CHAPTER XVIII. MR CUDEMORE GETS UNCOMFORTABLE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2242, 20 November 1886, Page 1 (Supplement)

CHAPTER XVIII. MR CUDEMORE GETS UNCOMFORTABLE.

That men have infatuations about women past comprehension is an axiom as indisputable in life as that a line is the shortest distance between points in mithematics. "What does he see in her ?" demand his friends, angrily and with justice; she may be vulgar, and c*'en of dubious beauty, but no matter, she has fascinated that man, it may be for days or it may be forever, but though of mature age he will be blind as a newly- born puppy to her demerits. What does he see in her? Good Lord, he could not answer that question in the least. He would tell you that she was lovely, deny that she was vulgar, and assert upon oath that her English was faultless. Useless to reason with these infatuated ones. Safer far to emulate

that astute philosopher, who upon being condoled with about his brothel's nustdiifuice, quietly retorted : " What is there to howl about ? Charlie would never have been happy with a lady.' VI r Cudemore was quite otF his balance about Nid Foxborough. He had fair grounds for his infatuation. The girl was very pretty and bad been thoroughly educated, there were none of tins vulgarisms mentioned above in her, but 3he had never given him the slightest encouragement, nor had he indeed ever been afforded much opportunity of pushing his suit ; but for all that Mr Cudemore was most resolute in his determination to marry her. He was working hard to get the Syringa mainly into hia own hands, and had already, as he knew, assumed a control there to which ho was by no means entitled. What distressed him at present was not Nid's indifference to hia BU it — that he was prepared for ; but her mother's indifference to the loss of the management of the Syriuga. Mr Cudemore had already abaudoned all hope of carrying his point as a mere wooer, but he did think pressure about the Syringa might do wonders for him. To his dismay Mrs Foxborough seemed to care little whether she stayed or left. He had trusted much upon this leverage in the game he conceived James Foxborough's death had opened out to him. Another thing which had gone away with the money-lender was this. He was, of course, aware that Herbert Morant was his successful rival. He had held some bills of Morrant's, and Mr Cudemore's experience of young men told him that the first bill, like the first woodcock, was but the precuisor of the flight. He had looked forward at no little distance of time to having the young man most thoroughly under his thumb, but to his great astonishmemt Herbert Morant ha-i promptly taken up his bills as soon as they became due, and shown no wish to contract fresh obligations ; consequent indeed ou hia love lor Nid and desire to set to work to make a home for her ; but Mr Cudemore did not know all this, or I am afraid that maledictions wouH have fallen from beneath his well-waxed moustache, thick and thorough. He could not be said to be having a ro3y time of it altogether, this jackal that preyed ou the n ces-ities of hia brethren. Your professional aifiirs may run favourably enough, but mo3t men hare some aim utterly outside that, and the mark that particularly attracted Mr Cudemore's attention at this moment seemed considerably beyond his attainment. Still he was of that pertinacious temperament that sometimes achieves the fulfillment of its desires by its dogged perseverance. One thing, quietly as he had passed it by, hod struck Mr Cudemore duriug his interview with Mrs Fo\borough— to wit, !ier statement that the police had no longer thought her husband guilty of the Bunbury murder. It wa3 considerably to his interest, he thought, that Foxborough should be held guilty of that crime, aud he resolved to call upon Mr Sturton and endeavour to ascertain from him what Scotland Yard had thought of the information he had brought them. The great Bond-street maestio was at home, or, to speak more correctly, at his place of business. As for home, he resided in a charming house, standing in excessively pretty grounds out in West Kensington, where were plenty of servants, saddle and carriage horses, a French cook, a Scotch gardner aud conservatories ; his sons were at the universities, and though far more Conservative iv their professions than their father, with much less real reverence for a lord. As Coleridge hail a contemptuous belief in hosts such as he might hold in cabbages, because he had seen so many of them, so had these young men discovered that hereditary rank was simply the result of successful spoliation and corruption in the days gone by, aud its descendents by no means gifted above the sons of men. Mr Sturton was at hia place of business, and Mr Cudemore was at once ushered into the sartorial potentate's private sanctum — a simply furnished room at the back of the shop, where Mr Sturtou, seated at his writingtable, was quietly engaged in answering the heavy batch of letters which each morniDg's post brought him. 4Ah ! Cudemore," he said, in his usual languid manner : ' 4 pray, sit down ; excuse me for two minutes while I just finish, this, and then I shall be ready to talk to you." A few minutes, and then Sturton threw down his pen, aud pulling hi 3 chair round, said quietly — 4 Now, then, what is it ?' He and Mr Cudemore were not wont to indulge in ceremonious calling upon each other. ' What did they say to you at Scotland Yard the other day?" enquired the money lender, without further preamble. 4 You needn't feel the least uncomfortable about my going there anyway, for your name has never been mentioned, while mine they promised to keep dark unless absolutely compelled to bring it forward, which they did not in the least anticipate. I saw Sergeant Usher, the detective officer in charge of the case, and he said my information might turn oat of great value to them, but would probably never lead to their requiring any evidence from me, and that certainly at present they would infinitely prefer my keeping my mouth closed on the subject' 4 1 am told the police begin to think that Foxborough did not commit the crime. Is that true? What does Sergeant Usher think about it ?' 1 1 am sure I don't know,' replied Mr Sturton, ' and from what I saw of Serjeant Uglier I should say he's very unlikely to let any mortal soul know hie opinion on the subject till he's got someone on his trial for the murder. I should think he would talk affably and apparently openly with you for a week, and at the end of it you wouldn't have discovered what he thought about anything. I see a good bit of human nature, you know, you can't help measuring men's minds a little while you are measuring their bodies — that is if you are an artist. There are customers who never know exactly what they want, and whom you may persuade to do anything. Others who equally don't know what they want, but suspect you if you attempt lo assist the wobbling ideas that do duty with tham for a mind ; there's tho customer you can't please, do what you will, angular in body as in opinion ; there's the man who hates trying on, hates ordering clothes at all and pays ready money ; there's the man who delights in both first, but abhors the latter part of tho cciemony. Hasn't C'Vi'lyle written a book about it ? and, good Lord, if he had only had me to prompt him ! Ours io one of the great arts, and the day will soon come when it will be acknowledged as such. You've R A,'s, and I don't see why there shouldn't bo R.T.s; and as the age gets moie advanced and the general fusion of rhings begins there's no doubt, there's no doubt whatever," and hero the great democratic tailor stopped abruptly, his tongue having a, little overrun his defined opinions upon the coming upheaval, a thing which happens notably to many of our "" legislators, and accounts for tho consequent abrupt termination of come of their bursts of eloquence with which they are wont to electrify their constituents. Mr Cudemore was of a narrow-minded, but practical turu of mmd. He stared

with undisguised astonishment whilo his friend delivered himself of tho nbove rhapsody, but would, had his thoughts been put into English, have expressed himself somehow in this wise. All men have their faults, I know. It's tho weak point in their organisation, which carried to excess men call madnees. Only I know Sturton to bo a thorough bu.-ine?", practical man, I should wouder why his friends didn't shut him up, that is to say if he ever lets out in this way to them. I ! hum, if I could I should charge him another ten per cent for it. 4 Then this Sergeant Usher didn't tell you he considered Foxhorough had nothing to do with the crime ?' remarked Mr Cudemore, at length. •Certainly, not — whit put that into your head ?' 'The papers, I believe,' rejoined the money-lender, carelessly ; 4 and then I misunderstood you about your interview tit Scotland Yard.' 'I told you clearly,' rejoined Sturton, ' that Usher, like a colourless photograph, expressed nothing. Voluble, vory, on occasions; that is, it struck me if I didn't talk ; but muto as a mouse when I'd anything to nay. I know nothing about the opinion of Scotland Yard whatever." Ah ! wull, I felt a littlo curious to to know what they thought of your confession,' rejoined Mr Cudemore rising, 4 and also whether the making of it had brought you peace of mind.' 4 The sooner you understand I mean invariably to take my own way the better ;' returned Sturton sharply, and with a quickness that tho money-lender had never given him credit for. ' Ifc is very easy to transfer such busiuess as I have | with you to another of the fraternity." ' And suppose I choose to bruit about our former relations afterwards,' rejoined Cudemore, sullenly. 4 I should deliberately and assuredly ruin you. Fool that you are ! Can't you see that small capitalists like you are at the mercy of the bigger men who employ them,'' retorted Mr Sturton calmly. AH tho leading men in my profession aro reported to lend money to their customers whether they do or not. You can't do me much harm, but, my dear Cudemore, I shall assuredly break you. X pull strings that your limited mind has no conception, of. 4 1 don't want to quarrel,' replied the money lender. 'Unless with an object it's always a mistake ; but when you run counter to my views I like to kuow tho why of it. We'll change tho subject. How about young Morant ? Is he still on your books ? ho has taken np all his paper. 1 4 No; that's the man who stands in your way with Miss Foxborough, isn't he ? He has squared up and left us, and when they do that of their own accord it usually moans that they have taken to tho busiuess of life in some fashion. Flying kites and West-End tailors don't quite accord with each utilitarian views.' The conversation was again verging a little too deep for the money-lender, and it may be doubted whether Mr Sturton really comprehended what he meant by bis last observation. A tendency to inflated lansruage is one of tho characteristics of all platform oratory of the present day. Mr Cudemore thought t^ere was no more to be said, and no more to be learned, so he gravely and impressively wished the Bond-street magnate goodbye. Somewhat staggered, Mr Cudemore got out of the houso, having found this man of so much tougher calibre than he had deemed him, so utterly unmalleably and determinate about having his own way. Still he did recognise Sturton's grim formula that when the brazen pots and the earthen quarrel it is bad for tho latter, and felt that to buccurab with grace to his principal's dictum was all that was left to him. He had been slow to perceive this, but was quite awako to the fact that this languid man had a most peremptory will of hia own, and was hardly to be turned from it. Musing over this, to himself by no means pleasing, discovery, he arrived at bis houso in Spring Gardens, and proceeded, without going- into his office, to ascend the stairs to his own private apartments. As he turned the angle of the staircase, he caught night of his junior clerk — office boy, perhaps, would more fittingly describe him—coming, as it ap peare'd to him, out of his, Oudemore's, bedroom. 4 What the deuce are you doing up here ?' enquired the money-lender, angrily, as the pair met. 4 1 came up to see if you were in sir. There's a gent of the name of Smitbson wanting to see you terrible bad.' 4 Where's his card P 1 inquired Mr Cudemore. 4 He hadn't got one,' rejoined Tim, for such was the soubriquet by which this composite of clerk and office boy was known in the establishment ; doubtful even whether his master knew his legitimase patronymic. 4 Show him up then at once,' rejoined Cudemore. 4 He left, sir ; said he would call again in an hour, when he heard you were out.' 1 How the devil did he hear I was out, you young cheat- the- gallows, when you have just made tho discovery r' 4 I told him I thought you were,' replied Tim, flippantly, 4 and he wouldn't wait till I i-an up to see — " 4 Look here, ray young friend, it strikes me you're lying on a pretty extensive scale. You knew I was out to begin with.' 4 Certainly, sir, but I was not quite sure you had not come in.' 4 Clients who come to see mo genorally leave or produce cards," said the moneylender. ' Well, this one wouldn't,' rejoined Tim doggedly. ' And what business, sir, had you to suppose you would find me in my bedroom ?' 4 I didn't. I went to look for you iv your sitting-room, and not finding you there ran upstairs on the off chance ; the door being opon I peeped in, you were not there and I thought ib best to shut it behind me.' 4 I could have taken my oath, almost, you were coming out of the loom when I caught sight of you.' 4 Well, it may be I'd had my nock and perhaps a foot over tho threshold. I'm veiy sorry if I've done wron^r, Mr Cudemore, but this gentlemau ams so urgent, and I really didu't kuow whether you were in or out.' 4 That'll do,' repl'ed the money-lender, curtly, 'but remember, if ever I find you above the first floor again you go aud with no recommendation for fuither employment from me.' i Tim said nothing in return, but disappeared promptly to his legitimate sphere. 4 Now what was tho cursed young liar prowling 1 about my bedroom for,' mused Mr Cudemoro, as he entered tho bittiugroom and lit a cigar.