B. L. Farjeon

“ Born in different counties, with no tie of kinship between their families, their likeness to each other was so marvellous that any man seeing them for the first time side by side, without some such disguise as Chaytor wore on Gum Flat, and the second time apart, would have been puzzled to know which was which. But not less strange than this physical likeness was the contrast between their moral natures. One was the soul of guilelessness and honour, the other the soul of cunning and baseness. One walked the straight paths of life, the other chose the crooked. ”

“ It is a meaningless proceeding."
"To me," said Basil, interrupting her, "it means everything. Honour, truth, fidelity, faith in virtue and goodness, all are at stake. It may never come to an issue, for the end seems near, but heaven may yet have some mercy in store for me. As you prayed for a miracle last nigh: which was not vouchsafed you, so will I pray for a miracle to help me to a just conclusion of my bitter trials." A pitiful smile accompanied his words. "It is not for me, one suffering man among millions happier, I trust, than myself, to doubt Divine Goodness. ”

“ Keep it, my child, and be happy."
"Do you hear, little lady? Let us be thankful for small mercies. Shake hands, my dear. When you're a woman grown, don't forget Old Corrie."
"I never will--I never will," sobbed Annette.
"And don't forget," said Old Corrie, laying his hand on Basil's shoulder, "that Master Basil here is a gentleman to be honoured and loved, a man to be proud of, a man to treasure in your heart."
"I will never forget it," said Annette; with a fond look at Basil.
"And this, I think," said Gilbert Bidaud, with genial smiles all round, "is the end of an act. ”

“ The truth is, Basil was fearful of the manner in which you would receive his declaration. He loves you with so deep and profound a love, and he sets so high a value upon you, that he hardly dared to hope. The uncertainty of his position has made him forget himself; he has committed excesses; he has behaved as if he were not Basil, but another man. You, my dear child, with your simple heart, are ignorant of the vagaries which love's fever, and the fear of disappointment, play in a man's nature. ”

“ The surroundings of life in a great and gay city are dangerous and tempting even to the innocent. How much more dangerous and tempting are they to those who by teaching or inclination are ripe for vice? It is not our intention to follow Chaytor through these devious paths; we shall simply touch lightly upon those circumstances of his career which are pertinent to our story. If for a brief space we are compelled to treat of some of the darker shadows of human nature, it must be set down to the undoubted fact that life is not made up entirely of sweetness and light. ”

“ Ever since you became a man--heaven pardon me for calling you one!--you have been corrupt and vicious; and I knew it. Ever since you became a man you have been false to friendship, false to love; and I knew it. Ever since you became a man you have had but one idea--yourself, your vanities, your degraded pleasures, your low and envious desires; and I knew it. Why, then, should I ask you questions, knowing you would lie to me in your answers. For you are as glib of speech, Newman Chaytor, as you are cunning of mind. ”

“ Chaytor for a week was in his element; he ascertained from the hall porter in the hotel the places of amusement which Basil visited of an evening, and he followed him to them; he waited outside the hotel to catch glimpses of him; he studied every feature, every expression, every movement attentively, until he declared to himself that he knew him by heart. He began to let his moustache grow, and he practised little tricks of manners which he had observed. He was like a man possessed.
"He is a gentleman," he said. "So am I. I am as good looking as he is any day of the week. ”

“ What woman is not who has grace and beauty for her dower; and is there a woman in the world who is not proud of the possession, and who does not smile and greet herself in the mirror as she gazes upon the bright reflection of a brighter reality? Annette was innocently glad that she was fair, and all through her gladness the form of Basil was before her. ”

“ It was Rocke's misfortune to always wear a scowl on his face, but in this scowl there were degrees. To produce an amiable smile was with Rocke an impossibility; nature had been cruel, and his parents, one or both of them, had transmitted to him a sour temper as an inheritance; but the state of his feelings could be correctly judged by the kind of scowl he wore; a nice observer could scarcely make a mistake as to whether he tolerated, disliked, or hated the man he was gazing on. There could be no mistake made now; he hated Basil. ”

“ Then all the money that was won would be his own: there would be no Gilbert Bidaud to cheat him of half. "Have you verified my figures?" asked the old man, returning. "Have you established your folly?"
"No," replied Chaytor, thrusting the paper upon which he made his calculations into his pocket, "you have deceived and tricked me."
"Ah, ah," ejaculated Gilbert, in a light and pleasant tone, "I have deceived and tricked you--and you have seen through me! Clever Basil, clever Basil! I am as a child in your hands. Come, let us get back to our dear Annette. Let us fly on the wings of love." ”

“ CHAPTER XIII.
"I am listening," said Basil.
"There is no windlass, as I have told you," said Chaytor, "so I must devise something in its place to pull you up. The mischief is that I am alone, and have no one to help me. However, I must do the best I can. I am going to roll the trunk of a tree to the top of the shaft, then tie a rope firmly round it so that you can climb into the world again. It must be dreadful down there."
"It is," groaned Basil.
"I can imagine it," said Chaytor, complacently; "but you mustn't mind biding a bit. No man could do more than I am doing." ”

“ He speaks in a hard voice to everybody; he is unkind to animals; he has never put a flower on my dear father's grave."
"There, there, Annette--don't cry. I only want you to make the best, and not the worst, of things."
"I will, Basil--indeed, indeed I will. When I am far away from you, you will think, will you not, that I am trying hard to do everything to please you?"
"I promise to think so, and I have every faith in you. It is all for your good, you know, Annette. When you are out of this country where are your aunt and uncle going to live." ”

“ The future is a blank: there is no brightness in it. If it happens that we are fortunate, that after all our ill luck we should strike a rich claim, I will give you my share of the gold freely, for I should have no use for it."
"I would not accept it, Basil," said Chaytor; "we will share and share alike. Have you no desire, then, to return to England?"
"I shall never go back," replied Basil. "My days will be ended in Australia."
"Where you will one day meet with a woman who will drive all thoughts of Annette out of your head." ”

“ Chaytor gave Basil a look which meant, as plain as words could speak it, "Are you going to have secret conversations away from me after all the years we have been together, after all I've done for you?"
"Corrie," said Basil, laying one hand on Old Corrie's arm and the other on Chaytor's, "if you've anything to say to me I should like you to say it before Chaytor. There's nothing I would wish to hide from him. He's been the truest friend to me a man ever had, and I owe him more than I can ever repay." ”

“ Life is short--ah! I envy you; your feet have scarcely passed the threshold; I am far on the way. For you the summer, for me the winter. Well, well, there are some years before me yet, and I will exercise our philosophy by enjoying them. I look to myself; let other men do the same. Nature says aloud, 'Enjoy the sunshine.' I obey nature. Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy--that is the true teaching; and you, dear friend, are of my opinion. Let this proclaim that we are comrades." He held out his hand, which Chaytor felt restrained to take. ”

“ Had my nature been soured, it would have been the same, I think, for love is like the sun shining upon ice. I met a man and a friend in Anthony Bidaud; we understood and esteemed each other. I met a little maid to whom my heart went out--you know whom I mean, little Annette. You never saw her, Chaytor. When she came to Old Corrie's hut on the day we left Gum Flat, after you snatched me from a cruel death and nursed me to strength, you were wandering in the woods, and did not join us till she had gone. ”

“ He spent hours before the glass arranging his hair after the fashion of Basil's hair, as our hero had worn it in England; and, being a bit of an artist, he succeeded perfectly. The resemblance was marvellous, and Chaytor congratulated himself and chuckled at his cleverness. "Upon my soul," he said, "we must have been changed at our birth. I am Basil, and he----" He paused. No shudder passed through him, he was visited by no pang of remorse at the thought of Basil lying dead at the bottom of the shaft. It must have been very quick and sudden! Death must have ensued instantaneously. ”

“ How long is it since you were in Bournemouth?"
"It must be six months, quite; but I kept no account of time. What a fool I was not to go back and see Emily Crawford!"
"We'll waste no time in lamenting. What is past is past, and no man can foresee what is in the future. Do you see, now, how important your evidence is likely to be to me? Without it I might be compelled to pass through life bearing the shameful name of the villain who betrayed me. Corrie, there are anxious and dreaded possibilities in the future to which I dare not give utterance. I can only hope and work. ”

“ We have a lot to say to each other. I'm off the day after to-morrow; I should have been off before if it had not been for you and the little lady."
"She has been here?" cried Basil.
"She has been here four times since you left--the last time yesterday--not to see me, but you. She manages the thing herself, poor little lady, and comes alone, after giving the slip to those about her. Her first grief is over, though she will never forget the good father she has lost--never. It isn't in her nature to forget--bear that in mind, Master Basil. She clings to the friends that are left her. ”

“ Basil: "You did; you're a true friend." (Chaytor smiled.) "How am I to get up from here?"
Chaytor: "That's the question. How far are you down?"
Basil: "Heaven knows. It seems a mile or so."
Chaytor: "There's no windlass."
Basil: "Isn't there?"
Chaytor: "And it's pitch dark."
Basil: "It's as black as night down here. Can't you go for help?"
Chaytor: "I'll tell you something. There isn't a soul on the township but ourselves."
Basil: "Not one?"
Chaytor: "Not one. We must wait till daylight; then I'll see what I can do."
Basil: "There's no help for it; it must be as you say. You'll not desert me?" ”

“ So much to heart did Basil take Annette's silence that, had his nature been inclined to evil instead of good, mischief to others would probably have ensued, but as it was he was the only sufferer. In his utterances, when he was drawn to speak of the shock he had received, he was apt to exaggerate matters and to present himself in the worst light, but there had fallen to his share an inheritance of moral goodness which rendered it impossible for him to become a backslider from the paths of rectitude and honour. ”

“ Although there is an apparent change in you, you are still the same, I see, in cunning and duplicity. But I will listen to no subterfuges; there is no possibility of your justifying yourself, and your power over me is gone. Towards you my heart is cold as stone."
"You are labouring under some singular delusion," said Basil, "and I can but listen to you in wonder." ”

“ All my wicked thoughts are gone; they shall never come again; but I shall still feel a little unhappy sometimes."
"Of course you will, dear, and so shall I. But faith in God's goodness and the performance of our duty will always lighten that unhappiness. The stars of heaven are not brighter than the stars of hope and love we can keep shining in our hearts."
"Kiss me, Basil; that is the seal. I shall go away happier now."
"Tell me, Annette. Are your uncle and aunt kind to you?"
"They are neither kind nor unkind. ”

“ Take this from me, my friend; my niece knows something of Old Corrie which neither you nor I know, and when she placed her hand on your arm, and looked into those eyes of yours which shifted and wavered beneath her gaze, you felt as I felt, that she accused you of lying. Even her maid, Emily, who never set eyes on Basil Whittingham, believes not in you. And the fault is all your own. It is you, and you alone, who have supplied the evidence against yourself. ”

“ She threw her arms round his neck, and kissed him.
"That will be for ever, Basil. You have made me do happy, so happy!"
"So that is all settled," he said. "But I shall be a tyrant, Annette."
"I don't mind, Basil; I will be very good and obedient. Do you hear, Bruno, do you hear?" She knelt and kissed the faithful dog, and pressed his head to her bosom. "Basil is not going away. He will remain here forever--for ever!"
Basil was very grateful for the little maid's affection, grateful that his lines had fallen in such pleasant places. What more could man desire? ”

“ Bidaud shook his head with a sad smile. "That is not a proof. You are content to be ruled, and what passes between you springs from affection. The strength of character required to battle with the world is of a different kind from that which Annette exhibits towards you. The service I ask you to render me concerns Annette."
"Why, then," said Basil, gaily, "it is rendered before you ask for it."
"You must know its nature before you consent. It is nothing more nor less, Basil, than that you should stand to my child in the light of guardian." ”

“ There lies upon some men's natures a crust of selfishness so cruel that it becomes in their eyes a light matter to transgress all laws human and divine. They are blinded by a moral obliquity, and think not of the hour when the veil shall be torn from their eyes, and when the punishment which surely waits upon crime is meted out to them.
Annette's first letter to Basil is a fair example of those which followed, except that the progress of time seemed to deepen the attachment she bore for him. ”