Mills, who was always doing something or other to annoy me-or I felt as if he were, which was the same thing-had brought his conduct to a climax, by taking it into his head that he would go to India. It was a great augmentation of my uneasiness to be bereaved, at this eventful crisis, of the inestimable services of Miss Mills. Copperfield fell into a condition of strong nervous agitation and so remained until the day arrived.

Copperfield immediately replied, with his respectful compliments, that he would have the honour of waiting on the Misses Spenlow, at the time appointed accompanied, in accordance with their kind permission, by his friend Mr. Copperfield would do them the favour to call, upon a certain day (accompanied, if he thought proper, by a confidential friend), they would be happy to hold some conversation on the subject. Copperfield's communication but that if Mr.

The Misses Spenlow added that they begged to forbear expressing, 'through the medium of correspondence', an opinion on the subject of Mr. Copperfield, and informed him that they had given his letter their best consideration, 'with a view to the happiness of both parties'-which I thought rather an alarming expression, not only because of the use they had made of it in relation to the family difference before-mentioned, but because I had (and have all my life) observed that conventional phrases are a sort of fireworks, easily let off, and liable to take a great variety of shapes and colours not at all suggested by their original form. At last, an answer came from the two old ladies.

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