Shute, Nevil by What Happened to the Corbetts Read Free Book Online Page B

typing answers to a dozen letters, and in drafting out a partnership agreement.
    Towards lunch-time he was startled and pleasantly surprised to hear the telephone-bell ring. He went to the switchboard himself and answered it. It was Gordon, speaking from the hospital.
    He said: ‘Is that you, Corbett? It’s Gordon this end. Thank God this thing’s working again. You got that prescription all right? Fine. Look here. I want you to see that every drop of anything your family have to drink has been boiled. Yes-boiled. We’re getting posters out about it in the town this afternoon, but I wanted to ring you and tell you personally. It’s really important. Tell Joan as soon as you can. She’ll have to boil all milk, and especially all water, before she uses it. And try to keep her off raw vegetables and fruit.’
    ‘I’ll tell her. But what’s it all about?’
    ‘I can’t tell you over the telephone. And, anyway, we’re not quite certain yet ourselves. But there’s a lot of sickness in the Northam district that’s come up quite suddenly, and we’re a bit worried about it. You’d better tell your staff about boiling the water. Don’t make it alarmist.’
    ‘I won’t do that.’
    ‘Good man. It’s probably nothing at all-just a scare, you know. Doctors who’ve been out East get funny notions, sometimes. But tell Joan to boil everything she can.’
    He rang off, and Corbett tried to settle to his work again. He found he could not concentrate. Presently he went back to the switchboard and tried to ring his house.
    He heard the ringing tone, showing that the line was sound, but there was no reply; there was no one in the house. He went back to his desk and the consideration of his partnership agreement.
    Joan called for him before lunch. He told her about Gordon and his message. She wrinkled up her brows.
    ‘It’s diphtheria, I suppose,’ she said. “That’s what you get when drains go wrong, isn’t it?’
    He shook his head. ‘I couldn’t tell you. If it was diphtheria, I don’t see why he should have been so mysterious about it.’
    She smiled. ‘Everybody’s been a bit rattled, Peter. You can’t blame them. Do you know, quite a number of people left the city yesterday and went out into the country for the night. The Cummings did that, and the Howards. I met Mrs. Howard this morning. She said they just drove out into the country and parked by the side of the road, and sat in the car all night. They didn’t sleep a bit well, and when they woke up and found there hadn’t been a raid at all they felt awfully sold.’
    She paused. ‘They asked us to go in for a sherry tomorrow night.’
    ‘Good. I’d like to go.’
    They went out of the office to the car, full of parcels and children. As they drove through the town he noticed a great outbreak of recruiting posters on the hoardings, roughly printed and looking very new. And as they drove by one hoarding they saw a man finishing the posting of a placard, in large red block capitals:

BOIL YOUR WATER
    Underneath there was some sort of explanatory text.
    ‘They’ve not been long with that,’ he said.
    He went back to the office after lunch, and worked all afternoon. In the middle of the afternoon the weather clouded over, and it began to rain a little. His office faced north and grew dark early; mechanically he reached up and switched on the reading-lamp above his desk. To his surprise and gratification, it lit at once. The electricity was functioning.
    He was so pleased about it that he went and rang up Joan. ‘The lights are working here,’ he said. ‘Are they with you?’
    ‘I don’t know. Wait a minute while I try.’ He waited. Presently she came back to the telephone and said: ‘It’s all on now. I tried the lights and the cooker, too. It’s all working. We’ll be able to have a proper dinner tonight.’
    He said: ‘I give the Corporation full marks for that. They must have worked like niggers.’
    She sighed. ‘It is good. We’ll be