That little, the old man weighed. A little is often enough. It may be too much.
"He spoke about a girl, eh?"
"He said a lady was stopping there. Yes, sir."
"What else?"
The butler shuffled. "He said she was very pretty, sir."
"Go on, Canlon."
"Well, sir, it seems there was a joke about it. The young lady thought she was married."
"How was that?"
"I'm not supposed to know, sir. But from what was let on, Benny was rigged out as a dominie and it made 'em laugh."
The old man ran his head out like a turtle. "Damnation, what has that to do with it?"