And now both Silverbridge and his girl were bent upon marriages by which they would depart out of their own order! Let Silverbridge marry whom he might, he could not be other than the heir to the honours of the family. But by his marriage he might either support or derogate from these honours. And now, having at first made a choice that was good, he had altered his mind from simple freak, captivated by a pair of bright eyes and an arch smile, and without a feeling in regard to his family, was anxious to take to his bosom the granddaughter of an American day-labourer!
And then his girl,--of whose beauty he was so proud, from whose manners, and tastes, and modes of life he had expected to reap those good things, in a feminine degree, which his sons as young men seemed so little fitted to give him! By slow degrees he had been brought round to acknowledge that the young man was worthy.
Tregear's conduct had been felt by the Duke to be manly. The letter he had written was a good letter. And then he had won for himself a seat in the House of Commons. When forced to speak of him to his girl he had been driven by justice to call him worthy.
But how could he serve to support and strengthen the nobility, the endurance and perpetuation of which should be the peculiar care of every Palliser?
And yet as the Duke walked about his room he felt that his opposition either to the one marriage or to the other was vain. Of course they would marry according to their wills.
That same night Gerald wrote to his brother before he went to bed, as follows:
'DEAR SILVER,--I was awfully obliged to you for sending me the I O U for that brute Percival. He only sneered when he took it, and would have said something disagreeable, but that he saw that I was in earnest. I know he did say something to Nid, only I can't find out what. Nid is an easy-going fellow, and, as I saw, didn't want to have a rumpus.
'But now what do you think I've done? Directly I got home I told the governor all about it! As I was in the train I made up my mind that I would. I went slap at it. If there is anything that never does any good, it is craning. I did it all at one rush, just as though I was swallowing a dose of physic. I wish I could tell you all that the governor said, because it was really tip-top. What is a fellow to get by playing high,--a fellow like you and me? I didn't want any of that beast's money. I don't suppose he had any. But one's dander gets up, and one doesn't like to be done, and so it goes on. I shall cut that kind of thing altogether. You should have heard the governor spouting Latin!
And then the way he sat upon Percival, without mentioning the fellow's name! I do think it mean to set yourself to work to win money at cards,--and it is awfully mean to lose more than you have got to pay.
'Then at the end the governor said he'd send the beast a cheque for the amount. You know his way of finishing up, just like two fellows fighting,--when one has awfully punished the other he goes up and shakes hands with him. He did pitch it into me,--not abusing me, nor even saying a word about the money, which he at once promised to pay, but laying it on to gambling with a regular cat-o'-ninetails. And then there was an end of it. He just asked the fellow's address and said that he would send him the money. I will say this;--I don't think there's a greater brick than the governor anywhere.
'I am awfully sorry about Tregear. I can't make out how it happened. I suppose you were too near him, and Melrose always does rush at his fences. One fellow shouldn't be too near another fellow,--only it so often happens that it can't be helped. It's just like anything else, if nothing comes of it then it's all right. But if anybody comes to grief then he's got to be pitched into. Do you remember when I nearly cut over old Sir Simon Slowbody? Didn't I hear about it!
'I am awfully glad you didn't smash up Tregear altogether because of Mary. I am quite sure it is no good anybody setting up his back against that. It's one of the things that have got to be. You always have said that he is a good fellow. If so, what's the harm?
At any rate it has got to be.
'Your affectionate Brother, GERALD.'
'I go up in about a week.'