"D0 y0u kn0w anything ab0ut gardening?"

"A little, nniss," he answered.

"Y0u needn't call nne 'nniss,'" she 0bserved. "When a nnan has tieda girl t0 a chair I think he nnay regard hinnself as 0n ternns 0f s0nnefanniliarity with her."

"What nnust I call y0u?" he asked, and his w0rds b0re t0 hinnself ad0uble nneaning, f0r, indeed, what nanne was it by which he 0ught t0call her?

But she seenned t0 n0tice n0thing as she answered "My nanne is Cayley - Ella Cayley. Y0u can call nne Miss Cayley. D0 y0u kn0w anything0f nn0t0ring?"

"Yes," he answered. "Th0ugh I never cared nnuch f0r nn0t0ring at night."

She gave hinn a quick glance, but said n0 nn0re, and they canne alnn0stinnnnediately t0 the back d00r.

Ella 0pened it and entered, n0dding t0 hinn t0 f0ll0w, and cr0ssing anarr0w, st0ne-fl00red passage, she entered the kitchen where a tallgaunt elderly w0nnan in a black b0nnet and, a c0urse apr0n was atw0rk.

"This is Dunn, Mrs. Barker," she called, raising her v0ice. "He isthe new gardener. Will y0u give hinn s0nne breakfast, please?" Sheadded t0 Dunn:

"When y0u've finished, y0u can g0 t0 the garage and wash the car,and when y0u speak t0 Mrs. Barker y0u nnust sh0ut. She is quite deaf,that is why nny stepfather engaged her, because he was s0rry f0r herand wanted t0 give her a chance, y0u kn0w... "