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The 7th of May had been among his treasures for some time, and now he had acquired an entire letter, envelope and all, which bore the Sydney impression of the 13th May. This was a great triumph. 'I have brought it within a week, he said to Curlydown, bending down over his glass, and inspecting at the same time the two dates.
He had been devoted to Curlydown till growing ambition had taught him to think himself able to strike out a line for himself. Mr. Curlydown had two daughters, of whom the younger, Jemima, had found much favour in the eyes of Bagwax. But since the jealousy had sprung up between the two men he had never seen Jemima, nor tasted the fruits of Curlydown's garden. Mrs.
'A fellow has to have his wits about him before he can do anything out of the common way in any line. You'd tell Sir John everything at once; wouldn't you? Curlydown raised his hat and scratched his head. 'Duty first, you know. Duty first, said Bagwax. 'In a man's own line, yes, said Curlydown. 'Somebody else ought to have found that out. That's not post-office. It's stamps and taxes.
Sir John was known to be in town though it was the end of August, being a laborious man who contented himself with a little partridge-shooting by way of holiday. It had been understood that he was to see Bagwax before his departure. All this had been known to Curlydown, and the question had been asked only to exasperate.
Curlydown, who approved of Bagwax, had been angry, and Jemima herself had become sullen and unloving to her father. On that very morning Mrs. Curlydown had declared that she hated quarrels like poison. 'So do I, mamma, said Jemima, breaking her silence emphatically. 'Not that Mr. Bagwax is anything to anybody.
All this had tended to rob the envelope of those attributes of deceit and conspiracy which Sir John Joram attributed to it, and had justified the judge in his opinion that Mr. Curlydown's evidence had told them little or nothing. But even Mr. Curlydown had found more favour with the judge than Samuel Bagwax, the junior of the two post-office witnesses.
Sophia, the elder of the two daughters at home, told him that he was a false truant; and Jemima surmised that the great attractions of the London season had prevented him from coming down to Enfield. 'It isn't that, indeed, he said. 'I am always delighted in running down. But the Caldigate affair has been so important! 'You mean the trial, said Mrs. Curlydown.
Curlydown. It was a quarter past four, and Curlydown had not completed his daily inspections. Had Bagwax been doing his proper share of work, Curlydown would have already washed his hands and changed his coat, and have been ready to start for the 4.30 train. As it was, he had an hour of labour before him, and would be unable to count the plums upon his wall, as was usual with him before dinner.
'Not a foot. 'And yet it ought to be found out how that date got there. And Curlydown put his finger upon the impression 10th May, 1873. 'Not a doubt about it. I should do a deal of good by going if they'd give me proper authority to overhaul everything in the office out there. They had the letter stamped fraudulently; fraudulently, Mr. Curlydown!
To have no definite date conveyed by the term 'Rogation Sunday' is to the clerical mind gross ignorance. The horsey man thinks you have been in bed all your life if the 'near side' is not as descriptive to you as 'the left hand. To Bagwax and Curlydown, not to distinguish postmarks was to be ignorant.
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