One Mr. Lugubrious Blue flits through the drawings of a certain famous cartoonist. Mr. Blue's mission is to take the joy out of life and Charlotte Whipp was his blood kin. The tip of her long nose was as chilly as his and her gloom was similarly chronic. Miss Upton was determined that she would not be the first to break in upon Pearl's solo.
Finally Charlotte spoke:
"Do the Barrys have a house to the port?"
"Yes, a real cottage. The rest of us have shelters, but you can't call 'em houses."
Mrs. Whipp looked up apprehensively. "Do you mean they let in the rain?"
"Sometimes in storms," returned Miss Upton cheerfully, "but we run around with pans and catch it."
Mrs. Whipp viewed her bread and butter gloomily, the down-drawn corner of her one-sided mouth unusually depressed.
Miss Mehitable felt a wild desire to laugh. She wished she could keep Ben Barry out of her mind during this important interview. Her kind heart administered a little comfort.
"You see, there isn't any lath and plaster to the cottage, but it's good and tight except in very bad weather," she said.
"It's a wonder you don't get rheumatics yourself," vouchsafed Charlotte.