“I’m not losing sleep over them.”
“Now, I’ll admit candidly,” said the lawyer, “that a couple of ’em are no good. They’re dead. But there’s merit in Madam Taylor’s case. You went too far there. Your own lawyers will tell you that.”
“They have,” said Jeremy incautiously, and bit his lip.
“Well, in spite of that, I’ve come to tell you that we’ve advised our client to withdraw the action.”
“Have you?” said the editor warily. “Why?”
“Call it friendship.”
“On your part? For The Guardian?”
“We-ell; say it’s because I foresee that the paper is going to have plenty of troubles of its own without our adding to them.”
“You haven’t always been so solicitous as to The Guardian’s welfare.”
“Meaning that you would like to understand the reason for my present solicitude?”