Anyhow, he's buying
up a lot of the Wilbraham property. I should have thought you'd have
heard of it. Why, lots of people have been talking about it."
"Well," said Mrs Machin, "I don't like it."
She objected to a law which permitted a landlord to sell a house over
the head of a tenant who had occupied it for more than thirty years. In
the course of the morning she discovered that Denry was right--the other
tenants had received notices exactly similar to hers.
Two days later Denry arrived home for tea with a most surprising article
of news. Mr Cecil Wilbraham had been down to Bursley from London, and
had visited him, Denry. Mr Cecil Wilbraham's local information was
evidently quite out of date, for he had imagined Denry to be a
rent-collector and estate agent, whereas the fact was that Denry had
abandoned this minor vocation years ago. His desire had been that Denry
should collect his rents and watch over his growing interests in the
district.
"So what did you tell him?" asked Mrs Machin.
"I told him I'd do it." said Denry.
"Why?"
"I thought it might be safer for _you_," said Denry, with a certain
emphasis.
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