." She snapped the words--broke them crisp and sharp with
pardonable irritation and spirit.

"Oh--indeed--I'm not worrying meself. I'm sorry to have made you so
offended like--it's no affair of mine. I'm quite aware of that--only
that I thought, seeing you've been here nigh on two years and never
gone out by yourself before like--I was only just making--whatcher
might call--friendly inquiry about it--see?"

She brushed the heads of the shrimps into the slop-basin with her
hand and stood up, evidently offended, from the table.

"Of course, it's no business of mine, and I have no cause to complain
of anything you do; you give no offence to me, I must say that. I
never had better be'aved lodgers than I've got at present."

"But you felt curious?" suggested Janet.

"Me? Curious? Well, I think that's the last thing you could accuse
me of. I've got enough affairs of me own without worrying about other
people's. Me? Curious?" She laughed at the impossibility of such a
thing, and began to clear away the breakfast things with more noise
than was actually necessary.

"Well, there's nothing to be excited about, then," said Janet.

Mrs. Hewson laid a cup and saucer with such gentleness upon a pile
of plates that the absence of noise was oppressive.

"I'm not excited," she said with crimson cheeks.

"Sorry," said Janet, laconically; "thought you were. If there's a
thing more hateful than another, I think it's the vexation of a person
who can't satisfy their curiosity about some other body's business.
Don't you think so, Mrs. Hewson?"

"I'm sure I don't know. Those abstruse matters don't worry me."

"No? Well, that is so, and it's about the commonest weakness of
humanity. If I thought you worried about our affairs--of course, I
know you don't, you're most reasonable--I wouldn't stay here another
minute."

The colour in Mrs. Hewson's cheeks went from red to white.

"But you said I was curious," she said in a reserved voice.

"Oh yes, that was only fun! Hadn't you better get a key, Sally, if
you're going to be late. Can you spare Miss Bishop a key, Mrs.
Hewson?"

"Certainly; of course; I'll go and get it."

They both laughed when she had gone out. Sally told Janet that she
was wonderful.

"She'll never meddle again," she said. "I couldn't have done it like
you did."

"Of course you couldn't."

"But why not? I wouldn't be afraid to, but simply I shouldn't think
of things; and why shouldn't I?"

"Because you're