Herbert George Wells

The History of Mr. Polly Herbert George Wells

"Hole!" said Mr. Polly, and then for a change, and with greatly increased emphasis: "'Ole!"He paused, and then broke out with one of his private and peculiar idioms. "Oh! BeastlySilly Wheeze of a Hole!"He was sitting on a stile between two threadbare looking fields, and suffering acutely fromindigestion. He suffered from indigestion now nearly every afternoon in his life, but as he lackedintrospection he projected the associated discomfort upon the world. Every afternoon hediscovered afresh that life as a whole and every aspect of life that presented itself was"beastly." And this afternoon, lured by the delusive blueness of a sky that was blue becausethe wind was in the east, he had come out in the hope of snatching something of thejoyousness of spring. The mysterious alchemy of mind and body refused, however, topermit any joyousness whatever in the spring.