"Do you admire that man?" said Lord Worthington, following Lydia's
gaze.
"No. Is he anybody in particular?"
"He was a great man once--in the days of the giants. He was champion
of England. He has a special interest for us as the preceptor of a
mutual friend of ours."
"Please name him," said Lydia, intending that the mutual friend
should be named.
"Ned Skene," said Lord Worthington, taking her to mean the man
below. "He has done so well in the colonies that he has indulged
himself and his family with a trip to England. His arrival made
quite a sensation in this country: last week he had a crowded
benefit, at which he sparred with our mutual friend and knocked him
about like a baby. Our mutual behaved very well on the occasion in
letting himself be knocked about. You see he could have killed old
Skene if he had tried in earnest."
"Is that Skene?" said Lydia, looking at him with an earnest interest
that astonished Lord Worthington. "Ah! Now I recognize the man with
him. He is one of my tenants at the Warren Lodge--I believe I am
indebted to you for the introduction."
"Mellish the trainer?" said Lord Worthington, looking a little
foolish. "So it is. What a lovely bay that lancer has!--the second
from the far end."
But Lydia would not look at the lancer's horse. "Paradise!" she
heard Skene exclaim just then with scornful incredulity. "Ain't it
likely?" It occurred to her that if he was alluding to his own
chance of arriving there, it was not likely.
"Less likely things have happened," said Mellish. "I won't say that
Cashel Byron is getting stale; but I will say that his luck is too
good to last; and I know for a fact that he's gone quite melancholy
of late."
"Melancholy be blowed!" said Skene. "What should he go melancholy
for?"
"Oh, I know," said Mellish, reticently.
"You know a lot," retorted Skene with contempt. "I s'pose you mean
the young 'oman he's always talking to my missis about."
"I mean a young woman that he ain't likely to get. One of the
biggest swells in England--a little un with a face like the inside
of a oyster-shell, that he met down at Wiltstoken, where I trained
him to fight the Flying Dutchman. He went right off his training
after he met her--wouldn't do anything I told him. I made so
cock-sure that he'd be licked that I hedged every penny I had laid
on him except twenty pound that I got a flat to bet agin him down at
the fight after I had changed my mind. Curse that woman! I lost a
hundred pound by her."