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13 - Little Lord Fauntleroy by Frances Hodgson Burnett · Little Lord Fauntleroy

• 0:02
  Speaker 1: Of course, as soon as the story of Lord Fauntleroy
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: and the difficulties of the Earl of Dorincourt were discussed
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: in the English newspapers, they were discussed in the American newspapers.
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  Speaker 1: The story was too interesting to be passed over lightly,
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  Speaker 1: and it was talked of a great deal. There were
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  Speaker 1: so many versions of it that it would have been
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  Speaker 1: an edifying thing to buy all the papers and compare them.
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  Speaker 1: Mister Hobbs read so much about it that he became
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  Speaker 1: quite bewildered. One paper described his young friend Cedric as
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  Speaker 1: an infinite arms another as a young man at Oxford,
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  Speaker 1: winning all the honors and distinguishing himself by writing Greek poems.
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  Speaker 1: One said he was engaged to a young lady of
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  Speaker 1: great beauty who was the daughter of a duke. Another
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  Speaker 1: said he had just been married. The only thing, in
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  Speaker 1: fact which was not said was that he was a
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  Speaker 1: little boy between seven and eight, with handsome legs and
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  Speaker 1: curly hair. One said he was no relation to the
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  Speaker 1: Earl of Dorincourt at all, but was a small impostor
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  Speaker 1: who had sold newspapers and slept in the streets of
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  Speaker 1: New York before his mother imposed upon the family lawyer
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  Speaker 1: who came to America to look for the Earl's heir.
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  Speaker 1: Then came the descriptions of the new Lord Fauntleroy and
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  Speaker 1: his mother. Sometimes she was a gypsy, sometimes an actress,
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  Speaker 1: sometimes a beautiful spaniard. But it was always agreed that
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  Speaker 1: the Earl of Dorincourt was her deadly enemy and would
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  Speaker 1: not acknowledge her son as his heir if he could
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  Speaker 1: help it. And as there seemed to be some slight
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  Speaker 1: flaw in the papers she had produced, it was expected
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  Speaker 1: that there would be a long trial which would be
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  Speaker 1: far more interesting than anything ever carried into court before.
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  Speaker 1: Mister Hobbs used to read the papers until his head
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  Speaker 1: was in a whirl, and in the evening he and
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  Speaker 1: Dick would talk it all over. They found out what
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  Speaker 1: an important personage an Earl of Dorincourt was, and what
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  Speaker 1: a magnificent income he possessed, and how many estates he owned,
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  Speaker 1: and how stately and beautiful was the castle in which
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  Speaker 1: he lived. And the more they learned, the more excited
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  Speaker 1: they became. Seems like something are to be done, said
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  Speaker 1: mister Hobbs. Things like them are to be held on
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  Speaker 1: to earls. Are no earls, But there really was nothing
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  Speaker 1: they could do but each write a letter to Cedric
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  Speaker 1: containing assurances of their friendship and sympathy. They wrote those
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  Speaker 1: letters as soon as they could after receiving the news,
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  Speaker 1: and after having written them, they handed them over to
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  Speaker 1: each other to be read. This is what mister Hobbs
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  Speaker 1: read in Dick's letter, dear friend, I got your letter,
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  Speaker 1: and mister Hobbs got his, and we are sorry you
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  Speaker 1: are down on your luck, and we say hold on
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  Speaker 1: as long as you can, and don't let no one
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  Speaker 1: get ahead of you. There is a lot of old
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  Speaker 1: thieves will make all they can of you if you
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: don't keep your eye skinned. But this is mostly to
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  Speaker 1: say that I've not forgot what you did for me,
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  Speaker 1: and if there ain't no better way, come over here
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  Speaker 1: and go in partners with me. Business is fine, and
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  Speaker 1: I'll see no harm comes to you. Any big fellow
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  Speaker 1: that tries to come it over you will have to
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  Speaker 1: settle it fust with Professor Dick Tipton. So no more
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  Speaker 1: at present, Dick. And this is what Dick read in
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  Speaker 1: mister Hobbs's letter, Dear sir, yours received and would say
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  Speaker 1: things look bad. I believe it's a put up job,
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  Speaker 1: and them that's done. It ought to be looked after sharp.
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  Speaker 1: And what I write to say is two things. I'm
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  Speaker 1: going to look this thing up. Keep quiet, and I'll
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  Speaker 1: see a lawyer and do all I can. And if
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  Speaker 1: the worst happens, and them earls is too many for us,
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  Speaker 1: there's a partnership in the grocery business ready for you
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  Speaker 1: when you're old enough, and a home and a friend
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  Speaker 1: in yours, truly, silas haw Well, said mister Hobbs. He's
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  Speaker 1: provided for between us if he ain't an earl, so
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  Speaker 1: he is, said Dick. I'd a stood by him blest
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  Speaker 1: if I didn't like that little feller frustrate. The very
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  Speaker 1: next morning, one of Dick's customers was rather surprised. He
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  Speaker 1: was a young lawyer just beginning practice, as poor as
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  Speaker 1: a very young lawyer can possibly be, but a bright,
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  Speaker 1: energetic young fellow with sharp wit and a good temper.
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  Speaker 1: He had a shabby office near Dick's stand, and every
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  Speaker 1: morning Dick blacked his boots for him, and quite often
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  Speaker 1: they were not exactly water tight, but he always had
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  Speaker 1: a friendly word or a joke for Dick. That particular morning,
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  Speaker 1: when he put his foot on the rest He had
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  Speaker 1: an illustrated paper in his hand, an enterprising paper with
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  Speaker 1: pictures in it of conspicuous people and things. He had
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  Speaker 1: just finished looking it over, and when the last boot
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  Speaker 1: was polished, he handed it over to the boy. Here's
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  Speaker 1: a paper for you, Dick, he said, you can look
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  Speaker 1: it over when you drop in at Delmonico's for your breakfast.
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  Speaker 1: Picture of an English castle in it, and an English
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  Speaker 1: earl's daughter in law. Fine young woman too, lots of hair,
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  Speaker 1: though she seems to be raising rather a row. You
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  Speaker 1: ought to become familiar with the nobility and gentry. Dick,
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  Speaker 1: begin on the right, Honorable the Earl of Dorincourt and
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  Speaker 1: Lady Fauntleroy. Hello, I say, what's the matter. The pictures
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  Speaker 1: he spoke of were on the front page, and Dick
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  Speaker 1: was staring at one of them with his eyes and
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  Speaker 1: mouth open, and his sharp face almost pale with excitement.
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  Speaker 1: What's to pay, Dick, said the young man. What has
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  Speaker 1: paralyzed you? Dick really did look as if something tremendous
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  Speaker 1: had happened. He pointed to the picture, under which was
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  Speaker 1: written mother of claimant, Lady Fauntleroy. It was the picture
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  Speaker 1: of a handsome woman with large eyes and heavy braids
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  Speaker 1: of black hair wound around her head. Her said, Dick, My,
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: I know her better, and I know you. The young
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  Speaker 1: man began to laugh. Where did you meet her, Dick,
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  Speaker 1: He said, at Newport? Or when you ran over to
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  Speaker 1: Paris the last time. Dick actually forgot to grind. He
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  Speaker 1: began to gather his brushes and things together, as if
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  Speaker 1: he had something to do which would put an end
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  Speaker 1: to his business for the present. Never mind, he said,
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  Speaker 1: I know her, and I've struck work for this morning.
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  Speaker 1: And in less than five minutes from that time, he
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  Speaker 1: was tearing through the streets on his way to mister
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  Speaker 1: Hobbs in the corner store. Mister Hobbs could scarcely believe
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  Speaker 1: the evidence of his senses when he looked across the
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  Speaker 1: counter and saw Dick rush in with the paper in
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  Speaker 1: his hand. The boy was out of breath with running,
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  Speaker 1: so much out of breath, in fact, that he could
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  Speaker 1: scarcely speak as he threw the paper down on the counter. Hello,
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  Speaker 1: exclaimed mister Hobbs. Oh, oh what you got there? Look
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  Speaker 1: at it? Panted Dick. Look at that woman in the picture,
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  Speaker 1: that's what you look at. She ain't no ristocrat. She
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  Speaker 1: ain't with withering scorn. She's no lord's wife. You may
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  Speaker 1: eat me if it ain't Minna, minna. I'd know her
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  Speaker 1: anywheres and sewed Ben just axe him. Mister Hobbs dropped
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  Speaker 1: into his seat. I knowed it was a put up job,
• 7:31
  Speaker 1: he said, I knowed it, And they'd done it on
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  Speaker 1: account of him beIN American. Done it, cried Dick with disgust.
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  Speaker 1: She done it, that's who done it. She was allers
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  Speaker 1: up to her tricks. And I'll tell yer what come
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  Speaker 1: to me. The minute I saw her picture. There was
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  Speaker 1: one of them papers we saw had a letter in
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  Speaker 1: it that said something about her boy, and it said
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  Speaker 1: he had a scar on his chin. Put them two together,
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  Speaker 1: her and that their scar? Why that there, boy o?
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  Speaker 1: Hers ain't no more a lord than I am. It's
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  Speaker 1: Ben's boy. The little chap she hit when she let
• 8:08
  Speaker 1: fly that plate at me. Professor Dick Tipton had always
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  Speaker 1: been a sharp boy, and earning his living in the
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  Speaker 1: streets of a big city had made him still sharper.
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  Speaker 1: He had learned to keep his eyes open and his
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  Speaker 1: wits about him, and it must be confessed he enjoyed
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  Speaker 1: immensely the excitement and impatience of that moment. If little
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  Speaker 1: Lord Fauntleroy could only have looked into the store that morning,
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  Speaker 1: he would certainly have been interested, even if all the
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  Speaker 1: discussion and plans had been intended to decide the fate
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  Speaker 1: of some other boy than himself. Mister Hobbs was almost
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  Speaker 1: overwhelmed by his sense of responsibility, and Dick was all
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  Speaker 1: alive and full of energy. He began to write a
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  Speaker 1: letter to Ben, and he cut out the picture and
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  Speaker 1: enclosed it to him, and mister Hobbs wrote a letter
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  Speaker 1: to Cedric and one to the Earl. They were in
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  Speaker 1: the midst of this letter writing when a new idea
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  Speaker 1: came to Dick say. He said, the fellow that give
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  Speaker 1: me the paper, he's a lawyer. Let's axe him what
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  Speaker 1: we'd better do. Lawyers knows it all. Mister Hobbs was
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  Speaker 1: immensely impressed by this suggestion and Dick's business capacity. That's
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  Speaker 1: so he replied, this here calls for lawyers, and leaving
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  Speaker 1: the store in the care of a substitute, he struggled
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  Speaker 1: into his coat and marched down town with Dick, and
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  Speaker 1: the two presented themselves with their romantic story in mister
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  Speaker 1: Harrison's office, much to that young man's astonishment. If he
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  Speaker 1: had not been a very young lawyer with a very
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  Speaker 1: enterprising mind and a great deal of spare time on
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  Speaker 1: his hands, he might not have been so readily interested
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  Speaker 1: in what they had to say, for it all certainly
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  Speaker 1: sounded very wild and queer. But he chanced to want
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  Speaker 1: something to do very much, and he chanced to know Dick,
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  Speaker 1: and Dick chanced to say his say in a very sharp,
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  Speaker 1: telling sort of way, and said, mister Hobbs, say what
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  Speaker 1: your time's worth a hour and look into this thing
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  Speaker 1: thorough and I'll pay the damage Silas Hobbs, corner of
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  Speaker 1: Blank Street, Vegetables and fancy Groceries. Well, said mister Harrison.
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  Speaker 1: It will be a big thing if it turns out
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  Speaker 1: all right, and it will be almost as big a
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  Speaker 1: thing for me as for Lord Fauntleroy. And at any rate,
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  Speaker 1: no harm can be done by investigating It appears there
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  Speaker 1: has been some dubiousness about the child. The woman contradicted
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  Speaker 1: herself in some of her statements about his age and
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: aroused suspicion. The first persons to be written to are
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  Speaker 1: Dick's brother and the Earl of Dorincourt's family lawyer, and
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: actually before the sun went down, two letters had been
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  Speaker 1: written and sent in two different directions, one speeding out
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  Speaker 1: of New York Harbor on a mail steamer on its
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  Speaker 1: way to England, and the other on a train carrying
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  Speaker 1: letters and passengers bound for California. And the first was
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  Speaker 1: addressed to t. Havisham Esquire and the second to Benjamin Tipton.
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  Speaker 1: And after the store was closed that evening, mister Hobbs
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  Speaker 1: and Dick sat in the back room and talked together
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  Speaker 1: until midnight. End of chapter thirteen,