The Steam-Packet: A Tale of the River and the Ocean — page 378: what you’re looking at

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

THE STEAM PACKET. 291 *“¢'Yes—Mr. Smith,” returned Tom; “and another indiwidual too» with whom I hain’t the honour o’ being ack-vainted.” Scarcely were these words emitted with strange volubility from the mouth of Mr. Thomas Gibbins, when the gate bell was rung more fiercely than it had been sounded all the morning; and the persons announced by the captain’s valet immediately afterwards entered the gaoler’s apartment. ‘‘Where is this pretended Lord Noodleton ?”’ demanded the person- age with whose name Tom had professed himself to be unacquainted, but who was, in reality, the nobleman whose title the tailor had been adopting; ‘‘ where is this impostor 2? Let me see whether he will tell me to my face that he 1s the Earl of Noodleton now ?” Buckram rose sullenly from his seat, and surveyed the party with dogged indifference. : ‘“* Are you, sir—are you the man who dared assume my name?” cried the Earl of Noodleton, advancing towards the tailor, his counte- nance expressing the deepest indignation. . ‘“‘ Yes—that is the man,” said Mr. Pifpaf; ‘‘and he had himself made a Bunninatys too, by the same name. Zhat I shall never forgive, nor forget.” “And do you think, sir,” continued his lordship, heedless of Mr. Pifpaf’s latter remark,—‘‘ do you think, sir,” he said, addressing him- self to Buckram, and speaking with all the volubility of extreme wrath,—“ do you think, sir, that it is pleasant to my feelings to know that a vulgar blackguard like you—a tailor—a common journeyman tailor, for anything that I know—has been passing himself off as the representative and descendant of one of the oldest families in Eng- land ? Do you think, sir,” continued the earl, stamping violently. upon the floor, “‘ that I can put-up with such villany as this, and allow all the people who have feasted their eyes upon you under the impression that they were gazing upon a British peer, to remain under that delu- sion? Sir, you are beneath my notice—beneath even my footman’s notice; but your conduct has, nevertheless, tended to irritate me seri- ously.” | ‘**I am very sorry for it,” said Buckram, sullenly; ‘‘ but I shan’t stand here to be abused and called names any longer. Do what you choose, but let ’s have no more jaw.”’ “Vulgarian!’’ ejaculated Lord Noodleton, in a tone of the most sovereign contempt. ‘‘ You can conceive my astonishment, gentle- men,” he continued, addressing himself to Mr. Smith, Mr. Pifpaf, and Mr. Smale, ‘‘ when on my arrival at Samer very early this morning, and stopping to breakfast, so that my courier might have leisure to ride vu 2 Gomicbooks (E(0)