第98章

'No, sir, you are not an insulated being,' said Lord Colambre 'you have a near relation, who will, who must be dear to you; who will make you amends for all you have lost, all you have suffered--who will bring peace and joy to your heart.You have a grand-daughter.'

'No, sir; I have no grand-daughter,' said old Reynolds, his face and whole form becoming rigid with the expression of obstinacy.

'Rather have no descendant than be forced to acknowledge an illegitimate child.'

'My lord, I entreat as a friend--I command you to be patient,'

said the count, who saw Lord Colambre's indignation suddenly rise.

'So, then, this is the purpose of your visit,' continued old Reynolds; 'and you come from my enemies, from the St.Omars, and you are in a league with them,' continued old Reynolds; 'and all this time it is of my eldest son you have been talking.'

'Yes, sir,' replied the count; 'of Captain Reynolds, who fell in battle, in the Austrian service, about nineteen years ago--a more gallant and amiable youth never lived.'

Pleasure revived through the dull look of obstinacy in the father's eyes.

'He was, as you say, sir, a gallant, an amiabIe youth, once and he was my pride, and I loved him, too, once but did not you know I had another?'

'No, sir, we did not--we are, you may perceive, totally ignorant of your family and of your affairs we have no connexion whatever or knowledge of any of the St.Omars.'

'I detest the sound of the name,' cried Lord Colambre.

'Oh, good! good!--Well! well! I beg your pardon, gentlemen, a thousand times--I am a hasty, very hasty old man; but I have been harassed, persecuted, hunted by wretches, who got a scent of my gold; often in my rage I longed to throw my treasure-bags to my pursuers, and bid them leave me to die in peace.You have feelings, I see, both of you, gentlemen; excuse me, and bear with my temper.'

'Bear with you! Much enforced, the best tempers will emit a hasty spark,' said the count, looking at Lord Colambre, who was now cool again; and who, with a countenance full of compassion, sat with his eyes fixed upon the poor--no, not the poor, but the unhappy old man.

'Yes, I had another son,' continued Mr.Reynolds, 'and on him all my affections concentrated when I lost my eldest, and for him Idesired to preserve the estate which his mother brought into my family.Since you know nothing of my affairs, let me explain to you; that estate was so settled, that it would have gone to the child, even the daughter of my eldest son, if there had been a legitimate child.But I knew there was no marriage, and I held out firm to my opinion."If there was a marriage," said I, "show me the marriage certificate, and I will acknowledge the marriage, and acknowledge the child;" but they could not, and I knew they could not; and I kept the estate for my darling boy,' cried the old gentleman, with the exultation of successful positiveness again appearing strong in his physiognomy; but suddenly changing and relaxing, his countenance fell, and he added, 'But now I have no darling boy.What use all!--all must go to the heir-at-law, or I must will it to a stranger--a lady of quality, who has just found out she is my relation--God knows how--I'm no genealogist --and sends me Irish cheese and Iceland moss, for my breakfast, and her waiting-gentlewoman to namby-pamby me.Oh, I'm sick of it all--see through it--wish I was blind--wish I had a hiding-place, where flatterers could not find me--pursued, chased--must change my lodgings again to-morrow--will, will--I beg your pardon, gentlemen, again; you were going to tell me, sir, something more of my eldest son; and how I was led away from the subject, I don't know; but I meant only to have assured you that his memory was dear to me, till I was so tormented about that unfortunate affair of his pretended marriage, that at length Ihated to hear him named; but the heir-at-law, at last, will triumph over me.'

'No, my good sir, not if you triumph over yourself, and do justice,' cried Lord Colambre; 'if you listen to the truth, which my friend will tell you, and if you will read and believe the confirmation of it, under your son's own hand, in this packet.'

'His own hand indeed! His seal unbroken.But how--when where --why was it kept so long, and how came it into your hands?'

Count O'Halloran told Mr.Reynolds that the packet had been given to him by Captain Reynolds on his deathbed; related the dying acknowledgment which Captain Reynolds had made of his marriage;and gave an account of the delivery of the packet to the ambassador, who had promised to transmit it faithfully.Lord Colambre told the manner in which it had been mislaid, and at last recovered from among the deceased ambassador's papers.The father still gazed at the direction, and re-examined the seals.

'My son's handwriting--my son's seals! But where is the certificate of the marriage?' repeated he; 'if it is withinside of this packet, I have done great IN-- but I am convinced it never was a marriage.'Yet I wish now it could be proved--only, in that case, I have for years done great--'

'Won't you open the packet, sir?' said Lord Colambre.Mr.

Reynolds looked up at him with a look that said, 'I don't clearly know what interest you have in all this.' But, unable to speak, and his hands trembling so that he could scarcely break the seals, he tore off the cover, laid the papers before him, sat down, and took breath.Lord Colambre, however impatient, had now too much humanity to hurry the old gentleman; he only ran for the spectacles, which he espied on the chimney-piece, rubbed them bright, and held them ready.Mr.Reynolds stretched his hand out for them, put them on, and the first paper he opened was the certificate of the marriage; he read it aloud, and, putting it down, said--'Now I acknowledge the marriage.I always said, if there is a marriage there must be a certificate.And you see now there is a certificate I acknowledge the marriage.'

'And now,' cried Lord Colambre, 'I am happy, positively happy.