28"Who is Ezra Pincott?" enquired Miss Silver. She had the mild, expectant look of a teacher addressing her class. For the moment this consisted of Miss Fell, Major Albany, and Miss Janice Meade. Miss Brown had been persuaded to go to bed. Her absence was felt to be a relief.
All three of them said, "Ezra Pincott?"
"Dear me," said Miss Silver, "there seem to be a great many Pincotts in Bourne."
There was nothing in her manner to show that she had already acquired a considerable amount of information about the Pincotts in general and about Ezra in particular.
Miss Sophy stopped pouring out tea, but kept the teapot poised.
"Oh, yes," she said. "Old Jeremiah Pincott had eighteen children. Susannah Bush is one of them, and they have mostly had large families themselves. Not Susannah--she
