Mr. Allen

“ Allen says I have insulted women, he's a liar"
Then that bedizened judge turned on "New York" and said: "You look like a clean-cut, up-standing 285 man" (this last was the unkindest cut of all; it's a compliment to have some men call you a liar, but he needn't have used that word "up-standing"; Lord knows, "New York" didn't want to stand up) —"how do you explain your associating with such a person as this man Allen?"
And then "New York" shone some more. He told the captain that he had found Mr. Allen a most agreeable and congenial companion on this voyage. ”

“ A more perfect story has not been written by a Kentuckian of Mr. Allen's years. The Maker of Joys (Kansas City, 1907) , was so slight that it attracted little attention, yet it is exceedingly well-done; and in his latest book, The Golden Road (New York, 1910) , he just failed to do what one or two other writers have recently done so admirably. His Nature-loving tinker falls a bit short, but some excellent [Pg 367] writing may be found in this book. Mr. Allen has recently completed another novel, The Lovers of Skye, which will be issued by the Bobbs-Merrill Company in the spring of 1913. ”

“ Allen, you've no cheese. Here, let me fill your glass again. How's Rodchurch?" Every time that Mavis passed, she asked a question. "Mr. Allen, how's Miss Waddy's sister?"
"Dead," said Allen, with his mouth full.
"Dead. Oh, that's sad!" Then next time it was: "How's Miss Yorke? Not married yet?"
"No, nor likely to be."
The horse-people soon began to move off again—"Thank you, Mr. Dale. Good night, Mr. Dale.... You've done us proper, sir.... ”

“ When I left home, a week ago, her mother was talking of sending her to Troy, to her Aunt Sarah’s: but I declare I had forgotten all about it till this minute.”
Mr. Allen was a man of business, and very forgetful, or he could not have made such a blunder as this. ”

“ Then he said, in a very low and distant voice, “I know your identity, Mr. Billington,” with a profoundly sarcastic accent on the assumed name, “and I will not betray it. I know your secret, too; and I will keep that inviolate. Only, during the rest of this voyage, do me the honour, I beg of you, not to recognise me or speak to me in any way at any time.”
Guy slunk away in silence to his own cabin. Never before in his life had he known such shame. He felt that his punishment was indeed too heavy for him. ”

“ Allen divided between New York, Cincinnati, and Kentucky. He finally quit Kentucky in 1893, and he has not been in the state since 1898, at which time his alma mater conferred the honorary degree of LL. D. upon him. He now resides in New York.
Mr. Allen began with short essays for The Critic, The Continent, The Independent, The Manhattan, and other periodicals; and he contributed some strong and fine poems to The Atlantic Monthly, The Interior, Harper's Monthly, Lippincott's Magazine, The Independent, and elsewhere. But none of these represented the true beginning of his work, of his career. ”

“ During those years of prosperity he led a thoroughly active life, not only as an attorney with a large practice, but as an indefatigable public servant. In fact, through life he has given to the public the first and best of his efforts. He never became a finished advocate and speaker, but his enterprise and integrity secured him a large business, most of which was litigated in the counties of the Western Reserve.
Not long after Mr. Allen commenced practice in Ohio he married Miss Ann Maria Perkins of Warren, Trumbull county, an auspicious connection which was soon terminated by her death. ”

“ It was to be—somewhat to Aunt Cal’s dismay—a garden party.
We found Michael standing in the middle of the garden, surveying the arrangements. “Well,” inquired Eve, “is your Majesty pleased?”
He grinned at her. “Say,” he said, “am I going to be the only man at this party?”
“No, don’t worry. Captain Trout’s coming and perhaps Mr. Templeton and Hattie May wrote that she and Hamish would drive down if she could possibly manage it. But listen to the explanation Sandy’s just had of her vision the day we discovered the cupboard!” ”

“ This is our common," I added, with the condescending air of the small [Pg 6] proprietor whose vanity was touched because of not having been consulted concerning its occupancy by the daring incumbent.
"Happy to make your acquaintance, Mr. Charles Screwbelt Ring. Miss Nance Gwyn, I am distinctly honored.... And I," said he, with an elaborate bow in which he removed and swept the ground with an imaginary hat, while one hand pressed his heart, "am Jean François, sometimes known as the Umbrella Man, at others as the Happy Pedler.... I am pedler, poet, mender of umbrellas." ”

“ And, besides being slippery, I suppose he is a little to be feared, too.”
“I’ve no fear of him, dad” said Frank. “I have found that when a man does a whole lot of threatening he isn’t dangerous in the open.”
“That’s just it, my boy,” quietly replied the elder Allen. “If he were dangerous in the open he would have made you promise to pay for the dog right then—or fought.”
“There’s Mr. Van Kirk!” ”

“ Jerry declared that he felt sure he heard a sound not unlike a child crying, but the heavy voices of the men drowned this.
"Can't we do anything?" asked Will.
"Well, we're only a lot of boys, and they are big strapping men. Probably they've got the law on their side, too," suggested Frank, shaking his head.
"What do you mean by that, Frank?" queried Bluff indignantly.
"Why, the chances are ten to one that the boy, if it is a boy, must belong to one of the men—his own son, I mean—and you know, Mr. Lawyer, that a fellow has to be mighty careful how he steps in between a man and his son. ”

“ Say, what’s all the excitement anyway?”
“The excitement is,” I said, “that our Mr. Bangs, in addition to carrying cryptic documents in his suitcase, also carried a cargo of hair tonic which I guess we forgot to tell you about—bottles labeled ‘Harry’s Hair Restorer’ and so forth.”
“Sufferin’ sunfish! You don’t mean it? Then this guy is the very same villain that’s been diggin’ up that garden and that broke into your aunt’s house the other night!”
“Looks like it,” said Michael. “He must have got himself another wig somewhere.”
“And me talkin’ to him face to face!” moaned Hamish. ”

“ but his first purpose was to explain himself, and before they reached Mr. Allen's grounds he had done it so well that Catherine did not think it could ever be repeated too often. She was assured of his affection; and that heart in return was solicited, which, perhaps, they pretty equally knew was already entirely his own; ”

“ As often happens, chance stepped in at the very nick of time to fill up the vacancy. At the Rectory that night Mr. Tradescant was talking over with his wife the question of a tutor for their eldest son, that prodigiously stupid boy of seventeen—a pure portent of ignorance—who was to go in for an army examination at the end of September.
'No, I won't send him away, from home, Clara,' the Rector broke out testily. 'It's no earthly use sending him away from home. He's far too lazy. Unless Arthur's under my own eye, he'll never work with anyone. ”

“ I find him quick of apprehension, intelligent, and of sufficient gravity of deportment to ensure a respectful attention wherever he may go. He made one suggestion that ought to have occurred to me, and upon which I am acting. As no will has been found, it has been assumed that Captain Allen died intestate. Mr. Wallingford suggests that a will may have been executed; and that a thorough search be made in order to discover if one exists. ”

“ But at last Bluff's father had a chance to listen to what Jed had to tell.
"Show me those marks on your body," said the lawyer, and when the farmer's boy did as requested Mr. Masters looked exceedingly stern.
"I shall certainly take this matter up for you," he said. "It is an outrage."
"Do you think Jed ought to go back to his cruel uncle?" asked Frank.
"Never," cried the lawyer firmly. "Such a man is not fit to have anybody live with him."
A little later Frank took Jed to Jerry's home, and there asked to see the banker. ”

“ Allen's wealth and business power, but, having discussed the news of the day, they would pass on, and the people during the intervals of dancing drifted into congenial schools and shoals, like fish in a lake. Mr. and Mrs. Allen had a vague admiration for the learning of the scholars and the culture of the artists, but would infinitely prefer marrying their daughters to downtown merchant princes.
Take the world over, perhaps all classes of people are despising others quite as much as they are despised themselves. ”

“ Mr. Walsh—that’s Lynmouth’s last tutor—he was a perfect stick, a Cambridge man; Cambridge men always ARE sticks, I believe; you’re Oxford, of course, aren’t you? I thought so. Still, even Mr. Walsh was a little society, for I assure you, if it hadn’t been for him, I should never have seen anybody, to talk to, from year’s end to year’s end. So when Mr. Walsh was going to leave us, I said to mamma, “Why not ask one of the Mr. Le Bretons?” I wanted to have somebody sensible here, and so I got her to let me write to your brother Ronald about the tutorship. ”

“ Allen herself had reason to know during the violent controversy which raged in the ’60s and ’70s about the authorship of “Rock Me to Sleep.”
Another dispute, resembling in many ways the famous one between Mrs. Allen and Mr. Ball, and involving the reputation of one of the most distinguished men of Civil War days, still starts occasionally on a fresh round of the press. It was Partridge who remarked sadly of hunger that, no matter how often one subdues it, it always bobs up again ”

“ The marriage of Mr. Dewey took place within a month after the discovery of this will, and he brought his new wife to S——, installing her as mistress of the Allen House. She was a showy woman, past thirty, with a pair of brilliant black eyes, and a dark, rich complexion. Her long, thin nose, and delicate, but proudly arching lips, showed her to possess will and determination. It was the rumor in S——, that she brought her husband a considerable fortune. But she was not well received among us. The families of Judge Bigelow, and Joshua Kling, Cashier of the Clinton Bank, called immediately. ”

“ A company, formed in Boston, has purchased the lower mill, and rented from Mr. Wallingford the upper one, which was built on the Allen estate. Squire Floyd, I learn, is to be the manager here for the company. I am glad of this. Poor man! He was stripped of everything, and has been, for the past two years, in destitute circumstances. How he has contrived to live, is almost a mystery. ”

“ This much good has grown from it. You know just how Mr. Wallingford stands towards you, and you can govern yourself according to your own views in the case. And now let me volunteer this piece of advice. Never wantonly give offence to another, for you cannot tell how soon you may find yourself in need of his good services.”
Dewey gave me a formal bow, and passed on his way.
About a week afterwards, Judge Bigelow inquired of Wallingford as to when he wished to get possession of the Allen House. ”

“ Sir Henry raised his eyebrows slightly, but answered nothing.
'And he's not playing you any trick; that's the worst of it,' Gwen went on boldly, taking no notice of Sir Henry's indifferent politeness. 'He's poor, and he's a sculptor. He's been working for several years with a small Italian artist in the Marylebone Road.'
'Ah! yes, yes; I remember. He said he'd been engaged as a marble-cutter since he left his last situation. Why, bless my soul, his last situation was with old Mr. Philip Howard-Russell, of Wootton Mandeville. Let me see—your card—ah! quite so. ”

“ But all the same, you may think of this time, and be sorry you rubbed it in so hard; that’s all.”
“Come along, Bill,” urged the man called Whalen, as though fearing that unless they got their boisterous companion moving he might bring matters to an open rupture yet.
“Sure, I’ll go with you, Cass Whalen, even if you have deserted a pal when he was up against it. I won’t forget that, either. I’ve got a long memory for such things, I have. And mark me, Mr. Darrel, I’ll often see this hour again as I think of how you insulted me. That’s all I’ve got to say.” ”

“ The station-master himself—that mighty man in office—shook hands with 'Mr. Richard' immediately on his arrival; the porters presented him with a bouquet of white pinks fresh plucked from the Company's garden; and even Mr. Wells raised his hat to his late assistant with full consciousness of what respect was due from a country tradesman to a gentleman who had been admitted with flying colours to 'Oxford College.'
Dick's progress up the High Street was one long shaking of many friendly hands; and if that benevolent soul, Mr. ”

“ George Allen's house was, and was told that his farm was three miles distant. There was an hotel there, and I asked for a room for the night. I did not want to meet people who might show some aloofness till the following morning. In my portmanteaus there was some printed matter, showing that I had come from Australia. The hotelkeeper came into the sitting-room and made enquiries as to whether I had come from there, and alone, and we had a long [Pg 107] talk. He knew Mr. George. ”