登陆注册
5007800000001

第1章 A FAITHFUL RETAINER BY JAMES PAYN(1)

When I lived in the country,--which was a long time ago,--our nearest neighbours were the Luscombes. They were very great personages in the country indeed, and the family were greatly "respected"; though not, so far as I could discern, for any particular reason, except from their having been there for several generations. People are supposed to improve, like wine, from keeping--even if they are rather "ordinary" at starting; and the Luscombes, at the time I knew them, were considered quite a "vintage" family. They had begun in Charles II.'s time, and dated their descent from greatness in the female line. That they had managed to keep a great estate not very much impaired so long was certainly a proof of great cleverness, since there had been many spend-thrifts among them; but fortunately there had been a miser or two, who had restored the average, and their fortunes.

Mr. Roger Luscombe, the present proprietor, was neither the one nor the other, but he was inclined to frugality, and no wonder; a burnt child dreads the fire, even though he may have had nothing to do with lighting it himself, and his father had kicked down a good many thousands with the help of "the bones" (as dice were called in his day) and "the devil's books" (which was the name for cards with those that disapproved of them) and race-horses; there was plenty left, but it made the old gentleman careful and especially solicitous to keep it. There was no stint, however, of any kind at the Court, which to me, who lived in the little vicarage of Dalton with my father, seemed a palace.

It was indeed a very fine place, with statues in the hall and pictures in the gallery and peacocks on the terrace. Lady Jane, the daughter of a wealthy peer, who had almost put things on their old footing with her ample dowry, was a very great lady, and had been used, I was told, to an even more splendid home; but to me, who had no mother, she was simply the kindest and most gracious woman I had ever known.

My connection with the Luscombes arose from their only son Richard being my father's pupil. We were both brought up at home, but for verydifferent reasons. In my case it was from economy: the living was small and our family was large, though, as it happened, I had no brothers. Richard was too precious to his parents to be trusted to the tender mercies of a public school. He was in delicate health, not so much natural to him as caused by an excess of care--coddling. Though he and I were very good friends, unless when we were quarreling, it must be owned that he was a spoiled boy.

There is a good deal of nonsense talked of young gentlemen who are brought up from their cradles in an atmosphere of flattery /not/ being spoiled; but unless they are angels--which is a very exceptional case --it cannot be otherwise. Richard Luscombe was a good fellow in many ways; liberal with his money (indeed, apt to be lavish), and kind- hearted, but self-willed, effeminate, and impulsive. He had also-- which was a source of great alarm and grief to his father--a marked taste for speculation.

After the age of "alley tors and commoneys," of albert-rock and hard- bake, in which we both gambled frightfully, I could afford him no opportunities of gratifying this passion; but if he could get a little money "on" anything, there was nothing that pleased him better--not that he cared for the money, but for the delight of winning it. The next moment he would give it away to a beggar. Numbers of good people look upon gambling with even greater horror than it deserves, because they cannot understand this; the attraction of risk, and the wild joy of "pulling off" something when the chances are against one, are unknown to them. It is the same with the love of liquor. Richard Luscombe had not a spark of that (his father left him one of the best cellars in England, but he never touches even a glass of claret after dinner; "I should as soon think," he says, "of eating when I am not hungry"); but he dearly liked what he called a "spec." Never shall I forget the first time he realised anything that could be termed a stake.

When he was about sixteen, he and I had driven over to some little country races a few miles away from Dalton, without, I fear, announcing our intention of so doing. Fresh air was good for "our dear Richard," and since pedestrian exercise (which he also hated) exhausted him, he had a groom and dog-cart always at his own disposal. It was a day of greatexcitement for me, who had never before seen a race-course. The flags, the grand stand (a rude erection of planks, which came down, by-the-bye, the next year during the race for the cup, and reduced the sporting population), the insinuating gipsies, the bawling card-sellers, and especially the shining horses with their twisted manes, all excited my admiration.

I was well acquainted with them in fiction; and these illustrations of the books I loved so well delighted me. Richard, who had read less and seen more, was bent on business.

He was tall for his age, but very slight and youthful-looking, and the contrast of his appearance with that of the company in the little ring, composed as it was of a choice selection of the roughest blackguards in England, was very striking.

Many of these knew who he was, and were very glad to see him, but only one of the book-makers secured his patronage. The fact was, Master Richard had but one five-pound note to lay; he had been saving up his pocket-money for weeks for this very purpose, and he took ten to one about an outsider, "Don Sebastian,"--a name I shall remember when all other historical knowledge has departed from me,--not because he knew anything of the horse, but because the longest odds were laid against him.

同类推荐
热门推荐
  • 鬼帝绝宠:皇叔你行不行

    鬼帝绝宠:皇叔你行不行

    前世她活的憋屈,做了一辈子的小白鼠,重活一世,有仇报仇!有怨报怨!弃之不肖!她是前世至尊,素手墨笔轻轻一挥,翻手为云覆手为雨,天下万物皆在手中画。纳尼?负心汉爱上她,要再求娶?当她什么?昨日弃我,他日在回,我亦不肖!花痴废物?经脉尽断武功全无?却不知她一只画笔便虐你成渣……王府下人表示王妃很闹腾,“王爷王妃进宫偷墨宝,打伤了贵妃娘娘…”“王爷王妃看重了,学仁堂的墨宝当场抢了起来,打伤了太子……”“爱妃若想抢随她去,旁边递刀可别打伤了手……”“……”夫妻搭档,她杀人他挖坑,她抢物他递刀,她打太子他后面撑腰……双重性格男主萌萌哒
  • 格言联璧

    格言联璧

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 你是岁月派的星星糖

    你是岁月派的星星糖

    婚礼前夜,李晓澄暗戳戳地上知乎发帖求问网友:“嫁给前男友的叔叔是什么感觉?”裴庆承回答:你可以坐在巴黎时装周的第一排;你的照片偶尔会出现在财经版;你可以每天在300平方的卧室醒来;你可以一个月喝一万块的COCO奶茶,等等。李晓澄一眼就认出这人是谁,沉着脸回复:那我可以把你不住的别墅拿去换不锈钢脸盆吗?
  • 傲娇王爷请听令

    傲娇王爷请听令

    【重生/宫斗/甜宠】她本是书香门第的娇女儿,自小被父母兄长宠在手心里;却错嫁了令她万劫不复的渣男,临死前才看透真相......而今许绮兰有幸重生,且看她如何报仇雪恨,除仇敌,上青云;她誓要活出个别样人生!
  • 盗世长生

    盗世长生

    在一次奇特的冒险后,陈劫然意外的获得了长生的秘密,其中,也受到了来自陌生人寄来的关于自己家人失踪的线索和自己家人以前做过的事,之后的每一次冒险,他都会收到神秘的线索和信息,自己家人失踪究竟和传说的长生是不是有种千丝万缕的关系?长生,究竟是福还是祸?长生的秘密究竟是什么?民间组织前四象门,长生的天帛壁画,开国的传国玉玺,这一切,又有什么关联?其中又存在着什么关系?
  • 快穿女配反派男神宠过来

    快穿女配反派男神宠过来

    慕清弦,一个全能型满级大佬,因为好奇心,下载了一个名叫“灵魂”的软件,却不料绑定系统,最终走上了攻略男神的不归路,只是,她怎么越来越觉得每个攻略的人都是同一个人的感觉呢?最终,慕清弦忍不住问出来“狗子,其实在几个人但是同一个人吧”系统“恭喜宿主,获得最终大礼包-”
  • 我有一剑仙人跪

    我有一剑仙人跪

    民国时期,盛行盗墓,世俗之外,还有最后一批修行者。修行者,盗仙陵。一部石刻天书,一件金缕玉衣,一段神秘古老的血红文字,一尊死去万万载的魂魄英灵,天道共主,还有……一粒不知所踪的丹药。春秋有仙人,世人为犬猪。一段源远流长的真相,一个天外世界的阳谋。这是属于谢安的故事。ps:书友群895331068,欢迎大家来水,别让我一个人啊....
  • 掠婚:笼中雀

    掠婚:笼中雀

    她知道娱乐圈没有阳春白雪,从答应和那个人合作,就会有很多身不由己。但她没有想到,背后隐瞒的真相竟然是那样……
  • 高能出没

    高能出没

    唐小满的快乐生活,看一个从一个风流少年,如何成长为一个绝世强者,肩负着守护众生重任务。
  • 追妻无门:女boss不好惹

    追妻无门:女boss不好惹

    青涩蜕变,如今她是能独当一面的女boss,爱了冷泽聿七年,也同样花了七年时间去忘记他。以为是陌路,他突然向他表白,扬言要娶她,她只当他是脑子抽风,他的殷勤她也全都无视。他帮她查她父母的死因,赶走身边情敌,解释当初拒绝她的告别,和故意对她冷漠都是无奈之举。突然爆出她父母的死居然和冷家有丝毫联系,还莫名跳出个公爵未婚夫,扬言要与她履行婚约。峰回路转,破镜还能重圆吗? PS:我又开新文了,每逢假期必书荒,新文《有你的世界遇到爱》,喜欢我的文的朋友可以来看看,这是重生类现言,对这个题材感兴趣的一定要收藏起来。