CHAPTER II.
THE BRIDE'S RETURN.
The approaching gaieties of London, after Easter, were pronounced likely to be of a more brilliant description than they had been for years, as is always the case, according to the interests and wishes of the persons who raise the report. One of the earliest arrivals in the scene of ton was that of the Glenmores, who had returned from Paris, whither they had proceeded, it will be remembered, shortly after their marriage.
London, however, was still empty; a considerable part of the élite remained at Restormel, and others of their corps were not yet reunited; while such as had in fact nothing to do with them, were nevertheless sufficiently foolish to regulate their movements by those of the exclusives.
It was in this interval between the two assignable points of a London season that Lord Glenmore, turning the corner into the still deserted region of Hyde Park, met there, to his surprise, Lord Albert D'Esterre, who sat his horse like one careless of what was passing around him, and seemingly so absorbed in his own thoughts, that the exercise of riding had the appearance at that moment with him of a mechanical habit, rather than a thing of choice. So deeply occupied was he in reflection, that Lord Glenmore was obliged to call several times, and at length to ride close up to him, before he could attract his attention.
"D'Esterre," said he, as he held out his hand, "I rejoice to meet you; and this unexpected pleasure is the greater, as I thought you had been too fashionable a man to be yet in London, at least for a day or two to come. But how ill you look! what is the matter with you?"
Lord Albert was not in a mood to bear interruption from any one, or exactly able, without putting a force upon himself, to meet any inquiry with a courteous answer. But Lord Glenmore was, perhaps, one of the very few exceptions in whose favour something of this feeling was abated, for their intimacy had been of long standing; and Lord Albert's regard and respect for his character was, as it deserved to be, of the highest kind.
As soon, therefore, as the latter was roused from his reverie by the kindly voice of his friend, he greeted him with answering warmth, and inquired after Lady Glenmore with that cordial interest which he felt for the wife of his friend; he at the same time endeavoured to laugh off Lord Glenmore's observations on his own personal appearance, which were nevertheless well-founded—for his mind was labouring under an anxiety which visibly displayed itself in his countenance, and which, as his first emotion of pleasure in the near prospect of meeting Lady Adeline subsided, the mysterious words of Lady Hamlet Vernon's note were too well calculated to give rise to. This state of uneasiness was by no means diminished by the delay of Lady Dunmelraise's arrival in town. At her house Lord Albert's hourly inquiries had for two days been fruitless; and he was returning from South Audley Street, with the expression of increased disappointment painted in his looks, when he met Lord Glenmore.
After some conversation of a general nature, and inquiries into the events which had arisen in the fashionable world during his absence, and which the latter confessed himself to have been too happy to have thought about before, he asked Lord D'Esterre, with a manner implying more interest, what were his own views and intentions.
"I hope you are not thinking of returning abroad," he added, "for we want you at home, and then you must marry." Lord Albert sighed as his friend approached the subject so near his heart, but which he was little inclined to discuss with him at that particular moment; while the other, without remarking the grave expression that had returned over Lord Albert's countenance, continued:—
"Allow me to speak to you as a man who has lived a little longer in the world than yourself, and to whom you formerly communicated what were your views and wishes in life. You told me you would aim at diplomacy and at office; I am sure in both from noble motives, and because you felt it to be your bias, which in all our pursuits is half the battle in ensuring success. Now you must permit me to tell you that, however great or powerful in point of interest a man may be, he can never with these objects be too much of the latter. Above all things, then, keep this principle before you; and, in any alliance that you may form (for you will marry soon, depend upon it: the ladies, if there were no fears from yourself, will not allow you to remain long in single blessedness), endeavour to remember my advice, and look round you before you take the leap which is to break the neck of your liberty, and do not throw away the advantages which your situation (to say nothing of yourself) give you of selecting where you choose, and where you think your pursuits will best be promoted.
"Now there is one, par parenthèse, among the many desirable parties I could name to you—which is Osbaldeston's daughter. His interest is great; but he has taken through life the most foolish of all parts in politics—that of being of neither party; and, as an independent peer, is alternately hated and caressed, abused and praised, despised and sought after by both. You know, since the death of his eldest son, all his affections centre in this daughter; and I am persuaded that any one united to her, may make all Lord Osbaldeston's interests his own. I do not mean to force this match upon you," smiling as he spoke; "but I allude to it as a sample of what, as your friend, and one thinking with you in politics, and pretty much the same in all other matters, and having your interest, my dear D'Esterre, much at heart, I would rejoice to see you assent to. Enfin—the Osbaldestons dine with us to-day, and if you will join us, you will have an opportunity of judging for yourself."
Lord Albert, as if he thought himself doomed to undergo violence on all sides in regard to Lady Adeline, replied with more petulance in the tone of his voice than he was ever known to give way to—
"My dear friend, you forget that I am an engaged man."
"Oh, if you mean to allude to Lady Adeline Seymour, I had understood that it was only that sort of engagement which might be dissolved or not, as the parties chose when they came to years of discretion; and as I had heard it whispered that Lady Adeline was attached to a young man who was much at Dunmelraise, and a protégé of her mother's, a certain Mr. George Foley, who turned all the women's heads about two years ago in London (Lady Hamlet Vernon's among the rest, by the way), I could not suppose, seeing you very quietly here, that your heart was much engaged; and I thought I knew you too well to believe that you would ever marry (however much I hope you will make a prudent alliance) where love and esteem do not constitute a part of the compact."
"My dear Glenmore, I see your kind intention, through this apparent carelessness of my feelings; but allow me to assure you, you are misinformed—a purer, truer, or more innocent creature does not exist than Lady Adeline Seymour; and though I have been separated lately from her, yet from my correspondence with herself, and from the invariable accounts I have received from others, I feel assured that the ingenuousness of her character would never allow her to have a thought concealed from her mother or myself in the momentous question between us. Oh no; when I look back to her every letter, the recollection brings conviction along with it of her heart being unchanged."
Lord Albert spoke with an inward agitation which corresponded little with the confidence which his words expressed. His outward appearance, however, was calm; and Lord Glenmore, supposing he had been led into a very pardonable error, and wholly innocent of intentionally wounding his friend's feelings, proceeded—
"Well, if it is thus, D'Esterre, you are already a married man, I conceive; but be it so, that does not prevent your dining with me to-day—pray come."
Lord Albert declined, saying gravely, "no! that cannot be; for I am in hourly expectation of Lady Adeline's arrival with her mother, who, I am sorry to add, comes to town on account of her health." A momentary pause ensued in the conversation; and Lord Albert, seemingly little inclined to renew the last topic or enter upon any new one, seized the opportunity of bidding his companion farewell, and they separated.
From the somewhat cold and reserved manner of his parting, Lord Glenmore, when alone, began to think he had committed a mistake in treating his friend's engagement with Lady Adeline lightly, and condemned himself for what had escaped him on the subject. For Lord Glenmore was a man of honourable, as well as kindly feelings; and in giving the counsel of a prudential marriage to Lord Albert, was at the same time the last person to think that, in an union for life, happiness ought to be sacrificed to interested views: the furthest also from his thoughts would have been any design to interfere between, or to disunite any two persons who were attached to each other. Perhaps the world in general might not have given him credit for this amiability of feeling, or for the strict principle which he really possessed, from seeing that he lived in constant intercourse with a class, where, if similar worth of character did exist at all, it certainly never was looked up to as a merit in the possessor. It must be allowed that Lord Glenmore was any thing rather than a fitting member of such a class; for in addition to warmth of heart, natural affection, and good principles, he possessed talents of a very superior kind, and held opinions quite at variance with the received creed of his companions.
He believed, for instance, that life was given for other purposes than to be spent in accident alone, or that a perpetual course of frivolous pursuits, without any higher aim or object, should be suffered to govern human existence; but that, on the contrary, every action should tend to some useful purpose. If Lord Glenmore was ambitious (and he was so), his ambition was of a noble kind; and while he sought power, his uprightness of character could never suffer him to abuse its exercise. He was called proud by some: but although impressed with a sense of the dignity of the aristocracy to which he belonged, it was not a blind and foolish estimate of rank which made him value it, but a conviction of the importance and responsibility which every one placed in the higher grades of society possesses, while fulfilling the duties of the sphere in which Providence places him; and if in society he sometimes appeared reserved, and joined not in all the empty, uninteresting topics that make up the conversation of most of the coteries of ton, it was—that his mind was filled, even in the buzz of the vapid talk around him, with matters worthy of the reflection and study of an intellectual being.
He owed his admission, consequently, within the line of circumvallation drawn by the ultra leaders of fashion, to a dread of the important consequence of his remaining aloof from their circle, and the preponderating influence which even his neutrality would afford (for Lord Glenmore was not a man to lend himself to either side in such a frivolous warfare as the decision of who were, or who were not, worthy members of the corps élite). Although the exclusives, therefore, one and all, considered him to fall short of a due proportion of that species of merit necessary to their order, yet still they united in one common effort to retain him on their side. They could have wished him, no doubt, allied to one of their own peculiar choosing, and had heard with dismay proportionate to the consequences which might frustrate their plans respecting him, the announcement of his marriage with his present wife.
Determined, however, to make the best of the unpropitious event, they had from the first decided on the general policy of endeavouring to retain Lord Glenmore's influence, by admitting Lady Glenmore (however much she might be considered inadmissible) amongst them; and thus to secure in the opinion of the world the sanction of her husband to live on terms of intimacy in their set.
It was this motive which in some degree influenced the ladies who were present at Lady Melcomb's ball, and subsequently at the marriage, to risk the loss of caste by being seen in the motley collection of that lady's assembly: though the ties of relationship, in one or two instances, would have led them to the re-union on such a happy occasion. Yet with Lady Ellersby and Lady Tenderden these were impulses, which were only to be acted upon when the laws and dogmas of exclusiveness permitted such a proceeding.
When Lord Glenmore returned from the Continent with his young bride, the news of his arrival quickly spread through the exclusive circle, and called for some decisive measure on their part, to ascertain how he might be induced still to remain, under the circumstances of his new connexion, in the same degree of intimacy with them. It was therefore time, on the part of the exclusives, for bringing to bear these intentions at the moment of their re-assembling in London, and more particularly on that of the individuals who composed the party at Restormel.
Lady Tilney, whose activity was ever on the alert, ordered her carriage before the morning show of London began, that she might catch all the chiefs of her party at home. The first house she visited was Lady Ellersby's, who was not yet risen, but she was admitted to her bed-side.
"Reveillez-vous belle endormie," said Lady Tilney, kissing her on both sides of her face, "for what do you think I am come about?"
"I cannot imagine: has Lady Hamlet Vernon gone off with any body, or do the ministry totter, or has Newmarket proved unsuccessful, or, in short, tell me what has happened!"
"No, my dear, nothing of all that; but the Glenmores are come back from Paris, and now or never must the question be ultimately decided whether we are to retain Lord Glenmore amongst us or not. You know we were agreed on the general policy of doing so soon after his marriage, and the first step to take will be to tutor the young Georgina, so that she may not on the outset of her début do any thing to disgrace us. But although I considered the matter as settled, I would not take any decided step till I consulted you. It is on this account I am come at so early an hour, lest we should not have acted in concert on this point; for as I always say, it is the disagreement in the cabinet between their own members which always breaks up the administration; so society is, or ought to be, precisely a type of the government of a state: don't you agree with me?"
"Perfectly," replied Lady Ellersby, suppressing a yawn, for she did not, to do her justice, understand one word of the political jargon in which her friend always talked, whether the conversation ran on the choice of a new cap or the admission of a new member to their society. Lady Tilney observing her dear friend's absence of mind, told her that she looked so beautiful in her night-cap, she quite made her forget her errand.
"But, nevertheless," (she added) "I must remind you, that it is one of no small importance, for you see what a vast field of interests the Glenmore himself includes. There are the Melcombs, and the D'Esterres, and the Osbaldestons—a perfect host. Some of them may play a card in politics: all of them are good tools, and I promised Lord Tilney not to lose sight of that consideration. So if we exclude la petite Glenmore, we shall be incurring great risks; whereas, by making her one of us, we shall have a vast addition of strength added to our party, and we can always take care that the vulgars belonging to her, who are only good for certain uses, shall not come in her train."
Lady Ellersby, whose attention had been effectually awakened by the admiration of her night-cap, now sat up in her bed and said, "Ah! there indeed is the difficulty—how will you manage that?"
"Nothing easier: we will, as I said, explain to her what an advantage it is to belong to us, and the necessity of our confining our members to a very small circle, and then tell her that we will always let her know whom she is to invite to her parties, and whom she is to go out with. Thus we shall take care that, from the very beginning, she does not compromise us. One or other of us must always be at her right hand, and by flattering Lord Glenmore, and endeavouring to make him believe that Lord Tilney is wavering, and may possibly come round to his side in politics, we shall easily get that sort of power established with both, which it is quite necessary to obtain if they are to belong to us; and that they are so to do is, as I have already explained to you, equally necessary. Not that I, for the world, would make any body do what he did not like to do: no one is more for perfect freedom, as you well know, than myself, but you must feel that not to belong to us, is in fact to be nobody, so that we are doing them a favour, the greatest possible favour indeed; and I am sure I would not take all this trouble were it not that I am convinced it is doing good."
"Oh yes, you are so good-natured, you are always trying to oblige. And what then would you have me to do?"
"Why I would have you call upon Lady Glenmore to-day, and you may tell her how she ought to dress, and to demean herself in public. And when she is in public, you may take care that no one speaks to her but those whom we approve of; and should any of her vulgar relations by any accident affect to get near her, you can contrive to draw her away, and carry her off to some other place. Thus, my dear Lady Ellersby, I think, after having explained this business so far, I need say no more, though I could talk for hours on the subject," Lady Ellersby yawned instinctively; "but the line of conduct I wish you to adopt has been so minutely pointed out, that I think you cannot possibly misunderstand it. And now I will go to Lady Tenderden and the rest, and I flatter myself no diplomate ever played his part with more skill. Depend upon it I will continue to do my utmost endeavour to succeed in this affair, which I feel persuaded is of considerable consequence to our society. Not, as I before said, that I would ever, either in great or little matters, stoop to contrivance. I like to persuade people for their good, and would have all the world act with a liberal and free exercise of their own rightful powers; the right of reason which every individual ought to exert and use in his own behalf. Ah, if all governments could but be persuaded of this, and be ruled in their determinations by this noble motive of action, how differently things in general would be managed from what they are! Kings would no longer be puppets of state, but be obliged in self-defence to become rational people, and not to depend on their ministers and favourites; and ministers would not depend on each other as they do, but every body in his own sphere would be doing all he could to tend to the public weal."
Lady Tilney had once again got on her favourite theme; and on these occasions she never found out that the one part of her discourse generally contradicted the other, and that her meaning virtually did so where her words did not, for it was always herself who was to be the mover and law-giver. But this was all matter of moonshine to her present auditress, who at length shewed unequivocal symptoms of inattention, and even hinted that it was time for her to rise. So at length Lady Tilney, reiterating the part she assigned to her respecting Lady Glenmore, took a tender leave and departed.
Her next visit was made to Lady Tenderden.
"Ah!" she said, on meeting her, after the first greetings, "what a relief it is to have to converse with a rational being, one who understands the meaning of things in general. I have just been talking to poor dear Lady Ellersby, who is, between ourselves, become more than ever thick, and indolent—she actually cannot understand any thing consecutively; however, I have, I think, at last put her in a right track upon the subject which I must now discuss with you."
"I know," said Lady Tenderden, interrupting her (for patience was not her forte) "what you would say. The Glenmores are arrived, and—"
"Exactly; and it is necessary we talk the matter over, and settle precisely the marche du jeu."
"Oh! by all means, take la petite Georgina en main, et l'affaire est faite—je m'en charge."
"That is precisely what I wished;—nobody is better calculated for that office. In the multiplicity of things which I have to do," said Lady Tilney, "it is not possible that I should pay that sort of attention which she will require, for she is very childish, perfectly ignorant of the ways of the world, almost a simpleton, and our society might be entirely broken up and destroyed, if we allowed her, without proper caution being previously observed, to come in amongst us. At the same time, I think it is of such consequence that we should not altogether lose Lord Glenmore, I mean politically as well as prudentially speaking, that it does appear to me to be quite worth while to take the trouble of forming that little wife of his, and making her one of us."
"Oh, certainement," replied Lady Tenderden. "Besides, Lord Glenmore is charming; il fera fureur, when he becomes a little more polished, and I shall with infinite pleasure consacré some hours to the instruction of la petite ladi qui seroit à ravir si elle n'avoit pas l'air d'un mouton qui rève."
"Exactly," cried Lady Tilney, "but that is of no consequence."
"Oh, none in the world," responded Lady Tenderden.
"Well then, my dear, that is finally arranged, and I shall now only have to go to the Glenmores to-morrow; but if it be possible, you had better see her to-day, and above all things secure her coming to the Ellersby's party, and Lady Hamlet Vernon's on Sunday, and to our own party on the water on Monday, and to the Opera with you on Tuesday, and so on; in short, taking care only that not one day shall be lost or misapplied."
"Depend upon me; and now then farewell, my dear Lady Tenderden. We meet to-night?"
"Of course. Soyez toujours séduisante comme à present; cette capotte jaune est délicieuse; elle vous va à ravir."
"Flatteuse," rejoined Lady Tilney in a tone of languishing satisfaction, and so they parted mutually pleased. Lady Tenderden, true to her promise, drove straight to Lady Glenmore's, and found her at home. Having expressed her satisfaction at this fortunate circumstance, one too of such rare occurrence, she praised every part of her dress, and inquiring of the Paris fashions, thus proceeded: "And now, my fair queen, you are truly an enviable personage—you, if any body ever had, have really beau jeu, every thing that can make a woman's life truly desirable; a great establishment, magnificent equipages, jewels, and the consideration which attaches to a haut grade in society, a distinguished title, tout enfin qui peut embellir la vie; truly, je vous en félicite, ma belle amie. But you cannot occupy so enviable a position without exciting the most active envy. Now allow me, as a sincere friend, to put you au courant of some things, in respect to the true nature of which you may be deceived. There are a certain set of persons, who will very naturally pay you court, and endeavour to obtain your ear; such as the Duchesse D'Hermanton, the Ladies Proby, and Ladies How, and all that tiresome concourse of old dowagers; but be upon your guard against these, and without giving open offence to any body, be sure that you get rid of them in their very first onset."—Lady Glenmore stared. "Vous ouvrez des grands yeux, ma chère, but you will soon learn the use of these cautions. If the people I have named send their names, as they will certainly do or visit you, be a long time before you return the call; they are an old-fashioned set, who pique themselves on politeness, and veille cour attentions, and feeling affronted by this neglect on your part, they will not so readily or familiarly accost you in public. When they do (for some of them are vulgarly good-natured enough not to take the hint)—when they do accost you, take care to look as if you did not know who they were, and to answer them by monosyllables, if you answer them at all.
"Above all things, never go to their wearisome At Homes; but if they attack you with one of their downright speeches,—sorry not to have had the honour, &c. &c.—hoping you had received a card, &c. &c.—curtsey, and say you were vastly sorry, but you forgot the day, or——no no, say mistook it; yes, mistook it, that is best, because it is a loop-hole that answers for dinner as well as any other party; yes, a mistake of the day is the best recipe I know, for any invitation which you may chance to hesitate about, and perhaps think it possible you might like to accept, and then having done so, repent of it when the time comes—a mistake in the day sets all right. You are au desespoir, and they must believe you, or make themselves appear ridiculous; it may indeed cost you a note or two, but that is the worst of it, and then vous en êtes quitte pour la vie."
Lady Glenmore, who had been so astonished hitherto that she could not reply, now found herself called upon to make some answer, as there was a pause on the part of Lady Tenderden.
"You have told me so many things," she said, "my dear Lady Tenderden" (smiling as she spoke), "that I am afraid I shall never remember the half of them, particularly as they are upon subjects which, to tell you the truth, do not interest me much, if at all. One thing you said, however, that was very kind, and kindness is not lost upon me I can assure you, which was the cordial expression with which you wished me joy of my happiness. I should indeed be ungrateful if I did not feel warmly obliged to you; only you omitted in the catalogue of my felicities, that, without which there would be no felicity for me—I mean my being the wife of Lord Glenmore; who, had he not possessed any of the adventitious advantages you enumerated, I should equally have preferred to the whole world."
"Oh! cela va sans dire, of course such a young and handsome husband is taken into the account; but, my dear young friend, vous ne voulez pas vous donner des ridicules, much less render your husband the laughing-stock of all the world, by setting yourself up with him en scène de Berger et Bergere; besides, permit me to say, that is just the way to lose him. If you are always at his elbow, watching him en furet, depend upon it he will soon think you are jealous, and following him out of curiosity. Now there is nothing a man can so ill bear as the idea of being watched, particularly by a wife; besides, all his male friends would avoid him if they saw he had such an Argus—for, beautiful as you are, you must not have an hundred eyes, to spy out every thing your husband does; no no, my dear, when you are en tête-à-tête, it is all well enough, this new-married fondness; but it will soon evaporate, take my word for it, and then you will be dying to break the troublesome habit de part et d'autre, and will not know how to set about it: take great care, ma chère ladi, to begin as you mean to go on."
"Certainly," replied Lady Glenmore, "I have but one meaning, one intention—that is, to love and be loved; and I shall never, I hope, do any thing which can run counter to that prime business, that prime duty of my life."
"Oh!" cried Lady Tenderden, perceiving she had gone too far, "it is quite delightful to hear you. You are, I am sure, destined to be a phœnix" (sneeringly); "and proud indeed must any woman be to view one of her own sex so well calculated to be a glory and honour to it. I was only warning you against certain appearances, certain misapprehensions, which persons of your turn of mind are liable to fall into, and which might be the very means of depriving you of that which you are so anxious to retain. I know the world, believe me, my dear young friend, and there is nothing in it I can so ill endure to see, as an assumption of a happiness which is out of the common line. If you enjoy such a superlative felicity, tant mieux pour vous, but do not make an étalage of it, for either its reality will be questioned, or they will take care it shall not long be one; whereas if you do as other people do, you will be allowed to go on quietly, and you may perhaps carry on this sort of romantic view of life much longer than persons in general do."
Lady Glenmore, who had listened with painful earnestness to this insidious advice, now felt her heart swell, and the tears bursting from her eyes. "And must I really," she said in a voice of suffocation, "pretend to be indifferent to my husband, in order to retain his love?"
"Certainly, my dear child; peut on être si enfant" (observing her emotion), "as to allow yourself to be thus moved about such a trifle; take my advice, and you will never lose that sort of hold over his affections which it is so charming, I allow, to possess. Shew him that you can have other men at your feet—that you are not, in short, dependent upon him for any thing faites vous un sort, in short, et vous ne vous en répentirez pas."
"And pray, how am I to set about this sort of life?"
"Why nothing so easy; simply, go constantly out, and take care to have one or two young men de la première volée always about you; never be reduced to be handed out or into any public place by Lord Glenmore; only now and then pour faire beau voir, and to shew that you have des procédés honnêtes one to the other—or else par hasard, but never as a thing of course. Another point is, you must establish an apartment of your own; for you cannot think between married persons how necessary that is, and what an independence it gives to both. It is so very disagreeable to have the exact moment of our going in and coming out commented upon."
"Dear no, pardon me, not at all. I am always glad when Lord Glenmore says, 'Where have you been so long, Georgina?' because that shews he misses me."
"Oh, of course," said Lady Tenderden, as she always said when she did not know what to say; and inwardly she thought what a world of nature must here be overturned, before any thing artificial can be sown in such a soil! "Well, my dear Lady Glenmore, you come to the Hamlet Vernon's to-morrow night?"
"Yes, I believe so; that is to say, if Lord Glenmore is disengaged."
"Now really we shall all be afraid of such a paragon of love and obedience; or what is worse, we shall all laugh at you if you give tête baissé into that sort of ultra propriety. What can Lord Glenmore's engagements have to do with your coming or not coming to Lady Hamlet Vernon's?" Lady Glenmore blushed, and confessed that she did not wish to go out if Lord Glenmore did not.
"Well, my dear, I see the terrible re-action in perspective which must succeed to all this red-hot love; and it is mighty well for the moment; only you are laying up, croyez moi, a store of discontent and dissatisfaction for yourself."
At this moment a servant entered, and laid a visiting card on the table. "Oh, Mr. Leslie Winyard," said Lady Tenderden, taking it up, "a vastly agreeable creature: you will let him in of course."
"No," answered Lady Glenmore, "the only thing Lord Glenmore does not wish me to do, as a young married woman, is to receive young men as morning visitors, and I have no wish to disobey him; therefore Mr. Leslie Winyard has been included in the general order I gave to that effect."
"Je tombe de mon haut; well, certainly, I never should have guessed that Lord Glenmore, that handsome, young, gay Lothario, would have turned out such a tyrant; and to commence before the honey-moon be well nigh over to shew the cloven-foot of husbandism, is really putting a seal to that tyranny with a vengeance! And he—he too, of all persons, to pretend—but I believe that is always the way, these men à bonnes fortunes do always make the most insufferable husbands."
"I am sure," replied Lady Glenmore, with an air of offended dignity which astonished Lady Tenderden, "I am sure Lord Glenmore desires nothing of me but what he conceives is for my own happiness; and I am perfectly willing to obey him in every thing, far less in such a matter of indifference as this." Her cheeks here grew redder and redder during every word of Lady Tenderden's insidious speech. The melancholy, uneasy expression, nevertheless, which in despite of herself threw a cast of restless inquiry into her countenance, as though she would have asked "to what do you allude?" did not pass unobserved by Lady Tenderden, and she conceived it to be a good time to let the poison work which she had thus insidiously distilled; so she arose to take her leave, and with apparent carelessness said, "Au reste, remember," and she spoke in a soothing tone of commiseration, as if she wished, were it possible, to have withdrawn, or at least to soften the words she had uttered, "remember, Lord Glenmore is not a bit worse than other men, they are all alike; and really I think him singularly agreeable, so do not let any thing I have said give you a moment's uneasiness."
She knew the rankling arrow was in Lady Glenmore's heart. "You have nothing to do but to take your own way, and keep it well in mind that all husbands take theirs, and my word for it, if you only follow this counsel, you will live en Tourtereaux, and lead a very happy life."
"I have no doubt I shall do that," said Lady Glenmore, half-crying.
"Believe me, cher enfant, whenever you feel the least melancholy or uneasy, send for me, and I shall put all to rights for you in a moment; you are a delightful, an unique creature; I really love you, and him too; you know, he was my play-fellow when we were children, therefore I take a particular interest in you both, and am alike the friend of each. Come, dry these beauteous eyes, whose brightness ought not to be dimmed by a tear; come, take a drive with me in the Park." Lady Glenmore hesitated as she replied:
"I expect Lord Glenmore every moment; he promised to drive me in his phaeton. He was to have been here an hour ago" (looking anxiously at the clock).
"Well, then, if he is an hour after his appointment, you would not surely wait for him any longer? Depend upon it he has been engaged by some business, or it may be love of virtù or politics, que sçai-je—come let us go and look for him; my life for it we shall meet him in the Park."
"Perhaps so," said the youthful Georgina with a sigh, who evidently assented to Lady Tenderden's proposal for no other reason than that the hope might be realized;—and ordering the servant who answered her bell, to tell her maid to arrange her shawl, she followed her friend to her carriage.
When they reached the Park her eyes wandered from one figure to another in quest of Lord Glenmore; in vain—the admiration of the passing throng who courted her attention had no attraction for her, she saw not the only object she wished to see, and returned wearied and dispirited, notwithstanding all Lady Tenderden's endeavours to amuse and dissipate her thoughts. The moment she came home, however, she had the satisfaction of finding her husband already there, and she scarcely waited to say adieu to Lady Tenderden before she flew up stairs to him. After her first greeting, he asked her where and with whom she had been; and on telling him, he said, "I am glad, love, that you like Lady Tenderden, for she has a thousand good qualities;" (a façon de parler by the way, which is often taken upon trust from one month to another, and frequently bears no true meaning.) Lord Glenmore continued: "Yes, she has a thousand good qualities, and is very clever and agreeable in her way, and has that perfect usage du monde which has so much charm, and which besides may be of real advantage to a young person like yourself entering on the scene; I am quite rejoiced that she is your friend. It is true she sometimes overpasses that line of retenue which I might like my young wife to observe; yet she has never been charged with any real fault, and in adopting what is best, you can leave out such parts of her manners and conduct as may not exactly suit your age and taste. In short, I think she is a very useful acquaintance, and you may safely listen to her advice respecting your conduct in the world; but after a little experience, my sweet Georgina, you may make your own choice of intimates, and I am sure that selection will always be well and wisely made."
Lady Glenmore listened attentively to her husband, and sighed as she recalled to mind the nature of the advice which she had already received; but thought, "well, then, Lady Tenderden was right after all, and I must not tell Glenmore. How childish and silly I was in having been so vexed about his not coming home this morning,—still less must I tell him of her cautioning me against pursuing him, for should he know that I had a thought of doing so, it might probably produce the effect she predicted."
With this idea thus unfortunately impressed upon her mind by what her husband had unthinkingly said, Lady Glenmore remained silent. The hour of dressing now called them to their toilette, and the subject was not at that time renewed.