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beasts and superbeasts-第27章

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country are nesting in your woods。  Very few people know 

about them; but as a member of the league for protecting 

rare birds that information would be at his disposal。  I 

came down in the train with him; and I noticed that a 

bulky volume of Dresser's 'Birds of Europe' was one of 

the requisites that he had packed in his travelling…kit。  

It was the volume dealing with short…winged hawks and 

buzzards。〃



Clovis believed that if a lie was worth telling it 

was worth telling well。



〃This is appalling;〃 said Mrs。 Olston; 〃my husband 

would never forgive me if anything happened to those 

birds。  They've been seen about the woods for the last 

year or two; but this is the first time they've nested。  

As you say; they are almost the only pair known to be 

breeding in the whole of Great Britain; and now their 

nest is going to be harried by a guest staying under my 

roof。  I must do something to stop it。  Do you think if I 

appealed to him … 〃



Clovis laughed。



〃There is a story going about; which I fancy is true 

in most of its details; of something that happened not 

long ago somewhere on the coast of the Sea of Marmora; in 

which our friend had a hand。  A Syrian nightjar; or some 

such bird; was known to be breeding in the olive gardens 

of a rich Armenian; who for some reason or other wouldn't 

allow Lanner to go in and take the eggs; though he 

offered cash down for the permission。  The Armenian was 

found beaten nearly to death a day or two later; and his 

fences levelled。  It was assumed to be a case of 

Mussulman aggression; and noted as such in all the 

Consular reports; but the eggs are in the Lanner 

collection。  No; I don't think I should appeal to his 

better feelings if I were you。〃



〃I must do something;〃 said Mrs。 Olston tearfully; 

〃my husband's parting words when he went off to Norway 

were an injunction to see that those birds were not 

disturbed; and he's asked about them every time he's 

written。  Do suggest something。〃



〃I was going to suggest picketing;〃 said Clovis。



〃Picketing!  You mean setting guards round the 

birds?〃



〃No; round Lanner。  He can't find his way through 

those woods by night; and you could arrange that you or 

Evelyn or Jack or the German governess should be by his 

side in relays all day long。  A fellow guest he could get 

rid of; but he couldn't very well shake off members of 

the household; and even the most determined collector 

would hardly go climbing after forbidden buzzards' eggs 

with a German governess hanging round his neck; so to 

speak。〃



Lanner; who had been lazily watching for an 

opportunity for prosecuting his courtship of the 

Coulterneb girl; found presently that his chances of 

getting her to himself for ten minutes even were non…

existent。  If the girl was ever alone he never was。  His 

hostess had changed suddenly; as far as he was concerned; 

from the desirable type that lets her guests do nothing 

in the way that best pleases them; to the sort that drags 

them over the ground like so many harrows。  She showed 

him the herb garden and the greenhouses; the village 

church; some water…colour sketches that her sister had 

done in Corsica; and the place where it was hoped that 

celery would grow later in the year。



He was shown all the Aylesbury ducklings and the row 

of wooden hives where there would have been bees if there 

had not been bee disease。  He was also taken to the end 

of a long lane and shown a distant mound whereon local 

tradition reported that the Danes had once pitched a 

camp。  And when his hostess had to desert him temporarily 

for other duties he would find Evelyn walking solemnly by 

his side。  Evelyn was fourteen and talked chiefly about 

good and evil; and of how much one might accomplish in 

the way of regenerating the world if one was thoroughly 

determined to do one's utmost。  It was generally rather a 

relief when she was displaced by Jack; who was nine years 

old; and talked exclusively about the Balkan War without 

throwing any fresh light on its political or military 

history。  The German governess told Lanner more about 

Schiller than he had ever heard in his life about any one 

person; it was perhaps his own fault for having told her 

that he was not interested in Goethe。  When the governess 

went off picket duty the hostess was again on hand with a 

not…to…be…gainsaid invitation to visit the cottage of an 

old woman who remembered Charles James Fox; the woman had 

been dead for two or three years; but the cottage was 

still there。  Lanner was called back to town earlier than 

he had originally intended。



Hugo did not bring off his affair with Betty 

Coulterneb。  Whether she refused him or whether; as was 

more generally supposed; he did not get a chance of 

saying three consecutive words; has never been exactly 

ascertained。  Anyhow; she is still the jolly Coulterneb 

girl。



The buzzards successfully reared two young ones; 

which were shot by a local hairdresser。





THE STAKE





〃RONNIE is a great trial to me;〃 said Mrs。 Attray 

plaintively。  〃Only eighteen years old last February and 

already a confirmed gambler。  I am sure I don't know 

where he inherits it from; his father never touched 

cards; and you know how little I play … a game of bridge 

on Wednesday afternoons in the winter; for three…pence a 

hundred; and even that I shouldn't do if it wasn't that 

Edith always wants a fourth and would be certain to ask 

that detestable Jenkinham woman if she couldn't get me。  

I would much rather sit and talk any day than play 

bridge; cards are such a waste of time; I think。  But as 

to Ronnie; bridge and baccarat and poker…patience are 

positively all that he thinks about。  Of course I've done 

my best to stop it; I've asked the Norridrums not to let 

him play cards when he's over there; but you might as 

well ask the Atlantic Ocean to keep quiet for a crossing 

as expect them to bother about a mother's natural 

anxieties。〃



〃Why do you let him go there?〃 asked Eleanor 

Saxelby。



〃My dear;〃 said Mrs。 Attray; 〃I don't want to offend 

them。 After all; they are my landlords and I have to look 

to them for anything I want done about the place; they 

were very accommodating about the new roof for the orchid 

house。  And they lend me one of their cars when mine is 

out of order; you know how often it gets out of order。〃



〃I don't know how often;〃 said Eleanor; 〃but it must 

happen very frequently。  Whenever I want you to take me 

anywhere in your car I am always told that there is 

something wrong with it; or else that the chauffeur has 

got neuralgia and you don't like to ask him to go out。〃



〃He suffers quite a lot from neuralgia;〃 said Mrs。 

Attray hastily。  〃Anyhow;〃 she continued; 〃you can 

understand that I don't want to offend the Norridrums。  

Their household is the most rackety one in the county; 

and I believe no one ever knows to an hour or two when 

any particular meal will appear on the table or what it 

will consist of when it does appear。〃



Eleanor Saxelby shuddered。  She liked her meals to 

be of regular occurrence and assured proportions。



〃Still;〃 pursued Mrs。 Attray; 〃whatever their own 

home life may be; as landlords and neighbours they are 

considerate and obliging; so I don't want to quarrel with 

them。  Besides; if Ronnie didn't play cards there he'd be 

playing somewhere else。〃



〃Not if you were firm with him;〃 said Eleanor 〃I 

believe in being firm。〃



〃Firm?  I am firm;〃 exclaimed Mrs。 Attray; 〃I am 

more than firm … I am farseeing。  I've done everything I 

can think of to prevent Ronnie from playing for money。  

I've stopped his allowance for the rest of the year; so 

he can't even gamble on credit; and I've subscribed a 

lump sum to the church offertory in his name instead of 

giving him instalments of small silver to put in the bag 

on Sundays。  I wouldn't even let him have the money to 

tip the hunt servants with; but sent it by postal order。  

He was furiously sulky about it; but I reminded him of 

what happened to the ten shillings that I gave him for 

the Young Men's Endeavour League 'Self…Denial Week。' 〃



〃What did happen to it?〃 asked Eleanor。



〃Well; Ronnie did some preliminary endeavouring with 

it; on his own account; in connection with the Grand 

National。  If it had come off; as he expressed it; he 

would have given the League twenty…five shillings and 

netted a comfortable commission for himself; as it was; 

that ten shillings was one of the things the League had 

to deny itself。  Since then I've been careful not to let 

him have a penny piece in his hands。〃



〃He'll get round that in some way;〃 said Eleanor 

with quiet conviction; 〃he'll sell things。〃



〃My dear; he's done all that is to be done in that 

direction already。  He's got rid of h
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