V
That same evening, in the colossal many-tabled dining-saloon of the_Lithuania_ Edward Henry sat as usual to the left of the purser'sempty chair, at the purser's table, where were about a dozen othermen. A page brought him a marconigram. He opened it and read thesingle word "Nineteen." It was the amount of the previous evening'sreceipts at the Regent, in pounds. He was now losing something likeforty pounds a night--without counting the expenses of the presentexcursion. The band began to play as the soup was served, and the shiprolled politely, gently, but nevertheless unmistakably, accomplishingone complete roll to about sixteen bars of the music. Then the entiresaloon was suddenly excited. Isabel Joy had entered. She was in thegallery, near the orchestra, at a small table alone. Everybody becameaware of the fact in an instant, and scores of necks on the lowerfloor were twisted to glimpse the celebrity on the upper. It wasremarked that she wore a magnificent evening-dress.
One subject of conversation now occupied all the tables. And it wasfully occupying the purser's table when the purser, generally a littlelate, owing to the arduousness of his situation on the ship, enteredand sat down. Now the purser was a northerner, from Durham, adelightful companion in his lighter moods, but dour, and with a highconception of authority and of the intelligence of dogs. He wouldrelate that when he and his wife wanted to keep a secret from theirYorkshire terrier they had to spell the crucial words in talk, forthe dog understood their every sentence. The purser's views aboutthe cause represented by Isabel Joy were absolutely clear. Nonecould mistake them, and the few clauses which he curtly added to thediscussion rather damped the discussion, and there was a pause.
"What should you do, Mr. Purser," said Edward Henry, "if she began toplay any of her tricks here?"
"If she began to play any of her tricks in this ship," answered thepurser, putting his hands on his stout knees, "we should know what todo?"
"Of course you can arrest?"
"Most decidedly. I could tell you things--" The purser stopped, forexperience had taught him to be very discreet with passengers until hehad voyaged with them at least ten times. He concluded: "The captainis the representative of English law on an English ship."
And then, in the silence created by the resting orchestra, all in thesaloon could hear a clear, piercing woman's voice, oratorical at firstand then quickening:
"Ladies and gentlemen, I wish to talk to you to-night on the subjectof the injustice of men to women." Isabel Joy was on her feet andleaning over the gallery rail. As she proceeded a startled hushchanged to uproar. And in the uproar could be caught now and then adetached phrase, such as "For example, this man-governed ship."
Possibly it was just this phrase that roused the northerner in thepurser. He rose and looked towards the captain's table. But thecaptain was not dining in the saloon that evening. Then he strode tothe centre of the saloon, beneath the renowned dome which has been sooften photographed for the illustrated papers, and sought to destroyIsabel Joy with a single marine glance. Having failed, he called outloudly:
"Be quiet, madam. Resume your seat."
Isabel Joy stopped for a second, gave him a glance far more homicidalthan his own, and resumed her discourse.
"Steward," cried the purser, "take that woman out of the saloon."
The whole complement of first-class passengers was now standingup, and many of them saw a plate descend from on high and grazethe purser's shoulder. With the celebrity of a sprinter the manof authority from Durham disappeared from the ground-floor and wasimmediately seen in the gallery. Accounts differed, afterwards, as tothe exact order of events; but it is certain that the leader of theband lost his fiddle, which was broken by the lusty Isabel on thepurser's head. It was known later that Isabel, though not exactly inirons, was under arrest in her state-room.
"She really ought to have thought of that for herself, if she's assmart as she thinks she is," said Edward Henry, privately.