Mr. Coulson

Mr. Coulson is a wealthy, elderly widower. He lives alone, aside from a few domestic servants. He has an illness called gout, and so he often relies on the servants for daily tasks. One day in May, due in part to the heat and floral aromas of springtime, he falls in love with his housemaid—the widow Mrs. Widdup. When Constantia makes the interior of the home artificially cold, Mr. Coulson’s love for Widdup vanishes. The love then returns after Widdup remedies the temperature, and Mr. Coulson considers proposing marriage to Widdup.

Mrs. Widdup

Mrs. Widdup is Mr. Coulson’s housemaid. She is a widow. When Mr. Coulson first begins to profess his love to her, she is confused. However, she eventually begins to deduce his true meaning. The next day, she prompts him to continue, but he is gruff due to the artificial chill in...