44 AN ANGLER AT LARGE 



any hour of the morning that it may happen to 

 be when we make him go to bed. Thus by day 

 my wife and I are able to pursue our ordinary 

 avocations just as if Cha vender were not here, 

 and by night we are compelled, by the laws of 

 hospitality, to indulge our passion for frivolous 

 talk to most improper lengths. 



Chavender is distinguishable from other men 

 by (1) his power of catching fishes, (2) his capacity 

 for tea-drinking. Teapots turn pale at Chaven- 

 der. He empties them. That is what he does 

 with them. He is their master. We have a 

 little small teapot which is really a coffee-pot. 

 This was sent up to Chavender's bedroom on his 

 first morning here. He must have used it with 

 frightful rigour, for nothing has been able to per- 

 suade it to venture again into his chamber. Now 

 only the largest and strongest of these vessels 

 ever goes there. When a teapot is confronted 

 with Chavender it shrivels up and becomes no- 

 thing at all. Let it be accustomed to hold tea 

 for ten, twice. Chavender fixes it with his eye, 

 and the poor thing is bolting out of the room 

 crying for a fresh supply. Only one man has 

 driven a pen big enough for Chavender and the 

 teapots, and he definitely gave up writing cen- 

 turies ago. 1 have therefore borrowed his giant 

 quill the good fellow made no bones about 



