CHAPTER III.


In the month of October of that year, a short time after John had taken
up his abode in Trinity College, an event occurred which shook
Billingsfield to its foundations; no less an event than the occupation of
the dwelling known as the "cottage." What the cottage was will appear
hereafter. The arrival of the new tenants occurred in the following
manner.

The Reverend Augustin Ambrose received a letter, which he immediately
showed to his wife, as he showed most of his correspondence; for he was
of the disposition which may be termed wife-consulting. Married men are
generally of two kinds; those who tell their wives everything and those
who tell them nothing. It is evident that the relative merits of the two
systems depend chiefly upon the relative merits of the wives in question.
Mr. Ambrose had no doubt of the advantages of his own method and he
carried it to its furthest expression, for he never did anything whatever
without consulting his better half. On the whole the plan worked well,
for the vicar had learning and his wife had common sense. He therefore
showed the letter to her and she read it, and read it again, and finally
put it away, writing across the envelope in her own large, clear hand the
words--Goddard, Cottage--indicative of the contents.

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