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The four who looked to the door of the Duke's hut, and waited for the news, were not relieved as quickly as they expected. When men return with no news they are apt to forget that others are less wise than themselves; and where, with something to impart, they had flown to relieve the anxious, they are prone to forget that the negative has its value for those who are in suspense.
Hence some minutes elapsed before Roger presented himself. And when he came and they cried breathlessly, "Well, what news? " his answer was a look of reproach.