She was a very little old woman, and always wore
a very coarse apron with a bib before and a loop behind, together
with bandages on her wrists, which appeared to be afflicted with an
everlasting sprain. She was on all occasions chary of opening the street
door, and ardent to shut it again; and she waited at table in a bonnet.
This was the only great change over and above the change which had
fallen on the youngest gentleman. As for him, he more than corroborated
the account of Mrs Todgers; possessing greater sensibility than even
she had given him credit for. He entertained some terrible notions of
Destiny, among other matters, and talked much about people's 'Missions';
upon which he seemed to have some private information not generally
attainable, as he knew it had been poor Merry's mission to crush him
in the bud. He was very frail and tearful; for being aware that a
shepherd's mission was to pipe to his flocks, and that a boatswain's
mission was to pipe all hands, and that one man's mission was to be a
paid piper, and another man's mission was to pay the piper, so he had
got it into his head that his own peculiar mission was to pipe his eye.
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