CHAPTER XXVI.
FREDERICK HOLDFAST'S STATEMENT (CONTINUED).
At this time Sydney began to feel the effects of his temerity inintroducing Grace to the ball. Certain rumours and whispers affectingGrace's character and Sydney's connection with her, caused the ladypatronesses of the ball to institute inquiries, and the consequence wasthat Sydney was quietly but firmly banished from society. Houses whichhe was in the habit of visiting were closed against him; mothers who hadheld out a welcome hand to him now frigidly returned his bow or openlycut him; fathers--bound to an outward show of morality--turned theirbacks upon him or affected not to see him; marriageable young ladies,with whom, as an unengaged man, he had hitherto been an adorable being,looked any way but in his direction when they met in the thoroughfares.When Sydney became aware of this alteration in his social standing, hetested it to its fullest extent, and having quite convinced himself,proclaimed open defiance.
"War to the knife," he said.
He carried the war into the enemy's quarters. He appeared with Graceupon every public occasion that presented itself. In the theatre heengaged the best and most conspicuous seats, and sat by the side ofGrace with Society's eyes full upon him. It did not help his cause thatGrace was invariably the most beautifully-dressed lady in the assembly,and that her brightness and animation attracted general admiration.
Adolph espoused Grace's cause with complete disregard of consequences;his cousin, Mr. Pelham, however, held aloof, and simply bowed to her inpublic.
"Adolph is very fond of Grace," I said to Sydney.
"She is fond of him, too," responded Sydney. "What of that? He is but aboy!"
It struck me as strange that, out of Grace's house, Adolph and Mr.Pelham scarcely ever spoke to each other; as cousins they should havebeen more intimate. But this circumstance helped to strengthen mysuspicions, and to render me more keenly watchful of the course ofevents. Before long Mr. Pelham became an adept at roulette; the firstnight he spent at Grace's house was the only night on which he lost.Good luck ranged itself on his side, and he generally departed with acomfortable sum in his possession. True, it was represented principallyby I. O. U.'s., but with the exception of Sydney there was not one of uswho could not afford immediately to pay his losses. For my own part Idid not lose; I even won a little; I played for small stakes, and Mr.Pelham, winning so largely from others, did not grudge paying me,without commenting on my caution or timidity. He now always acted asbanker at roulette; taking his seat at the head of the table with theaccustomed air of a professional; never making a mistake in paying orreceiving. His aptitude was wonderful. Sydney's losses grew larger andlarger, and the more he lost the more recklessly he betted. Mr. Pelhamwas soon his principal creditor, and held the largest portion of hispaper.
One day, when I was out riding, my horse cast a shoe. The accidenthappened within a couple of hundred yards of Grace's cottage. There wasa blacksmith near, and it occurred to me to leave my horse with theblacksmith, and drop in upon Grace for a bit of lunch.
Upon my summons at the door being answered, I was informed that Gracewas not at home. Having a little time to spare, I strolled about thecountry lanes, and came suddenly upon a lady and gentleman conversingtogether. Their backs were towards me, but I recognised them instantly.The lady was Grace, and the gentleman Mr. Pelham. They were conversingearnestly, and I should have retired immediately had it not been forthe first few words which reached my ears. They were spoken by Mr.Pelham, who said:
"It is time to gather in the harvest. We must get your fool of a loverto stump up. Here is a list of his I O U's--in all, more than fourteenthousand pounds. We shall be able to cut a dash, my girl. We'll go toMonaco again, and this time we'll break the bank."
"I'm agreeable," replied Grace; "I am tired of this life, and I don'tthink I could keep up my part much longer. Sydney is all very well, buthe is too lackadaisical."
"I should think he is, for such as you, Grace," said Mr. Pelham; "toogoody-goody, eh, my girl? You want a man with a spice of the devil inhim. But he has suited our turn, and you have played your part well.Give me some praise. Haven't I been magnanimous in trusting you withhim--haven't I been confiding? You wouldn't get many lovers likeme--trusting you out of their sight, without ever a shadow ofsuspicion. Then there's our young pigeon, Adolph----"
"A child!" cried Grace.
"Quite old enough," retorted Mr. Pelham, "for me to twist his neck forhim if I had any doubts of you. But I haven't, my girl. It is not onlylove, but interest, that binds us together."
They passed on out of my sight without having perceived me. I wasastounded, not by the discovery, but by the coarse, brutal nature of theplot in which Sydney's honour was sacrificed. This woman, Grace, was aworthless schemer and a deliberate cheat. The man, Mr. Pelham, was ablackleg and a ruffian. O, that such a nature as my friend Sydney'sshould have been so played upon! That such a noble heart as his shouldhave been so basely betrayed! Here was my difficulty. It was the verynobility and generosity of his nature that would cause him openly tobreak with me if I attempted to open his eyes to the treachery, backedonly by the imperfect testimony I could bring forward. His first stepwould be to rush to Grace, and inform her of my accusation, and onceupon their guard, this man and this woman would weave their net abouthim too cunningly and cleverly to allow him an opportunity to breakthrough its meshes. Whom could I enlist to aid me? I had an intimatefriend whose assistance I would have asked, and he would freely havegiven it, but he was absent from Oxford. I could think of but one ally,a dangerous friend to enlist because of his inexperience and of hisfeelings towards Grace. But I determined to risk it. I spoke to Adolph.
"Adolph," I said, "can we two speak together in perfect confidence, asman to man?"
"Yes," replied the lad, colouring, "in perfect confidence. I hope youare not going to lecture me about Grace."
"Why should I lecture you about her?" I asked, glad at this clearing ofthe ground. "You are fond of her, I know, but that is a matter of theheart. You would do nothing dishonourable, nor would you be a party todishonour."
"No, indeed," he cried, and went no further.
His face was scarlet; I knew in what way his conscience was pricked.
"We all make mistakes," I said, half gaily; I did not wish to frightenhim by an over-display of seriousness; "the best as well as the worst ofus; the oldest as well as the youngest of us. We have a good many dreamsin life, Adolph, to which we cling in earnestness and true faith, andwhen we awake from them and our suffering is over, we smile at ourselvesfor our credulity. You are dreaming such a dream now, and if I rouse youfrom it I do so for a good purpose, and out of consideration for anotheras well as for yourself. Tell me--why did you introduce Mr. Pelham intoGrace's house as your cousin? You are silent. Shall I answer for you? Itwas because Grace herself asked you to do so."
"Yes," said Adolph, "she asked me, and I did it."
"Are you satisfied with yourself for having done so?" I asked.
"No," he replied.
"I will tell you why," I said. "You never saw Mr. Pelham until he madehis appearance on that unfortunate evening, and you have discovered, aswe have all discovered, that he is not a gentleman."
"He is Grace's friend," said Adolph.
"Does that speak in her favour, or in his? Think over certain events,Adolph. Mr. Pelham, a stranger to all of us, is the friend of this lady.But if you will remember, upon his first visits, she and he scarcelyspoke to each other, and when they meet in public the recognition thatpasses between them is so slight as to be remarkable. There is somethingsuspicious in this, which even you, infatuated as you are, willrecognise. Whom would you choose for your friend, Mr. Pelham or SydneyCampbell? In whose company would you rather be seen--whose hand wouldyou rather shake--to whose honour would you rather trust your honour?"
"To Sydney Campbell," said Adolph. "There is no choice between them.Sydney is a gentleman. Mr. Pelham is a ----"
He did not complete the sentence; I supplied the omission. "Mr. Pelh
amis a blackleg. You start! Before you are many days older I will prove itto you; if I do not, I will submit to any penalty you may inflict uponme."
He puckered his brows. "You are not the only one," he said, biting hislips, "who has spoken against him."
"There are others, then, whose suspicions have been aroused?"
"Yes, Mr. ----" (mentioning the most accomplished card-player in ourset) "says that he palms the cards or has the devil's luck."
"The proof of either in any man would be sufficient to make him unfitcompany for gentlemen, for honourable men who play fair. Adolph,remember, you are responsible for him." The lad winced. "There is butone manly course before you--to clear the character of this man, or toexpose him. If we are doing him an injustice in our estimate of him,there can be no exposure; he will come out of the fire unscathed. If wesucceed in proving our suspicions unfounded, you will be clear. And eventhen I should advise you to make a clean breast of it. Subterfuge anddeceit, my dear lad, are not gentlemen's weapons. When we strike a man,we strike him in the face--we do not stab in the back."
"What will Grace say?" murmured Adolph.
"What _can_ she say? In the case of an exposure, it is you who have beenwronged, not she. She knew the character of the man whom she inducedyou to introduce as your cousin--to you he was utterly unknown. You hadnever set eyes on him before that evening. As you are answerable to us,so is she answerable to you. And if she reproach you unreasonably, askher--prepare for a shock, Adolph; I am going to give you one straightfrom the shoulder--ask her whether less than three lovers at a time willnot content her."
"Mr. Holdfast," cried Adolph, drawing himself up, "I request anexplanation of your words."
"You shall have it, Adolph. First and foremost, is not Sydney Campbell,your friend and mine, is he not Grace's accepted lover? You shrink; why?Because you also, in some sense, are her accepted lover. Men have eyes,Adolph, and you cannot be so simple as to suppose you have escapedobservation. I ask you for no confession, but many of us have seen andremarked upon your infatuation. Now, say that Grace has encouraged you.Is that honest on her part towards Sydney? Say that you have made loveto her secretly, led on by the force of your passion, and perhaps alittle by her--is that honest on _your_ part towards Sydney? It strikesme, if the case be as I have represented it, that Sydney is much wrongedby the young lad in whom he places full confidence, and by the lady towhom he has given his love. Come, Adolph, if I have cut deep, it isout of friendship. It is an ugly business, my lad, and I can find nojustification for it. But the worst part of the unhappy story remainsto be disclosed. Sydney Campbell is this lady's lover, and sheencourages him; you are this lady's lover, and she encourages you; Mr.Pelham is this lady's lover, and she is his. You may well turn pale.She brings this blackleg lover of hers into the house--into Sydney'shouse--under false colours. On my oath, Adolph, I am speaking the truthwhen I speak of Grace as Mr. Pelham's lover. She plays _you_ into hishands--but you are subsidiary in the affair, my lad. The big stake lieswith our friend Sydney. She plays _him_ into this blackleg's hands,and sullies the reputation and breaks the heart of as high-minded agentleman as you and I can hope to meet again in life!"
I had spoken earnestly, and I saw that I had produced the impression Idesired. Then I related to Adolph all that I knew, and having drivenconviction home to him, we made a solemn compact to do our best to openSydney's eyes to the infamous scheme of which he was the victim. Adolphwas to act implicitly under my instructions; I remember how troubledhe was when he left me, and I judged it well that he should be left tohimself in his suffering. Poor lad! It was his first experience in humantreachery, and he suffered the more that his heart was confiding andtender.
On this evening it was that Sydney, in my company, lashed himself into afurious state of indignation at a slight that had been put upon Grace inhis hearing. It occurred in a club, and Sidney, with a violent displayof temper, defended Grace, and attacked the character of the gentlemanwho had uttered a simple word or two to Grace's disparagement. Sydneywas not content with attacking the character of the gentleman; heattacked the lady members of the gentleman's family, with whom he hadonce been intimate, and called them a parcel of scheming, jealous jades,who could not believe in purity because they did not themselves possessit. He exceeded the bounds of moderation, it must be confessed, and ascene ensued that was not soon forgotten.
"The injustice of the world," cried Sydney to me, "is enough to drive anearnest man mad--as I have no doubt it has driven many. That gentlemanand his mother and sisters would lower their false faces to the groundbefore Lady this and Lady that"--he mentioned the names of the ladies,but it is unnecessary to set them down here--"who are wealthy and highlyconnected, but who are not fit to tie the shoe-strings of my poorpersecuted Grace, nor the shoe-strings of any girl who has a spark ofvirtue in her. You have seen Grace times enough now, Fred, to be ableto appreciate her purity, her modesty, her innocence, at their properworth. There lives not on earth a woman more worthy the love and esteemof man!"
Then he broke out into a rhapsody of extravagant adoration which wouldhave amazed me had I not been acquainted with the intense chivalry ofhis nature. The more Grace was vilified, the more stoutly would he standby her; the stronger the detraction, the stronger his love. It was notwhile he was in such a humour as this that I could commence to play thepart of an honest Iago.
"By heavens!" he cried, flourishing a letter; "here is my father alsocoming forward to strike a feeble woman, whose only armour is hervirtue. In this letter he expresses his sorrow at the intelligence whichhas reached him that I am getting myself talked about in connectionwith a woman of disgraceful character. The honour of his name is in mykeeping, he says, and he looks to me to do nothing to tarnish it. Norwill I. To stand up, as I am standing up, against the world, in defenceof virtue, purity, and innocence, can but reflect honour on the highest,and so I have told him. Look you, Fred; I know what I am staking in thismatter. I am staking my life, and my heart, and all that is precious tomy better nature; and the prize is worth it."
We adjourned to Grace's house, where Sydney paid Grace the most delicateattention; it was as though he felt that he owed her reparation for theill opinion of the world. It was an eventful night; Sydney proposed totake the bank at roulette, and it appeared as if his luck had reallyturned. He won back all the I O U's he had given us, and his onlycreditor was Mr. Pelham, who had won or lost but a small sum. Sydneytwitted him for the smallness of his stakes, and Mr. Pelham, seeminglystung by the sarcasm, plunged heavily. By mutual consent the limitwas increased, and the battle between the two became so exciting thatthe other players round the table staked but trifling amounts, theirattention being engrossed by the dangerous duel. Fortune being in thebalance, now Sydney won, now Mr. Pelham; but presently Mr. Pelham, withthe air of a man who intended to win all or lose all, threw a hundredpounds I O U upon a number. Sydney looked grave for a moment, and then,with a careless toss of the head, turned the wheel. The number did notturn up, and Sydney won the hundred; all felt relieved, for if thenumber Mr. Pelham backed had come up, it would have cost Sydneythirty-five hundred pounds in one coup.
"Again?" asked Mr. Pelham, tauntingly.
"Again," assented Sydney, with a scornful laugh.
Mr. Pelham threw down upon a number another of Sydney's I O U for ahundred, and again Sydney won. This occurred five or six times insuccession until Sydney cried,
"Double it, if you wish!"
Mr. Pelham accepted the challenge; but now he appeared to play withgreater deliberation. He placed two hundred pounds each on numbers 5 and24, exactly opposite zero. I looked at Grace; she was leaning over thetable, watching the duel with eager eyes, and I could see that herwhole soul was in the game. Round and round went the wheel, and we allfollowed the progress of the marble with the most intense interest. Theball fell into 28, and Sydney won.
"I shall stick to my numbers," said Mr. Pelham, staking similar amountsupon the same two numbers. This time zero appeared, and Sydney sweptthe
board. Again the two numbers were backed for the high stakes, andnow the marble rolled into number 24.
"There's nothing like constancy," cried Mr. Pelham.
Sydney, with a steady hand, wrote out an I O U for seven thousandpounds, and threw it over to Mr. Pelham.
Once more the same numbers were backed, and the devil sent the marblerolling back for the second time into number 24.
"Always back the last number and the last colour," cried Mr. Pelham.
"For a novice, Pelham," remarked one of our party, "you play exceedinglywell."
The slight sneer which accompanied the remark was not lost upon us, butMr. Pelham did not appear to notice it. I believe at that moment therewas not a man in the room who would not have been made happy by theopportunity of picking a quarrel with him.
"There is nothing difficult to learn in it," said Mr. Pelham; "even sucha poor player as myself may happen to be favoured by fortune."
Sydney, meanwhile, had written another I O U for seven thousand pounds;he handed it to Mr. Pelham, saying,
"You will give me my revenge?"
"Most certainly," replied Mr. Pelham. "Now?"
"No," said Sydney, "to-morrow night. You hold a great deal of my paper?"
Mr. Pelham produced his pocket-book, and added up some figures.
"Something under twenty thousand," said Mr. Pelham.
Sydney nodded gravely, and not rising from his seat, twirled the wheelcarelessly, and apparently in deep thought. Roulette, however, was overfor the night, and the men broke up into small parties, some playinghazard, some unlimited loo. I alone remained with Sydney by the wheel.As carelessly as himself, I threw the marble in as he turned the wheel.He gave me an intelligent glance, and we continued our idle game for acouple of dozen turns of the wheel. Numbers 5 or 24 came up on averageabout once in every six turns. Sydney rose from the table, and in sucha manner as not to attract attention I examined the wheel. It did notoccupy me long to discover that it had been tampered with. The spacesbetween the two numbers Mr. Pelham had backed were wider than thosewhich divided the other numbers, and the circumstance of numbers 5 and24 being opposite Zero gave the backer an immense advantage. The chancesin his favour were increased by another discovery I made. Where thesetwo lucky numbers were situated there was a deeper bevel than in anyother part of the circle. I ascertained this both by sight and touch.There was no further doubt in my mind as to the character of Mr. Pelham,nor, indeed, as to the character of Grace. The wheel could not have beentampered with had they not been in collusion.
Before we broke up, a little private conversation took place between thetwo men.
Mr. Pelham put a question to Sydney, and Sydney replied,
"Certainly. Give yourself no anxiety."
Then he drew me aside, and asked me if I could let him have a hundredpounds.
"It is for Grace," he said, "she is short of money; and so am I," headded with a laugh.
I gave him the money, and we broke up for the night.
Sydney and I walked home in company, excusing ourselves from the others.It was a fine night, and we lit our cigars, and walked on for a while insilence, which Sydney was the first to break.
"I wanted your company badly," he said; "my mind is troubled."
"I am your friend, Sydney," I said.
He returned the pressure of my hand. "Thank you, Fred. My mind istroubled about Mr. Pelham. There is no reason why he should not win fromme as easily as, with luck on my side, I might win from him. But I amnot satisfied. It appears to me that the numbers he backed and won uponwere the numbers he intended to back and win upon. If so, it denotesdesign. How does it strike you?"
"With you as banker, I will back numbers 5 and 24," I replied, "and willundertake to win a fortune of you in an hour or two. Always supposingthat the wheel is the same as it was to-night."
"It struck me as strange," he said thoughtfully; "until to-night mysuspicions have not been excited. Had any of you won my money, I shouldhave thought less of it. You were trying the wheel as I turned it, afterplay was over. Confirm or destroy the impression on my mind."
"I must confirm it. The numbers Mr. Pelham backed have been tamperedwith."
"Are you certain?"
"Most certain."
He lit a fresh cigar, and threw away the old one.
"These things are not done without human agency, Fred."
"Indeed not. Very skilful hands have been at work upon that wheel. Wereit not that I desire not to risk your friendship, Sydney, which I valuehighly, I should impart something to you concerning Mr. Pelham which hascome to my knowledge."
He did not reply for a few moments, and then he said, "We tremble on thebrink sometimes, but it is only cowards who fly. How beautiful the nightis, Fred! The world is very lovely--the stars to me are living things.Even now, when I seem to feel that Fate has something horrible in storefor me, they whisper peace into my soul. Ah, friend of mine! that aman's hope, and heart, and holiest wish should be at the mercy of arickster! It is sad and laughable. This flower in my coat was given tome by Grace; it is dead." He made a motion as if he would fling it fromhim, but he restrained himself, and crushing it in his hand, put itinto his breast pocket. As I looked at him with loving pity, he put hishandkerchief to his mouth, and drew it away, stained with blood.
"Sydney!" I cried, in alarm.
"It is nothing," he said; "I have been spitting blood for a long timepast. Now tell me what has come to your knowledge respecting Mr. Pelham.Do not fear--you will not risk my friendship, upon which you place fartoo high a value."
I said simply, "He is not Adolph's cousin."
"How do you know that?"
"From Adolph himself; he and I have been speaking to each other inconfidence."
"What was the lad's motive in introducing Mr. Pelham to us with afalsehood?"
"He did so by desire of Grace."
"Then Grace must have been acquainted with Mr. Pelham."
"It naturally follows, to the mind of one who does not wilfully blindhimself to inexorable fact. Sydney, let us walk back in the direction ofGrace's house. It is a whim of mine, and will do no harm."
"It can do no good."
"Sydney," I said impressively, "as surely as we are now walking side byside conversing on a theme which is bringing torture to your heart, sosurely do I know what I dare not impart to you. Come, humour me."
I turned him gently towards Grace's house, and we walked to thewell-known spot. It was an hour since we parted from her, but there wasno sign of repose in the house. The windows of the sitting-room were litup from within, and I drew Sydney close enough to them to hear the soundof laughter--the laughter of a man and a woman.
"For God's sake," said Sydney, "let us get away from this place!"
He ran so swiftly from me towards the town that it was long before Icame up to him, and then I found him with a deathly-white face, and aheart palpitating wildly from mental and physical exhaustion. I assistedhim home, and we parted without exchanging another word on the subject.All that he said was,
"To-morrow night I am to have my revenge. You will come to thecottage?"
It was tacitly understood that the night was to be devoted to a gamblingduel between Sydney and Mr. Pelham, and expectation was on every face.Grace looked bewitching, and exhibited more than usual tendernesstowards Sydney, and he, on his part, was never more attentive anddevoted in his conduct towards her than he was on this evening. He was asingularly handsome man, and the contrast between him and his opponentwas very marked. Mr. Pelham, who was the last to arrive, was cooland collected enough, but he was inferior to Sydney in polish andgentlemanly bearing. The first hour was passed in badinage and livelyconversation, and then roulette was proposed. Sydney laughingly shookhis head.
"Roulette will be too slow for Mr. Pelham and myself," he said. "We musthave a more direct trial of skill. I propose, Mr. Pelham, a duel withthe dice."
"Dice be it," said Mr. Pelham, and the two men sat down to Hazard. Theyplayed low at first, bu
t this was only to whet the appetite, and withinan hour the stakes became higher than had ever been played for in thathouse. In the course of the play, Sydney said to his opponent,
"I have promised to settle up with you in a few days, Mr. Pelham, shouldyou rise a winner, and you may depend upon my keeping my word. Mr.Pelham, gentlemen, is called abroad, and I must not remain his debtor.Men of honour know what is due to each other; if I win from Mr. Pelhamto-night I shall expect him to pay me. It seems as if good fortune wereon my side."
It really appeared to be so, and we all rejoiced. During a coupleof hours' play Sydney had won from Mr. Pelham between six and seventhousand pounds. Both men were playing with coolness and judgment, buteven when Mr. Pelham was the setter, good luck remained with Sydney.For a great part of these two hours Grace remained by the side of theplayers, and when she moved away Sydney called her back, saying that shegave him luck. By midnight Sydney had won back over fifteen thousandpounds, and then an adjournment for supper was called. All but Sydneyand Mr. Pelham responded to the invitation; they were too deeplyinterested in their duel to rise from their table, and thus it happenedthat they were left for a time with no witness but Adolph, who said hecould not eat. When we returned from the supper table they had changedtheir game. They were playing now with three dice, the highest throw forvarying sums, from a hundred to a thousand pounds. Sydney's good luckappeared to have deserted him; he was now losing heavily. He cried outto us not to crowd round the table.
"Do you think we are playing for life and death?" he exclaimed, with awild laugh. "Come, Mr. Pelham, two thousand on this throw!"
With glittering eyes and teeth firmly set, Mr. Pelham assented, and won.
"Five thousand!" cried Sydney, and threw fourteen. "Ten to one inhundreds you do not beat it."
"Done!" said Mr. Pelham, and threw sixteen.
"You must be most unfortunate in your love affairs, Mr. Pelham," saidSydney. "How do we stand now?"
Mr. Pelham passed over to his opponent a sheet of paper with figures onit.
"Twenty-four thousand," cried Sydney. "Enough to set up a house inBelgravia. I am weary of this work. One throw for the last--double orquits. Your last chance, and mine. Done?"
"Done!" said Mr. Pelham, with white lips.
Every man in the room suspended his game, and rose to witness this madplay.
"I protest!" said Sydney, turning almost savagely upon his friends. "Goto your tables, and concern yourself with your own counters. We cansettle our affair without witnesses. Grace, a glass of champagne."
He drank three glasses in succession, and said to Mr. Pelham, with onlymyself and Adolph standing by the small table,
"This is a moment to remember. Fortune! be kind! I throw first.Fifteen! I am a free man. Now, Mr. Pelham."
"Sixteen!" said Mr. Pelham, raising his box.
The word had no sooner passed his lips than his wrist was seized with agrasp of iron by Sydney, and taking up this unrehearsed cue, I pinnedthe cheat to his chair. He uttered a cry of rage, but he could neitherrise nor release his wrist from Sydney's hold. This incident brought allthe players to their feet.
"Gentlemen," said Sydney, calmly, "this man and I have been playing forsomething more than money, but it is simply a question of honour inwhich money is involved that I ask you to decide. Here are my dice, andhere my throw. There are Mr. Pelham's dice, and there his throw. I callupon you to constitute yourselves a committee of honour, and examine thedice we each used in the last throw."
They removed the dice, and discovered those used by Mr. Pelham to beloaded. It would have gone hard with him if Sydney had not interfered.
"Hold!" he cried. "Fair play for rogue and gentleman! Release him,Fred." I released the blackleg, and he sat helpless in his chair,and glared at us. But he saw that his fate was in our hands, and hesubmitted. Sydney continued: "Mr. Pelham, these dice I have thrown withare fair dice, such as are used by gentlemen. My throw is fifteen. Takethem, and throw against it. On my honour, if you beat my cast, I willendeavour to pay you what I owe you, despite the fact that the I O U'syou hold of mine have been unfairly won."
The blackleg took the box, and rattled the dice in it, gazing upon uswith a ghastly smile, and then deliberately replaced the box on thetable, mouth upwards.
"What guarantee have I," he asked, "that in the event of my throwinghigher than fifteen, these gentlemen friends of yours will not set uponme, and murder me?"
"I answer for them," replied Sydney; "it is my honour that isconcerned, not theirs, and they are, in some measure, guests in myhouse. You will be allowed to depart unmolested, and to-morrow I willreceive you in my rooms, and endeavour to come to a settlement withyou."
"I take your word," said the blackleg, and he raised the box from thetable, and rattled the dice again.
[Decoration]