Debray

“ The earthquake of applause which succeeded this announcement was almost [Pg 95] frightful, and while the scene was at its height, the three friends with great difficulty managed to extricate themselves from the multitude which wedged up the lobbies, and to make their escape.
"A friend of the people!" cried Debray, bitterly, as his coupé, containing himself and companions, drove off to Véry's. "From such friends let the people be saved, and they may save themselves from their foes."
"And the play, what think you of that?" cried Beauchamp. ”

“ We will leave the banker contemplating the enormous magnitude of his debt before the phantom of bankruptcy, and follow the baroness, who after being momentarily crushed under the weight of the blow which had struck her, had gone to seek her usual adviser, Lucien Debray. The baroness had looked forward to this marriage as a means of ridding her of a guardianship which, over a girl of Eugenie's character, could not fail to be rather a troublesome undertaking ”

“ Why did he kill himself instead of you? Because he had no cash to save. My life belongs to my cash. M. Debray has made me lose 700,000 francs; let him bear his share of the loss, and we will go on as before; if not, let him become bankrupt for the 250,000 livres, and do as all bankrupts do—disappear. He is a charming fellow, I allow, when his news is correct; but when it is not, there are fifty others in the world who would do better than he.”
Madame Danglars was rooted to the spot ”

“ But that same night, he found himself the possessor of a fine house, situated on the Boulevard de la Madeleine, and an income of 50,000 livres. The next day, just as Debray was signing the deed, that is about five o'clock in the afternoon, Madame de Morcerf, after having affectionately embraced her son, entered the coupe of the diligence, which closed upon her. A man was hidden in Lafitte's banking-house, behind one of the little arched windows which are placed above each desk; he saw Mercedes enter the diligence, and he also saw Albert withdraw. ”

“ Deborah had not seen him for weeks; she gave a cry of joy, and sprang into his arms. The roughness of the boy had passed from Charlie Fleming, but his rare demonstrations of affection were shewn to Deborah only. 'I am only here for half an hour, Deb. I must saddle horse afresh and off to Lincoln Castle. I am in rare trouble, Deb. Hush, child! I am come to thank ye for refusing Adam Sinclair. Better poverty, Deb, than that. Better starvation. I'd blow his brains out sooner than see you his wife. ”

“ Then Deborah looked up white and calm: 'What could have induced you, father? What ruin could be great enow to justify so great a sin? The loss of house and lands? Let them go. You and I had better live in some poor honest way, than keep at Enderby. Let it go. It is no great matter, so long as you have your children's love.'
He groaned. 'It isn't all, Deb; ruin isn't all. We have that, and enow. But ye know the old saying, "Death before dishonour."—Charlie, Charlie!' and the father's tremulous lips struggled piteously to utter more. ”

“ Lord Dewry feeling at his heart that blessed sensation of security which he had not known for twenty years.
The peer's next act was calmly to take his pocketbook from his pocket, and drawing forth five notes, amounting to the sum which Sir Roger had demanded, he laid them, one after another, down upon the paper which they had been corrupting; and then, taking up the whole packet, he put it into his companion's hand. "Sir Roger," he said, "I always like to be as good as my word, and often endeavour to prove myself better than my word. ”

“ This march and the long rides are wearing you out. You must ride in the Dhooyl like Amy and me.”
“Oh! Mother!” cried Fanny, “I really can't! I assure you it is really nothing! I really am as strong as a horse and quite fit to bear—” but here she paused as if seeking for a word.
“A husband and get children!” cried the impudent Mabel. “Mabel!” cried Mrs. Selwyn, “how dare you! How dare you say such things, and before Captain Devereaux too!
Go into the tent, miss and don't presume to come out until I let you! ”

“ Beneath it should be words to the effect that it was the portrait of a man who knew, before its committal, that the murder of the poor girl Lizzie Melladew was planned, and who must, therefore, be implicated in it. The portrait would lead to your arrest, and then Mr. and Mrs. Lemon would come forward with certain facts. Mr. Devlin, I would make London too hot to hold you."
"An expressive phrase. Your plan is more than ordinarily clever; it is ingenious. And London," said Devlin thoughtfully, "is such a place to work in, such a place to live in, such a place to observe in! ”

“ I took off my hat and bowed, and asked this charming girl, “Can you kindly tell me where I should go to find Col. Selwyn ?”
“Papa is at the room, but he will be home soon. This is our house. I suppose you are Captain Devereaux?”
“Yes! I have only just arrived. I have been traveling all night and I am afraid I am more than dirty, but you must kindly excuse me for venturing to come near you in such a condition. You see I did not know which way to go, but left it to my pony and he brought me to you.”
“Well! Won't you let the Sayce take him, and come in and see my mother? ”

“ How was a chap to do otherwise when at last he saw the old look in Deb’s eyes, and heard Roger Lyndesay, standing at his window, say “Thank God!” as a man before a High Altar? Deb had put her hand on his head and soothed him in the quaint, motherly way she kept for Larry only, and for the first time he found himself able to tell her of his other trouble that had taken the brightness out of the sun. He had been too chilled by her strange aloofness to mention Verity before, but now he gave her as much of the story as he loyally could, and Deborah’s intuition told her the rest. ”

“ I replied.
"Give me no more credit than I deserve," said Devlin. "It is simply that I keep a promise. In the fulfilment of this promise--both in the spirit and to the letter, my dear sir--I may to-morrow unfold to you a wonder. It is my purpose to compel the man we have pursued to himself reveal all that he knows of Lizzie Melladew. Perhaps it will be as well for you to take down in writing what passes between us. Accept it from me that there are unseen forces and unseen powers in this world, so rich in sin, of which few men dream. ”

“ Is it possible that Deb thrilled to a possible romance? And how did she accept the discovery of what in fact it was? With the one exception of Mercer, they are almost lay figures in the Diary, mute and passive under his greedy hands. Some were baggages, no doubt, or baggages-elect. They cannot all have been baggages. Deb, with her gravity and measured speech, what was she? There’s no telling. ”

“ How could Delapine marry her when she was without a sou? How could she earn her living except as a despised and pitied governess? He thought of his old comrade Duval—the brave old man in spite of his vanity and eccentricities—now lying cold in the grave. He thought of his son Pierre, a parricide and an outcast like Ishmael of old, a wild man, whose hand was against every man and every man's hand against him, and he trembled at the awful vista it awoke in his mind. ”

“ Deb gazed at her sister's rapt face, glowing in the firelight, and wondered if the brain behind it could be altogether sane.
"To call that HAPPINESS!" she ejaculated, with sad irony and scorn.
"If you must fix a name to it—yes," the widow considered thoughtfully.
"After all, 'unmiserable' does not go far enough. I AM happy. For, Debbie"—turning to look into the dark, troubled eyes—"I'm clean now—I never thought to be again—to know anything so exquisitely sweet, either in earth or heaven—I'm clean, body and soul, day and night, inside and outside, at last." ”

“ She heard a half-choked gasp from Dorothy's lips, and saw the look that came to Mary's face as her eyes turned like a flash toward the younger girl.
"Is it possible he can be known to ye?" she asked quickly.
"Yes,—I think we met him once," Mary answered falteringly. "That is, we met a young man of the same name. But he was not a captain—only a cornet of dragoons."
"Still, it is like to be the same man," the landlady said rather insistingly, as though hoping that such was the fact. ”

“ There was a pertinacity in Lord Dewry's rudeness that offended Manners; but he gave no way to his anger. There was a stronger feeling in his bosom; and pity for the childless old man not barely mastered every other sensation, but mastered all so completely, that he went on with as nice a calculation of the best and kindest means of breaking his loss to the peer, as if not a word had been said but those of welcome and civility. ”

“ The pale thin youth took the money, laid down his cue, and left us to ourselves. When he was gone I placed a chair at an angle against the handle of the door, there being no key in the lock, and thus prevented the entrance of any person without notice. It was the leisure time of the day, and there was little fear of our being disturbed. The extra gratuity I had given to the marker would insure privacy. As I took my station at the window, from which Mr. Dowsett's house was in full view, Devlin nodded approval of my proceedings.
"You are a man of resource," he said. ”

“ Now Lord Dewry was a shrewd and strong-minded man, who, as far as a violent and proud disposition, and very uncontrollable passions, would let him, generally acted upon a regularly-arranged and well-considered system in every thing he undertook: but it is extraordinary how often a man acts upon system without knowing it; for, after all, as before said, we are but mere puppets, body and mind, in the hands of our desires. Lord Dewry had ordered the beggared and threadbare Sir Roger Millington to be taken to one of the most splendid apartments in his splendid house ”

“ When he said that what Ruby needed was a mother's tender care, it was at Deborah he looked, who never turned a hair's-breadth in his direction at any time, except when good manners obliged her, and who was not tender to Ruby, whom she called "that brat", and had smartly spanked on several occasions.
A beautiful woman cannot help having objectionable lovers any more than a king can help a cat looking at him. This man—a most well-meaning, good-hearted, useful little underbred person, typical of so large a class in the Colonial Church—was Deb's pet aversion, and did not know it. ”

“ What hast thou to do with me?”
“The son of thy father’s foe, ’tis true,” answered Devereaux, “but not thine, Francis. I make no war on women though I did unwittingly strike thee once. I repent me that ever I claimed to have slain that deer. Yet hear me, mistress. Had the foresters not come as they did, I would have given thee the horns. I came to thy father’s castle to offer them to thee, but dost thou remember how didst greet me with scorn? And I, thinking thee to be thy brother, did answer in like manner.”
“Thou hast been long in the telling, master,” 174 remarked the girl scornfully. ”

“ I shall sleep here to-night, Fanny."
"And welcome, sir. We haven't a spare bedroom, but I can make you up a bed on the sofa in the parlour."
"I shall not need it. I am going to sleep in Devlin's room, on the floor."
She caught my arm with a cry of alarm. "Has he got hold of you, too, sir? The Lord save us! He's got the lot of us in his claws!"
"Don't be absurd," I said. "I know what I'm about, and Mr. Devlin will find me a match for him. No more questions; do as you are bid. If you have a mattress and some bedclothes to spare, bring them up at once." ”

“ Dowsett to his fate.
I went down to Devlin, and acquainted him with the result of my investigation.
"Quite as I expected," he said. "Let them go for the present. Our concern is with the man inside. I am going to put my scheme into operation. What is the time?"
"Five minutes past two," I replied, looking at my watch.
"In capital time," said Devlin. "Wait you here until half-past two. Then go in to Mr. Dowsett, and apologise to him for the indignity to which he has been subjected. He will fume and threaten; let him. Be you humble and contrite, and say that you are very, very sorry. ”

“ Fanny Lemon came in, smothered with a mattress, sheets, blankets, and pillows, and, without uttering a word, proceeded to make the bed on the floor.
"You have brought plenty of pillows, Fanny," I remarked.
"I thought you'd like to lay high, sir," she whispered.
Devlin broke out into a loud laugh. "Most people do," he said, "while they live. When they die they all lie low—all of them, all of them!" ”

“ I can plainly distinguish the features of the two men upon whom we are gazing. One is young. Who is he?"
"His name," I replied, believing that entire frankness would be more likely to win Devlin to my side, "is George Carton."
"I recognise him; he was in your house yesterday morning. He seems distressed. There is a troubled look in his face."
"He was the murdered girl's lover."
"Ah! And the other, the elder man, casting anxious glances upon the younger--who may he be?"
"His name is Mr. Kenneth Dowsett. He is young Carton's guardian." ”

“ Amidst all the confusion incident to the announcement of the old seaman, Devereaux drew Francis aside and whispered entreatingly:
“Francis, I implore thee to remain here. ’Tis not seemly that thou shouldst board ship. There will be fighting, and——”
“And thou wouldst have all the glory, Edward Devereaux,” cried the girl unjust as she often was when indignant. “Dost thou think that I fear? What hath life to yield that would equal the sweetness of striking one blow for England? Think you an English girl cannot fight as well as an English lad?” ”