The Turquoise Cup, and, the Desert

  VI

  During the following week the cardinal was so occupied with his poorthat he nearly forgot his rich. He saw the yacht whenever he took hisbarca at the molo, and once, when he was crossing the Rialto, he caughta glimpse of Lady Nora and her aunt, coming up the canal in theirgondola.

  As for the earl, he haunted St. Mark's. Many times each day he went tothe treasury only to find it locked. The sacristan could give him nocomfort. "Perhaps to-morrow, my lord," he would say when the earl puthis customary question; "it is the annual cleaning, and sometimes ajewel needs resetting, an embroidery to be repaired--all this takestime--perhaps to-morrow. Shall I uncover the Palo d'Oro, my Lord, orlight up the alabaster column; they are both very fine?" And the earlwould turn on his heel and leave the church, only to come back in anhour to repeat his question and receive his answer.

  One day the earl spoke out--"Tommaso," he said, "you are not a rich man,I take it?"

  "My lord," replied Tommaso, "I am inordinately poor. Are you about totempt me?"

  The earl hesitated, blushed, and fumbled in his pocket. He drew out ahandful of notes.

  "Take these," he said, "and open the treasury."

  "Alas, my lord," said Tommaso, "my virtue is but a battered thing, but Imust keep it. I have no key."

  The earl went out and wandered through the arcades. He came upon LadyNora and Miss O'Kelly. They were looking at Testolini's shop-windows.Lady Nora greeted him with a nod--Miss O'Kelly with animation.

  "I'm havin' a struggle with me conscience," she said.

  So was the earl.

  "Do ye see that buttherfly?" continued Miss O'Kelly, putting her fingeragainst the glass; "it's marked two hundred lire, and that's eightpounds. I priced one in Dublin, just like it, and it was three hundredpounds. They don't know the value of diamonds in Italy. I've ten poundsthat I got from Phelim yesterday, in a letther. He says there's been anEnglishman at the Kildare Club for three weeks, who thought he couldplay piquet. Phelim is travellin' on the Continent. Now, the question inme mind is, shall I pay Father Flynn the ten pounds I promised him, ayear ago Easter, or shall I buy the buttherfly? It would look illigant,Nora, dear, with me blue bengaline."

  Lady Nora laughed, "I am sure, Aunt Molly," she said, "that Phelim wouldrather you bought the butterfly, I'll take care of your subscription toFather Flynn."

  With an exclamation of joy, Miss O'Kelly ran into the shop.

  "Nora," said the earl, "the treasury is still closed."

  "Oh," said Lady Nora, "why do you remind me of such tiresome things asthe treasury? Didn't you hear Aunt Molly say that Phelim is on theContinent? I had a wire from him this morning. Read it; it's quiteIrish."

  She handed the earl a telegram.

  "Shall I read it?" he asked.

  "Of course," she answered.

  He read--"_I'm richer, but no shorter. Is there a hotel in Venice bigenough to take me in? Wire answer._ PHELIM."

  "Will you send this reply for me?" she asked, when the earl had readPhelim's telegram.

  "To be sure I will," he said.

  "How many words are there?" she asked. "I'll pay for it."

  Thus compelled, the earl read her answer--"_Come, rich or poor, long orshort. Come._ NORA."

  The earl went off with the telegram, thinking.

  The next afternoon the earl came out of the church--his fifth visitsince ten o'clock--and there, near the fountain, were Lady Nora and heraunt. The earl marked them from the church steps. There was no mistakingMiss O'Kelly's green parasol.

  This time Lady Nora met him with animation. She even came toward him,her face wreathed in smiles.

  "Phelim has come!" she exclaimed.

  "Quite happy--I'm sure," said the earl. "He's prompt, isn't he?"

  "Yes," said Lady Nora, "he's always prompt. He doesn't lose shirt-studs,and he never dawdles."

  "Ah!" said the earl.

  "Here he comes!" exclaimed Lady Nora, and she began to wave herhandkerchief.

  The earl turned and saw, coming from the corner by the clock-tower, aman. He had the shoulders of Hercules, the waist of Apollo, the legs ofMercury. When he came closer, hat in hand, the earl saw that he hadcurling chestnut locks, a beard that caressed his chin, brown eyes, andwhite teeth, for he was smiling.

  "Nora," he cried, as he came within distance, "your friend the cardinalis a good one. He puts on no side. He had me up on the balcony, openedyour letter, took out the check, and read the letter before even helooked at the stamped paper. When a man gets a check in a letter andreads the letter before he looks at the check, he shows breedin'."

  "The Earl of Vauxhall," said Lady Nora, "I present Mr. Phelim Blake."

  The two men nodded; the earl, guardedly; Phelim, with a smile.

  "I think, my lord," said Phelim, "that you are not in Venice for herantiquities. No more am I. I arrived this mornin' and I've been all overthe place already. I was just thinkin' that time might hang. Twice a dayI've to go out to the yacht to propose to Nora. Durin' the intervals wemight have a crack at piquet."

  The earl was embarrassed. He was not accustomed to such frankness. Hewas embarrassed also by the six feet three of Phelim. He himself wasonly six feet.

  "I do not know piquet," he said.

  "Ah," said Phelim, "it cost me much to learn what I know of it, and Iwill gladly impart that little for the pleasure of your companionship. Iwill play you for love."

  The earl took counsel with himself--"So long as he is playing piquetwith me," he said to himself, "so long he cannot be making love toNora."

  "How long will it take me to learn the game?" he asked.

  "As long," answered Phelim, "as you have ready money. When you begin togive due bills you have begun to grasp the rudiments of the game."

  "Then," said the earl, "I shall be an apt pupil, for I shall give an IOUthe first time I lose"

  "In piquet," said Phelim, squaring himself, and placing the index fingerof his right hand in his left hand, after the manner of the didactic,"the great thing is the discard, and your discard should be governed bytwo considerations--first, to better your own hand, and second, tocripple your opponent's. Your moderate player never thinks of thislatter consideration. His only thought is to better his own hand. Henever discards an ace. The mere size of it dazzles him, and he will keepaces and discard tens, forgetting that you cannot have a sequence ofmore than four without a ten, and that you can have one of seven withoutthe ace, and that a king is as good as an ace, if the latter is in thediscard. I am speakin' now," continued Phelim, "of the beginner. Let ussuppose one who has spent one thousand pounds on the game, and ispresumed to have learned somethin' for his money. His fault is apt to bethat he sacrifices too much that he may count cards. I grant you thatyou cannot count sixty or ninety if your opponent has cards, but youmay, if cards are tied. When I was a beginner I used to see ColonelMellish make discards, on the mere chance of tyin' the cards, thatseemed to me simply reckless. I soon discovered, however, that they weresimply scientific. One more thing--always remember that there is noaverage card in a piquet pack. The average is halfway between theten-spot and the knave. Now, what are the chances of the junior handdiscardin' a ten and drawin' a higher card? In the Kildare Club they areunderstood to be two and three-eighths to one against, although ColonelMellish claims they are two and five-eighths to one. The colonel is anauthority, but I think he is a trifle pessimistic. He--"

  "There, Phelim," said Lady Nora, "I think that is enough for the firstlesson. We dine at eight. If Lord Vauxhall has nothing better to doperhaps he will come with you."

  "We'll dine on deck, Phelim, dear," said Miss O'Kelly. "You won't haveto go below."