“Ay, but how?” asked Willie.
“How?” cried Mr Tippet; “why, by giving ’em money. You are aware that I stopped their allowance because Cattley senior went and drank it as soon as he got it, and Cattley junior is able to support himself, and I was not until now aware that the poor daughter was killing herself to support her father; but as I do know it now I’ll continue the allowance and increase it, and we shall give it into the daughter’s hands, so that the father won’t be able to mis-spend it.”
Mr Tippet’s visage glowed with ardour as he stated this arrangement, but the glow was displaced by a look of anxiety as he observed that Willie shook his head and looked as perplexed as ever.
“If that plan would have availed I would have tried it long ago,” said he, with a sad smile, “for my income is a pretty good one, thanks to you, sir—”
“Thanks to your own genius, Willie, for the remarkable and prolific offshoots which you have caused to sprout from this dry old root,” said Mr Tippet, interrupting, as he glanced round the room with an air of affection, which showed that he loved the root dearly, despite its age and dryness.
“Not the less thanks to you, sir,” said Willie, in the deferential tone which he had assumed involuntarily towards his patron almost from the commencement of their intercourse; “but Z–—a—Miss Cattley positively refuses to accept of money from anyone in charity, as long as she can work.”
“Ah!” exclaimed Mr Tippet, shaking his head slowly, “pride, simple pride. Not laudable pride, observe. She deceives herself, no doubt, into the belief that it is laudable, but it is not; for, when a girl cannot work without working herself into her grave, it is her duty not to work, and it is the duty as well as the privilege of her friends to support her. Truth is truth, Willie, and we must not shrink from stating it because a few illogical thinkers are apt to misunderstand it, or because there are a number of mean-spirited wretches who would be too glad to say that they could not work without injuring their health if they could, by so doing, persuade their friends to support them. What! are those whom God has visited with weakness of body to be made to toil and moil far beyond their strength in order to prove that they do not belong to the class of deceivers and sycophants? Yet public opinion in regard to this matter of what is called self-respect and proper pride compels many hundreds who urgently require assistance to refuse it, and dooms many of them to a premature grave, while it does not shut the maw of a single one of the other class. Why, sir, Miss Cattley is committing suicide; and, in regard to her father, who is dependent on her, she is committing murder—murder, sir!”
Mr Tippet’s eyes flashed with indignation, and he drove the chisel deep down into the bench, as if to give point and force to his sentiment, as well as an illustration of the dreadful idea with which he concluded.
Willie admitted that there was much truth in Mr Tippet’s observations, but did not quite agree with him in his sweeping condemnation of Ziza.
“However,” continued Mr Tippet, resuming his quiet tone and benignant aspect, “I’ll consider the matter. Yes, I’ll consider the matter and see what’s to be done for ’em.”