things which do not invariably run smoothly in conjunction with each
other.

The opening phrase had reference to the fact that her husband, the
defunct major, had been an army doctor, and the word hospitality
pleasantly suggested the idea of a home from home, whilst the
afterthought conveyed by the moderate terms delicately indicated that the
hospitality was not entirely of a gratuitous nature. The man-servant, on
closer inspection, resolved himself into a French-Swiss waiter, whose
agility and condition were such that he could negotiate the whole ninety
stairs of the house, three at a time, without once pausing for breath
till he reached the top.

Little Miss Bunting, the lady-help, who lived with Mrs. Lawrence on the
understanding that she gave "assistance in light household duties in
return for hospitality," was not quite so nimble as Henri, the waiter,
and often found her heart beating quite uncomfortably fast by the time
she had climbed the ninety stairs to the little cupboard of a room which
Mrs. Lawrence's conception of hospitality allotted for her use. She did
the work of two servants and ate rather less than one, and, seeing that
she received no wages and was incurably conscientious, Mrs. Lawrence
found the arrangement eminently satisfactory. Possibly Miss Bunting
herself regarded the matter with somewhat less enthusiasm, but she was a
plucky little person and made no complaint. As she wrote to her invalid
mother, shortly after taking up her duties at Brutton Square: "After all,
dearest of little mothers, I have a roof over my head and food to eat,
and I'm not costing you anything except a few pounds for my clothes. And
perhaps when I leave here, if Mrs. Lawrence gives me a good reference, I
shall be able to get a situation with a salary attached to it."