"TERRARUM DOMINOS."
"Near side, man! the near side! Take it up two holes--that'll do. Sit
tight behind!"
The leaders cringed and winced against their bars. One wheeler,
accepting under protest a wipe with the double thong across his
quarters, threw himself widely off the pole; the other, butting like a
goat, bounced into his collar; and so, starting the whole coach, the
painted, varnished, glittering toy passed on, in clouds of dust, through
all that wealth of oak and fern, and hill and dale, and gleaming glade
and darkling dell, that make a midsummer fairy-land of Windsor Forest on
your way to Ascot Races.
The man who had thus pulled up his team for alteration of their harness
was a well-dressed, clean-made, good-looking young fellow enough. From
the crown of his white hat to the soles of his varnished boots he was a
"gentleman" all over; and if the choice little posy in his button-hole
betrayed a suspicion of dandyism, it was redeemed by the frankness of
manner, the good-humoured and unaffected _bonhomie_ cultivated by our
young warriors of the Household Brigade, horse and foot.
Frank Vanguard, who belonged to the former of these services, was now
steering the regimental drag and a roof-ful of brother officers to the
great Olympic gathering of modern times on the Cup Day at Ascot.
Good spirits, good humour, banter, repartee, and nonsense, reigned
supreme, constituting a combination called "chaff;" just as light wine,
effervescence, and fragrant herbs, in due proportions, become "cup." The
driver had enough to do, with a free but not very handy team and a
crowded road, to the whole of which every carriage he passed assumed a
prescriptive right; yet could he find leisure to answer in corresponding
vein a volley of jesting remarks shot freely at him from behind.
"Frank," says a fresh-coloured young warrior, well qualified to enact
the part of Achilles, so long as that hero was yet in girl's clothes,
"there's a nice bit of galloping ground over the rise. You're not
driving a hearse! _Do_ spring 'em a bit, and give 'em the silk!"
"I'm not so fond of the silk as _you_ are!" answered Frank, touching his
near leader lightly under the bars, as a fly-fisher throws his line.
"You used to get double-thonged pretty handsomely at Eton, I remember,
but it hasn't done you much good."
"Rating and flogging," answered the other, puffing out volumes of smoke;
"that's the way to spoil your young entry!"
"Waste of whipcord," says a graver youth, desirous, of all things in
life, that he should become a Master of Hounds. "They never made you
steady from hare!"
"You got that, Charlie!" laughed another; but Charlie, ere this, has
found a new interest in spasms of anxiety lest they should be passed by
a rival drag, coming up in clouds of dust on their quarter, like an
enemy's frigate through the smoke of battle.
"Who's this cove?" he exclaimed eagerly. "Sits well on his box--nice
short-legged team--keeps his whip quiet, and drives to an inch."
"Snob!" replies a sententious captain, with long moustaches, "by name,
Picard. Wouldn't have him in the Club. Did something abroad. Quite
right. Heavy load and a roughish lot. Team, I should say, better bred
than the company. Don't let him get by. D--n it all, Frank! that's a
close shave!"
It _was_ a close shave! Nothing but the affability with which the near
wheeler, having recovered its temper, answered both rein and thong,
kept the coach out of a roadside ditch, which would have sent one of the
most promising coveys of Her Majesty's peculiar defenders into the thick
of Her Majesty's preserves.
In keeping ahead of his rival, Frank Vanguard passed a barouche, from
the inside of which was turned up to him a fair statue-like face, with
dark eyes and hair, that flushed faintly under its white lace veil, as
it gave him a little modest nod of recognition. No wonder he looked
back; no wonder, thus looking, he brought his wheel so near the edge of
a chasm, that one turn more would have turned him over, and that Miss
Hallaton, holding her breath, shut both hands tight, while her father
exclaimed:
"Nearest thing I ever saw in my life! Who's driving, Helen? He bowed to
_you_."
And Helen, answering demurely--"Captain Vanguard, I _think_,
papa"--reflected how, had he been upset and hurt, the whole brightness
of _her_ day would have darkened into sorrow, and how she wished he
wouldn't be quite so reckless, though she liked him for being so bold.
Behind their barouche came a tax-cart, and behind the tax-cart another
open carriage, in which drove the party who had assembled at dinner in
No. 40, not very long ago.
Uncle Joseph, with his back to the horses, sat in unusual pomp and
magnificence, pointing out the humours, explaining the races, and
generally laying down the law, as though he combined in his own person
the Mastership of the Buckhounds with the authority of the whole Jockey
Club. Owner of a pretty little villa on the Thames, he had invited his
kinswoman, the lady of his affections, and Mr. Goldthred to stay with
him for Ascot Races. Therefore "The Lilies" smiled gay in chintz and
muslin and fresh-cut flowers. Therefore Uncle Joseph, basking in a June
sun and the light of Miss Ross's eyes, felt ten, twenty years
younger--hopeful, enterprising, volatile as a boy!
Mrs. Lascelles was at all times a person of equable spirits. Perhaps it
would be more correct to say, that she possessed that self-command which
forbids emotion to appear on the surface. She looked bright, smiling,
gracious as usual; her lustrous eyes, rosy lips, and white teeth,
enhanced by bonnet, dress, pink-tinted parasol, general sense of
triumph, and flush of the summer's day. Poor Goldthred, sitting over
against her, strove to stifle certain misgivings that such a goddess was
too noble a prize for creatures of common mould, and vaguely wished he
had kept away from the flame, round which, like some singed moth, he
could not help fluttering in senseless, suicidal infatuation!
Parties of pleasure cannot always be equally pleasant to everybody
concerned. Miss Ross, too, seemed out of spirits and pre-occupied; less
gracious to Goldthred, less confiding with Mrs. Lascelles, less
susceptible to the attentions of Uncle Joseph himself. Jin, as she was
now called in her own set, sank back among the cushions, buried in
strange, sad memories, that made her unconscious of the noise, the dust,
the glare, the confusion of tongues, the crush of carriages, all the
charms of the expedition. This, because playing at a cottage door,
shouting vigorously as they passed, she had caught a glimpse of a ruddy,
dark-eyed urchin, who reminded her painfully of her child. It was but
one glance, as he sat triumphant in the dust, waving two dirty little
hands round a black curly head, yet it was enough. She was back in sunny
France once more, with something to trust in, something to work for,
something to love. Looking in Uncle Joseph's battered old face and
cloudy eyes, rather near her own, she could scarcely repress a movement
of abhorrence and disgust; while he, good man, under the impression that
he was more delightful than usual, inveighed against the furious
driving, the extravagant habits, and general recklessness of the
Household Cavalry.
"He's _very_ good-looking!" observed Jin, rousing herself to make a
remark that she knew would be unpalatable to her listener; "isn't he,
Rose?"
"_Very!_" assented Mrs. Lascelles; "but you should see him in
regimentals, my dear. I think I'll ask him to dinner."
Symptoms of mental disquietude in Uncle Joseph and young Goldthred. Each
marvelling that a transitory glimpse, while passing at a hand-gallop,
should have made so vivid an impression; and the latter wondering
whether, if he were to alter the whole tenor of his life, to arm his
chest with a cuirass, and plunge his legs into jack-boots, Mrs.
Lascelles would deem him also worth looking at in "regimentals," as an
officer's uniform is called by nobody but ladies who have never been in
a regiment.
No amusement, except perhaps cricket, seems so popular as racing, yet
out of every hundred people who attend Epsom, Ascot, or Doncaster, do
you suppose five know one favourite from another, or, indeed, ever look
at the noble animal, except he shows temper in his canter before the
start? Helen Hallaton, though she dearly loved a horse, could not even
have told you how many were going for the race about to commence as she
took up her station on the Course; and yet the pretty pageant, bright
and blooming like a June flower-bed, passed under her very nose. But she
could have given a clear account of the masterly manner in which Frank
Vanguard brought his coach into the enclosure; how he laid it alongside
Viscount Jericho's, with as much pomp and little less manoeuvring than
moors an iron-clad at regulation distance from her consort; with what
easy magnificence he flung his reins to right and left, condescendingly
facetious the while with sundry muscular cads, who put their shoulders
to the wheels and deftly extracted the pole. She could have told you
how he leaped like a Mercury from his box, how carefully he laid aside
his whip in its case, how with a silk handkerchief he dusted his white
hat, his shirt-front, his curling moustaches, and the places where his
whiskers were coming fast; lastly, how he took from the inside of the
coach a beautiful little nosegay, daintily tied up, and stuck it into
his button-hole, causing her to admit in her own mind that she wouldn't
mind wearing one of those flowers herself, if she could have it without
its being given her.
Of all this, I say, Miss Hallaton made accurate note; but I doubt if she
had an idea of Mr. Picard's team, though it came next; of his
flash-looking load, with a _loudish_ lady on the box; of his blue coach,
his red wheels, his well-dressed servants, or the workman-like pull up
which brought the whole thing to an anchor, and was, indeed, one of the
best performances of the day.
And now a dozen two-year-olds, after a dozen false starts, have run off
their five furlongs with the speed of an express train, and "the
Termagant filly," overpowering her jockey, a little bundle of pink satin
and puff, huddled up on her back, has won by a neck. There is a lull
till the numbers are up for the next race, and even the Ring, hungry,
insatiate, roaring like the ocean, has subsided into a momentary calm.
Sir Henry takes a cigar from a gorgeous case, and turns to his daughter.
"Backed her for her blood, Nell," says he; "they're all speedy, but they
can't stay. Only a pony--that's better than nothing, however."
"How _can_ you, papa?" replies Nell. "It's wicked of you to bet, though
you _do_ generally seem to win."
Helen draws the usual distinction as to the immorality of gambling. To
win is less than folly, to lose is more than sin. I do not think though
that Sir Henry was equally confiding about his wagers when his judgment
had been at fault. He seemed in the best of humours now.
"Nell, that's the prettiest bonnet we've hoisted the whole season, and
the dress isn't the worst I've seen to-day. It's cruel to waste such a
'get-up' in a carriage. Come across, and we'll show ourselves on the
Lawn."
"And you won't bet on the next race, papa?" says Helen, delighted; for
is there not a chance, nay, almost a certainty, that Captain Vanguard,
having eaten, and drunk, and smoked, and been through all the other
privileged portals, will come to the Lawn for inspection of countless
ladies drawn up in line-of-battle on their own special parade-ground?
The great tumult of the day was over; the Royal party had arrived under
the usual burst of cheers; the greys had been admired; the carriages
commented on; the Master of the Buckhounds, his horse, his figure, his
boots, his seat, and all that covered it, subjected to rigid criticism.
Everybody had a few spare minutes to walk about and admire or ridicule
everybody else. As father and daughter set foot on the smooth burnt-up
slope in front of the boxes, they came suddenly face to face with Mrs.
Lascelles and Miss Ross. Each lady caught sight of Sir Henry at the same
moment, and waited to see what her friend would do. I believe that if
one had turned coldly on her heel, in answer to his ready salute, the
other would have followed suit, and neither would ever have spoken to
her fickle admirer again. But it is probable that the latter's habits
familiarised him with such meetings, for in an instant he had both by
the hand, and was accosting them with that mixture of interest,
deference, and cordiality, which constituted the charm of his very
agreeable manner. He seemed to take it as a matter of course that he
should have made love to both, that they should all meet at Ascot, and
that he should proceed to make love to them again.
"So glad to see you, Mrs. Lascelles!" exclaimed this hardened offender.
"How wet you must have got the last time we parted. I sent my carriage
after you directly I got home, but it was too late. So glad to see you,
Miss Ross. You left us in such a hurry we didn't half wish you good-bye.
Helen and I were very dull without you. Here she is--don't she look
well? don't you both look well? don't we all look well?"
With such effrontery it was impossible not to fall into an easy strain
of conversation, and after an affectionate greeting had been exchanged
between Helen and her two presumptive step-mothers, the whole party
proceeded to Mrs. Lascelles's box, from whence, without crowding or
inconvenience, they could see the race for the Cup, in so far as it was
affected by the run-in seventy yards from home.
Sir Henry, who had another "pony" depending on this event, would have
liked to be a little nearer the Judge's chair; but I doubt if the ladies
cared much for the final struggle, decided by half a length. Mrs.
Lascelles, thinking that her old admirer looked worn, handsome, and
gentleman-like, in spite of crow's-feet and grizzling whiskers, while
resolving to punish him severely for his treachery, was reflecting that
the process would be by no means unpleasant to herself. Miss Ross
continued silent and pre-occupied, haunted by the vision of that sturdy
boy kicking and crowing in the dirt. While Helen, commanding the
four-in-hand coaches with her glass, saw only Vanguard's shapely figure
on the roof of his drag as he turned to watch the race; and when the
excitement was over, sprang down to mingle with the crowd that poured
into the Course, on his way, as she hoped and believed, to join them
here.
Now he stops to speak to a good-looking bad-looking man, whom she
recognises as the driver of the coach which so nearly overtook his own.
Certain courtesies of the road have already made these two acquaintances
and almost friends. Now he bows to a duchess, now nods to a gipsy;
presently he is lost in the throng, and emerges under their very box,
when good-humoured Mrs. Lascelles, doing as she would be done by,
beckons him up at once, and makes ready a place for him at Miss
Hallaton's side.
He has something pleasant to say to each lady; and Miss Ross rouses
herself to observe his good looks, enhanced by that frank air of
courtesy, peculiar to an English gentleman, which is so fascinating to
the women least accustomed to it. She gives him the benefit of a deadly
shot or two from her black eyes, as he seats himself by Helen's side,
and the girl, quick-sighted, silent, sensitive, feels each glance like a
stab.
But it is pleasant to have him here, out of the crowd, amidst this
beautiful scenery, under the summer sun, and over her steals that
feeling of security and complete repose which is the infallible test of
genuine affection.
He is quiet and happy too. Neither of them says much; perhaps they have
a good deal to think of, and are thinking of it.
Uncle Joseph and young Goldthred, returning from an unremunerative
expedition to the betting-ring, are somewhat discomfited to observe this
invasion of their territories, but become speedily reassured in
detecting Sir Henry's obvious anxiety to escape, that he may get "on"
for the next race, and the ill-concealed admiration of Frank Vanguard
for that reckless individual's daughter.
Mr. Groves backs Mrs. Lascelles's invitation freely.
"You will come and dine, Sir Henry," says she; "promise, and I'll let
you off this minute. You know you are dying to get back to that wicked
betting. Think of Helen. She'll be tired to death with the journey to
London in a stuffy railway. Things! You don't want any things. Besides,
why not work the wires? Telegraph for your servants to bring them down.
We needn't dress for dinner. Captain Vanguard, if you can get away from
the barracks, won't you come too?"
Frank looked at Helen, Helen looked resolutely at the card in her hand.
He was forced, unwillingly, to decline, but doubtless remarked the
colour fade in her cheek while he did so, expressing at the same time a
hope of meeting next day. Uncle Joseph, who had quite abandoned the
control of his own household, expressed entire satisfaction with
everybody's arrangements, and Miss Ross whispered in his ear, "it was
very dear of him to be so good-natured!"
Goldthred, too, having lost nine pairs of gloves, six and a half, three
buttons, to Mrs. Lascelles, was in the seventh heaven. Altogether, not
many race-goers left the Course better pleased with themselves that day.
And Mr. Picard, looking down at Helen as he passed her carriage driving
home, said to the loudish lady by his side--
"_That's_ the handsomest girl I've seen the whole season! I wonder who
she is?"
To which the loudish lady replied with acrimony--
"_Do_ you think so? Well, perhaps she is fresh looking, in a
bread-and-butter, missy-ish sort of style. Can't you go a little faster?
One gets choked with this horrid dust!"