"Miss," he said, "we've never done big jobs, Sim Soames an' me. P'raps
we're not up to it--but it'd be a fortune to us."
She was looking down at one of her papers and making pencil marks on it.
"You did some work last year on a little house at Tidhurst, didn't you?"
she said.
To think of her knowing that! Yes, the unaccountable good luck had
actually come to him that two Tidhurst carpenters, falling ill of the
same typhoid at the same time, through living side by side in the same
order of unsanitary cottage, he and Sim had been given their work to
finish, and had done their best.
"Yes, miss," he answered.
"I heard that when I was inquiring about you. I drove over to Tidhurst
to see the work, and it was very sound and well done. If you did that, I
can at least trust you to do something at the Court which will prove to
me what you are equal to. I want a Stornham man to undertake this."
"No Tidhurst man," said Joe Buttle, with sudden courage, "nor yet no
Barnhurst, nor yet no Yangford, nor Wratcham shall do it, if I can look
it in the face. It's Stornham work and Stornham had ought to have it. It
gives me a brace-up to hear of it."
The tall young lady laughed beautifully and got up.
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