CHAPTER XXI
SIX LETTERS
Mrs. Maradick to Miss Crowdet.
The Elms, Epsom.
October 17.
My dearest Louie,
I’ve been meaning to write all this week, but so many things have accumulated since we’ve been away that there’s simply not been a minute to write a decent letter. No, Treliss wasn’t very nice this time. You know, dear, the delightful people that were there last year? Well, there were none of them this year at all except that Mrs. Lawrence, who really got on my nerves to such an extent!
There were some people called Gale we saw something of—Lady and Sir Richard Gale. I must say I thought them rather bad form, but Jim liked them; and then their boy eloped with a girl from the town, which made it rather thrilling, especially as Sir Richard was simply furious with Jim because he thought that he’d had something to do with it. And you can’t imagine how improved dear old Jim is with it all, really quite another man, and so amusing when he likes; and people quite ran after him there, you wouldn’t have believed it. There was a horrid woman, a Mrs. Lester, who would have gone to any lengths, I really believe, only, of course, Jim wasn’t having any. I always said that he could be awfully amusing if he liked and really nice, and he’s been going out quite a lot since we’ve been back and everybody’s noticed the difference.
And what do you think? We may be leaving Epsom! I know it’ll be simply hateful leaving you, dear, but it’ll only be London, you know, and you can come up whenever you like and stay just as long as you please, and we’ll be awfully glad. But Epsom is a little slow, and what Jim says is quite true—why not be either town or country? It’s what I’ve always said, you know, and perhaps we’ll have a little cottage somewhere as well.
By the way, dear, as you are in town I wish you’d just look in at Harrod’s and see about those patterns. Two and elevenpence is much too much, and if the ones at two and sixpence aren’t good enough you might ask for another sort!