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1It seemed as if Mr Shepherd, in this anxiety to bespeak Sir Walter's good will towards a naval officer as tenant, had
2been gifted with foresight; for the very first application for the house was from an Admiral Croft, with whom he shortly
3afterwards fell into company in attending the quarter sessions at Taunton; and indeed, he had received a hint of the
4Admiral from a London correspondent. By the report which he hastened over to Kellynch to make, Admiral Croft was a
5native of Somersetshire, who having acquired a very handsome fortune, was wishing to settle in his own country, and had
6come down to Taunton in order to look at some advertised places in that immediate neighbourhood, which, however, had not
7suited him; that accidentally hearing--(it was just as he had foretold, Mr Shepherd observed, Sir Walter's concerns
8could not be kept a secret,)--accidentally hearing of the possibility of Kellynch Hall being to let, and understanding
9his (Mr Shepherd's) connection with the owner, he had introduced himself to him in order to make particular inquiries,
10and had, in the course of a pretty long conference, expressed as strong an inclination for the place as a man who knew
11it only by description could feel; and given Mr Shepherd, in his explicit account of himself, every proof of his being a
12most responsible, eligible tenant. "And who is Admiral Croft?" was Sir Walter's cold suspicious inquiry. Mr Shepherd
13answered for his being of a gentleman's family, and mentioned a place; and Anne, after the little pause which followed,
14added-- "He is a rear admiral of the white. He was in the Trafalgar action, and has been in the East Indies since; he
15was stationed there, I believe, several years." "Then I take it for granted," observed Sir Walter, "that his face is
16about as orange as the cuffs and capes of my livery." Mr Shepherd hastened to assure him, that Admiral Croft was a very
17hale, hearty, well-looking man, a little weather-beaten, to be sure, but not much, and quite the gentleman in all his
18notions and behaviour; not likely to make the smallest difficulty about terms, only wanted a comfortable home, and to
19get into it as soon as possible; knew he must pay for his convenience; knew what rent a ready-furnished house of that
20consequence might fetch; should not have been surprised if Sir Walter had asked more; had inquired about the manor;
21would be glad of the deputation, certainly, but made no great point of it; said he sometimes took out a gun, but never
22killed; quite the gentleman. Mr Shepherd was eloquent on the subject; pointing out all the circumstances of the
23Admiral's family, which made him peculiarly desirable as a tenant. He was a married man, and without children; the very
24state to be wished for. A house was never taken good care of, Mr Shepherd observed, without a lady: he did not know,
25whether furniture might not be in danger of suffering as much where there was no lady, as where there were many
26children. A lady, without a family, was the very best preserver of furniture in the world. He had seen Mrs Croft, too;
27she was at Taunton with the admiral, and had been present almost all the time they were talking the matter over. "And a
28very well-spoken, genteel, shrewd lady, she seemed to be," continued he; "asked more questions about the house, and
29terms, and taxes, than the Admiral himself, and seemed more conversant with business; and moreover, Sir Walter, I found
30she was not quite unconnected in this country, any more than her husband; that is to say, she is sister to a gentleman
31who did live amongst us once; she told me so herself: sister to the gentleman who lived a few years back at Monkford.
32Bless me! what was his name? At this moment I cannot recollect his name, though I have heard it so lately. Penelope, my
33dear, can you help me to the name of the gentleman who lived at Monkford: Mrs Croft's brother?" But Mrs Clay was talking
34so eagerly with Miss Elliot, that she did not hear the appeal. "I have no conception whom you can mean, Shepherd; I
35remember no gentleman resident at Monkford since the time of old Governor Trent." "Bless me! how very odd! I shall
36forget my own name soon, I suppose. A name that I am so very well acquainted with; knew the gentleman so well by sight;
37seen him a hundred times; came to consult me once, I remember, about a trespass of one of his neighbours; farmer's man
38breaking into his orchard; wall torn down; apples stolen; caught in the fact; and afterwards, contrary to my judgement,
39submitted to an amicable compromise. Very odd indeed!" After waiting another moment-- "You mean Mr Wentworth, I
40suppose?" said Anne. Mr Shepherd was all gratitude. "Wentworth was the very name! Mr Wentworth was the very man. He had
41the curacy of Monkford, you know, Sir Walter, some time back, for two or three years. Came there about the year --5, I
42take it. You remember him, I am sure." "Wentworth? Oh! ay, Mr Wentworth, the curate of Monkford. You misled me by the
43term gentleman. I thought you were speaking of some man of property: Mr Wentworth was nobody, I remember; quite
44unconnected; nothing to do with the Strafford family. One wonders how the names of many of our nobility become so
45common." As Mr Shepherd perceived that this connexion of the Crofts did them no service with Sir Walter, he mentioned it
46no more; returning, with all his zeal, to dwell on the circumstances more indisputably in their favour; their age, and
47number, and fortune; the high idea they had formed of Kellynch Hall, and extreme solicitude for the advantage of renting
48it; making it appear as if they ranked nothing beyond the happiness of being the tenants of Sir Walter Elliot: an
49extraordinary taste, certainly, could they have been supposed in the secret of Sir Walter's estimate of the dues of a
50tenant. It succeeded, however; and though Sir Walter must ever look with an evil eye on anyone intending to inhabit that
51house, and think them infinitely too well off in being permitted to rent it on the highest terms, he was talked into
52allowing Mr Shepherd to proceed in the treaty, and authorising him to wait on Admiral Croft, who still remained at
53Taunton, and fix a day for the house being seen. Sir Walter was not very wise; but still he had experience enough of the
54world to feel, that a more unobjectionable tenant, in all essentials, than Admiral Croft bid fair to be, could hardly
55offer. So far went his understanding; and his vanity supplied a little additional soothing, in the Admiral's situation
56in life, which was just high enough, and not too high. "I have let my house to Admiral Croft," would sound extremely
57well; very much better than to any mere Mr.----; a Mr. (save, perhaps, some half dozen in the nation,) always needs a
58note of explanation. An admiral speaks his own consequence, and, at the same time, can never make a baronet look small.
59In all their dealings and intercourse, Sir Walter Elliot must ever have the precedence. Nothing could be done without a
60reference to Elizabeth: but her inclination was growing so strong for a removal, that she was happy to have it fixed and
61expedited by a tenant at hand; and not a word to suspend decision was uttered by her. Mr Shepherd was completely
62empowered to act; and no sooner had such an end been reached, than Anne, who had been a most attentive listener to the
63whole, left the room, to seek the comfort of cool air for her flushed cheeks; and as she walked along a favourite grove,
64said, with a gentle sigh, "A few months more, and he, perhaps, may be walking here."
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