the celebrity of the Buckmasters, and the antickety of the
Slamcoes. They had a six-roomed house (not counting kitching and
sculry), and now twelve daughters in all; whizz.--4 Miss
Buckmasters: Miss Betsy, Miss Dosy, Miss Biddy, and Miss Winny;
1 Miss Shum, Mary by name, Shum's daughter, and seven others, who
shall be nameless. Mrs. Shum was a fat, red-haired woman, at least
a foot taller than S.; who was but a yard and a half high, pale-
faced, red-nosed, knock-kneed, bald-headed, his nose and shut-frill
all brown with snuff.

Before the house was a little garden, where the washin of the famly
was all ways hanging. There was so many of 'em that it was obliged
to be done by relays. There was six rails and a stocking on each,
and four small goosbry bushes, always covered with some bit of
linning or other. The hall was a regular puddle: wet dabs of
dishclouts flapped in your face; soapy smoking bits of flanning
went nigh to choke you; and while you were looking up to prevent
hanging yourself with the ropes which were strung across and about,
slap came the hedge of a pail against your shins, till one was like
to be drove mad with hagony. The great slattnly doddling girls was
always on the stairs, poking about with nasty flower-pots, a-
cooking something, or sprawling in the window-seats with greasy
curl-papers, reading greasy novels. An infernal pianna was
jingling from morning till night--two eldest Miss Buckmasters,
"Battle of Prag"--six youngest Miss Shums, "In my Cottage," till I
knew every note in the "Battle of Prag," and cussed the day when
"In my Cottage" was rote. The younger girls, too, were always
bouncing and thumping about the house, with torn pinnyfores, and
dogs-eard grammars, and large pieces of bread and treacle. I never
see such a house.