"I thought you were one of those women,
Josephine, who always kept their servants."
"I do, as a rule," was the quiet reply, "only sometimes Henry
intervenes. If there is one thing that the modern servant dislikes, it
is sarcasm, and sarcasm is Henry's favourite weapon when he wants to be
really disagreeable. Generally speaking, I think a servant would rather
be sworn at."
"You seem to have made a clean sweep this time."
Josephine stirred her coffee thoughtfully.
"Henry has been having one of his bad weeks," she said. "He has been
absolutely impossible to every one. He threatened to give every servant
in the house notice, the other day, because his bell wasn't answered, so
I took him at his word. We've no one left except the cook, and she
declined to go. She has been with us ever since we were married. All the
same, I wouldn't have had any one but you and Jimmy to dinner to-night.
I wasn't at all sure how things would turn out. Besides, it isn't every
one I'd care to ask into this dungeon of a room."
"I was wondering why we were here, Josephine," Sarah remarked, looking
around her. "It used to be one of your hospital rooms, surely?"
Josephine nodded.
"The other rooms want turning out, dear. I knew you wouldn't mind."
There are women as well as men who have learnt the art of a sociable
silence.
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