Twentyman might be given back to her. The Postmaster, half
vacillating in his desire to oblige a neighbour, produced the
letter and Mrs. Masters put out her hand to grasp it; but the
servant of the public,--who had been thoroughly grounded in his
duties by one of those trusty guardians of our correspondence who
inspect and survey our provincial post offices,--remembered himself
at the last moment and expressing the violence of his regret,
replaced the letter in the box. Mrs. Masters, in her anger and
grief, condescended to say very hard things to her neighbour; but
the man remembered his duty and was firm.
On that evening Larry Twentyman did not attend the Dillsborough
Club, having in the course of the week notified to the attorney
that he should be a defaulter. Mr. Masters himself went over
earlier than usual, his own house having become very uncomfortable
to him. Mrs. Masters for an hour sat expecting that Larry would
come, and when the evening passed away without his appearance, she
was convinced that the unusual absence was a part of the conspiracy
against her.
Larry did not get his letter till the Monday morning. On the last
Thursday and Saturday he had consoled himself for his doubts with
the U.R.U., and was minded to do so on the Monday also. He had not
gone to the club on Saturday and had moped about Chowton all the
Sunday in a feverish state because of his doubts.
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