asked Frances.
‘The landed estate, by settlement, will come to the daughter when she is 21 – she is now 14 – but the rest, and one may only guess the value, is rich pickings for ardent gentlemen. There were suitors paying their addresses even before she was in semi–mourning. Several tried to persuade her that she was not able to manage her fortune, which would be better placed in their hands, but she would not listen.’
‘And,’ said Barstie, ‘she has proved herself to be an excellent manager, with clever investments and careful living. Her only ambition now is to give her daughter every refinement and see her married well.’
‘So Mr Matthews is a fortune hunter,’ said Frances, ‘and cares nothing for the lady.’
‘I think he is,’ said Chas, airily, ‘as are all men in one way or another. If the daughter was 21 I hardly think he would have troubled himself about the mother.’
‘What does Mr Paskall think of Mr Matthews paying court to his sister?’ asked Frances.
‘Ah, what did I tell you, Barstie?’ said Chas with a smile of triumph. ‘Miss Doughty sees all that there is to see!’
‘Oh, I wish that was true,’ sighed Frances.
‘Mr Paskall and Mr Matthews are, like Barstie and me, old friends, who first became acquainted at school. And a wonderful pair of harum scarum rascals they were in their youth, always up to pranks, though they wouldn’t want to be reminded of that now .
‘Mr Paskall, who, as I am sure you know, hopes to be voted in for the Conservatives at the next election, was one of the many who made losses when the Bayswater Bank collapsed, though he has kept very quiet about it and would deny it to your face if asked. He would dearly love to lay his hands on his sister’s fortune, but she will let him have none of it, even as a loan. She is afraid that he will lose it, as he lost the rest. Not one penny will she let him have, for she knows that once she has weakened and allowed him some then he will be constantly returning to her for more. But supposing she was to marry Mr Matthews, her fortune would then become his and he would be very amenable to lending Mr Paskall the funds he requires.’
‘And what of the daughter?’ exclaimed Frances. ‘His own niece? Would he leave her poor?’
‘She will have enough to meet Mr Paskall’s ambitions,’ said Barstie. ‘He would rather she marry a tradesman with money than a title with none.’
‘But I expect her mother wants her fortune to attract a husband in the high life,’ said Frances. ‘How has the daughter been educated?’
‘By private tutor, in keeping with her mother’s desires.’
‘Oh, and one more thing,’ said Chas. ‘Matthews, Paskall and Fiske are the governors of the Bayswater Academy for the Education of Young Ladies, where those scurrilous pamphlets were left the other day. But I expect you already know that.’ He winked at Frances.
C HAPTER F IVE
A t eight the following morning Frances returned to Chepstow Place, painfully aware that, as yet, she had no suspects, very little idea of what the pamphlets had contained, and no clues at all as to why inappropriate reading matter had been put in the girls’ desks. She had no grand plan in mind but there were pupils to whom she had not yet spoken and she supposed that she should interview everyone, including Mr Fiske’s fellow governors, before she admitted defeat.
She was met at the door not by the housemaid, but by Miss Bell, who was clutching a handkerchief and looked flustered. ‘Miss Doughty,’ she said, ‘I am so sorry, we are all at sixes and sevens today. Please come in, Mrs Venn would like to see you at once. She has something very particular to impart.’
Miss Bell was unusually silent on the reason for her agitation, which suggested to Frances that the headmistress had reserved for herself the pleasure of revealing the information. After showing Frances up to the study, Miss Bell hovered for a moment on the landing as if unsure
‘The landed estate, by settlement, will come to the daughter when she is 21 – she is now 14 – but the rest, and one may only guess the value, is rich pickings for ardent gentlemen. There were suitors paying their addresses even before she was in semi–mourning. Several tried to persuade her that she was not able to manage her fortune, which would be better placed in their hands, but she would not listen.’
‘And,’ said Barstie, ‘she has proved herself to be an excellent manager, with clever investments and careful living. Her only ambition now is to give her daughter every refinement and see her married well.’
‘So Mr Matthews is a fortune hunter,’ said Frances, ‘and cares nothing for the lady.’
‘I think he is,’ said Chas, airily, ‘as are all men in one way or another. If the daughter was 21 I hardly think he would have troubled himself about the mother.’
‘What does Mr Paskall think of Mr Matthews paying court to his sister?’ asked Frances.
‘Ah, what did I tell you, Barstie?’ said Chas with a smile of triumph. ‘Miss Doughty sees all that there is to see!’
‘Oh, I wish that was true,’ sighed Frances.
‘Mr Paskall and Mr Matthews are, like Barstie and me, old friends, who first became acquainted at school. And a wonderful pair of harum scarum rascals they were in their youth, always up to pranks, though they wouldn’t want to be reminded of that now .
‘Mr Paskall, who, as I am sure you know, hopes to be voted in for the Conservatives at the next election, was one of the many who made losses when the Bayswater Bank collapsed, though he has kept very quiet about it and would deny it to your face if asked. He would dearly love to lay his hands on his sister’s fortune, but she will let him have none of it, even as a loan. She is afraid that he will lose it, as he lost the rest. Not one penny will she let him have, for she knows that once she has weakened and allowed him some then he will be constantly returning to her for more. But supposing she was to marry Mr Matthews, her fortune would then become his and he would be very amenable to lending Mr Paskall the funds he requires.’
‘And what of the daughter?’ exclaimed Frances. ‘His own niece? Would he leave her poor?’
‘She will have enough to meet Mr Paskall’s ambitions,’ said Barstie. ‘He would rather she marry a tradesman with money than a title with none.’
‘But I expect her mother wants her fortune to attract a husband in the high life,’ said Frances. ‘How has the daughter been educated?’
‘By private tutor, in keeping with her mother’s desires.’
‘Oh, and one more thing,’ said Chas. ‘Matthews, Paskall and Fiske are the governors of the Bayswater Academy for the Education of Young Ladies, where those scurrilous pamphlets were left the other day. But I expect you already know that.’ He winked at Frances.
C HAPTER F IVE
A t eight the following morning Frances returned to Chepstow Place, painfully aware that, as yet, she had no suspects, very little idea of what the pamphlets had contained, and no clues at all as to why inappropriate reading matter had been put in the girls’ desks. She had no grand plan in mind but there were pupils to whom she had not yet spoken and she supposed that she should interview everyone, including Mr Fiske’s fellow governors, before she admitted defeat.
She was met at the door not by the housemaid, but by Miss Bell, who was clutching a handkerchief and looked flustered. ‘Miss Doughty,’ she said, ‘I am so sorry, we are all at sixes and sevens today. Please come in, Mrs Venn would like to see you at once. She has something very particular to impart.’
Miss Bell was unusually silent on the reason for her agitation, which suggested to Frances that the headmistress had reserved for herself the pleasure of revealing the information. After showing Frances up to the study, Miss Bell hovered for a moment on the landing as if unsure
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