to the
of Toronto
by
SEgrrell
of tlj0 ^nttJersttg uf
eminent Caitahtan geologist,
explorer, anb scholar
JANE
WHERE ALL THE ' OLD-FASHIONED ' FLOWERS
GREW IN PROFUSION
JANE
Social Incident
BY
MARIE CORELLI
WITH FOUR ILLUSTRATIONS
WILLIAM BRIGGS
TORONTO
\v
p/f
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
WHERE ALL THE * OLD-
FASHIONED ' FLOWERS GREW
IN PROFUSION . . ' .
"WHAT AM I T9 DO WITH ALL
THIS MONEY ? "
" STONEY-BROKE ON THE
TURF" ......
"i AM MISS BELMONT" .
Frontispiece
FACING PAGE
36
49
103
PREFACE
HTHE following story offers the
very simple and unadorned
presentment of an c old-fashioned '
type of gentlewoman, a type which
may possibly still be found in quiet
country towns and villages far
removed from the whirl of latter-
day society and the rush of modern
progress. In her previous appear-
ances c Jane ' has found considerable
favour with a large portion of the
reading public; so much so indeed
that I believe I am justified in the
7
8 JANE
hope that sweetness, integrity and
humility are still considered admir-
able (Dualities in woman, despite her
recent c free fights ' with the police,
and her combats against existing
Law and Order. It may be as well
perhaps to say that the episodes of
London life which occur in * Jane '
are drawn strictly from fact, and that
' Mrs. Maddenham * is a faithful
representative of a particular class
of * up-to-date ' women who con-
sider it perfectly lawful to plunder
persons of means who are foolish
enough to wish to enter what is
called c the swim.' Numerous cases
PREFACE 9
could be cited of women, and men
too, who pay certain sums regu-
larly per annum, to members of
the c upper ten ' in order to ensure
invitations to all their social en-
tertainments; and I have in my
memory now a very notorious
example of a somewhat impecu-
nious nobleman who obtained a
large loan on the understanding
that he was to introduce the person
who thus obliged him to the pri-
vate acquaintanceship of Royalty.
c Jane,' however, in the uses she
made of c Mrs. Maddenham ' was
not such a simpleton as she ap-
io JANE
peared to be; and I have often
thought that if two or three women
like her were to join the social
round, they might possibly effect
some reform in what is surely a
rather reprehensible method of
money-making. However, with
the change of times there is bound
to occur a change in manners, and
the modern < advance of woman *
is so rapidly exterminating the few
vestiges of the old order of things,
when fine feeling, gentleness and
dignity were the natural environ-
ment of the perfect lady, that it is
almost wasted labour to make any
PREFACE ii
fresh appeal to what is nowadays
perhaps considered merely c old-
fashioned ' sentiment. Yet at the
risk of giving dire offence to my
Suffragist friends, I venture to
think that though the women of
c old fashion ' may be set down as
c slow,' c dull,' and utterly blind to
their own self-interest and advan-
tage, it was surely better to have
them so, than that they should be
vulgar, pushful, assertive and noisy,
even more vulgar, pushful, asser-
tive and noisy than the most boorish
and ill-bred men. It was not to
women of the Suffragette type that
12 JANE
Dante addressed his ' Vita Nuova '
and Petrarch his c Sonnets ' ; it was
not from a female clamourer for
' equal rights that Raffaelle drew
his heavenly c Madonna ' ; and
when we take time to reasonably
consider how great has been man's
ideal of Womanhood all through
the ages, and how he has evinced
his worship of that ideal through-
out all his best and highest efforts
in Art and in Literature, it surely
behoves us to seriously weigh the
consequences of shattering the high
faith he has had in us for so long.
Perhaps it is already shattered,
PREFACE 13
who knows ! In any case it will be
rather hard if for the sake of a few
political termagants the whole of
our sex should lose * caste ' in the
eyes of the ' lords of creation '
for lords of creation they are, no
matter how much they are bullied
and brow-beaten, and Nature will
not allow the fact to be denied!
Wherefore in the face of incontro-
vertible destiny it seems to me that
a graceful humility is more becom-
ing to our sex than an arrogant
obstinacy, and that we are far
more likely to be happy in our-
selves if we are contented with the
14 JANE
great and unassailable position we
naturally hold, that of being the
inspirers, helpers and guides of men
rather than their rivals in public
contests not worth the winning.
The less women enter the political
arena the better, the more they
remain in their own sphere of home
and love and tenderness the more
hope there is for the future welfare
of the nation.
The excursion of * Jane ' into
society somewhat late in life, was a
lesson she had resolved to learn for
herself, and her return to her
quiet little home was the natural
PREFACE 15
result of that experience. I shall
be satisfied if her brief history has
but one effect that of making my
sex see, if only * through a glass
darkly ' that home is best and that
it is within the scope of every
woman, even the poorest, to make
whatever home she possesses a
happy and useful centre from which
may spring noble lives, noble aims
and noble results. In our present
strange, troubled, and strenuous
times women could do much useful
work if only they would but it is
not by rushing into the political
fray and hampering the business of
1 6 JANE
Government by ignorant and foolish
quarrels that they can show their
wisdom or exert their influence.
Women seldom shine to advantage
in political discussions, and even
in their private lives they do not
always make the best of themselves.
Much is to be said in favour of the
men who endure their many moods
and vagaries with mute patience,
for we cannot deny that there are
thousands of mean women, spiteful
women, jealous women, petty and
childish women, who make their
homes unbearable by their quarrels,
tempers, sulks and whimsies and
PREFACE 17
by their teasing or * nagging '
spirit, thus giving ample cause
for all the caustic witticisms that
have ever been launched against
our sex from time immemorial by
many succeeding generations of
male cynics and satirists. There is
time and opportunity to remedy all
this, for in these days women are
given far better chances of educa-
tion than they ever had before,
and with careful study, constant
reading, and habitual practice of
that gracious and gentle self-control
which alone can give the perfect
manner, ease and distinction of
1 8 JANE
perfect womanhood, the reproaches
so often and so justly levelled
against us should grow less,
if not cease altogether. A loud
tongue, a fussy bearing and a heavy
tread betoken the female vulgarian,
while a soft voice, quiet movements
and a light step express the dainti-
ness and delicacy of that fine
feminine charm which silently
asserts itself to be all that man is
not, and which because of its
unlikeness to himself man does
most admire and worship. Even
with the on-coming of years that
particular charm never fails to exert
PREFACE 19
a wholesome and refining influence
on others, as in the case of c Jane '
for youth, if vulgar and arrogant,
loses its attractiveness, while age,
if mellowed with the sweet spirit of
content, inspires love unconsciously,
and attaches to itself a thousand ties
of reverence and tenderness which
often make the sunset of life more
beautiful than the sunrise. So it
was with c Jane ' so, let me hope,
may it be with every one of my sex
who does me the honour of reading
Jane's * Social Incident.'
MARIE CORELLI
JANE
IT was a very odd thing. Some
people declared it was the oddest
thing they ever heard of. Never-
theless, odd or even, the fact
remained : Jane had resolved to
1 go into Society.'
Now in the ordinary course of
fashionable events, ladies are
supposed to * come out ' when
they are seventeen or eighteen.
Sometimes they have been known
(if we are to believe their own
candid statements) to make their
curtsey at Court when barely
21
22 JANE
fifteen, and then to have been
immediately snapped up by some
ardent and impatient bidder in
the matrimonial market before
they have had time to become
sixteen. This accounts, they will
tell you with a sweet smile, for
the presence of their remarkably
mature-looking sons and daughters,
while they themselves are still
quite young. But Jane would
never be able to plead an early
entrance into Society in excuse
for her age. Jane ' came out '
at fifty-seven, and everybody knew
it.
Jane, otherwise known as Miss
Jane Belmont, was a sweet-look-
JANE 23
ing, placid-faced lady of the
purely old-fashioned type. She
was altogether behind the time in
her notions of life, she was not,
and never could be, ' up to date. 1
She had never adopted a * cause '
or developed a ' mission.' Living
in the country all her life as she
had done, she was a creature of
simple habits and equable dis-
position, with a warm, generous
heart of her own, and all the
fine instincts and characteristics of
the perfect gentlewoman. She
was quite contented with the
world as she found it, she
thought it a very beautiful world,
and every morning and evening
24 JANE
she closed her gentle blue eyes in
a quiet ravishment of earnest
prayer, and asked the great
Creator of all things to make her
more and more thankful for the
blessing and high privilege of life.
Here it will at once be seen
how ignorant and foolish Jane
was. If she had known better,
if she had read her modern
magazines properly, and if she
had followed the tenor of * pro-
gressive ' thought, she would of
course have realised that Science
had proved to its own entire
satisfaction that there was no
Creator at all to be thankful to,
and that life was now discovered
JANE 25
to be such a poor thing at best
as to be only fit for frittering away
or grumbling at.
But Jane never read any maga-
zines. She was a curious woman
in some things; and one of her
fixed ideas was that no literature
could be good or reliable which
was too cheap. So she paid her
threepence for the Times every
morning religiously, and never
read anything in it except the
telegrams, which were quite suf-
ficient to keep her fairly cognisant
of the greater doings of the human
race at large. Of the ' little
doings,' the fashionable scandals,
the silly rumours, the ridiculously
26 JANE
trifling incidents of Court and
Society which are so frequently
served up as ' news ' to a jaded
and contemptuous public, she knew
nothing whatever. And in conse-
quence of her lack of better inform-
ation she lived on in the peaceful
belief that God was good, that
the world was a very pleasant
place, that life and health were
excellent things, and that men
and women were, taken altogether,
much more full of virtue than of
vice. And thus a lovely benevo-
lence ennobled her features and
made them attractive, despite the
wrinkling of the pale, delicate skin
near the eyes and mouth, the in-
JANE 27
ward grace of charity gave lustre
to her calm eyes and bestowed a
magic brightness on the silver
threads in her soft parted hair,
and there was not a man, woman,
or child in the village where she
dwelt that would not have wil-
lingly testified to the sweetness of
her smile. It was a smile that
warmed the heart and lingered in
the memory, and young girls
who came with their mothers to
call on * that old maid,' as some
of them profanely styled her
before they knew her, went away
charmed and enthralled by Jane
and her beautiful manners, carry-
ing bouquets of roses she had
28 JANE
herself gathered and given to
them, with kind and pretty words,
from her own carefully kept and
deliciously scented garden, where
all the ' old-fashioned ' flowers grew
in profusion, making a paradise
of enchantment for bees, butter-
flies, and singing-birds.
Ashleigh-in-the-Dell was a charm-
ing little English village nest-
ling among hills and sheltered by
deep woodlands, and there Jane had
lived ever since her earliest child-
hood. Her father had been the
rector of the parish, and had died
full of years and honours after a
well-spent, useful life in which he
had conscientiously striven to do
JANE 29
his utmost best to follow the
Divine teaching of the Divinest
Teacher the world has ever seen
or ever will see. And when the
new rector was installed, Jane,
rinding herself possessed of a
sufficient income whereon to live
becomingly, if simply, purchased
the cottage where she now dwelt,
which for some private reason of
her own she called ' Restful
Harbour.' There she stayed year
after year, without taking any
change or seeming to require one.
She had no recollection of her
mother, who had died early;
though there was a picture of her
in the charming drawing-room of
30 JANE
* Restful Harbour ' which Jane was
fond of looking at because it was
a beautiful face, almost the face
of what one might expect an
angel to be. "That was my
mother," she would say to the in-
quiring visitor. And on one such
occasion, when a caller, wishing
to be complimentary, replied,
"You are very like her," Jane
flushed with surprise and answered
eagerly, "Oh, no! I was never
in the least like her. She
was a great beauty, I have heard,
and I was always plain."
Occasionally, on winter evenings,
when news was scarce and there
was nothing particular to talk
JANE 31
about, some of the people at
Ashleigh-in-the-Dell would rum-
mage their memories to try and
recall whether in bygone times
Jane had ever been in love. She
had not always been elderly, she
was certainly young once. What
did she do when she was young ?
What was she like? Nobody had
a very distinct impression. She
had been the dispenser of her
father's bounties to the poor of
the neighbourhood, but she had
always maintained such an unob-
trusive demeanour that as a
matter of fact her quiet presence
in the village had grown to be
as much a portion of it as the
32 JANE
sunshine that beamed upon it or
the flowers that grew in its
meadows. And after her father's
death she became less noticeable
than ever; she was just ' Miss
Jane,' or 'Old Miss Belmont,' by
whichever name her neighbours
affected to call her, and there her
individuality appeared to end.
She was one of those unimportant
persons against whom there is
nothing to be said, one who is
neither rich, nor powerful, nor
good-looking enough to create envy
in the hearts of others or set
scandalous tongues gossiping.
She lived her life in undisturbed
seclusion, doing a great deal of
JANE 33
good in her own simple way, and
having no particular ' hobby ' or
' fad ' except an artistic taste
for old china and a great
tenderness for mignonette. Mig-
nonette bordered her garden
wherever a border was possible
great vases of it were daily ar-
ranged in her rooms, and the
sweet fragrance of it seemed to
be distilled from every breath of
air that blew over ' Restful Har-
bour.' But beyond the old china
and the mignonette, Jane had no
desires and apparently no am-
bition.
Taking all these premises of
Jane's uneventful history into due
c
34 JANE
consideration, it was not wonder-
ful that the village of Ashleigh-
in-the-Dell should experience a
violent thrill, somewhat of the
nature of an earthquake or a
thunder-clap, when it heard the
news that Jane had all at once
become a great heiress in her own
right, and that from henceforth
her yearly income would average
nearly twenty thousand pounds.
A relative of whom she had never
heard, a cousin of her beautiful
dead mother, had suddenly gone
to his account, leaving everything
he possessed to "Jane Belmont,
only daughter of the late Reverend
Hugh Belmont and of his wife,
JANE 35
Janet Evelyn Pierpont, first cousin
to me the testator/' She, Jane,
was the Jane Belmont in ques-
tion, so she was told by the two
legal gentlemen who called in
person one day at * Restful Har-
bour ' to break the good news to
her gently. "For," said they
with much feeling, looking round
the simple little country parlour
she called her drawing-room, " it
must be very overwhelming for
you I"
But Jane was not exactly over-
whelmed ; true, a few tears trickled
down her cheeks, and her thin,
well-shaped white hands trembled
a little, but otherwise she showed
3 6 JANE
no sign of feverish excitement.
"What am I to do with all
this money?" she asked with a
touch of sorrow in her voice as
she put the question.
"Spend it, my dear madam!
Spend it!" exclaimed one of the
legal gentlemen, smiling at her
naivete. "That is, spend the
interest and reserve the capital.
Amuse yourself, go about the
world a little enjoy your life I"
" I have always enjoyed it,"
said Jane, simply.
"Well, well, enjoy it a little
more! Money can do anything
for you ; you can have a fine
house, a carriage and pair, a box
JANE 37
at the opera, plenty of dresses and
and jewels, in fact, everything in
the world is at your disposal. You
have only to express a wish and
you have the means to gratify
it."
A bewildered look shadowed
Jane's peaceful countenance, and
she folded her delicate hands to-
gether more closely, to hide their
nervous trembling.
" I am too old for such
pleasures, sir," she said gently.
' Too old ! Nonsense, my dear
madam!" And the lawyer quite
bounced in his chair at the very
suggestion. " I never heard of
such a thing! Nobody is old in
3 8 JANE
our days, nobody ever intends to
be old. I know a lady of your
age who passes very well for
thirty at this very moment in
fact, she is much more lively and
smart than she was in her teens.
With your fortune, I assure you,
my dear Miss Belmont, that you
can have a very pleasant time of
it, ah! and I shouldn't wonder if
you made a very excellent
marriage!"
Jane's pale cheeks flushed a
shamed soft pink.
"Please do not jest with me,"
she said, the quiet dignity of her
voice and manner rather confus-
ing her legal visitors, who began
JANE 39
to feel they had been guilty of
an impertinence " I hope I know
better than to marry at my time
of life."
The legal gentlemen protested
they had meant no harm, and
duly apologised for their indis-
cretion. They left her, some-
what troubled in their own
minds as to what she thought
of them. Going back in the
train to London from Ashleigh-
in-the-Dell, one said to the
other,
"I wonder what she will do?"
And the other replied,
"Something quite unusual, you
may be sure! I shouldn't wonder
40 JANE
if she made her mark in Society."
Now when the news of Jane's
inheritance reached to that al-
most inaccessible and exclusive
point of social altitude repre-
sented by the Squire and his
wife and daughters, who were
the one ' county family ' in resi-
dence at Ashleigh-in-the-Dell, it
was made the subject of a solemn
and general palaver. The Squire
himself, who had never called on
* old Miss Belmont,' said he must
* leave a card ' the Squire's lady
signified her intention of doing
the same; and the Squire's
daughters observed with much
graceful tenderness that they
JANE 41
would take a basket of hothouse
grapes to ' dear Miss Belmont.'
And a lady who was staying
with the Squire on a visit the
Honourable Mrs. Maddenham, a
personage understood to be of
immense influence at Court and
much liked by all Great People
(by which phrase we nowadays
understand the Great of Purse
and not the Great of Heart),
said she would like nothing
better than to be introduced to
such an ' interesting ' person as
Miss Belmont. Introduced she
was accordingly, and at once
fastened on Jane as pertinaciously
as a blood-sucking gadfly. Every-
42 JANE
where Jane went, there would
the affectionate Mrs. Maddenham
also go. Jane was her ' sym-
pathy,' she declared; for ages
she had been looking for a
woman in all points resembling
Jane. Jane must love her because
she loved Jane! It was an
' affinity ' of souls.' And curious to
relate, after a very little while, Mrs.
Maddenham completely dominated
and took possession of Jane.
Now up to this time ' old Miss
Belmont ' had been credited,
rightly or wrongly, with the
quality of ' having a will of
her own,' but with the advent
of the honourable Mrs. Madden-
JANE
43
ham she appeared to resign herself
to the force of circumstances,
and most meekly to do what-
ever Mrs. Maddenham bade her.
It was Mrs. Maddenham who
impressed her with the fact that
she must 'go into Society,'
and ' into Society ' Jane plunged
accordingly. Accompanied by
Mrs. Maddenham, she left Ash-
leigh-in-the-Dell, handing over
* Restful Harbour ' with all its
china and mignonette to the
care of her gardener and his
wife, who were charged with
the business of keeping it clean
and in order. Without a tear
or a sigh she turned her back
44 JANE
on the pretty village which had
been her home for years, and
went by tearing, snorting, smok-
ing, grinding express to london.
Within that huge vortex, Jane,
like a helpless wooden dummy,
disappeared under the wild and
whirling wing of the Honour-
able Mrs. Maddenham. And
for some time she seemed drowned,
lost, and gone for ever: when
suddenly she emerged from the
seething whirlpool of Fashion
with three white feathers on her
dear old head and a long
silver-grey train, trimmed with
wonderful lace, pendant from
her shoulders, which, by-the-bye,
JANE 45
were still shapely, and would
bear showing in daylight, for
Jane was a well-made woman,
with a white skin. In this
guise, and with some qualms of
uneasy shame concerning these
same shoulders, Jane made her
curtsey to one of the conven-
ient representatives of absent
Majesty on Drawing-Room Day,
and her appearance was duly
chronicled in the fashionable-
news among the presentations
thus: "Miss Jane Belmont, by
the Honourable Mrs. Maddenham.'*"
Then it was that people be-
gan to talk and say, "What
an odd thing!*' The natives of
46 JANE
Ashleigh-in-the-Dell improved this
statement by adding "that it
was the oddest thing they ever
heard ofl" Jane had * gone
into Society,' she had * come
out!' and not only had she
* come out,' but she had been
sketched in the Lady's Pictorial
in her Court gown with a waist
of sixteen inches, the contour
of a broomstick, and the head
of a noodle. But that was the
fault of the Court modiste who
made her gown. The Court
modiste had put the gown on
one of her ' collapsible ' wire
frames, and had turned the
4 collapsible ' round and round
JANE 47
like a tee-to-tum for the delec-
tation of the fashion-paper artist
and he or she had sketched
it, as every sort of costume is
sketched in the pictorials, with
nothing of figure, but all of
millinery. And seeing poor
Jane thus stuck up for show,
Ashleigh-in-the-Dell was, as it
were, convulsed and worthy
persons, who had known Jane
for years, shook their heads and
said "Can it be possible?"
* Law," murmured the gar-
dener's wife, as she dusted the
deserted little rooms in * Rest-
ful Harbour* " who'd a' thought
it at her time o' life!"
48 JANE
" Which we never knows what
we shall be!'* returned the gar-
dener himself, gloomily, as he
trained the Gloire-de-Dijon roses
to grow more symmetrically
round the windows of the house.
" She was such a real lady,
I'd never a' believed she'd a'
gone advertising of herself in
one of they public prints!"
But the reckless Jane, in happy
ignorance of the comments passed
upon her actions by her country
acquaintances, did not stop in her
mad career with her presentation
at Court and her broomstick
portrait in the Lady's Pictorial.
As a matter of fact, she had
' STONEY-BROKE ON THE TURF
JANE 49
only just begun to move her
arms in what is called the
1 swim.' Supported by Mrs.
Maddenham, who never left her
except to take the sleep which
is necessary, even to Society
vampires, Jane spent a good
deal of money. She bought a
magnificent house in Grosvenor
Place, fully furnished, from an
impecunious nobleman, who told
her languidly that he was
" stoney-broke on the turf,"
an expression which she did not
quite understand but vaguely
grasping the fact that he had
once been a gentleman and was
now compelled to be a slang-
50 JANE
talking beggar, she delicately
referred him to her lawyers in
order that the purchase of his
property might be arranged to
his entire satisfaction, without
inflicting upon him any unneces-
sary degradation or pain. The
matter was finally settled, and
Jane found herself mistress of
what the auctioneers call * a
palatial residence,' which * pala-
tial residence,' necessitated her
hiring an equally * palatial ' staff
of servants to keep it in proper
order. One would have thought
that the trouble and inconvenience
generally attendant on a luxurious
establishment would have been
JANE 51
too much for Jane, and would
have put her out of humour,
she having been so long accus-
tomed to the simplest habits of
life, but on the contrary she
seemed more placid and passive
than ever. One old friend, who
journeyed up from Ashleigh-in-
the-Dell to see her in her new
surroundings, went back again
sorely troubled, and opined
solemnly that Jane was going
mad. "Poor old Miss Bel-
mont," she said, sadly, "there's
a queer look in her eyes which
I don't like. All this fuss of
going to Court and being in
Society is turning her head.
52 JANE
She seems quite weak and silly,
and as for that Mrs. Madden-
ham, why Mrs. Maddenham
simply lives on her!*
In this respect the country
friend was right. Mrs. Madden-
ham did live on Jane, and very
good living she found it. She
often congratulated herself on the
way in which she had got Jane
'under her thumb,* and she
would often boast of her clever-
ness among her * swagger *
friends, saying,
"Oh, yes! Poor old Jane!
She's a dear, she'll do anything
for me! Do you want a ball
got up ? Jane's the very person I
JANE 53
You can have her rooms for
nothing, they're splendid! and
she will be only too delighted to
hire the band and pay for the
supper. 1 have only to ask her.
You see, she came into her for-
tune rather late, poor dear, and
she doesn't know much about
good society, but she's very
anxious to learn. Oh, she's not
common or vulgar by any means,
she's very well born, and very well
connected. I chose her house for
her, you know, and I got her
all her servants. She can't do
a thing without me, and of course
she's very much indebted to me for
introducing her to my * set.' "
54 JANE
Thus would the Honourable
Mrs. Maddenham talk by the
hour, and the ' swagger ' set
gradually came to realise the
convenience of having a Jane
among them, a Jane who kept
open house and gave everybody
as much food and drink as they
could gorge and swill without
bursting, a Jane who did not
mind paying for theatre parties
and late suppers at the Savoy,
and moreover, a Jane who never
interfered or looked obtrusive, but
who wore quiet colours, good
old lace, and very few jewels,
and who was content to sit
among them in more or less
JANE 55
silence, with folded hands and
a kind of silly smile on her
countenance which meant, or
appeared to mean, absolutely
nothing. It was this silly smile
which made some of her former
acquaintances think she had a
* screw loose,' or was * dotty.'
" I don't think you know at
what rate you are living," said a
would-be adviser to her one day.
The * silly smile ' appeared in its
full breadth on Jane's amiable
visage, but she said nothing.
"That Mrs. Maddenham, for in-
stance," went on her visitor,
" she costs you a good deal."
" I hope so," replied Jane,
56 JANE
still smiling, " I want her to
cost me a good deal. She is a
very useful person to me."
" Dotty oh, dotty!" groaned
the would-be adviser to himself in
bitterness of spirit. " The money
has turned her poor old brain."
But this was a mistake. Jane's
brain was not by any means
* turned, ' it was, on the con-
trary, particularly well balanced.
Had some of her fashionable
acquaintances been able to exactly
guess the logical precision of that
brain-balance, they would have
been considerably startled; and
probably the Honourable Mrs.
Maddenham would have been
JANE 57
more startled than anybody. But
surface observers were content to
draw their conclusions from Jane's
1 silly smile,' and also from a certain
vague look of timidity and be-
wilderment which was occasionally
reflected in her mild blue eyes;
and they found it refreshing, as
well as courteous and honourable,
to go to Jane's parties, eat of her
food, drink of her wine, criticise
her domestic arrangements, and
stare at the rich, stiff, sober-tinted
silks she wore, and then remark
to one another in somewhat
audible undertones: "Poor old
thing! Very passee, isn't she?
I wonder if any one will propose
58 JANE
to her for her money ? She
wouldn't be half bad as a wife,
too old for larks, and plenty of
manner about her!"
Yes; this was a point which
was never questioned Jane's
* manner.' It was a particular
manner, which is fast becoming
obsolete, a manner which ex-
pressed dignity, grace, and a re-
finement as delicate as it was
rare. When ' swagger ' people
condescendingly dined with her
through the invitations of Mrs.
Maddenham, Jane received them
with that special ' manner ' of
hers which none of them could
imitate or compete with, that
JANE 59
exquisite bearing which silently
implies everything courteous with-
not being in the least affected
or hypocritical. It was an
old - fashioned manner, but it
was not without charm. And
when at table the ' up-to-date '
man or woman talked slang,
and said certain things were
* ripping ' and other things
'tommy-rot,' Jane sat silent and
absorbed, looking at her plate
as earnestly as though she saw
a pretty little picture of * Restful
Harbour ' right in the middle
of its polished centre. When
titled ladies of known birth and
breeding lolled in her drawing-
60 JANE
room, with their feet slightly
elevated to show their shoes
and a portion of their ankles,
and smoked cigarettes till the air
reeked with tobacco, Jane made
no sort of observation on this
' new ' custom brought into vogue
by the votaries of rank and
fashion. She merely sat, like a
thoughtful queen, in her chair,
and watched the proceedings.
She was careful that her gorgeous
flunkeys (whom she kept through
the advice of Mrs. Maddenham)
should not fail to see every
lady provided with the necessary
smoking materials, and she en-
dured the fumes heroically with-
JANE 6 1
out a cough of protest. But
she did not smoke herself. And
the consequence of this was that,
though she knew it not, she
looked like a forlorn, castaway
lady of noble birth fallen ac-
cidentally amongst a set of female
rowdies.
One day the Honourable Mrs.
Maddenham said to Jane,
"Why don't you bike?"
"Why don't I ... what?"
murmured Jane in a gentle flutter
of amazement.
"Bike!" repeated Mrs. Mad-
denham forcibly. "Get a pair
of knickers and a short skirt and
learn to ride on a bicycle. It's
62 JANE
awfully good exercise for you.*'
Jane's mouth opened a little
way, as though she expected a
sugar-plum to drop into it, and
the dawn of the * silly smile '
began to spread out among the
fine and pretty little wrinkles of
her meditative face.
" Get a pair of knickers and
a short skirt!" she echoed
musingly. "Have you got them ?"
"Of course I have!" returned
Mrs. Maddenham jubilantly.
" I'll put them on and spin
round here to-morrow. You must
see me on my wheel, I look
first-rate!"
And sure enough, with the
JANE 63
morrow Jane did see her. And
Jane nearly died of it. The
Honourable Mrs. Maddenham, in
a short tweed skirt with knickers
appearing beneath, sitting astride
on a bicycle, her thick ankles and
flat feet well exposed, and work-
ing at the machine she thus im-
modestly bestrode with the meas-
ured regularity of a convict work-
ing the treadmill, was certainly
a sight calculated to bring such
a woman as Jane was almost to
the brink of the grave. Not with
shock or surprise, but with
laughter! Ah ! nobody knew how
Jane could laugh if she liked!
Such a merry, vholesome un-
64 JANE
spoilt, altogether frank and de-
lightful laugh it was, a laugh
that matched her manner, an
old-fashioned, obsolete laugh.
She did not laugh in the pre-
sence of Mrs. Maddenham she
was far too courteous for that;
but when Mrs. Maddenham's
hard-working, thick legs had
borne her, red and perspiring,
afar from Jane's wondering view,
and she was no more seen,
then it was that Jane laughed
till she cried.
"Dear, dear mel" said Jane,
wiping her eyes with her dainty
handkerchief. "What an extra-
ordinary place this London is
JANE 65
to be sure ; It is like a big
lunatic asylum ! What with the
people climbing into monster
wheels for the sake of looking
out of the windows of small
cars, and then flying up in
aeroplanes, rushing up and
down on a ' switch-back,'
and climbing ' belvedere towers,'
it seems to me that they all
want to turn themselves into
squirrels and monkeys instead
of men and women. But Mrs.
Maddenham on a bicycle is the
most comical sight of all I
Poor thing ! poor thing I How
ashamed those grown-up sons and
daughters of hers must be when
66 JANE
they see her exposed to the gaze
of the public like that! She's
really very useful to me, though,
I never thought I should get
so much fun out of her!"
Whereby it will doubtless be
realised that Jane was not so
silly as she sometimes seemed.
Any way she flatly refused to
*bike,' which was one most
excellent proof of her sanity and
self-respect, though Mrs. Mad-
denham said it was ' narrow. 1
"All the best set 'bike,'"
Mrs. Maddenham declared.
" Women's legs have never had
fair play till now. What are
our legs for, I should like to
JANE 67
know ? We've had to hide them
under long skirts for ages except
on the stage it is time they
should see daylight."
Jane shivered as though a
douche of cold water had been
poured down her back, then
blushed as deeply as though
scalding wine had been poured
down her throat. That women's
legs ' should see daylight * seemed
to her a remarkable proposition,
not without a touch of the
weird and fantastic. And she
remained firmer than ever in
her determination to be ignor-
ant of the ' bike ' and its
various attractions.
68 JANE
Jane now began to be very
well known in Society. She
was frequently referred to in
the * fashionable jottings,' and
whenever it was announced that
Miss Belmont was * at home '
the fact created a certain stir.
By degrees it was whispered in
several * exclusive ' sets that to
have Jane installed in Grosvenor
Place was a great convenience.
Gentlemen desirous of making
love to other gentlemen's wives
arranged (through Mrs. Madden-
ham) to meet their fair libertines
at Jane's afternoon teas and
evening crushes (both which
kind of festivities were always
JANE 69
arranged by Mrs. Maddenham),
and ladies equally wishful of
making love to other ladies'
husbands followed the same
course of procedure. ' Old Miss
Belmont ' saw nothing and knew
nothing, they averred; she was
a dear old dummy, most useful
in the place where Mrs.
Maddenham had put her. What
a delightful party she gave, for
instance at Henley, on her superb
house-boat, when Mrs. Madden-
ham invited all the guests, and
when it was hardly possible for
Jane herself to find a seat at
her own luncheon table ! That
was a grand time! When the
70 JANE
lovely Lady Repousse slipped a
teaspoonful of ice-cream behind
the shirt-collar and down the
back of the Most Dignified
and Serene His Highness of
Lumpfernel, and His Highness
of Lumpfernel, yelling with
laughter, flung pellets of bread
at Lady Repousse and informed
the assembled company that he
knew she had thick ankles. It
was so witty of His Highness !
And altogether the manners of
the * set ' surrounding him were
so entirely charming! The hilar-
ious customs of a beanfeast
were tame in comparison to the
* ripping fun ' Mrs. Maddenham
JANE 71
got up on Jane's house-boat
at Henley. Nobody paid much
attention to Jane on that oc-
casion, except one man of
about six-and-twenty, the Honour-
able Arthur Morvyn, the im-
pecunious second son of the late
Earl of Drumleigh. Arthur
Morvyn, when the evening came
on and the air of the river
grew chilly, found a shawl
somewhere and put it round
Jane's shoulders, whereat she
looked up at him with a sudden
tenderness in her eyes and
thanked him more effusively than
such a simple action would
seem to warrant. And while
72 JANE
he hesitated, standing by her
chair and thinking within himself
that she was a * ladylike old
girl,' she told him gently that she
had once known his father very
intimately.
"Indeed!" said Arthur Morvyn,
feeling his moustache dubiously.
"Yes," answered Jane, "he
used often to visit my father at
Ashleigh-in-the-Dell before he be-
came Earl of Drumleigh. He
had friends in the neighbour-
hood, with whom he used to
stay. I saw a good deal of
him when I was young."
"Really I" and Arthur Morvyn,
remembering that she had twenty
JANE 73
thousand a year, sought about
in his brain for a suitable
compliment, "I shouldn't have
thought you were old enough to
remember my father, "
" He was just seven years my
senior," returned Jane calmly.
"Regularly gives herself
away I" thought Arthur Morvyn
in amazement. " If she were
only up-to-date she'd wear a
carroty wig, put on ' young '
frocks and pass for thirty. Rum
old truth-teller, 'pon my life."
Yet he was so much impressed
by the * rum old truth-teller '
that he could not help thinking
a great deal about her, not only
74 JANE
during that Henley week but
for some time afterwards.
One day the Honourable Mrs.
Maddenham came to Jane in a
great flutter of excitement and
said,
" My dear, I have got a
splendid chance for you I A
magnificent opportunity to make
your mark once and for all in
Society and to be acknowledged
as one of the very tip-top
leaders of fashion I You will
be charmed!* 1
" Shall I?" asked Jane with
her * silly smile.*
11 Shall you?" echoed Mrs.
Maddenham, " I should think
JANE 75
so, indeed 1 What woman would
not be proud and grateful to
entertain Royalty I"
"What sort of ' Royalty' ?"
inquired Jane doubtfully. For
she remembered His Serene High-
ness of Lumpfernel with no
particular ardour or enthusiasm.
Mrs. Maddenham laughed rather
boisterously.
" What a dear thing you are!"
she exclaimed " what a quaint,
dear thing! You are positively
humorous sometimes! I know
quite what you mean when you
ask ' what sort of royalty ?'
though you know they are all
of the same kind, little and big
76 JANE
ill connected with first-class
German houses," this as if she
were speaking of business firms
with whom she was connected in
some kind of trade. " But this
time it's tip-top royalty, my
dear!" and looking cautiously
round she drew nearer to Jane
and whispered something in her
ear. Then she pulled herself
back with a jerk and a trium-
phant smile. " There! What
do you think of that! It will
simply make you!"
Jane did not know what to
think of it. The two names
whispered in her ear had cer-
tainly startled her, and a gentle
JANE 77
and old-fashioned loyalty of soul
made her at once desirous of
doing her best to entertain the
great personages whom Mrs.
Maddenham had mentioned, not
out of any personal vanity, but
simply because she felt that if
such exalted individuals chose
to honour her house by a visit,
nothing could possibly be too
good for them. But all the same
she was puzzled and bewildered.
" You must forgive me if I
am rather dense," she said at
last, after a pause, " but I do
not quite understand. How is
it that these gentlemen know of
me? And why should they
78 JANE
propose to visit me at all? I
have not invited them, and
would not have presumed so far.**
"Ah! that's my manage-
ment!" exclaimed Mrs. Madden-
ham triumphantly, " I have
been working you up step by
step, and now I have got you
to the very top of the tree.
Leave everything in my hands!
All I want to know is whether
you give me carte blanche? I
will manage the whole affair
splendidly for you!'*
" But," persisted Jane mildly,
"why do they want to come to
me? What makes them think
of coming?"
JANE 79
Mrs. Maddenham was a little
bit confused. It would never do
to tell the whole truth to Jane,
she would never understand.
She would never see the ne-
cessity, the convenience, the
in short, the everything of the
matter. So she said evasively,
' They wish to do you honour,
my dear! That's all. And if
you are not pleased and proud,
you are very ungrateful. Shall
I say you will be happy to
receive them, and get the day
fixed? It will have to be a
late supper-party I think?"
Jane considered a little, then,
with a slight sigh, folded her
80 JANE
hands meekly and, with an air
of resignation,
" Do as you think best," she
said, "But please say every-
thing that is respectful and
right on my part to their Royal
Highnesses.*'
Mrs. Madden ham grinned to
herself at the words * respectful
and right.'
"Poor old Jane! She's too
funny for anything!" she solilo-
quised. "As if any one cared
a hang for her * respectful and
right' greetings! She ought to
have lived in the Middle
Ages."
She began her preparations in
JANE 8 1
earnest, and very soon London
knew that * old Miss Belmont's '
house was to be a scene of
' royal ' revelry. Mrs. Madden-
ham sent out all the invitations,
for it was to be a ' select '
party, a ' submitted ' list, in-
cluding some of the most noted
of the fashionable beauties and
otherwise 'ripping' women.
Rumours of the ' Royal * con-
descension about to be extended
to Jane reached Ashleigh-in-the-
Dell and excited spleen and
envy in the gentle breasts of the
Squire's lady and the Squire's
fair daughters.
41 What a ridiculous thing!"
82 JANE
they exclaimed. "The idea of
old Miss Belmont receiving
Royalty!"
And they quivered and snorted
and tittered with rage. They
would never have the chance
Jane had; for though they
assumed to be somebodies at
Ashleigh-in-the-Dell, they were
nobodies in London, and they
knew it. It is a knowledge
that is frequently pressed home
with convincing force to the
souls of country squires and
their families.
The expected evening came at
last, and Jane, in a gentle
flutter of loyal excitement and
JANE 83
anxiety, went to take a last
look round her rooms now that
all was in readiness for the
reception of her * royal ' guests.
Everything was arranged with
taste and luxury ; no expense
had been spared; and the
supper-room, with its palms and
flowers and separate little tables
lit by the electric light, was a
scene of fairy-like splendour.
The members of a renowned
French orchestra were stationed
in the conservatory, ready to
begin at the signal of Mrs.
Maddenham, and Mrs. Madden-
ham herself, gorgeously attired
and ornamented after the style
84 JANE
of a jeweller's window with
diamonds, was giving her final
instructions to the powdered
flunkeys and their attendants.
Seeing Jane suddenly appear
beside her, she frowned.
"Oh, do go away, my dear,"
she said, querulously. " There
is no reason for you to be
down here. I can tell the
servants all they have to do.
Your place is in the drawing-
room. You must receive the
people as they arrive, you
know."
Jane hesitated, her fine, worn
face growing somewhat pale,
and Mrs. Maddenham, looking
JANE 85
at her, felt a sudden twinge of
shame and remorse pricking her
soul, for Jane's ' grand manner '
had never been so much in
evidence as it was that night.
The dress she wore enhanced
it, being of rich lilac satin
showered with old lace, and the
way in which she had arranged
her hair, lifting its soft grey
waves slightly off her forehead,
gave her an expression of dig-
nity and grace which caused
Mrs. Maddenham to seem be-
side her, notwithstanding her
diamonds, a mere artificial
female humbug.
"What are you waiting for?"
86 JANE
said Mrs. Maddenham, almost
sharply. " Why don't you go
into the drawing-room ?"
" I wished to see if every-
thing was all right," responded
Jane mildly. " After all, I am
responsible for the affair; I am
the mistress of my own house.
And I hope you will come
with me into the drawing-room
to help me receive, because you
know the people you have
asked, and I do not. 5 '
"You know some of them,"
said Mrs. Maddenham. " It is
only the Royal ' set ' you are
not in with but I will try and
get you in if I can; only you
JANE 87
know it is rather difficult-
14 Difficult!'* echoed Jane, with
a great surprise reflected in her
placid face. " But they are
coming here to see me, are
they not?"
Mrs. Maddenham grew sud-
denly red in the face and was
troubled with a tickling in her
throat which caused her to
cough considerably. What a
fool Jane was, to be sure, she
mentally considered 1 The idea
of her expecting that the Royal
* set ' were actually coming to
see her. It was enough to
make ' swagger ' persons laugh
themselves into convulsion-fits!
88 JANE
But it was no use saying any-
thing to Jane; Jane would never
comprehend that she ought to
be greatly honoured to have
her house turned into a kind of
restaurant for the entertainment
of * great ' people, and that she
ought to be proud and glad if
the said ' great ' people ate and
drank of what she provided
without either a ' How d'y do '
or * Thank you ' to their
hostess. She would never under-
stand ; ' swagger ' society and its
ways were altogether beyond
Jane.
Between ten and eleven o'clock
the company began to arrive,
JANE 89
and Jane, standing with Mrs,
Maddenham at the head of her
stately staircase, which was
decorated for the occasion with
the rarest palms and exotics,
awaited with a somewhat beat-
ing heart the approach of
* the ' guests of the evening.
They were late in coming; but
to make amends for their delay
the ' select ' company invited to
meet them flocked into the
rooms in a crowd, laughing and
talking together and spreading
themselves in loose and familiar
fashion all over the place, as
if it belonged to them, and
paying very little heed to either
90 JANE
Jane or Mrs. Maddenham.
Lovely countesses, duchesses,
and * great ' ladies of title
and no title came attended
by their various adorers and
admirers, and flung them-
selves about on sofas and in
arm-chairs, making cosy corners
for conversation and the
planning of fresh intrigues, and
though the first arrivals (who
happened, by the excellent
management of Mrs. Maddenham,
to be certain respectable old
fogies who had met Jane before)
greeted their hostess with the
usual conventional manner and
courtesy, yet when the crush
JANE 91
grew denser and people became
wedged en masse on the stairs,
unable to move backward or
forward, it was hardly possible
to distinguish Jane in the
general press, much less greet
her as the mistress of the house
and giver of the evening's
hospitality.
' They will never get into
the supper-room, " said Jane
anxiously, as she gazed at the
increasing stream. " My dear
Mrs. Maddenham, I am sure
you have asked too many
people I"
"Not a bit of it," retorted
Mrs. Maddenham. " The more
92 JANE
we can keep them squeezed up
here, the less chance they will
have of disturbing their High-
nesses in the supper-room. Sup-
per is only for the * royal '
set."
This was a staggerer for
Jane, and she was about to
enter a protest against such an
unequal arrangement, when there
was a sudden stir, a sway-
ing movement in the crowd
on the stairs, and two broadly-
smiling gentlemen entered, fol-
lowed by two other somewhat
serious gentlemen, all of whom
blandly shook hands with Mrs.
Maddenham, who, in her turn,
JANE 93.
bobbed demurely up and down
to the two smiling gentlemen
and nodded familiarly to the
two serious gentlemen and then
piloted them over to a certain
portion of the room where a
bevy of the * ripping ' ladies
elsewhere alluded to awaited
their coming.
Jane looked about her bewil-
deredly. It was beginning to
be like the luncheon party at
Henley ; there seemed to be no
room for her at all. Had
4 Royalty ' arrived ? Were those
two broadly-smiling gentlemen
' the ' great ones ? and the two
serious gentlemen the equerries
94 JANE
in attendance? They had all
passed her, they had not
noticed her; Mrs. Maddenham
had borne them away afar, but
whither? Putting on her gold-
rimmed glasses, Jane peered
into every corner and found no
sign of either the broadly-
smiling or the serious gentlemen
at all ; as a matter of fact,
they had passed out through the
opposite door with the ladies
they had selected as their com-
panions, and were gone down
to supper. The band played
gay music, the noise of tongues
and the swish of silk dresses
became confusing, the scent of
JANE 95
flowers, mingling with the sick-
lier odour of artificial perfumes,
assailed Jane's nose and irritated
it, and a sudden wrath began
to kindle in her usually peace-
able mind. Was it possible
could it be likely that Mrs.
Maddenham had gone down to
supper without presenting her,
the actual hostess of the occas-
ion, to Royalty at all? It
seemed like it, it really seemed
very like it! Jane waited a
few moments on her own stair-
case like a belated stranger, in
doubt and perplexity, then, sud-
denly perceiving two of her
flunkeys engaged in handing wine,
96 JANE
coffee, ices, and other refresh-
ments among the people who
were crowded in the drawing-
room, she beckoned one of them
to come up to her. The man
did so.
" Have the ' royal ' people
come?" she asked him.
" Oh, yes'm ; They are in
the supper-room. "
"Is Mrs. Maddenham there ?"
" Yes'm. Mrs. Maddenham
is at the royal table.'*
" Supper has commenced,
then?"
"Oh, yes'm! Supper's well
on now."
Jane asked no more questions.
JANE 97
Pale and calm and full of her
'grand manner,' which gave her
an almost regal air, she made
her way slowly and with elab-
orate care and courtesy down
the broad stairs, apologising
sweetly if she chanced to brush
against a dress or disturb a
side flirtation, and both men
and women paused in their
gabble to stare at her and say
sotto voce, " Why, I believe
that's old Miss Belmont! Ton
my life, it's the woman whose
house we are in!"
If 'old Miss Belmont 1
heard any of these comments
she gave no sign, but pursued
G
98 JANE
the even tenor of her way till,
arriving at the bottom of the
grand staircase, she paused,
hesitating and looking about
her. The doors of the dining-
room, where the ' Royal ' supper
party was going on, were closed;
but on the left-hand side of
the hall the smoking-room was
open to view, and she saw that it
was crowded with men. Led
by some unaccountable impulse,
she moved thither, with a kind
of idea that if she should
happen to see any friend of
: her own among the party she
would ask him to go in to
Mrs. Maddenham and tell her
JANE 9
gently that she had in the
excitement of the occasion for-
gotten the existence of her
hostess. As she approached the
threshold, however, she caught
some words rather loudly
spoken which brought her to a
sudden standstill and made the
generous blood in her veins
rush back to her heart in a
quick angry tide that blanched
her cheeks and made her
tremble.
" Who's the woman that's
giving this affair to-night?"
asked one man. "Do I know
her?"
"Of course you do!" said
ioo JANE
another. " Everybody knows
the ubiquitous licker of ' royal '
boots, Mrs. Maddenham."
"Oh, I don't mean her!"
said the first man, " I mean
the creature behind her, the
woman who's paying to get in
with the 'set.'"
" Oh, that's Miss Belmont, the
old maid who came suddenly into a
fortune the other day," put in
a third man. " Vapid, rapid
Jane, as some people call her.
She's a pretty tough hen,
you know, over fifty by her
own account. But she's coming
out with a vengeance. Shouldn't
wonder if she married a duke,
JANE 101
in the end. She's got the dibs
to do it.* 1
"What does she look like?"
inquired another man.
"Oh, not half bad. I
wouldn't mind marrying her
myself, providing she let me
have my own way afterwards."
A laugh went round the
room, followed by a moment's
silence.
"Are these Jane's cigars?" said
another languid, drawling voice
presently. " If so, she knows how
to choose a good brand ! Wonder
if she smokes?"
They laughed again.
" I suppose she's in with the
102 JANE
* Royalties ' at supper?" was the
next remark.
"Not a bit of it!" eagerly ex-
claimed the first man who had
spoken. " Little Maddenham
knows better than that. The
1 Royalties ' don't know her any
more than Adam, why should
they? What on earth should
'royalty' want with Jane?"
The laughter this time was pro-
longed and boisterous.
"Rum old girl she must be,"
said another of the speakers at last,
" But she's got a first-class estab-
lishment. Rather tempting to me,
don'cher-know; I could do with it
vry comfortably. 'Pon my word,
AM MISS BEI.MONT'
JANE 103
I think I'll have a try for Jane. I
should like to see her first, though."
At that very moment Jane, pale,
composed, and queenly in her de-
meanour, appeared in the doorway.
"You see her now, sir," she
said quietly, " I am Miss Belmont."
There was a sudden pause, a
horrified pause, in which each man
in the smoking-room looked pain-
fully conscious of feeling more or
less of a fool.
" I am Miss Belmont," pursued
Jane, speaking firmly and with
most unruffled composure. " This
house, the arrangements of which
you are good enough to approve,
is mine. And being mine I have
io 4 JANE
to request you all to leave it."
The silence grew more deadly.
The men hastily put down their
half-smoked cigars and stared help-
lessly at one another. The * rum
old girl ' was * rum ' indeed !
" My dear Miss Belmont," be-
gan one man feebly, " surely you
are too sensible to take offence at
a few words spoken hastily and
without thought "
" I have not taken offence,' sir,"
said Jane calmly. " I have simply
been under a misapprehension. I
imagined I was entertaining gentle-
men whose code of honour was
such that nothing could have per-
suaded them to make vulgar jesting
JANE 105
out of the name and fame of any
woman in whose house they were
being hospitably received. I have
now perceived my error, I must
therefore again request all of you
to leave the premises."
"By Jove!" gasped one young
man, turning quite pale in the ex-
tremity of his amazement, " she
means it!"
14 But my dear Miss Belmont,"
urged another man, in deepening
consternation, " Mrs. Madden-
ham -"
" Mrs. Maddenham is not mis-
tress here," said Jane. "'I am.
Have the goodness, if you please,
to understand that I am in ear-
106 JANE
nest. Go quietly, and at once."
And taming to a staring flunkey,
who stood listening agape in won-
derment, and questioning within
himself whether the heavens were
not going to fall upon him and
crush his pink-stockinged calves
out of shape and existence, she
said,
" Go into the supper-room and
tell Mrs. Maddenham I must see her
directly. If she will not come to
me, say that I shall come to her
and explain everything I have to
say before their Royal Highnesses."
The flunkey departed in haste
and agitation, and Jane stood
calmly watching the proceedings,
JANE 107
while some of her other men-
serrants assisted the discomfited
1 swells ' in the smoking-room to
find their hats and coats and get
rapidly ready for departure. In
two or three minutes the Honour-
able Mrs. Maddenham, flushed
with champagne-supper, appeared
exclaiming,
" What's the matter? What
on earth is the matter? Why
is anybody going away?"
For all answer Jane took a firm
hold of her arm, and with a dex-
terous movement gently hustled her
into a small boudoir leading out of
the hall and closed the door on
them both.
io8 JANE
" Now,'* said Jane, her eyes
sparkling with unwonted excite-
ment, " I don't want to make a
scene or a scandal, if I can help
it, but this supper-party must be
cut short. You have invited snobs
and ruffians here under the pre-
tence of meeting Royalty and as
I do not like snobs and ruffians,
they must go. This house must be
cleared of your social riff-raff; do
you understand? I give you half
an hour to do it."
Mrs. Maddenham's jaw almost
dropped in the excess of her rage
and amazement.
" Have you gone mad, Jane?"
she exclaimed. "What are you
JANE 109
talking about? What do you
mean?"
" I mean what I say," returned
Jane imperturbably, " I am re-
solved to have no more of this. I
thought you were inviting a
' select * party of the noblest and
best-bred men and women in
England to meet the Royal guests,
you have got together the
choicest collection of vulgarians
ever found out of Thackeray's
* Book of Snobs.' I do not choose
to entertain such persons a moment
longer, nor will I be treated as a
stranger in my own household. I
have let you have your full way
because it amused me to do so; I
no JANE
wanted to see what sort of a woman
you were, what sort of a woman,
in fact, is tolerated nowadays
among the ' upper ten * ; and I
wanted to find out for myself what
* swagger ' society is like. I have
learnt the lesson by heart, and a
very ugly lesson it is. As I have
already said, this house must be
cleared, and you must clear it.
You brought Royalty here; you
must take it away!"
" Take it away!" almost
shrieked Mrs. Maddenham,
"Take Royalty away take it "
Here her voice broke off in
inarticulate gurglings.
"Yes," said Jane, "take it
JANE in
away ! Represent to their Royal
Highnesses that the mistress of
this house is a very simple, old-
fashioned woman who does not
understand * good ' society, who
thought that they, in their exalted
positions, would have invited, nay,
commanded the presence of their
hostess at supper, and that they
would never have allowed them-
selves to-be led into mistaking Mrs.
Maddenham for Miss Belmont.
Say to them that Miss Belmont had
no desire to receive them here for
the purpose of kneeling down
wiping the dust off their illustrious
boots, nor for any other cause par-
taking of servility, toadyism, or
ii2 JANE
self-interest, but merely to do them
honour with the poor best her house
afforded. But that rinding Royalty
does not even inquire as to whether
she exists or no, and also that
many of the persons invited to meet
Royalty are of a kind she does not
herself care to be acquainted with,
she humbly requests that her house
may be relieved from the honour
which has fallen upon it, and she
herself left to her ordinary peace
and privacy. Tell them that,"
concluded Jane triumphantly, with
heaving breast and flashing
eyes; "or if you won't tell
them, I will go and tell them
myself !"
JANE 113
She drew herself up with a proud
gesture, and looked taller, younger,
handsomer than ever she had
seemed before; an inspiration was
upon her which seemed to dilate her
form and to add new dignity to her
manner.
" Good Gracious!'' and Mrs.
Maddenham began fairly to
whimper. "Whatever shall I do?
Jane, Jane, you must be going
perfectly crazy; you will be the
laughing stock of the whole
'set.'"
"That will not hurt me," said
Jane. " And some of the laughter
will certainly be on my side!"
" But after supper I was going
n 4 JANE
to present you!" wailed Mrs. Mad-
denham, pressing her handkerchief
to her eyes, "I was really going
to present you- "
"Were you?" and Jane looked
her straight in the face. "Well,
you know best whether you were
going to do so or not! At any
rate, I have now no wish to be
presented. I want the house cleared,
' of Royalty and everything and
everybody belonging to it, and I
leave you to do it. It must be
done; and I advise you to do it
quickly if you don't want me to
take matters into my own hands.
I will, if you like."
"No, no, no!" cried Mrs. Mad-
JANE 115
denham desperately. " Oh, dear,
dear me! Who would have
thought of such a contretemps as
this; who could have imagined you
would turn so unreasonable, so
cranky, so mad, so lost to every
sense of decency ! Whatever shall
I do ! Good gracious ! This is the
way one is always served the
more you work for a person's good
the more ungrateful that person is I
I shall be disgraced! I shall never
be able to lift up my head again!
The royal people will never speak
to me or look at me! Oh, dear,
dear, what a terrible business! I
wish I had never brought them
here "
n6 JANE
" I wish so too," said Jane.
"And if I had imagined it was a
case of your bringing them, and not
their own kindly desire to honour
me that persuaded them to come,
they would never have entered the
house. Don't lose any more time,
please! It is getting late, and I
want my rooms to myself."
In a state bordering on frenzy,
Mrs. Maddenham re-entered the
supper-room and began the diffi-
cult, complicated, and diplomatic
task of getting the royal party to
adjourn. It was very troublesome,
for they were all exceedingly com-
fortable, and perfectly satisfied with
their surroundings. But gradually,
JANE 117
whether through the indiscretion
of a flunkey or the nervous excite-
ment of Mrs. Maddenham herself,
it got whispered about that there
had been a rumpus, that some
gentlemen had been actually turned
out, and that * old Miss Belmont '
was giving the conge to a number
of her guests; in fact, that she was
bent, for some reason or other,
on having the house * cleared.'
* Royalty ' caught the rumour over
its last glass of champagne, smiled
incredulously, shrugged its distin-
guished shoulders, and finally
guffawed with laughter at the idea
of Miss Belmont wanting to turn
everybody out because she had not
ii8 JANE
been at once invited to sit down at
her own supper-table. It was such
an extraordinary thing, such a
mistaken idea.
" What a ridiculous old woman
she must be!" murmured a distin-
guished lord, lazily drinking an
extra draught of the * ridiculous
old woman's ' best wine. " She
can't know anything about man-
ners."
" I expect she's old-fashioned,"
said a cynic of some fifty years of
age. " There were days, you
know, when hospitality was a
stately, courteous kind of virtue,
and when the hostess was every-
thing to the guests who accepted
JANE 119
her welcome. Private houses
did not turn themselves into
restaurants then, and there were
not any scrimmages for food. I
daresay old Miss Belmont dates
from that period."
Royalty, however, heeded not
the words of the cynic, for it was
getting under weigh for departure,
and the snobs and snobesses who
are accustomed to wait on it as
pertinaciously as mosquitoes wait
on fresh blood, were also getting
ready to follow their leaders.
Giggle and jest, loud guffaw and
subdued hypocritical twitter echoed
yet for a while through the great
hall of Jane's stately residence,
120 JANE
mingled with the clatter of car-
riages, driving up and driving
away, and the shouting of footmen
and policeman, and then the hall
door finally closed, and all was
silence. The Honourable Mrs.
Maddenham had departed in a rage
with the rest of the guests, vowing
to herself and one other confidant
(a man) that she would " never
forgive Jane." And Jane herself
came down to the deserted supper-
room and mildly partook of some
of the ' broken meats ' left from the
luxurious menu which, printed on
satin, adorned the various little
empty tables, moreover, she
allowed herself the further
JANE 121
liberty of drinking a glass
of the very excellent cham-
pagne her money had paid
for. This done, she bade the
deeply attentive and respectful
flunkey in waiting to close up all
the rooms for the night. Peace-
fully Jane went to bed and slept
the sleep of the just, and
excitedly the flunkey gossiped with
his fellow-flunkeys in the servants'
hall, and stated that he " thought
Miss Belmont knew a thing or
two " that "she was on her high
horse this time and no mistake,"
and that "he shouldn't wonder
if that blessed old Maddenham
woman got the sack."
122 JANE
In the latter part of his surmise
he proved correct, for when the
Honourable Mrs. Maddenham
struggled down to her breakfast
the next morning about midday,
after passing a horrible night, in
which she dreamed that the old
barbaric and ignorant periods had
come back, and that she and Jane
were being solemnly executed on
Tower Hill for some affront to
1 Royalty,' she received a polite
little note from Jane running
thus :
'-My DEAR MRS. MADDENHAM,
" Allow me to thank you for
the services you have rendered me
JANE 123
in introducing me to * Society,'
and to say that as I propose selling
my London residence and returning
to Ashleigh-in-the-Dell as soon as
conveniently possible, I am no
longer in need of your kind super-
intendence of my conduct and de-
portment. You have taught me
many good lessons, for which I am
sincerely grateful, and which I
should never have known without
you, and I hope the enclosed may
help to console you for any trouble
or difficulty you may have had with
me. I was not aware till last night
that ' swagger ' society was so es-
sentially and hoplessly vulgar; but
as you assure me that only the
I2 4 JANE
' best ' set were invited, I have no
alternative but to regret that I
ever was made aware that such a
' best * set existed. And with all
my heart I compassionate the
Royalties who are unfortunately
obliged to be surrounded by such
ill-bred vulgarians. After this free
expression of my sentiments, I
trust you will see the advisability
of our ceasing to be acquainted
with each other for the future, and
wishing you every happiness in
your social career,
"I am,
" Your very faithful and
obliged
"Jane Belmont."
JANE 125
A cheque for one thousand
pounds dropped out of this letter,
and as Mrs. Maddenham, stricken
to the soul, realised in one burst
Jane's extraordinary munificence,
Jane's remarkable usefulness,
Jane's apparent adaptability, and
Jane's ' deceiving ' firmness of
character, despite the * silly smile,'
she gave way to actual tears of
rage and spite as she thought that
never, never more would the great
house of Grosvenor Place be open
to her, never, never more would
she be able to invite her friends
to luncheon or to dinner at Jane's
expense, never, never more would
she have the joy of advertising
126 JANE
herself through Jane and using
Jane as a sort of complacent and
uncomplaining 'sandwich-man. 1
It was all over! And for such a
trifling cause, too! just the mere
oversight of not having introduced
Jane at first to the Royal person-
ages who came to eat of
Jane's food. It was ridiculous,
aggravating beyond measure !
Nevertheless, the fiat had gone
forth, Jane had suddenly de-
veloped a mulish obstinacy of dis-
position, and Mrs. Maddenham's
doom was sealed. She would have
!o find another Jane to live upon;
so far as this present Jane was
concerned, her career was ended !
JANE 127
Meanwhile, rumour's many
tongues got hold of the story of
what it was pleased to call Jane's
' scandalous conduct.' It was
repeated from mouth to mouth,
with all sorts of exaggerations and
additions, till Jane became that
' vulgar old Miss Belmont ' in
one quarter, and that ' mad old
Miss Belmont' in another. The
brilliancy of her parties was for-
gotten, the kindness and liberality
with which she had treated all who
had freely ' sponged ' upon her
was not even thought of, and
those who had been most frequently
the partakers of her hospitality
were the first to vilify her name
128 JANE
and make her the butt of ridicule.
But Jane did not care. She had
found a purchaser for her house,
and was leaving London. Sweet
thoughts of ' Restful Harbour, 1
with its old china and scent of
mignonette, were flitting across
her mind, and the goose-like hiss
and cackle of Society gossip,
though some of it reached her ears-
did not affect her peace of mind.
One of its unexpected results,
however, was that young Arthur
Morvyn, second son of the late Earl
of Drumleigh, hearing old Miss
Belmont's name and fame pulled
to pieces in every direction, took
means to ascertain exactly the
JANE 129
truth of the ' scandal' affecting
her; and when he found that
it was nothing more or less than
an independent display of spirit
which had moved her to resent the
distinguished presence of Royalty
in her house because of the crowd
of snobs attendant on it, his
admiration for her knew no bounds.
Taking into due consideration her
twenty thousand a year, her * grand
manner, 1 and this marked proof
she had given of a straightforward
and singularly firm character,
Arthur Morvyn wrote her a
remarkable letter. It spoke of his
deep respect for her, the desire he
had to devote himself to making
I
130
JANE
her happy, in short, it was a clear,
concise, business-like and perfectly
honourable proposal of marriage.
Dear me I How Jane cried over
it to be sure! She positively
sobbed, did Jane, till her nerves
were all in a quiver, and her gentle
blue eyes were red and swollen.
For hours she sat by herself read-
ing Arthur Morvyn's letter over
and over again, and weeping, till
at last, when her tears had had full
vent and the shedding of them had
eased her woman's heart, she grad-
ually regained self-control, and
sitting down quietly at her desk she
wrote her rejection of the only dis-
tinct offer of marriage she had ever
JANE 131
had in all her life. And this was
how she did it :
11 To the honourable Arthur
Morvyn,
" My DEAR YOUNG MAN,
" Your letter has very heartily
grieved me, as well as caused me
shame, for surely it is in every
sense shameful that you, who are
a mere boy, should venture to
address a woman of my years on
such a subject as marriage. I
should indeed be seriously offended
with you if you were not the son
of your father; but of his
memory's sake I will put aside my
own hurt feelings and speak to
you with the sincerity and feeling
I 3 2 JANE
as well as the frankness of a true
friend. You must know, therefore,
that your father, before he became
Earl of Drumleigh, was my sweet-
heart; we were girl and boy
together, and loved each other
very dearly in the old days when
he used to visit us at Ashleigh-in-
the-Dell. Circumstances connected
with his position prevented any
possibility of marriage between us,
his parents were against it, and
my good father would not allow
me to think of wedding any man
whose family might have looked
upon me as an unwelcome intruder.
So we parted ; and never met again.
He married, I stayed single. For
JANE 133
you must surely know that there
are some hearts in the world which
can never forget a great love,
this has been my case, and this will
account to you for the great interest
I felt in you when I first had the
pleasure of meeting you. Now,
my dear boy, I know quite well
what has made you commit the
folly of asking an old woman like
me to marry you, it is the temp-
tation my wealth has for you, and
nothing more. Let me entreat of
you to put such wrong and foolish
notions out of your head for ever.
They are the result of a bad system
of education and the pernicious
laxity of moral force and fine feel-
134 JANE
ing which is so sad to see nowadays
in latter-day society. Never marry
a woman for her money, whether
such woman be young or old;
marry for love. It is the old-
fashioned way, but it is the best
way and the only one that God
approves with His blessing. Find
some sweet girl whose heart is
yours, and yours only, and if you
are not rich enough to keep her in
all the wanton and foolish luxury
which disfigures the manners of
the age, at any rate be strong
enough to work for her and sur-
round her with whatever comforts
you manfully can. Depend upon
it, she will find them sufficient if
JANE 135
love is made the great and only
mainspring of life, which it surely
is and must ever be. I have seen
how very strangely and foolishly
some people lead their lives in these
days, and I am afraid a great many
mistakes are being made which will
lead to sad results hereafter, but
in spite of it all, I am convinced
that a true and great love is the
best blessing earth can give, the
strongest safeguard against evil,
and the noblest incentive to work.
Win that, my dear friend, when-
ever you can, and having won it,
keep it. Look upon world's wealth
as a secondary consideration, for
wealth does not bring happiness.
136 JANE
And if, as I am afraid, you are in
money difficulties just now, confide
in me, let me be your banker and
help you out of any trouble I can;
it will be a pleasure and a pride to
me to be of use to you, if only for
your father's sake. I am returning
to my old, home in the country,
where I hope to pass the rest of my
days in quietness, you will always
be welcome there, and your joys and
sorrows will never be indifferent to
me. I return you your letter that
you may yourself destroy it, for it
is a very foolish and ill-advised one,
and I shall forget that it ever was
written. Your sincere old friend,
JANE BELMONT.
JANE 137
It would be difficult to describe
the feelings with which young
Arthur Morvyn received this
gently-worded epistle. It is no
discredit to his manhood to say that
tears sprang to his eyes, and that
he was so unwontedly stirred up in
that set of emotions which used to
be called honour and chivalry
before apathy and laissez faire took
their place, that he went straight off
to Jane and apologised for his
indiscretion. And the result of his
frankness was a strong friendship
for life, which was beneficial to his
young lordship in many more ways
than one.
And Jane herself returned to
138 JANE
Ashleigh - in - the - Dell, a wiser
woman, if not a better one, for her
London experiences. The mig-
nonette had never smelt so sweet,
the old china had never looked so
brightly polished and homelike, as
on the day when she re-entered
1 Restful Harbour,' never to leave it
again. Satisfied with simple things
for herself, but doing great deeds
of generosity for others, Jane has
now become the blessing and
honour of all the country -side,
the helper of the afflicted,
rescuer of the distressed, the gentle,
noble, never-failing friend of all
in need. Her portrait appears no
more in the Lady's Pictorial, and
JANE 139
she has never again visited Court,
but her kind, bright face is the sun-
light of many an otherwise dark
home, and it may be that in the
High Court of Heaven her name is
not unknown. She lives her life
as the famous Disraeli would have
us all live it, * in peace with honour,'
and the little ' social incident '
connected with her London career
has been gradually forgotten by all
except a few people with long
memories and keen wits, who
secretly regret the departure of Jane
from town, and wish there were a
few more like her. For in the
appalling vulgarity, selfishness, and
apathy of Society nowadays, the
140
lack of straightforward principle is
everywhere painfully manifest, and
a lesson or two in honesty and
courage might not be without
wholesome effect. Half a dozen
1 Janes ' dotted about in various
quarters during a London * season '
might work wonders, and bring
Society round to the remembrance
and re-cultivation of its lost graces,
*- - such as courtesy, simplicity,
truth, and dignity, which in them-
selves constitute the whole art of
perfect breeding. But of our Jane,
' the * Jane who ' received ' Royalty
and dismissed it again without
being presented to it, there is no
more to be said beyond that the
JANE 141
whole village of Ashleigh-in-the
Dell seems to be permeated in
summer with the scent of the mig-
nonette that grows in the garden of
' Restful Harbour,' and that the
contented mistress of the little place
indulges in her passion for old
china to such a lavish extent
that her collection is beginning to
be known and envied by the best
connoisseurs. It may likewise be
added that Arthur Morvyn and his
wife are near neighbours of hers,
and that their small family of
golden-haired, laughing children
are perpetually to be seen romping
about ' Restful Harbour,' standing
up to their little bare knees in the
i 4 2 JANE
mignonette and shouting for a cer-
tain ' Auntie Jane.* So we may
presume that Jane, after all, is
something of a social ' leader,' in
her own way, though she has no
longer any connection with the
Swagger Set.
WALTEB WATTS AND Co., LTD., PRIM-IMS, LEICESTER,
PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE
CARDS OR SLIPS FROM THIS POCKET
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY
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4.504 Jane
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