Just now he had the election on his hands, and with it some problems of personal dignity and repute that required his closest attention. But he also had Wanalah plantation to look after, and in view of his long absence he felt that home affairs were pressing.
Accordingly he was up before the dawn, on the morning after his arrival, and for half an hour after dawn he waited, not at all patiently, for the coming of his overseer, to whom he had sent a summons over night to be with him "at the crack of day." Then instead of waiting longer, he mounted his horse and rode away on a tour of inspection.
It was well after sunrise when he returned to find the overseer hitching his horse to the rack.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Wilkinson," he said; "I had hoped to see you this morning."
"I'm sorry, sir, but Î was very tired last night."
"So was I. I had walked all through the night before. Never mind that now. I wanted to see you at dawn. The sun is now half an hour high. That means that you have wasted an hour and a half of my time, and my time is just now precious."
"I'm very sorry, sir—"
"Don't bother to apologize. I can't waste any further time listening to excuses. Why are you seeding the Gaston field in wheat? I directed otherwise, you know."
"Well, sir, the fall has given us good weather, and we can get in that two hundred acres as well as not."
"But how about harvesting it?"