"At that," continued The Freak with relish, "my sportsman went a sort of ripe gorgonzola colour, grabbed his filthy brolly, and slid heavily down the back stairs of the 'bus."
"And what did you do then?" enquired Lady Adela.
"I," replied Dicky triumphantly, "got up and took his seat and gave Tilly my umbrella!"
"Ha! ha! ha!" crowed Mr. Mainwaring delightedly. "H'm! h'm! h'm! Honk! honk! honk!" he concluded hurriedly, coughing laboriously and patting himself upon the chest, as his consort turned menacingly in his direction.
"And where did you part company?" asked Lady Adela.
"Well," explained the culprit, "I offered to see her home. She was rather shaken up by what had happened."
Lady Adela nodded her head as if she had expected this.
"I see. And what did the young woman--
"Don't you think, Mum dear, that you might start calling her 'lady' now?" suggested Dicky gently.
"--Say to that?" she enquired, without taking the slightest notice of the interruption.