Then I went in to Sam's little sitting-room.
'I've come to have it out with you, Sam, sit down.'
'Won't hurt me to stand up for five minutes, miss.'
'Sit down when you're told. I'm going to stay hours. Put your leg up properly. Now then,' I observed, when discipline had been unwillingly restored. 'We've had enough to eat since last Friday, have you been interfering in my kitchen, Brown?'
'Sorry, miss, but he told me to, you know.'
'Yes, but do you think that is sufficient reason when I told you not to. You must take a month's notice,' I said severely. 'Who's the mistress of the house, Brown?'
'You are, madam,' and he twinkled at me.
'Well, now, as you are really respectful, I may feel inclined to withdraw the notice if you tell me exactly where I go wrong. Why are we so disliked, let's have the whole truth, what's the matter with us?'
'Everything,' said Sam, surveying me gloomily, 'but some things specially, the silver's one.'
'The silver? Why it's almost all old, some of it's seventeen hundred and something.'