Sir Jaspar

“ The demon of Jaspar's nature displayed itself in the cane-field and in the sugar-house, which Colonel Dumont rarely visited, having intrusted the entire management of the estate to him, his own attention being occupied by the exterior business of the plantation, and by his city possessions. The poor negro, who was compelled to submit to cruel usage and short fare, knew Jaspar's nature better than uncle or niece. ”

“ I can't take a single step in the dark."
"Here it is," and Jaspar took from his pocket the money. "Have you the document?"
"I have," replied De Guy, producing the fictitious will, which Maxwell had drawn up in conformity with the instructions of Jaspar.
"And you are ready to affix the signature?" said Jaspar, who appeared not to be in the possession of his usual confidence. Few villains ever become so hardened as never to tremble. ”

“ He may as well have it as she," muttered he. "This will suits me not, and must be broken or altered."
"It is hard upon you," said Maxwell, who had overheard Jaspar's mutterings.
"It is rather hard to be placed upon the same level with a comparative stranger," replied Jaspar, thoughtfully, after a long pause. He had not intended the lawyer should hear his previous remarks, and had reflected whether he should disown them, or pursue the subject as thus opened. ”

“ With compressed lips, and the scowl of a demon, Jaspar witnessed the departure of the overseer. His case looked desperate, and he felt something like the gloominess of despair. Dalhousie could be disposed of, but the niece!—the niece, if she yet lived, would be the destruction of all his avaricious schemes.
As usual when agitated, he paced the room; and, as he reflected upon the danger, and the desperate remedies which suggested themselves, his manner grew more and more demoniacal. He resolved to trust no man. ”

“ In the third Ind was the kingdom of Thaars. Of that kingdom was Jaspar king at the birth of Christ. And Jaspar offered myrrh to the young Child, and in this land is the isle of Egrisoulla, where groweth myrrh more plentifully than in any place of the world, and it waxeth like ears of corn that are burnt with the weather, and right thick; and when it is ripe it is so soft that it cleaveth to men's clothes as they go by the way. ”

“ Jaspar Dumont sat in the library at Bellevue. It was the evening after his return from Vicksburg. Near him, engaged in examining a heap of papers, was his new overseer, Dalhousie.
Jaspar was musing over the late turn his affairs had taken; and, while he congratulated himself on his present triumphant position, he could but regard with apprehension the future, which seemed to smile only to lure him on to certain destruction. The trite saying, "There is no peace for the wicked," is literally and universally true. ”

“ What the devil do you mean by honorably?" said Jaspar, exasperated by this unexpected display of morality.
"What do I mean by honorably? Why, anything which does not affect the legal or moral rights of others," replied Maxwell, a little touched by the seeming reflection of Jaspar.
"Fudge! how long have you been so conscientious?" sneered Jaspar.
"When a man has a reputation to make or break, it becomes him to handle it with care."
"Out upon you, man! Your reputation is not so fair, that you need be so tender of it," replied Jaspar, with some severity.
"Sir!" ”

“ Oh Jaspar, I didn't know you was sech a man."
She stood up, her eyes were shining, her face radiant "Fergive me, but I reckoned you--was--petered--out?"
"Petered out--me?"
"Yas; I'm a silly, fullish woman."
"No, you ain't. Petered out--me? Wal," he glanced at Leveson, "somebody is petered out, but it ain't me. Did ye ever see a man scairt worse'n him? I scairt the wizard some; yas I did, but he could run: this feller can't crawl, I reckon. An' this yere Colt wan't loaded then, an' it ain't loaded--now. Look! What an appetite I hev! Who says supper? ”

“ Jarvis (Warner) . Cynical traveller who comes to Castle Nowhere, and loses his heart to Silver.—Constance Fennimore Woolson, Castle Nowhere.
Jason. King of Thessaly, commander of Argonautic expedition, and unfaithful husband of Medea.
Jaspar was poor, heartless, and wicked; he lived by highway robbery, and robbery led to murder. One day he induced a poor neighbor to waylay his landlord; but the neighbor relented, and said, “Though dark the night, there is One above who sees in darkness.” “Never fear!” said Jaspar; “for no eye above or below can pierce this darkness.” ”

“ The body of the deceased lady was claimed by Dalhousie, in behalf of Jaspar, and interred in Vicksburg.
In company with the new overseer and his wife, Jaspar returned the next day to Bellevue.
CHAPTER XVII.
"Say quick! quoth he; I bid thee say,
What manner of man art thou? ”

“ I will settle as many scores as you like, Sir Jasper—so long as it is me sword and not me purse that pays them."
"Draw then, man, draw!" snarled Sir Jasper, dancing in his fury. He bared his silver-hilted sword and threw the scabbard in a corner.
"Heaven defend us!" cried Stafford, in vain endeavouring to come between the two.
"Sure, you must not contradict him," cried O'Hara, unbuckling his belt rapidly, and drawing likewise with a pretty flourish of shining blade. "'Tis the worst way in the world to deal with a cracked man. Sure, ye must soothe him and give in to him. ”

“ But here Sir Jasper escaped from his friend's control. "I'll not stand it," cried he. "'Tis more than flesh and blood can endure. Give her up to me, sir. How dare you hold her?" He fell upon O'Hara in the rear and seized him, throttling, round the neck.
"I'll dare you in a minute, ye mad divil!" yelled O'Hara, in a fury no whit less violent than that of his assailant. Thus cried he, then choked.
In the scuffle they had reached the parlour.
"Oh, Jasper, Jasper, in the name of decency!" protested Stafford, vainly endeavouring to pluck the baronet from the Irishman's back. ”

“ Come on, Sir Jasper, I'm yer man. Just pull the chairs out of the way, Tom, me dear boy."
"Now sir, now sir!" said Sir Jasper, and felt restored to himself again as steel clinked against steel. And he gripped the ground with his feet, and knew the joy of action.
"Well, what must be, must be," said Stafford philosophically, and sat across a chair; "and a good fight is a good fight all the world over! Ha! that was a lunge! O'Hara wields a pretty blade, but there is danger in Jasper's eye. I vow I won't have the Irish boy killed. Ha!" ”

“ Yes, [134] you—or any other man. ‘Look out for a well-bred creature, pray,’ I would say, ‘and a healthy, that she be kind to our little Denis, and pick her sensible, for the Lord’s sake.’ Now, Sir Jasper, mark my words ... I give him a week to bellow, and, after that—observe me—he will be found at such common, low places as a cockfight, or a bruising match, with a kerchief high about his neck, and a hat down on his eyes. And he will, like as not, make expeditions to Bristol and Plymouth, where he is less known, and where a man may attend a bit of sport without his friends’ eyes upon him. ”

“ Here the speaker, who was always ready with a generous appreciation of his own conceits, threw his head back and laughed consumedly, while Sir Jasper uttered some sounds between a growl and a groan.
The volatile second in waiting wiped his eyes.
"Go to, man," cried he, turning with sudden irascibility upon his friend, "for pity's sake take that lugubrious countenance of thine out of my sight. What the devil I ever saw in thee, Jasper, to make a friend of, passes my comprehension: for, of all things, I love a fellow with a spark of wit. ”

“ The old woman sank upon the floor, and grovelled at his feet
"Oh, Sir Jasper," she moaned; "oh, Sir Jasper Frome, be merciful! Lord God! how may I tell it!"
Sir Jasper was trembling, and his eyes were wild. "Go on," he cried, "tell me all—everything!"
The old woman clung about his knees. "'Twas his doing—Sir Ralph's doing—I swear it! He told her you were dead, and she fell in a fit."
Sir Jasper clasped his hand tight upon his eyes. "The Lady Kate?" he asked.
"The Lady Kate; yes, yes," she answered feverishly. ”

“ To call once a week upon his old acquaintance, frighten him with a few threats, or force a deathlike smile from agonising lips by a few villanous jokes, carry off his four sovereigns, and enjoy himself thereon till pay-day duly returned, was a condition of things that Jasper did not greatly care to improve; and truly had he said to Poole that his earlier energy had left him. As a sensualist of Jasper’s stamp grows older and falls lower, indolence gradually usurps the place once occupied by vanity or ambition. Jasper was bitterly aware that his old comeliness was gone ”

“ They carried the old man to his bed, and for weeks he lay, with small show of life in him, until one day, opening his eyes, he learned that Sir Jasper had taken ship with an expedition to one of the Madras Settlements, and from that moment he grew stronger.
And now it seemed that all his hate was centred in his pale-faced daughter; he would not have her near him; and did she steal on light foot to watch him as he slept, he, waking, would drive her from him, with fierce imprecations and curses. ”

“ He was yet standing with the candle in one hand and his reddened sword in the other when his glance became fixed by that which lay half hid beneath the tumbled pillow—that which drove the blood in one wild surge back to his heart—a newly-severed human hand. A small, well-shaped hand it was, but very thin, and black with grime and filth, with nails thick and curved like the talons of a bird, and beside it lay a little battered gold locket that glittered in the candle-light. Sir Jasper's breath caught in his throat; he bent lower, the candle-stick trembling in his grasp. ”

“ Truly, 'tis the overruling spirit of God who has guided them to a right judgment!" said the Abbot. "Now for Jasper there will need to be no thought taken. Out of the abundance of thy lands he will be provided for, and may marry and raise up a fair lineage; but for our nephew Ralph other thoughts will be requisite. He will need fair clothes, as becometh one of a noble house, and an honest varlet to go with him, and a mettlesome courser; one not too fiery, that will lead him astray, and perchance disgrace him, or his clothes, but one that is stout withal, and not of a too tame spirit. ”

“ The old man stood leaning heavily upon his stick, his head craned forward, his grizzled brows twitching above his bloodshot eyes, his mouth working with the fury of his anger. As he watched, he saw her hands clasp about Sir Jasper's neck—saw him bend his head to meet her kiss—and at the sight a sudden, inarticulate cry broke from him.
At the sound the lady sprang back, and her cheeks went white as she faced the little, shrivelled, fierce old man, who crept towards them leaning on his stick, with the skinny fingers of his right hand fumbling and groping for the hilt of his small sword. ”

“ The swelling outlines of the hills, the curves of a coast, the free sinuosities of a river are less suave than the harmonious lines of her body, and when she moves, gliding lightly, the grace of her progress suggests the power of occult forces which rule the fascinating aspects of the visible world.
Dependent on things as all men are, Jasper loved his vessel—the house of his dreams. He lent to her something of Freya’s soul. Her deck was the foothold of their love. The possession of his brig appeased his passion in a soothing certitude of happiness already conquered. ”

“ Sir Jasper, they say, behaved so oddly to Captain Spicer who brought the first challenge, that Lord Verney sent another by a chairman this morning. And then Colonel Villiers. Of course, as Mr. Mahoney says (that's Mr. O'Hara's man, ma'am) , Sir Jasper is safe to kill Lord Verney, and Colonel Villiers is safe to kill Sir Jasper. But if the Colonel do not kill Sir Jasper, then Sir Jasper will fight Captain Spicer! La! ma'am, the chocolate's all over the bed."
"Oh, get out of that, you silly wench," cried Mistress Bellairs, "let me rise! There is not a moment to lose. ”

“ Presumably the house had been deserted till Jasper’s entrance, but a prowler in the yard might have judged from this ever-burning light that some one was in residence. The bedroom was Spartan—an iron bed, one straight chair, a washstand, a heavy oak bureau. Jasper scrambled to unlock the lowest drawer of the bureau, yank it open, take out a wrinkled shiny suit of black, a pair of black shoes, a small black bow tie, a Gladstone collar, a white shirt with starched bosom, a speckly brown felt hat and a wig—an expensive and excellent wig with artfully unkempt hair of a faded brown. ”

“ Jasper stands still, and looks on intently at the young fellow, divesting himself of his outward coat, hat, gloves, and so forth. Once for all, a look of intentness and intensity—a look of hungry, exacting, watchful, and yet devoted affection—is always, now and ever afterwards, on the Jasper face whenever the Jasper face is addressed in this direction. And whenever it is so addressed, it is never, on this occasion or on any other, dividedly addressed; it is always concentrated. ”

“ Again he lifted the little trembling fingers to his lips; yet as he did so, Sir Ralph cried out sudden and sharp, and, stiffening his sword-arm, ran in upon him. But he stumbled; the sword flew from his grasp, and Sir Jasper caught him in his arms. Yet even then the old man spurned him feebly away, his foam-flecked lips working convulsively.
"Go! prithee, prithee, go!" cried the girl; and as she spoke, with a swift gesture she detached the locket at her neck, and pressed it into her lover's hand, and with a last lingering clasp, he turned and left her. ”