"Why, Trumbull himself is pretty sure of five hundred—that you maydepend,—I shouldn't wonder if my brother promised him," said Solomon,musing aloud with his sisters, the evening before the funeral.
"Dear, dear!" said poor sister Martha, whose imagination of hundredshad been habitually narrowed to the amount of her unpaid rent.
But in the morning all the ordinary currents of conjecture weredisturbed by the presence of a strange mourner who had plashed amongthem as if from the moon. This was the stranger described by Mrs.Cadwallader as frog-faced: a man perhaps about two or three and thirty,whose prominent eyes, thin-lipped, downward-curved mouth, and hairsleekly brushed away from a forehead that sank suddenly above the ridgeof the eyebrows, certainly gave his face a batrachian unchangeableness ofexpression. Here, clearly, was a new legatee; else why was he bidden asa mourner? Here were new possibilities, raising a new uncertainty, whichalmost checked remark in the mourning-coaches. We are all humiliatedby the sudden discovery of a fact which has existed very comfortably andperhaps been staring at us in private while we have been making up ourworld entirely without it. No one had seen this questionable strangerbefore except Mary Garth, and she knew nothing more of him than thathe had twice been to Stone Court when Mr. Featherstone was down-stairs, and had sat alone with him for several hours. She had found anopportunity of mentioning this to her father, and perhaps Caleb's werethe only eyes, except the lawyer's, which examined the stranger withmore of inquiry than of disgust or suspicion. Caleb Garth, having littleexpectation and less cupidity, was interested in the verification of hisown guesses, and the calmness with which he half smilingly rubbed hischin and shot intelligent glances much as if he were valuing a tree, madea fine contrast with the alarm or scorn visible in other faces when theunknown mourner, whose name was understood to be Rigg, entered thewainscoted parlor and took his seat near the door to make part of theaudience when the will should be read. Just then Mr. Solomon and Mr.Jonah were gone up-stairs with the lawyer to search for the will; andMrs. Waule, seeing two vacant seats between herself and Mr. BorthropTrumbull, had the spirit to move next to that great authority, who washandling his watch-seals and trimming his outlines with a determinationnot to show anything so compromising to a man of ability as wonder orsurprise.
"I suppose you know everything about what my poor brother's done,Mr. Trumbull," said Mrs. Waule, in the lowest of her woolly tones, whileshe turned her crape-shadowed bonnet towards Mr. Trumbull's ear.
"My good lady, whatever was told me was told in confidence," saidthe auctioneer, putting his hand up to screen that secret.
"Them who've made sure of their good-luck may be disappointedyet," Mrs. Waule continued, finding some relief in this communication.
"Hopes are often delusive," said Mr. Trumbull, still in confidence.
"Ah!" said Mrs. Waule, looking across at the Vincys, and then movingback to the side of her sister Martha.
"It's wonderful how close poor Peter was," she said, in the sameundertones. "We none of us know what he might have had on his mind. Ionly hope and trust he wasn't a worse liver than we think of, Martha."
Poor Mrs. Cranch was bulky, and, breathing asthmatically, had theadditional motive for making her remarks unexceptionable and givingthem a general bearing, that even her whispers were loud and liable tosudden bursts like those of a deranged barrel-organ.
"I never was covetous, Jane," she replied; "but I have six children andhave buried three, and I didn't marry into money. The eldest, that sitsthere, is but nineteen—so I leave you to guess. And stock always short,and land most awkward. But if ever I've begged and prayed; it's been toGod above; though where there's one brother a bachelor and the otherchildless after twice marrying—anybody might think!"
Meanwhile, Mr. Vincy had glanced at the passive face of Mr. Rigg,and had taken out his snuff-box and tapped it, but had put it againunopened as an indulgence which, however clarifying to the judgment,was unsuited to the occasion. "I shouldn't wonder if Featherstone hadbetter feelings than any of us gave him credit for," he observed, in theear of his wife. "This funeral shows a thought about everybody: it lookswell when a man wants to be followed by his friends, and if they arehumble, not to be ashamed of them. I should be all the better pleased ifhe'd left lots of small legacies. They may be uncommonly useful tofellows in a small way."
"Everything is as handsome as could be, crape and silk andeverything," said Mrs. Vincy, contentedly.
But I am sorry to say that Fred was under some difficulty inrepressing a laugh, which would have been more unsuitable than hisfather's snuff-box. Fred had overheard Mr. Jonah suggesting somethingabout a "love-child," and with this thought in his mind, the stranger'sface, which happened to be opposite him, affected him too ludicrously.Mary Garth, discerning his distress in the twitchings of his mouth, andhis recourse to a cough, came cleverly to his rescue by asking him tochange seats with her, so that he got into a shadowy corner. Fred wasfeeling as good-naturedly as possible towards everybody, including Rigg;and having some relenting towards all these people who were less luckythan he was aware of being himself, he would not for the world havebehaved amiss; still, it was particularly easy to laugh.
But the entrance of the lawyer and the two brothers drew every one'sattention. The lawyer was Mr. Standish, and he had come to Stone Courtthis morning believing that he knew thoroughly well who would bepleased and who disappointed before the day was over. The will heexpected to read was the last of three which he had drawn up for Mr.Featherstone. Mr. Standish was not a man who varied his manners: hebehaved with the same deep-voiced, off-hand civility to everybody, as ifhe saw no difference in them, and talked chiefly of the hay-crop, whichwould be "very fine, by God!" of the last bulletins concerning the King,and of the Duke of Clarence, who was a sailor every inch of him, andjust the man to rule over an island like Britain.
Old Featherstone had often reflected as he sat looking at the fire thatStandish would be surprised some day: it is true that if he had done ashe liked at the last, and burnt the will drawn up by another lawyer, hewould not have secured that minor end; still he had had his pleasure inruminating on it. And certainly Mr. Standish was surprised, but not atall sorry; on the contrary, he rather enjoyed the zest of a little curiosityin his own mind, which the discovery of a second will added to theprospective amazement on the part of the Featherstone family.
As to the sentiments of Solomon and Jonah, they were held in uttersuspense: it seemed to them that the old will would have a certainvalidity, and that there might be such an interlacement of poor Peter'sformer and latter intentions as to create endless "lawing" before anybodycame by their own—an inconvenience which would have at least theadvantage of going all round. Hence the brothers showed a thoroughlyneutral gravity as they re-entered with Mr. Standish; but Solomon tookout his white handkerchief again with a sense that in any case therewould be affecting passages, and crying at funerals, however dry, wascustomarily served up in lawn.
Perhaps the person who felt the most throbbing excitement at thismoment was Mary Garth, in the consciousness that it was she who hadvirtually determined the production of this second will, which mighthave momentous effects on the lot of some persons present. No soulexcept herself knew what had passed on that final night.
"The will I hold in my hand," said Mr. Standish, who, seated at thetable in the middle of the room, took his time about everything,including the coughs with which he showed a disposition to clear hisvoice, "was drawn up by myself and executed by our deceased friend onthe 9th of August, 1825. But I find that there is a subsequentinstrument hitherto unknown to me, bearing date the 20th of July,1826, hardly a year later than the previous one. And there is farther, Isee"—Mr. Standish was cautiously travelling over the document with hisspectacles—"a codicil to this latter will, bearing date March 1, 1828."
"Dear, dear!" said sister Martha, not meaning to be audible, butdriven to some articulation under this pressure of dates.
"I shall begin by reading the earlier will," continued Mr. Standish,"since such, as appears by his not having destroyed the document, wasthe intention of deceased."
The preamble was felt to be rather long, and several besides Solomonshook their heads pathetically, looking on the ground: all eyes avoidedmeeting other eyes, and were chiefly fixed either on the spots in thetable-cloth or on Mr. Standish's bald head; excepting Mary Garth's.When all the rest were trying to look nowhere in particular, it was safefor her to look at them. And at the sound of the first "give and bequeath"she could see all complexions changing subtly, as if some faint vibrationwere passing through them, save that of Mr. Rigg. He sat in unalteredcalm, and, in fact, the company, preoccupied with more importantproblems, and with the complication of listening to bequests which mightor might not be revoked, had ceased to think of him. Fred blushed, andMr. Vincy found it impossible to do without his snuff-box in his hand,though he kept it closed.
The small bequests came first, and even the recollection that therewas another will and that poor Peter might have thought better of it,could not quell the rising disgust and indignation. One likes to be donewell by in every tense, past, present, and future. And here was Petercapable five years ago of leaving only two hundred apiece to his ownbrothers and sisters, and only a hundred apiece to his own nephews andnieces: the Garths were not mentioned, but Mrs. Vincy and Rosamondwere each to have a hundred. Mr. Trumbull was to have the gold-headedcane and fifty pounds; the other second cousins and the cousins presentwere each to have the like handsome sum, which, as the saturnine cousinobserved, was a sort of legacy that left a man nowhere; and there wasmuch more of such offensive dribbling in favor of persons not present—problematical, and, it was to be feared, low connections. Altogether,reckoning hastily, here were about three thousand disposed of. Wherethen had Peter meant the rest of the money to go—and where the land?and what was revoked and what not revoked—and was the revocationfor better or for worse? All emotion must be conditional, and might turnout to be the wrong thing. The men were strong enough to bear up andkeep quiet under this confused suspense; some letting their lower lip fall,others pursing it up, according to the habit of their muscles. But Janeand Martha sank under the rush of questions, and began to cry; poorMrs. Cranch being half moved with the consolation of getting anyhundreds at all without working for them, and half aware that her sharewas scanty; whereas Mrs. Waule's mind was entirely flooded with thesense of being an own sister and getting little, while somebody else wasto have much. The general expectation now was that the "much" wouldfall to Fred Vincy, but the Vincys themselves were surprised when tenthousand pounds in specified investments were declared to bebequeathed to him:—was the land coming too? Fred bit his lips: it wasdifficult to help smiling, and Mrs. Vincy felt herself the happiest ofwomen—possible revocation shrinking out of sight in this dazzlingvision.
There was still a residue of personal property as well as the land, butthe whole was left to one person, and that person was—O possibilities!O expectations founded on the favor of "close" old gentlemen! O endlessvocatives that would still leave expression slipping helpless from themeasurement of mortal folly!—that residuary legatee was Joshua Rigg,who was also sole executor, and who was to take thenceforth the nameof Featherstone.
There was a rustling which seemed like a shudder running round theroom. Every one stared afresh at Mr. Rigg, who apparently experiencedno surprise.
"A most singular testamentary disposition!" exclaimed Mr. Trumbull,preferring for once that he should be considered ignorant in the past."But there is a second will—there is a further document. We have not yetheard the final wishes of the deceased."
Mary Garth was feeling that what they had yet to hear were not thefinal wishes. The second will revoked everything except the legacies tothe low persons before mentioned (some alterations in these being theoccasion of the codicil), and the bequest of all the land lying in Lowickparish with all the stock and household furniture, to Joshua Rigg. Theresidue of the property was to be devoted to the erection and endowmentof almshouses for old men, to be called Featherstone's Alms-Houses, andto be built on a piece of land near Middlemarch already bought for thepurpose by the testator, he wishing—so the document declared—toplease God Almighty. Nobody present had a farthing; but Mr. Trumbullhad the gold-headed cane. It took some time for the company to recoverthe power of expression. Mary dared not look at Fred.
Mr. Vincy was the first to speak—after using his snuff-boxenergetically—and he spoke with loud indignation. "The mostunaccountable will I ever heard! I should say he was not in his rightmind when he made it. I should say this last will was void," added Mr.Vincy, feeling that this expression put the thing in the true light. "EhStandish?"
"Our deceased friend always knew what he was about, I think," saidMr. Standish. "Everything is quite regular. Here is a letter fromClemmens of Brassing tied with the will. He drew it up. A veryrespectable solicitor."
"I never noticed any alienation of mind—any aberration of intellect inthe late Mr. Featherstone," said Borthrop Trumbull, "but I call this willeccentric. I was always willingly of service to the old soul; and heintimated pretty plainly a sense of obligation which would show itself inhis will. The gold-headed cane is farcical considered as anacknowledgment to me; but happily I am above mercenaryconsiderations."
"There's nothing very surprising in the matter that I can see," saidCaleb Garth. "Anybody might have had more reason for wondering if thewill had been what you might expect from an open-mindedstraightforward man. For my part, I wish there was no such thing as awill."
