st night over
diaries and Roman roads. By a natural revulsion, violent in proportion
to the depth of her previous regard for Major Benjy, she hugged herself
more closely on the prospect of exposing him than on that of exposing
the other. She had had daydreams about Major Benjy and the conversion of
these into nightmares annealed her softness into the semblance of some
red-hot stone, giving vengeance a concentrated sweetness as of
saccharine contrasted with ordinary lump sugar. This sweetness was of so
powerful a quality that she momentarily forgot all about the contents of
Withers's letter on the kitchen table, and tripped across to Mr.
Hopkins's with an oblivious smile for him.

"Good morning, Mr. Hopkins," she said. "I wonder if you've got a nice
little dab for my dinner to-day? Yes? Will you send it up then, please?
What a mild morning, like May!"

The opening move, of course, was to tell Diva about the revelation that
had burst on her the night before. Diva was incomparably the best
disseminator of news: she walked so fast, and her telegraphic style was
so brisk and lucid. Her terse tongue, her revolving feet! Such a gossip!

"Diva darling, I had to look in a moment," said Elizabeth, pecking her
affectionately on both cheeks. "Such a bit of news!"

"Oh, Contessa di Faradidleony," said Diva sarcastically. "I heard
yesterday. Journey put off."

Miss Mapp just managed to stifle the excitement which would have
betrayed that this was news to her.

"No, dear, not that," she said. "I didn't suspect you of not knowing
that. Unfortunate though, isn't it, just when we were all beginning to
believe that there was a Contessa di Faradidleony! What a sweet name!
For my part I shall believe in her when I see her. Poor Mr. Wyse!"

"What's the news then?" asked Diva.

"My dear, it all came upon me in a flash," said Elizabeth. "It explains
the portmanteau and the early train and the duel."

Diva looked disappointed. She thought this was to be some solid piece of
news, not one of Elizabeth's ideas only.

"Drive ahead," she said.

"They ran away from each other," said Elizabeth, mouthing her words as
if speaking to a totally deaf person who understood lip-reading. "Never
mind the cause of the duel: that's another affair. But whatever the
cause," here she dropped her eyes, "the Major having sent the challenge
packed his portmanteau. He ran away, dear Diva, and met Captain Puffin
at the station running away too."

"But did