* * * * *
One bright night in April there was an eclipse of the moon, and Mr.
Torkingham, by arrangement, brought to the observatory several labouring
men and boys, to whom he had promised a sight of the phenomenon through
the telescope. The coming confirmation, fixed for May, was again talked
of; and St. Cleeve learnt from the parson that the Bishop had arranged to
stay the night at the vicarage, and was to be invited to a grand luncheon
at Welland House immediately after the ordinance.
This seemed like a going back into life again as regarded the mistress of
that house; and St. Cleeve was a little surprised that, in his
communications with Viviette, she had mentioned no such probability.
The next day he walked round the mansion, wondering how in its present state
any entertainment could be given therein.
He found that the shutters had been opened, which had restored an
unexpected liveliness to the aspect of the windows. Two men were putting
a chimney-pot on one of the chimney-stacks, and two more were scraping
green mould from the front wall. He made no inquiries on that occasion.
Three days later he strolled thitherward again. Now a great cleaning of
window-panes was going on, Hezzy Biles and Sammy Blore being the
operators, for which purpose their services must have been borrowed from
the neighbouring farmer. Hezzy dashed water at the glass with a force
that threatened to break it in, the broad face of Sammy being discernible
inside, smiling at the onset. In addition to these, Anthony Green and
another were weeding the gravel walks, and putting fresh plants into the
flower-beds. Neither of these reasonable operations was a great
undertaking, singly looked at; but the life Viviette had latterly led and
the mood in which she had hitherto regarded the premises, rendered it
somewhat significant. Swithin, however, was rather curious than
concerned at the proceedings, and returned to his tower with feelings of
interest not entirely confined to the worlds overhead.
Lady Constantine may or may not have seen him from the house; but the
same evening, which was fine and dry, while he was occupying himself in
the observatory with cleaning the eye-pieces of the equatorial, skull-cap
on head, observing-jacket on, and in other ways primed for sweeping, the
customary stealthy step on the winding staircase brought her form in due
course into the rays of the bull's-eye lantern. The meeting was all the
more pleasant to him from being unexpected, and he at once lit up a
larger lamp in honour of the occasion.
'It is but a hasty visit,' she said when, after putting up her mouth to
be kissed, she had seated herself in the low chair used for observations,
panting a little with the labour of ascent. 'But I hope to be able to
come more freely soon. My brother is still living on with me. Yes, he
is going to stay until the confirmation is over. After the confirmation
he will certainly leave. So good it is of you, dear, to please me by
agreeing to the ceremony. The Bishop, you know, is going to lunch with
us. It is a wonder he has promised to come, for he is a man averse to
society, and mostly keeps entirely with the clergy on these confirmation
tours, or circuits, or whatever they call them. But Mr. Torkingham's
house is so very small, and mine is so close at hand, that this
arrangement to relieve him of the fuss of one meal, at least, naturally
suggested itself; and the Bishop has fallen in with it very readily.