"My congratulations to you on your curry, Colonel Trestrail," said
Miss Macdonnell. "You haven't followed the English fashion of
flavouring a curry by emptying the pepper-pot into the dish?"
"Pepper properly used is the most admirable of condiments," the
Colonel said.
"Why this association of the Colonel and pepper?" said Van der
Roet. "In this society we ought to be as nice in our phraseology
as in our flavourings, and be careful to eschew the incongruous.
You are coughing, Mrs. Wilding. Let me give you some water."
"I think it must have been one of those rare grains of the
Colonel's pepper, for you must have a little pepper in a curry,
mustn't you, Colonel? Though, as Miss Macdonnell says, English
cooks generally overdo it."
"Vander is in one of his pleasant witty moods," said the Colonel,
"but I fancy I know as much about the use of pepper as he does
about the use of oil colours; and now we have, got upon art
criticism, I may remark, my dear Vander, I have been reminded that
you have been poaching on my ground.
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