Cat Among the Pigeons by Agatha Christie Page A

Eleanor will do! No new experiments, nothing revolutionary. That wasn’t the way I made Meadowbank what it is. I took chances. I upset lots ofpeople. I bullied and cajoled, and refused to follow the pattern of other schools. Isn’t that what I want to follow on here now? Someone to pour new life into the school. Some dynamic personality … like—yes—Eileen Rich.
    But Eileen wasn’t old enough, hadn’t enough experience. She was stimulating, though, she could teach. She had ideas. She would never be dull—Nonsense, she must get that word out of her mind. Eleanor Vansittart was not dull….
    She looked up as Miss Chadwick came in.
    â€œOh, Chaddy,” she said. “I am pleased to see you!”
    Miss Chadwick looked a little surprised.
    â€œWhy? Is anything the matter?”
    â€œI’m the matter. I don’t know my own mind.”
    â€œThat’s very unlike you, Honoria.”
    â€œYes, isn’t it? How’s the term going, Chaddy?”
    â€œQuite all right, I think.” Miss Chadwick sounded a little unsure.
    Miss Bulstrode pounced.
    â€œNow then. Don’t hedge. What’s wrong?”
    â€œNothing. Really, Honoria, nothing at all. It’s just—” Miss Chadwick wrinkled up her forehead and looked rather like a perplexed Boxer dog—“Oh, a feeling. But really it’s nothing that I can put a finger on. The new girls seem a pleasant lot. I don’t care for Mademoiselle Blanche very much. But then I didn’t like Geneviève Depuy, either. Sly. ”
    Miss Bulstrode did not pay very much attention to this criticism. Chaddy always accused the French mistresses of being sly.
    â€œShe’s not a good teacher,” said Miss Bulstrode. “Surprising really. Her testimonials were so good.”
    â€œThe French never can teach. No discipline,” said Miss Chadwick. “And really Miss Springer is a little too much of a good thing! Leaps about so. Springer by nature as well as by name….”
    â€œShe’s good at her job.”
    â€œOh yes, first class.”
    â€œNew staff is always upsetting,” said Miss Bulstrode.
    â€œYes,” agreed Miss Chadwick eagerly. “I’m sure it’s nothing more than that. By the way, that new gardener is quite young. So unusual nowadays. No gardeners seem to be young. A pity he’s so good-looking. We shall have to keep a sharp eye open.”
    The two ladies nodded their heads in agreement. They knew, none better, the havoc caused by a good-looking young man to the hearts of adolescent girls.

Seven
S TRAWS IN THE W IND
    I
    â€œN ot too bad, boy,” said old Briggs grudgingly, “not too bad.”
    He was expressing approval of his new assistant’s performance in digging a strip of ground. It wouldn’t do, thought Briggs, to let the young fellow get above himself.
    â€œMind you,” he went on, “you don’t want to rush at things. Take it steady, that’s what I say. Steady is what does it.”
    The young man understood that his performance had compared rather too favourably with Briggs’s own tempo of work.
    â€œNow, along this here,” continued Briggs, “we’ll put some nice asters out. She don’t like asters—but I pay no attention. Females has their whims, but if you don’t pay no attention, ten to one they never notice. Though I will say She is the noticing kind on the whole. You’d think she ’ad enough to bother her head about, running a place like this.”
    Adam understood that “ She ” who figured so largely in Briggs’s conversation referred to Miss Bulstrode.
    â€œAnd who was it I saw you talking to just now?” went onBriggs suspiciously, “when you went along to the potting shed for them bamboos?”
    â€œOh, that was just one of the young ladies,” said Adam.
    â€œAh. One of them two Eye-ties, wasn’t it? Now you be careful, my