'Mrs Gradgrind?' I said.
'How well you know your Dickens, little 'un. I always thought that such a funny joke. Don't hold me, darling, you must be so tired. Sit down beside me.'
Presently he said,—
'You might see poor old Sam to-morrow, he's somewhere in the hospital. He wants to marry the S.P.' And he smiled a little.
'Ought you to talk so much?' I asked.
'It doesn't matter when I can,' he answered, 'there are such a lot of things I want to say. That night when we were in the trench Sam said, "If we get out of this alive I want to marry Emma, if you've no objection, sir."
'"Who on earth," I said, "is Emma, Brown?"
'"Miss Margaret's parlourmaid, you know, sir."
'"Oh, the S.P., yes. Well, Sam, why shouldn't you if the lady's willing?"
'"If you've no objection, sir," he said again.