As the eldest girl of a well-born, but impecunious family, she had, so to speak, "taken the bush out of the gap," for her five sisters, sacrificed her Romance, and married Hector Ffinch; a prosperous tea-planter, whose stolid reserved character, found an irresistible attraction in vivacious Julia Lamerton,—who had the power of imposing her personality on all her surroundings.
After a short and undemonstrative courtship, a quiet wedding and handsome settlements, he carried off his bride to the East. India fell far beneath the lady's expectations; a vivid imagination had misled her; at "Clouds Rest" she found no gay, amusing cantonment, or gorgeous, and amazing entourage—merely a vast tea estate, a large, half-empty bungalow, and a tribe of brown retainers,—last, not least, a dull enough husband! Hector was as heavy and immovable as a block of granite; she, as mobile and restless, as a bit of quicksilver.
For a time, she secretly wept, and bitterly bewailed her fate. It was all so utterly different to what she had expected! Alas, for her plan of inviting her sisters one by one, and marrying them off with success and éclat! "Clouds Rest" was as hopeless (from a matrimonial point of view) as any dead-and-alive rural village.
However, she had one solid consolation—money; also, the still undimmed halo of "the bride"; so she exercised her gifts of oratory and persuasion, and pleaded most eloquently for the company of guests, for a motor, for quantities of new furniture, and a trip home,—at least once in three years. To all these requests, Hector lent a favourable ear; even his lethargic mind realized what the change of surroundings meant to a member of a large and talkative family, and any amount of lively society. The couple had now been married twelve years; and in spite of various visits to England, and many gay excursions to the plains, Julia Ffinch was beginning to weary of this comfortable exile; she could never be happy without a certain amount of excitement—excitement was as necessary to her well-being, as petrol to an engine.
She did a little racing (under the rose)—the telegraph peon's red turban looming along through the tea bushes, gave her appropriate thrills; she played Bridge for rather high stakes; but what afforded her the keenest enjoyment, was intruding into other people's lives; pulling strings, directing their affairs, and making her puppets dance right merrily! This, she considered to be a legitimate and delightful entertainment, and by dint of clever manipulation, contrived to make her immediate neighbours perform with praiseworthy success!
It was thanks to her offices, that a planter's wife at Tirraputty had left her home in a cloud of mystery; she had stage-managed the engagement between Blanche Meach, and a civilian; a notable match,—but then Blanche was very pretty. On the other hand, to her, was attributed the rupture of the affair between Fanny Hicks, and a young fellow in the Woods and Forests, and the dire disgrace of a German Missionary. Many and various matters in which Mrs. Ffinch had taken a part, afforded scope for interviews, letters, stormy scenes (at which she assisted), cables, telegrams, sudden entrances and exits. All of these, the clever operator of the puppet-play, most heartily enjoyed.
Mrs. Ffinch descended the steps with leisurely precision,—offering as she did so, an interesting display of brown silk stockings, and neat brown shoes.—She was immediately followed by her grey-haired, square-headed, and somewhat paunchy lord; and also a guest; a slim, well-groomed gentleman, with closely set black eyes, and a slightly vulpine nose. Some people thought Captain Calvert handsome; to others, he unpleasantly recalled a well-bred greyhound with an uncertain temper.
"Well, Nancy darling," Mrs. Ffinch began in her clear high voice, "so here we are at last! We had a smash—ran into a bullock bandy at a corner—the bandy, like the 'Coo,' got the worst of it!"
Her glance travelled to Mayne, and as her eyes rested on him, they brightened,—after the manner of a hunter who sees game afoot!
A tall, well set-up young fellow, with clear-cut features, candid dark eyes, and an air of distinction—quite a find!