"Professor Hanky," said she to Mrs. Humdrum, in Hanky's hearing, "is a
little alarmed at my having asked you to join our secret conclave. He is
not married, and does not know how well a woman can hold her tongue when
she chooses. I should have told you all that passed, for I mean to
follow your advice, so I thought you had better hear everything
yourself."
Hanky still looked black, but he said nothing. Luncheon was promptly
served, and done justice to in spite of much preoccupation; for if there
is one thing that gives a better appetite than another, it is a Sunday
morning's service with a charity sermon to follow. As the guests might
not talk on the subject they wanted to talk about, and were in no humour
to speak of anything else, they gave their whole attention to the good
things that were before them, without so much as a thought about
reserving themselves for the evening's banquet. Nevertheless, when
luncheon was over, the Professors were in no more genial, manageable,
state of mind than they had been when it began.
When the servants had left the room, Yram said to Hanky, "You saw the
prisoner, and he was the man you met on Thursday night?"
"Certainly, he was wearing the forbidden dress and he had many quails in
his possession. There is no doubt also that he was a foreign devil.
Pages:
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233