Vanity Fair - Page 253/573

"How good of you to ask," said she, pressing one of his hands in both

her own. "How cool and collected you look when everybody else is

frightened! How is our dear little Emmy? It must have been an awful,

awful parting."

"Tremendous," Jos said.

"You men can bear anything," replied the lady. "Parting or danger are

nothing to you. Own now that you were going to join the army and leave

us to our fate. I know you were--something tells me you were. I was so

frightened, when the thought came into my head (for I do sometimes

think of you when I am alone, Mr. Joseph), that I ran off immediately

to beg and entreat you not to fly from us."

This speech might be interpreted, "My dear sir, should an accident

befall the army, and a retreat be necessary, you have a very

comfortable carriage, in which I propose to take a seat." I don't know

whether Jos understood the words in this sense. But he was profoundly

mortified by the lady's inattention to him during their stay at

Brussels. He had never been presented to any of Rawdon Crawley's great

acquaintances: he had scarcely been invited to Rebecca's parties; for

he was too timid to play much, and his presence bored George and Rawdon

equally, who neither of them, perhaps, liked to have a witness of the

amusements in which the pair chose to indulge. "Ah!" thought Jos, "now

she wants me she comes to me. When there is nobody else in the way she

can think about old Joseph Sedley!" But besides these doubts he felt

flattered at the idea Rebecca expressed of his courage.

He blushed a good deal, and put on an air of importance. "I should like

to see the action," he said. "Every man of any spirit would, you know.

I've seen a little service in India, but nothing on this grand scale."

"You men would sacrifice anything for a pleasure," Rebecca answered.

"Captain Crawley left me this morning as gay as if he were going to a

hunting party. What does he care? What do any of you care for the

agonies and tortures of a poor forsaken woman? (I wonder whether he

could really have been going to the troops, this great lazy gourmand?)

Oh! dear Mr. Sedley, I have come to you for comfort--for consolation.

I have been on my knees all the morning. I tremble at the frightful

danger into which our husbands, our friends, our brave troops and

allies, are rushing. And I come here for shelter, and find another of

my friends--the last remaining to me--bent upon plunging into the

dreadful scene!"

"My dear madam," Jos replied, now beginning to be quite soothed, "don't

be alarmed. I only said I should like to go--what Briton would not?

But my duty keeps me here: I can't leave that poor creature in the

next room." And he pointed with his finger to the door of the chamber

in which Amelia was.