“Law, Betsy, how could you go for to tell such
a wicked story!” said Hester, the little kitchen-maid
late on her promotion—“and to Madame
Crawley, so good and kind, and his Rev’rince
(with a curtsey), and you may search all my boxes,
Mum, I’m sure, and here’s my keys as I’m
an honest girl, though of pore parents and workhouse
bred—and if you find so much as a beggarly
bit of lace or a silk stocking out of all the gownds
as you’ve had the picking of, may I never
go to church agin.”
“Give up your keys, you hardened hussy,”
hissed out the virtuous little lady in the calash.
“And here’s a candle, Mum, and if you
please, Mum, I can show you her room, Mum, and the
press in the housekeeper’s room, Mum, where
she keeps heaps and heaps of things, Mum,” cried
out the eager little Hester with a profusion of curtseys.
“Hold your tongue, if you please. I know
the room which the creature occupies perfectly well.
Mrs. Brown, have the goodness to come with me, and
Beddoes don’t you lose sight of that woman,”
said Mrs. Bute, seizing the candle. “Mr.
Crawley, you had better go upstairs and see that they
are not murdering your unfortunate brother”—and
the calash, escorted by Mrs. Brown, walked away to
the apartment which, as she said truly, she knew perfectly
well.
Bute went upstairs and found the Doctor from Mudbury,
with the frightened Horrocks over his master in a
chair. They were trying to bleed Sir Pitt Crawley.
With the early morning an express was sent off to
Mr. Pitt Crawley by the Rector’s lady, who assumed
the command of everything, and had watched the old
Baronet through the night. He had been brought
back to a sort of life; he could not speak, but seemed
to recognize people. Mrs. Bute kept resolutely
by his bedside. She never seemed to want to
sleep, that little woman, and did not close her fiery
black eyes once, though the Doctor snored in the arm-chair.
Horrocks made some wild efforts to assert his authority
and assist his master; but Mrs. Bute called him a
tipsy old wretch and bade him never show his face
again in that house, or he should be transported like
his abominable daughter.
Terrified by her manner, he slunk down to the oak
parlour where Mr. James was, who, having tried the
bottle standing there and found no liquor in it, ordered
Mr. Horrocks to get another bottle of rum, which he
fetched, with clean glasses, and to which the Rector
and his son sat down, ordering Horrocks to put down
the keys at that instant and never to show his face
again.
Cowed by this behaviour, Horrocks gave up the keys,
and he and his daughter slunk off silently through
the night and gave up possession of the house of Queen’s
Crawley.
In Which Becky Is Recognized by the Family
