The Vice Of Virtue (A Poor Man At The Gate Series Book 10)

by Andrew Wareham

  “That was duty, Margaret, but my pleasure, too. I am comfortably off. Not rich, but I own the better part of a thousand acres and a respectable farmhouse, close to Town as well. My income from Lord St Helens is not small and I have a most interesting occupation with him, so I can look forward to a life of some little enjoyment.”

  “But you have no wife to share your life with.”

  “No, Margaret, but Lord St Helens has strongly intimated to me that I should consider settling down. He fears that I am wild and irresponsible, I believe, and would like to see me tied to a pair of apron strings.”

  She laughed, then looked at him consideringly.

  “Will you show yourself in the Season, Eustace?”

  “I could, so my lord informs me, but I will seek a wife from the squirearchy I think – a young lady who would find no shame in working in her own kitchen on occasion or overseeing the farmyard.”

  They surveyed the town together next day, inspecting the music shop particularly.

  “A lack of transcriptions, Eustace. A pity, I had hoped to discover some few.”

  “Would it not be possible to carry some of his music back to England and there employ a young man to produce from them?”

  “Possible, but it would require a young gentleman of some genius, and where to find one of those I am uncertain.”

  They bought what was to hand and carried the sheets back to the inn.

  “The road to Hamburg tomorrow, Margaret?”

  “Berlin, perhaps?”

  “We should not delay too much on the road, Margaret.”

  “I shall be one-and-twenty next week, Eustace – a free lady! There is an embassy in Berlin, I believe.”

  Hood was not stupid, immediately saw her purpose.

  “One could, perhaps, register a marriage in a Protestant church in such case.”

  He liked her enough, enjoyed her company sufficiently, and could see great advantage in the marriage; besides that she was a strong and brave girl, one who commanded his admiration. There would no doubt be objections and obstacles was a betrothal to be suggested in England, but, presented with a fait accompli? The Grafhams would have little alternative to rolling out a red carpet for him.

  “Might I have the honour of begging your hand in marriage, Margaret?”

  “I would be pleased if you would, Eustace!”

  He tapped on her bedroom door that night as soon as he heard the maid leave for her own room. She let him into the chamber uncertainly and into her bed with grave misgivings, but she was soon brought to agree that there had been little point to waiting for just another week.

  He left early in the morning, joined her for breakfast before they set out.

  “This does mean that we must wed next week, does it not, Eustace.”

  “I have every wish to do so, my love. It is my most earnest intent. A honeymoon journey from Berlin to Hamburg, thence to the north of England and into the Lakes for a few days before making our way to London, do you think? A letter home to your parents by the embassy bag would be a good idea, I suspect.”

  “And leave them a month or so to calm down, Eustace?”

  “Just so. Another letter to my housekeeper to tell her to open the place up and air out every room and take on a pair of maids will make sense too. I assume that your Dorcas will stay in your personal service?”

  The ambassador was surprised when his secretary informed him that Captain and Lady Margaret Hood wished to notify him of their recent marriage in a Lutheran church in the city, to make an official record of their union. There was a signed certificate and he had no doubt that the service was legitimate, the knot lawfully tied.

  “They would wish letters to be sent to England in our bag, sir.”

  That was a normal enough service for British subjects overseas and the ambassador was puzzled that it should be mentioned. His secretary was a most able young man, would not be wasting his time with trivia.

  “Captain Hood? What regiment?”

  There had been some very shady battalions formed and then disbanded in the wars.

  “Naval, sir, a post-captain.”

  Naval captains were generally respectable, and far outranked the army, were the equivalent of lieutenant-colonel.

  “Lady Margaret? What was she? I cannot place a daughter of the aristocracy of that name… a widow, or a girl come out in the past three or four Seasons, whilst I have been out of London, I presume.”

  “Masters, sir.”

  “Lady Margaret Masters… Hell’s Teeth! The Marquis of Grafham’s daughter? Married clandestinely in Berlin? Oh, Christ! We do not want such a scandal here! Is she showing pregnant?”

  The secretary was able to reassure him that was not the case.

  “Send their letters – one to be addressed to the Marquis, I presume? Put that in a cover stating that we became aware of the marriage after it had taken place. How old is the girl?”

  “She is just of age, sir.”

  “That is a relief – we could have taken no action had we been aware in advance of her intention. I must meet them, do the pretty, I believe. Have refreshments brought in after ten minutes – I shall certainly be dry-mouthed by then.”

  The ambassador welcomed the happy couple, congratulated them, enquired in passing why they had not chosen to wed in England.

  Captain Hood, who he noticed was a good fifteen years older than his bride, smiled and quietly said that he was not the most obviously eligible of husbands for Lady Margaret and that, having met in Prague and journeyed some distance together, they had decided to wed first and argue with her parents later.

  The ambassador toasted their future happiness and asked whether they intended to stay long in Berlin.

  “Hamburg, leaving tomorrow we plan, Your Excellency. Then a ship to England, probably to Newcastle so that we may travel to the Lakes before removing to my little estate in Kent.”

  He had some land – he was not utterly impossible – but the ambassador could place no Hood family in the English aristocracy.

  Captain Hood said that his grandmother was second daughter to Lord Cheney, a minor northern baron, the family died out in the wars.

  “The Hoods have owned an estate in Lincolnshire for many generations, small landowners of little ambition. My elder brother Geoffrey is a member for the county, I believe, but we have been out of contact these twenty years. I rather suspect that just as soon as he identifies my wife he will remedy his omissions.”

  The ambassador laughed – it was very probable, he suspected.

  “What was your last ship, Captain Hood?”

  “Post-ship Clotho, 22, in the Year Ten, sir. I then served in other functions for the remainder of the wars and for some few years thereafter.”

  The ambassador asked no more, knowing exactly what Hood meant.

  “Did you notice anything of the condition of the country as you passed through the southern parts of the Germanies, Captain Hood?”

  Hood gave a detailed report of all he had heard, seen and surmised, though not mentioning the dead reservists he had left behind him.

  “A revolution, sir?”

  “No, not yet – this outbreak is by way of being contained. There will be a greater uprising soon, I fear, unless the poverty of the countryside is alleviated – but that also applies in England, of course.”

  “What is to be done, sir?”

  “Recruit soldiers – the men will then be fed at least. Besides that build manufacturies and create colonies. Push the men off the land if they will not go willingly.”

  “An uncomfortable prospect, Captain Hood.”

  “Very, Your Excellency. I am glad that I am not a member of the government and have, therefore, no responsibility for the harsh decisions that must be made.”

  Henry Star took ship from Liverpool for New York. In consultation with Grace he had decided to visit her family before returning to New Orleans, to an extent because he wanted Luke to become acquainted with the big city before seeing the South
. He felt that the shock might be lessened.

  His valet and the tutor followed behind the family, Nurse and Grace’s maid bringing up the tail of the little procession. Three adults, two children and four menials made a significant show, one that was noticed by the master and his mates as they surveyed the first class passengers. They would eat in their company for a month, so they wished to see what they were in for.

  The purser came at the master’s call as he disposed of the family to their cabins, passenger list in hand.

  “Mr and Mrs Henry Star, of New Orleans, and two children; Mr Luke Star of Freeman’s in Lancashire; Mr Blake, tutor to the family; Beaver, valet to Mr Henry Star; Nurse and maid.”

  “Star – the cotton family?”

  “Yes, sir. Brothers to the current lord. Mr Henry Star is a businessman of some renown in the States, sir – he has a steam shipyard in New Orleans, first and biggest, may in some ways be compared to Commodore Vanderbilt. The brother, Mr Luke Star, is best described in terms of notoriety, I believe. He was a minister, a Methody, one is informed, and discarded his dog-collar in exchange for a sword, went off to the wars in Greece where he gained, one understands, a reputation for great ferocity. I have read in one of the many pamphlets that circulated that he fought in every battle for the last five years of the conflict – a strange case for a minister, one might say!”

  They were impressed, and not displeased to have the opportunity to meet such a man; everyone knew of the great wickedness of the Turk and it was a privilege to meet one who had so thoroughly chastised them.

  “Mrs Star is a lady of New York, one is told – she has the accent, certainly. I believe I heard that her father is, or was, a judge, a political appointment.”

  Judges had power in the States – it was a very prudent marriage.

  “No other first-class passengers, Mr Heward?”

  “Two gentlemen, sir, bankers or some such, I believe. There are twenty or so of businessmen in the great cabin and a hundred or more belowdecks in the emigrant berths.”

  “Rations sufficient for a long passage, sir?”

  The purser was offended; his ship was not one on which the steerage passengers starved.

  “Unless we are three months at sea, sir, we shall all be fed more than adequately!”

  The passage to New York was far quicker than that from New Orleans. In part that was due to the ship itself; designed as a passenger-carrier rather than a round-bowed cargo vessel, she could make at least a hundred miles a day more in ordinary winds. There was a greater degree of comfort for the passengers as well, for those who paid the higher fares at least. There was a lounge with a small library and a large bar and a number of comfortable chairs, space for the children to play watched by their Nurse but out of hearing range of their parents.

  “Ah… Henry, do you think there might be something a little peculiar, shall we say, about our Mr Blake?”

  The tutor was a man in his mid-twenties, a graduate of Oxford and a Wykehamist, a man of learning and some common-sense as well. He was a fourth son of some well-to-do squire, had almost no income of his own and had been very happy to achieve a post in America. Henry had assured him that he would be a client for his whole existence, that he would be assisted to open a college of his own if the family ran out of children for him to nurture.

  “I believe him to be unlikely to marry, my dear. In fact, I cannot conceive that there is the slightest possibility that he might do so. But I am wholly certain that the children will be safe – I am reliably told that he has no inclinations toward the immature.”

  Grace was in very uncertain territory – she had never discussed the matter of unorthodox affections and was not at all sure of what they were. The topic was one that was not brought up in conventional households, and her upbringing had been respectably sheltered.

  “Oh! I merely thought that it seemed strange that a man of his background should have formed an apparently close friendship with your valet. Their education, for example, cannot be similar.”

  “Birds of a feather, ma’am. I believe them to be very close indeed – and have not, and will not, say a word to either about the fact.”

  “Will not the minister be inclined to preach against them, and us by extension?”

  That was a point Henry had not considered; it seemed very likely.

  “Leave that to me, ma’am! I will speak to the minister in advance of any sermonising, will persuade him to have nothing to say on the matter. Do you attend divine service from the plantation house?”

  There was no respectable church or chapel within reach, she regretted. There were two small places close to the plantation and within reach of the four others nearby, but they allowed bond-servants to sit in their rearmost pews and were not appropriate locations from which her prayers should arise.

  “It is therefore merely a question of New Orleans, the House of God which is honoured by your attendance when in the city. That will be a simple task, I doubt not.”

  She wondered just what Henry would be able to say to the minister that might convince him to keep silent, but she had no doubt that he would succeed – her beloved was a great man.

  Henry was a little irritated – it might well cost a thousand a year to buy the preacher’s silence – wasted money!

  Judge Chard was pleased to see them, delighted in fact, saying so at great length – a brother of his good son Henry was more than welcome as well.

  He took them to church with the family on Sunday, showing them off to his peers. The paddle-steamers on the Mississippi were famous now, and a major manufacturer was a known figure on the national scene. Mr Luke Star was also notorious, the righteous uprising of the Greeks having excited a degree of interest amongst many of the religious. It seemed that the pamphlets written in London had made their way to New York where they had been accepted as gospel truth – which was in a way unfortunate, Luke felt.

  The worthies of New York were flattered to meet the Christian hero, and wanted to know where he was bound next.

  “Texas, I should imagine, Mr Star – the good American settlers there are being much put upon by the Mexicans. Did you know, sir, that amongst the landowners, the important folk, there are ten Americans or Englishmen for every Spanish speaker? The Texicans are becoming wroth with the Mexican tyranny and will soon be forced to arms!”

  Luke smiled and quietly said that he had heard something to that effect. This was immediately interpreted as evidence that he intended to take his military skills to their rescue.

  “God bless you in your endeavour, sir! The Sword of the Lord and of Gideon shall smite the evil-doers, and yours shall be the right arm that wields it!”

  There were subdued cries of ‘Amen’ and ‘Hallelujah’ from those who had heard the conversation.

  Returning with the Chards, Luke ventured to suggest that the Church Militant was strong in New York.

  “True Christianity is powerful in this country, sir, and we welcome those who will stand for the right. As well, sir, we admire to see such men prosper, and I have no doubt that you will find yourself master of many acres of rolling prairie lands in the state you have fought to make free.”

  Henry rolled his eyes heavenwards and murmured ‘Amen’ to this.

  Luke was amazed by New York – in his imagination America was a primitive sort of place, log cabins and such. The first tenements had risen downtown and many fine brownstone mansions graced the genteel parts of the city – it reminded him of London but stank far less.

  “The better parts of civilisation, it would seem, Henry.”

  “I believe so, brother. It is different, obviously, in the parts further inland, but there are some fine cities in the new country.”

  “You tell me that we must sail for another two weeks and more to reach New Orleans, Henry. That is almost one half of the distance from here to London!”

  “It is a vast country, Luke, which is one of the reasons it is so rich.”

  Luke was silent, looked about him, no
ting everything in his mind.

  Luke appraised the richness of furnishing and ornamentation in Judge Chard’s house, eyes open now that he was recovered from his journey, finding all to be much similar to the seats of the richer English mill-owners. He approved – they were his sort of people, he supposed.

  “Texas, Mr Star, is where the future of America is to be decided!”

  They were sat over their wine after dinner, the menfolk together, Judge Chard in expansive mood.

  “Mexico is now de facto a country, sir, independent of Spain, however little the Spaniards like it!”

  Henry nodded agreement.

  “It is a vast country, and incapable of government from the south. The savage tribes, the Comanche especially, are too fierce for the Mexican army to subdue and many of the Spanish speakers have left for the south of the country. The lands north of the Rio Grande del Norte depend on the American empresarios and quite clearly must look towards the United States for their political being. Many Texicans recognise that fact already, and more are coming to such an understanding every day. Washington is developing an awareness of the new reality and any number of western senators and congressmen are looking forward to the day when the new states shall join our sacred union.”

  “Well… jolly good show, sir!”

  “Quite, Mr Star. There is, however, a need for military men, for true soldiers, to take a lead, to show the willing but martially inexperienced gentlemen exactly how to make war.”

  “Ah… I understand, sir. The field of military insurgency is one in which I have some slight experience, though I do not know how willing western gentlemen might be to be guided by Englishmen such as myself.”

  “Was it to be an unknown Englishman, then there might indeed be some doubts, Mr Star. The doings of the Greek insurgents, however, have received wide publicity – a number of pamphlets have been written and circulated, many reaching the States to be reprinted and sold in every town and city of the north. The name of ‘Lukas’ Star, the English Captain, is rather well known as a result.”