Civil service -- Fiction; London (England) -- Fiction
He became a hero; but Undy was all but undone. The highest hope of the
Sabbatarian had been to address an almost empty house for an hour and
a half on this his favourite subject. But the chance was too good to
be lost; he sacrificed his oratorical longings on the altar of party
purpose, and limited his speech to a mere statement of his motion. Off
flew on the wings of Hansom a youthful member, more trusty than the
trusted Undy, to the abode of the now couchant Treasury Argus. Morpheus
had claimed him all for his own. He was lying in true enjoyment, with
his tired limbs stretched between the unaccustomed sheets, and snoring
with free and sonorous nose, restrained by the contiguity of no
Speaker's elbow. But even in his deepest slumber the quick wheels of
the bounding cab struck upon the tympanum of his anxious ear. He roused
himself as does a noble watch-dog when the 'suspicious tread of theft'
approaches. The hurry of the jaded horse, the sudden stop, the maddened
furious knock, all told a tale which his well-trained ear only knew too
well. He sat up for a moment, listening in his bed, stretched himself
with one involuntary yawn, and then stood upright on the floor. It
should not at any rate be boasted by any one that he had been found in
bed.
With elastic step, three stairs at a time, up rushed that young and
eager member. It was well for the nerves of Mrs. Whip Vigil that the
calls of society still held her bound in some distant brilliant throng;
for no consideration would have stopped the patriotic energy of that
sucking statesman. Mr. Vigil had already performed the most important
act of a speedy toilet, when his door was opened, and as his young
friend appeared was already buttoning his first brace.
'Pumpkin is up!' said the eager juvenile,' and we have only five men in
the house.'
'And where the devil is Undy Scott?' said the Right Hon. Mr. Vigil.
'The devil only knows,' said the other.
'I deserve it for trusting him,' said the conscience-stricken but worthy
public servant. By this time he had on his neckcloth and boots; in his
eager haste to serve his country he had forgotten his stockings. 'I
deserve it for trusting him--and how many men have they?'
'Forty-one when I left.'
'Then they'll divide, of course?'
'Of course they will,' said the promising young dove of the Treasury.
And now Mr. Whip Vigil had buttoned on that well-made frock with which
the Parliamentary world is so conversant, and as he descended the
stairs, arranged with pocket-comb his now grizzling locks. His
well-brushed hat stood ready to his touch below, and when he entered the
cab he was apparently as well dressed a gentleman as when about three
hours after noon he may be seen with slow and easy step entering the
halls of the Treasury chambers.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account