Mr. Scrobby did not prosper greatly in his new career. He
became a guardian of the poor and quarrelled with all the Board. He
tried to become a municipal counsellor in the borough, but failed.
Then he quarrelled with his landlord, insisted on making changes in
the grounds which were not authorised by the terms of his holding,
would not pay his rent, and was at last ejected,--having caused
some considerable amount of trouble. Then he occupied a portion of
his leisure with spreading calumnies as to his Lordship and was
generally understood to have made up his mind to be disagreeable.
As Lord Rufford was a sportsman rather than anything else Scrobby
studied how he might best give annoyance in that direction, and
some time before the Goarly affair had succeeded in creating
considerable disturbance. When a man will do this pertinaciously,
and when his selected enemy is wealthy and of high standing, he
will generally succeed in getting a party round him. In Rufford
there were not a few who thought that Lord Rufford's pheasants and
foxes were a nuisance,--though probably these persons had never
suffered in any way themselves. It was a grand thing to fight a
lord,--and so Scrobby had a party.
When the action against his Lordship was first threatened by
Goarly, and when it was understood that Scrobby had backed him with
money there was a feeling that Scrobby was doing rather a fine
thing.
Pages:
678
679
680
681
682
683
684
685
686
687
688
689
690
691
692
693
694
695
696
697
698
699
700
701
702