It was not often that Peter involved himself in business matters any more. He clearly enjoyed his retirement and John was pleased to see him become more as he remembered him when he was a child. He was always a straight, erect man, but his straightness gained a greater lightness as the burden of the business fell from him, and he smiled a great deal more. Equally, John was saddened by the palpable signs of age etched in deep lines in his face, but he consoled himself with the fact that, on balance, Peter was happier now than he had been for many years, and that all of his predecessors had died in office. Peter was the first, if not to officially retire, at least to ease back. It was a hopeful sign.
He kept his father up to date on the state of the business, and weighed carefully any comme
