Beechcroft at Rockstone

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'Then I will go to the house. When shall I be likely to find Mr.
Stebbing!'

'Just after luncheon, I should say.'

'And shall I take the lawyer?'

'I should say not. If they hope to keep the thing secret, they will
be the more amenable, but you should have the two boys within reach.
Let us ask for them to come up after their dinner to Beechcroft. No,
it must not be to dinner. Petros must not be sent to the kitchen,
and Ada would expire if the other came to us! Now, do you like to
see your house? Here is Macrae dying to see you.'

The old soldier had changed his quarters too often to be keenly
interested in any temporary abode, provided it would hold the
requisite amount of children, and had a pleasant sitting-room for his
Lily, but he inspected politely and gratefully, and had a warmly
affectionate interview with Macrae, who had just arrived with a great
convoy of needfuls from Silverfold, and who undertook to bring up and
guard the two boys from any further impertinences that might excite
Master Grove's pugnacity.

It was a beautiful day, of the lamb-like entrance weather of March,
and on the way home Miss Adeline was met taking advantage of the
noontide sunshine to exchange her book at the library, 'where,' she
said, 'I found Mr. White reading the papers, so I asked him to meet
Jasper at luncheon, thinking that may be useful.'

If Sir Jasper would rather have managed matters by himself, he
forebore to say so, and he got on very well with Mr. White on
subjects of interest, but, to the ladies' vexation, he waited to be
alone before he began, 'I have come down to see what can be done for
this poor young man, Mr. White, a connection of yours, I believe.

'A bad business, Sir Jasper, a bad business.'

'I am sorry to hear you say so. I have seen a great deal of service
with his father, and esteemed him very highly---'

'Ay, ay, very likely. I had a young man's differences with my
cousin, as lads will fall out, but there was the making of a fine
fellow in him. But it was the wife, bringing in that Greek taint,
worse even than the Italian, so that there's no believing a word out
of any of their mouths.'

'Well, the schoolmaster has just given me a high character of the
younger one, for truthfulness especially.'

'All art, Sir Jasper, all art. They are deeper than your common
English sort, and act it out better. I'll just give you an instance
or two. That eldest son has been with me just now, a smart young
chap, who swears he has been keeping his mother all this time---he has
written to me often enough for help to do so. On the other hand, the
little sister tells me, "Mamma always wants money to send to poor
Richard." Then again, Miss Mohun assures me that the elder one vows
that she never encouraged Frank Stebbing for a moment, and to his
mother's certain knowledge she is keeping up the correspondence.'

'Indeed,' said Sir Jasper. 'And may I ask what is your opinion as to
this charge? I never knew a young man enlist with fifteen pounds in
his pocket.'

'Spent it by the way, sir. Ran through it at billiards. Nothing
more probable; it is the way with those sober-looking lads when
something upsets them. Then when luck went against him, enlisted out
of despair. Sister, like all women, ready to lie through thick and
thin to save him, most likely even on oath.'

'However,' said Sir Jasper, 'I can produce independent witness that
the youngest boy set off with the letter for the office, and the
porter not admitting him, carried it to the house.'

'What became of it then?'

'Mr. Stebbing will have to answer that. I propose to lay the
evidence before him in his own house, so that he may make inquiry,
and perhaps find it, and drop the prosecution. Will you come with
me?'

'Certainly, Sir Jasper. I should be very glad to think as you do. I
came prepared to act kindly by these children, the only relations I
have in the world; but I confess that what I have seen and heard has
made me fear that they, at least the elder ones, are intriguing and
undeserving. I should be glad of any proof to the contrary.'

Carrara was not far off, and they were just in time to catch Mr.
Stebbing in his arm-chair, looking over his newspaper, before
repairing to his office. Mrs. Stebbing stood up, half-flattered,
half-fluttered, at the call of this stately gentleman, and was
scarcely prepared to hear him say---

'I have come down about this affair of young White's. His father was
my friend and brother-officer, and I am very anxious about him.'

'I have been greatly disappointed in those young people, Sir Jasper,'
said Mr. Stebbing uneasily.

'I understand that you are intending to prosecute Alexis White for
the disappearance of the fifteen pounds he received on behalf of the
firm.'

'Exactly so, Sir Jasper. There's no doubt that the carter, Field,
handed it to him; he acknowledges as much, but he would have us
believe that after running away with it, he returned it to his sister
to send to me. Where is it? I ask.'

'Yes,' put in Mrs. Stebbing, 'and the girl, the little one, changed a
five-pound note at Glover's.'

'I can account for that,' said Mr. White, with somewhat of an effort.
'I gave her one for her sister, and charged them not to mention it.'

He certainly seemed ashamed to mention it before those who accounted
it a weakness; and Sir Jasper broke the silence by proposing to
produce his witnesses.

'Really, Sir Jasper, this should be left for the court,' said Mr.
Stebbing.

'It might be well to settle the matter in private, without dragging
Miss White into Avoncester away from her dying mother.'

'Those things are so exaggerated,' said the lady.

'I have seen her,' said Sir Jasper gravely.

'May I ask who these witnesses are?' demanded Mr. Stebbing.

'Two are waiting here---the messenger and his companion. Another is
your porter at the marble works, and the fourth is your youngest
son.'

This caused a sensation, and Mrs. Stebbing began---

'I am sure I can't tell what you mean, Sir Jasper.'

'Is he in the house?'

'Yes; he has a bad cold.'

Mrs. Stebbing opened the door and called 'George,' and on the boy's
appearance, Sir Jasper asked him---

'Do you remember the morning of the 17th of last month---three days
after the accident? I want to know whether you saw any one in the
approach to the house.'

'I don't know what day it was,' said the boy, somewhat sulkily.

'You did see some one, and warned them off!'

'I saw two little ca---two boys out of the town on the front door
steps.'

'Did you know them?'

'No---that is to say, one was a fisherman's boy.'

'And the other?'

'I thought he belonged to the lot of Whites.'

'Should you know them again?'

'I suppose so.'

'Will you excuse me, and I will call them into the hall?' said Sir
Jasper.

This was effected, and Master George had to identify the boys, after
which Sir Jasper elicited that Petros had seen the dirty envelope
come out of his brother's letter, and that his sister had put it into
another, which she addressed as he described, and gave into his
charge to deliver. Then came the account of the way he had been
refused admittance by the porter.

'Why didn't you give him the letter?' demanded Mr. Stebbing.

'Catch us,' responded Sydney Grove, rejoiced at the opportunity,
'when what we got was, "Get out, you young rascals!"'

Petros more discreetly added---

'My sister wanted it to be given to Mr. Stebbing, so we went up to
the house to wait for him, but it got late for school, and I saw the
postman drop the letters into the slit in the door, so I thought that
would be all right.'

'Did you see him do so?' asked Sir Jasper of the independent witness.

'Yes, sir, and he there'---pointing to George---'saw it too, and---'

'Did you?'

'Ay, and thought it like their impudence.'

'That will do, my boys,' said Sir Jasper. 'Now run away.'

Mr. White put something into each paw as the door was opened and the
pair made their exit.

If Sir Jasper acted as advocate, Mr. White seemed to take the
position of judge.

'There can be no doubt,' he said, 'that the letter containing the
notes reached this house.'

'No,' said Mr. Stebbing hotly. 'Why was I not told? Who cleared the
letter-box?'

It was the page's business, but to remember any particular letter on
any particular day was quite beyond him, and he only stared wildly
and said, 'Dun no,' on which he was dismissed to the lower regions.

'The address was "Francis Stebbing, Esq.,"' said Sir Jasper
meditatively, perhaps like a spider pulling his cord. 'Francis---your
son's name. Can he---'

'Mr. White, I'll thank you to take care what you say of my son!'
exclaimed Mrs. Stebbing; but there was a blank look of alarm on the
father's face.

'Where is he?' asked Mr. White.

'He may be able to explain'---courtesy and pity made the General add.

'No, no,' burst out the mother. 'He knows nothing of it. Mr.
Stebbing, can't you stand up for your own son?'

'Perhaps,' began the poor man, his tone faltering with a terrible
anxiety, but his wife exclaimed hastily---

'He never saw nor heard of it. I put it in the fire.'

There was a general hush, broken by Mr. Stebbing saying slowly---

'You---put---it---in---the---fire.'

'Yes; I saw those disreputable-looking boys put it into the box. I
wasn't going to have that bold girl sending billy-doos on the sly to
my son.'

'Under these circumstances,' drily said Sir Jasper, 'I presume that
you will think it expedient to withdraw the prosecution.'

'Certainly, certainly,' said Mr. Stebbing, in the tone of one
delivered from great alarm. 'I will write at once to my solicitor at
Avoncester.' Then turning on his wife, 'How was it that I never
heard this before, and you let me go and make a fool of myself?'

'How was I to know, Mr. Stebbing? You started off without a word to
me, and all you told me when you came back was that the young man
said he had posted the letter to his sister. I should like to know
why he could not send it himself to the proper place!'

'Well, Mrs. Stebbing,' said her husband, 'I hope it will be a lesson
to you against making free with other people's letters.'

She tossed her head, and was about to retire, when Sir Jasper said---

'Before leaving us, madam, in justice to my old friend's daughter, I
should be much obliged if you would let me know your grounds for
believing the letter to be what you say.'

'Why---why, Sir Jasper, it has been going on this year or more! She
has perfectly infatuated the poor boy.'

'I am not asking about your son's sentiments but can you adduce any
proof of their being encouraged!'

'Sir Jasper! a young man doesn't go on in that way without
encouragement.'

'What encouragement can you prove?'

'Didn't I surprise a letter from her---?'

'Well'---checked the tone of triumphant conviction.

'A refusal, yes, but we all know what that means, and that there must
have been something to lead to it'---and as there was an unconvinced
silence---'Besides---oh, why, every one knew of her arts. You did, Mr.
Stebbing, and of poor Frank's infatuation. It was the reason of her
dismissal.'

'I knew what you told me, Mrs. Stebbing,' he answered grimly, not at
all inclined to support her at this moment of anger. 'I am sure I
wish I had never listened to you. I never saw anything amiss in the
girl's behaviour, and they are all at sixes and sevens without her at
the mosaic work---though she is only absent from her mother's illness
at present.'

'You! of course she would not show her goings on before you, said the
lady.

'Is Master Frank in the house?' put in Mr. White; 'I should like to
put the question before him.'

'You can't expect a young man to make mortifying admissions,'
exclaimed the mother, and as she saw smiles in answer she added, 'Of
course, the girl has played the modest and proper throughout! That
was her art, to draw him on, till he did not know what he was about.'

'Setting aside the supposed purpose,' said Sir Jasper, 'you admit,
Mrs. Stebbing, that of your own knowledge, Miss White has never
encouraged your son's attentions.'

'N---no; but we all know what those girls are.'

'Fatherless and unprotected,' said Sir Jasper, 'dependent on their
own character and exertion, and therefore in especial need of kind
construction. Good morning, Mrs. Stebbing; I have learnt all that I
wish to know.'

Overpowered, but not convinced, Mrs. Stebbing saw her visitors
depart.

'And I hope her husband will give it to her well,' said Mr. White, as
they left the house.

They looked in at Beechcroft Cottage with the tidings.

'All safe, I see!' cried Miss Jane. 'Is the money found?'

'No; Mrs. Stebbing burnt it, under the impression that it was a love-
letter,' drily said Sir Jasper.

Miss Mohun led the way in the hearty fit of laughter, to which the
gentlemen gave way the more heartily for recent suppression; and Mr.
White added---

'I assure you, it was as good as a play to hear Sir Jasper worm it
out. One would think he had been bred a lawyer.'

'And now,' said the General, 'I must go and relieve that poor girl's
suspense.'

'I will come with you,' volunteered Mr. White. 'I fully believe that
she is a good girl, though this business and Master Richard's
applications staggered me; and this soldier fellow must be an ass if
he is not a scamp.'

'Scarcely that, I think,' said Miss Adelaide, with her pleading
smile.

'Well, discipline will be as good for him as for his father,' said
Mr. White. 'He has done for himself, but that was a nice little lad
that you had up---too good for a common national school.'

Wherewith they departed, and found that Kalliope must have been on
the watch, for she ran down to open the door to them, and the
gladness which irradiated her face as Sir Jasper's first 'All right,'
lighted up her features, which were so unlike the shop-girl
prettiness that Mr. White expected as quite to startle him.

Richard was in the parlour in a cloud of smoke, and began to do the
honours.

'Our acknowledgments are truly due to Sir Jasper. Mr. White, we are
much honoured. Pray be seated, please to excuse---'

They paid little attention to him, while Sir Jasper told as much to
his sister as could well be explained as to the fate of her envelope,
and added---

'You will not be wanted at Avoncester, as the case will not come on.
I shall go and see all safe, then on to town, but I mean to see your
brother's commanding officer, and you may tell your mother that I
have no doubt that he will be allowed a furlough.'

'But, Sir Jasper' broke in Richard, 'I beg your pardon; but there is
a family from Leeds at Bellevue, the Nortons, and imagine what it
would be if they reported me as connected with a common private
soldier, just out of prison too!'

'Let him come to me then,' exclaimed Mr. White.

In spite of appearances of disgust, Richard took the invitation to
himself, and looked amiable and gratified.

'Thank you, Mr. White, that will obviate the difficulty. When shall
I move up?'

'You, sir? Did you think I meant you?' said Mr. White contemptuously.
'No; I prefer a fool to a knave!'

'Mr. White,' interposed Sir Jasper, 'whatever you may have to say to
Richard White, consider his sister. Or had you not better report our
success to your mother, my dear?'

'One moment,' said Mr. White. 'Tell me, young lady, if you do not
object, what assistance have you ever received from me.'

'You have most kindly employed us, and paid for Maura's education,'
said Kalliope.

'Is that all? Has nothing been transmitted through this brother?'

'I do not understand,' said Kalliope, trembling, as Richard scowled
at her.

'Sir,' said he, 'I always intended, but unforeseen circumstances---'

'That's enough for the present, sir,' said Mr. White. 'I have heard
all I wish, and more too.'

'Sir,' said Kalliope, still trembling, 'indeed, Richard is a kind son
and brother. My mother is much attached to him. I am generally out
all day, and it is quite possible that she did not tell me all that
passed between them, as she knew that I did not like you to be
applied to.'

'That will do, my dear,' said Mr. White. 'I don't want to say any
more about it. You shall have your brother to-morrow, if Sir Jasper
can manage it. I will bring him back to Rockstone as my guest, so
that his brother need not be molested with his company.'

CHAPTER XX. IVINGHOE TERRACE

On an east-windy Friday afternoon Valetta and Fergus were in a
crowning state of ecstasy. Rigdum Funnidos was in a hutch in the
small garden under the cliff, Begum and two small gray kittens were
in a basket under the kitchen stairs, Aga was purring under
everybody's feet, Cocky was turning out the guard upon his perch---in
short, Il Lido was made as like Silverfold as circumstances would
permit. Aunt Ada with Miss Vincent was sitting on the sofa in the
drawing-room, with a newly-worked cosy, like a giant's fez, over the
teapot, and Valetta's crewel cushion fully displayed. She was
patiently enduring a rush in and out of the room of both children and
Quiz once every minute, and had only requested that it should not be
more than once, and that the door should neither be slammed nor left
open.

Macrae and the Silverfold carriage were actually gone to the station,
and, oh! oh! oh! here it really was with papa on the box, and heaps
of luggage, and here were Primrose and Gillian and mamma and Mrs.
Halfpenny, all emerging one after another, and Primrose, looking---oh
dear! more like a schoolroom than a nursery girl---such a great piece
of black leg below the little crimson skirt; but the dear little face
as plump as ever.

That was the first apparent fact after the disengaging from the
general embrace, when all had subsided into different seats, and Aunt
Jane, who had appeared from somewhere in her little round sealskin
hat, had begun to pour out the tea. The first sentence that emerged
from the melee of greetings and intelligence was---

'Fly met her mother at the station; how well she looks!'

'Then Victoria came down with you?'

'Yes; I am glad we went to her. I really do like her very much.'

Then Primrose and Valetta varied the scene by each laying a kitten in
their mother's lap; and Begum, jumping after her progeny, brushed
Lady Merrifield's face with her bushy tail, interrupting the
information about names.

'Come, children,' said Sir Jasper, 'that's enough; take away the
cats.' It was kindly said, but it was plain that liberties with
mamma would not continue before him.

'The Whites?' was Gillian's question, as she pressed up to Aunt Jane.

'Poor Mrs. White died the night before last,' was the return. 'I
have just come from Kally. She is in a stunned state now---actually
too busy to think and feel, for the funeral must be to-morrow.'

Sir Jasper heard, and came to ask further questions.

'She saw Alexis,' went on Miss Mohun. 'They dressed him in his own
clothes, and she seemed greatly satisfied when he came to sit by her,
and had forgotten all that went before. However, the end came very
suddenly at last, and all those poor children show their southern
nature in tremendous outbursts of grief---all except Kalliope, who
seems not to venture on giving way, will not talk, or be comforted,
and is, as it were, dried up for the present. The big brothers give
way quite as much as the children, in gusts, that is to say. Poor
Alexis reproaches himself with having hastened it, and I am afraid
his brother does not spare him. But Mr. White has bought his
discharge.'

'You don't mean it.'

'Yes; whether it was the contrast between Alexis's air of refinement
and his private soldier's turn-out, or the poor fellow's patience and
submission, or the brother's horrid behaviour to him, Mr. White has
taken him up, and bought him out.'

'All because of Richard's brutal speech. That is good! Though I
confess I should have let the lad have at least a year's discipline
for his own good, since he had put himself into it; but I can't be
sorry. There is something engaging about the boy.'

'And Mr. White is the right man to dispose of them.'

No more passed, for here were the children eager and important, doing
the honours of the new house, and intensely happy at the sense of
home, which with them depended more on persons than on place.

One schoolroom again,' said Mysie. 'One again with Val and Prim and
Miss Vincent. Oh, it is happiness!'

Even Mrs. Halfpenny was a delightful sight, perhaps the more so that
her rightful dominion was over; the nursery was no more, and she was
only to preside in the workroom, be generally useful, wait on my
lady, and look after Primrose as far as was needful.

The bustle and excitement of settling in prevented much thought of
the Whites, even from Gillian, during that evening and the next
morning; and she was ashamed of her own oblivion of her friend in the
new current of ideas, when she found that her father meant to attend
the funeral out of respect to his old fellow-soldier.

Rockquay had outgrown its churchyard, and had a cemetery half a mile
off, so that people had to go in carriages. Mr. White had made
himself responsible for expenses, and thus things were not so utterly
dreary as poverty might have made them. It was a dreary, gusty March
day, with driving rushes of rain, which had played wildly with
Gillian's waterproof while she was getting such blossoms and
evergreen leaves as her aunt's garden afforded, not out of love for
the poor Queen of the White Ants herself, but thinking the attention
might gratify the daughters; and her elders moralised a little on the
use and abuse of wreaths, and how the manifestation of tender
affection and respect had in many cases been imitated in empty and
expensive compliment.

'The world spoils everything with its coarse finger,' said Lady
Merrifield.

'I hope the custom will not be exaggerated altogether out of
fashion,' said Jane. 'It is a real comfort to poor little children
at funerals to have one to carry, and it is as Mrs. Gaskell's
Margaret said of mourning, something to prevent settling to doing
nothing but crying; besides that afterwards there is a wholesome
sweetness in thus keeping up the memory.'

Sir Jasper shared a carriage with Mr. White, and returned somewhat
wet and very cold, and saying that it had been sadly bleak and
wretched for the poor young people, who stood trembling, so far as he
could see; and he was anxious to know how the poor girls were after
it. It had seemed to him as if Kalliope could scarcely stand. He
proved to be right. Kalliope had said nothing, not wept
demonstratively, perhaps not at all; but when the carriage stopped at
the door, she proved to be sunk back in her corner in a dead faint.
She was very long in reviving, and no sooner tried to move than she
swooned again, and this time it lasted so long that the doctor was
sent for. Miss Mohun arrived just as he had partially restored her,
and they had a conversation.

'They must get that poor girl to bed as soon as it is possible to
undress her,' he said. 'I have seen that she must break down sooner
or later, and I'm afraid she is in for a serious illness; but as yet
there is no knowing.'

Nursing was not among Jane's accomplishments, except of her sister
Ada's chronic, though not severe ailments; but she fetched Mrs.
Halfpenny as the most effective person within reach, trusting to that
good woman's Scotch height, strong arms, great decision, and the
tenderness which real illness always elicited.

Nor was she wrong. Not only did Mrs. Halfpenny get the half-
unconscious girl into bed, but she stayed till evening, and then came
back to snatch a meal and say---

'My leddy, if you have no objection, I will sit up with that puir
lassie the night. They are all men-folk or bairns there, except the
lodger-lady, who is worn out with helping the mother, and they want
some one with a head on her shoulders.'

Lady Merrifield consented with all her heart; but the Sunday
morning's report was no better, when Mrs. Halfpenny came home to
dress Primrose, and see her lady.

'That eldest brother, set him up, the idle loon, was off by the mail
train that night, and naething wad serve him but to come in and bid
good-bye to his sister just as I had gotten her off into something
more like a sleep. It startled her up, and she went off her head
again, poor dearie, and began to talk about prison and disgrace, and
what not, till she fainted again; and when she came to, I was fain to
call the other lad to pacify her, for I could see the trouble in her
puir een, though she could scarce win breath to speak.'

'Is Alexis there?'

'Surely he is, my leddy; he's no the lad to leave his sister in sic a
strait. It was all I could do to gar him lie down when she dozed off
again, but there's sair stress setting in for all of them, puir
things. I have sent the little laddie off to beg the doctor to look
in as soon as he can, for I am much mistaken if there be not fever
coming on.'

'Indeed! And what can those poor children do?'

'That's what I'm thinking, my leddy. And since 'tis your pleasure
that the nursery be done awa' wi', and I have not ta'en any fresh
work, I should like weel to see the puir lassie through wi' it.
Ye'll no mind that Captain White and my puir Halfpenny listed the
same time, and always forgathered as became douce lads. The twa of
them got their stripes thegither, and when Halfpenny got his
sunstroke in that weary march, 'twas White who gave him his last sup
of water, and brought me his bit Bible. So I'd be fain to tend his
daughter in her sickness, if you could spare me, my leddy, and I'd
aye rin home to dress Missie Primrose and pit her to bed, and see to
matters here.'

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