“Tell me,” said Kearns, after a pause, “what’s the name of that village?”
“Pemberton, sir.”
“Pemberton—Pemberton,” repeated Kearns. “I thought I knew all the places in this section, yet I never heard of Pemberton. Can you tell me in which direction lies Averill?”
“Averill, sir? I never heard the name.”
“Have you lived here long?”
“All my life.”
Kearns paused a moment thoughtfully. Then a sudden thought occurred to him.
“You say this is the end of July?”
“Yes sir; the twenty-fifth.”
“Any news lately about the nominations?”