`I wish you'd interfere here, Nickleby,' said Lord Frederick. `What is the matter, my lord?' demanded Ralph from the bottom of the table, where he was supported by Messrs Pyke and Pluck.
`This fellow, Hawk, is monopolising your niece,' said Lord Frederick.
`He has a tolerable share of everything that you lay claim to, my lord,'
said Ralph with a sneer.
`'Gad, so he has,' replied the young man; `deyvle take me if I know which is master in my house, he or I.'
` I know,' muttered Ralph.
`I think I shall cut him off with a shilling,' said the young nobleman, jocosely.
`No, no, curse it,' said Sir Mulberry. `When you come to the shilling -- the last shilling -- I'll cut you fast enough; but till then, I'll never leave you -- you may take your oath of it.'
This sally (which was strictly founded on fact) was received with a general roar, above which, was plainly distinguishable the laughter of Mr Pyke and Mr Pluck, who were, evidently, Sir Mulberry's toads in ordinary.
Indeed, it was not difficult to see, that the majority of the company preyed upon the unfortunate young lord, who, weak and silly as he was, appeared by far the least vicious of the party. Sir Mulberry Hawk was remarkable for his tact in ruining, by himself and his creatures, young gentlemen of fortune -- a genteel and elegant profession, of which he had undoubtedly gained the head. With all the boldness of an original genius, he had struck out an entirely new course of treatment quite opposed to the usual method;his custom being, when he had gained the ascendancy over those he took in hand, rather to keep them down than to give them their own way; and to exercise his vivacity upon them openly, and without reserve. Thus, he made them butts, in a double sense, and while he emptied them with great address, caused them to ring with sundry well-administered taps, for the diversion of society.
The dinner was as remarkable for the splendour and completeness of its appointments as the mansion itself, and the company were remarkable for doing it ample justice, in which respect Messrs Pyke and Pluck particularly signalised themselves; these two gentlemen eating of every dish, and drinking of every bottle, with a capacity and perseverance truly astonishing. They were remarkably fresh, too, notwithstanding their great exertions: for, on the appearance of the dessert, they broke out again, as if nothing serious had taken place since breakfast.
`Well,' said Lord Frederick, sipping his first glass of port, `if this is a discounting dinner, all I have to say is, deyvle take me, if it wouldn't be a good pla-an to get discount every day.'
`You'll have plenty of it, in your time,' returned Sir Mulberry Hawk;`Nickleby will tell you that.'
`What do you say, Nickleby?' inquired the young man; `am I to be a good customer?'
`It depends entirely on circumstances, my lord,' replied Ralph.
`On your lordship's circumstances,' interposed Colonel Chowser of the Militia -- and the race-courses.
The gallant colonel glanced at Messrs Pyke and Pluck as if he thought they ought to laugh at his joke; but those gentlemen, being only engaged to laugh for Sir Mulberry Hawk, were, to his signal discomfiture, as grave as a pair of undertakers. To add to his defeat, Sir Mulberry, considering any such efforts an invasion of his peculiar privilege, eyed the offender steadily, through his glass, as if astonished at his presumption, and audibly stated his impression that it was an `infernal liberty,' which being a hint to Lord Frederick, he put up his glass, and surveyed the object of censure as if he were some extraordinary wild animal then exhibiting for the first time. As a matter of course, Messrs Pyke and Pluck stared at the individual whom Sir Mulberry Hawk stared at; so, the poor colonel, to hide his confusion, was reduced to the necessity of holding his port before his right eye and affecting to scrutinise its colour with the most lively interest.
All this while, Kate had sat as silently as she could, scarcely daring to raise her eyes, lest they should encounter the admiring gaze of Lord Frederick Verisopht, or, what was still more embarrassing, the bold looks of his friend Sir Mulberry. The latter gentleman was obliging enough to direct general attention towards her.
`Here is Miss Nickleby,' observed Sir Mulberry, `wondering why the deuce somebody doesn't make love to her.'
`No, indeed,' said Kate, looking hastily up, `I --' and then she stopped, feeling it would have been better to have said nothing at all.
`I'll hold any man fifty pounds,' said Sir Mulberry, `that Miss Nickleby can't look in my face, and tell me she wasn't thinking so.'
`Done!' cried the noble gull. `Within ten minutes.'
`Done!' responded Sir Mulberry. The money was produced on both sides, and the Honourable Mr Snobb was elected to the double office of stake-holder and time-keeper.
`Pray,' said Kate, in great confusion, while these preliminaries were in course of completion. `Pray do not make me the subject of any bets.
Uncle, I cannot really --'
`Why not, my dear?' replied Ralph, in whose grating voice, however, there was an unusual huskiness, as though he spoke unwillingly, and would rather that the proposition had not been broached. `It is done in a moment;there is nothing in it. If the gentlemen insist on it --'
` I don't insist on it,' said Sir Mulberry, with a loud laugh.
`That is, I by no means insist upon Miss Nickleby's making the denial, for if she does, I lose; but I shall be glad to see her bright eyes, especially as she favours the mahogany so much.'
`So she does, and it's too ba-a-d of you, Miss Nickleby,' said the noble youth.
`Quite cruel,' said Mr Pyke.
`Horrid cruel,' said Mr Pluck.
`I don't care if I do lose,' said Sir Mulberry; `for one tolerable look at Miss Nickleby's eyes is worth double the money.'
`More,' said Mr Pyke.
`Far more,' said Mr Pluck.
`How goes the enemy, Snobb?' asked Sir Mulberry Hawk.
`Four minutes gone.'
`Bravo!'