The Man Between [37]
just as well born as themselves, respected business energy and enterprise; and she had other plans and propositions just as interesting and as full of youth's impossible enthusiasm.
In the morning she went to talk the subject over with her grandmother. The old lady received the news with affected indif- ference. She said, "It mattered nothing to her who sat in Rawdon's seat; but she would not hear Mostyn blamed for seeking his right. Money and sentiment are no kin," she added, "and Fred has no sentiment about Rawdon. Why should he? Only last summer Rawdon kept him out of Parliament, and made him spend a lot of money beside. He's right to get even with the family if he can."
"But the old Squire! He is now----"
"I know; he's older than I am. But Squire Percival has had his day, and Fred would not do anything out of the way to him--he could not; the county would make both Mostyn and Rawdon very uncomfortable places to live in, if he did."
"If you turn a man out of his home when he is eighty years old, I think that is `out of the way.' And Mr. Mostyn is not to be trusted. I wouldn't trust him as far as I could see him."
"Highty-tighty! He has not asked you to trust him. You lost your chance there, miss."
"Grandmother, I am astonished at you!"
"Well, it was a mean thing to say, Ethel; but I like Fred, and I see the rest of my family are against him. It's natural for Yorkshire to help the weakest side. But there, Fred can do his own fighting, I'll warrant. He's not an ordinary man."
"I'm sorry to say he isn't, grandmother. If he were he would speak without a drawl, and get rid of his monocle, and not pay such minute attention to his coats and vests and walking sticks."
Then Ethel proceeded to explain her resolves with regard to the Tyrrel-Rawdons. "I shall pay them the greatest attention," she said. "It was a noble thing in young Tyrrel-Rawdon to give up everything for honorable love, and I think everyone ought to have stood by him."
"That wouldn't have done at all. If Tyrrel had been petted as you think he ought to have been, every respectable young man and woman in the county would have married where their fancy led them; and the fancies of young people mostly lead them to the road it is ruin to take."
"From what Fred Mostyn says, Tyrrel's descendants seem to have taken a very respectable road."
"I've nothing to say for or against them. It's years and years since I laid eyes on any of the family. Your grandfather helped one of the young men to come to America, and I remember his mother getting into a passion about it. She was a fat woman in a Paisley shawl and a love-bird on her bonnet. I saw his sister often. She weighed about twelve stone, and had red hair and red cheeks and bare red elbows. She was called a `strapping lass.' That is quite a complimentary term in the West Riding."
"Please, grandmother, I don't want to hear any more. In two weeks I shall be able to judge for myself. Since then there have been two generations, and if a member of the present one is fit for Parliament----"
"That's nothing. We needn't look for anything specially refined in Parliament in these days. There's another thing. These Tyrrel-Rawdons are chapel people. The rector of Rawdon church would not marry Tyrrel to his low-born love, and so they went to the Methodist preacher, and after that to the Methodist chapel. That put them down, more than you can imagine here in America."
"It was a shame! Methodists are most respectable people."
"I'm saying nothing contrary."
"The President is a Methodist."
"I never asked what he was. I am a Church of England woman, you know that. Born and bred in the Church, baptized, confirmed, and married in the Church, and I was always taught it was the only proper Church for gentlemen and gentlewomen to be saved in. However, English Methodists often go back to the Church when they get rich."
"Church or chapel makes no difference to me, grandmother. If people are only good."
"To be sure; but you won't be long in England until you'll find out that some things make
In the morning she went to talk the subject over with her grandmother. The old lady received the news with affected indif- ference. She said, "It mattered nothing to her who sat in Rawdon's seat; but she would not hear Mostyn blamed for seeking his right. Money and sentiment are no kin," she added, "and Fred has no sentiment about Rawdon. Why should he? Only last summer Rawdon kept him out of Parliament, and made him spend a lot of money beside. He's right to get even with the family if he can."
"But the old Squire! He is now----"
"I know; he's older than I am. But Squire Percival has had his day, and Fred would not do anything out of the way to him--he could not; the county would make both Mostyn and Rawdon very uncomfortable places to live in, if he did."
"If you turn a man out of his home when he is eighty years old, I think that is `out of the way.' And Mr. Mostyn is not to be trusted. I wouldn't trust him as far as I could see him."
"Highty-tighty! He has not asked you to trust him. You lost your chance there, miss."
"Grandmother, I am astonished at you!"
"Well, it was a mean thing to say, Ethel; but I like Fred, and I see the rest of my family are against him. It's natural for Yorkshire to help the weakest side. But there, Fred can do his own fighting, I'll warrant. He's not an ordinary man."
"I'm sorry to say he isn't, grandmother. If he were he would speak without a drawl, and get rid of his monocle, and not pay such minute attention to his coats and vests and walking sticks."
Then Ethel proceeded to explain her resolves with regard to the Tyrrel-Rawdons. "I shall pay them the greatest attention," she said. "It was a noble thing in young Tyrrel-Rawdon to give up everything for honorable love, and I think everyone ought to have stood by him."
"That wouldn't have done at all. If Tyrrel had been petted as you think he ought to have been, every respectable young man and woman in the county would have married where their fancy led them; and the fancies of young people mostly lead them to the road it is ruin to take."
"From what Fred Mostyn says, Tyrrel's descendants seem to have taken a very respectable road."
"I've nothing to say for or against them. It's years and years since I laid eyes on any of the family. Your grandfather helped one of the young men to come to America, and I remember his mother getting into a passion about it. She was a fat woman in a Paisley shawl and a love-bird on her bonnet. I saw his sister often. She weighed about twelve stone, and had red hair and red cheeks and bare red elbows. She was called a `strapping lass.' That is quite a complimentary term in the West Riding."
"Please, grandmother, I don't want to hear any more. In two weeks I shall be able to judge for myself. Since then there have been two generations, and if a member of the present one is fit for Parliament----"
"That's nothing. We needn't look for anything specially refined in Parliament in these days. There's another thing. These Tyrrel-Rawdons are chapel people. The rector of Rawdon church would not marry Tyrrel to his low-born love, and so they went to the Methodist preacher, and after that to the Methodist chapel. That put them down, more than you can imagine here in America."
"It was a shame! Methodists are most respectable people."
"I'm saying nothing contrary."
"The President is a Methodist."
"I never asked what he was. I am a Church of England woman, you know that. Born and bred in the Church, baptized, confirmed, and married in the Church, and I was always taught it was the only proper Church for gentlemen and gentlewomen to be saved in. However, English Methodists often go back to the Church when they get rich."
"Church or chapel makes no difference to me, grandmother. If people are only good."
"To be sure; but you won't be long in England until you'll find out that some things make