A JUST MAN ANGERED
When things are piled one on top of another beyond a certain height,
they generally come down with a crash.
That one word "Sunday" was the last straw for Jones, sweeping away
breakfast, bank and everything; coming on top of the events of the last
twenty-four hours, it brought his mental complacency to ruin, ruin from
which shot blazing jets of wrath.
Red rage filled him. He had been made game of, every man and everything
was against him. Well, he would bite. He would strike. He would attack,
careless of everything, heedless of everything.
A mesmerised looking taxi-cab, crawling along on the opposite side of
the way, fortunately caught his eye.
"I'll make hay!" cried Jones, as he rushed across the street. He stopped
the cab.
"10A, Carlton House Terrace," he cried to the driver. He got in and shut
the door with a bang.
He got out at Carlton House Terrace, ran up the steps of 10A, and rang
the bell.
The door was opened by the man who had helped to eject Spicer. He did
not seem in the least surprised to see Jones.
"Pay that taxi," said Jones.
"Yes, my Lord," replied the flunkey.
Jones turned to the breakfast-room. The faint smell of coffee met him at
the door as he opened it. There were no servants in the room. Only a
woman quietly breakfasting with the Life of St. Thomas à Kempis by her
plate.
It was Venetia Birdbrook.
She half rose from her chair when she saw Jones. He shut the door. The
sight of Venetia acted upon him almost as badly as the word "Sunday" had
done.
"What are you doing here?" said he. "I know--you and that lot had me
tucked away in a lunatic asylum; now you have taken possession of the
house."
Venetia was quite calm.
"Since the house is not yours," said she, "I fail to see how my presence
here affects you. We know the truth. Dr. Simms has arrived at the
conclusion that your confession was at least based on truth. That you
are what you proclaimed yourself to be, a man named Jones. We thought
you were mad, we see now that you are an impostor. Kindly leave this
house or I will call for a policeman."
Jones' mind lost all its fire. Hatred can cool as well as inflame and he
hated Venetia and all her belongings, including her dowager mother and
her uncle the duke, with a hatred well based on reason and fact. All his
fear of mind disturbance should he go on playing the part of Rochester
had vanished, the fires of tribulation had purged them away.
"I don't know what you are talking about," said he. "Do you mean that
joke I played on you all? I am the Earl of Rochester, this is my house,
and I request you to leave it. Don't speak. I know what you are going to
say. You and your family will do this and you will do that. You will do
nothing. Even if I were an impostor you would dare to do nothing. Your
family washing is far, far too much soiled to expose it in public.
"If I were an impostor, who can say I have not played an honourable
game? I have recovered valuable property--did I touch it and take it
away? Did I expose to the public an affair that would have caused a
scandal? You will do nothing and you know it. You did not even dare to
tell the servants here what has happened, for the servant who let me in
was not a bit surprised. Now, if you have finished your breakfast, will
you kindly leave my house?"
Venetia rose and took up her book.
"_Your_ house," said she.
"Yes, my house. From this day forth, my house. But that is not all.
To-morrow I will get lawyers to work and I'll get apologies as big as
houses from the whole lot of you--else I'll prosecute." He was getting
angry, "prosecute you for doping me." Recollections of the Barometer
man's advice came to him, "doping me in order to lay your hands on that
million of money."
He went to the bell and rang it.
"We want no scene before the servants," said Venetia hurriedly.
"Then kindly go," said Jones, "or you will have a perfect panorama
before the servants."
A servant entered.
"Send Church here," said Jones. He was trembling like a furious dog.
He had got the whole situation in hand. He had told his tale and acted
like an honourable man, the fools had disbelieved him and doped him.
They had scented the truth but they dared do nothing. Mulhausen and the
recovered mine, the Plinlimon letters, Rochester's past, all these were
his bastions, to say nothing of Rochester's suicide.
The fear of publicity held them in a vice. Even were they to go to
America and prove that a man called Jones exactly like the Earl of
Rochester had lived in Philadelphia, go to the Savoy and prove that a
man exactly like the Earl of Rochester had lived there, produce the
clothes he had come home in that night--all of that would lead them,
where--to an action at law.
They could not arrest him as an impostor till they had proved him an
impostor. To prove that, they would have to turn the family history
inside out before a gaping public.
Mr. Church came in.
"Church," said Jones, "I played a practical joke on--on my people. I met
a man called Jones at the Savoy--well, we needn't go into details, he
was very like me, and I told my people for a joke that I was Jones. The
fools thought I was mad. They called in two doctors and drugged me and
hauled me off to a place. I got out, and here I am back. What do you
think of that?"
"Well, my Lord," said Church, "if I may say it to you, those practical
jokes are dangerous things to play--Lord Langwathby--"
"Was he here?"
"He came last night, my Lord, to have a personal explanation about a
telegram he said you sent him as a practical joke, some time ago, taking
him up to Cumberland."
"I'll never play another," said Jones. "Tell them to bring me some
breakfast, and look here, Church, I've told my sister to leave the house
at once. I want no more of her here. See that her luggage is taken down
at once."
"Yes, my Lord."
"And see here, Church, let no one in. Lord Langwathby, or anyone else. I
want a little peace. By the way, have a taxi sent for, and tell me when
my sister's luggage is down."
In the middle of breakfast, Church came in to say that Miss Birdbrook
was departing and Jones came into the hall to verify the fact.
Venetia had brought a crocodile skin travelling bag and a trunk.
These were being conveyed to a taxi.
Not one word did she say to relieve her outraged feelings. The fear of a
"scene before the servants" kept her quiet.