I discovered that one of these gentlemen was a barrister and the other a ship-owner, by the answers which Mrs.Farnaby absently extracted from them on the subject of their respective vocations in life.

And while she questioned incessantly, she ate incessantly.

Her vigorous body insisted on being fed.

She would have emptied her wineglass (I suspect) as readily as she plied her knife and fork--but I discovered that a certain system of restraint was established in the matter of wine.

At intervals, Mr.
Farnaby just looked at the butler--and the butler and his bottle, on those occasions, deliberately passed her by.