A sense of mental uneasiness roused him now and then, but only for a few moments together; he slumbered on till Dunfield was reached.
At the entrance to the mill he was in fierce conflict with himself.

As is usually the case in like circumstances, the sleepy journey had resulted in bodily uneasiness; he had a slight headache, was thirsty, felt indisposed to return to work.

When he had all but crossed the threshold, he turned sharply back, and entered a little public-house a few yards away; an extraordinary thing for him to do, but he felt that a small glass of spirits would help him to quieter nerves, or at all events would sustain his unusual exhilaration till the interview with Dagworthy was over.

At the very door of the office he had not decided whether it should be silence or restitution.
'That you, Hood ?' Dagworthy asked, looking up from a letter he was writing.

'Been rather a long time, haven't you ?' The tone was unusually indulgent.