MRS. THRALE'S TEAPOT

New Zealand Tablet, 11 October 1906, Page 7

MRS. THRALE'S TEAPOT

Mrs. Bell entered her lodger's room with the 'Times' of the previous day in her hands 'There, Miss Trevor,' she remarked, pointing to a particular column, ' there's "one of them sales 1 told you about. John had the paper home from Mr " Dean's.' Agnes Trevor looked up from the skirt she' was engaged in remaking. ' Oh, thank you, Mrs. Bell'! Where is the sale, and when ? ' ' 'At Hazzel's to-morrow,' Mrs. Bell replied •promptly. * lOh ! Hazzel's ? I'm afraid only very wealthy People go to Hazzel's. ' Everyone can go,' Mrs. Bell returned dogmatically. And it was at a place of the kind my sister's mother-in-law bought a picture for next to no thine and she afterwards got twenty pounds for it Things ii^o^rz^ 1 '- You might «* some •*» Agnes sighed. Three years previously her father and mother had died within a few weeks of each other. Dr. Trevor had had a very large, but scarcely lucrative practice ; and at has death it was found that he had made no provision of any kind for his only child. One or two relatives had offered Acnes a home ; but the girl had a strong wish to be indeP ? J?£' 1+ She f went to London, and, after a good deal of difficulty, found employment as clerk in a large commercial house. Her salary was not a very generous one, and it was lucky for her that her home was under Mrs. Bell's roof. Mrs. Bell had at one time been a servant'to Dr I revor. fehe had married a middle-aged butler in the' service of a certain Mr. Dean, well known in learned circles Jbhn Bell's duties were not onerous, and he was able to return each night to the little house occupied by his wife. It was indeed fortunate fo? io g orfnr at + i M \ S: n 6li i Was , a ' ble to take her under her ioof, foi the kindly shrewd woman managed the girl's housekeeping in a more capable gnd economical fashion than she herself could have done. ' I should like to,' Agnes said. ' Miss Grant was ?nl fw l ? n - G wh ??- falher and m °tber died and, i.ow that she is gettm-g married after so lone an engagement, I should like to send her a nice useful wedding present. She won't be very well off, you Mrs. Bell retired, and Agnes began looking over the announcement of the Hazel's sale The lot had belonged to a deceased banker who evidently had a 3 for f ollc^ng old and valuable articfes. Agnes smiled to herself as she set out for the famous sale rooms next day, in spite of Mrs. Bell's numerous n stances of the bargains sometimes acquired at 'such enii' 1> « n l not likely " to bli y m uch,' she said to hcrsell; 'however, I can at least admire the thugs' Ihe auction was in full swing when she entered the rooms which were by no mean! crowded ; Jnd AeJS? orV J^w + S - UPPH ? With a seat an ' d catatSgue befoie she had time to look about her. When she did fnnnA er attent T> to **« gentlemanly auctioneer she ed ' Lo 6 t I?? n° ldlnS l ! P - a , Jarge silver tea P°i markcatahWp ci, ?n? n s J earc } lns : for that number on her catalogue she found it to be a solid tilver teanot Thrale bel ° nged to J <*«son's hosE, firs. i 'n'°Tn Miss Grant Wollllcl like Jt ! ' she said half a!ril, re eX m on, ! 7 ??»** 1 "«"« t«ini£S The auctioneer nodded Agnes^safdl^ lll^ B8 '' * man at ' Some dislance fr °™ 'Three-and-sixpence,' Agnes looked to the salesman *our shillings,' the man near said' briskly

1 Four and six, 'she repeated over and over,. 1 for a good silver teapot !. I call it a marvellous bargain.'" But I'm glad you are pleased, Miss Trevor.' Oh, yes, Tin pleased. The gentleman Miss Grant is to marry is very learned. . He will value- the --tea^ pot on- Mrs. Thrale's account, and Miss Grant will value it for the workmanship. Oh,- yes, J'-m quite pleased !' Agnesi said. - - - She was very much the reverse a few hours later. ~ The afternoon post brought" her a bill notifying .her the amount of her indebtedness to . .Anthony- <~:Hazzel. ' When she glanced at the slip of paper, she rushed to Mrs. Bell's kitchen. 'Oh, Mrs. Bell, look at this Bill! It is dreadful ! What am I to do ? The teapot isn't four shillings and sixpence. That is the price per ounce ' ' Four and six .an ounce ! ' Mrs. Bell ejaculated in dismay. 'I never knew teapots were sold that way.' 'Nor I,'— Agnes was almost in tears. ' Oh, I couldn't pay it at all ! What am I to do !' What she did after much talk was to write to Mr. Hazzel explaining the matter ; and at a very early hour on the following morning she was summoned to Mrs. Bell's parlor. 1 'Tis about the teapot, I'm certain,'. Mrs. Bell remarked. " He's a very nice-looking young man too— not one of the kind who seem to know all about everything.' Now, Agnes Trevor was a very pretty girl at all times ; and she was certainly looking her best when she entered the room where her visitor awaited her coming. Her cheeks, at most times pale, were flushed and her blue eyes brighter than usual. She did not notice that the young man who stood awkwardly in the middle of the room was not quite at ease 'You have come about the teapot ?" she inquired nastily. ' Yes,' Percival Carleton replied, ' I have come ab^ .«. .} ca P ot -. Then he stood silent and constrained \\on t you sit down ? ' Agnes said ; and Mr. Carleton did so. ' You see I hadn't the least notion that such things were sold by the ounce. I couldn't as I explained in my letter, pay for the teapot. I bought it for a wedding present for a very dear friend Have you a message from Mr. Hazzel ? ' ' oS 1 ' " Ot fr ° m Hazzel ' s '' the y°ung mam began. 1 I—my name is Carleton— Percival Carleton. I was sent by my uncle Sir Francis Carleton, to secure Mis. Thrale's teapot at any price. He is a collector of curiosities of one Kind and another. I was late for the sale, and when I got your address I decided to offer you any fair price for the article You see my uncle is ill, and he is not to be thwarted or annoyed. *r 'i Oi l ' • n f s i,- said ap:aini ' * wrote to the auctioneel last night telling him of the mistake I -had made 1 thought you were— one of his people.' In a few minutes more the two young; folk were laughing merrily over the mistake Agnes had made Percival Carleton secured the teapot for his relative, who was proud of the new addition to his curios So pleased was he, indeed, that he took an unusual interest in what his nephew had to tell him of Agnes. * Trevor ! Is her name Trevor ?' he remarked. George Trevor and I were at Stonyhurst together. „ He married a distant relation of my mother's 1 * should like to know if the girl is my old comrade's daughter. This curiosity necessitated Percival's making a second call on Miss Trevor; and when Sir Francis learned that she was the only daughter of his early friend, he insisted on an afternoon visit from her L-ater on, when she and his nephew were riiarried he" had serious thoughts of presenting them with 'the article which had. ..-brought about their acquaintanceship ; -but finally contented himself with leaving it ta them in his will. . ' For,' the old gentleman said, ' I really can't during my hfe relinquish Mrs. Thrale's teapot.'—' Aye