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diff --git a/41286-8.txt b/41286-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 1613301..0000000 --- a/41286-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,18791 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Miss Marjoribanks, by Mrs (Margaret) Oliphant - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: Miss Marjoribanks - -Author: Mrs (Margaret) Oliphant - -Release Date: November 4, 2012 [EBook #41286] -[Last updated: February 12, 2013] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISS MARJORIBANKS *** - - - - -Produced by Delphine Lettau, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - Chronicles of Carlingford - - MISS MARJORIBANKS - - _By_ MRS OLIPHANT - - - The Zodiac Press - LONDON - - - - -Contents - - - Chapter I 25 - - Chapter II 34 - - Chapter III 41 - - Chapter IV 45 - - Chapter V 55 - - Chapter VI 63 - - Chapter VII 72 - - Chapter VIII 80 - - Chapter IX 90 - - Chapter X 98 - - Chapter XI 110 - - Chapter XII 118 - - Chapter XIII 125 - - Chapter XIV 133 - - Chapter XV 141 - - Chapter XVI 149 - - Chapter XVII 157 - - Chapter XVIII 167 - - Chapter XIX 179 - - Chapter XX 188 - - Chapter XXI 199 - - Chapter XXII 204 - - Chapter XXIII 213 - - Chapter XXIV 229 - - Chapter XXV 240 - - Chapter XXVI 248 - - Chapter XXVII 258 - - Chapter XXVIII 267 - - Chapter XXIX 279 - - Chapter XXX 289 - - Chapter XXXI 296 - - Chapter XXXII 304 - - Chapter XXXIII 312 - - Chapter XXXIV 321 - - Chapter XXXV 333 - - Chapter XXXVI 338 - - Chapter XXXVII 341 - - Chapter XXXVIII 352 - - Chapter XXXIX 363 - - Chapter XL 377 - - Chapter XLI 387 - - Chapter XLII 394 - - Chapter XLIII 402 - - Chapter XLIV 409 - - Chapter XLV 420 - - Chapter XLVI 430 - - Chapter XLVII 439 - - Chapter XLVIII 449 - - Chapter XLIX 461 - - Chapter L 471 - - Chapter LI 481 - - Chapter the last 494 - - - - -_Chapter I_ - - -Miss Marjoribanks lost her mother when she was only fifteen, and when, -to add to the misfortune, she was absent at school, and could not have -it in her power to soothe her dear mamma's last moments, as she herself -said. Words are sometimes very poor exponents of such an event: but it -happens now and then, on the other hand, that a plain intimation -expresses too much, and suggests emotion and suffering which, in -reality, have but little, if any, existence. Mrs Marjoribanks, poor -lady, had been an invalid for many years; she had grown a little peevish -in her loneliness, not feeling herself of much account in this world. -There are some rare natures that are content to acquiesce in the general -neglect, and forget themselves when they find themselves forgotten; but -it is unfortunately much more usual to take the plan adopted by Mrs -Marjoribanks, who devoted all her powers, during the last ten years of -her life, to the solacement and care of that poor self which other -people neglected. The consequence was, that when she disappeared from -her sofa--except for the mere physical fact that she was no longer -there--no one, except her maid, whose occupation was gone, could have -found out much difference. Her husband, it is true, who had, somewhere, -hidden deep in some secret corner of his physical organisation, the -remains of a heart, experienced a certain sentiment of sadness when he -re-entered the house from which she had gone away for ever. But Dr -Marjoribanks was too busy a man to waste his feelings on a mere -sentiment. His daughter, however, was only fifteen, and had floods of -tears at her command, as was natural at that age. All the way home she -revolved the situation in her mind, which was considerably enlightened -by novels and popular philosophy--for the lady at the head of Miss -Marjoribanks school was a devoted admirer of _Friends in Council_, and -was fond of bestowing that work as a prize, with pencil-marks on the -margin--so that Lucilla's mind had been cultivated, and was brimful of -the best of sentiments. She made up her mind on her journey to a great -many virtuous resolutions; for, in such a case as hers, it was -evidently the duty of an only child to devote herself to her father's -comfort, and become the sunshine of his life, as so many young persons -of her age have been known to become in literature. Miss Marjoribanks -had a lively mind, and was capable of grasping all the circumstances of -the situation at a glance. Thus, between the outbreaks of her tears for -her mother, it became apparent to her that she must sacrifice her own -feelings, and make a cheerful home for papa, and that a great many -changes would be necessary in the household--changes which went so far -as even to extend to the furniture. Miss Marjoribanks sketched to -herself, as she lay back in the corner of the railway carriage, with her -veil down, how she would wind herself up to the duty of presiding at her -papa's dinner-parties, and charming everybody by her good humour, and -brightness, and devotion to his comfort; and how, when it was all over, -she would withdraw and cry her eyes out in her own room, and be found in -the morning languid and worn-out, but always heroical, ready to go -downstairs and assist at dear papa's breakfast, and keep up her smiles -for him till he had gone out to his patients. Altogether the picture was -a very pretty one; and, considering that a great many young ladies in -deep mourning put force upon their feelings in novels, and maintain a -smile for the benefit of the unobservant male creatures of whom they -have the charge, the idea was not at all extravagant, considering that -Miss Marjoribanks was but fifteen. She was not, however, exactly the -kind of figure for this _mise en scène_. When her schoolfellows talked -of her to their friends--for Lucilla was already an important personage -at Mount Pleasant--the most common description they gave her was, that -she was "a large girl"; and there was great truth in the adjective. She -was not to be described as a tall girl--which conveys an altogether -different idea--but she was large in all particulars, full and -well-developed, with somewhat large features, not at all pretty as yet, -though it was known in Mount Pleasant that somebody had said that such a -face might ripen into beauty, and become "grandiose," for anything -anybody could tell. Miss Marjoribanks was not vain; but the word had -taken possession of her imagination, as was natural, and solaced her -much when she made the painful discovery that her gloves were half a -number larger, and her shoes a hair-breadth broader, than those of any -of her companions; but the hands and feet were both perfectly well -shaped; and being at the same time well clothed and plump, were much -more presentable and pleasant to look upon than the lean rudimentary -schoolgirl hands with which they were surrounded. To add to these -excellences, Lucilla had a mass of hair which, if it could but have been -cleared a little in its tint, would have been golden, though at present -it was nothing more than tawny, and curly to exasperation. She wore it -in large thick curls, which did not, however, float or wave, or do any -of the graceful things which curls ought to do; for it had this -aggravating quality, that it would not grow long, but would grow -ridiculously, unmanageably thick, to the admiration of her companions, -but to her own despair, for there was no knowing what to do with those -short but ponderous locks. These were the external characteristics of -the girl who was going home to be a comfort to her widowed father, and -meant to sacrifice herself to his happiness. In the course of her rapid -journey she had already settled upon everything that had to be done; or -rather, to speak truly, had rehearsed everything, according to the habit -already acquired by a quick mind, a good deal occupied with itself. -First, she meant to fall into her father's arms--forgetting, with that -singular facility for overlooking the peculiarities of others which -belongs to such a character, that Dr Marjoribanks was very little given -to embracing, and that a hasty kiss on her forehead was the warmest -caress he had ever given his daughter--and then to rush up to the -chamber of death and weep over dear mamma. "And to think I was not there -to soothe her last moments!" Lucilla said to herself, with a sob, and -with feelings sufficiently real in their way. After this, the devoted -daughter made up her mind to come downstairs again, pale as death, but -self-controlled, and devote herself to papa. Perhaps, if great emotion -should make him tearless, as such cases had been known, Miss -Marjoribanks would steal into his arms unawares, and so surprise him -into weeping. All this went briskly through her mind, undeterred by the -reflection that tears were as much out of the Doctor's way as embraces; -and in this mood she sped swiftly along in the inspiration of her first -sorrow, as she imagined, but in reality to suffer her first -disappointment, which was of a less soothing character than that mild -and manageable grief. - -When Miss Marjoribanks reached home her mother had been dead for -twenty-four hours; and her father was not at the door to receive her as -she had expected, but by the bedside of a patient in extremity, who -could not consent to go out of the world without the Doctor. This was a -sad reversal of her intentions, but Lucilla was not the woman to be -disconcerted. She carried out the second part of her programme without -either interference or sympathy, except from Mrs Marjoribanks's maid, -who had some hopes from the moment of her arrival. "I can't abear to -think as I'm to be parted from you all, miss," sobbed the faithful -attendant. "I've lost the best missus as ever was, and I shouldn't mind -going after her. Whenever any one gets a good friend in this world, -they're the first to be took away," said the weeping handmaiden, who -naturally saw her own loss in the most vivid light. "Ah, Ellis," cried -Miss Marjoribanks, reposing her sorrow in the arms of this anxious -attendant, "we must try to be a comfort to poor papa!" - -With this end Lucilla made herself very troublesome to the sober-minded -Doctor during those few dim days before the faint and daily lessening -shadow of poor Mrs Marjoribanks was removed altogether from the house. -When that sad ceremony had taken place, and the Doctor returned, serious -enough, Heaven knows, to the great house, where the faded helpless -woman, who had notwithstanding been his love and his bride in other -days, lay no longer on the familiar sofa, the crisis arrived which Miss -Marjoribanks had rehearsed so often, but after quite a different -fashion. The widower was tearless, indeed, but not from excess of -emotion. On the contrary, a painful heaviness possessed him when he -became aware how little real sorrow was in his mind, and how small an -actual loss was this loss of his wife, which bulked before the world as -an event of just as much magnitude as the loss, for example, which poor -Mr Lake, the drawing-master, was at the same moment suffering. It was -even sad, in another point of view, to think of a human creature passing -out of the world, and leaving so little trace that she had ever been -there. As for the pretty creature whom Dr Marjoribanks had married, she -had vanished into thin air years and years ago. These thoughts were -heavy enough--perhaps even more overwhelming than that grief which -develops love to its highest point of intensity. But such were not -precisely the kind of reflections which could be solaced by paternal -_attendrissement_ over a weeping and devoted daughter. It was May, and -the weather was warm for the season; but Lucilla had caused the fire to -be lighted in the large gloomy library where Dr Marjoribanks always sat -in the evenings, with the idea that it would be "a comfort" to him; -and, for the same reason, she had ordered tea to be served there, -instead of the dinner, for which her father, as she imagined, could have -little appetite. When the Doctor went in to his favourite seclusion, -tired and heated and sad--for even on the day of his wife's funeral the -favourite doctor of Carlingford had patients to think of--the very -heaviness of his thoughts gave warmth to his indignation. He had longed -for the quiet and the coolness and the solitude of his library, apart -from everybody; and when he found it radiant with firelight, tea set on -the table, and Lucilla crying by the fire, in her new crape, the effect -upon a temper by no means perfect may be imagined. The unfortunate man -threw both the windows wide open and rang the bell violently, and gave -instant orders for the removal of the unnecessary fire and the -tea-service. "Let me know when dinner is ready," he said, in a voice -like thunder; "and if Miss Marjoribanks wants a fire, let it be lighted -in the drawing-room." Lucilla was so much taken by surprise by this -sudden overthrow of her programme, that she submitted, as a girl of much -less spirit might have done, and suffered herself and her fire and her -tea-things to be dismissed upstairs, where she wept still more at sight -of dear mamma's sofa, and where Ellis came to mingle her tears with -those of her young mistress, and to beg dear Miss Lucilla, for the sake -of her precious 'elth and her dear papa, to be persuaded to take some -tea. On the whole, master stood lessened in the eyes of all the -household by his ability to eat his dinner, and his resentment at having -his habitudes disturbed. "Them men would eat and drink if we was all in -our graves," said the indignant cook, who indeed had a real grievance; -and the outraged sentiment of the kitchen was avenged by a bad and hasty -dinner, which the Doctor, though generally "very particular," swallowed -without remark. About an hour afterwards he went upstairs to the -drawing-room, where Miss Marjoribanks was waiting for him, much less at -ease than she had expected to be. Though he gave a little sigh at the -sight of his wife's sofa, he did not hesitate to sit down upon it, and -even to draw it a little out of its position, which, as Lucilla -described afterwards, was like a knife going into her heart. Though, -indeed, she had herself decided already, in the intervals of her tears, -that the drawing-room furniture had got very faded and shabby, and that -it would be very expedient to have it renewed for the new reign of -youth and energy which was about to commence. As for the Doctor, though -Miss Marjoribanks thought him insensible, his heart was heavy enough. -His wife had gone out of the world without leaving the least mark of her -existence, except in that large girl, whose spirits and forces were -unbounded, but whose discretion at the present moment did not seem much -greater than her mother's. Instead of thinking of her as a comfort, the -Doctor felt himself called upon to face a new and unexpected -embarrassment. It would have been a satisfaction to him just then to -have been left to himself, and permitted to work on quietly at his -profession, and to write his papers for the _Lancet_, and to see his -friends now and then when he chose; for Dr Marjoribanks was not a man -who had any great need of sympathy by nature, or who was at all addicted -to demonstrations of feeling; consequently, he drew his wife's sofa a -little farther from the fire, and took his seat on it soberly, quite -unaware that, by so doing, he was putting a knife into his daughter's -heart. - -"I hope you have had something to eat, Lucilla," he said; "don't get -into that foolish habit of flying to tea as a man flies to a dram. It's -a more innocent stimulant, but it's the same kind of intention. I am not -so much against a fire; it has always a kind of cheerful look." - -"Oh, papa," cried his daughter, with a flood of indignant tears, "you -can't suppose I want anything to look cheerful this dreadful day." - -"I am far from blaming you, my dear," said the Doctor; "it is natural -you should cry. I am sorry I did not write for my sister to come, who -would have taken care of you; but I dislike strangers in the house at -such a time. However, I hope, Lucilla, you will soon feel yourself able -to return to school; occupation is always the best remedy, and you will -have your friends and companions----" - -"Papa!" cried Miss Marjoribanks; and then she summoned courage, and -rushed up to him, and threw herself and her clouds of crape on the -carpet at his side (and it may here be mentioned that Lucilla had seized -the opportunity to have her mourning made _long_, which had been the -desire of her heart, baffled by mamma and governess for at least a -year). "Papa!" she exclaimed with fervour, raising to him her -tear-stained face, and clasping her fair plump hands, "oh, don't send me -away! I was only a silly girl the other day, but _this_ has made me a -woman. Though I can never, never hope to take dear mamma's place, and -be--all--that she was to you, still I feel I can be a comfort to you if -you will let me. You shall not see me cry any more," cried Lucilla with -energy, rubbing away her tears. "I will never give way to my feelings. I -will ask for no companions--nor--nor anything. As for pleasure, that is -all over. Oh, papa, you shall never see me regret anything, or wish for -anything. I will give up everything in the world to be a comfort to -you!" - -This address, which was utterly unexpected, drove Dr Marjoribanks to -despair. He said, "Get up, Lucilla;" but the devoted daughter knew -better than to get up. She hid her face in her hands, and rested her -hands upon her mother's sofa, where the Doctor was sitting; and the sobs -of that emotion which she meant to control henceforward, echoed through -the room. "It is only for this once--I can--cannot help it," she cried. -When her father found that he could neither soothe her, nor succeed in -raising her, he got up himself, which was the only thing left to him, -and began to walk about the room with hasty steps. Her mother, too, had -possessed this dangerous faculty of tears; and it was not wonderful if -the sober-minded Doctor, roused for the first time to consider his -little girl as a creature possessed of individual character, should -recognise, with a thrill of dismay, the appearance of the same qualities -which had wearied his life out, and brought his youthful affections to -an untimely end. Lucilla was, it is true, as different from her mother -as summer from winter; but Dr Marjoribanks had no means of knowing that -his daughter was only doing her duty by him in his widowhood, according -to a programme of filial devotion resolved upon, in accordance with the -best models, some days before. - -Accordingly, when her sobs had ceased, her father returned and raised -her up not unkindly, and placed her in her chair. In doing so, the -Doctor put his finger by instinct upon Lucilla's pulse, which was -sufficiently calm and regulated to reassure the most anxious parent. And -then a furtive momentary smile gleamed for a single instant round the -corners of his mouth. - -"It is very good of you to propose sacrificing yourself for me," he -said; "and if you would sacrifice your excitement in the meantime, and -listen to me quietly, it would really be something--but you are only -fifteen, Lucilla, and I have no wish to take you from school just now; -wait till I have done. Your poor mother is gone, and it is very natural -you should cry; but you were a good child to her on the whole, which -will be a comfort to you. We did everything that could be thought of to -prolong her days, and, when that was impossible, to lessen what she had -to suffer; and we have every reason to hope," said the Doctor, as indeed -he was accustomed to say in the exercise of his profession to mourning -relatives, "that she's far better off now than if she had been with us. -When that is said, I don't know that there is anything more to add. I am -not fond of sacrifices, either one way or another; and I've a great -objection to any one making a sacrifice for me----" - -"But, oh, papa, it would be no sacrifice," said Lucilla, "if you would -only let me be a comfort to you!" - -"That is just where it is, my dear," said the steady Doctor; "I have -been used to be left a great deal to myself; and I am not prepared to -say that the responsibility of having you here without a mother to take -care of you, and all your lessons interrupted, would not neutralise any -comfort you might be. You see," said Dr Marjoribanks, trying to soften -matters a little, "a man is what his habits make him; and I have been -used to be left a great deal to myself. It answers in some cases, but I -doubt if it would answer with me." - -And then there was a pause, in which Lucilla wept and stifled her tears -in her handkerchief, with a warmer flood of vexation and disappointment -than even her natural grief had produced. "Of course, papa, if I can't -be any comfort--I will--go back to school," she sobbed, with a touch of -sullenness which did not escape the Doctor's ear. - -"Yes, my dear, you will certainly go back to school," said the -peremptory father; "I never had any doubt on that subject. You can stay -over Sunday and rest yourself. Monday or Tuesday will be time enough to -go back to Mount Pleasant; and now you had better ring the bell, and get -somebody to bring you something--or I'll see to that when I go -downstairs. It's getting late, and this has been a fatiguing day. I'll -send you up some negus, and I think you had better go to bed." - -And with these commonplace words, Dr Marjoribanks withdrew in calm -possession of the field. As for Lucilla, she obeyed him, and betook -herself to her own room, and swallowed her negus with a sense, not only -of defeat, but of disappointment and mortification which was very -unpleasant. To go back again and be an ordinary schoolgirl, after the -pomp and woe in which she had come away, was naturally a painful -thought; she who had ordered her mourning to be made long, and -contemplated new furniture in the drawing-room, and expected to be -mistress of her father's house, not to speak of the still dearer -privilege of being a comfort to him; and now, after all, her active mind -was to be condemned over again to verbs and chromatic scales, though she -felt within herself capacities so much more extended. Miss Marjoribanks -did not by any means learn by this defeat to take the characters of the -other personæ in her little drama into consideration, when she rehearsed -her pet scenes hereafter--for that is a knowledge slowly acquired--but -she was wise enough to know when resistance was futile; and like most -people of lively imagination, she had a power of submitting to -circumstances when it became impossible to change them. Thus she -consented to postpone her reign, if not with a good grace, yet still -without foolish resistance, and retired with the full honours of war. -She had already rearranged all the details, and settled upon all the -means possible of preparing herself for what she called the charge of -the establishment when her final emancipation took place, before she -returned to school. "Papa thought me too young," she said, when she -reached Mount Pleasant, "though it was dreadful to come away and leave -him alone with only the servants; but, dear Miss Martha, you will let me -learn all about political economy and things, to help me manage -everything; for now that dear mamma is gone, there is nobody but me to -be a comfort to papa." - -And by this means Miss Marjoribanks managed to influence the excellent -woman who believed in _Friends in Council_, and to direct the future -tenor of her own education; while, at least, in that one moment of -opportunity, she had achieved long dresses, which was a visible mark of -womanhood, and a step which could not be retraced. - - - - -_Chapter II_ - - -Dr Marjoribanks was so far from feeling the lack of his daughter's -powers of consolation, that he kept her at Mount Pleasant for three -years longer, during which time it is to be supposed he managed to be -comfortable after a benighted fashion--good enough for a man of fifty, -who had come to an end of his illusions. To be sure, there were in the -world, and even in Carlingford, kind women, who would not have objected -to take charge of the Doctor and his "establishment," and be a comfort -to him; but, on the whole, it was undeniable that he managed tolerably -well in external matters, and gave very good men's dinners, and kept -everything in perfect order, so far as it went. Naturally the fairer -part of existence was left out altogether in that grim, though -well-ordered house; but then he was only a man and a doctor, and knew no -better; and while the feminine part of Grange Lane regarded him with -natural pity, not only for what he lacked, but for a still more sad -defect, his total want of perception on the subject, their husbands and -fathers rather liked to dine with the Doctor, and brought home accounts -of sauces which were enough to drive any woman to despair. Some of the -ladies of Grange Lane--Mrs Chiley, for example, who was fond of good -living herself, and liked, as she said, "a little variety"--laid siege -to the Doctor, and did their best to coax his receipts out of him; but -Dr Marjoribanks knew better than that. He gave all the credit to his -cook, like a man of sense; and as that functionary was known in -Carlingford to be utterly regardless and unprincipled in respect to -gravy-beef, and the materials for "stock," or "consommé," as some people -called it, society was disinclined to exert its ordinary arts to seduce -so great an artiste from the kitchen of her indulgent master. And then -there were other ladies who took a different tone. "Dr Marjoribanks, -poor man, has nothing but his table to take up his mind," said Mrs -Centum, who had six children; "I never heard that the heart could be -nourished upon sauces, for my part; and for a man who has his children's -future to think of, I must say I am surprised at you, Mr Centum." As -for young Mrs Woodburn, her reply was still more decisive, though milder -in its tone. "Poor cook! I am so sorry for her," said the gentle young -matron. "You know you always like something for breakfast, Charles; and -then there is the children's dinner, and our lunch, and the servants' -dinner, so that the poor thing is worn out before she comes to what -_you_ call the great event of the day; and you know how angry you were -when I asked for a kitchen-maid for her, poor soul." The consequence of -all this was, that Dr Marjoribanks remained unrivalled in Grange Lane in -this respect at least. When rumours arose in Carlingford of a possible -second marriage for the Doctor--and such rumours naturally arose three -or four times in the course of the three years--the men of Grange Lane -said, "Heaven forbid!" "No wife in the world could replace Nancy," said -Colonel Chiley, after that fervent aspiration, "and none could put up -with her;" while, on the other side, there were curious speculations -afloat as to the effect upon the house, and especially the table, of the -daughter's return. When a young woman comes to be eighteen it is -difficult to keep her at school; and though the Doctor had staved off -the danger for the moment, by sending Lucilla off along with one of her -schoolfellows, whose family was going abroad, to make orthodox -acquaintance with all the Swiss mountains, and all the Italian capitals, -still that was plainly an expedient for the moment; and a new mistress -to the house, which had got along so well without any mistress, was -inevitable. So that it cannot be denied Miss Marjoribanks's advent was -regarded in Carlingford with as much interest and curiosity as she could -have wished. For it was already known that the Doctor's daughter was not -a mild young lady, easy to be controlled; but, on the contrary, had all -the energy and determination to have her own way, which naturally -belonged to a girl who possessed a considerable chin, and a mouth which -could shut, and tightly curling tawny tresses, which were still more -determined than she was to be arranged only according to their -inclination. It was even vaguely reported that some passages-of-arms had -occurred between Miss Marjoribanks and the redoubtable Nancy during the -short and uncertain opportunities which were afforded by holidays; and -the community, accordingly, regarded as an affair of almost municipal -importance Lucilla's final return home. - -As for the young lady herself, though she was at school, she was -conscious of having had a career not without importance, even during -these three years of pupilage. Since the day when she began to read -political economy with Miss Martha Blount, who, though the second -sister, was the directing spirit of the establishment, Lucilla had -exercised a certain influence upon the school itself which was very -satisfactory. Perhaps her course might be a little deficient in grace, -but grace, after all, is but a secondary quality; and, at all events, -Miss Marjoribanks went straight forward, leaving an unquestionable wake -behind her, and running down with indifference the little skiffs in her -way. She was possessed by nature of that kind of egotism, or rather -egoism, which is predestined to impress itself, by its perfect reality -and good faith, upon the surrounding world. There are people who talk of -themselves, and think of themselves, as it were, under protest, and with -depreciation, not actually able to convince themselves that anybody -cares; but Lucilla, for her part, had the calmest and most profound -conviction that, when she discussed her own doings and plans and -clevernesses, she was bringing forward the subject most interesting to -her audience as well as to herself. Such a conviction is never without -its fruits. To be sure, there were always one or two independent spirits -who revolted; but for the crowd, it soon became impressed with a -profound belief in the creed which Miss Marjoribanks supported so -firmly. This conviction of the importance and value of her own -proceedings made Lucilla, as she grew older, a copious and amusing -conversationalist--a rank which few people who are indifferent to, or do -not believe in, themselves can attain to. One thing she had made up her -mind to as soon as she should return home, and that was to revolutionise -society in Carlingford. On the whole, she was pleased with the success -of the Doctor's dinners, though a little piqued to think that they owed -nothing to herself; but Lucilla, whose instinct of government was of the -true despotic order, and who had no objection to stoop, if by that means -she could conquer, had no such designs against Nancy as were attributed -to her by the expectant audience in Carlingford. On the contrary, she -was quite as much disposed as her father was to take Nancy for -prime-minister; for Miss Marjoribanks, though too much occupied with -herself to divine the characteristic points of other people, had a -sensible and thorough belief in those superficial general truths which -most minds acquiesce in, without taking the trouble to believe. She -knew, for example, that there was a great difference between the -brilliant society of London, or of Paris, which appears in books, where -women have generally the best of it, and can rule in their own right; -and even the very best society of a country town, where husbands are -very commonly unmanageable, and have a great deal more of their own way -in respect to the houses they will or will not go to, than is good for -that inferior branch of the human family. Miss Marjoribanks had the good -sense to see and appreciate these details; and she knew that a good -dinner was a great attraction to a man, and that, in Carlingford at -least, when these refractory mortals were secured, the wives and -daughters would necessarily follow. Besides, as is not uncommon with -women who are clever women, and aware of the fact, Miss Marjoribanks -preferred the society of men, and rather liked to say so. With all these -intentions in her mind, it may be imagined that she received coolly -enough the invitation of her friend to join in the grand tour, and the -ready consent given by her father when he heard of it. But even the -grand tour was a tool which Lucilla saw how to make use of. Nowadays, -when people go everywhere, an untravelled woman would find it so much -the harder to keep up the _rôle_ of a leader of society to which she had -devoted herself; and she felt to the depth of her heart the endless -advantage to her future conversation of the experiences to be acquired -in Switzerland and Italy. But she rejected with scorn the insinuation of -other accidents that might occur on the way. - -"You will never come back again, Lucilla," said one of her companions; -"you will marry some enchanting Italian with a beautiful black beard, -and a voice like an angel; and he'll sing serenades to you, and do all -sorts of things: oh, how I wish I was you!" - -"That may be," said Miss Marjoribanks, "but I shall never marry an -Italian, my dear. I don't think I shall marry anybody for a long time. I -want to amuse myself. I wonder, by the way, if it would improve my voice -to take lessons in Italy. Did I ever tell you of the Italian nobleman -that was so very attentive to me that Christmas I spent at Sissy -Vernon's? He was very handsome. I suppose they really are all very -handsome--except, of course, the Italian masters; but I did not pay any -attention to him. My object, dear, and you know it, is to return home as -well educated as possible, to be a comfort to dear papa." - -"Yes, dear Lucilla," said the sympathetic girl, "and it is so good of -you; but do tell me about the Italian nobleman--what did he look -like--and what did he say?" - -"Oh, as for what he said, that is quite a different matter," said -Lucilla; "but it is not what they say, but the way they say it, that is -the fun. I did not give him the least encouragement. As for that, I -think a girl can always stop a man when she does not care for him. It -depends on whether you intend him to commit himself or not," Miss -Marjoribanks continued, and fixed her eyes meditatively, but intently, -upon her friend's face. - -"Whether I intend?--oh, goodness, Lucilla! how can you speak so? as if I -ever intended anything," said her companion, confused, yet flattered, by -the possibility; to which the elder sage answered calmly, with all the -composure in the world. - -"No, I never supposed you did; I was thinking of myself," said Lucilla, -as if, indeed that was the only reasonable subject of thought. "You know -I have seen a good deal of the world, one way and another, with going to -spend the holidays, and I could tell you quantities of things. It is -quite astonishing how much experience one gets. When I was at Midhurst, -at Easter, there was my cousin Tom, who was quite ridiculous; I declare -he nearly brought things to an explanation, Fanny--which, of course, of -all things in the world I most wanted to avoid." - -"Oh, but why, Lucilla?" cried Fanny, full of delight and wonder; "I do -so want to know what they say when they make--explanations, as you call -them. Oh, do tell me, Lucilla, why?" - -"My dear," said Miss Marjoribanks, "a cousin of my own! and only -twenty-one, and reading for the bar! In the first place, my aunt would -never have forgiven me, and I am very fond of my aunt. It's so nice to -like all one's relations. I know some girls who can't bear theirs. And -then a boy not much older than myself, with nothing but what his mother -pleases! Fortunately he did not just say the words, so I escaped that -time; but, of course, I could understand perfectly what he meant." - -"But, oh, Lucilla, tell me the words," cried the persistent questioner; -"do, there's a darling! I am quite sure you have heard them--and I -should so like to know exactly what they say;--do they go down on their -knees?--or do they try to take your hand as they always do in -novels?--or what do they do?--Oh, Lucilla, tell me, there's a dear!" - -"Nonsense," said Lucilla; "I only want you to understand that I am not -likely to fall into any danger of that sort. My only ambition, Fanny, as -I have told you often, is to go home to Carlingford and be a comfort to -dear papa." - -"Yes," said Fanny, kissing her devoted companion, "and it is so good of -you, dear; but then you cannot go on all your life being a comfort to -dear papa," said the intelligent girl, bethinking herself, and looking -again with some curiosity in Lucilla's face. - -"We must leave that to Providence," said Miss Marjoribanks, with a sense -of paying a compliment to Providence in entrusting it with such a -responsibility. "I have always been guided for the best hitherto," she -continued, with an innocent and unintentional profanity, which sounded -solemn to her equally innocent companion, "and I don't doubt I shall be -so till the end." - -From which it will be perceived that Miss Marjoribanks was of the -numerous class of religionists who keep up civilities with heaven, and -pay all the proper attentions, and show their respect for the divine -government in a manner befitting persons who know the value of their own -approbation. The conversation dropped at this point; for Lucilla was too -important a person to be left to the undivided possession of an -inquisitive innocent like Fanny Middleton, who was only sixteen, and had -never had even a flirtation in her own person. There were no Carlingford -girls at Mount Pleasant, except poor little Rose Lake, the -drawing-master's second daughter, who had been received on Dr -Marjoribanks's recommendation, and who heard the little children their -geography and reading, and gave them little lessons in drawing, by way -of paying for her own education; but then Rose was entirely out of Miss -Marjoribanks's way, and could never count for anything in her designs -for the future. The girls at Mount Pleasant were good girls on the -whole, and were rather improved by the influence of Lucilla, who was -extremely good-natured, and, so long as her superiority was duly -acknowledged, was ready to do anything for anybody--so that Rose Lake -was not at all badly off in her inferior position. She could be made -useful too, which was a great point in her favour; and Miss -Marjoribanks, who possessed by nature some of the finest qualities of a -ruler, instinctively understood and appreciated the instruments that -came to her hand. As for Rose, she had been brought up at the School of -Design in Carlingford, of which, under the supervision of the -authorities who, in those days, inhabited Marlborough House, Mr Lake was -the master. Rose was the pride of the school in the peaceable days -before her mother died; she did not know much else, poor child, except -novels, but her copies "from the round" filled her father with -admiration, and her design for a Honiton-lace flounce, a spirited -composition of dragons' tails and the striking plant called teazle, -which flourishes in the neighbourhood of Carlingford (for Mr Lake had -leanings towards Preraphaelitism), was thought by the best judges to -show a wonderful amount of feeling for art, and just missed being -selected for the prize. A girl with such a talent was naturally much -appreciated in Mount Pleasant. She made the most charming design for -Miss Marjoribanks's handkerchief--"Lucilla," in Gothic characters, -enclosed in a wreath of forget-me-nots, skilfully combined with -thistle-leaves, which Rose took great pains to explain were so much -better adapted to ornamentation than foliage of a less distinct -character; and the young draftswoman was so charmed by Lucilla's -enthusiastic admiration, that she volunteered to work the design in the -cambric, which was a much more serious matter. This was on the eve of -Miss Marjoribanks's final departure from school. She was to spend a year -abroad, to the envy of all whom she left behind; but for herself Lucilla -was not elated. She thought it very probable that she would ascend Mont -Blanc as far as the Grands Mulets at least, and, of course, in spring, -go up Vesuvius, having got through the Carnival and Miserere and all the -balls in Rome; but none of these things moved her out of her usual -composure. She took it all in the way of business, as she had taken her -French and her German and her singing and her political economy. As she -stepped into the steamboat at Dover which was to convey her to scenes so -new, Lucilla felt more and more that she who held the reorganisation of -society in Carlingford in her hands was a woman with a mission. She was -going abroad as the heir-apparent went to America and the Holy Land, to -complete her education, and fit herself, by an examination of the -peculiarities of other nations, for an illustrious and glorious reign at -home. - - - - -_Chapter III_ - - -It may be well to seize the opportunity of Miss Marjoribanks's travels, -through which it is unnecessary to follow her, as they have nothing -particular to do with the legitimate history of her great undertaking, -to explain a little the state of affairs in Carlingford before this -distinguished revolutionary began her labours. It is something like -going back into the prehistoric period--those ages of the flint, which -only ingenious quarrymen and learned geologists can elucidate--to recall -the social condition of the town before Miss Marjoribanks began her -Thursday evenings, before St Roque's Chapel was built or thought of, -while Mr Bury, the Evangelical Rector, was still in full activity, and -before old Mr Tufton, at Salem Chapel (who sometimes drank tea at the -Rectory, and thus had a kind of clandestine entrance into the dim -outskirts of that chaos which was then called society), had his first -"stroke." From this latter circumstance alone the entirely disorganised -condition of affairs will be visible at a glance. It is true, Mr -Vincent, who succeeded Mr Tufton, was received by Lady Western, in days -when public opinion had made great advances; but then Lady Western was -the most good-natured creature in the world, and gave an invitation, -when it happened to come into her head, without the least regard for the -consequences; and, after all, Mr Vincent was very nice-looking and -clever, and quite presentable. Fortunately, however, the period to which -we allude was prior to the entrance of Lady Western into Grange Lane. -She was a very pretty woman, and knew how to look like a lady of -fashion, which is always of importance; but she was terribly -inconsequent, as Miss Marjoribanks said, and her introductions were not -in the least to be depended upon. She was indeed quite capable of -inviting a family of retired drapers to meet the best people in Grange -Lane, for no better reason than to gratify her protégés, which, of -course, was a proceeding calculated to strike at the roots of all -society. Fortunately for Carlingford, its reorganisation was in abler -hands. Affairs were in an utterly chaotic state at the period when this -record commences. There was nothing which could be properly called a -centre in the entire town. To be sure, Grange Lane was inhabited, as at -present, by the best families in Carlingford; but then, without -organisation, what good does it do to have a number of people together? -For example, Mr Bury was utterly unqualified to take any lead. Mrs Bury -had been dead a long time, and the daughters were married, and the -Rector's maiden sister, who lived with him, was entirely of his own way -of thinking, and asked people to tea-parties, which were like -Methodists' class-meetings, and where Mr Tufton was to be met with, and -sometimes other Dissenters, to whom the Rector gave what he called the -right hand of fellowship. But he never gave anything else to society, -except weak tea and thin bread-and-butter, which was fare, the ladies -said, which the gentlemen did not relish. "I never can induce Charles to -go out to tea," said young Mrs Woodburn piteously; "he won't, and there -is an end of it. After dinner he thinks of nothing but an easy-chair and -the papers; and, my dear Miss Bury, what can I do?" "It is a great pity, -my dear, that your husband's carelessness should deprive you of the -benefit of Christian conversation; but, to be sure, it is your duty to -stay with him, and I hope it will be made up to you at home," Miss Bury -would say. As for the Rector, his favourites were devoted to him; and as -he always saw enough of familiar faces at his sister's tea-parties, he -took no account of the defaulters. Then there was Dr Marjoribanks, who -gave only dinners, to which naturally, as there was no lady in the -house, ladies could not be invited, and who, besides, was rather a -drawback than a benefit to society, since he made the men quite -intolerable, and filled them with such expectations, in the way of -cookery, that they never were properly content with a good family dinner -after. Then the ladies, from whom something might justly have been -expected in the way of making society pleasant--such as Mrs Centum and -Mrs Woodburn, for example, who had everything they could desire, and the -most liberal housekeeping allowances--were either incapacitated by -circumstances (which was a polite term in use at Carlingford, and meant -babies) or by character. Mrs Woodburn liked nothing so well as to sit by -the fire and read novels, and "take off" her neighbours, when any one -called on her; and, of course, the lady who was her audience on one -occasion, left with the comfortable conviction that next time she would -be the victim; a circumstance which, indeed, did not make the offender -unpopular--for there were very few people in Carlingford who could be -amusing, even at the expense of their neighbours--but made it quite -impossible that she should ever do anything in the way of knitting -people together, and making a harmonious whole out of the scraps and -fragments of society. As for Mrs Chiley, she was old, and had not energy -enough for such an undertaking; and, besides, she had no children, and -disliked bustle and trouble, and was of opinion that the Colonel never -enjoyed his dinner if he had more than four people to help him to eat -it; and, in short, you might have gone over Grange Lane, house by house, -finding a great deal of capital material, but without encountering a -single individual capable of making anything out of it. Such was the -lamentable condition, at the moment this history commences, of society -in Carlingford. - -And yet nobody could say that there were not very good elements to make -society with. When you add to a man capable of giving excellent dinners, -like Dr Marjoribanks, another man like young Mr Cavendish, Mrs -Woodburn's brother, who was a wit and a man of fashion, and belonged to -one of the best clubs in town, and brought down gossip with the bloom on -it to Grange Lane; and when you join to Mrs Centum, who was always so -good and so much out of temper that it was safe to calculate on -something amusing from her, the languid but trenchant humour of Mrs -Woodburn--not to speak of their husbands, who were perfectly available -for the background, and all the nephews and cousins and grand-children, -who constantly paid visits to old Mr Western and Colonel Chiley; and the -Browns, when they were at home, with their floating suite of admirers; -and the young ladies who sang, and the young ladies who sketched, and -the men who went out with the hounds, when business permitted them; and -the people who came about the town when there was an election; and the -barristers who made the circuit; and the gay people who came to the -races; not to speak of the varying chances of curates, who could talk or -play the piano, with which Mr Bury favoured his parishioners--for he -changed his curates very often; and the occasional visits of the lesser -county people, and the country clergymen;--it will be plainly apparent -that all that was wanting to Carlingford was a master-hand to blend -these different elements. There had even been a few feeble preliminary -attempts at this great work, which had failed, as such attempts always -fail when they are premature, and when the real agent of the change is -already on the way; but preparations and presentiments had taken vague -possession of the mind of the town, as has always been observed to be -the case before a great revolution, or when a man destined to put his -mark on his generation, as the newspapers say, is about to appear. To be -sure, it was not a man this time, but Miss Marjoribanks; but the -atmosphere thrilled and trembled to the advent of the new luminary all -the same. - -Yet, at the same time, the world of Carlingford had not the least idea -of the real quarter from which the sovereign intelligence which was to -develop it from chaos into order and harmony was, _effectivement_, to -come. Some people had hoped in Mrs Woodburn before she fell into her -present languor of appearance and expression; and a great many people -hoped in Mr Cavendish's wife, if he married, as he was said to intend to -do; for this gentleman, who was in the habit of describing himself, no -doubt, very truthfully, as one of the Cavendishes, was a person of great -consideration in Grange Lane; and some hoped in a new Rector, for it was -apparent that Mr Bury could not last very long. Thus, with the ordinary -short-sightedness of the human species, Carlingford blinded itself, and -turned its eyes in every direction in the world rather than in that of -the Swiss mountains, which were being climbed at that moment by a large -and blooming young woman, with tawny short curls and alert decided -movements; so little do we know what momentous issues may hang upon the -most possible accident! Had that energetic traveller slipped but an inch -farther upon the _mer de glace_--had she taken that other step which she -was with difficulty persuaded not to take on the Wengern Alp--there -would have been an end of all the hopes of social importance for -Carlingford. But the good fairies took care of Lucilla and her mission, -and saved her from the precipice and the crevasses; and instinctively -the air at home got note of what was coming, and whispered the news -mysteriously through the keyholes. "Miss Marjoribanks is coming home," -the unsuspecting male public said to itself as it returned from Dr -Marjoribanks's dinners, with a certain distressing, but mistaken -presentiment, that these delights were to come to an end; and the ladies -repeated the same piece of news, conjoining with it benevolent -intimations of their intention to call upon her, and make the poor thing -feel herself at home. "Perhaps she may be amusing," Mrs Woodburn was -good enough to add; but these words meant only that perhaps Lucilla, who -was coming to set them all right, was worthy of being placed in the -satirist's collection along with Mrs Centum and Mrs Chiley. Thus, while -the town ripened more and more for her great mission, and the ignorant -human creatures, who were to be her subjects, showed their usual -blindness and ignorance, the time drew nearer and nearer for Miss -Marjoribanks's return. - - - - -_Chapter IV_ - - -"My daughter is coming home, Nancy," said Dr Marjoribanks. "You will -have to make preparations for her immediately. So far as I can make out -from this letter, she will arrive to-morrow by the half-past five -train." - -"Well, sir," said Nancy, with the tone of a woman who makes the best of -a misfortune, "it ain't every young lady as would have the sense to fix -an hour like that. Ladies is terrible tiresome in that way; they'll come -in the middle o' the day, when a body don't know in the world what to -have for them; or they'll come at night, when a body's tired, and ain't -got the heart to go into a supper. There was always a deal of sense in -Miss Lucilla, when she hadn't got nothing in her head." - -"Just so," said Dr Marjoribanks, who was rather relieved to have got -through the announcement so easily. "You will see that her room is -ready, and everything comfortable; and, of course, to-morrow she and I -will dine alone." - -"Yes, sir," said Nancy; but this assent was not given in the decisive -tone of a woman whose audience was over; and then she was seized with a -desire to arrange in a more satisfactory manner the cold beef on the -sideboard. When she had secured this little interval for thought, she -returned again to the table, where her master ate his breakfast, with a -presentiment. "If you please, sir," said Nancy, "not to give you no -vexation nor trouble, which every one knows as it has been the aim o' my -life to spare you, as has so much on your mind. But it's best to settle -afore commencing, and then we needn't have no heartburning. If you -please, am I to take my orders of Miss Lucilla, or of you, as I've -always been used to? In the missus's time," said Nancy, with modest -confidence, "as was a good missus, and never gave no trouble as long as -she had her soup and her jelly comfortable, it was always you as said -what there was to be for dinner. I don't make no objection to doing up a -nice little luncheon for Miss Lucilla, and giving a little more thought -now and again to the sweets; but it ain't my part to tell you, sir, as a -lady's taste, and more special a young lady's, ain't to be expected to -be the same as yours and mine as has been cultivated like. I'm not one -as likes contention," continued the domestic oracle, "but I couldn't -abear to see a good master put upon; and if it should be as Miss Lucilla -sets her mind upon messes as ain't got no taste in them, and -milk-puddings and stuff, like the most of the ladies, I'd just like to -know out of your own mouth, afore the commencement, what I'm to do?" - -Dr Marjoribanks was so moved by this appeal that he laid down his knife -and contemplated the alarming future with some dismay. "It is to be -hoped Miss Lucilla will know better," he said. "She has a great deal of -good sense, and it is to be hoped that she will be wise enough to -consult the tastes of the house." - -But the Doctor was not to be let off so easily. "As you say, sir, -everything's to be hoped," said Nancy steadily; "but there's a-many -ladies as don't seem to me to have got no taste to their mouths; and it -ain't as if it was a thing that could be left to hopes. Supposin' as it -comes to that, sir, what am I to do?" - -"Well," said the Doctor, who was himself a little puzzled, "you know -Miss Lucilla is nineteen, Nancy, and my only child, and the natural -mistress of the house." - -"Sir," said Nancy austerely, "them is things as it ain't needful to -name; that ain't the question as I was asking. Supposin' as things come -to such a point, what am I to do?" - -"Bless me! it's half-past nine," said the Doctor, "and I have an -appointment. You can come just as usual when we are at breakfast, that -will be the best way," he said as he went out at the door, and chuckled -a little to himself when he felt he had escaped. "Lucilla is her -mother's daughter, it is true," he said to himself when he had got into -the safe seclusion of his brougham, with a degree of doubt in his tone -which was startling, to say the least of it, from the lips of a medical -man; "but she is my child all the same," he added briskly, with -returning confidence; and in this conviction there was something which -reassured the Doctor. He rubbed his hands as he bowled along to his -appointment, and thought within himself that if she turned out a girl of -spirit, as he expected, it would be good fun to see Lucilla's struggle -with Nancy for the veritable reins of government. If Dr Marjoribanks had -entertained any positive apprehensions that his dinners would be spoiled -in consequence, his amusement would have come to an abrupt conclusion; -but he trusted entirely in Nancy and a little in Lucilla, and suffered -his long upper-lip to relax at the thought without much fear. - -Her father had not returned from the labours of his long day when -Lucilla arrived, but he made his last visits on foot in order to be able -to send the brougham for her, which was a great thing for the Doctor to -do. There was, indeed, a mutual respect between the two, who were not -necessary to each other's comfort, it is true, as such near relations -sometimes are; but who, at the same time, except on the sole occasion of -Mrs Marjoribanks's death, had never misunderstood each other, as -sometimes happens. This time Miss Marjoribanks was rather pleased, on -the whole, that the Doctor did not come to meet her. At other times she -had been a visitor; now she had come into her kingdom, and had no desire -to be received like a guest. A sense of coming home, warmer than she -remembered to have felt before, came into Lucilla's active mind as she -stepped into the brougham. Not that the words bore any special tender -meaning, notwithstanding that it was the desire of her heart, well known -to all her friends, to live henceforward as a comfort to dear papa, but -that now at last she was coming into her kingdom, and entering the -domain in which she intended her will to be law. After living for a year -with friends whose arrangements (much inferior to those which she could -have made had she had the power) she had to acquiesce in, and whose -domestic economy could only be criticised up to a certain point, it was -naturally a pleasure to Miss Marjoribanks to feel that now at length she -was emancipated, and at liberty to exercise her faculty. There were -times during the past year when Lucilla had with difficulty restrained -herself from snatching the reins out of the hands of her hosts, and -showing them how to manage. But, impatient as she was, she had to -restrain herself, and make the best of it. Now all that bondage was -over. She felt like a young king entering in secret a capital which -awaits him with acclamations. Before she presented herself to the -rejoicing public, there were arrangements to be made and things to be -done; and Miss Marjoribanks gave a rapid glance at the shops in George -Street as she drove past, and decided which of them she meant to honour -with her patronage. When she entered the garden it was with the same -rapid glance of reorganising genius that she cast her eyes around it; -and still more decided was the look with which she regarded her own -room, where she was guided by the new housemaid, who did not know Miss -Lucilla. Nancy, who knew no better (being, like most gifted persons, a -woman of one idea), had established her young mistress in the little -chamber which had been Lucilla's when she was a child; but Miss -Marjoribanks, who had no sentimental notions about white dimity, shook -her head at the frigid little apartment, where, however, she was not at -all sorry to be placed at present; for if Dr Marjoribanks had been a man -of the _prevenant_ class, disposed to make all the preparations possible -for his daughter, and arrange elegant surprises for her, he would have -thoroughly disgusted Lucilla, who was bent on making all the necessary -improvements in her own person. When she went down to the drawing-room -to await her father, Miss Marjoribanks's look of disapprobation was -mingled with so much satisfaction and content in herself that it was -pleasant to behold. She shook her head and shrugged her shoulders as she -paused in the centre of the large faded room, where there was no light -but that of the fire, which burned brightly, and kept up a lively play -of glimmer and shadow in the tall glass over the fireplace, and even -twinkled dimly in the three long windows, where the curtains hung stiff -and solemn in their daylight form. It was not an uncomfortable sort of -big, dull, faded, respectable drawing-room; and if there had been a -family in it, with recollections attached to every old ottoman and -easy-chair, no doubt it would have been charming; but it was only a -waste and howling wilderness to Lucilla. When she had walked from one -end to the other, and verified all the plans she had already long ago -conceived for the embellishment of this inner court and centre of her -kingdom, Lucilla walked with her unhesitating step to the fire, and took -a match and lighted all the candles in the large old-fashioned -candlesticks, which had been flickering in grotesque shadows all over -the roof. This proceeding threw a flood of light on the subject of her -considerations, and gave Miss Marjoribanks an idea, in passing, about -the best mode of lighting, which she afterwards acted upon with great -success. She was standing in this flood of light, regarding everything -around her with the eye of an enlightened critic and reformer, when Dr -Marjoribanks came in. Perhaps there arose in the soul of the Doctor a -momentary thought that the startling amount of _éclairage_ which he -witnessed was scarcely necessary, for it is certain that he gave a -momentary glance at the candles as he went up to greet his daughter; but -he was far too well-bred a man to suggest such an idea at the moment. On -the contrary, he kissed her with a sentiment of real pleasure, and owned -to himself that, if she was not a fool, and could keep to her own -department, it might be rather agreeable on the whole to have a woman in -the house. The sentiment was not enthusiastic, and neither were the -words of his salutation: "Well, Lucilla; so this is you!" said the -moderate and unexcited father. "Yes, papa, it is me," said Miss -Marjoribanks, "and very glad to get home;" and so the two sat down and -discussed the journey--whether she had been cold, and what state the -railway was in--till the Doctor bethought himself that he had to prepare -for dinner. "Nancy is always very punctual, and I am sure you are -hungry," he said; "so I'll go upstairs, with your permission, Lucilla, -and change my coat;" and with this the actual arrival terminated, and -the new reign began. - -But it was only next morning that the young sovereign gave any -intimation of her future policy. She had naturally a great deal to tell -that first night; and though it was exclusively herself, and her own -adventures and achievements, which Miss Marjoribanks related, the -occasion of her return made that sufficiently natural; and the Doctor -was not altogether superior to the natural prejudice which makes a man -interested, even when they are not in themselves particularly -interesting, in the doings of his children. She succeeded in doing what -is certainly one of the first duties of a woman--she amused her father. -He followed her to the drawing-room for a marvel, and took a cup of tea, -though it was against his principles; and, on the whole, Lucilla had the -satisfaction of feeling that she had made a conquest of the Doctor, -which, of course, was the grand and most essential preliminary. In the -little interval which he spent over his claret, Miss Marjoribanks had -succeeded in effecting another fundamental duty of woman--she had, as -she herself expressed it, harmonised the rooms, by the simple method of -rearranging half the chairs and covering the tables with trifles of her -own--a proceeding which converted the apartment from an abstract English -drawing-room of the old school into Miss Marjoribanks's drawing-room, an -individual spot of ground revealing something of the character of its -mistress. The Doctor himself was so moved by this, that he looked -vaguely round when he came in, as if a little doubtful where he was--but -that might only be the effect of the sparkling mass of candles on the -mantelpiece, which he was too well-bred to remark upon the first night. -But it was only in the morning that Lucilla unfolded her standard. She -was down to breakfast, ready to pour out the coffee, before the Doctor -had left his room. He found her, to his intense amazement, seated at the -foot of the table, in the place which he usually occupied himself, -before the urn and the coffee-pot. Dr Marjoribanks hesitated for one -momentous instant, stricken dumb by this unparalleled audacity; but so -great was the effect of his daughter's courage and steadiness, that -after that moment of fate he accepted the seat by the side where -everything was arranged for him, and to which Lucilla invited him -sweetly, though not without a touch of mental perturbation. The moment -he had seated himself, the Doctor's eyes were opened to the importance -of the step he had taken. "I am afraid I have taken your seat, papa," -said Miss Marjoribanks, with ingenuous sweetness. "But then I should -have had to move the urn, and all the things, and I thought you would -not mind." The Doctor said nothing but "Humph!" and even that in an -undertone; but he became aware all the same that he had abdicated, -without knowing it, and that the reins of state had been smilingly -withdrawn from his unconscious hands. - -When Nancy made her appearance the fact became still more apparent, -though still in the sweetest way. "It is so dreadful to think papa -should have been bothered with all these things so long," said Miss -Marjoribanks. "After this I am sure you and I, Nancy, can arrange it all -without giving him the trouble. Perhaps this morning, papa, as I am a -stranger, you will say if there is anything you would like, and then I -shall have time to talk it all over with Nancy, and find out what is -best,"--and Lucilla smiled so sweetly upon her two amazed subjects that -the humour of the situation caught the fancy of the Doctor, who had a -keen perception of the ridiculous. - -He laughed out, much to Nancy's consternation, who was standing by in -open-eyed dismay. "Very well, Lucilla," he said; "you shall try what you -can do. I daresay Nancy will be glad to have me back again before long; -but in the meantime I am quite content that you should try," and he went -off laughing to his brougham, but came back again before Lucilla could -take Nancy in hand, who was an antagonist more formidable. "I forgot to -tell you," said the Doctor, "that Tom Marjoribanks is coming on Circuit, -and that I have asked him to stay here, as a matter of course. I suppose -he'll arrive to-morrow. Good-bye till the evening." - -This, though Dr Marjoribanks did not in the least intend it, struck -Lucilla like a Parthian arrow, and brought her down for the moment. "Tom -Marjoribanks!" she ejaculated in a kind of horror. "Of all people in the -world, and at this moment!" but when she saw the open eyes and rising -colour of Nancy the young dictator recovered herself--for a conqueror in -the first moment of his victory has need to be wary. She called Nancy to -her in her most affectionate tones as she finished her breakfast. "I -sent papa away," said Miss Marjoribanks, "because I wanted to have a -good talk with you, Nancy. I want to tell you my object in life. It is -to be a comfort to papa. Ever since poor mamma died that is what I have -been thinking of; and now I have come home, and I have made up my mind -that he is not to be troubled about anything. I know what a good, -faithful, valuable woman you are, I assure you. You need not think me a -foolish girl who is not able to appreciate you. The dinner was charming -last night, Nancy," said Lucilla, with much feeling; "and I never saw -anything more beautifully cooked than papa's cutlets to-day." - -"Miss Lucilla, I may say as I am very glad I have pleased you," said -Nancy, who was not quite conquered as yet. She stood very stiffly -upright by the table, and maintained her integrity. "Master _is_ -particular, I don't deny," continued the prime minister, who felt -herself dethroned. "I've always done my best to go in with his little -fancies, and I don't mean to say as it isn't right and natural as you -should be the missis. But I ain't used to have ado with ladies, and -that's the truth. Ladies is stingy in a-many things as is the soul of a -good dinner to them as knows. I may be valleyable or not, it ain't for -me to say; but I'm not one as can always be kept to a set figger in my -gravy-beef, and my bacon, and them sorts of things. As for the butter, I -don't know as I could give nobody an idea. I ain't one as likes changes, -but I can't abide to be kept to a set figger; and that's the chief -thing, Miss Lucilla, as I've got to say." - -"And quite reasonable too," said Miss Marjoribanks; "you and I will work -perfectly well together, Nancy. I am sure we have both the same meaning; -and I hope you don't think I am less concerned about dear papa than -about the gravy-beef. He must have been very desolate, with no one to -talk to, though he has been so good and kind and self-sacrificing in -leaving me to get every advantage; but I mean to make it up to him, now -I've come home." - -"Yes, miss," said Nancy, somewhat mystified; "not but what master has -had his little parties now and again, to cheer him up a bit; and I make -bold to say, miss, as I have heard compliments, which it was Thomas that -brought 'em downstairs, as might go nigh to turn a body's head, if it -was vanity as I was thinking of; but I ain't one as thinks of anything -but the comfort of the family," said Nancy, yielding in spite of herself -to follow the leadings of the higher will in presence of which she found -herself, "and I'm always one as does my best, Miss Lucilla, if I ain't -worried nor kept to a set figger with my gravy-beef." - -"I have heard of papa's dinners," said Lucilla graciously, "and I don't -mean to let down your reputation, Nancy. Now we are two women to manage -everything, we ought to do still better. I have two or three things in -my head that I will tell you after; but in the meantime I want you to -know that the object of my life is to be a comfort to poor papa; and now -let us think what we had better have for dinner," said the new -sovereign. Nancy was so totally unprepared for this manner of -dethronement, that she gave in like her master. She followed Miss -Marjoribanks humbly into those details in which Lucilla speedily proved -herself a woman of original mind, and powers quite equal to her -undertaking. The Doctor's formidable housekeeper conducted her young -mistress downstairs afterwards, and showed her everything with the -meekness of a saint. Lucilla had won a second victory still more -exhilarating and satisfactory than the first; for, to be sure, it is no -great credit to a woman of nineteen to make a man of any age throw down -his arms; but to conquer a woman is a different matter, and Lucilla was -thoroughly sensible of the difference. Now, indeed, she could feel with -a sense of reality that her foundations were laid. - -Miss Marjoribanks had enough of occupation for that day, and for many -days. But her mind was a little distracted by her father's parting -intelligence, and she had, besides, a natural desire to view the country -she had come to conquer. When she had made a careful supervision of the -house, and shifted her own quarters into the pleasantest of the two best -bedrooms, and concluded that the little bare dimity chamber she had -occupied the previous night was quite good enough for Tom Marjoribanks, -Lucilla put on her hat and went out to make a little reconnaissance. She -walked down to the spot where St Roque's now stands, on her own side of -Grange Lane, and up on the other side into George Street, surveying all -the capabilities of the place with a rapid but penetrating glance. Dr -Marjoribanks's house could not have been better placed as a strategic -position, commanding as it did all Grange Lane, of which it was, so to -speak, the key, and yet affording a base of communication with the -profaner public, which Miss Marjoribanks was wise enough to know a -leader of society should never ignore completely; for, indeed, one of -the great advantages of that brilliant position is, that it gives a -woman a right to be arbitrary, and to select her materials according to -her judgment. It was more from a disinclination to repeat herself than -any other motive that Lucilla, when she had concluded this preliminary -survey, went up into Grove Street, meaning to return home that way. At -that hour in the morning the sun was shining on the little gardens on -the north side of the street, which was the plebeian side; and as it was -the end of October, and by no means warm, Lucilla was glad to cross over -and continue her walk by the side of those little enclosures where the -straggling chrysanthemums propped each other up, and the cheerful -Michaelmas daisies made the best of it in the sunshine that remained to -them. Miss Marjoribanks had nearly reached Salem Chapel, which pushed -itself forward amid the cosy little line of houses, pondering in her -mind the unexpected hindrance which was about to be placed in her -triumphant path, in the shape of Tom Marjoribanks, when that singular -piece of good fortune occurred to her which had so much effect upon her -career in Carlingford. Such happy accidents rarely happen, except to -great generals or heroes of romance; and it would have been, perhaps, a -presumption on the part of Lucilla to place herself conspicuously in -either of these categories. The fact is, however, that at this eventful -moment she was walking along under the shade of her pretty parasol, not -expecting anything, but absorbed in many thoughts, and a little cast -down in her expectations of success by a consciousness that this unlucky -cousin would insist upon making love to her, and perhaps even, as she -herself expressed it, _saying the words_ which it had taken all her -skill to prevent him from saying before. Not that we would have any one -believe that love-making in the abstract was disagreeable to Miss -Marjoribanks; but she was only nineteen, well off and good-looking, and -with plenty of time for all that; and at the present moment she had -other matters of more importance in hand. It was while occupied with -these reflections, and within three doors of Salem Chapel, in front of a -little garden where a great deal of mignonette had run to seed, and -where the Michaelmas daisies had taken full possession, that Lucilla was -roused suddenly out of her musings. The surprise was so great that she -stopped short and stood still before the house in the extremity of her -astonishment and delight. Who could it be that possessed that voice -which Miss Marjoribanks felt by instinct was the very one thing -wanting--a round, full, delicious contralto, precisely adapted to -supplement without supplanting her own high-pitched and much-cultivated -organ? She stopped short before the door and made a rapid observation -even in the first moment of her surprise. The house was not exactly like -the other humble houses in Grove Street. Two little blank squares hung -in the centre of each of the lower windows, revealed to Lucilla's -educated eye the existence of so much "feeling" for art as can be -satisfied with a transparent porcelain version of a famous Madonna; and -she could even catch a glimpse, through the curtains of the best -room--which, contrary to the wont of humble gentility in Carlingford, -were well drawn back, and allowed the light to enter fully--of the -glimmer of gilt picture-frames. And in the little garden in front, half -buried among the mignonette, were some remains of plaster-casts, -originally placed there for ornament, but long since cast down by rain -and neglect. Lucilla made her observations with the promptitude of an -accomplished warrior, and before the second bar of the melody indoors -was finished, had knocked very energetically. "Is Miss Lake at home?" -she asked, with confidence, of the little maid-servant who opened the -door to her. And it was thus that Lucilla made her first bold step out -of the limits of Grange Lane for the good of society, and secured at -once several important personal advantages, and the great charm of those -Thursday evenings which made so entire a revolution in the taste and -ideas of Carlingford. - - - - -_Chapter V_ - - -Miss Marjoribanks did not leave the contralto any time to recover from -her surprise; she went up to her direct where she stood, with her song -arrested on her lips, as she had risen hastily from the piano. "Is it -Rose?" said Lucilla, going forward with the most eager cordiality, and -holding out both her hands; though, to be sure, she knew very well it -was not Rose, who was about half the height of the singer, and was known -to everybody in Mount Pleasant to be utterly innocent of a voice. - -"No," said Miss Lake, who was much astonished and startled and offended, -as was unfortunately rather her custom. She was a young woman without -any of those instincts of politeness, which make some people pleasant in -spite of themselves; and she added nothing to soften this abrupt -negative, but drew her hands away from the stranger and stood bolt -upright, looking at her, with a burning blush, caused by temper much -more than by embarrassment, on her face. - -"Then," said Lucilla, dropping lightly into the most comfortable chair -she could get sight of in the bare little parlour, "it is Barbara--and -that is a great deal better; Rose is a good little thing, but--she is -different, you know. It is so odd you should not remember me; I thought -everybody knew me in Carlingford. You know I have been a long time away, -and now I have come home for good. Your voice is just the very thing to -go with mine: was it not a lucky thing that I should have passed just at -the right moment? I don't know how it is, but somehow these lucky -chances _always_ happen to me. I am Lucilla Marjoribanks, you know." - -"Indeed!" said Barbara, who had not the least intention of being civil, -"I did not recognise you in the least." - -"Yes, I remember you were always shortsighted a little," said Miss -Marjoribanks calmly. "I should so like if we could try a duet. I have -been having lessons in Italy, you know, and I am sure I could give you a -few hints. I always like, when I can, to be of use. Tell me what songs -you have that we could sing together. You know, my dear, it is not as if -I was asking you for mere amusement to myself; my grand object in life -is to be a comfort to papa----" - -"Do you mean Dr Marjoribanks?" said the uncivil Barbara. "I am sure he -does not care in the least for music. I think you must be making a -mistake----" - -"Oh, no," said Lucilla, "I never make mistakes. I don't mean to sing -_to_ him, you know; but you are just the very person I wanted. As for -the ridiculous idea some people have that nobody can be called on who -does not live in Grange Lane, I assure you I mean to make an end of -that. Of course I cannot commence just all in a moment. But it would -always be an advantage to practise a little together. I like to know -exactly how far one can calculate upon everybody; then one can tell, -without fear of breaking down, just what one may venture to do." - -"I don't understand in the least," said Barbara, whose pride was up in -arms. "Perhaps you think I am a professional singer?" - -"My dear, a professional singer spoils everything," said Miss -Marjoribanks; "it changes the character of an evening altogether. There -are so few people who understand that. When you have professional -singers, you have to give yourself up to music; and that is not my view -in the least. My great aim, as all my friends are aware, is to be a -comfort to dear papa." - -"I wish you would not talk in riddles," said Lucilla's amazed and -indignant companion, in her round rich contralto. "I suppose you really -are Miss Marjoribanks. I have always heard that Miss Marjoribanks was a -little----" - -"There!" said Lucilla triumphantly; "really it is almost like a -recitativo to hear you speak. I am so glad. What have you got there? Oh, -to be sure, it's _that_ duet out of the Trovatore. Do let us try it; -there is nobody here, and everything is so convenient--and you know it -would never do to risk a breakdown. Will you play the accompaniment, or -shall I?" said Miss Marjoribanks, taking off her gloves. As for the -drawing-master's daughter, she stood aghast, lost in such sudden -bewilderment and perplexity that she could find no words to reply. She -was not in the least amiable or yielding by nature; but Lucilla took it -so much as a matter of course that Barbara could not find a word to -say; and before she could be sure that it was real, Miss Marjoribanks -had seated herself at the piano. Barbara was so obstinate that she would -not sing the first part, which ought to have been hers; but she was not -clever enough for her antagonist. Lucilla sang her part by herself -gallantly; and when it came to Barbara's turn the second time, Miss -Marjoribanks essayed the second in a false voice, which drove the -contralto off her guard; and then the magnificent volume of sound flowed -forth, grand enough to have filled Lucilla with envy if she had not been -sustained by that sublime confidence in herself which is the first -necessity to a woman with a mission. She paused a moment in the -accompaniment to clap her hands after that strophe was accomplished, and -then resumed with energy. For, to be sure, she knew by instinct what -sort of clay the people were made of by whom she had to work, and gave -them their reward with that liberality and discrimination which is the -glory of enlightened despotism. Miss Marjoribanks was naturally elated -when she had performed this important and successful _tour_. She got up -from the piano, and closed it in her open, imperial way. "I do not want -to tire you, you know," she said; "that will do for to-day. I told you -your voice was the very thing to go with mine. Give my love to Rose when -she comes in, but don't bring her with you when you come to me. She is a -good little thing--but then she is different, you know," said the bland -Lucilla; and she held out her hand to her captive graciously, and -gathered up her parasol, which she had left on her chair. Barbara Lake -let her visitor go after this, with a sense that she had fallen asleep, -and had dreamt it all; but, after all, there was something in the visit -which was not disagreeable when she came to think it over. The -drawing-master was poor, and he had a quantity of children, as was -natural, and Barbara had never forgiven her mother for dying just at the -moment when she had a chance of seeing a little of what she called the -world. At that time Mr Lake and his portfolio of drawings were asked out -frequently to tea; and when he had pupils in the family, some kind -people asked him to bring one of his daughters with him--so that -Barbara, who was ambitious, had beheld herself for a month or two almost -on the threshold of Grange Lane. And it was at this moment of all -others, just at the same time as Mrs Marjoribanks finished her pale -career, that poor Mrs Lake thought fit to die, to the injury of her -daughter's prospects and the destruction of her hopes. Naturally -Barbara had never quite forgiven that injury. It was this sense of -having been ill-used which made her so resolute about sending Rose to -Mount Pleasant, though the poor little girl did not in the least want to -go, and was very happy helping her papa at the School of Design. But -Barbara saw no reason why Rose should be happy, while she herself had to -resign her inclinations and look after a set of odious children. To be -sure, it was a little hard upon a young woman of a proper ambition, who -knew she was handsome, to fall back into housekeeping, and consent to -remain unseen and unheard; for Barbara was also aware that she had a -remarkable voice. In these circumstances, it may be imagined that, after -the first movement of a passionate temper was over, when she had taken -breath, and had time to consider this sudden and extraordinary visit, a -glimmer of hope and interest penetrated into the bosom of the gloomy -girl. She was two years older than Miss Marjoribanks, and as different -in "style" as she was in voice. She was not stout as yet, though it is -the nature of a contralto to be stout; but she was tall, with all due -opportunity for that development which might come later. And then -Barbara possessed a kind of beauty, the beauty of a passionate and -somewhat sullen brunette, dark and glowing, with straight black -eyebrows, very dark and very straight, which gave, oddly enough, a -suggestion of oblique vision to her eyes; but her eyes were not in the -least oblique, and looked at you straight from under that black line of -shadow with no doubtful expression. She was shy in a kind of way, as was -natural to a young woman who had never seen any society, and felt -herself, on the whole, injured and unappreciated. But no two things -could be more different than this shyness which made Barbara look you -straight in the face with a kind of scared defiance, and the sweet -shyness that pleaded for kind treatment in the soft eyes of little Rose, -who was plain, and had the oddest longing to make people comfortable, -and please them in her way, which, to be sure, was not always -successful. Barbara sat down on the stool before the piano, which Miss -Marjoribanks had been so obliging as to close, and thought it all over -with growing excitement. No doubt it was a little puzzling to make out -how the discovery of a fine contralto, and the possibility of getting up -unlimited duets, could further Lucilla in the great aim of her life, -which was to be a comfort to her dear papa. But Barbara was like a young -soldier of fortune, ready to take a great deal for granted, and swallow -much that was mysterious in the programme of the adventurous general who -might lead her on to glory. In half an hour her dreams had gone so far -that she saw herself receiving in Miss Marjoribanks's drawing-room the -homage, not only of Grange Lane, but even of the county families, who -would be attracted by rumours of her wonderful performance; and Barbara -was, to her own consciousness, walking up the middle aisle of -Carlingford Church in a veil of real Brussels, before little Mr Lake -came in, hungry and good-tempered, from his round. To be sure, she had -not concluded who was to be the bridegroom; but that was one of those -matters of detail which could not be precisely concluded on till the -time. - -Such was the immediate result, so far as this secondary personage was -concerned, of Lucilla's masterly impromptu; and it is needless to say -that the accomplished warrior, who had her wits always about her, and -had made, while engaged in a simple reconnaissance, so brilliant and -successful a capture, withdrew from the scene still more entirely -satisfied with herself. Nothing, indeed, could have come more -opportunely for Lucilla, who possessed in perfection that faculty of -throwing herself into the future, and anticipating the difficulties of a -position, which is so valuable to all who aspire to be leaders of -mankind. With a prudence which Dr Marjoribanks himself would have -acknowledged to be remarkable "in a person of her age and sex," Lucilla -had already foreseen that to amuse her guests entirely in her own -person, would be at once impracticable and "bad style." The first -objection might have been got over, for Miss Marjoribanks had a soul -above the ordinary limits of possibility, but the second unanswerable. -This discovery, however, satisfied all the necessities of the position. -Lucilla, who was liberal, as genius ought always to be, was perfectly -willing that all the young ladies in Carlingford should sing their -little songs while she was entertaining her guests; and then at the -right moment, when her ruling mind saw it was necessary, would occur the -duet--the one duet which would be the great feature of the evening. Thus -it will be seen that another quality of the highest order developed -itself during Miss Marjoribanks's deliberations; for, to tell the truth, -she set a good deal of store by her voice, and had been used to -applause, and had tasted the sweetness of individual success. This, -however, she was willing to sacrifice for the enhanced and magnificent -effect which she felt could be produced by the combination of the two -voices; and the sacrifice was one which a weaker woman would have been -incapable of making. She went home past Salem Chapel by the little lane -which makes a line of communication between the end of Grove Street and -the beginning of Grange Lane, with a sentiment of satisfaction worthy -the greatness of her mission. Dr Marjoribanks never came home to lunch, -and indeed had a contempt for that feminine indulgence; which, to be -sure, might be accounted for by the fact that about that time in the day -the Doctor very often found himself to be passing close by one or other -of the houses in the neighbourhood which had a reputation for good -sherry or madeira, such as exists no more. Lucilla, accordingly, had her -lunch alone, served to her with respectful care by Nancy, who was still -under the impression of the interview of the morning; and it occurred to -Miss Marjoribanks, as she sat at table alone, that this was an -opportunity too valuable to be left unimproved; for, to be sure, there -are few things more pleasant than a little impromptu luncheon-party, -where everybody comes without being expected, fresh from the outside -world, and ready to tell all that is going on; though, on the other -hand, it was a little doubtful how it might work in Carlingford, where -the men had generally something to do, and where the married ladies took -their luncheon when the children had their dinner, and presided at the -nursery meal. And as for a party of young ladies, even supposing they -had the courage to come, with no more solid admixture of the more -important members of society, Lucilla, to tell the truth, had no -particular taste for that. Miss Marjoribanks reflected as she ate--and -indeed, thanks to her perfect health and her agreeable morning walk, -Lucilla had a very pretty appetite, and enjoyed her meal in a way that -would have been most satisfactory to her many friends--that it must be -by way of making his visit, which was aggravating under all -circumstances, more aggravating still, that Tom Marjoribanks had decided -to come now, of all times in the world. "If he had waited till things -were organised, he might have been of a little use," Lucilla said to -herself; "for at least he could have brought some of the men that come -on circuit, and that would have made a little novelty; but, of course, -just now it would never do to make a rush at people, and invite them all -at once." After a moment's consideration, however. Miss Marjoribanks, -with her usual candour, reflected that it was not in Tom Marjoribanks's -power to change the time of the Carlingford assizes, and that, -accordingly, he was not to be blamed in this particular at least. "Of -course _it_ is not his fault," she added, to herself, "but it is -astonishing how things happen with some men always at the wrong moment; -and it is _so_ like Tom." These reflections were interrupted by the -arrival of visitors, whom Miss Marjoribanks received with her usual -grace. The first was old Mrs Chiley, who kissed Lucilla, and wanted to -know how she had enjoyed herself on the Continent, and if she had -brought many pretty things home. "My dear, you have grown ever so much -since the last time I saw you," the old lady said in her grandmotherly -way, "and stout with it, which is such a comfort with a tall girl; and -then your poor dear mamma was so delicate. I have always been a little -anxious about you on that account, Lucilla; and I am so glad, my dear, -to see you looking so strong." - -"Dear Mrs Chiley," said Miss Marjoribanks, who perhaps in her heart was -not quite so gratified by this compliment as the old lady intended, "the -great aim of my life is to be a comfort to dear papa." - -Mrs Chiley was very much moved by this filial piety, and she told -Lucilla that story about the Colonel's niece, Susan, who was such a good -daughter, and had refused three excellent offers, to devote herself to -her father and mother, with which the public in Grange Lane were -tolerably acquainted. "And one of them was a baronet, my dear," said Mrs -Chiley. Miss Marjoribanks did not make any decided response, for she -felt that it would be dangerous to commit herself to such a height of -self-abnegation as that; but the old lady was quite pleased to hear of -her travels and adventures instead; and stayed so long that Mrs Centum -and Mrs Woodburn, who happened to arrive at the same moment, found her -still there. Mrs Chiley was a little afraid of Mrs Woodburn, and she -took her leave hastily, with another kiss; and Lucilla found herself -face to face with the only two women who could attempt a rival -enterprise to her own in Carlingford. As for Mrs Woodburn, she had -settled herself in an easy-chair by the fire, and was fully prepared to -take notes. To be sure, Lucilla was the very person to fall victim to -her arts; for that confidence in herself which, in one point of view, -gave grandeur to the character of Miss Marjoribanks, gave her also a -certain naïveté and openness which the most simple rustic could not have -surpassed. - -"I am sure by her face she has been telling you about my niece Susan," -said the mimic, assuming Mrs Chiley's tone, and almost her appearance, -for the moment, "and that one of them was a baronet, my dear. I always -know from her looks what she has been saying; and 'the Colonel was much -as usual, but suffering a little from the cold, as he always does in -this climate.' She must be a good soul, for she always has her favourite -little speeches written in her face." - -"I am sure I don't know," said Miss Marjoribanks, who felt it was her -duty to make an example; "there has always been one thing remarked of me -all my life, that I never have had a great sense of humour. I know it is -singular, but when one has a defect, it is always so much better to -confess it. I always get on very well with anything else, but I never -had any sense of humour, you know; and I am very fond of Mrs Chiley. She -has always had a fancy for me from the time I was born; and she has such -nice manners. But then, it is so odd I should have no sense of humour," -said Lucilla, addressing herself to Mrs Centum, who was sitting on the -sofa by her. "Don't you think it is very odd?" - -"I am sure it is very nice," said Mrs Centum. "I hate people that laugh -at everything. I don't see much to laugh at myself, I am sure, in this -distracting world; any one who has a lot of children and servants like -me to look after, finds very little to laugh at." And she seized the -opportunity to enter upon domestic circumstances. Mrs Woodburn did not -answer a word. She made a most dashing murderous sketch of Lucilla, but -that did the future ruler of Carlingford very little harm; and then, by -the evening, it was known through all Grange Lane that Miss Marjoribanks -had snubbed the caricaturist who kept all the good people in terror of -their lives. Snubbed her absolutely, and took the words out of her very -mouth, was the report that flew through Grange Lane; and it may be -imagined how Lucilla's prestige rose in consequence, and how much people -began to expect of Miss Marjoribanks, who had performed such a feat -almost on the first day of her return home. - - - - -_Chapter VI_ - - -Tom Marjoribanks arrived that night, according to the Doctor's -expectation. He arrived, with that curious want of adaptation to the -circumstances which characterised the young man, at an hour which put -Nancy entirely out, and upset the equanimity of the kitchen for -twenty-four hours at least. He came, if any one can conceive of such an -instance of carelessness, by the nine o'clock train, just as they had -finished putting to rights downstairs. After this, Miss Marjoribanks's -conclusion that the fact of the Carlingford assizes occurring a day or -two after her arrival, when as yet she was not fully prepared to take -advantage of them, was _so_ like Tom, may be partially understood. And -of course he was furiously hungry, and could have managed perfectly to -be in time for dinner if he had not missed the train at Didcot Junction, -by some wonderful blunder of the railway people, which never could have -occurred but for his unlucky presence among the passengers. Lucilla took -Thomas apart, and sent him downstairs with the most conciliatory -message. "Tell Nancy not to put herself about, but to send up something -cold--the cold pie, or anything she can find handy. Tell her I am _so_ -vexed, but it is just like Mr Tom; and he never knows what he is -eating," said Miss Marjoribanks. As for Nancy, this sweetness did not -subdue her in the least. She said, "I'll thank Miss Lucilla to mind her -own business. The cold pie is for master's breakfast. I ain't such a -goose as not to know what to send upstairs, and that Tummas can tell her -if he likes." In the meantime the Doctor was in the drawing-room, much -against his will, with the two young people, spinning about the room, -and looking at Lucilla's books and knick-knacks on the tables by way of -covering his impatience. He wanted to carry off Tom, who was rather a -favourite, to his own den downstairs, where the young man's supper was -to be served; but, at the same time, Dr Marjoribanks could not deny that -Lucilla had a right to the greetings and homage of her cousin. He could -not help thinking, on the whole, as he looked at the two, what a much -more sensible arrangement it would have been if he had had the boy, -instead of his sister, who had been a widow for ever so long, and no -doubt had spoiled her son, as women always do; and then Lucilla might -have passed under the sway of Mrs Marjoribanks, who no doubt would have -known how to manage her. Thus the Doctor mused, with that sense of mild -amazement at the blunders of Providence, which so many people -experience, and without any idea that Mrs Marjoribanks would have found -a task a great deal beyond her powers in the management of Lucilla. As -for Tom, he was horribly hungry, having found, as was to be expected, no -possible means of lunching at Didcot; but, at the same time, he was -exhilarated by Lucilla's smile, and delighted to think of having a week -at least to spend in her society. "I don't think I ever saw you looking -so well," he was saying; "and you know my opinion generally on that -subject." To which Lucilla responded in a way to wither all the germs of -sentiment in the bud. - -"What subject?" she said; "my looks? I am sure they can't be interesting -to you. You are as hungry as ever you can be, and I can see it in your -eyes. Papa, he is famishing, and I don't think he can contain himself -any longer. Do take him downstairs, and let him have something to eat. -For myself," Lucilla continued, in a lower tone, "it is my duty that -keeps me up. You know it has always been the object of my life to be a -comfort to papa." - -"Come along, Tom," said the Doctor. "Don't waste your time philandering -when your supper is ready." And Dr Marjoribanks led the way downstairs, -leaving Tom, who followed him, in a state of great curiosity to know -what secret oppression it might be under which his cousin was supported -by her duty. Naturally his thoughts reverted to a possible rival--some -one whom the sensible Doctor would have nothing to say to; and his very -ears grew red with excitement at this idea. But, notwithstanding, he ate -a very satisfactory meal in the library, where he had to answer all -sorts of questions. Tom had his tray at the end of the table, and the -Doctor, who had, according to his hospitable old-fashioned habit, taken -a glass of claret to "keep him company," sat in his easy-chair between -the fire and the table, and sipped his wine, and admired its colour and -purity in the light, and watched with satisfaction the excellent meal -his nephew was making. He asked him all about his prospects, and what he -was doing, which Tom replied to with the frankest confidence. He was not -very fond of work, nor were his abilities anything out of the common; -but at the present moment Tom saw no reason why he should not gain the -Woolsack in time; and Dr Marjoribanks gave something like a sigh as he -listened, and wondered much what Providence could be thinking of not to -give _him_ the boy. - -Lucilla meantime was very much occupied upstairs. She had the new -housemaid up nominally to give her instructions about Mr Tom's room, but -really to take the covers off the chairs, and see how they looked when -the room was lighted up; but the progress of decay had gone too far to -stand that trial. After all, the chintz, though none of the freshest, -was the best. When the gentlemen came upstairs, which Tom, to the -Doctor's disgust, insisted on doing, Lucilla was found in the act of -pacing the room--pacing, not in the sentimental sense of making a little -promenade up and down, but in the homely practical signification, with a -view of measuring, that she might form an idea how much carpet was -required. Lucilla was tall enough to go through this process without any -great drawback in point of grace--the long step giving rather a -tragedy-queen effect to her handsome but substantial person and long, -sweeping dress. She stopped short, however, when she saw them, and -withdrew to the sofa, on which she had established her throne; and there -was a little air of conscious pathos on her face as she sat down, which -impressed her companions. As for Tom, he instinctively felt that it must -have something to do with that mystery under which Lucilla was supported -by her duty; and the irrelevant young man conceived immediately a -violent desire to knock the fellow down; whereas there was no fellow at -all in the case, unless it might be Mr Holden, the upholsterer, whose -visits Miss Marjoribanks would have received with greater enthusiasm at -this moment than those of the most eligible eldest son in England. And -then she gave a little pathetic sigh. - -"What were you doing, Lucilla?" said her father,--"rehearsing Lady -Macbeth, I suppose. At least you looked exactly like it when we came -into the room." - -"No, papa," said Lucilla sweetly; "I was only measuring to see how much -carpet we should want; and that, you know, and Tom's coming, made me -think of old times. You are so much downstairs in the library that you -don't feel it; but a lady has to spend her life in the drawing-room--and -then I always was so domestic. It does not matter what is outside, I -always find my pleasure at home. I cannot help if it has a little effect -on my spirits now and then," said Miss Marjoribanks, looking down upon -her handkerchief, "to be always surrounded with things that have such -associations----" - -"What associations?" said the amazed Doctor. To be sure, he had -forgotten his wife; but it was four years ago, and he had got used to -her absence from her favourite sofa; and, on the whole, in that -particular, had acquiesced in the arrangements of Providence. "Really, -Lucilla, I don't know what you mean." - -"No, papa," said Miss Marjoribanks, with resignation. "I know you don't, -and that is what makes it so sad. But talking of new carpets, you know, -I had such an adventure to-day that I must tell you--quite one of _my_ -adventures--the very luckiest thing. It happened when I was out walking; -I heard a voice out of a house in Grove Street, just the _very_ thing to -go with my voice. That is not a thing that happens every day," said -Lucilla, "for all the masters have always told me that my voice was -something quite by itself. When I heard it, though it was in Grove -Street, and all the people about, I could have danced for joy." - -"It was a man's voice, I suppose," suggested Tom Marjoribanks, in gloomy -tones; and the Doctor added, in his cynical way: - -"It's a wonderful advantage to be so pleased about trifles. What number -was it? For my part, I have not many patients in Grove Street," said Dr -Marjoribanks. "I would find a voice to suit you in another quarter, if I -were you." - -"Dear papa, it's such a pity that you don't understand," said Lucilla -compassionately. "It turned out to be Barbara Lake; for, of course, I -went in directly, and found out. I never heard a voice that went so well -with mine." If Miss Marjoribanks did not go into raptures over the -contralto on its own merits, it was not from any jealousy, of which, -indeed, she was incapable, but simply because its adaptation to her own -seemed to her by far its most interesting quality, and indeed almost the -sole claim it had to consideration from the world. - -"Barbara Lake?" said the Doctor. "There's something in that. If you can -do her any good or get her teaching or anything--I have a regard for -poor Lake, poor little fellow! He's kept up wonderfully since his wife -died; and nobody expected it of him," Dr Marjoribanks continued, with a -momentary dreary recollection of the time when the poor woman took -farewell of her children, which indeed was the next day after that on -which his own wife, who had nobody in particular to take farewell of, -faded out of her useless life. - -"Yes," said Lucilla, "I mean her to come here and sing with me; but, -then, one needs to organise a little first. I am nineteen--how long is -it since you were married, papa?" - -"Two-and-twenty years," said the Doctor abruptly. He did not observe the -strangeness of the question, because he had been thinking for the moment -of his wife, and perhaps his face was a trifle graver than usual, though -neither of his young companions thought of remarking it. To be sure he -was not a young man even when he married; but, on the whole, perhaps -something more than this perfect comfort and respectability, and those -nice little dinners, had seemed to shine on his horizon when he brought -home his incapable bride. - -"Two-and-twenty years!" exclaimed Lucilla. "I don't mind talking before -Tom, for he is one of the family. The things are all the same as they -were when mamma came home, though, I am sure, nobody would believe it. I -think it is going against Providence, for my part. Nothing was ever -intended to last so long, except the things the Jews, poor souls! wore -in the desert, perhaps. Papa, if you have no objection, I should like to -choose the colours myself. There is a great deal in choosing colours -that go well with one's complexion. People think of that for their -dresses, but not for their rooms, which are of so much more importance. -I should have liked blue, but blue gets so soon tawdry. I think," said -Miss Marjoribanks, rising and looking at herself seriously in the glass, -"that I have enough complexion at present to venture upon a pale spring -green." - -This little calculation, which a timid young woman would have taken care -to do by herself, Lucilla did publicly, with her usual discrimination. -The Doctor, who had looked a little grim at first, could not but laugh -when he saw the sober look of care and thought with which Miss -Marjoribanks examined her capabilities in the glass. It was not so much -the action itself that amused her father, as the consummate ability of -the young revolutionary. Dr Marjoribanks was Scotch, and had a respect -for "talent" in every development, as is natural to his nation. He did -not even give his daughter that credit for sincerity which she deserved, -but set it all to the score of her genius, which was complimentary, -certainly, in one point of view; but the fact was that Lucilla was -perfectly sincere, and that she did what was natural to her under -guidance of her genius, so as always to be in good fortune, just as Tom -Marjoribanks, under the guidance of his, brought discredit even upon -those eternal ordinances of English government which fixed the time of -the Carlingford assizes. Lucilla was quite in earnest in thinking that -the colour of the drawing-room was an important matter, and that a woman -of sense had very good reason for suiting it to her complexion--an idea -which accordingly she proceeded to develop and explain. - -"For one can change one's dress," said Miss Marjoribanks, "as often as -one likes--at least as often, you know, as one has dresses to change; -but the furniture remains the same. I am always a perfect guy, whatever -I wear, when I sit against a red curtain. You men say that a woman -always knows when she's good-looking, but I am happy to say _I_ know -when I look a guy. What I mean is a delicate pale green, papa. For my -part, I think it wears just as well as any other colour; and all the -painters say it is the very thing for pictures. The carpet, of course, -would be a darker shade; and as for the chairs, it is not at all -necessary to keep to one colour. Both red and violet go beautifully with -green, you know. I am sure Mr Holden and I could settle all about it -without giving you any trouble." - -"Who told you, Lucilla," said the Doctor, "that I meant to refurnish the -house?" He was even a little angry at her boldness, but at the same time -he was so much amused and pleased in his heart to have so clever a -daughter, that all the tones that could produce terror were softened out -of his voice. "I never heard that was a sort of thing a man had to do -for his daughter," said Dr Marjoribanks; "and I would like to know what -I should do with all that finery when you get married--as I suppose you -will by and by--and leave me alone in the house?" - -"Ah, that is the important question," said Tom. As usual, it was Tom's -luck; but then, when there did happen to be a moment when he ought to be -silent, the unfortunate fellow could not help but speak. - -"Perhaps I may marry some time," said Miss Marjoribanks, with composure; -"it would be foolish, you know, to make any engagements; but that will -depend greatly upon how you behave, and how Carlingford behaves, papa. -I give myself ten years here, if you should be very good. By twenty-nine -I shall be going off a little, and perhaps it may be tiring, for -anything I can tell. Ten years is a long time, and naturally, in the -meantime, I want to look as well as possible. Stop a minute; I forgot to -put down the number of paces for the length. Tom, please to do it over -again for me; of course, your steps are a great deal longer than mine." - -"Tom is tired," said the Doctor; "and there are no new carpets coming -out of my pockets. Besides, he's going to bed, and I'm going downstairs -to the library. We may as well bid you good-night." - -These words, however, were addressed to deaf ears. Tom, as was natural, -had started immediately to obey Lucilla, as he was in duty bound; and -the old Doctor looked on with a little amazement and a little amusement, -recognising, with something of the surprise which that discovery always -gives to fathers and mothers, that his visitor cared twenty times more -for what Lucilla said than for anything that his superior wisdom could -suggest. He would have gone off and left them as a couple of young -fools, if it had not occurred to him all at once that since this sort of -thing had begun, the last person in the world that he would choose to -see dancing attendance on his daughter was Tom Marjoribanks. Oddly -enough, though he had just been finding fault with Providence for not -giving him a son instead of a daughter, he was not at all delighted nor -grateful when Providence put before him this simple method of providing -himself with the son he wanted. He took a great deal too much interest -in Tom Marjoribanks to let him do anything so foolish; and as for -Lucilla, the idea that, after all her accomplishments, and her expensive -education, and her year on the Continent, she should marry a man who had -nothing, disgusted the Doctor. He kept his seat accordingly, though he -was horribly bored by the drawing-room and its claims, and wanted very -much to return to the library, and get into his slippers and his -dressing-gown. It was rather a pretty picture, on the whole, which he -was regarding. Lucilla, perhaps, with a view to this discussion, had put -on green ribbons on the white dress which she always wore in the -evening, and her tawny curls and fresh complexion carried off -triumphantly that difficult colour. Perhaps a critical observer might -have said that her figure was a little too developed and substantial -for these vestal robes; but then Miss Marjoribanks was young, and could -bear it. She was standing by, not far from the fire, on the other side -from the Doctor, looking on anxiously, while Tom measured the room with -his long steps. "I never said you were to stride," said Lucilla; "take -moderate steps, and don't be so silly. I was doing it myself famously if -you had not come in and interrupted me. It is frightful to belong to a -family where the men are so stupid," said Miss Marjoribanks, with a sigh -of real distress; for, to be sure, the unlucky Tom immediately bethought -himself to take small steps like those of a lady, which all but threw -him on his well-formed though meaningless nose. Lucilla shook her head -with an exasperated look, and contracted her lips with disdain, as he -passed her on his ill-omened career. Of course he came right up against -the little table on which she had with her own hand arranged a bouquet -of geraniums and mignonette. "It is what he always does," she said to -the Doctor calmly, as Tom arrived at that climax of his fate; and the -look with which she accompanied these words, as she rang the bell -smartly and promptly, mollified the Doctor's heart. - -"I can tell you the size of the room, if that is all you want," said Dr -Marjoribanks. "I suppose you mean to give parties, and drive me out of -my senses with dancing and singing.--No, Lucilla, you must wait till you -get married--that will never do for me." - -"Dear papa," said Lucilla sweetly, "it is so dreadful to hear you say -_parties_. Everybody knows that the only thing I care for in life is to -be a comfort to you; and as for dancing, I saw at once that was out of -the question. Dancing is all very well," said Miss Marjoribanks -thoughtfully; "but it implies quantities of young people--and young -people can never make what _I_ call society. It is _Evenings_ I mean to -have, papa. I am sure you want to go downstairs, and I suppose Tom would -think it civil to sit with me, though he is tired; so I will show you a -good example, and Thomas can pick up the table and the flowers at his -leisure. Good-night, papa," said Lucilla, giving him her round fresh -cheek to kiss. She went out of the room with a certain triumph, feeling -that she had fully signified her intentions, which is always an -important matter; and shook hands in a condescending way with Tom, who -had broken his shins in a headlong rush to open the door. She looked at -him with an expression of mild despair, and shook her head again as she -accorded him that sign of amity. "If you only would look a little where -you are going," said Miss Marjoribanks;--perhaps she meant the words to -convey an allegorical as well as a positive meaning, as so many people -have been found out to do--and then she pursued her peaceful way -upstairs. As for the Doctor, he went off to his library rubbing his -hands, glad to be released, and laughing softly at his nephew's abashed -looks. "She knows how to put _him_ down at least," the Doctor said to -himself, well pleased; and he was so much amused by his daughter's -superiority to the vulgar festivity of parties, that he almost gave in -to the idea of refurnishing the drawing-room to suit Lucilla's -complexion. He rubbed his hands once more over the fire, and indulged in -a little laugh all by himself over that original idea. "So it is -Evenings she means to have?" said the Doctor; and, to be sure, nothing -could be more faded than the curtains, and there were bits of the carpet -in which the pattern was scarcely discernible. So that, on the whole, up -to this point there seemed to be a reasonable prospect that Lucilla -would have everything her own way. - - - - -_Chapter VII_ - - -Miss Marjoribanks had so many things to think of next morning that she -found her cousin, who was rather difficult to get rid of, much in her -way: naturally the young man was briefless, and came on circuit for the -name of the thing, and was quite disposed to dawdle the first morning, -and attach himself to the active footsteps of Lucilla; and for her part, -she had things to occupy her so very much more important. For one thing, -one of Dr Marjoribanks's little dinner-parties was to take place that -evening, which would be the first under the new régime, and was -naturally a matter of some anxiety to all parties. "I shall go down and -ask Mrs Chiley to come with the Colonel," said Lucilla. "I have always -meant to do that. We can't have a full dinner-party, you know, as long -as the house is so shabby; but I am sure Mrs Chiley will come to take -care of me." - -"To take care of you!--in your father's house! Do you think they'll -bite?" said the Doctor grimly; but as for Lucilla, she was quite -prepared for that. - -"I must have a chaperone, you know," she said. "I don't say it is not -quite absurd; but then, at first, I always make it a point to give in to -the prejudices of society. That is how I have always been so -successful," said the experienced Lucilla. "I never went in the face of -anybody's prejudices. Afterwards, you know, when one is known----" - -The Doctor laughed, but at the same time he sighed. There was nothing to -be said against Mrs Chiley, who had, on the whole, as women go, a very -superior training, and knew what a good dinner was; but it was the -beginning of the revolution of which Dr Marjoribanks, vaguely oppressed -with the idea of new paper, new curtains, and all that was involved in -the entrance of Mr Holden the upholsterer into the house, did not see -the end. He acquiesced, of course, since there was nothing else for it: -but it must be confessed that the spectre of Mrs Chiley sitting at his -right hand clouded over for the Doctor the pleasant anticipation of the -evening. If it had been possible to put her at the head of the table -beside Lucilla, whom she was to come to take care of, he could have -borne it better--and to be sure it would have been a great deal more -reasonable; but then that was absolutely out of the question, and the -Doctor gave in with a sigh. Thus it was that he began to realise the -more serious result of that semi-abdication into which he had been -beguiled. The female element, so long peacefully ignored and kept at a -distance, had come in again in triumph and taken possession, and the -Doctor knew too well by the experience of a long life what a restless -and troublesome element it was. He had begun to feel that it had ceased -to be precisely amusing as he took his place in his brougham. It was -good sport to see Lucilla make an end of Tom, and put her bridle upon -the stiff neck of Nancy; but when it came to changing the character of -the Doctor's dinners, his intellect naturally got more obtuse, and he -did not see the joke. - -As for Tom, he had to be disposed of summarily. "Do go away," Miss -Marjoribanks said, in her straightforward way. "You can come back to -luncheon if you like;--that is to say, if you can pick up anybody that -is very amusing, you may bring him here about half-past one, and if any -of my friends have come to call by that time, I will give you lunch; but -it must be somebody very amusing, or I will have nothing to say to you," -said Lucilla. And with this dismissal Tom Marjoribanks departed, not -more content than the Doctor; for, to be sure, the last thing in the -world which the poor fellow thought of was to bring somebody who was -amusing, to injure his chances with Lucilla. Tom, like most other -people, was utterly incapable of fathoming the grand conception which -inspired Miss Marjoribanks. When she told him that it was the object of -her life to be a comfort to papa, he believed it to a certain extent, -but it never occurred to him that filial devotion, though beautiful to -contemplate, would preserve Lucilla's heart from the ordinary dangers of -youth, or that she was at all in earnest in postponing all matrimonial -intentions until she was nine-and-twenty, and had begun to "go off" a -little. So he went away disconsolate enough, wavering between his -instinct of obedience and his desire of being in Lucilla's company, and -a desperate determination never to be the means of injuring himself by -presenting to her anybody who was very amusing. All Miss Marjoribanks's -_monde_, as it happened, was a little out of humour that day. She had -gone on so far triumphantly that it had now come to be necessary that -she should receive a little check in her victorious career. - -When Tom was disposed of, Miss Marjoribanks put on her hat and went down -Grange Lane to carry her invitation to Mrs Chiley, who naturally was -very much pleased to come. "But, my dear, you must tell me what to put -on," the old lady said. "I don't think I have had anything new since you -were home last. I have heard so much about Dr Marjoribanks's dinners -that I feel a little excited, as if I was going to be made a freemason -or something. There is my brown, you know, that I wear at home when we -have anybody--and my black velvet; and then there is my French gray that -I got for Mary Chiley's marriage." - -"Dear Mrs Chiley," said Lucilla, "it doesn't matter in the least what -you wear; there are only to be gentlemen, you know, and one never -dresses for gentlemen. You must keep that beautiful black velvet for -another time." - -"Well, my dear," said Mrs Chiley, "_I_ am long past that sort of -thing--but the men think, you know, that it is always for them we -dress." - -"Yes," said Miss Marjoribanks, "their vanity is something dreadful--but -it is one of my principles _never_ to dress unless there are ladies. A -white frock, high in the neck," said Lucilla, with sweet simplicity--"as -for anything else, it would be bad style." - -Mrs Chiley gave her young visitor a very cordial kiss when she went -away. "The sense she has!" said the old lady; but at the same time the -Colonel's wife was so old-fashioned that this contemptuous way of -treating "The Gentlemen" puzzled her unprogressive intelligence. She -thought it was superhuman virtue on Lucilla's part, nearly incredible, -and yet established by proofs so incontestable that it would be a shame -to doubt it; and she felt ashamed of herself--she who might have been a -grandmother, had such been the will of Providence--for lingering five -minutes undecided between her two best caps. "I dare say Lucilla does -not spend so much time on such vanity, and she only nineteen," said the -penitent old lady. As for Miss Marjoribanks, she returned up Grange Lane -with a mind at ease, and that consciousness of superior endowments -which gives amiability and expansion even to the countenance. She did -not give any money to the beggar who at that period infested Grange Lane -with her six children, for that was contrary to those principles of -political economy which she had studied with such success at Mount -Pleasant; but she stopped and asked her name, and where she lived, and -promised to inquire into her case. "If you are honest and want to work, -I will try to find you something to do," said Miss Marjoribanks; which, -to be sure, was a threat appalling enough to keep her free from any -further molestation on the part of that interesting family. But Lucilla, -to do her justice, felt it equally natural that beneficence should issue -from her in this manner as in that other mode of feeding the hungry -which she was willing to adopt at half-past one, and had solemnly -engaged herself to fulfil at seven o'clock. She went up after that to Mr -Holden's, and had a most interesting conversation, and found among his -stores a delicious damask, softly, spiritually green, of which, to his -great astonishment, she tried the effect in one of the great mirrors -which ornamented the shop. "It is just the tint I want," Lucilla said, -when she had applied that unusual test; and she left the fashionable -upholsterer of Carlingford in a state of some uncertainty whether it was -curtains or dresses that Miss Marjoribanks meant to have made. - -Perhaps this confusion arose from the fact that Lucilla's mind was -occupied in discussing the question whether she should not go round by -Grove Street, and try that duet again with Barbara, and invite her to -Grange Lane in the evening to electrify the little company; or whether, -in case this latter idea might not be practicable, she should bring -Barbara with her to lunch by way of occupying Tom Marjoribanks. Lucilla -stood at Mr Holden's door for five seconds at least balancing the -matter; but finally she gave her curls a little shake, and took a quick -step forward, and without any more deliberation returned towards Grange -Lane; for, on the whole, it was better not to burst in full triumph all -at once upon her constituency, and exhaust her forces at the beginning. -If she condescended to sing something herself, it would indeed be a -greater honour than her father's dinner-party, in strict justice, was -entitled to; and as for the second question, though Miss Marjoribanks -was too happy in the confidence of her own powers to fear any rivals, -and though her cousin's devotion bored her, still she felt doubtful how -far it was good policy to produce Barbara at luncheon for the purpose of -occupying Tom. Other people might see her besides Tom, and her own grand -_coup_ might be forestalled for anything she could tell; and then Tom -had some title to consideration on his own merits, though he was the -unlucky member of the family. He might even, if he were so far left to -himself (though Miss Marjoribanks smiled at the idea), fall in love with -Barbara; or, what was more likely, driven to despair by Lucilla's -indifference, he might _pretend_ to fall in love; and Lucilla reflected, -that if anything happened she could never forgive herself. This was the -point she had arrived at when she shook her tawny curls and set out -suddenly on her return home. - -It was now nearly one o'clock, and it was quite possible that Tom, as -well as herself, might be on the way to Grange Lane; but Lucilla, who, -as she said, made a point of never going against the prejudices of -society, made up her mind to remain sweetly unconscious of the hour of -luncheon, unless some lady came to keep her company. But then Miss -Marjoribanks was always lucky, as she said. A quarter of an hour before -Tom applied for admission, Miss Bury came to pay Lucilla a visit. She -had been visiting in her district all the morning, and was very easily -persuaded to repose herself a little; and then, naturally, she was -anxious about her young friend's spiritual condition, and the effect -upon her mind of a year's residence abroad. She was asking whether -Lucilla had not seen something soul-degrading and dishonouring to -religion in all the mummeries of Popery; and Miss Marjoribanks, who was -perfectly orthodox, had replied to the question in the most satisfactory -manner; when Tom made his appearance, looking rather sheepish and -reluctant, and followed by the "somebody amusing" whom Lucilla had -commissioned him to bring. He had struggled against his fate, poor -fellow! but when it happens to be a man's instinct to do what he is -told, he can no more resist it than if it was a criminal impulse. Tom -entered with his amusing companion, who had been chosen with care, and -was very uninviting to look at; and by and by Miss Bury, with the most -puzzled looks, found herself listening to gossip about the theatres and -all kinds of profane subjects. "I think they are going to hang that -fellow that killed the tailor," said the amusing man; "that will stir -you up a little in Carlingford, I should suppose. It is as good as a -play for a country town. Of course, there will be a party that will get -up a memorial, and prove that a man so kind-hearted never existed out of -paradise; and there will be another party who will prove him to be -insane; and then at the end all the blackguards within a hundred miles -will crowd into Carlingford, and the fellow will be hanged, as he -deserves to be; but I assure you it's a famous amusement for a country -town." - -"Sir," said Miss Bury, with a tremulous voice, for her feelings had -overcome her, "when you speak of amusement, does it ever occur to you -what will become of his miserable soul?" - -"I assure you, wretches of that description have no souls," said the -young barrister, "or else, of course, I would not permit myself to speak -so freely. It is a conclusion I have come to not rashly, but after many -opportunities of observing," the young man went on with solemnity; "on -the whole, my opinion is, that this is the great difference between one -portion of mankind and the other: that description of being, you may -take my word for it, has no soul." - -"I never take anybody's word for what is so plainly stated in the Holy -Scriptures," said Miss Bury; "I never heard any one utter such a -terrible idea. I am sure I don't want to defend a--a murderer," cried -the Rector's sister, with agitation; "but I have heard of persons in -that unfortunate position coming to a heavenly frame of mind, and giving -every evidence of being truly converted. The law may take their lives, -but it is an awful thing--a truly dreadful thing," said Miss Bury, -trembling all over, "to try to take away their soul." - -"Oh, nonsense, Lucilla. By Jove! he does not mean that, you know," said -Tom, interposing to relieve his friend. - -"Do you believe in Jove, Mr Thomas Marjoribanks," said Miss Bury, -looking him in an alarming manner full in the face. - -The unfortunate Tom grew red and then he grew green under this question -and that awful look. "No, Miss Bury, I can't say I do," he answered -humbly; and the amusing man was so much less brotherly than Tom that he -burst into unsympathetic laughter. As for Lucilla, it was the first real -check she had sustained in the beginning of her career. There could not -have been a more unfortunate _contretemps_, and there is no telling how -disastrous the effect might have been, had not her courage and -coolness, not to say her orthodoxy, been equal to the occasion. She gave -her cousin a look which was still more terrible than Miss Bury's, and -then she took affairs into her own hands. - -"It is dreadful sometimes to see what straits people are put to, to keep -up the conversation," said Lucilla; "Tom in particular, for I think he -has a pleasure in talking nonsense. But you must not suppose I am of -that opinion. I remember quite well there was a dreadful man once here -in jail for something, and Mr Bury made him the most beautiful -character! Every creature has a soul. I am sure we say so in the Creed -every day of our lives, and especially in that long creed where so many -people perish everlastingly. So far from laughing, it is quite dreadful -to think of it," said Lucilla. "It is one of my principles never to -laugh about anything that has to do with religion. I always think it my -duty to speak with respect. It has such a bad effect upon some minds. -Miss Bury, if you will not take anything more, I think we had better go -upstairs." - -To think that Tom, whose luck, as usual, had betrayed him to such an -unlooked-for extent, should have been on the point of following to the -drawing-room, was more than Miss Marjoribanks could comprehend; but -fortunately his companion had more sense, and took his leave, taking his -conductor with him. Miss Bury went upstairs in silence, sighing heavily -from time to time. The good woman was troubled in her spirit at the -evident depravity of the young men with whom circumstances had -constrained her to sit down at table, and she was sadly afraid that such -companionship must have a debasing effect upon the mind of that lamb of -the flock now standing before her. Miss Bury bethought herself of Dr -Marjoribanks's profane jokes, and the indifference he had shown to many -things in which it was his duty to have interested himself, and she -could not but look with tender pity in her young friend's face. - -"Poor dear," said Miss Bury, "it is dreadful indeed if this is the sort -of society you are subjected to. I could recommend to Dr Marjoribanks a -most admirable woman, a true Christian, who would take charge of things -and be your companion, Lucilla. It is not at all nice for you, at your -age, to be obliged to receive young men like these alone." - -"I had you!" said Lucilla, taking both Miss Bury's hands. "I felt it was -such a blessing. I would not have let Tom stay for luncheon if you had -not been there; and now I am so glad, because it has shown me the danger -of letting him bring people. I am quite sure it was a special providence -that made you think of coming here to-day." - -"Well, my dear," said Miss Bury, who was naturally mollified by this -statement of the question, "I am very glad to have been of use to you. -If there is anything I desire in this life, it is to be useful to my -fellow-creatures, and to do my work while it is called day. I should not -think the time lost, my dear Lucilla, if I could only hope that I had -impressed upon your mind that an account must be given of every careless -word----" - -"Oh, yes," said Lucilla, "that is _so_ true; and besides, it is quite -against my principles. I make it a point never to speak of anything -about religion except with the greatest respect; and I am quite sure it -was a special providence that I had _you_." - -Miss Bury took her farewell very affectionately, not to say effusively, -after this, with her heart melting over the ingenuous young creature who -was so thankful for her protection; but at the same time she left Miss -Marjoribanks a prey to the horrible sensation of having made a failure. -To be sure, there was time to recover herself in the evening, which was, -so to speak, her first formal appearance before the public of -Carlingford. Tom was so ill-advised as to come in when she was having -her cup of tea before dinner to fortify her for her exertions; and the -reception he met with may be left to the imagination. But, after all, -there was little satisfaction in demolishing Tom; and then Lucilla had -known from the beginning that the success of her undertaking depended -entirely on herself. - - - - -_Chapter VIII_ - - -The evening passed off in a way which, if Miss Marjoribanks had been an -ordinary woman, would have altogether obliterated from her mind all -recollection of the failure at lunch. To speak first of the most -important particular, the dinner was perfect. As for the benighted men -who had doubted Lucilla, they were covered with shame, and, at the same -time, with delight. If there had been a fault in Dr Marjoribanks's table -under the ancient régime, it lay in a certain want of variety, and -occasional over-abundance, which wounded the feelings of young Mr -Cavendish, who was a person of refinement. To-night, as that -accomplished critic remarked, there was a certain air of feminine grace -diffused over everything--and an amount of doubt and expectation, -unknown to the composed feastings of old, gave interest to the meal. As -for the Doctor, he found Mrs Chiley, at his right hand, not so great a -bore as he expected. She was a woman capable of appreciating the -triumphs of art that were set before her; and had indeed been trained to -as high a pitch of culture in this respect as perhaps is possible to the -female intelligence; and then her pride and delight in being admitted to -a participation in those sacred mysteries was beyond expression. "My -dear Lucilla, I feel exactly as if I was going to be made a freemason; -and as if your dear good papa had to blindfold me, and make me swear all -sorts of things before he took me downstairs," she said, as they sat -together waiting for the commencement of the ceremony; and when the two -ladies returned to the drawing-room, Mrs Chiley took Lucilla in her arms -and gave her a kiss, as the only way of expressing adequately her -enthusiasm. "My love," said the Colonel's wife, "I never realised before -what it was to have a genius. You should be very thankful to Providence -for giving you such a gift. I have given dinners all my life--that is, -all my married life, my dear, which comes to almost the same thing, for -I was only a baby--but I never could come up to anything like that," -said Mrs Chiley, with tears in her eyes. As for Miss Marjoribanks, she -was so satisfied with her success that she felt at liberty to -tranquillise her old friend. - -"I am sure you always give very nice dinners," she said; "and then, you -know, the Colonel has his favourite dishes--whereas, I must say for -papa, he is very reasonable for a man. I am so glad you are pleased. It -is very kind of you to say it is genius, but I don't pretend to anything -but paying great attention and studying the combinations. There is -nothing one cannot manage if one only takes the trouble. Come here to -this nice easy-chair--it is so comfortable. It is so nice to have a -little moment to ourselves before they come upstairs." - -"That is what I always say," said Mrs Chiley; "but there are not many -girls so sensible as you, Lucilla. I hear them all saying it is so much -better French fashion. Of course, I am an old woman, and like things in -the old style." - -"I don't think it is because I am more sensible," said Miss -Marjoribanks, with modesty. "I don't pretend to be better than other -people. It is because I have thought it all over, you know--and then I -went through a course of political economy when I was at Mount -Pleasant," Lucilla said tranquilly, with an air of having explained the -whole matter, which much impressed her hearer. "But for all that, -something dreadful happened to-day. Tom brought in one of his friends -with him, you know, and Miss Bury was here, and they talked--I want to -tell you, in case she should say something, and then you will know what -to believe. I never felt so dreadfully ashamed in my life--they -talked----" - -"My dear! not anything improper, I hope," cried the old lady, in dismay. - -"Oh, no," said Lucilla; "but they began laughing about some people -having no souls, you know--as if there could be anybody without a -soul--and poor Miss Bury nearly fainted. You may think what a dreadful -thing it was for me." - -"My dear child, if that was all," said Mrs Chiley, reassured--"as for -everybody having a soul, I am sure I cannot say. You never were in -India, to be sure; but Miss Bury should have known better than to faint -at a young man's talk, and frighten you, my poor dear. She ought to be -ashamed of herself, at her age. Do you think Tom has turned out clever?" -the old lady continued, not without a little finesse, and watching -Lucilla with a curious eye. - -"Not in the very least," said Miss Marjoribanks calmly; "he is just as -awkward as he used to be. It is dreadful to have him here just now, when -I have so many things to do--and then he would follow me about -everywhere if I would let him. A cousin of that sort is always in the -way." - -"I am always afraid of a cousin, for my part," said Mrs Chiley; "and -talking of that, what do you think of Mr Cavendish, Lucilla? He is very -nice in himself, and he has a nice property; and some people say he has -a very good chance to be member for Carlingford when there is an -election. I think that is just what would suit you." - -"I could not see him for the lamp," said Lucilla; "it was right between -us, you know--but it is no use talking of that sort of thing just now. -Of course, if I had liked, I never need have come home at all," Miss -Marjoribanks added, with composure; "and, now I have come home, I have -got other things to think of. If papa is good, I will not think of -leaving him for ten years." - -"Oh, yes; I have heard girls say that before," said Mrs Chiley; "but -they always changed their minds. You would not like to be an old maid, -Lucilla; and in ten years----" - -"I should have begun to go off a little, no doubt," said Miss -Marjoribanks. "No, I can't say I wish to be an old maid. Can they be -coming upstairs already, do you think? Oh, it is Tom, I suppose," said -Lucilla, with a little indignation. But when _They_ did make their -appearance, which was at a tolerably early period--for a return to the -drawing-room was quite a novelty for Dr Marjoribanks's friends, and -tempted them accordingly--Miss Marjoribanks was quite ready to receive -them. And just before ten o'clock, when Mrs Chiley began to think of -going home, Lucilla, without being asked, and without indeed a word of -preface, suddenly went to the piano, and before anybody knew, had -commenced to sing. She was a great deal too sensible to go into high art -on this occasion, or to electrify her father's friends with her -newly-acquired Italian, or even with German, as some young ladies do. -She sang them a ballad out of one of those treasures of resuscitated -ballads which the new generation had then begun to dig out of the bowels -of the earth. There was not, to tell the truth, a great deal of music -in it, which proved Lucilla's disinterestedness. "I only sang it to -amuse you," she said, when all the world crowded to the piano; and for -that night she was not to be persuaded to further exertions. Thus Miss -Marjoribanks proved to her little public that power of subordinating her -personal tastes and even her vanity to her great object, which more than -anything else demonstrates a mind made to rule. "I hope next time you -will be more charitable, and not tantalise us in this way," Mr Cavendish -said, as he took his leave; and Lucilla retired from the scene of her -triumph, conscious of having achieved entire success in her first -appearance in Carlingford. She laid her head upon her pillow with that -sweet sense of an approving conscience which accompanies the footsteps -of the benefactors of their kind. But even Miss Marjoribanks's -satisfaction was not without its drawbacks. She could not get out of her -mind that unhappy abortive luncheon and all its horrors; not to speak of -the possibility of her religious principles being impugned, which was -dreadful in itself ("for people can stand a man being sceptical, you -know," Miss Marjoribanks justly observed, "but everybody knows how -unbecoming it is in a woman--and me who have such a respect for -religion!"); there remained the still more alarming chance that Miss -Bury, who was so narrow-minded, might see something improper in the -presence of the two young men at Lucilla's maidenly table; for, to be -sure, the Rector's sister was altogether incapable of grasping the idea -that young men, like old men and the other less interesting members of -the human family, were simple material for Miss Marjoribanks's genius, -out of which she had a great result to produce. This was the dread that -overshadowed the mind of Lucilla as she composed herself to rest after -her fatigues. When she slept the sleep of the innocent, it still pursued -her into her dreams. She dreamed that she stood at the altar by the side -of the member for Carlingford, and that Mr Bury, with inflexible -cruelty, insisted upon marrying her to Tom Marjoribanks instead; and -then the scene changed, and instead of receiving the salutations of Mr -Cavendish as M.P. for the borough, it was the amusing man, in the -character of the defeated candidate, who grinned and nodded at her, and -said from the hustings that he would never forget the luncheon that had -been his first introduction to Carlingford. Such was the nightmare that -pursued Lucilla even into the sphere of dreams. - -When such a presentiment takes possession of a well-balanced mind like -that of Miss Marjoribanks, it may be accepted as certain that something -is likely to follow. Lucilla did her best to disarm fate, not only by -the sweetest submission and dutifulness to the Doctor and his wishes, -but by a severe disregard of Tom, which drove that unhappy young man -nearly desperate. Far from saying anything about luncheon, she even -ignored his presence at breakfast, and remained calmly unconscious of -his empty cup, until he had to ask for some coffee in an injured and -pathetic voice, which amused Dr Marjoribanks beyond description. But -even this did not prove sufficient to propitiate the Fates. When They -were gone--and it may be well to say that Lucilla used this pronoun to -signify _the gentlemen_, in greater or smaller number as it might -happen--and she had finished all her arrangements, Miss Marjoribanks -decided upon going to Grove Street to pay Barbara Lake a visit, and -practise some duets, which was certainly as innocent an occupation for -her leisure as could be desired. She was putting on her hat with this -object when the bell in the garden rang solemnly, and Lucilla, whose -curiosity conquered her good manners for the moment, hastening to the -window, saw Mr Bury himself enter the garden, accompanied by a black -figure in deep and shabby mourning. All the tremors of the night rushed -back upon her mind at the sight. She felt that the moment had arrived -for a trial of her courage very different from the exertions which had -hitherto sufficed her. Nothing but the most solemn intentions could have -supported the Rector in that severe pose of his figure and features, -every line in which revealed an intention of being "faithful"; and the -accompanying mute in black, whose office the culprit could not divine, -had a veil over her face, and wore a widow's dress. Miss Marjoribanks, -it is true, was not a woman to be discouraged by appearances, but she -felt her heart beat as she collected all her powers to meet this -mysterious assault. She took off her hat with an instinctive certainty -that, for this morning at least, the duet was impracticable, when she -heard Mr Bury's steady step ascending the stairs; but, notwithstanding, -it was with a perfectly cheerful politeness that she bade him welcome -when he came into the room. "It is so good of you to come," Lucilla -said; "you that have so much to do. I scarcely could believe it when I -saw you come in: I thought it must be for papa." - -"I did hope to find Dr Marjoribanks," said the Rector, "but as he is not -at home, I thought it best to come to you. This is Mrs Mortimer," said -Mr Bury, taking the chair Lucilla had indicated with a certain want of -observance of his companion which betrayed to the keen perceptions of -Miss Marjoribanks that she was a dependant of some kind or other. The -Rector was a very good man, but was Evangelical, and had a large female -circle who admired and swore by him; and, consequently, he felt it in a -manner natural that he should take his seat first, and the place that -belonged to him as the principal person present; and then, to be sure, -his mission here was for Mrs Mortimer's as well as Miss Marjoribanks's -"good." After this introduction, the figure in black put up its veil, -and revealed a deprecating woman, with a faint sort of pleading smile on -her face. Probably she was making believe to smile at the position in -which she found herself; but anyhow she took her seat humbly on another -chair at a little distance, and waited, as Lucilla did, for the next -golden words that it might please the Rector to say. - -"My sister told me what happened yesterday," said Mr Bury. "She is very -sorry for you, Miss Marjoribanks. It is sad for you to be left alone so -young, and without a mother, and exposed to--to temptations which it is -difficult to withstand at your age. Indeed, at all ages, we have great -occasion to pray not to be led into temptation; for the heart of man is -terribly deceitful. After hearing what she had to say, I thought it best -to come up at once this morning and talk to Dr Marjoribanks. I am sure -his natural good sense will teach him that you ought not to be left -alone in the house." - -"I do not see how papa can help it," said Lucilla. "I am sure it is very -sad for him as well; but since dear mamma died there has been nobody but -me to be a comfort to him. I think he begins to look a little cheerful -now," Miss Marjoribanks continued, with beautiful simplicity, looking -her adversary in the face. "Everybody knows that to be a comfort to him -is the object of my life." - -"That is a very good feeling," said the Rector, "but it does not do to -depend too much upon our feelings. You are too young to be placed in a -position of so much responsibility, and open to so much temptation. I -was deeply grieved for Dr Marjoribanks when his partner in life was -taken from him; but my dear Miss Lucilla, now you have come home, who -stand so much in need of a mother's care, we must try to find some one -to fill her place." - -Lucilla uttered a scream of genuine alarm and dismay; and then she came -to herself, and saw the force of her position. She had it in her power -to turn the tables on the Rector, and she did not hesitate, as a weaker -woman might have done, out of consideration for anybody's feelings. "Do -you mean you have found some one for him to marry?" she asked, with a -look of artless surprise, bending her earnest gaze on Mr Bury's face. - -As for the Rector, he looked at Lucilla aghast, like a man caught in a -trap. "Of course not, of course not," he stammered, after his first -pause of consternation; and then he had to stop again to take breath. -Lucilla kept up the air of amazement and consternation which had come -naturally at the first, and had her eyes fixed on him, leaning forward -with all the eager anxiety natural to the circumstances, and the -unfortunate clergyman reddened from the edge of his white cravat to the -roots of his gray hair. He was almost as sensitive to the idea of having -proposed something improper as his sister could have been, though -indeed, at the worst, there would have been nothing improper in it had -Dr Marjoribanks made up his mind to another wife. - -"It is very dreadful for me that am so young to go against _you_" said -Lucilla; "but if it is _that_, I cannot be expected to take any part in -it--it would not be natural. It is the great object of my life to be a -comfort to papa; but if that is what you mean, I could not give in to -it. I am sure Miss Bury would understand me," said Miss Marjoribanks; -and she looked so nearly on the point of tears, that the Rector's -anxious disclaimer found words for itself. - -"Nothing of the kind, my dear Miss Lucilla--nothing of the kind," cried -Mr Bury; "such an idea never came into my mind. I cannot imagine how I -could have said anything--I can't fancy what put such an idea----Mrs -Mortimer, you are not going away?" - -Lucilla had already seen with the corner of her eye that the victim had -started violently, and that her heavy veil had fallen over her face--but -she had not taken any notice, for there are cases in which it is -absolutely necessary to have a victim. By this time, however, the poor -woman had risen in her nervous, undecided way. - -"I had better go--I am sure I had better go," she said hurriedly, -clasping together a pair of helpless hands, as if they could find a -little strength in union. "Miss Marjoribanks will understand you better, -and you will perhaps understand Miss Marjoribanks----" - -"Oh, sit down, sit down," said Mr Bury, who was not tolerant of -feelings. "Perhaps I expressed myself badly. What I meant to say was, -that Mrs Mortimer, who has been a little unfortunate in -circumstances--sit down, pray--had by a singular providence just applied -to me when my sister returned home yesterday. These things do not happen -by chance, Lucilla. We are taken care of when we are not thinking of it. -Mrs Mortimer is a Christian lady for whom I have the greatest respect. A -situation to take the superintendence of the domestic affairs, and to -have charge of you, would be just what would suit her. It must be a -great anxiety to the Doctor to leave you alone, and without any control, -at your age. You may think the liberty is pleasant at first, but if you -had a Christian friend to watch over and take care of you----What is the -matter?" said the Rector, in great alarm. It was only that the poor -widow who was to have charge of Lucilla, according to his benevolent -intention, looked so like fainting, that Miss Marjoribanks jumped up -from her chair and rang the bell hastily. It was not Lucilla's way to -lose time about anything; she took the poor woman by the shoulders and -all but lifted her to the sofa, where she was lying down with her bonnet -off when the Rector came to his senses. To describe the feelings with -which Mr Bury contemplated this little _entr'acte_, which was not in his -programme, would be beyond our powers. He went off humbly and opened the -window when he was told to do so, and tried to find the eau-de-Cologne -on the table; while Thomas rushed downstairs for water at a pace very -unlike his usual steady rate of progress. As for Lucilla, she stood by -the side of her patient quite self-possessed, while the Rector looked so -foolish. "She will be all right directly," Miss Marjoribanks was saying; -"luckily she never went right off. When you don't go right off, lying -down is everything. If there had been any one to run and get some water -she would have got over it; but luckily I saw it in time." What possible -answer Mr Bury could make to this, or how he could go on with his -address in sight of the strange turn things had taken, it would have -been hard to say. Fortunately for the moment he did not attempt it, but -walked about in dismay, and put himself in the draught (with his -rheumatism), and felt dreadfully vexed and angry with Mrs Mortimer, who, -for her part, now she had done with fainting, manifested an inclination -to cry, for which Mr Bury in his heart could have whipped her, had that -mode of discipline been permitted in the Church of England. Lucilla was -merciful, but she could not help taking a little advantage of her -victory. She gave the sufferer a glass of water, and the eau-de-Cologne -to keep her from a relapse, and whispered to her to lie quiet; and then -she came back and took her seat, and begged the Rector not to stand in -the draught. - -"I don't think she is strong," said Miss Marjoribanks confidentially, -when she had wiled the disconcerted clergyman back to her side, "her -colour changes so; she never would be able for what there is to do here, -even if papa would consent to think of it. For my part I am sure I -should be glad of a little assistance," said Lucilla, "but I never like -to give false hopes, and I don't think papa would consent;--she looks -nice if she was not so weak, poor thing!--and there are such quantities -of things to be done here: but if you wish it, Mr Bury, I will speak to -papa," said Miss Marjoribanks, lifting her eyes, which were so open and -straightforward, to the Rector's face. - -To tell the truth, he did not in the least know what to say, and the -chances are he would not have been half so vexed and angry, nor felt in -so unchristian a disposition with the poor woman on the sofa, had he -meant to do her harm instead of good. "Yes, I should be glad if you -would mention it to Dr Marjoribanks," he said, without very well knowing -what he said; and got up to shake hands with Lucilla, and then -recollected that he could not leave his protégée behind him, and -hesitated, and did not know what to do. He was really grateful, without -being aware of it, to Miss Marjoribanks, when once again she came to his -aid. - -"Please, leave her a little," said Lucilla, "and I can make acquaintance -with her, you know, in case papa should be disposed to think of it;--she -must lie still till it quite wears off. I would ask you to stay to lunch -if I was not afraid of wasting your precious time----" - -Mr Bury gave a little gasp of indignation, but he did not say anything. -On the whole, even though smarting under the indignity of being asked to -lunch, as his sister had been, when probably there might be a repetition -of the scene of yesterday, he was glad to get safely out of the house, -even at the risk of abandoning his enterprise. As for a woman in want of -a situation, who had so little common sense as to faint at such a -critical moment, the Rector was disposed to wash his hands of her; for -Mr Bury, "like them all," as Lucilla said, was horribly frightened by a -faint when he saw one, and afterwards pretended to disbelieve it, and -called it one of the things which a little self-command could always -prevent. When he was gone Miss Marjoribanks felt the full importance of -her victory; and then, though she had not hesitated to sacrifice this -poor woman when it was necessary to have a victim, that moment was over, -and she had no pleasure in being cruel; on the contrary, she went and -sat by her patient, and talked, and was very kind to her; and after a -while heard all her story, and was more comforting than the Rector could -have been for his life. - -"I knew it would hurt your feelings," Miss Marjoribanks said candidly, -"but I could not do anything else--and you know it was Mr Bury's fault; -but I am sure if I can be of any use to you----" It was thus that -Lucilla added, without knowing it, another complication to her fortunes; -but then, to be sure, clear-sighted as she was, she could not see into -the future, nor know what was to follow. She told the Doctor in the -evening with the greatest faithfulness, and described how Mr Bury -looked, and that she had said she did not think papa would be disposed -to think of it; and Dr Marjoribanks was so much entertained that he came -upstairs to hear the end, and took a cup of tea. It was the third night -in succession that the Doctor had taken this step, though it was against -his principles; and thus it will be seen that good came out of evil in a -beautifully distinct and appropriate way. - - - - -_Chapter IX_ - - -It was not till Miss Marjoribanks had surmounted to a certain extent the -vexation caused her by her unlucky confidence in Tom, that that unhappy -young man took the step which Lucilla had so long dreaded, but which she -trusted to her own genius to hinder him from carrying into execution. -Miss Marjoribanks had extricated herself so triumphantly from the -consequences of that unhappy commencement of her very charming -luncheon-parties, that she had begun to forget the culpability of her -cousin. She had defeated the Rector in his benevolent intentions, and -she had taken up his protégée just at the moment when Mr Bury was most -disgusted with the unfortunate woman's weakness. Poor Mrs Mortimer, to -be sure, had fainted, or had been near fainting, at the most inopportune -moment, and it was only natural that the Rector should be annoyed; but -as for Lucilla, who was always prompt in her actions, and whose good -nature and liberality were undoubted, she found her opportunity in the -failure of Mr Bury's scheme. After the Rector had gone away, Miss -Marjoribanks herself conducted the widow home; and by this time Mrs -Mortimer's prospects were beginning to brighten under the active and -efficient patronage of her new friend. This being the case, Lucilla's -good humour was perfectly restored, and she had forgiven Tom his -maladroitness. "He cannot help it, you know," she said privately to old -Mrs Chiley: "I suppose some people are born to do ridiculous things." -And it was indeed as if he had intended to give a practical illustration -of the truth of this conclusion that Tom chose the particular moment he -did for driving Miss Marjoribanks to the extremity of her patience. The -upholsterers were in the house, and indeed had just finished putting up -the pictures on the new paper in the drawing-room (which was green, as -Lucilla had determined it should be, of the most delicate tint, and -looked, as she flattered herself, exactly like silk hangings); and Mr -Holden himself waited with a certain complaisance for Miss -Marjoribanks's opinion of the effect. He had no doubt on the subject -himself; but he was naturally impressed, as most people were, with that -confidence in Lucilla's judgment which so much facilitates the -operations of those persons who are born to greatness. It was precisely -at this moment that his evil genius persuaded Tom Marjoribanks to -interrupt Thomas, who was carrying Mr Holden's message to his young -mistress, and to shut the library door upon the external world. Lucilla -had taken refuge in the library during the renovation of the -drawing-room; and she was aware that this was Tom's last day at -Carlingford, and had no intention of being unkind to him. To tell the -truth, she had at the bottom of her heart a certain regard and impulse -of protection and patronage towards Tom, of which something might have -come had the unlucky fellow known how to manage. But, at the same time, -Miss Marjoribanks was aware that things must be approaching a crisis -upstairs, and was listening intently to the movements overhead, and -wondering why she was not sent for. This was the moment of all others at -which Tom thought fit to claim a hearing; and the state of Lucilla's -feelings may be easily imagined when she saw him plant himself by her -side, with his face alternately red and white, and all the signs of a -desperate resolution in his countenance. For the first time in her life -a certain despair took possession of Miss Marjoribanks's mind. The -sounds had suddenly ceased upstairs, as if the artists were making a -pause to contemplate the effect of their completed work--which indeed -was precisely the case--and at the same time nobody came to call her, -important though the occasion was. She made a last effort to emancipate -herself before it was too late. - -"Ring, please, Tom," she said; "I want to know if they have finished -upstairs. I am so sorry you are going away; but you know it is one of my -principles never to neglect my duty. I am sure they must be waiting for -me--if you would only be kind enough to ring." - -"Lucilla," said Tom, "you know I would do anything in the world you -liked to tell me; but don't ask me to ring just now: I am going to leave -you, and there is something I must say to you, Lucilla," said the young -man, with agitation. Miss Marjoribanks was seated near the window, and -she had a moral certainty that if any of the Browns happened to be in -that ridiculous glass-house where they did their photography, they must -have a perfectly good view of her, with Tom in the background, who had -placed himself so as to shut her into the recess of the window. This, -coupled with the evidence of her senses that the workmen up stairs had -ceased their work, and that a slow footstep traversing the floor now and -then was all that was audible, drove Lucilla to despair. - -"Yes," she said, temporising a little, which was the only thing she -could do, "I am sure I am very sorry; but then, you know, with the house -in such a condition! Next time you come I shall be able to enjoy your -society," said the designing young woman; "but at present I am _so_ -busy. It is one of my principles, you know, that things are never -rightly done if the lady of the house does not pay proper attention. -They are sure to make some dreadful mistake upstairs if I don't look -after them. I shall see you again before you go." - -"Lucilla, don't be so cruel!" cried the unlucky Tom, and he caught her -hand though they were at the window; "do stop a moment and listen to me. -Lucilla! what does it matter about furniture and things when a man's -heart is bursting?" cried the unfortunate lover; and just at that moment -Miss Marjoribanks could see that the curtain was drawn aside a -little--ever so little--in the glass-house. She sat down again with a -sigh, and drew her hand away, and prepared herself to meet her fate with -heroism at least. - -"What in the world can you have been doing?" said Lucilla innocently; -"you used always to tell me, you know, when you got into any difficulty, -and I am sure if I can be of any use to you, Tom----But as for furniture -and things, they matter a great deal, I assure you, to people's -happiness; and then, you know, it is the object of my life to be a -comfort to dear papa." - -When she said this, Miss Marjoribanks settled herself again in the -recess of the window, so that the Miss Browns could command a full view -if they chose; for Lucilla's courage was of the highest order, and -nothing, except, perhaps, a strategical necessity of profound -importance, would have moved her to retreat before an enemy. As for Tom, -he was bewildered, to start with, by this solemn repetition of her great -purpose. - -"I know how good you are, Lucilla," he said, with humility; "but then my -uncle, you know--I don't think he is a man to appreciate----Oh, -Lucilla! why should you go and sacrifice to him the happiness of your -life?" - -"Tom," said Miss Marjoribanks, with some solemnity, "I wish you would -not talk to me of happiness. I have always been brought up to believe -that duty was happiness; and everybody has known for a long time what -was the object of my life. As for poor papa, it is the worse for him if -he does not understand; but that does not make any difference to my -duty," said the devoted daughter. She gave a little sigh as she spoke, -the sigh of a great soul, whose motives must always remain to some -extent unappreciated; and the sight of her resignation and beautiful -perseverance overwhelmed her unlucky suitor; for indeed, up to this -moment, Lucilla still entertained the hope of preventing Tom from, as -she herself described it, "saying the very words," which, to be sure, -are awkward words to hear and to say. - -"Lucilla, when you are so good to my uncle, you ought to have a little -pity on me," said Tom, driven to the deepest despondency. "How do you -think I can bear it, to see you getting everything done here, as if you -meant to stay all your life--when you know I love you?" said the -unfortunate young man; "when you know I have always been so fond of you, -Lucilla, and always looked forward to the time----; and now it is very -hard to see you care so little for me." - -"Tom," said Miss Marjoribanks, with indignant surprise, "how _can_ you -say I care little for you? you know I was always very fond of you, on -the contrary. I am sure I always stood your friend at home, whatever -happened, and never said a word when you broke that pretty little pearl -ring I was so fond of, and tore the scarf that my aunt gave me. I -wonder, for my part, how you can be so unkind as so say so. We have -always been the very best friends in the world," said Lucilla, with an -air of injury. "I always said at school I liked you the best of all my -cousins; and I am very fond of all my cousins." Miss Marjoribanks -concluded, after a little pause, "It is so unkind to tell me that I -don't care for _you_." - -Poor Tom groaned within himself as he listened. He did not know what to -answer to Lucilla's aggrieved yet frank confession. Naturally it would -have been much less displeasing to Tom to understand that she hated him, -and never desired to see him any more. But Miss Marjoribanks was far -from entertaining any such unchristian sentiments. She even began to -forget her anxiety about what was going on upstairs in that delightful -sense of power and abundant resources with which she was mastering the -present difficulty. She reflected in herself that though it was -excessively annoying to be thus occupied at such a moment, still it was -nearly as important to make an end of Tom as to see that the pictures -were hung rightly; for, to be sure, it was always easy to return to the -latter subject. Accordingly, she drew her chair a little nearer to the -window, and regarded Tom with a calm gaze of benevolent interest which -was in perfect accordance with the sentiments she had just expressed; a -look in which a gentle reproach was mingled. "I have always been like a -sister to you," said Lucilla; "how can you be so unkind as to say I -don't care?" - -As for the unhappy Tom, he got up, as was natural, and took a little -walk in front of the table, as a young man in trouble is apt to do. "You -know very well that is not what I mean, Lucilla," he said -disconsolately. "It is you who are unkind. I don't know why it is that -ladies are so cruel; I am not such a snob as to persecute anybody. But -what is the good of pretending not to know what I mean?" - -"Tom, listen!" cried Miss Marjoribanks, rising in her turn; "I feel sure -they must have finished. There is Mr Holden going through the garden. -And everybody knows that hanging pictures is just the thing of all -others that requires a person of taste. If they have spoiled the room, -it will be all your fault." - -"Oh, for Heaven's sake never mind the room!" said Tom. "I never thought -you would have trifled with a man, Lucilla. You know quite well what I -mean; you know it isn't a--a new thing," said the lover, beginning to -stammer and get confused. "You know that is what I have been thinking of -all along, as soon as ever I had anything to live on. I love you, -Lucilla; you know I love you! how can you trifle with me so?" - -"It is you who are trifling," said Miss Marjoribanks, "especially when -you know I have really something of importance to do. You can come -upstairs with me if you like. Of course we all love each other. What is -the good of being relations otherwise?" said Lucilla calmly; "it is such -a natural thing, you know. I suppose it is because you are going away -that you are so affectionate to-day. It is very nice of you, I am sure; -but, Tom, I feel quite certain you have not packed your things," Miss -Marjoribanks added, in an admonitory tone. "Come along with me -upstairs." - -And by this time Lucilla's curiosity was beginning again to get the -upper hand. If she only could have escaped, it would have been -impossible for her cousin to have renewed the conversation; and luckily -he was to leave Carlingford the same evening; but then a man is always -an inconsequent creature, and not to be calculated on. This time, -instead of obeying as usual, Tom--having, as Miss Marjoribanks -afterwards described (but only in the strictest confidence), "worked -himself up to it"--set himself directly in her way, and seized upon both -her hands. - -"Lucilla," cried the unlucky fellow, "is it possible that you really -have misunderstood me all this time? Do you mean to say that you don't -know? Oh, Lucilla, listen just five minutes. It isn't because I am your -cousin. I wish to Heaven I was not your cousin, but some one you had -never seen before. I mean I want you to consent to--to--to--marry me, -Lucilla. That is what I mean. I am called to the bar, and I can work for -you, and make a reputation. Lucilla, listen to what I have to say." - -Miss Marjoribanks left her hands in his with a calmness which froze poor -Tom's heart in his breast. She did not even take the trouble to draw -them away. "Have you gone out of your senses, Tom?" she asked, in her -sensible way; and she lifted her eyes to the face of the poor young -fellow who was in love, with an inquiring look, as if she felt a little -anxious about him. "If you have any feeling as if fever was coming on," -said Lucilla, "I think you should go upstairs and lie down a little till -papa comes in. I heard there had been some cases down about the canal. I -hope it is not the assizes that have been too much for you." When Miss -Marjoribanks said this, she herself took fast hold of Tom's hands with a -motherly grasp to feel if they were hot, and looked into his eyes with a -certain serious inspection, which, under the circumstances, poor fellow! -was enough to drive him out of the little rationality he had left. - -Tom was so far carried away by his frenzy, that he gave her a little -shake in his impatience. "You are trying to drive me mad, Lucilla!" -cried the young man. "I have got no fever. It is only you who are -driving me out of my senses. This time you must hear me. I will not let -you go till you have given me an answer. I am called to the bar, and I -have begun my Career," said Tom, making a pause for breath. "I knew you -would have laughed at me when I was depending on my mother; but now all -that is over, Lucilla. I have loved you as long as I can remember; and I -always thought--that you--cared for me a little. If you will have me, -there is nothing I could not do," said Tom, who thoroughly believed what -he was saying; "and if you will not have me, I will not answer for the -consequences. If I go off to India, or if I go to the bad----" - -"Tom," said Lucilla solemnly, and this time she drew away her hands, "if -you ever want to get married, I think the very best thing you can do is -to go to India. As for marrying just now at your age, you know you might -as well jump into the sea. You need not be vexed," said Miss -Marjoribanks, in her motherly way. "I would not speak so if I was not -your best friend. As for marrying me, you know it is ridiculous. I have -not the least intention of marrying anybody. If I had thought of that, I -need never have come home at all. As for your going to the bad, I am not -afraid of that. If I were to let you carry on with such a ridiculous -idea, I should never forgive myself. It would be just as sensible to go -into a lunatic asylum at once. It is very lucky for you that you said -this to _me_," Lucilla went on, "and not to one of the girls that think -it great fun to be married. And if I were you, Tom, I would go and pack -my things. You know you are always too late; and don't jump on your -portmanteau and make such a dreadful noise if it won't shut, but ring -the bell for Thomas. You know we are to dine at half-past five to-day, -to give you time for the train." - -These were the last words Tom Marjoribanks heard as Lucilla left the -room. She ran up to the drawing-room without losing a minute, and burst -in upon the vacant place where Mr Holden had stood so long waiting for -her. To be sure, Miss Marjoribanks's forebodings were so far fulfilled -that the St Cecilia, which she meant to have over the piano, was hung -quite in the other corner of the room, by reason of being just the same -size as another picture at the opposite angle, which the workmen, -sternly symmetrical, thought it necessary to "match." But, after all, -that was a trifling defect. She stood in the middle of the room, and -surveyed the walls, well pleased, with a heart which kept beating very -steadily in her bosom. On the whole, perhaps, she was not sorry to have -had it out with Tom. So far as he was personally concerned, Miss -Marjoribanks, being a physician's daughter, had great faith in the _vis -medicatrix_, and was not afraid for her cousin's health or his morals, -as a less experienced woman might have been. If she was angry with -anybody, it was with herself, who had not taken sufficient precautions -to avoid the explanation. "But, after all, everything is for the best," -Lucilla said to herself, with that beautiful confidence which is common -to people who have things their own way; and she devoted her mind to the -St Cecilia, and paid no more attention to Tom. It was not till more than -an hour after that a succession of dreadful thumps was not only heard -but felt throughout the house. It was Tom, but he was not doing any harm -to himself. He was not blowing out his brains or knocking his head -against the wall. He was only jumping on his portmanteau, -notwithstanding that Lucilla had warned him against such a -proceeding--and in his state of mind the jumps were naturally more -frantic than usual. When Lucilla heard it, she rang the bell, and told -Thomas to go and help Mr Tom with his packing; from which it will be -seen that Miss Marjoribanks bore no grudge against her cousin but was -disposed to send him forth in friendship and peace. - - - - -_Chapter X_ - - -It was nearly six weeks after this before all Miss Marjoribanks's -arrangements were completed, and she was able with satisfaction to -herself to begin her campaign. It was just before Christmas, at the time -above all others when society has need of a ruling spirit. For example, -Mrs Chiley expected the Colonel's niece, Mary Chiley, who had been -married about six months before, and who was not fond of her husband's -friends, and at the same time had no home of her own to go to, being an -orphan. The Colonel had invited the young couple by way of doing a kind -thing, but he grumbled a little at the necessity, and had never liked -the fellow, he said--and then what were two old people to do to amuse -them? Then Mrs Centum had her two eldest boys home from school, and was -driven out of her senses by the noise and the racket, as she confided to -her visitors. "It is all very well to make pretty pictures about -Christmas," said the exasperated mother, "but I should like to know how -one can enjoy anything with such a commotion going on. I get up every -morning with a headache, I assure you; and then Mr Centum expects me to -be cheerful when he comes in to dinner; men are so unreasonable. I -should like to know what _they_ would do if they had what we have to go -through: to look after all the servants--and they are always out of -their senses at Christmas--and to see that the children don't have too -much pudding, and to support all the noise. The holidays are the hardest -work a poor woman can have," she concluded, with a sigh; and when it is -taken into consideration that this particular Christmas was a wet -Christmas, without any frost or possibility of amusement out of doors, -English matrons in general will not refuse their sympathy to Mrs Centum. -Mrs Woodburn perhaps was equally to be pitied in a different way. She -had to receive several members of her husband's family, who were, like -Miss Marjoribanks, without any sense of humour, and who stared, and did -not in the least understand her when she "took off" any of her -neighbours; not to say that some of them were Low-Church, and thought -the practice sinful. Under these circumstances it will be readily -believed that the commencement of Lucilla's operations was looked upon -with great interest in Carlingford. It was so opportune that society -forgot its usual instincts of criticism, and forgave Miss Marjoribanks -for being more enlightened and enterprising than her neighbours; and -then most people were very anxious to see the drawing-room, now it had -been restored. - -This was a privilege, however, not accorded to the crowd. Mrs Chiley had -seen it under a vow of secrecy, and Mr Cavendish owned to having made a -run upstairs one evening after one of Dr Marjoribanks's little dinners, -when the other _convives_ were in the library, where Lucilla had erected -her temporary throne. But this clandestine inspection met with the -failure it deserved, for there was no light in the room except the -moonlight, which made three white blotches on the carpet where the -windows were, burying everything else in the profoundest darkness; and -the spy knocked his foot against something which reduced him to sudden -and well-merited agony. As for Mrs Chiley, she was discretion itself, -and would say nothing even to her niece. "I mean to work her a footstool -in water-lilies, my dear, like the one I did for you when you were -married," the old lady said; and that was the only light she would throw -on the subject. "My opinion is that it must be in crimson," Mrs Woodburn -said, when she heard this, "for I know your aunt's water-lilies. When I -see them growing, I always think of you. It would be quite like Lucilla -Marjoribanks to have it in crimson--for it is a cheerful colour, you -know, and quite different from the old furniture; and that would always -be a comfort to her dear papa." From this it will be seen that the -curiosity of Carlingford was excited to a lively extent. Many people -even went so far as to give the Browns a sitting in their glass-house, -with the hope of having a peep at the colour of the hangings at least. -But Miss Marjoribanks was too sensible a woman to leave her virgin -drawing-room exposed to the sun when there was any, and to the -photographers, who were perhaps more dangerous. "I think it is blue, for -my part," said Miss Brown, who had got into the habit of rising early in -hopes of finding the Doctor's household off its guard. "Lucilla was -always a great one for blue; she thinks it is becoming to her -complexion;" which, indeed, as the readers of this history are aware, -was a matter of fact. As for Miss Marjoribanks, she did her best to -keep up this agreeable mystery. "For my part, I am fond of neutral -tints," she herself said, when she was questioned on the subject; -"anybody who knows me can easily guess my taste. I should have been born -a Quaker, you know, I do so like the drabs and grays, and all those soft -colours. You can have as much red and green as you like abroad, where -the sun is strong, but here it would be bad style," said Lucilla; from -which the most simple-minded of her auditors drew the natural -conclusion. Thus all the world contemplated with excitement the first -Thursday which was to open this enchanted chamber to their admiring -eyes. "Don't expect any regular invitation," Miss Marjoribanks said. "I -hope you will all come, or as many of you as can. Papa has always some -men to dinner with him that day, you know, and it is so dreadfully slow -for me with a heap of men. That is why I fixed on Thursday. I want you -to come every week, so it would be absurd to send an invitation; and -remember it is not a party, only an Evening," said Lucilla. "I shall -wear a white frock high, as I always do. Now be sure you come." - -"But we can't all go in high white frocks," said Mrs Chiley's niece, -Mary, who, if her trousseau had been subtracted from the joys of -marriage, would not, poor soul! have found very much left. This -intimation dismayed the bride a little; for, to be sure, she had decided -which dress she was to wear before Lucilla spoke. - -"But, my dear, you are married," said Miss Marjoribanks; "that makes it -quite different: come in that pretty pink that is so becoming. I don't -want to have any dowdies, for my part; and don't forget that I shall -expect you all at nine o'clock." - -When she had said this, Miss Marjoribanks proceeded on her way, sowing -invitations and gratification round her. She asked the youngest Miss -Brown to bring her music, in recognition of her ancient claims as the -songstress of society in Carlingford; for Lucilla had all that regard -for constituted rights which is so necessary to a revolutionary of the -highest class. She had no desire to shock anybody's prejudices or wound -anybody's feelings. "And she has a nice little voice," Lucilla said to -herself, with the most friendly and tolerant feelings. Thus Miss -Marjoribanks prepared to establish her kingdom with a benevolence which -was almost Utopian, not upon the ruins of other thrones, but with the -goodwill and co-operation of the lesser powers, who were, to be sure, -too feeble to resist her advance, but whose rights she was quite ready -to recognise, and even to promote, in her own way. - -At the same time it is necessary here to indicate a certain vague and -not disagreeable danger, which appeared to some experienced persons to -shadow Lucilla's conquering way. Mr Cavendish, who was a young man of -refinement, not to say that he had a very nice property, had begun to -pay attention to Miss Marjoribanks in what Mrs Chiley thought quite a -marked manner. To be sure, he could not pretend to the honour of taking -her in to dinner, which was not his place, being a young man; but he did -what was next best, and manoeuvred to get the place on her left hand, -which, in a party composed chiefly of men, was not difficult to manage. -For, to tell the truth, most of the gentlemen present were at that -special moment more interested in the dinner than in Lucilla. And after -dinner it was Mr Cavendish who was the first to leave the room; and to -hear the two talking about all the places they had been to, and all the -people they had met, was as good as a play, Mrs Chiley said. Mr -Cavendish confided to Lucilla his opinions upon things in general, and -accepted the reproofs which she administered (for Miss Marjoribanks was -quite unquestionable in her orthodoxy, and thought it a duty, as she -said, always to speak with respect of religion) when his sentiments were -too speculative, and said, "How charming is divine philosophy!" so as, -for the moment, to dazzle Lucilla herself, who thought it a very pretty -compliment. He came to her assistance when she made tea, and generally -fulfilled all the duties which are expected of a man who is paying -attention to a young lady. Old Mrs Chiley watched the nascent regard -with her kind old grandmotherly eyes. She calculated over in her own -mind the details of his possessions, so far as the public was aware of -them, and found them on the whole satisfactory. He had a nice property, -and then he was a very nice, indeed an unexceptionable young man; and to -add to this, it had been agreed to between Colonel Chiley and Mr Centum, -and several other of the leading people in Carlingford, that he was the -most likely man to represent the borough when old Mr Chiltern, who was -always threatening to retire, fulfilled his promise. Mr Cavendish had a -very handsome house a little out of town, where a lady would be next -thing to a county lady--indeed, quite a county lady, if her husband was -the Member for Carlingford. - -All these thoughts passed through Mrs Chiley's mind, and, as was -natural, in the precious moments after dinner, were suggested in -occasional words of meaning to the understanding ear of Miss -Marjoribanks. "My dear Lucilla, it is just the position that would suit -you--with your talents!" the old lady said; and Lucilla did not say No. -To be sure, she had not at the present moment the least inclination to -get married, as she truly said; it would, indeed, to tell the truth, -disturb her plans considerably; but still, if such was the intention of -Providence, and if it was to the Member for Carlingford, Lucilla felt -that it was still credible that everything might be for the best. - -"But it is a great deal too soon to think of anything of that sort," -Miss Marjoribanks would reply. "If I had thought of that, I need never -have come home at all; and especially when papa has been so good about -everything." Yet for all that she was not ungracious to Mr Cavendish -when he came in first as usual. To marry a man in his position would -not, after all, be deranging her plans to any serious extent. Indeed, it -would, if his hopes were realised, constitute Lucilla a kind of queen in -Carlingford, and she could not but feel that, under these circumstances, -it might be a kind of duty to reconsider her resolution. And thus the -time passed while the drawing-room was undergoing renovation. Mr -Cavendish had been much tantalised, she said, by the absence of the -piano, which prevented them from having any music, and Lucilla had even -been tempted into a few snatches of song, which, to tell the truth, some -of the gentlemen present, especially the Doctor himself and Colonel -Chiley, being old-fashioned, preferred without the accompaniment. And -thus it was, under the most brilliant auspices, and with the full -confidence of all her future constituency, that Miss Marjoribanks -superintended the arrangement of the drawing-room on that momentous -Thursday, which was to be the real beginning of her great work in -Carlingford. - -"My dear, you must leave yourself entirely in my hands," Lucilla said to -Barbara Lake on the morning of that eventful day. "Don't get impatient. -I dare say you don't know many people, and it may be a little slow for -you at first; but everybody has to put up with that, you know, for a -beginning. And, by the bye, what are you going to wear?" - -"I have not thought about it," said Barbara, who had the painful pride -of poverty, aggravated much by a sense that the comforts of other people -were an injury to her. Poor soul! she had been thinking of little else -for at least a week past; and then she had not very much choice in her -wardrobe; but her disposition was one which rejected sympathy, and she -thought it would look best to pretend to be indifferent. At the same -time, she said this with a dull colour on her cheeks, the colour of -irritation; and she could not help asking herself why Lucilla, who was -not so handsome as she was, had the power to array herself in gorgeous -apparel, while she, Barbara, had nothing but a white frock. There are -differences even in white frocks, though the masculine mind may be -unaware of them. Barbara's muslin had been washed six times, and had a -very different air from the vestal robes of her patroness. To be sure, -Lucilla was not taken in, in the least, by her companion's look of -indifference, and would even have been delighted to bestow a pretty -dress upon Barbara, if that had been a possible thing to do. - -"There will be no dress," said Miss Marjoribanks, with solemnity. "I -have insisted upon that. You know it is not a party, it is only an -Evening. A white frock, _high_--that is all I mean to wear; and mind you -don't lose patience. I shall keep my eye on you; and after the first, I -feel sure you will enjoy yourself. Good-bye for the present." When she -had uttered these encouraging words. Miss Marjoribanks went away to -pursue her preparations, and Barbara proceeded to get out her dress and -examine it. It was as important to her as all the complicated -paraphernalia of the evening's arrangements were to Lucilla. It is true -that there were greater interests involved in the case of the leader; -but then Barbara was the soldier of fortune who had to open the oyster -with her sword, and she was feeling the point of it metaphorically while -she pulled out the breadths of her white dress, and tried to think that -they would not look limp at night; and what her sentiments lost in -breadth, as compared with Lucilla's, they gained in intensity, for--for -anything she could tell--her life might change colour by means of this -Thursday Evening; and such, indeed, was her hope. Barbara prepared for -her first appearance in Grange Lane, with a mind wound up to any degree -of daring. It did not occur to her that she required to keep faith with -Miss Marjoribanks in anything except the duet. As regarded other -matters, Barbara was quite unscrupulous, for at the bottom she could not -but feel that any one who was kind to her was taking an unwarrantable -liberty. What right had Lucilla Marjoribanks to be kind to her? as if -she was not as good as Lucilla any day! and though it might be worth her -while to take advantage of it for the moment, it was still an insult, in -its way, to be avenged if an opportunity ever should arise. - -The evening came, as evenings do come, quite indifferently whether -people are glad or sorry; and it was with a calmness which the other -ladies regarded as next to miraculous, that Miss Marjoribanks took -Colonel Chiley's arm to go to the dining-room. We say the other ladies, -for on this great occasion Mrs Centum and Mrs Woodburn were both among -the dinner-guests. "To see her eat her dinner as if she had nothing on -her mind!" Mrs Centum said in amazement: "as for me, though nobody can -blame me if anything goes wrong, I could enjoy nothing for thinking of -it. And I must say I was disappointed with the dinner," she added, with -a certain air of satisfaction, in Mrs Woodburn's ear. It was when they -were going upstairs, and Lucilla was behind with Mrs Chiley. "The fuss -the men have always made about these dinners! and except for a few made -dishes that were really nothing, you know, I can't say _I_ saw anything -particular in it. And as for Lucilla, I can't think she has any -feeling," said the banker's wife. - -"Oh, my dear, it is because you don't understand," said Mrs Woodburn. -"She is kept up, you know, by a sense of duty. It is all because she has -set her heart on being a comfort to her dear papa!" - -Such, it is true, were the comments that were made upon the -public-spirited young woman who was doing so much for Carlingford; but -then Lucilla only shared the fate of all the great benefactors of the -world. An hour later the glories of the furniture were veiled and hidden -by the robes of a radiant flood of society, embracing all that was most -fair and all that was most distinguished in Carlingford. No doubt there -was a world of heterogeneous elements; but then if there had not been -difficulties where would have been the use of Miss Marjoribanks's -genius? Mr Bury and his sister, who had been unconsciously mollified by -the admirable dinner provided for them downstairs, found some stray -lambs in the assembly who were in need of them, and thus had the double -satisfaction of combining pleasure with duty; and though there were -several people in the room whose lives were a burden to them in -consequence of Mrs Woodburn's remarkable gift, even they found it -impossible not to be amused by an occasional representation of an -absent individual, or by the dashing sketch of Lucilla, which she gave -at intervals in her corner, amid the smothered laughter of the audience, -who were half ashamed of themselves. "She is never ill-tempered, you -know," the persons who felt themselves threatened in their turn said to -each other with a certain piteous resignation; and oddly enough it was -in general the most insignificant people about who were afraid of Mrs -Woodburn. It is needless to say that such a dread never entered the -serene intelligence of Miss Marjoribanks, who believed in herself with a -reasonable and steady faith. As for old Mrs Chiley, who had so many -funny little ways, and whom the mimic executed to perfection, she also -was quite calm on the subject. "You know there is nothing to take off in -me," the old lady would say; "I always was a simple body: and then I am -old enough to be all your grandmothers, my dear;" which was a saying -calculated, as Miss Marjoribanks justly observed, to melt a heart of -stone. - -Then the Miss Browns had brought their photographs, in which most people -in Grange Lane were caricatured hideously, but with such a charming -equality that the most _exigeant_ forgave the wrong to himself in -laughing at his neighbours. Miss Brown had brought her music too, and -sang her feeble little strain to the applause of her immediate -neighbours, and to the delight of those who were at a distance, and who -could talk louder and flirt more openly under cover of the music; and -there were other young ladies who had also come prepared with a little -roll of songs or "pieces." Lucilla, with her finger as it were upon the -pulse of the company, let them all exhibit their powers with that -enlightened impartiality which we have already remarked in her. When Mr -Cavendish came to her in his ingratiating way, and asked her how she -could possibly let all the sparrows chirp like that when the nightingale -was present, Miss Marjoribanks proved herself proof to the flattery. She -said, "Do go away, like a good man, and make yourself agreeable. There -are so few men, you know, who can flirt in Carlingford. I have always -reckoned upon you as such a valuable assistant. It is always an -advantage to have a man who flirts," said Miss Marjoribanks. This was a -sentiment perhaps too large and enlightened, in the truest sense of the -word, to meet, as it ought to have done, with the applause of her -audience. Most of the persons immediately surrounding her thought, -indeed, that it was a mere _bon-mot_ to which Lucilla had given -utterance, and laughed accordingly; but it is needless to explain that -these were persons quite unable to understand her genius. - -All this time she was keeping her eyes upon a figure in the corner of a -sofa, which looked as if it was glued there, and kept staring defiance -at the world in general from under black and level brows. Lucilla, it is -true, had introduced Barbara Lake in the most flattering way to Mrs -Chiley, and to some of the young ladies present; but then she was a -stranger, and an intruder into those regions of the blest, and she could -not help feeling so. If her present companions had not whispered among -themselves, "Miss Lake! what Miss Lake? Good gracious! Lake the -drawing-master's daughter!" she herself would still have reminded -herself of her humble paternity. Barbara sat as if she could not move -from that corner, looking out upon everybody with scared eyes, which -expressed nothing but defiance, and in her own mind making the -reflections of bitter poverty upon the airy pretty figures round her, in -all the variations of that costume which Miss Marjoribanks had announced -as the standard of dress for the evening. Barbara's muslin, six times -washed, was not more different from the spotless lightness of all the -draperies round her, than was her air of fright, and at the same time of -defiance, from the gay babble and pleasant looks of the group which, by -a chance combination, she seemed to form part of. She began to say to -herself that she had much better go away, and that there never could be -anything in common between those frivolous creatures and herself, a poor -man's daughter; and she began to get dreadfully exasperated with -Lucilla, who had beguiled her into this scene, to make game of her, as -poor Barbara said; though, so far from making game of her, nobody took -much notice, after the first unsuccessful attempt at conversation, of -the unfortunate young woman. It was when she was in this unhappy humour -that her eye fell upon Mr Cavendish, who was in the act of making the -appeal to Lucilla which we have already recorded. Barbara had never as -yet had a lover, but she had read an unlimited number of novels, which -came to nearly the same thing, and she saw at a glance that this was -somebody who resembled the indispensable hero. She looked at him with a -certain fierce interest, and remembered at that instant how often in -books it is the humble heroine, behind backs, whom all the young ladies -snub, who wins the hero at the last. And then Miss Marjoribanks, though -she sent him away, smiled benignantly upon him. The colour flushed to -Barbara's cheeks, and her eyes, which had grown dull and fixed between -fright and spite, took sudden expression under her straight brows. An -intention, which was not so much an intention as an instinct, suddenly -sprang into life within her, and, without knowing, she drew a long -breath of eagerness and impotence. He was standing quite near by this -time, doing his duty according to Miss Marjoribanks's orders, and -flirting with all his might; and Barbara looked at him as a hungry -schoolboy might be supposed to look at a tempting apple just out of his -reach. How was she to get at this suitor of Lucilla's? It would have -given her so pure a delight to tear down the golden apple, and tread on -it, and trample it to nothing; and then it came into her head that it -might be good to eat as well. - -It was at this moment that Miss Marjoribanks, who was in six places at -once, suddenly touched Barbara's shoulder. "Come with me a minute; I -want to show you something," she said loud out. Barbara, on her side, -looked round with a crimson countenance, feeling that her secret -thoughts must be written in her guilty eyes. But then these were eyes -which could be utterly destitute of expression when they pleased, though -their owner, at present just at the beginning of her experience, was not -quite aware of the fact. She stumbled to her feet with the awkward -motion natural to that form of shyness which her temper and her -temperament united to produce in her. She did all but put her foot -through Miss Brown's delicate skirt, and she had neither the natural -disposition nor the acquired grace which can carry off one of those -trifling offences against society. Nevertheless, as she stood beside -Lucilla at the piano, the company in general owned a little thrill of -curiosity. Who was she? A girl with splendid black hair, with brows as -level as if they had been made with a line, with intense eyes which -looked a little oblique under that straight bar of shadow. Her dress was -limp, but she was not such a figure as could be passed over even at an -evening party; and then her face was a little flushed, and her eyes lit -up with excitement. She seemed to survey everybody with that defiant -look which was chiefly awkwardness and temper, but which looked like -pride when she was standing up at her full height, and in a conspicuous -position, where everybody could see her. Most people concluded she was -an Italian whom Lucilla had picked up somewhere in her travels. As for -Mr Cavendish, he stopped short altogether in the occupation which Miss -Marjoribanks had allotted to him, and drew close to the piano. He -thought he had seen the face somewhere under a shabby bonnet in some -by-street of Carlingford, and he was even sufficiently learned in female -apparel to observe the limpness of her dress. - -This preface of curiosity had all been foreseen by Miss Marjoribanks, -and she paused a moment, under pretence of selecting her music, to take -the full advantage of it: for Lucilla, like most persons of elevated -aims, was content to sacrifice herself to the success of her work; and -then all at once, before the Carlingford people knew what they were -doing, the two voices rose, bursting upon the astonished community like -a sudden revelation. For it must be remembered that nobody in -Carlingford, except the members of Dr Marjoribanks's dinner-party, had -ever heard Lucilla sing, much less her companion; and the account which -these gentlemen had carried home to their wives had been generally -pooh-poohed and put down. "Mr Centum never listens to a note if he can -help it," said the banker's wife, "and how could he know whether she had -a nice voice or not?" which, indeed, was a powerful argument. But this -evening there could be no mistake about it. The words were arrested on -the very lips of the talkers; Mrs Woodburn paused in the midst of doing -Lucilla, and, as we have before said, Mr Cavendish broke a flirtation -clean off at its most interesting moment. It is impossible to record -what they sang, for those events, as everybody is aware, happened a good -many years ago, and the chances are that the present generation has -altogether forgotten the duet which made so extraordinary an impression -on the inhabitants of Grange Lane. The applause with which the -performance was received reached the length of a perfect ovation. -Barbara, for her part, who was not conscious of having ever been -applauded before, flushed into splendid crimson, and shone out from -under her straight eyebrows, intoxicated into absolute beauty. As for -Miss Marjoribanks, she took it more calmly. Lucilla had the advantage of -knowing what she could do, and accordingly she was not surprised when -people found it remarkable. She consented, on urgent persuasion, to -repeat the last verse of the duet, but when that was over, was smilingly -obdurate. "Almost everybody can sing," said Miss Marjoribanks, with a -magnificent depreciation of her own gift. "Perhaps Miss Brown will sing -us something; but as for me, you know, I am the mistress of the house." - -Lucilla went away as she spoke to attend to her guests, but she left -Barbara still crimson and splendid, triumphing over her limp dress and -all her disadvantages, by the piano. Fortunately, for that evening -Barbara's pride and her shyness prevented her from yielding to the -repeated demands addressed to her by the admiring audience. She said to -Mr Cavendish, with a disloyalty which that gentleman thought piquant, -that "Miss Marjoribanks would not be pleased"; and the future Member for -Carlingford thought he could not do better than obey the injunctions of -the mistress of the feast by a little flirtation with the gifted -unknown. To be sure, Barbara was not gifted in talk, and she was still -defiant and contradictory; but then her eyes were blazing with -excitement under her level eyebrows, and she was as willing to be -flirted with as if she had known a great deal better. And then Mr -Cavendish had a weakness for a contralto. While this little by-play was -going on, Lucilla was moving about, the centre of a perfect tumult of -applause. No more complete success could be imagined than that of this -first Thursday Evening, which was remarkable in the records of -Carlingford; and yet perhaps Miss Marjoribanks, like other conquerors, -was destined to build her victory upon sacrifice. She did not feel any -alarm at the present moment; but even if she had, that would have made -no difference to Lucilla's proceedings. She was not the woman to shrink -from a sacrifice when it was for the promotion of the great object of -her life; and that, as everybody knew who knew Miss Marjoribanks, was to -be a comfort to her dear papa. - - - - -_Chapter XI_ - - -"You have never told us who your unknown was," said Mr Cavendish. "I -suppose she is professional. Carlingford could not possibly possess two -such voices in private life." - -"Oh, I don't know about two such voices," said Miss Marjoribanks; "her -voice suits mine, you know. It is always a great thing to find two -voices that suit. I never would choose to have professional singers, for -my part. You have to give yourself up to music when you do such a thing; -and that is not my idea of society. I am very fond of music," said -Lucilla--"excessively fond of it; but then everybody is not of my -opinion--and one has to take so many things into consideration. For -people who give one party in the year it does very well--but then I hate -parties: the only pleasure in society is when one's friends come to see -one without any ado." - -"In white frocks, _high_," said Mrs Woodburn, who could not help -assuming Lucilla's manner for the moment, even while addressing herself; -but as the possibility of such a _lèse-majesté_ did not even occur to -Miss Marjoribanks, she accepted the observation in good faith. - -"Yes; I hate a grand toilette when it is only a meeting of friends," she -said--"for the girls, you know; of course you married ladies can always -do what you like. You have your husbands to please," said Lucilla. And -this was a little hard upon her satirist, for, to tell the truth, that -was a particular of domestic duty to which Mrs Woodburn did not much -devote herself, according to the opinion of Grange Lane. - -"But about the contralto," said Mr Cavendish, who had come to call on -Miss Marjoribanks under his sister's wing, and desired above all things -to keep the peace between the two ladies, as indeed is a man's duty -under such circumstances. "You are always statesmanlike in your views; -but I cannot understand why you let poor little Molly Brown carry on her -chirping when you had such an astonishing force in reserve. She must -have been covered with confusion, the poor little soul." - -"Nothing of the sort," said Mrs Woodburn, pursuing her favourite -occupation as usual. "She only said, 'Goodness me! how high Lucilla -goes! Do you like that dreadfully high music?' and made little -eyebrows." To be sure, the mimic made Miss Brown's eyebrows, and spoke -in her voice, so that even Lucilla found it a little difficult to keep -her gravity. But then Miss Marjoribanks was defended by her mission, and -she felt in her heart that, representing public interest as she did, it -was her duty to avoid all complicity in any attack upon an individual; -and consequently, to a certain extent, it was her duty also to put Mrs -Woodburn down. - -"Molly Brown has a very nice little voice," said Lucilla, with most -disheartening gravity. "I like to hear her sing, for my part--the only -thing is that she wants cultivation a little. It doesn't matter much you -know, whether or not you have a voice to begin with. It is cultivation -that is the thing," said Miss Marjoribanks deliberately. "I hope you -_really_ thought it was a pleasant evening. Of course everybody said so -to me; but then one can never put any faith in that. I have said it -myself ever so many times when I am sure I did not mean it. For myself, -I don't give any importance to the first evening. Anybody can do a thing -once, you know; the second and the third, and so on--that is the real -test. But I hope you thought it pleasant so far as it went." - -"It was a great deal more than pleasant," said Mr Cavendish; "and as for -your conception of social politics, it is masterly," the future M.P. -added, in a tone which struck Lucilla as very significant; not that she -cared particularly about Mr Cavendish's meaning, but still, when a young -man who intends to go into Parliament congratulates a young lady upon -her statesmanlike views, and her conception of politics, it must be -confessed that it looks a little particular; and then, if that was what -he meant, it was no doubt Lucilla's duty to make up her mind. - -"Oh, you know, I went through a course of political economy at Mount -Pleasant," she said, with a laugh. "One of the Miss Blounts was -dreadfully strong-minded. I wonder, for my part, that she did not make -me literary; but fortunately I escaped that." - -"Heaven be praised!" said Mr Cavendish. "I think you ought to be Prime -Minister. That contralto of yours is charming raw material; but if I -were you I would put her through an elementary course. She knows how to -sing, but she does not know how to move; and as for talking, she seems -to expect to be insulted. If you make a pretty-behaved young lady out of -that, you will beat Adam Smith." - -"Oh, I don't know much about Adam Smith," said Miss Marjoribanks. "I -think Miss Martha thought him rather old-fashioned. As for poor Barbara, -she is only a little shy, but that will soon wear off. I don't see what -need she has to talk--or to move either, for that matter. I thought she -did very well indeed for a girl who never goes into society. Was it not -clever of me to find her out the very first day I was in Carlingford? It -has always been so difficult to find a voice that went perfectly with -mine." - -"For my part, I think it was a great deal more than clever," said Mr -Cavendish; for Mrs Woodburn, finding herself unappreciated, was silent -and making notes. "It was a stroke of genius. So her name is Barbara? I -wonder if it would be indiscreet to ask where Mademoiselle Barbara comes -from, or if she belongs to anybody, or lives anywhere. My own impression -is that you mean to keep her shut up in a box all the week through, and -produce her only on the Thursday evenings. I have a weakness for a fine -contralto. If she had been existing in an ordinary habitation like other -people in Carlingford, I should have heard her, or heard of her. It is -clear to me that you keep her shut up in a box." - -"Exactly," said Lucilla. "I don't mean to tell you anything about her. -You may be sure, now I have found her out, I mean to keep her for -myself. Her box is quite a pretty one, like what Gulliver had somewhere. -It is just time for lunch, and you are both going to stay, I hope; and -there is poor Mary Chiley and her husband coming through the garden. -What a pity it is he is such a goose!" - -"Yes; but you know she never would take her uncle's advice, my dear," -said the incorrigible mimic, putting on Mrs Chiley's face; "and being an -orphan, what could anybody do? And then she does not get on with _his_ -family. By the way," Mrs Woodburn said, falling into her natural -tone--"I wonder if anybody ever does get on with her husband's family?" -The question was one which was a little grave to herself at the moment; -and this was the reason why she returned to her identity--for there was -no telling how long the Woodburns, who had come for Christmas, meant to -stay. "I shall be quite interested to watch _you_, Lucilla, when it -comes to be your turn, and see how you manage," she went on, with a keen -look at Miss Marjoribanks; and Mr Cavendish laughed. He too looked at -her, and Lucilla felt herself in rather a delicate position: not that -she was agitated, as might have been the case had the future M.P. for -Carlingford "engaged her affections," as she herself would have said. -Fortunately these young affections were quite free as yet; but -nevertheless Miss Marjoribanks felt that the question was a serious one, -as coming from the sister of a gentleman who was undeniably paying her -attention. She did not in the least wish to alarm a leading member of a -family into which it was possible she might enter; and then at the same -time she intended to reserve fully all her individual rights. - -"I always make it a point never to shock anybody's prejudices," said -Miss Marjoribanks. "I should do just the same with _them_ as with other -people; all you have to do is to show from the first that you mean to be -good friends with everybody. But then I am so lucky: I can _always_ get -on with people," said Lucilla, rising to greet the two unfortunates who -had come to Colonel Chiley's to spend a merry Christmas, and who did not -know what to do with themselves. And then they all went downstairs and -lunched together very pleasantly. As for Mr Cavendish, he was "quite -devoted," as poor Mary Chiley said, with a touch of envy. To be sure, -her trousseau was still in its full glory; but yet life under the -conditions of marriage was not nearly such fun as it had been when she -was a young lady, and had some one paying attention to her: and she -rather grudged Lucilla that climax of existence, notwithstanding her own -superior standing and dignity as a married lady. And Mrs Woodburn too -awoke from her study of the stupid young husband to remark upon her -brother's behaviour: she had not seen the two together so often as Mrs -Chiley had done, and consequently this was the first time that the -thought had occurred to her. She too had been born "one of the -Cavendishes," as it was common to say in Carlingford, with a certain -imposing yet vague grandeur--and she was a little shocked, like any good -sister, at the first idea. She watched Lucilla's movements and looks -with a quite different kind of attention after this idea struck her, and -made a rapid private calculation as to who Dr Marjoribanks's connections -were, and what he would be likely to give his daughter; so that it is -evident that Lucilla did not deceive herself, but that Mr Cavendish's -attentions must have been marked indeed. - -This was the little cloud which arose, as we have said, no bigger than a -man's hand, over Miss Marjoribanks's prosperous way. When the luncheon -was over and they had all gone, Lucilla took a few minutes to think it -over before she went out. It was not that she was unduly flattered by Mr -Cavendish's attentions, as might have happened to an inexperienced young -woman; for Lucilla, with her attractions and genius, had not reached the -mature age of nineteen without receiving the natural homage of mankind -on several clearly-defined occasions. But then the present case had -various features peculiar to itself, which prevented Lucilla from -crushing it in the bud, as she had meant to do with her cousin's -ill-fated passion. She had to consider, in the first place, her mission -in Carlingford, which was more important than anything else; but though -Miss Marjoribanks had vowed herself to the reorganisation of society in -her native town, she had not by any means vowed that it was absolutely -as Miss Marjoribanks that she was to accomplish that renovation. And -then there was something in the very idea of being M.P. for Carlingford -which moved the mind of Lucilla. It was a perfectly ideal position for a -woman of her views, and seemed to offer the very field that was -necessary for her ambition. This was the reason, of all others, which -made her less careful to prevent Mr Cavendish from "saying the words" -than she had been with Tom. To be sure, it would be a trial to leave the -drawing-room after it had just been furnished so entirely to her -liking--not to say to her complexion; but still it was a sacrifice which -might be made. It was in this way that Miss Marjoribanks prepared -herself for the possible modifications which circumstances might impose. -She did not make any rash resolution to resist a change which, on the -whole, might possibly be "for the best," but prepared herself to take -everything into consideration, and possibly to draw from it a superior -good: in short, she looked upon the matter as a superior mind, trained -in sound principles of political economy, might be expected to look upon -the possible vicissitudes of fortune, with an enlightened regard to the -uses of all things, and to the comparative values on either side. - -Barbara Lake, as it happened, was out walking at the very moment when -Miss Marjoribanks sat down to consider this question. She had gone to -the School of Design to meet Rose, with an amiability very unusual in -her. Rose had made such progress, after leaving Mount Pleasant, under -her father's care, and by the help of that fine feeling for art which -has been mentioned in the earlier part of this history, that the charge -of the female pupils in the School of Design had been confided to her, -with a tiny little salary, which served Mr Lake as an excuse for keeping -his favourite little daughter with him. Nothing could be supposed more -unlike Barbara than her younger sister, who just came up to her -shoulder, and was twice as serviceable and active and "nice," according -to the testimony of all the children. Barbara had led her father a hard -life, poor man! the time that Rose was at Mount Pleasant; but now that -his assistant had come back again, the poor drawing-master had recovered -all his old spirits. She was just coming out of the School of Design, -with her portfolio under her arm, when Barbara met her. There were not -many pupils, it is true, but still there were enough to worry poor Rose, -who was not an imposing personage, and who was daily wounded by the -discovery that after all there are but a limited number of persons in -this world, especially in the poorer classes of the community, and under -the age of sixteen, who have a feeling for art. It was utterly -inconceivable to the young teacher how her girls could be so clever as -to find out each a different way of putting the sublime features of the -Belveder Apollo out of drawing, and she was still revolving this -difficult problem when her sister joined her. Barbara, for her part, was -occupied with thoughts of a hero much more interesting than he of -Olympus. She was flushed and eager, and looking very handsome under her -shabby bonnet; and her anxiety to have a _confidante_ was so great that -she made a dart at Rose, and grasped her by the arm under which she was -carrying her portfolio, to the great discomposure of the young artist. -She asked, with a little anxiety, "What is the matter? is there anything -wrong at home?" and made a rapid movement to get to the other side. - -"Oh, Rose," said Barbara, panting with haste and agitation, "only fancy; -I have just seen him. I met him right in front of Masters's, and he took -off his hat to me. I feel in such a way--I can scarcely speak." - -"Met--who?" said Rose--for she was imperfect in her grammar, like most -people in a moment of emergency; and, besides, she shared to some extent -Miss Marjoribanks's reluctance to shock the prejudices of society, and -was disturbed by the idea that somebody might pass and see Barbara in -her present state of excitement, and perhaps attribute it to its true -cause. - -"Oh, you stupid little thing!" said Barbara, giving her "a shake" by her -disengaged arm. "I tell you, _him_!--the gentleman I met at Lucilla -Marjoribanks's. He looked as if he was quite delighted to see me again; -and I am sure he turned round to see where I was going. He couldn't -speak to me, you know, the first time; though indeed I shouldn't be the -least surprised if he had followed--at a distance, you know, only to see -where I live," said Barbara, turning round and searching into the -distance with her eager eyes. But there was nobody to be seen in the -street, except some of Rose's pupils lingering along in the sunshine, -and very probably exchanging similar confidences. Barbara turned back -again with a touch of disappointment. "I am quite sure he will find out -before long; and don't forget I said so," she added, with a little nod -of her head. - -"I don't see what it matters if he found out directly," said Rose. "Papa -would not let anybody come to our house that he did not approve of; and -then, you know, he will never have anything to say to people who are -patronising. I don't want to hear any more about your fine gentleman. If -you were worried as I am, you would think much more of getting home than -of anybody bowing to you in the street. One of the gentlemen from -Marlborough House once took off his hat to me," said Rose, with a -certain solemnity. "Of course I was pleased; but then I knew it was my -design he was thinking of--my Honiton flounce, you know. I suppose this -other one must have thought you had a pretty voice." - -This time, however, it was an angry shake that Barbara gave to her -sister. "I wish you would not be such a goose," she said; "who cares -about your Honiton flounce? He took off his hat because--because he -admired me, I suppose--and then it was a great deal more than just -taking off his hat. He gave me such a look! Papa has no sense, though I -suppose you will blaze up when I say so. He ought to think of us a -little. As for patronising, I should soon change that, I can tell you. -But then papa thinks of nothing but paying his bills and keeping out of -debt, as he says--as if everybody was not in debt; and how do you -suppose we are ever to get settled in life? It would be far more -sensible to spend a little more, and go into society a little, and do us -justice. Only think all that that old Doctor is doing for Lucilla; and -there are four of us when the little ones grow up," said Barbara, in a -tone of injury. "I should like to know what papa is thinking of? If -mamma had not died when she did----" - -"It was not poor mamma's fault," said Rose. "I dare say she would have -lived if she could for all our sakes. But then you have always taken a -false view of our position, Barbara. We are a family of _artists_," said -the little mistress of the School of Design. She had pretty eyes, very -dewy and clear, and they woke up under the excitement of this proud -claim. "When papa is appreciated as he deserves, and when Willie has -_made a name_" said Rose, with modest confidence, "things will be -different. But the true strength of our position is that we are a family -of artists. We are everybody's equal, and we are nobody's equal. We have -a rank of our own. If you would only remember this, you would not grudge -anything to Lucilla Marjoribanks; and then I am sure she has been very -kind to you." - -"Oh, bother!" said the unfeeling Barbara. "You do nothing but encourage -papa with your nonsense. And I should like to know what right Lucilla -Marjoribanks has to be kind to me? If I am not as good as she, it is a -very strange thing. I should never take the trouble to think about _him_ -if it was not that Lucilla believes he is paying her attention--that is -the great fun. It would be delicious to take him from her, and make game -of her and her kindness. Goodness! there he is again. I felt sure that -he would try to find out the house." - -And Barbara crimsoned higher than ever, and held Rose fast by the arm, -and called her attention by the most visible and indeed tangible signs -to the elegant apparition, like any other underbred young woman. As for -Rose, she was a little gentlewoman born, and had a horror unspeakable of -her sister's bad manners. When Mr Cavendish made a movement as if to -address Barbara, it was the pretty gray eyes of Rose lifted to his face -with a look of straightforward surprise and inquiry which made him -retire so hastily. He took off his hat again more respectfully than -before, and pursued his walk along Grove Street, as if he had no -ulterior intention in visiting that humble part of the town. As for -Barbara, she held Rose faster than ever, and almost pinched her arm to -make her listen. "I knew he was trying to find out the house," she said, -in an exultant whisper. "And Lucilla thinks he is paying her -attention!" For the fact was, that when Miss Marjoribanks took to being -kind to Barbara, she conferred upon the contralto at the same moment a -palpable injury and grievance, which was what the drawing-master's -daughter had been looking for, for several years of her life. And -naturally Lucilla, who was at this moment thinking it all over under the -soft green shadows from her new hangings, was deprived of the light -which might have been thrown on her reflections, had she seen what was -going on in Grove Street. The conditions of humanity are such that even -a woman of genius cannot altogether overstep them. And Lucilla still -continued to think that Mr Cavendish was paying her attention, which, -indeed, was also the general opinion in Grange Lane. - - - - -_Chapter XII_ - - -The second of her Thursday evenings found Miss Marjoribanks, though -secure, perhaps more anxious than on the former occasion. The charm of -the first novelty was gone, and Lucilla did not feel quite sure that her -subjects had the good sense to recognise all the benefits which she was -going to confer upon them. "It is the second time that counts," she said -in confidence to Mrs Chiley. "Last Thursday they wanted to see the -drawing-room, and they wanted to know what sort of thing it was to be. -Dear Mrs Chiley, it is to-night that is the test," said Lucilla, giving -a nervous pressure to her old friend's hand; at least a pressure that -would have betokened the existence of nerves in any one else but Miss -Marjoribanks, whose magnificent organisation was beyond any suspicion of -such weakness. But, nevertheless, Mrs Chiley, who watched her with -grandmotherly interest, was comforted to perceive that Lucilla, as on -the former occasion, had strength of mind to eat her dinner. "She wants -a little support, poor dear," the old lady said in her heart; for she -was a kinder critic than the younger matrons, who felt instinctively -that Miss Marjoribanks was doing what they ought to have done. She took -her favourite's arm in hers as they went upstairs, and gave Mr Cavendish -a kindly nod as he opened the door for them. "He will come and give you -his assistance as soon as ever he can get away from the gentlemen," -said Mrs Chiley, in her consolatory tone; "but, good gracious, Lucilla, -what is the matter?" The cause of this exclamation was a universal hum -and rustle as of many dresses and many voices; and, to tell the truth, -when Miss Marjoribanks and her companion reached the top of the stairs, -they found themselves lost in a laughing crowd, which had taken refuge -on the landing. "There is no room, Lucilla. Lucilla, everybody in -Carlingford is here. Do make a little room for us in the drawing-room," -cried this overplus of society. If there was an enviable woman in -Carlingford at that moment, it certainly was Miss Marjoribanks, standing -on the top of her own stairs, scarcely able to penetrate through the -throng of her guests. Her self-possession did not forsake her at this -supreme moment. She grasped Mrs Chiley once again with a little -significant gesture which pleased the old lady, for she could not but -feel that she was Lucilla's only _confidante_ in her brilliant but -perilous undertaking. "_They_ will not be able to get in when they come -upstairs," said Miss Marjoribanks; and whether the faint inflection in -her voice meant exultation or disappointment, her old friend could not -tell. - -But the scene changed when the rightful sovereign entered the gay but -disorganised dominion where her subjects attended her. Before any one -knew how it was done, Miss Marjoribanks had re-established order, and, -what was still more important, made room. She said, "You girls have no -business to get into corners. The corners are for the people that can -talk. It is one of my principles always to flirt in the middle of the -company," said Lucilla; and again, as happened so often, ignorant people -laughed and thought it a _bon mot_. But it is needless to inform the -more intelligent persons who understand Miss Marjoribanks, that it was -by no means a _bon mot_, but expressed Lucilla's convictions with the -utmost sincerity. - -Thus it happened that the second Thursday was more brilliant and -infinitely more gratifying than the first had been. For one thing, she -felt sure that it was not to see the new furniture, nor to criticise -this new sort of entertainment, but with the sincerest intention of -enjoying themselves, that all the people had come; and there are moments -when the egotism of the public conveys the highest compliment that can -be paid to the great minds which take in hand to rule and to amuse it. -The only drawback was, that Barbara Lake did not show the same modesty -and reticence as on the former occasion. Far from being sensibly -silent, which she had been so prudent as to be on Miss Marjoribanks's -first Thursday, she forgot herself so far as to occupy a great deal of -Mr Cavendish's valuable time, which he might have employed much more -usefully. She not only sang by herself when he asked her, having brought -some music with her unseen by Lucilla, but she kept her seat upon the -stool before the piano ever so long afterwards, detaining him, and, as -Miss Marjoribanks had very little doubt, making an exhibition of -herself: for Barbara, having received one good gift from nature, had -been refused the other, and could not talk. When Lucilla, arrested in -the midst of her many occupations, heard her protégée's voice rising -alone, she stopped quite short with an anxiety which it was touching to -behold. It was not the jealousy of a rival cantatrice which inspired -Miss Marjoribanks's countenance, but the far broader and grander anxiety -of an accomplished statesman, who sees a rash and untrained hand -meddling with his most delicate machinery. Lucilla ignored everything -for the moment--her own voice, and Mr Cavendish's attentions, and every -merely secondary and personal emotion. All these details were swallowed -up in the fear that Barbara would not acquit herself as it was necessary -for the credit of the house that she should acquit herself; that she -should not sing well enough, or that she should sing too much. Once more -Miss Marjoribanks put her finger upon the pulse of the community as she -and they listened together. Fortunately, things went so far well that -Barbara sang her very best, and kept up her prestige: but it was -different in the second particular; for, unluckily, the contralto knew a -great many songs, and showed no inclination to stop. Nothing remained -for it but a bold _coup_, which Lucilla executed with all her natural -coolness and success. - -"My dear Barbara," she said, putting her hands on the singer's shoulders -as she finished her strain, "that is enough for to-night. Mr Cavendish -will take you downstairs and get you a cup of tea; for you know there is -no room to-night to serve it upstairs." Thus Miss Marjoribanks proved -herself capable of preferring her great work to her personal sentiments, -which is generally considered next to impossible for a woman. She did -what perhaps nobody else in the room was capable of doing: she sent away -the gentleman who was paying attention to her, in company with the girl -who was paying attention to him; and at that moment, as was usual when -she was excited, Barbara was splendid, with her crimson cheeks, and the -eyes blazing out from under her level eyebrows. This Miss Marjoribanks -did, not in ignorance, but with a perfect sense of what she was about. -It was the only way of preventing her Evening from losing its -distinctive character. It was the Lamp of sacrifice which Lucilla had -now to employ, and she proved herself capable of the exertion. But it -would be hopeless to attempt to describe the indignation of old Mrs -Chiley, or the unmitigated amazement of the company in general, which -was conscious at the same time that Mr Cavendish was paying attention to -Miss Marjoribanks, and that he had been flirting in an inexcusable -manner with Miss Lake. "My dear, I would have nothing to do with that -bold girl," Mrs Chiley said in Lucilla's ear. "I will go down and look -after them if you like. A girl like that always leads the gentlemen -astray, you know. I never liked the looks of her. Let me go downstairs -and look after them, my dear. I am sure I want a cup of tea." - -"You shall have a cup of tea, dear Mrs Chiley," said Miss -Marjoribanks--"some of them will bring you one; but I can't let you take -any trouble about Barbara. She had to be stopped, you know, or she would -have turned us into a musical party; and as for Mr Cavendish, he is the -best assistant I have. There are so few men in Carlingford who can -flirt," said Lucilla regretfully. Her eyes fell as she spoke upon young -Osmond Brown, who was actually at that moment talking to Mr Bury's -curate, with a disregard of his social duties painful to contemplate. -Poor Osmond started when he met Miss Marjoribanks's reproachful eye. - -"But then I don't know how," said the disconcerted youth,--and he -flushed, poor boy, being only eighteen, and not much more than a -schoolboy. As for Lucilla, who had no intention of putting up with that -sort of thing, she sent off the curate summarily for Mrs Chiley's cup of -tea. - -"I did not mean you, my dear Osy," she said, in her motherly tone. "When -you are a little older we shall see what you can do; but you are not at -all disagreeable for a boy," she added encouragingly, and took Osmond's -arm as she made her progress down the room with an indulgence worthy of -her maturer years; and even Mrs Centum and Mrs Woodburn and the Miss -Browns, who were, in a manner, Lucilla's natural rivals, could not but -be impressed with this evidence of her powers. They were like the Tuscan -chivalry in the ballad, who could scarce forbear a cheer at the sight -of their opponent's prowess. Perhaps nothing that she could have done -would have so clearly demonstrated the superiority of her genius to her -female audience as that bold step of stopping the music, which began to -be too much, by sending off the singer downstairs under charge of Mr -Cavendish. To be sure the men did not even find out what it was that -awoke the ladies' attention; but then, in delicate matters of social -politics, one never expects to be understood by _them_. - -Barbara Lake, as was to be expected, took a very long time over her cup -of tea; and even when she returned upstairs she made another pause on -the landing, which was still kept possession of by a lively stream of -young people coming and going. Barbara had very little experience, and -she was weak enough to believe that Mr Cavendish lingered there to have -a little more of her society all to himself; but to tell the truth, his -sentiments were of a very different description. For by this time it -must be owned that Barbara's admirer began to feel a little ashamed of -himself. He could not but be conscious of Lucilla's magnanimity; and, at -the same time, he was very well aware that his return with his present -companion would be watched and noted and made the subject of comment a -great deal more amusing than agreeable. When he did take Barbara in at -last, it was with a discomfited air which tickled the spectators beyond -measure. And as his evil luck would have it, notwithstanding the long -pause he had made on the landing, to watch his opportunity of entering -unobserved, Miss Marjoribanks was the first to encounter the returning -couple. They met full in the face, a few paces from the door--exactly, -as Mrs Chiley said, as if it had been Mr and Mrs Cavendish on their -wedding visit, and the lady of the house had gone to meet them. As for -the unfortunate gentleman, he could not have looked more utterly -disconcerted and guilty if he had been convicted of putting the spoons -in his pocket, or of having designs upon the silver tea-service. He -found a seat for his companion with all the haste possible; and instead -of lingering by her side, as she had anticipated, made off on the -instant, and hid himself like a criminal in the dark depths of a group -of men who were talking together near the door. These were men who were -hopeless, and good for nothing but to talk to each other, and whom Miss -Marjoribanks tolerated in her drawing-room partly because their wives, -with an excusable weakness, insisted on bringing them, and partly -because they made a foil to the brighter part of the company, and served -as a butt when anybody wanted to be witty. As for Lucilla, she made no -effort to recall the truant from the ranks of the Incurables. It was the -only vengeance she took upon his desertion. When he came to take leave -of her, she was standing with her hand in that of Mrs Chiley, who was -also going away. "I confess I was a little nervous this evening," Miss -Marjoribanks was saying. "You know it is always the second that is the -test. But I think, on the whole, it has gone off very well. Mr -Cavendish, you promised to tell me the truth; for you know I have great -confidence in your judgment. Tell me sincerely, do you think it has been -a pleasant evening?" Lucilla said, with a beautiful earnestness, looking -him in the face. - -The guilty individual to whom this question was addressed felt disposed -to sink into the earth, if the earth, in the shape of Mr Holden's -beautiful new carpet, would but have opened to receive him; but, after -all, that was perhaps not a thing to be desired under the circumstances. -Mr Cavendish, however, was a man of resources, and not disposed to give -up the contest without striking a blow in his own defence. - -"Not so pleasant as last Thursday," he said. "I am not fit to be a -lady's adviser, for I am too sincere; but I incline to think it is the -third that is the test," said the future M.P.; and Lucilla made him, as -Mrs Chiley remarked, the most beautiful curtsey; but then nothing could -be more delightful than the manner in which that dear girl behaved -through the whole affair. - -"If everybody would only help me as you do!" said Miss Marjoribanks. -"Good-night; I am so sorry you have not enjoyed yourself. But then it is -such a consolation to meet with people that are sincere. And I think, on -the whole, it has gone off very well for the second," said Lucilla, -"though I say it that should not say it." The fact was, it had gone off -so well that the house could hardly be cleared of the amiable and -satisfied guests. A series of the most enthusiastic compliments were -paid to Lucilla as she stood in state in the middle of the room, and -bade everybody good-bye. "Next Thursday," she said, with the benevolent -grace of an acknowledged sovereign. And when they were all gone, Miss -Marjoribanks's reflections, as she stood alone in the centre of her -domains, were of a nature very different from the usual reflections -which the giver of a feast is supposed to make when all is over. But -then, as everybody is aware, it was not a selfish desire for personal -pleasure, nor any scheme of worldly ambition, which moved the mind of -Lucilla. With such motives it is only natural that the conclusion, "All -is vanity," should occur to the weary entertainer in the midst of his -withered flowers and extinguished lights. Such ideas had nothing in -common with the enlightened conceptions of Miss Marjoribanks. Perhaps it -would be false to say that she had suffered in the course of this second -Thursday, or that a superior intelligence like Lucilla's could permit -itself to feel any jealousy of Barbara Lake; but it would be vain to -deny that she had been _surprised_. And any one who knows Miss -Marjoribanks will acknowledge that a great deal was implied in that -confession. But then she had triumphed over the weakness, and -triumphantly proved that her estimate of the importance of her work went -far beyond the influence of mere personal feeling. In these -circumstances Lucilla could contemplate her withered flowers with -perfect calmness, without any thought that all was vanity. But then the -fact was, Miss Marjoribanks was accomplishing a great public duty, and -at the same time had the unspeakable consolation of knowing that she had -proved herself a comfort to her dear papa. The Doctor, it is true, after -looking on for a little with a half-amused consciousness that his own -assistance was totally unnecessary, had gradually veered into a corner, -and from thence had finally managed to escape downstairs to his beloved -library. But then the sense of security and tranquillity with which he -established himself at the fire, undisturbed by the gay storm that raged -outside, gave a certain charm to his retirement. He rubbed his hands and -listened, as a man listens to the wind howling out of doors, when he is -in shelter and comfort. So that, after all, Lucilla's sensation of -having accomplished her filial duties in the most effective manner was -to a certain extent justified, while at the same time it is quite -certain that nobody missed Dr Marjoribanks from the pleasant assembly -upstairs. - - - - -_Chapter XIII_ - - -It was thus that the reign of Miss Marjoribanks became gradually -established and confirmed in Carlingford. It would be unnecessary to -enter into detail, or to redouble instances of that singular genius -which made itself so fully felt to the furthest limits of society, and -which even indeed extended those limits miraculously beyond the magic -circle of Grange Lane. Lucilla's powers beguiled not only the Powells -and Sir John Richmond's family, who were, as everybody knows, fully -entitled to be called county people, and came only on the Thursdays when -there was moonlight to light them home, which was not so much to be -wondered at, since county society in those parts was unusually heavy at -that period; but even, what was more extraordinary, Miss Marjoribanks -made a lodgment in the enemy's country on the other side, and made a -capture, of all people in the world, of John Brown, who lived in his -father's big old house at the _town_ end of George Street, and had -always laughed in his cynical way at the pretensions of Grange Lane. But -then Lucilla had, as all the ladies admitted, an influence over "the -gentlemen," of which, as was natural, they were slightly contemptuous, -even if perhaps envious, to some extent, of the gift. For everybody -knows that it requires very little to satisfy the gentlemen, if a woman -will only give her mind to it. As for Miss Marjoribanks herself, she -confessed frankly that she did her best to please Them. "For you know, -after all, in Carlingford, one is obliged to take them into -consideration," she said, with a natural apology. "So many of you poor -dear people have to go where they like, and see the people they want you -to see," Miss Marjoribanks added, fluttering her maiden plumes with a -certain disdainful pity in the very eyes of Mrs Centum and Mrs Woodburn, -who were well aware, both of them, at the bottom of their hearts, that -but for Dr Marjoribanks's dinners, their selfish mates would find -infinite objections to the Thursday evening, which was now an -institution in Carlingford. And Lucilla knew it just as well as they -did, which gave a certain sense of condescension and superiority to her -frankness. "I never pretend I don't try to please them," Miss -Marjoribanks said; and the matrons found themselves worsted as usual; -for, to be sure, it was not for _Them_, but for the good of the -community in general, that Lucilla exerted herself so successfully. - -Nothing, indeed, could have proved more completely the disinterested -character of Miss Marjoribanks's proceedings than her behaviour in -respect to Mr Cavendish. After the bold and decisive action taken by -Lucilla on the first occasion when the flirtation between him and -Barbara Lake became apparent, the misguided young man returned to a -better frame of mind; perhaps out of admiration for her magnanimity, -perhaps attracted by her indifference, as is the known and ascertained -weakness of the gentlemen. And perhaps also Mr Cavendish was ashamed of -himself, as, in Mrs Chiley's opinion at least, he had so much reason to -be. Anyhow, whatever the cause, he behaved himself with the profoundest -decorum for several weeks in succession, and treated the contralto with -such overwhelming politeness as reduced poor Barbara out of her -momentary exultation into the depths of humiliation and despair. Mr -Cavendish was Lucilla's right hand for that short but virtuous period, -and fully justified Miss Marjoribanks's opinion, which was founded at -once upon reflection and experience, that to have a man who can flirt is -next thing to indispensable to a leader of society; that is to say, if -he is under efficient discipline, and capable of carrying out a grand -conception. Everything went on delightfully so long as this interval -lasted, and Lucilla herself did not disdain to recompense her faithful -assistant by bestowing upon him various little privileges, such as -naturally appertain to a subject whose place is on the steps of the -throne. She took him into her confidence, and made him to a certain -extent a party to her large and philanthropic projects, and even now and -then accepted a suggestion from him with that true candour and modesty -which so often accompany administrative genius. While this continued, -kind old Mrs Chiley kept caressing them both in her old-womanly way. She -even went so far as to call Mr Cavendish "my dear," as if he had been a -grandson of her own, and took her afternoon drive in her little brougham -past his house with a genial sense of prospective property through -Lucilla, which was wonderfully pleasant. To be sure there was not very -much known in Carlingford about his connections; but then everybody was -aware that he was one of the Cavendishes, and the people who are not -content with that must be hard indeed to please. As for Mrs Woodburn, -she, it was true, continued to "take off" Miss Marjoribanks; but then, -as Mrs Chiley justly remarked, she was a woman who would take off the -Archbishop of Canterbury or the Virgin Mary, if she had the opportunity; -and there was no fear but Lucilla, if once married, would soon bring her -to her senses; and then Mr Chiltern grew more and more feeble, and was -scarcely once in a fortnight in his place in Parliament, which was a -sacrifice of the interests of the borough dreadful to contemplate. And -thus it was in the interests of Lucilla, notwithstanding that ladies are -not eligible for election under such circumstances, that Mrs Chiley -carried on a quiet little canvass for the future M.P. - -All this lasted, alas! only too short a time. After a while the level -eyebrows and flashing eyes and magnificent voice of Barbara Lake began -to reassert their ancient power. Whatever may be the predisposition of -the Cavendishes in general, this particular member of the race was -unable to resist these influences. Barbara had managed to persuade Rose -to persuade her father that it was necessary for her to have a new -dress; and Mr Lake was more persuadable than usual, being naturally -pleased to be complimented, when he went to give his lessons, on his -daughter's beautiful voice. "Her talent has taken another development -from _ours_," he said, with his little air of dignity, "but still she -has the artist temperament. All my children have been brought up to love -the beautiful;" and this argument had, of course, all the more effect -upon him when repeated by his favourite daughter. "And then Barbara has -such a noble head," said Rose; "when nobody is looking at her she always -makes a fine composition. To be sure, when she is observed she gets -awkward, and puts herself out of drawing; but that is not to be wondered -at. I don't want her to be fine, or to imitate the Grange Lane people; -but then, you know, papa, you always say that we have a rank of our own, -being a family of artists," said Rose, holding up her little head with a -pretty arrogance which delighted the father both in a paternal and a -professional point of view. "If one could only have made a study of her -at that moment," he said to himself regretfully; and he consented to -Barbara's dress. - -As for the contralto, whose sentiments were very different from those of -her father and sister, she watched over the making of the robe thus -procured with a certain jealous care which nobody unacquainted with the -habits of a family of artists could understand. Barbara's talent was not -sufficiently developed to permit of her making it herself; but she knew -already by sad experience that Rose's views of what was picturesque in -costume were peculiar, and not always successful. And then it was only a -new dress to Rose, whereas to Barbara it was a supreme effort of passion -and ambition and jealousy and wounded _amour propre_. Mr Cavendish had -paid a great deal of attention to her, and she had naturally entertained -dreams of the wildest and most magnificent character--of riding in her -carriage, as she would herself have said, and dressing as nobody else -dressed in Carlingford, and becoming the great lady of the town, and -eclipsing utterly Lucilla Marjoribanks, who had been so impertinent as -to patronise her. Such had been Barbara's delicious dreams for a whole -fortnight; and then Mr Cavendish, who had taken her up, put her down -again, and went away from her side, and delivered himself over, heart -and soul, to the service of Lucilla. Barbara had no intellect to speak -of, but she had what she called a heart--that is to say, a vital centre -of inclinations and passions, all of which were set in motion by that -intense force of self-regard which belongs to some of the lower -organisations. Thus she arrayed herself, not in simple muslin, but in -all the power of fascination which a strong will and fixed purpose can -add to beauty. And in her excitement, and with the sense she had that -this was her opportunity, and that advancement and grandeur depended -upon the result of her night's work, her level eyebrows, and flushing -cheeks, and black intense eyes, rose almost into positive beauty. There -was nobody in the room to compare with her when she stood up to sing on -that memorable evening. The Miss Browns, for example, were very pretty, -especially Lydia, who was afterwards married to young Richmond, Sir -John's eldest son; and they were much _nicer_ girls, and far more -engaging than Barbara Lake, who was not even a lady, Mrs Chiley said. -But then her determination, though it was a poor enough thing in itself, -gave a certain glow and passion to her coarser beauty. - -When she stood up to sing, the whole room was struck with her -appearance. She had her new dress on, and though it was only white -muslin like other people's, it gave her the air of a priestess inspired -by some approaching crisis, and sweeping forward upon the victim who -was ready to be sacrificed. And yet the victim that night was far from -being ready for the sacrifice. On the contrary, he had been thinking it -all over, and had concluded that prudence and every other reasonable -sentiment were on the other side, and that in many ways it would be a -very good thing for him if he could persuade Miss Marjoribanks to -preside over and share his fortunes. He had made up his mind to this -with all the more certainty that he was a man habitually prone to run -off after everything that attracted him, in direct opposition to -prudence--an inclination which he shared with his sister, who, as -everybody knew, had ruined poor Mr Woodburn's fortunes by "taking off," -before his very face, the only rich uncle in the Woodburn family. Mr -Cavendish, with this wise resolution in his mind, stood up in the very -path of the contralto as she followed Miss Marjoribanks to the piano, -and, confident in his determination, even allowed himself to meet her -eye--which was rash, to say the least of it. Barbara flashed upon him as -she passed a blaze of intense oblique lightning from under her level -brows--or perhaps it was only that straight black line which made it -look oblique--and then went on to her place. The result was such as -might have been anticipated from the character of the man. Barbara was -in richer voice than ever before, and all but obliterated even Lucilla, -though she too was singing her best; and thus poor Mr Cavendish again -fell into the snare. That very night the flirtation, which had already -created so much talk, was resumed with more energy than ever; and -Barbara took Miss Marjoribanks's place at the piano, and sang song after -song in a kind of intoxication of triumph. This, to be sure, was visible -only to a small portion of the guests who crowded Lucilla's -drawing-room. But the result was soon so visible that all Carlingford -became aware of it. The hero wavered so much that the excitement was -kept up for many weeks; but still from the first nobody could have any -reasonable doubt as to how it was to end. - -And it was while this process of seduction was going on that the -character of Miss Marjoribanks revealed itself in all its native -grandeur. Lucilla had various kind friends round her to advise her, and -especially old Mrs Chiley, whose indignation went beyond all bounds. "My -dear, I would never let her enter my door again--never!" cried the old -lady; "I told you long ago I never could bear her looks--you know I -warned you, Lucilla. As for her singing, what does it matter? You have a -much prettier voice than she has: everybody knows that a soprano is -perfect by itself, but a contralto is only a _second_," Mrs Chiley said, -with mingled wrath and satisfaction; "and, my dear, I should never let -her enter my house again, if it was me." - -"Dear Mrs Chiley," said Lucilla, who was now, as usual, equal to the -occasion, "it is so nice of you to be vexed. You know I would do -anything to please you;--but, after all, there are thousands and -thousands of gentlemen, and it is not so easy to find a voice that goes -with mine. All my masters always said it was a quite peculiar second I -wanted; and suppose Barbara is foolish, that is not to say I should -forget _my_ duties," Miss Marjoribanks added, with a certain solemnity; -"and then, you know, she has no mother to keep her right." - -"And neither have you, my poor dear," said Mrs Chiley, kissing her -protégée. As for Lucilla, she accepted the kiss, but repressed the -enthusiasm of partisanship with which her cause was being maintained. - -"I have _you_," she said, with artless gratitude; "and then I am -different," added Lucilla. Nothing but modesty of the most delicate -description could have expressed the fact with such a fine reticence. No -doubt Miss Marjoribanks was different; and she proved her superiority, -if anybody could have doubted it, by the most beautiful behaviour. She -took no more notice of the unprincipled flirtation thus set agoing under -her very eyes, than if Mr Cavendish and Barbara Lake had been two -figures in gingerbread. So far as anybody knew, not even a flying female -shaft from Lucilla's bow, one of those dainty projectiles which the best -of women cast forth by times, had ever been directed against the -ungrateful young person who had made so unprincipled a use of her -admittance into Grange Lane; and the faithless gallant had not even the -gratification of feeling that Lucilla was "cool" to him. Whether this -singular self-denial cost Miss Marjoribanks any acute sufferings, nobody -could tell, but Mrs Chiley still marked with satisfaction that Lucilla, -poor dear, was able to eat her dinner, of which she had so much need to -support her strength; and after she had eaten her dinner Miss -Marjoribanks would go upstairs and show herself just as usual. She was -in perfect voice, and neither lost her colour, nor grew thin, nor showed -any of those external signs of a disappointment in love with which most -people are familiar. "It might have been different, you know, if my -affections had been engaged," she said to her sole and sympathising -counsellor; and Mrs Chiley, who had had a great deal of experience in -girls, became more and more of opinion that such sense was all but -superhuman. - -Meantime the tide of public opinion ran very high in Carlingford against -Mr Cavendish, who had been so popular a little while before. If it had -been one of the Miss Browns, or a niece of the Colonel's, or indeed -anybody in Grange Lane, people might have passed over it--but one of Mr -Lake the drawing-master's daughters! The only person indifferent was Mrs -Woodburn, who ought to have known better; but then she was thoughtless, -like her brother, and liked it all the better, on the whole, that he -should transfer those attentions which he had been paying to Miss -Marjoribanks, and which in that quarter must have come to something, to -a little harmless amusement with Barbara, who, after all, was very -handsome, and had by times a little air of obdurate stupidity which -captivated the mimic. As for anything coming of _that_, Mrs Woodburn -rejected the idea with a simplicity which was perfectly consistent with -her insight into other people's weaknesses. She could put on Barbara's -stolid defiant look, and even make her eyebrows square, and give -something of an oblique gleam to her eyes, with the most perfect skill -and mastery of the character, and at the same time be just as stolid as -Barbara in respect to what was going on at her very hand, and to the -consequences which must follow. She did not want her brother to marry -Miss Marjoribanks, and yet she could not have said a word against so -unexceptionable a match; and accordingly it was quite a satisfaction to -her to see him turned aside in so perfectly legitimate a manner. She -added to her repertory a sketch of Barbara at the moment when, yielding -to Mr Cavendish's entreaties, she seated herself at the piano "for just -one song"; and being perfectly successful in the representation, Mrs -Woodburn took no further care about the matter. To be sure, the hero was -sufficiently experienced in such matters to know how to get out of it -when it should be the proper time. - -Thus the affair progressed which was to have far more serious -consequences than these thoughtless persons dreamed of. Barbara ascended -again to the heights of exultation and enchantment. Perhaps she was even -a little in love; for, after all, she was young, and grateful to the man -who thus distinguished her from the world. Yet, on the whole, it is to -be feared that his house and his position in society, and the prospect -of unlimited millinery, were more to her than Mr Cavendish. All these -details were not perhaps contemplated by himself as he devoted himself -to the handsome contralto. He had not begun to dream, as Barbara had -done for a long time, of the wedding breakfast and the orange blossoms, -or even of furnishing a new drawing-room handsomer than Miss -Marjoribanks's, and giving parties which should be real parties and not -mere Thursdays. None of these imaginations occupied Mr Cavendish as he -followed Barbara's glowing cheeks and flashing eyes to his undoing. But -then if he did not mean it she meant it; and, after all, there are -occasions in which the woman's determination is the more important of -the two. So that, taking everything into consideration, there can be no -doubt that it was very fortunate that Lucilla's affections were not -engaged. She behaved as nobody else in Carlingford was capable of -behaving, and very few people anywhere, according to Mrs Chiley's -admiring belief. It was not for a vulgar antagonist like Barbara Lake to -touch Lucilla. The way in which she asked her to lunch and went on -practising duets with her was angelical--it brought the tears to Mrs -Chiley's eyes; and as for the domestic traitor whom Miss Marjoribanks -thus contrived to warm in her magnanimous bosom, she was sometimes so -full of spite and disappointment that she could neither eat her lunch -nor go on with her singing. For, to be sure, the dearest climax of her -triumph was wanting so long as Lucilla took no notice; and so far from -taking any notice, Miss Marjoribanks was sweeter and more friendly than -usual in her serene unconsciousness. "I am so afraid you have caught -cold," Lucilla would say; "if you don't feel clear in your lower notes, -we can pass over this passage, you know, for to-day. You must see papa -before you go away, and he will order you something; but, my dear -Barbara, you must take care." And then Barbara could have eaten her -fingers instead of the gloves which she kept biting in her vexation. -For, to tell the truth, if Miss Marjoribanks was not jealous, the -victory was but half a victory after all. - - - - -_Chapter XIV_ - - -It was thus that Miss Marjoribanks went through all the preliminary -stages, and succeeded finally in making a triumph out of what would -certainly have been a defeat, and a humbling defeat, for anybody else. -She was much too sensible to deceive herself on the subject, or not to -be aware that to have a gentleman who was paying attention to her -withdrawn from her side in this open manner in the sight of all the -world, was as trying an accident as can happen to a woman. Fortunately, -as Lucilla said, her affections were not engaged; but then, apart from -the affections, there are other sentiments which demand consideration. -Everybody in Carlingford knew that Mr Cavendish had been paying her a -great deal of attention, and the situation was one which required the -most delicate skill to get through it successfully. Besides, Miss -Marjoribanks's circumstances were all the more difficult, since up to -this moment she had been perfectly sincere and natural in all her -proceedings. Policy had been constantly inspired and backed by nature in -the measures Lucilla had taken for the organisation and welfare of her -kingdom, and even what people took for the cleverest calculation was in -reality a succession of happy instincts, by means of which, with the -sovereignty of true genius, Miss Marjoribanks managed to please -everybody by having her own way. A little victory is almost necessary to -begin with, and it is a poor nature that does not expand under the -stimulus of victory; but now the young reformer had come to the second -stage. For, to be sure, that sort of thing cannot last for ever; and -this Lucilla, with the natural prevision of a ruling mind, had foreseen -from the beginning. The shape in which she had feared defeat, if a -nature so full of resources could ever be said to fear, was that of a -breakdown, when all the world was looking to her for amusement, or the -sudden appearance of a rival entertainer in Carlingford with superior -powers: though the last was but a dim and improbable danger, the first -was quite possible, and might have arrived at any moment. Miss -Marjoribanks was much too sensible not to have foreseen this danger in -all its shapes, and even in a kind of way to have provided against it. -But Providence, which had always taken care of her, as Lucilla piously -concluded, had spared her the trial in that form. Up to this moment it -had always providentially happened that all the principal people in -Carlingford were quite well and disengaged on the "evening." To be sure, -the ladies had headaches, and the married gentlemen now and then were -out of temper in Grange Lane as in other less favoured places; but these -social accidents had been mercifully averted on Thursdays, perhaps by -means of some special celestial agency, perhaps only through that -good-luck which had been born with Lucilla. Not in this vulgar and -likely manner was the trial of her strength to come. - -But when she was at the height of her success, and full in the eye of -the world, and knew that everybody was remarking her, and that from the -sauces for which the Doctor's table was once so famed, but which even -Colonel Chiley no longer thought of identifying as Dr Marjoribanks's, to -the fashion of the _high_ white frock in which Lucilla had taught the -young ladies of Carlingford to appear of an evening, she was being -imitated on every hand,--at that moment, when an ordinary person would -have had her head turned, and gone wild with too much success, Miss -Marjoribanks suddenly saw her dragon approaching her. Just then, when -she could not put on a new ribbon, or do her hair in a different style, -without all Carlingford knowing of it--at that epoch of intoxication and -triumph the danger came, sudden, appalling, and unlooked for. If Lucilla -was staggered by the encounter, she never showed it, but met the -difficulty like a woman of mettle, and scorned to flinch. It had come to -be summer weather when the final day arrived upon which Mr Cavendish -forgot himself altogether, and went over to the insidious enemy whom -Miss Marjoribanks had been nourishing in her bosom. Fifty eyes were upon -Lucilla watching her conduct at that critical moment--fifty ears were on -the strain to divine her sentiments in her voice, and to catch some -intonation at least which should betray her consciousness of what was -going on. - -But if Miss Marjoribanks's biographer has fitly discharged his duty, the -readers of this history will have no difficulty in divining that the -curiosity of the spectators got no satisfaction from Lucilla. Many -people even supposed she had not remarked anything, her composure was so -perfect. No growing red or growing pale, no harsh notes in her voice, -nor evidence of distracted attention, betrayed that her mind was -elsewhere while she was attending to her guests; and yet, to be sure, -she saw, just as other people did, that Barbara, all flushed and -crimson, with her eyes blazing under their sullen brows, stood in a glow -of triumph at the open window, with Mr Cavendish in devoted -attendance--a captive at her chariot-wheels. Matters had been -progressing to this point for some time; but yet the two culprits had -never before showed themselves so lost to all sense of propriety. -Instead of fainting or getting pale, or showing any other symptoms of -violent despite, Lucilla went upon her airy way, indirectly approaching -this point of interest. She went up and chatted with them, and ordered -Mr Cavendish to find a chair for Barbara. "What can you be thinking of -to let her stand so near the window? If she were to catch cold and lose -her voice, what should we all do?" said Lucilla; and she established the -two in the most commodious corner before she left them. "Take care she -does not go back again into the draught," were her parting words, and -even the culprits themselves could do nothing but stare at each other -with consternation and shame. - -This was all the notice Lucilla took of what was going on. If she was -affronted, or if she was wounded, nobody found it out; and when Mrs -Chiley offered the tribute of her indignation and sympathy, it has -already been recorded how her young friend responded to her. -"Fortunately my affections never were engaged," Lucilla said, and no -doubt that was a great advantage; but then, as we have said, there are -other things besides affections to be taken into account when the woman -whom you have been kind to snaps up the man who has been paying -attention to you, not only before your eyes, but before the eyes of all -the world. The result of her masterly conduct on this occasion was that -her defeat became, as we have said, a triumph for Miss Marjoribanks. To -be sure, it is to be hoped that, in the sweets of their mutual regard, -the two criminals found compensation for the disapproval of the -spectators; but nothing could be more marked than the way in which -Carlingford turned its cold shoulder on its early favourite. "I never -imagined Cavendish was such a fool," Mr Centum said, who was a man of -few words; "if he likes that style of philandering, it is nothing to me, -but he need not make an idiot of himself." As for Mr Woodburn, he, as -was natural, inflicted vicarious punishment upon his wife. "It must be -all your fault," he growled, when he was taking her home, and had her -at his mercy, with that logic peculiar to a married man; "you ought to -tell him he's making an ass of himself. Why the deuce do you let him go -on with that tomfoolery? He'll lose all his chances in life, and then, I -hope, you'll be satisfied. You women can never see an inch before your -own noses!" cried the uncivil husband; which, it must be confessed, was -rather hard upon poor Mrs Woodburn, who had nothing to do with it, and -had indeed calculated upon perfecting her sketch of Barbara in the -quietness of the walk home; for as everybody lived in Grange Lane, -carriages were not necessary for Miss Marjoribanks's guests. They -flitted out and in, in the moonlight, with pretty scarfs thrown over -their heads and laced handkerchiefs tied under their chins, and made -Grange Lane between the two straight lines of garden-wall like a scene -in a masquerade. - -While Mr Cavendish was thus suffering by deputy the contempt of his -former admirers, Lucilla, by herself in the abandoned drawing-room, was -thinking over the evening with a severe but on the whole satisfactory -self-examination. After the first shock, which she had encountered with -so much courage, Miss Marjoribanks was rather grateful than otherwise to -Providence, which had brought the necessary trial upon her in this form. -If it had been a breakdown and humiliating failure instead, how -different would her sensations have been! and Lucilla was quite -conscious that such a thing might have occurred. It might have occurred -to her, as it had done to so many people, to see Thursday come round -with a failure of all that made Thursday agreeable. Lady Richmond might -have had her influenza that day, and little Henry Centum his sudden -attack, which had kept his mother in conversation ever since, and Mrs -Woodburn one of her bad headaches; and as for the Miss Browns, there was -nothing in the world but Lucilla's habitual good fortune which prevented -them from having blacked their fingers with their photography to such an -extent as to make them perfectly unpresentable. Or, to turn to another -chapter of accidents, the last duet, which Barbara had insisted upon -singing without proper practice, might have broken down utterly. None of -these things had happened, and Lucilla drew a long breath of gratitude -as she thought how fortunate she had been in all these particulars. To -be sure, it was necessary to have a trial of one kind or other; and the -modest but intense gratification of having stood the test, diffused -itself like a balm through her bosom. No doubt she would have felt, like -most people, a certain pleasure in snubbing Barbara; but then there is, -on the other hand, a sweetness in sacrificing such impulses to the -sacred sense of duty and the high aims of genius which is still more -attractive to a well-regulated mind. Miss Marjoribanks herself put out -the candles, and went to her own room with that feeling of having -acquitted herself satisfactorily which many people think to be the -highest gratification of which the mind is capable. After all, it was by -no means certain that Mr Cavendish would be M.P. for Carlingford. Mr -Chiltern might live for twenty years, or he even might get better, which -was more unlikely; or supposing him to be comfortably disposed of, -nobody could say with any certainty that some man unknown at present in -Carlingford might not start up all of a sudden and gain the most sweet -voices of the shopkeepers, who were the majority of the community, and -quite outnumbered Grange Lane. It was thus that Lucilla consoled herself -as she went meditative but undaunted to her maiden rest. - -While all this was going on, Dr Marjoribanks remained an amused -spectator, and chuckled a little quietly, without saying anything to -anybody, over the turn affairs had taken. The Doctor knew all about -everybody in Carlingford, and he had never been an enthusiast in favour -of Mrs Woodburn's brother, notwithstanding that the young man had been -received so warmly into society as one of the Cavendishes. Perhaps Dr -Marjoribanks being Scotch, and having a turn for genealogy, found the -description a little vague; but at all events there can be no doubt that -he laughed to himself as he retired from the scene of his daughter's -trial. The Doctor possibly thought, in a professional point of view, -that a little discipline of this description would be useful to Lucilla. -Perhaps he thought it would be good for her to find out that--though she -had managed to slip the reins out of his hands, and get the control of -affairs with a skill which amused the Doctor, and made him a little -proud of her abilities, even though he was himself the victim--she could -not go on always unchecked in her triumphant career, but must endure -like other people an occasional defeat. No doubt, had Lucilla been -really worsted, paternal feeling would have interposed, and Dr -Marjoribanks would to some extent have suffered in her suffering; but -then the case was different, and nobody required, as it turned out, to -suffer for Lucilla. The Doctor was pleased she had shown so much -spirit, and pleased to see how entirely she had discomfited her -antagonists, and turned the tables upon the "young puppy," in whom he -had no confidence; and withal Dr Marjoribanks chuckled a little in his -secret heart over the event itself, and concluded that it would do -Lucilla good. She had vanquished Nancy, and by a skilful jerk taken the -reins out of his own experienced hands. He was aware that he had been on -the whole very wisely governed since his abdication, but yet he was not -sorry that the young conqueror should feel herself human; so that nobody -except Mrs Chiley felt that mingled rage and disappointment with which -Barbara Lake had hoped to inspire Lucilla's bosom; and Mrs Chiley, so to -speak, had nothing to do with it. As for Barbara herself, she returned -home in a state of mingled spite and exultation and disgust, which -filled her sister with amazement. - -"She is such an actor, you know," Barbara said; "she never will give in -to let you know how she is feeling--not if she can help it; but for all -that she must have felt it. Nobody could help feeling it, though she -carried it off so well. I knew how it would be, as soon as I had on a -dress that was fit to be seen." - -"What is it that she could not help feeling?" said Rose. "I suppose it -is Lucilla you mean?" - -"I should like to know what right she had to be kind to me," cried -Barbara, all glowing in her sullen but excited beauty; "and invite me -there, and introduce me in her grand way, as if she was any better than -I am! And then to look at all her India muslins; but I knew it would be -different as soon as I had a decent dress," said the contralto, rising -up to contemplate herself in the little mirror over the mantelpiece. - -This conversation took place in Mr Lake's little parlour, where Rose had -been waiting for her sister, and where Barbara's white dress made an -unusual radiance in the dim and partially-lighted room. Rose herself was -all shrouded up in her morning dress, with her pretty round arms and -shoulders lost to the common view. She had been amusing herself as she -waited by working at a corner of that great design which was to win the -prize on a later occasion. Readers of this history who have studied the -earlier chapters will remember that Rose's tastes in ornamentation were -very clearly defined for so young a person. Instead of losing herself in -vague garlands of impossible flowers, the young artist clung with the -tenacity of first love to the thistle leaf, which had been the -foundation of her early triumphs. Her mind was full of it even while she -received and listened to Barbara; whether to treat it in a national -point of view, bringing in the rose and shamrock, which was a perfectly -allowable proceeding, though perhaps not original--or whether she should -yield to the "sweet feeling" which had been so conspicuous in her -flounce, in the opinion of the Marlborough House gentlemen--or whether, -on the contrary, she should handle the subject in a boldly naturalistic -way, and use her spikes with freedom,--was a question which occupied at -that moment all Rose's faculties. Even while she asked Barbara what the -subject was on which Lucilla might be supposed to be excited, she was -within herself thinking out this difficult idea--all the more difficult, -perhaps, considering the nature of the subject, since the design in this -case was not for a flounce, in which broad handling is practicable, but -for a veil. - -"I wish you would not talk in that foolish way," said Rose; "nobody need -be any better than you, as you say. To be sure, we don't live in Grange -Lane, nor keep a carriage; but I wish you would recollect that these are -only accidental circumstances. As for dress, I don't see that you -require it; our position is so clearly defined; we are a family of----" - -"Oh, for goodness gracious sake, do be quiet with your family of -artists!" cried Barbara. "Speak for yourself, if you please. I am not an -artist, and never will be, I can tell you. There are better places to -live in than Grange Lane; and as for keeping a carriage, I would never -call a little bit of a brougham a carriage, if it was me. Lucilla made -believe to take no notice, but she did not deceive me with that. She was -as disappointed as ever she could be--I dare say now she's sitting -crying over it. I never would have cared one straw if I had not wanted -to serve Lucilla out!" cried the contralto, with energy. She was still -standing before the glass pulling her black hair about into new -combinations, and studying the effect; and as for Rose, she too looked -up, and, seeing her sister's face reflected in the glass, made the -discovery that there was something like grimace in the countenance, and -paused in the midst of her meditations with her pencil in her hand. - -"Don't put yourself out of drawing," said Rose; "I wish you would not do -that so often. When the facial angle is disturbed to that extent----But -about Lucilla, I think you are excessively ungrateful. Gratitude is not -a servile sentiment," said the little Preraphaelite, with a rising -colour. "It is a slavish sort of idea to think any one has done you an -injury by being kind to you. If that is the sort of thing you are going -to talk of, I think you had better go to bed." - -"Then I will, and I shan't tell you anything," said Barbara -angrily--"you are so poor-spirited. For my part, do you think I'd ever -have gone to help Lucilla and sing for her, and all that sort of thing, -if it had not been to better myself? Nor I wouldn't have thought of -_him_ just at first, if it hadn't been to spite _her_. And I've done it -too. I'd just like to look in at her room window and see what she's -about. I dare say she is crying her eyes out, for all her looking as if -she took no notice. I know better than to think she doesn't care. And, -Rose, he's such a dear," said Barbara, with a laugh of excitement. To be -sure, what she wanted was to be Mrs Cavendish, and to have a handsome -house and a great many nice dresses; but at the same time she was young, -and Mr Cavendish was good-looking, and she was a little in love, in her -way, as well. - -"I don't want to hear any more about it," said Rose, who was so much -moved as to forget even her design. "I can't think how it is you have no -sense of honour, and you one of the Lakes. I would not be a traitor for -a dozen Mr Cavendishes!" cried Rose, in the force of her indignation. -"He must be a cheat, since you are a traitor. If he was a true man he -would have found you out." - -"You had better be quiet, Rose," said Barbara; "you may be sure I shall -never do anything for you after we are married, if you talk like that; -and then you'll be sorry enough." - -"After you are married! has he asked you to marry him?" cried Rose. She -pushed away her design with both her hands in the vehemence of her -feelings, and regarded her sister with eyes which blazed, but which were -totally different in their blazing from those which burned under -Barbara's level eyebrows. It was too plain a question to have a plain -answer. Barbara only lighted her candle in reply, and smiled and shook -her head. - -"You don't suppose I am going to answer after your insulting ways," she -said, taking up her candle; and she swept out of the room in her white -dress with a sense of pleasure in leaving this grand point unsettled. To -be sure, Mr Cavendish had not yet asked that important question; but -then the future was all before them, and the way clear. As for Rose, she -clenched her little fists with a gesture that would have been too -forcible for any one who was not an artist, and a member of a family of -artists. "To think she should be one of us, and not to know what honour -means," said Rose; "and as for this man, he must be a cheat himself, or -he would find her out." - -This was how Mr Cavendish's defection from Lucilla took place; and at -the same time it is a satisfaction to know that the event was received -by everybody very much as little Rose Lake received it. And as for Miss -Marjoribanks, if Barbara could have had the malicious satisfaction of -looking in at the window, she would have been mortified to find that -right-minded young woman sleeping the sleep of the just and innocent, -and enjoying repose as profound and agreeable as if there had been no Mr -Cavendish in the world, not to speak of Carlingford;--which, to be sure, -was a result to be greatly attributed to Lucilla's perfect health, and -entire satisfaction with herself. - - - - -_Chapter XV_ - - -This event was of far too much importance in the limited world of Grange -Lane to pass over without some of the many commentaries which were going -on upon the subject coming to the ears of Miss Marjoribanks, who was the -person principally concerned. As for the Doctor, as we have already -said, he was so far lost to a sense of his paternal duties as to chuckle -a little within himself over the accident that had happened to Lucilla. -It had done her no harm, and Dr Marjoribanks permitted himself to regard -the occurrence in a professional point of view, as supplying a little -alterative which he could scarcely administer himself; for it is well -known that physicians are seldom successful in the treatment of their -own families. He was more jocose than usual at breakfast for some days -following, and, on the morning of the next Thursday, asked if everybody -was to come as usual, with a significance which did not escape the young -mistress of the house. - -"You know best, papa," she said cheerfully, as she poured him out his -coffee: "if there is anybody who is ill and can't come, it must be your -fault--but I did not hear that any one was ill." - -"Nor I," said the Doctor, with a quiet laugh; and he could not help -thinking it would be good sport to see Cavendish come into the -drawing-room all by himself without any support, and make his appearance -before Miss Marjoribanks, and do his best to be agreeable, with an awful -consciousness of his bad behaviour, and nobody sufficiently benevolent -to help him out. The Doctor thought it would serve him right, but yet he -was not sufficiently irritated nor sufficiently sympathetic to lose any -of the humour of the situation; and it was with a little zest, as for -something especially piquant, that he looked forward to the evening. As -for Miss Marjoribanks, she too recognised the importance of the -occasion. She resolved to produce that evening a new _plat_, which had -occupied a corner of her busy mind for some time past. It was a crisis -which called for a new step in advance. She sat down by the window after -breakfast with various novel combinations floating in her creative -brain; and while she was revolving these ideas in her mind, Nancy came -in with more than her usual briskness. It is true that Lucilla had her -household well in hand, and possessed the faculty of government to a -remarkable extent; but still, under the best of circumstances, it was a -serious business to propose a new dish to Nancy. Dr Marjoribanks's -factotum was a woman of genius in her way, and by no means unenlightened -or an enemy of progress; but then she had a weakness common to many -persons of superior intelligence and decided character. When there was -anything new to be introduced, Nancy liked to be herself the godmother -of the interesting novelty; for, to be sure, it was her place, and Miss -Lucilla, though she was very clever, was not to be expected to -understand what came in best with the other dishes for a dinner. "I -ain't one as goes just upon fish and flesh and fowl, like some as call -themselves cooks," Nancy said. "If I have a failing, it's for things as -suits. When it's brown, make it brown, and don't be mean about the -gravy-beef--that's my principle; and when it ain't brown, mind what -you're a-doing of--and don't go and throw a heap of entrys and things at -a gentleman's head without no 'armony. I always says to Miss Lucilla as -'armony's the thing; and when I've set it all straight in my mind, I -ain't one as likes to be put out," Nancy would add, with a gleam in her -eye which betokened mischief. Miss Marjoribanks was much too sensible -not to be aware of this peculiarity; and accordingly she cleared her -throat with something as near nervousness as was possible to Lucilla -before she opened her lips to propose the innovation. Miss Marjoribanks, -as a general rule, did not show much nervousness in her dealings with -her prime minister, any more than in her demeanour towards the less -important members of society; and consequently Nancy remarked the -momentary timidity, and a flash of sympathy and indignation took the -place of her usual impulse of defiance. - -"I heard as master said, there was some gentleman as wasn't a-coming," -said Nancy. "Not as one makes no difference in a dinner; but I allays -likes to know. I don't like no waste, for my part. I ain't one as -calk'lates too close, but if there's one thing as I hates like poison, -it's waste. I said as I would ask, for Thomas ain't as correct as could -be wished. Is it one less than usual, Miss Lucilla?" said Nancy; and it -was Lucilla's fault if she did not understand the profound and indignant -sympathy in Nancy's voice. - -"Oh, no; it is just the usual number," said Miss Marjoribanks. "It was -only a joke of papa's--they are all just as usual----" And here Lucilla -paused. She was thinking of the dish she wanted, but Nancy thought she -was thinking of Mr Cavendish, who had treated her so badly. She studied -the countenance of her young mistress with the interest of a woman who -has had her experiences, and knows how little _They_ are to be depended -upon. Nancy murmured "Poor dear!" under her breath, almost without -knowing it, and then a brilliant inspiration came to her mind. Few -people have the gift of interfering successfully in such cases, but then -to offer consolation is a Christian duty, especially when one has the -confidence that to give consolation is in one's power. - -"Miss Lucilla, I would say as you've been doing too much, if anybody was -to ask me," said Nancy, moved by this generous impulse--"all them -practisings and things. They're well enough for young ladies as ain't -got nothing else to do; but you as has such a deal in your hands----If -there was any little thing as you could fancy for dinner," said Nancy, -in her most bland accents; "I've set it all down as I thought would be -nicest, allays if you approves, Miss Lucilla; but if there was any -little thing as you could fancy----" "Poor dear, it's all as we can do," -she murmured to herself. The faithless could not be brought back again; -but Ariadne might at least have any little thing she could fancy for -dinner, which, indeed, is a very general treatment of such a case on the -part of perplexed sympathisers who do not know what to say. - -Lucilla was so excited for the moment by this unusual evidence of her -own good fortune, that she had almost spoiled all by sitting straight up -and entering with her usual energy into the discussion--but instinct -saved Miss Marjoribanks from this mistake. She lost no time in taking -advantage of the opportunity, and instead of having a fight with Nancy, -and getting a reluctant consent, and still more reluctant execution of -the novelty, Lucilla felt that she was doing that excellent woman a -favour by naming her new dish. Nancy approved so thoroughly as to be -enthusiastic. "I always said as she had a deal of sense," she said -afterwards triumphantly. "There ain't one young lady in a hundred as -knows what's good for her, like Miss Lucilla." But notwithstanding this -fervent declaration of approval, Nancy, softened as she was, could not -but linger, when all was concluded, to give a little advice. - -"I wouldn't worrit myself with all them practisings, Miss Lucilla, if I -was you," said her faithful retainer. "They're a deal too much for you. -I've took the liberty, when all was cleaned up, to go on the stair and -listen a bit, and there ain't nothing to equal it when you're a-singing -by yourself. I don't think nothing of them duets--and as for that -bold-faced brazen thing----" - -"Oh, Nancy, hush!" said Lucilla; "Miss Lake has a beautiful voice. If -she does not look quite like a lady, it is not her fault, poor thing. -She has no mamma to set her right, you know. She is the best assistant I -have--she and Mr Cavendish," said Lucilla sweetly; and she gave Nancy a -look which moved the faithful servant almost to tears, though she was -not addicted to that weakness. Nancy retired with the most enthusiastic -determination to exert herself to the utmost for the preparation of the -little dish which Lucilla fancied. "But I wouldn't worrit about them -duets," she said again, as she left the room. "I wouldn't, not if I was -you, Miss Lucilla, asking pardon for the liberty: as for having no -mamma, you have no mamma yourself, and you the young lady as is most -thought upon in Carlingford, and as different from that brazen-faced -thing, with her red cheeks----" - -"Hush, oh hush, Nancy," Lucilla said, as she sank back in her chair; but -Miss Marjoribanks, after all, was only human, and she was not so -distressed by these unpolished epithets as she might or perhaps ought to -have been. "Poor Barbara! I wish she could only look a little bit like a -lady," she said to herself; and so proceeded with her preparations for -the evening. She had all her plans matured, and she felt quite -comfortable about that evening which all her friends were thinking would -be rather trying for Lucilla. To tell the truth, when a thing became -rather trying, Lucilla's spirits rose. Mr Cavendish's desertion was, -perhaps, on the whole, more than compensated for by the exhilaration of -a difficulty to be encountered. She too began to forecast, like her -father, the possibilities of the evening, and to think of Mr Cavendish -coming in to dinner when there was nobody to support him, and not even a -crowd of people to retire among. Would he run the risk of coming, under -the circumstances? or, if he came, would he prostrate himself as he had -done on a previous occasion, and return to his allegiance? This question -roused Lucilla to a degree of energy unusual even to her who was always -energetic. It was then that the brilliant idea struck her of adjourning -to the garden in the evening--a practice which was received with such -enthusiasm in Carlingford, where the gardens were so pretty. She put on -her hat directly and went downstairs, and called the gardener to consult -him about it; and it was thus that she was employed when Mrs Chiley rang -the bell at the garden gate. If it had been anybody else in Carlingford, -Lucilla would have led her back again to the house, and said nothing -about the subject of her conference with the gardener; for it is always -best, as all judicious persons are aware, not to forestall these little -arrangements which make so agreeable a surprise at the moment; but then -Mrs Chiley was Miss Marjoribanks's special confidant. The old lady had -her face full of business that bright morning. She listened to what her -young friend proposed, but without hearing it, and said. "Oh, yes, my -dear, I am sure it will be charming," without the very least notion what -it was she applauded. "Let us go in and sit down a moment, for I have -something to say to you, Lucilla," Mrs Chiley said; and when they had -reached the drawing-room and shut the door, the Colonel's wife gave her -favourite a kiss, and looked anxiously in her face. "You have not been -to see me since Monday," said Mrs Chiley. "I am sure you are not well, -or you could not have stayed away so long; but if you did not feel equal -to going out, why did you not send for me, Lucilla, my poor dear?" -Though Miss Marjoribanks's thoughts at that moment were full of the -garden, and not in the least occupied with those more troublesome -matters which procured for her Mrs Chiley's sympathy, she placed the -kind old lady in the most easy chair, and sat down by her, as Mrs Chiley -liked to see a young creature do. Lucilla's affairs were too important -to be trusted to a young _confidante_ of her own age; but even a person -of acknowledged genius like Miss Marjoribanks is the better of some one -to whom she can open up her breast. - -"Dear Mrs Chiley!" said Lucilla, "I am quite well, and I meant to have -come to see you to-day." - -"My poor dear!" said Mrs Chiley again. "You say you are quite well for -you have such a spirit; but I can see what you have been going through. -I don't understand how you can keep on, and do so much. But it was not -_that_ that brought me here. There is some one coming to Carlingford -that I want you to meet, Lucilla. He is a relation of Mary Chiley's -husband, and as she does not get on very well with them, you know, I -think it is our duty to be civil. And they say he is a very nice man; -and young--enough," said Mrs Chiley, with a look of some anxiety, -pausing to see the effect produced upon Lucilla by her words. - -Miss Marjoribanks had not, as she once confessed, a very vivid sense of -humour, but she laughed a little, in spite of herself, at the old lady's -anxious look. "Don't be sorry for me," she said; "I told you that -fortunately my affections were not engaged. I don't want any new -gentleman introduced to me. If _that_ was what I was thinking of, I -never need have come home," Lucilla said, with a little dignity; and -yet, to be sure, she was naturally curious to know who the new man, who -was very nice and young--enough, could be; for such apparitions were not -too plentiful in Carlingford; and it did not seem in reason that an -individual of this interesting description could come out of Colonel -Chiley's house. - -"My dear, he is a clergyman," said Mrs Chiley, putting her hand on Miss -Marjoribanks's arm, and speaking in a half whisper; "and you know a nice -clergyman is always nice, and you need not think of him as a young man -unless you like. He has a nice property, and he is Rector of Basing, -which is a very good living, and Archdeacon of Stanmore. He has come -here to hold a visitation, you know; and they say that if Carlingford -was made into a bishopric, he is almost sure to be the first bishop; and -you know a bishop, or even an archdeacon, has a very nice position. I -want to be civil to him for Mary Chiley's sake, who is not on such terms -as we could wish with her husband's friends; and then I suppose he will -have to be a great deal in Carlingford, and I should like him to form a -good impression. I want you and your dear good papa to come and meet -him; and then after that--but one thing is enough at a time," the old -lady said, breaking off with a nod and a smile. She too had brought her -bit of consolation to Lucilla; and it was a kind of consolation which, -when administered at the right moment, is sometimes of sovereign -efficacy, as Mrs Chiley was aware. - -"I am sure papa will be very happy," said Lucilla; "and, indeed, if you -like, I shall be very glad to ask him here. If he is a friend of yours, -that is quite enough for me. It is very nice to know a nice clergyman; -but as for being a young man, I can't see how that matters. If I had -been thinking of _that_, I need never--but I should think papa would -like to meet him; and you know it is the object of my life to please -papa." - -"Yes, my poor dear," said the Colonel's wife, "and he would be -hard-hearted indeed if he was not pleased; but still we must consider -you a little, Lucilla. You do everything for other people, and you never -think of yourself. But I like to see you with nice people round you, for -my part," Mrs Chiley added--"really nice people, and not these -poor-spirited, ungrateful----" - -"Hush, hush!" said Lucilla; "I don't know such nice people anywhere as -there are in Carlingford. Some people are never pleased with their -neighbours, but I always get on so well with everybody. It is my good -luck, you know; and so long as I have you, dear Mrs Chiley----" - -"Ah, Lucilla!" said the old lady, "that is very kind of you--and you -could not have anybody that is fonder of you than I am; but still I am -an old woman, old enough to be your grandmother, my dear--and we have -your future interests to think of. As for all the vexations you have -had, I think I could find it in my heart to turn that ungrateful -creature to the door. Don't let her come here any more. I like your -voice a great deal better when you are singing by yourself--and I am -sure the Archdeacon would be of my opinion," said Mrs Chiley, with a -confidence which was beautiful to behold. It was true she had not seen -her new hero as yet, but that only left her so much more free to take -the good of him and his probable sentiments; for to persons of frank and -simple imagination a very little foundation of fact is enough to build -upon. - -"Dear Mrs Chiley, it is so nice of you to be vexed," said Lucilla, who -thought it as well not to enter into any further argument. "Papa will be -delighted, I am sure, and I can come in the evening. The Colonel likes -to have only six people, and you will be three to start with, so there -can't be any room for me at dinner; and you know I don't mind about -dinner. I shall come in the evening and make tea for you--and if you -think he would like to come next Thursday----" said Lucilla graciously. -This was how it was eventually settled. Mrs Chiley went home again -through Grange Lane in the sunshine, with that little old-womanish -hobble which Mrs Woodburn executed with such precision, perfectly -satisfied with her success, and indulging herself in some pleasant -visions. To be sure, a nice clergyman is always nice to know, even -though nothing more was to come of it; and a new man in the field of -such distinguished pretensions, would be Lucilla's best defence against -any sort of mortification. As for Miss Marjoribanks herself, she was -thinking a great deal more of the new details for the approaching -evening than of anything else more distant, and consequently less -important; but, on the whole, she was by no means displeased to hear of -the Archdeacon. In such a work as hers, a skilful leader is always on -the outlook for auxiliaries; and there are circumstances in which a nice -clergyman is almost as useful to the lady of the house as a man who can -flirt. To be sure, now and then there occurs a rare example in which -both these qualities are united in one person; but even in the most -modest point of view, if he was not stupid or obstinately Low-Church, -there was nothing to despise in the apparition of the Archdeacon thus -suddenly blown to her very door. While she had the seats placed in the -garden (not too visibly, but shrouded among the shrubs and round the -trunks of the trees), and chose the spot for a little illumination, -which was not to be universal, like a tea-garden, but concentrated in -one spot under the big lime-tree, Lucilla permitted herself to speculate -a little about this unknown hero. She did not so much ask herself if he -would be dark or fair, according to the usage of young ladies, as -whether he would be High or Broad. But, however, that question, like -various others, was still hidden in the surrounding darkness. - -This was how Mrs Chiley did her best to cheer up Lucilla in the -discouragement from which she supposed her young friend to be suffering. -It was perhaps a loftier expedient in one way than Nancy's desire that -she should have something she would fancy for dinner; but then there -could not be any doubt as to the kindness which prompted both -suggestions; and, after all, it is not what people do for you, but the -spirit in which they do it, which should be taken into consideration, as -Lucilla most justly observed. - - - - -_Chapter XVI_ - - -That evening was one which all the people in Grange Lane had unanimously -concluded would be rather hard upon Miss Marjoribanks. To be sure, when -a crisis arrives there is always a certain excitement which keeps one -up; but afterwards, when the excitement is over, then is the time when -it becomes really trying. There was naturally, under these -circumstances, a larger assemblage than usual to watch the progress of -the little drama, and how Lucilla would behave; for, after all, society -would be excessively tame if it were not for these personal -complications, which are always arising, and which are so much better -than a play. As for the Doctor himself, the portion of the evening's -entertainment which particularly amused him was that which preceded all -the rest--the reception given by Lucilla to her guests at dinner, and -especially to the culprit, who came in quite alone, and found nobody to -stand up for him. Mr Cavendish, who felt to the full the difficulty of -his position, and, to tell the truth, was a little ashamed of himself, -came late, in order to abridge his trial as much as possible; but -Lucilla's habitual good-fortune was not confined only to her own -necessities, but seemed to involve everybody opposed to her in a -ceaseless ill-luck, which was very edifying to the spectators. Mr -Cavendish was so late that the other guests had formed into groups round -the room, leaving a great open space and avenue of approach to the lady -of the house in the middle; and the audience, thus arranged, was very -impatient and unfavourable to the lingerer who kept them waiting for -their dinner. When he came in at last, instead of doing anything to help -him, everybody ceased talking and looked on in stern silence as the -wretched culprit walked all the length of the room up to Lucilla through -the unoccupied space which exposed him so unmercifully on every side. -They all stopped in the middle of what they were saying, and fixed stony -eyes on him, as the dead sailors did on the Ancient Mariner. He had a -very good spirit, but still there are circumstances which take the -courage out of a man. To be sure, Miss Marjoribanks, when he reached her -at last, received Mr Cavendish with the utmost grace and cordiality, but -it is easy to imagine what must have been the feelings of the -unfortunate hero. The Balaclava charge itself, in the face of all the -guns, could have been nothing to the sensation of walking through that -horrible naked space, through a crowd of reproachful men who were -waiting for dinner; and it was only after it was all over, and Mr -Cavendish had safely arrived at Miss Marjoribanks's side, and was being -set at his ease, poor wretch, by her incomparable sweetness, that the -Doctor, with a certain grim smile on his countenance, came and shook -hands with his unfortunate guest. - -"You are late," Dr Marjoribanks said, taking out the great watch by -which all the pulses of Grange Lane considered it their duty to keep -time, and which marked five minutes after seven, as everybody could see. -It was ten minutes after seven by the pretty French clock on the -mantelpiece, and at least twenty by the lowering countenances of Dr -Marjoribanks's guests. Mr Cavendish made the best of his unhappy -position, and threw himself upon Lucilla's charity, who was the only one -who had any compassion upon him; for to see Mrs Chiley's forbidding -countenance no one could have believed that she had ever called him "my -dear." "Dinner is on the table, papa," Miss Marjoribanks said, with a -little reassuring nod to the culprit who had made her his refuge; and -she got up and shook out her white draperies with a charitable commotion -for which her faithless admirer blessed her in his heart. - -But the place at her left hand was not left vacant for Mr Cavendish; he -had not the spirit to claim it, even had he had the time; and the -consequence was that he found himself next to his brother-in-law at -table, which was indeed a hard fate. As for Lucilla, she was quite -radiant when the famous dish made its appearance which Nancy had -elaborated to please her, and told the story of its introduction to her -two next neighbours, in a half whisper, to their immense amusement. -"When the servants are gone I will tell you what we are laughing at," -she breathed across the table to Mrs Chiley, who was "more than -delighted," as she said, to see her dear Lucilla keeping up so well; and -when the dessert was put upon the table, and Thomas had finally -disappeared, Miss Marjoribanks kept her promise. "I could not think how -I was going to get her to consent," Lucilla said, "but you know she -thought I was in low spirits, the dear old soul, and that it would be a -comfort to me." Though there was often a great deal of fun at Dr -Marjoribanks's table, nothing was ever heard there to compare with the -laughter that greeted Lucilla's narrative. Everybody was so entirely -aware of the supposed cause of the low spirits, and indeed was so -conscious of having speculated, like Nancy, upon Miss Marjoribanks's -probable demeanour at this trying moment, that the laughter was not mere -laughter, but conveyed, at the same time a confession of guilt and a -storm of applause and admiration. As for Mr Cavendish, it was alarming -to look at him in the terrible paroxysm of confusion and shame which he -tried to shield under the universal amusement. Miss Marjoribanks left -the dining-room that evening with the soothing conviction that she had -administered punishment of the most annihilating kind, without for a -moment diverging from the perfect sweetness and amiability with which it -was her duty to treat all her father's guests. It was so complete and -perfect that there was not another word to be said either on one side or -the other; and yet Lucilla had not in the least committed herself, or -condescended from her maiden dignity. As for Dr Marjoribanks, if he had -chuckled over it before, in anticipation, it may be supposed how he -enjoyed now this perfect vindication of his daughter's capacity for -taking care of herself. The sound of the victory was even heard -upstairs, where the young ladies at the open windows were asking each -other, with a little envy, what the men could be laughing at. There was, -as we have said, a larger assembly than usual that night. For one thing, -it was moonlight, and all the people from the country were there; and -then public curiosity was profoundly concerned as to how Lucilla was to -conduct herself on so trying an occasion. The laughter even jarred on -the sensitive feelings of some people who thought, where a young girl's -happiness was concerned, that it was too serious a matter to be laughed -at; but then Miss Marjoribanks was not a person who could be classed -with ordinary young girls, in the general acceptation of the word. - -It was when things were at this crisis, and all eyes were directed to -Lucilla, and a certain expectation was diffused through the company, -that Miss Marjoribanks made that proposal of adjourning to the garden, -which was received with so much applause. Lucilla's instinct, or rather -her genius, had warned her that something out of the ordinary course of -proceedings would be expected from her on that special occasion. She -could not get up and make a speech to her excited and curious audience, -neither could she, apropos of nothing, tell over again the story which -had been received with such applause downstairs; and yet something was -wanting. The ordinary routine did not satisfy Lucilla's constituency, -who had come with the laudable intention of observing her on a trying -occasion, and watching how she got through it. "The air is so delicious -to-night that I had some seats placed in the garden," Miss Marjoribanks -said, "and if you all like we will sing to you up here, and give you as -much music as ever you please. You know I never would consent to be too -musical when everybody was in one room. It does not matter so much, when -there are a suite; but then papa, you know, is only a professional man, -and I have but one drawing-room," said Lucilla, with sweet humility. It -was Lady Richmond to whom she was addressing herself at the moment, who -was a lady who liked to be the great lady of the party. "It is only in -summer that we can be a little like you fine people, who have as many -rooms as you please. When you are at a little distance we will sing to -you all the evening, if you like." - -"But, my dear, are you sure you feel able for so much exertion?" said -Lady Richmond, who was one of those people who did not think a young -girl's happiness a thing to be trifled with; and she looked with what -she described afterwards as a very searching expression in Miss -Marjoribanks's face. - -"Dear Lady Richmond, I hope I am always able for my duty," said that -gentle martyr. "Papa would be wretched if he did not think we were all -enjoying ourselves; and you know it is the object of my life to be a -comfort to papa." - -This was what the searching expression in Lady Richmond's eyes elicited -from Lucilla. The sentiment was perhaps a little different from that -which she had conveyed to her delighted auditors in the dining-room, but -at the same time it was equally true; for everybody in Carlingford was -aware of the grand object of Miss Marjoribanks's existence. Lady -Richmond went down to the garden at the head of a bevy of ladies, and -seated herself under the drawing-room windows, and placed a chair beside -her own for Mrs Chiley. "I am afraid that dear girl is keeping up too -well," Lady Richmond said; "I never saw such fortitude. All the young -people say she does not feel it; but as soon as I fixed my eyes on her I -saw the difference. You can always find out what a girl's feelings are -when you look into her eyes." - -"Yes," said Mrs Chiley, with a little doubt, for she had been shaken in -her convictions by the universal laughter, though she was a little -mystified herself by Lucilla's anecdote; and then she had never been -gifted with eyes like Lady Richmond's, which looked people through and -through. "She goes through a great deal, and it never seems to do her -any harm," the old lady said, with a little hesitation. "It is such a -comfort that she has a good constitution, especially as her mother was -so delicate; and then Lucilla has such a spirit----" - -"But one may try a good constitution too far," said Lady Richmond; "and -I am certain she is full of feeling. It is sure to come out when she -sings, and that is why I came to this seat. I should not like to lose a -note. And do tell me who is that horrid flirting, disagreeable girl," -added the county lady, drawing her chair a little closer. By this time -the garden was full of pretty figures and pleasant voices, and under the -lime-tree there was a glimmer of yellow light from the lamps, and on the -other side the moon was coming up steady like a ball of silver over the -dark outlines of Carlingford; and even the two voices which swelled -forth upstairs in the fullest accord, betraying nothing of the personal -sentiments of their owners, were not more agreeable to hear than the -rustle and murmur of sound which rose all over Dr Marjoribanks's smooth -lawn and pretty shrubbery. Here and there a group of the older people -sat, like Lady Richmond and Mrs Chiley, listening with all their might; -and all about them were clusters of girls and their natural attendants, -arrested in their progress, and standing still breathless, "just for -this bar," as young people pause in their walks and talks to listen to a -chance nightingale. And, to be sure, whenever anybody was tired of the -music, there were quantities of corners to retire into, not to speak of -that bright spot full of yellow light under the lime-tree. - -"Nobody but Lucilla ever could have thought of anything so delicious," -was what everybody said. And then the two singers upstairs gave so much -scope to curiosity. "Do you think they are all by themselves?" Lydia -Brown was heard to ask, with a little natural anxiety; and the livelier -imaginations among the party set to work at once to invent impossible -tortures which the soprano might inflict on the contralto. But, to tell -the truth, the two singers were by no means alone. Half the gentlemen of -the dinner-party, who were past the sentimental age, and did not care -about moonlight, had gone upstairs according to their use and wont, and -remained there, finding, to their great satisfaction, room to move -about, and comfortable chairs to sit down in. They sat and chatted in -the corners in great content and good-humour, while Lucilla and Barbara -executed the most charming duets. Now and then old Colonel Chiley paused -to put his two hands softly together and cry "Brava!" but on the whole -the gentlemen were not much disturbed by the music. And then there were -a few ladies, who were subject to neuralgia, or apt to take bad colds in -the head, who preferred being upstairs. So that if Lucilla had meant to -pinch or maltreat her rival, circumstances would have made it -impossible. Miss Marjoribanks did nothing to Barbara, except incite her -to sing her very best; but no doubt she was the means of inflicting -considerable pain on Mr Cavendish, who stood at a little distance, and -looked and listened to both, and perhaps had inward doubts as to the -wisdom of his choice. Such was the arrangement of the personages of the -social drama, and it was in this way that everybody was occupied, when -an event occurred which at a later period awoke much excitement in -Carlingford, and had no small influence upon the future fate of some of -the individuals whose history is here recorded. - -Everything was as calm and cheerful and agreeable as if Carlingford had -been a social paradise, and Miss Marjoribanks's drawing-room the seventh -heaven of terrestrial harmony. The sky itself was not more peaceful, nor -gave less indication of any tempest than did the tranquil atmosphere -below, where all the people knew each other, and everybody was friendly. -Lucilla had just risen from the piano, and there was a little pause, in -which cheers were audible from the garden, and Colonel Chiley, in the -midst of his conversation, patted his two hands together; and it was -just at that moment that the drawing-room door opened, and Thomas came -in, followed by a gentleman. The gentleman was a stranger, whom Miss -Marjoribanks had never seen before, and she made a step forward, as was -her duty as mistress of the house. But when she had made that one step, -Lucilla suddenly stood still, arrested by something more urgent than the -arrival of a stranger. Mr Cavendish, too, had been standing with his -face to the door, and had seen the new arrival. He was directly in front -of Lucilla, so near her that he could not move without attracting her -attention. When Miss Marjoribanks took that step in advance, Mr -Cavendish, as if by the same impulse, suddenly, and without saying a -word, turned right round like a man who had seen something terrible, at -which he dared not take a second look. He was too much absorbed at that -moment in his own feelings to know that he was betraying himself to -Lucilla, or even to be conscious that she was near him. His face was -more than pale; it had a green ghastly look, as of a face from which all -the blood had suddenly been withdrawn to reinforce the vital centre in -some failing of nature. His under-lip hung down, and two hollows which -had never been seen there before appeared in his cheeks. Miss -Marjoribanks was so taken by surprise that she stood still, thinking no -more of her duties, but regarding in utter dismay and amazement the look -of dead stupefied terror which thus appeared so unexpectedly before her. -Mr Cavendish had turned right round, turning his back upon a lady to -whom he had been talking the minute before. But he was as unconscious of -doing so as of the fact that he had presented the spectacle of his -miserable surprise and alarm in the most striking way to the one woman -present who had a right to entertain a certain grudge against him. - -During this moment of unusual inaction on Lucilla's part, the stranger -had been led up to Colonel Chiley, and had shaken hands with him, and -was entering into some explanations which Miss Marjoribanks divined with -her usual quick intelligence; and then the old Colonel roused himself up -from his easy-chair, and leaned over to speak to Dr Marjoribanks, and -showed symptoms of approaching the lady of the house. All these -movements Lucilla followed breathlessly, with a strange consciousness -that only her presence of mind stood between her faithless suitor and a -real danger. And as if to prove the difference, Barbara Lake chose that -moment of all others to show her power, and made an appeal to Mr -Cavendish and his taste in music, to which the unhappy man made no -response. Miss Marjoribanks saw there was no time to lose. With a -fearless hand she threw down a great portfolio of music which happened -to be close to her, just at his feet, making a merciful disturbance. And -then she turned and made her curtsey, and received the homage of Mr -Archdeacon Beverley, who had arrived a day before he was expected, and -had come to look after his host, since his host had not been at home to -receive him. - -"But you have broken your music-stand or something, Lucilla," said the -Colonel. - -"Oh, no; it is only a portfolio. I can't think what could make me so -awkward," said Miss Marjoribanks; "I suppose it was seeing some one come -in whom I didn't know." And then the old gentleman, as was his duty, -paid the Archdeacon a compliment on having made such a commotion. "We -used to have the best of it in our day," said the old soldier; "but now -you churchmen are the men." Miss Marjoribanks heard the door open again -before this little speech was finished. It was Mr Cavendish, who was -going out with a long step, as if he with difficulty kept himself from -running; and he never came back again to say good-night, or made any -further appearance either out of doors or indoors. It is true that the -Archdeacon made himself very agreeable, but then one man never quite -makes up for another. Miss Marjoribanks said nothing about it, not even -when Mrs Woodburn came up to her with a scared face, and in full -possession of her own identity, which of itself was an extraordinary -fact, and proved that something had happened; but it would be vain to -say that Lucilla was not much excited by this sudden gleam of mystery. -It gave the Archdeacon an extraordinary and altogether unexpected -attraction; and as for Mr Cavendish, it was utterly inconceivable that a -man in society, whom everybody knew about, should give way to such a -panic. The question was, What did it mean? - - - - -_Chapter XVII_ - - -The arrival of Mr Archdeacon Beverley in Carlingford was, for many -reasons, an event of importance to the town, and especially to society, -which was concerned in anything that drew new and pleasant people to -Grange Lane. For one thing, it occurred at the time when that first -proposal of elevating Carlingford into a bishopric, in order to relieve -the present bishop of the district of a part of his immense diocese, had -just been mooted; and supposing this conception to be ever carried out, -nobody could have been more eligible as first bishop than the -Archdeacon, who was in the prime of life, and a very successful -clergyman. And then, not to speak of anything so important, his presence -was a great attraction to the country clergy, especially as he had come -to hold a visitation. Notwithstanding all this, it is impossible to deny -that Mrs Chiley, his hostess, and even Miss Marjoribanks herself, -regarded the manner of his first appearance with a certain displeasure. -If he had only had the good sense to stay at home, and not come to seek -his entertainers! To be sure it is awkward to arrive at a house and find -that everybody is out; but still, as Mrs Chiley justly observed, the -Archdeacon was not a baby, and he might have known better. "Coming to -you the very first night, and almost in his travelling things, to take -the cream off everything," the old lady said, with tears of vexation in -her eyes; "and after that, what have we to show him in Carlingford, -Lucilla?" As for Miss Marjoribanks, she was annoyed, but she knew the -wealth of her own resources, and she was not in despair, like her old -friend. "They never know any better," she said sympathetically. "Dear -Mrs Chiley, there was nothing else to be expected; but, at the same -time, I don't think things are so very bad," said Lucilla; for she had -naturally a confidence in herself of which even Mrs Chiley's admiring -faith fell short. - -The Archdeacon himself took it quite cheerfully, as if it was the most -natural thing in the world. "I have no doubt it was a very pleasant -party, if one could have got the key-note," he said, in his -Broad-Church way, as if there was nothing more to be said on the -subject, and Lucilla's Thursday was the merest ordinary assembly. For -there could be no doubt that he was Broad-Church, even though his -antecedents had not proclaimed the fact. He had a way of talking on many -subjects which alarmed his hostess. It was not that there was anything -objectionable in what he said--for, to be sure, a clergyman and an -archdeacon may say a great many things that ordinary people would not -like to venture on,--but still it was impossible to tell what it might -lead to; for it is not everybody who knows when to stop, as Mr Beverley -in his position might be expected to do. It was the custom of good -society in Carlingford to give a respectful assent, for example, to Mr -Bury's extreme Low-Churchism--as if it were profane, as it certainly was -not respectable, to differ from the Rector--and to give him as wide a -field as possible for his missionary operations by keeping out of the -way. But Mr Beverley had not the least regard for respectability, nor -that respect for religion which consists in keeping as clear of it as -possible; and the way in which he spoke of Mr Bury's views wounded some -people's feelings. Altogether, he was, as Mrs Chiley said, an anxious -person to have in the house; for he just as often agreed with the -gentlemen in their loose ways of thinking, as with the more correct -opinions by which the wives and mothers who had charge of Their morality -strove hard to keep them in the right way; and that was the reverse of -what one naturally expected from a clergyman. He was very nice, and had -a nice position; and, under all the circumstances, it was not only a -duty to pay attention to him, but a duty from which results of a most -agreeable character might spring; but still, though she could not be -otherwise than kind, it would be impossible to say that it was out of -personal predilection that Mrs Chiley devoted herself to her guest. She -admitted frankly that he was not like what clergymen were in her time. -For one thing, he seemed to think that every silly boy and girl ought to -have an opinion and be consulted, as if they had anything to do with -it--which was just the way to turn their heads, and make them utterly -insupportable. On the whole, perhaps, the old lady was more charitable -to Mary Chiley, and understood better how it was that she, brought up in -sound Church principles, did not get on so well as might be desired with -her husband's family, after a week of the Archdeacon. And yet he was a -delightful person, and full of information, as everybody admitted; and -if Carlingford should be erected into a bishopric, as would be only -right--and if Mr Beverley should happen to be appointed bishop, as was -highly probable--then it would be a pleasure to think that one had been -kind to him. At the same time, it must be owned that he showed a great -want of tact in coming to Miss Marjoribanks's Thursday on the night of -his arrival, and thus brushing, as it were, the very cream off his -introduction to Grange Lane. And Mrs Chiley still sighed a little over -Mr Cavendish, and thought within herself that it was not his fault, but -that designing, artful creature, who was enough to lead any man wrong. -For it was very clear to the meanest capacity that nobody could ever -call the Archdeacon "my dear," as, with all his faults, it had been -possible to call Mr Cavendish. And by this line of thought Mrs Chiley -was led to regret Mr Cavendish, and to wonder what had become of him, -and what family affairs it could be that had taken him so suddenly away. - -A great many people in Carlingford were at that moment occupied by the -same wonders and regrets. Some people thought he was frightened to find -how far he had gone with _that_ Miss Lake, and had left town for a -little to be out of the way; and some thought he must have been -speculating, and have lost money. To tell the truth, it was very strange -that he should have disappeared so suddenly,--just at the moment, too, -when old Mr Chiltern had one of his bad attacks of bronchitis, which Dr -Marjoribanks himself had admitted might carry him off any day. Nothing -could be more important to the future interests of young Cavendish than -to be on the spot at this critical moment, and yet he had disappeared -without telling anybody he was going, or where he was going, which was -on the whole a perfectly unexplainable proceeding. His very servants, as -had been ascertained by some inquiring mind in the community, were -unaware of his intention up to the very last moment; and certainly he -had not said good-bye to anybody before leaving Dr Marjoribanks's garden -on that Thursday evening. Mr Woodburn, who was not a person of very -refined perceptions, was the only man who found his disappearance quite -natural. "After making such a deuced ass of himself, by George! what -could the fellow do?" said his brother-in-law, who naturally enjoyed the -discomfiture of so near a connection; and this was no doubt a -providential circumstance for Mrs Woodburn, who was thus saved from the -necessity of explaining or accounting for her brother's unexpected -disappearance; but it failed to satisfy the general community, who did -not think Mr Cavendish likely to give in at the first blow even of so -distinguished an antagonist as Miss Marjoribanks. Some of the more -charitable inhabitants of Grange Lane concluded that it must be the -sudden illness of some relative which had called him away; but then, -though he was well known to be one of the Cavendishes, neither he nor -his sister ever spoke much of their connections; and, on the whole, -public opinion fluctuated between the two first suggestions--which -seemed truest to nature at least, whether or not they might be fully -corroborated by fact--which were, either that Mr Cavendish had taken -fright, as he might very naturally have done, at the advanced state of -his relations with Barbara Lake; or that he had speculated, and lost -money. In either case his departure would have been natural enough, and -need not, perhaps, have been accomplished with quite so much -precipitation; but still such a community as that in Grange Lane was in -circumstances to comprehend how a young man might take fright and leave -home, either because of losing a lot of money, or getting entangled with -a drawing-master's daughter. - -The immediate result, so far as society was concerned, was one for which -people did not know whether to be most glad or sorry. Mrs Woodburn, who -kept half the people in Grange Lane in terror of their lives, seemed to -have lost all her inspiration now her brother was away. She did not seem -to have the heart to take off anybody, which was quite a serious matter -for the amusement of the community. To be sure, some people were -thankful, as supposing themselves exempted from caricature; but then -unfortunately, as has been said, the people who were most afraid for Mrs -Woodburn were precisely those who were unworthy of her trouble, and had -nothing about them to give occupation to her graphic powers. As for Miss -Marjoribanks, who had supplied one of the mimic's most effective -studies, she was much disturbed by the failure of this element of -entertainment. "I have always thought it very strange that I never had -any sense of humour," Lucilla said; "but it would not do, you know, if -all the world was like me; and society would be nothing if everybody did -not exert themselves to the best of their abilities." There was a -mournful intonation in Lucilla's voice as she said this; for, to tell -the truth, since Mr Cavendish's departure she had been dreadfully -sensible of the utter absence of any man who could flirt. As for Osmond -Brown and the other boys of his age, it might be possible to train them, -but at the best they were only a provision for the future, and in the -meantime Miss Marjoribanks could not but be sensible of her loss. She -lamented it with such sincerity that all the world thought her the most -perfect actress in existence. "I have nothing to say against any of -you," Lucilla would say, contemplating with the eye of an artist the -young men of Grange Lane who were her raw material. "I dare say you will -all fall in love with somebody sooner or later, and be very happy and -good for nothing; but you are no assistance in any way to society. It is -Mr Cavendish I am sighing for," said the woman of genius, with the -candour of a great mind; and even Mrs Woodburn was beguiled out of her -despondency by a study so unparalleled. All this time, however, Lucilla -had not forgotten the last look of her faithless admirer as he faced -round upon her when Mr Archdeacon Beverley came into the room. She too, -like everybody else, wondered innocently why Mr Cavendish had gone away, -and when he was coming back again; but she never hinted to any one that -the Archdeacon _had_ anything to do with it; for indeed, as she said to -herself, she had no positive evidence except that of a look that the -Archdeacon had anything to do with it. By which it will be seen that -Miss Marjoribanks's prudence equalled her other great qualities. It -would be wrong to say, however, that her curiosity was not excited, and -that in a very lively way; for the vague wonder of the public mind over -a strange fact, could never be compared in intensity to the surprise and -curiosity excited by something one has actually seen, and which gives -one, as it were, a share in the secret,--if indeed there was a secret, -which was a matter upon which Lucilla within herself had quite made up -her mind. - -As for the Archdeacon, the place which he took in society was one quite -different from that which had been filled by Mr Cavendish, as, indeed, -was natural. He was one of those men who are very strong for the -masculine side of Christianity; and when he was with the ladies, he had -a sense that he ought to be paid attention to, instead of taking that -trouble in his own person. Miss Marjoribanks was not a woman to be -blind to the advantages of this situation, but still, as was to be -expected, it took her a little time to get used to it, and to make all -the use of it which was practicable under the circumstances--which was -all the more difficult since she was not in the least "viewy" in her own -person, but had been brought up in the old-fashioned orthodox way of -having a great respect for religion, and as little to do with it as -possible, which was a state of mind largely prevalent in Carlingford. -But that was not in the least Mr Beverley's way. - -It was when Lucilla's mind was much occupied by this problem that she -received a visit quite unexpectedly one morning from little Rose Lake, -who had just at that time a great deal on her mind. For it may easily be -supposed that Mr Cavendish's sudden departure, which bewildered the -general public who had no special interest in the matter, must have had -a still more overwhelming effect upon Barbara Lake, who had just been -raised to the very highest pinnacle of hope, closely touching upon -reality, when all her expectations collapsed and came to nothing in a -moment. She would not believe at first that it could be true; and then, -when it was no longer possible to resist the absolute certainty of Mr -Cavendish's departure, her disappointment found vent in every kind of -violence--hysterics, and other manifestations of unreason and self-will. -Rose had been obliged to leave the Female School of Design upon her -papa's overburdened shoulders, and stay at home to nurse her sister. -Perhaps the little artist was not the best person to take care of a -sufferer under such circumstances; for she was neither unreasonable nor -self-willed to speak of, though perhaps a little opinionative in her -way--and could not be brought to think that a whole household should be -disturbed and disordered, and a young woman in good health retire to her -room, and lose all control of herself, because a young man, with whom -she had no acquaintance three months before, had gone out of town -unexpectedly. Perhaps it was a want of feeling on the part of the -unsympathetic sister. She gave out that Barbara was ill, and kept up a -most subdued and anxious countenance downstairs, for the benefit of the -children and the maid-of-all-work, who represented public opinion in -Grove Street; but when Rose went into her sister's room, where Barbara -kept the blinds down, and had her face swollen with crying, it was with -a very stern countenance that her little mentor regarded the invalid. -"I do not ask you to have a sense of duty," Rose said, with a certain -fine disdain, "but at least you might have a proper pride." This was all -she took the trouble to say; but it must be admitted that a great deal -more to the same effect might be read in her eyes, which were generally -so dewy and soft, but which could flash on occasion. And then as the -week drew on towards Thursday, and all her representations proved -unavailing to induce Barbara to get up and prepare herself for her usual -duties, the scorn and vexation and impatience with which the dutiful -little soul met her sister's sullen determination that "she was not -able" to fulfil her ordinary engagements, roused Rose up to a great -resolution. For her own part she was one of the people who do not -understand giving in. "What do you mean by lying there?" she said, -pounding Barbara down small and cutting her to pieces with infallible -good sense and logic; "will that do any good? You would try to look -better than usual, and sing better than usual, if you had any proper -pride. I did not fall ill when my flounce was passed over at the -exhibition. I made up my mind that very evening about the combination -for my veil. I would die rather than give in if I were you." - -"Your flounce!" sobbed Barbara--"oh, you unfeeling insensible thing!--as -if your h-heart had anything to do with--that. I only went to s-spite -Lucilla--and I won't go--no more--oh, no more--now he's been and -deserted me. You can't understand my feelings--g-go away and leave me -alone." - -"Barbara," said Rose, with solemnity, "I would forgive you if you would -not be mean. I don't understand it in one of _us_. If Mr Cavendish has -gone away, it shows that he does not care for you; and you would scorn -him, and scorn to show you were thinking of him, if you had any proper -pride." - -But all the answer Barbara gave was to turn away with a jerk of -annoyance the old easy-chair in which she was lying buried, with her -hands thrust up into her black hair, and her eyes all red; upon which -Rose left her to carry out her own resolution. She was prompt in all her -movements, and she wasted no time on reconsideration. She went down into -Grange Lane, her little head erect, and her bright eyes regarding the -world with that air of frank recognition and acknowledgment which Rose -felt she owed as an artist to her fellow-creatures. They were all good -subjects more or less, and the consciousness that she could draw them -and immortalise them gave her the same sense of confidence in their -friendliness, and her own perfect command of the situation, as a young -princess might have felt whose rank protected her like an invisible -buckler. Rose, too, walked erect and open-eyed, in the confidence of -_her_ rank, which made her everybody's equal. It was in this frame of -mind that she arrived at Dr Marjoribanks's house, and found Lucilla, who -was very glad to see her. Miss Marjoribanks was pondering deeply on the -Archdeacon at that moment, and her little visitor seemed as one sent by -heaven to help her out. For to tell the truth, though Lucilla understood -all about Mr Cavendish, and men of his description, and how to manage -them, and take full use of their powers, even her commanding -intelligence felt the lack of experience in respect to such a case as -that of the Archdeacon, who required a different treatment to draw him -out. She was thinking it over intently at the moment of Rose's arrival, -for Lucilla was not a person to give up the advantages of a novel -position because she did not quite understand it. She felt within -herself that there was no doubt a great effect might be produced if she -could but see how to do it. And it was Thursday morning, and there was -no time to lose. - -"I came to speak to you about Barbara," said Rose. "She is not fit to -come out this morning. I told her it was very ungrateful not to make an -effort after you had been so kind; but I am sorry to say she has not a -strong sense of duty; and I don't think she would be able to sing or do -anything but look stupid. I hope you will not think very badly of her. -There are some people who can't help giving in, I suppose," said Rose, -with an impatient little sigh. - -"And so this is you, you dear little Rose!" said Lucilla, "and I have -never seen you before since I came home--and you always were such a pet -of mine at Mount Pleasant! I can't think why you never came to see me -before; as for me, you know, I never have any time. Poor papa has nobody -else to take care of him, and it always was the object of my life to be -a comfort to papa." - -"Yes," said Rose, who was a straightforward little woman, and not given -to compliments. "I have a great deal to do too," she said; "and then all -my spare moments I am working at my design. Papa always says that -society accepts artists for what they can give, and does not expect them -to sacrifice their time," Rose continued, with her little air of -dignity. Miss Marjoribanks knew very well that society was utterly -unconscious of the existence of the Lake family; but then there is -always something imposing in such a perfectly innocent and superb -assumption as that to which the young Preraphaelite had just given -utterance; and it began to dawn upon Lucilla that here was another -imperfectly understood but effective instrument lying ready to her hand. - -"I should like to see your design," said Miss Marjoribanks graciously. -"You made such a pretty little wreath for the corner of my -handkerchief--don't you remember?--all frogs' legs and things. It looked -so sweet in the old satin stitch. What is the matter with poor Barbara? -I felt sure she would catch cold and lose her voice. I shall tell papa -to go and see her. As for to-night, it will be a dreadful loss to be -sure, for I never could find a voice that went so well with mine. But if -you are sure she can't come----" - -"When people have not a sense of duty," said Rose, with an indignant -sigh, "nor any proper pride,----Some are so different. Barbara ought to -have been some rich person's daughter, with nothing to do. She would not -mind being of no use in the world. It is a kind of temperament I don't -understand," continued the little artist. All this, it is true, was -novel to Miss Marjoribanks, who had a kind of prejudice in favour of the -daughters of rich persons who had nothing to do; but Lucilla's genius -was broad and catholic, and did not insist upon comprehending -everything. She gave Rose a sudden scrutinising look, and measured her -mentally against the gap she had to fill. No doubt it was an experiment, -and might fail signally; but then Miss Marjoribanks was always at hand -to cover deficiencies, and she had that confidence in herself and her -good fortune which is necessary to everybody who greatly dares. - -"You must come yourself this evening, you dear old Rose," said Lucilla. -"You know I always was fond of you. Oh, yes, I know you can't sing like -Barbara. But the Archdeacon is coming, who understands about art; and if -you would like to bring your design----My principle has always been, -that there should be a little of everything in society," said Miss -Marjoribanks. "I dare say you will feel a little strange at first with -not knowing the people, but that will soon pass off--and you _must_ -come." - -When she had said this, Lucilla bestowed upon little Rose a friendly -schoolfellow kiss, putting her hands upon the little artist's shoulders, -and looking her full in the face as she did so. "I am sure you can -talk," said Miss Marjoribanks. She did not say "Go away now, and leave -me to my arrangements;" but Rose, who was quick-witted, understood that -the salute was a dismissal, and she went away accordingly, tingling with -pride and excitement and pleasure and a kind of pain. The idea of -practically exemplifying, in her own person, the kind of demeanour which -society ought to expect from an artist had not occurred to Rose; but -destiny having arranged it so, she was not the woman to withdraw from -her responsibilities. She said to herself that it would be shabby for -her who was known to have opinions on this subject, to shrink from -carrying them out; and stimulated her courage by recourse to her -principles, as people do who feel themselves bound to lay sacrifices on -the altar of duty. Notwithstanding this elevated view of the emergency, -it must be admitted that a sudden thought of what she would wear had -flushed to Rose's very finger-tips, with a heat and tingle of which the -little heroine was ashamed. For it was Thursday morning, and there was -not a moment to be lost. However, after the first thrill which this idea -had given her, Rose bethought herself once more of her principles, and -stilled her beating heart. It was not for her to think of what she was -to put on, she who had so often proclaimed the exemption of "a family of -artists" from the rules which weigh so hard upon the common world. "We -have a rank of our own," she said to herself, but with that tremor which -always accompanies the transference of a purely theoretical and even -fantastic rule of conduct into practical ground--"We are everybody's -equal, and we are nobody's equal--and when papa begins to be appreciated -as he ought to be, and Willie has made a Name----" This was always the -point at which Rose broke off, falling into reverie that could not be -expressed in words; but she had no leisure to remark upon the chance -"compositions" in the street, or the effects of light and shade, as she -went home. A sudden and heavy responsibility had fallen upon her -shoulders, and she would have scorned herself had she deserted her -post. - - - - -_Chapter XVIII_ - - -But the anticipations of Rose Lake were trifling matters in comparison -with the universal interest and even excitement which attended the -Archdeacon's first appearance in Carlingford. What might be called his -first public appearance took place at Dr Marjoribanks's table, although -he had previously dined at the Rectory, and also at Sir John Richmond's, -besides that there had been somebody to dinner at Colonel Chiley's -almost every day; but then there were only county people at Sir John's, -and Mr Bury's guests naturally counted for very little in Grange -Lane;--indeed, it was confidently reported that the Rector had invited -Mr Tufton of Salem Chapel to meet the Archdeacon, and that, but for the -Dissenting minister having more sense and knowing his place, that -unseemly conjunction would have taken place, to the horror of all -right-thinking people. So that Dr Marjoribanks's was in reality the -first house where he had any chance of seeing society. It would perhaps -be using too strong a word to say that Miss Marjoribanks was anxious -about the success of her arrangements for this particular evening; but, -at the same time, it must be admitted that the circumstances were such -as to justify a little anxiety. Mr Cavendish was gone, who, to do him -justice, was always agreeable, and his departure disturbed the habitual -party; and Mrs Woodburn had lost all her powers, as it seemed, and sat -at Dr Marjoribanks's left hand, looking just like other people, and -evidently not to be in the least depended on; and Lucilla was aware that -Barbara was not coming, which made, if nothing else, a change in the -programme. No music, nobody to do the flirting, nor to supply the -dramatic by-play to which Grange Lane had become accustomed; and a new -man to be made use of, and to be done honour to, and introduced in -society. A young woman of powers inferior to those of Miss Marjoribanks -would have sunk under such a weight of responsibility, and there was no -doubt that Lucilla was a little excited. She felt that everything -depended upon her courage and self-possession. If she but lost her head -for a moment and lost command of affairs, everything might have been -lost; but then fortunately she knew herself and what she could do, and -had a modest confidence that she would not lose her head; and thus she -could still eat her dinner with the composure of genius, though it would -be wrong to deny that Lucilla was a little pale. - -And then, as if all these things had not been enough to discourage the -lady of the house, another discordant element was added by the presence -of Mr Bury and his sister, whom it had been necessary to ask to meet the -Archdeacon. The Rector, though he was very Low-Church, has no particular -objections to a good dinner--but he made a principle of talking of that -important daily necessity in a disparaging, or at best in a patronising -way, which roused Dr Marjoribanks's temper; and sometimes the Doctor -would launch a shaft of medical wit at his spiritual guide, which Mr -Bury had no means of parrying. Nor was this the only danger to which the -peace of the party was exposed. For the Rector, at the same time, -regarded Mr Beverley with a certain critical suspiciousness, such as is -seldom to be encountered except among clergymen. He did not know much -about his clerical superior, who had only recently been appointed to his -archdeaconry; but there was something in his air, his looks, and -demeanour, which indicated what Mr Bury considered a loose way of -thinking. When the Archdeacon made any remark the Rector would pause and -look up from his plate to listen to it, with his fork suspended in the -air the while--and then he would exchange glances with his sister, who -was on the other side of the table. All this, it may be supposed, was a -little discomposing for Lucilla, who had the responsibility of -everything, and who could now look for no assistance among the ordinary -members of her father's party, who were, as a general rule, much more -occupied with the dinner than with anything else that was going on. In -such a state of affairs, it was a great relief to Miss Marjoribanks when -the Archdeacon, who occupied the post of honour by her side, made a -lively new beginning in the conversation. It had not to call _flagged_ -before--not precisely flagged--but still there were indications of -approaching exhaustion, such as can always be perceived half a mile off -by anybody who has any experience in society, and when the Archdeacon -took up the ball with all the liveliness of a man who is interested in a -special question, it will not be difficult to any lady who has ever been -in such circumstances to realise to herself Miss Marjoribanks's sense of -gratitude and relief. - -"By the bye," said Mr Beverley, "I meant to ask if any one knew a man -whom I am sure I caught a glimpse of the first day I was in Carlingford. -Perhaps it was in the morning after I arrived, to be precise. I can't -recollect exactly. If he lives about here, he ought to be known, for he -is a clever amusing sort of fellow. I don't know if Carlingford is more -blessed than other country towns with people of that complexion," said -the Archdeacon, turning to Lucilla with a smile. His smile, as he paused -and turned to Miss Marjoribanks, was such as conveys a kind of challenge -when it is addressed to a young lady, and meant to lead to a lively -little combat by the way; and yet there was something of keen personal -anxiety and animosity in it. As for Lucilla, she was conscious of an -immediate thrill of curiosity, but still it was curiosity unmingled with -any excitement, and she had no particular objection to respond. - -"Everybody is nice in Carlingford," said Miss Marjoribanks; "some people -are always finding fault with their neighbours, but I always get on so -well with everybody--I suppose it is my luck." This was not precisely an -answer to the Archdeacon's question; and there was somebody at the table -who could have fallen upon Lucilla and beaten her for putting off the -revelation which trembled on the lips of Mr Beverley, and yet would have -given anything in the world to silence the Archdeacon, and felt capable -of rushing at him like a fury and tearing his tongue out, or suffocating -him, to stop the next words that he was going to say. But nobody knew -anything about this, or could see into the one heart that had begun to -flutter and throb with alarm; for outwardly, all the well-dressed, -cheerful people at Dr Marjoribanks's table sat eating their dinner, one -precisely like another, as if there had been no such thing as mystery or -terror in the world. - -"You must not expect me to believe in the perfection of human society," -said the Archdeacon, going on in the same strain; "I would much rather -pin my faith to the amiable dispositions of one young lady who always -finds her neighbours agreeable--and I hope she makes no exception to the -rule," said the Broad-Churchman in a parenthesis, with a smile and a -bow--and then he raised his voice a little: "The man I speak of is -really a very amusing fellow, and very well got up, and calculated to -impose upon ordinary observers. It is quite a curious story; he was a -son of a trainer or something of that sort about Newmarket. Old Lord -Monmouth took an extraordinary fancy to him, and had him constantly -about his place--at one time, indeed, he half brought him up along with -his grandson, you know. He always was a handsome fellow, and picked up a -little polish; and really, for people not quite used to the real thing, -was as nearly like a gentleman----" - -"Come, now, I don't put any faith in that," said Mr Woodburn. "I don't -pretend to be much of a one for fine company myself, but I know a -gentleman when I see him; a snob always overdoes it, you know----" - -"I never said this man was a snob," said the Archdeacon, with a refined -expression of disgust at the interruption flitting over his features; -"on the contrary, if he had only been honest, he would have been really -a very nice fellow----" - -"My dear sir," said Mr Bury, "excuse me for breaking in--perhaps I am -old-fashioned, but don't you think it's a pity to treat the question of -honesty so lightly? A dishonest person has a precious soul to be saved, -and may be a most deeply interesting character; but to speak of him as a -very nice fellow, is--pardon me--I think it's a pity; especially in -mixed society, where it is so important for a clergyman to be guarded in -his expressions," said the Rector. When Mr Bury began to speak, -everybody else at table ceased talking, and gave serious attention to -what was going on, for the prospect of a passage of arms between the two -clergymen was an opportunity too captivating to be lost. - -"I hope Mr Bury's dishonest friends will pardon me," said the -Archdeacon; "I mean no harm to their superior claims. Does anybody know -the man here, I wonder? He had changed his name when I knew him, and -there is no telling what he may call himself now. I assure you he was a -very good-looking fellow--dark, good features, nearly six feet high----" - -"Oh, please don't say any more," said Miss Marjoribanks, and she could -not quite have explained why she interrupted these personal details; "if -you tell me what he is like, I shall fancy everybody I meet is him; Mr -Centum is dark, and has good features, and is nearly six feet high. -Never mind what he is like; you gentlemen can never describe -anybody--you always keep to _generals_; tell us what he has done." - -Somebody drew a long breath at the table when the Archdeacon obeyed Miss -Marjoribanks's injunction. More than one person caught the sound, but -even Lucilla's keen eyes could not make out beyond controversy from whom -it proceeded. To be sure, Lucilla's mind was in a most curious state of -tumult and confusion. She was not one of the people who take a long time -to form their conclusions; but the natural conclusion to which she felt -inclined to jump in this case was one so monstrous and incredible that -Miss Marjoribanks felt her only safeguard in the whirl of possibilities -was to reject it altogether, and make up her mind that it was -impossible; and then all the correspondences and apparent corroborations -began to dance and whirl about her in a bewildering ring till her own -brain seemed to spin with them. She was as much afraid lest the -Archdeacon by some chance should fall upon a really individual feature -which the world in general could identify, as if she had had any real -concern in the matter. But then, fortunately, there was not much chance -of that; for it was one of Lucilla's principles that men never can -describe each other. She listened, however, with such a curious -commotion in her mind, that she did not quite make out what he was -saying, and only pieced it up in little bits from memory afterwards. Not -that it was a very dreadful story. It was not a narrative of robbery or -murder, or anything very alarming; but if it could by any possibility -turn out that the man of whom Mr Beverley was speaking had ever been -received in society in Carlingford, then it would be a dreadful blow to -the community, and destroy public confidence for ever in the social -leaders. This was what Lucilla was thinking in her sudden turmoil of -amazement and apprehension. And all this time there was another person -at table who knew all about it twenty times better than Lucilla, and -knew what was coming, and had a still more intense terror lest some -personal detail might drop from the Archdeacon's lips which the public -in general would recognise. Mr Beverley went on with his story with a -curious sort of personal keenness in his way of telling it, but never -dreaming for a moment that anybody that heard him was disturbed or -excited by it. "He has a mark on his face," the Archdeacon said--but -here Miss Marjoribanks gave a little cry, and held up both her hands in -dismay. - -"Don't tell us what marks he has on his face," said Lucilla. "I know -that I shall think every man who is dark, and has good features, and is -six feet, must be him. I wonder if it could be my cousin Tom; _he_ has a -little mark on his face--and it would be just like his dreadful luck, -poor fellow. Would it be right to give up one's own cousin if it should -turn out to be Tom?" said Miss Marjoribanks. The people who were sitting -at her end of the table laughed, but there was no laughing in Lucilla's -mind. And this fright and panic were poor preparatives for the evening, -which had to be got through creditably with so few resources, and with -such a total reversal of the ordinary programme. Miss Marjoribanks was -still tingling with curiosity and alarm when she rose from the table. If -it should really come to pass that an adventurer had been received into -the best society of Carlingford, and that the best judges had not been -able to discriminate between the false and true, how could any one -expect that Grange Lane would continue to confide its most important -arrangements to such incompetent hands? - -Such was the dreadful question that occupied all Lucilla's thoughts. So -far as the adventurer himself was concerned, no doubt he deserved -anything that might come upon him; but the judgment which might overtake -the careless shepherds who had admitted the wolf into the fold was much -more in Miss Marjoribanks's mind than any question of abstract justice. -So that it was not entirely with a philanthropical intention that she -stopped Mr Beverley and put an end to his dangerous details. Now she -came to think of it, she began to remember that _nobody of her -acquaintance_ had any mark on his face; but still it was best not to -inquire too closely. It was thus with a preoccupied mind that she went -up to the drawing-room, feeling less in spirits for her work than on any -previous occasion. It was the first of the unlucky nights, which every -woman of Lucilla's large and public-spirited views must calculate upon -as inevitable now and then. There was no moon, and the Richmonds -naturally were absent, and so were the Miss Browns, who were staying -there on a visit--for it was after the engagement between Lydia[1] and -John; and Mr Cavendish was away (though perhaps under the circumstances -that was no disadvantage); and Mrs Woodburn was silenced; and even -Barbara Lake had failed her patroness. - -[Footnote 1: It may be mentioned here that this was an engagement that -none of the friends approved of, and that it was the greatest possible -comfort to Miss Marjoribanks's mind that she had nothing to do with -it--either one way or another, as she said.] - -"You are not in spirits to-night, Lucilla, my poor dear," said Mrs -Chiley, as they went upstairs; and the kind old lady cast a fierce -glance at Mrs Woodburn, who was going before them with Miss Bury, as if -it could be her fault. - -"Dear Mrs Chiley," said Miss Marjoribanks, "I am in perfect spirits; it -is only the responsibility, you know. Poor Barbara is ill, and we can't -have any music, and what if people should be bored? When one has real -friends to stand by one it is different," said Lucilla, with an -intonation that was not intended for Mrs Chiley, "and I _always_ stand -by my friends." - -This was the spirit with which Miss Marjoribanks went upstairs. It was a -sentiment which pervaded her whole life. Even when she had occasion to -be sufficiently displeased with the people who surrounded her, and to -feel that her own loyal friendship met with no adequate response, this -was the unfailing inspiration of her heart. She did not rush into -opposition because any misguided man or woman failed for the moment to -appreciate her efforts, and return, as they ought to have been glad to -do, her sentiments of kindness. On the contrary, nothing could have been -more long-suffering and tolerant and benign than the feelings with which -Lucilla regarded the unfortunate persons who mistook or did not -appreciate her. She knew herself, which, however superior they might be, -was something they could not know; and she could afford to be sorry (for -their own sakes) for their want of discrimination. If there should -happen to be somebody in Grange Lane who had gained admittance into -society under false pretences, not even such an offence, grievous as it -was, could induce Miss Marjoribanks to condemn the culprit unheard. It -was at once her settled resolution, and a peculiarity of her character, -to stand by her friends; and whatever might be the thoughts in her own -mind, her immediate decision was to shut her ears to every indication of -the culprit's personality, and to be blind to every suggestion that -could identify him. People who like to discover the alloy which blends -with all human motives, may suppose that Lucilla felt her own credit as -the leader of society at stake, and would not admit that she had been -duped. But this had in reality but a very small share in the matter. Her -instinct, even when reason suggested that she should be doubtful of -them, was always to side with her own friends; and though there might be -persons included in that sacred number who were scarcely worthy of the -character, yet Lucilla, like every lofty character, could act but -according to her own nature, and could not forsake any one whom she -supposed to be thus mysteriously and darkly assailed. - -And she had her reward. There are virtues in this world which go without -any recompense, but there are other virtues upon which a prompt guerdon -is bestowed; and Lucilla possessed this happier development. Whether it -was that little speech of hers which touched the mimic's heart, or -whether the effect was produced by some other secret influence, it is -certain that this was the night on which Mrs Woodburn's talent came to -what may be called a sort of apotheosis. She shook off her languor as by -a sudden inspiration, and gave such a sketch of the Archdeacon as up to -this day is remembered more clearly in Carlingford than the man himself. -She took him off to his very face, and he never found it out, though -everybody else did, and the house shook with restrained laughter. And as -if this was not enough, Rose Lake had come with her portfolio, with some -sketches of her brother's (who afterwards became so celebrated) in it, -which electrified all the people who were fond of art; and by the side -of the young Preraphaelite was Barbara, who had come "to spite Lucilla," -and who remained unwittingly to grace her triumph. She stood by herself, -all wan and crumpled, all the night, showing her disappointment and rage -and jilted state so clearly in her face, as to afford to all the mammas -in her neighbourhood a most startling example of the danger of showing -your feelings, with which to point a moral to the other young people -about. She had come because Rose was coming, and she would not be -eclipsed by her younger sister. But nobody took any notice of Barbara on -this miserable evening; nobody asked her to sing, or offered her a seat, -or even spoke to her, except Lucilla, who in her magnanimity found time -to say a word as she passed. She was carelessly dressed, and her hair -was hastily arranged, and her eyes were red. She had no desire to look -as if she had not been jilted, and had no proper pride, as Rose said; -and Mrs Chiley, who was Lucilla's partisan and champion, and who thought -poor Barbara deserved it all, seized the opportunity, and delivered a -little lecture on the subject to the first group of girls who came in -her way. - -"A disappointment may happen to any one," said Mrs Chiley; "and so long -as they had done nothing unbecoming, nobody could blame them; but, my -dears, whatever you do, don't show it like that! It makes me ashamed of -my sex. And only look at Lucilla!" said the old lady. Lucilla had the -best of it now. Instead of a failure, such as for a moment seemed -likely, she had a triumphant success. She, and she only, said a word of -kindness to her formerly triumphant rival. She drove her chariot over -Barbara, and drew an advantage even from her sullen looks and red eyes. -And the only thing that dissatisfied Mrs Chiley in the entire course of -the evening was the trustful confidence with which Miss Marjoribanks -left the Archdeacon, the (possible) new candidate for her favour, beside -the Lakes and their portfolio of drawings. In this, as in all other -things, Lucilla could not but follow the dictates of her magnanimous -nature. And even her own prospects, as her old friend lamented, were as -nothing to her in comparison with the good of society. Experience ought -to have taught her better; but then experience rarely does that amount -of practical good which is generally attributed to it in the world. -Lucilla gave little Rose the fullest opportunity of showing her drawings -to the Archdeacon and awakening his curiosity, and even securing his -affections, as the jealous observer thought; and everybody knows how -little is necessary, if a young woman likes to exert herself, to lead a -poor man to his undoing; and Mr Beverley, though an archdeacon, was most -probably, in this respect at least, no wiser than other men. This was -the painful aspect of the case which Mrs Chiley discussed with her -husband when they got home. - -"He is not like what clergymen were in our day," said the old lady, "but -still he is very nice, and has a nice position, and it would just suit -Lucilla; but to think of her going and leaving him with these Lake -girls, notwithstanding the lesson she has had! and I have no doubt the -little one is just as designing and nasty as the other. If it should -come to anything, she has only herself to blame," said Mrs Chiley. As -for the Colonel, he took it more calmly, as a gentleman might be -expected to do. - -"You may trust a parson for that," said the old soldier. "He knows what -he is about. You will never find him make such an ass of himself as -young Cavendish did." But this only made Mrs Chiley sigh the more. - -"Poor Mr Cavendish!" said the old lady. "I will never blame him, poor -fellow. It was all that deceitful thing laying her snares for him. For -my part I never like to have anything to do with those artist kind of -people--they are all adventurers," said the Colonel's wife; and she went -to bed with this unchristian persuasion in her mind. - -While every one else regarded the matter with, to some extent, a -personal bias, the only person who looked at it abstractly, and -contemplated not the accidents of an evening, but the work itself, which -was progressing in the face of all kinds of social difficulties, was the -master-mind which first conceived the grand design of turning the -chaotic elements of society in Carlingford into one grand unity. Lucilla -was not blind to the dangers that surrounded her, nor indifferent to the -partial disappointment she had undergone; but she saw that, in spite of -all, her great work was making progress. And when we announce that Miss -Marjoribanks herself was satisfied, there remains little more to say. - -As for the Archdeacon, he, as was natural, knew nothing about the -matter. He said again, with the natural obtuseness which is so general -among the gentlemen, that it had been a very pleasant party. "She has a -fine clear candid nature," said Mr Beverley, which certainly was better -than pronouncing solemnly that she was a good woman, which was what he -said of Mrs Chiley and Lady Richmond, in the lump, as it were, without -considering how unlike they were to each other. That was all he, being -only a man, knew about it. But though Lucilla was satisfied with the -events of the evening, it would be vain to deny that there were -perturbations in her mind as she laid her head upon her maiden pillow. -She said to herself again with profounder fervour, that fortunately her -affections had not been engaged; but there were more things than -affections to be taken into consideration. Could it be possible that -mystery, and perhaps imposture, of one kind or another, had crossed the -sacred threshold of Grange Lane; and that people might find out and cast -in Lucilla's face the dreadful discovery that a man had been received in -_her_ house who was not what he appeared to be? When such an idea -crossed her mind, Miss Marjoribanks shivered under her satin quilt. Of -course she could not change the nature of the fact one way or another; -but, at least, it was her duty to act with great circumspection, so that -if possible it might not be found out--for Lucilla appreciated fully the -difference that exists between wrong and discovery. If any man was -imposing upon his neighbours and telling lies about himself, it was his -own fault; but if a leader of society were to betray the fact of having -received and petted such a person, then the responsibility was on _her_ -shoulders. And softer thoughts mingled with these prudential -considerations--that sweet yet stern resolution to stand by her friends -which Miss Marjoribanks had this evening expressed, and that sense of -pity for everybody who is unfortunate which asserts itself even in the -strongest of female intelligences. On the whole, it was clear that -prudence was the great thing required, and a determination not to give -too hasty heed to anything, nor to put herself in the wrong by any -alarmist policy. Fortunately the respectability of Dr Marjoribanks's -house was enough to cover its guests with a shining buckler. Thus -Lucilla calmed down her own apprehensions, and succeeded in convincing -herself that if the impostor whom the Archdeacon had seen had been -really received in Grange Lane, it was so much the worse for the -impostor; but that, in the meantime, in the lack of evidence it was much -the best thing to take no notice. If there was any one else in -Carlingford who regarded that past danger with a livelier horror and a -more distinct fear, certainly Miss Marjoribanks had no way of knowing of -it; and nobody had been remarked as being in a despondent condition, or, -indeed, in anything but the highest spirits, in the course of this -Thursday, except the ungrateful creature who had begun all the mischief; -and tolerant as Lucilla was, it would have been going beyond the limits -of nature to have expected that she could have been profoundly sorry for -Barbara Lake. - -At the same time, poor Barbara, though she was not an elevated -character, had gone home in a very sad state of mind. She had taken -courage to ask Mrs Woodburn about her brother, and Mrs Woodburn had made -the very briefest and rudest response to her question, and had "taken -off" her woe-begone looks almost to her very face. And no one had shown -the least sympathy for the forsaken one. She had not even been called -from her solitude to sing, which might have been something, and it was -Rose, as she said to herself, who had attracted all the attention; for, -like most selfish people, Barbara, though keenly aware of her own -wrongs, had no eyes to perceive that Rose, who had a proud little -spirit, was anything but satisfied with the evening's entertainment, to -which she had herself so largely contributed. "I feel as if I should -never see him more," Barbara said, quite subdued and broken down, with a -burst of tears, as the two went home; and poor little Rose, who was -soft-hearted, forgot all her disapprobation in sympathy. "Never mind -them, dear; they have no feeling. We must cling together all the closer, -and try to be everything to each other," Rose said, with eyes which were -full, but which would not shed any tears. What was passing through her -own mind was, that it was not for herself, but for her portfolio and the -talk that arose over it, that Lucilla had asked her; but, at the same -time, she said to herself, that all that was nothing in comparison to -the wound of the heart under which Barbara was suffering. "Dear, never -mind, we will be everything to each other," said poor little romantic -Rose; and the elder sister, even in the depths of her dejection, could -have given her a good shake for uttering such an absurd sentiment; for a -great deal of good it would do to be everything to each other--as if -that could ever replace the orange blossoms and the wedding tour, and -the carriage and handsome house, which were included in the name of -Cavendish! "And he was such a dear!" she said to herself in her own -mind, and wept, and made her eyes redder and redder. If Mr Cavendish had -known all that was going on in Carlingford that night, the chances are -that he would have been most flattered by those tears which Barbara shed -for him under the lamps in Grove Street; but then it is to be hoped he -would not have been insensible either to the just reticence and -self-restraint which, mingling with Miss Marjoribanks's suspicions, -prevented her, as she herself said, even in the deepest seclusion of her -own thoughts, from naming any name. - - - - -_Chapter XIX_ - - -But Lucilla's good luck and powers of persuasion were such that after a -while she even succeeded in convincing little Rose Lake of the perfect -reasonableness, and indeed necessity, of sacrificing herself to the -public interests of the community. "As for enjoying it," Miss -Marjoribanks said, "that is quite a different matter. Now and then -perhaps for a minute one enjoys it; but that is not what I am thinking -of. One owes something to one's fellow-creatures, you know; and if it -made the evening go off well, I should not mind in the least to be -hustled up in a corner and contradicted. To be sure, I don't remember -that it ever happened to me; but then I have such luck; and I am sure I -give you full leave to box the Archdeacon's ears next Thursday; or to -tell him he does not know anything in the world about art," said Miss -Marjoribanks thoughtfully, with a new combination rising in her mind. - -"Thank you, Lucilla," said Rose, "but I shall not come back again. I am -much obliged to you. It does not do for people who have work to do. My -time is all I have, and I cannot afford to waste it, especially----" - -"Rose," said Miss Marjoribanks, "how are you ever to be an artist if you -do not know life? That is just the very reason why you ought to go out -into the world; and I don't see, for my part, that it matters whether it -is pleasant or not. To practise scales all day long is anything but -pleasant, but then one has to do it, you know. I don't blame you," said -Lucilla, with tender condescension. "You are a dear little thing, and -you don't know any better; but _I_ went through Political Economy, and -learnt all about that;--you don't think _I_ choose it for the pleasure? -But you all know what is the object of my life, and I hope I am not one -to shrink from my duty," Miss Marjoribanks added. And it was difficult -to reply to such a sublime declaration. Little Rose left her friend with -the conviction that it was her duty, too, to sacrifice herself for the -benefit of society and the advancement of art. Such were the lofty -sentiments elicited naturally, as enthusiasm responds to enthusiasm, by -Lucilla's self-devotion. Already, although she was not much more than -twenty, she had the consoling consciousness that she had wrought a great -work in Carlingford; and if Miss Marjoribanks required a little -sacrifice from her assistants, she did not shrink from making the same -in her own person, as has been shadowed forth in the case of Mr -Cavendish, and as will yet, in the course of this history, be still more -seriously and even sadly evolved. - -Three weeks had passed in this way, making it still more and more -visible to Lucilla how much she had lost in losing Mr Cavendish, of whom -nothing as yet had been heard, when suddenly, one day, about -luncheon-time, at the hour when Miss Marjoribanks was known to be at -home, the drawing-room door opened without any warning, and the missing -man walked in. It was thus that Lucilla herself described the unexpected -apparition, which appeared to her to have dropped from the clouds. She -avowed afterwards to Mrs Chiley that his entrance was so utterly -unexpected, so noiseless, and without warning, that she felt quite -silly, and could not tell in the least how she behaved; though the -friends of Miss Marjoribanks, it is to be hoped, are too well acquainted -with her promptitude of mind and action to imagine that she in any way -compromised herself even under the surprise of the moment. As for Mr -Cavendish, he exhibited a certain mixture of timidity and excitement -which it was remarkable, and indeed rather flattering for any lady to -see, in such an accomplished man of the world. Lucilla was not a person -to deceive herself, nor did she want experience in such matters, as has -been already shown; but it would be vain to deny that the conviction -forced upon her mind by the demeanour of her visitor was that it was a -man _about to propose_ who thus made his unlooked-for appearance before -her. She confessed afterwards to her confidential friend that he had all -the signs of it in his looks and manners. "He gave that little nervous -cough," Lucilla said, "and pulled his cravat _just so_, and stared into -his hat as if he had it all written down there; and looked as They -always look," Miss Marjoribanks added, with a touch of natural contempt. -Nor was this all the change in Mr Cavendish's appearance. He had managed -miraculously in his month's absence to grow the most charming little -moustache and beard, which were, to be sure, slightly red, like most -people's. It gleamed into Miss Marjoribanks's mind in a moment that -people did such things sometimes by way of disguising themselves; but -if such had been Mr Cavendish's intention, it had utterly failed, since -he seemed rather more like himself than before, in Lucilla's opinion, -and certainly was more likely to attract attention, since beards were -not so usual in these days. They met on the very spot where Lucilla had -seen him last, with that look of insane terror on his handsome face. And -the Archdeacon was still in Carlingford, if it was he who had occasioned -such a panic. Mr Cavendish came in as if he had never been absent, as if -he had seen Miss Marjoribanks on the previous night, and had no fear of -anything in the world but of failing to please her; and Lucilla -fortunately saw the nature of the position, and was not to be put out -even by such an emergency. Of course, under the circumstances, to accept -him was utterly out of the question; but, at the same time, Lucilla did -not feel it expedient, without much more distinct information, to put a -definitive and cruel negative on Mr Cavendish's hopes. As for Barbara -Lake, that was a trifle not worth thinking of; and, notwithstanding that -there was something rather unaccountable in his conduct, he was still -the probable member for Carlingford, just, as Mrs Chiley so often said, -the position which, of all others, she would have chosen for Lucilla; so -that Miss Marjoribanks was not prepared, without due consideration, to -bring the matter to a final end. - -While Lucilla made this rapid summary of affairs and took her stand in -her own mind, Mr Cavendish had taken a chair and had opened the -conversation. He hoped he had not been entirely forgotten, though a -fortnight's absence was a severe tax on anybody's memory---- - -"A fortnight!" said Miss Marjoribanks; "how happy you must have been -while you have been away!--for I assure you a month is a month at -Carlingford; and one does not get such ornaments in two weeks," said -Lucilla, putting her hand to her chin, which made Mr Cavendish laugh, -and look more nervous than ever. - -"It is a souvenir of where I have been," he said. "I could imagine I had -been gone two years, judging by my own feelings. I am so pleased to see -that you remember how long it is. I dare say it looked a little droll -running away so, but I dared not trust myself with leave-takings," Mr -Cavendish said, with an air of sentiment. "I have been watching over a -poor friend of mine on his sick-bed. He was once very good to me, and -when he sent for me I could not delay or refuse him. I found he had -telegraphed for me when I got home the last Thursday evening I was -here," he continued, looking Lucilla full in the face with the candour -of conscious truth--though, to be sure, when people are stating a simple -fact, it is seldom that they take the pains to be so particular. "I -started by the night-train, and crossed the Channel while you were all -fast asleep. I wonder if any one gave me a thought," continued Mr -Cavendish; and it was still more and more impressed upon Lucilla that he -had all the signs of a man who had come to propose. - -"I cannot say about that night in particular, but I am sure a great many -people have given you a thought," said Miss Marjoribanks. "We have all -been wondering what had become of you, where you were, and when you were -coming back. So far as I am concerned, I have missed you dreadfully," -said Lucilla, with her usual openness; and she really thought for a -moment that Mr Cavendish in a sudden transport was going down on his -knees. - -"I scarcely hoped for so much happiness," he said; and though he kept up -the tone proper to good society, which might mean sport or earnest -according as the occasion required, there was a certain air of gratitude -and tenderness in his face which sent Lucilla's active mind a-wondering. -"He is thinking of the music-stand," she said to herself, and then went -on with what she was saying; for though Miss Marjoribanks had a very -good opinion of herself, it had not occurred to her that Mr Cavendish -was very deeply in love--with _her_, at all events. - -"Ah, yes--not only for the flirting, you know, which of itself is a -dreadful loss; but then you were so good in keeping the gentlemen to -their duty. I missed you dreadfully--there has been nobody at all to -help me," said Lucilla. Her tone was so genuinely plaintive that Mr -Cavendish grew more and more moved. He put down his hat, he cleared his -throat, he got up and walked to the window--evidently he was getting up -his courage for the last step. - -"But I heard you had some distinguished strangers here," he said, coming -back to his seat without having, as it appeared, made up his mind. "My -sister wrote--that is to say I heard--I really don't remember how I got -the news; a dean, or bishop, or something----?" - -"Oh, yes, Mr Archdeacon Beverley; he came precisely the night you went -away," said Lucilla. "Didn't you see him? I thought you stayed till -after he came into the room. A nice clergyman is very nice, you know; -but, after all, a man who has some experience in society--and we have -had no music to speak of since you went away. Poor dear Barbara has had -such a bad cold. In short, we have all been at sixes and sevens; and the -Archdeacon----" - -"Oh, never mind the Archdeacon," said Mr Cavendish, and Miss -Marjoribanks felt that he had not winced at the name, though he did -glance up at her in spite of himself with a little gleam in his eyes -when she mentioned Barbara Lake. Perhaps this was because he knew -nothing about the Archdeacon, perhaps because he was prepared to hear -the Archdeacon named. Lucilla did not give him all the benefit of the -uncertainty, for she began to get a little impatient, and to wonder, if -the man had come to propose, as appearances suggested, why he did not do -it and get done with it?--which was a very reasonable question. This -time, however, it certainly was coming. "I don't like nice clergymen," -said Mr Cavendish, "especially not when it is _you_ who find them so. If -I could really flatter myself that you missed me----" - -"We all did," said Lucilla; "there is no compliment about it; and poor -dear Barbara has had such a cold----" - -"Ah!" said the unfortunate aspirant; and once more he gave a doubtful -glance at Lucilla--decidedly the name of Barbara had more effect upon -him than that of the Archdeacon. It seemed to damp his fire and smother -the words on his lips, and he had to take another promenade to the -window to recover himself. After that, however, he came back evidently -wound up and determined; and his eyes, as he returned to Miss -Marjoribanks's side, fell upon the music-stand by means of which she had -covered his fright and flight (if it was not a mere hallucination on -Lucilla's part that he had been frightened and had fled) on the night he -left Carlingford. He came back with the air of a man who means to delay -and deliberate no more. - -"If I could flatter myself that _you_ had missed me," he said; -"_you_--not any one else--I might have the courage to ask----" - -It was at that precise moment of all moments that Mrs Chiley, whom they -had not heard coming upstairs, though she was sufficiently audible, -suddenly opened the door. Mr Cavendish, as was natural, broke off in a -moment with a face which had turned crimson, and even Lucilla herself -felt a little annoyed and put out, when, as in duty bound, she got up to -meet and welcome her old friend. One thing was fortunate, as Miss -Marjoribanks afterwards reflected, that since it was to be interrupted, -it had been interrupted so early, before he could have put himself in -any ridiculous attitude, for example; for at such moments it is well -known that some men go down upon their knees--or at least such is the -ineradicable belief of womankind. If Mr Cavendish had been on his -knees--though, to tell the truth, he was not a very likely subject--the -position would have been much more embarrassing. But as it was, there -was an end. _He_ turned back again to the window, biting his glove in -the most frantic way, and taking up his hat, while _she_, always -mistress of the position, advanced to the new-comer with outstretched -hands. - -"I know you have come to have lunch with me," said Lucilla. "You are -always so nice--just when I wanted you; for, of course, I dared not have -asked Mr Cavendish to go downstairs if I had been all alone." - -"Mr Cavendish!" cried the old lady, with a little scream. "So he has -really come back! I am so glad to see you. I can't tell you how glad I -am to see you; and, I declare, with a beard! Oh, you need not blush for -what I say. I am old enough to be both your grandmothers, and I am so -glad to see you together again!" said Mrs Chiley, with an imprudent -effusion of sentiment. And it may be imagined what the effect of this -utterance was upon the suitor whose love-making (if he was really going -to make love) was thus cut short in the bud. He coughed more than ever -when he shook hands with the new-comer, and kept fast hold of his hat -with that despairing grasp which is common to men in trouble. And then -he kept looking at the door, as if he expected some one else to come in, -or wanted to escape; and so far from following up his interrupted -address by any explanatory or regretful glances, he never even looked at -Lucilla, which, to be sure, struck her as odd enough. - -"Miss Marjoribanks is very good," he said, "and I am very glad to see -you so soon after my return, Mrs Chiley--though, of course, I should -have called; but I may have to go away in a day or two; and I am afraid -I cannot have the pleasure of staying to lunch." - -"Oh, yes, you must stay," said Mrs Chiley; "I want to hear all about it. -Go away again in a day or two? If I were Lucilla I would not let you go -away. She is queen now in Carlingford, you know;--and then poor old Mr -Chiltern is so ill. I hope you won't think of going away. They all say -it would be such a pity if anything happened to him while you were away. -Tell me where you have been, and what you have been doing all this time. -We have missed you so dreadfully. And now you look quite like a military -man with that beard." - -"I have been nursing a sick friend--on the Continent," said Mr -Cavendish; "not very cheerful work. I am sorry about Mr Chiltern, but I -cannot help it. I have doubts now whether, even if he were to die, I -should offer myself. I couldn't give pledges to all the shopkeepers -about my opinions," said the embarrassed man; and as he spoke, he put -his hat against his breast like a buckler. "I must not detain you from -your lunch. Good-bye, Miss Marjoribanks; I am very sorry I can't stay." - -"But, dear me, stop a minute--don't run away from us," said Mrs Chiley. -"Come and talk it all over with the Colonel, there is a dear--and don't -do anything rash. Good-bye, if you _will_ go," said the old lady. She -sat with a look of consternation in her face, looking at Miss -Marjoribanks, as he made his way downstairs. "Did I come in at a wrong -time, Lucilla?" said Mrs Chiley, in distress. "Have you refused him, my -dear? What is the matter? I am so dreadfully afraid I came in at the -wrong time." - -"Dear Mrs Chiley," said Lucilla sweetly, "you can never come in at a -wrong time; and it is just as well, on the whole, that he didn't--for I -was not prepared to give him any answer. I am sure, on the contrary, it -was quite providential," Miss Marjoribanks said; but it may be doubted -whether Lucilla's mind perfectly corresponded to her words on this -occasion, though she was so amiable about it, as Mrs Chiley afterwards -said. For even when a woman has not her answer ready, she has always a -certain curiosity about a proposal; and then when such a delicate matter -is crushed in the bud like this, who can tell if it will ever blossom -again, and find full expression? Miss Marjoribanks could not be said to -be disappointed, but unquestionably she regretted a little that he had -not been permitted to say out his say. As for Mrs Chiley, when she -understood all the rights of it, she was afflicted beyond measure, and -could not forgive herself for the unlucky part she had played. - -"If you had only said you were engaged," the old lady exclaimed, "or not -at home--or anything, Lucilla! You know, you need never stand on -ceremony with me. No wonder he looked as if he could eat me! Poor -fellow! and I dare say he has gone away with his heart full," said Mrs -Chiley, with the tenderest sympathy. She could not get over it, nor eat -any lunch, nor think of anything else. "Poor dear boy! He need not have -been so put out with an old woman like me. He might have known if he had -given me the least hint, or even a look, I would have gone away," said -the kind old woman. "But you must be all the kinder to him when he comes -back, Lucilla. And, my dear, if I were you, I would stay in this -afternoon. He is sure to come back, and I would not keep him in pain." - -"I don't think he will come back," Lucilla could not help saying; for -she had a conviction that nothing more would come of it; but -nevertheless she did stay in that afternoon, and received several -visits, but saw nothing more of Mr Cavendish. It was rather vexatious, -to tell the truth; for to see a man so near the point and not even to -have the satisfaction of refusing him, is naturally aggravating to a -woman. But Miss Marjoribanks had far too much philosophy as well as good -sense to be vexed on that account with Mrs Chiley, who could not forgive -herself, and to make up for the consequences of her unlucky visit, would -have done anything in the world. The old lady herself returned in the -afternoon to know the result, and was doubly vexed and distressed to -hear he had not come back. - -"I ought to be on the Archdeacon's side, Lucilla," she said, with tears -in her eyes. "I know I ought, when it was I that brought him here: but I -can't help feeling for the other, my dear. He always was so nice--a -great deal nicer, to my way of thinking, than Mr Beverley; not to say -but that the Archdeacon is very agreeable," Mrs Chiley added, -recollecting herself; for in matters of that description a woman of -experience is aware that she cannot be too particular about what she -says; and supposing that Mr Cavendish did not come back, it would never -do to prejudice Lucilla against the other candidate. "I never blamed Mr -Cavendish about that Lake girl," the old lady continued. "It was not his -fault, poor young man. I know he was always devoted to you in his heart; -and to think he should come here the very first place as soon as he -returned! I only wish I had had one of my headaches this morning, my -dear, to keep me indoors for an old Malaprop. I do indeed, Lucilla. It -would have served me right, and I should not have minded the pain." - -"But indeed I don't wish anything of the sort," said Miss Marjoribanks. -"I would not have the best man in the world at the cost of one of those -dreadful headaches of yours. It is so good of you to say so; but you -know very well it is not that sort of thing I am thinking of. If I were -to go off and marry just now, after all that has been done to the -drawing-room and everything, I should feel as if I were swindling papa; -and it is the object of my life to be a comfort to _him_." - -"Yes, my dear," said Mrs Chiley, "but we must not neglect your own -interest for all that. I think it is most likely he will come this -evening. He has just come from the Continent, you know, where people do -make calls in the evening. I meant to have asked you to come down to us, -as we shall be all alone----" - -"All alone? Then where is the Archdeacon?" asked Lucilla. - -"He has gone out to Sir John's for a day or two, my dear," said Mrs -Chiley, and she could not understand the little gleam of intelligence -that shot into Lucilla's eye. "He left word with me for you that he -would be sure to be back before Thursday, but seeing Mr Cavendish when I -came in made me forget all about it. He would be quite distressed, poor -man! if he thought I had forgotten to give you his message. I won't ask -you now to come down and cheer me up a little, Lucilla. I think poor Mr -Cavendish is sure to come this evening, and I will not stand in his way -again. But, my dear, you must send me a little note after he has been. -Now promise. I shall be quite in suspense all night." - -"Dear Mrs Chiley, I don't think he will come," said Miss Marjoribanks. -"For my part, I think it was providential your coming to-day--for I am -sure I don't know what I should have said to him. And it is so odd the -Archdeacon should be away just at this moment. I feel quite sure he will -not come to-night." - -"There is nothing odd about the Archdeacon," said Mrs Chiley. "It was -for to-day he was asked, you know; _that_ is simple enough. If you are -sure that you prefer the Archdeacon, my dear----" the old lady added, -with an anxious look. But Lucilla cut short the inquiry, which was -becoming too serious, by bringing her kind visitor a cup of tea. - -"I hope you don't think I prefer any of them," said the injured maiden. -"If I had been thinking of that sort of thing, you know, I need never -have come home. If they would only let one do one's duty in peace and -quiet," said Lucilla, with a sigh; and to tell the truth, both the -ladies had occasion on that trying afternoon for the consolation of -their cup of tea. But while they were thus refreshing themselves, a -conversation of a very different kind, yet affecting the same interests, -was being carried on not very far off, under the shelter of a little -flowery arbour in another of the embowered gardens of Grange Lane, where -the subject was just then being discussed from the other side. - - - - -_Chapter XX_ - - -Mr Woodburn's house, everybody admitted, was one of the nicest in -Carlingford; but that was not so visible out of doors as in. He was a -great amateur of flowers and fruit, and had his garden lined on each -side with greenhouses, which were no doubt very fine in their way, but -somewhat spoiled the garden, which had not in the least the homely, -luxuriant, old-fashioned look of the other gardens, where, for the most -part, the flowers and shrubs grew as if they liked it and were at -home--whereas Mr Woodburn's flower-beds were occupied only by -tenants-at-will; but at one corner near the house there was a little -arbour, so covered up and heaped over with clematis that even the Scotch -gardener had not the heart to touch it. The mass was so perfect and yet -so light that it was the most perfect hiding-place imaginable; and -nobody who had not been in it could have suspected that there was a -possibility of getting inside. Here Mrs Woodburn and Mr Cavendish were -seated on this particular afternoon; she very eager, animated, and in -earnest, he silent and leaning his head on his two hands in a sort of -downcast, fallen way. Mrs Woodburn had one of her lively eyes on the -garden that nobody might enter unseen, and for this once was "taking -off" no one, but was most emphatically and unquestionably herself. - -"So you did not do it," she said. "Why didn't you do it? when you knew -so much depended upon it! You know I did not wish for it myself, at -first. But now since this man has come, and you have got into such a -panic, and never will have the courage to face it out----" - -"How can I have the courage to face it out?" said Mr Cavendish, with a -groan. "It is all very easy for a woman to speak who has only to -criticise other people. If you had to do it yourself----" - -"Ah, if I only had!" cried the sister. "You may be sure I would not make -so much fuss. After all, what is there to do? Take your place in -society, which you have worked for and won as honestly as anybody ever -won it, and look another man in the face who is not half so clever nor -so sensible as you are. Why, what can he say? If I only could do it, -you may be sure I should not lose any time." - -"Yes," said Mr Cavendish, lifting his head. "To be sure, you're a -mimic--you can assume any part you like; but I am not so clever. I tell -you again, the only thing I can do is to go away----" - -"Run away, you mean," said Mrs Woodburn. "I should be foolish, indeed, -if I were trusting to your cleverness to assume a part. My dear good -brother, you would find it impossible to put yourself sufficiently in -sympathy with another," cried the mimic, in the Archdeacon's very tone, -with a laugh, and at the same time a little snarl of bitter contempt. - -"Oh, for Heaven's sake, Nelly, no foolery just now," said Mr Cavendish. -"I don't understand how you can be so heartless. To mimic a man who has -my position, my reputation, my very existence in his hands!" - -"Have you murdered anybody?" said Mrs Woodburn, with intense scorn. -"Have you robbed anybody? If you have, I can understand all this stuff. -He is the very man to mimic, on the contrary. I'd like to let you see -him as he was on that famous occasion when he delivered his opinions on -art in Lucilla's drawing-room. Look here," said the mimic, putting one -hand behind an imaginary coat tail, and with the other holding up a -visionary drawing to the light; but this was more than her audience -could bear. - -"I think you must have vowed to drive me crazy," cried the exasperated -brother. "Put aside for once that confounded vanity of yours--as if a -man had always leisure to look at your playing the fool." While he spoke -in this unusual way, he got up, as was natural, and took one or two -steps across the narrow space which was shut in by those luxuriant heaps -of clematis; and Mrs Woodburn, for her part, withdrew her chair out of -his way in equal heat and indignation. - -"You have always the leisure to play the fool yourselves, you men," she -said. "Vanity, indeed! as if it were not simply to show you that one can -laugh at him without being stricken with thunder. But leave that if you -like. You know quite well if you married Lucilla Marjoribanks that there -would be no more about it. There _could_ be no more about it. Why, all -Grange Lane would be in a sort of way pledged to you. I don't mean to -say _I_ am attached to Lucilla, but you used to be, or to give yourself -out for being. You flirted with her dreadfully in the winter, I -remember, when those terrible Woodburns were here," she continued, with -a shiver. "If you married Lucilla and got into Parliament, you might -laugh at all the archdeacons in the world." - -"It is very easy for a woman to talk," said the reluctant wooer again. - -"I can tell you something it is not easy to do," cried his sister. "It -is frightfully hard for a woman to stand by and see a set of men making -a mess of things, and not to dare to say a word till all is spoiled. -What is this Archdeacon, I would like to know, or what could he say? If -you only would have the least courage, and look him in the face, he -would be disabled. As if no one had ever heard of mistaken identity -before? And in the meantime go and see Lucilla, and get her consent. I -can't do that for you; but I could do a great deal of the rest, if you -would only have a little pluck and not give in like this." - -"A _little_ pluck, by George!" cried the unfortunate man, and he threw -himself down again upon his chair. "I am not in love with Lucilla -Marjoribanks, and I don't want to marry her," he added doggedly, and sat -beating a tune with his fingers on the table, with but a poorly-assumed -air of indifference. As for Mrs Woodburn, she regarded him with a look -of contempt. - -"Perhaps you will tell me who you are in love with," she said -disdainfully; "but I did not ask to be taken into your confidence in -such an interesting way. What I wish to know is, whether you want a wife -who will keep your position for you. I am not in the least fond of her, -but she is very clever. Whether you want the support of all the best -people in Carlingford, and connections that would put _all that_ to -silence, and a real position of your own which nobody could interfere -with--that is what I want to know, Harry; as for the sentimental part, I -am not so much interested about that," said Mrs Woodburn, with a -contemptuous smile. She was young still, and she was handsome in her way -(for people who liked that style), and it jarred a little on the natural -feelings to hear a young wife express herself so disdainfully; but, to -be sure, her brother was not unaccustomed to that. - -"You said once that Woodburn was necessary to your happiness," he said, -with a mixture of scorn and appeal, "though I can't say I saw it, for my -part." - -"Did I?" she said, with a slight shrug of her shoulders; "I saw what -was necessary on another score, as you don't seem to do. When a man has -nobody belonging to him, it is connections he ought to try for: and -Lucilla has very good connections; and it would be as good as securing -the support of Grange Lane. Do it for my sake, Harry, if you won't do it -for your own," said Mrs Woodburn, with a change of tone. "If you were to -let things be said, and give people an advantage, think what would -become of me. Woodburn would not mind so much if somebody else were -involved; but oh, Harry! if he should find out _he_ had been cheated, -and he only----" - -"He was not cheated! You were always a great deal too good for him, -Nelly," said Mr Cavendish, touched at last at an effectual point; "and -as for _his_ friends and family, and all that----" - -"Oh, please, don't speak of them," said Mrs Woodburn, with a shudder; -"but there are only two of us in the world; and, Harry, for my sake----" - -At this appeal Mr Cavendish got up again, and began to pace the little -arbour, two steps to the wall, and two steps back again. "I told you I -had almost done it, when that confounded old woman came in," he said: -"that could not be called my fault?" - -"And she said she was both your grandmothers," said the mimic, with a -slightly hysterical laugh, in Mrs Chiley's voice. "I know how she did -it. She can't be there still, you know--go now and try." - -"Let alone a little; don't hurry a fellow," said her brother, somewhat -sullenly; "a man can't move himself up to the point of proposing twice -in one day." - -"Then promise that you will do it to-morrow," said Mrs Woodburn. "I -shall have to go in, for there is somebody coming. Harry, before I go, -promise that you will do it to-morrow, for my sake." - -"Oh, bother!" said Mr Cavendish; and it was all the answer he deigned to -give before Mrs Woodburn was called away, notwithstanding the adjuration -she addressed to him. It was then getting late, too late, even had he -been disposed for such an exertion, to try his fortunes again that day, -and Lucilla's allusion had given him a great longing to see Barbara once -more before his sacrifice was accomplished. Not that it was such a great -sacrifice, after all. For Mr Cavendish was quite aware that Miss -Marjoribanks was a far more suitable match for him than Barbara Lake, -and he was not even disposed to offer himself and his name and fortune, -such as they were, to the drawing-master's daughter. But, to tell the -truth, he was not a person of fixed and settled sentiments, as he ought -to have been in order to triumph, as his sister desired, over the -difficulties of his position. Perhaps Mrs Woodburn herself would have -done just the same, had it been she from whom action was demanded. But -she was capable of much more spirited and determined conduct in theory, -as was natural, and thought she could have done a great deal better, as -so many women do. - -Mr Cavendish lounged about the garden a little, with his hands in his -pockets, and then strayed out quite accidentally, and in the same -unpremeditating mood made his way to Grove Street. He meant nothing by -it, and did not even inquire of himself where he was going, but only -strolled out to take the air a little. And it was better to go up to the -higher parts of the town than to linger here about Grange Lane, where -all the people he knew might pass, and stop to talk and ask him where he -had been, and worry his life out. And surely he had had enough of bother -for one day. By this time it was getting dark, and it was very pleasant -in Grove Street, where most of the good people had just watered their -little gardens, and brought out the sweetness of the mignonette. Mr -Cavendish was not sentimental, but still the hour was not without its -influence; and when he looked at the lights that began to appear in the -parlour windows, and breathed in the odours from the little gardens, it -is not to be denied that he asked himself for a moment what was the good -of going through all this bother and vexation, and whether love in a -cottage, with a little garden full of mignonette and a tolerable amount -of comfort within, was not, after all, a great deal more reasonable than -it looked at first sight? This, however, it must be allowed, was no -conclusion arrived at on sufficient premises, and with the calmness that -befitted such an important argument, but the mere suggestion, by the -way, of an impatient, undecided mind, that did always what at the moment -it found most agreeable to do, and reflected afterwards, when the moment -of repentance, not of reflection, had arrived. - -He had paused by instinct under a lamp not yet lighted, which was almost -opposite Mr Lake's house; and it was not his fault if he saw at the -upper window a figure looking out, like Mariana, and sighing, "He cometh -not." Naturally the figure was concerned to find out who he was, and -_he_ was anxious to find out who was the figure. And, on the whole, it -was in a very innocent manner that this entirely natural curiosity was -satisfied. First the window was opened a little--a very little, just -enough to change the air--and Mr Cavendish down below heard the voice of -Barbara singing softly up above, which settled the matter as to her -identity. As to _his_, Barbara had never, from the first moment she -perceived him, any doubt of that. Her heart leaped back, as she thought, -to its right place when she first caught sight of that blessed -apparition; and with her heart came the orange-flowers, and the wedding -breakfast, and the veil of real Brussels for which Barbara had so much -wept. She tried to sing something that would convey hope and assurance -to her timid lover, according to romantic precedent; but her mind was -far from being a prompt one, as has been said. Thus it was all in the -most natural way that it came about. When Mr Cavendish felt quite sure -who it was, he took off his hat, which was only civil, and made a step -or two forward; and then Barbara took the extreme step of going down to -the door. No doubt it was an extreme step. Nothing but a great public -aim, like that of Miss Marjoribanks, could have justified such a -measure; but then Barbara, if she had not a great public, had at least a -decided personal, purpose, and obeyed the impulse of that mingled -inclination towards another and determination to have her own way, which -in such a mind calls itself passion, and which sometimes, by sheer force -of will, succeeds better than either genius or calculation. She went -down to the door, all palpitating with renewed hope, and, at the same -time, with the dread that he might escape her in the moment which was -necessary for her passage downstairs. But when she opened the door and -appeared with her cheeks glowing, and her eyes blazing, and her heart -thumping in her breast, in the midst of that quiet twilight, the object -of her hopes was still there. He had even advanced a little, with an -instinctive sense of her approach; and thus they met, the street being -comparatively quiet just then, and the mignonette perfuming the air. To -be sure, the poetry of the situation was of a homely order, for it was -under a lamp-post instead of a tree that the lover had placed himself; -and it was not the dew, but the watering, that had brought out the odour -of the mignonette; but then neither of the two were very poetical -personages, and the accessories did perfectly well for them. - -"Is it you, Mr Cavendish? Goodness! I could not think who it was," cried -Barbara, out of breath. - -"Yes, it is I. I thought, if I had an opportunity, I would ask how you -were--before I go away again," said the imprudent man. He did not want -to commit himself, but at the same time he was disposed to take the -benefit of his position as a hero on the eve of departure. "I heard you -had been ill." - -"Oh, no--not ill," said Barbara; and then she added, taking breath, "I -am quite well now. Won't you come in?" - -This was the perfectly simple and natural manner in which it occurred. -There was nobody in, and Barbara did not see, any more than her lover -did, why she should sacrifice any of her advantages. They were, on the -whole, quite well matched, and stood in need of no special protection on -either side. Though naturally Barbara, who felt by this time as if she -could almost see the pattern of the real Brussels, had a much more -serious object in view than Mr Cavendish, who went in only because it -was a pleasant thing to do at the moment, and offered him a little -refuge from himself and his deliberations, and the decision which it was -so necessary to come to. Thus it happened that when Mr Lake and Rose -came in from the evening walk they had been taking together, they found, -to their great amazement, Barbara in the little parlour, singing to Mr -Cavendish, who had forgotten all about Grange Lane, and his dangers, and -his hopes of better fortune, and was quite as much contented with the -mellow contralto that delighted his ears, and the blazing scarlet bloom, -and black level brows that pleased his eyes, as anybody could have -desired. To be sure, he had not even yet given a thought to the wedding -breakfast, which was all arranged already in the mind of the enchantress -who thus held him in thrall; but perhaps that may be best accounted for -by referring it to one of those indefinable peculiarities of difference -that exist between the mind of woman and that of man. - -When Mr Lake and his daughter came in from their walk, and their talk -about Willie, and about art, and about the "effects" and "bits" which -Rose and her father mutually pointed out to each other, to find this -unexpected conjunction in the parlour, their surprise, and indeed -consternation, may be imagined. But it was only in the mind of Rose that -the latter sentiment existed. As for Mr Lake, he had long made up his -mind how, as he said, "a man of superior position" ought to be received -when he made his appearance in an artist's house. Perhaps, to tell the -truth, he forgot for the moment that his visitor was young, and his -daughter very handsome, and that it was to visit Barbara and not himself -that Mr Cavendish had come. The little drawing-master would not suffer -himself to be seduced by thoughts which were apart from the subject from -carrying out his principles. When Mr Cavendish rose up confused, with a -look of being caught and found out, Mr Lake held out his hand to him -with perfect suavity--"I have the pleasure of knowing you only by -sight," said the innocent father, "but I am very glad to make your -acquaintance in my own house;" and as this was said with the conscious -dignity of a man who knows that his house is not just an ordinary house, -but one that naturally the patrician portion of the community, if they -only knew it, would be glad to seek admittance to, the consequence was -that Mr Cavendish felt only the more and more confused. - -"I happened to be passing," he explained faintly, "and having heard that -Miss Lake, whom I have had the pleasure of meeting----" - -"I assure you," said the drawing-master, "that I hail with satisfaction -the appearance of a gentleman whose intelligence I have heard so much -of. We artists are a little limited, to be sure; for life, you know, is -short, and art is long, as the poet says; and our own occupation -requires so much of our thoughts. But still we are sympathetic, Mr -Cavendish. We can understand other subjects of study, though we cannot -share them. Yes, Barbara has been a little poorly--but she does not look -as if there was much the matter with her to-night. Ask for the lamp, -Rose," said Mr Lake, with a little grandeur. There was no light in the -room except the candles at the piano, which lighted that corner and left -the rest of the apartment, small as it was, in comparative shade. There -was something magnificent in the idea of adding the lamp to that -illumination; but then it is true that, as Mr Lake himself said, "every -artist is a prodigal in his heart." - -Rose had been standing all this time with her hat on, looking at Mr -Cavendish like a little Gorgon. What did he want here? How had he been -admitted? She scorned to go and interrogate the maid, which involved a -kind of infidelity to her sister, but all the same she looked hard at Mr -Cavendish with a severity which had, on the whole, a reassuring effect -upon him. For, to tell the truth, the benign reception which he was -receiving from Mr Lake, instead of setting the visitor at his ease, -made him nervous; for he was not in the least aware of the heroic soul -which existed in the drawing-master's limited person. Mr Cavendish -thought nothing but that he was being "caught," according to his own -vulgar theory. He thought Barbara's father was cringing to him, and -playing the usual mean part of an interested parent who means to secure -a good match for his daughter. But as for Rose, she evidently, either -from jealousy or some other reason, was not in the plot. She stood apart -and scowled, as well as she knew how, upon the intruder. "I suppose, -papa," said Rose, "Mr Cavendish wished to hear Barbara sing, and she has -been singing. She is always very good-natured in that way; but as we -have none of us anything particular to do, I don't see what need we have -for a lamp." - -At this trenchant speech Mr Cavendish rose. He was quite grateful to the -little Preraphaelite for her incivility. It made him feel less as if he -had committed himself, and more as if he were an intruder, which was the -more agreeable suggestion of the two under the present circumstances. -"You remind me that I should thank Miss Lake for letting me come in and -hear once more her lovely voice," he said. "I am at present only a -visitor in Carlingford, and indeed in England--I may have to leave again -in a day or two--good-bye. If I am still here, I shall hope to meet you -on Thursday." And then he pressed Barbara's hand, who, to tell the -truth, was very reluctant to let him go away. - -"If you must go----" she said, so low that her father could not hear -her, though the vigilant, suspicious little Rose caught the sound, and -came a step nearer, like a little dragon, as Barbara was disposed to -think she was. - -"I _must_ go," murmured Mr Cavendish; "but I shall see you--we shall -meet." He dared not say another word, so alarming were the looks of the -small Medusa, whose countenance he could see behind Barbara regarding -the parting. As for Mr Lake, he too regarded it with a momentary -curiosity. He did not quite understand how it was that his daughter and -his visitor could know each other well enough to communicate in this -undertone. - -"I am sorry to see so little of you," said Mr Lake. "I am afraid it is -my little girl's _brusque_ way of speaking that hastens your going. I -assure you we were quite unoccupied, and would have been very -happy--perhaps we may be more fortunate another time;" and with that -the drawing-master gave a dignified dismissal to his surprising visitor. -It was Rose herself who saw Mr Cavendish to the door, which she opened -for him with an utter disregard of his excuses and attempts to do that -office for himself. She would not even shake hands, but made him the -most majestic curtsey that was ever executed by a personage five feet -high, under the influence of which Mr Cavendish went away humbled, and, -he could scarcely tell why, ashamed of himself. When Rose came back to -the parlour, still with her hat on, she found that Barbara had gone to -the window, and was looking out at the edge of the blind--which was all -that was wanted to put a climax to her sister's exasperation. - -"Papa," said Rose, "I should like to know in your presence, or I should -like you to ask Barbara herself, what is the meaning of all that has -been going on to-night." - -Mr Lake turned right round at this appeal with an expression of utter -amaze and bewilderment, which at another moment would have struck Rose -with the profoundest delight as a study; and as for Barbara, without any -more ado she burst into a flood of passionate tears. - -"Oh, you nasty, envious thing! oh, you jealous, disagreeable thing!" -sobbed the elder sister; "to send him away and spoil everything with -your airs! when he was as near--just as near"--but here Barbara's voice -lost itself in her tears. - -"My dear, what does this mean?" said Mr Lake. - -"It means, papa, that she has encouraged him to come, and invited him -in, and been singing to him," cried Rose. "To think she should be one of -us, and have no proper pride! If he was fond of her, he would tell her -so, and ask your permission; but she is laying herself out to please -_him_, and is content that they should all jeer at her in Lucilla's -parties, and say she is trying to catch him. I thought I could have died -of shame when I saw him here to-night; and compromising you, as if that -was why you were so civil. If it were for her good, do you think _I_ -would ever interfere?" cried Barbara's guardian angel. At this point -Rose herself would have liked excessively to cry, if the truth must be -told; but Barbara had already appropriated that facile mode of -expression, and the little artist scorned to copy. As for Mr Lake, he -turned from one to the other of his daughters with unmitigated -consternation and dismay. - -"It was all your coming in," sobbed Barbara, "if you had only had the -sense to see it. _That_ was what he meant. If I was singing, it was just -to pass the time; I know that was what he came for. And you to send him -away with your airs!" cried the injured young woman. All this made up a -scene entirely novel to the amazed father, who felt it his duty to put a -stop to it, and yet could not tell what to say. - -"Girls," he began, with a trembling voice, "this is all perfectly new to -me. I don't understand. If Mr Cavendish, or--or any one, wishes to pay -his addresses to my daughter, it is, of course, his business to apply to -me in the first place. Barbara, don't cry. You know how I dislike to -hear you cry," said the poor man, gradually losing his head. "Don't make -a fuss, Rose; for Heaven's sake, girls, can't you say at once what you -mean, and don't worry me to death? Ah, if your poor mother had but been -spared!" cried the unfortunate widower; and he had five daughters -altogether, poor soul!--and it was so easy to drive him out of his -senses. At this point Rose intervened, and did what she could to calm -matters down. Barbara, still sobbing, retired to her chamber; the boys -came in from their cricket, and the little children had to be put to -bed; and there was no one to attend to all these matters, in the absence -of the eldest sister, except the little mistress of the School of -Design, so that naturally all further explanation was postponed for this -night. - - - - -_Chapter XXI_ - - -It was thus that Mr Cavendish, without particularly meaning it, -impressed upon two interesting and amiable young women on the same day -the conviction that he was about to propose, without in either case -realising that expectation. After this last exploit he went home with -his head more confused, and his will more undecided, than ever. For he -had one of those perverse minds which cling to everything that is -forbidden; and the idea that he ought not to have gone near Barbara -Lake, and that he ought not to see her again, made him more anxious to -seek her out and follow her than he had ever been before. If such a -thing had been permissible in England as that a man might marry one wife -for his liking and another for his interests, the matter might have been -compromised by proposing to them both; and there cannot be a doubt that -Lucilla, in such a case, would very soon have triumphed over her -handsome, sullen, passionate rival. But then such a way of conciliating -a man with himself does not exist in the British Islands, and -consequently was not to be thought of. And to be sure, every time he -came to think of it, Mr Cavendish saw more and more clearly what a fool -he would be to marry Barbara, who was evidently so ready to marry him. -The same thing could not with any confidence be predicated of Miss -Marjoribanks, though, if she were to accept him, and her father were to -consent, nothing could be better for his interests. All this he felt, -and yet an unconquerable reluctance kept him back. His history was not -quite spotless, and there were chapters in it which he thought it would -kill him to have brought before the public of Carlingford; but still he -was far from being a bad fellow in his way. And down at the bottom of -his heart, out of everybody's sight, and unacknowledged even by himself, -there was one little private nook full of gratitude to Lucilla. Though -he scarcely knew what was passing at the moment, he knew, when he came -to think of it, that she had saved him from the effects of his first -panic at the unexpected appearance of Mr Beverley. Perhaps it was partly -this consciousness that made him so embarrassed in her presence; and he -could not find it in his heart, with this sense of gratitude, to deceive -her, and say he loved her, and ask her to marry him. To be sure, if Mr -Cavendish had been a very acute observer, he might have felt that -Lucilla was quite able to take care of herself in such an emergency, and -was at the least a match for him, however seductive he might appear to -others; but then, few people are acute observers in a matter so entirely -personal to themselves. - -He felt furious with himself as he went home, and thought how foolish he -had been ever to go near Barbara Lake in the present position of -affairs; and yet he could not help feeling that it was more delightful -to him to see the colour blaze into her cheeks, and the song rise like a -bird from her full crimson lips, and that flush of excitement and -triumph come from her eyes, than it could have been in any case to have -been admitted to the same degree of intimacy with Lucilla, who was not -in the least intoxicated by his presence. Thus the unfortunate man was -torn asunder, not so much by love and duty, as by inclination and -interest, though the inclination was not strong enough to have allowed -of any great sacrifice, nor the interest sufficiently certain to have -repaid the exertion. This only made it the more difficult to decide; and -in his circumstances, and with the panic that pursued him, he did not -feel it possible to adopt the only wise policy that remained to him, and -wait. - -As Mr Cavendish was thus making his way home, horribly vexed and annoyed -with himself, and avoiding Grange Lane as if the plague was in it, Miss -Marjoribanks sat in her drawing-room alone, and thought the matter over. -Certainly she had not expected him that evening, but still, when she -heard ten o'clock strike, and felt that his coming now absolutely -impossible, she was a little--not exactly disappointed, but annoyed at -herself for having felt a sort of expectation. Lucilla was not a person -to hide her sentiments, or even to conceal a fact which was disagreeable -to her _amour propre_. She had too thorough and well-founded a -confidence in the natural interest of the world in all belonging to her -to do that; so when ten o'clock had done striking, she opened her -blotting-book and took one of her pretty sheets of paper, with -Lucilla on it in delicate rose-tinted letters, the L very large, and -the concluding letters very small, and dashed off her note to Mrs -Chiley. The Miss Blounts' at Mount Pleasant had been one of the very -first establishments to forsake the handwriting which was all corners, -in favour of the bold running hand of the present female generation; and -it was accordingly in a very free and strongly-characterised manuscript, -black with much ink, that Miss Marjoribanks wrote: - - "DEAREST MRS CHILEY,--I never expected him to come, and he has not. - I dare say he never meant it. I am so glad. It was Providence that - sent you at that particular moment to-day.--Always in haste, with - fond love, your most truly affectionate - - "LUCILLA." - -And when she had sent Thomas with this note, Miss Marjoribanks felt her -mind relieved. Not that it had been much distressed before, but when she -had put it in black and white, and concluded upon it, her satisfaction -was more complete; and no such troublous thoughts as those which -disturbed the hero of this day's transactions--no such wild tears as -poured from the eyes of Barbara Lake--interfered with the maidenly -composure of Lucilla's meditations. Notwithstanding all that people say -to the contrary, there is a power in virtue which makes itself felt in -such an emergency. Miss Marjoribanks could turn from Mr Cavendish, who -had thus failed to fulfil the demands of his position, to the serene -idea of the Archdeacon, with that delightful consciousness of having -nothing to reproach herself with, which is balm to a well-regulated -mind. She had done her duty, whatever happened. She had not -injudiciously discouraged nor encouraged the possible Member for -Carlingford; and at the same time she was perfectly free to turn her -attention to the possible Bishop; and neither in one case nor the other -could anybody say that she had gone a step too far, or committed herself -in any way whatsoever. While these consoling reflections were passing -through Lucilla's mind, Dr Marjoribanks came upstairs, as had grown to -be his custom lately. Sometimes he took a cup of tea, though it was -against his principles, and sometimes he only sat by while his daughter -had hers, and amused himself with her chat before he went to bed. He was -later than usual to-night, and naturally the tea-tray had disappeared -some time before. As for Lucilla, she did not for a moment permit her -own preoccupation to interfere with the discharge of her immediate duty, -which was unquestionably to be amusing and agreeable, and a comfort to -her dear papa. - -"So you had Cavendish here to-day?" said the Doctor. "What brought him -here? What has he been doing? Since you and he are on such good terms, I -hope he gave you an account of where he has been." - -"He has been nursing a sick friend on--the Continent," said Lucilla, -with that largeness of geographical expression which is natural to the -insular mind. "Who are Mr Cavendish's friends, papa?" added Miss -Marjoribanks, with confiding simplicity; and it was beautiful to see how -the daughter looked up into her father's face, with that angelic -confidence in his knowledge on all subjects which is so rarely to be met -with in the present generation. But it was not a question to which the -Doctor found it easy to respond. - -"Who are his friends?" said Dr Marjoribanks. "He's one of the -Cavendishes, they say. We have all heard that. I never knew he had any -friends; which is, after all, next best to having very good ones," said -the philosophical old Scotchman; and there, as it appeared, he was quite -content to let the matter drop. - -"I like to know who people belong to, for my part," said Lucilla. "The -Archdeacon, for example, one knows all about his friends. It's a great -deal nicer, you know, papa. Not that it matters in the least about the -Cavendishes----" - -"Well, I should have thought not, after the way you made an end of him," -said the Doctor. "I hope he doesn't mean to begin that nonsense over -again, Lucilla. He is a good fellow enough, and I don't mind asking him -to my house; but it is quite a different thing to give him my daughter. -He spends too much money, and I can't see what real bottom he has. It -may all flare up and come to nothing any day. Nobody can have any -certainty with an expensive fellow like that," said Dr Marjoribanks. -"There is no telling where he draws his income from; it isn't from the -land, and it isn't from business; and if it's money in the Funds----" - -"Dear papa," said Lucilla, "if he had the Bank of England, it would not -make any difference to me. I am not going to swindle you, after you have -had the drawing-room done up, and everything. I said ten years, and I -mean to keep to it,--if nothing very particular happens," Miss -Marjoribanks added prudently. "Most likely I shall begin to go off a -little in ten years. And all I think of just now is to do my duty, and -be a little comfort to you." - -Dr Marjoribanks indulged in a faint "humph!" under his breath, as he -lighted his candle; for, as has been already said, he was not a man to -feel so keenly as some men might have felt the enthusiasm of filial -devotion which beautified Lucilla's life. But at the same time he had -that respect for his daughter's genius, which only experience could have -impressed upon him; and he did not venture, or rather he did not think -it necessary, to enter into any further explanations. Dr Marjoribanks -did not in the least degree share the nervousness of Mr Cavendish, who -was afraid of deceiving Lucilla. As for her father, he felt a consoling -conviction that she was quite able to conduct her own affairs, and would -do him no discredit in any engagements she might form. And at the same -time he was amused by the idea that he might be swindled in respect to -the drawing-room, if she married at this early moment. He took it for -wit, when it was the most solid and sensible reality; but then, -fortunately, the points in which he misapprehended her redounded as much -to Lucilla's credit, as those in which he seized her meaning clearest, -so that on every side there was something to be gained. - -And when Miss Marjoribanks too retired to her maidenly chamber, a -sentiment of general content and satisfaction filled her mind. It is -true that for the moment she had experienced a natural womanly vexation -to see a proposal nipped in the bud. It annoyed her not so much on -personal as on general principles; for Lucilla was aware that nothing -could be more pernicious to a man than when thus brought to the very -point to be thrown back again, and never permitted to produce that -delicate bloom of his affections. It was like preventing a rose from -putting forth its flowers, a cruelty equally prejudicial to the plant -and to the world. But when this pang of wounded philanthropy was over, -Miss Marjoribanks felt in her heart that it was Providence that had sent -Mrs Chiley at that special moment. There was no telling what -embarrassments, what complications she might not have got into, had Mr -Cavendish succeeded in unbosoming himself. No doubt Lucilla had a -confidence that, whatever difficulties there might have been, she would -have extricated herself from them with satisfaction and even _éclat_, -but still it was better to avoid the necessity. Thus it was with a -serene conviction that "whatever is, is best," that Miss Marjoribanks -betook herself to her peaceful slumbers. There are so many people in -the world who hold, or are tempted to hold, an entirely different -opinion, that it is pleasant to linger over the spectacle of a mind so -perfectly well regulated. Very different were the sentiments of Mr -Cavendish, who could not sleep for the ghosts that kept tugging at him -on every side; and those of Barbara Lake, who felt that for her too the -flower of her hero's love had been nipped in the bud. But, to be sure, -it is only natural that goodness and self-control should have the best -of it sometimes even in this uncertain world. - - - - -_Chapter XXII_ - - -The Archdeacon returned to Carlingford before Thursday, as he had -anticipated; but in the interval Mr Cavendish had not recovered his -courage so far as to renew his visit to Miss Marjoribanks, or to face -the man who had alarmed him so much. Everybody in Grange Lane remarked -at the time how worried poor Mrs Woodburn looked. Her eyes lost their -brightness, which some people thought was the only beauty she had, and -her nerves and her temper both failed her, no one could tell why. The -personal sketches she made at this moment were truculent and bitter to -an unheard-of degree. She took off Mr Beverley with a savage force which -electrified her audience, and put words into his mouth which everybody -admitted were exactly like him, if he could ever be imagined to have -fallen into the extraordinary circumstances in which the mimic placed -him. In short, Mrs Woodburn made a little drama out of the Archdeacon. -Mr Beverley, of course, knew nothing about this, and showed some -surprise now and then at the restrained laughter which he heard in the -corners; but when anybody spoke of Mrs Woodburn, he showed an -instinctive want of confidence. "I have not studied her sufficiently to -give an opinion of her," he said, which was certainly the very reverse -of her deliverance upon him. To tell the truth, she had rather studied -him too much, and gave too keen an edge to his characteristic qualities, -as is natural to all literary portraiture, and even went so far that, -in the end, people began to ask whether she had any personal spite -against him. - -"She don't know him," Mr Woodburn said, when he heard some faint echo of -this suggestion. "She's clever, and it carries her away, you know. She -enters into it so, she don't know how far she is going; but I can answer -for it she never saw the Archdeacon before; and Hal isn't here to give -her the key-note, as she says. _He_ has met everybody, I believe, one -place or another," the simple man said, with a little natural pride; for -in his heart he was vain of his fashionable brother-in-law. As for Mr -Cavendish himself, it began to be understood that he was with a friend -who was sick, on the Continent; and soon--for news had a wonderful -tendency to increase and grow bigger as it spread in Grange Lane--that -his friend was dying, and that a probable large increase of fortune to -the popular favourite would be the result, which was an idea that did -credit to the imagination of Carlingford. He had disappeared completely -once more after the eventful day which we have described, carrying out -in the fullest way Lucilla's prediction, but striking Barbara Lake with -bitter disappointment. Miss Marjoribanks had a great many things to -occupy her, but Barbara had nothing except the humble duty of looking -after her little brothers and sisters, and attending to her father's -comfort, which had never been occupations particularly to her mind. And -then Barbara was aware that, if she neglected her duties, Rose, on her -return from the School of Design, would do them, though with a fierce -little outbreak of indignation, which the elder sister felt she could -bear; and accordingly, she did little else but brood over his sudden -disappearance, and spend her time at the window looking for his return. - -Lucilla conducted herself, as might have been expected, in a much more -rational and dignified manner. She made herself very agreeable to the -Archdeacon, who unbended very much, and grew very nice, as Mrs Chiley -herself allowed. "But, my dear, I am uneasy about his opinions," the old -lady said. He certainly had a very free way of talking, and was ready to -discuss _anything_, and was not approved of by Mr Bury. But still he had -very good connections and a nice position, and had always a chance of -being Bishop of Carlingford; and in marriage it is well known that one -never can have everything one wants. So that, on the whole, even Mrs -Chiley did not see what difference his opinions made, so far as Lucilla -was concerned. When Miss Marjoribanks went down to Colonel Chiley's in -the evening and made tea for the old people, like a daughter of the -house, Mr Beverley was always disposed to go over to the enemy, as the -old Colonel said. No doubt he had enough of Colonel Chiley, who had not -received a new idea into his mind since the battle of Waterloo, and did -not see what people had to do with such nonsense. And then the -Archdeacon would very often walk home with the young visitor. During -this time, as was natural, Mr Beverley heard Mr Cavendish's name a -hundred times, and regretted, like all the world, that so eminent a -member of the Carlingford commonwealth should be absent during his -visit; but, at the same time, Lucilla took great care to avoid all -personalities, and kept a discreet silence even about the gifts and -accomplishments of her almost-lover. Mrs Chiley sighed, poor soul, when -she saw how her young friend avoided this subject, and thought sometimes -that he was forgotten, sometimes that the poor dear was breaking her -heart for him; but it is needless to say that neither of these -suppositions was in the least true. - -And then it began to be considered rather odd in Carlingford that the -Archdeacon should pay such a long visit. Mrs Chiley no doubt was very -kind and hospitable, and exceedingly glad to receive such a -distinguished clergyman; but when a man has been six weeks in any one's -house, and shows no inclination of going, it is natural that people -should feel a little surprised. His visitation was over, and he had -dined with everybody, and studied the place and its characteristics, and -entered into everything that was going on. The only thing, indeed, that -he did not seem to think of, was going away. If it had been Mr -Cavendish, the chances are that he would have made himself so much one -of the family, that his departure would have been felt as a domestic -calamity; but the Archdeacon was very different from Mr Cavendish. So -long as he was in the house it was impossible to forget either his -position or his ways of thinking, or the absence of any real connection -between himself and his hosts. He did not combat or contradict anybody, -but he would give a faint smile when the Colonel uttered his -old-fashioned sentiments, which drove the old soldier frantic. "As if I -was not able to form an opinion, by Jove!" Colonel Chiley said; while, -on the other hand, the Archdeacon was quite ready to enter into the -young people's absurd theories, and discuss the very Bible itself, as if -that were a book to be discussed. As for the Rector, he turned his head -away when he passed Colonel Chiley's door, and Miss Bury made visits of -condolence and sympathy. "You must feel it a great responsibility having -Mr Beverley with you," the Rector's sister would say, though naturally -without any distinct explanation of her meaning; and then she would look -at Mrs Chiley and sigh. - -"Oh, I am sure it is a great pleasure," Mrs Chiley answered, not willing -to let down the prestige of her guest. "He is very nice, and takes a -great deal of interest in everything; and then, you know, he is a -connection of ours. The Colonel's niece, Mary Chiley----" - -"Yes, I know," said Miss Bury. "Poor thing! she looked suffering the -last time I saw her. I hope she has found the true consolation to -support her, now she has entered into the troubles of life." - -"Well, yes, I hope so," said Mrs Chiley, a little doubtfully; "but you -know one does not feel the troubles of life very severely at her age; -and I don't think I should have called a baby a trouble when I was like -her. I never had any, you know, and I used to fret over it a great deal; -but the Colonel never liked the noise of children, and I suppose it is -all for the best." - -"One may always be sure of that," said Miss Bury, in her instructive -way. "I suppose the Archdeacon is going soon," she added; "he has been -here a long time now. I almost wonder he likes to be so long absent from -his parish. Two months, is it not?" - -"Oh, no--not quite six weeks," said Mrs Chiley briskly. "I hope he may -be persuaded to stay some time longer. I look upon it as quite a -compliment to Carlingford; for, to be sure, he would not stay if he had -not some attraction," said the imprudent old woman. And this was -precisely what Miss Bury wanted, as any one of acute perceptions might -have seen from the first. - -"It must be a great responsibility for you," said the Rector's sister, -with a sigh, pressing Mrs Chiley's hand. "If it should turn out badly, -you know----Of course, my brother and I don't agree with Mr Beverley on -all points--though I am sure I hope he is quite conscientious; but I do -feel for you with such a responsibility," said Miss Bury, with a look -that made the old lady nervous in spite of herself. Thus, -notwithstanding all her sense of the duties of hospitality, and her -anxiety about Lucilla's interests, she could not but feel that it would -be rather a relief to get so formidable a guest fairly out of the house. -It is uncomfortable, it must be allowed, to entertain in your house -anybody, particularly a clergyman of whom your Rector does not approve; -and there could be no doubt that the Archdeacon was not like the -clergymen that Mrs Chiley had been accustomed to. "And he could come -back another time," she said to herself, by way of conciliating her own -weariness with her visitor's advantage and the interests of Lucilla. But -notwithstanding these reflections on Mrs Chiley's part and -notwithstanding the Colonel's less amiable growl, uttered every -morning--"Does that parson of yours never mean to go away?"--the -Archdeacon showed no intention of budging. It was poor Mrs Chiley who -had all the brunt to bear, to exhaust herself in civilities and to be -upbraided with "that parson of yours"--whereas he was not in the least -her parson, nor even the kind of man she approved of as a clergyman. All -this, however, the brave old woman bore with fortitude for Lucilla's -sake: certainly it must be Lucilla who kept him in Carlingford--if it -were not something else. - -Things were in this condition, Mr Cavendish having again disappeared -into utter darkness, and Carlingford beginning to enter warmly into the -question whether or not Mr Beverley was paying attention to Lucilla, -when it happened to Miss Marjoribanks one morning to meet the Archdeacon -in a little lane running between Grove Street and Grange Lane. Opening -from this lane was a little door in the wall, which admitted to a little -garden very bright with flowers of the simplest old-fashioned kinds, -with a little house planted at its extremity, which had pretensions to -be an old-fashioned and quasi-rural cottage, on the score of being very -rickety, uncomfortable, and badly arranged. But it must be a very -impracticable erection indeed which does not look tolerable under the -bright sunshine on a summer noon, at the end of a pretty garden where -children are playing and birds singing, and a woman or two about. -Lucilla was standing at the door of this little closed-up hermitage, -almost filling up the opening with her crisp summer draperies, and -affording only a very partial and tempting glimpse of its flowers and -shrubs and whitewashed walls inside; and when Mr Beverley came up to -Miss Marjoribanks he felt his curiosity excited. "Is it Armida's -garden, or the Elysian fields--" said the Archdeacon; and he made a dead -stop before the door, not knowing any more than any other blind mortal -what he was going to find inside. - -"I don't know anything about Armida," said Miss Marjoribanks; -"unfortunately they were all Cambridge in their ways of thinking at -Mount Pleasant, and our classics got dreadfully neglected. But you may -come in if you like--at least I think you may come in, if you will -promise not to frighten the children. I am sure they never saw an -Archdeacon in their lives." - -"Are there children?" said Mr Beverley, with a doubtful air; for, to -tell the truth, he had come to the age at which men think it best to -avoid children, unless, indeed, they happen to have a personal interest -in them; and he stretched his neck a little to see in over Miss -Marjoribanks's head. - -"There are a whole lot of children, and a pretty governess," said -Lucilla. "It is a school, and I am so much interested in it. I may call -it my school, for that matter. I came to know her in the funniest way; -but I will tell you that another time. And it was just my luck, as -usual. She is so nice, and quite a lady. If you will not say you are an -Archdeacon, to frighten the children, I will let you come in." - -"You shall call me whatever you like," said Mr Beverley; "when I am with -the lady-patroness, what does it matter what I call myself? Let me see -how you manage your educational department. I have already bowed before -your genius in the other branches of government; but this ought to be -more in my own way." - -"I don't think you care for visiting schools," said Lucilla. "I know you -think it is a bore; but she is so nice, and so nice-looking; I am sure -you will be pleased with her. I am quite sure she is a lady, and has -seen better days." - -"Oh, those dreadful women that have seen better days!" said the -Archdeacon; "I think Mrs Chiley has a regiment of them. It is hard to -know how to get one's self into sympathy with those faded existences. -They fill me with an infinite pity; but then what can one do? If one -tries to recall them to the past, it sounds like mockery--and if one -speaks of the present, it wounds their feelings. It is a great social -difficulty," said Mr Beverley; and he fixed his eyes on the ground and -entered meditatively, without looking where he was going, in his -Broad-Church way. - -"Dear Mrs Chiley is so kind," said Lucilla, who was a little puzzled for -the moment, and did not know what to say. - -"Mrs Chiley is a good, pure, gentle woman," said the Archdeacon. He -spoke in a tone which settled the question, and from which there was no -appeal; and no doubt what he said was perfectly true, though it was not -a very distinct characterisation. Thus they went in together into the -bright little garden, thinking of nothing in particular, and loitering -as people do who do not know what is coming. There was something that -morning in Mr Beverley's tone and manner which struck Lucilla as -something more than usual. She was not a young woman to attach undue -importance to looks and tones; but the Archdeacon's manner was so -softened and mellowed, and his eyes had so much expression in them, and -he looked at Lucilla with such marked regard, that it was impossible for -her not to recognise that a crisis might be approaching. To be sure, it -was not by any means so near as that crisis _manqué_ which had so lately -passed over her head in respect to Mr Cavendish. But still Miss -Marjoribanks could not but remark the signs of a slowly approaching and -most likely more important climax; and as she remarked it, Lucilla -naturally by anticipation prepared herself for the coming event that -thus threw a shadow upon her. She did not make up her mind to accept Mr -Beverley any more than she had made up her mind to accept Mr Cavendish; -but she thought it only her duty to him and to herself, and to society -in general, to take his claims into full consideration. And no doubt, if -these claims had seemed to her sufficiently strong to merit such a -reward, Miss Marjoribanks had it in her to marry the Archdeacon, and -make him an admirable wife, though she was not at the present moment, so -far as she was aware, absolutely what foolish people call in love with -him. At the same time, she made herself all the more agreeable to Mr -Beverley from her sense of the dawn of tenderness with which he regarded -her. And in this way they went up the broad central path which traversed -the little garden, neither looking to the left nor the right, but -presenting all that appearance of being occupied with each other, which, -especially to a female observer, is so easy of interpretation. For, to -be sure, the Archdeacon had not the remotest idea into whose house he -was going, nor who it was whom he was about to see. - -But as it happened, Lucilla's protégée, who had seen better days, had -just finished one of her lessons, and sent her little pupils out into -the garden. She was preparing for the next little class, when, raising -her eyes accidentally, she saw Miss Marjoribanks coming through the -garden with the Archdeacon by her side. She was the same person whom Mr -Bury had brought to Lucilla with the idea of recommending her to Dr -Marjoribanks as a companion and chaperone for his daughter; but since -then Mrs Mortimer's appearance had considerably changed. She had grown -younger by ten years during the period of comparative comfort and -tranquillity which Lucilla's active help and championship had procured -for her. Her house, and her garden, and her little scholars, and the -bloom on her cheeks, and the filling-up of her worn frame, were all Miss -Marjoribanks's doing. In the intervals of her legislative cares Lucilla -had run about all over Carlingford searching for pupils, and at the same -moment had cut and stitched and arranged, and papered walls, and planted -flower-beds, for the feeble creature thus thrown upon her. This was a -side of Lucilla's character which certainly she did nothing to hide from -the public, but which, at the same time, she never made any fuss about; -and it was an endless pleasure to her to find a protégée so perfectly -content to be "done for," and do as she was told to do. It was thus that -the poor faded widow, who was sensitive and had feelings, and forgot -herself so far as to faint, or nearly to faint, just at the most unlucky -moment possible, when the Rector's character and dignity demanded -superior self-control on her part, had found her youth again and her -good looks under Lucilla's shadow. When she looked up and saw the two -approaching, Mrs Mortimer's first impulse was to smile at the -conjunction; but the next moment she had dropped the books out of her -hands, and was standing gazing out like a woman in a dream, with the -colour all gone out of her cheeks, and even out of her lips, in the -surprise of the moment. It was only surprise and a kind of dismay; it -was not terror, like that which Mr Cavendish had exhibited at the same -apparition. She dropped into her chair without knowing it, and probably -would have fainted this time also, if something more urgent than mere -"feelings" had not roused her up. As it was, it happened very happily -for her that she had thus a little preparation. When she saw that her -patroness was leading Mr Beverley up to the door, and that in a minute -more he would inevitably be brought to her very side, Mrs Mortimer -roused up all her strength. She gathered up her books in her hand -without knowing very well what she was doing, and, taking virtue from -necessity, went desperately out to meet them. It was Miss Marjoribanks -who first saw her, white and tottering, leaning against the trellis of -the little porch, and Lucilla could not but give a little cry of alarm -and wonder. What kind of man could this be, who thus struck down another -victim without even so much as a glance? It was just then that the -Archdeacon raised his eyes, and saw standing before him, among the faded -roses, the woman whom he had been approaching so indifferently--the -faded existence that had seen better days. He saw her, and he stood -stock-still, as if it was she who was the basilisk, and the look of -pleased interest went out of his face in a moment. In that moment he had -become as unconscious of the presence of Lucilla as if he had never in -his life softened his voice to her ear, or talked nonsense to please -her. His eyes did not seem big enough to take in the figure which stood -shrinking and looking at him in the porch. Then he made one long step -forward, and took hold of her sleeve--not her hand--as if to convince -himself that it was something real he saw. He showed no joy, nor -satisfaction, nor anything but sheer amaze and wonder, at this -unexpected appearance, for he had not had time to prepare himself as she -had. "Am I dreaming, or is it you?" he said, in a voice that sounded as -different from the voice with which he had been speaking to Lucilla, as -if years had elapsed between the two. And it would be vain to describe -the amazement and singular sense that the earth had suddenly given way -under her feet, with which Miss Marjoribanks stood by and looked on. - - - - -_Chapter XXIII_ - - -Miss Marjoribanks was naturally the first to recover her senses in this -emergency. Even she, self-possessed as she was, felt the natural -giddiness inseparable from such a strange reversal of the position. But -she did not lose her head like the others. She looked at the widow -standing white and tremulous in the shadow of the little porch, and on -the Archdeacon, whose manly countenance had paled to a corresponding -colour. A man does not seize a woman by the sleeve and ask, "Is it -_you_?" without some reason for an address so destitute of ordinary -courtesy; and Lucilla was sufficiently versed in such matters to know -that so rude and startling an accost could be only addressed to some one -whose presence set the speaker's heart beating, and quickened the blood -in his veins. It was odd, to say the least, after the way in which he -had just been speaking to herself; but Miss Marjoribanks, as has been -already said, was not the woman to lose her head. She recovered herself -with the second breath she drew, and took her natural place. "I can see -that you have something to say to each other," said Lucilla. "Mrs -Mortimer, ask Mr Beverley to walk in. Never mind me. I want to speak to -the little Lakes. I shall come back presently," Miss Marjoribanks added, -nodding pleasantly to the Archdeacon--and she went away to the other end -of the garden, calling to the children with that self-possession which -is the gift only of great minds. But when Lucilla found herself at a -safe distance, and saw the Archdeacon stoop to go in under the porch, it -cannot be denied that her mind was moved by the sight. It was she who -had seen after the putting-up of that trellis round that porch, and the -arrangement of the wistaria, which had been sprawling all over the front -of the house uncared for. If there was any place in the world where she -should have been free from such a shock, it certainly should have been -here, in this spot, which she had, so to speak, created. Naturally the -unfitness of these surroundings to witness a revolution so unlooked-for -and disagreeable struck Lucilla. If she had to be again humiliated, and -to submit once more to see another preferred to herself, it certainly -should have been under other circumstances. When we admit that such a -thought did pass through the mind of Miss Marjoribanks, it will prove to -all who know her that Lucilla found her position sufficiently -aggravating. She had exerted herself for Mrs Mortimer as nobody else in -Carlingford would have exerted themselves. She had not only found pupils -and a means of living for the widow, which, perhaps, a committee of -ladies might have done at the end of a year, had it been put into their -hands; but Miss Marjoribanks had done it at once, and had taken charge -of that timid and maladroit individual herself, and set her up, and done -everything for her. It was Dr Marjoribanks's gardener, under Lucilla's -orders, who had arranged and planted the garden, and trained the -embowering foliage which had just brushed the Archdeacon's clerical hat -as he went in; and in the act of refurnishing her drawing-room, Miss -Marjoribanks had managed to procure, without costing anybody anything -except a little trouble, as she herself said, many accessories, which -gave an air of comfort to the little parlour, in which, no doubt, at -that moment, Mr Beverley and Mrs Mortimer were explaining themselves. -Lucilla had a great deal too much good sense to upbraid anybody with -ingratitude, or even to make any claim upon that slippery quality; but -she knew at the same time that the widow was the very last person from -whom a new discomfiture should come, and that to enter in under that -trellis when he left her was, on the Archdeacon's part, an aggravation -of the change in his sentiments which it was difficult to bear. - -She walked along the garden path very briskly under the influence of -these thoughts, and it was not in nature to do otherwise than snub the -children when she joined them. Lucilla was a woman of genius, but she -was not faultless; and when she found Ethelinda and Ethelfreda Lake, the -two twins, the one with her clean frock all muddy and stained, the other -with the front breadth torn right up the middle, it is scarcely to be -wondered at if she lost her patience. "You little nasty untidy things!" -she said, "I should like to know who you expect is to go mending up and -washing every day for you? It will not be Barbara, I am sure," Miss -Marjoribanks added, with a fine intonation of scorn, of which the -culprits were insensible; and she gave Ethelinda a shake, who was -sitting on the wet ground, all muddy with recent watering, and who, -besides, was the one who most resembled Barbara. When this temporary -ebullition had taken place, Lucilla began gradually to right herself. -It was a grand sight, if anybody had been there to witness it, or if -anybody could have seen into Miss Marjoribanks's maiden bosom; but the -spectacle of a great mind thus recovering its balance is one which can -rarely be visible except in its results. While she set the children to -rights, and represented to Mrs Mortimer's little servant, who was in the -garden furtively on a pretence of cabbages, the extreme folly, and -indeed idiocy, of letting them get to the water and make a mess of -themselves, Lucilla was in reality coming to herself. Perhaps she spoke -with a little more energy than usual; but the offenders were so well -aware of their guilt, and so thoroughly satisfied of the justice of the -reproof addressed to them, that no other explanation was necessary; and, -little by little, Miss Marjoribanks felt herself restored to her natural -calm. - -"You know I don't like to scold you," she said; "but what would anybody -say?--nice clean frocks, that I am sure were put on fresh this -morning--and you, Mary Jane----" - -"Please, Miss, it was only for a young cabbage. Missis is fond of a bit -of vegetable," said the little maid. "I knew _she'd_ not say -nothing;--and just as I had told 'em all to have done and be good--and -nobody knew as _you_ was here," said Mary Jane. There was something even -in that small and humble testimony to Lucilla's sovereignty which helped -on the process which was operating in her mind. She regained bit by bit -that serene self-consciousness which places the spirit above the passing -vexations of the world. What did it matter what other people might be -doing or saying? Was not she still Lucilla Marjoribanks? and when one -had said that, one had said all. - -"It is time you were all going home to your dinners," said Lucilla; "and -I have asked Mrs Mortimer to give you a half-holiday. As for you, you -little Linda, you are not fit to be seen; and I am sure if I were your -sister I should send you off to bed. Now get all your hats and things -and run away; and if you are not awfully good to-morrow, I shall never -ask for another half-holiday again." - -Saying which, Miss Marjoribanks herself saw the hats brought out, and -the little scholars sent away. She took matters into her own hand with -the confidence of a superior nature. "After all the long talk they are -having she will not be able for her scholars to-day," Lucilla said -magnanimously to herself; and she again made the tour of the garden, -inspecting everything, to see that all was in order. With every step -that she took, Miss Marjoribanks became more and more herself. As we -have already said, it was a grand and inspiring sight; but then, to be -sure, as in the former case, her affections, fortunately, were not -engaged. She was not in love with the Archdeacon, any more than she had -been in love with Mr Cavendish;--though it is true, love is not -everything. And to think how he had been looking and talking not much -more than half an hour ago, and to reflect that now he had most likely -forgotten her very existence, and was explaining himself, and placing -that position which would have just suited Lucilla at the feet of the -object of her bounty, was enough to have driven a young woman of -ordinary mind half out of her senses with disgust and indignation. But, -fortunately, Lucilla's mind was not an ordinary one; and every step she -took round the garden restored her more and more entirely to herself. -Instead of conceiving any jealous dislike to Mrs Mortimer, she had -already, as has been stated, exerted herself with her usual benevolence -to leave the widow free for the rest of the day. "After all, it is not -her fault if she knew him before, or if he was in love with her," -Lucilla said to herself. And when she had arrived at this perfectly true -and profoundly philosophical conclusion, it may be said that the crisis -was at an end. - -But then where personal offence and indignation (if the natural shock to -Miss Marjoribanks's feelings could be called by such hard names) ended, -bewilderment and curiosity began. Who could this Archdeacon be who had -frightened the most popular man in Carlingford out of the place, and -whose unlooked-for appearance had driven Mrs Mortimer back out of her -recovered good looks and cheerfulness into pallor and trembling? It is -true that Lucilla knew quite well who he was--the second son of Mr -Beverley of Trent Valley, a family as well known as any family in -England. Everybody knew all about the Archdeacon: his career from his -youth up was as clearly traceable as if he had been killed in a railway -accident and had had his memoir published in the _Times_. There was -nothing in the smallest degree secret or mysterious about him; and yet -how could it come about that the sight of him should frighten Mr -Cavendish out of his senses, and make Mrs Mortimer, who was utterly -unconnected with Mr Cavendish, all but faint, as she had done on a -former occasion? Was it his mission to go about the world driving -people into fits of terror or agitation? To be sure, he was a -Broad-Churchman, and not the type of clergyman to which Lucilla in her -heart inclined; but still a man may be Broad Church, and speak a little -freely on religious matters, without being a basilisk. As these thoughts -went through her mind, Miss Marjoribanks could not help observing that -the branches of the pear-tree, which was all that the garden contained -in the shape of fruit, had come loose from the wall, and were swaying -about greatly to the damage of the half-grown pears,--not to say that it -gave a very untidy look to that corner. "I must send Crawford down this -evening to fasten it up," Lucilla said to herself, and then went on with -what she was thinking; and she made one or two other remarks of the same -description in a parenthesis as she made her tour. After all, it is -astonishing how many little things go wrong when the man or woman with a -hundred eyes is absent for a few days from the helm of affairs. It was -nearly a week since Miss Marjoribanks had been round Mrs Mortimer's -garden, and in that time the espalier had got detached, some of the -verbenas were dead in the borders, and the half of the sticks that -propped up the dahlias had fallen, leaving the plants in miserable -confusion. Lucilla shook her head over this, as she asked herself what -mysterious influence there could be in the Archdeacon. For her own part, -she was not in the slightest degree afraid of him, nor could she confess -to having felt agitated even when he walked with her into this fated -garden; but there could be no doubt of the seriousness of the effect -produced by his appearance on the two others. "They have broken half of -the props, the little nuisances," Lucilla said to herself, as she -pursued her musings. For her large mind was incapable, now that its -perfect serenity was happily regained, of confining itself, unless with -a very good reason, to one sole subject. - -When she had finished her inspection, and saw that nobody had yet -appeared at the door, Miss Marjoribanks collected the books which the -children had left lying in the summer-house, and put them under -cover--for, to tell the truth, it looked a little like rain; and having -done this, and looked all round her to see if anything else required her -immediate care, Lucilla carried philosophy to its highest practical -point by going away, which is, perhaps, a height of good sense which may -be thought too much for humanity. It was not too much for Miss -Marjoribanks's legislative soul and knowledge of human nature;--and in -thus denying herself she was perfectly aware of her advantages, and of -the inevitable result. She knew, just as well as if she had already -received it, that Mrs Mortimer would write her a little three-cornered -note, marked _Private_, as soon as the Archdeacon was gone; and she -thought it was highly probable that Mr Beverley himself would come to -give some explanation. With this tranquil assurance in her mind, Lucilla -turned her face towards Grange Lane. She began to have a kind of -conviction too, since this had happened, either that Carlingford would -not be raised into a bishopric, or that the Archdeacon at least would -not be the first bishop. It was difficult to give any ground for the -idea, but it came into her mind with a kind of quiet certainty; and with -this conviction, in which she recognised that beautiful self-adjusting -balance of compensations which keeps everything right in the world, -Lucilla, quite recovered from her shock, had on the whole a pleasant -walk home. - -As for the two who were shut up together in Mrs Mortimer's parlour, -their state of mind was far from partaking of the virtuous peace and -serenity which filled Miss Marjoribanks's bosom. It was more than an -hour before the Archdeacon went away; and when Mrs Mortimer had a little -collected her faculties, the result arrived which had been foreseen by -Lucilla. In the first place, terror seized the widow as to what had -become of her pupils, whom all this time she had forgotten, and deep was -her gratitude when she had ascertained that her protecting genius had -sent them away. But with that gratitude came a sudden recollection of -the manner in which Mr Beverley and Miss Marjoribanks had been coming -together up the garden path, before the mistress of the house showed -herself. Mrs Mortimer wrung her hands when she recollected the looks and -attitude of the two, and the rumour which had reached her ears that the -Archdeacon was paying attention to Miss Marjoribanks. What was she to -do?--was her miserable presence here to dispel perhaps the youthful -hopes of her benefactress, and make a revolution in Lucilla's prospects? -The poor woman felt herself ready to sink into the earth at the thought. -She went to the window and looked out disconsolately into the rain--for -it had come on to rain, as Lucilla supposed it would--and felt like a -creature in a cage, helpless, imprisoned, miserable, not knowing what to -do with herself, and the cause of trouble to her best friends. A little -house in a garden may look like a little paradise in the sunshine, and -yet feel like a dungeon when a poor woman all alone looks out across her -flowers in the rain, and sees nothing but the wall that shuts her in, -and thinks to herself that she has no refuge nor escape from it--nobody -to tell her what to do, nothing but her own feeble powers to support -her, and the dreadful idea that she has done harm and can do no good to -her only protector. Any reasonable creature would have said, that to be -there in her own house, poor enough certainly, but secure, and no longer -driven lonely and distressed about the world, was a great matter. But -yet, after all, the walls that shut her in, the blast of white, -sweeping, downright rain, which seemed to cut her off from any succour -outside, and the burden of something on her mind which by herself she -was quite unable to bear, was a hard combination; and wringing one's -hands, and feeling one's mind ready to give way under a new and -unexpected burden, could not advance matters in the slightest degree. -She was not strong-minded, as has been already proved; nor, indeed, had -she the ordinary amount of indifference to other people, or confidence -in herself, which stands in the place of self-control with many people. -After she had wrung her hands, and looked out again and again with a -vague instinct of perhaps finding some suggestion of comfort outside, -Mrs Mortimer relapsed by necessity into the one idea that had been a -support to her for so many months past. All that she could do was to -consult Lucilla--it might be to wound Lucilla, for anything she could -tell; but when a poor creature is helpless and weak, and has but one -friend in the world who is strong, what can she do but apply to her -sustainer and guardian? When, after beating about wildly from one point -to another, she arrived ultimately, as might have been predicted, and as -Miss Marjoribanks had expected from the first, at that conclusion, there -remained a further difficulty in respect to the means of communication. -Lucilla had settled quite calmly in her own mind that it would be by the -medium of a three-cornered note, a matter in which there was no -difficulty whatever, for the widow was sufficiently fluent with her pen; -but then Lucilla had not thought of Mary Jane, who was the only possible -messenger. It was to this point now that Mrs Mortimer's ideas addressed -themselves. At that moment the rain poured down fiercer than ever, the -bricks of the uncovered wall grew black with the wet, and the wistaria -crouched and shivered about the porch as if it wanted to be taken -indoors. And then to get wet, and perhaps catch cold, was a thing Mary -Jane conscientiously avoided, like the rest of the world; and it was -with a sense of alarm even stronger than that excited by the possibility -of injuring Lucilla, that Mrs Mortimer very gently and modestly rang her -bell. - -"I don't think it rains quite so heavily," said the timid -experimentalist, feeling her heart beat as she made this doubtful -statement. "Have you a pair of goloshes, Mary Jane?" - -"No," said the little handmaiden, with precaution; "and, please, if it's -for the post, it rains worse nor ever; and I don't think as mother would -like----" - -"Oh, it is not for the post," said Mrs Mortimer; "it is for Miss -Marjoribanks. You can take mine, and then you will not get your feet -wet. I go out so very little; you may have them--to keep--Mary Jane. And -you can take the big shawl that hangs in the passage, and an umbrella. I -don't think it is so heavy as it was." - -Mary Jane regarded the rain gloomily from the window; but her reluctance -was at an end from the moment she heard that it was to Miss Marjoribanks -she was going. To be sure, the distance between the Serenissime Nancy -and Thomas, and the other inmates of the Doctor's kitchen, and Mrs -Mortimer's little handmaiden, was as great as that which exists between -an English Duke and the poorest little cadet of a large family among his -attendant gentry; but, correspondingly, the merest entrance into that -higher world was as great a privilege for Mary Jane, as the Duke's -notice would be to the Squire's youngest son. She kept up a momentary -show of resistance, but she accepted the goloshes, and even after a -moment agreed in her mistress's trembling assertion about the rain. And -this was how the three-cornered note got conveyed to its destination in -the heaviest of the storm, between three and four o'clock in the -afternoon. Mrs Mortimer still sat at her window, wringing her hands from -time to time, with her head aching and her heart beating, and a dreadful -question in her mind as to what Lucilla would say, or whether perhaps -she might reject altogether in her natural indignation the appeal made -to her; which was an idea which filled the widow with inexpressible -horror. While at the same moment Miss Marjoribanks sat looking for that -appeal which she knew was sure to come. The rain had set in by this time -with an evident intention of lasting, and even from the windows of -Lucilla's drawing-room the prospect of the garden walls and glistening -trees was sufficiently doleful. Nobody was likely to call, nothing was -doing; and Lucilla, who never caught cold, had not the least fear of -wetting her feet. And besides, her curiosity had been rising every -moment since her return; and the widow's pathetic appeal, "Come to me, -my dearest Lucilla. I have nobody whom I can talk to in the world but -you!" had its natural effect upon a mind so feeling. Miss Marjoribanks -got up as soon as she had read the note, and changed her dress, and put -on a great waterproof cloak. Instead of thinking it a trouble, she was -rather exhilarated by the necessity. "Be sure you make your mistress a -nice cup of tea as soon as we get there," she said to Mary Jane. "She -must want it, I am sure, if she has not had any dinner;" for the little -maid had betrayed the fact that Mrs Mortimer could not eat anything, and -had sent away her dinner, which was naturally an alarming and wonderful -occurrence to Mary Jane. The widow was still sitting at the window when -Lucilla appeared tripping across the wet garden in her waterproof cloak, -if not a ministering angel, at least a substantial prop and support to -the lonely woman who trusted in her, and yet in the present instance -feared her. But anything more unlike a disappointed maiden, whose wooer -had been taken away from her under her very eyes, could not have been -seen. On the contrary, Miss Marjoribanks was radiant, with raindrops -glistening on her hair, and what Mrs Chiley called "a lovely colour." If -there was one thing in the world more than another which contented -Lucilla, it was to be appealed to and called upon for active service. It -did her heart good to take the management of incapable people, and -arrange all their affairs for them, and solve all their difficulties. -Such an office was more in her way than all the Archdeacons in the -world. - -"I saw you knew him the moment I looked at you," said Lucilla. "I have -seen other people look _like that_ when he appeared. Who is he, for -goodness' sake? I know quite well, of course, who he is, in the ordinary -way; but do tell me what has he done to make people look like that -whenever he appears?" - -Mrs Mortimer did not directly answer this question--she fixed her mind -upon one part of it, like an unreasonable woman, and repeated "Other -people?" with a kind of interrogative gasp. - -"Oh, it was only a gentleman," said Lucilla, with rapid intelligence; -and then there was a little pause. "He has been here for six weeks," -Miss Marjoribanks continued; "you must have heard of him; indeed, you -would have heard him preach if you had not gone off after these -Dissenters. Did you really never know that he was here till to-day?" - -"I did not think of him being Archdeacon--he was only a curate when I -used to know him," said poor Mrs Mortimer, with a sigh. - -"Tell me all about it," said Lucilla, with ingenuous sympathy; and she -drew her chair close to that of her friend, and took her hand in a -protecting, encouraging way. "You know, whatever you like to say, that -it is quite safe with me." - -"If you are sure you do not mind," said the poor widow. "Oh, yes, I have -heard what people have been saying about him and--and you, Lucilla; and -if I had known, I would have shut myself up--I would have gone away for -ever and ever--I would----" - -"My dear," said Miss Marjoribanks, with a little severity, "I thought -you knew me better. If I had been thinking of that sort of thing, I -never need have come home at all; and when you know how kind papa has -been about the drawing-room and everything. Say what you were going to -say, and never think of me." - -"Ah, Lucilla, I have had my life," said the trembling woman, whose -agitation was coming to a climax--"I have had it, and done with it; and -you have been so good to me; and if, after all, I was to stand between -you and--and--and--anybody----" But here Mrs Mortimer broke down, and -could say no more. To be sure, she did not faint this time any more than -she did on the first occasion when she made Miss Marjoribanks's -acquaintance; but Lucilla thought it best, as then, to make her lie down -on the sofa, and keep her quite quiet, and hasten Mary Jane with the cup -of tea. - -"You have been agitated, and you have not eaten anything," said Lucilla. -"I am going to stay with you till half-past six, when I must run home -for dinner, so we have plenty of time; and as for your life, I don't -consider you gone off at all yet, and you are a great deal -younger-looking than you were six months ago. I am very glad the -Archdeacon did not come until you had got back your looks. It makes such -a difference to a man," Miss Marjoribanks added, with that almost -imperceptible tone of contempt which she was sometimes known to use when -speaking of Their absurd peculiarities. As for Mrs Mortimer, the -inference conveyed by these words brought the colour to her pale -cheeks. - -"It will never come to that," she said, "no more than it did in old -days; it never can, Lucilla; and I don't know that it is to be wished. I -couldn't help being put out a little when I saw him, you know; but there -is one thing, that he never, never will persuade me," said the widow. -Lucilla could not but look on in surprise and even consternation, while -Mrs Mortimer thus expressed herself. A warm flush animated the pale and -somewhat worn face--and a gleam of something that looked absolutely like -resolution shone in the yielding woman's mild eyes. Was it possible that -even she had one point upon which she could be firm? Miss Marjoribanks -stood still, petrified, in the very act of pouring out the tea. - -"If it is only one thing, if I were you, I would give in to him," said -Lucilla, with a vague sense that this sort of self-assertion must be put -a stop to, mingling with her surprise. - -"Never," said Mrs Mortimer again, with a still more distinct gleam of -resolution. "In the first place, I have no right whatever to anything -more than my uncle gave me. He told me himself I was to have no more; -and _he_ was very, very kind to poor Edward. You don't know all the -circumstances, or you would not say so," she cried, with a sob. As for -Miss Marjoribanks, if it is possible to imagine her clear spirit -altogether lost in bewilderment, it would have been at that moment; but -she recovered as soon as she had administered her cup of tea. - -"Now tell me all about it," said Lucilla, again sitting down by the -sofa; and this time Mrs Mortimer, to whom her excitement had given a -little spur and stimulus, did not waste any more time. - -"He is my cousin," she said; "not my real cousin, but distant; and I -will not deny that long, long ago--when we were both quite young, you -know, Lucilla----" - -"Yes, yes, I understand," said Miss Marjoribanks, pressing her hand. - -"He was very nice in those days," said Mrs Mortimer, faltering; "that -is, I don't mean to say he was not always nice, you know, but only----I -never had either father or mother. I was living with my Uncle -Garrett--my uncle on the other side; and he thought he should have made -me his heiress; but instead of that, he left his money, you know, to -_him_; and then he was dreadfully put out, and wanted me to go to law -with him and change the will; but I never blamed him, for my part, -Lucilla--he knows I never blamed him--and nothing he said would make me -give in to go to the law with him----" - -"Stop a minute," said Lucilla, "I am not quite sure that I understand. -Who was it he wanted you to go to law with? and was it to the Archdeacon -the money was left?" - -"Oh, Lucilla," said the widow, with momentary exasperation, "you who are -so quick and pick up everything, to think you should not understand me -when I speak of a thing so important! Of course it was not to Charles -Beverley the money was left: if it had been left to him, how could he -have wanted me to go to law? It has always been the question between -us," said Mrs Mortimer, once more lighting up with exceptional and -unwonted energy. "He said I was to indict him for conspiracy; and I -declare to you, Lucilla, that he was not to blame. Uncle Garrett might -be foolish, but I don't say even that he was foolish: he was so good to -him, like a son; and he had no son of his own, and I was only a girl. He -never was anything to me," said Mrs Mortimer, wiping her eyes--"never, -whatever Charles may choose to say; but if ever I was sure of anything -in the world, I am sure that he was not to blame." - -Lucilla's head began to whirl; but after her first unsuccessful essay, -she was wise enough not to ask any more direct questions. She made all -the efforts possible, with ears and eyes intent, to disentangle this web -of pronouns, and failing, waited on in the hope that time and patience -would throw a little light upon them. "I suppose Mr Beverley thought he -was to blame?" she said, when the narrator paused to take breath. - -"Is not that what I am saying?" said Mrs Mortimer. "It was through that -it was all broke off. I am sure I don't know whether he has regretted it -or not, Lucilla. It is not always very easy to understand a gentleman, -you know. After I was married to poor Edward, naturally I never had any -more correspondence with him; and to see him to-day without any warning, -and to find him just as bent as he was upon making me prosecute, and -just as full of bad feeling, and speaking as if there was some reason -more than truth and justice why I should be so determined. No, Lucilla," -said Mrs Mortimer, raising herself up on the sofa, "it is just the same -thing as ever, and the same obstacle as ever, and it never will come to -_that_." - -"You are agitating yourself," said Miss Marjoribanks; "lie down--there's -a dear--and keep quite still, and see whether we cannot make anything -better of it. Tell me, what would you go to law with him for?" Lucilla -continued, with the natural humility of imperfect comprehension. It was -perhaps the first time in her life that such a singular chance had -happened to Miss Marjoribanks, as to have a matter explained to her, and -yet be unable to understand. - -"He says he could be indicted for conspiracy, or for having too much -influence over him, and making him do what he liked. But he was very -good to him, Lucilla, and to my poor Edward; and when I was married to -him----" - -"Goodness gracious! were you married to him as well?" cried Lucilla, -fairly losing the thread and her balance in this confusing circle. Mrs -Mortimer grew pale, and rose quite up from the sofa, and went with the -air of an insulted woman to seat herself in her usual chair. - -"I don't know why you should address me so," she said. "He is nothing to -me, and never was. It is an insult to me to think that I must have a -personal reason for refusing to do a wicked and unjust thing. I could -give up anything," said the widow, losing a little of her dignity, and -growing again pathetic--"I would give in in a moment if it was any fancy -of mine--you know I would; but I am sure it would be wicked and -unjust----" - -"I am sure I am not the person to bid you do anything unjust or wicked," -said Lucilla, who, in the utter confusion of her faculties, began to -feel offended in her turn. - -"Then I beg you will never speak to me of it again!" cried Mrs Mortimer. -"How is it possible that either he or you can know the rights of it as I -do, who was in the house at the time and saw everything? He may say what -he likes, but I know there was no conspiracy; he was just as much -surprised as you could be, or Charles, or anybody. Of course it was for -his advantage--nobody denies that--but you don't mean to say that a man -is to reject everything that is for his advantage?" said the widow, -turning eyes of indignant inquiry upon her visitor; and Miss -Marjoribanks for once was so utterly perplexed that she did not know how -to respond. - -"But you said when you were married to him?" said Lucilla, who felt that -the tables were turned upon her for the moment. "I am sure I beg your -pardon for being so stupid; but whom were you married to?" This was said -in the most deprecating tone in the world, but still it irritated Mrs -Mortimer, whose mind was all unhinged, and who somehow felt that she -was not finding in Miss Marjoribanks the help and support to which her -clear and detailed explanation entitled her. Though her head was aching -dreadfully, she sat up more upright than ever in her chair. - -"I don't think you can mean to insult me, Miss Marjoribanks," said the -widow, "after being so kind. Perhaps I have been trying you too much by -what I have said; though I am sure I would have given up everything, and -gone away anywhere, rather than be the cause of anything unpleasant. You -know that it was my poor dear Edward I was married to; you know I have -a--a horror," said Mrs Mortimer, faltering, "in general--of second -marriages." - -"Oh, yes," said Lucilla, "but there are always exceptions, you know; and -when people have no children, nor anything--and you that were so young. -I always make exceptions, for my part; and if you could only get over -this one point," Miss Marjoribanks added, making a dexterous strategical -movement. But Mrs Mortimer only shook her head. - -"I don't think I am hard to get on with," she said; "but my poor Edward -always said one must make a stand somewhere. He used to say I was so -easy to be persuaded. He was glad to see I had a point to make a stand -on, instead of being disagreeable about it, or thinking he was anything -to me. And oh, Lucilla, he was so kind to him," said the widow, with -tears in her eyes. "We met him quite by chance, and he was so kind. I -will never forget it, if I should live a hundred years. And why should -Charles be in such a way? He never did him any harm! If any one was -injured, it was me, and I never felt myself injured--neither did Edward. -On the contrary, he _always_ did him justice, Lucilla," Mrs Mortimer -continued, fixing a pathetic look upon her friend. What could Lucilla -do? She was burning to take it all in her own hands, and arrange it -somehow, and unite the two lovers who had been so long separated; but -unless she could understand what the point was on which Mrs Mortimer -made her stand, what could she do? - -"I never could understand," said the widow, who began to feel her heart -sick with the disappointment of that hope which she had fixed in Miss -Marjoribanks, "why he should take it so much to heart. Poor Edward never -thought of such a thing! and why he should be so set against poor Mr -Kavan, and so----Lucilla! oh, tell me, do you see anything? what do you -mean?" - -"I want to know who Mr Kavan is?" said Miss Marjoribanks, much startled. -She had for the moment forgotten the Archdeacon's discovery and her own -suspicions; and the idea of connecting the man who had (apparently) fled -from Mr Beverley's presence, with the innocent and helpless woman upon -whom the appearance of the Broad Churchman had so overwhelming an -effect, had never hitherto entered her imagination. But this name, which -was not the name of anybody she knew, and yet seemed to bear an odd sort -of rudimentary relationship to another name, struck her like a sudden -blow and brought everything back to her mind. It was a bewildering sort -of explanation, if it was an explanation; but still a confused light -began to break upon Lucilla's understanding. If this was what it all -meant then there was the widest opening for charitable exertions, and -much to be done which only a mind like Miss Marjoribanks's could do. - -"That is not his name now," said Mrs Mortimer, "I don't see, if he liked -it, why he should not change his name. I am sure a great many people do; -but his name was Kavan when he lived with my uncle. I don't remember -what it was after, for of course he was always Mr Kavan to me; and -Charles Beverley never could bear him. He used to think----But oh, -Lucilla, forgive me--oh, forgive me, if it is too much for you!" she -added, a moment after, as another idea struck her. "It was not with the -idea of--of anything coming of it, you know; it will never come to -that--not now;--I don't know if it is to be wished. I am sure he is -quite free so far as I am concerned. It was not with that idea I asked -for your advice, Lucilla," said the poor woman, in piteous tones. If -Miss Marjoribanks had pressed her, and insisted upon knowing what _was_ -the idea which had moved her friend to ask her advice, Mrs Mortimer -would no doubt have found it very hard to reply; but Lucilla had no such -cruel intentions; and the widow, notwithstanding her piteous denial of -any motive, now that her mind was cleared, and she had caught the -comprehension of her auditor, began to regard her with a certain -instinct of hope. - -As for Miss Marjoribanks, this revelation at once troubled and cleared -her mind. If this was the culprit, he _was_ a culprit and yet he was -innocent; and to heap coals of fire upon his head was in some respects a -Christian duty. Her ideas went forward at a bound to a grand finale of -reconciliation and universal brotherhood. She saw the tools under her -hands, and her very fingers itched to begin. Large and varied as her -experience was, she had never yet had any piece of social business on so -important a scale to manage, and her eyes sparkled and her heart beat at -the idea. Instead of shrinking from interference, her spirits rose at -the thought. To vanquish the Archdeacon, to pluck out from the darkness, -and rehabilitate and set at his ease the mysterious adventurer, whom, to -be sure, _she could not say she knew_--for Lucilla was very careful, -even in her own thoughts, not to commit herself on this subject--and to -finish off by a glorious and triumphant marriage--not her own, it is -true, but of her making, which was more to the purpose--such was the -programme she made out for herself with the speed of lightning, the -moment she had laid hold of the clue which guided or seemed to guide her -through the labyrinth. It would be too lengthy a matter to go into all -her tender cares for the widow's comfort during the rest of her stay, -and the pains and delicacy with which she managed to elicit further -particulars, and to make out her brief, so to speak, while she cheered -up and encouraged the witness. Miss Marjoribanks jumped to the -conclusion that "poor Edward" had been, after all, but a temporary -tenant of the heart, which was now again free for the reception of the -Archdeacon, if he could be got to accept the conditions. When half-past -six arrived, and Thomas came for her with the great umbrella, she went -off quite resplendent in her waterproof cloak, and utterly indifferent -to the rain, leaving Mrs Mortimer worn out, but with a glimmer of hope -in her mind. Such was the great work which, without a moment's -hesitation, Lucilla took upon her shoulders. She had no more fear of the -result than she had of wetting her feet, which was a thing Mrs Mortimer -and Thomas were both concerned about. But then Lucilla knew her own -resources, and what she was capable of, and proceeded upon her way with -that unconscious calm of genius which is always so inexplicable to the -ordinary world. - - - - -_Chapter XXIV_ - - -It was the most unlucky moment for the weather to change, being the -middle of July, and as near as possible to St Swithin's Day; but the -season had been so delightful up to that time that nobody in Carlingford -at least had any reason to complain. So far as Miss Marjoribanks was -concerned, she was rather glad, on the whole, that the next day was wet, -and that she could not go out all the morning, nor was likely to be -interrupted by visitors. She had all her plans to settle and mature for -the great enterprise which she had taken in hand. By this time, so far -from feeling any personal interest in the Archdeacon, or considering -herself injured by his sudden desertion, that little episode had gone -out of Lucilla's mind as completely as if it had never been. In one -point, however, Miss Marjoribanks's conviction remained firm; it was -impressed upon her mind that Carlingford would not be made into a -bishopric, or, if made into a bishopric, that it was not Mr Beverley who -would be chosen to occupy the new see. It was one of those instinctive -certainties which are not capable of explanation, which was thus borne -in upon her spirit, and she could not have felt more sure of it had she -seen it under the Queen's own hand and seal. While she went about her -usual morning occupations, her mind was full of her great and novel -undertaking. Mr Beverley was not a man to be revolutionised in a moment; -and many people would have shrunk from the attempt to work in a few days -or weeks, with no better arms than those of acquaintance, a change which -the influence of love had not been able to do in so many years. But it -was not in Lucilla's nature to be daunted by a difficulty so -unimportant. There was, thank Heaven, some difference between herself -and the widow, who, in a strait, could think of nothing better to do, -poor soul! than to faint; and Miss Marjoribanks had the advantage of -never as yet having been beaten, whereas Mrs Mortimer had undergone -numberless defeats. - -The hardest matter in the whole business, however, was the -identification of the Mr Kavan whom the Archdeacon thought he had seen -in Carlingford, and was not afraid to speak of as a clever rascal and -adventurer. Mr Beverley had never seen the fellow again, as he had told -Lucilla not many days back, and Miss Marjoribanks had been unfeignedly -glad to hear it; but now matters had changed. In the course of her -reflections, she decided that it would now be best that these two men, -if possible, should meet and recognise each other, and that the business -should once for all be definitively settled. If all the offence he had -committed against society was to have had a large sum of money left him -by a childless old man, Lucilla saw no reason why this mysterious -culprit should conceal himself; and even if he had taken a little -liberty with his name, that was not a crime--his name was his own -surely, if anything was his own. At the same time, Miss Marjoribanks -took pains to impress upon herself, as it is to be hoped a friendly -audience will also have the goodness to do, that she had no _real -foundation_ for her suspicions as to the identity of this personage, and -might turn out to be completely mistaken. He might have made no change -whatever on his name; he might be flourishing in some other quarter of -England or the world, with all his antecedents perfectly well known, and -unconscious of anything to be ashamed about; which, to tell the truth, -was, as Lucilla confessed to herself, a much more likely hypothesis than -the supposition which had taken such possession of her mind. But then -Miss Marjoribanks had a just faith in her instincts, and in those brief -but telling pieces of evidence which supported her conclusion. She was -thinking over this important branch of the subject with the greatest -care and devotion, when, looking out by chance into the rain, she saw -the Archdeacon crossing the garden. Perhaps it was just as well that she -thus had warning and a moment to prepare for his visit; not that Lucilla -was a person to be taken at disadvantage; but still, in a matter so -practical and pressing, it was always better to be prepared. - -Mr Beverley came in with an air and expression so different from that -which he had borne in their intercourse no further gone than yesterday, -that, notwithstanding the corresponding revolution in her own mind, Miss -Marjoribanks could not but regard him with mingled admiration and -surprise. She judged him as the general world so often judged herself, -and gave him credit for skill and courage in assuming such an attitude, -when the fact was he was only preoccupied and natural, and did not think -of his attitude at all. It did not occur to the Archdeacon that he had -sinned towards Lucilla. He thought it right to explain to her his -extreme surprise at the sight of Mrs Mortimer, and possibly to make her -aware, at the same time, of his grievances, in so far as Mrs Mortimer -was concerned; but perhaps Mr Beverley was, on the whole, innocent of -those intentions which Mrs Chiley had attributed to him, and which even -Lucilla, more clear-sighted, had seen dawning in their last interview; -for, to be sure, this is one of the questions which the female intellect -is apt to judge in a different light from that in which it is regarded -by a man. The Archdeacon, accordingly, came in preoccupied, with a cloud -on his brow, but without the smallest appearance of penitence or -deprecation; by which demeanour he gained, without deserving it, the -respect, and to a certain extent the admiration, of Lucilla. His -expression was not that of a man repentant, but of a man aggrieved. He -had a cloud upon his countenance, and a certain air of offence and -temper; and when he sat down, he breathed a short impatient sigh. - -"Thank you for receiving me so early," he said. "I called yesterday -afternoon, but found you out. You must have had very particular business -to take you out in that rain," Mr Beverley continued, with subdued -exasperation; for naturally, being a clergyman, he was a little -impatient to find, when it was _he_ who wanted her, any of his female -friends out of the way. - -"Yes," said Lucilla, who thought it was best to open her battery boldly -and at once. "I was spending the afternoon with poor Mrs Mortimer; poor -dear, she is so solitary!" and to meet Mr Beverley's ill-temper, Miss -Marjoribanks put on her most heavenly air of sympathy, and rounded her -words with a soft sigh, as different from his as a flute is from a -trumpet. It was with an exclamation of impatience that the Archdeacon -replied. - -"_Poor_ Mrs Mortimer!" he cried; "I don't know whether you are aware how -much her obstinacy has cost me; and herself, I suppose," he added, in a -parenthesis. "Not to depreciate your kindness, or the truly human and -Christian way in which you have conducted yourself--fancy what my -feelings naturally must have been to find her an object of -charity--actually of charity! I don't mean to say," said Mr Beverley, -controlling himself, "that it is degrading to accept succour when given -as from man to man--quite the contrary; but you will excuse me from -entering into the general question. She knew perfectly well that if I -had known where she was--if she had consented to yield to me on one -point--solely on _one_ point----" - -"And she such an obstinate woman!" said Miss Marjoribanks, with fine -scorn. "How could you ever think of such a thing? A woman that never -gives in to anybody. If you knew her as well as I do----" - -The Archdeacon glanced up with a momentary intense surprise, as if it -was within the possibilities that such a change might have taken place -in the widow's nature; and then he caught Lucilla's eye, and grew red -and more aggrieved than ever. - -"Mrs Mortimer happens to be a relative of mine," he said, in his -authoritative voice. "I have known her from her youth. I am better -instructed in all her affairs than she can possibly be. When I urge her -to any step, however much it may be against her inclinations, she ought -to know that it can only be for her good. I beg your pardon, Miss -Marjoribanks. It will give me great grief to find that you, upon whose -superior good sense I have so much calculated, should support her in her -folly. I know how much she owes to you----" - -"Oh, no, she does not owe me anything," said Lucilla. "It was just my -luck, you know. I knew she would turn out to be a lady. I don't want to -stand up for her if she is wrong; but I have only heard _her_ side. When -you tell me about it, I shall be able to form an opinion," Miss -Marjoribanks added prudently; "for of course everything has two sides." - -"Most things," said Mr Beverley, "but this is precisely one of the -things which have not two sides. Nothing except some sort of infatuation -or other--but never mind, you shall hear the facts," said the -Archdeacon, once more making an effort upon himself. "Her uncle, Mr -Garrett, was above eighty. Why Providence should have let him live to -such an age to do so much mischief, Heaven alone knows. Some different -rule seems to exist up _there_ about those matters, from what we find to -answer on earth," the Broad-Churchman said, with a certain air of -disapproval. "He had this young fellow to see him and then to live with -him, and took some sort of idiotic fancy to him; and when the will was -made, it was found that, with the exception of a small sum to Helen, -everything was left to this impostor. No, I can't say I have any -patience with her folly. How could any man have two opinions on the -subject? He was neither related to him, nor connected with him," cried -Mr Beverley, with a momentary inclination, as Lucilla thought, to get -aground among the pronouns, as Mrs Mortimer had done. "I do not suspect -my cousin," the Archdeacon continued, with an air so severe and -indignant that it was evident he was contradicting his own sentiments, -"of having any partiality for such a person; but certainly her obstinacy -and determination are such----" - -"Hush, please," said Lucilla; "you are only laughing when you use such -words. Now, tell me one thing, and don't be angry if it is a stupid -question--If there was any one that knew her and you, and perhaps him, -and was to try--don't you think it might be arranged?" - -"By money?" said the Archdeacon; and he smiled one of those disagreeable -smiles which youthful writers describe by saying that his lip curled -with scorn. "You seem to take me for Mortimer, who could go into that -sort of compromise. I suppose he did give them money before--before she -was left a widow," said Mr Beverley, grinding his teeth slightly with a -savage expression. "No, Miss Marjoribanks. Where everlasting truth and -justice are concerned, I do not understand how things can be arranged." - -After such a truculent statement, what was the peacemaker to do? She -left the fire to blaze out by itself for a minute or two, and then she -came down upon the enemy on another wind. - -"I am sure I am very sorry," said Lucilla softly, "to think you should -be so fond of her and she so fond of you, and nothing but this standing -in the way; and then she is too good for this world, and never thinks of -herself. I often think, if anything was to happen to me--and my life is -no safer than other people's lives," said Miss Marjoribanks, with a -sigh--"what would become of her, poor dear! I am sure, if I knew of any -way----As for obstinate, you know it is not in her to be obstinate. She -thinks she is right, and you think you are right; and I suppose neither -of you will give in," cried Lucilla. "What is anybody to do?" - -"If any one gives in, it should be she," said the Archdeacon. "For my -part, I will never stand by and consent to such a robbery,--never. In -these matters, at least, a man must be a better judge than a woman. If -you are her friend you will persuade her of her duty," Mr Beverley -added; and he did not show so much as a symptom of yielding. To say that -Miss Marjoribanks was not discouraged would be more than the truth; but -she was still at the beginning of her forces, and no thought of giving -in was in her courageous soul. - -"I will tell you what occurs to me," said Lucilla frankly. "Let us find -out something about him. Do you know anything about him? If she were to -hear that he was, as you say, an impostor, you know, and a -villain?--What is his name?--Where does he live?--Is he a very, very -wicked man?" said Miss Marjoribanks, and she looked up with that -ingenuous look of appeal, which was always so touching in her, to the -Archdeacon's face. - -As for Mr Beverley, in his haste and excitement, he gave vent to two -very contradictory statements. "She knows all about him. I don't know -anything about him," he said, with some heat. "I mean, she knows as much -as I do, though she draws such a different conclusion. I am sure I saw -him in Carlingford the first day I was here. For anything I can tell, -she knows _more_ of him than I do," said the Broad Churchman, with a -sudden flash of jealousy and anger. It occurred to Lucilla then for the -first time that she had found the grand clue to the whole. - -"That would be dreadful," said Miss Marjoribanks, "if she knew him, and -was keeping him out of the way till you were gone. I did not think of -that. If such a thing should be the case, fond as I am of Mrs Mortimer, -I never could go near her any more," said Lucilla sadly. "Oh, don't say -you think so, please. I should have to give her up, and that would be -dreadful; for I owe it to papa, when he gives me so much liberty, to be -very careful. Oh, Mr Beverley, don't say you think so," cried Lucilla, -deeply moved. She put her handkerchief to her eyes, and yet she kept -watch upon the Archdeacon through one of the corners. He had got up by -this time, and was walking about the room like any other man in trouble. -To throw suspicion on the widow, or separate her from so effectual a -protector, was the very last thing he had any inclination to do: for, to -tell the truth, he made that jealous suggestion only in order to receive -an indignant denial, and to be assured that such a thing was impossible. -But then Mr Beverley did not know whom he had to deal with, nor that he -was not the first man whom Miss Marjoribanks had reduced to his proper -place. - -"If that was the case," said Lucilla, drying her eyes, "dreadful as it -is to think of it--oh, Mr Beverley, if such a thing were the case--it -would be far better for her to marry him, and then she would have all -the fortune without going to law. If things have gone so far, though it -is miserable to think of it, and to believe that she could be so -unkind," said Miss Marjoribanks, with a sob, "and so double-minded, and -so deceitful to _me_----" - -"In Heaven's name what are you thinking of?" said the Archdeacon. He had -grown as pale as he was before red, and came to a dead stop in front of -Lucilla, and stood lowering and menacing over her. His shadow was so big -and strong, and stood so directly between her and the window, that Miss -Marjoribanks's heart gave one bound of something like alarm. - -"Dear Mr Beverley," said Lucilla, "try and compose yourself. It would be -a dreadful trial to me, but I should endeavour to bear it. If we love -her, we should, on the contrary, urge her to do it," said the young -moralist, with solemnity, "however hard it may be to us. It would be -better than--than dreadful concealment and misery--it would be better -than knowing and not telling, as you say. Oh, Mr Beverley, if you are -sure that is the case, let us both go to her, and beg her to marry him. -I could never, never, never see her again," sobbed Lucilla, "but she -would be happy, and that would be the end of all." - -The Archdeacon, though he was not a weakling, was altogether stunned by -this address. He sank into the nearest chair, and drew it closer to -Lucilla, and looked perfectly flabby and ghastly in his white tie, with -his alarmed countenance. "For the sake of all that is sacred," said Mr -Beverley, bending forward towards her, "tell me what foundation you -have--tell me all you know." - -Now was the critical moment, and Lucilla felt it. If Mrs Chiley, for -example, had only advised herself to come in then instead of -interrupting people's proposals, and driving a likely suitor to -desperation! But such happy chances do not occur at the real crises of -life. What she wanted was, naturally, not to explain herself, but to let -that arrow rankle in her opponent's heart until it should have served -her purpose. All that she said in answer to Mr Beverley's appeal was to -hide her face in her handkerchief, which was the only means that -occurred to her for the moment of gaining a little time for reflection. - -"It is so hard to have such thoughts put into one's head," said Lucilla, -"of a person who has been one's friend. And she always looked so nice -and so true! I never thought she would deceive any one. I thought she -was so transparent, you know. Oh, Mr Beverley, it is so dreadful to be -disappointed in one's friends! I wish I had never heard of it--I wish -you had never told me. I almost wish, though it is dreadful to say such -a thing, that you had never come to Carlingford and found it all out." - -"My dear Miss Marjoribanks," said the Archdeacon solemnly, "I implore -you, as the greatest kindness you can do me, to tell me all you know." - -"Indeed, I don't know what I know," said Lucilla, partially raising her -face out of her handkerchief; "I don't think I know anything, for my -part. I always thought if one could rely upon any one, one could rely -upon her--for truthfulness, and for yieldingness, and doing what any one -asked her. I did think so; and it is perfectly bewildering to think, -after all, that she should be obstinate and deceiving, and yet look so -different!" said Lucilla. "But if it has come to that, we must be firm, -Mr Beverley. If you ask my opinion, I say she should be allowed to marry -him. That would solve everything, you know," Miss Marjoribanks added, -with sad decision. "She would get all the fortune without going to law, -and she would be settled, and off one's mind. That would be my final -advice, if everything has happened as you say." - -Mr Beverley was driven as nearly out of his senses by this counsel as it -was possible for a man of ordinary self-control and warm temper to be. -He got up again and made a stride to and fro, and wiped the moisture -from his forehead, which, as Lucilla remarked at the moment, had a -Low-Church look, which she would not have expected from him. But, on the -other hand, he gave vent to some stifled and unintelligible exclamations -which, whatever they might be, were not blessings. Then he came to -himself a little, which was what Miss Marjoribanks was most afraid of, -and stood over her, large and imposing as before. - -"Tell me, for Heaven's sake, what you mean!" cried the Archdeacon. "You -do not think, surely, that I for a moment meant to imply that Helen -would waste a thought upon such a miscreant. Good Heavens, marry him! -You must be raving. She would as soon think of--going for a soldier," -said Mr Beverley, with a hoarse and perfectly unmirthful laugh, "or -doing anything else that was mad and unnatural. That is how you women -stand up for your friends--always ready to suggest something -inconceivably horrible and debasing! Happily you always go too far," he -added, once more wiping his forehead. It was a very Low-Church, not to -say Dissenterish, sort of thing to do, and it unconsciously reduced her -adversary's dignity in Miss Marjoribanks's opinion, besides affording a -proof that he was not nearly so much convinced of what he said, as he -professed to be, in his secret heart. - -"Mr Beverley, I think you forget a little," said Lucilla, with dignity. -"I know nobody but yourself who has any suspicions of Mrs Mortimer. If -it had been anybody but you, I should have laughed at them. But to -return to the question," Miss Marjoribanks added, with calm grace: "I -always used to be taught at Mount Pleasant that feelings had nothing to -do with an abstract subject. I don't see, for my part, now you have -mentioned it, why she should not marry him. It would arrange the money -matter without any trouble; and I have always heard he was very nice," -said the bold experimentalist, fixing her eyes calmly upon the -Archdeacon's face. "I am sure I should never have thought of it, if it -had been left to me; but speaking calmly, I don't see the objections, -now it has been proposed. Oh, it is only the bell for luncheon that -Thomas is ringing. Is it actually half-past one? and I expect some -people," said Lucilla. She got up as she spoke and went to the mirror, -and looked at herself with that beautiful simplicity which was one of -Miss Marjoribanks's distinguishing features. "When one has been crying -it always shows," she said, with a little anxiety. As for Mr Beverley, -his state of mind, as the newspapers say, could better be imagined than -described. - -"I must go away," he said, taking up his hat. "I don't feel capable of -meeting strangers after this exciting conversation. Miss Marjoribanks," -continued the Archdeacon, taking her hand, and holding it fast over his -hat to give emphasis to his address, "at least I can trust to you not to -breathe a word to Mrs Mortimer--not a syllable--of the horrible -suggestion which has got utterance, I don't know how. I may surely trust -to your honour," Mr Beverley said, with emphasis; but by this time Miss -Marjoribanks considered it time to bring the crisis to an end. - -"I wish you would stay to luncheon," she said; "there are only one or -two of my friends. As for _honour_, you know you gentlemen say that we -have no sense of honour," said Lucilla airily; "and to think that two -women could be together and not talk of what might perhaps be a -marriage----" - -At this moment some one rang the door-bell. Lucilla knew perfectly well -that it was only the baker, but it could not be expected that the -Archdeacon should be similarly initiated into the secrets of the house. -He thought, as was natural, that it was the people she expected, and -almost wrung her hand as he let it go. "You will let me see you again -first," he said, in a tone of entreaty. "Before you see her, you will -let me see you again. For Heaven's sake don't refuse me," cried Mr -Beverley. If anybody had but heard him! as Lucilla said to herself the -minute he was gone. And the truth was that Thomas did hear him, who had -just opened the door to tell his young mistress that her luncheon was -waiting, and whom the Archdeacon did all but knock downstairs in his -sudden and unlooked-for exit. The impression naturally conveyed to -Thomas by these words was of the clearest and most distinct description. -He was even known to say afterwards, "That he never knew a gentleman as -spoke more plain." But Mr Beverley rushed downstairs, without thinking -of Thomas, in a most unenviable frame of mind, into the rain. He was -more afraid of meeting Miss Marjoribanks's friends than a man of his -size and principles should have been afraid of meeting anybody; but then -there is a vast distinction, as everybody is aware, and no one more than -the Archdeacon, between physical and moral strength. - -As for Lucilla, her tears and anxieties passed off in a miraculous -manner as soon as her visitor was gone. She went downstairs and ate her -luncheon with the serenest brow and a most agreeable ladylike appetite. -And it was not a fib, as may perhaps be supposed, that she was expecting -people--for at that hour Miss Marjoribanks always did expect people, -who, to be sure, might be kept back by the rain, but whom she was always -justified in looking for. Perhaps, on the whole, notwithstanding her -warm sense of the duties of hospitality, Lucilla was glad that it rained -so heavily, and that nobody came. She had a great deal to think of as -she took her maidenly and delicate repast. The first step had been -taken, and taken triumphantly. Henceforward, whatever the Archdeacon's -illusions might be, he could no longer stand calm upon his eminence, and -conclude that it was he, and he alone, who could raise the widow from -her lowly estate. Lucilla, it is true, knew that no such idea as that of -marrying her uncle's heir would ever present itself to Mrs Mortimer; and -that--at least so far as Miss Marjoribanks's information went--such a -thought was equally removed from the mind of the personage unknown, whom -Mr Beverley denounced as an impostor. But this did not in the least -affect the value of the suggestion as an instrument to be used against -the Archdeacon, who was big enough to defend himself, and on whose -account the young philanthropist had no compunctions. The first step was -thus taken, and taken successfully, but it was only after this that the -real difficulties began; and Lucilla knew no more as yet how she was to -find and identify, not to say assail and vanquish, the other side, the -mysterious Mr Kavan, the man whom the Archdeacon abused and the widow -defended, than even the greatest military genius knows at the -commencement of the first campaign how to conduct the second. This was -what she considered so closely as she sat alone in the dull afternoon. -She did not go to Mrs Mortimer, because it was impossible that every day -could be a half-holiday, and because, on the whole, she judged it best -not to subject herself, in the present undeveloped state of the -position, to much questioning; but she sent her a little note to satisfy -her mind, telling her to keep herself easy, and not to let the -Archdeacon bully her, and to confide in the devotion of her affectionate -Lucilla. When she had thus satisfied the immediate demands of -friendship, Miss Marjoribanks took her work and sat down to reflect. -Nothing could be more exciting than the position in which she found -herself; but the difficulties were only such as stimulated her genius; -and then it was not any selfish advantage, but the good of her neighbour -in its most sublime manifestation--the good of her neighbour who had -injured her, and been insensible to her attractions, which, according to -the world in general, is the one thing unpardonable to a woman--which -Lucilla sought. And it was not even the scriptural coals of fire she was -thinking of as she pondered her great undertaking in her mind. The -enterprise might not be free from a touch of human vanity, but it was -vanity of a loftier description: the pleasure of exercising a great -faculty, and the natural confidence of genius in its own powers. - - - - -_Chapter XXV_ - - -The fruit of Lucilla's long and mature reflection was that next morning -being fine and all the clouds dispersed, she went out with her usual -firm step and self-possession, and, what was rather unusual with her, -except on necessary occasions of ceremony, knocked at Mrs Woodburn's -door. - -Mrs Woodburn and Miss Marjoribanks had never, as people say, taken to -each other. They were as different in their ways as it is possible to -imagine. The mimic was a little indolent, and would not take the trouble -to make any exertions for the good of the community, except in the -exercise of her peculiar talent, though she had been known, when -excited, to go through real fatigue for that; but she had none of the -steady force, the persevering energy--or, to sum up all in one word, the -genius--of Miss Marjoribanks, who, for her part, recognised the _use_ of -such an instrument of entertainment as Mrs Woodburn possessed without -appreciating it in her own person; for Lucilla had no sense of humour, -as she candidly admitted, with that consciousness of her own faults, and -slight disposition to consider them virtues, which is common to persons -of great endowments. It was accordingly with a slight sense of effort on -both sides that they met thus in the familiarity of an early visit, at a -moment when people doing their duty to each other in a ceremonial way -would not have thought of calling. She was aware that Mrs Woodburn -regarded her, even when she kissed her in the most neighbourly and -affectionate manner, with a look which seemed to say, "What can she -want, coming here so early?" As for Lucilla, she was too wise to pretend -that it was a mere visit of regard. She was too wise, and her -interlocutor was too clever, and prone to catch every touch of -expression, though Miss Marjoribanks flattered herself she had -sufficient experience to enable her to dismiss, when there was occasion -for it, all expression from her face. But such was not her policy at -this moment. When the two faces had touched each other in that loving -and sisterly salutation, their owners immediately separated, and -regarded each other from two opposite chairs, without decided -hostility, it is true, but with the watchful air of two people whom the -fates may range on different sides, and whom it behoves to be mutually -watchful. And Lucilla thought it the most expedient course, under the -circumstances, to begin her investigations at once. - -"I have come to make an inquisition," she said; "I may as well confess -it at once, for you would find me out if I didn't. Mrs Woodburn, where -is Mr Cavendish? I am not going to put up with it any longer. He must be -written to, and had back again. The only man that was to be depended -upon in Carlingford!" said Lucilla; "and to think he should disappear -like this and never say a word!" - -Mrs Woodburn fairly gasped in her companion's face. She could no more -tell what this meant, than if she had been a person utterly unacquainted -with human motives and ways of working; and, indeed, it was only the -tricks of the surface for which she had any real insight. "My brother!" -she exclaimed, with something between an impulse of defence and denial, -and a quite opposite instinct of confidence. Had he proposed, after all, -without telling his sister? Had Lucilla a right to ask the question she -uttered so frankly? Had he been prudent for once in his life, and -secured this sensible alliance and prop to his position? All these -questions rushed at lightning-speed through Mrs Woodburn's mind; but she -was not so prompt as Miss Marjoribanks would have been under the -circumstances, and all she did was to open her eyes wide, and give a -start on her chair, and say, "My brother?" with a voice which trembled, -and was half extinguished by surprise. - -"Yes; Mr Cavendish," said Lucilla. "Do tell me his address. There is not -a man in Carlingford who is good for anything, now that he is gone. You -must see that as well as I do. As for flirting, I have always said he -was the only man that knew anything about it. Do tell me where he is, -and I will write to him; or, please, send him word for me, that -absolutely he must come back. We are all dying for him, you may say." - -Mrs Woodburn had recovered a little, and found a moment to think, but -her faculties were not so handy, except in her own particular way, as -might have been expected from such a clever woman. She could even at -that moment have taken off Miss Marjoribanks to the life, but she was in -the most profound bewilderment as to what Lucilla could mean; whether -she was really laying herself out to "catch" Mr Cavendish, or whether -she was merely talking nonsense without any particular meaning; or -whether she was feigning indifference by way of getting information; and -the stupidest person in Carlingford would have acquitted herself as well -as Mrs Woodburn felt able to do in the emergency. "I should think he -would rather hear that some of you were willing to live for him," she -said, in a tremulous way; finding nothing better come to her lips than -the echo of an old compliment, which went against her nature, but yet -with an instinct of serving her brother so far as it might be in her -power. - -"Not me," said Lucilla frankly. "Some people once thought so, you know; -but I can't say I ever thought so. There never will be anything about -living or dying between him and me. I hope we know better," said Miss -Marjoribanks; "besides, if I were so much as to think of that sort of -thing I should feel I was swindling papa. Oh, no; I assure you I am -quite disinterested. I want him for my Thursdays. Do write, and say he -must come home." - -"I don't like people to be too disinterested," said Mrs Woodburn; "and I -don't think Harry would be at all glad to hear it. I wish he would come -back, I am sure. I am always bullying him about it. I thought perhaps -some of you young ladies had been unkind to him," said the anxious -sister, who had recovered her head, and thought it might be possible to -get at the secret, if there was a secret, by means like this. - -"No," said Miss Marjoribanks; "_I_ have not been unkind to him; and -there is nobody else I know of," said the candid Lucilla, "unless poor -Barbara; and _she_ will never be unkind, you know. I will write him a -letter if you will give me his address. Is it true that somebody has -left him a great deal of money, and he is going to change his name?" - -"His name!" said Mrs Woodburn, with a little cry, like an imprudent -woman; and then she recovered herself. "I have not heard of anything of -the kind," she said, "and he would be sure to tell me of it; but in -Carlingford people know things before they happen. I should be very glad -to know that somebody was going to leave him a great deal of money; but -I don't know about the name----" - -"Oh, I heard it only in a confused sort of way," said Lucilla, "or that -he _had_ changed his name. I am sure I don't know if it was past or -present. Did he ever make any change to be somebody's heir? Oh, I beg -your pardon; but you know people do it every day." - -Mrs Woodburn had grown quite pale--perhaps because she began to see that -there was some method in these questions, perhaps with simple and -unreasonable fright at the suggestion. She could not say a word for a -moment, so startling was the question; and then there was something in -Lucilla's early visit, and in her instant onslaught upon Mr Cavendish, -which was alarming. She was so frightened and driven into a corner that -she could not tell how to answer. It occurred to her all at once that -perhaps Mr Cavendish had opened his heart to Miss Marjoribanks and given -her an inkling of his secret; and what would Lucilla think if she -contradicted her brother? Never was a poor woman in a greater -difficulty. All her fun and her mimicry collapsed. She no more noticed -the peculiarities of Lucilla's look and manner than if she had been an -ordinary inhabitant of Grange Lane. "Changed his name?" she faltered, in -a blank sort of interrogative way; and in spite of herself faltered and -shook, and conveyed to Lucilla the most perfect assurance that what she -supposed was true. - -"When it is for a great deal of money there is some sense in it; when it -is only for a prettier name it is dreadfully stupid. Don't you think so? -As if we all could have pretty names!" said Lucilla. "I should like so -much to have a talk with Mr Cavendish. I picked up some very, very old -friends of his the other day--people who used to know him long ago. I am -sure he would be interested if he were to know." - -"I don't think it could be him," said Mrs Woodburn, with something like -the instinct of despair; "I don't remember any very old friends he has; -it is so long a time ago----" and then the poor lady stopped short, as -if she had something choking her in her throat. "I don't think it could -be he." - -"Not such a very long time," said Lucilla, in her easy way. "It is -dreadful to give him a character for being old. Do write him, please, -and tell him about those people. He is sure to be interested if you say -it is a lady, and a pretty woman, and a widow," continued Miss -Marjoribanks. "She says he was once very kind to her when her poor -husband was alive." - -Mrs Woodburn recovered herself a little as Lucilla spoke. "It must have -been some other Mr Cavendish," she said. "Harry was--so much abroad--so -long away from home----" At that moment there was a sound in the house -of a heavy step, and Mr Woodburn's whistle became audible in the -distance. Then the poor woman, who had a secret, fixed haggard eyes upon -Miss Marjoribanks. She dared not say, "Don't speak of this before my -husband." She dared not utter a word to awaken suspicion on one side or -the other. She knew very well that if Mr Woodburn heard of the existence -of any old friends of his brother-in-law, he would insist upon having -them produced, and "paying them some attention"; and at the same time -Mrs Woodburn could not so far confide in Lucilla as to beg her to keep -silent. This was what her brother's poltroonery brought upon the -unfortunate woman. And when the emergency came she was not as equal to -it as she expected to be. Her talents were not of a nature to do her any -good in such a strait. She collapsed entirely, and looked round her in a -flutter of fright and despair, as if to find some means of escape. - -But this terror all arose from the fact that she did not know Miss -Marjoribanks, who was generous as she was strong, and had no intention -of going to extremities. Lucilla got up from her chair when she heard Mr -Woodburn's whistle coming nearer. "I hear somebody coming," she said, -"and I must not stay, for I have quantities of things to do. Only mind -you tell Mr Cavendish I have something quite serious to say to him from -his old friend; and from me, please to tell him, that it is _impossible_ -to get on without him," continued Lucilla, as Mr Woodburn entered the -room. "There is not a soul that can flirt or do anything. I should write -to him myself if I knew his address." - -And then, as was natural, Woodburn, with his usual absurdity, as his -wife explained afterwards, struck in with some boisterous _badinage_. As -for Mrs Woodburn, in her mingled terror and relief, she was too much -excited to know what he said. But when Lucilla, serenely smiling, was -gone, the mimic, with her nerves strung to desperation, burst into the -wildest comic travesty of Miss Marjoribanks's looks and manners, and her -inquiries about Harry, and sent her unsuspicious husband into -convulsions of laughter. He laughed until the tears ran down his -cheeks--the unconscious simpleton; and all the time his wife could have -liked to throw him down and trample on him, or put pins into him, or -scratch his beaming, jovial countenance. Perhaps she would have gone -into hysterics instead if she had not possessed that other safety-valve, -for Mrs Woodburn had not that supreme composure and self-command which -belonged to Lucilla's higher organisation. She wrote a long letter that -afternoon, and had a dreadful headache all the evening after it, which, -considering all things, was to be expected under the circumstances, and -was a weak-minded woman's last resource. - -No headache, however, disturbed Miss Marjoribanks's beneficent progress. -She went home conscious that, if she had not acquired any distinct -information, she had at least gained a moral certainty. And besides, she -had measured the forces of Mr Cavendish's bodyguard, and had found them -utterly unequal to any prolonged resistance. All that was wanted was -prudence and care, and that good luck which was as much an endowment in -its way as the other qualities by which Lucilla might be said to have -secured it. She went home meditating her next step, and with a certain -enjoyment in the sense of difficulty and the consciousness of how much -skill and power would be required to carry on three different threads of -innocent intrigue with the three different persons in the drama, without -ever letting the general web get confused, or confounding one strand -with another. She had to frighten the Archdeacon with the idea that Mrs -Mortimer might marry the impostor, and she had to keep the widow in the -profoundest ignorance of this suggestion, and she had to manage and -guide the impostor himself, to save his position, and deliver him from -his enemies, and make his would-be persecutor for ever harmless. If by -chance she should forget herself for a moment, and say to Mr Beverley -what she meant for Mr Cavendish, or betray her mode of dealing with -either to the third person interested, then farewell to all her hopes. -But when all that was required was skill and self-possession and -courage, Miss Marjoribanks knew herself too well to be afraid. - -She came in with that sense of having done her duty which is so sweet to -a well-regulated mind. But it was not to that internal satisfaction -alone that Providence limited Lucilla's reward. There are exceptional -cases to be found here and there even in this world, in which virtue -finds its just acknowledgment, and disinterested well-doing is -recompensed as it deserves. While Miss Marjoribanks was still occupied -with the arrangement of her plans she was interrupted by a visitor, who -entered with a brow clouded by care, and yet exalted by the sense of a -charge and dignity which is not afforded to every woman. It was Mrs -Centum who thus came to unfold to Lucilla the new event which was about -to happen in Carlingford. She had a great deal to say first, as was -natural, of the dreadful vexation of such a thing happening in -holiday-time when the boys were all at home, and when she did not know -what to do. - -"But you know, Lucilla, it will be delightful for all you young ladies -to have the officers," said Mrs Centum; "it keeps a place lively; -though, for my part, I always say in six months there will not be a -servant in the house that one can depend upon. It is dreadful for -servants--especially young ones, and if they are nice-looking, you know; -but it is very nice for the young ladies, and for all the picnics and -dances and everything----" - -"What officers?" said Lucilla, pricking up her ears--for to tell the -truth, the very name of officers in a place like Carlingford, where -nobody could flirt but Mr Cavendish, was as water in the desert to Miss -Marjoribanks's soul. - -"Has not the Doctor told you?" said Mrs Centum--"but, to be sure, very -few people know as yet. Mr Centum says it must be all on your account, -because you give such nice parties--but of course that is only his fun, -you know. However, I suppose somebody has told Lord Palmerston of all -those great buildings that were meant for the factories, and of -Carlingford being such a healthy place. And so the General is coming to -us to-morrow, Lucilla--General Travers, you know, that was in all the -papers for something he did in India; Charles used to know him at -school. He is quite handsome, and has ever so many medals and things. It -is a dreadful addition to one's troubles in holiday-time, you know; but, -my dear, I hope you will ask him to your Thursdays, and help us to make -Carlingford pleasant to him. It all depends upon him," said Mrs Centum -solemnly;--"if he likes the place, and thinks it will do, and finds nice -society--whether it is here or at Hampton that they establish the -depot." - -"At Hampton!" cried Miss Marjoribanks naturally excited--"the stupidest, -wretchedest little place----" - -"That is just what Mr Centum says," said the visitor, with a sigh; "what -I am nervous about is the servants, Lucilla; and you know that -under-nurse of mine, what a nice steady girl she has always been, and -such a comfort--but as soon as the soldiers come it turns their heads. I -want you to tell me, if you'll be so very good, Lucilla, how Nancy makes -that _paté_ that Mr Centum is so fond of. I know it is a good deal to -ask; but I am sure you are one to stand by your friends; and if the -General should take a dislike to Carlingford through any fault of mine, -I never could forgive myself; and I want you to ask him to your -Thursdays, Lucilla--there's a dear." - -"Dear Mrs Centum," cried Miss Marjoribanks, "papa must call on the -General and ask him to dinner: as for my Thursdays, I always say they -are not parties; they are only _evenings_," said Lucilla sweetly, "and -not worth a gentleman's while." - -"And about the _paté_, Lucilla," said Mrs Centum anxiously, "I hope you -won't think it too much of me to ask;--you are so clever, you know, and -so is Nancy: and what with the noise, and the nursery dinners, and all -those big boys home from school----" - -Mrs Centum fixed her eyes with true solicitude on Lucilla's face. Miss -Marjoribanks was magnanimous, but the _paté_ in question was one of the -greatest triumphs of the Doctor's table. She thought, and with truth, -that it _was_ a great deal for any one to ask; but then it is true that -genius has duties as well as privileges; and to impress upon mediocrity -the benefit of loyally following and copying superior intelligence, is -of itself a moral effect of the greatest importance. And besides, the -woman who at such a moment produced a live General in Carlingford, and -held out hopes of officers, was not a woman to be denied. - -"I will write it down for you," said Lucilla graciously, "if you think -your cook will understand; or perhaps Nancy might step in and show her -how--if I can persuade Nancy. Dear Mrs Centum, I hope you will always -feel sure that I am ready to do anything for my friends." - -"Oh, thank you, dear," cried the grateful woman; "I knew you were not -one to mind; and if Nancy would be so very kind----I am sure you will -like the General," added Mrs Centum, with effusion; "he will live here, -you know, if the depot comes, and be such an addition! I said to -Charles, the moment he told me, That would just be the very thing for -Lucilla! And he is quite young looking, and so nice and pleasant," she -added, in the fulness of her enthusiasm and gratitude. As for Miss -Marjoribanks, she shook her head, but nevertheless received the -assurance with a smile. - -"It is not that sort of thing I am thinking of," said Lucilla: "if it -had been, I need never have come home; and now, after papa has been so -kind about the drawing-room----; but I am always glad to hear of nice -new people," said Miss Marjoribanks; "and to meet a man that has been in -the world is such a pleasure to papa." - -With this benign acknowledgment of the General's merits, Lucilla -received Mrs Centum's affectionate leave-takings. To be sure, she knew -nothing, and did not occupy herself much at that moment about General -Travers. But at the same time Miss Marjoribanks, with her usual piety, -recognised the approval of Providence in this new occurrence, and was -naturally both encouraged and exhilarated. It is but in rare cases, as -has been said, that the reward of virtue is given so promptly, and with -such beautiful discrimination: and there are even people in the world -who profess to have no faith in any prompt or visible recompense. But -Lucilla was not of that new and heretical school. For her own part, she -felt it very natural that her exertions for the good of her kind should -thus be recognised and acknowledged, and returned to her plans with that -sweet and exhilarating sense of moral harmony, which an approving -Heaven, and a sense of blessings earned and goodness recompensed, are so -well calculated to give. - - - - -_Chapter XXVI_ - - -Miss Marjoribanks's mind had scarcely subsided out of the first -exhilarating sense of a great many things to do, and a truly important -mission in hand, when little Rose Lake sought her with that confession -of family troubles, and prayer for counsel and aid in the extremity, -which opened a new way and mode of working to Lucilla. Rose was proud, -poor little soul, not only of her exceptional position, and that of her -family, as a family of artists, but also with a constitutional and -individual pride as one of the natural conservators of domestic honour, -who would rather have died than have heard the Lakes lightly spoken of, -or upbraided with debt or indecorum, or any other crime. She had been -silent as long as she could about Barbara's shortcomings, jealously -concealing them from all the world, and attacking them with a violence -which made her big elder sister, who was twice as big and six times as -strong as she, tremble before her when they were alone. But little Rose -had at length found things come to a point beyond which her experience -did not go. Barbara began to have secret meetings with a man whose -presence nobody was aware of, and who did not come openly to the house -to seek her, and persevered, in spite of all remonstrances, in this -clandestine career; and all the prejudices and all the instincts of the -young artist rose up against her. A vague presentiment of greater evil -behind impelled her to some action, and shame and pride combined at the -same time to keep her silent. She could not speak to her father, because -the poor man lost his head straightway, and made piteous appeals to her -not to make a fuss, and threw the burden back again upon her with a -double weight; and besides, he was only a man, though he was her father, -and Rose had the pride of a woman in addition to her other pride. In -these painful circumstances, it occurred to her to consult Lucilla, who -had been, as has been recounted in an early part of this history, a -great authority at Mount Pleasant, where her heroic belief in herself -led, as was natural, others to believe in her. And then Miss -Marjoribanks was one of the people who can keep counsel; and Rose felt, -besides, that Lucilla had been injured, and had not revenged herself, -and that to put confidence in her would be, to a certain extent, to make -up for the offence. All these motives, combined with an intolerable -sense of having upon her shoulders a burden greater than she could bear, -drove the young artist at last to Grange Lane, where Lucilla, as we have -said, was still in the state of mental exhilaration and excitement -naturally consequent upon having a very important piece of work in hand. - -"I don't know what to do," said Rose; "I made up my mind I never would -say a word to any one. It is so strange she should have no proper pride! -but then it is dreadful to think, what if anything should come of it! -though I am sure I don't know what could come of it; but they might run -away, or something; and then people are so fond of talking. I thought -for a long time, if I only knew some nice old lady; but then I don't -suppose there are any nice old ladies in Carlingford," added the -Preraphaelist, with a sigh. - -"Oh, you little monster!" cried Lucilla, "there is Mrs Chiley, the -dearest old----; but never mind, make haste and tell me all the same." - -"Lucilla," said Rose solemnly, "we are not great people like you; we -are not rich, nor able to have all we like, and everybody to visit us; -but, all the same, we have our Pride. The honour of a family is just as -precious whether people live," said the young artist, with a certain -severity, "in Grove Street or in Grange Lane." - -This exordium had its natural effect upon Miss Marjoribanks; her -imagination leaped forward a long way beyond the reality which her -companion talked of so solemnly, and she changed her colour a little, as -even a woman of her experience might be excused for doing in the -presence of something terrible and disastrous so near at hand. - -"I wish you would not frighten me," said Lucilla; "I am very sorry for -you, you dear little Rose. You are only a baby yourself, and ought not -to have any bother. Tell me all about it, there's a dear." - -But these soothing tones were too much for Rose's composure. She cried, -and her cheeks flushed, and her dewy eyes enlarged and lightened when -they had thrown off a little part of their oppression in the form of -those hot salt tears. Miss Marjoribanks had never seen her look so -pretty, and said so to herself, with a momentary and perfectly -disinterested regret that there was "nobody" to see her--a regret which -probably changed its character before Rose left the house. But in the -meantime Lucilla soothed her and kissed her, and took off her hat and -shed her pretty curls off her forehead. These curls were not by any -means so strong and vehement in their twist as Miss Marjoribanks's own, -but hung loosely and softly with the "sweet neglect" of the poet. "You -would look very nice if you would take a little pains," Lucilla said, in -her maternal way. "You must wear your hair just so on Thursday; and now -tell me all about it--there's a dear." - -"Lucilla, _you know_" said Rose, drying her tears, "she has taken to -going out in the evening, and I am sure she meets him every night. I -can't be a spy on her, whatever she does, and I can't lock her up, you -know, or lock the door, or anything like that. I am not her mother," -said the poor little sister pathetically, with a regretful sob. "And -then she has taken to making herself _nice_ before she goes out. I don't -think she ever cared much for being nice--not at home, you know; but now -she has pretty collars and gloves and things, and I can't tell where she -gets them," cried Rose, her eyes lighting up passionately. "She has no -money to spend on such things. Lucilla, I should die if I thought she -would accept them from _him_." - -"You dear old Rose, you don't know what you are saying," said the -experienced Lucilla; "most likely, if she meets a gentleman, she is -engaged to him; and They always give people presents, you know. If you -would only tell me who it is." - -"Lucilla, do not trifle with me," said Rose; "it is much too serious for -that--engaged without papa knowing of it, nor me! You know very well -that would be no engagement. I sometimes think she is--is--fond of him," -said the reverent little maiden, whose voice changed and softened under -the influence of that supposition; "and then again I think it is only -because he is rich," she went on, with new vehemence. "Oh, Lucilla, if -you only knew how dreadful it was to have such thoughts--and there is -nobody to take care of her but me! Papa cannot be worried, for that -would react upon everything. An artist is not just like other people. It -is everybody's duty to leave him undisturbed; and then, you know, he is -only a man, and does not understand; and if she won't pay any attention -to me when I speak to her, oh, Lucilla, tell me, what can I do?" - -"Let me think," said Lucilla gravely. "You know I can't tell all in a -moment. It is Mr Cavendish, I suppose, though you won't say so. Now just -wait a moment, and let me think." - -"I once thought of going to him," said Rose; "perhaps he might be -generous, and go away. An artist can do many things that other people -can't do. We have an exceptional position," the Preraphaelist went on, -faltering a little, and not feeling quite so sure of the fact on that -special occasion. "I thought of going and begging of him, if it was on -my knees----" - -"My dear," said Lucilla, with great seriousness, "if you did, I think it -is most likely he would fall in love with _you_, and that would not mend -the matter; and I am sure Barbara would give you poison. I will tell you -what we must do. I would not do it for everybody; but you know I was -always very fond of you, you dear little Rose. You shall ask me for -to-morrow evening to come to tea." - -"To come to tea!" echoed poor Rose, in dismay. She had been waiting for -Lucilla's advice with a great deal of anxiety; but at the present moment -it would be vain to conceal that the proposed expedient seemed to her -altogether inadequate for the emergency. The light went out of her face -as she opened her eyes wide and fixed them on Lucilla; and for one -moment, one desperate moment, Rose was disloyal, and lost faith in the -only person who could help her; which, perhaps, under the circumstances, -was not a thing to cause much surprise. - -"My dear, you may be sure I would not propose it, if I did not feel it -was the best thing to do," said Lucilla, with great gravity. "It happens -precisely that I want to see Mr Cavendish, and if he is at home he never -shows himself, and I have been wondering how I could find him. I shall -make him walk home with me," said Miss Marjoribanks, "so you need not be -uneasy, Rose, about the trouble I am taking. I am doing it to serve -myself as well as you. We shall say eight o'clock, if that is not too -late." - -"But, Lucilla----" said Rose, with consternation; and then she stopped -short, and could not tell what more to say. - -"You don't understand it?" said Miss Marjoribanks; "I don't think it was -to be expected that you should understand it. A little thing like you -has no way of knowing the world. When Barbara knows I am there, she will -be sure to bring him to the very door; she will want me to see that he -is with her; and you may leave the rest to me," said Lucilla. "For my -part, I have something very particular to say to Mr Cavendish. It is my -luck," Miss Marjoribanks added, "for I could not think how to get to see -him. At eight o'clock to-morrow evening----" - -"Yes," said Rose; but perhaps it was still doubtful how far she -understood the mode of operations proposed. Lucilla's prompt and facile -genius was too much for the young artist, and there was, as she herself -would have said, an entire want of "keeping" between her own sense of -the position, tragical and desperate as that was, and any state of -matters which could be ameliorated by the fact of Miss Marjoribanks -coming to tea. It had been Rose's only hope, and now it seemed all at -once to fail her; and yet, at the same time, that instinctive faith in -Lucilla which came naturally to every one under her influence struggled -against reason in Rose's heart. Her red soft lips fell apart with the -hurried breath of wonder and doubt; her eyes still expanded, and clearer -than usual after their tears, were fixed upon Lucilla with an appealing, -questioning look; and it was just at this moment, when Rose was a great -deal too much absorbed in her disappointment and surprise, and lingering -hope, to take any notice of strange sounds or sights, or of anybody -coming, that Thomas all at once opened the door and showed Mrs Centum -into the room. - -Now it would have mattered very little for Mrs Centum--who, to be sure, -knew Lucilla perfectly well, and would never have dreamed for a moment -of identifying such a trifling little person as Rose Lake in any way -with Miss Marjoribanks; but then Mrs Centum happened at that precise -moment to be bringing the new arrival, the important stranger, who had -so much in his power--General Travers himself--to be introduced to -Lucilla; and it was not the fault either of Rose or the General if it -was on the young mistress of the Female School of Design that the -warrior's first glance fell. Naturally the conversation had run upon -Miss Marjoribanks on the past evening, for Mrs Centum was full of the -enthusiasm and excitement incident to that _paté_ which Lucilla had so -magnanimously enabled her to produce. "Is she pretty?" General Travers -had demanded, as was to be expected. "We--ll," Mrs Centum had replied, -and made a long pause--"would you call Lucilla pretty, Charles?" and -Charles had been equally dubious in his response; for, to be sure, it -was a dereliction from Miss Marjoribanks's dignity to call her pretty, -which is a trifling sort of qualification. But when the General entered -the drawing-room, which might be called the centre of Carlingford, and -saw before him that little dewy face, full of clouds and sunshine, -uncertain, unquiet, open-eyed, with the red lips apart, and the eyes -clear and expanded with recent tears--a face which gave a certain -sentiment of freshness and fragrance to the atmosphere like the quiet -after a storm--he did not understand what his hosts could mean. "I call -her very pretty," he said, under his breath, to his interested and -delighted chaperone; and we are surely justified in appealing to the -readers of this history, as Lucilla, who was always reasonable, -afterwards did to herself, whether it could be justly said under all the -circumstances, that either Rose or the General were to blame? - -The little artist got up hurriedly when she awoke to the fact that other -visitors had come into the room, but she was not at all interested in -General Travers, whom Rose, with the unconscious insolence of youth, -classified in her own mind as an elderly gentleman. Not that he was at -all an elderly gentleman; but then a man of forty, especially when he is -a fine man and adequately developed for his years, has at the first -glance no great attraction for an impertinent of seventeen. Rose did -not go away without receiving another kiss from Lucilla, and a parting -reminder. "To-morrow at eight o'clock; and mind you leave it all to me, -and don't worry," said Miss Marjoribanks; and Rose, half ashamed, put on -her hat and went away, without so much as remarking the admiration in -the stranger's eyes, nor the look of disappointment with which he saw -her leave the room. Rose thought no more of him than if he had been a -piece of furniture; but as for the General, when he found himself -obliged to turn to Lucilla and make himself agreeable, the drawback of -having thus had his admiration forestalled and drawn away from its -legitimate object was such, that he did not find her at all pretty; -which, after all, on a first interview at least, is all They think -about, as Miss Marjoribanks herself said. - -"We must do all we can to make Carlingford agreeable to the General," -said Mrs Centum. "You know how much depends upon it, Lucilla. If we can -but make him like the place, only think what an advantage to -society--and we have such nice society in Carlingford," said the -injudicious woman, who did not know what to say. - -"Nothing very particular," said Miss Marjoribanks. "I hope General -Travers will like us; but as for the officers, I am not so sure. They -are all so light and airy, you know: and to have nothing but flirting -men is almost as bad as having nobody that can flirt; which is my -position," Lucilla added, with a sigh, "as long as Mr Cavendish is -away." - -"Lucilla," cried Mrs Centum, a little shocked, "one would think to hear -you that you were the greatest coquette possible; and on the contrary -she is quite an example to all our young ladies, I assure you, General; -and as for flirting----" - -"Dear Mrs Centum," said Lucilla sweetly, "one has always to do one's -duty to society. As far as I am concerned, it is quite different. And I -don't mean to say that the officers would not be a great acquisition," -Miss Marjoribanks continued, with her usual politeness; "but then too -many young people are the ruin of society. If we were to run all to -dancing and that sort of thing, after all the trouble one has taken----" -said Lucilla. Perhaps it was not quite civil; but then it must be -admitted, that to see a man look blankly in your face as if he were -saying in his mind, "Then it is only _you_, and not that pretty little -thing, that is Miss Marjoribanks!" was about as exasperating a sensation -as one is likely to meet with. Lucilla understood perfectly well -General Travers's look, and for the moment, instead of making herself -agreeable, it was the contrary impulse that moved her. She looked at -him, not blankly as he looked at her, but in a calmly considerate way, -as she might have looked at Mr Holden the upholsterer, had he proposed a -new kind of _tapisserie_ to her judgment. "One would be always -delighted, of course, to have General Travers," said Miss Marjoribanks, -"but I am afraid the officers would not do." - -As for Mrs Centum, she was quite incapable of managing such a terrible -crisis. She felt it, indeed, a little hard that it should be her man who -was defied in this alarming way, while Mr Cavendish and the Archdeacon, -the two previous candidates, had both been received so sweetly. To be -sure, it was his own fault; but that did not mend matters. She looked -from one to the other with a scared look, and grew very red, and untied -her bonnet; and then, as none of these evidences of agitation had any -effect upon the other parties involved, plunged into the heat of the -conflict without considering what she was about to say. - -"Lucilla, I am surprised at you," said Mrs Centum, "when you know how -you have gone on about Mr Cavendish--when you know what a fuss you have -made, and how you have told everybody----" - -"By the bye, who is Mr Cavendish?" said General Travers, interposing, -with that holy horror of a quarrel between women which is common to the -inferior half of creation. "I wonder if he is a fellow one used to meet -everywhere. One never could get any satisfaction who he belonged to. He -never pretended to be one of the Devonshire Cavendishes, you know. I -don't know if he had any family at all, or relations, or that sort of -thing. In most cases a man gets on just as well without them, in my -opinion. I wonder if this fellow you are talking of is he?" - -"Oh, no," said Mrs Centum. "I hope you will meet him before you leave -Carlingford. He has a sister married here; but we have always understood -he was one of the Cavendishes. I am sure Mrs Woodburn always gives -herself out for somebody," she continued, beginning to let the -interesting suspicion enter her mind; for, to be sure, they were about -of a standing, and the banker's wife had sometimes felt a little sore at -the idea that her neighbour possessed distinctions of family which were -denied to herself. "It is true, none of her relations ever come to see -her," said Mrs Centum, and she began to forget the General, and -Lucilla's reception of him, in this still more interesting subject. It -was the first time that the authenticity of the Cavendishes had been -attacked in Carlingford; and, to be sure, what is the good of having -fine connections if they cannot be produced? While Mrs Centum pondered a -suggestion so interesting, Lucilla, on her part, also took advantage of -the occasion, and descended from the calm heights of dignity on which -she had placed herself. And the General, who was a well-bred man, had -got over for the moment the unlucky impression made upon him by the -fresh face of little Rose Lake. - -"Mr Cavendish is very nice," said Miss Marjoribanks. "I am very fond of -all my own relations, but I don't care about other people's. Of course -he is one of the Cavendishes. I don't see how he can help it, when that -is his name. I should think it was sure to be the same. We should be so -obliged to you if you would bring him back to Carlingford. I don't know, -I am sure, why he is so obstinate in staying away." - -"Perhaps somebody has been unkind to him," said the General, feeling it -was expected of him. - -"I am sure _I_ have not been unkind to him," said Lucilla. "He is such a -loss to me. If you are going to do us the pleasure of coming on -Thursday--Oh, I am sure we shall feel quite honoured, both papa and I--I -will show you how badly off I am. It is not a party in the least, and we -don't dance," said Miss Marjoribanks, "that is why I am a little -uncertain about the officers. It is one of my principles that too many -young people are the ruin of society; but it is hard work, sometimes, -when one is not properly supported," Lucilla added, with a gentle sigh. - -"If I can be of any use," said the amused soldier. "I don't pretend to -be able to replace Cavendish, if it is Cavendish; but----" - -"No," said Miss Marjoribanks, with resignation, "it is not easy to -replace him. He has quite a talent, you know; but I am sure it is very -kind of you, and we shall be delighted to have such an acquisition," -Lucilla continued, after a pause, with a gracious smile; and then she -led her guests downstairs to luncheon, which was every way satisfactory. -As for the General, it cannot be doubted that he had the worst of it in -this little encounter, and felt himself by no means such a great -personage in Carlingford as his hospitable entertainers had persuaded -him he should be. Mrs Centum declared afterwards that she could not -form the least idea what Lucilla meant by it, she who was generally so -civil to everybody. But it is not necessary to say that Miss -Marjoribanks knew perfectly well what she was doing, and felt it -imperatively necessary to bring down General Travers to his proper -level. Carlingford could exist perfectly well without him and his -officers; but Lucilla did not mean that the society she had taken so -much pains to form should be condescended to by a mere soldier. And -then, after all, she was only human, and it was not to be expected she -could pass over the blank look with which her visitor turned to herself, -after having by evil fortune cast his eyes upon Rose Lake. At the same -time, Miss Marjoribanks, always magnanimous, did not blame Rose, who had -no hand whatever in the matter; and if she avenged herself in a ladylike -and satisfactory manner, it is not to be supposed that it was simply a -sense of offence which actuated Lucilla. She did it, on the contrary, on -strictly philosophical principles, having perceived that Mrs Centum was -spoiling her General, and that it was absolutely necessary that he -should be disabused. - -When they left, Mrs Centum was almost afraid to put the question that -trembled on her lips. She uttered it at last, faltering, and with a very -doubtful expression, for she could not conceal from herself the fact -that the General had been snubbed. "How do you like Lucilla?" she said, -in the most humble way; and then she turned away her face. She could -bear it, whatever it might be. She said to herself that so long as the -children were well, and the holidays about over, she could bear -anything; and what did it matter to her about the officers?--but at the -same time she preferred to avert her face when she received the blow. - -"I am sure Miss Marjoribanks is a person for whom I shall always -entertain the highest respect," said the General, and he gave a little -laugh. "Was that pretty little creature a sister of hers?--or a -friend?--or what? I don't know when I have seen anything so pretty," -said the unsuspecting man; and then Mrs Centum turned round upon him -with a kind of horror. - -"_That_ Lucilla's sister!--why, she has no sister; I told you so; she is -an only child, and will have everything. She will be quite an heiress," -cried Mrs Centum, "if the old Doctor were to die; though, I am sure, -poor dear man, I hope he will not die. There is no other medical man in -the town that one can have the least confidence in, except Dr Rider; -and then _he_ is so young, and can't have much experience with children. -Her sister, indeed! It was little Rose Lake, the drawing-master's -daughter," said Mrs Centum, with cruel distinctness. The General only -said, "Oh!" but it was in a crestfallen tone; for to be snubbed by one -lady, and struck with sudden enthusiasm for another, who, after all, was -not a lady to speak of, but only a drawing-master's daughter, was rather -hard upon the poor man. Thus it was the soldier, who in ordinary -circumstances ought to have been the most successful, who began in the -most cruel and uncomfortable way his campaign in Carlingford. - - - - -_Chapter XXVII_ - - -Miss Marjoribanks, except for her habitual walk, did not go out much -that day. She was too much occupied with what she had in hand. She could -not conceive--for Lucilla naturally took a reasonable view of affairs in -general, and did not account for the action of any such unknown quantity -as love, for example--why Mr Cavendish should conceal himself so -carefully from society in Carlingford, and yet run all the risk of -meeting Barbara Lake in the evenings. It seemed to Lucilla -inconceivable, and yet it was impossible not to believe it. Mr -Cavendish, though she had seen him on the very verge of a proposal, did -not present himself to her mind in the aspect of a man who would -consider the world well lost for any such transitory passion; neither, -as was natural, did Barbara Lake appear to Lucilla the least like a -person calculated to call forth that sentiment; but nevertheless it must -be true, and the only way to account for it was by thinking, after all, -what fools _They_ were, and what poor judges, and how little to be -depended on, when women were concerned. Miss Marjoribanks was determined -to lose no more time, but to speak to Mr Cavendish, if it was Mr -Cavendish, and she could get the chance, quite plainly of the situation -of affairs--to let him know how much she knew, and to spur him up to -come forward like a man and brave anything the Archdeacon could do. Had -it been any small personal aim that moved Lucilla, no doubt she would -have shrunk from such a decided step; but it was, on the contrary, the -broadest philanthropical combination of Christian principles, help to -the weak and succour to the oppressed, and a little, just a very little, -of the equally Evangelical idea of humbling the proud and bringing down -the mighty. She was so much occupied with her plans that it was with a -little difficulty she roused herself to keep up the conversation with -her father at dinner, and be as amusing and agreeable as ordinary; which -indeed was more than ordinarily her duty, since Dr Marjoribanks came in, -in a fractious and disturbed state of mind, discontented with things in -general. The truth was, he had got a letter from Tom Marjoribanks from -India, where that unlucky man had gone. It was all very well and natural -to go to India, and Lucilla had felt, indeed, rather satisfied with -herself for having helped forward that desirable conclusion, especially -after the Doctor had taken pains to explain to her, not knowing that she -had any share in it, that it was the very best thing for Tom to do. For -it has been already said that Dr Marjoribanks, though he liked Tom, and -thought it very odd that Providence should have given the girl to him, -and the boy to his incapable sister-in-law, who did not in the least -know how to manage him, had no desire to have his nephew for a -son-in-law. Going to India was very right and proper, and the best thing -to do; for a man might get on _there_, even at the bar, who would have -no chance _here_; but after he had made one step in the right direction, -it was only to be expected that all sorts of misfortunes should happen -to Tom. He was wrecked, which might have been looked for, and he lost -his boxes, with the greater part of his outfit, either at that unhappy -moment, or in the Desert, or at an after part of his unlucky career; and -the object of the letter which Dr Marjoribanks had just received was to -get money to make up for his losses. Tom, who was a very good son, did -not want to vex his mother, and accordingly it was his uncle whom he -applied to, to sell out a portion of the money he had in the Funds. "She -would think I was ruined, or that it was my fault, or at least that I -meant to spend all my money," wrote Tom, "and you understand, uncle, -that it is not my fault." "Confound him! it is never his fault," said Dr -Marjoribanks, as if that could possibly be brought against the -unfortunate young man as a crime. - -"No, papa, it is his luck," said Lucilla; "poor Tom!--but I should not -like to take a passage in the same boat with him if I was the other -people. Though I am sure he is not a bit to blame." - -"I hope he does not mean to go on like this," said the Doctor. "He will -soon make ducks and drakes of his five thousand pounds. A young fellow -like that ought to mind what he's doing. It is a great deal easier to -throw money away than to lay it by." - -"Papa, it is his luck," said Miss Marjoribanks; "it is all put into a -system in political economy, you know. For my part, I am always the -other way. It is very funny before you get used to it; but you know -there has to be a balance in everything, and that is how it must be." - -"I don't think it at all funny," said Dr Marjoribanks, "unless your good -luck and his bad were to be joined together; which is not an expedient I -fancy." When he said this the Doctor gave a sharp glance at his -daughter, to see if by chance that might perhaps be what she was -thinking of; but naturally the maiden candour and unsuspecting innocence -of Lucilla was proof to such glances. She took no notice at all of the -implied suspicion. But though it was very absurd for anybody to think -that she would have married him, it was not in Miss Marjoribanks's -nature to be disloyal to Tom. - -"I think he is quite right about his mother, papa," said Lucilla; "she -would never understand it, you know; she would think the world was -coming to an end. I would not for anything take a passage in the same -boat with him, but he is nice in his way, poor fellow! I wonder what he -has ever done to have such dreadful luck--but I hope you are going to do -what he asks you:" and with this calm expression of her interest Miss -Marjoribanks went upstairs. When the Doctor became thus aware of his -daughter's sentiments, it seemed to him that he was more at liberty to -be kind to his nephew. He had never been able to divest himself of a -little lurking dread, an inherent idea which was so obstinate that it -felt like a prophecy, that somehow or other, after costing her father so -much, and making such a difference in the house, Lucilla, who on the -whole was a dear production, would fall to Tom's share, with all Dr -Marjoribanks's other possessions; and the Doctor saw no reason why he -should work and lay up money for a boy whom Providence, with a wonderful -want of discrimination, had bestowed, not upon him, but upon Mrs John -Marjoribanks. However, when that question was settled and done with, his -heart began to relent to Tom the unlucky, who, after all, when the -son-in-law hypothesis was fully dismissed, was his natural born nephew, -and, as Lucilla said, very nice in his way, poor fellow! The Doctor -began to write him a letter, and softened more and more with every line -he wrote; but as for Lucilla, she had something more immediately -important to occupy her upstairs. - -The fact was that Miss Marjoribanks had found a shadowy figure in black -in the corner of one of the sofas when she came into the -drawing-room--a-figure with a veil down, and a large shawl, and a -tremulous air. It was very seldom that Mrs Mortimer took courage to -visit her young patroness; and to go out at night, except sometimes to -Salem Chapel when there was a meeting, and when the timid woman -represented to herself that it was her duty, was a thing unknown to her. -But yet, nevertheless, it was Mrs Mortimer who sat waiting for Lucilla. -They had not met since that momentous interview in which the widow -revealed her history to Miss Marjoribanks's sympathetic ears, and the -poor woman had been able to bear no longer the solitude of her cottage, -and her garden-walls, and her little pupils, and Mary Jane. To know that -something was going on outside that concerned her--to hear the waves, as -it were, beating round the walls of her prison, and never to have even -so much as a peep at them, what they were about, if the tide was -beginning to turn, or the wind to change, or the lifeboat to appear--was -more than Mrs Mortimer, even with all her training to patience, could -put up with; and accordingly she had made a frantic rush out, under -cover of night, to see if there was anything to see, and hear if there -was anything to hear. - -"You don't know how dreadful it is to keep staring at the walls all day -and never see any change," said the widow. "It is very stupid and silly, -but you know I cannot help it. I get to fancy always that something -wonderful must be going on on the other side." - -"That is because you don't go out enough," said Lucilla. "You know how -often I have said you should go out once every day; and then you would -see that everything outside was very much the same as everything -within." - -"Oh, Lucilla! don't say so," said Mrs Mortimer; "and besides, _he_ has -been again, and I could see you had been saying something to him. He -spoke as if I understood it all when I did not understand a word of it; -and he spoke of him, you know, and was quite solemn, and warned me to -think well of it, and not do anything rash--as if I had anything to -think about, or was going to do anything! Tell me what you said to him, -Lucilla; for I am sure, by the way he spoke, he must have taken him for -himself, and perhaps you for me." - -"Who did he take for himself, I wonder?" said Lucilla. "As for you and -me, dear Mrs Mortimer, we are so different that he could never take us -for each other, whatever the circumstances might be." - -"Ah, yes, Lucilla! we are different," said the poor widow. "You have all -your own people to take care of you, and you are not afraid of anybody; -but as for me, I have not a creature in the world who cares what becomes -of me." As she made this forlorn statement it was only natural that the -poor woman should cry a little. This was no doubt the result of the four -garden-walls that closed in so tightly, and the aggravating little -pupils; but Miss Marjoribanks felt it was not a state of feeling that -could be allowed to go on. - -"You ought not to speak like that; I am sure there are a great many -people who are interested in you; and you have always Me," said Lucilla, -with a certain reproachful tenderness. As for Mrs Mortimer, she raised -her head and dried her eyes when Miss Marjoribanks began to speak, and -looked at her in a somewhat eager, inquiring way; but when Lucilla -uttered those last reassuring words, it is undeniable that the widow's -countenance fell a little. She faltered and grew pale again, and only -cried the more--perhaps with gratitude, perhaps with disappointment. And -when she said, "I am sure you are very kind, Lucilla," which was all the -poor soul could utter, it was in a very tremulous undecided voice. The -fact that she had always the sympathy and co-operation of such a friend -as Miss Marjoribanks, did not seem to have the exhilarating effect upon -her that it ought to have had. It did not apparently do any more for her -than the similar reassurance that Lucilla was coming to tea did for Rose -Lake. But then, like every other benefactor of the human race, Miss -Marjoribanks was aware that the human mind has its moments of unbelief. -It was a discouraging experience to meet with; but she never permitted -it seriously to interrupt her exertions for the good of her kind. - -"You should not have so poor an opinion of your friends," said Lucilla, -who after all was giving only a stone when her suppliant asked for -bread. "You know how much interested we all are in you; and for me, -anything I can do----" - -"Oh, Lucilla, you are very kind; nobody could be kinder," cried Mrs -Mortimer, with compunction. "It is very nice to have friends. I do not -know what I should do without you, I am sure; but then one cannot live -upon one's friends; and then one knows, when they go away," said the -widow, with more feeling than distinctness of expression, "that they all -go away to something of their own, and pity you or forget you; but you -always stay there, and have nothing of your own to go away to. I am not -grumbling, but it is hard, Lucilla; and then you are young, and happy, -and at home, and I don't think it is possible you can understand." - -"My dear," said Miss Marjoribanks, "it is quite easy to understand, and -I know exactly what you mean. You want me to tell you all about Mr -Beverley, and what I said to him, and what he has in his mind. If he is -the something of your own you would like to go away to, I think it is a -pity. I am sure he has a temper, and _I_ would not marry him for my -part. But if you mean _me_, I have nothing to go away to," said Lucilla, -with a little scorn. "I should be ashamed not to be enough for myself. -When I leave you it is not to enjoy myself, but to think about you and -to plan for you; and all that you want to know is about _him_!" said -Miss Marjoribanks, piercing through and through the thin armour of her -incapable assailant. Naturally all the widow's defences fell before this -ruthless response. She cried with a mingled sensation of shame at being -found out, and penitence for being so ungrateful, and a certain desolate -distress with her own incapacity and want of power to defend herself. It -was an acute variety of feminine anguish on the whole. The idea that -she, a mature woman, a married woman and widow, who ought to have been -done with all these vanities, should have been found out by a young girl -to be thinking about _a gentleman_, struck poor Mrs Mortimer with a -sharp sense of shame as if her wistful preoccupation had been a crime. -Indeed the chances are, if it had been a crime, she would not have been -nearly so much ashamed of it. She hid her face in her hands and blushed -down to the very edge of her black dress and up into the glooms of her -widow's veil; and all the self-defence she was capable of was a faint -"Oh, Lucilla!" a mere appeal of weakness without reason--a virtual -throwing of herself in acknowledged guilt at her judge's feet. - -"Thomas is coming with the tea," said Miss Marjoribanks. "Come into my -room and take off your bonnet. What is the good of worrying yourself -when you know I have taken it into my own hands? Spoiling your eyes with -crying, and making everybody uncomfortable never does the least good; -and, besides, one never knows what harm one might do one's self," said -Lucilla seriously. "I don't think you gone off at all, for my part; but -if you don't take proper care----I shall give you some rose-water, and -you will be all right after you have had a cup of tea." - -"Oh, no; it will be best to go home. I am such a poor creature now. I am -not good for anything. Let me go home, Lucilla," said poor Mrs Mortimer. -But Lucilla would not let her go home; and by the time tea was ready, -and Dr Marjoribanks had come upstairs, she had so managed to soothe her -visitor's nerves, and console her spirits, that the Doctor himself grew -complimentary. He was so civil, in fact, that Lucilla felt slightly -startled, and on the whole thought it was as well that the Archdeacon -was at hand, and affairs in a promising way; for it was doubtful whether -even Miss Marjoribanks's magnanimity could have got over any ridiculous -exhibition of interest on the part of her father, who certainly was old -enough to know better. Even to see him taking Mrs Mortimer's tea to her, -and congratulating her upon her improved looks, and felicitating himself -and the world in general on the fact that Carlingford agreed with her, -was aggravating to his daughter--more aggravating, though it is strange -to say so, than even the blank looks of General Travers in the morning, -or his transference of the homage intended for herself to little Rose -Lake; _that_ was no more than a blunder, and Lucilla felt a consolatory -conviction that, so far as incivility went, the General had received a -very satisfactory set-off. But to see Dr Marjoribanks exerting himself -in such an unheard-of way made her open her eyes. If he were still -accessible to such influences, nobody could answer for anything that -might happen; and the widow was so grateful for his kindness, that at -one moment it was all that Lucilla could do to keep her lips shut fast, -and restrain herself from a tempting allusion which would have made an -end of Mrs Mortimer. It was the first time that Lucilla's protégée had -ventured to come thus familiarly and uninvited to her friend's house; -and the Doctor, who knew no special reason for the visit, expressed his -satisfaction with a warmth which was quite uncalled-for, and hoped that -Lucilla might often "have the advantage of her company;" and actually -betrayed symptoms of a disposition to "see her home," if Miss -Marjoribanks had not already made provision for that emergency. When the -visitor had finally departed, under the charge of Thomas and Mary Jane, -the father and daughter regarded each other, for the first time, with -dubious glances--for, as far as Lucilla was concerned, it was a -revelation to her of a new and altogether unsuspected danger; and the -Doctor, for his part, was very conciliatory, and showed a certain -consciousness of having committed himself, which made matters twenty -times worse. - -"Really, Lucilla, your friend is a credit to you," said Dr Marjoribanks. -"It was a stroke of talent to pick her up, as you did, and make a woman -of her--and a pretty woman too," he added incautiously; as if he, at his -age, had anything to do with that. - -"I am so glad you think so, papa," said Lucilla, in her dutiful way. "I -don't think myself that she has gone off at all to speak of. In some -lights she might pass for being no older than I am--if she was very well -dressed, you know; and it really does not matter what age a woman is if -she keeps her looks. I should be very glad to see her nicely married, -for my part; she is one of the people who ought to be married," Miss -Marjoribanks continued, with an inflection of compassionate tolerance in -her voice. As for the Doctor, he mistook her as usual, and took her tone -of pity and kindly patronising disdain for another instance of his -daughter's policy and high art; whereas the truth was she was quite in -earnest, and meant every word she said. And then Dr Marjoribanks's sense -of humour was keener than that of Lucilla. After this the conversation -flagged slightly, for Miss Marjoribanks had undeniably received a shock. -In the midst of her benevolent preoccupation and care for other people, -it had suddenly dawned upon her that her own stronghold might be -attacked, and the tables turned upon her in the twinkling of an eye. -There are days of discouragement in the most triumphant career and this -was one of those uncomfortable moments. Her faith in herself did not -fail her for an instant; but the faith of her natural born subjects--the -creatures of her bounty--had visibly failed her. Neither Rose Lake nor -Mrs Mortimer had shown that confidence in Lucilla's genius which -experience and loyalty both called upon them to show. When Dr -Marjoribanks had gone downstairs to resume the case which he was writing -out for the _Lancet_, Lucilla passed through one of those moments of -sublime despondency which now and then try the spirits of the -benefactors of their race. A few tears came to her eyes as she reflected -upon this great problem. Without such trials genius would not fully know -itself nor be justly aware of its own strength. For no temptation to -give up her disinterested exertions had any effect upon the mind of Miss -Marjoribanks; and even her sense of pain at the unbelief of her -followers was mingled with that pity for their weakness which involves -pardon. Even when they wounded her she was sorry for them. It was nature -that was in fault, and not the fallible human creatures who had it not -in them to believe in the simple force of genius. When Lucilla had shed -these few tears over her subjects' weakness and want of faith, she rose -up again in new strength from the momentary downfall. It was, as we have -said, a sublime moment. The idea of giving them up, and leaving their -affairs to their own guidance, never for an instant penetrated into her -heroic mind; but she was human, and naturally she felt the prick of -ingratitude. When the crisis was over she rose up calmly and lighted her -candle, and went to her room with a smile upon her magnanimous lips. As -she performed that simple action, Lucilla had lifted up the feeble -widow, and taken the family of Lakes, and Mr Cavendish, and even the -burly Archdeacon himself, upon her shoulders. They might be ungrateful, -or even unaware of all she was doing for them; but they had the supreme -claim of Need upon Strength; and Miss Marjoribanks, notwithstanding the -wound they had given her, was loyal to that appeal, and to her own -consciousness of superior Power. - -At the same time, it would not be just to omit all mention of a -consolatory recollection which occurred to Lucilla in this moment of her -weakness. At such a crisis the mind of genius may be supported by a -matter very trifling in itself. Even at the instant when the moisture -sprang to her eyes, Miss Marjoribanks said to herself, "Poor Tom!" and -felt that the bitterness, to a certain extent, had evaporated out of her -tears. He was a long way off, and Lucilla would have thought it madness -indeed to connect herself in any way with the fortunes of her unlucky -cousin; yet it gave her a certain support to think that, amid all the -want of faith she was encountering, Tom believed in her, heart and soul. -It was an insignificant matter, so far as any practical result was -concerned, if, indeed, anything can be called insignificant which gives -strength to a great mind in a moment of discouragement. She said "Poor -Tom!" and felt as if for the moment she had something to lean on, and -was comforted. We mention this fact rather as a contribution to the -history of those phenomena of the human mind, which have as yet escaped -the metaphysician, than as an actual circumstance in the life of Miss -Marjoribanks. She was a woman of genius, and he only a very simple, -unlucky fellow; and yet a sensation of comfort came to Lucilla's heart -when she said "Poor Tom!" - - - - -_Chapter XXVIII_ - - -Lucilla prepared her toilette the next evening, to take tea with the -Lakes, with greater care than she would have spent upon a party of much -greater pretensions. She was, to be sure, dressed as usual in the white -dress, _high_, which she had brought into fashion in Carlingford; but -then that simple evening toilette required many adjuncts which were not -necessary on other occasions, seeing that this time she was going to -walk to her destination, and had in her mind the four distinct aims of -pleasing Rose, of dazzling Barbara, of imposing upon Mr Cavendish, and, -finally, of being, as always, in harmony with _herself_. She was as -punctual to the hour and minute of her engagement as if she had been a -queen; and, indeed, it was with a demeanour as gracious that she entered -the little house in Grove Street, where, naturally, there had been also -sundry preparations made for her visit. Mr Lake himself, who had -postponed his usual walk, and was taking his tea an hour later than -usual, received his young visitor with all the suavity natural to him; -and as for Barbara, she did the honours with a certain suppressed -exultation and air of triumph, which proved to Lucilla that her plan was -indeed an inspiration of genius. As for Rose, it would be impossible to -describe what were her sensations. Her faith still failed her at that -momentous hour. She was sceptical of Lucilla, and naturally of all the -world, and regarded everybody with jealous scrutiny and expectation and -distrust, as was natural to a young conspirator. She was profoundly -excited and curious to know what Miss Marjoribanks meant to do; and at -the same time she did not believe in Miss Marjoribanks, and was almost -disposed to betray and interfere with her, if such treachery had been -possible. It was Rose Lucilla specially came to visit, and yet Rose was -the only one who was cool to her, and did not seem fully to appreciate -her condescension; but then, happily, Miss Marjoribanks was magnanimous, -and at the same time had a purpose to support her, which was much more -comprehensive and of larger application than anything that had entered -into the mind of Rose Lake. - -"I am proud to see you in my house, Miss Marjoribanks," said Mr Lake. "I -have always considered your excellent father one of my best friends. I -am not able to give my children the same advantages, but I have always -brought them up not to have any false pride. We have no wealth; but we -have some things which cannot be purchased by wealth," said the -drawing-master, with mild grandeur; and he looked round upon the walls -of his parlour, which were hung with his own drawings, and where one of -Willie's held the place of honour. In all Carlingford there was no other -house that enjoyed a similar distinction; and, consequently, it was with -a delicious sense of chivalrous deference yet equality that the -exceptional man of Grove Street received the young sovereign of Grange -Lane. - -"I am so glad to come, Mr Lake," said Lucilla. "It is so nice to be -among such old friends; and, besides that, you know there never was any -voice that suited mine like Barbara's; and that dear old Rose was always -my pet at Mount Pleasant. I should have come long ago if anybody had -ever asked me," said Miss Marjoribanks. And as for Mr Lake, he was so -overpowered by this implied reproach upon his hospitality that he -scarcely knew how to reply. - -"My dear Miss Marjoribanks, if you have not been asked it has been from -no want of--of goodwill," said Mr Lake anxiously. "I do not know what -the girls can have been thinking of. You see Rose's genius takes another -line; and Barbara, naturally, has a great many things to think of; but -in the future, I hope----" - -"Oh, yes; I shall come without being asked," said Lucilla. And when the -tea came it was all she could do to keep herself quiet, and remember -that she was a visitor, and not take it out of the incapable hands of -Barbara, who never gave her father the right amount of sugar in his tea. -To tell the truth, Barbara's thoughts were occupied by a very different -subject; and even Rose had but little attention to spare for her papa's -comforts at that special moment. But Lucilla's larger mind embraced -everything. She sat with her very fingers itching to cut the -bread-and-butter for him, and give him a cup of tea as he liked it; and -asked herself, with indignation, what was the use of that great -creature, with her level eyebrows and her crimson bloom, who could not -take the trouble to remember that three lumps was what Mr Lake liked. -Miss Marjoribanks had never taken tea with him before; but his second -cup, had she dispensed it, would have been exactly to his taste--which -was a thing Barbara had not learned to make it in all these years. No -wonder that a certain sense of contemptuous indignation arose for one -moment, even in the calm and impartial bosom of genius. Perhaps Rose -would not have done much better; but then Rose was good for something -else, which was always a set-off on the other side. Thus it will be seen -that Lucilla had a respect for use, even of a kind which in her own -person she did not much appreciate, as became a person of a truly -enlightened mind; but a creature who was of no earthly good irritated -her well-regulated spirit; for, to be sure, the possession of a fine -contralto (which is, at the same time, not fine enough to be made use of -professionally) is not a matter of sufficient moment in this world to -excuse a young woman for not knowing how to give her father a -comfortable cup of tea. - -It was nearly nine o'clock before Mr Lake went out for his walk, and by -that time it was almost dark, and the lamp outside was lighted, which -was not far from the door. Lucilla had taken a seat near the window, -with the view of witnessing everything; and it cannot be denied that she -felt a little excited when Barbara went out of the room after her -father, leaving Rose alone with her guest. Miss Marjoribanks's heart -gave a beat or two the more in the first minute, though before the next -had passed it had fallen into its usual measure. There were no candles -as yet in the parlour, and Grove Street--or at least the bit of it -which lay before the window, lighted by the lamp outside, and relieved -against a little square of bluish-green sky which intervened between -Miss Hemmings's house and that of old Mr Wrangle on the opposite -side--was very clear to the interested spectator. There was nobody -visible but an organ-man, who was grinding a popular melody very -dolorously out of his box, in what Rose would have called the middle -distance; and beyond, Miss Jane Hemmings looking out of the long -staircase window, and three little boys in different attitudes -below,--that is, if one did not count a tall figure which, perhaps with -the view of listening to the music of the organ, was coming and going in -a limited circuit round the light of the lamp. - -"How convenient it is to have the lamp so near," said Lucilla. "Oh, -don't light any candles, please; it is so nice to sit in the dark. Where -is Barbara, I wonder? Let us have some music, and put down that dreadful -organ. I hope she has not gone out. And where are you, you sulky little -Rose?" - -"She has gone upstairs," said Rose, who began to feel all the enormity -of her conduct in thus betraying her sister. "I hate sitting in the -dark. I hate being a spy; come in from the window, Lucilla, now you are -here----" - -"My dear Rose," said Miss Marjoribanks, "I think you forget a little. -For my part I do not understand what being a spy means. Barbara knows -very well I am here. I should scorn to take an advantage of anybody, for -my part. If she does not bring him past the very window, and under my -eyes--Ah, yes, that is just what I thought," said Lucilla, with gentle -satisfaction. But by this time poor little Rose had roused herself into -an innocent fury. - -"What is just as you thought?" said Rose, laying an impatient grasp on -Miss Marjoribanks's arm. "Come in from the window, Lucilla, this -moment--this moment! Oh, me, to think it should be my doing! Oh, -Lucilla, don't be so mean and shabby and wretched. I tell you to come -in--come in directly! If you do not shut the window, and come and sit -here in the corner, I will never, never speak to you again!" - -Miss Marjoribanks, as was natural, took no notice of this childish fury. -She was sitting just where she had been sitting all the evening, within -sight of the street lamp and the organ-grinder, and Miss Jane Hemmings -at the staircase window;--just where Barbara had placed her, and where -that young woman calculated on finding her, when she made a promenade of -triumph up the partially lighted street by the side of her clandestine -suitor. Perhaps Barbara had seen Miss Jane as well, and knew that public -opinion was thus watching over her; but at all events she was not at all -ashamed of herself, or indignant at being spied upon. On the contrary, -it was a kind of apotheosis for Barbara, only second to the grand and -crowning triumph which would be accomplished in Carlingford Church under -the shadow of that veil of real Brussels, which grew more and more real -every day. Thus neither the actors in the drama, nor the principal -spectator, were in the smallest degree disturbed by horror or shame or -sense of guilt, excepting always the fanciful little Rose, who suffered -for everybody; who could have wished that the earth would open and -swallow up Barbara and her lover; who could have slaughtered Lucilla on -the spot, and given herself over to any kind of torture for her -treachery. Naturally nobody paid any sort of attention to Rose. Barbara, -for her part, took her admirer's arm in the twilight with a swelling of -exultation, which the gaining of the very highest prize in the -department of ornamental art could scarcely have conveyed to the bosom -of the little artist; and Lucilla put back her small assailant softly -with her hand, and smoothed down her ruffled plumes. - -"My dear, it is Miss Hemmings that is spying," said Lucilla; "and poor -Barbara would be so disappointed if I were to go away from the window. -Have patience just a little longer--there's a dear. It is all exactly as -I thought." - -And then there followed a pause, which was a terrible pause for Rose. -The organ-grinder stopped his doleful ditty, and there was scarcely any -sound to be heard in the street except the footsteps approaching and -retiring, the measured tread of two people occupied with each other, -going now more slowly, now more quickly, as the humour seized them, or -as their conversation grew in interest; even the sound of their voices -came by times to the auditors--Barbara's with an occasional laugh or -tone of triumph, and the other deeper, with which Rose had but little -acquaintance, but which was perfectly known to Lucilla. All this time, -while her companion sat panting in the dark corner, Miss Marjoribanks -was looking to the joints of her harness, and feeling the edge of her -weapons. For, after all, it was no small enterprise upon which she was -going forth. She was going to denounce the faithless knight to his face, -and take him out of the hands of the enchantress; but then she herself -meant to take him in hand, and show him his true dangers, and vindicate -his honour. A more disinterested enterprise was never undertaken by any -knight-errant. Yet, at the same time, Lucilla could not help -entertaining a certain involuntary contempt for the man who had deserted -her own standard to put himself under that of Barbara Lake, and who was -being paraded up and down here without knowing it, to gratify the vanity -of his new sovereign, and make an exhibition of his weakness. Lucilla -would have been more than mortal if she had not felt the difference -between her own rule, which would have been all to his good, and the -purely egotistical sway of Barbara; and even in her magnanimous mind, it -was impossible that pity itself should not be mingled with a certain -disdain. - -She sat quite still for so long that Barbara grew intoxicated with her -triumph. "It is perhaps the last time," Lucilla said to herself, with a -movement of compassion; and the breadth of her human sympathy was such -that she waited till the very latest moment, and let the deluded young -woman have the full enjoyment of her imaginary victory. Then Miss -Marjoribanks rose with a certain solemnity, and put on her hat, and gave -an unappreciated kiss to Rose, who kept in her corner. "Good-night; I am -going," said Lucilla. The words were simple enough, but yet they rang in -Rose's ears like the signal of a conspiracy. When the calm leader of the -expedition went forth, sensible of the importance of her mission, but -tranquil as great minds always are in a moment of danger, Rose got up -too and followed, trembling in every limb. She was capable of having -thrown herself upon the spears in her own person in a sudden _élan_ of -indignation and passion; but she was not capable of waiting till the -right moment, and meeting her antagonists in reasonable combat. Miss -Marjoribanks went out deliberately, without any unnecessary haste, -sweeping into the dusky twilight with her virginal white draperies. It -was a very ordinary scene, and yet, even in the midst of her excitement, -Rose could not help observing involuntarily its pictorial qualities--if -only any painter could have transferred to his canvas the subdued -musical hum of surrounding life, the fragrance of the mignonette, and -the peaceful stillness of the summer night. The sky shone out -green-blue, lambent and wistful, from the vacant space between Miss -Hemmings's and Mr Wrangle's, and there were the dusky twilight shadows -below, and the yellow gleam of the lamp, and Barbara's exulting, -triumphant figure, and the white robes of the avenging angel. Rose could -not have observed all this if she had not been stilled into a kind of -breathless awe by the solemn character of the situation, which struck -her as being somehow like one of Millais's pictures. As for the lovers, -they had just turned at the moment that Miss Marjoribanks came out, and -consequently met her straight in the face, as she stood suave and -smiling at the little garden door. - -"It _is_ Mr Cavendish," said Lucilla; "I am so glad; I have been hoping -and trying to see you for ever so long; and as soon as ever I heard you -talking I felt sure it was your voice." - -This was the greeting she addressed to Barbara Lake's lover. For his -part he stood before her, growing red and growing pale, struck dumb by -the unlooked-for meeting, and with such a sense of being ashamed of -himself as never before had entered his mind, though, no doubt, he had -done worse actions in his day. Even Barbara had not calculated upon this -open encounter; and instead of giving him any assistance, as was a -woman's duty in such a case, she only tossed her head, and giggled with -an embarrassment which was more pride than shame. As for Mr Cavendish, -he would have liked to disappear under the pavement, if it had been -possible. For once he and Rose were agreed. If a gulf had opened before -him, he would have jumped into it without ever pausing to ask himself -why. And yet all the time Miss Marjoribanks was looking as placid as if -she had been in her own drawing-room, and expecting his reply to her -friendly observations. When he realised that he ought to say something, -Mr Cavendish felt that he had as much need to wipe his forehead as ever -the Archdeacon had. He turned hot and cold, and felt his mind and his -tongue frozen, and could not find a word to say. With a sudden horror he -woke up, like one of Comus's revellers, and found himself changed into -the likeness of the creature he consorted with. If he had found an ass's -head on his shoulders, he could not have felt more startled and -horrified than when he heard himself, in the imbecility of the moment, -giggle like Barbara, and answer to Lucilla's remark, "Oh! yes, it was my -voice." - -"I am very sorry to separate you from Barbara," said Miss Marjoribanks; -"but she is at home, you know, and I want so much to talk to you. -Barbara, good-night; I want Mr Cavendish to walk home with me. Rose, -don't stand in the garden and catch cold; thank you, dear, for such a -pleasant evening," said Lucilla, pressing another kiss upon her little -friend's unwilling cheek. When she had done this, she put out her hand -to Barbara, and passed her, sweeping her white garments through the -narrow gateway. She took Mr Cavendish's arm as if he had been a young -brother come to fetch her. "Let us go round by the chapel," said Miss -Marjoribanks, "I have so much to say to you. Be sure to practise for -Thursday, Barbara, and bid your papa good-night for me." This was how -she carried off Mr Cavendish finally out of Barbara's very fingers, and -under her very eyes. - -When the two sisters were left standing together at the door, they could -do nothing but stare at each other in the extremity of their amazement. -Rose, for her part, remained but a moment, and then, feeling by far the -guiltiest and most miserable of the whole party, ran upstairs to her own -room and cried as if her heart would break. Barbara, on the contrary, -who was past crying, stood still at the door, and watched Lucilla's -white dress disappearing on the way to Grange Lane with indescribable -emotions. A young woman cannot call the police, or appeal to the crier, -when it is her lover whom she has lost: but to see him carried off by -the strong hand--to watch him gradually going away and disappearing from -her eyes--to hear his steps withdrawing into the distance--was such a -trial as few are called upon to bear. She stood and looked after him, -and could not believe her eyes. And then it was all so sudden--an affair -of a moment. Barbara could not realise how the world had turned round, -and this revolution had been effected;--one minute she had been leaning -on his arm triumphant, making a show and exhibition of him in the pride -of her heart, though he did not know it; and the next was not she -standing here watching him with a blank countenance and a despairing -heart, while Lucilla had pounced upon him and carried him off in her -cruel grasp? The blow was so sudden, that Barbara stood speechless and -motionless till the two departing figures had vanished in the darkness. -Would he come back again to-morrow, or was he gone for ever and ever? -Such were the thoughts of the forsaken maiden, as she stood paralysed -under this sudden change of fortune, at her father's door. If some cruel -spectator had thrown into the fire that Brussels veil with which her -imagination had so long played, and Barbara had stood heart-struck, -watching the filmy tissue dissolve into ashes before her eyes, her sense -of sudden anguish could not have been more acute. Yet, after all, -Barbara's pangs were nothing to those of Mr Cavendish, as he felt Miss -Marjoribanks's light touch on his arm, and felt his doomed feet turn in -spite of himself in the most dangerous direction, and became conscious -that he was being led beyond all possibility of resistance, back to -Grange Lane and to his fate. - -To be sure it was dark, which was one consolation; but it was not dark -enough to conceal Lucilla's white dress, nor the well-known form and -lineaments of the young monarch of Grange Lane, in whose company nobody -could pass unobserved. Mr Cavendish could have faced danger by sea and -land with the average amount of courage; but the danger of the walk down -the little street, which afterwards led to St Roque's, and up the -embowered stillness of Grange Lane, was more than he was equal to. He -could not be sure of making a single step by these garden-walls without -meeting somebody who knew him--somebody whose curiosity might ruin him -in Carlingford; or even without the risk of encountering in the face of -that arch-enemy, who would not go away, and whose presence had banished -him from the place. It may be supposed that, under these terrible -circumstances, Mr Cavendish's thoughts of Barbara, who had got him into -this scrape, were far from lover-like. He was a man universally popular -among ladies, and who owed a great deal of the social consideration -which he prized so highly to this fact; and yet the most gentle -sentiment in his mind at that moment, was a "Confound these women!" -which he breathed to himself, all low and deep, as he went slowly along -by Lucilla's side. As for Miss Marjoribanks, her thoughts were of a very -much more serious description than anything her unlucky escort was -thinking of, and a minute or two passed in silence before she could make -up her mind to speak. - -"I have been thinking a great deal about you lately, and wishing very -much to see you," said Lucilla. "Did not Mrs Woodburn tell you?--I think -I should have written to you had I known your address." - -"And I am sure you would have made me the happiest of men," said the -victim, with rueful politeness. "What had I done to deserve such a -privilege? But my sister did not tell me; she left me to hear it from -your own----" - -"Yes," said Miss Marjoribanks, with a certain solemnity, interrupting -him; "I have been thinking a great deal--and _hearing_ a great deal -about you, Mr Cavendish." When she had said this Lucilla sighed, and her -sigh found a terrible echo in her hearer's bosom. She knew that he -turned green in the darkness as he gave an anxious look at her. But he -was too much alarmed to give her an opportunity of studying his face. - -"_Hearing_ of me," he said, and tried to laugh; "what have my kind -friends been saying?" and for one moment the sufferer tried to delude -himself that it was some innocent gossip about Barbara which might be -circulating in Grange Lane. - -"Hush," said Lucilla, "don't laugh, please; for I want to have a very -serious talk. I have been hearing about you from some very, very old -friends, Mr Cavendish--not anything about _this_, you know," Miss -Marjoribanks added, waving her hand in the direction of Grove Street. -And then Barbara Lake and everything connected with her vanished like a -shadow from the unfortunate man's mind. It was horribly ungrateful on -his part, but it was, as Miss Marjoribanks would have said, just what -might have been expected, and how They always behave. He had no longer -any time or patience for the object which had been giving occupation and -interest to his solitude. He woke up in a moment, and gave a passing -curse to his folly, and faced the real danger as he best could. - -"You must be making a mistake, Miss Marjoribanks," he said, with some -bitterness; "it should have been, very, very old enemy. I know who it -is. It is that Archdeacon you ladies make such a fuss about. It is he -who has been telling lies about me," said Mr Cavendish. He breathed a -deep hard breath as he spoke, and the blood came back to his face. -Perhaps for the first moment he felt satisfied, and breathed freer after -it was over; but at the same time it was very dreadful to him to feel -that he was found out, and that henceforth Grange Lane would shut its -doors and avert its countenance. "If you take his word for it, I may -give in at once," he continued, bitterly. "A parson will say anything; -they are as bad as--as women." This the poor man said in his despair, -because he did not know what he was saying; for in reality he knew that -women had been his best friends, and that he had still a chance, if the -judgment was to rest with them. - -"You are very ungrateful to say so," said Miss Marjoribanks, "but it is -only because you are excited, I suppose. No, Mr Cavendish, it was not -the Archdeacon; on the contrary, it was a lady, and she said nothing but -good of you," said Lucilla; and then there was a pause. As for Mr -Cavendish, it would be altogether impossible to describe the state of -his mind. He was like a man suddenly reprieved, but giddy with the -shock, and feeling the halter still round his neck, and knowing that he -had himself undermined the ground on which he was standing. It was -Lucilla who supported him in the shock of the moment, for all his -self-command could not keep him from a momentary shiver and stagger when -he found that things were not so bad as he thought. - -"A lady, and she said nothing but good!" he muttered, under his breath; -and then he made an effort to recover himself. "Pardon me, I cannot -guess who my unknown friend may be. It is very soothing to one's -feelings to be spoken well of by a lady," said Mr Cavendish, and he -laughed again in a discordant unsteady way. Lucilla regarded him through -all these fluctuations with natural pity, and at the same time with the -calmness of a knowledge which was aware of all and had nothing more to -discover; and at the end Mr Cavendish perceived her calm, and the -absence of wonder and curiosity in her face, and began to perceive that -he had something very serious to deal with--more serious even than he -had at first supposed. - -"I am going to tell you all about it," said Miss Marjoribanks, "but in -the meantime wait a minute and let me speak to you. I have something -very serious to say." - -It was for this they stopped short at the foot of Grange Lane just where -the land was already parcelled out for St Roque's. What Lucilla was -going to say was too important to be spoken while walking, and she -withdrew her hand from Mr Cavendish's arm. They were both so much -absorbed that they did not see anybody coming, nor indeed had any -attention to spare for external affairs. The blood had deserted Mr -Cavendish's face, and he was once more green with anxiety and -inquietude. He stood facing her, feeling that the crisis of his fate -had come, and not knowing whether it was absolute despair or a faint -dawning of hope that possessed him. If he had been the most passionate -of lovers, and if she had held in her hands the dreadful alternative -between rapture and misery, there could not have been a more rapt and -absorbing attention in Mr Cavendish's face. - -"I want to tell you, first of all, that you must have confidence in me," -said Lucilla; "you--must--have confidence in me. We can do nothing -without that. I know everything, Mr Cavendish," Miss Marjoribanks added -compassionately--"_everything_; but nobody else knows it. I hope I can -arrange everything if it is left in my hands. This is what I wanted to -tell you first of all. Before everything, you must have confidence in -me." - -What Mr Cavendish might have answered to this solemn appeal it would be -vain to imagine; for the truth was, he was stopped before he could utter -a word. He was stopped and seized by the hand, and greeted with a -frankness which was, perhaps, all the more loud and cordial from what -appeared to the new-comer the comic character of the situation. "It _is_ -Cavendish, by Jove!" the intruder exclaimed, waving his hand to some -people who were coming on behind him. "I beg a thousand pardons for -disturbing you, my dear fellow; but they all talk about you so, that I -was determined to make sure it was you. Good heavens, Miss -Marjoribanks!" General Travers added, taking off his hat. It was Mr and -Mrs Centum who were coming down behind him--she with a light shawl -thrown over her head, tempted out by the beauty of the evening; and -Lucilla saw in a moment the consequences of this encounter, and how it -would be over all Carlingford before to-morrow morning that she and Mr -Cavendish were betrothed at the very least. Miss Marjoribanks had all -her wits about her, as ever, fortunately for both. - -"Yes, it is me," she said calmly; "I have been taking tea with the -Lakes, and I made Mr Cavendish give me his arm home. He did not like -being found out, to be sure, but he could not help himself; and we all -know about that," Lucilla added, with a smile, taking once more the -unfortunate man's arm. "Oh, yes, we all know," said Mrs Centum, with a -laugh; but yet, notwithstanding, everybody felt sure that it was all -Lucilla's cleverness, and that Barbara Lake was a myth and fiction. And -it was thus, with Miss Marjoribanks leaning on his arm, and General -Travers, in all the warmth of renewed friendship, guarding him on the -other side, that Mr Cavendish, whose head was in a whirl of excitement, -and who did not know what he was doing, was led back in triumph past -Colonel Chiley's very door, where the Archdeacon was lying in wait to -crunch his bones, back from all his aberrations into the very heart of -Grange Lane. - - - - -_Chapter XXIX_ - - -Mr Cavendish was led back to his own house that evening by General -Travers, whose claim of acquaintance was too decided to be rejected. He -never knew very well what passed between the moment when Miss -Marjoribanks began to expound to him the urgent necessity that he should -confide in her, and the moment in which he found himself in his own -house, admitted eagerly by the surprised and anxious servants, and -conducted by the energetic soldier. That he had taken leave of Lucilla -at her own door, that he had watched her white dress sweep away into the -dark garden with a faint sense that it was his only remaining protector -who thus left him, and that after that he had smoked a horrible cigar -with Mr Centum, and been accompanied home by the old acquaintance, who -had turned up at so unlucky a moment,--was all that the poor man was -aware of. And yet it is to be supposed that on the whole he behaved -himself very much like other people, since General Travers had no -distinct idea that his company was undesirable, or that his cordial -recognition was anything but welcome. The General, indeed, took it as -quite natural, under the circumstances, that Cavendish should be a -little confused. A man who is no longer a very young man, and has a -character to support, does not care to be found mooning with the object -of his affections on a summer evening, like a boy of twenty; and General -Travers was perfectly aware that he had thus a very good joke against -Cavendish. "It is worth a man's while to set up a bachelor establishment -in the country," the General said. "By Jove! I wish I could do it. It -makes a fellow feel Arcadian, and ready for anything;" and for his own -part he was very ready to seize upon his former acquaintance, a man who -belonged to his club, and had a chance to know what he was talking -about. "As for Charlie Centum," the soldier said, "what between business -and matrimony, he has grown the greatest guy imaginable; and I can't go -off directly, you know; and then there's always this business about the -depot. It's immense luck to find you here, Cavendish," General Travers -added, with flattering cordiality; and if poor Mr Cavendish was not -grateful, it certainly was not his friend's fault. He led the way into -his house with a glum countenance and a sinking heart, though -fortunately the latter was not visible. It was a very nice house, fitted -up with all that luxury of comfort which a man who has, as Mrs Centum -said, "only himself to look to," can afford to collect around him. Mr -Cavendish had only himself, and he had made his habitation perfect, -though, on the whole, he did not pass a very great deal of his time at -home. He had some nice pictures and a good library, though he was not -particularly given to the arts; and he had an admirable cellar, as all -the gentlemen owned in Carlingford, though, for his own part, he was -very moderate in that point, and did not give himself any airs on the -subject. Mr Centum, on the contrary, was one of the men who talk about -vintages, and raise expectations never to be carried out. And General -Travers could not but feel the force of the contrast as he sat deep into -the night, and "talked over everything," with the man who by that time -he felt convinced was one of his best friends. - -As for Mr Cavendish, it would be very difficult to describe his -feelings. He had been knocking about in all sorts of poor places, making -clandestine visits to his sister, and hovering round the more than -suburban simplicity of Grove Street, and the sense of being once more -enveloped and surrounded by all that was pleasant to the eye and -comfortable to the outer man was wonderfully consolatory and agreeable. -But his mind was in a dreadfully harassed condition all the same. He was -preoccupied to the last degree, wondering what Miss Marjoribanks really -knew, and how far he had betrayed himself, and to what extent it would -be safe, as she herself said, to confide in Lucilla; and at the same -time he was obliged to listen to and show a certain interest in the -General's stories, and to make now and then a painful effort of mind to -recall some of the mutual friends referred to, whose names and persons -had in the meantime slipped out of his memory. All the babble of the -club, which General Travers felt must be so refreshing to the ears of a -rusticated member, fell as flat upon Mr Cavendish, whose mind was full -of other matters, as if it had been the merest old woman's gossip, -which, to be sure, it slightly resembled in some points. The gallant -General made himself so agreeable that he nearly drove the unfortunate -man out of his senses, and, when he had exhausted all other means of -aggravation, returned with fresh zest to the sentimental circumstances -in which, as he supposed, he had found his companion out. - -"Very sensible I call it," said General Travers. "To be candid, I don't -call her strictly handsome, you know; she's too big for that--and I -don't suppose she's of any family to speak of; though perhaps you don't -mind that trifling circumstance; but a woman that will dress well and -light up well, and knows how to give a man a capital dinner, by Jove! -and no doubt has a pretty little bit of money into the bargain--I -respect your taste, Cavendish," said the friendly critic, with effusion; -and somehow this applause irritated its recipient more than all that had -gone before. - -"I am sure I am much obliged to you," said Mr Cavendish, "though, -unfortunately, I don't merit your approbation. Miss Marjoribanks is a -great friend of mine, but she wouldn't have me, and I don't mean to ask -her. At the same time, she has very good connections; and that is not -the way to talk of a girl of twenty. She is worth a dozen of your fast -young ladies," said the sufferer, with some heat. He was not in the -least in love with Lucilla, and indeed had a certain dread of her at -this present moment; but he could not forget that she had once stood by -him in his need--and, besides, he was glad of any subject on which he -could contradict his visitor. "I dare say her family is better than -either yours or mine. Scotch, you know," said Mr Cavendish, trying to -laugh. As for the General, he leaned back on his chair with an indulgent -air, and stroked his mustache. - -"Beg your pardon--meant no offence," he said. "For my part, I don't see -that it matters, if a woman is good-looking and has something, you know. -For instance, there was a pretty little thing--a charming little -thing--Lake, or something like that----" - -"Ah!" said Mr Cavendish. It was a frightful want of self-control; but he -had been a long time at full strain, and he could not help it. It did -not occur to him, for the moment, that nobody in his senses would have -applied the term "little thing" to Barbara; and, after all the slow -aggravation that he had been submitting to, the idea of this insolent -soldier interfering in Grove Street was beyond his power of endurance. -As for the General, the tone of this exclamation was such that he too -turned round on his chair, and said, "Yes?" with equally unmistakable -meaning, startled, but ready for the emergency, whatever it might be. - -Thus the two looked at each other for a second, friends in the ordinary -acceptation of the word, and yet, perhaps, on the eve of becoming -enemies. Mr Cavendish had, up to that moment, pretty nearly forgotten -Barbara Lake. It was a piquant sort of occupation when he had nothing -else to do, and when the world, according to his morbid fancy, was on -the eve of turning its back upon him--but from the moment when he had -said between his teeth "Confound these women!" and had felt the -excitement of the approaching crisis, Barbara, and her crimson cheeks, -and her level eyebrows, and her contralto, had gone altogether out of -his mind. At the same time, it is quite true that a man may feel himself -at liberty to forget a woman when other matters of more immediate -interest are absorbing his attention, and yet be driven furious by the -idea suddenly presented to him that somebody else, who has nothing -earthly to do with it, is about to interfere. Mr Cavendish, however, -recovered himself while the General sat staring at him, and began to see -how ridiculous his defiance was. - -"Well?--go on. I did not say anything," he said, and lighted another -cigar. Yet he did not face his companion as a friendly listener should, -but began to beat measure to an irritating imaginary air on the table, -with a certain savage energy by moments, as if he were beating time on -the General's head. - -"Then why do you stop a fellow short like that?" said General Travers; -"I was going to tell you of some one I saw the other day in the house of -your--your friend, you know. She was under Miss Marjoribanks's wing, -that was how I saw her--and I hope you are not playing the gay deceiver, -my friend;--a little thing, round-faced, hazel-eyed--a little soft -rosebud sort of creature," said the General, growing eloquent. "By Jove! -Cavendish, I hope you don't mean to make yourself disagreeable. These -sort of looks, you know----" - -"It was Rose, I suppose," said Mr Cavendish, relieved in a moment; and, -to tell the truth, he could not help laughing. The more eloquent and -angry the General grew, the more amused and contemptuous grew his -entertainer. He was so tickled by the position of affairs, that he -actually forgot his anxieties for the moment. "No doubt it was Rose," he -repeated, and laughed; Rose! what anybody could see in that little -dragon! And then the contrast between the soldier, who prided himself on -his knowledge of the world, and liked to talk of his family and -position, to the annoyance of those who had none, and the amusement of -those who happen to possess these valuable qualifications--and the -mistress of the Female School of Design, filled Mr Cavendish with -amusement: perhaps all the more because he himself was in a similar -scrape. As for General Travers, he was as much disposed to be angry as, -a moment before, Mr Cavendish had been. - -"It might be Rose," he said, "or Lily either, for anything I can tell; -but there is nothing laughable in it that I can see. You seem to be -perfectly _au courant_, at all events--which I hope is quite -satisfactory to Miss Marjoribanks," said the soldier; and then he -resumed, after a disagreeable little pause, "they tell me that everybody -meets at the Doctor's on Thursdays. I suppose I shall see you there. -Thursday, ain't it? to-morrow?" He looked as he spoke, with what seemed -to his victim an insulting consciousness, in poor Cavendish's face. But, -in reality, the General did not mean to be insulting, and knew nothing -whatever of the horrible internal pang which rent his companion when it -was thus recalled to him that it _was_ to-morrow--a fact which, up to -this moment, had not occurred to the unfortunate. To-morrow; and not -even to-morrow--to-day--for by this time it was two o'clock in the -morning, and the unwelcome intruder was wasting the little time he had -for deciding what he should do. Once more his own personal anxieties, -which he had put aside for a moment at the sudden dictate of jealousy, -surged over everything, and swallowed up all lesser sensations. -To-morrow!--and by this time everybody knew that he was in Carlingford, -and he could not stay away from the weekly assembly without attracting -general attention to himself, and throwing open the flood-gates of -suspicion. What was he to do? should he turn his back on the enemy once -for all, and run away and break off his connection with Carlingford? or -should he dare everything and face the Archdeacon, and put his trust in -Lucilla, as that high-minded young woman had invited him to do? With -these thoughts in his mind, it may be supposed that Mr Cavendish gave -but a very mingled attention to the babble of his visitor, who found the -wine and the cigars so good, and perhaps had begun to be a little moved -out of his ordinary lucidity by their effect. - -"You've got a nice little house, Cavendish," said the General, "but it's -too small for a married man, my boy. These women are the very deuce for -turning a man out of his comfortable quarters. You'll have to go in for -boudoirs and those sort of things; and, by George! you'll be an ass if -you do, with a snug little box like this to retire into," said the -philosophical warrior; and poor Cavendish smiled a ghastly smile, with -the strongest inclination all the time to take him by the collar and -turn him out of doors. But then he _was_ a warrior and a general -officer, and a member of the same club, and six feet high--all which -particulars, not to speak of the sacred rights of hospitality, made it -somewhat difficult to carry this idea out. - -"Don't you think Centum will be sitting up for you?" he said mildly; -"it's past two o'clock; and it's Thursday morning," the victim added, -with a sigh. The last words were an involuntary utterance of his own -despair, but fortunately they struck General Travers's vein of humour, -which happened to be lively at the moment, and worked the desired but -unexpected result. The General laughed loud and long, and declared that -he respected a man who was above-board, and meant to look respectable -for Miss Marjoribanks's sake; and then he poured a mighty libation to -Lucilla, and took an affectionate leave of her supposed lover. The -General made a great commotion in the decorous quiet of Grange Lane when -he knocked at Mr Centum's door. Though it was nearly three o'clock in -the morning, nothing but his inherent dread of a woman would have -prevented him from knocking up the banker to share his hilarity; but Mrs -Centum, in her nightcap, peaceably asleep as she was at the moment, -daunted the soul of the gallant soldier; and naturally his recollection -was not very perfect next day. "I had something very funny to tell you; -but, by Jove! I forget what it was!" General Travers said next morning -when he met his host at breakfast; and thus one bad joke at least was -spared. But Mr Cavendish shut his door upon his departing guest, without -any sense, poor fellow, of having done or said anything in the least -funny. He said, "Thank Heaven!" with a kind of groan of relief when his -troublesome visitor was gone. And then he went back again into his -library, where they had been sitting. Perhaps he had never fully -appreciated before the comfort of everything, the handsome house which -he had enjoyed so long without thinking anything of it, and all the -pleasant luxurious accessories of life. He had been doing without them -for a week or two, and he had not liked it; and yet at that moment it -seemed to Mr Cavendish that he could rather be content to lose them all -at a stroke, to make it known in Carlingford that he was ruined and had -lost his fortune, than that Carlingford should find out that he was not, -after all, one of the Cavendishes, nor the person it took him for. But, -alas! all his fortune could not bring reality to these pretensions, nor -hinder the exposure to which he looked forward with such horror. It is -true that he was an adventurer, but he was not a base one; nor had he -done anything dishonourable either to gain his fortune or to captivate -the good opinion of society, which had become so important to him. But -there are actual crimes that would be sooner forgiven to a man than the -folly of having permitted himself to be considered one of the -Cavendishes, and having set his heart on making a figure in that mild -provincial world. Mr Cavendish knew enough of human nature to know that -a duchess or a lord-chamberlain would forgive more readily than Mr and -Mrs Centum any such imposition upon them, and intrusion into their -exclusive circle. And then his sister, who could not run away! For her -sake it seemed to him that he had better rush off at once, and sell his -house and furniture and horses, and give up Carlingford. As he thought -of that, all the advantages of Carlingford came upon him stronger than -ever. Perhaps a man who has always been used to be recognised as one of -the members of a local aristocracy, would not have seen anything half so -precious as Mr Cavendish saw in the fact of being everywhere known and -acknowledged as a constituent part of Grange Lane;--recognised by the -county people, and by the poor people, and pointed out as he passed by -one and another to any stranger who might happen to be so ignorant as -not to know Mr Cavendish. To people who are not used to it, there is a -charm in this universal acknowledgment. And then he had more need of it -than most men have; and, when Carlingford signed his patent of -gentility, and acknowledged and prized him, it did an infinite deal more -than it had any intention of doing. To keep its regard and recognition -he would have done anything, given up the half or three parts, or even, -on emergency, all he had. Perhaps he had an undue confidence in the -magnanimity of society, and was too sure that in such a case it would -behave with a grandeur worthy of the occasion; but still he was quite -right in thinking that it could forgive the loss of his fortune sooner -than his real offence. And now it was Thursday morning, the day upon -which he must either fight or flee. He too had laughed at Miss -Marjoribanks's evenings in his time, and thought of Thursday lightly as -Lucilla's day; but there was nothing in the least amusing in the -prospect of that assembly now. - -When a man has thoughts like these to entertain him, nothing can be more -useless than to go to bed, although in ordinary circumstances, at three -o'clock in the morning, that is about the only thing one can do. Poor Mr -Cavendish, however, was not quite free to act as he thought proper. He -had been a long time away from home, and he did not feel himself in a -position to shock his servants' feelings with impunity. He went to his -room, accordingly, like a martyr, carrying all his difficulties with -him, and these unpleasant companions naturally made a night of it when -they had him all to themselves. When sheer fatigue and exhaustion -procured him a moment's sleep, it was only getting deeper and deeper -into trouble: for then it was the Archdeacon who had planted a heavy -foot on his neck, or General Travers, who, with still more fatal force, -had found out the way to Grove Street. When Mr Cavendish awoke, he said -to himself, "Confound these women!" with more fervour than ever; but, at -the same time, he swore a mighty oath to himself that he would horsewhip -the fellow who ventured to come in his way. Barbara Lake might be no -great things, but at least it was to him, and no one else, that she -belonged. Such was the complication that afforded him a little outlet -for his temper in the midst of the dreadful difficulties of his -position, and the question which was constantly renewing itself in his -thoughts, as to whether he should go or stay. The idea of presenting -himself in the centre of society in Miss Marjoribanks's drawing-room, -and being met by the Archdeacon, and held up to public contempt there -and then, with all the world looking on, and even Travers, who would -carry the narrative out of Carlingford, was something too horrible to be -contemplated; and yet how was he to escape? He was still in this state -of mind, driven backwards and forwards by every new wind, when the -morning came, and when Miss Marjoribanks's note was put into his hand. - -For the truth was, that, after long consideration, Lucilla had -determined that the matter was one which could not be permitted to stand -over. She was of too energetic a temperament to let things linger on in -an uncertain way when they could be made an end of, and brought to a -conclusion; and then, as nobody can predict what sudden and unexpected -turn human affairs may take, it was always possible that, if Miss -Marjoribanks did not make an end of the business dramatically, and to -the satisfaction of everybody concerned, it might be found some fine day -to have resolved itself by means of some one of those illegitimate and -incomplete expedients which abound in ordinary life. It was with this -view that Miss Marjoribanks took the step of writing to Mr Cavendish. -She had written in the sacred retirement of her own maiden chamber, when -all the world was still; perhaps at the moment when General Travers was, -as he would himself have vulgarly called it, "chaffing" Cavendish about -the beautiful and disinterested friendship which united him to the young -sovereign of Grange Lane. But naturally such poor raillery was far from -the virginal thoughts of Lucilla at that retired and sacred hour; and we -may venture to add that the elevating influence of the maiden's bower in -which she composed it, and of that tranquil moment of meditation and -solitude, breathed in every line, and gave force to every sentiment of -the letter which Mr Cavendish tore open with an excited hand. Perhaps he -was too anxious and curious to give it the solemn perusal which it ought -to have received. - - "MY DEAR MR CAVENDISH,--It was very unlucky that we should have - been interrupted this evening at such an important moment, when I - had so much to say to you. But I think the best thing I can do is - to write, feeling quite sure that when you know all, _you cannot - possibly mistake_ my motives. Everybody has retired, and I am quite - alone, and the silence[2] seems to me full of meaning when I think - that the fate of a person for whom I have so great a regard may be - hanging upon it. I might be afraid of writing to you so frankly, if - I did not feel quite sure that you would appreciate my intention. - - "Dear Mr Cavendish, it is not the Archdeacon who has said anything. - _He does not know it is you_; therefore, of course, he could not - say anything directly bearing upon you. But then, you know, if he - were to meet you by hazard, as he is sure to do some day--and for - my part I rather think he is fond of Grove Street--you would be - exposed at once, and everything would be lost, for we all know the - prejudices that exist in Carlingford. I have another plan of - operations to propose to you, which I feel quite sure is for your - good, and also naturally for the good of anybody to whom you may - intend to unite your fortunes. I feel quite sure that it is far - safer to adopt a bold resolution, and to have it over at once. Come - to dinner to-morrow. If you may happen to find an enemy, you will - find also an unlooked-for friend; and, so far as I am concerned, - you _know_ that you may calculate on my support. I do not wonder at - your being anxious about it; but if you will only have full - confidence in me and a little in yourself, believe me it will be - all over in a night. If there had ever been anything between you - and me, as these stupid people suppose, I might have felt - hesitation in writing to you like this; but when I know a thing to - be right, I hope I will never be afraid to do it. I have been - called upon to do many things that are not common for girls of my - age, and perhaps that is why I made up my mind at once to set this - all straight for you. Once more I repeat, dear Mr Cavendish, have - confidence in me. Come to-morrow evening as if nothing had - happened; and take my word for it that all will go well.--Your - friend, - - "LUCILLA MARJORIBANKS. - - "_P.S._--If you would like to come and talk it over with me - to-morrow, I shall be at home till twelve o'clock; but unless it - will be a satisfaction to your own mind, it is not necessary for - me, for I have all my plans laid." - -[Footnote 2: It is only justice to Miss Marjoribanks to say that she was -not addicted to fine writing; but then she was a person who liked to -have everything in keeping, and naturally an emergency such as the -present does not come every day, and requires to be treated -accordingly.] - - * * * * * - -It would be quite out of the question to attempt any explanation of Mr -Cavendish's feelings when he read this letter. His utter bewilderment, -his terror, his rage, his final helpless sense that it would be utterly -hopeless for him, or half a dozen men, to enter the field against this -curious complication of unknown friends and open enemies and generous -protectors, took away from him the last remnant of courage. He did not -know what to do or to think. He swallowed his coffee with a sense of -despair, and sent the rest of his breakfast away untasted; thus -betraying, without intending it, his emotions to his kitchen. "It stands -to reason as there's a cause for it," Mr Cavendish's domestics concluded -in committee of the whole house; and surely, if ever man had good reason -for not eating his breakfast, it was he. When he had gone over it all -again till his head had grown utterly confused and his thoughts were all -topsy-turvy, Mr Cavendish took a sudden resolution. He went upstairs and -changed his dress with a certain solemnity. He made a toilette more -careful than if he were going, as he once had gone, to propose. It was -like Nelson going into gala uniform for a battle. And then he went out -to discover, if possible, what was coming to him. The difference was, -that in this battle no honour, but only a possible salvage of reputation -and fortunate escape, was to be gained. - - - - -_Chapter XXX_ - - -It is possible that some people may think Mr Cavendish's emotions too -acute for all the danger to which he was exposed; but no doubt every -alarm gets intensified when a man broods on it, and thinks of nothing -else for weeks at a time. All that he had to do at the present moment -was to walk into Carlingford by the most frequented way, and to go up -Grange Lane, where every house was open to him, and where nobody was so -great a favourite as he. There were as many chances in his favour that -he would not in that friendly neighbourhood encounter his one enemy, as -there is for every man who goes into action that the bullet which is -predestined to strike somebody will not be directed to him; but then Mr -Cavendish had not the excitement of personal conflict, nor the kind of -security which is given by sharing a risk with a great many other -people. And to see everything smiling and serene around, and yet to know -that the most deadly danger may arrive to you at any innocent opening, -or round the first street-corner, is a kind of risk which naturally -tells upon the nerves more than a more open peril. Mr Cavendish met Dr -Marjoribanks, and the Doctor was good enough to stop his brougham and -keep him in conversation for five minutes with his back to the foe, if -foe there was approaching; and then he met Mrs Chiley, who all but -kissed him, and was so glad to see him again, and so pleased that he was -in time to make acquaintance with the Archdeacon, and so sure that -Lucilla would be quite happy now he had come back. "Perhaps I ought not -to say so, but I _know_ she has missed you," said the injudicious old -lady; and she took both his hands and held the miserable man in a kind -of pillory, from whence he gazed with despairing eyes over her shoulder, -feeling sure that now was the fatal moment, and that his enemy _must_ be -coming. But fortune still favoured him, as it happened. He had the -presence of mind to say, "I am going to call on Miss Marjoribanks;" and -Mrs Chiley dropped his hands on the instant as if they burned her, and -patted him on the arm and sent him away. "She is sure to be in just now, -and I am so glad; and, my dear, you need not mind me, for I am both your -friends," Mrs Chiley said. But when he was delivered from that danger, -something still more formidable awaited the unfortunate man. He could -not believe his eyes at first, nor conceive it possible that Fate would -have such a spite against him; but there was no mistaking the crumpled -dress, any more than the straight eyebrows and flashing oblique glances -that had already found him out. Of all the horrible chances in the -world, it was Barbara--Barbara, who had a right to think he had deserted -her on the previous night, and with whom his next interview could not be -otherwise than stormy--who thus appeared like a lion in his way. When he -saw what awaited him, Mr Cavendish lost courage. His heart sank down -into unfathomable depths. He did not know what he could say to her to -shorten the inevitable interview, nor how he could escape, nor how -hinder her from discovering that it was Lucilla he was going to see; and -he had no longer any doubt in his mind that while he was thus engaged -the Archdeacon must inevitably appear. If he had had time to think of -ordinary subjects, he would have been sufficiently annoyed at the idea -of an interview with Barbara in broad daylight on the sacred soil of -Grange Lane, where all the world could or might be spectators; but such -a merely prudential sentiment was entirely swallowed up to-day in much -more urgent considerations. He would have been content just now, in the -horror of the moment, to plight his troth to Barbara by way of getting -rid of her, and leaving his path clear; but he could not stop her or -himself from advancing, and dared not give any vent to the panic which -was consuming his soul. - -"Oh, I am sure I never thought of seeing you here, Mr Cavendish," said -Barbara, with a toss of her head. She would have done a great deal to -secure her wavering lover, but she could not be amiable at a moment when -she had him at a disadvantage. "Perhaps you are going to see Miss -Marjoribanks," said the foolish young woman. To tell the truth, she did -not suspect him of any such treachery; but her heart was beating louder -than usual, and she had the best position of the two, or thought she -had, and chose what she supposed the most aggravating thing to say. - -But it is always hard to tell what a man may do when he is in a state of -despair. Mr Cavendish looked her in the face with the composure of -desperation, though she did not know that. All that he was able to think -of was how to get rid of her soonest, and to be able to continue his -way. "Yes, I am going to see Miss Marjoribanks," he said, with a face -which extremity rendered stolid and impassible. As for poor Barbara, her -colour changed in a moment. The very least that she had a right to -expect was that he should have asked her pardon, put himself at her -feet; and her mingled spite and humiliation and mortification at this -response were beyond telling. Her cheeks blazed with sudden rage, her -passion was so furious that she actually did what he wanted and stood -out of his way, and made him an imperious sign to pass on and leave her. -But even then she did not expect to be taken at her word. When Mr -Cavendish took off his hat in that heartless way and passed on, Barbara -stood aghast, not able to believe her senses. Had he really passed and -left her, she who had done so much for him? Had he actually gone over to -her adversary before her very eyes? She stood stock-still when he left -her, gazing after him, blazing with rage and despite, and scarcely able -to keep herself from shrieking out the torrent of reproaches and -vituperations that were in her mind. She made no attempt whatever to -hide her wrath or jealous curiosity from any eyes that might be there to -see; but to be sure she had, as her sister said, no proper pride. If Mr -Cavendish had carried out his intentions, the chances are that Barbara, -driven desperate, would have rushed after him, and found some means of -breaking in upon his interview with Lucilla; but after all this -badgering, he had not the courage to carry out his intentions. He looked -down the long sunshiny line of Grange Lane with a sickening sense that -any of these doors might open at any moment, and his fate rush out upon -him. There was not a soul to be seen, but that only made it all the more -likely to poor Mr Cavendish's distempered fancy that somebody was -coming. He had not even a single thought at leisure to give to Barbara, -and never asked himself whether or not she was standing watching him. -All his senses and faculties were engaged forecasting what might happen -to him before he could reach Dr Marjoribanks's house. He was approaching -it from the lower end of Grange Lane, and consequently had everything to -risk; and when Mr Centum's door opened, and all the nurses and all the -children poured out, the unfortunate man felt his heart jump, and drop -again, if possible, lower than ever. It was this that drove him, instead -of going on to Lucilla, to take refuge in his sister's house, where the -door happened to be open. He rushed in there, and took breath, and was -safe for the instant. But Barbara, for her part, watching him, divined -none of Mr Cavendish's reasons. Her heart too gave a jump, and her wrath -cooled down miraculously. No doubt it was a little impatience at being -questioned which had made him answer as he did. He had not gone to -Lucilla--he had not deserted her standard, who had always met him -half-way, and done so much for him. Barbara calmed down as she saw him -enter at Mrs Woodburn's door. After having thus witnessed his safe exit, -she felt at liberty to go back and return to her own affairs, and -prepare her toilette for the evening; for it moved her very little less -than Mr Cavendish to know that it was Thursday, and that there was no -telling what might happen that night. - -As for the hero of all this commotion, he went and buried himself in Mrs -Woodburn's back drawing-room, and threw himself on the sofa in the dark -corner, and wiped his forehead like the Archdeacon. It was not his fault -if events had overwhelmed him. If he had not met in succession Dr -Marjoribanks and Mrs Chiley and Barbara, he would have gone right to -Lucilla without stopping to question himself further--but he could not -bear all this accumulation. Panic had seized upon him, and this panic -wrought more effectually than all argument. It was so terrible to live -under such a shadow, that he felt it must be put an end to. If only he -were left at rest for this moment, he felt that he could make up his -mind to take the perilous leap at night, and dare everything. "It can't -be worse than ruin," he said to himself, and tried not to think that -for his sister it might be something even worse than ruin. But the first -thing of all was to get a little rest in the meantime, and hide himself, -and forget the nightmare that was seated on his shoulders. When Mrs -Woodburn came to him in haste, and saw his careful dress and pale looks, -she was frightened for the moment. She thought it possible for one -second that despair had driven him out of his wits, and that there might -be, for anything she could tell, a little bottle of prussic acid in his -waistcoat pocket. That was her first idea, and her second was that he -was going to carry out at last his most wise and laudable resolution of -proposing to Miss Marjoribanks, and that it was this--naturally a -serious and hazardous enterprise--which made him look so pale. - -"Harry, if you are going to Lucilla----!" said Mrs Woodburn; "wait and -rest yourself a little, and I will get you a glass of wine. Keep still; -there's some Tokay," said the anxious sister. "Don't you go and worry -yourself. You shall see nobody. I'll bring it you with my own hand." - -"Oh, confound the Tokay!" said Mr Cavendish. "I know what Woodburn's -Tokay is--if that mattered. Look here, I want to speak to you. I _was_ -going to Lucilla, but I'm not up to it. Oh, not in the way you think! -Don't be a fool like everybody. I tell you she wouldn't have me, and I -won't ask her. Read this, which is much more to the purpose," Mr -Cavendish added, taking out Miss Marjoribanks's letter. He watched her, -while she read it, with that sense of contempt and superiority which a -man naturally feels who has advanced much beyond the point in any -special matter at which his interlocutor is still stationary. He even -smiled at her cry of horror and amazement, and found the agitation she -showed ridiculous. "Don't make a row about it," he said, regaining his -colour as his sister lost hers. "It's all right. I can't ask Lucilla -Marjoribanks to have me after that, but I mean to put my trust in her, -as she says. I was going to ask her to explain; but after all, on -thinking of it, I don't see the good of explanations," said Mr -Cavendish, with lofty tranquillity. "The fact is, she is right, Nelly, -and, stand or fall, we'll have it out to-night." - -But Mrs Woodburn was scarcely in a condition to reply, much less to give -any advice. "Oh, good heavens! what does she know?" cried the trembling -woman. "What do you suppose she can know? She gave me a dreadful -fright, coming and asking about you and your name. And then she never -was a great friend of mine--and if she should say anything to Woodburn! -Oh, Harry, go away, go away, and don't face her. You know you slighted -her, and she is laying a snare for us. Oh, Harry, go away! She can't do -you much harm, but she could ruin me, and any little peace I have! -Woodburn would never--never forgive--he would be frantic, you know. It -has always been he that made a fuss about the Cavendishes--and, good -heavens! to be in a girl's power, and she one that you have slighted, -Harry! Oh, for Heaven's sake, for pity's sake, if you care anything for -me----" - -"Hold your tongue, Nelly," said Mr Cavendish. "Don't make a row. What on -earth is the use of Heaven's-saking? I tell you I am going to make an -end of it. If I were to run away now, it would turn up again at some -other corner, and some other moment. Give me a pen and a bit of paper. I -will write a note, and say I am coming. I don't want any explanations. -If it's all a mistake, so much the better; but I'm going to face it out -to-night." - -It was some time before Mrs Woodburn recovered her senses; but in the -meantime her brother wrote Lucilla his note, and in sight of his -sister's agitation felt himself perfectly composed and serene and -manful. It even made him complaisant to feel the difference that there -was, when the emergency really arrived at last, between his own manly -calm and her womanish panic. But then it was for herself that she was -afraid, lest her husband should find out that she was not one of the -Cavendishes. "You must have been giving yourself airs on the subject," -Mr Cavendish said, as he fastened up his note. "I never was so foolish -as that, for my part;" and naturally the more he admired his own -steadiness and courage, the steadier and more courageous he grew--or at -least so he felt for the moment, with her terror before his eyes. - -"If you do go," said Mrs Woodburn at last, "oh, Harry, for goodness' -sake, mind that you deny _everything_. If you confess to anything, it -will all be proved against you; don't allow a single thing that's said -to you. It is a mistaken identity, you know--that is what it is; there -was a case in the papers just the other day. Oh, Harry, for Heaven's -sake don't be weak!--deny everything; you don't know anything about -it--you don't know what they mean--you can't understand----" - -"It is I that have to do it, Nelly," said Mr Cavendish, more and more -tranquil and superior. "You must let me do it my way;" and he was very -kind and reassuring to her in his composure. This was how things ought -to be; and it was astonishing how much he gained in his own mind and -estimation by Mrs Woodburn's panic. Being the stronger vessel, he was of -course superior to all that. But somehow when he had got back to his own -house again, and had no longer the spectacle of his sister's terror -before him, the courage began to ooze out of Mr Cavendish's -finger-points; he tried hard to stimulate himself up to the same point, -and to regain that lofty and assured position; but as the evening -approached, matters grew rather worse than better. He did not turn and -flee, because flight, in the present alarmed and touchy state of public -opinion, would have equally been destruction; and nobody could answer -for it how far, if he failed to obey her, Miss Marjoribanks's discretion -might go. And thus the eventful evening fell, and the sun went down, -which was to Mr Cavendish as if it might be the last sun he should ever -(metaphorically) see--while, in the meantime, all the other people -dressed for dinner as if nothing was going to happen, and as if it was -merely a Thursday like other Thursdays, which was coming to Grange -Lane. - - - - -_Chapter XXXI_ - - -Lucilla waited till twelve o'clock, as she had said, for Mr Cavendish's -visit; and so mingled are human sentiments, even in the mind of a person -of genius, that there is no doubt she was at once a little disappointed, -and that Mr Cavendish gained largely in her estimation by not coming. -Her pity began to be mingled by a certain respect, of which, to tell the -truth, he was not worthy; but then Miss Marjoribanks did not know that -it was circumstances, and not self-regard, or any sense of dignity, that -had kept him back. With the truest consideration, it was in the -dining-room that Lucilla had placed herself to await his visit; for she -had made up her mind that he should not be disturbed _this time_ by any -untimely morning caller. But as she sat at the window and looked out -upon the garden, and was tantalised by fifty successive ringings of the -bell, none of which heralded her expected visitor, a gentler sentiment -gradually grew in Lucilla's mind. Perhaps it would not be just to call -it positively regret; but yet she could not help a kind of impression -that if the Archdeacon had never come to Carlingford, and if Mr -Cavendish had never been so weak as to be drawn aside by Barbara Lake, -and if everything had gone as might have been expected from first -appearances--that, on the whole, it might have been well. After all, he -had a great many good qualities. He had yielded to panic for the moment, -but (so far as Lucilla knew) he was now girding up his loins to meet the -emergency in a creditable way; and if, as has been just said, nothing -had come in the way--if there had been no Archdeacon, no Mrs Mortimer, -no Barbara--if Mr Chiltern had died, as was to have been expected, and -Mr Cavendish been elected for Carlingford--then Lucilla could not help a -momentary sense that the arrangement altogether might have been a not -undesirable one. Now, of course, all that was at an end. By dexterous -management the crisis might be tided over, and the worst avoided; but -Lucilla became regretfully conscious that now no fate higher than -Barbara was possible for the unfortunate man who might once, and with -hope, have aspired to herself. It was very sad, but there was no help -for it. A certain tenderness of compassion entered Miss Marjoribanks's -bosom as she realised this change. It would be hard if a woman did not -pity a man thus shut out by hard fate from any possibility of ever -becoming the companion of her existence--a man who, on the whole, had -many capabilities, yet whose highest fortune in life could not mount -above Barbara Lake! - -This thought filled Lucilla's heart with gentle regret. It was sad, but -it was inevitable; and when Mr Cavendish's note was brought to her, in -which he said simply, and very briefly, that though not sure whether he -understood the meaning of her letter, he should certainly do himself the -pleasure of accepting as usual her kind invitation, Miss Marjoribanks's -regret grew more and more profound. Such a man, who had been capable of -appreciating herself, to think that, having known her, he should decline -upon Barbara! The pity was entirely disinterested, for nobody knew -better than Lucilla that, under the circumstances, no other arrangement -was possible. He might marry the drawing-master's daughter, but Miss -Marjoribanks was too well aware of her duty to her friends, and to her -position in society, to have given her consent to his marriage with -anybody's daughter in Grange Lane. But still it was a pity--nobody could -say that it was not a pity--a man so visibly capable of better things. - -Lucilla, however, could not afford to waste her morning in unprofitable -regrets. An evening so critical and conclusive had to be provided for in -many different ways. Among other things, she had to invite, or rather -command, the presence of a guest whom, to tell the truth, she had no -particular desire to see. The Archdeacon was only a man when all was -said, and might change his mind like other men; and to bring Mrs -Mortimer to Grange Lane in the evening, looking interesting, as, to be -sure, she could look by times, after that unpleasant exhibition of Dr -Marjoribanks's feelings, was naturally a trial to Lucilla. Mr Beverley -had drawn back once before, and that when Mrs Mortimer was young, and no -doubt a great deal more attractive than at present; and now that she was -a widow, forlorn and faded, it would be no wonder if he were to draw -back, especially, as Lucilla acknowledged to herself, when he saw the -ancient object of his affections in her own society, and among all the -fresh young faces of Grange Lane: and if the Archdeacon should draw -back, and leave the field open, and perhaps the Doctor, who ought to -know better, should step in--when she had got so far, Lucilla rose up -and shook out her draperies, as if by way of shaking off the -disagreeable idea. "At all events I have to do my duty," she said to -herself. And thus it was with that last and most exquisite refinement of -well-doing, the thought that she might possibly be going to harm herself -in benefiting others, that Miss Marjoribanks heroically put on her hat, -and issued forth in the dinner-hour of the little pupils, to invite her -last and most important guest. - -This period of suspense had not been by any means a happy or comfortable -period for Mrs Mortimer. The poor widow was living in a constant -expectation of something happening, whereas her only true policy was to -have made up her mind that nothing would ever happen, and shaped herself -accordingly to her life. Instead of eating her dinner as she ought to -have done at that hour of leisure, and fortifying herself for the weary -afternoon's work, she was sitting as usual at the window when Miss -Marjoribanks came to the door. And if it was a tedious business looking -out of the window when the rain was drenching the four walls of the -garden and breaking down the flowers, and reducing all the poor little -shrubs to abject misery, it could not be said to be much more cheerful -in the sunshine, when pleasant sounds came in over that -enclosure--voices and footsteps of people who might be called alive, -while this solitary woman was buried, and had nothing to do with life. -Such a fate may be accepted when people make up their minds to it; but -when, so far from making up one's mind, one fixes one's thoughts upon -the life outside, and fancies that every moment the call may come, and -one may find one's place again in the active world, the tedium grows -more and more insupportable. As for Lucilla, naturally she could not see -any reason why Mrs Mortimer should sit at the window--why she could not -content herself, and eat her dinner instead. - -"There are a great many people in Carlingford who have not nearly such a -pleasant lookout," Lucilla said; "for my part, I think it is a very -pretty garden. The wistaria has grown quite nice, and there is a little -of everything," said Miss Marjoribanks; and, so far as that went, she -was no doubt the best judge, having done it all herself. - -"Oh, yes, it is very pretty; and I am sure I am very grateful to -Providence for giving me such a home," said the widow; but she sighed, -poor soul, as she said it: for, to tell the truth, though she was not -so young as she once was, it takes some people a long time to find out -that they themselves are growing old, and have done with life. And then -outside, in that existence which she could hear but could not see, there -was one figure which was wonderfully interesting to poor Mrs Mortimer; -which is a complication which has a remarkable effect on the question of -content or discontent. - -"You ought to take a walk every day," said Miss Marjoribanks, "that is -what is the matter with you; but, in the meantime, there is something -else I want you to do. This is Thursday, you know, and I have always -some people on Thursday. It is not a party--it is only an Evening--and -no dress to speak of. Your black silk will look quite nice, and be all -that is necessary. Black is very becoming to some people," said Lucilla -reflectively. She looked at Mrs Mortimer with her head a little on one -side, and saw in a moment, with the rapid glance of genius, just what -she wanted. "And some lace for your head," Miss Marjoribanks added. "I -don't think you have gone off at all, and I am sure you will look very -nice. It is at nine o'clock." - -"This evening, Lucilla!" said Mrs Mortimer, faintly: "but you know I -never go out--I am not fit for society. Oh, don't ask me, please! Since -poor Edward died----' - -"Yes," said Lucilla, "it must have been a great loss, I am sure; though -I can't say I mind going into a room alone, as some people do; but you -know you can avoid that, if you like, by coming early. Come at eight, -and there will be nobody in the drawing-room, and you can choose your -own corner. Put it quite back--at the back of your head," said Miss -Marjoribanks, with a little anxiety. "I could show you how if I had the -lace. I do so want you to look nice. Oh, never mind the fashion. When -one has a style of one's own, it is always twenty times better. Put it -as you used to wear it before you were married; and then, with that nice -black silk----" - -"Oh, Lucilla, don't ask me," said the widow. "I shall not know how to -talk, nor look, nor anything; and then I know nobody; and then----" - -"My dear, you have always _me_," said Lucilla, with tender reproach. "I -am so sorry I can't stop any longer. I leave it quite to your own taste -about the lace. And you will find people you know, you may be quite sure -of that. Remember, not later than nine o'clock; and come at eight if you -don't like to come into the room by yourself. Good-bye now. I want you -to look very nice to-night," Miss Marjoribanks added, giving her friend -an affectionate kiss; "you must, for my sake." - -"But, Lucilla----" cried Mrs Mortimer. - -It was vain to make any further protest, however, for Lucilla was gone, -having, in the first place, communicated her requirements to Mary Jane, -who was not likely to forget, nor to let her mistress be late. "And mind -she is _nice_," said Miss Marjoribanks emphatically, as she went out at -the door. It was necessary she should be nice; without that the intended -_situation_ which Lucilla was preparing--the grand finale of her -exertions--would fall flat, and probably fail of its effect. For this it -was necessary that the widow should look not only pretty, but -interesting, and a little pathetic, and all that a widow should look -when first dragged back into society. Miss Marjoribanks gave a momentary -sigh as she emerged from the garden door, and could not but feel -conscious that in all this she might be preparing the most dread -discomfiture and downfall for herself. Even if it passed over as it -ought to do, and nobody was charmed but the Archdeacon, who was the -right person to be charmed, Lucilla felt that after this she never could -have that entire confidence in her father which she had had up to this -moment. The incipient sentiment Dr Marjoribanks had exhibited was one -that struck at the roots of all faith in him as a father; and every -person of sensibility will at once perceive how painful such a -suggestion must have been to the mind of a young woman so entirely -devoted as was Miss Marjoribanks to the consolation and comfort of her -dear papa. - -Lucilla was not allowed to spend the rest of this momentous afternoon in -maturing her plans, as might have been necessary to a lesser -intelligence; and when the refreshing moment came at which she could -have her cup of tea before preparing for the fatigues of the evening, it -was Mrs Chiley who came to assist at that ceremony. The old lady came in -with an important air, and gave Lucilla a long, lingering kiss, as old -ladies sometimes do when they particularly mean it. "My dear, I am not -going to stay a moment, but I thought you might have something to tell -me," the kind old woman said, arranging herself in her chair with the -satisfaction of a listener who expects to be confided in. As for -Lucilla, who had no clue to Mrs Chiley's special curiosity, and who had -a good many things on her mind just at that moment which she rather -preferred not to talk about, she was for once struck with veritable -astonishment, and did not know what to say. - -"Dear Mrs Chiley, what should I have to tell you?" said Miss -Marjoribanks. "You know very well where I should go the very first -moment if anything happened;" and by way of staving off more particular -questions, she took her old friend a cup of tea. - -"Yes, my dear, I hope so," said Mrs Chiley, but at the same time her -disappointment was evident. "It is very nice, thank you--your tea is -always nice, Lucilla--but it was not that I was thinking of. I can't -understand how it is, I am sure. I saw him to-day with my own eyes, and -could not help seeing how anxious he was looking! I hope, I do hope, you -have not been so cruel as to refuse him, Lucilla--and all for something -that is not his fault, poor fellow, or that could be explained, you may -be sure." - -Miss Marjoribanks grew more and more surprised as she listened. She put -away the kettle without filling the teapot, and left her own cup -standing untasted, and went and sat down on the stool by Mrs Chiley's -feet. "Tell me whom I have refused this time, for I don't know anything -about it," said Lucilla; and then her visitor burst forth. - -"It must be all that creature's fault! He told me he was coming here; -and to tell the truth, I stood and watched him, for you know how -interested I am, my dear; and then a little while after he met _that_ -Barbara. Oh, Lucilla, why were you ever so foolish as to have her here? -I told you how it would end when you brought those artist people about -your house. They are all a set of adventurers!" cried Mrs Chiley. "I saw -them meet, and I was so disgusted that I did not know what I was doing; -but he passed her as nicely as possible. Just a civil word, you know, -and then he was past. Just as I would have done myself; for it is always -best not to be uncivil to anybody. I could see her standing as if she -had been struck with lightning; and naturally, Lucilla, I never thought -anything else than that he had come here, and that all was right between -you. Oh, my dear, I hope you are sure you have not refused him," Mrs -Chiley said, piteously; "anyhow, Lucilla, you need not mind telling -_me_. I may be sorry, but I will not blame you, my dear." - -"I have not refused anybody," said Lucilla, with a modest innocence that -it was a pleasure to see; "but, dear Mrs Chiley," she continued, -raising her drooping eyelids, "I think you make a mistake about Mr -Cavendish. My own opinion is that Barbara would make him a very nice -wife. Oh, please, don't be angry! I don't mean to say, you know, that I -think her quite what one would call _nice_--for oneself. But then the -gentlemen have such strange ways of thinking. Many a girl whom we could -not put up with is quite popular with Them," said Miss Marjoribanks, -with a certain mild wonder at the inexplicable creatures whom she thus -condescended to discuss. "I suppose they have a different standard, you -know; and for my part, I would advise Mr Cavendish to marry Barbara. I -think it is the best thing he could do." - -"Lucilla!" cried Mrs Chiley, almost with a shriek of horror. She -thought, as was perhaps natural, that there was some pique in what her -young companion said; not doing Miss Marjoribanks justice--as indeed few -people did--for that perfect truthfulness which it was Lucilla's luck -always to be able to maintain. Mrs Chiley thought it was her young -friend's maidenly pride and determination not to take up the part of a -woman slighted or jilted. "You may refuse him, my dear, if your heart is -not with him," said the old lady; "but I would not be so hard upon him -as that, poor fellow. You may say what you please, but I always will -think him nice, Lucilla. I know I ought to be on the Archdeacon's side," -said Mrs Chiley, putting her handkerchief to her eyes; "but I am an old -woman, and I like my old friends best. Oh, Lucilla, it is not kind of -you to keep up appearances with me. I wish you would give way a little. -It would do you good, my darling; and you know I might be both your -grandmothers, Lucilla," she cried, putting her arm round her favourite. -As for Miss Marjoribanks, she gave her old friend a close embrace, which -was the only thing that even her genius could suggest to do. - -"I have always _you_," said Lucilla, with touching eloquence; and then -she freed herself a little from Mrs Chiley's arms. "I don't say, -perhaps, that everybody will receive her; but I mean to make an effort, -for my part; and I shall certainly tell Mr Cavendish so if he ever -speaks of it to me. As for Mr Beverley, he is going to be married too. -Did not you hear? He told me all about it himself one day," said Miss -Marjoribanks; "and I will ask him to-night if I may not tell you who the -lady is. It is quite a little romance, and I hope we shall have two -marriages, and it will make it quite gay for the winter. When you know -all about it," Lucilla added tenderly, by way of breaking the shock, "I -am sure you will be pleased." - -But instead of being pleased, Mrs Chiley was speechless for the moment. -Her fresh old cheeks grew ashy with dismay and horror. "The Archdeacon -too!" she cried, gasping for breath. "Oh, Lucilla, my dear?--and you?" -Then the kind old lady held Miss Marjoribanks fast, and sobbed over her -in the despair of the moment. To think, after all the pains that had -been taken, and all the hopes and all the speculations, that neither the -one nor the other was coming to anything! "If it should be that General, -after all--and I cannot abide him," sobbed Lucilla's anxious friend. But -Miss Marjoribanks's genius carried her through this trial, as well as -through all the others which she had yet encountered on her way. - -"Dear Mrs Chiley!" said Lucilla, "it is so good of you to care; but if -it had been _that_ I was thinking of, I need never have come home at -all, you know; and my object in life is just what it has always been, to -be a comfort to papa." - -Upon which Mrs Chiley kissed her young friend once more with lingering -meaning. "My dear, I don't know what They mean," she said, with -indignation; "everybody knows men are great fools where women are -concerned--but I never knew what idiots they were till now; and you are -too good for them, my darling!" said Mrs Chiley, with indignant -tenderness. Perhaps Miss Marjoribanks was in some respects of the same -way of thinking. She conducted her sympathetic friend to the garden -door, when it came to be time for everybody to go and dress, with a -certain pathetic elevation in her own person, which was not out of -accord with Mrs Chiley's virtuous wrath. To have Mrs Mortimer and -Barbara Lake preferred to her did not wound Lucilla's pride--one can be -wounded in that way only by one's equals. She thought of it with a -certain mild pity and charitable contempt. Both these two men had had -the chance of having _her_, and this was how they had chosen! And there -can be little wonder if Miss Marjoribanks's compassion for them was -mingled with a little friendly and condescending disdain. - -It was, however, an ease to Lucilla's mind that she had let Mrs Chiley -know, and was so far free to work out her plans without any fear of -misconception. And on the whole, her old friend's tender indignation was -not disagreeable to her. Thus it was, without any interval of repose to -speak of, that her lofty energies went on unwearied to overrule and -guide the crisis which was to decide so many people's fate. - - - - -_Chapter XXXII_ - - -Dr Marjoribanks was not a man to take very much notice of trivial -external changes; and he knew Lucilla and her constitution, and, being a -medical man, was not perhaps so liable to parental anxieties as an -unprofessional father might have been; but even he was a little struck -by Miss Marjoribanks's appearance when he came into the drawing-room. He -said, "You are flushed, Lucilla? is anything going to happen?" with the -calmness of a man who knew there was not much the matter--but yet he did -observe that her colour was not exactly what it always was. "I am quite -well, papa, thank you," said Lucilla, which, to be sure, was a fact the -Doctor had never doubted; and then the people began to come in, and -there was no more to be said. - -But there could be no doubt that Lucilla had more colour than usual. Her -pulse was quite steady, and her heart going on at its ordinary rate; but -her admirable circulation was nevertheless so far affected, that the -ordinary rose-tints of her complexion were all deepened. It was not so -distinctly an improvement as it would have been had she been habitually -pale; but still the flush was moderate, and did Miss Marjoribanks no -harm. And then it was a larger party than usual. The Centums were there, -who were General Travers's chaperons, and so were the Woodburns, and of -course Mrs Chiley, which made up the number of ladies beyond what was -general at Dr Marjoribanks's table. Lucilla received all her guests with -the sweetest smiles and all her ordinary ease and self-possession, but -at the same time her mind was not free from some excitement. She was on -the eve of a crisis which would be the greatest failure or the greatest -success of her public life, and naturally she anticipated it with a -certain emotion. - -Mr Cavendish, for his part, had sufficient sense to come very early, and -to get into a dark corner and keep himself out of the way; for though he -was screwed up to the emergency, his self-possession was nothing to -that of Lucilla. But on the whole, it was perhaps Mrs Woodburn who -suffered the most. Her heightened colour was more conspicuous than that -of Miss Marjoribanks, because as a general rule she was pale. She was -pale, almost white, and had dark eyes and dark hair, and possessed -precisely all the accessories which make a sudden change of complexion -remarkable; and the effect this evening was so evident that even her -husband admired her for a moment, and then stopped short to inquire, "By -George! had she begun to paint?" to which question Mrs Woodburn -naturally replied only by an indignant shrug of her white shoulders and -aversion of her head. She would not have been sorry, perhaps, for this -night only, if he had believed that it was rouge, and not emotion. Of -all the people at Dr Marjoribanks's table, she perhaps was the only one -really to be pitied. Even Mr Cavendish, if vanquished, would at the most -receive only the recompense of his deeds, and could go away and begin -over again somewhere else, or bury himself in the great depths of -general society, where nobody would be the wiser; but as for his sister, -she could not go away. The first result for her would be to give the -master to whom she belonged, and for whom she had, with some affection, -a great deal of not unnatural contempt, a cruel and overwhelming power -over her; and she knew, poor soul, that he was not at all too generous -or delicate to make use of such a power. In such a case she would be -bound to the rock, like a kind of hapless Andromeda, to be pecked at by -all the birds and blown at by all the winds, not to speak of the -devouring monster from whom no hero could ever deliver her; and with all -these horrible consequences before her eyes, she had to sit still and -look on and do nothing, to see all the hidden meaning of every look and -movement without appearing to see it, to maintain ordinary conversation -when her ear was strained to the uttermost to hear words of fate on -which her whole future depended. No wonder her colour was high; and she -could not go into a corner, as Mr Cavendish did, nor keep silent, nor -withdraw herself from observation. Neither her pulse nor her heart would -have borne the scrutiny to which Miss Marjoribanks's calm organs might -have been subjected with perfect security; and the chances are, if the -Doctor had by any hazard put his finger on her wrist when he shook hands -with her, that instead of handing her over to General Travers to be -taken down to dinner, he would have, on the contrary, sent her off to -bed. - -Fortunately by this time the year was declining, and that happy season -had returned in which people once more begin to dine by artificial -light; and at the same time it was not absolutely dark in the -drawing-room, so that Lucilla had not, as she said, thought it necessary -to have the candles lighted. "If there should happen to be a mistake as -to who is to take down who, it will only be all the more amusing," said -Miss Marjoribanks, "so long as you do not go off and leave _me_." This -was addressed to the Archdeacon, to whom Lucilla was very particular in -her attentions at that moment. Mrs Chiley, who was looking on with a -great sense of depression, could not help wondering why--"When she knows -he is engaged and everything settled," the old lady said to herself, -with natural indignation. For her part, she did not see what right a man -had to introduce himself thus under false pretences into the confiding -bosom of society--when he was as bad as married, or even indeed worse. -She was ruffled, and she did not think it worth while to conceal that -she was so; for there are limits to human patience, and a visitor who -stays six weeks ought at least to have confidence in his entertainers. -Mrs Chiley for once in her life could have boxed Lucilla's ears for her -uncalled-for civility. "I think it very strange that it is not the -General who takes her downstairs," she said to Mrs Centum. "It is all -very well to have a respect for clergymen; but after being here so -often, and the General quite a stranger--I am surprised at Lucilla," -said the indiscreet old lady. As for Mrs Centum, she felt the neglect, -but she had too much proper pride to own that her man was not receiving -due attention. "It is not the first time General Travers has been here," -she said, reserving the question; and so in the uncertain light, when -nobody was sure who was his neighbour, the procession filed downstairs. - -To enter the dining-room, all brilliant and shining as it was, radiant -with light and flowers and crystal and silver, and everything that makes -a dinner-table pretty to look upon, was, as Mrs Centum said, "quite a -contrast." A close observer might have remarked, as Mrs Woodburn and -Lucilla took their places, that both of them, instead of that flush -which had been so noticeable a short time before, had become quite pale. -It was the moment of trial. Poor Mr Cavendish, in his excitement, had -taken just the place he ought not to have taken, immediately under the -lamp at the centre of the table. During the moment when the unsuspecting -Archdeacon said grace with his eyes decorously cast down, Miss -Marjoribanks owned the ordinary weakness of humanity so much as to drop -her fan and her handkerchief, and even the napkin which was arranged in -a symmetrical pyramid on her plate. Such a sign of human feebleness -could but endear her to everybody who was aware of the momentous -character of the crisis. When these were all happily recovered and -everybody seated, Lucilla kept her eyes fixed upon the Archdeacon's -face. It was, as we have said, a terrible moment. When he raised his -head and looked round him, naturally Mr Beverley's eyes went direct to -the mark like an arrow; he looked, and he saw at the centre of the -table, surrounded by every kind of regard and consideration, full in the -light of the lamp, his favourite adventurer, the impostor whom he had -denounced the first time he took his place by Miss Marjoribanks's side. -The Archdeacon rose to his feet in the excitement of the discovery; he -put his hand over his eyes as if to clear them. He said, "Good God!" -loud out, with an accent of horror which paralysed the two people lower -down than himself. As for Miss Marjoribanks, she was not paralysed--she -who had not lost a single glance of his eyes or movement of his large -person. Lucilla rose to the height of the position. She put her hand -upon his arm sharply, and with a certain energy. "Mr Beverley, Thomas is -behind you with the soup," said Miss Marjoribanks. The Archdeacon turned -round to see what it was, conscious that somebody had spoken to him, but -as indifferent to his companion and to civility as he was to Thomas and -the soup. "What?" he said hoarsely, interrupting his scrutiny for the -moment. But when he had met Miss Marjoribanks's eye the Archdeacon sat -down. Lucilla did not liberate him for a moment from that gaze. She -fixed her eyes upon his eyes, and looked at him as people only look when -they mean something. "If you tell me what surprised you so much, perhaps -I can explain," said Miss Marjoribanks. She spoke so that nobody could -hear but himself; and in the meantime General Travers at her left hand -was making himself excessively agreeable to Mrs Woodburn, and no doubt -occupying all her attention; and Lucilla never turned her eyes for a -moment from the Archdeacon's face. - -"I beg your pardon," said Mr Beverley. "I was confounded by what I saw. -Good heavens! it is not possible I can deceive myself. I understand your -alarm. I am not going to make a disturbance and break up your party. I -can wait," the Archdeacon said, drawing a rapid forcible breath. "Miss -Marjoribanks, do you know who that man is?" - -"Oh, yes," said Lucilla, softening into a smile. "Perfectly, I assure -you. He is one of papa's guests, and very much respected in Carlingford; -and he is one of my--very particular friends," Miss Marjoribanks added. -She laughed as she spoke, a kind of laugh which is only appropriate to -one subject, and which is as good, any day, as a confession; and the -flush was so obliging as to return at that moment to her ingenuous -countenance. "We have known each other a long time," Lucilla went on -after that pretty pause; and then she raised her confiding eyes, which -had been cast down, once more to the Archdeacon's face. "You can't think -how nice he is, Mr Beverley," said Miss Marjoribanks. She clasped her -hands together, just for a moment, as she did so, with an eloquent -meaning which it was impossible to mistake. The Archdeacon, for his -part, gazed at her like a man in a dream. Whether it was true--or -whether he was being made a fool of more completely than ever man before -was--or whether he was the victim of an optical or some other kind of -delusion,--the poor man could not tell. He was utterly stricken dumb, -and did not know what to say. He accepted the soup humbly, which Thomas -set before him, though it was a white soup, an effeminate dish, which -went utterly in the face of his principles. And then he looked at the -innocent young creature at his side in that flutter of happy confusion. -It was a terrible position for the Broad-Churchman. After such a tacit -confession he could not spring from his seat and hurl the impostor out -of the room, as in the first place he had a mind to do. On the contrary, -it was with a voice trembling with emotion that he spoke. - -"My dear Miss Marjoribanks," said the Archdeacon, "I am struck dumb by -what you tell me. Good heavens! that it should have come to this; and -yet I should be neglecting my duty if I kept silent. You do not--you -cannot know who he is." - -"Oh, yes," said Lucilla, with another little laugh--"_everything_--and -how he used to know Mrs Mortimer, and all about it. He has no secrets -from me," said Miss Marjoribanks. She caught Mr Cavendish's eye at the -moment, who was casting a stealthy glance in her direction, and who -looked cowed and silenced and unquiet to the most miserable degree; and -she gave him a little reassuring nod, which the Archdeacon watched with -an inward groan. What was he to do? He could not publicly expose the man -who had just received this mark of confidence from his young hostess, -who knew everything. Perhaps it was one of the greatest trials of -Christian patience and fortitude which the Archdeacon, who was not -great, as he himself would have said, in the passive virtues, had -undergone in all the course of his life. He was so utterly subdued and -confounded that he ate his soup, and never found out what kind of soup -it was. That is, he consumed it in large spoonfuls without being aware, -by way of occupying his energies and filling up the time. - -"You cannot mean it," he said, after a pause. "You must be imperfectly -informed. At least let me talk to your father. You must hear all the -rights of the story. If you will let me speak half a dozen words to--to -that person, Miss Marjoribanks, I am sure he will leave the place; he -will give up any claim----" - -"Oh, yes, please talk to him," said Miss Marjoribanks, "it will be so -nice to see you friends. Nothing would make me so happy. You know I have -heard all about it from you and from Mrs Mortimer already, so I am sure -there cannot be much more to tell; and as for papa, he is very fond of -Mr Cavendish," said Lucilla, with an imperceptible elevation of her -voice. - -"Is it _he_ whom you call Mr Cavendish?" said the Archdeacon. He too had -raised his voice without knowing it, and several people looked up, who -were not at the moment engaged in active conversation of their own. The -owner of that name, for his part, also turned his face towards the upper -end of the table. He was sick of the suspense and continued endurance, -and by this time was ready to rush upon his fate. - -"Did any one call me?" he said; and there was a little pause, and the -company in general fixed its regard upon those three people with a sense -that something remarkable was going on among them, though it could not -tell what or why. - -"The Archdeacon wants to make your acquaintance," said Miss -Marjoribanks. "Mr Cavendish--Mr Beverley. There, you know each other; -and when we are gone you can talk to each other if you like," Lucilla -added; "but in the meantime _you_ are too far off, and _I_ want the -Archdeacon. He is _so_ much liked in Carlingford," she continued, -lowering her voice. "You can't think how glad we are to have him back -again. I am sure if you only knew him better----" said Miss -Marjoribanks. As for the Archdeacon, words could not give any idea of -the state of his mind. He ate his dinner sternly after that, and did not -look at anything but his plate. He consumed the most exquisite _plats_, -the tenderest wings of chicken and morsels of _paté_, as if they had -been his personal enemies. For, to tell the truth, he felt the tables -altogether turned upon him, and was confounded, and did not know what it -could mean. - -It was the General who took up Mr Beverley's abandoned place in the -conversation. The gallant soldier talked for two with the best will in -the world. He talked of Cavendish, and all the pleasant hours they had -spent together, and what a good fellow he was, and how much the men in -the club would be amused to hear of his domesticity. It was a kind of -talk very natural to a man who found himself placed at table between his -friend's sister, and, as he supposed, his friend's future bride. And -naturally the Archdeacon got all the benefit. As for Lucilla, she -received it with the most perfect grace in the world and saw all the -delicate points of the General's wit, and appreciated him so thoroughly, -that he felt half inclined to envy Cavendish. "By Jove! he is the -luckiest fellow I know," General Travers said; and probably it was the -charms of his intelligent and animated conversation that kept the ladies -so long at table. Mrs Chiley, for her part, did not know what to make of -it. She said afterwards that she kept looking at Lucilla until she was -really quite ashamed; and though she was at the other end of the table, -she could see that the poor dear did not enjoy her dinner. It happened, -too, that when they did move at last, the drawing-room was fuller than -usual. Everybody had come that evening--Sir John, and some others of the -county people, who only came now and then, and without any exception -_everybody_ in Carlingford. And Lucilla certainly was not herself for -the first half-hour. She kept close to the door, and regarded the -staircase with an anxious countenance. When she was herself at the helm -of affairs, there was a certain security that everything would go on -tolerably--but nobody could tell what a set of men left to themselves -might or might not do. This was the most dreadful moment of the evening. -Mrs Mortimer was in the drawing-room, hidden away under the curtains of -a window, knowing nobody, speaking to nobody, and in a state of mind to -commit suicide with pleasure; but Miss Marjoribanks, though she had -cajoled her into that martyrdom, took no notice of Mrs Mortimer. She was -civil, it is true, to her other guests, but there could not be a doubt -that Lucilla was horribly preoccupied, and in a state of mind quite -unusual to her. "I am sure she is not well," Mrs Chiley said, who was -watching her from afar. "I saw that she did not eat any dinner"--and the -kind old lady got up slowly and extricated herself from the crowd, and -put herself in motion as best she could, to go to her young friend's -aid. - -It was at this moment that Lucilla turned round radiant upon the -observant assembly. The change occurred in less than a moment, so -suddenly that nobody saw the actual point of revolution. Miss -Marjoribanks turned round upon the company and took Mr Cavendish's arm, -who had just come upstairs. "There is a very, very old friend of yours -in the corner who wants to see you," said Lucilla; and she led him -across the room as a conqueror might have led a captive. She took him -through the crowd, to whom she dispensed on every side her most gracious -glances. "I am coming directly," Miss Marjoribanks said--for naturally -she was called on all sides. What most people remarked at this moment -was, that the Archdeacon, who had also come in with the other gentlemen, -was standing very sullen and lowering at the door, watching that -triumphal progress. And it certainly was not Lucilla's fault if Mrs -Chiley and Lady Richmond, and a few other ladies, were thus led to form -a false idea of the state of affairs. "I suppose it is all right between -them at last," Lady Richmond said, not thinking that Barbara Lake was -standing by and heard her. According to appearances, it was all -perfectly right between them. Miss Marjoribanks, triumphant, led Mr -Cavendish all the length of the room to the corner where the widow sat -among the curtains, and the Archdeacon looked on with a visible passion, -and jealous rage, which were highly improper in a clergyman, but yet -which were exciting to see. And this was how the little drama was to -conclude, according to Lady Richmond and Mrs Chiley, who, on the whole, -were satisfied with the conclusion. But, naturally, there were other -people to be consulted. There was Mr Beverley, whom Miss Marjoribanks -held in leash, but who was not yet subdued; and there was Dr -Marjoribanks, who began to feel a little curiosity about his daughter's -movements, and did not make them out; and there was Barbara Lake, who -had begun to blaze like a tempest with her crimson cheeks and black -bold eyes. But by this time Lucilla was herself again, and felt the -reins in her hands. When she had deposited Mr Cavendish in safety, she -faced round upon the malcontents and upon the observers, and on the -world in general. Now that her mind was at rest, and everything under -her own inspection, she felt herself ready and able for all. - - - - -_Chapter XXXIII_ - - -The Archdeacon stood before the fireplace with Dr Marjoribanks and a -host of other gentlemen. Mr Beverley's countenance was covered with -clouds and darkness. He stood, not with the careless ease of a man -amusing himself, but drawn up to his full height and breadth, a -formidably muscular Christian, in a state of repression and restraint, -which it was painful, and at the same time pleasing to see. The -Berserker madness was upon him; and yet such are the restraints of -society, that a young woman's eye was enough to keep him down--Lucilla's -eye, and the presence of a certain number of other frivolous creatures -in white muslin, and of some old women, as he irreverently called them, -who were less pleasant, but not more imposing. He was an Archdeacon, and -a leading man of his party, whose name alone would have conferred -importance upon any "movement," and whom his bishop himself--not to -speak of the clergy whom he charged in his visitation addresses like a -regiment of cavalry--stood a little in awe of. Yet such are the -beneficial restraints of society, that he dared not follow his natural -impulses, nor even do what he felt to be his duty, for fear of Miss -Marjoribanks, which was about the highest testimony to the value of -social influence that could be given. At the same time, it was but -natural that under such circumstances the Archdeacon should feel a -certain savage wrath at the bond that confined him, and be more -indignant than usual at the false and tyrannical conventionalism called -society. And it was at this moment, of all times in the world, that -General Travers, like a half-educated brute as (according to Mr -Beverley's ideas) he was, took the liberty of calling his attention to -what the soldier called "a lot of pretty girls." "And everything -admirably got up, by Jove!" he added; not having the remotest idea what -effect so simple an observation might produce. - -"Yes, it is admirably got up," said the Archdeacon, with a snarl of -concealed ferocity. "You never said anything more profoundly true. It is -all got up, the women, and the decorations, and the gaiety, and all this -specious seeming. And these are creatures made in the image of God!" -said the Broad-Churchman--"the future wives and mothers of England. It -is enough to make the devils laugh and the angels weep!" - -It may be supposed that everybody was stricken with utter amazement by -this unlooked-for remark. Dr Marjoribanks, for his part, took a pinch of -snuff, which, as a general rule, he only did at consultations, or in the -face of a difficulty; and as for the unlucky soldier who had called it -forth, there can be no doubt that a certain terror filled his manly -bosom; for he naturally felt as if he must have said something -extraordinary to call forth such a response. - -"I never was accused before of saying anything profoundly true," the -General said, and he grew pale. "I didn't mean it, I'm sure, if that is -any justification. Where has Cavendish vanished to, I wonder?" the -soldier added, looking round him, scared and nervous--for it was evident -that his only policy was to escape from society in which he was thus -liable to commit himself without knowing how. - -"Female education is a monstrous mistake," said Mr Beverley--"always has -been, and, so far as I can see, always will be. Why should we do our -best to make our women idiots? They are bad enough by nature. Instead of -counterbalancing their native frivolity by some real instruction----good -heavens!" The critic paused. It was not that his emotions were too much -for him; it was because the crowd opened a moment, and afforded him a -glimpse of a figure in black silk, with the lace for which Miss -Marjoribanks had stipulated falling softly over a head which had not -quite lost its youthful grace. He gave a glance round him to see if the -coast was clear. Lucilla was out of the way at the other end of the -room, and he was free. He made but one stride through the unconscious -assembly which he had been criticising so severely, and all but knocked -down little Rose Lake, who was not looking at the Archdeacon, though she -stood straight in his way. He might have stepped over her head without -knowing it, so much was he moved. All the gay crowd gave way before him -with a cry and flutter; and Lucilla, for her part, was out of the way! - -But there are moments when to be out of the way is the highest proof of -genius. Miss Marjoribanks had just had a cup of tea brought her, of -which she had great need, and her face was turned in the other -direction, but yet she was aware that the Archdeacon had passed like a -Berserker through those ranks which were not the ranks of his enemies. -She felt without seeing it that the "wind of his going" agitated his own -large coat tails and heavy locks, and made a perfect hurricane among the -white muslin. Lucilla's heart beat quicker, and she put down her tea, -though she had so much need of it. She could not swallow the cordial at -such a moment of excitement. But she never once turned her head, nor -left off her conversation, nor betrayed the anxiety she felt. Up to this -time she had managed everything herself, which was comparatively easy; -but she felt by instinct that now was the moment to make a high effort -and leave things alone. And it may be added that nothing but an inherent -sense of doing the right thing under the circumstances could have -inspired Miss Marjoribanks to the crowning achievement of keeping out of -the way. - -When Mr Beverley arrived in front of the two people who were seated -together in the recess of the window, he made no assault upon them, as -his manner might have suggested. On the contrary, he placed himself in -front of them, with his back to the company, creating thus a most -effectual moral and physical barrier between the little nook where his -own private vengeance and fate were about to be enacted, and the -conventional world which he had just been denouncing. The Archdeacon -shut the two culprits off from all succour, and looked down upon them, -casting them into profound shade. "I don't know what combination of -circumstances has produced this meeting," he said, "but the time was -ripe for it, and I am glad it has happened," and it was with dry lips -and the calmness of passion that he spoke. - -Mrs Mortimer gave a little cry of terror, but her companion, for his -part, sat quite dumb and immovable. The moment had arrived at last, and -perhaps he too was glad it had come. He sat still, expecting to see the -earth crumble under his feet, expecting to hear the humble name he had -once borne proclaimed aloud, and to hear ridicule and shame poured upon -the impostor who had called himself one of the Cavendishes. But it was -no use struggling any longer. He did not even raise his eyes, but sat -still, waiting for the thunderbolt to fall. - -But to tell the truth, the Archdeacon, though a torrent of words came -rushing to his lips, felt at a difficulty how to begin. "I don't -understand how it is that I find you here with the man who has ruined -your prospects," he said, with a slight incoherence; and then he changed -the direction of his attack. "But it is you with whom I have to do," he -said; "you, sir, who venture to introduce yourself into society -with--with your victim by your side. Do you not understand that -compassion is impossible in such a case, and that it is my duty to -expose you? You have told some plausible story here, I suppose, but -nothing can stand against the facts. It is my duty to inform Dr -Marjoribanks that it is a criminal who has stolen into his house and his -confidence--that it is a conspirator who has ventured to approach his -daughter--that it is----" - -"A criminal? a conspirator?" said Mr Cavendish, and he looked in his -accuser's face with an amazement which, notwithstanding his rage, struck -the Archdeacon. If he had called him an impostor, the culprit would have -quailed and made no reply. But the exaggeration saved him. After that -first look of surprise, he rose to his feet and confronted the avenger, -who saw he had made a blunder without knowing what it was. "You must be -under some strange mistake," he said. "What do you accuse me of? I know -nothing about crime or conspiracy. Either you are strangely mistaken, or -you have forgotten what the words mean." - -"They are words which I mean to prove," said the Archdeacon; but there -can be no doubt that his certainty was diminished by the surprise with -which his accusation was received. It checked his first heat, and it was -with a slightly artificial excitement that he went on, trying to work -himself up again to the same point. "You who worked yourself into a -wretched old man's confidence, and robbed an unoffending woman," said Mr -Beverley; and then in spite of himself he stopped short; for it was -easier to say such things to a woman, who contradicted without giving -much reason, than to a man who, with an air of the utmost astonishment, -stood regarding his accuser in the face. - -"These are very extraordinary accusations," said Mr Cavendish. "Have you -ever considered whether you had any proof to support them?" He was not -angry to speak of, because he had been entirely taken by surprise, and -because at the same time he was unspeakably relieved, and felt that the -real danger, the danger which he had so much dreaded, was past and over. -He recovered all his coolness from the moment he found out that it was -not a venial imposition practised upon society, but a social crime of -the ugliest character, of which he was accused. He was innocent, and he -could be tranquil on that score. "As for robbing Mrs Mortimer," he added -with a little impatience, "she knows, on the contrary, that I have -always been most anxious and ready to befriend her----" - -"To befriend----Her!" cried the Archdeacon, restored to all his first -impetuosity. He could not swear, because it was against his cloth and -his principles; but he said, "Good heavens!" in a tone which would have -perfectly become a much less mild expletive. "It is better we should -understand each other thoroughly," he said. "I am not in a humour for -trifling. I consider it is _her_ fortune which enables you to make an -appearance here. It is _her_ money you are living upon, and which gives -you position, and makes you presume as--as you are doing--upon my -forbearance. Do you think it possible that I can pass over all this and -let you keep what is not yours? If you choose to give up everything, and -retire from Carlingford, and withdraw all your pretensions----It is not -for my part," said Mr Beverley, with solemnity, taking breath, "to deal -harshly with a penitent sinner. It is my duty, as a clergyman, to offer -you at least a place of repentance. After _that_----" - -But he was interrupted once more. Mrs Mortimer made her faint voice -heard in a remonstrance. "Oh, Charles, I always told you--I had no right -to anything!" cried the terrified widow; but that was not what stopped -the Archdeacon. It was because his adversary laughed that he stopped -short. No doubt it was the metallic laugh of a man in great agitation, -but still Mr Beverley's ear was not fine enough at that moment to -discriminate. He paused as a man naturally pauses at the sound of -ridicule, still furious, yet abashed, and half conscious of a ludicrous -aspect to his passion--and turned his full face to his antagonist, and -stood at bay. - -"It is a modest request, certainly," Mr Cavendish said. "Give up all I -have and all I am, and perhaps you will forgive me! You must think me a -fool to make such a proposal; but look here," said the accused -energetically; "I will tell you the true state of affairs, if for once -you will listen. I do it, not for my sake, nor for your sake, but for -the sake of--of the women involved," he added hastily; and it was well -for him that, instead of looking at the shrinking widow beside him as he -said so, his eye had been caught by the eager eye of his sister, who was -watching from her corner. With that stimulus he went on, calming himself -down, and somehow subduing and imposing upon the angry man by the mere -act of encountering him fairly and openly. "I will tell you what are the -actual circumstances, and you can see the will itself if you will take -the trouble," said the defendant, with a nervous moderation and -self-restraint, in which there was also a certain thrill of indignation. -"The old man you speak of might have left his money to a more worthy -person than myself, but he never meant to leave it to his grand-niece; -and she knew that. She was neither his companion nor his nurse. There -was nothing between them but a few drops of blood. For my part, I gave -him----but, to be sure, it would not interest you to know how I spent my -youth. You came upon the scene like--a man in a passion," Mr Cavendish -said, with an abrupt laugh, which this time was more feeble, and proved -that his composure was giving way, "and misjudged everything, as was -natural. You are doing the same again, or trying to do it. But you are a -clergyman, and when you insult a man----" - -"I am ready to give him satisfaction," said the Broad-Churchman hotly; -and then he made a pause, and that sense of ridicule which is latent in -every Englishman's mind, came to the Archdeacon's aid. He began to feel -ashamed of himself, and at the same time his eye caught his own -reflection in a mirror, and the clerical coat which contrasted so -grotesquely with his offer of "satisfaction." Mr Beverley started a -little, and changed his tone. "This has lasted long enough," he said, in -his abrupt imperious way. "_This_ is not the place nor the time for such -a discussion. We shall meet elsewhere," the Archdeacon added austerely, -with a significance which it is impossible to describe. His air and his -words were full of severe and hostile meaning, and yet he did not know -what he meant any more than Mr Cavendish did, who took him at his word, -and retired, and made an end of the interview. Whatever the Archdeacon -meant, it was his adversary who was the victor. _He_ went off, threading -his way through the curious spectators with a sense of relief that -almost went the length of ecstasy. He might have been walking on his -head for anything he knew. His senses were all lost and swallowed up in -the overwhelming and incredible consciousness of safety. Where were they -to meet elsewhere? With pistols in a corner of Carlingford Common, or -perhaps with their fists alone, as Mr Beverley was Broad-Church? When a -man has been near ruin and has escaped by a hair-breadth, he may be -permitted to be out of his wits for a few minutes afterwards. And the -idea of fighting a duel with a dignitary of the Church so tickled Mr -Cavendish, that he had not the prudence to keep it to himself. "You will -stand by me if he calls me out?" he said to General Travers as he -passed; and the air of utter consternation with which the warrior -regarded him, drove Mr Cavendish into such agonies of laughter, that he -had to retire to the landing-place and suffocate himself to subdue it. -If any man had said to him that he was hysterical, the chances are that -it was he who would have called that man out, or at least knocked him -down. But he had to steal downstairs afterwards and apply to Thomas for -a cordial more potent than tea; for naturally, when a man has been -hanging over an abyss for ever so long, it is no great wonder if he -loses his head and balance when he suddenly finds himself standing on -firm ground, and feels that he has escaped. - -As for the Archdeacon, when the other was gone, he sat down silently on -his abandoned chair. He was one of the men who take pride in seeing both -sides of a question; and to tell the truth, he was always very candid -about disputed points in theology, and ready to entertain everybody's -objection; but it was a different thing when the matter was a matter of -fact. He put down his face into his hands, and tried to think whether it -was possible that what he had just heard might be the true state of the -case. To be sure, the widow who was seated half fainting by his side had -given him the same account often enough, but somehow it was more -effective from the lips of a man who confronted him than from the mild -and weeping woman whom he loved better than anything else in the world, -but whose opinion on any earthly (or heavenly) subject had not the -weight of a straw upon him. He tried to take that view of it; and then -it occurred to him that nothing was more ludicrous and miserable than -the position of a man who goes to law without adequate reason, or -without proof to maintain his cause. Such a horrible divergence from -everything that was just and right might be, as that the well-known and -highly-esteemed Archdeacon Beverley might be held up for the amusement -and edification of the country in a _Times_ leader, which was a -martyrdom the Archdeacon would have rather liked than otherwise in a -worthy cause, but not for a wretched private business connected with -money. He sighed as he pondered, feeling, as so many have felt, the -difficulties which attend a good man's progress in this life--how that -which is just is not always that which is expedient, and how the -righteous have to submit to many inconveniences in order that the -adversary may have no occasion to blaspheme. In this state of mind a man -naturally softens towards a tender and wistful sympathiser close at -hand. He sighed once more heavily, and lifted his head, and took into -his own a soft pale hand which was visible near him among the folds of -black silk. - -"So you too have been brought into it, Helen," the Archdeacon said -pathetically; "I did not expect to see you here." - -"It was Lucilla," said Mrs Mortimer timidly; "it was not any wish of -mine. Oh, Charles! if you would let me speak. If you will but forget all -this, and think no more about it; and I will do my best to make you -a----" Here the poor woman stopped short all at once. What she meant to -have said was, that she would make him a good wife, which nature and -truth and the circumstances all prompted her to say--as the only -possible solution to the puzzle. But when she had got so far, the poor -widow stopped, blushing and tingling all over, with a sense of shame, -more overwhelming than if she had done a wicked action. It was nothing -but pure honesty and affection that prompted her to speak; and yet, if -it had been the vilest sentiment in human nature, she would not have -been so utterly ashamed. "That was not what I meant to say!" she cried, -with sharp and sudden wretchedness; and was not the least ashamed of -telling a downright lie instead. - -But, to tell the truth, the Archdeacon was paying no particular -attention. He had never loved any other woman; but he was a little -indifferent as to what innocent nonsense she might please to say. So -that her confusion and misery, and even the half offer of herself which -occasioned these feelings, were lost upon him. He kept her hand and -caressed it in the midst of his own thoughts, as if it was a child's -head he was patting. "My poor Helen," he said, coming back to her when -he found she had stopped speaking, "I don't see why you should not -come, if this sort of thing is any pleasure to you; but afterwards----" -he said reflectively. He went to that sort of thing often himself, and -rather liked it, and did not think of any afterwards; but perhaps the -case of a weak woman was different, or perhaps it was only that he -happened to be after his downfall in a pathetic and reflective state of -mind. - -"Afterwards?" said Mrs Mortimer. She did not take the word in any -religious or philosophical, but in its merest matter-of-fact meaning, -and she was sadly hurt and wounded to see that he had not even noticed -what she said, much as she had been ashamed of saying it. She drew away -her hand with a quick movement of despite and mortification, which -filled Mr Beverley with surprise. "Afterwards I shall go back to my -little house and my school, and shut myself in, and never, never come -back again, you may be sure," said the widow, with a rush of tears to -her eyes. Why they did not fall, or how she kept herself from -fainting--she who fainted so easily--she never, on reviewing the -circumstances, could tell; and Miss Marjoribanks always attributed it to -the fact that _she_ was absent, and there was no eau-de-Cologne on the -table. But whatever the cause might be, Mrs Mortimer did not faint; and -perhaps there never was anything so like despair and bitterness as at -that moment in her mild little feminine soul. - -"Never come back again?" said the Archdeacon, rousing up a little; and -then he put out his large hand and took back the other, as if it had -been a pencil or a book that he had lost. All this, let it be known, was -well in the shadow, and could not be seen by the world in general to -teach the young people a bad lesson. "Why should not you come back? I am -going away too," said Mr Beverley; and he stopped short, and resisted -the effort his prisoner made to withdraw. Oddly enough at that moment -his Rectory rose suddenly before him as in a vision--his Rectory, all -handsome and sombre, without a soul in it, room after room uninhabited, -and not a sound to be heard, except that of his own foot or his -servant's. It was curious what connection there could be between that -and the garden, with its four walls, and the tiny cottage covered with -wistaria. Such as it was, it moved the Archdeacon to a singular, and, -considering the place and moment, rather indecorous proceeding. Instead -of contenting himself with the resisting hand, he drew the widow's arm -within his as they sat together. "I'll tell you what we must do, -Helen," he said confidentially--"we must go back to Basing together, you -and I. I don't see the good of leaving you by yourself here. You can -make what alterations you like when you get to the Rectory; and I shall -let that--that person alone, if you wish it, with his ill-gotten gear. -He will never come to any good," said the Archdeacon, with some -satisfaction; and then he added in a parenthesis, as if she had -expressed some ridiculous doubt on the subject, "Of course I mean that -we should be married before we go away." It was in this rapid and -summary manner that the whole business was settled. Naturally his -companion had nothing to say against such a reasonable arrangement. She -had never contradicted him in her life about anything but one thing; and -that being set aside, there was no possible reason why she should begin -now. - - - - -_Chapter XXXIV_ - - -This was how the crisis came to an end, which had been of so much -interest to the parties immediately affected. Mrs Woodburn had one of -her nervous attacks next morning, and was very ill, and alarmed Dr -Marjoribanks; but at her very worst moment the incorrigible mimic -convulsed her anxious medical adviser and all her attendants by a sudden -adoption of the character of Mrs Mortimer, whom she must have made a -careful study of the previous night. "Tell him to tell him to go -downstairs," cried the half-dead patient; "I want to speak to him, and -he is not to hear;--if he were not so thoughtless, he would offer him -some lunch at least," Mrs Woodburn said pathetically, with closed eyes -and a face as pale as death. "She never did anything better in her -life," Dr Marjoribanks said afterwards; and Mr Woodburn, who was fond of -his wife in his way, and had been crying over her, burst into such an -explosion of laughter that all the servants were scandalised. And the -patient improved from that moment. She was perfectly well and in the -fullest force a week afterwards, when she came to see Lucilla, who had -also been slightly indisposed for a day or two. When Thomas had shut the -door, and the two were quite alone, Mrs Woodburn hugged Miss -Marjoribanks with a fervour which up to that moment she had never -exhibited. "It was only necessary that we should get into full sympathy -with each other as human creatures," she said, lifting her finger like -the Archdeacon; and for all the rest of that autumn and winter Mrs -Woodburn kept society in Carlingford in a state of inextinguishable -laughter. The odd thing was that Miss Marjoribanks, who had been one of -her favourite characters, disappeared almost entirely from her -repertory. Not quite altogether, because there were moments of supreme -temptation which the mimic could not resist; but as a general rule -Lucilla was the only woman in Carlingford who escaped the universal -critic. No sort of acknowledgment passed between them of the obligations -one had to the other, and, what was still more remarkable, no discussion -of the terrible evening when Lucilla had held the Archdeacon with her -eye, and prevented the volcano from exploding. Perhaps Mrs Woodburn, for -her part, would have been pleased to have had such an explanation, but -Miss Marjoribanks knew better. She knew it was best not to enter upon -confidences which neither could ever forget, and which might prevent -them meeting with ease in the midst of the little world which knew -nothing about it. What Lucilla knew, she knew, and could keep to -herself; but she felt at the same time that it was best to have no -expansions on the subject. She kept it all to herself, and made the -arrangements for Mrs Mortimer's marriage, and took charge of everything. -Everybody said that nothing could be more perfect than the bride's -toilette, which was as nice as could be, and yet not like a _real_ bride -after all; a difference which was only proper under the circumstances; -for she was married in lavender, poor soul, as was to be expected. "You -have not gone off the least bit in the world, and it is quite a pleasure -to see you," Lucilla said, as she kissed her _that_ morning--and -naturally all Carlingford knew that it was owing to her goodness that -the widow had been taken care of and provided for, and saved up for the -Archdeacon. Miss Marjoribanks, in short, presided over the ceremony as -if she had been Mrs Mortimer's mother, and superintended the wedding -breakfast, and made herself agreeable to everybody. And in the meantime, -before the marriage took place, most people in Carlingford availed -themselves of the opportunity of calling on Mrs Mortimer. "If she should -happen to be the future bishop's lady, and none of us ever to have -taken any notice of her," somebody said, with natural dismay. Lucilla -did not discourage the practical result of this suggestion, but she felt -an instinctive certainty in her mind that _now_ Mr Beverley would never -be bishop of Carlingford, and indeed that the chances were Carlingford -would never be elevated into a bishopric at all. - -It was not until after the marriage that Mr Cavendish went away. To be -sure, he was not absolutely present at the ceremony, but there can be no -doubt that the magnificent _parure_ which Mrs Mortimer received the -evening before her marriage, "from an old friend," which made -everybody's mouth water, and which she herself contemplated with mingled -admiration and dismay, was sent by Mr Cavendish. "Do you think it could -be from _him_; or only from him?" the bride said, bewildered and -bewildering. "I am sure he might have known I never should require -anything so splendid." But Lucilla, for her part, had no doubt whatever -on the subject; and the perfect good taste of the offering made Miss -Marjoribanks sigh, thinking once more how much that was admirable was -wasted by the fatal obstacle which prevented Mr Cavendish from aspiring -to anybody higher than Barbara Lake. As for the Archdeacon, he too found -it very easy to satisfy his mind as to the donor of the emeralds. He put -them away from him severely, and did not condescend to throw a second -glance at their deceitful splendour. "Women are curiously constituted," -said Mr Beverley, who was still at the height of superiority, though he -was a bridegroom. "I suppose those sort of things give them -pleasure--things which neither satisfy the body nor delight the soul." - -"If it had been something to eat, would it have pleased you better?" -said Lucilla, moved for once in her life to be impertinent, like an -ordinary girl. For really when a man showed himself so idiotic as to -despise a beautiful set of emeralds, it went beyond even the well-known -tolerance and compassionate good-humour with which Miss Marjoribanks -regarded the vagaries of "the gentlemen." There is a limit in all -things, and this was going too far. - -"I said, to satisfy the body, Miss Marjoribanks," said the Archdeacon, -"which is an office very temporarily and inadequately performed by -something to eat. I prefer the welfare of my fellow-creatures to a few -glittering stones--even when they are round Her neck," Mr Beverley -added, with a little concession to the circumstances. "Jewellery is -robbery in a great town where there is always so much to be done, and so -little means of doing it; to secure health to the people, and -education----" - -"Yes," said Miss Marjoribanks, who knew in her heart that the Archdeacon -was afraid of her. "It is so nice of you not to say any of those -dreadful sanitary words--and I am sure you could make something very -nasty and disagreeable with that diamond of yours. It is a beautiful -diamond; if I were Helen I should make you give it me," said Lucilla -sweetly; and the Archdeacon was so much frightened by the threat that he -turned his ring instinctively, and quenched the glitter of the diamond -in his closed hand. - -"It was a present," he said hastily, and went away to seek some better -occupation than tilting with the womankind, who naturally had possession -of the bride's little house and everything in it at that interesting -moment. It was the last evening of Lucilla's reign, and she was disposed -to take the full good of it. And though Mrs Mortimer's trousseau was -modest, and not, as Lydia Brown repeated, like that of a _real_ bride, -it was still voluminous enough to fill the room to overflowing, where it -was all being sorted and packed under Miss Marjoribanks's eye. - -"It is a very nice diamond indeed," said Lucilla; "if I were you I would -certainly make him give it to me--rings are no good to a gentleman. They -never have nice hands, you know--though indeed when they have nice -hands," said Miss Marjoribanks reflectively, "it is a great deal worse, -for they keep always thrusting them under your very eyes. It is curious -why They should be so vain. They talk of women!" Lucilla added, with -natural derision; "but, my dear, if I were you I would make him give it -me; a nice diamond is always a nice thing to have." - -"Lucilla," said the widow, "I am sure I don't know how to thank you for -all you have done for me; but, dear, if you please, I would not talk -like that! The gentlemen laugh, but I am sure they don't like it all the -same;" for indeed the bride thought it her duty, having won the prize in -her own person, to point out to her young friend how, to attain the same -end, she ought to behave. - -Miss Marjoribanks did not laugh, for her sense of humour, as has been -said, was not strong, but she kissed her friend with protecting -tenderness. "My dear, if that had been what I was thinking of I need -never have come home," said Lucilla; and her superiority was so calm -and serene, that Mrs Mortimer felt entirely ashamed of herself for -making the suggestion. The widow was simple-minded, and, like most other -women, it gratified her to believe that here and there, as in Miss -Marjoribanks's case, there existed one who was utterly indifferent to -the gentlemen, and did not care whether they were pleased or not; which -restored a little the balance of the world to the widow-bride, who felt -with shame that she cared a great deal, and was quite incapable of such -virtue. As for Lucilla herself, she was not at that moment in conscious -enjoyment of the strength of mind for which her friend gave her credit. -On the contrary, she could not help a certain sense of surprised -depression as she superintended the packing of the boxes. The man had -had it in his power to propose to her, and he was going to be married to -Mrs Mortimer! It was not that Lucilla was wounded or disappointed, but -that she felt it as a wonderful proof of the imperfection and weakness -of human nature. Even in the nineteenth century, which has learnt so -much, such a thing was possible! It filled her with a gentle sadness as -she had the things put in, and saw the emeralds safely deposited in -their resting-place. Not that she cared for the Archdeacon, who had thus -disposed of himself; but still it was a curious fact that such a thing -could be. - -Altogether it must be admitted that at this special moment Miss -Marjoribanks occupied a difficult position. She had given the Archdeacon -to understand that Mr Cavendish was a "_very_ particular friend"; and -even when the danger was past, Lucilla scorned to acknowledge her pious -prevarications. During all this interval she continued so gracious to -him that everybody was puzzled, and Mrs Woodburn even insisted on her -brother, after all, making his proposal, which would be better late than -never. - -"I am sure she is fond of you," said the softened mimic, "and that sort -of thing doesn't matter to a woman as it does to a man;" for it has been -already said that Mrs Woodburn, notwithstanding her knack of external -discrimination, had very little real knowledge of character. And even at -moments, Mr Cavendish himself, who ought to have known better, was half -tempted to believe that Lucilla meant it. The effect upon Dr -Marjoribanks was still more decided. He thought he saw in his daughter -the indications of that weakness which is sometimes so surprising in -women, and it disturbed the Doctor's serenity; and he actually tried to -snub Lucilla on sundry occasions, with that wonderful fatuity which is -common to men. - -"I hope when this marriage is over people will recover their senses. I -hear of nothing else," Dr Marjoribanks said one day at dessert, when -they were alone. He took some chestnuts as he spoke, and burned his -fingers, which did not improve his temper. "That sort of rubbish, I -suppose, is much more interesting than attending to your natural -duties," the Doctor added morosely, which was not a kind of address -which Miss Marjoribanks was used to hear. - -"Dear papa," said Lucilla, "if I attended to my duties ever so much I -could not keep you from burning your fingers. There are some things that -people _must_ do for themselves," the dutiful daughter added, with a -sigh. Nobody could doubt who knew Lucilla that she would have gladly -taken the world on her shoulders, and saved everybody from those little -misadventures; but how could she help it if people absolutely would not -take care of themselves? - -The Doctor smiled grimly, but he was not satisfied. He was, on the -contrary, furious in a quiet way. "I don't need at this time of day to -be told how clever you are, Lucilla," said her father; "and I thought -you had been superior to the ordinary folly of women----" - -"Papa, for Heaven's sake!" cried Miss Marjoribanks. She was really -alarmed this time, and she did not hesitate to let it be apparent. "I do -not mean to say that I always do precisely what I ought to do," said -Lucilla; "nobody does that I know of; but I am sure I never did anything -to deserve _that_. I never was superior, and I hope I never shall be; -and I know I never pretended to it," she said, with natural horror; for -the accusation, as everybody will perceive, was hard to bear. - -The Doctor laughed again, but with increased severity. "We understand -all that," he said. "I am not in the secret of your actions, Lucilla. I -don't know what you intend, or how far you mean to go. The only thing I -know is that I see that young fellow Cavendish a great deal oftener in -the house and about it than I care to see him; and I have had occasion -to say the same thing before. I know nothing about his means," said Dr -Marjoribanks; "his property may be in the Funds, but I think it a great -deal more likely that he speculates. I have worked hard for my money, -and I don't mean it to go in that way, Lucilla. I repeat, I am not in -the secret of your proceedings----" - -"Dear papa! as if there was any secret," said Lucilla, fixing her candid -eyes upon her father's face. "I might pretend I did not understand you -if there was anything in what you say, but I never go upon false -pretences when I can help it. I am very fond of Mr Cavendish," she -continued regretfully, after a pause. "There is nobody in Carlingford -that is so nice; but I don't see whom he can marry except Barbara Lake." -Miss Marjoribanks would have scorned to conceal the unfeigned regret -which filled her mind when she uttered these words. "I am dreadfully -sorry, but I don't see anything that can be done for him," she said, and -sighed once more. As for the Doctor, he forgot all about his chestnuts, -and sat and stared at her, thinking in his ignorance that it was a piece -of acting, and not knowing whether to be angry or to yield to the -amusement which began to rise in his breast. - -"He may marry half a dozen Barbara Lakes," said Dr Marjoribanks, "and I -don't see what reason we should have to interfere: so long as he doesn't -want to marry you----" - -"That would be impossible, papa," said Lucilla, with pensive gravity. "I -am sure I am very, very sorry. She has a very nice voice, but a man -can't marry a voice, you know; and if there was anything that I could -do----I am not sure that he ever wished for _that_ either," Miss -Marjoribanks added, with her usual candour. "It is odd, but for all that -it is true." For it was a moment of emotion, and she could not help -giving utterance to the surprise with which this consideration naturally -filled her mind. - -"What is odd, and what is true?" said Dr Marjoribanks, growing more and -more bewildered. But Lucilla only put aside her plate and got up from -her chair. - -"Not any more wine, thank you," she said. "I know you don't want me any -more, and I have so much to do. I hope you will let me invite Barbara -here when they are married, and pay her a little attention; for nobody -likes her in Grange Lane, and it would be so hard upon _him_. The more I -think of it, the more sorry I am," said Lucilla; "he deserved better, -papa; but as for me, everybody knows what is my object in life." - -Thus Miss Marjoribanks left the table, leaving her father in a singular -state of satisfaction and surprise. He did not believe a word of what -she had been saying, with that curious perversity common to the people -who surrounded Lucilla, and which arose not so much from doubt of her -veracity as from sheer excess of confidence in her powers. He thought -she had foiled him in a masterly manner, and that she was only, as -people say, amusing herself, and had no serious intentions; and he -laughed quietly to himself when she left him, in the satisfaction of -finding there was nothing in it. Miss Marjoribanks, for her part, went -on tranquilly with the arrangements for the marriage; one by one she was -disembarrassing herself from the complications which had grown round her -during the first year of her reign in Carlingford; and now only the last -links of the difficulty remained to be unrolled. - -The explanation she had with Mr Cavendish himself was in every way more -interesting. It happened pretty late one evening, when Lucilla was -returning with her maid from the widow's little cottage, which was so -soon to be deserted. She was just at that moment thinking of the -wistaria which had grown so nicely, and of all the trouble she had taken -with the garden. Nobody could tell who might come into it now, after she -had done so much for it; and Miss Marjoribanks could not but have a -momentary sense that, on the whole, it was a little ungrateful on the -part of Mrs Mortimer, when everybody had taken such pains to make her -comfortable. At this moment, indeed, Lucilla was slightly given to -moralising, though with her usual wisdom she kept her meditations to -herself. She was thinking with a momentary vexation of all the plants -that had been put into the beds, and of so much time and trouble -lost--when Mr Cavendish came up to her. It was a cold evening, and there -was nothing in common between this walk and the walk they had taken -together from Grove Street to Grange Lane on an earlier occasion. But -this time, so far from being reluctant to accompany her, Mr Cavendish -came to her side eagerly. The maid retired a little behind, and then the -two found themselves in that most perfect of all positions for mutual -confidence--a street not too crowded and noisy, all shrouded in the -darkness, and yet twinkling with the friendly lights of an autumn -evening. Nothing could have been more perfect than their isolation from -the surrounding world, if they thought proper to isolate themselves; and -yet it was always there to be taken refuge in if the confidence should -receive a check, or the mind of the chance companions change. - -"I have been trying to catch a glimpse of you for a long time," said Mr -Cavendish, after they had talked a little in the ordinary way, as -everybody was doing in Grange Lane, about the two people henceforward to -be known in Carlingford as "the Beverleys." "But you are always so busy -serving everybody. And I have a great deal to say to you that I don't -know how to say." - -"Then don't say it, please," said Lucilla. "It is a great deal better -not. It might be funny, you know; but I am not disposed to be funny -to-night. I am very glad about Mrs Mortimer, to be sure, that she is to -be settled so nicely, and that they are going to be married at last. -But, after all, when one thinks of it, it is a little vexatious. Just -when her house was all put to rights, and the garden looking so pretty, -and the school promising so well," said Lucilla; and there was a certain -aggrieved tone in her voice. - -"And it is you who have done everything for her, as for all the rest of -us," said Mr Cavendish, though he could not help laughing a little; and -then he paused, and his voice softened in the darkness by Lucilla's -side. "Do not let us talk of Mrs Mortimer," he said. "I sometimes have -something just on my lips to say, and I do not know whether I dare say -it. Miss Marjoribanks----" - -And here he came to a pause. He was fluttered and frightened, which was -what she, and not he, ought to have been. And at the bottom of his heart -he did not wish to say it, which gave far more force to his hesitation -than simply a doubt whether he might dare. Perhaps Lucilla's heart -fluttered too, with a sense that the moment which once would not have -been an unwelcome moment, had at last arrived. Her heart, it is true, -was not _very_ particularly engaged; but still she was sensible of all -Mr Cavendish's capacities, and was "very fond" of him, as she said; and -her exertions on his behalf had produced their natural effect, and moved -her affections a little. She made an involuntary pause for the hundredth -part of a minute, and reckoned it all up again, and asked herself -whether it were possible. There was something, in the first place, -becoming and suitable in the idea that she, who was the only person who -knew his secret, should take him and it together and make the best of -them. And Lucilla had the consciousness that she could indeed make a -great deal of Mr Cavendish. Nobody had ever crossed her path of whom so -much could be made; and as for any further danger of his real origin and -position being found out and exposed to the world, Miss Marjoribanks was -capable of smiling at that when the defence would be in her own hands. -She might yet accept him, and have him elected member for Carlingford, -and carry him triumphantly through all his difficulties. For a small -part--nay, even for the half of a minute--Lucilla paused, and made a -rapid review of the circumstances, and reconsidered her decision. -Perhaps if Mr Cavendish had been really in earnest, that which was only -a vague possibility might have become, in another minute, a fact and -real. It was about the first time that her heart had found anything to -say in the matter; and the fact was that it actually fluttered in her -reasonable bosom, and experienced a certain _malaise_ which was quite -new to her. Was it possible that she could be in love with Mr Cavendish? -or was it merely the excitement of a final decision which made that -unusual commotion far away down at the bottom of Lucilla's heart? - -However that might be, Miss Marjoribanks triumphed over her momentary -weakness. She saw the possibility, and at the same moment she saw that -it could not be; and while Mr Cavendish hesitated, she, who was always -prompt and ready, made up her mind. - -"I don't know what I have done in particular, either for her or the rest -of you," she said, ignoring the other part of her companion's faltering -address, "except to help to amuse you; but I am going to do something -very serious, and I hope you will show you are grateful, as you -say--though I don't know what you have to be grateful about--by paying -great attention to me. Mr Cavendish, I am going to give you good -advice," said Lucilla; and, notwithstanding her courage, she too -faltered a little, and felt that it was rather a serious piece of -business that she had taken in hand. - -"Advice?" Mr Cavendish said, like an echo of her voice; but that was all -he found time to say. - -"We are such old friends, that I know you won't be vexed," said Lucilla; -"and then we understand each other. It is so nice when two people -understand each other; they can say quantities of things that strangers -cannot say. Mr Cavendish, you and Barbara are in love," said Lucilla, -making a slight pause, and looking in his face. - -"Miss Marjoribanks!" cried the assaulted man, in the extremity of his -amazement and horror. As for Lucilla, she came a little closer to him, -and shook her head in a maternal, semi-reproving way. - -"Don't say you are not," said Miss Marjoribanks; "you never could -deceive _me_--not in anything like that. I saw it almost as soon as you -met. They are not rich, you know, but they are very nice. Mr Lake and -Rose," said Lucilla, with admirable prudence, keeping off the difficult -subject of Barbara herself, "are the two very nicest people I know; and -everybody says that Willie is dreadfully clever. I hope you will soon be -married, and that you will be very happy," she continued, with an -effort. It was a bold thing to say, and Lucilla's throat even contracted -a little, as if to prevent the words from getting utterance; but then -she was not a person, when she knew a thing was right, to hesitate about -doing it; and in Miss Marjoribanks's mind duty went before all, as has -already been on several occasions said. - -After this a horrible silence fell upon the two--a silence which, like -darkness, could be felt. The thunderbolt fell upon the victim's -unprotected head without any warning. The idea that Lucilla would talk -to him about Barbara Lake was the very last that could have entered Mr -Cavendish's mind. He was speechless with rage and mortification. He took -it for an insult inflicted upon him in cold blood, doing Lucilla much -injustice as the other people who took the candid expression of her -sentiments for a piece of acting. He was a gentleman, notwithstanding -his doubtful origin, and civilised down to his very finger-tips; but he -would have liked to have knocked Miss Marjoribanks down, though she was -a woman. And yet, as she was a woman, he dared not for his life make any -demonstration of his fury. He walked along by her side down into the -respectable solitude of Grange Lane, passing through a bright bit of -George Street, and seeing askance, by the light from the shop windows, -his adviser walking beside him, with the satisfaction of a good -conscience in her face. This awful silence lasted until they reached Dr -Marjoribanks's door. - -"Thank you for coming with me so far," said Lucilla, holding out her -hand. "I suppose I must not ask you to come in, though papa would be -delighted to see you. I am afraid you are very angry with me," Miss -Marjoribanks added, with a touch of pathos; "but you may be sure I would -always stand by _you_; and I said it because I thought it was for the -best." - -"On the contrary, I am much obliged to you," said Mr Cavendish, with -quiet fury, "and deeply touched by the interest you take in my -happiness. You may be sure I shall always be grateful for it; and for -the offer of your support," said the ungrateful man, with the most -truculent meaning. As for Miss Marjoribanks, she pressed quite kindly -the hurried hand with which he touched hers, and went in, still saying, -"Good-night." She had done her duty, whatever might come of it. He -rushed home furious; but she went to a little worsted-work with a mind -at peace with itself and all men. She was gentler than usual even to the -maids, who always found Miss Marjoribanks a good mistress--but she felt -a little sad in the solitude of her genius. For it is true that to be -wiser and more enlightened than one's neighbours is in most cases a -weariness to the flesh. She had made a sacrifice, and nobody appreciated -it. Instead of choosing a position which pleased her imagination, and -suited her energies, and did not go against her heart, Lucilla, moved by -the wisest discretion, had decided, not without regret, to give it up. -She had sacrificed her own inclination, and a sphere in which her -abilities would have had the fullest scope, to what she believed to be -the general good; and instead of having the heroism acknowledged, she -was misunderstood and rewarded with ingratitude. When Miss Marjoribanks -found herself alone in the solitude of her drawing-room, and in the -still greater solitude, as we have said, of her genius, she felt a -little sad, as was natural. But at the same moment there came into -Lucilla's mind a name, a humble name, which has been often pronounced in -the pages of this history, and it gave her once more a certain -consolation. A sympathetic presence seemed to diffuse itself about her -in her loneliness. There are moments when the faith of a very humble -individual may save a great soul from discouragement; and the -consciousness of being believed in once more came with the sweetest and -most salutary effect upon Lucilla's heart. - - - - -_Chapter XXXV_ - - -It was the very day after the marriage, and two or three days after this -conversation, that Mr Cavendish left Carlingford. He went to spend the -winter in Italy, which had long been "a dream" of his, as he explained -to some of the young ladies--most of whom had the same "dream," without -the enviable power of carrying it out. He made very brief and formal -adieux to Lucilla, to the extreme amazement of all the surrounding -world, and then disappeared, leaving--just at that moment after the -excitement of the marriage was over, when Grange Lane stood most in need -of somebody to rouse its drooping spirits--a wonderful blank behind him. -Lucilla said much less about her feelings on this occasion than she was -in the habit of doing, but there could be no doubt that she felt it, and -felt it acutely. And the worst of it was, that it was she who was -universally blamed for the sudden and unexplained departure of the most -popular man in Carlingford. Some people thought he had gone away to -escape from the necessity of proposing to her; and some of more friendly -and charitable disposition believed with Mrs Chiley that Lucilla had -refused him; and some, who were mostly outsiders and of a humble class, -were of opinion that Miss Marjoribanks had exercised all her influence -to send Mr Cavendish out of the way of Barbara Lake. It was with this -impression that Rose made her way one of those foggy autumn mornings -through the fallen leaves with which the garden was carpeted, to see if -any explanation was to be got from Lucilla. The art-inspectors from -Marlborough House had just paid their annual visit to Carlingford, and -had found the Female School of Design in a condition which, as they said -in their report, "warranted the warmest encomiums," and Rose had also -won a prize for her veil in the exhibition at Kensington of ornamental -art. These were triumphs which would have made the little artist -overwhelmingly happy, if they had not been neutralised by other -circumstances; but as it was, they only aggravated the difficulties of -the position in which she found herself. She came to Lucilla in a -bonnet--a circumstance which of itself was solemn and ominous; for -generally that portentous article of dress, which was home-made, and did -not consist with cheerful dispositions, was reserved by Rose for going -to church; and her soft cheeks were pale, and the hazel eyes more dewy -than usual, though it was rain, and not dew, that had been falling from -them during those last painful days. - -"I am ashamed to ask you such a question," said Rose; "but I want you to -tell me, Lucilla, if you know why Mr Cavendish has gone away. She will -not come and ask you herself, or rather I would not let her come; for -she is so passionate, one does not know what she might do. You have -behaved a little strange, Lucilla," said the straightforward Rose. "If -he cared for her, and she cared for him, you had no right to come and -take him away." - -"My dear, I did not take him away," said Miss Marjoribanks. "I had to -talk to him about some--business; that was all. It is disgraceful of -Barbara to bother you about it, who are only a baby and oughtn't to know -anything----" - -"Lucilla!" cried Rose, with flashing eyes, "I am seventeen, and I will -not put up with it any longer. It is all your fault. What right had you -to come and drag us to your great parties? We are not as rich as you, -nor as fine, but we have a rank of our own," cried the little artist. -"You have a great deal more money, but we have some things that money -cannot buy. You made Barbara come and sing, and put things into her -head; and you made me come, though I did not want to. Why did you ask -_us_ to your parties, Lucilla? It is all your fault!" - -Lucilla was in a subdued state of mind, as may have been perceived, and -answered quite meekly. "I don't know why you should all turn against me -like this," she said, more sadly than surprised. "It is unkind of you to -say it was my fault. I did not expect it from you; and when I have so -many vexations----" Miss Marjoribanks added. She sat down as she spoke, -after being repulsed by Rose, with an air of depression which was quite -unusual to her; for to be blamed and misunderstood on all sides was hard -for one who was always working in the service of her fellow-creatures, -and doing everything for the best. - -As for Rose, her heart smote her on the instant. "Have _you_ vexations, -Lucilla?" she said, in her innocence. It was the first time such an idea -had entered into her mind. - -"I don't think I have anything else," said Lucilla; though even as she -said it she began to recover her spirits. "I do all I can for my -friends, and they are never pleased; and when anything goes wrong it is -always my fault." - -"Perhaps if you were not to do so much----" Rose began to say, for she -was in her way a wise little woman; but her heart smote her again, and -she restrained the truism, and then after a little pause she resumed her -actual business. "I am ashamed to ask you, but do you know where Mr -Cavendish is, Lucilla?" said Rose. "She is breaking her heart because he -has gone away." - -"Did he never go to say good-bye nor anything?" asked Miss Marjoribanks. -She was sorry, for it was quite the contrary of the advice she had -given, but still it would be wrong to deny that Mr Cavendish rose higher -in Lucilla's opinion when she heard it. "I don't know any more than -everybody knows. He has gone to Italy, but he will come back, and I -suppose she can wait," Miss Marjoribanks added, with perhaps a touch of -contempt. "For my part, I don't think she will break her heart." - -"It is because you do not know her," said Rose, with some -indignation--for at seventeen a broken heart comes natural. "Oh, -Lucilla, it is dreadful, and I don't know what to do!" cried the little -artist, changing her tone. "I am a selfish wretch, but I cannot help it. -It is as good as putting an end to my Career; and just after my design -has been so successful--and when papa was so proud--and when I thought I -might have been a help. It is dreadful to think of oneself when her -heart is breaking; but I shall have to give up everything; and I--I -can't help feeling it, Lucilla," cried Rose, with a sudden outburst of -tears. - -All this was sufficiently unintelligible to Miss Marjoribanks, who was -not the least in anxiety about Barbara's breaking heart. "Tell me what -is the matter, and perhaps we can do something," said Lucilla, -forgetting how little her past exertions had been appreciated; and Rose, -with equal inconsistency, dried her tears at the sound of Miss -Marjoribanks's reassuring voice. - -"I know I am a wretch to be thinking of myself," she said. "She cannot -be expected to stay and sacrifice herself for us, after all she has -suffered. She has made up her mind and advertised in the _Times_, and -nothing can change it now. She is going out for a governess, Lucilla." - -"Going for a--what?" said Miss Marjoribanks, who could not believe her -ears. - -"For a governess," said Rose calmly; for though she had been partly -brought up at Mount Pleasant, she had not the elevated idea of an -instructress of youth which might have been expected from a pupil of -that establishment. "She has advertised in the _Times_," Rose added, -with quiet despair, "with no objections to travel. I would do anything -in the world for Barbara, but one can't help thinking of oneself -sometimes, and there is an end of my Career." When she had said this she -brushed the last tear off her eyelashes, and sat straight up, a little -martyr and heroic victim to duty. "Her eye, though fixed on empty space, -beamed keen with honour"; but still there was a certain desperation in -the composure with which Rose regarded, after the first outburst, the -abandonment of all her hopes. - -"She is a selfish thing," said Lucilla indignantly; "she always was a -selfish thing. I should like to know what she can teach anybody? If I -were you and your papa, I certainly would not let her go away. I don't -see any reason in the world why you should give in to her and let her -stop your--your Career, you know; why should you? I would not give in to -her for one moment, if I were your papa and you." - -"Why should I?" said Rose; "because there is nobody else to do anything, -Lucilla. Fleda and Dreda are such two little things; and there are all -the boys to think of, and poor papa. It is of no use asking why. If I -don't do it, there will be nobody to do it," said Rose, with big tears -coming to her eyes. Her Career was dear to her heart, and those two -tears welled up from the depths; but then there would be nobody else to -do it--a consideration which continually filters out the people who are -good for anything out of the muddy current of the ordinary world. - -"And your pretty drawings, and the veil, and the School of Design!" -cried Lucilla. "You dear little Rose, don't cry. It never can be -permitted, you know. She cannot teach anything, and nobody will have -her. She is a selfish thing, though she is your sister; and if I were -your papa and you----" - -"It would be no good," said Rose. "She will go, whatever anybody may -say. _She_ does not care," said the little martyr, and the two big tears -fell, making two big round blotches upon the strings of that bonnet -which Lucilla had difficulty in keeping her hands off. But when she had -thus expressed her feelings, Rose relented over her sister. "She has -suffered so much here; how can any one ask her to sacrifice herself to -us?" said the young artist mournfully. "And I am quite happy," said -Rose--"quite happy; it makes all the difference. It is her _heart_, you -know, Lucilla; and it is only my Career." - -And this time the tears were dashed away by an indignant little hand. -Barbara's heart, if she had such an organ, had never in its existence -cost such bitter drops. But as for Lucilla, what could she do? She could -only repeat, "If I was your papa and you," with a melancholy sense that -she was here balked and could do no more. For even the aid of Miss -Marjoribanks was as nothing against dead selfishness and folly, the two -most invincible forces in the world. Instead of taking the business into -her own hands, and carrying it through triumphantly as she had hitherto -been in the habit of doing, Lucilla could only minister to the sufferer, -and keep up her courage, and mourn over the Career thus put in danger. -Barbara's advertisement was in the newspapers, and her foolish mind was -made up; and the hope that nobody would have her was a forlorn hope, for -somebody always does have the incapable people, as Miss Marjoribanks was -well aware. And the contralto had been of some use in Grange Lane and a -little in Grove Street, and it would be difficult, either in the one -sphere or the other, to find any one to fill her place. It was thus amid -universal demolition that Christmas approached, and Miss Marjoribanks -ended the first portion of her eventful career. - - - - -_Chapter XXXVI_ - - -One fytte of Lucilla's history is here ended, and another is to be told. -We have recorded her beginning in all the fulness of youthful confidence -and undaunted trust in her own resources; and have done our best to show -that in the course of organising society Miss Marjoribanks, like all -other benefactors of their kind, had many sacrifices to make, and had to -undergo the mortification of finding out that many of her most able -efforts turned to other people's profit and went directly against -herself. She began the second period of her career with, to some certain -extent, that sense of failure which is inevitable to every high -intelligence after a little intercourse with the world. She had -succeeded in a great many things, but yet she had not succeeded in all; -and she had found out that the most powerful exertions in behalf of -friends not only fail to procure their gratitude, but sometimes convert -them into enemies, and do actual harm; which is a discovery which can -only be made by those who devote themselves, as Miss Marjoribanks had -done, to the good of the human species. She had done everything for the -best, and yet it had not always turned out for the best; and even the -people who had been most ready to appeal to her for assistance in their -need, had proved the readiest to accuse her when something disagreeable -happened, and to say "It was your fault." In the second stage of her -progress Miss Marjoribanks found herself, with a great responsibility -upon her shoulders, with nearly the entire social organisation of -Carlingford depending upon her; and, at the same time, with her means of -providing for the wants of her subjects sensibly diminished, and her -confidence in the resources of the future impaired to an equal degree. -One thing was sure, that she had taken the work upon her shoulders, and -that she was not the woman to draw back, whatever the difficulties might -be. She did not bate a jot of her courage, though the early buoyancy of -hope had departed, never to return. It is true that she was not so -joyful and triumphant a figure as when she conquered Nancy, and won over -Dr Marjoribanks, and electrified Mr Holden by choosing curtains which -suited her complexion; but with her diminished hopes and increased -experience and unabated courage, no doubt Miss Marjoribanks presented a -still nobler and more imposing aspect to everybody who had an eye for -moral grandeur, though it would be difficult to tell how many of such -worthy spectators existed in Grange Lane. - -There was, as our readers are aware, another subject also on which -Lucilla had found her position altered. It was quite true that, had she -been thinking of _that_, she never need have come home at all; and that, -in accepting new furniture for the drawing-room, she had to a certain -extent pledged herself not to marry immediately, but to stay at home and -be a comfort to her dear papa. This is so delicate a question that it is -difficult to treat it with the freedom necessary for a full development -of a not unusual state of mind. Most people are capable of falling in -love only once or twice, or at the most a very few times, in their life; -and disappointed and heartbroken suitors are not so commonly to be met -with as perhaps could be wished. But at the same time, there can be -little doubt that the chief way in which society is supposed to signify -its approval and admiration and enthusiasm for a lady, is by making -dozens of proposals to her, as may be ascertained from all the -best-informed sources. When a woman is a great beauty, or is very -brilliant and graceful, or even is only agreeable and amusing, the -ordinary idea is that the floating men of society, in number less or -more according to the lady's merits, propose to her, though she may not -perhaps accept any of them. In proportion as her qualities rise towards -the sublime, these victims are supposed to increase; and perhaps, to -tell the truth, no woman feels herself set at her true value until some -poor man, or set of men, have put, as people say, their happiness into -her hands. It is, as we have said, a delicate subject to discuss; for -the truth is, that this well-known and thoroughly established reward of -female excellence had not fallen to Miss Marjoribanks's lot. There was -Tom, to be sure, but Tom did not count. And as for the other men who had -been presented to Lucilla as eligible candidates for her regard, none of -them had given her this proof of their admiration. The year had passed -away, and society had laid no tribute of this description upon Lucilla's -shrine. The Archdeacon had married Mrs Mortimer instead, and Mr -Cavendish had been led away by Barbara Lake! After such an experience -nothing but the inherent sweetness and wholesome tone of Miss -Marjoribanks's character could have kept her from that cynicism and -disbelief in humanity which is so often the result of knowledge of the -world. As for Lucilla, she smiled as she thought of it, not cynically, -but with a sweetly melancholy smile. What she said to herself was, Poor -men! they had had the two ways set before them, and they had not chosen -the best. It made her sad to have this proof of the imperfection of -human nature thrust upon her, but it did not turn her sweet into bitter, -as might have been the case with a more ordinary mind. Notwithstanding -that this universal reward, which in other cases is, as everybody knows, -given so indiscriminately, and with such liberality, had altogether -failed in her case, Lucilla still resumed her way with a beautiful -constancy, and went forward in the face of fate undaunted and with a -smile. - -It was thus that she began the second period of her career. Up to this -moment there had never been a time in which it was not said in -Carlingford that some one was paying attention to Miss Marjoribanks; but -at present no one was paying attention to her. There were other -marriages going on around her, and other preliminaries of marriage, but -nobody had proposed to Lucilla. Affairs were in this state when she took -up her burden again boldly, and set out anew upon her way. It was a -proof of magnanimity and philanthropy which nobody could have asked from -her, if Lucilla had not been actuated by higher motives than those that -sway the common crowd. Without any assistance but that of her own -genius--without the stimulating applause of admirers, such as a woman in -such circumstances has a right to calculate upon--with no sympathising -soul to fall back upon, and nothing but a dull level of ordinary people -before her,--Miss Marjoribanks, undaunted, put on her harness and -resumed her course. The difficulties she had met only made her more -friendly, more tender, to those who were weaker than herself, and whom -evil fortune had disabled in the way. When Barbara Lake got her -situation, and went out for a governess, and Rose's fears were realised, -and she had with bitter tears to relinquish her Career, Lucilla went and -sat whole afternoons with the little artist, and gave her the handiest -assistance, and taught her a great many things which she never could -have learned at the School of Design. And the effect of this -self-abnegation was, that Lucilla bore General Travers's decision, and -gave up all hope of the officers, with a stout-heartedness which nobody -could have looked for, and did not hesitate to face her position -boldly, and to erect her standard, and to begin her new campaign, -unaided and unappreciated as she was. People who know no better may go -away upon marriage tours, or they may fly off to foreign travel, or go -out as governesses, when all things do not go just as they wish. But as -for Miss Marjoribanks, she stood bravely at her post, and scorned to -flinch or run away. Thus commenced, amid mists of discouragement, and in -an entire absence of all that was calculated to stimulate and -exhilarate, the second grand period of Lucilla's life. - - - - -_Chapter XXXVII_ - - -It would be vain to follow Lucilla in detail through her consistent and -admirable career; nor is it necessary to say that she went on steadily -in face of all her discouragements, with that mixture of success and -failure which comes natural to all human affairs. The singular thing -about it was, that the years passed on, and that she was permitted by -the world in general to fulfil her own promise and prophecy about -remaining ten years at home to be a comfort to her dear papa. She had -been nineteen when she began her career, and she was nine-and twenty -when that little episode occurred with young Dr Rider, before he was -married to his present wife. There would have been nothing in the least -unsuitable in a marriage between Dr Rider and Miss Marjoribanks, though -people who were the best informed never thought either of them had any -serious meaning; but, of course, the general public, having had Lucilla -for a long time before their eyes, naturally added on seven or eight -years to her age, and concluded her to be a great deal older than the -young doctor, though everybody allowed that it would have been a most -advantageous match for him in every possible point of view. But, -however, it did not come to anything, no more than a great many other -nibbles of the same kind did. The period arrived at which Lucilla had -thought she might perhaps have begun to go off in her looks, but still -there was no immediate appearance of any change of name or condition on -her part. Many people quite congratulated themselves on the fact, as it -was impossible to imagine what might be the social condition of Grange -Lane without Miss Marjoribanks; but it is doubtful whether Lucilla -congratulated herself. She was very comfortable, no doubt, in every way, -and met with little opposition to speak of, and had things a great deal -more in her own hands than she might have had, had there been a husband -in the case to satisfy; but notwithstanding, she had come to an age when -most people have husbands, and when an independent position in the world -becomes necessary to self-respect. To be sure, Lucilla _was_ -independent; but then--there is a difference, as everybody knows. - -And Miss Marjoribanks could not but feel that the world had not shown -that appreciation of her, to which, in her earlier days, she looked -forward with so little fear. The ten years, as they had really gone by, -were very different from the ten years she had looked forward to, when, -in the triumph of her youth, she named that period as the time when she -might probably begin to go off, and would be disposed to marry. By this -time the drawing-room carpets and curtains had faded a little, and -Lucilla had found out that the delicate pale green which suited her -complexion was not to call a profitable colour; and nobody could have -thought or said that to marry at this period would be in the least -degree to swindle the Doctor. Thus the moment had arrived to which she -looked forward, but the man had not arrived with it. Ten years had -passed, during which she had been at the head of society in Grange Lane, -and a great comfort to her dear papa; and now, if there remained another -development for Lucilla's character, it was about time that it should -begin to show itself. But at the same time, the main element necessary -for that new development did not seem at present likely to be found in -Grange Lane. - -Unless, indeed, it might happen to be found in the person of Mr -Ashburton, who was so often in Carlingford that he might be said to form -a part of society there. It was he who was related to the Richmonds, who -were a family much respected in the county. He had been at the bar, and -even begun to distinguish himself, before old Miss Penrhyn died and left -him the Firs. He had begun to distinguish himself, but he had not, it -appeared, gone so far as to prevent him from coming down to his new -property and settling upon it, and taking his place as a local -notability. He was not a man who could be expected to care for evening -parties in a provincial town; but he never refused to dine with Dr -Marjoribanks, and was generally popular upstairs, where he always paid a -little attention to Lucilla, though nothing very marked and noticeable. -Mr Ashburton was not like Mr Cavendish, for instance (if anybody -remembered Mr Cavendish), a man whose money might be in the Funds, but -who more probably speculated. Everybody knew everything about him, which -was an ease to the public mind. The Firs was as well known as -Carlingford steeple, and how much it was worth a year, and everything -about it; and so was the proprietor's pedigree, which could be traced to -a semi-mythical personage known as old Penrhyn, whose daughter was Sir -John Richmond's grandmother. The Firs, it is true, had descended in the -female line, but still it is something to know where a man comes from, -even on one side. - -Mr Ashburton made himself very agreeable in the neighbourhood, and was -never above enlightening anybody on a point of law. He used to say that -it was kind to give him something to do, which was an opinion endorsed -practically by a great many people. It is true that some of his -neighbours wondered much to see his patience, and could not make out why -he chose to rusticate at the Firs at his age, and with his abilities. -But either he never heard these wonderings, or at least he never took -any notice of them. He lived as if he liked it, and settled down, and -presented to all men an aspect of serene contentment with his sphere. -And it would be difficult to say what suggestion or association it was -which brought him all of a sudden into Miss Marjoribanks's head, one -day, when, seeing a little commotion in Masters's shop, she went in to -hear what it was about. The cause of the commotion was an event which -had been long expected, and which, indeed, ten years before, had been -looked on as a possible thing to happen any day. The wonder was, not -that old Mr Chiltern should die, but that he should have lived so long. -The ladies in Masters's cried, "Poor dear old man!" and said to each -other that however long it might have been expected, a death always -seemed sudden at the last. But, to tell the truth, the stir made by this -death was rather pleasant than sad. People thought, not of the career -which was ended, but of the one which must now begin, and of the -excitement of an election, which was agreeable to look forward to. As -for Lucilla, when she too had heard the news, and had gone upon her way, -it would be vain to assert that a regretful recollection of the time -when Mr Cavendish was thought a likely man to succeed Mr Chiltern did -not occur to her. But when Miss Marjoribanks had dismissed that -transitory thought, Mr Ashburton suddenly came into her head by one of -those intuitions which have such an effect upon the mind that receives -them. Lucilla was not of very marked political opinions, and perhaps was -not quite aware what Mr Ashburton's views were on the Irish Church -question, or upon parliamentary reform; but she said after, that it came -into her mind in a moment, like a flash of lightning, that he was the -man. The idea was so new and so striking, that she turned back and went, -in the excitement of the moment, to suggest it to Mrs Chiley, and see -what her old friend and the Colonel would say. Of course, if such a -thing was practicable, there was no time to lose. She turned round -quickly, according to her prompt nature; and such was her absorbed -interest in the idea of Mr Ashburton, that she did not know until she -had almost done it, that she was walking straight into her hero's arms. - -"Oh, Mr Ashburton!" said Lucilla, with a little scream, "is it you? My -mind was quite full of you. I could not see you for thinking. Do come -back with me, for I have something very particular to say----" - -"To me?" said Mr Ashburton, looking at her with a smile and a sudden -look of interest; for it is always slightly exciting to the most -philosophical mortal to know that somebody else's mind is full of him. -"What you have said already is so flattering----" - -"I did not mean anything absurd," said Miss Marjoribanks. "Don't talk -any nonsense, please. Mr Ashburton, do you know that old Mr Chiltern is -dead?" - -Lucilla put the question solemnly, and her companion grew a little red -as he looked at her. "It is not my fault," he said, though he still -smiled; and then he grew redder and redder, though he ought to have been -above showing such signs of emotion; and looked at her curiously, as if -he would seize what she was going to say out of her eyes or her lips -before it was said. - -"It is not anything to laugh about," said Lucilla. "He was a very nice -old man; but he is dead, and somebody else must be Member for -Carlingford: that was why I told you that my mind was full of you. I am -not in the least superstitious," said Miss Marjoribanks, solemnly; "but -when I stood there--there, just in front of Mr Holden's--you came into -my mind like a flash of lightning. I was not thinking of you in the -least, and you came into my mind like--like Minerva, you know. If it was -not an intimation, I don't know what it was. And that was why I ran -against you, and did not see you were there. Mr Ashburton, it is you who -must be the man," said Lucilla. It was not a thing to speak lightly -about, and for her part she spoke very solemnly; and as for Mr -Ashburton, his face flushed deeper and deeper. He stood quite still in -the excitement of the moment, as if she had given him a blow. - -"Miss Marjoribanks, I don't know how to answer you," he cried; and then -he put out his hand in an agitated way and grasped her hand. "You are -the only creature in Carlingford, man or woman, that has divined me," he -said, in a trembling voice. It was a little public at the top of Grange -Lane, where people were liable to pass at every moment; but still Miss -Marjoribanks accepted the pressure of the hand, which, to be sure, had -nothing whatever to do with love-making. She was more shy of such -demonstrations than she had been in her confident youth, knowing that in -most cases they never came to anything, and at the same time that the -spectators kept a vivid recollection of them; but still, in the -excitement of the moment, Miss Marjoribanks accepted and returned in a -womanly way the pressure of Mr Ashburton's hand. - -"Come in and let us talk it over," Lucilla said, feeling that no time -was to be lost. It was a conference very different from that which, had -Mr Chiltern been so well advised as to die ten years before, might have -been held in Dr Marjoribanks's drawing-room over his successor's -prospects; but at the same time there was something satisfactory to the -personal sentiments of both in the way in which this conversation had -come about. When Lucilla took off her hat and sat down to give him all -her attention, Mr Ashburton could not but feel the flattering character -of the interest she was taking in him. She was a woman, and young -(comparatively speaking), and was by no means without admirers, and -unquestionably took the lead in society; and to be divined by such a -person was perhaps, on the whole, sweeter to the heart of the aspirant -than if Colonel Chiley had found out his secret, or Dr Marjoribanks, or -even the Rector: and Lucilla for her part had all that natural pleasure -in being the first to embrace a new interest which was natural under the -circumstances. "Let us talk it all over," she said, giving Mr Ashburton -a chair near her own. "If I believed in spirit-rapping, you know, I -should be sure that was what it meant. I was not thinking of you in the -least, and all at once, like a flash of lightning--Mr Ashburton sit down -and tell me--what is the first thing that must be done?" - -"If I could ask you to be on my committee, that would be the first thing -to be done," said Mr Ashburton, "but unfortunately I can't do that. Let -me tell you in the first place how very much I am obliged----" - -"Don't say that, please," said Miss Marjoribanks, with her usual good -sense, "for I have done nothing. But papa can be on the committee, and -old Colonel Chiley, who is such a one for politics; and of course Sir -John--that will be a very good beginning; and after that----" - -"My dear Miss Marjoribanks," Mr Ashburton said, with a smile, and a -little hesitation, "Sir John takes exactly the other side in politics; -and I am afraid the Doctor and the Colonel are not of the same way of -thinking; and then my opinions----" - -"If they are not of the same way of thinking we must make them," said -Lucilla: "after having such an intimation, I am not going to be put off -for a trifle; and besides, what does it matter about opinions? I am sure -I have heard you all saying over and over that the thing was to have a -good _man_. Don't go and make speeches about opinions. If you begin with -that, there is no end to it," said Miss Marjoribanks. "I know what you -gentlemen are. But if you just say distinctly that you are the best -man----" - -"It would be an odd thing to say for oneself," said Mr Ashburton, -and he laughed; but, to tell the truth, he was not a man of very -quick understanding, and at the first outset of the thing he -did not understand Lucilla; and he was a little--just a very -little--disappointed. She had divined him, which was a wonderful proof -of her genius; but yet at the bottom she was only an ignorant woman -after all. - -"I see it all quite clear what to do," said Miss Marjoribanks. "You must -have the Colonel and Sir John, and everybody. I would not pay the least -attention to Tories or Whigs, or anything of the sort. For my part I -don't see any difference. All that has to be said about it is simply -that you are the right man. Papa might object to one thing and the -Colonel might object to another, and then if Sir John, as you say, is of -quite another way of thinking----But you are the man for Carlingford -all the same; and none of them can say a word against that," said -Lucilla, with energy. She stopped short, with her colour rising and her -eyes brightening. She felt herself inspired, which was a new sensation, -and very pleasant; and then the idea of such a coming struggle was sweet -to Miss Marjoribanks, and the conviction burst upon her that she was -striking out a perfectly new and original line. - -As for her candidate, he smiled, and hesitated, and paid her pretty -little compliments for a few minutes longer, and said it was very good -of her to interest herself in his fortunes. All which Lucilla listened -to with great impatience, feeling that it had nothing to do with the -matter in hand. But then after these few minutes had elapsed the meaning -of his fair adviser, as he called her, began to dawn upon Mr Ashburton's -mind. He began to prick up his mental ears, so to speak, and see that it -was not womanish ignorance, but an actual suggestion. For, after all, so -long as he was the Man for Carlingford, all the rest was of little -importance. He took something out of his pocket, which was his address -to the constituency of Carlingford (for being anxious on the subject, he -had heard of Mr Chiltern's death an hour or two before anybody else), -and choke-full of political sentiments. In it he described to the -electors what he would do if they sent him to Parliament, as carefully -as if their election could make him Prime Minister at least; and -naturally a man does not like to sacrifice such a confession of faith. -"I should like to read it to you," he said, spreading it out with -affectionate care: but Lucilla had already arranged her plans, and knew -better than that. - -"If you were to read it to me," said Miss Marjoribanks, "I should be -sure to be convinced that you were quite right, and to go in with you -for everything; and then I should be no good, you know. If it were to -drive papa and Sir John and the Colonel all to their own ways of -thinking, we never should make any progress. I would never mind about -anybody's ways of thinking, if I were you. After all," said Lucilla, -with fine satire, of which she was unconscious, "what does it matter -what people think? I suppose when it comes to doing anything, the Whigs -and the Tories are just the same. Mr Ashburton, it is the Man that is -wanted," said Miss Marjoribanks, with all the warmth of sudden -conviction. She felt a little like Joan of Arc as she spoke. When an -army has the aid of a sacred maiden to bring inspiration to its -counsels, the idea of going on in the old formal way is no longer to be -tolerated. And such was the force of Lucilla's conviction, that Mr -Ashburton, though he felt a little affronted, and could not but look -with fond and compunctious regret upon his address, yet began more and -more to feel that there was justice in what she said. - -"I will think over what you say," he said, rather stiffly, and put up -his address--for it was natural, when he had done her such an honour as -to offer to read it to her, that he should be affronted by her refusal. -It was a bold experiment on Lucilla's part, but then she was carried out -of herself at the moment by this singular flash of inspiration. "I will -think over what you say," Mr Ashburton continued; "and if my judgment -approves----At all events I shall not issue _this_ till I have thought -it all over. I am sure I am extremely obliged to you for your interest." -And here he stopped short, and looked as if he were going to get up and -go away, which would have spoiled all. - -"You are going to stop to lunch," said Lucilla; "somebody is sure to -come in. And you know you must not lose any opportunity of seeing -people. I am so glad to-night is Thursday. Tell me just one thing, Mr -Ashburton, before any one comes. There is one thing that is really -important, and must be fixed upon. If we were to make any mistake, you -know----" - -"What?" said the candidate eagerly--"about Reform? I have expressed -myself very clearly----" - -Lucilla smiled compassionately, and with the gentlest tolerance, at this -wild suggestion. "I was not thinking of Reform," she said, with that -meekness which people assume when it is of no use being impatient. "I -was thinking what your colours were to be. I would not have anything to -do with the old colours, for my part--they would be as bad as opinions, -you know. You may laugh, but I am quite in earnest," said Miss -Marjoribanks. As for Mr Ashburton, he did not begin to laugh until he -had fixed upon her that gaze of utter amazement and doubt with which on -many similar occasions ordinary people had regarded Lucilla--thinking -she was joking, or acting, or doing something quite different from the -severe sincerity which was her leading principle. She was so used to it, -that she waited with perfect patience till her companion's explosion of -amusement was over. He was thinking to himself what a fool she was, or -what a fool he was to think of taking a woman into his counsels, or what -curious unintelligible creatures women were, made up of sense and folly; -and all the time he laughed, which was a relief to his feelings. Miss -Marjoribanks laughed a little too, to keep him in countenance, for she -was always the soul of good nature; and then she repeated, "Now you must -tell me what our colours are to be----" - -"I am sure I don't know anything about colours," said the candidate, -"any more than you do about opinions. I think they are equally -unimportant, to say the least. I shall adopt the colours of my fair -counsellor," Mr Ashburton added, laughing, and making a mock bow to her, -and getting his hat as he did so--for he had naturally calmed down a -little from the first enthusiasm with which he had hailed the woman who -divined him, and he did not mean to stay. - -"Blue and yellow are the old colours," said Lucilla thoughtfully, "and -you are the new man, you know, and we must not meddle with these -antiquated things. Do you think this would do?" As she spoke she took up -a handful of ribbons which were lying by, and put them up to her face -with an air of serious deliberation which once more disturbed Mr -Ashburton's gravity. And yet, when a young woman who is not at all -bad-looking puts up a rustling, gleaming knot of ribbons to her hair and -asks a man's opinion of the same, the man must be a philosopher or a -wretch indeed who does not give a glance to see the effect. The -candidate for Carlingford looked and approached, and even, in the -temptation of the moment, took some of the long streamers in his hand. -And he began to think Miss Marjoribanks was very clever, and the most -amusing companion he had met with for a long time. And her interest in -him touched his heart; and, after all, it is no drawback to a woman to -be absurd by moments. His voice grew quite soft and caressing as he took -the end of ribbon into his hand. - -"If they are your colours they shall be mine," he said, with a sense of -patronage and protection which was very delightful; and the two were -still talking and laughing over the silken link thus formed between -them, when the people came in whom Lucilla was expecting to lunch, and -who were naturally full of Mr Chiltern's death, which, poor old man! was -so sudden at the last. Mr Ashburton stayed, though he had not intended -it, and made himself very pleasant. And Lucilla took no pains to -conceal her opinion that the thing was neither to consider Whigs nor -Tories, but a good _Man_. And Major Brown, who had come with his -daughters, echoed this sentiment so warmly that Mr Ashburton was -entirely convinced of the justice of Miss Marjoribanks's ideas. "We -can't have a tip-topper, you know," Major Brown said, who was not very -refined in his expressions; "and what I should like to see is a man that -knows the place and would look after Carlingford. That's what we're all -looking for." Mr Ashburton did not declare himself to Major Brown, but -he dashed off his new address ten minutes after he had taken leave of -Miss Marjoribanks, and put the other one in the fire like a Christian, -and telegraphed for his agent to town. Lucilla, for her part, made an -effort equally great and uncompromising. She took the ribbon Mr -Ashburton had played with, and cut it up into cockades of all -descriptions. It was an early moment, but still there was no time to be -lost in a matter of such importance. And she wore one on her breast and -one in her hair when Mr Ashburton's address was published, and all the -world was discussing the new candidate. - -"Of course they are his colours--that is why I wear them," said Lucilla. -"I shall always think there was something very strange in it. Just after -I had heard of poor old Mr Chiltern's death, as I was passing -Holden's--when I was not in the least thinking of him--he came into my -mind like a flash of lightning, you know. If I had been very intimate -with poor old Mr Chiltern, or if I believed in spirit-rapping, I should -think _that_ was it. He came into my head without my even thinking of -him, all in a moment, with his very hat on and his umbrella, like -Minerva--wasn't it Minerva?" said Miss Marjoribanks. And she took up Mr -Ashburton's cause openly, and unfurled his standard, and did not even -ask her father's opinion. "Papa knows about politics, but he has not had -an intimation, as I have," said Lucilla. And, naturally, she threw all -the younger portion of Grange Lane, which was acquainted with Mr -Ashburton, and looked forward eagerly to a little excitement, and liked -the idea of wearing a violet-and-green cockade, into a flutter of -excitement. Among these rash young people there were even a few -individuals who took Lucilla's word for it, and knew that Mr Ashburton -was very _nice_, and did not see that anything more was necessary. To be -sure, these enthusiasts were chiefly women, and in no cases had votes; -but Miss Marjoribanks, with instinctive correctness of judgment, -decided that there were more things to be thought of than the electors. -And she had the satisfaction of seeing with her own eyes and hearing -with her own ears the success of that suggestion of her genius. -Carlingford had rarely been more excited by any public event than it was -by the address of the new candidate, who was in the field before anybody -else, and who had the boldness to come before them without uttering any -political creed. "The enlightened electors of Carlingford do not demand, -like other less educated constituencies, a system of political doctrines -cut and dry, or a representative bound to give up his own judgment, and -act according to arbitrary promises," said the daring candidate: "what -they want is an honest man, resolved to do his duty by his country, his -borough, and his constituency; and it is this idea alone which has -induced me to solicit your suffrages." This was what Mr Ashburton said -in his address, though at that moment he had still his other address in -his pocket, in which he had entered at some length into his distinctive -personal views. It was thus that an independent candidate, unconnected -with party, took the field in Carlingford, with Miss Marjoribanks, like -another Joan of Arc, wearing a knot of ribbons, violet and green, in her -hair, to inspire and lead him on. - - - - -_Chapter XXXVIII_ - - -Life with most people is little more than a succession of high and low -tides. There are times when the stream runs low, and when there is -nothing to be seen but the dull sandbanks, or even mud-banks, for -months, or even years together; and then all at once the waters swell, -and come rushing twice a day like the sea, carrying life and movement -with them. Miss Marjoribanks had been subject to the _eaux mortes_ for a -long time: but now the spring-tides had rushed back. A day or two after -Mr Ashburton had been revealed to her as the predestined member, -something occurred, not in itself exciting, but which was not without -its ultimate weight upon the course of affairs. It was the day when Aunt -Jemima was expected in Grange Lane. She was Aunt Jemima to Lucilla; but -the Doctor called her Mrs John, and was never known to address her by -any more familiar title. She was, as she herself described it, a widow -lady, and wore the dress of her order, and was the mother of Tom -Marjoribanks. She was not a frequent visitor at Carlingford, for she and -her brother-in-law had various points on which they were not of accord. -The Doctor, for his part, could not but feel perennially injured that -the boy had fallen to the lot of Mrs John, while he had only a -girl--even though that girl was Lucilla; and Aunt Jemima could not -forgive him for the rude way in which he treated her health, which was -so delicate, and his want of sympathy for many other people who were -delicate too. Even when she arrived, and was being entertained with the -usual cup of tea, fears of her brother-in-law's robustness and -unsympathetic ways had begun to overpower her. "I hope your papa does -not ask too much from you, Lucilla," she said, as she sat in her -easy-chair, and took her tea by the fire in the cosy room which had been -prepared for her. "I hope he does not make you do too much, for I am -sure you are not strong, my dear. Your poor mamma, you know----" and Mrs -John looked with a certain pathos at her niece, as though she saw signs -of evil in Lucilla's fresh complexion and substantial frame. - -"I am pretty well, thank you, Aunt Jemima," said Miss Marjoribanks, -"and papa lets me do pretty much what I like: I am too old now, you -know, to be told what to do." - -"Don't call yourself old, my dear," said Aunt Jemima, with a passing -gleam of worldly wisdom--"one gets old quite soon enough. Are you -subject to headaches, Lucilla, or pains in the limbs? Your poor -mamma----" - -"Dear Aunt Jemima, I am as well as ever I can be," said Miss -Marjoribanks. "Tell me when you heard from Tom, and what he is doing. -Let me see, it is ten years since he went away. I used to write to him, -but he did not answer my letters--not as he ought, you know. I suppose -he has found friends among the Calcutta ladies," said Lucilla, with a -slight but not unapparent sigh. - -"He never says anything to me about Calcutta ladies," said Tom's mother; -"to tell the truth, I always thought before he went away that he was -fond of _you_--I must have been mistaken, as he never said anything; and -_that_ was very fortunate at all events." - -"I am sure I am very thankful he was not fond of me," said Lucilla, with -a little natural irritation, "for I never could have returned it. But I -should like to know why that was so fortunate. I can't see that it would -have been such a very bad thing for him, for my part." - -"Yes, my dear," said Aunt Jemima, placidly, "it would have been a very -bad thing; for you know, Lucilla, though you get on very nicely here, -you never could have done for a poor man's wife." - -Miss Marjoribanks's bosom swelled when she heard these words--it swelled -with that profound sense of being unappreciated and misunderstood, which -is one of the hardest trials in the way of genius; but naturally she was -not going to let her aunt see her mortification. "I don't mean to be any -man's wife just now," she said, making a gulp of it--"I am too busy -electioneering; we are going to have a new member in dear old Mr -Chiltern's place. Perhaps he will come in this evening to talk things -over, and you shall see him," Lucilla added, graciously. She was a -little excited about the candidate, as was not unnatural--more excited, -perhaps, than she would have been ten years ago, when life was young; -and then it was not to be expected that she could be pleased with Aunt -Jemima for thinking it was so fortunate; though even that touch of -wounded pride did not lead Miss Marjoribanks to glorify herself by -betraying Tom. - -"My brother-in-law used to be a dreadful Radical," said Aunt Jemima; "I -hope it is not one of those revolutionary men; I have seen your poor -uncle sit up arguing with him till I thought they never would be done. -If that is the kind of thing, I hope you will not associate yourself -with it, Lucilla. Your papa should have more sense than to let you. I -should never have permitted it if you had been _my_ daughter," added Mrs -John, with a little heat--for, to tell the truth, she too felt a slight -vexation on her part that the Doctor had the girl--even though not for -twenty girls would she have given up Tom. - -Miss Marjoribanks looked upon the weak woman who thus ventured to -address her with indescribable feelings; but after all she was not so -much angry as amused and compassionate. She could not help thinking to -herself, if she had been Mrs John's daughter, how perfectly docile Aunt -Jemima would have been by this time, and how little she would have -really ventured to interfere. "It would have been very nice," she said, -with a meditative realisation of the possibility--"though it is very odd -to think how one could have been one's own cousin--I should have taken -very good care of you, I am sure." - -"You would have done no such thing," said Mrs John; "you would have gone -off and married; I know how girls do. You have not married now, because -you have been too comfortable, Lucilla. You have had everything your own -way, and all that you wanted, without any of the bother. It is very -strange how differently people's lots are ordered. I was married at -seventeen--and I am sure I have not known what it was to have a day's -health----" - -"Dear Aunt Jemima!" said her affectionate niece, kissing her, "but papa -shall see if he cannot give you something, and we will take such care of -you while you are here." - -Mrs John was softened in spite of herself; but still she shook her head. -"It is very nice of you to say so, my dear," she said, "and it's -pleasant to feel that one has somebody belonging to one; but I have not -much confidence in your papa. He never understood my complaints. I used -to be very sorry for your poor mamma. He never showed that sympathy--but -I did not mean to blame him to you, Lucilla. I am sure he is a very good -father to you." - -"He has been a perfect old angel," said Miss Marjoribanks; and then the -conversation came to a pause, as it was time to dress for dinner. Mrs -John Marjoribanks had a very nice room, and everything that was adapted -to make her comfortable; but she too had something to think of when the -door closed upon Lucilla, and she was left with her maid and her hot -water and her black velvet gown. Perhaps it was a little inconsistent to -wear a black velvet gown with her widow's cap; it was a question which -she had long debated in her mind before she resigned herself to the -temptation--but then it always looked so well, and was so very -profitable! and Mrs John felt that it was incumbent upon her to keep up -a respectable appearance for Tom's sake. Tom was very much in her mind -at that moment, as indeed he always was; for though it was a long time -ago, she could not get the idea out of her head that he must have said -something to Lucilla before he went off to India; and he had a way of -asking about his cousin in his letters; and though she would have done -anything to secure her boy's happiness, and was on the whole rather fond -of her niece, yet the idea of the objections her brother-in-law would -have to such a match, excited to the uttermost the smouldering pride -which existed in Aunt Jemima's heart. He was better off, and had always -been better off, than her poor John--and he had robust health and an -awful scorn of the coddling, to which, as he said, she had subjected his -brother; and he had money enough to keep _his_ child luxuriously, and -make her the leader of Carlingford society, while _her_ poor boy had to -go to India and put himself in the way of all kinds of unknown diseases -and troubles. Mrs John was profoundly anxious to promote her son's -happiness, and would gladly have given every penny she had to get him -married to Lucilla, "if that was what he wanted," as she justly said; -but to have her brother-in-law object to him, and suggest that he was -not good enough, was the one thing she could not bear. She was thinking -about this, and whether Tom really had not said anything, and whether -Lucilla cared for him, and what amid all these perplexities she should -do, while she dressed for dinner; and, at the same time, she felt her -palpitation worse than usual, and knew Dr Marjoribanks would smile his -grim smile if she complained, so that her visit to Grange Lane, though -Lucilla meant to take good care of her, was not altogether unmingled -delight to Mrs John. - -But, nevertheless, Dr Marjoribanks's dinner-table was always a cheerful -sight, even when it was only a dinner-party of three; for then naturally -they used the round table, and were as snug as possible. Lucilla wore -her knot of green and violet ribbons on her white dress, to her aunt's -great amazement, and the Doctor had all the air of a man who had been -out in the world all day and returned in the evening with something to -tell--which is a thing which gives great animation to a family party. -Mrs John Marjoribanks had been out of all that sort of thing for a long -time. She had been living quite alone in a widowed, forlorn way, and had -half forgotten how pleasant it was to have somebody coming in with a -breath of fresh air about him and the day's budget of news--and it had -an animating effect upon her, even though she was not fond of her -brother-in-law. Dr Marjoribanks inquired about Tom in the most fatherly -way, and what he was about, and how things were looking for him, and -whether he intended to come home. "Much better not," the Doctor -said,--"I should certainly advise him not, if he asked me. He has got -over all the worst of it, and now is his time to do something worth -while." - -"Tom is not one to think merely of worldly advantages," said his mother, -with a fine instinct of opposition. "I don't think he would care to -waste all the best part of his life making money. I'd rather see him -come home and be happy, for my part, even if he were not so rich----" - -"If all men were happy that came home," said the Doctor, and then he -gave a rather grim chuckle. "Somebody has come home that you did not -reckon on, Lucilla. I am sorry to spoil sport; but I don't see how you -are to get out of it. There is another address on the walls to-day -besides that one of yours----" - -"Oh, I hope there will be six addresses!" cried Miss Marjoribanks; "if -we had it all our own way it would be no fun;--a Tory, and a Whig, and -a--did you say Radical, Aunt Jemima? And then, what is a Conservative?" -asked Lucilla, though certainly she had a very much better notion of -political matters than Aunt Jemima had, to say the least. - -"I wonder how you can encourage any poor man to go into Parliament," -said Mrs John; "so trying for the health as it must be, and an end to -everything like domestic life. If it was my Tom I would almost rather he -stayed in India. He looks strong, but there is never any confidence to -be put in young men looking strong. Oh, I know you do not agree with me, -Doctor; but I have had sad reason for my way of thinking," said the poor -lady. As for the Doctor, he did not accept the challenge thus thrown to -him. Tom Marjoribanks was not the foremost figure in the world in his -eyes, as the absent wanderer was in that of his mother; and he had not -yet unburdened himself of what he had to say. - -"I am not saying anything in favour of going into Parliament," said the -Doctor. "I'd sooner be a barge-man on the canal, if it was me. I am only -telling Lucilla what she has before her. I don't know when I have been -more surprised. Of course you were not looking for _that_," said Dr -Marjoribanks. He had kept back until the things were taken off the -table, for he had a benevolent disinclination to spoil anybody's dinner. -Now, when all the serious part of the meal was over, he tossed the -_Carlingford Gazette_ across the table, folded so that she could not -miss what he wanted her to see. Lucilla took it up lightly between her -finger and thumb; for the Carlingford papers were inky and badly -printed, and soiled a lady's hand. She took it up delicately without -either alarm or surprise, knowing very well that the Blues and the -Yellows were not likely without a struggle to give up to the new -standard, which was violet and green. But what she saw on that inky -broadsheet overwhelmed in an instant Miss Marjoribanks's -self-possession. She turned pale, though her complexion was, if -possible, fresher than ever, and even shivered in her chair, though her -nerves were so steady. Could it be a trick to thwart and startle her? or -could it be true? She lifted her eyes to her father with a look of -horror-stricken inquiry, but all that she met in return was a certain -air of amusement and triumph, which struck her at the tenderest point. -He was not sorry nor sympathetic, nor did he care at all for the sudden -shock she had sustained. On the contrary, he was laughing within himself -at the utterly unexpected complication. It was cruel, but it was -salutary, and restored her self-command in a moment. She might have -given way under kindness, but this look of satisfaction over her -discomfiture brought Lucilla to herself. - -"Yes, I thought you would be surprised," said Dr Marjoribanks dryly; and -he took his first glass of claret with a slow relish and enjoyment, -which roused every sentiment of self-respect and spark of temper -existing in his daughter's mind. "If you had kept your own place it -would not have mattered; but I don't see how you are to get out of it. -You see young ladies should let these sort of things alone, Lucilla." -This was all the feeling he showed for her in her unexpected dilemma. -Miss Marjoribanks's heart gave one throb, which made the green and -violet ribbons jump and thrill; and then she came to herself, and -recognised, as she had so often done before, that she had to fight her -way by herself, and had nobody to look to. Such a thought is dreary -enough sometimes, and there are minds that sink under it; but at other -times it is like the touch of the mother earth which gave the giant back -its strength; and Lucilla was of the latter class of intelligence. When -she saw the triumph with which her embarrassment was received and that -she had no sympathy nor aid to look for, she recovered herself as if by -magic. Let what would come in the way, nothing could alter her certainty -that Mr Ashburton was the man for Carlingford; and that determination -not to be beaten, which is the soul of British valour, sprang up in an -instant in Miss Marjoribanks's mind. There was not even the alternative -of victory or Westminster Abbey for Lucilla. If she was ever to hold up -her head again, or have any real respect for herself, she must win. All -this passed through her head in the one bewildering moment, while her -father's words were still making her ears tingle, and _that name_, -printed in big inky letters, seemed to flutter in all the air round her. -It was hard to believe the intelligence thus conveyed, and harder still -to go on in the face of old friendships and the traditions of her youth; -but still duty was dearer than tradition, and it was now a necessity to -fight the battle to the last, and at all risks to win. - -"Thank you all the same, papa, for bringing me the paper," said Lucilla. -"It would have been a great deal worse if I had not known of it before I -saw him. I am sure I am very glad for one thing. He can't be married or -dead, as people used to say. I am quite ashamed to keep you so long -downstairs, Aunt Jemima, when I know you must be longing for a cup of -tea--but it is somebody come back whom nobody expected. Tell him I shall -be _so_ glad to see him, papa; though I have no reason to be glad, for -he was one of my _young_ friends, you know, and he is sure to think I -have gone off." As she spoke, Lucilla turned Aunt Jemima, to whom she -had given her arm, quite round, that she might look into the great glass -over the mantelpiece: "I don't think I _am_ quite so much gone off as I -expected to be," said Miss Marjoribanks, with candid impartiality; -"though of course he will think me stouter--but it does not make any -difference about Mr Ashburton being the right man for Carlingford." She -said the words with a certain solemnity, and turned Mrs John, who was so -much surprised as to be speechless, round again, and led her upstairs. -It was as if they were walking in a procession of those martyrs and -renouncers of self, who build up the foundations of society; and it -would not be too much to say that under her present circumstances, and -in the excitement of this singular and unexpected event, such was the -painful but sublime consciousness which animated Lucilla's breast. - -As for Dr Marjoribanks, his triumph was taken out of him by that -spectacle. He closed the door after the ladies had gone, and came back -to his easy-chair by the side of the fire, and could not but feel that -he had had the worst of it. It was actually Mr Cavendish who had come -home, and whose address to the electors of Carlingford, dated from Dover -on his return to England, the Doctor had just put into his daughter's -hand. But wonderful and unlooked-for as was the event, Lucilla, though -taken unawares, had not given in, nor shown any signs of weakness. And -the effect upon her father of her last utterance and confession was such -that he took up the paper again and read both addresses, which were -printed side by side. In other days Mr Cavendish had been the chosen -candidate of Grange Lane; and the views which he expressed (and he -expressed his views very freely) were precisely those of Dr -Marjoribanks. Yet when the Doctor turned to Mr Ashburton's expression of -his conviction that he was the right man for Carlingford, it cannot be -denied that the force of that simple statement had a wonderful effect -upon his mind--an effect all the greater, perhaps, in comparison with -the political exposition made by the other unexpected candidate. The -Doctor's meditations possibly took a slumbrous tone from the place and -the moment at which he pursued them; for the fact was that the words he -had just been hearing ran in his head all through the reading of the two -addresses. Mr Cavendish would think Lucilla had gone off; but yet she -had not gone off so much as might have been expected, and Mr Ashburton -was the man for Carlingford. Dr Marjoribanks laughed quietly by himself -in his easy-chair, and then went back to Mr Cavendish's opinions; and -ended again, without knowing it, in a kind of odd incipient agreement -with Lucilla. The new candidate was right in politics; but, after all, -Mr Ashburton was a more satisfactory sort of person. He was a man whom -people knew everything about, and a descendant of old Penrhyn, and had -the Firs, and lived in it, and spent about so much money every year -honestly in the face of the world. When a man conducts himself in this -way, his neighbours can afford to be less exacting as to his political -opinions. This comparison went on in the Doctor's thoughts until the -distinction between the two grew confused and faint in that ruddy and -genial glow of firelight and lamplight and personal well-being which is -apt to engross a man's mind after he has come in out of the air, as -people say, and has eaten a good dinner, and feels himself comfortable; -and at last all that remained in Dr Marjoribanks's mind was that Mr -Cavendish would think Lucilla had gone off, though she had not gone off -nearly so much as might have been expected; at which he laughed with an -odd sound, which roused him, and might have induced some people to think -he had been sleeping--if, indeed, anybody had been near to hear. - -But this news was naturally much more serious to Miss Marjoribanks when -she got upstairs, and had time to think of it. She would not have been -human if she had heard without emotion of the return of the man whom she -had once dreamed of as member for Carlingford, with the addition of -other dreams which had not been altogether without their sweetness. He -had returned now and then for a few days, but Lucilla knew that he had -never held up his head in Grange Lane since the day when she advised him -to marry Barbara Lake. And now when he had bethought himself of his old -ambition, had he possibly bethought himself of other hopes as well? And -the horrible thing was, that she had pledged herself to another, and put -her seal upon it that Mr Ashburton was the man for Carlingford! It may -be supposed that, with such a complication in her mind, Miss -Marjoribanks was very little capable of supporting Aunt Jemima's -questions as to what it was about, and who was Mr Cavendish, and why was -his return of consequence to Lucilla? Mrs John was considerably alarmed -and startled, and began to think in earnest that Tom was fond of his -cousin, and would never forgive his mother for letting Lucilla perhaps -marry some one else, and settle down before her very eyes. - -"If it is a very particular friend, I can understand it," Mrs John said, -with a little asperity; but that was after she had made a great many -attempts, which were only partially successful, to find it all out. - -"Dear Aunt Jemima," said Lucilla, "we are all particular friends in -Carlingford--society is so limited, you know;--and Mr Cavendish has been -a very long time away. He used to be of such use to me, and I am so fond -of him," Miss Marjoribanks said, with a sigh; and it may be supposed -that Mrs John's curiosity was not lessened by such a response. - -"If you are engaged to any one, Lucilla, I must say I think I ought to -have been told," said Tom's mother, with natural indignation. "Though I -ought not to blame _you_ for it, perhaps. It is a sad thing when a girl -is deprived of a mother's care; but still I am your nearest -relation----" - -"My dear aunt, it is something about the election," said Miss -Marjoribanks. "How could I be engaged to a man who has been away ten -years?" - -"Tom has been away ten years," said Mrs John impetuously; and then she -blushed, though she was past the age of blushing, and made haste to -cover her imprudence. "I don't see what you can have to do with the -election," she said, with suspicion, but some justice; "and I don't -feel, Lucilla, as if you were telling me all." - -"I have the favours to make, Aunt Jemima," said Lucilla--"green and -violet. You used to be so clever at making bows, and I hope you will -help me;--papa, you know, will have to be on Mr Ashburton's committee," -Miss Marjoribanks added; and then, in spite of herself, a sigh of doubt -and anxiety escaped her bosom. It was easy to say that "papa would be on -Mr Ashburton's committee, you know," but nobody had known that Mr -Cavendish was coming to drive everything topsy-turvy; and Lucilla, -though she professed to know only who was the man for Carlingford, had -at the same time sufficient political information to be aware that the -sentiments propounded in Mr Cavendish's address were also Dr -Marjoribanks's sentiments; and she did not know the tricks which some -green-and-violet spirit in the dining-room was playing with the Doctor's -fancy. Perhaps it might turn out to be Mr Cavendish's committee which -her father would be on; and after she had pledged herself that the other -man was the man for Carlingford! Lucilla felt that she could not be -disloyal and go back from her word, neither could she forget the -intimation which had so plainly indicated to her that Mr Ashburton was -the man; and yet, at the same time, she could not but sigh as she -thought of Mr Cavendish. Perhaps he had grown coarse, as men do at that -age, just as Lucilla herself was conscious that he would find her -stouter. Perhaps he had ceased to flirt, or be of any particular use of -an evening; possibly even he might have forgotten Miss Marjoribanks--but -naturally that was a thing that seemed unlikely to Lucilla. And oh! if -he had but come a little earlier, or for ever stayed away! - -But while all these thoughts were going through her mind, her fingers -were still busy with the violet-and-green cockades which Aunt Jemima, -after making sure that Mr Ashburton was not a Radical, had begun to help -her with. And they sat and talked about Mrs John's breathing, which was -so bad, and about her headaches, while Lucilla by snatches discussed the -situation in her mind. Perhaps, on the whole, embarrassment and -perplexity are a kind of natural accompaniment to life and movement; and -it is better to be driven out of your senses with thinking which of two -things you ought to do than to do nothing whatever, and be utterly -uninteresting to all the world. This at least was how Lucilla reasoned -to herself in her dilemma; and while she reasoned she used up yard upon -yard of her green ribbon (for naturally the violet bore but a small -proportion to the green). Whatever she might have to do or to -suffer--however her thoughts might be disturbed or her heart -distracted--it is unnecessary to add that it was impossible to Lucilla -either to betray or to yield. - - - - -_Chapter XXXIX_ - - -It was a very good thing for Lucilla that Mrs John was so much of an -invalid, notwithstanding that the Doctor made little of her complaints. -All that Dr Marjoribanks said was--with that remnant of Scotch which was -often perceptible in his speech--that her illnesses were a fine thing to -occupy her, and he did not know what she would do without them--a manner -of speaking which naturally lessened his daughter's anxiety, though her -sympathetic care and solicitude were undiminished. And no doubt, when -she had been once assured that there was nothing dangerous in her aunt's -case, it was a relief to Miss Marjoribanks at the present juncture that -Mrs John got up late and always breakfasted in her own room. Lucilla -went into that sanctuary after she had given her father his breakfast, -and heard all about the palpitation and the bad night Aunt Jemima had -passed; and then when she had consoled her suffering relative by the -reflection that one never sleeps well the first night or two, Miss -Marjoribanks was at liberty to go forth and attend a little to her own -affairs, which stood so much in need of being attended to. She had had -no further talk with the Doctor on the subject, but she had read over Mr -Cavendish's address, and could not help seeing that it went dead against -her candidate; neither could Lucilla remain altogether unaffected by the -expression of feeling in respect to "a place in which I have spent so -many pleasant years, and which has so many claims on my affections," and -the touching haste with which the exile had rushed back as soon as he -heard of the old member's death. If it touched Miss Marjoribanks, who -was already pledged to support another interest, what might it not do to -the gentlemen in Grange Lane who were not pledged, and who had a -friendship for Mr Cavendish? This was the alarming thought that had -disturbed her sleep all night, and returned to her mind with her first -awakening; and when she had really her time to herself, and the fresh -morning hours before her, Lucilla began, as everybody ought to do, by -going to the very root and foundation, and asking herself what, beyond -all secondary considerations, it was _right_ to do. To change from one -side to the other and go back from her word was a thing abhorrent to -her; but still Miss Marjoribanks was aware that there are certain -circumstances in which honesty and truth themselves demand what in most -cases is considered an untruthful and dishonest proceeding. - -Thus in order to come to a right decision, and with a sense of the duty -she owed to her country which would have shamed half the electors in -England, not to say Carlingford, Lucilla, who naturally had no vote, -read the two addresses of the two candidates, and addressed herself -candidly and impartially to the rights of the subject. Mr Cavendish was -disposed, as we have said, to be pathetic and sentimental, and to speak -of the claims the borough had upon his affections, and the eagerness -with which he had rushed home at the earliest possible moment to present -himself to them. If poor old Mr Chiltern had been King Bomba, or a -gloomy Oriental tyrant, keeping all possible reformers and successors -banished from his dominions, the new candidate could not have spoken -with more pathos. It was a sort of thing which tells among the -imaginative part of the community, or so, at least, most people think; -and Miss Marjoribanks was moved by it for the first moment; but then her -enlightened mind asserted its rights. She said to herself that Mr -Cavendish might have come home at any hour, by any steamboat; that -Calais and Boulogne, and even Dieppe, were as open to him as if he had -been an actual refugee, and that consequently there was nothing -particular to be pathetic about. And then, if the town had such claims -on his affections, why had he stayed so long away? These two -rationalistic questions dispersed the first _attendrissement_ which had -begun to steal over Lucilla's mind. When she came to this conclusion, -her difficulties cleared away. She had no reason to go back from her -engagements and reject that intimation which had so impressed it on her, -that Mr Ashburton was the man. It was a sacrifice which ancient truth -and friendship did not demand, for verity was not in the document she -had just been reading, and that appeal to sentiment was nothing more -than what is generally called humbug. "He might have been living here -all the time," Lucilla said to herself; "he might have had much stronger -claims upon our affections; if he had wanted, he might have come back -ages ago, and not let people struggle on alone." When this view of the -subject occurred to her, Lucilla felt more indignation than sympathy. -And then, as Dr Marjoribanks had done, she turned to the calm utterance -of her own candidate--the man who was the only man for Carlingford--and -that sweet sense of having given sound counsel, and of having at last -met with some one capable of carrying it out, which makes up for so many -failures, came like balm to Lucilla's bosom. There was nothing more -necessary; the commotion in her mind calmed down, and the tranquillity -of undisturbed conviction came in its place. And it was with this sense -of certainty that she put on her bonnet and issued forth, though it -snowed a little, and was a very wintry day, on Mr Ashburton's behalf, to -try her fortune in Grange Lane. - -She went to Mrs Chiley's, who was now very old, poor old lady! and -feeble, and did not like to leave her sofa. Not but what she could leave -the sofa, she said to her friends, but at that time of the year, and at -her time of life, it was comfortable. The sofa was wheeled to the side -of the fire, and Mrs Chiley reclined upon it, covered with knitted rugs -of the brightest colours, which her young friends all worked for her. -The last one arrived was what used to be called an Afghanistan blanket, -done in stripes of all sorts of pretty tints, which was a present from -Mrs Beverley. "Her work, she says, Lucilla," said the old lady; "but we -know what sort of soft dawdling woman she is, and it must have been the -Archdeacon's nieces, you know." But still it had the place of honour at -present, covering Mrs Chiley's feet, and affording something to talk -about when any one came in. And by her side was a little table, upon -which stood one China rose, in a glass of water--a pale rose, almost as -pale as her soft old cheeks, and chilled like them by the approaching -frost. And the fire burned with an officious cheerfulness at her elbow, -as if it thought nothing of such accidental circumstances as winter and -old age. To be sure this was a reflection which never came into Mrs -Chiley's head, who was, on the contrary, very thankful for the fire, and -said it was like a companion. "And I often think, my dear, how do the -poor people get on, especially if they are old and sick, they have no -fires to keep them cheerful in this dreadful weather," the kind old lady -would say. She did say so now when Lucilla came in, glowing with cold -and her rapid walk, and with a flake or two of snow slowly melting on -her sealskin cloak. Perhaps it was not a sentiment the Colonel agreed -with, for he gave a humph and a little hoist of his shoulders, as if in -protest, being himself a good deal limited in his movements, and not -liking to own it, by the wintry torpor within his big old frame, and the -wintry weather outside. - -"Come and tell us all the news, Lucilla, my darling," Mrs Chiley said, -as she drew down her young friend's glowing face to her own, and gave -her one of her lingering kisses; "I felt sure you would come and tell us -everything. I said it would not be like Lucilla if she didn't. We know -nothing but _the fact_, you know--not another word. Make haste and tell -us everything, my dear." - -"But I don't know anything," said Miss Marjoribanks. "Of course you mean -about Mr Cavendish. I saw it in the papers, like everybody else, but I -don't know anything more." - -And then Mrs Chiley's countenance fell. She was not very strong, poor -old lady, and she could have cried, as she said afterwards. "Ah, well, I -suppose there is not time," she said, after a little pause; "I suppose -he has not got here from Dover yet--one always forgets the distance. I -calculated it all over last night, and I thought he would get home by -the eleven train; but these trains are never to be calculated upon, you -know, my dear. I _am_ a little disappointed, Lucilla. Poor dear! to -think how he must have rushed home the first moment--I could have cried -when I read that address." - -"I don't see why any one should cry," said Lucilla. "I think he makes a -great deal too much of that; he might have come ever so many years ago -if he had liked. Poor Mr Chiltern did not banish him, poor old man!--he -might have been here for years." - -Upon which the Colonel himself drew a little nearer, and poked the fire. -"I am glad to see you are so sensible, Lucilla," he said. "It's the -first rational word I have heard on the subject. _She_ thinks he's a -kind of saint and martyr; a silly young fellow that runs off among a set -of Frenchmen because he can't get everything his own way--and then he -expects that we are all to go into transports of joy, and give him our -votes," Colonel Chiley added, smashing a great piece of coal with the -poker, with a blow full of energy, yet showing a slight unsteadiness in -it, which sent a host of blazing splinters into the hearth. He was a man -who wore very well, but he was not so steady as he once was, and -nowadays was apt, by some tremulous movement, to neutralise the strength -which he had left. - -Mrs Chiley, for her part, was apt to be made very nervous by her -husband's proceedings. She was possessed by a terror that the splinters -some day would jump out of the hearth on to the carpet and fly into the -corners, "and perhaps burn us all up in our beds," as she said. She gave -a little start among her cushions, and stooped down to look over the -floor. "He will never learn that he is old," she said in Lucilla's ear, -who instantly came to her side to see what she wanted; and thus the two -old people kept watch upon each other, and noted, with a curious mixture -of vexation and sympathy, each other's declining strength. - -"For my part, I would give him all my votes, if I had a hundred," said -Mrs Chiley, "and so will you, too, when you hear the rights of it. -Lucilla, my dear, tell him--I hope _you_ are not going to forsake old -friends." - -"No," said Miss Marjoribanks--but she spoke with a gravity and -hesitation which did not fail to reach Mrs Chiley's ear--"I hope I shall -never desert my old friends; but I think all the same that it is Mr -Ashburton who is the right man for Carlingford," she said slowly. She -said it with reluctance, for she knew it would shock her audience, but, -at the same time, she did not shrink from her duty; and the moment had -now arrived when Lucilla felt concealment was impossible, and that the -truth must be said. - -As for Mrs Chiley, she was so distressed that the tears came to her -eyes; and even the Colonel laughed, and did not understand it. Colonel -Chiley, though he was by no means as yet on Mr Cavendish's side, was not -any more capable than his neighbours of understanding Miss -Marjoribanks's single-minded devotion to what was just and right; and -why she should transfer her support to Ashburton, who was not a ladies' -man, nor, in the Colonel's opinion, a marrying man, nor anything at all -attractive, now that the other had come back romantic and repentant to -throw his honours at her feet, was beyond his power of explanation. He -contented himself with saying "humph"; but his wife was not so easily -satisfied. She took Lucilla by the hand and poured forth a flood of -remonstrances and prayers. - -"I do not understand you, Lucilla," said Mrs Chiley. "He whom we know so -little about--whom, I am sure, you have no reason to care for. And where -could you find anybody nicer than Mr Cavendish?--and he to have such -faith in us, and to come rushing back as soon as he was able. I am sure -you have not taken everything into consideration, Lucilla. He might not -perhaps do exactly as could have been wished before he went away; but he -was young and he was led astray; and I do think you were a little hard -upon him, my dear; but I have always said I never knew anybody nicer -than Mr Cavendish. And what possible reason you can have to care about -that other man----" - -"It was like a special Intimation," said Lucilla, with solemnity. "I -don't see how I could neglect it, for my part. The day the news came -about poor old Mr Chiltern's death I was out, you know, and heard it; -and just at one spot upon the pavement, opposite Mr Holden's, it came -into my mind like a flash of lightning that Mr Ashburton was the man. I -don't care in the least for him, and I had not been thinking of him, or -anything. It came into my head all in a moment. If I had been very -intimate with poor dear old Mr Chiltern, or if I believed in -spirit-rapping, I should think it was a message from _him_." - -Lucilla spoke with great gravity, but she did not impress her audience, -who were people of sceptical minds. Mrs Chiley, for her part, was almost -angry, and could scarcely forgive Lucilla for having made her give grave -attention to such a piece of nonsense. "If it _had_ been him," she said, -with some wrath, "I don't see how having been dead for a few hours -should make his advice worth having. It never was good for anything when -he was alive. And you don't believe in spirit-rapping, I _hope_. I -wonder how you can talk such nonsense," the old lady said severely. And -Colonel Chiley, who had been a little curious too, laughed and coughed -over the joke; for the two old people were of the old school, and of a -very unbelieving frame of mind. - -"I knew you would laugh," said Miss Marjoribanks, "but I cannot help it. -If it had been impressed upon _your_ mind like that, you would have been -different. And, of course, I like Mr Cavendish much the best. I am so -glad I have no vote," said Lucilla; "it does not matter to anybody what -I think; but if I had anything to do with it, you know I could not stand -up for Mr Cavendish, even though I am fond of him, when I felt sure that -Mr Ashburton is the man for Carlingford--nobody could ask me to do -that." - -There followed a pause upon this declaration; for Miss Marjoribanks, -though she had no vote, was a person of undoubted influence, and such a -conviction on her part was not to be laughed at. Even Colonel Chiley, -who was undecided in his own mind, was moved by it a little. "What does -the Doctor think?" he asked. "Ashburton doesn't say a word about his -principles that I can see; and the other, you know----" - -"Dear Colonel Chiley," cried Lucilla, "he is not going to be Prime -Minister; and I have always heard you say, as long as I can remember, -that it was not opinions, you know, but a good _man_ that people wanted. -I have heard people talking politics for hours, and I always remember -you saying that, and thinking it was the only sensible thing that was -said; but, of course, I don't understand politics," Lucilla added, with -humility. As for the Colonel, he took up the poker, perhaps to hide a -little pleasant confusion, and again drew near the fire. - -"By George! I believe Lucilla is in the right," he said, with a certain -agreeable consciousness. Perhaps he did not quite recollect at what -moment of his life he had originated that sentiment, but he thought he -could recollect having said it; and it was with the view of carrying off -the bashfulness of genius, and not because the coals had any need of it, -that he took up the poker--a proceeding which was always regarded with -alarm and suspicion by his wife. - -"The fire is very nice," said Mrs Chiley. "I hate to have the fire poked -when it does not want it. Lucilla, if you make him go over to _that_ Mr -Ashburton's side, you will have a great deal to answer for, and I will -never forgive you. My dear, you must be dreaming--a man that is as dry -as a stick, and not one-hundredth nor one-thousandth part so nice----" - -"I shan't say another word," said Lucilla; "I shan't stay any longer, -for I can't help it, and you would be angry with me. People can't help -what they believe, you know. There is poor little Oswald Brown, who has -doubts, and can't go into the Church, and will ruin all his prospects, -and nobody can help it----" - -"If I were his mother I should help it!" cried Mrs Chiley. "I promise -you he should not talk of his doubts to me! A bit of a lad; and what is -good enough for all the bishops, and everybody in their senses, is not -good enough for him! If that is the kind of example you are going to -follow, Lucilla----" - -"Dear Mrs Chiley," said Miss Marjoribanks, "everybody knows what my -Church principles are; and perhaps you will come round to think with me; -but I am not going to say any more about it now. I am so glad your -rheumatism is better this morning; but you must wrap up well, for it is -so cold, oh, so cold, out of doors!" - -When Lucilla had thus dismissed the subject, she came to her old -friend's side and bent over her in her sealskin cloak, to say good-bye. -Mrs Chiley took her by both hands as she thus stood with her back to the -old Colonel, and drew her down close, and looked searchingly into her -eyes. "If you have any _particular_ reason, Lucilla, you ought to tell -me--that would make such a difference," said the old lady. "I always -tell you everything," said Miss Marjoribanks, with evasive fondness, as -she kissed the soft old withered cheek; and naturally, with the Colonel -behind, who was standing up before the fire shadowing over them both, -and quite unaware of this little whispered episode, it would have been -impossible to say more had there been ever so much to say. But it had -been a close encounter in its way, and Lucilla was rather glad to get -off without any further damage. She did not feel quite successful as she -went out; but still she had left a very wholesome commotion behind her; -for Colonel Chiley could not but feel that the sentiment which she had -quoted from himself was a very just sentiment. "By George! Lucilla was -in the right of it," he said again, after she was gone; and in fact went -through a process very similar to that which had modified the sentiments -of Dr Marjoribanks on the previous night. Mr Cavendish was a young -fellow who had rushed off among a set of Frenchmen, because Lucilla -Marjoribanks would not have him, or because he could not marry Barbara -Lake in addition, or at least somehow because he failed of having his -own way. It was all very well for him to come back and make a commotion, -and be sentimental about it. But what if, after all, Ashburton, who had -the Firs, and lived there, and spent his money like a Christian, was the -man for Carlingford? The Colonel's mind still wavered and veered about; -yet it had received an impulse which was by no means unworthy of -consideration. - -As for Mrs Chiley, she laid back her head upon her pillows and painfully -questioned with herself whether Lucilla could have any _particular_ -reason for taking Mr Ashburton's part so warmly. She thought with -justice that Miss Marjoribanks was looking brighter and better, and had -more of her old animation than she had shown for a long time--which -arose from the simple fact that she had something in hand, though the -old lady thought it might have a more touching and delicate motive. If -_that_ was the case, it would make a great difference. Mrs Chiley was no -longer able to go out in the evening, and had to be dependent on other -people's observation for a knowledge of what happened--and she was -wounded by a sense that her young friend had not been appreciated as her -worth deserved. If Mr Ashburton had the sense to see what was for his -own advantage, it would be a frightful thing, as Mrs Chiley said to -herself, if Lucilla's friends should fly in his face. And though it was -a hard trial to give up Mr Cavendish, still if anything of the kind had -happened----Thus it will be evident that Lucilla's visit, though it was -not a long one, nor the least in the world an argumentative visit, was -not without its fruit. - -She went up Grange Lane again cheerful and warm in her sealskin coat. It -was a thing that suited her remarkably well, and corresponded with her -character, and everybody knows how comfortable they are. The snowflakes -fell softly, one at a time, and melted away to nothing upon her sleeves -and her shoulders without leaving any trace--and Lucilla, with the chill -air blowing in her face, and those feathery messengers in the air, could -not but feel that her walk and the general readiness which she felt to -face all kinds of objections and difficulties, and to make a sacrifice -of her own feelings, had in them a certain magnanimous and heroic -element. For after all she had no _particular_ reason, as Mrs Chiley -said. Mr Ashburton was a dry man, and of very little use in a social -point of view, and had never paid her any attention to speak of, nor at -all put himself forth as a candidate for her favour. If he had done so, -she would not have felt that thrill of utter disinterestedness which -kept her as warm within as her sealskin did without. - -There was not a soul to be seen in Grange Lane at that moment in the -snow, which came on faster and faster, but one of Mr Wentworth's (who at -that time was new in St Roque's) gray sisters, and another lady who was -coming down, as quickly as Lucilla was going up, by the long line of -garden walls. The gentlemen were either at business or at their club, or -keeping themselves snug indoors; and it was only these devoted women who -braved the elements outside. The figure in the gray cloak was occupied -simply with the poor people, and that is not our present business; but -the other two were otherwise inspired. Mr Cavendish, who had lately -arrived, had not been able to make up his mind to face the weather; but -his sister was of a different way of thinking. She was not of half the -capacity of Lucilla, but still she felt that something ought to be done, -and that there was not a moment to be lost. When she saw it was Miss -Marjoribanks that was advancing to meet her, a momentary chill came over -Mrs Woodburn. She was thinking so much of her own errand that she could -not but jump at the idea that nothing less important could have induced -Lucilla to be out of doors on such a day; and her heart beat loud as the -two drew near each other. Was it an unexpected and generous auxiliary, -or was it a foe accomplished and formidable? For one thing, she was not -coming out of Mr Centum's, where Mrs Woodburn herself was going, which -at least was a relief. As they came nearer the two ladies instinctively -looked to their weapons. They had met already in many a little passage -of arms, but nothing like this had ever occurred to them before. If they -were to work in union, Mrs Woodburn felt that they would carry all -before them; and if not, then it must be a struggle unto the death. - -"Is it really you, Lucilla?" she said; "I could not believe my eyes. -What can have brought you out of doors on such a day? You that have -everything your own way, and no call to exert yourself----" - -"I have been to see Mrs Chiley," said Lucilla sweetly; "when the weather -is bad she sees nobody, and she is always so pleased to have me. Her -rheumatism is not so bad, thank you--though I am sure if this weather -should last----" - -"You would see Mrs Beverley's blanket," said Mrs Woodburn, who was a -little nervous, though perhaps that might only be the cold; "but we know -what sort of woman she is, and it must have been the Archdeacon's -nieces, my dear. Do turn back with me a moment, Lucilla; or I shall go -with you. I want to speak to you. Of course you have heard of Harry's -coming home?" - -"I saw it in the papers," said Miss Marjoribanks, whose perfect serenity -offered a curious contrast to her companion's agitation. "I am sure I -shall be very glad to see him again. I hope he will come to dinner on -Thursday as he used to do. It will be quite nice to see him in his old -place." - -"Yes," said Mrs Woodburn; "but that was not what I was thinking of. You -know you used always to say he ought to be in Parliament; and he has -always kept thinking of it since he went away--and thinking, I am sure, -that it would please you," said the poor woman, faltering; for Lucilla -listened with a smile that was quite unresponsive, and did not change -countenance in the least, even at this tender suggestion. "He has come -home with that object now, you know, now that poor old Mr Chiltern is -dead; and I hope you are going to help us, Lucilla," said Mrs Woodburn. -Her voice quite vibrated with agitation as she made this hurried, -perhaps injudicious, appeal, thinking within herself at the same moment -what would Harry say if he knew that she was thus committing him. As for -Lucilla, she received it all with the same tranquillity, as if she -expected it, and was quite prepared for everything that her assailant -had to say. - -"I am sure I wish I had a vote," said Lucilla; "but I have no vote, and -what can a girl do? I am so sorry I don't understand politics. If we -were going in for that sort of thing, I don't know what there would be -left for the gentlemen to do." - -"You have influence, which is a great deal better than a vote," said Mrs -Woodburn; "and they all say there is nobody like a lady for -electioneering--and a young lady above all; and then you know Harry so -well, and can always draw him out to the best advantage. I never thought -he looked so nice, or showed his talents so much, as when he was with -you," said the eager advocate. She was only wrapped in a shawl herself, -and when she looked at Lucilla's sealskin coat, and saw how rosy and -comfortable she looked, and how serene and immovable, poor Mrs Woodburn -was struck with a pang of envy. If Miss Marjoribanks had married ten -years ago, it might have been she now who would have had to stand -trembling with anxiety and eagerness among the falling snow, knowing -sundry reasons why Mr Cavendish should be disposed to go into Parliament -more substantial than that of gratifying a young lady, and feeling how -much depended on her ability to secure support for him. This, as it -happened, had fallen to his sister's share instead, and Lucilla stood -opposite to her looking at her, attentive and polite, and unresponsive. -If Harry had only not been such a fool ten years ago! for Mrs Woodburn -began to think now with Aunt Jemima, that Lucilla did not marry because -she was too comfortable, and, without any of the bother, could have -everything her own way. - -"It is so cold," said Miss Marjoribanks, "and I do think it is coming on -to snow very fast. I don't think it is good to stand talking. Do come in -to lunch, and then we can have a long chat; for I am sure nobody else -will venture out to-day." - -"I wish I could come," said Mrs Woodburn, "but I have to go down to Mary -Centum's, and hear all about her last new housemaid, you know. I don't -know what servants are made of for my part. They will go out in their -caps and talk to the young men, you know, in a night that is enough to -give any one their death," the mimic added, with a feeble exercise of -her gift which it was sad to see. "But Harry will be sure to come to -call the first time he goes out, and you _will_ not forget what I have -said to you, Lucilla?" and with this Mrs Woodburn took her young -friend's hand and looked in her face with a pathetic emphasis which it -would be impossible to describe. - -"Oh, no, certainly not," said Miss Marjoribanks, with cheerful -certainty; and then they kissed each other in the midst of the falling -snow. Mrs Woodburn's face was cold, but Lucilla's cheek was warm and -blooming as only a clear conscience and a sealskin cloak could have made -it; and then they went their several ways through the wintry solitude. -Ah, if Harry had only not been such a fool ten years ago! Mrs Woodburn -was not an enthusiastic young wife, but knew very well that marriage had -its drawbacks, and had come to an age at which she could appreciate the -comfort of having her own way without any of the bother. She gave a -furtive glance after Lucilla, and could not but acknowledge to herself -that it would be very foolish of Miss Marjoribanks to marry, and forfeit -all her advantages, and take somebody else's anxieties upon her -shoulders, and never have any money except what she asked from her -husband. Mrs Chiley, to be sure, who was more experienced than Mrs -Woodburn, and might have been her grandmother, took a different view of -the subject; but this was what the middle-aged married woman felt, who -had, as may be said, two men to carry on her shoulders, as she went -anxiously down Grange Lane to conciliate Mrs Centum, wrapping her shawl -about her, and feeling the light snow melt beneath her feet, and the -cold and discomfort go to her heart. She had her husband to keep in good -humour, and her brother to keep up and keep to the mark, and to do what -she could to remedy in public the effects of his indolent Continental -habits, and carry, if it was possible, the election for him--all with -the horrid sense upon her mind that if at any time the dinner should be -a little less cared for than usual, or the children more noisy, Woodburn -would go on like a savage. Under such circumstances, the poor woman, -amid her cares, may be excused if she looked back a little wistfully at -Lucilla going home all comfortable and independent and light-hearted, -with no cares, nor anybody to go on at her, in her sealskin coat. - -This was how Lucilla commenced that effective but decorous advocacy -which did Mr Ashburton so much good in Carlingford. She did not pretend -to understand about politics, or to care particularly about Reform or -the Income-tax; but she expressed with quiet solemnity her conviction -that it was not opinions but a good man that was wanted; that it was not -a prime minister they were going to elect, and that Mr Ashburton was the -man for Carlingford. "By George! Lucilla is in the right of it!" Colonel -Chiley said; "that was always my opinion;" and the people in Grange Lane -soon began to echo the Colonel's sentiments, which were so sound and so -just. - -As for Miss Marjoribanks, nobody had any occasion to "go on" about any -neglect on her part of her household duties. Dr Marjoribanks's dinners -were always excellent, and it was now, as ever, a privilege to be -admitted to his table; and nothing could be more exemplary than the care -Lucilla took of Aunt Jemima, who had always such bad nights. Even on -this snowy afternoon she went in from her more important cares, with a -complexion freshened by the cold, and coaxed Mrs John into eating -something, and made her as comfortable as possible at the drawing-room -fireside. - -"Now, tell me all about Tom," Lucilla said, when she had got her work -and settled herself comfortably for a quiet afternoon--for the snow had -come on heavier than ever, and unless it might be a sister of charity, -or such another sister not of charity, as Lucilla had already -encountered, nobody was like to stir abroad or to disturb the two ladies -in their work and their talk. Lucilla had some very interesting -worsted-work in hand; and the drawing-room never looked more cosy, with -somebody to talk to inside, and the wintry world and driving snow -without. And such an invitation as Miss Marjoribanks had just given -lifted Aunt Jemima into a paradise of content. She took Lucilla at her -word, and told her, as may be supposed, _all_ about Tom, including many -things which she was quite acquainted with and knew by heart; and at the -same time there was something implied all through, but never -obtrusively set forth, which was not displeasing to the auditor. Miss -Marjoribanks listened with affectionate satisfaction, and asked a great -many questions, and supplied a great many reminiscences, and entered -quite into the spirit of the conversation, and the two spent a very -pleasant afternoon together,--so pleasant that Mrs John felt quite -annoyed at the reflection that it must come to an end like everything -else that is good, and that she must get herself once more into her -velvet gown and dine with her brother-in-law. If Providence had only -given her the girl instead of the Doctor, who would no doubt have got on -quite well without any children! but then, to be sure, if Lucilla had -been hers to start with, she never could have married Tom. - -For this was the extravagant hope which had already begun to blossom in -his mother's breast. To be sure a woman might marry Tom, who was too -comfortable at home to think of marrying just anybody who might make her -an offer. But it was not easy to tell how Lucilla herself felt on this -subject. Her complexion was so bright with her walk, her sensations so -agreeable after that warm, cheerful, pleasant afternoon, her position so -entirely everything that was to be desired, and her mind so nobly -conscious of being useful to her kind and country, that, even without -any additional argument, Miss Marjoribanks had her reward, and was -happy. Perhaps a touch more exquisite might still come in to round the -full proportions of content. But, to tell the truth, Lucilla was so well -off that it was not necessary to invent any romantic source of happiness -to account for the light of well-being and satisfaction that shone in -her eyes. - - - - -_Chapter XL_ - - -The result of Miss Marjoribanks's wise precaution and reticence was that -Sir John Richmond and the Doctor and Colonel Chiley were all on Mr -Ashburton's committee. They might not agree with his principles; but -then when a man does not state any very distinct principles, it is -difficult for any one, however well disposed, to disagree with him; and -the fact that he was the man for Carlingford was so indisputable, that -nobody attempted to go into the minor matters. "Mr Ashburton is a -gentleman known to us all," Sir John said, with great effect, in his -nomination speech; and it was a sentence which went to the hearts of his -audience. The other candidate had been a long time from home, and it was -longer still since anybody in Carlingford could be said to have -benefited by his residence there. He had had all his things down from -town, as Mr Holden, the upholsterer, pithily remarked--and that made a -great difference to start with. As for Mr Ashburton, though it is true -nobody knew what he thought about Reform or the Income-tax, everybody -knew that he lived at the Firs, and was supplied in a creditable way by -George Street tradesmen. There was no mystery whatever about him. People -knew how much he had a year, and how much he paid for everything, and -the way in which his accounts were kept, and all about him. Even when he -had his wine direct from the growers (for naturally his own county could -not supply the actual liquor), it was put in Carlingford bottles, and -people knew the kinds he had, and how much, and a hundred agreeable -details. And then, "he was a gentleman as was always ready to give his -advice," as some of the people said. All this furnished an immense body -of evidence in his favour, and made Sir John's remark eloquent. And then -Carlingford, as a general rule, did not care the least in the world -about Reform. There were a few people who had once done so, and it was -remarked in Grove Street that Mr Tozer had once been in a dreadful state -of mind about it. But he was quite tranquil on the subject now, and so -was the community in general. And what was really wanted, as Lucilla's -genius had seen at a glance, was not this or that opinion, but a good -man. - -But at the same time it would be vain to deny that Miss Marjoribanks -looked forward to a possible visit from Mr Cavendish with a certain -amount of anxiety. She was not frightened, for she knew her own powers; -but she was a little excited and stimulated by the idea that he might -come in at any minute, bringing back a crowd of recollections with him; -and it was a perpetual wonder to her how he would take the inevitable -difference, whether he would accept it as natural, or put on the airs of -an injured man. Lucilla did not go out the two afternoons after her -meeting with Mrs Woodburn, partly that she might not miss him if he -called--for it was better to have it over; but Mr Cavendish did not come -on either of these days. After that, of course, she did not wait for him -any longer. But on the third or fourth day, when she was in Miss Brown's -photographing room (the eldest Miss Brown was not married, and was a -mother to the younger girls, and always enthusiastic about sitters), Mr -Ashburton called about business, and Thomas came to fetch Miss -Marjoribanks. She was sitting with the greatest good-nature for half a -dozen pictures, knowing in her secret heart all the time that she would -look a perfect fright, and that all Carlingford would see her grinning -with imbecile amiability out of the hazy background of Miss Brown's -_cartes_. Lucilla knew this, and had hitherto avoided the process with -success; but now she gave in; and as the Major was there, of course they -talked of the coming election, which, indeed, at present was almost the -only topic of conversation in Grange Lane. - -"Of course, you are on Mr Ashburton's committee," said Lucilla; "you -must be, or going to be, after what you said the other day at lunch----" - -"What did I say?" asked Major Brown, with an air of dismay; for, to tell -the truth, his heart inclined a little towards poor Mr Cavendish, who -was an old neighbour, and to whom Major Brown could not but think the -Marjoribanks and others had behaved rather cruelly. But then in these -electioneering matters one never knows what one may have done to -compromise oneself without meaning it; and the Major was a little -anxious to find out what he had said. - -"Dear Major Brown," said Lucilla, seriously, "I am so sorry if you did -not mean it. I am sure it was that as much as anything that influenced -Mr Ashburton. He was turning it all over in his mind, you know, and was -afraid the people he most esteemed in Carlingford would not agree with -him, and did not know what to do; and then you said, What did it matter -about opinions, if it was a good man?--that was what decided him," said -Miss Marjoribanks, with sad yet gentle reproachfulness. "I am so sorry -if you did not mean what you said----" - -"Good heavens! I don't remember saying anything of the sort," said Major -Brown. "I--I am sure I never thought of influencing anybody. It is true -enough about a good man, you know; but if I had imagined for an instant -that any one was paying attention----By George! it was you that said it, -Lucilla--I remember now." - -"Please don't make fun of me," said Miss Marjoribanks; "as if anybody -cared what _I_ say about politics. But I know that was what decided poor -Mr Ashburton. Indeed, he told me so; and when he finds you did not mean -anything----" - -"But, good heavens!--I--I did mean something," cried the accused, with -dismay. And he grew quite inarticulate in his confusion, and red in the -face, and lost his head altogether, while Lucilla sat calmly looking on -with that air of virtue at once severe and indulgent, which pities, and -blames, and hopes that perhaps there is not so much harm done as might -have been expected. This was the position of affairs when Thomas came to -say that Miss Marjoribanks was wanted, as she had told him to do when -her candidate came; for, to be sure, it was only next door. It was -terrible to hear the soft sigh she gave when she shook hands with Major -Brown. "I hope he will not feel it so much as I think; but I should be -afraid to tell him," said Lucilla; and she went away, leaving the good -man in a state of bewilderment and embarrassment and doubt, which would -have been much more unpleasant if he had not felt so flattered at the -same time. "I never meant to influence anybody, I am sure!" he said, -with a comical mixture of complacence and dismay, when Lucilla was gone. -"I have always said, papa, that you don't think enough of the weight -people give to your opinion," Miss Brown replied, as she gave the final -bath to her negatives; and they both left off work with a certain glow -of comforted _amour propre_, and the most benevolent sentiments towards -Mr Ashburton, who, to tell the truth, until he got his lesson from Miss -Marjoribanks, had never once thought about the opinion of Major Brown. - -He was sitting with Aunt Jemima when Lucilla came in, and talking to her -in a steady sort of a way. Nothing could have made Mr Ashburton socially -attractive, but still there are many people to whom this steady sort of -talk is more agreeable than brilliancy. When a man is brilliant there is -always a doubt in some minds whether he is trustworthy, or sincere, or -to be relied upon; but an ordinary commonsense sort of talker is free -from such suspicion. Mr Ashburton was very sorry to hear that Mrs John -Marjoribanks had bad nights, and suggested that it might be nervousness, -and hoped that the air of Carlingford would do her good, and was very -glad to hear that her son was getting on so well in India; and Aunt -Jemima could not help approving of him, and feeling that he was a person -of substance and reflection, and not one of those fly-away young men who -turn girls' heads, and never mean anything. Lucilla herself gained -something in Mrs John's eyes from Mr Ashburton's high opinion; but at -the same time it was quite clear that he was not thinking of anything -sentimental, but was quite occupied about his election, as a man of -sense should be. Lucilla came in with a fine bloom on her cheeks, but -still with a shade of that sadness which had had so great an effect upon -Major Brown. She had taken off her hat before she came in, and dropped -into her chair with an air of languor and fatigue which was quite -unusual to her. "It makes such a difference in life when one has -something on one's mind," said Lucilla, and she sighed, as was but -natural; for though that did not affect the energy of her proceedings, -she knew and remembered at moments of discouragement how seldom one's -most disinterested exertions are appreciated at the end. - -"You want your lunch, my dear," said Mrs John. - -"Perhaps I do," said Miss Marjoribanks, with a mournful affectionate -smile. "I have been sitting to Maria Brown. She has taken six, and I am -sure they are every one more hideous than the other; and they will go -all over England, you know, for the Browns have hosts of people -belonging to them; and everybody will say, 'So _that_ is Miss -Marjoribanks.' I don't think I am vain to speak of," said Lucilla, "but -that sort of thing goes to one's heart." - -"These amateurs are terrible people," said Mr Ashburton, in his steady -way; "and photographs are a regular nuisance. For my part----" - -"Don't say that," said Miss Marjoribanks. "I know what you are going to -say; and you _must_ sit to her, please. I have said already she must do -one of you; and I will tell you presently about the Major. But wait and -talk to Aunt Jemima a little, for I am so tired," said Lucilla. She was -lying back negligently in her seat, with that air of languor which so -many young ladies excel in, but which was for her a novel indulgence. -Her hand hung over the arm of her chair as if there was no longer any -force in it. Her head fell back, her eyes were half closed; it was a -moment of abandonment to her sensations, such as a high-principled young -woman like Miss Marjoribanks seldom gives way to. But Lucilla went into -it conscientiously, as into everything she did, that she might regain -her strength for the necessary duties that were before her. - -And it was at this moment that Thomas appeared at the door with a -suspicion of a grin appearing at the corners of his sober mouth, and -announced Mr Cavendish, who came in before an ordinary woman would have -had time to open her eyes. This was the moment he had chosen for his -first visit; and yet it was not he who had chosen it, but fate, who -seemed to have in this respect a spite against Lucilla. It was not only -the embarrassing presence of his rival, but the fact that neither of the -two people in the room knew or had ever seen Mr Cavendish, that put a -climax to the horror of the situation. She alone knew him, and had to -take upon herself to present and introduce him, and bridge over for him -the long interval of absence, and all this with the sense of being in -the enemy's interest, and to a certain extent false to Mr Cavendish! -Lucilla rose at once, but she was not a woman to make pretences. She did -not throw off all in a moment her fatigue, and dash into spasmodic -action. She held out her hand silently to Mr Cavendish, with a look -which spoke only affectionate satisfaction in a friend's return. She did -not even speak at all for the first moment, but contented herself with a -look, which indeed, if he had been younger and less preoccupied, would -no doubt have touched his very heart. - -"So you have really come back," she said. "I am so glad! after all that -people said about your being married and dead and ever so many stupid -things. Oh! don't look at me, please. It doesn't matter with a -gentleman, but I know as well as if you had told me that you think me -dreadfully gone off----" - -"_I_ entertain such a profane idea!" said Mr Cavendish; but he was -considerably embarrassed, and he was a great deal stouter, and -altogether different from what he used to be, and he had not the light -hand of his youth for a compliment. And then he sat down on the chair -Thomas had given him; and he looked uncomfortable, to say the least of -it; and he was getting large in dimensions and a little red in the face, -and had by no means the air of thinking that it didn't matter for a -gentleman. As for Miss Marjoribanks, it would be impossible to say what -mists of illusion dropped away from her mind at the sight of him. Even -while she smiled upon the new-comer, she could not but ask herself, with -momentary dismay--Had _she_ really gone off as much in the same time? - -"I have been looking for you," Miss Marjoribanks resumed; "I waited in -for you Tuesday and Wednesday, and it is so odd you should have come -just at this minute. Aunt Jemima, this is Mr Cavendish, whom you have -heard so much about--and don't go, please, Mr Ashburton--you two must -know each other. You will be hearing of each other constantly; and I -suppose you will have to shake hands or something on the hustings--so it -will be much the best to begin it here." - -But the two candidates did not shake hands: they bowed to each other in -an alarming way, which did not promise much for their future -brotherliness, and then they both stood bolt upright and stared at Miss -Marjoribanks, who had relapsed, in the pleasantest way in the world, -into her easy-chair. - -"Now, please sit down and talk a little," said Lucilla; "I am so proud -of having you both together. There never has been anybody in the world -that I have missed so much as _you_--you knew that when you went away, -but you didn't mind. Mr Ashburton is very nice, but he is of no use to -speak of in an evening," said Miss Marjoribanks, turning a reflective -glance upon her own candidate with a certain sadness; and then they both -laughed as if it was a joke; but it was no joke, as one of them at least -must have known. - -"Lucilla," said Mrs John, with consternation, "I never heard anybody -talk as you do; I am sure Mr Ashburton is the very best of society, and -as for Mr Cavendish----" - -"Dear Aunt Jemima," said Lucilla, "would you mind ringing the bell? I -have been sitting to Maria Brown, and I am almost fainting. I wish you -gentlemen would sit to her; it would please her, and it would not do -_you_ much harm; and then for your constituents, you know----" - -"I hope you don't wish me to look like one of Maria Brown's photographs -to my constituents," said Mr Cavendish; "but then I am happy to say they -all know me pretty well." This was said with a slight touch of -gentlemanly spite, if there is such a thing; for, after all, he _was_ an -old power in Carlingford, though he had been so long away. - -"Yes," said Lucilla reflectively, "but you are a little changed since -then; a little perhaps--just a little--stouter, and----" - -"Gone off?" said Mr Cavendish, with a laugh; but he felt horribly -disconcerted all the same, and savage with Miss Marjoribanks, and could -not think why "that fellow" did not go away. What had _he_ to do in -Lucilla's drawing-room? what did he mean by sitting down again and -talking in that measured way to the old lady, as if all the ordinary -rules of good breeding did not point out to him that he should have gone -away and left the field clear? - -"Oh, you know it does not matter for a gentleman," said Lucilla; and -then she turned to Mr Ashburton--"I am sure the Major wants to see you, -and he thinks that it was he who put it into your head to stand. He was -here that day at lunch, you know, and it was something he said----" - -"Quite true," said Mr Ashburton in his business way. "I shall go to see -him at once. Thank you for telling me of it, Miss Marjoribanks; I shall -go as soon as I leave here." - -And then Mr Cavendish laughed. "This is what I call interesting," he -said. "I hope Mr Ashburton sees the fun; but it is trying to an old -friend to hear of _that_ day at lunch, you know. I remember when these -sort of allusions used to be pleasant enough; but when one has been -banished for a thousand years----" - -"Yes," said Lucilla, "one leaves all that behind, you know--one leaves -ever so many things behind. I wish we could always be twenty, for my -part. I always said, you know, that I should be gone off in ten years." - -"Was it the only fib you ever told that you repeat it so?" said Mr -Cavendish; and it was with this pretty speech that he took her -downstairs to the well-remembered luncheon. "But you _have_ gone off in -some things when you have to do with a prig like that," he said in her -ear, as they went down together, "and cast off old friends. It was a -thing a fellow did not expect of _you_." - -"I never cast off old friends," said Miss Marjoribanks. "We shall look -for you on Thursday, you know, all the same. Must you go, Mr Ashburton, -when lunch is on the table? But then, to be sure, you will be in time at -the Browns'," said Lucilla sweetly, and she gave the one rival her hand -while she held the arm of the other, at the door of the dining-room, in -which Mr Ashburton had gallantly deposited Aunt Jemima before saying -good-bye. They were both looking a little black, though the gloom was -moderate in Mr Ashburton's case; but as for Lucilla, she stood between -them a picture of angelic sweetness and goodness, giving a certain -measure of her sympathy to both--Woman the Reconciler, by the side of -those other characters of Inspirer and Consoler, of which the world has -heard. The two inferior creatures scowled with politeness at each other, -but Miss Marjoribanks smiled upon them both. Such was the way in which -she overcame the difficulties of the meeting. Mr Ashburton went away a -little annoyed, but still understanding his instructions, and ready to -act upon them in that businesslike way he had, and Mr Cavendish -remained, faintly reassured in the midst of his soreness and -mortification, by at least having the field to himself and seeing the -last (for the present) of his antagonist--which was a kind of victory in -its way. - -"I thought I knew you better than to think you ever would have anything -to do with _that_ sort of thing," said Mr Cavendish. "There are people, -you know, whom I could have imagined--but a prig like that." He became -indeed quite violent, as Aunt Jemima said afterwards, and met with that -lady's decided disapproval, as may be supposed. - -"Mr Ashburton is very well-bred and agreeable," Mrs John said, with -emphasis. "I wish all the young men I see nowadays were as nice." - -"Young men!" said Mr Cavendish. "Is that what people call young -nowadays? And he must be insane, you know, or he would never dream of -representing a town without saying a single word about his principles. -I dare say he thinks it is original," said the unhappy man. He thought -he was pointing out his rival's weakness to Lucilla, and he went on with -energy--"I know you better than to think you can like that -milk-and-water sort of thing." - -"Oh, I don't pretend to know anything about politics," said Lucilla. "I -hear you gentlemen talk, but I never pretend to understand. If we were -not to leave you _that_ all to yourselves, I don't know what you could -find to do," Miss Marjoribanks added compassionately; and as she spoke -she looked so like the Lucilla of old, who had schemed and plotted for -Mr Cavendish, that he could not believe in her desertion in his heart. - -"That is a delusion like the going off," he said. "I can't believe you -have gone over to the enemy. When I remember how I have been roving -about all those ten years, and how different it might have been, and -whose fault it all was----" - -This Mr Cavendish said in a low voice, but it did not the less horrify -Aunt Jemima, who felt prepared for any atrocity after it. She would have -withdrawn, in justice to her own sense of propriety; but then she -thought it was not impossible that he might propose to Lucilla on the -spot, or take her hand or something, and for propriety's sake she -stayed. - -"Yes," said Lucilla--and her heart did for one little moment give a -faint thump against her breast. She could not help thinking what a -difference it might have made to him, poor fellow, had he been under her -lawful and righteous sway these ten years. But as she looked at him it -became more and more apparent to Miss Marjoribanks that Mr Cavendish -_had_ gone off, whatever she herself might have done. The outlines of -his fine figure had changed considerably, and his face was a little red, -and he had the look of a man whose circumstances, spiritual and -temporal, would not quite bear a rigid examination. As she looked at him -her pity became tinged by a certain shade of resentment to think that -after all it was his own fault. She could not, notwithstanding her -natural frankness of expression, say to him, "You foolish soul, why -didn't you marry me somehow, and make a man of yourself?" Lucilla -carried honesty very far, but she could not go as far as that. "Yes," -she said, turning her eyes upon him with a sort of abstract sympathy, -and then she added softly, "Have you ever seen Her again?" with a -lowering of her voice. - -This interesting question, which utterly bewildered Aunt Jemima, drove -Mr Cavendish wild with rage. Mrs John said afterwards that she felt a -shiver go through her as he took up the carving-knife, though it was -only to cut some cold beef. He grew white all at once, and pressed his -lips tightly together, and fixed his eyes on the wall straight before -him. "I did not think, after what I once said to you, Miss Marjoribanks, -that you would continue to insult my judgment in that way," he said, -with a chill which fell upon the whole table, and took the life out of -everything, and dimmed the very fire in the chimney. And after that the -conversation was of a sufficiently ordinary description until they went -back again into the drawing-room, by which time Mr Cavendish seemed to -have concluded that it was best to pocket the affront. - -"I am going to begin my canvass to-morrow," he said. "I have not seen -anybody yet. I have nobody but my sister to take _me_ in hand, you know. -There was once a time when it might have been different"--and he gave -Lucilla a look which she thought on the whole it was best to meet. - -"Yes," said Miss Marjoribanks, with cruel distinctness, "there was a -time when you were the most popular man in Grange Lane--everybody was -fond of you. I remember it as if it had been yesterday," said Lucilla, -with a sigh. - -"You don't give a man much encouragement, by Jove!" said the unlucky -candidate. "You remember it like yesterday? It may be vanity, but I -flatter myself I shall still be found the most popular man in Grange -Lane." - -Miss Marjoribanks sighed again, but she did not say anything. On the -contrary she turned to Aunt Jemima, who kept in the background an -alarmed and alert spectator, to consult her about a shade of wool; and -just then Mr Cavendish, looking out of the window, saw Major Brown -conducting his rival through his garden, and shaking hands with him -cordially at the door. This was more than the patience of the other -candidate could bear. A sudden resolution, hot and angry, as are the -resolutions of men who feel themselves to have a failing cause, came -into his mind. He had been badgered and baited to such an extent (as he -thought) that he had not time to consider if it was wise or not. He, -too, had sat to Maria Brown, and commanded once the warmest admiration -of the household. He thought he would put it to the test, and see if -after all his popularity was only a thing to be remembered like -yesterday;--and it was with this intention that he bade a hurried -good-bye to Lucilla, and, rushing out, threw himself at once upon the -troubled waves of society, which had once been as smooth as glass to the -most popular man in Grange Lane. - - - - -_Chapter XLI_ - - -Mr Cavendish thought he had been an object of admiration to Maria Brown, -as we have said. He thought of it with a little middle-aged complacency, -and a confidence that this vague sentiment would stand the test he was -about to apply to it, which did honour to the freshness of his heart. -With this idea it was Miss Brown he asked for as he knocked at the -Major's door; and he found them both in the drawing-room, Maria with -gloves on to hide the honourable stains of her photography, which made -her comparatively useless when she was out of her "studio"--and her -father walking about in a state of excitement, which was, indeed, what -Mr Cavendish expected. The two exchanged a guilty look when they saw who -their visitor was. They looked as people might well look who had been -caught in the fact and did not know how to get over it. They came -forward, both of them, with a cowardly cordiality and eagerness to -welcome him--"How very good of you to come to see us so soon!" Miss -Brown said, and fluttered and looked at her father, and could not tell -what more to say. And then a dead pause fell upon them--such a pause as -not unfrequently falls upon people who have got through their mutual -greetings almost with an excess of cordiality. They stopped short all at -once, and looked at each other, and smiled, and made a fatal conscious -effort to talk of something. "It is so good of you to come so soon," -Miss Brown repeated; "perhaps you have been to see Lucilla," and then -she stopped again, slightly tremulous, and turned an appealing gaze to -her papa. - -"I have come to see _you_," said Mr Cavendish, plucking up all his -courage. "I have been a long time gone, you know, but I have not -forgotten Carlingford; and you must forgive me for saying that I was -very glad to hear I might still come to see--Miss Brown. As for Lydia?" -said the candidate, looking about him with a smile. - -"Ah, Lydia," said her sister, with a sigh--"her eldest is eight, Mr -Cavendish. We don't see her as often as we should like--marriage makes -such a difference. Of course it is quite natural she should be all for -her own family now." - -"Quite natural," said Mr Cavendish, and then he turned to the Major. "I -don't think there are quite so many public changes as I expected to see. -The old Rector always holds out, and the old Colonel; and you have not -done much that I can see about the new paving. You know what I have come -home about, Major; and I am sure I can count upon you to support me," -the candidate said, with a great deal more confidence than he felt in -his voice. - -Major Brown cleared his throat; his heart was moved by the familiar -voice, and he could not conceal his embarrassment. "I hope nothing will -ever occur," he said, "to make any difference in the friendly -feelings--I am sure I shall be very glad to welcome you back permanently -to Carlingford. You may always rest assured of that," and he held out -his hand. But he grew red as he thought of his treachery, and Maria, who -was quaking over it, did not even try to say a word to help him--and as -for Mr Cavendish, he took up his position on the arm of the sofa, as he -used to do. But he had a slim youthful figure when he used to do it, and -now the attitude was one which revealed a certain dawning rotundity, -very different, as Maria afterwards said, from one's idea of Mr -Cavendish. He was not aware of it himself, but as these two people -looked, their simultaneous thought was how much he had changed. - -"Thank you, you are very kind," said Mr Cavendish. "I have been a little -lazy, I am afraid, since I came here; but I expect my agent down -to-night, and then, I hope, you'll come over to my place and have a talk -with Woodburn and Centum and the rest about it. I am a poor tactician, -for my part. You shall contrive what is best to be done, and I'll carry -it out. I suppose I may expect almost to walk over," he said. It was the -confidence of despair that moved him. The more he saw that his cause was -lost, the more he would make it out that he was sure to win--which is -not an unusual state of mind. - -"I--I don't know, I am sure," said poor Major Brown. "To tell the truth, -I--though I can safely say my sympathies are always with you, -Cavendish--I--have been so unfortunate as to commit myself, you know. It -was quite involuntary, I am sure, for I never thought my casual -expression of opinion likely to have any weight----" - -"Papa never will perceive the weight that is attached to his opinion," -said Miss Brown. - -"I was not thinking of it in the least, Maria," said the modest Major; -"but the fact is, it seems to have been _that_ that decided Ashburton to -stand; and after drawing a man in to such a thing, the least one can do -is to back him out in it. Nobody had an idea then, you know, that you -were coming back, my dear fellow. I assure you, if I had known----" - -"But even if you had known, you know you never meant it, papa," said -Maria. And Mr Cavendish sat on the arm of the sofa, and put his hands -deep into his pockets, and dropped his upper lip, and knit his eyebrows -a little, and listened to the anxious people excusing themselves. He did -not make any answer one way or another. He was terribly mortified and -disappointed, and it went against his pride to make further -remonstrances. When they had done, he got down off his seat and took his -right hand out of his pocket and offered it to Miss Brown, who, putting -her own into it, poor soul! with the remembrance of her ancient -allegiance, was like to cry. - -"Well," he said, "if that is the case, I suppose I need not bother you -any longer. You'll give me your good wishes all the same. I used to hear -of Ashburton sometimes, but I never had the least idea he was so -popular. And to tell the truth, I don't think he's any great things to -brag of--though I suppose it's not to be expected _I_ should appreciate -his qualities," Mr Cavendish added, with a laugh. As for Miss Brown, it -was all she could do to keep from crying as he went away. She said she -could see, by the way he left the drawing-room, that he was a stricken -deer; and yet, notwithstanding this sympathetic feeling, she could not -but acknowledge, when Miss Marjoribanks mentioned it, that, to have been -such a handsome man, he was inconceivably gone off. - -Mr Cavendish went up Grange Lane with his hands in his pockets, and -tried to think that he did not care; but he did care all the same, and -was very bitter in his mind over the failure of friends and the vanity -of expectations. The last time he had walked past those garden walls he -had thought himself sure of the support of Carlingford, and the -personal esteem of all the people in all the houses he was passing. It -was after the Archdeacon had broken down in his case against the man -whom he called an adventurer, and when Mr Cavendish felt all the -sweetness of being a member of an oligarchy, and entitled to the -sympathy and support of his order. Now he went along the same path with -his hat over his ears and his hands in his pockets, and rage and pain in -his heart. Whose fault was it that his friends had deserted him and -Carlingford knew him no more? He might as well have asked whose fault it -was that he was getting stout and red in the face, and had not the same -grace of figure nor ease of mind as he used to have? He had come very -near to settling down and becoming a man of domestic respectability in -this quiet place, and he had just escaped in time, and had laughed over -it since, and imagined himself, with much glee, an old fogy looking -after a lot of children. But the fact is that men do become old fogies -even when they have no children to look after, and lose their figure and -their elasticity just as soon and perhaps a little sooner in the midst -of what is called life than in any milder scene of enjoyment. And it -would have been very handy just now to have been sure of his election -without paying much for it. He had been living fast, and spending a -great deal of money, and this, after all, was the only real ambition he -had ever had; and he had thought within himself that if he won he would -change his mode of life, and turn over a new leaf, and become all at -once a different man. When a man has made such a resolution, and feels -not only that a mere success but a moral reformation depends upon his -victory, he may be permitted to consider that he has a right to win; and -it may be divined what his state of mind was when he had made the -discovery that even his old friends did not see his election to be of -any such importance as he did, and could think of a miserable little bit -of self-importance or gratified vanity more than of his interests--even -the women who had once been so kind to him! He had just got so far in -his thoughts when he met Mr Centum, who stared for a moment, and then -burst into one of his great laughs as he greeted him. "Good Lord! -Cavendish, is this you? I never expected to see you like that!" the -banker said, in his coarse way. "You're stouter than I am, old fellow; -and such an Adonis as you used to be!" Mr Cavendish had to bear all this -without giving way to his feelings, or even showing them any more than -he could help it. Nobody would spare him that imbecile suggestion as to -how things used to be. To be growing stouter than Centum without -Centum's excuse of being a well-to-do householder and father of a -family, and respectable man from whom stoutness was expected, was very -bitter to him: but he had to gulp it down, and recollect that Centum was -as yet the only influential supporter, except his brother-in-law, whom -he had in Carlingford. - -"What have you been doing with yourself since you came that nobody has -seen you?" said Mr Centum. "If you are to do any good here, you know, we -shall have to look alive." - -"I have been ill," said the unfortunate candidate, with a little natural -loss of temper. "You would not have a man to trudge about at this time -of year in all weathers when he is ill." - -"I would not be ill again, if I were you, till it's all over," said Mr -Centum. "We shall have to fight every inch of our ground; and I tell you -that fellow Ashburton knows what he's about--he goes at everything in a -steady sort of way. He's not brilliant, you know, but he's sure----" - -"Brilliant!" said Mr Cavendish, "I should think not. It is Lucilla -Marjoribanks who is putting him up to it. You know she had an old grudge -at me." - -"Oh, nonsense about Lucilla," said Mr Centum. "I can tell you Ashburton -is not at all a contemptible adversary. He is going to work in the -cunningest way--not a woman's sort of thing, and he's not a ladies' man -like you," the banker added, with a laugh. - -"But I am afraid you can't go in for that sort of thing as you used to -do, Cavendish. You should marry, and settle, and become a steady member -of society, now you've grown so stout." This was the kind of way in -which he was addressed even by his own supporter, who uttered another -great laugh as he went off upon his busy way. It was a sort of thing Mr -Cavendish was not used to, and he felt it accordingly. To be sure he -knew that he was ten years older, and that there were several things -which he could not do with the same facility as in his youth. But he had -saved up Carlingford in his imagination as a spot in which he would -always be young, and where nobody should find out the difference; and -instead of that, it was precisely in Carlingford that he was fated to -hear how changed he was, with a frankness which only old friends would -have been justified in using. As for Lucilla Marjoribanks, she was -rather better looking than otherwise, and absolutely had not gone off. -It did not occur to Mr Cavendish that this might be because Lucilla at -present was not still so old as he had been ten years ago, in the period -which he now considered his youth. He was rather disposed, on the -contrary, to take a moral view, and to consider that it was her feminine -incapacity for going too far, which had kept years and amusements from -having their due effect upon Miss Marjoribanks. And, poor fellow, he -_had_ gone too far. He had not been as careful in his life as he might -have been had he stayed at Carlingford; and now he was paying the -penalty. Such was the edifying state of mind which he had come to when -he reached the top of Grove Street. And there a waft of soft -recollections came across his mind. In the absence of all sympathy he -could not help turning back to the thought of the enchantress of old who -used to sing to him, and listen to him, and storm at him. Probably he -would have ended by strolling along the familiar street, and canvassing -for Mr Lake's vote, which would have done him no good in Carlingford, -but just then Dr Marjoribanks stopped in his brougham. The Doctor was -looking very strange that morning, though nobody had particularly -remarked it--perhaps because he smoothed his countenance when he was out -of the brougham, which was his refuge when he had anything to think -about. But he stopped suddenly to speak to Mr Cavendish, and perhaps he -had not time to perform that ceremony. He looked dark and cloudy, and -constrained, and as if he forced himself to speak; which, to be sure, -under the circumstances, was not so very strange. - -"I am very glad to see you," the Doctor said, "though you were a day too -late, you know. Why didn't you give us warning before we all went and -committed ourselves? If we had known that you were coming----" - -"Ah, that's what old Brown said," said Mr Cavendish, with a slight shrug -of his shoulders; which was imprudent, for the Major was not so old as -the Doctor, and besides was a much less important man in Grange Lane. - -"So you have been to see old Brown," said Dr Marjoribanks, in his dry -way. "He always was a great admirer of yours. I can't wish you luck, you -know, for if you win we lose----" - -"Oh, I don't want you to wish me luck. I don't suppose there can be much -comparison between my chance and that of a new man whom nobody ever -heard of in my time," said the candidate for Carlingford. "I thought you -Scotchmen, Doctor, always liked to be on the winning side." - -"We've a way of making our side the winning side," said Dr Marjoribanks -grimly, for he was touchy where his nationality was concerned. "Health -all right, I hope?" he added, looking at Mr Cavendish with that critical -medical glance which shows that a verbal response is quite unnecessary. -This time there was in the look a certain insinuation of doubt on the -subject, which was not pleasant. "You are getting stout, I see," Dr -Marjoribanks added--not laughing, but as if that too was poor Mr -Cavendish's fault. - -"Yes, I'm very well," he answered curtly; but the truth was that he did -not feel sure that he was quite well after he had seen the critical look -in Dr Marjoribanks's eye. - -"You young men always go too fast," said the Doctor, with a strange -little smile; but the term at least was consolatory; and after that -Doctor Marjoribanks quite changed his tone. "Have you heard Woodburn -talking of that great crash in town?" he said--"that India house, you -know--I suppose it's quite true?" - -"Quite true," said Mr Cavendish, promptly, and somehow he felt a -pleasure in saying it. "I got all the particulars to-day in one of my -letters--and lots of private people involved, which is always the way -with these old houses," he added, with a mixture of curiosity and -malice--"widows, and all sorts of superannuated folks." - -"It's a great pity," said the Doctor: "I knew old Lichfield once, the -chief partner--I am very sorry to hear it's true;" and then the two -shook hands, and the brougham drove on. As for Mr Cavendish, he made up -his mind at once that the Doctor was involved, and was not sorry, and -felt that it was a sort of judicial recompense for his desertion of his -friends. And he went home to tell his sister of it, who shared in his -sentiments. And then it was not worth while going out any more that -day--for the electioneering agent, who knew all about it, was not coming -till the last train. "I suppose I shall have to work when he is here," -Mr Cavendish said. And in the meantime he threw himself into an easy -chair. Perhaps that was why he was getting so stout. - -And in the meantime the Doctor went on visiting his patients. When he -came back to his brougham between his visits, and went bowling along in -that comfortable way, along the familiar roads, there was a certain -glumness upon his face. He was not a demonstrative man, but when he was -alone you could tell by certain lines about the well-worn cordage of his -countenance whether all was right with the Doctor; and it was easy to -see just at this moment that all was not right with him. But he did not -say anything about it when he got home; on the contrary, he was just as -usual, and told his daughter all about his encounter with Mr Cavendish. -"A man at his time of life has no right to get fat--it's a sort of thing -I don't like to see. And he'll never be a ladies' man no more, Lucilla," -said the Doctor, with a gleam of humour in his eye. - -"He is exactly like George the Fourth, papa," said Miss Marjoribanks; -and the Doctor laughed as he sat down to dinner. If he had anything on -his mind he bore it like a hero, and gave no sign; but then, as Mrs John -very truly remarked, when a man does not disclose his annoyances they -always tell more upon him in the end. - - - - -_Chapter XLII_ - - -There were a great many reasons why this should be a critical period in -Miss Marjoribanks's life. For one thing, it was the limit she had always -proposed to herself for her term of young-ladyhood; and naturally, as -she outgrew the age for them, she felt disposed to put away childish -things. To have the control of society in her hands was a great thing; -but still the mere means, without any end, was not worth Lucilla's -while--and her Thursdays were almost a bore to her in her present stage -of development. They occurred every week, to be sure, as usual; but the -machinery was all perfect, and went on by itself, and it was not in the -nature of things that such a light adjunct of existence should satisfy -Lucilla, as she opened out into the ripeness of her thirtieth year. It -was this that made Mr Ashburton so interesting to her, and his election -a matter into which she entered so warmly, for she had come to an age at -which she might have gone into Parliament herself had there been no -disqualification of sex, and when it was almost a necessity for her to -make some use of her social influence. Miss Marjoribanks had her own -ideas in respect to charity, and never went upon ladies' committees, -nor took any further share than what was proper and necessary in parish -work; and when a woman has an active mind, and still does not care for -parish work, it is a little hard for her to find a "sphere." And -Lucilla, though she said nothing about a sphere, was still more or less -in that condition of mind which has been so often and so fully described -to the British public--when the ripe female intelligence, not having the -natural resource of a nursery and a husband to manage, turns inwards, -and begins to "make a protest" against the existing order of society, -and to call the world to account for giving it no due occupation--and to -consume itself. She was not the woman to make protests, nor claim for -herself the doubtful honours of a false position; but she felt all the -same that at her age she had outlived the occupations that were -sufficient for her youth. To be sure, there were still the dinners to -attend to, a branch of human affairs worthy of the weightiest -consideration, and she had a house of her own, as much as if she had -been half a dozen times married; but still there are instincts which go -even beyond dinners, and Lucilla had become conscious that her -capabilities were greater than her work. She was a Power in Carlingford, -and she knew it; but still there is little good in the existence of a -Power unless it can be made use of for some worthy end. - -She was coming up Grange Lane rather late one evening, pondering upon -these things--thinking within herself compassionately of poor Mr -Cavendish, a little in the same way as he had been thinking of her, but -from the opposite point of view. For Lucilla could not but see the -antithesis of their position, and how he was the foolish apprentice who -had chosen his own way and was coming to a bad end, while she was the -steady one about to ride by in her Lord Mayor's coach. And Miss -Marjoribanks was thinking at the same time of the other candidate, whose -canvass was going on so successfully; and that, after the election and -all the excitement was over, she would feel a blank--and Lucilla did not -see how the blank was to be filled up as she looked into the future; -for, as has been said, parish work was not much in her way, and for a -woman who feels that she is a Power, there are so few other outlets. She -was a little disheartened as she thought it all over. Gleams of -possibility, it is true, crossed her mind, such as that of marrying the -member for Carlingford, for instance, and thus beginning a new and more -important career; but she was too experienced a woman not to be aware -by this time, that possibilities which did not depend upon herself alone -had better not be calculated upon. And there did occur to her, among -other things, the idea of making a great Experiment which could be -carried out only by a woman of genius--of marrying a poor man, and -affording to Carlingford and England an example which might influence -unborn generations. Such were the thoughts that were passing through her -mind when, to her great surprise, she came up to her father, walking up -Grange Lane over the dirty remains of the snow--for there was a great -deal of snow that year. It was so strange a sight to see Dr Marjoribanks -walking that at the first glance Lucilla was startled, and thought -something was the matter; but, of course, it all arose from a perfectly -natural and explainable cause. - -"I have been down to see Mrs Chiley," said the Doctor; "she has her -rheumatism very bad again; and the horse has been so long out that I -thought I would walk home. I think the old lady is a little upset about -Cavendish, Lucilla. He was always a pet of hers." - -"Dear Mrs Chiley! she is not very bad, I hope?" said Miss Marjoribanks. - -"Oh, no, she is not very bad," said the Doctor, in a dreary tone. "The -poor old machine is just about breaking up, that is all. We can cobble -it this once, but next time perhaps----" - -"Don't talk in such a disheartening way, papa," said Lucilla. "I am sure -she is not so very old." - -"We're all pretty old, for that matter," said the Doctor; "we can't run -on for ever, you know. If you had been a boy like that stupid fellow -Tom, you might have carried on my practice, Lucilla--and even extended -it, I shouldn't wonder," Dr Marjoribanks added, with a little grunt, as -who should say _that_ is the way of the world. - -"But I am not a boy," said Lucilla mildly; "and even if I had been, you -know, I might have chosen another profession. Tom never had any turn for -medicine that I ever heard of----" - -"I hope you know pretty well about all the turns he ever had with that -old--woman," said the Doctor, pulling himself up sharply, "always at -your ear. I suppose she never talks of anything else. But I hope you -have too much sense for that sort of thing, Lucilla. Tom will never be -anything but a poor man if he were to live a hundred years." - -"Perhaps not, papa," said Lucilla, with a little sigh. The Doctor knew -nothing about the great social experiment which it had entered into Miss -Marjoribanks's mind to make for the regeneration of her contemporaries -and the good of society, or possibly he might not have distinguished Tom -by that particular title. Was it he, perhaps, who was destined to be the -hero of a domestic drama embodying the best principles of that Moral -Philosophy which Lucilla had studied with such success at Mount -Pleasant? She did not ask herself the question, for things had not as -yet come to that point, but it gleamed upon her mind as by a side-light. - -"I don't know how you would get on if you were poor," said the Doctor. -"I don't think that would suit you. You would make somebody a capital -wife, I can say that for you, Lucilla, that had plenty of money and a -liberal disposition like yourself. But poverty is another sort of thing, -I can tell you. Luckily you're old enough to have got over all the -love-in-a-cottage ideas--if you ever had them," Dr Marjoribanks added. -He was a worldly man himself, and he thought his daughter a worldly -woman; and yet, though he thoroughly approved of it, he still despised -Lucilla a little for her prudence, which is a paradoxical state of mind -not very unusual in the world. - -"I don't think I ever had them," said Lucilla; "not that kind of -poverty. I know what a cottage means; it means a wretched man, always -about the house with his feet in slippers, you know--what poor dear Mr -Cavendish would come to if he was poor----" - -The Doctor laughed, though he had not seemed up to this moment much -disposed for laughing. "So that is all your opinion of Cavendish," he -said; "and I don't think you are far wrong either; and yet that was a -young fellow that might have done better," Dr Marjoribanks said -reflectively, perhaps not without a slight prick of conscience that he -had forsaken an old friend. - -"Yes," said Lucilla, with a certain solemnity--"but you know, papa, if a -man will not when he may----" And she sighed, though the Doctor, who -had not been thinking of Mr Cavendish's prospects in that light, laughed -once more; but it was a sharp sort of sudden laugh without much heart in -it. He had most likely other things of more importance in his mind. - -"Well, there have been a great many off and on since that time," he -said, smiling rather grimly. "It is time you were thinking about it -seriously, Lucilla. I am not so sure about some things as I once was, -and I'd rather like to see you well settled before----It's a kind of -prejudice a man has," the Doctor said abruptly, which, whatever he might -mean by it, was a dismal sort of speech to make. - -"Before what, papa?" asked Lucilla, with a little alarm. - -"Tut--before long, to be sure," he said impatiently. "Ashburton would -not be at all amiss if he liked it and you liked it; but it's no use -making any suggestions about those things. So long as you don't marry a -fool----" Dr Marjoribanks said, with energy. "I know--that is, of -course, I've _seen_ what that is; you can't expect to get perfection, as -you might have looked for perhaps at twenty; but I advise you to marry, -Lucilla. I don't think you are cut out for a single woman, for my part." - -"I don't see the good of single women," said Lucilla, "unless they are -awfully rich; and I don't suppose I shall ever be awfully rich. But, -papa, so long as I can be a comfort to you----" - -"Yes," said the Doctor, with that tone which Lucilla could remember -fifteen years ago, when she made the same magnanimous suggestion, "but I -can't live for ever, you know. It would be a pity to sacrifice yourself -to me, and then perhaps next morning find that it was a useless -sacrifice. It very often happens like that when self-devotion is carried -too far. You've behaved very well, and shown a great deal of good sense, -Lucilla--more than I gave you credit for when you commenced--I may say -that; and if there was to be any change, for instance----" - -"What change?" said Lucilla, not without some anxiety; for it was an odd -way of talking, to say the least of it; but the Doctor had come to a -pause, and did not seem disposed to resume. - -"It is not so pleasant as I thought walking over this snow," he said; "I -can't give _that_ up, that I can see. And there's more snow in the air -if I'm any judge of the weather. There--go in--go in; don't wait for -me;--but mind you make haste and dress, for I want my dinner. I may have -to go down to Mrs Chiley again to-night." - -It was an odd way of talking, and it was odd to break off like this; but -then, to be sure, there was no occasion for any more conversation, since -they had just arrived at their own door. It made Lucilla uneasy for the -moment, but while she was dressing she managed to explain it to herself, -and to think, after all, it was only natural that her papa should have -seen a little into the movement and commotion of her thoughts; and then -poor dear old Mrs Chiley being so ill, who was one of his own set, so to -speak. He was quite cheerful later in the evening, and enjoyed his -dinner, and was even more civil than usual to Mrs John. And though he -did not come up to tea, he made his appearance afterwards with a flake -of new-fallen snow still upon his rusty gray whiskers. He had gone to -see his patient again, notwithstanding the silent storm outside. And his -countenance was a little overcast this time, no doubt by the late walk, -and the serious state Mrs Chiley was in, and his encounter with the -snow. - -"Oh, yes, she is better," he said. "I knew she would do this time. -People at our time of life don't go off in that accidental kind of way. -When a woman has been so long used to living, it takes her a time to get -into the way of dying. She might be a long time thinking about it yet, -if all goes well----" - -"Papa, don't speak like that!" said Lucilla. "Dying! I can't bear to -think of such a thing. She is not so very old." - -"Such things will happen whether you can bear to think of them or not," -said the Doctor. "I said you would go down and see her to-morrow. We've -all held out a long time--the lot of us. I don't like to think of the -first gap myself, but somebody must make a beginning, you know." - -"The Chileys were always older than you," said Mrs John. "I remember in -poor Mrs Marjoribanks's time:--they were quite elderly then, and you -were just beginning. When my Tom was a baby----" - -"We were always of the same set," said the Doctor, interrupting her -without hesitation. "Lucilla, they say Cavendish has got hold of the -Rector. He has made believe to be penitent, you know. That is cleverer -than anything you could have done. And if he can't be won back again it -will be serious, the Colonel says. You are to try if you can suggest -anything. It seems," said the Doctor, with mingled amusement and satire, -and a kind of gratification "that Ashburton has great confidence in -you." - -"It must have been the agent," said Lucilla. "I don't think any of the -rest of them are equal to that. I don't see, if that is the case, how we -are to win him back. If Mr Ashburton had ever done anything very wicked, -perhaps----" - -"You are safe to say _he_ is not penitent anyhow," said Dr -Marjoribanks, and he took his candle and went away with a smile. But -either Mr Ashburton's good opinion of Lucilla, or some other notion, had -touched the Doctor. He was not a man who said much at any time, but when -he bade her good-night, his hand drooped upon Lucilla's shoulder, and he -patted it softly, as he might have patted the head of a child. It was -not much, but still it was a good deal from him. To feel the lingering -touch of her father's hand caressing her, even in so mild a way, was -something quite surprising and strange to Miss Marjoribanks. She looked -up at him almost with alarm, but he was just then turning away with his -candle in his hand. And he seemed to have laid aside his gloom, and even -smiled to himself as he went upstairs. "If _she_ had been the boy -instead of that young ass," he said to himself. He could not have -explained why he was more than ordinarily hard just then upon the -innocent, far-distant Tom, who was unlucky, it is true, but not exactly -an ass, after all. But somehow it struck the Doctor more than ever how -great a loss it was to society and to herself that Lucilla was not "the -boy." She could have continued, and perhaps extended, the practice, -whereas just now it was quite possible that she might drop down into -worsted-work and tea-parties like any other single woman--while Tom, who -had carried off the family honours, and was "the boy" in this limited -and unfruitful generation, was never likely to do anything to speak of, -and would be a poor man if he were to live for a hundred years. Perhaps -there was something else behind that made the Doctor's brow contract a -little as he crossed the threshold of his chamber, into which, no more -than into the recesses of his heart, no one ever penetrated; but it was -the lighter idea of that comparison, which had no actual pain in it, but -only a kind of humorous discontent, which was the last articulate -thought in his mind as he went to his room and closed his door with a -little sharpness, as he always did, upon the outside world. - -Aunt Jemima, for her part, lingered a little with Lucilla downstairs. -"My dear, I don't think my brother-in-law looks well to-night. I don't -think Carlingford is so healthy as it is said to be. If I were you, -Lucilla, I would try and get your papa to take something," said Mrs -John, with anxiety, "before he goes to bed." - -"Dear Aunt Jemima, he never takes anything. You forget he is a doctor," -said Miss Marjoribanks. "It always puts him out when he has to go out in -the evening; and he is sad about Mrs Chiley, though he would not say -so." But nevertheless Lucilla knocked at his door when she went -upstairs. And the Doctor, though he did not open, growled within with a -voice which reassured his dutiful daughter. "What should I want, do you -think, but to be left quiet?" the Doctor said. And even Mrs John, who -had waited at his door, with her candle in her hand, to hear the result, -shrank within at the sound and was seen no more. And Miss Marjoribanks, -too, went to her rest, with more than one subject of thought which kept -her awake. In the first place, the Rector was popular in his way, and if -he chose to call all his forces to rally round a penitent, there was no -saying what might come of it; and then Lucilla could not help going back -in the most illogical manner to her father's caress, and wondering what -was the meaning of it. Meantime the snow fell heavily outside, and -wrapped everything in a soft and secret whiteness. And amid the -whiteness and darkness, the lamp burned steadily outside at the -garden-gate, which pointed out the Doctor's door amid all the closed -houses and dark garden-walls in Grange Lane--a kind of visible succour -and help always at hand for those who were suffering. And though Dr -Marjoribanks was not like a young man making a practice, but had perfect -command of Carlingford, and was one of the richest men in it, it was -well known in the town that the very poorest, if in extremity, in the -depths of the wildest night that ever blew, would not seek help there in -vain. The bell that had roused him when he was young, still hung near -him in the silence of his closed-up house when he was old, and still -could make him spring up, all self-possessed and ready, when the enemy -Death had to be fought with. But that night the snow cushioned the wire -outside, and even made white cornices and columns about the steady lamp, -and the Doctor slept within, and no one disturbed him; for except Mrs -Chiley and a few chronic patients, there was nothing particularly amiss -in Carlingford, and then it was Dr Rider whom all the new people went -to, the people who lived in the innumerable new houses at the other end -of Carlingford, and had no hallowing tradition of the superior authority -of Grange Lane. - - - - -_Chapter XLIII_ - - -The talk of this evening might not have been considered of any -importance to speak of, but for the extraordinary and most unlooked-for -event which startled all Carlingford next morning. Nobody could believe -that it was true. Dr Marjoribanks's patients waited for him, and -declared to their nurses that it was all a made-up story, and that he -would come and prove that he was not dead. How could he be dead? He had -been as well as he ever was that last evening. He had gone down Grange -Lane in the snow, to see the poor old lady who was now sobbing in her -bed, and saying it was all a mistake, and that it was she who ought to -have died. But all those protestations were of no avail against the cold -and stony fact which had frightened Thomas out of his senses, when he -went to call the Doctor. He had died in the night without calling or -disturbing anybody. He must have felt faint, it seemed, for he had got -up and taken a little brandy, the remains of which still stood on the -table by his bedside; but that was all that anybody could tell about it. -They brought Dr Rider, of course; but all that he could do was to -examine the strong, still frame--old, and yet not old enough to be -weakly, or to explain such sudden extinction--which had ceased its human -functions. And then the news swept over Carlingford like a breath of -wind, though there was no wind even on that silent snowy day to carry -the matter. Dr Marjoribanks was dead. It put the election out of -people's heads, and even their own affairs for the time being; for had -he not known all about the greater part of them--seen them come into the -world and kept them in it--and put himself always in the breach when the -pale Death approached that way? He had never made very much boast of his -friendliness or been large in sympathetic expressions, but yet he had -never flinched at any time, or deserted his patients for any -consideration. Carlingford was sorry, profoundly sorry, with that true -sorrow which is not so much for the person mourned as for the mourner's -self, who feels a sense of something lost. The people said to -themselves, Whom could they ever find who would know their -constitutions so well, and who was to take care of So-and-so if he had -another attack? To be sure Dr Rider was at hand, who felt a little -agitated about it, and was conscious of the wonderful opening, and was -very ready to answer, "I am here;" but a young doctor is different from -an old one, and a living man all in commonplace health and comfort is -not to be compared with a dead one, on the morning at least of his -sudden ending. Thank Heaven, when a life is ended there is always that -hour or two remaining to set straight the defective balances and do a -hasty late justice to the dead, before the wave sweeps on over him and -washes out the traces of his steps, and lets in the common crowd to make -their thoroughfare over the grave. - -"It cannot be the Doctor," Mrs Chiley said, sobbing in her bed, "or else -it has been in mistake for me. He was always a healthy man, and never -had anything the matter with him--and a great deal younger than we are, -you know. If anything has happened to him it must have been in mistake -for me," said the poor old lady, and she was so hysterical that they had -to send for Dr Rider, and she was thus the first to begin to build the -new world on the foundations of the old, little as she meant it. But for -the moment everything was paralysed in Grange Lane, and canvassing came -to a standstill, and nothing was discussed but Dr Marjoribanks--how he -was dead, though nobody could or would believe it; and how Lucilla would -be left, and who her trustees were, and how the place could ever get -used to the want of him, or would ever look like itself again without -his familiar presence. It was by way of relieving their minds from the -horror of the idea, that the good people rushed into consultations what -Lucilla would do. It took their minds a little off the ghastly -imagination of that dark room with the snow on the window, and the late -moonlight trying to get into the darkness, and the white rigid face -inside, as he was said to have been found. It could not but make a -terrible change to her--indeed, through her it could not but make a -great change to everybody. The Doctor's house would, of course, be shut -up, which had been the most hospitable house in Carlingford, and things -would drop into the unsatisfactory state they used to be in before Miss -Marjoribanks's time, and there would no longer be anybody to organise -society. Such were the ideas the ladies of Grange Lane relapsed into by -way of delivering themselves from the pain of their first realisation of -what had happened. It would make a great change. Even the election and -its anticipated joys could not but change character in some respects at -least, and there would be nobody to make the best of them; and then the -question was, What would Lucilla do? Would she have strength to "make an -effort," as some people suggested; or would she feel not only her grief, -but her downfall, and that she was now only a single woman, and sink -into a private life, as some others were inclined to believe? - -Inside the house, naturally, the state of affairs was sad enough. -Lucilla, notwithstanding the many other things she had had to occupy her -mind, was fond of her father, and the shock overwhelmed her for the -moment. Though she was not the kind of woman to torture herself with -thinking of things that she might have done, still at the first moment -the idea that she ought not to have left him alone--that she should have -sat up and watched or taken some extraordinary, unusual precaution--was -not to be driven away from her mind. The reign of reason was eclipsed in -her as it often is in such an emergency. She said it was her fault in -the first horror. "When I saw how he was looking, and how he was -talking, I should never have left him," said Lucilla, which indeed was a -very natural thing to say, but would have been an utterly impossible one -to carry out, as she saw when she came to think of it. But she could not -think of it just then. She did not think at all that first long snowy, -troubled day, but went about the house, on the bedroom floor, wringing -her hands like a creature distracted. "If I had only sat up," she said; -and then she would recall the touch of his hand on her shoulder, which -she seemed still to be feeling, and cry out, like all the rest of the -world, that it could not be true. But, to be sure, that was a state of -feeling that could not last long. There are events for which something -higher than accident must be held accountable, were one ever so ready to -take the burden of affairs on one's own shoulders; and Lucilla knew, -when she came to herself, that if she had watched ever so long or so -closely, that could have had no effect upon the matter. After a while, -the bewildering sense of her own changed position began to come upon -her, and roused her up into that feverish and unnatural activity of -thought which, in some minds, is the inevitable reaction after the -unaccustomed curb and shock of grief. When she had got used to that -dreadful certainty about her father, and had suddenly come with a leap -to the knowledge that she was not to blame, and could not help it, and -that though _he_ was gone, _she_ remained, it is no censure upon -Lucilla to say that her head became immediately full of a horror and -confusion of thoughts, an involuntary stir and bustle of plans and -projects which she did all she could to put down, but which would return -and overwhelm her whether she chose it or not. She could not help asking -herself what her new position was, thinking it over, so strangely free -and new and unlimited as it seemed. And it must be recollected that Miss -Marjoribanks was a woman of very active mind and great energies, too old -to take up a girl's fancy that all was over because she had encountered -a natural grief on her passage, and too young not to see a long future -still before her. She kept her room, as was to be expected, and saw -nobody, and only moved the household and superintended the arrangements -in a muffled way through Thomas, who was an old servant, and knew "the -ways" of the house; but notwithstanding her seclusion and her honest -sorrow, and her perfect observance of all the ordinary restraints of the -moment, it would be wrong to omit all mention of this feverish bustle of -thinking which came into Lucilla's mind in her solitude. Of all that she -had to bear, it was the thing that vexed and irritated and distressed -her the most--as if, she said to herself indignantly, she ought to have -been able to think of anything! And the chances are that Lucilla, for -sheer duty's sake, would have said, if anybody had asked, that of course -she had not thought of anything as yet; without being aware that the -mere shock, and horror, and profound commotion had a great deal more to -do than anything else in producing that fluttering crowd of busy, -vexatious speculations which had come, without any will of hers, into -her heart. - -It looked a dreadful change in one way as she looked at it, without -wishing to look at it, in the solitude of her own room, where the blinds -were all down, and the snow sometimes came with a little thump against -the window, and where it was so dark that it was a comfort when night -came, and the lamp could be lighted. So far as Carlingford was -concerned, it would be almost as bad for Miss Marjoribanks as if she -were her father's widow instead of his daughter. To keep up a position -of social importance in a single woman's house, unless, as she had -herself lightly said so short a time since, she were awfully rich, would -be next to impossible. All that gave importance to the centre of -society--the hospitable table, the open house--had come to an end with -the Doctor. Things could no more be as they had once been, in that -respect at least. She might stay in the house, and keep up to the -furthest extent possible to her its old traditions; but even to the -utmost limit to which Lucilla could think it right to go it could never -be the same. This consciousness kept gleaming upon her as she sat in the -dull daylight behind the closed blinds, with articles of mourning piled -about everywhere, and the gray dimness getting into her very eyes, and -her mind distressed by the consciousness that she ought to have been -unable to think; and the sadness of the prospect altogether was enough -to stir up a reaction, in spite of herself, in Miss Marjoribanks's mind. - -And on the other side she would no doubt be very well off, and could go -wherever she liked, and had no limit, except what was right and proper -and becoming, to what she might please to do. She might go abroad if she -liked, which perhaps is the first idea of the modern English mind when -anything happens to it, and settle wherever she pleased, and arrange her -mode of existence as seemed good in her own eyes. She would be an -heiress in a moderate way, and Aunt Jemima was by this time absolutely -at her disposal, and could be taken anywhere; and at Lucilla's age it -was quite impossible to predict what might not happen to a woman in such -a position. When these fairer possibilities gleamed into Lucilla's mind, -it would be difficult to describe the anger and self-disgust with which -she reproached herself--for perhaps it was the first time that she had -consciously failed in maintaining a state of mind becoming the occasion; -and though nobody but herself knew of it, the pain of the accusation was -acute and bitter. But how could Miss Marjoribanks help it?--the mind -travels so much quicker than anything else, and goes so far, and makes -its expeditions in such subtle, stealthy ways. She might begin by -thinking of her dear papa, and yet, before she could dry her eyes, might -be off in the midst of one of these bewildering speculations. For -everything was certain now so far as he was concerned; and everything -was so uncertain, and full of such unknown issues for herself. Thus the -dark days before the funeral passed by--and everybody was very kind. Dr -Marjoribanks was one of the props of the place, and all Carlingford -bestirred itself to do him the final honours; and all her friends -conspired how to save Lucilla from all possible trouble, and help her -over the trial; and to see how much he was respected was the greatest of -all possible comforts to her, as she said. - -Thus it was that among the changes that everybody looked for, there -occurred all at once this change which was entirely unexpected, and put -everything else out of mind for the moment. For to tell the truth, Dr -Marjoribanks was one of the men who, according to external appearance, -need never have died. There was nothing about him that wanted to be set -right, no sort of loss, or failure, or misunderstanding, so far as -anybody could see. An existence in which he could have his friends to -dinner every week, and a good house, and good wine, and a very good -table, and nothing particular to put him out of his way, seemed in fact -the very ideal of the best life for the Doctor. There was nothing in him -that seemed to demand anything better, and it was confusing to try to -follow him into that which, no doubt, must be in all its fundamentals a -very different kind of world. He was a just man and a good man in his -way, and had been kind to many people in his lifetime--but still he did -not seem to have that need of another rectifying, completer existence -which most men have. There seemed no reason why he should die--a man who -was so well contented with this lower region in which many of us fare -badly, and where so few of us are contented. This was a fact which -exercised a very confusing influence, even when they themselves were not -aware of it, on many people's minds. It was hard to think of him under -any other circumstances, or identify him with angels and spirits--which -feeling on the whole made the regret for him a more poignant sort of -regret. - -And they buried him with the greatest signs of respect. People from -twenty miles off sent their carriages, and all the George Street people -shut their shops, and there was very little business done all day. Mr -Cavendish and Mr Ashburton walked side by side at the funeral, which was -an affecting sight to see; and if anything more could have been done to -show their respect which was not done, the corporation of Carlingford -would have been sorry for it. And the snow still lay deep in all the -corners, though it had been trampled down all about the Doctor's house, -where the lamp was not lighted now of nights; for what was the use of -lighting the lamp, which was a kind of lighthouse in its way, and meant -to point out succour and safety for the neighbours, when the physician -himself was lying beyond all hope of succour or aid? And all the Grange -Lane people retired in a sympathetic, awe-stricken way, and decided, or -at least the ladies did, to see Lucilla next day, if she was able to see -them, and to find out whether she was going to make an effort, or what -she meant to do. And Mrs Chiley was so much better that she was able to -be up a little in the evening, though she scarcely could forgive -herself, and still could not help thinking that it was she who had -really been sent for, and that the Doctor had been taken in mistake. And -as for Lucilla, she sat in her room and cried, and thought of her -father's hand upon her shoulder--that last unusual caress which was more -touching to think of than a world of words. He had been fond of her and -proud of her, and at the last moment he had showed it. And by times she -seemed to feel again that lingering touch, and cried as if her heart -would break: and yet, for all that, she could not keep her thoughts -steady, nor prevent them from wandering to all kinds of profane -out-of-door matters, and to considerations of the future, and estimates -of her own position. It wounded her sadly to feel herself in such an -inappropriate state of mind, but she could not help it; and then the -want of natural light and air oppressed her sorely, and she longed for -the evening, which felt a little more natural, and thought that at last -she might have a long talk with Aunt Jemima, who was a kind of refuge in -her present loneliness, and gave her a means of escape at the same time -from all this bustle and commotion of unbecoming thoughts. - -This was enough surely for any one to have to encounter at one time; but -that very night another rumour began to murmur through Carlingford--a -rumour more bewildering, more incredible still, than that of the -Doctor's death, which the town had been obliged to confirm and -acknowledge, and put its seal to. When the thing was first mentioned, -everybody (who could find it in their heart to laugh) laughed loud in -the face of the first narrator with mingled scepticism and indignation. -They asked him what he meant by it, and ridiculed and scoffed at him to -his face. "Lucilla will be the richest woman in Grange Lane," people -said; "everybody in Carlingford knows that." But after this statement -had been made, the town began to listen. It was obliged to listen, for -other witnesses came in to confirm the story. It never might have been -found out while the Doctor lived, for he had a great practice, and made -a great deal of money; but now that he was dead, nothing could be hid. -He was dead, and he had made an elaborate will, which was all as just -and righteous as a will could be; but after the will was read, it was -found out that everything named in it had disappeared like a bubble. -Instead of being the richest, Dr Marjoribanks was one of the poorest -men in Carlingford when he shut his door behind him on that snowy night. -It was a revelation which took the town perfectly by storm, and startled -everybody out of their senses. Lucilla's plans, which she thought so -wicked, went out all of a sudden, in a certain dull amaze and dismay, to -which no words could give any expression. Such was the second -inconceivable reverse of fortune which happened to Miss Marjoribanks, -more unexpected, more incomprehensible still than the other, in the very -midst of her most important activities and hopes. - - - - -_Chapter XLIV_ - - -When the first whisper of the way in which she was--as people -say--"left" reached Lucilla, her first feeling was incredulity. It was -conveyed to her by Aunt Jemima, who came to her in her room after the -funeral with a face blanched with dismay. Miss Marjoribanks took it for -grief; and, though she did not look for so much feeling from Mrs John, -was pleased and comforted that her aunt should really lament her poor -papa. It was a compliment which, in the softened and sorrowful state of -Lucilla's mind, went to her heart. Aunt Jemima came up and kissed her in -a hasty excited way, which showed genuine and spontaneous emotion, and -was not like the solemn pomp with which sympathising friends generally -embrace a mourner; and then she made Lucilla sit down by the fire and -held her hands. "My poor child," said Aunt Jemima--"my poor, dear, -sacrificed child! you know, Lucilla, how fond I am of you, and you can -always come to me----" - -"Thank you, dear Aunt Jemima," said Miss Marjoribanks, though she was a -little puzzled. "You are the only relative I have, and I knew you would -not forsake me. What should I do without you at such a time? I am sure -it is what dear papa would have wished----" - -"Lucilla," cried Mrs John impulsively, "I know it is natural you should -cry for your father; but when you know all,--you that never knew what it -was to be without money--that never were straitened even, or obliged to -give up things, like most other young women. Oh, my dear, they said I -was to prepare you, but how can I prepare you? I feel as if I never -could forgive my brother-in-law; that he should bring you up like this, -and then----" - -"What is it?" said Miss Marjoribanks, drying her tears. "If it is -anything new, tell me, but don't speak so of--of----What is it? say it -right out." - -"Lucilla," said Aunt Jemima solemnly, "you think you have a great deal -of courage, and now is your time to show it. He has left you without a -farthing--he that was always thought to be so rich. It is quite true -what I am saying. He has gone and died and left nothing, Lucilla. Now I -have told you; and oh, my poor, dear, injured child," cried Mrs John, -with fervour, "as long as I have a home there will be room in it for -you." - -But Lucilla put her aunt away softly when she was about to fall upon her -neck. Miss Marjoribanks was struck dumb; her heart seemed to stop -beating for the moment. "It is quite impossible--it cannot be true," she -said, and gave a gasp to recover her breath. Then Mrs John came down -upon her with facts, proving it to be true--showing how Dr -Marjoribanks's money was invested, and how it had been lost. She made a -terrible muddle of it, no doubt, but Lucilla was not very clear about -business details any more than her aunt, and she did not move nor say a -word while the long, involved, endless narrative went on. She kept -saying it was impossible in her heart for half of the time, and then she -crept nearer the fire and shivered, and said nothing even to herself, -and did not even seem to listen, but knew that it must be true. It would -be vain to attempt to say that it was not a terrible blow to Lucilla; -her strength was weakened already by grief and solitude and want of -food, for she could not find it in her heart to go on eating her -ordinary meals as if nothing had happened; and all of a sudden she felt -the cold seize her, and drew closer and closer to the fire. The thoughts -which she had been thinking in spite of herself, and for which she had -so greatly condemned herself, went out with a sudden distinctness, as if -it had been a lamp going out and leaving the room in darkness, and a -sudden sense of utter gloom and cold and bewildering uncertainty came -over Lucilla. When she lifted her eyes from the fire, into which she had -been gazing, it almost surprised her to find herself still in this warm -room where there was every appliance for comfort, and where her entire -wardrobe of new mourning--everything, as Aunt Jemima said, that a woman -could desire--was piled up on the bed. It was impossible that she could -be a penniless creature, left on her own resources, without father or -supporter or revenue; and yet--good heavens! could it be true? - -"If it is true, Aunt Jemima," said Lucilla, "I must try to bear it; but -my poor head feels all queer. I'd rather not think any more about it -to-night." - -"How can you help thinking about it, Lucilla?" cried Mrs John. "I can -think of nothing else; and I am not so much concerned as you." - -Upon which Lucilla rose and kissed Aunt Jemima, though her head was all -confused and she had noises in her ears. "I don't think we are much like -each other, you know," she said. "Did you hear how Mrs Chiley was? I am -sure she will be very sorry;" and with that Miss Marjoribanks softened, -and felt a little comforted, and cried again--not for the money, but for -her father. "If you are going downstairs, I think I will come down to -tea, Aunt Jemima," she said. But after Mrs John had gone away full of -wonder at her philosophy, Lucilla drew close to the fire again and took -her head between her hands and tried to think what it meant. Could it be -true? Instead of the heiress, in a good position, who could go abroad or -anywhere, and do anything she liked, was it possible that she was only a -penniless single woman with nobody to look to, and nothing to live on? -Such an extraordinary incomprehensible revolution might well make any -one feel giddy. The solid house and the comfortable room, and her own -sober brain, which was not in the way of being put off its balance, -seemed to turn round and round as she looked into the fire. Lucilla was -not one to throw the blame upon her father, as Mrs John had done. On the -contrary she was sorry, profoundly sorry for him, and made such a -picture to herself of what his feelings must have been, when he went -into his room that night and knew that all his hard-earned fortune was -gone, that it made her weep the deepest tears for him that she had yet -shed. "Poor papa!" she said to herself; and as she was not much given to -employing her imagination in this way, and realising the feeling of -others, the effect was all the greater now. If he had but told her, and -put off a share of the burden from his own shoulders on to hers who -could have borne it! but the Doctor had never done justice to Lucilla's -qualities. This, amid her general sense of confusion and dizziness and -insecurity, was the only clear thought that struck Miss Marjoribanks; -and that it was very cold and must be freezing outside; and how did the -poor people manage who had not all her present advantages? She tried to -put away this revelation from her, as she had said to Aunt Jemima, and -keep it for a little at arm's length, and get a night's rest in the -meantime, and so be able to bring a clear head to the contemplation of -it to-morrow, which was the most judicious thing to do. But when the -mind has been stimulated by such a shock, Solomon himself, one would -suppose, could scarcely, however clearly he might perceive what was -best, take the judicious passive way. When Lucilla got up from where she -was crouching before the fire, she felt so giddy that she could scarcely -stand. Her head was all queer, as she had said, and she had a singing in -her ears. She herself seemed to have changed along with her position. An -hour or two before, she could have answered for her own steadiness and -self-possession in almost any circumstances, but now the blood seemed to -be running a race in her veins, and the strangest noises hummed in her -ears. She felt ashamed of her weakness, but she could not help it; and -then she was weak with grief and excitement and comparative fasting, -which told for something, probably, in her inability to bear so -unlooked-for a blow. - -But Miss Marjoribanks thought it was best to go down to the drawing-room -for tea, as she had said. To see everything just as it had been, utterly -indifferent and unconscious of what had happened, made her cry, and -relieved her giddiness by reviving her grief; and then the next minute a -bewildering wonder seized her as to what would become of this -drawing-room, the scene of her triumphs--who would live in it, and whom -the things would go to--which made her sick, and brought back the -singing in her ears. But on the whole she took tea very quietly with -Aunt Jemima, who kept breaking into continual snatches of lamentation, -but was always checked by Lucilla's composed looks. If she had not heard -this extraordinary news, which made the world turn round with her, Miss -Marjoribanks would have felt that soft hush of exhaustion and grief -subdued which, when the grief is not too urgent, comes after all is -over; and even now she felt a certain comfort in the warm firelight and -the change out of her own room--where she had been living shut up, with -the blinds down, and the black dresses everywhere about, for so many -dreary days. - -John Brown, who had charge of Dr Marjoribanks's affairs, came next day -and explained everything to Lucilla. The lawyer had had one short -interview with his client after the news came, and Dr Marjoribanks had -borne it like a man. His face had changed a little, and he had sat down, -which he was not in the habit of doing, and drawn a kind of shivering -long breath; and then he had said, "Poor Lucilla!" to himself. This was -all Mr Brown could say about the effect the shock had on the Doctor. And -there was something in this very scanty information which gave Lucilla a -new pang of sorrow and consolation. "And he patted me on the shoulder -that last night," she said, with tender tears; and felt she had never -loved her father so well in all her life--which is one of the sweeter -uses of death which many must have experienced, but which belonged to a -more exquisite and penetrating kind of emotion than was common to -Lucilla. - -"I thought he looked a little broken when he went out," said Mr Brown, -"but full of pluck and spirit, as he always was. 'I am making a good -deal of money, and I _may_ live long enough to lay by a little still,' -were the last words he said to me. I remember he put a kind of emphasis -on the _may_. Perhaps he knew he was not so strong as he looked. He was -a good man, Miss Marjoribanks, and there is nobody that has not some -kind thing to tell of him," said the lawyer, with a certain moisture in -his eyes; for there was nobody in Carlingford who did not miss the old -Doctor, and John Brown was very tender-hearted in his way. - -"But nobody can know what a good father he was," said Lucilla, with a -sob; and she meant it with all her heart, thinking chiefly of his hand -on her shoulder that last night, and of the "Poor Lucilla!" in John -Brown's office; though, after all, perhaps, it was not chiefly as a -tender father that Dr Marjoribanks shone, though he gave his daughter -all she wanted or asked for. Her grief was so true, and so little -tinctured by any of that indignation over the unexpected loss, which -Aunt Jemima had not been able to conceal, that John Brown was quite -touched, and felt his heart warm to Lucilla. He explained it all very -fully to her when she was composed enough to understand him; and as he -went through all the details the giddiness came back, and once more Miss -Marjoribanks felt the world running round, and heard his statement -through the noises in her ears. All this settled down, however, into a -certain distinctness as John Brown, who was very clear-headed and good -at making a concise statement, went on; and gradually the gyrations -became slower and slower, and the great universe became solid once more, -and held to its moorings under Lucilla's feet, and she ceased to hear -that supernatural hum and buzz. The vague shadows of chaos and ruin -dispersed, and through them she saw once more the real aspect of things. -She was not quite penniless. There was the house, which was a very good -house, and some little corners and scraps of money in the Funds, which -were Lucilla's very own, and could not be lost; and last of all there -was the business--the best practice in Carlingford, and entire command -of Grange Lane. - -"But what does that matter?" said Lucilla; "if poor papa had retired -indeed, as I used to beg him to do, and parted with it----But everybody -has begun to send for Dr Rider already," she said, in an aggrieved -voice; and then for the first time John Brown remembered, to his -confusion, that there was once said to be "something between" Miss -Marjoribanks and Dr Rider; which complicated the affair in the most -uncomfortable way. - -"Yes," he said, "and of course that would make it much more difficult to -bring in another man; but Rider is a very honourable young fellow, Miss -Marjoribanks----" - -"He is not so very young," said Lucilla. "He is quite as old as I am, -though no one ever would think so. I am sure he is honourable, but what -has that to do with it? And I do think Mrs Chiley might have done -without--anybody else: for a day or two, considering when it was----" - -And here she stopped to cry, unreasonably, but yet very naturally; for -it did feel hard that in the house to which Dr Marjoribanks's last visit -had been paid, another doctor should have been called in next day. - -"What I meant to say," said John Brown, "was, that Dr Rider, though he -is not rich, and could not pay a large sum of money down, would be very -glad to make some arrangement. He is very anxious about it, and he -seemed himself to think that if you knew his circumstances you would not -be disinclined to----But as I did not at all know----" - -Lucilla caught, as it were, and met, and forced to face her, her -informant's embarrassed, hesitating look. "You say this," said Miss -Marjoribanks, "because people used to say there was something between -us, and you think I may have some feeling about it. But there never was -anything between us. Anybody with a quarter of an eye could have seen -that he was going out of his senses about that little Australian girl. -And I am rather fond of men that are in love--it shows they have some -good in them. But it is dreadful to talk of such things now," said -Lucilla, with a sigh of self-reproach. "If Dr Rider has any arrangement -to propose, I should like to give him the preference, please. You see -they have begun to send for him already in Grange Lane." - -"I will do whatever you think proper," said John Brown, who was rather -scared, and very much impressed by Miss Marjoribanks's candour. Dr Rider -had been the first love of Mr Brown's own wife, and the lawyer had a -curious kind of satisfaction in thinking that this silly young fellow -had thus lost two admirable women, and that probably the little -Australian was equally inferior to Miss Marjoribanks and Mrs Brown. He -ought to have been grateful that Dr Rider had left the latter lady to -his own superior discrimination--and so he was; and yet it gave him a -certain odd satisfaction to think that the Doctor was not so happy as he -might have been. He went away fully warranted to receive Dr Rider's -proposition, and even, to a certain extent, to decide upon it--and -Lucilla threw herself back in her chair in the silent drawing-room, from -which Aunt Jemima had discreetly withdrawn, and began to think over the -reality of her position as she now saw it for the first time. - -The sense of bewildering revolution and change was over; for, strangely -enough, the greater a change is the more easily the mind, after the -first shock, accepts and gets accustomed to it. It was over, and the -world felt steady once more under Lucilla's feet, and she sat down, not -precisely amid the ruins of her happiness, but still in the presence of -many an imagination overthrown, to look at her real position. It was -not, after all, utter poverty, misery, and destitution, as at the first -glance she had believed. According to what John Brown had said, and a -rapid calculation which Lucilla had herself made in passing, something -approaching two hundred a year would be left to her--just a small single -woman's revenue, as she thought to herself. Two hundred a year! All at -once there came into Miss Marjoribanks's mind a sudden vision of the two -Miss Ravenswoods, who had lived in that pretty set of rooms over -Elsworthy's shop, facing into Grange Lane, and who had kept a lady's -maid, and asked the best people in the place to tea, upon a very -similar income, and how their achievements had been held up to everybody -as a model of what genteel economy could do. She thought of them, and -her heart sank within her; for it was not in Lucilla's nature to live -without a sphere, nor to disjoin herself from her fellow-creatures, nor -to give up entirely the sovereign position she had held for so many -years. Whatever she might ultimately do, it was clear that, in the -meantime, she could not make up her mind to any such giving up of the -battle as that. And then there was the house. She might let it to the -Riders, and add probably another hundred a year to her income; for -though it was an excellent house, and worth more than a hundred a year, -still there was no competition for houses in Grange Lane, and the new -Doctor was the only probable tenant. And, to tell the truth, though -Lucilla was very reasonable, it went to her heart at the present moment -to think of letting the house to the new Doctor, and having the patients -come as usual, and the lamp lighted as of old, and nothing changed -except the central figure of all. She ought to have been above such -sentimental ideas when a whole hundred pounds a year was in question; -but she was not, which of itself was a strange phenomenon. If she could -have made up her mind to that, there were a great many things that she -might have done. She might still have gone abroad, and to some extent -taken a limited share in what was going on in some section of English -society on the Continent. Or she might have gone to one of the mild -centres of a similar kind of life in England. But such a prospect did -not offer many attractions to Miss Marjoribanks. If she had been rich, -it would have been different. Thus there gradually dawned upon her the -germ of the plan she ultimately adopted, and which was the only one that -commended itself to her feelings. Going away was expensive and -troublesome at the best; and even at Elsworthy's, if she could have made -up her mind to such an expedient, she would have been charged a pound a -week for the rooms alone, not to speak of all kinds of extras, and never -having the satisfaction of feeling yourself in your own place. Under all -the circumstances, it was impressed upon Lucilla's mind that her natural -course was to stay still where she was, and make no change. Why should -she make any change? The house was her own, and did not cost anything, -and if Nancy would but stand by her and one good maid----It was a -venture; but still Lucilla felt as if she might be equal to it. Though -she was no mathematician, Miss Marjoribanks was very clever at mental -arithmetic in a practical sort of way. She put down lines upon lines of -figures in her head while she sat musing in her chair, and worked them -out with wonderful skill and speed and accuracy. And the more she -thought of it, the more it seemed to her that this was the thing to do. -Why should she retreat and leave her native soil and the neighbourhood -of all her friends because she was poor and in trouble? Lucilla was not -ashamed of being poor--nor even frightened by it, now that she -understood what it was--any more than she would have been frightened, -after the first shock, had her poverty even been much more absolute. She -was standing alone at this moment as upon a little island of as yet -undisturbed seclusion and calm, and she knew very well that outside a -perfect sea of good advice would surge round her as soon as she was -visible. In these circumstances Lucilla took by instinct the only wise -course: she made up her mind there and then with a perfect unanimity -which is seldom to be gained when counsellors are admitted. And what she -decided upon, as was to be expected from her character, was not to fly -from her misfortune and the scene of it, but to confront fate and take -up her lawful burden and stay still in her own house. It was the wisest -and the easiest, and at the same time the most heroic course to adopt, -and she knew beforehand that it was one which would be approved of by -nobody. All this Lucilla steadily faced and considered and made up her -mind to while she sat alone; although silence and solitude and -desolation seemed to have suddenly come in and taken possession all -around her of the once gay and brilliant room. - -She had just made her final decision when she was rejoined by her aunt, -who, everybody said, was at this trying moment like a mother to Lucilla. -Yet Aunt Jemima, too, had changed a little since her brother-in-law's -death. She was very fond of Miss Marjoribanks, and meant every word she -had said about giving her a home, and still meant it. But she did not -feel so certain now as she had done about Tom's love for his cousin, nor -at all anxious to have him come home just at this moment; and for -another thing, she had got a way of prowling about the house and looking -at the furniture in a speculative, auctioneering sort of way. "It must -be all sold, of course," Aunt Jemima had said to herself, "and I may as -well look what things would suit me; there is a little chiffonier that I -have always wanted for my drawing-room, and Lucilla would like to see a -few of the old things about her, poor dear." With this idea Mrs John -gave herself a great deal of unnecessary fatigue, and gave much offence -to the servants by making pilgrimages all over the house, turning up at -the most unlikely places and poking about in the least frequented rooms. -It was a perfectly virtuous and even amiable thing to do, for it was -better, as she reasoned, that they should go to her than to a stranger, -and it would be nice for Lucilla to feel that she had some of the old -things about her; but then such delicate motives are seldom appreciated -by the homely critics downstairs. - -It was with something of this same air that she came into the -drawing-room, where Lucilla was. She could not help laying her hand in a -suggestive sort of way on a small table which she had to pass, as if she -were saying to herself (as indeed she was saying), "The veneer has been -broken off at that side, and the foot is mended; it will bring very -little; and yet it looks well when you don't look too close." Such were -the ideas with which Aunt Jemima's mind was filled. But yet she came -forward with a great deal of sympathy and curiosity, and forgot about -the furniture in presence of her afflicted niece. - -"Did he tell you anything, Lucilla?" said Mrs John; "of course he must -have told you something--but anything satisfactory, I mean." - -"I don't know if you can call it satisfactory," said Lucilla, with a -sudden rush of softer thoughts; "but it was a comfort to hear it. He -told me something about dear papa, Aunt Jemima. After he had heard of -_that_, you know--all that he said was, Poor Lucilla! And don't you -remember how he put his hand on my shoulder that last night? I am -so--so--glad he did it," sobbed Miss Marjoribanks. It may be supposed it -was an abrupt transition from her calculations; but after all it was -only a different branch of the same subject; and Lucilla in all her life -had never before shed such poignant and tender tears. - -"He might well say, Poor Lucilla!" said Mrs John--"brought up as you -have been, my dear; and did not you hear anything more important?--I -mean, more important in a worldly point of view," Aunt Jemima added, -correcting herself, "of course, it must be the greatest comfort to hear -something about your poor papa." - -And then Lucilla unfolded John Brown's further particulars to her -surprised hearer. Mrs John lived upon a smallish income herself, and she -was not so contemptuous of the two hundred a year. "And the house," she -said--"the house would bring you in another hundred, Lucilla. The -Riders, I am sure, would take it directly, and perhaps a great part of -the furniture too. Three hundred would not be so bad for a single woman. -Did you say anything about the furniture, my dear?" Aunt Jemima added, -half regretfully, for she did feel that she would be sorry to lose that -chiffonier. - -"I think I shall stay in the house," said Lucilla; "you may think it -silly, Aunt Jemima, but I was born in it, and----" - -"Stay in the house!" Mrs John said, with a gasp. She did not think it -silly, but simple madness, and so she told her niece. If Lucilla could -not make up her mind to Elsworthy's, there was Brighton and Bath and -Cheltenham, and a hundred other places where a single woman might be -very comfortable on three hundred a year. And to lose a third part of -her income for a piece of sentiment was so utterly unlike any conception -Aunt Jemima had ever formed of her niece. It _was_ unlike Miss -Marjoribanks; but there are times of life when even the most reasonable -people are inconsistent. Lucilla, though she felt it was open to grave -criticism, felt only more confirmed in her resolution by her aunt's -remarks. She heard a voice Aunt Jemima could not hear, and that voice -said, Stay! - - - - -_Chapter XLV_ - - -It must be allowed that Lucilla's decision caused very general surprise -in Carlingford, where people had been disposed to think that she would -be rather glad, now that things were so changed, to get away. To be sure -it was not known for some time; but everybody's idea was that, being -thus left alone in the world, and in circumstances so reduced, Miss -Marjoribanks naturally would go to live with somebody. Perhaps with her -aunt, who had something, though she was not rich; perhaps, after a -little, to visit about among her friends, of whom she had so many. -Nobody doubted that Lucilla would abdicate at once, and a certain -uneasy, yet delicious, sense of freedom had already stolen into the -hearts of some of the ladies in Grange Lane. They lamented, it is true, -the state of chaos into which everything would fall, and the dreadful -loss Miss Marjoribanks would be to society; but still, freedom is a -noble thing, and Lucilla's subjects contemplated their emancipation with -a certain guilty delight. It was, at the same time, a most fertile -subject of discussion in Carlingford, and gave rise to all those lively -speculations and consultations, and oft-renewed comparing of notes, -which take the place of bets in the feminine community. The Carlingford -ladies as good as betted upon Lucilla, whether she would go with her -aunt, or pay Mrs Beverley a visit at the Deanery, or retire to Mount -Pleasant for a little, where those good old Miss Blounts were so fond of -her. Each of these opinions had its backers, if it is not profane to say -so; and the discussion which of them Miss Marjoribanks would choose -waxed very warm. It almost put the election out of people's heads; and -indeed the election had been sadly damaged in interest and social -importance by the sad and most unexpected event which had just happened -in Grange Lane. - -But when the fact was really known, it would be difficult to describe -the sense of guilt and horror which filled many innocent bosoms. The -bound of freedom had been premature--liberty and equality had not come -yet, notwithstanding that too early unwise _élan_ of republican -satisfaction. It was true that she was in deep mourning, and that for a -year, at least, society must be left to its own devices; and it was -true, also, that she was poor--which might naturally be supposed a -damper upon her energies--but, at the same time, Carlingford knew its -Lucilla. As long as she remained in Grange Lane, even though retired and -in crape, the constitutional monarch was still present among her -subjects; and nobody could usurp her place or show that utter -indifference to her regulations which some revolutionaries had dreamed -of. Such an idea would have gone direct in the face of the British -Constitution, and the sense of the community would have been dead -against it. But everybody who had speculated upon her proceedings -disapproved of Lucilla in her most unlooked-for resolution. Some could -not think how she could bear it, staying on there when everything was so -changed; and some said it was a weakness they could never have believed -to exist in her; and some--for there are spiteful people -everywhere--breathed the names of Cavendish and Ashburton, the rival -candidates, and hinted that Miss Marjoribanks had something in her mind -to justify her lingering. If Lucilla had not been supported by a -conscious sense of rectitude, she must have broken down before this -universal disapprobation. Not a soul in the world except one supported -her in her resolution, and that was perhaps, of all others, the one -least likely to be able to judge. - -And it was not for want of opportunity to go elsewhere. Aunt Jemima, as -has been seen, did not lose an instant in offering the shelter of her -house to her niece; and Mrs Beverley wrote the longest, kindest, most -incoherent letter begging her dear Lucilla to come to her immediately -for a long visit, and adding, that though she had to go out a good deal -into society, she needn't mind, for that everything she could think of -would be done to make her comfortable; to which Dr Beverley himself, who -was now a dean, added an equally kind postscript, begging Miss -Marjoribanks to make her home at the Deanery "until she saw how things -were to be." "He would have found me a place, perhaps," Lucilla said, -when she folded up the letter--and this was a terrible mode of -expression to the genteel ears of Mrs John. - -"I wish you would not use such words, my dear," said Aunt Jemima; "even -if you had been as poor as you thought, my house would always have been -a home for you. Thank Heaven I have enough for both; you never needed to -have thought, under any circumstances, of taking a--a situation. It is a -thing I could never have consented to,"--which was a very handsome thing -of Aunt Jemima to say. - -"Thank you, aunt," said Lucilla, but she sighed; for, though it was very -kind, what was Miss Marjoribanks to have done with herself in such a -dowager establishment? And then Colonel Chiley came in, who had also his -proposal to make. - -"_She_ sent me," the Colonel said; "it's been a sad business for us all, -Lucilla; I don't know when I have felt anything more; and as for her, -you know, she has never held up her head since----" - -"Dear Mrs Chiley!" Miss Marjoribanks said, unable to resist the old -affection; "and yet I heard she had sent for Dr Rider directly," Lucilla -added. She knew it was quite natural, and perhaps quite necessary, but -then it did seem hard that his own friends should be the first to -replace her dear papa. - -"It was I did that," said the Colonel. "What was a man to do? I was -horribly cut up, but I could not stand and see her making herself worse; -and I said you had too much sense to mind----" - -"So I ought," said Lucilla, with penitence, "but when I remembered where -he was last, the very last place----" - -It was hard upon the Colonel to stand by and see a woman cry. It was a -thing he could never stand, as he had always said to his wife. He took -the poker, which was his favourite resource, and made one of his -tremendous dashes at the fire, to give Lucilla time to recover herself, -and then he turned to Aunt Jemima, who sat pensively by: - -"_She_ sent me," said the Colonel, who did not think his wife needed any -other name--"not that I would not have come of my own accord; we want -Lucilla to go to us, you see. I don't know what plans she may have been -making, but we're both very fond of her--she knows that. I think, if you -have not settled upon anything, the best that Lucilla can do is to come -to us. She'll be the same as at home, and always somebody to look after -her----" - -The old Colonel was standing before the fire, wavering a little on his -long unsteady old legs, and looking wonderfully well preserved, and old -and feeble; and Lucilla, though she was in mourning, was so full of life -and force in her way. It was a curious sort of protection to offer her, -and yet it was real protection, and love and succour, though, Heaven -knows! it might not perhaps last out the year. - -"I am sure, Colonel Chiley, it is a very kind offer," said Aunt Jemima, -"and I would have been thankful if she could have made up her mind to go -with me. But I must say she has taken a very queer notion into her -head--a thing I should never have expected from Lucilla--she says she -will stay here." - -"Here?--ah--eh--what does she mean by here?" said the Colonel. - -"_Here_, Colonel Chiley, in this great big melancholy house. I have been -thinking about it, and talking about it till my head goes round and -round. Unless she were to take Inmates," said Aunt Jemima, in a resigned -and doleful voice. As for the Colonel, he was petrified, and for a long -time had not a word to say. - -"_Here!_--By Jove, I think she must have lost her senses," said the old -soldier. "Why, Lucilla, I--I thought--wasn't there something about the -money being lost? You couldn't keep up this house under a--fifteen -hundred a year at least; the Doctor spent a mint of money;--you must be -going out of your senses. And to have all the sick people coming, and -the bell ringing of nights. Bless my soul! it would kill anybody," said -Colonel Chiley. "Put on your bonnet, and come out with me; shutting her -up here, and letting her cry, and so forth--I don't say it ain't -natural--I'm terribly cut up myself whenever I think of it; but it's -been too much for her head," said the Colonel, with anxiety and -consternation mingling in his face. - -"Unless she were to take Inmates, you know," said Aunt Jemima, in a -sepulchral voice. There was something in the word that seemed to carry -out to a point of reality much beyond anything he had dreamt of, the -suggestion Colonel Chiley had just made. - -"Inmates! Lord bless my soul! what do you mean, ma'am?" said the old -soldier. "Lucilla, put on your bonnet directly, and come and have a -little fresh air. She'll soon be an inmate herself if we leave her -here," the Colonel said. They were all very sad and grave, and yet it -was a droll scene; and then the old hero offered Lucilla his arm, and -led her to the door. "You'll find me in the hall as soon as you are -ready," he said, in tones half gruff, half tender, and was glad to go -downstairs, though it was cold, and put on his greatcoat with the aid of -Thomas, and stand warming the tips of his boots at the hall fire. As -for Lucilla, she obeyed him without a word; and it was with his unsteady -but kind old arm to lean upon that she first saw how the familiar world -looked through the mist of this strange change that had come over it, -and through the blackness of her crape veil. - -But though she succeeded in satisfying her friends that she had made up -her mind, she did not secure their approval. There were so many -objections to her plan. "If you had been rich even, I don't think I -should have approved of it, Lucilla," Mrs Chiley said, with tears; "and -I think we could have made you happy here." So the good old lady spoke, -looking round her pretty room, which was so warm and cheery and bright, -and where the Colonel, neat and precise as if he had come out of a box, -was standing poking the fire. It looked all very solid and substantial, -and yet it was as unstable as any gossamer that the careless passenger -might brush away. The two good people were so old that they had -forgotten to remember they were old. But neither did Lucilla think of -that. This was really what she thought and partly said: - -"I am in my own house, that wants no expense nor changing, and Nancy is -getting old, and does not mind standing by me. And it is not so much -trouble after all keeping everything nice when there is no gentleman -coming in, and nothing else to do. And, besides, I don't mean to be -Lucilla Marjoribanks for ever and ever." This was the general scope, -without going into all the details, of what Lucilla said. - -But, at the same time, though she was so happy as not to be disturbed in -her decision, or made uncomfortable, either by lamentation or -remonstrance, and had no doubt in her mind that she was doing right, it -was disagreeable to Miss Marjoribanks to go thus in the face of all her -friends. She went home by herself, and the house did look dreary from -the outside. It was just as it had always been, for none of the servants -were dismissed as yet, nor any external change made; but still a look as -if it had fallen asleep--a look as if it too had died somehow, and only -pretended to be a house and home--was apparent, in the aspect of the -place; and when the servants were gone, and nobody remained except -Lucilla and her faithful Nancy, and a young maid--which must be the -furthest limit of Miss Marjoribanks's household, and difficult enough to -maintain upon two hundred a year--what would it look like? This thought -was more discouraging than any remonstrances; and it was with a heavy -heart that Lucilla re-entered her solitary house. She told Thomas to -follow her upstairs; and when she sank, tired, into a chair, and put up -her veil before commencing to speak to him, it was all she could do to -keep from crying. The depressing influences of this sad week had told so -much on her, that she was quite fatigued by her walk to see Mrs Chiley; -and Thomas, too, knew why he had been called, and stood in a formal -manner before her, with his hands crossed, against the closed door. When -she put back her thick black veil, the last climax of painful change -came upon Miss Marjoribanks. She did not feel as if she were Lucilla; so -discouraged and depressed and pale, and tired with her walk as she was, -with all sorts of projects and plans so quenched out of her; almost if -she had been charged with being somebody else, the imputation was one -which she could not have denied. - -"Thomas," she said faintly, "I think I ought to speak to you myself -about all that has happened--we are such old friends, and you have been -such a good kind servant. You know I shan't be able to keep up----" - -"And sorry we all was, Miss, to hear it," said Thomas, when Lucilla's -utterance failed. "I am sure there never was a better master, though -particular; and for a comfortabler house----" - -"If I had been as poor papa expected to leave me," said Miss -Marjoribanks, after a little pause, "everything would have gone on as -usual: but after your long service here, and so many people as know you, -Thomas, you will have no difficulty in getting as good a place: and you -know that anything I can say----" - -"Thank you, Miss," said Thomas; and then he made a pause. "It was not -exactly that as I was thinking of; I've set my heart, this many a day, -on a little business. If you would be so kind as to speak a word for me -to the gentlemen as has the licensing. There ain't nobody as knows -better how----" - -"What kind of a business, Thomas?" said Lucilla, who cheered up a little -in ready interest, and would have been very glad if she could have taken -a little business too. - -"Well, Miss, a kind of a quiet--public-house, if I don't make too bold -to name it," said Thomas, with a deprecating air--"not one of them -drinking-places, Miss, as, I know, ladies can't abide; but many a man, -as is a very decent man, wants his pint o' beer now and again, and their -little sort of clubs of a night as well as the gentlefolks; and it's my -opinion, Miss, as it's a man's dooty to see as that sort of thing don't -go too far, and yet as his fellow-creatures has their bit of pleasure," -said Thomas, who naturally took the defensive side. - -"I am sure you are quite right," said Lucilla, cheering up more and -more, and instinctively, with her old statesmanlike breadth of view, -throwing a rapid glance upon the subject to see what capabilities there -might be in it; "and I hope you will try always to exercise a good -influence--What is all that noise and shouting out of doors?" - -"It's one of the candidates, Miss," said Thomas, "as is addressing of -the bargemen at the top o' Prickett's Lane." - -"Ah!" said Lucilla; and a deep sigh escaped from her bosom. "But you -cannot do anything of that kind, you know, Thomas, without a wife." - -"Yes, Miss," said Thomas, with great confusion and embarrassment; "that -was just what I was going to say. Me and Betsy----" - -"Betsy!" said Lucilla, with dismay; for it had been Betsy she had -specially fixed upon as the handy, willing, cheerful maid who, when -there was no gentleman coming in, and little else to do, might keep even -this big house in order. She sighed; but it was not in her power, even -if she had desired it, to put any restriction upon Betsy's wishes. And -it was not without a momentary envy that she received the intelligence. -It was life the housemaid was about to enter on--active life of her own, -with an object and meaning--clogged by Thomas, no doubt, who did not -appear to Lucilla as the bright spot in the picture--but still -independent life; whereas her mistress knew of nothing particularly -interesting in her own uncertain future. She was roused from her -momentary meditation by the distant shouts which came from the top of -Prickett's Lane, and sighed again, without knowing it, as she spoke. - -"It's a pity you had not got your--little inn," said Lucilla, for the -sake of euphony, "six months or a year ago, for then you might have -voted for Mr Ashburton, Thomas. I had forgotten about the election until -now." - -"Not as that needn't stand in the way, Miss," said Thomas eagerly; -"there's Betsy's brother as has it now, and he ain't made up his mind -about his vote; and if he knowed as it would be any comfort to you----" - -"Of course it will be a comfort to me!" said Miss Marjoribanks; and she -got up from her chair with a sense that she was still not altogether -useless in the world. "Go and speak to him directly, Thomas; and here's -one of Mr Ashburton's colours that I made up myself; and tell him that -there can be no doubt _he_ is the man for Carlingford; and send up Nancy -to me. And I hope Betsy and you will be very happy," said Lucilla. She -had been dreadfully down, but the rebound was all the more grateful. "I -am not done with yet, and, thank Heaven! there must always be something -to do," she said to herself when she was alone. And she threw off her -shawl, and began to make the drawing-room look like itself; not that it -was not perfectly in order, and as neat as a room could be; but still -the neatness savoured of Betsy, and not of Lucilla. Miss Marjoribanks, -in five minutes, made it look like that cosy empire of hospitality and -kindness and talk and wit, and everything pleasant, that it used to be; -and then, when she had finished, she sat down and had a good cry, which -did not do her any harm. - -Then Nancy appeared, disturbed in her preparations for dinner, and with -her arms wrapped in her apron, looking glum and defiant. Hers was not -the resigned and resourceful preparation for her fate which had appeared -in Thomas. She came in, and put the door ajar, and leant her back -against the sharp edge. She might be sent off like the rest, if that was -Miss Lucilla's meaning--her that had been in the house off and on for -more than thirty years; but if it was so, at least she would not give up -without unfolding a bit of her mind. - -"Come in," said Lucilla, drying her eyes--"come in and shut the door; -you had better come and sit down here, Nancy, for I have a great deal to -say, and I want to speak to you as a friend." - -Nancy shut the door, but she thought to herself that she knew what all -this meant, and made but a very little movement into the room, looking -more forbidding than ever. "Thank you all the same, Miss Lucilla, but I -ain't too old to stand," she said; and stood firm to meet the shock, -with her arms folded under her apron, thinking in her heart that it was -about one of the almshouses, her horror and hope, that her young -mistress was going to speak. - -"Nancy," said Lucilla, "I want to tell you what I am going to do. I -have to make up my mind for myself now. They all go against me, and one -says I should do this and another says I should do that; but I don't -think anybody knows me so well as you do. Don't stand at the door. I -want to consult you as a friend. I want to ask you a question, and you -must answer as if you were before a judge--I have such confidence in -_you_." - -Nancy's distrust and defiance gave way a little before this appeal. She -came a step nearer, and let the apron drop from her folded arms. "What -is it, Miss Lucilla?--though I ain't pretending to be one to advise," -she said, building a kind of intrenchment round her with the nearest -chairs. - -"You know how things are changed," said Lucilla, "and that I can't stay -here as I used to do. People think I should go and live with somebody; -but _I_ think, you know--if I was one of those ladies that have a -faithful old servant to stand by them, and never to grumble nor make a -fuss, nor go back on the past, nor go in for expensive dishes--one that -wouldn't mind cooking a chop or making a cup of tea, if that was all we -could afford--why, I think, Nancy----" - -But Nancy could not hear any more. She made a little rush forward, with -a kind of convulsive chuckling that was half sobbing and half laughter. -"And me here!" cried Dr Marjoribanks's famous cook, who had spent a -fortune on her gravy-beef alone, and was one of the most expensive -people in Carlingford--"me as has done for you all your days! me as -would--if it was but a roast potato!" cried the devoted woman. She was -in such a state of hysterical flutter and excitement that Lucilla had to -take her almost into her arms and put the old woman into a chair and -bring her to, which was an occupation quite in Miss Marjoribanks's way. - -"But I shall only have two hundred a year," said Lucilla. "Now don't be -rash; there will have to be a maid to keep things tidy, and that is -every farthing I shall have. You used to spend as much in gravy-beef," -said Miss Marjoribanks, with a sigh. - -"Oh, Miss Lucilla, let bygones be bygones," said Nancy, with tears. "If -I did, it wasn't without many a little something for them as was too -poor to buy it for themselves--for I never was one as boiled the senses -out of a bit of meat; and when a gentleman is well-to-do, and hasn't got -no occasion to count every penny----The Doctor, I will say for him, was -never one as asked too many questions. Give him a good dinner on his -own table, and he wasn't the gentleman as grudged a bit of broken meat -for the poor folks. He did a deal of good as you nor no one never know'd -of, Miss Lucilla," said Nancy, with a sob. - -And then his daughter and his faithful old servant cried a little in -company over Dr Marjoribanks's vacant place. What could a man have more? -Nobody was made altogether desolate by his death, nor was any heart -broken, but they wept for him honestly, though the old woman felt happy -in her sorrow. And Lucilla, on her knees before the fire, told Nancy of -that exclamation the Doctor had made in John Brown's office, and how he -had put his hand on her shoulder that last night. "All he said was, Poor -Lucilla!" sobbed Miss Marjoribanks; "he never thought of himself nor all -his money that he had worked so hard for;" and once more that touch of -something more exquisite than was usual to her went sharply down into -Lucilla's heart and brought up tenderer and deeper tears. - -She felt all the better for it after, and was even a little cheerful in -the evening, and like herself; and thus it will be seen that one person -in Carlingford--not, it is true, a popular oracle, but of powerful -influence and first-rate importance in a practical point of view--gave -the heartiest approbation to Miss Marjoribanks's scheme for her new -life. - - - - -_Chapter XLVI_ - - -Lucilla's calculations were fully justified by the result. Twenty times -in a day she recognised the wisdom of her own early decision, which was -made while she was still by herself, and before anybody had come in to -advise her. If she had left it over until the time when, though much -shaken, she was understood to be able to see her friends, it is just -possible that the whirlwind of popular opinion which raged about her -might have exercised a distracting influence even upon Miss -Marjoribanks's clear head and steady judgment. For even now, though they -saw her in her own house, in her mourning, people would not believe that -it was true, and that Lucilla actually intended to make "no change"; and -all that tide of good advice which had been flowing through Carlingford -ever since the Doctor's death in the form of opinion, now rushed in upon -her, notwithstanding that all the world knew that she had made up her -mind. "Everybody says you are going to stay on, but we do hope it is not -true, Lucilla," her friends said, in many voices. "It is dreadful for us -to lose you, but you never _could_ bear it, dear." And this was repeated -so often that if Miss Marjoribanks had been weak-minded, she must have -ended by believing not only that it was more than she was equal to, but -more than she ought to be equal to--which was a more touching argument -still. - -"You are excited now," Miss Brown said, who had a great deal of -experience in family troubles; "one always is at such a time; but when -things have settled down in their ordinary way, then you will find it is -more than you can bear. I think it is always best to make a change. If -you were to travel a little, you know----" - -"But, my dear, I am poor," said Lucilla. - -"It doesn't require so much money when you know how to set about it," -said her adviser; "and there are so many people who would be glad to -have you, Lucilla! And then you might settle a little at Caen or Tours, -or some of those nice places, where there is such capital English -society, and everything so cheap; or, if you thought your health -required it, at Pau or Nice, you know. You are looking quite pale, and -I don't think you were ever very strong in the chest, Lucilla; and -everything is _so_ different on the Continent--one feels it the moment -one crosses the Channel; there is something different in the very air." - -"It smells different, I know," said Lucilla meekly; and then the -conversation was interrupted by that afternoon cup of tea, which Nancy -could not be got to think was an extravagance, and around which, to tell -the truth, the Grange Lane ladies began to resume their habit of -gathering--though Miss Marjoribanks, of course, was still quite unequal -to society--as in the old times. - -"And unless it is for a very short time, Lucilla," Mrs Centum said, who -had joined them, "you never can keep it up, you know. _I_ could not -pretend to afford Nancy, for my part; and when a cook is extravagant she -may promise as faithfully as you please, and make good resolutions, and -all that; but when it is in her, Lucilla--I am sure one or two receipts -she has given me have been quite ridiculous. You don't like to give in, -I know, but you'll be driven to give in; and if she does not get you -into debt as well, you will be very lucky. I know what it is. With my -family, you know, a week of Nancy would make an end of me." - -"And the worst of all is," said Lady Richmond, who had driven in -expressly to add her mite to the treasure of precious counsel, of which -Miss Marjoribanks was making so little use, "that I am sure Lucilla is -overestimating her strength. She will find after that she is not equal -to it, you know; all the associations--and the people coming at night to -ask for the Doctor--and--and all that. I know it would kill _me_." - -"Dear Lady Richmond," said Lucilla, making a desperate stand, and -setting, as it were, her back against a rock, "don't you think I can -bear it best here where you are all so kind to me; and where everybody -was so fond of--of _him_? You can't think what a comfort it is to me," -said Lucilla, with a sob, "to see all the hatbands upon the gentlemen's -hats." - -And then there was a pause, for this was an argument against which -nobody could find anything to say. - -"For my part, I think the only thing she can do is to take Inmates," -said Aunt Jemima. "If I were obliged to leave she would be so very -lonely. I have known ladies do it who were in a very good position, and -it made no difference; people visited them all the same. She could say, -'In consequence of changes in the family,' or 'A lady who has a larger -house than she requires'; which I am sure is quite true. It goes to -one's heart to think of all these bedrooms, and only one lady to sleep -in them all--when so many people are so hampered for want of room. Or -she might say, 'For the sake of society'; for, I am sure, if I should -have to go away----" - -"But I hope you are not going away. It would be so sad for Lucilla to be -left alone," said Lady Richmond, who took a serious view of everything, -"at such a time." - -"Oh, no!" Aunt Jemima said, faltering a little; and then a pink blush, -which seemed strangely uncalled for in such a mild little tea-party, -came over her mature countenance; "but then one can never tell what may -happen. I might have other duties--my son might make a call upon my -time. Not that I know of anything at present," she added hurriedly, "but -I never can bind myself on account of Tom----" - -And then she caught Lucilla's eye, and grew more confused than ever. -What could she have to be confused about? If Tom did make a call upon -her time, whatever that might mean, there was nothing in it to call a -blush upon his mother's face. And the fact was, that a letter had come -from Tom a day or two before, of which, contrary to all her usual -habits, Aunt Jemima had taken no notice to Lucilla. These were things -which would have roused Miss Marjoribanks's curiosity if she had been -able to think about anything, as she said. But her visitors were taking -their cup of tea all the time, in a melancholy, half-sympathetic, -half-disapproving way, and they could not be expected to see anything -particularly interesting in Aunt Jemima's blush. - -And then Rose Lake came in from Grove Street, who was rather an unusual -visitor, and whose appearance, though they were all very kind and -gracious to her, rather put the others to flight; for nobody had ever -quite forgotten or forgiven Barbara's brief entrance into society and -flirtation with Mr Cavendish, which might be said to have been the -beginning of all that happened to him in Grange Lane. As for Mrs Centum, -she took her leave directly, and pressed Lucilla's hand, and could not -help saying in her ear that she hoped _the other_ was not coming back to -Carlingford to throw herself in poor Mr Cavendish's way. "It would do -him so much harm," Mrs Centum said anxiously; "but oh! I forgot, -Lucilla, you are on the other side." - -"I am on no side _now_," said Miss Marjoribanks, with plaintive meaning; -"and Barbara was as old as I am, you know, and she must have gone off." - -"I have no doubt she has gone off," said Mrs Centum, with righteous -indignation. "As old as you, Lucilla! She must be ten years older at -least; and such a shocking style of looks--if men were not so -infatuated! And you have not gone off at all, my poor dear," she added, -with all the warmth of friendship! And then they were joined at the door -by the county lady, who was the next to go away. - -"My dear, I hope you will be guided for the best," Lady Richmond said as -she went away; but she gave a deep sigh as she kissed Lucilla, and -looked as if she had very little faith in the efficacy of her own wish. -Maria Brown had withdrawn to another part of the drawing-room with Aunt -Jemima, so that Lucilla was, so to speak, left alone with Rose. And -Rose, too, had come with the intention of giving advice. - -"I hear you are going to stay, Lucilla," she said, "and I did not think -I would be doing my duty if I did not tell you what was in my mind. _I_ -can't do any good to anybody, you know; but you who are so clever, and -have so much in your power----" - -"I am poor now," said Miss Marjoribanks; "and as for being clever, I -don't know about that. I never was clever about drawing or Art, like -you." - -"Oh, like me!" said poor little Rose, whose Career had been sacrificed -ten years ago, and who was a little misanthropical now, and did not -believe even in Schools of Design; "I am not so sure about the moral -influence of Art as I used to be--except High Art, to be sure; but we -never have any High Art down here. And oh, Lucilla! the poor people _do_ -want something done for them. If I was as clever as you, and with a -great house all to myself like this, and well off, and with plenty of -influence, and no ties----" said Rose, with energetic emphasis. She made -a pause there, and she was so much in earnest that the tears came into -her eyes. "I would make it a House of Mercy, Lucilla! I would show all -these poor creatures how to live and how to manage, if I was as clever -as you; and teach them and their children, and look after them, and be -a mother to them!" said Rose; and here she stopped short, altogether -overcome by her own magnificent conception of what her friend could or -might do. - -Aunt Jemima and Miss Brown, who had drawn near out of curiosity, stared -at Rose as if they thought she had gone mad; but Lucilla, who was of a -larger mind and more enlightened ideas, neither laughed nor looked -horrified. She did not make a very distinct answer, it is true, but she -was very kind to her new adviser, and made her a fresh cup of tea, and -even consented, though in an ambiguous way, to the principle she had -just enunciated, "If you won't be affronted, my dear," Lucilla said, "I -do not think that Art could do very much in Carlingford; and I am sure -any little thing that I may be of use for----" But she did not commit -herself any further, and Rose too found the result of her visit -unsatisfactory, and went home disappointed in Lucilla. This was how the -afternoon passed; and at the end of such a day, it may well be imagined -how Miss Marjoribanks congratulated herself on having made up her mind -before the public, so to speak, were admitted. For Rose was followed by -the Rector, who, though he did not propose in so many words a House of -Mercy, made no secret of his conviction that parish-work was the only -thing that could be of any service to Lucilla; and that, in short, such -was the inevitable and providential destination of a woman who had "no -ties." Indeed, to hear Mr Bury, a stranger would have been disposed to -believe that Dr Marjoribanks had been, as he said, "removed," and his -fortune swept away, all in order to indicate to Lucilla the proper -sphere for her energies. In the face of all this it will be seen how -entirely Miss Marjoribanks's wisdom in making her decision by herself -before her advisers broke in upon her, was justified. She could now set -her back against her rock, and face her assailants, as Fitz-James did. - - Come one, come all, this rock shall fly - From its firm base as soon as I, - -might have been her utterance; but she was not in a defiant mood. She -kissed all her counsellors that day (except, of course, the Rector), and -heard them out with the sweetest patience; and then she thought to -herself how much better it was that she had made up her mind to take her -own way. - -Notwithstanding, all this commotion of public opinion about her made a -certain impression upon Miss Marjoribanks's mind. It was not unpleasant -to feel that, for this moment at least, she was the centre of the -thoughts of the community, and that almost everybody in Carlingford had -taken the trouble to frame an ideal existence for her, according as he -or she regarded life. It is so seldom that any one has it in his power, -consciously and evidently, to regulate his life for himself, and make it -whatever he wants it to be. And then, at the same time, the best that -she could make of it would, after all, be something very limited and -unsatisfactory. In her musings on this subject, Lucilla could not but go -back a great many times to that last conversation she had with her -father, when she walked up Grange Lane with him that night over the -thawed and muddy snow. The Doctor had said she was not cut out for a -single woman; and Lucilla, with candour, yet a certain philosophical -speculativeness, had allowed that she was not--unless, indeed, she could -be very rich. If she had been very rich, the prospect would no doubt -have been, to a certain extent, different. And then, oddly enough, it -was Rose Lake's suggestion which came after this to Lucilla's mind. She -did not smile at it as some people might expect she would. One thing was -quite sure, that she had no intention of sinking into a nobody, and -giving up all power of acting upon her fellow-creatures; and she could -not help being conscious of the fact that she was able to be of much use -to her fellow-creatures. If it had been Maria Brown, for instance, who -had been concerned, the whole question would have been one of utter -unimportance, except to the heroine itself; but it was different in Miss -Marjoribanks's case. The House of Mercy was not a thing to be taken into -any serious consideration; but still there was something in the idea -which Lucilla could not dismiss carelessly as her friends could. She had -no vocation, such as the foundress of such an establishment ought to -have, nor did she see her way to the abandonment of all projects for -herself, and that utter devotion to the cause of humanity which would be -involved in it; but yet, when a woman happens to be full of energy and -spirit, and determined that whatever she may be she shall certainly not -be a nonentity, her position is one that demands thought. She was very -capable of serving her fellow-creatures, and very willing and well -disposed to serve them; and yet she was not inclined to give herself up -entirely to them, nor to relinquish her personal prospects--vague -though these might be. It was a tough problem, and one which might have -caused a most unusual disturbance in Lucilla's well-regulated mind, had -not she remembered all at once what deep mourning she was in, and that -at present no sort of action, either of one kind or another, could be -expected of her. There was no need for making a final decision, either -about the parish-work, or about taking Inmates, as Aunt Jemima proposed, -or about any other single suggestion which had been offered to her; no -more than there was any necessity for asking what her cousin Tom's last -letter had been about, or why his mother looked so guilty and -embarrassed when she spoke of him. Grief has its privileges and -exemptions, like other great principles of life; and the recollection -that she could not at present be expected to be able to think about -anything, filled Lucilla's mind with the most soothing sense of -consolation and refreshing calm. - -And then other events occurred to occupy her friends; the election for -one thing began to grow a little exciting, and took away some of the -superfluous energy of Grange Lane. Mr Ashburton had carried all before -him at first; but since the Rector had come into the field, the balance -had changed a little. Mr Bury was very Low-Church; and from the moment -at which he was persuaded that Mr Cavendish was a great penitent, the -question as to which was the Man for Carlingford had been solved in his -mind in the most satisfactory way. A man who intrenched himself in mere -respectability, and trusted in his own good character, and considered -himself to have a clear conscience, and to have done his duty, had no -chance against a repentant sinner. Mr Cavendish, perhaps, had not done -his duty quite so well; but then he was penitent, and everything was -expressed in that word. The Rector was by no means contemptible, either -as an adversary or a supporter--and the worst of it was that, in -embracing Mr Cavendish's claims, he could scarcely help speaking of Mr -Ashburton as if he was in a very bad way. And feeling began to rise -rather high in Carlingford. If anything could have deepened the -intensity of Miss Marjoribanks's grief, it would have been to know that -all this was going on, and that affairs might go badly with her -candidate, while she was shut up, and could give no aid. It was hard -upon her, and it was hard upon the candidates themselves--one of whom -had thus become generally disapproved of, without, so far as he knew, -doing anything to deserve it; while the other occupied the still more -painful character of being on his promotion--a repentant man, with a -character to keep up. It was no wonder that Mrs Centum grew pale at the -very idea of such a creature as Barbara Lake throwing herself in poor Mr -Cavendish's way. A wrong step one way or other--a relapse into the ways -of wickedness--might undo in a moment all that it had cost so much -trouble to do. And the advantage of the Rector's support was thus -grievously counterbalanced by what might be called the uncertainty of -it--especially as Mr Cavendish was not, as his committee lamented -secretly among themselves, a man of strong will or business habits, in -whom implicit confidence could be placed. He might get restive, and -throw the Rector over just at the critical moment; or he might relapse -into his lazy Continental habits, and give up church-going and other -good practices. But still, up to this moment, he had shown very -tolerable perseverance; and Mr Bury's influence thrown into his scale -had equalised matters very much, and made the contest very exciting. All -this Lucilla heard, not from Mr Cavendish, but from her own candidate, -who had taken to calling in a steady sort of way. He never went into any -effusions of sympathy, for he was not that kind of man; but he would -shake hands with her, and say that people must submit to the decrees of -Providence; and then he would speak of the election and of his chances. -Sometimes Mr Ashburton was despondent, and then Lucilla cheered him up; -and sometimes he had very good hopes. - -"I am very glad you are to be here," he said on one of these occasions. -"It would have been a great loss to me if you had gone away. I shall -never forget our talk about it here _that_ day, and how you were the -first person that found me out." - -"It was not any cleverness of mine," said Lucilla. "It came into my mind -in a moment, like spirit-rapping, you know. It seems so strange to talk -of that _now_; there have been such changes since then--it looks like -years." - -"Yes," said Mr Ashburton, in his steady way. "There is nothing that -really makes time look so long; but we must all bow to these -dispensations, my dear Miss Marjoribanks. I would not speak of the -election, but that I thought it might amuse you. The writs are out now, -you know, and it takes place on Monday week." - -Upon which Miss Marjoribanks smiled upon Mr Ashburton, and held out her -hands to him with a gesture and look which said more than words. "You -know you will have _all_ my best wishes," she said; and the candidate -was much moved--more moved than at such a moment he had thought it -possible to be. - -"If I succeed, I know whom I shall thank the most," he said fervently; -and then, as this was a climax, and it would have been a kind of bathos -to plunge into ordinary details after it, Mr Ashburton got up, still -holding Lucilla's hand, and clasped it almost tenderly as he said -good-bye. She looked very well in her mourning, though she had not -expected to do so; for black was not Lucilla's style. And the fact was, -that instead of having gone off, as she herself said, Miss Marjoribanks -looked better than ever she did, and was even embellished by the natural -tears which still shone by times in her eyes. Mr Ashburton went out in a -kind of bewilderment after this interview, and forgot his overcoat in -the hall, and had to come back for it, which was a confusing -circumstance; and then he went on his way with a gentle excitement which -was not unpleasant. "Would she, I wonder?" he said to himself, as he -went up Grange Lane. Perhaps he was only asking himself whether Lucilla -would or could be present along with Lady Richmond and her family at the -window of the Blue Boar on the great day; but if that was it, the idea -had a certain brightening and quickening influence upon his face and his -movements. The doubt he had on the subject, whatever it was, was not a -discouraging, but a piquant, stimulating, exciting doubt. He had all but -proposed the question to his committee when he went in among them, which -would have filled these gentlemen with wonder and dismay. But though he -did not do that, he carried it home with him, as he trotted back to the -Firs to dinner. Mr Ashburton took a walk through his own house that -evening, and examined all its capabilities--with no particular motive, -as he was at pains to explain to his housekeeper; and again he said to -himself, "Would she, I wonder?" before he retired for the night; which -was no doubt an unusual sort of iteration for so sensible a man, and one -so fully occupied with the most important affairs, to make. - -As for Lucilla, she was not in the way of asking herself any questions -at that moment. She was letting things take their course, and not -interfering; and consequently, nothing that happened could be said to be -her fault. She carried this principle so far, that even when Aunt Jemima -was herself led to open the subject, in a hesitating way, Miss -Marjoribanks never even asked a single question about Tom's last letter. -She was in mourning, and that was enough for her. As for appearing at -the window of the Blue Boar with Lady Richmond, if that was what Mr -Ashburton was curious about, he might have saved himself the trouble of -any speculations on the subject. For though Miss Marjoribanks would be -very anxious about the election, she would indeed have been ashamed of -herself could her feelings have permitted her to appear anywhere in -public so soon. Thus, while Mr Ashburton occupied himself much with the -question which had taken possession of his mind, Lucilla took a good -book, which seemed the best reading for her in her circumstances, and -when she had looked after all her straitened affairs in the morning, sat -down sweetly in the afternoon quiet of her retirement and seclusion, and -let things take their way. - - - - -_Chapter XLVII_ - - -As the election approached, it became gradually the one absorbing object -of interest in Carlingford. The contest was so equal that everybody took -a certain share in it, and became excited as the decisive moment drew -nigh. Most of the people in Grange Lane were for Mr Ashburton, but then -the Rector, who was a host in himself, was for Mr Cavendish; and the -coquetting of the Dissenting interest, which was sometimes drawn towards -the liberal sentiments of the former candidate, but sometimes could not -help reflecting that Mr Ashburton "dealt" in George Street; and the -fluctuations of the bargemen, who were, many of them, freemen, and a -very difficult part of the population, excited the most vivid interest. -Young Mr Wentworth, who had but lately come to Carlingford, had already -begun to acquire a great influence at Wharfside, where most of the -bargees lived, and the steady ones would no doubt have been largely -swayed by him had his inclinations been the same as the Rector's; but Mr -Wentworth, perversely enough, had conceived that intuitive repugnance -for Mr Cavendish which a high-principled and not very tolerant young man -often feels for the middle-aged individual who still conceives himself -to have some right to be called young, and whose antecedents are not -entirely beyond suspicion. Mr Wentworth's disinclination (and he was a -man rather apt to take his own way) lay like a great boulder across the -stream of the Rector's enthusiasm, and unquestionably interrupted it a -little. Both the candidates and both the committees had accordingly work -enough to do up to the last moment. Mr Cavendish all at once became a -connoisseur in hams, and gave a magnificent order in the most -complimentary way to Tozer, who received it with a broad smile, and -"booked" it, as he said. "It ain't ham he's a wanting," the butterman -said, not without amusement; for Tozer was well-to-do, and, except that -he felt the honour of a mark of confidence, was not to be moved one way -or another by one order. "If he dealt regular, it might be different. -Them's the sort of folks as a man feels drawn to," said the true -philosopher. Mr Ashburton, on the other side, did not make the -impression which his friends thought he ought to have made in Prickett's -Lane; but at least nobody could say that he did not stick very close to -his work. He went at it like a man night and day, and neglected no means -of carrying it to a successful issue; whereas, as Mr Centum and Mr -Woodburn mourned in secret to each other, Cavendish required perpetual -egging on. He did not like to get up in the morning, and get early to -his work. It went against all his habits--as if his habits mattered in -the face of so great an emergency; and in the afternoon it was hard to -prevent him from lounging into some of his haunts, which were utterly -out of the way of business. He would stay in Masters's for an hour at a -time, though he knew Mr Wentworth, who was Masters's great patron, did -not care for him, and that his favour for such a Tractarian sort of -place was bitter to the Rector. Anything for a little idleness and waste -of time, poor Mr Centum said, who was two stone lighter on the eve of -the election than when the canvass began. Such a contrast would make any -man angry. Mr Cavendish was goaded into more activity as the decisive -moment approached, and performed what seemed to himself unparalleled -feats. But it was only two days before the moment of fate when the -accident happened to him which brought such dismay to all his -supporters. Our own opinion is, that it did not materially affect the -issue of the contest one way or other; but that was the reverse of the -feeling which prevailed in Grange Lane. - -It was just two days before the election, and all seemed going on -sufficiently well. Mr Cavendish had been meeting a Dissenting committee, -and it was on leaving them that he found himself at the corner of Grove -Street, where, under ordinary circumstances, he had no occasion to be. -At a later period he was rather fond of saying that it was not of his -own motion that he was there at all, but only in obedience to the -committee, which ordered him about like a nigger. The spring afternoon -was darkening, and the Dissenters (almost wholly unimpressed by his -arguments, and remarking more strongly than ever where Mr Ashburton -"dealt," and how thoroughly everybody knew all about him) had all -dispersed. It was but natural, when Mr Cavendish came to the corner of -Grove Street, where, in other days, he had played a very different part, -that certain softening influences should take possession of his soul. -"What a voice she had, by Jove!" he said to himself; "very different -from that shrill pipe of Lucilla's." To tell the truth, if there was one -person in Carlingford whom he felt a resentment against, it was Lucilla. -She had never done him any harm to speak of, and once she had -unquestionably done him a great deal of good. But, on the other hand, it -was she who first showed herself candidly conscious that he had grown -stout, and who all along had supported and encouraged his rival. It was -possible, no doubt, that this might be pique; and, mixed with his anger -for her sins against him, Mr Cavendish had, at the same time, a -counterbalancing sense that there still remained to him in his life one -supereminently wise thing that he still could do--and that was, to go -down Grange Lane instantly to the Doctor's silenced house, and go down -on his knees, or do any other absurdity that might be necessary to make -Lucilla marry him; after which act he would henceforward be, pecuniarily -and otherwise (notwithstanding that she was poor), a saved man. It did -not occur to him that Lucilla would never have married him, even had he -gone down on his knees; but perhaps that would be too much to ask any -man to believe of any woman; and his feeling that this was the right -thing to do, rather strengthened than otherwise the revolt of his heart -against Lucilla. It was twilight, as we have said, and he had done a -hard day's work, and there was still an hour before dinner which he -seemed to have a right to dispose of in his own way; and he did -hesitate at the corner of Grove Street, laying himself open, as it were, -to any temptation that might offer itself. Temptations come, as a -general rule, when they are sought; and thus, on the very eve of the -election, a grievous accident happened to Mr Cavendish. It might have -happened at any time, to be sure, but this was the most inopportune -moment possible, and it came accordingly now. - -For, as he made that pause, some one passed him whom he could not but -look after with a certain interest. She went past him with a whisk, as -if she too was not without reminiscences. It was not such a figure as a -romantic young man would be attracted by on such a sudden meeting, and -it was not attraction but recollection that moved Mr Cavendish. It was -the figure of a large woman in a large shawl, not very gracefully put -on, and making her look very square about the shoulders and bunchy at -the neck; and the robe that was whisked past him was that peculiar kind -of faded silk gown which looks and rustles like tin, or some other thin -metallic substance. He made that momentary pause at the street corner, -and then he went on, slowly, not following her, to be sure, but merely, -as he said to himself, pursuing his own course; for it was just as easy -to get into Grange Lane by the farther end as by this end. He went along -very slowly, and the lady before him walked quickly, even with something -like a bounce of excitement, and went in at Mr Lake's door long before -Mr Cavendish reached it. When he came up on a level with the parlour -window, which was partially open though the evening was so cold, Mr -Cavendish positively started, notwithstanding the old associations which -had been rising in his mind; for there was pouring forth from the -half-open window such a volume of melody as had not been heard for years -in Grove Street. Perhaps the voice had lost some of its freshness, but -in the surprise of the moment the hearer was not critical; and its -volume and force seemed even greater than before. - -It has been already mentioned in this history that a contralto had a -special charm for Mr Cavendish. He was so struck that he stood -stock-still for the moment, not knowing what to make of it; and then he -wavered for another moment, with a sudden sense that the old allegorical -crisis had occurred to him, and that Pleasure, in a magnificent gush of -song, wooed him on one side, while Duty, with still small voice, called -him at the other. He stood still, he wavered--for fifty seconds perhaps -the issue was uncertain, and the victim was still within reach of -salvation; but the result in such a case depends very much upon whether -a man really likes doing his duty, which is by no means an invariable -necessity. Mr Cavendish had in the abstract no sort of desire to do his -unless when he could not help it, and consequently his resistance to -temptation was very feeble. He was standing knocking at Mr Lake's door -before half the thoughts appropriate to the occasion had got through his -mind, and found himself sitting on the little sofa in Mr Lake's parlour -as he used to do ten years ago, before he could explain to himself how -he came there. It was all, surely, a kind of enchantment altogether. He -was there--he who had been so long away from Carlingford--he who had -been so deeply offended by hearing his name seriously coupled with that -of Barbara Lake--he who ought to have been anywhere in the world rather -than here upon the eve of his election, when all the world was keeping -watch over his conduct. And it was Barbara who sat at the piano -singing--singing one of the same songs, as if she had spent the entire -interval in that occupation, and never had done anything else all these -years. The sensation was so strange that Mr Cavendish may be excused for -feeling a little uncertainty as to whether or not he was dreaming, which -made him unable to answer himself the graver question whether or not he -was doing what he ought to do. He did not seem to be able to make out -whether it was now or ten years ago--whether he was a young man free to -amuse himself, or a man who was getting stout, and upon whom the eyes of -an anxious constituency were fixed. And then, after being so virtuous -for a length of time, a forbidden pleasure was sweet. - -Mr Cavendish's ideas, however, gradually arranged themselves as he sat -in the corner of the little haircloth sofa, and began to take in the -differences as well as the bewildering resemblances of the present and -past. Barbara, like himself, had changed. She did not insult him, as -Lucilla had done, by fresh looks and mischievous candour about "going -off." Barbara _had_ gone off, like himself, and, like himself, did not -mean to acknowledge it. She had expanded all over, as was natural to a -contralto. Her eyes were blacker and more brilliant in a way, but they -were eyes which owned an indescribable amount of usage; and her cheeks, -too, wore the deep roses of old, deepened and fixed by wear and tear. -Instead of feeling ashamed of himself in her presence, as he had done in -Lucilla's, Mr Cavendish felt somehow consoled and justified and -sympathetic. "Poor soul!" he said to himself, as he sat by while she was -singing. She, too, had been in the wars, and had not come out -scatheless. She did not reproach him, nor commiserate him, nor look at -him with that mixture of wonder and tolerance and pity which other -people had manifested. She did not even remark that he had grown stout. -He was not a man fallen, fallen, fallen from his high estate, to -Barbara. She herself had fallen from the pinnacles of youth, and Mr -Cavendish was still a great man in her eyes. She sang for him as she had -sung ten years ago, and received him with a flutter of suppressed -delight, and in her satisfaction was full of excitement. The hardworked -candidate sank deeper and deeper into the corner of the sofa and -listened to the music, and felt it very soothing and pleasant, for -everybody had united in goading him on rather than petting him for the -last month or two of his life. - -"Now tell me something about yourself," he said, when the song was over, -and Barbara had turned round, as she used to do in old times, on her -music-stool; "I hear you have been away, like me." - -"Not like you," said Barbara, "for you went because you pleased, and I -went----" - -"Why did you go?" asked Mr Cavendish. - -"Because I could not stay here any longer," said Barbara, with her -old vehemence; "because I was talked about, and looked down upon, -and----Well, never mind, that's all over now; and I am sure I am very -glad to see you, Mr Cavendish, as a _friend_." - -And with that something like a tear came into her eye. She had been -knocked about a good deal in the world, and though she had not learned -much, still she had learned that she was young no longer, and could not -indulge in the caprices of that past condition of existence. Mr -Cavendish, for his part, could not but smile at this intimation that he -was to be received as a friend, and consequently need not have any fear -of Barbara's fascinations,--as if a woman of her age, worn and gone off -as she was, could be supposed dangerous; but still he was touched by her -tone. - -"We were once very good friends, Barbara," said the inconsistent man; -"we have lost sight of each other for a long time, as people do in this -world; but we were once very good friends." - -"Yes," she said, with a slight touch of annoyance in her voice; "but -since we have lost sight of each other for so long, I don't see why you -should call me Barbara. It would be much more becoming to say Miss -Lake." - -Mr Cavendish was amused, and he was touched and flattered. Most people -had been rather forbearing to him since he came back, putting up with -him for old friendship's sake, or supporting his cause as that of a -reformed man, and giving him, on the whole, a sort of patronising -humiliating countenance; and to find somebody in whose eyes he was still -the paladin of old times, _the_ Mr Cavendish whom people in Grange Lane -were proud of, was balm to his wounded soul. - -"I don't know how I am to learn to say Miss Lake--when you are just as -good to me as ever, and sing as you have just been doing," he said. "I -suppose you say so because you find me so changed?" - -Upon which Barbara lifted her black eyes and looked at him as she had -scarcely done before. The eyes were as bright as ever, and they were -softened a little for the moment out of the stare that seemed to have -grown habitual to them; and her crimson cheeks glowed as of old; and -though she was untidy, and looked worn, and like a creature much -buffeted about by wind and waves, she was still what connoisseurs in -that article call a fine woman. She looked full at Mr Cavendish, and -then she cast down her eyes, as if the sight was too much for her. "I -don't see any difference," she said, with a certain tremor in her voice; -for he was a man of whom, in the days of her youth, she had been fond in -her way. - -And naturally Mr Cavendish was more touched than ever. He took her hand, -and called her Barbara again without any reproof; and he saw that she -trembled, and that his presence here made to the full as great an -impression as he had ever done in his palmiest days. Perhaps a greater -impression; for their old commerce had been stormy, and interrupted by -many a hurricane; and Barbara then had, or thought she might have, many -strings to her bow, and did not believe that there was only one Mr -Cavendish in the world. Now all that was changed: and if this old hope -should revive again, it would not be allowed to die away for any -gratification of temper. Mr Cavendish did not remember ever to have seen -her tremble before, and he too was fond of her in his way. - -This curious revival did not come to anything of deeper importance, for -of course just then Rose came in from her household affairs, and Mr Lake -to tea; and the candidate recollected that it was time for dinner. But -father and sister also gave him, in their different ways, a rather -flattering reception. Mr Lake had already pledged him his vote, and was -full of interest as to how things were going on, and enthusiastic for -his success; and Rose scowled upon him as of old, as on a dangerous -character, whose comings and goings could not be seen without -apprehension; which was an unexpected pleasure to a man who had been -startled to find how very little commotion his presence made in Grange -Lane. He pressed Barbara's hand as he went away, and went to his dinner -with a heart which certainly beat lighter, and a more pleasant sense of -returning self-confidence, than he had felt for a long time. When he was -coming out of the house, as a matter of course, he met with the chief of -his Dissenting supporters, accompanied (for Mr Bury, as has been said, -was very Low-Church, and loved, wherever he could do it, to work in -unison with his Dissenting brethren) by the Rector's churchwarden, both -of whom stopped with a curiously critical air to speak to the Candidate, -who had to be every man's friend for the time being. The look in their -eyes sent an icy chill through him, but still the forbidden pleasure had -been sweet. As he walked home, he could not help thinking it over, and -going back ten years, and feeling a little doubtful about it, whether it -was then or now. And as he mused Miss Marjoribanks, whom he could not -help continually connecting and contrasting with the other, appeared to -him as a kind of jealous Queen Eleanor, who had a right to him, and -could take possession at any time, should she choose to make the effort; -while Barbara was a Rosamond, dilapidated indeed, but always ready to -receive and console him in her bower. This was the kind of unconscious -sentiment he had in his mind, feeling sure, as he mused, that Lucilla -would be very glad to marry him, and that it would be very wise on his -part to ask her, and was a thing which might still probably come to -pass. Of course he could not see into Miss Marjoribanks's mind, which -had travelled such a long way beyond him. He gave a glance up at the -windows as he passed her door, and felt a kind of disagreeable -satisfaction in seeing how diminished the lights were in the once -radiant house. And Lucilla was so fond of a great deal of light! but -she could not afford now to spend as much money upon wax as a -Continental church might do. Mr Cavendish had so odd a sense of -Lucilla's power over him, that it gave him a certain pleasure to think -of the coming down of her pride and diminution of her lights. - -But the fact was, that not more than ten minutes after he had passed her -door with this reflection, Lucilla, sitting with her good book on the -table and her work in her hand, in the room which was not so well -lighted as it used to be, heard that Mr Cavendish had been met with -coming out of Mr Lake's, and that Barbara had been singing to him, and -that there was no telling what might have happened. "A man ain't the man -for Carlingford as takes up with that sort," Thomas said indignantly, -who had come to pay his former mistress a visit, and to assure her of -his brother-in-law's vote. He was a little more free-spoken than of old, -being now set up, and an independent householder, and calling no man -master; and he was naturally indignant at an occurrence which, regarded -in the light of past events, was an insult not only to Carlingford, but -to Lucilla. Miss Marjoribanks was evidently startled by the news. She -looked up quickly as if she had been about to speak, and then stopped -herself and turned her back upon Thomas, and poked the fire in a most -energetic way. She had even taken the hearth-brush in her hand to make -all tidy after this onslaught, but that was a thing that went to -Thomas's heart. - -"I couldn't stand by and see it, Miss Lucilla," said Thomas; "it don't -feel natural;" and there was actually a kind of moisture in his eye as -he took that domestic implement out of her hand. Mr Cavendish pitied -Lucilla for having less light than of old, and Thomas for being reduced -so low as to sweep her own hearth. But Lucilla was very far from pitying -her own case. She had been making an effort over herself, and she had -come out of it triumphant; after reading so many good books, it is not -to be wondered at if she felt herself a changed and softened and -elevated character. She had the means in her hands of doing her -candidate's rival a deadly mischief, and yet, for old friendship's sake, -Lucilla made up her mind to forbear. - -"I will give it you, Thomas," she said, with dignity, holding the -hearth-brush, which was in such circumstances elevated into something -sublime, "if you will promise, never, until after the election--never -to say a word about Mr Cavendish and Miss Lake. It was quite right to -tell me, and you are very kind about the hearth; but you must promise -never to say a syllable about it, not even to Nancy, until the election -is over; or I will never give it you, nor ask you to do a single thing -for me again." - -Thomas was so much struck with this address that he said "Good Lord!" in -sheer amazement; and then he made the necessary vow, and took the -hearth-brush out of Lucilla's hand. - -"No doubt he was asking for Mr Lake's vote," said Miss Marjoribanks. -"They say everybody is making great exertions, and you know they are -both my friends. I ought to be pleased whoever wins. But it is impressed -on my mind that Mr Ashburton will be the man," Lucilla added, with a -little solemnity, "and, Thomas, we must give them fair-play." - -It would be vain to assert that Thomas understood this romantic -generosity, but he was taken by surprise, and had relinquished his own -liberty in the matter, and had nothing further to say. Indeed he had so -little to say downstairs, that Nancy, who was longing for a little -gossip, insulted and reviled him, and declared that since he took up -with _that_ Betsy there never was a sensible word to be got out of him. -And all the time the poor man was burning with this bit of news. Many a -man has bartered his free-will before under the influence of female -wiles, or so at least history would have us believe; but few have done -it for so poor a compensation as that hearth-brush. Thomas withdrew sore -at heart, longing for the election to be over, and kept his word like an -honest man; but notwithstanding, before the evening was over, the fatal -news was spreading like fire to every house in Grange Lane. - - - - -_Chapter XLVIII_ - - -It is probable that Mr Cavendish considered the indulgence above -recorded all the more excusable in that it was Saturday night. The -nomination was to take place on Monday, and if a man was not to be -supposed to be done with his work on the Saturday evening, when could he -be expected to have a moment of repose? He had thought as he went -home--for naturally, while putting himself so skilfully in the way of -temptation, such questions had not entered into his mind--that the fact -of to-morrow being Sunday would effectually neutralise any harm he could -have been supposed to have done by a visit so simple and natural, and -that neither his sister nor his committee, the two powers of which he -stood in a certain awe, could so much as hear of it until the election -was over, and all decided for good or for evil. This had been a comfort -to his mind, but it was the very falsest and most deceitful consolation. -That intervening Sunday was a severer calamity for Mr Cavendish than -half a dozen ordinary days. The general excitement had risen so high, -and all the chances on both sides had been so often discussed and -debated, that something new was as water in the desert to the thirsting -constituency. The story was all through Grange Lane that very night, but -Carlingford itself, from St Roque's to the wilderness of the North End, -tingled with it next morning. It is true, the Rector made no special -allusion to it in his sermon, though the tone of all his services was so -sad, and his own fine countenance looked so melancholy, that Mr Bury's -devoted followers could all see that he had something on his mind. But -Mr Tufton at Salem Chapel was not so reticent. He was a man quite famous -for his extempore gifts, and who rather liked to preach about any very -recent public event, which it was evident to all his hearers could not -have found place in a "prepared" discourse; and his sermon that morning -was upon wickedness in high places, upon men who sought the confidence -of their fellows only to betray it, and offered to the poor man a hand -red with his sister's (metaphorical) blood. - -But it would be wrong to say that this was the general tone of public -opinion in Grove Street; most people, on the contrary, thought of Mr -Cavendish not as a wolf thirsting for the lamb's blood, but rather -himself as a kind of lamb caught in the thicket, and about to be offered -up in sacrifice. Such was the impression of a great many influential -persons who had been wavering hitherto, and inclining on the whole to Mr -Cavendish's liberal principles and supposed Low-Church views. A man -whose hand is red metaphorically with your sister's blood is no doubt a -highly objectionable personage; but it is doubtful whether, under the -circumstances, an enlightened constituency might not consider the man -who had given a perfectly unstained hand to so thoroughly unsatisfactory -a sister as more objectionable still; and the indignation of Grange Lane -at Barbara's reappearance was nothing to the fury of George Street, and -even of Wharfside, where the bargees began to scoff openly. Society had -nothing worse to say than to quote Mrs Chiley, and assert that "these -artist people were all adventurers"; and then Grange Lane in general -could not forget that it "had met" Barbara, nor dismiss from its -consideration her black eyes, her level brows, and her magnificent -contralto; whereas in the other region the idea of the Member for -Carlingford marrying "that sort!" cast all the world into temporary -delirium. It was a still more deadly offence to the small people than to -the great. And the exceptional standing which poor Mr Lake and his -daughter Rose used to lay claim to--the "rank of their own" which they -possessed as artists--was a pretension much more disagreeable to the -shopkeepers than to society in general. Thus in every sense Mr Cavendish -had done the very worst for himself by his ill-timed indulgence; and his -guilt was about the same with most of his critics whether he meant -perfectly well and innocently, or entertained the most guilty intentions -ever conceived by man. - -And all his misfortunes were increased by the fact that the intervening -day was a Sunday. Barbara Lake herself, who did not know what people -were saying, and who, if she had known, would not have cared, came to -church, as was natural, in the morning; and under pretence that the -family pew was full, had the assurance, as people remarked, to come to -the middle aisle, in that same silk dress which rustled like tin, and -made more demonstration than the richest draperies. The pew-opener -disapproved of her as much as everybody else did, but she could not turn -the intruder out; and though Barbara had a long time to wait, and was -curiously inspected by all the eyes near her while she did so, the end -was that she got a seat in her rustling silk not very far from where -Lucilla sat in deep mourning, a model of every righteous observance. As -for poor Barbara, she too was very exemplary in church. She meant nobody -any harm, poor soul. She could not help the flashing of those big black -eyes, to which the level line above them gave such a curious appearance -of obliqueness--nor was it to be expected that she should deny herself -the use of her advantages, or omit to "take the second" in all the -canticles with such melodious liquid tones as made everybody stop and -look round. She had a perfect right to do it; indeed it was her duty, as -it is everybody's duty, to aid to the best of their ability in the -church-music of their parish, which was what Lucilla Marjoribanks -persisted in saying in answer to all objections. But the effect was -great in the congregation, and even the Rector himself was seen to -change colour as his eye fell upon the unlucky young woman. Mr -Cavendish, for his part, knew her voice the moment he heard it, and gave -a little start, and received such a look from his sister, who was -standing by him, as turned him to stone. Mrs Woodburn looked at him, and -so did her husband, and Mr Centum turned a solemnly inquiring -reproachful gaze upon him from the other side of the aisle. "Oh, Harry, -you will kill me with vexation! why, for goodness' sake, did you let her -come?" his sister whispered when they had all sat down again. "Good -heavens! how could I help it?" cried poor Mr Cavendish, almost loud -enough to be heard. And then by the slight, almost imperceptible, hum -around him, he felt that not only his sister and his committee, but the -Rector and all Carlingford, had their eyes upon him, and was thankful to -look up the lesson, poor man, and bury his face in it. It was a hard -punishment for the indiscretion of an hour. - -But perhaps of all the people concerned it was the Rector who was the -most to be pitied. He had staked his honour upon Mr Cavendish's -repentance, and here was he going back, publicly to wallow in the -mire--and it was Sunday when such a worldly subject ought not to be -permitted to enter a good man's mind, much less to be discussed and -acted upon as it ought to be if anything was to be done; for there was -little more than this sacred day remaining in which to undo the mischief -which a too great confidence in human nature had wrought. And then, to -tell the truth, the Rector did not know how to turn back. It would have -been hard, very hard, to have told all the people who confided in him -that he had never had any stronger evidence for Mr Cavendish's -repentance than he now had for his backsliding; and to give in, and let -the other side have it all their own way, and throw over the candidate -with whom he had identified himself, was as painful to Mr Bury as if, -instead of being very Low-Church, he had been the most muscular of -Christians. Being in this state of mind, it may be supposed that his -sister's mild wonder and trembling speculations at lunch, when they were -alone together, were well qualified to raise some sparks of that old -Adam, who, though well kept under, still existed in the Rector's, as in -most other human breasts. - -"But, dear Edward, I would not quite condemn him," Miss Bury said. "He -has been the cause of a good deal of remark, you know, and the poor girl -has been talked about. He may think it is his duty to make her amends. -For anything we can tell, he may have the most honourable -intentions----" - -"Oh, bother his honourable intentions!" said the Rector. Such an -exclamation from him was as bad as the most dreadful oath from an -ordinary man, and very nearly made Miss Bury drop from her chair in -amazement. Things must have gone very far indeed when the Rector himself -disregarded all proprieties and the sacredness of the day in such a -wildly-daring fashion. For, to tell the truth, in his secret heart Mr -Bury was himself a little of the way of thinking of the people in Grove -Street. Strictly speaking, if a man has done anything to make a young -woman be talked about, every well-principled person ought to desire that -he should make her amends; but at the same time, at such a crisis there -was little consolation in the fact that the candidate one was supporting -and doing daily battle for had honourable intentions in respect to -Barbara Lake. If it had been Rose Lake, it would still have been a blow; -but Rose was unspeakably respectable, and nobody could have said a -syllable on the subject: while Barbara, who came to church in a tin -gown, and rustled up the middle aisle in it, attracting all eyes, and -took such a second in the canticles that she overwhelmed the choir -itself--Barbara, who had made people talk at Lucilla's parties, and had -been ten years away, wandering over the face of the earth, nobody could -tell where--governessing, singing, play-acting, perhaps, for anything -that anybody could tell! A clergyman, it is true, dared not have said -such a thing, and Mr Bury's remorse would have been bitter could he have -really believed himself capable even of thinking it; but still it is -certain that the unconscious, unexpressed idea in his mind was, that the -honourable intentions were the worst of it--that a candidate might be a -fool, or even an unrepentant sinner, and after all it would be chiefly -his own concern; but that so much as to dream of making Barbara Lake the -Member's wife, was the deepest insult that could be offered to -Carlingford. The Rector carried his burden silently all day, and -scarcely opened his lips, as all his sympathetic following remarked; but -before he went to bed he made a singular statement, the complete -accuracy of which an impartial observer might be disposed to doubt, but -which Mr Bury uttered with profound sincerity, and with a sigh of -self-compassion. "_Now_ I understand Lucilla Marjoribanks," was what the -good man said, and he all but puffed out the candle he had just lighted, -with that sigh. - -Lucilla, however, in her own person took no part in it at all, one way -or other. She shook hands very kindly with Barbara, and hoped she would -come and see her, and made it clearly apparent that _she_ at least bore -no malice. "I am very glad I told Thomas to say nothing about it," she -said to Aunt Jemima, who, however, did not know the circumstances, and -was very little the wiser, as may be supposed. - -And then the two ladies walked home together, and Miss Marjoribanks -devoted herself to her good books. It was almost the first moment of -repose that Lucilla had ever had in her busy life, and it was a repose -not only permitted but enjoined. Society, which had all along expected -so much from her, expected now that she should not find herself able for -any exertion; and Miss Marjoribanks responded nobly, as she had always -done, to the requirements of society. To a mind less perfectly -regulated, the fact that the election which had been so interesting to -her was now about, as may be said, to take place without her, would have -been of itself a severe trial; and the sweet composure with which she -bore it was not one of the least remarkable phenomena of the present -crisis. But the fact was that this Sunday was on the whole an oppressive -day. Mr Ashburton came in for a moment, it is true, between services; -but he himself, though generally so steady, was unsettled and agitated. -He had been bearing the excitement well until this last almost -incredible accident occurred, which made it possible that he might not -only win, but win by a large majority. "The Dissenters have all held out -till now, and would not pledge themselves," he said to Lucilla, actually -with a tremble in his voice; and then he told her about Mr Tufton's -sermon and the wickedness in high places, and the hand imbrued -metaphorically in his sister's blood. - -"I wonder how he could say so," said Lucilla, with indignation. "It is -just like those Dissenters. What harm was there in going to see her? I -heard of it last night, but even for your interest I would never have -spread such mere gossip as that." - -"No--certainly it is mere gossip," said Mr Ashburton; "but it will do -him a great deal of harm all the same," and then once more he got -restless and abstracted. "I suppose it is of no use asking you if you -would join Lady Richmond's party at the Blue Boar? You could have a -window almost to yourself, you know, and would be quite quiet." - -Lucilla shook her head, and the movement was more expressive than words. -"I did not think you would," said Mr Ashburton; and then he took her -hand, and his looks too became full of meaning. "Then I must say adieu," -he said--"adieu until it is all over. I shall not have a moment that I -can call my own--this will be an eventful week for me." - -"You mean an eventful day," said Lucilla; for Mr Ashburton was not such -a novice as to be afraid of the appearance he would have to make at the -nomination. He did not contradict her, but he pressed her hand with a -look which was equivalent to kissing it, though he was not romantic -enough to go quite that length. When he was gone, Miss Marjoribanks -could not but wonder a little what he could mean by looking forward to -an eventful week. For her own part, she could not but feel that after so -much excitement things would feel rather flat for the rest of the week, -and that it was almost wrong to have an election on a Tuesday. Could it -be that Mr Ashburton had some other contest or candidateship in store -for himself which he had not told her about? Such a thing was quite -possible; but what had Lucilla in her mourning to do with worldly -contingencies? She went back to her seat in the corner of the sofa and -her book of sermons, and read fifty pages before tea-time; she knew how -much, because she had put a mark in her book when Mr Ashburton came in. -Marks are very necessary things generally in sermon-books; and Lucilla -could not but feel pleased to think that since her visitor went away she -had got over so much ground. - -To compare Carlingford to a volcano that night (and indeed all the next -day, which was the day of nomination) would be a stale similitude; and -yet in some respects it was like a volcano. It was not the same kind of -excitement which arises in a town where politics run very high--if there -are any towns nowadays in such a state of unsophisticated nature. -Neither was it a place where simple corruption could carry the day; for -the freemen of Wharfside were, after all, but a small portion of the -population. It was in reality a quite ideal sort of contest--a contest -for the best man, such as would have pleased the purest-minded -philosopher. It was the man most fit to represent Carlingford for whom -everybody was looking, not a man to be baited about parish-rates and -Reform Bills and the Irish Church;--a man who lived in, or near the -town, and "dealt regular" at all the best shops; a man who would not -disgrace his constituency by any unlawful or injudicious sort of -love-making--who would attend to the town's interests and subscribe to -its charities, and take the lead in a general way. This was what -Carlingford was looking for, as Miss Marjoribanks, with that intuitive -rapidity which was characteristic of her genius, had at once remarked; -and when everybody went home from church and chapel, though it was -Sunday, the whole town thrilled and throbbed with this great question. -People might have found it possible to condone a sin or wink at a mere -backsliding; but there were few so bigoted in their faith as to believe -that the man who was capable of marrying Barbara Lake could ever be the -man for Carlingford; and thus it was that Mr Cavendish, who had been -flourishing like a green bay-tree, withered away, as it were, in a -moment, and the place that had known him knew him no more. - -The hustings were erected at that central spot, just under the windows -of the Blue Boar, where Grange Lane and George Street meet, the most -central point in Carlingford. It was so near that Lucilla could hear the -shouts and the music and all the divers noises of the election, but -could not, even when she went into the very corner of the window and -strained her eyes to the utmost, see what was going on, which was a very -trying position. We will not linger upon the proceedings or excitement -of Monday, when the nomination and the speeches were made, and when the -show of hands was certainly thought to be in Mr Cavendish's favour. But -it was the next day that was the real trial. Lady Richmond and her party -drove past at a very early hour, and looked up at Miss Marjoribanks's -windows, and congratulated themselves that they were so early, and that -poor dear Lucilla would not have the additional pain of seeing them go -past. But Lucilla did see them, though, with her usual good sense, she -kept behind the blind. She never did anything absurd in the way of early -rising on ordinary occasions; but this morning it was impossible to -restrain a certain excitement, and though it did her no good, still she -got up an hour earlier than usual, and listened to the music, and heard -the cabs rattling about, and could not help it if her heart beat -quicker. It was perhaps a more important crisis for Miss Marjoribanks -than for any other person, save one, in Carlingford; for of course it -would be foolish to attempt to assert that she did not understand by -this time what Mr Ashburton meant; and it may be imagined how hard it -was upon Lucilla to be thus, as it were, in the very outside row of the -assembly--to hear all the distant shouts and sounds, everything that was -noisy and inarticulate, and conveyed no meaning, and to be out of reach -of all that could really inform her as to what was going on. - -She saw from her window the cabs rushing past, now with her own -violet-and-green colours, now with the blue-and-yellow. And sometimes it -seemed to Lucilla that the blue-and-yellow predominated, and that the -carriages which mounted the hostile standard carried voters in larger -numbers and more enthusiastic condition. The first load of bargemen that -came up Grange Lane from the farther end of Wharf side were all Blues; -and when a spectator is thus held on the very edge of the event in a -suspense which grows every moment more intolerable, especially when he -or she is disposed to believe that things in general go on all the worse -for his or her absence, it is no wonder if that spectator becomes -nervous, and sees all the dangers at their darkest. What if, after all, -old liking and friendship had prevailed over that beautiful optimism -which Lucilla had done so much to instil into the minds of her -townsfolk? What if something more mercenary and less elevating than the -ideal search for the best man, in which she had hoped Carlingford was -engaged, should have swayed the popular mind to the other side? All -these painful questions went through Lucilla's mind as the day crept on; -and her suspense was much aggravated by Aunt Jemima, who took no real -interest in the election, but who kept saying every ten minutes--"I -wonder how the poll is going on--I wonder what that is they are -shouting--is it 'Ashburton for ever!' or 'Cavendish for ever!' Lucilla? -Your ears should be sharper than mine; but I think it is Cavendish." -Lucilla thought so too, and her heart quaked within her, and she went -and squeezed herself into the corner of the window, to try whether it -was not possible to catch a glimpse of the field of battle; and her -perseverance was finally rewarded by the sight of the extremity of the -wooden planks which formed the polling-booth; but there was little -satisfaction to be got out of that. And then the continual dropping of -Aunt Jemima's questions drove her wild. "My dear aunt," she said at -last, "I can see nothing and hear nothing, and you know as much about -what is going on as I do"--which, it will be acknowledged, was not an -answer such as one would have expected from Lucilla's perfect temper and -wonderful self-control. - -The election went on with all its usual commotion while Miss -Marjoribanks watched and waited. Mr Cavendish's committee brought their -supporters very well up in the morning--no doubt by way of making sure -of them, as somebody suggested on the other side; and for some time Mrs -Woodburn's party at Masters's windows (which Masters had given rather -reluctantly, by way of pleasing the Rector) looked in better spirits and -less anxious than Lady Richmond's party, which was at the Blue Boar. -Towards noon Mr Cavendish himself went up to his female supporters with -the bulletin of the poll--the same bulletin which Mr Ashburton had just -sent down to Lucilla. These were the numbers; and they made Masters's -triumphant, while silence and anxiety fell upon the Blue Boar:-- - - Cavendish 283 - Ashburton 275 - -When Miss Marjoribanks received this disastrous intelligence, she put -the note in her pocket without saying a word to Aunt Jemima, and left -her window, and went back to her worsted-work; but as for Mrs Woodburn, -she gave her brother a hug, and laughed, and cried, and believed in it, -like a silly woman as she was. - -"It is something quite unlooked-for, and which I never could have -calculated upon," she said, thrusting her hand into an imaginary -waistcoat with Mr Ashburton's very look and tone, which was beyond -measure amusing to all the party. They laughed so long, and were so gay, -that Lady Richmond solemnly levelled her opera-glass at them with the -air of a woman who was used to elections, but knew how such _parvenus_ -have their heads turned by a prominent position. "That woman is taking -some of us off," she said, "but if it is me, I can bear it. There is -nothing so vulgar as that sort of thing, and I hope you never encourage -it in your presence, my dears." - -Just at that moment, however, an incident occurred which took up the -attention of the ladies at the windows, and eclipsed even the interest -of the election. Poor Barbara Lake was interested, too, to know if her -friend would win. She was not entertaining any particular hopes or plans -about him. Years and hard experiences had humbled Barbara. The Brussels -veil which she used to dream of had faded as much from her memory as -poor Rose's Honiton design, for which she had got the prize. At the -present moment, instead of nourishing the ambitious designs which -everybody laid to her charge, she would have been content with the very -innocent privilege of talking a little to her next employers about Mr -Cavendish, the member for Carlingford, and his visits to her father's -house. But at the same time, she had once been fond of him, and she took -a great interest in him, and was very anxious that he should win. And -she was in the habit, like so many other women, of finding out, as far -as she could, what was going on, and going to see everything that there -might be to see. She had brought one of her young brothers with her, -whose anxiety to see the fun was quite as great as her own; and she was -arrayed in the tin dress--her best available garment--which was made -long, according to the fashion, and which, as Barbara scorned to tuck it -up, was continually getting trodden on, and talked about, and reviled -at, on that crowded pavement. The two parties of ladies saw, and even it -might be said heard, the sweep of the metallic garment, which was -undergoing such rough usage, and which was her best, poor soul. Lady -Richmond had alighted from her carriage carefully tucked up, though -there were only a few steps to make, and there was no _lady_ in -Carlingford who would have swept "a good gown" over the stones in such -a way; but then poor Barbara was not precisely a lady, and thought it -right to look as if it did not matter. She went up to read the numbers -of the poll--in the sight of everybody; and she clasped her hands -together with ecstatic satisfaction as she read; and young Carmine, her -brother, dashed into the midst of the fray, and shouted "Cavendish for -ever! hurrah for Cavendish!" and could scarcely be drawn back again to -take his sister home. Even when she withdrew, she did not go home, but -went slowly up and down Grange Lane with her rustling train behind her, -with the intention of coming back for further information. Lady Richmond -and Mrs Woodburn both lost all thought of the election as they watched; -and lo! when their wandering thoughts came back again, the tide had -turned. - -The tide had turned. Whether it was Barbara, or whether it was fate, or -whether it was the deadly unanimity of those Dissenters, who, after all -their wavering, had at last decided for the man who "dealt" in George -Street--no one could tell; but by two o'clock Mr Ashburton was so far -ahead that he felt himself justified in sending another bulletin to -Lucilla--so far that there was no reasonable hope of the opposite -candidate ever making up his lost ground. Mrs Woodburn was not a woman -to be content when reasonable hope was over--she clung to the last -possibility desperately, with a pertinacity beyond all reason, and swore -in her heart that it was Barbara that had done it, and cursed her with -her best energies; which, however, as these are not melodramatic days, -was a thing which did the culprit no possible harm. When Barbara herself -came back from her promenade in Grange Lane, and saw the altered -numbers, she again clasped her hands together for a moment, and looked -as if she were going to faint; and it was at that moment that Mr -Cavendish's eyes fell upon her, as ill fortune would have it. They were -all looking at him as if it was his fault; and the sight of that -sympathetic face was consoling to the defeated candidate. He took off -his hat before everybody; probably, as his sister afterwards said, he -would have gone and offered her his arm had he been near enough. How -could anybody wonder, after that, that things had gone against him, and -that, notwithstanding all his advantages, he was the loser in the fight? - -As for Lucilla, she had gone back to her worsted-work when she got Mr -Ashburton's first note, in which his rival's name stood above his own. -She looked quite composed, and Aunt Jemima went on teasing with her -senseless questions. But Miss Marjoribanks put up with it all; though -the lingering progress of these hours from one o'clock to four, the -sound of cabs furiously driven by, the distant shouts, the hum of -indefinite din that filled the air, exciting every moment a keener -curiosity, and giving no satisfaction or information, would have been -enough to have driven a less large intelligence out of its wits. Lucilla -bore it, doing as much as she could of her worsted-work, and saying -nothing to nobody, except, indeed, an occasional word to Aunt Jemima, -who would have an answer. She was not walking about Grange Lane -repeating a kind of prayer for the success of her candidate, as Barbara -Lake was doing; but perhaps, on the whole, Barbara had the easiest time -of it at that moment of uncertainty. When the next report came, -Lucilla's fingers trembled as she opened it, so great was her emotion; -but after that she recovered herself as if by magic. She grew pale, and -then gave a kind of sob, and then a kind of laugh, and finally put her -worsted-work back into her basket, and threw Mr Ashburton's note into -the fire. - -"It is all right," said Lucilla. "Mr Ashburton is a hundred ahead, and -they can never make up that. I am so sorry for poor Mr Cavendish. If he -only had not been so imprudent on Saturday night!" - -"I am sure I don't understand you," said Aunt Jemima. "After being so -anxious about one candidate, how can you be so sorry for the other? I -suppose you did not want them both to win?" - -"Yes, I think that _was_ what I wanted," said Lucilla, drying her eyes; -and then she awoke to the practical exigencies of the position. "There -will be quantities of people coming to have a cup of tea, and I must -speak to Nancy," she said, and went downstairs with a cheerful heart. It -might be said to be as good as decided, so far as regarded Mr Ashburton; -and when it came for her final judgment, what was it that she ought to -say? - -It was very well that Miss Marjoribanks's unfailing foresight led her to -speak to Nancy; for the fact was, that after four o'clock, when the -polling was over, everybody came in to tea. All Lady Richmond's party -came, as a matter of course, and Mr Ashburton himself, for a few -minutes, bearing meekly his new honours; and so many more people -besides, that but for knowing it was a special occasion, and that "our -gentleman" was elected, Nancy's mind never could have borne the strain. -And the tea that was used was something frightful. As for Aunt Jemima, -who had just then a good many thoughts of her own to occupy her, and did -not care so much as the rest for all the chatter that was going on, nor -for all those details about poor Barbara and Mr Cavendish's looks, which -Lucilla received with such interest, she could not but make a -calculation in passing as to this new item of fashionable expenditure -into which her niece was plunging so wildly. To be sure, it was an -occasion that never might occur again, and everybody was so excited as -to forget even that Lucilla was in mourning, and that such a number of -people in the house so soon might be more than she could bear. And she -was excited herself, and forgot that she was not able for it. But still -Aunt Jemima, sitting by, could not help thinking, that even five-o'clock -teas of good quality and unlimited amount would very soon prove to be -impracticable upon two hundred a year. - - - - -_Chapter XLIX_ - - -Mr Ashburton, it may be supposed, had but little time to think on that -eventful evening; and yet he was thinking all the way home, as he drove -back in the chilly spring night to his own house. If his further course -of action had been made in any way to depend upon the events of this -day, it was now settled beyond all further uncertainty; and though he -was not a man in his first youth, nor a likely subject for a romantic -passion, still he was a little excited by the position in which he found -himself. Miss Marjoribanks had been his inspiring genius, and had -interested herself in his success in the warmest and fullest way; and if -ever a woman was made for a certain position, Lucilla was made to be the -wife of the Member for Carlingford. Long, long ago, at the very -beginning of her career, when it was of Mr Cavendish that everybody was -thinking, the ideal fitness of this position had struck everybody. -Circumstances had changed since then, and Mr Cavendish had fallen, and a -worthier hero had been placed in his stead; but though the person was -changed, the circumstances remained unaltered. Natural fitness was -indeed so apparent, that many people would have been disposed to say -that it was Lucilla's duty to accept Mr Ashburton, even independent of -the fact that he was perfectly eligible in every other respect. - -But with all this the new Member for Carlingford was not able to assure -himself that there had been anything particular in Lucilla's manner to -himself. With her as with Carlingford, it was pure optimism. He was the -best man, and her quick intelligence had divined it sooner than anybody -else had done. Whether there was anything more in it, Mr Ashburton could -not tell. His own impression was that she would accept him; but if she -did not, he would have no right to complain of "encouragement," or to -think himself jilted. This was what he was thinking as he drove home; -but at the same time he was very far from being in a desponding state of -mind. He felt very nearly as sure that Lucilla would be his wife, as if -they were already standing before the Rector in Carlingford Church. He -had just won one victory, which naturally made him feel more confident -of winning another; and even without entertaining any over-exalted -opinion of himself, it was evident that, under all the circumstances, a -woman of thirty, with two hundred a year, would be a fool to reject such -an offer. And Lucilla was the very furthest in the world from being a -fool. It was in every respect the beginning of a new world to Mr -Ashburton, and it would have been out of nature had he not been a little -excited. After the quiet life he had led at the Firs, biding his time, -he had now to look forward to a busy and important existence, half of it -spent amid the commotion and ceaseless stir of town. A new career, a -wife, a new position, the most important in his district--it was not -much wonder if Mr Ashburton felt a little excited. He was fatigued at -the same time, too much fatigued to be disposed for sleep; and all these -united influences swayed him to a state of mind very much unlike his -ordinary sensible calm. All his excitement culminated so in thoughts of -Lucilla, that the new Member felt himself truly a lover; and late as the -hour was, he took up a candle and once more made a survey all alone of -his solitary house. - -Nothing could look more dismal than the dark rooms, where there was -neither light nor fire--the great desert drawing-room, for example, -which stood unchanged as it had been in the days of his grand-aunts, the -good old ladies who had bequeathed the Firs to Mr Ashburton. He had made -no change in it, and scarcely ever used it, keeping to his library and -dining-room, with the possibility, no doubt, always before him of -preparing it in due course of time for his wife. That moment had now -arrived, and in his excitement he went into the desolate room with his -candle, which just made the darkness visible, and tried to see the dusky -curtains and faded carpet, and the indescribable fossil air which -everything had. There were the odd little spider-legged stands, upon -which the Miss Penrhyns had placed their work-boxes, and the old sofas -on which they had sat, and the floods of old tapestry-work with which -they had decorated their favourite sitting-room. The sight of it chilled -the Member for Carlingford, and made him sad. He tried to turn his -thoughts to the time when this same room should be fitted up to suit -Lucilla's complexion, and should be gay with light and with her -presence. He did all he could to realise the moment when, with a -mistress so active and energetic, the whole place would change its -aspect, and glow forth resplendent into the twilight of the county, a -central point for all. Perhaps it was his fatigue which gained upon him -just at this moment, and repulsed all livelier thoughts; but the fact -is, that however willing Lucilla might turn out to be, her image was -coy, and would not come. The more Mr Ashburton tried to think of her as -in possession here, the more the grim images of the two old Miss -Penrhyns walked out of the darkness and asserted their prior claims. -They even seemed to have got into the library before him when he went -back, though there his fire was burning, and his lamp. After that there -was nothing left for a man to do, even though he had been that day -elected Member for Carlingford, but to yield to the weakness of an -ordinary mortal, and go to bed. - -Thoughts very different, but even more disturbing, were going on at the -same time in Grange Lane. Poor Mr Cavendish, for one thing,--upbraided -by everybody's looks, and even by some people's words--feeling himself -condemned, censured, and despised on all sides--smarting under his -sister's wild reproaches and her husband's blunt commentary -thereupon,--had slunk away from their society after dinner, not seeing -_now_ why he should bear it any longer. "By Jove! if it had only been -for _her_ sake, you might have left over your philandering for another -night," Mr Woodburn had said, in his coarse way; and it was all Mr -Cavendish could do to refrain from saying that one time and another he -had done quite enough for _her_ sake, but he did not see any reason why -he should put up with it any longer. He strolled out of doors, though -the town was still in commotion, and could not but think of the -sympathetic countenance which had paled to-day at sight of the numbers -of the poll. She, by Heaven! might have had reason to find fault with -him, and she had never done so; _she_ had never perceived that he was -stout, or changed from old times. As he entertained these thoughts, his -steps going down Grange Lane gradually quickened, but he did not say to -himself where he was going. He went a very roundabout way, as if he did -not mean it, as far as St Roque's, and then up by the lane to the -far-off desert extremity of Grove Street. It was simply to walk off his -excitement and disappointment, and free himself from criticism for that -evening at least; but as he walked he could not help thinking that -Barbara, if she were well dressed, would still be a fine woman, that her -voice was magnificent in its way, and that about Naples, perhaps, or the -baths of Lucca, or in Germany, or the south of France, a man might be -able to get on well enough with such a companion, where society was not -so exacting or stiff-starched as in England. And the end was, that the -feet of the defeated candidate carried him, ere ever he was aware, with -some kind of independent volition of their own, to Mr Lake's door--and -it may be here said, once for all, that this visit was decisive of Mr -Cavendish's fate. - -This will not be regarded as anything but a digression by such of -Lucilla's friends as may be solicitous to know what she was making up -her mind to under the circumstances; but the truth is that Lucilla's -historian cannot, any more than Miss Marjoribanks herself could, refrain -from a certain regret over Mr Cavendish. That was what he came to, poor -man! after all his experiences; a man who was capable of so much better -things--a man even who, if he had made a right use of his opportunities, -might once have had as good a chance as any other of marrying Lucilla -herself. If there ever was an instance of chances thrown away and lost -opportunities, surely here was that lamentable example. And thus, poor -man! all his hopes and all his chances came to an end. - -As for Miss Marjoribanks herself, it would be vain to say that this was -not a very exciting moment for her. If there ever could be said to be a -time when she temporarily lost the entire sway and control of herself -and her feelings, it would be at this crisis. She went about all that -evening like a woman in a dream. For the first time in her life she not -only did not know what she would do, but she did not know what she -wanted to do. There could now be no mistaking what Mr Ashburton's -intentions were. Up to a very recent time Lucilla had been able to take -refuge in her mourning, and conclude that she had no present occasion to -disturb herself. But now that calm was over. She could not conceal from -herself that it was in her power by a word to reap all the advantages of -the election, and to step at once into the only position which she had -ever felt might be superior to her own in Carlingford. At last this -great testimonial of female merit was to be laid at her feet. A man -thoroughly eligible in every way--moderately rich, well connected, able -to restore to her all, and more than all, the advantages which she had -lost at her father's death--a man, above all, who was Member for -Carlingford, was going to offer himself to her acceptance, and put his -happiness in her hands; and while she was so well aware of this, she was -not at all so well aware what answer she would make him. Lucilla's mind -was in such a commotion as she sat over her embroidery, that she thought -it strange indeed that it did not show, and could not understand how -Aunt Jemima could sit there so quietly opposite her, as if nothing was -the matter. But, to tell the truth, there was a good deal the matter -with Aunt Jemima too, which was perhaps the reason why she saw no signs -of her companion's agitation. Mrs John Marjoribanks had not been able -any more than her niece to shut her eyes to Mr Ashburton's evident -meaning, and now that matters were visibly coming to a crisis, a sudden -panic and horror had seized her. What would Tom say? If she stood by and -saw the prize snapped up under her very eyes, what account could she -give to her son of her stewardship? how could she explain her silence as -to all _his_ wishes and intentions, her absolute avoidance of his name -in all her conversations with Lucilla? While Miss Marjoribanks marvelled -that the emotion in her breast could be invisible, and at Aunt Jemima's -insensibility, the bosom of that good woman was throbbing with equal -excitement. Sometimes each made an indifferent remark, and panted after -it, as if she had given utterance to the most exhausting emotions; but -so great was the preoccupation of both that neither observed how it was -faring with the other. - -But perhaps, on the whole, it was Aunt Jemima that suffered the most; -for her there was nothing flattering, nothing gratifying, no prospect of -change or increased happiness, or any of the splendours of imagination -involved. All that could happen to her would be the displeasure of her -son and his disappointment; and it might be her fault, she who could -have consented to be chopped up in little pieces, if that would have -done Tom any good; but who, notwithstanding, was not anxious for him to -marry his cousin, now that her father's fortune was all lost and she had -but two hundred a year. They had a silent cup of tea together at eight -o'clock, after that noisy exciting one at five, which had been shared by -half Carlingford, as Aunt Jemima thought. The buzz of that impromptu -assembly, in which everybody talked at the same moment, and nobody -listened, except perhaps Lucilla, had all died away into utter -stillness; but the excitement had not died away; _that_ had only risen -to a white heat, silent and consuming, as the two ladies sat over their -tea. - -"Do you expect Mr Ashburton to-morrow, Lucilla?" Aunt Jemima said, after -a long pause. - -"Mr Ashburton?" said Lucilla, with a slight start; and, to tell the -truth, she was glad to employ that childish expedient to gain a little -time, and consider what she should say. "Indeed I don't know if he will -have time to come. Most likely there will be a great deal to do." - -"If he does come," said Mrs John, with a sigh--"or _when_ he does come, -I ought to say, for you know very well he _will_ come, Lucilla--I -suppose there is no doubt that he will have something very particular to -say." - -"I am sure I don't know, Aunt Jemima," said Miss Marjoribanks; but she -never raised her eyes from her work, as she would have done in any other -case. "Now that the election is over, you know----" - -"I hope, my dear, I have been long enough in the world to know all about -that," Aunt Jemima said severely, "and what it means when young ladies -take such interest in elections;" and then some such feeling as the dog -had in the manger--a jealousy of those who sought the gift though she -herself did not want it--came over Mrs John, and at the same time a -sudden desire to clear her conscience and make a stand for Tom. She did -it suddenly, and went further than she meant to go; but then she never -dreamt it would have the least effect. "I would not say anything to -disturb your mind, Lucilla, if you have made up your mind; but when you -receive your new friends, you might think of other people who perhaps -have been fond of you before you ever saw them, or heard their very -name." - -She was frightened at it herself before the words were out of her mouth, -and the effect it had upon Miss Marjoribanks was wonderful. She threw -her embroidery away, and looked Tom's mother keenly in the face. "I -don't think you know anybody who is fond of me, Aunt Jemima," she said; -"I don't suppose anybody is fond of me. Do you?" said Lucilla. But by -that time Aunt Jemima had got thoroughly frightened, both at herself and -her companion, and had nothing more to say. - -"I am sure all these people to-day have been too much for you," she -said. "I wonder what they could all be thinking of, for my part, -flocking in upon you like that, so soon after----I thought it was very -indelicate of Lady Richmond. And Lucilla, my dear, your nerves are quite -affected, and I am sure you ought to go to bed." - -Upon which Miss Marjoribanks recovered herself in a moment, and folded -up her worsted-work. "I do feel tired," she said sweetly, "and perhaps -it _was_ too much. I think I will take your advice, Aunt Jemima. The -excitement keeps one up for the moment, and then it tells after. I -suppose the best thing is to go to bed." - -"Much the best, my dear," Aunt Jemima said, giving Lucilla a kiss; but -she did not take her own advice. She took a long time to think it all -over, and sat up by the side of the decaying fire until it was -midnight--an hour at which a female establishment like this should -surely have been all shut up and at rest. And Lucilla did very much the -same thing, wondering greatly what her aunt could tell her if she had a -mind, and having the greatest inclination in the world to break into her -chamber, and see, at any risk, what was in Tom's last letter. If she -could have seen that, it might have thrown some light on the problem -Lucilla was discussing, or given her some guidance through her -difficulties. It was just then that Mr Ashburton was inviting her image -into the fossil drawing-room, and finding nothing but the grim shades of -the Miss Penrhyns answer to his call. Perhaps this was because Lucilla's -image at that moment was called upon more potently from another quarter -in a more familiar voice. - -But after this exhausting day and late sitting-up, everybody was late in -the morning, at least in Grange Lane. Miss Marjoribanks had slept -little all night, and she was not in a more settled state of mind when -the day returned which probably would bring the matter to a speedy -decision. Her mind was like a country held by two armies, one of which -by turns swept the other into a corner, but only to be driven back in -its turn. After the unaccountable stupidity of the general public--after -all the Cavendishes, Beverleys, and Riders who had once had it in their -power to distinguish themselves by at least making her an offer, and who -had not done it--here at last, in all good faith, honesty, and -promptitude, had appeared a man superior to them all--a man whom she -would have no reason to be ashamed of in any particular, sensible like -herself, public-spirited like herself--a man whose pursuits she could -enter into fully, who had a perfectly ideal position to offer her, and -in whose person, indeed, all sorts of desirable qualities seemed to -meet. Miss Marjoribanks, when she considered all this, and thought over -all their recent intercourse, and the terms of friendship into which the -election had brought them, felt, as any other sensible person would have -felt, that there was only one answer which could be given to such a man. -If she neglected or played with his devotion, then certainly she never -would deserve to have another such possibility afforded to her, and -merited nothing better than to live and die a single woman on two -hundred a year. But then, on the other hand, there would rush forth a -crowd of quick-coming and fantastic suggestions which took away -Lucilla's breath, and made her heart beat loud. What if there might be -"other people" who had been fond of her before she ever heard of Mr -Ashburton's name? What if there might be some one in the world who was -ready, not to offer her his hand and fortune in a reasonable way, as Mr -Ashburton no doubt would, but to throw himself all in a heap at her -feet, and make the greatest fool of himself possible for her sake? Miss -Marjoribanks had been the very soul of good sense all her days, but now -her ruling quality seemed to forsake her. And yet she could not consent -to yield herself up to pure unreason without a struggle. She fought -manfully, womanfully against the weakness which hitherto must have been -lying hidden in some out-of-the-way corner in her heart. Probably if Mr -Ashburton had asked her all at once amid the excitement of the election, -or at any other unpremeditated moment, Lucilla would have been saved all -this self-torment; but it is hard upon a woman to have a proposal -hanging over her head by a hair, as it were, and to look forward to it -without any uncertainty or mystery, and have full time to make up her -mind. And there was no accounting for the curious force and vividness -with which that strange idea about "other people," upon which Aunt -Jemima would throw no light, had come into Lucilla's head. - -She was still in the same frightful chaos of uncertainty when Mr -Ashburton was shown into the drawing-room. She had not even heard him -ring, and was thus deprived of the one possible moment of coming to a -decision before she faced and confronted her fate. Miss Marjoribanks's -heart gave a great jump, and then she recovered herself, and rose up -without faltering, and shook hands with him. She was all alone, for Aunt -Jemima had not found herself equal to facing the emergency; and there -was not the least possibility of evading or postponing, or in any way -running away from it now. Lucilla sat down again upon her sofa where she -had been sitting, and composed herself with a certain despairing -tranquillity, and trusted in Providence. She had thrown herself on other -occasions, though never at an equally important crisis, upon the -inspiration of the moment, and she felt it would not forsake her now. - -"I should be sorry the election was over," said Mr Ashburton, who was -naturally a little agitated too, "if I thought its privileges were over, -and you would not let me come----I shall always think I owe my success -to you; and I would thank you for being so kind--so very kind to me, -if----" - -"Oh, dear, no; pray don't say so," cried Lucilla. "I only felt sure that -you were the best man--the only man--for Carlingford." - -"I wish I might but prove the best man for something else," said the -candidate nervously; and then he cleared his throat. "I would say you -had been kind if I did not hope--if I was not so very anxious that you -should be something more than kind. It may be vain of me, but I think we -could get on together. I think I could understand you, and do you -justice----Lucilla! what is the matter? Good heavens! is it possible -that I have taken you quite by surprise?" - -What caused this question was that Miss Marjoribanks had all at once -changed colour, and given a great start, and put her hand to her breast, -where her heart had taken such a leap that she felt it in her throat. -But it was not because of what Mr Ashburton was saying; it was because -of one of the very commonest sounds of everyday existence--a cab -driving down Grange Lane; but then it was a cab driving in such a way -that you could have sworn there was somebody in it in a terrible hurry, -and who had just arrived by the twelve o'clock train. - -"Oh, no, no," said Miss Marjoribanks; "I know you have always done me -more than justice, Mr Ashburton, and so have all my friends; and I am -sure we always will get on well together. I wish you joy with all my -heart, and I wish you every happiness; and I always thought, up to this -very last moment----" - -Lucilla stopped again, and once more put her hand to her breast. Her -heart gave another jump, and, if such a thing were possible to a heart, -went off from its mistress altogether, and rushed downstairs bodily to -see who was coming. Yet, with all her agitation, she had still enough -self-control to lift an appealing look--a look which threw herself upon -his mercy, and implored his forbearance--to Mr Ashburton's face. - -As for the Member for Carlingford, he was confounded, and could not tell -what to make of it. What was it she had thought up to the very last -moment? Was this a refusal, or was she only putting off his claim, or -was it something altogether independent of him and his intentions that -agitated Lucilla to such an unusual extent? While he sat in his -confusion trying to make it out, the most startling sound interrupted -the interview. The old disused bell that had so often called Dr -Marjoribanks up at night, and which hung near the door of the old -Doctor's room, just over the drawing-room, began to peal through the -silence, as if rung by a hand too impatient to notice what it was with -which it made its summons. - -"Papa's bell!" Miss Marjoribanks cried, with a little shriek; and she -got up trembling, and then dropped upon her seat again, and in her -agitated state burst into tears. And Mr Ashburton felt that, under these -most extraordinary circumstances, even so sensible a woman as Lucilla -might be justified in fainting, embarrassing and uncomfortable as that -would be. - -"I will go and see what it means," he said, with still half the air of a -man who had a right to go and see, and was, as it were, almost in his -own house. As he turned round, the door bell pealed wildly below in -correction of the mistake. It was evident that somebody wanted admission -who had not a moment to lose, and who was in the habit of pulling wildly -at whatever came in his way. Mr Ashburton went out of the room to see -who it was, a little amused and a little alarmed, but much annoyed at -bottom, as was only natural, at such an interruption. He did not very -well know whether he was accepted or rejected; but it was equally his -duty in either case to put a stop to the ringing of that ghostly bell. -He went away, meaning to return immediately and have it out and know his -fate. And Lucilla, whose heart had come back, having fully ascertained -who it was, and was now choking her with its beating, was left to await -the new event and the new-comer alone. - - - - -_Chapter L_ - - -Mr Ashburton went away from Lucilla's side, thinking to come back again, -and clear everything up: but he did not come back. Though he heard -nothing, and saw nothing, that could throw any distinct light on the -state of her mind, yet instinct came to his aid, it is to be supposed, -in the matter. He did not return: and Lucilla sat on her sofa with her -hands clasped together to support her, and her heart leaping in her very -mouth. She was in a perfect frenzy of suspense, listening with her whole -heart and soul; but that did not prevent the same crowd of thoughts -which had been persecuting her for twenty-four hours from keeping up -their wild career as before. What reason had she to suppose that "any -one" had arrived? Who could arrive in that accidental way, without a -word of warning? And what possible excuse had she to offer to herself -for sending the new member for Carlingford--a man so excellent and -honourable and eligible--away? The minutes, or rather the seconds, -passed over Miss Marjoribanks like hours, as she sat thus waiting, not -daring to stir lest the slightest movement might keep from her ears some -sound from below, till at last the interval seemed so long that her -heart began to sink, and her excitement to fail. It could not be any -one--if it had been any one, something more must have come of it before -now. It must have been Lydia Richmond coming to see her sister next -door, or somebody connected with the election, or---- - -When she got as far as this, Lucilla's heart suddenly mounted up again -with a spring into her ears. She heard neither words nor voice, but she -heard something which had as great an effect upon her as either could -have had. On the landing half-way up the stairs, there had stood in Dr -Marjoribanks's house from time immemorial a little old-fashioned table, -with a large china bowl upon it, in which the cards of visitors were -placed. It was a great bowl, and it was always full, and anybody rushing -upstairs in a reckless way might easily upset table and cards and all in -their progress. This was what happened while Lucilla sat listening. -There was a rumble, a crash, and a sound as of falling leaves, and it -made her heart, as we have said, jump into her ears. "It is the table -and all the cards," said Lucilla--and in that moment her composure came -back to her as by a miracle. She unclasped her hands, which she had been -holding pressed painfully together by way of supporting herself, and she -gave a long sigh of unutterable relief, and her whirl of thought stopped -and cleared up with an instantaneous rapidity. Everything seemed to be -explained by that sound; and there never was a greater change upon the -looks and feelings of any one in this world than that which passed upon -the looks and feelings of Lucilla, in the interval between the drawing -up of that cab and the rush of Tom Marjoribanks at the drawing-room -door. - -For after the commotion on the staircase Lucilla had no further doubt on -the subject. She even had the strength to get up to meet him, and hold -out her hands to him by way of welcome--but found herself, before she -knew how, in the arms of a man with a beard, who was so much changed in -his own person that he ventured to kiss her, which was a thing Tom -Marjoribanks, though her cousin, had never dared to do before. He kissed -her--such was his audacity; and then he held her at arm's length to have -a good look at her; and then, according to all appearance, would have -repeated his first salutation, but that Lucilla had come to herself, and -took the reins at once into her hand. - -"Tom!" she said, "of course it is you; nobody else would have been so -impertinent. When did you come? Where did you come from? Who could ever -have thought of your appearing like this, in such an altogether -unexpected----?" - -"Unexpected!" said Tom, with an astonished air. "But I suppose you had -other things to think of. Ah, Lucilla, I could not write to you. I felt -I ought to be beside you, trying if there was not something I could do. -My mother told you, of course; but I could not trust myself to write to -_you_." - -Then Lucilla saw it all, and that Aunt Jemima had meant to do Mr -Ashburton a good turn. And she was not grateful to her aunt, however -kind her intentions might have been. But Tom was holding her hand, and -looking into her face while this thought passed through her mind, and -Miss Marjoribanks was not the woman, under any circumstances, to make -dispeace. - -"I am sure I am very glad," said Lucilla. "I would say you were changed, -but only of course that would make you think how I am changed; and -though one knows one has gone off----" - -"I never saw you look so nice all your life," cried Tom energetically; -and he took hold of both her hands, and looked into her face more and -more. To be sure he had a kind of right, being a cousin, and newly -returned after so long an absence; but it was embarrassing all the same. - -"Oh, Tom, don't say so," cried Lucilla; "if you but knew how different -the house is, and everything so altered--and dear papa!" - -It was natural, and indeed it was only proper, that Miss Marjoribanks -should cry--which she did abundantly, partly for grief, and partly -because of the flutter of agitation, and something like joy, in which -she was, and which, considering that she had always frankly owned that -she was fond of Tom, was quite natural too. She cried with honest -abandonment, and did not take much notice what her cousin was doing to -comfort her, though indeed he applied himself to that benevolent office -in the most anxious way. - -"Don't cry, Lucilla," he said, "I can't bear it. It don't look natural -to see you cry. My poor uncle was an old man, and you were always the -best daughter in the world----" - -"Oh, Tom! sometimes I don't think so," sobbed Lucilla; "sometimes I -think if I had sat up that last night----And you don't know how good he -was. It was me he was thinking of, and never himself. When he heard the -money was lost, all that he said was, Poor Lucilla! You rang his bell -though it is the night-bell, and nobody ever touches it now; I knew it -could be nobody but you; and to see you again brings up everything so -distinctly. Oh, Tom! he was always very fond of you." - -"Lucilla," said Tom Marjoribanks, "you know I always had a great regard -for my uncle. But it was not for him I came back. He was never half so -fond of me as I am of you. You know that as well as I do. There never -was a time that I would not have gone to the other end of the world if -you had told me; and I have done it as near as possible. I went to India -because you sent me away. And I have come back----" - -"You have not come back only for an hour, I hope?" said Miss -Marjoribanks, with momentary impatience; "you are not obliged to talk of -everything all in a moment--and when one has not even got over one's -surprise at seeing you. When _did_ you come back? When did you have -anything to eat? You want your breakfast or your lunch or something; -and, Tom! the idea of sitting here talking to me, and talking nonsense, -when you have not seen your mother. She is in her own room, you -unnatural boy--the blue room, next to what used to be yours. To think -Aunt Jemima should be in the house, and you should sit here talking -nonsense to me!" - -"This minute," said Tom apologetically; but he drew his chair in front -of Miss Marjoribanks, so that she could not get away. "I have come back -to stay as long as you will let me," he said; "don't go away yet. Look -here, Lucilla--if you had married, I would have tried to bear it; but as -long as you are not married, I can't help feeling as if there might be a -chance for me yet. And that is why I have come home. I met somebody -coming downstairs." - -"Tom," said Miss Marjoribanks, "it is dreadful to see that you have come -back just as tiresome as ever. I always said I would not marry for ten -years. If you mean to think I have never had any opportunities----" - -"Lucilla," said Tom, and there was decision in his eye, "somebody came -downstairs as I came in. I want to know whether it is to be him or me!" - -"Him--or you!" said Lucilla, in dismay. Blunderer as he was, he had gone -direct to the very heart of the question, and it was impossible not to -tremble a little in the presence of such straightforward -clear-sightedness. Miss Marjoribanks had risen up to make her escape as -soon as it should be possible, but she was so much struck by Tom's -unlooked-for perspicuity, that she sat down again in her consternation. -"I think you are going out of your mind," she said. "What do you know -about the gentleman who went downstairs? I am not such a wonderful -beauty, nor such a witch, that everybody who sees me should want to--to -marry me. Don't talk any more nonsense, but let me go and get you -something to eat." - -"They would if they were of my way of thinking," said the persistent -Tom. "Lucilla, you shan't go. This is what I have come home for. You may -as well know at once, and then there can be no mistake about it. My poor -uncle is gone, and you can't be left by yourself in the world. Will you -have him or me?" - -"I am not going to be tyrannised over like this," said Lucilla, with -indignation, again rising, though he still held her hands. "You talk as -if you had just come for a call, and had everything to say in a moment. -When a man comes off a long journey it is his breakfast he wants, and -not a--not anything else that I know of. Go up to your mother, and let -me go." - -"Will you have him or me?" repeated Tom. It was not wisdom, is was -instinct, that made him thus hold fast by his text; and as for Lucilla, -nothing but the softened state in which she was, nothing but the fact -that it was Tom Marjoribanks who had been ten years away, and was always -ridiculous, could have kept her from putting down at once such an -attempt to coerce her. But the truth was, that Miss Marjoribanks did not -feel her own mistress at that moment, and perhaps that was why he had -the audacity to repeat, "Will you have him or me?" - -Then Lucilla found herself fairly driven to bay. "Tom!" she said, with a -solemnity that overwhelmed him for the moment, for he thought at first, -with natural panic, that it was himself who was being rejected, "I would -not have _him_ if he were to go down on his knees. I know he is very -nice and very agreeable, and the best man----And I am sure I ought to do -it," said Miss Marjoribanks, with a mournful sense of her own weakness; -"and everybody will expect it of me; but I am not going to have him, and -I never meant it, whatever you or anybody may say." - -When Lucilla had made this decisive utterance she turned away with a -certain melancholy majesty to go and see after lunch--for he had loosed -her hand and fallen back in consternation, thinking for the moment that -it was all over. Miss Marjoribanks sighed, and turned round, not -thinking of Tom, who was safe enough, but with a natural regret for the -member for Carlingford, who now, poor man, was as much out of the -question as if he had been dead and buried. But before she reached the -door Tom had recovered himself. He went up to her in his ridiculous way -without the slightest regard either for the repast she was so anxious to -prepare for him, or for his mother's feelings, or indeed for anything -else in the world, except the one thing which had brought him, as he -said, home. - -"Then, Lucilla, after all, it is to be me," he said, taking her to him, -and arresting her progress as if she had been a baby; and though he had -such a beard, and was twice as big and strong as he used to be, there -were big tears in the great fellow's eyes. "It is to be me after all," -said Tom, looking at her in a way that startled Lucilla. "Say it is to -be me!" - -Miss Marjoribanks had come through many a social crisis with dignity and -composure. She had never yet been known to fail in an emergency. She had -managed Mr Cavendish, and, up to the last moment, Mr Ashburton, and all -the intervening candidates for her favour, with perfect self-control and -command of the situation. Perhaps it was because, as she had herself -said, her feelings had never been engaged. But now, when it was only -Tom--he whom, once upon a time, she had dismissed with affectionate -composure, and given such excellent advice to, and regarded in so -motherly a way--all Lucilla's powers seemed to fail her. It is hard to -have to wind up with such a confession after having so long entertained -a confidence in Lucilla which nothing seemed likely to impair. She broke -down just at the moment when she had most need to have all her wits -about her. Perhaps it was her past agitation which had been too much for -her. Perhaps it was the tears in Tom Marjoribanks's eyes. But the fact -was that Lucilla relinquished her superior position for the time being, -and suffered him to make any assertion he pleased, and was so weak as to -cry, for the second time, too--which, of all things in the world, was -surely the last thing to have been expected of Miss Marjoribanks at the -moment which decided her fate. - -Lucilla cried, and acquiesced, and thought of her father and of the -Member for Carlingford, and gave to each a tear and a regret; and she -did not even take the trouble to answer any question, or to think who it -was she was leaning on. It was to be Tom after all--after all the -archdeacons, doctors, generals, members of Parliament--after the ten -years and more in which she had not gone off--after the poor old -Doctor's grudge against the nephew whom he did not wish to inherit his -wealth, and Aunt Jemima's quiet wiles, and attempt to disappoint her -boy. Fate and honest love had been waiting all the time till their -moment came; and now it was not even necessary to say anything about it. -The fact was so clear that it did not require stating. It was to be Tom -after all. - -To do him justice, Tom behaved at this moment, in which affairs were -left in his hands, as if he had been training for it all his life. -Perhaps it was the first time in which he had done anything absolutely -without a blunder. He had wasted no time, and no words, and left no room -for consideration, or for that natural relenting towards his rival which -was inevitable as soon as Mr Ashburton was off the field. He had -insisted, and he had perceived that there was but one alternative for -Lucilla. Now that all was over, he took her back to her seat, and -comforted her, and made no offensive demonstrations of triumph. "It is -to be me after all!" he repeated; and it was utterly impossible to add -anything to the eloquent brevity of this succinct statement of the case. - -"Tom," said Miss Marjoribanks, when she had a little recovered, "if it -is to be you, that is no reason why you should be so unnatural. Go up -directly and see your mother. What will Aunt Jemima think of me if she -knows I have let you stay talking nonsense here?" - -"Yes, Lucilla--this moment," said Tom; but all the same he showed not -the slightest inclination to go away. He did not quite believe in it as -yet, and could not help feeling as if, should he venture to leave her, -the whole fabric of his incredible good fortune must dissolve and melt -away. As for Lucilla, her self-possession gradually came back to her -when the crisis was over, and she felt that her involuntary abdication -had lasted long enough, and that it was full time to take the management -of affairs back into her own hands. - -"You shall go _now_," she said, drying her eyes, "or else you cannot -stay here. I thought of letting you stay in the house, as Aunt Jemima is -with me; but if you do not mean to go and tell your mother, I will tell -Nancy to send your things up to the Blue Boar. Ring the bell, please; if -you will not ring the bell, I will do it myself, Tom. You may say what -you like, but I know you are famishing; and Aunt Jemima is in the blue -room, next door to----Oh, here is Nancy. It is Mr Tom, who has come -home," said Lucilla hastily, not without a rising colour; for it was -hard to explain why, when his mother was in the blue room all this -time, he should have stayed here. - -"Yes, Miss Lucilla--so I heard," said Nancy, dropping a doubtful -curtsey. And then only Tom was persuaded, and bethought himself of his -natural duty, and rushed upstairs. He seized Nancy's hand, and shook it -violently, as he passed her, to her great consternation. The moment of -his supremacy was over. It was to be Tom after all; but Lucilla had -recovered her self-possession, and taken the helm in her hand again, and -Tom was master of the situation no more. - -"Yes, it is Mr Tom," said Lucilla, shaking her head with something -between a smile and a sigh. "It could be nobody but him that would ring -_that_ bell, and upset all the cards. I hope he has not broken dear -papa's punch-bowl that he used to be so fond of. He must have something -to eat, Nancy, though he is such an awkward boy." - -"I don't see nothing like a boy in him," said Nancy; "he's big and -stout, and one o' them awful beards. There's been a deal of changes -since he went away; but if he's new comed off that terrible long -journey, it is but natural, as you say, Miss Lucilla, that he should -want something to eat." - -And then Miss Marjoribanks made various suggestions, which were received -still doubtfully by her prime minister. Nancy, to tell the truth, did -not like the turn things were taking. Lucilla's maiden household had -been on the whole getting along very comfortably, and there was no -telling how long it might have lasted without any new revolution. To be -sure, Mr Ashburton had looked dangerous, but Nancy had seen a great many -dangers of that kind blow over, and was not easily alarmed. Mr Tom, -however, was a very different person; and Nancy was sufficiently -penetrating to see that something had happened. Therefore, she received -very coldly Lucilla's suggestions about lunch. "It ain't like the old -times," she said at last, "when there was always something as one could -put to the fire in a hurry;" and Nancy stood turning round the handle of -the door in her hand, and contemplating the changed state of affairs -with a sigh. - -"That would be all very true if you were like anybody else," said -Lucilla; "but I hope you would not like to send Mr Tom off to the Blue -Boar. After all, perhaps it is better to have a--a gentleman in the -house. I know you always used to think so. They are a great deal of -trouble; but--for some things, you know----" said Lucilla; "and then Mr -Tom is not just like other people; and whatever happens, Nancy, you are -an old dear, and it shall never make any difference between you and me." - -When she had said these words, Lucilla gave her faithful servant a hug, -and sent her off to look after Tom Marjoribanks's meal; and then she -herself went half-way downstairs and picked up the cards that were still -scattered about the landing, and found with satisfaction that the -Doctor's old punch-bowl was not broken. All Tom's things were lying -below in the hall--heaps of queer Indian-looking baggage--tossed down -anyhow in a corner, as if the owner had been in much too great a hurry -to think of any secondary circumstances. "And it was there he met poor -Mr Ashburton," said Lucilla to herself, with a certain pathos. There it -was indeed that the encounter had taken place. They had seen each other -but for a moment, but that moment had been enough to send the Member for -Carlingford away dejected, and to impress upon Tom's mind the -alternative that it was either to be "him or me." Miss Marjoribanks -contemplated the spot with a certain tender sentimental interest, as any -gentle moralist might look at a field of battle. What feelings must have -been in the minds of the two as they met and looked at each other! What -a dread sense of disappointment on the one side; what sharp stimulation -on the other! Thus Lucilla stood and looked down from her own landing -upon the scene of that encounter, full of pensive interest. And now it -was all over, and Mr Ashburton had passed away as completely as Mr -Chiltern, who was in his grave, poor man; or Mr Cavendish, who was going -to marry Barbara Lake. The thought of so sudden a revolution made -Lucilla giddy as she went thoughtfully upstairs. Poor Mr Ashburton! It -hardly seemed real even to Miss Marjoribanks when she sat down again in -the drawing-room, and confessed to herself that, after all, it was to be -Tom. - -But when he came downstairs again with his mother, Lucilla was quite -herself, and had got over all her weakness. Aunt Jemima, for her part, -was in a very agitated state of mind. Tom had come too soon or Mr -Ashburton too late, and all the fruits of her little bit of treachery -were accordingly lost, and at the same time, the treachery itself -remained, revealed at least to one person in the very clearest light. -It did not seem possible to Aunt Jemima that Lucilla would not tell. If -she had not done it now, in the excitement of the moment, at least it -would come out some time when she was least expecting it, and her son's -esteem and confidence would be lost. Therefore it was with a very blank -countenance that Mrs John Marjoribanks came downstairs. She dared not -say a word, and she had to kiss her niece, and take her to her maternal -bosom, Tom looking on all the while; but she gave Lucilla a look that -was pitiful to see. And when Tom finally was dismissed to his room, to -open his trunks, and show the things he had brought home, Aunt Jemima -drew near her future daughter with wistful guiltiness. There was no -comfort to her in the thought of the India shawl, which her son had gone -to find. Any day, any hour, Lucilla might tell; and if the unlucky -mother were put on her defence, what could she say? - -"Lucilla," said the guilty woman, under her breath, "I am sure you think -it very strange. I don't attempt to deceive _you_. I can't tell you how -thankful and glad I am that it has all ended so well; but you know, -Lucilla, in the first place, I did not know what your feelings were; and -I thought, perhaps, that if anything would tell, it would be a surprise, -and then----" - -"Did you, Aunt Jemima?" said Miss Marjoribanks, with gentle wonder. "I -thought you had been thinking of Mr Ashburton, for my part." - -"And so I was, Lucilla," said the poor lady, with great relief and -eagerness. "I thought he was coming forward, and of course he would have -been a far better match than my Tom. I had to think for you both, my -dear. And then I never knew what your feelings were, nor if you would -care; and then it was not as if there had been a day fixed----" - -"Dear Aunt Jemima," said Miss Marjoribanks, "if you are pleased now, -what does it matter? but I do hope you are pleased now?" - -And Mrs John took her niece into her arms again this time with better -will, and cried. "I am as happy as ever I can be," said the inconsistent -mother. "I always knew you were fond of each other, Lucilla; before you -knew it yourselves, I saw what would come of it. But my poor -brother-in-law----And you will make my boy happy, and never turn him -against his mother," cried the repentant sinner. Lucilla was not the -woman to resist such an appeal. Mrs John had meant truly enough towards -her in other ways, if not in this way; and Miss Marjoribanks was fond of -her aunt, and it ended in a kiss of peace freely bestowed, and a vow of -protection and guidance from the strong to the weak, though the last was -only uttered in the protectress's liberal heart. - - - - -_Chapter LI_ - - -When Miss Marjoribanks had time to consider the prospect which had thus -so suddenly opened before her, it also had its difficulties, like -everything else in the world. Her marriage now could not be the -straightforward business it might have been had it been Mr Ashburton -instead of Tom. In that case she would have gone to an established house -and life--to take her place in the one and her share in the other, and -to find the greater part of her surroundings and duties already fixed -for her, which was a thing that would have very greatly simplified the -matter. But Tom, who had dashed home from India at full speed as soon as -he heard of his uncle's death, had left his profession behind him at -Calcutta, and had nothing to do in England, and was probably too old to -resume his (non) practice at the bar, even if he had been in the least -disposed to do so; while, at the same time, an idle man--a man to be -found everlastingly at home--would have been insupportable to Lucilla. -Miss Marjoribanks might feel disposed (for everybody's good) to assume -the sovereign authority in her own house, but to marry anybody that -would be merely an appendage to her was a thing not to be thought of; -and as soon as the first preliminaries were arranged her active mind -sprang up with redoubled vigour from the maze in which it had been. Her -intelligence had suspended, so to speak, all its ordinary operations for -twenty-four hours at least, while it was busy investigating the purely -personal question: from the moment when the Member for Carlingford was -finally elected until Tom Marjoribanks rang the night-bell at the old -Doctor's door, Lucilla's thoughts had been in that state of -over-stimulation and absorption which is almost as bad as having no -power of thought at all. But as soon as the pressure was removed--as -soon as it was all over, and the decision made, and no further question -was possible--then Miss Marjoribanks's active mind sprang up with -renewed energy. For it was not only a new beginning, but everything had -to be settled and arranged. - -Her mind was full of it while her hands were busy putting away all the -Indian presents which Tom had brought--presents which were chronological -in their character, and which he had begun to accumulate from the very -beginning of his exile. It could not but be touching to Lucilla to see -how he had thought of her for all these years; but her mind being, as -everybody is aware, of a nobly practical kind, her thoughts, instead of -dallying with these tokens of the past, went forward with serious -solicitude into the future. The marriage could not take place until the -year was out; and there was, accordingly, time to arrange everything, -and to settle all the necessary preliminaries to a point as near -perfection as is possible to merely human details. Tom, no doubt, was -very urgent and pressing, and would have precipitated everything, and -had the whole business concluded to-morrow, if he could have had his -way. But the fact was that, having once given in to him in the memorable -way which we have already recorded, Lucilla did not now, so far as the -final arrangements were concerned, make much account of Tom's wishes. -Heaven be praised, there was one of the two who knew what was right and -proper, and was not to be moved from the correct path by any absurd -representations. Miss Marjoribanks was revolving all these important -questions when she laid her hand by chance, as people say, upon the -_Carlingford Gazette_, all damp and inky, which had just been laid upon -the library table. It contained, of course, all the news of the -election, but Lucilla was too well acquainted with that beforehand to -think of condescending to derive her information from a newspaper. She -looked at the advertisements with an eye which saw all that was there -without pausing upon anything in particular. She saw the usual notice -about marmalade oranges, and the announcement that young Mr Vincent, who -after that made himself so well known in Carlingford, was to preach the -next Sunday in Salem Chapel, and all the other important novelties in -the place; but naturally she took but a moderate amount of interest in -such details as these. - -Suddenly, however, Lucilla's eye, which, if it could ever be said to be -vacant, had been regarding vacantly the list of advertisements, kindled -up, and all its usual energy and intelligence came back to it. Her -thoughtful face woke up as from a dream. Her head, which had been -drooping in pensive meditation, grew erect--her whole figure expanded. -She clasped her hands together, as if in the fervour of the moment, -nobody else being present, she could not refrain from shaking hands with -herself, and giving vent to a self-congratulation. "It is a special -providence," said Lucilla to herself, with her usual piety; and then she -folded up the paper in a little square, with the announcement in the -middle which had struck her so much, and placed it where Tom could not -fail to see it when he came in, and went upstairs with a new and -definite direction given to her thoughts. That was how it must be! -Lucilla, for her part, felt no difficulty in discerning the leadings of -Providence, and she could not but appreciate the readiness with which -her desires were attended to, and the prompt clearing-up of her -difficulties. There are people whose inclinations Providence does not -seem to superintend with such painstaking watchfulness; but then, no -doubt, that must be their own fault. - -And when Tom came in, they had what Aunt Jemima called "one of their -discussions" about their future life, although the only thing in it -worthy consideration, so far as Tom was concerned, seemed to be the time -when they should be married, which occupied at present all that hero's -faculties. "Everything else will arrange itself after, you know," he -said, with calm confidence. "Time enough for all the rest. The thing is, -Lucilla, to decide when you will leave off those formalities, and let It -be. Why shouldn't it be now? Do you think my uncle would wish to keep us -unhappy all for an idea?" - -"My dear Tom, I am not in the least unhappy," said Lucilla, interrupting -him sweetly, "nor you either, unless you tell dreadful stories; and as -for poor dear papa," Miss Marjoribanks added, with a sigh, "if we were -to do exactly as _he_ wished, I don't think It would ever be. If you -were not so foolish, you would not oblige me to say such things. Tom, -let us leave off talking nonsense--the thing that we both want is -something to do." - -"That is what _I_ want," said Tom quickly, "but as for you, Lucilla, you -shall do nothing but enjoy yourself and take care of yourself. The idea -of _you_ wanting something to do!" - -Miss Marjoribanks regarded her betrothed with mild and affectionate -contempt as he thus delivered himself of his foolish sentiments. "It is -of no use trying to make him understand," she said, with an air of -resignation. "Do you know that I have always been doing something, and -responsible for something, all my life?" - -"Yes, my poor darling," said Tom, "I know; but now you are in my hands I -mean to take care of you, Lucilla; you shall have no more anxiety or -trouble. What is the good of a man if he can't save the woman he is fond -of from all that?" cried the honest fellow--and Lucilla could not but -cast a despairing glance round her, as if appealing to heaven and earth. -What was to be done with a man who had so little understanding of her, -and of himself, and of the eternal fitness of things? - -"My dear Tom," she said once more, mildly, "we may have lost some money, -but we are very well off, and Providence has been very kind to us. And -there are a great many poor people in the world who are not so well off. -I have always tried to be of some use to my fellow-creatures," said -Lucilla, "and I don't mean, whatever you may say, to give it up now." - -"My dearest Lucilla, if it was the poor you were thinking of----! I -might have known it was something different from my stupid notions," -cried Tom. This kind of adoration was new to Lucilla, notwithstanding -her many experiences. And he thought it so good of her to condescend to -be good, that she could not help thinking a little better of herself -than ordinary, though that, perhaps, was not absolutely needful; and -then she proceeded with the elucidation of her views. - -"I have been of some use to my fellow-creatures in my way," said Miss -Marjoribanks modestly, "but it has been hard work, and people are not -always grateful, you know. And then things are a good deal changed in -Carlingford. A woman may devote herself to putting some life into -society, and give up years of her time, and--and even her opportunities -and all that, and do a great deal of good; but yet if she is put aside -for a moment, there is an end of it. I have been doing the best I could -for Carlingford for ten years," said Lucilla, with a little natural -sadness, "and if any one were to examine into it, where is it all now? -They have only got into the way of looking to me; and I do believe if -you were to go up and down from Elsworthy's to St Roque's, though you -might find people at dinner here and there, you would not find a shadow -of what could really be called society in all Grange Lane!" - -Lucilla paused, for naturally her feelings were moved, and while Tom -bent over her with tender and respectful devotion, it was not to be -wondered at if Miss Marjoribanks, in the emotion of her heart, should -wipe away a tear. - -"After working at it for ten years!" said Lucilla; "and now, since poor -papa died, who was always full of discrimination----This is what will -come of it, Tom," she added solemnly--"they will go back to their old -ridiculous parties, as if they had never seen anything better; and they -will all break up into little cliques, and make their awful morning -calls and freeze one another to death. That will be the end of it all, -after one has slaved like a--like a woman in a mill," said the -disappointed reformer, "and given up ten years." - -"My poor darling!" cried Tom, who would have liked to go and challenge -Carlingford for being so insensible to his Lucilla's devotion and -cherishing maternal care. - -"But if it had been the poor," said Miss Marjoribanks, recovering her -spirits a little, "they could not help being the better for what one did -for them. They might continue to be as stupid as ever, and ungrateful, -and all that; but if they were warm and comfortable, instead of cold and -hungry, it would always make a difference. Tom, I will tell you what you -will do if you want to please me. You will take all our money and -realise it, you know, whatever that means, and go off directly, as fast -as the train can carry you, and buy an Estate." - -"An estate!" cried Tom, in consternation; and the magnitude of the word -was such, and Lucilla was so entirely in earnest, that he jumped from -his chair and gazed at her as if constrained, notwithstanding his -amazement, to rush off instantly and obey. - -"I did not mean just this moment," said Lucilla; "sit down and we can -talk it all over, Tom. You know it would be something for you to do; you -cannot just go living on like this at your age; you could improve the -land, you know, and do all that sort of thing, and the people you could -leave to me." - -"But Lucilla," said Tom, recovering a little from his consternation, "it -is not so easy buying an estate. I mean all that I have to be settled -upon you, in case of anything happening. Land may be a safe enough -investment; but you know, very often, Lucilla--the fact is, it doesn't -pay." - -"_We_ could make it pay," said Miss Marjoribanks, with a benevolent -smile, "and besides there are estates and estates. I don't want you to -go and throw away your money. It was in the _Carlingford Gazette_ this -morning, and I can't help feeling it was a special providence. Of course -you never looked at it in the paper, though I marked it for you. Tom, it -is Marchbank that I want you to buy. You know how papa used to talk of -it. He used to say it was just a nice little property that a gentleman -could manage. If he had been spared," said Lucilla, putting her -handkerchief to her eyes, "and these wicked dreadful people had not -failed, nor nothing happened, I know he would have bought it himself. -Dear papa! and he would have given it to me; and most likely, so far as -one can tell, it would have come to you at the last, and you would have -been Marjoribanks of Marchbank, like our great-great-grandpapa; and that -is what I want you to do." - -Lucilla's proposition, as it thus unfolded itself, took away Tom -Marjoribanks's breath, for notwithstanding that it came from a (young) -lady, and was confused by some slightly unintelligible conditions about -doing good to one's fellow-creatures, it was not a trifling or romantic -suggestion. Tom, too, could remember Marchbank, and his uncle's interest -in it, and the careful way in which he explained to the ignorant that -this was the correct pronunciation of his own name. While Lucilla made -her concluding address, Tom seemed to see himself a little fellow, with -his eyes and his ears very wide open, trotting about with small steps -after the Doctor, as he went over the red-brick house and neglected -gardens at Marchbank: it was only to be let then, and had passed through -many hands, and was in miserable case, both lands and house. But neither -the lands nor the house were bad of themselves, and Tom was, like -Lucilla, perfectly well aware that something might be made of them. - -This idea gave a new direction to his thoughts. Though he had been -brought up to the bar, he had never been a lover of town, and was in -reality, like so many young Englishmen, better qualified to be something -in the shape of a country gentleman than for any other profession in the -world; and he had left his profession behind, and was in most urgent -want of something to do. He did not give in at once with a lover's -abject submission, but thought it over for twenty-four hours at all his -spare moments,--when he was smoking his evening cigar in the garden, -and studying the light in his lady's window, and when he ought to have -been asleep, and again in the morning when he sallied forth, before Miss -Marjoribanks's blinds were drawn up or the house had fairly awoke. He -was not a man of brilliant ability, but he had that sure and steady eye -for the real secret of a position which must have been revealed to every -competent critic by the wonderful clear-sightedness with which he saw, -and the wise persistence with which he held to the necessity of an -immediate choice between himself and Mr Ashburton. He had seen that -there was but one alternative, and he had suffered no delay nor -divergence from the question in hand. And it was this same quality which -had helped him to the very pretty addition to his small patrimony which -he had meant to settle on Lucilla, and which would now make the -acquisition of Marchbank an easy thing enough. And though Tom had looked -wise on the subject of investment in land, it was a kind of investment -in every way agreeable to him. Thus Lucilla's arrow went straight to the -mark--straighter even than she had expected; for besides all the other -and more substantial considerations, there was to Tom's mind a sweet -sense of poetic justice in the thought that, after his poor uncle's -failure, who had never thought him good enough for Lucilla, it should be -he and no other who would give this coveted possession to his cousin. -Had Marchbank been in the market in Dr Marjoribanks's time, it was, as -Lucilla herself said, his money that would have bought it; but in such a -case, so far as the Doctor was concerned, there would have been little -chance for Tom. Now all that was changed, and it was in Tom's hands that -the wealth of the family lay. It was he who was the head, and could -alone carry out what Lucilla's more original genius suggested. If the -Doctor could but have seen it, he who had formed plans so very -different--but perhaps by that time Dr Marjoribanks had found out that -Providence after all had not been so ill-advised as he once thought in -committing to his care such a creative intelligence as that of Lucilla, -and withholding from him "the boy." - -As for Miss Marjoribanks, after she had made up her mind and stated her -conviction, she gave herself no further trouble on the subject, but took -it for granted, with that true wisdom which is unfortunately so rare -among women. She did not talk about it overmuch, or display any feverish -anxiety about Marchbank, but left her suggestion to work, and had faith -in Tom. At the same time, the tranquillising sense of now knowing, to a -certain extent, what lay before her came into Lucilla's mind. It would -be a new sphere, but a sphere in which she would find herself at home. -Still near enough to Carlingford to keep a watchful eye upon society and -give it the benefit of her experience, and yet at the same time -translated into a new world, where her influence might be of untold -advantage, as Lucilla modestly said, to her fellow-creatures. There was -a village not far from the gates at Marchbank, where every kind of -village nuisance was to be found. There are people who are very tragical -about village nuisances, and there are other people who assail them with -loathing, as a duty forced upon their consciences; but Lucilla was -neither of the one way of thinking nor of the other. It gave her the -liveliest satisfaction to think of all the disorder and disarray of the -Marchbank village. Her fingers itched to be at it--to set all the -crooked things straight, and clean away the rubbish, and set everything, -as she said, on a sound foundation. If it had been a model village, with -prize flower-gardens and clean as Arcadia, the thought of it would not -have given Miss Marjoribanks half so much pleasure. The recollection of -all the wretched hovels and miserable cottages exhilarated her heart. - -"They may be as stupid and ungrateful as they like," she said to -herself, "but to be warm and comfortable instead of cold and hungry -always makes a difference." Perhaps it was not the highest motive -possible, and it might be more satisfactory to some people to think of -Lucilla as actuated by lofty sentiments of philanthropy; but to persons -acquainted with Miss Marjoribanks's character, her biographer would -scorn to make any pretence. What would be the good of a spirit full of -boundless activity and benevolent impulses if there was nobody to -help?--what would be the use of self-devotion if the race in general -stood in no need of charitable ministrations? Lucilla had been of use to -her fellow-creatures all her life; and though she was about to -relinquish one branch of usefulness, that was not to say that she should -be prevented from entering into another. The state of the Marchbank -village did her good to the very bottom of her soul. It justified her to -herself for her choice of Tom, which, but for this chance of doing good, -might perhaps have had the air of a merely selfish personal preference. -Now she could regard it in a loftier light, and the thought was sweet -to Lucilla; for such a beautiful way of helping her neighbour would no -doubt have been to a certain extent impracticable amid the many -occupations of the Member's wife. - -Perhaps the most difficult thing in Miss Marjoribanks's way at this -otherwise satisfactory moment was the difficulty she found in persuading -society, first of the reality, and then of the justice, of the step she -had taken. Most of them, to tell the truth, had forgotten all about Tom -Marjoribanks. It is true that when Lucilla's intentions and prospects -were discussed in Grange Lane, as they had been so often, it was not -uncommon for people to say, "There was once a cousin, you know"; but -nobody had ever given very much heed to the suggestion. When Lucilla -went to tell Mrs Chiley of what had happened, she was but inadequately -prepared for the surprise with which her intelligence was received. For -it all seemed natural enough to Miss Marjoribanks. She had gone on very -steadily for a long time, without thinking particularly about anybody, -and disposed to accept the most eligible and satisfactory person who -happened to present himself; but all the time there had been a warm -corner in her heart for Tom. And then the eligible person had not come, -and she had been worried and wearied, and had had her losses, like most -other people. And it had always been pleasant to remember that there was -one man in the world who, if she but held out a finger to him----But -then the people in Grange Lane were not capable of discrimination on -such a delicate subject, and had never, as was to be expected, had the -smallest insight into Lucilla's heart. - -"You have something to tell me, Lucilla?" said old Mrs Chiley. "You need -not say no, for I can see it in your eyes. And how lucky it is the -Colonel is out, and we can have it all to ourselves! Come here and sit -by me, and tell me all--every word." - -"Dear Mrs Chiley," said Lucilla, "you can always see what one means -before one says a word. And it has all happened so suddenly; but the -very first thing I thought of doing was to come and tell you." - -Mrs Chiley gave her young friend, who was leaning over her, a hug, which -was the only answer which could be made to so touching a speech, and -drew Lucilla down upon a low chair that had been placed by the side of -her sofa. She kept Miss Marjoribanks's hand in her own, and caressed it, -and looked at her with satisfaction in every line of her face. After -waiting so long, and having so many disappointments, everything was -going to turn out so entirely as it ought to do at last. - -"I think I know what you are going to tell me, my dear," said Mrs -Chiley; "and I am so pleased, Lucilla. I only wonder you did not give me -a hint from the very first. You remember I asked you when you came here -that snowy evening. I was a hard-hearted old woman, and I dare say you -were very vexed; but I am so glad to think that the Colonel never stood -out against him, but gave his consent that very day." - -This was the moment, if there ever was such a moment, when Lucilla lost -courage. Mrs Chiley was so entirely confident as to what was coming, and -it was something so different that was really coming; and it was hard -upon Miss Marjoribanks to feel that she was about to disappoint -everybody's expectations. She had to clear her throat before she -spoke--she who was generally so ready for every emergency; and she could -not help feeling for the moment as if she was a young girl who had run -away with somebody, and deceived all her anxious friends. - -"Dear Mrs Chiley, I am afraid I am not going to say what you expected," -said Lucilla. "I am very comfortable and happy, and I think it's for the -best; and I am so anxious that you should like him; but it is not the -person you are thinking of. It is----" - -Here the old lady, to Lucilla's surprise, rose up upon her pillows and -threw her arms round her, and kissed her over again, and fell a-crying. -"I always said how generous you were, Lucilla," cried Mrs Chiley. "I -knew it from the first. I was always fond of him, you know; and now that -he has been beaten, poor dear, and disappointed, you've gone and made it -up to him! Lucilla, other people may say what they like, but it is just -what I always expected of you!" - -This unlooked-for burst of enthusiasm took Lucilla entirely by surprise. -She could not say in reply that Mr Cavendish did not want her to make it -up to him; but the fact that this was the only alternative which -occurred to Mrs Chiley filled Miss Marjoribanks with a sense of -something like positive guilt. She had deceived everybody, and raised -false expectations, and how was she to explain herself? It was with -humility and embarrassment that she spoke. - -"I don't know what you will say when you hear who it really is," she -said. "He has been fond of me all this time, though he has been so far -away. He went to India because I sent him, and he came back as soon as -ever he heard about--what had happened. And what could I do? I could not -be so ungrateful or so hard-hearted _again_, as to send him away?" - -"Lucilla, who is it?" said Mrs Chiley, growing pale--for she generally -had a little wintry bloom on her cheek like the China roses she was so -fond of. "Don't keep me like this in suspense." - -"Dear Mrs Chiley," said Lucilla, with the brevity of excitement, "I -don't see what other person in the world it could be but my cousin Tom." - -Poor Mrs Chiley started, so that the sofa and Lucilla's chair and the -very room shook. She said herself afterwards that she felt as if -somebody had discharged a pistol into her breast. She was so shocked and -startled that she threw off all her coverings and the Afghanistan -blanket Mrs Beverley had sent, and put her tottering old feet to the -floor; and then she took her young friend solemnly by both her hands. - -"Oh, Lucilla, my poor dear!" she cried, "you have gone and done it -without thinking what you were doing. You have taken it into your head -that it was all over, and that there was nothing more to look for. And -you are only nine-and-twenty, Lucilla; and many a girl marries very -well--better than common--long after she's nine-and-twenty; and I know -for a fact--oh! my poor dear child, I know for a _certain_ fact!--that -Mr Ashburton was coming forward. He as good as said it to Lady Richmond, -Lucilla. He as good as said, as soon as the election was over--and now -you have gone and got impatient, and thrown yourself away!" - -Miss Marjoribanks was quite carried away for the moment by this flood of -sorrowful eloquence. She was silenced, and had nothing to answer, and -accepted it as in some respect the just penalty for the disappointment -she was causing everybody. She let Mrs Chiley say out her say, and then -she restored the old lady to her sofa, and made her comfortable, and -covered her up with all her wraps and blankets. Though she ran on in a -feeble strain all the time weeping and lamenting, Lucilla took no -notice. She wrapped her old friend up, and put her pillows just as she -liked them, and sat down again on the low chair; and by that time the -poor old lady had sunk into a faint sob of vexation and disappointment, -and had given her remonstrances up. - -"Now, I will tell you all about it," said Miss Marjoribanks. "I knew you -would be surprised; and if it would be any comfort to you, dear Mrs -Chiley, to know that Mr Ashburton _did_----" - -"And you refused him, Lucilla?" Mrs Chiley asked, with horror in her -face. - -"Ought I to have accepted him when there was somebody I liked better?" -said Lucilla, with the force of conscious virtue, "and you used always -to say just the contrary. One great thing that supported me was, that -_you_ would be sure to understand. I did not know it at the time," said -Miss Marjoribanks, with sweet confidence and simplicity, "but I see it -all now. Why it never came to anything before, you know, was that I -never could in my heart have accepted anybody but Tom." - -Mrs Chiley turned round with unaffected surprise, which was not -unmingled with awe. Up to this moment she had been under the impression -that it was the blindness, and folly, and stupidity of the gentlemen -which had kept it from ever coming to anything. It was altogether a new -light that broke upon her now, confusing, though on the whole -satisfactory; but for the moment she was struck dumb, and had no answer -to make. - -"I never knew it myself until--quite lately," said Miss Marjoribanks, -with confidential tenderness, "and I don't think I could tell it to any -one but you. Dear Mrs Chiley, you have always taken such an interest in -me! I sent him away, you know, and thought I was only fond of him -because he was my cousin. And then there were all the others, and some -of them were very nice; but always when it came to the point--And it -never came into my head that Tom was at the bottom of it all--never till -the other day." - -Mrs Chiley was still so much confounded by this unexpected revelation -that it was some time before she could find her voice; and even now the -light penetrated slowly into her mind, and it was only by degrees that -she accepted the new fact thus presented to her faith--that it was not -the gentlemen who were to blame--that it was all Lucilla's or rather Tom -Marjoribanks's fault. - -"And Mr Ashburton, Lucilla?" she asked faintly. - -"I am very sorry," said Miss Marjoribanks, "very, very sorry; but I -don't think I can blame myself that I gave him encouragement, you know. -I may have been foolish at other times, but I am sure I was very careful -with him. It was all the election that was to blame. I spoke very -frankly to him," Lucilla added, "for I knew he was a man to do me -justice; and it will always be a comfort to me to think that we had -our--our explanation, you know, before I knew it was Tom." - -"Well, Lucilla, it is a great change," said Mrs Chiley, who could not -reconcile herself to the new condition of affairs. "I don't mean to -pretend that I can make up my mind to it all at once. It seems so -strange that you should have been setting your heart on some one all -these ten years, and never saying a word; I wonder how you could do it. -And when people were always in the hopes that you would marry at home, -as it were, and settle in Carlingford. I am sure your poor dear papa -would be as much astonished as anybody. And I suppose now he will take -you away to Devonshire, where his mother lives, and we shall never see -you any more." And once more Mrs Chiley gave a little sob. "The Firs -would almost have been as good as Grange Lane," she said, "and the -Member for Carlingford, Lucilla!" - -As for Miss Marjoribanks, she knelt down by the side of the sofa and -took her old friend, as well as the blankets and pillows would permit, -into her arms. - -"Dear Mrs Chiley, we are going to buy Marchbank and settle," said -Lucilla, weeping a little for company. "You could not think I would ever -go far away from you. And as for being Member for Carlingford, there are -Members for counties too," Miss Marjoribanks said in her excitement. It -was a revelation which came out unawares, and which she never intended -to utter; but it threw a gleam of light over the new world of ambition -and progress which was opened to Lucilla's far-seeing vision; and Mrs -Chiley could not but yield to the spell of mingled awe and sympathy -which thrilled through her as she listened. It was not to be supposed -that what Lucilla did was done upon mere unthinking impulse; and when -she thought of Marchbank, there arose in Mrs Chiley's mind "the slow -beginnings of content." - -"But, Lucilla," the old lady said with solemnity, as she gave her a last -kiss of reconciliation and peace, "if all Grange Lane had taken their -oaths to it, I never could have believed, had you not told me, that, -after all, it was to be Tom!" - - - - -_Chapter the Last_ - - -This was the hardest personal encounter which Miss Marjoribanks was -subjected to; but when the news circulated in Grange Lane there was -first a dead pause of incredulity and amazement, and then such a -commotion as could be compared to nothing except a sudden squall at sea. -People who had been going peaceably on their way at one moment, thinking -of nothing, were to be seen the next buffeted by the wind of Rumour and -tossed about on the waves of Astonishment. To speak less metaphorically -(but there are moments of emotion so overwhelming and unprecedented that -they can be dealt with only in the language of metaphor), every -household in Grange Lane, and at least half of the humbler houses in -Grove Street, and a large proportion of the other dwellings in -Carlingford, were nearly as much agitated about Lucilla's marriage as if -it had been a daughter of their own. Now that he was recalled to their -minds in such a startling way, people began to recollect with greater -and greater distinctness that "there was once a cousin, you know," and -to remember him in his youth, and even in his boyhood, when he had been -much in Carlingford. And by degrees the Grange Lane people came to see -that they knew a great deal about Tom, and to remind each other of the -abrupt end of his last visit, and of his going to India immediately -after, and of many a little circumstance in Lucilla's looks and general -demeanour which this _dénouement_ seemed to make plain. - -Lady Richmond, though she was a little annoyed about Mr Ashburton's -disappointment, decided at once that it was best to ignore that -altogether, and was quite glad to think that she had always said there -must be somebody. "She bore up a great deal too well against all her -little disappointments," she said, when discussing the matter. "When a -girl does that one may be always sure there is somebody behind--and you -know I always said, when she was not just talking or busy, that there -was a preoccupation in Lucilla's eye." This was a speech which Mrs -Woodburn, as might have been expected, made a great deal of--but, -notwithstanding, it had its effect in Grange Lane. Going back upon their -recollections, most people were able to verify the fact that Miss -Marjoribanks had borne her little disappointments very well, and that -there was sometimes a preoccupation in her eye. The first was beyond -dispute; and as for the second, it was a thing which did not require a -very great stretch of imagination to suppose--and the unexpected -sensation of finding at last a distinct bit of romance to round off -Lucilla's history, was pleasant to most people. If she had married Mr -Ashburton, it would have been (so far as anything connected with Miss -Marjoribanks could be) a commonplace conclusion. But now she had upset -everybody's theories, and made an altogether original and unlooked-for -ending for herself, which was a thing to have been expected from -Lucilla, though nobody could have foreseen the special turn which her -originality would take. - -And nothing could have come in more appropriately after the election, -when people felt the blank of ordinary existence just beginning to -settle down upon them again. It kept all Carlingford in conversation for -a longer time than might be supposed in these busy days; for there was -not only the fact itself, but what _they_ were to do, and where they -were to go, to be discussed. And then Tom himself began to be visible -about Grange Lane; and he had heaps of Indian things among his baggage, -and recollected so affectionately the people he used to know, and -dispensed his curiosities with such a liberal hand, that the heart of -Carlingford was touched. He had a way of miscalculating distances, as -has been said, and exercised some kind of magnetic influence upon all -the little tables and unsteady articles of furniture, which somehow -seemed to fall if he but looked at them. But, on the other hand, John -Brown, who had in hand the sale of Marchbank, found him the most -straightforward and clear-headed of clients. The two had all the -preliminaries arranged before any other intending purchaser had time to -turn the matter over in his mind. And Tom had the old brick house full -of workmen before anybody knew it was his. When the summer had fairly -commenced he went over and lived there, and saw to everything, and went -so far as to fit up the drawing-room with the same well-remembered tint -of pale green which had been found ten years ago to suit so well with -Lucilla's complexion. It was perhaps a little hazardous to repeat the -experiment, for green, as everybody knows, is a very trying colour; but -it was a most touching and triumphant proof that to Tom, at least, -Lucilla was as young as ever, and had not even begun to go off. It was -Mr Holden who supplied everything, and he was naturally proud of the -trust thus reposed in him, and formed the very highest opinion of his -customer; and it was probably from his enthusiasm on this subject that -might be traced the commencement of that singular revolution of -sentiment in Grange Lane, which suddenly woke up all in an instant -without knowing how, to recognise the existence of Mr Marjoribanks, and -to forget the undue familiarity which had ventured upon the name of Tom. - -When Lucilla went over in the most proper and decorous way, under the -charge of Aunt Jemima, to see her future home, the sight of the village -at Marchbank was sweet to her eyes. That it was not by any means sweet -to any other sense did but enhance Miss Marjoribanks's satisfaction. "A -year after this!" she said to herself, and her bosom swelled; for to -realise clearly how much she had it in her power to do for her -fellow-creatures was indeed a pleasure. It occupied her a great deal -more than the gardens did, which Tom was arranging so carefully, or even -than the kitchen, which she inspected for the information of Nancy; for -at that time the drawing-room was not fitted up. Lucilla's eyes went -over the moral wilderness with the practical glance of a statesman, and, -at the same time, the sanguine enthusiasm of a philanthropist. She saw -of what it was capable, and already, in imagination, the desert -blossomed like a rose before her beneficent steps, and the sweet sense -of well-doing rose in her breast. And then to see Tom at Marchbank was -to see his qualities. He was not a man of original mind, nor one who -would be likely to take a bold initiative. Considering all the -circumstances, that was a gift which was scarcely to be wished for; but -he had a perfect genius for carrying out a suggestion, which, it need -scarcely be added, was a faculty that, considering the good fortune -which Providence had so long reserved for him, made his character as -near perfect as humanity permits. Lucilla felt, indeed, as she drove -away, that approbation of Providence which a well-regulated mind, in -possession of most things which it desires, might be expected to feel. -Other delusive fancies _had_ one time and another swept across her -horizon; but after all there could be no doubt that only thus could she -have been fitly mated, and full development afforded to all the -resources of her spirit. As the carriage passed the Firs she sighed and -put down her veil with a natural sentiment; but still she felt it was -for the best. The Member for Carlingford must be a busy man, occupied -about his own affairs, and with little leisure for doing good to his -fellow-creatures except in a parliamentary way. "And there are members -for counties as well," Lucilla, in the depths of her soul, said to -herself. Then there rose up before her a vision of a parish saved, a -village reformed, a county reorganised, and a triumphant election at the -end, the recompense and crown of all, which should put the government of -the country itself, to a certain extent, into competent hands. This was -the celestial vision which floated before Miss Marjoribanks's eyes as -she drove into Carlingford, and recollected, notwithstanding occasional -moments of discouragement, the successful work she had done, and the -good she had achieved in her native town. It was but the natural -culmination of her career that transferred her from the town to the -county, and held out to her the glorious task of serving her generation -in a twofold way, among the poor and among the rich. If a momentary sigh -for Grange Lane, which was about to lose her, breathed from her lips, it -was sweetened by a smile of satisfaction for the county which was about -to gain her. The lighter preface of life was past, and Lucilla had the -comfort of feeling that its course had been full of benefit to her -fellow-creatures; and now a larger sphere opened before her feet, and -Miss Marjoribanks felt that the arrangements of Providence were on the -whole full of discrimination, and that all was for the best, and she had -not lived in vain. - -This being the case, perhaps it is not necessary to go much further into -detail. Mr Ashburton never said anything about his disappointment, as -might have been expected. When he did mention that eventful day at all, -he said that he had happened accidentally to be calling on Miss -Marjoribanks the day her cousin came home, and saw at once the state of -affairs; and he sent her a very nice present when she was married. After -all, it was not her fault. If Providence had ordained that it was to be -Tom, how could Lucilla fly in the face of such an ordinance? and, at the -same time, there was to both parties the consoling reflection, that -whatever might happen to them as individuals, the best man had been -chosen for Carlingford, which was an abiding benefit to all concerned. - -Under all the circumstances, it was to be looked for that Miss -Marjoribanks's spirits should improve even in her mourning, and that the -tenacity with which she clung to her father's house should yield to the -changed state of affairs. This was so much the case, that Lucilla took -heart to show Mrs Rider all over it, and to point out all the -conveniences to her, and even, with a sigh, to call her attention to the -bell which hung over the Doctor's bedroom door. "It breaks my heart to -hear it," Miss Marjoribanks said; "but still Dr Rider will find it a -great convenience." It was a very nice house; and so the new Doctor's -wife, who had not been used to anything so spacious, was very willing to -say; and instead of feeling any grudge against the man who was thus in -every respect to take her father's place, so sweet are the softening -influences of time and personal well-being, that Lucilla, who was always -so good-natured, made many little arrangements for their comfort, and -even _left the carpets_, which was a thing nobody could have expected of -her, and which Aunt Jemima did not scruple to condemn. "They are all -fitted," Lucilla said, "and if they were taken up they would be spoiled; -and besides, we could have no use for them at Marchbank." It was a very -kind thing to do, and simplified matters very much for the Riders, who -were not rich. But Aunt Jemima, in the background, could not but pull -Lucilla's sleeve, and mutter indistinct remarks about a valuation, which -nobody paid any particular attention to at the moment, as there were so -many things much more important to think of and to do. - -And the presents that came pouring in from every quarter were enough to -have made up for twenty carpets. Lucilla got testimonials, so to speak, -from every side, and all Carlingford interested itself, as has been -said, in all the details of the marriage, as if it had been a daughter -of its own. "And yet it is odd to think that, after all, I shall never -be anything but Lucilla Marjoribanks!" she said, in the midst of all her -triumphs, with a certain pensiveness. If there could be any name that -would have suited her better, or is surrounded by more touching -associations, we leave it to her other friends to find out; for at the -moment of taking leave of her, there is something consoling to our own -mind in the thought that Lucilla can now suffer no change of name. As -she was in the first freshness of her youthful daring, when she rose -like the sun upon the chaos of society in Carlingford, so is she now as -she goes forth into the County to carry light and progress there. And -in this reflection there is surely comfort for the few remaining -malcontents, whom not even his own excellent qualities, and Lucilla's -happiness, can reconcile to the fact that after all it was Tom. - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Miss Marjoribanks, by Mrs (Margaret) Oliphant - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISS MARJORIBANKS *** - -***** This file should be named 41286-8.txt or 41286-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/1/2/8/41286/ - -Produced by Delphine Lettau, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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