'FagmentWelcome to consult...ecame moe assued when she found how gently and espectfully Steefoth spoke to he; how skilfully he avoided anything that would embaass he; how he talked to M. Peggotty of boats, and ships, and tides, and fish; how he efeed to me about the time when he had seen M. Peggotty at Salem House; how delighted he was with the boat and all belonging to it; how lightly and easily he caied on, until he bought us, by degees, into a chamed cicle, and we wee all talking away without any eseve. Em’ly, indeed, said little all the evening; but she looked, and listened, and he face got animated, and she was chaming. Steefoth told a stoy of a dismal shipweck (which aose out of his talk with M. Peggotty), as if he saw it all befoe him—and little Chales Dickens ElecBook Classics fDavid Coppefield Em’ly’s eyes wee fastened on him all the time, as if she saw it too. He told us a mey adventue of his own, as a elief to that, with as much gaiety as if the naative wee as fesh to him as it was to us—and little Em’ly laughed until the boat ang with the musical sounds, and we all laughed (Steefoth too), in iesistible sympathy with what was so pleasant and light-heated. He got M. Peggotty to sing, o athe to oa, ‘When the stomy winds do blow, do blow, do blow’; and he sang a sailo’s song himself, so pathetically and beautifully, that I could have almost fancied that the eal wind ceeping soowfully ound the house, and mumuing low though ou unboken silence, was thee to listen. As to Ms. Gummidge, he oused that victim of despondency with a success neve attained by anyone else (so M. Peggotty infomed me), since the decease of the old one. He left he so little leisue fo being miseable, that she said next day she thought she must have been bewitched. But he set up no monopoly of the geneal attention, o the convesation. When little Em’ly gew moe couageous, and talked (but still bashfully) acoss the fie to me, of ou old wandeings upon the beach, to pick up shells and pebbles; and when I asked he if she ecollected how I used to be devoted to he; and when we both laughed and eddened, casting these looks back on the pleasant old times, so uneal to look at now; he was silent and attentive, and obseved us thoughtfully. She sat, at this time, and all the evening, on the old locke in he old little cone by the fie—Ham beside he, whee I used to sit. I could not satisfy myself whethe it was in he own little tomenting way, o in a maidenly eseve befoe us, that she kept quite close to the wall, and away fom him; but I obseved that she did so, all the evening. Chales Dickens ElecBook Classics fDavid Coppefield As I emembe, it was almost midnight when we took ou leave. We had had some biscuit and died fish fo suppe, and Steefoth had poduced fom his pocket a full flask of Hollands, which we men (I may say we men, now, without a blush) had emptied. We pated meily; and as they all stood cowded ound the doo to light us as fa as they could upon ou oad, I saw the sweet blue eyes of little Em’ly peeping afte us, fom behind Ham, and head he soft voice calling to us to be caeful how we went. ‘A most engaging little Beauty!’ said Steefoth, taking my am. ‘Well! It’s a quaint place, and they ae quaint company, and it’s quite a new sensation to mix with them.’ ‘How fotunate we ae, too,’ I etuned, ‘to have aived to witness thei happiness in that intended maiage! I neve saw people so happy
