CHAPTER XX.—MRS DIXON.

Waikato Times, Volume IV, Issue 241, 25 November 1873, Page 3

CHAPTER XX.— MRS DIXON.

' WKLfi, here's a letter from Mrs St Quentin ot last!' enid Mrs Ritchie, the housekeeper fit the Fns, to a satellite housemaid, one morning towards the end of «pnng, when even the neighbourhood of Drington was looking beautiful, and the " gloom? old house was touched by the all-pervaJing sunshine which its pervers v construction and position could not enable it altogether to evade. 'Slie's took her time.' remarked the aitellite, not deeply intereate 1 in the matter; ' but matter don't cure, s^emin ly. lie wouldn't break his heart, if she did not come back. lie heard him tell her she knew no more about illness than ft dog or a cat, nor, indeed, as much, for l'iey could keep quiet when thflv wh w .Intel to' Sirs hiic'ue was not nttendms to tHe«e remaiks Shewn* ppnilmir tic lonsj-exp.'ited leiter, and when she came to it* comlu-ion, s'le linn d biik to tlie beginning, and ivaJ it tliroti^ l! iiz'im, before she spoke ' Well, I'm »vie '' washer tirst observation, nwikenins tl c cuno3it\ ol her companion, wlio illumed eagerly at t'.ie document Well, I'm sure! Wh.it next 9' ' W.i.it lir»t? I should like to know, if you don't mind telling me,'s-ud the satellite with impatiento, b irely tempere 1 b\ iv-pect. ' M s\t Q lent in ain't eominc at all! And I telling her about Mr Clint as pi mi .1* I c >uU ]' ' Wh\ ain't s'lo cj..1111.5? Won't the old gentleman let her '•'' Mr> R rc'iie was too much surprised to rememher her own di_'iul\, and th>' impropriety of »uu'i a designation for tinson in 1 1>\ of t ie house. ' I don't know ahy bhe is not com 1112 ; she does not tel me. Sic only sa\s she cannot come; but slie is ?enJmt! Mis 1) \o'i t 1 take eire of \\v C nit ' 'Y s m'ee I. Well, it'a their bu ines«, n»t mi ie, sine lif done m\ dut\ h« Ai'clin,' to hi'i'. Wll Dixon uilli.e cli veiei tlmu I t ike her for, il she can manage him, or mind him It's more than her elders, and bettors, I wil si\, tan d..' i The «a'fll;tc «a» still 100 l i si at ill' Ict'er wit'i greed \ eve- ; and Mis Ritchie uonde^uen led so fir as to read it out for her ' I am very much obliged to you f>r wiitin_ r to me, nnd (listre-><ed at the net omit 3011 »end me ol my f.ither, wrote Mirui n. 'It h u iloituuatelv out. of my p) ver to return to the Fi 8 at present, an I vet [ an very uinvillin^ tint, you shoui.l have the entne trouble, fitimie, and responsibility ol his»t.iteol health llnoun 11mm vdu. I have therefore d< terintned to M?nd uiv lil.nl, Mrs D ton, to England, and she will 11-3 -4 Miv 111 any nu-se-ten ling w nc 1 my father mat lequne Y>u will remember t .at the u a person to be tie pen led on. \er\ handy in cisc ol illness, an 1 tli.it mv lather lihs oik cor t»ii*o 111 mleil Imri-e'f "f her se vh-e*. You mil n t, nl (oiiife, let In i. know that I have sent Airs Dixon to the Fus with this purpose in \lew, as lie "nig ir n>t like it. It vr.ll be uiou^li that he »hould know that I request his per>nisMon tor her to re n.iiu at his hous % where she will make heiself tienerullv 11-eful, until Mr StQuomin ani I return to Englinl. I tlimk my fattier will in ike no o^jee tion. I depen lon \ou to arrm^e all this, an lam sure you will fin.l Mis D.urn ver\ steady and n»eliil. I have directed her to po>t this Idler in L >ndon, so flint yon will be (ire pared lor her arr \ il icy s'lorlly .ifter it reaches \ou ' 'Lor 1' mteiiuptnl the sitellite, 'Mrs Dixon may come to d iv, perh.i,is Wiieie's 3ie to «'cc 1?' Mrs Kit clue had a renon ol her own for not answerm* tins question immediately. S'ie wa* a s'irewd and a kindhe i'ted woman. The first q ulity mi lo he* nwiro of the difficult v of obevin? certain inpnctiona contained in a portion of Mrs S' Quentin's letter which she had not thought proper to re 1 I al.xi I ; and the "eeoud made her ivry desirous ol eonphiiig wit'i them. The other sf'vants hil not been jeiloiiaol R s-s pi'i\i'e:es wli Ie lt)«i'» nu tr ■ va< in tie home with lur. to keep her a most entirtly on upied with herself, an I make her moiv of a companion linn a tneie la h's mll I. Bit \ln Ritchie had too mue'i experience to expecr tliarthei would besit isfied that Mr->DiNon slioul I betmitt-d wit 1 eUra-eotiMileration und-r the present 0 icuiristnme--. An I \et, Mirii'ii h.vl written: 'You will, I am «nr *, make M--i D \on as eomfoita'">V as possibl » S'w lm< hid a koo 1 ded of trouble, I b-h v , in her lue, aid s'ie like* to keep \er\ niueli to herself, and she is not lery companionable wi h nnv of the other servai'ts heie. S'ie will be more useful if she is left entirely to her-.elf.and has the charge of my fatlur'-> r 'om-i I d iresav it wi'l not he any a 1 litionil tnuble ti let her have my former mo n«, until I can come, and,as you will remember, she i'wa s had c meals t iere.' lvln's no loss ilovMi-.tair», anyhow,' Tvas Mrs Riteh c's reflection, 'fir «he'-i nothmir but a poor, palo kill joy pi 11 creature, and neier wants 1o liv hei n'odle out of haul, an I lime 1 bit to out, or ,i -.|)cll >>t chat, Ike another. S ill, tin y won't like it Jlow.tit, tlint'-. neither lierf nor i lirri-- it is a liieixt thmu for me to get fome m» to take him off mv haiid —>ind they must lu-np it I'm not uoing to offend Mrs St Quentin for their fancies and fo •lings.' S>, when th" sitellite repeated her question, Mrs Ritchie sai I, with nn air of mature consiJerati >n : 'I t'imk, Susan, the very he<t tuni; I cm do is to giV' M.'s Dixon t'm room Mrs "<t Q lent in slept in. She em kee.i all her needlfwork and trap^ in the si'tin '-roo-n, an 1 be out of every one's i\av tin r •, an 1 not fir oT Mr U mt, if she really takes to looking after him, and I c will let he l.' •As vui leise, m'in of eo-irjp,'«airl Susin,\rith a'l indication of -inffl ng ; • b it I never did he.ir of a lady's-tnatd being gi< en a les bed 00-n. ' Y m' I hear of it now, and see it too,' siid Mrs Ritchie brNklr, for she ha I no notion of her auihorifi hpin r disputed ; ' an 1, what's more. I thi«k 1 shall cue Mrs Di\»n her im-il* in tier own run She ha 3 n>rv prim wnvs wth her, an 1 I ren.'mher Miss Miriim telling me «he ha I nu Ie it a point, when she w> int to th» -"Cii >1 to be engii^ed, that | she win not to hnv hr mea's with m'u-servants S!.e was broii'j'it 11 1 very t 1 t >' win*.' ' Tcrv iiunwnsic l', I should say,' remarkel Su«.an with a ileei Iml sniff this tune 'Poor servsiiita li.ive li ftle e'")n i}\ to -un ise them, wi hous in »kia a' benniti of themsjUcs ' 1 Tint's true,' assentjd tho h >us°keeper hea-tily ; ' and if she prefers to shut heiself up. I'm sure w shan't i»"as her—nor Ro'iort nether However, we «hill «cc when aim come. Open the shutters Susiu a'i' d s" the mums ru .at all events I must go an I tell Mi 0 mt what Mis Sc Quunti'i wishes. ' I wonder how he'll tike it?' ' I don't know, I am snre ; it depends entiiely on his rhenni.visin.' 1 An! on his tenpfr.' muttered Susan a« she slowly ascended the stai'?, and Mr« Ritchi crossed the hall towards the di nn, f-roi)in ' lTia Dikoti mu3 v. be a re.'iilir v>*t one or nujo-nmin fond of Mra St Q lentin, to 1 ..ne hack here. aft< r she ha I got awvy wrhouther; and to atteu I on that old hrute I'd see hirnnl his dui^h^r farther first, I kno v ; anl Koliert will think fie same. I'll l>o luil ' Tnin^s were thus shaping thems h'ri so -n to render the fultilin -lit of the task which she hid taken upon her elf less difficult than she could have hopel or expected, while Florence was tr.iveiling towirds 'he Firs Her courage had not enned unie- tho trial of pnrHncj with Mitiam. or the 'htle ''istgteeahles of her <oji»-iry j iiirney. Mrs St QnenMn hal l>e°n muoh di-tres^e Iby the necessity fir Klo-en-e's tay rin<» alone; I>ut the latter put the ennsi lera^i.m si oomnletflv ai I nn^ffeetedly aside, as to mike Miriam fe3l it hal done lis-red ' to the co.n<nou sense of both ; and she mad i he-see the needless risk of c nnmeo'in^ iijion it to Mi St Qnentin. Th it gentlem m had received the in plligence of Rnse Dixon's inten lei departure with unfeijnel s.Uisf tction. and plume 1 himself immensely upon having curie I a point qnie'lv, but firmly, which it wouM h.ive been un rj;e itlem\n!ike to have insisted upon vehemently, lie had never heen able to discover what, it was that Rose Dixon helped his nnexppc edly untnu ajeahle wife to cvrv on, nor hil he b jen .'ibleevni to ma'%e up his mind ns to wmt it wts thit he siisiiec.el her of cirrying on with tins perfi lions aid j but h> felt tha L, i 1" won' 1 be a great relief to get her out of his si^ht an IMrihi * > co".iyin'. The demon of jjalnu y. illicit not to tnie an I tempt bun ko keenly then. At all e\tuts it would be much eniev to watch his wife, when h i«j ->hrniM h ive no one familiar with mci lenl^ and assocntjus of her past life neir her. to encourage her. and ho 1 )to deln I.i him The replacing of I'ose Dixon by an Jd' >n wo"!!-!, a total stringer fco Miriim, ahmil I he 1113 t '*' ; she m isfc nut sneak a word of English —Miii.im did nit speik Itmin with sufßeient fluency for confi'ences — an,! his w>>ni\n shoiil Ibe in his in*eres f. Mr S* Qic tin r>' i\- I his teasing vigilance towards Miriam from the li ■ u iii wh ci she cdlly announ el the newt to hi.n, and rv . i' Jer--in-law had a f»md deal of almost unrestrained i-i nnuiionsVp dining tht» week prior to their parting. F! , rime ha! a curimslv kei perception of the state of Mr Sl. Q lent n's mind, and it tilled her with npp reheniio»s fo,- \siuarn, for a'ie knew that Mr St Quen m's morbid jeilo'isy wo'ill be only alliyel by her depirt'ire, anl wo il i a^.uu lesmne its active sway over him The time pis-, 1 wi.hout her dwelling much upon her own ao'ual eire nmti'ic •=», uuiil s'ie fmi' hers 'If in tho tuiu trave'liu,' fr un L>n lon B 1 Igo to Drington. A tor iblo sense 'if loneliness, dreirmess. and apprehension came over her as s'ie stood alone upon the pi it form wheie she and her hmSiul hal c change I th vfc dn nb farewell, wheie his hm I had so co<e'y grispel, so reluctantly quitted heri —an I tie si^ht hil saem-'d to be struck from her ejes as her yearning c *.e lost him in ti« cr wd.

■' E '1p« " emti ibjitrs t'lo follo« in^ ci icU'tin^ mptn to the Australasian: — ' A Viet.irmn, who had I itclv returned from England, win tH k"g tl»n ot'ier day of Graci-'i ci-ickcf An ex|iert' pivno I Inn ratlier luml for paiticuliis ns to t!ip r'i 'mpjon's gtylo ot liiitm^, ln-i d f.-in***, snrl ot-'irr Iri'litnon! I'Mjj !»6w !u» deilt with e.'itan km U of bowlinir. &<• 1 airly corn red lio su nmoned v.> tho uwrita thui : — ' Well, be juit knock* the ball to blare*! '"

Almellcr nr.noumes ns u fact that lie onrc in liislliie brl eld i topic" nnii'liug llcir ov n Ihmih^" rllu«r llu« nnnjiknble o((Uiu)H'e lap] enoci nt ?ca, iLp pusacngcr« Jbcui^ ".'too tick " to ntlrnd to each other's coin-eras. S."ya the minister, at a marriage, to a fanner- Our joint net mi tn us lcpicsiiit the chief exoellcLCc of Jif» l , — "Yo . tiJl* 1 tiu " (Ltiiuy) 1 Ljl% !> , i