It had been a bad winter, somehow, for the firm of Pennybacker, Bigler and Small.

These celebrated contractors usually made more money during the session of the legislature at Harrisburg than upon all their summer work, and this winter had been unfruitful.

It was unaccountable to Bigler.
"You see, Mr.Bolton," he said, and Philip was present at the conversation, "it puts us all out.

It looks as if politics was played out.

We'd counted on the year of Simon's re-election.