Buch lesen: «Hector's Inheritance, Or, the Boys of Smith Institute»

CHAPTER I. MR. ROSCOE RECEIVES TWO LETTERS

Mr. Roscoe rang the bell, and, in answer, a servant entered the library, where he sat before a large and commodious desk.

“Has the mail yet arrived?” he asked.

“Yes, sir; John has just come back from the village.”

“Go at once and bring me the letters and papers, if there are any.”

John bowed and withdrew.

Mr. Roscoe walked to the window, and looked thoughtfully out upon a smooth, luxuriant lawn and an avenue of magnificent trees, through which carriages were driven to what was popularly known as Castle Roscoe. Everything, even to the luxuriously appointed room in which he sat, indicated wealth and the ease which comes from affluence.

Mr. Roscoe looked around him with exultation.

“And all this may be mine,” he said to himself, “if I am only bold. What is it old Pindar says? ‘Boldness is the beginning of victory.’ I have forgotten nearly all I learned in school, but I remember that. There is some risk, perhaps, but not much, and I owe something to my son—”

He was interrupted by the entrance of the servant with a small leather bag, which was used to hold mail matter, going from or coming to the house.

The servant unlocked the bag, and emptied the contents on the desk. There were three or four papers and two letters. It was the last which attracted Mr. Roscoe’s attention.

We will take the liberty of looking over Mr. Roscoe’s shoulder as he reads the first. It ran as follows:

“DEAR SIR:-I am in receipt of your favor, asking my terms for boarding pupils. For pupils of fifteen or over, I charge five hundred dollars per year, which is not a large sum considering the exceptional advantages presented by Inglewood School. My pupils are from the best families, and enjoy a liberal table. Moreover, I employ competent teachers, and guarantee rapid progress, when the student is of good, natural capacity, and willing to work.

“I think you will agree with me that it is unwise to economize when the proper training of a youth is in question, and that a cheap school is little better than no school at all.

“I have only to add that I shall be most happy to receive your young nephew, if you decide to send him to me, and will take personal pains to promote his advancement. I remain, dear sir, your obedient servant,

“DIONYSIUS KADIX.”

Mr. Roscoe threw the letter down upon the desk with an impatient gesture.

“Five hundred dollars a year!” he exclaimed. “What can the man be thinking of? Why, when I went to school, twenty-five years since, less than half this sum was charged. The man is evidently rapacious. Let me see what this other letter says.”

The second letter was contained in a yellow envelope, of cheap texture, and was much more plebeian in appearance than the first.

Again we will look over Mr. Roscoe’s shoulder, and read what it contains. It was postmarked Smithville, and the envelope was disfigured by a blot. It commenced:

“DEAR SIR:-It gives me pleasure to answer your inquiries respecting my school. I have about fifty pupils, part of whom, say one-third, are boarders. Though I say it myself, it will be hard to find any school where more thorough instruction is given. I look upon my pupils as my children, and treat them as such. My system of government is, therefore, kind and parental, and my pupils are often homesick in vacation, longing for the time to come when they can return to their studies at Smith Institute. It is the dearest wish of Mrs. Smith and myself to make our young charges happy, and to advance them, by pleasant roads over flowery meads, to the inner courts of knowledge.

“Humbug!” muttered Mr. Roscoe. “I understand what all that means.” He continued:

“I hope you will not consider three hundred dollars per annum too much for such parental care. Considering the present high price of provisions, it is really as low a price as we can afford to receive.

“I shall be glad if you consider my letter favorable and decide to place your nephew under my charge. Yours respectfully,

“SOCRATES SMITH, A. M.”

“That is more reasonable,” said Mr. Roscoe, to himself, as he laid down the letter. “Three hundred dollars I consider a fair price. At any rate, I do not propose to pay any more for Hector. I suppose the table is plain enough, but I don’t believe in pampering the appetites of boys. If he were the master of Roscoe Hall, as he thinks he is, there might be some propriety in it; but upon that head I shall soon undeceive him. I will let him understand that I am the proprietor of the estate, and that he is only a dependent on my bounty. I wonder how he will take it. I dare say he will make a fuss, but he shall soon be made to understand that it is of no use. Now to answer these letters.”

Mr. Roscoe sat down in a luxurious armchair, and, drawing pen and paper toward him, wrote first to Dr. Radix. I subjoin the letter, as it throws some light upon the character of the writer:

“ROSCOE HALL, Sept. 10th. DR. DIONYSIUS RADIX.

“My DEAR SIR:-I am in receipt of your letter of the 8th instant, answering my inquiries in regard to your school. Let me say at once that I find your terms too high. Five hundred dollars a year for forty weeks’ board and schooling seems to me an exorbitant price to ask. Really, at this rate, education will soon become a luxury open only to the wealthy.

“You are probably under a misapprehension in reference to my young ward. Nephew he is not, in a strict sense of the term. He was adopted—not legally, but practically—by my brother, when he was only a year old, and his origin has been concealed from him. My brother, being childless, has allowed him to suppose that he was his own son. Undoubtedly he meant to provide for him in his will, but, as often happens, put off will-making till it was too late. The estate, therefore, goes to me, and the boy is unprovided for. This does not so much matter, since I am willing to educate him, and give him a fair start in life, if he acts in a manner to suit me. I do not, however, feel called upon to pay an exorbitant price for his tuition, and, therefore, shall be obliged to forego placing him at Inglewood School. Yours, etc.,

“ALLAN ROSCOE.”

“When this letter is sent, I shall have taken the decisive step,” thought Mr. Roscoe. “I must then adhere to my story, at whatever cost. Now for the other.”

His reply to the letter of Socrates Smith, A. M., was briefer, but likely to be more satisfactory to the recipient. It ran thus;

“SOCRATES SMITH, A. M.

“DEAR Sir:-Your letter is at hand, and I find it, on the whole, satisfactory. The price you charge-three hundred dollars per annum—is about right. I hope you are a firm disciplinarian. I do not want Hector too much indulged or pampered, though he may expect it, my poor brother having been indulgent to excess.

“Let me add, by the bye, that Hector is not my nephew, though I may inadvertently have mentioned him as such, and had no real claims upon my brother, though he has been brought up in that belief. He was adopted, in an informal way, by my brother, when he was but, an infant. Under the circumstances, I am willing to take care of him, and prepare him to earn his own living when his education is completed.

“You may expect to see me early next week. I will bring the boy with me, and enter him at once as a pupil in your school.

“Yours, etc., ALLAN ROSCOE.”

“There, that clinches it!” said Mr. Roscoe, in a tone of satisfaction. “Now for an interview with the boy.”

CHAPTER II. RESENTING AN INSULT

A stone’s throw from the mansion was a neat and spacious carriage house. The late master of Castle Roscoe had been fond of driving, and kept three horses and two carriages. One of the latter was an old-fashioned coach; while there was, besides, a light buggy, which Hector was accustomed to consider his own. It was he, generally, who used this, for his father preferred to take a driver, and generally took an airing, either alone or with Hector, in the more stately carriage, drawn by two horses.

Hector walked across the lawn and entered the carriage house, where Edward, the coachman, was washing the carriage. As the former is to be our hero, we may pause to describe him.

He was fifteen, slenderly but strongly made, with a clear skin and dark eyes and a straightforward look. He had a winning smile, that attracted all who saw it, but his face could assume a different expression if need be. There were strong lines about his mouth that indicated calm resolution and strength of purpose. He was not a boy who would permit himself to be imposed upon, but was properly tenacious of his rights.

As he entered the carriage house, he looked about him in some surprise.

“Where is the buggy, Edward?” he asked.

“Master Guy is driving out in it.”

“How is that?” said Hector. “Doesn’t he know that it is mine? He might, at least, have asked whether I intended to use it.”

“That is what I told him.”

“And what did he say?”

“That it was just as much his as yours, and perhaps more so.”

“What could he mean?”

“He said his father had promised to give it to him.”

“Promised to give him my buggy!” exclaimed Hector, his eyes flashing.

“It’s a shame, Master Hector, so it is,” said Edward, sympathetically. He had known Hector since he was a boy of five, and liked him far better than Guy, who was a newcomer, and a boy disposed to domineer over those whom he considered his inferiors.

“I don’t intend to submit to it,” said Hector, trying, ineffectually, to curb his anger.

“I don’t blame you, Master Hector, but I’m afraid you will have a hard time. As your uncle is your guardian, of course he has power over you, and he thinks everything of that boy of his, though, to my mind, he is an unmannerly cub.”

“I don’t know how much power he has over me, but he mustn’t expect me to play second fiddle to his son. I am willing that Guy should enjoy as many privileges as I do, though the estate is mine; but he mustn’t interfere with my rights.”

“That’s right, Master Hector. Why don’t you speak to your uncle about it? I would, if I were you.”

“So I will, if it is necessary. I will speak to Guy first, and that may be sufficient. I don’t want to enter complaint against him if I can help it.”

“You didn’t see Master Guy ride out, did you?”

“‘No; I was reading. If I had seen him, I would have stopped him.”

“I am afraid it wouldn’t have done any good.”

“Do you mean that he would have taken the buggy in spite of me?” asked Hector, indignantly.

“I think he would have tried. To tell the truth, Master Hector, I refused to get the buggy ready for him, till he brought out a paper from his father commanding me to do it. Then, of course, I had no choice.”

Hector was staggered by this.

“Have you got the paper?” he asked.

“Yes,” answered Edward, fumbling in his vest pocket.

He drew out a small scrap of notepaper, on which was written, “My son, Guy, has my permission to ride out in the buggy. You will obey me rather than Hector.”

This was signed, “Allan Roscoe.”

“So it seems my uncle is the trespasser,” said Hector. “It is he who takes the responsibility. I will go and speak to him at once.”

“Wait a minute! There comes Master Guy, returning from his ride. You can have it out with him first.”

In fact, Hector had only to look down the avenue to see the rapid approach of the buggy. Guy held the reins, and was seated in the driver’s seat with all the air of a master. The sight aggravated Hector, and not without reason. He waited until Guy, flinging the reins to Edward, leaped from the buggy, then he thought it time to speak.

“Guy,” he said, calmly, “it seems to me that you owe me an apology.”

“Oh, I do, do I?” sneered Guy. “What for, let me ask?”

“You have driven out in my buggy, without asking my permission.”

“Oh, it’s your buggy, is it?” said Guy, with another sneer.

“Of course it is. You know that as well as I do.”

“I don’t know it at all.”

“Then I inform you of it. I don’t want to be selfish; I am willing that you should ride out in it occasionally; but I insist upon your asking my permission.”

Guy listened to these words with a sneer upon his face. He was about the same age and size as Hector, but his features were mean and insignificant, and there was a shifty look in his eye that stamped him as unreliable. He did not look like the Roscoes, though in many respects he was in disposition and character similar to his father.

“It strikes me,” he said, with an unpleasant smile, “that you’re taking a little too much upon yourself, Hector Roscoe. The buggy is no more yours than mine.”

“What do you say, Edward?” said Hector, appealing to the coachman.

“I say that the buggy is yours, and the horse is yours, and so I told Master Guy, but he wouldn’t take no notice of it.”

“Do you hear that, Guy?”

“Yes, I do; and that’s what I think of it,” answered Guy, snapping his fingers. “My father gave me permission to ride out in it, and I’ve got just as much right to it as you, and perhaps more.”

“You know better, Guy,” said Hector, indignantly; “and I warn you not to interfere with my rights hereafter.”

“Suppose I do?” sneered Guy.

“Then I shall be under the necessity of giving you a lesson,” said Hector, calmly.

“You will, will you? You’ll give me a lesson?” repeated Guy, nodding vigorously. “Who are you, I’d like to know?”

“If you don’t know, I can tell you.”

“Tell me, then.”

“I am Hector Roscoe, the owner of Roscoe Hall. Whether your father is to be my guardian or not, I don’t know; but there are limits to the power of a guardian, and I hope he won’t go too far.”

“Hear the boy talk!” said Guy, contemptuously.

“I wish to treat my uncle with becoming respect; but he is a newcomer here—I never saw him till three months since—and he has no right to come here, and take from me all my privileges. We can all live at peace together, and I hope we shall; but he must treat me well.”

“You are quite sure Roscoe Castle belongs to you, are you, Hector?”

“That’s the law. Father left no will, and so the estate comes to me.”

“Ho! ho!” laughed Guy, with malicious glee.

“If you only knew what I know, you wouldn’t crow quite so loud. It’s a splendid joke.”

There was something in this that attracted Hector’s attention, though he was not disposed to attach much importance to what Guy said.

“If I only knew what you know!” he repeated.

“Yes; that’s what I said.”

“What is it?”

“You’ll know it soon enough, and I can tell you one thing, it’ll surprise you. It’ll take down your pride a peg or two.”

Hector stared at his cousin in unaffected surprise. What could Guy possibly mean? Had his father perhaps made a will, and left the estate to some one else—his uncle, for example? Was this the meaning of Guy’s malicious mirth?

“I don’t know to what you refer,” he said; “but if it’s anything that is of importance to me, I ought to know it. What is it?”

“Go and ask father,” said Guy, with a tantalizing grin.

“I will,” answered Hector, “and without delay.”

He turned to enter the house, but Guy had not exhausted his malice. He was in a hurry to triumph over Hector, whom he disliked heartily.

“I don’t mind telling you myself,” he said.

“You are not what you suppose. You’re a lowborn beggar!”

He had no sooner uttered these words, than Hector resented the insult. Seizing the whip from Guy, he grasped him by the collar, flung him to the ground and lashed him with it.

“There,” said he, with eyes aflame, “take that, Guy Roscoe, and look out how you insult me in future!”

Guy rose slowly from the ground, pale with fury, and, as he brushed the dust from his clothes, ejaculated:

“You’ll pay dearly for this, Hector!”

“I’ll take the consequences,” said Hector, as coldly as his anger would allow. “Now, I shall go to your father and ask the meaning of this.”

CHAPTER III. HECTOR LEARNS A SECRET

Hector entered the library with some impetuosity. Usually he was quiet and orderly, but he had been excited by the insinuations of Guy, and he was impatient to know what he meant—if he meant anything.

Allan Roscoe looked up, and remarked, with slight sarcasm:

“This is not a bear garden, Hector. You appear to think you are on the playground, judging by your hasty motions.”

“I beg your pardon, uncle,” said Hector, who never took amiss a rebuke which he thought deserved. “I suppose I forgot myself, being excited. I beg your pardon.”

“What is the cause of your excitement?” asked Mr. Roscoe, surveying the boy keenly.

“Guy has said something that I don’t understand.”

“He must have said something very profound, then,” returned Allan Roscoe, with light raillery.

“Indeed, Uncle Allan, it is no laughing matter,” said Hector, earnestly.

“Then let me hear what it is.”

“He intimates that he knows something that would let down my pride a peg or two. He hints that I am not the heir of Castle Roscoe.”

The boy used the term by which the house was usually known.

Allan Roscoe knit his brow in pretended vexation.

“Inconsiderate boy!” he murmured. “Why need he say this?”

“But,” said Hector, startled, “is it true?”

“My boy,” said his uncle, with simulated feeling, “my son has spoken to you of a secret which I would willingly keep from you if I could. Yet, perhaps, it is as well that you should be told now.”

“Told what?” exclaimed Hector, quite at sea.

“Can you bear to hear, Hector, that it is indeed true? You are not the owner of this estate.”

“Who is then?” ejaculated the astonished boy.

“I am; and Guy after me.”

“What! Did my father leave the estate away from me? I thought he did not leave a will?”

“Nor did he.”

“Then how can anyone else except his son inherit?”

“Your question is a natural one. If you were his son you would inherit under the law.”

“If I were his son!” repeated Hector, slowly, his head swimming. “What do you mean by that? Of course I am your brother’s son.”

“It is very painful for me to tell, Hector. It will be distressing for you to hear. No tie of blood connects you with the late owner of Castle Roscoe.”

“I don’t believe you, Uncle Allan,” said Hector, bluntly.

“Of course, therefore, I am not your uncle,” added Allan Roscoe, dryly.

“I beg your pardon; I should have said Mr. Allan Roscoe,” said Hector, bowing proudly, for his heart was sore, and he was deeply indignant with the man who sat, smooth and sleek, in his father’s chair, harrowing up his feelings without himself being ruffled.

“That is immaterial. Call me uncle, if you like, since the truth is understood. But I must explain.”

“I would like to know what is your authority for so surprising a statement, Mr. Roscoe. You cannot expect me to believe that I have been deceived all my life.”

“I make the statement on your father’s authority—I should say, on my brother’s authority.”

“Can you prove it, Mr. Roscoe?”

“I can. I will presently put into your hands a letter, written me by my brother some months since, which explains the whole matter. To save you suspense, however, I will recapitulate. Where were you born?”

“In California.”

“That is probably true. It was there that my brother found you.”

“Found me?”

“Perhaps that is not the word. My brother and his wife were boarding in Sacramento in the winter of 1859. In the same boarding house was a widow, with a child of some months old. You were that child. Your mother died suddenly, and it was ascertained that she left nothing. Her child was, therefore, left destitute. It was a fine, promising boy—give me credit for the compliment—and my brother, having no children of his own, proposed to his wife to adopt it. She was fond of children, and readily consented. No formalities were necessary, for there was no one to claim you. You were at once taken in charge by my brother and his wife, therefore, and very soon they came to look upon you with as much affection as if you were their own child. They wished you to consider them your real parents, and to you the secret was never made known, nor was it known to the world. When my brother returned to this State, three years after, not one of his friends doubted that the little Hector was his own boy.

“When you were six years old your mother died—that is, my brother’s wife. All the more, perhaps, because he was left alone, my brother became attached to you, and, I think, he came to love you as much as if you were his own son.”

“I think he did,” said Hector, with emotion. “Never was there a kinder, more indulgent father.”

“Yet he was not your father,” said Allan Roscoe, with sharp emphasis.

“So you say, Mr. Roscoe.”

“So my brother says in his letter to me.”

“Do you think it probable that, with all this affection for me, he would have left me penniless?” asked the boy.

“No; it was his intention to make a will. By that will he would no doubt have provided for you in a satisfactory manner. But I think my poor brother had a superstitious fear of will making, lest it might hasten death. At any rate, he omitted it till it was too late.”

“It was a cruel omission, if your story is a true one.”

“Your—my brother, did what he could to remedy matters. In his last sickness, when too weak to sign his name, he asked me, as the legal heir of his estate, to see that you were well provided for. He wished me to see your education finished, and I promised to do so. I could see that this promise relieved his mind. Of one thing you may be assured, Hector, he never lost his affection for you.”

“Thank Heaven for that!” murmured the boy, who had been deeply and devotedly attached to the man whom, all his life long, he had looked upon as his father.

“I can only add, Hector,” said Mr. Roscoe, “that I feel for your natural disappointment. It is, indeed, hard to be brought up to regard yourself as the heir of a great estate, and to make the discovery that you have been mistaken.”

“I don’t mind that so much, Mr. Roscoe,” said Hector, slowly. “It is the hardest thing to think of myself as having no claim upon one whom I have loved as a father—to think myself as a boy of unknown parentage. But,” he added, suddenly, “I have it only on your word. Why should I believe it?”

“I will give you conclusive proof, Hector. Read this.”

Allan Roscoe took from his pocket a letter, without an envelope. One glance served to show Hector that it was in the handwriting of his late father, or, at any rate, in a handwriting surprisingly like it.

He began to read it with feverish haste.

The letter need not find a place here. The substance of it had been accurately given by Mr. Allan Roscoe. Apparently, it corroborated his every statement.

The boy looked up from its perusal, his face pale and stricken.

“You see that I have good authority for my statement,” said Mr. Roscoe.

“I can’t understand it,” said Hector, slowly.

“I need only add,” said Mr. Roscoe, apparently relieved by the revelation, “that my brother did not repose confidence in me in vain. I accept, as a sacred charge, the duty he imposed upon me. I shall provide for you and look after your education. I wish to put you in a way to prepare yourself for a useful and honorable career. As a first step, I intend, on Monday next, to place you in an excellent boarding school, where you will have exceptional privileges.”

Hector listened, but his mind was occupied by sad thoughts, and he made no comment.

“I have even selected the school with great care,” said Mr. Roscoe. “It is situated at Smithville, and is under the charge of Socrates Smith, A. M., a learned and distinguished educator. You may go now. I will speak with you on this subject later.”

Hector bowed. After what he had heard, his interest in other matters was but faint.

“I shall be glad to get him out of the house,” thought Allan Roscoe. “I never liked him.”