Surbiton

Part 1.

The boy who resided at Agathoc's Lodge, 28 Buckingham Park Road, Surbiton, had often been puzzled by the old signpost that stood almost opposite.

He asked his mother about it, and she replied that it was a joke, and not a very nice one, which had been made many years back by some naughty men, and that the police ought to remove it.

for there were two strange things about this signpost.

After number 39, the quality of the houses dropped very suddenly, and 64 had not even a separate servant's entrance.

But at the present moment, the whole road looked rather pretty, for the sun had just set in splendor, and the inequalities of wrench were drowned in a saffron afterglow.

Small birds twittered, and the breadwinner's train shrieked musically down through the cutting, that wonderful cutting which has drawn to itself the whole beauty out of Surbiton, and clad itself, like any alpine valley, with the glory of the fir and the silver birch and the primrose.

It was this cutting that had first stirred desires within the boy, desires for something just a little different.

Gabrielle's back in Southfields after a trip to Australia.

Fazza in Carl Shorten, Rosie and Connor in Surbiton, there's Joe and Alice in Wimbledon, Sean O'Neill in Greenwich, and on Mixcloud we've got Karmizan, Mikey the Towner, Tin Man, Dawn Clark, Norikki, Martin Byrne, Hong Kong Dave, Loz and Nadia Smith, and of course, Melanie from Worcester Park.

And it's the brand new Heavies next with a tune from 1994, Back to Love, and this is the Graham Park remix.

To lose our way Somehow God led us straight So how God led us straight That's why I'm Brother said he needs it Sister said she needs it We are gonna need it someday We seem to lose our way Somehow God led us straight That's why I'm here to say Gotta get back to it now Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah Yeah,

He stayed with Sybil till nearly midnight, comforting her and being comforted in turn, and early the next morning he left for Venice after writing a manly, firm letter to Mr. Merton about the necessary postponement of the marriage.

CHAPTER IV In Venice he met his brother, Lord Surbiton, who happened to have come over from Corfu in his yacht.

The two young men spent a delightful fortnight together.

In the morning they rode on the Lido, or glided up and down the green canals in their long black gondola.

He began to be afraid that some accident had happened to her, and often regretted that he had prevented her taking the aconite when she had been so anxious to try its effect.

Sibyl's letters, too, though full of love and trust and tenderness, were often very sad in their tone, and sometimes he used to think that he was parted from her forever.

After a fortnight, Lord Surbiton got bored with Venice, and determined to run down the coast to Ravenna, as he heard that there was some capital cock-shooting in the Pine Etamp.

Lord Arthur at first refused absolutely to come, but Serbiton, of whom he was extremely fond, finally persuaded him that if he stayed at Daniele's by himself he would be moped to death.

He stayed with Sybil till nearly midnight, comforting her and being comforted in turn, and early the next morning he left for Venice after writing a manly, firm letter to Mr. Merton about the necessary postponement of the marriage.

CHAPTER IV In Venice he met his brother, Lord Surbiton, who happened to have come over from Corfu in his yacht.

The two young men spent a delightful fortnight together.

In the morning they rode on the Lido, or glided up and down the green canals in their long black gondola.

the deanery chichester the twenty seventh of may my dearest aunt thank you so much for the flannel for the dorcas society and also for the gingham i quite agree with you that it is nonsense their wanting to wear pretty things but everybody is so radical and irreligious nowadays that it is difficult to make them see that they should not try and dress like the upper classes i am sure i don't know what we are coming to as papa has often said in his sermons we live in an age of unbelief we have had great fun over a clock that an unknown admirer sent papa last thursday it arrived in a wooden box from london carriage paid and papa feels it must have been sent by some one who had read his remarkable sermon is licensed liberty for on the top of the clock was the figure of a woman with what papa said was the cap of liberty on her head i didn't think it very becoming myself but papa said it was historical so i suppose it is all right parker unpacked it and papa put it on the mantelpiece in the library and we were all sitting there on friday morning when just as the clock struck twelve we heard a whirring noise a little puff of smoke came from the pedestal of the figure and the goddess of liberty fell off and broke her nose on the fender maria was quite alarmed but it looked so ridiculous that james and i went off into fits of laughter and even papa was amused when he examined it we found it was a sort of alarum clock and that if you set it to a particular hour and put some gunpowder and a cap under a little hammer it went off whenever you wanted papa said it must not remain in the library as it made a noise sir reggie carried it away to the schoolroom and does nothing but have small explosions all day long do you think arthur would like one as a wedding present i suppose they are quite fashionable in london papa says they should do a great deal of good as they show that liberty can't last but must fall down papa says liberty was invented at the time of the french revolution how awful it seems i have now to go to the dorcas where i will read them your most instructive letter how true dear aunt your idea is that in their rank of life they should wear what is unbecoming i must say it is absurd their anxiety about dress when there are so many more important things in this world and in the next i am so glad your flowered poplin turned out so well and that your lace was not torn I am wearing my yellow satin that you so kindly gave me at the bishop's on Wednesday, and think it will look all right.

Would you have bows or not?' jennings says that every one wears bows now and that the underskirt should be frilled reggie has just had another explosion and papa has ordered the clock to be sent to the stables i don't think papa likes it so much as he did at first though he is very flattered at being sent such a pretty and ingenious toy it shows that people read his sermons and profit by them papa sends his love in which james and reggie and maria all unite and hoping that uncle cecil's gout is better believe me my dear aunt ever your affectionate niece jane percy p s do tell me about the beaux dennings insists they are the fashion lord arthur looked so serious and unhappy over the letter that the duchess went into fits of laughter my dear arthur she cried i shall never show you a young lady's letter again but what shall i say about the clock i think it is a capital invention and i should like to have one myself i don't think much of them said lord arthur with a sad smile and after kissing his mother he left the room when he got upstairs he flung himself on a sofa and his eyes filled with tears he had done his best to commit this murder but on both occasions he had failed and through no fault of his own he had tried to do his duty but it seemed as if destiny herself had turned traitor he was oppressed with the sense of the barrenness of good intentions of the futility of trying to be fine perhaps it would be better to break off the marriage altogether sybil would suffer it is true but suffering could not really mar a nature so noble as hers as for himself what did it matter there is always some war in which a man can die some cause to which a man can give his life and as life had no pleasure for him so death had no terror let destiny work out his doom he would not stir to help her At half-past seven he dressed and went down to the club.

Surbiton was there with a party of young men, and he was obliged to dine with them.

Their trivial conversation and idle jests did not interest him, and as soon as coffee was brought, he left them inventing some engagement in order to get away.

Ten forty-one is the time.

David is in Surbiton.

David, what have you got?

Morning, James.