After my good and excellent mistress, Mrs Dacre, departed this life
for a better, it seemed as if nothing ever prospered in the family,
whom I had the honour of serving in the capacity of confidential
housekeeper. Mr Dacre became morose and careless of his affairs; his
sons were a source of great misery to him, pursuing a course of
reckless extravagance and heartless dissipation; while the five young
ladies--the youngest of whom, however, had attained the age of
twenty-four--cared for little else than dress, and visiting, and empty
show. These five young ladies had not amiable dispositions or gentle
manners; but they were first-rate horsewomen, laughed and talked very
loud, and were pronounced fine dashing women. There was another member
of the family, an orphan niece of my master's, who had greatly
profited by my lamented lady's teaching and companionship. Miss Marion
had devoted herself to the sick-room with even more than a daughter's
love; and for two years she had watched beside the patient sufferer,
when her more volatile and thoughtless cousins refused to credit the
approach of death. Miss Marion had just entered her twentieth year;
life had not been all summer with her; for she remembered scenes of
privation and distress, ere the decease of her parents left her, their
only child, to the care of affluent relatives. She was a serious and
meek, but affectionate creature; of a most goodly countenance and
graceful carriage; and I used sometimes to think that the Misses Dacre
were jealous of the admiration she excited, and kept her in the
background as much as possible. It was not difficult to do this, for
Miss Marion sought and loved retirement. After Mrs Dacre's decease,
she had expressed an urgent wish to earn her bread by filling the
situation of a governess. But the pride of the Dacres revolted at
this; besides, Miss Marion was a comfort to her uncle, when his
daughters were absent or occupied. So the dear young lady gave up her
own wishes, and strove to do all she could for her generous
benefactor, as she was wont to call my master.
Circumstances, which it were needless to detail, except to say that,
although I had served _one_ mistress satisfactorily, I found it
impossible to serve _five_, determined me to resign the situation I
had creditably filled for so many years. I deeply grieved to leave my
beloved Miss Marion; and she, sweet, humble soul, on her part, yearned
towards me, and wept a farewell on my bosom. I betook myself, in the
first instance, to my brother Thomas Wesley and his wife--a worthy
couple without children, renting a small farm nearly a hundred miles
off. A very pleasant, small farm it was, situated in a picturesque
valley, through which tumbled and foamed a limpid hill-stream, washing
the roots of fine old trees, and playing all sorts of antics. This
valley was a resort of quiet anglers, and also of artists during the
summer season; and Thomas and Martha Wesley often let a neat parlour
and adjoining bedroom to such respectable, steady people as did not
object to observe the primitive hours and customs enforced at Fairdown
Farm. Here I enjoyed the privilege of writing to, and hearing from, my
dear Miss Marion; and though she never complained, or suffered a
murmur to escape her, yet from the tenor of her letters I had great
cause to fear things were all going very wrong at Mr Dacre's, and that
her own health, always delicate, was giving way beneath the pressure
of anxiety and unkindness.
In less than six months after I had quitted the family, a climax,
which I had long anticipated with dread, actually arrived. Mr Dacre,
suddenly called to his account, was found to have left his temporal
affairs involved in inextricable and hopeless ruin; and amid the
general crash and desolation, who was to shield or befriend the poor
dependent, the orphan niece, Miss Marion? She was rudely cast adrift
on the cold world; her proffered sympathy and services tauntingly
rejected by those who had now a hard battle to fight on their own
account. Broken down in health and spirits, the poor young lady flew
to me, her humble, early friend, gratefully and eagerly availing
herself of Thomas Wesley's cordial invitation, to make his house her
home for the present.
My brother was a kind-hearted, just man; he had once been to see me
when I lived at Mr Dacre's; and that gentleman, in his palmy days, was
truly hospitable and generous to all comers. Thomas never forgot his
reception, and now he was a proud and happy man to be enabled thus to
offer 'a slight return,' as he modestly said, to one of the family.
With much concern we all viewed Miss Marion's wan and careworn looks,
so touching in the young; 'But her dim blue een will get bright again,
and she'll fill out--never fear,' said Martha Wesley to me, by way of
comfort and encouragement, 'now we've got her amongst _us_, poor dear.
I doubt those proud Misses Dacre were not over-tender with such a one
as sweet Miss Marion'----
'Dame, dame, don't let that tongue of thine wag so fast,' interrupted
Thomas, for he never liked to hear people ill spoken of behind their
backs, though he would speak out plainly enough to everybody's face.
A few days after Miss Marion's arrival at Fairdown (it was just at the
hay-making season, and the earth was very beautiful--birds singing and
flowers blooming--soft breezes blowing, and musical streamlets
murmuring rejoicingly in the sunshine), a pedestrian was seen
advancing leisurely up the valley, coming in a direction from the
neighbouring town--a distance, however, of some miles, and the nearest
point where the coach stopped. The stranger, aided in his walk by a
stout stick, was a short, thickset, elderly man, clad in brown
habiliments from head to foot: a brown, broad-brimmed beaver, an
antiquated brown spencer (a brown wig must not be omitted), brown
gaiters, and brown cloth boots, completed his attire. His linen was
spotless and fine, his countenance rubicund and benevolent; and when
he took off his green spectacles, a pair of the clearest and honestest
brown eyes ever set in mortal's head looked you full in the face. He
was a nice, comfortable-looking old gentleman; and so Thomas and I
both thought at the same moment--for Martha was out of the way, and I
shewed the apartments for her; the stranger, who gave his name as Mr
Budge, having been directed to our house by the people of the inn
where the coach stopped, who were kin to Martha, and well-disposed,
obliging persons.
Mr Budge said he wanted quietness for some weeks, and the recreation
of fishing; he had come from the turmoil of the great city to relax
and enjoy himself, and if Thomas Wesley would kindly consent to
receive him as a lodger, he would feel very much obliged. Never did we
listen to so pleasant and obliging a mode of speaking; and when Mr
Budge praised the apartments, and admired the country, the conquest of
Thomas's heart was complete. 'Besides,' as Martha sagaciously
remarked, 'it was so much better to have a steady old gentleman like
this for a lodger, when pretty Miss Marion honoured them as a guest.'
I thought so too; my dear young lady being so lone and unprotected by
relatives, we all took double care of her.
So Mr Budge engaged the rooms, and speedily arrived to take
possession, bringing with him a spick-and-span new fishing-rod and
basket. He did not know much about fishing, but he enjoyed himself
just as thoroughly as if he did; and he laughed so good-humouredly at
his own Cockney blunders, as he called them, that Thomas would have
been quite angry had any one else presumed to indulge a smile at Mr
Budge's expense. A pattern lodger in all respects was Mr
Budge--deferential towards Martha and myself, and from the first
moment he beheld Miss Marion, regarding her as a superior being, yet
one to be loved by a mortal for all that. Mr Budge was not a
particularly communicative individual himself, though we opined from
various observations, that, although not rich, he was comfortably off:
but somehow or other, without appearing in the least inquisitive, he
managed to obtain the minutest information he required. In this way,
he learned all the particulars respecting Miss Marion; and gathered
also from me, my own desire of obtaining a situation, such as I had
held at Mr Dacre's, but in a small and well-regulated household. As to
Miss Marion, the kind old gentleman could never shew kindness enough
to her; and he watched the returning roses on her fair cheeks with a
solicitude scarcely exceeded by mine. I never wondered at anybody
admiring and loving the sweet, patient girl; but Mr Budge's admiration
and apparent affection so far exceeded the bounds of mere conventional
kindness in a stranger, that sometimes I even smilingly conjectured he
had the idea of asking her to become Mrs Budge, for he was a widower,
as he told us, and childless.
Such an idea, however, had never entered Miss Marion's innocent heart;
and she, always so grateful for any little attention, was not likely
to receive with coldness those so cordially lavished on her by her new
friend, whom she valued as a truly good man, and not for a polished
exterior, in which Mr Budge was deficient. Nay, so cordial was their
intimacy, and so much had Miss Marion regained health and
cheerfulness, that with unwonted sportiveness, on more than one
occasion she actually hid the ponderous brown snuff-box, usually
reposing in Mr Budge's capacious pocket, and only produced it when his
distress became real; whereupon he chuckled and laughed, as if she had
performed a mighty clever feat, indulging at the same time, however,
in a double pinch.
Some pleasant weeks to us all had thus glided away, and Miss Marion
was earnestly consulting me about her project of governessing, her
health being now so restored; and I, for my part, wanted to execute my
plans for obtaining a decent livelihood, as I could not think of
burdening Thomas and Martha any longer, loath as they were for me to
leave them. Some pleasant weeks, I say, had thus glided away, when Mr
Budge, with much ceremony and circumlocution, as if he had deeply
pondered the matter, and considered it very weighty and important,
made a communication which materially changed and brightened my
prospects. It was to the effect, that an intimate friend of his, whom
he had known, he said, all his life, required the immediate services
of a trustworthy housekeeper, to take the entire responsible charge of
his house. 'My friend,' continued Mr Budge, tapping his snuff-box
complacently, his brown eyes twinkling with the pleasure of doing a
kind act, for his green specs were in their well-worn case at his
elbow--'My friend is about my age--a sober chap, you see, Mrs Deborah;
'here a chuckle--'and he has no wife and no child to take care of
him'--here a slight sigh: 'he has lately bought a beautiful estate,
called Sorel Park, and it is there you will live, with nobody to
interfere with you, as the lady-relative who will reside with my
friend is a most amiable and admirable young lady; and I am sure, Mrs
Deborah, you will become much attached to her. 'By the by, Mrs
Deborah,' he continued, after pondering for a moment, 'will you do me
a favour to use your influence to prevent Miss Marion from accepting
any appointment for the present, as after you are established at Sorel
Park, I think I know of a home that may suit her?'
I do not know which I felt most grateful or delighted for--my own
prospects, or my dear Miss Marion's; though certainly hers were more
vague and undefined than mine, for the remuneration offered for my
services was far beyond my expectation, and from Mr Budge's
description of Sorel Park, it seemed to be altogether a place beyond
my most sanguine hopes. I said something about Miss Marion, and my
hope that she might be as fortunate as myself; and Mr Budge, I was
happy to see, was quite fervent in his response. 'My friend,' said he,
at the close of the interview, 'will not arrive to take possession of
Sorel Park until you, Mrs Deborah, have got all things in order; and
as I know that he is anxious for the time to arrive, the sooner you
can set out on your journey thither the better. I also must depart
shortly, but I hope to return hither again.' Important business
required Mr Budge's personal attention, and with hurried adieus to us
all, he departed from Fairdown; and in compliance with his request, I
set off for Sorel Park, leaving my beloved Miss Marion to the care of
Thomas and Martha for the present.
The owner of this fine place was not as yet known there; for Mr Budge,
being a managing man, had taken everything upon himself, and issued
orders with as lordly an air as if there was nobody in the kingdom
above the little brown man. The head-gardener, and some of the other
domestics, informed me they had been engaged by Mr Budge himself, who,
I apprehended, made very free and busy with the concerns of his
friend. Sorel Park was a princely domain, and there was an air of
substantial comfort about the dwelling and its appointments, which
spoke volumes of promise as to domestic arrangements in general. I
soon found time to write a description of the place to Miss Marion,
for I knew how interested she was in all that concerned her faithful
Deborah; and I anxiously awaited the tidings she had promised to
convey--of Mr Budge having provided as comfortably for her as he had
for me. I at length received formal notification of the day and hour
the owner of Sorel Park expected to arrive, accompanied by his female
relative. This was rather earlier than I had been led to expect; but
all things being in order for their reception, I felt glad at their
near approach, for I was strangely troubled and nervous to get this
introduction over. I was very anxious, too, about my dear Miss
Marion; for I knew that some weighty reason alone prevented her from
answering my letter, though what that reason could be, it was
impossible for me to conjecture.
The momentous day dawned; the hours glided on; and the twilight hour
deepened. The superior servants and myself stood ready to receive the
travellers, listening to every sound; and startled, nevertheless, when
the rapid approach of carriage-wheels betokened their close proximity.
With something very like disappointment, for which I accused myself of
ingratitude, I beheld Mr Budge, browner than ever, alight from the
chariot, carefully assisting a lady, who seemed in delicate health, as
she was muffled up like a mummy. Mr Budge returned my respectful
salutation most cordially, and said, with a smile, as he bustled
forwards to the saloon, where a cheerful fire blazed brightly on the
hearth--for it was a chill evening: 'I've brought your new mistress
home, you see, Mrs Deborah; but you want to know where your new master
is--eigh? Well, come along, and this young lady will tell you all
about the old fellow.'
I followed them into the apartment; Mr Budge shut the door; the lady
flung aside her veil, and my own dear, sweet Miss Marion clasped me
round the neck, and sobbed hysterically in my arms.
'Tell her, my darling,' said Mr Budge, himself quite husky, and
turning away to wipe off a tear from his ruddy cheek--'tell her, my
darling, you're the _mistress_ of Sorel Park; and when you've made the
good soul understand _that_, tell her we'd like a cup of tea before we
talk about the _master_.'
'O my dear Miss Marion!' was all I could utter; 'what does this mean?
Am I in a dream?' But it was not a happy dream; for when I had a
moment to reflect, my very soul was troubled as I thought of the
sacrifice of all her youthful aspirations, made by that poor, gentle
creature, for the sake of a secure and comfortable home in this stormy
world. I could not reconcile myself to the idea of Mr Budge and Marion
as man and wife; and as I learned, ere we retired to rest that night,
I had no occasion to do so. Mr Budge was Miss Marion's paternal uncle,
her mother, Miss Dacre, having married his elder brother. These
brothers were of respectable birth, but inferior to the Dacres; and
while the elder never prospered in any undertaking, and finally died
of a broken heart, the younger, toiling in foreign climes, gradually
amassed a competency. On returning to his native land, he found his
brother no more, and the orphan girl he had left behind placed with
her mother's relatives.
Mr Budge had a great dread of appearing before these proud patrician
people, who had always openly scorned his deceased brother; and once
accidentally encountering them at a public _fête_, the contumelious
bearing of the young ladies towards the little brown gentleman
deterred him from any nearer approach. No doubt, he argued, his
brother's daughter was deeply imbued with similar principles, and
would blush to own a 'Mr Budge' for her uncle! This name he had
adopted as the condition of inheriting a noble fortune unexpectedly
bequeathed by a plebeian, but worthy and industrious relative, only a
few years previous to the period when Providence guided his footsteps
to Fairdown Farm and Miss Marion.
The moderate competency Mr Budge had hitherto enjoyed, and which he
had toiled hard for, now augmented to ten times the amount, sorely
perplexed and troubled him; and after purchasing Sorel Park, he had
flown from the turmoil of affluence, to seek peace and obscurity for
awhile, under pretext of pursuing the philosophical recreation of
angling. How unlike the Misses Dacre was the fair and gracious
creature he encountered at Fairdown! And not a little the dear old
gentleman prided himself on his talents for what he called
diplomacy--arranging his plans, he said, 'just like a book-romance.'
After my departure, he returned to Fairdown, and confided the
wonderful tidings to Thomas and Martha Wesley, more cautiously
imparting them to Miss Marion, whose gentle spirits were more easily
fluttered by sudden surprise.
For several years, Mr Budge paid an annual visit to Fairdown, when the
trout-fishing season commenced; and many useful and valuable gifts
found their way into Thomas's comfortable homestead, presented by dear
Miss Marion. In the course of time, she became the wife of one worthy
of her in every respect--their lovely children often sportively
carrying off the ponderous box of brown rappee, and yet Uncle Budge
never frowning.
These darlings cluster round my knees, and one, more demure than the
rest, thoughtfully asks: 'Why is Uncle Budge's hair not snowy white,
like yours, dear Deb? For Uncle Budge says he is _very_ old, and that
God will soon call him away from us.'