The allowance of beer was a
pint and a half per diem to Bartholomew, and a pint to each woman; and Mr.
Crowdey used to observe from the head of the servants' dinner-table on the
arrival of each cargo, 'Now this (puff) beer is to (wheeze) a month, and,
if you choose to drink it in a (gasp) day, you'll go without any for the
rest of the (wheeze) time'; an intimation that had a very favourable effect
upon the tap. Mr. Leather, however, did not like it. 'Puffington's
servants,' he said, 'had beer whenever they chose,' and he thought it
'awful mean' restricting the quantity. Mr. Jog, however, was not to be
moved. Thus time crawled heavily on.
Mr. and Mrs. Jog had a long confab one night on the expediency of getting
rid of Mr. Sponge. Mrs. Jog wanted to keep him on till after the
christening; while Jog combated her reasons by representing the
improbability of its doing Gustavus James any good having him for a
godpapa, seeing Sponge's age, and the probability of his marrying himself.
Mrs. Jog, however, was very determined; rather too much so, indeed, for she
awakened Jog's jealousy, who lay tossing and tumbling about all through the
night.
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