Fighting the Flames by Robert Michael Ballantyne (read novels website txt) 📖

pushed on until he became a philosopher-of-all-trades, and of many sciences too, so that it would have been difficult to find his match between Charing Cross and Primrose Hill.

And Willie was not changeable. True to his first love, he clung with all the ardour of youth to fire, fire-engines, and the fire-brigade. He would have become a member of the latter if he could, but that was in the circumstances impossible. He studied the subject, however, and knew its history and its working details from first to last. He did his best to invent new engines and improve on old ones; but in such matters he usually found that his inventions had been invented, and his improvements made and improved upon, long before. Such checks, however, did not abate his ardour one jot. He persevered in his varied courses until he worked himself into a species of business which could exist only in London, which it would be difficult to describe, and which its practitioner styled "poly-artism" with as much boldness as if the word were in Johnson's Dictionary!

Standing on the hearth, as we have said, Willie related to his friend all he knew in regard to the Cattley family, and wound up with an anxious demand what was to be done for them.

Mr Tippet, leaning on his bench and looking into Willie's face with a benignant smile, said--

"Done, my boy? why, help 'em of course."

"Ay, but how?" asked Willie.

"How?" cried Mr Tippet; "why, by giving 'em money. You are aware that I stopped their allowance because Cattley senior went and drank it as soon as he got it, and Cattley junior is able to support himself, and I was not until now aware that the poor daughter was killing herself to support her father; but as I do know it now I'll continue the allowance and increase it, and we shall give it into the daughter's hands, so that the father won't be able to mis-spend it."

Mr Tippet's visage glowed with ardour as he stated this arrangement, but the glow was displaced by a look of anxiety as he observed that Willie shook his head and looked as perplexed as ever.

"If that plan would have availed I would have tried it long ago," said he, with a sad smile, "for my income is a pretty good one, thanks to you, sir--"

"Thanks to your own genius, Willie, for the remarkable and prolific offshoots which you have caused to sprout from this dry old root," said Mr Tippet, interrupting, as he glanced round the room with an air of affection, which showed that he loved the root dearly, despite its age and dryness.

"Not the less thanks to you, sir," said Willie, in the deferential tone which he had assumed involuntarily towards his patron almost from the commencement of their intercourse; "but Z---a--Miss Cattley positively refuses to accept of money from anyone in charity, as long as she can work."

"Ah!" exclaimed Mr Tippet, shaking his head slowly, "pride, simple pride. Not laudable pride, observe. She deceives herself, no doubt, into the belief that it is laudable, but it is not; for, when a girl cannot work without working herself into her grave, it is her duty _not_ to work, and it is the duty as well as the privilege of her friends to support her. Truth is truth, Willie, and we must not shrink from stating it because a few illogical thinkers are apt to misunderstand it, or because there are a number of mean-spirited wretches who would be too glad to say that they could not work without injuring their health if they could, by so doing, persuade their friends to support them. What! are those whom God has visited with weakness of body to be made to toil and moil far beyond their strength in order to prove that they do not belong to the class of deceivers and sycophants? Yet public opinion in regard to this matter of what is called self-respect and proper pride compels many hundreds who urgently require assistance to refuse it, and dooms many of them to a premature grave, while it does not shut the maw of a single one of the other class. Why, sir, Miss Cattley is committing suicide; and, in regard to her father, who is dependent on her, she is committing murder--murder, sir!"

Mr Tippet's eyes flashed with indignation, and he drove the chisel deep down into the bench, as if to give point and force to his sentiment, as well as an illustration of the dreadful idea with which he concluded.

Willie admitted that there was much truth in Mr Tippet's observations, but did not quite agree with him in his sweeping condemnation of Ziza.

"However," continued Mr Tippet, resuming his quiet tone and benignant aspect, "I'll consider the matter. Yes, I'll consider the matter and see what's to be done for 'em."

He leaped from the bench with a quiet chuckle as he said this and began to saw vigorously, while Willie went to his desk in the corner and applied himself to an abstruse calculation, considerably relieved in mind, for he had unbounded belief in the fertility of Mr Tippet's imagination, and he knew well that whatever that old gentleman promised he would certainly fulfil.


CHAPTER THIRTY.


THE BEST-LAID PLANS.

There were other men besides Mr Tippet who could be true to their promises when it suited them.

D. Gorman was true to his, in so far as they concerned David Boone. He visited that unfortunate invalid so frequently, and brought him so many little "nice things" for the alleviation of his sufferings, and exhibited altogether such nervous anxiety about his recovery, that worthy Mrs Craw was quite overwhelmed, and said, in the fulness of her heart, that she never did see a kinder friend, or one who more flatly gave the lie-direct to his looks, which, she was bound to admit, were not prepossessing.

But, despite his friend's solicitude, and his doctor's prescriptions, and his nurse's kindness, David Boone continued steadily to sink, until at last the doctor gave it as his opinion that he would not recover.

One afternoon, soon after the expression of this opinion, Gorman called on his friend, and was shown as usual into his chamber. It was a wet, cold, stormy afternoon, and the window rattled violently in its frame.

Boone was much better that afternoon. It seemed as if he had just waited for the doctor to pronounce his unfavourable opinion in order to have the satisfaction of contradicting it.

"He's better to-day, sir," said Mrs Craw, in a whisper.

"Better!" exclaimed Gorman with a look of surprise, "I'm glad to hear that--very glad."

He looked as if he were very sorry, but then, as Mrs Craw said, his looks belied him.

"He's asleep now, sir; the doctor said if he slept he was on no account to be waked up, so I'll leave you to sit by him, sir, till he wakes, and, please, be as quiet as you can."

Mrs Craw left the room on tip-toe, and Gorman went to the bedside and looked on the sick man's wasted features with a frown.

"Ha! you're asleep, are you, and not to be waked up--eh? Come, I'll rouse you."

He shook him violently by the shoulder, and Boone awoke with a start and a groan.

"Hope I didn't disturb you, Boone," said his friend in a quiet voice. "I came to inquire for you."

Boone started up in his bed and stared wildly at some object which appeared to be at the foot of the bed. Gorman started too, and turned pale as his eyes followed those of the invalid.

"What is it you see, Boone?"

"There, there!" he whispered hoarsely, clutching Gorman's arm as if for protection, "look, I heard his voice just now; oh! save me from that man; he--he--wants to kill me!"

"Come, David," said Gorman soothingly, "it's only a fancy--there's nobody there--nobody in the room but me."

"And who are you?" inquired the sick man, falling back exhausted, while he gazed vacantly at his friend.

"Don't you know me, David?"

"Never mind, shut your eyes now and try to sleep. It'll be time to take your physic soon."

"Physic!" cried Boone, starting up in alarm, and again clutching Gorman's arm. "You won't let _him_ give it me, will you? Oh! say you won't--promise to give it me yourself!"

Gorman promised, and a very slight but peculiar smile turned up the corners of his mouth as he did so.

Boone again sank back on his pillow, and Gorman sat down on a chair beside him. His villainous features worked convulsively, for in his heart he was meditating a terrible deed. That morning he had been visited by Ned Hooper, who in the most drunken of voices told him, "that it wash 'mposh'ble to git a body f'r love or munny, so if 'e wanted one he'd better cut's own throat."

His plans having miscarried in this matter, Gorman now meditated taking another and more decided step. He looked at the sick man, and, seeing how feeble he was, his fingers twitched as if with a desire to strangle him. So strong was the feeling upon him that he passed his fingers nervously about his own throat, as if to ascertain the formation of it and the precise locality of the windpipe. Then his hand dropped to his side, and he sat still again, while Boone rolled his poor head from side to side and moaned softly.

Evening drew on apace, and the shadows in the sick-room gradually became deeper and deeper until nothing could be seen distinctly. Still Gorman sat there, with his features pale as death, and his fingers moving nervously; and still the sick man lay and rolled his head from side to side on the pillow. Once or twice Gorman rose abruptly, but he as often sat down again without doing anything.

Suddenly a ray of bright light shot through the window. Gorman started and drew back in alarm. It was only a lamp-lighter who had lighted one of the street-lamps, and the ray which he had thus sent into the sick-chamber passed over the bed. It did not disturb Boone, for the curtains were between him and it, but it disturbed Gorman, for it fell on the chimney-piece and illuminated a group of phials, one of which, half full of a black liquid, was labelled "_Poison_!"

Gorman started up, and this time did not sit down, but with a trembling step moved to the fireplace. He stretched out his hand to grasp the bottle, and almost overturned it, for just at the moment his own figure intercepted the ray of light, and threw the spot where it stood into deep shadow.

"What's that?" asked Boone.

"It's only me," said Gorman, "getting you your physic. I almost upset it in the dark. Here now, drink it off. I can't find the cup, but you can take it out of the bottle."

"You won't let _him_ come near when you give it, will you?" asked Boone anxiously.

"No, no; come, open your mouth."

Boone hesitated to do so, but Gorman used a little force. His hands were steady now! His heart was steeled to the deed, and the cry which Boone was about to utter was choked by the liquid flowing down his