CHAPTER XCI.
THE GRAND CONSULTATION BROKEN UP BY MRS. CHILLINGWORTH, AND THEDISAPPEARANCE OF VARNEY.
Remarkable was the change that had taken place in the circumstances ofthe Bannerworth family. From a state of great despondency, and, indeed,absolute poverty, they had suddenly risen to comfort and independence.
It seemed as if the clouds that had obscured their destiny, had now,with one accord, dissipated, and that a brighter day was dawning. Notonly had the circumstances of mental terror which had surrounded themgiven way in a great measure to the light of truth and reflection, butthose pecuniary distresses which had pressed upon them for a time, werelikewise passing away, and it seemed probable that they would be in aprosperous condition.
_The acquisition of the title deeds of the estate_, which they thoughthad passed away from the family for ever, became to them, in theirpresent circumstances, an immense acquisition, and brought to theirminds a feeling of great contentment.
Many persons in their situation would have been extremely satisfied athaving secured so strong an interest in the mind of the old admiral, whowas very wealthy, and who, from what he had already said and done, nodoubt fully intended to provide handsomely for the Bannerworth family.
And not only had they this to look forward to, if they had chosen toregard it as an advantage, but they knew that by the marriage of Florawith Charles Holland she would have a fortune at her disposal, while he(Charles) would be the last man in the world to demur at any reasonableamount of it being lavished upon her mother and her brothers.
But all this did not suit the high and independent spirit of HenryBannerworth. He was one who would rather have eaten the dust that heprocured for himself by some meritorious exertion, than have feasted onthe most delicate viands placed before him from the resources ofanother.
But now that he knew this small estate, the title deeds of which hadbeen so singularly obtained, had once really belonged to the family, buthad been risked and lost at the gaming-table, he had no earthly scruplein calling such property again his own.
As to the large sum of money which Sir Francis Varney in his confessionshad declared to have found its way into the possession of MarmadukeBannerworth, Henry did not expect, and scarcely wished to becomepossessed of wealth through so tainted a source.
"No," he said to himself frequently; "no--I care not if that wealth benever forthcoming, which was so badly got possession of. Let it sinkinto the earth, if, indeed, it be buried there; or let it rot in someunknown corner of the old mansion. I care not for it."
In this view of the case he was not alone, for a family more unselfish,or who cared so little for money, could scarcely have been found; butAdmiral Bell and Charles Holland argued now that they had a right to theamount of money which Marmaduke Bannerworth had hidden somewhere, andthe old admiral reasoned upon it rather ingeniously, for he said,--
"I suppose you don't mean to dispute that the money belongs to somebody,and in that case I should like to know who else it belonged to, if notto you? How do you get over that, master Henry?"
"I don't attempt to get over it at all," said Henry; "all I say is, thatI do dislike the whole circumstances connected with it, and the mannerin which it was come by; and, now that we have a small independence, Ihope it will not be found. But, admiral, we are going to hold a familyconsultation as to what we shall do, and what is to become of Varney. Hehas convinced me of his relationship to our family, and, although hisconduct has certainly been extremely equivocal, he has made all theamends in his power; and now, as he is getting old, I do not like tothrow him upon the wide world for a subsistence."
"You don't contemplate," said the admiral, "letting him remain with you,do you?"
"No; that would be objectionable for a variety of reasons; and I couldnot think of it for a moment."
"I should think not. The idea of sitting down to breakfast, dinner, tea,and supper with a vampyre, and taking your grog with a fellow that sucksother people's blood!"
"Really, admiral, you do not really still cling to the idea that SirFrancis Varney is a vampyre."
"I really don't know; he clings to it himself, that's all I can say; andI think, under those circumstances, I might as well give him the benefitof his own proposition, and suppose that he is a vampyre."
"Really, uncle," said Charles Holland, "I did think that you haddiscarded the notion."
"Did you? I have been thinking of it, and it ain't so desirable to be avampyre, I am sure, that any one should pretend to it who is not;therefore, I take the fellow upon his own showing. He is a vampyre inhis own opinion, and so I don't see, for the life of me, why he shouldnot be so in ours."
"Well," said Henry, "waving all that, what are we to do with him?Circumstances seem to have thrown him completely at our mercy. What arewe to do with him, and what is to become of him for the future?"
"I'll tell you what I'll do," said the admiral. "If he were ten times avampyre, there is some good in the fellow; and I will give him enough tolive upon if he will go to America and spend it. They will take goodcare there that he sucks no blood out of them; for, although an Americanwould always rather lose a drop of blood than a dollar, they keep apretty sharp look out upon both."
"The proposal can be made to him," said Henry, "at all events. It is onewhich I don't dislike, and probably one that he would embrace at once;because he seems, to me, to have completely done with ambition, and tohave abandoned those projects concerning which, at one time, he tooksuch a world of trouble."
"Don't you trust to that," said the admiral. "What's bred in the bonedon't so easily get out of the flesh; and once or twice, when MasterVarney has been talking, I have seen those odd looking eyes of his flashup for a moment, as if he were quite ready to begin his old capersagain, and alarm the whole country side."
"I must confess," said Charles Holland, "that I myself have had theimpression once or twice that Varney was only subdued for a time, andthat, with a proper amount of provocation, he would become again a veryserious fellow, and to the full as troublesome as he has been."
"Do you doubt his sincerity?" said Henry.
"No, I do not do that, Henry: I think Varney fully means what he says;but I think, at the same time, that he has for so long lead a strange,wild, and reckless life, that he will find it very far from easy, ifindeed possible, to shake off his old habits and settle down quietly, ifnot to say comfortably."
"I regret," said Henry, "that you have such an impression; but, while Ido so, I cannot help admitting that it is, to a considerable extent, nomore than a reasonable one; and perhaps, after all, my expectation thatVarney will give us no more trouble, only amounts to a hope that he willnot do so, and nothing more. But let us consider; there seems to be someslight difference of opinion among us, as to whether we should take upour residence at this new house of ours, which we did not know we owned,at Dearbrook, or proceed to London, and there establish ourselves, oragain return to Bannerworth Hall, and, by a judicious expenditure ofsome money, make that a more habitable place than it has been for thelast twenty years."
"Now, I'll tell you what," said the admiral, "I would do. It's quite outof the question for any body to live long unless they see a ship; don'tyou think so, Miss Flora?"
"Why, how can you ask Flora such a question, uncle," said CharlesHolland, "when you know she don't care a straw about ships, and onlylooks upon admirals as natural curiosities?"
"Excepting one," said Flora, "and he is an admiral who is natural but nocuriosity, unless it be that you, can call him such because he is sojust and generous, and, as for ships, who can help admiring them; and ifAdmiral Bell proposes that we live in some pleasant, marine villa by thesea-coast, he shall have my vote and interest for the proceeding."
"Bravo! Huzza!" cried the admiral. "I tell you what it is, MasterCharley--you horse marine,--I have a great mind to cut you out, and haveMiss Flora myself."
"Don't, uncle," said Charles; "that would be so very cruel, after shehas promised me so faithfully. How do
you suppose I should like it; comenow, be merciful."
At this moment, and before any one could make another remark, there camerather a sharp ring at the garden-gate bell, and Henry exclaimed,--
"That's Mr. Chillingworth, and I am glad he has come in time to join ourconference. His advice is always valuable; and, moreover, I rather thinkhe will bring us some news worth the hearing."
The one servant who they had to wait upon them looked into the room, andsaid,--"If you please, here is Mrs. Chillingworth."
"Mistress? you mean Mr."
"No; it is Mrs. Chillingworth and her baby."
"The devil!" said the admiral; "what can she want?"
"I'll come and let you know," said Mrs. Chillingworth, "what I want;"and she darted into the room past the servant. "I'll soon let you know,you great sea crab. I want my husband; and what with your vampyre, andone thing and another, I haven't had him at home an hour for the pastthree weeks. What am I to do? There is all his patients getting well asfast as they can without him; and, when they find that out, do you thinkthey will take any more filthy physic? No, to be sure not; people ain'tsuch fools as to do anything of the sort."
"I'll tell you what we will do, ma'am," said the admiral; "we'll all getill at once, on purpose to oblige ye; and I'll begin by having themeasles."
"You are an old porpoise, and I believe it all owing to you that myhusband neglects his wife and family. What's vampyres to him, I shouldlike to know, that he should go troubling about them? I never heard ofvampyres taking draughts and pills."
"No, nor any body else that had the sense of a goose," said the admiral;"but if it's your husband you want, ma'am, it's no use your looking forhim here, for here he is not."
"Then where is he? He is running after some of your beastly vampyressomewhere, I'll be bound, and you know where to send for him."
"Then you are mistaken; for, indeed, we don't. We want him ourselves,ma'am, and can't find him--that's the fact."
"It's all very well talking, sir, but if you were a married woman, witha family about you, and the last at the breast, you'd feel verydifferent from what you do now."
"I'm d----d if I don't suppose I should," said the admiral; "but as forthe last, ma'am, I'd soon settle that. I'd wring its neck, and shove itoverboard."
"You would, you brute? It's quite clear to me you never had a child ofyour own."
"Mrs. Chillingworth," said Henry, "I think you have no right to complainto us of your domestic affairs. Where your husband goes, and what hedoes, is at his own will and pleasure, and, really, I don't see that weare to be made answerable as to whether he is at home or abroad; to saynothing of the bad taste--and bad taste it most certainly is, of talkingof your private affairs to other people."
"Oh, dear!" said Mrs. Chillingworth; "that's your idea, is it, youno-whiskered puppy?"
"Really, madam, I cannot see what my being destitute of whiskers has todo with the affair; and I am inclined to think my opinion is quite asgood without them as with them."
"I will speak," said Flora, "to the doctor, when I see him."
"Will you, Miss Doll's-eyes? Oh, dear me! you'll speak to the doctor,will you?"
"What on earth do you want?" said Henry. "For your husband's sake, whomwe all respect, we wish to treat you with every imaginable civility; butwe tell you, candidly, that he is not here, and, therefore, we cannotconceive what more you can require of us."
"Oh, it's a row," said the admiral; "that's what she wants--woman like.D----d a bit do they care what it's about as long as there's adisturbance. And now, ma'am, will you sit down and have a glass ofgrog?"
"No, I will not sit down; and all I can say is, that I look upon thisplace as a den full of snakes and reptiles. That's my opinion; so I'llnot stay any longer; but, wishing that great judgments may some day comehome to you all, and that you may know what it is to be a mother, withfive babies, and one at the breast, I despise you all and leave you."
So saying, Mrs. Chillingworth walked from the place, feeling herselfhighly hurt and offended at what had ensued; and they were compelled tolet her go just as she was, without giving her any information, for theyhad a vivid recollection of the serious disturbance she had created on aformer occasion, when she had actually headed a mob, for the purpose ofhunting out Varney, the vampyre, from Bannerworth Hall, and putting anend consequently, as she considered, to that set of circumstances whichkept the doctor so much from his house, to the great detriment of a notvery extensive practice.
"After all," said Flora, "Mrs. Chillingworth, although she is not themost refined person in the world, is to be pitied."
"What!" cried the admiral; "Miss Doll's-eyes, are you taking her part?"
"Oh, that's nothing. She may call me what she likes."
"I believe she is a good wife to the doctor," said Henry,"notwithstanding his little eccentricities; but suppose we now at oncemake the proposal we were thinking of to Sir Francis Varney, and so gethim to leave England as quickly as possible and put an end to thepossibility of his being any more trouble to anybody."
"Agreed--agreed. It's the best thing that can be done, and it will besomething gained to get his consent at once."
"I'll run up stairs to him," said Charles, "and call him down at once. Iscarcely doubt for a moment his acquiescence in the proposal."
Charles Holland rose, and ran up the little staircase of the cottage tothe room which, by the kindness of the Bannerworth family, had beendevoted to the use of Varney. He had not been gone above two minutes,when he returned, hastily, with a small scrap of paper in his hand,which he laid before Henry, saying,--
"There, what think you of that?"
Henry, upon taking up the paper, saw written upon it the words,--
"_The Farewell of Varney the Vampyre_."
"He is gone," said Charles Holland. "The room is vacant. I saw at aglance that he had removed his hat, and cloak, and all that belonged tohim. He's off, and at so short a warning, and in so abrupt a manner,that I fear the worst."
"What can you fear?"
"I scarcely know what; but we have a right to fear everything andanything from his most inexplicable being, whose whole conduct has beenof that mysterious nature, as to put him past all calculation as regardshis motives, his objects, or his actions. I must confess that I wouldhave hailed his departure from England with feelings of satisfaction;but what he means now, by this strange manoeuvre, Heaven, and his ownsingular intellect, can alone divine."
"I must confess," said Flora, "I should not at all have thought this ofVarney. It seems to me as if something new must have occurred to him.Altogether, I do not feel any alarm concerning his actions as regardsus. I am convinced of his sincerity, and, therefore, do not view withsensations of uneasiness this new circumstance, which appears at presentso inexplicable, but for which we may yet get some explanation that willbe satisfactory to us all."
"I cannot conceive," said Henry, "what new circumstances could haveoccurred to produce this effect upon Varney. Things remain just as theywere; and, after all, situated as he is, if any change had taken placein matters out of doors, I do not see how he could become acquaintedwith them, so that his leaving must have been a matter of merecalculation, or of impulse at the moment--Heaven knows which--but canhave nothing to do with actual information, because it is quite evidenthe could not get it."
"It is rather strange," said Charles Holland, "that just as we werespeculating upon the probability of his doing something of this sort, heshould suddenly do it, and in this singular manner too."
"Oh," said the old admiral, "I told you I saw his eye, that was enoughfor me. I knew he would do something, as well as I know a mainmast froma chain cable. He can't help it; it's in the nature of the beast, andthat's all you can say about it."
Varney the Vampire; Or, the Feast of Blood Page 90
