Eight VISITORS FOR JIMMY

We must at this point go back to some twenty minutes earlier, to a mo-ment when Jimmy Thesiger, emerging from the mists of sleep, was con-scious of a familiar voice speaking unfamiliar¹ words.
His sleep-ridden brain tried for a moment to cope with the situation, butfailed. He yawned and rolled over again.
“A young lady, sir, has called to see you.”
The voice was implacable. So prepared was it to go on repeating thestatement indefinitely that Jimmy resigned himself to the inevitable². Heopened his eyes and blinked.
“Eh, Stevens?” he said. “Say that again.”
“A young lady, sir, has called to see you.”
“Oh!” Jimmy strove to grasp the situation. “Why?”
“I couldn’t say, sir.”
“No, I suppose not. No,” he thought it over. “I suppose you couldn’t.”
Stevens swooped³ down upon a tray by the bedside.
“I will bring you some fresh tea, sir. This is cold.”
“You think that I ought to get up and—er—see the lady?”
Stevens made no reply, but he held his back very stiff and Jimmy readthe signs correctly.
“Oh! very well,” he said. “I suppose I’d better. She didn’t give hername?”
“No, sir.”
“M’m. She couldn’t be by any possible chance my Aunt Jemima, couldshe? Because if so, I’m damned if I’m going to get up.”
“The lady, sir, could not possibly be anyone’s aunt, I should say, unlessthe youngest of a large family.”
“Aha,” said Jimmy. “Young and lovely. Is she—what kind is she?”
“The young lady, sir, is most undoubtedly⁴ strictly⁵ comme il faut, if I mayuse the expression.”
“You may use it,” said Jimmy graciously. “Your French pronunciation,Stevens, if I may say so, is very good. Much better than mine.”
“I am gratified to hear it, sir. I have lately been taking a correspondencecourse in French.”
“Have you really? You’re a wonderful chap, Stevens.”

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