They had been most gratefully and graciously free from Tom since his
father's death, but he reappeared a day or two before the end of the six
weeks, and brought with him a wife from Guernsey--not even a Guernsey
woman, however, but a Frenchwoman from the Cotentin--black-haired,
black-eyed, good-looking, after the type that would please such an one
as Tom Hamon--somewhat over-bold of face and manner for the rest of the
family.

Philip Tanquerel had had to bring all his sagacity to bear on his
difficult task of apportioning the lots, and Tom, who knew every inch of
the ground and all its capacities, grinned viciously now and again at
the acumen displayed in the divisions.

The allotment of the house-room had presented difficulties.

The great kitchen at La Closerie occupied the whole centre third of the
ground floor, the remaining thirds of the space on each side being taken
up with the rarely-used best room and three bedrooms, all pretty much of
a size, and all opening into the kitchen. Up above, under the sloping
thatch was the great solie or loft, entered from the outside through the
door-window in the gable by means of a short wooden ladder.

Grannie's dower rights, when Tom's grandfather died, had obtained for
her the two rooms constituting one-third of the house on the south side
of the kitchen, and certain rights of use of the kitchen itself. As she
needed only one room, she had bartered off the other and her kitchen
rights to her son and his wife in exchange for food and attendance, and
the arrangement had worked excellently.