Chapter 10 HIDING-PLACES
　　PHILIP and Dinah were sitting on the edge of the same deck- chair together, next to Mrs.
　　Mannering's. Jack¹ was on the foot-end of her chair, with his bit of paper. They all looked veryinnocent and unconcerned.
　　"I don't really like to bother Mr. Eppy now," said Jack. "He's reading."Mrs. Eppy heard. She tapped her husband on the arm. "Paul," she said. "Jack wants to ask yousomething."
　　Mr. Eppy knew that perfectly² well, but he had pretended not to hear. He looked up.
　　"Very well," he said grudgingly³. "What is it?""Just some old bit of paper we found," said Philip, joining in. "Probably quite uninteresting. We can'tunderstand anything on it, of course."
　　"It mayn't be old at all," said Jack, flipping⁴ his bit with his thumb.
　　"It looks old," said Mrs. Mannering, getting interested. "Where did you get it?""I don't really know — picked it up somewhere on one of the islands we visited," said Jack. "Do youknow exactly where, Dinah?"
　　"No," said Dinah truthfully. "I've no idea.""Nor have I," said Philip.
　　"Pass it over," said Mr. Eppy, sounding rather bored. His wife passed him the piece of parchment. Hetook it and glanced at it, meaning to pass it back with a scornful remark. What did these childrenknow about old things? Nothing! It was probably a bit of an old letter blown about by the wind, thatthey had picked up in the street. Or maybe they had bought something and this was part of the paperit was wrapped in. Mr. Eppy looked at it and opened his mouth to say something contemptuous.
　　But he didn't say a word. He went on looking and looking at the paper. Finally he took his darkglasses off and looked at it without them.
　　"Er — is it genuinely old, sir?" asked Jack, at last, not able to wait any longer.
　　Mr. Eppy didn't answer. He was feeling in his pocket for something. He took out a little black caseand undid⁵ it, Inside was a strong magnifying-glass set in an eye-piece that could be screwed into theeye — something like watch- repairers wear sometimes when repairing tiny watches. Mr. Eppyscrewed the glass into his eye, like an enormous monocle, and once more

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