Mildred Arkell: A Novel. Vol. 1 (of 3)Wood, Henry, Mrs.
General
Mildred Arkell: A Novel. Vol. 1 (of 3)
Wood, Henry, Mrs.
Fiction
Young Lewis galloped out, spinning the shilling in his hand. "Don't I
hope old Marmaduke will leave all his money to me!" quoth he, mentally.
To say the truth, the whole family of the Carrs indulged golden dreams
of this money more frequently than they need have done--apart from the
squire, who was the most sanguine dreamer of all.
They were going out, to stow themselves in the two flies as they best
could, when Marmaduke's eye fell on Travice Arkell. The old man caught
his hand.
"Will you come home and dine with us, Travice? Five o'clock, sharp!"
"Thank you, sir--I shall be very glad," replied Travice, who liked good
dinners as well as most schoolboys, and Mr. Carr's style of dinner, when
he did entertain, was renowned.
"If you don't want these flies to be taken by somebody else, you had
better come!" cried out young Lewis, putting his wet head in at the
entrance door. "Mamma, I am stopping another for you."
Travice Arkell for once imitated the junior college boys, and splashed
recklessly through the puddles of the streets, as fast as his legs would
carry him, on his way to the Palmery, for he wanted to see Frederick St.
John: he had just time. His nearest road led him past Peter Arkell's,
and he spared a minute to look in.
"So you have got home safely, Lucy?"
"As if I could get home anything but safely, coming as I did!" returned
Lucy, in merriment. "Such a commotion it caused when the carriage dashed
up! The elm-trees became alive with rooks'-heads, not to speak of the
windows. You should have seen the footman and his cane marshalling me to
the door! But oh, Travice! when I got inside, the gilt was taken off the
gingerbread!"
"How so?"
"You know how badly papa sees now without his spectacles. He did not
happen to have them on, and he took it to be the old beadle of St.
James the Less, with his laced hat and staff. He said he could not think
what he wanted."
Travice laughed, laughed merrily, with Lucy. He stayed a minute, and
then splashed on to the Palmery.
Frederick St. John was sitting up, but he had been really ill in the
morning. Mrs. James and Lady Anne were giving him and Mrs. St. John the
details of the concert. It was not surprising that no one had known Lady
Anne. She had paid a long visit to Westerbury several years before, when
she was a little girl; but growing girls alter, and her face was not
recognised again. She had come for a long visit now, bringing, as
before, her carriage and three or four servants--for she was an orphan,
and had her own establishment.
"I say, Arkell, I'm glad you are come. Anne is trying to enlighten us
about the grand doings this morning, and she can't do it at all. She
protests that Mr. Wilberforce sang the comic song."
Lady Anne eagerly turned to Travice. "That little gentleman in silver
spectacles, who was looking so impatiently for his carriage--who told
you once or twice to pay attention to the college boys--was it not Mr.
Wilberforce?"
"Undoubtedly."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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