Chapter 162: The Royal Navy’s Little Characters

Chapter 161 – The Royal Navy’s Small Characters
Marylebone District, a famous and wealthy residential area in London in the 19th century.

Within this not particularly vast area, the best parts of Britain’s art, culture, education, and environment were brought together.

The Royal College of Art, St. Marylebone Church, Regent’s Park, as well as the London Zoo and Queen Mary’s Rose Garden located within Regent’s Park, as well as the British Museum and Arthur’s alma mater, the University of London, which surrounded it.

Of course, it is also home to Baker Street, a pilgrimage site for later generations of detective novel enthusiasts, and in a few decades’ time, a statue and memorial to Sherlock Holmes will be erected at the Marylebone crossroads that Arthur had just passed.

And just five years later, Madame Tussauds, a French socialite who had moved to London, would set up her first wax museum here ahead of the great detective Holmes.

Only Madame Tussaud’s experience of wax sculpture is not as romantic as most people think, and the reason why she was so proficient in the art of wax sculpture was actually because too many people had their heads chopped off during the French Revolution.

Therefore, Madame Tussauds, who worked as a housekeeper under the medical doctor Curtis and learned the art of wax sculpture from him, was never short of fresh and lifelike materials.

Not far ahead, there is a restaurant specializing in selling sandwiches, which, interestingly enough, is the property of the Earl of Sandwich’s family.

Why is this two slices of bread with vegetables, eggs and meat called a sandwich?

Guess, of course, because the sandwich is the fourth Earl of Sandwich John Montagu invented.

The Earl, who served three terms as Secretary of the Navy, contributed greatly to the reform and exploration of the Royal Navy, but when he was mentioned in London, it wasn’t his accomplishments that were most talked about, but rather his gambling personality.

Many Londoners say that sandwiches, this convenient snack is the Earl of Sandwich in order to be able to not leave the gambling table and invented.

It is rumored that every time he gambled until he was hungry, the Earl would yell out ‘bring the sandwiches’, and so the name has been passed down.

Although the Montague family had always claimed that this was a rumor made up by political enemies in order to attack the noble Mister Count, but after a long time, this incident had become an anecdote, and no one was willing to go to the top to find out whether it was true or not.

This is like the Duke of Wellington’s nickname ‘The Iron Duke’, perhaps after a hundred years, people will forget that he got this nickname because the newspapers mocked him for his attempts to block parliamentary reforms, and as a result, under the onslaught of the mob, he had to replace the windows in his house with iron ones.

And when it comes to the surname Montagu, one has to talk about another Montagu-based person, Mary Montagu, Mrs. Montagu.

This founder of the ‘Blue Stocking Society’ is known as the most individual woman of the 17th century in England.

In her early years, she refused a marriage arranged by her father, the Earl of Kingston, and eloped with a Whig parliamentary lawyer, Edward Montagu, but the relationship didn’t work out particularly well, and after her husband became the British ambassador to the Ottomans, their relationship quickly cooled off.

And after that, she became enamored of the Italian writer Algarotti Francesco, who was visiting London, but the affair soon ended without a trace when Francesco was recruited by the Prussian monarch Frederick the Great.

After that, Mrs. Montagu, who was living in France, fell in love again with a young Italian Viscount, and this time it lasted, and their relationship lasted for ten years.

At the end of her years of sojourn, Madame Montagu finally set sail for home.

And, happily, during her life, Mrs. Montagu was not only inspired by her uncle Henry Fielding to work in literature all the years of her life, but she opened up many subjects and models for later novelists. Most importantly, of course, she made the most of her travel insights and brought back to England the planting of cowpox to prevent smallpox, which literally saved many lives.

Arthur’s thoughts flew, and before he knew it, the open carriage he was riding in slowly stopped in front of a building with a red brick facade for protection and black iron carvings for decoration.

The coachman took off his hat and turned back to greet Arthur, “Mr. Hastings, I will have dinner at the nearby Ponsonby’s Restaurant, and then continue back here to wait for you until nine o’clock in the evening, and the bill for this trip will be sent to your mansion by the London Deluxe Carriage Hire Company within a week.”

Arthur looked at the coachman, who was as well dressed as he was, put on his own bowler hat and sniggered, “Perhaps I should change my occupation, I’m afraid I’d make more money as a decent coachman in your department than as a policeman at Scotland Yard?”

The coachman smiled at his words, “You flatter me, we just earn a living. You’re just a police officer at Scotland Yard, it’s not like you’re really Scottish. If you are a Scot, then I must admit that I probably do have it a little better than you.”

Hearing this, and knowing that he was talking about something, Arthur smiled back, “Yes, after all, everyone knows that horsemen in England feed their horses oats, whereas in Scotland, oats are their national delicacy. It is for this reason that the horses in England are individually exceptional and as fit as the people in Scotland.”

The coachman still couldn’t help laughing at this traditional English joke as if he were hearing it for the first time.

He lifted his whip and gently tapped it on his brow, and spoke, “Mr. Hastings, although I haven’t known you for a long time, we got along very well. If you still have carriage rental needs next time, feel free to come to the company and name them to me. So, without further ado, have a nice evening.”

“Have a good time at Ponsonby’s as well, and please, for the sake of you having to take me home, don’t get too drunk there. Finally, this is a small token of appreciation for your quality service.” At that, Arthur fished two shillings out of his pocket and left them on the seat of the carriage, then stepped out of the carriage and watched the driver drive away.

Only when his figure could no longer be seen on the street did Arthur let out a sigh of relief, “What do you mean by high society? Upper class means that the usual fare for the whole journey can only be offset against the tip here.”

Agares, who was squatting on the iron parapet of the red brick wall and looking out, heard this and couldn’t help but smile and nod his head, “Arthur, it seems that you’ve already comprehended part of the essence of it.”

Arthur also didn’t bother with the red devil, he just walked to the dark as ink gate and gently shook the brass bell that hung in front of the gate tied with a red ribbon.

Only a jingle was heard, and the vestibule, supported by ivory marble pillars behind the courtyard gate, soon opened its double doors.

Two people stepped out from inside, a middle-aged male butler wearing a simple and capable tuxedo, white gloves, and semi-long hair, and a young maid with a lace-trimmed headscarf, wool stockings over her legs, and a black linen dress underneath, with a white frilly-trimmed floral-printed apron over her coat.

Arthur shot a glance at the male butler, then at the maid, and nodded slightly.

There was indeed a resemblance, but it definitely wasn’t as flashy as the ones drawn in Japanese manga.

He took out a business card from his breast pocket with a handkerchief pinned to it and handed it over, and spoke with a smile, “Please inform His Excellency and Mrs. Codrington that the Superintendent of the East London Region of the Greater London Police Department, and a researcher in the field of electromagnetism in the field of natural philosophy, Arthur Hastings, has been invited to visit by appointment.”

The butler stretched out those white-gloved hands to receive the business card, and after carefully scrutinizing it, he quickly half-bowed with a smile on his face.

“Mr. Hastings, I did not expect you to be here so early. His Excellency Codrington thought that you might be a little late, after all, a scholar like you might take some time to prepare the experimental equipment and thoughts.”

Arthur smiled, “After all, this is my first time coming to General Codrington’s banquet, so it is always good to arrive a little early. However, your words have reminded me. In order to demonstrate today’s progressive achievements in the field of electromagnetism, I have borrowed something from Mr. Faraday. A carriage from the Royal Society should be coming later to transport the relevant instruments, so if they arrive, I would be grateful if you would let me know at that time.”

The butler nodded slightly and said, “Please don’t worry, it’s on me.”

After speaking, the butler then rushed to the maid behind him and instructed, “Jenny, you first take Mr. Hastings to the lounge. By the way, inform the kitchen that the previously prepared snacks can be served one after another.”

The maid named Jenny came forward and slightly curtsied before speaking, “Mr. Hastings, please follow me.”

Arthur raised his right hand and lightly touched the brim of his hat in return, as taught in the London Social Guide, and then followed the maid in three or two steps to the front hall, and walked into the three-story mansion of the Royal Navy’s white-flagged lieutenant admiral.

Just stepping into the front hall, the first thing that caught his eyes was a portrait of General Codrington hanging on the wall.

His Excellency Codrington’s appearance is indeed reasonable, a standard naval uniform also sets him off in a majestic manner, and the bald part on the top of his head is also a very good illustration of this veteran admiral’s past history, so that people will understand at a glance that he must have served as commander of the Mediterranean Fleet.

Of course, Arthur refrained from commenting on the art of the portrait in public, as a precaution against impoliteness.

He simply asked gently, “Am I the first to arrive today?”

Jenny pressed both hands on her abdomen and smiled haughtily, she led the way while answering, “Several guests have already arrived in the lounge, they are chatting and playing cards there, if you find it boring to be alone, you can join them or read a book as well.”

Arthur sniffed and couldn’t help but follow up with, “Is it convenient for you to reveal who they are?”

“Well …… the ones who come early are usually young men, I seem to remember they are all now or once subordinates of the Hon. Codrington, and several of the gentlemen are all from the Royal Navy. Like Captain John Franklin of the Royal Naval Reserve, Captain Robert Fitzroy, commanding HMS Beagle, and His Majesty’s Naval Attaché at Arms, Sir George Elliot, commanding HMS Victory, the flagship of the Commander of the Portsmouth Naval Base. Sir.”

Hearing this, Arthur roughly understands the scale and rank of this banquet, his heart has a bottom, and his mood naturally relaxes, and he can’t help but jest, “To be able to remember so clearly, ma’am, it seems that in the future you will definitely be able to become the head maid here.”

Jenny sniffed and couldn’t help but smile with a red face, “Mr. Hastings, you are really joking.”

After speaking, she gently knocked on the mahogany door of the lounge, then bowed slightly and said, “Gentlemen, there is a new guest arriving.”

(End of chapter)