“You’ll have to make up your mind pretty soon, I suppose,” said Warburton at length, in a not unpleasant voice.

“That’s the worst of it.  I don’t want to be in a hurry—­it’s just what I don’t want.”

“Doesn’t it occur to you,” asked Will, as if a sudden idea had struck him, “that perhaps she’s no more in a hurry than you are?”

“It’s possible.  I shouldn’t wonder.  But if I seem to be playing the fool—?”

“That depends on yourself.—­But,” Will added, with a twinkle in his eye, “there’s just one piece of advice I should like to offer you.”

“Let me have it,” replied the other eagerly.  “Very good of you, old man, not to be bored.”

“Don’t,” said Warburton, in an impressive undertone, “don’t persuade Mrs. Cross to change her grocer.”

CHAPTER 26

This conversation brought Warburton a short relief.  Laughter, even though it come from the throat rather than the midriff, tends to dispel morbid humours, and when he woke next morning, after unusually sound sleep, Will had a pleasure in the sunlight such as he had not known for a long time.  He thought of Norbert Franks, and chuckled; of Bertha Cross, and smiled.  For a day or two the toil of the shop was less irksome.  Then came sordid troubles which again overcast the sky.  Acting against his trusty henchman’s advice, Will had made a considerable purchase of goods from a bankrupt stock; and what seemed to be a great bargain was beginning to prove a serious loss.  Customers grumbled about the quality of articles supplied to them out of this unlucky venture, and among the dissatisfied was Mrs. Cross, who came and talked for twenty minutes about some tapioca that had been sent to her, obliging Mr. Jollyman to make repeated apologies and promises that such a thing should never occur again.  When the querulous-voiced lady at length withdrew, Will was boiling over with rage.

“Idiot!” he exclaimed, regardless of the fact that Allchin overheard him.

“You see, sir,” remarked the assistant.  “It’s just as I said; but I couldn’t persuade you.”

Will held his lips tight and stared before him.

“There’ll be a net loss of ten pounds on that transaction,” pursued Allchin.  “It’s a principle of honest business, never buy a bankrupt stock.  But you wouldn’t listen to me, sir—­”

“That’ll do, Allchin, that’ll do!” broke in the master, quivering with the restraint he imposed upon himself.  “Can’t you see I’m not in a mood for that sort of thing?”

This same day, there was a leakage of gas on the premises, due to bad workmanship in some new fittings which had cost Will more than he liked.  Then the shop awning gave way, and fell upon the head of a passer-by, who came into the shop swearing at large and demanding compensation for his damaged hat.  Sundry other things went wrong in the course of the week, and by closing-time on Saturday night Warburton’s nerves were in a state of tension which threatened catastrophe.  He went to bed at one o’clock; at six in the morning, not having closed his eves for a moment, he tumbled out again, dressed with fury, and rushed out of the house.