Dear all,
this is from the story 'Horsie' by Dorothy Parker. Mary is a servant in the Cruger's household, Miss Wilmarth is a trained nurse who dines with the head of the family. Mary dislikes Miss Wilmarth.
But no smile would mellow Mary’s lips, no light her eyes. Mary, in converse with the cook, habitually referred to Miss Wilmarth as “that one.” She wished no truck with Miss Wilmarth or any of the others of her guild; always in and out of a person’s pantry.
It's clear what pantry is, but here it looks like an idiom. Does Mary mean Miss Wilmarth always prys, enquires too inquisitively into a person's private affairs ?
this is from the story 'Horsie' by Dorothy Parker. Mary is a servant in the Cruger's household, Miss Wilmarth is a trained nurse who dines with the head of the family. Mary dislikes Miss Wilmarth.
But no smile would mellow Mary’s lips, no light her eyes. Mary, in converse with the cook, habitually referred to Miss Wilmarth as “that one.” She wished no truck with Miss Wilmarth or any of the others of her guild; always in and out of a person’s pantry.
It's clear what pantry is, but here it looks like an idiom. Does Mary mean Miss Wilmarth always prys, enquires too inquisitively into a person's private affairs ?