Then there was an awkward pause as he
stood by the wheel with his cap off.
"Well, Miss McGill," he said, "there's an express train at
five o'clock, so with luck I shall be in Brooklyn to-night.
My brother's address is 600 Abingdon Avenue, and I hope when
you're sending a card to the Sage you'll let me have one, too.
I shall be very homesick for Parnassus, but I'd rather leave
her with you than with any one I know."
He bowed very low, and before I could say a word he blew his
nose violently and hurried away. I saw him carrying his
valise into the station, and then he disappeared. I suppose
that living alone with Andrew for all these years has unused
me to the eccentricities of other people, but surely this
little Redbeard was one of the strangest beings one would be
likely to meet.
Bock yowled dismally inside, and I did not feel in any mood to
sell books in Port Vigor. I drove back into the town and
stopped at a tea shop for a pot of tea and some toast. When
I came out I found that quite a little crowd had collected,
partly owing to the strange appearance of Parnassus and partly
because of Bock's plaintive cries from within. Most of the
onlookers seemed to suspect the outfit of being part of a
travelling menagerie, so almost against my will I put up the
flaps, tied Bock to the tail of the wagon, and began to answer
the humourous questions of the crowd.
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