April Lady

‘No,’ said Mr Allandale. ‘I must own that I had little hope of obtaining your lordship’s consent. I am aware that in your eyes the scheme must seem preposterous.’

‘And how does it seem in yours?’ enquired the Earl curiously. ‘You have been acquainted with my sister for more than a year, after all!’

‘Were it not for your lordship’s refusal to entertain my proposal, I should have no hesitation in asking Lady Letitia to accompany me, as my wife, to Brazil.’

‘The devil you wouldn’t!’

‘I believe her to be equal to anything,’ said Mr Allandale reverently. ‘When I first learned of the appointment, I confess that the very natural feeling of delight I experienced was instantly tempered – I might almost say dissipated – by the same doubt of which your lordship is conscious. I could not believe that a delicately nurtured female – and one, moreover, of such tender years – could contemplate without dismay the several evils attaching to the appointment. The discomforts of a long sea-voyage! the going amongst foreigners! the separation from her relations! I promise you, sir, every disagreeable possibility that presented itself to my mind was at once communicated to her by me. But nothing was ever like her spirit! What inconveniences there may be she will not regard; and although I do not anticipate that there is any danger to be apprehended, that she would meet with the same trust and courage which she shows in being willing to bestow her hand upon one whose prosperity must depend upon his own exertions!’

The thought of this nobility overcame him so much that his voice thickened, and he was obliged to blow his nose. Its effect upon Cardross was to exasperate him into saying, with a snap: ‘I suppose she told you so!’

‘Yes,’ replied Mr Allandale simply.

‘Did she also work on you to come here today with your fantastic proposal?’

‘She certainly thought that with my advancement now secured we might hope for some relenting on your part,’ admitted Mr Allandale.

The Earl looked him over somewhat grimly. ‘But you did not think so, Mr Allandale, did you?’

‘Well –’

‘It appears to me, my dear sir, that you are as wax in my sister’s hands! It is a reflection which fills me with deep misgiving. I know Letty to be as headstrong as she is bird-witted, and what she may next bully or bewitch you into doing there is no saying – though I might hazard a guess!’

‘If you mean, sir, that I might be tempted to elope with Lady Letitia you may be easy!’ returned Mr Allandale, reddening. ‘Even if I were not a man of honour, my circumstances must forbid me to embark on anything of a clandestine nature.’ He drew a breath, and continued with a little difficulty: ‘You were kind enough, my lord, to acquit me of hanging out (as you phrased it) for a rich wife. That is true, for, in fact, I had not, until I met Lady Letitia, any thought of marriage at all. My widowed parent, though possessed of a respectable jointure, is quite unable to support the expense of educating my younger brothers and sisters without my assistance; and until they are established creditably I must not – indeed, I cannot! – marry a female who has no fortune of her own. Just a genteel fortune, to match my own. I never contemplated marriage to a great heiress – and, to own the truth, it is not what I like! However, I daresay it may be possible to form some kind of a trust which would ensure that I should not benefit by anything more than a reasonable amount.’

‘The matter is not of pressing importance,’ said the Earl. ‘Until she reaches the age of five-and-twenty my sister’s fortune is in my hands, and her allowance is at my discretion. If I chose to do it, I could cut off every penny of it.’

‘I cannot believe, sir, that you would be guilty of such inhumanity!’ said Mr Allandale, in a voice of strong censure.

‘There would be no inhumanity,’ replied Cardross coolly. ‘Letty would merely be obliged to continue living in my house, and her dre

ss-bills would be paid by me. I may add that I already pay quite a number of them. I am afraid you would find her very expensive, for she never has a feather to fly with, you know.’

‘I am aware that she has not been taught habits of economy,’ said Mr Allandale stiffly. ‘Indeed, she has told me so herself, and has regretted it. She is very willing to learn, and I hope to teach her to manage better.’

‘Yes, in my more optimistic moments I too indulge that hope,’ agreed Cardross. ‘Go and take up this appointment of yours, and I’ll engage to do my best to instil some small knowledge of economy into her head while you are away. Who knows? You may return to find her quite prudent!’

Mr Allandale rose, and walked over to the window. He said, staring out of it: ‘I do not imagine that it will be of any use to return. Not, of course, that I contemplate passing the rest of my life in Brazil, but –’ He stopped, and cleared his throat. ‘I cannot flatter myself that I shall find her still unattached. So much sought-after – and by men of far greater address than will ever be mine – separated from me for a prolonged period, and by such a distance – No, it would be too much to expect of her! She will wed another.’

‘The same fate may as easily overtake you, my dear sir,’ remarked the Earl.

‘No,’ said Mr Allandale baldly. He added, after a pause: ‘My feeling is unalterable. I am not subject to fits of gallantry, sir. I had even believed myself to be proof against – But from the moment when I first saw your sister, I knew myself lost! I struggled against it, for the unsuitability of the match was as plain to me as it is to you. It was to no avail. I shall never marry any other lady.’

‘Ah!’ murmured the Earl, looking amused. ‘I remember that I said much the same thing myself – a good many years ago. She was ravishingly beautiful – at least, I know I thought so, though, to own the truth, I can now only vaguely recall her face to my mind.’

‘I am happy to afford your lordship entertainment!’ said Mr Allandale, in rather less measured accents.

‘No, you are not,’ replied Cardross, rising. ‘You would like to plant me a facer, and I’m sure I don’t wonder at it. Nothing is more exasperating than to be obliged to listen to advice based on experience which is necessarily wider than your own – particularly when you have an uneasy suspicion that it may be good!’

‘I have no such suspicion,’ instantly retorted Mr Allandale. ‘I venture to think that my nature is more tenacious than your lordship’s!’

‘In that case,’ said Cardross, with unimpaired good-humour, ‘I shall expect to see you again upon your return from Rio de Janeiro. In the meantime, accept my best wishes for your success in that salubrious locality!’

‘Do you forbid me to hold further communication with Lady Letitia, sir?’ demanded Mr Allandale, somewhat reluctantly taking the hand that was being held out to him.

‘My dear sir, do let me assure you that I am neither so gothic nor so cork-brained! I daresay you will meet Letty at any number of parties. As for clandestine meetings, I am persuaded that your sense of propriety must be safeguard enough.’

‘Anything of a clandestine nature is repugnant to me,’ stated Mr Allandale. ‘I can only beg of you, sir, to consider well before you blight, perhaps for ever, the happiness of two persons, one of whom is – or should be – dear to you! I reject – indeed, I scorn! – your suggestions of inconstancy, but too well do I know the arts that are employed in the world of fashion to detach from an unworthy object the affections of such as Lady Letitia! All is sacrificed to pride and consequence! If I were in more affluent circumstances, I believe no considerations of propriety could avail to prevent me – But it serves no purpose to continue talking!’