At the toll-house

An original fiction passage set in the nineteenth century.

Mr Avery had written the letter of dismissal before setting out. Reports of unpaid tolls had reached the road office twice, and he expected to find a careless keeper with a cupboard full of excuses.

Instead, the toll-house step had been scrubbed pale. Inside, the columns of Bell's ledger stood as straight as fencing posts, without a blot or an empty space, and the coins in the drawer were arranged in exact stacks. Mr Avery inspected them twice.

A cart approached. A thin woman held a sleeping child against her shoulder while Bell raised the barrier. No coin passed between them.

'I was told this was your habit,' Mr Avery said.

'Then you were told correctly.'

Bell watched until the cart had turned towards the town. Only then did he open a small tin beneath the desk, take out one of the three coins it contained and add it to the toll drawer.

'The road is paid,' he said. 'She can pay the physician.'

Mr Avery drew the letter from his pocket. Its paper looked absurdly white beside the ink-stained ledger. He smoothed its folded edge and placed it beneath the ledger instead of into Bell's hand.

Analyse the writer's use of language and structure in presenting Mr Avery's response to the toll-keeper. Support your answer with references to the passage.