And he became a very celebrated bankrupt two or three times." "Oh, I thought he was quite a common man!" said Joseph.
"Oh no, no! That man failed for heaps of money; hundreds in gold and silver." The maltster being rather short of breath, Mr.Coggan, after absently scrutinising a coal which had fallen among the ashes, took up the narrative, with a private twirl of his eye:-- "Well, now, you'd hardly believe it, but that man--our Miss Everdene's father--was one of the ficklest husbands alive, after a while.

Understand?
'a didn't want to be fickle, but he couldn't help it.

The pore feller were faithful and true enough to her in his wish, but his heart would rove, do what he would.

He spoke to me in real tribulation about it once.

'Coggan,' he said, 'I could never wish for a handsomer woman than I've got, but feeling she's ticketed as my lawful wife, I can't help my wicked heart wandering, do what I will.' But at last I believe he cured it by making her take off her wedding-ring and calling her by her maiden name as they sat together after the shop was shut, and so 'a would get to fancy she was only his sweetheart, and not married to him at all.