Chapter V

Frances the tailor's daughter. • Struck with me. • My indifference. • A Priapean exposure. • Nelly's disappearance. • That night's meeting. • Easy victory, willing virgin. • Her history. • Father in hospital. • The wages of sin useful. • Parental obliviousness. • Frances in service. • In keeping. • H*l*n M***w**d. • Our first meeting. • Her physical perfections. • Money differences. • My promise kept. • A year's interval. • Friendship established. • Mutual meretriciousness. • Unrestrained sexual amusements. • Erotic tastes gratified. • Arcades ambo.

For two or three weeks after Agnes first left Nelly L, I did not go there. Then I resumed my visits, which led to an extraordinary piece of luck. — Nelly was in the same rooms, and had no servant, perhaps because she couldn't then afford to keep one. Occasionally I when she didn't expect me, and several times found her called between three and four o'clock in the afternoon sitting and working with a shabbily dressed, tallish, pale-faced, delicate, indeed refined looking girl, with blue soft eyes and brown hair. Seemingly she was about sixteen years of age, which indeed she was. The girl was scuffled out of the room quickly, but till she left, she kept as much as she could her eyes upon me enquiring, and as if struck with me. That passed through my mind but without its leading to any other thoughts about her, excepting that she was a genteel looking girl to be sitting with a thorough harlot, for Nelly now looked one and was.

Afterwards the girl was standing in the passage once or twice when I had written Nelly to expect me. I told her she was pretty, to which she made no reply, but looked me full and earnestly in the face. I told Nelly of this, who angrily remarked, “What does she do there?” — “Wants fucking perhaps, get her for me, I suppose she's had the doodle up her.”

I scarcely ever saw Nelly excited but she was now. That she wouldn't. “She's never had it, I'm sure.” — The girl was the eldest daughter of a tailor, who with a wife and four children had the top rooms of the house, they were most respectable people, had prayers morning and night, invited Nelly to join them at prayers, worked from morning to night, but could scarcely live, for all that and permitted their daughter to work in Nelly's room in the day time. Nelly had told them she was engaged at a theatre, perhaps they believed that, at all events knew that Nelly was a quiet woman who paid her rent, and even once lent the tailor a little money when he was hard up. The girl was working at waistcoats, in Nelly's room.

“You talk about fucking with her.” — Nelly denied that, but afterwards admitted that at times they did, if they talked about marriage, or children. “Why of course you can't help talking about doing it, all girls do.” — “She'll be fucked soon.” — “If she be, it won't be any fault of mine.” — “She's been fucked.” — “I'm sure she hasn't.” “Get her for me.” — “That I won't.” — Mine was mere joking, for I'd no desire for the girl. Soon after I fancied that this girl must have heard from Nelly when she expected me, and that she had taken a liking for me, I saw it in her eyes, and if caught in the room she evidently took as long to get out as she could, yet for a couple of months I thought nothing about that. Then it passed through my mind that a poke into her little quim would not be undesirable.

One evening in my shirt only, and Nelly in chemise, I was going to fuck her and had a glorious erection, when a knock came at the door of the sitting room. Nelly jumped up, saying, “Wait a minute it's the tailor's gal she's got something for me.” — Partly closing the bed-room door, she let the girl in. I went to the bedroom door when they had been talking a minute. — Nelly had her back to me, the girl her face. — She saw me, but gave no signs of it to Nelly. Being lewed, I lifted my shirt and showed my pego. Still the girl gave no signs, but her eyes every minute went to my stiff penis, then to Nelly. Then I shook it at her, feeling delight at shewing it to one who probably had never seen, or certainly never handled a man's pego in that carnally excited state. A minute perhaps this went on, for they were engaged in an animated conversation about some-thing. Then Nelly turning round saw me, — I had just dropped my shirt, — and said, “Ar'n't you coming?” — She pushed the girl immediately out of the room. Whilst doing so and her back was towards me, I again showed the tailoress my stiff stander for an instant.

A week or so after that I called and the girl was there. To Nelly's annoyance I now kissed the girl who quietly submitted to it. Soon after when I called, a man was with Nelly, I went off and came back in an hour, and the tailoress was then in the passage. “You didn't tell Nelly I showed it you,” said I. She shook her head but never spoke. Excepting one day after the cock exhibition night, I'd never heard the girl's voice.

Now came a passing desire for the wench and I spoke about her. Nelly repeated all. Thinking that the girl must know all about Nell's occupation, I said — “She'll soon get fucked I'm sure.” — “Perhaps she will for they are dreadfully poor and she wants to go to service, but they won't spare her, but I won't have anything to do with your having her” — I thought no more about it for my desire was not strong.

About three weeks after this when I knocked at Nelly's door, it was opened by a man who said he'd been in the rooms a fortnight. Standing in the street wondering, disappointed, and much wanting a fuck, and thinking I'd try a French doxy, a girl came along carrying a small basket of vegetables. It was the tailor's daughter. “Why it's you, Miss Frances.” — “Yes sir.” Then she told me that Nelly left in a hurry, why she knew not, neither knew she where she had gone. We stood talking, my pego swollen with want of a woman, and the girl lovely in my eyes. I wondered if she'd been fucked, and a rush of cognate ideas coming, said, “Do you recollect my standing in my shirt?” — “Of course” — she replied quite calmly and without a smile as far as I could see by the light of the street lamps. Questioning her, she said she knew Nelly was gay, didn't think her father did, she'd never seen any one else in a shirt like me, and the placid manner and look of the girl was such, that I thought her one of the supremely cunning ones. She then looked round restlessly, saying, “I hope father won't catch me.” Risking it I asked her if she'd come with me, have a glass of wine, and see me stand in my shirt again. I used no other language. She looked very queerly and earnestly at me. At length, “You're very fond of Nelly ain't you? she says you are.” — “Pretty well, but I'm love with you.” — “Oh you story.” — “It's true — come now, and let me kiss those pretty lips, and I'll give you two sovereigns.” — The girl got quite agitated, she seemed to shake — I repeated it. — “I would but am frightened.” — “Oh come.” — After a few minutes' persuasion, (had sensuous thrills in her cunt any-thing to do with it?) “I must take these up and get a bit to eat, and I'll come if mother lets me.” — “I'll be here in half an hour with a cab, but if your mother won't let you?” — That agitated her more than ever, she reflected looking all the time at me. — “I will run out then, I will whether she lets me or not, I'm sick of home, but if father's at home, I daren't.”

Has the little devil been fucked, and did Nelly fear my taking a fancy to her; that passed through my mind. If she had, it would still be a youthful cunt, one wanting a fuck, and that would be a treat in itself. As it was or would be soon my dinner time, I went to a fish-shop, dined off oysters, bought a cake and bottle of Sherry, and was in a cab near the house at the appointed time. Soon after she came running down the street. — “Mother wouldn't let me, so I ran off, and father isn't at home.” Ten minutes after we were in a nice bedroom.