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Dinner in the Nob Hill palace was served at six-thirty He arrived at six-forty-five and encountered Mrs Suentlewoton family that had shaken the entire Pacific Coast with its financial crash in the middle seventies Despite her stoutness, she suffered from what she called shattered nerves
"This will never, never do, Richard," she censured "Here is dinner waiting fifteen minutes already, and you have not yet washed your face and hands"
"I aized "I won't keep you waiting ever again And I won't bother you much ever"
At dinner, in state, the two of the Dick strove to e that she was on his pay-roll, he felt toward as a host uest
"You'll be very comfortable here," he proood old house, and most of the servants have been here for years"
"But, Richard," she smiled seriously to him; "it is not the servants ill determine raciously "Better than that I'm sorry I came in late for dinner In years and years you'll never see ain I won't bother you at all You'll see It will be just as though I wasn't in the house"
When he bade her good night, on his way to bed, he added, as a last thought: "I'll warn you of one thing: Ah Sing He's the cook He's been in our house for years and years--oh, I don't know, maybe twenty-five or thirty years he's cooked for father, fro before this house was built or I was born He's privileged He's so used to having his oay that you'll have to handle hiloves But once he likes you he'll work his fool head off to please you He likes et him to like you, and you'll have the tiive you any trouble at all It'll be a regular snap, just as if I wasn't here at all"