-going to give them up because they was shabby,"
said Sarah. He sent down his shabby clothes to be brushed, and wore Mr
Wentworth's linen, to the indignation of the household. But he was not
a man to be concealed in a corner. From where he sat in the green
room, he whistled so beautifully that Mrs Hadwin's own pet canary
paused astonished to listen, and the butcher's boy stole into the
kitchen surreptitiously to try if he could learn the art; and while he
whistled, he filled the tidy room with parings and cuttings of wood,
and carved out all kinds of pretty articles with his knife. But though
he rang his bell so often, and was so tiresome with his litter, and
gave so much trouble, Sarah's heart, after a while, melted to "the
gentleman." He made her a present of a needlecase, and was very
civil-spoken--more so a great deal than the Curate of St Roque's; and
such a subject of talk and curiosity had certainly not been in
Carlingford for a hundred years.

As for Mrs Hadwin, she never gave any explanation at all on the
subject, but accepted the fact of a new inmate cheerfully, as if she
knew all about it. Of course she could not ask any of her nieces to
visit her while the green room was occupied; and as they were all
rather large, interfering, managing women, perhaps the old lady was
not very sorry. Mr Wentworth himself was still less explanatory. When
Mr Wodehouse said to him, "What is this I hear about a brother of
yours?--they tell me you've got a brother staying with you. Well,
that's what I hear. Why don't you bring him up to dinner? Come
to-morrow;" the Perpetual Curate calmly answered, "Thank you; but
there's no brother of mine in Carlingford," and took no further
notice. Naturally, however, this strange apparition was much discussed
in Grange Lane; the servants first, and then the ladies, became
curious about him. Sometimes, in the evenings, he might be seen coming
out of Mrs Hadwin's garden-door--a shabby figure, walking softly in
his patched boots. There never was light enough for any one to see
him; but he had a great beard, and smoked a short little pipe, and had
evidently no regard for appearances. It was a kind of thing which few
people approved of. Mrs Hadwin ought not to permit it, some ladies
said; and a still greater number were of the opinion that, rather than
endure so strange a fellow-lodger, the Curate ought to withdraw, and
find fresh lodgings. This was before the time when the public began to
associ