LITMIR.BIZ

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John Vavasor sat by in silence as the arrangement was being made, not knowing how to speak. He had no money with which to give assistance. “I wish you to understand from the lady’s father,” Grey said to the lawyer, “that the marriage would be regarded by him with as much dismay as by myself.”

      “Certainly;—it would be ruinous,” Mr Vavasor had answered.

      “And you see, Mr Tombe,” Mr Grey went on, “we only wish to try the man. If he be not such as we believe him to be, he can prove it by his conduct. If he is worthy of her, he can then take her.”

      “You merely wish to open her eyes, Mr Grey,” said the mild-eyed lawyer.

      “I wish that he should have what money he wants, and then we shall find what it is he really wishes.”

      “Yes; we shall know our man,” said the lawyer. “He shall have the money, Mr Grey,” and so the interview had been ended.

      Mr Vavasor, when he entered the drawing-room, addressed his daughter in a cheery voice. “What; all in the dark?”

      “Yes, papa. Why should I have candles when I am doing nothing? I did not expect you.”

      “No; I suppose not. I came here because I want to say a few words to you about business.”

      “What business, papa?” Alice well understood the tone of her father’s voice. He was desirous of propitiating her; but was at the same time desirous of carrying some point in which he thought it probable that she would oppose him.

      “Well; my love, if I understood you rightly, your cousin George wants some money.”

      “I did not say that he wants it now; but I think he will want it before the time for the election comes.”

      “If so, he will want it at once. He has not asked you for it yet?”

      “No; he has merely said that should he be in need he would take me at my word.”

      “I think there is no doubt that he wants it. Indeed, I believe that he is almost entirely without present means of his own.”

      “I can hardly think so; but I have no knowledge about it. I can only say that he has not asked me yet, and that I should wish to oblige him whenever he may do so.”

      “To what extent, Alice?”

      “I don’t know what I have. I get about four hundred a year, but I do not know what it is worth, or how far it can all be turned into money. I should wish to keep a hundred a year and let him have the rest.”

      “What; eight thousand pounds!” said the father who in spite of his wish not to oppose her, could not but express his dismay.

      “I do not imagine that he will want so much; but if he should, I wish that he should have it.”

      “Heaven and earth!” said John Vavasor. “Of course we should have to give up the house.” He could not suppress his trouble, or refrain from bursting out in agony at the prospect of such a loss.

      “But he has asked me for nothing yet, papa.”

      “No, exactly; and perhaps he may not; but I wish to know what to do when the demand is made. I am not going to oppose you now; your money is your own, and you have a right to do with it as you please;—but would you gratify me in one thing?”

      “What is it, papa?”

      “When he does apply, let the amount be raised through me?”

      “How through you?”

      “Come to me; I mean, so that I may see the lawyer, and have the arrangements made.” Then he explained to her that in dealing with large sums of money, it could not be right that she should do so without his knowledge, even though the property was her own. “I will promise you that I will not oppose your wishes,” he said. Then Alice undertook that when such case should arise the money should be raised through his means.

      The day but one following this she received a letter from Lady Glencora, who was still at Matching Priory. It was a light-spirited, chatty, amusing letter, intended to be happy in its tone,—intended to have a flavour of happiness, but just failing through the too apparent meaning of a word here and there. “You will see that I am at Matching,” the letter said, “whereas you will remember that I was to have been at Monkshade. I escaped at last by a violent effort, and am now passing my time innocently,—I fear not so profitably as she would induce me to do,—with Iphy Palliser. You remember Iphy. She is a good creature, and would fain turn even me to profit, if it were possible. I own that I am thinking of them all at Monkshade, and am in truth delighted that I am not there. My absence is entirely laid upon your shoulders. That wicked evening amidst the ruins! Poor ruins. I go there alone sometimes and fancy that I hear such voices from the walls, and see such faces through the broken windows! All the old Pallisers come and frown at me, and tell me that I am not good enough to belong to them. There is a particular window to which Sir Guy comes and makes faces at me. I told Iphy the other day, and she answered me very gravely, that I might, if I chose, make myself good enough for the Pallisers. Even for the Pallisers! Isn’t that beautiful?”

      Then Lady Glencora went on to say, that her husband intended to come up to London early in the session, and that she would accompany him. “That is,” added Lady Glencora, “if I am still good enough for the Pallisers at that time.”

Chapter XXXVIII.

       The Inn at Shap

       Table of Contents

      When George Vavasor left Mr Scruby’s office—the attentive reader will remember that he did call upon Mr Scruby, the Parliamentary lawyer, and there recognised the necessity of putting himself in possession of a small sum of money with as little delay as possible;—when he left the attorney’s office, he was well aware that the work to be done was still before him. And he knew also that the job to be undertaken was a very disagreeable job. He did not like the task of borrowing his cousin Alice’s money.

      We all of us know that swindlers and rogues do very dirty tricks, and we are apt to picture to ourselves a certain amount of gusto and delight on the part of the swindlers in the doing of them. In this, I think we are wrong. The poor, broken, semi-genteel beggar, who borrows half-sovereigns apiece from all his old acquaintances, knowing that they know that he will never repay them, suffers a separate little agony with each petition that he makes. He does not enjoy pleasant sailing in this journey which he is making. To be refused is painful to him. To get his half sovereign with scorn is painful. To get it with apparent confidence in his honour is almost more painful. “D–––– it,” he says to himself on such rare occasions, “I will pay that fellow;” and yet, as he says it, he knows that he never will pay even that fellow. It is a comfortless unsatisfying trade, that of living upon other people’s money.

      How was George Vavasor to make his first step towards getting his hand into his cousin’s purse? He had gone to her asking for her love, and she had shuddered when he asked her. That had been the commencement of their life under their new engagement. He knew very well that the money would be forthcoming when he demanded it,—but under their present joint circumstances, how was he to make the demand? If he wrote to her, should he simply ask for money, and make no allusion to his love? If he went to her in person, should he make his visit a mere visit of business,—as he might call on his banker?

      He resolved at last that Kate should do the work for him. Indeed, he had felt all along that it would be well that Kate should act as ambassador between him and Alice in money matters, as she had long done in other things. He could talk to Kate as he could not talk to Alice;—and then, between the women, those hard money necessities would be softened down by a romantic phraseology which he would not himself know how to use with any effect. He made up his mind to see Kate, and with this view he went down to Westmoreland; and took himself to a small wayside inn at Shap among the fells, which had been known to him of old. He gave

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