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nervous you re quite sure you can manage him she said if not we can take john why aunt exclaimed i always drive the children at home and sometimes when i m on the box with he gives me the reins in a straight part of the road and paul and virginia pull like anything says it s all x an do to hold them was a little hurt at the idea that she might find aunt s pony too much for her a sleepy little of a thing as she privately called it which along exactly like a animal in urgent need of winding up don seemed a little better that day and was lifted into the pony cart where he lay on the mat the air as if it was doing him good really could drive well for her age and woke the pony up in a manner that astonished her aunt who remarked from time to time that she knew wanted to walk now he never could trot long at a time and so they reached the house which was five miles away i don the story of a greedy dog towards the head of the lake well under the hour a most surprising feat for it was a grown up party and although she had brought her was a little afraid to play besides she wanted to consult young mr about don who had been left with the cart in the stables mr who was a good natured young soldier just about to join his regiment was not playing either so went up to him on the first opportunity you know about dogs mr don t you er said mr who was a trifle why are you thinking of in a dog it s aunt s dog explained and he s ill very ill and we can t make out what s the matter so i thought you would tell us perhaps ru ride over to morrow and have a look at him oh but you needn t he s here wait i ll fetch him don t you come please and presently made her appearance on the lawn carrying don who felt quite a weight in her arms she set him down before the young man who examined him in a knowing manner don the story of a greedy dog while miss and some others who were not playing just then gathered round don was languid but dignified he rather liked being the subject of so much notice waited for the verdict well said mr it s easy enough to see what s wrong with him i should knock off his but cried mrs we have knocked off his as you call it the poor dog is starved starved mr said he should scarcely have supposed so from his appearance but i assure you he has eaten nothing positively nothing for days and days ah said mr is he then he s had too much air that s all just then a young lady who had been brought by some friends living se by joined the group why she said at once that s the little steamer dog how did he come here i e a little steamer dog said miss in her most dignified manner he is my dog oh i didn t know said the first speaker but but i m sure i ve seen him on the steamer several times lately i never use the unless i m absolutely don the story of a greedy dog obliged i of them it must have been some other dog the young lady was positive she had made no mistake you so seldom see a dog with just those she said and i don t think anybody was with him he came on board at and went all round the lake with us at cried that s where we live and aunt you know don has been away all day lots of times lately what did this dog do on the steamer asked miss faintly oh he was so sweet he went round everybody and sat up so prettily till they gave him and things he was everybody s pet we were all jealous of one another for the honour of feeding him the second time we brought on purpose but we quite thought he belonged to the steamer young mr laughed so that is how he took the air i thought i wasn t far wrong he said put him back in the cart said miss severely i can t bear to look at him don did his best to follow this dialogue but all he could make out was that it was about himself and that he was being as usual exceedingly admired so he sat and looked as good and don the story of a greedy dog innocent and interesting as he knew how just then he felt that he would almost rather they did not offer him anything to eat at least not anything very sweet and rich for he was still not at all well it was a relief to be back in the cart and in peace again though he wondered why didn t kiss the top of his head as she had done several times in carrying him to the lawn this time she held him at a distance and said two words which sounded suspiciously like you pig as she put him down miss was very grave and silent as they drove home i cap t trust myself to speak about it she said if if it was true it shows such an utter want of principle such deceit and don used to be so honest and straightforward what if we make inquiries at the pier it it may be all a mistake they	44
stopped for this purpose at ay miss he does that dug said the old and a makes rare an friendly a do they him fine em eh but he s a smart little dug we quite look for him of a morning for his constitution fur the like a like a ry greedy christian said his disgusted mistress she said when she don the story of a greedy dog returned to the donkey cart it s all true i i never have been so deceived in any one and the worst of it is i don t know how to punish him or like a very how to make him feel what a disgraceful trick this is nobody else s dog i ever heard of made his mistress publicly absurd in this way it s so so ungrateful don the story of a greedy dog aunt said an idea will you leave him to me and pretend you don t suspect anything i will cure him this time you you won t want to whip him said miss because though it s all his own doing he really is not well enough for it just now no said i won t tell you my plan but it s better than and all this time the unconscious don was wearing an expression of suffering and looking meekly sorry for himself with no suspicion in the world that he had been found out next day he felt much better and as the morning was bright he thought that after all he might manage another steamer trip his appetite had come back and his breath was not nearly so short as it had been he was just making modestly for the gate when stopped him where are you going sir she inquired don rolled over instantly with all his legs in the air and a feeble apology in his eye i want you for just one minute first said politely and carried him into the was he going to be whipped she couldn t have the heart an invalid like him he tried to protest by his don the story of a greedy dog but did nothing of the kind she merely took something that was flat and broad and white and fastened it round his neck with a very ornamental bow and ribbon then she opened the french windows and said in rather a chilly voice now run away and get on your nasty steamer and beg and see what you get by it that seemed as far as he could tell very sensible advice and oddly enough it was exactly what he had been intending to do it did not strike him as particularly strange that should know because don was a dog that didn t go very deeply into matters unless he was obliged he trotted off at an easy pace down to the village getting every minute and hoping that the people on the steamer would have brought nice things to day when close to the turning that led to the landing stage he met and was naturally obliged to stop for a few moments conversation he was not at all pleased to see him notwithstanding for i am sorry to say that don s had so grown upon him of late that he was actually afraid that his humble friend who was a little slow to find out when he wasn t wanted would accompany him on the and don the story of a greedy dog then of course the good things would have to be divided however don was a dog that was always mr friend had i blind n polite even to his fellow dogs and he did not like to be rude now said in dogs language of course but i have reason to believe that what don the story of a greedy dog follows is as nearly as possible what was actually said what s the matter with you this morning don replied that he was rather out of sorts and was going down to a certain lane for a dose of dog grass a lit dog grass won t do me any harm said i ll come too this was awkward but don pretended to be glad and they went a little way together but what s that thing round your neck asked the oh said don that i its a bit of finery they put on me at the cottage it pleases them you know think it s becoming um answered reminds me of a thing a friend of mine used to wear but he had a blind man tied to him i don t see your blind man they would have given me a blind man of course if i d asked for it said don but what s the use of a blind man isn t he rather a bore i didn t ask but my friend said he believed the thing round his neck which was flat and white just like yours only he had a tin underneath his made people more inclined to give him things he didn t know why do you find that don the story of a greedy dog how stupid of to foi et the thought don i could have brought things home to eat quietly then i don t know he replied to i haven t tried he meant to put it to the test very soon though if only he could get rid of by the way he said carelessly have you been round by the hotel lately no answered not since the threw a brush at me well said don there was a bone outside the porch which if i hadn t been feeling so poorly i should have had a good mind to tackle myself but perhaps some other dog has got hold of it by this	44
a good deal of knocking about but his life there had begun to seem easier to put up with from the moment she formed part of it he had never dared to speak to her before she had never given him the chance and besides it was quite enough for him to look at her but now he thought she meant to be friendly and begin a conversation are you very dull here then he asked rather nervously a toy tragedy stared at first no one had introduced him and she felt very much inclined to take no notice however she thought after her long silence that it might amuse her to talk to somebody even if it was only a shabby common creature like this so she said dull you were never in street or you wouldn t ask such a question i came from the he said oh really then of course this would be quite a pleasant change for you i don t know he said i like the it was so lively a little noisy perhaps too much top spinning and pop and playing all round one but very cheerful yes i liked the very mixed the society there isn t it she asked aren t you expected to know penny things well there were a good many penny things there he owned and very amusing they were there was a wooden bird there that used to duck his head and wag his tail when they swung a weight underneath he would have made you laugh so i hope said i should never so far forget myself as to laugh under a toy tragedy any circumstances and certainly not at a penny thing i wonder how much he cost she thought not very much i can see from his manner but perhaps i can get him to tell me do you very mixed society remember she asked aloud what was the a the they asked for introducing you here did you happen to catch the amount do you mean my price he said oh three it was on the ticket what a vulgar creature thought i shall really have to drop him dear me she said that sounds very reasonable very moderate indeed but perhaps you were reduced for she thought he would be more if he had cost a little more once a toy tragedy i don t think so he said that s the fair selling price well that s very curious said she because the young man at street a most charming person by the way positively wouldn t part with me under thirty five shillings and he said so many delightful things about me that i feel quite sorry for him sometimes when i think how he must be missing me but then very likely he s saying the same thing about some other doll now i suppose he is said the he had seen something of toy selling in his time it s his business you know i don t see how you can possibly tell said who had not expected him to agree with her the is not street the did not care to dispute this and were you very happy at street he asked happy she repeated well i don t know at least one was not bored there i was in the best set you see the two guinea one and they were always getting up something to amuse us in the window a review or a sham fight or a garden party or something last winter they gave us a fancy dress ball i went as mary i i i i t a toy tragedy and was very much admired but here and she finished the sentence with a little shrug i don t think find it so very bad here when you get a more used to it he said our mistress pray don t use that very unpleasant word she interrupted sharply did you never hear of rights we call these people well our hostess then miss she s not unkind she doesn t care much about me and that cousin of hers master gives me rather a bad time of it when i come in his way but really she s very polite and attentive to you polite and attentive sneered and if you have never seen a doll sneer you can have no idea how alarming it is i don t call it an attention to be treated like a baby by a little of a girl who can t dress herself properly yet no style no elegance and actually a in the mornings this is the way some of these costly lady talk about their when the gas is out and they think no one them i don t know whether the old fashioned ones who are not so carefully treated but often more tenderly loved are as bad but it is impossible to say n a toy tragedy are exceedingly artful and there are persons quite clever in other things who will tell you honestly that they do not understand them in the least then the society here went on without much consideration for the other s feelings perhaps she thought he was too cheap to have any it s really something too dreadful for words why those people in the little house over there with only four rooms and a front door they can t open have never had the decency to call upon me not that i should take any notice of course if they did but it just shows what they are and the other day i actually overheard one frightful creature in a print dress with nothing on her head but a great tin tack ask another horror which she liked best make believe tea or i well prefer	44
make believe tea myself said the because you see i can t get the orange down and so it s rather bad for the dress and complexion possibly she said scornfully i m thankful to say i ve not been called upon to try it myself even miss knows better than that but anyhow it s horribly here and i suppose it will be like this always now i did hope once that when i went out into the world i a toy tragedy should be a heroine and have a romance of my own what is a romance he asked i thought you wouldn t understand me she said a romance is well there s champagne in it and to begin with but what is champagne he interrupted and something you drink she said what else could it be see he said a sort of orange orange cried contemptuously it s not in the least like orange it s she didn t know what it was made of herself but there was no use in telling him so a toy tragedy i couldn t make you understand without too much trouble you really are so very ignorant but there s a good deal of it in and and and being very beautiful and miserable till just before the end that s a romance my used to have one read out to her while she was dressing me for that ball i told you about do you mind telling me what a heroine is he asked i know tm very stupid a heroine oh any doll can be a heroine i felt all the time the were all just like me they were either very good or very wicked and i m sure i could be the one or the other if i got the chance i think it would be more amusing perhaps to be a little wicked but then it s not quite so easy you know i should think it would be more uncomfortable he suggested ah but then you see you haven t any sentiment about you she said no he admitted i m afraid i haven t i suppose they couldn t put it in for three i should think not observed it s very expensive and then after a short silence she said more you were talking of master just now i rather like that boy a toy tragedy do you know i believe i could make something of him if he would only let me he s a mischievous boy said the and ill natured too yes he she agreed i like him for that i fancy a duke or a must be something like him they all had just his wicked black eyes and long restless fingers it wouldn t be quite so dull if he would notice me a little but he never will he s going back to school next week the said rather cheerfully so soon sighed there s hardly time for him to make a real heroine of me before that how i wish he would i shouldn t care how he did it or what came of it i m sure i should enjoy it and it would give me something to think about all my life say that again my dainty little lady say it again cried a harsh voice from beside them and if you really mean it perhaps the old can manage it for yoa he s done more wonderful things than that in his time i can tell you the voice came from an old german clock which stood on the or rather from a strange painted wooden figure which was part of it an ugly old man who sat on the top with a toy tragedy a plate of on his knees and a fork in one hand every minute he slowly up a from the plate to his mouth and swallowed it suddenly while his lower jaw and his narrow eyes rolled as it went down in a truly horrible manner at ugly old man the children had long since given him the name of which he richly deserved he was a sort of in his way having so much in his inside and he was and malicious owing to the quantity of wooden he bolted which would have ruined any one s and temper good gracious cried with a start who is that person a toy tragedy somebody who can be a good kind friend to you pretty lady if you only give him leave so you want some excitement here do you you want to be wicked and interesting and unfortunate and all the rest of it eh and you d like young a nice boy that by the way you d like him to give you a little romance well then he shall and to morrow too hot and strong if you like to say the word was too much fluttered to speak at first and she was a little afraid of the old man too for he all round in such an odd way and ate so fast and don t oh w don t cried a little voice above him it came from a queer little doll with gold paper wings a muslin dress and a with a star at the end of it who was fastened up on the wall above a picture you won t like it you won t really don t trust him whispered the he s a bad old man he ruined a very promising young dancing only the other day him so that he will never hook on any more ha ha laughed the as he disposed of another that old fellow in the peculiar coat is jealous you know he can t a toy tragedy make a heroine of you and so he doesn t want any one else to who cares what	44
he says and as for our little wooden friend up above well i should hope a dainty like you is not going to let herself be dictated to by a low creature who sets up for a fairy when she knows her sisters dance round white hats every day not sisters they re second cousins the poor dutch doll very much hurt and they don t mean any harm by it it s only their high spirits and whatever you say fm a fairy i had a christmas tree of my own once but i had to leave it it was so expensive to keep up now you take my advice my dear do she added to don t you listen to him he d give all his to see you in trouble he would but he can t do anything unless you give him leave but of course it would have been a little too absurd if had taken advice from a doll and a from the my good creatures she said to them you mean well no doubt but pray leave this gentleman and me to settle our own affairs can you really get master to take some notice of me sir i she said to the figure on the clock a toy tragedy i can my loveliest he said and will it be exciting she asked and romantic and and just the least bit wicked too you shall be the very heroine in any nursery in the world he replied oh dear me how you will enjoy yourself then i accept said i put myself quite in your hands i leave everything to you that s right cried the that s a brave little beauty i it s a bargain then to morrow afternoon the fun will begin and then my springs and wheels what a time you will have of it he he you look out for and then he trembled all over as the clock struck twelve and went on eating his without another word while gave herself up to delightful of the wonderful adventures that were actually about to happen to her at last but the felt very uneasy about it all he felt so sure that the old s had some underneath it you are a fairy aren t you he said to the dutch doll in a whisper can t you do anything to help her a toy tragedy no she said and if i could i wouldn t she has chosen to put herself in his power and whatever comes of it will serve her right i don t know what he means to do and i can t stop him still if i can t help her i can help you and you may want it because he is sure to be angry with you for trying to warn her but i never gave him leave to with said the have you got or inside you or what asked the fairy neither he said only the i with and wire but why i was afraid so it s only the with or inside them that he can t do whatever he likes with without their consent he can do anything he chooses with you but he shan t hurt you this time if you only take care for i ll grant you the very next thing you wish only do be careful now about wishing don t be in a and waste the wish wait till things are at their very worst thank you very much he said i don t mind for myself so much but i should like to prevent any harm from coming to her i ll remember then he bent towards and whispered a toy tragedy you didn t believe what the old man the clock told you about me did you tm not jealous i m only a poor and you re a great lady but you ll let me sit by you and you ll talk to me sometimes in the evenings as you did to night won t you but though she heard him plainly pretended to be fast asleep it was of no con to her whether he was jealous not was sitting the next afternoon alone in her nursery trying to play she was a dear little girl about nine years old with long soft brown hair a straight little nose and brown eyes which just then had a wistful dissatisfied look in them for the fact was that for some reason or other she could not get on with her at all the was not good looking enough for her they had put his eyes in so carelessly and his face had such a queer look and he was altogether a limp person she always said to herself that she liked him for the sake of the poor clumsy good hearted the who had left in disgrace and presented him as her parting gift but one might as a toy not be cared for at all as be liked in that way and beautiful and fashionable as she was was not friendly and never could get intimate with her she felt afraid to treat her as a small child younger than herself it seemed almost a liberty to nurse her for seemed to be quite grown up and to know far more than she did herself she sat there looking at and stared back at her in a cold distant way as if she half remembered meeting her somewhere before there was a fixed smile on her lips which seemed false and even a little contemptuous to poor lonely little who thought it was hard that her own doll should despise her the s smile was amiable enough though it was rather but then no one cared about him or how he smiled as he lay unnoticed on his back in	44
the corner you would not have guessed it from their faces but both were really very much excited each was thinking about the and his vague promises and wondering if and how those promises were to be carried out the wooden himself was his a minute on the top of the clock just as a toy tragedy usual only the fancied his cunning eyes rolled round at them with a peculiar as a cheerful whistle was heard on the stairs outside a moment afterwards a lively brown faced boy in sailor dress put his head in at the door he said are you all alone nurse has gone downstairs said i ve got the but it s dull here somehow can t you come and help me to play had been all the morning and could not settle down just then to any of his favourite books so he had come up to see with the idea of finding something to amuse him there for though he was a boy he did at times so far as to help her in her games out of which he managed to get a good deal of amusement in his own peculiar way but of course he had to make a favour of it and must not let see that it was anything but a sacrifice for him to consent i ve got other things to do he said and you know you always make a fuss when i do play with you look at last time ah but then you played at being a and you made me sell you my old black for a slave and then you tied her up and whipped her i didn t like game but o a toy tragedy if you ll stay this time i won t mind what else you do for had a way of making the go through exciting adventures at which tied her up and whipped her assisted with a fearful wonder that had a fascination about it girls don t know how to play with and that s a fact said i could get more fun out of that house than a dozen girls could he would have set fire to it but i tell yon what if you ll let me do exactly what i like and a toy tragedy don t go interfering except when i tell you to perhaps i will stay a little while not long you know i promise said if you won t break anything i ll do just what you tell me very well then here goes let s see who you ve got i say who s this in the swell dress he was pointing to whose brain began to at once with a delicious excitement he has noticed me at last she thought i wonder if i could make him fall desperately in love with me and she turned her big blue eyes full upon him ah if i could only speak but perhaps i shall presently i m quite sure the romance is going to begin that s isn t she pretty i ve seen them he said she s like that eve de something we saw at lane we ll have her and there s that chap in the fool s dress we may want him now we re ready what are you going to do with them you leave that to me i ve an idea something much better than your silly tea parties why doesn t he tell that child to go thought we don t want her m now listen said this is o io a toy tragedy the game you re a beautiful queen only do sit up and take that finger out of your mouth queens don t do that well and tm the king and this is your maid of honour the beautiful lady see go on i see cried and i like it so far i think ought to have been the queen said to herself well now said the boy i ll tell you something this maid of honour of yours doesn t like you don t say she does now i m telling this and i know you watch her carefully can t you see a sort of look in her face as if she didn t think much of you how clever he is thought he knows exactly how i feel do you really think it s that said it s just what i was afraid of before you came in that s it look out for a kind of glare in her eye when i pay you any attention how does your majesty do well i hope there didn t you see it well that s jealousy that is she hates you like anything i m sure she doesn t then protested oh well if you know better than i do you can finish it for yourself i m going a toy tragedy no no do stay i like it tu be good after this don t you interrupt again then now the real truth is that she d like to be queen instead of you she s ambitious you know that s what s the matter with her and so she s got it into her head that if you were only out of the way i should ask her to be the next queen could not say a word she was so overcome by the idea of her doll s and took by the waist and brought her near her royal mistress as he said now you ll see how artful she is she s coming to ask you if she may go out listen please your gracious majesty may i go out for a little while this is even better than if i spoke myself thought he can talk for me and i do believe i m going	44
thought i shall have to try her but i m glad of it i ll let her off but he very soon found that he had no voice at all in the matter except what chose to lend him oh but said who was determined to defeat the ends of justice if she possibly could can a be a judge why not said judges make jokes sometimes i ve heard papa say so and he s a and ought to know a toy tragedy but this one doesn t make real jokes persisted who asked him to judges are not obliged to make jokes believe you are trying to get her off but i m going to see justice done i tell you so now then lady you are charged with high treason and trying to poison her most gracious majesty queen by putting in her majesty s tea guilty or not guilty speak up guilty put in quickly thinking that would settle the whole trial y there you can t say she im a judge didn t speak that time now you have done it said triumphantly if she d confessed we might have shown mercy now we shall have to prove it and if we do i m sorry for her that s all if she says guilty and she won t do it again suggested it s too late for that now said who i a toy not going to have his trial cut short in that way no we must prove it but how are you going to prove it you wait i ve been in court once or twice with papa and seen him prove all sorts of things first we must have in the fellow who sold the poison the you know oh i say though i forgot that he s the judge that won t do then you can t prove it after all i m so glad cried the queen with her eyes sparkling one would think you rather liked being poisoned said in an offended tone i like and it isn t poison really it s medicine it isn t now it s and she shan t get off like this i ll call the s young man he ll prove it this brick is the s young man there he says it s all right she did it right enough now for the sentence put a on the judge s head will you it s what s a sentence asked much disturbed at these ill arrangements you ll see this is the judge talking now lady you ve been found guilty of very bad conduct you ve put in your beloved queen s tea a toy tragedy why i haven t had tea yet protested the sovereign her majesty is respectfully ordered not to interrupt the judge when he s up it puts him out well as i was saying lady i m sorry to tell you that we shall have to cut your head off what have i done thought the shell think i m in earnest she ll never forgive me but was perfectly delighted for not one of her had ever been in such a romantic position as this and of course she thought it will all come right in the end it always does however was terrified by the of the court she cried she mustn t have her head cut off it will be all right if you will only leave it to me and not interfere you promised not to interrupt and yet you will keep on doing it s head was full of just then for he had been reading the tower of london he had been leading up to an execution from the very first and he meant to have his own way but first he amused himself by working upon a toy tragedy s feelings which was a bad habit of his on these occasions to do him justice he did not know how keenly she felt things and how soon she forgot it was only it flattered to see how easily he could make cry about nothing and he never guessed what real pain he was giving her he began very she s in prison now in her prison cell and do you know i rather think her heart s beginning to soften a little she wants you to come and see her you won t refuse her last request will you as if i could cried full of the tenderest compassion very well then this is the last meeting my dear kind mistress its speaking to you now that i once loved so dearly in the happy day s when i was innocent arid good i die till i had asked you to forgive me let your poor wicked maid of honour kiss your hand just once more as she used to do tell her you forgive her about that now then i i sobbed quite melted by this pathetic appeal if you don t she ll think you re angry still and won t forgive her said just you listen a toy tragedy this is her now won t you ay one little word your majesty you might as well when vm gone and away in my s grave it will be too late then and be sorry its the last thing i shall ever ask you oh darling implored her queen don t go on talking in that dreadful way i can t bear it i forgive her now oh yes forgive her he said with approval queens shouldn t or bear malice it s all right said briskly as she dried her eyes she s quite good again now let s play at something not quite so horrid when we ve done with this we will but it isn t half over yet there s all the	44
execution to come it s the fatal day now the dismal is erected here he made a rough platform and a neat little block with the books the is mounting guard over it and propped up the unfortunate against a so that he overlooked the the trembling criminal is brought out amidst the groans of the groan can t you i shan t groan said i m a queen not a you won t really cut off her head will you don t be a little said he the end is a toy tragedy to be a surprise so i can t tell you what it is till it comes youve heard of arriving just in time haven t you very well then only i don t say one will here you know i only say wait and now he went on i m not the king any longer i m the and i say perhaps you d better hide your face now a queen wouldn t look on at the execution really at least a nice queen wouldn t so hid her face in her hands very glad to be spared even the pretence of an execution and earnestly wishing was near the end of this uncomfortable game but was just beginning to enjoy himself the wretched woman he announced with immense is led tottering to the block and then the very respectfully cuts off some of her beautiful golden hair so that it shouldn t get in his way at this point i am sorry to say that from a wish to have everything as real as possible actually did off a good part of s curls luckily for him his cousin was too conscientious and to peep through her fingers and never imagined that the she heard were really cutting anything she even kept her eyes shut while hunted about the a toy tragedy room for something which he found out at last and which was a sword in a red tin till then was not quite sure what he tottering o the really meant to do at first he had fancied that it would be enough for him just to touch lightly with the sword but now whether the idea had been put in his head by the or whether it had been there somewhere all the a toy tragedy time he began to think how easily the sharp blade would s soft wax neck and how he could up the severed head by the hair just like the in the pictures and say solemnly this is the head of a he knew of course that it would get him into terrible trouble and he ought to have known that it would be mean and cowardly of him to take advantage of his poor little cousin s trust in him to deceive her but he did not stop to think of that the temptation was too strong for him he had gone so far in cutting off her hair that he might just as well cut off her head too so that presently found herself lying helpless with her hands tied behind her and her close head placed on a thick book while stood over her with a cruel gleam in his eyes and flourishing a flashing sword i ought to be though he said suddenly or i might be recognised had to be v tie a handkerchief over my eyes and that will have to do and when he had done this he began to measure the distance with his eye and to make some trial cuts to be quite sure of his aim for he meant to get the utmost possible enjoyment out of it a toy tragedy began to be terribly frightened being a heroine was not nearly so pleasant as she had expected it had cost her most of her beautiful hair already was it going to cost her her head as well too late she began to see how foolish she had been and that even make believe tea parties were better than this she longed to be held safe in tender hearted little s arms but s eyes were shut tight and would not be opened till till all was over could not move could not cry out to her she was quite helpless and all the time the wicked old man on the clock went on steadily after as if he had nothing at all to do with it the was even more alarmed for than she was herself he was quite certain that was being deceived and that the pardon so suggested would never come in another minute this dainty little lady with the sweet blue eyes and smile would be gone from him for ever and there was no hope for none and the bitterest thing about it was that although he was a great deal confused as he very well might be as to how it had all come about he a toy tragedy knew that in some way he himself had taken part or rather several parts in bringing her to this shameful end and the poor innocent as he was fancied that her big eyes had a calm scorn reproach in them as she looked up at him sideways from the block what shall i do without her he thought how can i bear it ah i ought to be lying there not she i wish i could take her place all this time had been lingering he lingered so long that lost all patience do make haste she said with a little shudder that shook the table i can t bear it much longer i shall have to open my eyes it was only the mask got in my way he said now tm ready one two three and then there was a whistling sound followed by a heavy and a after that very made for	44
the door i i couldn t help it really he stammered as she put her hands down with relief and looked about rather dazzled at first by the sudden light tu save up and buy you another twice as pretty and you know you said didn t seem to care about you a toy tragedy stop what do you mean did you think you d cut her head off really haven t i said i cut head off i saw it go then you did mean it and oh it s the i wouldn t have minded it so much if you hadn t meant it for and you cruel bad boy youve cut cut all her beautiful hair off and i sat here and let you she s not pretty at all now it s a shame it z y a shame had had a wonderful escape and this is how it happened the had been so anxious about that he had forgotten all about the fairy and how she had granted him his very next wish but she being a fairy had to remember it if he had only thought of it it would have been just as easy to wish safe without any harm coming to himself but he had wished to take her place and the fairy whether she liked it or not was obliged to keep her promise so the little shake which had given the table was enough to make roll quietly over the edge of the platform and the who never was very firm on his legs fall forward on his face the next moment exactly where she had lain and either the fairy or the a toy tragedy handkerchief over his face prevented from finding out the exchange in time tried to defend himself i think she looks better with her hair cut short he said i lots of girls wear it like that and don t you see this has been a plot got up by the was innocent all the time and he s just nicely caught in his own trap that that s the surprise a toy tragedy i don t believe you one bit said you had no business to cut even my head off but you meant to do much worse i won t play with you any more and i shan t forgive you till the very day you go back to school but protested looking rather and ashamed of himself go away directly said stamping her foot i don t want to listen leave me alone so went not sorry now that an accident had kept him from doing his worst and feeling tolerably certain that he would be able to make his cousin long before the time she had fixed while left to herself again was so absorbed in sobbing over s sad that she quite forgot to pick up the split of the s head which were lying on the nursery floor that night had the chest of drawers all to herself and the old grinned savagely at her from the for he was disappointed at the way in which his plans had turned out good evening he began with one of his a toy tragedy and how are you after your little romance eh master very nearly had your pretty little empty head off but of course i couldn t allow that i hope you enjoyed yourself i did at first said i got frightened afterwards when i thought it wasn t going to end at all nicely but did you notice how very that dreadful behaved to me it will be a warning to me against with such persons in future and i assure you that there was something about him that made me shudder from the very first i have heard terrible things about the in the and what can you expect at such prices well he s rewarded for his crimes and that s a comfort to think but it has all upset me very much indeed and i don t want any more romance it does the hair so the dutch fairy doll heard her and was very angry for she knew of course why the had come to such a tragic ending shall i tell her now and make her ashamed and sorry would she believe me would she care perhaps not but i must speak out some time only i had better wait till the clock has stopped i can t bear her to talk about that poor in this way a toy tragedy but it really did not matter to the who could hear or feel nothing for they had thrown him into the where unless the dust cart has called since he is lying still tf a come here sir i want you the little girl who spoke was standing by the table in the morning room of a london house one summer day and she spoke to a small silver grey lying curled up at the foot of one of the window curtains as happened to be particularly comfortable just then he pretended not to hear in the a farewell appearance hope that his child mistress would not press the point but she did not choose to be with in this way he was called more still until he could no longer and came out gradually stretching himself and yawning with a deep sense of injury i know you haven t been asleep i saw you watching the flies she said come up here on the table seeing there was no help for it he obeyed and sat down on the table cloth opposite to her with his tongue hanging out and his eyes waiting her pleasure was rather particular as to the hands he allowed to touch him but generally speaking he found it pleasant enough when he had	44
vulgar doll to which he was obliged to be civil and even affectionate as if it was real a farewell appearance was an honest dog and so of course it was very to his feelings to have to impose upon the public in this manner but mr punch if he was only a doll had a way of making himself obeyed and though in time the new learnt to perform his duties enough he did so without the least enthusiasm it wounded his besides making him very when punch caught hold of his head and something with red whiskers and a blue frock took him by the hind legs and danced round the stage with him he hated that more than anything day by day he grew more miserable and he the punch and show and every doll in it from the hero down to the ghost and the baby and bob were not actually unkind to him and would even have been friendly had he allowed it but he was a dainty dog with a natural dislike to ill dressed and dirty persons and shrank from their rough if well meant advances he never could forget what he had once been and what he was and often in the close sleeping room of some common he dreamed of the comfortable home he had lost and s pretty imperious face and woke to miss her more than ever a farewell appearance at first his new masters had been careful to keep him from all chance of escape and bob led him after the show by a string but as he seemed to be getting resigned to his position they allowed him to run loose he was trotting at s heels one hot august morning followed by a small train of admiring children when all at once he became aware that he was in a street he knew well he was near his old a few minutes hard run and he would be safe with he looked up sideways at who was beating his drum and blowing his pipes with his eyes on the lower and upper windows bob s head was inside the show and both were in front and not thinking of him just then stopped turned round upon the children behind looked wistfully up at them as much as to say don t tell and then bolted at the top of his speed there was a shrill cry from the children at once of oh mr punch sir please your s a away from yer and angry calls to return from the two men even made an attempt to pursue him but the drum was too much in his way and a small dog is not easily caught at the best of times when he takes it into his head to escape so he gave it up a farewell appearance meanwhile ran on till the shouts behind were no longer to be heard once an errand boy struck by the coloured round the dog s neck tried to stop him but he managed to slip past him and run out into the middle of the road and kept on blindly narrowly escaping being run over several times by s carts and at last panting and exhausted he reached the gate out of which he had marched so it seemed long ages ago the tried u bim were covered with wire inside as he knew but fortunately some one had left the gate open and he eagerly down the area steps safe and at home at last a farewell appearance the kitchen door was shut but the window was not and as the sill was low he contrived to scramble up somehow and jump into the kitchen where he reckoned upon finding friends to protect him but he found it empty and looking strangely cold and desolate only a small fire was in the range instead of the cheerful blaze he remembered there and he could not find the cook an especial of his anywhere he up into the hall making straight for the morning room where he knew he should find curled up in one of the arm chairs with a book but that room was empty too the shutters were up and the half light which streamed in above them showed a dreary state of confusion the writing table was covered with a sheet and put away in a corner the chairs were piled up on the centre table the carpet had been taken up and rolled under the and there was a faint warm smell of and dust and in the place he out again feeling puzzled and a little afraid and went up the bare stone staircase to find in one of the upper rooms perhaps in the nursery but the upper rooms too were all bare and a farewell appearance and ghostly and higher up the stairs were spotted with great stars of and there were and on which strange and ghostly men in dirty white were talking and joking a great deal and doing a little now and then when they had time for it their voices echoed up and down the stairs with a hollow noise that scared him and he a farewell appearance was afraid to venture any higher besides he knew by this time somehow that her father and mother all the friends he had counted upon seeing again would not be found in any part of that house it was the same house though stripped and deserted but all the life and colour and warmth had gone out of it and he ran here and there seeking for them in vain he picked his way down to the hall again and there he found a old woman with a pinned over her head and a and brush in her hand for unhappily for him the family servants and all had gone away	44
some days before into the country and this old woman had been put into the house as she dropped her brush and pan with a start as she saw him for she was not fond of dogs why me she said if it hasn t give me quite a turn however did the nasty little beast get in a about as if the place belonged to him sat up and begged in the old days he would not have done such a thing for any servant below a cook who was always worth being polite to but he felt a very reduced and miserable little animal indeed just then and he thought she might be able to take him to a farewell appearance but the s only idea was to get rid of him as quickly as possible why if it ain t a she cried as her dim old eyes caught sight of his here you get out you don t belong ere and she took him up by the of the neck and went to the front door as she opened it a sound came from the street outside which knew only too well it was the long drawn of mr punch that s where he come from iii bet a penny cried the and she went down the steps a farewell appearance and called over the gate hi master you don t happen to have lost your do you is this him the man with the drum came up it was himself and thereupon was handed over the to him and delivered up once more to the hard life he had so nearly succeeded in shaking off he had a severe beating when they got him home as a warning to him not to rebel again and he never did try to run away a second time where was the good of it was gone he did not know where and the house was a home no longer so he went patiently about with the show a dismal little dog captive the little that ever delighted a street audience so languid and at times that mr punch was obliged to rap him really hard on the head before he could induce him to take the slightest notice of him but in spite of all this he made the people laugh most perhaps at night when the show was lit up by a can of and he sat with his feet in coffin howling at the melancholy strains of s pipes which always found too much for his feelings a farewell appearance it was winter time about a fortnight after christmas and the night was snowy and outside though warm enough in the kitchen of a big house the kitchen was crowded a stream of and gorgeous powdered and smart maids was perpetually coming and going in front of the fire a tired little with a shabby round his neck was in the blaze and near him sat a little man with a red beard who was being listened to with some attention by a few of the upper servants who were enjoying a moment s leisure yes he was saying i ve been in the a sight o years now but i don t know as i ever heard on a punch s show like me and my mate s bein engaged for a lar swell party afore it shows to my mind as public taste is a coming round it ain t quite so low as formerly the little man was and he with his partner bob and were in the house owing to an eccentric notion of its master who happened to have a taste for experiments he agreed with many who consider that some kind of amusement in the intervals of dancing is welcome to children but it was one of his ideas too that they must be getting a bored by a farewell appearance the inevitable lecture with the views and find a even after seeing him several times in a fortnight as a rule more bewildering than amusing although as a present producing animal the last has his he was curious to see how they would receive the drama of punch and in its old state he could easily have hired an elegant and perfectly refined form of the entertainment from some of the fashionable toy shops or universal only unfortunately in these improved much of the original fun is often found to have been refined away so he had decided upon introducing the original mr punch from his native streets and and bob chanced to be the persons selected to exhibit him is all alike observed the butler who having been to engage the condescended to feel a interest in the affair or low there s nothing pleases em more than seeing one party a another party a good over the that s where in my opinion all these makes a mistake there s too much and music all about em and not enough slide and red ot there s plenty of in our show a farewell appearance said with some pride for my partner you see he don t find as the dialogue comes as to him as he could wish for so he cuts a deal of it and what ain t is mostly stick like a cheap your little dog seems very wet and tired said a pretty bending down to pat as he lay stretched out we got one he fed on thing s you can but raised i he w able th made hi a farewell appearance were back in his own old kitchen but he was too tired to be hungry he won t hardly look at it said the i don t think he can be well well said lies well enough that s all his that is the fact is he thinks a deal too good for the	44
likes of us he do thinks he ought to be on in a he sneered wasting his satire on the un i tell you what it is miss that there s art ain t in his business he lar looks down on the concern thinks it ow why i see im from the a up his nose at it and it downright set me against him give me a as takes a interest in the drama the last but one as we had afore him now ae used to look on from start to finish and when punch went and jack why that used to bark and jump about as pleased as punch and he d go in among the crowd too and fetch back the as punch pitched out o as tender with it as a and he warn t like the general run of neither for he got quite thick with the punch thought a deal on im he did and if you ll believe ne when i ad to get the a and a farewell appearance it broke the art he away quite rapid but this ere one wouldn t turn a air if the company went to together here bob who had been setting up the show in one of the rooms came into the kitchen looking rather uneasy at finding himself in such fine company and was spared further as he was called upon to follow the pair upstairs they went up into a large handsome room where at one end there were placed rows of seats and chairs and at the other the homely old show seeming oddly out of place in its new surroundings poor felt more ashamed of it and himself than ever and he was glad to get away under its ragged and lie still by bob s dirty boots till he was wanted and then there was the sound of children s voices and laughter as they all came in with a crisp rustle of delicate dresses and a scent of kid gloves that reached where he lay it reminded him of evenings long ago when had had parties and he had been washed and and out in ribbons for the occasion and children had played with him and given him nice things to eat they had generally dis o a farewell appearance agreed with him but now he could only remember the pleasure and of it all he would never be any more presently those children would see him smoking a pipe and being familiar with that low punch they would laugh at him too they always did and like most dogs hated being laughed at and never took it as a compliment the host s experiment was evidently a complete success the children even the most who danced the step and thought vulgar were delighted to meet an old friend so unexpectedly a good many had often to see the whole show right through from beginning to end and chance or a stern nurse had never permitted it now their time had come and mr punch in spite of his lamentable in every relation of life was received with the usual applause at last the hero called for his faithful dog as a distraction after the painful domestic scenes in which he had felt himself driven to throw his child out of window and silence the objections of his wife by making himself a and accordingly was caught up and set on the shelf by his side the sudden glare hurt his eyes and he sat a farewell appearance there at the audience with a pitiful want of pride in his dignity as dog he tried to look as if he didn t know punch who was doing all he could to catch his eye for his made him shiver nervously and long to get away from the whole thing and lie down somewhere in peace was up at him i know d that ere would go and disgrace he was reflecting when i get him alone he shall catch it for this was able to see better now and he found as he had guessed that here was not one of his usual no homely crowd of errand boys maids of all work and ragged children and turning their grinning white faces up to him there were children here too plenty of them but children at their best and and looking as if and quarrels were things unknown to though possibly they were not the laughter however was much the same as he was accustomed to more musical perhaps and to hear but quite as hearty and they were laughing at him and he hung his head abashed but all at once he forgot his shame though he did not remember mr punch a bit the more for a farewell appearance that he ran backwards and forwards on his ledge and his tail and giving short piteous in a state of the wildest excitement the reason of it was this near the end of the front row he saw a little girl who was bending eagerly forward with her pretty grey eyes wide open and a puzzled line on her forehead knew her at the very first glance it was she knew him almost as soon for her clear voice rang out above the general laughter oh that isn t he s my own dog my that i lost it is really let him come to me please do don t you see how badly he wants to there was a sudden surprised silence at this even mr punch was quiet for an instant but as soon as heard her voice he could wait no longer and crouched for a spring catch the dog somebody he s going to jump cried the master of the house more amused than ever from behind was	44
too sulky to interfere but some grown up person caught the trembling dog just in time to save him from a broken leg or worse and handed him to his delighted little mistress and i think the frantic joy which a farewell appearance felt as he was clasped tight in her loving arms once more and covered her flushed face with his eager kisses more than made up for all he had suffered scornfully refused to have anything to do with who tried hard to convince her she was mistaken she took her recovered favourite to her hostess he really is mine she assured her earnestly and he doesn t want to be a tm sure he doesn t see how he when that horrid man comes near dear mrs please tell them tm to have him and of course carried her point for the were not unwilling after a short conversation with the master of the house to give up their rights in a dog who would never be much of an ornament to their profession and was out of health into the bargain held all muddy and as he was fast in her arms all through the remainder of the performance as if she was afraid mr punch might still claim him for his own and the dog lay there in content the hateful made him start and shiver no more he was too happy to howl at s dismal pipes and drum they had no terrors for him any more a farewell appearance i think i should like to go home now said to her hostess when mr punch had finally retired is so excited feel how his heart beats just there you know he ought to be in bed and i want to tell them all at home so much she resisted all despairing entreaties to stay from several small partners who felt life a blank after she had gone till supper came and so her carriage was called and she and drove home in it together once more youve very quiet she said once as they easily and swiftly along aren t you going to tell me you re glad to be mine r but could only wag his tail feebly and look up in her face with an exhausted sigh he had suffered much and was almost worn out but rest was coming to him at last as soon as the carriage had stopped and the door was opened ran in breathless with excitement oh look she cried to the maid in the hall is found he s here the maid took the lifeless little body from her looked at it for a moment under the lamp and turned away without speaking then she placed it gently in s arms again a farewell appearance oh miss didn t you see she said with a catch in her voice don t take on now but it s come too late poor little dog gone t was the night after had been taken to his first and he had been lying asleep in his little bedroom for now that he was nine he slept in the night nursery no longer he had been asleep when he was suddenly awakened by a brilliant red at first he was afraid the house was on fire when the red turned to a dazzling green he gave a great gasp of delight for he s hero thought the scene was still going on and there s all the best part still to come he said to himself but as he became wider awake he saw that it was out of the question to expect his bedroom to hold all those wonders and he was almost surprised to see that there was even so much as a single fairy in it a fairy there was nevertheless she stood there with a star in her hair and her dress out all around her just as he had seen her a few hours before when she rose up with little inside a great gilded shell and spoke some poetry which he didn t quite catch she spoke audibly enough now nor was her voice so as it had sounded before little boy she began i am the ruling genius of you entered my kingdom for the first time last night how did you enjoy yourself f oh said so much it was splendid thank you she smiled and seemed well pleased i always call to inquire on a new acquaintance she said and so you liked our as every sensible boy does well it is in my power to reward you every night for a certain time you shall see again the things you liked best what did you like best s hero the part said promptly for it ought to be said here that he was a boy who had always had a leaning to the kind of practical fun which he saw carried by the to a pitch of perfection which at once enchanted and him till that he had thought himself a funny boy in his way and it had surprised him that his family had not found him more amusing than they did but now he felt all at once that he was only a very humble and had never understood what real fun was for he had not much above hiding behind doors and out suddenly on a passing servant causing her to jump delightfully once indeed he used to be able to sell his family by pretending all manner of but they had grown so stupid lately that they never believed a single word he said no the would not own him as a he would despise his little attempts at practical jokes still thought i can try to be more like him perhaps he will come to hear of me some day for he had never met any one he admired half	44
so much as that who was always in a good temper to be sure he had everything his own way but then he deserved to always quick and s hero ready with his excuses and if he did run away in times of danger it was not because he was really afraid then how impudent he was to who but he would have dared to a large fish by making a door mat of it or to ask the prices of on purpose to throw mud at them not that he couldn t be serious when he chose for once he a union jack and said something quite noble which made everybody clap their hands for two minutes and he told people the best shops to go to for a quantity of things and he could not have been joking then for they were the same names that were to be seen on all the this will explain how it was natural that on being asked which part of the he preferred should say without the slightest hesitation oh the part the fairy seemed less pleased the part she repeated what those shop scenes on right at the end without rhyme or reason yes said those ones and the great wood with the shifting green and violet lights and the white bands of dancing in circles didn t you like them i h yes said the candid pretty well i didn t care much for them s hero well she said but you liked the grand with all their gorgeous dresses and monstrous figures surely you liked them there was such a lot of it said the was the best and if you could you d rather see those last scenes again than all the rest i she said frowning a oh wouldn t i just said but may i really and truly i see you are not one of my boys said the genius of rather sadly it so happens that those closing scenes are the very ones i have least control over they are a part of my kingdom which has fallen into sad decay and rebellion but one thing o i can do for you i will give you the for a friend and companion and much good may he do you but would he come he asked hardly daring to believe in such condescension he must if bid him it is for you to make him feel comfortable and at home with you the longer you can keep him the better i shall be pleased oh how kind of you he cried he shall stay all the holidays td rather have him than anybody else what fun we shall have what fun s hero the green fire faded out and the fairy with il he must have fallen asleep again for when he opened his eyes there was the at the foot of his bed making a face said the i say are you the nice little boy i was told to come and stay with yes yes said i am so glad to see you tm just going to get up i know you are said the and upset him out of bed into the cold bath this he could not help thinking a little bit unkind of the on such a cold morning particularly as he followed it up by throwing a hair brush two pieces of soap and a pair of shoes at him before he could get out again but it woke him at all events and he ventured with great respect to throw one of the shoes back it just the s top knot to s alarm the set up a as if he was injured you cruel unkind little boy he sobbed to play so rough with a pore but you threw them at me first pleaded and much harder too tm the oldest said the and you ve got to make me feel at home or i shall go away again s hero i won t do it again and i m very sorry pleaded but the wouldn t be i love friends with him for ever so long and was only appeased at last by being allowed to put down in a tall basket which stood in a corner s hero then he helped to dress by all his clothes the wrong way and hiding his stockings and while he was doing this the under nurse came in and he up to her and began to dance quietly go away said beautiful said the though was extremely plain i love yer and he put out his tongue and his head at her until she ran out of the room in terror he looked so absurd that was delighted with him again and yet when the bell rang for breakfast he felt obliged to give his new friend a hint i say he said you don t mind my telling you but mother s very particular about manners at table but the relieved him instantly by saying that so was he very particular and he slid down the and turned in the hall until joined him i do hope father and mother won the unkind to him he thought as he went in because he does seem to feel things so but nothing could be more polite than the welcome s parents gave the stranger as he came in bowing very low and making a queer little step s mother said she was always glad to see any friend of her boy s s hero while his father begged the to make himself quite at home all he said was tm disgusted to make your acquaintance but he certainly made himself at home in fact he was not quite so particular about his manners as he had led to expect he volunteered to divide the and	44
bacon himself and he did so in such a way that everybody else got very little and he himself got a great deal if it had been anybody else would certainly have called this as it was he tried to think it was all fun and that he himself had no particular appetite his cousin a little girl of about his own age was staying with them just then and came down presently to breakfast oh my said the laying a great red hand on his heart nice little you are ain t yer come and sit by me my dear no thank you tm going to sit by aunt mary she replied looking rather shy and surprised allow me he persisted to pass you the jam and the ril have some jam thank you she replied he looked round and chuckled oh i say that little said thank you before she got it he exclaimed there ain t no and i ve s hero eaten all the jam which made choke with laughter flushed that s a very stupid joke she pronounced severely and rude too it s a pity you weren t taught to behave better when you were young so i was said the with his mouth full then youve forgotten it she said you re nothing but a big baby that you are retorted the so a big baby which as even saw was not a very brilliant reply it was a singular fact about the that the slightest check seemed to take away all his brilliancy you know you re not telling the truth now said so contemptuously that the began to weep bitterly she says i don t speak the truth he complained and she knows it will be my aunt s birthday last you great silly thing what has that to do with it cried indignantly what is there to cry about which very nearly made quarrel with her for why couldn t she be polite to friend however the soon dried his eyes on the and recovered his cheerfulness and s hero presently he noticed the times lying folded by s papa s plate oh i say he said shall i air the newspaper for yer thank you if you will was the polite reply he shook it all out in one great sheet and wrapped it round him and about in it until nearly rolled off his seat with delight when youve quite done with it his father was saying mildly as the made a great hole in the middle and thrust his head out of it with a bland smile tm only just looking through it he explained you can have it now and he rolled it up in a tight ball and threw it at his host s head breakfast was certainly not such a dull meal as usual that morning thought but he wished his people would show a little more appreciation instead of sitting there all stiff and surprised he was afraid the would feel discouraged when his papa the ball the paper was found to be torn into long which delighted but his father on the other hand seemed annoyed possibly because it was not so easy to read in that form meanwhile the busied himself in the butter dish into his pockets and this did shock the boy a little for s hero he knew it was not polite to pocket things at meals and wondered how his friend could be breakfast was over at last and the took s arm and walked upstairs to the first floor with him who s in there he asked as they passed the spare bedroom said the boy she s staying with us only she always has breakfast in her room you know why you don t mean to say you ve got a cried the with joy you are a nice little boy now we ll have some fun with her felt doubtful whether she could be induced to join them so early in the morning and said so you knock and say you ve got a present for her if she ll come out suggested the but i haven t objected wouldn t that be a story he had forgotten his old fondness for of course it would said the i m always a of em i am was shocked once more as he that his friend was not a truthful but he knocked at the door nevertheless and asked his grandmother to come out and see a friend of his s hero wait one minute my boy she answered and ru come out was surprised to see his companion preparing to lie face downwards on the mat just outside the door get up he said you ll trip up if you stay there that s what tm doing it for said the but it will hurt her he cried nothing hurts old women said the i ve tripped up of em and i ought to know well you shan t trip up my anyhow said stoutly for he was not a bad hearted boy and his grandmother had given him a splendid box of soldiers on christmas day don t come out it s a mistake he shouted the rose with a look of disgust do you call this like a friend to me he demanded well said she s my you see she ain t and if she was i d let you trip her up i would ain t selfish i shan t stop with you any longer h do said we ll go and play somewhere else o s hero well said the if youve a good boy you shall see me make a butter slide in the hall then saw how he had wronged him in thinking he had the butter out of mere and he felt ashamed and penitent the made a beautiful slide though wished he would not	44
insist upon putting all the butter that was left down his back there s a ring at the bell said the ru open the door and you hide and see the fun so hid himself round a corner as the door opened walk in sir said the politely master in said a jolly hearty voice it was dear old uncle john who had taken him to the the night before i thought look in and see if he would care to come with me to the crystal oh and there was a noise and a heavy ran out full of remorse uncle john was sitting on the rubbing his head and oddly enough did not look at all funny oh uncle cried the boy not hurt i didn t know it was you i m a bit shaken my boy that s all said his uncle one doesn t come down like a feather at s hero my age and he picked himself slowly up well i must get home again he said no crystal palace to day after this and he went slowly out leaving with the feeling that he had had enough of he even wiped the clean again with a and the clothes brush though the who had been hiding tried to prevent him we ain t ad the fun out of it yet he complained he always spoke in rather a common way as began to notice with pain had enough said it was my uncle john who slipped down that time and he s hurt and he d come to take me to the crystal palace well he hadn t come to take w said the you are about your relations you are you ain t a boy for a bit o fun felt this rebuke very much he had so hoped to gain the s esteem but he would not give in he only suggested humbly that they should go up into the play room the play room was at the top of the house and and two little sisters of s were playing there when they came in the turning in his toes and making awful faces s hero the two little girls ran into a corner and seemed considerably frightened by the stranger s appearance but reassured them don t take any notice she said it s only a horrid friend of s he won t interfere with us oh the boy protested he s awfully nice if you only knew him he can make you laugh do let us play with you he wants to and he won t be rough do pleaded the i ll behave so pretty well said mind you do then or you shan t stop and for a while he did behave himself showed him his new soldiers and he seemed quite interested and then he had a ride on the rocking horse and was sorry when it broke down under him and after that he came suddenly upon a beautiful doll which belonged to the youngest sister do let me nurse it he said and the little girl gave it up timidly of course he nursed it the wrong way up and at last he forgot and sat down on it the head which was wax being crushed to pieces was in fits of laughter at the droll face he made as he held out the crushed doll at arm s s hero length and looked at it with one eye shut exclaiming poor thing what a pity i do i t made its ache but the two little girls were crying bitterly in one another s arms and turned on the with tremendous indignation you did it on purpose you know you did she said s hero go away little girl don t talk to me said the putting in front of him she said what did you bring your friend up here for he only spoils everything he s allowed to touch take him away pleaded he s a visitor you know i don t care she replied mr you shan t stay here this is our room and we don t want you go away she walked towards him looking so fierce that he backed hastily go downstairs she said pointing to the door you too for you encouraged him said the a sound by which he intended to imitate her anger oh please i m going remember me to your mother and he left the room followed rather sadly by who felt that was angry with him that s a very little girl remarked the when they were safe outside and thought it wiser to agree what have you got in your pockets he asked presently seeing a hard in his friend s white trunks only some o your nice soldiers said the and walked into the where s hero there was a fire burning are they brave he asked very said who had quite persuaded himself that this was so look here we ll have a battle he thought a battle would keep the quiet here s two cannon and peas and you shall be the french and v be english all right said the and took his share of the soldiers and calmly put them all in the middle of the red hot coals i want to be quite sure they can stand fire first he explained and then as they melted he said there you see they re all running away i never see such was in a great rage and could almost have cried if it had not been for they were his best which he could see dropping down in great glittering stars on the ashes below that s a thing to do he said with difficulty i didn t give them to you to put in the fire oh i thought you did said the i beg your pardon and he threw the rest after	44
them as he spoke you re a beast cried indignantly i ve done with you after this oh no yer ain t he returned s hero i have though said not friends any longer all right said the when i m not friends with any one i take and use the red ot to em and he put it in the fire to heat as he spoke this terrified the boy it was no use trying to argue with the and he had seen how he used a red hot well til forgive you this time he said hastily let s come away from here i tell you what said the you and me u go down in the kitchen and make a pie forgot his injuries at this delightful idea he knew what the s notion of would be yes he said eagerly that will be jolly only i don t know he added doubtfully if cook will let us however the soon managed to secure the kitchen to himself he had merely to attempt to kiss the cook once or twice and to throw the best dinner service at the other servants and they were left quite alone to do as they pleased what fun it was at first the brought out a large deep dish and began by putting a whole turkey and an hare in it out of the after that he put in jam s hero and and in short the first things that came to hand it ain t full yet he said at last as he looked gravely into the pie no said can t we get anything else to put in the very thing cried the youve just about the right size to fill up my what a pie it s going to be eh and he caught up his young friend just as he was him into the pie and poured on him but he kicked and howled until the grew seriously displeased why t you lay quiet he said angrily like the turkey does you don t deserve to be put into such a nice pie if you make a pie of me said there ll be nobody to look on and laugh at you you know no more there won t said the and allowed him to crawl out all over it was a pity he declared because he fitted so nicely and now they would have to look about for something else but he contrived to make a shift with the contents of the cook s work basket which he poured in wax and all he had tried to put the kitchen cat in too but she scratched his hands and could not be induced to form the finishing touch to the pie s hero how the got the and rolled it and made in a mess with it and how the pie was finished at last would take too long to tell here but somehow it was not quite such capital fun as he had it seemed to want the music or something and then was always lest the should change his mind at the last minute and put him in the pie after all even when it was safely in the oven he had another fear lest he should be made to stay and eat it for it had such very peculiar things in it that it could not be at all nice fortunately as soon as it was put away the seemed to weary of it himself let me and you go and take a walk he suggested caught at the proposal for he was fast becoming afraid of the and felt really glad to get him out of the house so he got his cap and the put on a brown overcoat and a tall hat under which his white and red face looked stranger than ever and they forth together once would have thought it a high privilege to be allowed to go out with a but if the plain truth must be told he did not enjoy himself so very much after all people s hero seemed to stare at them so for one thing and he felt almost ashamed of his companion whose behaviour was ridiculous they went to all the family to whom was of course well known and the would order the most impossible things and say they people seemed to stare at them so were for once he even pushed him into a large s shop full of pretty and contemptuous young ladies and left him to explain his presence as he could but it was worse when they happened to meet an italian boy with a tray of plaster images on his head s hero here s a lark said the and against him in such a way that the tray slipped and all the images fell to the ground with a crash it was certainly amusing to see all the pieces rolling but while was still laughing the boy began to howl and him to the crowd which gathered round them the crowd declared that it was a shame and that ought to be made to pay for it and no one said so more loudly and indignantly than the before he could escape he had to give his father s name and address and promise that he would pay for the damage after which he joined the who had strolled on with a heavy heart for he knew that that business would stop all his pocket money for years after he was grown up he even ventured to reproach his friend i shan t of you of course he said but you know you did it the s only answer to this was a reproof for telling wicked stories at last they passed a s and the suddenly remembered that he was hungry so they went in and he borrowed sixpence from	44
which by some happy inspiration he had lighted during a solitary tour waiting until she should appear he could see the whole scene the tiny with the violet shadow of the cliff sleeping on the green b by ic the brass bottle water the swell of the waves lazily against the board from which he had plunged half an hour before he remembered the long swim out to the the anticipation with which he had dressed and climbed the steep path to the hotel terrace for was he not to pass the whole remainder of that day in s society were they not to together there were of course others of the party but they did not count to over to to there under the and ride back always together in the sweet scented dusk over the slopes between the or the glowing golden against a sky of warm purple now he saw himself going round to the in front of the hotel with a sudden dread of missing her there was nothing there but the little low cart with its canvas which was to convey professor and his wife to the place of there was at last fair and fresh in her cool pink and cream coloured skirt how gracious and friendly and generally delightful she had been throughout that day which was supreme amongst others only a little less perfect and all now fled for ever they had had it was true old was perhaps the least bit of a bore at times with his by ic receives a commission interminable on egyptian art and ancient oriental character writing in which he seemed convinced that must feel a interest as indeed he thought it to affect the professor was a most learned and positively with information on his favourite subjects but it is just possible that might have been less curious concerning the distinction between and or and if his had happened to be the father of anybody else however such as these are but so many evidences of sincerity so with self ingenuity up various pictures from that holiday of his the little half cottages with their faded blue shutters and the rushes growing out of their roofs the of village churches gleaming above the bronze green the bold their and yellow cliffs grimly with the soft of the turf above them the black and white cattle peacefully against a background of and sea and in every scene the sensation of s near presence the sound of her voice in his ears and now he looked up from the papers and on his desk and round the small room which served him as an office at the framed plans and photographs the set squares and t squares on the by ic the brass bottle walls and felt a dull against his surroundings from his window he commanded a cheerful view of a tall wall once part of the abbey boundaries surmounted by de above whose some plane trees stretched their branches she would have come to care for me s thoughts ran on i could have sworn that that last day of all and her people didn t seem to object to me her mother asked me cordially enough to call on them when they were back in town when i did when he had called there had been a not an unusual to an begun in a continental watering place it was to define but unmistakable a certain formality and on mrs s part and even on s which seemed intended to warn him that it is not every friendship that the channel passage so he had gone away sore at heart but fully that any advances in future must come from their side they might ask him to dinner or at least to call again but more than a month had passed and they had made no sign no it was all over he must consider himself dropped after all he told himself with a short and anything but laugh it s natural enough mrs has probably been making inquiries about by ic receives a commission my professional prospects it s better as it is what earthly chance have i got of marrying unless i can get work of my own it s all i can do to keep myself decently i ve no right to dream of asking any one to say nothing of to marry me i should only be rushing into temptation if i saw any more of her she s not for a poor beggar like me who was bom unlucky well won t do any good let s have a look at s latest performance he spread out a large coloured plan in a comer of which appeared the name of william and began to study it in a spirit of anything but appreciation gets on he said to himself heaven knows i don t him his success he s a good fellow though he does build and seems to like em who am i to give myself airs he s successful i m not yet if i only had his opportunities what wouldn t i make of them let it be said here that this was not the ordinary self delusion of an really had talent above the average with and which might under better conditions have attained recognition and fulfilment before this but he was not quite energetic enough besides being too proud to push himself into notice and hitherto he had met with persistent ill luck by ic the brass bottle so had no other occupation now but to give whose and clerk he shared such slight assistance as he might require and it was by no means cheering to feel that every year of this semi idleness left him further in the race for wealth and fame for he had already passed his twenty	44
eighth birthday if miss had indeed felt attracted towards him at one time it was not altogether incomprehensible was not a model of manly beauty models of manly beauty are rare of novels and seldom interesting in them but his clear cut clean shaven face possessed a certain distinction and if there were faint lines about the mouth they were by the expression of the grey blue eyes which were remarkably frank and pleasant he was well made and tall enough to escape all danger of being described as short and pale without being pallid in complexion and he gave the impression of being a man who took life as it came and whose sense of humour would serve as a for most clouds that might his horizon there was a rap at the door which communicated with s office and himself a man with small side whiskers burst in i say you didn t run ofi with the plans for that house i m building at did you by ic re receives a commission ah i see you re looking over them sorry to deprive you but thanks old fellow take them by all means i ve seen all i wanted to see well i m just off to now want to ba there to check the quantities and there s my other house at i must go on afterwards and set it out so i shall probably be away some days i m taking down too you won t be wanting him eh laughed i can manage to do nothing without a clerk to help me your necessity is greater than mine here are the plans i m rather pleased with em myself you know said that roof ought to look well eh good idea of mine the slate with that ornamental tile work along the top you saw i put in one of your windows with just a trifling addition i almost inclined to keep both alike as you suggested but it struck me a little variety one red brick and the other would be more out of the way oh much agreed knowing that to was useless not mind you continued that i believe in going in for too much originality in domestic architecture the average no more wants an original house than he wants an original hat he wants something he won t feel a fool in i ve often thought old by ic the brass bottle man that perhaps the reason why you haven t got on you don t mind my speaking candidly do you not a bit said cheerfully s the of friendship it on well i was only going to say that you do yourself no good by all those ideas of yours if you had your chance to morrow it s my belief you d throw it away by on some fantastic or other these speculations are a trifle premature considering that there doesn t seem the remotest prospect of my ever getting a chance at all i got mine before i d set up six months said the great thing however he went on with a of personal application is to know how to use it when it does come well i must be off if i mean to catch that one o clock from you ll see to anything that may come in for me while i m away won t you and let me know oh by the way the quantity has just sent in the quantities for that at do you mind running through them and seeing they re right and there s the for the new wing at lodge you might that some time when you ve nothing else to do you ll find all the papers on my desk thanks awfully old chap and hurried back to his own room where for the next few minutes he could be heard bustling o by ic receives a commission the clerk to make haste then a was whistled for there were footsteps down the old stairs the sounds of a departing vehicle on the stones and after that silence and solitude it was not in nature to avoid feeling a little envious had work to do in the world even if it chiefly consisted in by or it was still work which entitled him to consideration and respect in the eyes of all persons and nobody believed in as yet he had never known the satisfaction of seeing the work of his brain in stone and brick and mortar no building stood anywhere to bear testimony to his existence and long after he himself should have passed away it was not a profitable train of thought and to escape from it he went into s room and fetched the documents he had at least they would keep him occupied until it was time to go to his club and lunch he had no sooner settled down to his calculations however when he heard a shuffling step on the landing followed by a knock at s office door more work for he thought what luck the fellow has i d better go in and explain that he s just left town on business but on entering the adjoining room he heard the knocking repeated this time at his own door and by ic the brass bottle hastening back to put an end to this somewhat form of hide and seek he discovered that this visitor at least was his and was in fact no other than professor himself the professor was standing in the doorway peering short through his glasses his head from his loosely fitting great coat with an irresistible suggestion of an inquiring to his appearance was more welcome than that of the for why should s father take the trouble to pay him this visit unless he still wished to continue the it might even be that he was	44
see for himself it s not modern rubbish make a pretty little ornament for the remarked a wag is the top made to or what sir asked a third seems fixed on pretty tight by ic the brass bottle i can t say probably it has not been removed for some time it s a weight said the chief after handling it s inside of it i don t represent it as having anything inside it said the if you want to know my opinion i think there s money in it ow much don t me gentlemen when i say i consider there s money in it i m not alluding to its contents i ve no reason to believe that it contains anything i m merely suggesting the thing itself may be worth more than it looks ah it might be that without itself well well don t let us waste time look upon it as a pure speculation and make me an for it some of you come ap ny cried the comic man to brace himself for a mighty pray be serious gentlemen we want to get on you know anything to make a start five shillings it s not the value of the metal but i ll take the bid six look at it well it s not an article you come across every day of your lives the bottle was still being passed round with and and it had now come to s right hand neighbour who it carefully but made no bid by ic a cheap lot that s all right you know he whispered in s ear that s good stuff that is if i was you i d ave that seven shillings eight nine bid for it over there in the comer said the if you think it s so good why don t you have it yourself asked his neighbour me oh well it ain t exactly in my line and getting this last lot pretty near cleaned me out i ve done for to day i ave all the same it is a curiosity as i ve seen a brass just that shape before and it s genuine old though all these are too ignorant to know the value of it so i don t mind giving you the tip rose the better to examine the top as far as he could make out in the flickering light of one of the gas stars which the had just ordered to be lit there were half and marks on the cap that might possibly be an inscription if so might there not be the means here of the professor s favour which he felt that as it was he should probably justly or not by his ill success he could hardly spend the professor s money on it since it was not in the catalogue and he had no authority to bid for it but he had a few shillings of his own to spare why not bid for it on his own as long as be could afford to do go if by ic the brass bottle he were as usual it would not particularly matter thirteen shillings the was saying in his caught his eye and slightly raised his catalogue while another man nodded at the same time fourteen in two places raised his catalogue again i won t go beyond fifteen he thought fifteen it s against you sir any advance on fifteen sixteen this very quaint old oriental bottle going for only sixteen shillings after all thought i don t mind anything under a pound for it and he bid seventeen shillings eighteen cried his rival a short cheery faced little dealer whose neighbours him to sit quiet like a good little boy and not waste his pocket money nineteen said pound answered the man a pound only bid for this grand brass vessel said the all done at a pound thought another shilling or two would not ruin him and nodded a guinea for the last time you ll lose it sir said the to the little man go on don t you be beat spring another bob on it his friends advised him but shook his head with the air by a cheap lot of a man who knows when to draw the line one guinea and that s not half its value gentleman on my left said the more in sorrow than in and the brass bottle became s property he paid for it and since he could hardly walk home nursing a large metal bottle without an inconvenient amount of attention directed that it should be sent to his lodgings at square but when he was out in the fresh air walking westward to his club he found himself wondering more and more what could have possessed him to throw away a guinea when he had few enough for legitimate expenses on an article of such exceedingly value by ic the brass chapter iii an unexpected opening made his way to gardens that evening in a highly inconsistent not to say state of mind the thought that he would presently see again made his blood course quicker while he was fully determined to say no more to her than civility demanded at one moment he was blessing professor for his happy thought in making use of him at another he was bitterly that it would have been better for his peace of mind if he had been left alone and her mother had no desire to see more of him if they had they would have asked him to come before this no doubt they would him now for the professor s sake but who would not rather be ignored than the more often he saw the more she would make his heart ache with vain longing whereas he was getting almost reconciled to	44
her he would very soon be cured if he didn t see her why should he see her he need not go in at all by ic an unexpected opening he had merely to leave the catalogue with his com and the professor would learn all he wanted to know on second thoughts he must go if only to return the bank note but he would ask to see the professor in private most probably he would not be invited to join his wife and daughter but if he were he could make some excuse they might think it a little odd a little perhaps but they would be too relieved to care much about that when he got to gardens and was actually at the door of the house one of the and in that retired and quarter he began to feel a hope that the professor might be out in which case he need only leave the catalogue and write a letter when he got home his non success at the sale and returning the note and as it happened the professor was out and was not so glad as he thought he should be the maid told him that the ladies were in the and seemed to take it for granted that he was coming in so he had himself announced he would not stay long just long enough to explain his business there and make it clear that he had no wish to force his acquaintance upon them he found mrs in the farther part of the pretty double drawing room writing letters and more by ic the brass bottle fair than ever in some sort of black frock with a and a bunch of on her breast was comfortably established with a book in the front room and seemed surprised if not at having to disturb herself i must he began with an involuntary for calling at this very time but the fact is the professor i know all about it interrupted mrs while her shrewd light grey eyes took him in with a cool stare that was observant without being we heard how my husband abused your good nature it was too bad of him to ask a busy man like you to put aside his work and go and spend a whole day at that stupid oh i d nothing particular to do i can t call myself a busy man unfortunately said with that frankness which to conceal what other people know perfectly well already ah well it s very nice of you to make light of it but he ought not to have done it after so short an acquaintance too and to make it worse he has had to go out unexpectedly this evening but he ll be back before very long if you don t mind waiting there s really no need to wait said because this catalogue will tell him everything and as the particular things he wanted went for much by ic an unexpected opening more than he thought i wasn t able to get any of them i m sure i m very glad of it said mrs for his study is crammed with odds and ends as it is and i don t want the whole house to look like a museum or an antiquity shop i d all the trouble in the world to persuade him that a great gaudy gilded case was not quite the thing for a but please sit down mr thanks stammered but but i mustn t stay if you will tell the professor how sorry i was to miss him and give him back this note which he left with me to cover any deposit i i won t interrupt you any longer he was as a rule in most social but just now he was seized with a wild desire to escape which to his infinite mortification made him behave like a shy nonsense said mrs i am sure my husband would be most annoyed if we didn t keep you till he came i really ought to go he declared wistfully enough we mustn t mr to stay mother when he so evidently wants to go said cruelly well i won t detain you at least not long i wonder if you would mind a letter for me as you pass the pillar box i ve almost finished it and by ic the brass bottle it ought to go to night and my maid has such a bad cold i really don t like sending her out with it it would have been impossible to refuse to stay after that even if he had wished it would only be for a few minutes might spare him that much of her time he should not trouble her again so mrs went back to her and and he were practically alone she had taken a seat not far from his and made a few constrained remarks obviously out of sheer civility he returned mechanical replies with a dreary wonder whether this could really be the girl who had talked to him with such charming friendliness and confidence only a few weeks ago in and the worst of it was she was looking more than ever her slim arms gleaming through the black lace of her sleeves and the gold threads in her soft masses of chestnut hair sparkling in the light of the shaded lamp behind her the slight of her eyebrows and the downward curve of her mouth seemed expressive of what a dreadfully long time mamma is over that letter she said at last i think i d better go and hurry her up please don t unless you are particularly anxious to get rid of me i thought you seemed particularly anxious to escape she said coldly and as a family we have by ic an unexpected opening	44
certainly taken up quite enough of your time for one day that is not the way you used to talk at st he said at st perhaps not but in london everything is so different you see very different when one meets people abroad who who seem at all inclined to be she continued one is so apt to think them pleasanter than they really are then one meets them again and and wonders what one ever saw to like in them and it s no use pretending one feels the same because they generally understand sooner or later don t you find that i do indeed he said though i don t know what i ve done to deserve that you should tell me so oh i was not you you have been most i can t think how papa could have expected you to take all that trouble for still you did though you must have simply hated it but good heavens don t you know i should be only too delighted to be of the least service to him or to any of you you looked anything but delighted when you came in just now you looked as if your one idea was to get it over as soon as you could you know perfectly well you re longing now for mother to finish by ic the brass bottle her letter and set you free do you really think i can t see that if all that is true or partly true said can t you guess why i guessed how it was when you called here first that afternoon mamma had asked you to and you thought you might as well be civil perhaps you really did think it would be pleasant to see us again but it wasn t the same thing oh i saw it in your face you became conventional and distant and horrid and it made me horrid too and you went away determined that you wouldn t see any more of us than you could help that s why i was so furious when i heard that papa had been to see you and with such an object all this was so near the truth and yet missed it with such perverse ingenuity that felt bound to put himself right perhaps i ought to leave things as they are he said but i can t it s no earthly use i know but may i tell you why it really was painful to me to meet you again i thought you were changed that you wished to forget and wished me to forget only i can t that we had been friends for a short time and though i never blamed you it was natural enough it hit me pretty hard so hard that i didn t feel anxious to repeat the experience did it hit you hard said softly by an unexpected opening perhaps i minded too just a very little however she added with a sudden smile that made two in her cheeks it only shows how much more sensible it is to have things out now perhaps you won t persist in keeping away from us i believe said gloomily still determined not to let any direct pass his lips it would be best that i should keep away her half closed eyes shone through their long lashes the on her breast rose and fell i don t think i understand she said in a tone that was both hurt and there is a pleasure in yielding to some temptations that more than for the pain of any previous resistance come what might he was not going to be misunderstood any longer if i must tell you he said i ve fallen desperately hopelessly in love with you now you know the reason it doesn t seem a very good reason for wanting to go away and never see me again it not when i ve no right to speak to you of love but you ve done that i know he said i couldn t help it but i never meant to it slipped out i quite understand how hopeless it is of course if you are so sure as all that you are quite right not to try by ic the brass bottle you can t mean that that you do care after all didn t you really see she said with a low happy laugh how stupid of you and how he caught her hand which she allowed to rest in his oh then you do you do but my god what a selfish brute i am for we can t marry it may be years before i can ask you to come to me your father and mother wouldn t hear of your being engaged to me need they hear of it just yet yes they must i should feel a cur if i didn t tell your mother at all events then you shan t feel a cur for we jl go and tell her together and rose and went into the farther room and put her arms round her mother s neck mother darling she said in a half whisper it s really all your fault for writing such very long letters but but we don t exactly know how we came to do it but and i have got engaged somehow you aren t very angry are you i think you re both extremely foolish said mrs as she herself from s arms and turned to face from all i hear mr you re not in a position to marry at present unfortunately no said i m making by ic an opening s nothing as yet but my chance must come some day i don t ask you to give me till then and you know you	44
don t expose the documents if any too suddenly to the outer air and it would be better if you did not handle them yourself i shall be rather curious to hear whether it really does contain anything and if so what i will open it as carefully as possible said and whatever it may contain you may rely upon my letting you know at once he left shortly afterwards encouraged by the radiant trust in s eyes and thrilled by the secret pressure of her hand at parting he had been amply repaid for all the hours he had spent in the close sale room his luck had turned at last he was going to succeed he felt it in the air as if he were already by fortune s still thinking of he let himself into the old fashioned house on the north side of square where he had lodged for some years it was nearly twelve o clock and his landlady mrs and her husband had already gone to bed by ic the brass bottle went up to his sitting room a comfortable apartment with two long windows opening on to a and balcony a room which as he had furnished and decorated it himself to suit his own tastes had none of the of typical lodgings it was quite dark for the season was too mild for a fire and he had to for the matches before he could light his lamp after he had done so and turned up the the first object he saw was the long jar which he had bought that afternoon and which now stood on the stained boards near the it had been delivered with unusual somehow he felt a sort of at the sight of it it s a looking object than i thought he said to himself a chimney pot would be about as and appropriate in my room what a thundering ass i was to waste a guinea on it i i wonder if there really is anything inside it it is so ugly that it ought to be useful the professor seemed to fancy it might hold documents and he ought to know anyway i ll find out before i turn in he grasped it by its long thick neck and tried to twist the cap off but it remained firm which was not surprising seeing that it was thickly with a like crust by an unexpected opening i must get some of that off first and then try again he decided and after downstairs he returned with a hammer and with which he away the crust till the line of the cap was revealed and an uncouth metal that seemed to be a catch this he tapped sharply for some time and again attempted to off the lid then he the vessel between his knees and put forth all his strength while the bottle seemed to rock and heave under him in sympathy the cap was beginning to give way very slightly one last and it came off in his hand with such suddenness that he was flung violently backwards and hit the back of his head against an angle of the he had a vague impression of the bottle lying on its side with dense volumes of hissing black smoke pouring out of its mouth and towering up in a gigantic column to the ceiling he was conscious too of a and peculiarly overpowering perfume i ve got hold of some sort of infernal machine he thought and i shall be all over the square in less than a second and just as he arrived at this cheerful conclusion he lost consciousness altogether he could not have been unconscious for more than a few seconds for he opened his eyes the room was still thick with smoke through which he dimly by ic the brass bottle discerned the figure of a stranger who seemed of and almost colossal height but this must have been an illusion caused by the effects of the smoke for as it cleared his visitor proved to be of no more than ordinary stature he was elderly and indeed venerable of appearance and wore an eastern robe and head dress of a dark green hue he stood there with uplifted hands uttering something in a loud tone and a language unknown to being still somewhat dazed felt no surprise at seeing him mrs must have let her second floor at last to some oriental he would have preferred an englishman as a fellow but this foreigner must have noticed the smoke and rushed in to offer assistance which was both and of him awfully good of you to come in sir l e said as he scrambled to his feet i don t know what s happened exactly but there s no harm done i m only a trifle shaken that s all by the way i suppose you can speak english assuredly i can speak so as to be understood by all whom i address answered the stranger dost thou not understand my speech perfectly now said but you made a remark just now which i didn t follow would you repeating it by ic w an unexpected opening i said prophet of god i will not return to the like conduct ever ah said i dare say you were rather startled so was i when i opened that bottle tell was it indeed thy hand that removed the seal young man of kindness and good works i certainly did open it said though i don t know where the kindness comes for i ve no notion what was inside the thing i was inside it said the stranger calmly by ic the brass bottle chapter iv at large so you were inside that bottle were you said how singular he began to that he had to deal with an oriental lunatic and must	44
humour him to some extent fortunately he did not seem at all dangerous though eccentric looking his hair fell in profusion from under his high about his cheeks which were of a pale tint his grey beard streamed out in three thin and his long narrow eyes in hue and set rather wide apart and at a slight angle had a curious expression part and part simplicity dost thou doubt that i speak truth i tell thee that i have been confined in that accursed vessel for countless centuries how long i know not for it is beyond calculation i should hardly have thought from your appearance sir that you had been so many years in bottle as all that said politely but it s certainly time you had a change may i if it isn t by ic at large ask how you came into such a very uncomfortable position but probably you have forgotten by this time forgotten said the other with a sombre red glow in his eyes wisely was it written let him that desire th oblivion confer but the memory of an injury for ever i forget neither benefits nor injuries an old gentleman with a grievance thought and mad into the bargain nice person to have staying in the same house with one know best of mankind continued the stranger that he who now addresses thee is el one of the green and i dwelt in the palace of the mountain of the clouds above the city of in the garden of which thou doubtless by i fancy i have heard of it said as if it were an address in the court delightful neighbourhood i had a el who possessed beauty and manifold accomplishments and seeing that though a she was of the believing i despatched messengers to the great the son of offering him her hand in marriage but a certain the son of the son of may he be for ever accursed looked with favour upon the maiden and going unto by ic the brass bottle persuaded him that i was preparing a for the king s and of course you never thought of such a thing said by a tongue the fairest motives may be rendered foul was the somewhat reply thus it came to pass that on whom be peace listened unto the voice of and refused to receive the maiden moreover he commanded that i should be seized and imprisoned in a bottle of brass and cast into the sea of el there to abide the day of doom too bad really too bad murmured in a tone that he could only hope was sufficiently sympathetic but now by thy means thou of noble ancestors and gentle disposition my hath been accomplished and if i were to serve thee for a thousand years regarding nothing else even thus could i not thee and my so doing would be a small thing according to thy deserts pray don t mention it said only too pleased if i ve been of any use to you in the sky it is written upon the pages of the air he who doth kind actions shall experience the like am i not an of the demand therefore and thou shalt receive poor old chap thought he s very by ic at large cracked indeed he ll be wanting to give me a present of some sort soon and of course i can t have that my dear mr he said aloud i ve done nothing nothing at and if i had i couldn t possibly accept any reward for it what are thy names and what calling dost thou follow i ought to have introduced myself let me give you my card and gave him one which the other took and placed in his that s my business address i m an if you know what that a man who houses and churches you know in fact anything when he can get it to build a useful calling and one to be rewarded with fine gold in my case confessed the reward has been too fine to be perceived in other words i ve never been rewarded because i ve never yet had the luck to get a and what is this of whom thou oh well some well to do merchant who wants a house built for him and doesn t care how much he on it there must be lots of them about but they never seem to come in my direction grant me a period of delay and if it be possible i will procure thee such a could not help thinking that any by ic the brass bottle from such a quarter would hardly weight but as the poor old man evidently imagined himself under an obligation which he was anxious to discharge it would have been unkind to throw cold water on his good intentions my dear sir he said lightly if you should come across that particular type of and can contrive to impress him with the belief that i m just the he s looking out for which between ourselves i am though nobody s discovered it yet if you can get him to come to me you will do me the very greatest service i could ever hope for but don t give yourself any trouble over it it will be one of the easiest things that can be said his visitor that is and here a shade of rather pathetic doubt crossed his face provided that anything of my former power yet remains unto me well never mind sir said if you can t i shall take the will for the deed first of all it will be prudent to learn where is that i may humble myself before him and make my peace yes said gently i would i should make a	44
point of that sir not now you know he might be in bed to morrow morning this is a strange place that i am in and i know not yet in what direction i should seek him but till by ic at large i have found him and justified myself in his sight and had my revenge upon mine enemy i shall know no rest well but go to bed now like a sensible old chap said soothingly anxious to prevent this poor from falling into the hands of the police plenty of time to go and call on to morrow i will search for him even unto the ends of the earth that s you re sure to find him in one of them only don t you see it s no use starting tonight the last trains have gone long ago as he spoke the night wind bore across the square the sound of big ben striking the quarters in westminster clock tower and then after a pause the solemn boom that announced the first of the small hours to morrow thought i ll speak to mrs and get her to send for a doctor and have him put under proper care the poor old boy really isn t fit to go about alone i will start now at once insisted the stranger for there is no time to be lost oh come said after so many thousand years a few hours more or less won t make any serious and you can t go out now they ve shut up the house do let me take you upstairs to your room sir by ic the brass bottle not so for i must leave thee for a season young man of kind conduct but may thy days be fortunate and thy gate never cease to be repaired and the nose of him that thee be rubbed in the dust for love for thee hath entered into my heart and if it be permitted unto me i will cover thee with the of my protection as he finished this the speaker seemed to s speechless amazement to slip through the wall behind him at all events he had left the room somehow and found himself alone he rubbed the back of his head which began to be painful he can t really have vanished through the wall he said to himself that s too absurd the fact is i m over excited this and no wonder after all that s happened the best thing i can do is to go to bed at once which he accordingly proceeded to do by ic chapter v when woke next morning his headache had gone and with it the recollection of everything but the wondrous and delightful fact that loved him and had promised to be his some day her mother too was on his side why should he despair of anything after that there was the professor to be sure but even he might be brought to consent to an engagement especially if it turned out that the brass bottle and here began to recall an extraordinary dream in connection with that extremely purchase of his he had dreamed that he had forced the bottle open and that it proved to contain not but an elderly who alleged that he had been imprisoned there by the order of king solomon what he wondered could have put so grotesque a fancy into his head and then he smiled as he traced it to s playful suggestion that the bottle might contain a as did the famous jar in the nights and to her father s of the word to upon that slight e by ic the brass bottle foundation his sleeping brain had built up all that elaborate a scene so vivid and a story so and plausible that in spite of its extravagance he could hardly even now persuade himself that it was entirely imaginary the of dreams is a subject which has a fascinating mystery even for the least serious student as he entered the sitting room where his breakfast awaited him he looked round half expecting to find the bottle lying with its lid off in the corner as he had last seen it in his dream of course it was not there and he felt an odd relief the room people had not delivered it yet and so much the better for he had still to ascertain if it had anything inside it and who knew that it might not contain something more to his advantage than a old with a grievance several thousands of years old breakfast over he rang for his landlady who presently appeared mrs was a superior type of her much abused class she was clean and neat in her person her sandy hair was so smooth and tightly knotted that it gave her head the colour and shape of a nut she had sharp eyes nostrils that seemed to smell battle afar off a wide thin mouth that apparently closed with a snap and a dry brown complexion suggestive of by ic but if somewhat of aspect she was a good soul and devoted to in whom she took almost a maternal interest while that he was not what she called minded enough to get on in the world had and married her when they were both in service and he still took occasional as an butler though suspected that his more form of industry was the consumption of gin and water and remarkably full cigars in the parlour shall you be dining in this evening sir inquired mrs i don t know don t get anything in for me i shall most probably dine at the club said and mrs who had a confirmed belief that all clubs were of vice and extravagance by the way he added if a kind of brass pot is sent	44
here it s all right i bought it at a sale yesterday be careful how you handle it it s rather old there was a come late last night sir i don t know if it s that it s old fashioned enough then will you bring it up at once please i want to see it mrs retired to re appear presently with the brass bottle i thought you d have noticed it when you come in last night sir she explained for i stood it in the corner and when i see it this morning it was by ic the brass bottle o one side and looking that dirty and i took it down to give it a good clean which it wanted it it certainly looked rather the better for it and the marks or on the cap were more but was somewhat disconcerted to find that part of his dream was true the bottle had been there i hope i ve done nothing wrong said mrs observing his expression i only used a little warm ale to it which is a capital thing for brass work and gave it a with but it would take more than that to get all the off of it it is all right so long as you didn t try to get the top off said why the top was off it sir i thought you d done it with the and when you got ome said his landlady staring i found them ere on the carpet started then that part was true too oh ah he said i believe i did i d forgotten that reminds me haven t you let the room above to to an oriental gentleman a native you know wears a green that i most certainly ave not mr said mrs with emphasis nor wouldn t not if his was all the colours of the rainbow for i don t old with such why there was s own by ic sister in law let her parlour floor to a a he was or one o them and reason she ad to repent of it for all his gold spectacles whatever made you fancy i should let to a oh i thought i saw somebody about er that description and i wondered if never in this sir mrs next door but one might let to such for all i can say to the contrary not being what you might call particular and her rooms more suitable to savage notions but i ve enough on my hands mr attending to you not keeping a girl to do the waiting as why should i while i m well able to do it better myself as soon as she relieved him of her presence he examined the bottle there was nothing whatever inside it which disposed of all the hopes he had entertained from that quarter it was not difficult to account for the visionary oriental as an probably inspired by the heavy for he now believed in the which had doubtless resulted from the rapid of some long buried or similar suddenly exposed to the air if any further explanation were needed the accidental blow to the back of his head together with the latent suggestion from the nights would amply provide it by the brass bottle so having settled these points to his entire satisfaction he went to his office in great street which he now had entirely to himself and was soon engaged in the for on which he had been working when so fortunately interrupted the day before by the professor the work was more or less mechanical and could bring him no credit and little thanks but had the happy faculty of doing thoroughly whatever he undertook and as he sat there by his wide open window he soon became entirely of all but the task before him so much so that even when the light became obscured for a moment as if by some large and body in passing he did not look up immediately and when he did was surprised to find the only occupied by a person who seemed to be trying to recover his breath i beg your pardon said i never heard you come in his visitor could only wave his hand in courteous under which there seemed a suspicion of bewildered embarrassment he was a rosy clean elderly gentleman with white whiskers his eyes just then slightly were shrewd but genial he had a wide jolly mouth and a double chin he was dressed like a man who is above his prosperity he wore a large shaped by pearl in his crimson and had probably only lately discarded his summer white hat and white waistcoat my dear sir he began in a rich voice as soon as he could speak my dear sir you must think this is a most way of ah dropping in on of your privacy not at all said wondering whether he possibly intend him to understand that he had come in by the window i m afraid there was no one to show you my clerk is away just now no matter sir no matter i found my way up as you perceive the important i may say the essential fact is that i am here quite so said and may i ask what brought you what brought the stranger s eyes grew for the moment allow me i i shall come to that in good time i am still a little as you can see he glanced round the room you are i think an mr ah mr um is my name said and i am an to be sure he put his hand in his pocket and produced a card yes it s all quite correct i see i have the name here	44
might carry out some of his most ambitious ideas moreover he would now be in a position to speak to s father without fear of a his commission on would be and that on the and other work at least as much again by ic the brass bottle probably more in a year he could marry without in two or three years he might be making a handsome income for he felt confident that with such a start he would soon have as much work as he could undertake he was ashamed of himself for ever having lost heart what were the last few years of weary waiting but and preparation for this splendid chance which had come just when he really needed it and in the most simple and natural manner he completed the work he had promised to do for who would have to dispense with his assistance in future and then he felt too excited and restless to stay in the office and after at his club as usual he promised himself the pleasure of going to gardens and telling his good news it was still early and he walked the whole way as some vent for his high spirits enjoying everything with a new zest the grey and salmon sky before him the and yellow of the scanty foliage in gardens the scent of fallen and and burning leaves the blue grey mist stealing between the distant and then the cheery bustle and brilliancy of the high street finally came the joy of finding all alone and witnessing her frank delight at what he had come to tell her of feeling her hands on by ic his shoulders and holding her in his arms as their lips met for the first time if on that saturday afternoon there was a happier man than he would have done well to his felicity for fear of the jealousy of the high gods when mrs returned as she did only too soon to find her daughter and seated on the same sofa she did not pretend to be gratified this is taking a most unfair advantage of what i was weak enough to say last night mr she began i thought i could have trusted you i shouldn t have come so soon he said if my position were what it was only yesterday but it s changed since then and i venture to hope that even the professor won t object now to our being regularly engaged and he told her of the sudden alteration in his prospects well said mrs you had better speak to my husband about it the professor came in shortly afterwards and immediately requested a few minutes conversation with him in the study which was readily granted the study to which the professor led the way was built out at the back of the house and crowded with oriental of every age and kind the furniture had been made by cabinet makers and along the of the book cases were from the by ic the brass bottle while every chair bore the for welcome in a gilded on its leather back the lamp was a lantern with long glass like glasses a smiled from a corner with well began the professor as soon as they were seated so i was not mistaken there was something in the brass bottle after all then let s have a look at it whatever it is for the moment had almost forgotten the bottle oh he said i i got it open but there was nothing in it just as i anticipated sir said the professor i told you there couldn t be anything in a bottle of that description it was simply throwing money away to buy it i dare say it was but i wished to speak to you on a much more important matter and briefly explained his object dear me said the professor rubbing up his hair dear me i d no idea of this no idea at all i was under the impression that you volunteered to act as escort to my wife and daughter at st purely out of good nature to relieve me from to a man of my habits in that extreme would have been an and distasteful duty i was not wholly unselfish i admit said i fell in love with your daughter sir the first day i by ic met her only i felt i had no right as a poor man with no prospects to speak to her or you at that time a very creditable feeling but i ve yet to learn why you should have overcome it so for the third time told the story of the sudden turn in his fortunes i know this mr samuel by name said the professor one of the chief partners in the firm of and the great estate agents a most influential man if you can only succeed in satisfying him oh i don t feel any about that sir said i mean to build him a house that will be beyond his wildest expectations and you see that in a year i shall have earned several thousands and i need not say that i will make any settlement you think proper when i marry when you are in possession of those thousands remarked the professor it will be time enough to talk of marrying and making meanwhile if you and choose to consider yourselves engaged i won t object only i must insist on having your promise that you won t persuade her to marry you without her mother s and my consent gave this undertaking willingly enough and they returned to the drawing room mrs hardly avoid asking in his new character by ic the brass of to stay and dine which it need not be said he was only too delighted to	44
do there is one thing my er said the professor solemnly after dinner when the neat had left them at one thing on which i think it my duty to caution you if you are to justify the confidence we have shown in your engagement to you must this of yours to needless extravagance papa cried what could have made you think extravagant said i shouldn t have called myself particularly so nobody ever does call himself particularly extravagant retorted the professor but i observed at st that you habitually gave fifty as a when or even a penny would have been handsome and no one with any regard for the value of money would have given a guinea for a worthless brass vessel on the bare chance that it might contain which as any one could have foreseen it did not but it s not a bad sort of bottle sir pleaded if you remember you said yourself the shape was unusual why shouldn t it be worth all the money and more to a perhaps said the professor with his which you are no i by ic can only call it a senseless and waste of money well the truth is said i bought it with some idea that it might interest then you were mistaken sir it does not interest me why should i be interested in a metal jar which for anything that appears to the contrary may have been cast the other day at but there is something said a seal or inscription of some sort engraved on the cap didn t i mention it you said nothing about an inscription before replied the professor with rather more interest what is the character i really couldn t say it s almost rubbed out queer little marks something like birds that sounds like said the professor which would seem to point to a origin and as i am acquainted with no oriental brass earlier than the ninth century of our era i should regard your description as a distinctly unlikely however i should certainly like to have an opportunity of examining the bottle for myself some day whenever you please professor when can you come why i m so much occupied all day that i can t say for certain when i can get up to your f by ic the brass bottle my own days will be fairly full now said and the thing s not at the but in my rooms at square why shouldn t you all come and dine quietly there some evening next week and then you could examine the inscription comfortably afterwards you know professor and find out what it really is do say you will he was eager to have the privilege of entertaining in his own rooms for the first time no no said the professor i see no reason why you should be troubled with the entire family i may drop in alone some evening and take the luck of the pot sir thank you papa put in but i should like to come too please and hear what you think of s bottle and i m dying to see his rooms i believe they re fearfully luxurious i trust observed her father that they are far indeed from answering that description if they did i should consider it a most unsatisfactory indication of s character there s nothing magnificent about them i assure you said though it s true i ve had them done up and all that sort of thing at my own expense but quite simply i couldn t afford to spend much on them but do come and see them i must have a little dinner to my good it will be so jolly if you ll all three come by if we do come the professor it must be on the distinct understanding that you don t provide an elaborate banquet plain simple wholesome food well cooked such as we have had this evening is all that is necessary more would be my dear protested in distress at this somewhat speech surely you can leave all that to my dear understands that in speaking as i did i was simply treating him as a member of my family here made a private little no young man who marrying should allow himself to into extravagance on the strength of prospects which for all he can tell said the professor may prove on the contrary if his affection is sincere he will as little expense as possible put by every penny he can save rather than subject the girl he to love to the ordeal of a long engagement in other words the truest lover is the best i quite understand sir said good it would be foolish of me to attempt any ambitious form of entertainment especially as my landlady though an excellent plain cook is not exactly a so you can come to my modest board without before he left a date for the dinner was fixed for an evening towards the end of the next week by ic the brass bottle and walked home treading on air rather than hard stones and striking the stars with his uplifted head the next day he went down to and made the acquaintance of the whole family who were all enthusiastic about the proposed country house the site was everything that the most could desire and he came back to town the same evening having spent a pleasant day and learnt enough of his s and what was even more important those of his s wife and daughters to enable him to begin work upon the sketch plans the next morning he had not been long in his rooms at square and was still agreeably engaged in recalling the and ready appreciation with which the had received his suggestions and rough sketches their compliments and absolute	44
hard labour asked in wonder it is not thus with the i love my work for its own sake said and then when i have finished it i shall have earned a very fair amount of money which is particularly important to me just now and why my son art thou so desirous of obtaining riches because said unless a man is tolerably well off in these days he cannot hope to marry smiled with indulgent compassion how excellent is the saying of one of old he that upon matrimony is like unto one who his hand into a sack containing many thousands of and one yet if fate so decree he may draw forth the and thou art by ic the brass bottle comely and of an age when it is natural to desire the love of a maiden therefore be of good heart and a cheerful eye and it may be that when i am more at leisure i shall find thee a who shall rejoice thy soul please don t trouble to find me anything of the sort said hastily with a mental vision of some helpless and stranger being shot into his dwelling like coals i assure you i would much rather win a wife for myself in the ordinary as thanks to your kindness i have every hope of doing before long is there already some for whom thy heart if so fear not to tell me her names and dwelling place and i will assuredly obtain her for thee but had seen enough of the s oriental methods to doubt his tact and discretion where was concerned no no of course not i spoke generally he said it s exceedingly kind of but i do wish i could make you understand that i am as it is you have put me in the way to make a name and fortune for myself if i fail it will be my own fault and at all events i want nothing more from you if you mean to find on whom be peace you must go and live in the east altogether for he certainly isn t over here you must give up your whole time to it keep as quiet as possible by ic de and don t be discouraged by any reports you may bear above all never trouble your head about me or my again thou of wisdom and eloquence said this is most excellent advice i will go then but may i drink the cup of if i become of thy benevolence and raising his joined hands above his head as he spoke he sank feet foremost through the carpet and was gone thank heaven thought he s taken the hint at last i don t think i m likely to see any more of him i feel an ungrateful brute for saying so but i can t help it i can not stand being under any obligation to a who s been shut up in a brass bottle ever since the days of solomon who probably had very good reasons for putting him there next asked himself whether he was bound in honour to disclose the facts to mr and give him the opportunity of withdrawing from the agreement if he thought fit on the whole he saw no necessity for telling him anything the only possible result would be to make his suspect his and who would care to employ an insane then if he retired from the undertaking without any explanations what could he say to what would s father say to by ic the brass bottle him there would certainly be an end to his engagement after all he had not been to blame the were quite satisfied he felt perfectly sure that he could justify their selection of him he would wrong nobody by accepting the commission while he would only offend them injure himself and lose all hope of gaining if he made any attempt to them and was gone never to return so on all these considerations decided that silence was his only possible policy and though some may condemn his conduct as and wanting in true moral courage i venture to doubt whether any reader however independent straightforward and indifferent to and ridicule would have behaved otherwise in s extremely delicate and difficult position some days passed every working hour of which was spent by in the rapture of creation to every man with the soul of an artist in him there comes at times only too seldom in most cases a revelation of latent power that he had not dared to hope for and now with years of study and which he had often been tempted to think wasted began to bear golden fruit he designed and drew with a rapidity and originality a sense of perfect mastery of the various problems to be dealt with and a delight by ic de in the working out of mass and detail so that he almost dreaded lest he should be the victim of some self delusion his evenings were of course spent with the in discovering in some new and yet more aspect altogether he was very much in love very happy and very busy three states not invariably found in combination and as he had foreseen he had got rid of who was evidently too engrossed in the pursuit of solomon to think of anything else and there seemed no reason why he should abandon his search for a generation or two for it would probably take all that time to convince him that that mighty monarch was no longer on the throne it would have been too brutal to tell him myself thought when he was so keen on having his case and it gives him an object poor old and keeps him from interfering in my affairs so it s best for both of us s little	44
dinner party had been twice postponed till he had begun to have a superstitious fear that it never would come off but at length the professor had been induced to give an absolute promise for a certain evening on the day before after breakfast had summoned his landlady to a consultation on the nothing elaborate you know mrs said by ic the brass bottle who though he would have liked to provide a feast of all for s was obliged to respect her father s prejudices just a simple dinner thoroughly well cooked and nicely served as you know so well how to do it i suppose sir you would require to wait as the ex butler was liable to on these occasions during which he could do nothing but smile and bow with speechless politeness as he dropped boats and plates replied that he thought of having some one in to avoid troubling mr but his wife expressed such confidence in her husband s proving equal to all that the point and left it to her to hire extra help if she thought fit now what soup can you give us he inquired as mrs stood at attention and quite after protracted mental conflict she suggested which thought too and rejected in favour of mock well then fish he continued how about fish mrs dragged the depths of her resources for several seconds and finally brought to the surface what she called a nice sole would not hear of it and urged her to to salmon she which he opposed by a happy inspiration of and the however presented by ic as de to her mind and she a compromise in the form of which he finally accepted as a fish which the professor could hardly censure for next came the no less questions of or no of joint and bird what s in season just now said let me see and glanced out of window as he spoke as though in search of some outside suggestion by jove he suddenly exclaimed mr sir repeated mrs in some bewilderment and then remembering that he was given to she gave a little cough i ll be shot i aren t said what do you make of em mrs out of the faint mist which hung over the farther end of the square advanced a procession of tall animals with long delicately poised necks and a gait even mrs could not succeed in making anything of them except what the deuce does a of want in square said with a sudden for which he could not account most likely they belong to the show sir suggested his landlady i did hear they were coming to again this year why of course cried intensely relieved it s on their way from the at least it isn t by ic the brass bottle out of their way or probably the main road s up for that s it they ll turn off to the left at the corner see they ve got drivers with them wonderful how the fellows manage them it seems to me sir said mrs that they re coming our way they seem to be stopping outside don t talk such infernal i beg your pardon mrs but why on earth should and s come out of their way to call on me it s ridiculous you know said it be sir she retorted but they re all down on the road opposite our door as you can see and them is making signs to you to come out and speak to em it was true enough one by one the which were apparently of the purest breed folded themselves up in a row like at a sign from their attendants who were now making profound towards the window where was standing i suppose i d better go down and see what they want he said with rather a sickly smile they may have lost the way to i only hope isn t at the bottom of this he thought as he went downstairs but he d come at all events he wouldn t send me a message on such a lot of as he appeared on the all the by ic mb de drivers down and rubbed their flat black noses on the for heaven s sake get up said angrily this isn t turn to the left into the bridge and ask a policeman the nearest way to be not angry with thy slaves said the head driver in excellent english we are here by command of el our lord whom we are bound to obey and we have brought thee these as gifts my compliments to your master said between his teeth and tell him that a london has no sort of occasion for say that i am extremely obliged but am compelled to decline them highly born one explained the driver the are not a gift but the loads which are upon the suffer us therefore since we dare not our lord s commands to carry these trifling tokens of his good will into thy dwelling and depart in peace had not noticed till then that every bore a heavy burden which the attendants were now oh if you must he said not too graciously only do look sharp about it there s a crowd collecting already and i don t want to have a here g by ic the brass bottle he returned to his rooms where he found mrs with amazement it it s all right he said rd it s only a few oriental things from the place where that brass bottle came from you know they ve left them here on approval seems funny their sending their goods ome on sir doesn t it said mrs not at all funny said they they re an firm	44
their way of one after another a train of dusky attendants entered each of whom deposited his load on the floor with a and retired backward until the sitting room was blocked with piles of and and whereupon the head driver appeared and intimated that the tale of gifts was complete i wonder what sort of tip this fellow expects thought a sovereign seems shabby but it s all i can run to i ll try him with that but the all idea of a with stately dignity and as saw him to the gate he found a stolid by the this won t do you know said the these ere must move or i shall ave to interfere it s all right said pressing into his hand the sovereign the head driver had rejected they re going to move on now they ve by ic de brought me a few presents from from a friend of mine in the east by this time the attendants had mounted the kneeling which rose with them and swung oflf round the square in a long swaying trot that soon left the crowd far behind staring after the as after disappeared into the haze i shouldn t mind that friend o yours sir said the open sort o gentleman i should think very said savagely and returned to his room which mrs had now left his hands shook though not with joy as he some of the and and forced open the looking the contents of which almost took away his breath for in the were carpets and which he saw at a glance must be of antiquity and beyond all price the held golden and vessels of strange and proportions the were full of jewels ropes of pink pearls as large as average strings of and the smallest of which would have been a tight fit in an ordinary collar box and diamonds roughly and polished each the size of a in whose hearts quivered a liquid and radiance on the most moderate the total value by the brass bottle of these gifts could hardly be less than several hundred millions never probably in the world s history had any treasury contained so rich a store it would have been for anybody on suddenly finding himself the possessor of this immense wealth to make any comment quite worthy of the situation but surely none could have been more inadequate and indeed than s which as it was was in the simple damn by ic chapter vii a lively sense of to come most men on suddenly finding themselves in possession of such enormous wealth would have felt some as we have seen was merely exasperated and although this attitude of his may strike the reader as incomprehensible or absolutely wrong headed he had more reason on his side than might appear at a first view it was undoubtedly the fact that with the money these treasures represented he would be in a position to the money of europe and america bring society to his feet make and in short the entire world but then as told himself with a groan it wouldn t amuse me in the least to money do i want to see the people in london for anything they think they re likely to get out of me as i should be perfectly well aware that their homage was not paid to any personal merit of mine i could hardly consider it flattering and by ic the brass bottle why should i make the only thing i understand and care about is making houses then am i likely to be a better hand at the world than all the others who have tried the experiment i doubt it he called to mind all the he had ever read or heard of they didn t seem to get much fun out of their riches the majority of them were to they were often weighed down by the cares and of their position the only people who were unable to obtain an audience of them at any time were their friends they lived in a glare of and every post brought them hundreds of begging letters and a few threats their children were in constant danger from and they themselves after knowing no rest in life could not be certain that even their would be undisturbed whether they were extravagant or they were equally and whatever the fortune they left behind them they could be absolutely certain that in a couple of generations it would be entirely dissipated and the biggest living concluded is a compared with me but there was another consideration how was he to all this wealth he knew enough about precious stones to be aware that a for instance of the true pigeon s blood colour and the size of by ic a lively sense of to come a as most of these were would be worth even when cut considerably over a million but who would buy it i think i see myself he reflected grimly calling on some diamond merchant in garden with half a dozen jewels in a bag if he believed they were genuine he d probably have a fit but most likely he d think i d invented some for them and had been fool enough to the size anyhow he d want to know how they came into my possession and what could i say that they were part of a little present made to me by a in grateful acknowledgment of my having relieved him from a brass bottle in which he d been shut up for nearly three thousand years look at it how you will it s not convincing i fancy i can guess what he d say and what an ass i should look then suppose the thing got into the papers got into the papers why of course it	44
would get into the papers as if it were possible in these days for a young and hitherto suddenly to surround himself with wondrous carpets and gold vessels and gigantic jewels without the notice of some he would be the story of his curiously acquired riches would go the round of the papers he would find himself the object of incredulity suspicion by ic the brass ridicule in imagination he could already see the on the news sheets amazing by an he says the jar contained a story details and so on through every phrase of ingenuity he ground his teeth at the mere thought of it then would come to hear of it and what would she think she would naturally be as any nice minded girl would be by the idea that her lover was in secret alliance with a supernatural being and her father and mother would they allow her to marry a man however rich whose wealth came from such a questionable source no one would believe that he had not made some bargain before to set this spirit free he who had acted in absolute ignorance who had persistently declined all reward after what he had done no it was too much try as he might to do justice to the s gratitude and generosity he could not restrain a bitter resentment at the utter want of consideration shown in him with gifts so useless and so no however old however with the world as it is had any right to be such a fool by ic a lively sense op to come and at this above the of and which occupied all the available space in the room appeared mrs s face i was going to ask you sir before them came she began with a dry cough of what you would like in the way of to morrow night i thought if i could find a at all reasonable to surrounded as he was by riches seemed just then the transition of thought was too violent i can t bother about that now mrs he said we ll settle it to morrow i m too busy i suppose most of these things will have to go back sir if they re only sent on approval like if he only knew where and how he could send them back i i m not sure he said i may have to keep them well sir bargain or none i wouldn t have em as a gift myself being so dirty and they can t be no use to nobody not to mention there being no room to move with them up all the place i d better tell to carry em all upstairs out of people s way certainly not said sharply by no means anxious for the to discover the real nature of his don t touch them either of you leave them exactly as they are do you understand by ic the brass bottle as you please mr sir only if they re not to be interfered with i don t see myself how you re going to set your friends down to dinner to morrow that s all and indeed considering that the table and every available chair and even the floor were heaped so high with that himself could only just squeeze his way between the piles it seemed as if his guests might find themselves cramped it will be all right he said with an he was very far from feeling we ll manage somehow leave it to me before he left for his office he took the precaution to any on the part of his landlady by his sitting room door and carrying away the key but it was in a very different mood from his former light hearted confidence that he sat down to his drawing board in great street that morning he could not his mind his enthusiasm and his ideas had alike deserted him he flung down the he had been using and pushed away the nest of of indian ink and colours in a fit of it s no good he exclaimed aloud i feel a perfect this morning i couldn t even design a decent dog even as he spoke he became conscious of a presence in the room and looking round saw the standing at his elbow smiling down on him by ic a lively sense op to come more than ever and with a serene expectation of being warmly welcomed and thanked which made rather ashamed of his own inability to meet it he s a thoroughly good natured old chap he thought self he means well and i m a beast not to feel more glad to see him and yet hang it all i can t have him in and out of the like a rabbit whenever the fancy takes him peace be upon thee said moderate the trouble of thy heart and impart thy difficulties to me oh they re nothing thanks said feeling decidedly embarrassed i got stuck over my work for the moment and it worried me a little that s all then thou hast not yet received the gifts which i commanded should be delivered at thy oh indeed i have replied and i really don t know how to thank you for them a few trifling presents answered the and by no means suited to thy dignity yet the best in my power to bestow upon thee for the time being my dear sir they simply me with their magnificence they re beyond all price and by ic the brass bottle and i ve no idea what to do with such a a of good things is good was the s reply not in my particular case i i quite feel your goodness and generosity but indeed as i told you before it	44
much progress can you how excellent is the saying replied the the time which is spent in doing call it not wasted yes that s very good said feeling driven to silence this if possible with one of his own invention but we have a saying too how does it go ah i remember it is possible for a kindness to be more inconvenient than an injury gifted was he who discovered such a saying cried i imagine said he learnt it from his own experience by the way what place were you thinking of drawing i mean trying next for i purpose to repair to and inquire there capital said with hearty approval for he hoped that this would take the some little time wonderful city from all i ve heard though not quite what it used to be perhaps by ic a lively sense of to comb then there s you might go on there and if you shouldn t hear of him there why not strike down into central africa and do that thoroughly or south america it s a pity to lose any chance you ve never been to south america yet i have not so much as heard of such a country and how should be there pardon me i didn t say he was there all i meant to convey was that he s quite as likely to be there as anywhere else but if you re going to first you d better lose no more time for i ve always understood that it s rather an awkward place to get at though probably you won t find it very difficult i care not said though the search be long for in travel there are five advantages i know interrupted so don t stop to describe them now i should like to see you fairly started and you really mustn t think it necessary to break oflf your search again on my account because thanks to you i shall get on splendidly alone for the future if you ll kindly see that that is removed thine abode shall not be with it for another hour said the thou judicious one in whose estimation wealth is of no value know that i have never encountered a mortal who pleased me as thou hast and moreover be assured that such h by ic the brass bottle as thine shall not go without a how often must i tell you said in a glow pf impatience that i am already much more than now my kind generous old friend he added with an emotion that was not wholly the time has come to bid you farewell for ever let me picture you as your former haunts penetrating to quarters of the globe for whether you are aware of it or not this earth of ours is a globe hitherto unknown to you refreshing your mind by foreign travel and the study of mankind but never never for a moment losing sight of your main object the discovery of and reconciliation with on whom be peace that is the greatest the only happiness you can give me now good bye and hon voyage may never deprive thy friends of thy presence returned the who was apparently touched by this for truly thou art a most excellent young man and stepping back into the fireplace he was gone in an instant sank back in his chair with a sigh of relief he had begun to fear that the never would take himself off but he had gone at last and for good he was half ashamed of himself for feeling so glad by a lively sense of to comb for was a good natured old thing enough in his way only he would things he had no sense of proportion why thought if a fellow expressed a modest wish for a in a cage he s just the sort of old to bring him a whole of in an about ten times the size of the crystal palace however he does understand now that i can t take anything more from him and he isn t offended either so that s all settled now i can set to work and knock off these plans in peace and but he had not done much before he heard sounds in the next room which told him that had returned at last he had been expected back from the country for the last day or two and it was fortunate that he had delayed so long thought as he went in to see him and to tell him the unexpected piece of good fortune that he himself had met with since they last met it is needless to say that in giving his account he from any mention of the brass bottle or the as elements in his story s congratulations were quite as cordial as could be expected as soon as he fully understood that no was intended well old man he said i am glad i really am you know to think of a prize like that coming to you the very first time and you don t even know how this mr came by ic the brass bottle to hear of just happened to see your name up outside and came in i expect why i dare say if i hadn t chanced to go away as i did and about a couple of paltry two thousand pound houses too ah well i don t grudge you your luck though it does seems rather it was worth waiting for you ll be cutting me out before long if you don t make a mess of this job i mean you know old chap if you don t go and give your city man a castle when what he wants is something with plenty of plate glass	44
windows and a that s the rock i see ahead of you you mustn t mind my giving you a word of warning oh no said but i shan t give him either a castle or plenty of plate glass i venture to think he ll be pleased with the general idea as i m working it out let s hope so said if you get into any you know he added with a touch of patronage just you come to me thanks said i will but i m getting on very fairly at present i should rather like to see what you ve made of it i might be able to give you a here and there it s awfully good of you but i think i d rather you didn t see the plans till they re quite finished said the truth was that he was perfectly aware that the other would not be in sympathy with by ic a lively sense of to come his ideas and who had just been suffering from a cold fit of depression about his work rather shrank from any kind of criticism oh just as you please said a little stiffly you always were an obstinate beggar i ve had a certain amount of experience you know in my poor little way and i thought i might possibly have saved you a or two but if you think you can manage better alone only don t get bolted with by one of those of yours that s all all right old fellow i ll ride my on the said laughing as he went back to his own office where he found that all his former certainty and enjoyment of his work had returned to him and by the end of the day he had made so much progress that his designs needed only a few finishing touches to be complete enough for his s inspection better still on returning to his rooms that evening to change before going to he found that the admirable had kept his every chest sack and had been cleared away them come back for the things this afternoon sir said mrs and it put me in a at first for i made sure you d locked your door and took the key but i must have been them got in somehow i hope you meant everything to go back by ic the brass bottle quite said i saw the the person who sent them this morning and told him there was nothing i cared for enough to keep and like his sending you a lot o rubbish like that on approval and on too declared mrs i m sure i don t know what them will try pushing i call it now that everything was gone felt a little natural regret and doubt whether he need have been quite so in his refusal of the treasures i might have kept some of those and things for he thought and she loves pearls and a prayer carpet would have pleased the professor but no after all it wouldn t have done couldn t go about in pearls the size of new potatoes and the professor would only have ragged me for more reckless extravagance besides if i d taken any of the s gifts he might keep on pouring more in till i should be just where i was before or worse off really because i couldn t decently refuse them then so it s best as it is and really considering his temperament and the peculiar nature of his position it is not easy to see how he could have arrived at any other conclusion by ic chapter bachelor s quarters was feeling particularly happy as he walked back the next evening to square he had the consciousness of having done a good day s work for the sketch plans for mr s mansion were actually completed and despatched to his business address while now felt a comfortable assurance that his designs would more than satisfy his but it was not that which made him so light of heart that night his rooms were to be honoured for the first time by s presence she would tread upon his carpet sit in his chairs comment upon and perhaps even handle his books and ornaments and all of them would retain something of her charm for ever after if she only came for even now he could not quite believe that she really would that some event would not make a point of happening to prevent her just as he sometimes doubted whether his engagement was not too sweet and wonderful to be true or at all events to last as to the dinner his mind was tolerably easy for by ic the brass bottle he had settled the remaining details of the with his landlady that morning and he could hope that without being so as to excite the professor s wrath it would still be not altogether unworthy and what goods could be rare and dainty enough to be set before he would have liked to provide champagne but he knew that that wine would of in the professor s judgment so he had contented instead with a sound which he knew he could depend upon flowers he thought were clearly and he had called at a s on his way and got some of yellow and deepest the finest he could see some of them would look well on the centre of the table in an old blue and white bowl he had the rest he could arrange about the room there would just be time to see to all that before dressing occupied with these thoughts he turned into square which looked than ever with the haze by its high and under a wide expanse of steel blue sky across which the clouds were	44
driving fast like ships in full sail for harbour before a storm against the mist below the young and nearly trees showed flat black as of pressed and the sky immediately above the house tops was tinged with a sullen red from miles of lighted streets from the river by ic s bachelor s quarters came the long drawn of mingled with the more distant and hysterical shrieks of railway engines on the lines and now he reached the old semi detached house in which he lodged and noticed for the first time how the work of the made with the and hanging baskets a kind of pattern against the windows which were with a glow that looked warm and comfortable and hospitable he wondered whether would notice it when she arrived he passed under the old wrought iron arch that once held an oil lamp and up a short but rather steep flight of steps which led to a brick porch built out at the side then he let himself in and stood with perplexed amazement for he was in a strange house in place of the modest passage with the yellow marble wall paper the mahogany hat stand and the elderly in a state of depression which he knew so well he found an arched with of blue crimson and gold and richly embroidered the floor was marble and from a shallow basin of in the centre a fountain rose and fell with a i must have mistaken the number he thought quite forgetting that his latch key had fitted and he was just about to retreat before his intrusion was discovered when the parted and mrs by ic the brass bottle presented herself making so a figure in such sun and looking so bewildered and that in spite of his own increasing uneasiness had some difficulty in keeping his gravity oh mr sir she lamented whatever you go and do next i wonder to think of your going and having the whole place done up and altered out of knowledge like this without a word of warning if any were required i do think as me and had the right to be consulted let all his drop into the fountain he understood now indeed he seemed in some way to have understood almost from the first only he would not admit it even to himself the irrepressible was at the bottom of this of course he remembered now having made that unfortunate remark the day before about the limited accommodation his rooms afforded clearly must have taken a mental note of it and with that which was one of his worst had determined by way of a pleasant surprise to entirely and the apartments according to his own ideas it was extremely kind of him it showed a truly grateful disposition but oh as thought in the bitterness of his soul if he would only learn to let well alone and mind his own business by ic bachelor s quarters however the thing was done now and he must accept the responsibility for it since he could hardly disclose the truth didn t i mention i was having some alterations made he said carelessly they ve got the work done rather sooner than i expected were were they long over it i m sure i can t tell you sir having stepped out to get some things i wanted in for to night and he was round the comer at his reading room and when i come back it was all done and the workmen gone ome and how they could have finished such a job in the time beats me altogether for when we ad the men in to do the back kitchen they took ten days over it well said this point however they ve done this they ve done it remarkably well you ll admit that mrs that s as may be sir said mrs with a but it ain t my taste nor yet i don t think it will be s taste when he comes to see it it was not s taste either though he was not going to confess it sorry for that mrs he said but i ve no time to talk about it now i must rush upstairs and dress begging your pardon sir but that s a total for they re been and took away the staircase taken away the staircase nonsense cried by ic the brass bottle so i think mr but it s what them men have done and if you don t believe me come and see for yourself she drew the aside and to s astonished gaze a vast hall with a lofty roof from which hung several lamps a subdued radiance high up in the wall on his left were the two windows which he judged to have formerly belonged to his sitting room for either from delicacy or inability or simply because it had not occurred to liim the had not interfered with the external structure but the windows were now by a and gilded which accounted for the pattern had noticed from without the walls were covered with blue and white oriental and a raised platform of on which were ran round two sides of the hall while the side opposite to him was pierced with shaped arches apparently leading to other apartments the centre of the marble floor was spread with costly and piles of cushions their rich hues glowing through the gold with which they were embroidered well said the unhappy scarcely knowing what he was saying it it all looks very cost mrs it s not for me to say sir but i should like to know where you thought of dining by ic bachelor s where said why here of course there s plenty of room there isn t a table left in the house said mrs so unless	44
you d wish the cloth laid on the floor oh there must be a table somewhere said impatiently or you can borrow one don t difficulties mrs big up anything you like now i must be and dress he got rid of her and on entering one of the discovered a smaller room in wood with ivory and mother o pearl which was evidently his bedroom a gorgeous robe with gold and glittering with ancient gems was laid out for him for the had thought of but naturally preferred his own evening clothes mr he shouted going to another arch that seemed to communicate with the sir replied his landlord who had just returned from his reading room and now appeared without a tie and in his shirt sleeves looking pale and wild as was perhaps intelligible in the circumstances as he entered his marble halls he staggered and his red eyes rolled and his mouth in a like fashion they ve been at it ere too ly he remarked there have been a few changes said by ic no the brass bottle quietly as you can see you don t happen to know where they ve put my dress clothes do you i don t to know where put your dress clothes why i where they ve bin and put our little where me and maria ave set of a all these years regular i where they ve put the nor yet the bath room with ot and cold water laid on at my own expense and you me to find your i consider sir i consider that a that a most liberty have bin took at my expense my good man don t talk rubbish said i m talking to you about what i know and i assert that an englishman s ome is his and nobody s got the right when his turned to go and make a of it not nobody t make a what of it cried a that s english ain t it i who do you suppose is goin to take apartments furnished in this ere style what am i goin to say to my landlord it ll about me this will and after you bein a ere for five year and more and regarded by me and maria in the light of one of the ly it s ard it s damned ard now look here said sharply for it was obvious that mr s studies had been by ic bachelor s quarters ill lightened by copious refreshment pull yourself together man and listen to me i decline to pull f r anybody said mr with a noble air i ere upon my dignity as a man sir i i ere upon here he waved his hand and sat down suddenly upon the marble floor you can stand on anything you like or can said but hear what i ve got to say the the people who made all these alterations went beyond my instructions i never wanted the house interfered with like this still if your landlord doesn t see that its value is immensely improved he s a fool that s all anyway i ll take care you shan t suffer if i have to put everything back in its former state i will at my own expense so don t bother any more about that you re a gen l man mr said cautiously his feet there s no a gen l man a gen l man of course you are said and i ll tell you how you re going to show it you re going straight downstairs to get your good wife to pour some cold water over your head and then you will finish dressing see what you can do to get a table of some sort and lay it for dinner and be ready to announce my friends when they arrive and wait afterwards do you see by ic the brass bottle that will be all ri mr said who was not far gone enough to be beyond understanding or obeying you leave it entirely to me i ll that your friends shall be made ive lived as butler in the the most you know the sort o i m to r member and and everything was always all ri and i shall be all ri in a few minutes with this assurance he stumbled downstairs leaving relieved to some extent would be sober enough after his head had been under the tap for a few minutes and in any case there would be the hired waiter to rely upon if he could only find out where his evening clothes were he returned to his room and made another frantic search but they were nowhere to be found and as he could not bring himself to receive his guests in his ordinary morning costume which the professor would probably as a deliberate slight and which would certainly seem a in mrs s eyes if not in her daughter s he decided to put on the eastern robes with the exception of a which he could not manage to wind round his head thus arrayed he re entered the hall where he was annoyed to find that no attempt had been made as yet to prepare a dinner table and he was just looking round for a bell when by ic bachelor s quarters appeared he had apparently followed s advice for his hair looked wet and sleek and he was comparatively sober this is too bad cried my friends may be here at any moment now and nothing done you don t propose to wait at table like that do you ho added as he noted the man s overcoat and the round his throat i do not propose to wait in any garments whatsoever said i m	44
a goin out i am very well said then send the waiter i suppose he s come he come but he went away i told him as he wouldn t be required you told him that said angrily and then controlled himself come be reasonable you can t really mean to leave your wife to cook the dinner and serve it too she ain t intending to do neither she ve left the house already you must fetch her back cried good heavens man you see what a fix you re leaving me in my friends have started long it s too late to wire to them or make any other arrangements there was a knock as he spoke at the front door and odd enough was the familiar sound of the cast iron in that hall there they are he said and the idea of meeting i by ic the brass bottle them at the door and proposing an instant to a occurred to till he suddenly recollected that he would have to change and try to find some money even for that for the last time he cried in despair do you mean to tell me there s no dinner ready oh said there s dinner right enough and a lot o downstairs a of it that s what broke maria s art to see it all took out of her after the trouble she d gone to but i must have somebody to wait exclaimed you ve got enough as far as that goes but if you expect a christian man to wait along of a lot o and be at their and call you re sir for i m going to sleep the night at my brother in law s and take his advice he bein a at a s and knowing the law about this ere business and so i wish you a good and your dinner will be to your liking and satisfaction he went out by the farther while from the entrance hall could hear voices he knew only too well the had come well at all events it seemed that there would be something for them to eat since in his anxiety to do the thing thoroughly had furnished both the feast and attendance but who was there to announce the guests by ic bachelor s quarters where were these had spoken of ought he to go and bring in his visitors himself these questions answered themselves the next instant for as he stood there under the dome the curtains of the central arch were drawn with a rattle and disclosed a double line of tall slaves in rich their eyes rolling and their teeth flashing in their countenances as they between this double line stood professor and mrs and who had just removed their and were gazing in astonishment on the which met their view advanced to receive them he felt he was in for it now and the only course left him was to put as good a face as he could on the matter and trust to luck to pull him through without discovery or disaster by ic the brass bottle ix apparatus so youve found your way here at last said as he shook hands heartily with the professor and mrs i can t tell you how delighted i am to see you as a matter of fact he was very far from being at ease which made him rather over but he was determined that if he could help it he would not betray the slightest consciousness of anything or unusual in his domestic arrangements and these said mrs who was extremely stately in black with old lace and steel these are the bachelor lodgings you were so modest about she added with a humorous twinkle in her shrewd eyes you young men seem to understand how to make yourselves don t they they do indeed said the professor though it cost him effort to conceal his appreciation to produce such results as these must if i by ic apparatus mistake not have infinite and considerable expense no said no you you d be surprised if you knew how little i should have imagined retorted the professor that any on apartments which i presume you do not contemplate occupying for an extended period must be money thrown away but doubtless you know best but your rooms are quite wonderful cried her charming eyes with admiration and where where did you get that magnificent dressing gown i never saw anything so lovely in my life i she herself was lovely enough in a frock of a delicate apple green hue her only ornament a deep blue egyptian with spread wings which was suspended from her neck by a slender gold chain i i ought to for receiving you in this costume said with embarrassment but the fact is i couldn t find my evening clothes anywhere so so i put on the first things that came to hand it is hardly necessary said the professor conscious of being correctly clad and unconscious that his shirt front was and his long white tie beginning to work up towards his left jaw hardly necessary to offer any apology for the simplicity of by ic the brass bottle your costume which is entirely in keeping with the ah strictly oriental character of your interior i feel dreadfully out of keeping said for there s nothing in the least oriental about me unless it s my and he s i don t know how many centuries behind the time poor dear if you said thousands of years my dear corrected the professor you would be more accurate that was taken out of a tomb of the well i m sure he d rather be where he is said and entirely agreed with her i look at everything how clever	44
and original of you to an ordinary london house into this oh well you see explained it it wasn t exactly done by me whoever did it said the professor must have devoted considerable study to eastern art and architecture may i ask the name of the firm who executed the alterations i really couldn t tell you sir answered who was beginning to understand how very bad a d can be you can t tell me exclaimed the professor you order these extensive and i should say expensive and you don t know the firm you selected to carry them out by ic apparatus of course i said only i don t happen to remember at this moment let me see now was it liberty no i m almost certain it wasn t liberty it might have been but i m not sure whoever did do it they were cheap i am glad to hear it said the professor in his most unpleasant tone where is your dining room why i rather think said helplessly as he saw a train of attendants laying a round cloth on the floor i rather think this is the dining room you appear to be in some doubt said the professor i leave it to them it depends where they choose to lay the cloth said sometimes in one place sometimes in another there s a great charm in uncertainty he faltered doubtless said the professor by this time two of the slaves under the direction of a tall and black had set a low stool with silver and in strange devices on the round carpet when other attendants followed with a circular silver tray containing covered dishes which they placed on the stool and your ah groom of the chambers said the professor seems to have decided that we should dine here i observe they are making signs to you that the food is on the table by ic the brass bottle so it is said shall we sit down but my dear said mrs your butler has forgotten the chairs you don t appear to my dear said the professor that in such an interior as this chairs would be hopelessly i m afraid there aren t any said for there was nothing but four fat cushions let s sit down on these he proposed it it s more fun at my time of life said the professor as he let himself down on the cushion such fun as may be derived from eating one s meals on the floor fails to appeal to my sense of humour however i admit that it is thoroughly oriental i think it s delightful said ever so much than a stiff conventional dinner party one may be remarked her father without escaping the penalty of go away sir go away he added to one of the slaves who was attempting to pour water over his hands your servant appears to imagine that i go out to dinner without taking the trouble to wash my hands previously this i may mention is not the case it s only an eastern ceremony professor said i am perfectly well aware of what is customary in the east retorted the professor it does not follow by ic apparatus that such ah precautions are either necessary or desirable at a western table made no reply he was too much occupied in gazing at the silver dish covers and wondering what in the world might be underneath nor was his perplexity relieved when the covers were removed for he was quite at a loss to guess how he was supposed to help the contents without so much as a fork the chief attendant however solved that difficulty by in that the guests were expected to use their fingers accomplished this and with intense amusement but her father and mother made no secret of their if i were dining in the desert with a sir observed the professor i should i hope know how to to his habits and prejudices here in the heart of london i confess all this strikes me as a piece of needless i m very sorry said i d have some knives and forks if i could but i m afraid these fellows don t even understand what they are so it s useless to order any we we must rough it a little that s all i hope that er fish is all right professor he did not know precisely what kind of fish it was but it was in oil of and with a ture of and and the professor did not appear to be making much progress with it himself would have infinitely preferred by the brass bottle the original and but that could not be helped now thank you said the professor it is but characteristic not any more thank you could only trust that the next course would be more of a success it was a dish of mutton with and sugar which declared was delicious her parents made no comment might i ask for something to drink said the professor presently whereupon a poured him a of with of i m very sorry my dear fellow he said after it but if i drink this i shall be ill all next day if i might have a glass of wine another slave instantly handed him a cup of wine which he tasted and set down with a face and a shudder tried some afterwards and was not surprised it was a strong harsh wine in which and struggled for it s an old and i make no doubt a fine wine observed the professor with studied politeness but i fancy it must have suffered in i really think that with my tendency a little and would be better for me if you keep such in the house felt	44
convinced that it would be useless to order the slaves to bring or which by ic apparatus were of course unknown in the s time so he could do nothing but for their absence no matter said the professor i am not so thirsty that i cannot wait till i get home it was some consolation that both and her mother commended the and even appreciated or were so obliging as to say they appreciated the which consisted of rice and wrapped in vine leaves and certainly was not in appearance besides being difficult to dispose of gracefully it was followed by a whole lamb in oil with nuts and seeds and liberally with and only had sufficient courage to attack the lamb and he found reason to regret it afterwards came fowls stuffed with and bread and the banquet ended with of weird forms and aspect i hope said anxiously you don t find this eastern very er he himself was feeling distinctly it s rather a change from the ordinary routine i have made a truly wonderful dinner thank you replied the professor not it is to be feared without intention even in the east i have eaten nothing approaching this by ic the brass bottle but where did your landlady pick up this extraordinary cooking my dear said mrs i thought you said she was merely a plain cook has she ever lived in the east not exactly in the east exclaimed not what you would call living there the fact is he continued feeling that he was in danger of and that he had better be as candid as he could this dinner wasn t cooked by her she she was obliged to go away quite suddenly so the dinner was all sent in by by a sort of you know he supplies the whole thing and all i was thinking said the professor that for a bachelor an engaged bachelor you seemed to maintain rather a large establishment oh they re only here for the evening sir said capital fellows more picturesque than the local and they don t breathe on the top of your head they re perfect remarked only well just a little to look at it would ill become me to the style and method of our entertainment put in the professor otherwise i might be tempted to observe that it scarcely showed that regard for economy which i should have now put in his wife don t let us have any fault finding i m sure has it all by ic apparatus delightfully yes delightfully and even if he has been just a little extravagant it s not as if he was obliged to be as economical now you know my dear said the professor i have yet to learn that the prospect of an increased income in the remote future is any justification for reckless profusion in the present if you only knew said you wouldn t call it profusion it it s not at all the dinner i meant it to be and i m afraid it wasn t particularly nice but it s certainly not expensive expensive is of course a very relative term but i think i have the right to ask whether this is the footing on which you propose to begin your married life it was an extremely awkward question as the reader will perceive if as he might with truth that he had no intention whatever of maintaining his wife in luxury such as that he stood convicted of selfish indulgence as a bachelor if on the other hand he declared that he did propose to maintain his wife in the same fantastic and exaggerated splendour as the present it would confirm her father s in his prudence and economy and it was that old ass of a as thought with suppressed rage who had let him in for all this and who was now far beyond all remonstrance or reproach by ic the brass bottle before he could bring himself to answer the question the attendants had noiselessly removed the tray and stool and were handing round in a silver and basin the character of which luckily or otherwise turned the professor s into a different channel these are not bad really not bad at all he said the design where did you manage to pick them up i didn t said they re provided by the the person who supplies the dinner can you give me his address said the professor a bargain because really you know these things are probably much too good to be used for business purposes i m wrong said these particular things are are lent by an eccentric oriental gentleman as a great favour do i know him is he a of such things you wouldn t have met him he he s lived a very retired life of late i should very much like to see his collection if you could give me a letter of introduction no said in a state of heat it wouldn t be any use his collection is never shown he s a most peculiar man and just now he s abroad ah pardon me if i ve been but i by ic apparatus concluded from what you said that this ah banquet was furnished by a professional oh the banquet yes that came from the stores said the the oriental department they ve just started it you know so so i thought i d give them a trial but it s not what i call properly yet the slaves were now with low inviting them to seat themselves on the which lined part of the hall ha said the professor as he rose from his cushion audibly so we re to have our coffee and	44
what not over there hey well my boy i shan t be sorry i confess to have something to lean my back against and a cigar a mild cigar will ah aid you do smoke here smoke said why of course all over the place here he said clapping his hands which brought an slave instantly to his side just bring coffee and cigars will you the slave rolled his brandy ball eyes in obvious perplexity coffee said you must know what coffee is and well if that s what you call them but the slave clearly did not understand and it suddenly struck that since tobacco and coffee were not introduced even in the east till long after the by ic i a j the o nd v that t the ao y j ou you t ie tie to at coffee k if it at v w d e i oi ere y r what it y as tie j s if i la as ij tie cap by apparatus while he was over it seated himself on the by s side hoping for one of the whispered conversations permitted to lovers he had pulled through the banquet somehow and on the whole he felt thankful things had not gone off worse the noiseless and attendants whom he did not know whether to regard as or or simply illusions but whose services he had no wish to retain had all withdrawn mrs was peacefully and her husband was in a better humour than he had been all the evening suddenly from behind the of one of the came strange sounds and varied by as of impassioned cats drew involuntarily closer to her mother woke with a start and the professor looked up from the brass bottle with returning irritation what s this what s this he demanded some fresh surprise in store for us it was quite as much of a surprise for but he was spared the humiliation of it by the entrance of some half dozen dusky in white and carrying various strangely fashioned instruments with which they down in a by the opposite wall and began to and and with the complacent of an eastern clearly was determined k by ic the brass bottle that nothing should be wanting to make the entertainment a complete success what a very extraordinary noise said mr surely they can t mean it for music yes they do said it it s really more harmonious than it sounds you have to get accustomed to the er when you do it s rather soothing than otherwise i dare say said the poor lady and do they come from the stores too no said with a fine assumption of they don t they come from the at earl s court parties and attended you know but they play here for nothing they they want to get their name known you see very deserving and respectable set of fellows my dear remarked mrs if they expect to get engagements for parties and so on they really ought to try and learn a tune of some sort i understand whispered it s very naughty of you to have gone to all this trouble and expense for of course it has cost you a lot just to please us but whatever may say i love you all the better for doing it and her hand stole softly into his and he felt that he could forgive everything even even the by ic apparatus but there was something about their shadowy forms which showed in and shapes in the uncertain light some of them wore immense and curious white head dresses which gave them the appearance of and they all went on and and with a that felt must be getting on his guests nerves as it certainly was on his own he did not know how to get rid of them but he a kind of gesture in the air intended to intimate that while their efforts had afforded the keenest pleasure to the company generally they were unwilling to them any longer and the artists were at liberty to retire perhaps there is no art more liable to than certainly s efforts in this direction were misunderstood for the music became louder more and out of tune and then a worse thing happened for the curtains separated and by sharp from the a female figure floated into the hall and began to dance with a slow and grace her beauty though of a pronounced oriental type as unmistakable even in the subdued light which fell on her her robe indicated a form her dark were with she by ic the brass bottle had the long eyes the dusky cheeks and the fixed scarlet smile of the eastern dancing girl of all time and she paced the floor with her feet and like some beautiful while the players worked themselves up to yet higher and higher stages of frenzy as he sat there looking helplessly on felt a return of his resentment against the it was really too bad of him he ought at his age to have known better not that there was anything objectionable in the performance itself but still it was not the kind of entertainment for such an occasion wished now he had mentioned to who the guests were whom he expected and then perhaps even the would have exercised more tact in his arrangements and does this girl come from earl s court inquired mrs who was now thoroughly awake oh dear no said i engaged her at at s the entertainment they told me there she was rather good struck out a line of her own don t you know but perfectly correct	44
she she only does this to support an invalid aunt these statements were as he felt even in making them not only but utterly by ic apparatus but he had arrived at that condition in which a man with terror the amount of latent in his system i should have thought there were other ways of supporting invalid remarked mrs what is this young lady s name said on the spur of the moment miss but surely she is a foreigner i ought to have said and with an a you know i believe her mother was of but i really don t know explained conscious that had withdrawn her hand from his and was regarding him with covert anxiety i really must put a stop to this he thought you re getting bored by all this darling he said aloud so am i i ll tell them to go and he rose and held out his hand as a sign that the dance should cease it ceased at once but to his unspeakable horror the crossed the floor with a swift rush and sank in a heap at his feet seizing his hand in both hers and covering it with kisses while she murmured speeches in some tongue unknown to him is this a usual feature in miss s may i ask said mrs with not unnatural indignation by ic the brass bottle i really don t know said the unhappy i can t make out what she s saying if i understand her rightly said the professor she is addressing you as the light of her eyes and the vital spirit of her heart oh said she s quite mistaken you know it it s the artist temperament they don t mean anything by it my my dear young lady he added you ve danced most delightfully and i m sure we re all most deeply indebted to you but we won t detain you any longer professor he added as she made no offer to rise mil you kindly explain to them in that i should be obliged by their going at once the professor said a few words which had the desired effect the girl gave a little scream and through the and the seized their instruments and after her i am so sorry said whose evening seemed to him to have been chiefly spent in apologies it s not at all the kind of entertainment one would expect from a place like s by no means agreed the professor but i understood you to say miss was recommended to you s very likely sir said but that doesn t affect the case i shouldn t expect it from them probably they don t know how that by ic apparatus young person herself said mrs and i think it only right that they should be told i shall complain of course said i shall put it very strongly a protest would have more weight coming from a woman said mrs and as a in the company i shall feel bound no i wouldn t said in fact you mustn t for now i come to think of it she didn t come from s after all or s either then perhaps you will be good enough to inform us where she did come from i would if i knew said but i don t what cried the professor sharply do you mean to say you can t account for the existence of a dancing girl who in my daughter s presence kissed your hand and addresses you by oriental said she was a little of course if i had had any idea she would make such a scene as that he broke off don t doubt me no said simply i m sure you must have some explanation only i do think it would be better if you gave it if i told you the truth said slowly you would none of you believe me then you admit put in the professor that hitherto you have not been telling the truth by ic the brass bottle not as invariably as i could have wished confessed so i suspected then unless you can bring yourself to be perfectly candid you can hardly wonder at our asking you to consider your engagement as broken off broken off echoed you won t give me up you i wouldn t do anything unworthy of you i m certain that you can t have done anything which would make me love you one bit the less if i knew it so why not be quite open with us because darling said i m in such a fix that it would only make matters worse in that case said the professor and as it is already rather late perhaps you will allow one of your numerous to call a four clapped his hands but no one answered the summons and he could not find any of the slaves in the i m afraid all the servants have left he explained and it is to be feared he would have added that they were all obliged to return to the by eleven only he caught the professor s eye and decided that he had better refrain if you will wait here i ll go out and fetch a cab he added there is no occasion to trouble you said the professor my wife and daughter have already by ic apparatus got their things on and we will walk until we find a cab now mr we will bid you good night and good bye for after what has happened you will i trust have the good taste to your visits and make no attempt to see again upon my honour protested i have done nothing to warrant you in shutting your doors against me i am unable to agree with you i have	44
never thoroughly approved of your engagement because as i told you at the time i suspected you of in money matters even in accepting your invitation to night i warned you as you may remember not to make the occasion an excuse for foolish extravagance i come here and find you in apartments furnished and decorated as you informed us by yourself and on a scale which would be prodigal in a you have a of which except for their and imperfect discipline a prince might envy you provide a banquet of hem which must have cost you infinite trouble and unlimited expense this after i had expressly for a quiet family dinner not content with that you procure for our diversion music and dancing of a of a highly character i should be unworthy the name of father sir if i were to my only daughter s happiness to a young man with so little sense by ic the brass bottle so little self restraint and she will understand my motives and obey my wishes you re right professor according to your lights admitted and yet confound it all you re utterly wrong too oh cried if you had only listened to and not gone to all this foolish foolish expense we might have been so happy but i have gone to no expense all this hasn t cost me a penny ah there is some mystery if you love me you will explain here now before it s too late my darling groaned i would like a shot if i thought it would be of the least use i hitherto said the professor you cannot be said to have been happy in your explanations and i should advise you not to venture on any more once more i only wish it were possible without needless irony to make the customary for a pleasant evening mrs had already hurried her daughter away and though she had left her husband to express his sentiments she made it sufficiently clear that she entirely agreed with them stood in the outer hall by the fountain in which his drowned were still floating and gazed in despair after his guests as they went down the path to the gate he knew only too well by ic apparatus that they would never cross his threshold nor he theirs again suddenly he came to himself with a start i ll try it he cried i can t and won t stand this and he rushed after them professor he said as he caught him up one moment on second thoughts i will tell you my secret if you will promise me a patient hearing the pavement is hardly the place for confidences replied the professor and if it were your costume is calculated to attract more remark than is desirable my wife and daughter have gone on if you will permit me i will overtake them i shall be at home to morrow morning should you wish to see me no to night to night urged i can t sleep in that infernal place with this on my mind put mrs and into a cab professor and come back it s not late and i won t keep you long but for heaven s sake let me tell you my story at once probably the professor was not without some curiosity on the subject at all events he yielded very well he said go into the house and i will you presently on ly remember he added that i shall accept no statement without the fullest proof otherwise you will merely be wasting your time and mine by ic the brass bottle proof thought gloomily as he returned to his halls the only decent proof i could produce would be old and he s not likely to turn up again especially now i want him a little later the professor returned having found a cab and despatched his women folk home now young man he said as he his and seated himself on the by s side i can give you just ten minutes to tell your story in so let me beg you to make it as brief and is as you can it was not exactly an encouraging invitation in the circumstances but took his courage in both hands and told him everything just as it had happened and that s your story said the professor after listening to the narrative with the utmost attention when came to the end that s my story sir said and i hope it has altered your opinion of me it has replied the professor in an altered tone mt has indeed yours is a sad a very sad case it s rather awkward isn t it but i don t mind so long as you understand and you ll tell as much as you think proper yes i must tell and i may go on seeing her as usual by ic apparatus well will you be guided by my advice the advice of one who has lived more than double your years certainly said then if i were you i should go away at once for a complete change of air and scene that s impossible sir you forget my work never mind your work my boy leave it for a while try a sea voyage go round the world get quite away from these associations but i might come across the again objected lies travelling as i told you yes yes to be sure still i should go away consult any doctor and he ll tell you the same thing consult any good god cried i see what it you think i m mad no no my dear boy said the professor soothingly not mad nothing of the sort perhaps your mental is just a trifle	44
it s quite intelligible you see the sudden turn in your professional prospects coupled with your engagement to i ve known stronger minds than yours thrown off their balance temporarily of course quite temporarily by less than that you believe i am suffering from i don t say that i think you may see ordinary things in a distorted light by ic the brass bottle anyhow you don t believe there really was a inside that bottle you yourself assured me at the time you opened it that you found nothing whatever inside it isn t it more that you were right then than that you should be right now well said you saw all those black slaves you ate or tried to eat that banquet you heard that and then there was the dancing girl and this hall we re in this robe i ve got on are they because if they are i m afraid you will have to admit that mad too put said the professor i fear it is unwise to argue with you still i will venture to assert that a strong imagination like yours and with oriental ideas to which i fear i may have is not incapable of unconsciously assisting in its own deception in other words i think that you may have provided all this yourself from various quarters without any clear recollection of the fact that s very scientific and satisfactory as far as it goes my dear professor said but there s one piece of evidence which may upset your theory and that s this brass bottle if your reasoning powers were in their normal condition said the professor you by ic apparatus would see that the mere production of an empty bottle can be no proof of what it contained or for that matter that it ever contained anything at all oh i see said but this bottle has a with what you yourself admit to be an inscription of some sort suppose that inscription my story what then all i ask you to do is to make it out for yourself before you decide that i m either a liar or a lunatic i warn you said the professor that if you are trusting to my being unable to the inscription you are deceiving yourself you represent that this bottle belongs to the period of solomon that is about a thousand years b c probably you are not aware that the earliest specimens of oriental metal work in existence are not older than the tenth century of our era but that it is as old as you i shall certainly be able to read any inscription there may be on it i have made out clay in which were certainly written a thousand years before solomon s time so much the better said i m as certain as i can be that whatever is written on that lid whether it s or or anything else must have some reference to a confined in the bottle or at least bear the seal of solomon but there the thing examine it for yourself not now said the professor it s too late and by ic i the brass bottle the light here is not strong enough but i tell you j what i will do i ll take this thing home with me and examine it carefully to morrow on one condition you have only to name it said my condition is that if i and one or two other to whom i may submit it come to the conclusion that there is no real inscription at all or if any that a date and meaning must be assigned to it totally inconsistent with your story you will accept our finding and acknowledge that you have been under a delusion and dismiss the whole affair from your mind oh i don t mind agreeing to ta said particularly as it s my only chance very well then said the professor as he removed the metal cap and put it in his pocket you may depend upon hearing from me in a day or two meantime my boy he continued almost affectionately why not try a short tour somewhere hey you re a i know anything but allow yourself to dwell on oriental subjects it s not so easy to avoid dwelling on them as you think said with rather a dreary laugh and i fancy professor that whether you like it or not you ll have to believe in that of mine sooner or later i can scarcely conceive replied the professor who by ic apparatus was by this time at the outer door any degree of evidence which could succeed in convincing me that your brass bottle had ever contained an however i shall endeavour to preserve an open mind on the subject good evening to you as soon as he was alone paced up and down his deserted halls in a state of rage as he thought how eagerly he had looked forward to his little dinner party how intimate and delightful it might have been and what a monstrous and prolonged nightmare it had actually proved and at the end of it there he was in a fantastic impossible dwelling deserted by every one his chances of setting himself right with hanging on the thread unknown and threatening him from every side he owed all this to yes that grateful with his notions and his high flown professions had contrived to ruin him more than if he had been his bitterest foe ah if he could be face to face with him once more if only for five he would be restrained by no false delicacy he would tell him fairly and plainly what a old fool he was but had taken his flight for ever there were no	44
means of calling him nothing to be done now but go to bed and sleep if he could exasperated by the sense of his utter helplessness l by ic the brass bottle went to the arch which led to his and drew the curtain back with a furious pull and just within the standing erect with folded arms and the smile of which was beginning to know and dread was the form of el the by ic chapter x no place like home i may thy head long survive said by way of salutation as he stepped through the you re very good said whose anger had almost in the relief of the s unexpected return but i don t think any head can survive this sort of thing long art thou content with this dwelling i have provided for thee inquired the glancing around the stately hall with perceptible complacency it would have been positively brutal to say how very far from contented he felt so could only that he had never been lodged like that before in all his life it is far below thy deserts observed graciously and were thy friends amazed at the manner of their entertainment they were said a sure method of preserving friends is to feast them with liberality remarked the by ic the brass bottle this was rather more than s temper could stand you were kind enough to provide my friends with such a feast he said that they ll never come here again how so were not the choice and in was not the wine sweet and the like unto snow oh everything was as nice as possible said couldn t have been better yet thou that thy friends will return no more for what reason well you see explained reluctantly there s such a thing as doing people too well i mean it isn t everybody that cooking but they might have stood that it was the dancing girl that did for me i commanded that a than the full moon and graceful as a young should appear for the delight of thy guests she came said gloomily me with that which hath occurred for i perceive plainly that something hath fallen out contrary to thy desires well said if it had been a bachelor party there would have been no harm in the but as it happened two of my guests were ladies and they well they not put a wrong construction on it all by ic no like home verily exclaimed the thy words are totally incomprehensible to me i don t know what the custom may be in said but with us it is not usual for a man to engage a to dance after dinner to amuse the lady he is proposing to marry it s the kind of attention she d be most unlikely to appreciate then was one of thy guests the whom thou art seeking to marry she was said and the other two were her father and mother from which you may imagine that it was not altogether agreeable for me when your threw herself at my feet and my knees and declared that i was the light of her eyes of course it all meant nothing it s probably the conventional behaviour for a and i m not reflecting upon her in the least but in the circumstances it was i thought said that thou assured st me that thou not contracted to any i think i only said that there was no one whom i would trouble you to procure as a wife for me replied i certainly was engaged though after this evening my engagement is at an end unless that reminds me do you happen to know whether there really was an inscription on the seal of your bottle and what it said by ic the bottle i know naught of any inscription said the bring me the seal that i may see it i haven t got it by me at this moment said i lent it to my the father of this young lady i told you of you see mr you got me into i mean i was in such a hole over this affair that i was obliged to make a clean breast of it to him and he wouldn t believe it so it struck me that there might be an inscription of some sort on the seal saying who you were and why solomon had you confined in the bottle then the professor would be obliged to admit that there s something in my story truly i wonder at thee and at the of thy penetration the commented for if there were indeed any writing upon this seal it is not possible that one of thy race should be able to it oh i beg your pardon said professor is an oriental scholar he can make out any inscription no matter how many thousands of years old it may be if anything s there he ll it the question is whether anything is there the effect of this speech on was as unexpected as it was inexplicable the s features usually so mild began to work until they became terrible to look at and suddenly with a fierce howl he shot up to nearly double his ordinary stature thou of little sense and breeding he cried in a loud voice how thou to deliver the bottle by ic no like home in which i was confined into the hands of this learned man startled as he was did not lose his my dear sir he said i did not suppose you could have any further use for it and as a matter of fact i didn t give professor the bottle which is over there in the comer but merely the i wish you wouldn t tower over me like	44
it gives me a in the neck to talk to you why on earth should you make such a fuss about my the seal what possible difference can it make to you even if it does confirm my story and it s of immense importance to me that the professor should believe i told the truth i spoke in haste said the slowly his normal size and looking slightly ashamed of his recent outburst as well as uncommonly foolish the bottle truly is of no value and as for the since it is but lent it is no great matter if there be any legend upon the seal perchance this learned man of whom thou will by this time have it no said he won t tackle it till tomorrow and it s as likely as not that when he does he won t find any reference to y m and i shall be up a taller tree than ever art thou so desirous that he should receive proof that thy story is true by ic the brass bottle why of course i am haven t i been saying so all this time who can satisfy him so surely as i you cried do you mean to say you really would mr you are an old brick that would be the very thing there is naught said the smiling that i would not do to promote thy welfare for thou hast rendered me service me therefore with the abode of this sage and i will present myself before him and if he should find no inscription upon the seal or its purport should be hidden from him then will i convince him that thou hast spoken the truth and no lie very willingly gave him the professor s address only don t drop in on him to night you know he thought it prudent to add or you might him call any time after breakfast to morrow and you ll find him in to night said i return to pursue my search after on whom be peace for not yet have i found him if you will try to do so many things at once said i don t see how you can expect much results at they knew him not for where i left a city i found but a heap of ruins by and they say the lion and the keep the courts by ic no place like home half to himself i was afraid you might be disappointed with myself why not run over to you might hear of him there of el the country of the queen beloved of said the it is an excellent suggestion and i will follow it without delay but you won t forget to look in on professor to morrow will you assuredly i will not and now ere i depart tell me if there be any other service i may render thee hesitated there is just one he said only i m afraid you ll be offended if i mention it on the head and the eye be thy commands said the for whatsoever thou shall be accomplished provided that it lie within my power to perform it well said if you re sure you don t mind i ll tell you you ve transformed this house into a wonderful place more like the i don t mean the one in square than a london lodging house but then i am only a here and the people the house belongs to excellent people in their way would very much rather have the house as it was they have a sort of idea that they won t be able to let these rooms as easily as the others base and sordid dogs said the with contempt by ic the brass bottle possibly said it s narrow minded of them but that s the way they look at it they ve actually left rather than stay here and it s their house not mine if they abandon this dwelling thou wilt remain in the more secure possession oh shall i though they ll go to law and have me turned out and i shall have to pay into the bargain so you see what you intended as a kindness will only bring me bad luck without more to the statement of thy request said for i am in haste all i want you to do replied in some anxiety as to what the effect of his request would be is to put everything here back to what it was before it won t take you a minute of a truth exclaimed to bestow a favour upon thee is but a undertaking for not once but twice hast thou rejected my and now behold i am at a loss to devise means to gratify thee i know i ve abused your good nature said but if you ll only do this and then convince the professor that my story is true i shall be more than satisfied i ll never ask another favour of you my benevolence towards thee hath no bounds as thou shalt see and i can deny thee nothing for truly thou art a worthy and temperate young man farewell then and be it according to thy desire by ic no place like he raised his arms above his head and shot up like a towards the lofty dome which split asunder to let him pass as he gazed after him had a momentary glimpse of deep blue sky with a star or two that seemed to be hurrying through the transparent before the roof closed in once more then came a low sound with a shock like a mild earthquake the slender pillars swayed under their arches the big hanging went out the walls and the floor heaved and rose till found himself up in his own familiar sitting	44
forgetting as he did very well mrs said we will understand that last night s hem rather painful experience is not to be alluded to again on either side he felt sincerely thankful to have got out of it so easily for it was impossible to say what gossip might not have been set on foot if the had not been brought to see the of on the subject there s one more thing sir i wished for to speak to you about said mrs that great brass as you bought at an some time back i if you remember it i remember it said well what about it why sir i found it in the coal cellar this morning and i thought i d ask if that was where you wished it in future for though no amount o polish could make it what i call a thing it s neither nor yet useful where it is at present oh said rather relieved for he had an ill defined dread from her opening words that the bottle might have been itself in some way put it wherever you please mrs do by ic a pool s paradise whatever you like with it so long as i don t see the thing again very good sir i on y thought i d ask the question said mrs as she closed the door upon herself altogether walked to great street that morning in a fairly cheerful mood and disposed even towards the with all his many faults he was a thoroughly good natured old devil very superior in every way to the one the nights found in his bottle ninety nine out of a hundred thought would have turned nasty on finding benefit after benefit declined with thanks but one good point in is that he does take a hint in good part and as soon as he can be made to see where he s wrong he s always ready to set things right and he thoroughly understands now that these oriental of his won t do nowadays and that when people see a man suddenly in riches they naturally want to know how he came by them i don t suppose he will trouble me much in future if he should look in now and then i must put up with it perhaps if i suggested it he wouldn t mind coming in some form that would look less if he would get himself up as a banker or a bishop the bishop of say i shouldn t care how often he called only i can t have him coming down the chimney in m by ic toe brass bottle either capacity but he ll see that himself and he s done me one real service i mustn t let myself forget that he sent me old by the way i wonder if he s seen my designs yet and what he thinks of them he was at his table engaged in down some rough ideas for the of the reception rooms in the projected house when came in ive got nothing doing just now he said so i thought i d come in and have a at those plans of yours if they re forward enough to be seen yet had to explain that even the imperfect method of examination proposed was not possible as he had despatched the drawings to his the night before said that s sharp work isn t it i don t know i ve been sticking hard at it for over a fortnight well you might have given me a chance of seeing what you ve made of it i let you see all my work to tell you the honest truth old fellow i wasn t at all sure you d like it and i was afraid you d put me out of conceit with what i d done and was in a frantic hurry to have the plans so there it was and do you think he ll be satisfied with them he ought to be i don t like to be cock sure but i believe i really do believe that i ve given him by ic a fool s paradise rather more than he expected it s going to be a devilish good house though i say it myself something new and fantastic eh well he t care about it you know when you ve had my experience you ll that a is a rum bird to satisfy i shall satisfy my old bird said gaily he ll have a cage he can hop about in to his heart s content you re a clever chap enough said but to carry a big job like this through you one thing and that s not while you heave yours at my head come old fellow you aren t really because i sent off those plans without showing them to you i shall soon have them back and then you can pitch into em as much as you please seriously though i shall want all the help you can spare when i come to the completed designs um said you ve got along very well alone so far at least by your own account so i dare say you ll be able to manage without me to the end only you know he added as he left the room you haven t won your spurs yet a fellow isn t necessarily a scott or a or a just because he happens to get a pound job the first go off poor old thought by ic the brass bottle i ve put his back up i might just as well have shown him the plans after all it wouldn t have hurt me and it would have pleased him i ll make my peace with him after lunch i ll	44
ask him to give me his idea for a no hang it all even friendship has its limits he returned from lunch to hear what sounded like an of some sort in his office in which as he his door s voice was distinctly audible my dear sir he was saying i have already told you that it is no affair of mine but i ask you sir as a brother said another voice whether you consider it professional or reasonable as a brother replied as opened the door i would rather be excused from giving an opinion ah here is mr himself entered to find himself confronted by mr whose face was purple and whose white whiskers were with rage so sir he began so sir and choked there appears to have been some misunderstanding my dear explained with a which was only a shade less offensive than open triumph i think i d better leave you and this gentleman to talk it over quietly by ic a fool s quietly exclaimed mr with an quietly i ve no idea what you are so excited about sir said perhaps you will explain explain mr gasped no if i speak just now i shall be ill you tell him he added waving a plump hand in s direction i m not in possession of all the facts said smoothly but so far as i can gather this gentleman thinks that considering the importance of the work he to your hands you have given less time to it than he might have expected as i have told him that is a matter which does not concern me and which he must discuss with you so saying retired to his own room and shut the door with the same discretion which conveyed that he was not in the least surprised but was too much of a gentleman to show it well mr began e when they were alone so you re disappointed with the house disappointed said mr furiously i am disgusted sir disgusted s heart sank lower still had he deceived himself after all then had he been nothing but a conceited fool and most thought of all had judged him only too accurately and yet no he could not believe it he knew his work was good this is plain speaking with a vengeance he said by ic k g the brass bottle i m sorry you re dissatisfied i did my best to carry out your instructions oh you did mr that s what you call but go on sir go on i got it done as quickly as possible continued because i understood you wished no time to be lost no one can accuse you of over it what i should like to know is how the devil you managed to get it done in the time i worked incessantly all day and every day said that s how i managed it and this is all the thanks i get for it thanks mr well nigh howled you you insolent young you expect thanks now look here mr said whose own temper was getting a little i m not accustomed to being treated like this and i don t intend to submit to it just tell me in as moderate language as you can command what you object to i object to the whole damned thing sir i mean i the entire concern it s the work of a lunatic a place that no english gentleman sir with any self respect or ah consideration for his reputation and position in the county could consent to occupy for a single hour oh said feeling sick in that by ic a fool s paradise case it is useless of course to suggest any absolutely said mr very well then there s no more to be said replied you will have no in finding an who will be more successful in your intentions mr the gentleman you met just now he added with a touch of bitterness would probably be just your man of course i retire altogether and really if any one is the over this i fancy it s myself i can t see how you are any the worse not any the worse cried mr when the infernal place is built built echoed feebly i tell you sir i saw it with my own eyes driving to the station this morning my coachman and footman saw it my wife saw it damn it sir we all saw it then understood his had been at work again of course for it must have been what he would term the easiest of affairs especially after a glance at the plans and remembered that the had surprised him at work upon them and even requested to have them explained to him to dispense with and and and the entire building in the course of a single night by the brass bottle it was a generous and spirited action but particularly now that the original designs had been found and rejected it placed the unfortunate in a most position well sir said mr with elaborate irony i presume it is you whom i have to thank for improving my land by this precious palace on it i i began utterly broken down and then he saw with emotions that may be imagined the himself in his green robes standing immediately behind mr greeting to ye said coming forward with his smile of amiable cunning if i mistake not he added addressing the startled estate agent who had jumped visibly thou art the merchant for whom my son here and he laid a hand on s shrinking shoulder undertook to a mansion i am said mr in some have i the pleasure of addressing mr senior no no put in no relation he s a sort of	44
partner hast thou not found him an of divine gifts inquired the beaming with pride is not the palace that he hath raised for thee by his accomplishments a marvel of by ic a fool s paradise g beauty and and one that might envy no sir shouted the mr since you ask my opinion it s nothing of the sort it s a ridiculous tom fool cross between the at and the there s no room and not a decent bedroom in the house i ve been all over it so i ought to know and as for there isn t a sign of it and he has the brass ah i should say the to call that a country house s dismay curiously shot with relief the who was certainly very far from being a genius except by courtesy had taken it upon himself to erect the palace according to his own notions of domestic luxury and taught by bitter experience could to some extent with his unfortunate on the other hand it was to his self respect to find that it was not his own plans after all which had been found so preposterous and by some obscure mental process which i do not propose to explain he became reconciled and almost grateful to the and then too he was his and had no intention of letting him be by an let me explain mr he said personally i ve had nothing to do with this this gentleman wishing to spare me the trouble has taken by ic the brass bottle upon himself to build your house for you without consulting either of us and from what i know of his powers in that direction i ve no doubt that that it s a devilish fine place in its way anyhow we make no charge for it he presents it to you as a free gift why not accept it as such and make the best of it make the best of it mr stand by and see the best site in three by a nightmare like that why they ll call it s folly sir i shall be the laughing stock of the neighbourhood i can t live in the building i couldn t afford to keep it up and won t have it my land do you hear won t i ll go to law cost me what it may and compel you and your friend there to pull the thing down i ll take the case up to the house of lords if necessary and fight you as long as i can stand as long as thou stand repeated gently that is a long time truly thou one on all ungrateful dog that thou art he cried with an abrupt and entire change of manner and crawl henceforth for the remainder of thy days i el command thee it was both painful and grotesque to see the and intensely respectable mr suddenly drop forward on his hands while desperately striving by ic a fool s paradise to preserve his dignity how dare you sir he almost how dare you i say are you aware that i could summon you for this me up i insist upon getting up contemptible in aspect replied the throwing open the door to thy i won t i can t the unhappy man how do you ct me me to cross westminster bridge on all what will the officials think at where i have been known and respected for years how am i to face my family in in this position do for mercy s sake let me get up had been too shocked and startled to speak before but now humanity coupled with disgust for the s high handed methods compelled him to interfere mr he said this has gone far enough unless you stop this unfortunate gentleman i ve done with you never said he hath dared to abuse my palace which is far too a dwelling for such a son of a burnt dog as he therefore i will make his abode to be in the dust for ever but i don t find fault poor mr you you entirely misunderstood the few comments i ventured to make it s a capital mansion handsome and yet too i ll never say another word against it i ll yes i ll live in it if only you ll let me up by ic the brass bottle do as he asks you said to the or i swear i ll never speak to you again thou art the of this matter was the reply and if i yield it is at thy and not his then he said to the depart and show us the breadth of thy shoulders it was this precise moment which who was probably unable to restrain his curiosity any longer choose to re enter the room oh he began did i leave my i beg your pardon i thought you were alone again don t go sir said mr as he scrambled awkwardly to his feet his usually face in grey and i i should like you to know that after talking things quietly over with your friend mr and his partner here i am thoroughly convinced that my objections were quite i all i said the house is ah admirably planned most convenient and ah the the entire freedom from all is a particular recommendation in short i am more than satisfied pray forget anything i may have said which might be taken to imply the contrary gentlemen good afternoon he bowed himself past the in a state of deference and apprehension and was heard stumbling down the staircase hardly dared to meet by ic a fool s paradise s eyes which were fixed upon the green as he stood apart in dreamy abstraction smiling placidly	44
to himself i say said to at last in an you never told me you had gone into he s not a regular partner whispered he does odd things for me occasionally that s all he soon managed to smooth your down remarked yes said he s an oriental you see and he has a a very manner would you like to be introduced if it s all the same to you replied still below his voice i d rather be excused to tell you the truth old fellow i don t altogether fancy the looks of him and it s my opinion he added that the less you have to do with him the better he strikes me as a un old man no no said eccentric that s all you don t understand him news began the after with suspicion and evident even on his back and shoulders had retreated to his own room the son of sleeps with his fathers i know retorted whose nerves were unequal to much reference to solomon just then so does queen anne by the brass bottle i have not heard of her but art thou not astounded then by my tidings i have matters nearer home to think about said i must say mr you have landed me in a pretty mess explain more fully for i comprehend thee not why on earth groaned couldn t you let me build that house my own way did i not hear thee with my own ears lament thy inability to perform the task thereupon i determined that no disgrace should fall upon thee by reason of such since i myself would erect a palace so splendid that it should cause thy name to live for ever and behold it is done it is said and so am i i don t want to reproach you i quite feel that you have acted with the best intentions but oh hang it all cant you see that you ve absolutely wrecked my career as an that is a thing that cannot be returned the seeing that thou hast all the credit the credit this is england not what credit can i gain from being supposed to be the of an oriental which might be all very well for al but i can assure you is preposterous as a home for an average by a fool s paradise yet that hound remarked the expressed much gratification naturally after he had found that he could not give a candid opinion except on all a valuable that and how do you suppose i can take his money no mr if i have to go on all myself for it i must say and i will say that you ve made a most frightful of it me with thy wishes said a little abashed for thou that i can refuse thee naught then said boldly couldn t you remove that palace it into space or something verily said the in an tone to do good acts unto such as thee is but wasted time for thou me no peace till they are undone this is the last time urged i promise never to ask you for anything again not for the first time hast thou made such a promise said and save for the magnitude of thy service unto me i would not to this caprice of thine nor wilt thou find me so indulgent on another occasion but for this once and he muttered some words and made a sweeping gesture with his right thy desire is granted thee of the palace and all that is therein there no trace by ic the brass bottle another surprise for poor old thought but a pleasant one this time my dear mr he said aloud i really can t say how grateful i am to you and now i hate you like this but if you could manage to look in on professor what cried the yet another request already well you promised you d do that before you know said for that matter remarked i have already fulfilled my promise you have exclaimed and does he believe now that it s all true about that bottle when i left him answered the all his doubts were removed by jove you are a cried only too glad to be able to commend with sincerity and do you think if i went to him now i should find him the same as usual nay said with his weak and yet inscrutable smile that is more than i can promise thee but why asked if he knows all there was the expression in the s eyes a kind of mischief combined with a sense of wrong doing like a naughty child whose is still of jam because he replied by ic a fool s with a sound between a and a chuckle because in order to overcome his it was necessary to him into a one eyed mule of hideous appearance what cried but whether to avoid thanks or explanations the had disappeared with his customary shouted mr come back do you hear i must speak to you there was no answer the might be well on his way to lake or by that time he was far enough from great street sat down at his drawing table and his head buried in his hands tried to think out this latest had transformed professor into a one eyed mule it would have seemed incredible almost once but so many had happened to of late that one more made little or no strain upon his what he felt chiefly was the new barrier that this event must raise between himself and to do him justice the mere fact that the father of his was a mule did not lessen his in the slightest even if he had felt no personal responsibility for the calamity he loved far too	44
well to be by it and few family are without a skeleton of some sort with courage and the determination to look only n by ic the brass bottle on the bright side of things almost any domestic can be lived down but the real point as he instantly recognised was whether in the changed condition of circumstances would consent to marry him might she not after the experiences of that abominable dinner of his the night before connect him in some way with her poor father s she might even suspect him of this means of compelling the professor to renew their engagement and indeed was by no means certain himself that the might not have acted from some headed motive of this kind it was likely enough that the professor after learning the truth should have refused to allow his daughter to marry the of so a patron and that had then resorted to pressure in any case knew well enough to feel sure that pride would steel her heart against him so long as this obstacle remained it would be to set down here all that said and thought of the person who had brought all this upon them but after some wild and futile he became calm enough to recognise that his proper place was by s side perhaps he ought to have told her at first and then she would have been less unprepared for and yet how could he trouble her mind so long as he could cling to the hope that the would cease to interfere by ic a s paradise but now lie could be silent no longer naturally the prospect of calling at gardens just then was anything but agreeable but he felt it would be cowardly to keep away besides he could cheer them up he could bring with him a message of hope no doubt they believed that the professor s would be permanent a prospect for so united a family but fortunately would be able to them on this point had always his previous performances as soon as he could be brought to understand their and would take good care that he this nevertheless it was with a sinking heart and an unsteady hand that he pulled the visitors bell at the house that afternoon for he neither knew in what state he should find that afflicted family nor how they would regard his intrusion at such a time by ic the brass bottle chapter xii the of hope the neat and pretty parlour maid opened the door with a smile of welcome which found no girl he thought whose master had suddenly been transformed into a mule could possibly smile like that the professor she told him was not at home which again was comforting for a however careless about his personal appearance would scarcely venture to brave public opinion in the semblance of a is the professor out he inquired to make sure not exactly out sir said the maid but particularly engaged working hard in his study and not to be disturbed on no account this was encouraging too since a mule could hardly engage in literary labour of any kind evidently the must either have over his supernatural powers or else have been deliberately amusing himself at s expense then i will see miss he said miss is with the sir said the girl by ic the messenger of but if you ll come into the drawing room i ll let mrs know you are here he had not been in the drawing room long before mrs appeared and one glance at her face confirmed s worst fears outwardly she was calm enough but it was only too obvious that her calmness was the result of severe self her eyes usually so and placidly observant had a haggard and hunted look her ears seemed on the strain to catch some distant sound i hardly thought we should see you to day she began in a tone of studied reserve but perhaps you came to offer some explanation of the extraordinary manner in which you thought fit to entertain us last night if so the fact is said looking into his hat i came because i was rather anxious about the professor about my husband said the poor lady with a really heroic effort to appear surprised he as well as could be expected why should you suppose otherwise she added with a flash of suspicion i fancied perhaps that that he t be quite himself to day said with his eyes on the carpet i see said mrs her composure you were afraid that all those foreign dishes might not have agreed with him but except that he is a little irritable this afternoon he is much as usual by ic the brass bottle i m delighted to hear it said with hope do you think he would see me for a moment great heavens no cried mrs with an irrepressible start i mean she explained that after what took place last night my husband very properly feels that an interview would be too painful but when we parted he was perfectly friendly i can only say replied the courageous woman that you would find him considerably altered now had no in believing it at least i may see he pleaded no said mrs i really can t have disturbed just now she is very busy helping her father has to read a paper at one of his societies to morrow night and she is writing it out from his if any departure from strict truth can ever be this surely was one unfortunately just then herself burst into the room mother she cried without seeing in her agitation do come to papa quick he has just begun kicking again and i can t manage him alone oh you here she broke off as she saw who	44
was in the room why do you come here now please please go papa is rather nothing serious only oh do go away darling said going to her and taking by ic the messenger of hope bath her hands i know do you understand all mamma cried reproachfully have you told him already when we settled that even wasn t to know till till papa i have told him nothing my dear replied her mother he can t possibly know unless but no that isn t possible and after all she added with a warning glance at her daughter i don t know why we should make any mystery about a mere attack of but i had better go and see if your father wants anything and she hurried out of the room sat down and gazed silently into the fire i dare say you don t know how dreadfully people kick when they ve got she remarked presently oh yes i do said at least i can guess especially when it s in both legs continued or said gently in all four ah you do know cried then it s all the more horrid of you to come dearest said is not this just the time when my place should be near and him not near papa she put in anxiously it wouldn t be at all safe do you really think i have any fear for myself are you sure you quite know what he is like now by ic l the brass bottle i understand said trying to put it as as possible that a casual observer who didn t know your father might mistake him at first sight for for some sort of he s a mule sobbed breaking down entirely i could bear it better if he had been a nice mule b but he isn t whatever he may be declared as he knelt by her chair endeavouring to comfort her nothing can alter my profound respect for him and you must let me see him because i fully believe i shall be able to cheer him up if you imagine you can persuade him to to laugh it off said i wasn t proposing to try to make him see the humorous side of his situation mildly explained i trust i have more tact than that but he may be glad to know that at the worst it is only a temporary inconvenience i ll take care that he s all right again before very long she started up and looked at him her eyes with dawning dread and if you can speak like that she said it must have been you who no i can t believe it that would be too horrible i who did what weren t you there when when it happened no she replied i was only told of it afterwards by ic the op hope mother heard papa talking loudly in his study this morning as if he was angry with somebody and at last she grew so uneasy she couldn t bear it any longer and went in to see what was the matter with him was quite alone and looked as usual only a little excited and then without the slightest warning just as she entered the room he he changed slowly into a mule before her eyes anybody but mamma would have lost her head and roused the whole house thank heaven she didn t said fervently that was what i was most afraid of then oh it was you it s no use denying it i feel more certain of it every moment now r he protested still anxious if possible to keep the worst from her what could have put such an idea as that into your head i don t know she said slowly several things last night no one who was really nice and like everybody else would live in queer rooms like those and dine on cushions with dreadful black slaves and and dancing girls and things you pretended you were quite poor so i am darling and as for the rooms and and the rest they re all gone if you went to square to day you wouldn t find a trace of them that only shows said but why should by ic the brass bottle you play such a cruel and and trick on poor if you had ever really loved me but i do you can t really believe me capable of such an outrage look at me and tell me so no said frankly i don t believe you did it but i believe you know who did and you had better tell me at once if you re quite sure you can stand it he replied i ll tell you everything and as briefly as possible he told her how he had the brass bottle and all that had come of it she bore it on the whole better than he had expected perhaps being a woman it was some consolation to her to remind him that she had foretold something of this kind from the very first but of course i never really thought it would be so awful as this she said how could you be so careless as to let a great wicked thing like that escape out of its bottle i had a notion it was a manuscript said till he came out but he isn t a great wicked thing he s an amiable old enough and he d do anything for me nobody could be more grateful and generous than he has been do you call it generous to change the poor dear into a mule inquired with a little curl of her upper lip by ic the messenger of hope that was an said he meant no harm by	44
it in they do these things or used to in his day not that that s much excuse for him still he s not so young as he was and besides being up for all those centuries must have him rather you must try and make for him darling i shan t said unless he to poor father and puts him right at once why of course he ll do that answered confidently i ll see that he does i don t mean to stand any more of his nonsense i m afraid i ve been just a little too slack for fear of his feelings but this time he s gone too far and i shall talk to him like a dutch uncle he s always ready to do the right thing when he s once shown when he has gone wrong only he takes such a lot of showing poor old chap but when do you think he ll do the right thing oh as soon as i see him again yes but when you see him again that s more than i can say he s away just now in china or or somewhere then he won t be back for months and months oh yes he will he can do the whole trip et you know in a few hours he s an active old beggar for his age in the mean time dearest the chief thing is to keep up your father s spirits so i by ic the brass bottle think i d better i was just telling mrs he said as that lady re entered the room that i should like to see the professor at once it s quite quite impossible was the nervous reply he s in such a state that he s unable to see any one you don t know how makes him dear mrs said believe me i know more than you suppose yes mother dear put in he knows every everything and perhaps it might do good to see him mrs sank helplessly down on a oh dear me she said i don t know what to say i really don t if you had seen him plunge at the mere suggestion of a doctor privately though naturally he could not say so thought a might be more appropriate but eventually he persuaded mrs to conduct him to her husband s study love she said as she knocked gently at the door i ve brought to see you for a few moments if he may it seemed from the sounds of furious and stamping within that the professor resented this intrusion on his privacy my dear said his devoted wife as she unlocked the door and turned the key on the inside after admitting try to be by ic the messenger of hope calm think of the servants downstairs is so anxious to help as for he was speechless so shocked was he by the alteration in the professor s appearance he had never seen a mule in condition or in so vicious a temper most of the lighter furniture had been already reduced to the glass doors of the were or shivered precious egyptian and glass were strewn in fragments on the carpet and even the though it still smiled with the same cheerfulness seemed to have suffered severely from the hoofs instinctively felt that any words of conventional sympathy would jar here indeed the professor s attitude and expression of a certain donkey he had seen by music hall artists at the point where it becomes sullen and defiant only he had laughed helplessly at the donkey and somehow he felt no inclination to laugh now believe me sir he began i would not disturb you like this unless steady there for heaven s sake professor don t kick till you ve heard me out for the mule in a clumsy way which betrayed the was slowly revolving on his own so as to bring his hind quarters into action while still keeping his only serviceable eye upon his unwelcome visitor by the brass bottle listen to me sir said in his turn i m not to blame for this and if you brain me as you seem to be endeavouring to do you ll simply destroy the only living man who can get you out of this the mule appeared impressed by this and backed into a comer from which he regarded with a but attentive eye if as i imagine sir continued you are though temporarily deprived of speech perfectly capable of following an argument will you kindly signify it by raising your right ear the mule s right ear rose with a sharp now we can get on said first let me tell you that i all responsibility for the proceedings of that infernal i wouldn t stamp like that you might go through the floor you know now if you will only exercise a little patience at this the exasperated animal made a sudden run at him with his mouth open which obliged to shelter himself behind a large leather arm chair you really must keep cool sir he remonstrated your nerves are naturally if i might suggest a little you could manage it in in a bucket and it would help you to pull yourself together a of er tail would imply consent the professor s tail instantly swept some rare glass lamps and by ic the messenger of hope from a shelf at his rear whereupon mrs went out and returned presently with a bottle of champagne and a large china as the best substitute she could find for a bucket when the mule had drained the flower pot and appeared refreshed proceeded i have every hope sir he said that before many hours you will be smiling pray don t like that i mean what i say	44
smiling over what now seems to you very justly a most and serious catastrophe i shall speak seriously to the you know and i am sure that as soon as he what a frightful blunder he has made he will be the first to offer you every in his power for old as he is he s thoroughly good hearted the professor drooped his ears at this and shook his head with a incredulity that made him look more like the donkey than ever i think i understand him fairly well by this time sir said and i ll answer for it that there s no real harm in him i give you my word of honour that if you ll only remain quiet and leave everything to me you shall very soon be released from this absurd position that s all i came to tell you now i won t trouble you any longer if you could bring yourself as a sign that you bear me no ill feeling to give me your your off at parting i but the professor turned his back in so pointed by ic l the brass bottle and ominous a manner that judged it better to withdraw without further i m afraid he said to mrs after they had rejoined in the drawing room i m afraid your husband is still a little sore with me about this miserable business i don t know what else you can expect replied the lady rather he can t help feeling as we all must and do after what you said just now that but for you this would never have happened if you mean it was all through my attending that sale said you might remember that i only went there at the professor s request you know that yes said but papa never asked you to buy a hideous brass bottle with a nasty genius in it and any one with ordinary common sense would have kept it properly what you against me too cried cut to the quick no never against you i didn t mean to say what i did only it is such a relief to put the blame on somebody i know i know you feel it almost as much as we do but so long as poor dear papa remains as he is we can never be anything to one another you must see that yes i see that he said but trust me he shall not remain as he is i swear he shall not in another day or two at the outside you will see him by ic the messenger op hope his own self once more and then oh darling darling you won t let anything or anybody separate us promise me that he would have held her in his arms but she kept him at a distance when papa is himself again she said i shall know better what to say i can t promise anything now recognised that no appeal would draw a more definite answer from her just then so he took his leave with the feeling that after all matters must improve before very long and in the mean time he must bear the suspense with patience he got through dinner as well as he could in his own rooms for he did not like to go to his club lest the should suddenly return during his absence if he wants me he d be quite equal to coming on to the club after me he reflected for he has about as much sense of the fitness of things as mary s lamb shouldn t care about seeing him suddenly bursting through the floor of the smoking room nor would the committee he sat up late in the hope that would appear but the made no sign and began to get uneasy i wish there was some w y of ringing him up he thought if he were only the slave of a ring or a lamp i d rub it but it wouldn t be any use to rub that and besides he isn t a slave probably he has a suspicion that he has not by ic the brass bottle exactly distinguished himself over his latest feat and thinks it prudent to keep out of my way for the present but if he fancies hell make things any better for himself by that hell find himself mistaken it was to think of the unhappy professor still away hour after hour in the form of a mule waiting impatiently for the relief that never came if it lingered much longer he might actually starve unless his family thought of getting in some for him and he could be prevailed upon to touch them and how much longer could they succeed in concealing the nature of his affliction how long before all and the whole world would know that one of the leading in europe was on four legs around his study in gardens backed by speculations such as these lay awake till well into the small hours when he dropped off into troubled dreams that wild as they were could not be more fantastic than the realities to which they were the alternative by ic chapter xiii a choice of evils not even his morning tub could brace s spirits to their usual cheerfulness after sending away his breakfast almost he stood at his window looking out over the crude green turf of square at the masses of the abbey and the victoria tower and the huge to the right which loomed faintly through a coloured haze he felt a positive for his office to which he had gone with such high hopes and enthusiasm of late there was no work for him to do there any longer and the sight of his drawing table and materials would he knew be intolerable in their mute mockery	44
nor could he with any decency present himself again at gardens while the situation still remained unchanged as it must do until he had seen when would the return or horrible suspicion did he never intend to return at all he groaned aloud you can t really by ic the brass bottle mean to leave me in such a regular deuce of a hole as this at thy service said a well known voice behind him and he turned to see the standing smiling on the and at this accomplishment of his dearest desire all his indignation back oh you are he said where on earth have you been all this time nowhere on earth was the bland reply but in the regions of the air seeking to promote thy welfare if you have been as brilliantly successful up there as you have down here retorted i have much to thank you for i am more than repaid answered the who like many highly persons was almost to irony by such assurances of thy gratitude i m not grateful said i m devilish annoyed well hath it been written replied the be of thine affairs and commit them to the course of fate for often a thing that thee may eventually be to thee pleasing i don t see the remotest chance of that in my case said why is thy countenance thus troubled and what new complaint hast thou against me by ic a of evils what the devil do you mean by turning a distinguished and perfectly scholar into a mule broke out if that is your idea of a practical joke it is one of the easiest affairs possible said the complacently running his fingers through the thin of his beard i have accomplished such on several occasions then you ought to be ashamed of yourself that s all the question is how do you propose to restore him again far from be that which is accomplished was the answer what cried hardly believing his ears you surely don t mean to allow that unhappy professor to remain like that for ever do you none can alter what is very likely not but it wasn t that a learned man should be suddenly degraded to a mule for the rest of his life destiny wouldn t be such a fool despise not for they are useful and valuable animals in the household but confound it all have you no imagination can t you enter at all into the feelings of a man a man of wide learning and reputation suddenly plunged into such a humiliating condition by ic the brass bottle upon his own head be it said coldly for he hath brought this fate upon himself well how do you suppose that you have helped me by this performance will it make him any the more disposed to consent to my marrying his daughter is that all you know of the world it is not my intention that thou take his daughter to wife whether you approve or not it s my intention to marry her assuredly she will not marry thee so long as her father a mule there i with you but is that your notion of doing me a good turn i did not consider thy interest in this matter then will you be good enough to consider it now i have pledged my word that he shall be restored to his original form not only my happiness is at stake but my honour by failure to perform the impossible none can lose and this is a thing that cannot be undone cannot be undone repeated feeling a cold clutch at his heart why because said the sullenly i have forgotten the way nonsense retorted i don t believe it why he urged descending to flattery you re such a clever old i beg your pardon i meant such a by ic a choice of evils clever old yon can do anything if you only give your mind to it just look at the way you changed this house back again to what it was marvellous that was the trifle said though he was obviously pleased by this tribute to his talent this would be a different affair altogether but child s play to come you know very well you can do it if you only choose it may be as thou say est but i do not choose then i think said that considering the obligation you admit yourself you are under to me i have a right to know the the reason why you refuse thy claim is not without justice answered the after a pause nor can i decline to gratify thee that s right cried i knew you d see it in the proper light when it was once put to you now don t lose any more time but restore that unfortunate man at once as you ve promised not so said the i promised thee a reason for my and that thou shalt have know then my son that this one had by some vile and arts divined the hidden meaning of what was written upon the seal of the bottle wherein i was confined and was preparing to reveal the same unto all men by ic the brass bottle what would it matter to you if he did much for the writing contained a false and lying record of my actions if it is all lies it can t do you any harm why not treat them with the contempt they deserve they are not all lies the admitted reluctantly well never mind whatever you ve done you ve it by this time now that is no more it is my desire to seek out my of the green and live out my days in and honour how can that be if they hear my name by	44
all mortals nobody would think of you about an affair three thousand years old it s too stale a scandal thou without understanding i tell thee that if men knew but the half of my said in a tone not altogether free from a kind of sombre complacency the noise of them would rise even unto the uppermost regions and scorn and would be my portion oh it s not so bad as all that said who had a private impression that the s past would probably turn out to be chiefly made up of but anyway i m sure the professor will readily agree to keep silence about it and as you by ic pi a choice of evils have of course got the seal in your own possession again nay the seal is still in his possession and it is naught to me where it is deposited said since the only mortal who hath it is now a dumb animal not at all said there are several friends of his who could that inscription quite as easily as he did is this the truth said the in visible alarm certainly said within the last quarter of a century has made great strides our learned men can now read bricks and as easily as if they were on iron you may think you ve been extremely clever in turning the professor into an animal but you ll probably find you ve only made another mistake how so inquired well said seeing his advantage and pushing it now that in your infinite wisdom you have ordained that he should be a mule he naturally can t possess property therefore all his effects will have to be sold and amongst them will be that seal of yours which like many other things in his collection will probably be bought up by the british museum where it will be examined and by the brass bottle commented upon by every in europe i suppose you ve thought of all that young man of marvellous sagacity said the truly i had omitted to consider these things and thou hast opened my eyes in time for i will present myself unto this man mule and him to reveal where he hath bestowed this seal so that i may regain it he can t do that you know so long as he remains a mule i will him with speech for the purpose let me tell you this said he s in a very nasty temper just now naturally enough and you won t get anything out of him until you have restored him to human form if you do that he ll agree to anything whether i restore him or not will depend not on me but on the who is his daughter and to whom thou art contracted in marriage for first of all i must speak with her so long as i am present and you promise not to play any tricks said i ve no objection for i believe if you once saw her and heard her plead for her poor father you wouldn t have the heart to hold out any longer but you must give me your word that you ll behave yourself thou hast it said the i do but desire to see her on thine account by ic a choice op evils very well agreed but i really can t introduce you in that she d be terrified couldn t you contrive to get yourself up in commonplace english clothes just for something that wouldn t attract so much attention will this satisfy thee inquired the as his green and flowing robes suddenly resolved themselves into the conventional chimney pot hat frock coat and trousers of modern he bore a painful resemblance in them to the kind of elderly gentleman who comes on in the to be by the but was in no mood to be critical just then that s better he said much better now he added as he led the way to the hall and put on his own hat and overcoat we ll go out and find a and be at in less than twenty minutes we shall be there in less than twenty seconds said the seizing him by the arm above the elbow and found himself suddenly carried up into the air and set down gasping with surprise and want of breath on the pavement opposite the door i should just like to observe he said as soon as he could speak that if we ve been seen we shall probably cause a sensation are not accustomed to seeing people over the like amateur by ic the brass bottle trouble not for that said for no mortal eyes are capable of following our flight i hope not said or i shall lose any reputation i have left i think he added i d better go in alone first and prepare them if you won t mind waiting outside i ll come to the window and wave my pocket handkerchief when they re ready and do come in by the door like an ordinary person and ask the if you may see me i will bear it in mind answered the and suddenly sank or seemed to sink through a in the pavement after ringing at the door was admitted and shown into the drawing room where presently came to him looking as lovely as ever in spite of the due to and anxiety it is kind of you to call and inquire she said with the unnatural calm of suppressed is much the same this morning he had a fairly good night and was able to take part of a for breakfast but i m afraid he s just remembered that he has to read a paper on oriental before the society this evening and it s worrying him a little oh she broke out unexpectedly how perfectly awful	44
all this is how are we to bear it don t give way darling said you will not have to bear it much longer by ic a choice of evils it s all very well but unless something is done soon it will be too late we can t go on keeping a mule in the study without the servants suspecting something and where are we to put poor dear papa it s too ghastly to think of his having to be sent away to to a home of for horses and yet what is to be done with him why do you come if you can t do anything i shouldn t be here unless i could bring you good news you remember what i told you about the cried as if i could forget has he really come back yes i think i have brought him to see that he has made a foolish mistake in your unfortunate father and he seems willing to undo it on certain conditions he is somewhere within call at this moment and will come in whenever i give the signal but he wishes to speak to you first to me f oh no exclaimed i d so much rather not i don t like things that have come out of brass bottles i shouldn t know what to say and it would frighten me horribly you must be brave darling said that it depends on you whether the professor is to be restored or not and there s nothing alarming about old either i ve got him to put on ordinary things and he really don t look so bad in by ic the brass bottle them he s quite a mild amiable old and he ll do anything for you if you ll only stroke him down the right way you will see him won t you for your father s sake if i must said with a shudder i i ll be as nice to him as i can went to the window and gave the signal though there was no one in sight however it was evidently seen for the next moment there was a blow at the front door and a little later the parlour maid announced mr to see mr and the stalked gravely in with his tall hat on his head you are probably not aware of it sir said bat it is the custom here to in the presence of a lady the removed his hat with both hands and stood silent and let me present you to miss continued the lady whose name you have already heard there was a momentary gleam in s odd eyes as they lighted on s shrinking figure but he made no acknowledgment of the introduction the is not without he remarked to but there are far than she i didn t ask you for either or said sharply there is nobody by ic a choice of evils the world equal to miss in my opinion and you will be good enough to remember that fact she is exceedingly distressed as any dutiful daughter would be by the cruel and senseless trick you have played her father and she that you will it at once don t you yes indeed said almost in a whisper if it isn t troubling you too much i have been turning over thy words in my mind said to still and i am convinced that thou art right even if the contents of the seal were known of all men they would raise no about affairs that concern them not therefore it is nothing to me in whose hands the seal may be dost thou not agree with me in this of course i do said and it naturally follows that it naturally follows as thou said the with a cunning assumption of indifference that i have naught to gain by demanding back the seal as the price of restoring this s father to his original form wherefore so far as i am concerned let him remain a mule for ever unless indeed thou art ready to with my conditions conditions cried utterly unprepared for this conclusion what can you possibly want from me but state them i ll agree to anything in reason j by the brass bottle i demand that thou should st the hand of this that s out of all reason said and you know it i will never give her up so long as she is willing to keep me maiden said the addressing for the first time the matter rests with thee wilt thou release this my son from his contract since thou art no fit wife for such as he how can i cried when i love him and he loves me what a wicked old thing you must be to expect it i can t give him up it is but giving up what can never be thine said and be not anxious for him for i will reward and console him a for the loss of thy society a little while and he shall remember thee no more don t believe him darling said you know me better than that said the that by thy refusal thou wilt condemn thy parent to remain a mule throughout all his days art thou so unnatural and hard hearted a daughter as to do this thing oh i couldn t cried i can t let poor father remain a mule all his life when one word and yet what am i to do what shall i say advise me advise me heaven help us both groaned if by ic a choice op evils i could only see the right thing to do look here mr he added this is a matter that requires consideration will you relieve us of your presence for a short time while we talk it over with all	44
my heart said the in the most obliging manner in the world and vanished instantly now darling began after he had gone if that unspeakable old scoundrel is really in earnest there s no denying that he s got us in an extremely tight place but i can t bring myself to believe that he does mean it i fancy he s only trying us and what i want you to do is not to consider me in the matter at all how can i help it said poor you you don t want to be released do you i said when you are all i have in the world that s so likely but we are bound to look facts in the face to begin with even if this hadn t happened your people wouldn t let our engagement continue for my prospects have changed again dearest i m even worse than when we first met for that confounded has contrived to lose my first and only for me the one thing worth having he ever gave me and he told her the story of the palace and mr s so you see darling he concluded i haven t even a home to ofi er you and if i had it would be miserably uncomfortable for you with that old p by the brass bottle continually dropping in on us especially if as i m afraid he has he s taken some unreasonable dislike to you but surely you can talk him over said you said you could do anything you liked with him i m beginning to find he replied enough that he s not so easily managed as i thought and for the present i m afraid if we are to get the professor out of this that there s nothing for it but to humour old then you actually advise me to to break it off she cried i never thought you would do that for your own sake said for your father s sake if you won t i must and you w ill spare me that let us both agree to part and and trust that we shall be united some day don t try to deceive me or yourself she said if we part now it will be for ever he had a dismal conviction that she was right we must hope for the best he said may have some motive in all this we don t understand or he may but part we must for the present very well she said if he i will give you up but not unless hath the decided asked the suddenly re appearing for the period of deliberation is past by ic a choice of evils miss and i answered for her are willing to consider our engagement at an end until you approve of its renewal on condition that you restore her father at once agreed said conduct me to him and we will arrange the matter without delay outside they met mrs on her way from the study you here she exclaimed and who is this gentleman this said is the er author of the professor s misfortunes and he has come here at my request to undo his work it would be so kind of him exclaimed the distressed lady who was by this time far beyond either surprise or resentment i m sure if he knew all we have gone through and she led the way to her husband s room as soon as the door was opened the professor seemed to recognise his in spite of his changed and was so powerfully agitated that he actually on his four legs and stood over in a lamentable fashion man of distinguished began the whom i have caused for reasons that are known unto thee to assume the shape mule speak i thee and tell me where thou hast deposited the inscribed seal which is in thy possession the professor spoke and the effect of articulate by ic the brass bottle speech proceeding from the mouth of what was to all outward seeming an ordinary mule was strange beyond description ill see you damned first he said sullenly you can t do worse to me than you ve done already as thou wilt said but unless i regain it i will not restore thee to what thou well then said the mule savagely you ll find it in the top right hand drawer of my writing table the key is in that bowl on the the unlocked the drawer and took out the metal cap which he placed in the breast pocket of his frock coat so far well he said next thou must deliver up to me the thou hast made and swear to preserve an secrecy regarding the meaning thereof do you know what you re asking sir said the mule laying back his ears do you think that to oblige you i m going to suppress one of the most remarkable discoveries of my whole scientific career never sir never since if thou i shall assuredly deprive thee of speech once more and leave thee a mule as thou art now of hideous appearance said the thou art like to gain little by a discovery which thou wilt be unable to impart however the choice rests with thee the mule rolled his one eye and showed all his by a choice of evils teeth in a vicious you ve got the whip hand of me he said and i may as well give in there s a inside my case it s the only copy i ve made found the paper which he rubbed into between his palms as any ordinary might do now raise thy right he said and swear by all thou sacred never to what thou hast learnt which oath the professor in the of	44
took enough good said the with a grim smile now let one of thy women bring me a cup of fair water went out and came back with a cup of water it s she said anxiously don t know if that will do it will suffice said let both the women withdraw surely remonstrated mrs you don t mean to turn his wife and daughter out of the room at such a moment as this we shall be perfectly quiet and we may even be of some help do as you re told my dear snapped the ungrateful mule do as you re told you ll only be in the way here do you suppose he doesn t know his own business they left accordingly whereupon took the cup an breakfast cup with a greek by the brass bottle key border pattern in pale blue round the top and the mule with the contents exclaimed quit this form and return to the form in which thou for a dreadful moment or two it seemed as if no effect was to be produced the animal simply stood and shivered and began to feel an suspicion that the really had as he had first asserted forgotten how to perform this particular all at once the mule reared and began to beat the air with his fore hoofs after which he fell heavily backward into the nearest which was fortunately a solid and piece of furniture with his fore legs hanging at his side in a semi human fashion there was a brief and then by some gradual process impressive to witness the man seemed to break through the mule the mule became in the man and professor restored to his own natural form and habit sat gasping and trembling in the chair before them by ic chapter xiv since there s no help come let us kiss and part as soon as the professor seemed to have regained his faculties opened the door and called in and her mother who were as was only to be expected overcome with joy on seeing the head of the family released from his condition of a singularly ill favoured there there said the professor as he submitted to their embraces and congratulations it s nothing to make a fuss about i m quite myself again as you can see and he added with an unreasonable outburst of ill temper if one of you had only had the common sense to think of such a simple remedy as a little cold water over me when i was first taken like that i should have been spared a great deal of unnecessary inconvenience but that s always the way with women lose their heads the moment anything goes wrong if i had not kept perfectly cool myself by the brass bottle it was very very stupid of us not to think of it papa said the fact that there was scarcely an article in the room still you know if we had thrown the water it t have had the same effect i m not in a condition to argue now said her father you didn t trouble to try it and there s no more to be said no more to be said exclaimed thou monster of ingratitude hast thou no thanks for him who hath delivered thee from thy as i am already indebted to you sir said the i for about twenty four hours of the most and humiliating mental and bodily anguish a human being can endure inflicted for no reason that i can discover except the wanton indulgence of your powers i can only say that any gratitude of which i am conscious is of a very qualified description as for you he added turning to i don t know i can only guess at the part you have played in this wretched business but in any ease you will understand once for all that all relations between us must cease papa said and i have already agreed that that we must separate at my bidding explained for such an alliance would be totally unworthy of his merits and condition by ic let us kiss and part this frankness was rather too much for the professor whose temper had not been improved by his recent trials nobody asked for your opinion sir he snapped a person who has only recently been released from a term of long and from all i have been able to ascertain well deserved imprisonment is scarcely entitled to pose as an authority on social rank have the decency riot to interfere again with my domestic affairs excellent is the saying remarked the let the rat that is between the of the observe rigidly all the rules of politeness and refrain from words of provocation for to return thee to the form of a mule once more would be no difficult undertaking i think i failed to make myself clear the professor hastened to observe failed to make myself clear i i merely meant to congratulate you on your fortunate escape from the consequences of what i i don t doubt was an error of justice i i am sure that in the future you will employ your your very remarkable abilities to better purpose and i would suggest that the greatest service you can do this unfortunate young man here is to from any further attempts to promote his interests hear hear could not help throwing in though in so discreet an that it was by the brass bottle far be this from me replied for he has become unto me even as a favourite son whom i design to ip upon the golden of felicity therefore i have chosen for him a wife who is unto this of thine as the full moon to the glow worm and as the bird of	44
paradise to an and the shall be celebrated before many hours cried justly why didn t you tell me this before because said the unhappy this is the very first i ve heard of it he s always springing some fresh surprise on me he added in a whisper but they never come to anything much and he can t marry me against my will you know no said biting her lip i never supposed he could do that i ll settle this at once he replied now look here mr he added i don t know what new scheme you have got in your head but if you are proposing to marry me to anybody in particular have i not informed thee that i have it in contemplation to obtain for thee the hand of a king s daughter of marvellous beauty and accomplishments you know perfectly well you never mentioned it before said while gave a little low cry not the since it is for his welfare for though as yet he by ic let us kiss and part it not when he the beauty of her countenance he will away with delight and forget thy very existence shall do nothing of the sort said savagely just understand that i don t intend to marry any princess you may prevent me in fact you have from marrying this lady but you can t force me to marry anybody else i defy you when thou hast seen thy bride s thou wilt need no said and if thou should st refuse know this that thou wilt be exposing those who are dear to thee in this household to of the most unfortunate description the awful of this threat completely crushed he could not think he did not even dare to imagine what consequences he might bring upon his beloved and her helpless parents by in his refusal give me time he said heavily i want to talk this over with you pardon me said the professor with politeness but interesting as the discussion of your matrimonial arrangements is to you and your a protector i should greatly prefer that you chose some more fitting place for arriving at a decision which is in the circumstances a conclusion i am rather tired and upset and i should be obliged if you and this gentleman could bring this most trying by the brass bottle interview to a close as soon as you conveniently can you hear mr said between his teeth it is quite time we left if you go at once i will follow you very shortly thou wilt find me awaiting thee answered the and to mrs s and s alarm disappeared through one of the well said gloomily you see how i m situated that obstinate old devil has me i m done for don t say that said the professor you appear to be on the eve of a most brilliant alliance in which i am sure you have our best wishes the best wishes of us all he added said still lingering before i go tell me that whatever i may have to do you will understand that that it will be for your sake please don t talk like that she said we may never see one another again don t let my last recollection of you be of of a a he cried this is too much what have i said or done to make you think me that oh i am not so simple as you suppose she replied i see now why all this has happened why poor was tormented why you insisted on my setting you free but i would have released you by let us kiss and part without that indeed all this elaborate wasn t in the least necessary you believe i was an in that old fool s plot he said you believe me such a cur as that i don t blame you she said i don t believe you could help yourself he can make you do whatever he chooses and then you are so rich now it is natural that you should want to marry some one some one more suited to you like this lovely princess of yours of mine groaned the exasperated when i tell you i ve never even seen her as if any princess in the world would marry me to please a out of a brass bottle and if she did you can t believe any princess would make me forget you it depends so very much on the princess was all could be induced to say well said if that s all the faith you have in me i suppose it s useless to say any more good bye mrs good bye professor i wish i could tell you how deeply i regret all the trouble i have brought on you by my own folly all i can say is that i will bear anything in future rather than expose you or any of you to the smallest risk i trust indeed said the professor stiffly that you will use all the influence at your command to by ic the brass bottle secure me from any repetition of an experience that might well have a less temperament than my own good bye said mrs more kindly i believe you are more to be pitied than blamed whatever others may think and i don t forget if does that but for you he might instead of sitting there comfortably in his be out with his hind legs and kicking everything to pieces at this very moment i deny that i lashed out said the professor ry a hind quarters may have been under imperfect control but i never lost my reasoning powers or my good humour for a single instant i can say that	44
if the professor could say that amidst the general wreck in which he sat like another he had little to learn in the gentle art of self tion but there was nothing to gain by him then good bye said and held out his hand good bye she said without offering to take it or look at and after a miserable pause he left the study but before he had reached the front door he heard a and of behind him and felt her light hand on his arm ah no she said clinging to him i can t let you go like this i didn t by ic let us kiss and part mean all the things i said just now i do believe in you at least i ll try hard to and i shall always always love you i shan t care very much even if you forget me so long as you are happy only don t be too happy think of me sometimes i shall not be too happy he said as he held her close to his heart and kissed her drawn mouth and flushed cheeks and i shall think of you and you won t fall in love with your princess entreated at the end of her promise if i am ever provided with one he replied i shall her for not being you but don t let us lose heart darling there must be some way of talking that old idiot out of this nonsense and bringing him round to common sense i m not going to give in just yet these were brave words but as they both felt the situation had little enough to warrant them and after one last long embrace they parted and he was no sooner on the steps than he felt himself caught up as before and borne through the air with breathless speed till he was set down he could not have well said how in a chair in his own sitting room at square well he said looking at the who was by ic the brass bottle standing opposite with a smile of intolerable complacency i suppose you feel satisfied with yourself over this business it hath indeed been brought to a favourable conclusion said well hath the poet written i don t think i can stand any more elegant this afternoon interrupted let us come to business you seem he went on with a strong effort to keep himself in hand to have formed some plan for marrying me to a king s daughter may i ask you for full particulars no honour and advancement can be in excess of thy deserts answered the very kind of you to say but you are probably unaware that as society is constituted at the present time the objections to such an alliance would be quite for me said the few obstacles are but speak thy mind freely i will said to begin with no european princess of the blood royal would entertain the idea for a moment and if she did she would her rank and cease to be a princess and i should probably be imprisoned in a fortress for or something dismiss thy fears for i do not propose to unite thee to any princess that is born of mortals the bride i intend for thee is a the by ic let its kiss and part i el daughter of my the of the blue oh is she though said i m exceedingly obliged but whatever may be the lady s attractions her nose the with enthusiasm is like unto the keen edge of a polished sword her hair jewels and her cheeks are ruddy as wine she hath heavy and when she aside she to shame the wild cows my good excellent friend said by no means impressed by this catalogue of charms one doesn t marry to wild cows when she with a gait continued as though he had not been interrupted the willow branch itself green with envy personally said a doesn t strike me as particularly it s quite a matter of taste do you happen to have seen this lately my eyes have not been refreshed by her manifold beauties since i was enclosed by whose name be accursed in the ss bottle of which thou why dost thou ask merely because it occurred to me that after very nearly three thousand years your charming may well to put it as mildly as possible not have q by ic the brass bottle altogether escaped the usual effects of time i she must be getting on you know silly bearded one said the in rebuke art thou then ignorant that we of the are not as mortals that we should feel the of age forgive me if i m personal said but surely your own hair and beard might be described as rather to grey not from age said this from long confinement i see said like the prisoner of well assuming that the lady in question is still in the bloom of early youth i see one fatal difficulty to becoming her doubtless said the thou art referring to the son of the son of no i wasn t said because you see i don t remember having ever heard of him however he s another fatal difficulty that makes two of them surely i have spoken of him to thee as my foe it is true that he is a powerful and who hath long persecuted the with hateful attentions yet it may be possible by good fortune to overthrow him then i gather that any for s hand would be looked upon as a rival by the amiable by ic let us kiss and part far is he from being of an amiable disposition answered the simply and he would be so transported by rage and jealousy that he	44
so described by one of our poets could give me points and a beating in the matter of i ll make you a sporting offer there are over five million inhabitants in this london of ours if you go out into the streets and ask the first five hundred you meet whether they know me i don t mind you what shall i say a new hat that you won t find half a dozen who ve ever even heard of my existence why not go out and see for yourself to his surprise and gratification the took this suggestion seriously i will go forth and make inquiry he said for i desire further concerning thy statements but remember he added should i still require thee to wed the el and thou should st me thou wilt bring disaster not on thine own head but on those thou art most desirous of protecting by ic the brass bottle yes so you told me before said good evening but was already gone in spite of all he had gone through and the unknown before him was seized with what uncle calls a spell of the dry at the thought of the probable replies that the would meet with in the course of his inquiries i m afraid he won t be particularly impressed by the politeness of a london crowd he thought but at least they ll convince him that i am not exactly a prominent citizen then he ll give up this match of his i don t know though he s such a pig headed old fool that he may stick to it all the same i may find myself with a bride several centuries my senior before i know where i am no i forgot there s the jealous to be polished off first i seem to remember something about a quick change combat with an in the nights i may as well look it up and see what may be in store for me and after dinner he went to his shelves and took down lane s three volume edition of the nights which he set himself to study with a new interest it was long since he had looked into these wondrous tales old beyond all human calculation and even now than the most modern of successful after all he was tempted to think they might possess quite as much historical value as many works with graver pretensions to accuracy by ic let us kiss and part he found a full account of the combat with the in the story of the second royal in the first volume and was surprised to discover that the s name was actually given as the son of the son of evidently the same person to whom had referred as his bitterest foe he was described as of hideous aspect and had it seemed not only carried oflf the daughter of the lord of the island on her wedding night but on discovering her in the society of the royal had himself by striking off her hands her feet and her head and his human rival into an between this fellow and old he reflected at this point i seem likely to have a fairly lively time of it he read on till he reached the memorable encounter between the king s daughter and who presented himself in a most hideous shape with hands like forks and legs like and eyes like burning which was calculated to the the began by himself from a lion to a upon which the princess became a serpent then he changed to an eagle and she to a he to a black cat and she to a wolf he to a burst and she to a cock he to a fish and she to a larger fish still if can me through all that without by the brass bottle a fatal somewhere told himself i shall be agreeably disappointed in him but after reading a few more lines he cheered up for the finished as a flame and the princess as a body of fire and when we looked towards him continued the we perceived that he had become a heap of ashes come said to himself that puts out of action any way the odd thing is that should never have heard of it but as he saw on reflection it was not so very odd after all as the incident had probably happened after the had been consigned to his brass bottle where intelligence of any kind would be most unlikely to reach him he worked steadily through the whole of the second volume and part of the third but although he picked up a certain amount of information upon oriental habits and modes of thought and speech which might come in later it was not until he arrived at the th chapter of the third volume that his interest really revived for the th chapter contained the story of and el and it was only natural that he should be anxious to know all that there was to know concerning the of one who might be his before long he read eagerly it appeared was the lovely daughter of by ic let us kiss and part one of the kings of the believing her father not himself as the had represented had offered her in marriage to no less a personage than king solomon himself who however had preferred the queen of the son of the king of egypt afterwards fell desperately in love with but she and her grandmother both declared that between mankind and the there could be no agreement and was a king s son commented i needn t alarm myself she wouldn t be likely to have anything to say to me it s just as i told his heart grew lighter still as he came to the for he	44
learnt that after many adventure which need not be mentioned here the devoted did actually succeed in gaining the proud as his wife even could not propose to marry me to some one who has a husband already he thought still she may be a widow to his relief however the conclusion ran thus el lived with el a most pleasant and agreeable life until they were visited by the of delights and the of companions if that means anything at all he reasoned it means that and are both deceased even a seems to be mortal or perhaps she by ic the brass bottle became so by marrying a mortal i dare say that himself wouldn t have lasted all this time if he hadn t been like a but i m glad i found this out because is evidently unaware of it and if he should persist in any more of this nonsense i think i see my way now to getting the better of him so with renewed hope and in vastly improved spirits he went to bed and was soon sound asleep by ic chapter xv blushing honours it was rather late the next morning when opened his eyes to discover the standing by the foot of his bed oh it s is it he said how did you a get on last night i gained such information as i desired said and now for the last time i am come to ask thee whether thou wilt still persist in refusing to wed the illustrious el and have a care how thou so you haven t given up the idea said well since you make such a point of it i ll meet you as far as this if you produce the lady and she to marry me i won t decline the honour but there s one condition i really must insist on it is not for thee to make still yet this once i will hear thee i m sure you ll see that it s only fair supposing for any reason you can t persuade the princess to meet me within a reasonable time shall we say a week by the brass bottle thou shalt be admitted to her presence within twenty four hours said the that s better still then if i don t see her within twenty four hours i am to be at liberty to infer that the are off and i may marry anybody else i please without any opposition from you is that understood it is agreed said for i am confident that will accept thee joyfully we shall see said but it might be as well if you went and prepared her a little i suppose you know where to find her and you ve only hours you know more than is needed answered the with such confidence that felt almost ashamed of so easy a victory but the sun is already high arise my son put on these robes and with this he flung on the bed the magnificent which had last worn on the night of his disastrous entertainment and when thou hast broken thy fast prepare to accompany me before i agree to that said sitting up in bed i should like to know where you re taking me to obey me without said or thou the consequences it seemed to that it was as well to humour him and he got up accordingly washed and shaved and putting on his dazzling robe of cloth of gold thickly by ic blushing honours with gems he joined who by the way was if less arrayed in the in a state of some eat quickly commanded the for the time is short and after hastily of a cold egg and a cup of coffee happened to go to the windows good heavens he cried what does all this mean he might well ask on the opposite side of the road by the of the square a large crowd had collected all staring at the house in eager expectation as they caught sight of him they raised a cheer which caused him to retreat in confusion but not before he had seen a great golden chariot with six magnificent coal black horses and a of attendants in standing by the pavement below whose carriage is that he asked it belongs to thee said the descend then and make thy progress in it through the city i will not said even to oblige you i simply can t drive along the streets in a thing like the band chariot of a travelling it is necessary declared must i again recall to thee the penalty of oh very well said if you insist on my making a fool of myself i suppose i must but where am i to drive and why by the brass bottle that replied thou shalt discover at the fitting moment and so amidst the shouts of the spectators climbed up into the vehicle while the took his seat by his side had a parting glimpse of mr and mrs s respective noses against the window and then two dusky slaves mounted to a seat at the back of the chariot and the horses started off at a stately trot in the direction of i think you might tell me what all this means he said you ve no conception what an ass i feel stuck up here like this dismiss from thee since all this is designed to render thee more acceptable in the eyes of the princess said the said no more though he could not but think that this parade would be thrown away but as they turned into victoria street and seemed to be heading straight for the abbey a horrible thought occurred to him after all his only authority for the marriage and of was the nights which was not evidence what	44
these occasions to mention the particular merit which has been deemed worthy of recognition was greatly relieved to hear it for it struck him as a most sensible and in his own particular case essential formality by ic a killing frost but on the present occasion sir proceeded the speaker i feel as all present must feel that it be unnecessary nay almost impertinent were i to weary the public ear by a halting of deeds with which it is already so familiar at this he was interrupted by and long continued applause at the end of which ho continued i have only therefore to greet you in the name of the and to offer you the right hand of fellowship as a and citizen and maker of london as he shook hands he presented with a copy of the oath of that he was to read it aloud naturally had not the least objection to swear to be good and true to our sovereign lady queen victoria or to be obedient to the lord mayor and warn him of any against the queen s peace which might chance to come under his observation so he took the oath cheerfully enough and hoped that this was really the end of the ceremony however to his great and apprehension the lord mayor rose with the evident intention of making a speech he said that the conclusion of the city to bestow the highest honour in their gift upon mr had been here he hesitated somewhat hastily arrived at personally he would have liked a longer time to prepare to make the display by ic the brass bottle less inadequate to and of this exceptional occasion he thought that was the general feeling it evidently was judging from the loud and unanimous cheering however for reasons which for reasons with which they were as well acquainted as himself the notice had been short the had yielded as they always did as it would always be their pride and pleasure to yield to popular pressure which was practically irresistible and had done the best they could in the limited he might almost say the limited period allowed them the leaf in mr s of today was he would venture to assert the sight of the enthusiasm and assemblage not only in that noble hall but in the of this mighty metropolis under the circumstances this was a marvellous tribute to the admiration and affection which mr e had succeeded in inspiring in the great heart of the people rich and poor high and low he would not detain his hearers any longer all that remained for him to do was to ask mr s acceptance of a golden containing the roll of freedom and he felt sure that their distinguished guest before proceeding to his name on the register would oblige them all by some account from his own lips of of the events in which he had figured and so received the mechanically there was by ic a killing frost a universal cry of speech from the audience to which he replied by shaking his head in helpless but in vain he found himself irresistibly pressed towards the rail in front of the and the roar of applause which greeted him saved him from all necessity of attempting to speak for nearly two minutes during that interval he had time to clear his brain and think what he had better do or say in his present for some time past a suspicion had been growing in his mind until it had now almost swollen into certainty he felt that before he or allowed his too generous to compromise themselves it was absolutely necessary to ascertain his real position and to do that he must make some sort of speech with this resolve all his and embarrassment and melted away he faced the assembly coolly and gallantly convinced that his best alternative now lay in perfect my lord mayor my lords ladies and gentlemen he began in a clear voice which penetrated to the farthest gallery and commanded instant attention if you expect to hear from me any description of what i ve done to be received like this i in afraid you will be disappointed for my own belief is that i ve done nothing whatever there was a general of no no at this and a murmur of protest s by ic the brass bottle it s all very well to say no no said and i am extremely grateful to you all for the interruption still i can only repeat that i am absolutely unaware of having ever rendered my country or this great city a single service deserving of the slightest acknowledgment i wish i could feel i had but the simple truth is that if i have the fact has entirely slipped from my memory again there were murmurs this time with a certain under current of irritation and he could hear the lord mayor behind him remarking to the city that this was not at all the kind of speech for the occasion i know what you re thinking said you re thinking this is mock modesty on my part but it s nothing of the sort don t know what i ve done but i presume you are all better informed because the wouldn t have given me that very charming you wouldn t all of you be here like this unless you were under a strong impression that i d done something to deserve it at this there was a fresh outburst of applause just so said calmly well now will any of you be kind enough to tell me in a few words what you suppose i ve done there was a dead silence in which every one looked at his or her neighbour and smiled feebly my lord mayor	44
continued i appeal to by ic a killing you to tell me and this distinguished assembly why on earth we re all here the lord mayor rose i think it sufficient to say he announced with dignity that the and myself were of opinion that this distinction should be for reasons which it is unnecessary and hum to enter into here i am sorry persisted but i must press your for those reasons i have an object will the city oblige me then no well then the town clerk no it s just as i suspected none of you can give me your reasons and shall i tell you why because there any now do bear with me for a moment i m quite aware this is very embarrassing for all of you but remember that it s infinitely more awkward for m i really cannot accept the freedom of the city under any suspicion of false it would be a poor reward for your hospitality and base and into the bargain to the value of so great a distinction by permitting it to be conferred if after you ve heard what i am going to tell you you still insist on my accepting such an honour of course i will not be so as to refuse it but i really don t feel that it would be right to my name on your of fame without some sort of explanation if i did i might for anything i know involuntarily be the death warrant of the i by ic i the brass bottle there was a breathless hush upon this the silence grew so intense that to borrow a slightly involved from a distinguished friend of the writer s you might have picked up a pin in it leaned sideways against the rail in an easy attitude so as to face the lord mayor as well as a portion of his audience before i go any farther he said will your pardon me if i suggest that it might be as well to direct that all present should immediately withdraw the table was instantly in a stir of anger and many of the guests expressed some dissatisfaction we at least said the lord mayor rising flushed with annoyance have no reason to dread i decline to make a hole and corner of this i shall give no such orders very well said when the chorus of approval had subsided my suggestion was made quite as much in the s interests as in mine i merely thought that when you all clearly understood how you ve been you might prefer to have the details kept out of the newspapers if possible but if you particularly want them published over the whole world why of course an uproar followed here under cover of which the lord mayor contrived to give orders to have the doors fastened till further directions by ic a killing frost don t make this more difficult and disagreeable for me than it is already said as soon as he could obtain a hearing again you don t suppose that i should have come here in this tom dress imposing myself on the hospitality of this great city if i could have helped it if you ve been brought here under false so have i if you ve been made to look rather foolish what is your situation to mine the fact is i am the victim of a force i am utterly unable to control upon this a fresh uproar arose and prevented him from continuing for some time i only ask for fair play and a patient hearing he pleaded give me that and i will undertake to restore you all to good humour before i have done they down at this appeal and he was able to proceed my case is simply this he said a little time ago i happened to go to an and buy a large brass bottle for some inexplicable reason his last words roused the audience to absolute frenzy they would not hear anything about the brass bottle every time he attempted to mention it they howled him down they they groaned they shook their fists the din was positively nor was the demonstration confined to the male portion of the assembly one lady indeed who is a prominent leader in society but whose name shall not by ic the brass bottle be here was so carried away by her feelings as to a heavy cut glass bottle of smelling at s offending head fortunately for him it missed him and only caught one of the officials was not in a mood to notice details very accurately but he had a notion that it was the city somewhere about the region of the watch pocket will you hear me out shouted i m not trifling i haven t told you yet what was inside the bottle when i opened it i found he got no farther for as the words left his lips he felt himself seized by the collar of his robe and lifted off his feet by an agency he was powerless to resist up and up he was carried past the great between the carved and gilded pursued by a universal shriek of dismay and horror down below he could see the throng of pale faces and hear the wild screams and laughter of several ladies of great distinction in violent and the next moment he was in the glass lantern and the panes gave way like paper as he broke through into the open air causing the on the roof to up in a flutter of alarm of course he knew that it was the who was him in this manner and he was rather relieved than alarmed by s summary proceeding for he seemed for once to have hit upon the best way out of a situation	44
that was rapidly becoming impossible by ic chapter high words once outside in the open air the like a shot through the breast and closed his eyes with a combined swing and channel passage sensation during a flight which apparently continued for hours although in reality it probably did not occupy more than a very few seconds his uneasiness was still further increased by his inability to guess where he was being taken to for he felt instinctively that they were not travelling in the direction of home at last he felt himself set down on some hard firm surface and ventured to open his eyes once more when he where he actually was his knees gave way under him and he was seized with a sudden that very nearly made him lose his balance for he found himself standing on a sort of narrow ledge or immediately under the ball at the top of st paul s many feet beneath him spread the dull leaden summit of the dome its raised stretching like by ic the bottle huge over the curve beyond which was a glimpse of the green roof of the and the two west towers with their grey columns and urn and gilded which shone in the sun he had an impression of hill and fleet street as a deep winding in partial shadow of long of roofs and chimney pots showing their sharp outlines above mouse coloured smoke wreaths of the broad pearl tinted river with and a golden where the sunlight touched it of the gleaming slope of mud under the and on the side of and in black clusters of a small down the river leaving a arrow head in its wake cautiously he moved round towards the east where the houses formed a of cream slate and dull and above which slender rose flushed and towers pierced the haze stained in countless places by pillars of black grey and smoke and lightened by and of silvery steam till all blended by into a sky of tenderest gold with blue it was a magnificent view and none the less so because the of all beyond a limited made the huge city seem not only by ic high words but absolutely boundless iu extent but although was distinctly conscious of all this he was scarcely in a state to appreciate its grandeur just then he was much too concerned with wondering why had chosen to plant him up there in so a position and how he was ever to be rescued from it since the had apparently disappeared he was far off for presently saw him stalk round the narrow with an air of being perfectly at home on it so there you are said i thought you d deserted me again what have you brought me up here for because i desired to have speech with thee in private the we re not likely to be on here certainly said but isn t it rather exposed rather public if we re seen up here you know it will cause a decided sensation i have laid a spell on all below that they should not raise their eyes be seated therefore and hear my words lowered himself carefully to a sitting position so that his legs in space and took a seat by his side most of mankind he began in an tone thou hast been near the of a great blunder and doing ill to and to me by ic the brass bottle well i do like that retorted when you let me in for all that freedom of the city business and then off leaving me to get out of it the best way i could and only came back just as i was about to explain matters and carried me up through the roof like a sack of flour do you consider that on your part thou drunk wine and permitted it to creep as far as the place of secrets only one glass said and i wanted it i can assure you i was obliged to make a speech to them and thanks to you i was in such a hole that i saw nothing for it but to tell the truth as thou wilt learn answered the is not invariably the ship of safety thou about to betray the benefactor who procured for thee such glory and honour as might well cause the of lions to burst with envy if any lion with the least sense of humour could have witnessed the proceedings said he might have burst with laughter certainly not envy good lord he cried in his indignation i ve never felt such an absolute ass in my whole life if nothing would satisfy you but my receiving the freedom of the city you might at least have contrived some decent excuse for it but you left out the only point there was in the whole and all for what what doth it signify why the whole by ic high words should come forth to thee and do thee honour so long as they did so said sullenly for the report of thy fame would reach el that s just where you re mistaken said if you had not been in too desperate a hurry to make a few inquiries you would have found out that you were taking all this trouble for nothing how thou well you would have discovered that the princess is spared all temptation to marry beneath her by the fact that she became the bride of somebody else about thirty centuries ago she married a mortal one el a king s son and they ve both been dead a considerable time another obstacle to your plans it is a lie declared if you will take me back to square i shall be happy to show you the evidence in your national records said and you may be glad to know	44
that your old enemy mr came to a violent end after a very sporting encounter with a king s daughter who though in advanced magic unfortunately perished herself poor lady in the final round i had intended thee to accomplish his said i know said it was most thoughtful of you but i doubt if i should have done it half as by ic the brass bottle well and it would have probably cost me an eye at the very least it s better as it is and how long hast thou known of these things only since last night since last night and thou not them unto me till this instant i ve had such a busy morning you see explained there s been no time silly bearded fool that i was to bring this dog into the august presence of the great lord mayor himself on whom be peace cried the i object to being referred to as a dog said but with the rest of your remark i entirely i m afraid the lord mayor is very far from being at peace just now he pointed to the steep roof of the with its and fretted and the slender lantern through which he had so lately made his exit there s the devil of a row going on under that lantern just now mr you may depend upon that they ve locked the doors till they can decide what to do next which will take them some time and it s all your fault it was thy doing why thou dare to inform the lord mayor that he was deceived why because i thought he ought to know because i was bound particularly after my oath of by ic high words to warn him of any conspiracy against him because i was in such a hat hell understand all he won t blame me for this business it is fortunate observed the that i flew away with thee before thou pronounce my name you gave yourself away said they all saw you you know you weren t flying so particularly fast recognise you again if you mil carry off a man from under the lord mayor s very nose and shoot up through the roof hke a with him you can t expect to escape some notice you see you happen to be the only in this city shifted his seat on the i have committed no act of unto the lord mayor he said therefore he can have no just cause of anger against me perceived that the was not altogether at ease and pushed his advantage accordingly my dear good old friend he said you don t seem to yet what an awful thing you ve done for your own mistaken purposes you have compelled the chief magistrate and the of the greatest city in the world to make themselves hopelessly ridiculous they ll never hear the last of this affair just look at the crowds waiting patiently below there look at the flags think of that gorgeous conveyance of yours standing outside the think of the by the brass bottle assembly inside all the most aristocratic noble and distinguished personages in the land continued it on as he proceeded all collected for what to be made fools of by a out of a brass bottle for their own will they preserve silence said with a gleam of unwonted probably they would hush it up if they only could but how can they what are they to say what plausible explanation can they give besides there s the press you don t know what the press is but i assure you its power is tremendous it s simply impossible to keep anything secret from it nowadays it has eyes and ears everywhere and a thousand tongues five minutes after the doors in that hall are unlocked and they can t keep them locked longer the will be handing in their special descriptions of you and your latest to their respective journals within half an hour bills will be carried through every quarter of bills with enormous letters extraordinary scene at the strange end to a function startling appearance of an oriental in the city of a guest of the lord mayor intense excitement full particulars and by that time the story will have flashed round the whole world keep silence indeed do you imagine for a moment that the lord by ic high words mayor or anybody else concerned however will ever forget or be allowed to forget such an outrageous incident as this if you do believe me you re mistaken truly it would be a terrible thing to the wrath of the lord mayor said the in troubled accents awful said but you seem to have managed it he round his neck a magic jewel which him dominion over devils is it not so you know best said it was the splendour of that jewel and the majesty of his countenance that rendered me afraid to enter his presence lest he should recognise me for what i am and command me to obey him for verily his might is greater even than s and his hand heavier upon such of the as fall into his power if that s so said i should strongly advise you to find some way of putting things straight before it s too you ve no time to lose thou well said springing to his feet and turning his face towards himself along the ledge in a seated position after the and looking down between his feet could just see the tops of the thin and rusty trees in the churchyard the black and of people in the street and the scarlet by the brass bottle mouths of chimney pots on the roofs below there is but one remedy i know said the and it may be that i have lost power to	44
perform it yet will i make the endeavour and stretching forth his right hand toward the east he muttered some kind of command or almost fell off the with apprehension of what might follow would it be a a plague some frightful of nature he felt sure that would hesitate at no means however violent of burying all traces of his blunder in oblivion and very little hope that whatever he did it would prove anything but some worse than his previous performances happily none of these extreme measures seemed to have occurred to the though what followed was strange and striking enough for presently as if in obedience to the s weird a lurid belt of fog came rolling up from the direction of the exchange up building after building in its rapid course one by one the bow church itself and the churchyard disappeared and turning his head to the left saw the tide sweeping on westward out hill the strand cross and westminster till at last he and were alone above a plain of by ic high words cloud the only living beings left as it seemed in a blank and silent universe look again said and looking eastward saw the spire of bow church rosy once more the standing clear and and the streets and house tops gradually only the flags with their shiver and ripple of colour had disappeared and with them the waiting crowds and the mounted the ordinary of and was proceeding as though it had never been interrupted the and of harness chains the cries and whip of drivers rose with curious distinctness above the incessant roar which is the ground swell of the human ocean that cloud which thou said hath swept away with it all memory of this affair from the minds of every mortal assembled to do thee honour see they go about their several and all the past incidents are to them as though they had never been it was not often that could honestly commend any performance of the s but at this he could not restrain his admiration by jove he said that certainly gets the lord mayor and everybody else out of the mess as neatly as possible i must say mr it s much the best thing i ve seen you do yet t by the brass bottle wait said the for presently thou shalt see me perform a yet more excellent thing there was a most unpleasant green glow in his eyes and a in his thin beard as he spoke which suddenly made feel uncomfortable he did not like the look of the at all i really think you ve done enough for to day he said and this wind up here is rather searching i shan t be sorry to find myself on the ground again that replied the thou shalt assuredly do before long impudent and wretch and he laid a long lean hand on s shoulder he is put out about something thought but what my dear sir he said aloud i don t understand this tone of yours what have i done to offend you gifted was he who said beware of losing hearts in consequence of injury for the bringing them back after flight is difficult excellent said but i don t quite see the application the application explained the is that i am determined to cast thee down from here with my own hand turned faint and dizzy for a moment then by a strong effort of will he pulled himself together oh come now he said you don t really mean that you know after h your kind ess you re by ic high words much too good natured to be capable of anything so all pity hath been from my heart returned therefore prepare to die for thou art presently about to perish in the most unfortunate manner could not repress a shudder hitherto he had never been able to take quite seriously in spite of all his supernatural powers he had treated him with a half kindly half contemptuous as a well meaning but hopelessly old that the should ever become towards him had never entered his head tiu now and yet he undoubtedly had how was he to and this formidable being he must keep cool and act promptly or he would never see again as he sat there on the narrow ledge with a faint and not unpleasant smell of his nostrils from some distant he tried hard to collect his thoughts but could not he found himself instead idly watching the busy crowd below who were all unconscious of the impending drama so high above them just over the rim of the dome he could see the white top of a lamp on a shelter where a stood directing the traffic would he look up if called for help even if he could what help could he render all he could by ic the bottle do would be to keep the crowd back and send for a covered no he would not dwell on these horrors he must fix his mind on some way of how did the people in the nights manage the for instance he persuaded his to return to the bottle by pretending to doubt whether he had ever really been inside it but though simple enough in some respects was not quite such a fool as that sometimes the could be and induced to grant a by being told stories one inside the other like a nest of oriental boxes unfortunately did not seem in the humour for listening to and even if he were could not think of or any just then besides he thought i can t sit up here telling him anecdotes for ever i d almost sooner die still he remembered that it was generally possible to draw an into discussion they all loved argument and had a rough	44
conception of justice i think mr he said that in common i have a right to know what offence i have committed to thy replied the would occupy much time i don t mind that said i can give you as long as you like i m in no sort of hurry by ic high words with me it is otherwise retorted making a stride towards him therefore court not life for thy death hath become before we part said you won t refuse to answer one or two questions thou not undertake never to ask any further favour of me moreover it will avail thee for i am positively determined to thee i demand it said in the most great name of the lord mayor on whom be peace it was a desperate shot but it took effect the visibly ask then he said but briefly for the time short determined to make one last appeal to s sense of gratitude since it had always seemed the dominant trait in his character well he said but for me wouldn t you be still in that brass bottle that replied the is the very reason why i purpose to destroy thee oh was all could find to say at this most for answer his sheet anchor in which he had trusted had suddenly dragged and he was drifting fast to destruction are there any other questions which thou ask inquired the with grim indulgence by the brass bottle or wilt thou encounter thy doom without further was determined not to give in just yet he had a very bad hand but he might as well play the game out and trust to luck to gain a stray trick i haven t nearly done yet he said and remember you ve promised to answer me in the name of the lord mayor i will answer one other question and no more said the in an tone and that his fate would depend upon what he said next by ic chapter xviii a game of bluff thy second question one said the impatiently he was standing with folded arms looking down on who was still seated on the narrow not daring to glance below again lest he should lose his head altogether i m coming to it said i want to know why you should propose to dash me to pieces in this barbarous way as a return for letting you out of that bottle were you so comfortable in it as all that in the bottle i was at least suffered to rest and none me but in me thou conceal from me that was dead and gone and that there one in his stead a thousand fold who our race with labours and exceeding all the of what on earth have you got into your head now you can t mean the lord mayor whom else said the solemnly and though for this once by a device i have his by ic the brass bottle vengeance yet do i know full well that either of the magic jewel upon his breast or through that malignant monster with the ears and eyes and tongues which thou the press i shall inevitably fall into his power before long for the life of him in spite of his desperate plight could not help laughing i beg your pardon mr he said as soon as he could speak but the lord mayor it s really too absurd why he wouldn t hurt a hair on a fly s head seek not to deceive me further said furiously thou not inform me with thy own mouth that the spirits of earth air water and fire were subject to his will have i no eyes do i not behold from here the labours of my captive brethren what are those on yonder bridges but shrieking and groaning in and forth steam as they drag their wheeled burdens behind them are there not others toiling with panting efforts through the waters others again imprisoned in lofty pillars from which the smoke of their breath even unto heaven doth not the air throb and quiver with their restless struggles as they below in darkness and torment and thou hast the to pretend that these things are done in the lord mayor s own without his knowledge verily thou must take me for a fool by ic a game of bluff after all reflected if he chooses to consider that railway engines and and machinery generally are inhabited by so many doing time it s not to my interest to him indeed it s quite the contrary i wasn t aware the lord mayor had so much power as all that he said but very likely you re right and if you re so anxious to keep in favour with him it would be a great mistake to kill me that would annoy him not so said the for i should declare that thou spoken of him in my hearing and that i had slain thee on that account your proper course said would be to hand me over to him and let him deal with the case much more regular that may be said but i have conceived so bitter a hatred to thee by reason of thy insolence and treachery that i cannot forego the delight of thee with my own hand can t you really said on the verge of despair and then what will you do then replied the i shall flee away to where i shall be safe don t you be too sure of that said you see all those wires stretched on poles down there those are the of certain known as electric currents and the lord mayor could send a message by ic the brass bottle along them which would be at before you had flown farther than and i may mention that is now more	44
thee hither said and yet i am persuaded that thou art even now treachery against me and wilt betray me if thou was about to assure him once more that no one could be more anxious than himself to see him safely back in his bottle when he recollected that it was to appear too eager after the way you ve behaved he said i m not at all sure that i ought to help you still i said i would on certain conditions and i ll keep my word conditions thundered the wilt thou bargain with me yet further my excellent friend said quietly you know perfectly well that you can t get yourself safely sealed up again in that bottle without my assistance if you don t like my terms and prefer to take your by ic a game of bluff chance of finding an who is willing to brave the lord mayor well you ve only to say so i have loaded thee with all of riches and and i will bestow no more upon thee said the sullenly nay in token of my displeasure i will deprive thee even of such gifts as thou hast retained he pointed his grey forefinger at whose and robes instantly into and and fluttered to the carpet in leaving him in nothing but his that only shows what a nasty temper you re in said and doesn t annoy me in the least if you ll excuse me i ll go and put on some things i can feel more at home in and perhaps by the time i return you ll have cooled down he slipped on some clothes hurriedly and re entered the sitting room now mr he said we ll have this out you talk of having loaded me with benefits you seem to consider i ought to be grateful to you in heaven s name for what i ve been as as possible all this time because i gave you credit for meaning well now i ll speak plainly i told you from the first and i tell you now that i want no riches nor honours from you the one real good turn you did me was bringing me that and you spoilt that because you would insist on building the palace yourself instead of leaving it to me as for by ic the brass bottle the rest here am i a ruined and man with a who probably i m in league with the devil with the girl i love and might have married believing that i have left her to marry a princess and her father unable ever to forgive me for having seen him as a one eyed mule in short i m in such a mess all round that i don t care two whether i live or die what is all this to me said the only this that unless you can see your way to putting things straight for me i m hanged if i take the trouble to seal you up in that bottle how am i to put things straight for thee cried if you could make all those people entirely forget that affair in the you can make my friends forget the brass bottle and everything connected with it can t you there would be no in that admitted well do it and i ll swear to seal you up in the bottle exactly as if you had never been out of it and pitch you into the deepest part of the thames where no one will ever disturb you first produce the bottle then said for i cannot believe but that thou hast some lurking in thy heart i ll ring for my landlady and have the bottle brought by ic a game of bluff up said perhaps that will satisfy you stay you d better not let her see you i will render myself invisible said the the action to his words but beware lest thou play me false his voice continued for i shall hear thee so you ve come in mr said mrs as she entered and without the gentleman i was surprised and so was the same to see you off this morning in that chariot and and dressed up that lovely depend upon it i says to i says depend upon it mr u be sent for to if it ain t castle never mind that now said impatiently i want that brass bottle i bought the other day bring it up at once please i thought you said the other day you never wanted to set eyes on it again and i was to do as i pleased with it sir well i ve changed my mind so let me have it quick i m sure i m very sorry sir but that you can t because not to have the place up with rubbish disposed of it on y last night to a gentleman as keeps a rag and bone off the bridge and a crown was the most he d give for it sir u by the brass bottle give me his name said sir when comes in i m sure he d go round with pleasure and see about it if required i ll go myself said it s all right mrs quite a natural mistake on your part but but i happen to want the bottle again you needn t stay thou smooth faced and double one said the after she had gone as he re appeared to view did i not foresee that thou deal unto me my bottle i ll go and get it at once said i shan t be five minutes and he prepared to go thou shalt not leave this house cried for i perceive plainly that this is but a device of thine to escape and betray me to the press devil if you	44
can t see said angrily that i m quite as anxious to see you safely back in that confounded bottle as ever you can be to get there you must be pretty dense you understand the bottle s sold and i can t buy it back without going out don t be so unreasonable go then said the and i will await thy return here but know this that if thou long or without my bottle i shall know that thou art a traitor and will visit thee and those who are dear to thee with the most unpleasant by ic a game of bluff i ll be back in half an hour at most said feeling that this would allow him ample margin and thankful that it did not occur to to go in person he put on his hat and hurried off in the gathering dusk he had some little trouble in finding mr s establishment which was a dirty dusty little place in a back street with a few deplorable old chairs and rusty outside and the interior almost completely blocked by piles of dingy empty clock cases and cracked broken lamps picture frames and everything else which one would imagine could have no possible value for any human being but in all this collection of worthless the brass bottle was nowhere to be seen went in and found a youth of about thirteen straining his eyes in the fading light over one of those humorous journals which thanks to an improved system of education at least eighty per cent of our population are now enabled to appreciate i want to see mr he began you can t said the youth cause he ain t in he s attending of an when mil he be in do you know might be back to his tea but i wasn t to expect him not before supper by ic the brass bottle you don t happen to have any old metal or or brass would do for sale you don t at me like that bottles is made o well a jar then a big brass pot anything of that kind don t keep em said the boy and buried himself once more in his copy of i ll just look round said and began to about with a sinking heart and a horrid dread that he might have come to the wrong shop for the big pot vessel certainly did not seem to be there at last to his unspeakable joy he discovered it under a piece of tattered why this is the sort of thing i meant he said feeling in his pocket and discovering that he had exactly a sovereign how much do you want for it i said the boy i don t mind three shillings said who did not wish to appear too keen at first i ll tell the nor when he comes in was the reply and you can look in later i want it at once insisted come i ll give you three and six for it it s more than it s replied the candid youth perhaps said but i m rather pressed for time if you ll this sovereign i ll take the bottle away with me by a game op bluff you seem uncommon anxious to get old on it said the boy with sudden suspicion nonsense said i live close by and i thought i might as well take it that s all oh if that s all you can wait till the nor s in i i t be passing this way again for some time said bound to be if you live close by and the provoking youth returned to his do you call this attending to your master s business said listen to me you young rascal i ll give you five shillings for it you re not going to be fool enough to refuse an offer like that i ain t goin to be fool enough to refuse it nor yet i ain t goin to be fool enough to take it cause i m only ere to see as nobody don t come in and i ain t got no authority to sell and i don t know the o so there you ave it take the five shillings said and if it s too little i ll come round and settle with your master later i thought you said you wasn t likely to be again no you don t kid me that way had a mad impulse to snatch up the precious bottle then and there and make off with it and might have yielded to the temptation with disastrous consequences had not an elderly man entered the shop at by ic the brass bottle that moment he was bent and wore rather more and upon his person than most well dressed people would consider necessary but he came in with a certain air of authority nevertheless mr sir the youth ore s a took a fancy to this ere brass pot o yours says he must ave it five shillings he d got to but i told him he d ave to wait till you come in quite right my lad said mr a watery but sharp old eye at five shillings ah sir you can t know much about these hold brass to make an like that i know as much as most people said but let us say six shillings couldn t be done sir couldn t indeed why i give a pound for it myself at s as sure as i m ere in the presence o my maker and you a sinner he declared if rather tour memory is not quite accurate said you bought it last night from a man of the name of who lets lodgings in square and you paid exactly half a crown	44
for it if you say so i dare say it s correct sir said mr without exhibiting the least confusion and if i did buy it off mr he s a respectable party and ain t likely to have come by it by ic a game of bluff i never said he did what will you take for the thing well just look at the work in it they don t turn out the like o that nowadays dutch that is what they used for to put their milk and such like in damn it said completely losing his temper i know what it was used for will you tell me what you want for it i couldn t let a curiosity like that go a penny under thirty shillings said mr affectionately it would be myself i ll give you a sovereign for it there said you know best what profit that represents that s my last word my last word to that sir is good said the worthy man good evening then said and walked out of the shop rather to bring mr to terms than because he really meant to abandon the bottle for he dared not go back without it and he had nothing about him just then on which he could raise the extra ten shillings supposing the dealer refused to trust him for the balance and the time was growing short fortunately the well worn succeeded for mr ran out after him and laid an upon his coat sleeve don t go he said i like to do business if i can though my word by ic the brass bottle and honour a sovereign for a work o art like that well just for luck and bein my birthday we ll call it a deal handed over the coin which left him with a few pence there ought to be a lid or of some sort he said suddenly what have you done with that no sir there you re you are indeed i do assure you you never see a pot of this pattern with a lid to it never oh don t you though said i know better never mind he said as he recollected that the seal was in s possession i ll take it as it is don t trouble to wrap it up i m in rather a hurry it was almost dark when he got back to his rooms where he found the shaking with mingled rage and apprehension no welcome to thee he cried dog that thou art thou delayed another minute i would have called down some calamity upon thee well you need not trouble yourself to do that now returned here s your bottle and you can creep into it as soon as you please but the seal shrieked the what hast thou done with the seal which was upon the bottle why you ve got it yourself of course said in one of your pockets by ic a game of bluff thou of base howled shaking out his flowing how should i have the seal this is but a fresh device of thine to undo me don t talk rubbish retorted you made the professor give it up to you yesterday you must have lost it somewhere or other never mind i ll get a large cork or which will do just as well and i ve lots of wax i will have no seal but the seal of declared the for with no other will there be security verily i believe that that accursed sage thy friend hath contrived by some cunning to get the seal once more into his hands i will go at once to his abode and compel him to restore it i wouldn t said feeling extremely uneasy for it was evidently a much thing to let a out of a bottle than to get him in again he s quite incapable of taking it and if you go out now you ll only make a fuss and attract the attention of the press which i thought you rather wanted to avoid i shall attire myself in the garments of a mortal even those i assumed on a former occasion said and as he spoke his outer robes into a frock coat thus shall i escape attention wait one moment said what is that in your breast pocket by ic the brass bottle of a truth said the looking relieved but not a little foolish as he extracted the object it is indeed the seal you re in such a hurry to think the worst of everybody you see said now do try to carry away with you into your seclusion a better opinion of human nature to all the people of this age cried re assuming his green robe and for i now put no faith in human beings and would them all were not the lord mayor on whom be peace than i therefore while it is yet time take thou the and swear that after i am in this bottle thou wilt seal it as before and cast it into deep waters where no eye will look upon it more with all the pleasure in the world said only you must keep your part of the bargain first you will kindly all recollection of yourself and the brass bottle from the minds of every human being who has had anything to do with you or it not so objected the for thus thou forget thy compact oh very well leave me out then said not that anything could make me forget you swept his right hand round in a half circle it is accomplished he said all recollection of myself and yonder bottle is now from the memories of every one but by ic a game of bluff but how about my said i can t afford to lose him you know he	44
shall return unto thee said the trembling with impatience now perform thy share had it had been a long and desperate with this singular being who was at once so and so so and so suspicious so benevolent and so again and again he had of victory but he had won at last in another minute or so this formidable would be safely once more and powerless to and plague him for the future and yet in the very moment of triumph as such scruples may seem to some s conscience smote him he could not help a certain pity for the old creature who was shaking there prepared to re enter his bottle prison rather than a wholly imaginary doom had aged visibly within the last hour now he looked even older than his three thousand and odd years true he had led a fearful life of late but at first at least his intentions had been good his gratitude if mistaken in its form was the sign of a generous disposition not every surely would have endeavoured to press millions and honours and of all kinds upon him in return for a service which most mortals would have considered by ic the brass bottle amply repaid by a brace of birds and an invitation to an evening party and how was treating him he was taking in his heart he felt to be a rather mean advantage of the s ignorance of modem life to him into returning to his why not suffer him to live out the brief remainder of his years for he could hardly last more than another century or two at most in freedom had his lesson he was not likely to interfere again in human affairs he might find his way back to the palace of the mountain of the clouds and end his days there in peaceful enjoyment of the society of such of the as might still survive so obeying against his own interests some impulse made an effort to the who was already hovering in air above the neck of the bottle in a of revolving like some old bee vainly endeavouring to hit the opening into his hive mr he cried before you go any farther listen to me there s no real necessity after all for you to go back to your bottle if you ll only wait a little but the who had now swelled to gigantic proportions and whose form and features were only dimly through the wreaths of black in which he was involved answered him from by a game op bluff his pillar of smoke in a terrible voice thou still persuade me to linger he cried hold thy peace and be ready to fulfil thine undertaking but look here persisted i should feel such a brute if i sealed you up without telling you the whirling and roaring column in shape like an was being fast sucked down into the vessel till only a semi but highly head was left above the neck of the bottle must i it cried till the lord mayor arrive with his and the hour of safety is expired by my head if thou another instant i will put no more faith in thee and i will come forth once more and thee and thy ay and all the in this accursed with the most painful and unheard of and with these words the head sank into the bottle with a loud clap resembling thunder hesitated no longer the himself had him from all further scruples to and her parents not to mention all london out of consideration for one obstinate and old demon would clearly be carrying sentiment much too far accordingly he made a rush for the jar and slipped the metal cover over the mouth of the neck which was so hot that it his fingers and seizing by the brass bottle the he down the secret catch until the lid fitted as closely as himself could have required then he stuffed the bottle into a bag adding a few coals to give it extra weight and toiled off with it to the nearest pier where he spent his remaining pence in a ticket to the temple next day the following paragraph appeared in one of the evening papers which probably had more space than usual at its disposal singular occurrence on a penny a gentleman on board one of the thames so we are informed by an eye witness met with a somewhat ludicrous yesterday evening it appears that he had with him a small or large hand bag which he was supporting on the rail of the stern just as the vessel was opposite the hotel he raised his hand to the brim of his hat thereby hold of the bag which itself and fell into the deepest part of the river where it instantly sank the owner whose carelessness occasioned considerable amusement to passengers in his immediate vicinity appeared no little disconcerted by the and was not as to the amount of his loss though by a game op bluff he was understood to state that the bag contained nothing of any great value however this may be he has probably learnt a lesson which will render him more careful in future by ic the brass bottle the on a certain evening in may dined in a private room at the as one of the guests of mr samuel in fact he might almost be said to be the guest of the evening as the dinner was given by way of the completion of the host s new country house at of which was the and also to congratulate him on his approaching marriage which was fixed to take place early in the following month with miss quite a small and friendly party said mr looking round on his numerous sons and	44
daughters as he greeted in the reception room only ourselves you see miss a young lady with whom you are fairly well acquainted and her people and an old of mine and his wife who are not yet arrived he s a man of considerable eminence he added with a roll of reflected importance in his voice quite worth your sir his name is i don t know if you remember him but he discharged the duties of by the lord mayor of london the year before last and himself very in fact he got a for it as the year before last was the year in which had paid his involuntary visit to the he was able to reply with truth that he did remember sir he was not altogether comfortable when the ex lord mayor was announced for it would have been more than awkward if sir had chanced to remember him fortunately he gave no sign that he did so though his manner was itself delighted my dear mr he said pressing s hand almost as warmly as he had done that october day on the most delighted to make your acquaintance i am always glad to meet a rising young man and i hear that the house you have designed for my old friend here is a perfect palace a marvel sir i knew he was my man declared mr as modestly sir s compliment you remember my dear fellow that day when w e were crossing westminster bridge together and i was telling you i thought of building go to one of the leading men an e a and all that sort of thing you said then you ll be sure of getting your money s worth but i said no i like to choose for myself to exercise my own judgment x by ic the brass bottle in these matters and there s a young fellow i have in my eye who ll beat em all if he s given the chance i m off to see him now and off i went to great street for he hadn t those offices of his in victoria street at that time without losing another instant and dropped in on him with my little commission didn t i you did indeed said wondering how far these reminiscences would go and continued mr patting on the shoulder from that day to this i ve never had a moment s reason to regret it we ve worked in perfect sympathy his ideas with mine i think he found that i met him so to speak on all assented though it struck him that a happier expression might and would have been employed if his had remembered one particular interview in which he had not figured to advantage they went in to dinner in a room decorated with of grey green and softly shaded lamps and of gilded leather through the centre of the table rose a tall palm its boughs hung with small electric like magic fruits this palm said the professor who was in high good humour really gives quite an oriental look to the table personally i think we might the style of and arrangement generally by ic the in our homes with great advantage i often wonder it never occurred to my future son in law there to turn his talents in that direction and design an oriental interior for himself nothing more comfortable and luxurious for a bachelor s purposes i m sure said his wife managed to make himself quite comfortable enough as it was he has the most delightful rooms in square heard her remark to si i shall never forget the first time we dined there just after my daughter and he were engaged i was quite astonished everything was so perfect quite simple you know but so arranged and his landlady such an excellent cook too still of course in many ways it will be for him to have a home of his own with such a beautiful and charming companion to share it with said sir in his most manner the ah poorest home would prove a paradise indeed and i suppose now my dear young lady he added raising his voice to address you are busy making your future abode as exquisite as taste and can render it all the furniture shops in london for treasures and going about to or do ah that department to mr i do go about to old furniture shops sir she said but not i m afraid i should only by the brass bottle get just the thing i didn t want if i tried to bid and she added in a lower voice turning to i don t believe you would be a bit more successful what makes you say that he asked with a start why do you mean to say you ve forgotten how you went to that for papa and came away without having managed to get a single thing she said what a short memory you must have there was only tender mockery in her eyes absolutely no recollection of the sinister purchase he had made at that sale or how nearly it had separated them for ever so he hastened to admit that perhaps he had not been particularly successful at the in question sir next addressed him across the table i was just telling mrs he said how much i regretted that i had not the privilege of your acquaintance during my year of a lord mayor as you doubtless know has exceptional for hospitality and it would have afforded me real pleasure if your first visit to the could have been paid under my hum ha you are very kind said very much on his guard i could not wish to pay it under better i flatter myself said the	44
pages one ceases to j u y enjoy it is a story of intense excitement yet the and the are admirable in a the use of which is such a rare and delicious the book is good the twentieth edition crown vo i the um the best and strongest romance which he has yet given to the public his interesting story will be found very difficult to lay down until its last page has been turned with edged tools vo boards cover or limp red cloth j d book cannot be too highly praised the westminster conceived as a whole and most skilful m its details the story never flags or from one generation to another boards cover s or limp red cloth s d the illustrated london news tht book is a good book the characters of michael and of james are admirably contrasted is a very fair allowance of wrong doing in the novel but on the other which is quite unusual in a story things all come right at last the there is not a really dull page in the book the slave of the lamp boards cover s or limp red cloth s d the guardian a story so like real life and so entirely the so has mr henry fulfilled his task that we read through his two thrilling volumes without any feeling of incredulity the grey lady square i mo s or with full page illustrations by arthur crown s j ri tr of striking merit throughout f pf s thoughtful carefully written story with a charming touch of london smith elder co place by ic novels by a of the with forty full page illustrations crown vo s the tragedy of the the speaker it is dangerous to describe any work of fiction in these days of a press as a yet there cannot be any doubt that the word is strictly to mr s tragedy of the we heartily congratulate mr upon having produced a work of such remarkable power and distinction the daily news a fine story the interest of which the reader s attention at the start and holds it to the close the throughout is strong clear and very delicate impressive with emotion informed with a great au of reality this story will sustain and its author s already high reputation i r l fascinating daily second edition with twelve full page illustrations crown vo s uncle a memory of the empire the world uncle is a this memory of the empire make the most interesting of human beings napoleon live and move and speak within the knowledge of every one who reads it the daily chronicle uncle is for a truth dr s napoleon viewed as a picture of the little man in the grey coat it must take rank before anything he has written the fascination of it is extraordinary it reaches everywhere a high literary level jl notable and very brilliant of genius the with eight full page illustrations crown vo dr stone the daily telegraph dr has written a wonderful book in this his latest contribution to the new romance the story goes so gallantly from start to finish that we are fairly startled out of in de indifference and carried along in breathless excitement to learn the fate of the boy hero and the punch a delightful quality about stone is its go there is not a dull page in it from first to last all b light colour movement blended and inspired by a master hand twenty second edition crown vo the white company times we could not de a more stirring romance or one more flattering to our national traditions we feel throughout that mr s story is not a mere item in the catalogue of exciting it is real literature illustrated london news i have read nothing of the kind so good since with which it has many points of resemblance with a crown vo s the green flag and other stories of war and sport post there is not a weak story or a dull page in this volume skill genuine humour and a mastery of style to make this the most attractive volume of short stories we have for some time seen daily telegraph few of our time would have told the story in such stirring language and the battle picture is perfect of its kind altogether the volume is admirable london smith elder co place by ic novels by s r with a crown vo s little mark speaker romantic adventure especially in his own is undoubtedly mr s strong f there is a good deal of vigorous writing that does not miss fire like so much in modem stuff and little mark is a sufficiently dashing and attractive heroine to fill the title with effect altogether here b a good to read little hark vo ha little hark crown vo news in little mark mr is quite at his best for this is a good rattling story of romantic adventure never once does his invention flag one dramatic incident succeed another with lightning rapidity mr carries us along from exciting incident to thrilling episode and gives us scarce time to breathe third edition with full page illustrations crown vo s the black speaker upon the who e the strongest piece of work we have yet had from mr a book which the imagination in a thoroughly satisfactory fashion academy a stirring story of fighting and loving and vengeance black and white a fine vigorous story full of hard fighting and brave deeds the black third edition crown vo os the black third edition crown vo os post a brilliant of work one of tiie best stories we have met christian world the story b from beginning to	44
and his watery pale eyes and receding chin gave one the idea that he was hardly to be trusted anything more spirited than a gold headed cane and yet somehow he aroused compassion rather than any sense of the ludicrous he had that look of shrinking which comes of a recent humiliation and in spite of all he was obviously a the talking horse gentleman while something in his manner that his natural tendency would once at all events have been to avoid any kind of extremes he puzzled and interested me so much that i did my best to enter conversation with him only to be baffled by the embarrassment with which he met all advances and when we got out at curiosity led me to keep him still in view evidently he had not come with any intention of making money he avoided the grand stand with the in couples uke hoarse he kept away from the members where the guards band was endeavouring to defy the elements which emptied their into the brazen instruments he drifted about the course till the clearing bell rang and it seemed as if he was searching for some one whom he only wished to discover in order to avoid it must be admitted was not as gay as usual that day with its park and d sky its and whose sides gleamed livid as they caught the light but there was a general determination to the as far as possible and an excitement over the main event of the day which no could the ten thousand was run ladies with lowered their without a murmur and smart men on shook hands the talking as amidst a frantic roar of delight strode past the post the moment after i looked round for my stranger and saw him engaged in a well meant attempt to press a upon a carriage horse to one of the trees a feat of abstraction which at such a time was only surpassed by that of at the sack of after that i could no longer control my curiosity i felt i must speak to him again and i made an opportunity later as we stood alone on a stand which commanded the finish of one of the shorter courses by suggesting that he should share my umbrella before accepting he glanced suspiciously at me through the that streamed from his hat brim i m afraid i said it is rather like shutting the stable door after the is stolen he started he stolen then he cried so you have heard i explained that i had only used an old proverb which i thought might appeal to him and he sighed heavily i was for the moment he said you have guessed then that i have been accustomed to horses you have hardly made any great secret of it the fact is he said instantly understanding this allusion to his costume i i put on these things so b the talking as not to lose the habit of riding altogether i have not been on horseback lately at one time i used to ride constantly constantly i was a regular attendant in until something occurred which shook my nerve and i am only waiting now for the shock to i did not like to ask any questions and we walked back to the station and travelled up to in company without any further reference to the subject as we were parting however he said i wonder if you would care to hear my full story some day i cannot help thinking it would interest you and it would be a relief to me i was ready enough to hear whatever he chose to tell me and persuaded him to dine with me at my rooms that evening and himself afterwards which he did to an extent for which i confess i was unprepared that he himself believed in his own story i could not doubt and he told it throughout with the mixture of vanity and modesty and an obvious struggle between a dim perception of his own absurdity and the determination to spare himself in no single particular which though it did not overcome my could not fail to sympathy but for all that by the time he entered upon the more part of his case i was driven to form conclusions respecting it which as they will probably the talking force themselves upon the reader s own mind i need not anticipate here i give the story as far as possible in the words of its author and have only to add that it would never have been published here without his full consent and approval my name said he is i have no occupation and six hundred a year i lived a quiet and contented bachelor until i was and then i met for the first time we were spending christmas at the same country house and it did not take me long to become the most devoted of her many she was one of the most accomplished girls i had ever met she was a skilled a brilliant amateur she could give most men thirty out of a hundred at and her judgment and daring across the most country had won her the warm admiration of all hunting men and she was neither fast nor seeming to find but pleasure in the society of mere to whose conversation she infinitely preferred that of persons who like myself were rather agreeable than i was not at that time whatever i may be now without my share of good looks and for some reason it pleased miss to show me a degree of favour which she accorded to no other member of the the talking it was to feel that my with the open air sports in which she delighted me from her company to	44
so great an extent for it often happened that i scarcely saw her until the evening when i sometimes had the bliss of sitting next to her at dinner but on these occasions i could not help seeing that she found some pleasure in my society i don t think i have mentioned that besides being exquisitely lovely was an and it was not without a sense of my own presumption that i allowed myself to entertain the hope of winning her at some future day still i was not absolutely and she was her own mistress and i had some cause as i have said for that she was at least not ill disposed towards me it seemed a favourable sign for instance when she asked me one day why it was i never rode i replied that i had not ridden for years though i did not add that the exact number of those years was twenty eight oh but you must take it up again she said with the prettiest air of you ought to ride in the next season if i did i said would you let me ride with you sometimes we should meet of course she said and it is such a pity not to keep up your riding you lose so much by not doing so was i wrong in taking this as an intimation that the talking horse by following her advice i should not lose my reward if you had seen her face as she spoke you would have thought as i did then as i do now and so with this i overcame any private and soon after my return to town attended a fashionable riding school near park with the fixed determination to acquire the whole art and mystery of that i found learning a pleasure i cannot declare i have passed happier hours than those i spent in round four bare walls on a horse with my crossed upon the saddle the informed me from time to time that i was getting on and i knew instinctively when i was coming off but i must have made some progress for my became more encouraging why when you come here first mr sir you were like a pair o on a wall as they say whereas now well you can tell yourself how you are he would say though even then i occasionally had reason to regret that i was not on a wall however i inspired by the thought that each fresh horse i crossed and some were very fresh indeed represented one more barrier surmounted between myself and and encouraged by the discovery after repeated experiments that tan was rather soothing to fall upon than otherwise when i walked in the where a few the talking horse were performing as of spring i their riding which i thought indifferent as they neglected nearly all the rules i began to anticipate a day when i should exhibit a purer and more classic style of and one morning i saw who pulled up her dancing mare to ask me if i had remembered her advice and i felt proudly able to reply that i should certainly make my appearance in the row before very long from that day i was perpetually questioning my riding master as to when he considered i should be ripe enough for he was but not actually it s like this you see sir he explained if you get hold of a quiet steady why you won t come to no harm but if you go out on an animal that will take advantage of you mr why you ll be all no how on him sir they would have mounted me at the school but i knew most of the there and none of them quite came up to my ideal of a quiet steady horse so i went to a neighbouring job master from whom i had occasionally hired a and asked to be shown an animal he could recommend to one who had not had much practice lately he admitted candidly enough that most of his horses took a deal of riding but added that it so happened that he had one just then which would suit me down to the ground a phrase which on my nerves though i consented to see the horse his aspect the talking horse impressed me most he was a chestnut of noble proportions with a mane but what reassured me was the expression of his eye indicating as it did a self respect and sagacity which one would hardly expect for seven and sixpence an hour you won t get a park than what he is not to be so quiet said his owner he s what you may call a kind and as gentle you could ride him on a i considered reins safer but i was powerfully drawn towards the horse he seemed to me to be sensible that he had a character to lose and to possess too high an intelligence to his with hardly a second thought i engaged him for the following afternoon i mounted at the stables with just a passing perhaps while my were being adjusted and a little awkwardness in taking up my reins which were more twisted than i could have wished however at length i found myself embarked on the stream of on the back of the chestnut whose name by the way was shall i ever forget the pride and ecstasy of finding that i had my under perfect control that we the of carriages with absolute security i turned him into the park and my tongue he broke into a and how shall i describe my delight at the discovery that it was not uncomfortable i said and he stopped so gradually the talking horse that my was not seriously disturbed he trotted and	44
still i myself to his movements without any positive inconvenience i could have embraced him for gratitude never before had i been upon a beast whose paces were so easy whose behaviour was so considerate i could ride at last or which amounted to the same thing i could ride the horse i was on and i would use no other i was about to meet and need not fear even to encounter her critical eyes we had crossed the bridge and were just turning in upon the when and here i am only too conscious that what i am about to say may strike you as almost incredible when i heard an voice addressing me with i say you and the moment afterwards that it proceeded from my own horse i am not ashamed to own that i was as nearly off as possible for a more practised rider than i could pretend to be might have a in preserving his in this all but situation i was too much engaged in feeling for my left to make any reply and presently the horse spoke once more i say he inquired and i failed to discern the slightest trace of respect in his tone do you think you can ride you can judge for yourself how the inquiry must have been from such lips i felt rooted to the saddle a sensation which with me was sufficiently rare i looked round the talking horse in helpless bewilderment at the and the white houses in park lane gleaming out of a haze at the coloured and the flash of distant carriage wheels in the sunlight all looked as usual and yet there was i on the back of a horse which had just inquired whether i thought i could ride i have had two dozen lessons at a riding school i said at last with rather a dignity i should hardly have suspected it was his brutal retort you are evidently one of the hopeless cases i was deeply hurt the more so because i could not deny that he had some claim to be a judge i i thought we were getting on so nicely together i faltered and all he said in reply to that was did you do you know i began striving to be i never was on a horse that talked before you are enough to make any horse talk he answered but i suppose i am an exception i think you must be said i the only horses i ever heard of as possessing the gift of speech were the how do you know i am not one of them he replied if you are you will understand that i took the liberty of mounting you under a very mistake and if you will have the goodness to stand still i will no longer detain you the talking horse not so fast said he i want to know more about you first i should say now you were a man with plenty of i am well off i said how i wished i was i have long been looking out for a proprietor who would not me now of course i don t know but you scarcely strike me as a hard rider i do not think i could be fairly accused of that i answered with all the consciousness of innocence just so then buy me no i gasped after the extremely candid opinion you were good enough to express of my riding i m surprised that you should even suggest such a thing oh i will put up with that you will suit me well enough i dare say you must excuse me i prefer to keep my spare cash for objects and with your permission i will spend the remainder of the afternoon on foot you will do nothing of the sort said he if you won t stop and let me get off properly i said with firmness i shall roll ofl there were some within easy hail but how was i to word a call for help how explain such a as mine you will only reduce me to the painful necessity of on you he you must see that you are to a certain extent in my power suppose it occurred to me to leap those rails and take you into the horse tho or to run away and upset a mounted policeman with you do you think you could offer much opposition i could not honestly assert that i did you were introduced to me i said reproachfully as a kind horse and so i am apart from matters of business come will you buy or be bolted with i buy i said with commercial if you will take me back i will arrange about it at once it is needless to say that my one idea was to get safely off his back after which neither honour nor law could require me to execute a contract from me by threats but as we were going down the he said i ve been thinking it will be better for all parties if you make your offer to my proprietor before you i was too vexed to speak this animal s infernal intelligence had foreseen my he meant to foil it if he could and then we in under the glass yard of the livery stables and the job master who was alone there cast his eyes up at the sickly faced clock as if he were comparing its with my own why you are home early sir he said you didn t find the too much for you did you he said this without any suspicion of the real truth and indeed i may say once for all that this weird horse the talking horse or whatever else he might	44
be admitted no one but myself into the secret of his marvellous gifts and in all his conversations with me managed though how i cannot pretend to say to avoid being overheard oh dear no i protested he carried me admirably admirably and i made an attempt to slip off no such thing instantly my memory and me by the slightest suggestion of a buck he s a grand sir isn t he said the complacently m magnificent i agreed with a jerk will you go to his head please but the horse backed into the centre of the yard where he plunged with a quiet obstinacy i like him so much i called out as i clung to the saddle that i want to know if you re at all inclined to part with him here became calm and attentive would you be inclined to make me a for him sir yes i said faintly about how much would he be you step into my here sir said he and we ll talk it over i should have been only too willing for there was no room there for the horse but the suspicious animal would not hear of it he began to immediately the talking horse let us settle it now here i said i can t wait the job master away a grin no doubt there was something and in such especially as combined with my appearance at the time well you ave took a fancy to the and no mistake sir he remarked i never crossed a creature i said which was hardly a prudent remark for an intending but then there was the animal himself to be i don t know really as i can do without him just at this time of year said the man i m under as it is for the work i ve got to do a sweet relief stole over me i had done all that could be expected of me i m very sorry to hear that i said preparing to that is a disappointment but if you can t there s an end of it don t you be afraid said te sell me readily enough make him an quick i ll give you thirty guineas for him come i said knowing well enough that he would not take twice the money i thought a gentleman like you would have had more insight into the value of a he said why his action alone is worth that sir you couldn t let me have the action without the the talking horse i suppose i said and i must have intended some joke it is unnecessary to a painful scene ran me up steadily from sum to sum until his owner said at last well we won t sir call it a hundred i had to call it a hundred and what is more it was a hundred i took him without a without even a opinion i could have been induced to take my purchase away then and there as if i had been buying a so was i to transactions of this kind and i am afraid the job master considered me little better than a fool so i found myself the involuntary possessor of a or something even worse and i walked back to my rooms in park street in a state of stupor what was i to do with him to ride an animal so would be a continual penance and yet i should have to keep him for i knew he was cunning enough to any attempt to dispose of him and to this love and ambition had led me i could not after all i had said approach with any confidence as a mere the fact that i was in possession of a healthy horse which i never rode would be sure to out in time and how was i to account for it i could see no way and i groaned under an embarrassment which i dared not confide to the ear i hated the the horse that had himself upon me and looked in vain for any mode of escape i had to provide with in another part of the town for he proved exceedingly to please he found fault with everything and i only wonder he did not demand that his stable should be fitted up with blue china and in his new quarters i left him for some days to his own devices a course which i was glad to find on visiting him again had considerably reduced his he wanted to go in the and see the other horses and it did not at all meet his views to be exercised there by a at hours so he proposed a compromise if i would only consent to mount him he engaged to treat me with forbearance and pointed out that he could give me as he expressed it various tips which would improve my seat i was not blind to the advantages of such an arrangement it is not every one who a riding master in the person of his own horse the horse is essentially a generous animal and i felt that i might trust to s honour and to do him justice he observed the compact with strict good faith some of his tips it is true very nearly tipped me off but their result was to bring us closer together our relations were less strained it seemed to me that i gained more mastery over him every day and was less stiff afterwards but i was not allowed to enjoy this illusion long c the talking one day when i innocently asked him if he found my hands improving he upon me his off eye you ll never improve old sack of beans for he had come to address me with a freedom i burned to resent hands why you	44
re my mouth off all the time and your feet home and me under my shoulders at every stride why i m half ashamed to be seen about with you i was deeply hurt i will spare you for the future i said coldly this is my last appearance nonsense he said you needn t show temper over it surely if i can put up with it you can but we will make a new compact i never knew such a beast as he was for you only worry me by interfering with the reins let em out and leave everything to me just mention from time to time where you want to go and i ll attend to it if i ve nothing better to do i felt that such an understanding was destructive of all dignity as it did the natural relations between horse and rider but i had hardly any self respect left and i consented since i saw no way of refusing and on the whole i cannot say even now that i had any grave reason for finding fault with the use made of my he showed more tact than i could have expected in the merely nature of my authority i had only one serious complaint against him talking which was that he had a habit of breaking suddenly away with a merely formal apology to exchange with some or mare to whose owner i was a perfect stranger thus driving me to invent the most desperate excuses to cover my seeming intrusion but i managed to account for it various ways and even made a few acquaintances in this irregular and involuntary manner i could have wished he had been a less susceptible animal for though his were merely it is rather humiliating to have to play to one s own horse a part which i was constantly being called upon to perform as it happened was away in paris that and we had not met since my appearance in the but i knew she would be in town again shortly and with i began to excite s curiosity by sundry careless allusions to miss s little mare wild rose she s too for my taste i said but she s been a good deal admired though i dare say you wouldn t be particularly struck by her so that on the first afternoon of s return to the i found it easy under cover of giving an opportunity of forming an opinion to prevail on him to carry me to her side who was with a certain lady her welcomed me with charming smile i had no idea you could ride so well she said c the horse you manage that beautiful horse of yours so very easily with such light hands too this was not irony for i could now give my whole mind to my seat and as i never interfered at all with the apparatus my hands must have seemed the perfection of lightness he wants delicate handling i answered carelessly but he goes very well with me i wish you would let me try his paces some morning struck in a colonel who was riding with them and whom i knew slightly i ve a notion he would go better on the i shall be very happy i began when just in time i noticed a warning depression in s ears the colonel rode about sixteen stone and with s i mean i added hastily i should have only to tell you the truth i couldn t trust any one on him but myself my dear fellow said the colonel who i could see was offended i ve not met many horses in my time that i couldn t get upon terms with i think mr is quite right said when a horse gets accustomed to one he does so resent a strange hand it spoils his temper for days i never will lend wild to anybody for that very reason the colonel fell back in the rear in a decided poor dear colonel i said he is so the talking horse proud of his riding but i think he a horse i don t call that riding y do you well hardly i agreed with easy i never believe in ruling a horse by fear i suppose you are very fond of yours she said fond is not the word i exclaimed and it certainly was not i am not sure that what i said about wild would apply to she said i think you would be gentle with her i was certain that i should treat her with all consideration but as i doubted whether she would wholly it i said with much presence of mind that i should regard riding her as akin to as and i were going home he observed that it was a good thing i had not agreed to lend him to the colonel yes i said determined to improve the occasion you might not have found him as considerate as well as some people i meant it was a good thing for you he hinted darkly and i did not care to ask for an explanation what did you mean he resumed by saying that i should not admire wild why she is charming charming in that case i said i don t mind riding with her mistress occasionally to oblige you the talking you don t mind he said you will have to my boy and every afternoon i suppressed a chuckle after all man is the nobler animal i could manage a horse in my own way my little had succeeded i should have no more forced to strangers and now for some weeks my life passed in a happy dream i only lived for those hours in the bow where turned as naturally to wild as	44
the to the sun and and i grew more intimate every day happiness and security made me almost witty i was merciless in my of the eccentric of which were to be met with and was provoked by my comments to the sweetest silvery laughter as for colonel whom i had once suspected of a desire to be my rival he had long become a quantity and if i delayed in asking to trust me with her sweet self it was only because i found an pleasure in a suspense that was so little uncertain and then without warning my riding was interrupted for a while was discovered much to his annoyance to have a saddle raw and was even so unjust as to lay the blame on me though for my own part i thought it a mark of apt though i was not disposed to tempt fortune upon any other mount but i could not keep away the talking from tho bow nevertheless and appeared there on foot i saw riding with the colonel who seemed to think his opportunity had come at last but whenever she passed the on which i leaned she would raise her eyebrows and draw her mouth down into a little curve of resigned which completely reassured me still i was very glad when was well again and we were down the bow once more both in the highest spirits i never heard tho horses here so much as they do this season i said by way of making conversation can you account for it at all for he sometimes gave me pieces of information which enabled me to impress afterwards by my intimate knowledge of horses he said they re laughing that s what they re doing and no wonder oh said i and what s the joke why you are ho replied you don t suppose you take them in do you they know all about you bless your heart oh do they i said this brute took a positive pleasure i believe in my i dare say it has got about through wild he continued she was immensely when i told her i m afraid she must have been feeling rather dull all these days by the bye the talking i felt an unworthy impulse to take his conceit down as he had lowered mine not so very i think i said she seemed to me to find that brown hunter of colonel s a very agreeable substitute late as it is for i must acknowledge with shame that in uttering this i did that poor little mare for whom i entertained the highest respect a shameful injustice and i should like to state here in the most solemn and emphatic manner my sincere belief that from first to last she conducted herself in a manner that should have her from all it was only a mean desire to a petty and spite that prompted me thus to poison s confidence and i regretted the words as soon as i had uttered them that beast he said starting as if i had touched him with a whip a thing i never used why he hasn t two ideas in his great fiddle head the only sort of he ought to carry is a i grant he has not your personal advantages and charm of manner i said no doubt i was wrong to say anything about it no he said you you have done me a service and he into a sombre silence i was riding with as usual and was about to express my delight at being able to resume our companionship when her mare drew slightly ahead the talking horse and lashed out suddenly catching me on the left leg and causing intense agony for the moment showed the sweetest concern imploring me to go home in a cab at once while her groom took charge of i declined the cab but as my leg was really painful and was showing an impatience i dared not disregard i had to leave her side on our way home said it is all over between us you saw that i felt it i replied she nearly broke my leg it was intended for me he said it was her way of that we had better be strangers for the future i her with her she denied it of course every mare does we had an explanation and everything is at an end i did not ride him again for some days and when i did i found him in gloom he even wanted at first to keep entirely on the side of the park though i succeeded in arguing him out of such weakness be a horse i said show her you don t care you only flatter her by betraying your feelings this was a that had evidently not occurred to him but he was intelligent enough to feel the force of what i said you are right he admitted you are not quite a fool in some respects she shall b e how little i care naturally after this i expected to accompany the horse as usual and it was a bitter disappointment to me to find that would not hear of doing so he had an old acquaintance in the park a who probably from some early disappointment was a confirmed and whose society he thought would be congenial just then the grey was ridden regularly by a certain miss whose appearance as she laboriously up and down had often furnished and myself with amusement and now in spite of all my efforts made straight to the grey i was not in such as might have been expected for i happened to know miss slightly as a lady no longer in the bloom of youth who still retained a form of though rather her than not i found it	44
necessary just then to throw some slight into my greeting she not perhaps was flattered by my preference and begged me to give her a little instruction in riding which heaven forgive me for it i took upon myself to do even now i scarcely see how i could have acted otherwise i could not leave her side until had exhausted the pleasures of with his grey friend and the time had to be filled up somehow but oh the torture of seeing at a distance and knowing that only a miserable misunderstanding between our respective kept us apart feeling constrained even to avoid looking in her direction lest she should summon me to her side the horse one day as i was riding with miss she glanced at me over her sharp right shoulder and said do you know only such a uttle while ago i never even dreamed that we should ever become as intimate as we are now it seems almost incredible does it not you must not say so i replied surely there is nothing singular in my helping you a little with your riding though it struck me that it would have been very singular if i had perhaps not singular she murmured looking modestly down her nose but will you think me very if i confess that to me those lessons have developed a dawning danger you are perfectly safe on the grey i said i i was not thinking of the grey she ned dear mr i must speak a girl has so many things to consider and i am afraid you have made me forget how and i have been of late i cannot help suspecting that you must have some motive in seeking my society in so so marked a manner miss said i i can disguise nothing i have and you have not been merely amusing yourself all this time before heaven i cried with i have you are not one of those false men who give their the horse bridle reins a shake and ride off with adieu for tell me you are not i might shake my bridle reins till i was tired and nothing would come of it unless was in the humour to depart so that i was able to assure her with truth that i was not at all that kind of person then why not let your heart speak there is such a thing i said gloomily as a heart that is can no word no hint of mine the she wished to know what you are silent still then mr though i may seem harsh and cruel in saying it our pleasant intercourse must end we must ride together no more no what would say to that i was miss i said in great agitation i entreat you to those words i i am afraid i could not undertake to accept such a dismissal surely after that you will not insist she sighed i am a weak foolish girl she said you are only too able to overcome my judgment there mr look happy again i you may stay if you will you must believe that i felt thoroughly ashamed of myself for i could not be blind to the encouragement which though i sought to confine my words to strict truth i was innocently affording but with a horse like mine what was a man to do what would you have done yourself as soon as was prudent i the a hinted to that his confidences had lasted long enough and as he trotted away with me he remarked i thought you were never going was he weary of the grey my heart leaped i said thickly are you strong enough to bear a great joy speak out he said and do try to keep those heels out of my ribs i cannot see you suffer i told him with a sense of my own all the time i must tell you circumstances have come to my knowledge which lead me to believe that we have both judged wild rose too hastily i am sure that her heart is yours still she is only longing to tell you that she has never really from her it is too late now he said and the back of his head looked obstinate we have kept asunder too long no i said listen i take more interest in you than you are perhaps aware of and i have thought of a little plan for bringing you together again what if i find an opportunity to see the lady she belongs to we h ve not met lately as you know and i do not pretend that i desire a renewal of our intimacy you like the one on the grey best i saw that long ago he said and i left him in his error in any case for your sake i will sacrifice myself i said i will begin to morrow the talking horse come you will not let your lives be wrecked by a foolish lovers quarrel he made a little half hearted opposition but finally as i knew he would consented i had gained my point i was free from miss at last that evening i met in the hall of a house in square she was going downstairs as i was making my way to the ball room and greeted me with a rather cool uttle nod you have quite deserted me lately she said smiling but i could read the reproach in her eyes you never ride with us now my throat was swelling with passionate eloquence and i could not get any of it out no i never do was all my stupid tongue could find to say you have discovered a more congenial companion said cruel miss i said eagerly you don t know how i	44
heels as we started what are those things you ve got on he inquired spurs i replied you shouldn t wear them till you have learnt to the talking horse turn your toes in he said and a whip too may i ask what that is for we will discuss that presently i said very coldly for i did not want to have a scene with my horse in the street when we came round by the statue of and on to the bide i my reins and got a better hold of the whip while i found that from some cause i cannot explain the roof of my mouth grew dry i should be glad of a quiet talk with you if you ve no objection i began i am quite at your disposal he said his bit with a touch of irony first let me tell you i said that i have lost my only love for ever well he retorted you won t die of it so have i we must endeavour to console one another i still maintained a deadly calm you seem unaware that you are the sole cause of my calamity i said had you only consented to face wild yesterday i should have been a happy man by this time how was i to know that when you let me think all your affections were given to the elderly thing who is trotted out by my friend the grey we won t argue please i said hastily it is enough that your infernal and self will have the ruined my happiness i have allowed you to the rule to reverse our natural positions i shall do so no more i intend to teach you a lesson you will never forget for a horse he certainly had a keen sense of humour i thought the would have snapped and when do you intend to begin he asked as soon as he could speak i looked in front of me there were and her accepted lover riding towards us and so natural is even to the sweetest and best women that no one would have suspected from her radiant face that her gaiety covered an aching heart i intend to begin now i said monster demon whatever you are that have held me in so long i have broken my chains i have been a coward long enough you may kill me if you like i rather hope you will but first i mean to pay you back some of the humiliation with which you have loaded me i intend to you as long as i remain in the saddle i have been told by eye witnesses that the was of brief duration but while it lasted i flatter myself it was severe i laid into him with a stout whip of whose i had assured myself by experiments upon my own legs i dug my borrowed spurs into his i jerked his mouth i dare say he was almost as much surprised as pained but he was pained i i was about to continue my practical rebuke when the talking h r e my victim suddenly my grasp and for one vivid second i seemed to be gazing upon a view of his back and then there was a crash and i lay like a bee in an fog and each colour meant a different pain and they faded at last into darkness and i remember no more it was weeks concluded mr before that darkness lifted and revealed me to myself as a and but and this is perhaps the most curious part of my narrative almost the first sounds that reached my ears were those of wedding bells and i knew without requiring to be told that they were ringing for s marriage with the colonel that showed there wasn t much the matter with me didn t it why i can hear them everywhere now i don t think she ought to have had them rung at though it was just a little so long after the ceremony don t you think so yes yes i said but you never told me what became of the horse ah the horse yes i am looking for him i m not so angry with him as i was and i don t like to ask too many questions at the stables for fear they may tell me one day that they had to shoot him while i was so ill you knew i was ill i dare say he broke off there were about me in the papers look here he handed me a cutting on which i read the talking the accident in rotten row there is no change as yet in mr s condition the unfortunate gentleman is still lying unconscious at his rooms in park street and his medical attendants fear that even if he his physical strength the brain will be permanently injured but that was all nonsense said mr with a little nervous laugh it wasn t injured a bit or how could i remember everything so clearly as i do you know and this was an argument that was of course s v the good little girl a story for children her name was and she was a very good little girl indeed so good was she in fact that she could not help being aware of it herself and that is a stage to which very many quite excellent persons never succeed in she was only just a child it is true but she had read a great many beautiful story books and so she knew what a powerful influence a childish and innocent remark or a youthful example or a happy combination of both can exert over grown up people and early in life she was but eleven at the date of this history early in	44
where i met the fairy she came in and took her place at the family luncheon which was the children s dinner they were all seated already including her father who had got through most of his writing in the course of the morning now make haste and eat your dinner said her mother or it will be quite cold i always let it get a little cold mother replied the good little girl so that i t come to think too much about eating you know as she uttered this remark she felt a jewel pro the girl itself in some mysterious way from the tip of her tongue and saw it fall with a clatter into her plate i ll pretend not to notice anything she thought exclaimed pausing in the act of i say if you ask mother i m sure she will tell you that it is most ill to speak with your mouth full said her speech greatly by an immense i like that exclaimed her rude brother who s speaking with their mouth full now their is not grammar dear was s only reply to this as she delicately a pearl you should say her mouth full for s grammar was as good as her principles but really dear said her mother who felt some embarrassment at so novel an experience as being to find fault with her little daughter you should not eat sweets just before dinner and and couldn t you get rid of them in some other manner sweets cried considerably annoyed at being so misunderstood they are not sweets mother look and she offered to submit one for inspection if i may venture to express an opinion observed her father l would rather that a child of mine should sweets than coloured beads and in either the good little case i object to having them forced upon my notice at meal times but i i m wrong i generally am papa is quite right dear said her mother it is such a dangerous habit suppose you were to swallow one you know put them in the fire like a good girl and go on with your dinner rose without a word her cheeks and dropped the pearl and with great accuracy into the very centre of the fire this done she returned to her seat and went on with her dinner in silence though her prevented her from eating very much if they choose to think my pearls are only beads or or drops she said to herself bitterly i won t waste any more on them that s all i won t open my lips again except to say quite ordinary things so there if had not been such a very good little girl you might almost have thought she was in a temper but she was not her feelings were wounded that was all which is quite a different thing that afternoon her aunt mrs came to call she was the aunt whom we have already mentioned as being given to she was not well off and had a tendency to flatter people but was fond of her notwithstanding and she had never detected her in any towards herself she was sent into the drawing room to enter e the good little tain her aunt until her mother was ready to come down and her aunt as usual overwhelmed her with how pretty and well you are looking my pet she began and oh what a beautiful frock you have on the little wore it before i did aunt said modestly how sweet of you to say so but they never looked half so well in it i ll be why my child you ve dropped a stone out of a or something look on the carpet there oh said carelessly it was out of my mouth not out of a i never wear i think makes people grow so conceited don t you aunt yes indeed dearest indeed you are so right said her aunt who wore a as large as a upon her cloak and and surely that can t be a diamond in your lap oh yes it is i met a fairy this morning in the lane and so and here proceeded to her wonderful experience i thought it might perhaps make papa and mamma value me a little more than they do she said wistfully as she finished her story but they don t take the least notice they made me put the jewels on the fire they did really what blindness cried her aunt how can people shut their eyes to such a treasure and and may i just have one look what you really the good little girl don t want them i may keep them for my very own you precious love ah i know a humble home where you would be appreciated at your proper worth what would i not give for my poor naughty and to have the advantage of seeing more of such a cousin i don t know whether i could do them much good said but i would try my best i am sure you would said aunt and now dearest sweet i am going to ask your dear mamma to spare you to us for just a little while we must both beg very hard i ll go and tell nurse to pack my things now and then i can go away with you said the little girl when her mother heard of the invitation she consented quite willingly to tell you the truth she said i shall be very glad for the child to have a change she seems a little unhappy at home with us and she behaved most unlike her usual self at lunch it be natural for a child of her age to large glass beads did your and	44
ever do such a thing never said aunt it is a habit that certainly ought to be checked and i promise you my dear that if you will only trust to me i will take away anything of that kind the very moment i find it and i do think poor as we are we shall manage to make her feel at home we are all so fond of your sweet k the good little girl so the end of it was that went to stay with her aunt that very afternoon and her family bore the parting with the greatest composure i can t give you nice food or a pretty bedroom to sleep in such as you have at home said her kind aunt we are very plain people my pet but at least we can promise you a warm welcome h protested you mustn t think i mind a little hardship why if beds weren t hard and food not nicely cooked now and then we should soon grow too luxurious to do our duty and that would be so very bad for us oh what beauties cried her aunt involuntarily as she stooped to recover several sparkling gems from the floor of the cab i mean it s better to pick them up dear don t you think they might get in people s you know what a blessing you will be in our simple home i want you to do all you can to instruct your cousins don t be afraid of telling them of any faults you may happen to see poor and i fear they are very far from being all they should be and aunt heaved a sigh never mind they will be better in time i am sure i wasn t always a good girl thoroughly enjoyed the first few days of her visit even her aunt was only too grateful for instruction and begged that would tell her quite candidly of any she might notice and v kindly and always the good little did tell her and were less and she saw that it would take her some time to win their esteem and but this was just what liked it was the usual experience of the in the books and much more interesting too than conquering her cousins hearts at once still both and persistently hardened their hearts against their gentle little cousin in the way they would scarcely speak to her and chose to make a grievance out of the fact that one or other of them was obliged by their mother s strict orders to be constantly in attendance upon her in order to pick up and bring mrs all the jewels that scattered in profusion wherever she went if you would only carry a plate about with you complained one day you could catch the jewels in that but i don t want to catch the jewels dear said with a playful but very sweet smile if other people prize such things that is not my fault is it jewels do not make people any happier i should think not exclaimed i m sure my back perfectly with stooping and so does s there that big has just gone and rolled under the and mother will be so angry if i don t get it out it is too bad of you i believe you do it on purpose the good little girl ah you will know me better some day was the gentle response well at all events i think you might be naughty just now and then and give and me a half holiday i would do anything else to please you dear but not that you must not ask me to do what is impossible alas not even this behaviour not even the loving the tender the shocked reproaches that fell accompanied by perfect of jewels from the lips of our pattern uttle succeeded in removing the utterly prejudices of her cousins though it was some consolation to feel that she was gradually acquiring a most influence over her who called her little conscience for you see s conscience had so little to do on her own account that it was always at the service of other people and indeed quite enjoyed being useful as was only natural to a conscientious conscience which felt that it could never have been created to be idle very soon another responsibility was added to little s burdens her cousin dick the worldly one with the yellow boots came home after his annual holiday which as he was the junior clerk in a large bank he was obliged to take rather late in the year she had looked forward to his return with some excitement dick she knew was frivolous and reckless the good little girl in his habits he went to the theatre occasionally and frequently spent an evening in playing and smoking cigars at a friend s house there would be real credit in poor cousin dick he was not long of course in hearing of s marvellous and upon the first occasion they were alone together treated her with a respect and admiration which he had very certainly never shown her before you re wonderful he said i d no idea you had it in you nor had i dick but it shows that even a little girl can do something i should rather think so and and the way you look as grave as a judge all the time i wish you d tell me how you manage it i wouldn t tell a soul but i don t know dick i only talk and the jewels come that is all you artful uttle girl you can keep a secret i see but so can i and you might tell me how you do the trick what put you up to the i m to be trusted i	44
assure you dick you can t you mustn t think there is any about it how can you believe i could be such a wicked uttle girl as to play tricks it was an old fairy that gave me the gift i m sure i don t know why unless she thought that i was a good child and deserved to be encouraged the good little girl by jove cried dick i never knew you were half such fun i am not fun dick i think fun is generally so very vulgar and oh i wish you wouldn t say by jove surely you know he was a heathen god i seem to have heard of him in some such capacity said dick i say what a big ah dick dick you are like the others i m afraid you think more of the jewels than of any words i may say and yet jewels are common enough they seem to be with you pearls too and such fine ones here take them they re your property put her hands behind her no indeed dick they are of no use to me keep them please they may help to remind you of what i have said it s awfully kind of you said dick looking really touched then since you put it in that way thanks i will i ll have them made into a pin you mustn t let it make you too fond of dress then said but i m afraid you re that already dick a diamond he cried go on i m listening pitch into me it will do me a lot of good but thought it wisest to say no more just then the good little girl that night after and and had gone to bed dick and his mother sat up talking a late hour is dear little cousin to be a in this establishment began her cousin stifling a for there had been a rather copious flow of precious stones during the evening well i shall keep her with us as long as i can said mrs she s such a and they don t seem to want her at home i m sure limited as my means are i m most happy to have such a visitor she seems to pay her way only her way is a trifle trying at times isn t it she me for half an hour on end without a single check are you sure you picked them all up dear boy got a few of the best in my waistcoat pocket now i m afraid i a pearl or two though they were all over the place you know i suppose you ve been collecting too i picked up one or two said his mother i should think i must have nearly enough now to fill a and that brings me to what i wanted to consult you about how are we to dispose of them she has given them all to me you haven t done anything with them yet then how could i i have been obliged to stay at home i ve been so afraid of letting that precious the good little child go out of my sight for a single hour for fear some persons might get hold of her i thought that perhaps when you came home you would dispose of the jewels for me but protested dick i can t go about asking who ll buy a whole full of jewels oh very well then i suppose we must go on living this life when we have the means of being as rich as princes just because you are too lazy and selfish to take a httle trouble i know something about these things said dick i know a fellow who s a diamond merchant and it s not so easy to sell a lot of valuable stones as you seem to imagine mother and then really it you know why if she goes on like this she ll make diamonds as cheap as i should have thought that was a reason for selling them as soon as possible but i m only a woman and of course my opinion is worth nothing still you might take some of the biggest to your friend and accept whatever he ll give you for them there are plenty more you needn t over the price he d want to know all about them and what should i say i can t tell him a cousin of mine produces them whenever she feels disposed you could say they have been in the family for some time and you are obliged to part with them i don t ask you to tell a falsehood the good little girl well to tell you the honest truth said dick i d rather have nothing to do with it i m not proud but i shouldn t like it to get about among our fellows at the bank that i went about diamonds but you stupid boy don t you see that you could leave the bank you need never do anything any more we should all live rich and happy somewhere in the country if we could only sell those jewels and you won t do that one little thing weu said dick i ll think over it i ll see what i can do and his mother knew that it was perfectly useless to urge him any further for in some things dick was as obstinate as a mule and in others far too and careless ever to succeed in life he had promised to think over it however and she had to be contented with that on the evening following this conversation cousin dick entered the sitting room the moment after his return from the city and found his mother to all appearances	44
we haven t picked up anything the whole afternoon ah my poor you shall never be your cousin s slaves any more don t go near her she s a naughty wretch her jewels are false my sweet loves false she has imposed upon us all she does not deserve to associate with you i always said s jewels looked like the things you get on said tossing her head now we shall have a little rest i hope in i shall send her home to her parents this very night declared aunt she shall not stay here to our happy household with her miserable here found her tongue do you think i want to stay she said proudly i see now that you only wanted to have me here because because of the horrid jewels and i never knew they were false and i let you have them all every one you know i did and i wanted you to mind what i said and not trouble about picking them up but you do it and now you all turn round upon me like this what have i done to be treated so what have i done cried dick mother if you ask me i think it serves us all jolly well right and it s the good little girl g a downright shame to poor in this way i ask you retorted his mother sharply so you will kindly keep your opinions to yourself la la sang rude dick we are a united family we are we are we are a vulgar refrain he had picked up at one of the theatres he was only too fond of but came to him and held out her hand quite gratefully and humbly thank you dick she said you are kind at all events and i am sorry you couldn t have your horse shoe pin oh hang the horse shoe pin exclaimed dick and poor was so thoroughly cast down that she quite forgot to him she was not sent home that night after all for dick protested against it in such strong terms that even aunt saw that she must give way but early on the following morning quitted her aunt s house leaving her to be sent on after her she had not far to walk and it so happened that her way led through the identical lane in which she had met the fairy wonderful to relate there on the very same stone and in precisely the same attitude sat the old lady peering out from under her and resting her old hands on her handled stick walked past with her head in the air the good little pretending not to notice her for she considered that the fairy had played her a most malicious and trick said the old lady it is only who can permit themselves such old fashioned expressions nowadays why here s my good little girl again isn t she going to speak to me no she s not said but she found herself compelled to stop notwithstanding why what s all this about you re not going to with me my dear are you i think you re a very cruel bad unkind old woman for deceiving me like this goodness me why didn t the jewels come after all yes they came only they were all horrid artificial ones and it is a shame it is cried poor from her bursting heart artificial were they that really is very odd can you account for that at all now of course i can t you told me that they would drop out whenever i said anything to improve people and i was always saying something improving aunt had a in her room quite full of them ah you ve been very industrious evidently it s unfortunate your jewels should all have been artificial most unfortunate i don t know how to explain it unless and here the old lady looked up from the good little girl g under her white unless your goodness was artificial too how do you mean asked feeling strangely uncomfortable i m sure i ve never done anything the least bit how can my goodness possibly be artificial ah that i can t explain but i know that people who really good are generally the last persons to suspect it and the moment they become aware of it and begin to think how good they are and how bad everybody else is why somehow or other their goodness away and leaves only a sort of outside shell behind it and i m very old and of course i may be mistaken but i think i only say i think mind that a little girl so young as you must have some faults hidden about her somewhere and that perhaps on the whole she would be better employed in trying to find them out and cure them before she attempted to correct those of other people and i m sure it can t be good for any child to be always seeing herself in a little picture just as she likes to fancy other people see her very many pretty books are written about good little girls and it is quite true that children may exercise a great influence for good more than they can ever tell perhaps but only just so long as they remain natural and unconscious and not little for then they make themselves and other people worse than they might have been but of f the good little girl course my dear you never made such a mistake as that turned very red and began to scrape one of her feet the other she was thinking and her thoughts were not at all pleasant ones oh fairy she said at last i m afraid that s just what i did do	44
i was always thinking how good t was and putting everybody papa mamma aunt and even poor cousin dick right i have been a horrid little hateful and that s why all the jewels were rubbish but oh shall i have to go on talking sham diamonds and things all the rest of my life that said the fairy depends entirely on yourself you have the remedy in your own hands or lips ah you mean i needn t talk at all but i must sometimes i couldn t bear to be dumb as long as i lived and it would look so odd too i never said you were not to open your lips at all but can t you try to talk simply and naturally not like little girls or boys in any story books whatever not to show oflf or improve people only as a girl would talk who remembers that after all her elders are quite as likely as she is to know what they ought or ought not to do and say i shall forget sometimes i know i shall said if you do there will be something to remind you you know and by and by perhaps as you grow up the good little girl you may quite by accident say something sincere and noble and true and then a jewel will fall which will really be of value no cried no please oh fairy let me oflf that if i must drop them let them be false ones to punish me not real i don t want to be rewarded any more for being good if i ever am really good come said the fairy with a much pleasanter smile you are not a hopeless case at all events it shall be as you wish then and perhaps it will be the wisest arrangement for all parties now run away home and see how little use you can make of your fairy gift found her family still at breakfast why observed her father raising his eyebrows as she entered the room here s our little or is it eh back again children we shall all have to mind our p s and q s and indeed our entire now i m sure said her mother kissing her fondly knows we re all delighted to have her home fm not said with all a boy s engaging nor am i added it s been ever so much at home while she s been away burst into tears as she hid her face upon the good little her mother s shoulder it s true she sobbed i don t deserve that you should be glad to see me i ve been hateful and horrid i know but oh if you ll only forgive me and love me and put up with me a uttle i ll try not to preach and be a any more i will truly and at this her father called her to his side and embraced her with a he had not shown for a very long time i should not like to go so far as to assert that no imitation diamond pearl or ever proceeded from s lips again habits are not cured in a day and however old they may be are still so it did occasionally happen that a mock jewel made an unwelcome appearance after one of s more but she was always ashamed and abashed by such an accident and buried the imitation stones immediately in a corner of the garden and as time went on the jewels grew smaller and smaller and frequently dissolved upon her tongue leaving a faintly bitter taste until at last they ceased altogether and became as pleasant and unaffected a girl as she who may now be finishing this history aunt never sent back the contents of that she kept the biggest stones and had a made of them while as she never mentioned the good little girl that they were false no one out of the family ever so much as suspected it but for all that she always declared that her niece had bitterly disappointed her expectations which was perhaps the truest thing that aunt ever said a matter of taste i it is a little singular that upon an engagement becoming known and being discussed by the friends and acquaintances of the persons principally concerned by far the most usual tone of comment should be a wonder that particular alliance is generally the very last that anybody ever expected what made him choose her of all people and what on earth she could see in him are declared problems it is confidently predicted that the engagement will never come to anything or that if such a marriage ever does take place it is most unlikely to prove a success sometimes in the case of female friends this tone is even perceptible under their warmest and through the smiling mask of shine eyes moist with the most quality of compassion so glad so delighted but why didn t you consult this complicated expression might a matter of taste be rendered i could have saved you from this i was so pleased to hear of it and yet in the majority of cases these are not found to turn out so very badly after all and the couple seem really to have their own hearts and their possibilities of happiness together more accurately than the most clear sighted of their acquaintances the announcement that had accepted george provoked the customary sensation and surprise in their respective sets and perhaps with rather more justification than usual miss had beauty of a spiritual and rather type and was generally understood to be highly cultivated she had spent a year at though she had gone down without trying for a	44
place in either or thereby preserving if not increasing her reputation for superiority she had lived all her life among people she was devoted to music and regularly attended the though she could seldom be induced to play in public she had a feeling for art though she neither painted nor drew a love of strong enough to her from all amateur efforts in that direction in art music and literature she was impatient of and while she was as fond as most girls of the pleasures which upper society can offer she intellect and preferred the conversation of the fe r a of taste the of the mere dancing man no matter how handsome of feature and perfect of step he might be george was certainly not a mere his being rather conscientious than and he was only tolerably good looking on the other hand he was not celebrated in any way and even his mother and sisters had never considered him brilliant he had been educated at and cambridge where he rowed a fairly good oar on principle and took a middle second in the moral science now he was in a s office where he was receiving a good salary and was valued as a steady sensible young fellow who could be thoroughly depended upon he was fond of his profession and had acquired a considerable knowledge of its details apart from it he had no very decided tastes he lived a quiet regular life and dined out and went to dances in moderation his manner though he was nearly twenty six was still rather blunt what there was in him that had found favour in s fastidious eyes the is not rash enough to attempt to but it may be suggested that the most unlikely people may possess their fairy rose and ring which render them irresistible to at least one heart if they only have faith to believe in and luck to perceive their power so early in the year george had plucked up a of taste courage to propose to miss after meeting and secretly her for some months past and she to the general astonishment had accepted him he had a private income not a large one of his own and had saved out of it she was entitled under her grandmother s will to a sum which made her an in a modest way and thus there was no reason why the engagement should he a long one and no date had been definitely fixed for the marriage it was understood that it should take place at some time before the end of the summer soon after the engagement however an aunt with whom had always been a great favourite was ordered to the south of france and implored her to go with her which who had a real affection for her relative as well as a strong sense of duty had consented to do this was a misfortune in one of two ways it either that most necessary and most delightful period during which discover one another s and weaknesses or it made it necessary to the marriage george naturally preferred the former as the more evil but s letters from abroad began to hint more and more plainly at delay her aunt might remain on the continent all the summer and she could not possibly leave her there was so much to be done after her return that could not be done in a hurry they had not even begun to furnish the a matter of taste pretty little house on hill that was to be their new home it would be better to wait till november or even later the mere idea was alarming to george and he remonstrated as far as he dared but remained firm and he grew desperate he might have spared himself the trouble about the middle of june s aunt who of course had had to leave the grew tired of travelling and to george s intense satisfaction returned to her mother s house in gardens and now when our story opens george who had managed to get away from office work two hours before his usual time was hurrying towards gardens as fast as a could take him to see his for the first time after their long separation he was eager naturally and a little nervous would still persist in her wish for delay or would he be able to convince her that there were no obstacles in the way he felt he had strong arguments on his side if only and here was the real seat of his anxiety if only her objections were not raised from some other motive she might have been trying to prepare him for a final and then well he concluded with his customary good sense no use meeting trouble in five minutes i shall know for certain a matter of taste at the same moment mrs and her daughter a girl in the old stage were in the drawing room at gardens it was the ordinary double drawing room of a london house but everything in it was beautiful and harmonious the eye was vaguely rested by the and subdued colour of walls and antique rare bits of china all occupied the precise place in which their value was most felt a room in short of exceptional and distinction was standing at the window from which a glimpse could just be caught of fresh green foliage and the lodge gates with the bustle of the traffic in the high street beyond mrs was writing at a in the corner i suppose said as she a piece of old stained glass that was hanging in the window we shall have george here this afternoon mrs raised her head she had a striking face tinted a clear olive with a high wave of silver hair crowning the forehead	44
her eyebrows were dark and so were the eyes the nose was and the thin well cut mouth a little hard she was a woman who had been much admired in her time and who still retained a certain attraction though some were apt to find her somewhat cold and a matter of taste her daughter for example was always secretly a little in awe of her mother who however had no terrors for audacious if he comes he will be very welcome she said but i hardly expect him yet george is not likely to neglect his duties even for her mouth rather scornfully oh george is she mm if he was it would hardly be a reproach said her mother catching the word but at all events george has thoroughly good principles and is sure to succeed in the world i have every reason to be pleased every reason ah but are you pleased mother dear you know he s as dull as dull does not find him so and i don t like to hear you say such things even in s absence oh i never abuse him to it wouldn t be any use she s firmly convinced that he s perfection at least she was before she went away why do you mean that she has altered have you seen any sign of it mrs made this inquiry sharply but not as if such a ch would be altogether to her oh no only she hasn t seen him for so long you know perhaps when she comes to look at him with fresh eyes she ll notice things more ah here is a of taste george just getting out of a so he has played for once there s one thing i do think might do persuade him to off some of those whiskers i wonder why he never seems to get a hat or anything else like other people s presently george was announced he was slightly above middle height broad shouldered and the whiskers did indeed cover more of his cheeks than modern fashion for men of his age and had evidently never known a he wore a turn down collar and a of a rather crude red his clothes were neat and well brushed but not remarkable for their cut well my dear george said mrs we have seen very little of you while has been away i know he said awkwardly i ve had a lot of things to look after in one way and another what after your work at the office was over cried yes after that it s taken up my time a good deal and so you couldn t spare any to call here i see said george she added with a sudden diversion i wonder you aren t afraid of catching cold how can you go about in such thin boots as those these he said them doubtfully they were strong sensible boots with and a matter of taste projecting of ponderous thickness why what s the matter with them eh don t you think they re strong enough for walking in no george they re the very things for an afternoon dance and quite a lot of couples could dance in them you see but for walking ah i m afraid you sacrifice too much to appearances i don t really george protested in all good faith now do i mrs is making fun of you george you mustn t mind her impertinence oh is that all do you know i really thought for the moment that she meant they were too small for me you like getting a rise out of me don t you and he laughed with such genuine and amusement that the young lady felt somehow a little small and almost ashamed although it took the form of suppressed irritation he really ought not to come here in such things she said to herself and i don t believe that even now he sees what i meant just at this point came in with the least touch of shyness perhaps at meeting him before witnesses after so long an absence but she only looked the more charming in consequence and as her greeting was her pretty eyes had a sparkle of pleasure that scattered all george s fears to the winds even felt instinctively that a matter of taste red thick george had lost none of his divinity for they did not seem to have much to say to one another notwithstanding possibly because was called upon to dispense the tea which had just been brought in george sat nursing the hat which found so objectionable while he balanced a with the anxious eye of a out of practice and the conversation at last under pretence of his tea most of which he had upon a rug he crossed to i say he suggested don t you think you could come out for a little while i ve such lots to tell you and i want you to go somewhere with me mrs made no objection beyond that must not be allowed to tire herself after her journey and so a few minutes later miss came down in her pretty summer hat and light cape and she and george were allowed to set out once outside the house he drew a long breath of mingled relief and pleasure by jove i am glad to get you back again i say how jolly you do look in that hat now do you know where i m going to take you it will be in the gardens said ah but that s not where you re going now he said with a delicious assumption of authority you re coming with me to see a certain house on hill you may have heard of a a matter of taste that will be	44
there standing over those beggars of painters and keeping em at it and working out and seeing and and all kinds of i used to get home dead tired of an evening but i didn t mind that i felt it was all bringing you nearer to me darling and that made everything a pleasure there was such honest affection in his look and voice he had so evidently intended to please her and had been in such manifest dread of any further separation from her that she was completely dear george she said gently i am so sorry you took all the trouble on yourself it was very very good of you to care so much and i know i shall be delighted with the house well said george i m not much afraid about that because i expect our tastes are pretty much the same in most things they were by this time at the house and george after a little with his as yet threw open the door with a flourish and said there you are little woman walk in and you ll see what you shall see no sooner was inside the hall than her heart sank looks neat and nice doesn t it said george cheerfully you d almost take that paper for real marble wouldn t you see how well they ve done those veins i like this colour better than a matter of taste green don t you it looks so cool in summer that s a good strong hall lamp not what you call high art exactly but gives a rattling good light and that s the main thing here i ll light it up for confound it they haven t turned the gas on yet however there s too much sunshine for it to show much if they had this is a capital thing you might as long as you liked and you d never get that pattern out no agreed with a tragic little smile it it looks as if it would last last i should just think so and here s a you could almost swear it was carved wood of some sort but it s only cast iron painted you see they told me that was the latest wonderful how they turn them out isn t it i thought you said you were helped oh i didn t want any help here this is only the passage you know yes it was only the passage and yet she had been such a charming entrance with a draped arch a graceful lamp a fresh bright paper a small of genuine old oak and so on she suppressed a sigh as she passed on after all so long as the rooms themselves were all right it did not so very much matter and she knew that her mother s taste could be trusted but on the threshold of the dining room she a matter of taste stopped aghast the walls had been a particularly hideous the curtains were yellow the carpet was a dull brown the marble for which she had been intending to substitute one in wood with still shone in of there was a huge mahogany of a kind she had only seen in hotels comfortable eh remarked george lots of wear in those curtains unhappily there was as was only too well aware you did this room yourself too then george she managed to say without betraying herself by her voice yes i chose everything here you see we shall only use this room for meals only for meals yes she with a shudder but george surely you said mother had helped you with the rooms what your mother no her notions are rather too grand for me it was and i meant just come and see what they ve made of my den followed the window which had commanded such a cheerful outlook into one of the pretty gardens with a pink thorn a tree or two and some which still flourish fresh and fair on was obscured now by a matter of taste detestable contrivance in transparent paper stained glass that was the girls notion said george following the direction of her eyes they fixed it all it was their present to me pretty of them to think of it wasn t it i call it an immense improvement and you see it s stuck on with some patent so it can t rub off you get the effect better if you stand here now see how well the colours come out in the sun if only they would come out but what could she do but stand and admire her eyes in spite of herself seemed drawn to that bright sham by black lines intended to represent leading of the room itself she only saw vaguely that it was not unworthy of the window nothing to what they ve done with the said innocent george beaming come along darling you ll scarcely know the place and reduced to a condition of stony stupor followed to the drawing room she did not know the place indeed it was a shaped irregular room with french windows opening upon the garden on one side and a deep bow window on another when she had last seen it the walls were covered with a paper so pleasing in tone and design that she had almost decided to retain it that paper was gone and in its place a gaudy semi chinese pattern of unknown birds flying and on a matter of taste branches laden with impossible flowers and then the the elegant drawing room in and shiny satin the cheap and the ready made black and gilt with its of blossom and on dead surely it had all been transferred bodily from the stage of some carelessly mounted comedy s gaze gradually took in other the china swinging	44
touched she was by then presents what a darling she is and how happy we shall be together part ii once safely at home hastened upstairs to her own room where if the truth must be told she employed the half hour before dinner in sobbing into which temper largely entered he has spoilt it all for me how could he oh how could he ran the burden of her moan at the though pale and silent she had recovered composure a pleasant walk inquired her mother with rather formal interest yes very replied trusting she would not be questioned further i believe i know where you went cried you went to look at your new a matter of taste home now you ah i thought so i suppose you have quite made up your minds how you mean to do the rooms quite we might go round to all the best places tomorrow said mrs and see some papers and there were some lovely patterns in blank s windows the other day and added been out with after school several times to court and street and oxford street oh everywhere hunting up old furniture and i can show you where they have some beautiful things not but really good you know said mrs observing that she did not answer i want you to have a pretty house and you and george must order exactly what you like but i think you will find i may be some to you in choosing thank you mother said without any animation i i don t think we shall want much you will want all that young people in your position do want i suppose said mrs a little impatiently and of course you understand that the bills are to be my affair thank you mother murmured again she t feel able to tell them just yet how this had all been she felt that she would break down if she tried h a of taste you seem a little to night my dear said her mother she was naturally hurt at the very way in which her good ofl had been met i have a dreadful headache pleaded i i think i myself this afternoon then you were very foolish after travelling all yesterday as you did i don t wonder that george was ashamed to come in you had better go to bed early and i will send in to you with some of my sleeping mixture was glad enough to obey though the draught took some time to operate she felt as if no happiness or peace of mind were possible for her till george had been persuaded to undo his work surely he could not refuse when he knew that her mother was prepared to do everything for them at her own expense and here it began to dawn upon her what this would george s words came back to her as if she heard them actually spoken did he not say that the house had been furnished out of his what was she asking him to do to it entirely to himself by going round to all the people he had dealt with asking them as a favour to take back their goods or else he must sell them as best he could for a of their cost who was to him all he had so spent could she a matter of taste ask her mother to do so would he even consent to such an arrangement if it was proposed then his sisters how could she avoid offending them perhaps george in a quarrel with his family if she were to carry her point as she for the first time the inevitable consequences of success she asked herself in despair what she ought to do where her plain duty lay did she love george or was it all delusion and was he less to her than mere the fringe of life she did love him in spite of any passing of thought she felt his sterling worth and goodness even his weaknesses had something in them for her and he had been planning spending w all this time to give her pleasure and this was his reward she had been within an ace of letting him see the cruel ingratitude that was in her heart what a selfish wretch i have been she thought but i won t be no i won t george shall not be hurt from his family on my account no she would suffer she alone and in silence never by a word would she betray to him the pain his well action cost her not even to her mother and would she permit herself to utter a of taste the least complaint lest they should insist upon opening george s eyes so having arrived at this heroic resolve in which she found a touch of the that almost consoled her the tears dried on her cheeks and fell asleep at last some readers no though possibly few of our heroine s sex will smile scornfully at this rose leaf agony this tempest in a and the writer is not concerned to deny that the situation has its ludicrous side but for a girl brought up as had been in an artistic her eye trained to love all that was beautiful in colour and form to be almost sensitive to and vulgarity it was a very real and bitter struggle a hard won victory to come to such a decision as she formed life heaven knows contains worse trials and deeper than this but at least s happy life had as yet known no harder and so far she must be given the credit of having conquered is no doubt half the battle unfortunately s resolution though she hardly perceived this at present could not be	44
effected by one isolated and final act but by a long chain of daily and the first break in which would undo all that had gone before how she bore the test we are going to see a matter taste she woke the next to a sense that her hfe had somehow lost its the exaltation of her resolve had gone off and left her spirits flat and dead but she came down nevertheless determined to be and true to george under all have you and george decided when you would like your wedding to be asked her mother after breakfast because we ought to have the invitations printed very soon not yet faltered and the w might have passed either as an answer or an appeal i think it should be some time before the end of next month or people will be going out of town i suppose so was the reply so given that mrs glanced keenly at her daughter what do you feel about it yourself i oh i ive no feeling perhaps if wo waited no it doesn t matter let it be when you and george wish mother please mrs gave a sharp annoyed little laugh my dear if you can t get up any more interest in it than that i think it would certainly be wiser to wait it was more than that felt a wild aversion to beginning the new life that but lately had seemed so mysteriously sweet and strange she was frightened by it ashamed of it but she could not help herself she made no answer nor did mrs again refer to the subject a matter of taste but s worst had yet to come that afternoon as she and her mother and were sitting in the drawing room mrs and the miss were announced evidently they had deemed it incumbent on them to pay a state visit as soon as possible after s return returned their greetings as as she could she had never succeeded in a very lively affection for them to day she found them barely mrs was a stout old lady with dull eyes and folds in her face she had a voice and a manner her eldest da was not altogether in a commonplace way she was dark haired loud generally and and overpowering she was in such a hurry to speak that her words tripped one another up and she had a and to highly httle laugh was plain and content to admire and echo her sister after some conversation on s continental experiences suddenly as s uneasy instinct foresaw turned to mrs of course told you what a surprise she had at hill yesterday weren t you no doubt i should have been said mrs a matter of taste who detested only did not think fit to mention it oh i wonder at that i hope i wasn t going to betray the secrets of the prison house was fond of using stock phrases to give lightness and sparkle to her conversation the idea of your keeping it all to yourself you sly but tell me would you ever have believed his sisters called george could be capable of such independent behaviour no said i indeed i never should ha ha nor should we you would have screamed to see him about wasn t he killing over it oh he was my son explained mrs to mrs is so wonderfully energetic and practical i have never known him fail to carry through anything he has once undertaken he that from his poor dear father i don t quite gather what your brother george has doing even now said mrs to oh but my lips are sealed wild horses sha n t drag any more from me don t be afraid i won t spoil sport there is no sport to spoil said mother it is only that that george has furnished the house while i have been away a matter of taste said mrs politely that is energetic of him indeed poor dear came home so proud of your approval said to and we were awfully relieved to find you didn t think we d made the house quite too dreadful weren t we yes indeed of course observed the latter young lady it s always so hard to hit upon another person s taste exactly especially in furnishing impossible i should have thought from mrs i hope is of a different opinion what do you say dearest oh cried hastily with splendid i i liked it all very much and and it was so much too kind of you and i ve never thanked you for for all the things you gave me oh those they ain t worth thanking for just a artistic odds and ends they set off a room you know give it a finish young people nowadays old mrs in mrs s courteously inclined ear think so much of luxury and ornament i m sure when i married my dear husband we now dear you really mustn t interrupted the irrepressible mrs is on our side you know she likes pretty things about her don t you mrs and talking of that a matter of taste i hope you thought our a success we were perfectly surprised ourselves to see how well it came out just transparent coloured paper mrs and you cut it into sheets and it on the window panes and really unless you were told or came quite close you would declare it was real stained glass you ought to try some of it on your windows mrs i ll tell you where you can get it you go down i m afraid i m old fashioned my dear said mrs stiffly if i cannot have the reality i	44
prefer to do without even the best why you re us i declare you must take her to see the window and then perhaps she will change her opinion i always tell my girls said mrs in her voice when i am dead and gone they can make any alterations they please but while i am spared to them i like everything about the house to be kept exactly as it was in their poor father s lifetime is i t she a dear old said to in an audible aside why i do believe she won t see anything to admire in your little house at least if she the dear old lady she d sooner die than admit it the went at last and before they were out of the house mrs with an effort to seem said and so you and george a matter of taste have done without my help of course you know your own affairs best still i should have thought i should certainly have thought that i might have been of some assistance to you if only in pecuniary matters george preferred that you should not be troubled stammered i am not him i respect him for wishing to be independent i own to being a uttle surprised that you should not have told me of this before though but for that chattering girl i presume i should have been left to discover it for myself i wonder you cannot bring yourself to be a little more open with your mother my dear oh mother cried in despair indeed i was going to tell you only i did not know myself till yesterday at least that is she broke oflf fearing to reflect on george i find it hard to believe that george would act without consulting you in any way it is strange enough that he should have undertaken to furnish the house in your absence but if i couldn t be there pleaded and i couldn t naturally as you were on the continent you couldn t be on hill at the same time you need not be absurd but what i want to know is this have you had a voice in the matter or have you not a of taste n not much confessed hanging her head so i suspected and i think george ought to be ashamed of himself i never heard of such a thing and i shall make a point of seeing the house and satisfying myself that it is fit for a daughter of mine to mother exclaimed springing up excitedly you don t understand why should you choose to suppose that the house is not pretty it is not done as you would do it because poor george hadn t much money to spend but if i am satisfied why should you come between us and i am satisfied quite quite satisfied he has done it all beautifully and i will not have a single thing altered after all it is his house our house and nobody else has any right to interfere not even you mother mrs shrugged her shoulders oh my dear if that is the way you think proper to speak to me it is time to change the subject pray understand that i shall not dream of interfering i am very glad that you are so satisfied and by and by she left the room when she had gone who had been listening open eyed to all that had taken place came and stood in front of s chair tell me she said has george really furnished the house exactly as you like really now haven t i said so why should you doubt it a matter of taste oh i don t know i was wondering that was au cried angrily anyone would think poor george was a sort of who couldn t be expected to know anything or trusted to do anything i m sure i never said so but how clever of him to choose just the right things and do all the colours and things go well together i always thought most men didn t notice much about all that and are the new pretty oh and where did he go for the papers and the carpets i wish you w t so can t you see i have a headache i can t answer so many questions and i won t once for all everything is just what i like do you understand or shall i tell you again what i like oh all right returned with good humour then there s nothing to lose your temper about darling is there and this was all that had gained by her loyalty to george so far it was the morning after the visit had seen her mother and preparing to go out but owing to the between them they neither invited her to accompany them nor did she venture to ask where they were going at luncheon however the unhappy girl divined from the expression of their faces how they had employed the fore a matter of taste noon they had been the hill house her mother s handsome face wore a look of frozen contempt imagine a strict s feelings on seeing his son with a pair of black eyes a s at finding a under his daughter s pillow a s whose children have all joined the salvation army and even then but a faint idea will be reached of mrs s utter dismay and disgust though angry took a different view of s share in the business she knew her better than her mother did and consequently refused to believe that she was a at heart it was her absurd for george that made her see with his eyes and bow down before the hideous household gods	44
he had chosen to erect on such weakness had no mercy well dear she began mother and i have seen your house george has quite surpassed our wildest expectations accept my compliments said her mother severely will you kindly choose some other topic i really feel too seriously annoyed about all this to bear to hear it spoken of just yet i think you shall come with me to the garden party this afternoon and not as we are dining out this evening you had better stay at home and rest in this and countless other ways was made to feel that she was in disgrace a matter of taste nor did spare her sister when they were alone poor dear mother she said i quite thought that house would have broken her heart oh i m not saying a word against it i know you like it and i m sure it looks very comfortable everything so sensible and useful and the kitchen really charming mother and i liked it best of all the rooms such a horrid man let us in he was at work there and he would follow us all about and tell mother his entire history i don t think he could have been quite sober he would insist on turning all the on everywhere i suppose it s ever so much cheaper to furnish as you and george have done that s the worst of pretty things they do cost such a lot i d no idea you were so practical though and so on on sunday george came to luncheon he was delighted to hear from that they had been to the house and gave a high spirited account of his labours it was a grind he informed them and as for those painter fellows i began to think they d stay out the entire lease art is long george observed oh yes i know but they promised faithfully to be out in ten days and they were over three weeks but look at the result george how did you find out that liked doors well to tell you the truth that was a bit of a the man told me that was a r of taste coming in again and i said grain em then didn t know in short he was more dense than ever to day and found herself growing more and more and irritable that afternoon he could not understand why she was so to talk even the dear little house of which she was so soon to be the mistress failed to interest her you have told me twice already that you got the drawing room carpet a great bargain and only paid four pounds ten for the table in the dining room she broke out can t we take that for granted in future i forgot i d told you i thought it was the he said and i say how about pictures s promised to do us some water colours she s been taking lessons lately you know but we shall want one or two prints for the dining room shan t we you can pick them up second hand very cheap oh yes yes anything you please george no no i m not cross i m only tired especially of talking about the house it is quite finished you know so what is there to discuss during the days that followed devised an ingenious method of she laid out her pocket money of which she had a good deal on the most preposterous a pair of dangling cut glass bead a of wax fruit under a glass shade gaudy fire and flower a of taste pots all of which she solemnly presented to her suffering sister this was not pure mischief or on s side but part of a treatment she had hit upon for of her folly and at last the worm turned came in one day with a cheap and of appalling for the drawing room dear she observed and suddenly burst into a flood of tears you are very very unkind to me sobbed i exclaimed in a tone of the most innocent surprise why i thought you would be charmed with it i m sure george will and you know it will go beautifully with the rest of your things you might understand you might see i might see what ho miserable i am said which was the very admission miss had been seeking to provoke suppose i do see she said suppose i ve been trying to get you to act sensibly then it s cruel of you no it s not it s kind how am i to help you unless you speak out i m younger than you but i know this i would never and make myself miserable when a word would put everything right i a matter of taste but it wouldn t it is too late to speak now i can t tell him how i really feel i can t ah then you own there is something to tell what have i said forget what i said it slipped out i meant nothing and you are perfectly happy and satisfied are you i know how people look when they are perfectly happy and satisfied it s no use cried suddenly i ve tried and tried and tried to bear it but i can t i must tell somebody it is making me ill i am getting cross and wicked and unlike what i used to be i can t go and live there i dread the thought of it i shrink from it more and more every day it is all odious impossible and yet i must i must no you mustn t and what s more you shan t you mean you will tell mother you must not do you hear if you do	44
it will only make matters worse oh why did i tell you cried in shame at this lapse from all her heroism promise me you will say nothing to mother it is too late now promise very well said reluctantly then i promise but all the same i think you re a great goose i didn t promise i wouldn t say anything to george though she reflected and so on the very next occasion that she caught him alone she availed herself of an innocent allusion of his to a matter of taste spirits to give him the benefit of her candid opinion which was not tempered by any marked consideration for his feelings was in the morning room alone she had taken to sitting alone lately brooding over her trials she was no heroine after all her mind it is to bo feared was far from superior she was finding out that she had undertaken too heavy a task she could not console herself for her lost dream of a appointed house she might endure to live in such a home as george had made for her but to be expected to admire it to let it be understood that it was her that she had chosen or approved of it this was the burden that was crushing her suddenly the door opened and george stood before her his expression was so altered that she scarcely recognised him all the cheery had vanished and his stern set face had a dignity and character in it now that were wanting before i have just had a talk with he began she has shown me what a what a mistake i ve been making could not help feeling a certain relief though she said it was very wrong of she had no right to speak she had every right he said she might have done it more kindly perhaps but that s nothing why didn t you tell me yourself you might have trusted me a matter of taste i couldn t it seemed so cruel so ungrateful after all you had done i hoped you would never know it s well for you and for me too that i know this while there s still time i ve been a blind fool i never had a suspicion of this till till just now or you don t i should have gone on with it a single minute i came to tell you that you need not make yourself miserable any longer i will put an end to this whatever it costs me oh george i am so ashamed i know it is weak and cowardly of me but i can t help it and and will it cost you so very much quite as much as i can bear no but tell me about how much more than a hundred pounds i haven t worked it out in pounds shillings and pence he said grimly but i should put it higher won t they take back some of the things they ought to she suggested timidly the things oh the furniture good heavens do you suppose i care a straw about that all i can think of is how i could have gone on deceiving myself like this believing i knew your every thought and all the time what a fool i ve been i thought i should get used to it she pleaded and oh you don t know how hard i have tried to bear it not to let anyone see what i felt you don t know a matter of taste and i would rather not know he replied for it s not exactly flattering you see and at all events it s over now this is the last time i shall trouble you you will see no more of me after to day could only stare at him had he really taken the matter so seriously to heart as this could he not forgive the wound to his vanity how hard how utterly unworthy of him yes he continued i see now we were quite to one another i should never have made you happy it s best to find it out before it s too late so let us ke hands and say good bye my dear she felt powerless to appeal to him and yet it was not wholly pride that tied her tongue she was too shaken and stunned to make the least effort at remonstrance then if it must be she said at last very low good bye george he crushed her hand in his strong grasp don t mind about me he said roughly you ve nothing to blame yourself for i i shall get over it all right it s rather sudden at first that s all and with that he was gone coming in a little later found her sister sitting by the window smiling in a strange vacant way well said eagerly for she had been anxiously waiting to hear the result of the interview it s all over he has broken it off a matter of taste oh i m so glad i hoped he would but i wasn t sure well you may thank me for delivering you darling if i hadn t spoken plainly tell me what you said oh let me see well i told him anybody else would have seen long ago that your feelings were altered i said you were perfectly miserable at having to marry him only you thought it was too late to say so i told him he didn t understand you in the least and you hadn t a single thought or taste in common i said if he cared about you at all the best way he could prove it was by setting you free and not your life and his	44
own too i put it as pleasantly as i could said but he is very trying you told him all that what made you invent such wicked cruel lies it is you that have spoilt our lives and i will never forgive you never as long as i live cried the younger sister utterly astonished at this outburst why didn t you tell me the other day how miserable you were and how you dared not speak about it and now when i go away you have done mischief enough oh very well i m going if this is all i get for helping you is it my fault if you don t know your own mind and say what you don t mean and if you really want your dearly beloved george b k k a matter of taste again there s time yet he hasn t he s in the drawing room with mother how infinitely petty her past misery seemed now for what trifles she had thrown away george s honest heart if only there was a chance still at least false pride should not come between them any longer bo thought on her way to the drawing room george was still there as she turned the door handle she heard her mother s clear tones not that that is any excuse for she was saying burst into the room she was only just in time for george had risen and was evidently on the point of leaving george she exclaimed panting after her rapid flight i i came to tell you my dear interrupted mrs the kindest thing you can do for george now is to let him go without any more explanations stopped again her mind became a blank what had she come for what was it she felt she must say while she hesitated george was already at the other door he seemed anxious to avoid hearing her in another second he would be gone she cried to him george dear george don t leave me i can t bear it this is too ridiculous exclaimed her mother angrily what is it that you do want i want george she said simply it was all a mistake george oh you don t a matter of taste really think that i have left off caring for you i haven t dear indeed i haven t won t you believe me i had better leave you to come to an understanding together said mrs not in the best of for she had been more sorry for george than for the he came to announce and she swept out of the room with very perceptible annoyance i thought it was all up with me i did indeed said george a minute or two later his face still pale after all this emotion but tell me what s wrong with the furniture i ordered nothing dear nothing she answered blushing don t think about it any more no but your mother was talking about it too he insisted come dear for heaven s sake let us have no more i see now what an ass i was not to wait and let you choose for yourself these things are not in my line but i d no idea you d care so much but i don t now a bit well i do then and the house must be done all over again and exactly as you would like it so there s no more to be said about it said george without a trace of or wounded vanity george you are too good to me i don t deserve it and indeed you must not think of the expense a matter of taste his face lengthened slightly he knew well enough that the change would cost him dear i ll manage it somehow he declared stoutly would her mother help them now thought and felt more than doubtful no in spite of her own wishes she must not allow george to carry out his intentions but you forget and she said we shall hurt their feelings so if we change now by jove i forgot that he said yes they won t like it they meant well poor girls and took a lot of trouble still you re the first person to be considered i ll try and smooth it over with them and if they choose to be offended why they must that s all and i tell you what suppose we go and see the house now and you shall tell me just what wants doing to make it right she would have liked to decline this rather office especially as she felt no compromise to be possible but he was so urgent that she finally agreed to go with him as they gained hill and the road in which their house stood george stopped he said that can t be the house what s the matter with it very soon it was pretty evident what had been the matter the walls were and streaming the window were ty and wasted by fire the door was and blackened a a matter of taste in his cap with his at his back was just opening the gate as they came up can t come in sir he said enough no one admitted hang it exclaimed george it s my own fire i m the tenant oh i beg your pardon sir it s been got under some hours now i was just going off duty much damage done inquired george well you see sir said the man evidently considering how to prepare george for the worst we didn t get the call till the house was well alight and there was three and a manual a playing on it so well you must expect things to	44
be a bit inside but the walls and the roof ain t much and how did it happen the house isn t even occupied workmen said the man was in there early this morning and left the gas escaping and as likely as not a light burning near and here you are well i ll be off sir there s nothing more to be done ere good day sir and thank ye i m sure oh george said half crying our poor poor little house it seems like a judgment on me how can you laugh who will build it up for us now a matter of taste who why the people to be sure you see the firm are agents for the and as soon as i got all the furniture in i the whole concern and got a protection note so we re all right don t worry little l why don t you see this gets us out of our difficulty we can start afresh now without offending anybody look there there s that idiot of a who s done all the mischief a nice he ll be in when he sees us but mr was quite if anything his features wore a look of sombre complacency as he came towards them i m sorry this should have occurred he said but you ll bear me out that i warned yer as something was bound to in course i couldn t tell what form it might take and fire i must say i did not expect i t on y been in the place not a quarter of a hour watering the in the the as was i should say when it struck me i d forgot my screw driver so fortunately as things turned out i went ome to my place to get it and i come back to see the place all in a blaze it s fate that s what it is fate s at the bottom o this ere job much more likely to be a lighted candle said george i was not on the premises at the time so i can t say but be that ow it may there s no denying it s a thing the way my words have been fulfilled almost literal a matter of taste confound you said george you take good care your come off why man you re not going to pretend you don t know that it s your own carelessness that s brought this about this isn t the only house you ve brought bad luck into mr what s your name since you ve started in business you can t make me lose my temper replied the with dignity i put it down to so do i said george and if i know anyone who s anxious for a little or wants his house burnt down at a moderate charge why i shall know whom to recommend good day he turned on his heel and walked off but lingered behind i only just wanted to tell you she said addressing the astonished tliat you have done us a very great service and i at le st very much obliged to you and i after her the that instrument of destiny looked after the retreating couple and indulged in a whistle comes a of me he observed to a lamp post and she s very much obliged and i m if i know what for either way cracked poor young things cracked the pair on em and no wonder with such a calamity so recent ah well i do as this is the end on it i i shan t be a matter of taste the means of bringing no more trouble into that little that i kin truly say and human gratitude having its limits it is highly probable that this pious will not be disappointed so long at least as mr and mrs s continues bon the story of a greedy dog a tale for children dearest said miss anxiously to her niece one afternoon do you think poor don is quite the thing he has seemed so very languid these last few days and he is certainly losing his figure was absorbed in a rather ambitious attempt to sketch the lake from the open windows of cottage and did not look up from her drawing immediately when she did speak her reply might i have been more sympathetic he eats such a lot she said yes don we are talking about you you know you eat too much and that s the reason you re so fat don who was lying on a rug under the his tail with an uneasy protest as if he as indeed he did of the very personal turn had given to the conversation he had noticed himself that he was not as active as he used to be he grew tired so very soon now when he chased birds he was always possessed by a fixed idea that if he only gave his whole mind to it he could catch any don the story of a greedy dog swallow that flew at all fairly he felt the heat considerably still it was don s opinion that so long as he did not mind being fat himself it was no business of any other person s certainly not of s but cried miss you don t really mean that i him well admitted i think you give way to him rather aunt i really do i know that at home we never let have anything between his meals jack says that unless a small dog is kept on very simple diet he ll soon get fat and getting fat added means having fits sooner or later oh my dear exclaimed her aunt now seriously alarmed what do you think i ought to	44
do about it i know what i would do if he was my dog said with great decision diet him and take no notice when he at table i would i d begin this very afternoon after tea miss no was the answer at tea it s all for his own good yes dear i m sure you re but he has such pretty ways i m so afraid i shall forget i ll remind you aunt he shan t take advantage of you while fm here you re just a tiny bit hard on him aren t you hard on don cried catching him up and bon the story a dog holding him out at arm s length don i m not hard on you am i i love you only i see your faults and you know it you re full of here she kissed him between the eyes and set him down aunt you would never have found out hia trick about the milk if it hadn t been for me would you now perhaps not my love agreed miss mildly the trick in question was a certain ingenious device of don s for obtaining a double allowance of afternoon tea a refreshment for which he had acquired a strong taste the tea had once been too hot and burnt his tongue and as he howled with the pain milk had been added ever since that occasion he had been in the habit of up all but a or two of the tea in his and then uttering a pathetic little whereupon innocent miss would as regularly fill up the with milk again but for don his mistress had invited her niece to spend part of her summer holidays at her pretty cottage in the lake district and s eyes had detected this little about the milk on the very first evening was fourteen and i fancy i have noticed that when a girl is about this age she not has a tendency to be rather a severe when others than herself are concerned at all events had very decided notions on the proper method bon the story op a of bringing up dogs and children too only there did not happen to be any children at cottage to try experiments upon and she was quite sure that aunt allowed herself to be imposed upon by don there was perhaps some excuse for miss for don was a particularly charming specimen of the with a silken coat of silver blue set off by a head and of the gold his manners were most and his great eyes glowed at times under his long hair as if a wistful loving little soul were trying to speak through them but though it seems an unkind thing to say it must be confessed that this same soul in don s eyes was never quite so apparent as when he was begging for some peculiarly morsel he was really fond of his mistress but at meal times i am afraid he put it on a little bit of course this was not quite straightforward but then i am not holding him up as a model animal how far he understood the conversation that has been given above is more than i can pretend to say but from that afternoon he began to be aware of a very unsatisfactory alteration in his treatment don had sometimes felt a little out of temper with his mistress for being slow to understand exactly what he did want and he had almost sharply to intimate to the best of his powers not bread and butter so you may conceive his don the story of a greedy disgust when she did not even give him bread and butter nothing but judicious advice without jam she was most it is true and explained amply why she could not indulge him as heretofore but don wanted sugar and not sermons sometimes she nearly gave way and then cruel would the dainty under his very nose which he thought most he had a sort of notion that it was all through that they were just as and selfish in the kitchen and that his meals were now so few and plain it was very ungrateful of her for he had gone out of his way to be polite and attentive to her when he thought of her behaviour to him he felt strongly inclined to but somehow he did not actually go so far as that he liked she was pretty for one thing and don always preferred pretty people and then she him in a very superior and soothing manner besides this he respected her she had been with the duty of him on more than one occasion and her really hurt while it was hopeless to try to soften her heart by trying to the hands a which was always effective with poor miss so he contented himself with letting her see that though he did not understand her conduct towards him he was willing to overlook it for the present what a wonderful improvement in the dear dog miss remarked one morning at don a greedy do j after don had been on short for a week or two i begin to think you were quite right about him oh i m sure i was said who always had great confidence in her own judgment yes continued her aunt and now he s so much better just this one small bit don s eyes already had a green glitter in them and his mouth was watering no aunt said i wouldn t really he s better without anything i wish that girl was gone reflected poor don as he went back to his basket it s enough to make a dog steal upon my tail it is i m positively starved no bones no chicken	44
only dry and milk twice a day i wish i could about in and places as does but i don t think the things you find in are ever nice does but he s just that low sort of dog who would was a humble friend of his down in the village a sort of distant relation to the he was a rough long backed creature as grey as a and with a big solemn head like a hammer don was civil to him in a way but he did not tell him of the he was subject to perhaps because he had been rather given to boast of his influence over his mistress and the high consideration he enjoyed at cottage don the story of a greedy dog now used to go up for solitary on the sometimes when she generally took don as a protector he was becoming very nearly as active as ever and now there was a stronger motive than before for pursuing the for he had a notion that they would be rather good eating but one morning she missed him on her way back through the village by the lake she was sure he was with her on the pier and she had only stopped to ask some question at the ticket office about the times and when she turned round don was gone however her aunt was neither angry nor alarmed miss was not able to walk as much as don wished she said so he was accustomed to take a great deal of solitary exercise he was such a remarkably intelligent dog that he could be trusted to take care of himself oh he would come back and towards dusk that evening don did come back there was a curious air about him subdued almost sad remembered long afterwards how unusually affectionate he had been and how quietly he had lain on her lap till the next morning when her aunt and she prepared to go for a walk along the lake don s excitement was more marked than usual he leaped up and tried to caress their hands he assured them in a thousand ways of the delight he felt at being allowed to make one of the party after it was a painful surprise to find that he don the story of a greedy dog gave them the slip the moment they reached the village but miss kin said he always did prefer scenery and no doubt it was tiresome for him to have to about as they did and master don began to give them less and less of his society in the and to wander from mom to eve in solitude and independence though whether he went up mountains to admire the view or visited ruins and or spent his days hunting no one at cottage could even pretend to guess one good thing aunt said complacently one evening a little later i ve quite cured don of being troublesome at meals he couldn t be troublesome if he tried dear said miss with mild reproof but i must bay you have succeeded quite wonderfully how did you do it why said i spoke to him exactly as if he could understand every word and i made him thoroughly see that he was only wasting his time by sitting up and begging for things and you got to believe it at last didn t you dear she added to don who was lying stretched out on the rug don pricked the ear that was uppermost and then uttered a heavy sigh which smote his mistress to the heart she said it s no use i n give him something poor pet he deserves it for being so and patient all this time one bon the story of a greedy dog even well a very plain one then let me give it to him the was procured and with an express intimation that this was a very particular indulgence it to the deserving he half raised his head at it and then fell back again with another weary little sigh felt rather crushed i m afraid he s cross with me she said you try aunt aunt tried but with no better success though don his tail feebly to express that he was not by any personal feeling in the matter he had no appetite that was all said miss with something more hke anger than she generally showed i was very wrong to listen to you about the diet it s perfectly plain to me that by checking don s appetite as we have we have done him serious harm you can see for yourself that he is past eating anything at all now cook told me to day that he had scarcely touched his meals lately and yet he s than ever isn t he was forced to allow that this was so but what can it be she said it disease said her aunt very solemnly i ve read over and over again that has nothing whatever to do with the amount of food one eats and oh i don t want to blame you dear but i m afraid we have been i don the story of a greedy dog him of the things he really needed to enable him to struggle against the complaint poor was overcome by remorse as she knelt over the don oh darling don she said i didn t mean it you know i didn t don t you you must get well and forgive me i tell you what aunt she said as she rose to her feet you know you said i might drive you over in the pony cart to that party at the to morrow well young mr is rather a sort of man and nice too suppose we take don with us	44
and ask him to tell us plainly whether he has anything dreadful the matter with him miss consented though she did not pretend to hope much from mr s skill i m afraid she said with ar sigh only a very clever surgeon would find out what really is the matter with don but you can try my dear the following afternoon miss herself and don to s driving not without some nervous you re quite sure you can manage him she said if not we can take john why aunt exclaimed i always drive the children at home and sometimes when i m on the box with he gives me the reins in k don the story of a greedy dog part of the road and paul and virginia pull like anything says it s all he can do to hold them was a little hurt at the idea that she might find aunt s pony too much for her a sleepy little of a thing as she privately called it which along exactly like a animal in urgent need of winding up don seemed a little better that day and was lifted into the pony cart where he lay on the mat the air as if it was doing him good really could drive well for her age and woke the pony up in a manner that astonished her aunt who remarked from time to time that she knew wanted to walk now he never could trot long at a and so they reached the house which was five miles away towards the head of the lake well under the hour a most surprising feat for it was a grown up party and although she had brought her was a little afraid to play besides she wanted to consult young mr about don who had been left with the cart in the stables mr who was a good natured red faced yoimg soldier just about to join his regiment was not playing either so went up to him on the first opportunity don the story of a dog you know about dogs mr don t you er said mr who was a trifle why are you thinking of in a dog it s aunt s dog explained and he s ill very ill and we can t make out what s the matter so i thought you would tell us perhaps i ll ride over to morrow and have a look at him oh but you needn t he s here wait i ll fetch him don t you come please and presently made her appearance on the lawn carrying don who felt quite a weight in her arms she set him down before the young man who examined him in a knowing manner while miss and some others who were not playing just then gathered round don was languid but dignified he rather liked being the subject of so much notice waited for the verdict well said mr it s easy enough to see what s wrong with liim i should knock off his but cried miss we have knocked off his as you call it the poor dog is starved literally starved mr said he should scarcely have supposed so from his appearance but i assure you he has eaten nothing positively nothing for days and days don the of a greedy ah said mr is he then he s had too much air that s all just then a young lady who had been brought by some friends close by joined the group why she said at once that s the little steamer dog how did he come here he is not a little steamer dog said miss in her most dignified manner he is my dog oh i didn t know said the first speaker but but i m sure i ve seen him on the steamer several times lately i never use the unless i m absolutely obliged i of them it must have been some other dog the young lady was positive she had made no mistake you so seldom see a dog with just those she said and i don t think anybody was with him he came on board at and went all round the lake with us at cried that s where we live and aunt you know don has been away all day lots of times lately what did this dog do on the steamer asked miss faintly oh he was so sweet he went round to everybody and sat up so prettily till they gave him and things he was everybody s pet we were all jealous of one another for the honour of feeding him the second time we brought on don the of a pose but we quite thought he belonged to the steamer young mr laughed so that is how he took the air i thought i wasn t far wrong he said put him back in the cart said miss severely i can t bear to look at him don did his best to follow this dialogue but all he could make out was that it was about himself and that he was being as usual exceedingly admired so he sat and looked as good and innocent and interesting as he knew how just then he felt that he would almost rather they did not offer him anything to eat at least not anything very sweet and rich for he was still not at all well it was a relief to be back in the cart and in peace again though he wondered why didn t kiss the top of his head as she had done several times in carrying him to the lawn this time she held him at a distance and said nothing but two words which sounded suspiciously like you pig as she	44

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