Kipps, H. G. Wells [uplifting book club books TXT] 📗

been advised, he had been warned, he had been flattered and congratulated, he had been given whiskey and hot water and lemon and sugar, and his health had been drunk in the same. He had also eaten two Welsh Rabbits⁠—an unusual supper. His Uncle was chiefly for his going into Parliament, his Aunt was consumed with a great anxiety. “I’m afraid he’ll go and marry beneath ’im.”

“Y’ought to ’ave a bit o’ shootin’ somewheer,” said Old Kipps.

“It’s your duty to marry into a county family, Artie. Remember that.”

“There’s lots of young noblemen’ll be glad to ’ang on to you,” said Old Kipps. “You mark my words. And borry your money. And then, good day to ye.”

“I got to be precious Careful,” said Kipps. “Mr. Bean said that.”

“And you got to be precious careful of this old Bean,” said Old Kipps. “We may be out of the world in Noo Romney, but I’ve ’eard a bit about s’licitors, for all that. You keep your eye on old Bean, me b’y.

“ ’Ow do we know what ’e’s up to, with your money, even now?” said Old Kipps, pursuing this uncomfortable topic.

“ ’E looked very respectable,” said Kipps.⁠ ⁠…

Kipps undressed with great deliberation, and with vast gaps of pensive margin. Twenty-six thousand pounds!

His Aunt’s solicitude had brought back certain matters into the foreground that his “Twelve ’Undred a year!” had for a time driven away altogether. His thoughts went back to the woodcarving class. Twelve Hundred a Year. He sat on the edge of the bed in profound meditation and his boots fell “whop” and “whop” upon the floor, with a long interval between each “whop.” Twenty-five thousand pounds. “By Gum!” He dropped the remainder of his costume about him on the floor, got into bed, pulled the patchwork quilt over him and put his head on the pillow that had been first to hear of Ann Pornick’s accession to his heart. But he did not think of Ann Pornick now.

It was about everything in the world except Ann Pornick that he seemed to be trying to think of⁠—simultaneously. All the vivid happenings of the day came and went in his overtaxed brain; “that old Bean” explaining and explaining, the fat man who wouldn’t believe, an overpowering smell of peppermint, the banjo, Miss Mergle saying he deserved it, Chitterlow’s vanishing round a corner, the wisdom and advice and warnings of his Aunt and Uncle. She was afraid he would marry beneath him, was she? She didn’t know.⁠ ⁠…

His brain made an excursion into the woodcarving class and presented Kipps with the picture of himself amazing that class by a modest yet clearly audible remark, “I been left twenty-six thousand pounds.”

Then he told them all quietly but firmly that he had always loved Miss Walshingham, always, and so he had brought all his twenty-six thousand pounds with him to give to her there and then. He wanted nothing in return.⁠ ⁠… Yes, he wanted nothing in return. He would give it to her all in an envelope and go. Of course he would keep the banjo⁠—and a little present for his Aunt and Uncle⁠—and a new suit perhaps⁠—and one or two other things she would not miss. He went off at a tangent. He might buy a motor car, he might buy one of these here things that will play you a piano⁠—that would make old Buggins sit up! He could pretend he had learnt to play⁠—he might buy a bicycle and a cyclist suit.⁠ ⁠…

A terrific multitude of plans of what he might do and in particular of what he might buy, came crowding into his brain, and he did not so much fall asleep as pass into a disorder of dreams in which he was driving a four-horse Tip-Top coach down Sandgate Hill (“I shall have to be precious careful”), wearing innumerable suits of clothes, and through some terrible accident wearing them all wrong. Consequently he was being laughed at. The coach vanished in the interest of the costume. He was wearing golfing suits and a silk hat. This passed into a nightmare that he was promenading on the Leas in a Highland costume, with a kilt that kept shrinking, and Shalford was following him with three policemen. “He’s my assistant,” Shalford kept repeating; “he’s escaped. He’s an escaped Improver. Keep by him and in a minute you’ll have to run him in. I know ’em. We say they wash, but they won’t.”⁠ ⁠… He could feel the kilt creeping up his legs. He would have tugged at it to pull it down only his arms were paralysed. He had an impression of giddy crisis. He uttered a shriek of despair. “Now!” said Shalford. He woke in horror, his quilt had slipped off the bed.

He had a fancy he had just been called, that he had somehow overslept himself and missed going down for dusting. Then he perceived it was still night and light by reason of the moonlight, and that he was no longer in the Emporium. He wondered where he could be. He had a curious fancy that the world had been swept and rolled up like a carpet and that he was nowhere. It occurred to him that perhaps he was mad. “Buggins!” he said. There was no answer, not even the defensive snore. No room, no Buggins, nothing!

Then he remembered better. He sat on the edge of his bed for some time. Could anyone have seen his face they would have seen it white and drawn with staring eyes. Then he groaned weakly. “Twenty-six thousand pounds?” he whispered.

Just then it presented itself in an almost horribly overwhelming mass.

He remade his bed and returned to it. He was still dreadfully wakeful. It was suddenly clear to him that he need never trouble to get up punctually at seven again. That fact shone out upon him like a star through clouds. He was free to lie in bed as long as he liked, get up when he liked, go where he liked, have eggs every morning for breakfast