Frank Fairlegh Part 9

"Then ask the gentleman to give it to you--you have a right to do what you please with your own property, I imagine?"

It was very evident that this suggestion was not exactly agreeable to Mullins; and although his habitual fear of Lawless was so strong as completely to overpower any dread of what might be the possible consequences of his act, it was not without much hesitation that he approached Oaklands, and asked him for the book, as he wished to lend it to Lawless.

On hearing this Oaklands leisurely turned to the fly-leaf, and, having apparently satisfied himself, by the perusal of the name written thereon, that it really belonged to Mullins, handed it to him without a word. I fancied, however, from the stern expression of his mouth and a slight contraction of the brow, that he was not as insensible to their impertinence as he wished to appear.

Lawless, who had been sitting during this little scene -54--with his eyes closed, as if asleep, now roused himself, and saying, "Oh, you have got it at last, have you?" began turning over the pages, reading aloud a line or two here and there, while he kept up a running commentary on the text as he did so:--

"Hum! ha! now let's see, here we are--the 'g-i-a-o-u-r,'--that's a nice word to talk about. What does g-i-a-o-u-r spell, Mullins? You don't know? what an a.s.s you are, to be sure!--

'Fair clime, whose every season smiles Benignant o'er those blessed isles'--

blessed isles, indeed; what stuff!--

''Tis Greece, but living Greece no more;'

that would do for a motto for the barbers to stick on their pots of bear's grease!--

'Clime of the unforgotten brave;'

_unforgotten_! yes, I should think so; how the deuce should they be forgotten, when one is bored with them morning, noon, and night, for everlasting, by old Sam, and all the other pastors and masters in the kingdom? Hang me, if I can read this trash; the only poetry that ever was written worth reading is 'Don Juan'."

He then flung the book down, adding:--

"It's confoundedly cold, I think. Mullins, shut that window."

This order involved more difficulties in its execution than might at first be imagined. Oaklands, after giving up the book, had slightly altered his position by drawing nearer the window and leaning his elbow on the sill, so that it was impossible to shut it without obliging him to move. Mullins saw this, and seemed for a moment inclined not to obey, but a look and a threatening gesture from Lawless again decided him; and with slow unwilling steps he approached the window, and laid his hand on it, for the purpose of shutting it. As he did so, Oaklands raised his head, and regarded him for a moment with a glance like lightning, his large eyes glaring in the twilight like those of some wild animal, while the red flush of anger rose to his brow, and we all expected to see him strike Mullins to the ground. Conquering himself, however, by a powerful effort of self-control, he folded his arms, and, turning from the window, suffered Mullins to close it without interruption. Still I could perceive, from -55--the distended nostril and quivering lip, that his forbearance was almost exhausted.

"Ah, that's an improvement," said Lawless; "I was getting uncommonly chilly. By the way, what an interesting virtue patience is; it is a curious fact in Natural History that some of the lower animals share it with us; for instance, there's nothing so patient as a jack-a.s.s----"

"Except a pig," put in Mullins; "they're uncommon--"

"Obstinate," suggested Coleman.

"Oh, ah! it's obstinate I mean," replied Mullins. "Well, you know donkeys are obstinate, like a pig; that's what I meant."

"Don't be a fool," said Lawless. "Deuce take these chairs, I cannot make myself comfortable anyhow--the fact is, I must have three, that's the proper number--give me another, Mullins."

"I can't find one," was the answer; "they are all in use."

"Can't find one! nonsense," said Lawless; "here, take one of these; the gentleman is asleep, and won't object, I daresay."

When Mullins was shutting the window his head had been so turned as to prevent his observing the symptoms of anger in Oaklands, which had convinced me that he would not bear trifling with much longer.

Presuming, therefore, from the success of his former attacks, that the new pupil was a person who might be insulted with impunity, and actuated by that general desire of retaliation, which is the certain effect bullying produces upon a mean disposition, Mullins proceeded, _con amore_, to fulfil Lawless's injunction. With a sudden s.n.a.t.c.h he withdrew the centre chair, on which Oaklands' legs mainly rested, so violently as nearly to throw them to the ground, a catastrophe which was finally consummated by Lawless giving the other chair a push with his foot, so that it was only by great exertion and quickness that Oaklands was able to save himself from falling.

This was the climax; forbearance merely human could endure no longer: Lawless had obtained his object of disturbing Harry Oaklands'

self-possession, and was now to learn the consequences of his success.

With a bound like that of an infuriated tiger, Oaklands leaped upon his feet, and, das.h.i.+ng Mullins into a corner with such force that he remained lying exactly where he fell, he sprang upon Lawless, seized him by the collar of his coat, and after a short but severe struggle dragged him to the -56--window, which was about eight feet from the ground, threw it open, and taking him in his arms with as much ease as if he had been a child flung him out. He then returned to the corner in which, paralysed with fear, Mullins was still crouching, drew him to the spot from whence he had removed the chair, placed him there upon his hands and knees, and saying, in a stern voice, "If you dare to move till I tell you, I'll throw you out of the window too," quietly resumed his former position, with his legs resting upon Mullins' back instead of a chair.

[Ill.u.s.tration: page56 Lawless Finds his Level]

As soon as Coleman and I had in some degree recovered from our surprise and consternation (for the anger of Oaklands once roused was a fearful thing to behold), we ran to the other window, just in time to see Lawless, who had alighted among some stunted shrubs, turn round and shake his fist at Oaklands (who merely smiled), ere he regained his feet, and rang the bell in order to gain admittance. A minute afterwards we heard him stride upstairs, enter his bedroom, and close the door with a most sonorous bang. Affairs remained in this position nearly a quarter of an hour, no one feeling inclined to be the first to speak. At length the silence was broken by Oaklands, who, addressing himself to c.u.mberland, said:--

"I am afraid this absurd piece of business has completely marred the harmony of the evening. Get up, Mr. Mullins," he continued, removing his legs, and a.s.sisting him to rise; "I hope I did not hurt you just now."

In reply to this Mullins grumbled out something intended as a negative, and, shambling across the room, placed himself in a corner, as far as possible from Oaklands, where he sat rubbing his knees, the very image of sulkiness and terror. c.u.mberland, who appeared during the whole course of the affair absorbed in a book, though, in fact, not a single word or look had escaped him, now came forward and apologised, in a quiet, gentlemanly manner (which, when he was inclined, no one could a.s.sume with greater success), for Lawless's impertinence, which had only, he said, met with its proper reward.

"You must excuse me, Mr. c.u.mberland, if I cannot agree with you,"

replied Oaklands; "since I have had time to cool a little, I see the matter in quite a different light. Mr. Lawless was perfectly right; the carelessness of my manner must naturally have seemed as if I were purposely giving myself airs, but I can a.s.sure you such was not the case."

He paused for a moment, and then continued, with a half-embarra.s.sed smile:--

-57--"The fact is, I am afraid that I have been spoiled at home; my mother died when I was a little child, and my dear father, having n.o.body else to care about, thought, I believe, that there was no one in the world equal to me, and that nothing was too good for me. Of course, all our servants and people have taken their tone from him, so that I have never had any one to say to me, 'Nay,' and am therefore not at all used to the sort of thing. I hope I do not often lose my temper as I have done this evening; but really Mr. Lawless appears quite an adept in the art of ingeniously tormenting."

"I am afraid you must have found so much exertion very fatiguing,"

observed Coleman, politely.

"A fair hit, Mr. Coleman," replied Oaklands, laughing. "No! those are not the things that tire me, somehow; but in general I am very easily knocked up--I am indeed--most things are so much trouble, and I hate trouble; I suppose it is that I am not strong."

"Wretchedly weak, I should say," rejoined Coleman; "it struck me that you were so just now, when you chucked Lawless out of the window like a cat."

"Be quiet, Freddy," said c.u.mberland, reprovingly.

"Nay, don't stop him," said Oaklands; "I delight in a joke beyond measure, when I have not the trouble of making it myself. But about this Mr. Lawless, I am exceedingly sorry that I handled him so roughly; would you mind going to tell him so, Mr. c.u.mberland, and explaining that I did not mean anything offensive by my manner?"

"Exactly, I'll make him understand the whole affair, and bring him down with me in five minutes," said c.u.mberland, leaving the room as he spoke.

"What makes c.u.mberland so good-natured and amiable to-night?" whispered I to Coleman.

"Can't you tell?" was the reply. "Don't you see that Oaklands is a regular top-sawyer, a fish worth catching; and that by doing this, c.u.mberland places him under an obligation at first starting? Not a bad move to begin with, eh? Besides, if a regular quarrel between Lawless and Oaklands were to ensue, c.u.mberland would have to take one side or the other; and it would not exactly suit him to break with Lawless, he knows too much about him; besides," added he, sinking his voice, "he owes him money, more than I should like to owe anybody a precious deal, I can tell you. Now, do you _twig_?"

"Yes," said I, "I comprehend the matter more clearly, if that is what you mean by _twigging_; but how shocking -58--it all is! why, c.u.mberland is quite a swindler--gambling, borrowing money he can't pay, and----"

"Hus.h.!.+" interrupted Coleman, "here they come."

Coleman was not mistaken: c.u.mberland had been successful in his emba.s.sy, and now entered the room, accompanied by Lawless, who looked rather crestfallen, somewhat angry, and particularly embarra.s.sed and uncomfortable, which, as Coleman whispered to me, was not to be wondered at, considering how thoroughly he had been _put out_ just before., Oaklands, however, appeared to see nothing of all this; but, rising from his seat as they entered, he approached Lawless, saying:--

"This has been a foolish piece of business, Mr. Lawless; I freely own that I am thoroughly ashamed of the part I have taken in it, and I can only apologise for the intemperate manner in which I behaved".

The frank courtesy with which he said this was so irresistible, that Lawless was completely overcome, and, probably for the first time in his life, felt himself thoroughly in the wrong. Seizing Oaklands' hand, therefore, and shaking it heartily, he replied:--

"I'll tell you what it is, Oaklands--we don't Mr. each other here--you are a right good fellow--a regular brick, and no mistake; and as to your shoving me out of the window, you served me quite right for my abominable impertinence. I only wonder you did not do it ten minutes sooner, that's all; but you really ought to be careful what you do with those arms of yours; I was like a child in your grasp; you are as strong as a steam engine."

"I can a.s.sure you I am not," replied Oaklands; "they never let me do anything at home, for fear I should knock myself up."

"You are more likely to knock other people down, I should say," rejoined Lawless; "and, by the way, that reminds me--Mullins! come here, stupid, and beg Mr. Oaklands' pardon, and thank him for knocking you down."

A sulky, half-muttered "shan't," was the only reply.