had, she must go in to dinner.

These few minutes had been used by Willoughby in sketching to the
Dalloways the people they were to meet, and checking them upon his
fingers.

"There's my brother-in-law, Ambrose, the scholar (I daresay you've heard
his name), his wife, my old friend Pepper, a very quiet fellow, but
knows everything, I'm told. And that's all. We're a very small party.
I'm dropping them on the coast."

Mrs. Dalloway, with her head a little on one side, did her best to
recollect Ambrose--was it a surname?--but failed. She was made slightly
uneasy by what she had heard. She knew that scholars married any
one--girls they met in farms on reading parties; or little suburban
women who said disagreeably, "Of course I know it's my husband you want;
not _me_."

But Helen came in at that point, and Mrs. Dalloway saw with relief
that though slightly eccentric in appearance, she was not untidy, held
herself well, and her voice had restraint in it, which she held to be
the sign of a lady. Mr. Pepper had not troubled to change his neat ugly
suit.

"But after all," Clarissa thought to herself as she followed Vinrace in
to dinner, "_every_ _one's_ interesting really."

When seated at the table she had some need of that assurance, chiefly
because of Ridley, who came in late, looked decidedly unkempt, and took
to his soup in profound gloom.