The Story of Antony Grace Part 88

"I believe him to be a thorough scoundrel," I said angrily.

"He seems quite taken with little Linny there."

"I know that," I said bitterly.

"And yet you brought him here, sir."

"I? Brought him here?" I exclaimed. "It was going on before I knew them."

"What! that boy--that parchment slip?" he exclaimed.

"No, no," I said hastily. "I meant John Lister."

As the words were leaving my lips, he of whom I spoke pa.s.sed by on the other side, and turned his face to look up at the second floor, the light from a gas-lamp making his countenance perfectly clear.

"Oh!" said Mr Jabez softly; and, after standing watching the retiring figure, he too went his way.

CHAPTER FIFTY THREE.

MY VISITOR.

Two years of hard work rapidly pa.s.sed away, during which, I suppose, I made rapid progress in my profession, and also had the satisfaction of seeing Hallett's machine grow towards perfection.

It had progressed slowly, in spite of the energy brought to bear, for Hallett toiled at it patiently and well; but the work was for the most part out of his hands now.

I had introduced him to Mr Girtley, who at once took a great deal of interest in the scheme, but who rather damped us at first by pointing out weaknesses, not of principle, but of construction, and at once proposed that before the great machine itself was attempted, a working model, four times the size of that laboriously constructed by Hallett, should be made.

"It means time and expense, Mr Hallett," he said, "but over new things we must be slow and sure. For instance, there will be great stress upon certain parts--here--here--and here. I can say to you now that these parts must be greatly strengthened, and I could make certain calculations, but we can only learn by experience what is to be done."

There was so much good sense in this, that Hallett at once agreed, and Mr Jabez of course nodded approval; and though it took a long time, the trial of the little machine fully bore out Mr Girtley's prophecies; so that great modifications had to be made.

"Yes," said Mr Girtley, after the trial, "it is discouraging, certainly; but is it not better than having a breakdown just when your hopes are highest?"

"Yes, but new moulds can be made, and you will go on at once," said Hallett eagerly.

"Yes, the moulds shall be made, and we will go on at once."

"Mr Girtley thought me very impatient, Antony," said Hallett, as we walked steadily back from Great George Street, where the little machine had been set up; "but there are bounds to every one's patience, and I feel sometimes as if the idol I have been trying to set up will not be finished in my time."

"Nonsense?" I cried cheerily, "I guarantee it shall be. I'm to have a lot of superintending to do, Hallett, and I'll leave no stone unturned to get it on."

"Thank you, Antony," he said, "do your best. I grieve for poor Mr Jabez more than for myself. Two hundred and fifty pounds of his money gone, and he has nothing yet before him in return but an unsubstantial shadow."

Miss Carr had been a good deal away from England during this time, visiting her sister, who twice over returned with her to stay at Westmouth Street. I had, however, kept her fully informed about the progress made by Hallett. In fact, she knew my innermost life, and as much of the Halletts' as I knew myself. Those were pleasant days, though, when she was at home, much of my time being spent with her; and though I found that Lister had made several attempts to see her, and had written continually, he had never been successful.

I learned, too, that Mr Ruddle had interfered in concert with some distant relatives of Miss Carr, and they had pretty well coerced Lister into more reasonable behaviour.

He evidently, however, lived in the hope of yet resuming his old relations.h.i.+p with Miss Carr, little dreaming how well acquainted she was with his character, for, in no tale-bearing spirit, but in accordance with her wish, that she should know everything in connection with my daily life, I had told her of Lister's continued underhanded pursuit of Linny, news which I afterwards found had come to her almost in company with imploring letters, full of love, pa.s.sion and repentance.

When I look back upon that portion of my life, it all seems now like a dream of pleasure, that glided away as if by magic. I had no troubles-- no cares of my own, save such as I felt by a kind of reflex action. I was young, active, and full of eagerness. Hallett's enterprise seemed to be almost my own, and I looked forward to its success as eagerly as he did himself.

The house at Great Ormond Street was a far less solemn place now than it used to be, and many and bright were the evenings we spent together.

Hallett seemed less sad and self-contained, as he saw his mother take a little interest in the group that used to form about her chair. For Mr Jabez appeared to have become quite a new man, and there were not many evenings that he did not spend at the Halletts'.

"Business, you see, Grace," he used to say, with a dry chuckle. "I must be on the spot to talk over the machine with Hallett;" but somehow very little used to be said about business: for very often after the first introduction by the old man, there used to be a snug rubber at whist, in which he and Mrs Hallett would be partners against Linny and Tom Girtley.

For Tom used to come a great, deal in those days to see me. He used to tell me, with a laughing light in his eye, that he was sure I must be very dull there of an evening, and that it was quite out of kindness to me. But, somehow or another, I suppose through my neglect, and the interest I took in Hallett's work, he used to be driven upstairs, where his bright, hearty ways made him always welcome. For after what looked like dead opposition at first, Tom quite won Mr Jabez over to his side; and, save and excepting a few squabbles now and then, which Mrs Hallett took seriously, and which afforded Linny intense amus.e.m.e.nt, Mr Jabez and Tom became the best of friends.

"I don't think he's such a very bad sort of fellow, as boys go, Grace,"

Mr Jabez said; "but look here, my boy, do you see how the land lies?"

"What do you mean, Mr Rowle?" I said laughing; "that Tom and Linny seem to be getting very fond of one another?"

"Yes," he said, tapping me on the breast-bone with his snuff-box. "I spoke to Hallett about it last night, and he said he was not sorry."

"Of course not. I am sure he likes Tom," I said thoughtfully, as I saw how great an alteration had come about at the house, for Linny used to sing about the place now like a bird, and Mary watched over her like a dragon. In fact, Mary was a wonderful inst.i.tution at Great Ormond Street, and even Mrs Hallett was afraid of her, in so much that Mary's practical ways seemed quite to silence her murmurings, and make her take a more cheerful view of life.

"But look here, Grace," said Mr Jabez, "don't you be a young fool. You don't want to grow into an old bachelor like I am."

"I don't know that I do," I said.

"Then about Linny: does it suit your book for that big child to be coming here and cutting the ground from under your feet?"

"Cutting the ground from under my feet?" I said merrily. "Why, what do you mean, Mr Jabez?"

"I mean, don't you be a young noodle, and play with your opportunities.

Linny's a very nice little girl, and I shouldn't be a bit surprised if some day she had a few--perhaps a good many hundreds of her own. I tell you what it is, Grace, my boy, I shouldn't be a bit displeased if you were to play your cards right, and make a match of it with that little girl."

"And I hope, Mr Rowle, you would not be a bit displeased if I did not do anything of the sort?"

"H'm-m! No! I don't know that I should, boy. But, hang it all, you are not. You have not any one else in your eye. You are not thinking about Miss Carr, are you, you puppy?"

I burst out into a hearty fit of laughter.

"No, Mr Rowle," I said merrily. "I never think about such matters, and between ourselves," I said with much severity, "I am surprised to find a quiet elderly gentleman like you taking to match-making."

"Get out, you young dog!" he cried. "There, just as you like, only I thought I'd see how you felt about it, that's all."

Mr Rowle's words set me thinking, and I could not help seeing that though there was no love-making, or anything out of the ordinary way in their every-day intercourse, Linny's old sorrow had been completely swept away, and she evidently looked upon Tom as a very great friend.

I was in my own room one evening reporting progress to Hallett, who had just come in from the office where he still worked as an ordinary journeyman. Mr Jabez was upstairs with Tom Girtley, and a quiet rubber of whist was in progress, when Mary came up into the room to announce that there was some one downstairs who wanted to see me.

"Who is it, Mary?" I said.

Mary glanced at Hallett, who saw the look and rose to go.