She had been accustomed to lean upon her husband, and now, for lack of firmer support, she leaned upon Winona.

Winona was young to act as prop, and though it flattered her sense of importance, it had put a row of wrinkles on her girlish forehead.

At fifteen she seemed much older than Percy at sixteen.

No one ever dreamt of taking Percy seriously; he was one of those jolly, easy-going, happy-go-lucky, unreliable people who saunter through life with no other aim than to amuse themselves at all costs.

To depend upon him was like trusting to a boat without a bottom.