"Wag, Wag, Wag!" repeated the stranger, briskly. "Funny name!
eh?"--"It was my father"s before me," observed Jeremiah, scarcely knowing what to think of the matter.
"Very good name!" continued the little gentleman, "Like it very much.
Got any children? Any little Wags, eh? Like to see "em. Fond of children--little Wags in particular--he, he, he!"
"Much obliged to ye for inquiring, sir," replied the senior Wag; "I"ve got just half-a-score, sorted sizes. That"s the eldest!" and he pointed to young Jerry, whose lanky limbs were at the moment displayed, spread-eagle fashion, against the shelves, from the topmost of which he was reaching down some commodity for a customer.
"That"s right. Bring "em up to industry," said the little gentleman.
"Well, I can"t stay now, because my dinner"s ready; but I see you sell Irish linen, and I want a piece for shirts; so, perhaps, you"ll be so good as to look me out a good one and bring it over to me."
"You may rely," commenced Mr Wag; but his new customer cut him short by adding, "I know that well enough," as he briskly made his exit.
The industrious shopkeeper forthwith selected certain of his primest articles, folded them in a wrapper, and, at the appointed time, carried the whole across to the King"s Arms.
He was immediately ushered into the presence of the eccentric elderly gentleman, who was seated alone behind a bottle of white and a bottle of red. "Suppose you"ve dined, Master Wag?" said he. "So, come! No ceremony, sit down and take a gla.s.s of wine."
"I"m very much obliged to you, I"m sure, sir," replied Jeremiah; "but I have just brought over half-a-dozen pieces of Irish for you to look at and choose."
"Phoo, phoo!" quoth the small stranger, "I don"t want to see them. I know nothing about "em. Leave all to you. Only meant to have had a piece; but, as you have brought half-a-dozen, I may as well take "em.
"Store"s no sore," they say. There"s a fifty-pound note! Reckon "em up, and see if there"s any change."
Jeremiah stared at this unusual wholesale mode of dealing, stammered his thanks, and observed, that the goods would not amount to half the money.
"So much the worse," said the little gentleman. "Must see if I can"t buy something else in your line presently; but, sit down now: that"s a good fellow! I want to have some talk with you."
The bashful shopkeeper hereupon perched himself on the extreme front edge of a chair, at a respectful distance from the table; but was told to draw up closer by his hospitable entertainer. Then they took three or four gla.s.ses of wine together, and gradually Jeremiah found himself more at home, and scrupled not to reply to the odd stranger"s questions respecting his family and occupations. And so they went on chatting till they appeared as two very old and intimate friends; for Mr Wag was of an open, unsuspecting disposition, and talked as though he had no objection that all the world should know all about his affairs.
"Well, but, my dear Wag," said the stranger, "can"t you tell what part of the country your father came from?"
"No, sir, I can"t," replied Jeremiah, "he died when I was about eight years old, and the London merchant to whom he was clerk put me to school, and after that apprenticed me to old Hicks, who lived over the way where I do now. Well, there I served my time, and then married his daughter, and so came in for the business when he died; but I"ve increased it a pretty deal; and if I"d more capital, could make a snug thing of it by going into the wholesale, and serving village shops with grocery, and so on."
"Why don"t you try it?" asked the little gentleman.
"It won"t do unless one has got the _ready_ to go to market with,"
replied Jeremiah knowingly; "and then one must be able to give credit, and ought to keep one"s own waggon to carry out goods. No, no, it won"t do. Many a man has made bad worse by getting out of his depth; and, as it is, thank G.o.d, I _can live_. The only thing that puzzles me now and then is, what I shall do with all the children."
"Harkye, my worthy Wag," said the odd stranger, "I have not got any children; so, if you"ll let me pick among the lot, I don"t care if I take two or three off your hands."
"Sir!" exclaimed the astonished shopkeeper.
"I mean what I say," replied the old gentleman, demurely. "Take me with you. Introduce me to your wife and family, and let us all have a friendly cup of tea together in your back parlour. Don"t stare, my good Wag; but fill your gla.s.s. I don"t want to buy your little Wags, but I happen to have more of the ready, as you call it, than I want; so I"ll put them to school or what you like. What say you?"
Jeremiah rubbed his eyes, as though doubtful if he were awake, and then uttered his thanks for such extraordinary kindness in the best way he was able; and about an hour after, the whimsical little old rich gentleman was sitting by the side of Mrs Wag, with a little curly-headed Wag on each knee, while the rest were playing round, or gazing open-mouthed at the stranger with childish wonder.
By degrees all stiffness wore off; and, before the evening concluded, nothing could exceed the merriment of the whole party. The eccentric elderly gentleman had learned to call all the Wags by their names, and he played and frolicked, and rolled upon the floor with the little people, in a style that made the parents suspect, with the landlord, that he must be "cracked."
However, at parting, he became more serious, and invited Jeremiah to come and breakfast with him in the morning, and to bring with him a copy of the names and birthdays of his children, as entered in the Family Bible.
Mr and Mrs Wag of course lay awake for an hour that night, talking over the strange incidents of the day, and perhaps building a few castles in the air, after the style of affectionate parents for their children.
On the following morning Jeremiah dressed himself in his Sunday suit, and repaired to fulfil his engagement. His new old friend received him in the most cordial manner, and they breakfasted together, chatting over family concerns as on the preceding day. When their repast was ended, the little gentleman read over the list of the young Wags, and smilingly observed, "A jolly set of them! We must contrive to make them all good and happy Wags if we can, eh? Eldest, Jerry, almost fourteen--useful to you in business. That"s right. Leave him there, eh? Next, Thomas, almost thirteen--fond of reading--told me so. A good school first, eh? Then three girls running, Mary, Anne, and f.a.n.n.y.
Pack them off to a good school too. Never mind. Then comes William, eight--and Stephen, seven. Think I know where to place them----Just the right age. Perhaps can"t do it at once, though. Humph. That"s all I can take _at present_. The other three, Sarah, Henry, and Philip, too young. Well, my worthy Wag, you will hear about what I mean to do with them before long, and a friend of mine will call upon you some day to consult about the best way of increasing your business. Settle all in time. No more to say now, but good-by--eh? Paid the landlord"s bill before breakfast, "cause don"t like to be kept waiting. Didn"t mean to have stopped longer than to change horses when I came yesterday. Glad I have, though. Hope you won"t be sorry. Holla!
waiter! is my carriage ready?"--"At the door, sir," shouted the landlord in reply. "That"s right!" exclaimed the extraordinary elderly gentleman. "Good-by, my worthy Wag! Remember me to Mrs Wag, and give my love to all the little Wags. Ten besides yourselves! A dozen Wags in one family! Never expected to see such a sight as that! He, he, he!
See it again, though, hope. Wag together, all of you, like a bundle of sticks, hope!" And, laughing and uttering similar incoherent sentences alternately, he walked briskly along the pa.s.sage to his carriage, into which he forthwith jumped, and, having repeated his valediction to the astounded shopkeeper, ordered the postilion to drive on.
Thus Jeremiah was prevented from expressing his grateful feelings for such wonderful promises, and so stood gaping in silence till the carriage was out of sight.
"Why, you seem regularly "mazed, neighbour!" exclaimed the landlord.
"Enough to make me," replied Mr Wag. "If one-half what I"ve heard this morning should come true, I shall be a lucky fellow, that"s all!"
"The old fellow"s cracked," observed t.i.tus Twist. "He"s a gentleman, however, every inch of him, that I will say for him. Didn"t make a word about nothing. All right. Used to good living, no doubt. More"s the pity, as he"s cracked. He certainly ought not to be allowed to travel without a servant as he does."
"Well," observed Jeremiah, "I don"t know what to say or what to think about it; but, if he is cracked--humph! I don"t know. It may be so.
However, there"s no harm done yet."
"So he"s been cramming you, eh!" said mine host. "Made you a present of the moon, perhaps? They do fancy strange things, and think themselves kings, and very rich in particular."
The truth of this latter a.s.sertion made an impression upon our worthy shopkeeper, who communicated it to his wife; but she had taken a great fancy to the odd old gentleman, and was not to be shaken in her conviction that he would really be "as good as his word."
"Well," observed her husband, "time will show; and, at all events, it was no bad thing to sell six pieces of fine linen at once. We don"t have such customers every day. However, the best thing we can do is, to keep our own secret; for, if the neighbours were to hear of it, we should never hear the last of it."
Mrs Wag agreed in the propriety of her spouse"s suggestion; but, nevertheless, was unable to refrain from dropping hints to sundry gossips concerning her antic.i.p.ations of coming good fortune; and the vagueness and mysterious importance of her manner created a sensation, and caused many strange surmises. Some decided that the Wags had been so imprudent as to purchase a whole lottery ticket, and blamed them accordingly; while others shook their heads, and hinted that, with so large a family, it would be a very fortunate circ.u.mstance if Jeremiah could manage so as not to go back in the world; and, for their parts, they never liked to hear folks talk mysteriously about good luck: so, for some time, the stranger"s visit appeared to have produced results somewhat the reverse of beneficial; but, at the end of a month, an elderly gentleman, dressed in black, entered the shop, and requested a private interview with Mr Wag; and as the back parlour was full of little Wags, then undergoing the ceremonies of ablution, combing, &c., he proposed that they should adjourn to the King"s Arms.
When they were seated there, the stranger very deliberately proceeded to arrange a variety of papers upon the table in a business-like manner; and when his task was completed, apparently to his satisfaction, he smiled, rubbed his hands, and thus addressed the wondering shopkeeper,
"My name is Stephen Goodfellow. I am an attorney, living in London; and there" (handing a card) "is my address. You will probably guess who is my client, but my instructions are to conceal his name. Well, he has consulted with me as to the best mode of carrying your intention of increasing your business into effect, and I have, consequently, had interviews with certain commercial gentlemen, and, ahem! the result is, that as the thing must be done gradually, I have to present you, in the first place, with this order for a thousand pounds. You will then be so good as to sign this doc.u.ment, by reading which you will perceive that you _cannot_ be called upon for repayment before the expiration of three years. Ahem! don"t interrupt me. That will do to begin with; but, after a little while, as you must give credit, and some of your commodities, particularly grocery, amount to considerable sums, you may want more, so--ahem!--yes, this is the paper. You are to put your usual signature here; and, mark me, in precisely six months from this day, an account will be opened in your name with the London bankers, whose check-book I now present you with.
They will have a.s.sets in their hands, and instructions to honour your drafts for any sum or sums not exceeding four thousand pounds. You understand?"
"I hear what you say, sir," stammered Jeremiah; "but, really, I"m so astonished, that----"
"Well, well," observed Mr Goodfellow, smiling, "it certainly is not an everyday transaction; but my respected client is a little eccentric, and so we must allow him to do things in his own way. He has taken a fancy to you, that"s clear; and when he takes anything in hand, he doesn"t mind trifles."
"But so much!" exclaimed Mr Wag. "One thousand--four thousand--five thousand pounds! It is like a dream! Surely, sir," and he hesitated; "surely the gentleman can"t be in--ahem!--in--his--right senses?"
"Sound as a bell," replied the lawyer. "I hope you may have as clear a head to carry on your new business. At present you are a little bewildered, that"s plain enough; but no great marvel. However, my time is precious, so just let me have your signature, and I"m off."
He then placed the papers before Jeremiah, who, after a little more demur, and a great deal of trepidation, wrote his name twice, and received the money order and the banker"s check-book. Mr Goodfellow then ordered a chaise, and chatted familiarly till it was ready, when he shook Mr Wag by the hand, wished him good luck, and departed.
"I told you so!" exclaimed Mrs Wag, when her spouse related the morning"s adventure. "He seemed so fond of the children. I knew how it would be. But you should have asked his name. I wonder who he can be!
Some great lord, no doubt. Well, bless him, I say! G.o.d bless him, whoever he is. Oh, Jerry! my dear Jerry Wag! I feel as if I was a-going to cry. How foolish! Well, I can"t help it, and that"s the truth;" and the good housewife wiped her eyes, and then threw her arms round the neck of her dearly beloved Wag, who, albeit that he was unused to the melting mood, found his eyes suddenly grow dim, and so they performed a weeping duet together.
It is pleasant to record that, at the termination of this natural paroxysm, they neglected not to return thanks to a higher Power for the wonderful change that had thus suddenly taken place in their prospects.
Their subsequent task was to take counsel together; but that was a work requiring more of calmness than they possessed for the first few days. However, by degrees, as time rolled on, the industrious couple made their arrangements, and, at the end of six months, Mr Wag had so increased his business, that it became advisable for him to have recourse to his London bankers. In the meanwhile, he had sent his son Tom and the three eldest girls to school, agreeably to the intimation of his unknown friend, which he considered as a command that he was in duty bound to comply with. Still it appeared very extraordinary that the little elderly gentleman neither communicated with nor came to see them; but, as the whole affair was out of the common way, Jeremiah resolved industriously to avail himself of the advantages of his new position, as the best means of testifying his grat.i.tude during his benefactor"s absence.
Much marvelling, of course, there was in the town and neighbourhood at the steady increase in Mr Wag"s "concern," in spite of his very plain statement that a kind friend had advanced him a considerable sum.