The weather had been quite hot; but this was one of the good phrases of the book, and I stuck to it.
All this appeared to increase his panic, and he glanced at the door more than once as if he would like to make a bolt for safety.
Now I was quite in my element, and from my palissade of books I could hurl all sorts of irrelevant politenesses at him.
“Ik verwelkom U oprechtelijk, mijnheer. U bezoek is mij oorzaak van ongeveinsde blijdschap.”
NONSENSE LET LOOSE.
Holding the portfolio clenched in both hands he stared at me as if he was incapable of speech.
This seemed a favourable opportunity for putting in an algemeene opmerking, which I must say had all the effect of a round shot after infantry fire.
“Deugden en belooning gaan zelden te zamen,” I murmured pleasantly, with a friendly gesture of deprecation. Then in a second or two afterwards I added,—leaving him to find out the connection as best he might,—“Water bevriest op twee-en-dertig graden.”
The more outrageous the nonsense which I repeated from my notes, the paler he got.