CODDLE. And "brute"?
WHITWELL. Of course.
CODDLE. And "old foozle"?
WHITWELL. Entirely, sir.
_Eglantine._ Papa, of course he does.
CODDLE (_a pause_). No, Mr. Whittermat, I can't give my daughter to
a man I never heard of in my life,--and with such a preposterous name
too! No, no.
WHITWELL. My name is Whitwell, my dear sir,--not Whittermat: nephew of
your old friend Benjamin Pottle.
CODDLE. God bless me! Nephew of Ben Pottle! Why didn't you say so
before? What did you tell me your name was Whittermat for?
WHITWELL. Some singular mistake, sir: I never did. Can't imagine how
the mistake could have occurred.
CODDLE. Well, well, Mr. Whitwell, this alters the case. Your uncle
wrote me about you. Extraordinary coincidence! Well, since you heard
all _I_ said--Ha, ha, ha!
WHITWELL. Of course I did. Ha, ha, ha! For every Roland of mine you
gave me two Olivers at least. Ha, ha, ha!
CODDLE. Neither of us deaf, eh? Diamond cut diamond,--ha, ha, ha! Pull
dog, pull devil, eh? (_Bursting with laughter. All laugh heartily._)
JANE. He, he, he! I never thought I'd live to see this happy day,
master.
CODDLE. Hold your tongue, you impudent cat! Quit my house. Mollycoddle,
indeed!
JANE. O Mr. Coddle, you won't go for to turn off a faithful servant in
this way. (_Aside to WHITWELL._) That legacy's lost. (_To CODDLE._) Ah,
master dear! you won't find nobody else as'll work their fingers to the
bone, and their voice to a thread-paper, as I have: up early and down
late, and yelling and screeching from morning till night. Well, the
house will go to rack and ruin when I'm gone,--that's one comfort.
WHITWELL (_aside to JANE_). The money's yours, cash down, the day of my
wedding.
CODDLE. Well, well, Jane, I'll forgive you, for luck. I'm too happy to
bear malice. But I wish you knew how to boil spinach.
JANE. I'll learn right straight off, sir.
CODDLE. Well, hang delay, children! I'll engage Dr. Harrold for a week
from to-day, and invite all our friends (_to the audience_) to witness
the wedding. Church of the Holy Cross, remember. No low church for me.
All who mean to come will please signify it by clapping their hands,
and the harder the better. Not many refusals here. (_Curtain falls._)