midday sun
He had merely humored a whim to walk through orchards and green fields in a leisurely fashion , to be a careless trudger for a day . True , he was saving carfare , but he observed dryly that he was expending many dollars ' worth of energy -- to say nothing of shoe leather . The pleasure of walking , paradoxically , was best achieved by sitting still in the shade . A midday sun was softening the asphalt with its fierce blaze . He looked idly at passing machines and wondered what the occupants thereof would say if he halted one and demanded a ride . He smiled . He stared after a passing sedan driven by a uniformed chauffeur , one half the rear seat occupied by a fat , complacent woman , the other half of the ten-inch upholstery given over to an equally fat and complacent bulldog .