CHAPTER IX
ST. GEORGE AND THE DRAGON
The scene presented by the room at this moment was sufficientlysingular. The waiters, drawn to the spot by the fury of my lady's tone,peered in at the half-opened door, and asking one another what thefracas was about, thought so; and softly called to others to witness it.On one side of the table rose Lady Dunborough, grim and venomous; on theother the girl stood virtually alone--for the elder woman had fallen toweeping helplessly, and the attorney seemed to be unequal to this newcombatant. Even so, and though her face betrayed trouble and someirresolution, she did not blench, but faced her accuser with a slowlyrising passion that overcame her shyness.
'Madam,' she said, 'I did not clearly catch your name. Am I right insupposing that you are Lady Dunborough?'
The peeress swallowed her rage with difficulty. 'Go!' she cried, andpointed afresh to the door. 'How dare you bandy words with me? Do youhear me? Go!'
'I am not going at your bidding,' the girl answered slowly. 'Why do youspeak to me like that?' And then, 'You have no right to speak to me inthat way!' she continued, in a flush of indignation.
'You impudent creature!' Lady Dunborough cried. 'You shameless,abandoned baggage! Who brought you in out of the streets? You, akitchen-wench, to be sitting at this table smiling at your betters!I'll--Ring the bell! Ring the bell, fool!' she continued impetuously,and scathed Mr. Thomasson with a look. 'Fetch the landlord, and let mesee this impudent hussy thrown out! Ay, madam, I suppose you are herewaiting for my son; but you have caught me instead, and I'll bebound. I'll--'
'You'll disgrace yourself,' the girl retorted with quiet pride. But shewas very white. 'I know nothing of your son.'
'A fig for the lie, mistress!' cried the old harridan; and added, as wastoo much the fashion in those days, a word we cannot print. The Duchessof Northumberland had the greater name for coarseness; but LadyDunborough's tongue was known in town. 'Ay, that smartens you, does it?'she continued with cruel delight; for the girl had winced as from ablow. 'But here comes the landlord, and now out you go. Ay, into thestreets, mistress! Hoity-toity, that dirt like you should sit at tables!Go wash the dishes, slut!'
There was not a waiter who saw the younger woman's shame who did notlong to choke the viscountess. As for the attorney, though he had vaguefears of privilege before his eyes, and was clogged by the sex of theassailant, he could remain silent no longer.
'My lady,' he cried, in a tone of trembling desperation, 'you will--youwill repent this! You don't know what you are doing. I tell you thatto-morrow--'
'What is this?' said a quiet voice. It was the landlord's; he spoke ashe pushed his way through the group at the door. 'Has your ladyship somecomplaint to make?' he continued civilly, his eye taking in thescene--even to the elder woman, who through her tears kept muttering,'Deary, we ought not to have come here! I told him we ought not to comehere!' And then, before her ladyship could reply, 'Is this theparty--that have Sir George Soane's rooms?' he continued, turning tothe nearest servant.
Lady Dunborough answered for the man. 'Ay!' she said, pitiless in hertriumph. 'They are! And know no more of Soane than the hair of my head!They are a party of fly-by-nights; and for this fine madam, she is akitchen dish-washer at Oxford! And the commonest, lowest slut that--'
'Your ladyship has said enough,' the landlord interposed, moved by pityor the girl's beauty. 'I know already that there has been some mistakehere, and that these persons have no right to the rooms they occupy. SirGeorge Soane has alighted within the last few minutes--'
'And knows nothing of them!' my lady cried, clapping her hands intriumph.
'That is so,' the landlord answered ominously. Then, turning to thebewildered attorney, 'For you, sir,' he continued, 'if you have anythingto say, be good enough to speak. On the face of it, this is a dirtytrick you have played me.'
'Trick?' cried the attorney.
'Ay, trick, man. But before I send for the constable--'
'The constable?' shrieked Mr. Fishwick. Truth to tell, it had been hisown idea to storm the splendours of the Castle Inn; and for certainreasons he had carried it in the teeth of his companions' remonstrances.Now between the suddenness of the onslaught made on them, thestrangeness of the surroundings, Sir George's inopportune arrival, andthe scornful grins of the servants who thronged the doorway, he wascowed. For a moment his wonted sharpness deserted him; he faltered andchanged colour. 'I don't know what you mean,' he said. 'I gave--I gavethe name of Soane; and you--you assigned me the rooms. I thought itparticularly civil, sir, and was even troubled about the expense--'
'Is your name Soane?' Mr. Smith asked with blunt-ness; he grew moresuspicious as the other's embarrassment increased.
'No,' Mr. Fishwick admitted reluctantly. 'But this young lady's name--'
'Is Soane?'
'Yes.'
Mr. Thomasson stepped forward, grim as fate. 'That is not true,' he saidcoldly. 'I am a Fellow of Pembroke College, Oxford, at present inattendance on her ladyship; and I identify this person'--he pointed tothe girl--'as the daughter of a late servant of the College, and thiswoman as her mother. I have no doubt that the last thing they expectedto find in this place was one who knew them.'
The landlord nodded. 'Joe,' he said, turning to a servant, 'fetch theconstable. You will find him at the Falcon.'
'That is talking!' cried my lady, clapping her hands gleefully. 'That istalking!' And then addressing the girl, 'Now, madam,' she said, 'I'llhave your pride pulled down! If I don't have you in the stocks for this,tease my back!'
There was a snigger at that, in the background, by the door; and a crushto get in and see how the rogues took their exposure; for my lady'sshrill voice could be heard in the hall, and half the inn was running tolisten. Mrs. Masterson, who had collapsed at the mention of theconstable, and could now do nothing but moan and weep, and the attorney,who spluttered vain threats in a voice quavering between fear andpassion evoked little sympathy. But the girl, who through all remainedsilent, white, and defiant, who faced all, the fingers of one handdrumming on the table before her, and her fine eyes brooding scornfullyon the crowd, drew from more than one the compliment of a quicker breathand a choking throat. She was the handsomest piece they had seen, theymuttered, for many a day--as alien, from the other two as light fromdarkness; and it is not in man's nature to see beauty humiliated, andfeel no unpleasant emotion. If there was to be a scene, and she did notgo quietly--in that case more than one in the front rank, who read thepride in her eyes, wished he were elsewhere.
Suddenly the crowd about the door heaved. It opened slowly, and a voice,airy and indifferent, was heard remarking, 'Ah! These are the people,are they? Poor devils! 'Then a pause; and then, in a tone ofunmistakable surprise, 'Hallo!' the newcomer cried as he emerged andstared at the scene before him. 'What is this?'
The attorney almost fell on his knees. 'Sir George!' he screamed. 'Mydear Sir George! Honoured sir, believe me I am innocent of anyill-meaning.'
'Tut-tut!' said Sir George, who might have just stepped out of hisdressing-closet instead of his carriage, so perfect was his array, fromthe ruffles that fell gracefully over his wrists to the cravat thatsupported his chin. 'Tut-tut! Lord, man, what is the meaning of this?'
'We are going to see,' the landlord answered drily, forestalling thelawyer's reply. 'I have sent for the constable, Sir George.'
'But, Sir George, you'll speak for us?' Mr. Fishwick cried piteously,cutting the other short in his turn. 'You will speak for us? You knowme. You know that I am a respectable man. Oh, dear me, if this were toldin Wallingford!' he continued; 'and I have a mother aged seventy! It isa mistake--a pure mistake, as I am prepared to prove. I appeal to you,sir. Both I and my friends--'
He was stopped on that word; and very strangely. The girl turned on him,her cheeks scarlet. 'For shame!' she cried with indignation that seemedto her hearers inexplicable. 'Be silent, will you?'
Sir George stared with the others. 'Oh!' said Lady Dunborough, 'so youhave found your voice, have you
, miss--now that there is agentleman here?'
'But--what is it all about?' Sir George asked.
'They took your rooms, sir,' the landlord explained respectfully.
'Pooh! is that all?' Soane answered contemptuously. What moved him hecould not tell; but in his mind he had chosen his side. He did not likeLady Dunborough.
'But they are not,' the landlord objected, 'they are not the personsthey say they are, Sir George.'
'Chut!' said Soane carelessly. 'I know this person, at any rate. He isrespectable enough. I don't understand it at all. Oh, is that you,Thomasson?'
Mr. Thomasson had fallen back a pace on Sir George's entrance; but beingrecognised he came forward. 'I think that you will acknowledge, my dearsir,' he said persuasively--and his tone was very different from thatwhich he had taken ten minutes earlier--'that at any rate--they are notproper persons to sit down with her ladyship.'
'But why should they sit down with her?' said Sir George thefashionable, slightly raising his eyebrows.
'Hem--Sir George, this is Lady Dunborough,' replied Mr. Thomasson, not alittle embarrassed.
Soane's eyes twinkled as he returned the viscountess's glance. But hebowed profoundly, and with a sweep of his hat that made the rusticsstare. 'Your ladyship's most humble servant,' he said. 'Allow me to hopethat Mr. Dunborough is perfectly recovered. Believe me, I greatlyregretted his mischance.'
But Lady Dunborough was not so foolish as to receive his overturesaccording to the letter. She saw plainly that he had chosen hisside--the impertinent fop, with his airs and graces!--and she was not tobe propitiated. 'Pray leave my son's name apart,' she answered, tossingher head contemptuously. 'After what has happened, sir, I prefer not todiscuss him with you.'
Sir George raised his eyebrows, and bowed as profoundly as before. 'Thatis entirely as your ladyship pleases,' he said. Nevertheless he was notaccustomed to be snubbed, and he set a trifle to her account.
'But for that creature,' she continued, trembling with passion, 'I willnot sleep under the same roof with her.'
Sir George simpered. 'I am sorry for that,' he said. 'For I am afraidthat the Falcon in the town is not the stamp of house to suit yourladyship.'
The viscountess gasped. 'I should like to know why you champion her,'she cried violently. 'I suppose you came here to meet her.'
'Alas, madam, I am not so happy,' he answered--with such blandness thata servant by the door choked, and had to be hustled out in disgrace.'But since Miss--er--Masterson is here, I shall be glad to place myrooms at her--mother's disposal.'
'There are no rooms,' said the landlord. Between the two he was growingbewildered.
'There are mine,' said Sir George drily.
'But for yourself, Sir George?'
'Oh, never mind me, my good man. I am here to meet Lord Chatham, andsome of his people will accommodate me.'
'Well, of course,' Mr. Smith answered, rubbing his hands dubiously--forhe had sent for the constable--'of course, Sir George--if you wish it.I did not understand for whom the rooms were ordered, or--or thisunpleasantness would not have arisen.'
'To be sure,' Sir George drawled good-naturedly. 'Give the constablehalf-a-crown, Smith, and charge it to me.' And he turned on his heel.
But at this appearance of a happy issue, Lady Dunborough's rage andchagrin, which had been rising higher and higher with each word of thedialogue, could no longer be restrained. In an awful voice, and with aport of such majesty that an ordinary man must have shaken in his shoesbefore her towering headdress, 'Am I to understand,' she cried, 'that,after all that has been said about these persons, you propose toharbour them?'
The landlord looked particularly miserable; luckily he was saved fromthe necessity of replying by an unexpected intervention.
'We are much obliged to your ladyship,' the girl behind the table said,speaking rapidly, but in a voice rather sarcastic than vehement. 'Therewere reasons why I thought it impossible that we should accept thisgentleman's offer. But the words you have applied to me, and the spiritin which your ladyship has dealt with me, make it impossible for us towithdraw and lie under the--the vile imputations, you have chosen tocast upon me. For that reason,' she continued with spirit, her faceinstinct with indignation, 'I do accept from this gentleman--and withgratitude--what I would fain refuse. And if it be any matter to yourladyship, you have only your unmannerly words to thank for it.'
'Ho! ho!' the viscountess cried in affected contempt. 'Are we to becalled in question by creatures like these? You vixen! I spit upon you!'
Mr. Thomasson smiled in a sickly fashion. For one thing, he began tofeel hungry; he had not supped. For another, he wished that he had kepthis mouth shut, or had never left Oxford. With a downcast air, 'I thinkit might be better,' he said, 'if your ladyship were to withdraw fromthis company.'
But her ladyship was at that moment as dangerous as a tigress. 'Youthink?' she cried. 'You think? I think you are a fool!'
A snigger from the doorway gave point to the words; on which LadyDunborough turned wrathfully in that direction. But the prudent landlordhad slipped away, Sir George also had retired, and the servants andothers, concluding the sport was at an end, were fast dispersing. Shesaw that redress was not to be had, but that in a moment she would beleft alone with her foes; and though she was bursting with spite, theprospect had no charms for her. For the time she had failed; nothing shecould say would now alter that. Moreover her ladyship was vaguelyconscious that in the girl, who still stood pitilessly behind the table,as expecting her to withdraw, she had met her match. The beautiful faceand proud eyes that regarded her so steadfastly had a certain terror forthe battered great lady, who had all to lose in a conflict, and sawdimly that coarse words had no power to hurt her adversary.
So Lady Dunborough, after a moment's hesitation, determined to yield thefield. Gathering her skirts about her with a last gesture of contempt,she sailed towards the door, resolved not to demean herself by a singleword. But halfway across the room her resolution, which had nearly costher a fit, gave way. She turned, and withering the three travellers witha glance, 'You--you abandoned creature!' she cried. 'I'll see you in thestocks yet!' And she swept from the room.
Alas! the girl laughed: and my lady heard her!
Perhaps it was that; perhaps it was the fact that she had not dined,and was leaving her supper behind her; perhaps it was only a generalexasperation rendered her ladyship deaf. From one cause or another shelost something which her woman said to her--with no small appearance ofexcitement--as they crossed the hall. The maid said it again, but withno better success; and pressing nearer to say it a third time, when theywere halfway up the stairs, she had the misfortune to step on hermistress's train. The viscountess turned in a fury, and slappedher cheek.
'You clumsy slut!' she cried. 'Will that teach you to be more careful?'
The woman shrank away, one side of her face deep red, her eyesglittering. Doubtless the pain was sharp; and though the thing hadhappened before, it had never happened in public. But she suppressed herfeelings, and answered whimpering, 'If your ladyship pleases, I wishedto tell you that Mr. Dunborough is here.'
'Mr. Dunborough? Here?' the viscountess stammered.
'Yes, my lady, I saw him alighting as we passed the door.'
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