married sister, completing the tale, lived at the opposite
end of the county, held close by poverty and
her own large brood.

Summer and winter Gordon Makimmon drove
the stage between Greenstream and Stenton. At
dawn he left Greenstream, arriving in Stenton at
the end of day; the following morning he re-departed
for Greenstream. This mechanical, monotonous
routine satisfied his need without placing too great
a strain on his energy; he enjoyed rolling over the
summer roads or in the crisp clear sunlight of winter;
he liked the casual converse of the chance passengers,
the inevitable deference to his local knowledge,
the birdlike chatter and flattery of the young
women. He liked, so easily, to play oracle and
wiseman; he liked the admiration called forth by a
certain theatrical prowess with the reins and whip.

On the occasions when he was too drunk to drive
-- not over often -- a substitute was quietly found
until he recovered and little was said. Gordon
Makimmon was invaluable in a public charge, a
trust -- he had never lost a penny of the funds he
continually carried for deposit in the Stenton banks;
no insult had been successfully offered to any daughter
of Greenstream accompanying him without other
care in the stage.

[[22]]

p021 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p022w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p023

v?