The Weird of the Wentworths: A Tale of George IV's Time, Vol. 2

by Johannes Scotus

  CHAPTER VI.

  "He knew himself detested, but he knew The hearts that loathed him, crouched and dreaded too. Lone, wild, and strange, he stood alike exempt From all affection and from all contempt: His name could sadden, and his acts surprise; But they that feared him dared not to despise." _The Corsair._

  From his earliest years the Captain had given evidence of those evildesires and bold licentious passions which his manlier years had fullydeveloped. "The child is father to the man," is one of the truestproverbs, and in John de Vere's case its truth was wonderfullyexemplified. The petulance of childhood had strengthened intoungovernable passion; the desire for self-gratification had swelled intounrestrained pleasure-seeking, combined with great selfishness, whichcared not how it injured another, provided it gratified its own wishes.Every other childish failing had grown into enormities of vice, even asthe letting out of water, small as the stream may at first seem,increases into the turbulent and maddened torrent that carrieseverything before its headlong current. From a child he had evinced thatcruelty of disposition which, though at first it only exercised itselfon the meaner creatures, whose tortures gave the young Domitianpleasure, now that childish days were gone, the same increased to afearful extent on his fellow creatures. He who as a child shuddered notat the sufferings of a fly, a bird, or even a cat baited by dogs, nowshuddered not at the death of a man by sword or bullet, or thesufferings of a woman carried off to gratify his friend, and perhaps gotrid of with the same amount of feeling with which he would kick a dogfrom his door, or slaughter the hound that had ceased to earn hiscompassion. When as a boy John de Vere amused himself at his home,bird-nesting, cat-baiting, rat-hunting, even cock fights, were a greatpleasure. Many of the tenants and retainers at the Towers remembered howJohn began by glueing walnut shells filled with pitch on the paws of thehousekeeper's favourite Tomcat, and ended by tying him on a goose's backand setting them off together on the lake, enjoying the sight of the cattearing the bird's back with his long claws, and the bird diving todrown her rapacious enemy. Every kind of cruelty, from spinningcockchafers on a pin, and turning birds plucked of their feathers aliveinto the woods, to the worse scenes of the cockpit and badger baiting,amused him till he became ten years old, or thereabout, when he was sentto Harrow. Naturally of a depraved character, it was his own bad heartthat suggested these crimes, and not bad example, for his elder brother,the Earl, had none of these tastes but spent his time shooting orriding, and gained the character of a famous sportsman in all theneighbourhood. The old Earl, who lived till John was thirteen orfourteen, was often told of these early signs of depravity, but wouldonly call him a "sad fellow," a "naughty, cruel boy," and "he would growwiser when he got older." Augusta too used to speak often to him, but hewas of that age when boys generally despise the other sex, and not onlyturned a deaf ear to her admonitions, but called her a silly,chicken-hearted girl, and said that men never thought of such things. Ifhis father went fox-hunting, why should he not hunt cats? When John wentto Harrow, he soon became the leader and chieftain of a set of boys asbad as himself. He was, however, obliged to fag, and his master happenedto be the Marquis of Arranmore, then Earl of Claremont, who was aneasy-going, good-natured sort of fellow, and though he once or twicegave him a hiding, was on the whole a very merciful lord. Young Musgravewas also a boy at Harrow; and these two, equally bad, Musgrave in thescheming and John in the acting part of their juvenile scrapes, were thechosen leaders in every row. If there was an orchard robbed, windowsbroken, farmers' fields trampled over--the head offender was John deVere; the planner of the action, Musgrave. From Harrow, Musgrave andJohn de Vere went to a military college to prepare for the army, andhere they set out on a bolder line. The theatre and saloon were theirnightly rendezvous, and men of wicked character their companions in idlehours. Occasionally they took excursions to town, and flew with avidityto every kind of vicious pleasure. They then entered the 7th Hussarstogether, into which regiment L'Estrange exchanged; and the three youngmen soon became prime leaders in every folly and dissipation, then morecommon than now. Their colonel, Sir Harry Maynard, overlooked many abreach of military discipline in consideration of youth andinexperience; possibly the well-filled purse of the young officer DeVere, his excellent champagne suppers, &c., made a balance in favour ofhim and his friend with the regiment, or assuredly their names wouldhave been erased. Owing to the 7th being quartered at Brighton sometime, the Prince Regent became acquainted with young De Vere, andfinding him suited to his mind in every way, he made strides in Royalfavour, as well from the fact of his brother, the Earl, holding a highposition at Court, as from his qualities corresponding with alas! theknown character of the Prince. It was in a row at Brighton, in whichboth Musgrave and De Vere played a notable part, that the latter firstbecame known to Bill Stacy, and this strange, dark character appeared totake peculiar pleasure in his new acquaintance, as well as to evincesuch a knowledge of the noble family of which he was a scion, as oftento make the Captain open his eyes with astonishment, and wonder who uponearth old Bill could be, and where he had gleaned his information. Theold desperado, however, showed himself fully capable of holding his ownsecrets, and after trying by threats and entreaties, and plying Billdrunk and sober to get at the bottom, he gave it up as a bad job, butcontinued the acquaintance, as Bill was a fit instrument for many of hisdesigns. The foregoing chapters have fully proved the service Billafforded to this bad young man, over whose early life we have glancedmerely to show the reader that he was naturally demoralized, and hadgrown in _dis_favour with God and man from his youth up. It only nowremains to resume the thread of the Captain's history at the point wherewe last lost sight of him, and bring it on to the next point, where hisfortunes mingle with others connected with our tale.

  When Captain De Vere and Scroop left the Towers, on the fatal evening ofthe duel, they proceeded straight to Leith, whence Archy was sent backwith the horses, while our two friends proceeded to embark, having firstrouted out old Stacy, who had returned from Germany, after leavingL'Estrange at Hamburgh. Bill was right glad to see the Captain again,and he soon found a bark ready to convey them to Hamburgh also. In thisship high words passed between the Captain and Juana, who was also apassenger; however, ere they reached Germany, they appeared entirely tohave made it up, though it was a matter not unobserved by several thatfrom that day Juana gradually drooped, until she ended her life as wehave seen in the last chapter. At Hamburgh the Captain soon discoveredhis old friend L'Estrange, and so close did their intimacy again becomethat Scroop, who was entirely ignorant of the true facts of theabduction, expressed his surprise at the Captain's having any doingswith him. This was the first seed of dislike betwixt the two, and endedin an encounter between the late principal and second, in which thelatter was so badly cut by his antagonist--for they fought withrapiers--that his life was despaired of.

  The Captain and L'Estrange, who assumed the name of Count Czinsky, werefain to leave for St. Petersburgh, not however before the former wrung apromise from the wounded man he would never mention the fact of hismeeting L'Estrange again, should he survive and return home. At St.Petersburgh our duo kept up the greatest style, and created quite asensation amongst the fair Russian ladies.

  One day L'Estrange opened an English newspaper, in which was a fullaccount of the Earl's marriage.

  "She is married," he cried, "she is married!" dropping the paper fromhis hands.

  "Of course you didn't think the Earl was fool enough to wait till youplayed the part of young Lochinvar again, and ran off with his Ellen.Why, Ned, you are a greater fool than I took you for! Egad, it sits soredoes it, Ned? Take my advice and snap your fingers at a girl who won'ttake you.--I'll read the account for you--give me the paper, oldSpooniana! Why, pest, after all it is as bad for me as you. I lose mycoronet--and you your lady love!" so saying he took the papers and readthe article aloud, laughing--then tossed it to L'Estrange again. Thelatter began to read over the sad paragraph, wit
h that earnestness withwhich we often read again and again what is the most painful to ourfeelings. At last he cried out, "Here's something for you--let's see howyou bear ill news, who are so ready to read them to others."

  "Read away, read away--it's not a little will make my face as long asyours is, Ned! Why, God a' mercy, you look as if you were going to behung; fire away with your evil reports!"

  "'After the departure of the noble Earl and his lovely partner,' (oh!that I should read it)," read L'Estrange--"'the Marquis of Arranmorekept open house at the Castle, and was to end the festivities of theweek by a grand flare up, which festive event was suddenly prevented bya melancholy and fatal accident, by which the young and elegantMarchioness lost her life.'"

  "Heavens!" muttered the Captain.

  "'It may be remembered that only a year ago this lady, eldest sister ofthe Earl of Wentworth, was married to the noble Marquis--'"

  "Read ahead!" cried the Captain.

  "'A few moments before the ball commenced the attention of the Marquisand Mr. Lennox, then staying at the Towers, was drawn to the lady's roomby screams of a most harrowing nature, and the unhappy young ladyappeared enveloped in flames, which were, however, speedilyextinguished, but not before the unfortunate Marchioness had sustainedsuch injuries as proved fatal. A short time before midnight death endedher sufferings.'"

  "Egad, that was a _flare up_! The Marquis never dreamed of that, I'llwarrant!" said the heartless man.

  "De Vere," said L'Estrange, horrified at this unfeeling jest, "yourcold-blooded ferocity makes my blood curdle. What have you come to whenyou joke on your sister's lamentable death?"

  "By Jove! you take me up sharply. On my soul I am sorry, d--dsorry--poor Edith! I am awfully cut up about her. As I live I meant notwhat I said. Come, Ned, don't look so savage! Come, and we'll have abottle of wine, and drown this horrid remembrance. Egad! I am awfullysorry, I am sure I would it had been any one else! Come, Ned, I didn'tmean anything, only it came so pat!"

  And with these words he actually dismissed his sister's death, and todrown his sorrow plunged into every kind of dissipation for the nextthree months, until he made St. Petersburgh too hot for himself byshooting Count Strogonoff in an affair of honour, and probably savedending his days in Siberian mines by a speedy escape in sleighs throughPoland to Germany, where he and L'Estrange spent the summer atBaden-Baden, which was even then notorious as a gambling-place. Here theCaptain had a run of luck at the roulette-tables, and pocketed an almostincredible amount. Many a hapless gambler was ruined by him, and on oneoccasion when he had won every farthing from a luckless Baron, theunfortunate loser blew his brains out over the table!

  "Kelner, wipe up that mess," said the Captain, with a sneer. "I wish toG-- people would blow out their brains in their own houses, and notchoose the saloons for such purposes!"[B]

  These two associates in evil soon made Baden too hot for them also, andtravelled about till they again reached Hamburgh, where Bill met themwith important news from England. After a long conversation withL'Estrange, whose conscience was getting more and more seared from hisintercourse with such a reprobate, they both set sail for Scotland,taking Stacy with them. It was then about the middle of December, a timewhen Christmas festivities are in preparation--those at the Towers wouldbe of the most private character--and the Captain spoke of showing hisface again at home, thinking the duel would be pretty well blown over;however, the large debts he had incurred both in Scotland and Englandwould not so easily be forgotten, and he determined he would not riskincarceration in Fleet Street Prison again, for he had once tasted itsjoys, until released by the Earl's paying off his liabilities. These,however, had now reached a pass which the Earl would probably be unable,even if willing to defray. The coming of these birds of ill omen so nearthe home of the Countess seems to bode no good, but we must leave theresult to another chapter.