Oh! how he enjoyed it! He
was sick of elaborate menus.
On the following Friday, when she again suggested salt salmon for
dinner, Lewis came home, carrying two ptarmigans! He called to her
from the threshold:
"Just imagine, Lou, a most extraordinary thing happened! A most
extraordinary thing!"
"Well, what is it?"
"You'll hardly believe me when I tell you that I bought a brace of
ptarmigans, bought them myself at the market for--guess!"
His little wife seemed more annoyed than curious.
"Just think! One crown the two!"
"I have bought ptarmigans at eightpence the brace; but--" she added in
a more conciliatory tone, so as not to upset him altogether, "that was
in a very cold winter."
"Well, but you must admit that I bought them very cheaply."
Was there anything she would not admit in order to see him happy?
She had ordered boiled groats for dinner, as an experiment. But after
Lewis had eaten a ptarmigan, he regretted that he could not eat as
much of the groats as he would have liked, in order to show her that
he was really very fond of groats. He liked groats very much indeed--milk
did not agree with him after his attack of ague. He couldn't take milk,
but groats he would like to see on his table every evening, every blessed
evening of his life, if only she wouldn't be angry with him.
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