Afloat and Ashore Part 34

Female nature could not suppress the exclamations of belight that succeeded. Even Rupert, who had a besetting weakness on the subject of all personal ornaments, laid aside his segar, and came within the prescribed distance, the better to admire. It was admitted all round, New York had nothing to compare with them. I then mentioned that they had been fished up by myself from the depths of the sea.

"How much that adds to their value!" said Lucy, in a low voice, but in her warm, sincere manner.

"That was getting them _cheap_, was it not, Miss Wallingford?" inquired Emily, with an emphasis I disliked.

"Very; though I agree with Lucy, it makes them so much the more valuable."

"If Miss Merton will forget my charge of treason, and condescend to put on the necklace, you will all see it to much greater advantage than at present. If a fine necklace embellishes a fine woman, the advantage is quite reciprocal. I have seen my pearls once already on her neck, and know the effect."

A wish of Grace's aided my application, and Emily placed the ornaments around her throat. The dazzling whiteness of her skin gave a l.u.s.tre to the pearls that they certainly did not previously possess. One scarcely knew which to admire the most--the ornaments, or their setting.

"How very, very beautiful they are _now!_" cried Lucy, in generous admiration. "Oh! Miss Merton, pearls should ever be your ornaments."

"_Those_ pearls, you mean, Lucy," put in Rupert, who was always extremely liberal with other people's means; "the necklace ought never to be removed."

"Miss Merton knows their destination," I said, gallantly, "and the terms of ownership."

Emily slowly undid the clasp, placed the string before her eyes, and looked at it long and silently.

"And what is this destination, Miles? What these terms of ownership?" my sister asked.

"Of course he means them for you, dear," Lucy remarked in haste. "For whom else can he intend such an ornament?"

"You are mistaken, Miss Hardinge. Grace must excuse me for being a little selfish this time, at least. I do not intend those pearls for Miss Wallingford, but for Mrs. Wallingford, should there ever be such a person."

"Upon my word, such a double temptation, my boy, I Wonder Miss Merton ever had the fort.i.tude to remove them from the enviable position they so lately occupied," cried Rupert, glancing meaningly towards Emily, who returned the look with a slight smile.

"Of course, Miss Merton understood that my remark was ventured in pleasantry," I said stiffly, "and not in presumption. It was decided, however, when in the Pacific, that these pearls ought to have that destination. It is true, Clawbonny is not the Pacific, and one may be pardoned for seeing things a little differently _here_, from what they appeared _there_. I have a few more pearls, however, very inferior in quality I confess, to those of the necklace; but, such as they are, I should esteem it a favour, ladies, if you would consent to divide them equally among you. They would make three very pretty rings, and as many breast-pins."

I put into Grace's hands a little box containing all the pearls that had not been placed on the string. There were many fine ones among them, and some of very respectable size, though most were of the sort called seed.

In the whole, there were several hundreds.

"We will not balk his generosity," said Grace, smiling--"so, Miss Merton, we will separate the pearls into three parcels, and draw lots for them. Here are handsome ornaments among them!"

"They will have one value with you, at least, Grace, and quite likely with Lucy, while they might possibly possess another with Miss Merton. I fished up every one of those pearls with my own hands."

"Certainly, that will give them value with both Lucy and me, dearest Miles, as would the simple fact that they are your gift--but what is to give them their especial value with Miss Merton?"

"They may serve to remind Miss Merton of some of her hair-breadth escapes, of the weeks pa.s.sed on the island, and of scenes that, a few years hence, will probably possess the colours of a dream, in her recollection."

"_One_ pearl I will take, with this particular object"--said Emily, with more feeling than I had seen her manifest since she had got back into the world, "if Miss Wallingford will do me the favour to select it."

"Let it be enough for a ring, at least," Grace returned, in her own sweetest manner. "Half a dozen of the finest of these pearls, of which one shall be on Miles' account, and five on mine."

"On those conditions, let it then be six. I have no occasion for pearls to remind me how much my father and my self owe to Captain Wallingford."

"Come, Rupert," added Grace; "you have a taste in these things, let us have your aid in the selection." Rupert was by no means backward in complying, for he loved to be meddling in such matters.

"In the first place," he said, "I shall at once direct that the number be increased to seven; this fine one in the centre, and three on each side, gradually diminishing in size. We must look to quality, and not to weight, for the six puisne judges, as we should call them in the courts.

The Chief Justice will be a n.o.ble-looking fellow, and the a.s.sociates ought to be of good quality to keep his honour's company."

"Why do you not call your judges 'my lords,' as we do in England, Mr.

Hardinge?" inquired Emily, in her prettiest manner.

"_Why,_ sure enough! I wish with all my heart we did, and then a man would have something worth living for."

"Rupert!" exclaimed Lucy, colouring--"you know it is because our government is republican, and that we have no n.o.bles among us. Nor do you say exactly what you think; you would not be 'my lord,' if you could."

"As I never shall be a 'my lord,' and I am afraid never a 'your honour'--There, Miss Merton--there are numbers two and three--observe how beautifully they are graduated as to size."

"Well, 'your honour,'" added Grace, who began to be a little uneasy at the manner Rupert and Emily exhibited towards each other--"well, 'your honour,' what is to come next?"

"Numbers four and five, of course--and here they are, Miss Merton; as accurately diminished, as if done by hand. A beautiful ring it will make--I envy those who will be recalled to mind, by so charming an object."

"You will now be one of those yourself, Mr. Hardinge"--observed Emily, with great tact--"for you are fully ent.i.tled to it, by the trouble you are giving yourself, and the taste and judgment you possess."

Lucy looked petrified. She had so long accustomed herself to think of Grace as her future sister, that the open admiration expressed in Rupert's countenance, which was too manifest to escape any of us, first threw a glimmering of light on suspicions of the most painful nature. I had long seen that Lucy understood her brother's character better than any of us--much better, indeed, than his simple-minded father; and, as for myself, I was prepared to expect anything but consistency and principle in his conduct. Dearly as I prized Lucy, and by this time the slight compet.i.tion that Emily Merton had presented to my fancy, had entirely given way to the dear creature's heart, and nature,--but, dearly as I prized Lucy, I would greatly have preferred that my sister should not marry her brother; and, so far from feeling resentment on account of his want of fidelity, I was rather disposed to rejoice at it. I could appreciate his want of merit, and his unfitness to be the husband of such a woman as Grace, even at my early age; but, alas! I could not appreciate the effects of his inconstancy on a heart like that of my sister. Could I have felt as easy on the subject of Mr. Andrew Drewett, and of my own precise position in society, I should have cared very little, just then, about Rupert, and his caprices.

The pearls for the ring were soon selected by Rupert, and approved of by Grace, after which I a.s.sumed the office of dividing the remainder myself. I drew a chair, took the box from Rupert, and set about the task.

"I shall make a faithful umpire, girls," I observed, as pearl after pearl was laid, first on one spot, then on another--"for I feel no preference between you--Grace is as Lucy; Lucy is as Grace, with me."

"That may be fortunate, Miss Hardinge, since it indicates no preference of a particular sort, that might require repressing," said Emily, smiling significantly at Lucy. "When gentlemen treat young ladies as sisters, it is a subject of rejoicing. These sailors need severe lessons, to keep them within the rules of the land."

Why this was said, I did not understand; but Rupert laughed at it, as if it were a capital thing. To mend the matter, he added, a little boisterously for him--

"You see, Miles, you had better have taken to the law--the ladies cannot appreciate the merits of you tars."

"So it would seem," I returned, a little drily, "after all Miss Merton has experienced and seen of the trade."

Emily made no reply, but she regarded her pearls with a steadiness that showed she was thinking more of their effect than that of either her own speech or mine. I continued to divide the pearls, and soon had the work complete.

"What am I to do, now?"--I asked--"Will you draw lots, girls, or will you trust to my impartiality?"

"We will certainly confide in the last," answered Grace. "The division is so very equitable that I do not well see how you can defraud either."

"That being the case, this parcel is for you, Lucy; and, Grace, that is your's."

Grace rose, put her arms affectionately around my neck, and gave me one of the hundred kisses that I had received, first and last, for presents of one sort and another. The deep attachment that beamed in her saint-like eyes, would of itself have repaid me for fifty such gifts.

At the moment, I was almost on the point of throwing her the necklace in the bargain; but some faint fancies about Mrs. Miles Wallingford prevented me from so doing. As for Lucy, not a little to my surprise, she received the pearls, muttered a few unintelligible words, but did not even rise from her chair. Emily seemed to tire of this, so she caught up her gypsy, said the evening was getting to be delightful, and proposed a walk. Rupert and Grace cheerfully acquiesced, and the three soon left the place, Lucy preparing to follow, as soon as a maid could bring her hat, and I excusing myself on the score of business in my own room.

"Miles"--said Lucy, as I was about to enter the house, she herself standing on the edge of the piazza on the point of following the party, but holding towards me the little paper box in which I had placed her portion of the pearls.

"Do you wish me to put them away for you, Lucy?"

"No, Miles--not for _me_--but for _yourself_--for Grace--for _Mrs. Miles Wallingford_, if you prefer that."

This was said without the slightest appearance of any other feeling than a gentle request. I was surprised, and scarce knew what to make of it; at first, I refused to take the box.