A handsome
gentleman, with a young face, but with an older figure in its
robustness and its breadth of shoulder; say a man of eight-and-
twenty, or at the utmost thirty; so extremely sunburnt that the
contrast between his brown visage and the white forehead shaded out
of doors by his hat, and the glimpses of white throat below the
neckerchief, would have been almost ludicrous but for his broad
temples, bright blue eyes, clustering brown hair, and laughing
teeth.
'I have noticed,' said he; '--my name is Tartar.'
Neville inclined his head.
'I have noticed (excuse me) that you shut yourself up a good deal,
and that you seem to like my garden aloft here. If you would like
a little more of it, I could throw out a few lines and stays
between my windows and yours, which the runners would take to
directly. And I have some boxes, both of mignonette and wall-
flower, that I could shove on along the gutter (with a boathook I
have by me) to your windows, and draw back again when they wanted
watering or gardening, and shove on again when they were ship-
shape; so that they would cause you no trouble. I couldn't take
this liberty without asking your permission, so I venture to ask
it. Tartar, corresponding set, next door.'
'You are very kind.'
'Not at all. I ought to apologise for looking in so late. But
having noticed (excuse me) that you generally walk out at night, I
thought I should inconvenience you least by awaiting your return.
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