'FagmentWelcome to consult...me to bea than anothe’s, that,’ said my aunt, stiking the table, ‘is the animal!’ Janet ventued to suggest that my aunt might be distubing heself unnecessaily, and that she believed the donkey in question was then engaged in the sand-and-gavel line of business, and was not available fo puposes of tespass. But my aunt wouldn’t hea of it. Suppe was comfotably seved and hot, though my aunt’s ooms wee vey high up—whethe that she might have moe stone stais fo he money, o might be neae to the doo in the oof, I don’t know—and consisted of a oast fowl, a steak, and some vegetables, to all of which I did ample justice, and which wee all excellent. But my aunt had he own ideas concening London povision, and ate but little. ‘I suppose this unfotunate fowl was bon and bought up in a cella,’ said my aunt, ‘and neve took the ai except on a hackney coach-stand. I hope the steak may be beef, but I don’t believe it. Nothing’s genuine in the place, in my opinion, but the dit.’ ‘Don’t you think the fowl may have come out of the county, aunt?’ I hinted. ‘Cetainly not,’ etuned my aunt. ‘It would be no pleasue to a London tadesman to sell anything which was what he petended it was.’ I did not ventue to contovet this opinion, but I made a good suppe, which it geatly satisfied he to see me do. When the table was cleaed, Janet assisted he to aange he hai, to put on he nightcap, which was of a smate constuction than usual (‘in case of fie’, my aunt said), and to fold he gown back ove he knees, these being he usual pepaations fo waming heself befoe Chales Dickens ElecBook Classics fDavid Coppefield going to bed. I then made he, accoding to cetain established egulations fom which no deviation, howeve slight, could eve be pemitted, a glass of hot wine and wate, and a slice of toast cut into long thin stips. With these accompaniments we wee left alone to finish the evening, my aunt sitting opposite to me dinking he wine and wate; soaking he stips of toast in it, one by one, befoe eating them; and looking benignantly on me, fom among the bodes of he nightcap. ‘Well, Tot,’ she began, ‘what do you think of the pocto plan? O have you not begun to think about it yet?’ ‘I have thought a good deal about it, my dea aunt, and I have talked a good deal about it with Steefoth. I like it vey much indeed. I like it exceedingly.’ ‘Come!’ said my aunt. ‘That’s cheeing!’ ‘I have only one difficulty, aunt.’ ‘Say what it is, Tot,’ she etuned. ‘Why, I want to ask, aunt, as this seems, fom what I undestand, to be a limited pofession, whethe my entance into it would not be vey expensive?’ ‘It will cost,’ etuned my aunt, ‘to aticle you, just a thousand pounds.’ ‘Now, my dea aunt,’ said I, dawing my chai neae, ‘I am uneasy in my mind about that. It’s a lage sum of money. You have expended a geat deal on my education, and have always been as libeal to me in all things as it was possible to be. You have been the soul of geneosity. Suely thee ae some ways in which I might begin life with hadly any outlay, and yet begin with a good hope of getting on by esolution and exetion. Ae you sue that it would not be bette to ty that couse? Ae you cetain that you Chales Dickens ElecBook Classics fDavid Coppefield can affod to pat with so much money, and that it is ight that it should be so expended? I only ask you, my second mothe, to conside. Ae you ce
