"Well I know of another case; young Foyle."
Susie started and nearly dropped her asked the other woman with little interest.
"The young fellow who works at Har-risen's, the ironmongers, used to be such a smart young chap, and Harrison left a lo to him, but my word! the change since he been married about three months! Looks as though he hadn't a penny to bless himself with now and a smart young chap there. is pushing him into the background, though my husband told me there was once a real chance of the old man giving Joe an interest in the business."
"Well! Well! I suppose she runs through his money quicker than he can earn it "Must do, my dear! The poor fellow Over heels in debt. Such said the conductor Susie got off the bus, her face was flushed, she felt that she was choking.
She was furious with the two scandalmongers in the bus, with Joe and with her-Self. This was all his wonderful Budget had done: People were saying things like that about them, and she was getting the blame. She was not a local girl, she came it matter what people like that said anyway? Her friends and Joe's friends would know there was no truth in the absurd story.
And then came just a tiny stab of fear when she thought of what that woman had said about Joe's job.
She had not been in Harrison's for some weeks. For one thing it was a rather swagger and expensive shop, and for another it made her feel horribly embarrassed to be served by her husband, but she determined to go there that morning and see for herself.
Harrison's was in the High Street, and Susie got a shock as soon as she entered the place. The sleek-haired young fellow whom Joe had taught his job, stepped forward to serve her, and there was Joe down On his knees, explaining a patent cooker to a customer, and she felt ashamed of him the soles of his shoes were exposed, a hi; hole almost worn through, his trousers, showing under his holland overall were terribly shaggy and beginning to fray at the ends, and his hair was too long.
Joe got to his feet and grinned cheerfully at her, as he conducted the customer along to see another cooker, but it was all Susie could do to smile back. She left the shop with a small saucepan she did not really need, and on her way home she did a lot of thinking.
"What have you put these out for, Sue? The old shoes will do till the end of the week in this dry weather.
Joe was gazing at the black shoes put out for him in place of the citi brown ones he had been going to take out to the scullery to clean.
"They looked awful, Joe, you couldn't have worn them any longer, so I took them round to be soled and heeled before it was too lat "That means TI have to pay for them this Saturday, and it will just spoil a record month's savings, and Christmas coming On too," grumbled Joe, but when Sue said she would pay for them out of the housekeeping, he wouldn't hear of it, and made such a fuss at the idea that Susie who had been going to suggest that she let him have the money to buy a pair of grey flannel trousers, promptly abandoned the idea.
How could she tell Joe what a wreck he looked and what people were saying? He was so pleased with himself over his saving: scheme, and she knew he could be as obstinate as a mule Tact! It would all tactfully, have to be done Joe!" she cried breathlessly, "there's a parcel come for you ey those people who've just moved in along the road thinking that you wrote poetry, Joe," she said sweetly at tea time the next evening "Eh?" said Joe, quite startled.
"She said shed heard that poets always wore their hair very long and went about looking like tramps!" murmured Susie, "I thought it was very rude of her." era
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.