His brother in the Midlands made contribution towards the mother's support, but Henry had a family of his own, and it was only right that Gilbert should bear the greater charge.

Gilbert was nearing five-and-thirty.
By nature he was a lonely man.

Amusement such as his world offered had always been savourless to him, and he had never sought familiar fellowship beyond his home.

Even there it often happened that for days he kept silence; he would eat his meal when he came from work, then take his book to a corner, and be mute, answering any needful question with a gesture or the briefest word.

At such times his face had the lines of age; you would have deemed him a man weighed upon by some vast sorrow.