CHAPTER XLII
"Why, Arthur, I had almost forgotten what you are like," said Mildred,when that young gentleman at last put in an appearance at the Quinta."Where have you been to all this time?"
"I--oh, I have been writing letters," said Arthur.
"Then they must have been very long ones. Don't tell fibs, Arthur; youhave not stopped away from here for a day and a half in order to writeletters. What is the matter with you?"
"Well, if you must know, Mildred, I detest your friend Lord Minster,the mere sight of him sets my teeth on edge, and I did not want tomeet him. I only came here to-day because Lady Florence told me thatthey were going up to the Convent this afternoon."
"So you have been to see Lady Florence?"
"No, I met her buying fruit yesterday, and went for a walk with her."
"In the intervals of the letter-writing?"
"Yes."
"Well, do you know I detest Lady Florence?"
"That is very unkind of you. She is charming."
"From your point of view, perhaps, as her brother is from mine."
"Do you mean to tell me that you think that horrid fellow charming?"asked Arthur in disgust.
"Why should I not?"
"Oh, for the matter of that there is no reason why you should not, butI can't congratulate you either on your friend or your taste."
"Leaving my taste out of the question, why do you call Lord Minster myfriend?"
"Because Miss Terry told me that he was; she said that he was alwaysproposing to you, and that you would probably marry him in the end."
Mildred blushed faintly.
"She has no business to tell you; but, for the matter of that, so havemany other men. It does not follow that, because they choose topropose to me, they are my friends."
"No, but then they have not married you."
"No more has he; but, while we are talking of it, why should I notmarry Lord Minster? He can give me position, influence, everythingthat is dear to a woman, except the rarest of all gifts--love."
"But is love so rare, Mildred?"
"Yes, the love that it can satisfy a woman either to receive or togive, especially the latter, for in this we are more blessed in givingthan in receiving. It is but very rarely that the most fortunate of usget a chance of accepting such love as I mean, and we can only give itonce in our lives. But you have not told me your reasons against mymarrying Lord Minster."
"Because he is a mean-spirited, selfish man. If he were not, he couldnot have talked as he did last night. Because you do not love him,Mildred, you cannot love such a man as that, if he were fifty times amember of the Government."
"What does it matter to you, Arthur," she said, in a voice ofindescribable softness, bending her sunny head low over her work,"whether I love him or not; my doing so would not make your heart beatthe faster."
"I don't wish you to marry him," he said, confusedly.
She raised her head and looked full at him with eyes which shone likestars through a summer mist.
"That is enough, Arthur," she answered, in a tone of gentlesubmission, "if you do not wish it, I will not," and, rising, she leftthe room.
Arthur blushed furiously at her words, and a new sensation crept overhim.
"Surely," he said to himself, "she cannot---- No, of course she onlymeans that she will take my advice."
But, though he dismissed the suspicion thus readily, it left somethingthat he could not quite define behind it. He had, after the manner ofyoung men were women are concerned, thought that he understood Mildredthoroughly; now he came to the modest conclusion that he knew verylittle about her.
On the following afternoon, when he was at the Quinta talking as usualto Mrs. Carr, he saw Lord Minster coming up the steps of the portico,dressed in much the same way and with exactly the same air as he wasaccustomed to assume when he mounted those of the "Reform," oroccasionally, if he thought that the "hungry electors" wanted"pandering" to, those of the new "National Club."
"Hullo," said Arthur, "here comes Lord Minster in his war paint, frockcoat, tall hat, eye-glass and all. Good-bye."
"Why do you go away, Arthur? Stop and protect me," said Mildred,laughing.
"Oh, no, indeed, I don't want to spoil sport. I would not interferewith your amusement on any account."
Mildred looked a little vexed.
"Well, you will come back to dinner?"
"That depends upon what happens."
"I told you what would happen, Arthur. Good-bye."
"Perhaps it is as well to get it over at once," thought Mildred.
In the hall Arthur met Lord Minster, and they passed with a gesture ofrecognition so infinitesimally small that it almost faded into thenothingness of a "cut." So far as he could condescend to notice so lowa thing at all, his lordship had conceived a great dislike for Arthur.
"How do you do, Lord Minster?" said Mildred, cordially. "I hear thatyou went to the Convent yesterday; what did you think of the view?"
"The view, Mrs. Carr--was there a view? I did not notice it; indeed, Ionly went up there at all to please Florence. I don't like that sortof thing."
"If you don't like roughing it, I am afraid that you did not enjoyyour voyage out."
"Well, no, I don't think I did, and there was a low fellow on boardwho had been ruined by the retrocession of the Transvaal, and who,hearing that I was in the Government, took every possible opportunityto tell me publicly that his wife and children were almost in a stateof starvation, as though I cared about his confounded wife andchildren. He was positively brutal. No, certainly I did not enjoy it.However, I am rewarded by finding you here."
"I am very much flattered."
Lord Minster fixed his eye-glass firmly in his eye, planted his handsat the bottom of his trousers pockets, and, clearing his throat,placed himself in the attitude that was so familiar to the House, andbegan.
"Mrs. Carr, I told you, when last I had the pleasure of seeing you,that I should take the first opportunity of renewing a conversationthat I was forced to suspend in order to attend, if my memory servesme, a very important committee meeting. I was therefore surprised,indeed I may almost say hurt, when I found that you had suddenlyflitted from London."
"Indeed, Lord Minster?"
"I will not, however, take up the time of this--I mean your time, byrecapitulating all that I told you on that occasion; the facts are, soto speak, all upon the table, and I will merely touch upon the mainheads of my case. My prospects are these: I am now a member of theCabinet, and enjoy, owing to the unusual but calculated recklessnessof my non-official public utterances, an extraordinary popularity witha large section of the country, the hungry section to which I alludedlast night. It is probable that the course of the present Governmentis pretty nearly run, the country is sick of it, and those who put itinto power have not got enough out of it. A dissolution is thereforean event of the near future; the Conservatives will come in, but theyhave no power of organization, and very little political talent attheir backs, above all, they are deficient in energy, probably becausethere is nothing that they can destroy and therefore no pickings tostruggle for. In short, they are not 'capaces imperii.' The want ofthese qualities and of leaders will very soon undermine their holdupon the country, always a slight one, and, assisted by a few otherpushing men, I anticipate, by carefully playing into the hands of theIrish party which will really rule England in the future, being able,as one of the leaders of the Opposition, to consummate their downfall.Then will come my opportunity, and, if luck goes with me, I shall befirst Lord of the Treasury within half a dozen years. But now comesthe difficulty. Though I am so popular with the country, I am, forsome reason quite inexplicable to myself, rather at a--hum--a discountamongst my colleagues and that influential section of society to whichthey belong. Now, in order to succeed to the full extent that I haveplanned, it is absolutely essential that I should win the countenanceof this class, and the only way that I can see of doing it is bymarrying some woman charmin
g enough to disarm dislike, beautifulenough to command admiration, rich enough to entertain profusely, andclever enough to rule England. Those desiderata are all to a strikingdegree united in your person, Mrs. Carr, and I have therefore muchpleasure in asking you to become my wife."
"You have, as I understand you, Lord Minster, made a very admirablestatement of how desirable it is for yourself that you should marryme, but it is not so clear what advantage I should reap by marryingyou."
"Why, the advantages are obvious: if by your help I can become PrimeMinister, you would become the wife of the Prime Minister."
"The prospect fails to dazzle me. I have everything that I want; whyshould I strive to reach a grandeur to which I was not born, andwhich, to speak the truth, I regard with a very complete indifference?But there is another point. In all your speech you have said nothingof any affection that you have to offer, not a single word of love--you have been content to expatiate on the profits that a matrimonialinvestment would bring to yourself, and by reflection, to the othercontracting party."
"Love," asked Lord Minster, with an expression of genuine surprise;"why, you talk like a character in a novel; now tell me, Mrs. Carr,_what_ is love?"
"It is difficult to define, Lord Minster; but as you ask me to do so,I will try. Love to a woman is what the sun is to the world, it is herlife, her animating principle, without which she must droop, and, ifthe plant be very tender, die. Except under its influence, a woman cannever attain her full growth, never touch the height of herpossibilities, or bloom into the plenitude of her moral beauty. Aloveless marriage dwarfs our natures, a marriage where love isdevelops them to their utmost."
"And what is love to a man?"
"Well, I should say that nine of a man's passions are merely episodesin his career, the mile-stones that mark his path; the tenth, or thefirst, is his philosopher's stone that turns all things to gold, or,if the charm does not work, leaves his heart, broken and bankrupt, acold monument of failure."
"I don't quite follow you, and I must say that, speaking for myself, Inever felt anything of all this," said Lord Minster, blankly.
"I know you do not, Lord Minster; your only passions tend towardspolitical triumphs and personal aggrandisement; we are at the twopoles, you see, and I fear that we can never, never meet upon a commonmatrimonial line. But don't be down-hearted about it, you will findplenty more women who fulfil all your requirements and will be veryhappy to take you at your own valuation. If only a woman is necessaryto success, you need not look far, and forgive me if I say that Ibelieve it will not make much difference to you who she is. But allthe same, Lord Minster, I will venture to give you a piece of advice:next time you propose, address yourself a little more to the lady'saffections and a little less to her interests," and Mrs. Carr rose asthough to show that the interview was at an end.
"Am I then to understand that my offer is definitely refused?" askedLord Minster, stiffly.
"I am afraid so, and I am sure that you will, on reflection, see howutterly unsuited we are to each other."
"Possibly, Mrs. Carr, possibly; at present all that I see is that youhave had a great opportunity, and have failed to avail yourself of it.My only consolation is that the loss will be yours, and my only regretis that I have had the trouble of coming to this place for nothing.However, there is a ship due to-morrow, and I shall sail in her."
"I am sorry to have been the cause of bringing you here, Lord Minster,and still more sorry that you should feel obliged to cut short yourstay. Good-bye, Lord Minster; we part friends, I hope?"
"Oh, certainly, Mrs. Carr. I wish you a very good morning, Mrs. Carr,"and his lordship marched out of Mildred's life.
"There goes my chance of becoming the wife of a prime minister, andmaking a figure in history," said that lady, as she watched his tallfigure stalking stiffly down the avenue. "Well, I am glad of it. Iwould just as soon have married a speech-making figure-head stuffedfull of the purest Radical principles."
On the following day Arthur met Lady Florence again in the town.
"Where have you been to, Lady Florence?" he said.
"To see my brother off," she answered, without any signs of deepgrief.
"What, has he gone already?"
"Yes; your friend Mrs. Carr has been too many for poor James."
"What! do you mean that he has been proposing?"
"Yes, and got more than he bargained for."
"Is he cut up?"
"He, no, but his vanity is. You see, Mr. Heigham, it is this way. Mybrother may be a very great man and a pillar of the State, and allthat sort of thing. I don't say he isn't; but from personal experienceI _know_ that he is an awful prig, and thinks that all women aremachines constructed to advance the comfort of your noble sex. Well,he has come down a peg or two, that's all, and he don't like it. Good-bye; I'm in a hurry."
Lady Florence was nothing if not outspoken.