They had decided on retaining a little furniture, besides the photographic apparatus and studio fittings, for the establishment of the new home, wherever and whatever it should be.
"Very well, Miss Gertrude. And shall I bring you up a little luncheon?"
"No, thank you, Kettle. And I must say good-bye, and thank you for all your kindness to us."
"God bless you, Miss Gertrude, every one of you! I have made so bold as to give my address-card to Miss Phyllis; and if there's anything in which I can ever be of service, don't you think twice about it, but write off at once to Jonah Kettle."
Overcome by his own eloquence, and without waiting for a reply, the old man shuffled off down the path, leaving Gertrude strangely touched by this unexpected demonstration.
"We resolved not to be cynical," she thought. "Cynical! What is the meaning of the current commonplaces as to loss of friends with loss of fortune? How did they arise? What perverseness of vision could have led to the creation of such a person as Timon of Athens, for instance? If misery parts the flux of company, surely it is the miserable people's own fault."
Balancing the mass of friends in need against one who was only a fair-weather friend, Gertrude refused to allow her faith in humanity to be shaken.
Ah, Gertrude, but it is early days!
