The Two Admirals (29 page)

"That w'ud ye!—that w'ud ye!" said Magrath, growing more and more
Scotch, as he warmed in the discourse; "ye'd board a mackerel-hoy,
rather than not have an engagement. Ye'r a varra capital vice-admiral of
the red, Sir Gervaise, but I'm judging ye'd mak' a varra indeeferent
loblolly-boy."

"Bluewater, I shall be compelled to change ships with you, in order to
get rid of the old stand-by's of the Plantagenets! They stick to me like
leeches; and have got to be so familiar, that they criticise all my
orders, and don't more than half obey them, in the bargain."

"No one will criticise your nautical commands, Sir Gervaise; though, in
the way of the healing airt,—science, it should be called—ye're no
mair to be trusted, than one of the young gentlemen. I'm told ye drew
ye'r lancet on this poor gentleman, as ye'd draw ye'r sword on an
enemy!"

"I did, indeed, sir; though Mr. Rotherham had rendered the application
of the instrument unnecessary. Apoplexy is a rushing of the blood to the
head; and by diminishing the quantity in the veins of the arms or
temples, you lessen the pressure on the brain."

"Just layman's practice, sir—just layman's practice. Will ye tell me
now if the patient's face was red or white? Every thing depends on
that
; which is the true diagnosis of the malady."

"Red, I think; was it not, Bluewater? Red, like old port, of which I
fancy the poor man had more than his share."

"Weel, in that case, you were not so varra wrong; but, they tell me his
countenance was pallid and death-like; in which case ye came near to
committing murder. There is one principle that controls the diagnosis of
all cases of apoplexy among ye'r true country gentlemen—and that is,
that the system is reduced and enfeebled, by habitual devotion to the
decanter. In such attacks ye canna' do warse, than to let blood. But,
I'll no be hard upon you, Sir Gervaise; and so we'll drop the
subject—though, truth to say, I do not admire your poaching on my
manor. Sir Wycherly is materially better, and expresses, as well as a
man who has not the use of his tongue,
can
express a thing, his
besetting desire to make his last will and testament. In ordinary cases
of
apoplexia
, it is good practice to oppose this craving; though, as
it is my firm opinion that nothing can save the patient's life, I do not
set myself against the measure, in this particular case. Thar' was a
curious discussion at Edinbro', in my youth, gentlemen, on the question
whether the considerations connected with the disposition of the
property, or the considerations connected with the patient's health,
ought to preponderate in the physician's mind, when it might be
reasonably doubted whether the act of making a will, would or would not
essentially affect the nervous system, and otherwise derange the
functions of the body. A very pretty argument, in excellent Edinbro'
Latin, was made on each side of the question. I think, on the whole, the
physicos had the best o' it; for they could show a plausible present
evil, as opposed to a possible remote good."

"Has Sir Wycherly mentioned my name this morning?" asked the
vice-admiral, with interest.

"He has, indeed, Sir Gervaise; and that in a way so manifestly connected
with his will, that I'm opining ye'll no be forgotten in the legacies.
The name of Bluewater was in his mouth, also."

"In which case no time should be lost; for, never before have I felt
half the interest in the disposition of a stranger's estate. Hark! Are
not those wheels rattling in the court-yard?"

"Ye'r senses are most pairfect, Sir Gervaise, and that I've always said
was one reason why ye'r so great an admiral," returned Magrath. "Mind,
only
one
, Sir Gervaise; for many qualities united, are necessary to
make a truly great man. I see a middle-aged gentleman alighting, and
servants around him, who wear the same liveries as those of this house.
Some relative, no doubt, come to look after the legacies, also."

"This must be Sir Reginald Wychecombe; it may not be amiss if we go
forward to receive him, Bluewater."

At this suggestion, the rear-admiral drew in his legs, which had not
changed their position on account of the presence of the surgeon, arose,
and followed Sir Gervaise, as the latter left the room.

"
Videsne quis venit?
"
"
Video, et gaudeo.
"

NATHANIEL ET HOLOFERNES.

Tom Wychecombe had experienced an uneasiness that it is unnecessary to
explain, ever since he learned that his reputed uncle had sent a
messenger to bring the "half-blood" to the Hall. From the moment he got
a clue to the fact, he took sufficient pains to ascertain what was in
the wind; and when Sir Reginald Wychecombe entered the house, the first
person he met was this spurious supporter of the honours of his name.

"Sir Reginald Wychecombe, I presume, from the arms and the liveries,"
said Tom, endeavouring to assume the manner of a host. "It is grateful
to find that, though we are separated by quite two centuries, all the
usages and the bearings of the family are equally preserved and
respected, by both its branches."

"I am Sir Reginald Wychecombe, sir, and endeavour not to forget the
honourable ancestry from which I am derived. May I ask what kinsman I
have the pleasure now to meet?"

"Mr. Thomas Wychecombe, sir, at your command; the
eldest
son of Sir
Wycherly's next brother, the late Mr. Baron Wychecombe. I trust, Sir
Reginald, you have not considered us as so far removed in blood, as to
have entirely overlooked our births, marriages, and deaths."

"I have
not
, sir," returned the baronet, drily, and with an emphasis
that disturbed his listener, though the cold jesuitical smile that
accompanied the words, had the effect to calm his vivid apprehensions.
"
All
that relates to the house of Wychecombe has interest in my eyes;
and I have endeavoured, successfully I trust, to ascertain
all
that
relates to its births,
marriages
, and deaths. I greatly regret that
the second time I enter this venerable dwelling, should be on an
occasion as melancholy as this, on which I am now summoned. How is your
respectable—how is Sir Wycherly Wychecombe, I wish to say?"

There was sufficient in this answer, taken in connection with the
deliberate, guarded, and yet expressive manner of the speaker to make
Tom extremely uncomfortable, though there was also sufficient to leave
him in doubts as to his namesake's true meaning. The words emphasized by
the latter, were touched lightly, though distinctly; and the cold,
artificial smile with which they were uttered, completely baffled the
sagacity of a rogue, as common-place as the heir-expectant. Then the
sudden change in the construction of the last sentence, and the
substitution of the name of the person mentioned, for the degree of
affinity in which he was supposed to stand to Tom, might be merely a
rigid observance of the best tone of society, or it might be equivocal.
All these little distinctions gleamed across the mind of Tom Wychecombe;
but that was not the moment to pursue the investigation. Courtesy
required that he should make an immediate answer, which he succeeded in
doing steadily enough as to general appearances, though his sagacious
and practised questioner perceived that his words had not failed of
producing the impression he intended; for he had looked to their
establishing a species of authority over the young man.

"My honoured and beloved uncle has revived a little, they tell me," said
Tom; "but I fear these appearances are delusive. After eighty-four,
death has a fearful hold upon us, sir! The worst of it is, that my poor,
dear uncle's mind is sensibly affected; and it is quite impossible to
get at any of his little wishes, in the way of memorials and messages—"

"How then, sir, came Sir Wycherly to honour
me
with a request to visit
him?" demanded the other, with an extremely awkward pertinency.

"I suppose, sir, he has succeeded in muttering your name, and that a
natural construction has been put on its use, at such a moment. His will
has been made some time, I understand; though I am ignorant of even the
name of the executor, as it is closed in an envelope, and sealed with
Sir Wycherly's arms. It cannot be, then, on account of a
will
, that he
has wished to see you. I rather think, as the next of the family,
out
of the direct line of succession
, he may have ventured to name you as
the executor of the will in existence, and has thought it proper to
notify you of the same."

"Yes, sir," returned Sir Reginald, in his usual cold, wary manner;
"though it would have been more in conformity with usage, had the
notification taken the form of a request to serve, previously to making
the testament. My letter was signed 'Gervaise Oakes,' and, as they tell
me a fleet is in the neighbourhood, I have supposed that the celebrated
admiral of that name, has done me the honour to write it."

"You are not mistaken, sir; Sir Gervaise Oakes is in the house—ah—here
he comes to receive you, accompanied by Rear-Admiral Bluewater, whom the
sailors call his mainmast."

The foregoing conversation had taken place in a little parlour that led
off from the great hall, whither Tom had conducted his guest, and in
which the two admirals now made their appearance. Introductions were
scarcely necessary, the uniform and star—for in that age officers
usually appeared in their robes—the uniform and star of Sir Gervaise at
once proclaiming his rank and name; while, between Sir Reginald and
Bluewater there existed a slight personal acquaintance, which had grown
out of their covert, but deep, Jacobite sympathies.

"Sir Gervaise Oakes," and "Sir Reginald Wychecombe," passed between the
gentlemen, with a hearty shake of the hand from the admiral, which was
met by a cold touch of the fingers on the part of the other, that might
very well have passed for the great model of the sophisticated
manipulation of the modern salute, but which, in fact, was the result of
temperament rather than of fashion. As soon as this ceremony was gone
through, and a few brief expressions of courtesy were exchanged, the new
comer turned to Bluewater, with an air of greater freedom, and
continued—

"And you, too, Sir Richard Bluewater! I rejoice to meet an acquaintance
in this melancholy scene."

"I am happy to see you, Sir Reginald; though you have conferred on me a
title to which I have no proper claim."

"No!—the papers tell us that you have received one of the lately vacant
red ribands?"

"I believe some such honour has been in contemplation—"

"Contemplation!—I do assure you, sir, your name is fairly and
distinctly gazetted—as, by sending to my carriage, it will be in my
power to show you. I am, then, the first to call you Sir Richard."

"Excuse me, Sir Reginald—there is some little misapprehension in this
matter; I prefer to remain plain Rear-Admiral Bluewater. In due season,
all will be explained."

The parties exchanged looks, which, in times like those in which they
lived, were sufficiently intelligible to both; and the conversation was
instantly changed. Before Sir Reginald relinquished the hand he held,
however, he gave it a cordial squeeze, an intimation that was returned
by a warm pressure from Bluewater. The party then began to converse of
Sir Wycherly, his actual condition, and his probable motive in desiring
to see his distant kinsman. This motive, Sir Gervaise, regardless of the
presence of Tom Wychecombe, declared to be a wish to make a will; and,
as he believed, the intention of naming Sir Reginald his executor, if
not in some still more interesting capacity.

"I understand Sir Wycherly has a considerable sum entirely at his own
disposal," continued the vice-admiral; "and I confess I like to see a
man remember his friends and servants, generously, in his last moments.
The estate is entailed, I hear; and I suppose Mr. Thomas Wychecombe
here, will be none the worse for that precaution in his ancestor; let
the old gentleman do as he pleases with his savings."

Sir Gervaise was so much accustomed to command, that he did not feel the
singularity of his own interference in the affairs of a family of what
might be called strangers, though the circumstance struck Sir Reginald,
as a little odd. Nevertheless, the last had sufficient penetration to
understand the vice-admiral's character at a glance, and the peculiarity
made no lasting impression. When the allusion was made to Tom's
succession, as a matter of course, however, he cast a cold, but
withering look, at the reputed heir, which almost chilled the marrow in
the bones of the jealous rogue.

"Might I say a word to you, in your own room, Sir Gervaise?" asked Sir
Reginald, in an aside. "These matters ought not to be indecently
hurried; and I wish to understand the ground better, before I advance."

This question was overheard by Bluewater; who, begging the gentlemen to
remain where they were, withdrew himself, taking Tom Wychecombe with
him. As soon as they were alone, Sir Reginald drew from his companion,
by questions warily but ingeniously put, a history of all that had
occurred within the last twenty-four hours; a knowledge of the really
helpless state of Sir Wycherly, and of the manner in which he himself
had been summoned, included. When satisfied, he expressed a desire to
see the sick man.

"By the way, Sir Reginald," said the vice-admiral, with his hand on the
lock of the door, arresting his own movement to put the question; "I
see, by your manner of expressing yourself, that the law has not been
entirely overlooked in your education. Do you happen to know what
'half-blood' means? it is either a medical or a legal term, and I
understand few but nautical."

"You could not apply to any man in England, Sir Gervaise, better
qualified to tell you," answered the Hertfordshire baronet, smiling
expressively. "I am a barrister of the Middle Temple, having been
educated as a younger son, and having since succeeded an elder brother,
at the age of twenty-seven; I stand in the unfortunate relation of the
'half-blood' myself, to this very estate, on which we are now
conversing."