a moment. After the confusion of her twilight walk,
and her random thoughts, life in this small room appeared extremely
concentrated and bright. She turned instinctively to look out of the
window, which was uncurtained, but Mary immediately recalled her.

"It was very clever of you to find your way," she said, and Katharine
wondered, as she stood there, feeling, for the moment, entirely detached
and unabsorbed, why she had come. She looked, indeed, to Mary's eyes
strangely out of place in the office. Her figure in the long cloak,
which took deep folds, and her face, which was composed into a mask of
sensitive apprehension, disturbed Mary for a moment with a sense of
the presence of some one who was of another world, and, therefore,
subversive of her world. She became immediately anxious that Katharine
should be impressed by the importance of her world, and hoped that
neither Mrs. Seal nor Mr. Clacton would appear until the impression of
importance had been received. But in this she was disappointed. Mrs.
Seal burst into the room holding a kettle in her hand, which she set
upon the stove, and then, with inefficient haste, she set light to the
gas, which flared up, exploded, and went out.

"Always the way, always the way," she muttered. "Kit Markham is the only
person who knows how to deal with the thing."

Mary had to go to her help, and together they spread the table, and
apologized for the disparity between the cups and the plainness of the
food.

"If we had known Miss Hilbery was coming, we should have bought a cake,"
said Mary, upon which Mrs. Seal looked at Katharine for the first time,
suspiciously, because she was a person who needed cake.

Here Mr. Clacton opened the door, and came in, holding a typewritten
letter in his hand, which he was reading aloud.

"Salford's affiliated," he said.

"Well done, Salford!" Mrs. Seal exclaimed enthusiastically, thumping the
teapot which she held upon the table, in token of applause.

"Yes, these provincial centers seem to be coming into line at last,"
said Mr. Clacton, and then Mary introduced him to Miss Hilbery, and
he asked her, in a very formal manner, if she were interested "in our
work."

"And the proofs still not come?" said Mrs. Seal, putting both her elbows
on the table, and propping her chin on her hands, as Mary began to pour
out tea. "It's too bad--too bad. At this rate we shall miss the
country post. Which reminds me, Mr. Clacton, don't you think we shou