The Argosy — page 395: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

372 The House of Halliwell. her as so supremely absurd. ‘There knelt Captain Kerleton in the everlasting regimentals, his hands thrown theatrically out towards Mrs. Copp, and his face twisted into a die-away expression towards Hester, while Aunt Copp stood arrested in the middle of the room, one hand grasping the sugar-basin, the other the silver tongs, her face turning to petrifaction, and her eyes rolling from one to the other in a sort of horror. ‘‘Niece Hester, what zs this? I insist upon knowing.” “T think Captain Kerleton meant to play off a little joke with me, Aunt Copp,” she answered. ‘Lucy, it seems, offended him this morning, but they will make it all night again.” “But, by heaven, it is no joke, Miss Hester,” interrupted the Captain, springing up. “I mean it as real earnest.” “Then allow me to assure you, Captain Kerleton, that I shall never treat it but as a joke, now and always,” Hester impressively whispered. ‘And pray let neither of us recur to it again, even in thought.” “Then you won’t have me? You mean to insinuate that?” he reiterated aloud, pulling a face as long as his arm. ‘T would not have you, Captain Kerleton, if you were worth your weight in gold,’’ she said. ‘‘So let the joke pass away, and we had better say nothing about it to Lucy.” “ Highty-tighty,” cried Aunt Copp, recovering from her petrifac- fion and going forward, “but you can’t do these things, Captain. Shake off one sister and take up another! I see what it is: you have been getting up your temper because Lucy crossed your whim this morning. So now you must get it down again. We were just going out to take a walk, and the best thing you can do is to go with us. Why, you would be as bad as a sailor.” ‘A sailor?” sullenly repeated the Captain. “Yes, sir, a sailor. They have sweethearts by the dozen, in each port, and that’s well known. Many’s the wrangle I have had with my boy about that: he vowing, by all that’s blue, that Ze had not, and I knowing he had. Don’t tell me. But you can’t have two in a house, Captain. ‘So sit down there and get cool while we put our things on.” He went out with Aunt Copp and Lucy. MHester remained at home, truly uncomfortable, and deliberating whether she ought not to tell Lucy what had taken place. For if the thing were not a joke —as she kept trying to persuade herself, though the more she tried, the more incomprehensible a joke it grew—was a man capable of these violent changes and fits of temper one to whom they ought to entrust Lucy ? | The following day dawned, and they all rose as usual, little thinking what it was to bring forth. For how many a one’ has a day risen in happiness to close in sorrow, dark as the darkest night! It was not strictly sorrow, however, that came to them, Gomicbooks.co ()