General John Regan Part 19

"Devil the sign of believing any such thing there was about her when I left."

"She may come to believe it later on," said Dr. O'Grady, "when she and Ford have had time to talk the whole thing over together."

The doctor's servant came into the room while he spoke.

"Constable Moriarty is outside at the door," she said, "and he's wis.h.i.+ng to speak with you. There's a young woman along with him."

"Mary Ellen, I expect," said Dr. O'Grady.

"He's upset in his mind about that same Mary Ellen," said Doyle, "ever since he heard she was the niece of the General. It's day and night he's round the hotel whistling all sorts and??"

"You told me all about that before," said Dr. O'Grady. "Bring him in, Bridgy, bring in the pair of them, and let's hear what it is they want."

Constable Moriarty entered the room, followed at a little distance by Mary Ellen. He led her forward, and set her in front of Dr. O'Grady. He looked very much as Touchstone must have looked when he presented the rustic Audrey to the exiled Duke as "a poor virgin, sir, an ill-favoured thing, sir, but mine own."

"If you want a marriage license," said Dr. O'Grady, "you've come to the wrong man. Go up to Father McCormack."

"I do not want a marriage license," said Constable Moriarty, "for I'm not long enough in the force to get leave to marry. And to do it without leave is what I wouldn't care to risk."

"If you don't want to marry her," said Doyle, "I'd be glad if you'd let her alone the way she'd be able to do her work. It's upsetting her mind you are with the way you're going on."

"Is it true what they tell me," said Moriarty, "that the Lord-Lieutenant's coming to the town?"

"I think we may say it is true," said Dr. O'Grady.

"To open the statue you're putting up to the General?"

"'Open' isn't the word used about statues," said Dr. O'Grady, "but you've got the general idea right enough."

"What I was saying to Mary Ellen," said Moriarty, "is that seeing as she's the niece of the General??"

"She's no such thing," said Doyle, "and well you know it."

"The doctor has it put out about her that she is," said Moriarty, "and Mary Ellen's well enough content. Aren't you, Mary Ellen?"

"I am surely," said Mary Ellen. "Why wouldn't I?"

"Look here, Moriarty," said Dr. O'Grady, "if you've got any idea into your head that there's a fortune either large or small coming to Mary Ellen out of this business you're making a big mistake."

"I wasn't thinking any such thing," said Moriarty. "Don't I know well enough it's only talk?"

"It will be as much as we can possibly do," said Dr. O'Grady, "to pay for the statue and the incidental expenses. Pensioning off Mary Ellen afterwards is simply out of the question."

"Let alone that she doesn't deserve a pension," said Doyle, "and wouldn't get one if we were wading up to our knees in sovereigns."

"So you may put it out of your head that Mary Ellen will make a penny by it," said Dr. O'Grady.

"It wasn't that I was thinking of at all," said Moriarty, "for I know you couldn't do it. My notion?what I was saying to Mary Ellen a minute ago?is that if the Lord-Lieutenant was to be told?at the time that he'd be looking at the statue?whenever that might be?that Mary Ellen was the niece of the General??"

"If you're planning out a regular court presentation for Mary Ellen,"

said Dr. O'Grady, "the thing can't be done. No one here is in a position to present anyone else because we have none of us been presented ourselves. Besides, it wouldn't be the least use to her if she was presented. The Lord-Lieutenant wouldn't take her on as an upper housemaid or anything of that sort merely because she'd been presented to him as General John Regan's niece."

"It wasn't a situation for Mary Ellen I was thinking of," said Moriarty.

"In the name of G.o.d," said Doyle, "will you tell us what it is you have in your mind?"

"What I was thinking," said Moriarty, "was that if the matter was represented to the Lord-Lieutenant in a proper manner?-about Mary Ellen being the General's niece and all to that?he might, maybe, see his way to making me a sergeant. It was that I was saying to you, Mary Ellen, wasn't it, now?"

"It was," said Mary Ellen.

"The idea of trotting out Mary Ellen on the occasion isn't at all a bad one," said Dr. O'Grady. "I'll see what can be done about it."

"I'm obliged to you," said Moriarty.

"But I don't promise that you'll be made a sergeant, mind that now."

"Sure I know you couldn't promise that," said Moriarty. "But you'll do the best you can. Come along now, Mary Ellen. It's pretty near time for me to be going on patrol, and the sergeant will check me if I'm late."

"There's something in that idea of Moriarty's," said Dr. O'Grady, when he and Doyle were alone again.

"I don't see what good will come of it," said Doyle, "and I'm doubting whether Thady Gallagher will be pleased. Mary Ellen's mother was a cousin of his own."

"She's a good-looking girl," said Dr. O'Grady. "If we had her cleaned up a bit and a nice dress put on her she'd look rather well standing at the foot of the statue. I expect the Lord-Lieutenant would be pleased to see her."

"And who'd be getting the lunch for the Lord-Lieutenant," said Doyle, "when Mary Ellen would be playing herself?"

"We'll get someone to manage the lunch all right. The great thing for us is to be sure of making a good general impression on the Lord-Lieutenant, and I think Mary Ellen would help. I daresay you've never noticed it, Doyle?it would be hard for you when she will not wash her face?but she really is a good-looking girl. The Lord-Lieutenant will want something of the sort to look at after he's faced Mrs. Ford and her illuminated address. She's not exactly?-"

"The man that would run away with that one," said Doyle vindictively, "would do it in the dark if he did it at all."

"Besides," said Dr. O'Grady, "we ought to think of poor little Mary Ellen herself. It'll be a great day for her, and she'll enjoy having a new dress."

"Who's to pay for the dress?" said Doyle.

"The dress will be paid for out of the general funds. I'll ask Mrs.

Gregg to see about having it made. She has remarkably good taste. I'll tell her not to get anything very expensive, so you need not worry about that. And now, Doyle, unless there's anything else you want to settle with me at once, I think I'll write our invitation to the Lord-Lieutenant."

"It would be well if you did," said Doyle, "so as we'd know whether he's coming or not."

"Oh, he'll come. If he boggles at it at all I'll go up to Dublin and see him myself. A short verbal explanation?? We'll let him choose his own date."

Doyle lit his pipe and walked back to the hotel. He found Thady Gallagher waiting for him in his private room.

"What's this I'm after hearing," said Gallagher, "about the Lord-Lieutenant?"

"He's coming down here," said Doyle, "to open the new statue."

He spoke firmly, for he detected a note of displeasure in the tone in which Thady Gallagher asked this question.