The Steam-Packet: A Tale of the River and the Ocean — page 119: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

86 THE STEAM PACKET, unless indeed a contemptuous shrug of the shoulders might have been intended or taken as one; and the Luminaries—forty in number—were compelled to proceed, two at a time, into a small weoden house built upon the pier, where they underwent the usual examination. The moment they emerged from the tenement where this scrutiny took place, the ladies in the meantime having been submitted to a similar process in another little wooden cabin, the presiding genius of which was a matron so stout that she could hardly waddle, and the interest of whose appearance was increased by the loss of an eye,—a host of queer-looking men, who acted in the capacity of ‘*touters” to the various hotels of the town, pounced upon our travellers, each recommending at the top of his voice the establishment with which he was connected. ‘‘ Hotel de Flandres, Messieurs et Dames!” shouted one burly and red-faced gentleman, much better dressed than the remainder. ‘‘ Hotel du Chapeau Rouge, Messieurs les Anglais!” cried another. ** Lady and gentelman,” said a third, in a most insinuating tone, ‘me have de honour to represent de famousest hotel wot is in all de town ; and me peak Inglis, that you find vare commode!” *¢ And if your hotel is like its representative,” said Captain Penton- ville, eyeing the commissioner, who seemed to have purloined his wardrobe from the Genius of Seediness himself, ‘‘it must be a very nice place.” ‘* Pray make haste, and let us choose some hotel to which we can repair,’ said Mrs. Pifpaf, imploringly; for her bonnet had been squeezed into an acute angle above her forehead, in the pressure of the crowd. : ** Ah! do for God’s sake!’ murmured the dowager, whose wig had now fallen over her left eyebrow. ‘<The Hotel de Flandres! the Hotel de Flandres!” ejaculated Mr. Pifpaf, who, previous to leaving England, had taken care to provide himself with certain necessary little pieces of information relative to _ inns, &c., from a friend of his who carried on a brisk trade between England and France; but the commercial transactions of this gentle- man were of such a peculiar nature that (probably fearing competition or some other inconvenient interruption) he chose the night-time for the landing of his cargoes, and very judiciously avoided the places that were infested by those common pests of society called excise-officers. ‘Dis vay—dis vay, lady and gentelman! ” shouted the commissioner of the Hotel de Flandres; and the Luminaries, having immediately formed themselves into a procession, three deep, passed along the pier towards their destimation,— Mr. Pifpaf waiting to see them march by comicbooks (EO)