... By Jove, I was bad.'
'Where?--on the ship?'
'No,' bellowed the other. 'No. That was in Wellington, New Zealand. I was
bad, and got lower an' lower--couldn't think what was up. I could hardly
crawl about. As certain as I'm here, she was poisoning me, to get to th'
other chap--I'm certain of it.'
'And what did you do?'
'I cleared out--went to Sydney--'
'And left her?'
'Yes, I thought begod, I'd better clear out if I wanted to live.'
'And you were all right in Sydney?'
'Better in no time--I _know_ she was putting poison in my coffee.'
'Hm!'
There was a glum silence. The driver stared at the road ahead, fixedly,
managing the car as if it were a live thing. The nephew felt that his
uncle was afraid, quite stupefied with fear, fear of life, of death, of
himself.
'You're in rooms, then?' asked the nephew.
'No, I'm in a house of my own,' said the uncle defiantly, 'wi' th' best
little woman in th' Midlands. She's a marvel.--Why don't you come an' see
us?'
'I will. Who is she?'
'Oh, she's a good girl--a beautiful little thing. I was clean gone
on her first time I saw her. An' she was on me. Her mother lives with
us--respectable girl, none o' your....'
'And how old is she?'
'--how old is she?--she's twenty-one.'
'Poor thing.'
'_She's_ right enough.'
'You'd marry her--getting a divorce--?'
'I shall marry her.'
There was a little antagonism between the two men.
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