Bennett on the piece of luck
which had befallen him, but he tried to make him understand by his
manner that he was distinctly to be envied as the prospective
father-in-law of such a one as himself.
Mr. Bennett stared in a frozen sort of way at the hand. He had placed
Sam by now. He knew that Sir Mallaby had a son. This, presumably, was
he. But the discovery did not diminish his indignation.
"I am delighted to meet you, Mr. Bennett," said Sam. "You could not
have come at a more fortunate moment. You see for yourself how things
are. There is no need for a long explanation. You came to find a
daughter, Mr. Bennett, and you have found a son!"
And he would like to see the man, thought Sam, who could have put it
more cleverly and pleasantly and tactfully than that.
"What are you talking about?" said Mr. Bennett, recovering breath. "I
haven't got a son."
"I will be a son to you! I will be the prop of your declining
years...."
"What the devil do you mean, my declining years?" demanded Mr.
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