The Old Curiosity Shop
‘Well, child,’ she said, ‘how do you like this way of travelling?’
Nell replied that she thought it was very pleasant indeed, to which the
lady assented in the case of people who had their spirits. For
herself, she said, she was troubled with a lowness in that respect
which required a constant stimulant; though whether the aforesaid
stimulant was derived from the suspicious bottle of which mention has
been already made or from other sources, she did not say.
‘That’s the happiness of you young people,’ she continued. ‘You don’t
know what it is to be low in your feelings. You always have your
appetites too, and what a comfort that is.’
Nell thought that she could sometimes dispense with her own appetite
very conveniently; and thought, moreover, that there was nothing either
in the lady’s personal appearance or in her manner of taking tea, to
lead to the conclusion that her natural relish for meat and drink had
at all failed her. She silently assented, however, as in duty bound,
to what the lady had said, and waited until she should speak again.
Instead of speaking, however, she sat looking at the child for a long
time in silence, and then getting up, brought out from a corner a large
roll of canvas about a yard in width, which she laid upon the floor and
spread open with her foot until it nearly reached from one end of the
caravan to the other.
‘There, child,’ she said, ‘read that.’
Nell walked down it, and read aloud, in enormous black letters, the
inscription, ‘JARLEY’S WAX-WORK.’
‘Read it again,’ said the lady, complacently.
‘Jarley’s Wax-Work,’ repeated Nell.
‘That’s me,’ said the lady. ‘I am Mrs Jarley.’
Giving the child an encouraging look, intended to reassure her and let
her know, that, although she stood in the presence of the original
Jarley, she must not allow herself to be utterly overwhelmed and borne
down, the lady of the caravan unfolded another scroll, whereon was the
inscription, ‘One hundred figures the full size of life,’ and then
another scroll, on which was written, ‘The only stupendous collection
of real wax-work in the world,’ and then several smaller scrolls with
such inscriptions as ‘Now exhibiting within’--‘The genuine and only
Jarley’--‘Jarley’s unrivalled collection’--‘Jarley is the delight of
the Nobility and Gentry’--‘The Royal Family are the patrons of Jarley.’
When she had exhibited these leviathans of public announcement to the
astonished child, she brought forth specimens of the lesser fry in the
shape of hand-bills, some of which were couched in the form of parodies
on popular melodies, as ‘Believe me if all Jarley’s wax-work so
rare’--‘I saw thy show in youthful prime’--‘Over the water to Jarley;’
while, to consult all tastes, others were composed with a view to the
lighter and more facetious spirits, as a parody on the favourite air of
‘If I had a donkey,’ beginning,
If I know’d a donkey wot wouldn’t go
To see Mrs JARLEY’S wax-work show,
Do you think I’d acknowledge him? Oh no no!
Then run to Jarley’s--
--besides several compositions in prose, purporting to be dialogues
between the Emperor of China and an oyster, or the Archbishop of
Canterbury and a dissenter on the subject of church-rates, but all
having the same moral, namely, that the reader must make haste to
Jarley’s, and that children and servants were admitted at half-price.
When she had brought all these testimonials of her important position
in society to bear upon her young companion, Mrs Jarley rolled them up,
and having put them carefully away, sat down again, and looked at the
child in triumph.
‘Never go into the company of a filthy Punch any more,’ said Mrs
Jarley, ‘after this.’
‘I never saw any wax-work, ma’am,’ said Nell. ‘Is it funnier than
Punch?’
‘Funnier!’ said Mrs Jarley in a shrill voice. ‘It is not funny at all.’
‘Oh!’ said Nell, with all possible humility.
‘It isn’t funny at all,’ repeated Mrs Jarley. ‘It’s calm and--what’s
that word again--critical?--no--classical, that’s it--it’s calm and
classical. No low beatings and knockings about, no jokings and
squeakings like your precious Punches, but always the same, with a
constantly unchanging air of coldness and gentility; and so like life,
that if wax-work only spoke and walked about, you’d hardly know the
difference. I won’t go so far as to say, that, as it is, I’ve seen
wax-work quite like life, but I’ve certainly seen some life that was
exactly like wax-work.’
‘Is it here, ma’am?’ asked Nell, whose curiosity was awakened by this
description.
‘Is what here, child?’
‘The wax-work, ma’am.’
‘Why, bless you, child, what are you thinking of? How could such a
collection be here, where you see everything except the inside of one
little cupboard and a few boxes? It’s gone on in the other wans to the
assembly-rooms, and there it’ll be exhibited the day after to-morrow.
You are going to the same town, and you’ll see it I dare say. It’s
natural to expect that you’ll see it, and I’ve no doubt you will. I
suppose you couldn’t stop away if you was to try ever so much.’
‘I shall not be in the town, I think, ma’am,’ said the child.
‘Not there!’ cried Mrs Jarley. ‘Then where will you be?’
‘I--I--don’t quite know. I am not certain.’
‘You don’t mean to say that you’re travelling about the country without
knowing where you’re going to?’ said the lady of the caravan. ‘What
curious people you are! What line are you in? You looked to me at the
races, child, as if you were quite out of your element, and had got
there by accident.’
‘We were there quite by accident,’ returned Nell, confused by this
abrupt questioning. ‘We are poor people, ma’am, and are only wandering
about. We have nothing to do;--I wish we had.’
‘You amaze me more and more,’ said Mrs Jarley, after remaining for some
time as mute as one of her own figures. ‘Why, what do you call
yourselves? Not beggars?’
‘Indeed, ma’am, I don’t know what else we are,’ returned the child.
‘Lord bless me,’ said the lady of the caravan. ‘I never heard of such
a thing. Who’d have thought it!’
She remained so long silent after this exclamation, that Nell feared
she felt her having been induced to bestow her protection and
conversation upon one so poor, to be an outrage upon her dignity that
nothing could repair. This persuasion was rather confirmed than
otherwise by the tone in which she at length broke silence and said,
‘And yet you can read. And write too, I shouldn’t wonder?’
‘Yes, ma’am,’ said the child, fearful of giving new offence by the
confession.
‘Well, and what a thing that is,’ returned Mrs Jarley. ‘I can’t!’
Nell said ‘indeed’ in a tone which might imply, either that she was
reasonably surprised to find the genuine and only Jarley, who was the
delight of the Nobility and Gentry and the peculiar pet of the Royal
Family, destitute of these familiar arts; or that she presumed so great
a lady could scarcely stand in need of such ordinary accomplishments.
In whatever way Mrs Jarley received the response, it did not provoke
her to further questioning, or tempt her into any more remarks at the
time, for she relapsed into a thoughtful silence, and remained in that
state so long that Nell withdrew to the other window and rejoined her
grandfather, who was now awake.
At length the lady of the caravan shook off her fit of meditation, and,
summoning the driver to come under the window at which she was seated,
held a long conversation with him in a low tone of voice, as if she
were asking his advice on an important point, and discussing the pros
and cons of some very weighty matter. This conference at length
concluded, she drew in her head again, and beckoned Nell to approach.
‘And the old gentleman too,’ said Mrs Jarley; ‘for I want to have a
word with him. Do you want a good situation for your grand-daughter,
master? If you do, I can put her in the way of getting one. What do
you say?’
‘I can’t leave her,’ answered the old man. ‘We can’t separate. What
would become of me without her?’
‘I should have thought you were old enough to take care of yourself, if
you ever will be,’ retorted Mrs Jarley sharply.
‘But he never will be,’ said the child in an earnest whisper. ‘I fear
he never will be again. Pray do not speak harshly to him. We are very
thankful to you,’ she added aloud; ‘but neither of us could part from
the other if all the wealth of the world were halved between us.’
Mrs Jarley was a little disconcerted by this reception of her proposal,
and looked at the old man, who tenderly took Nell’s hand and detained
it in his own, as if she could have very well dispensed with his
company or even his earthly existence. After an awkward pause, she
thrust her head out of the window again, and had another conference
with the driver upon some point on which they did not seem to agree
quite so readily as on their former topic of discussion; but they
concluded at last, and she addressed the grandfather again.
‘If you’re really disposed to employ yourself,’ said Mrs Jarley, ‘there
would be plenty for you to do in the way of helping to dust the
figures, and take the checks, and so forth. What I want your
grand-daughter for, is to point ‘em out to the company; they would be
soon learnt, and she has a way with her that people wouldn’t think
unpleasant, though she does come after me; for I’ve been always
accustomed to go round with visitors myself, which I should keep on
doing now, only that my spirits make a little ease absolutely
necessary. It’s not a common offer, bear in mind,’ said the lady,
rising into the tone and manner in which she was accustomed to address
her audiences; ‘it’s Jarley’s wax-work, remember. The duty’s very
light and genteel, the company particularly select, the exhibition
takes place in assembly-rooms, town-halls, large rooms at inns, or
auction galleries. There is none of your open-air wagrancy at
Jarley’s, recollect; there is no tarpaulin and sawdust at Jarley’s,
remember. Every expectation held out in the handbills is realised to
the utmost, and the whole forms an effect of imposing brilliancy
hitherto unrivalled in this kingdom. Remember that the price of
admission is only sixpence, and that this is an opportunity which may
never occur again!’
Descending from the sublime when she had reached this point, to the
details of common life, Mrs Jarley remarked that with reference to
salary she could pledge herself to no specific sum until she had
sufficiently tested Nell’s abilities, and narrowly watched her in the
performance of her duties. But board and lodging, both for her and her
grandfather, she bound herself to provide, and she furthermore passed
her word that the board should always be good in quality, and in
quantity plentiful.
Nell and her grandfather consulted together, and while they were so
engaged, Mrs Jarley with her hands behind her walked up and down the
caravan, as she had walked after tea on the dull earth, with uncommon
dignity and self-esteem. Nor will this appear so slight a circumstance
as to be unworthy of mention, when it is remembered that the caravan
was in uneasy motion all the time, and that none but a person of great
natural stateliness and acquired grace could have forborne to stagger.
‘Now, child?’ cried Mrs Jarley, coming to a halt as Nell turned towards
her.
‘We are very much obliged to you, ma’am,’ said Nell, ‘and thankfully
accept your offer.’
‘And you’ll never be sorry for it,’ returned Mrs Jarley. ‘I’m pretty
sure of that. So as that’s all settled, let us have a bit of supper.’
In the meanwhile, the caravan blundered on as if it too had been
drinking strong beer and was drowsy, and came at last upon the paved
streets of a town which were clear of passengers, and quiet, for it was