Mrs Yabsley stood on the veranda and watched his departing figure, aching
in every joint from the strain of the eventful day. Cardigan Street was
silent and deserted. The air was still hot and breathless, but little
gusts of wind began to rise, the first signs of a coming "buster". Then
she turned to Jonah and Ada, who had followed her on to the veranda,
and summed up the day's events.

"All's well that ends well, as the man said when he plaited the horse's
tail, but this is a new way of gittin' married on the sly, with all the
street to keep the secret. There's no mistake, secrets are dead funny.
Spend yer last penny to 'elp yer friend out of a 'ole, an' it niver gits
about, but pawn yer last shirt, an' nex' day all the bloomin' street wants
to know if yer don't feel the cold."




CHAPTER 8



JONAH STARTS ON HIS OWN


It was Monday morning. Hans Paasch was at his bench cleaning up the dirt
and litter of last week, setting the tools in order at one end of the
bench, while he swept it clear of the scraps of leather that had gathered
through the week. Then he set the heavy iron lasts on their shelves,
where they looked like a row of amputated feet. The shining knives and
irons lay in order, ready to hand. A light cloud of dust from the broom