He had not intended
to appear now, but Nicholas had awakened more suddenly than he looked for,
and he had had no time to conceal himself.
"Poor fellow!" said Nicholas, "your hard fate denies you any friend but
one, and he is nearly as poor and helpless as yourself."
"May I--may I go with you?" asked Smike timidly. "I will be your faithful
hard-working servant, I will, indeed. I want no clothes," added the poor
creature, drawing his rags together; "these will do very well. I only want
to be near you."
"And you shall!" cried Nicholas. "The world shall deal by you as it does
by me, till one or both of us shall quit it for a better. Come!"
With these words, he strapped his burden on his shoulders, and, taking his
stick in one hand, extended the other to his delighted charge; and so they
passed out of the old barn together, out from the nightmare of life at
Dotheboys Hall, into the busy world outside.
* * * * *
Some years later, when Mr. Squeers was making one of his customary
semi-annual visits to London, he was arrested and sent to jail by persons
who had discovered his system of fraud and cruelty, as well as the fact
that he had in his possession a stolen will.
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