Mrs. Bainton laughed good-naturedly.
"That's quite true!" she agreed; "If there were, I shouldn't have made Sunday pudding for a man who talks too much to eat it while it's hot. Keep your tongue in your mouth, Tom!--use it for tastin' jes' now an' agin!"
Bainton took the hint and subsided into silent enjoyment of his food. Only once again he spoke in the course of the meal, and that was during the impressive pause between pudding and cheese.
"When he knows as 'ow the Five Sisters be chalked, Passon Walden's sure to do somethin'," he said.
"Ay!" responded his wife thoughtfully; "he's sure to do something."
"What d'ye think he'll do?" queried Bainton, somewhat anxiously.
"Oh, you know best, Tom," replied his buxom partner, setting a flat Dutch cheese before him and a jug of foaming beer; "There ain't no sense o' fitness in ME, bein' a woman! You know best!"
Bainton lowered his eyes sheepishly. As usual his better half had closed the argument unanswerably.