It was strange how many reminiscences were brought to mind by this
circumstance of girls who had disappeared years before and were supposed
to be dead--or worse. And this woman might be one of them; indeed,
Peterkin had said that she was, and they came in crowds to see her, and
to see, as well, the inside of the handsome house, of which they had
heard so much, especially since Mr. Arthur's return. But in this they
were disappointed, for all the front rooms were locked against them, and
only the large dining-room, the breakfast-room, the servants' hall, and
the little back office were thrown open to the public. In the first of
these the corpse was lying in a substantial, handsome coffin, for Frank,
who ordered it, would have no other; and when the undertaker suggested a
cheaper one would answer just as well, had said, decidedly:
'I mean to bury her decently. Give me this one, and send the bill to me,
not to Arthur.'
It was _his_ funeral, and, judging from his face, he was burying all his
friends, instead of a poor, unknown woman, whose large, coarse features
and plain woollen dress looked out of place in that handsome black
coffin, with its silver-plated trimmings. Frank had suggested that she
should have a white merino shroud, but his wife had overruled him.
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