With a view to recording for posterity some critical sentiments respecting the works of Mr Dickens, Mr Headstone took himself to a small stationer's and print seller's near Leadenhall Market to buy a calfskin notebook. The keeper of the shop, who quickly discerned that the pedagogue was a man of literary aspirations, was most assiduous in providing that gentleman with assistance in the acquisition of the full complement of tools necessary for the trade. As a consequence of this diligent service, Mr Headstone left the establishment with a quantity of articles tied together with brown paper and string; including, a steel-nibbed pen, a glass inkwell with a pewter cap, a rolling blotter, a mechanical pencil of a design patented by Mr Sampson Mordan, a pot of glue and a brush, a dozen sticks of sealing wax, and a stuffed owl. This latter item, although not strictly a requirement for a man of letters, had been languishing in the stationer's window for several years, and, having been much favoured by moths during its tenancy, now presented a rather careworn expression to the world. The bird, which on account of the size of its eyes is generally considered to have a bookish demeanour, had originally been displayed on a green velvet ground as a means of attracting the scholarly trade, but with time had taken on such a disapproving aspect that the stationer had resolved to let it go to the very next customer who could be persuaded to buy it.
Mr Headstone hurried back to his lodgings, eager to embark upon the first stage of his great project, and lost no time in unpacking his purchases and arranging them before him to his satisfaction. This preliminary operation, which should have been the work of but a moment, was confounded by the fact that the pedagogue's desk had as its principal feature a sloping surface. No matter how carefully any article of stationery was positioned at the top, the item would - in compliance with the Newtonian notion of gravity - immediately descend to the base, thereby interfering with the comfortable placement of the elbows. It was only with the application of some glue that Mr Headstone was finally able to dispose everything to his satisfaction, by which time there was not enough light to see by without the assistance of a tallow candle. This instrument of illumination being the one item that the school master had forgotten to purchase, it was necessary to defer the commencement of the project to another day.
Mr Charles Dickens
