"Not a bit of a mistake; she"s a niece of Sir Gilbert. I remember that, because the name is a familiar one."
"Familiar!" repeated Hawbury; "I should think so. By Jove!"
Hawbury here relapsed into silence, and sat with a frown on his face, and a puzzled expression. At times he would mutter such words as, "Deuced odd!" "Confounded queer!" "What a lot!" "By Jove!" while Dacres looked at him in some surprise.
"Look here, old fellow!" said he at last. "Will you have the kindness to inform me what there is in the little fact I just mentioned to upset a man of your size, age, fighting weight, and general coolness of blood?"
"Well, there is a deuced odd coincidence about it, that"s all."
"Coincidence with what?"
"Well, I"ll tell some other time. It"s a sore subject, old fellow.
Another time, my boy. I"ll only mention now that it"s the cause of my present absence from England. There"s a bother that I don"t care to encounter, and Sir Gilbert Biggs"s nieces are at the bottom of it."
"You don"t mean this one, I hope?" cried Dacres, in some alarm.
"Heaven forbid! By Jove! No. I hope not."
"No, I hope not, by Jove!" echoed the other.
"Well, old man," said Hawbury, after a fit of silence, "I suppose you"ll push matters on now, hard and fast, and launch yourself into matrimony?"
"Well--I--suppose--so," said Dacres, hesitatingly.
"You _suppose_ so. Of course you will. Don"t I know you, old chap?
Impetuous, tenacious of purpose, iron will, one idea, and all that sort of thing. Of course you will; and you"ll be married in a month."
"Well," said Dacres, in the same hesitating way, "not so soon as that, I"m afraid."
"Why not?"
"Why, I have to get the lady first."
"The lady; oh, she seems to be willing enough, judging from your description. Her pleading look at you. Why, man, there was love at first sight. Then tumbling down the crater of a volcano, and getting fished out. Why, man, what woman could resist a claim like that, especially when it is enforced by a man like Scone Dacres? And, by Jove! Sconey, allow me to inform you that I"ve always considered you a most infernally handsome man; and what"s more, my opinion is worth something, by Jove!"
Hereupon Hawbury stretched his head and shoulders back, and pulled away with each hand at his long yellow pendent whiskers. Then he yawned. And then he slowly e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed,
"By Jove!"
"Well," said Dacres, thoughtfully, "there is something in what you say; and, to tell the truth, I think there"s not a bad chance for me, so far as the lady herself is concerned; but the difficulty is not in that quarter."
"Not in that quarter! Why, where the mischief else could there be any difficulty, man?"
Dacres was silent.
"You"re eager enough?"
Dacres nodded his head sadly.
"Eager! why, eager isn"t the word. You"re mad, man--mad as a March hare! So go in and win."
Dacres said nothing.
"You"re rich, not over old, handsome, well born, well bred, and have saved the lady"s life by extricating her from the crater of a volcano.
She seems too young and childlike to have had any other affairs. She"s probably just out of school; not been into society; not come out; just the girl. Confound these girls, I say, that have gone through engagements with other fellows!"
"Oh, as to that," said Dacres, "this little thing is just like a child, and in her very simplicity does not know what love is.
Engagement! By Jove, I don"t believe she knows the meaning of the word! She"s perfectly fresh, artless, simple, and guileless. I don"t believe she ever heard a word of sentiment or tenderness from any man in her life."
"Very likely; so where"s the difficulty?"
"Well, to tell the truth, the difficulty is in my own affairs."
"Your affairs! Odd, too. What"s up? I didn"t know any thing had happened. That"s too infernal bad, too."
"Oh, it"s nothing of that sort; money"s all right; no swindle. It"s an affair of another character altogether."
"Oh!"
"And one, too, that makes me think that--"
He hesitated.
"That what?"
"That I"d better start for Australia."
"Australia!"
"Yes."
"What"s the meaning of that?"
"Why," said Dacres, gloomily, "it means giving up the child-angel, and trying to forget her--if I ever can."
"Forget her! What"s the meaning of all this? Why, man, five minutes ago you were all on fire about her, and now you talk quietly about giving her up! I"m all adrift."
"Well, it"s a mixed up matter."
"What is?"
"My affair."
"Your affair; something that has happened?"
"Yes. It"s a sore matter, and I don"t care to speak about it just now."
"Oh!"