Last time I dreamt about him Dolly had measles; she was awfully ill; she nearly died." As he spoke, Timmy kept looking round, as if afraid of being overheard.
"I don't mean to tell anyone else," he added confidentially.

"You see it upsets Mum, and makes the others cross, if I say things like that.

But still, I just thought I'd tell _you_." Radmore was impressed, disagreeably so, in spite of himself; but: "Look here, Timmy," he said chaffingly.

"The Greeks have a proverb about the bearer of ill-tidings; don't let yourself ever become that, old man! Have you ever heard, by the by, about 'the long arm of coincidence' ?" Timmy nodded.
"Don't you think it possible that your having dreamt about Dr.O'Farrell just before Dolly was taken ill may have been that long arm of coincidence--and nothing more?
I can't help thinking that probably your mother said something about sending for Dr.O'Farrell--for people don't get measles in a minute, you know; they are seedy for some days beforehand--and that made you dream of him.

Eh ?" But Timmy answered obliquely, as was rather his way when brought to book by some older person than himself.