Detective and mystery stories, English; English fiction -- 20th century; Short stories, English
"Toward the middle of April Prince Orsoff arrived in London. Within
two days he telephoned to Mrs. Smithson to ask her when he might come
to pay his respects. A day was fixed, and he came to The Towers to
lunch. He came again, and at his third visit he formally proposed to
Miss Louisa Smithson, and was accepted. The wedding was to take
place almost immediately, and the very next day the exciting
announcement had gone the round of the Smithsons' large circle of
friends--not only in Folkestone but also in London.
"The effect of the news appears to have been staggering as far as the
unfortunate Henry Carter was concerned. In the picturesque language
of Mrs. Hicks, the middle-aged charlady who 'did' for the two
brothers in their little home in Chelsea, ''e carried on something
awful.' She even went so far as to say that she feared he might 'put
'is 'ead in the gas oven,' and that, as Mr. John was away at the
time, she took the precaution every day when she left to turn the gas
off at the meter.
"The following week-end Henry came down to Folkestone and again took
up his quarters in the small hotel by the harbour. On the Saturday
afternoon he called at The Towers, and refused to take 'no' for an
answer when he asked to see Miss Smithson. Indeed, he seems
literally to have pushed his way into the drawing-room where the
ladies were having tea. According to statements made subsequently by
the butler, there ensued a terrible scene between Henry and his
former fiancée, at the very height of which, as luck would have it,
who should walk in but Prince Orsoff.
"That elegant gentleman, however, seems to have behaved on that
trying occasion with perfect dignity and tact, making it his chief
business to reassure the ladies, and paying no heed to Henry's
recriminations, which presently degenerated into vulgar abuse and
ended in violent threats. At last, with the aid of the majestic
butler, the young man was thrust out of the house, but even on the
doorstep he turned and raised a menacing fist in the direction of
Prince Orsoff and said loudly enough for more than one person to hear:
"'Wait! I'll be even with that ---- foreigner yet!'
"It must indeed have been a terrifying scene for two sensitive and
refined ladies like Mrs. and Miss Smithson to witness. Later on,
after the Prince himself had taken his leave, the butler was rung for
by Mrs. Smithson who told him that under no circumstances was Mr.
Henry Carter ever to be admitted inside The Towers.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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