"And how, may I ask, did Mrs. Purcell translate 'elevating her shingle' into English?"
"Oh, I can't remember the old lady's long-winded sentences, but she is now in Guelph Road. Miss Slarge, with Miss Ostergaard, comes up next week. Of course, Mrs. Purcell knows nothing of Mrs. Carson's matrimonial troubles, or I dare say she would have asked her too."
"She must ask her," said Mallow, hastily. "I shall call on Mrs. Purcell, and explain the circumstances. It will never do for Mrs. Carson to be left alone in her troubles."
"Take care, Mallow; your interest in Mrs. Carson may be misconstrued."
"Oh, rubbish! Mrs. Purcell is a woman of sense, I am sure. So long as I keep my own counsel, she can say nothing. I want Mrs. Carson to revert, as much as possible, to the condition of affairs before this unhappy marriage. When all this mystery is cleared up, she will be able to start fresh."
"That will depend, of course, mainly upon the identity of this man Carson," said Aldean.
"Nothing of the sort," contradicted Mallow, sharply, but wincing all the same; "whatever he is she is his wife--there's no getting past that fact."
"She may get a divorce. Carson's gone off with that girl."
"Quite so; but he has not so far treated her with cruelty, and--well, you know the idiotcy of the D.C. For Heaven's sake, Jim, drop Mrs. Carson."
"All right," assented Aldean. "I see your nerves are jumpy on that subject. Let's get to the matters in hand. About this Carson mess; what do you think of it?"