The implication of Mr. Murray's absence is that he is not coming back, having found someone else to live his life with and abandoning his wife and children. The gossip would be mostly about which perceived flaws of Mrs. Murray, physical or otherwise, were the ones that drove away Mr. Murray. The longer the absence, the more such gossip turns to certainty, and the more vicious it becomes. And with neither the Internet or daytime television shows, confirmation would be spotty at best.