“I don’t ask your permission before I open my mouth,” cried Erb heatedly.
“True, my lad, true! You can go further than that. You can say that you didn’t do so without being adequately bribed to do it.”
“Bribed!” Erb rose at the table and clenched his fist.
“Keep cool!” said Mr. Doubleday, making a military tent of his two hands. “There’s no extra charge for sitting down.”
“Let me know what you mean by saying that I’ve been bribed.”
“I should have thought that you would have known the meaning of the term by this time. B-r-i-b-e is a word meaning the sum accepted for doing work that you had no business to do. We can easily verify it.” He snapped his fingers. “Got a dictionary, my dear?”
“To eat?” asked the waitress.
“A dictionary,” he repeated with impatience.
“We’ve got an old London directory.”
“Never mind about the exact definition of the word,” said Erb steadily. “Tell me at once what you mean by your accusation.”