Presently he took out his pocket-book and began to write in it with a piece of black-lead pencil.

When the pipe was smoked out he knocked the bowl against the grate to get rid of the ash, and placed the pipe in his waistcoat pocket.

Then, having torn out the leaf on which he had been writing, he got up and went into the pantry, where Bert was still struggling with the old whitewash.
'Ain't yer nearly finished?
I don't want yer to stop in 'ere all day, yer know.' 'I ain't got much more to do now,' said the boy.

'Just this bit under the bottom shelf and then I'm done.' 'Yes, and a bloody fine mess you've made, what I can see of it!' growled Crass.

'Look at all this water on the floor!' Bert looked guiltily at the floor and turned very red.
'I'll clean it all up', he stammered.