George A. Birmingham

“ Now, Higginbotham, the question is simply this: will you go or will you not? I'd go myself in a minute, only I thought you'd like to get the chance. I've nothing to gain by being civil to Sir Giles, but you have. Why, man, your whole future depends upon the kind of impression you make upon these big officials. You know the way they talk to each other in their clubs after luncheon. I tell you there's very little they don't know about every inspector and engineer in the country. If you've any sense you'll make yourself as pleasant and obliging to Sir Giles as you possibly can. ”

“ You're an official yourself, and I need scarcely say that a subordinate official is the very last kind of man who should mix himself up in a business of this kind."
"I see that, of course."
"I needn't say, Higginbotham, that it's no pleasure to me to repeat stories of this kind. I wouldn't have said a word if you hadn't forced me. I'm extremely sorry for Sir Giles and for poor Langton. What a promising career that man had before him! With his taste for manuscripts and the whole College Library at his disposal, he might have made a European reputation. Drink's an awful curse." ”

“ We owe it to him to do him a good turn of some sort. I don't feel that we've treated him quite fairly. It's rough on a man to set him searching for tubercle bacilli all day long on an island by himself. It's not in Higginbotham's regular line of work and I'm afraid he won't like it at all. I'm sorry I had to do it."
"What have you done?"
"I've just told you. I've sent him off to Inishmore to make a kind of census of all the consumptive people on the island. I told him he'd better get the parish priest to help him. By the way, what sort of a fellow is the parish priest of Inishmore?" ”