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The colonel lounged across the room towards Lord Vieuxbois, a quiet, truly high- bred young man, with a sweet open countenance, and an ample forehead, whose size would have vouched for great talents, had not the promise been contradicted by the weakness of the over-delicate mouth and chin. 'Who is that with whom you came into the room, Bracebridge? asked Lord Vieuxbois.
Let him try to right somewhat of the doubt, confusion, custom-worship, inconsistency, idolatry, within him some of the greed, bigotry, recklessness, respectably superstitious atheism around him; and perhaps before his new task is finished, Lancelot and Tregarva may have returned with a message, if not for him for that depends upon him having ears to hear it yet possibly for strong Lord Minchampstead, probably for good Lord Vieuxbois, and surely for the sinners and the slaves of Whitford Priors.
Argemone, my child, I hope you spent a pleasant evening? Argemone answered by some tossy commonplace. A pause and then Mrs. Lavington recommenced, 'How very pleasing that poor young Lord Vieuxbois is, after all! 'I thought you disliked him so much. 'His opinions, my child; but we must hope for the best.
'Just because they express the feelings of that class, of which I am beginning to fear that we know very little. Look again, what a noble literature of people's songs and hymns Germany has. Some of Lord Vieuxbois's friends, I know, are busy translating many of them. 'As many of them, that is to say, said Vieuxbois, 'as are compatible with a real Church spirit. 'Be it so; but who wrote them?
'But I am sorry to say that, as far as I can find from my agents, when the upper classes write cheap publications, the lower classes will not read them. 'Too true, said Vieuxbois. 'Is not the cause, asked Lancelot, 'just that the upper classes do write them? 'The writings of working men, certainly, said Lord Minchampstead, 'have an enormous sale among their own class.
'Where have you been staying? 'With young Lord Vieuxbois, among high art and painted glass, spade farms, and model smell-traps, rubricalities and sanitary reforms, and all other inventions, possible and impossible, for "stretching the old formula to meet the new fact," as your favourite prophet says. 'Till the old formula cracks under the tension. 'And cracks its devotees, too, I think.
Why, sir, they growl as insolently now at the parson or the squire's wife if they don't get as much money as their neighbours, as they used to at the parish vestrymen under the old law. Look at that Lord Vieuxbois, sir, as sweet a gentleman as ever God made.
Mellot, whom I should never have allowed to enter my house if I had suspected his religious views, the place has become a hotbed of false doctrine and heresy. I have been quite frightened when I have heard their conversation at dinner, lest the footmen should turn infidels! 'Perhaps, mamma, said Honoria, slyly, 'Lord Vieuxbois might convert them to something quite as bad.
'Oh, I understand, said Lord Minchampstead; 'Bracebridge's tongue is privileged, you know, Lord Vieuxbois, so you must not be angry. 'I don't see how all these painted windows, and crosses, and chanting, and the deuce and the Pope only know what else, are to make boys any better. 'We have it on the highest authority, said Vieuxbois, 'that pictures and music are the books of the unlearned.
Do you think that I will tell you of what Lancelot was thinking? But here Vieuxbois spurred in to break a last lance. He had been very much disgusted with the turn the conversation was taking, for he considered nothing more heterodox than the notion that the poor were to educate themselves.
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