The Major was perfectly sincere in his sympathetic sorrow and in his sympathetic joy; consequently, he was a favourite with both sexes, old and young, and was the confidant of all in many delicate affairs which could have been intrusted only to one who had proved himself able to keep a secret as well as to sympathise. His little foibles were overlooked, or, at most, provoked a quiet smile at his innocent faith in their invisibility. For instance, nobody ever displayed the slightest consciousness that his well-trimmed black hair and moustache were dyed, although the fact was patent to every one. On this subject the Major was peculiarly sensitive; and for years he cherished the fond delusion that even his man Hollis believed black to be the natural colour of his hair. But accident betrayed the mystery, and from that hour the master was held in bondage by the man.
Hollis had been in several good places at one time as valet, and subsequently as butler. As a matter of principle, he considered himself bound to test the quality of all the liquors in his master’s cellar and sideboard; and he had carried this principle of self-sacrifice to his employers’ interests to such a degree that he was at length glad to accept the moderate salary which Major Dawkins could afford to pay him for his services as general factotum. Of course, Hollis regarded his new position as a downfall in the world, for here he had to combine the duties of butler, valet, and footman, and there was no cellar at all! But he had a considerate master, and during their frequent stay at country-houses, Hollis’s appetites were amply satisfied, whilst he discovered various ways of securing ‘tips’ which materially added to his income. He might have been as contented as a man of his character ever could be, if it had not been for one grievance.
His master had a nice little box covered with Russian leather and supplied with a Bramah lock. The Major took this box everywhere with him; he always opened it and locked it himself and kept the key in his own pocket. It was not a jewel-case or a cash-box, for Hollis had seen it open on several occasions, and noted that its chief contents were a small green glass and a bottle of peculiar shape without any label. The principle which regulated the life of Hollis was touched: he had no doubt that the bottle contained some special liqueur—in colour it somewhat resembled yellow Chartreuse, as far as he could make out—and he felt much aggrieved that his master would allow him no opportunity of testing its quality. That it must be something very special was evident from the care with which it was guarded.
He watched and waited, and his opportunity came, as it comes to all who wait. The Major was out later than usual one night, and next morning he rose late, which caused him to be much hurried with his toilet, in order to keep an important engagement.
‘Back about three,’ he said as he hastened away.
When the door closed behind him, Hollis, as was his custom, instantly entered his master’s room.—Did his eyes deceive him? No; the key was in the lock of the little Russian leather case, for once forgotten by its keeper. The man’s eyes glistened with satisfaction, and his mouth watered in anticipation of the treat in store for him, as he removed the stopper and filled the dainty glass with the contents of the bottle. It looked nice, but he did not quite relish its faint odour. There was a suspicion of almonds and something else, which he could not liken to anything he had smelt before. Doubtless it was some Indian liqueur, good for the liver; people did drink strange stuffs as well as eat strange stuffs in foreign parts. Hollis was not the person to shrink from his duty; he had tasted almost everything in the way of wines and liqueurs, and he was bound to discover the character of this fluid. He raised the glass to his lips.
‘Good heavens! man, what are you doing?’ shouted the voice of the Major, raised in extreme alarm. ‘That is deadly poison—it is hair-dye!’
The glass dropped from the servant’s trembling hand, and he stood abashed.
The Major having discovered his oversight when only a little way from his chambers, had hastily returned, and his latchkey admitted him. Without heeding the broken glass, he angrily locked the case and put the key in his pocket. He was chagrined that in his excitement he had blurted out the carefully guarded secret of the black hair and moustaches; whilst he was relieved by the thought that he had been in time to save the man from the consequences of his folly. He was as much confused as Hollis, and his confusion lasted longer, for the worthy factotum was quick to perceive the advantage he had gained.
Instant dismissal was the penalty that the master first thought of; and the next moment he felt that he dared not inflict it. The man would talk, and in a few hours the scandal would fly up the back-stairs of every house in town. Very likely there would be a smart paragraph in the ‘Society’ journals making fun of him.