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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..0922317 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #62159 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/62159) diff --git a/old/62159-8.txt b/old/62159-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 7b54284..0000000 --- a/old/62159-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,5676 +0,0 @@ -Project Gutenberg's The Impending Sword (Vol. 2 of 3), by Edmund Yates - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: The Impending Sword (Vol. 2 of 3) - A Novel - -Author: Edmund Yates - -Release Date: May 17, 2020 [EBook #62159] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE IMPENDING SWORD (VOL. 2 OF 3) *** - - - - -Produced by Charles Bowen from page scans provided by the Web Archive - - - - - - - - - - -Transcriber's Notes: - 1. Page scan source: - http://www.archive.org/details/impendingswordno02yate - (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign) - - - - - - -THE IMPENDING SWORD. - - - - - - -LONDON: -ROBSON AND SONS, PRINTERS, PANCRAS ROAD, N.W. - - - - - - -THE -IMPENDING SWORD. - - - -A Novel. - - - -BY -EDMUND YATES, - -AUTHOR OF 'BLACK SHEEP,' 'THE ROCK AHEAD,' 'THE YELLOW FLAG,' ETC. -ETC. - - - - 'Put we our quarrel to the will of Heaven, - Who, when He sees the hours ripe on earth, - Will rain hot vengeance on the offenders' heads.' - SHAKESPEARE. - - - -IN THREE VOLUMES. -VOL. II. - - - -LONDON: -TINSLEY BROTHERS, 8 CATHERINE ST. STRAND. -1874. -[_The right of translation, dramatic adaptation, and reproduction is -reserved._] - - - - - - -CONTENTS OF VOL. II. - -Book the Second. -THE CRIME. - -CHAP. - I. DOWN TO LIVERPOOL. - II. TRAPPED. - III. HELEN'S JOURNAL. - IV. 'SCOT FREE.' - V. A BLAZE OF TRIUMPH. - VI. STARTLING NEWS. - VII. ONLY TOO TRUE. - VIII. THORNTON CAREY. - - - - - -Book the Second. -THE CRIME. - - - - -CHAPTER I. -DOWN TO LIVERPOOL. - - -Bryan Duval had not forgotten his promise to Miss Montressor. Early in -the morning of that eventful day, when she and Mr. Dolby had parted so -strangely, and before she had even yet shaken off the extra slumber -occasioned by the fatigue of the Richmond dinner, the fair actress had -received a letter from her _entrepreneur_ which ran thus: - - -'My dear Clara,--The business which I feared might possibly have -detained me has been smoothed over, and we positively sail on -Saturday, in the Cuba. We shall go down to Liverpool by the twelve -o'clock train, on Friday, stop the night at the Adelphi, and have -plenty of time to see our traps--and what with music scores, -promptbooks, and costumes, I have a tolerable amount of -luggage--comfortably on board one of the first tenders which will be -despatched to the ship. I think we shall be a pleasant party. I have -concluded engagements with Mrs. Regan, for old women and heavies, with -Skrymshire for first low comedy, and with Cooington for walking -gentleman and utility. He is a nice-looking young fellow, can make-up -very fairly, and will, consequently, make an excellent foil for me; -all the other people I can get over there, but these are absolutely -necessary. Cooington will be especially valuable. You are young, and -your ideas of the dreadful are, probably, vague, but when you have -once seen an American _jeune premier_, with his peculiar style of hair -and costume, they will immediately become definite. - -'By the way, my dear, talking about costumes, I think it would be -advisable that you should have two first-rate evening gowns--don't fly -into a rage now. Your toilette yesterday was particularly good, and I -have no doubt you show quite as much good taste in your evening dress, -but I want something exceptionally stylish; you will be seen a great -deal more in public over there than you are here. You will probably -have a reception, as they call it, from one of their artistic -societies, and on off-nights will have to show-up at the opera, or one -of the other theatres; and as our good friends on the other side -attach immense importance to dress--and rightly too, according to my -notions--I want you at once to send a pattern-body to Madame Lagrange, -118 Rue Vivienne. That's all! You need take no further trouble about -the matter. I have written to old Lagrange by this post--I have known -her ever since I was a boy--and told her exactly what you want; for my -sake the old lady will put on all steam, and you will have your gowns -in time to pack them for America. I have also desired Madame Lagrange -to send the bill to me, a liberty which, I trust, under the -circumstances, you will excuse. - -'I have an enormous number of things to get ready before I start; the -rehearsal of _Pickwick's Progress_ to superintend at the Gravity, and -an action to bring against a rascal in the North who has been -producing an exact copy of the _Cruiskeen Lawn,_ fights, songs, Irish -wake, and all under the title of the _Jug of Punch_. The copyright law -in this country is disgraceful. By the way, did you see those absurd -remarks in the _Earwig_ about me and Mr. Dickens, in connection with -Pickwick's Progress? I mention this in case I may not be able to call -upon you before we start, so that you may be perfectly sure to be at -Euston very soon after eleven. Till then good-bye. - - 'Yours always, - - 'BRYAN DUVAL. - -'P.S.--What a good dinner it was yesterday, and how very jolly we all -were! I have taken a great fancy to Foster, he seems to be an -exceptionally good fellow. He talks of coming down to Liverpool to -see us off. If he does, I shall make a point of giving him a dinner at -the Adelphi the night before we sail--they have some green turtle -there--but women don't understand these things.' - - -'Mr. Foster is an exceptionally good fellow,' said Miss Montressor, -laying down the letter, 'and you are another, Bryan Duval. This -experience confirms me in my opinion, that whenever you hear men -bitter and disparaging in their remarks about a man who is before the -world, and who is successful, he is sure to prove remarkably pleasant, -agreeable, and kind-hearted. Now I am sure nothing could be more -thoughtful or more delicate than Mr. Duval's suggestion about those -gowns, and what a queer fellow he is too!' she said, taking up the -letter again; 'fancy his writing about a "pattern-body"--he seems to -know everything.' - -By this time the fact of the great actor-author's departure for -America, taking with him a select troupe for the purpose of playing -certain of his own pieces, had been heralded in the newspapers, and -had created as much excitement as even he could have wished. Most of -the journals congratulated Mr. Duval on the engagement, and the -Americans on the fact that they were about to renew their acquaintance -with that distinguished combination of literature and art, who would -add fresh laurels to the wreath which had already adorned his brows, -and from this they proceeded in a tone of patronage towards the -Western hemisphere generally, telling it how thankful it ought to be -in having such a school of talent as England to draw upon for its -artists. - -Some of the other journals, however, the conductors or writers of -which had a personal pique against Mr. Duval, did not think so -strongly on the matter. They averred, roundly enough, that the autumn -was the usual time for English actors to go out to America, and not -the spring; and that probably the reason which induced Mr. Duval to -take his departure from his native country at the present time was -that he was entirely played out and used up there, and he hoped to -recoup himself by repeating his previous success in America, an -expectation which would be undoubtedly disappointed. - -Mr. Duval read these various reports with equal delight. He liked -being praised; but he did not in the least mind being found fault -with. - -'I like to see 'em pitch in,' he would say, slowly rubbing his hands -together, with a broad grin, such as those who had only seen him in -his melo-dramatic parts on the stage, could never believe him capable -of giving. 'I like to see them pitch in; it shows their interest in -me. I would sooner that they would write about me with bradawls dipped -in vitriol, rather than that they should say nothing. This,' touching -one of the journals before him, 'is Cosby's doing. Cosby is a stupid -ass. I have told him so in print and by word of mouth many a time and -oft. I have dropped down hot and heavy upon Cosby frequently, and he -don't forgive that. When my _Varco the Vampire_ was produced at the -Parthenon, Cosby's original comedy of _Gold and Gloom_ (taken from a -play of Maquet and Dumas, produced at the Porte St. Martin in '52--I -have it there in the bookcase, and can show it to you) was brought out -at the Gravity. _Varco_ ran for one hundred and fifty nights, when I -stopped it myself, as I wanted a little chamois shooting in Styria, -and _Gold and Gloom_ fizzled out in a fortnight. Cosby didn't like -that--he don't like the notion that my _Pickwick's Progress_ is about -to be produced at the Gravity, which he looks upon somewhat as his own -theatre; he don't like, what he knows to be the fact, that I have a -splendid engagement with Van Buren in New York, and so he writes these -lies about me, thinking to rile me and to draw me out. No good, dear -Cosby; no good, dear boy. There is nothing makes a venomous ruffian -like that so wild as to completely ignore his attack, and if you -chance to meet him in the street, greet him with the utmost -politeness; you need not take his hand, but you also need not put your -fist into his face. Cosby will watch the papers daily, looking for an -indignant letter from me in reply to his screed; but he will find -none; and if I see him at the first night of _Pickwick's Progress,_ I -shall wag my head at him, and express a hope that he is pleased with -the entertainment.' - -But though he declined to resent this newspaper controversy, Mr. Duval -found more than enough to occupy his mind and to fill up his time. -Half a dozen needy persons belonging to the theatrical profession--not -adventurers, and in no way dishonest--simply men and women who, from -stress of circumstances, had undertaken to do something for which they -were not in the least qualified, and who consequently had gone to the -wall, were simultaneously struck with the brilliant idea that it would -be a remarkably good thing for Mr. Duval if he took a temporary -farewell of the British public in a performance the proceeds of which -should be devoted to their benefit. Others there were who addressed -him on the strength of having read that he was about to take a company -with him to perform his pieces in the United States, and at once -expressing themselves as perfectly certain that such company would not -be complete unless they, the writers, joined it in prominent positions -with high salaries. In fact, the notice of his departure brought upon -him all the horde of impertinent correspondents who prey upon a public -man's time, and rob him of such leisure as he might otherwise have; -autograph hunters, photographers, who could make it convenient to -receive him at any time, sanctimonious begging-letter writers, who -declared that his path across the ocean would neither be happy nor -successful unless he were blessed with the inward consciousness of -having left behind him half a crown to succour modest misery in -distress. - -Applications such as these Mr. Duval treated with sovereign -contempt--he had quite enough real business on hand. His rooms in -Vernon-chambers were very much changed from their normal condition; -all the nick-nacks were put away, all the pictures and handsome -furniture covered over, and in the midst stood enormous boxes, some -crammed to repletion, others yet gaping as it were for food, all -bearing the great actor's name in large red letters, all marked with -the word 'Hold.' - -Thither, threading their way among the packages which littered the -landings as well as the apartments, came those anxious to have a last -few words with Mr. Duval. Mr. Moss Marks, the manager of the Gravity, -was there, nervously anxious about the forthcoming _Pickwick's -Progress_, and constantly endeavouring to cut down costly items of -furniture and decoration which Duval had insisted upon being provided. -Mr. Hodgkinson, too, came to impress upon his friend his parting -injunctions, that if he saw anything in the States likely to make a -sensation, any 'fakement' likely to hit up the British public, he -should wire him at once and send it over by the next boat. There, too, -was the great impresario, Wuff, who began to find that camels and -coryphées spelt bankruptcy as well as Shakespeare, and he was eager to -beg a few last words of advice from the omniscient Bryan Duval before -he started. Mr. Foster looked in, too, once or twice, to see how his -friend was getting on, and to ask whether he could be any use in -helping him in his preparations for the voyage. - -Nor was Miss Montressor without her visitors. Two days after the -announcement of her intended visit to America appeared in the Sunday -papers, a mysterious old lady, neatly dressed in black silk, with an -old-fashioned bonnet, appeared at the Brompton villa, and giving her -name as Mrs. Porter, begged permission to speak for a few minutes to -the lady of the house. The page, who, though a sharp boy, was not yet -sufficiently versed in his business to gauge the social position of -visitors, was about to usher the old lady into the drawing-room, but -Justine, happening to pass downstairs at the moment, promptly bade her -take a seat in the hall, and took upon herself the task of announcing -her arrival. - -Miss Montressor started very much at tearing the name, but recovering -herself, desired that the visitor should be shown to her bedroom. The -old lady bowed when she received the summons; and Justine noticed that -she trembled very much as she ascended the stairs. What passed during -the interview Justine did not exactly know, though she loitered about -the passage to gather as much as she could. First, she heard her -mistress's voice in high sharp tones of rebuke, and the old lady -apparently pleading. Miss Montressor's voice then softened very much, -and the conversation was carried on in a low earnest undertone, -mingled, so Justine thought, with sobs from one, if not from both, and -just before the door opened she could have sworn she heard a sound as -of many kisses, broken with words of blessing and farewell. And Miss -Montressor's eyes were very red, and her brilliant complexion rather -tear-blurred, after her visitor's departure; and though she speedily -rectified this irregularity, she remained singularly quiet and subdued -all that evening. - -Also, just before the day of her departure, arrived Miss Thomasina -Campbell and Miss Georgina Goss, formerly Miss Montressor's colleagues -at the T.R.D.L., where they had many a bitter quarrel together; but -now that she was going to rid them of her presence, and to interfere -no more, her devoted friends. The visit of these young ladies was -ostensibly to bid their dear Clara good-bye, but in reality to -endeavour to ascertain from her what terms she had got, and what -parts she was likely to play, and to look at the dresses she was -going to take with her. As regards the first items, they failed -lamentably--Miss Montressor spoke vaguely of enormous sums, and of -'leading business,' but declined to enter into any particulars--but as -regards the latter, they were gratified to the highest extent. Miss -Montressor showed them all her pretty things, and even went to the -extent of unpacking an enormous trunk for the sake of displaying the -two splendid gowns which had duly arrived from Madame Lagrange, and -which were pronounced by staid Miss Campbell to be 'truly superb,' and -by giggling Miss Goss to be 'perfect ducks.' When they had seen all -the pretty things, and partaken of sherry and seltzer-water, with -which gay little Miss Goss moistened a cigarette, they took their -leave, not without warning their hostess to beware of the fascinations -of Bryan Duval, who, they insinuated, was a heartless wretch who made -love to everybody. - -Finally, Mr. Foster paid his first and last visit to the young lady in -whom he seemed to have taken so kindly an interest. - -'You are surprised to see me here, Miss Montressor,' he said, 'more -especially when you recollect that you never asked me to call upon -you.' - -'I am very much delighted to see you, Mr. Foster,' said Miss -Montressor frankly, extending her hand to him, 'and I should be more -pleased if I did not think that your presence here meant that there -was no chance of your sailing with us in the Cuba, on Saturday.' - -'It does mean that, indeed,' said Mr. Foster. 'I shall not be able to -complete my business so early, but I hope to follow you in a very -short time. You are kind enough to say you wish I were coming with -you, Miss Montressor, but you cannot regret the impossibility half so -much as I do. I am home sick, and that talk which we had the other day -about my wife and my belongings has made me more than ever anxious to -get back to them.' - -'I verily believe it was the chance of another chat about them that -procured me the pleasure of this visit,' said Miss Montressor. 'But, -however, you shall not be gratified this time. You shall talk to me of -nothing but what I shall do in New York, where I shall go, what I -shall see, and to whom I must make myself most gracious and agreeable -in order to insure my success. By the way,' she added, turning -suddenly round to him, 'one thing struck me in thinking over our talk -the other day. This business of which you think so much, and in -connection with which you came over here, it must be still going on in -New York, is it not?' - -'Certainly.' - -'But not by itself; you must have left it in somebody's charge?' - -'Of course, in the charge of my most intimate friend.' - -'O, indeed,' said Miss Montressor. 'And Mrs. Foster, she is doubtless -with her family--father or mother, or something of that sort?' - -'No, indeed, poor Helen is an orphan; she remains at home, in our own -house, but I have desired my friend to look after her.' - -'The same friend?' inquired Miss Montressor. - -'The same friend!' - -'O, indeed,' said Miss Montressor, in the same tone. 'It must be a -great comfort to you to think that there is some one to whom you can -confide your business and your wife with a perfect feeling of -security.' - -And then they talked of subjects connected with theatricals and New -York until Mr. Foster took his departure. - -At length the eventful Friday morning arrived, and though, from the -ordinary condition of the Euston Station, it would seem impossible -that there should ever be any extra bustle there, some little -additional excitement might have been noticed. Mr. Bryan Duval, never -oblivious of the chances of advertisement, had written to the traffic -manager, enclosing a slip cut from the newspaper, announcing his -departure, and requesting some extra facilities in the way of -transport. The traffic manager, with great politeness, had ordered a -saloon carriage to be placed at the disposal of the theatrical party; -and thus their intended arrival became known. People who were waiting -about on the platform, ordinary passengers and their friends, saw the -handsome saloon carriage, and concluding immediately that it must be -for some member of the Royal Family, or some other equally -distinguished personage, lingered round it in the pleasant expectation -of being gratified with the sight of a hat or a beard, the skirt of a -robe or the end of a bonnet-string. - -They were not, however, much disappointed when, upon inquiry, they -learned who were really to be the occupants of the carriage. A live -actor or actress in their ordinary citizen garb has an immense -attraction for the many-headed, and Bryan Duval was both well known -and popular; his very luggage, arriving, as it did, in a huge break, -interested them much, and they studied the enormous red letters -announcing 'Bryan Duval, passenger per Cuba, New York, U.S.A.,' and -the mysterious word 'Hold,' with a feeling akin to awe. The -well-informed told the ignorant of the plays he had written and what -characters he had played, what a magnificent fortune he had, and what -a number of duchesses and marchionesses were dying of love for him. - -The great actor was the first to arrive. Ordinary people travel in -rough clothes, and drive to the station in a cab. Not so Mr. Bryan -Duval. His belief in the necessity of advertising himself remained -with him to the last, and the hoofs of the spanking chestnuts, as -their master tooled them under the archway, roused the echoes of the -Euston courtyard. No sign of vulgar luggage appeared in Mr. Duval's -trap--the only hint that he was about to travel might have been found -in the natty morocco-leather courier's pouch, slung over his shoulder -by a trap; otherwise he might have been going down to a picnic at St. -Albans, for he was dressed in a suit of gray dittos, wore a crimson -tie, shiny-tip jean boots, and his usual curly-brimmed hat. - -The little crowd gathered round him as he drew up to the station, but -he pretended to take no notice of them, and to be absorbed in giving -directions to his groom. When these were concluded, he was apparently -about moving off, when the groom touched his hat, and said, with -something like a quiver in his voice, 'Take the liberty of wishing you -good-bye, sir--happy voyage and a safe return.' - -'Thank you, James, very much,' said Mr. Duval, in his clearest tones. -'Take care of the horses--see that Black Bess and Tantivy are always -properly exercised, and remember me very kindly to your wife.' And Mr. -Duval moved off midst a murmur of sympathetic admiration from the -crowd. - -'Sharp fellow that James,' he muttered to himself, as he entered the -ticket office; 'spoke that line I taught him deuced well. I shall -probably be able to make something of him on the stage when I come -back.' - -His elation was a little dazed at the sight of Mrs. Regan, who, -running up to him, clasped him by both hands, and whose appearance was -scarcely calculated to impress bystanders with admiration. This worthy -old person, who was of Hibernian descent, and had what is known -amongst her countrymen as a 'potato' face, was dressed in a voluminous -chintz gown, like bed furniture, and, slung on her arm, carried a -check wicker basket, like a soft chess-board, with what was obviously -the neck of a bottle protruding from it. He was gratified, however, by -the appearance of Mr. Cooington, who, with a feeling that he was about -to spend ten days on the ocean, arrived at Euston Station in a -yachting costume, a straw hat with a very narrow brim, and a ribbon -with 'Plover' in gold letters round it. Mr. Skyrmshire, the low-comedy -man, had apparently adopted some of his theatrical wardrobe for -travelling purposes, and consequently arrived in a suit of such -enormous stripes, that in it he looked like a zebra on his hind legs. -He was a practical as well as a poetical humourist too, and combining -jocosity with business, carried about with him a number of small -labels, printed 'Go and hear Skrymshire, the brilliant Momus,' and -gummed at the back, with which he adorned the velveteen jackets of all -the porters with whom he came in contact. - -And then Mr. Foster arrived, and then Miss Montressor, looking very -pretty, and dressed with great simplicity and good taste. Mr. Duval -offered her his arm, and led the way to the saloon carriage, the -others following. Then rushed out to take a last look that the baggage -was all safe, to compliment the inspector and tip the porters, and -returned. A whistle, a shriek, Mr. Skrymshire said, 'Give him his -head, John,' Mrs. Regan breathed hard and cried, 'Now we're off,' the -train moved on a little, and then stopped. - -A porter put his head into the carriage in which the actor's party had -already begun to lean back, and realise the fact that they had -started, and inquired whether the gentleman who owned the portmanteau -left at the station an hour ago, and which he had just put into the -van, according to orders, was there. The occupants of the carriage -glanced at each other, shook their heads in a general negative, and -Bryan Duval answered for them, 'No, the gentleman was not there.' - -'Beg pardon, gentlemen,' said the porter, 'but I can't find the owner -of the portmanteau.' - -'And you want your tip, I suppose?' said Bryan Duval, in an undertone, -to the man, who was standing on the step of the carriage, with his -hands on the door. - -'No, sir, I don't,' said the man; 'the gentleman paid me to look after -the portmanteau. I only wanted to make sure that he was here, so as it -shouldn't go amongst missing luggage, but I can't find him--he isn't -in the train.' He fell back, made a sign to the guard, and the train -moved on this time, to pursue its way unbrokenly. - -'What a horrid nuisance!' said Miss Montressor to Mr. Foster. 'I can't -imagine anything more worrying than losing one's luggage.' - -'And yet,' said Mr. Foster, 'it is one of those things no one gets -pitied for. For my part, I always stick to mine in this country, where -matters of that kind are certainly not regulated with the intelligence -and attention to public convenience they are amongst us. However, I -daresay this gentleman and his portmanteau will not be long parted. -That porter was an honest fellow. Shall I pull the window up?' - -'No, thanks,' said Miss Montressor. 'I am perfectly comfortable. You -have very good notions of travelling, Mr. Foster, and have chosen my -seat with admirable discretion. Where is the library?--O, overhead, I -see. Not that I care much for reading in a train; it tries one's eyes. -Do you always read in the train?' - -'That depends on my company,' said Mr. Foster. 'I don't feel inclined -to read to-day.' - -'Then suppose we make a law that nobody is to read?' said Miss -Montressor, looking round upon her companions with the proud -consciousness of being a leading lady in every sense of the word. - -'Never make a law unless you are sure of its being obeyed,' said Bryan -Duval drily, as he settled his travelling cap, and ensconced his head -in a convenient angle of the partition between his seat and that of -his fair neighbour, opposite to whom Mr. Foster was placed, and -immediately immersed himself in the pages of the _Times_. - -The journey was a very pleasant one; every one was good-humoured, and -Miss Montressor had her own way. She and Mr. Foster talked a good deal -more than any of their companions, but the tone of the conversation -was necessarily general. Thus, there was no reference on his part to -the domestic circumstances which had annoyed Miss Montressor when he -confided them to her at Richmond, and her versatile nature had enabled -her almost entirely to dismiss the recollection of her sister Bess, -except in the general sense of being rather glad than otherwise that -she should have an opportunity of seeing her. - -In her present sanguine mood, Miss Montressor doubted not that she -should be able to induce Bess to say, or to leave unsaid, precisely -whatever she pleased to indicate--at the worst, this was an annoyance -to be postponed for consideration, until after her arrival on the -other side; she was not going to trouble herself about it prematurely. - -To tell the truth about Miss Montressor, she thought very little of -Mr. Dolby during the pleasant hours of her journey to Liverpool. It -would be good fun finding him in New York, and either making up the -quarrel which had marked their parting or not making it up, precisely -as it should suit her humour and her convenience, when the time had -arrived. That, too, she need not think of beforehand. Altogether, Miss -Montressor could recall few days in her life which had passed more -completely to her satisfaction than that of her departure from London, -and she mentioned the fact to Mr. Foster, when, for the first time, -she found herself out of hearing of her companions on the arrival of -the train, when he gave her his arm to walk along the platform at -Lime-street. - -During a momentary pause in order to rally their party, the attention -of Miss Montressor and Mr. Foster was attracted to the unloading of -the luggage van. A solitary portmanteau had been chucked upon the -platform with a contemptuous indifference, which is the destiny of -waifs and strays among luggage. - -'I am sure that is the unclaimed portmanteau,' said Miss Montressor; -'looks new too. What will they do with it?' - -'Put it in the parcel-office, of course,' said Mr. Foster, 'for the -present, and then they forget all about it.' - -The portmanteau, a shiny black one of the most commonplace appearance, -lay upon the pavement until all the claimed luggage had been disposed -of and wheeled away on trucks to its various destinations; then the -waif was carried by a porter to the parcel-office and there deposited, -with a brief intimation to the official who resided behind a sliding -window, amid huge barricades of packing-cases, hampers, and every -description of impedimenta, from camel trunks to brown-paper parcels -and stray hand-bags, 'That this 'ere box, name o' Dunn, hadn't been -owned.' - -Travellers to Liverpool by all trains, at all hours, are a motley -crew; all ranks and classes of society, all industries, all -circumstances, may be found represented in the voyagers going towards -the great outlet of England. The train which conveyed Bryan Duval and -his troop was no exception, but rather a notable example of this -truth. Only two components of the crowd which were whirled from the -great social to the great commercial capital on that particular day -have any interest for us; they are our theatrical friends, and one -other man, a solitary and insignificant unit among the number. - -This man wore a sailor's dress, and carried a parcel, done up in a bit -of tarpaulin, under his arm. He had arrived at Euston Station a few -minutes before the party whose departure had formed a feature of the -day; had stood wholly unnoticed among the third-class passengers -crowding that portion of the platform opposite to the pens appointed -for their use, and had quietly taken his seat in the farthest corner -of the last compartment in the train. There was nothing remarkable in -this man's appearance or manner. His sailor's clothes were clean, and -fitted with characteristic looseness. He did not remove his cap or -relinquish his hold of his tarpaulin bundle, which he placed upon his -knees, and folding his arms upon it, kept them there during the whole -of the journey. He exchanged not a word with his fellow passengers, -except a mechanic and his family about to exchange the used-up old -world for the new and happy land--though they thought him a morose -surly sort of fellow, no doubt; but they were full of their own hopes, -interests, and regrets, which they discussed with the simple unreserve -of the poor, and, after a few minutes, did not notice him. - -He was a dark-complexioned man, with a rough red beard and hair to -match, and had probably but recently adopted the avocation of a -sailor, for his hands were rather delicate for a man of that class, -and had evidently had no prolonged acquaintance with the ropes or -great familiarity with tar. Though he travelled down the whole way to -Liverpool without appearing to be conscious of the presence of his -immediate companions, this sailor seemed to have some attraction -towards the more distinguished passengers by the train. He lingered -for a few minutes on the platform on their arrival at Lime-street, -though he had put no luggage in the van, and had no occasion to wait -while its contents were being turned out and sorted; and during this -delay he surveyed,--with an intentness probably caused by his -knowledge of their celebrity,--the party of actors as they took their -way to the exit. He was but a few steps behind them when they reached -the entrance of the station, and he stood in the doorway while they -crossed the street on foot and entered the hospitable portals of the -Adelphi Hotel, where their rooms had been engaged. When they had gone -in, and were quite hidden from his view, he still lingered; indeed, -the greater part of the burden which the train had carried had been -discharged from the station before this desultory mariner moved on. -Even then he only crossed the street, still hugging his tarpaulin -bundle under his arm, and slouched along under the windows of the -Adelphi, as though the place had some attraction for him. - -The contrasts offered by London itself are hardly greater than those -to be found in Liverpool; the physical division of the great town into -high and low is not more marked than its moral division into luxury -and want, into respectability and infamy, into leisure and toil. There -is a calm, tranquil, well-bred comfort about some of the uncommercial -districts of Liverpool as characteristic and as striking as the -splendour of its great streets, the long line of shops, each -displaying the products of the teeming wealth of many countries, and -are lost in those wonderful masses of warehouses, stores, factories, -and shipping offices, which epitomise the whole history of commerce in -its greatest forms, while they exhibit it in its minutest detail. The -actual story of the world in its most practical, and at the same time -not in its least romantic, aspect may be read by him who runs--if his -hurried way should take him past the great landing-stages which -project upon the Mersey. All the interests of life in its present -crowded phase, and in its extended intercourse of business and of -greatness, find their symbols there; its transitoriness, its change, -its tumultuous variety, its youthful hope, its keenest anxieties, its -bitterest partings, have found their theatre there since the first -ship brought in the wealth of a foreign land, and the first ship -carried out the produce of our own. The steadiest industry, the most -inveterate vagabondism, find their representatives among the -population of Liverpool; there is no place in existence in which the -student of human nature may discover more to interest, to edify, to -puzzle, and to appal him. - -The sailor who had travelled by the five-o'clock train to Liverpool -was seemingly possessed by a great curiosity concerning the commercial -city. He had not eaten or drunk since early in the day; but this -circumstance, rarely devoid of interest to persons of his class, -seemed to trouble him but little. He had not turned into any -eating-house, he had not visited any drinking-bar; but he took his way -slowly, and always meditatively, along the streets which led to the -water-side. In Water-street he lingered long. The great business -centres and conduits were emptying themselves of the swarms of human -beings whose business lies in the deep waters, who, if they did not go -down to the sea in ships themselves, spent their lives in business -matters connected with those who do; hurrying crowds jostled the -sailor upon the pathways, crowds whose backs were turned upon the -direction in which he was going; and as he took his way at a lounging -pace, which contrasted curiously with the vigorous hurry and -breaking-up air of bustle around him which marks the close of the -business day in Liverpool, and the 'coming on of evening mild,' with -its welcome recreation, at home or elsewhere, according to the -diversity of tastes. The water-side was almost deserted when he -debouched upon it from Water-street under the shadow of the huge -warehouses. - -In the dim light the prosaic landing-stage looked almost -picturesque--shortly to be turned to a silver radiance by the yet -unrisen moon; the waters of the Mersey lay in solemn calm; in the dim -light, the long lines of huge warehouses, with their cumbrous -apparatus of crank and pulley, of windlass and stage, looked more than -ever like a series of gigantic gallows, prepared for a general -execution. The mind speedily loses itself in the mere contemplation of -their resources in the way of sacks and bales. To stray into -considerations of cotton is to get lost, to think of pig-iron is -distraction; the best way is to accept it all as a picture, happily -unaccompanied at that hour of the night by the maddening noise of the -day-time, and to be satisfied, without attempting to comprehend them, -with the vastness, with the wealth, of Liverpool. - -Probably this was not the line on which the sailor's thoughts were -running when he examined the before-mentioned long range of -warehouses, which lie parallel to the great landing-stage, with the -wide roadway lying between, to inspire the observer with constant -wonder how, by any effort of human industry, it is ever kept in a -state of repair. His examination was minute, careful, and marked by -one peculiarity. He laid his hand on every door as he passed it by, -giving the sturdy panel a strong and stealthy push; in every instance -but one, the response to this movement was the steady resistance of a -stout bolt. One door, very far down the range, and in a place where -already the profoundest tranquillity reigned, fell open at his touch, -and the sailor, with a lounging gait of perfectly idle curiosity, -ready, if challenged, to apologise for an intrusion on that score, -passed into the yard to which the complying portal gave admittance. - -It was some minutes before he emerged and began to retrace his steps -towards Water-street; but he had now discarded his lounging gait, his -step was purpose-like, quick, and wholly out of unison with his dress -and appearance; nor had he any longer the uncertain discovery-making -manner of a man unacquainted with the locality in which he finds -himself for the first time. - -He threaded his way with great rapidity through a number of small -streets and lanes, best described by the generic term of 'slums,' -quite regardless of the sights and sounds in perfect harmony with the -neighbourhood, which was a particularly villanous one; he bent his -steps to a low public-house, and close to the river. - -Here he called for bread-and-cheese, of which he ate sparingly, and -for a pot of beer, of which he drank a very small quantity--the meal -did not seem to recommend itself to his palate; here, too, he spoke no -word, and looked no one in the face, but he passed in and out quite -disregarded. - -The drinking-den--for it was hardly more--was, indeed, crowded, as it -was at most hours of the day, and as far into the night as the police -would permit but its occupants were either drinking or quarrelling, or -both, and too much engaged in these pursuits to notice the surly -newcomer. - -Having thus sparingly satisfied the hunger and thirst which he must -have been experiencing, the sailor sought for a place of repose. He -selected for this purpose a common lodging-house, much in use by men -of his craft when on shore, under circumstances which may be briefly -described as 'down on their luck.' It was a dirty, ill-ventilated, -wretched place, where beds of the very coarsest sacking, with very -repulsive-looking bed-clothes, were stretched out in long lines on two -sides of the low whitewashed room; a carpetless and matless lane ran -up the centre, encumbered with the discarded garments of the occupants -of the beds, and every accessory of the scene was unpleasant. The -sailor seemed indisposed to avail himself of even the full extent of -the accommodation which this uninviting hostelry afforded, limited as -it was; he abstained from undressing himself, but flung himself down -in his clothes upon the bed which was pointed out to him, and which he -was congratulated by the proprietor of this hideous retreat upon -having been so fortunate as to secure, as it was the only one which -had not already a tenant. - -This was not exactly a place in which good order might be expected to -reign. Its temporary occupants were in many instances drunk, in very -few decent, in almost all noisy; but the new-comer contributed no more -to the horrid merriment of the sleeping den than he had contributed to -the conviviality of the drinking den during that day. He met all -attempts at questioning with a sullen growl; and placing his tarpaulin -bundle under his head for a pillow, he soon fell, or seemed to fall, -into a heavy slumber. - - - - -CHAPTER II. -TRAPPED. - - -The normal state of the Adelphi Hotel at Liverpool is one of such -bustle and confusion, that when the entire establishment goes stark -staring mad, as is the case twice a year, on the occasions of the -Grand National Steeplechase and the Waterloo Meeting, the people are -not inclined to regard the eccentricity as anything to be wondered at. -Passing a night at the Adelphi, you are liable to come across the man -who went out to California five-and-twenty years ago with the full -determination never to revisit the motherland where the first half of -his life had been so thrown away, but who, his fortune made and the -nostalgia strong upon him, arrived last night from New York, to travel -for six months like a gentleman in the country where, for a quarter of -a century, he had starved and slaved. Or you are equally likely to run -into the arms of the elderly friend whom you have always considered as -a fixed item of London life, but who, having heard a rumour 'that -things are going wrong out there,' is starting by the next day's -outward-bound mail to satisfy himself. The halls and passages of the -Adelphi are always crammed with sea-going chests and Saratoga boxes, -and deckchairs, more or less maimed; and there is generally a dozen of -champagne being cracked in some of the rooms to drink the health of -the captain who has just brought the good ship safely over, or success -to the captain who is just going to take the good ship out; and there -are newspaper reporters flying to and fro to get lists of passengers, -or details of any occurrences on the voyage, and relations of the -newly-arrived, who are very much elated, and relations of the -departing, who are very much depressed, and whose excessive emotion in -their case contrasts curiously with the steady-going business tone of -the members of the establishment. - -It was not to be supposed that a man of Mr. Bryan Duval's foresight -would have neglected writing beforehand to secure rooms, any more than -that he would have omitted sending a hint of his intended arrival to -two or three members of the local press with whom he was on terms of -friendship. Consequently, when the theatrical party from London walked -into the house, they were not merely received with gracious smiles -from the three young ladies in the bar, and with portentous grins from -Sam the boots (not naturally a good-natured man, but an old -acquaintance of Mr. Duval's, and the recipient of many orders for the -upper boxes when that gentleman was staying there on a starring tour), -but with a warm acclamation from Mr. Lavrock, the popular editor of -the _Liverpool Lion_, and two or three of his comrades. It was not Mr. -Lavrock's fault that he was not a London editor; it was the one hope -of his life; but being unable to accomplish the feat, and finding -himself tied to Liverpool, he revenged himself on the fate which had -dictated, as his duty, the pulverisation of the Mayor, the castigation -of the Corporation, and the flaying of the Mersey Board, by devoting -every minute of his off-time to London things and London people, by -running to the metropolis at all times when he could get away, and by -acting as general agent for every London literary or theatrical -celebrity. - -It had not wanted the presence of these gentlemen to remind Bryan -Duval that he had intended giving a little banquet that evening in -honour of Mr. Foster; but when he saw them, he at once thought that -they would not be merely pleasant additions to the party, but that -they might be the means of giving it world-wide publicity by inserting -a neat little paragraph in the next morning's editions, which he would -take over with him, and have copied immediately after arrival in the -New York journals. Mr. Lavrock and his friends would be delighted to -accept the invitation, and the party separated with the understanding -that they were to meet at seven o'clock, the travellers going to their -bedrooms to rest themselves after their journey, and the newspaper men -to their offices, to prepare that little paragraph concerning which -Mr. Duval had dropped a hint into the ear of each of them. - -The Adelphi can give a dinner when it has a mind, and it had a mind -this day. The turtle was superb; so good that Mr. Foster, who had had -two or three rather sharp culinary arguments with Mr. Duval since -their acquaintance, was compelled to acknowledge that on one point, at -least, he had been wrong, and that he had never, even at the Brevoort -House in New York, tasted better soup than that then set before him; -and when dinner was over, Mr. Duval made a very prolonged epigrammatic -speech, proposing Mr. Foster's health, and Mr. Foster, with that -self-possession and flow of language so characteristic of his -countrymen, returned thanks. And then Mr. Lavrock stood up and -exhausted the dictionary of flattery upon Bryan Duval, who, in -responding, remarked that he hoped in a couple of months or so to give -another dinner to almost the same party in the same place, on his -return from what he intended should be a prosperous run; and then, as -they were most of them tired, and had to get up betimes, the party -broke up. - -When Mr. Foster came down the next morning, he found Bryan Duval, -already the centre of an admiring crowd, giving directions for the -stowage of his luggage on the huge trucks which were to convey it to -the steamer's tender. Mr. Duval had exchanged his costume of the -previous day for a yachting suit, and with an oilskin-covered straw -hat, low patent-leather shoes, and striped silk socks, looked ready to -lead off a hornpipe on any given cue. It had been arranged that they -should breakfast in their rooms, and that Mr. Foster, who might be -looked upon as accustomed to this kind of thing, should act as convoy -to the company, Mr. Duval going in front to attend to the luggage. No -sooner, therefore, was the truck duly piled than Bryan rattled off -before it in a swift-going hansom, while Mr. Foster, Miss Montressor, -and the others followed in a more sober vehicle. - -The landing-stage at which the Cunard tender was lying was thronged on -this occasion with even a more motley crowd than usual, for the -paragraphs in the morning journals had announced to the actors the -presence among them of their great colleague, and several of them had -come down to see him off. Many of the young brokers and shipping -clerks too had rushed away from their offices for a few minutes to -catch a glimpse of the popular artistes, and, as if to act as a -corrective to the light tone of thought likely to be engendered by -these people, a dark-bearded sombre-faced man, in the rustic garb of a -Methodist preacher, made his way in and out amongst the crowd, -distributing tracts to whoever would take them. There was no chance -for his admirers mistaking any one else for Mr. Duval; that -gentleman's activity was preternatural; and when the tender left the -shore, they raised a little cheer, which he gratefully acknowledged by -squeezing his hat over his chest exactly as he had done on many -occasions after a successful first night's performance. - -There was not much talk among the little party as they made their way -to the ship. They praised her noble proportions as she lay at anchor -in mid-stream, cast looks at the sky, and prophesied about the -weather; but their hearts were too full to say much, and they soon -lapsed into silence. When they were once on board they, those who were -to make the voyage, went straight to their state-rooms, and of our -friends all remained there with the exception of Miss Montressor and -Bryan Duval; the latter had still to see the luggage safely stowed -away in the hold, the former came straight to Mr. Foster as he was -standing very dejectedly on the hurricane-deck. - -'I have just found another instance of your kindness, another thing to -be grateful to you for.' - -'Not in the least,' he replied with a sad smile. 'I had forgotten all -about it; but I know there is no preventive of sea-sickness like -champagne, and you can depend upon that case being genuine.' - -'I wish you would have a bottle of it now,' she said. 'I think it -would do you good.' - -'I am afraid not,' he replied, with an attempt at gaiety. 'I am very -depressed and very dull, I know, and I do not think champagne would -help me; the only cure for me will be when I find myself on this or -some sister ship bound for home.' - -'And Helen!' whispered Miss Montressor. - -'And Helen,' he repeated gravely, lifting his hat as though invoking a -blessing on the name. - -Then the shore-bell rang, and Bryan Duval came up, and in a few words -of kindly friendship, without a trace of professional affectation, -spoke his thanks and adieux to his newly-made friend. - -When Mr. Foster turned to Miss Montressor he tried to put on a light -and rallying manner, but his voice broke, and the tears rose in his -eyes. He muttered something, she could not distinguish what, for she -herself was very much overcome, and vanished down the ladder and -across the gangway. - -Then the tender steamed away. Bryan Duval and Clara Montressor, -leaning over the rail, watched the figure of the man in whom alone -they had an interest until it was undistinguishable; still stood -gazing until the tender herself became a mere speck in the distance. -Then he touched her on the arm. - -'You had better go down and see to your things, Clara, my dear,' he -said, in a kindly tone. 'We shall meet Foster again, I trust--he is a -downright good fellow.' - -'He is a gentleman,' sobbed Clara Montressor, 'and one of the best men -on the face of the earth.' - -By this time the good ship was standing out to sea. - - * * * * * * - -Mr. Foster returned to his hotel in very low spirits; the mere sight -of the sea, the mere sense of being on board a steamer, the bustle and -departure, and the glad anticipations which he heard all around him, -had produced a fit of home-sickness. It rarely occurred that Mr. -Foster, as the strictly business man, revolted against business in any -shape, or resented its exactions, but he did so on this occasion, and -yielded to a sort of physical and mental _malaise_, which he was ready -to impute partly to fatigue, and partly to the fact that he had been -amusing himself more than was his custom during the last few days, and -this was the reaction. 'I go back to the grind now,' he thought, 'and -I will get it over as soon as possible--I can't stand much more of -this kind of thing; it doesn't pay. My Helen would be cured of her -funny unreasonable notions about the supremacy of my business in my -thoughts, her pretty jealousy would vanish like a cloud if she could -only see me now, if she could only look into my heart and know how I -longed to have done with it all and to get back to her. How I envy the -people who are going where she is!' - -He was walking slowly, with bent head and a musing manner, rarely seen -in the busy streets of the water-side city, as he thought this, and he -mechanically put his hand into his breast-pocket searching for his -wife's last letter, which he felt sure he had brought down with him; -but it was not there. 'I must have left it in my room,' he thought, -and quickened his steps. On reaching the hotel, Mr. Foster went to his -room and found the letter, which he glanced over and placed in his -pocket-book. - -Everything, tide included, had favoured the departure of his friends. -It was nigh noon when the ship steamed down the Mersey, and the -solitary man, who was in a humour to indulge the sense of solitude, -had several hours to dispose of before returning to London. He had -contemplated staying one night in Liverpool, but he changed his mind; -he would go and have a look at the chief places of interest in the -city and its environs, and so dispose of the hours until he could go -away. - -It was a little after one when he left the Adelphi, and set out on a -sort of strolling tour, and his mind, an active and intelligent one, -soon became diverted and interested in the novel scene. There is a -good deal to be seen in Liverpool and at Birkenhead, and Mr. Foster -gave his mind to seeing it; so that it was much later than he had -calculated upon when he was crossing in the ferry from the latter -place, and he perceived, with some vexation, that he had overstayed -his time, and could not possibly leave by the night train as he had -intended. 'Not that it matters,' he thought, 'except that Helen's -letter will be waiting for me instead of my being waiting for it.' - -'I beg your pardon,' he said, making room on the bench where he was -sitting for a man who had stood, with rather an ostentatious air of -expecting to have room made for him, just in front of Mr. Foster, 'I -didn't see that you wanted a place;' and the man sat down, after some -words of course. - -He was a slight man, who carried himself awkwardly, with high -shoulders and sunken chest and stooping head; he was of dark -complexion, had straight black hair, which fitted his head like a -thatch, and a black beard, but he was painfully nearsighted, and wore -spectacles of such power that his eyes, seen through them, seemed to -be buried in cavities altogether disproportionate to the other -feature. He was curiously ill-dressed, not only as regards the fabric -of his garments, which was incongruous, but also as regards their fit, -which had not the slightest reference to either his height or his -breadth. They were formed of two or three kinds of cloth of different -degrees of coarseness, but all of the cheapest description, and -all rusty black, which associates itself in one's mind with the -Scripture-reading, amateur-preaching, charity-letter writing, and -tract-distributing class. He wore shoes, which might have been made -for any one of the passengers on board the ferry with as much -reference to their fit as for him, and his gray cotton gloves were too -long in the fingers and too wide in the wrists. In the dog's-eared -pocket of his black cloth waistcoat he carried a clumsy silver watch, -attached to a frayed piece of black braid; and a shiny leather case, -which had evidently been replenished with tracts since he had lavishly -distributed his morning supply of that improving order of literature, -protruded from the breast-pocket of his shapeless coat. - -Mr. Foster glanced at the stranger as one naturally glances at a -person to whom one has done a passing civility, and was not far out in -his estimate of his social position and professional character; not -that he was familiar with the precise type, but the character was too -ostentatiously put forward to be mistaken. - -A respectable-looking stout woman, with a large basket, which she held -tenaciously upon her knees, to her extreme discomfort, no doubt -considering it much too precious to be intrusted to the open space of -deck at her feet, got into conversation with Mr. Foster's neighbour, -with all the facility accorded by custom to social intercourse with -gentlemen of his profession, and after a few minutes Mr. Foster found -himself taking an interest in the conversation. It referred to the -physical and spiritual needs of the water-side population, and the man -spoke in a sensible and straightforward way, quite devoid of cant, -which pleased Mr. Foster, and was singularly at variance with his -appearance--that of the most conventional theatrical type, which one -is almost irresistibly tempted to associate with imposture and -hypocrisy. - -'I wonder,' said the woman, 'you are not afraid to go down into them -dens. What extraordinary sights you must see there!' - -'I see a great deal of poverty and suffering,' said the man, in a -marked Irish accent, 'but much less wickedness than people think for.' - -And he then proceeded to tell one or two stories of his experience of -that day, which had a very real ring about them, and which he related -with no affectation, self-seeking, or technical phraseology. Probably -he had observed that the gentleman who had made way for him was taking -an interest in the conversation, for he shifted his position, in which -he had previously had his shoulder turned towards Mr. Foster, for one -which placed him straight between his two neighbours, his shoulders -against the rail of the bench, and his bent head on his breast. There -was occasionally the slightest possible glance of the strange-looking -eyes, from under the magnifying spectacles, in the direction of Mr. -Foster's attentive and sympathising face. - -'May I ask if you have seen much of this sort of thing?' said Mr. -Foster, when the speaker came to a pause, and the kindly woman on his -other side was unaffectedly wiping from her eyes tears of compassion -evoked by his story of a scene which the narrator had that morning -witnessed at a certain 'rookery,' as he called it. - -'O yes; my life has passed among such scenes,' said the man. - -'Do you get used to them?' asked Mr. Foster. - -'In a certain sense, of course I do; as a surgeon gets used to the -sight of pain, and a judge to the presence of criminals; but if you -mean do I leave off feeling them, do the individual cases become -merged in the general, no, certainly not. And, sir,' said the man, now -turning decidedly towards Mr. Foster, but propping his arm on his -knee, and covering with his hand the end of his nose and the upper -lip, already sufficiently hidden by his straight black moustache, -which shaded his teeth and mingled with the hair of the beard, 'mine -is a life which has its consolations as well as its duties. I see a -great deal of misery, vice, sickness, cruelty, and injustice, but I -see a great deal of charity too. I am made the channel through which -not a little of it flows. Are you familiar with Liverpool?' - -'No,' said Mr. Foster; 'I never was here until yesterday, having -merely passed through when I came from New York, and I am going back -to town to-morrow morning, and should have gone to-night if I hadn't -over-stayed my time in sight-seeing, and run myself late for the -train.' - -'Among the sights you have seen,' said the man with the spectacles, -'had the low quarters of Liverpool and their inhabitants any place?' - -'O no,' said Mr. Foster. 'I had not time for anything of that -kind--just to get a look at the surface was all I have been able to -do; besides, one never sees anything of that sort in reality, I fancy, -if one goes loafing into it as a casual stranger; one must go round -with the police to get any real insight into the life of such places.' - -'Do you think so?' said the man, in a remonstrating tone. 'Did you -ever try ta get a look into the lives of the poor and the dangerous -classes in the company of their friends, for they have friends, rather -than in that of their enemies?' - -'No,' said Mr. Foster; 'the idea never occurred to me; indeed, I am -sorry to say, I am such a busy man, that I have hardly ever seen -anything of that sort, even at home. I am afraid I have been rather -remiss,' he continued, with a cordial frankness, which was one of his -pleasant peculiarities; 'too easily satisfied with giving a little -money now and then, which I can readily spare, and shielding my own -feelings from the sight of poverty, which we are all ready to talk -about and depute other people to relieve.' - -At this point in the conversation the brief crossing came to an end, -and the two men stepped off the ferry-boat together. He whom we may -call for convenience the stranger scrupulously assisted the woman and -her cumbersome basket--an act of politeness which he accomplished with -not a little difficulty, as it appeared he also had a parcel to carry. -As the ferry touched the landing-stage, he stooped down and picked up -from under the bench, where he had placed it unnoticed by either of -his temporary companions, a good-sized package, rather neatly done up -in tarpaulin. - -Mr. Foster was the first to step off the ferry, and he and the -stranger stood for a moment outside, while the latter relinquished her -basket to the woman, who took a civil leave of both, and then waited, -as if supposing that the sentence addressed to him was incomplete. - -'I beg your pardon,' he said, as if expecting Mr. Foster to resume it; -'I thought you asked me a question.' - -'I did not,' said Mr. Foster; 'but may I now ask you if your day's -work is done?' - -The first smile which had appeared upon the face of the stranger -crossed it now, but it was instantly controlled, and had been almost -imperceptibly brief. 'O dear, no,' he replied, giving the parcel which -he had tucked under his arm a significant squeeze; 'I am on an errand -to one of the poorest places in all Liverpool--a rookery down near the -landing-stage--and I am taking some clothes there which have just been -given me for the purpose for a woman and two children, who are lying -on old sacks under a piece of old sail-cloth, because the mother has -no clothes in which she can go and beg for work. That was not a case -in which to wait for to-morrow, so I went and begged the clothes from -some people I know at Birkenhead, and I am going down there direct.' - -They had walked on a few steps, but the stranger stood still now, as -if expecting--several places branching off here--the gentleman would -take leave of him. In that moment of waiting he had an indescribable -look of suspicion: the nostrils expanded and closed, the dark -complexion paled slightly, and the fingers of one hand clenched -themselves. It was only for a second, though; the next Mr. Foster -spoke: - -'I suppose the place you're going to is quite a representative den?' -he said. 'Would you mind taking me with you--I should like to see it, -and I should like to help a little through you, who know these poor -people? I suppose it isn't very far? But of course it is not, down by -the landing-stage. I should hardly have thought there were dens of -that kind down there in the region of the great wharves and -warehouses.' - -'That's just where they swarm,' said the stranger in a bold tone of -assertion, 'as you will see' (he stepped out briskly as he spoke). 'I -will show you several as we go down to the one my business lies in.' - -The night had fallen rapidly; there was no moon, and though the stars -were coming out, there was a considerable drift of cloud, so that the -sky was gloomy. As the two men walked side by side along the lighted -streets, Mr. Foster found himself occasionally outstripping his -companion, with whom he was talking familiarly, not exclusively upon -topics which had previously engaged them, but with reference to the -aspect of Liverpool. On each occasion of the kind he apologised; on -the first the stranger complained of a slight lameness, which -prevented his keeping up with the alert step of the strange gentleman. - -The slowness and the slouchingness of his gait certainly did not -decrease during their long walk; their progress was tediously slow; -and Mr. Foster would probably have been surprised at the lateness of -the hour, had it occurred to him to think about it. - -The city was settling down into the silence produced by the general -evacuation of its business quarters before that walk commenced. By the -time the two turned on Water-street--along the great line of the -warehouses past which the sailor who had been Mr. Foster's -fellow-traveller from London on the previous day had taken his way the -night before--that part of Liverpool was as silent as the City of -London at midnight. It presented somewhat of a similar aspect, from a -picturesque point of view, of a great centre of wealth and business in -isolation and inaction. With this aspect of London Mr. Foster was well -acquainted. One of the sights and sensations he had procured for -himself some time before was 'the City'--properly so called--when -nobody is in it; and Liverpool was now affording him a similar study; -but the locality was entirely new, and very shortly Mr. Foster was -quite bewildered, and had lost all notion of where he was. Out there -lay the river, on the other side of the town, and the great buildings -stretched endlessly under the frowning sky, like a giant wall between -him and its life. - -They had passed along innumerable immense blocks of building, -profoundly still, when they reached one where there was a kind of yard -surrounded on three sides with high walls, pierced with many windows. -The fore wall forming the front was considerably lower than the other -three, and in one corner was a door standing ajar, and kept from -closing by a stone; the aperture was very slight, and the probability -of any passer-by, previously unacquainted with the locality, -perceiving that the door was unfastened was exceedingly small. As the -two passed it, Mr. Foster, who was on the inner side, would not have -been the least aware of the fact, had not his companion stretched his -arm across him and pushed the door wide open. - -'This is the rookery,' said the stranger, having checked Mr. Foster's -steps by the movement of his arm, and stopped with suddenness which -took him by surprise; 'clean and quiet as it looks outside, it swarms -like a London court.' - -Mr. Foster stepped back on the pathway for a moment, while his -companion crossed the threshold, and expressed some astonishment at no -light being visible. - -'They are all at the back,' replied the man, as he kicked away the -stone and held the door for Mr. Foster to pass through. He did so, and -it was shut behind him. 'Follow me,' said the stranger; 'the door into -the house is in an opposite corner, and the stairs are dark till you -get to the first landing--mind the step.' - -Mr. Foster followed him in silence, and they passed through the narrow -door into the flagged passage, from which a steep and narrow -staircase, with an iron railing, led to a square landing at some -height above them. Still there was no light, except a feeble glimmer -emitted from the window above the landing. When they had mounted the -staircase so far, and could see each other's faces by the feeble -light, Mr. Foster remarked: - -'There cannot be any rooks here tonight--there is no cawing.' - -It was not, perhaps, any feeling so decided as distrust which lent a -peculiar tone to his voice, but it was certainly discomfort. - -'I beg your pardon,' said the man; 'I didn't catch what you said,' and -he drew quite close to him on the narrow landing, from which a second -flight of steep stairs went up. - -Mr. Foster repeated the sentence. 'There cannot be any rooks here -to-night--there is no cawing;' and had hardly uttered it when the man -pushed him into the angle of the wall on which the little ray of light -fell obliquely, and stabbed him to the heart! Stabbed him with a hand -so sure, with a thrust so steady, with a blade so keen, with an aim so -precise, that he only groaned and sank down dead when the hand which -pressed him back, the hilt of the weapon within it, was withdrawn. - -Then the murderer, making one cautious step backward, which just -withdrew him beyond the reach of the outstretched feet, as the dead -man dropped into a heap in the corner, lighted an inch of wax candle -which he took from his pocket, and, standing well away from the blood -which soaked through the dead man's clothes, welling upwards from the -wound, but neither spurting nor dropping, for it was all caught in the -folds of the waistcoat and the shirt, stooped over him and closely -examined the features, without touching the body. The examination, -prolonged until the fixity of death had gripped every feature, and the -film of death had covered the wide-open eyes, was perfectly -satisfactory. - -This ascertained, the murderer, standing at the full length of his arm -from the dead man, slowly and carefully withdrew the weapon, and -placing it on his victim's lap, proceeded to search the breast-pocket -from which he had seen a note-book peeping out. He found the -note-book, and, after a hasty glance at its contents, transferred it, -taking care that it received no stain of blood, to his own pocket; but -his rifling of the dead stopped there, with one trifling exception. -There was a handkerchief in the same pocket with the note-book, marked -in initials which did not correspond with Mr. Foster's name; this he -took possession of. - -There was no hurry, there was no tremor, there was not a moment's -uncertainty, there was not an undecided movement throughout the whole -of these proceedings. This man and his victim might have been alone in -the universe for any trace of haste or fear of detection which he -displayed. His face was motionless, his lips were still, there was no -hurried breathing, no muttered words, as he minutely inspected his own -clothes and hands. His precautions had been eminently successful; -there was no stain on either. - -The landing was narrow, the space was small, and for his next -operation the murderer required a little more room. Mr. Foster had -fallen completely in the angle of the wall, and when the body slipped -down, the feet projected almost to the top of the lower stair. The -murderer took hold of these feet and gently pushed them towards the -wall, so as to leave himself more space; he had deposited his bundle -on the second step of the upper stair, and he left it undisturbed -while he divested himself of every article of clothing except his -shirt, and folded them up into a neat roll, corresponding in size with -that enclosed in the tarpaulin covering. - -This done, he took off his black wig, beard, and moustaches, placed -them in the centre of the roll, and proceeded to unpack the bundle. It -contained a suit of sailors clothes, including a blue shirt, a red -wig, and a red beard. These were very carefully constructed, and he -assumed them without any difficulty. He then put on the sailor's dress -complete, wrapped his white shirt round the clothes he had taken off, -and sitting down on the topmost step of the lower stair, with the dead -man's feet within a foot of his elbow, sewed up the second bundle in -the tarpaulin cover which had enclosed the first, by the aid of a -packing-needle and a piece of twine which he took with him ready in -his trousers pocket. - -This done, he stood up and stood still for two clear minutes, mentally -recapitulating the precautions he had just taken, and comparing them -with the programme he had arranged. He had omitted nothing, he was -quite satisfied; so he put his bundle under his arm, blew out the -scrap of candle, and without a glance in the direction in which the -dead man lay in a mass rapidly becoming indistinguishable in the -darkness, almost groped his way down the stairs, passed out of the -door, crossed the yard noiselessly, and noiselessly pushing back the -bolt of the outer gate, emerged from it just as a policeman on his -beat had reached the second block of building above it, and was safe -not to observe him. - -The sailor strolled leisurely down to the landing-stage. If any one -had met him, it would have been impossible to mistake his character of -houseless, companionless, foreign sailor; but no one did meet him, and -a few minutes' keen inspection of the lonely scene satisfied him that -the opportunity for the last precaution to be taken with success was -there. He advanced to the edge of the stage, and leaning against one -of the iron posts which supported the boundary chain, he slowly -dropped the parcel with its tarpaulin covering into the river. Even to -his impassiveness, to his almost incredible indifference of manner, -the finality of this act seemed to be a relief. He straightened his -figure, drew a deep breath, stretched his arms out to their full -length, and brought them down by his sides, and after standing for a -few minutes, with a straight look-out seawards, he turned away, and -keeping the side of the road which borders the landing-stage, avoiding -on this occasion the shade of the great warehouses, he took his way -towards the tramps' quarters where he had passed the previous night. - -On his road he passed a trough provided for the watering of cattle on -their way from shipment. A lamp stood near, so that, though the -darkness of the night had increased, there was light on that spot. The -sailor took his cap off, pulled up the sleeves of his jersey, and -pumped a quantity of water over his head and face. This done, he once -more inspected the premises, and finding himself perfectly free from -any danger of observation, he took off his shoes and examined his feet -by the gaslight. It was as he supposed. There were traces of blood -upon them, but it had dried before he had put on his stockings, so -that no tell-tale marks had extended to them. He swung himself up on -the side of the trough, and carefully washed first one foot, then the -other; after which he sat swinging them in the air until they were -perfectly dry, when he resumed his shoes and stockings, and again went -on his way. - -The lodging-house was even more crowded than it had been on the -previous night, and the proprietor was more drunk and less -accommodating. A couple of dirty sacks on the landing, outside the -wretched dormitory, was all that the sailor could procure by way of a -bed; and when he asked for a pillow, he was told that he might roll up -his clothes, and use them for that purpose--they hadn't got no -pillows--advice which was accompanied by a coarse jest at the -luxuriousness of his requirements, and which was overheard by one of -the men whose efforts at conversation the sailor had met, on the -previous night, with sullen moroseness. - -'Pillow,' said this man; 'what do you want with a pillow? Where's that -'ere bundle you were so particular about last night? One would think -it was stuffed with diamonds, you was so fond of it.' - -'I've been robbed of it,' replied the man, with an oath. 'Worse luck.' - -'Well, you weren't robbed of it here,' said the proprietor of the -establishment. - -'No, that you weren't, Tom Summers,' struck in his neighbour; 'we -ain't fine gentlemen here as are above being spoken to, but we're on -the square, and pals is safe with us.' With which testimony to the -virtues of the company, and protest against the surliness of the -new-comer, this gentleman turned on his bed of sacking and went to -sleep. - -And so the night wore on in Liverpool, and the dawn brightened over -the fair ship with her happy and hopeful company out at sea, and over -the stark figure of the dead man who lay with wide-open eyes upon the -landing of the great warehouse, where many hurrying feet would shortly -be arrested beside him in horror at the fate of the unknown, unclaimed -stranger. - - - - -CHAPTER III. -HELEN'S JOURNAL. - - -Sitting down this morning to make a beginning towards the fulfilment -of my promise to my husband, I ask myself if I am indeed the same -person as I was when he left me. It seems to me that a great gulf lies -between me and that time, and that the experience which I have gained -of human nature and of the possibilities of life has completely -changed me. With all the relief which the absence of Alston's friend -has given me there is a great pang of pain for Alston himself, and a -horrid sense of a barrier of concealment between us. I have allowed -so many days to elapse before I force myself into commencing this -self-communing, in sheer uncertainty of what my line of duty is, and -though I am now tolerably clearly convinced that neither now nor ever -must I reveal to Alston what has passed, the conviction invests my -task of writing to him with great pain and difficulty. Somehow we seem -to be doubly parted; first by distance, then by secret. Will this -additional sense of parting yield even to his return? How shall I bear -to see him take up his relations with Warren just where he dropped -them, and to know, as I do know, how his confidence is betrayed? Not -in business matters, I daresay; so far as I understand anything about -them, there is no likelihood that Alston's interests and Warren's -could ever clash, and so far he is safe. It would do my husband such -harm in every way to know what has occurred; his own frankness and -loyalty of nature could hardly withstand so great a shock; the world -would be changed for him. No, he shall never know it; I will trust to -the chapter of accidents, or rather, I should say, to the beneficence -of Providence, to preserve us harmless from his false friend. - -But my journal, to which he looked forward with such pleasure, and -which I determined should be so frank and free and full a record of my -life, telling it all out to him in so far as one human heart can break -the bar of its solitude in words to another--what has become of that? -To keep any freshness and any truth in it at all, I must make this -record of what has passed for myself, waiting it indeed, but laying it -by as a thing that is done with--as a chronicle of the truth for -reference, for precisely that which must not be brought into my -letters to Alston is that relief for the feelings and the fears which -must be hidden from him. What are these fears? How often I ask myself -that question, and I never find an answer! The man has gone; not alone -has he pledged his word--he could hardly expect me to set much store -by that; but he knows it is for his own interest, for his own safety, -for the future preservation of the good relations between him and -Alston, which, false as all pretext to friendship is on his part, are, -nevertheless, valuable to him, that he should keep his promise to -me--that he should remain away; that he should never attempt to see me -or to communicate with me while I am alone. A thousand times a day I -tell myself this; I strive to feel my freedom; I recall the oppression -of his presence: I remember my dislike to him long before I knew the -secret unconscious origin it had; and I ask myself why I do not exult, -why I am not able to bear with more than composure anything which has -led to such an emancipation? But it is not so. The presence of the -enemy seems to hem me in, an evil influence is in the air I breathe; -no effort frees me from this morbid terror, of which I am half -ashamed, while I write this secret record no eyes but my own are ever -to see. How cleverly, how skilfully this man has carried out this -sudden and complete change of all his plans; how reasonably he seems -to have accounted for leaving New York! No one seems surprised, and I -am quite certain not the slightest shade of suspicion that his -departure is of any consequence to me has presented itself to the mind -of any of our common acquaintance, though the close tie between him -and Alston is perfectly well known. It is just this power, this -influence over others, which makes me so afraid of him even now. What -if on Alston's return he took some other means of alienating him from -me! The feminine inferiority, the absence of a power of understanding -business matters, will serve him no longer: he won't try to revive -that theory when Alston returns; he shall find that I have -administered every affair which he left in my charge too well to be -set down as an incapable for the future; but he may try a more subtle -means. I believe the love of a man like Warren is half passion, half -hatred, and that the hatred swallows up the passion when it is -effectually checked. Whence that notion has come to me, I know not, -but it has come, and with it a fear of this man's hatred, greater, if -possible, than my horror of his love. - -There, I have recorded it, and now I will try to turn my mind from -it--I will try to write to Alston a cheery letter, a pious fraud. - - -When you told me, dearest Alston, that my letters were to take the -form of a journal, I remember thinking of the passage in our pet book, -the _Vicar of Wakefield_, in which Dr. Primrose describes the -vicissitudes of primroses' existence, and summoning them up in -migrations from the blue bed to the brown. My journal, if I keep it at -all within the actual sense of the term, would record nothing more -strange or exciting. I migrate from the nursery to the parlour, from -the parlour to the park, from the park to the nursery; but my chief -sojourn is in the latter place. I never could have imagined that a -baby could give one so much to do, even when one is assisted, as I am, -by the most capable of nurses, concerning whom I have a lot to tell -you presently; neither could I have believed that a baby could be so -interesting. We made up our minds, you remember, that we were not -going to plague our neighbours, and make fools of ourselves, by -advancing the claims of this remarkable infant to be quite the finest, -the most intelligent, and the most precocious that ever existed. -Bearing this resolution in mind, I endeavoured to be a very rational -mother, but I protest, quite genially, that I do not want any society -except baby's, until the kind Fates send me that of baby's papa. - -The child has become so strong and healthy that I am no longer in the -least uneasy about her; therefore she is a pure unmitigated pleasure -to me; and the real truth is that if I am to tell you all about my -daily life, I fear you will suffer from the plethora of baby. Of -course, I read and work, and visit and receive some people -sometimes--not many and not often; and, of course, I get out and do -some shopping. I bought the loveliest pelisse, yesterday, that ever -was seen out of Paris, and I believe it came from there; and then, -again, even shopping has come to mean baby--the pelisse was for her, -not for me. I play the piano, sometimes, a little--nurse says baby is -beginning to take notice of music. But after all this is not my life, -you know; it is only the outside of it, and one shell is very like -another. - -Of course I miss you frightfully, more and more every day, but I do -not feel helpless. I made up my mind, you know, that I never would -yield to that helpless feeling, from which I have seen so many women -suffer who are guarded as I am by the care and love and generosity of -good men, from every trouble from which one human being can shield -another, and so I have kept my promise made to myself. When there is -anything to make up my mind about, I make up my mind promptly; when -there is anything to do, I do it at once, to the best of my ability; -if I make mistakes I don't fret over them, but I think I shall manage -them better next time, and I don't get discouraged. I daresay I shall -see in the end how very good for me this parting between us proved. -Don't suppose I am going back upon what you laughed at me for, and -called my jealous susceptibility. I have got over all that, but I -really am going to say that you will find me ever so much more useful, -ever so much more of a companion; because I shall have had this little -interval for exercising my judgment as well as my taste, for exerting -my discretion as well as gratifying my fancies. Hitherto, your -indulgence and affection have limited me to the less useful and less -strengthening of these processes; so when you come home, dearest -Alston, you will have to tell me all about business, and you will find -I shall understand it quite as well, and take quite as much pleasure -in it, as in our old discussions on books and music and pictures and -acting. - -Writing that word 'acting' reminds me of our baby's new nurse--rather -an inconsequent style of writing this, you will perhaps say, for a -woman who is claiming a newly-developed talent for business; but it is -what you asked for. Baby's nurse is the oddest woman, and such a -treasure! I will tell you how she came to me, and really it is not out -of proportion, for it was certainly the most striking event in my life -since you left me. She came in answer to my advertisement--she was the -first candidate, her name is Bessie Jenkins, her husband is somewhere -in the Western States. They had misfortunes, and were obliged to part -for a while, like ourselves. I suppose it was that likeness in -unlikeness which attracted me towards the good woman from the first. -She spoke with a hearty love and a hearty sorrow of her absent husband -and her dead baby, only a day or two dead when she came to me, and I -shall never forget her face when she took our little Mary in her arms, -and saw how delicate the child was. The very way she said: 'This won't -do you don't understand babies, ma'am;' put aside the food which -Jessie and I had been messing up unskilfully; and made some mysterious -alterations in the way the child's clothes were put on, made me feel -that the right person had been sent to me. Dr. Clark just looked at -her and said, 'She will do; make sure of her, Mrs. Griswold;' and I -asked her if she could come to me at once--if she could stay that very -night; she said she would, and went and fetched her things on the -spot. - -We are quite friends--we were from the beginning--and she takes almost -as much care of me as of little Mary; even that she does cleverly, and -has avoided making any jealousy or confusion in the house, which was -just what I dreaded, you know, when the doctor told me I must have a -nurse. Mrs. Jenkins is a good-looking woman, tall, large, active, with -a very fair skin, and fine, honest, gray eyes. She says she does not -know exactly how old she is, and I believe her--she looks about -five-and-twenty; she is very well spoken for a woman of her class, and -not at all ignorant. We have long talks in the nursery and in our -drives--for I never go out without nurse and baby; it is so horribly -dull to drive out alone; and I find I learn a good deal from her about -the realities of life as they exist for women who have not been taken -the care of that you have taken of me. - -After all, dearest Alston, what a very little bit of trouble I have -known in my life--just those dark days when poor papa's affairs went -badly, and you came and brightened them up with that blessed, steady -light which has shone on all my pathway since. Why are people's -history so different? Is mine to be always an exception? Some time -before you left me, and when I was much less thoughtful than I am now, -I have occasionally felt afraid that I was too happy; there seemed -such deep peace, of such settled certainty, in our lives. I hardly -understand all the talk in books and in speech about the turbulence -and the transitoriness and the perpetual change which mark human -existence all over the world; while your absence has taken away that -deep tranquillity, it has not touched, of course, the real happiness -of my life. I would not have you think me discontented, and, perhaps, -this little shake is good for me--will be good for us both. This is a -lesson which Mrs. Jenkins, in her good, quiet, homely, honest way, -impresses on me very often. It does one good to see a person who has -had plenty of trouble of a sternly material kind, as well as a great -sorrow, bear them with the ready submission and cheerful courage of -this poor woman; and many a time when I see her with our baby in her -arms and at her breast, where her dead child once lay, I ask myself -how I should have faced such a life as hers. - -I have said before that we are great friends; she has formed a really -strong affection for me--it is like the kind of thing one hears about -the Irish people in old times. I fancy she would not shrink from any -sacrifice for me. She is extremely curious about you, and never tired -of hearing me tell how I came to know you first, and the story of my -girlhood; and I talk to her about all these things; so you will have -no difficulty in believing that our new nurse is an exceptional -person, and that, though she is homely in speech and manner, there is -no real inferiority in her. Don't laugh at me when I say that I am -quite sure you and she will be great friends. There is, at least, one -very strong bond of union between you: Mrs. Jenkins has a ruling -passion--it is for the drama. I found that out very soon. - -You know we agreed that the nursery was to be made into a very pretty -and cheerful room, so that baby's nurse, if we had the good fortune to -find a good one, should be thoroughly comfortable, and feel herself at -home. Looking about through the house for such things as I could spare -to ornament her domain, on the day after Mrs. Jenkins's arrival, I -came upon a lot of photographs in a drawer in the study--they were -likenesses of all the actors and actresses whom, I verily believe, you -have seen in the whole course of your life. I had no notion you had -such a collection; and you need not be frightened, I have not deprived -you of them, I have only taken such as have duplicates--there are a -good many. I put them all into the photograph-book which belonged to -me when I was a girl, and made it over for nursery use. Who knows how -soon Mrs. Jenkins will find out that her wonderful nurseling takes -notice of pictures as well as of music? Two or three days after, I -asked her if she liked her rooms, if she was quite comfortable, and so -forth. She replied, with great delight, that she had never been so -comfortable in her life, and expressed peculiar pleasure at finding -some pictures about. I found she had been eagerly investigating the -contents of the photograph-book, and she surprised me not a little by -running glibly over the names of all the portraits. As I hadn't -written them in--for one very good reason among others, that I had no -notion of who are represented by several of their numbers--I could not -understand how she came to know who all these theatrical ladies and -gentlemen were. It came out then; the theatre is a celestial vision to -Mrs. Jenkins; to see a play is the greatest enjoyment of which she is -capable. - -She says that she knows a good play from a bad one as well as any one -in the world, and is a first-rate judge of acting; but she would much -rather see a bad play than none at all, which I take as a mark of -enthusiasm, if true, that does not justify much faith in her critical -faculty. I think she knows every play that has been produced in New -York in her time. If she hasn't seen she has read them; she knows all -about the 'castes,' as she calls it, is a perfect chronicle of the -successes and the failures of the actors and actresses who have come -here from London and Paris, and has, among her possessions, a huge -scrap-book, of which she is inordinately proud, crammed with newspaper -critiques, squibs, old playbills, and gaudy woodcuts, which represent -her prime favourites as it is devoutly to be hoped they never did -appear upon any stage. Mrs. Jenkins is not an American by birth; she -was born in Hampshire and reared in London; and though she has been in -America since her fifteenth year, she seems to have enjoyed a good -deal of her favourite amusement even at that early age. I am, however, -positive that she was never employed in any capacity in connection -with the stage herself, if only because she speaks of the fact with -considerable regret. - -One portrait in the photograph-book has so special an attraction for -her, that I took it out and put it in a little upright frame, which -she keeps on her dressing-table. This slight act of kindness has, it -appears, particularly touched her heart; and yesterday, when I -mentioned that I should be despatching my letter to you this morning, -she begged me to ask you to be sure and go to see the original of this -beloved portrait, a certain Miss Clara Montressor, who is at present -playing at one of the London theatres. The theatre in question is -called the Thespian; you may perhaps know it, but I am so deplorably -ignorant of such matters that I really do not know whether I am -talking to you of a first-rate or a fifth-rate establishment. I -disguised my ignorance, for Mrs. Jenkins's harmless enthusiasm and -true believership amuses me so much that I would not snub her for the -world; and when she assured me that she has heard tell that Miss Clara -Montressor is quite the finest actress in existence, I did not allow -her to perceive that I had never heard Miss Clara Montressor's name. -If you can at all conveniently get anywhere near to confirming Mrs. -Jenkins's belief, pray do so; at all events, let your reply to this -contain an assurance that you have beheld the prodigy. I should not -like baby's nurse to be prejudiced against baby's papa by supposing -that he could be in London without seeing Miss Clara Montressor and -appreciating the advantage as it deserves. - -This young lady is one craze; but Mrs. Jenkins has another, rather an -abstract one, for she has never seen its object, who is no less a -person than the famous actor, Bryan Duval. She has followed his career -with most amusing zeal, and has told me all about his best characters -and his peculiar points, until I feel that he too is an old -acquaintance. How heartily you would have laughed if you could have -been present, unseen, at baby's bedtime yesterday! I had just heard a -piece of information which I knew would be productive of unbounded -delight to Mrs. Jenkins, and I took that favourable opportunity, when -she is always thoroughly disposed for a chat, to tell her about it. -She had been rather low all day--she sometimes is, I observe, when she -gets a letter from her husband (he is not like you, Alston, though she -loves him)--and I knew I should cheer her up by telling her, what no -doubt you know as well as we know it here, that Bryan Duval is coming -to New York. You never saw anything so absurd as her delight, which -appeared to be thoroughly shared by baby, judging by the kicking and -crowing of that young lady in consequence of the additional dangling -and tossing which her nurse bestowed upon her in her pleasure. I told -her not only that she could go to see him, but that she might -accompany me--we can manage to put baby in commission for that little -time--and I even hinted at the possibility of her unknown idol -presenting himself in the flesh at our house. I suppose you will have -made this gentleman's acquaintance in London; do be sure and tell me -if so, and whether he is really the very charming man in society which -he has the name of being here. Mrs. Sinclair said, in speaking of him -to-day, that he was one of the very few great actors whom it did to -know off the stage, but that he was thoroughly satisfactory. 'So -unlike either authors or painters, you know,' added Mrs. Sinclair, in -that bored manner of hers; 'they never do, dear, out of print and off -canvas; but Bryan Duval is charming!' Charming doesn't mean very much, -for every one says it, and everybody means by it something different -from what everybody else means. If you say Bryan Duval is 'charming,' -I shall know the value of the verdict, and be quite sure that I shall -find him so, for of course we shall know him here, whether you have -made his acquaintance in London or not. If you have, dear Alston, give -him a letter of introduction to me, for I really think I am slightly -bitten by the popular enthusiasm, and though I cannot say, like Mrs. -Sinclair, that I am 'dying to know him,' it would be very pleasant, -and I should at once call upon his wife, of whom I have heard a great -deal. - -I have nothing particularly interesting to communicate respecting -household affairs; everything is going on very well and very quietly. -Of course, my dearest Alston, you will expect that this letter should -contain some reference to the commission with which you charged Mr. -Warren on the day of your departure, and which he immediately -fulfilled. Will you pardon me if I make my reference to it a brief one -in proportion to its importance and to the large share which I know it -has had in your thoughts? Our parting is too new, the sense of its -inevitable duration weighs too heavily upon me. I am obliged to set my -face too steadfastly to overcome the nervousness, the anxiety, and the -loneliness involved in dwelling upon it to admit of my saying all that -I feel, or even any part of it, with regard to the contents of the -letter which your friend handed to me. If I said all, if I said any, -it would come to the same thing--that letter is like you, Alston; it -is an absolute fulfilment, a complete realisation of the estimate -which I have formed of you. If by any horrible decree of Fate the -occasion should ever arise on which it would be my doom and my duty to -act upon the instructions, and to carry out the provisions, contained -in that letter, I should do so with a proud and full sense that they -are worthy of you, that they are such last words, such last -instructions, as, if I could have chosen, I should have asked of you. -And now I must pass away from this subject. I am unequal to saying -more about it. When I can say what I have felt, with my head on your -shoulder and my hand in yours, you will know what the receipt and the -reading of that letter was to me. The other commission with which you -charged Mr. Warren, I fear, I received in a different spirit--one -which made it difficult for me to bow my own will completely to yours, -to substitute your judgment unrepiningly for my own. Happily no -occasion has yet arisen to oblige me to have recourse to Mr. Warren's -advice or assistance. I have needed neither. All external matters, -with which alone he could have any concern, have passed along very -smoothly, nor can I, at present, foresee any possible contingency in -which it would be necessary for me to apply to him; should any such -arise, you may rest assured that I shall strictly conform to your -instructions. It was rather hard for me, my dear husband, to be told -by that one friend of yours, concerning whom we are not entirely of -one opinion, that my letters to you were to pass through his hands. -Did I not know that you are quite above such a futile and foolish -exercise of power, such experimenting in the pliability of the human -will, had we not often discussed the contemptible folly of the patient -Griselda, and quite made up our minds as to what we thought of -Geraint, I might have supposed for a moment that you had imposed this -restriction upon me as a sort of test, as well as a significant hint -to me that thus far and no farther I might go in our domestic -relations. I might have thought you meant to say, 'I like Warren, you -don't; you will have to give in to my liking.' This would have been a -calculation and an act of a domestic tyrant; therefore an -impossibility to you. I accept the restriction in a perfectly frank -and candid spirit, and absolute loyalty towards you. Some day you will -perhaps tell me--when you find that I am capable of being more of a -companion to you than I have hitherto been--what is the precise nature -of your present business, and the exact character of the complication -which has rendered it necessary that my letters should not go direct -from your own house in New York to your own address in London; and I -have no doubt that I shall entirely recognise the force of the reason. -If, however, you should never tell me, if for any reason conceivable -or unconceivable by me it should remain impossible for you to confide -this to me, I shall be perfectly satisfied that the motive not to be -explained is one which does no discredit to you, and is wholly -uninfluenced with any slight to me. And now, dear Alston, I pass from -the subject either for ever or until such time as you choose to resume -it. I wonder if you will be provoked with my pertinacity if I tell you -that I have discovered that Mr. Warren has very few such partial -friends as you are. The fact is, he is not much liked by men, and he -is, generally speaking, as much disliked by their wives as he is by -me. I think no polish of manner, no external surface, brightness, or -gallantry of that kind which, when looked into by a keen-eyed woman, -is much more insulting than complimentary, has ever enabled him to -conceal from women in general the sentiment which all right-minded -women must resent, and which would render neglect, even rudeness, from -Mr. Warren, the most acceptable line of treatment he could adopt -towards a woman. Mrs. Sinclair was talking of him yesterday. I did not -introduce the subject, and I kept my own opinion to myself. I should -regard it as a kind of side wind of disloyalty to you, my dearest, if -I allowed anybody but yourself to know the difference that exists -between us on that point, to suspect that your friend was not my -friend. Mrs. Sinclair spoke of him pretty roundly, and saying a great -many things which were untrue, I daresay, she said one in which I -believed. It was that Mr. Warren was, in her opinion, an unsafe friend -and an exceedingly dangerous enemy. I pray that we may never have him -for an enemy! I wish to God, and with a growing earnestness, that we -had never had him for a friend! - -At this point in my letter, dearest Alston, I was interrupted by a -visit, and now I fear that I shall have to finish this up hurriedly in -time for the mail. My unexpected visitor was Thornton Carey. He sat -with me a long time. I didn't like to hint to him that his coming was -a little imprudent, in one sense, as curtailing my time for writing to -you--that, however, I can take up again; in another sense, his visit -was exceedingly apropos. You will be delighted to hear how admirably -your generous intentions towards him have been realised. Can I ever -thank you sufficiently for all you have done for him, indeed for every -one dear to me, from my father to the merest acquaintance whom I have -ever recommended to your good offices? Thornton looks remarkably well, -and so far from complaining of hard work in his new office, he says he -hasn't half enough to do but judging from the account he gave me of -his duties, I should say most men would consider they had a tolerably -fair share of labour and responsibility in his post of librarian at -New Orleans. He has taken to his occupation with enthusiasm; in that -respect (only) he reminded me very strongly of Tom Pinch, when he set -to work so vehemently about making a catalogue of his unknown -employer's books in the Temple chambers. He seems to have grown fond -of the very outside of his charge; and when we were talking of our -childish days together, and I reminded him of the awful quarrel we had -because he tore the red-and-gold cover of my _Arabian Nights_, he -regarded me with the most comical horror, as though I had suddenly dug -up and brought to light the corpse of a victim, and produced it in the -sight of its murderer, after the fashion of, 'You don't mean to say, -Helen,' he said, 'that even in my most cub-like and uncivilised days I -ever tore a book?' I laughed as I little thought I should ever laugh -during your absence; but I thought we were both very near tears -occasionally during our interview, for, of course, we talked of our -friendlessness until we respectively found the best of all friends in -you. I wonder if Thornton Carey has any chance of being a great man -some day--in his own studious scientific line, I mean? How nice it -would be if he did turn into a great man, and it was all your -doing--for so it would be! No man could work without tools; you have -put his into his hand. Do you know even I had no notion how hopeless -he was, how severely he felt the restriction of poverty, and that -narrow sphere from which there seemed no chance of escape, until you -opened the barrier with the golden key? I suppose I understand most -things better now; and though I always felt very much for him, and had -a dim notion that he was a case of what I have heard you call 'wasted -force,' I have only come to see it clearly since he has been talking -to me. - -How earnestly I thank you for all your goodness to my old friend! It -seems, he says, the most absurd of all possible ideas that he could -ever be able to express his feelings otherwise than by, or even by, -words. There is small chance that he should ever be able to prove his -gratitude or repay his obligation to you--not that he ever wishes it -ever to be repaid; I do believe him to be one of those few noble men -who can bear obligation nobly; but should the opportunity ever come, -he would snatch at it gladly. He said a great deal to me which I feel -I cannot repeat, partly because he would not like it, and partly -because you could not bear it. I never met any one who can so ill -endure to be thanked as you, my dear Alston. I have seen you carry -that sometimes to an almost ungracious extent. So when Thornton meets -you he will not try to thank you--he will leave that to me; you will -accept the substitute, won't you? - -We had one more laugh, he and I, before I had to send him away, in -order that I might get time just to finish this. It was over our -recollections of the time when we took great delight in the fable of -the Lion and the Mouse. He and I differed in opinion in those days--he -wanted to be the lion, I preferred being the mouse; we agreed just now -that Fate had turned us both into mice, and put the kindest of lions -in our way. May God keep him from any net, or any need of nibblers! - -Of course I am looking out very anxiously for all sorts of details -about your daily life. I should like to know that you are exceedingly -comfortable, very well looked after, and enjoying yourself when you -are not immersed in business; but I don't think I want to hear that -you like London very much, that you find the time flies, and that your -quarters are sufficiently snug to prevent your remembering home very -constantly, and missing me at every turn. This is not small-minded, is -it? And even if it were, you would not care, Alston, for it has -nothing to do with my mind, but everything to do with my heart. I do -not say, for my own part, - - - 'There is na luck about the house,' - - -but there is no joy, and there is a constant sense of waiting; -nothing seems particularly well worth doing, and my life, comfortable, -well-ordered, and not useless as it is, has established itself on a -very dead level. I am not going to mope, however, or to be -discontented, or anything but cheerful, than what you would have me, -until the time comes when the waiting will be over, and I can say, -once more, - - - 'His very foot has music in't - As he comes up the stair.' - - -And now I must shut this up, sealing it with a kiss from baby, and one -from your own HELEN. - - -Helen Griswold sealed her letter, placed it in a large envelope, on -which she wrote, with a strange shrinking repugnance, Trenton Warren's -New York address, despatched it by a special messenger to his office, -and went immediately to her child. A nervous flurry had come upon her -while writing the last lines of her letter, and it was only by a -determined struggle with herself that she kept off a passionate fit of -crying; but she put it down, and went into the nursery with a calm -face. This woman was growing apace. By what mysterious process? She -talked cheerfully to Mrs. Jenkins, and taking the baby, who was -sleepy, in her arms, rocked it to rest. The monotonous movement had a -quieting influence upon herself, and by degrees her cheerfulness was -restored. - -That night, when Helen Griswold was in her own room, she wrote for a -while in the private memorandum-book in which we have already seen her -record the circumstances which had given a double current and meaning -to her life. Having made a few cursory notes of the main points of her -letter to her husband, laying special stress upon the mention of -Trenton Warren, she went on to note in her duplicate chronicle the -principal event of the day--this was Thornton Carey's visit. - -'I wonder,' she wrote, 'why it is that a pure and unmitigated -pleasure, one totally unassociated with any pain, one perfectly free -from any drawback, should not avail to crush, at least for a time, the -oppressing pain and dread which has been troubling me of late. If I -have, as I believe I have, a relentless enemy in Trenton Warren, I -have a friend upon whose fidelity I may rely, whose love I can trust -with all my heart, and accept with all my conscience, to oppose to -him. My friend is a cleverer man than my enemy; he surpasses him by -all the distance which makes a gentleman to surpass a man who is not a -gentleman; his will is as steadfast; his courage is, or I am much -mistaken, far more high; of his devotion to me I have many years' -experience; of his devotion to Alston I have the guarantee of a nature -large enough and good enough to contain that great virtue, gratitude; -and yet there is no reassurance, there is no consolation, there is no -rest for me in all this knowledge. I don't think it would come, if -even I should tell Thornton what is in my heart; and that I could not -do! I could not bear that lie should know that such a profanation had -ever overtaken me as the avowal of this man's hideous love; the mere -remembrance of it seems to stain my soul, as it troubles my repose; it -has gotten into my life like a bad influence. When I awake in the -morning, I think not of Alston, but of Warren, and I welcome sleep -because it shuts out the hateful remembrance. I must shake this off, -or I shall turn the fancied evil into a real one, and give my own -fears their worst fulfilment.' - - - - -CHAPTER IV. -'SCOT FREE.' - - -On the morning after the murder, so much of the daylight as could -force its way through the begrimed glass, or greased paper acting as -substitute for absent glass, in the low window of the tramps' home -struggled in a shame-faced manner into the den, and faintly revealed -the prostrate forms of its inhabitants. - -Most of them were still asleep, but by one man there the advent of -that streak of light had been long and anxiously looked for. This was -the man dressed in sailor's clothes, whose dread proceedings on the -previous night have been at length recounted; he who was called Tom -Summers by those lying around him, and whose demand for a pillow, and -complaint of the loss of his bundle, had alternately roused their -scorn and mirth. - -As the first ray penetrated the room, Tom Summers cautiously withdrew -the arm which, during the night, he had kept drawn across his face, -and looked round him. So far as he could make out, none of his -companions were yet awake, and he availed himself of the opportunity -to take a small looking-glass from his pocket, and propping it against -the wall, he rapidly surveyed himself in it, pulling his red wig -further down over his face, and settling the red beard, which had -become shifted during the night. No stings of conscience, no -terrifying reminiscences of the foul deed which he had committed, -disturbed his rest; the strain upon his mental and bodily faculties -had been so great that he had slept heavily and soundly, without a -dream, without a movement. Even then, as he surveyed himself in the -little pocket glass, he felt his eyelids closing, the elbow on which -he leant giving way under him, and he felt more than half inclined to -drop down upon his side, and slumber again. - -It must not be! He had set himself the task of rousing with daylight, -and had fulfilled it, and he had too much to do to permit himself to -relapse into slumber; so, after indulging in one luxurious but silent -yawn and stretch, he pulled himself together by an effort, and -staggered to his feet. One or two of the sleepers in his immediate -neighbourhood, roused by the noise he made, cursed him roundly; but -beyond this no notice was taken of his proceedings. - -Tom Summers stepped quickly down the creaking, rickety staircase, at -the bottom of which he found the proprietor's 'deputy'--a -shock-headed, blear-eyed old man, who acted as the porter and boots of -the establishment; the daylight had not yet penetrated to this part of -the house, and the old man held a flaring tallow candle in his hand, -with which he surveyed the sailor. - -'O, it's you, Jack, is it?' he said, in a thin piping voice. 'I -thought it was some of the coves trying to come the double over me, -but you paid your shot last night--I saw you.' - -'Yes, yes, I paid last night,' repeated the sailor quickly. 'Open the -door, please, and let me out.' - -'Why, what's your hurry?' asked the old man, turning towards the hole -from which he had just emerged, and looking up at the old Dutch clock -which hung against the wall; 'it has only just gone five, and--' - -'I've got to join my ship,' said Summers, 'and I must be off at once. -Let me out, please.' - -The old man unlocked the door, and pulled it open by degrees. As soon -as there was space enough for him to pass, Tom Summers slipped by -without a word, and went limping up the court. The old man looked -after him with bent brows, muttering in a tone of great disgust: -'That's polite, any way--got to join your ship, have you? I tell you -what, my lad, I believe your ship is H.M. gunboat Crimp; and that as -soon as you get on board of her, there will be a muster of all hands -for punishment parade;' and grumbling thus, he returned to his den, -closing the door after him. - -Meanwhile Tom Summers, when he once found himself clear of the court, -turned his back on the water-side quarters, and made the best of his -way towards the Lime-street station. He still walked with an -apparently painful limp; he still shuffled along with his shoulder -almost rubbing against the wall; he looked like a sailor just -recovering from a bad illness, and as such he was compassionated at -the Lime-street station by an old woman, who gave him sixpence, and -offered him a pull at the black bottle in her wicker basket, telling -him, at the same time, that her son was at sea too, and on the west -coast of Africa; worse luck! - -It was for the parliamentary train to Chester, which was about to -start, that Tom Summers took a third-class ticket; and carefully -avoiding the carriage into which he watched his recent benefactress, -climbed into an empty compartment, and curling himself up into a -corner, scarcely waited for the starting of the train to fall asleep. -There was no chance of any particular notice being taken of him, for -scarcely a train left Lime-street which did not carry some liberty-men -from the great ships in the Mersey going inland for a few days' -furlough. There was no chance of his being carried beyond his -destination, for he had purposely selected a carriage which did not go -farther than Chester; he could enjoy the luxury of a long silent -sleep, and he did. Once he started forward and groaned, but on waking -suddenly he could recollect nothing more than that he had been -striking at something which disappeared beneath his blow; and once -more he put his feet upon the seat, and went to sleep again. - -By the time the slow-going train, which stopped at every station to -pick up and let out crowds of men and women, carrying baskets of -country produce, arrived at the Chester station, Tom Summers was -thoroughly rested. He stepped blithely out of the carriage, exchanged -a pleasant good-morning with the guard, and made straight for the -newspaper stall on which the bundle of Liverpool papers, only arriving -in time at Lime-street to be thrown into the van, were then being -unpacked. He bought a copy of each morning journal, and seating -himself on a neighbouring bench, turned one after the other inside -out, and rapidly ran his eye over their contents. Twice he passed the -morning journals thus in review before him, occasionally starting as -his eye caught certain paragraphs with sensation headings, but reading -rapidly on until he had perused the batch. Then, with a sigh of -relief, he rose and made his way to the cloak-room. To the porter who -was in attendance there in the absence of the general functionary, not -yet arrived, Tom Summers handed a printed ticket, immediately -receiving for it in exchange a small black bag. - -'Here is your kit. Jack,' remarked the porter, handing it to him. - -'My skipper's, not mine,' said Tom Summers; 'it's too fine for the -likes of me;' words which had a hidden humour apparently altogether -too much for the porter? who kept bursting into loud guffaws of -laughter long after Tom Summers had left him. - -With the small bag swinging upon his hand, Tom Summers walked past the -Queen's Hotel, and down the broad road, yet unbuilt on, leading to the -town. On one spot a temporary wooden circus had been erected, and he -stopped to read the bills of the performance hanging at the door. Then -he lounged along again; but as soon as he came within the precincts of -the town, he turned in between two of the old houses up a passage, at -the end of which was a flight of stone steps leading to the ancient -city walls. These he ascended, and when he found himself on the walls, -he hesitated as though in doubt which way to turn. - -Beneath him lay the old city, its quaintly fantastic gabled roofs, its -cathedral tower, its numerous church spires, and its hundred relics of -mediaeval architecture glowing in the early morning sun. Beyond were -to be seen the broad silver windings of the Dee, the velvet-turfed -racecourse, just outlined by its white posts and rails, and far away -in the distance, heaving up their broad shoulders out of the blue -haze, the majestic range of the Welsh mountains. - -That was the side to which Tom Summers inclined; he sought the -country, not the city; and turning sharply to his right, he made a -half circuit of the wall, and descended in a by-lane which gave right -upon the racecourse. - -Once only did he pause in his work, and that was when his steps took -him in front of the county gaol, a full view of which is commanded -from the walls; a prison omnibus drew up at the huge outer gate, and -from it some half-dozen prisoners descended, heavily handcuffed, and -were marched into the gaol-yard between a file of warders. Tom Summers -surveyed this little ceremony with great interest, leaning over the -top of the crumbling wall, and shading his eyes from the sun with his -hands. When the great gates clanged behind them, an expression, half -of pity, half of contempt, crossed his face, and after he had -muttered: 'Poor devils,' he speedily added: 'Stupid fools,' then he -shrugged his shoulders and went on his way. - -When Tom Summers found himself on the flat bare expanse of the -racecourse, he seemed considerably disappointed, and looked round with -dismay at the abandoned prospect before him. On one side lay the -river, but that seemed to offer him no consolation; on the other, the -town, but on that he had already turned his back. At length, after a -careful survey, he saw at about the distance of half a mile, on a -rising ground, a little thicket, not much more indeed than a largish -clump of trees, and towards that he at once bent his way. The sun by -this time had attained considerable height, and more than considerable -strength; and when the wayfarer had skirted the racecourse, and toiled -across the intervening fields, and up a wooded knoll, he was tired and -hot. The outermost edge of shade did not, however, content him. He -paused there and looked round to note the farmer's wain, a dot upon -the distant turnpike road; the lark singing in high heaven above his -head; the man and boy at plough-work three fields off, the one intent -on his furrow, the other on his team. And then, having satisfied -himself that such human beings as he had seen were unobservant of his -actions, and that there were none others within range, he plunged -deeper into the little wood, and opening the bag which he carried with -a key, drew from it a plain gray suit of morning dress and a soft-felt -wideawake. - -In less time almost than it takes to write, he had divested himself of -his sailor's clothes, and of the red wig and beard, all of which he -thrust into the bag; then dressing himself in the gray suit, and -donning the wideawake, he took the bag in his hand, and left the -little wood on the opposite side to that on which he had entered it. - -The clerk in the cloak-room at the Lime-street station that afternoon -was more than usually busy, and consequently more than usually -short-tempered. He was ticking off an enormous number of entries in -the way-bill, and was well down the third column, when he heard a soft -voice from the sliding window, which was open, say: - -'I beg your pardon.' - -'Seven hundred and twenty-three, barrel of oysters marked X.O.,' -muttered the clerk to himself, giving no heed to the interruption. -'Seven hundred and twenty-four, crate of live fowls; seven--' - -'I beg your pardon,' said the voice again, and the clerk looked up and -found that it belonged to a slim gentleman in a pale gray suit, and -with a soft black-felt hat on his head, and carrying a small bag in -his hand. 'Two days ago I came by the noon express from Euston,' said -the gentleman, 'and booked my portmanteau to Liverpool; but being -taken ill, I was compelled to get out at Edge-hill, and so my -luggage came on without me. A brown portmanteau, bearing the name of -Dunn--shall I have the good luck to find it here?' - -'If it is here you will, sir,' growled the clerk, dying to get back to -the way-bill. 'Two days ago, you say; brown portmanteau, name of Dunn? -Here you are.' - -'I am very much obliged to you, indeed,' said the gentleman. - -'Going by cab or train, sir?' said the clerk shortly. - -'By cab, if you please, to--' - -'Here, Jim,' called the clerk to a passing porter, 'put this -portmanteau on a cab for the gentleman. Parson out for a holiday, I -should think,' he said, muttering to himself, looking after the -passenger, who was following his luggage; 'they always try to get out -of uniform, but are frightened to get into anything louder than gray.' - -Mr. Dunn saw his portmanteau placed upon the cab, and, giving the -porter sixpence, bade him tell the driver to go to the Adelphi Hotel. -He looked hard at the porter's face while he spoke to him, as he had -looked from under his overhanging brow at the clerk in the cloak-room, -as he looked at the cabman when, after taking a note of the number of -the vehicle, he descended in front of the Adelphi. - -As he advanced quickly to the glass case in which are enshrined the -presiding goddesses of the establishment, he was struck with a sudden -chill; he shivered violently and shrugged his shoulders, and rubbed -his hands together as he stood asking whether he could be accommodated -with two rooms--a sitting-room and bedroom--leading out of one -another. - -'Certainly, sir,' was the gracious reply. 'Show ten and eleven, -Charles. You seem to be very cold, sir?' - -'I have taken a chill, I think,' said Mr. Dunn, pausing at the bottom -of the stairs and looking round. 'I come from a climate where frost -and east winds are unknown, and if I mistake not, there is a fine -specimen of the latter raging through your streets just now.' - -'Beg your pardon, sir, wind's southwest,' said Sam, the porter, who -was standing by. - -'Well, whatever it is, it seems to have penetrated right through me,' -said Mr. Dunn, shivering again, 'and I must ask for a good fire in my -sitting-room. What's this?' He was proceeding up the stairs, but -paused again as two policemen, followed by a small mob, which remained -outside, entered the house, and approached the glazed sanctum. - -'Beg your pardon, miss,' said one of them, who wore the blue-braided -frock of an inspector, touching his hat, 'but we have come to make -some inquiries. The body of a gentleman, evidently a case of murder, -has been discovered, and it is recognised by a cabman as that of a -fare whom he drove from this hotel to the docks, and who is supposed -to have been a visitor here.' - -'O my, how dreadful!' says the young lady in the glass shrine. -'Perhaps you had better see the manager, inspector; just step in here, -if you please.' - -She rang a bell, and Sam and the waiter and the traveller, who had all -suspended their proceedings, now walked up-stairs, the former bearing -the portmanteau, and the latter muttering: - -'Murder! body! What an unpleasant affair!' Then calling back, said: -'Please don't forget to send a chambermaid to light the fire at once.' - -When the porter had placed the portmanteau in the bedroom, and he and -the waiter had retired, Mr. Dunn threw himself into an easy-chair, and -with his arms folded and his legs crossed, fell into a reverie, which -lasted until he was aroused by a knock at the door. He did not call -out 'Come in' until he had retired to his bedroom, half closing after -him the door of communication, and through the crack watched the -operation of lighting the fire by the kneeling chambermaid. - -When the girl had retired, Mr. Dunn emerged from the bedroom, and made -straight for the window. A great breadth of street between the hotel -and the opposite houses; no chance of his being overlooked. He walked -quietly to the door, turned the key, and settled it so in the lock as -to prevent his being spied upon from the outside; then, with soft -quick steps, entered the bedroom and immediately came out again, -bringing with him the hand-bag which he himself carried up the stairs. - -A momentary hesitation now, and a stealthy and sharp look round; the -next minute the bag is open, and Mr. Dunn has taken from it and laid -upon the table the sailor's dress which Tom Summers wore in the low -tavern and the tramps' lodging-house, and at the same time has -produced from his breast-pocket a long shiny pair of scissors. With -these he makes short work of the sailor's suit, tearing and ripping it -into strips, and cutting these strips into smaller pieces, which he -gathers together in a heap in the middle of the table. - -Then Mr. Dunn, returning to the bedroom, unlocks the portmanteau which -he had received from the cloak-room at Lime-street, lays out his -dressing materials on the table and some clothes on a chair, takes a -Bradshaw and a Tourist's Guide to Ireland with him into the -sitting-room, and then, with a sudden effort, gathers the whole heap -of cut and tattered clothing in his arms, and throws it on to the -fire, which by this time is blazing brightly. Some of the little bits -of blue cloth take fire at once, and go eddying up the chimney--others -smoulder slowly; but Mr. Dunn stands in front of the fireplace, gazing -at the grate, now and then patting and forming its contents with the -shovel, until no fragment of the clothes remains visible--only white -dust and charred ashes. Then he throws back his shoulders and -stretches out his arms like one rid of an intolerable burden, and -heaves a great sigh of relief. - -Quick now, for the burning cloth has left a pungent, titillating, -acrid smell, which must be attended to immediately. Mr. Dunn draws an -easy-chair to the corner of the table close by the fireplace, and -rumples the antimacassar, which has been laid on by careful hands; -then takes the Tourist's Guide, places it on the table in close -proximity to the chair, opens it, and places his gold pencil-case -between the leaves; lastly, he takes a shovelful of red-hot coals from -the grate, and deliberately strews them over the hearthrug; then he -quietly quits the room, leaving the door open behind him. - -Meanwhile, Inspector Jeffery and his subordinate. Sergeant Scott, were -enjoying themselves after their fashion. They had a great triumph of -popular excitement and curiosity up to the doors of the hotel, and -once inside, they were destined to still greater distinction, not, -indeed, at the hands of the young lady in the glass case--she was too -much in the habit of seeing celebrities of all kinds, military and -naval heroes, leading lawyers, great authors and actors, all of whom -were in the habit of putting up at the Adelphi, and addressing polite -nothings to her, to be particularly moved at the entrance of a couple -of policemen, even though engaged in investigating a murder mystery. -When she had turned them over to the manager, her business with them -was concluded, and she went back to her ledger and to answering the -numerous applicants at the glass case, without bestowing another -thought upon the visitors in blue-braided uniform. But the gentleman -who at that time filled the position of manager was a very different -kind of person; he delighted in the mysterious and romantic, and the -word 'murder' sounded pleasantly in his ear. The police officers were -invited into his private sanctum, were bidden to take seats, and were -asked what beverage would be most agreeable to them. The inspector, a -man of travel and of taste, suggested dry sherry; the sergeant, a pure -and simple Liverpudlian, would have liked to have named gin, but he -recollected where he was, and asked for brandy. - -'And now,' said the manager, as soon as the visitors were comfortably -seated, with their glasses before them, 'now, inspector, tell us all -about it.' - -'There isn't much to tell, sir,' said Inspector Jeffery, 'though it is -as bold and, I may say, as clean a job as I have met with in my -experience.' - -'And you mean to say the murdered man was a visitor in this hotel?' -interrupted the manager. 'Who could it be?' - -'I'm coming to that presently, sir,' said the inspector, who always -delivered himself according to what he called 'the laws of evidence,' -and who was terribly put out by having his straight story broken in -upon. 'I said it was a bold and clean job, and I might have added -clever, for although there was a patrol passing up and down in front -of the very door of the warehouse where it was committed every half -hour, to say nothing of sergeants visiting rounds and all that, not a -trace was seen or heard of anything about it until the people came to -the warehouse this morning.' - -'Warehouse! How did he get in there? It must have been done by one of -the warehouse hands,' again interrupted the manager. - -'When you have done, sir, I will continue,' said the inspector -testily. 'It was one of those large warehouses close by Water-street, -which are let in floors, or flats as they call them in Scotland; each -lock up separate to themselves, with a common stairway, and where, -there being no porter resident on the place, the front door is always -kept unfastened. I have spoken to the commissioners about that once or -twice, suggesting an order should be issued to have some one -responsible for those doors being locked, and if that had been the -case there would have been no murder. It was an out-door clerk -belonging to Triggs and Vyner, wool-staplers, on the third floor, that -discovered the murder. He came about seven o'clock this morning, -having forgotten his note-book last night, and being unable to start -his rounds without it. When he got up to the first-floor landing, he -found the dead man lying in a heap in the corner. He thought he was -drunk at first--not a tramp, he could not have been that by his -clothes, but some gentleman who had been dining out and mistaken his -road home--but when he bent over him he found that the man was dead. -There was very little blood on the floor, though his clothes were -soaked with it. He had been stabbed to the heart with a long-bladed -knife, more like a dagger, which was lying by his side. Such a stab, -so straight and sure, I never saw before in my experience, nor our -divisional surgeon neither. He says, if it weren't for reflecting upon -the credit of the profession, he could almost swear it had not been -done by any amateur.' - -'Good Lord!' said the manager, by this time intensely interested. -'Well, what then?' - -'Then, I was sent for,' resumed the inspector, 'and I came down, and -by this time there was a crowd round the place, and my men had some -difficulty in turning them out. Two or three of them I allowed to -stop, and among them was old Tom Langman the flyman, who whispered to -me that he recognised the body as that of the gentleman he had driven -from this house to the docks, and who, he thought, was one of a large -theatrical party now staying here.' - -'Not now,' cried the manager, 'they're gone; went away yesterday in -the Cuba. Why, good heavens, it must be number fourteen! He was to -have gone back to London last night, but Miss Jennings told me he had -changed his mind, and though he was not at home his things were still -in his room.' - -'Better send and see if they are there now,' said the inspector. 'What -was the gentleman's name?' - -'I cannot say,' said the manager. 'You see I was so taken up with -listening ta Duval, and looking at Miss Montressor, and laughing at -that funny fellow in the check suit, that I didn't take much notice of -the others. I will call somebody to go up to fourteen, and--I beg your -pardon, sir,' he exclaimed to the gentleman whom he found on the other -side of the door just as he opened it, 'did you wish for anything?' - -'Not at all,' said the gentleman in a soft voice. 'I am Mr. Dunn, a -visitor at this house occupying number ten, and I heard something as I -was passing the bar about some murder which had been discovered.' - -'Yes, indeed, sir, a dreadful murder of a poor gentleman who -was staying here, and who seems to have been decoyed into some -out-of-the-way place and stabbed to the heart.' - -'Indeed,' said Mr. Dunn, 'decoyed into an out-of-the-way place? Ah, -probably some woman in it, I should imagine.' - -'That's a very good notion, sir,' said the manager, 'very good indeed; -the inspector of police is in this room, sir; perhaps you would just -step in and mention it. Inspector, here is a gentleman staying in the -house who has got what I consider a very excellent idea about the -murder.' - -'O indeed, sir,' said the inspector gruffly. He greatly disapproved of -amateur suggestions. - -'Not at all a great idea, inspector,' said Mr. Dunn softly; 'our -friend here is pleased to speak too highly of it--merely a notion -which has occurred to me, and I have no doubt has previously occurred -to you, that a--I beg your pardon,' said Mr. Dunn, stopping short and -sniffing through his nose, 'isn't there a very peculiar smell?' - -The manager, the inspector, and the sergeant all sniffed in concert; -the two latter never smelt anything, but the manager called out at -once, 'Something burning.' - -'So I thought,' said Mr. Dunn; 'something woollen.' - -'We must see to this at once,' cried the manager, and rushed out. - -The others rushed with him, and after a prolonged amount of sniffing -made their way up the stairs leading to number ten. As they advanced -the smell grew stronger, and they came upon a vast quantity of smoke, -which they soon found proceeded from number ten itself, where the -atmosphere was so dense that it was impossible to see across the room. -There was no trace of any flame, but when the windows had been thrown -open it was discovered that the hearth-rug and a portion of the carpet -around it were smouldering slowly, and were nearly consumed. Bells -were rung and water was brought, though long before it arrived the -inspector and the sergeant had removed any further cause for fear by -stamping out the fire with their heavy boots. - -The manager was very cross; he did not quite see how he could explain -the matter at the next meeting of the directors, and ask for a new -carpet. He had intended to show his temper to Mr. Dunn, but that -gentleman he saw was far too savage himself to brook being spoken to. - -'It is most annoying,' said Mr. Dunn. 'I am only here for a day on my -way to Ireland and this accident occurs. The silly woman who lit the -fire did not bring a guard for it. I am unused to fires; I live in a -warm climate; but some friends of mine told me never to sit by a fire -in England unless it had a guard on it. I looked for a guard before I -left the room, but could not find one, and I thought it would be all -right.' - -The manager was full of apologies. - -'Should they move Mr. Dunn to another suite of rooms? They could do so -at once.' - -'No, thank you,' said Mr. Dunn in reply. 'It is unfortunate, but still -it is an accident, and could not have been prevented. I will sleep in -the bedroom to-night, and I should not have used the sitting-room -much, as I am a stranger in Liverpool, and I want to see all that is -to be seen on this the only day I have. In the mean time, I shall be -thankful if you will prepare me a little dinner, some fish and a chop, -in the coffee-room, and I will come down to it as soon as I have -washed my hands and face, which seem to be tolerably blackened by the -smoke.' - -When the manager and the servants had taken their departure--the -inspector and sergeant had gone long since--Mr. Dunn retired to his -bedroom, and, after turning the key in the door, took off his coat and -waistcoat, and seated himself on the edge of the bed. - -'So far so good,' he soliloquised; 'so far everything that I have done -has been perfectly successful. My personal identity ceased on my -leaving America, and no one can have found any traces of Mr. Dolby, -the cynical millionaire, in Tom Summers, the sailor, or Mr. Dunn, the -soft-spoken tourist. One night more and I shake the dust of this land -from my feet, and can fairly consider myself scot free. That was a -lucky idea of mine to strew those cinders on the hearth-rug; the smell -of Tom Summers' smouldering rags might have awakened the keen -suspicions of those police gentry downstairs. That flannel shirt was -beginning to smoke confoundedly before I left the room, but that is -now all provided for; the police themselves were the first persons to -see what had occurred, and helped to extinguish the smouldering -carpet. Not one precaution has been omitted, and, distrustful of -myself as I generally am, I begin to look with pride upon my powers of -organisation as exhibited in this matter. If my orders have only been -implicitly obeyed in America, all I could have looked for is -accomplished. One more night of acting and character-playing, and I -can rest in peace, and return to reap the reward of all I have gone -through.' - -Then Mr. Dunn rose from the edge of the bed, carefully washed his face -and hands, put on the gray coat and waistcoat, and, looking -wonderfully simple and respectable, went down to dinner. - -The dinner was ready, and as soon as he heard that his visitor was -seated, the manager was in attendance to give special directions to -the waiter, and to exhibit the utmost consideration for one who had -been the victim of such an untoward accident. When Mr. Dunn had -finished his fish, the manager ventured to attempt a little -confidential conversation. - -'That unfortunate fire, sir,' said he, 'prevented us hearing more -about the murder from the police. It is a very, very sad affair. I -have been with the inspector since I saw you, and though we are not -going to view the body until to-morrow, I have no doubt that the -unfortunate gentleman was a Mr. Foster, an American gentleman of great -wealth who had been staying in this house, and who occupied the very -rooms adjoining yours, where his things still remain.' - -'An American was he?' asked Mr. Dunn. - -'Yes, sir, American,' replied the manager; 'very rich, and with an -enormous fancy for theatricals. Beg your pardon, sir; not very much in -your line, I should say; but Mr. Foster was very fond of them indeed. -He came down here with the celebrated Bryan Duval, of whom you may -have heard, and a party of performers who were going across to -America. Mr. Foster left this house to see them off, and after that we -never set eyes upon him.' - -'That's a strange thing for an inhabitant of such a town as Liverpool -to confess,' said Mr. Dunn. 'We in the colonies speak of the mother -country as the home of the rarest civilisation. What with your gas and -your much-vaunted police arrangement, we are apt to boast of the -safety of your streets, of the enormous difference between the state -of things in which law and order prevail and where they are governed -by a reckless rabble, such as is sometimes found amongst us; and yet -here is a most wonderfully cool and audacious murder committed in the -heart of the second city of the empire, and not discovered for a -certain number of hours afterwards. By the way, is there no trace of -the wretch who committed the crime?' - -'No, sir, not yet; though I don't know what evidence Inspector Jeffery -may bring forward at the inquest to-morrow morning. Perhaps you would -like to be present at the inquest, sir? I am sure I should be able to -get a place for you.' - -'You are very good,' said Mr. Dunn, 'and I should much like to be -present at the scene, as a study of law, of character, and society; -but my time to return to Jamaica is drawing nigh and I must get -through the rest of my British visits as soon as I can. The direct -steamer for Belfast leaves to-morrow morning?' - -The manager replied in the affirmative. - -'Then I will go by it,' said Mr. Dunn. 'I have heard much of the -beauties of Ireland, and I wish to see them before I return. Now I -think I will make my way to bed, for I have had a fatiguing day. I -wish you good-night.' - -The manager bowed his acknowledgment of his politeness, and Mr. Dunn -retired. - - -As, about noon next day, Mr. Dunn was proceeding to the cab which was -to convey him to the dock, he saw in the hall of the hotel the -presiding goddess in the glass case, and the chambermaid, gallantly -escorted by Inspector Jeffery, one of the waiters, and the porter. - -'The witnesses, sir,' whispered the manager, pointing to them. 'The -body has been removed to the dead-house, the inquest is just over, and -the jury found a verdict of wilful murder against some person or -persons unknown.' - -'Unknown!' echoed Mr. Dunn. 'Then there is no trace of the murderer?' - -'Not at present, sir,' said the manager. 'Inspector Jeffery had -nothing to bring forward. I wish you good-morning, sir.' - -'Good-morning,' said Mr. Dunn, descending the steps. - -Then, as the cab drove off, he opened his shoulders, took a long -respiration, and muttered between his teeth, 'At last! Scot free!' - - - - -CHAPTER V. -A BLAZE OF TRIUMPH. - - -The voyage on board the Cuba was by no means the dreadful experience -which Miss Montressor had been led to believe; in fact, when they were -twenty-four hours clear of the coast of Ireland--where it was, as -usual, very wet and inclement, the weather always, apparently, -endeavouring to spoil the pleasure prepared by the hospitable -inhabitants for their visitors--she roused up and enjoyed herself very -much. At first the mere idea of food upset her, and she declared that -the constant round of meals was 'disgusting;' but it was soon observed -that 'when refection bell did call,' Miss Montressor was one of the -first persons to smilingly take up her position at the board, and one -of the last to leave it. It was a part of Mr. Bryan Duval's policy -that everything should be done in the most liberal manner, and there -was consequently abundance of wine and of very excellent quality, on -the merits and demerits of which Mr. Duval would descant to the -admiration of the company. - -This was not the only point on which, that eminent artist won renown. -He expounded his views on certain questions of seamanship to the -captain with such a wealth of professional phraseology that the worthy -officer, who was not in the habit of consorting much with his -theatrical passengers, looked upon him with especial favour, asked him -constantly into his deckhouse, and ventilated at length--almost, as -Byran thought, at too great length--his original theories concerning -currents and wind storms. When, moreover, Mr. Duval had corrected the -third officer, who was a Yorkshireman, about the exact position of a -tobacconist's shop in Boar-lane, Leeds, and had demonstrated that a -Scotch professor of St. Andrew's University, who was looked upon as a -miracle of learning, was little better than an idiot, he was generally -allowed to be a man of universal genius, and respected accordingly. As -for the officers of the ship, they took the greatest fancy to him. He -was unanimously elected an honorary member of their mess, and the -deliciously titillating and highly-spiced dishes which, at a late hour -of the night, he prepared in the purser's cabin, the effervescent -cooling drinks which he manufactured to go with them, and the romantic -little Spanish love songs which he sung afterwards to the -accompaniment of a guitar, formed the theme of conversation for many a -future voyage. - -Mr. Skrymshire, the low comedian, who had been seen in the exercise of -his profession by several of the passengers, both in London and -Liverpool, and from whom a fund of amusement was expected, did not -quite come up to popular anticipation, as he passed the principal part -of the voyage moaning in his berth in the agonies of illness, and -requesting, as a personal favour, that he might be thrown overboard. -It was not until the ship had passed Sandy Hook that he put in an -appearance on deck; and she was safe at anchor in the quarantine -ground--where, in consequence of her late arrival, she was compelled -to remain during the night--before he cracked his first joke. - -All the party were up on deck very early the next morning, looking -with admiring eyes at the beauties of Staten Island, and with wonder -at the steamers and ferry-boats darting in and out. Acting upon the -private hint given to her by Bryan Duval the night before, Miss -Montressor had paid a little special attention to her toilette, and -looked very pretty and fascinating. - -'Quite right, my dear,' said Bryan, when lie saw her--he himself was -arrayed in a high hat with a curly brim, blue body coat, gray trousers, -and jean boots with patent leather tips--'quite right, my dear; they -go in immensely for this sort of thing here, and you will find that we -shall have a few of the press fellows on board before we land, and no -end of them waiting at the wharf. First impressions are everything, -and half a column in the _Scarifier_, a personal paragraph in the -_Growler_, and a subleader in the _Democrat_ to-morrow morning, will -do us good service with our first night's audience; besides, Van Buren -is a man who fancies himself a lady-killer, and I want him to be -impressed.' - -'And won't you be at all jealous?' asked Miss Montressor, looking up -coquettishly. - -'I jealous?' cried Bryan. 'Of course; stark, staring, raving crazy -with jealousy. I'd push those side curls a little further back, my -dear, if I were you; and just let me tighten that pin at the back of -your collar. That will do nicely. Have you seen anything of -Skrymshire?' - -'The last time he appeared he was looking very melancholy and -disconsolate,' said Miss Montressor. - -'It is most important that Van Buren should not see him until he is in -better feather,' said Bryan. 'There will be some champagne cocktail -going on when these press fellows come on board, and I will take care -that Skrymshire has a dose of that to pick him up. A low comedian with -a horse's head and that suit of clothes is enough to frighten any -manager out of an engagement.' - -Mr. Duval's predictions were fulfilled. The health officer had -scarcely rowed off after his interview with the doctor when another -boat was seen approaching the vessel, containing certain members of -the press, who quickly appeared on board and were conducted to Mr. -Duval, by whom they were received with great courtesy. His ability and -geniality had made him a general favourite during his last visit to -America, and his return, bringing out a company of whom--notably of -Miss Montressor--great things were expected, was hailed with delight. -The literary gentlemen, who had a general air of having been up all -night, and not having thought it worth while to devote much attention -to their toilets in the morning, were conducted to the cabin, where -champagne cocktails and other exhilarating drinks were provided for -them by Mr. Duval, who, when the liquor had well circulated, -despatched a trusty emissary to conduct Miss Montressor to their -presence. - -In her fresh morning toilette, with her pleasant smiles and frank -ingenuous manner, the London actress took by storm the susceptible -hearts of the literary gentlemen. They had come with the express -intention of interviewing her, and, lo and behold, the most they could -do was to utter little compliments and flattery, while most of their -time was occupied in staring at her. But Mr. Duval, who knew exactly -what was wanted, was not going to let slip such a golden opportunity, -and went about from one to the other, answering such questions as he -thought might have been propounded. - -'What should I say her height was? About five feet five, I should -think--a little taller, perhaps, with those new French heels, which -set the foot off, but are deuced dangerous for walking. Ah, Willie -Webster, you rascal,' whispering in the ear of a dirty little man in a -wideawake, 'you're the lad for the ladies, and you're death on -complexions, I know. Look at hers; look at the Montressor's. That's -the real thing--none of your bismuth and pearl powder, but with the -warm tinge on it which she has caught on her voyage from the sea and -sun. Natural daughter of a most distinguished man, my dear Carter; -blue blood, Norman descent, and all that sort of thing--look at it in -her hands and feet, that's where the real breeding comes out. You -don't care about noble descent in this country, I know--honesty, -virtue, simple citizen, and all that kind of thing; but you do admire -hands and feet, and most of your ladies have them in perfection.' - -The press gentlemen went off in their swift-sailing little boat, and -landing before the huge steamer worked her way to the wharf, so -aroused the enthusiasm of those waiting there by their description of -Miss Montressor's charms, that when she was seen on the deck, leaning -on Bryan Duval's arm, she was greeted with great applause, cheerings, -and waving of handkerchiefs. Most interested among those assembled on -the wharf to meet the voyagers was Mr. Van Buren, a strikingly -handsome man of between forty and fifty, with jet-black hair in crisp -waves over his well-shaped head, a classic profile, and an excellent -figure. He was naturally nervous, for the good old British comedies, -which were the staple attraction at Van Buren's Varieties, had ceased -to attract, and the manager was looking to the engagement of Duval's -company to recoup him his losses, and finish his season brilliantly. -Dogging his heels was his friend and adviser Mr. Morris Jacobs, who -had entered the service of Mr. Van Buren's father as call-boy at three -dollars a week, but who was now reputed to be worth half a million, -and to be the real owner of Van Buren's Varieties and almost of Van -Buren himself, for the manager-actor was fond of pleasure, and was -besides a great sportsman. He had always horses in training somewhere, -and whenever he could get away from the theatre he was rushing off to -look after them; while Mr. Morris Jacobs had but one thought in life, -the accumulation of money; and finding that could be best attended to -at the Varieties, there he remained, and there, morning, noon, and -night, he was to be found. But when Mr. Van Buren had been presented -to Miss Montressor by Bryan Duval all his nervousness vanished. He -bowed his curly head over her daintily gloved hand, and lifted it to -his lips. Then turning to Mr. Jacobs, he muttered, - -'No use shinning about any more, Morris; trump card's found!' - -More and more delights were there in store for the newly-arrived -troupe: banquets in their rooms at the Fifth-avenue Hotel, bushels of -cards left by distinguished callers, artistic clubs proffering -receptions, and invitations for all kinds of entertainments. Miss -Montressor was in the highest state of delight. 'If this is America,' -she said to Bryan Duval, 'I rather think I am likely to be pleased -with it.' - -Intelligence of the arrival of the star company, and their brilliant -reception in New York, speedily reached Mrs. Griswold's house. Helen, -with her usual cordial kindness, sent the newspaper which contained -the lengthiest and most sensational account of the proceedings of the -popular reception, and the programme of the performance, to Mrs. -Jenkins. She would have gone to the nursery to read it all for her, -and enjoy the pleasure and excitement with which she felt the nurse -would peruse it, but she happened just then to be detained by callers. - -Mrs. Jenkins clutched the paper from the hand of the servant who -brought it to her, and read it with the utmost avidity. When, shortly -afterwards, Mrs. Griswold went up-stairs to pay her customary visit to -the baby before dressing for lunch, she found the nurse in rather a -fidgety state; she was absent while Mrs. Griswold talked to her, she -answered one or two of her questions at random, and altogether her -manner was so _distrait_ that Helen resolved to find out what it all -meant. - -'Has anything happened to you?' she said; 'have you had any bad news? -Pray tell me.' - -'No, ma'am,' said Mrs. Jenkins, 'I have not had any bad news, but I -should like very much to go out for a while; there is some one come to -New York that I know, and I should like to call and see her.' - -Perhaps a transitory feeling of surprise crossed Helen's mind at the -unusual reticence of Mrs. Jenkins, who by this time had become so -familiarised with her friendly manner and her kindly genial interest -in all that concerned the dwellers in her house that she would have -supposed the nurse would at once have told her who the person was, and -all about it; but Helen's kindness was not of the exacting sort, and -she received this brief communication with her usual sweet compliance. - -'Of course you can go out,' she said. 'I will take care of baby; I can -take you in the carriage wherever you want to go, and then you can -leave baby with me.' - -'No, thank you,' answered Mrs. Jenkins, with some embarrassment and a -rising colour, which Helen at once perceived, but passed over quite -unnoticed, concluding that Mrs. Jenkins's confusion had something to -do with the good-for-nothingness of her husband--a point on which -Helen deeply commiserated her lot, because, though she had been told -no particulars, she felt perfectly convinced that Mr. Jenkins's -good-for-nothingness, and no other cause, was at the bottom of his -wife's present dependent situation--'no, thank you, ma'am, I would -rather go alone, if you please; and if you will allow me, I should -like very much to take baby. I think you can trust me not to take her -into any place or to see any person of whom you would disapprove.' - -'Indeed, I can,' said Helen cordially. 'I can trust you most -completely. You shall take baby, and you shall go where you like, and -stay as long as you like, and,' she added, laying her hand gently on -Mrs. Jenkins's shoulder, as she stooped over the nursing chair, 'never -think it necessary to tell me more than you wish, never think that I -wish to drive your confidence faster than its natural pace.' - -Then she immediately left the room, and Mrs. Jenkins, after a few -minutes, got herself and the child ready and went out. - - -Miss Montressor was very much pleased with the aspect of affairs in -New York. For the first time in her life, she felt herself a person of -real and indubitable importance; the reception had pleased her; she -was charmed with the look of the city, and delighted with her quarters -at Fifth-avenue Hotel; the largeness and liberality of all the -arrangements for public comfort, which cannot fail to strike the -newly-arrived visitor in New York, duly impressed themselves upon Miss -Montressor, and she had hardly become accustomed to her large and -pleasant rooms, she was still discovering new perfections in them, and -finding out points of advantage in everything American over everything -English, when she was told that a person wished to see her. - -Visions of eager strangers bent on obtaining her autograph and -photograph, dreams of interviewing, even notions of a sharp contention -between rival managers, flashed in a moment across her lively -imagination, as she requested that the person--no indication of the -sex of the applicant had been given--should be invited to walk up. - -Miss Montressor was already very handsomely dressed, so that nothing -remained but for her to assume a statuesque and striking attitude in -which to await the arrival of her visitor. Half a minute sufficed to -show her that her preparations were thrown away: no fashionable -lounger, no splendidly-dressed lady, no eager man of business, was -this visitor who thus early claimed admittance to her; only a -plainly-dressed woman, carrying an infant in her arms, who stretched -her disengaged hand eagerly towards her with a glad cry of, 'Clara! -Clara!' - -Miss Montressor recoiled--to do her justice, it was only for a -moment--the next she took the woman's hand, and saying, 'Hush! do not -speak so loud,' kissed her. - -'O, how glad I am to see you, Clara! You see, your grand new name -comes quite easy to me. I have never forgotten that you told me not to -call you Matty any more. How glad I was when I heard you were coming -out, and though at first I took it very unkind that you did not write -to tell me, I soon knew it was because you were sure I should see it -in the papers.' - -The speaker had seated herself, loosened her shawl, and taken off her -bonnet before Miss Montressor had recovered from the slight constraint -of the first surprise. - -'Yes,' she said, 'I am very glad, indeed, to see you; but you have put -me in a mortal fright. I don't want to be unkind, you know--and you're -a sensible woman--only think how it would ruin me if Jenkins came -about after me here.' - -'Jenkins can't, my dear soul.' said the other. 'He is away, he ain't -in New York; and if he was he would do nothing to harm you, bless you. -He and I both understand that we must keep our distance from you -now--not that you're not a good sister, as you always was and always -will be, but for your sake and ourselves too--only you must forgive my -coming to you. I really couldn't bear it, and I knew it was all safe; -it is such a time since I have seen you, and you have done such a deal -in the time. Only to think, Clara, of your being a regular star, and -leading lady at the Thespian.' - -Miss Montressor laughed a good-natured laugh, but with a peculiar -sound in it, which comes of a superior knowledge of the world and a -truer test of greatness than that of the speaker. - -'My dear, you have got very funny notions about me. I have not done -badly; but as to the great things, I have not many of them to count up, -and this is the very first really big chance I have had.' - -'Don't be afraid that I shall spoil it,' said Bess, laying the -sleeping child comfortably in a corner of a luxurious settee, and -seating herself beside Miss Montressor, with one arm placed fondly -round her neck, while her honest gray eyes, full of tears, looked -searchingly in the other's face. 'I would rather never see you for -half my life than harm you, dear; and I suppose it would harm you, -even in this country, where everybody is free and equal, they say, if -you were known to have a servant for a sister?' - -'A servant, Bess!' said Miss Montressor with surprise and displeasure. -'How is that? What do you mean?' - -'Just what I say to you. I am a servant. I am a nurse in a very good -family here in town; it is a good place, and I am happy, trusted, -useful, and comfortable.' - -'Nurse!' said Miss Montressor; 'is that your nurse-child, then? I -thought it was your own.' - -'Mine? O dear no. My baby was a poor little cripple, and he was taken -away from all his troubles a little while ago. Jenkins was leaving me -for a profitable job he had got, and I could not stand the loneliness; -besides we were very poor, and so I took a place. It is Mrs. -Griswold's, in Fifth-avenue, and I get along very well indeed. Mrs. -Griswold is alone, like myself. Her husband is in Europe; and she gave -me leave to come here to-day, and to bring the child, so as I might be -free, as kind as possible.' - -'Fifth-avenue?' said Miss Montressor; 'why, that's a fashionable part -of New York. I know that much, though I have only been one night in -the place. I knew it before, however. This lady must be a person of -importance. My dear Bess, you didn't let out to her where you were -coming to?' - -'I did not,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'I only told her some one had come to -New York that I wanted to see, and she never asked another question. -She is a perfect lady, is Mrs. Griswold, and respects everybody's -confidence. She will ask me nothing when I get back; and when you meet -her, I am sure you need not be afraid she will know that the famous -Miss Montressor is her nurse's sister.' - -There was just the slightest tone of hurt feeling in Mrs. Jenkins's -kindly voice, and Miss Montressor, who was as kindly as herself at -bottom--only a little overlaid by the affectation of her profession -and her associations--sympathetically perceived it. 'The gentleman -talked nonsense, Bess,' she said, bestowing on her sister a hearty -hug, to which the other responded. 'Here we are now, and here we may -not be long uninterrupted, so let us have a talk while we may. What's -Jenkins about?' - -'I don't know, darling. No harm, but some business of a private -nature, which will keep him away for some time--it's only a commission -agency, but I don't know in what.' - -Mrs. Jenkins was the most loyal of wives, and even to her beloved -sister, the pride and delight of her life, would not have betrayed her -husband's confidence, and Miss Montressor was in reality profoundly -indifferent to the answer to the question which she had just asked. -She did not care one straw where Jenkins was, provided he was not in -New York, or what he was doing, provided his occupation was not of a -nature to expose her to any risk of contact with him. Satisfied on -this point, she was quite ready to respond to her sister's -affectionate inquisitiveness respecting herself and her concerns, and -the two plunged immediately into an animated and confidential -conversation, which brought out the best sides of the characters of -both. - -Miss Montressor gave her sister a tolerably correct and exceedingly -pleasant description of her career during the years which had parted -them--years which had been very prosperous on the whole for the -friendless young actress, and not unmarked by acts of generosity -towards her sister, whose lot had been very different. That Mrs. -Jenkins was so poor as she had been when we first made her -acquaintance in Bleeker-street was not Miss Montressor's fault; she -had frequently assisted her sister and her good-for-nothing husband -out of her, at first, very moderate means; but when Bess saw that -Jenkins's good-for-nothingness was an established fact, her honesty of -purpose and truthfulness of mind made her make a resolution to accept -no more assistance from Clara. 'I don't mind working hard,' was her -mental comment on the situation, 'that he may have money to -waste--I am his wife; but Clara shall not do it. I will never touch a -shilling of her earnings more;' and she had written to Clara asking -her to abstain from sending them money. - -This, to tell the truth, Miss Montressor, who had had an instinctively -bad opinion of her brother-in-law, was not sorry to do; and so her -knowledge of the Jenkinses' circumstances became slight and confused. -Her sister could not very well keep her informed of them without -appearing to ask for the aid which she had deprecated; she therefore -wrote vaguely and seldom, and Miss Montressor had acquiesced in this -latterly, contenting herself with the reflection that she was now so -extensively reported in the newspapers as being here or there, and -playing this or that engagement to more or less appreciative -audiences, that really Bess would know as much about her from the -journals as she cared to tell, for there were one or two things she -did not wish to tell. But she was brimful of news now, and Mrs. -Jenkins's impression that Miss Montressor was by far the finest -actress in existence was deepened by the narrative of triumphs which -her sister poured into her ear. It was not an untrue narrative, it was -only coloured; and yet, with all their confidence, with all their -eager talk, there was a reticence on both sides. - -Miss Montressor never mentioned Mr. Dolby. - -Mrs. Jenkins made no allusion to Trenton Warren. - -Bess had a great deal to say respecting Mrs. Griswold; and here told -her sister, with lively pleasure, of that lady's promise to take her -with herself to the play. 'But,' she added, 'she will have the -satisfaction of seeing you before I shall, Clara. You see, I didn't -care to press her so much as asking to go on the first or second night -would have done--I thought it would not seem reasonable, and might -arouse a suspicion; and if it did not do you harm, it might make you -angry; and I would rather know you were playing for a whole week to -all New York, and turning the place upside down about you, and sit at -home without the chance of seeing you, than vex you; and so I have got -to wait patiently until my betters are served. But I know she will -keep her word; and, as I was going to say, she will see you before I -shall, for she is going to-night.' - -'To-night?' said Miss Montressor; 'that's quick! Is she as fond of the -play as you are?' - -'I think she is very fond of it. She tells me she and Mr. Griswold -always went to see anything that was worth seeing. But now that he is -away she is very particular indeed. She never goes anywhere except -amongst old friends, and she does that very sparingly; and as to a -theatre or concert, she has never put her foot in one since he left.' - -'O, then, Mr. Griswold is not at home?' said Miss Montressor. - -'O dear no! he went away before I came. I have never seen him.' - -'Where is he?' - -'He is in London, I believe, doing some business in a very large way. -People say Griswold is a very rich man; and I suppose he wants to be -richer, like all the rest of them, and must pay a price for it--pretty -big price too, going to the other end of the world, and leaving his -young wife alone so long. She mopes dreadfully; I am quite glad she is -going to-night, if it is only to cheer her up. She was in great -spirits at getting so good a place. It was bespoke long before you -came.' - -'You had been talking about me, I suppose?' - -'Of course I had. I had just told her you were the finest actress in -the world, and she had better make haste to see you.' - -'Have you any idea in what part of the theatre Mrs. Griswold would be -sitting?' said Miss Montressor. 'I very seldom try to see any one from -the stage; and most times, when one does try, one cannot do it. But I -will have a look at her, if you will tell me where she will sit.' - -'I can tell you,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'She will be right at the end of -the dress circle, last seat but two, right-hand side; and I know what -she is going to wear, so that you can tell her by her dress. An old -gentleman and an old lady and their son are going with her--it is just -a party of four.' - -'Tell me about her dress,' said Miss Montressor, 'and the colour of -her hair.' - -'She has a quantity of very fine brown hair,' said Mrs. Jenkins, -'which matches her eyes, and she never wears any ornaments in it. The -dress she is going to wear to-night is pale blue velvet, square cut, -with turnovers, and very fine guipure lace. She always wears plain -gold ornaments with that gown, and a blue-and-gold fan.' - -'Very well,' said Miss Montressor; 'I will look out for the blue -velvet and the guipure, for the gold ornaments, and the blue-and-gold -fan.' - -A timepiece rang out the hour. - -'Dear me, how late it is!' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'I had no notion I had -been here so long. I think I must go now, Clara; but I shall get down -to see you again before long, and you will come to see me, won't you?' - -'My dear Bess, what are you thinking of?' replied her sister. 'How do -you suppose I am to keep the secret, which you see I cannot help -keeping? It is not unkindness and it is not snobbishness; it is only -for the sake of the interests which I cannot afford to throw over. If -I am seen going to Mrs. Griswold's house to visit Mrs. Griswold's -nurse, why, if she didn't find it out, as I suppose she need not--no -doubt I could always see you in a room to ourselves--just fancy how -the servants would talk. There is not one in New York, I suppose, by -this time who does not know my face; and it would be all over the -place in a few hours. No, no you must come and see me when you can. It -is muck safer, and just as easy.' - -'I really think you might let me tell Mrs. Griswold,' said Mrs. -Jenkins; 'you have no notion how kind she is, and how free from -nonsense and pretence of all sorts. Her heart would be touched if I -told her how we two were left poor motherless children to the care of -our old aunt, who pushed us out into the world when we were almost -babies, to do the best we could each for ourselves, and how you did -the best, and it was very good, and I did--well, not quite the worst -after all.' - -A sweet smile, though sad, passed over the frank features of the -speaker, a spark of the ever-burning lamp of life within her, that -light which glorified even so mean an object as Ephraim Jenkins. - -'Good Heavens,' thought Miss Montressor, 'she actually believes in -that vagabond still, and is as fond of him as ever; she is perfectly -incorrigible!' She did not give utterance to these sentiments, but -took a most affectionate leave of her sister, even bestowing some -transient expressions of admiration upon little Mary Griswold, who was -wide awake by this time, and staring about her with a greedy curiosity -which succeeds the first stages of stolid indifference incidental to -babyhood. She did not kiss the child, she was not quite equal to -that--Mrs. Jenkins wondered how she could deny herself the -indulgence--but she patted her and chirped to her, and sent her sister -away delighted with her amiability and her affability. - -How hard it was for Bess to keep from talking of her visit when she -went to assist at Mrs. Griswold's evening toilette nobody but Bess -knew. When Mrs. Griswold had gone down-stairs, and driven away in the -carriage which her friends had brought to fetch her, arrayed and -looking very handsome in the pale blue velvet gown, with the guipure -trimming, in the gold ornaments, and carrying her blue-and-gold fan, -Mrs. Jenkins indemnified herself for the unnatural restraint by -talking rapturously to the baby. - - -An enormous crowd of well-dressed people was flocking into Van Buren's -Varieties, to the great delight of Mr. Van Buren himself, who stood at -the checktaker's wicket, with his friend Mr. Morris Jacobs by his -side. Mr. Van Buren had that amount of vanity which is inseparable -from the theatrical profession, and to see himself recognised by -members of the crowd, to hear the flattering remarks made on his -personal appearance and his histrionic talents, rendered him supremely -happy. Mr. Jacobs, who had no pretensions to manly beauty, being a -short stout man, with an enormous head and an exaggerated Jewish cast -of countenance, contented himself with silently counting the people as -they came in, and keeping a wary eye upon the checktaker. It was a -long time since the Varieties had boasted such an audience; every seat -was taken, and the large lobbies at the back of the circles were -inconveniently crowded. There was scarcely one in the many-sided -phases of New York society which was not represented. The journals had -done their work so well, and Mr. Van Buren and Mr. Jacobs had worked -their various agencies with such success, that a desire to see the -English actress and renew acquaintance with the handsome tragedian had -been generated amongst people who had not visited the theatre for -years. Good old Knickerbocker families, prouder of the 'Van' before -their names than of the enormous fortunes which had accrued to them -from the sale of the lands which had once formed the gardens and -grounds of their old red-brick houses, and which now formed avenues -and streets in the most fashionable districts; steady church-goers, -whose wildest idea of dissipation was attendance at a lecture or a -mass meeting; men who passed their days in Wall-street, and their -evenings at the extemporised exchange in the hall of the Fifth-avenue -Hotel--all these classes seemed to have caught the infection, and were -largely represented. The regular attendants at theatrical -representations--the club men, Fifth-avenue families, the people who -wished to be thought 'in the style,' and whose newly-gotten wealth has -made of them a plutocracy as imperious, as intolerant, and as hollow -as any aristocracy in the Old World--all these were in fullest force. -Such a reunion was seldom to be seen at so late a period; and the -buzzing conversation of friends which took place before the -commencement of the play was not, as usual, about the balls and -entertainments to which they were invited, but treated rather of their -intended summer flights; the various merits of style at Saratoga, -rural quiet at Lake George, boisterous frivolity at Long Branch, or -sea breezes at Newport being fully discussed. - -Behind the scenes, too, there was very great excitement. Bryan Duval -knew exactly the kind of audience he might expect to welcome his -return and Miss Montressor's first appearance; he knew that on such an -occasion his appeal ought to be made rather to the sympathies than the -intelligence of the people; and so, reserving for a further occasion -_Romeo and Juliet_, and other specimens of poetical drama in which he -knew that he and Miss Montressor could help each other largely, and -make themselves appreciated by the critical and the educated, he had -determined upon commencing his campaign with the celebrated Irish -drama, _Cruiskeen Lawn_. The American version of this play--it -underwent considerable modification when acted in the United -Kingdom--contained a goodly amount of treasonable speeches, -denunciation of British kings and British government, and therefore -greatly acceptable to that portion of the New York population which -made their entry into America through the fair haven of Castle Garden; -the dialogue, too, was sprinkled with numerous tropes and metaphors -which Bryan had carefully culled from Tom Moore's poetical works. When -there is to be added to this that it gave scope for pretty scenery, -quaint coquettish peasant dresses for Miss Montressor, much -love-making, and various astonishing feats, such as diving down a well -and rushing through a blazing cottage, for Mr. Duval himself, it was -evident that those who loved sensation were likely to be gratified. - -Mr. Duval had arrived at the theatre early, donned his stage costume, -and was occupying himself in looking after the members of his troupe. -He found Mr. Covington, like most novices, in deep distress as regards -his costume, and assisted that young gentleman to make up his face, -and showed him how to wear his sword. He gave Mr. Skrymshire a little -more red eyebrow, and threw a Hibernian expression into the low -comedian's somewhat long face by the simple process of making two -thick black streaks under his nose, which imparted to that organ a -turn-up appearance. With Mrs. Regan, on the contrary, he had to tone -down the Hibernianism, that worthy old woman being desirous of -expressing her nationality by entering into a fight with her -attendant dresser. Finally, Mr. Duval knocked at Miss Montressor's -dressing-room, and being bidden to come in, stood in the doorway and -expressed his delight by clapping his hands. - -'Nothing could be better, my dear,' said he. 'Why on earth didn't I -have you for the original Kathleen Mavourneen in London? If I had, I -should have made 32,000_l_. by this time. The rouge a little higher up -on the left cheek, dear, I think, and the right eyebrow, too, a -hair's-breadth longer--that will do nicely! You must take off your -rings, dear; peasant girls in Kerry don't wear blue silk stockings -either, but that's a poetical license; but I do not think the public -will stand the rings. That's right! Now just remember one thing, that -the Irish brogue is permanent, and not a temporary affliction, and -that you are sometimes in the habit of forgetting it, and talking in -your native Regent-street accent; think of that, and hold to it all -through; and if you stick at all for words--I don't think you will, -for you struck me as being letter perfect--but if you do, just say -"Arrah!" and "Bedad!" until I can get alongside and prompt you. Now, -then, it is my time to go on.' - -Two minutes after, an enormous roar of applause welcomed Mr. Bryan's -return to the United States, a roar which very speedily was exceeded -twenty fold by the greeting given to Miss Montressor. There is an idea -that an American audience is not enthusiastic, but it is a false one, -for if you please them there is no people so lavish in their favour. -The ladies waved their handkerchiefs, the gentlemen cheered and -clapped their hands, the rougher portion of the community roared and -shrieked until they were hoarse, and Miss Montressor stood curtsying -and curtsying, her hands crossed over her little blue bodice, and her -eyes demurely cast upon the ground. - -When silence was restored and the business of the play recommenced, -she took advantage of the first opportunity to look in the direction -where, according to Bess's information, she expected to see Mrs. -Griswold. There, accordingly, at the end of the first circle, in the -last seat but one on the right-hand side, sat a lady with a quantity -of fine brown hair, dressed in plain blue velvet and guipure lace, and -bearing a blue-and-gold fan. What caused Miss Montressor to start as -she gazed upon this face? What rendered her so oblivious for the -moment that Bryan Duval had to prompt her? Mrs. Griswold had never -been out of America, and yet Miss Montressor could have sworn she had -seen her before. Whenever she could she stole a glance at the face, -and still found it familiar to her; but it was not until nearly the -close of the play that the right idea came to her. - -It came like an inspiration. 'The portrait!' she said to herself; 'the -portrait! That woman may or may not be Mrs. Griswold, but assuredly -she is the original of the portrait set in the watch which was shown -to me on the terrace at Richmond by Mr. Foster.' - - - - -CHAPTER VI. -STARTLING NEWS. - - -The curtain had fallen upon the happy marriage of Kathleen Mavourneen -and Comether O'Shaughnessy. The talented representatives of the two -characters had been called forward several times amidst huzzahs, and -most of the audience had quitted the theatre; and Miss Montressor had -retired to her dressing-room, where, throwing herself into a chair, -she fell into a reverie. - -'What could be the meaning of that extraordinary resemblance between -the lady who had sat in the very seat which Bess had assured her had -been taken by Mrs. Griswold, and the portrait which Mr. Foster had -shown her on the terrace at Richmond, as that of his wife? There must -have been some mistake; Bess must have made a blunder about the exact -position in the circle, or Mrs. Griswold must have been unable to -obtain the seat on which she had first set her mind!' But then came -the identity of the costume the lady in the circle wore--the exact -dress which Bess had described as that which her mistress was about to -wear; the blue velvet and guipure lace, the plain gold ornaments, the -blue-and-gold fan--all were there. It was most astonishing--Miss -Montressor admitted that; but she could not understand why, as she -admitted it, a sombre presentiment, a sense of some impending -calamity, seemed to come across her. - -She was roused by a knock at the door, following immediately on which -Mr. Bryan Duval put in his head. - -'Clara, my clear,' said he, 'I will get dressed as quickly as -possible; I have got a room at Delmonico's.' - -'Delmonico's!' echoed Miss Montressor. 'What's that? - -'Something very nice,' said Mr. Duval; 'the best restaurant in the -world. The piece has been such a go, that I could not do less than ask -a few people to an improvised supper--Van Buren and two or three of -the press people, you know. Of course we must have you, and old Mrs. -Regan will come as chaperone. It will be remarkably jolly, and I -shouldn't wonder if there were a few lines about it in to-morrow -morning's paper, which will be quite worth the expense.' - -Supper was a weakness with Miss Montressor. When she was acting she -didn't care particularly about dinner, invariably refused all -invitations to that meal, and ate sparingly at a comparatively early -hour; but supper had always been her favourite amusement. In the early -days of her stage apprenticeship, long before her Christian name was -Clara or her surname Montressor, when she was a struggling, raw-boned, -weak-eyed girl, playing chambermaids and general utility in a -provincial theatre, with a salary of eighteen shillings a week, she -used to devote a portion of that modest sum to the purchase of pigs' -pettitoes and polonies, on which, with a pint of very flat porter, she -used to regale herself in her wretched garret after her return from -the theatre. After she had established herself, and made a success in -later life, she kept up the same practice, the Brompton villa being -substituted for the garret, boned turkeys, _pâté de foie gras_, and -cold game for the delicacies above mentioned, and the society of -pleasant Bohemians for the cruel solitude. So Miss Montressor -intimated to Bryan Duval her acceptance of his invitation, and made -all possible haste to get ready for the scene of action. - -As soon as she was dressed she joined Mr. Duval and Mrs. Regan, and -the three drove off in a carriage together. - -Miss Montressor thought there was an air of comfort as she stepped -across the little garden and entered the bright cheery hall at -Delmonico's, with its bureau immediately fronting the street, its -glimpse of well-dressed men and women, attentive waiters, steaming -dishes, and silver-necked flasks lolling out of ice-pails, in the -large room on the left, and its broad staircase, up and down which the -nimble attendants were flitting. But when she found herself on the -first floor, in the room furnished with extravagant richness, but in -perfect French taste, and looked through the open folding-doors into -another room, where the round table for a dozen convives was already -spread, and shimmering with its accumulation of plate and glass, she -could not resist clapping and giving a little scream of delight. - -'Welcome to the star of the evening,' cried Mr. Van Buren, his hair -poodled up into a magnificent curling crop, his moustache lacquered -and pointed in the latest fashion, advancing to do homage. 'I have to -thank you, my dear young lady, for your performance to-night.' - -'If you were pleased,' said Miss Montressor, with a sweet smile, which -went straight to the heart of the inflammable manager, 'I have every -reason to be satisfied.' - -'Pleased!' cried he. 'I not merely look upon the success as certain, -but I regard this as the first of a series of visits which you shall -pay to this country, and by which I shall be enabled to help you to -realise a fortune; and there is something selfish in the thought,' he -added, 'for it will not merely give me the assurance of seeing you -constantly, but enable me to support your absence with the certain -idea of your return.' - -Miss Montressor smiled upon him again, and Mr. Van Buren immediately -began to calculate how he could dispose of the thirty-fourth Mrs. Van -Buren, who was at that moment on his hands, and substitute the new -favourite for her. - -'Now,' said Mr. Duval, bustling about, 'let us get to table as soon as -possible. Those who have not been introduced to Miss Montressor -already had better come to me, and I will perform the ceremony. My -dear Clara, I think you already know Mr. Willy Webster of the -_Democrat_' he added, pushing forward a dirty little man with soiled -shirt, and clothes shining with grease--'not clean, perhaps, but -decidedly clever,' said Bryan, dropping his voice; 'and you must shake -hands with him.' - -Mr. Looby of the _Scarifier_ and Mr. O'Gog of the _Growl_, came -forward and made their obeisance; Henry P. Remington and Samuel D. -Silliman, two young men about town, who had more money than brains, -and less manners than either; a gray-headed man, with a thin keen -face, who seemed to know everything and every one, and who was -universally addressed as Uncle William, completed the party. - -'Now are we all here?' said Bryan Duval, who had seated Miss Montressor -between himself and Mr. Van Buren, and who was compelled to stand up -to look round the table, so large and luxurious was the basket of -flowers in the centre--'are we all here?' - -'No,' said Willy Webster from the other side of the table. 'Here, next -me, is a chair for our good friend Banquo.' - -'Who is our good friend Banquo on this occasion? Let me see,' said -Bryan Duval. 'Looby, O'Gog--'pon my word, I can't recollect.' - -'I thought you told me you had sent round to the _Globe_ office to -tell Brighthurst to come up?' said Van Buren. - -'To be sure,' cried Bryan. 'Brighthurst is Banquo. Why on earth is he -not here?' - -'I sincerely hope he will come,' said Willy Webster. - -'And I--and I!' cried several others. - -'Mr. Brighthurst seems to be a general favourite,' said Miss -Montressor to her neighbour--'what are his particular attractions?' - -'I am sure I don't know,' said Mr. Van Buren, a little piqued; 'he is -a good sort of fellow, I believe.' - -'Brighthurst, my dear,' said Duval, 'is one of the cleverest men on -the press of this or any other country. He has written everything in -his time--five-act plays, political pamphlets, orthodox sermons, and -hymns which would draw tears from a hard-shell Baptist--then he's very -good-looking and capital talk. I shall be sincerely disappointed if he -doesn't come soon. I am sure you and he would get on well together.' - -'Do you think he would be horrified at seeing me eating these enormous -oysters?' said Miss Montressor, with a little playfulness, turning to -her other neighbour. - -'I don't know whether _he_ would, but I am not,' said Mr. Van Buren. -'Everything you do is done with a grace possessed by no other woman in -the world.' - -'O, Mr. Van Buren,' said the actress with an upward glance, 'that -compliment is even more difficult to swallow than the large oysters.' - -'Now, boys,' cried Bryan Duval, as the first crack of the champagne -corks was heard, 'there must be an exception to the general rule in -America to-night--we will have no speech-making.' - -'We must have one toast,' cried Willy Webster. 'You won't refuse to -drink this--Success to the _Cruiskeen Lawn_.' - -'Stay!' cried Van Buren, holding up his hand; 'add this to it--And all -our thanks to the lovely Kathleen!' - -The men rose to their feet to drink the toast, and had not resumed -their seats when the door opened, and a tall middle-aged man, with a -bald head, aquiline nose, and large grizzled whiskers, entered the -room. He made straight for Duval, and shook hands with him warmly. - -'My dear Brighthurst,' cried the host, 'I am delighted to see you. We -were all just now regretting your absence, and if you had not been so -erratic a being, should have wondered at its cause. However, here you -are--let me present you to Miss Montressor.' - -After his introduction, Mr. Brighthurst took the vacant seat, and -bending over to the young actress, said: - -'You must not fully believe all these gentlemen say about my -Bohemianism and erratic propensities, Miss Montressor; living in -crystal palaces themselves, they should be the last to throw stones. -They cannot understand, these frivolous butterflies, that I am a -steady man, and that I was prevented from coming here by attention to -my duty.' - -'No, we certainly cannot understand that,' said Mr. Looby. - -'No, indeed, bedad,' said Mr. O'Gog; 'that is not your usual form, -Brighthurst, anyhow!' - -'It may not be my usual form, sweet flower of Erin,' said Mr. -Brighthurst; 'but what I say happens to be correct as regards -to-night. I was detained at the office to write a short editorial upon -some news which just came in.' - -'News!' cried Willy Webster. 'And what was it, pray? Has Tweed been -nominated for the Presidency, or has A.T. Stewart proved to be nothing -but a dead head? Has the Commodore issued a new lot of central stock, -or has John Morrissy joined the Particular Baptists? Speak the word, -Brighthurst, and ease our impatient minds.' - -'What I speak of is English news from the latest files of London -papers, which were delivered this evening, my dear Willy,' said -Brighthurst quietly. - -'European news!' cried Webster. 'Has Queen Victoria sent for Sam Ward -at last, or is the Prince Imperial going to be united to Queen -Isabella, and thus consolidate the two thrones?' - -'The news does not treat of any such important personages or -subjects,' said Brighthurst; 'it simply sends us details of the -English murder, information of which was cabled some days ago.' - -'A murder!' cried Bryan Duval. 'You cannot possibly have the joyful -news for me that the victim was a tailor living in the neighbourhood -of Bond-street?' - -'No,' said Brighthurst with a slight smile; 'nor was the crime -committed in London. The victim was an American gentleman of the name -of Foster.' - -Miss Montressor turned deadly pale, and set down untasted the glass -she was in the act of raising to her lips. - -'What name did you say, Brighthurst?' said Duval, turning quickly to -him. 'Foster, an American? Where was the murder committed?' - -'In Liverpool,' said Brighthurst. 'He had been staying at the Adelphi -Hotel.' - -'Great Heavens,' cried Duval, 'this is most terrific!' - -Miss Montressor buried her face in her handkerchief, and sobbed -silently. - -'What is the meaning of this?' asked Mr. Van Buren, while a look of -inquiry passed round the table. - -'The meaning is simply that this unfortunate gentleman was well known -to me and all my party. He took a great interest in theatricals, and -actually accompanied us to Liverpool to see the last of us before we -sailed. It must have been about that time that his murder took place.' - -'It was within a day or two of your sailing,' said Mr. Brighthurst. - -'But what was the name of the assassin? What was the motive for his -crime? For God's sake, my dear fellow, tell us more about it!' cried -Bryan. - -'I am very sorry, my dear Duval, that I cannot give you any -particulars of your poor friend's fate,' said Brighthurst. 'The -coroner's jury have returned a verdict of wilful murder against some -person or persons unknown, and no trace of the assassin had been -discovered up to the time of the papers going to press. I know this -much, for I made it the text of my editorial, that the English police -do not seem more active in discovering the perpetrators of great -crimes than our detectives here. I shall, however, be able to let you -know all about it in a few minutes, as I instructed a boy to bring a -proof of my article here, and with it a copy of the London _Times_, -containing the account of the coroner's inquest, which I proposed -reading in bed tonight.' - -'I shall await it with the greatest anxiety,' said Bryan. Then turning -to Miss Montressor, whose face was still buried in her handkerchief, -and dropping his voice, he said: 'There is no occasion yet, at all -events, to be so overwhelmed, my dear Clara. Foster is by no means an -uncommon American name. Liverpool is even more frequented by Americans -than London, and all of them who visit Liverpool of course go to the -Adelphi. The victim in this awful case may not be our poor friend, -after all.' - -'But the date,' whispered poor Miss Montressor; 'the date of the -murder concurs just with the time when he would be at Liverpool; -though, by the way, he told me he intended to return to London on the -evening of our departure. Something, however, may have detained him; -and, besides, I have a kind of presentiment--something which I cannot -shake off--that we shall discover it was our friend Mr. Foster, and no -one else.' - -'I confess I feel very uncomfortable and desponding about it myself,' -said Bryan; 'and I should not be surprised if-- What is this?' he -cried, as the waiter entered, bringing a packet for Mr. Brighthurst. -'O, the newspaper at last!' - -'Pray take it, my dear Duval, and satisfy yourself at once,' said -Brighthurst, handing the paper across to Bryan; 'I can fully apprehend -your anxiety.' - -Bryan took the journal, and, in the midst of a sympathetic silence, -turned it over until he came upon the spot which he was seeking--a -description of the proceedings at the coroner's inquest. In a broken -voice he read out certain details with which the readers of this story -are already familiar: the finding of the body on the landing-place of -the warehouse, the evidence of the outdoor clerk, the two policemen, -and the various persons present at the scene, the fly-driver, who -recognised the victim as one of his customers, and the manager of the -Adelphi, who gave evidence that the body was that of Mr. Foster, who -had been staying at the hotel. - -'There is no doubt at all about it,' said Bryan Duval, laying down the -paper for a minute, his eyes filling with tears. 'It was poor Foster; -it was our poor friend!' - -'It is too dreadful to think of,' said Miss Montressor, giving way to -her grief. - -'Who can the murderer be? What can have been the motive for such a -deed?' cried Duval, after reading a little farther. 'Foster was the -kindest, gentlest soul in the world--a man who could not possibly have -had an enemy; besides, he knew but few people in England, and none, I -should have thought, in Liverpool.' - -'Perhaps he was in the habit of sporting his money,' said Mr. O'Gog; -'there are terrible thieves in them Liverpool taverns.' - -'No, that could not have been,' said Bryan, pointing to a passage in -the paper; 'for it says here that though no papers, cards, or letters -were found upon the body, his purse, containing several sovereigns and -some silver, keys, penknife, and pencil, were found in the pockets -untouched.' - -'That's a strange circumstance,' said Mr. Brighthurst, looking at it -with the professional eye of an editorial writer. 'My experience leads -me to believe that there are two principal motives which lead to the -commission of murder--lust of gain or desire for vengeance. By the -finding of the purse, the first motive is wanting in this instance; -and as regards the second, you tell me he had very few acquaintances -in England, and was the last man in the world likely to have any -enemies, much less one fierce and implacable enough to do such a deed -as this.' - -'He was the kindest-hearted man in the world,' sobbed Miss Montressor; -'always willing to do everybody a service, and more like a woman than -a man in the soft sweetness of his disposition.' - -'Stay,' said Bryan, who had again taken up the paper; 'here are some -farther particulars. The manager of the hotel deposed that, on -examining the room occupied by the deceased, he found a small American -valise, containing a suit of clothes, some linen, and the usual -dressing apparatus; a valuable gold watch had been left on the -dressing-table, which, at the request of the jury, was handed to them. -Here,' continued Bryan, still reading the newspaper, 'a curious -incident occurred. One of the jury was our well-known townsman, Mr. -Hand, the watch and clock maker, who served his time in America. On -examining this watch, Mr. Hand declared, without hesitation, that a -certain portion of its works was made under the patent of the -celebrated house of Tiffany, in New York. All possible search and -inquiry seems to have been made by the police and others concerned, -but without any effect. The conclusion of the story is to be found in -the verdict of wilful murder against some person or persons unknown, -so we must wait and see what time will bring forth. Poor Foster--poor -fellow!' - -'Poor dear Mr. Foster!' sobbed Miss Montressor, in great agitation. 'I -declare it is one of the most horrible things I ever knew. What will -his poor wife say, when she hears the news?' - -'Has he a wife?' asked Mr. Brighthurst. - -'O dear yes; a sweetly pretty woman, with one young child.' - -'It's pretty rough on her, poor thing,' said Mr. Brighthurst, a shadow -stealing over his handsome features. - -'Yes; and the most awful part of it is, that even now she must be in -complete ignorance of what has happened, for I saw her this very night -at the theatre.' - -'At the theatre?' cried several. - -'At the theatre, not two hours since,' cried Miss Montressor. 'I have -most excellent reasons for believing that the lady I saw was Mrs. -Foster.' - -'My dear Miss Montressor,' said Mr. Brighthurst, leaning forward, 'I -think, I trust, you are mistaken. The news that an American gentleman -named Foster had been found murdered in Liverpool was received here by -cable, without any particulars, several days since, and was published -in all the newspapers. It would have been impossible that Mrs. Foster, -or some of her family or friends, should not have seen it.' - -'It may be that I am mistaken,' said Miss Montressor. 'I trust I am, -for it is an awful thing to think of that pretty creature amusing -herself at the theatre with this awful thunder-cloud ready to break -over her head.' And Miss Montressor's tears again began to flow. - -Bryan Duval, who had been listening silently but most attentively to -this colloquy, then roused himself. - -'I think, my dear Clara, you had better retire for a few minutes, and -endeavour to compose yourself. Gentlemen, I am sure you will excuse -Miss Montressor for a time; this news has been too much for her. We -will rejoin you later.' - -All rose as he spoke, and Bryan Duval, taking the actress by the arm, -led her through the folding-doors into the adjoining apartment, and -carefully closed the doors behind him. - -'Try to quiet yourself,' said Bryan Duval, as he placed her in a chair -beside an open window, and, seating himself alongside of her, assumed -a perfectly tranquil air. 'This is a very serious business, and I want -to speak to you about it without delay, and out of hearing of these -people. It is better they should not get hold of such facts as may be -hidden under the surface of this horrible event prematurely. Will you -tell me as quietly as you can exactly what you mean about the lady -whom you saw at the theatre to-night? That's right; you are quieter -now; don't speak for a minute, until you can do so without sobbing; -try to recollect every circumstance, and to be perfectly exact.' - -The purpose-like composure of his manner had its due effect upon the -excitable but not foolish woman to whom he spoke. She made a steady -effort, and subdued the rising hysterical agitation, and after a -minute or two was quite able to speak plainly. - -'You remember,' she said, 'the dinner Mr. Foster gave us at Richmond, -and that I had a good deal of talk with him both down at Richmond and -in the carriage as we came home?' - -Bryan Duval nodded. - -'He told me a good deal about himself, and spoke much of his wife, to -whom he seemed to be quite unusually attached. He said he would -introduce me to her, as he knew she would like me; that she was very -fond of the stage, had a passion for artistes' society, and a great -many other things of the same kind. Of course I asked him what she was -like, and he gave me a great description of her beauty and grace. I -suppose I did not keep down a smile of something like incredulity, or -at least of a suspicion of some exaggeration, in this description, for -he said, "You shall see for yourself, Miss Montressor, whether I am -exaggerating like an absent lover my Helen's charms;" and he took out -a watch--one of a very peculiar construction; I had never seen one -like it--and opened it by touching a spring so carefully concealed -that, when he put it into my hands afterwards, and told me to try if I -could open it, I could not even perceive where the spring lay. The -cover flew back and disclosed a miniature of a woman who was certainly -very pretty, and had the kind of face which one does not forget. I -looked at it for a good while: held it in my hand--for Mr. Foster had -taken it off his watch-chain--as we walked up and down on the terrace, -and made myself perfectly familiar with the features; the arrangement -of the hair particularly struck me, and I remarked to him how well it -suited the face. He said yes, he had always thought so; that his wife -had very good taste, and was her own hairdresser. You will see -presently why I tell you these particulars.' - -'I especially wish you to tell me every particular you can recollect,' -said Bryan Duval. - -'I do not think there was anything remarkable except that in what he -said to me,' said Miss Montressor. 'The subject was again referred to -during our drive home, and he told me the watch containing the -portrait was a parting gift from his wife. She had given it to him on -the very evening before he had left New York, and he had promised -always to wear it. I thought it a little unusual for a man to speak so -frankly and so freely of a thing of the kind, and I suppose I said it -or looked it. I do not remember that, but I do recollect his saying, -"Out of the fulness of the heart, you know. Miss Montressor, the mouth -speaketh," when neither a lack of sympathy nor ridicule was to be -apprehended. I thought him a man of considerable feeling, and that he -found his sojourn in England very wearisome, so that he was relieved -by finding any one, even a stranger, to whom he might talk of his -home.' - -'He was not a reticent man,' said Bryan Duval, 'as I have good reason -to know; a reason which I shall tell you presently if, as I fear, -there is more in this matter than meets the eye, and I have to ask -your help in a painful duty that may fall to my share. But pray go on, -and tell me what is the connection between Mr. Foster's confidence to -you and the lady whom you saw tonight.' - -Miss Montressor hesitated for just one moment. Could she explain -herself fully without the revelation of the family secret she had -strongly desired to preserve? Not if Bryan Duval were to question her -very closely on material issues. 'Never mind,' she thought, 'I must -risk it. I won't tell it unless I am forced, but I cannot hold my -tongue here--it is too serious.' - -'I have a friend in New York,' she said, 'who came to see me -yesterday, and in the course of some gossip about this place and the -people in it she happened to mention a certain Mrs. Griswold, who -holds a high position here, and who is a great admirer of the drama. -My friend told me that Mrs. Griswold had been particularly anxious to -see me in one of my best parts, and had taken places for our first -appearance. This Mrs. Griswold, it appears, was very handsome, very -charming, and altogether a somebody. I fancied I should like to -recognise her, if possible, among the audience; and as my friend knew -where she was going to sit, she gave me a description of her -appearance and dress, which would have enabled me to recognise her, -had this lady occupied the place my friend knew she had taken. The -description was--brown hair, worn plain, without flowers or jewels, -brown eyes, pale blue velvet dress, gold ornaments, and a -blue-and-gold fan. Not very distinct, after all, when you come to -think of it, now that pale blue velvet is so fashionable; but true -enough, when I looked at the place my friend had directed my attention -to--the last seat but two, dress circle, right-hand side--I saw a lady -who was watching the play intently, and whose appearance and dress -entirely coincided with my friend's description--but the lady was not -Mrs. Griswold.' - -'Not Mrs. Griswold!' exclaimed Bryan Duval. 'How do you know?' - -'Because,' returned Miss Montressor impressively, 'the face was the -face of Mr. Foster's wife, as I saw it in the miniature enclosed in -the watch-cover; the hair and the eyes were quite unmistakable. That -she was the woman who had sat for that miniature I cannot entertain -the smallest doubt. It is Mrs. Foster, and therefore _not_ Mrs. -Griswold!' - -Bryan Duval had listened to the latter part of Miss Montressor's -narrative with intense, even painful, eagerness. It was evident that -he attached immense importance to the apparently insignificant mistake -made by Miss Montressor; a mistake easily to be explained on the -theory that her friend had given her an erroneous indication of Mrs. -Griswold's place in the house. Not so did Bryan Duval interpret it. - -'You are quite sure,' he repeated, 'that you looked at the place where -you were told to look for Mrs. Griswold?' - -'I am quite sure.' - -'You are quite sure that the lady you saw in that place bore a close -resemblance to the miniature likeness of Mr. Foster's wife?' - -'I am perfectly certain of it,' returned Miss Montressor; 'every -feature and line was identical, and the peculiar unornamented mode in -which the hair was dressed was a conclusive proof to my mind. Stay a -moment,' she said, with a start like one catching at a suddenly -suggested point, and laying her hand upon his arm, 'there is a curious -coincidence in this. My friend told me that Mrs. Griswold had -beautiful brown hair, in which she never wore any ornament.' - -Bryan Duval rose, walked slowly up and down the room twice, and then -returned to Miss Montressor's side. His face was very pale, and his -voice sounded hoarsely, as he said to her: - -'There is far more than ordinary villany in this atrocious murder, and -perhaps the only way by which it can be exposed rests with you and -with me. I think you will be discreet, and if it be necessary to ask -you to take any part in this terrible matter, I think you will consent -to do so, and to act under orders.' - -'Certainly,' replied Miss Montressor, looking considerably frightened. -'I wish you would explain what you mean, and what part in it can -possibly fall to me.' - -'I will explain,' said Bryan Duval. 'I fear I shall soon have to -violate a dead man's confidence more extensively than by telling the -story to you. Foster took, as you know, a great fancy to me, and even -before that day when we went down to Richmond he had told me a great -deal about himself; but his confidences with me took a different form -from those in which he indulged on that day with you--they chiefly -related to business matters. He told me what was the object of his -journey to London--with which I need not trouble you, it has no -immediate bearing on the case: he told me how unexpectedly and rapidly -successful he had been in the accomplishment of that object, and that -he had good hopes of being able to return to New York at a much -earlier date than that fixed at his departure. I remember that he did -say he hadn't as yet announced to his wife that such a prospect had -opened up to him, preferring to make quite sure rather than run the -risk of keeping her in suspense, which might possibly end in -disappointment. The details were rather complicated, and it struck me -at the time that there was a good deal, not only of fair business -competition, but of equivocal manoeuvring to be apprehended in the -carrying through of the enterprise. That it was by no means smooth -sailing for Foster was particularly borne in upon me by one fact, -which he communicated to me in the strictest confidence, now unhappily -dispersed. It was this'--Bryan Duval now spoke in a whisper, and with -great intentness--'he had come to England under a false name.' - -Miss Montressor looked up wonderingly. 'Under a false name?' she -repeated. 'His name was not Foster? What was it, then?' - -'I do not know,' returned Bryan Duval. 'But an awful surmise as to what -it might have been came to me with your first words, when this horrid -news was conveyed to us just now.' - -'I don't understand you,' said Miss Montressor, with a somewhat -confused and wondering look. She had not caught at the chain of -probabilities which had presented itself to Bryan Duval. - -'I have a horrible conviction,' said he, 'that Foster's name really -was Griswold.' - -'My God,' exclaimed Miss Montressor, moved to the exclamation by more -feelings than the one which could be easily interpreted by her hearer, -'can it be?' - -'It struck me in an instant, and every word that you have spoken has -confirmed the suspicion. He told me that his wife had no notion that -he had been obliged to assume a false name; he spoke of her to me only -casually--with great affection it is true--but my only distinct -recollection of any quality which he assigned to her was a negative -one: that she knew nothing about business, and that, therefore, he -could not have told her that the assumption of a name not his own was -a necessary precaution without alarming her. He had, not very wisely I -thought at the time, kept her in ignorance of this detail, and -arranged for her letters to him passing through the hands of a friend, -who was to redirect them to him under his assumed appellation, known -only to this friend. How well I recollect that the whole story struck -me as the sort of thing which, had it occurred in a play or a book, -would have been pronounced rather unnatural, and likely to involve so -much confusion of detail as to hamper rather than aid business -operations! How little I dreamt of such a complication as that which -has arisen now! I do not think you see it?' - -'I confess I do not,' said Miss Montressor. - -'Well, it is simply this: the lady you saw in the theatre to-night was -Mrs. Griswold, but none the less was she the original of the miniature -which Mr. Foster showed you as that of his wife. The unhappy woman has -no conception that the news with which all New York is ringing -concerns her--that the murdered man is her husband.' - -'I see it now, I see it now!' said Miss Montressor. - -'You do not see it all even yet,' resumed Bryan Duval impressively. -'You don't see how it touches us. We two are the only people in this -city who know the truth--we two are the only people on whom the task -of making the truth known can possibly devolve, except, indeed, the -friend through whom Foster received his wife's letters; and I know -neither his name, his address, nor his business--I have, indeed, no -clue whatever to him. The position of this unfortunate man's wife is -one of the most terrible and tragic that can be conceived. What is to -be done?' - -'What, indeed!' said Miss Montressor, whose mind, however, glanced -rapidly towards her sister. 'I suppose you must communicate with the -authorities.' - -'Of course, of course!' said Bryan Duval. 'But I am not thinking so -much of the public and official steps to be taken in this horrible -affair; it is the wife, whose position, poor unconscious creature, is -so very awful.' - -To this Miss Montressor assented with ready sympathy, but it was -agreed between them, as at that late hour nothing whatever could be -done until the morning, there was nothing for it but that they should -keep their own counsel. Bryan Duval impressed upon Miss Montressor the -absolute necessity of appearing to be totally unconcerned in the -matter, lest she should expose herself to indiscreet questioning by -any member of the party, which it had now become necessary they should -rejoin. - -'If I could avoid seeing them at all,' she said, 'it would be better, -and, indeed, I hardly feel equal to the exertion. I cannot forget the -face I saw to-night, so full of interest and delight, beaming with -youth, beauty, and happiness; I cannot forget the pride and pleasure -with which that poor fellow showed me its miniature presentment in the -watch, which was his wife's parting gift. The two pictures will haunt -me all night, and when the morn comes, what shall we do?' - -'I do not know,' said Bryan Duval, 'what my part may have to be; I -must be well advised in that matter: but one grand object would be to -secure access to Mrs. Griswold. How well I remember poor Foster -talking of the pleasure it would give his wife to make our -acquaintance, and telling me that he could not give me a letter of -introduction to her, because it might lead to the leaking out, through -some other members of the company, of the fact that they had known him -as Mr. Foster. If the poor fellow had only made his confidence in me -complete, if he had told me what was the real name which he had hidden -under a false one, it might be easier for me now to help in this -terrible calamity. There is no way of getting at Mrs. Griswold without -startling her, if, indeed, we must be the persons to reveal the -truth.' - -'Perhaps we may devise one,' said Miss Montressor; 'but we must break -up now. I am quite worn out.' - -'Do not return to the supper-room at all,' said Bryan Duval; 'here is -a side door by which you can get away. I will apologise for you, -though, indeed, no apology is needed.' - -During the conversation the hum of voices in the next room had been -distinctly audible. The English actors had suddenly found themselves -invested with a new importance and interest in New York; the very -latest intelligence of the murdered man was to be had from them; and -when Bryan Duval returned, he found his companions the centre of an -eager group, who were all listening with absorbed avidity to every -detail which could be furnished by the party concerning their -acquaintance with Mr. Foster. The telegraph had given accurate -particulars of the place and time at which the murder had been -committed, which had so immediately followed the farewell scene on -board the Cuba, that every utterance of Mr. Foster's which could be -retailed by his companions on that occasion was regarded and noted -with all the impressiveness due to last words. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. -ONLY TOO TRUE. - - -Mr. Jacobs was as punctual as usual in his early attendance in the -box-office of the Varieties on the morning after the first appearance -of the Bryan Duval troupe, when he was lightly touched on the -shoulder, and, turning round, was astonished to perceive the great -London star himself. - -'Ha, ha, my dear boy, it is you, is it?' cried Mr. Jacobs, with -unctuous familiarity. 'Looking after business--always got an eye to -the dollars--come down to see how the places are going? Well, you need -not look so anxious about it; we're going right ahead, we are, this -time.' - -'It wasn't for that, Jacobs,' said Bryan, with a faint smile. 'I want -to look at the sheet for last night. I want to see what names certain -places were taken in.' - -'O, that's the game, is it?' said Mr. Jacobs, handing him the sheet -required. 'Want to see whether any of your old flames came to welcome -you back. Hallo! what's the matter?' he cried, as Duval uttered a -short groan. - -'Nothing,' said Bryan; 'nothing at all. As Jacobs looked up at him he -saw his finger resting motionless on a certain portion of the box -sheet. 'Thank you, I won't intrude upon you any more. Good-morning, -Jacobs;' and he sauntered off. - -'Mrs. Alston E. Griswold,' murmured Jacobs to himself, reading the -name underneath which Bryan's finger had been fixed. 'That's it; -there's the mark of his black glove on the sheet now. Alston Griswold? -Why, that's the name of one of your Wall-street customers, with a fine -up-town house and--ah, Bryan, my boy, your propensities will get you -into mischief one of these days.' - -'All doubt is at an end now,' said Bryan, as he walked up to the -hotel, 'and Clara was right. The case seems to me even darker and -worse than she seems to think at present. It is lucky that she has a -head upon her shoulders, for I shall have to take her into -consultation.' - -Thereupon he despatched an elderly Irishman to Miss Montressor's room, -with a message intimating his desire to be allowed access to her as -soon as possible. Bryan Duval's messenger returned with an affirmatory -answer to his inquiry whether Miss Montressor could let him see her; -they had not yet met on that morning, and she was in a high state of -expectation of what the interview might bring forth. - -Miss Montressor had been thinking intently on the subject in -discussion during all her waking moments since she and Bryan Duval had -parted on the preceding night. It had not kept her from sleeping; her -nerves were in too good order and her constitution was too sound for -her to be subjected to inconveniences of that sort by any abstract -cause of emotion; but she had thought over it until she fell asleep, -and it had recurred to her with her first consciousness on waking. She -had endeavoured, in anticipation of Bryan Duval's possible line of -interrogation, to recall everything that had been said during the -conversation between herself and Mr. Foster on the terrace at -Richmond, and, strangely as she considered it, she found this very -difficult to do. If Miss Montressor had understood the laws of mental -processes better, she would have known that this difficulty was of -ordinary occurrence, and to be anticipated in her case. She was not in -the habit of thinking about anything systematically, and a beginning -in this direction is no easier than any other mental process directed -with intention. So that Miss Montressor had got herself rather into a -muddle between what had really been said by Mr. Foster and her general -impression of the interview, when she found Bryan Duval in the small -ante-room in which the residents at the hotel usually received their -friends. - -Neither was insensible to the gravity and incongruity of the occasion. -That two strangers, come to New York in the trifling and superficial -character of actors, should be--to their own almost indubitable -persuasion, and quite unsuspected by the public--able to supply the -key of one of the most terrible mysteries of crime which had for a -long time startled and disturbed society, was a circumstance full of -oddity and interest that they appreciated to the full. Literally -nothing could have influenced, impressed, surprised, or agitated Duval -out of the instincts of the dramatist who combines, and the actor who -reproduces, the situations supplied by human events. When this story -should be complete in its reality, it would find its way to the -pigeon-holes in which Bryan Duval's materials, the pabulum of his -ever-active brain, were stored up, with the regularity, in order and -in date, of a privately edited edition of the _Annual Register_. In -due, not in undue time--Bryan Duval was never so wanting in taste and -judgment as to incur the charge of indecent haste--this drama of real -life would no doubt be put upon the stage, with charming accessories -of scenery, decoration, and padding-out. Bryan Duval saw his way to it -already, though as yet the knowledge of the murderer and his motive -were wanting to the story. - -It had occupied his thoughts also almost exclusively; and though he -had been trained to habits of mental precision, and the following of -clues to human nature altogether beyond Miss Montressor's ken and -capacity, he had not reached a much clearer state of mind than that in -which his fair friend was about to join him. Bryan Duval was a man of -too much natural keenness and too much acquired experience to accept -generalities as bases for argument, or to seek conclusions in them. -While he constructed a system with the skill and minuteness of a -Procureur Impérial, he did not lend his judgment to one hypothesis, -and turn the facts to fit it. Without ignoring or depreciating the -influence of women in all human events, he regarded the 'Who is she?' -which has become axiomatic as rather smart than sound, and was -disposed to believe that dollars are quite as often to be found as -women at the bottom of the crimes, as they assuredly are of the -misfortunes, of men. In the present instance, if anything could be -said to induce an explanation in the midst of the mystery of this -crime, it was Bryan Duval's conviction that money was in question. Mr. -Foster's private business in London; the disguise about his name, -which he had avowed, but not explained; the perfectly conceivable -rivalry and envy which his expedition might have excited--all these -were plain to the mind of Bryan Duval as he pondered the matter, and -they pointed each and all to another conclusion than that of 'Who is -she?' Of Mr. Foster, or, as he had almost come to name the murdered -man in his thoughts, Alston Griswold, he had not known very much, and -their term of acquaintance had been short; but it had sufficed to -create a strong regard for him, and Bryan Duval had formed a pretty -accurate estimate of the New York merchant's character. - -'An honest, true-hearted fellow,' said Duval to himself, 'and -profoundly in love with his wife, who seems to have been equally -attached to him. There was no woman in this case--no woman on either -side the Atlantic. The murderer must be looked for in the ordinary -category of ruffians, or if it is a put-up job, the wire-puller is -here in New York among his rivals in business.' - -The scene and circumstances of the crime, imperfectly as they could be -gathered from the newspaper reports, made a very vivid picture to the -mind's eye of the dramatist, accustomed to seize upon salient points; -and he thought he discerned in them tokens of a surprise and a -discovery, rather than of the common assault of a robber. - -'Why should he have gone with any man into an empty warehouse?' Bryan -Duval asked himself. 'May he not have been enticed thither by a -promise of information of some kind? May he not have been suddenly set -upon and murdered, because he refused to give certain information?' - -The circumstance of Mr. Foster having lingered in Liverpool later than -the departure of the train by which he mentioned to Duval it was his -intention to return to London, did not make any impression upon the -actor's mind. - -'Business men have business matters to attend to in many places,' he -thought. 'If the poor fellow strained a point a little in letting me -suppose that he had nothing to do and nobody to see in Liverpool, and -only came down on our account, it was a harmless little bit of -compliment, and I daresay he did. No man is bound to tell a far closer -friend than I was _all_ about any matter in which he is concerned, and -this one may have had an extensive connection in Liverpool, and lots -to do there for anything I know to the contrary. I have, to be sure, -no very solid grounds for my belief; but it is certainly more than an -impression that this poor fellow's business in England lies at the -root of this matter, and that there is no woman in the case.' - -The words were passing through his mind as Miss Montressor entered the -room. - -'You were only too right,' said Bryan Duval, as Miss Montressor -entered the room with face full of inquiry: 'the lady who occupied the -seat you described to me last night was indeed Mrs. Alston Griswold; -here is the memorandum from the box-office, giving the name and -address. This is certainty on one side of the question; certainty on -the other will, I fear, be only too readily attained.' - -Miss Montressor sat down and looked, as she felt, very much concerned. -The condition of the unconscious wife appealed at once to her womanly -and her artistic feelings; the truth and the situation alike struck -her as deeply impressive. - -'I shall communicate at once with the city authorities,' said Bryan -Duval; 'it will be impossible for me to keep out of this sad affair, -and it is manifestly my duty to volunteer all the information it is in -my power to give. I suppose there will be some person who will be -deputed to break this terrible news to her?' - -'No, no,' said Miss Montressor; 'do not act in the matter in that way. -What do the ends of justice matter in comparison with the wife who is -widowed in such a horrible manner, and who knows nothing of the -calamity which has befallen her? Let them wait; let us first try to -find some personal friend of the poor thing, and tell him.' - -'Of course,' said Bryan Duval, 'that would be the proper line of -action if we knew anything about a personal friend; but we must first -discover the identity of a person of the sort, and how am I to do that -except by communicating with the authorities? Very likely the -officials with whom it will be my duty to confer may all, or some of -them, be acquainted with Mrs. Griswold. Full particulars of the murder -cannot be known until the arrival of the mail, and it is just possible -that no suspicion may arise, unless I awaken it, that Mr. Foster is -the well-known Mr. Griswold I now firmly believe him to be. To keep -the knowledge of such a possibility from the police authorities here -for a moment longer than it can be avoided may seriously impede action -on the other side, as it must prevent the supplying of information -from thence.' - -Miss Montressor had listened to Bryan Duval with a troubled -countenance and an equally troubled heart. A line of action was -suggesting itself to her, which had the full consent of her judgment -and her feelings, but a consideration of self-interest was striving to -withhold her from propounding it. She knew that the means of acquiring -the information which would enable Bryan Duval to communicate direct -with some acquaintance or friend of Mrs. Griswold's lay ready at her -hand, but she hesitated to use it. Bess was that means--it would cost -her something to avail herself of Bess. The struggle in Miss -Montressor's mind was not lasting. The kindly remembrance of the man -who had treated her with such gentlemanly consideration, with such -unfeigned respect, a thought of the fair woman whom she had seen on -the previous night and her pathetic ignorance, overcame her -misgivings. - -'I think,' she said, 'I can supply you with a hint which may change -your view of the most judicious course for you to pursue. Do you -remember that I told you yesterday that I had a friend who knew Mrs. -Griswold, and had given me indications by which I recognised her--or, -as I thought, recognised Mrs. Foster--at the theatre?' - -'Yes, I remember,' said Bryan Duval. 'How stupid I am not to have -remembered it sooner! I suppose you can put yourself in communication -with her?' - -'Easily,' said Miss Montressor. 'She is'--here she hesitated for one -last moment--'she is in a very humble station--no higher than that of -nurse to Mrs. Griswold's child.' - -'Capital,' said Bryan Duval, passing over the explanation with an -absolute carelessness highly reassuring to Miss Montressor; 'nothing -could be better. She is positively in the house, and knows all about -them.' - -'Well, she has only been in the house since Mr. Griswold's departure; -but I have no doubt she can give us the information we require.' - -'Can you get it from her?' said Bryan Duval, in that curt business -tone which Miss Montressor had come to know so thoroughly, and which -had in it something extremely satisfactory to everybody who wanted to -transact business with the man who spoke thus to the purpose. - -'I can,' she replied, 'but it will be a little difficult to do without -exciting suspicion and precipitating discovery, if indeed the -discovery is to be made. I cannot send for her to come to me -openly--such an invitation would astonish Mrs. Griswold, and she might -meet it with an objection--neither can I go in my proper capacity to -Mrs. Griswold's house to visit one of Mrs. Griswold's servants.' - -'Why can't you go as a servant yourself?' said Bryan Duval. 'Your -make-up in that line is unexceptionable; try it off the boards at -once!' - -'I will,' said Miss Montressor; 'that is a capital idea. I will go -disguised, and discover whether the lady at the play really was Mrs. -Griswold. If I cannot see her, which I may manage to do by some -contrivance, I shall at least be sure to see a portrait of her. A man -like her husband was not likely to be satisfied with a mere miniature -of his wife while a full-length portrait was to be had for money. We -are, of course, morally certain that the fact is what we take it to -be, but the first thing to be done is to achieve actual certainty. -Taking it for granted that I see Mrs. Griswold and identify her with -the miniature, what will you do next?' - -'I cannot decide upon that until I have received your report,' said -Bryan Duval, 'on these two heads--first, the identity of Mrs. Griswold -with the portrait Mr. Foster showed you; secondly, the name and -address of some intimate friend of the family, with whom I may at once -communicate.' - -'I am quite sure there is such a person,' interrupted Miss Montressor. -'I could not distinctly recall everything that Mr. Foster told me, in -the hurry and confusion of last night; but since then I have -remembered a good deal. He mentioned to me, but not by name, one -friend in particular, in whose charge he had confided not only his -business interests in New York during his absence, but also his -household treasures. Poor fellow, he quite amused me--though I am -conscious now that I did not respond very warmly or graciously--by his -simple talk about his wife and child. He would try to describe the -baby to me, and he did describe the mother as well as showing me her -picture. He was a good soul. But I quite remember now that he told me -he had this trusty friend.' - -'A piece of information which makes your suggestion all the more -admirable and your aid all the more valuable. We now have some -definite basis of action. When we discover this friend of Foster's, or -Griswold's, we shall not only have found the man who will be our best -guide as to what we ought to do, but we shall have found the man who -will be sure to hit upon the motive of the crime. And now lose no -time. Set about your task at once; the sooner it is over, the better -for you and for what I have to do. I do not say to you, do it well and -do it delicately--that I feel is unnecessary. We have not had half -sufficient time to realise how horrid this thing is which has -happened; and so much the better, since it has so strangely fallen out -that we have come to this side of the world to act in such a tragedy.' - -Miss Montressor rose and was about to leave the room, when she said: - -'Suppose by any possibility I should be wrong, and that this lady is -not the original of the miniature, consequently that Mr. Griswold, her -husband, is not the murdered man--what will you do in that case?' - -'In that case,' said Bryan Duval, 'I shall simply have to communicate -with the authorities the fact that Mr. Foster is not the murdered -man's real name; this on his own authority, and of course it will be -immediately transmitted to London. Go now. You will find me here on -your return; I shall not leave the house.' - -Miss Montressor left him, and, going to her own room, made rapid -preparation for the arduous task she had been set. She hurriedly -turned over such articles of her wardrobe as had yet been unpacked, -searching for those most suitable to the part she was to play. While -doing this, her thoughts reverted to the last unprofessional -masquerade in which she had indulged, and, by a natural transition, to -Mr. Dolby. She had thought very little about him during her voyage -out, but as it approached its termination she had occasionally -speculated upon whether that gentleman would present himself at the -wharf, or whether he would wait and pay her a more dignified visit at -her hotel. She had actually spared him a few moments' recollection in -all the triumph of her first brilliantly successful appearance on the -previous evening. 'Was Mr. Dolby in the house?' she had wondered. 'Was -his hand among the number of those which had flung prodigal floral -tributes at her feet? Or--was he sulky still?' She had, however, -completely forgotten him from the announcement of the supper, and in -all the hurry, agitation, and confusion of the ensuing hours of the -night, her mind had never once glanced towards him. But now--she -selected a plain gray skirt, originally intended to fulfil the once -humble office of petticoat, but which was rather an unduly smart -morning walking dress for the part she was assuming--she remembered -the day on which she had gone to the house in Queen-street, and -inquired ineffectually for her angry lover. Even now it was only a -passing remembrance; her feelings were unaffectedly and deeply engaged -in the matter in hand. Miss Montressor's wardrobe contained nothing -suitable to be worn as an out-door dress of the sort which she -required; but she remedied the deficiency by putting on a thick dark -shawl, which she found among the parcel of wraps, and removing the too -conspicuous feather from her hat, over which she pinned a veil. - -As she unfolded the shawl the sharp end of a pin caught her finger. -'How tiresome of Justine,' she muttered, 'to leave pins stuck in -shawls! I have so often spoken to her about it;' and she turned over -the folds of the garment to find the obnoxious object. It was a long -gold pin with a carved head, rather intended for a gentleman's necktie -than as a shawl fastener; the stone was a very fine specimen of -intaglio work, and Miss Montressor looked at it without any -recognition of whence it came. It was not hers; and as it was a very -uncommon article, it was not the sort of thing to be picked up on the -floor or anywhere, as people pick up ordinary pins. 'I wonder whose it -is, and how I came by it?' she thought, as she mechanically used it to -fasten the shawl. - -She then went quickly clown the stairs, and passed out of the door, -comparatively unnoticed. It was early in the day, and the customary -groups of loungers had not yet assembled. On leaving the hotel, Miss -Montressor turned to the right, and making inquiry of the first person -whom she met as to the distance which divided her from that portion of -Fifth-avenue in which Mrs. Griswold's house was situate, learned that -she would be overtaken in about a minute by a street car, which would -deposit her close by. She had barely thanked her informant when the -car came up, and the man to whom she had spoken signalled to the -conductor; the next moment Miss Montressor was making her first -experience of the marvellously-convenient and well-arranged street -locomotion of New York. As she seated herself, a sudden recollection -flashed across her that the pin which she had been so surprised to -find in her shawl had belonged to Mr. Foster. With the suddenness of -the vision, the little circumstance which had placed it in her -possession returned to her memory--again she felt the slight chill of -the evening air; she saw Mr. Foster's face, and felt his careful hands -drawing the warm folds around her; remembering that he held them -together with one hand, as he removed the pin from his own necktie -with the other. How came she to have forgotten this pin--to have -omitted returning it to him? It was a strange oversight. How curious -and mysterious, should it be now destined to be an important -coincidence! 'His wife will remember it,' she thought. 'If we are -right in our terrible belief, my bringing it to her, my requesting her -to identify it, will enable me to prove my sad story to the poor lady.' -What was it Mr. Foster had told her about this pin? She must try to -recollect all he had said very exactly; she must not add a word or -subtract a word if possible. He had said that it was a sleeve button -that had belonged to his wife; that on his arrival in London he had -found it among his things, where it had no doubt been put by accident, -and that he had had it made into a pin--yes, that was exactly what he -had said. She took out her pocket-book, and in the few minutes -occupied by the transit she wrote down, with all the accuracy -attainable by her memory, the words in which Mr. Foster had told her -these facts. - -She had hardly concluded the memorandum when she was set down, and in -a few minutes found herself at the door of Mrs. Griswold's house. A -good-humoured coloured servant answered the summons of the bell, and, -on her inquiry for Mrs. Jenkins, ushered her into a small waiting-room -on the right of the hall. Several newspapers lay upon the table; she -turned them over hurriedly, and found in each great prominence given -to the appalling murder in Liverpool of an American gentleman. She had -no time to read the details, which were afforded in every variety of -type, and embellished with every device to attract curiosity and -direct attention, for she was joined by her sister within a few -moments. 'Civil people these,' she thought, in the way that people -will think of trifles amid the most serious occupations of the mind; -'civil people these, to give a message to a servant with such -celerity.' - -'You see I have come to visit you, Bess, after all' - -Mrs. Jenkins received her sister with unbounded delight, but had -hardly greeted her and recounted with what eloquent praises Mrs. -Griswold had spoken of the performance, and especially of Clara's part -in it, that morning, when she was helping to dress her, when she broke -off to ask about the very subject which was occupying Miss -Montressor's thoughts. - -'My dear,' she said, 'of course you have heard of this horrible -murder? It gave me a dreadful turn last night, when I heard the boys -crying out, about an hour after Mrs. Griswold went to the play, and -Jim went out to find out all about it. Mrs. Griswold hadn't heard -anything of it when she came in, and I was very glad; for really it is -enough to make one nervous. You heard all about it, of course?' - -'O, yes,' said Miss Montressor; 'we have heard all about it. It -happened the very day after we sailed. Does every one know about it in -the house now?' - -'Of course,' said Mrs. Jenkins. - -'I didn't mean to ask that,' said Miss Montressor; 'my mind is -wandering. I meant to say, was Mrs. Griswold acquainted with Mr. -Foster?' - -'Lor' bless you! no, Clara,' said her sister, laughing. 'I think you -Londoners imagine London is the only big place in the world, and think -people who live anywhere else must know everybody who ever came from -the place where they live. There are lots of Fosters in New York, I -should think, and there is not anything known about this poor gentleman -except that his name is Foster. Mrs. Griswold saw it this morning, and -she said she did not think Mr. Griswold knew any one of the name; but -it made her quite downhearted--set her off thinking of Mr. Griswold, I -suppose.' - -'Well, I am glad she hadn't heard it before she left the theatre,' -said Miss Montressor; 'it isn't pleasant news to wind up the evening -with, even when one knows nothing at all of the parties concerned, a -dreary epilogue to the play. I saw Mrs. Griswold last night, Bess.' - -'I am glad you did. What do you think of her--though I suppose you -couldn't judge very well at that distance?' - -'Well, in the first place, I should like to be sure that it was Mrs. -Griswold. People change places occasionally, you know, at the theatre, -and I didn't catch sight of her until the third act, nor see her very -distinctly then; but I could make out the gown, and that she wore gold -ornaments of the new fashion--warming-pan style, all clink and clatter -when you are near them, and very like harness when you are not. I saw -the blue-and-gold fan, too; so I suppose there is no doubt that was -the lady?' - -'No doubt at all,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'She was in the seat I told you -to look at, and said how comfortable it was, and what a capital view -of the stage she had from it. She was highly delighted, I can tell -you, Clara, and said she liked your acting better than any she had -ever seen. I told her it was not your best part, that it was nothing -to your Juliet; but she said she was afraid she was too stupid to care -about Shakespeare--not that she is stupid. I am sure I don't set -myself up for a judge, but I think she is as bright as she is pretty.' - -'I don't exactly know whether she is pretty or not,' said Miss -Montressor, 'and I take a great interest in your Mrs. Griswold: a lady -who is so kind to her dependents as you make her out to be, and has -the good sense and the good taste to be an admirer of the drama, is a -legitimate subject of interest. I am sorry I did not see her face more -distinctly; could you give me a sight of her now?' - -'Now,' said Mrs. Jenkins, 'and in that dress, Clara! What would she -think?' - -'Why, my dear Bess, you do not imagine I want you to introduce me as -Miss Montressor in this costume, and thus deliberately tell on myself -the very thing which I have been impressing upon you must be kept -profoundly secret? Not at all. But nursery visitors are not -impossibilities in a house of this sort, I suppose? Couldn't I be a -humble friend, a former fellow-servant somewhere--I suppose she thinks -you were a servant before you came to her--who has just dropped in to -have a look at baby?' - -Mrs. Jenkins laughed. 'It would be good fun to have a private play of -that sort on our own account, Clara, but unfortunately it cannot be -done, for Mrs. Griswold is not in the nursery, and she is not likely -to come to it. She caught cold last night at the play, and I could not -persuade her not to get up this morning; but she felt very tired after -breakfast, and I did persuade her to go and lie down: she is lying -down in her own room, and the orders are that she is not to be -disturbed for anything less important than a cable message from Mr. -Griswold. She is always expecting one, though, as far as I can see, he -is too sensible to waste money in them, and satisfies himself with -writing by the mail--precious long letters they are, and doesn't she -prize them just! However, she is lying down, and I cannot disturb her, -above all by taking a stranger into the room; so you cannot see her at -present.' - -'O, never mind,' said Miss Montressor; 'so much the better that she is -in the room. I shall have plenty of chances of seeing her. And now I -should like a look at the house, Bess. It is the first house I have -been in in New York, and I have a fancy for that sort of thing, and I -like to get hints about carpets and curtains and drawing-room fixings. -Can't you take me round--it is allowed, I suppose?' - -'O, certainly, it is allowed,' said Mrs. Jenkins; 'we are under no -restraint here. Come along up-stairs;' and the unsuspecting woman led -Miss Montressor up the broad staircase to the white-and-gold -folding-doors which gave access to the reception-rooms. - -'What a simple creature it is,' thought Miss Montressor, 'that it has -never occurred to her to ask me why I have so decidedly changed mv -mind as to come here to see her, that being the very exact thing which -I so positively assured her yesterday I could not do! Very handsome -rooms, indeed,' she said aloud; 'fitted up in capital taste, and -evidently quite regardless of expense. That's a fine picture on the -wall opposite.' - -She stepped across the floor rapidly, and stood still in front of it. -It was a fine picture; an admirably executed portrait of Helen -Griswold. The artist had painted her in an unconventional attitude, -and the whole picture was pleasing to the general eye, interested in -the work of art rather than in the likeness. It represented a slight, -almost girlish figure, in soft white muslin robes slightly trimmed -with lace, touched here and there with a knot of ribbon, a lace veil -being loosely tied over the rich chestnut-brown hair, softening its -masses, but hiding neither its richness nor its colour; the hands were -clad in gardening-gloves; in the right was a large pair of scissors, -just about to be applied to a rose-bush, one blossom of which was held -apart from the stem by the left; a basket of roses already cut stood -at the feet, and the scene of the picture was a conservatory, the -original of which Miss Montressor had caught a glimpse of on the first -floor of the house. - -'That is Mrs. Griswold's portrait,' said Mrs. Jenkins, in reply to her -sister's observation, 'and it is not at all flattered; so now you can -see, if you had got a near view of her last night, you would have -agreed with me about her beauty.' - -'Yes,' said Miss Montressor slowly, 'that is a pretty face, and one -cannot say of it, as one does of so many pretty faces, that there is -nothing in it. I should think she was a very sensible woman, as well -as a very kind-hearted one?' - -'She is just that,' said Mrs. Jenkins enthusiastically. 'Sit down -here, Clara, and have a good look at it.' - -The sisters placed themselves side by side upon an ottoman which -commanded a good view of the portrait, at which Miss Montressor -continued steadfastly to gaze. All doubt was over now, all hope that -she had been mistaken was at an end; the miniature she had seen in the -watch that day as she paced the terrace at Richmond was but a reduced -copy without the veil, and the face that looked mildly, beaming down -upon her out of its gilded frame, was as fresh and fair as the roses -in the feet. Miss Montressor was not of a classic turn of mind; her -education had not gone far in any direction, nor at all in that; she -did not refer the suggestiveness of the open scissors in the woman's -hand, about to snip the fresh young life of the beautiful rose, to any -recollection of the Pareae; but it had a certain something in it which -impressed her, something of suspicion which filled her eyes with tears -unseen by Mrs. Jenkins. - -'Is there a portrait of Mr. Griswold?' she asked. - -'Only a small one, half-sized, and since he went away Mrs. Griswold -has had it moved to her bedroom. It hangs on the wall just over her -dressing-table, and opposite the foot of her bed. It is the first -thing she must see in the morning when she opens her eyes. They say it -is uncommonly like him; it is painted by the same artist who did this -one; but Mrs. Griswold will have it the picture in her bracelet--much -handsomer and much younger--is more like Mr. Griswold.' - -'Does any one of her family stay with her while he is away?' was Miss -Montressor's next question. - -'There is not any family. She has no relatives, I am told, not only in -New York, but in all the world; she was an orphan when Mr. Griswold -married her, and I do not believe he has any relatives; for I have -never seen any nor heard them spoken of, either by her or among the -servants.' - -'That's lonely for Mrs. Griswold. Has she much company while he is -away? But I think you said not yesterday?' - -'O dear, no she leads the quietest life that any lady could live. Many -a one would think it very dull; but she doesn't, what with her books, -and music, and baby, and her letters to Mr. Griswold. She is sometimes -sorrowful, but never dull. She has some visitors at times, but I don't -think she cares for them--one person is pretty much the same to her as -another, when it is not Mr. Griswold--and one day she said to me, "I -have no intimates, and my husband has very few for so wonderfully -sociable a man, and such a general favourite as he is."' - -'Then there is no one to take care of her in particular?' said Miss -Montressor; 'for she is young, you know, to be left alone with so -much to look after and to do as there must be in the care of all -this,'--with a comprehensive sweep of her arm, intended to take in all -the household goods at once. - -'O, no, there is no one to take care of her,' said Mrs. Jenkins; 'but -she can take very good care of herself. She always wishes to do, and -she always does, what is right and good and kind towards every one.' - -Miss Montressor was profoundly discouraged. Her embassy was not -prospering; the worst that they feared was true, and the aid on which -they had speculated did not seem to be forthcoming. Mrs. Griswold had -no relatives and no intimates. Mr. Griswold had no relatives, and if -he had any intimates, Mrs. Jenkins could evidently have no information -concerning them. What was to be done now? Miss Montressor dared not -pursue her questioning of her sister any further, and hastily decided -that the best thing she could do would be to return to the hotel and -narrate to Bryan Duval exactly what had passed. She felt that her -mission was but imperfectly executed; but its solemnity and importance -had grown upon her with every moment since she had entered Mrs. -Griswold's house, and she was now strongly actuated by a nervous -desire to get out of it as soon as possible. She looked at her watch -and started up in a hurry. - -'I must be going, Bess,' she said; 'I had no notion it was so late. I -am overdue at rehearsal, and here I have stayed talking about other -people, and not said anything of all I wanted to say to you. Come -along down-stairs with me.' - -'You will come again, Clara?' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'Nobody will ever -suspect you in that gown and with that great shawl--it spoils your -figure, dear, but never mind.' - -'I will try,' said Miss Montressor, 'I will see about it; if not, you -can come to me. Good-bye now.' - -Mrs. Jenkins had come to the door with her; the hall was empty as the -sisters spoke their last few words there. Mrs. Jenkins's hand was upon -the lock of the street door when the bell was rung. She mechanically -drew back the lock, and a gentleman presented himself. He was a young -man, tall, slight, and upright, with bright black eyes and dark -complexion, fine curly black hair, and a dark moustache. - -'Is Mrs. Griswold at home?' he said. - -'She is at home, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins, 'but she is very tired and -not very well, and she is lying down.' - -'O, then,' said the stranger, passing into the hall, 'I will content -myself with a visit to your quarters, Mrs. Jenkins, and a look at the -baby.' He had lifted his hat to Miss Montressor, who by this time was -on the outside of the door. 'And,' he now added, 'I will just write a -line in the waiting-room before you take me up-stairs, Mrs. Jenkins, -and ask you to give it to Mrs. Griswold when she awakes.' The sisters -parted with a wave of the hand, and Mrs. Jenkins shut the door. - -Miss Montressor walked slowly and thoughtfully down the street. She -felt sure that the gentleman whom she had just seen, and who spoke so -familiarly to her sister, must be at least an intimate acquaintance of -Mrs. Griswold's--the early hour of his visit, his familiar manner, the -fact that he was going to be taken up to see the child, the very tone -of her sister's voice as she answered his question, all indicated that -he was no stranger. Bess had said Mrs. Griswold had no intimate -friends. Perhaps she had forgotten this one, or the intimacy might be -between him and Mr. Griswold. From that, may be, Miss Montressor felt -instinctively that here was a resource--an instrument put into her -hands. There could be no risk in the using of it. - -By the time she had arrived at this conclusion she was well out of -sight from the windows of Mrs. Griswold's house; but no one could -leave that house and turn to either side without her perceiving the -fact. She crossed the street and waited on the opposite side. She was -quite alone, as it happened, throughout its long length, and might -pass slowly back and forward a few steps in each direction without -attracting attention. - -The minutes during which she was thus engaged seemed very long to Miss -Montressor. Would Bryan Duval approve of what she was going to do? It -might be a great blunder; it might be the best thing under the -circumstances. She was forced to use her discretion in the matter; -there seemed the one way in which she could fulfil the promise with -which she had left Duval. After an interval of at least a quarter of -an hour the door of Mrs. Griswold's house opened, and the young man -for whom Miss Montressor was watching appeared on the threshold, -attended by the coloured servant, to whom he was speaking pleasantly, -and who was receiving a communication with the most expressive grin. -In another moment he came down the steps, and advanced briskly in the -same direction which she had taken. She stood perfectly still until he -was nearly opposite to her. Then she crossed the street rapidly, went -up to him, and, without giving herself a moment to consider, said: - -'You are a friend of Mrs. Griswold's? In her interest may I speak with -you?' - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. -THORNTON CAREY. - - -Thornton Carey, who was much surprised at this sudden address, -stopped, hesitated, and looked somewhat embarrassed. Another man, -accustomed to what are called 'adventures,' would not have been in the -least thrown off his balance, either by the suddenness or the style of -the address; he would have accepted it as a matter of course, and done -his best to make himself pleasant to the speaker. Thornton Carey, -however, was not this style of man, and, even if he had been, there -was something in the earnestness of Miss Montressor's voice and manner -which would have stopped his flippancy. Had she not, moreover, -mentioned the name of Helen, and declared herself to be about to speak -in Mrs. Griswold's interests? That would have been quite enough at any -time to command Thornton Carey's sympathy and attention. - -'I am a friend of Mrs. Griswold's,' he replied, looking keenly at his -interlocutor, 'and, for the matter of that, of Mr. Griswold's too, I -hope.' - -'What I have to say concerns them both most nearly,' said Miss -Montressor, frankly meeting his gaze. 'Will you, in the exercise of -your friendship for them, trust me so far as to accompany me in a -carriage to the Fifth-avenue Hotel?' - -Again Thornton Carey hesitated. He went very little into female -society, and, under any other circumstances, the idea of being shut up -in a carriage with a strange lady would certainly have frightened him; -and again he suffered himself to be persuaded by Miss Montressor's -manner and the object of her mission. - -'I will do so willingly,' he said; and ordering the coachman to drive -to the hotel, he entered the vehicle, and took his place by his fair -companion's side. - -As they drove through the crowded streets, Thornton Carey thought with -wonder upon his strange position. Here was he, the hermit, the -recluse, who so seldom emerged from his lettered seclusion far away in -the city of the South, who seldom sought for any company beyond that -of the distinguished dead who gathered around him as he pored over his -books--here he was, rattling over the stones of New York, bound for -the most luxurious hotel in the city, and with a very handsome, -dashing young woman by his side. In the course of the desultory -reading which, like most young men, he had indulged in before -permanently settling down to valuable study, he had, he remembered, -come across the description of certain adventures, such as he was then -going through; and the idea that he, whom all his coevals looked upon -as a model of sageness and sobriety, should be found under such -circumstances, would have amused him, had he not at the same time -remembered that the errand on which he was bound was, according to his -companion's words, one in which Helen's happiness was deeply -interested. - -The carriage stopped at the ladies' entrance of the hotel, and Miss -Montressor, on being handed out by Thornton Carey, requested him to -follow her. They passed up the staircase to the first floor, and -finding one of the smaller parlours disengaged, his companion -requested Mr. Carey to be seated, while she sent one of the servants -to call Mr. Bryan Duval. - -'Bryan Duval!' echoed Carey in astonishment. 'Why, surely that is the -name of a famous actor? Even I, though not much given to dramatic -literature or theatre-going, have heard of him.' - -'It is the same,' said Miss Montressor. - -'But how can he be mixed up in any matter concerning Mrs. Griswold?' -asked Carey. - -'It is as much in his power as in mine,' said Miss Montressor, 'to -give information upon a subject in which Mrs. Griswold is most deeply -and most unhappily interested.' - -'Unhappily!' interrupted Thornton Carey, turning pale. - -'Most unhappily, as you will agree when you know all,' said Miss -Montressor. 'Here, however, is Mr. Duval; he will explain matters to -you much better than I can.' - -She introduced the gentlemen, and was pleased to notice that, so far -as she could see, each liked the look of the other's appearance. Duval -was pleased with Thornton Carey's frank honest expression, while Carey -himself recognised the keen acumen and subtle intelligence displayed -in the broad brow and bright eves of the dramatist. - -Miss Montressor commenced the conversation by rapidly explaining to -Duval, so far as she thought necessary, and without, of course, any -allusion to Bess, the failure of her mission to Mrs. Griswold's house, -adding that she there had met Mr. Carey, and learning that he was an -intimate friend of the family, she had thought it best to ask his kind -assistance, and had brought him there in order that the matter might -be explained to him. - -'You have acted perfectly right, my dear Miss Montressor,' said Bryan, -avoiding his usual familiarity, under the idea that it would prove -surprising, if not displeasing, to their new ally. 'And now, sir,' he -added, turning to Carey, 'I will keep you no longer in suspense. You -have, of course, heard of this terrible murder of the American -gentleman in Liverpool, the news of which is ringing through all New -York.' - -'I have indeed,' replied Carey; 'and though the victim, whose name I -believe was Foster, was personally unknown to me, the fact of his -being a stranger, apparently without friends or connections at the -scene of the assassination, seems to render the tragedy doubly -dreadful.' - -'That he had no friends or relatives at the scene of the murder is, I -have no doubt, perfectly true,' said Bryan Duval; 'but I have too much -reason to believe, not merely that his name was not Foster, but, from -what we now learn, that he was an intimate friend of yours.' - -'Good God!' cried Thornton Carey, upon whom a light suddenly broke. -'And you say that Helen Griswold is also deeply interested in the -matter? You cannot imagine for an instant--' and he stopped, for his -voice suddenly failed him. - -'I do not merely imagine,' said Bryan Duval, speaking deliberately, -'but in my own mind I no longer entertain any doubt that the man, the -news of whose murder has caused such a shock in New York society, was -Mr. Griswold, the husband of the lady whom you went to see this -morning.' - -'It is too terrible,' said Thornton Carey, covering his face with his -hands. 'You seem to speak with certainty. Mr. Griswold was in -Europe--might have been in Liverpool at the very time--and yet why -this assumption of a false name?' - -'That is exactly what we want you to explain to us,' said Bryan -quickly; 'but before you attempt to do so, let me explain to you as -shortly as possible the story of my acquaintance with Griswold, and -the reason I have for coming to this sad conclusion.' - -Then Bryan Duval succinctly, and in as few words as possible, sketched -the story of their acquaintance with Griswold in London--narrated the -particulars of the Richmond dinner, the conversation which the -unfortunate man had had with Miss Montressor, the devoted manner in -which he had spoken of his wife, and in which he had exhibited her -portrait set in the watch; the melancholy which had overcome him at -Liverpool at the knowledge that they were about to proceed to New -York, while his business must detain him some little time longer in -England; told him, in fact, the whole story, without concealment or -curtailment, down to Miss Montressor's recognition of the lady in the -stalls on the previous evening as the original of the portrait which -the so-called Mr. Foster had shown her, and the terrible dread which -had then fallen upon her and Duval, that the murdered man was Mr. -Griswold, who, for some object of his own unknown to them, had chosen, -while away from home, to pass under an assumed name. - -'But what that object was,' said Bryan Duval, in conclusion, 'we want -you to tell us.' - -After a pause of a few minutes, during which he had remained buried in -abstraction, Thornton Carey spoke. 'You have given me a task which I -am quite unable to fulfil,' he said, shaking his head. 'There is -probably no man in the world who understands so little of business, by -which I mean commercial matters, as myself. Mr. Griswold never spoke -to me about them, and if he had I should have been unable to -understand them; and, fond of me as I am sure he was, I should have -been one of the last persons in the world to whom he would have made -any business confidence.' - -'You believe, then,' said Bryan Duval, 'that this taking of an assumed -name was really done for business purposes?' - -'I have not the least doubt of it,' said Thornton Carey earnestly. - -'I am myself inclined to that belief,' said Bryan. 'There was a -singular frankness and honesty about the man, and the way in which he -spoke about his wife, both to myself and Miss Montressor here, was -evidently genuine; though,' he continued, with a touch of that worldly -cynicism which sometimes came upon him, as it were, in spite of -himself, 'these are matters in which one must never be led away by -what one either sees or hears. There are men who love their wives very -deeply, and who yet, when away from them, urged on by vanity or -passion, or whatever they may choose to call it--' - -'I know what you would say,' said Thornton Carey, holding up his hand, -'and I suppose, as regards the generality of men, you are right. But, -believe me, this was not the case with Alston Griswold--his was not a -mere mouth worship of his wife; no other woman, be she who she might, -would have been able for an instant to make him forget her whom he so -dearly loved.' - -'I believe you, Mr. Carey,' said Bryan, 'and in any case I honour you -for your championship; but in this case I think you are right. From -the little I saw of him, I have no doubt that your friend was all you -say. We will allow, then, that he dropped his own name and called -himself Foster for the furtherance of certain business transactions. -To obtain anything like a clue to this murder, it is necessary for us -to know what those business transactions were, and whence this -necessity for concealment arose; until we can obtain that, we shall -still be in the dark as to the motives of the murderer.' - -'I cannot help you,' said Thornton Carey, shaking his head ruefully. -'As I said before, I only knew Mr. Griswold in his domestic capacity -as my friend, and the word business was never even mentioned between -us.' - -'You may yet be able to help us,' said Miss Montressor, leaning -forward. 'This unfortunate Mr. Foster--Mr. Griswold as we must now -think of him--told me that evening in the garden at Richmond that he -had an intimate friend and confidant in New York, to whom during his -absence he had not merely intrusted the conduct and supervision of his -affairs and correspondence, but he had also placed his wife in this -man's charge. Now, knowing the Griswolds as you do, you will probably -be able to tell us if there is any man who stood in this relation with -them and if so, what is his name?' - -'This declaration goes further to corroborate your idea that the -murdered man was indeed poor Griswold,' said Thornton Carey, with a -sigh. 'There was a man exactly fulfilling those functions, who was -understood to be a sort of partner of Griswold's in certain matters, -and from whom he was never separated. I did not know that he carried -the intimacy into his domestic life, and, indeed, I should have -thought the person I mean was one for whom Mrs. Griswold would have -had but little liking.' - -'What was the name?' asked Duval eagerly. - -'His name was Warren--Trenton Warren,' replied Carey. 'He was a man -much thought of for his foresight and acuteness in commercial matters, -and he had an office down town in Broad-street, not far from -Griswold's own place of business.' - -'The thing to be done, then, is to see this Mr. Warren at once,' said -Bryan Duval. 'If we prove to him, as we shall be able to do, that we -were friends of Mr. Griswold's, he will doubtless be able to clear up -the whole mystery of the change of names.' - -'Even in this we are baffled for the time being,' said Thornton Carey. -'I heard accidentally that Mr. Warren was at Chicago.' - -'Is that far distant?' asked Miss Montressor. - -'Thirty-six hours' journey at least,' said Duval; 'and being, as I -understand, essentially a man of business, Mr. Warren might not be -able to leave at once, however earnestly we might venture to recall -him.' - -'You would be right, under ordinary circumstances,' said Thornton -Carey; 'but I think if you were to let him know that it was of great -importance that Mrs. Griswold should see him at once, he would -return.' - -'And what shall we say to him when he comes?' asked Miss Montressor. - -'Rather what shall he say to us?' said Carey. 'Mixed up as he is with -Griswold's affairs, he will be able to see at a glance to whose -interest it would be that this unfortunate man should be unfairly -gotten rid of.' - -'You seem disposed to take my view of this affair, Mr. Carey,' said -Bryan Duval: 'that robbery was not the motive cause for this murder, -but some ulterior object.' - -'Unquestionably,' said Carey, 'robbery was not the object, because, if -the papers be correct, the unfortunate man's watch and money were left -undisturbed. Some other motive, doubtless connected with the business -which took him on his fatal journey, and which he was at such pains to -keep secret--perhaps even dictated from this side of the water--must -be at the bottom of it.' - -'Your views coincide exactly with mine,' said Bryan Duval. 'It is -useless for us, however, further to speculate on this matter, more -especially since we know nothing at all approaching certainty, until -Mr. Warren helps us with his experience. The one thing that confronts -us and that cannot be blinked at is, that no matter from what reason -or other the poor fellow has been murdered, the fact, sooner or later, -must be broken to his wife.' - -'That is what I feel so deeply,' said Carey. 'There is a mail from -Europe due to-morrow; she will know of its arrival; and after that the -truth can no longer be kept from her.' - -'All that will remain, then, for us,' said Bryan, 'will be to break it -to her in the most delicate manner possible, and it is most lucky that -we have found you to aid us in that difficult task.' - -'I will do my best most willingly,' said Carey; 'and after I have -settled upon the matter, I may be of some use. At present, I confess -that the news has come upon me so suddenly, my obligation to this -unfortunate gentleman is so great, and my regard for him and his wife -so essentially a portion of my life, that I cannot trust myself to -give anything like clear advice or reliable aid.' - -'I perfectly comprehend your feelings,' said Bryan Duval, 'and there -is no need for us to prolong this painful interview--in fact, Miss -Montressor and myself have our duties to attend to at the theatre, and -we must go to them. We may, however, rely upon you to take the one -step immediately necessary--namely, to apprise Mr. Warren by telegraph -that his presence is most desirable in New York.' - -'You may depend upon my doing so,' said Carey, 'and upon my being here -tomorrow to take my part in any further consultation.' - -So they parted. - -Thornton Carey was completely overwhelmed by the news he had just -heard. He would have disbelieved it, but he was never in the habit of -allowing his common sense to be over-ridden by his sympathies; and -that rare and inestimable quality told him that Mr. Bryan Duval had, -indeed, good foundation for the deductions he had drawn. The more he -thought over it, the less real doubt had he that the _soi-disant_ -Foster and his friend and benefactor, Alston Griswold, were one. He -knew that Griswold's one idea in life had been to achieve such a -fortune as would enable him to vie with the proudest millionaire in -New York, and to retire altogether from business. It was evident that, -in this endeavour, he had gone in for some great stake; so great as to -require the exercise of what in the commercial world is known as tact, -but in free-spoken circles, outside the commercial world, is called -duplicity. This change of name, for instance--it could be easily -learned whether the secret had been confided to Warren alone, or was -known to the clerks in Griswold's house of business--that could be -learned from the clerks themselves; and Thornton Carey determined at -once to inquire of them. - -Wall-street, hot, rushing, and demented as usual; closing hour just at -hand, and everybody anxious to make a few hundred or thousand more -dollars before returning up-town for the day; telegraphs ticking from -attic to basement in each of the enormous houses between Canal-street -and Bowling-green; messengers rushing about in frantic haste, and the -bar at Delmonico's at the corner of Chambers-street actually for five -minutes without an occupant. Hustled on all sides, and swayed hither -and thither by the fluctuating crowd, Thornton Carey at last made his -way into Griswold's office. Telegraph instrument madly clicking in one -corner, and white serpents winding out from it and covering the floor -with their tortuous folds; clerks running races with the telegraph -instrument, and endeavouring to drown its noise with the scratching of -their pens over the paper; men in shiny hats tumbling in and out, and -adding to the general confusion. - -After some delay, Thornton Carey was recognised by one of the -principal clerks, who vouchsafed him three minutes' conversation. 'Mr. -Griswold still in Europe; hoped he would be back very shortly; should -be able to say more to-morrow, as letters were expected by the morning -mail, giving the date of his return.' - -Plainly everybody there was wholly unconscious of any evil having -befallen the head of the establishment. 'That argued nothing,' -Thornton Carey thought to himself, 'save that Griswold had placed no -confidence in his servants.' He must try Warren's office next. - -Being a partner of Mr. Griswold's, Trenton Warren had the use of the -clerks and appliances of his friend's office. For his own particular -service he kept but one quiet, silent, trustworthy individual, who -looked up when Carey entered, and in reply to his inquiry, announced -that Mr. Warren was at Chicago. 'I forward his letters to him every -day,' said the man, 'and if you have anything to send, it can go with -my lot.' - -Thornton Carey reflected for a moment. - -'No, thank you,' he said; 'my business is important, and I must wire -Mr. Warren at once. What is his address?' - -'Three Bryan's Block, Chicago, will find him,' said the clerk, and -immediately whirled round on his stool to continue his writing. - -On Thornton Carey leaving Warren's office, he stepped at once into the -Western Union Telegraph, and sent the following message: - - -'Trenton Warren, 3 Bryan's Block, Chicago.--I most earnestly request -you to come to New York without delay; it is of the utmost importance -that I should see you; a great calamity has occurred. - -'HELEN GRISWOLD.' - - -'Now we must trust to Providence for the rest,' said Thornton Carey, -as he walked away. - -Having despatched the telegram, Thornton Carey returned to Mrs. -Griswold's house, to which he was admitted by Jim. He ascertained from -Mrs. Jenkins and from Helen's maid that there was not any danger of -her proposing to go out when she should leave her room. On this point -he was extremely anxious. He knew it would have been impossible for -her to have passed a street corner, any public building, or any group -of talkers without seeing the announcement of the latest news from -England of the murder which was occupying the attention of every -intelligent person in New York at that moment, or hearing it -discussed. It was everything to those who were now engaged in -considering how best the awful truth should be broken to the -unconsciously bereaved woman, that no uneasiness should be created in -her mind through any indirect source. - -'You are quite sure,' Thornton Carey asked of Mrs. Jenkins, 'that she -has not ordered the carriage for this afternoon?' - -'I am quite sure,' returned Mrs. Jenkins. 'About an hour ago she sent -a note down to Mrs. Villiers to excuse herself from a dinner -engagement for to-day, which was made at the play last night; and, -indeed, I should not be surprised if she did not leave her room all -day--her cold is very heavy.' - -It was impossible that Thornton Carey could have thus questioned the -two women servants without exciting some suspicion, some uneasiness in -their minds. He saw very plainly that he had done so, and he thought -he might just venture to give them a hint of the origin of the -caution, to endeavour to impress it upon them, and thereby render them -more certain to observe it. - -'I daresay you wonder,' he continued, 'why I am so anxious to know -about Mrs. Griswold's probable movements of to-day; and, as I am sure -I may trust you, and that you are both faithful friends to her'--the -women exchanged looks with each other, and each bestowed an inquiring -nod upon Thornton Carey, while they drew closer to him in their -eagerness--'I will tell you that there is a rumour of an accident -having occurred in England, in which it is just possible that Mr. -Griswold may have been injured.' - -'A railway accident, sir?' the two women exclaimed simultaneously. - -'No,' he answered, with some confusion, 'not a railway accident; it -is, I believe, a case of supposed malicious injury. I cannot enter -into the particulars now. I am not, indeed, fully aware of them. As -soon as I am, and that I know for certain whether Mr. Griswold is or -is not injured, I will tell you. In the mean time, you will understand -that it is of immense importance that Mrs. Griswold should not be -alarmed. If what we fear is true, she must know it soon enough. If it -is not true, it will be most cruel to subject her to the excitement -and suspense of knowing anything about it until all is known. I want -you, Mrs. Jenkins, and you, Annette,' addressing Helen's maid, 'to -make me the same promise that I have also secured from Jim.' - -'I will do anything you wish, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins; 'and I am sure -Annette will say the same.' - -'Mais oui, mais oui,' assented Annette eagerly. - -'Well, then, you promise to be very cautious in your own manner, -looks, and speech--not to let Mrs. Griswold hear you talking to one -another in any unusual way; not to go into her room with frightened -faces, or with anything in your look which could lead her to think -that this day is different from any other day in any respect. Will you -promise me to keep a perpetual watch over yourselves, and to remember -that all we want is a few hours' interval, during which I and other -friends of Mrs. Griswold's may be quite sure that no one will be -allowed to see her who can talk to her about the distressing rumour -which has just reached New York, and yet that she will not suspect -that any such watchfulness is being observed?' - -Again he received assuring nods from the two women. - -'I must also beg you,' he continued, 'to be very particular to keep -every newspaper out of your mistress's sight until after the next time -I shall have been here; make any excuse and every excuse that comes in -your heads, but don't permit her to get hold of a single evening paper -or any morning paper of to-day. I hope none have found their way to -her room this morning?' - -'No, I think not,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'You haven't seen any newspapers -about, Annette?' - -'No,' Annette replied; 'madame had not asked for any newspapers, and -she had taken none up to her.' - -'You need not be frightened on that point,' said Mrs. Jenkins; 'for I -never saw a lady with so little curiosity about news as Mrs. Griswold. -She reads the weeklies sometimes, when they are all about books and -interesting things that are happening in the world; but I have known -her go a whole week without looking into a daily; and we will keep -them out of her way, if by any perverse chance she should take it into -her head to want to see them. She is not given to scolding, but I -daresay Jim would not mind taking a scolding from her for not having -thought of fetching an evening paper, if it is for her.' - -'Don't make yourself uneasy, sir; not but what we should like to have -a look at what they say.' - -'They don't say anything,' said Thornton Carey; 'at least, they have -not said it yet. The news has come by private cable message, and I am -only afraid of its getting into the later editions. I shall be here -tomorrow early, and implicitly trust you in this matter. There is -another thing, too, you will have to be very careful about, if you -please.' - -'Certainly, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'What is that?' - -'It is just possible that a telegram may come, directed to Mrs. -Griswold.' - -'From Europe, sir?' - -'No,' said Thornton Carey; 'from Chicago.' - -Mrs. Jenkins started slightly, and said: - -'Chicago! Is there anything wrong there?' - -'O, no, there is nothing wrong; only Mrs. Griswold has been sending a -message on business to a friend of Mr. Griswold's, and it is better, -until we are sure that Mr. Griswold is all right, that she should not -see the answer. Will you therefore, Mrs. Jenkins, undertake, if this -telegram should come, to have it sent at once to me at the -Fifth-avenue Hotel? You need not be alarmed at undertaking the -responsibility--the giving the message to one to whom it is not -addressed. I can give you my word of honour for that, and you will -know why almost as soon as I do. I cannot tell you more just now, -because I do not know more.' - -'I will have the message sent, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'Up to what -hour shall you expect it?' - -'I mean to remain at the hotel all day--at least until it comes,' said -Thornton Carey. 'There is an almost absolute certainty that it will -come.' - -'There will be no difficulty about it, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins; 'but -may I ask you if we are to be as particular about letters as about -telegrams and newspapers?' - -'Certainly,' said Thornton Carey; 'my injunctions refer to every kind -of communication which could possibly reach Mrs. Griswold between this -time and my next visit.' - -'I don't see how we are to manage that, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'She -doesn't mind about newspapers, and she does not expect any telegrams -from any part of the States; but she will be looking out for English -letters in the morning--they ought to be in--and it won't be possible, -I am afraid, to keep her quiet then, to prevent her coming downstairs, -or to hide the letters from her, if they come. What are we to do in -that case?' - -'It will not matter about English letters,' he replied. 'Any she could -get tomorrow morning must have been written before the accident which -is reported, so you need not trouble about that; besides, I will be -here almost as soon as the mail can be delivered.' - -He received an earnest assurance from the two women that all his -requests should be scrupulously observed, and he left the house -feeling that, as far as human precaution could be taken towards -securing her from a premature shock, Helen was safe, at all events, -for a few hours. - -Mrs. Jenkins and Annette retired to the waiting-room of the hall, and -earnestly discussed the strange directions which they had just -received. As a matter of course, they immediately seized on the -morning paper of that day; for it had not escaped Mrs. Jenkins's -characteristic acuteness that there was a decided inconsistency -between Thornton Carey's statement that the news which he apprehended -reaching Mrs. Griswold had come in private telegram, and his question -as to whether any newspapers had been taken to her room that day. -'Depend upon it,' said she to Justine, 'whatever it is, there is some -hint of it in the dailies for to-day. Let us have a look.' - -The papers lay, as they had done on the previous day, on the table in -the waiting-room; the two women turned them over eagerly, but found -nothing which they could suppose to have reference to the mysterious -rumour to which Thornton Carey had vaguely alluded--the murder at -Liverpool was still the leading theme. - -'I cannot,' said Mrs. Jenkins, 'find out that anybody has come to -grief except that unlucky Mr. Foster.' - -Thornton Carey returned to the Fifth-avenue Hotel, where he found -Bryan Duval, looking weary and dejected. The actor said little in -reply to the narrative of the steps which he had taken. The little he -did say was in approval, and then he made a dreary effort to get away -for a while from the terrible subject which was occupying them. - -'I shall stay here all day,' said Thornton Carey, 'and wait for the -telegram, and I really don't see that there is anything else to be -done. But you had better go out and get a little fresh air to string -yourself up for to-night's work--it will be hard to get through, I -fancy.' - -'Deuced hard,' said Bryan Duval. 'It is not the first time I have -comedied on the beards and tragedied behind the scenes, but I do not -know that I ever found the contrast so great a pull as this time--it -is the unconsciousness of the woman that is so horrid; when she knows -the worst, it will not be so bad. Good Heavens! only think, if she -took it into her head to come to the theatre to-night!' - -'There is not the slightest danger of that,' said Thornton Carey. 'I -forgot to tell you that she has a heavy cold.' - -But little more was said between them, and Bryan Duval took the young -man's advice. He went out until it was time to go down to the theatre. -About two hours later than the time at which Thornton Carey had -rejoined him they met for a moment before the performance, and -Thornton told him that no news had come; a message to the same effect -was conveyed to Bryan Duval in a twisted note on his return after the -play, but Thornton Carey made no attempt to see him again that night. - -Once more the house had been crowded by an enthusiastic audience; -again the performance had realised public expectation to the fullest -extent. If possible, Bryan Duval had been more exquisitely humorous, -had thrown more of his characteristic acuteness into his part, than on -the previous evening. Miss Montressor had charmed all the spectators; -but some of those who had been present at the first performance -noticed that she was slightly nervous, which she had not been on that -occasion, and that she wore a little more rouge. - -During the whole of that night Thornton Carey did not undress or lie -down; the hours passed drearily away, and no message came to interrupt -them. Just before the time at which Mrs. Griswold's house was usually -closed and her servants retired, Jim had 'slipped round,' as he -phrased it, to Fifth-avenue Hotel, and told Mr. Carey that his orders -had been strictly observed; no callers, no news, no newspapers, no -messages had been suffered to reach Mrs. Griswold, who was better, had -got up rather late in the evening, and passed an hour in the nursery; -but she had asked no dangerous questions, she had displayed no -imprudent curiosity. She was in bed, and asleep, old Jim said, on the -authority of Mrs. Jenkins, when he came out to report to Thornton -Carey; but no telegram had been received. - -This inexplicable circumstance sorely troubled and beset the mind of -Thornton Carey. Advice, assistance from Warren, if not his actual -presence, was entirely indispensable under the circumstances; but when -the morning dawned, and when the letter-post hour was near, Thornton -knew that the moment he dreaded so intensely had arrived, that no -further delay was possible, and that that advice and assistance must -be dispensed with. - -At the early hour which had previously been agreed upon, Bryan Duval, -Thornton Carey, and Miss Montressor--the trio had by this time become -quite friends--left the hotel and proceeded on foot to Helen -Griswold's house. As they reached it, the postman came up, with his -usual quick important step, and delivered a few unimportant notes, -which Jim, with a glance at Thornton Carey, who was ascending the -steps, took from his hand. The three entered the house, the door was -shut behind them, and the letters just received were handed by the -docile Jim to Carey. - -'There is nothing here,' he remarked, laying them on the table in the -waiting-room. 'Jim, ring for the women.' - -In answer to the customary summons, both Mrs. Jenkins and Annette came -downstairs. The first thing to be done was to send up word, in reply -to Mrs. Griswold's eager inquiry (made, as Mrs. Jenkins told them, the -moment she awoke, only a few instants ago) as to whether letters from -England were yet delivered, 'that they had not yet come.' - -'Tell her this,' said Thornton Carey, 'and then tell her that I am -here, and that I beg she will see me as soon as is convenient. If she -asks why I come so early, say you do not know. It is too late to make -any excuse now.' - -'Is it true, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins--'has anything really happened to -Mr. Griswold?' - -'It is too true,' said Duval, addressing the wondering woman, whose -eager interest and curiosity about him showed in every feature of her -face, even in this crisis; 'it is too true--you will soon know all! In -the mean time be more cautious than ever.' - -Without a word Mrs. Jenkins returned up-stairs, whither Annette had -preceded her, and Thornton Carey led the way into the dining-room, -where the three sat in profound silence, interrupted after the -interval of a few minutes by Mrs. Jenkins, who entered the room with a -very pale face, and addressed Thornton Carey. - -'She will see you, sir; she is just getting up, and Annette is -dressing her as fast as she can. But--I hope you won't be angry, sir, -or think it was my fault--I gave my message as matter-of-fact as could -be, and the curtain was between me and her, so she could not see my -face; but the very moment she heard you wanted to see her at this hour -of the morning, she took fright. I suppose it was because she had not -had the English letters that she expected, and that disappointment had -told upon her nerves, and helped to make her suspicious. She said she -knew there was something wrong. "Go down," said she, "and say I will -see him. Bring him up to the boudoir, and let him tell me whatever I -have got to hear and bear." Not another word, sir, but she is as white -as a corpse.' - -Thornton Carey had started up before Mrs. Jenkins had got through her -first sentence, and turned a face of wild distress upon the other two. - -'It cannot be helped,' said Bryan Duval, 'and it is better so. Go up -with the good woman at once--for God's sake get it over.' - -He, too, rose as he spoke, and turning abruptly towards the -chimneypiece, laid his arms upon it, and hid his face in them. - -Miss Montressor sat profoundly still, but the description her sister -had just given of Helen might have been repeated of her--she, too, was -as pale as a corpse. - -Thornton Carey and Mrs. Jenkins went up-stairs without exchanging a -single word. The door of Helen's boudoir opened in the corridor -outside her bedroom. Mrs. Jenkins merely threw it open in passing, and -the young man went in, while she entered the bedroom by the other -door. No sound reached his strained ear for the few minutes during -which he waited. At their expiration Helen came in. She wore a white -muslin dressing-gown, and her hair was simply brushed behind her ears, -and hung loose upon her shoulders. As she came through the door of her -bedroom into the boudoir, she faced Thornton Carey directly, and her -first glance at him told her that her fears had been prophetic--that -he had bad news to tell. - - - -END OF VOL. II. - - - -LONDON: -ROBSON AND SONS, PRINTERS, PANCRAS ROAD, N.W. - - - - - - - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's The Impending Sword (Vol. 2 of 3), by Edmund Yates - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE IMPENDING SWORD (VOL. 2 OF 3) *** - -***** This file should be named 62159-8.txt or 62159-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/2/1/5/62159/ - -Produced by Charles Bowen from page scans provided by the Web Archive -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law 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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Vol. II.</title> -<meta name="Subtitle" content="A Novel."> -<meta name="Author" content="Edmund Yates"> -<meta name="Publisher" content="TInsley Brothrs"> -<meta name="Date" content="1874"> -<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1"> -<style type="text/css"> -body {margin-left:10%; - margin-right:10%; background-color:#FFFFFF;} - - -p {text-indent:1em; text-align: left;} - -p.right {text-align:right; margin-right:20%;} -p.center {text-align: center;} -p.continue {text-indent: 0in; margin-top:9pt;} - -h1,h2,h3,h4,h5 {text-align: center;} - -span.sc {font-variant: small-caps; font-size:110%;} - -hr.W10 {width:10%; color:black; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt} -hr.W20 {width:20%; color:black; margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:12pt} -hr.W50 {width:50%; color:black;} -hr.W90 {width:90%; color:black;} - -p.hang1 {margin-left:3em; text-indent:-3em;} - -</style> -</head> -<body> - - -<pre> - -Project Gutenberg's The Impending Sword (Vol. 2 of 3), by Edmund Yates - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: The Impending Sword (Vol. 2 of 3) - A Novel - -Author: Edmund Yates - -Release Date: May 17, 2020 [EBook #62159] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE IMPENDING SWORD (VOL. 2 OF 3) *** - - - - -Produced by Charles Bowen from page scans provided by the Web Archive - - - - - -</pre> - -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<p class="hang1">Transcriber's Note:<br> -1. Page scan source:<br> -http://www.archive.org/details/impendingswordno02yate<br> -(University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)</p> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h3>THE IMPENDING SWORD.</h3> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h5>LONDON:<br> -ROBSON AND SONS, PRINTERS, PANCRAS ROAD, N.W.</h5> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h5>THE</h5> -<h4>IMPENDING SWORD.</h4> -<br> -<h5>A Novel.</h5> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h5>BY</h5> -<h4>EDMUND YATES,</h4> -<h5>AUTHOR OF 'BLACK SHEEP,' 'THE ROCK AHEAD,' 'THE YELLOW FLAG,'<br> -ETC. ETC.</h5> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<p style="margin-left:15%; font-size: smaller; text-indent:-.5em">'Put we our quarrel to the will of Heaven,<br> -Who,when He sees the hours ripe on earthWill rain hot vengeance on the offenders' heads.'</p> -<p style="text-indent:60%">SHAKESPEARE.</p> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h5>IN THREE VOLUMES.</h5> -<h5>VOL. II.</h5> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h5>LONDON:<br> -TINSLEY BROTHERS, 8 CATHERINE ST. STRAND.<br> -1874.</h5> - -<h5>[<i>The right of translation, dramatic adaptation, and reproduction is -reserved</i>.]</h5> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<table cellpadding="10" style="width:90%; margin-left:5%; font-weight:bold"> -<colgroup> -<col style="width:10%; vertical-align:top; text-align:right"> -<col style="width:90%; vertical-align:top; text-align:left"> -</colgroup> -<tr> -<td colspan="2"> -<h3>CONTENTS OF VOL. II.</h3> -<h4>Book the Second.</h4> -<h4>THE CRIME.</h4></td> -</tr><tr> -<td>CHAP.</td> -<td> </td> -</tr><tr> -<td><a name="div2Ref_01" href="#div2_01">I.</a></td> -<td>DOWN TO LIVERPOOL.</td> -</tr><tr> -<td><a name="div2Ref_02" href="#div2_02">II.</a></td> -<td>TRAPPED.</td> -</tr><tr> -<td><a name="div2Ref_03" href="#div2_03">III.</a></td> -<td>HELEN'S JOURNAL.</td> -</tr><tr> -<td><a name="div2Ref_04" href="#div2_04">IV.</a></td> -<td>'SCOT FREE.'</td> -</tr><tr> -<td><a name="div2Ref_05" href="#div2_05">V.</a></td> -<td>A BLAZE OF TRIUMPH.</td> -</tr><tr> -<td><a name="div2Ref_06" href="#div2_06">VI.</a></td> -<td>STARTLING NEWS.</td> -</tr><tr> -<td><a name="div2Ref_07" href="#div2_07">VII.</a></td> -<td>ONLY TOO TRUE.</td> -</tr><tr> -<td><a name="div2Ref_08" href="#div2_08">VIII.</a></td> -<td>THORNTON CAREY.</td> -</tr> -</table> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h3>Book the Second.</h3> -<h4>THE CRIME.</h4> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h4><a name="div2_01" href="#div2Ref_01">CHAPTER I.</a></h4> -<h5>DOWN TO LIVERPOOL.</h5> -<br> - -<p>Bryan Duval had not forgotten his promise to Miss Montressor. Early in -the morning of that eventful day, when she and Mr. Dolby had parted so -strangely, and before she had even yet shaken off the extra slumber -occasioned by the fatigue of the Richmond dinner, the fair actress had -received a letter from her <i>entrepreneur</i> which ran thus:</p> -<br> - -<p>'My dear Clara,--The business which I feared might possibly have -detained me has been smoothed over, and we positively sail on -Saturday, in the Cuba. We shall go down to Liverpool by the twelve -o'clock train, on Friday, stop the night at the Adelphi, and have -plenty of time to see our traps--and what with music scores, -promptbooks, and costumes, I have a tolerable amount of -luggage--comfortably on board one of the first tenders which will be -despatched to the ship. I think we shall be a pleasant party. I have -concluded engagements with Mrs. Regan, for old women and heavies, with -Skrymshire for first low comedy, and with Cooington for walking -gentleman and utility. He is a nice-looking young fellow, can make-up -very fairly, and will, consequently, make an excellent foil for me; -all the other people I can get over there, but these are absolutely -necessary. Cooington will be especially valuable. You are young, and -your ideas of the dreadful are, probably, vague, but when you have -once seen an American <i>jeune premier</i>, with his peculiar style of hair -and costume, they will immediately become definite.</p> - -<p>'By the way, my dear, talking about costumes, I think it would be -advisable that you should have two first-rate evening gowns--don't fly -into a rage now. Your toilette yesterday was particularly good, and I -have no doubt you show quite as much good taste in your evening dress, -but I want something exceptionally stylish; you will be seen a great -deal more in public over there than you are here. You will probably -have a reception, as they call it, from one of their artistic -societies, and on off-nights will have to show-up at the opera, or one -of the other theatres; and as our good friends on the other side -attach immense importance to dress--and rightly too, according to my -notions--I want you at once to send a pattern-body to Madame Lagrange, -118 Rue Vivienne. That's all! You need take no further trouble about -the matter. I have written to old Lagrange by this post--I have known -her ever since I was a boy--and told her exactly what you want; for my -sake the old lady will put on all steam, and you will have your gowns -in time to pack them for America. I have also desired Madame Lagrange -to send the bill to me, a liberty which, I trust, under the -circumstances, you will excuse.</p> - -<p>'I have an enormous number of things to get ready before I start; the -rehearsal of <i>Pickwick's Progress</i> to superintend at the Gravity, and -an action to bring against a rascal in the North who has been -producing an exact copy of the <i>Cruiskeen Lawn,</i> fights, songs, Irish -wake, and all under the title of the <i>Jug of Punch</i>. The copyright law -in this country is disgraceful. By the way, did you see those absurd -remarks in the <i>Earwig</i> about me and Mr. Dickens, in connection with -Pickwick's Progress? I mention this in case I may not be able to call -upon you before we start, so that you may be perfectly sure to be at -Euston very soon after eleven. Till then good-bye.</p> - -<p style="text-indent:45%">'Yours always,</p> -<p style="text-indent:55%">'BRYAN DUVAL.</p> -<br> -<p>'P.S.--What a good dinner it was yesterday, and how very jolly we all -were! I have taken a great fancy to Foster, he seems to be an -exceptionally good fellow. He talks of coming down to Liverpool to -see us off. If he does, I shall make a point of giving him a dinner at -the Adelphi the night before we sail--they have some green turtle -there--but women don't understand these things.'</p> -<br> - -<p>'Mr. Foster is an exceptionally good fellow,' said Miss Montressor, -laying down the letter, 'and you are another, Bryan Duval. This -experience confirms me in my opinion, that whenever you hear men -bitter and disparaging in their remarks about a man who is before the -world, and who is successful, he is sure to prove remarkably pleasant, -agreeable, and kind-hearted. Now I am sure nothing could be more -thoughtful or more delicate than Mr. Duval's suggestion about those -gowns, and what a queer fellow he is too!' she said, taking up the -letter again; 'fancy his writing about a "pattern-body"--he seems to -know everything.'</p> - -<p>By this time the fact of the great actor-author's departure for -America, taking with him a select troupe for the purpose of playing -certain of his own pieces, had been heralded in the newspapers, and -had created as much excitement as even he could have wished. Most of -the journals congratulated Mr. Duval on the engagement, and the -Americans on the fact that they were about to renew their acquaintance -with that distinguished combination of literature and art, who would -add fresh laurels to the wreath which had already adorned his brows, -and from this they proceeded in a tone of patronage towards the -Western hemisphere generally, telling it how thankful it ought to be -in having such a school of talent as England to draw upon for its -artists.</p> - -<p>Some of the other journals, however, the conductors or writers of -which had a personal pique against Mr. Duval, did not think so -strongly on the matter. They averred, roundly enough, that the autumn -was the usual time for English actors to go out to America, and not -the spring; and that probably the reason which induced Mr. Duval to -take his departure from his native country at the present time was -that he was entirely played out and used up there, and he hoped to -recoup himself by repeating his previous success in America, an -expectation which would be undoubtedly disappointed.</p> - -<p>Mr. Duval read these various reports with equal delight. He liked -being praised; but he did not in the least mind being found fault -with.</p> - -<p>'I like to see 'em pitch in,' he would say, slowly rubbing his hands -together, with a broad grin, such as those who had only seen him in -his melo-dramatic parts on the stage, could never believe him capable -of giving. 'I like to see them pitch in; it shows their interest in -me. I would sooner that they would write about me with bradawls dipped -in vitriol, rather than that they should say nothing. This,' touching -one of the journals before him, 'is Cosby's doing. Cosby is a stupid -ass. I have told him so in print and by word of mouth many a time and -oft. I have dropped down hot and heavy upon Cosby frequently, and he -don't forgive that. When my <i>Varco the Vampire</i> was produced at the -Parthenon, Cosby's original comedy of <i>Gold and Gloom</i> (taken from a -play of Maquet and Dumas, produced at the Porte St. Martin in '52--I -have it there in the bookcase, and can show it to you) was brought out -at the Gravity. <i>Varco</i> ran for one hundred and fifty nights, when I -stopped it myself, as I wanted a little chamois shooting in Styria, -and <i>Gold and Gloom</i> fizzled out in a fortnight. Cosby didn't like -that--he don't like the notion that my <i>Pickwick's Progress</i> is about -to be produced at the Gravity, which he looks upon somewhat as his own -theatre; he don't like, what he knows to be the fact, that I have a -splendid engagement with Van Buren in New York, and so he writes these -lies about me, thinking to rile me and to draw me out. No good, dear -Cosby; no good, dear boy. There is nothing makes a venomous ruffian -like that so wild as to completely ignore his attack, and if you -chance to meet him in the street, greet him with the utmost -politeness; you need not take his hand, but you also need not put your -fist into his face. Cosby will watch the papers daily, looking for an -indignant letter from me in reply to his screed; but he will find -none; and if I see him at the first night of <i>Pickwick's Progress,</i> I -shall wag my head at him, and express a hope that he is pleased with -the entertainment.'</p> - -<p>But though he declined to resent this newspaper controversy, Mr. Duval -found more than enough to occupy his mind and to fill up his time. -Half a dozen needy persons belonging to the theatrical profession--not -adventurers, and in no way dishonest--simply men and women who, from -stress of circumstances, had undertaken to do something for which they -were not in the least qualified, and who consequently had gone to the -wall, were simultaneously struck with the brilliant idea that it would -be a remarkably good thing for Mr. Duval if he took a temporary -farewell of the British public in a performance the proceeds of which -should be devoted to their benefit. Others there were who addressed -him on the strength of having read that he was about to take a company -with him to perform his pieces in the United States, and at once -expressing themselves as perfectly certain that such company would not -be complete unless they, the writers, joined it in prominent positions -with high salaries. In fact, the notice of his departure brought upon -him all the horde of impertinent correspondents who prey upon a public -man's time, and rob him of such leisure as he might otherwise have; -autograph hunters, photographers, who could make it convenient to -receive him at any time, sanctimonious begging-letter writers, who -declared that his path across the ocean would neither be happy nor -successful unless he were blessed with the inward consciousness of -having left behind him half a crown to succour modest misery in -distress.</p> - -<p>Applications such as these Mr. Duval treated with sovereign -contempt--he had quite enough real business on hand. His rooms in -Vernon-chambers were very much changed from their normal condition; -all the nick-nacks were put away, all the pictures and handsome -furniture covered over, and in the midst stood enormous boxes, some -crammed to repletion, others yet gaping as it were for food, all -bearing the great actor's name in large red letters, all marked with -the word 'Hold.'</p> - -<p>Thither, threading their way among the packages which littered the -landings as well as the apartments, came those anxious to have a last -few words with Mr. Duval. Mr. Moss Marks, the manager of the Gravity, -was there, nervously anxious about the forthcoming <i>Pickwick's -Progress</i>, and constantly endeavouring to cut down costly items of -furniture and decoration which Duval had insisted upon being provided. -Mr. Hodgkinson, too, came to impress upon his friend his parting -injunctions, that if he saw anything in the States likely to make a -sensation, any 'fakement' likely to hit up the British public, he -should wire him at once and send it over by the next boat. There, too, -was the great impresario, Wuff, who began to find that camels and -coryphées spelt bankruptcy as well as Shakespeare, and he was eager to -beg a few last words of advice from the omniscient Bryan Duval before -he started. Mr. Foster looked in, too, once or twice, to see how his -friend was getting on, and to ask whether he could be any use in -helping him in his preparations for the voyage.</p> - -<p>Nor was Miss Montressor without her visitors. Two days after the -announcement of her intended visit to America appeared in the Sunday -papers, a mysterious old lady, neatly dressed in black silk, with an -old-fashioned bonnet, appeared at the Brompton villa, and giving her -name as Mrs. Porter, begged permission to speak for a few minutes to -the lady of the house. The page, who, though a sharp boy, was not yet -sufficiently versed in his business to gauge the social position of -visitors, was about to usher the old lady into the drawing-room, but -Justine, happening to pass downstairs at the moment, promptly bade her -take a seat in the hall, and took upon herself the task of announcing -her arrival.</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor started very much at tearing the name, but recovering -herself, desired that the visitor should be shown to her bedroom. The -old lady bowed when she received the summons; and Justine noticed that -she trembled very much as she ascended the stairs. What passed during -the interview Justine did not exactly know, though she loitered about -the passage to gather as much as she could. First, she heard her -mistress's voice in high sharp tones of rebuke, and the old lady -apparently pleading. Miss Montressor's voice then softened very much, -and the conversation was carried on in a low earnest undertone, -mingled, so Justine thought, with sobs from one, if not from both, and -just before the door opened she could have sworn she heard a sound as -of many kisses, broken with words of blessing and farewell. And Miss -Montressor's eyes were very red, and her brilliant complexion rather -tear-blurred, after her visitor's departure; and though she speedily -rectified this irregularity, she remained singularly quiet and subdued -all that evening.</p> - -<p>Also, just before the day of her departure, arrived Miss Thomasina -Campbell and Miss Georgina Goss, formerly Miss Montressor's colleagues -at the T.R.D.L., where they had many a bitter quarrel together; but -now that she was going to rid them of her presence, and to interfere -no more, her devoted friends. The visit of these young ladies was -ostensibly to bid their dear Clara good-bye, but in reality to -endeavour to ascertain from her what terms she had got, and what -parts she was likely to play, and to look at the dresses she was -going to take with her. As regards the first items, they failed -lamentably--Miss Montressor spoke vaguely of enormous sums, and of -'leading business,' but declined to enter into any particulars--but as -regards the latter, they were gratified to the highest extent. Miss -Montressor showed them all her pretty things, and even went to the -extent of unpacking an enormous trunk for the sake of displaying the -two splendid gowns which had duly arrived from Madame Lagrange, and -which were pronounced by staid Miss Campbell to be 'truly superb,' and -by giggling Miss Goss to be 'perfect ducks.' When they had seen all -the pretty things, and partaken of sherry and seltzer-water, with -which gay little Miss Goss moistened a cigarette, they took their -leave, not without warning their hostess to beware of the fascinations -of Bryan Duval, who, they insinuated, was a heartless wretch who made -love to everybody.</p> - -<p>Finally, Mr. Foster paid his first and last visit to the young lady in -whom he seemed to have taken so kindly an interest.</p> - -<p>'You are surprised to see me here, Miss Montressor,' he said, 'more -especially when you recollect that you never asked me to call upon -you.'</p> - -<p>'I am very much delighted to see you, Mr. Foster,' said Miss -Montressor frankly, extending her hand to him, 'and I should be more -pleased if I did not think that your presence here meant that there -was no chance of your sailing with us in the Cuba, on Saturday.'</p> - -<p>'It does mean that, indeed,' said Mr. Foster. 'I shall not be able to -complete my business so early, but I hope to follow you in a very -short time. You are kind enough to say you wish I were coming with -you, Miss Montressor, but you cannot regret the impossibility half so -much as I do. I am home sick, and that talk which we had the other day -about my wife and my belongings has made me more than ever anxious to -get back to them.'</p> - -<p>'I verily believe it was the chance of another chat about them that -procured me the pleasure of this visit,' said Miss Montressor. 'But, -however, you shall not be gratified this time. You shall talk to me of -nothing but what I shall do in New York, where I shall go, what I -shall see, and to whom I must make myself most gracious and agreeable -in order to insure my success. By the way,' she added, turning -suddenly round to him, 'one thing struck me in thinking over our talk -the other day. This business of which you think so much, and in -connection with which you came over here, it must be still going on in -New York, is it not?'</p> - -<p>'Certainly.'</p> - -<p>'But not by itself; you must have left it in somebody's charge?'</p> - -<p>'Of course, in the charge of my most intimate friend.'</p> - -<p>'O, indeed,' said Miss Montressor. 'And Mrs. Foster, she is doubtless -with her family--father or mother, or something of that sort?'</p> - -<p>'No, indeed, poor Helen is an orphan; she remains at home, in our own -house, but I have desired my friend to look after her.'</p> - -<p>'The same friend?' inquired Miss Montressor.</p> - -<p>'The same friend!'</p> - -<p>'O, indeed,' said Miss Montressor, in the same tone. 'It must be a -great comfort to you to think that there is some one to whom you can -confide your business and your wife with a perfect feeling of -security.'</p> - -<p>And then they talked of subjects connected with theatricals and New -York until Mr. Foster took his departure.</p> - -<p>At length the eventful Friday morning arrived, and though, from the -ordinary condition of the Euston Station, it would seem impossible -that there should ever be any extra bustle there, some little -additional excitement might have been noticed. Mr. Bryan Duval, never -oblivious of the chances of advertisement, had written to the traffic -manager, enclosing a slip cut from the newspaper, announcing his -departure, and requesting some extra facilities in the way of -transport. The traffic manager, with great politeness, had ordered a -saloon carriage to be placed at the disposal of the theatrical party; -and thus their intended arrival became known. People who were waiting -about on the platform, ordinary passengers and their friends, saw the -handsome saloon carriage, and concluding immediately that it must be -for some member of the Royal Family, or some other equally -distinguished personage, lingered round it in the pleasant expectation -of being gratified with the sight of a hat or a beard, the skirt of a -robe or the end of a bonnet-string.</p> - -<p>They were not, however, much disappointed when, upon inquiry, they -learned who were really to be the occupants of the carriage. A live -actor or actress in their ordinary citizen garb has an immense -attraction for the many-headed, and Bryan Duval was both well known -and popular; his very luggage, arriving, as it did, in a huge break, -interested them much, and they studied the enormous red letters -announcing 'Bryan Duval, passenger per Cuba, New York, U.S.A.,' and -the mysterious word 'Hold,' with a feeling akin to awe. The -well-informed told the ignorant of the plays he had written and what -characters he had played, what a magnificent fortune he had, and what -a number of duchesses and marchionesses were dying of love for him.</p> - -<p>The great actor was the first to arrive. Ordinary people travel in -rough clothes, and drive to the station in a cab. Not so Mr. Bryan -Duval. His belief in the necessity of advertising himself remained -with him to the last, and the hoofs of the spanking chestnuts, as -their master tooled them under the archway, roused the echoes of the -Euston courtyard. No sign of vulgar luggage appeared in Mr. Duval's -trap--the only hint that he was about to travel might have been found -in the natty morocco-leather courier's pouch, slung over his shoulder -by a trap; otherwise he might have been going down to a picnic at St. -Albans, for he was dressed in a suit of gray dittos, wore a crimson -tie, shiny-tip jean boots, and his usual curly-brimmed hat.</p> - -<p>The little crowd gathered round him as he drew up to the station, but -he pretended to take no notice of them, and to be absorbed in giving -directions to his groom. When these were concluded, he was apparently -about moving off, when the groom touched his hat, and said, with -something like a quiver in his voice, 'Take the liberty of wishing you -good-bye, sir--happy voyage and a safe return.'</p> - -<p>'Thank you, James, very much,' said Mr. Duval, in his clearest tones. -'Take care of the horses--see that Black Bess and Tantivy are always -properly exercised, and remember me very kindly to your wife.' And Mr. -Duval moved off midst a murmur of sympathetic admiration from the -crowd.</p> - -<p>'Sharp fellow that James,' he muttered to himself, as he entered the -ticket office; 'spoke that line I taught him deuced well. I shall -probably be able to make something of him on the stage when I come -back.'</p> - -<p>His elation was a little dazed at the sight of Mrs. Regan, who, -running up to him, clasped him by both hands, and whose appearance was -scarcely calculated to impress bystanders with admiration. This worthy -old person, who was of Hibernian descent, and had what is known -amongst her countrymen as a 'potato' face, was dressed in a voluminous -chintz gown, like bed furniture, and, slung on her arm, carried a -check wicker basket, like a soft chess-board, with what was obviously -the neck of a bottle protruding from it. He was gratified, however, by -the appearance of Mr. Cooington, who, with a feeling that he was about -to spend ten days on the ocean, arrived at Euston Station in a -yachting costume, a straw hat with a very narrow brim, and a ribbon -with 'Plover' in gold letters round it. Mr. Skyrmshire, the low-comedy -man, had apparently adopted some of his theatrical wardrobe for -travelling purposes, and consequently arrived in a suit of such -enormous stripes, that in it he looked like a zebra on his hind legs. -He was a practical as well as a poetical humourist too, and combining -jocosity with business, carried about with him a number of small -labels, printed 'Go and hear Skrymshire, the brilliant Momus,' and -gummed at the back, with which he adorned the velveteen jackets of all -the porters with whom he came in contact.</p> - -<p>And then Mr. Foster arrived, and then Miss Montressor, looking very -pretty, and dressed with great simplicity and good taste. Mr. Duval -offered her his arm, and led the way to the saloon carriage, the -others following. Then rushed out to take a last look that the baggage -was all safe, to compliment the inspector and tip the porters, and -returned. A whistle, a shriek, Mr. Skrymshire said, 'Give him his -head, John,' Mrs. Regan breathed hard and cried, 'Now we're off,' the -train moved on a little, and then stopped.</p> - -<p>A porter put his head into the carriage in which the actor's party had -already begun to lean back, and realise the fact that they had -started, and inquired whether the gentleman who owned the portmanteau -left at the station an hour ago, and which he had just put into the -van, according to orders, was there. The occupants of the carriage -glanced at each other, shook their heads in a general negative, and -Bryan Duval answered for them, 'No, the gentleman was not there.'</p> - -<p>'Beg pardon, gentlemen,' said the porter, 'but I can't find the owner -of the portmanteau.'</p> - -<p>'And you want your tip, I suppose?' said Bryan Duval, in an undertone, -to the man, who was standing on the step of the carriage, with his -hands on the door.</p> - -<p>'No, sir, I don't,' said the man; 'the gentleman paid me to look after -the portmanteau. I only wanted to make sure that he was here, so as it -shouldn't go amongst missing luggage, but I can't find him--he isn't -in the train.' He fell back, made a sign to the guard, and the train -moved on this time, to pursue its way unbrokenly.</p> - -<p>'What a horrid nuisance!' said Miss Montressor to Mr. Foster. 'I can't -imagine anything more worrying than losing one's luggage.'</p> - -<p>'And yet,' said Mr. Foster, 'it is one of those things no one gets -pitied for. For my part, I always stick to mine in this country, where -matters of that kind are certainly not regulated with the intelligence -and attention to public convenience they are amongst us. However, I -daresay this gentleman and his portmanteau will not be long parted. -That porter was an honest fellow. Shall I pull the window up?'</p> - -<p>'No, thanks,' said Miss Montressor. 'I am perfectly comfortable. You -have very good notions of travelling, Mr. Foster, and have chosen my -seat with admirable discretion. Where is the library?--O, overhead, I -see. Not that I care much for reading in a train; it tries one's eyes. -Do you always read in the train?'</p> - -<p>'That depends on my company,' said Mr. Foster. 'I don't feel inclined -to read to-day.'</p> - -<p>'Then suppose we make a law that nobody is to read?' said Miss -Montressor, looking round upon her companions with the proud -consciousness of being a leading lady in every sense of the word.</p> - -<p>'Never make a law unless you are sure of its being obeyed,' said Bryan -Duval drily, as he settled his travelling cap, and ensconced his head -in a convenient angle of the partition between his seat and that of -his fair neighbour, opposite to whom Mr. Foster was placed, and -immediately immersed himself in the pages of the <i>Times</i>.</p> - -<p>The journey was a very pleasant one; every one was good-humoured, and -Miss Montressor had her own way. She and Mr. Foster talked a good deal -more than any of their companions, but the tone of the conversation -was necessarily general. Thus, there was no reference on his part to -the domestic circumstances which had annoyed Miss Montressor when he -confided them to her at Richmond, and her versatile nature had enabled -her almost entirely to dismiss the recollection of her sister Bess, -except in the general sense of being rather glad than otherwise that -she should have an opportunity of seeing her.</p> - -<p>In her present sanguine mood, Miss Montressor doubted not that she -should be able to induce Bess to say, or to leave unsaid, precisely -whatever she pleased to indicate--at the worst, this was an annoyance -to be postponed for consideration, until after her arrival on the -other side; she was not going to trouble herself about it prematurely.</p> - -<p>To tell the truth about Miss Montressor, she thought very little of -Mr. Dolby during the pleasant hours of her journey to Liverpool. It -would be good fun finding him in New York, and either making up the -quarrel which had marked their parting or not making it up, precisely -as it should suit her humour and her convenience, when the time had -arrived. That, too, she need not think of beforehand. Altogether, Miss -Montressor could recall few days in her life which had passed more -completely to her satisfaction than that of her departure from London, -and she mentioned the fact to Mr. Foster, when, for the first time, -she found herself out of hearing of her companions on the arrival of -the train, when he gave her his arm to walk along the platform at -Lime-street.</p> - -<p>During a momentary pause in order to rally their party, the attention -of Miss Montressor and Mr. Foster was attracted to the unloading of -the luggage van. A solitary portmanteau had been chucked upon the -platform with a contemptuous indifference, which is the destiny of -waifs and strays among luggage.</p> - -<p>'I am sure that is the unclaimed portmanteau,' said Miss Montressor; -'looks new too. What will they do with it?'</p> - -<p>'Put it in the parcel-office, of course,' said Mr. Foster, 'for the -present, and then they forget all about it.'</p> - -<p>The portmanteau, a shiny black one of the most commonplace appearance, -lay upon the pavement until all the claimed luggage had been disposed -of and wheeled away on trucks to its various destinations; then the -waif was carried by a porter to the parcel-office and there deposited, -with a brief intimation to the official who resided behind a sliding -window, amid huge barricades of packing-cases, hampers, and every -description of impedimenta, from camel trunks to brown-paper parcels -and stray hand-bags, 'That this 'ere box, name o' Dunn, hadn't been -owned.'</p> - -<p>Travellers to Liverpool by all trains, at all hours, are a motley -crew; all ranks and classes of society, all industries, all -circumstances, may be found represented in the voyagers going towards -the great outlet of England. The train which conveyed Bryan Duval and -his troop was no exception, but rather a notable example of this -truth. Only two components of the crowd which were whirled from the -great social to the great commercial capital on that particular day -have any interest for us; they are our theatrical friends, and one -other man, a solitary and insignificant unit among the number.</p> - -<p>This man wore a sailor's dress, and carried a parcel, done up in a bit -of tarpaulin, under his arm. He had arrived at Euston Station a few -minutes before the party whose departure had formed a feature of the -day; had stood wholly unnoticed among the third-class passengers -crowding that portion of the platform opposite to the pens appointed -for their use, and had quietly taken his seat in the farthest corner -of the last compartment in the train. There was nothing remarkable in -this man's appearance or manner. His sailor's clothes were clean, and -fitted with characteristic looseness. He did not remove his cap or -relinquish his hold of his tarpaulin bundle, which he placed upon his -knees, and folding his arms upon it, kept them there during the whole -of the journey. He exchanged not a word with his fellow passengers, -except a mechanic and his family about to exchange the used-up old -world for the new and happy land--though they thought him a morose -surly sort of fellow, no doubt; but they were full of their own hopes, -interests, and regrets, which they discussed with the simple unreserve -of the poor, and, after a few minutes, did not notice him.</p> - -<p>He was a dark-complexioned man, with a rough red beard and hair to -match, and had probably but recently adopted the avocation of a -sailor, for his hands were rather delicate for a man of that class, -and had evidently had no prolonged acquaintance with the ropes or -great familiarity with tar. Though he travelled down the whole way to -Liverpool without appearing to be conscious of the presence of his -immediate companions, this sailor seemed to have some attraction -towards the more distinguished passengers by the train. He lingered -for a few minutes on the platform on their arrival at Lime-street, -though he had put no luggage in the van, and had no occasion to wait -while its contents were being turned out and sorted; and during this -delay he surveyed,--with an intentness probably caused by his -knowledge of their celebrity,--the party of actors as they took their -way to the exit. He was but a few steps behind them when they reached -the entrance of the station, and he stood in the doorway while they -crossed the street on foot and entered the hospitable portals of the -Adelphi Hotel, where their rooms had been engaged. When they had gone -in, and were quite hidden from his view, he still lingered; indeed, -the greater part of the burden which the train had carried had been -discharged from the station before this desultory mariner moved on. -Even then he only crossed the street, still hugging his tarpaulin -bundle under his arm, and slouched along under the windows of the -Adelphi, as though the place had some attraction for him.</p> - -<p>The contrasts offered by London itself are hardly greater than those -to be found in Liverpool; the physical division of the great town into -high and low is not more marked than its moral division into luxury -and want, into respectability and infamy, into leisure and toil. There -is a calm, tranquil, well-bred comfort about some of the uncommercial -districts of Liverpool as characteristic and as striking as the -splendour of its great streets, the long line of shops, each -displaying the products of the teeming wealth of many countries, and -are lost in those wonderful masses of warehouses, stores, factories, -and shipping offices, which epitomise the whole history of commerce in -its greatest forms, while they exhibit it in its minutest detail. The -actual story of the world in its most practical, and at the same time -not in its least romantic, aspect may be read by him who runs--if his -hurried way should take him past the great landing-stages which -project upon the Mersey. All the interests of life in its present -crowded phase, and in its extended intercourse of business and of -greatness, find their symbols there; its transitoriness, its change, -its tumultuous variety, its youthful hope, its keenest anxieties, its -bitterest partings, have found their theatre there since the first -ship brought in the wealth of a foreign land, and the first ship -carried out the produce of our own. The steadiest industry, the most -inveterate vagabondism, find their representatives among the -population of Liverpool; there is no place in existence in which the -student of human nature may discover more to interest, to edify, to -puzzle, and to appal him.</p> - -<p>The sailor who had travelled by the five-o'clock train to Liverpool -was seemingly possessed by a great curiosity concerning the commercial -city. He had not eaten or drunk since early in the day; but this -circumstance, rarely devoid of interest to persons of his class, -seemed to trouble him but little. He had not turned into any -eating-house, he had not visited any drinking-bar; but he took his way -slowly, and always meditatively, along the streets which led to the -water-side. In Water-street he lingered long. The great business -centres and conduits were emptying themselves of the swarms of human -beings whose business lies in the deep waters, who, if they did not go -down to the sea in ships themselves, spent their lives in business -matters connected with those who do; hurrying crowds jostled the -sailor upon the pathways, crowds whose backs were turned upon the -direction in which he was going; and as he took his way at a lounging -pace, which contrasted curiously with the vigorous hurry and -breaking-up air of bustle around him which marks the close of the -business day in Liverpool, and the 'coming on of evening mild,' with -its welcome recreation, at home or elsewhere, according to the -diversity of tastes. The water-side was almost deserted when he -debouched upon it from Water-street under the shadow of the huge -warehouses.</p> - -<p>In the dim light the prosaic landing-stage looked almost -picturesque--shortly to be turned to a silver radiance by the yet -unrisen moon; the waters of the Mersey lay in solemn calm; in the dim -light, the long lines of huge warehouses, with their cumbrous -apparatus of crank and pulley, of windlass and stage, looked more than -ever like a series of gigantic gallows, prepared for a general -execution. The mind speedily loses itself in the mere contemplation of -their resources in the way of sacks and bales. To stray into -considerations of cotton is to get lost, to think of pig-iron is -distraction; the best way is to accept it all as a picture, happily -unaccompanied at that hour of the night by the maddening noise of the -day-time, and to be satisfied, without attempting to comprehend them, -with the vastness, with the wealth, of Liverpool.</p> - -<p>Probably this was not the line on which the sailor's thoughts were -running when he examined the before-mentioned long range of -warehouses, which lie parallel to the great landing-stage, with the -wide roadway lying between, to inspire the observer with constant -wonder how, by any effort of human industry, it is ever kept in a -state of repair. His examination was minute, careful, and marked by -one peculiarity. He laid his hand on every door as he passed it by, -giving the sturdy panel a strong and stealthy push; in every instance -but one, the response to this movement was the steady resistance of a -stout bolt. One door, very far down the range, and in a place where -already the profoundest tranquillity reigned, fell open at his touch, -and the sailor, with a lounging gait of perfectly idle curiosity, -ready, if challenged, to apologise for an intrusion on that score, -passed into the yard to which the complying portal gave admittance.</p> - -<p>It was some minutes before he emerged and began to retrace his steps -towards Water-street; but he had now discarded his lounging gait, his -step was purpose-like, quick, and wholly out of unison with his dress -and appearance; nor had he any longer the uncertain discovery-making -manner of a man unacquainted with the locality in which he finds -himself for the first time.</p> - -<p>He threaded his way with great rapidity through a number of small -streets and lanes, best described by the generic term of 'slums,' -quite regardless of the sights and sounds in perfect harmony with the -neighbourhood, which was a particularly villanous one; he bent his -steps to a low public-house, and close to the river.</p> - -<p>Here he called for bread-and-cheese, of which he ate sparingly, and -for a pot of beer, of which he drank a very small quantity--the meal -did not seem to recommend itself to his palate; here, too, he spoke no -word, and looked no one in the face, but he passed in and out quite -disregarded.</p> - -<p>The drinking-den--for it was hardly more--was, indeed, crowded, as it -was at most hours of the day, and as far into the night as the police -would permit but its occupants were either drinking or quarrelling, or -both, and too much engaged in these pursuits to notice the surly -newcomer.</p> - -<p>Having thus sparingly satisfied the hunger and thirst which he must -have been experiencing, the sailor sought for a place of repose. He -selected for this purpose a common lodging-house, much in use by men -of his craft when on shore, under circumstances which may be briefly -described as 'down on their luck.' It was a dirty, ill-ventilated, -wretched place, where beds of the very coarsest sacking, with very -repulsive-looking bed-clothes, were stretched out in long lines on two -sides of the low whitewashed room; a carpetless and matless lane ran -up the centre, encumbered with the discarded garments of the occupants -of the beds, and every accessory of the scene was unpleasant. The -sailor seemed indisposed to avail himself of even the full extent of -the accommodation which this uninviting hostelry afforded, limited as -it was; he abstained from undressing himself, but flung himself down -in his clothes upon the bed which was pointed out to him, and which he -was congratulated by the proprietor of this hideous retreat upon -having been so fortunate as to secure, as it was the only one which -had not already a tenant.</p> - -<p>This was not exactly a place in which good order might be expected to -reign. Its temporary occupants were in many instances drunk, in very -few decent, in almost all noisy; but the new-comer contributed no more -to the horrid merriment of the sleeping den than he had contributed to -the conviviality of the drinking den during that day. He met all -attempts at questioning with a sullen growl; and placing his tarpaulin -bundle under his head for a pillow, he soon fell, or seemed to fall, -into a heavy slumber.</p> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h4><a name="div2_02" href="#div2Ref_02">CHAPTER II.</a></h4> -<h5>TRAPPED.</h5> -<br> - -<p>The normal state of the Adelphi Hotel at Liverpool is one of such -bustle and confusion, that when the entire establishment goes stark -staring mad, as is the case twice a year, on the occasions of the -Grand National Steeplechase and the Waterloo Meeting, the people are -not inclined to regard the eccentricity as anything to be wondered at. -Passing a night at the Adelphi, you are liable to come across the man -who went out to California five-and-twenty years ago with the full -determination never to revisit the motherland where the first half of -his life had been so thrown away, but who, his fortune made and the -nostalgia strong upon him, arrived last night from New York, to travel -for six months like a gentleman in the country where, for a quarter of -a century, he had starved and slaved. Or you are equally likely to run -into the arms of the elderly friend whom you have always considered as -a fixed item of London life, but who, having heard a rumour 'that -things are going wrong out there,' is starting by the next day's -outward-bound mail to satisfy himself. The halls and passages of the -Adelphi are always crammed with sea-going chests and Saratoga boxes, -and deckchairs, more or less maimed; and there is generally a dozen of -champagne being cracked in some of the rooms to drink the health of -the captain who has just brought the good ship safely over, or success -to the captain who is just going to take the good ship out; and there -are newspaper reporters flying to and fro to get lists of passengers, -or details of any occurrences on the voyage, and relations of the -newly-arrived, who are very much elated, and relations of the -departing, who are very much depressed, and whose excessive emotion in -their case contrasts curiously with the steady-going business tone of -the members of the establishment.</p> - -<p>It was not to be supposed that a man of Mr. Bryan Duval's foresight -would have neglected writing beforehand to secure rooms, any more than -that he would have omitted sending a hint of his intended arrival to -two or three members of the local press with whom he was on terms of -friendship. Consequently, when the theatrical party from London walked -into the house, they were not merely received with gracious smiles -from the three young ladies in the bar, and with portentous grins from -Sam the boots (not naturally a good-natured man, but an old -acquaintance of Mr. Duval's, and the recipient of many orders for the -upper boxes when that gentleman was staying there on a starring tour), -but with a warm acclamation from Mr. Lavrock, the popular editor of -the <i>Liverpool Lion</i>, and two or three of his comrades. It was not Mr. -Lavrock's fault that he was not a London editor; it was the one hope -of his life; but being unable to accomplish the feat, and finding -himself tied to Liverpool, he revenged himself on the fate which had -dictated, as his duty, the pulverisation of the Mayor, the castigation -of the Corporation, and the flaying of the Mersey Board, by devoting -every minute of his off-time to London things and London people, by -running to the metropolis at all times when he could get away, and by -acting as general agent for every London literary or theatrical -celebrity.</p> - -<p>It had not wanted the presence of these gentlemen to remind Bryan -Duval that he had intended giving a little banquet that evening in -honour of Mr. Foster; but when he saw them, he at once thought that -they would not be merely pleasant additions to the party, but that -they might be the means of giving it world-wide publicity by inserting -a neat little paragraph in the next morning's editions, which he would -take over with him, and have copied immediately after arrival in the -New York journals. Mr. Lavrock and his friends would be delighted to -accept the invitation, and the party separated with the understanding -that they were to meet at seven o'clock, the travellers going to their -bedrooms to rest themselves after their journey, and the newspaper men -to their offices, to prepare that little paragraph concerning which -Mr. Duval had dropped a hint into the ear of each of them.</p> - -<p>The Adelphi can give a dinner when it has a mind, and it had a mind -this day. The turtle was superb; so good that Mr. Foster, who had had -two or three rather sharp culinary arguments with Mr. Duval since -their acquaintance, was compelled to acknowledge that on one point, at -least, he had been wrong, and that he had never, even at the Brevoort -House in New York, tasted better soup than that then set before him; -and when dinner was over, Mr. Duval made a very prolonged epigrammatic -speech, proposing Mr. Foster's health, and Mr. Foster, with that -self-possession and flow of language so characteristic of his -countrymen, returned thanks. And then Mr. Lavrock stood up and -exhausted the dictionary of flattery upon Bryan Duval, who, in -responding, remarked that he hoped in a couple of months or so to give -another dinner to almost the same party in the same place, on his -return from what he intended should be a prosperous run; and then, as -they were most of them tired, and had to get up betimes, the party -broke up.</p> - -<p>When Mr. Foster came down the next morning, he found Bryan Duval, -already the centre of an admiring crowd, giving directions for the -stowage of his luggage on the huge trucks which were to convey it to -the steamer's tender. Mr. Duval had exchanged his costume of the -previous day for a yachting suit, and with an oilskin-covered straw -hat, low patent-leather shoes, and striped silk socks, looked ready to -lead off a hornpipe on any given cue. It had been arranged that they -should breakfast in their rooms, and that Mr. Foster, who might be -looked upon as accustomed to this kind of thing, should act as convoy -to the company, Mr. Duval going in front to attend to the luggage. No -sooner, therefore, was the truck duly piled than Bryan rattled off -before it in a swift-going hansom, while Mr. Foster, Miss Montressor, -and the others followed in a more sober vehicle.</p> - -<p>The landing-stage at which the Cunard tender was lying was thronged on -this occasion with even a more motley crowd than usual, for the -paragraphs in the morning journals had announced to the actors the -presence among them of their great colleague, and several of them had -come down to see him off. Many of the young brokers and shipping -clerks too had rushed away from their offices for a few minutes to -catch a glimpse of the popular artistes, and, as if to act as a -corrective to the light tone of thought likely to be engendered by -these people, a dark-bearded sombre-faced man, in the rustic garb of a -Methodist preacher, made his way in and out amongst the crowd, -distributing tracts to whoever would take them. There was no chance -for his admirers mistaking any one else for Mr. Duval; that -gentleman's activity was preternatural; and when the tender left the -shore, they raised a little cheer, which he gratefully acknowledged by -squeezing his hat over his chest exactly as he had done on many -occasions after a successful first night's performance.</p> - -<p>There was not much talk among the little party as they made their way -to the ship. They praised her noble proportions as she lay at anchor -in mid-stream, cast looks at the sky, and prophesied about the -weather; but their hearts were too full to say much, and they soon -lapsed into silence. When they were once on board they, those who were -to make the voyage, went straight to their state-rooms, and of our -friends all remained there with the exception of Miss Montressor and -Bryan Duval; the latter had still to see the luggage safely stowed -away in the hold, the former came straight to Mr. Foster as he was -standing very dejectedly on the hurricane-deck.</p> - -<p>'I have just found another instance of your kindness, another thing to -be grateful to you for.'</p> - -<p>'Not in the least,' he replied with a sad smile. 'I had forgotten all -about it; but I know there is no preventive of sea-sickness like -champagne, and you can depend upon that case being genuine.'</p> - -<p>'I wish you would have a bottle of it now,' she said. 'I think it -would do you good.'</p> - -<p>'I am afraid not,' he replied, with an attempt at gaiety. 'I am very -depressed and very dull, I know, and I do not think champagne would -help me; the only cure for me will be when I find myself on this or -some sister ship bound for home.'</p> - -<p>'And Helen!' whispered Miss Montressor.</p> - -<p>'And Helen,' he repeated gravely, lifting his hat as though invoking a -blessing on the name.</p> - -<p>Then the shore-bell rang, and Bryan Duval came up, and in a few words -of kindly friendship, without a trace of professional affectation, -spoke his thanks and adieux to his newly-made friend.</p> - -<p>When Mr. Foster turned to Miss Montressor he tried to put on a light -and rallying manner, but his voice broke, and the tears rose in his -eyes. He muttered something, she could not distinguish what, for she -herself was very much overcome, and vanished down the ladder and -across the gangway.</p> - -<p>Then the tender steamed away. Bryan Duval and Clara Montressor, -leaning over the rail, watched the figure of the man in whom alone -they had an interest until it was undistinguishable; still stood -gazing until the tender herself became a mere speck in the distance. -Then he touched her on the arm.</p> - -<p>'You had better go down and see to your things, Clara, my dear,' he -said, in a kindly tone. 'We shall meet Foster again, I trust--he is a -downright good fellow.'</p> - -<p>'He is a gentleman,' sobbed Clara Montressor, 'and one of the best men -on the face of the earth.'</p> - -<p>By this time the good ship was standing out to sea.</p> - -<p>* * * * * *</p> - -<p>Mr. Foster returned to his hotel in very low spirits; the mere sight -of the sea, the mere sense of being on board a steamer, the bustle and -departure, and the glad anticipations which he heard all around him, -had produced a fit of home-sickness. It rarely occurred that Mr. -Foster, as the strictly business man, revolted against business in any -shape, or resented its exactions, but he did so on this occasion, and -yielded to a sort of physical and mental <i>malaise</i>, which he was ready -to impute partly to fatigue, and partly to the fact that he had been -amusing himself more than was his custom during the last few days, and -this was the reaction. 'I go back to the grind now,' he thought, 'and -I will get it over as soon as possible--I can't stand much more of -this kind of thing; it doesn't pay. My Helen would be cured of her -funny unreasonable notions about the supremacy of my business in my -thoughts, her pretty jealousy would vanish like a cloud if she could -only see me now, if she could only look into my heart and know how I -longed to have done with it all and to get back to her. How I envy the -people who are going where she is!'</p> - -<p>He was walking slowly, with bent head and a musing manner, rarely seen -in the busy streets of the water-side city, as he thought this, and he -mechanically put his hand into his breast-pocket searching for his -wife's last letter, which he felt sure he had brought down with him; -but it was not there. 'I must have left it in my room,' he thought, -and quickened his steps. On reaching the hotel, Mr. Foster went to his -room and found the letter, which he glanced over and placed in his -pocket-book.</p> - -<p>Everything, tide included, had favoured the departure of his friends. -It was nigh noon when the ship steamed down the Mersey, and the -solitary man, who was in a humour to indulge the sense of solitude, -had several hours to dispose of before returning to London. He had -contemplated staying one night in Liverpool, but he changed his mind; -he would go and have a look at the chief places of interest in the -city and its environs, and so dispose of the hours until he could go -away.</p> - -<p>It was a little after one when he left the Adelphi, and set out on a -sort of strolling tour, and his mind, an active and intelligent one, -soon became diverted and interested in the novel scene. There is a -good deal to be seen in Liverpool and at Birkenhead, and Mr. Foster -gave his mind to seeing it; so that it was much later than he had -calculated upon when he was crossing in the ferry from the latter -place, and he perceived, with some vexation, that he had overstayed -his time, and could not possibly leave by the night train as he had -intended. 'Not that it matters,' he thought, 'except that Helen's -letter will be waiting for me instead of my being waiting for it.'</p> - -<p>'I beg your pardon,' he said, making room on the bench where he was -sitting for a man who had stood, with rather an ostentatious air of -expecting to have room made for him, just in front of Mr. Foster, 'I -didn't see that you wanted a place;' and the man sat down, after some -words of course.</p> - -<p>He was a slight man, who carried himself awkwardly, with high -shoulders and sunken chest and stooping head; he was of dark -complexion, had straight black hair, which fitted his head like a -thatch, and a black beard, but he was painfully nearsighted, and wore -spectacles of such power that his eyes, seen through them, seemed to -be buried in cavities altogether disproportionate to the other -feature. He was curiously ill-dressed, not only as regards the fabric -of his garments, which was incongruous, but also as regards their fit, -which had not the slightest reference to either his height or his -breadth. They were formed of two or three kinds of cloth of different -degrees of coarseness, but all of the cheapest description, and -all rusty black, which associates itself in one's mind with the -Scripture-reading, amateur-preaching, charity-letter writing, and -tract-distributing class. He wore shoes, which might have been made -for any one of the passengers on board the ferry with as much -reference to their fit as for him, and his gray cotton gloves were too -long in the fingers and too wide in the wrists. In the dog's-eared -pocket of his black cloth waistcoat he carried a clumsy silver watch, -attached to a frayed piece of black braid; and a shiny leather case, -which had evidently been replenished with tracts since he had lavishly -distributed his morning supply of that improving order of literature, -protruded from the breast-pocket of his shapeless coat.</p> - -<p>Mr. Foster glanced at the stranger as one naturally glances at a -person to whom one has done a passing civility, and was not far out in -his estimate of his social position and professional character; not -that he was familiar with the precise type, but the character was too -ostentatiously put forward to be mistaken.</p> - -<p>A respectable-looking stout woman, with a large basket, which she held -tenaciously upon her knees, to her extreme discomfort, no doubt -considering it much too precious to be intrusted to the open space of -deck at her feet, got into conversation with Mr. Foster's neighbour, -with all the facility accorded by custom to social intercourse with -gentlemen of his profession, and after a few minutes Mr. Foster found -himself taking an interest in the conversation. It referred to the -physical and spiritual needs of the water-side population, and the man -spoke in a sensible and straightforward way, quite devoid of cant, -which pleased Mr. Foster, and was singularly at variance with his -appearance--that of the most conventional theatrical type, which one -is almost irresistibly tempted to associate with imposture and -hypocrisy.</p> - -<p>'I wonder,' said the woman, 'you are not afraid to go down into them -dens. What extraordinary sights you must see there!'</p> - -<p>'I see a great deal of poverty and suffering,' said the man, in a -marked Irish accent, 'but much less wickedness than people think for.'</p> - -<p>And he then proceeded to tell one or two stories of his experience of -that day, which had a very real ring about them, and which he related -with no affectation, self-seeking, or technical phraseology. Probably -he had observed that the gentleman who had made way for him was taking -an interest in the conversation, for he shifted his position, in which -he had previously had his shoulder turned towards Mr. Foster, for one -which placed him straight between his two neighbours, his shoulders -against the rail of the bench, and his bent head on his breast. There -was occasionally the slightest possible glance of the strange-looking -eyes, from under the magnifying spectacles, in the direction of Mr. -Foster's attentive and sympathising face.</p> - -<p>'May I ask if you have seen much of this sort of thing?' said Mr. -Foster, when the speaker came to a pause, and the kindly woman on his -other side was unaffectedly wiping from her eyes tears of compassion -evoked by his story of a scene which the narrator had that morning -witnessed at a certain 'rookery,' as he called it.</p> - -<p>'O yes; my life has passed among such scenes,' said the man.</p> - -<p>'Do you get used to them?' asked Mr. Foster.</p> - -<p>'In a certain sense, of course I do; as a surgeon gets used to the -sight of pain, and a judge to the presence of criminals; but if you -mean do I leave off feeling them, do the individual cases become -merged in the general, no, certainly not. And, sir,' said the man, now -turning decidedly towards Mr. Foster, but propping his arm on his -knee, and covering with his hand the end of his nose and the upper -lip, already sufficiently hidden by his straight black moustache, -which shaded his teeth and mingled with the hair of the beard, 'mine -is a life which has its consolations as well as its duties. I see a -great deal of misery, vice, sickness, cruelty, and injustice, but I -see a great deal of charity too. I am made the channel through which -not a little of it flows. Are you familiar with Liverpool?'</p> - -<p>'No,' said Mr. Foster; 'I never was here until yesterday, having -merely passed through when I came from New York, and I am going back -to town to-morrow morning, and should have gone to-night if I hadn't -over-stayed my time in sight-seeing, and run myself late for the -train.'</p> - -<p>'Among the sights you have seen,' said the man with the spectacles, -'had the low quarters of Liverpool and their inhabitants any place?'</p> - -<p>'O no,' said Mr. Foster. 'I had not time for anything of that -kind--just to get a look at the surface was all I have been able to -do; besides, one never sees anything of that sort in reality, I fancy, -if one goes loafing into it as a casual stranger; one must go round -with the police to get any real insight into the life of such places.'</p> - -<p>'Do you think so?' said the man, in a remonstrating tone. 'Did you -ever try ta get a look into the lives of the poor and the dangerous -classes in the company of their friends, for they have friends, rather -than in that of their enemies?'</p> - -<p>'No,' said Mr. Foster; 'the idea never occurred to me; indeed, I am -sorry to say, I am such a busy man, that I have hardly ever seen -anything of that sort, even at home. I am afraid I have been rather -remiss,' he continued, with a cordial frankness, which was one of his -pleasant peculiarities; 'too easily satisfied with giving a little -money now and then, which I can readily spare, and shielding my own -feelings from the sight of poverty, which we are all ready to talk -about and depute other people to relieve.'</p> - -<p>At this point in the conversation the brief crossing came to an end, -and the two men stepped off the ferry-boat together. He whom we may -call for convenience the stranger scrupulously assisted the woman and -her cumbersome basket--an act of politeness which he accomplished with -not a little difficulty, as it appeared he also had a parcel to carry. -As the ferry touched the landing-stage, he stooped down and picked up -from under the bench, where he had placed it unnoticed by either of -his temporary companions, a good-sized package, rather neatly done up -in tarpaulin.</p> - -<p>Mr. Foster was the first to step off the ferry, and he and the -stranger stood for a moment outside, while the latter relinquished her -basket to the woman, who took a civil leave of both, and then waited, -as if supposing that the sentence addressed to him was incomplete.</p> - -<p>'I beg your pardon,' he said, as if expecting Mr. Foster to resume it; -'I thought you asked me a question.'</p> - -<p>'I did not,' said Mr. Foster; 'but may I now ask you if your day's -work is done?'</p> - -<p>The first smile which had appeared upon the face of the stranger -crossed it now, but it was instantly controlled, and had been almost -imperceptibly brief. 'O dear, no,' he replied, giving the parcel which -he had tucked under his arm a significant squeeze; 'I am on an errand -to one of the poorest places in all Liverpool--a rookery down near the -landing-stage--and I am taking some clothes there which have just been -given me for the purpose for a woman and two children, who are lying -on old sacks under a piece of old sail-cloth, because the mother has -no clothes in which she can go and beg for work. That was not a case -in which to wait for to-morrow, so I went and begged the clothes from -some people I know at Birkenhead, and I am going down there direct.'</p> - -<p>They had walked on a few steps, but the stranger stood still now, as -if expecting--several places branching off here--the gentleman would -take leave of him. In that moment of waiting he had an indescribable -look of suspicion: the nostrils expanded and closed, the dark -complexion paled slightly, and the fingers of one hand clenched -themselves. It was only for a second, though; the next Mr. Foster -spoke:</p> - -<p>'I suppose the place you're going to is quite a representative den?' -he said. 'Would you mind taking me with you--I should like to see it, -and I should like to help a little through you, who know these poor -people? I suppose it isn't very far? But of course it is not, down by -the landing-stage. I should hardly have thought there were dens of -that kind down there in the region of the great wharves and -warehouses.'</p> - -<p>'That's just where they swarm,' said the stranger in a bold tone of -assertion, 'as you will see' (he stepped out briskly as he spoke). 'I -will show you several as we go down to the one my business lies in.'</p> - -<p>The night had fallen rapidly; there was no moon, and though the stars -were coming out, there was a considerable drift of cloud, so that the -sky was gloomy. As the two men walked side by side along the lighted -streets, Mr. Foster found himself occasionally outstripping his -companion, with whom he was talking familiarly, not exclusively upon -topics which had previously engaged them, but with reference to the -aspect of Liverpool. On each occasion of the kind he apologised; on -the first the stranger complained of a slight lameness, which -prevented his keeping up with the alert step of the strange gentleman.</p> - -<p>The slowness and the slouchingness of his gait certainly did not -decrease during their long walk; their progress was tediously slow; -and Mr. Foster would probably have been surprised at the lateness of -the hour, had it occurred to him to think about it.</p> - -<p>The city was settling down into the silence produced by the general -evacuation of its business quarters before that walk commenced. By the -time the two turned on Water-street--along the great line of the -warehouses past which the sailor who had been Mr. Foster's -fellow-traveller from London on the previous day had taken his way the -night before--that part of Liverpool was as silent as the City of -London at midnight. It presented somewhat of a similar aspect, from a -picturesque point of view, of a great centre of wealth and business in -isolation and inaction. With this aspect of London Mr. Foster was well -acquainted. One of the sights and sensations he had procured for -himself some time before was 'the City'--properly so called--when -nobody is in it; and Liverpool was now affording him a similar study; -but the locality was entirely new, and very shortly Mr. Foster was -quite bewildered, and had lost all notion of where he was. Out there -lay the river, on the other side of the town, and the great buildings -stretched endlessly under the frowning sky, like a giant wall between -him and its life.</p> - -<p>They had passed along innumerable immense blocks of building, -profoundly still, when they reached one where there was a kind of yard -surrounded on three sides with high walls, pierced with many windows. -The fore wall forming the front was considerably lower than the other -three, and in one corner was a door standing ajar, and kept from -closing by a stone; the aperture was very slight, and the probability -of any passer-by, previously unacquainted with the locality, -perceiving that the door was unfastened was exceedingly small. As the -two passed it, Mr. Foster, who was on the inner side, would not have -been the least aware of the fact, had not his companion stretched his -arm across him and pushed the door wide open.</p> - -<p>'This is the rookery,' said the stranger, having checked Mr. Foster's -steps by the movement of his arm, and stopped with suddenness which -took him by surprise; 'clean and quiet as it looks outside, it swarms -like a London court.'</p> - -<p>Mr. Foster stepped back on the pathway for a moment, while his -companion crossed the threshold, and expressed some astonishment at no -light being visible.</p> - -<p>'They are all at the back,' replied the man, as he kicked away the -stone and held the door for Mr. Foster to pass through. He did so, and -it was shut behind him. 'Follow me,' said the stranger; 'the door into -the house is in an opposite corner, and the stairs are dark till you -get to the first landing--mind the step.'</p> - -<p>Mr. Foster followed him in silence, and they passed through the narrow -door into the flagged passage, from which a steep and narrow -staircase, with an iron railing, led to a square landing at some -height above them. Still there was no light, except a feeble glimmer -emitted from the window above the landing. When they had mounted the -staircase so far, and could see each other's faces by the feeble -light, Mr. Foster remarked:</p> - -<p>'There cannot be any rooks here tonight--there is no cawing.'</p> - -<p>It was not, perhaps, any feeling so decided as distrust which lent a -peculiar tone to his voice, but it was certainly discomfort.</p> - -<p>'I beg your pardon,' said the man; 'I didn't catch what you said,' and -he drew quite close to him on the narrow landing, from which a second -flight of steep stairs went up.</p> - -<p>Mr. Foster repeated the sentence. 'There cannot be any rooks here -to-night--there is no cawing;' and had hardly uttered it when the man -pushed him into the angle of the wall on which the little ray of light -fell obliquely, and stabbed him to the heart! Stabbed him with a hand -so sure, with a thrust so steady, with a blade so keen, with an aim so -precise, that he only groaned and sank down dead when the hand which -pressed him back, the hilt of the weapon within it, was withdrawn.</p> - -<p>Then the murderer, making one cautious step backward, which just -withdrew him beyond the reach of the outstretched feet, as the dead -man dropped into a heap in the corner, lighted an inch of wax candle -which he took from his pocket, and, standing well away from the blood -which soaked through the dead man's clothes, welling upwards from the -wound, but neither spurting nor dropping, for it was all caught in the -folds of the waistcoat and the shirt, stooped over him and closely -examined the features, without touching the body. The examination, -prolonged until the fixity of death had gripped every feature, and the -film of death had covered the wide-open eyes, was perfectly -satisfactory.</p> - -<p>This ascertained, the murderer, standing at the full length of his arm -from the dead man, slowly and carefully withdrew the weapon, and -placing it on his victim's lap, proceeded to search the breast-pocket -from which he had seen a note-book peeping out. He found the -note-book, and, after a hasty glance at its contents, transferred it, -taking care that it received no stain of blood, to his own pocket; but -his rifling of the dead stopped there, with one trifling exception. -There was a handkerchief in the same pocket with the note-book, marked -in initials which did not correspond with Mr. Foster's name; this he -took possession of.</p> - -<p>There was no hurry, there was no tremor, there was not a moment's -uncertainty, there was not an undecided movement throughout the whole -of these proceedings. This man and his victim might have been alone in -the universe for any trace of haste or fear of detection which he -displayed. His face was motionless, his lips were still, there was no -hurried breathing, no muttered words, as he minutely inspected his own -clothes and hands. His precautions had been eminently successful; -there was no stain on either.</p> - -<p>The landing was narrow, the space was small, and for his next -operation the murderer required a little more room. Mr. Foster had -fallen completely in the angle of the wall, and when the body slipped -down, the feet projected almost to the top of the lower stair. The -murderer took hold of these feet and gently pushed them towards the -wall, so as to leave himself more space; he had deposited his bundle -on the second step of the upper stair, and he left it undisturbed -while he divested himself of every article of clothing except his -shirt, and folded them up into a neat roll, corresponding in size with -that enclosed in the tarpaulin covering.</p> - -<p>This done, he took off his black wig, beard, and moustaches, placed -them in the centre of the roll, and proceeded to unpack the bundle. It -contained a suit of sailors clothes, including a blue shirt, a red -wig, and a red beard. These were very carefully constructed, and he -assumed them without any difficulty. He then put on the sailor's dress -complete, wrapped his white shirt round the clothes he had taken off, -and sitting down on the topmost step of the lower stair, with the dead -man's feet within a foot of his elbow, sewed up the second bundle in -the tarpaulin cover which had enclosed the first, by the aid of a -packing-needle and a piece of twine which he took with him ready in -his trousers pocket.</p> - -<p>This done, he stood up and stood still for two clear minutes, mentally -recapitulating the precautions he had just taken, and comparing them -with the programme he had arranged. He had omitted nothing, he was -quite satisfied; so he put his bundle under his arm, blew out the -scrap of candle, and without a glance in the direction in which the -dead man lay in a mass rapidly becoming indistinguishable in the -darkness, almost groped his way down the stairs, passed out of the -door, crossed the yard noiselessly, and noiselessly pushing back the -bolt of the outer gate, emerged from it just as a policeman on his -beat had reached the second block of building above it, and was safe -not to observe him.</p> - -<p>The sailor strolled leisurely down to the landing-stage. If any one -had met him, it would have been impossible to mistake his character of -houseless, companionless, foreign sailor; but no one did meet him, and -a few minutes' keen inspection of the lonely scene satisfied him that -the opportunity for the last precaution to be taken with success was -there. He advanced to the edge of the stage, and leaning against one -of the iron posts which supported the boundary chain, he slowly -dropped the parcel with its tarpaulin covering into the river. Even to -his impassiveness, to his almost incredible indifference of manner, -the finality of this act seemed to be a relief. He straightened his -figure, drew a deep breath, stretched his arms out to their full -length, and brought them down by his sides, and after standing for a -few minutes, with a straight look-out seawards, he turned away, and -keeping the side of the road which borders the landing-stage, avoiding -on this occasion the shade of the great warehouses, he took his way -towards the tramps' quarters where he had passed the previous night.</p> - -<p>On his road he passed a trough provided for the watering of cattle on -their way from shipment. A lamp stood near, so that, though the -darkness of the night had increased, there was light on that spot. The -sailor took his cap off, pulled up the sleeves of his jersey, and -pumped a quantity of water over his head and face. This done, he once -more inspected the premises, and finding himself perfectly free from -any danger of observation, he took off his shoes and examined his feet -by the gaslight. It was as he supposed. There were traces of blood -upon them, but it had dried before he had put on his stockings, so -that no tell-tale marks had extended to them. He swung himself up on -the side of the trough, and carefully washed first one foot, then the -other; after which he sat swinging them in the air until they were -perfectly dry, when he resumed his shoes and stockings, and again went -on his way.</p> - -<p>The lodging-house was even more crowded than it had been on the -previous night, and the proprietor was more drunk and less -accommodating. A couple of dirty sacks on the landing, outside the -wretched dormitory, was all that the sailor could procure by way of a -bed; and when he asked for a pillow, he was told that he might roll up -his clothes, and use them for that purpose--they hadn't got no -pillows--advice which was accompanied by a coarse jest at the -luxuriousness of his requirements, and which was overheard by one of -the men whose efforts at conversation the sailor had met, on the -previous night, with sullen moroseness.</p> - -<p>'Pillow,' said this man; 'what do you want with a pillow? Where's that -'ere bundle you were so particular about last night? One would think -it was stuffed with diamonds, you was so fond of it.'</p> - -<p>'I've been robbed of it,' replied the man, with an oath. 'Worse luck.'</p> - -<p>'Well, you weren't robbed of it here,' said the proprietor of the -establishment.</p> - -<p>'No, that you weren't, Tom Summers,' struck in his neighbour; 'we -ain't fine gentlemen here as are above being spoken to, but we're on -the square, and pals is safe with us.' With which testimony to the -virtues of the company, and protest against the surliness of the -new-comer, this gentleman turned on his bed of sacking and went to -sleep.</p> - -<p>And so the night wore on in Liverpool, and the dawn brightened over -the fair ship with her happy and hopeful company out at sea, and over -the stark figure of the dead man who lay with wide-open eyes upon the -landing of the great warehouse, where many hurrying feet would shortly -be arrested beside him in horror at the fate of the unknown, unclaimed -stranger.</p> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h4><a name="div2_03" href="#div2Ref_03">CHAPTER III.</a></h4> -<h5>HELEN'S JOURNAL.</h5> -<br> - -<p>Sitting down this morning to make a beginning towards the fulfilment -of my promise to my husband, I ask myself if I am indeed the same -person as I was when he left me. It seems to me that a great gulf lies -between me and that time, and that the experience which I have gained -of human nature and of the possibilities of life has completely -changed me. With all the relief which the absence of Alston's friend -has given me there is a great pang of pain for Alston himself, and a -horrid sense of a barrier of concealment between us. I have allowed -so many days to elapse before I force myself into commencing this -self-communing, in sheer uncertainty of what my line of duty is, and -though I am now tolerably clearly convinced that neither now nor ever -must I reveal to Alston what has passed, the conviction invests my -task of writing to him with great pain and difficulty. Somehow we seem -to be doubly parted; first by distance, then by secret. Will this -additional sense of parting yield even to his return? How shall I bear -to see him take up his relations with Warren just where he dropped -them, and to know, as I do know, how his confidence is betrayed? Not -in business matters, I daresay; so far as I understand anything about -them, there is no likelihood that Alston's interests and Warren's -could ever clash, and so far he is safe. It would do my husband such -harm in every way to know what has occurred; his own frankness and -loyalty of nature could hardly withstand so great a shock; the world -would be changed for him. No, he shall never know it; I will trust to -the chapter of accidents, or rather, I should say, to the beneficence -of Providence, to preserve us harmless from his false friend.</p> - -<p>But my journal, to which he looked forward with such pleasure, and -which I determined should be so frank and free and full a record of my -life, telling it all out to him in so far as one human heart can break -the bar of its solitude in words to another--what has become of that? -To keep any freshness and any truth in it at all, I must make this -record of what has passed for myself, waiting it indeed, but laying it -by as a thing that is done with--as a chronicle of the truth for -reference, for precisely that which must not be brought into my -letters to Alston is that relief for the feelings and the fears which -must be hidden from him. What are these fears? How often I ask myself -that question, and I never find an answer! The man has gone; not alone -has he pledged his word--he could hardly expect me to set much store -by that; but he knows it is for his own interest, for his own safety, -for the future preservation of the good relations between him and -Alston, which, false as all pretext to friendship is on his part, are, -nevertheless, valuable to him, that he should keep his promise to -me--that he should remain away; that he should never attempt to see me -or to communicate with me while I am alone. A thousand times a day I -tell myself this; I strive to feel my freedom; I recall the oppression -of his presence: I remember my dislike to him long before I knew the -secret unconscious origin it had; and I ask myself why I do not exult, -why I am not able to bear with more than composure anything which has -led to such an emancipation? But it is not so. The presence of the -enemy seems to hem me in, an evil influence is in the air I breathe; -no effort frees me from this morbid terror, of which I am half -ashamed, while I write this secret record no eyes but my own are ever -to see. How cleverly, how skilfully this man has carried out this -sudden and complete change of all his plans; how reasonably he seems -to have accounted for leaving New York! No one seems surprised, and I -am quite certain not the slightest shade of suspicion that his -departure is of any consequence to me has presented itself to the mind -of any of our common acquaintance, though the close tie between him -and Alston is perfectly well known. It is just this power, this -influence over others, which makes me so afraid of him even now. What -if on Alston's return he took some other means of alienating him from -me! The feminine inferiority, the absence of a power of understanding -business matters, will serve him no longer: he won't try to revive -that theory when Alston returns; he shall find that I have -administered every affair which he left in my charge too well to be -set down as an incapable for the future; but he may try a more subtle -means. I believe the love of a man like Warren is half passion, half -hatred, and that the hatred swallows up the passion when it is -effectually checked. Whence that notion has come to me, I know not, -but it has come, and with it a fear of this man's hatred, greater, if -possible, than my horror of his love.</p> - -<p>There, I have recorded it, and now I will try to turn my mind from -it--I will try to write to Alston a cheery letter, a pious fraud.</p> -<br> - -<p>When you told me, dearest Alston, that my letters were to take the -form of a journal, I remember thinking of the passage in our pet book, -the <i>Vicar of Wakefield</i>, in which Dr. Primrose describes the -vicissitudes of primroses' existence, and summoning them up in -migrations from the blue bed to the brown. My journal, if I keep it at -all within the actual sense of the term, would record nothing more -strange or exciting. I migrate from the nursery to the parlour, from -the parlour to the park, from the park to the nursery; but my chief -sojourn is in the latter place. I never could have imagined that a -baby could give one so much to do, even when one is assisted, as I am, -by the most capable of nurses, concerning whom I have a lot to tell -you presently; neither could I have believed that a baby could be so -interesting. We made up our minds, you remember, that we were not -going to plague our neighbours, and make fools of ourselves, by -advancing the claims of this remarkable infant to be quite the finest, -the most intelligent, and the most precocious that ever existed. -Bearing this resolution in mind, I endeavoured to be a very rational -mother, but I protest, quite genially, that I do not want any society -except baby's, until the kind Fates send me that of baby's papa.</p> - -<p>The child has become so strong and healthy that I am no longer in the -least uneasy about her; therefore she is a pure unmitigated pleasure -to me; and the real truth is that if I am to tell you all about my -daily life, I fear you will suffer from the plethora of baby. Of -course, I read and work, and visit and receive some people -sometimes--not many and not often; and, of course, I get out and do -some shopping. I bought the loveliest pelisse, yesterday, that ever -was seen out of Paris, and I believe it came from there; and then, -again, even shopping has come to mean baby--the pelisse was for her, -not for me. I play the piano, sometimes, a little--nurse says baby is -beginning to take notice of music. But after all this is not my life, -you know; it is only the outside of it, and one shell is very like -another.</p> - -<p>Of course I miss you frightfully, more and more every day, but I do -not feel helpless. I made up my mind, you know, that I never would -yield to that helpless feeling, from which I have seen so many women -suffer who are guarded as I am by the care and love and generosity of -good men, from every trouble from which one human being can shield -another, and so I have kept my promise made to myself. When there is -anything to make up my mind about, I make up my mind promptly; when -there is anything to do, I do it at once, to the best of my ability; -if I make mistakes I don't fret over them, but I think I shall manage -them better next time, and I don't get discouraged. I daresay I shall -see in the end how very good for me this parting between us proved. -Don't suppose I am going back upon what you laughed at me for, and -called my jealous susceptibility. I have got over all that, but I -really am going to say that you will find me ever so much more useful, -ever so much more of a companion; because I shall have had this little -interval for exercising my judgment as well as my taste, for exerting -my discretion as well as gratifying my fancies. Hitherto, your -indulgence and affection have limited me to the less useful and less -strengthening of these processes; so when you come home, dearest -Alston, you will have to tell me all about business, and you will find -I shall understand it quite as well, and take quite as much pleasure -in it, as in our old discussions on books and music and pictures and -acting.</p> - -<p>Writing that word 'acting' reminds me of our baby's new nurse--rather -an inconsequent style of writing this, you will perhaps say, for a -woman who is claiming a newly-developed talent for business; but it is -what you asked for. Baby's nurse is the oddest woman, and such a -treasure! I will tell you how she came to me, and really it is not out -of proportion, for it was certainly the most striking event in my life -since you left me. She came in answer to my advertisement--she was the -first candidate, her name is Bessie Jenkins, her husband is somewhere -in the Western States. They had misfortunes, and were obliged to part -for a while, like ourselves. I suppose it was that likeness in -unlikeness which attracted me towards the good woman from the first. -She spoke with a hearty love and a hearty sorrow of her absent husband -and her dead baby, only a day or two dead when she came to me, and I -shall never forget her face when she took our little Mary in her arms, -and saw how delicate the child was. The very way she said: 'This won't -do you don't understand babies, ma'am;' put aside the food which -Jessie and I had been messing up unskilfully; and made some mysterious -alterations in the way the child's clothes were put on, made me feel -that the right person had been sent to me. Dr. Clark just looked at -her and said, 'She will do; make sure of her, Mrs. Griswold;' and I -asked her if she could come to me at once--if she could stay that very -night; she said she would, and went and fetched her things on the -spot.</p> - -<p>We are quite friends--we were from the beginning--and she takes almost -as much care of me as of little Mary; even that she does cleverly, and -has avoided making any jealousy or confusion in the house, which was -just what I dreaded, you know, when the doctor told me I must have a -nurse. Mrs. Jenkins is a good-looking woman, tall, large, active, with -a very fair skin, and fine, honest, gray eyes. She says she does not -know exactly how old she is, and I believe her--she looks about -five-and-twenty; she is very well spoken for a woman of her class, and -not at all ignorant. We have long talks in the nursery and in our -drives--for I never go out without nurse and baby; it is so horribly -dull to drive out alone; and I find I learn a good deal from her about -the realities of life as they exist for women who have not been taken -the care of that you have taken of me.</p> - -<p>After all, dearest Alston, what a very little bit of trouble I have -known in my life--just those dark days when poor papa's affairs went -badly, and you came and brightened them up with that blessed, steady -light which has shone on all my pathway since. Why are people's -history so different? Is mine to be always an exception? Some time -before you left me, and when I was much less thoughtful than I am now, -I have occasionally felt afraid that I was too happy; there seemed -such deep peace, of such settled certainty, in our lives. I hardly -understand all the talk in books and in speech about the turbulence -and the transitoriness and the perpetual change which mark human -existence all over the world; while your absence has taken away that -deep tranquillity, it has not touched, of course, the real happiness -of my life. I would not have you think me discontented, and, perhaps, -this little shake is good for me--will be good for us both. This is a -lesson which Mrs. Jenkins, in her good, quiet, homely, honest way, -impresses on me very often. It does one good to see a person who has -had plenty of trouble of a sternly material kind, as well as a great -sorrow, bear them with the ready submission and cheerful courage of -this poor woman; and many a time when I see her with our baby in her -arms and at her breast, where her dead child once lay, I ask myself -how I should have faced such a life as hers.</p> - -<p>I have said before that we are great friends; she has formed a really -strong affection for me--it is like the kind of thing one hears about -the Irish people in old times. I fancy she would not shrink from any -sacrifice for me. She is extremely curious about you, and never tired -of hearing me tell how I came to know you first, and the story of my -girlhood; and I talk to her about all these things; so you will have -no difficulty in believing that our new nurse is an exceptional -person, and that, though she is homely in speech and manner, there is -no real inferiority in her. Don't laugh at me when I say that I am -quite sure you and she will be great friends. There is, at least, one -very strong bond of union between you: Mrs. Jenkins has a ruling -passion--it is for the drama. I found that out very soon.</p> - -<p>You know we agreed that the nursery was to be made into a very pretty -and cheerful room, so that baby's nurse, if we had the good fortune to -find a good one, should be thoroughly comfortable, and feel herself at -home. Looking about through the house for such things as I could spare -to ornament her domain, on the day after Mrs. Jenkins's arrival, I -came upon a lot of photographs in a drawer in the study--they were -likenesses of all the actors and actresses whom, I verily believe, you -have seen in the whole course of your life. I had no notion you had -such a collection; and you need not be frightened, I have not deprived -you of them, I have only taken such as have duplicates--there are a -good many. I put them all into the photograph-book which belonged to -me when I was a girl, and made it over for nursery use. Who knows how -soon Mrs. Jenkins will find out that her wonderful nurseling takes -notice of pictures as well as of music? Two or three days after, I -asked her if she liked her rooms, if she was quite comfortable, and so -forth. She replied, with great delight, that she had never been so -comfortable in her life, and expressed peculiar pleasure at finding -some pictures about. I found she had been eagerly investigating the -contents of the photograph-book, and she surprised me not a little by -running glibly over the names of all the portraits. As I hadn't -written them in--for one very good reason among others, that I had no -notion of who are represented by several of their numbers--I could not -understand how she came to know who all these theatrical ladies and -gentlemen were. It came out then; the theatre is a celestial vision to -Mrs. Jenkins; to see a play is the greatest enjoyment of which she is -capable.</p> - -<p>She says that she knows a good play from a bad one as well as any one -in the world, and is a first-rate judge of acting; but she would much -rather see a bad play than none at all, which I take as a mark of -enthusiasm, if true, that does not justify much faith in her critical -faculty. I think she knows every play that has been produced in New -York in her time. If she hasn't seen she has read them; she knows all -about the 'castes,' as she calls it, is a perfect chronicle of the -successes and the failures of the actors and actresses who have come -here from London and Paris, and has, among her possessions, a huge -scrap-book, of which she is inordinately proud, crammed with newspaper -critiques, squibs, old playbills, and gaudy woodcuts, which represent -her prime favourites as it is devoutly to be hoped they never did -appear upon any stage. Mrs. Jenkins is not an American by birth; she -was born in Hampshire and reared in London; and though she has been in -America since her fifteenth year, she seems to have enjoyed a good -deal of her favourite amusement even at that early age. I am, however, -positive that she was never employed in any capacity in connection -with the stage herself, if only because she speaks of the fact with -considerable regret.</p> - -<p>One portrait in the photograph-book has so special an attraction for -her, that I took it out and put it in a little upright frame, which -she keeps on her dressing-table. This slight act of kindness has, it -appears, particularly touched her heart; and yesterday, when I -mentioned that I should be despatching my letter to you this morning, -she begged me to ask you to be sure and go to see the original of this -beloved portrait, a certain Miss Clara Montressor, who is at present -playing at one of the London theatres. The theatre in question is -called the Thespian; you may perhaps know it, but I am so deplorably -ignorant of such matters that I really do not know whether I am -talking to you of a first-rate or a fifth-rate establishment. I -disguised my ignorance, for Mrs. Jenkins's harmless enthusiasm and -true believership amuses me so much that I would not snub her for the -world; and when she assured me that she has heard tell that Miss Clara -Montressor is quite the finest actress in existence, I did not allow -her to perceive that I had never heard Miss Clara Montressor's name. -If you can at all conveniently get anywhere near to confirming Mrs. -Jenkins's belief, pray do so; at all events, let your reply to this -contain an assurance that you have beheld the prodigy. I should not -like baby's nurse to be prejudiced against baby's papa by supposing -that he could be in London without seeing Miss Clara Montressor and -appreciating the advantage as it deserves.</p> - -<p>This young lady is one craze; but Mrs. Jenkins has another, rather an -abstract one, for she has never seen its object, who is no less a -person than the famous actor, Bryan Duval. She has followed his career -with most amusing zeal, and has told me all about his best characters -and his peculiar points, until I feel that he too is an old -acquaintance. How heartily you would have laughed if you could have -been present, unseen, at baby's bedtime yesterday! I had just heard a -piece of information which I knew would be productive of unbounded -delight to Mrs. Jenkins, and I took that favourable opportunity, when -she is always thoroughly disposed for a chat, to tell her about it. -She had been rather low all day--she sometimes is, I observe, when she -gets a letter from her husband (he is not like you, Alston, though she -loves him)--and I knew I should cheer her up by telling her, what no -doubt you know as well as we know it here, that Bryan Duval is coming -to New York. You never saw anything so absurd as her delight, which -appeared to be thoroughly shared by baby, judging by the kicking and -crowing of that young lady in consequence of the additional dangling -and tossing which her nurse bestowed upon her in her pleasure. I told -her not only that she could go to see him, but that she might -accompany me--we can manage to put baby in commission for that little -time--and I even hinted at the possibility of her unknown idol -presenting himself in the flesh at our house. I suppose you will have -made this gentleman's acquaintance in London; do be sure and tell me -if so, and whether he is really the very charming man in society which -he has the name of being here. Mrs. Sinclair said, in speaking of him -to-day, that he was one of the very few great actors whom it did to -know off the stage, but that he was thoroughly satisfactory. 'So -unlike either authors or painters, you know,' added Mrs. Sinclair, in -that bored manner of hers; 'they never do, dear, out of print and off -canvas; but Bryan Duval is charming!' Charming doesn't mean very much, -for every one says it, and everybody means by it something different -from what everybody else means. If you say Bryan Duval is 'charming,' -I shall know the value of the verdict, and be quite sure that I shall -find him so, for of course we shall know him here, whether you have -made his acquaintance in London or not. If you have, dear Alston, give -him a letter of introduction to me, for I really think I am slightly -bitten by the popular enthusiasm, and though I cannot say, like Mrs. -Sinclair, that I am 'dying to know him,' it would be very pleasant, -and I should at once call upon his wife, of whom I have heard a great -deal.</p> - -<p>I have nothing particularly interesting to communicate respecting -household affairs; everything is going on very well and very quietly. -Of course, my dearest Alston, you will expect that this letter should -contain some reference to the commission with which you charged Mr. -Warren on the day of your departure, and which he immediately -fulfilled. Will you pardon me if I make my reference to it a brief one -in proportion to its importance and to the large share which I know it -has had in your thoughts? Our parting is too new, the sense of its -inevitable duration weighs too heavily upon me. I am obliged to set my -face too steadfastly to overcome the nervousness, the anxiety, and the -loneliness involved in dwelling upon it to admit of my saying all that -I feel, or even any part of it, with regard to the contents of the -letter which your friend handed to me. If I said all, if I said any, -it would come to the same thing--that letter is like you, Alston; it -is an absolute fulfilment, a complete realisation of the estimate -which I have formed of you. If by any horrible decree of Fate the -occasion should ever arise on which it would be my doom and my duty to -act upon the instructions, and to carry out the provisions, contained -in that letter, I should do so with a proud and full sense that they -are worthy of you, that they are such last words, such last -instructions, as, if I could have chosen, I should have asked of you. -And now I must pass away from this subject. I am unequal to saying -more about it. When I can say what I have felt, with my head on your -shoulder and my hand in yours, you will know what the receipt and the -reading of that letter was to me. The other commission with which you -charged Mr. Warren, I fear, I received in a different spirit--one -which made it difficult for me to bow my own will completely to yours, -to substitute your judgment unrepiningly for my own. Happily no -occasion has yet arisen to oblige me to have recourse to Mr. Warren's -advice or assistance. I have needed neither. All external matters, -with which alone he could have any concern, have passed along very -smoothly, nor can I, at present, foresee any possible contingency in -which it would be necessary for me to apply to him; should any such -arise, you may rest assured that I shall strictly conform to your -instructions. It was rather hard for me, my dear husband, to be told -by that one friend of yours, concerning whom we are not entirely of -one opinion, that my letters to you were to pass through his hands. -Did I not know that you are quite above such a futile and foolish -exercise of power, such experimenting in the pliability of the human -will, had we not often discussed the contemptible folly of the patient -Griselda, and quite made up our minds as to what we thought of -Geraint, I might have supposed for a moment that you had imposed this -restriction upon me as a sort of test, as well as a significant hint -to me that thus far and no farther I might go in our domestic -relations. I might have thought you meant to say, 'I like Warren, you -don't; you will have to give in to my liking.' This would have been a -calculation and an act of a domestic tyrant; therefore an -impossibility to you. I accept the restriction in a perfectly frank -and candid spirit, and absolute loyalty towards you. Some day you will -perhaps tell me--when you find that I am capable of being more of a -companion to you than I have hitherto been--what is the precise nature -of your present business, and the exact character of the complication -which has rendered it necessary that my letters should not go direct -from your own house in New York to your own address in London; and I -have no doubt that I shall entirely recognise the force of the reason. -If, however, you should never tell me, if for any reason conceivable -or unconceivable by me it should remain impossible for you to confide -this to me, I shall be perfectly satisfied that the motive not to be -explained is one which does no discredit to you, and is wholly -uninfluenced with any slight to me. And now, dear Alston, I pass from -the subject either for ever or until such time as you choose to resume -it. I wonder if you will be provoked with my pertinacity if I tell you -that I have discovered that Mr. Warren has very few such partial -friends as you are. The fact is, he is not much liked by men, and he -is, generally speaking, as much disliked by their wives as he is by -me. I think no polish of manner, no external surface, brightness, or -gallantry of that kind which, when looked into by a keen-eyed woman, -is much more insulting than complimentary, has ever enabled him to -conceal from women in general the sentiment which all right-minded -women must resent, and which would render neglect, even rudeness, from -Mr. Warren, the most acceptable line of treatment he could adopt -towards a woman. Mrs. Sinclair was talking of him yesterday. I did not -introduce the subject, and I kept my own opinion to myself. I should -regard it as a kind of side wind of disloyalty to you, my dearest, if -I allowed anybody but yourself to know the difference that exists -between us on that point, to suspect that your friend was not my -friend. Mrs. Sinclair spoke of him pretty roundly, and saying a great -many things which were untrue, I daresay, she said one in which I -believed. It was that Mr. Warren was, in her opinion, an unsafe friend -and an exceedingly dangerous enemy. I pray that we may never have him -for an enemy! I wish to God, and with a growing earnestness, that we -had never had him for a friend!</p> - -<p>At this point in my letter, dearest Alston, I was interrupted by a -visit, and now I fear that I shall have to finish this up hurriedly in -time for the mail. My unexpected visitor was Thornton Carey. He sat -with me a long time. I didn't like to hint to him that his coming was -a little imprudent, in one sense, as curtailing my time for writing to -you--that, however, I can take up again; in another sense, his visit -was exceedingly apropos. You will be delighted to hear how admirably -your generous intentions towards him have been realised. Can I ever -thank you sufficiently for all you have done for him, indeed for every -one dear to me, from my father to the merest acquaintance whom I have -ever recommended to your good offices? Thornton looks remarkably well, -and so far from complaining of hard work in his new office, he says he -hasn't half enough to do but judging from the account he gave me of -his duties, I should say most men would consider they had a tolerably -fair share of labour and responsibility in his post of librarian at -New Orleans. He has taken to his occupation with enthusiasm; in that -respect (only) he reminded me very strongly of Tom Pinch, when he set -to work so vehemently about making a catalogue of his unknown -employer's books in the Temple chambers. He seems to have grown fond -of the very outside of his charge; and when we were talking of our -childish days together, and I reminded him of the awful quarrel we had -because he tore the red-and-gold cover of my <i>Arabian Nights</i>, he -regarded me with the most comical horror, as though I had suddenly dug -up and brought to light the corpse of a victim, and produced it in the -sight of its murderer, after the fashion of, 'You don't mean to say, -Helen,' he said, 'that even in my most cub-like and uncivilised days I -ever tore a book?' I laughed as I little thought I should ever laugh -during your absence; but I thought we were both very near tears -occasionally during our interview, for, of course, we talked of our -friendlessness until we respectively found the best of all friends in -you. I wonder if Thornton Carey has any chance of being a great man -some day--in his own studious scientific line, I mean? How nice it -would be if he did turn into a great man, and it was all your -doing--for so it would be! No man could work without tools; you have -put his into his hand. Do you know even I had no notion how hopeless -he was, how severely he felt the restriction of poverty, and that -narrow sphere from which there seemed no chance of escape, until you -opened the barrier with the golden key? I suppose I understand most -things better now; and though I always felt very much for him, and had -a dim notion that he was a case of what I have heard you call 'wasted -force,' I have only come to see it clearly since he has been talking -to me.</p> - -<p>How earnestly I thank you for all your goodness to my old friend! It -seems, he says, the most absurd of all possible ideas that he could -ever be able to express his feelings otherwise than by, or even by, -words. There is small chance that he should ever be able to prove his -gratitude or repay his obligation to you--not that he ever wishes it -ever to be repaid; I do believe him to be one of those few noble men -who can bear obligation nobly; but should the opportunity ever come, -he would snatch at it gladly. He said a great deal to me which I feel -I cannot repeat, partly because he would not like it, and partly -because you could not bear it. I never met any one who can so ill -endure to be thanked as you, my dear Alston. I have seen you carry -that sometimes to an almost ungracious extent. So when Thornton meets -you he will not try to thank you--he will leave that to me; you will -accept the substitute, won't you?</p> - -<p>We had one more laugh, he and I, before I had to send him away, in -order that I might get time just to finish this. It was over our -recollections of the time when we took great delight in the fable of -the Lion and the Mouse. He and I differed in opinion in those days--he -wanted to be the lion, I preferred being the mouse; we agreed just now -that Fate had turned us both into mice, and put the kindest of lions -in our way. May God keep him from any net, or any need of nibblers!</p> - -<p>Of course I am looking out very anxiously for all sorts of details -about your daily life. I should like to know that you are exceedingly -comfortable, very well looked after, and enjoying yourself when you -are not immersed in business; but I don't think I want to hear that -you like London very much, that you find the time flies, and that your -quarters are sufficiently snug to prevent your remembering home very -constantly, and missing me at every turn. This is not small-minded, is -it? And even if it were, you would not care, Alston, for it has -nothing to do with my mind, but everything to do with my heart. I do -not say, for my own part,</p> - -<p class="center">'There is na luck about the house,'</p> -<br> -<p class="continue">but there is no joy, and there is a constant sense of waiting; -nothing seems particularly well worth doing, and my life, comfortable, -well-ordered, and not useless as it is, has established itself on asize -very dead level. I am not going to mope, however, or to be -discontented, or anything but cheerful, than what you would have me, -until the time comes when the waiting will be over, and I can say, -once more,</p> -<div style="margin-left:20%; text-indent:0"> -<p class="continue">'His very foot has music in't<br> -As he comes up the stair.'</p> -</div> - -<p>And now I must shut this up,' sealing it with a kiss from baby, and one -from your own HELEN.</p> -<br> - -<p>Helen Griswold sealed her letter, placed it in a large envelope, on -which she wrote, with a strange shrinking repugnance, Trenton Warren's -New York address, despatched it by a special messenger to his office, -and went immediately to her child. A nervous flurry had come upon her -while writing the last lines of her letter, and it was only by a -determined struggle with herself that she kept off a passionate fit of -crying; but she put it down, and went into the nursery with a calm -face. This woman was growing apace. By what mysterious process? She -talked cheerfully to Mrs. Jenkins, and taking the baby, who was -sleepy, in her arms, rocked it to rest. The monotonous movement had a -quieting influence upon herself, and by degrees her cheerfulness was -restored.</p> - -<p>That night, when Helen Griswold was in her own room, she wrote for a -while in the private memorandum-book in which we have already seen her -record the circumstances which had given a double current and meaning -to her life. Having made a few cursory notes of the main points of her -letter to her husband, laying special stress upon the mention of -Trenton Warren, she went on to note in her duplicate chronicle the -principal event of the day--this was Thornton Carey's visit.</p> - -<p>'I wonder,' she wrote, 'why it is that a pure and unmitigated -pleasure, one totally unassociated with any pain, one perfectly free -from any drawback, should not avail to crush, at least for a time, the -oppressing pain and dread which has been troubling me of late. If I -have, as I believe I have, a relentless enemy in Trenton Warren, I -have a friend upon whose fidelity I may rely, whose love I can trust -with all my heart, and accept with all my conscience, to oppose to -him. My friend is a cleverer man than my enemy; he surpasses him by -all the distance which makes a gentleman to surpass a man who is not a -gentleman; his will is as steadfast; his courage is, or I am much -mistaken, far more high; of his devotion to me I have many years' -experience; of his devotion to Alston I have the guarantee of a nature -large enough and good enough to contain that great virtue, gratitude; -and yet there is no reassurance, there is no consolation, there is no -rest for me in all this knowledge. I don't think it would come, if -even I should tell Thornton what is in my heart; and that I could not -do! I could not bear that lie should know that such a profanation had -ever overtaken me as the avowal of this man's hideous love; the mere -remembrance of it seems to stain my soul, as it troubles my repose; it -has gotten into my life like a bad influence. When I awake in the -morning, I think not of Alston, but of Warren, and I welcome sleep -because it shuts out the hateful remembrance. I must shake this off, -or I shall turn the fancied evil into a real one, and give my own -fears their worst fulfilment.'</p> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h4><a name="div2_04" href="#div2Ref_04">CHAPTER IV.</a></h4> -<h5>'SCOT FREE.'</h5> -<br> - -<p>On the morning after the murder, so much of the daylight as could -force its way through the begrimed glass, or greased paper acting as -substitute for absent glass, in the low window of the tramps' home -struggled in a shame-faced manner into the den, and faintly revealed -the prostrate forms of its inhabitants.</p> - -<p>Most of them were still asleep, but by one man there the advent of -that streak of light had been long and anxiously looked for. This was -the man dressed in sailor's clothes, whose dread proceedings on the -previous night have been at length recounted; he who was called Tom -Summers by those lying around him, and whose demand for a pillow, and -complaint of the loss of his bundle, had alternately roused their -scorn and mirth.</p> - -<p>As the first ray penetrated the room, Tom Summers cautiously withdrew -the arm which, during the night, he had kept drawn across his face, -and looked round him. So far as he could make out, none of his -companions were yet awake, and he availed himself of the opportunity -to take a small looking-glass from his pocket, and propping it against -the wall, he rapidly surveyed himself in it, pulling his red wig -further down over his face, and settling the red beard, which had -become shifted during the night. No stings of conscience, no -terrifying reminiscences of the foul deed which he had committed, -disturbed his rest; the strain upon his mental and bodily faculties -had been so great that he had slept heavily and soundly, without a -dream, without a movement. Even then, as he surveyed himself in the -little pocket glass, he felt his eyelids closing, the elbow on which -he leant giving way under him, and he felt more than half inclined to -drop down upon his side, and slumber again.</p> - -<p>It must not be! He had set himself the task of rousing with daylight, -and had fulfilled it, and he had too much to do to permit himself to -relapse into slumber; so, after indulging in one luxurious but silent -yawn and stretch, he pulled himself together by an effort, and -staggered to his feet. One or two of the sleepers in his immediate -neighbourhood, roused by the noise he made, cursed him roundly; but -beyond this no notice was taken of his proceedings.</p> - -<p>Tom Summers stepped quickly down the creaking, rickety staircase, at -the bottom of which he found the proprietor's 'deputy'--a -shock-headed, blear-eyed old man, who acted as the porter and boots of -the establishment; the daylight had not yet penetrated to this part of -the house, and the old man held a flaring tallow candle in his hand, -with which he surveyed the sailor.</p> - -<p>'O, it's you, Jack, is it?' he said, in a thin piping voice. 'I -thought it was some of the coves trying to come the double over me, -but you paid your shot last night--I saw you.'</p> - -<p>'Yes, yes, I paid last night,' repeated the sailor quickly. 'Open the -door, please, and let me out.'</p> - -<p>'Why, what's your hurry?' asked the old man, turning towards the hole -from which he had just emerged, and looking up at the old Dutch clock -which hung against the wall; 'it has only just gone five, and--'</p> - -<p>'I've got to join my ship,' said Summers, 'and I must be off at once. -Let me out, please.'</p> - -<p>The old man unlocked the door, and pulled it open by degrees. As soon -as there was space enough for him to pass, Tom Summers slipped by -without a word, and went limping up the court. The old man looked -after him with bent brows, muttering in a tone of great disgust: -'That's polite, any way--got to join your ship, have you? I tell you -what, my lad, I believe your ship is H.M. gunboat Crimp; and that as -soon as you get on board of her, there will be a muster of all hands -for punishment parade;' and grumbling thus, he returned to his den, -closing the door after him.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile Tom Summers, when he once found himself clear of the court, -turned his back on the water-side quarters, and made the best of his -way towards the Lime-street station. He still walked with an -apparently painful limp; he still shuffled along with his shoulder -almost rubbing against the wall; he looked like a sailor just -recovering from a bad illness, and as such he was compassionated at -the Lime-street station by an old woman, who gave him sixpence, and -offered him a pull at the black bottle in her wicker basket, telling -him, at the same time, that her son was at sea too, and on the west -coast of Africa; worse luck!</p> - -<p>It was for the parliamentary train to Chester, which was about to -start, that Tom Summers took a third-class ticket; and carefully -avoiding the carriage into which he watched his recent benefactress, -climbed into an empty compartment, and curling himself up into a -corner, scarcely waited for the starting of the train to fall asleep. -There was no chance of any particular notice being taken of him, for -scarcely a train left Lime-street which did not carry some liberty-men -from the great ships in the Mersey going inland for a few days' -furlough. There was no chance of his being carried beyond his -destination, for he had purposely selected a carriage which did not go -farther than Chester; he could enjoy the luxury of a long silent -sleep, and he did. Once he started forward and groaned, but on waking -suddenly he could recollect nothing more than that he had been -striking at something which disappeared beneath his blow; and once -more he put his feet upon the seat, and went to sleep again.</p> - -<p>By the time the slow-going train, which stopped at every station to -pick up and let out crowds of men and women, carrying baskets of -country produce, arrived at the Chester station, Tom Summers was -thoroughly rested. He stepped blithely out of the carriage, exchanged -a pleasant good-morning with the guard, and made straight for the -newspaper stall on which the bundle of Liverpool papers, only arriving -in time at Lime-street to be thrown into the van, were then being -unpacked. He bought a copy of each morning journal, and seating -himself on a neighbouring bench, turned one after the other inside -out, and rapidly ran his eye over their contents. Twice he passed the -morning journals thus in review before him, occasionally starting as -his eye caught certain paragraphs with sensation headings, but reading -rapidly on until he had perused the batch. Then, with a sigh of -relief, he rose and made his way to the cloak-room. To the porter who -was in attendance there in the absence of the general functionary, not -yet arrived, Tom Summers handed a printed ticket, immediately -receiving for it in exchange a small black bag.</p> - -<p>'Here is your kit. Jack,' remarked the porter, handing it to him.</p> - -<p>'My skipper's, not mine,' said Tom Summers; 'it's too fine for the -likes of me;' words which had a hidden humour apparently altogether -too much for the porter? who kept bursting into loud guffaws of -laughter long after Tom Summers had left him.</p> - -<p>With the small bag swinging upon his hand, Tom Summers walked past the -Queen's Hotel, and down the broad road, yet unbuilt on, leading to the -town. On one spot a temporary wooden circus had been erected, and he -stopped to read the bills of the performance hanging at the door. Then -he lounged along again; but as soon as he came within the precincts of -the town, he turned in between two of the old houses up a passage, at -the end of which was a flight of stone steps leading to the ancient -city walls. These he ascended, and when he found himself on the walls, -he hesitated as though in doubt which way to turn.</p> - -<p>Beneath him lay the old city, its quaintly fantastic gabled roofs, its -cathedral tower, its numerous church spires, and its hundred relics of -mediaeval architecture glowing in the early morning sun. Beyond were -to be seen the broad silver windings of the Dee, the velvet-turfed -racecourse, just outlined by its white posts and rails, and far away -in the distance, heaving up their broad shoulders out of the blue -haze, the majestic range of the Welsh mountains.</p> - -<p>That was the side to which Tom Summers inclined; he sought the -country, not the city; and turning sharply to his right, he made a -half circuit of the wall, and descended in a by-lane which gave right -upon the racecourse.</p> - -<p>Once only did he pause in his work, and that was when his steps took -him in front of the county gaol, a full view of which is commanded -from the walls; a prison omnibus drew up at the huge outer gate, and -from it some half-dozen prisoners descended, heavily handcuffed, and -were marched into the gaol-yard between a file of warders. Tom Summers -surveyed this little ceremony with great interest, leaning over the -top of the crumbling wall, and shading his eyes from the sun with his -hands. When the great gates clanged behind them, an expression, half -of pity, half of contempt, crossed his face, and after he had -muttered: 'Poor devils,' he speedily added: 'Stupid fools,' then he -shrugged his shoulders and went on his way.</p> - -<p>When Tom Summers found himself on the flat bare expanse of the -racecourse, he seemed considerably disappointed, and looked round with -dismay at the abandoned prospect before him. On one side lay the -river, but that seemed to offer him no consolation; on the other, the -town, but on that he had already turned his back. At length, after a -careful survey, he saw at about the distance of half a mile, on a -rising ground, a little thicket, not much more indeed than a largish -clump of trees, and towards that he at once bent his way. The sun by -this time had attained considerable height, and more than considerable -strength; and when the wayfarer had skirted the racecourse, and toiled -across the intervening fields, and up a wooded knoll, he was tired and -hot. The outermost edge of shade did not, however, content him. He -paused there and looked round to note the farmer's wain, a dot upon -the distant turnpike road; the lark singing in high heaven above his -head; the man and boy at plough-work three fields off, the one intent -on his furrow, the other on his team. And then, having satisfied -himself that such human beings as he had seen were unobservant of his -actions, and that there were none others within range, he plunged -deeper into the little wood, and opening the bag which he carried with -a key, drew from it a plain gray suit of morning dress and a soft-felt -wideawake.</p> - -<p>In less time almost than it takes to write, he had divested himself of -his sailor's clothes, and of the red wig and beard, all of which he -thrust into the bag; then dressing himself in the gray suit, and -donning the wideawake, he took the bag in his hand, and left the -little wood on the opposite side to that on which he had entered it.</p> - -<p>The clerk in the cloak-room at the Lime-street station that afternoon -was more than usually busy, and consequently more than usually -short-tempered. He was ticking off an enormous number of entries in -the way-bill, and was well down the third column, when he heard a soft -voice from the sliding window, which was open, say:</p> - -<p>'I beg your pardon.'</p> - -<p>'Seven hundred and twenty-three, barrel of oysters marked X.O.,' -muttered the clerk to himself, giving no heed to the interruption. -'Seven hundred and twenty-four, crate of live fowls; seven--'</p> - -<p>'I beg your pardon,' said the voice again, and the clerk looked up and -found that it belonged to a slim gentleman in a pale gray suit, and -with a soft black-felt hat on his head, and carrying a small bag in -his hand. 'Two days ago I came by the noon express from Euston,' said -the gentleman, 'and booked my portmanteau to Liverpool; but being -taken ill, I was compelled to get out at Edge-hill, and so my -luggage came on without me. A brown portmanteau, bearing the name of -Dunn--shall I have the good luck to find it here?'</p> - -<p>'If it is here you will, sir,' growled the clerk, dying to get back to -the way-bill. 'Two days ago, you say; brown portmanteau, name of Dunn? -Here you are.'</p> - -<p>'I am very much obliged to you, indeed,' said the gentleman.</p> - -<p>'Going by cab or train, sir?' said the clerk shortly.</p> - -<p>'By cab, if you please, to--'</p> - -<p>'Here, Jim,' called the clerk to a passing porter, 'put this -portmanteau on a cab for the gentleman. Parson out for a holiday, I -should think,' he said, muttering to himself, looking after the -passenger, who was following his luggage; 'they always try to get out -of uniform, but are frightened to get into anything louder than gray.'</p> - -<p>Mr. Dunn saw his portmanteau placed upon the cab, and, giving the -porter sixpence, bade him tell the driver to go to the Adelphi Hotel. -He looked hard at the porter's face while he spoke to him, as he had -looked from under his overhanging brow at the clerk in the cloak-room, -as he looked at the cabman when, after taking a note of the number of -the vehicle, he descended in front of the Adelphi.</p> - -<p>As he advanced quickly to the glass case in which are enshrined the -presiding goddesses of the establishment, he was struck with a sudden -chill; he shivered violently and shrugged his shoulders, and rubbed -his hands together as he stood asking whether he could be accommodated -with two rooms--a sitting-room and bedroom--leading out of one -another.</p> - -<p>'Certainly, sir,' was the gracious reply. 'Show ten and eleven, -Charles. You seem to be very cold, sir?'</p> - -<p>'I have taken a chill, I think,' said Mr. Dunn, pausing at the bottom -of the stairs and looking round. 'I come from a climate where frost -and east winds are unknown, and if I mistake not, there is a fine -specimen of the latter raging through your streets just now.'</p> - -<p>'Beg your pardon, sir, wind's southwest,' said Sam, the porter, who -was standing by.</p> - -<p>'Well, whatever it is, it seems to have penetrated right through me,' -said Mr. Dunn, shivering again, 'and I must ask for a good fire in my -sitting-room. What's this?' He was proceeding up the stairs, but -paused again as two policemen, followed by a small mob, which remained -outside, entered the house, and approached the glazed sanctum.</p> - -<p>'Beg your pardon, miss,' said one of them, who wore the blue-braided -frock of an inspector, touching his hat, 'but we have come to make -some inquiries. The body of a gentleman, evidently a case of murder, -has been discovered, and it is recognised by a cabman as that of a -fare whom he drove from this hotel to the docks, and who is supposed -to have been a visitor here.'</p> - -<p>'O my, how dreadful!' says the young lady in the glass shrine. -'Perhaps you had better see the manager, inspector; just step in here, -if you please.'</p> - -<p>She rang a bell, and Sam and the waiter and the traveller, who had all -suspended their proceedings, now walked up-stairs, the former bearing -the portmanteau, and the latter muttering:</p> - -<p>'Murder! body! What an unpleasant affair!' Then calling back, said: -'Please don't forget to send a chambermaid to light the fire at once.'</p> - -<p>When the porter had placed the portmanteau in the bedroom, and he and -the waiter had retired, Mr. Dunn threw himself into an easy-chair, and -with his arms folded and his legs crossed, fell into a reverie, which -lasted until he was aroused by a knock at the door. He did not call -out 'Come in' until he had retired to his bedroom, half closing after -him the door of communication, and through the crack watched the -operation of lighting the fire by the kneeling chambermaid.</p> - -<p>When the girl had retired, Mr. Dunn emerged from the bedroom, and made -straight for the window. A great breadth of street between the hotel -and the opposite houses; no chance of his being overlooked. He walked -quietly to the door, turned the key, and settled it so in the lock as -to prevent his being spied upon from the outside; then, with soft -quick steps, entered the bedroom and immediately came out again, -bringing with him the hand-bag which he himself carried up the stairs.</p> - -<p>A momentary hesitation now, and a stealthy and sharp look round; the -next minute the bag is open, and Mr. Dunn has taken from it and laid -upon the table the sailor's dress which Tom Summers wore in the low -tavern and the tramps' lodging-house, and at the same time has -produced from his breast-pocket a long shiny pair of scissors. With -these he makes short work of the sailor's suit, tearing and ripping it -into strips, and cutting these strips into smaller pieces, which he -gathers together in a heap in the middle of the table.</p> - -<p>Then Mr. Dunn, returning to the bedroom, unlocks the portmanteau which -he had received from the cloak-room at Lime-street, lays out his -dressing materials on the table and some clothes on a chair, takes a -Bradshaw and a Tourist's Guide to Ireland with him into the -sitting-room, and then, with a sudden effort, gathers the whole heap -of cut and tattered clothing in his arms, and throws it on to the -fire, which by this time is blazing brightly. Some of the little bits -of blue cloth take fire at once, and go eddying up the chimney--others -smoulder slowly; but Mr. Dunn stands in front of the fireplace, gazing -at the grate, now and then patting and forming its contents with the -shovel, until no fragment of the clothes remains visible--only white -dust and charred ashes. Then he throws back his shoulders and -stretches out his arms like one rid of an intolerable burden, and -heaves a great sigh of relief.</p> - -<p>Quick now, for the burning cloth has left a pungent, titillating, -acrid smell, which must be attended to immediately. Mr. Dunn draws an -easy-chair to the corner of the table close by the fireplace, and -rumples the antimacassar, which has been laid on by careful hands; -then takes the Tourist's Guide, places it on the table in close -proximity to the chair, opens it, and places his gold pencil-case -between the leaves; lastly, he takes a shovelful of red-hot coals from -the grate, and deliberately strews them over the hearthrug; then he -quietly quits the room, leaving the door open behind him.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile, Inspector Jeffery and his subordinate. Sergeant Scott, were -enjoying themselves after their fashion. They had a great triumph of -popular excitement and curiosity up to the doors of the hotel, and -once inside, they were destined to still greater distinction, not, -indeed, at the hands of the young lady in the glass case--she was too -much in the habit of seeing celebrities of all kinds, military and -naval heroes, leading lawyers, great authors and actors, all of whom -were in the habit of putting up at the Adelphi, and addressing polite -nothings to her, to be particularly moved at the entrance of a couple -of policemen, even though engaged in investigating a murder mystery. -When she had turned them over to the manager, her business with them -was concluded, and she went back to her ledger and to answering the -numerous applicants at the glass case, without bestowing another -thought upon the visitors in blue-braided uniform. But the gentleman -who at that time filled the position of manager was a very different -kind of person; he delighted in the mysterious and romantic, and the -word 'murder' sounded pleasantly in his ear. The police officers were -invited into his private sanctum, were bidden to take seats, and were -asked what beverage would be most agreeable to them. The inspector, a -man of travel and of taste, suggested dry sherry; the sergeant, a pure -and simple Liverpudlian, would have liked to have named gin, but he -recollected where he was, and asked for brandy.</p> - -<p>'And now,' said the manager, as soon as the visitors were comfortably -seated, with their glasses before them, 'now, inspector, tell us all -about it.'</p> - -<p>'There isn't much to tell, sir,' said Inspector Jeffery, 'though it is -as bold and, I may say, as clean a job as I have met with in my -experience.'</p> - -<p>'And you mean to say the murdered man was a visitor in this hotel?' -interrupted the manager. 'Who could it be?'</p> - -<p>'I'm coming to that presently, sir,' said the inspector, who always -delivered himself according to what he called 'the laws of evidence,' -and who was terribly put out by having his straight story broken in -upon. 'I said it was a bold and clean job, and I might have added -clever, for although there was a patrol passing up and down in front -of the very door of the warehouse where it was committed every half -hour, to say nothing of sergeants visiting rounds and all that, not a -trace was seen or heard of anything about it until the people came to -the warehouse this morning.'</p> - -<p>'Warehouse! How did he get in there? It must have been done by one of -the warehouse hands,' again interrupted the manager.</p> - -<p>'When you have done, sir, I will continue,' said the inspector -testily. 'It was one of those large warehouses close by Water-street, -which are let in floors, or flats as they call them in Scotland; each -lock up separate to themselves, with a common stairway, and where, -there being no porter resident on the place, the front door is always -kept unfastened. I have spoken to the commissioners about that once or -twice, suggesting an order should be issued to have some one -responsible for those doors being locked, and if that had been the -case there would have been no murder. It was an out-door clerk -belonging to Triggs and Vyner, wool-staplers, on the third floor, that -discovered the murder. He came about seven o'clock this morning, -having forgotten his note-book last night, and being unable to start -his rounds without it. When he got up to the first-floor landing, he -found the dead man lying in a heap in the corner. He thought he was -drunk at first--not a tramp, he could not have been that by his -clothes, but some gentleman who had been dining out and mistaken his -road home--but when he bent over him he found that the man was dead. -There was very little blood on the floor, though his clothes were -soaked with it. He had been stabbed to the heart with a long-bladed -knife, more like a dagger, which was lying by his side. Such a stab, -so straight and sure, I never saw before in my experience, nor our -divisional surgeon neither. He says, if it weren't for reflecting upon -the credit of the profession, he could almost swear it had not been -done by any amateur.'</p> - -<p>'Good Lord!' said the manager, by this time intensely interested. -'Well, what then?'</p> - -<p>'Then, I was sent for,' resumed the inspector, 'and I came down, and -by this time there was a crowd round the place, and my men had some -difficulty in turning them out. Two or three of them I allowed to -stop, and among them was old Tom Langman the flyman, who whispered to -me that he recognised the body as that of the gentleman he had driven -from this house to the docks, and who, he thought, was one of a large -theatrical party now staying here.'</p> - -<p>'Not now,' cried the manager, 'they're gone; went away yesterday in -the Cuba. Why, good heavens, it must be number fourteen! He was to -have gone back to London last night, but Miss Jennings told me he had -changed his mind, and though he was not at home his things were still -in his room.'</p> - -<p>'Better send and see if they are there now,' said the inspector. 'What -was the gentleman's name?'</p> - -<p>'I cannot say,' said the manager. 'You see I was so taken up with -listening ta Duval, and looking at Miss Montressor, and laughing at -that funny fellow in the check suit, that I didn't take much notice of -the others. I will call somebody to go up to fourteen, and--I beg your -pardon, sir,' he exclaimed to the gentleman whom he found on the other -side of the door just as he opened it, 'did you wish for anything?'</p> - -<p>'Not at all,' said the gentleman in a soft voice. 'I am Mr. Dunn, a -visitor at this house occupying number ten, and I heard something as I -was passing the bar about some murder which had been discovered.'</p> - -<p>'Yes, indeed, sir, a dreadful murder of a poor gentleman who -was staying here, and who seems to have been decoyed into some -out-of-the-way place and stabbed to the heart.'</p> - -<p>'Indeed,' said Mr. Dunn, 'decoyed into an out-of-the-way place? Ah, -probably some woman in it, I should imagine.'</p> - -<p>'That's a very good notion, sir,' said the manager, 'very good indeed; -the inspector of police is in this room, sir; perhaps you would just -step in and mention it. Inspector, here is a gentleman staying in the -house who has got what I consider a very excellent idea about the -murder.'</p> - -<p>'O indeed, sir,' said the inspector gruffly. He greatly disapproved of -amateur suggestions.</p> - -<p>'Not at all a great idea, inspector,' said Mr. Dunn softly; 'our -friend here is pleased to speak too highly of it--merely a notion -which has occurred to me, and I have no doubt has previously occurred -to you, that a--I beg your pardon,' said Mr. Dunn, stopping short and -sniffing through his nose, 'isn't there a very peculiar smell?'</p> - -<p>The manager, the inspector, and the sergeant all sniffed in concert; -the two latter never smelt anything, but the manager called out at -once, 'Something burning.'</p> - -<p>'So I thought,' said Mr. Dunn; 'something woollen.'</p> - -<p>'We must see to this at once,' cried the manager, and rushed out.</p> - -<p>The others rushed with him, and after a prolonged amount of sniffing -made their way up the stairs leading to number ten. As they advanced -the smell grew stronger, and they came upon a vast quantity of smoke, -which they soon found proceeded from number ten itself, where the -atmosphere was so dense that it was impossible to see across the room. -There was no trace of any flame, but when the windows had been thrown -open it was discovered that the hearth-rug and a portion of the carpet -around it were smouldering slowly, and were nearly consumed. Bells -were rung and water was brought, though long before it arrived the -inspector and the sergeant had removed any further cause for fear by -stamping out the fire with their heavy boots.</p> - -<p>The manager was very cross; he did not quite see how he could explain -the matter at the next meeting of the directors, and ask for a new -carpet. He had intended to show his temper to Mr. Dunn, but that -gentleman he saw was far too savage himself to brook being spoken to.</p> - -<p>'It is most annoying,' said Mr. Dunn. 'I am only here for a day on my -way to Ireland and this accident occurs. The silly woman who lit the -fire did not bring a guard for it. I am unused to fires; I live in a -warm climate; but some friends of mine told me never to sit by a fire -in England unless it had a guard on it. I looked for a guard before I -left the room, but could not find one, and I thought it would be all -right.'</p> - -<p>The manager was full of apologies.</p> - -<p>'Should they move Mr. Dunn to another suite of rooms? They could do so -at once.'</p> - -<p>'No, thank you,' said Mr. Dunn in reply. 'It is unfortunate, but still -it is an accident, and could not have been prevented. I will sleep in -the bedroom to-night, and I should not have used the sitting-room -much, as I am a stranger in Liverpool, and I want to see all that is -to be seen on this the only day I have. In the mean time, I shall be -thankful if you will prepare me a little dinner, some fish and a chop, -in the coffee-room, and I will come down to it as soon as I have -washed my hands and face, which seem to be tolerably blackened by the -smoke.'</p> - -<p>When the manager and the servants had taken their departure--the -inspector and sergeant had gone long since--Mr. Dunn retired to his -bedroom, and, after turning the key in the door, took off his coat and -waistcoat, and seated himself on the edge of the bed.</p> - -<p>'So far so good,' he soliloquised; 'so far everything that I have done -has been perfectly successful. My personal identity ceased on my -leaving America, and no one can have found any traces of Mr. Dolby, -the cynical millionaire, in Tom Summers, the sailor, or Mr. Dunn, the -soft-spoken tourist. One night more and I shake the dust of this land -from my feet, and can fairly consider myself scot free. That was a -lucky idea of mine to strew those cinders on the hearth-rug; the smell -of Tom Summers' smouldering rags might have awakened the keen -suspicions of those police gentry downstairs. That flannel shirt was -beginning to smoke confoundedly before I left the room, but that is -now all provided for; the police themselves were the first persons to -see what had occurred, and helped to extinguish the smouldering -carpet. Not one precaution has been omitted, and, distrustful of -myself as I generally am, I begin to look with pride upon my powers of -organisation as exhibited in this matter. If my orders have only been -implicitly obeyed in America, all I could have looked for is -accomplished. One more night of acting and character-playing, and I -can rest in peace, and return to reap the reward of all I have gone -through.'</p> - -<p>Then Mr. Dunn rose from the edge of the bed, carefully washed his face -and hands, put on the gray coat and waistcoat, and, looking -wonderfully simple and respectable, went down to dinner.</p> - -<p>The dinner was ready, and as soon as he heard that his visitor was -seated, the manager was in attendance to give special directions to -the waiter, and to exhibit the utmost consideration for one who had -been the victim of such an untoward accident. When Mr. Dunn had -finished his fish, the manager ventured to attempt a little -confidential conversation.</p> - -<p>'That unfortunate fire, sir,' said he, 'prevented us hearing more -about the murder from the police. It is a very, very sad affair. I -have been with the inspector since I saw you, and though we are not -going to view the body until to-morrow, I have no doubt that the -unfortunate gentleman was a Mr. Foster, an American gentleman of great -wealth who had been staying in this house, and who occupied the very -rooms adjoining yours, where his things still remain.'</p> - -<p>'An American was he?' asked Mr. Dunn.</p> - -<p>'Yes, sir, American,' replied the manager; 'very rich, and with an -enormous fancy for theatricals. Beg your pardon, sir; not very much in -your line, I should say; but Mr. Foster was very fond of them indeed. -He came down here with the celebrated Bryan Duval, of whom you may -have heard, and a party of performers who were going across to -America. Mr. Foster left this house to see them off, and after that we -never set eyes upon him.'</p> - -<p>'That's a strange thing for an inhabitant of such a town as Liverpool -to confess,' said Mr. Dunn. 'We in the colonies speak of the mother -country as the home of the rarest civilisation. What with your gas and -your much-vaunted police arrangement, we are apt to boast of the -safety of your streets, of the enormous difference between the state -of things in which law and order prevail and where they are governed -by a reckless rabble, such as is sometimes found amongst us; and yet -here is a most wonderfully cool and audacious murder committed in the -heart of the second city of the empire, and not discovered for a -certain number of hours afterwards. By the way, is there no trace of -the wretch who committed the crime?'</p> - -<p>'No, sir, not yet; though I don't know what evidence Inspector Jeffery -may bring forward at the inquest to-morrow morning. Perhaps you would -like to be present at the inquest, sir? I am sure I should be able to -get a place for you.'</p> - -<p>'You are very good,' said Mr. Dunn, 'and I should much like to be -present at the scene, as a study of law, of character, and society; -but my time to return to Jamaica is drawing nigh and I must get -through the rest of my British visits as soon as I can. The direct -steamer for Belfast leaves to-morrow morning?'</p> - -<p>The manager replied in the affirmative.</p> - -<p>'Then I will go by it,' said Mr. Dunn. 'I have heard much of the -beauties of Ireland, and I wish to see them before I return. Now I -think I will make my way to bed, for I have had a fatiguing day. I -wish you good-night.'</p> - -<p>The manager bowed his acknowledgment of his politeness, and Mr. Dunn -retired.</p> -<br> - -<p>As, about noon next day, Mr. Dunn was proceeding to the cab which was -to convey him to the dock, he saw in the hall of the hotel the -presiding goddess in the glass case, and the chambermaid, gallantly -escorted by Inspector Jeffery, one of the waiters, and the porter.</p> - -<p>'The witnesses, sir,' whispered the manager, pointing to them. 'The -body has been removed to the dead-house, the inquest is just over, and -the jury found a verdict of wilful murder against some person or -persons unknown.'</p> - -<p>'Unknown!' echoed Mr. Dunn. 'Then there is no trace of the murderer?'</p> - -<p>'Not at present, sir,' said the manager. 'Inspector Jeffery had -nothing to bring forward. I wish you good-morning, sir.'</p> - -<p>'Good-morning,' said Mr. Dunn, descending the steps.</p> - -<p>Then, as the cab drove off, he opened his shoulders, took a long -respiration, and muttered between his teeth, 'At last! Scot free!'</p> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h4><a name="div2_05" href="#div2Ref_05">CHAPTER V.</a></h4> -<h5>A BLAZE OF TRIUMPH.</h5> -<br> - -<p>The voyage on board the Cuba was by no means the dreadful experience -which Miss Montressor had been led to believe; in fact, when they were -twenty-four hours clear of the coast of Ireland--where it was, as -usual, very wet and inclement, the weather always, apparently, -endeavouring to spoil the pleasure prepared by the hospitable -inhabitants for their visitors--she roused up and enjoyed herself very -much. At first the mere idea of food upset her, and she declared that -the constant round of meals was 'disgusting;' but it was soon observed -that 'when refection bell did call,' Miss Montressor was one of the -first persons to smilingly take up her position at the board, and one -of the last to leave it. It was a part of Mr. Bryan Duval's policy -that everything should be done in the most liberal manner, and there -was consequently abundance of wine and of very excellent quality, on -the merits and demerits of which Mr. Duval would descant to the -admiration of the company.</p> - -<p>This was not the only point on which, that eminent artist won renown. -He expounded his views on certain questions of seamanship to the -captain with such a wealth of professional phraseology that the worthy -officer, who was not in the habit of consorting much with his -theatrical passengers, looked upon him with especial favour, asked him -constantly into his deckhouse, and ventilated at length--almost, as -Byran thought, at too great length--his original theories concerning -currents and wind storms. When, moreover, Mr. Duval had corrected the -third officer, who was a Yorkshireman, about the exact position of a -tobacconist's shop in Boar-lane, Leeds, and had demonstrated that a -Scotch professor of St. Andrew's University, who was looked upon as a -miracle of learning, was little better than an idiot, he was generally -allowed to be a man of universal genius, and respected accordingly. As -for the officers of the ship, they took the greatest fancy to him. He -was unanimously elected an honorary member of their mess, and the -deliciously titillating and highly-spiced dishes which, at a late hour -of the night, he prepared in the purser's cabin, the effervescent -cooling drinks which he manufactured to go with them, and the romantic -little Spanish love songs which he sung afterwards to the -accompaniment of a guitar, formed the theme of conversation for many a -future voyage.</p> - -<p>Mr. Skrymshire, the low comedian, who had been seen in the exercise of -his profession by several of the passengers, both in London and -Liverpool, and from whom a fund of amusement was expected, did not -quite come up to popular anticipation, as he passed the principal part -of the voyage moaning in his berth in the agonies of illness, and -requesting, as a personal favour, that he might be thrown overboard. -It was not until the ship had passed Sandy Hook that he put in an -appearance on deck; and she was safe at anchor in the quarantine -ground--where, in consequence of her late arrival, she was compelled -to remain during the night--before he cracked his first joke.</p> - -<p>All the party were up on deck very early the next morning, looking -with admiring eyes at the beauties of Staten Island, and with wonder -at the steamers and ferry-boats darting in and out. Acting upon the -private hint given to her by Bryan Duval the night before, Miss -Montressor had paid a little special attention to her toilette, and -looked very pretty and fascinating.</p> - -<p>'Quite right, my dear,' said Bryan, when lie saw her--he himself was -arrayed in a high hat with a curly brim, blue body coat, gray trousers, -and jean boots with patent leather tips--'quite right, my dear; they -go in immensely for this sort of thing here, and you will find that we -shall have a few of the press fellows on board before we land, and no -end of them waiting at the wharf. First impressions are everything, -and half a column in the <i>Scarifier</i>, a personal paragraph in the -<i>Growler</i>, and a subleader in the <i>Democrat</i> to-morrow morning, will -do us good service with our first night's audience; besides, Van Buren -is a man who fancies himself a lady-killer, and I want him to be -impressed.'</p> - -<p>'And won't you be at all jealous?' asked Miss Montressor, looking up -coquettishly.</p> - -<p>'I jealous?' cried Bryan. 'Of course; stark, staring, raving crazy -with jealousy. I'd push those side curls a little further back, my -dear, if I were you; and just let me tighten that pin at the back of -your collar. That will do nicely. Have you seen anything of -Skrymshire?'</p> - -<p>'The last time he appeared he was looking very melancholy and -disconsolate,' said Miss Montressor.</p> - -<p>'It is most important that Van Buren should not see him until he is in -better feather,' said Bryan. 'There will be some champagne cocktail -going on when these press fellows come on board, and I will take care -that Skrymshire has a dose of that to pick him up. A low comedian with -a horse's head and that suit of clothes is enough to frighten any -manager out of an engagement.'</p> - -<p>Mr. Duval's predictions were fulfilled. The health officer had -scarcely rowed off after his interview with the doctor when another -boat was seen approaching the vessel, containing certain members of -the press, who quickly appeared on board and were conducted to Mr. -Duval, by whom they were received with great courtesy. His ability and -geniality had made him a general favourite during his last visit to -America, and his return, bringing out a company of whom--notably of -Miss Montressor--great things were expected, was hailed with delight. -The literary gentlemen, who had a general air of having been up all -night, and not having thought it worth while to devote much attention -to their toilets in the morning, were conducted to the cabin, where -champagne cocktails and other exhilarating drinks were provided for -them by Mr. Duval, who, when the liquor had well circulated, -despatched a trusty emissary to conduct Miss Montressor to their -presence.</p> - -<p>In her fresh morning toilette, with her pleasant smiles and frank -ingenuous manner, the London actress took by storm the susceptible -hearts of the literary gentlemen. They had come with the express -intention of interviewing her, and, lo and behold, the most they could -do was to utter little compliments and flattery, while most of their -time was occupied in staring at her. But Mr. Duval, who knew exactly -what was wanted, was not going to let slip such a golden opportunity, -and went about from one to the other, answering such questions as he -thought might have been propounded.</p> - -<p>'What should I say her height was? About five feet five, I should -think--a little taller, perhaps, with those new French heels, which -set the foot off, but are deuced dangerous for walking. Ah, Willie -Webster, you rascal,' whispering in the ear of a dirty little man in a -wideawake, 'you're the lad for the ladies, and you're death on -complexions, I know. Look at hers; look at the Montressor's. That's -the real thing--none of your bismuth and pearl powder, but with the -warm tinge on it which she has caught on her voyage from the sea and -sun. Natural daughter of a most distinguished man, my dear Carter; -blue blood, Norman descent, and all that sort of thing--look at it in -her hands and feet, that's where the real breeding comes out. You -don't care about noble descent in this country, I know--honesty, -virtue, simple citizen, and all that kind of thing; but you do admire -hands and feet, and most of your ladies have them in perfection.'</p> - -<p>The press gentlemen went off in their swift-sailing little boat, and -landing before the huge steamer worked her way to the wharf, so -aroused the enthusiasm of those waiting there by their description of -Miss Montressor's charms, that when she was seen on the deck, leaning -on Bryan Duval's arm, she was greeted with great applause, cheerings, -and waving of handkerchiefs. Most interested among those assembled on -the wharf to meet the voyagers was Mr. Van Buren, a strikingly -handsome man of between forty and fifty, with jet-black hair in crisp -waves over his well-shaped head, a classic profile, and an excellent -figure. He was naturally nervous, for the good old British comedies, -which were the staple attraction at Van Buren's Varieties, had ceased -to attract, and the manager was looking to the engagement of Duval's -company to recoup him his losses, and finish his season brilliantly. -Dogging his heels was his friend and adviser Mr. Morris Jacobs, who -had entered the service of Mr. Van Buren's father as call-boy at three -dollars a week, but who was now reputed to be worth half a million, -and to be the real owner of Van Buren's Varieties and almost of Van -Buren himself, for the manager-actor was fond of pleasure, and was -besides a great sportsman. He had always horses in training somewhere, -and whenever he could get away from the theatre he was rushing off to -look after them; while Mr. Morris Jacobs had but one thought in life, -the accumulation of money; and finding that could be best attended to -at the Varieties, there he remained, and there, morning, noon, and -night, he was to be found. But when Mr. Van Buren had been presented -to Miss Montressor by Bryan Duval all his nervousness vanished. He -bowed his curly head over her daintily gloved hand, and lifted it to -his lips. Then turning to Mr. Jacobs, he muttered,</p> - -<p>'No use shinning about any more, Morris; trump card's found!'</p> - -<p>More and more delights were there in store for the newly-arrived -troupe: banquets in their rooms at the Fifth-avenue Hotel, bushels of -cards left by distinguished callers, artistic clubs proffering -receptions, and invitations for all kinds of entertainments. Miss -Montressor was in the highest state of delight. 'If this is America,' -she said to Bryan Duval, 'I rather think I am likely to be pleased -with it.'</p> - -<p>Intelligence of the arrival of the star company, and their brilliant -reception in New York, speedily reached Mrs. Griswold's house. Helen, -with her usual cordial kindness, sent the newspaper which contained -the lengthiest and most sensational account of the proceedings of the -popular reception, and the programme of the performance, to Mrs. -Jenkins. She would have gone to the nursery to read it all for her, -and enjoy the pleasure and excitement with which she felt the nurse -would peruse it, but she happened just then to be detained by callers.</p> - -<p>Mrs. Jenkins clutched the paper from the hand of the servant who -brought it to her, and read it with the utmost avidity. When, shortly -afterwards, Mrs. Griswold went up-stairs to pay her customary visit to -the baby before dressing for lunch, she found the nurse in rather a -fidgety state; she was absent while Mrs. Griswold talked to her, she -answered one or two of her questions at random, and altogether her -manner was so <i>distrait</i> that Helen resolved to find out what it all -meant.</p> - -<p>'Has anything happened to you?' she said; 'have you had any bad news? -Pray tell me.'</p> - -<p>'No, ma'am,' said Mrs. Jenkins, 'I have not had any bad news, but I -should like very much to go out for a while; there is some one come to -New York that I know, and I should like to call and see her.'</p> - -<p>Perhaps a transitory feeling of surprise crossed Helen's mind at the -unusual reticence of Mrs. Jenkins, who by this time had become so -familiarised with her friendly manner and her kindly genial interest -in all that concerned the dwellers in her house that she would have -supposed the nurse would at once have told her who the person was, and -all about it; but Helen's kindness was not of the exacting sort, and -she received this brief communication with her usual sweet compliance.</p> - -<p>'Of course you can go out,' she said. 'I will take care of baby; I can -take you in the carriage wherever you want to go, and then you can -leave baby with me.'</p> - -<p>'No, thank you,' answered Mrs. Jenkins, with some embarrassment and a -rising colour, which Helen at once perceived, but passed over quite -unnoticed, concluding that Mrs. Jenkins's confusion had something to -do with the good-for-nothingness of her husband--a point on which -Helen deeply commiserated her lot, because, though she had been told -no particulars, she felt perfectly convinced that Mr. Jenkins's -good-for-nothingness, and no other cause, was at the bottom of his -wife's present dependent situation--'no, thank you, ma'am, I would -rather go alone, if you please; and if you will allow me, I should -like very much to take baby. I think you can trust me not to take her -into any place or to see any person of whom you would disapprove.'</p> - -<p>'Indeed, I can,' said Helen cordially. 'I can trust you most -completely. You shall take baby, and you shall go where you like, and -stay as long as you like, and,' she added, laying her hand gently on -Mrs. Jenkins's shoulder, as she stooped over the nursing chair, 'never -think it necessary to tell me more than you wish, never think that I -wish to drive your confidence faster than its natural pace.'</p> - -<p>Then she immediately left the room, and Mrs. Jenkins, after a few -minutes, got herself and the child ready and went out.</p> -<br> - -<p>Miss Montressor was very much pleased with the aspect of affairs in -New York. For the first time in her life, she felt herself a person of -real and indubitable importance; the reception had pleased her; she -was charmed with the look of the city, and delighted with her quarters -at Fifth-avenue Hotel; the largeness and liberality of all the -arrangements for public comfort, which cannot fail to strike the -newly-arrived visitor in New York, duly impressed themselves upon Miss -Montressor, and she had hardly become accustomed to her large and -pleasant rooms, she was still discovering new perfections in them, and -finding out points of advantage in everything American over everything -English, when she was told that a person wished to see her.</p> - -<p>Visions of eager strangers bent on obtaining her autograph and -photograph, dreams of interviewing, even notions of a sharp contention -between rival managers, flashed in a moment across her lively -imagination, as she requested that the person--no indication of the -sex of the applicant had been given--should be invited to walk up.</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor was already very handsomely dressed, so that nothing -remained but for her to assume a statuesque and striking attitude in -which to await the arrival of her visitor. Half a minute sufficed to -show her that her preparations were thrown away: no fashionable -lounger, no splendidly-dressed lady, no eager man of business, was -this visitor who thus early claimed admittance to her; only a -plainly-dressed woman, carrying an infant in her arms, who stretched -her disengaged hand eagerly towards her with a glad cry of, 'Clara! -Clara!'</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor recoiled--to do her justice, it was only for a -moment--the next she took the woman's hand, and saying, 'Hush! do not -speak so loud,' kissed her.</p> - -<p>'O, how glad I am to see you, Clara! You see, your grand new name -comes quite easy to me. I have never forgotten that you told me not to -call you Matty any more. How glad I was when I heard you were coming -out, and though at first I took it very unkind that you did not write -to tell me, I soon knew it was because you were sure I should see it -in the papers.'</p> - -<p>The speaker had seated herself, loosened her shawl, and taken off her -bonnet before Miss Montressor had recovered from the slight constraint -of the first surprise.</p> - -<p>'Yes,' she said, 'I am very glad, indeed, to see you; but you have put -me in a mortal fright. I don't want to be unkind, you know--and you're -a sensible woman--only think how it would ruin me if Jenkins came -about after me here.'</p> - -<p>'Jenkins can't, my dear soul.' said the other. 'He is away, he ain't -in New York; and if he was he would do nothing to harm you, bless you. -He and I both understand that we must keep our distance from you -now--not that you're not a good sister, as you always was and always -will be, but for your sake and ourselves too--only you must forgive my -coming to you. I really couldn't bear it, and I knew it was all safe; -it is such a time since I have seen you, and you have done such a deal -in the time. Only to think, Clara, of your being a regular star, and -leading lady at the Thespian.'</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor laughed a good-natured laugh, but with a peculiar -sound in it, which comes of a superior knowledge of the world and a -truer test of greatness than that of the speaker.</p> - -<p>'My dear, you have got very funny notions about me. I have not done -badly; but as to the great things, I have not many of them to count up, -and this is the very first really big chance I have had.'</p> - -<p>'Don't be afraid that I shall spoil it,' said Bess, laying the -sleeping child comfortably in a corner of a luxurious settee, and -seating herself beside Miss Montressor, with one arm placed fondly -round her neck, while her honest gray eyes, full of tears, looked -searchingly in the other's face. 'I would rather never see you for -half my life than harm you, dear; and I suppose it would harm you, -even in this country, where everybody is free and equal, they say, if -you were known to have a servant for a sister?'</p> - -<p>'A servant, Bess!' said Miss Montressor with surprise and displeasure. -'How is that? What do you mean?'</p> - -<p>'Just what I say to you. I am a servant. I am a nurse in a very good -family here in town; it is a good place, and I am happy, trusted, -useful, and comfortable.'</p> - -<p>'Nurse!' said Miss Montressor; 'is that your nurse-child, then? I -thought it was your own.'</p> - -<p>'Mine? O dear no. My baby was a poor little cripple, and he was taken -away from all his troubles a little while ago. Jenkins was leaving me -for a profitable job he had got, and I could not stand the loneliness; -besides we were very poor, and so I took a place. It is Mrs. -Griswold's, in Fifth-avenue, and I get along very well indeed. Mrs. -Griswold is alone, like myself. Her husband is in Europe; and she gave -me leave to come here to-day, and to bring the child, so as I might be -free, as kind as possible.'</p> - -<p>'Fifth-avenue?' said Miss Montressor; 'why, that's a fashionable part -of New York. I know that much, though I have only been one night in -the place. I knew it before, however. This lady must be a person of -importance. My dear Bess, you didn't let out to her where you were -coming to?'</p> - -<p>'I did not,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'I only told her some one had come to -New York that I wanted to see, and she never asked another question. -She is a perfect lady, is Mrs. Griswold, and respects everybody's -confidence. She will ask me nothing when I get back; and when you meet -her, I am sure you need not be afraid she will know that the famous -Miss Montressor is her nurse's sister.'</p> - -<p>There was just the slightest tone of hurt feeling in Mrs. Jenkins's -kindly voice, and Miss Montressor, who was as kindly as herself at -bottom--only a little overlaid by the affectation of her profession -and her associations--sympathetically perceived it. 'The gentleman -talked nonsense, Bess,' she said, bestowing on her sister a hearty -hug, to which the other responded. 'Here we are now, and here we may -not be long uninterrupted, so let us have a talk while we may. What's -Jenkins about?'</p> - -<p>'I don't know, darling. No harm, but some business of a private -nature, which will keep him away for some time--it's only a commission -agency, but I don't know in what.'</p> - -<p>Mrs. Jenkins was the most loyal of wives, and even to her beloved -sister, the pride and delight of her life, would not have betrayed her -husband's confidence, and Miss Montressor was in reality profoundly -indifferent to the answer to the question which she had just asked. -She did not care one straw where Jenkins was, provided he was not in -New York, or what he was doing, provided his occupation was not of a -nature to expose her to any risk of contact with him. Satisfied on -this point, she was quite ready to respond to her sister's -affectionate inquisitiveness respecting herself and her concerns, and -the two plunged immediately into an animated and confidential -conversation, which brought out the best sides of the characters of -both.</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor gave her sister a tolerably correct and exceedingly -pleasant description of her career during the years which had parted -them--years which had been very prosperous on the whole for the -friendless young actress, and not unmarked by acts of generosity -towards her sister, whose lot had been very different. That Mrs. -Jenkins was so poor as she had been when we first made her -acquaintance in Bleeker-street was not Miss Montressor's fault; she -had frequently assisted her sister and her good-for-nothing husband -out of her, at first, very moderate means; but when Bess saw that -Jenkins's good-for-nothingness was an established fact, her honesty of -purpose and truthfulness of mind made her make a resolution to accept -no more assistance from Clara. 'I don't mind working hard,' was her -mental comment on the situation, 'that he may have money to -waste--I am his wife; but Clara shall not do it. I will never touch a -shilling of her earnings more;' and she had written to Clara asking -her to abstain from sending them money.</p> - -<p>This, to tell the truth, Miss Montressor, who had had an instinctively -bad opinion of her brother-in-law, was not sorry to do; and so her -knowledge of the Jenkinses' circumstances became slight and confused. -Her sister could not very well keep her informed of them without -appearing to ask for the aid which she had deprecated; she therefore -wrote vaguely and seldom, and Miss Montressor had acquiesced in this -latterly, contenting herself with the reflection that she was now so -extensively reported in the newspapers as being here or there, and -playing this or that engagement to more or less appreciative -audiences, that really Bess would know as much about her from the -journals as she cared to tell, for there were one or two things she -did not wish to tell. But she was brimful of news now, and Mrs. -Jenkins's impression that Miss Montressor was by far the finest -actress in existence was deepened by the narrative of triumphs which -her sister poured into her ear. It was not an untrue narrative, it was -only coloured; and yet, with all their confidence, with all their -eager talk, there was a reticence on both sides.</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor never mentioned Mr. Dolby.</p> - -<p>Mrs. Jenkins made no allusion to Trenton Warren.</p> - -<p>Bess had a great deal to say respecting Mrs. Griswold; and here told -her sister, with lively pleasure, of that lady's promise to take her -with herself to the play. 'But,' she added, 'she will have the -satisfaction of seeing you before I shall, Clara. You see, I didn't -care to press her so much as asking to go on the first or second night -would have done--I thought it would not seem reasonable, and might -arouse a suspicion; and if it did not do you harm, it might make you -angry; and I would rather know you were playing for a whole week to -all New York, and turning the place upside down about you, and sit at -home without the chance of seeing you, than vex you; and so I have got -to wait patiently until my betters are served. But I know she will -keep her word; and, as I was going to say, she will see you before I -shall, for she is going to-night.'</p> - -<p>'To-night?' said Miss Montressor; 'that's quick! Is she as fond of the -play as you are?'</p> - -<p>'I think she is very fond of it. She tells me she and Mr. Griswold -always went to see anything that was worth seeing. But now that he is -away she is very particular indeed. She never goes anywhere except -amongst old friends, and she does that very sparingly; and as to a -theatre or concert, she has never put her foot in one since he left.'</p> - -<p>'O, then, Mr. Griswold is not at home?' said Miss Montressor.</p> - -<p>'O dear no! he went away before I came. I have never seen him.'</p> - -<p>'Where is he?'</p> - -<p>'He is in London, I believe, doing some business in a very large way. -People say Griswold is a very rich man; and I suppose he wants to be -richer, like all the rest of them, and must pay a price for it--pretty -big price too, going to the other end of the world, and leaving his -young wife alone so long. She mopes dreadfully; I am quite glad she is -going to-night, if it is only to cheer her up. She was in great -spirits at getting so good a place. It was bespoke long before you -came.'</p> - -<p>'You had been talking about me, I suppose?'</p> - -<p>'Of course I had. I had just told her you were the finest actress in -the world, and she had better make haste to see you.'</p> - -<p>'Have you any idea in what part of the theatre Mrs. Griswold would be -sitting?' said Miss Montressor. 'I very seldom try to see any one from -the stage; and most times, when one does try, one cannot do it. But I -will have a look at her, if you will tell me where she will sit.'</p> - -<p>'I can tell you,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'She will be right at the end of -the dress circle, last seat but two, right-hand side; and I know what -she is going to wear, so that you can tell her by her dress. An old -gentleman and an old lady and their son are going with her--it is just -a party of four.'</p> - -<p>'Tell me about her dress,' said Miss Montressor, 'and the colour of -her hair.'</p> - -<p>'She has a quantity of very fine brown hair,' said Mrs. Jenkins, -'which matches her eyes, and she never wears any ornaments in it. The -dress she is going to wear to-night is pale blue velvet, square cut, -with turnovers, and very fine guipure lace. She always wears plain -gold ornaments with that gown, and a blue-and-gold fan.'</p> - -<p>'Very well,' said Miss Montressor; 'I will look out for the blue -velvet and the guipure, for the gold ornaments, and the blue-and-gold -fan.'</p> - -<p>A timepiece rang out the hour.</p> - -<p>'Dear me, how late it is!' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'I had no notion I had -been here so long. I think I must go now, Clara; but I shall get down -to see you again before long, and you will come to see me, won't you?'</p> - -<p>'My dear Bess, what are you thinking of?' replied her sister. 'How do -you suppose I am to keep the secret, which you see I cannot help -keeping? It is not unkindness and it is not snobbishness; it is only -for the sake of the interests which I cannot afford to throw over. If -I am seen going to Mrs. Griswold's house to visit Mrs. Griswold's -nurse, why, if she didn't find it out, as I suppose she need not--no -doubt I could always see you in a room to ourselves--just fancy how -the servants would talk. There is not one in New York, I suppose, by -this time who does not know my face; and it would be all over the -place in a few hours. No, no you must come and see me when you can. It -is muck safer, and just as easy.'</p> - -<p>'I really think you might let me tell Mrs. Griswold,' said Mrs. -Jenkins; 'you have no notion how kind she is, and how free from -nonsense and pretence of all sorts. Her heart would be touched if I -told her how we two were left poor motherless children to the care of -our old aunt, who pushed us out into the world when we were almost -babies, to do the best we could each for ourselves, and how you did -the best, and it was very good, and I did--well, not quite the worst -after all.'</p> - -<p>A sweet smile, though sad, passed over the frank features of the -speaker, a spark of the ever-burning lamp of life within her, that -light which glorified even so mean an object as Ephraim Jenkins.</p> - -<p>'Good Heavens,' thought Miss Montressor, 'she actually believes in -that vagabond still, and is as fond of him as ever; she is perfectly -incorrigible!' She did not give utterance to these sentiments, but -took a most affectionate leave of her sister, even bestowing some -transient expressions of admiration upon little Mary Griswold, who was -wide awake by this time, and staring about her with a greedy curiosity -which succeeds the first stages of stolid indifference incidental to -babyhood. She did not kiss the child, she was not quite equal to -that--Mrs. Jenkins wondered how she could deny herself the -indulgence--but she patted her and chirped to her, and sent her sister -away delighted with her amiability and her affability.</p> - -<p>How hard it was for Bess to keep from talking of her visit when she -went to assist at Mrs. Griswold's evening toilette nobody but Bess -knew. When Mrs. Griswold had gone down-stairs, and driven away in the -carriage which her friends had brought to fetch her, arrayed and -looking very handsome in the pale blue velvet gown, with the guipure -trimming, in the gold ornaments, and carrying her blue-and-gold fan, -Mrs. Jenkins indemnified herself for the unnatural restraint by -talking rapturously to the baby.</p> -<br> - -<p>An enormous crowd of well-dressed people was flocking into Van Buren's -Varieties, to the great delight of Mr. Van Buren himself, who stood at -the checktaker's wicket, with his friend Mr. Morris Jacobs by his -side. Mr. Van Buren had that amount of vanity which is inseparable -from the theatrical profession, and to see himself recognised by -members of the crowd, to hear the flattering remarks made on his -personal appearance and his histrionic talents, rendered him supremely -happy. Mr. Jacobs, who had no pretensions to manly beauty, being a -short stout man, with an enormous head and an exaggerated Jewish cast -of countenance, contented himself with silently counting the people as -they came in, and keeping a wary eye upon the checktaker. It was a -long time since the Varieties had boasted such an audience; every seat -was taken, and the large lobbies at the back of the circles were -inconveniently crowded. There was scarcely one in the many-sided -phases of New York society which was not represented. The journals had -done their work so well, and Mr. Van Buren and Mr. Jacobs had worked -their various agencies with such success, that a desire to see the -English actress and renew acquaintance with the handsome tragedian had -been generated amongst people who had not visited the theatre for -years. Good old Knickerbocker families, prouder of the 'Van' before -their names than of the enormous fortunes which had accrued to them -from the sale of the lands which had once formed the gardens and -grounds of their old red-brick houses, and which now formed avenues -and streets in the most fashionable districts; steady church-goers, -whose wildest idea of dissipation was attendance at a lecture or a -mass meeting; men who passed their days in Wall-street, and their -evenings at the extemporised exchange in the hall of the Fifth-avenue -Hotel--all these classes seemed to have caught the infection, and were -largely represented. The regular attendants at theatrical -representations--the club men, Fifth-avenue families, the people who -wished to be thought 'in the style,' and whose newly-gotten wealth has -made of them a plutocracy as imperious, as intolerant, and as hollow -as any aristocracy in the Old World--all these were in fullest force. -Such a reunion was seldom to be seen at so late a period; and the -buzzing conversation of friends which took place before the -commencement of the play was not, as usual, about the balls and -entertainments to which they were invited, but treated rather of their -intended summer flights; the various merits of style at Saratoga, -rural quiet at Lake George, boisterous frivolity at Long Branch, or -sea breezes at Newport being fully discussed.</p> - -<p>Behind the scenes, too, there was very great excitement. Bryan Duval -knew exactly the kind of audience he might expect to welcome his -return and Miss Montressor's first appearance; he knew that on such an -occasion his appeal ought to be made rather to the sympathies than the -intelligence of the people; and so, reserving for a further occasion -<i>Romeo and Juliet</i>, and other specimens of poetical drama in which he -knew that he and Miss Montressor could help each other largely, and -make themselves appreciated by the critical and the educated, he had -determined upon commencing his campaign with the celebrated Irish -drama, <i>Cruiskeen Lawn</i>. The American version of this play--it -underwent considerable modification when acted in the United -Kingdom--contained a goodly amount of treasonable speeches, -denunciation of British kings and British government, and therefore -greatly acceptable to that portion of the New York population which -made their entry into America through the fair haven of Castle Garden; -the dialogue, too, was sprinkled with numerous tropes and metaphors -which Bryan had carefully culled from Tom Moore's poetical works. When -there is to be added to this that it gave scope for pretty scenery, -quaint coquettish peasant dresses for Miss Montressor, much -love-making, and various astonishing feats, such as diving down a well -and rushing through a blazing cottage, for Mr. Duval himself, it was -evident that those who loved sensation were likely to be gratified.</p> - -<p>Mr. Duval had arrived at the theatre early, donned his stage costume, -and was occupying himself in looking after the members of his troupe. -He found Mr. Covington, like most novices, in deep distress as regards -his costume, and assisted that young gentleman to make up his face, -and showed him how to wear his sword. He gave Mr. Skrymshire a little -more red eyebrow, and threw a Hibernian expression into the low -comedian's somewhat long face by the simple process of making two -thick black streaks under his nose, which imparted to that organ a -turn-up appearance. With Mrs. Regan, on the contrary, he had to tone -down the Hibernianism, that worthy old woman being desirous of -expressing her nationality by entering into a fight with her -attendant dresser. Finally, Mr. Duval knocked at Miss Montressor's -dressing-room, and being bidden to come in, stood in the doorway and -expressed his delight by clapping his hands.</p> - -<p>'Nothing could be better, my dear,' said he. 'Why on earth didn't I -have you for the original Kathleen Mavourneen in London? If I had, I -should have made 32,000<i>l</i>. by this time. The rouge a little higher up -on the left cheek, dear, I think, and the right eyebrow, too, a -hair's-breadth longer--that will do nicely! You must take off your -rings, dear; peasant girls in Kerry don't wear blue silk stockings -either, but that's a poetical license; but I do not think the public -will stand the rings. That's right! Now just remember one thing, that -the Irish brogue is permanent, and not a temporary affliction, and -that you are sometimes in the habit of forgetting it, and talking in -your native Regent-street accent; think of that, and hold to it all -through; and if you stick at all for words--I don't think you will, -for you struck me as being letter perfect--but if you do, just say -"Arrah!" and "Bedad!" until I can get alongside and prompt you. Now, -then, it is my time to go on.'</p> - -<p>Two minutes after, an enormous roar of applause welcomed Mr. Bryan's -return to the United States, a roar which very speedily was exceeded -twenty fold by the greeting given to Miss Montressor. There is an idea -that an American audience is not enthusiastic, but it is a false one, -for if you please them there is no people so lavish in their favour. -The ladies waved their handkerchiefs, the gentlemen cheered and -clapped their hands, the rougher portion of the community roared and -shrieked until they were hoarse, and Miss Montressor stood curtsying -and curtsying, her hands crossed over her little blue bodice, and her -eyes demurely cast upon the ground.</p> - -<p>When silence was restored and the business of the play recommenced, -she took advantage of the first opportunity to look in the direction -where, according to Bess's information, she expected to see Mrs. -Griswold. There, accordingly, at the end of the first circle, in the -last seat but one on the right-hand side, sat a lady with a quantity -of fine brown hair, dressed in plain blue velvet and guipure lace, and -bearing a blue-and-gold fan. What caused Miss Montressor to start as -she gazed upon this face? What rendered her so oblivious for the -moment that Bryan Duval had to prompt her? Mrs. Griswold had never -been out of America, and yet Miss Montressor could have sworn she had -seen her before. Whenever she could she stole a glance at the face, -and still found it familiar to her; but it was not until nearly the -close of the play that the right idea came to her.</p> - -<p>It came like an inspiration. 'The portrait!' she said to herself; 'the -portrait! That woman may or may not be Mrs. Griswold, but assuredly -she is the original of the portrait set in the watch which was shown -to me on the terrace at Richmond by Mr. Foster.'</p> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h4><a name="div2_06" href="#div2Ref_06">CHAPTER VI.</a></h4> -<h5>STARTLING NEWS.</h5> -<br> - -<p>The curtain had fallen upon the happy marriage of Kathleen Mavourneen -and Comether O'Shaughnessy. The talented representatives of the two -characters had been called forward several times amidst huzzahs, and -most of the audience had quitted the theatre; and Miss Montressor had -retired to her dressing-room, where, throwing herself into a chair, -she fell into a reverie.</p> - -<p>'What could be the meaning of that extraordinary resemblance between -the lady who had sat in the very seat which Bess had assured her had -been taken by Mrs. Griswold, and the portrait which Mr. Foster had -shown her on the terrace at Richmond, as that of his wife? There must -have been some mistake; Bess must have made a blunder about the exact -position in the circle, or Mrs. Griswold must have been unable to -obtain the seat on which she had first set her mind!' But then came -the identity of the costume the lady in the circle wore--the exact -dress which Bess had described as that which her mistress was about to -wear; the blue velvet and guipure lace, the plain gold ornaments, the -blue-and-gold fan--all were there. It was most astonishing--Miss -Montressor admitted that; but she could not understand why, as she -admitted it, a sombre presentiment, a sense of some impending -calamity, seemed to come across her.</p> - -<p>She was roused by a knock at the door, following immediately on which -Mr. Bryan Duval put in his head.</p> - -<p>'Clara, my clear,' said he, 'I will get dressed as quickly as -possible; I have got a room at Delmonico's.'</p> - -<p>'Delmonico's!' echoed Miss Montressor. 'What's that?</p> - -<p>'Something very nice,' said Mr. Duval; 'the best restaurant in the -world. The piece has been such a go, that I could not do less than ask -a few people to an improvised supper--Van Buren and two or three of -the press people, you know. Of course we must have you, and old Mrs. -Regan will come as chaperone. It will be remarkably jolly, and I -shouldn't wonder if there were a few lines about it in to-morrow -morning's paper, which will be quite worth the expense.'</p> - -<p>Supper was a weakness with Miss Montressor. When she was acting she -didn't care particularly about dinner, invariably refused all -invitations to that meal, and ate sparingly at a comparatively early -hour; but supper had always been her favourite amusement. In the early -days of her stage apprenticeship, long before her Christian name was -Clara or her surname Montressor, when she was a struggling, raw-boned, -weak-eyed girl, playing chambermaids and general utility in a -provincial theatre, with a salary of eighteen shillings a week, she -used to devote a portion of that modest sum to the purchase of pigs' -pettitoes and polonies, on which, with a pint of very flat porter, she -used to regale herself in her wretched garret after her return from -the theatre. After she had established herself, and made a success in -later life, she kept up the same practice, the Brompton villa being -substituted for the garret, boned turkeys, <i>pâté de foie gras</i>, and -cold game for the delicacies above mentioned, and the society of -pleasant Bohemians for the cruel solitude. So Miss Montressor -intimated to Bryan Duval her acceptance of his invitation, and made -all possible haste to get ready for the scene of action.</p> - -<p>As soon as she was dressed she joined Mr. Duval and Mrs. Regan, and -the three drove off in a carriage together.</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor thought there was an air of comfort as she stepped -across the little garden and entered the bright cheery hall at -Delmonico's, with its bureau immediately fronting the street, its -glimpse of well-dressed men and women, attentive waiters, steaming -dishes, and silver-necked flasks lolling out of ice-pails, in the -large room on the left, and its broad staircase, up and down which the -nimble attendants were flitting. But when she found herself on the -first floor, in the room furnished with extravagant richness, but in -perfect French taste, and looked through the open folding-doors into -another room, where the round table for a dozen convives was already -spread, and shimmering with its accumulation of plate and glass, she -could not resist clapping and giving a little scream of delight.</p> - -<p>'Welcome to the star of the evening,' cried Mr. Van Buren, his hair -poodled up into a magnificent curling crop, his moustache lacquered -and pointed in the latest fashion, advancing to do homage. 'I have to -thank you, my dear young lady, for your performance to-night.'</p> - -<p>'If you were pleased,' said Miss Montressor, with a sweet smile, which -went straight to the heart of the inflammable manager, 'I have every -reason to be satisfied.'</p> - -<p>'Pleased!' cried he. 'I not merely look upon the success as certain, -but I regard this as the first of a series of visits which you shall -pay to this country, and by which I shall be enabled to help you to -realise a fortune; and there is something selfish in the thought,' he -added, 'for it will not merely give me the assurance of seeing you -constantly, but enable me to support your absence with the certain -idea of your return.'</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor smiled upon him again, and Mr. Van Buren immediately -began to calculate how he could dispose of the thirty-fourth Mrs. Van -Buren, who was at that moment on his hands, and substitute the new -favourite for her.</p> - -<p>'Now,' said Mr. Duval, bustling about, 'let us get to table as soon as -possible. Those who have not been introduced to Miss Montressor -already had better come to me, and I will perform the ceremony. My -dear Clara, I think you already know Mr. Willy Webster of the -<i>Democrat</i>' he added, pushing forward a dirty little man with soiled -shirt, and clothes shining with grease--'not clean, perhaps, but -decidedly clever,' said Bryan, dropping his voice; 'and you must shake -hands with him.'</p> - -<p>Mr. Looby of the <i>Scarifier</i> and Mr. O'Gog of the <i>Growl</i>, came -forward and made their obeisance; Henry P. Remington and Samuel D. -Silliman, two young men about town, who had more money than brains, -and less manners than either; a gray-headed man, with a thin keen -face, who seemed to know everything and every one, and who was -universally addressed as Uncle William, completed the party.</p> - -<p>'Now are we all here?' said Bryan Duval, who had seated Miss Montressor -between himself and Mr. Van Buren, and who was compelled to stand up -to look round the table, so large and luxurious was the basket of -flowers in the centre--'are we all here?'</p> - -<p>'No,' said Willy Webster from the other side of the table. 'Here, next -me, is a chair for our good friend Banquo.'</p> - -<p>'Who is our good friend Banquo on this occasion? Let me see,' said -Bryan Duval. 'Looby, O'Gog--'pon my word, I can't recollect.'</p> - -<p>'I thought you told me you had sent round to the <i>Globe</i> office to -tell Brighthurst to come up?' said Van Buren.</p> - -<p>'To be sure,' cried Bryan. 'Brighthurst is Banquo. Why on earth is he -not here?'</p> - -<p>'I sincerely hope he will come,' said Willy Webster.</p> - -<p>'And I--and I!' cried several others.</p> - -<p>'Mr. Brighthurst seems to be a general favourite,' said Miss -Montressor to her neighbour--'what are his particular attractions?'</p> - -<p>'I am sure I don't know,' said Mr. Van Buren, a little piqued; 'he is -a good sort of fellow, I believe.'</p> - -<p>'Brighthurst, my dear,' said Duval, 'is one of the cleverest men on -the press of this or any other country. He has written everything in -his time--five-act plays, political pamphlets, orthodox sermons, and -hymns which would draw tears from a hard-shell Baptist--then he's very -good-looking and capital talk. I shall be sincerely disappointed if he -doesn't come soon. I am sure you and he would get on well together.'</p> - -<p>'Do you think he would be horrified at seeing me eating these enormous -oysters?' said Miss Montressor, with a little playfulness, turning to -her other neighbour.</p> - -<p>'I don't know whether <i>he</i> would, but I am not,' said Mr. Van Buren. -'Everything you do is done with a grace possessed by no other woman in -the world.'</p> - -<p>'O, Mr. Van Buren,' said the actress with an upward glance, 'that -compliment is even more difficult to swallow than the large oysters.'</p> - -<p>'Now, boys,' cried Bryan Duval, as the first crack of the champagne -corks was heard, 'there must be an exception to the general rule in -America to-night--we will have no speech-making.'</p> - -<p>'We must have one toast,' cried Willy Webster. 'You won't refuse to -drink this--Success to the <i>Cruiskeen Lawn</i>.'</p> - -<p>'Stay!' cried Van Buren, holding up his hand; 'add this to it--And all -our thanks to the lovely Kathleen!'</p> - -<p>The men rose to their feet to drink the toast, and had not resumed -their seats when the door opened, and a tall middle-aged man, with a -bald head, aquiline nose, and large grizzled whiskers, entered the -room. He made straight for Duval, and shook hands with him warmly.</p> - -<p>'My dear Brighthurst,' cried the host, 'I am delighted to see you. We -were all just now regretting your absence, and if you had not been so -erratic a being, should have wondered at its cause. However, here you -are--let me present you to Miss Montressor.'</p> - -<p>After his introduction, Mr. Brighthurst took the vacant seat, and -bending over to the young actress, said:</p> - -<p>'You must not fully believe all these gentlemen say about my -Bohemianism and erratic propensities, Miss Montressor; living in -crystal palaces themselves, they should be the last to throw stones. -They cannot understand, these frivolous butterflies, that I am a -steady man, and that I was prevented from coming here by attention to -my duty.'</p> - -<p>'No, we certainly cannot understand that,' said Mr. Looby.</p> - -<p>'No, indeed, bedad,' said Mr. O'Gog; 'that is not your usual form, -Brighthurst, anyhow!'</p> - -<p>'It may not be my usual form, sweet flower of Erin,' said Mr. -Brighthurst; 'but what I say happens to be correct as regards -to-night. I was detained at the office to write a short editorial upon -some news which just came in.'</p> - -<p>'News!' cried Willy Webster. 'And what was it, pray? Has Tweed been -nominated for the Presidency, or has A.T. Stewart proved to be nothing -but a dead head? Has the Commodore issued a new lot of central stock, -or has John Morrissy joined the Particular Baptists? Speak the word, -Brighthurst, and ease our impatient minds.'</p> - -<p>'What I speak of is English news from the latest files of London -papers, which were delivered this evening, my dear Willy,' said -Brighthurst quietly.</p> - -<p>'European news!' cried Webster. 'Has Queen Victoria sent for Sam Ward -at last, or is the Prince Imperial going to be united to Queen -Isabella, and thus consolidate the two thrones?'</p> - -<p>'The news does not treat of any such important personages or -subjects,' said Brighthurst; 'it simply sends us details of the -English murder, information of which was cabled some days ago.'</p> - -<p>'A murder!' cried Bryan Duval. 'You cannot possibly have the joyful -news for me that the victim was a tailor living in the neighbourhood -of Bond-street?'</p> - -<p>'No,' said Brighthurst with a slight smile; 'nor was the crime -committed in London. The victim was an American gentleman of the name -of Foster.'</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor turned deadly pale, and set down untasted the glass -she was in the act of raising to her lips.</p> - -<p>'What name did you say, Brighthurst?' said Duval, turning quickly to -him. 'Foster, an American? Where was the murder committed?'</p> - -<p>'In Liverpool,' said Brighthurst. 'He had been staying at the Adelphi -Hotel.'</p> - -<p>'Great Heavens,' cried Duval, 'this is most terrific!'</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor buried her face in her handkerchief, and sobbed -silently.</p> - -<p>'What is the meaning of this?' asked Mr. Van Buren, while a look of -inquiry passed round the table.</p> - -<p>'The meaning is simply that this unfortunate gentleman was well known -to me and all my party. He took a great interest in theatricals, and -actually accompanied us to Liverpool to see the last of us before we -sailed. It must have been about that time that his murder took place.'</p> - -<p>'It was within a day or two of your sailing,' said Mr. Brighthurst.</p> - -<p>'But what was the name of the assassin? What was the motive for his -crime? For God's sake, my dear fellow, tell us more about it!' cried -Bryan.</p> - -<p>'I am very sorry, my dear Duval, that I cannot give you any -particulars of your poor friend's fate,' said Brighthurst. 'The -coroner's jury have returned a verdict of wilful murder against some -person or persons unknown, and no trace of the assassin had been -discovered up to the time of the papers going to press. I know this -much, for I made it the text of my editorial, that the English police -do not seem more active in discovering the perpetrators of great -crimes than our detectives here. I shall, however, be able to let you -know all about it in a few minutes, as I instructed a boy to bring a -proof of my article here, and with it a copy of the London <i>Times</i>, -containing the account of the coroner's inquest, which I proposed -reading in bed tonight.'</p> - -<p>'I shall await it with the greatest anxiety,' said Bryan. Then turning -to Miss Montressor, whose face was still buried in her handkerchief, -and dropping his voice, he said: 'There is no occasion yet, at all -events, to be so overwhelmed, my dear Clara. Foster is by no means an -uncommon American name. Liverpool is even more frequented by Americans -than London, and all of them who visit Liverpool of course go to the -Adelphi. The victim in this awful case may not be our poor friend, -after all.'</p> - -<p>'But the date,' whispered poor Miss Montressor; 'the date of the -murder concurs just with the time when he would be at Liverpool; -though, by the way, he told me he intended to return to London on the -evening of our departure. Something, however, may have detained him; -and, besides, I have a kind of presentiment--something which I cannot -shake off--that we shall discover it was our friend Mr. Foster, and no -one else.'</p> - -<p>'I confess I feel very uncomfortable and desponding about it myself,' -said Bryan; 'and I should not be surprised if-- What is this?' he -cried, as the waiter entered, bringing a packet for Mr. Brighthurst. -'O, the newspaper at last!'</p> - -<p>'Pray take it, my dear Duval, and satisfy yourself at once,' said -Brighthurst, handing the paper across to Bryan; 'I can fully apprehend -your anxiety.'</p> - -<p>Bryan took the journal, and, in the midst of a sympathetic silence, -turned it over until he came upon the spot which he was seeking--a -description of the proceedings at the coroner's inquest. In a broken -voice he read out certain details with which the readers of this story -are already familiar: the finding of the body on the landing-place of -the warehouse, the evidence of the outdoor clerk, the two policemen, -and the various persons present at the scene, the fly-driver, who -recognised the victim as one of his customers, and the manager of the -Adelphi, who gave evidence that the body was that of Mr. Foster, who -had been staying at the hotel.</p> - -<p>'There is no doubt at all about it,' said Bryan Duval, laying down the -paper for a minute, his eyes filling with tears. 'It was poor Foster; -it was our poor friend!'</p> - -<p>'It is too dreadful to think of,' said Miss Montressor, giving way to -her grief.</p> - -<p>'Who can the murderer be? What can have been the motive for such a -deed?' cried Duval, after reading a little farther. 'Foster was the -kindest, gentlest soul in the world--a man who could not possibly have -had an enemy; besides, he knew but few people in England, and none, I -should have thought, in Liverpool.'</p> - -<p>'Perhaps he was in the habit of sporting his money,' said Mr. O'Gog; -'there are terrible thieves in them Liverpool taverns.'</p> - -<p>'No, that could not have been,' said Bryan, pointing to a passage in -the paper; 'for it says here that though no papers, cards, or letters -were found upon the body, his purse, containing several sovereigns and -some silver, keys, penknife, and pencil, were found in the pockets -untouched.'</p> - -<p>'That's a strange circumstance,' said Mr. Brighthurst, looking at it -with the professional eye of an editorial writer. 'My experience leads -me to believe that there are two principal motives which lead to the -commission of murder--lust of gain or desire for vengeance. By the -finding of the purse, the first motive is wanting in this instance; -and as regards the second, you tell me he had very few acquaintances -in England, and was the last man in the world likely to have any -enemies, much less one fierce and implacable enough to do such a deed -as this.'</p> - -<p>'He was the kindest-hearted man in the world,' sobbed Miss Montressor; -'always willing to do everybody a service, and more like a woman than -a man in the soft sweetness of his disposition.'</p> - -<p>'Stay,' said Bryan, who had again taken up the paper; 'here are some -farther particulars. The manager of the hotel deposed that, on -examining the room occupied by the deceased, he found a small American -valise, containing a suit of clothes, some linen, and the usual -dressing apparatus; a valuable gold watch had been left on the -dressing-table, which, at the request of the jury, was handed to them. -Here,' continued Bryan, still reading the newspaper, 'a curious -incident occurred. One of the jury was our well-known townsman, Mr. -Hand, the watch and clock maker, who served his time in America. On -examining this watch, Mr. Hand declared, without hesitation, that a -certain portion of its works was made under the patent of the -celebrated house of Tiffany, in New York. All possible search and -inquiry seems to have been made by the police and others concerned, -but without any effect. The conclusion of the story is to be found in -the verdict of wilful murder against some person or persons unknown, -so we must wait and see what time will bring forth. Poor Foster--poor -fellow!'</p> - -<p>'Poor dear Mr. Foster!' sobbed Miss Montressor, in great agitation. 'I -declare it is one of the most horrible things I ever knew. What will -his poor wife say, when she hears the news?'</p> - -<p>'Has he a wife?' asked Mr. Brighthurst.</p> - -<p>'O dear yes; a sweetly pretty woman, with one young child.'</p> - -<p>'It's pretty rough on her, poor thing,' said Mr. Brighthurst, a shadow -stealing over his handsome features.</p> - -<p>'Yes; and the most awful part of it is, that even now she must be in -complete ignorance of what has happened, for I saw her this very night -at the theatre.'</p> - -<p>'At the theatre?' cried several.</p> - -<p>'At the theatre, not two hours since,' cried Miss Montressor. 'I have -most excellent reasons for believing that the lady I saw was Mrs. -Foster.'</p> - -<p>'My dear Miss Montressor,' said Mr. Brighthurst, leaning forward, 'I -think, I trust, you are mistaken. The news that an American gentleman -named Foster had been found murdered in Liverpool was received here by -cable, without any particulars, several days since, and was published -in all the newspapers. It would have been impossible that Mrs. Foster, -or some of her family or friends, should not have seen it.'</p> - -<p>'It may be that I am mistaken,' said Miss Montressor. 'I trust I am, -for it is an awful thing to think of that pretty creature amusing -herself at the theatre with this awful thunder-cloud ready to break -over her head.' And Miss Montressor's tears again began to flow.</p> - -<p>Bryan Duval, who had been listening silently but most attentively to -this colloquy, then roused himself.</p> - -<p>'I think, my dear Clara, you had better retire for a few minutes, and -endeavour to compose yourself. Gentlemen, I am sure you will excuse -Miss Montressor for a time; this news has been too much for her. We -will rejoin you later.'</p> - -<p>All rose as he spoke, and Bryan Duval, taking the actress by the arm, -led her through the folding-doors into the adjoining apartment, and -carefully closed the doors behind him.</p> - -<p>'Try to quiet yourself,' said Bryan Duval, as he placed her in a chair -beside an open window, and, seating himself alongside of her, assumed -a perfectly tranquil air. 'This is a very serious business, and I want -to speak to you about it without delay, and out of hearing of these -people. It is better they should not get hold of such facts as may be -hidden under the surface of this horrible event prematurely. Will you -tell me as quietly as you can exactly what you mean about the lady -whom you saw at the theatre to-night? That's right; you are quieter -now; don't speak for a minute, until you can do so without sobbing; -try to recollect every circumstance, and to be perfectly exact.'</p> - -<p>The purpose-like composure of his manner had its due effect upon the -excitable but not foolish woman to whom he spoke. She made a steady -effort, and subdued the rising hysterical agitation, and after a -minute or two was quite able to speak plainly.</p> - -<p>'You remember,' she said, 'the dinner Mr. Foster gave us at Richmond, -and that I had a good deal of talk with him both down at Richmond and -in the carriage as we came home?'</p> - -<p>Bryan Duval nodded.</p> - -<p>'He told me a good deal about himself, and spoke much of his wife, to -whom he seemed to be quite unusually attached. He said he would -introduce me to her, as he knew she would like me; that she was very -fond of the stage, had a passion for artistes' society, and a great -many other things of the same kind. Of course I asked him what she was -like, and he gave me a great description of her beauty and grace. I -suppose I did not keep down a smile of something like incredulity, or -at least of a suspicion of some exaggeration, in this description, for -he said, "You shall see for yourself, Miss Montressor, whether I am -exaggerating like an absent lover my Helen's charms;" and he took out -a watch--one of a very peculiar construction; I had never seen one -like it--and opened it by touching a spring so carefully concealed -that, when he put it into my hands afterwards, and told me to try if I -could open it, I could not even perceive where the spring lay. The -cover flew back and disclosed a miniature of a woman who was certainly -very pretty, and had the kind of face which one does not forget. I -looked at it for a good while: held it in my hand--for Mr. Foster had -taken it off his watch-chain--as we walked up and down on the terrace, -and made myself perfectly familiar with the features; the arrangement -of the hair particularly struck me, and I remarked to him how well it -suited the face. He said yes, he had always thought so; that his wife -had very good taste, and was her own hairdresser. You will see -presently why I tell you these particulars.'</p> - -<p>'I especially wish you to tell me every particular you can recollect,' -said Bryan Duval.</p> - -<p>'I do not think there was anything remarkable except that in what he -said to me,' said Miss Montressor. 'The subject was again referred to -during our drive home, and he told me the watch containing the -portrait was a parting gift from his wife. She had given it to him on -the very evening before he had left New York, and he had promised -always to wear it. I thought it a little unusual for a man to speak so -frankly and so freely of a thing of the kind, and I suppose I said it -or looked it. I do not remember that, but I do recollect his saying, -"Out of the fulness of the heart, you know. Miss Montressor, the mouth -speaketh," when neither a lack of sympathy nor ridicule was to be -apprehended. I thought him a man of considerable feeling, and that he -found his sojourn in England very wearisome, so that he was relieved -by finding any one, even a stranger, to whom he might talk of his -home.'</p> - -<p>'He was not a reticent man,' said Bryan Duval, 'as I have good reason -to know; a reason which I shall tell you presently if, as I fear, -there is more in this matter than meets the eye, and I have to ask -your help in a painful duty that may fall to my share. But pray go on, -and tell me what is the connection between Mr. Foster's confidence to -you and the lady whom you saw tonight.'</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor hesitated for just one moment. Could she explain -herself fully without the revelation of the family secret she had -strongly desired to preserve? Not if Bryan Duval were to question her -very closely on material issues. 'Never mind,' she thought, 'I must -risk it. I won't tell it unless I am forced, but I cannot hold my -tongue here--it is too serious.'</p> - -<p>'I have a friend in New York,' she said, 'who came to see me -yesterday, and in the course of some gossip about this place and the -people in it she happened to mention a certain Mrs. Griswold, who -holds a high position here, and who is a great admirer of the drama. -My friend told me that Mrs. Griswold had been particularly anxious to -see me in one of my best parts, and had taken places for our first -appearance. This Mrs. Griswold, it appears, was very handsome, very -charming, and altogether a somebody. I fancied I should like to -recognise her, if possible, among the audience; and as my friend knew -where she was going to sit, she gave me a description of her -appearance and dress, which would have enabled me to recognise her, -had this lady occupied the place my friend knew she had taken. The -description was--brown hair, worn plain, without flowers or jewels, -brown eyes, pale blue velvet dress, gold ornaments, and a -blue-and-gold fan. Not very distinct, after all, when you come to -think of it, now that pale blue velvet is so fashionable; but true -enough, when I looked at the place my friend had directed my attention -to--the last seat but two, dress circle, right-hand side--I saw a lady -who was watching the play intently, and whose appearance and dress -entirely coincided with my friend's description--but the lady was not -Mrs. Griswold.'</p> - -<p>'Not Mrs. Griswold!' exclaimed Bryan Duval. 'How do you know?'</p> - -<p>'Because,' returned Miss Montressor impressively, 'the face was the -face of Mr. Foster's wife, as I saw it in the miniature enclosed in -the watch-cover; the hair and the eyes were quite unmistakable. That -she was the woman who had sat for that miniature I cannot entertain -the smallest doubt. It is Mrs. Foster, and therefore <i>not</i> Mrs. -Griswold!'</p> - -<p>Bryan Duval had listened to the latter part of Miss Montressor's -narrative with intense, even painful, eagerness. It was evident that -he attached immense importance to the apparently insignificant mistake -made by Miss Montressor; a mistake easily to be explained on the -theory that her friend had given her an erroneous indication of Mrs. -Griswold's place in the house. Not so did Bryan Duval interpret it.</p> - -<p>'You are quite sure,' he repeated, 'that you looked at the place where -you were told to look for Mrs. Griswold?'</p> - -<p>'I am quite sure.'</p> - -<p>'You are quite sure that the lady you saw in that place bore a close -resemblance to the miniature likeness of Mr. Foster's wife?'</p> - -<p>'I am perfectly certain of it,' returned Miss Montressor; 'every -feature and line was identical, and the peculiar unornamented mode in -which the hair was dressed was a conclusive proof to my mind. Stay a -moment,' she said, with a start like one catching at a suddenly -suggested point, and laying her hand upon his arm, 'there is a curious -coincidence in this. My friend told me that Mrs. Griswold had -beautiful brown hair, in which she never wore any ornament.'</p> - -<p>Bryan Duval rose, walked slowly up and down the room twice, and then -returned to Miss Montressor's side. His face was very pale, and his -voice sounded hoarsely, as he said to her:</p> - -<p>'There is far more than ordinary villany in this atrocious murder, and -perhaps the only way by which it can be exposed rests with you and -with me. I think you will be discreet, and if it be necessary to ask -you to take any part in this terrible matter, I think you will consent -to do so, and to act under orders.'</p> - -<p>'Certainly,' replied Miss Montressor, looking considerably frightened. -'I wish you would explain what you mean, and what part in it can -possibly fall to me.'</p> - -<p>'I will explain,' said Bryan Duval. 'I fear I shall soon have to -violate a dead man's confidence more extensively than by telling the -story to you. Foster took, as you know, a great fancy to me, and even -before that day when we went down to Richmond he had told me a great -deal about himself; but his confidences with me took a different form -from those in which he indulged on that day with you--they chiefly -related to business matters. He told me what was the object of his -journey to London--with which I need not trouble you, it has no -immediate bearing on the case: he told me how unexpectedly and rapidly -successful he had been in the accomplishment of that object, and that -he had good hopes of being able to return to New York at a much -earlier date than that fixed at his departure. I remember that he did -say he hadn't as yet announced to his wife that such a prospect had -opened up to him, preferring to make quite sure rather than run the -risk of keeping her in suspense, which might possibly end in -disappointment. The details were rather complicated, and it struck me -at the time that there was a good deal, not only of fair business -competition, but of equivocal manoeuvring to be apprehended in the -carrying through of the enterprise. That it was by no means smooth -sailing for Foster was particularly borne in upon me by one fact, -which he communicated to me in the strictest confidence, now unhappily -dispersed. It was this'--Bryan Duval now spoke in a whisper, and with -great intentness--'he had come to England under a false name.'</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor looked up wonderingly. 'Under a false name?' she -repeated. 'His name was not Foster? What was it, then?'</p> - -<p>'I do not know,' returned Bryan Duval. 'But an awful surmise as to what -it might have been came to me with your first words, when this horrid -news was conveyed to us just now.'</p> - -<p>'I don't understand you,' said Miss Montressor, with a somewhat -confused and wondering look. She had not caught at the chain of -probabilities which had presented itself to Bryan Duval.</p> - -<p>'I have a horrible conviction,' said he, 'that Foster's name really -was Griswold.'</p> - -<p>'My God,' exclaimed Miss Montressor, moved to the exclamation by more -feelings than the one which could be easily interpreted by her hearer, -'can it be?'</p> - -<p>'It struck me in an instant, and every word that you have spoken has -confirmed the suspicion. He told me that his wife had no notion that -he had been obliged to assume a false name; he spoke of her to me only -casually--with great affection it is true--but my only distinct -recollection of any quality which he assigned to her was a negative -one: that she knew nothing about business, and that, therefore, he -could not have told her that the assumption of a name not his own was -a necessary precaution without alarming her. He had, not very wisely I -thought at the time, kept her in ignorance of this detail, and -arranged for her letters to him passing through the hands of a friend, -who was to redirect them to him under his assumed appellation, known -only to this friend. How well I recollect that the whole story struck -me as the sort of thing which, had it occurred in a play or a book, -would have been pronounced rather unnatural, and likely to involve so -much confusion of detail as to hamper rather than aid business -operations! How little I dreamt of such a complication as that which -has arisen now! I do not think you see it?'</p> - -<p>'I confess I do not,' said Miss Montressor.</p> - -<p>'Well, it is simply this: the lady you saw in the theatre to-night was -Mrs. Griswold, but none the less was she the original of the miniature -which Mr. Foster showed you as that of his wife. The unhappy woman has -no conception that the news with which all New York is ringing -concerns her--that the murdered man is her husband.'</p> - -<p>'I see it now, I see it now!' said Miss Montressor.</p> - -<p>'You do not see it all even yet,' resumed Bryan Duval impressively. -'You don't see how it touches us. We two are the only people in this -city who know the truth--we two are the only people on whom the task -of making the truth known can possibly devolve, except, indeed, the -friend through whom Foster received his wife's letters; and I know -neither his name, his address, nor his business--I have, indeed, no -clue whatever to him. The position of this unfortunate man's wife is -one of the most terrible and tragic that can be conceived. What is to -be done?'</p> - -<p>'What, indeed!' said Miss Montressor, whose mind, however, glanced -rapidly towards her sister. 'I suppose you must communicate with the -authorities.'</p> - -<p>'Of course, of course!' said Bryan Duval. 'But I am not thinking so -much of the public and official steps to be taken in this horrible -affair; it is the wife, whose position, poor unconscious creature, is -so very awful.'</p> - -<p>To this Miss Montressor assented with ready sympathy, but it was -agreed between them, as at that late hour nothing whatever could be -done until the morning, there was nothing for it but that they should -keep their own counsel. Bryan Duval impressed upon Miss Montressor the -absolute necessity of appearing to be totally unconcerned in the -matter, lest she should expose herself to indiscreet questioning by -any member of the party, which it had now become necessary they should -rejoin.</p> - -<p>'If I could avoid seeing them at all,' she said, 'it would be better, -and, indeed, I hardly feel equal to the exertion. I cannot forget the -face I saw to-night, so full of interest and delight, beaming with -youth, beauty, and happiness; I cannot forget the pride and pleasure -with which that poor fellow showed me its miniature presentment in the -watch, which was his wife's parting gift. The two pictures will haunt -me all night, and when the morn comes, what shall we do?'</p> - -<p>'I do not know,' said Bryan Duval, 'what my part may have to be; I -must be well advised in that matter: but one grand object would be to -secure access to Mrs. Griswold. How well I remember poor Foster -talking of the pleasure it would give his wife to make our -acquaintance, and telling me that he could not give me a letter of -introduction to her, because it might lead to the leaking out, through -some other members of the company, of the fact that they had known him -as Mr. Foster. If the poor fellow had only made his confidence in me -complete, if he had told me what was the real name which he had hidden -under a false one, it might be easier for me now to help in this -terrible calamity. There is no way of getting at Mrs. Griswold without -startling her, if, indeed, we must be the persons to reveal the -truth.'</p> - -<p>'Perhaps we may devise one,' said Miss Montressor; 'but we must break -up now. I am quite worn out.'</p> - -<p>'Do not return to the supper-room at all,' said Bryan Duval; 'here is -a side door by which you can get away. I will apologise for you, -though, indeed, no apology is needed.'</p> - -<p>During the conversation the hum of voices in the next room had been -distinctly audible. The English actors had suddenly found themselves -invested with a new importance and interest in New York; the very -latest intelligence of the murdered man was to be had from them; and -when Bryan Duval returned, he found his companions the centre of an -eager group, who were all listening with absorbed avidity to every -detail which could be furnished by the party concerning their -acquaintance with Mr. Foster. The telegraph had given accurate -particulars of the place and time at which the murder had been -committed, which had so immediately followed the farewell scene on -board the Cuba, that every utterance of Mr. Foster's which could be -retailed by his companions on that occasion was regarded and noted -with all the impressiveness due to last words.</p> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h4><a name="div2_07" href="#div2Ref_07">CHAPTER VII.</a></h4> -<h5>ONLY TOO TRUE.</h5> -<br> - -<p>Mr. Jacobs was as punctual as usual in his early attendance in the -box-office of the Varieties on the morning after the first appearance -of the Bryan Duval troupe, when he was lightly touched on the -shoulder, and, turning round, was astonished to perceive the great -London star himself.</p> - -<p>'Ha, ha, my dear boy, it is you, is it?' cried Mr. Jacobs, with -unctuous familiarity. 'Looking after business--always got an eye to -the dollars--come down to see how the places are going? Well, you need -not look so anxious about it; we're going right ahead, we are, this -time.'</p> - -<p>'It wasn't for that, Jacobs,' said Bryan, with a faint smile. 'I want -to look at the sheet for last night. I want to see what names certain -places were taken in.'</p> - -<p>'O, that's the game, is it?' said Mr. Jacobs, handing him the sheet -required. 'Want to see whether any of your old flames came to welcome -you back. Hallo! what's the matter?' he cried, as Duval uttered a -short groan.</p> - -<p>'Nothing,' said Bryan; 'nothing at all. As Jacobs looked up at him he -saw his finger resting motionless on a certain portion of the box -sheet. 'Thank you, I won't intrude upon you any more. Good-morning, -Jacobs;' and he sauntered off.</p> - -<p>'Mrs. Alston E. Griswold,' murmured Jacobs to himself, reading the -name underneath which Bryan's finger had been fixed. 'That's it; -there's the mark of his black glove on the sheet now. Alston Griswold? -Why, that's the name of one of your Wall-street customers, with a fine -up-town house and--ah, Bryan, my boy, your propensities will get you -into mischief one of these days.'</p> - -<p>'All doubt is at an end now,' said Bryan, as he walked up to the -hotel, 'and Clara was right. The case seems to me even darker and -worse than she seems to think at present. It is lucky that she has a -head upon her shoulders, for I shall have to take her into -consultation.'</p> - -<p>Thereupon he despatched an elderly Irishman to Miss Montressor's room, -with a message intimating his desire to be allowed access to her as -soon as possible. Bryan Duval's messenger returned with an affirmatory -answer to his inquiry whether Miss Montressor could let him see her; -they had not yet met on that morning, and she was in a high state of -expectation of what the interview might bring forth.</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor had been thinking intently on the subject in -discussion during all her waking moments since she and Bryan Duval had -parted on the preceding night. It had not kept her from sleeping; her -nerves were in too good order and her constitution was too sound for -her to be subjected to inconveniences of that sort by any abstract -cause of emotion; but she had thought over it until she fell asleep, -and it had recurred to her with her first consciousness on waking. She -had endeavoured, in anticipation of Bryan Duval's possible line of -interrogation, to recall everything that had been said during the -conversation between herself and Mr. Foster on the terrace at -Richmond, and, strangely as she considered it, she found this very -difficult to do. If Miss Montressor had understood the laws of mental -processes better, she would have known that this difficulty was of -ordinary occurrence, and to be anticipated in her case. She was not in -the habit of thinking about anything systematically, and a beginning -in this direction is no easier than any other mental process directed -with intention. So that Miss Montressor had got herself rather into a -muddle between what had really been said by Mr. Foster and her general -impression of the interview, when she found Bryan Duval in the small -ante-room in which the residents at the hotel usually received their -friends.</p> - -<p>Neither was insensible to the gravity and incongruity of the occasion. -That two strangers, come to New York in the trifling and superficial -character of actors, should be--to their own almost indubitable -persuasion, and quite unsuspected by the public--able to supply the -key of one of the most terrible mysteries of crime which had for a -long time startled and disturbed society, was a circumstance full of -oddity and interest that they appreciated to the full. Literally -nothing could have influenced, impressed, surprised, or agitated Duval -out of the instincts of the dramatist who combines, and the actor who -reproduces, the situations supplied by human events. When this story -should be complete in its reality, it would find its way to the -pigeon-holes in which Bryan Duval's materials, the pabulum of his -ever-active brain, were stored up, with the regularity, in order and -in date, of a privately edited edition of the <i>Annual Register</i>. In -due, not in undue time--Bryan Duval was never so wanting in taste and -judgment as to incur the charge of indecent haste--this drama of real -life would no doubt be put upon the stage, with charming accessories -of scenery, decoration, and padding-out. Bryan Duval saw his way to it -already, though as yet the knowledge of the murderer and his motive -were wanting to the story.</p> - -<p>It had occupied his thoughts also almost exclusively; and though he -had been trained to habits of mental precision, and the following of -clues to human nature altogether beyond Miss Montressor's ken and -capacity, he had not reached a much clearer state of mind than that in -which his fair friend was about to join him. Bryan Duval was a man of -too much natural keenness and too much acquired experience to accept -generalities as bases for argument, or to seek conclusions in them. -While he constructed a system with the skill and minuteness of a -Procureur Impérial, he did not lend his judgment to one hypothesis, -and turn the facts to fit it. Without ignoring or depreciating the -influence of women in all human events, he regarded the 'Who is she?' -which has become axiomatic as rather smart than sound, and was -disposed to believe that dollars are quite as often to be found as -women at the bottom of the crimes, as they assuredly are of the -misfortunes, of men. In the present instance, if anything could be -said to induce an explanation in the midst of the mystery of this -crime, it was Bryan Duval's conviction that money was in question. Mr. -Foster's private business in London; the disguise about his name, -which he had avowed, but not explained; the perfectly conceivable -rivalry and envy which his expedition might have excited--all these -were plain to the mind of Bryan Duval as he pondered the matter, and -they pointed each and all to another conclusion than that of 'Who is -she?' Of Mr. Foster, or, as he had almost come to name the murdered -man in his thoughts, Alston Griswold, he had not known very much, and -their term of acquaintance had been short; but it had sufficed to -create a strong regard for him, and Bryan Duval had formed a pretty -accurate estimate of the New York merchant's character.</p> - -<p>'An honest, true-hearted fellow,' said Duval to himself, 'and -profoundly in love with his wife, who seems to have been equally -attached to him. There was no woman in this case--no woman on either -side the Atlantic. The murderer must be looked for in the ordinary -category of ruffians, or if it is a put-up job, the wire-puller is -here in New York among his rivals in business.'</p> - -<p>The scene and circumstances of the crime, imperfectly as they could be -gathered from the newspaper reports, made a very vivid picture to the -mind's eye of the dramatist, accustomed to seize upon salient points; -and he thought he discerned in them tokens of a surprise and a -discovery, rather than of the common assault of a robber.</p> - -<p>'Why should he have gone with any man into an empty warehouse?' Bryan -Duval asked himself. 'May he not have been enticed thither by a -promise of information of some kind? May he not have been suddenly set -upon and murdered, because he refused to give certain information?'</p> - -<p>The circumstance of Mr. Foster having lingered in Liverpool later than -the departure of the train by which he mentioned to Duval it was his -intention to return to London, did not make any impression upon the -actor's mind.</p> - -<p>'Business men have business matters to attend to in many places,' he -thought. 'If the poor fellow strained a point a little in letting me -suppose that he had nothing to do and nobody to see in Liverpool, and -only came down on our account, it was a harmless little bit of -compliment, and I daresay he did. No man is bound to tell a far closer -friend than I was <i>all</i> about any matter in which he is concerned, and -this one may have had an extensive connection in Liverpool, and lots -to do there for anything I know to the contrary. I have, to be sure, -no very solid grounds for my belief; but it is certainly more than an -impression that this poor fellow's business in England lies at the -root of this matter, and that there is no woman in the case.'</p> - -<p>The words were passing through his mind as Miss Montressor entered the -room.</p> - -<p>'You were only too right,' said Bryan Duval, as Miss Montressor -entered the room with face full of inquiry: 'the lady who occupied the -seat you described to me last night was indeed Mrs. Alston Griswold; -here is the memorandum from the box-office, giving the name and -address. This is certainty on one side of the question; certainty on -the other will, I fear, be only too readily attained.'</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor sat down and looked, as she felt, very much concerned. -The condition of the unconscious wife appealed at once to her womanly -and her artistic feelings; the truth and the situation alike struck -her as deeply impressive.</p> - -<p>'I shall communicate at once with the city authorities,' said Bryan -Duval; 'it will be impossible for me to keep out of this sad affair, -and it is manifestly my duty to volunteer all the information it is in -my power to give. I suppose there will be some person who will be -deputed to break this terrible news to her?'</p> - -<p>'No, no,' said Miss Montressor; 'do not act in the matter in that way. -What do the ends of justice matter in comparison with the wife who is -widowed in such a horrible manner, and who knows nothing of the -calamity which has befallen her? Let them wait; let us first try to -find some personal friend of the poor thing, and tell him.'</p> - -<p>'Of course,' said Bryan Duval, 'that would be the proper line of -action if we knew anything about a personal friend; but we must first -discover the identity of a person of the sort, and how am I to do that -except by communicating with the authorities? Very likely the -officials with whom it will be my duty to confer may all, or some of -them, be acquainted with Mrs. Griswold. Full particulars of the murder -cannot be known until the arrival of the mail, and it is just possible -that no suspicion may arise, unless I awaken it, that Mr. Foster is -the well-known Mr. Griswold I now firmly believe him to be. To keep -the knowledge of such a possibility from the police authorities here -for a moment longer than it can be avoided may seriously impede action -on the other side, as it must prevent the supplying of information -from thence.'</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor had listened to Bryan Duval with a troubled -countenance and an equally troubled heart. A line of action was -suggesting itself to her, which had the full consent of her judgment -and her feelings, but a consideration of self-interest was striving to -withhold her from propounding it. She knew that the means of acquiring -the information which would enable Bryan Duval to communicate direct -with some acquaintance or friend of Mrs. Griswold's lay ready at her -hand, but she hesitated to use it. Bess was that means--it would cost -her something to avail herself of Bess. The struggle in Miss -Montressor's mind was not lasting. The kindly remembrance of the man -who had treated her with such gentlemanly consideration, with such -unfeigned respect, a thought of the fair woman whom she had seen on -the previous night and her pathetic ignorance, overcame her -misgivings.</p> - -<p>'I think,' she said, 'I can supply you with a hint which may change -your view of the most judicious course for you to pursue. Do you -remember that I told you yesterday that I had a friend who knew Mrs. -Griswold, and had given me indications by which I recognised her--or, -as I thought, recognised Mrs. Foster--at the theatre?'</p> - -<p>'Yes, I remember,' said Bryan Duval. 'How stupid I am not to have -remembered it sooner! I suppose you can put yourself in communication -with her?'</p> - -<p>'Easily,' said Miss Montressor. 'She is'--here she hesitated for one -last moment--'she is in a very humble station--no higher than that of -nurse to Mrs. Griswold's child.'</p> - -<p>'Capital,' said Bryan Duval, passing over the explanation with an -absolute carelessness highly reassuring to Miss Montressor; 'nothing -could be better. She is positively in the house, and knows all about -them.'</p> - -<p>'Well, she has only been in the house since Mr. Griswold's departure; -but I have no doubt she can give us the information we require.'</p> - -<p>'Can you get it from her?' said Bryan Duval, in that curt business -tone which Miss Montressor had come to know so thoroughly, and which -had in it something extremely satisfactory to everybody who wanted to -transact business with the man who spoke thus to the purpose.</p> - -<p>'I can,' she replied, 'but it will be a little difficult to do without -exciting suspicion and precipitating discovery, if indeed the -discovery is to be made. I cannot send for her to come to me -openly--such an invitation would astonish Mrs. Griswold, and she might -meet it with an objection--neither can I go in my proper capacity to -Mrs. Griswold's house to visit one of Mrs. Griswold's servants.'</p> - -<p>'Why can't you go as a servant yourself?' said Bryan Duval. 'Your -make-up in that line is unexceptionable; try it off the boards at -once!'</p> - -<p>'I will,' said Miss Montressor; 'that is a capital idea. I will go -disguised, and discover whether the lady at the play really was Mrs. -Griswold. If I cannot see her, which I may manage to do by some -contrivance, I shall at least be sure to see a portrait of her. A man -like her husband was not likely to be satisfied with a mere miniature -of his wife while a full-length portrait was to be had for money. We -are, of course, morally certain that the fact is what we take it to -be, but the first thing to be done is to achieve actual certainty. -Taking it for granted that I see Mrs. Griswold and identify her with -the miniature, what will you do next?'</p> - -<p>'I cannot decide upon that until I have received your report,' said -Bryan Duval, 'on these two heads--first, the identity of Mrs. Griswold -with the portrait Mr. Foster showed you; secondly, the name and -address of some intimate friend of the family, with whom I may at once -communicate.'</p> - -<p>'I am quite sure there is such a person,' interrupted Miss Montressor. -'I could not distinctly recall everything that Mr. Foster told me, in -the hurry and confusion of last night; but since then I have -remembered a good deal. He mentioned to me, but not by name, one -friend in particular, in whose charge he had confided not only his -business interests in New York during his absence, but also his -household treasures. Poor fellow, he quite amused me--though I am -conscious now that I did not respond very warmly or graciously--by his -simple talk about his wife and child. He would try to describe the -baby to me, and he did describe the mother as well as showing me her -picture. He was a good soul. But I quite remember now that he told me -he had this trusty friend.'</p> - -<p>'A piece of information which makes your suggestion all the more -admirable and your aid all the more valuable. We now have some -definite basis of action. When we discover this friend of Foster's, or -Griswold's, we shall not only have found the man who will be our best -guide as to what we ought to do, but we shall have found the man who -will be sure to hit upon the motive of the crime. And now lose no -time. Set about your task at once; the sooner it is over, the better -for you and for what I have to do. I do not say to you, do it well and -do it delicately--that I feel is unnecessary. We have not had half -sufficient time to realise how horrid this thing is which has -happened; and so much the better, since it has so strangely fallen out -that we have come to this side of the world to act in such a tragedy.'</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor rose and was about to leave the room, when she said:</p> - -<p>'Suppose by any possibility I should be wrong, and that this lady is -not the original of the miniature, consequently that Mr. Griswold, her -husband, is not the murdered man--what will you do in that case?'</p> - -<p>'In that case,' said Bryan Duval, 'I shall simply have to communicate -with the authorities the fact that Mr. Foster is not the murdered -man's real name; this on his own authority, and of course it will be -immediately transmitted to London. Go now. You will find me here on -your return; I shall not leave the house.'</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor left him, and, going to her own room, made rapid -preparation for the arduous task she had been set. She hurriedly -turned over such articles of her wardrobe as had yet been unpacked, -searching for those most suitable to the part she was to play. While -doing this, her thoughts reverted to the last unprofessional -masquerade in which she had indulged, and, by a natural transition, to -Mr. Dolby. She had thought very little about him during her voyage -out, but as it approached its termination she had occasionally -speculated upon whether that gentleman would present himself at the -wharf, or whether he would wait and pay her a more dignified visit at -her hotel. She had actually spared him a few moments' recollection in -all the triumph of her first brilliantly successful appearance on the -previous evening. 'Was Mr. Dolby in the house?' she had wondered. 'Was -his hand among the number of those which had flung prodigal floral -tributes at her feet? Or--was he sulky still?' She had, however, -completely forgotten him from the announcement of the supper, and in -all the hurry, agitation, and confusion of the ensuing hours of the -night, her mind had never once glanced towards him. But now--she -selected a plain gray skirt, originally intended to fulfil the once -humble office of petticoat, but which was rather an unduly smart -morning walking dress for the part she was assuming--she remembered -the day on which she had gone to the house in Queen-street, and -inquired ineffectually for her angry lover. Even now it was only a -passing remembrance; her feelings were unaffectedly and deeply engaged -in the matter in hand. Miss Montressor's wardrobe contained nothing -suitable to be worn as an out-door dress of the sort which she -required; but she remedied the deficiency by putting on a thick dark -shawl, which she found among the parcel of wraps, and removing the too -conspicuous feather from her hat, over which she pinned a veil.</p> - -<p>As she unfolded the shawl the sharp end of a pin caught her finger. -'How tiresome of Justine,' she muttered, 'to leave pins stuck in -shawls! I have so often spoken to her about it;' and she turned over -the folds of the garment to find the obnoxious object. It was a long -gold pin with a carved head, rather intended for a gentleman's necktie -than as a shawl fastener; the stone was a very fine specimen of -intaglio work, and Miss Montressor looked at it without any -recognition of whence it came. It was not hers; and as it was a very -uncommon article, it was not the sort of thing to be picked up on the -floor or anywhere, as people pick up ordinary pins. 'I wonder whose it -is, and how I came by it?' she thought, as she mechanically used it to -fasten the shawl.</p> - -<p>She then went quickly clown the stairs, and passed out of the door, -comparatively unnoticed. It was early in the day, and the customary -groups of loungers had not yet assembled. On leaving the hotel, Miss -Montressor turned to the right, and making inquiry of the first person -whom she met as to the distance which divided her from that portion of -Fifth-avenue in which Mrs. Griswold's house was situate, learned that -she would be overtaken in about a minute by a street car, which would -deposit her close by. She had barely thanked her informant when the -car came up, and the man to whom she had spoken signalled to the -conductor; the next moment Miss Montressor was making her first -experience of the marvellously-convenient and well-arranged street -locomotion of New York. As she seated herself, a sudden recollection -flashed across her that the pin which she had been so surprised to -find in her shawl had belonged to Mr. Foster. With the suddenness of -the vision, the little circumstance which had placed it in her -possession returned to her memory--again she felt the slight chill of -the evening air; she saw Mr. Foster's face, and felt his careful hands -drawing the warm folds around her; remembering that he held them -together with one hand, as he removed the pin from his own necktie -with the other. How came she to have forgotten this pin--to have -omitted returning it to him? It was a strange oversight. How curious -and mysterious, should it be now destined to be an important -coincidence! 'His wife will remember it,' she thought. 'If we are -right in our terrible belief, my bringing it to her, my requesting her -to identify it, will enable me to prove my sad story to the poor lady.' -What was it Mr. Foster had told her about this pin? She must try to -recollect all he had said very exactly; she must not add a word or -subtract a word if possible. He had said that it was a sleeve button -that had belonged to his wife; that on his arrival in London he had -found it among his things, where it had no doubt been put by accident, -and that he had had it made into a pin--yes, that was exactly what he -had said. She took out her pocket-book, and in the few minutes -occupied by the transit she wrote down, with all the accuracy -attainable by her memory, the words in which Mr. Foster had told her -these facts.</p> - -<p>She had hardly concluded the memorandum when she was set down, and in -a few minutes found herself at the door of Mrs. Griswold's house. A -good-humoured coloured servant answered the summons of the bell, and, -on her inquiry for Mrs. Jenkins, ushered her into a small waiting-room -on the right of the hall. Several newspapers lay upon the table; she -turned them over hurriedly, and found in each great prominence given -to the appalling murder in Liverpool of an American gentleman. She had -no time to read the details, which were afforded in every variety of -type, and embellished with every device to attract curiosity and -direct attention, for she was joined by her sister within a few -moments. 'Civil people these,' she thought, in the way that people -will think of trifles amid the most serious occupations of the mind; -'civil people these, to give a message to a servant with such -celerity.'</p> - -<p>'You see I have come to visit you, Bess, after all'</p> - -<p>Mrs. Jenkins received her sister with unbounded delight, but had -hardly greeted her and recounted with what eloquent praises Mrs. -Griswold had spoken of the performance, and especially of Clara's part -in it, that morning, when she was helping to dress her, when she broke -off to ask about the very subject which was occupying Miss -Montressor's thoughts.</p> - -<p>'My dear,' she said, 'of course you have heard of this horrible -murder? It gave me a dreadful turn last night, when I heard the boys -crying out, about an hour after Mrs. Griswold went to the play, and -Jim went out to find out all about it. Mrs. Griswold hadn't heard -anything of it when she came in, and I was very glad; for really it is -enough to make one nervous. You heard all about it, of course?'</p> - -<p>'O, yes,' said Miss Montressor; 'we have heard all about it. It -happened the very day after we sailed. Does every one know about it in -the house now?'</p> - -<p>'Of course,' said Mrs. Jenkins.</p> - -<p>'I didn't mean to ask that,' said Miss Montressor; 'my mind is -wandering. I meant to say, was Mrs. Griswold acquainted with Mr. -Foster?'</p> - -<p>'Lor' bless you! no, Clara,' said her sister, laughing. 'I think you -Londoners imagine London is the only big place in the world, and think -people who live anywhere else must know everybody who ever came from -the place where they live. There are lots of Fosters in New York, I -hould think, and there is not anything known about this poor gentleman -except that his name is Foster. Mrs. Griswold saw it this morning, and -she said she did not think Mr. Griswold knew any one of the name; but -it made her quite downhearted--set her off thinking of Mr. Griswold, I -suppose.'</p> - -<p>'Well, I am glad she hadn't heard it before she left the theatre,' -said Miss Montressor; 'it isn't pleasant news to wind up the evening -with, even when one knows nothing at all of the parties concerned, a -dreary epilogue to the play. I saw Mrs. Griswold last night, Bess.'</p> - -<p>'I am glad you did. What do you think of her--though I suppose you -couldn't judge very well at that distance?'</p> - -<p>'Well, in the first place, I should like to be sure that it was Mrs. -Griswold. People change places occasionally, you know, at the theatre, -and I didn't catch sight of her until the third act, nor see her very -distinctly then; but I could make out the gown, and that she wore gold -ornaments of the new fashion--warming-pan style, all clink and clatter -when you are near them, and very like harness when you are not. I saw -the blue-and-gold fan, too; so I suppose there is no doubt that was -the lady?'</p> - -<p>'No doubt at all,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'She was in the seat I told you -to look at, and said how comfortable it was, and what a capital view -of the stage she had from it. She was highly delighted, I can tell -you, Clara, and said she liked your acting better than any she had -ever seen. I told her it was not your best part, that it was nothing -to your Juliet; but she said she was afraid she was too stupid to care -about Shakespeare--not that she is stupid. I am sure I don't set -myself up for a judge, but I think she is as bright as she is pretty.'</p> - -<p>'I don't exactly know whether she is pretty or not,' said Miss -Montressor, 'and I take a great interest in your Mrs. Griswold: a lady -who is so kind to her dependents as you make her out to be, and has -the good sense and the good taste to be an admirer of the drama, is a -legitimate subject of interest. I am sorry I did not see her face more -distinctly; could you give me a sight of her now?'</p> - -<p>'Now,' said Mrs. Jenkins, 'and in that dress, Clara! What would she -think?'</p> - -<p>'Why, my dear Bess, you do not imagine I want you to introduce me as -Miss Montressor in this costume, and thus deliberately tell on myself -the very thing which I have been impressing upon you must be kept -profoundly secret? Not at all. But nursery visitors are not -impossibilities in a house of this sort, I suppose? Couldn't I be a -humble friend, a former fellow-servant somewhere--I suppose she thinks -you were a servant before you came to her--who has just dropped in to -have a look at baby?'</p> - -<p>Mrs. Jenkins laughed. 'It would be good fun to have a private play of -that sort on our own account, Clara, but unfortunately it cannot be -done, for Mrs. Griswold is not in the nursery, and she is not likely -to come to it. She caught cold last night at the play, and I could not -persuade her not to get up this morning; but she felt very tired after -breakfast, and I did persuade her to go and lie down: she is lying -down in her own room, and the orders are that she is not to be -disturbed for anything less important than a cable message from Mr. -Griswold. She is always expecting one, though, as far as I can see, he -is too sensible to waste money in them, and satisfies himself with -writing by the mail--precious long letters they are, and doesn't she -prize them just! However, she is lying down, and I cannot disturb her, -above all by taking a stranger into the room; so you cannot see her at -present.'</p> - -<p>'O, never mind,' said Miss Montressor; 'so much the better that she is -in the room. I shall have plenty of chances of seeing her. And now I -should like a look at the house, Bess. It is the first house I have -been in in New York, and I have a fancy for that sort of thing, and I -like to get hints about carpets and curtains and drawing-room fixings. -Can't you take me round--it is allowed, I suppose?'</p> - -<p>'O, certainly, it is allowed,' said Mrs. Jenkins; 'we are under no -restraint here. Come along up-stairs;' and the unsuspecting woman led -Miss Montressor up the broad staircase to the white-and-gold -folding-doors which gave access to the reception-rooms.</p> - -<p>'What a simple creature it is,' thought Miss Montressor, 'that it has -never occurred to her to ask me why I have so decidedly changed mv -mind as to come here to see her, that being the very exact thing which -I so positively assured her yesterday I could not do! Very handsome -rooms, indeed,' she said aloud; 'fitted up in capital taste, and -evidently quite regardless of expense. That's a fine picture on the -wall opposite.'</p> - -<p>She stepped across the floor rapidly, and stood still in front of it. -It was a fine picture; an admirably executed portrait of Helen -Griswold. The artist had painted her in an unconventional attitude, -and the whole picture was pleasing to the general eye, interested in -the work of art rather than in the likeness. It represented a slight, -almost girlish figure, in soft white muslin robes slightly trimmed -with lace, touched here and there with a knot of ribbon, a lace veil -being loosely tied over the rich chestnut-brown hair, softening its -masses, but hiding neither its richness nor its colour; the hands were -clad in gardening-gloves; in the right was a large pair of scissors, -just about to be applied to a rose-bush, one blossom of which was held -apart from the stem by the left; a basket of roses already cut stood -at the feet, and the scene of the picture was a conservatory, the -original of which Miss Montressor had caught a glimpse of on the first -floor of the house.</p> - -<p>'That is Mrs. Griswold's portrait,' said Mrs. Jenkins, in reply to her -sister's observation, 'and it is not at all flattered; so now you can -see, if you had got a near view of her last night, you would have -agreed with me about her beauty.'</p> - -<p>'Yes,' said Miss Montressor slowly, 'that is a pretty face, and one -cannot say of it, as one does of so many pretty faces, that there is -nothing in it. I should think she was a very sensible woman, as well -as a very kind-hearted one?'</p> - -<p>'She is just that,' said Mrs. Jenkins enthusiastically. 'Sit down -here, Clara, and have a good look at it.'</p> - -<p>The sisters placed themselves side by side upon an ottoman which -commanded a good view of the portrait, at which Miss Montressor -continued steadfastly to gaze. All doubt was over now, all hope that -she had been mistaken was at an end; the miniature she had seen in the -watch that day as she paced the terrace at Richmond was but a reduced -copy without the veil, and the face that looked mildly, beaming down -upon her out of its gilded frame, was as fresh and fair as the roses -in the feet. Miss Montressor was not of a classic turn of mind; her -education had not gone far in any direction, nor at all in that; she -did not refer the suggestiveness of the open scissors in the woman's -hand, about to snip the fresh young life of the beautiful rose, to any -recollection of the Pareae; but it had a certain something in it which -impressed her, something of suspicion which filled her eyes with tears -unseen by Mrs. Jenkins.</p> - -<p>'Is there a portrait of Mr. Griswold?' she asked.</p> - -<p>'Only a small one, half-sized, and since he went away Mrs. Griswold -has had it moved to her bedroom. It hangs on the wall just over her -dressing-table, and opposite the foot of her bed. It is the first -thing she must see in the morning when she opens her eyes. They say it -is uncommonly like him; it is painted by the same artist who did this -one; but Mrs. Griswold will have it the picture in her bracelet--much -handsomer and much younger--is more like Mr. Griswold.'</p> - -<p>'Does any one of her family stay with her while he is away?' was Miss -Montressor's next question.</p> - -<p>'There is not any family. She has no relatives, I am told, not only in -New York, but in all the world; she was an orphan when Mr. Griswold -married her, and I do not believe he has any relatives; for I have -never seen any nor heard them spoken of, either by her or among the -servants.'</p> - -<p>'That's lonely for Mrs. Griswold. Has she much company while he is -away? But I think you said not yesterday?'</p> - -<p>'O dear, no she leads the quietest life that any lady could live. Many -a one would think it very dull; but she doesn't, what with her books, -and music, and baby, and her letters to Mr. Griswold. She is sometimes -sorrowful, but never dull. She has some visitors at times, but I don't -think she cares for them--one person is pretty much the same to her as -another, when it is not Mr. Griswold--and one day she said to me, "I -have no intimates, and my husband has very few for so wonderfully -sociable a man, and such a general favourite as he is."'</p> - -<p>'Then there is no one to take care of her in particular?' said Miss -Montressor; 'for she is young, you know, to be left alone with so -much to look after and to do as there must be in the care of all -this,'--with a comprehensive sweep of her arm, intended to take in all -the household goods at once.</p> - -<p>'O, no, there is no one to take care of her,' said Mrs. Jenkins; 'but -she can take very good care of herself. She always wishes to do, and -she always does, what is right and good and kind towards every one.'</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor was profoundly discouraged. Her embassy was not -prospering; the worst that they feared was true, and the aid on which -they had speculated did not seem to be forthcoming. Mrs. Griswold had -no relatives and no intimates. Mr. Griswold had no relatives, and if -he had any intimates, Mrs. Jenkins could evidently have no information -concerning them. What was to be done now? Miss Montressor dared not -pursue her questioning of her sister any further, and hastily decided -that the best thing she could do would be to return to the hotel and -narrate to Bryan Duval exactly what had passed. She felt that her -mission was but imperfectly executed; but its solemnity and importance -had grown upon her with every moment since she had entered Mrs. -Griswold's house, and she was now strongly actuated by a nervous -desire to get out of it as soon as possible. She looked at her watch -and started up in a hurry.</p> - -<p>'I must be going, Bess,' she said; 'I had no notion it was so late. I -am overdue at rehearsal, and here I have stayed talking about other -people, and not said anything of all I wanted to say to you. Come -along down-stairs with me.'</p> - -<p>'You will come again, Clara?' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'Nobody will ever -suspect you in that gown and with that great shawl--it spoils your -figure, dear, but never mind.'</p> - -<p>'I will try,' said Miss Montressor, 'I will see about it; if not, you -can come to me. Good-bye now.'</p> - -<p>Mrs. Jenkins had come to the door with her; the hall was empty as the -sisters spoke their last few words there. Mrs. Jenkins's hand was upon -the lock of the street door when the bell was rung. She mechanically -drew back the lock, and a gentleman presented himself. He was a young -man, tall, slight, and upright, with bright black eyes and dark -complexion, fine curly black hair, and a dark moustache.</p> - -<p>'Is Mrs. Griswold at home?' he said.</p> - -<p>'She is at home, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins, 'but she is very tired and -not very well, and she is lying down.'</p> - -<p>'O, then,' said the stranger, passing into the hall, 'I will content -myself with a visit to your quarters, Mrs. Jenkins, and a look at the -baby.' He had lifted his hat to Miss Montressor, who by this time was -on the outside of the door. 'And,' he now added, 'I will just write a -line in the waiting-room before you take me up-stairs, Mrs. Jenkins, -and ask you to give it to Mrs. Griswold when she awakes.' The sisters -parted with a wave of the hand, and Mrs. Jenkins shut the door.</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor walked slowly and thoughtfully down the street. She -felt sure that the gentleman whom she had just seen, and who spoke so -familiarly to her sister, must be at least an intimate acquaintance of -Mrs. Griswold's--the early hour of his visit, his familiar manner, the -fact that he was going to be taken up to see the child, the very tone -of her sister's voice as she answered his question, all indicated that -he was no stranger. Bess had said Mrs. Griswold had no intimate -friends. Perhaps she had forgotten this one, or the intimacy might be -between him and Mr. Griswold. From that, may be, Miss Montressor felt -instinctively that here was a resource--an instrument put into her -hands. There could be no risk in the using of it.</p> - -<p>By the time she had arrived at this conclusion she was well out of -sight from the windows of Mrs. Griswold's house; but no one could -leave that house and turn to either side without her perceiving the -fact. She crossed the street and waited on the opposite side. She was -quite alone, as it happened, throughout its long length, and might -pass slowly back and forward a few steps in each direction without -attracting attention.</p> - -<p>The minutes during which she was thus engaged seemed very long to Miss -Montressor. Would Bryan Duval approve of what she was going to do? It -might be a great blunder; it might be the best thing under the -circumstances. She was forced to use her discretion in the matter; -there seemed the one way in which she could fulfil the promise with -which she had left Duval. After an interval of at least a quarter of -an hour the door of Mrs. Griswold's house opened, and the young man -for whom Miss Montressor was watching appeared on the threshold, -attended by the coloured servant, to whom he was speaking pleasantly, -and who was receiving a communication with the most expressive grin. -In another moment he came down the steps, and advanced briskly in the -same direction which she had taken. She stood perfectly still until he -was nearly opposite to her. Then she crossed the street rapidly, went -up to him, and, without giving herself a moment to consider, said:</p> - -<p>'You are a friend of Mrs. Griswold's? In her interest may I speak with -you?'</p> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h4><a name="div2_08" href="#div2Ref_08">CHAPTER VIII.</a></h4> -<h5>THORNTON CAREY.</h5> -<br> - -<p>Thornton Carey, who was much surprised at this sudden address, -stopped, hesitated, and looked somewhat embarrassed. Another man, -accustomed to what are called 'adventures,' would not have been in the -least thrown off his balance, either by the suddenness or the style of -the address; he would have accepted it as a matter of course, and done -his best to make himself pleasant to the speaker. Thornton Carey, -however, was not this style of man, and, even if he had been, there -was something in the earnestness of Miss Montressor's voice and manner -which would have stopped his flippancy. Had she not, moreover, -mentioned the name of Helen, and declared herself to be about to speak -in Mrs. Griswold's interests? That would have been quite enough at any -time to command Thornton Carey's sympathy and attention.</p> - -<p>'I am a friend of Mrs. Griswold's,' he replied, looking keenly at his -interlocutor, 'and, for the matter of that, of Mr. Griswold's too, I -hope.'</p> - -<p>'What I have to say concerns them both most nearly,' said Miss -Montressor, frankly meeting his gaze. 'Will you, in the exercise of -your friendship for them, trust me so far as to accompany me in a -carriage to the Fifth-avenue Hotel?'</p> - -<p>Again Thornton Carey hesitated. He went very little into female -society, and, under any other circumstances, the idea of being shut up -in a carriage with a strange lady would certainly have frightened him; -and again he suffered himself to be persuaded by Miss Montressor's -manner and the object of her mission.</p> - -<p>'I will do so willingly,' he said; and ordering the coachman to drive -to the hotel, he entered the vehicle, and took his place by his fair -companion's side.</p> - -<p>As they drove through the crowded streets, Thornton Carey thought with -wonder upon his strange position. Here was he, the hermit, the -recluse, who so seldom emerged from his lettered seclusion far away in -the city of the South, who seldom sought for any company beyond that -of the distinguished dead who gathered around him as he pored over his -books--here he was, rattling over the stones of New York, bound for -the most luxurious hotel in the city, and with a very handsome, -dashing young woman by his side. In the course of the desultory -reading which, like most young men, he had indulged in before -permanently settling down to valuable study, he had, he remembered, -come across the description of certain adventures, such as he was then -going through; and the idea that he, whom all his coevals looked upon -as a model of sageness and sobriety, should be found under such -circumstances, would have amused him, had he not at the same time -remembered that the errand on which he was bound was, according to his -companion's words, one in which Helen's happiness was deeply -interested.</p> - -<p>The carriage stopped at the ladies' entrance of the hotel, and Miss -Montressor, on being handed out by Thornton Carey, requested him to -follow her. They passed up the staircase to the first floor, and -finding one of the smaller parlours disengaged, his companion -requested Mr. Carey to be seated, while she sent one of the servants -to call Mr. Bryan Duval.</p> - -<p>'Bryan Duval!' echoed Carey in astonishment. 'Why, surely that is the -name of a famous actor? Even I, though not much given to dramatic -literature or theatre-going, have heard of him.'</p> - -<p>'It is the same,' said Miss Montressor.</p> - -<p>'But how can he be mixed up in any matter concerning Mrs. Griswold?' -asked Carey.</p> - -<p>'It is as much in his power as in mine,' said Miss Montressor, 'to -give information upon a subject in which Mrs. Griswold is most deeply -and most unhappily interested.'</p> - -<p>'Unhappily!' interrupted Thornton Carey, turning pale.</p> - -<p>'Most unhappily, as you will agree when you know all,' said Miss -Montressor. 'Here, however, is Mr. Duval; he will explain matters to -you much better than I can.'</p> - -<p>She introduced the gentlemen, and was pleased to notice that, so far -as she could see, each liked the look of the other's appearance. Duval -was pleased with Thornton Carey's frank honest expression, while Carey -himself recognised the keen acumen and subtle intelligence displayed -in the broad brow and bright eves of the dramatist.</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor commenced the conversation by rapidly explaining to -Duval, so far as she thought necessary, and without, of course, any -allusion to Bess, the failure of her mission to Mrs. Griswold's house, -adding that she there had met Mr. Carey, and learning that he was an -intimate friend of the family, she had thought it best to ask his kind -assistance, and had brought him there in order that the matter might -be explained to him.</p> - -<p>'You have acted perfectly right, my dear Miss Montressor,' said Bryan, -avoiding his usual familiarity, under the idea that it would prove -surprising, if not displeasing, to their new ally. 'And now, sir,' he -added, turning to Carey, 'I will keep you no longer in suspense. You -have, of course, heard of this terrible murder of the American -gentleman in Liverpool, the news of which is ringing through all New -York.'</p> - -<p>'I have indeed,' replied Carey; 'and though the victim, whose name I -believe was Foster, was personally unknown to me, the fact of his -being a stranger, apparently without friends or connections at the -scene of the assassination, seems to render the tragedy doubly -dreadful.'</p> - -<p>'That he had no friends or relatives at the scene of the murder is, I -have no doubt, perfectly true,' said Bryan Duval; 'but I have too much -reason to believe, not merely that his name was not Foster, but, from -what we now learn, that he was an intimate friend of yours.'</p> - -<p>'Good God!' cried Thornton Carey, upon whom a light suddenly broke. -'And you say that Helen Griswold is also deeply interested in the -matter? You cannot imagine for an instant--' and he stopped, for his -voice suddenly failed him.</p> - -<p>'I do not merely imagine,' said Bryan Duval, speaking deliberately, -'but in my own mind I no longer entertain any doubt that the man, the -news of whose murder has caused such a shock in New York society, was -Mr. Griswold, the husband of the lady whom you went to see this -morning.'</p> - -<p>'It is too terrible,' said Thornton Carey, covering his face with his -hands. 'You seem to speak with certainty. Mr. Griswold was in -Europe--might have been in Liverpool at the very time--and yet why -this assumption of a false name?'</p> - -<p>'That is exactly what we want you to explain to us,' said Bryan -quickly; 'but before you attempt to do so, let me explain to you as -shortly as possible the story of my acquaintance with Griswold, and -the reason I have for coming to this sad conclusion.'</p> - -<p>Then Bryan Duval succinctly, and in as few words as possible, sketched -the story of their acquaintance with Griswold in London--narrated the -particulars of the Richmond dinner, the conversation which the -unfortunate man had had with Miss Montressor, the devoted manner in -which he had spoken of his wife, and in which he had exhibited her -portrait set in the watch; the melancholy which had overcome him at -Liverpool at the knowledge that they were about to proceed to New -York, while his business must detain him some little time longer in -England; told him, in fact, the whole story, without concealment or -curtailment, down to Miss Montressor's recognition of the lady in the -stalls on the previous evening as the original of the portrait which -the so-called Mr. Foster had shown her, and the terrible dread which -had then fallen upon her and Duval, that the murdered man was Mr. -Griswold, who, for some object of his own unknown to them, had chosen, -while away from home, to pass under an assumed name.</p> - -<p>'But what that object was,' said Bryan Duval, in conclusion, 'we want -you to tell us.'</p> - -<p>After a pause of a few minutes, during which he had remained buried in -abstraction, Thornton Carey spoke. 'You have given me a task which I -am quite unable to fulfil,' he said, shaking his head. 'There is -probably no man in the world who understands so little of business, by -which I mean commercial matters, as myself. Mr. Griswold never spoke -to me about them, and if he had I should have been unable to -understand them; and, fond of me as I am sure he was, I should have -been one of the last persons in the world to whom he would have made -any business confidence.'</p> - -<p>'You believe, then,' said Bryan Duval, 'that this taking of an assumed -name was really done for business purposes?'</p> - -<p>'I have not the least doubt of it,' said Thornton Carey earnestly.</p> - -<p>'I am myself inclined to that belief,' said Bryan. 'There was a -singular frankness and honesty about the man, and the way in which he -spoke about his wife, both to myself and Miss Montressor here, was -evidently genuine; though,' he continued, with a touch of that worldly -cynicism which sometimes came upon him, as it were, in spite of -himself, 'these are matters in which one must never be led away by -what one either sees or hears. There are men who love their wives very -deeply, and who yet, when away from them, urged on by vanity or -passion, or whatever they may choose to call it--'</p> - -<p>'I know what you would say,' said Thornton Carey, holding up his hand, -'and I suppose, as regards the generality of men, you are right. But, -believe me, this was not the case with Alston Griswold--his was not a -mere mouth worship of his wife; no other woman, be she who she might, -would have been able for an instant to make him forget her whom he so -dearly loved.'</p> - -<p>'I believe you, Mr. Carey,' said Bryan, 'and in any case I honour you -for your championship; but in this case I think you are right. From -the little I saw of him, I have no doubt that your friend was all you -say. We will allow, then, that he dropped his own name and called -himself Foster for the furtherance of certain business transactions. -To obtain anything like a clue to this murder, it is necessary for us -to know what those business transactions were, and whence this -necessity for concealment arose; until we can obtain that, we shall -still be in the dark as to the motives of the murderer.'</p> - -<p>'I cannot help you,' said Thornton Carey, shaking his head ruefully. -'As I said before, I only knew Mr. Griswold in his domestic capacity -as my friend, and the word business was never even mentioned between -us.'</p> - -<p>'You may yet be able to help us,' said Miss Montressor, leaning -forward. 'This unfortunate Mr. Foster--Mr. Griswold as we must now -think of him--told me that evening in the garden at Richmond that he -had an intimate friend and confidant in New York, to whom during his -absence he had not merely intrusted the conduct and supervision of his -affairs and correspondence, but he had also placed his wife in this -man's charge. Now, knowing the Griswolds as you do, you will probably -be able to tell us if there is any man who stood in this relation with -them and if so, what is his name?'</p> - -<p>'This declaration goes further to corroborate your idea that the -murdered man was indeed poor Griswold,' said Thornton Carey, with a -sigh. 'There was a man exactly fulfilling those functions, who was -understood to be a sort of partner of Griswold's in certain matters, -and from whom he was never separated. I did not know that he carried -the intimacy into his domestic life, and, indeed, I should have -thought the person I mean was one for whom Mrs. Griswold would have -had but little liking.'</p> - -<p>'What was the name?' asked Duval eagerly.</p> - -<p>'His name was Warren--Trenton Warren,' replied Carey. 'He was a man -much thought of for his foresight and acuteness in commercial matters, -and he had an office down town in Broad-street, not far from -Griswold's own place of business.'</p> - -<p>'The thing to be done, then, is to see this Mr. Warren at once,' said -Bryan Duval. 'If we prove to him, as we shall be able to do, that we -were friends of Mr. Griswold's, he will doubtless be able to clear up -the whole mystery of the change of names.'</p> - -<p>'Even in this we are baffled for the time being,' said Thornton Carey. -'I heard accidentally that Mr. Warren was at Chicago.'</p> - -<p>'Is that far distant?' asked Miss Montressor.</p> - -<p>'Thirty-six hours' journey at least,' said Duval; 'and being, as I -understand, essentially a man of business, Mr. Warren might not be -able to leave at once, however earnestly we might venture to recall -him.'</p> - -<p>'You would be right, under ordinary circumstances,' said Thornton -Carey; 'but I think if you were to let him know that it was of great -importance that Mrs. Griswold should see him at once, he would -return.'</p> - -<p>'And what shall we say to him when he comes?' asked Miss Montressor.</p> - -<p>'Rather what shall he say to us?' said Carey. 'Mixed up as he is with -Griswold's affairs, he will be able to see at a glance to whose -interest it would be that this unfortunate man should be unfairly -gotten rid of.'</p> - -<p>'You seem disposed to take my view of this affair, Mr. Carey,' said -Bryan Duval: 'that robbery was not the motive cause for this murder, -but some ulterior object.'</p> - -<p>'Unquestionably,' said Carey, 'robbery was not the object, because, if -the papers be correct, the unfortunate man's watch and money were left -undisturbed. Some other motive, doubtless connected with the business -which took him on his fatal journey, and which he was at such pains to -keep secret--perhaps even dictated from this side of the water--must -be at the bottom of it.'</p> - -<p>'Your views coincide exactly with mine,' said Bryan Duval. 'It is -useless for us, however, further to speculate on this matter, more -especially since we know nothing at all approaching certainty, until -Mr. Warren helps us with his experience. The one thing that confronts -us and that cannot be blinked at is, that no matter from what reason -or other the poor fellow has been murdered, the fact, sooner or later, -must be broken to his wife.'</p> - -<p>'That is what I feel so deeply,' said Carey. 'There is a mail from -Europe due to-morrow; she will know of its arrival; and after that the -truth can no longer be kept from her.'</p> - -<p>'All that will remain, then, for us,' said Bryan, 'will be to break it -to her in the most delicate manner possible, and it is most lucky that -we have found you to aid us in that difficult task.'</p> - -<p>'I will do my best most willingly,' said Carey; 'and after I have -settled upon the matter, I may be of some use. At present, I confess -that the news has come upon me so suddenly, my obligation to this -unfortunate gentleman is so great, and my regard for him and his wife -so essentially a portion of my life, that I cannot trust myself to -give anything like clear advice or reliable aid.'</p> - -<p>'I perfectly comprehend your feelings,' said Bryan Duval, 'and there -is no need for us to prolong this painful interview--in fact, Miss -Montressor and myself have our duties to attend to at the theatre, and -we must go to them. We may, however, rely upon you to take the one -step immediately necessary--namely, to apprise Mr. Warren by telegraph -that his presence is most desirable in New York.'</p> - -<p>'You may depend upon my doing so,' said Carey, 'and upon my being here -tomorrow to take my part in any further consultation.'</p> - -<p>So they parted.</p> - -<p>Thornton Carey was completely overwhelmed by the news he had just -heard. He would have disbelieved it, but he was never in the habit of -allowing his common sense to be over-ridden by his sympathies; and -that rare and inestimable quality told him that Mr. Bryan Duval had, -indeed, good foundation for the deductions he had drawn. The more he -thought over it, the less real doubt had he that the <i>soi-disant</i> -Foster and his friend and benefactor, Alston Griswold, were one. He -knew that Griswold's one idea in life had been to achieve such a -fortune as would enable him to vie with the proudest millionaire in -New York, and to retire altogether from business. It was evident that, -in this endeavour, he had gone in for some great stake; so great as to -require the exercise of what in the commercial world is known as tact, -but in free-spoken circles, outside the commercial world, is called -duplicity. This change of name, for instance--it could be easily -learned whether the secret had been confided to Warren alone, or was -known to the clerks in Griswold's house of business--that could be -learned from the clerks themselves; and Thornton Carey determined at -once to inquire of them.</p> - -<p>Wall-street, hot, rushing, and demented as usual; closing hour just at -hand, and everybody anxious to make a few hundred or thousand more -dollars before returning up-town for the day; telegraphs ticking from -attic to basement in each of the enormous houses between Canal-street -and Bowling-green; messengers rushing about in frantic haste, and the -bar at Delmonico's at the corner of Chambers-street actually for five -minutes without an occupant. Hustled on all sides, and swayed hither -and thither by the fluctuating crowd, Thornton Carey at last made his -way into Griswold's office. Telegraph instrument madly clicking in one -corner, and white serpents winding out from it and covering the floor -with their tortuous folds; clerks running races with the telegraph -instrument, and endeavouring to drown its noise with the scratching of -their pens over the paper; men in shiny hats tumbling in and out, and -adding to the general confusion.</p> - -<p>After some delay, Thornton Carey was recognised by one of the -principal clerks, who vouchsafed him three minutes' conversation. 'Mr. -Griswold still in Europe; hoped he would be back very shortly; should -be able to say more to-morrow, as letters were expected by the morning -mail, giving the date of his return.'</p> - -<p>Plainly everybody there was wholly unconscious of any evil having -befallen the head of the establishment. 'That argued nothing,' -Thornton Carey thought to himself, 'save that Griswold had placed no -confidence in his servants.' He must try Warren's office next.</p> - -<p>Being a partner of Mr. Griswold's, Trenton Warren had the use of the -clerks and appliances of his friend's office. For his own particular -service he kept but one quiet, silent, trustworthy individual, who -looked up when Carey entered, and in reply to his inquiry, announced -that Mr. Warren was at Chicago. 'I forward his letters to him every -day,' said the man, 'and if you have anything to send, it can go with -my lot.'</p> - -<p>Thornton Carey reflected for a moment.</p> - -<p>'No, thank you,' he said; 'my business is important, and I must wire -Mr. Warren at once. What is his address?'</p> - -<p>'Three Bryan's Block, Chicago, will find him,' said the clerk, and -immediately whirled round on his stool to continue his writing.</p> - -<p>On Thornton Carey leaving Warren's office, he stepped at once into the -Western Union Telegraph, and sent the following message:</p> -<br> - -<p>'Trenton Warren, 3 Bryan's Block, Chicago.--I most earnestly request -you to come to New York without delay; it is of the utmost importance -that I should see you; a great calamity has occurred.</p> -<h4>'HELEN GRISWOLD.'</h4> -<br> - -<p>'Now we must trust to Providence for the rest,' said Thornton Carey, -as he walked away.</p> - -<p>Having despatched the telegram, Thornton Carey returned to Mrs. -Griswold's house, to which he was admitted by Jim. He ascertained from -Mrs. Jenkins and from Helen's maid that there was not any danger of -her proposing to go out when she should leave her room. On this point -he was extremely anxious. He knew it would have been impossible for -her to have passed a street corner, any public building, or any group -of talkers without seeing the announcement of the latest news from -England of the murder which was occupying the attention of every -intelligent person in New York at that moment, or hearing it -discussed. It was everything to those who were now engaged in -considering how best the awful truth should be broken to the -unconsciously bereaved woman, that no uneasiness should be created in -her mind through any indirect source.</p> - -<p>'You are quite sure,' Thornton Carey asked of Mrs. Jenkins, 'that she -has not ordered the carriage for this afternoon?'</p> - -<p>'I am quite sure,' returned Mrs. Jenkins. 'About an hour ago she sent -a note down to Mrs. Villiers to excuse herself from a dinner -engagement for to-day, which was made at the play last night; and, -indeed, I should not be surprised if she did not leave her room all -day--her cold is very heavy.'</p> - -<p>It was impossible that Thornton Carey could have thus questioned the -two women servants without exciting some suspicion, some uneasiness in -their minds. He saw very plainly that he had done so, and he thought -he might just venture to give them a hint of the origin of the -caution, to endeavour to impress it upon them, and thereby render them -more certain to observe it.</p> - -<p>'I daresay you wonder,' he continued, 'why I am so anxious to know -about Mrs. Griswold's probable movements of to-day; and, as I am sure -I may trust you, and that you are both faithful friends to her'--the -women exchanged looks with each other, and each bestowed an inquiring -nod upon Thornton Carey, while they drew closer to him in their -eagerness--'I will tell you that there is a rumour of an accident -having occurred in England, in which it is just possible that Mr. -Griswold may have been injured.'</p> - -<p>'A railway accident, sir?' the two women exclaimed simultaneously.</p> - -<p>'No,' he answered, with some confusion, 'not a railway accident; it -is, I believe, a case of supposed malicious injury. I cannot enter -into the particulars now. I am not, indeed, fully aware of them. As -soon as I am, and that I know for certain whether Mr. Griswold is or -is not injured, I will tell you. In the mean time, you will understand -that it is of immense importance that Mrs. Griswold should not be -alarmed. If what we fear is true, she must know it soon enough. If it -is not true, it will be most cruel to subject her to the excitement -and suspense of knowing anything about it until all is known. I want -you, Mrs. Jenkins, and you, Annette,' addressing Helen's maid, 'to -make me the same promise that I have also secured from Jim.'</p> - -<p>'I will do anything you wish, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins; 'and I am sure -Annette will say the same.'</p> - -<p>'Mais oui, mais oui,' assented Annette eagerly.</p> - -<p>'Well, then, you promise to be very cautious in your own manner, -looks, and speech--not to let Mrs. Griswold hear you talking to one -another in any unusual way; not to go into her room with frightened -faces, or with anything in your look which could lead her to think -that this day is different from any other day in any respect. Will you -promise me to keep a perpetual watch over yourselves, and to remember -that all we want is a few hours' interval, during which I and other -friends of Mrs. Griswold's may be quite sure that no one will be -allowed to see her who can talk to her about the distressing rumour -which has just reached New York, and yet that she will not suspect -that any such watchfulness is being observed?'</p> - -<p>Again he received assuring nods from the two women.</p> - -<p>'I must also beg you,' he continued, 'to be very particular to keep -every newspaper out of your mistress's sight until after the next time -I shall have been here; make any excuse and every excuse that comes in -your heads, but don't permit her to get hold of a single evening paper -or any morning paper of to-day. I hope none have found their way to -her room this morning?'</p> - -<p>'No, I think not,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'You haven't seen any newspapers -about, Annette?'</p> - -<p>'No,' Annette replied; 'madame had not asked for any newspapers, and -she had taken none up to her.'</p> - -<p>'You need not be frightened on that point,' said Mrs. Jenkins; 'for I -never saw a lady with so little curiosity about news as Mrs. Griswold. -She reads the weeklies sometimes, when they are all about books and -interesting things that are happening in the world; but I have known -her go a whole week without looking into a daily; and we will keep -them out of her way, if by any perverse chance she should take it into -her head to want to see them. She is not given to scolding, but I -daresay Jim would not mind taking a scolding from her for not having -thought of fetching an evening paper, if it is for her.'</p> - -<p>'Don't make yourself uneasy, sir; not but what we should like to have -a look at what they say.'</p> - -<p>'They don't say anything,' said Thornton Carey; 'at least, they have -not said it yet. The news has come by private cable message, and I am -only afraid of its getting into the later editions. I shall be here -tomorrow early, and implicitly trust you in this matter. There is -another thing, too, you will have to be very careful about, if you -please.'</p> - -<p>'Certainly, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'What is that?'</p> - -<p>'It is just possible that a telegram may come, directed to Mrs. -Griswold.'</p> - -<p>'From Europe, sir?'</p> - -<p>'No,' said Thornton Carey; 'from Chicago.'</p> - -<p>Mrs. Jenkins started slightly, and said:</p> - -<p>'Chicago! Is there anything wrong there?'</p> - -<p>'O, no, there is nothing wrong; only Mrs. Griswold has been sending a -message on business to a friend of Mr. Griswold's, and it is better, -until we are sure that Mr. Griswold is all right, that she should not -see the answer. Will you therefore, Mrs. Jenkins, undertake, if this -telegram should come, to have it sent at once to me at the -Fifth-avenue Hotel? You need not be alarmed at undertaking the -responsibility--the giving the message to one to whom it is not -addressed. I can give you my word of honour for that, and you will -know why almost as soon as I do. I cannot tell you more just now, -because I do not know more.'</p> - -<p>'I will have the message sent, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'Up to what -hour shall you expect it?'</p> - -<p>'I mean to remain at the hotel all day--at least until it comes,' said -Thornton Carey. 'There is an almost absolute certainty that it will -come.'</p> - -<p>'There will be no difficulty about it, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins; 'but -may I ask you if we are to be as particular about letters as about -telegrams and newspapers?'</p> - -<p>'Certainly,' said Thornton Carey; 'my injunctions refer to every kind -of communication which could possibly reach Mrs. Griswold between this -time and my next visit.'</p> - -<p>'I don't see how we are to manage that, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins. 'She -doesn't mind about newspapers, and she does not expect any telegrams -from any part of the States; but she will be looking out for English -letters in the morning--they ought to be in--and it won't be possible, -I am afraid, to keep her quiet then, to prevent her coming downstairs, -or to hide the letters from her, if they come. What are we to do in -that case?'</p> - -<p>'It will not matter about English letters,' he replied. 'Any she could -get tomorrow morning must have been written before the accident which -is reported, so you need not trouble about that; besides, I will be -here almost as soon as the mail can be delivered.'</p> - -<p>He received an earnest assurance from the two women that all his -requests should be scrupulously observed, and he left the house -feeling that, as far as human precaution could be taken towards -securing her from a premature shock, Helen was safe, at all events, -for a few hours.</p> - -<p>Mrs. Jenkins and Annette retired to the waiting-room of the hall, and -earnestly discussed the strange directions which they had just -received. As a matter of course, they immediately seized on the -morning paper of that day; for it had not escaped Mrs. Jenkins's -characteristic acuteness that there was a decided inconsistency -between Thornton Carey's statement that the news which he apprehended -reaching Mrs. Griswold had come in private telegram, and his question -as to whether any newspapers had been taken to her room that day. -'Depend upon it,' said she to Justine, 'whatever it is, there is some -hint of it in the dailies for to-day. Let us have a look.'</p> - -<p>The papers lay, as they had done on the previous day, on the table in -the waiting-room; the two women turned them over eagerly, but found -nothing which they could suppose to have reference to the mysterious -rumour to which Thornton Carey had vaguely alluded--the murder at -Liverpool was still the leading theme.</p> - -<p>'I cannot,' said Mrs. Jenkins, 'find out that anybody has come to -grief except that unlucky Mr. Foster.'</p> - -<p>Thornton Carey returned to the Fifth-avenue Hotel, where he found -Bryan Duval, looking weary and dejected. The actor said little in -reply to the narrative of the steps which he had taken. The little he -did say was in approval, and then he made a dreary effort to get away -for a while from the terrible subject which was occupying them.</p> - -<p>'I shall stay here all day,' said Thornton Carey, 'and wait for the -telegram, and I really don't see that there is anything else to be -done. But you had better go out and get a little fresh air to string -yourself up for to-night's work--it will be hard to get through, I -fancy.'</p> - -<p>'Deuced hard,' said Bryan Duval. 'It is not the first time I have -comedied on the beards and tragedied behind the scenes, but I do not -know that I ever found the contrast so great a pull as this time--it -is the unconsciousness of the woman that is so horrid; when she knows -the worst, it will not be so bad. Good Heavens! only think, if she -took it into her head to come to the theatre to-night!'</p> - -<p>'There is not the slightest danger of that,' said Thornton Carey. 'I -forgot to tell you that she has a heavy cold.'</p> - -<p>But little more was said between them, and Bryan Duval took the young -man's advice. He went out until it was time to go down to the theatre. -About two hours later than the time at which Thornton Carey had -rejoined him they met for a moment before the performance, and -Thornton told him that no news had come; a message to the same effect -was conveyed to Bryan Duval in a twisted note on his return after the -play, but Thornton Carey made no attempt to see him again that night.</p> - -<p>Once more the house had been crowded by an enthusiastic audience; -again the performance had realised public expectation to the fullest -extent. If possible, Bryan Duval had been more exquisitely humorous, -had thrown more of his characteristic acuteness into his part, than on -the previous evening. Miss Montressor had charmed all the spectators; -but some of those who had been present at the first performance -noticed that she was slightly nervous, which she had not been on that -occasion, and that she wore a little more rouge.</p> - -<p>During the whole of that night Thornton Carey did not undress or lie -down; the hours passed drearily away, and no message came to interrupt -them. Just before the time at which Mrs. Griswold's house was usually -closed and her servants retired, Jim had 'slipped round,' as he -phrased it, to Fifth-avenue Hotel, and told Mr. Carey that his orders -had been strictly observed; no callers, no news, no newspapers, no -messages had been suffered to reach Mrs. Griswold, who was better, had -got up rather late in the evening, and passed an hour in the nursery; -but she had asked no dangerous questions, she had displayed no -imprudent curiosity. She was in bed, and asleep, old Jim said, on the -authority of Mrs. Jenkins, when he came out to report to Thornton -Carey; but no telegram had been received.</p> - -<p>This inexplicable circumstance sorely troubled and beset the mind of -Thornton Carey. Advice, assistance from Warren, if not his actual -presence, was entirely indispensable under the circumstances; but when -the morning dawned, and when the letter-post hour was near, Thornton -knew that the moment he dreaded so intensely had arrived, that no -further delay was possible, and that that advice and assistance must -be dispensed with.</p> - -<p>At the early hour which had previously been agreed upon, Bryan Duval, -Thornton Carey, and Miss Montressor--the trio had by this time become -quite friends--left the hotel and proceeded on foot to Helen -Griswold's house. As they reached it, the postman came up, with his -usual quick important step, and delivered a few unimportant notes, -which Jim, with a glance at Thornton Carey, who was ascending the -steps, took from his hand. The three entered the house, the door was -shut behind them, and the letters just received were handed by the -docile Jim to Carey.</p> - -<p>'There is nothing here,' he remarked, laying them on the table in the -waiting-room. 'Jim, ring for the women.'</p> - -<p>In answer to the customary summons, both Mrs. Jenkins and Annette came -downstairs. The first thing to be done was to send up word, in reply -to Mrs. Griswold's eager inquiry (made, as Mrs. Jenkins told them, the -moment she awoke, only a few instants ago) as to whether letters from -England were yet delivered, 'that they had not yet come.'</p> - -<p>'Tell her this,' said Thornton Carey, 'and then tell her that I am -here, and that I beg she will see me as soon as is convenient. If she -asks why I come so early, say you do not know. It is too late to make -any excuse now.'</p> - -<p>'Is it true, sir,' said Mrs. Jenkins--'has anything really happened to -Mr. Griswold?'</p> - -<p>'It is too true,' said Duval, addressing the wondering woman, whose -eager interest and curiosity about him showed in every feature of her -face, even in this crisis; 'it is too true--you will soon know all! In -the mean time be more cautious than ever.'</p> - -<p>Without a word Mrs. Jenkins returned up-stairs, whither Annette had -preceded her, and Thornton Carey led the way into the dining-room, -where the three sat in profound silence, interrupted after the -interval of a few minutes by Mrs. Jenkins, who entered the room with a -very pale face, and addressed Thornton Carey.</p> - -<p>'She will see you, sir; she is just getting up, and Annette is -dressing her as fast as she can. But--I hope you won't be angry, sir, -or think it was my fault--I gave my message as matter-of-fact as could -be, and the curtain was between me and her, so she could not see my -face; but the very moment she heard you wanted to see her at this hour -of the morning, she took fright. I suppose it was because she had not -had the English letters that she expected, and that disappointment had -told upon her nerves, and helped to make her suspicious. She said she -knew there was something wrong. "Go down," said she, "and say I will -see him. Bring him up to the boudoir, and let him tell me whatever I -have got to hear and bear." Not another word, sir, but she is as white -as a corpse.'</p> - -<p>Thornton Carey had started up before Mrs. Jenkins had got through her -first sentence, and turned a face of wild distress upon the other two.</p> - -<p>'It cannot be helped,' said Bryan Duval, 'and it is better so. Go up -with the good woman at once--for God's sake get it over.'</p> - -<p>He, too, rose as he spoke, and turning abruptly towards the -chimneypiece, laid his arms upon it, and hid his face in them.</p> - -<p>Miss Montressor sat profoundly still, but the description her sister -had just given of Helen might have been repeated of her--she, too, was -as pale as a corpse.</p> - -<p>Thornton Carey and Mrs. Jenkins went up-stairs without exchanging a -single word. The door of Helen's boudoir opened in the corridor -outside her bedroom. Mrs. Jenkins merely threw it open in passing, and -the young man went in, while she entered the bedroom by the other -door. No sound reached his strained ear for the few minutes during -which he waited. At their expiration Helen came in. She wore a white -muslin dressing-gown, and her hair was simply brushed behind her ears, -and hung loose upon her shoulders. As she came through the door of her -bedroom into the boudoir, she faced Thornton Carey directly, and her -first glance at him told her that her fears had been prophetic--that -he had bad news to tell.</p> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h4>END OF VOL. II.</h4> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<h5>LONDON:<br> -ROBSON AND SONS, PRINTERS, PANCRAS ROAD, N.W.</h5> -<br> -<br> -<br> -<br> - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's The Impending Sword (Vol. 2 of 3), by Edmund Yates - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE IMPENDING SWORD (VOL. 2 OF 3) *** - -***** This file should be named 62159-h.htm or 62159-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/2/1/5/62159/ - -Produced by Charles Bowen from page scans provided by the Web Archive -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law 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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