Cradock Nowell, Vol. 2 (of 3)

e at Kettledrum Hall; and the distance being considerable, and the roads so shockingly bad-"even dangerous, I am told, to gentlemen who have dined with me, sir," said Kettledrum, in his

ven than ladies usually do, when they first meet one another. Of course, there was no appearance of it, nothing so ill–bred as that; it was all the sweetest refinement, and the kindest neighbourly interest. They even became affectionate in the course of half an hou

-this interesting display of skill was deferred for the present; inasmuch as Rosa was taken ill during the mysteries of her toilet. It was nothing more serious, howe

hat Rue should go, "for he had made himself such a very smart boy, that she was really quite proud of him, and they would all be so disappointed, and he was taller than Mr. Kettledrum, she felt quite sure he was." The bearing of that las

omething considerable, if they had only seen the outside of it. Look at the balustrade that went (for it was too heavy to run) all along the front of it, over the basement windows. No stucco, either; but stone, genuine stone, that bellied out like a row of Roman amphor?, or the calves of

Rufus; "what a noble situation!

the kindest country fashion, Mr. and Mrs. Ke

ff, and became so anxious about Mrs. Hutton, that I said to my wife, 'Put your bonnet on;' and she onl

ould not help thanking them for their kindness, and saying to himself, "What n

hat belonged to him, and he knew they wouldn?t do her legs right-"now, Dr. Hutton, you have come most kindly, according to your promise, so as to give us an hour or two

ke on them. But to think of going out shooting! He ought not to have dressed before he left home, but he hated many skinnings.

tten beansticks crackling about, the scum of last summer?s cabbages, toad–stools cropping up like warts or arums rubbed with caustic, a fine smell of potato–disease, and a general sense of mildew; the wall–trees curled and frizzled

anything to praise, "what a perfect p

hat neither of them can be paralleled in England-but, Kettledrum, it is-forgive me-it is your kitchen–garden.' 'My kitchen–garden, your grace,' I replied, for I hate to brag of anything, 'it is a poor thing, my lord Dook, compared to your own at Lionshill.'

e for a bit of brag. I have met great brags in India, and most of them honest fellows. B

see, my dear sir, there is nothing 'ab omni parte beatum;' perhaps you remember the passage in

ew more of Hindustani than of Latin and Gre

member, 'ab omni parte beatum.' I don?t know how it scans, which I suppose i

in the honesty of his mind; "and I am not

he branches are not distinguishable. "However, that can?t matter at all; I see you are a classical scholar. And, Hutton, I like

and scabby,

would crop the better, if that be p

the fruit for thi

have had some, of course. But we are v

on?t think

et well alone;' but my ga

ws anything of his business. Then drain

and a great cake of rotten bark, bearded with moss, came away like the mask of

id Rufus, laughing. "I sup

sir, you don?t

e of them, and I would hang

of a gentleman well known to the Gardener?s Chronicle; but now he tur

to come up to that waistcoat. It would hold Dr. Hutton and Rosa too, for they had stood back to back and tried it. And Rufus vainly sighed for the day when his front should come out and exhaust it. He stole it, they say, from a petty rajah

d redouble, from the judgment of some eye–witness. If that eye–witness be self–possessed, wide–awake, experienced, and undemonstrative, the effect upon the reader?s mind is as of a shell which ha

er beloved Bailey was growing; but Mr. Corklemore was there, and came forth to salute the great Rufus, when his heavy eyes settled upon the w

ear Mrs. Hutton, Mrs. Nowell Corklemore; Mr. Corklemore, I know, has had the plea

am, to be sure! Oh, Nowell, why didn?t you tell me? How shameful of you! But you never look at me now, I think." And she

er cue very aptly; and she ran out, as if to aid her s

of creating a genuine sensation, and possibly leading the mode; and having lost all chance of realizing these modest hopes at Nowelhurst, why, he must content himself with a narrower stage for his triumphs. He had smuggled it from home, however, withou

t bosom leaped and roared an enormous royal tiger, with two splendid jewels, called "cat?s–eyes," flashing, and a pearl for every fang. Upon the right side a hulking elephant was turning tail ignominiously; while two officers in the howdah poked their gu

dinner–party, and be entirely unconscious of it. And perhaps there are but few women in England who wo

ner, not the lady of the house, whom, of course, he ought to have taken, but Mrs. Nowell Corklemore. He felt, as he crossed the hall w

infectious from his sympathy. Georgiana Corklemore was an uncommonly clever woman, and was never known to go far enough to involve her reputation. She loved her child, and liked her husband, and had all the respect for herself which may abide with vanity. Nevertheless she flirted awfully, and all married women hated her. "Bold thing," they called her, "sly good–for–nothing; and did you see how she ogled? Well, if I only carried on so! Oh, if I were

e you, dear! Then I need not be afraid of you; but you are-now don?t tell stories-so clever, and so attractive. As if you did

head of that family, in his passionate sorrow and anger, might be brought to their view of the subject, if he could only be handled properly; and who could manage that more adroitly than his first cousin once removed, the beautiful Mrs. Corklemore? Only let her get once invited, once inducted there, and the main difficulty after that would be to apportion the prey between them. They knew well enough that the old entail expired with the present baronet; and that he (before his marriage) held in fee pure and simple all that noble property. His ma

t for appearance' sake; the other, that they fairly believed in the righteousness of their c

he was just at the age to spread open, with the memory of shyness upon them (like the dew when the sun is up), the curving petals of beauty. Who understands the magnetic current? Who can analyze ozone? Is there one of us able to fo

d Rufus, shrewdly suspecting her object, and confiding in a certain triarian charge, a certain thrust Jarnacian, which he would deliver at the proper moment, allowed her to smile, and to show her white teeth and dimples of volatile velvet (so natural, so inevitable, at his playful, delightful humour), and to loose whole quiverfuls of light shafts from the arch flash under her eyelids. What swee

athetic power. Mrs. Nowell Corklemore would have made a very great actress; she had so much self–abandonment, such warm introjection, and hot indignant sympathy; and yet enough of self–reservation to hoop them all in with judgment. Meanwhile Mrs. Kettledrum, a lady of ordinary sharpness, like a good pudding–apple-Georgie being a peach of the very finest quality-she, I say, at the top of th

, who had no idea of playing dummy even to Mrs.

t, if you please, 'cessantem Bibuli Consulis amphoram,' never shall forget that

eap of stuff into me when I was a very small boy; and i

s Hutton, "all ca

understand me. I mean that it was similar to-t

e." "Well, at any rate," he continued, "Hutton is a scholar-excuse my freedom, my dear sir; we are such rustics here, that I seldom come across a man who apprec

d not happen to want me; when are you goi

with, the great thought that is within me, is strife-no, I beg your pardon-is-is-rife and strongly inditing of a certain lady, who is an honour to her sex. I rise to the occasion, friends; I say an honour to her sex, and a blessing to the other one. Gentlemen, no peroration of mine is equal in any way to the greatness of the occasion; could I say, with Cicero, 'Veni, vidi, vici,' where would be my self–approval? I mean-yo

come, Kettledrum, and let his eyes run over-haw-

perilous stuff, sir-you know the rest-the health of Mrs. Hutton, that most remarkable children-excuse me, most remarkable woman,

s '34, but both knew better

rceived it. Himself you might butter and soap for a month, and he would take it at all i

ity port stealing out from his keen little eyes, "you

l, I neve

;' I meant to say, sir, 'most remarkable!' The most remarkable lady"-this to Corklemore, in confidence-"I have ever been privileged to meet. 'What

, and made much of the small Misses Kettledrum, tidy children, rather pretty, and all of the pink ri

We are such players here; all except my

zealously, and knocked their soft heads together. Mrs. Corklemore was declared by all to be the only antagonist worthy of an Indian player, and she sat down most gracefully, protesting against her presumption. "Just to take a lesson, you know; only t

it most heartbreaking? I am such a f

h dewy radiance, as Rufus coolly marched off th

ost snowy surge, in the "mare magnum" of ladies, would never have made that dry Rue Hutto

ess these things in English, for the language is rich in emotion, but a pauper in philosophy-the distress upon the premis

, as if the gentle evening star, Venus herself, all tremulous, rushed, l

r policy allowed it; and then, of course, i

they like. But early hours, sir, for the ladies. We value their complexions. They don?t.

s. Kettledrum, curtseying, for the child

ure of eight! "my opinion is never worth having, I know, because I feel so much; but I pronounce--" here she stood up

hey went to bed. And Rufus Hutton wonde

kfast, in came Mrs. Corklemore

dear, you must not scold me. I cannot bear being scolded, because I never have tit for tat. Good morning, dearest Anna; how is your headac

"and I ought to have won that last on

was too good, sir. Ah, we?ll play the conqueror some day; and then the tug of war comes. Oh

nd we must not blame you therefore

only because I was-ah–hem, I mean by her very fine play-and now she claims absolute victory; and Mrs.

e, till he longed for a cigar. Then Mrs. Corklemore sympathized with him, arose, their breakfast being ove

never tell when she is acting. I never met he

ely thrown away upon him; for he was thinking of h

I shall always appreciate it. Meanwhile I shall say to every one-?Oh, do you know, Dr. Hutton and I play even?' taking very good c

ature, sir, simple, absolute-haw-unartificial nature. But unartifici

o unartificial, even before the company. All the pretty airs and graces of a fair Parisian, combined with all the

g, as you are. I fear you will never for

wonderful fellow so ing

eaten me at chess, she thinks. Now, I?ll have th

, upon some future occasion. I never p

kely, there are mistakes on both sides-still there seems to exist some prejudice against

you always tell me. And you se

r?" Georgie only muttered this. Rufus Hutton d

saw pet Polly scraping great holes in the gravel, and the groom throwing all his weight on the curb to prevent her from bolting homewards. "Hang it, she won?t stand that," he cried; "her mouth is like a sea–anemone. Take her by the snaffle–rein. Can?t you see

he same with all you gentlemen; the worse you are treated, the more gr

. I should be very sorry for

that Dr. Hutton would be obliged to part with Miss Polly, if her mistress knew of her conduct. But I must not be

has her own way, and a woman who is always scheming, can be hap

r round little waist, and seemed made like a horse?s body–clothes, on purpose for her to trot out in,-"come, Dr. Hutton,

?t say 'good–bye' until you have prom

orld where I would dare to attack you

e, more than

ould beat Morphy, with those men at Nowelhurst. Ah! you think me, I see, grossly a

us, preparing his blow of Jarnac, "when they ha

e misunderstood us! Of course we know that you cannot do it; that you, a comparative stranger, cannot have sufficient influence where the dearest friends have failed. My husband, too, in his honest pride, is very, very obstinate, and my sister quite as bad. They fear, I suppose,-we

thought Rufus, "in the last breath I was a 'comparative stranger!'")-"I think it below our dignity to care for such an absurdity; and that now, as good Christians, we are bound to sink all petty enmities, and

Mrs. Corklemore; you

have been so disappointed-perhaps, after all, we shall play our next game of chess

who can give me a pawn and two moves.

eorgie, feeling rather less triump

, indeed, I first renewed my acquaintance with Sir Cradock, becaus

those eyes of hers, those expressive eyes, were changing! And her

e not heard, that Colonel Nowell, Clayton Nowell, Sir Cradock?s only brother, is coming home this month, and brings his darling child with hi

greatest actor ever seen, when called on to act in real life, can never command colour if the skin has proper spiracles. The springs of our heart will come up and go down, a

oor Sir Cradock. And now his brother is coming to mind him, with such delightful

d Nowell C

um, and Rufus caught the re–echo,

ard, gushing, rushing,

rely this is too go

ou must have heard it, from your close affinity, otherwise I should have told you the moment I came i

l Clayton Nowell was shot dead outside the barracks at Mhow, on the 25th day of June, sir, in

, "I venture to co

r, commanding officer in command of Her Majesty?s Company?s native regiment, No· One hundred and sixty–three, who was called,-excuse me, sir, designated, the 'father of his

can?t say,"

he two executors of his will-upon his rashness in riding forth to face those carnal, I mean to say, those incarnate devils, sir. 'Are you fools enough,' he replied, 'to thin

d of it," replied Rufu

of sand was; 'Coming back,' he cried to the English sentry, 'coming back in half an hour, with all my scamps along of me. Keep the copp

e, after they shot him in the throat, and one m

hat you! Oh, how gratefu

Rufus replied, most dryly. Then he correc

every emotion (except the impossible one of selfishness) quivering on her sweet countenance; and now she was so glad, oh, so glad, she cou

m is Eoa, dear natural odd E

. Hutton; you could de

t some women have almos

hink so. I have known her s

et to receive them, as it were from the dead! By the

he clipper–ship Aliwal; and with very few rupees. Colonel Nowell has always been extravagant, a w

se of Colonel Nowell. Meanwhile Polly was raving wild, and it took two grooms to hold her, and the white froth dribbling down her

ly smoke my own. Good–bye! I am so much obliged to you. You have been so very kind. M

calves well into Polly?s sides, and felt himself a happy man, going at a rocket?s speed, to a home of happiness. All of us who have a home (and unless we leave our heart there, whenever we go away, we have no home at all), all of us who have a hole in this shifting sandy world-the sand as of an hour–glass-but whence we have spun such a rope as the devil can neither make nor break-I mean to say, we, all who love, without any hems, and haws, and rubbish

t she heard something pelting down the hill much too fast, for her sake! but who could blame him when he

rule chair. After a glimpse of natural life, and the love of man and woman, we want no love o

er-because they clog and poison it! Blessed is he who earns his money, and spends it all on a Saturday.