Michael Cox - The Meaning of Night

PART THE THIRD

Into the Shadow

October 1853

I will take heed both of a speedy friend, and a slow enemy.

Owen Felltham, Resolves (1623), iii,

‘A Friend and Enemy, When Most Dangerous’

19

Fide, sed cui vide *

Back in my rooms, after the discussion with Mr Tredgold in the Temple Gardens, I considered the new prospect that now lay before me.

My position had appeared fatally threatened by the revelation that Lord Tansor had determined to make Daunt his heir; but now Mr Tredgold seemed to offer the startling possibility of a resolution in my favour, if his inference concerning Mr Carteret’s discovery was correct. Did Lord Tansor’s secretary indeed possess the proof that I needed?

This is the letter that Mr Tredgold had received, and which he had given to me when we parted with the words, ‘Read this, Edward, and tell me what you think should be done.’

The Dower House, Evenwood Park

Evenwood, Northamptonshire

Wednesday, 5th October 1853 MY DEAR TREDGOLD, —I write to you in a strictly private & confidential capacity, in the full knowledge that your own rectitude & respect for my position here will ensure that no word or hint of this communication will be given to any third party, especially to my employer. We have had many occasions to correspond over the years in a professional capacity, and it has been my pleasure also to welcome you to Evenwood as a much esteemed guest – and friend. I therefore hope and believe that the sincerity of my regard for you will be more than sufficient to bind you to this undertaking.What I wish to say to you, most urgently, cannot be set down in writing but must be conveyed to you in person, for it goes to the heart of the present matter . I am aware – acutely aware – that my position is a delicate one, since my own interests are involved. But you will know that I speak God’s truth when I say that I have always had the sincerest desire to serve my employer to the best of my ability, regardless of my personal interests.I have been troubled for some little time by a matter that has presented itself to me, quite unexpectedly, in the course of my work here, relating to the question that is of most concern to my employer, and which he is now seeking to resolve by the means of which we are both aware. The consequences are momentous for his Lordship, and have their origins in the actions of a certain person, now deceased, for whom you and I once cherished an exceptional regard. But I cannot say more in writing.I am unable to come up to town for some weeks, and so you would oblige me greatly if you could suggest some arrangement for us to meet in the country in private . I would not wish to anticipate any plan you may have, beyond saying that I usually find myself in Stamford of a Tuesday morning, & that I also find the tap-room of the George Hotel a convenient place to take some refreshment at around midday.I cannot impress upon you enough the need for absolute discretion.Please direct reply via Post-office, Peterborough.I have the honour to be,Yours very sincerely,P. CARTERET

The next morning, Mr Tredgold and I laid our plans. Feeling that he could not risk undertaking such a clandestine meeting himself, my employer suggested that I might go to meet Mr Carteret in his stead. To this I readily agreed, and so he replied immediately, requesting Mr Carteret’s permission to send a trusted agent. Two days later a letter came back. The secretary was unwilling to sanction such an arrangement, saying that he would speak only to Mr Tredgold in person. But a further exchange of letters produced a softening in his attitude, and it was agreed that I, as Mr Tredgold’s surrogate, should travel to Stamford to meet Mr Carteret the following Tuesday, the 25th of October, though I decided I would go a day earlier and settle myself in the George Hotel in readiness.

The day prior to my departure happening to be a Sunday, Mr Tredgold invited me to spend the afternoon with him in his private residence.

‘I think perhaps we should forgo our usual bibliological entertainment,’ he said after we had taken our lunch and were sitting before the fire in his sitting-room, ‘and speak a little about the matter of Mr Carteret – if you do not mind?’

‘Of course. I am entirely at your disposal.’

‘As you always are, Edward,’ he beamed. ‘Well, then, no doubt you find Mr Carteret’s letter puzzling enough – as I do also – with respect to the matter he wishes to disclose. It may be that Mr Carteret exaggerates the importance of what he has discovered; but I suspect, knowing him to be a gentleman of careful judgment, that he would not have written to me in this way unless it was of the greatest possible moment. Whether Mr Carteret will choose to reveal the matter to you in person, I cannot say. Whatever happens, I hope you will be kind enough to keep me closely informed. I’m sure I do not need to impress on you the necessity for absolute discretion.’

‘I understand completely.’

‘That is one of your most valuable qualities, Edward,’ said Mr Tredgold. ‘You instinctively understand what is required in any given situation. Is there anything else I can tell you?’

‘Mr Carteret, you have said, is Lord Tansor’s cousin.’

‘That is correct. He is the younger son of his Lordship’s late aunt. His father, Mr Paul Carteret Senior, fell into pecuniary difficulties, leaving his two sons with no alternative but to earn a living. Mr Lawrence Carteret, now deceased, entered the diplomatic service; Mr Paul Carteret Junior was offered employment by his noble relative.’

‘A generous gesture,’ I observed.

‘Generous? Yes, you may say that, although the offer was perhaps made more out of duty towards Mrs Sophia Carteret, his Lordship’s aunt.’

‘You also mentioned, I think, during our talk in the Gardens, that Mr Carteret will inherit the Tansor title.’

‘He will – assuming of course that his Lordship’s position regarding an heir of his own remains as it is at present.’

Mr Tredgold took out his red handkerchief and began to polish his eye-glass.

‘You should be aware,’ he continued, ‘that Lord Tansor’s resolve to bequeath the major portion of his property to Mr Phoebus Daunt has been strengthened by a history of ill-feeling between the two branches of the family. A financial disagreement between Lord Tansor’s father and Mr Paul Carteret Senior has, alas, coloured his Lordship’s relationship with his cousin. The Carteret line, in his opinion, is also tainted by mental impairment.’

He lowered his voice, and leaned towards me.

‘Mr Carteret Senior’s mother died insane, though there is not the slightest indication that his son has inherited the malady. Indeed, Mr Carteret Junior is one of the sanest men I know; and his daughter, too, is decidedly free of any imputation of mental feebleness, being a fiercely intelligent and capable young woman – and a beautiful one, too. Lord Tansor, however, is prey to an acute sensitivity on this subject, deriving, I believe, from the fact that his Lordship’s elder brother, Vortigern Duport, died of an epileptic seizure. More tea?’

We sipped silently, Mr Tredgold appearing to take keen interest in an area of the ceiling just above my head.

‘Do you wish me to say something about Mr Phoebus Daunt?’ he suddenly asked.

‘Mr Daunt?’

‘Yes. To better understand the circumstances that have led to the present situation.’

‘By all means.’

Whereupon Mr Tredgold began to give me a full and detailed account of how Dr Daunt and his family had come to Evenwood, as a result of his second wife’s connexion with Lord Tansor, and of how the Rector’s son had been taken into his Lordship’s favour through his step-mother’s influence. Much of what he told me has been incorporated into an earlier section of this narrative.