Vellenaux A Novel by Edmund William Forrest (phonics reading books TXT) 📕

Excited Populace.

The Dewally Festival Is Equally Recognized By Natives Of All Castes And

Denominations As A Sort Of New Year's Day. Accounts For The Past Year

Are Closed,  And New Books Are Opened. The Dirt And Rubbish Of The Past

Twelvemonth Is Removed,  The Houses Thoroughly Cleansed And At Night The

City Or Town Is Illuminated With Lamps,  Chinese Lanterns,  And Other

Descriptions Of Lights,  And The Houses Thrown Open For General

Hospitality.

The Hooley,  The Most Revolting Of All Hindoo Festivals,  Draws Together

An Immense Concourse Of People. Large Fires Are Made On The Sides Of The

Public Streets And Liquid Dye Stuffs,  With Every Description Of Filth Is

Thrown By The Hindoos On Each Other,  And Should Any Unfortunate Hindoo

Woman Show Herself In The Street On These Occasions,  She Is Assaulted

With Language Of The Most Obscene And Disgusting Nature. These Festivals

Have Of Late Years Been Curtailed By The Government,  And Now Seldom Last

More Than Two Days--That Is,  In Large Cities Containing European

Communities--But In Native Towns It Is Still Of Many Days Duration.

Accounts Of These And Other Native Ceremonies,  Together With The Horrors

Of The Black Hole,  Experienced By Europeans,  Nearly One Hundred Years

Since At The Suggestion Of The Native Princes,  Had Been Related To Edith

By Her Moonshee Ayah,  But Their Dominion,  Or Power For Good Or Evil,  Has

Now Passed Away,  And Calcutta Of The Present Day Is One Of The

Pleasantest And Finest Cities To The European To Be Found Throughout Our

Indian Possessions.

And Were It Not For The Great Change In Her Position,  From Absolute

Affluence To Becoming The Recipient Of Another's Bounty,  Edith Would

Have Been,  If Not Quite Happy,  At Least Contented. Yet It Must Not Be

Imagined That She Was Ungrateful Or The Less Thankful To Her Kind

Protectors,  The Bartons,  For She Could Now Well Realize What Might Have

Been Her Situation Had She Been Compelled To Act Upon The Plan That Had

First Suggested Itself To Her On Leaving Vellenaux--That Of Becoming A

Governess Or Companion To Some Antiquated Dowager In Europe.

The Repeated Assurances From Mrs. Barton That She Would,  At No Distant

Period,  Secure A Brilliant Alliance,  Fell Coldly On Her Ear,  But She

Made No Ostentative Demonstration Of Her Own Ideas On The Subject,  But

With A Gentle And Quiet Dignity,  Repelled The Advances Of Certain

Aspirants For Her Hand,  Who Were Continually To Be Found In Her Train

Whenever She Appeared Abroad. She Had A Smile For All And A Fascinating

And Bewitching Manner Which Was Equally Bestowed Among Her Would-Be

Admirers. But Beyond This All Was Calm And Cold. Her Heart Had

Imperceptibly Slipped From Her,  And Was Now In The Care Of Another,  Nor

Would She Wish It Were Otherwise. The Future Was Before Her And She Was

Willing To Wait.

Let It Not Be Imagined That Arthur Carlton Was A Lukewarm Lover,  Coldly

Prudential,  Or Thinking It Would Be Time Enough To Marry When He Should

Have Obtained His Captaincy,  And Careless As To What Trying Position

Edith Might Be Placed In,  Surrounded,  As He Knew Her To Be,  By Those Who

Would Willingly Wed Her At Any Moment. Far From It. He Loved Her Too

Well To Ask Her To Share At Present The Inconveniences Incident To A

Camp Life,  As Experienced By The Wives Of Subalterns,  Not That He

Doubted She Would Yield Up Without A Single Regret The Gay Society And

Splendid Establishment Of Mrs. Barton,  And Contentedly Share With Him

His Home,  Be It Ever So Humble. But The Thought Of Her Having To Make

Any Such Sacrifice Was To Him One That Could Not Be Entertained For A

Moment. He Believed He Knew Her Sufficiently Well To Trust Implicitly In

Her Constancy,  And Await The Happy Time When He Could In All Honour

Formally Propose For Her Hand.

About A Twelvemonth Prior To The Outbreak Of The Great Sepoy Mutiny,  It

Pleased The Authorities To Change The Scene Of Mr. Barton's Labors From

Chowringee,  That Belgravia Of Calcutta,  To Goolampore,  A Military

Station Of Some Importance In The Northwest Provinces,  Or More Properly

Speaking In The Goozeratte Country. This Act Of The Government,  Although

Particularly Objectionable To Mrs. Barton,  Was Exactly What Her Lord And

Master Desired. His Term Of Service Would Shortly Come To A Close,  And

Therefore,  In His Opinion,  It Became Expedient,  Not Only To Retrench His

Expenses,  Which He Could Not Do At The Gay Capitol,  But Likewise Gather

In A Few More Of The Loaves And Fishes Of Office,  Which Were Said To Be

Found In Greater Abundance At A Distance From The Seat Of Government,

Besides Mr. Barton Was In The Decline Of Life,  And Felt That The Harness

Of Office Life Did Not Fit So Easily Upon Him While Under The Immediate

Supervision Of The Suddur Aydowlett,  As It Would Do When Removed From

Its Immediate Influence. However,  Be This As It May,  He Was Quite

Content With The Change,  Nor Was He The Only One To Whom This Change Was

A Sort Of Relief. The City Of Palaces And Its Surroundings Had Become

Distasteful To Edith; Not That She Disliked The Capitol Or The Pleasures

To Be Found There; But She Felt Wearied And Annoyed By The Attentions

That Were Showered Upon Her By The Numerous Suitors Who Thronged Around

Her,  Using All The Powers Of Persuasion They Had At Command,  To Induce

Her To Listen To Their Respective Suits. The Parchment Visaged Nabob,

With His Sacks Of Rupees,  The Wealthy Planter,  Whose Fortune Had Been

Wrung From Either Opium Or Indigo,  Perhaps Both,  The Rich Civil Servant

And Field Officer,  With Numerous Others,  All Jostling And Hedging Each

Other In The Race For The Hand Of The Beautiful Miss Effingham; But The

Prize Was Not For Them. She Cared Not A Jot For Either Their Persons Or

Their Purses And Would Not Consent To Be Caught,  And Like A Bird In A

Golden Cage,  Flutter Without The Means Of Escape.

But There Was One For Whom She Did Care,  One Whose Image Was Indelibly

Stamped On Her Heart,  And Whom She Loved As Woman Only Can Love,  And

This Favored One Was Arthur Carlton,  Lieut. H.M. Light Dragoons--The

Playmate Of Her Childhood,  And Companion Of Her Riper Years In The

Golden Days At Vellenaux,  In Dear Old England.

"It Is Absurd In The Directors,  Or Whoever Has To Do With It,  To Send

Horace Off To The Northwest,  Just At The Commencement Of The Season Too;

Besides,  We Shall Scarcely Be Settled Before We Shall Have To Return To

England. I Declare We Are Being Treated Shamefully," Said Mrs. Barton,

As She Stepped From The Chuppaul Ghat To The Budgerow That Was To Convey

Them To The Steamer,  In Which A Passage Had Been Provided By The

Government For Them,  To The Nearest Port On The Coast Of Goozeratte,  _En

Route_ For Goolampore,  "And To Think," Again Resumed The Little Lady To

Edith,  As They Sat Together In The Handsomely Furnished Cabin,  "That

Your Brilliant Prospects Will Be Destroyed; For Who Is There In The

Interior That Will Compensate For The Loss Of Those Eligible Suitors For

Your Hand?" Edith Disclaimed Against Brilliant Alliances Or The Admirers

Referred To.

"It Is All Very Fine,  My Dear,  For You To Say So; But Depend Upon It,

For A Young Lady In Your Position And Circumstances,  There Is Nothing

Equal To A Wealthy Husband,  And An Establishment Of Your Own. But What I

Shall Do Without You I Really Do Not Know; But I Expect It Must Come To

That Some Day Or Other." Here The Good Lady Sank Back Among Her

Cushions,  And Resigned Herself To Her Fate,  Her Ayah,  And Her Last New

Novel.

For Several Months All Went Pleasantly Enough With The Bartons,  Much

More So,  Indeed Than Had Been Anticipated By Her Little Ladyship; For

She Found That As Wife Of The Judge,  The Highest Civil Functionary In

The Station,  She Was Leader Of Fashion,  And Took Precedence Of All Other

Ladies In Goolampore; And Edith,  For A Time,  Found Herself Relieved From

The Importunities That Beset Her At Calcutta. Not That She Lacked

Admirers,  But Certainly At Present Their Attentions Were Not

Sufficiently Marked To Give Her Any Annoyance.

The Worthy Judge Was Retrenching. His Expenses Were Scarcely One Fourth

Of What They Had Been At The Presidency. He Had Attained His Object,  And

All Things For The Time Being _Couleur De Rose_.

"Come Here Pretty One," Said He As He Noticed Edith Dismounting,  After

Her Usual Ride Around The Race Course And Band Stand,  One Beautiful

Evening. "Listen! Here Is Something In The Papers That Will Greatly

Interest You,  Or I Am Much Mistaken." Edith Was Soon At His Side,  All

Attention,  When The Gentleman Proceeded To Read As Follows:--"Extract

From General Orders. His Excellency The Commander In Chief Has Been

Pleased To Appoint Lieutenant Arthur Carlton,  H.M. Light Dragoons,  To

Act As A.D.C. On The Staff Of General D----,  At Goolampore. That Officer

Will Proceed And Assume His Duties At That Station Forthwith." Edith

Could Not Conceal Her Joy At This Unexpected Event,  And Retired To Her

Chamber In A Flutter Of Agitation,  But Happier In Heart Than She Had

Been For Many Months Past.

It Was The Anniversary Of Her Majesty's Birthday,  And,  As Was Customary

At All Military Stations,  It Was Celebrated By A Military Display In The

Morning,  Theatricals,  And A Supper And Ball At Night. The Assembly

Rooms,  As They Were Called At Goolampore,  Were Built By Government. It

Was A Building Of Considerable Length,  Divided Into Three Rooms,  Eighty

Feet Long,  By Forty Feet Wide. The End One Was Fitted Up In Very

Handsome Style As A Theatre,  The Other Two Communicating With It By

Means Of Enormous Folding Doors,  And Were Used On Ordinary Occasions By

The Military Department For Holding Courts Martial,  Courts Of Enquiry,

Committees,  &C. The Other Was At The Disposal Of The Political Agents Or

Chief Magistrate To Transact Such Business As They Might Deem Necessary.

But On Such Occasions As The Present,  Or Others Of A Similar Character,

The Whole Three Were Brilliantly Illuminated And Thrown Open For The

Amusement Of The _Elite_ Of The Station.

"I Say Hopkins,  As You Know Everything And Everybody,  Tell Me,  Who Is

That Young Fellow In Staff Uniform,  Dancing With Miss Effingham?"

Enquired A Colonel Of The N.I.

"That Is Young Carlton Of The Dragoons,  The New A.D.C. He Only Arrived

This Morning.