He grumbled for hours to his mother.

She only said: "Well, my lad, you did it yourself, now you must make the best of it." And then the grit came out in him.

He buckled to work, undertook his responsibilities, acknowledged that he belonged to his wife and child, and did make a good best of it.

He had never been very closely inbound into the family.

Now he was gone altogether.
The months went slowly along.