One of Our Conquerors - World eBook Library

George Meredith
A fit of shuddering seized Nataly. It grew in violence, and
speaking out of it, with a pause of sickly empty chatter of the
jaws, she said: ‘Always that name?’
‘Before the maiden name? May have been or not.’
‘Not, you say?’
‘I don’t accurately know.’
Dartrey sprang to his legs. ‘My dear soul! dear friend—
one of the best! if we go on fencing in the dark, there’ll be
wounds. Your way of taking this affair disappointed me. Now
I understand. It’s the disease of a trouble, to fly at comparisons.
No real one exists. I wished to protect the woman from
a happier sister’s judgement, to save you from alarm concerning
Nesta:—quite groundless, if you’ll believe me. Come,
there’s plenty of benevolent writing abroad on these topics
now: facts are more looked at, and a good woman may join
us in taking them without the horrors and loathings of angels
rather too much given to claim distinction from the luckless.
A girl who’s unprotected may go through adventures
before she fixes, and be a creature of honest intentions. Better
if protected, we all agree. Better also if the world did not
favour the girl’s multitude of enemies. Your system of not
dealing with facts openly is everyway favourable to them. I
am glad to say, Victor recognizes what corruption that spread
of wealth is accountable for. And now I must go and have a
talk with the—what a change from the blue butterfly! Eaglet,
I ought to have said. I dine with you, for Victor may
bring news.’
‘Would anything down there be news to you, Dartrey?’
‘He makes it wherever he steps.’
‘He would reproach me for not detaining you. Tell Nesta I
have to lie down after talking. She has a child’s confidence in
you.’
A man of middle age! he said to himself. It is the particular
ejaculation which tames the senior whose heart is for a dash
of holiday. He resolved, that the mother might trust to the
discretion of a man of his age; and he went down to Nesta,
grave with the weight his count of years should give him.
Seeing her, the light of what he now knew of her was an
ennobling equal to celestial. For this fair girl was one of the
active souls of the world—his dream to discover in woman’s
form. She, the little Nesta, the tall pure-eyed girl before him,
was, young though she was, already in the fight with evil: a
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