CHAPTER XXXIII
LORD CASTLEWOOD
In the morning, when I was called again to see my afflictedcousin--Stixon junior having gladly gone to explain things for me atBruntsea--little as I knew of any bodily pain (except hunger, or thirst,or weariness, and once in my life a headache), I stood before LordCastlewood with a deference and humility such as I had never felt beforetoward any human being. Not only because he bore perpetual pain inthe two degrees of night and day--the day being dark and the nightjet-black--without a murmur or an evil word; not only because throughthe whole of this he had kept his mind clear and his love of knowledgebright; not even because he had managed, like Job, to love God throughthe whole of it. All these were good reasons for very great and veryhigh respect of any man; and when there was no claim whatever on hispart to any such feeling, it needs must come. But when I learned anotherthing, high respect at once became what might be called deep reverence.And this came to pass in a simple and, as any one must confess, quiteinevitable way.
It was not to be supposed that I could sit the whole of my first eveningin that house without a soul to speak to. So far as my dignity and senseof right permitted, I wore out Mr. Stixon, so far as he would go,not asking him any thing that the very worst-minded person could call"inquisitive," but allowing him to talk, as he seemed to like to do,while he waited upon me, and alternately lamented my hapless history andmy hopeless want of taste.
"Ah, your father, the Captain, now, he would have knowed what this is!You've no right to his eyes, Miss Erma, without his tongue and palate.No more of this, miss! and done for you a-purpose! Well, cook will beput out, and no mistake! I better not let her see it go down, anyhow."And the worthy man tearfully put some dainty by, perhaps without anyview to his own supper.
"Lord Castlewood spoke to me about a Mrs. Price--the housekeeper, isshe not?" I asked at last, being so accustomed to like what I could get,that the number of dishes wearied me.
"Oh yes, miss," said Stixon, very shortly, as if that descriptionexhausted Mrs. Price.
"If she is not too busy, I should like to see her as soon as thesethings are all taken away. I mean if she is not a stranger, and if shewould like to see me."
"No new-comers here," Mr. Stixon replied; "we all works our way upregular, the same as my lad is beginning for to do. New-fangled ways isnot accepted here. We puts the reforming spirits scrubbing of the stepstill their knuckles is cracked and their knees like a bean. The old lordwas the man for discipline--your grandfather, if you please, miss. Hecatched me when I were about that high--"
"Excuse me, Mr. Stixon; but would he have encouraged you to talk as youso very kindly talk to me, instead of answering a question?"
I thought that poor Stixon would have been upset by this, and was angrywith myself for saying it; but instead of being hurt, he only smiled andtouched his forehead.
"Well, now, you did remind me uncommon of him then, miss. I couldhave heard the old lord speak almost, though he were always harsh anddistant. And as I was going for to say, he catched me fifty years agonenext Lammas-tide; a pear-tree of an early sort it was; you may see thevery tree if you please to stand here, miss, though the pears is quitealtered now, and scarcely fit to eat. Well, I was running off with mycap chock-full, miss--"
"Please to keep that story for another time," I said; "I shall be mosthappy to hear it then. But I have a particular wish, if you please, tosee Mrs. Price before dark, unless there is any good reason why I shouldnot."
"Oh no, Miss Erma, no reason at all. Only please to bear in mind,miss, that she is a coorous woman. She is that jealous, and I might sayforward--"
"Then she is capable of speaking for herself."
"You are right, miss, there, and no mistake. She can speak for herselfand for fifty others--words enough, I mean, for all of them. But I wouldnot have her know for all the world that I said it."
"Then if you do not send her to me at once, the first thing I shall dowill be to tell her."
"Oh no, miss, none of your family would do that; that never has beendone anonymous."
I assured him that my threat was not in earnest, but of pure impatience.And having no motive but downright jealousy for keeping Mrs. Price fromme, he made up his mind at last to let her come. But he told me to becareful what I said; I must not expect it to be at all like talking tohimself, for instance.
The housekeeper came up at last, by dint of my persistence, and shestopped in the doorway and made me a courtesy, which put me out ofcountenance, for nobody ever does that in America, and scarcely any onein England now, except in country-dancing. Instead of being as describedby Stixon, Mrs. Price was of a very quiet, sensible, and respectfulkind. She was rather short, but looked rather tall, from her evenwalk and way of carrying her head. Her figure was neat, and her faceclear-spoken, with straight pretty eyebrows, and calm bright eyes. Ifelt that I could tell her almost any thing, and she would thinkbefore she talked of it. And in my strong want of some woman to advisewith--Betsy Bowen being very good but very narrow, and Mrs. Hockin amere echo of the Major until he contradicted her, and Suan Isco, withher fine, large views, five thousand miles out of sight just now--thiswas a state of things to enhance the value of any good countenancefeminine.
At any rate, I was so glad to see her that, being still ungraduated inthe steps of rank (though beginning to like a good footing there), I ranup and took her by both hands, and fetched her out of her grand courtesyand into a low chair. At this she was surprised, as one quick glanceshowed; and she thought me, perhaps, what is called in England "animpulsive creature." This put me again upon my dignity, for I never havebeen in any way like that, and I clearly perceived that she ought tounderstand a little more distinctly my character.
It is easy to begin with this intention, but very hard indeed to keepit up when any body of nice ways and looks is sitting with a properdeferential power of listening, and liking one's young ideas, whichmultiply and magnify themselves at each demand. So after some generaltalk about the weather, the country, the house, and so on, we came tothe people of the house, or at any rate the chief person. And I askedher a few quiet questions about Lord Castlewood's health and habits, andany thing else she might like to tell me. For many things had seemedto me a little strange and out of the usual course, and on that accountworthy to be spoken of without common curiosity. Mrs. Price told me thatthere were many things generally divulged and credited, which thereforelay in her power to communicate without any derogation from her office.Being pleased with these larger words (which I always have trouble inpronouncing), I asked her whether there was any thing else. And sheanswered yes, but unhappily of a nature to which it was scarcelydesirable to allude in my presence. I told her that this was notsatisfactory, and I might say quite the opposite; that having "alluded"to whatever it might be, she was bound to tell me all about it. ThatI had lived in very many countries, in all of which wrong thingscontinually went on, of which I continually heard just in that sort ofway and no more. Enough to make one uncomfortable, but not enough tokeep one instructed and vigilant as to things that ought to be avoided.Upon this she yielded either to my arguments or to her own dislikeof unreasonable silence, and gave me the following account of themisfortunes of Lord Castlewood:
Herbert William Castlewood was the third son of Dean Castlewood, ayounger brother of my grandfather, and was born in the year 1806. Hewas older, therefore, than my father, but still (even before my father'sbirth, which provided a direct heir) there were many lives betwixt himand the family estates. And his father, having as yet no promotion inthe Church, found it hard to bring up his children. The eldest son gota commission in the army, and the second entered the navy, while Herbertwas placed in a bank at Bristol--not at all the sort of life which hewould have chosen. But being of a gentle, unselfish nature, as well as aweak constitution, he put up with his state in life, and did his best togive satisfaction.
This calm courage generally has its reward, and in the year 1842, notvery long before the death of my grandfather at Shoxfo
rd, Mr. HerbertCastlewood, being well-connected, well-behaved, diligent, and pleasing,obtained a partnership in the firm, which was, perhaps, the foremost inthe west of England. His two elder brothers happened then to be at home,Major and Commander Castlewood, each of whom had seen very hard service,and found it still harder slavery to make both ends meet, althoughbachelors. But, returning full of glory, they found one thing harderstill, and that was to extract any cash from their father, the highlyvenerated Dean, who in that respect, if in no other, very closelyresembled the head of the family. Therefore these brave men resolved togo and see their Bristol brother, to whom they were tenderly attached,and who now must have money enough and to spare. So they wrote to theirbrother to meet them on the platform, scarcely believing that they couldbe there in so short a time from London; for they never had travelled byrail before; and they set forth in wonderful spirits, and laughed atthe strange, giddy rush of the travelling, and made bets with each otherabout punctual time (for trains kept much better time while new), and,as long as they could time it, they kept time to a second. But, sad torelate, they wanted no chronometers when they arrived at Bristol, bothbeing killed at a blow, with their watches still going, and a smileon their faces. For the train had run into a wall of Bath stone, andseveral of the passengers were killed.
The sight of his two brothers carried out like this, after so many yearsof not seeing them, was too much for Mr. Herbert Castlewood's nerves,which always had been delicate. And he shivered all the more fromreproach of conscience, having made up his mind not to lend them anymoney, as a practical banker was compelled to do. And from that verymoment he began to feel great pain.
Mrs. Price assured me that the doctors all agreed that nothing butchange of climate could restore Mr. Castlewood's tone and system, andbeing full of art (though so simple, as she said, which she could notentirely reconcile), he set off for Italy, and there he stopped, withthe good leave of his partners, being now valued highly as heir to theDean, who was known to have put a good trifle together. And in Italymy father must have found him, as related by Mr. Shovelin, and therereceived kindness and comfort in his trouble, if trouble so deep couldbe comforted.
Now I wondered and eagerly yearned to know whether my father, at sucha time, and in such a state of loneliness, might not have been led toimpart to his cousin and host and protector the dark mystery which layat the bottom of his own conduct. Knowing how resolute and stern he was,and doubtless then imbittered by the wreck of love and life, I thoughtit more probable that he had kept silence even toward so near arelative, especially as he had seen very little of his cousin Herberttill he had found him thus. Moreover, my grandfather and the Dean hadspent little brotherly love on each other, having had a life-long feudabout a copy-hold furze brake of nearly three-quarters of an acre, asBetsy remembered to have heard her master say.
To go on, however, with what Mrs. Price was saying. She knew scarcelyany thing about my father, because she was too young at that time tobe called into the counsels of the servants' hall, for she scarcely wasthirty-five yet, as she declared, and she certainly did not look forty.But all about the present Lord Castlewood she knew better than any bodyelse, perhaps, because she had been in the service of his wife, and,indeed, her chief attendant. Then, having spoken of her master's wife,Mrs. Price caught herself up, and thenceforth called her only his"lady."
Mr. Herbert Castlewood, who had minded his business for so many years,and kept himself aloof from ladies, spending all his leisure in goodliterature, at this time of life and in this state of health (for theshock he had received struck inward), fell into an accident tenfoldworse--the fatal accident of love. And this malady raged the morepowerfully with him on account of breaking out so late in life. In oneof the picture-galleries at Florence, or some such place, Mrs. Pricedeclared, he met with a lady who made all the pictures look cold anddull and dead to him. A lovely young creature she must have been (aseven Mrs. Price, who detested her, acknowledged), and to the eyes of alearned but not keen man as good as lovely. My father was gone to lookafter me, and fetch me out of England, but even if he had been there,perhaps he scarcely could have stopped it; for this Mr. Castlewood,although so quiet, had the family fault of tenacity.
Mrs. Price, being a very steady person, with a limited income, andenough to do, was inclined to look down upon the state of mind in whichMr. Castlewood became involved. She was not there at the moment, ofcourse, but suddenly sent for when all was settled; nevertheless, shefound out afterward how it began from her master's man, through what hehad for dinner. And in the kitchen-garden at Castlewood no rampionwould she allow while she lived. I asked her whether she had no pity, nosympathy, no fine feeling, and how she could have become Mrs. Price ifshe never had known such sentiments. But she said that they only calledher "Mistress" on account of her authority, and she never had been drawnto the opposite sex, though many times asked in marriage. And what shehad seen of matrimony led her far away from it. I was sorry to hear hersay this, and felt damped, till I thought that the world was not allalike.
Then she told me, just as if it were no more than a bargain for a poundof tallow candles, how Mr. Herbert Castlewood, patient and persistent,was kept off and on for at least two years by the mother of his sweetidol. How the old lady held a balance in her mind as to the likelihoodof his succession, trying, through English friends, to find the valueand the course of property. Of what nation she was, Mrs. Price couldnot say, and only knew that it must be a bad one. She called herself theCountess of Ixorism, as truly pronounced in English; and she really wasof good family too, so far as any foreigner can be. And her daughter'sname was Flittamore, not according to the right spelling, perhaps, butpronounced with the proper accent.
Flittamore herself did not seem to care, according to what Mrs. Pricehad been told, but left herself wholly in her mother's hands, being sureof her beauty still growing upon her, and desiring to have it admiredand praised. And the number of foreigners she always had about hersometimes made her real lover nearly give her up. But, alas! he was notquite wise enough for this, with all that he had read and learned andseen. Therefore, when it was reported from Spain that my father hadbeen killed by bandits--the truth being that he was then in Greece--theCountess at last consented to the marriage of her daughter with HerbertCastlewood, and even seemed to press it forward for some reasons of herown. And the happy couple set forth upon their travels, and Mrs. Pricewas sent abroad to wait upon the lady.
For a few months they seemed to get on very well, Flittamore showingmuch affection for her husband, whose age was a trifle more than her owndoubled, while he was entirely wrapped up in her, and labored that thegraces of her mind might be worthy to compare with those more visible.But her spiritual face and most sweet poetic eyes were vivid with bodilybrilliance alone. She had neither mind enough to learn, nor heart enoughto pretend to learn.
It is out of my power to describe such things, even if it were my dutyto do so, which, happily, it has never been; moreover, Mrs. Price, inwhat she told me, exercised a just and strict reserve. Enough that Mr.Castlewood's wedded life was done with in six months and three days.Lady Castlewood, as she would be called, though my father still wasliving and his cousin disclaimed the title--away she ran from some dullGerman place, after a very stiff lesson in poetry, and with her ran offa young Englishman, the present Sir Montague Hockin. He was Mr. Hockinthen, and had not a half-penny of his own; but Flittamore met thatdifficulty by robbing her husband to his last farthing.
This had happened about twelve years back, soon after I was placed atthe school in Languedoc, to which I was taken so early in life thatI almost forget all about it. But it might have been better for poorFlittamore if she had been brought up at a steady place like that, withsisters and ladies of retreat, to teach her the proper description ofher duties to mankind. I seemed now in my own mind to condemn her quiteenough, feeling how superior her husband must have been; but Mrs. Pricewent even further, and became quite indignant that any one should pityher.
"A huss
y! a hussy! a poppet of a hussy!" she exclaimed, with greaterpower than her quiet face could indicate; "never would I look at her.Speak never so, Miss Castlewood. My lord is the very best of all men,and she has made him what he is. The pity she deserves is to be troddenunder foot, as I saw them do in Naples."
After all the passion I had seen among rough people, I scarcely couldhelp trembling at the depth of wrath dissembled and firmly controlledin calm clear eyes under very steadfast eyebrows. It was plain that LordCastlewood had, at any rate, the gift of being loved by his dependents.
"I hope that he took it aright!" I cried, catching some of herindignation; "I hope that he cast her to the winds, without even a sighfor such a cruel creature!"
"He was not strong enough," she answered, sadly; "his bodily health wasnot equal to it. From childhood he had been partly crippled and spoiledin his nerves by an accident. And the shock of that sight at Bristolflew to his weakness, and was too much for him. And now this third andworst disaster, coming upon him where his best hope lay, and at such atime of life, took him altogether off his legs. And off his head too,I might almost say, miss; for, instead of blaming her, he put the faultentirely upon himself. At his time of life, and in such poor health, heshould not have married a bright young girl: how could he ever hope tomake her happy? That was how he looked at it, when he should have sentconstables after her."
"And what became of her--the mindless animal, to forsake so good andgreat a man! I do hope she was punished, and that vile man too."
"She was, Miss Castlewood; but he was not; at least he has not receivedjustice yet. But he will, he will, he will, miss. The treacherous thief!And my lord received him as a young fellow-countryman under a cloud, andlent him money, and saved him from starving; for he had broken with hisfather and was running from his creditors."
"Tell me no more," I said; "not another word. It is my fate to meetthat--well, that gentleman--almost every day. And he, and he--oh, howthankful I am to have found out all this about him!"
The above will show why, when I met my father's cousin on the followingmorning--with his grand, calm face, as benevolent as if he had passed anight of luxurious rest instead of sleepless agony--I knew myself to beof a lower order in mind and soul and heart than his; a small, narrow,passionate girl, in the presence of a large, broad-sighted, andcompassionate man.
I threw myself altogether on his will; for, when I trust, I trustwholly. And, under his advice, I did not return with any rash haste toBruntsea, but wrote in discharge of all duty there; while Mrs. Price, aclear and steadfast woman, was sent to London to see Wilhelmina Strouss.These two must have had very great talks together, and, both beingzealous and faithful, they came to many misunderstandings. However, onthe whole, they became very honest friends, and sworn allies at last,discovering more, the more they talked, people against whom they felt acommon and just enmity.
Erema; Or, My Father's Sin Page 33