G. A. Henty

“ This is my uncle.”
“Will you kiss me, Katie?” the old man said, “I have been an old fool, but Frank has forgiven me. Will you forgive me, too?”
“Yes,” Kate said, kissing him frankly; “it is all over now.”
“It is left to you, Katie,” the old man said. “All our future is in your hands. Frank is my heir in any case; in any case he will have an income at once to live here, or wherever he chooses. It is for you to decide, Katie. Frank has left it entirely in your hands. Will you go out to Australia, and be happy in each other, or will you stay here and cheer an old man’s life?” ”

“ You will, when you have heard it, be the first to allow that you yourself, an impulsive man, would have acted exactly as he did; you will see that a tissue of falsehood has been thrown round you by Fred Bingham. Bad as you believe him to be, you know absolutely nothing of what he is capable. If you will but listen, Frank, fairly and dispassionately, you will, I am sure, grant that there is nothing which can prevent you with the highest feeling of self-respect, standing in the place as your uncle’s heir, from which Fred Bingham has been cast out for ever. ”

“ The last words of Prescott had more effect with Frank Maynard than all that he had previously said.
“If that is the case, Prescott, I shall be easily satisfied. God knows I have never courted my uncle’s money; that I loved him for his kindness to me as a boy, and not with any idea of the money he might leave me. If I only know that Fred Bingham will not be his heir, I should care not one single scrap if every farthing were to go to the Charities of London.” ”

“ The cripple listened to it all with greater composure than Mrs. Holl did. Only when Prescott described the emotion of Captain Bradshaw did he appear affected.
“It is a strange story, sir,” he said when Prescott had finished, “and I am very glad to hear my poor mother was forgiven. For myself, sir, it makes but little difference. I am not like other men; still it will be a pleasure to me to be able to have what books I like, and to see for the first time the world. After what you have told me of my grandfather, I shall be glad if only for his sake. ”

“ When they entered the cabin Kate said,—
“Now, Miss Heathcote, I am willing of course to listen to you; but, I tell you, I am sorry you have come. We have done with England. We have learned the true value of our friends, and we are content to be all in all to each other.”
“You have one friend still in whom you trust, I think,” Alice said; “Arthur Prescott is here with my uncle.”
“Yes,” Kate said, “he is a friend—yes, Frank trusts him, and so do I.”
Alice hesitated, and then laying aside her previously quiet tone, she said, “Cousin Kate, Frank’s wife, listen to me! ”

“ Now, Prescott, have you anything else to propose?”
“Nothing definite, Frank; but if I were in your place, with your strength and energy, and with such a brave-hearted wife to back me and help me, I should emigrate. I am afraid there is no sort of profession here for which you are fitted, but you are just the man to get on out there. A man who is strong and active, and is willing to turn his hand to anything, is safe to get on; and no kind of work is considered dishonouring out there.”
“By Jove, Prescott, that would be just the thing for me, but it would be a rough life for poor Kate.” ”

“ I am content to know it was all a mistake, and I am glad to hear that Frank’s uncle has come to say good-bye to him; for Frank will, I know, always be glad to think kindly of his uncle, and of you, Alice,” she put in; “Frank never believed you were against him.”
“But, Katie,” Alice said, “we have not come to say good-bye at all, we have come to take you on shore. Yes, really, Katie,” she said, earnestly, as Kate made a motion of positive denial. “Poor James, uncle’s grandson, cannot live long, and uncle wants Frank and you to come and live with him and be his children.” ”

“ If Alice Heathcote no longer loves me as a, brother, it is because she has in some strange way been morally convinced that I am not worthy of her esteem; and if I know Alice—and I think I do know her—it has cost her no slight pain before she came to the conclusion.”
Kate was softened. “Perhaps you are right, Frank, but you must make allowances for me. You know it is galling to a wife that her husband should be assisted by a woman who used to love him. No one would like that, Frank. ”

“ Confident and secure as Alice was of her own position, and fearless as she was by nature, she could scarcely repress a little shiver at the glance of deadly hate which Fred Bingham gave her from under his fair eyelashes. Then, as his uncle was speaking to the cripple, he answered in a low tone,
“It is indeed, Miss Heathcote; it is a pity that the one member of the family is absent whose presence would make your happiness complete.” ”

“ JOHN HOLL, DUST CONTRACTOR. Arthur Prescott went up the same evening to Lowndes Square. The invalid had gone to bed, and Captain Bradshaw and Miss Heathcote were alone.
“Well, Mr. Prescott,” Captain Bradshaw said, after the first greetings, “I suppose you have no news to give us yet?”
“I have better than news, Captain Bradshaw; I have these to give you. There are all the proofs required in any court of law in the world to prove that James is your grandson and legitimate heir.” ”

“ I will punish you as I would punish a dog. James,” he said, grasping his enemy by the collar with a force from which he would have been powerless to escape had he had ten times his natural strength, “fetch me that riding-whip which I bought yesterday, out of the hall, and tell my wife to come here.”
Fred Bingham had recovered now from the shock he had suffered. Physically, he was not a coward, and he faced his powerful opponent with the courage of despair. For a moment, he made a tremendous effort to escape; but Frank held him without moving a muscle, as if even unconscious of his struggles. ”

“ You petty tyrant, you miserable, insignificant little despot, I have done with you for ever, and you may thank your fates that I go without giving you the thrashing you so richly merit.”
Fred Bingham had grown very white as Frank spoke, but he only said, “Keep your heroics, Frank. The sooner you go the better I shall be pleased. Don’t you lay a hand on me, Maynard, or you will regret it,” he said, as Frank made a step towards him.
“You miserable, paltry little cur,” Frank said, contemptuously, “I should despise myself if I were to touch you. Lads, come here!” ”

“ Captain Bradshaw spoke playfully, but he quite guessed what Alice was going to say, and was fully prepared to resist her.
“Uncle, you had heard before of Frank having lost all his money?”
“Yes, I had heard it before, Alice,” Captain Bradshaw said, and then muttered to himself, “and serve him right too.”
“Uncle,” Alice said, pleadingly, “can you bear to think of Frank with his young wife and a baby being in want, in absolute want?”
“He must do as other people do, my dear, and work for his living. He is strong enough.” ”

“ Fred Bingham coloured scarlet, and was about to speak, when Mr. Barton stopped him.
“Pooh, pooh, my dear sir, don’t be angry. As men of the world we understand these matters, and the little affair in question is not known beyond a very small circle of safe men. If men did not mention the matter to their particular friends, you know, accidents might happen; a gentleman might borrow twice, for instance, from different parties upon the strength of his expectations.” ”

“ The distress this smash will cause will be terrible; and by what I hear, even after the greatest amount possible is wrung out of the shareholders, there will not be nearly enough to pay the depositors in full. Now, Prescott, I could stand a good deal of hardship and trial, but I could not stand being pointed at as a man who had swindled—that would be the word, old man; there is no use mincing it—the widows and orphans who have been brought to want by the failure of the Bank. Even for Katie’s sake I could not do that. ”

“ Prescott, you must remember, that much as I loved Frank Maynard, and well as I believed I knew him, you knew far more of him than I did. A father can know but little of his son’s private life. His familiar friend can judge him much better than a father can. ”

“ No wonder Frank and you thought I was mad. They thought I was out of my mind, Alice. By Gad, I will have some one hung for it before I have done;” and Captain Bradshaw walked furiously up and down the room.
“Who was in the habit of taking the letters from the postman?”
“The footman,” Alice said; “he has been with us ever since—he went abroad with us—he is down-stairs now.”
“Will you let me speak to him, Captain Bradshaw? But if you do, please let me do it my own way. If we frighten him, he will of course say nothing.”
Captain Bradshaw rang the bell. “Tell my footman to come up.” ”

“ Captain Bradshaw exclaimed. “Impossible!”
“It is true, sir; he has never lost sight of him; he has been in the habit of coming to see him every few months.”
“The atrocious villain! the infernal scoundrel!” Captain Bradshaw exclaimed furiously. “Why did he not tell me?—what was his motive?”
“I can only imagine, sir, that he intended to keep it secret until the boy came of age, in order to get him to promise a very large sum of money upon being placed in possession of proofs of his birth.”
“The scoundrel! the villain!” ”

“ I have no choice.”
“And mind, Frank, work is to be work. I shall expect you to do just the same as any other inspector would do. To be on the work before the men begin at six in the morning, and to be there till they knock off at night.”
Again Frank had a very hard struggle with himself, his teeth were set hard, and the veins on his forehead stood out like cords. But he only said, “Of course I shall do my work like other people. Good night.”
Fred Bingham looked after him for some time with his smile upon his lips. “I’ll make you smart before I’ve done with you, my fine fellow.” ”

“ But it is a sad business for those who look in the slightest degree below the surface. Here are the ruins of a household. Almost every one of the articles so carelessly examined, so slightingly looked at, so jeeringly commented upon, has its own little history, its reminiscences, which make it sacred to those who have to part with it. The little child’s chair, the water-colour drawing which your wife gave you ere yet she was your wife, the chair she always sat in—these and a hundred other things are sacred relics to you, while they are caviare to the world around. ”

“ Prescott went upstairs again for a short time. When he had gone, Captain Bradshaw said,—
“That is a fine fellow, Alice, a very fine fellow. I wish I could see my way to doing him a good turn. I have been asking him, delicately you know, my dear, as an old man might ask a young one, to let me treat him as my legal adviser in the matter, but he would not hear of it. It is not often that a cheque for five hundred pounds gets thrown into the fire.” ”

“ I have been as hard as he has, but would you, James? He will not refuse you anything; you could put it on the ground of what he did for your aunt when she was in distress. Poor Frank, I do feel for him so.”
And Alice, who had tried hard to speak steadily, again broke down.
“Certainly I will ask it, Alice. I do not think my grandfather will refuse me,” and James sat for some time with a look of sad thought on his face. “I will speak to him to-night, after dinner.”
After dinner, accordingly, James refused to go upstairs as usual with Alice, and had his chair wheeled close to his grandfather. ”

“ Kate drew her own conclusions from this, and at night confided to Frank that she thought that Alice Heathcote would some day carry out his wish regarding Prescott.
“Do you mean that you think she will marry him, Kate?”
Kate nodded.
“He’s an awfully good fellow, Katie; I only hope you may be right. If she does she will have to ask him, for I feel pretty sure Prescott will never summon up courage sufficient to ask her. In spite of Alice being an heiress, and Prescott a poor man, I shall consider her to be a lucky girl.” ”

“ I couldn’t do anything in the literary line, to save my life, I can pull an oar you know; but then, fellows must be apprenticed before they can be watermen. Upon my word, the only thing I can see for myself,” he said, ruefully, “is to go into the ring. I fancy there ain’t above one or two men I couldn’t hold my own with.”
“A prizefighter, Frank! For shame! How dare you talk of such a thing?” Katie said, indignantly.
“He is only joking, Kate,” Prescott said, although he saw that Frank had been half in earnest. “He is laughing at himself and us.” ”

“ Now it is really possible that this poor woman who died at the Holls was her, and that this is her son, whom Captain Bradshaw has never known was alive. A three-fingered hand is not a common crest. I will write to Prescott at once, and ask him to go into the affair. Oh Katie, if it should turn out so, it will be glorious! Of course my uncle will leave him a part anyhow of his estate. By Jove I can forgive uncle having sent back my letter unanswered, if it is the means of finding his grandson and doing Fred Bingham out of part of the fortune. ”

“ I shall go away. I will, Frank; please let me go.”
“Not a bit of it, Katie. Here you are, and here you remain. Now, Prescott, please go on. It is agreed Katie is to give singing lessons, and I am to stay at home and nurse baby.”
“Frank, that is unkind,” Katie said, with the tears in her eyes. “Why should I not have the pleasure of helping too?”
“My own Katie,” Frank said. “If the worst comes to the worst, you shall help; but I hope that we shall hit on something better than that. Your proper work will be quite as hard, my pet; what with baby and me you will have quite enough to do. ”

“ I am not a good letter writer, and when things are not going on well I don’t write at all. Things are not going on well, and I have not written. You and Katie and everyone else have been right and I have been wrong, and Fred Bingham is a damned scoundrel; but that’s no news, and I am not writing about that now. I am writing about a very extraordinary discovery which has been made here. This afternoon I was clearing out my desk, and tore up a lot of old letters and things. Evan, who is a first-rate lad and as true as steel, cleared up the letters, and, seeing a seal unbroken, looked at it. ”