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632 THE ADVENTURES OF PHILIP
and interest; and I think we ought to go over and take another
dinner at the ' Ram.' "
The new candidate actually turned out to be Philip's old school
and college friend, Mr. Hornblow. After dinner we met him with
a staff of canvassers on the tramp through the little town. Mr.
Hornblow was paying his respects to such tradesmen as had their
shops yet open. Next day being market-day, he proposed to canvass
the market people. " If I meet the black man, Firmin," said
the burly squire, " I think I can chaff him off his legs. He is a
bad one at speaking, I am told."
As if the tongue of Plato would have prevailed in Whipham
and against the nominee of the great house ! The hour was late
to be sure, but the companions of Mr. Hornblow on his canvass
augured ill of his success after half-an-hour's walk at his heels.
Baker Jones would not promise nohow : that meant Jones would
vote for the Castle, Mr. Hornblow's legal aide-de-camp, Mr. Batley,
was forced to allow. Butcher Brown was having his tea,—his
shrill-voiced wife told us, looking out from her glazed back parlour :
Brown would vote for the Castle. Saddler Briggs would see about
it. Grocer Adams fairly said he would vote against us—against
us?—against Hornblow, whose part we were taking already. I
fear the flattering promises of support of a great body of free and
unbiassed electors, which had induced Mr. Hornblow to come forward
and, &c, were but inventions of that little lawyer, Batley,
who found his account in having a contest in the borough. When
the polling-day came—you see, I disdain to make any mysteries in
this simple and veracious story—Mr. GRENVILLE WOOLCOMB, whose
solicitor and agent spoke for him—Mr. Grenville Woolcomb, who
could not spell or speak two sentences of decent English, and whose
character for dulness, ferocity, penuriousness, jealousy, almost fatuity,
was notorious to all the world—was returned by an immense
majority, and the country gentlemen brought scarce a hundred votes
to the poll.
We who were in nowise engaged in the contest, nevertheless
found amusement from it in a quiet country place where little else
was stirring. We came over once or twice from Periwinkle Bay.
We mounted Hornblow's colours openly. We drove up ostentatiously
to the " Ram," forsaking the " Ringwood Arms," where Mr.
GRENVILLE WOOLCOMB'S COMMITTEE ROOM was now established
in that very coffee-room where we had dined in Mr. Bradgate's
company. We warmed in the contest. We met Bradgate and his
principal more than once, and our Montagus and Capulets defied
each other in the public street. It was fine to see Philip's great
figure and noble scowl when he met Woolcomb at the canvass.