V
“Milly,” demanded the husband when he faced his wife in the kitchen half an hour later, “what was Si Plumb doing upstairs with you, when mother called the first of the afternoon?”
The girl flashed him a look of defiance.
“So! Your mother’s been carryin’ tales, has she? Well, it’s just like her! If you want to know, Mr. Smartie, I sent for Si to come and tighten the faucets in the upstairs bathroom.” Si had long since quit the tannery and become a steam-fitter in the village.
But somehow Milly’s explanation sounded thin.
“I could have done such a simple job as that,” Nathan observed. “You didn’t need to call Si and run up a plumber’s bill!”
“You tighten bathroom faucets? You’re a high-brow, remember! You’re above tightening bathroom faucets these days, Nat Forge!”