em at any time; and never know it. She knows
nothing about 'em. She knows nothing about any relative whatever. Never did.
Never will.«
    »Mr. Casby could enlighten her, perhaps?«
    »May be,« said Pancks. »I expect so, but don't know. He has long had money
(not overmuch as I make out) in trust to dole out to her when she can't do
without it. Sometimes she's proud and won't touch it for a length of time;
sometimes she's so poor, that she must have it. She writhes under her life. A
woman more angry, passionate, reckless, and revengeful never lived. She came for
money, to-night. Said she had peculiar occasion for it.«
    »I think,« observed Clennam musing, »I by chance know what occasion - I mean
into whose pocket the money is to go.«
    »Indeed?« said Pancks. »If it's a compact, I recommend that party to be
exact in it. I wouldn't trust myself to that woman, young and handsome as she
is, if I had wronged her; no, not for twice my proprietor's money! Unless,«
Pancks added as a saving clause, »I had a lingering illness on me, and wanted to
get it over.«
    Arthur, hurriedly reviewing his own observation of her, found it to tally
pretty nearly with Mr. Pancks's view.
    »The wonder is to me,« pursued Pancks, »that she has never done for my
proprietor, as the only person connected with her story she can lay hold of.
Mentioning that, I may tell you, between ourselves, that I am sometimes tempted
to do for him myself.«
    Arthur started and said, »Dear me, Pancks, don't say that!«
    »Understand me,« said Pancks, extending five cropped coaly finger-nails on
Arthur's arm; »I don't mean, cut his throat. But by all that's precious, if he
goes too far, I'll cut his hair!«
    Having exhibited himself in the new light of enunciating this tremendous
threat, Mr. Pancks, with a countenance of grave import, snorted several times
and steamed away.
 

                                   Chapter X

                     The Dreams of Mrs. Flintwinch Thicken.

The shady waiting-rooms of the Circumlocution Office, where he passed a good
deal of time in company with various troublesome Convicts who were under
sentence to be broken