LITTLE DUDLEIGH.
Little Dudleigh now came to the Hall nearly every day, and devoted
himself to Edith. In spite of his devotion, however, her admiration for
him never rose to a very high pitch. There was something about the
little man which was too prim and precise--an indescribable something
which made her feel a half contempt, against which it was difficult to
struggle even by keeping her mind fixed on his valuable services. His
little particular ways were more appropriate to a woman than to a man,
and excited her impatience. Still she felt that he must have plenty of
courage, for had he not offered to risk his life, and had he not come
armed and prepared to force a way for her out of the park?
Edith, like all generous natures, was frank and confiding. She was
warm-hearted, impulsive, and quick to show gratitude. After the society
of the Mowbrays, she found that of Little Dudleigh an inexpressible
relief. What struck her most about him was his unvarying calmness. He
must have some personal regard for her, she was sure, for on what other
grounds would he come to see her so incessantly, and spend so much time
with her? Yet he never showed much of this in his manner. He frequently
paid compliments, and alluded to his willingness to do any thing to
serve her; but he seldom indulged in sentiment. He never showed any
approach to the tenderness of love. On the whole Edith was immensely
relieved at this, for the little man was one whom she could cordially
appreciate as a disinterested friend, but whose approach toward
gallantry or sentiment would have been repugnant in the extreme.
Little Dudleigh certainly exerted all his powers to make himself
agreeable, and not without success. For Edith, who was naturally of a
radiant temper, was now in high spirits at her brightening prospects,
and it was easy to amuse her. Dudleigh had innumerable stories to tell
of London life, and these stories referred almost exclusively to the
theatre. He appeared to be intimately acquainted with all the
“professional” world, and more particularly with the actresses. His
stories about them were generally of a light, gossiping character,
referring to their petty failings, jealousies, and weaknesses, and
seemed like the malicious tales which actresses tell about one another.
Still none of them were at all unfit for a lady's ear, and in all of
them there was some absurdity which compensated for their maliciousness.
Little Dudleigh seemed to understand most thoroughly the female nature,
its excellences and its defects, its strength and its weaknesses. In his
anecdotes about men he was never so successful. His familiarity with
women's ways was quite remarkable, and extended even to the smallest
details of dress and ornament. His whole manner put Edith singularly at
her ease, and she sometimes caught herself speaking to him almost as she
used to speak to her fellow school-girls.
Little Dudleigh's society thus became quite agreeable, and Edith looked
forward each day to his appearance with something like impatience. There
was, after all, every reason why she should enjoy it. She had no other
associate, and this one upon whom she was thrown exerted all his powers
for the sole purpose of pleasing her.
There was very little of any thing like enthusiasm about Little
Dudleigh, and in this respect he differed very widely from Edith. She
would go into raptures over every beautiful scene. A brilliant sky, a
rich landscape, a quiet woodland view, all served to excite her admiring
comments. Little Dudleigh, however, showed no such feeling. He confessed
himself indifferent to natural scenery, and partial only to city life;
and while he acknowledged the beauty of the place, he yet declared that
he found more to admire in a drawing-room or a theatre.
Meanwhile the little man had not been idle. On his first visit after the
conversation last detailed he informed Edith that he had written to
London, making inquiries about Sir Lionel. A few days afterward he
showed Edith a letter which he said he had received from Sir Lionel's
London solicitors. The writer stated that he did not know where Sir
Lionel was, but that he would write to a firm in Marseilles, who were
his bankers and agents. The opinion of the writer was that the baronet
was somewhere about the Mediterranean. This intelligence was rather
distressing to Edith, but she had been prepared for something of the
kind; and as Little Dudleigh encouraged her, and pointed out many
reasons for hope, she took heart and hoped for the best.
According to Little Dudleigh, Sir Lionel was always traveling. During
ten or twelve years he said that he had not been in England more than
three or four times. It was on one of these occasions that he had met
with him, and had received from him certain acts of kindness which made
him grateful to his benefactor. Sir Lionel, he said, had been a great
traveler, having been through every part of Europe and America, and most
of Asia. He was constantly roving about to different places, sometimes
by land, at other times in his own yacht. This, he thought, must be the
reason why Edith had never heard from him. Personally he was most
kind-hearted and generous, and if he only knew the situation in which
she was, he would fly to her assistance.
Little Dudleigh also alluded in a general way to Sir Lionel's family
troubles. The quarrel with his wife, he said, had broken up the
baronet's life, and made him a wanderer. He knew nothing about the
cause, but had heard that Lady Dudleigh had been very much to blame, and
had deserted her husband under very painful circumstances. It was this
that had made the unhappy husband a wanderer. Lady Dudleigh, he thought,
had died years ago.
Such was the state of things, according to Little Dudleigh, and Edith
had only to make up her mind to wait until something more definite was
known. In the mean time, however, Little Dudleigh had not been unmindful
of Miss Plympton, but wrote a letter to her, which he showed to Edith.
Edith also wrote one, which was inclosed in his. Several weeks passed
away, but no reply was received, and this silence distressed Edith
greatly. At length, when she had lost all hope of hearing from her dear
friend, a reply came. It was written from Italy, and Edith read it with
feelings of mingled amazement and anxiety.
It was written in a strange hand, and informed Lieutenant Dudleigh that
his letter and inclosure had been forwarded from Plympton Terrace, where
it had been first sent, to Miss Plympton's present abode at Nice; and
went on to say that Miss Plympton had come back from Dalton care-worn by
anxiety and fatigue, that a severe illness had been the result, and that
she had been sent to the south of France. The writer stated that she was
still too feeble to undergo any excitement, and therefore that
Lieutenant Dudleigh's letter and inclosure had not been shown her. As
soon as Miss Plympton's health would admit of it the letters would be
given to her. It was uncertain how long she would remain at Nice. They
were thinking now of taking her to Germany or Switzerland. The school
had been broken up for the present. This letter was signed by “Adèle
Swinburne,” who said that she was Miss Plympton's “attendant.” It was a
name that Edith had never heard of before.
It never occurred to Edith to question for one moment the authenticity
of this letter. She accepted it all as truth, and was filled with
grief. Miss Plympton, then, had not been forgetful. She had done what
she could, and this illness was the result. It seemed now to Edith that
the climax of her sorrows had been reached in the sufferings and exile
of her only friend.
“And now, Miss Dalton,” said Little Dudleigh, after a long silence, in
which he had watched her with respectful sympathy, “what do you wish to
do?”
“I'm afraid that I shall have to rely upon you altogether,” said Edith.
“You want something to be done as soon as possible, of course.”
“Of course--most earnestly.”
“You see, then, that both Sir Lionel and Miss Plympton are quite out of
our reach. If you wish for deliverance you must try something else.”
“What else can I try?”
“Well, the law.”
“The law? Of course, that is just what I wish.”
“It is tedious, remember.”
“Oh, if I can only make a beginning, I can wait. It isn't my life here,
or even my imprisonment, that is intolerable so much as my helplessness,
and the thought that I am doing nothing, and the impunity with which
this wretched Wiggins carries out his purposes. If I could only know
that the affair was in the hands of a lawyer, I should feel content.”
“Yes, women have a great faith in lawyers.”
“At any rate, there most be something in the law, although it is often
baffled.”
“There ought to be, certainly; but of course you must be prepared to
have your suit resisted. Wiggins will also have lawyers, and the ablest
ones that he can find.”
“Then I must get better ones.”
“Of course.”
“And immediately, too, without waiting any longer,” said Edith,
impatiently.
“Well, I will get you one as soon as possible, if you say so.”
“Lieutenant Dudleigh,” said Edith, with deep emotion, “you have claims
on my gratitude which I can never repay.”
“It is the happiest moment of my life,” said Little Dudleigh, with
greater animation than usual, “since I have heard you say that. But
don't speak of gratitude. Say, at the most, friendship. If you will
only accept my humble services, they are all yours, and my life too, if
necessary.”
“Oh,” said Edith, with a smile, “there will be no danger to your life
now, you know, if I put my case in the hands of lawyers.”
“Well, now, talking of lawyers,” said Little Dudleigh, “since you have
made up your mind to this, it will be necessary to be very cautious in
choosing one.”
“I must have the best counsel in England.”
“Certainly, for Wiggins will be on the alert. With him every thing is at
stake. If he loses, it will be absolute ruin. In the course of the
trial his whole past life must come up.”
“And it ought to come up,” said Edith, indignantly.
“We must, as you say, have the best counsel in England. An ordinary man
might ruin all. You must get the best lawyer in London. And now I would
not advise you to choose the most eminent one there, for fear lest the
multitude of his engagements might prevent him from giving to your case
the attention which it requires. You want some one who will give his
whole soul to the case--some shrewd, deep, wily, crafty man, who
understands thoroughly all the ins and outs of law, and can circumvent
Wiggins in every way.”
“But I don't like these wily lawyers,” said Edith, doubtfully. “I prefer
honorable men.”
“Yes, certainly, as friends, no doubt you do; but you are not now
seeking for a friend. You are on the look-out for a servant, or,
rather, for one who can fight your battle best, and deal the best and
surest blows upon Wiggins.”
“Well, I'm sure I don't know,” said Edith, doubtfully.
“Now I'll tell you what I'll do, if you'll consent,” said Little
Dudleigh. “I'll go to London and seek out the right man myself. There
is no use in writing letters. I must go and explain the thing
personally.”
“Lieutenant Dudleigh,” said Edith, in deep emotion, “I do not know what
to say. You really overwhelm me with kindnesses. I can only say that
you have earned my life-long gratitude.”
Little Dudleigh shook his head deprecatingly.
“Miss Dalton,” said he, in a tone of respectful devotion, “the favor is
all yours, and the pleasure is all mine. Believe me, I feel happy beyond
expression at being able to do any thing for you.”
And after some further conversation, Little Dudleigh took his leave.
“How noble and generous he is!” thought Edith, as she watched him walk
down the avenue. “Dear Little Dudleigh, what a pity it is that he is not
a few inches taller!”
* * * * *