“What do you think of it, Dinah?” said Barrington, as they sat in
conclave the next morning in her own sitting-room.
She laid down a letter she had just finished reading on the table,
carefully folding it, like one trying to gain time before she spoke:
“He's a clever man, and writes well, Peter; there can be no second
opinion upon that.”
“But his proposal, Dinah,--his proposal?”
“Pleases me less the more I think of it. There is great disparity of
age,--a wide discrepancy in character. A certain gravity of demeanor
would not be undesirable, perhaps, in a husband for Josephine, who has
her moments of capricious fancy; but if I mistake not, this man's nature
is stern and unbending.”
“There will be time enough to consider all that, Dinah. It is, in fact,
to weigh well the chances of his fitness to secure her happiness that he
pleads; he asks permission to make himself known to her, rather than to
make his court.”
“I used to fancy that they meant the same thing,--I know that they did
in my day, Peter,” said she, bridling; “but come to the plain question
before us. So far as I understand him, his position is this: 'If I
satisfy you that my rank and fortune are satisfactory to you, have I
your permission to come back here as your granddaughter's suitor?'”
“Not precisely, Dinah,--not exactly this. Here are his words: 'I am well
aware that I am much older than Miss Barrington, and it is simply to
ascertain from herself if, in that disparity of years, there exists that
disparity of tastes and temper which would indispose her to regard me as
one to whom she would intrust her happiness. I hope to do this without
any offence to her delicacy, though not without peril to my own
self-love. Have I your leave for this experiment?'”
“Who is he? Who are his friends, connections, belongings? What is his
station independently of his military rank, and what are his means? Can
you answer these questions?”
“Not one of them. I never found myself till to-day in a position to
inquire after them.”
“Let us begin, then, by that investigation, Peter. There is no such
test of a man as to make him talk of himself. With you alone the matter,
perhaps, would not present much difficulty to him, but I intend that Mr.
Withering's name and my own shall be on the committee; and, take _my_
word for it, we shall sift the evidence carefully.”
“Bear in mind, sister Dinah, that this gentleman is, first of all, our
guest.”
“The first of all that I mean to bear in mind is, that he desires to be
your grandson.”
“Of course,--of course. I would only observe on the reserve that should
be maintained towards one who honors us with his presence.”
“Peter Barrington, the Arabs, from whom you seem to borrow your notions
on hospitality, seldom scruple about cutting a guest's head off when he
passes the threshold; therefore I would advise you to adopt habits that
may be more suited to the land we live in.”
“All I know is,” said Barrington, rising and pacing the room, “that I
could no more put a gentleman under my roof to the question as to his
father and mother and his fortune, than I could rifle his writing-desk
and read his letters.”
“Brother Peter, the weakness of your disposition has cost you one of
the finest estates in your country, and if it could be restored to you
to-morrow, the same imbecility would forfeit it again. I will, however,
take the matter into my own hands.”
“With Withering, I suppose, to assist you?”
“Certainly not. I am perfectly competent to make any inquiry I deem
requisite without a legal adviser. Perhaps, were I to be so accompanied,
Major Stapylton would suppose that he, too, should appear with his
lawyer.”
Barrington smiled faintly at the dry jest, but said nothing.
“I see,” resumed she, “that you are very much afraid about my want of
tact and delicacy in this investigation. It is a somewhat common belief
amongst men that in all matters of business women err on the score of
hardness and persistence. I have listened to some edifying homilies from
your friend Withering on female incredulity and so forth,--reproaches
which will cease to apply when men shall condescend to treat us as
creatures accessible to reason, and not as mere dupes. See who is
knocking at the door, Peter,” added she, sharply. “I declare it recalls
the old days of our innkeeping, and Darby asking for the bill of the
lame gentleman in No. 4.”
“Upon my life, they were pleasant days, too,” said Barrington, but in a
tone so low as to be unheard by his sister.
“May I come in?” said Withering, as he opened the door a few inches,
and peeped inside. “I want to show you a note I have just had from
Kinshela, in Kilkenny.”
“Yes, yes; come in,” said Miss Barrington. “I only wish you had arrived
a little earlier. What is your note about?”
“It's very short and very purpose-like. The first of it is all about
Brazier's costs, which it seems the taxing-officer thinks fair and
reasonable,--all excepting that charge for the additional affidavits.
But here is what I want to show you. 'Major M'Cormick, of M'Cormick's
Grove, has just been here; and although I am not entitled to say as much
officially on his part, I entertain no doubt whatever but that he is
ready to advance the money we require. I spoke of fifteen hundred, but
said twelve might possibly be taken, and twelve would be, I imagine, his
limit, since he held to this amount in all our conversation afterwards.
He appears to be a man of strange and eccentric habits, and these
will probably be deemed a sufficient excuse for the singular turn
our interview took towards its conclusion. I was speaking of Mr.
Barrington's wish for the insertion in the deed of a definite period for
redemption, and he stopped me hastily with, “What if we could strike out
another arrangement? What if he was to make a settlement of the place
on his granddaughter? I am not too old to marry, and I 'd give him
the money at five per cent.” I have been careful to give you the very
expressions he employed, and of which I made a note when he left the
office; for although fully aware how improper it would be in me to
submit this proposal to Mr. Barrington, I have felt it my duty to put
you in possession of all that has passed between us.'”
“How can you laugh, Peter Barrington?--how is it possible you can laugh
at such an insult,--such an outrage as this? Go on, sir,” said she,
turning to Withering; “let us hear it to the end, for nothing worse can
remain behind.”
“There is no more; at least, there is not anything worth hearing.
Kinshela winds up with many apologies, and hopes that I will only use
his communication for my own guidance, and not permit it in any case to
prejudice him in your estimation.” As he spoke, he crumpled up the note
in his hand in some confusion.
“Who thinks of Mr. Kinshela, or wants to think of him, in the matter?”
said she, angrily. “I wish, however, I were a man for a couple of hours,
to show Major M'Cormick the estimate I take of the honor he intends us.”
“After all, Dinah, it is not that he holds us more cheaply, but rates
himself higher.”
“Just so,” broke in Withering; “and I know, for my own part, I have
never been able to shake off the flattery of being chosen by the most
nefarious rascal to defend him on his trial. Every man is a great
creature in his own eyes.”
“Well, sir, be proud of your client,” said she, trembling with anger.
“No, no,--he 's no client of mine, nor is this a case I would plead for
him. I read you Kinshela's note because I thought you were building too
confidently on M'Cormick's readiness to advance this money.”
“I understood what that readiness meant, though my brother did not.
M'Cormick looked forward to the day--and not a very distant day did he
deem it--when he should step into possession of this place, and settle
down here as its owner.”
Barrington's face grew pale, and a glassy film spread over his eyes,
as his sister's words sunk into his heart. “I declare, Dinah,” said he,
falteringly, “that never did strike me before.”
“'It never rains but it pours,' says the Irish adage,” resumed she. “My
brother and I were just discussing another proposal of the same kind
when you knocked. Read that letter. It is from a more adroit courtier
than the other, and, at least, he does n't preface his intentions with a
bargain.” And she handed Stapylton's letter to Withering.
“Ah!” said the lawyer, “this is another guess sort of man, and a very
different sort of proposal.”
“I suspected that he was a favorite of yours,” said Miss Dinah,
significantly.
“Well, I own to it. He is one of those men who have a great attraction
for me,--men who come out of the conflict of life and its interests
without any exaggerated notions of human perfectibility or the opposite,
who recognize plenty of good and no small share of bad in the world,
but, on the whole, are satisfied that, saving ill health, very few of
our calamities are not of our own providing.”
“All of which is perfectly compatible with an odious egotism, sir,” said
she, warmly; “but I feel proud to say such characters find few admirers
amongst women.”
“From which I opine that he is not fortunate enough to number Miss Dinah
Barrington amongst his supporters?”
“You are right there, sir. The prejudice I had against him before we met
has been strengthened since I have seen him.”
“It is candid of you, however, to call it a prejudice,” said he, with a
smile.
“Be it so, Mr. Withering; but prejudice is only another word for an
instinct.”
“I 'm afraid if we get into ethics we 'll forget all about the
proposal,” said Barrington.
“What a sarcasm!” cried Withering, “that if we talk of morals we shall
ignore matrimony.”
“I like the man, and I like his letter,” said Barrington.
“I distrust both one and the other,” said Miss Dinah.
“I almost fancy I could hold a brief on either side,” interposed
Withering.
“Of course you could, sir; and if the choice were open to you, it would
be the defence of the guilty.”
“My dear Miss Barrington,” said Withering, calmly, “when a great legal
authority once said that he only needed three lines of any man's writing
'to hang him,' it ought to make us very lenient in our construction of a
letter. Now, so far as I can see in this one before us, he neither asks
nor protests too much. He begs simply for time, he entreats leave to
draw a bill on your affections, and he promises to meet it.”
“No, sir, he wishes to draw at sight, though he has never shown us the
letter of credit.”
“I vow to Heaven it is hopeless to expect anything practical when you
two stand up together for a sparring-match,” cried Barrington.
“Be practical, then, brother Peter, and ask this gentleman to give you a
quarter of an hour in your study. Find out who he is; I don't expect you
to learn what he is, but what he has. With his fortune we shall get the
clew to himself.”
“Yes,” chimed in Withering, “all that is very businesslike and
reasonable.”
“And it pledges us to nothing,” added she. “We take soundings, but we
don't promise to anchor.”
“If you go off again with your figures of speech, Dinah, there is an
end of me, for I have one of those unhappy memories that retain the
illustration and forget what it typified. Besides this, here is a man
who, out of pure good nature and respect for poor George's memory, has
been doing us most important services, written letters innumerable, and
taken the most active measures for our benefit. What sort of a figure
shall I present if I bring him to book about his rental and the state of
his bank account?”
“With the exercise of a little tact, Barrington,--a little management--”
“Ask a man with a club-foot to walk gingerly! I have no more notion of
getting at anything by address than I have of tying the femoral artery.”
“The more blunt the better, Peter Barrington. You may tumble into the
truth, though you'd never pick your way into it. Meanwhile, leave me to
deal with Major M'Cor-mick.”
“You'll do it courteously, Dinah; you'll bear in mind that he is a
neighbor of some twenty years' standing?” said Barrington, in a voice
of anxiety.
“I 'll do it in a manner that shall satisfy _my_ conscience and _his_
presumption.”
She seated herself at the table as she said this, and dashed off a few
hasty lines. Indeed, so hurried was the action, that it looked far more
like one of those instances of correspondence we see on the stage than
an event of real life.
“Will that do?” said she, showing the lines to Withering.
The old lawyer read them over to himself, a faint twitching of the mouth
being the only sign his face presented of any emotion. “I should say
admirably,--nothing better.”
“May I see it, Dinah?” asked Peter.
“You shall hear it, brother,” said she, taking the paper and reading,--
“'Miss Barrington informs Mr. Kinshela that if he does not at once
retract his epistle of this morning's date, she will place it in the
hands of her legal adviser, and proceed against it as a threatening
letter.'”
“Oh, sister, you will not send this?”
“As sure as my name is Dinah Barrington.”