DIPLOMACY-AND MRS DENE

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 14322, 18 March 1910, Page 3

DIPLOMACY-AND MRS DENE

BY O. MALCOLM HINCKS. •

~ v;^'-v:^ Mr. Colvillb Dene sat in tho > first-class diner of the Midland * express, sipping his coffeo and smoking a cigar. 'An evening paper was in front of him, ; but lie was not reading it, his gaze was fixed absently; on th© dark, bleak country through which the train was rushing, and his long thin fingers drummed restlessly upon the small fable. , "If I only knew 1" he muttered—which was vague, then "Hang Ranfornians," which was expressive, but somewhat foolish considering that to all intents and purposes Mr. Colville Dene was Ranfornia. , No one took Dene to be a financier, because lie had neither a Hobrew name nor a Hebrew face; he was. a tall, sparely-built man, with a lined, hard face, yet possessing the dreamy eyes of the scholar and thinker. He was looked upon as a mystery in the city; ;he made money but no one knew how, he was reputed to have been the principal / actor in several great - coups, but ho never talked of his business transactions, and always left the city as often as ho could to spend a few days at the largo place he kept up in a pretty little Midland village. ' He was bound for home now, and as ho stared out of the window he wondered if this would bo his last journey there. It all depended upon the British Government and Richard Marsharii: Phentoil, British Consul attached to the capital of Ranfornia. Some months ago a certain gentleman had met Mr. Colville Deno by appointment, and ho had left the financier with a cheque for £1000 in his pocket, and the financier had bought land in Ranfornia, bought all that was to bo had, and would have bought more. , The ; political change foreshadowed by the gentleman who had earned a thousand pounds so quickly had come to pass, and concessions by the British Government were expected— concessions would double Mr. Colville Dene's capital.

But unfortunately a week after the political change in Ranfornia, a minister, who was frankly ylmperial and who steadfastly believed in everything: for the Englishman, had ; died suddenly, and a gentleman with directly .opposite? views had succeeded him, and the ; concessions? were doubtful. Meetings were now being held at the Foreign Office, and a member of these meetings was Mr. Phentoil, the British Consul of the coun- • try affected. In .the city *it was an open question, some thought, that the permanent officials would be strong enough to carry the projected scheme, others that the min- , ister, fearing the wrath of a section of his party who i regarded him as a leader, would sacrifice his country's interest on behalf of the benighted natives of ■ Ranfornia.

? Arid Colville stood to make or lose everything according to what the decision was.,? ■:■: The train began to slow down, and he irritably collected his belongings and paid his bill. It was as he was walking to the door as .the train drew alongside the platform that ho had the great inspiration.

' Ho ? alighted at tho junction - and crossed the platform to?where the local train; stood. Having seen his luggage deposited on the seats,;; he thrust "i his hands deep in.: the pockets of ! his overcoat and paced ; quickly up and down, until the ; guard approached and I announced ; that " the train was due to start. ' - k •

He slipped: half a, crown into the official's hand, "entered: the carriage, pulled his rug round him, and lay back on the cushions thinking.

Phentoil was not to, bo bribedif he had been >so , accommodating, Mr. Colville Dene would; have saved many anxious hours. But Phentoil was fond of a pretty I face it had been said that; a women "could worm anything out of him if she were pretty enough and tactful enough.? It was the remembrance of this| remark made at his club some time ago that gave the financier hope.* f ;, >", ; 3 His-face was flushed and his manner ali most genial as ?. he entered, the brougham which was waiting for him outside the i little station. t , The long drive in : tho winter usul ally made him irritable, but to-night he entered the hall with quick steps and actually kissed : r his wife, despite the; fact that a ? footman, a butler, and a lady novelist were within a few feet, of him.,

\ Mrs. Dene was somewhat staggered, and welcomed him in the cold, dignified manner that" she 7 had adopted .since their marriage, and? turned to go into the drawing-room.

!'.■■•," Mary," said Dene quietly, "jaake my excuses, ?Tin? ; red "% will you • grant \me the favour i? of; an interview: in the library when our guests have retired?" <£Ye —yes, if : you wish ;■ it. particularly," "said his wife, with a slight olevation of • her eyebrows.

.:?: i "I do wish ; it," said Dene shortly, " it' is in regard to a; most ; important matter.

: ? Mrs.- Colville? Dene slightly inclined her ; head and passed along the hall, while her husband" sought the solitude": of the library, which by £ his strict , orders was " never open to guests during their stay in their house. ?;? It "was nearly midnight when „ his wife entered the room and found him staring into the? dying embers ; of ? the? fire, an unlighted cigar between his teeth. He : turned ; round ; with" a start, rose to? his ieet, ■ and murmured an apology. ,? " I want you to ask a 1 man down here for th« week-end,','; he said standing with his back v to the fireplace arid staring down ?at her as she sat in the large leather chair by his desk, "We met Phentoil, Dick toilj you know, at some place a few months ago, he's in England now. and I: want him to come here." - '- ' - '?" Very well, I'll ask him down," said his wife rising, " whore is .he?" " Claridge's," ' said Dene, and then after a short pause, " you? may remember he is the British Consul in Ranfornia." - -' ; ,r Mrs. Dene stopped at the door. ; • •■*■•'■" I remember, he was on leave when we met him." , . " I am greatly interested in the proposed? Ranfornian concession," added Dene, " the. knowledge of ? what is going to be done i twelve hours J even': before it is made publicmeans everything to me." - _ > . - v," I thought there must be some r motive for such unwonted hospitality." ? i :.:■:'■ Derio. winced. v '' "■'■ ?? : " ■■/.'■';•':','""" /' : ''■■i"To put it plainly," went on somewhat harshly, " it' comes to : this, if - you 'cannot find out what ,! is going to be done in ; this affair, I'm ruined."•■;..'.. } /.•'■■•■*'• --.■•■:•..:?■;._,>• ? " Sol am to do the dirty work," she said bitterly,, "to ? worm the secret from this trusted official; really, Colville, ?I have always given you J credit for at least being a gentleman,' in a measure I 'was ? proud of your position, it was so incongruous—a gentleman making money in the city."' ? " You're talking nonsense, Mary, all's fair in love, warand finance. ?It '.;is purely a question of diplomacy, clever men have failed to draw Phentoil, but a clever woman may." : ; : :'?■'. ?,,. '~.? ■ ' - '■. , .

,-?" I don't know," said Mrs. Dene wearily ;. " I—Oh,; ask. thi* man down, I'll play : the '—diplomat!";-., , . , ''■■■-:" : /;'£,

ij Without another word she swept from the room and Dene flung himself into a chair and," with a sigh, "produced his pipe. "

His marriage had not been a success, it was •" doomed to ; failure -almost ; from- the start, he had not married until ho had made money' from his speculations, and he was more wedded to the?city than to his, wife. . ■' .;,."!. was a fool," he muttered impatiently, striking a' match,; and his philosophy was that a fool must pay for his folly.

: !?Only two years ago he had married the pretty -year-old daughter of a Society woman, who 'rejoicing;: in the good things of. this world ; saw much advantage to herself as well as to her daughter in the match. Dene had. hoped to secure a bright and cheerful? partner, but Mrs. Colville? Dene, left very much to herself .either in the Kensington flat or? the great lonely house in the Midlands, had ' moped. ,;?.'? Dene, too much wrapped ?up in .his"business, had ) failed to act at the proper, time and—

'? They drifted, and to drift is dangerous. ':; The house ;party/hailed ■■■•■ the arrival of Richard Marshajm Phentoil with delight, for

| the young diplomat infused lifo and laughter into tho place : and , saved "., many from < boredom. Phentoil x had jumped at ; the \ invitation, he * had. been ' away from England so v long that he had dropped out of the monotonous life of rooms and offices, music-halls, and late?suppers, and a few days' hunting in a rural district had appealed to him. Be-. sides, he remembered that Mrs. Colville Dene was very pretty, arid a pretty woman was always pleasant to have near one. •;£* After lunch on the fourth day, Phentoil, dressed with 'more than his usual care: and a \ slight flush on his dark, clean-shaven face, drove Mrs. Colville rDeno into the little market town : whore she had some business to attend to.' "••-.'.-..';•'" • . . "And a certain well-meaning captain of ! Hussars meeting Dene in the grounds, but-ton-holed him, coughed, . adjusted his eyeglass, and blurted out: , ; r " Don't want to make mischief, my dear chap, and all that, you know, but Phentoil is a bit of a devil with ; ; women, you know. When I was at Malta there was a little—" " Thank you," said Dene icily; "by the way. it's the ten o'clock train you are catching to-morrow, isn't it?" : > ' Ho passed on, leaving the captain staring after him, using languago which is usually credited to rugsred officers ; of the • Senior Service. . " • - The Consul and his hostess arrived back in time for tea. Phentoil never put in an appearance at the meal, and as he was selecting a stick from the stand preparatory to going for his usual stroll before dinner, Mrs. Dene came \ downstairs on her "way "the drawing-room. .• ■■ ■ Tho hall was desertedhe stepped quickly up to her. > . ■:*■. "Will you slip into the conservatory after dinner?" he asked in a pleading voice, "there is something I want to say to you." Can't you say it here?" cried the girl, with a little nervous laugh. ' ; " No," said Phentoil promptly. , " A good hostess strives to; please her guests,', said Mrs. Colville Dene endeavouring to speak carelessly; "if your communication is so very important, and vou are so fond of the conservatory, Mr. Phentoil, I .will see you there after'dinner.", ■ " Thanks awfully," said Phentoil. The woman, with a somewhat heightened colour, passed along the hall, tho man, with a peculiar smile on his lips, lit a cigarette, and whistling to a sleepy collie who was sprawling in the porch, went out for his walk. .;; : : ■; . * . As Mrs. Colville Done passed through the hall to dinner that night she spoke to tlie people round' her < and then laughed idiotic- ; ally, not having the faintest idea of what she said.; To two men she neither 6poke nor glanced at, yet her whole mind was thinking of those men, her husband and the * man called Phentoil. . ■■'.'.~ '..;■./•.-' •• :■".'"• > Phentoil was quiet, too, his dark eyes moved restlessly round the table, and every now and then he nervously stroked his carefully brushed black hair. :■; Dene, on the other hand, was usually talkative and" cheerful, from his end of the table laughter and conversation floated up to tho almost silent end where sat tho white-faced; girl with the unnaturally bright eyes? _ v The period of waiting in the drawing-room was worse? than torture; then the men entered. ;; Phentoil, after a moment's conversation with a severe-looking dowager, strolled carelessly into the conservatory. Five minutes later ;he was joined by his hostess. He had selected the part behind th* j*ilms, well away from the doors communicating with the palm trees. ? ■ t.' "Well?" asked Mrs. Colville Deno. It sounded absurd, but Mrs. Dene was unused to such situations, her brain was reeling, and her breath coming in little pant-, ing gasps.; • ; ■ . Wow ;Richard Marsham Phentoil was a clever man; as tho; ordinary raiof men go, he was also a conceited mavUior he thought he understood women. v Dene had flung herself sobbing into his arms, he would have played the tender lover, but Mrs. Dene asking with apparent coolness, for the conservatory was climly lighted, and ho could not see her agitation, what he intended to do, it struck him_ that she was a very different typo from what he had first thought her to be, so he adopted a very different manner. »' . • . . ' • '' He spoke tho naked truth. _- ". ??'" Look ? here," ho 'said i quickly, " we've been at cross purposes; I suppose! Den© has been working things his own way and worked them badly. ? He wants to know what we are going to do about 'Ranfornia.; '■'■-. Give you something out of it, and titer it doesn't matter .what; happens, eh, Mary?" : '. ; ■> ; Ho took a step forward, his : dark face flushed; ,;'• the girl stepped back, her face aßhen?f-v?'"'.>".'.'' ! v : ->'~ .""';'?;?;." •■.■:-_ i,' : ;':■'-->,

"You cad!',''she cried hysterically "you contemptible cad!" ': >■? r. ,■•„..' .;?■«-;■- L Richard Marsham Phentoil found, himself standing alone, a fierce anger at, his heart, and a' sense of having been robbed; «?i ?.x ; -Mary had said; that Phentoil was a jolly sort of chap, but not quite a gentleman; if he had been a gentleman, :he could not have spoken the truth. The Consul was thinking something in this strain when someone tapped him on the shoulder. .? ~:;.:,;. ■". '" I want a word, with you, please, in my study." ? ■ .. ' v;",.. _ ■?;-;?" i^" .;, Phentoil, turning quickly, found himself confronting his host, whose face was paler than usual and the dreamy eyes were almost red ■ with rage. -. :: -

•J? Mrs. Colville Dene was in her room bathing her eyes with eau de Cologne and declaring that all men were vile. She forgot that, approached differently, she would probably have forsaken one vile man for another, forgot everything save that the world was very cruel. • ■ ■-■;■,•■ -" < There was a tap at»the door, she sat up arid laid the saturated handkerchief on her ;lap.>:''''l. ; _.;?-'^;>'r i y,'' •;•',?; ?'.' : ' "'?;;? '?:';??" ; ??''.' : '?':?.■"?! ? "XJome in," she said faintly and her husband entered. ;: ; ; ?i : ' •■;-. "';•'' ■??.;' ;

?' "You," ? she said, duly wondering what the strange look .on ? his . face ' meant; suddenly the reason occurred ?to her, she had not obtained ■;the information he required, and he might be ruined. : : ":'' ! ' ■:'■'■(■. ;? ; y; ;■■'.? " I'm sorry I could not get- what -you wanted,"; she said nervously, "I am * afraid lam no.good; at—-at. diplomacy." '-; : -■' ; Dene eyed her awkwardly. /'; ;? "It doesn't matter in' the slightest," he said. "I cleared out a > few thousand Ranfomians on the strength of a rumour, and whatever they do ; in, regard 'to the concessions won't break me. I've just seen Phentoil." V ;■;>:??;?.:.? ■.':;';?;;;;■'■:,,?.:,;. -.-i :.>...-: '■

* Her face -first: flushed, then paled, she played nervously with the handkerchief. ' -" Ho is leaving to-night," went "on Dene. "I ? came : into 'the £ conservatory from the garden, ho didn't hear me,; I happened to near the—the; crisis of " the diplomatic relations ; I when you went I told him he? was a cad. ho did not deny it, butwell, the thing is at an end. I'm sorry I asked you to do what I did. I had no idee, that it would— but then it's only another mistake added to my already long list,", he concluded bitterly. ■ ; ,'■ .. v : . # . . . ,'-..• ■• ! , His face was drawn and his eyes full of misery as he crossed to, the mantelpiece and,' resting his head on his hand, stared down into the fire. A sudden flood of pity rushed to ? the girl's heart; she saw that tragedy hovered over -them, that they had drifted so far apart, that her life was miserable, so was his, and that she had been on the verge of moral and social ruin. Suppose they— ■ '-' : .'■*"- • \ Are mistakes always irreparable?" she asked? softly. ?-■ ' The man stood up with a jerk, and his • eyes sought hers. _ ~ * "It depends upon the person against whom 'the mistakes are made."

"But supposing there were mistakes on both sides," cried Mrs. Dene. \ She was on her feet now, fighting for the love that would be life; for the fir3t time she - realised J that the grave-faced, middleaged man J had always at least treated her kindly and genuinely, was more to her than she had thought.? ;-• ■-'■■; ..-. >.'■•'.:.,•'• - , " Can't we start, again, Colville? Take me away from 1 here for a little while, anywhere you like, but let us—" : : ?; . There was a tap ob the door. What is it?" shouted Dene.:? • "The butler would be obliged, sir, if—" " Tell the butler to go to the devil !" cried Dene. ; " : * # The under "footman stood gasping outside the door; before ho had recovered from his astonishment; he could have sworn ho heard . a kiss, "'■.?;-'''? - Phentoil drove down _to catch the late night train, coolly explaining he had to bo in town at: nine in the morning relative to the Ranfornian affair. • ' ' " Certain guests smiled, and waited anxiously for Mrs. Dene's appearance ?in ' the morning, quite crediting that she was suffering . from : a headache; : but in the morning they had; a shock, Mrs. Dene was looking better ' than she ? had ever looked in her married life, and Dene was 1 a changed man. : But ?if Phentoif had ?; not been an even worse diplomat in affairs of the heart than Mrs. Dene was in business— -.- .;;.;.'• /. - Richard Marsham Phentoil ? sometimes swears when the Ranfornian Concession is mentioned.