Tristram of Blent An Episode in the Story of an Ancient House   By: Anthony Hope (1863-1933)

BY THE SAME AUTHOR

A MAN OF MARK MR WITT'S WIDOW FATHER STAFFORD A CHANGE OF AIR HALF A HERO THE PRISONER OF ZENDA THE GOD IN THE CAR THE DOLLY DIALOGUES COMEDIES OF COURTSHIP THE CHRONICLES OF COUNT ANTONIO THE HEART OF PRINCESS OSRA PHROSO SIMON DALE RUPERT OF HENTZAU THE KING'S MIRROR QUISANTE

TRISTRAM of BLENT

An Episode in the Story of an Ancient House

By ANTHONY HOPE

New York MCCLURE, PHILLIPS & CO. MCMI

Copyright, 1900 and 1901, by ANTHONY HOPE HAWKINS

THIRD EDITION

Trow Directory Printing & Bookbinding Company New York

A TABLE of the CONTENTS Page

I. A SUPPRESSED PASSAGE 1 II. MR CHOLDERTON'S IMP 10 III. ON GUARD 22 IV. SHE COULD AN' SHE WOULD 34 V. THE FIRST ROUND 48 VI. THE ATTRACTION OF IT 61 VII. THE MOMENT DRAWS NEAR 74 VIII. DUTY AND MR NEELD 88 IX. THE MAN IN POSSESSION 101 X. BEHOLD THE HEIR! 114 XI. A PHANTOM BY THE POOL 129 XII. FIGHTERS AND DOUBTERS 143 XIII. IN THE LONG GALLERY 158 XIV. THE VERY SAME DAY 173 XV. AN INQUISITION INTERRUPTED 190 XVI. THE NEW LIFE 205 XVII. RIVER SCENES AND BRIC À BRAC 220 XVIII. CONSPIRATORS AND A CRUX 233 XIX. IN THE MATTER OF BLINKHAMPTON 248 XX. THE TRISTRAM WAY A SPECIMEN 264 XXI. THE PERSISTENCE OF BLENT 279 XXII. AN INSULT TO THE BLOOD 296 XXIII. A DECREE OF BANISHMENT 312 XXIV. AFTER THE END OF ALL 328 XXV. THERE'S THE LADY TOO! 342 XXVI. A BUSINESS CALL 358 XXVII. BEFORE TRANSLATION 375 XXVIII. THE CAT AND THE BELL 391 XXIX. THE CURMUDGEON 407 XXX. TILL THE NEXT GENERATION 420

I

A SUPPRESSED PASSAGE

Mr Jenkinson Neeld was an elderly man of comfortable private means; he had chambers in Pall Mall, close to the Imperium Club, and his short stoutish figure, topped by a chubby spectacled face, might be seen entering that dignified establishment every day at lunch time, and also at the hour of dinner on the evenings when he had no invitation elsewhere. He had once practised at the Bar, and liked to explain that he had deserted his profession for the pursuit of literature. He did not, however, write on his own account; he edited. He would edit anything provided there was no great public demand for an edition of it. Regardless of present favor, he appealed to posterity as gentlemen with private means are quite entitled to do. Perhaps he made rather high demands on posterity; but that was his business and its. At any rate his taste was curious and his conscience acute. He was very minute and very scrupulous, very painstaking and very discreet, in the exercise of his duties. Posterity may perhaps like these qualities in an editor of memoirs and diaries; for such were Mr Neeld's favorite subjects. Sometimes he fell into a sore struggle between curiosity and discretion, having impulses in himself which he forbore to attribute to posterity.