"Oh, he's the artfullest creetur!" cried Mrs. Nubbles.
"But come away. Don't speak to him for the world."

"Yes I will, mother. What nonsense. I say, sir-----"

Mr. Quilp affected to start, and looked smilingly round.

"You let my mother alone, will you?" said Kit. "How
dare you tease a poor lone woman like her, making her
miserable and melancholy as if she hadn't got enough to
make her so, without you. An't you ashamed of yourself,
you little monster?"

" Monster!" said Quilp inwardly, with a smile. "Ugliest
dwarf that could be seen anywhere for a penny--monster--
ah!"

"You show her any of your impudence again," resumed
Kit, shouldering the bandbox, "and I tell you what, Mr.
Quilp, I won't bear with you any more. You have no
right to do it; I'm sure we never interfered with you. This
isn't the first time; and if ever you worry or frighten her
again, you'll oblige me (though I should be very sorry to do
it, on account of your size) to beat you."

Quilp said not a word in reply, but walking up so close to
Kit as to bring his eyes within two or three inches of his
face, looked fixedly at him, retreated a little distance with-
out averting his gaze, approached again, again withdrew,
and so on for half a dozen times, like a head in a phantas-
magoria. Kit stood his ground as if in expectation of an
immediate assault, but finding that nothing came of these
gestures, snapped his fingers and walked away; his mother
dragging him off as fast as she could, and, even in the midst
of his news of little Jacob and the baby, looking anxiously
over her shoulder to see if Quilp were following.

KIT'S mother might have spared herself the trouble of
looking back so often, for nothing was further from Mr.
Quilp's thoughts than any intention of pursuing her and
her son, or renewing the quarrel with which they had
parted. He went his way, whistling from time to time
some fragments of a tune; and with a face quite tranquil
and composed, jogged pleasantly towards home; entertain-
ing himself as he went with visions of the fears and terrors

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