CHAPTER XLI
Meanwhile at Madeira matters were going on much as we left them; therehad indeed been little appreciable change in the situation.
For his part, our friend Arthur continued to dance or rather strollalong the edge of his flowery precipice, and found the view pleasantand the air bracing.
And no doubt things were very nicely arranged for his satisfaction,and had it not been for the ever-present thought of Angela--for he didthink of her a great deal and with deep longing--he should haveenjoyed himself thoroughly, for every day was beautiful, and every daybrought its amusements with it. Perhaps on arriving at the Quinta Carrabout eleven o'clock, he would find that the steam launch was waitingfor them in a little bay where the cliff on which the house stoodcurved inwards. Then, a merry party of young English folks allcollected together by Mrs. Carr that morning by the dint of superhumanefforts, they would scramble down the steps cut in the rock and steamoff to some neighbouring islet to eat luncheon and wander aboutcollecting shells and flowers and beetles till sunset, and then steamback again through the spicy evening air, laughing and flirting andmaking the night melodious with their songs. Or else the horses wouldbe ordered out and they would wander over the lonely mountains in theinterior of the island, talking of mummies and all things human, ofAngela and all things divine. And sometimes, in the course of theseconversations, Arthur would in a brotherly way call Mrs. Carr"Mildred," while occasionally, in the tone of a spinster aunt, shewould address him as "Arthur," a practice that, once acquired, shesoon found was, like all other bad habits, not easy to get rid of. Forsomehow in all these expeditions she was continually at his side,striving, and not without success, to weave herself into the substanceof his life, and to make herself indispensable to him, till at last hegrew to look upon her almost as a sister.
But beyond this he never went, and to her advances he was as cold asice, simply because he never noticed them, and she was afraid ofmaking them more obvious for fear that she would frighten him away. Hethought it the most natural thing in the world that he and Mildredshould live together like brother and sister, and be very fond of eachother as "sich," whilst she thought him--just what he was--theblindest of fools, and then loved him the more for his folly. Thesisterly relationship did not possess the same charms for Mildred thatit did for Arthur; they looked at matters from different points ofview.
One morning, peeping through a big telescope that was fixed in thewindow of the little boudoir which formed an entrance lobby to themuseum, Mrs. Carr saw a cloud of smoke upon the horizon. Presently thepoint of a mast poked up through the vapour as though the vessel wererising out of the ocean, then two more mastheads and a red and blackfunnel, and last of all a great grey hull.
"Hurrah!" called out Mrs. Carr, with one eye still fixed to thetelescope and the remainder of her little face all screwed up in herefforts to keep the other closed, "it's the mail; I can see the DonaldCurrie flag, a white C on a blue ground."
"Well, I am sure, Mildred, there's no need for you to make your facelook like a monkey, if it is; you look just as though the corner ofyour mouth were changing places with your eyebrow."
"Agatha, you are dreadfully rude; when the fairies took yourendowments in hand, they certainly did not forget the gift of plainspeech. I shall appeal to Mr. Heigham; do I look like a monkey, Mr.Heigham? No, on second thoughts, I won't wait for the inevitablecompliment. Arthur, hold your tongue and I will tell you something.That must be the new boat, the _Garth Castle_, and I want to see overher. Captain Smithson, who is bringing her out, has got a box ofthings for me. What do you say if we kill two birds with one stone, goand see the vessel and get our luncheon on board."
"I am at your ladyship's service," answered Arthur, lazily, "but wouldyou like to have the compliment apropos of the monkey? I have thoughtof something extremely neat now."
"Not on any account; I hate compliments that are not meant," and hereyes gave a little flash which put a point to her words. "Agatha, Isuppose that you will come?"
"Well, yes, dear, the bay looks pretty smooth."
"Smooth, yes, you might sail across it in a paper ship," yawnedArthur.
"For goodness' sake don't look so lazy, Mr. Heigham, but ring the bell--not that one, the electric one--and let us order the launch at once.The mail will be at anchor in about an hour."
Arthur did as he was bid, and within that time they were steamingthrough the throng of boats already surrounding the steamer.
"My gracious, Mildred," suddenly exclaimed Agatha, "do you see whothat is there leaning over the bulwarks? oh, he's gone, but so sure asI am a living woman, it was Lord Minster and Lady FlorenceThingumebob, his sister, you know, the pretty one."
Mildred looked vexed, and glanced involuntarily at Arthur who wassteering the launch. For a moment she hesitated about going on, andglanced again at Arthur. The look seemed to inspire her, for she saidnothing, and presently he brought the boat deftly alongside thegangway ladder.
The captain of the ship had already come to the side to meet her,having recognized her from the bridge; indeed there was scarcely a manin Donald Currie's service who did not know Mrs. Carr, at any rate, bysight.
"How do you do, Mrs. Carr; are you coming on to South Africa with us?"
"No, Captain Smithson; I, or rather we, are coming to lunch, and tosee your new boat, and last, but not least, to claim my box."
"Mrs. Carr, will you ever forgive me? I have lost it!"
"Produce my box, Captain Smithson, or I will never speak to you again.I'll do more. I'll go over to the Union line."
"In which case, I am afraid Donald Currie would never speak to meagain. I must certainly try to find that box," and he whispered anorder to a quartermaster. "Well, it is very kind of you to come andlunch, and I hope that you and your friends will do so with me. Tillthen, good-by, I must be off."
As soon as they got on the quarter-deck, Arthur perceived a tall,well-preserved man with an eyeglass, whom he seemed to know, bearingdown upon them, followed by a charming-looking girl, about three-and-twenty years of age, remarkable for her pleasant eyes and the humorousexpression of her mouth.
"How do you do, Mrs. Carr?" said the tall man. "I suppose that youheard that we were coming; it is very good of you to come and meetus."
"I had not the slightest idea that you were coming, and I did not cometo meet you, Lord Minster; I came to lunch," answered Mrs. Carr,rather coldly.
"Nasty one for James that, very," murmured Lady Florence; "hope itwill do him good."
"I was determined to come and look you up as soon as I got time, butthe House sat very late. However, I have got a fortnight here now, andshall see plenty of you."
"A good deal too much I daresay, Lord Minster; but let me introduceyou to Mr. Heigham."
Lord Minster glanced casually at Arthur, and, lifting his hat about aneighth of an inch, was about to resume his conversation, when Arthur,who was rather nettled by this treatment, said,
"I think I have had the pleasure of meeting you before, Lord Minster;we were stopping together at the Stanley Foxes last autumn."
"Stanley Foxes, ah, quite so, forgive my forgetfulness, but one meetsso many people, you see," and he turned round to where Mrs. Carr hadbeen, but that lady had taken the opportunity to retreat. Lord Minsterat once followed her.
"Well, if my brother has forgotten you, Mr. Heigham, I have not," saidLady Florence, now coming forward for the first time. "Don't youremember when we went nutting together and I tumbled into the pond?"
"Indeed I do, Lady Florence, and I can't tell you how pleased I am tosee you again. Are you here for long?"
"An indefinite time: an old aunt of mine, Mrs. Velley, is coming outby next mail, and I am going to stop with her when my brother goesback. Are you staying with Mrs. Carr?"
"Oh no, only I know her very well."
"Do you admire her?"
"Immensely."
"Then you won't like James--I mean my brother."
"Why not?"
>
"Because he also admires her immensely."
"We both admire the view from here very much indeed, but that is noreason why you and I should not like each other."
"No, but then you see there is a difference between lovely scenery andlovely widows."
"Perhaps there is," said Arthur.
At this moment Lord Minster returned with Mrs. Carr.
"How do you do, Lady Florence?" said the latter; "let me introduce youto Mr. Heigham. What, do you already know each other?"
"Oh, yes, Mrs. Carr, we are old friends."
"Oh, indeed, that is very charming for you."
"Yes, it is," said Lady Florence, frankly.
"Well, we must be off now, Florence."
"All right, James, I'm ready."
"Will you both come and dine with me to-night sans facon, there willbe nobody else except Agatha and Mr. Heigham?" asked Mrs. Carr.
"We shall be delighted," said Lord Minster.
"_Au revoir_, then," nodded Lady Florence to Arthur, and theyseparated.
When, after lunching and seeing round the ship, Miss Terry and Arthurfound themselves in the steam launch waiting for Mrs. Carr, who wassaying good-by to the captain and looking after her precious box,Arthur took the opportunity to ask his companion what she knew of LordMinster.
"Oh, not much, that is, nothing in particular, except that he is theson of a sugar-broker or something, who was made a peer for somereason or other, and I suppose that is why he is so stuck up, becauseall the other peers I ever met are just like other people. He is veryclever, too, is in the government now, and always hanging about afterMildred. He wants to marry her, you know, and I expect that he will atlast, but I hope he won't. I don't like him; he always looks at one asthough one were dirt."
"The deuce he does!" ejaculated Arthur, his heart filling on theinstant with envy, hatred, malice, and all uncharitableness towardsLord Minster. He had not the slightest wish to marry Mildred himself,but he boiled at the mere thought of anybody else doing so. LadyFlorence was right, there is a difference between ladies andlandscapes.
At that moment Mildred herself arrived, but so disgusted was he thathe would scarcely speak to her, and on arriving at the landing stagehe at once departed to the hotel, and even tried to get out of comingto dinner that night, but this was overruled.
"Good," said Mildred to herself, with a smile; "I have found out howto vex him."
At dinner that evening Lord Minster, who had of course taken hishostess in, opened the conversation by asking her how she had beenemploying herself at Madeira.
"Better than you have at St. Stephen's, Lord Minster; at any rate, Ihave not been forwarding schemes for highway robbery and the nationaldisgrace," she answered, laughing.
"I suppose that you mean the Irish Land Act and the TransvaalConvention. I have heard several ladies speak of them like that, and Iam really coming to the conclusion that your sex is entirely devoid ofpolitical instinct."
"What do you mean by political instinct, Lord Minster?" asked Arthur.
"By political instinct," he replied, "I understand a properappreciation of the science and object of government."
"Goodness me, what are they?" asked Mrs. Carr.
"Well, the science of government consists, roughly speaking, inknowing how to get into office, and remain there when once in; itsobjects are to guess and give expression to the prevailing popularfeeling or whim with the loss of as few votes as possible."
"According to that definition," said Arthur, "all national questionsare, or should be, treated by those who understand the 'science andobjects of government' on a semi-financial basis. I mean, they shouldbe dealt with as an investor deals with his funds, in order to make asmuch out of them as possible, not to bring real benefit to thecountry."
"You put the matter rather awkwardly, but I think I follow you. I willtry to explain. In the first place, all the old-fashioned Jingononsense about patriotism and the 'honour of the country' has, ifpeople only knew it, quite exploded; it only lingers in a certainsection of the landed gentry and a proportion of the upper middleclass, and has no serious weight with leading politicians."
"How about Lord Beaconsfield?"
"Well, he was perhaps an exception; but then he was a man with solarge a mind--I say it, though I detested him--that he could actually,by a sort of political prescience, see into the far future, and shapehis course accordingly. But even in his case I do not believe that hewas actuated by patriotism, but rather by a keener insight into humanaffairs than most men possess."
"And yet he came terribly to grief."
"Because he outflew his age. The will of the country--which means thewill of between five hundred thousand and a million hungry fluctuatingelectors--could not wait for the development of his imperial schemes.They wanted plunder in the present, not honour and prosperity for theEmpire in the future. The instinct of robbery is perhaps the strongestin human nature, and those who would rule humanity on its presentbasis must pander to it or fail. The party of progress means the partythat can give most spoil, taken from those that have, to those thathave not. That is why Mr. Gladstone is such a truly great man; heunderstands better than any one of his age how to excite the greed ofhungry voters and to guide it for his own ends. What was theMidlothian campaign but a crusade of plunder? First he excited thedesire, then he promised to satisfy it. Of course that is impossible,but at the time he was believed, and his promises floated ustriumphantly into power. The same arguments apply to that body ofelectors whose motive power is sentiment--their folly must be panderedto. For instance, the Transvaal Convention that Mrs. Carr mentioned isan admirable example of how such pandering is done. No man ofexperience can have believed that such an agreement could be wise, orthat it can result in anything but trouble and humiliation; but thetrouble and humiliation will not come just yet, and in the meanwhile asop is thrown to Cerberus. Political memories are short, and whenexposure comes it will be easy to fix the blame upon the other side.It is because we appreciate these facts that in the end we mustprevail. The Liberal party, or rather the Radical section, which is tothe great Liberal party what the helm is to the ship, appeals to thebaser instincts and more pressing appetites of the people; theConservative only to their traditions and higher aspirations, in thesame way that religion appeals to the spirit, and the worship ofMammon to the senses. The shibboleth of the one is 'self-interest;' ofthe other, 'national honour.' The first appeals to the many, thesecond to the finer few, and I must leave you to judge which willcarry the day."
"And if ever you become Prime Minister, shall you rule England uponthese principles?" asked Mrs. Carr.
"Certainly; it is because I have mastered them that I am what I am. Iowe everything to them, consequently in my view they are the finest ofall principles."
"Then Heaven help England!" soliloquized Arthur, rudely.
"And so say we all," added Lady Florence, who was a strongConservative.
"My dear young people," answered Lord Minster, with a superior smile,"England is quite capable of looking after herself. I have to lookafter myself. She will, at any rate, last my time, and my motto isthat one should get something out of one's country, not attempt to doher services that would in all probability never be recognized, or, ifrecognized, left unrewarded."
Arthur was about to answer, with more sharpness than discretion, butMrs. Carr interposed.
"Well, Lord Minster, we have to thank you for a very cynical and lucidexplanation of the objects of your party, if they really are itsobjects. Will you give me some wine?"
After dinner Mrs. Carr devoted herself almost exclusively to LordMinster, leaving Arthur to talk to Lady Florence. Lord Minster was notslow to avail himself of the opportunity.
"I have been thinking of your remark to me in London about thecrossing-sweeper," he began.
"Oh, for Heaven's sake don't drag that wretched man out of his grave,Lord Minster. I really have forgotten what I said about him."
"I hope, Mrs. Carr, that you have forgotten a g
ood deal you said thatday. I may as well take this opportunity----"
"No, please don't, Lord Minster," she answered, knowing very well whatwas coming; "I am so tired to-night."
"Oh, in that case I can easily postpone my statement. I have a wholefortnight before me."
Mrs. Carr secretly determined that it should remain as much aspossible at his own exclusive disposal, but she did not say so.
Shortly after this, Arthur took his leave, after shaking hands verycoldly with her. Nor did he come to the Quinta next day, as he hadconceived too great a detestation of Lord Minster to risk meeting him,a detestation which he attributed solely to that rising member of theGovernment's political principles, which jarred very much with hisown.
"Better and better," said Mrs. Carr to herself, as she took off herdress, "but Lord Minster is really odious, I cannot stand him forlong."