INDUCTIVE RATIOCINATION
I think Marjory must have suspected that I had something strange to say,
for almost as soon as I came in the morning room I saw that queer little
lift of her eyebrows and wrinkle in her brows which I was accustomed
to see when she was thinking. She held out her two hands towards me so
that I could see them without Mrs. Jack being able to. She held up her
fingers in the following succession:
Left index finger, right middle finger, left little finger, right little
finger, left thumb, right fourth finger, right index finger, left thumb,
right index finger; thus spelling "wait" in her own variant of our
biliteral cipher. I took her hint, and we talked commonplaces. Presently
she brought me up to the long oak-lined room at the top of the Castle.
Here we were all alone; from the window seat at the far end we could see
that no one came into the room unknown to us. Thus we were sure of not
being overhead. Marjory settled herself comfortably amongst a pile of
cushions, "Now" she said "go on and tell me all about it!"
"About what?" said I, fencing a little.
"The news that you are bursting to tell me. Hold on! I'll guess at
it. You are elated, therefore it is not bad; but being news and not
bad it must be good--from your point of view at any rate. Then you
are jubilant, so there must be something personal in it--you are
sufficiently an egoist for that. I am sure that nothing business-like
or official, such as the heading off the kidnappers, would have such a
positive effect on you. Then, it being personal, and you having rather
more of a dominant air than usual about you--Let me see--Oh!" she
stopped in confusion, and a bright blush swept over her face and neck.
I waited. It frightened me just a wee bit to see the unerring accuracy
with which she summed me up; but she was clearing the ground for me
rapidly and effectively. After a pause she said in a small voice:
"Archie show me what you have got in your waistcoat pocket." It was my
turn to blush a bit now. I took out the tiny case which held the gold
ring and handed it to her. She took it with a look of adorable sweetness
and opened it. I think she suspected only an engagement ring, for when
she saw it was one of plain gold she shut the box with a sudden "Oh!"
and kept it hidden in her hand, whilst her face was as red as sunset. I
felt that my time had come.
"Shall I tell you now?" I asked putting my arms round her.
"Yes! if you wish." This was said in a low voice "But I am too surprised
to think. What does it all mean? I thought that this--this sort of thing
came later, and after some time was mutually fixed for--for--_it_!"
"No time like the present, Marjory dear!" As she was silent, though she
looked at me wistfully, I went on:
"I have made a plan and I think you will approve of it. That is as a
whole; even if you dislike some of the details. What do you think of
an escape from the espionage of both the police and the other fellows.
You got hidden before; why not again, when once you have put them off
the scent. I have as a matter of fact planned a little movement which
will at any rate try whether we can escape the watchfulness of these
gentlemen."
"Good!" she said with interest.
"Well, first of all" I went on, getting nervous as I drew near the
subject "Don't you think that it will be well to prevent anyone talking
about us, hereafter, in an unpleasant way?"
"I'm afraid I don't quite understand!"
"Well, look here, Marjory. You and I are going to be much thrown
together in these matters that seem to be coming on; if there is any
escaping to be done, there will be watchful eyes on us before it, and
gossiping tongues afterwards; and inquiries and comparing of notes
everywhere. We shall have to go off together, often alone or under odd
circumstances. You can't fight a mystery in the open, you know; and
you can't by walking out boldly, bamboozle trained detectives who have
already marked you down."
"Not much; but it doesn't need any torturing of our brains with thinking
to know that."
"Well then my suggestion is that we be married at once. Then no one can
ever say anything in the way of scandal; no matter what we do, or where
we go!" My bolt was sped, and somehow my courage began to ooze away. I
waited to hear what she would say. She waited quite a while and then
said quietly:
"Don't be frightened, Archie, I am thinking it over. I must think; it
is all too serious and too sudden to decide on in a moment. I am glad,
anyhow, that you show such decision of character, and turn passing
circumstances into the direction in which you wish them to work. It
argues well for the future!"
"Now you are satirical!"
"Just a little. Don't you think there is an excuse?" She was not quite
satisfied; and indeed I could not be surprised. I had thought of the
matter so unceasingly for the last twenty-four hours that I did not miss
any of the arguments against myself; my natural dread of her refusal
took care of that. As, however, I almost expected her to begin with a
prompt negative, I was not unduly depressed by a shade of doubt. I was,
however, so single-minded in my purpose--my immediate purpose--that
I could endure to argue with her doubts. As it was evident that she,
naturally enough, thought that I wanted her to marry me at once out of
the ardour of my love, I tried to make her aware as well as I could of
my consideration for her wishes. Somehow, I felt at my best as I spoke;
and I thought that she felt it too:
"I'm not selfish in the matter, Marjory dear; at least I don't wish to
be. In this I am thinking of you altogether; and to prove it let me say
that all I suggest is the formal ceremony which will make us one in
form. Later on--and this shall be when you choose yourself and only
then--we can have a real marriage, where and when you will; with flowers
and bridesmaids and wedding cake and the whole fit out. We can be good
comrades still, even if we have been to church together; and I will
promise you faithfully that till your own time I won't try to make love
to you even when you're my wife--of course any more than I do now.
Surely that's not too much to ask in the way of consideration."
My dear Marjory gave in at once. It might have been that she liked the
idea of an immediate marriage; for she loved me, and all lovers like the
seal of possession fixed upon their hopes:
"Time goes on crutches, till love have all his rites."
But be this as it may, she wished at any rate to believe in me. She came
to me and put both her hands in mine and said with a gentle modesty,
which was all tenderness in fact, and all wifely in promise:
"Be it as you will, Archie! I am all yours in heart now; and I am ready
to go through the ceremony when you will."
"Remember, dear" I protested "it is only on your account, and to try
to meet your wishes at any sacrifice, that I suggested the interval
of comradeship. As far as I am concerned I want to go straight to the
altar--the real altar--now." Up went her warning finger as she said
lovingly:
"I know all that dear; and I shall remember it when the time comes. But
what have we to do to prepare for--for the wedding. Is it to be in a
church or at a registry. I suppose it doesn't matter which under the
circumstances--and as we are to have the real marriage later. When do
you wish it to be, and where?"
"To-morrow!" She started slightly as she murmured:
"So soon! I did not think it could be so soon."
"The sooner the better" said I "If we are to carry out our plans. All's
ready; see here" I handed her the license which she read with glad eyes
and a sweet blush. When she had come to the end of it I said:
"I have arranged with the clergyman of St. Hilda's Church in Carlisle to
be ready at eight o'clock to-morrow morning." She sat silent a while and
then asked me:
"And how do you suggest that I am to get there without the detectives
seeing me?"
"That is to be our experiment as to escape. I would propose that you
should slip out in some disguise. You will of course have to arrange
with Mrs. Jack, and at least one servant, to pretend that you are still
at home. Why not let it be understood that you have a headache and are
keeping your room. Your meals can be taken to you as would be done, and
the life of the household seem to go on just as usual."
"And what disguise had you thought of?"
"I thought that if you went dressed as a man it would be best."
"Oh that would be a lark!" she said. Then her face fell. "But where am
I to get a man's dress? There is not time if I am to be in Carlisle
to-morrow morning."
"Be easy as to that, dear. A man's dress is on its way to you now by
post. It should be here by now. I am afraid you will have to take chance
as to its fit. It is of pretty thick cloth, however, so that it will
look all right."
"What sort of dress is it?"
"A servant's, a footman's. I thought it would probably avoid suspicion
easier than any other."
"That goes! Oh this is too thrilling;" she stopped suddenly and said:
"But how about Mrs. Jack?"
"She will go early this afternoon to Carlisle and put up at a little
hotel out of the way. I have got rooms in one close to the station. At
first I feared it would not be possible for her to be with us; but then
when I thought it over, I came to the conclusion that you might not care
to let the matter come off at all unless she were present. And besides
you would want her to be with you to-night when you are in a strange
place." Again she asked after another pause of thought:
"But how am I to change my clothes? I can't be married as a footman; and
I can't go to a strange hotel as one, and come out as a young lady."
"That is all thought out. When you leave here you will find me waiting
for you with a bicycle in the wood on the road to Ellon. You will have
to start about half past five. No one will notice that you are using a
lady's wheel. You will come to Whinnyfold where you will find a skirt
and jacket and cap. They are the best I could get. We shall ride into
Aberdeen as by that means we shall minimise the chance of being seen.
There we will catch the eight train to Carlisle where we shall arrive
about a quarter to two. Mrs. Jack will be there ready for you and will
have the dress you will want to-morrow."
"Oh, poor dear won't she be flustered and mystified! How lucky it is
that she likes you, and is satisfied with you; otherwise I am afraid she
would never agree to such precipitancy. But hold on a minute! Won't it
look odd to our outside friends on the watch if a footman goes out and
doesn't return."
"You will return to-morrow late in the evening. Mrs. Jack will be home
by then; she must arrange to keep the servants busy in some distant
part of the house, so that you can come in unobserved. Besides, the
detectives have to divide their watches; the same men will not be on
duty I take it. Anyhow, if they do not consider the outgoing of a
footman as sufficiently important to follow him up they will not trouble
much about his incoming."
This all seemed feasible to Marjory; so we talked the matter over and
arranged a hundred little details. These things she wrote down for Mrs.
Jack's enlightenment, and to aid her memory when she would be alone to
carry out the plans as arranged.
Mrs. Jack was a little hard to convince; but at last she came round. She
persisted to almost the end of our interview in saying that she could
not understand the necessity for either the hurry or the mystery. She
was only convinced when at last Marjory said:
"Do you want us to have all the Chicago worry over again, dear? You
approve of my marrying Archie do you not? Well, I had such a sickener of
proposals and all about it, that if I can't marry this way now, I won't
marry at all. My dear, I want to marry Archie; you know we love each
other."
"Ah, that I do, my dears!"
"Well then you must help us; and bear with all our secrecy for a bit;
won't you dear?"
"That I will, my child!" she said wiping tears from the corners of her
eyes.
So it was all settled.