BY
MR SALTUS
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I MP E RI A L P U RP L E
MA R Y MA GDA L E N
T H E P H I LO SO P H Y O F D I SE N CH ANTM E N T
MA D AM SA PP H I RA
A T RAN SA CTI O N IN H E ARTS
MR I N CO U LS MI SA DVE N TU R E
E DEN
A T RAN SI E NT GU E ST
T H E TR U T H A B O U T T R I STR E M VARI C!
A STO RY WITH O UT A N AM E
TH E PA CE T H AT ! I LLS
.
LO VE
T HE
AN D
LO R E
ANATO MY
1N
A
O F
N E GA T I O N
PR E P /I R A TI O N
D U GH T E R S O F D
R E AM
EN T H R A LLE D
A
S TO R Y O F INTE R NAT IONA L LI FE
SETT IN G FO R T H
TH E
CU
R IO U S
I R CU MS TAN CES CONCER NING
C
LO R D CLO D EN A N D O SWA LD Q U A IN
by
S A LT U S
ED G A R
THE TU D O R
LO N DO N
T HE
A RI S
P
N EWS
A MERI C A N
AG E N T S
PR ESS
FO R T HE U N I
T E D STAT E S
I
8 94
E
M LB O U RN
E
CO MPA N Y
AND
A ADA
C N
C O PY R I G H T ,
1 89 4 ,
av
ED G AR SALTU S
Pr ess
A
L ttl e 81 Co
Pl ace , N e w Y o rk
of
sto r
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J J
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PS
2
7 52
FO R
C H ER U B I N A
D
mz m e
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u l cz
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r er u
m
C O NTEN TS
PA R T
I
AP T E R
I A So u l with T eeth
II T he Beast and the Be auty
I I I T wenty M illion — Less T en Pe r C ent
IV T he H ush ing of It
V C oroner s Verdict
Heart Failu re
V I E xit Oswal d Quain
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PA R T
II
APT E R
I T he Sighting of the E arl
I I H is Lordsh ip drops a G lass
I I I T he Happiest M an Alive
IV What may be R e ad in the Paper
V T he R oom of the G aping C himeras
V I M r Bancroft has his Say
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ENTHR A LLED
C HAP T E R I
A SO U L
!V
I TH TEETH
D EA R me Myrrha d id y o u see th i s ?
T he E arl of Cl o d e n is d e ad and the y can t
”
find h is son
It was M rs Smithwick the H er al d in one
han d a teacu p i n the other a d dressing h er
niece
T he girl sh ook her head
No dear aunt d i d you kno w h im
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I think I have heard of him the lady
answered defi antly at which a rude young
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man burst into a l augh
Oswald
she
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added
do fetch me the P eer age ; it is
yonder that big red book on the second
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shelf
T he room vast h igh ceiled deluged with
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Ent/z r a l/m
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sunlight opened on grounds that leaned to
the sea
In the air were the s avors of
b owers and brine ; from witho u t came th e
boom of waves th e rustle of retreating
w aters ; within were the tokens and attri
b u tes of ease It was at Newport the sum
mer h ome o f R ich ard A ttersol
At the lady s bidding the rude y oung man
got u p H e was a dissolute looking y oung
fellow blu e of eye red of hair Wi th f e atures
s q uat as a T artar s but he had the elastic
step which athletes an d p anth ers share A s
h e crosse d the room th e girl s eyes followed
h im
She was fair to see adorably constructed
d ivinely blon de fragrant of health graceful
simple —the image of sweet and twenty
But presently she tu rned again to her
aunt for M rs Smithwick in that tone wh ich
exacts attention yet decorously as from a
book of d evot i ons was reading from Burke
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rg Sh l t C ty E arl fCl d
E ar l f Mu ll V isc u t Sh l t
d L rd C
Og i l vy ( I 6 86 ) Visc u t f Mu ll d L rd
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Geo
o
e
o
an
o
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o
n
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n
re ,
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an
an
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en
an ty re o f
Canty re
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of
(I
Strathtay
L o rd
p eerag e
68 5) ,
of
Can ty re
Can ty re
c tl a d D d
l t Pri c
d I cy i
Fra c
H r di tary
Ch t l é
visi t r f J sus C ll O
Cap tai l at 9 3 d H i g h
23
l a d rs ; b r i L d
May 8 3 7 ; m arri d
L ad y Cic ly Ma rs sth dau gh t r f J am s
I S6 4
f Car l i gf rd ; h di d 8 D c mb r
1 3 th Mar q uis
1 8 70
l avi g a
ly
Arthur H ry Ch l
F a cis D u bar Visc u t Sh l t b r
4 th N v m
( I 4 8 7)
a e
o
n
A ll
z
t feet/
Sou l w i t/
A
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rau
i n the
n e
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ber ,
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on
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o n
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ar es
en
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nne
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x o n.
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on
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of
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And it is the V iscount they can t find
Myrrha asked with a pretty sh ow of interest
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T he earl
her a unt correcte d
He
has succeeded to his noble father s titles
and estates Listen
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O r three bars wavy gu
Cr t
O t o f a duca l c r o et a si n iste r cubi t
arm i n b en d d e ter ve sted v ert cu f
fe d erm char g d
with a cro ss cro ss l et o n the ha n d pp r p o i n ti g wi th
forefi n g er t an e s t i l e
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M tto J e n e p en s e pl us
A r ms
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No I don t believe h e did that rude
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young man remarked
None of those
chaps are much given to th inking Where
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d i d you sa y the son is ?
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E nth r alled
T he y
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don t know M rs Smithwick with
T hey don t know at
gre at pathos replied
T he H er al d sa y s he starte d a year
all
on a b ot anizing tou r th ro u gh the
ago
u pper re aches of the Amazon
and save
a l etter annou ncing h is arriv al at R i o h e
has not been heard from since Isn t it
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sad
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It may be the yo u ng man s u ggested
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that somewhere in those u pper reaches h e
i s engaged in rearing a d usky race i n wh ich
case
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Oswald Qu ain how can you !
M rs
Smithwick was ve ry small elaborately
garbed perhaps fi fty She had a perfect
man ia for going to the dentist s for going
to chu rch for titles for gossi p
But i f
feather h eade d she was not u nlovable
And now as she sp oke sh e starte d i n d ig
n an tl y ; b u t almost at once i n a complete
change of ke y sh e added with that look the
pensive have ! Wou l dn t it be n ice though
if he were to come this way meet M y rrh a
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an d m arry her
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Sou l wi t/z Teeth
A
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Yes wouldn t it ? an d Q u ai n mim
i ck ed the old l ady to her face
He tu rned
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to the girl
Wh at do y ou say to that
Myrrha ?
She had moved to a win dow th at gave on
the la wn and stood gazing at the miracle of
blue above at the satin and stripes of the
sea But as the q uestion reache d her she
passed out with it to the grounds
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It woul d be a perfectly su itable match
“
Mrs Smithwick continue d
Perfectly su it
able
My ri ha s fathe r is a pillar of the
chu rch u niversally respected a gentleman
of th e old sch ool ; and Myrrha is I have
always felt destin ed to grace a title
I
have I admit been j ust a l ittle worried by
the attentions which that man Bancroft has
been s howing her but
An d M rs Southwick waved her hand at
an invisible fl y
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Myrrh a doesn t care that for h im
Qu ain scowled His l ip was cu rled and
his teeth promin ent an d pointed as a jack
al s gl istened
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En tk r al l ea
onl y title she will ever have is that
of my wife As for Bancroft
For a second h e p aused an d th en ab
he added
sen tl y h is th oughts afa!
I don t see why you want her to marry
every foreigner y ou h ear of You know as
well as I d o where nine tenths of such mar
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ri ages en d — i n th e d ivorce cou rt
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I kn ow noth ing of the kin d ; my h us
ban d was a foreigner and we l ive d together
four and twenty years an d neve r quarrelle d
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once Besides
T he scowl on Q u ai n s face had gone bu t
a snee r had come
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D idn t you fi nd i t rath er d ull ? h e
asked with a civil air of fei gne d i nterest
M rs Smithwick put the P eer age among
the teacups and visibly primed h erself with
repartee
Before she cou ld take aim the
enemy escaped and sh e rose from he r seat
eyi ng h im suspiciou sly as he j oined her
n iece on th e l awn beyond T he girl was n ot
for h im sh e knew An d with the i dea that
th e inse rti on of a certain insect i n the ear
T he
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En th r alled
that it h ad twice given h im occasion to
refuse the Secretaryshi p of the T reasu ry
But no man can be u niversal For p ol itical
preferment he had no taste bu t the n his
tastes were simple H e cou ld have lived on
three hundred and sixty fi ve d ol lars a year
an d saved money H e l unche d on an apple
h is b reakfast was biscu it and milk wine h e
never touched an d h e d id not care to be
amused He had on e vice — the egotism of
the altruistic— charity ; and on e virtu e
belief
T he vice he concealed th e virtu e
was apparent H e looked like a good man
and h e was but he was good in the worst
sense — bigotedl y good R espectabi lity was
w r itten all over h im In the P resbyterian
C hurch of which he was tr u stee h e was a
pillar but a pillar man ifestly in process of
decay in kne e and shoulde r T ime had b ent
that frame of i r on ; and though h is eyes
cou ld yet pierce like kn ives and h is straight
thi n lips were fi rm as a recorder s the trem
u l o u s h and and swaying head told their tale
of palsy and encroach i ng age
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A
Sou l wi th Teeth
afternoon though th e sun was eager
he was crouchin g over a fire T he room
gave not on th e sea but to the west In a
corner was a safe the door ajar ; opposite
was a table T here was a small bed a wide
lounge capaciou s chairs ch intz hangings
and ro s
es in profusion
From the blue an d
amber flames into wh ich he peered mem
o ri es were
issuing perhaps regrets
As
Mrs S mith wick entered he started bu t
then he had been far away
“
Oswald is with her again R ichard
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What shall I do ?
T he chromatic silks the anxious eyes
the smal l shrill voice these things gave to
the little lady someth ing of the color and
trepidation of a bird
As she spoke she
s wayed and reached a hand to a panel for
su pport
T hough it was ten years since
the d eath of her sister h ad brought her in
contact with that sister s h usband she was
not as the phrase goes at home wi th h im y et
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Send him to me
Mrs Smithwick turned to obey
T hat
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E nth r alled
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And when Bancroft gets here
he
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call e d after her
send him too
H is eyes had gone back to th e fire but
presently he stood u p went to th e safe
closed and locked it
On the lawn without meanwhile Q u ain
had caught u p with the girl
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Oswald how di d y ou dare
A t his approach she had turned and
sto od a han d hal f raise d— th e hand of a
princess royally beautiful slend er ye t
strong del icate and colorful a hand made
for graci ous gestu res for kisses an d fal
cons ; a han d that matched th e beauty of
her fe atures and belonged to them as wholly
as the petal belongs to the rose
He caught i t and clasped it
And what is there that I would not dare
f or you
I n th e glancing su n he looked both bold
an d brave Surely h e was n ot one to fear
And h aving said as
an old man s anger
mu ch he began at once on th e b usiness
that had brought him there
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A
Sou l wi th Teeth
Myrrha I can wait n o longer I am
sick with l ove I am haunted by your eyes
an d lips You are to be m y wife some day
why not to ni ght
No one can love y o u as
I do
No one shall
If y o u love me
come
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But Os wald
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T here are no buts
I will listen to
non e You have promised I hold you to
you r word M yrrh a come with me ; an d as
there is a G o d above us never shal l y o u
regret it a moment s space You shall be
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a chu rch an d I th e worsh ipper
It woul d kill him Os wal d Have you
not seen the change ? He may yet con
sent You sh ould n ot u rge me to go with
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you l ike this
O fthe remonstrance he detained but one
phrase th e possibility of consent
Has h e said anything ? Have you
asked hi m ? Has he intimated in any
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way
T he girl shook her h ead
No but who
can tell
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E nth r alled
I can ; h e never will u nless —Myrrha
let us go In an h our there is a train for
B oston When he fi nds that you have gone
with me that you love me well e nough for
that he will consent at once Otherwi se he
never will An d j ust out of obstinacy too
For h e hasn t another reason to refuse not
one except i ndeed that I was poor But I
have plenty of money now—oh enough t o
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last us both for years ! C ome !
H e had but one power over he r mag
n eti sm
An d that force he was exert
ing by speech by contact by the f u lgura
tions of h is eyes As he stared into h e r
own th e girl shrank fascinate d and v acil
l ant
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I can t
sh e almost gaspe d
He
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made me swear I wou l d n o t
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And I swear you shal l
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Oswald
He tu rned F rom the house M rs Smith
wick was c al ling to him
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Oswald
M r A tterso l w ants you
O Oswald go
T he girl tou ched h im
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A Sou l wi th Teeth
to him do
And be— be d ifferent be
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gentle
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If I go will you wait ?
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Yes yes anything
T hen w ait ; or rather get some things
together If h e consents well and good ;
”
i f not we must go But be quick
He cross ed the l awn reache d the hou se
I n a moment he was at M r A tterso l s door
entering he closed it
”
You wished to see me sir I believe
H e looked rough as an oath but in voice
an d mann er th ere was a deference or at
le ast the assumption of it
M r A tterso l crossed the room from the
table he picked u p a letter put it dow n
agai n resumed his seat an d eyed the you n g
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H ow mu ch did y o u borrow on the
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strength of that lie about Myrrha ? h e
asked an d without waiting an answer added
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with a moti on at the safe !
T here are
those chequ es Y o u have y ou r choice —go
away or go to j ail You are warned for the
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En th r a lled
last time Myrrha shall neve r be y our wife
Never
D o you h ear me P I shall tie u p
my p ro p erty —for it is th at you want— I
shall tie it so that not a penny is h ers
Independent of that there are the chequ es
You will leave Newport to night or I wil l
”
have you u nder arrest
You are hard Mr A tterso l very You
brou ght u s up together you
H old you r tongu e Wh en your fathe r
pu t you in my care I su pposed th at you
would take after h im You r fathe r was a
gentleman an d what are you
A gambler
a l iar a thief If ever a young man h ad an
opportun ity you did When you left sch ool
I put you in my o ffice I let you l ive in my
house
Had you been my brother s son I
coul d not have done more
Y o u would
have succeeded me You had nothing t o
do but to compo r t yourself decently and
you wouldn t
I gave you money yet you
stol e I forgave you an d you forged my
name Because of th e d ebt I owed you r
fath er I condo n ed even that ; and as a rec
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E n th r alled
M r A ttersol had risen His hands were
trembling his head shook an d so tall was
he so great the menace of h is attitu de that
at th e moment h e seemed a tottering tower
about to fall and crush Before he coul d
speak th ere was a rap the door opened and
a y ou ng man strode in
Quain turned th e arms still crossed on
h is breast but instantl y one sh ot out
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“
As for Myrrha he shouted
try to
marry her to that cadging attorney there
an d I will kill h im though I swing for
”
it
He had moved as he spoke th ere was a
cu rse in h is eyes i n their stare a blight his
voice was hoa r se with violence an d the
words that he almost tore from his throat
seemed to have a life t hat vibrated and
filled the room
“
Bancroft there are souls th at have
teeth ; don t wake their h u nger
For a
A gestu re completed the sentence
second with j aw set and mu scles contracted
he looked a defi ance that was the more
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A
Sou l w i th
Teeth
h i d eous in that it was mute T hen with a
wrench at the d oor h e passed out slamming
it afte r him with a crash in which there
was the cl atter of m u sketry an d the din of
oaths
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C HAP T E R I I
THE B E A ST
AND
THE B E A U T Y
WHE N Quain reached the sitting room
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gain it was untenanted
He looked out
on the lawn ; there was no one
But the
sky had changed T he miracle of blue had
gone in its place was another of dead rose
and appl e green D usk was enc r oaching
silently T he boom of waves had ceased ;
there was but th e lap and gu rgl e of waters
fawning against the blu f
f th e hush of lo
cu sts and the ba r k of a dog caught u p and
repeated on th e road beyond T h e air too
was still an d th r ough the h ouse wh ich a
moment before had shook with his fury the
echoes had subsided
H e was furiou s still his eyes were d ilated
his features convu lsed But he had work to
do yet an d running a hand through the red
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The
Beast
Beau ty
an d the
tangles of his hair for a moment h e stood
reminiscent
His earliest recollection s were of that ol d
man wh om h e had so grievously insu lted
the memory of a b ig and silent room through
which h e came and went u nceasingly
T hrough it too others passed ; but these
but came an d wept an d vanishe d It was
the old man that al ways retu rned for to
Quain old h e had always seemed Yet th is
was in a past dim as a dream too vagu e
an d shad owy to be local ized and calendared
T hen there was the school l ife ; an d he r e
memory found its fi rst sure footing an d
paraded h im th rough the n ine uneventfu l
years which he passed in the ho me of a
country pedagogu e and duri ng wh ich on
the third day of each month invariably from
that old man h e had received a letter of
good counsel and advice
He was fifteen
wh en the nine years had gone and it was
then for the first time he saw New York
O h th e wonder of that city the wonder of
the gre at h ou se on Fifth Aven u e the won
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E nth r alled
der of M rs Smithwick s su rprises i n silk '
Before the wonder subsided there we r e
other tutors masters of d ifferent arts and
tongues until his eighteenth year h ad come
an d he saw h imsel f on a high stool i n a
Wall Street bank T o that stool for some
time he was not unfaithful ; but oth er things
intervene d — the cu rve of the race track the
green baize of the faro table the cocktails
of the C al umet B ut for social functions he
manifested no enthusiasm Whethe r or not
it b e true as psych ologists aver that tastes
are in fluenced and d ire cted by ph y sical con
formations i t is at l east indub itable that
Quain was not constructed to be a j oy in a
ball room It was n ot that h e was ugly — for
the maj ority of d ancing men are — he was
hideous and his h ideou sness was accent
was that of a
u ated by h is grace wh ich
l emu r—ah attribute which in conj unction
with h is appearance mad e you think him a
su rvival the type of primeval man
He
had the long arms of th e trogl o d yte th e
stoop of the c ave dweller the muscu lar
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,
The
Beast
an d
Bea u ty
the
thigh s of the savage wh ile his f eatures —all
indeed save the chin w hich was correct an d
strong and the eyes which were large and
phosphorescently blu e— were those of a ! al
muk At fi rst sight he frightened at second
he repelled And this clow n for h e had al l
of a clown s agility an d powers of mimicry
too had in the leisures of d uty and pastime
foun d noth ing less surprising to do than to
discove r that the bit of lign um vit ae which
serve d him for heart cou ld beat almost as
we ll as an other s
T he discove ry after the fashion of such
things came about in a circuitous if
commonplace man ner During the school
days in C on necticut the little girls of the
village h ad excite d in him no larger feeling
than that of contempt than which be it said
n o d ebt is ever more faithful ly acqu itted
M oreover as one l ittle girl seemed to di ffe r
from another only in deg r ee s of d isagree
abil ity h e did not in h is initial encounter
with Myrrha A tterso l take to her in th e
least Sh e was in th e way to begin with
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E nth r alled
”
and then she disliked h im
T oad was the
word he had heard her use to her au nt in
th e presumable summing u p of her first
impressions of h im
”
T oad am I ? h e repeated ragingly to
”
“
himself
T oad eh
I ll show her
And then in that chaste language which
i s bes t acqu ire d in family sch ools and P uri
tan villages he blessed her l n a series of
images which would have thrown a coster
monger i nto stu pors of admiration But the
blessing was delivered u nder th e breath ;
he glared merely and to do the girl j ustice
she glare d back
Myrrha was twelve then Sh e had the
pink an d wh ite sk in of a Psyche of the
Bouguereau clique a complexion so ideally
peach that the boy in spite of his disl ike
experience d a hau nting desire to learn
wh ether it were real One d ay he did He
ran the point of a forefi nger across h er
cheek and th en hel d that forefinger to the
light But the sl ur was too grievous e ven
for a maid of twelve to endure She th rew
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En th r a lled
girl s education was regarded as p r actically
complete
Quain meanwh ile comported himsel f with
su fficient propriety H e was regular enough
in his h ours faithful too in the observance
of h is d uties and if bad at al l it was in
that negative way which is perhaps the
worst of all in that it is the resultant not
alone of temperamental indifference but of
moral disorg an ization H e was opposed to
prej udices and at table aire d that opposi
tion as young men will
“
But you confound prej u dices with prin
”
ciples Melan chth on Stitt the n ovel ist said
to him on e night when Quain was cel ebrat
“
ing his maj ority
Patriotism isn t a p rej
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u d i ce
”
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”
It is an accident Quain interrupted
“
An accident when it does not happen to
”
be a vendetta
”
An d do you obj ect to it ?
Natu rally I do E very on e bu t a fool
mu st It is part of the old baggage that
has come down from th e time when men
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The
Beast
an d the
Bea u ty
f ought for ideas they d id not understand
,
for kings they had never seen for gods
more helpless than themselves
“
Admitting all that your obj ection to
it is in itself a prej udice You shoul d read
Se x t u s E mp i ricu s in the original T rans
”
l ati o n s lead one astray
Qu ain did H e read [E n esi d e m u s too ;
h e would have read Pyrrho also had that
atarax i st left anyth ing to read and u nder
the novelist s advice followed th em u p with
incursions to the granaries of G erman
thought
Whe n h e was done even the
prej u dice of a prej u dice had gone
He
was unable t o take anything seriously least
of all h imself H e was fi n de si ecl e last
train and h u rrah for the h indmost
however d i si n tegrat
T hese gymnastics
ing an d j oyous interfered n ot in the least
with h is duties at the bank B ut then to be
a consistent atarax i st to maintain an entire
suspension of j udgment a constant sho u lder
shrugging presupposes what it di d not
when ph ilosophers were content with an
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Enth r alled
T he sala ry which
obolus a day—wealth
Quain received was not generou s—the salary
of what clerk in Wall Street is —but such
as it was he knew it to be d ependent on good
behavior an d assi duity In Fifth Avenu e
Mr A tterso l treated him as h e might h ave
treated a son had he had one with a frosty
kindness a benign reserve
But in Wall
Street th ough the frosti ness an d reserve
were there they were absol utely untem
pered Qu ain was a clerk an d noth ing more
One morn ing that clerk s attention was
attracted by the o ffice boy O n the tip of
his snub nose was a smear of red ink , an d
he was sawing his throat with h is han d
”
“
You re wanted
h e croaked hoarsely
Look out for you r head
Ford s is
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c ho pp e d f
Ford was the cashier an elderly man
with a tired man ne r who never spoke and
to whom by his brother clerks in the ex p an
sive five minutes which are the successors
of lunch H el iogabali an propensities were
ascribed
,
,
,
,
,
.
The
Beast
a nd
B
the
ea u ty
”
Ah !
Quain felt his own head safe
enough an d woul d have said as much had
he thought it worth wh ile but h e obeye d
the b idding at once
”
Oswald sai d M r A tterso l when Quain
entered th e room where that gentl eman sat
“
I have been oblige d to thank M r Ford
for his serv ices
Y ou are to take his
"
pl ace
With th is the banker l ooked d own and
away But presently he ra ised his eyes !
“
Y o u are to take h is sal ary of cou rse
And
Quain was about to spe ak but h e ch ecked
h im
“
Myrrha an d M rs Smithwick return to
morrow Perhaps y ou w ill fi nd it co n ven
I shall expect
i en t to ge t rooms elsewhere
you at dinner on Su nday—o u every Sund ay
T hat will do
T elephone to Mr Bancroft
”
I woul d l ike a word with him
M r A ttersol s private o ffice had looked
very bright to Qu ain wh en h e entered it ;
there was sunlight eve rywhere and some of
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En th r a lled
that su n light accompanied his retu rn For
th e advancement was not only un expecte d
b ut u np recedented It sent h im careering
over fou r of h is sen iors One may indeed
be an atarax i st the recognition of one s
abil ities is pleasu rable after all And b e
sides though the h ouse on Fifth Avenu e
was su fficiently lu xu riou s and exceedingly
well appointed th rough some strange over
sight n o latchkeys had been provided which
perhaps was as well for M r A tterso l was
ve ry rigorous in his insistence that every
on e in th at house should be present at morn
ing prayers T hen too a rel ease from the
presence of that littl e vixen an d her feather
headed aunt was a matter wh ich Quain could
contemplate with entire equanimity
On
th e whol e th en as he re straddled h is stool
h e was on su ch good terms with th e worl d
at large that a half hou r passed before he
remembered the message to M r Bancroft
I f b ored at all it was merely at the prospect
of these S unda y d inners
”
“
“
I wonder
he mused
I wonder i f
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The
Beast
the
and
Bea u ty
that little catamount is any beastlier than
”
she was before she went away
An d for a moment he pictured her as h e
had seen h er last— the eyes half closed th e
chin u praised th e mouth drawn in d iligent
disdain
”
She couldn t be he ultimately d ecided
and consoled by th e reflection settled down
to work
But the Sun day which followed was fer
tile i n surprises Who was th is that looked
l ike a willis in a balla d an d who as h e
entered the drawing room came forward
with an e nchanted smile ?
Surely this
could not be Myrrha An d what was she
saying to h im ? When had h e h eard such
melody before ?
Her han d was in his ; about her mobi le
lips a smile was fluttering one that mounted
to her eyes danced in them and played
again i n th e curves of her mouth
No
n ever had h e seen that mouth before nor
yet i n all th e world any mouth that for
sweetness resemble d it And that hand !
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E nth r alled
Why was it in h is
And that face
Surely
this was some princess steppi ng from an
idyl in a dream !
Is it you
he asked grotesquel y and for
countenance s ake ran his fingers through
the t angles of his hair
T he phantasmagoria had lasted but a
second the sound of his voice awoke h im
h e was on earth again It is tr u e th e h an d
had gon e
”
I am glad to se e you he added civill y
en ough and in a moment h e was hobnob
bing with Mrs Sm ithwick congr atulat i ng
her on her safe return
D urin g the meal that followed you might
have mistaken h im for you r own co u sin so
nicely did h e behave T he girl too was
brigh t and debonair ; Mrs Smithwick s
tongue ran till it seeme d as though it mu st
fall from her mouth ; and though it was
Su nday even M r A tterso l seemed pleased
and content
In short th e d inner was s o
l ittl e un successful that whe n Quain got
back to the lodgings in the lower T hirties
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E n th r alled
the park he sal uted th e carriage with q u ick
c u ing pulse B ut th ese things h owever sig
n ifi can t were as n othing i n comparison to an
incident wh ich presently occu rred It was
in October that the girl had reached New
York and after that fi rst Sunday she treate d
Quain as though in reality h e were one of
the family ; interesting h erse l f i n h is pu r
suits question ing him i n regard to h imself
and when th e cloth was gone an d they had
all moved to the drawin g room telling h im
tales of E urope adventurous episodes of
schoolgirl career th e gemuthl i ehhei t of th e
D resden court th e saucin ess of Paris the
fatu ousness of the Florentines interrupted
if at all but now an d then by i nterludes
from he r aunt or some comment that issued
from beh ind the period ical in wh ich M r
A tterso l was su pposed to b e absorbed
T hen M rs Smithwick woul d vanish l ike a
wraith M r A tterso l too wou l d d isappear
and there would be more tales punctuated
by interchange of co n fi d en ces u ntil the cl ock
struck the eleventh h ou r an d Quain kne w it
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The
Beast
a nd
the
Beau ty
was time to go
D u ring th ese sess i ons
when the girl was occupied with the impres
s ions wh ich foreign lands had suppl ied it
was a pleasu re to watch her Her voice was
resonant as a bel l delightfully modulated
it charmed the ear B ut th e mobil ity of her
features th e varying expressions wh ich her
face took on at the situations wh ich sh e saw
before d escrib ing and which sh e made he r
auditor expect were a caress to the eye
T here were qu ivers in her mouth flushes
that woul d come an d go incl inations an d
poises of the head and particularly a l ittle
trick she had when h esitating for the word
she wanted of d rawi ng breath her lips half
parted the tip of her tongue j ust visible
that gave her a grace too a mbient to b e
portrayed
But when it was Quain in tu rn who led
the talk sh e exhibited an assenting imper
sonal interest which in th e lengthen ing
interviews changed almost into perplexity
as though her thoughts were occupied less
with wh at he said than with what he sug
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Enth r alled
though she had become doubl y
receptive attentive at once to h im and to
some other invisibl e to them b oth
Now it so happened th at M rs Smithwick
who had more fancies than a comp oser of
b allets conce i ved in an entirely painless
“
manner an idea that M y rrh a shoul d come
”
out
Her own people had been n otable a
t
a time whe n U nion Square was a s u burb ;
an d though th e fair precinct in wh ich she
now resided was largely inhabited by ladies
and gentlemen whose names had never in
th ose less complex days appeared on any
visiting list of which sh e had cognizance
still among th em were offsh oots and l in
cages which she coul d recognize T hen
too there was the wide the wealthy and
the fabulously respectabl e contingent adher
ent to the P resbyterian C hu rch of which as
already noted M r A ttersol was a pillar
And inevitably the flying s q uadron of
ac q uaint ances an d friends enco u nte re d an d
recruited among the penal colon ies on the
Seine on th e Arno an d the R iviera—ladies
gested ;
as
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The
Beast
Bea u ty
a n d the
of a certain age whose concepti on o f
morality appeared to consist in the improper
thoughts they had of other peopl e ; and
stately gentlemen of suave address with ou t
an enemy in the world or an ide a in th eir
he ads
Where was the obstacl e th at should pre
vent these representatives of fash ion from
becoming aware that M iss A tterso l was to
enter society ? Mrs Smithwi ck saw but
one — M iss A tterso l s fath er T o her sur
prise h owever an d more to h er content the
s u ggestion made there was no veto from
h im ; a protest merely from Myrrha to
which M rs Smithwick paid n o attention at
all but promptly consulted w ith Sherry an d
ordered the cards
T o this function Q u ain was d uly hi d d e n
It neede d some urging though before h e
consente d to come Oh not much ! He
balked ; he was n ot a society man he
insisted ; he woul d not know what not
to do nor wh at not to say B u t Myrrh a
br u she d hi s obj ect i ons as ide like cob
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En th r alled
”
webs
I want you sh e told him and
he came
”
“
But the visit was brief
I m off
he mu ttered to her the fi rst chance h e
got
T he d rawing room th e great dining room
beyond th e reception rooms the hall th e
stairway too were pervaded an d possesse d
by a set of people as well sent ou t as any
cap ital of the globe coul d produce At th e
t i me being Myrrh a was engaged in tal k
with Arth ur Bancroft a lawyer still young
yet already famous a man with the look of
an athlete that had taken honors one in
whom h er father reposed great trust as well
h e might for he was frank as a sword and
j ust as keen
”
I feel l ike a pike in a tank of goldfish
Quain added
”
“
Nonsense ! she
T he girl looke d u p
”
“
exclaimed
I won t have y ou go
B ut as h e nodded merely a flush
mou nted to her cheek sh e turned awa y
A moment and he had gone
“
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.
Beast
The
a nd
the
Bea u ty
”
“
What rights has she ove r me ? he
queried ind i gnantly T he re was no one to
reply
T hat n ight the qu estion haunted h im
and in the morn in g it greeted him anew
”
What is her ill humor to me ? he aske d
“
h imself
H aven t I provoked and ex p e
ri en ce d
it a thousand times before ? I
thought h er change d ! she isn t Since her
return she has done nothing but try to get
”
me under h er thumb It s absurd
B ut in spite of the irritation Myr r ha i n
habited his thoughts Yet not th e Myrrha
whom he had known Another had come
a new on e so to speak made u p of beauties
and imperfections perversities and cha r ms
that fused into a u nity adorable gracious
sincere T he form invisible and un de fined
which su rely accompanies the tho u ghts of
the adolescent and wh ich is but th e u n
incarnate d soul of h er that is destined to
reside therein abruptly took substance As
a weed of the sea loosene d and detached
rises slowly stayed by one e ddy then by
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En th r alled
an othe r before achieving its grad ual yet
sure ascent a revelation arrested n ow by
an obje ction again by a q u ery yet ever
nearer the s u rface rose from the depths of
h is being an d suddenly surged before him
”
But I love her he cried
T here is a magic in those words
No
sooner were they u ttere d than an e xterior
force seemed to lift h im from himself H is
mind became a rendezvo us of apparitions
Myrrha reappeared in countless phases
as h e had seen her fi rst as h e had seen
her last in all the d ifferent changes of
the years ; and a shu dde r seized hi m at
th e perception of this love which had
not existed the day before and which h ad
revealed itself causelessly after a night of
d ream afte r too many glasses of cham
pagne perhaps
”
“
“
I l ove her h e repeated
B ut— but
sh e is not for such as 1 Sh e woul d be
”
amused indee d coul d she suspect
He d rew breath went to the d ressing
table sh ut h is eye s waite d a mome nt
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En th r a lled
perhaps th rough that clairvoyant intuition
wh ich gi rls possess she wou ld d ivine an d
j est As he tol d h imself this it occurred to
him that h e might par r y any possible thrust
by th e annou ncement that h e was to leave
town After all never yet had h e asked
for a h oliday ; t here was not an imaginable
reason why h e shou l d not deman d an d
obtain leave for an outing in Florida But
fate that u ncertain force wh ich we recog
nize secretly an d openly deny willed other
wise He was not destine d to mingl e with
th e magnolias that year—no nor on any
other
”
I think h e began when the sou p had
“
gone
I think i f M r A tterso l don t mind
that I will take a ru n out of town to morrow
Wh at do you say Myrrh a ? Wou ldn t it be
a good idea for me to go to St Augustine
or somewh ere ? T hese gayeties you know
”
are upsetting
T h e girl shrugged a shou lder i n d iffer
”
“
—
ently
A good idea yes if you want to
Q u ain bit his lip T here had been a f ail
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The
Beast
a n d the
B ea u ty
u re in the street others were i mminent A
political j ob a triumph in trickery had been
T he papers were d ripping with
u nearthed
scandals — social fi nancial ecclesiastic A
wave of corruption seemed to be crossing
the continent M r A tterso l touched on the
subj ect but distantly with his huger tips
Q u ain picked it u p b odily Never had h e
appeared so intractable
You woul d have
said that everything which was occurring
was a matter of personal import
T he
ataraxi a h ad gone
”
“
At this rate he declared by way of
“
conclusion
the hour is near when th is
globe of ours in whirling th rough space
w i ll poison the un iverse with th e fetidity of
”
its exh alations
My ! exclaimed M rs Smithwick whom
th e prospect startled
My ! my !
But Quain h ad tu r ned to Myrrha T here
was a violence in his eyes a bitterness an
u nreasoning anger a l ight as well wh ich
su ddenly inundate d her A flush flamed to
he r f ace she could have cried alou d ; she
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E nth r alled
wishe d herself anywhere save where she was ;
she was smitten by emotion as by a bl ow
”
“
“
He loves me
she reflected
H e is
angry because I have not seen it— and I
,
.
havef
’
Mr A ttersol leaned from h is seat
“
What is the matter with you
You are
”
scarlet
T he girl mu ttered somethi ng but what ?
She stood u p
T he words were inau dible
and left th e room
”
“
M r A tterso l
G ayeties are u psetting
”
annou nced sign ificant ly
Adelaide
he
“
continued to Mrs Smithwick
se e to it
”
that sh e goes nowh ere th is week
As qu ickly as h e could Quain got from
th e h ouse On the steps he reeled He too
had seen H e was bl inded It was unreal
he kept telling himself It was impossible
H e was the to y of an ill usion But th e ex
pression wh ich her face had taken on in
answer to th e reproach on his was voluble
”
“
She kn ows that I love her he muttered
“
She knows it and if I re ad her eyes aright
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The
—dear
G o d,
Beast
a nd
Beau ty
the
if I have l ife is as fair as a
,
”
dream
O n the morrow he was irresolute vacillant
f
i ce
still By fou r h e left th e o f
An hou r
later he was at the hou se determine d if at
all but as to one th ing— to know
”
“
Yes M iss A tterso l was at home
he
le arned from th e servant and from coats in
the hall that M iss A tterso l was not alone
H o w he entere d the room he coul d not after
ward recall H e was conscious merely that
M elanchthon Stitt spoke to h im Bancroft
as well th at h e hate d them both and that
for a second h e hel d Myrrha s hand in h is
”
“
Yes it was most odd Stitt was saying
Have you h eard Quain
the novel ist i h
terru p ted h imself to ask
T hat l ittle rival
of mine M rs Fordyce has committed sui
cide I was j ust tell ing Miss A tterso l
Su i
cide always seems to me s uch a poor climax
particularly as l ife is well enough agreeable
even i f you l et it have its own way Of
course i f y o u tr y to oppose it with al l sorts
of ide as y o u h ave got y ou don t know ho w
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E n th r alled
y ou make a mess of th e wh ole thing
Li fe
is a cu rrent O f your conceptions of right
or wrong of your likes an d dislikes it takes
no account at all D rift with it don t o p
pose it It is a guide that won t be gui ded
”
you mu st yield to it or drown
T he little speech
T he n ovelist stood u p
”
“
was j ust so much copy
which he pro
posed to ampl ify at leisure
But how did she do it
Myrrh a asked
“
Who ? M rs Fordyce ? How did sh e
kill herself do you mean ? Oh she j ust
threw a glance out of the win dow an d fol
l owed it By the way I wanted to tell you
M iss A tterso l how mu ch I enj oyed your en
”
ti r el y charming affair th e oth er d ay
And the novel ist smiled and b owed
”
“
Bancroft he added for th e lawyer had
“
also risen
if you are going my way you
”
can give me a lift
A moment and Quain and the girl were
alone
”
“
“
Myrrha h e began at once that id iot
gave y ou his views of life at second h and
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Beast
The
and
the
Bea u ty
too I dare say What are you r v i ews of
”
love ?
He must h ave looked a very fierce wooer
as h e spoke for the girl shrank he saw it
and m ove d closer
Shall I tell you his Bancroft s all the
world s
T o them love is the affection of
some on e else But to you what is it to
you ? What does it imply ? Answer me
”
You must tel l me
H e was staring into her eyes there was a
pathos in them a dread a wonder too But
they were not in h is ; they looked rapt yet
startled When a girl first stands face to
face with love it may all u re but al ways
it alarms
”
“
T ell me
be repeated ; and at th e mo
ment awkwardly as men will do such things
h e attempted to take he r h an d But sh e
freed h erself an d moved a little T he effort
presumab l y aroused h er
I d o n ot know that I know what love is
but if the feel ing wh ich I have experience d
”
since y esterday be th at then —then
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En th r alled
She hesit ated an d paused Her eyes now
seemed set on some vista visible onl y to
h erself an d sh e adde d slowly with th e air
of one retu rning from some inord inate dis
t ance
”
“
T hen it i s the sweetest shape of pain
As she sai d this for the fi rst time sh e
t u rned to him and sh e smiled Yet was it a
smile ? O n her lips there was a gladn ess
but in her eyes were the ph antoms of twin
tears She ran a han d across them an d for
a moment held it so
”
“
Oswald she continued th e hand still
“
raised
let me tell you or rath er let me
try to tel l for as yet I myself do not u nder
stan d Perhaps you can make it cl ear I
”
think I love you
and at the avowal sh e
blu shed d ivinely
yet ag ain in some wa y
which I cannot explain to myself I think it
may n ot be love at all
For love shoul d
bring happiness sh ould it not ? And it is
not happiness that I feel it is a d read — an d
”
of what ? O f myself or of you ?
T he han d d ropped to he r side the flush
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E n th r alled
H is hand again had sought h er own an d
for a moment now she let it lie in h is
”
“
“
Myrrha
h e whispered
th is is the
”
birth day of my life
T he girl made no
reply nor even did sh e attempt to f r ame
one ; she made no revolt either an d for a
wh il e hand in han d they sat silent o p
pressed by that mel ancholy wh ich is the
woof o f love interrogating th e futu re mar
vel ling at the past
”
I am frightened th e girl murmu re d at
last but so faintly that h e barely h eard
An d I ! I too am frightened Myrrha
”
j oy affrights
She shook her head
Perhaps it is that
in l ove there a r e three ; th e third is the
Oswald I kn ow now it is that
U nkn own
”
I fear
She had stood up What vision had sh e
seen Sh e had been pale before but now she
was wh ite Sh e reached to a chair for support
”
C hildren what are you u p to ?
In the
“
Snu ff I
d oorway was M rs Smithwick
”
“
s u ppose she added fl ightil y
Well even
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Beast
The
a n d the
Beau ty
so ! Oswal d I th o u ght you were shootin g
crocod iles And Myrrha ! D o you know
it is seven
D o you know the Wentwo rths
are coming ? D o you know—why what is
”
the matter with h er ?
O n the chair her head on her shoulder
Myrrha seemed to have sunk in a heap
”
“
Quain sprang at her
She s fainted
he almost yel ped
“
Be still you great booby R ing the
bell cau it y ou ? C all Antoinette
A l reatf
y Mrs Smithwi ck had raised the
girl and was beating her hands with h ers
but instantly almost she opened her eyes
”
“
T here it s over n o w
Sh e straightened h erself and for a
moment sat Qu ain and M rs S mithwick
on eith er side unconscious of them u n co n
scious perhaps of herself in that attitude
which D urer gave to M el ancholy
Mrs Smithwick h owever had no intention
of e xperiencing any such emotion witho u t
enj oying the due reward
”
“
It is you r stays Myrrha
she began
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E n th r alled
severely
Don t tell me it isn t
It s
always the same thing I don t kn ow what
”
gets into girls
And looking over at
“
Quain she adde d in a sh rill aside
T he
devil I th ink
Myrrha n odded but to which solution was
by no means clear T hen with that motion
a swan has she turne d to Qu ain !
”
“
C ome to morrow won t you ?
Yes indeed h e would
And wh en h e
found h imself in the street h e rep eated that
promise alou d H e was vexed ne rvous too
distraught by the episodes of the aftern oon
which had left h im little wiser than before
H er attitude too fi lled him with surmises
H e asked himself a d ozen questions in as
many seconds an d let them pass unans wered
T h ere was but one that he detained — o f
what was she afraid ? Was it his face ?
Surely that were enough to frighten a
braver and stronge r one yet than sh e Bu t
had sh e not insisted angrily almost that it
was not that ? An d yet admitting that i n
her heart of hearts she really loved was it
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The
Beast
Bea u ty
the
a nd
not less h imself for whom sh e cared than
for some illusion of her fancy ?
It is the corollary of love to d oubt to
doubt al ways to doubt in certainty in con
vi cti o n ; and though such shrewd people as
you an d I could have tol d at a glance th at
the girl was not i l l u sio n i z ed in the least , yet
Quai n was i n the toils Love may frighten
b ut it blinds as well
H e had reached a cl ub where latterly he
had dined and entere d que rying stil l In
the main room Stitt was seated his back to
the d oor About hi m were a group of men
i n evening d re s s
Q u ai n s entrance was
u nnoticed
H e picked u p the P ast and
glanced at a leader But the sound of his
own name cause d him as invol untarily it
will ca u se the b est of us to l isten It was
Stitt that was speaking
Men such as
Y o u are wrong dear boy
he have opportun ities the rest of us never
e nj oy Wome n must be loved y es th ough
it be by monsters perhaps particu larl y b y
monsters
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E n th r alled
paper Quain held fell from h im It
was as though a veil had been rent Light
poured i n upon hi m H e tu rned to go b ut
another phrase from the n ovelist the answer
to some obj ection no doubt followed after
and caught him on th e way
Psych ology ! Bu t what is psychol ogy
but common sense with th e gas turned on
“
And what is a paradox ? h e asked h im
“
self as he reached th e street
What is it
but the commonplace in fancy d ress ? For
once and by accident that idiot is right If
Myrrha loves me it is because I di ffer from
all oth er men becau se I am a monster
because outside of Patagonia and Sing S ing
I am the ugl iest being on earth Because I
am u nique But what is it that sh e fears ?
”
Is my nature as h ideous as my face ?
T he man who has followed th e old worl d
recommendation the man wh o has taken
cognizance of himself is rare Quain was
no exception T he philosophy of the A the
u l ans had disorganized h im admirably ; it
had divested him of th e incessant preo ccu
T he
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The
Beast
an d the
Beau ty
p atio u of what St itt might have termed the
T he opinion of the thi rd
ean t d i r a t en
person had l ost its value But what philos
o p hy had not taught h im and that for th e
reason that only l ife can was that in the
depths of every man however intellectual
however refi ned are the sa me pos sibilities
for evil that bandits share Only with th e
former the d regs d o not get to the surface
Yet now as he asked himself that simpl e
little qu estion he stare d at the abysses
wh ich h e discovered T he man wh o divests
himself of prej u dices divests h imself of prin
And as Quain looked the
ci p l es as well
closer th ere was not one that h e coul d call
his own nothing at all i n fact save the fl i ck
e r an d flame of a passion the lawlessness of
one desi re a determination fi xed an d reso
l ute to possess that gi r l
“
She is right to b e afraid he muttered
It h ad b egu n to sn ow ; the cool flakes were
grateful exhilarating too and as h e strode
on u p the aven u e agai n there came to him a
sense of larger life the freedom that eagles
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En th r alled
know ; hi s l ungs expanded with fresh odors ;
beyond was a new horizon brutally beauti
ful wholly sol id d reamless and real and in
it fairer th an the desire of a falle n god was
Myrrh a— aglow with gold
At once he understood h imself Other
men had i n fi rmiti es h e was sound — no gas
tritis cal le d good tast e none of th at obesity
of the m ind which is kn own as d ecorum n o
rheumatism of the nerves none of the an
ch y losis of rectitu de H e was an ambition
animated on e with wh ich nothing shoul d
interfere No noth ing an d as h e repeate d
those two words unconsciously yet surely
the old world recommendation F
6 8
a v r dr had been put in practice
H e knew
and was confident o f— himself
Myrrh a
indeed was adorable anoth er Psyche Yet
had she been sister to the Harpies it woul d
have mattered n ow not in the least Beauty
genius virtue or the lack of them anyth ing
and eve ry thing h e was aware cou l d be
talked away yet never wealth It was that
sh e rep resen ted an d it was that he pre posed
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E n th r alled
In any event you will u ntil further notice
oblige me by d iscontinu ing you r visits to
”
the house T hat will d o
Before the window of the cage to which
Q u ai n s stool had b een removed he fou nd
after this inte rview fou r men in l ine As he
raised th e cu rtain th e fi rst man handed in a
cheque hn d glared savagely
”
“
“
Anoth er minute he d eclared
and I
”
would have had it protested
”
Protest and b e damned Quain gnashed
back An d to h im to the others h e tossed
out money ragefully with out a second
counting indifferent o f results
H e was
furious angry with fate angry with th e
world
”
“
Here Brisbane he calle d An d reliu
q u i shi n g h is stewardship to an under clerk
in half an h ou r he was at M y rrha s d oor
B ut Miss A tterso l was not at h ome H e
went away idled at a club and retu rnin g
T he answer was the same
rang again
After an h o u r s interval he reappe ared
T h is t ime he was admitted
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The
Beast
a nd
the
Beau ty
As the girl entered th e drawing room he
almost sprang at her
“
Do you know what you r father says ?
I am not to come here I tol d him I loved
you ; I told him too that y ou loved me
He says it is a mistake Is it a mistake
”
Myrrha ? Don t you love me ?
Her hands were in his his eyes in hers
T he question h e saw was needless but h e
repeate d it with all a tru e lover s sh o w of
poignant anxiety
“
D on t you Myrrha
She d rew her hands away ; but her eyes
still reste d in h is own and it was with her
e y es she answered
“
At once h is arm was about her
For
ever
he cried in a voice in which there
“
was a reminiscence of the stage
For
ever ? Myrrha tell me you will not
chan ge
T he girl smiled yet such a j oyless smile
one wh ich was nearer to tears th an to
l aughter
He will never consent Oswal d
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E nth r alled
With the bravest gestu re he inte rru pted !
And what of that
I may be poor but
I have two arms T he y are al l in all for
”
you
T he girl shook her head
It i s not that
H e told me last night that it would break
”
his heart if I did not give you u p
And you
”
I told h im it woul d break mine if I d id
Well
“
We will h ave to wait Oswald H e told
me I woul d kill him He said
From beyond came a j ostle of porti ere
rings T he girl turned
At the door her
father stood h is h and on the cu rtain For
a second that seemed a min ute n o on e
spoke then M r A tterso l motioned
”
Myrrha go to you r room
H e had spoken qu ietly in the low voice
h e used when he wished to impress and
d umbly the girl obeye d
”
“
“
Now sir he add ed to Quain
will
y ou explain what you mean by disobeying
”
my orders ?
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The
Beast
a nd
Beau ty
the
In matters of th is sort M r A tterso l
orders are not for you to g ive nor for me
to receive I love Myrrha and I propose
”
to make her my wife
“
And you propose also I imagine to
su pport her on money taken from the
till
”
“
What ?
In that one word which he propel led with
teeth and tong u e there were angers men
aces too great eno u gh to h ave deterred any
on e not wholly sure of his grou nd
Mr
A tterso l h owever did not appear to notice
the interru ption H e continu ed in th e same
tone in which h e had begun !
“
M r Brisbane d iscovere d an error in
y ou r accounts to day T here are others I
presume
B ut even otherwise one is suf
fi ci ent
You r services are no longer re
”
qu ired
Quain consu lte d his fi nger tips T he hot
wrath seemed to h ave gone
H e looked
down an d away an d then up at his j u d ge
”
“
Do y ou me an
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En th r alled
is an other matter You r father
intrusted me with a su m of money to be
given to you at my discretion It amounts
now to about two h undred thousan d T he
income will be paid as long as you remain
”
out of th is country
He turned an d touched a bell A se rvant
entered
“
H arris get Mr Quain his hat M iss
A tterso l will not be at home to him in
”
future
A metaphysician will if you let him tell
you that T ime is a category of thought a
figment of fancy the shadow of that which
is not a baseless appearan ce which imagina
tion creates Qu ain was not a metap hy si
In h is brain were two compartme n ts
ci an
O ne hel d the present the other the future
and during that n ight he examined th em
both T he two hu ndred th ousan d dollars
assumed a variety of entrancing shapes and
danced seductively before h im
But how
slight an d trumpery they seemed in com
p arison to the glare which th e p arade of
“
T here
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Beast
The
the
an d
Bea u ty
twenty million created
It was dazzlin g
nothin g less
Yet why he wondered why
might i t not be perfectly practicabl e to use
the one as means to the other ? H is dis
miss al and the reason of it the banishment
wh ich had ensued affecte d him remotely it
was of these things that he thought Su rely
th e money wh ich had been left to him was
n ot money wh ich M r A tterso l coul d retain
T here were certainly courts and codes
e nough to p revent h im
And with that
money it woul d not be d i fli cu l t to support
Myrrh a u ntil Mr A tterso l conclu ded to
leave the planet and the twenty mill ion
beh ind
Manifestly he could not live forever
Q u ai n s keen n ostrils had already d etected
about him some trace of that aroma of fresh
earth wh ich is th e pre symptom of decay
an d of Myrrha h e now was confi dent With
two hu n dred thousand then for the n eeds
of th e present of the futu re h e felt secu re
T hese preoccu pations resulte d in a con
su l tati o n with a memb er of the bar which
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Enth r al led
robbe d hi m of much of his seren it y T o
begin with there was not a thi n g except M r
A tterso l s own unwitnessed statement to go
on T he records in the su rrogate s o ffice
were examined ; the will of Q u ai n s fathe r
was n o t on file I n the total absence of evi
dence any action wh ich might be instituted
would be thrown out of cou rt T here was
but one cou rse possible — th reats
And
Quain consenting a letter was prepare d and
sent —one of th ose communications at once
courteous and ferocious which are the aver
age lawyer s stock in trade
At the expira
tion of a fortnight n o reply having been
received a second an d more agg r essive
missive was despatc hed
T h e result was
identical an d the attorney stepped out
A month or two later and Quain had so
nea r l y ru n his teth er that acceptance of M r
A tterso l s offer seemed obl igatory
But an
incident prevented
C hance took h im into
a gambl ing house and permitted h im to win
T he next day he retu rned and won again
T hereafter he became an habitu é , sometimes
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E nth r a lled
l aw s edict and was inclined to condole with
the young man in consequ ence
But after the unbu rd ening allu ded to
I saacste i n took h im in hand
”
“
You should hel o p e
he kept sayin g
“
Why bless you r sweet sou l the old to ff
will come down th en quick enough and
”
don t you slip u p and forget it
T he value of this counsel was not to be
talked away ; th e di fficulty lay in its o b
se rvance M eanwhi le Pa r kh urst aiding the
gambling house had been closed and at th e
races Quain was n ot fortunate T he mod
e rn Lochinvar has got to have en o u gh in
h is waistcoat pocket to satisfy h otel ke epers
and ticket agents and at this j uncture
Quain was broke But I saacstei n had n ot
co n sumed whiskey and time for fun
“
H o sval d l isten to me
You can t d o
this j ob hal o n e You need a pal Vat vill
my share be if I show you ow and pull you
”
T alk square an d let s be hat it
through
It was then the I st of May On th e i 3 th
the A tterso l ho u sehold removed to New
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Beast
The
an d
the
Beau ty
port On that day tw o che q ues pa y able to
bearer an d signed R ichard A tterso l were
presented an d paid O f th e amount thus
collected I saacstei n receive d a fou rth th e
bookmakers the balance a circumstance
which annoyed I saacstei n thoroughly T wo
days later another chequ e was prepared and
paid Before the proceeds could be lost
Quain and I saacstei n were in Newport
T h ere the you ng man without bothering
with the bagatel les of the doo r crossed the
lawn and entere d the room where Myrrha
an d her au nt were at tea
And now as h e stood alone in that
room it was these things that came back to
him H e had work to d o h owever ; an d
running h is h and agai n through th e tangles
of h is hair visibly he composed himself to
d o it B ut mean wh ile all thought of elope
ment had evaporated
”
“
I f h e makes that wil l to n ight
he
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muttere d we are done for
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C HAP T E R I I I
T WE N T Y
M
I LL I O N —LESS
TEN
CE N T
PE R
”
j ig s up
In a sailors dram sh op I saacstei n loung
ing against the bar was eying a th ick glass
thimble in which there was rot gut But as
the words reached hi m he looked u p his
yello w eyes charged with qu eries
”
“
Vat ? Vat vas that you said ?
Succinctly one after anoth er yet in a
voice inau dible six inch es away Quain
related th e i ncidents of the afternoon As
the tale conti nu ed I saacstei n s n ostrils con
tracted an d bu nched until he seemed al l
nose u ntil he seeme d as th ough h e were
inhaling th e fetidest of assafoetida
”
“
I don t like that
h e snarled when
“
Quai n had finished
I don t l ike that at
”
all
And emptying the thimbl e he added
”
“
Let s be hout of this I must th ink
“
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M i lli en — L ess
Twen ty
Ten P er
Cent
A moment and th ey were in an alley ;
be yon d was a wharf on which f reight was
piled Longshoremen were busy there an d
at the extremity a man swinging a lantern
was shout i ng hoarsely at the n ight
It
was a spot qu ite su ited to meditative
chat
“
T he th ing that stumps me
Quain con
“
tinned is th e will If he signs it to n ight
”
th ere is n o use
I saacstei n drove his hands into his pock
ets and i n fi ne b ulldog fash ion wobbled
his head
“
He
And as Quain contented h imself with
staring I saacstei n hi s head still nodding
but more slowly now to the dawn of u nder
standing which he saw breaking in th e
young man s face stared back
“
He sha n t Ve ll prevent h im Ve ll
prevent th e old toff that s vat ve l l do
von t ve H osval d ? It vo u l d n t b e nice of
”
us not to vou l d it H o sval d ?
From the entr ance to th e alley a small
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E nth r alled
mongrel emerge d barking unce rt ainly the
tail betwee n its legs
“
H e vo u l d regret it wou ldn t he H os
”
vald all the rest of his death ?
”
But how ? How are we going to
”
“
How ?
I saacstei n turne d ; th e mon
grel had approache d ci rcuitou sly u nce rt ain
still
“
Dere s a nice little dog
Dere s a
”
werry nice l ittle dog he gurgled sed u c
“
tivel y
Vas a nice little doggie vasn t
”
you ?
An d prese ntly th rough sweet beguiling
words the smal l beast su ffered i tself to b e
taken and patted on the head
“
Yes vas a remarkably nice little dog
I saacstei n continu ed
and drawing a phial
from h is waistcoat with one hand h e caught
the animal by the neck then passing the
stopper between its lips let it fall back
lifeless and limp
“
It vas quite dead H o sval d ! ick it
”
an d see
“
Quain shook h is he ad
It would n ever
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Twen ty
M i llion— L ess
Cent
Ten P er
work I doubt if they d let me in to begin
with and even otherwise I should be sus
”
p ected at once
“
O f course H o sval d so you vo u l d if
you go to the front door an d tell the ouse
keeper hall habo u t it But vy should you
d o that ? Vy shou ldn t you go in b y the
vindow by the old toffs vindow and no one
”
the viser not even h imself ?
Well what then
“
Vat then ? V y H osval d ven they take
hi m h is gruel in the m orning they find h e
had a fit in the night
T here ll be no
hodor H o sval d Look at that l ittle doggie
H o sval d
All the doctors in the vo r l d
coul dn t tell but vat that little doggie j ust
d ied of old hage
Ave y ou had you su p
pe r H o sval d ? Vell see there now No
man vas brave on an hemp ty stomach
C ome vid me H o sval d ; come vid you
”
farde r
O n the main street was an eating hou se
a white washed room the ceiling astragal ed
an d arabesqu ed with flies the walls fes
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E nth r a lled
with alluring invitatio n s —liver an d
bacon ham and eggs co ffee an d cakes
corned beef hash al l kinds of pie
”
It isn t Delmonico s said I saacste i n i n
“
gracious apol ogy
But then Lord love
you ve vo nt ave to pay tve n ty fi ve dollars
”
for a steak
”
“
And vat did the ladies do now ? h e
began anew when food and flies h ad at last
been brought
Vat d id Miss Myrrha say
ven you valk ed in and kin d of took em
u n avare s ?
And vat did her au nt say and
vat d id you say to them ? C ome H o sval d
”
tell you farder h all about it
Myrrha d idn t say anything What the
d euce would y ou expe ct h e r to say ? T h e
old lady looked a bit rattled at fi rst but she
picked u p the pape r and began ab out some
bloody E n gl ishman or other who is lost
Lord Cl o d en I th in k — I say waiter haven t
”
you any baldheaded potatoes ?
Vat H en gl ishman did you say H osval d ?
”
Vat H en gl ishman ?
Cl o d en the Visco u nt marquis or some
to o n ed
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En th r a lled
vald I ve seen h im H o sval d I don t min d
telling you he tried a post hobit on me
damme if h e didn t— and n ot a stick to post
h o b i t on not a stump
Nothing H o sval d
nothing H it vas cru el B ut I vas onto
im
H o sval d I kn ow em root and b ranch
H e vo u l d n t su it Miss Myrrha at al l Vell
”
and then vat ?
T hen what ? Why then I asked h er to
go with me and j ust when sh e sai d sh e
would her fath er sent for me I tol d y o u
the whole thing an h our ago What s th e
”
use i n going over it again ?
H e r fard er s room H o sval d
T hat vas
j ust over the balcony vasn t it ?
And
T hat vas it
over and and there you are
vasn t it H o sval d
T here y ou are if you like
T he coast is
free ; I sha n t interfe re But I won t go
”
mysel f
Not for tventy million H osval d ? Not
for tventy million ? Vy H o sval d th ink ;
vith tventy mill ion you co u l d sa y the World
vas mine !
And H o sval d—now do t ake a
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M i lli on— L ess
Twen ty
Cent
Ten P er
little more of the steak j ust th is little — and
You shou ld schmel l
H o sval d no hodor
that l ittle doggie now No hodor It hal l
evaporates Not a thing H o sval d on me
onor
Art fail ure they vill say Lord
love you H osval d they ve said it a thousand
times before T hey ll say it th is time too
Vy H o sval d I d do it mesel fif I vas to get
the plum But you se e I haint Only ten
per chent which you might ave cal led it
B ut there H o sval d you ll do the
tve n ty
square th ing by you farder I know you vill
”
—
H osval d
H ay vai ter Vere s the brandy ?
Quain p ushe d h is plate aside and looke d
ove r at the J ew
“
What is the stu ff anyway ? C hloro
form
Benignantly with that indulgence which
superior wisdom brings I saacstei n smiled
Before he could reply the waiter approache d
an d lolled affectionately familiar against
the table ready to j oin in the convers ation
to take a se at too and sh are in the brand y
as well
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En th ralled
Hot isn t it
You gentlemen are stran
gers b en t you
G oing to pass th e su mmer
here
“
Vat vas that to you ? Be hoff
T h e man scowle d and withdrew
I saacstei n s smile overcast for a second
reappeared
“
T ake th is H o sval d it vi ll d o y ou good
N o H osval d no v ater take it ne at
Z ere that s something l ike
No H o sval d
it vasn t chloroform it vas h m it vas h m
”
it vas H ydrocyanic
T he e f
fort at that H must have mad e the
acid seem l udicrousl y impotent or else th e
bran dy was taking e ffect for Quain laughed
outright
“
I say I saacstei n you rem ind me of a
character in a novel Y o u are ornate u se
ful beautiful to behold
You charm
T here radiate from you emanations that
clothe me with delight You are frank —a
qual ity wh ich is rare But you have n o
conscienc e which is commonplace E very
b ody should cultivate on e though i t be but
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Twen ty
M i lli on—L ess
Cen t
Ten P er
for the pleasu re of enj oyin g its qualms
Now b e conscientious for a second and tell
”
me where y ou stole that stu ff
”
“
?
Vere
I saacstei n put a fi nger to his
n ose and for a moment seeme d lost in re fl ec
“
tion
I vill tell you vere I vil l tell y o u
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Quain contemplated th e table cloth
When h e l ooked u p all sign of h ilarity had
gone
“
Se e here a fellow doesn t d o a thing
of that sort o ffhand H e has got to kill
phantom after phantom ; he has to h ave
done it time and again in fancy before
he can do it in fact H e must have accu s
”
to med his nerves to the idea
And must a fellow haccu sto m his nerves
to the hi d ea of preserving his life before he
does anythin g to th e other fellow vat has
got h im by the throat
M ust he H osval d
Vat di d the old toff say habo u t t hose
cheques ? T ell you farder aga i n H o sval d
tell i m ag ain T hose little bits of paper can
stri ng h out i nto ten y e ars H osval d Vo u l d
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En th r alled
you like to ave em back ? Vo u l d n t you
l ike to ave em h in you pocket ? Vo u l d n t
you l ike to ave the vill there too ?
V o u l d n t you like to ave M iss Myrrha ?
V o u l d n t you like tven ty mill ion
T venty
H o sval d hevery penny hof it except my ten
per ch ent Vy of course you vo u l d Hos
vald and noth ing to prevent y ou except
you conscience
You shouldn t ave n o
such th ing habo u t you H o sval d ; give it to
the valter And you haint frank vith you
farder ne ither H o sval d you haint frank
vith h im as he is vith y ou Y o u d on t tell
him l ittle things You like to tease you
hol d farder don t you H o sval d ? You
d on t vant him to kn ow that you hi nten d
to do the j ob by you rself and b ilk hi m
h out of his ten per chent
You d on t
vant im to know that eh H o sval d me
”
boy ?
”
“
Idiot ! Qu ain snarled in exasperation
“
T hat vas it H o sval d
H abu se you
h old farder hi nsu lt y o u hol d farder H e
don t mind ; he ll go vid y ou H o sval d ;
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Twen ty
M i ll i on—L ess
Cent
Ten Per
he ll give y o u a lift H osval d ; he ll st an d
”
guard H osval d
An d lowering his voice th e J ew le aned
across the table
”
“
T he re haint n o moon
I saacstei n dropped back in his se at b e av
ily with the air of one who has had h is sa y
B ut his eyes were on Quain as were Q u ain s
on him And for awhile b oth sat witho u t
a wor d without a motion staring at one
another u ntil at last th e J ew began to nod
his head as he had d one on the wharf then
both stood u p an d p assed into the ni ght
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IV
C HAP T E R
THE H U SH I N G
IT
or
re q u i rements i n R hode Islan d are
the s ame as i n New York T wo witnesses
”
fi cient
An d Bancroft h anded to M r
are su f
A tterso l a will wh ich he had j ust prep ared
”
It seems a p i ty h e adde d in reference
perhaps to the provisions of th e i nstru
ment
But M r A tterso l did n ot seem to hear
He held the paper to th e l ight of a lamp
lost in its clauses Bancroft went to the
window A g al e was blowing and the
waters had recommence d th eir surge
“
By th e way I omitted to tell you
When I left town this morning
Brisbane
aske d me to say that a cheque for seven
thousan d h ad come from Ph iladelphi a It
had not you r new m ark on it an d he threw
”
it out
“
TH E
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E n th r a lled
think that su ch lenience partic u larly as
it seems to have happene d before
“
It wo n t h appen again I will see to
that In any event Brisbane has n o right
”
to say it i s Qu ain
”
“
But i t i s Quain sir
M r A tterso l wave d a hand impatiently
“
Wire to Brisbane and let the matter
”
drop
It shall be as y o u wish sir of cou rse
B ut as h e p ut my name on it too
Wh at
“
T he che q u e was made payabl e to me ;
the ind orsement made it payable to be are r
It was because of that Brisban e spoke O f
course the T rust people will want my testi
mony As to the payee there is n ot a
doubt T he teller describe d him — red h ai r
”
squat features proj ecting teeth
”
“
We must hush it u p
T he ol d man had turned ; h e was l iv i d
his hea d shak ing with palsy
With one
hand he grasped the arm o f the cha i r b ut
th e other was sh ak i ng too
n or
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The H
fI t
ashi ng o
”
B ancroft we mu st hush it up
It is
T he lawyer raised his eyebrows
compound ing a felony sir
But even
otherwise the law shoul d take its cou rse
T he fellow is an un mitigate d scoun drel
You put him from you r o fli ce from you r
house I need not remind you of the man
n er in which he condu cted himself here th is
H is incarceration it seems to
afternoon
”
me is but a duty
M r A tterso l looke d down an d away hes
i tan t perplexed
”
“
You love her still do you not ? he
asked at last
Myrrha ? Love h er ? Why Mr Atte r
”
sol I would give my life for h e r
“
And I m y two
T he ol d man n odded
”
hands were sh e you rs to day
T here had come a strange path os to his
voice and to h is great h aggard eyes and
tormented brows a look wistfu l in its mel an
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cho ly
“
up
H
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H e is her brother
;
we m u st h u sh it
words had struggled from beneath
the breath but in them was the crash of
thunder
Bancroft started
T he room
seemed to b e turn in g ro u nd
“
I need n ot tell y o u of it all nor wou ld
y ou c are to know We — an d as th e mono
s y llabl e d roppe d from th e ol d man he m ade
a gesture so significant in the remoteness
wh ich it evoked that it d ispensed with
explanations
we were to h ave be e n
married but at the time there were ob
It was at his bi rth she d ied It
stacl es
was th e sin of m y l ife an d terrible has been
the penalty It is killing me as long since
”
it kil led her
For a second he paused a hand before
his eyes but presently it fell again an d th e
confession continu ed
“
Years after when Myrrh a was still a
child her mother learned th e truth
It
broke her h eart I think i t kille d her to o
she was never th e same again I n every
way I have been punished
An d yet as
G o d sees me now I di d my best for the boy
T he
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The H ash i ng
fI t
o
H e was my son in everyth ing but n ame I
shoul d have left h im half of what I h ave
It was the sentiment I saw developing be
tween him an d Myrrh a which forced me to
act as I d id T ell me d o you think she
”
?
still cares
”
It is horrible the y ou ng man muttere d
to himsel f
B ut M r A tterso l must have heard or
divine d the words for he raised his palsie d
hands i n testimony and cried alou d
”
“
It is worse ; it is life
T hen he sank back shu ddering ove rcom e
by the changes of the tragedy he had u h
rolled and for a wh ile there was silence in
that room
”
“
You sh ould tell her said Bancroft at
last very ge ntly
A s though issuin g from the mists of
”
“
dream M r A tterso l answered I know it
“
T hen he hesitated again and added !
But
I can t Nor in my place could you could
I h ave tried I have sought the
any one
”
—
cou rage I have failed
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E n th r alled
Again h e hesitated dej ected still bu t at
once in a tone cu riously humble the tone o f
one imploring the alms of advice fu rtively
yet almost h opefu lly too with that singular
ai r whi ch says Fate has done its worst h e
began anew
“
M ight it not be if we offe red h im a
lump sum to renounce Myrrha— and as
alternative arrest— might i t n ot be th at he
would accept ? I sa y a l ump sum H e
woul d have had h alf my prop ert y T his is
not a moment to b e paltr y
Suppose I
fer a mill ion two five even ; that sho u ld
of
”
satisfy sh ould it not ?
“
Any one else y es ; but h im —never
When a hyena has eaten h e is at pe ace
with the world B ut when were covetous
ness cri me an d folly fi lled ? T h ey are
”
insatiable an d so i s he
”
H e is my son the old man interru pted
and then interrupting h imself h e added !
“
My son ! H e is myself T he covetous
ness crime and folly that are in h im are my
o wn
It was from me he took them ; they
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The H
ashi ng o
fIt
are th e legacies of my flesh My coveto u s
ness has been th e ru in of h u ndreds ; my
crime precede d h is birth ; but it was m y
folly to think that criminal and covetous as
I have been I could el ude the finger of
God
T here cann ot be two hell s but there
is one an d men such as I bear it in their
hearts You are right I know my punish
ment is incomplete Send for her I will
tell her and the n G o d willing I wil l t u rn
”
my face to the wall
B ancroft raised a hand in protest
It was not that which I meant M r A t
indeed it was not It was my dread
terso l
one which we all share a dread which each
d ay is increasing into conviction that the
disposition of you r property will n ot affect
M y rrha s feel ings toward h im in the least
”
It is that which shoul d be counteracted he
added a l ittle lamely con fused perhaps by
the length of his own preamble pe r haps too
by the veheme nce of the old man s remorse
T hat was what I meant th at and th at
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only
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En th r alled
But M r A ttersol d id n ot appear to no
tice to hee d even
Bring her to me Is it l ate ? Fi nd her
Perhaps
maid then and have her called
yes I had best see her al on e B ut come to
me afterward I am not wel l and that wi l l
”
should be signed
H e had risen and putting his h ands on
Bancroft s shou lders looked hi m in th e face
”
“
Afte rward
he accent u ated the word
with wider meaning
afterward tell her
how I have su ffered A n d A rthu r should
she become you r wife be tru e to her —
there
I know you will But neve r let her endure
because of you what her mother d id be
”
cause of me
Bancroft turned ; the ol d man watched
him go T hen in shame of his daughter s
coming shame of him he l owered the light
to bu t a knot of gold an d blue
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En th r a lled
he arranged about th e young man s face
and head
Quain rea d j usted it to his l iking
Shoul d
anything occu r
”
“
Lord love you H o sval d n othing vill
H old your tongue
Shoul d anything
occ u r go back to that place where we had
supper
In five m inutes I ll be th ere
u n l ess I happen to be detaine d
T here was a wall to be crossed th e
devou red lawn as well an d to I saacstei n
abruptly he seemed to have bee n engulfed
by th e night Sil ently yet swiftly with th e
noiselessness of the ocelot h e reached th e
h ouse and there at the verand a steps
crouched an d l istened
Bu t there was
nothing— the swi r l of waters merely the
h ush of locusts th e beating of his h eart
R eassured he loo sened an d removed h is
sh oes placing them carefully on a step
close to a pillar where even in haste and
possible excitement they cou l d readily be
found
T hen at once the ascent of the
pillar began and continu ed through sheer
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Cor oner
Ver di ct
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strength of arm an d knee until a proj ectin g
ledge aiding he swung h imsel f bodi ly on to
the roof and landed there acrobati cally on
the tips of his toes
But the roof creaked a little and h e
re mained ve ry still T he handkerch ief had
slipped a trifle and he rearranged i t prop
erly T hat window was the one and he
fel l to wondering whether it might not be
bolted It was a thing of which he had not
thought before and h e marvelled a l ittle at
himself And that l ight ! B ut it was su ch
a thread that h e decid ed i t must come from
a night lamp
”
“
“
A fter all he reflected
I can stand
here an hour if I like and a sk myself
questions at the rate of one a second or I
T he latter course is I fancy what
can act
I saacstei n would prefer
Now vere is th e
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f?
shtu f
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But the l ittle bottle was safe enough
T i ghtening the kn ot of the handkerchief
he approache d the window and p ut h is fi n
gers tentatively on the cross piece tenta
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E n th r a lled
yet presently authoritatively for it
had moved and authoritatively still h e
raise d an d raised it until the spring catch
ing snapped out feebl y a minute gu n of
alarm
Wh o s there
In circu mstances not n ecessarily similar
but cognate men of experience of learn ing
men of what it is usual to term th e world
have aske d and will ask j ust su ch a th ing as
that without it may be awaiting any defi nite
reply It is true M r A tterso l was expecting
his daughte r but heretofore such visits as
she had made had been e ffected in a less
circu itous fashion invariably sh e had come
through the d oor T h en too what window
of its own volition raised itself
M r Atter
sol s curiosity was therefore qu ite natu ral
but that curiosity promptly gave wa y to a
sentiment in which there was anger an d in
which there was terror too
T he rationale of fear is simple —i t is the
dread of the U nkn own
And before any
circumstantial answer to that question cou l d
ti vel y
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En th r alled
neck n o l onge r twitched the head was
quiet and th e hands were still
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I must rea r range that
An d very adroitly and swiftly he closed
the eyes the mouth ; tu rned th e head a
l ittle on th e sh oul der fol ded the hands on
th e lap put th e b ody i nto the attitud e of
one wh om sleep has overtaken and fumbled
in a pocket which h e remembered of old
If the wil l was already signed i t was in
the safe h e was convince d and with a key
wh ich h e h ad fou nd he busied himself with
th e l ock one which lacked complexity for at
a turn the door open ed of itsel f d iscl osing
a vista of drawers an d lettere d pigeon h oles
T he compartmen t marked W containe d but
one paper the plan an d diagram of a wharf
Perplexed h e opened at random a d rawer ;
it was partially filled and h e was about to
rummage through the contents when the
q uestion h e had h eard five minutes before
leaped to his own l ips— there was some one
at th e door
Like a rat surprised he wheeled al l his
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Cor oner
Ver di ct
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senses concentrated y et alert Beh ind the
woodwork there was detection recogn i t i on
perhaps and remotely th e electric chair
T o the p alms of his han ds perspi ration
started and from his forehead drops fell
beneath the handkerchief on his face
T hen there came an other knock lou der
this time — a knock that exacted admittance
one that rang out imperatively and echoed
reve r berant through the silence of the hall
He coul d yet go he told h imself T here
was yet time Yet did h e now go with
out th e will with out the cheques he might
better have remained away— far better i h
deed ; and in that paralyzing uncertainty
which fright provi des he crouched u n
determined still T h e n abruptly his brain
became a ren dezvous of terrors In men
tal flashlights he saw h is entrance oh
se rved his identity d iscovered ; he told
himself that I saacstei n perhaps had sold
him out that th e pol ice were there behin d
that door beneath that veranda too ; that
the hou se was su rrounde d ; that there was
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En th r alled
no escape not one an d instinctivel y with
an u nformed resolve to defend himself
to the last he drew out and cl utched a
knife
But why had that imperiou s kn ocking
T he ech oes had subsided the hall
ceased
was silent again — no there was the sou n d
of footsteps ; but those footsteps —yes
there could be no mistake those footsteps
were going away
H e had not dared to breathe ; but as the
sound of th ose footsteps retreated an d died
in the d istance he stood up tremu lous with
the excess of emot ion still but h imself
h is mind dispossessed and vacated of its
h orrors It was Mrs Smithwick no doubt
Myrrha perhaps who had come on some
unimportant errand and fi nding th e door
l ocked had conc l u ded that M r A tterso l was
asleep and had retu rned suspicionless as
be fo r e
T hat was the explanation of it all in the
relief it brought him he found th e l eisure
to smile and turned again to the d r awe r
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En thr a lled
it be that the ol d man had it about h im ?
Of that it were easy to assure himself and
h e turned to wh ere he lay
Was it intuition or was it the in fluence of
that occult force wh ich some of us recog
nize and none can explain that compelled
h im even as h e turned to l ook not at the
door but above it ? Not a sou n d had h e
heard yet the inexplicable drew his eyes
that way ; and as he looked du ring on e
fleeting yet ever memorabl e second behind
the transom he saw a h ead that disappeare d
so suddenly that you or I might have ac
counted it an optical delusi on a phantom cre
ated according to the pathol ogy of the case
by the over taxing of d igesti on or of ne rves
But Quai n offe r ed himsel f n o such ex
plan ation A fear more paralyzing even
than uncertainty gl ue d h im to the spot ; h e
wanted to rush to the wi ndow throw h im
self down to the lawn an d be off anywhere
afar from the accu rsed h ouse — yet his e y es
were fastened on that transom his feet
rooted to the floor I f consciou s at all it
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Cor on er
Ver di ct
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was bu t of the immanence of fate one that
detained h im there and would not suffer
h im to go
A moment it had passed T he door was
quaking an d shrieking beneath the violence
of bl ows T he uproar an d the life of it
ban ished th e catalepsy wh ich h ad garroted
his will ; h e raised a hand in testimony of
his d eliverance and instantly he had u se for
it T he door flew ope n As though h urled
from a catapult Bancroft leaped at h is
throat
But th e u p r aised hand close d now and
wit hdrawn went out to meet the i ntruder
and fair on the forehead a blow to fell a
bullock knocke d him back ward on the
floor
H e would have risen but Quain
gave him n o time ; there was a flash of
steel one gasp and silence
“
And it was of that I was afraid
T o convince himself perhaps of the idle
ness of it all h e gave the body a kick n ot
aggressive but experimental as an assur
ance that it was not a fake
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En th r alled
What did I tell him th is day ?
T here are souls that have teeth and mine
”
have bitten But now for the will
Again h e tu rned to where th e old m an
lay but hastily fearful lest the househol d
were aroused In th e breast pocket there
was but a wallet ; it was not there it coul d
be and he replaced it que rying still when
an oblong document that lay on the table
caught his eye R eaching over h e drew it
to h im
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“
! n ow all men
he began bu t a cry
interru pted —the cry of a heart that is b reak
ing the cry of th e al nza per di ta; a cry ago
n i z i n g resonant
lancinant with pain with
angu ish too with despair with love a cry
that fi lled the room with the moan of his
name passed into th e night and sank into
stillness
In the door way cl inging to the wainscot
Myrrha stood H is han d went to his face
the handkerchief was no l onger there
When h e looked again the girl had fallen
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B ah
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E n th r alled
centimetre special dispensation or Q u ai n s
inexperience In addition h e was young
i n tip top trim without an excess against
him He had been unconscious for h ours
bu t h e had sl ept beautifully
T hough
physically weak with th a
t weakness which
blood letting induces ment ally h e was alert
—50 ale rt that the physician wh o presently
made his round said that eve ryth ing was
going very n icel y ; yet as h e would have
said th e same thing had the patient been
comatose and moribund Bancroft accepted
it for what it was worth — nothing
”
“
When am I to get u p ?
T he d octor was feeling the young man s
pul se gravely his thoughts occu pied with
other th i ngs ; but the question entangled
th em H e nodded — that S ph inx l ike n od
which the profession practise before a
mirror— and solicite d an inspection of th e
tongu e
If I pu t it out you will tell me to keep
it ou t You do m y way fi rst and I may do
”
y o u rs Answe r my q uestion
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Ex i t O swald Q u a i n
“
When are we to get u p eh ? Why the
”
—
moment we are abl e the very moment
And the physician smiled blandly with that
e ffrontery that ass u mption of wisdom with
which the practitione r conceals his paucity
of thought
H ow strange that is how very strange
and queer ! B ut I thank you for the con
N o w tell me have
ci sen ess of y ou r reply
they got him
Not that I have heard
T he burglar
H ow is Miss A tterso l
“
Quite as wel l as coul d be expected
quite as well D r McMasters with whom
I have thought it advisable to consult and
to whom I wired last night will I make no
doubt be h ere ver y sh ortly and co n fi rm the
”
opi nion which I h ave advanced
I don t see d octor that you h ave
advanced any but we won t argue over
that I think I will take a milk pu nch an d
”
I think too I will take another nap
“
But we m u st not take it too strong
We h ave a touch of feve r sti l l M odera
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Enth r alled
tion must be ou r motto —mod e ration in
al l th ings
A nd after more remarks of
an equally scientific natu re the doctor took
his C hesh ire cat smile aw ay
”
“
I diot growle d Bancroft as the door
closed
“
Yes sir
It was th e nurse that re
pl ied
“
And to think that I have to lie here
”
when so mu ch should be d on e
B ut wh at possibil ities of recu perati on
there are in strength of pu rpose and an u n
vitiated constitution
In a space of time
which by comparison to the gravity of the
wound was instructively brief Bancroft was
able to receive a visitor
M eanwhile his thoughts had b een busy
He had n ot alon e death to consider but
l ife — the life of one who was dearer to h im
than al l things else an d whom the i ntestacy
of h er father left a prey to th e wiles of that
b and it For he had recognized Quain at
once T here was that in his carr i age in
the length of his arms wh ich no mere mask
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E n th r alled
minin g even as he lay to land that h i ghw ay
man in j ail
T he motor forces of human act i vity are
gol d an d wom an It was the gol d for
wh ich Quain had striven ; the wom an in
th e case was an in cident T o Bancroft th e
woman was all It was for h er h e was
pl anning
An d as h is th oughts roamed
forward and back it was sh e that rep re
sente d th e futu re She might h e knew
never recompense h im with more than a
touch of th e hand th e e mb race of her lithe
wh ite arms might be the destined bliss of
another But th e love which littl e by little
had grown within him unti l it m astered h is
b eing though it gave n o rights brought
d uties and th ose d uties we re every one to
h er
O f these duties one wh ich th e admission
of the girl s father had made imperative
was the ablation from her heart of all affec
tion for Quain
Another was the prevention of further
enterprise on the part of that brigand
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Ex i t O swald Q u a i n
accomplish both one th ing was need
ful Q u ai n s capture prosecution an d i m
prisonment
U n aware i ndeed that the spectacle wh ich
the girl had beheld had already enlightened
h er su fficiently y et convinced that no on e
s ave h imself now knew of th e consangu inity
wh ich had M r A tterso l lived would have
prevented criminal proceedings it was with
the determ ination to let the assault go b y
the board but to press the charge of for
gery that he finally fitted himself to receive
a detective who on presentation of the
Philadel phi a draft had been empl oyed to
shadow Quain
T he man who was then ad mitted did not
however look l ike a detective T here was
nothing of the C entral O ffice about h im
H e looked shabby but not genteel ; th e
air of on e to whom th e wo r ld owes a liv
ing and has shirked th e debt
It was
when he spoke that confidence came for
if uncertain of oth ers h e seemed quite
sure of himself
To
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En th r alled
H e has been too qu ick for us M r
”
B ancroft h e began when th e nu rse had
“
gone
He was o ff before I got to h is
l odgi ngs It took me some time to discover
he had come here When I d id I followed
But he h ad ou t again It was then I learned
what had occurred Am I wrong in think
i n g it has altered you r intention s
“
No Before I wanted h im shadowed
Now I want him sent u p You must fi nd
”
h im sergeant
“
Will it be forgery sir or felon ious
assault
Bancroft stared
”
“
You suspected then
“
I kne w But I knew too l ate Wh ich
”
is it to be sir or is it to be both ?
“
Forge ry will do Have you any ide a
”
where h e is ?
“
If I hadn t I sh ould n ot be here It
may take a little time it may take longer
”
b ut in th e en d I can have him
T erms which are
Ve ry good sergeant
satisfactory to you will be entirely satisfac
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E n th r alled
the sooner y ou will get five th ousan d
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d ollars
T he detective rose from his seat look ed
at his watch and turned to th e door
“
T here is a train at two for Provide n ce
”
I may have hi m to night
”
“
If you d o Bancroft called after h im
”
I ll make it what you like
But not on that n ight nor on the sub
sequent o n e d id any news o f Q u ai n s cap
tu r e reach h im A week passed an d the n
one morning as he tu rned over the pages
of the H er al d the foll o wing item spran g
out and caressed h is eye !
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L O N DO N M ay 29 T he Si d n i a fr m B o s to n which
arriv ed at L ive rp o o l y esterday rep orts that O swal d
Q uai n a fi rst c l ass p ass en g er c o mmitted suicid e b y
j u mp i n g o verb o ard on the fi rs t day o u t
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En th r alled
back on the tray added with the abstrae
tion of a sibyl gauging the past !
T o th ink that but a year ago in this ve ry
room I was read ing of his father s death
D ear me d ear me ! H ow strange it all
seems ! H ow mu ch has happened since
Why Myrrha it was on that very n ight
that
M rs Smithwick ran on evoking episodes
relating incidents ventilating platitu des
losing herself i n extravagant conj ect u res
recovering h erself again without effort h er
fancy rising and subsiding indefatigably in
th e fl u x an d re flux of her words
But the girl had ceased to listen Much
indeed had happened ; an d wh ile h er aunt
splash ed about throu gh the shallows of
th ought she h ad n o n ee d of suggestion to
recall the drama of he r youth
T he n oblest truest and best may be
stricken yet after th e grave has open ed an d
close d ag ain does not Memor y still subsist
an d to the mourner may n ot th e ol d dreams
ret u rn
D e ath is b y no me ans the worst
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Sigh ti ng of the
The
E ar l
th at can come T hose who discove r th at
affection repose d has been given to an illu
sory representation to a trickster that has
cheated th e heart sound a deeper depth of
grief one where not only despai r is bu t
stupor too T hey may mou rn i ndeed
but they mo u rn for th emselves and they
mourn alone
On th e night to which Mrs Smithwick
had referred that crack of d oom wh i ch is
to heral d an etern al silence coul d not have
more appalle d the gir l than the spectacle
wh ich her father s room disclosed It had
seemed to her then that she was insane that
the world was ; that she was promenading
consciously through a n ightmare from which
despite the effort she coul d not awake So
great was the tension that it may b e in th e
strai n her mind woul d have given way had
not oblivion thrown its pall and drawn he r
gently in its morphi c arms
T h at n i ght a fever c ame that was obl i t
crating as th e morro w of steps on th e sand
For a month she was delir i o u s When sh e
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Enth r alled
i ssue d
from it though the u nforgettable t e
mained she was still in ignorance of much
that had occ u rre d an d it was not u ntil she
was able to leave her room th at it was con
si d ered wise for h er to le arn a few fr agments
an d particles of the truth
For th e truth in
its entiret y was yet ve iled and obscure
Phys i cian s certifie d that M r A tterso l had
d ie d of heart failu re though whether that
heart failure had been induced by th e ad
vent o fthe bu rglar whose presence Bancroft
had detected or whethe r death had preceded
that invasion they Were u nable to decide
But physic i ans are not detectives ; they are
content to be executioners A gentleman
from headqu arters came examined th e
wind ow and the lawn catech ised the serv
ants an d departed — with a fee At Paw
tucket the local police locked up a stranger
rele asing h im only on th e discove ry that on
the n ight in question the stranger if crimi
nally occup ied had been so with the local
pol icem an s wife
B ut the press was more enterprising T he
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E n th r alled
seemed not perfection indeed but the em
bodiment of attributes wh ich transcen d it
which appeal to th e senses as perfection
never does She had n ot regarde d him as
the i deal as one u nsu lliable and maile d
in right ; but h e h ad had the power to
tou ch th e very well springs of her bein g
so adroitly too that desp ite her fathe r s
u nconcealed alarm despite the th reat of
disinheritance despite the prayers wh ich h e
addressed her despite the evidence which
h e had displayed of th e man s u nworthiness
so u nable was she to fancy him oth er than
loyal and true that l ike Do na Sol she woul d
have preferred misery with him to regalias
with an emperor
E rring yes
Sh e tol d herself h e might be
that ; but sh e tol d hersel f too that though
a man may err and err again h e may yet
remain nobl e and steadfast through it all
A nd she kn ew un prompted that what would
appear a crime in the eyes o f her father
might seem but a transgression to another
less severe
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Sigh ti ng of the Ea r l
The
h is th reats therefore sh e had been
indifferent to h is pleadings deaf and when
in his increasing alarm h e had come to her
with proofs of her lover s folly of h is debts
dru nkenness and d isorders sh e had thought
him non e the less lovable for th at
Be
sides she had argu ed with h erself an d n ot
without l ogic were he otherwise h e woul d
be d ifferent and it was he as he was who m
she l oved Sh e had fou nd excuses too as
young girls will H e was h o m eless withou t
occupation brought up in l uxury abruptly
he was relegated to the chee r lessness of
furnish ed rooms It was small won der that
and if he foun d
he should seek distraction
that distraction in ways of which her father
cou ld n ot approve those ways sh e at least
could condone It was all very well for her
father to denounce him to say that he ran
u p debts that h e gambled an d the l ike
D issipation so far as she cou ld see hel d no
temptations for men of her father s years
and h abits ; and as for debts if inexcusabl e
in the rich were they not often u n avoid able
To
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En th r alled
by the poor ? Had Oswal d mone y sh e was
q u ite su re he wou ld owe no one a penny ;
had he an occu pation h e wou l d not gam
ble and had he a home he would seek no
distraction abroad
It was in th is fashion that the gi r l had
reasoned with herself ; but this was after
sh e had ceased reasoning with her heart for
that wo u ld brook n o interference When it
had fi rst begu n to beat she found that she
must yield to it or break it ; and for that
sh e lacked the stren gth T he love that had
entered there had come very su ddenly but
it had entered as a knight may into that
domain where all is vassalage and his own
It had frightene d her at fi rst though why
she cou l d n ot tell But presently the fear
had gone aided perhaps in its d isappear
ance by th e opposition with which th e love
itsel fhad been met In this she may have
differed from young lad ies of fiction bu t
sh e differed not at all from the average girl
It was n ot that sh e did not love her father
that she d id not respect h im or even that
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En thr a lled
palette on th e leaves d i d she learn with
part ial exactness th e motive of it al l
Bancroft strong in blood and sinew had
been u p an d doing before the d el iriu m had
l eft her and when at last she had been abl e
to descen d to th e sitting room again he
lacked th e b r utality to reconstruct for h er
what he knew of th e episodes of that night
B ut he was very tender of her yet tender
with j ust that self e ffacement which th e
broken hearted app reciate most
T he bandage which th e G reeks gave to
E ros must h ave falle n l ong since and been
lost on the way Nowadays a girl d oes not
need to b e tol d that she is l oved she pos
sesses a clairvoyan ce wh ich d oes away with
any need of speech But Myrrha was quite
blind Sh e noticed th e ten derness and was
grateful As for love that she deemed
impossible She was d egrad ed in her own
eyes a thing forever vil e on e wh o had given
her love and l ips to an outlaw T here were
no waters in which sh e coul d cleanse the
pollution Of her own choosin g she h ad
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The
Sighti ng of the
.
E arl
gone forth an exile from the best She had
ceased to be worthy of an ho n est ma
n
Bancroft s self effacement however was
n ot motived by any such reason ing as that
It was due primarily to the girl s manifest
weakness and in an almost equ al d egree to
the fact that she was one of the notable heir
esses of t he world one to whom the great
of th e earth would offer the hand — not th e
left e ither b ut both an d on su ppl icating
knees at that Yet h e knew too th e sim
p l ici ty of h er nature the sweetness of he r
ways and he told himsel f that coul d he but
win her and hold her to h im the wealth
which she possessed she might toss to the
sea
But with the heiress there is this d i ffi
cu lty A man less opu l ent than herself
h owever sincere his love may b e is han di
capped al ways by the th rottl ing dread that
she will th ink it is less herself h e is seeking
t han the blu e eyes of her cheque book
As a consequ ence Bancroft posses sed
himself of patience Du ring the summe r
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Enth r alled
.
th e isolation which th e recen t trage d y
demand ed h e made h i mself d iscreet l y an d
un importunately a slave Later when on
the girl s face on the lobes of her e ars and
on the cleft of her ch in health had replaced
its tokens in pink th e slave disappeared and
th e adviser came on e not sel fi co n sti tu ted
either a guardian appointed by power of
court as such a trifle authoritative given to
the giving of orders commands as well and
inj unctions too
But th e girl was ve ry pliant never u h
ru ly ; sh e signed u nread what papers he
brou gh t he r ind i fferent to details con fident
in his wisdom secu re in her trust
M eanwh ile apart from an unoccu pied seat
at table domestic arrangements were u n
ch anged Of a Saturday Bancroft in his
q u ality of nearest friend of attorney and
admin istrator wou l d appear
On Monday
h e was gone T o ward the en d of the week
M rs Smithwick might seem a trifle de
pressed as a bird will i n mou lting season
but early in the n ext her spirits would
an d
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E n th r alled
— b ut
an attorney
Why in E ngland
an attorney was but a d egree above a varlet
a bit of sociological i nformation which
she imparted to th e h ou sekeeper wh o re
cei ved it with awe
B ut there were minor matters In spite
of her fl i ghti n ess there was much of the she
wolf about her Myrrh a was less a daughter
of her sister s than a ch ild of her own An d
she wanted to growl over h er and show her
false teeth at th e trapper th at was coming
T he bare possibil ity that her
that way
charge was welcoming that trapper that
she was prepa r ing to put h er l ittle paw in
h is was a th ing so distressing th at it de
m and ed intervention from above
For Mrs
Smith wick bel ieved in s uch interventions
doctrinally in th e exact measu re that P res
by teri an i sm authorized her to believe an d
would h ave believed anyway authorized or
not because sh e regarde d it as aristocratic
to do so
But the intervention demande d rema i ned
”
u nvouchsafed
I can feel her going she
en cor e
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The
Sigh ti ng of the Ea r l
,
confided to th e h ousekeeper— a confi dence
which the housekeeper received with respect
”
“
But Myrrha was not
going
Sh e
lacked even the u rging wh ich u sually pre
cedes such departu r e Bancroft had not
said a word which h e might not h ave
shrieke d after her in a ball room
Only
h is forethought i ncreased ; th e girl felt her
self surrou n de d by impalpable attentions
her mind wadded from care He was grow
ing necessary to her and one evening that
fact became patent t o them both
It waé on the veran da Above a gala
moon glowed in a sky of peacock blu e
From beyond came the sibilants of the
sea B ut in the ai r th ough there was a
fragrance there was a c hill as well
Bancroft touched by that chill went for
a mantle wh ich h e put about h er and then
as she stood the moon in her eyes stepped
back
“
Do you know you are prettier than
B u t at once as tho u gh in palli ati on
ever
”
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h e added
Y o u have been so pal e
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Enth r alled
Don t call me pretty or y o u wil l make
me regret that I am not I f you wish to
pay me a compliment call y ou rself my
”
frien d
”
“
You kno w that I am— and more
”
I know I wish I had a brothe r
As
she spoke sh e tu rned and se ated herself
“
i n a great wicke r faute u il
I th ink I have
”
alw ays wished one
“
Bancroft shook h is head
It is n ot in
that way I love you For I d o love you
”
I always have I always shall
T he girl s brow an d mouth had contracted
a l ittle ; but as she sai d nothing e ither in
encouragement or rebuke after a moment
he leaned over and took her hand
“
Will you give it to me Myrrh a
Sh e drew back but irresol utely it seemed
slo wly as with regret
”
“
Will you not ? h e repeated H e had
made n o e ffort at d etention but he bent a
little closer In her eyes there were tears
With the han d wh ich he had rel eased she
brushed the m away
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E n th r a lled
H e was l ooking still into he r eyes T he
tears had gone n o w but there had come a
wistfu lness and a melancholy wh ich made
them sadder yet
”
“
T ell me ; where is he ?
Bancroft started
D on t y ou know ?
Has no on e told you ? D idn t you r aunt ?
”
S urely
“
B u t the girl sh ook he r h ead
At first I
woul d not l et he r Since then I have been
afrai d to ask
I feared that perhaps h e
”
—
might be i n i n
”
“
He is dead
T he monosyll ables fell l ike stones an d she
held out both hands as though to protect
h erself from them T he gesture annoyed
h im
“
Bu t what ? He cheated the gallo ws
”
that is all
th e girl cried for his words
were as blows
don t
An d w ith the han ds that she had ex
tended she covered her face
“
But Myrrha don t y o u know that he
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The
Sigh ti ng of the Ear l
killed you r father ? I had left him but a
few minutes before If not in th e best of
health at least he was n ot ill H e wanted
to see you I went to tell your women
When I returned the door that had been
open was l ocked I tried i t there was n o
answer I knocked again ; then I got a
chair looked through th e transom and
there was that man robbing the safe T he
very chequ es wh ich he had forged and
which h e too k from it were fou nd with other
”
things of h is on the sh ip
What sh ip ?
T he ship from which he thre w h imself
T h ough even othe r wise even had he not
committed su icide I think I shou ld have
”
said nothing
Again the temptation to tell her beset
h im but before h e cou l d formulate the
words Myrrha h ad risen
”
I don t see why she mu rmured T hen
woman like she showed h er teeth
I
”
al ways knew you hated h im
And with a little p rincess air which sh e
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En th r alled
could ass u me very well whe n she chose
sh e stood u p and turned away
Bancroft tu rned too A moment before
h e might have tol d now the telling seemed
unfair th e advantage too great But aside
from h imself was not a kn owledge of her
relationsh ip to Quain needful one which it
was his duty to impart which woul d cause
pain as acute too as an y su rgeon could
inflict but one which woul d rid her forever
of th e poison she had breathed of the gan
grene of regret as well
No doubt it wou ld
be his d uty were he other than himsel f and
yet again woul d it ?
He r father had n ot told and might not
even have contemplated d oing so were it
not for th e stress of circu mstances in which
at the time both labored But since then
the incentive had gone th e man was dead
Besides Myrrha had at least seen h im as
he was and time aiding doubtless she
would forget Yet would she ?
As h e reflected th e d ilemma heightened
It was a case of conscience one which h e
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E n th r a lled
Yes hel p me and be to me always
”
th e friend that you are
”
“
C hildren it is bedtime
From the doorway came a flood of light
an d th e high keys of M rs Smithwick s treble
It was in this way matters shaped them
selves Summer had gone autumn went
and a retu rn to town was e ffected T here
du ring the succeeding months there were
days whe n Bancroft told h imsel f the girl
would never care and there were others
when her platonism was so tender that
h ope returne d I n May the hou se at New
port was reopened and it was then that
Mrs Smithwick made that statement to th e
housekeeper which the h ousekeeper re
with respect But immediately it
cei ved
was forgot Fate an d maritime connections
suppl ied Mrs Smithw i ck with o ther food
for thou ght One day wh en Myrrha had
gone for a drive a card was brought and
H arris mottled with e x citement mu mbled
“
He tol d me to say h e had a letter b ut
”
h e had gone and loss it Yes mem
yo u ?
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Sigh ti ng of the Ea r l
The
Mrs Smithwick read and heard bu t in
her tufth u nter face not a muscle moved
”
“
Show him i n
As ordered so it was d one and a fraction
of an h our later when th e l ady was again
alone she stood u p an d bowed to hersel f
in th e glass
”
“
Never
as sh e
presently related to
“
Myrrha
never i n her l ife had sh e en
”
countered any one so utterly fascin ati ng
And as the tal e of th e visit contin ued
M y rrha learned that a you ng E nglishman
wh o had been ill with yellow fever in Brazil
had selected Newport as the m ost fitti n g
place to rec u perate An introductory l ine
which had bee n furnished h im by a cou sin
of M rs Smithwick s l ate husband had been
lost with ce rtain of his e ffects T his he
regretted yet not poignantly in that the
accident had at least a fforded him the o p
r
o
p tu n i ty t o explain and therewith to make
th e acquaintance of a lady so distingu ished
and charming as hersel f
No wonder he pleased Mrs Smithwick ;
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En thr a lled
and the ne x t da y when he came aga i n he
succeeded in pleasing Myrrha too
And now on t his particular aftern oon as
M rs Smithwick sounded his praises evo k
ing episodes relat i ng incidents her fancy
rising and subsiding inde fatigably to the
fl u x and reflu x of her words the door
was thrown open an d H arris purple with
pride announced maj estically
”
“
His l ordsh ip the E arl of Cl o d en
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En th r alled
al most tr ansparent ; eyes l arge s u ltry an d
hazel — eyes to keep mothers awake and
bring the ir daughters dreams ; and hair
bl ue i n its blackness falling on either side
of a brow in wh ich there was on e great
furrow si l l o wed there by emotions or b y
thought
beardless an d u n
T he face
mustached was so pal e yet so chiselled
that the contrast of black an d white j oine d
to th e p erfection of featu re gave h im th e
appearan ce of a Latin of th e decadence o f
a young patri cian of ol d R ome It was
when h e spoke that his race was apparent
for h e possessed that modulate d intonation
wh ich is the distinct an d p ractically i n imi t
abl e characteristic o fthe E ngl ishman of the
higher class
”
?
Society
he repeated with j ust a glance
at Myrrha as though uncertain what liber
ties o i description might b e permitted i n
the presence of the American gi r l
Oh it
i s I assu re you of the worst
Melanchthon Stitt drew breath In that
”
“
assu re there was no 12 At the ! nicker
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H i s L or dsh ip D r ops
a
Glass
bocker at the C al umet there always was
But h e recovered h imself at once
“
T h e worst society is often the best
don t you think
M rs Smithwick n odde d approvingly She
had not grasped the j est but she felt that i n
inviting the n ovelist she had not made a
mistake
”
“
You see the ea r l contin ued there are
cou ntries where natu re is so tempestuous
that precepts are unavailing In cou ntries
of that kind instead of ethics there are bolts
Brazil is one of them Socially it cannot be
”
said to exist
“
But d uring the emperor s time
“
Ah yes then there was I believe an
exotic imitation of th e T uileries B ut you
”
know in what it resulted
C onversation of this order st imu lated M rs
Smithwick like wine an d she perm itted her
self a qu estion
“
Speaking of that Lord Cl o d en you
h ave you — y o u have been presented to her
Maj esty
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E nthr a lled
earl consulted his plate ; but when
he l ooke d u p as h e i nst antly did the mi rth
wh ich for a fleeting secon d had d anced i n
his eyes was gone
Yes yes
He repe ate d the word w i th a
slight prolongation of the l ast l etter wh ich de
l ighte d M rs S mithwick vastl y
I was qu ite
”
y oung at the time perhaps three months
Ah
”
She is my godmother
As h e sai d th is
he spoke as though such relationship were
sh ared by all th e worl d
M rs Smithwick beamed radian t with
e x ultation
H ow d elightfu l how tru l y d elight f u l
How y o u must venerate h er ! A n d d i d she
h old y o u i n h er arms and —an d pet y ou
I d on t remembe r m u ch about that
But I don t bel ieve she d id ; in fact I am
q uite su re sh e didn t I d are say she looke d
rather cross she u suall y does I know sh e
sent a Praye r Book
A Praye r Book
H ow good h ow k ind
of h er ! And y ou h ave treasured it have
T he
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En th r a lled
it is al l for business pu rposes Yo u know
Lo r d Cl o d en every one ove r h ere is i n
”
trade
“
T he earl n odd ed appreciatively
It is
the same thing at home T here is my
cousin Ogilvy h is wi fe has a tea shop in
Half Moon Street ; no en d of fell ows are
in stocks ; B red el ban e is a ch eese monger
and Finsbu ry the D uke of Holborn s son
you know run s a music hall in Isl ington
O h I assu re y ou trade i s qu ite the thing
with u s But y ou Mr Stitt if I ma y ask
without indiscretion y ou are not in bu siness
”
are y o u ?
”
“
I edu cate littl e guinea pigs the n ov
el i st answere d modestly
“
He does nothing of the sort
And
Mrs Smith wick made a fi ne show of i n d i g
“
nation
H e is a poet a philosopher a
a public i st
H ow d are y ou say y o u are in
”
trade ?
“
By guinea pigs dear Mrs Smithwick I
presume he means the publ ic of wh ich I am
one I recall a most curious t ale a woman
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H i s Lor dsh ip D r ops
a
Glass
making the man sh e hated kill the man she
l oved
It was called if I rightly remember
Why N ot ? and the author s n ame sing u
”
l arl y resembled h is
”
“
Of cou rse it was his ! Mrs S mithwick
cried triumpha n
tly wh ile the n ovelist p re
ten ded to conceal impossible bl ushe s
It
was a n ovel Owen Mere dith might have been
prou d of o r— o r even — o r anybody else for
”
that matter sh e added with that decision
which only i gnorance provides
No doubt but i t seemed to me rather
different from th at How shall I say ? In
i ntensity in atmosphere an d manip ulation it
struck me as rather R ussian a qual ity wh ich
I have not noticed among oth er American
novelists T here is Mr H owells for l n
stance ; what may I ask do y o u th ink o f
”
him M r Stitt ?
Mr Stitt promptly assumed the ai r and
attitude of a sph inx
“
T he foremost of the auth ors that are
never read
“
Not read ? You su r prise me I have
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Enth r alled
not seen a mag azine in wh ich his name does
”
not appear
”
Precise l y Stitt answered with th at pon
ti fical m i en wh i ch only a novel ist may as
sume
No on e re ads magazines —e x cept
—and he raise d a finger tragically
ex
”
cept the ad vertiser
At this Lord Cl o d en looked expectant
Mrs Smithwick perplexed Myrrh a al on e
her eyes fastened on th e E nglish man seemed
ind i f
fect
ferent B ut M r Stitt sure of h is e f
launched forth
“
T he advertise r you m ust kn ow wishes
To
h is wares to penetrate everywhere
facilitate that penetration he has his adver
ti sements written in a l ively and engaging
f ash ion D o you imagi ne for one second
that h e will pay to have those advertisements
inserted in a period ical whose read ing m atter
is absorbing
Why n ever in the world H e
wants his wares heralded in magazines in
wh ich the reading matter is so so p o ri fic that
the subsc riber will tu rn to the adve rtise
ments for relief
T he editor who is not
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E nth r alled
wi ck removing as sh e spoke her elbows
“
from the table
H ow delightfu l it is to
hear men of talent talk But come Myrrha
let u s leave them to their smoke T hey
”
mustn t stay long though sh e concluded
”
“
archly
M ust they Myrrha ?
An d circling the girl s waist she almost
tripped fro m the room
T he men had risen
”
“
Harris said the n ovelist as he reseated
himself
is there any wh iskey in the
house ? Ve ry good get me a glass of
brandy the n — You will h ave some won t
”
?
you Lord Cl o d en
“
No I neve r touch it
I would like
another dro p of Apollinaris thou gh if I
might
”
“
Yes my lord T hank y our lo r dship
And Harris poured out the water with th e
fering a libation
solemnit y of an augur o f
B ut p resently he disappe ared and the earl
looke d u p
“
T hat is a most ingenious t heory of you rs
abo u t the advertiser It explains so much
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H is L or d sh ip D r ops
a
Glass
But does it explain why the public buy th e
magazines
”
“
T he public —the public ?
M r Stitt
with grand contempt had raise d a hand the
fi ngers exten ded
But let me ask y ou h ow
many i diots d oes it take to mak e a public
“
Ah yes I see ! the l ittle gu inea pigs
again B ut do give a stranger and a p ilgrim
some in formation Are you living here
T h e earl had crossed h is legs lit a cigar
ette an d M r Stitt promised himself an
agreeable ten mi nutes
“
I ? G ood Lord n o I I only ran down
for the day Family matter I m off again
to morrow T here will b e hardly any one
here for a month yet Sh ould y ou come to
”
town I wish y o u wou ld look me u p
“
B ut tell
T h anks ; you are very good
me I sh ould think these ladies wou ld fi nd it
”
r ather d ull here
M r Stitt had also crossed his l egs ; he
too was smoking ; h e was at his secon d
glass of b randy and altogeth er he felt com
fo rtabl e an d expansive
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En th r alled
Dull ? O fcou rse But then you see it
is rath er obligatory M iss A tterso l s father
has be en de ad hardly a year ; and he d ied
moreover i n—er—well what I might cal l
”
rathe r oddly don t y o u know
”
“
!
Ah
A n d th e ear l man i fested s u ch
civil interest as earls may
“
Yes ; a burglar got into th e room an d
frightened h im to death T hen there was
n o end of a rumpus A chap named B an
croft a lawyer who was stopping here had
a shy at him but M r Burglar was one too
many h e bowled hi m over and knifed h im
”
too
Lord Cl o d en raised th e Apoll inaris to his
“
lips
B ut th e burgl ar
Oh he got off I Bancroft couldn t give
any description
Here take my hand k er
ch ief
”
“
And the
T h anks the napkin will do
earl b egan mopping at his shirt on wh ich
“
some of the Apollinari s had spilled
By
th e way I think I will t ake a d rop of th at
”
br andy
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C HAP T E R III
H A P P I EST
TH E
MA N
AL I VE
L O R D CL O D E N do permit me this is
”
M r B a ncroft
It Wa s on a Monday that the ea r l had
fi rst appeare d at the A tterso l house it was
on Wednesday that the little d inner took
place T he next d ay with that punctilious
ness which is the courtesy of kings an d for
which E nglish men are famous the world
around h e made his visit of digestion b e
ing u rged to remain an d bre ak bread a sec
on d time he yielded qu ite read ily On the
morrow he enj oyed a stroll with Myrrha
drove with h er in th e afternoon and in the
evening brou ght Mrs Smithwick a small
bunch of large roses B ut on Satu rday it
was arranged that he should d ine again and
now on that evening as h e bent succes
“
O
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The H app i est
M an
A li ve
over extended wrists Mrs Smithwick
accomplishe d an introd u ction
Bancrof t stepped for ward at once his
hand outstretch ed
”
I am glad to meet you Lord Gloden
”
H ow d ye do ? responded that n oble
man and seate d h imsel f at Myrrha s si de
Bancroft stared
E ngl ish tourists were
apt to be abru pt h e knew b ut this p arti cu
lar specimen had been e xtolled by Mrs
Smithwick as rather gracious than the
reverse
”
H e can tell an attorney a mile away
M rs Smithwick reflected and smiled con
te ntedl y to herself
But Myrrha sat dumb T he e fforts of
th e earl to engage h er in talk were at
the moment at least u nsuccessfu l
His
even rhythmic flow of wo r ds passed her
unheeded At d inner on Wednesday again
the previous d ay she had fo u nd h erself per
p l ex ed as at th e whispered soun d of her
own name ; an d with it on each occasi on
had come a shadowy reminiscence which
sivel y
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En th r all ed
sh e coul d not detain and with wh i ch she
struggled i dly B ut when Cl o d en made his
r ather cavalier reply to Bancroft s greet i ng
there had been in his attitude th e poise of
his head as in the movement h e made as be
fect intangible atmos
seated h imself an e f
fect there had
p heri c perhaps but an e f
been wh ich from the borderlands of mem
o ry recalle d something equally in significant
n o doubt but yet precisel y similar wh ich
seemed to have impre ssed her somewhere at
some time long b efore
D inner h ad been announced an d she was
seated at table before sh e felt in a moo d to
speak At th e moment Cl o den was t alking
T he subject one which had sp ru ng out o f
nothing concerne d th e bu ried cities of
Yu cat an and he was advancing in a series
of serrie d argument an opinion that the
civilization of wh ic h those cities had been a
part was of E gyptian origin
In the middl e of a sentence Myrrha inter
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ru p ted
“
Lord
Gloden ,
tell me
,
have you ever
E n th r a lled
the Druids it is allu ded to in th e T almu d
an d it is hinte d at in the G ospel which
bears the name of St J ohn But forgive
this tiresome d igression one which I offer
only for what it is worth that is my own
research es ; for the idea used to haunt me
and continue d to for that matter until I
discovered I won t ventu re to say the seien
ti fi c but at least the rational explanation of
”
it al l
”
“
?
Wh ich is
“
Which is that th ings which we have j ust
don e or seen and wh ich seem to u s th ings
which we have done or seen in some ante
rior existence are b ut the reminiscences of
”
forgotten dreams
What I
“
Yes ; and th e proof of it is at least
cu r iou s You know that there are any num
ber of ch arming people who n ever dream at
all Well qu estion any of them and they
will tel l you they have never been h aunted
”
by su ch an idea as that
And tu rning to Bancroft he bowed anew
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The H app i est
M an
A li ve
Pardon me you were about to say some
”
thing were you not ?
T he lawyer l ooked u p abstractedly
“
Who ? I ? Oh nothing ! I merely
It is odd
Wanted to ask for some bread
”
“
though
he added afte r a pause
whe n
Miss A tterso l mentioned the subj ect it was
on my min d too Have you any exp lanation
”
for that Lord Cl o d en ?
”
“
None whatever
”
“
No more h ave I
retorted B ancroft
d ry ly and consulted his plate anew
D ur ing the remainder of the meal little o f
reportable interest occu rred
Prodded by
Mrs Smithwick Cl o d en gave a description
or two of equatorial life b ut Bancroft re
mained apathetic Myrrha dumb th e con
versation faltered and langu ish ed revived
only incidentally by the futilities that flared
and subsided from th e pin wh eels in Mrs
Smithwick s brain
When the bowls were brought Cl o d en
decline d to smoke and leaving Bancroft
followed the women to the sittin g room
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E nth r a lled
beyon d where Mrs Smithwick seating her
se lf at the piano attacke d the B atti hatti
and oth er sweet and antiquated airs he r
eyes on the ceiling her head tossin g like
th e pr i me donne of old Acad emy days
Gloden and th e girl had seated themselves
in an S in u pholste ry— the most del ightful
bit of furnitu re for tete a tete pu rposes be
it said that ever was devised — and to the
accompan iment of strains from D on Gi ovann i
and the Faz or z ta conversed for a wh ile ami
ably and impe rsonal ly as young people may
B ut at last as such things will h appen
”
“
the I cropped out
“
I have known y ou barely a week the
“
young lord sighed
but I fe el as th o u gh I
”
had known you all my life
“
And I too feel as though I had met you
before You remind me of some one I must
have seen in some place I cannot recall It
was because of that I asked you that ques
tion at dinner
It has puzzl ed me an d
I thought perhaps y o u might h ave been
in Florence when I was there or in Paris
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E nth r alled
I would be able to l ead you back from one
horizon to another u ntil that posting hou se
was reached wh ere ou r d estiny changed its
horses an d ou r hands were fi rst unclasped
T hat was what I thought M iss A tterso l an d
I thought too
T he girl was looking at him surp ri sed as
February at a violet ; smiling too divinely
“
pretty
I wish I had sai d that ; it was
”
what I felt and cou ld not express
Cl o d en moved his hand as though i n
silent thanks to take hers an d press it B ut
he refrained T he girl saw and u nderstood
Her eyes met h is and encou raged perhaps
by some light in them h e b ent over and
brushed th e hand with h is l ips M yrrha
started afraid of a kiss as of a bee B u t he r
face colored and she put a finger on a smile
“
Forgive me h e murmu red
T he finger fel l
”
“
But may I not tell y ou what I thought ?
T o this with a l ittle movement of mouth
an d eyel ids a movement that was enchant
ing perhaps enchanted sh e assented
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The H app i est
Man
A li ve
I thought of the old legen d wh ich tells
that long ago men an d women were one
that later they separated and it seemed to
me if that were true they now must seek
their ear l ier selves and when they fin d each
other it is love they fi nd as well T hat is
what I th ought M iss A tterso l for I knew
that all my life I had been seeking for
you
T he girl h ad made her face a blank b ut
in her th roat was a tell tale muscl e
It
spoke and in speaking encou raged
”
“
And I know also he continued if by
any chance you might learn to think so too
”
that l ife would be fair as a dream
T he sentence was s o harmonious that h e
paused to note its effect
But still she said n oth ing
”
“
“
Look at me he implored
Look at
me I love you r eyes Speak to me I l ove
”
you r voice
T he girl r aised her
H e p ause d again
eyes T h ey were troubled yet eager au x
ious and ardent Li ghtly as sleep may fall
“
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En th r alled
he touche d and took her hand For a sec
ond it lay u n r esistant then both tightened
an d at once he approach ed n earer the
shoulders advanced a l ittle but slowly still
deliberately inch by inch his eyes fi xed and
probing he r own T hen an arm went out
an d about he r an d he d rew th e April of her
lips to his
”
“
M yrrha he m urmu red my sou l c r ies
Gl or i a t o you and my heart answe r s I n
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E x cel si s
.
He had moved yet nea r er h is eyes still in
hers he r han d i n h is but the gi r l emotion
al i z ed
an d distraught seemed struggling
with hersel f
”
“
T ell me
h e whispered
T ell me
b e repeated
that you love
T ell me
Surely you must Always I have hu ngere d
for you
You have been the odor of the
feast at which I l onged to sit the shado w of
the hO p e I dreamed to claim At the time I
did not kn ow but when I saw you I knew it
was you I had been seeking I knew it an d
I have found you at l ast
For I have
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En th r alled
because I wished to assure you that in
all you r li fe you have n ever seen never
heard n ever read n ever imagined neve r
d reamed
”
“
M y my ! What now ?
“
O f a man a fraction as happy as I
”
Miss A tterso l and at this prelude th e smile
wen t from his face an d a gravity ceremo n i
“
ou s correct came in its stead
has j ust
done me the honor to consent to be my
”
wife
Mrs Smith wick opene d her mouth closed
it open ed it again and stepped b ack fl ab
b ergasted u ndone speechless with bewilder
ment an d j oy
”
“
“
I
Aunt dear
My rr ha exclaimed
I
”
d idn t say
But th e words dissolved the spell M rs
Smithwick fl un g h e r sel f at th e girl an d em
braced her hysterical ly with raptures an d
tears
My darling Myrrh a ; you little eat y ou
little cat
But aunt
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The H app i est
M an
A li ve
You darl ing darl ing child ! I knew it
”
I felt it Wh at am I to say ?
May I help
At her side Bancroft had abruptly surged
No on e had heard him enter an d now th e
wome n turned a trifle confused
But in the happ iness of the moment Mrs
Smithwick forgot he r dislike and in little
gulps she spluttered !
Myrrha i s—Lord Cl o d en I mean Oh
d on t you u nd erstan d ? T hey are— they are
engaged
It was Bancroft s tu rn to step back
”
7
Is it true My rr ha
But th e girl coul d have had n o answer
ready Sh e looked at h im then tu rned her
head
“
If it be true Lord Cl o d en I cannot
very well congratu late you for I had
thought G o d forgive me that she was to
”
be my wife
”
“
Ah indeed
mu rmure d his lordship
”
“
I can t very well express my regrets
T he girl d rew h im to the window
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’
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Enth r alled
”
H e d i d th ink s o sh e moaned
What
must he think of me n o w ? What must y ou
think of me ? What am I to d o ? G irls
don t go into n unneries any more or I
would I would pass my life slaving for
charity s sake T ell me what I am to do
I n her perplexity she wrung her small
hands and she was at once so prett y and s o
miserable that th e earl smiled
“
You are an ange l M y rrha ; be satisfied
with that Don t try to be a saint ; i t is a
step backward
“
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”
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E n t/
z r al /
ea
’
Me n worthy
the name can not eat th ree
of
meals a day h oweve r well served with noth
,
,
ing but th e morrow s re pasts for a future
’
hu man
T here i s that i n the
.
heart wh ich
makes aspi rations and ambitions requisite to
i ts p ulsations
;
there must be
a
ch imera to
p ursue eve n though we may s uspect the
,
chase to be futile eve n tho ugh we h ave
‘
,
spel led from books
of
bronze th at quarried
,
the ch imera massacres
,
.
A man who has n o b eliefs may be sin
cerel y
religious
Bancroft was
.
re ligion was th e
é eZZa J anna
paradise d h is mind
but h is
,
wh o had i m
I t was for h e r he ate
.
the three meals a day we nt d owntown
,
town and read the m orn ing pape rs
,
,
u
p
Devo
.
tion m ay be what we accep t from oth ers
,
yet it was what h e gave to he r regretting
,
only that it was not more to give convu lse d
,
as by a spasm merely at th ought
white arms
.
of
he r l ith e
Nothi ng n o guerd on n o crown
,
cou ld equal the possibil ity
,
of
th eir embrace
.
And j ust whe n h e seeme d about to i ntercept
th e gl eam of a comi ng d ay i n wh ich that
Wk at M ay
B
Me Paper
R eaa i n
’
e
sweetness migh t be h is ; at th e moment wh e n
al most with i n h is grasp glowe d that fl owe r
for wh ich for two years ignored reb uffed
,
,
,
subj ugated yet neve r despai rful ceaselessly
,
he had striven i t was as though h e stood
,
face to face with death to se e it snatch ed
from his hand by anothe r
Cl o d en
.
had d eclared h imself th e happ iest
man i n the wor l d
.
B ancroft sai d noth ing
b ut h e fel t the most m iserabl e
,
Whe n h e
.
re ach ed h is room it was like e ntering a
desert
and whe n h e closed the d oor h e
,
wondered sh o uld h e h ave th e stre ngth to
l eave it
.
Life is a song but death is its refrai n
,
And
fo r
a while th e e ch o
.
of
that bu rde n rip
pl ed harmoniously i n his ears as it has and
,
wil l rippl e i n th e ears o fth e strongest
.
Th e
man wh o has neve r contemplate d su icid e
has
th at
never love d
,
an d Bancroft l oved so wel l
at the first shock
of
the i nevitab l e
s uicide seeme d the only sol ution
path to that peace wh ich p asses
standing
.
,
,
th e one
al l
un der
’
E n tk r a/[ea
B u t to the sou l that is sinking hop e
throws a straw
Men tally and physically
.
h is days h ad been far too actively e mpl oyed
to su ffe r hi m n ow more than a mome ntary
contemplation of s uch a release
as it h ad come
i nfl uence
of
I t went
.
and at once throu gh th e
;
,
that c urious optimism which
visits th e condemne d
,
by
o ne
h e began
o ne
to revie w th e ch ances of escap e
S o many
.
p resented th emselves that wh en an h ou r
had gone the man wh o sixty mi nutes be fore
had bee n fumbl ing death was sound asleep
N os d é sespo irs sans fin
where
has sagely said
mome nt
”
some
,
“
,
ne
o ne
d uren t
.
some
qu
’
un
”
.
Bu t h e sle pt with th at wariness which
d ogs and l overs sh are
not re fre sh ed
“
1
,
and h e awoke i f
,
at least alert
,
.
have seen that man before
cided as h e dressed
“
.
”
,
B ut where
?
he de
”
T he n me ntal ly h e bolte d at th e cece n
,
,
tri city
of
h is
o
h e tol d h i mself
.
wn though t
.
I
am daft
"
,
B ut th e th ough t remaine d
decl i ni ng to be d ismissed
,
.
E ar/tr ai l ed
or rath er wait l et me tel l yo u
,
nothi ng
,
N oth ing
.
”
You
.
he repeated severe ly
,
And what is more I wil l thank
you
,
,
ttempt to i nterrup t
a
kn ow
,
not to
M yrrha yo u sh ou l d
.
,
not h ave accepte d h im witho ut consul tin g
me
I
.
view of the fact that yo u have th is
n
,
e ngageme nt must remain in abeyance unti l
I can l earn wh at neithe r o fus know wh eth e r
,
,
h e is or is not a man suited to be you r
,
,
h usband
“
”
.
th ink
I
Arth u r
,
sweetness l isped
th e only j udge
“
do
Why
,
of
“
,
”
,
the girl w ith silke n
that of that I shoul d b e
”
.
course
th i nk so
y ou
A ll
.
gi rl s
I t woul d b e extraordi nary i f th ey
.
did n t
Yet i t is j ust becau se th ey d o have
’
.
of
i deas
vented
N ow , Myrrh a
.
in
that ki nd that broth e rs were
make phrases
’
,
I d on t mean to
you r happiness is deare r to
’
me than anyth ing else and if yo u d on t
,
know it
you ought to
,
.
If
Cl o d en
is th e
man for y o u — and , m i nd , I d on t for a se con d
’
say h e isn t —I wi ll d ance
’
’
have n t
a
word
in
at
th e we d d ing
his d isfavor
.
.
I
O n the
Waat M ay
contrary
B
e
R eaa i n
I ad mit that h e is wel l bred
,
well behaved well ed ucated
,
that to my m ind th e
h im is h is l ooks
l ooking for
cei ve
share
is
not
,
yes he is far to o good
;
,
co n
,
an obj ection wh ich you wou l d
;
I am willing
but you mu st al so admit that
they are every
o n e of
th em
”
’
don t u n derstand
I
,
,
visible obj ection to
one
I admit these th ings
.
I admit also
.
man th ough that I can
a
to admit more
“
Me Paper
’
on
th e surface
”
.
And th e girl
.
looked at hi m with a can dor which woul d
have delighted
G reu ze
.
Yes y o u d o Y o u u nderstand p erfectly
Y o u u nderstand that a man may be well
.
,
.
bred wel l behave d wel l e d ucate d an d yet
,
,
be
out
and
out a
,
scalawag
.
T h e scalawag
wh o is none o f these th i ngs moves i n a very
l imited sphere
nating
,
or
.
T h e devil has to b e fasci
h ow can h e eve r e nthral l
m ean to so much
Cl o d e n
I d on t
’
i mp l y that I regard
as
otherwise tha n
as
a gentleman an d
,
as such i ncapabl e of scal aw aggery or d evi l
i shn ess
l awyer
o f an y
an d
”
kind
;
b ut I h appe n to be
a
E n thr al l ed
S u s picious by birth
“
lau gh thre w at h im
“
,
th e g i rl with a
.
bu t whe n you r fathe r b o u gh t
Perhaps
l
i
a
c
e
d
d
,
p
this
”
you th ink h im suspici ous
‘
because he h ad th e titl e search ed
good
.
Very
?
T h en do yo u c are to mai ntain that
the marri age co ntract i s less imp ortant
of
tha n th e conveyance
real estate
cou rse not ; n o girl eve r d oes
is the l ittl e bit
of
N o,
?
of
W ell what
,
.
ord inary p rude nce wh ich
you r father e x h ibited before p urchasing th is
p roperty for h imself in comparison to that
,
wh ich he wou ld exh ibit were
p urchase a husban d
“
Purchase
fo r
you
P u rch ase
?
,
?
be
about to
”
d id you say
"
?
T he girl s smile had gone b ut to h er ch eeks
’
,
twin roses had com e wh ich made h e r pret
tie r th an before
.
W hy
“
,
of
yo u hear me
?
”
’
.
Yes you d o and any way yo u can t hel p
’
,
,
yoursel f
ters
di d n t
;
T hen I don t want to hear any more
“
“
cou rse I sai d p urch ase
’
.
.
B esides we are advancing mat
Purch ase
,
an d
sale come l ate r
.
W hat
gr a d ed
E a t/
to
l et
any one for
a
moment su spect that
,
among th e redskins wh ere h e fou nd he r
,
h ad sh e not had bag u pon bag of wampum
he would have rubbe d noses an d passe d
h is w ay
l ittl e
on
And h e will b e ve ry sweet to that
.
girl very l oving very th o ughtful ve ry
,
,
,
co urteous u ntil it occurs to
,
hi m
that th ere
are other w o men i n th e l and that a p rince
acknow l edges to h imself bu t o n e law — h is
,
pl easure and to h is princess b ut
,
negl ect
.
one
d uty
An d presently in th e grange
bu ilt now and
reward ered ,
,
re
yet so far from
the long grass and pal m trees o fh ome that
-
,
l ittle girl will si t and we e p , and sh e will sit
and weep alone
”
.
T he fai ry tal e was stu pi d
,
perhaps
,
as
fai ry tales are apt to be to one no l onge r a
’
chil d b ut i n Bancroft s voice the re was so
,
much affection th at th e girl must h a
ve for
got to yawn
.
T o her eyel ids a l ittl e con
traction had come and sh e seeme d much
i nterested i n th e hands i n her lap
,
.
N o w,
me
.
Y ou
Myrrha
”
,
h e contin ue d
“
,
look at
are j ust as p retty as you can
Wan Z M ay
B
/
stick
Paper
R ead i n the
are i n th e festival of youth l ife
; you
,
is al l before
th e risk
e
is it worth wh il e to ru n
you
ru i ni ng t hat beauty with tears of
of
,
t urning that festival i nto a th re nody
of
,
bl ightin g al l th e years that are be fore you
fo r
j ust
th e lack
sight ?
Is it
honestl y
;
?
of
a b it
ord inary f o re
an d
Answe r m e cand idly
i s it worth wh il e to ru n s uch a
terrible risk
?
”
But who said it was ?
“
of
,
”
And B ancroft
was gratified wi th a stare ga z elle like in its
-
innoce nce
.
T o tell th e truth I th ough t
,
you
d id b ut
,
I am glad to d iscove r that I am i n e rror
You
see I th ought yo u had agree d to
,
come Prince C har mi n g s brid e
.
Well supposing I h ave what the n
“
,
”
O h,
pooh
'
U
ntil wh at ?
U
ntil you
h ave had a chance to l ook over th e
age,
I supp ose
it is
”
“
P
T hen that agre eme nt must re mai n i n
abeya n ce u ntil
“
be
”
’
,
.
.
W ell l ook it over
,
;
P eer
th ere
.
U ntil
I h ave had t ime to commu nicate
E nthr all ed
with S ir J u l ian
E ngland as well
“
“
Pau n cefo te
and hear from
”
.
And sup pose I refuse
’
B ut you won t re fuse
You have
.
mu ch common se nse to refuse
C l o d en
to o
and if
;
b e the man I take h im to be he will
.
facil itate my i nvesti gations i n every way
”
.
“
B ut what are yo u to i nvestigate ? I
dare say h e has bee n wicke d —all me n are
,
are n t th ey — and I dare say he h as debts
’
I never heard
d id yo u
ce rn no
an
of
E nglishman
that had n t
’
,
B ut these are matters wh ich con
o ne
but h im and me
‘
.
I f you are
going to ask to look at h is d iary I th ink h e
,
wo ul d be a fool to show it
“
“
A nd so d o I
”
,
”
.
B ancroft answe red d ryly
I agree with you i n eve ry particu lar
’
d on t want his d iary
;
.
.
I
I want h is record
.
I want to k no wp r i me is h e h ere after you r
,
blu e eyes or is h e after your wamp um
,
Visibly the girl was sitting
on
th e pins
and needles o f impatie nce , b ut at this she
l aughe d outright
.
“
I knew it Arth ur
,
.
I knew you woul d
E n thr a l l ed
e x p ression stuck i n h is throat
,
.
T he n h e
tol d m e that h e was a d emocrat that he had
,
d etermi ned to make money for h imself that
,
hi s b otanizing tour was but a refuge i n case
of
fai l ure that i n B razil he h ad gone i nto
,
coffe e that h e had su cceede d with it and
,
,
of
that now i nstead
,
his second cousi n the
hei ress h e prop ose d shou l d h e marry at all
,
,
to marry a girl
for
m do
of
h i s choice
I t is is it
seez
,
,
Is that e nough
.
Very good
whe n
he told me all that yesterday afternoon h e
,
knew no more about my wamp um than I
know about yours
S o there
.
Bancroft nodd ed with an air of relief
.
Apparentl y the p rem ises and concl usi on sat
i sfi ed
h i m amply
study
of
ti on for
.
B ut h e had not mad e a
d irect cross and red irect examin a
,
n
oth ing
,
H e looked at th e rug
,
th e n at the wind o w fi nally at th e girl an d
,
,
in anothe r tone and rather sadly h e aske d
“
D o you really l ove h im
?
”
T he girl her eyes l owered walke d straight
,
i nto th e trap
“
.
.
I do n t kn o w
’
I th ought I d id l ast n ight
.
What M ay
B
e
the
R ea d
But I h ave bee n mistake n before
Paper
Besides
.
,
d oes a girl eve r kn ow
“
Where a title i s concerne d sh e us u ally
d oes
G irls
.
l ike the m and with reason
,
A
.
titl e can be d ivided a duke make s a d uch
,
ess
whereas a man of brains cannot sh are
h is intellect with a fool
Myrrha l ooked u p
turned
“
.
;
”
.
th e twi n roses
A rth u r that is u nfair
,
of
you
may be a fool bu t I am not a snob
,
know I care nothing for h i s title
“
Ah
te
.
I
.
Y ou
”
.
S upposi ng it sh ou ld appear th at he
!
has none would
,
you
marry h im then
,
p ro vi d
ing I mean you i ntend to marry h im at
,
all
?
,
”
An d
ho w
could such a th in g appear
M yrrha with an assumption
ness and d efiance inqui red
“
of
great
?
”
hau ghti
.
From his own accou nt that botan izing
,
tou r was a sh am
as well
O
n
?
migh t not th e title
he
o ne
”
th e girl s face the rose s d ee pe ned bu t
’
whe n she spoke as sh e inst antly d id , th ei r
,
w ar m th was not i n h er t o ne
.
E n thr al l ed
“
Do
mean that
you
thi nk hi m an
u
o
y
impostor
“
I mean that I h ave see n h i m before
T roy either
of
and not at the siege
,
,
”
.
S o measure d were the words and so sig
,
too th at autumn m ust have touch e d
n i fi cant
,
th e roses —they disap peared
“
S o have you
m e w here
”
,
.
h e ad ded
N ow
“
.
tell
”
.
T h e girl was tre mbl ing he r face ash en
”
“
T ell me h e i nsisted ; and p roj e cting
.
,
,
his tee th contracting h is featu res h is face
,
,
took
“
the horror
on
a C hi nese mask
of
I don t kno w I don
’
’
,
“
You
drive me mad
0
.
T h e featu res rel axed
“
t
know
”
.
sh e cri ed
,
.
Arth ur don t
’
,
.
Myrrh a will yo u promise me th at this
,
e ngage me nt shal l remain i n abeyance until
I can learn someth i ng about him
yo u
“
W i ll you promise me that ?
Yes
”
,
sh e gasped
“
,
anyt h ing
?
”
”
.
Bancroft stood u p crosse d th e room
,
locke d the door and touche d
mome nt th e b utler
pp eare d
a
.
a
W il l
bell
.
,
un
In a
E n thr al l ed
“
I have you r promise th ough
,
se rte d
”
h e as
,
.
T h e te n m in utes m ust be up aren t they
’
,
“
I have you r promise h ave
,
I
not
?
”
B ut b efore any reply was possibl e Harris
reappeared an d ve ry gravely with fitti ng
,
,
reve re nce mumble d
,
“
H is lordsh i p th e
,
of
E arl
Gl od en
”
.
As th e latte r entered Bancroft stepped
forward a h and outstretch e d
,
“
G ood
morning
.
A tterso l
M iss
h ave b ee n having a littl e chat
know
met
,
was tel l ing he r
I
before
y ou
and I
D o yo u
.
thought
I
had
I
”
.
W ith th e arrogance of a young seigne u r
passing in dol ently between threate ning ra
piers and be ckon ing fans
,
Cl o d en
ignored
fered han d crosse d th e room raised
the pro f
,
,
’
the girl s wrist and ki ssed it
Yes
thi nk
I
”
,
.
Bancroft pleasantly repeated
have seen you somewhere
”
“
,
I
”
.
dare say, Cl o d en answered in a tone
“
as pleasant as th e la wyer s
I go there
I
,
’
.
now
an d
th en
”
.
What M ay
B
Bancroft fl ushed
Pap er
R ead i n the
e
He wante d to say some
.
th ing more bu t there seemed to be
abso
,
T h e subj ect had
been th orough ly d iscusse d
T here was
l u tel y
noth ing to add
.
.
n othing f
to d o b ut to go and he
o r h im
,
went
.
As
“
Cl o d en
th e door cl osed
I say
”
h e m u rmu red
,
like that ?
“
,
sm iled
.
is h e al ways
”
B ut the love rs were n ot su ffe re d to
mai n u n distu rbed
W ith
.
a
re
frou frou of sil k
-
and a gurgl e of greetings Mrs S mith wick
.
buzze d about
pre tendi ng to hav e d ozens
,
and d ozens of th ings
d o fei gn ing at each
to
,
i nstant to be about
to
bird l ike ease from
o ne
-
do th em fl itting with
,
subj ect to anothe r
e nervating M yrrh a ke e pi ng
,
C l o d en
,
on hi s
o wn
feet laugh ing at th e fantasi es of h er
,
imagi nation until se ize d by some su dde n
,
,
i dea sh e made a be e l ine for the d oor whi ch
opened h owever before she reache d it an d
,
,
,
,
,
Ban croft strod e i n
.
Have you seen the morning pape r
aske d abru ptly
.
?
”
he
E n thr all ed
T h e m orni ng paper
i ndeed
,
'
W hat
any morning pape r to d o with her ?
had
And
sh e w o ul d have sai d as m u ch , but someth ing
in
the lawyer s face deterred
’
“
Have you
?
”
h e repeated and l ooke d
,
to where M yrrha sat
H
er al d ,
the
.
E arl
“
.
Accord ing to th e
o f Cl o d en
d ay at S o u thampton
arrived yester
”
.
A blow cou l d not have stricke n the girl
more su rely
What
“
“
Precisely
N ow
.
sir
,
’9
he contin ued
,
perhaps you wil l take a seat
Cl o d e n
an d
explain
exami ned h is coat sleeve
-
fl icked from it a speck
of
,
of
suspici on
a d rawl
.
and
.
he annou nce d
the
first time the
,
of
,
”
”
I am not in the h abit
p resently an d with for
d ust
,
,
being asked to
take a seat in that way
T he n take two
,
rathe r fie rcely
“
B ut
I
i nformation
about h e r
.
”
,
the lawye r th rew back
.
m ust real ly th ank you
.
f
or
th e
I h ad be en a bit worried
You see
”
,
and as h e said th is h e
E n thr a l l ed
e x aggerate
pears
.
G e nerally
I admit
,
,
speak ing
like a l unatic
,
he
;
bu t h e
ap
seems to have l uci d i nte rvals in which
h e is me rely stupi d
stance
”
.
as
j ust
n o w,
for
ih
C HAP T E R V
THE
R
HE
OO M
WI T H
THE
G A PI N G
CH I
said there was no h urry sir ,
ME R A S
”
,
Harris
conti nued whe n Bancroft reache d the hal l
,
“
I showe d him i n the re
.
”
.
And as h e designate d a l ittle reception
room that gave on th e veranda h e
,
dded
a
i n a manne r wh ich was both soli citou s
,
and
apologetic
I
sir
’
’
ope as noth i ng as gone wrong again
,
"
.
Bancroft did
not seem
to hear
He
.
brushed on and passed into th e roo m
beyond —a roo m h atefu l to every one o n e
,
wh ich Mrs S mith wick had h u ng with night
.
mares
of
d iscordant stu ffs
with scarlet silks
over wh ich bl u e J ap anese monsters roamed
viole nces o f str i pe d and crescente d s urah s
from T urkey
;
canary and p i nk parallel o
gra m s from I spah an
;
the appl e gre e n
-
lo z
E n thr all ed
and p orti eres terrors i n
L ah ore ;
enges of
,
h i deous with ! oranic
i nscriptions i n silve r thread —a room that
l ilac and saffron
j arre d
the ne rves th at vi olated th e eye
on
,
of
as th e rasp
ear
slate pe ncils p un ctu res the
i n which an ebony d esk al ive with
o ne
,
,
wide mouthe d
ch i meras
-
leered i n you r face
an d
confronted
.
T here h is back to th e d oor h is hands
,
,
beh ind h im a man stood gazin g
ou t
,
grou nds
“
As B ancroft e nte red he tu rned
,
.
Why sergeant
,
“
at th e
”
,
th e lawye r exclaimed
the man tol d me yo u were here but
.
,
”
,
He
h esitate d
.
T h e d etective n od d ed
u nd erstand
“
he appeare d to
;
I was too su re
.
of
mysel f
”
,
h e sai d sl owly and moving to th e door
,
“
l ooke d ou t on the h all
O
continue d as h e turned again
,
sure
“
of
Of
course
h im
r
rathe r
“
,
”
,
,
he
I was too
”
.
Q uain yo u mean
,
Yes
.
,
yes
,
of
B ut why d id n t you come to me
’
.
after h e ch eate d u s both after h e j umpe d
,
overb oard from th e Sz donz a
'
’
2
E n thr al l ed
Yes yes
,
“
”
.
A nd besid es we al l have
ou r
,
,
pride
I
.
wante d to get h im i f on ly for th e bother h e
,
had
”
p ut me to
.
Bancroft d roppe d
h e said h oarsel y
on
a chair
bstraction
th e
a
turne d agai n to the wind ow
seated h i mself
p osed
”
“
,
“
.
detective
B ut i t was
h e ad ded presently , as h e
,
far tougher than I h ad su p
L isbon ,
I got to
.
,
.
I n se eming
a tough er j ob
S it down
.
”
and it was weeks
later and th e n o nly by accident that
,
,
I
fou nd
h e h ad gone i n a sail ing vessel to Havre
T h e way it came abou t
Bancroft
waved
a
N o matte r ab ou t th at
“
From Havre
ampton
C ross
I
,
.
I
.
”
h and
impatiently
.
”
.
tracke d h i m to S outh
and l ost h im again at C h aring
I t was two m onths and more before
fou nd a clew
.
I
had got
of th e u nder
ou t
ground one day at C ann on Street and was
walking
on
to th e stair when th e trai n wh ich
,
h ad started move d past me an d i n one
,
the wi nd ows I saw
I
saacste i n
.
of
I t was too
The Gap i ng Chi mer as
late to attempt to get
on
again but th e
,
n e x t day I was th ere and the ne x t and the
,
n e xt
F inally I saw my man
.
He was rid
.
i ng th ird class the carriage was full
,
I
.
i nto another and at every stop looke d
ou t
,
it was at M arylebone h e al igh ted
there
he
d own G reat
wal ke d
go t
From
.
Port l and
Street I afte r h im and crosse d over i nto
,
,
C h andos Place
O
.
T h ere h e rapped at N o
th e d oor was a plate
n
scribed M r Hobart
.
’
on
which was
,
I
2
.
in
It was thre e wh e n h e
.
we nt i n i t was after five wh e n h e came
From there
.
ou t
.
followe d h im to C amde n
T own to a h ou se wh ich he ope ned with a
,
l atch key
Above th e door h ung a squ are
-
.
paper sign
,
marked
‘
Apartme nts
T hat
’
.
night I was back there aski ng for l odgi ngs
I
wore green glasses
mysel f as a
!
,
an d
I
rep resente d
imberly engine e r come
London to be treated for cataract
was I l earned bu t
,
,
on e
to
T here
.
other l odge r Isaac
,
ste in known to the landla dy as M r M oss
,
.
.
.
He occu pie d th e two r o oms wh ich consti
tu ted
the first floor b ut the re was anoth e r
,
E n thr al l ed
room
the grou nd fl oor wh ich
on
secure d
I
T hereafte r I i nterested myself wh o l ly i n M r
M oss
He had I soon d iscovered
,
.
as i nvariabl e as th e l aws
Prussians
of
,
a
.
routin e
th e Swedes an d
At te n h e was i n C handos Place
.
.
At noon h e was at Fi nsbu ry Pavement
.
At
.
th ree h e went back to C handos Place
re
,
mai ne d there two hou rs and at si x retu rned
,
to C amde n
R oad ,
where he had d in ner i n
h is sitting room an d sat d rinki ng whiskey
-
,
and wate r u nti l eleven
.
H e had but
o ne
visitor a tou t for a money l ender to wh ose
-
,
o fli ce
he wen t each day
de r th e
ascend s
on e
,
I
.
My room was
i n which th ey sat
cou l d hear n oth ing
but sound
;
U nder
.
un
pre
te x t that th e noise from th e stre et distu rbe d
me
,
got th e landlady to give m e a room
I
th e secon d fl oor
wh ich
I
By means
.
the n mad e
only th ey talke d i n
of
on
an aperture
coul d h ear distinctly
I
G e rman ,
,
and what they
sai d left me n o w iser than before
.
M e an
-
whi le
,
I
n eed
no t
tel l
y ou
that I
had
very
th orough ly inf ormed mysel f i n regard to
M r H obart
.
.
He was I learned a surgeon
,
,
,
E n thr al l ed
abou t to give i t u p wh e n I chance d
,
R evu e Sei entzfi gae
cross notice to the
’
can t read French
might be
;
I
.
th e chance th at there
nythi ng i n th e paper was sl im
a
of
yet it was th e last
of
on a
,
th at particu lar pile
stones and something kept telling me
,
not to leave it u ntu rned
q u e n ce
As a
.
I h ad it translated
.
co n se
You may
re
member I tol d you wh en I took the l odgings
in C amd en
R oad
I had stated I was to be
treate d for cataract
th e first paragraph
Well I had not rea d
,
.
of
that translation before
it was as though a cataract h ad real ly been
removed
.
I
w
sa
.
T he connection ove r which I ha
d p uzzled
so was plai n to me at last C amden T own
.
is n ot i n th e cab radi us b ut I fou n d a h an
,
som at the corner an d finishe d th e pape r
,
while I was b eing d riven to C hand o s Place
.
arooned
abe
z
J
m
o f M ontevideo h ave
Neve r since th e time I
Myers the forger
,
I
,
ou t
been as e x cited as I was wh en I rang th at
bell
B ut
.
I fel t
that I had my hand
whe n the door opened
I was
on
Qu ai n
.
told that
The
Gap i ng Chi mer a!
M r Hobart was
.
ou t of
town
He h ad gone
,
that morni ng , the servant sai d h e had l e ft
,
n o ad dress
ro w,
h e migh t be back
on
th e mor
and yet agai n h e might not be back
f
or
a month ; h is l ocu m tenens was Dr Forb ush in
.
C avendi sh S quare
whom
From Dr Forbush to
.
went at once
I
,
.
,
e xtracte d only a sur
I
mise th at M r Hobart might have
ru n
.
d ow n
i nto S urrey as was h is habit whe n h e wishe d
,
to write u nd istu rbe d by i nte rruptions but
,
where i n S urrey he could
say
I
.
wo uld
not
returne d then to C hand os Pl ace
an d
not or
gave th e se rvant ten sh il lings and a promise
,
of
te n more to noti fy me th e moment M r
,
H obart got back
.
.
An d as a fee l er I offere d
,
,
h im a sovereign to find out wh ere h e had
gone
B ut of that h e decl ared h imsel f i n
.
capable
I
,
an d
saacste i n
with the id ea that no d oubt
was wiser than any
o n e,
and that
i f aske d b y th e landlad y wheth e r h e knew
of a
fi rst
-
ci o u sl y
T own
Place
,
class surgeon he m ight
u n su sp i
give the add ress I h u rried to C amd e n
,
I n my haste to get to C h andos
h oweve r , I had ru ine d
an y
such
E n thr all ed
ch ance as that
D uring my absence Isaac
.
stei n had d rive n
up
in
a fourwh eeler packed
,
h i s bel o n gings an d had gone no
,
one
kne w
wh ithe r th ough th e sl avey tho ugh t she h ad
,
h eard h im d irect th e cabman to C h aring
C ross
”
.
Bancroft m oved
,
and h is eyes roamed
i mpatie ntl y from the detective to the chi
mer as an d back agai n as th ou gh i n wonde r
,
wh ethe r nothi ng could h asten th is ti resome
tale
“
.
W ell si r
,
”
c ontinu e d the se rgeant by
,
,
wh om th e p antomi me had been prope rly
“
construed
th e u psh ot o f th e matte r was
,
that I coul d d o n oth ing u ntil M r H obart
.
returned
.
T he mome nt I got n ews of h i m
I was i n C handos Place and s o soon as I
,
was admitte d to h is offi ce I came to th e
poi nt —o n e wh ich I h ad h ad e nou gh time to
pre p are for I
had
,
the
cramme d th at articl e i n
R evu e Sci en tifi qn e
terms and all
h eart
,
as
you
and got i t
,
techni cal
will p resently see by
,
.
Mr H obart said I
’
.
,
,
I have a
d au gh
E nthr al l ed
th at is the nature o f th e process
Ye s
B ut yo u h ad best h ave that attended to first
that and the te eth
her to me
gu i ne as
“ ‘
I
T h en
.
.
,
can bring
you
M y fee will be a thousand
.
’
.
have of cou rse si r
,
,
’
,
I said
‘
,
eve ry
confidence oth e rwise I should n ot be he re
,
b ut p ermit me to ask is there any dange r
,
of
a f atal te rmi n ation
“
T hen h e wanted to kno w had sh e any
?
organ ic trouble s
was aware
‘
You
sai d he
I
told h im n one that I
of
.
need give you rself no uneasiness
‘
.
.
’
I h ave rece ntly operated
on
’
,
a
young man u nd er ci rcu m stances alm ost pre
c i sel y
similar
H is e ars protru de d h is feat
,
.
.
u res were squat his arms were simian , his
,
teeth proj ected and while th ere was nothi ng
,
th e matte r with h is eyes th e French ope ra
,
tor
of
wh om I spoke ch anged the m from
blu e to hazel
.
H is legs were not bowed
b ut they we re not in proportion to h is body
I
i ncrease d
i nches
’
.
,
.
th eir length by over thre e
Gap i ng Chi mer a!
The
T hat must have bee n a marve llous
“ ‘
undertaking I th re w i n
’
,
O
’
th e contrary he answe re d
n
,
quite simpl e
one o n
.
T here are fou r operat i ons
.
e ach th igh and leg b ut that
T he meth od is esse nt i ally
.
th e same as when we deal with
T h e bone s are broke n
.
,
th e
on
,
leg is twofold
bone
I t is
.
collar
a
and afte r
,
be ing cut qu ite obl iquely th e fragments
,
are
d rawn ap art unti l e ach th igh bone i s el on
-
gated two inches and each leg
,
o ne
half i nch wh ile at the same time
,
an d
th e
forme d l ower l imbs are mad e shapely
symmetrical
.
one
de
an d
An apparatu s wh ich I h ave
d evised is necessary for th is ope ration wh i ch
,
can be e x e cute d si multaneou sl y
shou lders
.
the m uscular stru ctures ? I
’
“ ‘
the
’
B ut is there n o resis tance
of
on
N one at all
’
on
sked
a
h e answered
,
th e p art
‘
.
.
M ore
ove r i n th is particular case th e adde d h eigh t
,
took
rms
a
al l
.
e x aggeration from th e l ength o f th e
And a slight stoop wi th wh ich the
p atie nt was a ffl icte d
,
I
tre ated as an ordi nary
E n thr al l ed
curvature
that sort
Your d aughte r has n othi ng
.
has
,
sh e ?
of
.
’
I t is h er face that worries h er most I
’
,
replied
might
H e smi l ed at that and well h e
,
.
.
Yo u say h er ears stand
Like fans
d id
So
‘
’
,
answered
I
o ut
?
’
h e aske d
.
’
th e young man s
’
,
sai d
be
From th e posterior part from the rim
,
the ear d own and
on
.
.
of
to the h ead I remove d
,
the skin stitched th e sm ooth cut ski n edge
-
,
of
th e ear to th at
of
the scalp an d the ears
,
I t is a si mpl e
ope ration less compl ex th an that wh ich I
lay back flat as you please
.
,
performe d
on
th e l ips
.
With you r d aughte r
as with him I sh oul d make a longitu d inal
i nci sion from the corne r o fthe mouth a h al f
,
i nch from th e ve rmil i on borde r ru nn ing it
,
parall el with th e wh ite ski n l i ne and contin u
i ng the i ncision t o th e opp osite corner of th e
m outh
T he n removi ng an oblo ng pi ece
.
of
th e s ub m u cous an d cel lu lar tissu e each side
-
of
th e median l ine
,
I
sh oul d i n turni ng away
,
e nough of the m embrane so operate that
,
E n thr all ed
o ste u
m an d tissu es separated fr o m the m
A
.
th e septum i s removed also
,
and so much Of th e bridge i s th en cut that
,
small portion
of
whe n toward the me dian l ine both sid es are
broke n with forceps they j ust meet and form
,
a perfectly straight
“ ‘
‘
seems
It
G reek
i ncred ible
W ould it be at
al l
nose
’
,
I
’
.
e xclaimed
'
.
possibl e for me to se e
the you ng man on wh om yo u Ope rate d
?
You can un derstand that my daughte r i s
timorous and a word with hi m
’
,
“
th e question
M r Hobart tol d me he h imself h ad j u st
B ut no th at was
,
out
of
.
.
returne d from Paris where he had gone to
assist
at
th e tattooi n g Of th e eyes
since then th e patie nt had started
recuperative j o urney
sai d he
and
on
a
.
‘
,
,
if it will give
you r
daughter any satisfaction to have you say
that you h ave see n p icture s Of h im take n
,
before and after h ere they are
,
’
.
And with that M r B an croft , he hand ed
,
m e first
Qu ai n
a
kod ak
.
likeness
Of
O sw al d
The
Gap i ng Chi mer a!
Bancroft h ad spru ng to his feet
“
.
And th e n
And then
”
,
ad ded the d etective poi nting
,
th rough the gaping ch ime ras to th e room
beyond
“
,
a
is i n there
l ike ness Of th e you ng man that
”
.
C HA PT E R V I
MR
FO R
a
B A N CR
.
O FT
H A S H I S SA Y
space ne ithe r spoke
T he sergeant
.
stoo d up m ove d to the wind ow looked
,
,
agai n t urned
,
“
,
O f cou rse ,
an d
”
coughed
.
h e began at last
have take n h i m at th e
ou t
L o gero t
“
,
I wou l d
this morni ng
,
but l earning h o w th e land lay I tho ught it
best to wait a bit and see
y ou
”
.
Bancroft wh o had bee n staring motion
,
less as
an
ido l at th e bl ue dragons on the
wall started with that shake Of the head a
,
bul l has whe n h e l unges at a toreador bu t
,
abruptly h e mastere d himsel f
i n regard to th e lay
of
.
T h e ph rase
th e land garnere d
,
u nconsci ou sly i n that cereb ral c ondition
wh ich a chess player betrays wh en h e an
-
swers
at the end Of a move a q uestion
dressed to h im at th e begi nn ing
him l ike a d ouch e
,
ad
af
fe cted
T here was b ut one
E n thr al l ed
top
I n the
.
stood
doorway Prince C harming
button ing a gl ove , ind iffere nt an d
,
caval ie r fair as a girl and bright as a god
,
m e th e favor to ste p i n
DO
ute
”
,
,
fo r
a
said Bancroft with great civility
,
wante d a word with you
.
mi n
“
I
.
”
.
T he young m an had crosse d th e thresh old
of
and halted i n th e mid dle
th e room his
,
e yes wandering from th e p i nk an d canary
parall elograms t o the h ieroglyph ics from
the
!
oran
An d as i n
.
ffecte d u nc o ncern
a
h e scruti nize d th e p ortiere th e d oor be neath
,
it close d th e sergeant placed himself befo re
,
it and for a moment th ere was sile nce i n
,
that room
.
I ndi ffere nt still , occ up ied yet with the
b utton
from
of
o ne
his glove th e you ng man tu rne d
,
to th e othe r
B u t i n B ancroft s
’
.
face were s uch commoti ons
,
in h is eyes
such threats abou t hi s mouth such vi ndi o
,
ti ve n ess,
You
that instinctively h e steppe d b ack
wish ed — d i d I u nd erstand
.
”
”
And as the word fell from th e
l awyer h e appr o ach ed ne arer
Y o u d on t
“
NO
’
.
M r Bancr oft
H a!
.
u nd erstand
.
I do
Say
H i!
’
You can t d rop you r
.
mask as you once d id bu t beh in d it
,
see th e felon Qu ain
I felt it was you
.
scou ndrel the mome nt
I
,
eyes
I
,
can
you
l ooke d into you r
could change the ir col or b ut not
you
the ir greed
Where i s th e kn ife you use d
.
so we ll that n igh t ?
haven t it by
’
You
n o w have you ? N o b ut
”
—
*
weapon the law
,
,
you
h ave a better
I
.
H is arm sh ot
ou t
the detective
to
DO
wh ethe r
as h e spoke and p ointe d
.
you happen to kno w my good si r
,
thi s
ge ntl eman
whether h e is mad
he m ust be b oth
?
is
screwed
,
,
”
.
,
second u nde r the bl ight
rai gn m e n t,
ai r
O
or
By gad it strikes me
And the you ng man wh o h ad qu ail ed
a
,
of
fo r
Bancroft s ar
’
tu rned to the d etective with an
f manifest
conce rn
.
S ane and sober as M r H obart
.
”
,
was th e
terse reply b u t it was acco mpanie d by a
,
nod
ise
that was e xh austive as a T euto n treat
.
“
Ah
I n the young man s t o ne was
’
E n thr all ed
such
ma z em ent as would come to you did
a
ask a question in
you
G reek
the answe r i n
E ngl ish
“
.
an d
Ah ind ee d
,
get
Mr
!
Hobart is a l oca l and proverbial person
p resume
.
I
,
I n France th ey say dru nk and
‘
.
’
c razy as a Spani sh cow here you say sane
,
an d
i ng
sober as M r H obart
.
R eal ly
.
’
Quite i nterest !
.
qu ite interesting
But if you
.
,
will pe rmit me I wil l bi d you both good
,
day
M ay
.
trouble you
I
”
He h ad steppe d to th e door
h
r
a
ed ,
c
o
p
;
as he
ap
’
th e detective s h ands l eape d from
his p ockets an d to the accompaniment
,
of
a
qu ick a nd do ubl e metall ic cl ick there we re
band s
“
O
’
fstee l
about th e you ng man s wrists
Shal l it b e forge ry si r ?
.
”
,
“
M urde r
“
”
B ancroft crie d
,
M urde r
!
”
face convulsed
.
gnash ed th e pri sone r
.
M u rd er yoursel f
h is
,
W hat
.
d o yo u m ean by cou nte nancin g th is o ut
rage
“
D on t yo u k now
’
.
”
D on t you k now Quain
”
’
,
recovere d
know that
cal m
I
,
inte rj ected
Bancrof t wit h
“
,
’
d on t you
was beh i nd that transom
?
”
E n thr a l l ed
worl d s d ish onored as th ey d rown bespat
te r oth e rs I nevitably Q u ai n s antecede nts
woul d be i nvestigate d O thers m igh t k now
’
’
.
.
of
h is pare ntage
h imself
H e might eve n know
.
H e had th reate ne d no thing as yet
.
b ut that very absence
of
menace made h im
,
handcu ffed th ough h e was more terribl e
than before
D id the story o f th e co n
,
.
sangu inity b ecome public Myrrha in dee d
,
woul d be marked he r wh ole l ife through
T h ese th ings oth ers too b eset and
,
,
sieged h is mi nd bu t
,
bati o n
of
the inward
h e gave n o o utward sign
be
p ertu r
h e turned
agai n to wh ere the late lord stood
“
.
.
I am at a l oss to see what connection
there can be betwe e n your arrest and M iss
A tterso l
’
s
welfare
;
and in any eve nt
not care to di scuss that subj ect
with
you
tion
of
or
I
do
any oth er
At th e same ti me in consi dera
.
,
her possibl e mo rtifi cati o n
I
,
wil l
agree n ot to press th e charges against you
,
on condition fi rst th at you l eave th e co un
,
try
at
sign
a
once
,
an d ,
,
se c o nd that
,
yo u
write an d
paper s uch as I will d ict ate
”
.
M r Bancr oft
.
At this Quain
d own looke d up
,
l ess
,
agree
I
H a!
H i!
Say
who had bee n l ook i ng
,
“
Anyth i ng I am help
,
.
”
.
Bancroft t urne d to wh ere th e gap ing
ch imeras held the
inkstand i n the ai r
.
T here was paper the re smal l sheets bor
,
dere d w ith vi olet pens with p eacock
,
feath
ers for holders and seal ing wa x in se ve n
-
,
ten de r shad es
“
.
”
T he n come here and write
C e rtainly Quain with curious mee k
.
“
”
,
ness answe red
;
“
but th ese things
Bancroft wh ose head was turned gl anced
,
,
over h is sh oulde r
“
.
Yes take th em Off sergeant
,
,
dere d
;
an d th en
,
i n search
of
”
,
he
or
l arge r and
less colorful pape r stoope d ove r a drawer
,
O
f th e
desk
.
For a moment the d etective b usied h im
sel f with the handcu ffs
h is charge
On
.
T h ey loosene d as with regret l ess rap idly
,
than they had cl osed and he foun d it meces
,
sary to use both hands to get them ni cely
i nt o the t ail p ocket Of h i s coat
.
He bent
a
E n thr al l ed
l ittl e to o in th e e ffort ; yet as he straight
,
,
e ne d h i m self
vivider green than th at
a
on
th e wa l l a red i n which the re was black and
,
yellow ,
a
brie f an d sud den series Of blind
i ng l ights seared h is eye s he cl utch ed at
,
th e p orti ere tu rne d completely round
,
fell w i th ou t a cry
,
face downward
a
,
kni fe th rough his heart
th e floor
on
an d
,
.
At th e noise Ban croft wh eeled an d with
,
,
of
th at i nward take
th e breath
that
,
one
co nvu lsive start wh ich pe ri l bri ngs stood as
,
th ough transfixed fronting Quain a p istol s
’
,
p oint
“
,
an d
d eath
word
o ne
the bowels
you
.
I t is my t urn
Say
,
of
,
n o w,
you cadgi ng h ound
take
step
o ne
.
an d by
,
C h rist th is time
I ll
kill
’
,
.
T h e th reat th e sound
,
h e h ate d
,
of
i nstinct pe rhaps
,
the vo ice that
some
on e
of
those u nanaly z e d forces wh ich i n mo ment s
Of d anger force u s
not
to th i nk but to act
.
banishe d the stu por u nde r wh ich Bancroft
labore d
;
and with
a
fe int to
o ne
j umped t o the othe r and at Quain
.
side h e
,
As h e
E n thr al l ed
ing i nto th at unconsci ousness h er eyes tear
,
l ess, b ut her breast convulse d
Myrrh a
Sh e sh u dd ere d an d sh rank
.
.
Myrrh a
“
Don t tou ch me
touch me I say
,
sh e bri ed
”
’
,
“
.
Don t
’
”
.
B ancroft h oweve r, had n o inte nti on of
,
permitti ng h e r to m ake a spectacl e of he r
sel f b efore th e se rvants
h er feet an d to a chair
,
Myrrha l isten
,
.
.
He d rew
her
to
.
Liste n b ut a moment
.
T h e man you th ought was to be you r h us
band is O swal d Quai n
If I
.
T he girl s hands had gone back to her
’
te m ples
.
He r eyes
i nordi nately
,
seeme d starting from thei r sockets
“
I am goi ng mad
”
O h,
.
Had I a
th ousand l ives I woul d give each
,
“
,
.
she gasped
,
why d id yo u not kil l me fi rst ?
h im
d il ated
o ne
for
”
.
H e is you r broth er Myrrh a
,
B ancroft
had
”
.
spoken i n a wh isper , bu t i n
it was th e b l are of twenty trumpets
.
As th e
M r Ba ncr oft
H a!
.
H i!
Say
words reach ed h er they seemed to d eafen
,
.
A hand left he r foreh ead an d sough t he r
throat th e other moved i n and
out
,
of
the coil s
th r ough
h e r hai r he r l ips move d sh e
sh rank yet furthe r back — th e image Of H o r
,
,
inhabited by Despai r
ro r
NO,
“
no
”
,
sh e cried
N ot
.
I t was you r fathe r
.
,
th at
”
.
M yrrh a wh o tol d
,
"
me
At this h e r hand s went to he r eyes sh e
.
,
bent a littl e an d sobbe d alo u d
“
of
I h ave d ru nk
of
drink
death
shame now l et m e
,
”
.
T h rough a hand a tear fell
oth e r came
.
bitte r was e ffective
,
hear me ?
an
,
Bancroft nodde d to h imsel f
Harris
T he n
.
When they had go n e there
.
we re oth ers
.
”
T here
call th em in
T h e cure if
,
.
h e called
,
.
Harris d on t
’
.
are
you
,
two m e n ou t th ere
;
”
.
And as th e b utl er paralyz e d at th e sight
,
of
a peer lying l ife l ess with a detective
stretch ed
at
h is feet st o od moti onl ess his
,
,