"What a law-abiding place Muddlebury is!" commented Stranleigh.
"Now, there's the humbug of it all," said Bennet. "You see that ugly office building three doors up the street? That was built and architected by Cloisters for Timmins, the lawyer. Timmins of late is getting proud because he's making so much money, doing practically all the law business of the town and surrounding country; because, as I said, old Sneerly hasn't a good word for anybody. Timmins had a long lease of the ground on which the old building stood, so pulled it down and had Cloisters architect that one about two years ago. I don't remember that either Timmins or Cloisters showed us the plans."
"Oh, well," protested Grice, "Cloisters being the surveyor, he'd only need to show the plans to himself, and Timmins, being the Clerk, he'd put it down in the book."
"I don't believe," objected Bennet, "that that is the law. Cloisters reports, of course, and he reports to the District Council, and we may accept or reject his report, and then the chairman would sign it. There's a clique runs that Council, just as it does everything else in this town. Greenleaves, Timmins, and Cloisters does what they please."
"That's very interesting," said Stranleigh, "and
