John Dalrymple

“ DALRYMPLE, ALEXANDER (1737–1808) , hydrographer to the admiralty, seventh son of Sir James Dalrymple, bart., auditor of the exchequer, and younger brother of Sir David Dalrymple, lord Hailes [q. v.] , was born at New Hailes, near Edinburgh, on 24 July 1737. When he was fifteen years of age he received an appointment as writer in the East India Company's service, and sailed from England in December 1752. He arrived at Madras in the following May, and on account of his bad writing was put in the storekeeper's office, where he spent eighteen months without much prospect of advancement. ”

“ For to the startled eyes of Doctor John Leslie, the snug, old-fashioned room was alive with boys and holly—boys and boys and boys upon boys, he would have told you in that first instant of delighted consternation, in different stages of embarrassment and rags. And one had but to glance at the faces of old Asher and Annie in the kitchen doorway, at Aunt Ellen, hovering near her Christmas brood with the look of all mothers in her kind, brown eyes, and then at Roger, scarlet with enthusiasm, to know that the Doctor had been the victim of benevolent conspiracy. ”

“ Everybody had been startled by her appearance.
"The colour of a table-cloth, ma'am—only a sort of yaller too," John graphically explained. Yet she had kept up, resolutely refusing to be cared for, and bent upon doing everything for her husband. This lasted until the doctor came. An examination of Mr. Dalrymple resulted in the cheerful verdict, "Two ribs broken, but no danger!" and then in a moment, almost without warning, Julia failed. John could not tell particulars here. He only knew that Mr. and Mrs. Dalrymple were in different rooms, that Mrs. Ogilvie could not leave Mrs. ”

“ A faint flush crept into Lady Dalrymple’s face.
“And am I to give all the service? I am to supply all the gaiety, the life, the care against his mere tolerance?”
“Yes,” was the calm answer. “It comes to about that if ye want a life that is worth living—ye must give somewhat your side; remember he has more on his mind than ye will ever ken.”
As she spoke the Countess lifted her eyes to a portrait over the bureau, it was of Sir John and taken in his May of life; he wore a cuirass and plumed hat and smiled out of the canvas, as handsome a face as a man may have. ”

“ Lord, I burn when I think of it."
"You couldn't be blamed for a bit of temper. You're Irish, lad, and an O'Neill. 'Tis a splendid inheritance but volcanic too." He changed color and began to roam around the room, his mind casting up a painful memory.
"You'll never guess," he went on moodily, "what fell upon the head of me after you went. John Whitaker came up and took a shot at me. And Garry. And then after a while when I was quieter, old Adam, stirring me up afresh. My ears are as used to the truth as my tongue."
"It's a darned shame!" said Brian warmly. Kenny sighed. ”

“ Dalrymple married, on 12 March 1682, Marion, daughter of Sir Robert Hamilton of Presmennan, afterwards one of the ordinary lords of session, by whom he had seven sons and five daughters. By his second wife, Elizabeth, daughter of John Hamilton of Olivestob, and widow of John Hamilton of Bangour, he had two daughters. His second wife survived him some years, and died at Edinburgh on 21 March 1742, aged 67. ”

“ I'm tired," he added simply. "I want to live my own life away from the things I can't do well. I'm tired of drifting."
"And to-night?"
Brian flung out his hands.
"The last straw!" he said bitterly.
"You're meaning the shotgun, Brian?" demanded Kenny.
"I'm meaning the shotgun."
"What will you do?" interposed the peacemaker in the nick of time.
"I've done some free-lance reporting for John Whitaker," said Brian. "I think he'll give me a big chance. He's interested." His voice—it had in it at times a hint of Kenny's soft and captivating brogue—was splendidly boyish and eager now. ”

“ In April 1779 he was appointed hydrographer to the East India Company; and in 1795, on the establishment of a hydrographic office at the admiralty, the appointment of hydrographer to the admiralty was offered to him. He accepted the offer, and held the appointment till 28 May 1808, when he was summarily dismissed in consequence, it is stated, of some offence caused by excess of zeal. Whatever this may have been, the dismissal preyed on Dalrymple's mind, and he died broken-hearted,’ just three weeks afterwards, on 19 June. ”

“ As he uncovered his head, his clear-cut profile crowned with a profusion of light brown curls, such as ladies love to toy with, shone white and clear against the dark blue of the carriage upholstery.
“A strikingly handsome man both as to feature and complexion,” all women vowed Richard Dalrymple at first sight—“and a manly-looking man, too,” they were prone to add when they saw his width of shoulder and length of limb, and noted the frank fearless look of the well-opened dark blue eyes. ”

“ Richard Dalrymple was what is termed a good, square man, and under the strongest conceivable temptation to prove himself a renegade he was doing his utmost, and not by any means with eye-service only, to prove himself true to his little Scottish sweetheart.
The cause—not of his apostasy, for he was still true in word and deed, and yes, in thought too, to his fiancée—but of his anxiety, was, all unknown to him, seated in the adjoining carriage with a smile of mingled triumph and apprehension lighting up her splendid dark eyes. ”

“ So he stirred restlessly, causing the wicker-work of his chair to utter long creaks, as a vent to his dissatisfaction.
"Would you not like another chair?" asked Hermione, disturbed by the squeaks.
"Thanks—no. This is very comfortable."
Mr. Dalrymple spoke next in quiet tones. "Yes, it is a blessed service," he said. "But the yielding of ourselves is not a matter of one moment's resolving or doing, as some would have us believe. It is a long battle."
"Only there has to be first the yielding of our will, grandfather. We have to give ourselves to Christ ”

“ Dalrymple's dying young, and——"
"Are you speaking of young Robert Dalrymple?"
"No, no, poor fellow: of his father. Mr. Dalrymple did die young, so to say; you can't call a man under fifty old. His death, and his son's close upon it, brought you, sir, to rule over us, and I am sorry to say your rule's a very hard one."
"It will not be made easier," curtly replied Oscar Dalrymple, who was getting angry. "And I will not detain you longer, Mr. Lee," he added, rising. "Your time is valuable."
"And what is to be my answer, sir?" ”

“ Busy as were his week-days, his Sundays were far from idle. Alike in summer and winter he might be seen at the early eight o'clock Holy Communion; and his silvery head was rarely missing from the Squire's pew during the morning and evening services. In the afternoon he would wend his way down to the classroom of the village-school, by Hermione's side, to teach a dozen village boys great truths in simple words.
Certainly Gilbert Dalrymple, Squire of Westford, did not spare himself; and the religion which he acted out on Sunday was by no means laid to slumber through the week. ”

“ The younger girl bent in her graceful manner for a kiss, and then sat down near the couch.
"It is a lovely day," she said.
"Too hot for Marjory," Mr. Fitzalan observed. "Mr. Dalrymple was not quite himself this morning, I think, was he?"
"No. It is the worry about Harvey."
Marjory's eyes opened more widely for a glance at her father.
"So Marjie has been saying," he remarked, "But Mr. Dalrymple has not been entirely as he should for some weeks."
Hermione wore an incredulous air. "He is very well and strong generally," she said. "Nothing was wrong with him until Harvey came." ”

“ It was streaked with grey, and there were small, nervous lines about his eyes, as well as deep furrows on his forehead and face.
Dalrymple had found in the artist world a man who was something of a companion to him at times,—a very young man, whom he could not understand, though his own dogmatic temper made him as a rule believe that he understood most things and most men. But this particular individual alternately puzzled, delighted, and irritated the nervous Scotchman. ”

“ I said, "We've got things like that. Robot brains, we call them. They figure out impossible problems."
And it came to me at that moment how we were taking for granted, through our conversation, our statements, and even our thinking, that this Dalrymple was exactly what he'd said he was—a man from another world.
He said, "I know what you refer to, but they are so childishly conceived as to be almost useless." The old sneer again.
Donovan growled. "You talk a lot but you haven't proved a damn thing."
"On the contrary. The flaws in this equation stand out by themselves. ”

“ Dalrymple's reputation was excellent as a liberal foreigner who paid well, and the gardener would not blame the boy for saddling the mule without leave. [200]
In a few words Dalrymple explained what he wanted, and to help the lad's understanding he gave him some coppers which filled the little fellow with energy and delight. The boy was to be at the top of the mule path leading down from above the convent to the valley in half an hour. Dalrymple told him that he wished to go to Tivoli, and that the boy could come with him if he chose, after the visit to the abbess was over. ”

“ The room contained handsome ornaments, as well as valuable oil-paintings, and the furniture was good, though somewhat old, and of a subdued tone of colouring.
"Shall I be recognised? Don't introduce me," Harvey had said outside, and Mr. Dalrymple complied, though he scarcely seemed to hear the words. He crossed slowly to a favourite armchair, absorbed and silent still. ”

“ But in that, he and Paul Griggs were very much alike. They found an element in every acquaintance which roused their distrust, and as men to men they were both [260] equally incapable of making a confidence. Dalrymple's life had not brought him into close relations with any woman except his wife. For her sake he had kept all others at a distance in a strange jealousy of his own heart which had made her for him the only woman in the world. Then, too, he had hated, for her, the curiosity of those who had evidently wished to know her story. ”

“ Did Dalrymple know anything, or was it an instinctive suspicion, or merely the explosion of helpless temper and dislike?
The ride was brief, and the block in which Dalrymple lived was, fortunately, at that moment free of pedestrians. Wandel descended and rang the bell. When the door was opened George relaxed his grasp. Dalrymple tried to spring from the opposite side of the cab. George caught him, lifted him, carried him like a child across the sidewalk, and set him down in the twilight of a hall where a flunky gaped.
"There's your precious friend," he accused Wandel. ”

“ Then Dalrymple took over.
"We have certain facts," he began. "A dead man; the person who admits he went through the physical motions of killing him. We also have the method of producing death—poison—and the setting of the crime."
"I think we've had enough of this clowning," Donovan said in a husky voice.
Dalrymple ignored the interruption, not even bothering to sneer at Donovan. "As every school child on my planet knows, each of these facts must be given a symbol and must become a part of our exploratory equation." ”

“ As each increases, the other is increased thereby. Attempting to define further, we find ourselves in a fog of terms.
As Mr. Dalrymple wrote, he lifted his eyes from time to time for a glance towards the bow-window. A small davenport stood there, and beside it a work-basket, also a lady's basket-chair. A little half-made print frock had been dropped across the arm of the chair, and a silver thimble lay on the davenport. It might have been a child's thimble, but it was not.
This was Hermione's favourite retreat. ”

“ I'm getting old now, and my eyesight ain't none of the best, nor my memory nayther. I shouldn't wonder if I'd ought to know you." He peered hard still, blinking a little. "And I'm thinking now as I sees summat. It ain't—surely—Miss Herminy's cousin—young Mr. Dalrymple!"
"I am Harvey Dalrymple," was the reply. "Yes—Miss Hermione's second cousin—or, if you like it, her brother."
"Young Mr. Dalrymple—his very own self!" ejaculated Sutton. "Well, well, sir—I'm glad to see you anyways. ”

“ His face grew paler still, and colder, but there was a far-off gleaming in the shadowy eyes, like the glimmer of [330] a light over a lonely plain through the dark. Dalrymple's spirits did not rise, but he talked more and more, and his sentences became long and involved, and sometimes had no conclusion. The wine was telling on him at last. He had never been so strong as Griggs, at his best, and he was no match for him now. The younger man's strangely dual nature seemed to place his head beyond anything which could affect his senses. ”

“ He meant it as a compliment but Dalrymple did not take it as such. "I didn't think of it, you fool. I worked it out. Haven't you understood anything I've told you? It's all here in the progression of the equation. Incidentally, that factor is the pivot of the whole sequence. Your stupid logic should carry you on from there."
"Somebody was trying to poison somebody else!" Donovan said.
"There had to be two men," I added. "They came in and ordered drinks. One poured poison in the other's drink. Then they left without—"
Dalrymple was leering at me. "How about one man and—suicide?" ”