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Thackeray, William Makepeace, 1811-1863

"The History of Pendennis"

She is quite young yet.--You wouldn't suppose her to be
five-and-twenty. Monsieur le Cury, song cure est touchy--j'ang suis sure
--Je conny cela biang--Ally Monsieur Smirke."
He softly blushed; he sighed; he hoped; he feared; he doubted; he
sometimes yielded to the delightful idea--his pleasure was to sit in
Madame Fribsby's apartment, and talk upon the subject, where, as the
greater part of the conversation was carried on in French by the
Milliner, and her old mother was deaf, that retired old individual (who
had once been a housekeeper, wife and widow of a butler in the Clavering
family) could understand scarce one syllable of their talk.
Thus it was, that when Major Pendennis announced to his nephew's tutor
that the young fellow would go to College in October, and that Mr.
Smirke's valuable services would no longer be needful to his pupil, for
which services the Major, who spoke as grandly as a lord, professed
himself exceedingly grateful, and besought Mr. Smirke to command his
interests in any way--thus it was, that the Curate felt that the critical
moment was come for him, and was racked and tortured by those severe
pangs which the occasion warranted.


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