young men used to rave about her long before she was out.' Mr. Staples smiled at some recollection, and added, 'I never spoke to her four times in my life; but I was as bad as any of them-presumptuous as you may think it.'
'I am glad you did not see her again,' burst from Felix, the tears starting forth as he copied her hopeful words. 'She altered sadly.'
'Ah! indeed.'
The concerned tone forced Felix to add, 'It came so much more heavily on her than on any of us, care and work and years of seeing my father's health failing; and in the last week of his life she had a fall, that brought on softening of the brain.'
Somehow, the whole had never struck him as so piteous before as in the contrast with her youthful brightness, and when he saw Mr. Staples greatly affected. He could only write on through a mist of tears, while the solicitor walked about the room, blowing his nose violently, and muttering sentences never developed; till at last he came behind Felix's chair, and laying his hand on his shoulder, said, 'After all, it will come round. You are next heir.'
'Heir? There's Fulbert Underwood!' exclaimed Felix.
'True; but he's been some years married, and there's no sign of a family. Depend upon it, we shall see Vale Leston come back yet.'
'It would make no difference now,' muttered Felix, as he traced his mother's fearless lines; nay, if he had a personal thought, it was of what he might have ventured towards Alice Knevett.
'Not to them,' said Mr. Staples, 'but a good deal to you, my young friend.'
'Now, Mr. Staples,' said Felix, smiling, 'aren't you doing our best to unsettle a young man in business?'
'Well, well, you are too reasonable. A contingency-only a contingency. But I should like to show you.' And he hastily sketched a pedigree that had at least the advantage of showing Felix his relationships.
Rev. Lancelot.
|_______________________________________________
| |
| | Rev. Fulbert. Lancelot
| |
| | Rev. Fulbert._______Lancelot_____James U. Lancelot_________Thomas d 1843. | | | |
| | | |
Fulbert Mary Wilmet Thomas Rev. Edward
| m. Edward U. m. Mary Kedge m. Mary Wilmet
| | | Underwood
Rev. Fulbert | |
Felix, etc. Mary Alda
Underwood
'There! Through your mother you stand next in the line-are heir-at-law, you see. May I live to see that day! That's all.'
The thought did not affect Felix much at the moment. He was too full of what might have been, and the 'contingency' was such a remote one! So after answering to the best of his ability whether any of his sisters were like his mother, he was glad to get out, and forget it all in croquet. His musical capacities were discovered too; but the attempt to profit by them proved quite too much for Lance, to whose brain the notes of the piano were absolute and severe pain.
A formal little note came on the ensuing morning, in which 'the Misses Hepburn'-in the third person-requested the favour of the company of Mr. Felix Underwood and his brother at luncheon. Felix felt a little stung. He could recollect warm passages between the ladies and his mother, and had been their pet long enough to wonder at this cold reception, and question whether it were not more dignified to reject advances made in such a manner; but his heart yearned towards those who had been kind to him in his youth, and he believed that his mother would have wished him to renew the intercourse, and therefore decided upon going, but it was too hot and sunny a day for Lance to walk, and Felix so entirely expected the visit to be wearisome and disagreeable, if not mortifying, that he could only resolve on it as a duty, and would not expose his brother to it.
So he plodded off alone, and a curious visit he had. It was not easy for him to guess at the sacredness of those traditions of gentility and superiority that the 'Misses Hepburn' held-not so much for their own sakes as in faithful loyalty to the parents many years dead, and to the family duty that imposed a certain careful exclusiveness on them in deference to the noble lineage they could reckon, and the head of the house, whom none of them had ever seen. He could not have guessed the warm feeling towards 'dear Mary' that had struggled so hard with the sense of duty, and had gained the victory over the soreness at the dropping of correspondence, and the idea that it was a dereliction to bend to one 'who had lowered himself,' as Mrs. Fulbert Underwood said he had.
What he saw was a tiny drawing-room, full of flowers and gimcracks, and fuller of four tall angular women, in dark dresses in the rear of the fashion, and sandy hair. They had decided in council, or rather Miss Isabella had decided for them, that since he was to be received, they would remember only his gentle blood; and therefore they shook hands with him, and the difference of the clasp alone could have shown the difference of character-the patronising, the nervous, the tenderly agitated, the hearty.
He found them better informed than the Squire had been as to the condition of the family-at least, so he presumed from the text of their inquiries. Not a word did they say of his own employment-it was to be treated as a thing not to be spoken of; but the welfare of the others was inquired after, and especially of Robina-who was the name-child of the eldest sister, the gentlest of the set, and the most in the background, quiet and tearful-pleased to hear that her godchild was at school, and as Felix emphatically said 'a very good girl,' anxious that he should take charge of 'a little token' for her.
The little token turned out to be Ministering Children; and this gave Felix a further hint, which prepared him for the tone in which some of his information was received, when he had only mentioned Geraldine as gone for health's sake to the St. Faith's Sisterhood.
The ladies looked at one another, Miss Isabella cleared her throat, and he knew a warning was coming; so he quickly said, 'One of the ladies, a clergyman's widow, was very kind to my father in his illness, and is really the best friend we have left in England.'
'Your dear father was too much inclined to those specious doctrines that are only too fascinating to youth. I hope you do not outrun him.'
'I hope not,' said Felix, very sincerely; and he then succeeded in interesting his monitor by speaking of Fulbert, and using him as a bridge to lead to an account of Mr. Audley's Australian doings.
It was altogether a stiff uncomfortable visit; the very politeness of the good ladies made Felix feel that they viewed his position as altered, and he could not but feel a strong hope that he should never again have to make this offering at the shrine of ancient friendship.
On coming home in the evening, Felix found a note on the table.
'Croquet to wit?' asked Lance, as Felix tried to read it by the almost vanished twilight.
'What's this?'
'We hope you and your brother will join us in a picnic at Kitt's Head on Saturday.
'Having discharged my ladies' commission, I proceed to that which I have authority from your relation for intimating to you-namely, that failing heirs of his own son, he has entailed the Vale Leston property upon you, thus rendering its alienation by the Reverend Fulbert impossible. I believe the arrangement was made within the last week. Congratulations would hardly be suitable, but I cannot refuse myself the pleasure of saying how sincerely I rejoice.'
'What-what?' cried Lance, jumping up. 'You to have that splendiferous river, and the salmon, and all. Won't you get a magnificent organ for that church?'
'My dear Lance, don't you see that all this means is, that if young Fulbert has no children, I shall come after him.'
'Oh, he won't! I'm sure he won't. Things always do come right. Oh, what a coup d'etat mine was after all! Things always do come right. You, that were born to it! Didn't old Tripp say how they had had the bells rung for you? I should like to set them going this minute!'
'They should be on your own cap, then!' said Felix, laughing and yet sharing in a castle or two-how Cherry should have a pony-carriage! how Clement should be turned loose upon the Church! how Lance should pursue the salmon at home and the humanities at the University! how Bernard should have a real good gentleman's
