Taking but little interest in public affairs, they beguiled their time chiefly with such amusements as the Peacock afforded, which were limited to a bagatelle-board in the first floor, and a sequestered skittle-ground in the back yard.

In the science and nicety of both these recreations, which are far more abstruse than ordinary men suppose, they were gradually initiated by Mr.Weller, who possessed a perfect knowledge of such pastimes.

Thus, notwithstanding that they were in a great measure deprived of the comfort and advantage of Mr.Pickwick's society, they were still enabled to beguile the time, and to prevent its hanging heavily on their hands.
It was in the evening, however, that the Peacock presented attractions which enabled the two friends to resist even the invitations of the gifted, though prosy, Pott.

It was in the evening that the 'commercial room' was filled with a social circle, whose characters and manners it was the delight of Mr.Tupman to observe; whose sayings and doings it was the habit of Mr.Snodgrass to note down.
Most people know what sort of places commercial rooms usually are.

That of the Peacock differed in no material respect from the generality of such apartments; that is to say, it was a large, bare-looking room, the furniture of which had no doubt been better when it was newer, with a spacious table in the centre, and a variety of smaller dittos in the corners; an extensive assortment of variously shaped chairs, and an old Turkey carpet, bearing about the same relative proportion to the size of the room, as a lady's pocket-handkerchief might to the floor of a watch-box.