Page 252 - of-human-bondage-

XXXVI

few days later Philip went to London. The curate had
A recommended rooms in Barnes, and these Philip en-
gaged by letter at fourteen shillings a week. He reached
them in the evening; and the landlady, a funny little old
woman with a shrivelled body and a deeply wrinkled face,
had prepared high tea for him. Most of the sitting-room was
taken up by the sideboard and a square table; against one
wall was a sofa covered with horsehair, and by the fireplace
an arm-chair to match: there was a white antimacassar over
the back of it, and on the seat, because the springs were bro-
ken, a hard cushion.
After having his tea he unpacked and arranged his books,
then he sat down and tried to read; but he was depressed.
The silence in the street made him slightly uncomfortable,
and he felt very much alone.
Next day he got up early. He put on his tail-coat and the
tall hat which he had worn at school; but it was very shab-
by, and he made up his mind to stop at the Stores on his
way to the office and buy a new one. When he had done
this he found himself in plenty of time and so walked along
the Strand. The office of Messrs. Herbert Carter & Co. was
in a little street off Chancery Lane, and he had to ask his
way two or three times. He felt that people were staring at
him a great deal, and once he took off his hat to see whether

1