Her words were like a stream of honey fleeting, The which doth
softly trickle from the hive, Able to melt the hearer's heart
unweeting And eke to make the dead again alive.
* * * * *
Much like an angel in all form and fashion.
SPENSER.
Margaret was welcomed to Ashdale with such sincere pleasure by Mr. Grey
and her Italian greyhound, that she could not find it in her heart to
regret the social circle she left behind. Seated in a low chair by her
uncle's side, with Gessina on her lap, she spent the evening alternately
in playing with her beautiful pet, and of giving him a history of her
week's visit.
Mr. Grey, like many people who live very retired, delighted in this
species of gossip. He was pleased to hear the names of the people who
dined at Captain Gage's during her stay, and the dresses which Margaret
had worn on each day. And if, during her narrative, she happened to
mention a name that was familiar to him, he would interrupt her to
remark that he had known a person of that name many years ago, who was
of such a county; and to wonder whether the one Margaret had met, was
related or not, to his old acquaintance.
These episodes were sometimes interrupted by the perverseness of
Gessina, who would creep under the sofas, or the heavy chairs, and had
to be fished out from these hiding places by the united industry of Mr.
Haveloc and Margaret.
These little pursuits seemed to bring them still more acquainted, so
that sometimes she ventured to appeal to him during her recollections to
confirm her statements.
"And so she lost the ball at last, poor child," said Mr. Grey drawing
her towards him. "What a pity that was!"
"Oh, yes uncle! I was very sorry at first. But I had such a head-ache.
Do you ever smoke cigars, Mr. Haveloc?"
"I have done such a thing," said he smiling. "But it is not a practice
of mine."
"And how did you spend that evening, my love?" said Mr. Grey, who had
not perceived the connexion between the ball and the cigars.
"I sat talking with Harriet Conway until I went to bed. Do you know
Harriet, Sir?"
"I have not seen her, my dear, since she was a child," said Mr. Grey.
"Oh! She is so handsome, Sir. Is she not, Mr. Haveloc? I think she was
the handsomest girl in the party, except Bessy, I hardly know which to
say."
"Which do you decide for, Claude?" asked Mr. Grey.
Mr. Haveloc paused a little, glanced at Margaret with a smile, and said
that he should not have considered either of those ladies the beauty of
the party. He had hardly noticed Miss Harriet Conway, but if he
recollected her, she had fine eyes.
Margaret felt embarrassed for a moment, but feeling sure that his remark
could not have referred to her in any way, she let the subject pass, and
continued her account.
"The flower-show was very delightful, Sir. There was a band of music,
and such a beautiful display of plants. Captain Gage's gardener had a
prize for hyacinths. Do you know, Sir, that four of my hyacinths are
blown in my dressing-room? I think I shall bring them down into the
drawing-room."
"Do, my love," said Mr. Grey.
"Bessy knew a great many people there, Sir; but Mr. Gage said he was
bored. I wished he had not come with us. And Mr. Hubert frightened me,
for he declared he was going to steal a cluster of the flowers for
Harriet and I; and there would have been such a scene!"
"And what did Miss Harriet say to that?" asked Mr. Grey.
"Oh! she laughed, and encouraged him," said Margaret. "But I think it
was only to put me in a fright; and just then, Bessy came up, and asked
if we would go, because Mr. Gage was so tired of it all."
"And did you have any more visitors afterwards?" asked Mr. Grey.
"Yes. Two foreigners, the Marquis de----, (a very long name that I
cannot remember), and his son. They talked Spanish with Harriet, and
French with the others. Mr. Hubert used always to contrive that I should
sit next one of them, that I might be obliged to speak French."
"Hubert is rather mischievous, is he not?" said Mr. Grey.
"Oh! yes, Sir; but very good-natured; and so is Captain Gage. We went
every day to see something or other. Once we went to hear service in
the Cathedral. I was so glad that Mr. Gage was not of the party that
morning. I wish, Mr. Haveloc, you would go on reading."
"I will, indeed," said he, taking up his book. "Only I have some
curiosity to know first, why you do not like George Gage?"
"You should not listen, Mr. Haveloc. One cannot like every body in the
world--though I did not say I disliked him."
"The Gages are all handsome," said Mr. Grey, musing. "George called on
me one day last week. I think it must have been the day you went to the
Cathedral. He said the ladies were out sight-seeing. I was very glad to
see him; and I took it kind, his coming to a dull house like this, to
pay a visit to a poor invalid."
"Kind, indeed!" exclaimed Margaret, her beautiful face all in a glow. "I
think he ought to feel much pleasure in seeing an old friend again. I
recollect Mr. Hubert came directly to see you, and he often talks of
your kindness to him when a boy."
Mr. Grey laughed, and patted her on the head. "Well, you like Hubert the
best it seems," he said. "But now tell me how you passed your evenings
when you were alone."
"That was the pleasantest time, Sir. After dinner we went into Bessy's
sitting-room; and one day, Harriet showed me how to make wreaths and
trimmings of natural flowers. Bessy had a large basket gathered for us,
and I wore them that evening; and then, Harriet is so clever, she used
to give us descriptions of the people who live near Singleton Manor, and
make us die of laughing. She can talk like the poor people in
Somersetshire. And then Mr. Hubert used to come in before tea-time, and
sometimes he would roast chestnuts on the bars of the grate--and we ate
them, Harriet and I. Bessy could never persuade him to have them done
by the housekeeper. And after tea, we had always plenty of music, for
Captain Gage likes music so much. And one evening Mr. Hubert would have
a twelfth cake, because he had not been at home for so many Twelfth
Nights; and Bessy was obliged to get one made on purpose at S----. And I
was the Queen, uncle! Captain Gage drew the King, and would not give it
up to Mr. Hubert. You should have seen Mr. Gage, uncle. He was obliged
to join in it all, half against his will; and Harriet laughed at him so
much for being grand."
"And so you passed a merry time of it;" said Mr. Grey.
"Very, Sir. But I was very glad to drive up the old avenue again, and
see you and Gessina. Do you know, Sir, Mason said that as soon as
Gessina heard the carriage she was wild to get down stairs."
"Was she, my love?" said Mr. Grey. There was a pause.
Mr. Grey fell asleep, Margaret caressed her dog, and Mr. Haveloc made a
sketch of her attitude in the fly-leaf of his book.
At last Margaret looked up.
"Oh! Mr. Haveloc, you have been to Italy. Do you not allow Gessina to be
a beauty? Blanche Somerton said I ought to have had a white greyhound."
"She is a very pretty creature," said Mr. Haveloc, coming over to her
side of the fire. "I believe the white ones are more expensive, which is
quite sufficient to account for some people's preference."
"Oh! I do not care about that. I like this fawn colour. I declare I
never saw such a beautiful head. Bessy says that the next time I go to
Chirke Weston, I am to be sure and take her with me."
"Miss Gage is always considerate," said Mr. Haveloc.
"I know you think very highly of her," said Margaret colouring, "because
you once advised me to consult her; and I think, in that affair, her
opinion was very like yours."
Mr. Haveloc smiled, and remained silent, watching Margaret, whose
attitudes rivalled those of her greyhound in beauty.
"Mr. Haveloc," said Margaret, looking up again, and blushing, "what were
you drawing just now?"
"So, you have some curiosity," he said, smiling.
"Because," she said timidly, "I should not wonder if you were drawing
Gessina--and--I wish you would show it to me--if you were."
"With pleasure. I will just put a few more touches. You will not be
satisfied if it is not a very flattering likeness."
"Have you done, Mr. Haveloc?"
"Not quite."
"Will you show it me presently, Mr. Haveloc? Will you show it me now?"
"You do not give me time to do my best," said he, as he handed her a
sheet of note paper, on which he had just made a pretty little sketch of
the greyhound.
"Oh, how exactly like! How very pretty! May I keep it, Mr. Haveloc?"
"If you please--I shall be too happy."
"I wish my uncle was awake," said Margaret looking towards him. "I
should like to show it to him. I wonder if he would know it directly. I
dare say he would!"
"Not a doubt of it," said Mr. Haveloc, "all Italian greyhounds are
alike. Any picture of an Italian greyhound would do for your dog. Do you
wish me to wake Mr. Grey, that he may decide the question?"
"Oh, no! what are you thinking of? People should never be wakened."
"Will you tell me now, why you do not like George Gage?"
"What, have you not forgotten that yet? Well I will tell you one reason.
Because he stares so much."
Mr. Haveloc laughed. "I really did not think," he said, "that ladies
resented that offence, so strongly. Fortunately I cannot offend in that
way, since I am half blind."
"I wish Mr. Gage was near-sighted," said Margaret laughing, "he is quite
mistaken if he thinks ladies like to be stared at; even Harriet, who
does not care for many things, told him one evening that it made her
quite nervous to have him opposite when she was singing, looking into
her mouth like a dentist."
"And when do you mean to ride out?" said Mr. Haveloc.
"Oh! do you know I had quite forgotten my horse," exclaimed Margaret,
"Uncle Grey!--There I have waked him at last."
"What is it, my love?" said Mr. Grey looking up.
"Miss Capel is so dismayed at having waked you," said Mr. Haveloc
laughing.
"Oh! I was not asleep," said Mr. Grey rubbing his eyes, "I have been
listening to all you have been saying."
Mr. Haveloc and Margaret exchanged smiles.
"Will you let me ride out to-morrow, dear uncle?"
"Yes, my love; you are quite sure of the horse, Claude. If somebody
would go out first, just to try him; or if you have no engagement
to-morrow, Claude, perhaps you would go with Margaret and Evans, just to
see that all is right for the first time. Evans is a very steady man;
afterwards I could trust him with comfort."
No one could mistake the delight that was visible on Mr. Haveloc's
countenance at this proposition. He could not have asked to ride out
with her, but here was a reason--a sufficient cause. "Nothing could give
him more pleasure," he said, "he begged to know what time would suit
Miss Capel, that he might be in the way."
Anybody but Mr. Grey would have noticed the impatience with which Mr.
Haveloc looked forward to this ride: any one else would have been aware
that it was some strong feeling that could make so ordinary an
occurrence a matter of so much importance to him.
Margaret never spent the morning in the library with them; and Mr.
Haveloc settled to nothing; he neither read nor wrote, but wandered
about the room, sometimes watching the weather, and sometimes glancing
over the newspaper. But Mr. Grey having provided for Margaret's safety,
forgot the subject altogether, and spent his time in puzzling over his
steward's accounts, and cutting the leaves of a new review without
taking any note of his companion's idleness. And when Margaret did make
her appearance, looking beautiful with excitement, and he hastened to
meet her, Mr. Grey followed him to the hall door giving him a string of
cautions, which any third person could have told him was quite
unnecessary in the present instance. He was quite eager enough to
examine the girths and the curb, and to prevent her horse from going too
fast.
It was a beautiful day; the trees were just out and the young leaves
trembled in the bright sunshine. There was that peculiar fragrance in
the air, which results from the opening buds in shrubs and hedges; and
in some places, the sweet breath of violets seemed to linger on the soft
wind, mingled with the fresh scent of dewy tufts of moss.
Margaret had no fear, and the paces of her horse were so easy, that she
felt no fatigue. Mr. Haveloc took the greatest care of her, and exerted
himself to amuse her so effectually, that she was really sorry when her
ride was concluded. Whether she would have enjoyed it quite as much with
the groom, for her sole attendant, is a question that she had no present
opportunity of solving; for Mr. Haveloc told Mr. Grey that he thought
her horse went best in company, and that while he remained at Ashdale,
he was entirely at the service of Miss Capel whenever she chose to ride
out.