Trollope_Can_You_Forgive_Her.txt topic ['13', '324', '378', '393']
of note paper, the
last of which had been crossed, but do not know that it was more
explicit. had abused , had abused , and had
abused all public things and institutions, because the arrangements
as now proposed would be very comfortable to , but would not,
as she was pleased to think, be very comfortable to herself. "
can go to and see everything and enjoy yourself, which was
not allowed to do; and all this noise and bother, and crowd of
electioneering, will take place down in just when am in
the middle of all my trouble." were many very long letters came
from to during the winter,--letters which
enjoyed thoroughly, but which she could not but regard as being very
indiscreet. was at the during the week, and
the descriptions of the and of his solicitude as to his heir
were very comic. " comes and bends over me on the sofa in the most
stupendous way, as though a woman to be the mother of his heir must
be a miracle in nature. is quite awful when he says a word or two,
and more awful in his silence. devil prompted me the other day,
and said hoped it would be a girl. was a look came over his
face which nearly frightened me. it should be, believe he will
turn me out of the house; but how can help it? wish you were
going to have a baby at the same time. , if yours was a boy and
mine a girl, we'd make a change." was very indiscreet.
would write indiscreet letters like this, which could
not show to her husband. was a thousand pities.
and wore themselves away, and the time came in
which the were bound to return to . husband had
very fully discussed with his wife that matter of his parliamentary
ambition, and found in her a very ready listener. made up
his mind to do this thing, he was resolved to do it thoroughly, and
was becoming almost as full of politics, almost as much devoted to
sugar, as himself. at any rate could not complain that
his wife would not interest herself in his pursuits. , as they
returned, came letters from , written as her troubles
grew nigh. had gone, of course; but he was to be there at
the appointed time. ", do so wish he would have a fit of the gout
in ,--or at ," said . they reached
they first heard the news from , who on this
occasion condescended to meet them at the railway. " has got
an heir," he said, before the carriage-door was open;--"born this
morning!" might have supposed that it was the 's baby, and
not the baby of and . was a note from
to . " !" said the note, "
and the boy"-- had scorned to use the word child--"
and the boy are quite as well as can be expected. the
new writs were moved for last night." 's honours, as will
be seen, came rushing upon him all at once.
little baby,--_purpureo genitus!_ have the gods not
done for thee, if thou canst only manage to live till thy good things
are all thine own,--to live through all the terrible solicitude with
which they will envelope thee! than royal rank will be thine,
with influence more than royal, and power of action fettered by no
royalty. wealth which will be really thine own, to do with it
as it beseemeth thee. wilt be at the top of an aristocracy in a
country where aristocrats need gird themselves with no buckram.
that the world can give will be thine; and yet when we talk of thee
religiously, philosophically, or politico-economically, we are wont
to declare that thy chances of happiness are no better,--no better,
if they be no worse,--than are those of thine infant neighbour just
born, in that farmyard cradle. shall say that they are better or
that they are worse? if they be better, or if they be worse, how
shall we reconcile to ourselves that seeming injustice?
now we will pay a little visit to the small one born in the
purple, and the story of that visit shall be the end of our history.
was early in , quite early in , and and were
both at . was there at the moment of which
we write, but was absent at with .
was the day of the election, and had gone
to that ancient borough, to offer himself as a candidate to the
electors, backed by the presence and aid of a very powerful member of
the . and were sitting up-stairs with the
small, purple-born one in their presence, and the small, purple-born
one was lying in 's lap.
" is such a comfort that it is over," said the mother.
" are the most ungrateful of women."
", ,--if you could have known! baby may come just as it
pleases. won't lie awake trembling how on earth you will bear
your disgrace if one of the vile weaker sex should come to disturb
the hopes of your lords and masters;--for had two, which made it so
much more terrible."
"'m sure would not have said a word."
", he would have said nothing,--nor would the . would
simply have gone away instantly, and never have seen me again till
the next chance comes,--if it ever does come. would
have been as gentle as a dove;--much more gentle than he is now, for
men are rarely gentle in their triumph. should have known what
they both thought and felt."
"'s all right now, dear."
", my bonny boy,--you have made it all right for me;--have you
not?" took her baby into her own arms. " have
made everything right, my little man. oh, , if you had seen
the 's long face through those three days; if you had heard the
tones of the people's voices as they whispered about me; if you
had encountered the oppressive cheerfulness of those two
doctors,--doctors are such bad actors,--you would have thought it
impossible for any woman to live throughout. 's one comfort;--if
my mannikin lives, can't have another eldest. looks like
living;--don't he, ?" were perpetrated various mysterious
ceremonies of feminine idolatry which were continued till there came
a grandly dressed old lady, who called herself the nurse, and who
took the idol away.
the course of that afternoon took all over
the house. was a castle of enormous size, quite new,--having been
built by the present proprietor,--very cold, very handsome, and very
dull. " an immense place!" said , as she stood looking round
her in the grand hall, which was never used as an entrance except on
very grand occasions. " it not? it cost--oh, can't tell you
how much it cost. hundred thousand pounds or more. ;--that
would be nothing, as the no doubt had the money in his pocket
to do what he liked with at the time. the joke is, nobody ever
thinks of living here. 'd live in such a great, overgrown place
such as this, if they could get a comfortable house like ?
you remember and the hot-water pipes? always think of
the poor when come through here. ever lives here, or
ever will. comes for one week in the year, and
says he hates to do that. for me, nothing on earth shall ever make
me live here. was completely in their power and couldn't help their
bringing me here the other day;--because had, as it were, disgraced
myself."
" disgraced yourself?"
" being so long, you know, before that gentleman was born. they
shan't play me the same trick again. shall dare to assert myself,
now. ,--we must go away. are some of the public
come to see one of the sights. 's another pleasure here.
has to run about to avoid being caught by the visitors.
housekeeper tells me they always grumble because they are not allowed
to go into my little room up-stairs."
the evening of that day and returned home from
together. latter was then a of ,
but the former at that moment was the possessor of no such dignity.
election for the borough was now over, whereas that for the
county had not yet taken place. there was no rival candidate for
the position, and was thoroughly contented with his fate.
was at this moment actually of the , and in
about ten days' time would be on his legs in the proposing for
his country's use his scheme of finance. two men were seated
together in an open carriage, and were being whirled along by four
horses. were both no doubt happy in their ambition, but think
that of the two, showed his triumph the most. that he
spoke even to his friend a word that was triumphant in its tone.
was not thus that he rejoiced. was by nature too placid for that.
there was a nervousness in his contentment which told the tale to
any observer who might know how to read it.
" hope you'll like it," he said to .
" shall never like it as you do," answered.
" why not;--why not?"
" the first place, have not begun it so young."
" time before thirty-five is young enough."
" useful work, yes,--but hardly for enjoyment in the thing.
then don't believe it all as you do. you the of
is everything."
";--everything," said with unwonted
enthusiasm;--"everything, everything. and the are
everything."
" is not so to me."
", but it will be. you really take to the work, and put yourself
into harness, it will be so. 'll get to feel it as do. man
who is counted by his colleagues as number one on the
in the of , is the first of living men. 's
my opinion. don't know that ever said it before; but that's my
opinion."
" who is the second;--the purse-bearer to this great man?"
" say nothing about the second. don't know that there is any
second. wonder how we shall find and the boy."
had then arrived at the side entrance to the , and ran
up-stairs to his wife's room to receive her congratulations.
" you are a of ?" she asked.
" tell me so, but don't know whether actually am one till
've taken the oaths."
" am so happy. 's no position in the world so glorious!"
"'s a pity you are not 's wife. 's just what he has
been saying."
", , am so happy. is so much more than have deserved.
hope,--that is, sometimes think--"
" what, dearest?"
" hope nothing that have ever said has driven you to it."
"'d do more than that, dear, to make you happy," he said, as he put
his arm round her and kissed her; "more than that, at least if it
were in my power."
my readers may agree with , that in the final
adjustment of her affairs she had received more than she had
deserved. her friends, except her husband, thought so. as
they have all forgiven her, including even herself,
hope that they who have followed her story to its close will not be
less generous.