CHAPTER V. WITH LORD CLAUD.
Cale shook his head; but Tom was resolute. He had fallen under thespell of the so-called Lord Claud's personality--like many anotherbefore him--and whatever the upshot of the matter might be, he wasgoing to accept the invitation accorded him, and visit thatpersonage in his lodgings.
"Have a care, lad, have a care," advised the little perruquier."All is not gold that glitters; and many a fine lad has been led tohis ruin ere now by following some headlong fancy of his own."
"I will be careful," answered Tom, with the careless confidence ofinexperience. "Did I not come back last night with nothing spentsave the price of the theatre and my coffee and supper? You saidyourself I had done well. So give me now ten guineas, and I will begone; for I was told to be early."
Tom had no difficulty, once he had reached the Mall, in findingLord Claud's rooms; for everybody knew where they were situated,and looked with some respect upon Tom for inquiring. He wasreceived at the door by a very fine lackey, and taken up a widestaircase, so richly carpeted that the footfall could not be heardupon it. Everywhere his eyes rested upon strange and costlyproducts of foreign lands, such as he had never dreamed ofheretofore. Later on he learned that Lord Claud had won thissumptuous suite of rooms from a rich young nobleman at the gamingtable, and had stepped into its luxury and collected treasures withnever an effort on his part. It was the fashion of the day to stakehouse and lands, wealth, and even honour, upon the cast of the diceor the fall of the cards; but that Tom did not yet know.
He followed the servant into a large and lofty bedchamber, the likeof which he had never seen before. He could have spent an hour inexamining all the rich and curious things it contained; but a voicehailed him from the bed, and there lay Lord Claud, in a nest ofsnowy pillows, his golden head and fair complexion giving him analmost girlish aspect, albeit the square set of the jaw and thepeculiarly penetrating glance of the dark-blue eyes robbed the faceof any charge of effeminacy.
He was clad in a sort of dressing jacket of silk and lace, fineenough for any lady; and the bed was draped in silk from theIndies, worked in a fashion that set Tom agape. A few volumes ofpoetry, half a dozen letters, scented and delicately twisted, and asilver salver bearing an empty cup stood beside him. His servantremoved this latter, and at a sign from his master withdrew; andTom was motioned to take the lounging chair which stood beside thebed, and from the recesses of which he could watch Lord Claud, ashe did, with a sense of fascination.
"Early afoot, in sooth, my young spark from the country! Ah, it isa fine habit, that of early rising. I practised it once myself, soI speak with authority. But what would you in this Babylon? And, i'faith, what is there to do before the afternoon to tempt a man fromhis couch? I have scarce had four hours' sleep as it is. There wasno getting away from my Lady Betty's reception last night. Egad, Ibelieve that fair votary of the Graces ruins more young bloods thanany sharper in the town! Have a care of your guineas, my youngfriend, if ever you find yourself sitting down to the card tablewith her!"
"That is not likely," answered Tom modestly. "I am but the son of acountry squire. I have come to London to see somewhat of the lifethere; but I look not to consort with the fashionable ones of theearth."
"We shall see, we shall see. A golden key opens all doors--atleast, nearly all. And you have not come empty-handed from home, Iwarrant. And that reminds me of your words of yesterday. You bringme a message from my quondam friend, Captain Jack. I would hearnews of him; so tell me all the tale."
Tom told the tale simply enough, and Lord Claud listened withunaffected interest, nodding his head once or twice at hearing theterms of the message delivered for himself.
"Ah, good Captain Jack! So he is still in the free forest! Well,well, well, perhaps he has chosen the better part. There be timeswhen I look back at the old free life of peril and adventure, andmy soul sickens at the weary round I see day by day. Who knows butthe time may come when I will break these gossamer bonds! Ah, Imight do worse--I might do worse--ere my youth and courage arefooled and squandered away."
He seemed almost to have forgotten that he had a listener, and tobe musing aloud; but, catching the wondering glance of Tom's eyes,he recollected himself with a smile, and stretching out a white yetmuscular hand, he said, with an air of winning grace:
"My young friend, I have taken a liking to you. I like you becauseyou bring to my jaded senses a whiff of the free air of field andforest, as well as a message from one to whom I owe much. I am sickto death of the inanities of the dandies and fops of the town.Shall we be friends and comrades, good Tom? I trow you might doworse than make your Mentor of me--little though I look the part ofthe preceptor of Telemachus!"
Tom could scarce believe his ears at this proposition; he blushedand stammered almost as though it were some fair lady wooing him tofriendship. Lord Claud laughed at his embarrassment, and presently,taking up one of the notes beside him, threw it across to Tom,saying:
"Read that, my young friend; I have a reason just at this momentwhy I would fain have a trusty friend beside me. What! thou canstnot make sense of the jargon! Well, it is jargon; in that thou artright, honest Tom. Men talk in a fashion which fools might gibe at.But 'tis the fashion, the fashion, and what would you? Be i' thefashion--or perish! That is the choice before us."
"But how can I serve you, my lord?" asked Tom eagerly.
"Hast ever taken part in a duel, good fellow?" asked Lord Claud,with a keen glance at the stalwart youth.
"I have fought many a battle in play and in earnest," answered Tom,"with my fists, with the sword, and with the quarterstaff. I haveno knowledge of the ways of town fights, such as I heard talk of inthe Folly yesterday; but--"
"But you have a stout arm, an honest heart, and a tongue that willnot wag when it is bidden to be silent? Is that so, honest friendTom?"
"My lord, I would not speak a word to living soul if you bid me besilent; and I would stand by you to the death!"
"'Tis a sudden liking you have taken for my unworthy self."
"Prove me, my lord, if it be not as sound as it be sudden."
Lord Claud stretched out his hand, and Tom's great fist met it.
"This liking on sight is a strange matter; yet I seldom mistake myman. Tom, I am going to trust you to act as my second in a littleaffair I have with another gentleman tomorrow morning, in a certainspot of which I have knowledge. Another man was to have acted forme--he has, indeed, made all the arrangements; but, as yon noteinforms me, he was mixed up in a brawl last evening at the gaminghouse, and lies abed with a broken arm. 'Tis not a matter I wouldhave get wind, else there be a dozen men who would serve my turn. Ihad rather one silent, steady comrade than a score of chatteringjays. So you shall be my friend, Tom, and see what duelling islike."
"You are not in danger of death, my lord, or grievous bodily hurt?Else I fear I should break the rules of the game and dash to yoursuccour!"
"Tush, boy!" answered the other, with a gleam in his eyes, "I haveyet to find my match with the rapier; I shall get off without ascratch, you will see. Whether or not I kill my man will dependupon his behaviour. I love not slaughter for its own sake, butthere be those whose jaunty insolence rouses the devil within me;and then I strike and spare not."
"And for what cause do men fight duels?" asked Tom.
"The question is a wide one, and smacks of innocence on your part,Tom. Generally a woman is the cause; but there be other matterstoo--wounded self-esteem or vanity, revenge, envy, evil passions ofall sorts. But, egad, in these days it takes little to provoke thecombat! Why, it is but a few months ago that two young sparks metin mortal conflict because, forsooth, one of them had declared thatVenus was the goddess of love and beauty, whilst the other affirmedthat it was Aphrodite!" and Lord Claud leaned back upon his pillowsand laughed aloud; laughing still more when he found that he had toexplain to Tom the nature of the confusion which had prompted theduel.
Time was fast flying as the two oddly-assorted comrades talked, andsoon the valet
appeared at the door with the perruquier in hiswake, informing his master that several gentlemen waited below, andthat all was in readiness for the morning toilet.
"Heigh-ho!" sighed the young exquisite. "Why can we not rise fromour couches like the beast of the field, give ourselves a shake,and be ready for the day's work? These levees are the bane of mylife. But fashion, fashion, fashion! She is the goddess of thehour. Tom, sit over yonder, and watch the follies of thy kind. Keepa quiet tongue, and I'll see you are not baited.
"And now, let in the popinjays and chattering monkeys; for thesooner we begin, the sooner comes the end!"
The next two hours presented a marvellous spectacle to Tom. Therewere perhaps some eight to twelve young sparks about town comingand going during that time, some remaining the whole toiletthrough, others roving off to other similar scenes. Whilst theperruquier plied his skilful hands in the curling, powdering, andarranging of Lord Claud's abundant golden hair, which some days waspowdered and some days left as nature had ordered, they sat besidehim in a row upon the bed and chattered of all the latest bits ofscandal, the wittiest retorts of this or that sprightly dame, theon dit of the town, the quarrels of the gaming houses, and thedoings of the court.
When Lord Claud left his bed and began arraying himself in the softand costly array provided by his valet, his friends amusedthemselves by joining with him in the perfuming of his person;borrowing his essences to sprinkle upon their own fine clothes,washing their hands in milk and perfume to make them white anddelicate; and calling to his valet to re-tie and arrange theirlace-edged cravats in imitation of the style affected by LordClaud.
Some of them removed their wigs, and asked the perruquier to givethem an extra powdering; others got at the cosmetic boxes upon thetoilet table, and gave a touch of carmine to cheeks which thenight's revel had left wan. Some gave infinite pains to thearrangement of a patch to resemble a dimple; and all desired to diptheir handkerchiefs in the silver bowl of rare scent which wasoffered almost the last thing to the master of all these luxuries.
Tom sat in his corner and looked on in amaze. He had felt himself avery pretty dandy whilst being arrayed in his new clothes in Cale'sshop, but he felt like a raven amongst peacocks in this company;and it would have taken nothing short of the testimony of his owneyes to convince him that these were men and not women engaged inall this pranking and personal adornment.
Many curious glances had been thrown in his direction at the first;and a few of the guests sauntered up from time to time, and enteredinto conversation with him. Tom observed, with some satisfaction,that there was respect, if not admiration, in their manner, and hewondered what had caused this; for yesterday he had receivedmockery and taunts as his portion from men of much less distinctionthan Lord Claud's friends.
He had not heard the words Lord Claud had spoken to his guests ontheir arrival--or, rather, he had not understood them, since theywere spoken in the French tongue.
"A friend of mine--a fine young fellow--a son of the forest--bestlet alone, gentlemen, by those who value a sound skin," Lord Claudhad said, with a careless laugh.
His friends drew their own conclusions, and looked at Tom withrespect. Lord Claud knew exactly what they were thinking, andlaughed in his sleeve.
The valet was now perfuming the gloves, and giving just the jauntycock to his master's hat which best suited its shape.
"Now, gentlemen, I will bid you farewell for the present," saidLord Claud. "I and my friend have business of our own. We may meetagain at the play ere long. Off with you each to his own favouritetavern. For my part, I have other fish to fry today."
With that he swept them a fine bow, and the room cleared as if bymagic. It was one of this man's arts that he could rid himself ofthe buzzing crowd by one look or gesture when he had the mind.Valet and perruquier followed the retreating guests, and Lord Clauddrew a breath of relief.
"There, honest Tom; we are well rid of the chatteringmagpies--screaming peacocks were the better word, or paintedpopinjays. Now to business; for I must keep a steady head and quiethours today. Are you anything of a swordsman, my friend?"
"I was accounted a good enough fighter in my own village," answeredTom; "but everything here is so different. My methods may beuseless against the skill of men trained in a different school."
"We will put that to the test, and that quickly," said Lord Claud;and forthwith he led his companion out of the house and throughseveral unfamiliar streets, till he reached a building ratherlarger than its surrounding neighbours, into which he walked withthe air of one well used to the place.
First they passed through a large hall, the floor of which wasthickly sprinkled with sawdust; but, without pausing, Lord Claudmounted a staircase in the corner, and led Tom into a large upperroom, the walls of which were adorned by rapiers with buttons atthe end, where a man was sitting polishing the foils and humming atune to himself. He rose instantly upon seeing Lord Claud, and madea deep bow.
"I have come to try a bout at sword play with a friend of mine,"explained the latter, stripping off his coat, and signing to Tom todo the same. "Give us two well-matched weapons; for we have nonetoo much time to spare measuring and comparing."
Tom's blood quickened at the feel of the rapier in his hand. He hadalways loved these encounters with the sword, whether in play orearnest. He had not lacked training of a certain rude sort, and hiswrist was strong and supple, his eye wary and keen; moreover, hehad length of reach and strength of muscle. After the first boutLord Claud gave him an approving nod, and, looking at the man whostood by, remarked:
"There is the making of a fine swordsman in the lad, is there not,when he has learnt more finesse and quickness?"
"The gentleman does well," answered the man, with a shrewd glanceat Tom's tall and well-knit frame. "He may be worsted in a shamfight, but, methinks, in sober earnest he would be an ugly customerto meet."
In the next bout Lord Claud showed his antagonist some of thedexterous feats of rapid sword play, with the result that Tom wasrather hard pressed; but for all that he did not lose his head, andsoon began to master the tricks of attack and defence, the quicklunge and the quick recovery which perplexed him at first; and inthe next bout he showed so much skill and address that his opponentand the onlooker alike applauded.
"Very good, Tom, very good," said Lord Claud. "You will make anotable swordsman one of these days. Now I shall leave you here foran hour with worthy Captain Raikes, and he will give you a lessonin fencing which you will not fail to profit by. After that I willcome back for you, and take you elsewhere.
"Captain Raikes, I have a little affair on hand tomorrow morning. Iwould fain try a pass with you, to see that my hand has lostnothing of its cunning."
"Not much fear of that, my lord," answered the master of the place,as he took the rapier from Tom; and the next minute the youth fromthe country stood in silent admiration and amaze, whilst the twoblades crossed and flashed, and twined and clashed, with aprecision and masterly deftness which aroused his keen delight andenvy. To become a proficient like that would be something worthliving for; and his quick eyes studied the movements and methods ofthe two adversaries, till he felt he had begun to have some littlenotion of the tricks by which such results were attained.
When Lord Claud came back to fetch him, at the end of thestipulated hour, it was to find young Tom without coat, vest, orperuke, and bathed in perspiration; but so keenly interested in thenew science, that it was all his comrade could do to drag him away.
"Egad, Tom, but you will make a pretty swordsman one of these days!Captain Raikes says he has never had a more promising pupil. Youhave winded him as well as yourself. But all that exertion musthave given you an appetite. We will to Pontac's and refreshourselves; and when you have cooled down, I will take you to see aman as great in his way as Captain Raikes with the foils. Oh yes,you can come again at your leisure for another lesson. But I haveno fears for you, tomorrow, even now. Whatever may betide, you areno child with the sword."
The coffee ho
use to which Lord Claud now conducted him was a muchfiner and more select place than the Folly, and Tom was muchinterested in the fine company there, all of whom welcomed LordClaud heartily, and seemed to desire to draw him into talk.
Although dressed in the height of the fashion, and not withouttheir fopperies and extravagances, the company here interesteditself less with private scandal than with public affairs, andthere was much talk of the war abroad, and of the return of theDuke of Marlborough, which it was now thought would take placebefore long.
"But he has first to go to Berlin, to cajole the King of Prussia tosend help to Italy, to the Duke of Savoy," cried one of thecompany, who seemed best informed on military matters. "It willtake a good one to wring eight thousand soldiers out of His Majestyof Prussia, but if any man can do it, it will be Johnny Churchill!I remember him even when we were boys together. He had a tonguethat would flatter the nose off your face, if you did but listen tohim! A voice of silver, and a hand of iron--those are the giftswhich have made the fortunes of my Lord of Marlborough."
"Ay, an iron hand for keeping money when once the fingers haveclosed upon it!" laughed one.
"And a wife who rules the Queen, and is bent upon making herhusband the greatest man in the kingdom--though she will alwayskeep the upper hand of her lord, you will see. Marlborough, whom nocombination of military prowess can daunt, trembles and turns palebefore the frown of his wife!"
"Yet it is not fear but love which makes him tremble," saidanother. "Although their children are grown to adolescence, heloves her yet as dotingly as ever youthful swain loves the Phyllisof his boyhood's amours!"
"That is nothing to sneer at," remarked Lord Claud, speaking forthe first time. "Rather should we thank Heaven, in these days ofprofligacy and vice, that we have a Queen upon the throne who lovesher husband faithfully and well, and a general, victorious in arms,who would gladly lay down his victor's laurels for the joy ofliving in peaceful obscurity at the side of his wife!"
Nobody laughed at Lord Claud's speech, though it would haveprovoked mirth if another had given utterance to the sentiment. Thetalk went on, however, in the same vein, and Tom listened insilence, trying to digest as much as he could of the news of theday.
Lord Claud did not remain long; and when they were in the streettogether, Tom asked him of the great Duke, and what had been saidof him. Was he really treacherous and false, loving money above allelse, and careless of the good of the realm, so long as he built uphis own fortunes securely?
"The Duke's career is not without its black spots," answered LordClaud. "It is known by all that he deserted the late King James theSecond; but there were reasons solid and sound for that. Thedarkest passage in his life is his intrigues against His MajestyKing William, for which he was disgraced for some time. But for allthat his genius is marvellous, and I am very sure he is loyal tothe core to good Queen Anne; albeit a man who will not openly allyhimself with either Whig or Tory faction must expect to makeenemies in many quarters."
"And does he indeed love money so well?"
"Second to his wife, or men do him great injustice. But though theylaugh and sneer at him, I misdoubt me if he loves wealth betterthan his traducers; only he keeps a firmer grip upon it, havingindeed no taste for vulgar dissipation. Why, even as a youth he wasmighty prudent."
Here Lord Claud began to laugh, as though tickled by some memory;and on being questioned further, he told Tom the tale.
"You must know that John Churchill was a marvellous pretty fellow,with just the same languid grace of bearing that he has kept allhis life; and of which you may judge the effect yourself, good Tom,ere many weeks be passed. He was a youth about the court of Charlesthe Second, and the Duchess of Cleveland took notice of thehandsome, witty lad, and sometimes had him in her rooms to amuseher. Once they so chanced to be there together, when the steps ofthe King were heard approaching; and as His Majesty was like tothink evil of a matter where no evil was, the Duchess was sore putto it, and looked so affrighted, that young Churchill gallantlysprang from the window, at the risk of breaking his leg if not hisneck. The Duchess sent him a present of five thousand pounds thenext day; and what does the lad do? Most of his sort would havesquandered it at play in a week; but Johnny Churchill was of adifferent kidney. He goes and purchases with it an annuity; so thatcome what may, he may never be left quite destitute in his oldage!"
And Lord Claud again burst into a hearty laugh, in which Tom nowjoined.
They were now approaching a narrow street hard by the Haymarket,and his companion knocked at a lowly door, which was opened by asombre-looking man in a shabby suit of clothes.
"Is your master within?" asked Lord Claud, who seemed known to allthe world; and the next minute he was striding up the stairs, twosteps at a time; Tom following, and marvelling much at the darknessof the humble abode, and at Lord Claud's purpose in coming.
A door on the second floor was thrown open, and Lord Claud steppedgaily in.
"Ha, Master Addison," he cried, "I have come to offer to you mytardy congratulations for that yet more tardy recognition of meritwhich has been your portion at last! And so the great ones of theland have been forced to come beseeching in person? Ha! ha! that isvery good. And may my friend here--young Esquire Tufton, ofGablethorpe, in the county of Essex--have the privilege of hearingsome of those wonderful lines which are to take the country bystorm? Come, Master Addison, you know that I am a lover of goodmetre and fine sentiment. The words must needs be tingling in yourears, and lying hot upon your tongue. Let us hear the roll of them,and I warrant that all London town shall soon be in a ferment tohear them, too!"
The man of letters was attired in a neat but poor suit of clothes,and his surroundings were humble and even sordid; but his face wasneither peevish nor careworn, but wore an expression of dignifiedcontentment and scholarly repose. The walls of his lodging werelined with bookcases, upon which many a volume was stacked. Poor hehad been for long, but he had not been in the straits that many menof letters were reduced to in those days. On his desk were strewnpages of manuscript verse which caught the eyes of the visitors atonce.
"By my halidome! if that be not the poem itself!"
"The rough copy alone, the rough copy," said Addison, who waswalking up and down the narrow room, his eyes aglow, his face alittle flushed. "The fair one is in the hands of the printers. MyLord Godolphin came himself to hear it read but a few short daysago, and took it off with him then and there."
"Delighted with it, and vowing that you should be the first poet ofthe times, if report be true!" cried Lord Claud.
"He did express his satisfaction," answered the poet quietly. "AndI doubt not I shall receive some mark of favour at no distant date.But not all the favour of Queen or courtier can give me the titleto poet. That lies in a sphere which not the most powerfulpotentate can aspire to touch. The voice of posterity alone canmake or mar that title!"
"But let us hear something of this great poem," cried Lord Claud."As I say, it must be burning upon your tongue. Prithee do us thegrace to recite us portions of it."
It was a request palatable to the eager soul of the poet, all onfire with the work which had occupied his thoughts and pen for somany long weeks. He still kept up his pacing to and fro; but as hewalked he gave utterance to the well-conned passages of his work,throwing into the words a fire and a spirit which kindled the sparkin Lord Claud's eyes, and even made young Tom's heart glow withadmiration and wonder, albeit he had never been the votary ofletters.
If high-flown, the language of the day kept it in countenance.Nothing simple would have found favour at that date. And no onecalled the sentiments forced, even though there seemed to be slightconfusion sometimes between Marlborough and the Deity. Thewell-known lines upon the battle of Blenheim itself were given witha wonderful fire and force:
"'Twas then great Marlbro's mighty soul was proved,That in the shock of charging hosts, unmovedAmidst confusion, horror, and despair,Examined all the dreadful scenes of war,In peaceful thought the field of deat
h surveyed,To fainting squadrons sent the timely aid,Inspired repulsed battalions to engage,And taught the doubtful battle where to rage.So, when an angel by divine commandWith rising tempest shakes a guilty land--Such as of late o'er pale Britannia passed--Calm and serene he drives the furious blast,And, pleased the Almighty's orders to perform,Rides in the whirlwind, and directs the storm."
"Excellent! excellent!" cried Lord Claud, when the poet at lastflung himself into his chair, exhausted by his own flow ofeloquence. "That will take them! That will hit them! My goodfriend, your fortune is made.
"Capital, was it not, Tom? Why, it has raised a sparkle in yourcalm bucolic eyes!
"'Tis a fine poem i' sooth, Master Addison; as fine a piece of workas any man of this day ever produced. You might have seen it allyourself. You have had information, one can see, from highquarters. Now tell me, I pray, something in detail of this greatbattle;" and forthwith poet and gallant fell to discussing thecampaign in such a fashion as filled Tom with wonder at hiscompanion, such as he was always feeling.
Lord Claud seemed to have such a masterly knowledge of militarydetail, that it was hard to believe he had not at some time been asoldier himself; and his knowledge of public affairs, and of theintricacies of foreign and home politics, struck the country-bredyouth as something little short of marvellous.
For hard upon two hours did the two men sit talking, with papersand diagrams before them; and when at last Lord Claud rose, Addisongripped him hard by the hand, and declared he was the best companyhe had seen for many a long day.
"We are too late for the play, Tom, my lad," said Lord Claud, asthey reached the street. "But, for my part, I have been betterentertained; and if I have wearied you, I crave pardon."
"I am no whit wearied," answered Tom promptly; "but I marvel muchat your knowledge of men and things."
Lord Claud laughed slightly and lightly.
"Keep open eyes and ears as you go along in life, Tom, and you willlearn many things in your turn. And now, methinks, we will takehorse to Earns, and lie there tonight. It will be better for usthan the long ride in the cold of the early morning."
Tom Tufton's Travels Page 5