Christopher Chattaway. A novel

Chapter I. Which Is Founded Chiefly On The Authority Of My Grandmother

Those early events of this history which occurred before I was born, when I was born, and for some Httle time after I was born, though not recorded here as my own experi ences, I have gathered with so much care and (Hscrinfination from my grandmother and other equally trustworthy sources, that in placing them before the reader, in the early part of this chapter, I may venture to assure him that they are weU worthy of credit. B My father, who bore the same name as my self, was a surgeon and chemist in Houndsditch in the city of London, who though he pos sessed high principles of honour and a heart always open to the sufferings of the poor, he — as is too frequently the case — was unable to give the latter little else than his compas sion, as his practice was miserably small, and his pockets were always miserably empty.

These little drawbacks were however more than counter-balanced by the possession of a good wife whom he tenderly loved, and who as tenderly loved him in return — cheered him in all his difficulties, bade him look for better days, and in due time made his paternal heart expand with joy, by bringing into the world the writer of this history. My mother was the youngest and most amiable of two daughters of a country lawyer named Mottam, who though the holder of considerable property, was willing to increase his worldly importance, by the sacrifice of his youngest daughter in marriage to a retired linen-draper, who was as wealthy as he was ugly and ignorant ; (which is saying a great deal for his riches,) and who was so enraged at her marriage with the poor surgeon, that putting a codicil to his wiU, he left the whole of his fortune to his eldest daughter, Ann ; and soon after departed this Hfe, in a fit of apoplexy.

So that my mother who had made several attempts to see him and obtain his forgiveness, — but had always been refused admittance to his presence — heard naught of his illness tiU the news came to her, of bis death. My father and mother were as happy to gether as most people who have plenty of love and very Httle money, usually are ; and some few months before I was born, came to look for my advent with considerable ex pectation and anxiety. Their chief source of anxiety was, what they should caU me when I came. b One day my mother — (who had lately been reading and crying over " Ivanhoe,") discon tinued some work she was doing, a Httle white cap with a Httle friU ; and raising her needle in a way of meditation, said with some hesita tion to my father, " My dear !" " What is it, my pet ?" repHed he, getting up and kissing her.

" What do you think of Mary Rebecca, or Mary Rowena ?" My father thinking deeply, doubtfully [said that he liked the name of Mary very much, as it was her own ; but he thought Sarah a great deal better than either Rowena or Rebecca, as it was the name of 't both bis mother and sister. But my mother had set her heart on Re becca, and my father — as all good husbands should — gave way, and sat for a minute smok ing his pipe in silence. At length taking it thoughtfuUy from his mouth, " Mary, my pet !" said he. " My dear ?" rephed his wife, looking up with tender affection. " Supposing my dear, — hem ! I say suppos ing my dear, after all, it should be — a boy !" This idea had never struck them before, and my mother had so made up her mind I was to be a girl, that in her deHcate state of health the very thought threatened to lay her prostrate, which my father perceiving in great alarm — and may be thinking if any one could know what my sex would be, she ought to be that one — at once conceded to her views upon the subject, — that I was to be a girl, and that I should be named Mary, Rebecca, Chattaway ; which wiU serve to the thinking reader, to show the absurdity of building castles in the air, and giving names to babies before they are born.

For it came to pass, one fine summer evening, as the hands of Bishopsgate church clock announced the time to be on the stroke of seven ; a Httle puny cry from my unpractised throat, announced that Chris topher Chattaway, surgeon, was a father ; and that Christopher Chattaway, baby, was born. My father's deHght on this occasion was so great, that in his delirium, taking me out of the nurse's arms, to kiss me, he knocked my head violently against the bed-post ; and any fooHsh actions I may have committed in after life, I cannot but attribute to this untoward event. But the joy he felt at my birth, was soon changed into a lasting sorrow at my mother's death, which melancholy event was brought about by a fever, that carried her off when I was only a few days old. Thus was I depriv ed of the greatest earthly boon — a mother's tender love and care ; and cast upon the guid ance of my poor father, who owing to his inexperience in aU such matters, and a con stitutional disease which threatened to rob me of him likewise, was quite unequal to the new duties and cares that devolved upon him.

Roused however from his grief by the necessity of the occasion, he persuaded his widowed mother to come to his house and fulfil, as far as she could, the duties of a mother to his child; which duties, to her credit be it said, she most faithfully and christianly performed. Before I was six years old, my adventures mainly consisted in the slow but steady growth of my hair and teeth, which I have been told were so long before they made their appearance, that my grandmother was afraid I should never have any ; but at length thank heaven, they gradually came, and her alarms for my welfare — at least on that head — began in proportion to abate. Briefly reviewing the chief incidents that occurred during this large gap in my life; I must first make mention of a young medical student, whom my father, "to make the two ends meet," had undertaken to "grind" for his examination, and who lodged in our house.

This young man, whose name was Johnson, unlike the generaHty of medical students, was both industrious and steady ; he stuck weU to his studies and passed bis examination with great credit. Uniting with a good inteUect, what is almost as rarely to be found, — a good heart, young Johnson had become much attached to my father in his grief; and his friendship my father most cordiaUy returned. Thus it was, that when duly qualified, Johnson went into the country to practise with an uncle; the two friends bade each other "good bye," not without much emotion, and protestations on both sides of a lasting friendship. We next received as a lodger an old friend of my father's named WiUiams, — a clerk hold ing a very respectable situation in Somerset House ; and who, when he first came, used to spend several evenings in the week at home in my father's quiet company.

But this did not last long. Mr. Jonathan WiUiams had a good, clear income of some three hundred pounds a year ; and his hours of business at Somerset House being very short, he put the question to him self, how he should employ his leisure time ? And he determined it should be in seeing a little of life. The consequence was, that many of those evenings he had hitherto been in the habit of spending at home, he now spent at the "Racehorse and Handicap" — a sporting public-house, of great repute hard-by — and a great many of those hours in the morning he ought rightly to have spent at Somerset House — he spent in bed. Not that that was of much importance, as the authorities were not very particular about an hour or two in those days, whatever they may be now. I soon became a great favorite with Mr. Williams, and he used to call me his " little Chrissy" and taught me to caU him "uncle Jonathan" in return.

He used sometimes to tell me stories about the fighting exploits of b the great "Slashing Dustman" and "Hard fisted Tommy;" as wreU as equally celebrated racehorses with very hard names, which I am only restrained giving to the reader and posterity, from my inability to recoUect them. I also derived other amusements from my grandmother's exertions, as she would tell me about "Little Cock Robin" and the "House that Jack BuUt," which I do not enter into here, as I daresay the reader knows them as weU as I do. But the favourite pastime I used to enjoy, with my grandmother's help, was to give snuff out of a wooden snuff-box in the shape of a shoe, to aU the ugly pictures in a picture book. But my chief play-feUow was " Co." — the shop -boy, who derived his remarkable name not from the wiU of his god-fathers and god mother, but in this wise.

My poor father (probably with the idea of adding importance to the firm,) had put "& Co." to the end of his name on the CHRISTOPHER CHATTAW 11 shop-biUs and labels; and this boy would often wonder to himself who the "& Co." could mean. One day when he was honourably employed in washing bottles, (which perhaps inspired him with the thought) the idea took possession of him, that he must be the " Co.," and telling his thoughts to the servant of all work, (who was much such a character as him self) was over-heard by Mr. WiUiams, and adopted by him HteraUy. Mr. Williams caUed him Co., and Co was the only name he came to be known by, to the whole of our Httle household. But in all these years that had passed silently away, that same dread disease that had threatened my father, had been preying on his vitals as silently and as surely as the onward course of time.

Friends shook their heads and sighed when they saw his sunken palHd cheek, his bending form, and heard that hollow cough ! He knew it too — poor man ! He knew too well — though he liked not to own it, even to himself — that Death's unrelenting hand was on him ; to drag him downwards to his early grave. He had advice, and was told that change of air might do him good ; He was to go to the sea-side, and try what that would do for him; but he knew — poor man — that that same stern grasp was not to be shaken off. Nevertheless he determined to try what could be done to save him — for hope clings to us even when we know that hope can never be fulfilled. He wrote to his sister who was Hving near Rams gate, to know if she could receive him at her house for a time. She rephed expressing her grief at her brother's iUness, and stating that she was coming up to town on business in a few days, which when transacted, they could return to Ramsgate together.

Chapter II

1 IN WHICH WE RECEIVE SOME STRANGE VISITORS, AND A MISFORTUNE HAPPENS TO MR. WILLIAMS. I was at this time about six years old, and was playing one day, behind the counter with my chief playfellow, Co., at " oughts and crosses." I was intently deliberating on the desirability of placing a cross in a particular square, when my attention was diverted from the game, by the entrance into the shop of a most extraordinary looking person, dressed in a most remarkable manner, and leading by the hand a boy of about my own age or a little older, whose dress and appearance, rendered him almost as extraordinary a looking object as the other. Although it was near the middle of summer and a very warm day, this remarkable person had on a thick stuff dress, which hung closely about her person, boots almost fit for a ploughman, which made a great noise when she walked, a winter shawl wrapt closely about her, and a very large bonnet, whose fashion might probably have been of a pre vious century.

She carried a large basket on her arm, and I noticed amongst her more personal characteristics that she had a crooked nose, very red at the top, a face of a saUow complexion, and pitted much with the smaU-pox. The boy (who, though as I have remarked, was about my own age,) was fuU a head taUer than myself, and very thin and pale, and looked as if he Hved on [sweetmeats and thin gruel. He wore gray worsted stockings and short drawers — which showed a pair of long thin legs, like emaciated skewers, a low crown ed beaver hat, and a red worsted comforter round his neck, with the ends thereof hanging down to his knees. Though, I think it was curiosity and sur prise, which took possession of me, when I first saw them, it was certainly with no Httle alarm, I beheld the female throw herseH into one of the shop chairs, begin to wring her hands and burst into noisy and tearful lamen tations, (without so far as I could see,) any cause.

I could by no means make out the purport of these lamentations, though I could dis tinguish that the words most often repeated, were "poor dear Christopher," which I attributed to myself, and thinking she was desperately mad very much increased my terror; and I shrunk for protection behind poor Co, who was opening his mouth and eyes with astonishment at the unwonted scene, to an extent which terrified me the more. Co however more experienced in the ways of the world than myself had, after the first burst ofsuprise, come to the conclusion (judging, I presume, from such manifestations as the lady's red nose), that she was intoxicated, and whispered his opinion in very expressive lan guage to me. But that he was wrong in this instance, will to my discriminating reader transpire. Happily my father, aroused by the unusual noise in the shop, came in at this moment to see what was the matter, and the strange wo man no sooner beheld him, than giving a scream Hke a female railway and a final wring at her hands, as if she were trying to pull off a pair of tight fitting gloves, rushed towards him and throwing her arms round his neck almost stifled him with kisses, and burst into renewed paroxysms of tears and lamentations.

To the extreme astonishment of myself and Co, — (whose eyebaUs at this moment, seemed to have made up their minds to roU out of their sockets and take a Httle journey down his throat), — my father, instead of repelling her advances, and treating her as a mad wo man, returned her kisses and caresses and as soon as she was a little calm, caUed me to him, saying — " This is your aunt Sarah, Chris." My aunt kissed me with great affection, and indeed much more energy than I liked ; and opening the basket she had on her arm, she took out some cakes, and with a kind smUe gave some to me, and some to the thin young gentleman at her side, whom my father observing for the first time, asked if he were her child, and she replied that he was, adding, — " Come and kiss your uncle ; Romulus." My father kissed his nephew and asked them to come into the surgery, and when they j1 were seated, enquired how she had been.

"Very poorly indeed, Chistopher," she replied almost crying again, "very poorly indeed. I have been suffering so from that terrible nervousness, you know I am subject to. The least excitement quite upsets me ; you saw how I was affected, just coming into this shop, expecting to see you." My father tried to soothe her ; and asked her how her husband was. " Oh ! " repHed she " Joseph is quite well ; I never saw such a man as he is ; he never seems to have anything the matter with him. I wish I could say as much for him in other respects." " Why what has he been doing ? " said my father. " Oh ! he's not been doing anything fresh," she returned, " but it's the old story of the flowers ; he gets worse and worse I think ; if I let him go out by himself he is certain to bring home a cart load of nasty flower-pots, or some filthy patent manure or other.

It wiU certainly be the death of me, one of these days, if he don't mend," and she began to wring her hands and cry again. To divert her from this disagreeable theme, my father ordered the tea to be got ready; saying he was sure she must want it, after her long journey ; to which she replied, drying her tears and smiling with satisfaction " that she did indeed ; for she found tea " soothed her nerves " better than anything else ; and that she felt "very nervous " this afternoon." My grandmother who had been out for her afternoon's walk, soon after came in ; and her meeting with her daughter and grandchild, was so affecting, (especiaUy with the former), that I wiU not prostitute my pen, by attempt ing so pathetic a description, in which were I to do so, I should certainly fail. I think it Hkely that every one is subject to associations Hke myself.

A simple song for instance may be linked to our memory with some old friend who sang it years ago ; and though he may have been long since dead, when we hear that Httle song ; up wiU spring his phantom in our mind, — we seem to inseparably connect the one with the other. Now I have associated my aunt Sarah Elden, (for such was her name) with a tea pot. I cannot now find out, for the life of me, whether this strange idea took its rise in any resemblance, I, as a chUd, may have fancied I saw, between her and the Chinese idols in an oriental exhibition, my father once took me to see ; or whether it was the great partiality for tea, my aunt at aU times dis played. But certain it is, whenever I think of my aunt ; my mental vision always conjures up a tea-pot. Whatever astonishment I had felt, at my aunt's and cousin's conduct, on this important day; it was certainly surpassed when I saw them drink tea; cup after cup, as it came almost boiHng from the kettle, went seething down their throats, without so much as winking to show they felt discommoded by its downward course, and not only was the tea they seemed so much to relish exquisitely hot, but — as I thought at least — nauseously strong.

After tea my aunt took a pair of worsted stockings from her basket, and a pair of tor toise-sheU spectacles from her pocket, and set herself to mend the former, in which she employed herself the whole of the evening ; and I may here remark, that in the same way I have come to look upon my aunt as a tea-pot ; I have associated her basket, with worsted stockings and darning-needles, as well as cakes of which she kept a good supply for "her poppets," as she caUed Romulus, and now came to caU me. As I was unable to persuade Romulus to play, he shortly fell asleep on the table ; in which I should soon have kept him company, had not an event of some importance in this history occurred, to keep me awake. There was a noise in the shop, as if a debiHtated elephant, with weak legs, were trying to batter the fixtures down, and while we were alarmed to know what could be the matter, Mr. WiUiams (who had evidently been to the " Racehorse and Handicap;") came or rather tottered into the surgery.

My father soon seeing, from a scared look that he wore, as well as from his manner, that it was not, as he at first suspected, drink (at least entirely ) which made him in the state he was. " Good heavens, WUHams ! What is the matter ?" asked my father with alarm. Mr. WiUiams made no reply, but groaned, and on my father shaking him and repeating his question with many more ; it at length came out, that Mr. WiUiams one day last week, had, contrary to his usual custom, gone to the " Racehorse and Handicap " in the morning, instead of waiting tiU the evening ; and meeting with some sporting friends, they made merry together, and contrary to the advice of his friends he had gone in a very intoxicated state to Somerset House, where he very improperly pulled his senior clerk's nose. The senior clerk, who was a staid man, naturaUy resenting the insult to his person, had made a report of the matter to the authorities, and the authorities aston ished at Mr. WiUiams's boldness, had this day discharged him, and he was now without the means of supporting his Use.

My father with great concern, tried to comfort him, saying, "you know my dear WiUiams, whUe I have a crust of bread and a home to Hve in, you are welcome to share them with me, for friendship's sake, and you may depend we shall never quarrel about my being paid for them." Mr. WUHams, overcome by my father's generosity, his own misfortunes, and may be a Httle " something " he had taken to keep up his spirits, here feU asleep under the table, whence he was removed to bed ; and my aunt, having, during the recital of bis misfortunes, manifested much nervousness, declared she couldn't go to bed without a cup of tea, which having taken, she retired for the night, the whole household soon foUowing her example.

Chapter III. In Which My Adventures May Be Said To Begin

Like most Londoners we were not early risers, and about day-break — or rather when my night's rest seemed but half over — I was aroused from my sleep by hearing my grandmother in my father's room — my little bedroom adjoining his. She was talking to him in fearful whispers, and I could just com prehend that their conversation was about thieves. With a vague and childish idea of some possible danger, I jumped out of my bed, and c ran to my father that I might have his pro tection whatever that danger might be, but so entirely was he occupied with what my grandmother was saying, that he paid Httle attention to my presence. " I am sure I heard some one, either in the shop or surgery" said she with tokens of terror on her face; "IteU you, Christopher, I am certain of it, and you may pish ! and pshaw ! as much as you Hke ; I can beheve my own ears surely !

You'U have every blessed bottle stolen from the shop, and then perhaps you'U believe me, with your ' pishes !' and ' pshaws !' truly "You must surely be mistaken, mother," said my father, who had got out of bed and was now standing in his night-shirt, — nor in deed was my grandmother in a much better condition, for, as she had evidently been aroused from her rest in a fright, she had just thrown a shawl over herself, and come down to share her alarm with my father. "WeU, just go and Hsten over the bannisters and convince yourself," she returned in an offended tone, for her son, most undutifuUy, did not seem to attach the same importance to her alarms that she herseH did, which was indeed much calculated to put an old lady out of temper^ He however complied, and returned with a very serious and rather pale face.

" There certainly is some one in the sur gery," he said, "though how they got into the house, I can't make out, for I bolted and locked the doors myself the very last thing, and you know how particular I always am. I " He was interrupted by Mr. WiUiams, who, aroused by the unusual noise, was coming hastUy down stairs in his night-shirt to see what it was aU about ; and my grandmother no sooner perceived him in this state, than female modesty prevaUing over every other feeling, she pushed my father out of the room and with great propriety locked herself in, I having foUowep closely at my father's heels. " Why, bless my soul, what's all this about, Chattaway ? " cried Mr. Williams, who from his sudden waking and last night's smaU pota tions, looked very much confused and scared. " There's some one broken into The cause of my father thus suddenly breaking off the explanation was a strange fizzing noise, Hke that a ginger-beer bottle makes when the cork is being drawn, which proceeded from my grandmother trying to say " Hush !

" through the key -hole of the door. " Hush ! " cried she " don't make such a noise, pray ! you'U frighten Sarah and her child, Httle Romulus, to death, or at any rate you'U wake them up, if you make so much noise. In compliance with this injunction my father concluded his recital in a lower tone ; upon which Mr. WUHams ran up to his bedroom to provide himself with a sword-stick which he always kept by his bed-side, and my father having armed himself with a poker and aflat candlestick, they went together thus prepared for conflict down stairs, where the burglars were supposed to be ; and looking in their night-shirts something Hke the lord after the duel, in Hogarth's " Marriage a la Mode," when he is escaping from the window, or rather like the constables who are in pursuit of him. As they drew nearer to the surgery, it be came stiU more evident there was some one in it, and the most remarkable part of the affair was that these house-breakers made a great deal more noise than house-breakers generaUy think it prudent to be guUty of; and the noise sounded amazingly like the rattling of cups and saucers, which most burglars would hardly think it worth their while to carry off.

My father and Mr. WiUiams boldly burst open the surgery-door, and were about to rush in, when a piercing scream from within — the last thing one might expect from a burglar — so startled them that my father taking a sudden spring backwards unfortunately trod upon a most tender corn that belonged to Mr. WiUiams, who was just behind ; and that gentleman, at the best of times, being no great master of swordsmanship but now having lost aU control over his weapon, through the pain he felt, stuck its point into a tender part of my father's body ; so that the two gentlemen groaned from pain in concert. To add to their confusion, the Hght had gone out, and in the darkness, Mr. WUHams' body com ing in violent contact with my father's, the latter feU sprawling into the surgery, and the former helplessly on the top of him.

The mystery of the burglars, was however at once cleared up, as the only persons in the surgery were my aunt Sarah and Romulus, who (as she afterwards explained) being used to get up at " cock-crow " in the country, had been unable to sleep after what she supposed was that time, now she was in London, and had got up to make herself an early cup of tea. The two gentlemen luckUy remembering the impropriety of their costume to appear before a lady, hastUy scampered away to their own rooms, almost before my aunt had time to notice their improper appearance. In the course of breakfast it appeared that my aunt's business in London, bore reference to the sale of a smaU plot of land she had at Ramsgate ; and she had come to town, to consult and give instructions to a certain Mr. Sampson Shorter, (House and Estate Agent, Old Broad Street, City), who usuaUy transacted such matters for her neigh bours in the country.

Early in the morning my aunt and Romu lus were ready to go to Mr. Shorter's, and I having asked and obtained permission to go with them, we set off together towards Broad Street, having first received minute instructions as to the way we were to take. After making many inquiries of the passers by (for my aunt was quite unused to London, and the noise whereof made Romulus cry) we found Mr. Shorter's offices, which were up a narrow court leading out of Broad Street. Mr. Shorter's clerk who was scaHng out some plan, on a large kind of deal table, was not a very old man, though he looked older than he was from the effects of a pair of thin pale cheeks and a pair of sunken eyes ; while there was that about his general appearance that made him look as if he was continuaUy being scared and frightened.