There were two comments which David would have liked to make at this point. One was that Miss Margaret Lorimer must be a very persuasive and determined young lady indeed. The other was that Lorimer’s was not at this moment in any state to make very generous contributions to anything, however worthy. The first matter was none of his business. On the second he felt unable to keep silent.
‘Our present state of liquidity,’ he began, and was at once interrupted.
‘I am fully aware of the present state of our available assets. I am aware that a run on the bank in this unrepresentative period could be a cause of some anxiety. I am also aware, as no doubt you are, Mr Gregson, that there have in the past few months been unfortunate rumours about other banks: rumours which were unjustified when they began but succeeded finally in bringing about precisely the disaster they foretold. I do not intend to allow such a situation to arise here. Lorimer’s ability to contribute so generously to this charity will be sufficient proof that there is no anxiety of any kind in its chairman’s mind. I did not call you here to ask for your opinion on this point, Mr Gregson, but to request you to keep the accounts for the new fund: more specifically, to act as its treasurer. Until now the ladies supporting the charity have paid money in and drawn it out as they needed it; with good intentions but very little control. It will be necessary now, with larger sums involved, to be more businesslike. Naturally you will receive a fee for the extra work. Since my daughter is to get her way in the larger question of the building, she might as well supervise the small details of expenditure also. I have authorized her to call on you within banking hours whenever she has any matters which need discussion. That is all, Mr Gregson, thank you.’
David accepted his dismissal without further protest. After all, he thought to himself as he left the rich mahogany panelling of the chairman’s room for his own austere cubicle, the old man is no fool. The new fund would inevitably use Lorimer’s as its bank, so that the first generous contribution would, to start with, represent only a paper transfer. If the appeal were successful, more funds would come into the bank and might not all be spent at once. It was not surprising that John Junius had made sure that the new treasurer should be one of his own employees. The choice of David in particular, and the offer of a fee - to come, presumably, out of the charity’s funds -might represent the chairman’s indirect thanks for the matter of the golden bird-cage, but at no point had good business sense been sacrificed to sentiment.
David did not find it so easy, as he went back to his desk, to separate the principles of accountancy from the yearnings of his heart. Throughout the rest of that day an unbusinesslike thought interfered with the concentration which all employees of the bank owed to their work. It seemed that he could after all hope to see Miss Margaret Lorimer again.
3
A young lady who wishes to impress a young gentleman with her business ability must naturally take pains to consider her appearance. Margaret Lorimer looked critically at herself in the glass as Betty crouched at her feet to fasten up her neat kid boots with a last twist of the button hook. Mr Gregson had been appointed by her father to supervise the financial affairs of the fund which would soon be at her disposal, and it was essential that at their first discussion he should recognize her as someone who knew exactly what she wanted. She had particularly chosen the most severely cut jacket she possessed, and it was a coincidence that it happened to fit most tightly round her tiny waist. The plainest bonnet in her wardrobe went with it: it was another accident that it happened to suit her better than any of those whose brims were frilled or pleated.
The need to look businesslike was created by the fact that she had no idea of business whatsoever. Even when she shopped for herself, she carried no money. Every tradesman in the city knew the Lorimers and sought the privilege of opening an account for them. Margaret could select whatever she wanted and walk out of any shop, leaving her purchases to be carried to the coachman or brought up to Brinsley House later. When she needed a new gown she chose the stuff and described the style and allowed herself to be measured. No price was ever asked or mentioned. She assumed that her choices were reasonable only because when the accounts were eventually presented to her father he made no comment, reserving his disapproval for her mother’s extravagances. Since she did not even know the price of a yard of ribbon, she could foresee the difficulty of persuading Mr Gregson that the property she wished to purchase was good value.
Half an hour later she dismounted from her father’s carriage in front of Lorimer’s head office in Corn Street. Mr Lynch, as obsequious to any member of the family as he was overbearing to the staff, showed her to the cubicle in which the accountant was at work. He was not expecting her, and tugged his paper cuffs off in embarrassment as he jumped to his feet. It was some consolation for her own blushes, Margaret felt, that he appeared to be flushed as well.
‘I’m afraid I disturb your work, Mr Gregson.’
‘I wish every day would bring such a disturbance, Miss Lorimer.’ He hesitated for a moment, but proved to be waiting only for the arrival of a more comfortable chair, sent on the instructions of Mr Lynch, so that he could invite her to sit. His working space was not private, being partitioned off on three sides only, but there was no movement past the open part.
‘My father told you, I imagine, that I would come?’
He nodded his head. ‘I have to congratulate you, Miss Lorimer. Your powers of persuasion must be strong.’
‘My feelings are strong,’ Margaret corrected him. ‘To tell the truth, it was a surprise to myself when I learned that they were to be indulged.’ She had expressed them as a wish only, a vision of something too ideal to be likely. It had taken her by surprise to be told a few days later that she had permission to produce a detailed plan. Her father was unlikely to be interested in the scheme for its own sake. She had taken his brusque approval as a sign that he wanted to please her, a gesture signifying reconciliation after the coolness caused by her rejection of Walter Crankshaw. It was not John Junius’s way to express in so many words his forgiveness for what he saw as her stupidity, but perhaps he had realized that some excuse was needed for her to display again her real affection for him, and for him to accept it. He had seemed pleased when she kissed him in thanks for his unexpected announcement.
Once his support for the plan had been won, Margaret did not wish to weary her father with the discussion of details. Or, to put it more realistically, she knew that if she were to ask his opinion on any matter, he would give not advice but a decision, and one which might not always please her. It would be disloyal to express this attitude to a member of his staff, so she had taken care before she arrived to prepare an alternative explanation of her visit.
‘I have two errands, Mr Gregson,’ she said. ‘My mother has promised to give an evening reception to launch the new fund. She will invite those of our acquaintances who may perhaps be persuaded to support it, and also the ladies who have already agreed to serve on its management committee. I hope that you will be able to attend, to make the acquaintance of the committee before its first business meeting is held.’
She delivered the invitation as though it were the most natural thing in the world. Mr Gregson must not be allowed to guess her mother’s preliminary horror at the suggestion that a mere accountant should mix socially in her drawing room with the most respected families of Bristol. Nor must he be able to divine the inexplicable confusion she felt at the thought that if he came he would hear her play and sing, for on this occasion she had promised her father that she and Luisa would entertain the guests. Her secret pleasure at the thought that she would be able to display her only talent in his presence must certainly be unladylike; if it could not be suppressed, it must at least be concealed.
He accepted the invitation before even enquiring its date, and with more difficulty she approached her second request.
‘All decisions regarding the fund must necessarily be made by its committee,’ she said. ‘But my experience i
s that when committees of ladies meet a great deal of talking takes place, not always to the point, and at the end the matter discussed may be left as indefinite as in the beginning. The most important decision naturally relates to the building required: its size and position and whether it should be purchased or built to order. My own views on what is needed are very clear, and I think a great deal of time could be saved if I were able to put a specific proposal to the committee instead of inviting a discussion of possibilities. Are you laughing at me, Mr Gregson?’
She had tried to speak in an efficient manner, so that it was disconcerting to realize how difficult he was finding it not to smile. Her question allowed him to abandon the attempt at concealment.
‘Indeed I am not, Miss Lorimer. I admire your discovery of a principle which many gentlemen in the world of business are never able to comprehend. If I smiled, it was at the thought that you are a true daughter of your father.’
Margaret knew what he meant, and joined a little guiltily in his laughter. But she was pleased to see that this did not divert him from a businesslike attitude.
‘So you have found a suitable property, Miss Lorimer?’
‘I have found one which could be made suitable,’ she replied. ‘Its position is ideal, and it possesses the separate outbuildings which would be necessary if children are to be kept out of contact with their mothers. But some alteration would be essential, of course. I am unable to estimate even approximately what this would cost. Nor do I know whether the price being asked for the estate is a fair one. I have in the past had no occasion ever to consider such prices. But the bank, I believe, often lends money to its customers for the purchase of their houses. I have come to ask you whether you would be willing to visit the estate in my company and give your opinion on the price: whether it is reasonable, and whether our fund could expect to raise the necessary amount.’
She saw him hesitate and took pains to conceal her disappointment.
‘This is a matter for a professional valuation,’ he said. ‘And you would need an estimate from a builder with regard to the alterations.’
Margaret had known all that. This was the moment when she had to recognize what she had not admitted earlier, even to herself - that she had used the property as an excuse to visit a young man whom she had found interesting. It seemed he was not willing to make use of the same excuse.
‘Yes, of course,’ she said. ‘And you have so little free time. I could hardly expect …’
He was quick to interrupt her.
‘I was meaning that my opinion would be of no great value, Miss Lorimer,’ he said. ‘But since, as your treasurer, I may one day have to pay the bill for your purchase, I would certainly be glad of the opportunity to inspect it with you.’
She had accused him at their first meeting of being too direct. Now he was expressing himself in the formal politenesses appropriate to a conversation between two people who were still almost strangers. But his eyes were as straight-forward at this moment as his words had been earlier and showed clearly the sincerity of his pleasure at the invitation. He was smiling at her as though they were friends. Margaret tried to keep the triumph out of her own smile, but she must have been unsuccessful, for his dark eyes sparkled with amusement as he accepted the arrangments for the expedition.
‘Do you always get what you want, Miss Lorimer?’
‘Until now I have never had what I want,’ she said. ‘I hope that perhaps my fortune is about to change.’
She said goodbye and returned to her carriage, hardly able to believe her own boldness. The next stage was to obtain her mother’s permission for the visit, and this proved simpler than she might have expected. Georgiana had been shocked by the necessity of inviting Mr Gregson to her house, but did not object to her daughter being accompanied by one of the bank staff for business reasons when she went on her tour of inspection. They both knew that Margaret ought to be chaperoned by a married woman on such an occasion, but Sophie was confined to her house after the birth of her second baby and Georgiana was too lazy to make the effort herself. She merely gave strict instructions that Betty should go in the carriage with her mistress.
The estate which had attracted Margaret was a large one on the far side of the river, bordered by Leigh Woods. After its buildings had been inspected she and David took advantage of the September sunshine to walk in its woods and gardens, while Betty remained behind to improve her acquaintance with the coachman. Margaret felt a kind of happiness which she had never known before as they talked together, abandoning all pretence of further interest in the charity’s affairs, and comparing their own childhoods. The end of the visit came all too soon for her.
‘I have promised to take tea at my brother’s house,’ she said. ‘I have a new niece waiting to be inspected, and my sister-in-law to congratulate. Before we part, will you give me your opinion of what we have seen?’
‘Your judgement of the house, as a house, could not be criticized,’ he said. ‘And its position in the sun and wind is undoubtedly healthy. But the park is larger than would be needed. And I cannot help wondering whether the situation might not prove inconvenient. To bring the mothers and children so far from their homes would be an expense, and the lack of public transport would deter their visitors.’
‘So what do you advise?’
‘My own suggestion - it is no more than that - is that we should study the tramway routes and look for a property which can be reached from their highest points: in the Redland area for instance.’
It should have been a disappointment that he did not approve her choice, but Margaret was not disappointed at all. There would be other expeditions, other walks and conversations. She was in a good humour as she arrived at William’s house and told the coachman to take Mr Gregson on to whatever address he gave.
Although not as palatial as Brinsley House, William’s home, The Ivies, was a sufficiently substantial affair. John Junius had given it to his elder son as a wedding present. It was a solid, five-storied house with six bays of windows, built in the local red stone but almost entirely covered by the ivy which had given it its name. Unlike Brinsley House, which was surrounded by its own extensive grounds, The Ivies stood in a street of equally prosperous houses. It was also in Clifton, but to the north of the suspension bridge, near the Zoological Gardens. William came out to greet his sister at the sound of the carriage, and looked surprised when it drove away. Margaret did not explain where she had been, nor in whose company, for she felt instinctively that William would disapprove.
If she had not known her brother in the schoolroom, she would have thought that he had been born at the age of forty. Although still only twenty-seven, he had none of a young man’s enthusiasms and never seemed to unbend. In person he was quite unlike his father. Everything about John Junius was on a large scale, but William’s frame, like Margaret’s, was slight. He did not share his sister’s expression of determination, however: his features were sharp and his temperament withdrawn. He gave the impression of being always absorbed in his own complicated plans. It was even hard to tell today whether he was pleased with the birth of his daughter, who was to be called Beatrice after the Queen’s youngest child.
Out of politeness Margaret sat with Sophie for a while after her first glimpse of her niece, but was glad when the young mother said that she was tired. Margaret had never been on intimate terms with her sister-in-law, but she had the ability to establish an instant relationship of warmth with any child, however young. She indulged herself with the baby until the nurse ordered that Beatrice should be put back to rest. Then she went in search of her nephew, Matthew.
To her surprise she found that Ralph was there before her, although he was normally intolerant of children and not at all disposed to seek their company. On this occasion, she supposed that he had come out of family feeling to congratulate William and Sophie.
‘Uncle Ralph’s playing with me while Claudine fetches my tea,’ said Matthew, rocking vigorously on his wooden horse. �
�I’m four now.’
It was an announcement which he had made at each of their last three meetings, as ten days had already passed since his birthday, but Margaret accepted the news with proper congratulations. Even her pleasure in playing with him did not prevent her, though, from noticing that Ralph looked pale and worried. It seemed unlikely that he was working too hard at school – at least, this was not a danger to which he had ever exposed himself before, and the new term had only just begun. It was more probable that the headmaster’s sermon that morning had in some way upset him. Mr Percival’s eloquence had more than once reduced Ralph to despair at the sinfulness of his thoughts, although the strict timetable of his life made it unlikely, she imagined, that he had ever committed any greater crime than that of borrowing from another boy without permission.
The nursery governess arrived with a tray before Margaret had time to enquire into her brother’s anxiety. Claudine had arrived from France two months earlier, ready to take charge of Matthew when the new baby monopolized the attention of the nurse. Soon after her arrival she had been dispatched by Sophie to Brinsley House for a brief stay, together with her young charge. No reason had been given to Margaret, although perhaps her parents were better informed. But the visit had coincided with Sophie’s departure to stay with her own mother for two weeks. It had been Margaret’s amused deduction that William was not to be allowed to keep Claudine under his roof during his wife’s absence.
Privately, Margaret did not consider that William was ever likely to allow any young woman to divert him from the task of making money, but she could sympathize with Sophie’s attitude. There was an expansive and undeferential warmth about Claudine’s behaviour, warmth of a kind not usually found amongst domestic staff. She was a country girl, not qualified to be a governess in any way that Margaret could see, except that of having French as her native language. But she was healthy and good-natured and her experience in caring for her own five younger brothers and sisters had enabled her to win Matthew’s heart at once. The schoolroom to which he was now promoted was a far happier place than the nursery over which Nurse Grant had always tyrannized.
The Lorimer Line Page 5