Chapter 5: November the Twentieth

⁠​​​‌​​​​​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌‌‌⁠It was Miss Aldclyffe’s custom, a custom originated by her father, and nourished by her own exclusiveness, to unlock the post-bag herself every morning, instead of allowing the duty to devolve on the butler, as was the case in most of the neighbouring county families. The bag was brought upstairs each morning to her dressing-room, where she took out the contents, mostly in the presence of her maid