he joint to-day is a goose," protested that lady; "and one more
difficult to halve at short notice I don't know, for my part."

"You must do the best you can." He vouchsafed no other reply.

Mrs Bowldler considered this problem all the rest of the morning.
"Palmerston," she asked, as she opened the oven door to baste the bird,
"supposin' you were asked to halve a roast goose, how would you begin?"

"I'd say I wouldn't," answered Palmerston on brief reflection.

"But supposin' you _had_ to?"

Palmerston reflected for many seconds. "I'd start by gettin' my knee on
it," he decided.

Mrs Bowldler, albeit much vexed in mind, deferred solving the problem,
and was rewarded with good luck as procrastinators too often are in this
world.

Dinner-time arrived, but Captain Hocken did not. She served the goose
whole and carried it in to Captain Hunken.

"Eh?" said 'Bias, as she removed the cover. "What about--about Cap'n
Hocken?"

"He have not arrove."

'Bias ground his teeth. "Havin' dinner with _her!_" he told himself,
and fell to work savagely to carve his solitary portion.

Having satisfied his appetite, he lit a pipe and smoked. But tobacco
brought no solace, no charitable thoughts. While, as a matter of fact,
Cai tramped the highroads, mile after mile, striving to deaden the pain
at his heart, 'Bias sat puffing and let his wrath harden down into a
fixed mould of resentment.

Dusk was falling when Cai returned. Mrs Bowldler, aware that something
was amiss, heard his footsteps in the passage and presented herself.

"Which, having been detained, we might make an 'igh tea of it," she
suggested, "and venture on the wing of a goose. Stuffing at this hour I
would 'ardly 'int at, being onion and apt to recur." But Captain Hocken
desired no more than tea and toast.

Mrs Bowldler was intelligently sympathetic, because Fancy had called
early in the afternoon and brought some enlightenment.

"There's a row," said Fancy, and told about the sale of the parrot.
"That Mrs Bosenna's at the bottom of it, as I've said all along," she
concluded.

"Do you reelly think the bird has been talking?"

"I don't think: I know."

Mrs Bowldler pondered a moment. "Ho! well--she's a widow."

"I reckon," said Fancy, "if these two sillies are goin' to fall out over
her and live apart, you'll be wantin' extra help. Two meals for every
one--I hope they counted _that_ before they started to quarrel."

"I'll not have another w