"She is, is she?" I said. "A murrain on her, Jeeves, and may she be
stood in the corner next Sunday for not knowing her collect. And then
you saw Miss Mapleton?"
"Yes, sir."
"And told her that I was out in the garden chevying burglars with my
bare hands?"
"Yes, sir."
"And had been on my way to call upon her?"
"Yes, sir."
"And now she's busy adding a postscript to her letter to Aunt Agatha,
speaking of me in terms of unstinted praise."
"Yes, sir."
I drew a deep breath. It was too dark for me to see the superhuman
intelligence which must have been sloshing about all over the man's
features. I tried to, but couldn't make it.
"Jeeves," I said, "I should have been guided by you from the first."
"It might have spared you some temporary unpleasantness, sir."
"Unpleasantness is right. When that lantern shone up at me in the
silent night, Jeeves, I thought I had unshipped a rib.... Jeeves!"
"Sir?"
"That Antibes expedition is off."
"I am glad to hear it, sir."
"If young Bobbie Wickham can get me into a mess like this in a quiet
spot like Bingley-on-Sea, what might she not be able to accomplish at a
really lively resort like Antibes?"
"Precisely, sir. Miss Wickham, as I have said, though a charming----"
"Yes, yes, Jeeves. There is no necessity to stress the point. The
Wooster eyes are opened." I hesitated. "Jeeves."
"Sir?"
"Those plus-fours."
"Yes, sir."
"You may give them to the poor."
"Thank you very much, sir."