A Heart-Song of To-day Part 12

"Dare say, Haughton."

"The prettiest bit of your news, Sir Tilton, is Cap de Juan," said Vaura, apparently absorbed in the delicacies on her plate; but thinking, "can it be true of the ideal knight of my childhood."

"Poor Lionel, how disgusted he will be," said Lady Esmondet, wearily.

"Still, men do do such things; why not he?" said Mrs. Haughton, daringly; "and after all, as none of us are going to marry him, we need not care."

"One feels for one's friends when maligned, that is all," said Vaura, carelessly.

"Well, supposing it be false," continued Mrs. Haughton, with morbid curiosity, watching the beautiful, expressive face of her rival--"which I don't believe, how could he clear himself?"

"I cannot say, Mrs. Haughton; it would be easier to name an antidote for the sting of the snake than for the tongue of Dame Rumour."

"All I can say is, I believe it," said Mrs. Haughton, aggressively; "he is handsome enough to have induced more than one woman to make a clandestine marriage with him."

"I regret to hear you say so, Kate," said her husband, gravely.

"Mrs. Haughton is to be excused, Eric; she does not know Lionel as we do."

"The animal man is the same everywhere," continued Madame, recklessly.

"The serious trouble I see in it for Capt. Trevalyon," said Lady Esmondet, "is, that did he contemplate matrimony, this scandal afloat would be a barrier to his union."

"If he were not so careless, he could stamp it out at once," said the Colonel, impatiently. But he is careless, and Mrs. Haughton exults as she remembers it, and at the success of her plot; for does not Lady Esmondet admit it would be a bar to his union; she feels a morbid pleasure in noting critically the varied charms of her rival, as an innate feeling tells her Miss Vernon might become; and she thinks: "For you he scorned my love; pride, though you die, will keep you apart; he will come to me yet."

CHAPTER X.

VELVET PAWS CONCEAL CLAWS.

"Eric, I have a favour to ask of you," said his friend; "I am going to Rome for a few weeks, and want Vaura with me."

"I had rather you had made any other request of me, Alice; when, and why do you go?"

"On to-morrow, after I have had an interview with Huntingdon, my lawyer (you will know him), who comes from London by appointment; and by the advice of my physician, who declares I require change."

"Change, change, that is always their cry," he answered, regretfully; "take my advice, Alice," he continued, eagerly; "come to Haughton instead."

"Rome first, Eric, thank you; home and Haughton afterwards; a few weeks will soon pa.s.s, as you say," she continued, taking his arm from the table. "I wonder what amount of change we can digest; we get nothing else; never at home; what, with the season at London, watering places, or abroad, home only at Christmas, and some of us don't even do that; but you will lend Vaura to me?"

"Yes," and her arm is pressed gently as he finds her a seat; "though it is hard. What do you say, Vaura; but your face tells me you like this change also."

"I regret this catching only a glimpse of you, dear uncle; but we, b.u.t.terflies, are here to-day, gone to-morrow. I love Haughton, and long for Rome; poor humanity, how unrestful; yet with all our change, the most _ennuyee_ of mortals."

"You will, I suppose, take Miss Vernon up with you for the season, Lady Esmondet?" asked Mrs. Haughton, eager to know if her wish to rid herself of Vaura companions.h.i.+p would be gratified.

"Yes, if her uncle will give her to me; for myself, I have set my heart on having her with me at Park Lane."

"I am glad of that, and the Colonel must agree, for I have not my plans matured; if we are at No. 2 Eaton Square, my house will be full as a box of sardines. You are sure to come for the season, I suppose?"

"Oh, yes! habit, habit; I could not miss my--every thing (I was going to say) that London gives; the crush at the b.a.l.l.s, seated comfortably with some pleasant people about me, chatting of the newest flirtations, if those (among the unmarried) of last season ended in matrimony; if so, what then? a pleasant yokedom or no? What divorce or separation is on the _tapis_; bits of club gossip, &c."

"With some racy sc.r.a.ps, political, which you would take to as for your dinner _entrees_," cried Vaura gaily.

"True, Vaura, and any new pa.s.sage at arms between our good Queen Victoria's prophet, Earl Beaconsfield and that earnest defender of the Liberal faith, Gladstone; and, this winter, if I mistake not, we shall have stirring times, we are getting ourselves into a tight place; England will have to keep one eye on the East, the other on her Armoury."

"I wish the war party were stronger," said Colonel Haughton, earnestly, "we shall have no soldiers among the rising generation, if Bright's policy be carried out continuously."

"War is too horrid for anything; one has no one to flirt with," cried Mrs. Haughton.

"You forget our older men and boys, Mrs. Haughton," said Vaura, gaily, "who, when not given a chance for the cold steel of the battle field, are ever ready to bare the breast for the warm dart of Cupid.

"Wouldn't give five cents for 'em," cried Mrs. Haughton, "I want the soldiers; so if this man Bright pleases me in this matter, though I care not a dime for politics, I am with him."

"Hear! hear!" exclaimed Everly. "I was beginning to think I was alone in the field, and, though a Bright man from the crown of my head to the sole of my foot, I was commencing to feel rather flat, in fact, anything but bright. What is the use of civilization? if we are to go on butchering our neighbours, or allowing them to make targets of us for every imaginary cause. Why be civilized in some matters, and in others remain savages? If a man strike me I shall knock him down, if he strike someone else even, in whom I am interested, he must fight his own battles, and let me look after my own interests. So, with England; I don't want to see the sons of the soil turned out to fight like dogs, when there is no occasion for it, by so doing, allowing the commercial and agricultural interests of the country go to ruin, and saddle us with an enormous debt. No! a thousand times no."

"You grow eloquent, Sir Tilton," said Vaura "and were you only with us, I should congratulate you on your power of speech. As it is, I can only lament that so much earnestness is lost to us; do, Sir Tilton, go in an unbiased mood to the House next session, give close attention to the arguments of Beaconsfield on this question, and then, I have no doubt, a man of your sense will come out in the right colours next election, and you will laugh at the time you did not want to see the dear Czar, or Sultan, blister their hands, or soil mother earth, while our brave fellows gave it them in the Balkans, or at Constantinople."

"No, no, I believe, I am a Whig; I know I am a Liberal, and it is the right side for our day."

"Now I think," continued Vaura, "one should be a stronger Tory than ever to-day; what with Fenianism, Socialism, Nihilism, if we would see a monarchy left standing, our peers with a voice, we must, even though inwardly acknowledging the other opinions to suit the progressive spirit, we must stand firm; we are not yet advanced, or you, or not I should say, Sir Tilton, to give us anything as perfect to take the place of our British Parliament."

"You have taken your first step towards us, Miss Vernon. I congratulate you on being a Liberal-Conservative," exclaimed Sir Tilton, gleefully.

"Ah! I should not have named my flying spirit," said Vaura, laughingly.

"No, that's where you were weak, dear," said her uncle, "you forgot your party."

"The carriage is waiting, sir," said the Colonel's man.

"Very well, Tims; tell the maids to bring wraps for their mistresses."

"The warmth of the fire is inviting," said Lady Esmondet, for they have been sipping their coffee by a bright fire.

"Which means you think the opposing element outside the reverse, G.o.dmother mine."

"Yes, Vaura, what do you say to keeping me company."

"With pleasure; I dare say we have seen whatever is on."

"Twelfth night," said Blanche; "I guess I'll stay too; Sir Tilton; a game at euchre."

"With pleasure, Miss Tompkins, though the game is new to me," he said, seating himself where he could have a good view of Vaura.

"Kate, dear, do you care to go?" enquired her husband.