or the strength to do that, Sir. You sit there and smile fatuously, but
you
could not bring such a thing off.’
‘No doubt I could not,’ said William pacifically, his legs stretched in front of him, his muscles relaxed, as he knew they should be, faced with such aggression.
‘I do not like your attitude. I have never liked it. I believe you sneer in your heart.’
‘I do not mean to sneer. Since we are to be brothers, I hope I would not give such an appearance. It would be most wrong.’
‘Ha.
Brothers
, you say. I don’t like that. You are underbred, Sir, you are no good match for my sister. There is bad blood in you, vulgar blood.’
‘I do not accept either “bad” or “vulgar”. I
am
aware that I am no good match, in that I have few prospects and no fortune. Your father and Eugenia have done me the great kindness of overlooking that. I hope you may come to accept their decision.’
‘You should wish rather to fight me. I insulted you. You are a miserable creature without breeding or courage. You should stand up, Sir, and face me.’
‘I think not. As for breeding, I count my father as a good man, and an honest man, and a kind man, and I know no other
good
reasons for respect except his high achievement. As for courage, I think I may claim that to have lived ten years in great hardship on the Amazon, to have survived murder plots and poisonous snakes, and shipwreck and fifteen days on a lifeboat in the mid-Atlantic may reasonably compare with driving a poor horse into a house through a window. I think I know what true courage is, Sir. It does not consist in fisticuffs as a response to insults.’
‘Well said, William Adamson,’ said Robin Swinnerton. ‘Well said, my fellow bridegroom.’
Edgar Alabaster clawed at William’s coat collar. ‘You shall not have her, do you hear? She is not for such as you.
Stand up
.’
‘Please do not breathe in my face. You resemble an angry dragon. You will not provoke me into disgracing a house and family I hope to belong to.’
‘Stand up.’
‘In the Amazons, the young men of the tribes who make themselvesstupid with spirits behave as you do. They often end by killing each other inadvertently.’
‘I should not care if you were killed.’
‘No. You would care if you were. Eugenia might care deeply if I were. She has already—’
He had not known where he was going. He was appalled that his tongue, even in anger, had run as far as Eugenia’s dead lover. The effect on Edgar of even that half-allusion, choked off, was startling. He went white, drew himself up awkwardly and dusted down his trousers repeatedly with heavy hands. William thought, Now he will really try to kill me, and waited for the blow, turned to avoid it, to leap sideways to kick at the groin. But Edgar Alabaster merely made an incoherent, choking sound, and went out of the room, still beating his clothes with his hands. Lionel said, ‘I beg you not to—not to make too much of Edgar. He is wild in his cups, and he is quiet after, he often does not remember what has passed. It was the drink insulted you.’
‘I am happy to accept that explanation.’
‘Good man, fellow bridegroom. Civilised man. We are not armed warriors now, are we? Civilised men in smoking jackets, we are, who stay seated as we should. I admire you, William. Edgar is an anachronism. You didn’t think I knew such a word, I’ll be bound.’
‘On the contrary. Thank you for your kindness.’
‘We must see each other often through our marriages.’
‘With great pleasure.’
He found it hard, afterwards, to remember the exact emotions of his wedding day. It was his observation that all ceremonies brought with them, besides a sense of deeply coloured significance, a heightened sense of unreality, as though he were a watcher, not a participant. He thought this sense of
watching
might derive from theabsence of simple belief in the Christian story, the Christian world, as Harald had so movingly described it to
you
could not bring such a thing off.’
‘No doubt I could not,’ said William pacifically, his legs stretched in front of him, his muscles relaxed, as he knew they should be, faced with such aggression.
‘I do not like your attitude. I have never liked it. I believe you sneer in your heart.’
‘I do not mean to sneer. Since we are to be brothers, I hope I would not give such an appearance. It would be most wrong.’
‘Ha.
Brothers
, you say. I don’t like that. You are underbred, Sir, you are no good match for my sister. There is bad blood in you, vulgar blood.’
‘I do not accept either “bad” or “vulgar”. I
am
aware that I am no good match, in that I have few prospects and no fortune. Your father and Eugenia have done me the great kindness of overlooking that. I hope you may come to accept their decision.’
‘You should wish rather to fight me. I insulted you. You are a miserable creature without breeding or courage. You should stand up, Sir, and face me.’
‘I think not. As for breeding, I count my father as a good man, and an honest man, and a kind man, and I know no other
good
reasons for respect except his high achievement. As for courage, I think I may claim that to have lived ten years in great hardship on the Amazon, to have survived murder plots and poisonous snakes, and shipwreck and fifteen days on a lifeboat in the mid-Atlantic may reasonably compare with driving a poor horse into a house through a window. I think I know what true courage is, Sir. It does not consist in fisticuffs as a response to insults.’
‘Well said, William Adamson,’ said Robin Swinnerton. ‘Well said, my fellow bridegroom.’
Edgar Alabaster clawed at William’s coat collar. ‘You shall not have her, do you hear? She is not for such as you.
Stand up
.’
‘Please do not breathe in my face. You resemble an angry dragon. You will not provoke me into disgracing a house and family I hope to belong to.’
‘Stand up.’
‘In the Amazons, the young men of the tribes who make themselvesstupid with spirits behave as you do. They often end by killing each other inadvertently.’
‘I should not care if you were killed.’
‘No. You would care if you were. Eugenia might care deeply if I were. She has already—’
He had not known where he was going. He was appalled that his tongue, even in anger, had run as far as Eugenia’s dead lover. The effect on Edgar of even that half-allusion, choked off, was startling. He went white, drew himself up awkwardly and dusted down his trousers repeatedly with heavy hands. William thought, Now he will really try to kill me, and waited for the blow, turned to avoid it, to leap sideways to kick at the groin. But Edgar Alabaster merely made an incoherent, choking sound, and went out of the room, still beating his clothes with his hands. Lionel said, ‘I beg you not to—not to make too much of Edgar. He is wild in his cups, and he is quiet after, he often does not remember what has passed. It was the drink insulted you.’
‘I am happy to accept that explanation.’
‘Good man, fellow bridegroom. Civilised man. We are not armed warriors now, are we? Civilised men in smoking jackets, we are, who stay seated as we should. I admire you, William. Edgar is an anachronism. You didn’t think I knew such a word, I’ll be bound.’
‘On the contrary. Thank you for your kindness.’
‘We must see each other often through our marriages.’
‘With great pleasure.’
He found it hard, afterwards, to remember the exact emotions of his wedding day. It was his observation that all ceremonies brought with them, besides a sense of deeply coloured significance, a heightened sense of unreality, as though he were a watcher, not a participant. He thought this sense of
watching
might derive from theabsence of simple belief in the Christian story, the Christian world, as Harald had so movingly described it to
Similar Books
