"Grandmamma was very sorry to part with it," cries Lady f.a.n.n.y.
"--And then she orders us to proceed to Mr. t.i.tmarsh"s house in the City, where the venison was left, in company with a couple of baskets of fruit bought at Grange"s by Lady f.a.n.n.y herself."
"And what was more," said Lady f.a.n.n.y, "I made Grandmamma go into Fr--into Lord Tiptoff"s rooms, and dictated out of my own mouth the letter which he wrote, and pinned up the haunch of venison that his hideous old housekeeper brought us--I am quite jealous of her--I pinned up the haunch of venison in a copy of the John Bull newspaper."
It had one of the Ramsbottom letters in it, I remember, which Gus and I read on Sunday at breakfast, and we nearly killed ourselves with laughing. The ladies laughed too when I told them this; and good-natured Lady Jane said she would forgive her sister, and hoped I would too: which I promised to do as often as her Ladyship chose to repeat the offence.
I never had any more venison from the family; but I"ll tell you _what_ I had. About a month after came a card of "Lord and Lady Tiptoff," and a great piece of plum-cake; of which, I am sorry to say, Gus ate a great deal too much.
CHAPTER VI
OF THE WEST DIDDLEs.e.x a.s.sOCIATION, AND OF THE EFFECT THE DIAMOND HAD THERE
Well, the magic of the pin was not over yet. Very soon after Mrs.
Brough"s grand party, our director called me up to his room at the West Diddles.e.x, and after examining my accounts, and speaking awhile about business, said, "That"s a very fine diamond-pin, Master t.i.tmarsh" (he spoke in a grave patronising way), "and I called you on purpose to speak to you upon the subject. I do not object to seeing the young men of this establishment well and handsomely dressed; but I know that their salaries cannot afford ornaments like those, and I grieve to see you with a thing of such value. You have paid for it, sir,--I trust you have paid for it; for, of all things, my dear--dear young friend, beware of debt."
I could not conceive why Brough was reading me this lecture about debt and my having bought the diamond-pin, as I knew that he had been asking about it already, and how I came by it--Abednego told me so. "Why, sir,"
says I, "Mr. Abednego told me that he had told you that I had told him--"
"Oh, ay-by-the-bye, now I recollect, Mr. t.i.tmarsh--I do recollect--yes; though I suppose, sir, you will imagine that I have other more important things to remember."
"Oh, sir, in course," says I.
"That one of the clerks _did_ say something about a pin--that one of the other gentlemen had it. And so your pin was given you, was it?"
"It was given me, sir, by my aunt, Mrs. Hoggarty of Castle Hoggarty,"
said I, raising my voice; for I was a little proud of Castle Hoggarty.
"She must be very rich to make such presents, t.i.tmarsh?"
"Why, thank you, sir," says I, "she is pretty well off. Four hundred a year jointure; a farm at Slopperton, sir; three houses at Squashtail; and three thousand two hundred loose cash at the banker"s, as I happen to know, sir,--_that"s all_."
I did happen to know this, you see; because, while I was down in Somersetshire, Mr. MacMa.n.u.s, my aunt"s agent in Ireland, wrote to say that a mortgage she had on Lord Brallaghan"s property had just been paid off, and that the money was lodged at Coutts"s. Ireland was in a very disturbed state in those days; and my aunt wisely determined not to invest her money in that country any more, but to look out for some good security in England. However, as she had always received six per cent.
in Ireland, she would not hear of a smaller interest; and had warned me, as I was a commercial man, on coming to town, to look out for some means by which she could invest her money at that rate at least.
"And how do you come to know Mrs. Hoggarty"s property so accurately?"
said Mr. Brough; upon which I told him.
"Good heavens, sir! and do you mean that you, a clerk in the West Diddles.e.x Insurance Office, applied to by a respectable lady as to the manner in which she should invest property, never spoke to her about the Company which you have the honour to serve? Do you mean, sir, that you, knowing there was a bonus of five per cent. for yourself upon shares taken, did not press Mrs. Hoggarty to join us?"
"Sir," says I, "I"m an honest man, and would not take a bonus from my own relation."
"Honest I know you are, my boy--give me your hand! So am I honest--so is every man in this Company honest; but we must be prudent as well. We have five millions of capital on our books, as you see--five _bona fide_ millions of _bona fide_ sovereigns paid up, sir,--there is no dishonesty there. But why should we not have twenty millions--a hundred millions?
Why should not this be the greatest commercial a.s.sociation in the world?--as it shall be, sir,--it shall, as sure as my name is John Brough, if Heaven bless my honest endeavours to establish it! But do you suppose that it can be so, unless every man among us use his utmost exertions to forward the success of the enterprise? Never, sir,--never; and, for me, I say so everywhere. I glory in what I do. There is not a house in which I enter, but I leave a prospectus of the West Diddles.e.x.
There is not a single tradesman I employ, but has shares in it to some amount. My servants, sir,--my very servants and grooms, are bound up with it. And the first question I ask of anyone who applies to me for a place is, Are you insured or a shareholder in the West Diddles.e.x? the second, Have you a good character? And if the first question is answered in the negative, I say to the party coming to me, Then be a shareholder before you ask for a place in my household. Did you not see me--me, John Brough, whose name is good for millions--step out of my coach-and-four into this office, with four pounds nineteen, which I paid in to Mr.
Roundhand as the price of half a share for the porter at my lodge-gate?
Did you remark that I deducted a shilling from the five pound?"
"Yes, sir; it was the day you drew out eight hundred and seventy-three ten and six--Thursday week," says I.
"And why did I deduct that shilling, sir? Because it was _my commission_--John Brough"s commission; honestly earned by him, and openly taken. Was there any disguise about it? No. Did I do it for the love of a shilling? No," says Brough, laying his hand on his heart, "I did it from _principle_,--from that motive which guides every one of my actions, as I can look up to Heaven and say. I wish all my young men to see my example, and follow it: I wish--I pray that they may. Think of that example, sir. That porter of mine has a sick wife and nine young children: he is himself a sick man, and his tenure of life is feeble; he has earned money, sir, in my service--sixty pounds and more--it is all his children have to look to--all: but for that, in the event of his death, they would be houseless beggars in the street. And what have I done for that family, sir? I have put that money out of the reach of Robert Gates, and placed it so that it shall be a blessing to his family at his death. Every farthing is invested in shares in this office; and Robert Gates, my lodge-porter, is a holder of three shares in the West Diddles.e.x a.s.sociation, and, in that capacity, your master and mine. Do you think I want to _cheat_ Gates?"
"Oh, sir!" says I.
"To cheat that poor helpless man, and those tender innocent children!--you can"t think so, sir; I should be a disgrace to human nature if I did. But what boots all my energy and perseverance? What though I place my friends" money, my family"s money, my own money--my hopes, wishes, desires, ambitions--all upon this enterprise? You young men will not do so. You, whom I treat with love and confidence as my children, make no return to me. When I toil, you remain still; when I struggle, you look on. Say the word at once,--you doubt me! O heavens, that this should be the reward of all my care and love for you!"
Here Mr. Brough was so affected that he actually burst into tears, and I confess I saw in its true light the negligence of which I had been guilty.
"Sir," says I, "I am very--very sorry: it was a matter of delicacy, rather than otherwise, which induced me not to speak to my aunt about the West Diddles.e.x."
"Delicacy, my dear dear boy--as if there can be any delicacy about making your aunt"s fortune! Say indifference to me, say ingrat.i.tude, say folly,--but don"t say delicacy--no, no, not delicacy. Be honest, my boy, and call things by their right names--always do."
"It _was_ folly and ingrat.i.tude, Mr. Brough," says I: "I see it all now; and I"ll write to my aunt this very post."
"You had better do no such thing," says Brough, bitterly: "the stocks are at ninety, and Mrs. Hoggarty can get three per cent. for her money."
"I _will_ write, sir,--upon my word and honour, I will write."
"Well, as your honour is pa.s.sed, you must, I suppose; for never break your word--no, not in a trifle, t.i.tmarsh. Send me up the letter when you have done, and I"ll frank it--upon my word and honour I will," says Mr.
Brough, laughing, and holding out his hand to me.
I took it, and he pressed mine very kindly--"You may as well sit down here," says he, as he kept hold of it; "there is plenty of paper."
And so I sat down and mended a beautiful pen, and began and wrote, "Independent West Diddles.e.x a.s.sociation, June 1822," and "My dear Aunt,"
in the best manner possible. Then I paused a little, thinking what I should next say; for I have always found that difficulty about letters.
The date and My dear So-and-so one writes off immediately--it is the next part which is hard; and I put my pen in my mouth, flung myself back in my chair, and began to think about it.
"Bah!" said Brough, "are you going to be about this letter all day, my good fellow? Listen to me, and I"ll dictate to you in a moment." So he began:--
"My Dear Aunt,--Since my return from Somersetshire, I am very happy indeed to tell you that I have so pleased the managing director of our a.s.sociation and the Board, that they have been good enough to appoint me third clerk--"
"Sir!" says I.
"Write what I say. Mr. Roundhand, as has been agreed by the board yesterday, quits the clerk"s desk and takes the t.i.tle of secretary and actuary. Mr. Highmore takes his place; Mr. Abednego follows him; and I place you as third clerk--as
"third clerk (write), with a salary of a hundred and fifty pounds per annum. This news will, I know, gratify my dear mother and you, who have been a second mother to me all my life.
"When I was last at home, I remember you consulted me as to the best mode of laying out a sum of money which was lying useless in your banker"s hands. I have since lost no opportunity of gaining what information I could: and situated here as I am, in the very midst of affairs, I believe, although very young, I am as good a person to apply to as many others of greater age and standing.
"I frequently thought of mentioning to you our a.s.sociation, but feelings of delicacy prevented me from doing so. I did not wish that anyone should suppose that a shadow of self-interest could move me in any way.
"But I believe, without any sort of doubt, that the West Diddles.e.x a.s.sociation offers the best security that you can expect for your capital, and, at the same time, the highest interest you can anywhere procure.
"The situation of the Company, as I have it from _the very best authority_ (underline that), is as follows:--