being good substantial mahogany or walnut, it was
some queerly veined light-coloured wood, and decorated
with the strangest coloured rectangular designs,
and painted -- well, with nightmare oddities, that's what
she called them! And she was not far wrong, for
all down one side of the wardrobe waddled a procession
of bright green ducks.

Polly could never make her husband out. He was
so careful, so -- so miserly in some ways, so wildly
extravagant in others. All this furniture had come
from Germany, and must have cost a pretty penny.
It was true that he had got it, or so he assured her,
with very heavy discount off -- and that no doubt was
correct.

The only ornaments in the room, if ornaments they
could be called, were faded photographs and two oleographs
in gilt frames. One of the photographs was
the portrait of Manfred's first wife, a very plain, fat
woman. Then there were tiny cartes of Manfred's
father and mother -- regular horrors they must have
been, so Polly thought resentfully. The oleographs
were views of Heidelburg and of the Kiel Canal.

Poor Polly! She had been sent up here, just as if
she was a little girl in disgrace, about half an hour
ago -- simply for having told her own sister Jenny, who
was useful maid to Miss Haworth at the Deanery, that
Manfred had spent yesterday at Southampton. He
had gone on smiling quite affably as long as Jenny
was there, but the door had hardly closed on her before
he had turned round on _her,_ Polly, in furious
anger.

"Blab! Blab! Blab!" he had snapped out. "You'll
end by hanging me before you've done! It won't be

[[131]]

p130 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p131w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p132

v?