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156 THE ADVENTURES OP PHILIP
Sister's room was a cheery little place, and received not a little
company. She allowed pa's pipe. "It's company to him," she
said. " A man can't be doing much harm when he is smoking his
pipe." And she allowed Phil's cigar. Anything was allowed to
Phil, the other lodgers declared, who professed to be quite jealous
of Philip Firmin. She had a very few books. " When I was a
girl I used to be always reading novels," she said ; " but la, they're
mostly nonsense. There's Mr. Pendennis, who comes to see Mr.
Ridley. I wonder how a married man can go on writing about
love, and all that stuff!" And, indeed, it is rather absurd for
elderly fingers to be still twanging Dan Cupid's toy bow and
arrows. Yesterday is gone—yes, but very well remembered ; and
we think of it the more now we know that To-morrow is not going
to bring us much.
Into Mrs. Brandon's parlour Mr. Ridley's old father would
sometimes enter of evenings, and share the bit of bread and cheese, or
the modest supper of Mrs. Brandon and the Captain. The homely
little meal has almost vanished out of our life now, but in former
days it assembled many a family round its kindly board. A little
modest supper-tray—a little quiet prattle—a little kindly glass that
cheered and never inebriated. I can see friendly faces smiling
round such a meal, at a period not far gone, but how distant ! I
wonder whether there are any old folks now, in old quarters of old
country towns, who come to each other's houses in sedan-chairs,
at six o'clock, and play at quadrille until supper-tray time] Of
evenings Ridley and the Captain, I say, would have a solemn game
at cribbage, and the Little Sister would make up a jug of something
good for the two oldsters. She liked Mr. Ridley to come, for he
always treated her father so respectful, and was quite the gentleman.
And as for Mrs. Ridley, Mr. R.'s "good lady,"—was she
not also grateful to the Little Sister for having nursed her son
during his malady ? Through their connection they were enabled
to procure Mrs. Brandon many valuable friends ; and always were
pleased to pass an evening with the Captain, and were as civil to
him as they could have been had he been at the very height of his
prosperity and splendour. My private opinion of the old Captain,
you see, is that he was a worthless old Captain, but most fortunate
in his early ruin, after which he had lived very much admired and
comfortable, sufficient whisky being almost always provided for him.
Old Mr. Ridley's respect for her father afforded a most precious
consolation to the Little Sister. Ridley liked to have the paper
read to him. He was never quite easy with print, and to his last
days many words to be met with in newspapers and elsewhere used
to occasion the good butler much intellectual trouble. The Little