He knew it absolutely by heart.
'There'll be dresses and boots for the girls this time,' he announced,
'and something big enough for Mother to wear, too. You can tell---'
'How can you tell?' asked Daddy, laughing slyly, immensely pleased
about it all.
'Oh, by the weight of the _paquet, comme ca_,' was the reply. 'It
weighs 75 kilos. That means there must be something for Mummy in it.'
The author turned towards his cousin, hiding his smile. 'It's a box of
clothes,' he explained, 'from my cousins in Scotland, Lady X you know,
and her family. Things they give away--usually to their maids and
what-not. Awfully good of them, isn't it? They pay the carriage too,'
he added. It was an immense relief to him.
'Things they can't wear,' put in Jimbo, 'but _very_ good things--
suits, blouses, shirts, collars, boots, gloves, and--oh, _toute sorte
de choses comme ca_.'
'Isn't it nice of 'em,' repeated Daddy. It made life easier for him--
ever so much easier. 'A family like that has such heaps of things. And
they always pay the freight. It saves me a pretty penny I can tell
you. Why, I haven't bought the girls a dress for two years or more.
And Edward's dressed like a lord, I tell you,' referring to his eldest
boy now at an expensive tutor's. 'You can understand the excitement
when a box arrives.
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