midday
she said from the doorstep . Her hair was just passably tidy , and she was a little effaced by a red blouse , but there was no mistaking the genuine brightness of her welcome . He was to come in to tea , and Mrs. Larkins , exuberantly genial in a floriferous but dingy flannel dressing gown , appeared to confirm that . He brought in his bicycle and put it in the narrow , empty passage , and everyone crowded into a small untidy kitchen , whose table had been hastily cleared of the _ débris _ of the midday repast . `` You must come in ` ere , '' said Mrs. Larkins , `` for Miriam 's turning out the front room . I never did see such a girl for cleanin ' up . Miriam 's ` oliday 's a scrub .