She foresaw, with the intuition of despair, that instead of being
paid her miserable wages for the last five months she would have to
content herself with a couple of her deceased mistress's skirts,
thirty-eight inches too wide round the waist.
There were wreaths--abundance of wreaths. Noticeable among them was an
enormous floral tribute from the owner of the FLUTTERBY. It attracted
the most favourable comment. People said that nobody but a
multi-multi-multi-millionaire could afford to forgive an affront like
that affair of the CREPE DE CHINE. As a matter of fact, old Koppen
would have been the last person on earth to forgive an injury of this
particular kind. He was a good American; he never permitted loose talk
about women, least of all if they were in any way connected with
himself; he would get purple in the face, he would ramp and rage and
hop about like a veritable Sioux, in the face of any suggestion of
improprieties on board his yacht. No, Cornelius van Koppen had acted in
all innocence, from natural kindliness of heart.
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