CHAPTER CXXV.
[Chapter 135]
MR. TWISSEL'S MISADVENTURES. —THE CONSEQUENCES OF BEING FOUND IN THE BANK
WITHOUT GIVING A SATISFACTORY ACCOUNT OF YOUR BUSINESS THERE. —AN UNPLEASANT
DILEMMA.
The peculiar position of Mrs. Meredith and her daughter Margaret, in some
measure, and to a great degree, tied their hands, and caused a corresponding
desire to know more than was told them; at the same time, they were fearful of
giving any offence to their new and wealthy lodger. They were both avaricious
and designing. To make a good settlement was the grand object of their lives,
and to that object they would sacrifice themselves —at least, sacrifice
Margaret, who, by-the-bye, would consider it no sacrifice at all, but a great
stroke of good luck.
However, they could do nothing of themselves; they saw there was a great,
and glorious chance for the future; they felt they had entangled the colonel;
they felt he had become a victim to their snares, and they were unwilling that
they should run any risk of a failure of their plans.
"If we offend him, he may consider us avaricious and designing," they
argued; "and that might prove too strong an antidote to even an old man's
love, and the prize might be snatched out of our hands, and we might not only
lose a rich husband, but a good lodger also."
These considerations induced them to act more warily and cautious than
the attorney, Mr. Twissel, who was anxious at once to seize the bull by the
horns, and come to an explanation, and thus save himself much labour and time,
for the sooner there was an explanation the better; and he did not apprehend
the result that they did; he believed it would only appear proper caution on
the part of a mother.
They had different opinions; and, between the two, there was an
indecisive policy adopted, which occasioned delay and uncertainty.
There was no doubt but the colonel meant matrimony; his infirmities were
of no consequence. It was not the man, but the money, that was wanted, and
which was sought with perseverance and constancy. They appeared negligent of
money matters before the colonel; and, when he paid them, which he did
regularly, he alwasys appeared to have money about him, which, of course,
increased their respect, and gave them increased confidence in him.
"It is all very well, ma," said Margaret, "but Mr. Twissel must not
offend Colonel Deverill; he is evidently a man much above him; his actions and
manner are such, that at once stamp him immeasurably his superior; now, as
regards this property, there can be no doubt but he must have enough."
"I think so, too, my dear; but it would be a dreadful thing if it should
turn out otherwise in the end; it would really be very dreadful; I should
never survive it."
"Nor I mother."
"What is to be done? —I declare I am at my wits' end."
"There is no fear, ma; do you not remember that Mr. Twissel himself has
found out that he is Colonel Deverill, and that he has retired from the army
of the Company?"
"Indeed, my dear, that is correct; I had forgotten that—quite forgotten
it; but it may so happen he has no money at all; he may have spent it."
"He does not appear to be extravagant," said Margaret; "he has retired
upon his half-pay, which you know must be a very good living, and I am sure of
a widow's pension, if nothing more; and, besides, I am sure, from what he has
said, there must be money."
"Well, I think so, too, my dear," said Mrs. Meredith; "and I think it
will be better that things should go on as the colonel desires; to lose him
him would be horribly aggravating."
"So it will, ma, because I am sure he will do justice. It is not like as
if we had money, too, and were as willing to have our affairs investigated, as
we are to investigate his."
"That is very true, my dear, very true; and Mr. Twissel does not seem to
know that; that I will tell him when I see him; by the way, I must send to
him, to tell him the colonel is going out in about an hour. If he can find
out anything, without compromising us in the affair, why, he may do so, and
welcome; for, you must acknowledge, it will be all the more satifactory."
"Yes, yes, I admit that; but I would not wilfully lose a good
opportunity."
"I must now send off to him. Mary must go, and that, too, as quickly as
she can; for I shall want her back again very soon, so she must run."
"Then, the sooner she goes the better," said Margaret.
Mary was sent to Mr. Twissel, who happened to be at home at the time, and
judging that Mary had been a good time on the road, that there would be no
time to go to Mrs. Meredith's house, and then follow the coach, so he
determined to go to the bank at once, so that he would be there in time to see
the colonel descend and enter the bank, into which he would follow him.
He sent word back to Mrs. Meredith that he would go on, and see her as
soon after as he could; and then he made the best of his way towards the bank,
where he arrived in good time—indeed, half-an-hour before the colonel, who
did not set out so soon as he intended.
"Now," thought Twissel, "if he were to turn out all right, why, I shall
be in good fortune; but if bad, it would be laid upon my shoulders. They
shall not say that I have not given them attention enough for their money; and
if I don't do something, they will say I haven't earned my money; and though I
can enforce payment of the bond, yet it may hurt my future prospects with
regard to my future connection with the family, which I hope to make a
profitable one in the long run."
Filled with these thoughts, he determined to watch with due caution for
the arrival of the colonel, on the other side of the way.
It was some time before the coach drove up, which it did after a
considerable lapse of time, and then Mr. Twissel crossed over, and placed
himself in a position by the lamp-post where he could obtain a good view of
any one passing in and out of the coach.
"'Tis he," he muttered, as he saw the colonel step out of the carriage,
and walk into the bank very leisurely and quietly, leaning upon his stick, and
walking lame. He watched him into the bank —he saw him go some distance
down the passage, and then he muttered, —
"Now, I will follow him up closely."
And, after a moment's pause to permit some one to pass him, he then
darted down the passage into a kind of yard; but no, he could not see him; he
was not there; and yet he was so lame, he could not have got out of sight so
soon as all that.
"He's gone to the dividend-office," he muttered; "I shall find him
there," and away he posted to that department; but he could not find him, he
was —he was not there. Then what could have become of him? That was a
point he could not solve.
"Well, this is very odd," he muttered; "very odd."
He paused to think over the matter; but that did not aid him. He was in
the dark but thought it was no use in waiting in any one place, so wandered
about from office to office, until he came to the body of the place, when he
waited until some one came up to him, and touched him on the shoulder. He
turned round, and at once perceived it was an officer.
"What do you want with me?" inquired Twissel.
"What is your business here?" returned the officer, by way of reply.
"I am here upon my own business. I am at a loss to understand what you
mean by asking me such a question in a public place. What can you mean by it?
I was never asked such a question before, and cannot see why you should do so
now."
"Excuse me, sir, I have ample warrant for what I am doing."
"Have you? Then state it."
"Easily. I have followed you about this last half-hour, and you have
been wandering about the place for some time, and looking about you in a
manner that has excited a good deal of suspicion, to say the least of it; and
I must have some satifactory explanation."
"You can have that," replied Mr. Twissel, very much annoyed; "you can
have any explanation you can require. I am very sure I came here on my own
affairs; what other explanation can you require?"
"Your affairs may be ours also, and the explanation you have given will
be just enough to justify my taking you into custody—so if you have no more
to say, I must request the favour of your company; that's my card of
invitation; do you hear, sir?"
"Yes, I do; I am an attorney-at-law, and you may depend upon it I will
not be content without punishing you for this indignity—I came in here
because I saw a friend call, to whom I wanted to speak."
"Where is he?"
"I don't know," said Twissel; "I have missed him."
"Very likely, and your friend will miss you for a short time; for you
must come with me; —you have been found here without being able to give any
account of yourself."
"I tell you I came in here to see Colonel Deverill."
"Well, what do we know of Colonel Deverill? We don't know anything about
him, nor you either; you must come with me. We are obligated to be very
particular when we see strangers walking about with no object whatever in
view—it is very suspicious."
"But I tell you I am a respectable attorney—a professional man. I had
no bad object in view."
"That may be as you say; but you must come with me."
Seeing there no help for it, Mr. Twissel resigned himself into the
officer's hands, and followed him to the station-house, where he was examined
byt the inspector, at the place where he was taken.
"Well, sir," said the inspector, "this may be all very true, but we must
have some proof of what you assert; then we can let you go."
"I'll have a complaint against you."
"You may; but you must prove not only that what you say is true, but that
there was no cause for suspicion, and that you were not loitering about the
bank, as the officer asserts you were."
The attorney thought that it would be quite unnecessary to get into the
public prints, because it would not do for him to make use of Colonel
Deverill's name; and that he had already done. What was he do do? he had got
into a very disagreeable scrape, out of which he must now get in the best
manner possible, and which he could not see his way clear to do.
"What do you want me to do?"
"Give us some proof that you are the person whom you represent yourself
to be," he replied, "and then we can let you go at once."
"Then I will give you my card," said Twissel, producing his card-case.
"That is no proof," said the constable. "A man might have robbed you of
your card-case, and you would have some one passing himself off for yourself."
"What shall I do, then?" inquired Twissel.
"Send for some one who knows you, or send for your own clerk—that will
do."
"That I can do at once," replied Twissel; and he at once wrote a note to
his clerk, and gave it unsealed into the hands of the constable, and asked if
there was any one who would go with it.
"You can send a messenger; there are many who will do that if you pay
them for it," replied the constable; and in another minute, for the sum of
half-a-crown, a messenger agreed to take the letter to his office, and deliver
it to his clerk, and wait for him.
This was done, and until that time he was locked up in a cell, where he
had a light certainly, but in which he had no other comfort at all; but in
about an hour and a half there was the prospect of a relief; for he saw his
clerk come into the station-house, and with him the messenger, who came to the
constable and said that was Mr. Twissel's clerk.
"Do you know Mr. Twissel?" inquired the constable.
"Yes, I do; he is my employer."
"Then point him out," said the constable.
At that moment, Mr. Twissel was brought in, and he at once pointed him
out to the satisfaction of the constable, who, with an admonition, consented
to the enlargement of Mr. Twissel, and in answer to his threat of future
investigation, said to him, —
"You see, sir, the bank is such a place, that we are compelled to keep
all persons out who have no business there, and it must not be a place where
people meet who have no particular bank business to transact; do not wait
about, then, for the future, sir, else you may run the same danger."
Mr. Twissel left the station-house with a feeling very much akin to
anger, and he walked home with a very disagreeable feeling. He felt that he
had been baffled, and had been also much ill-used, and very much affronted.
"Where could he have got to?" he murmured. "He must have turned in some
of the offices—confound him! I wish he had taken it into his head to
tumble. I am sure he ain't no good; if he were, I should not have been placed
in such an unpleasant position."
Suddenly he recollected that there was no necessity for his going home,
unless there had been anything happened since his departure; and upon being
informed that such was not the case, he determined to alter his course, and
proceed to Mrs. Meredith, and relate the misfortunes that had befallen him.
"And if that don't satify her I have her interest at heart, why, nothing
will."
And he left his clerk, after giving him some directions, and then turned
off towards Bloomsbury-square, where he arrived just before tea time.
—
