Chapter 13: Illustrious Circles

April 1802

It was early April when a letter arrived at his house. It came from Mister Carver, one of the buyers of the Egyptian slates, inviting Will to the opening of the exhibition. The slates and the Sphinx sculpture had safely arrived in London, Mister Carver wrote, and he had employed stone masons and sculptors to perform repairs, clean-ups and polishings. Now that the pieces were presentable, Mister Carver and his co-owners were looking forward to the grand opening, and they wanted Will to be present, as the part owner of the Sphinx.

The opening was just three weeks hence, throwing Will into hectic planning. He needed to get leave from his two employments, needing approval from Mister Croft and from the port admiral. This went surprisingly well since Sir Algernon had sent letters to both men asking them to allow “my young friend, Mister W^m Potter, a fortnight of leave so that his great contribution to the Royal Society would be recognised”. Croft was almost subservient to a young man who had likely saved his position as Plymouth commissioner and who was obviously befriended by a Civil Lord of the Admiralty, his own ultimate superior. The port admiral was not willing to antagonise Sir Algernon either, and so Will received his leave and was tasked to convey the gentlemen’s humble greetings.

Tutored by the suddenly friendly Mister Parry, who alway dressed after the newest fashion, Will also invested in an elegant coat, fine shirts, stockings and breeches, and even buckled shoes, although the latter came with pinchbeck buckles. This set him back by over five pounds, not counting the costs of travel. Of course, Abigail could not join him with an infant at home, or the costs would have tripled. At least, he would be a guest at the Montgomerys’ city house.

Therefore, a week before the event, Will kissed Abigail good-bye, charged Clyde Barker with her protection and Jeremy Balder with protecting his interests at the victualling yard, before boarding a coaster heading for Portsmouth. Two-and-a-half days later, he came ashore in Portsmouth — his first time there — and found a modest lodging. Early in the next morning, he boarded a post chaise for London, via Guildford, and arrived there late in the afternoon. He had to rent a one-horse cab to find his way to the Montgomeries’ imposing home, a short walk away from St. Paul’s Cathedral.

A liveried footman received him and Will announced himself. The man certainly had his doubts, but he soon returned and led him into the back of the house, where he found his hosts in a huge dining hall the likes of which he had never seen and probably would never see again. There was Lady Montgomery and her niece, Penelope, but also, wearing a big smile, Captain Reginald D’Arcy.

“My dear Mister Potter, I see that you made it in time,” D’Arcy welcomed him. “We were afraid that warning would be too late for you to make the necessary arrangements.”

“It was doable, Sir, and I could not turn down such an honour,” Will answered modestly.

D’Arcy showed his mirth now. “The gentlemen will be delighted, no doubt.”

Will felt self-conscious. “Was I not supposed to accept, Sir?”

“No, no, my dear Potter. Sir Algernon even wrote to your superiors to secure your leave. Some of the gentlemen in the Society may have reservations, but Mister Carver is the host after all, and what he says, goes. Nobody would like to incur his displeasure, after all.”

Will knew that he should understand the implied meaning, but he didn’t.

“Sir?”

“Mister Carver is the grandson of the late Marquess of Croydon, through the Marquess’s daughter. The title became extinct, but Carver inherited the lands and other possessions. He sits in Parliament for the Tories, too.”

“Oh!” Will said, feeling slightly dizzy. He was moving in exalted circles indeed. He decided right then that he would keep his mouth shut and his ears wide open for the next days. His language had certainly improved in the last years, but his ignorance of society would expose him quickly as the lowly upstart he was.

“How is your lovely wife, Mister Potter?” Lady Montgomery now wanted to know.

“She is fine, milady, and she tasked me with sending her respectful greetings,” Will answered carefully.

“That is good to hear. And Master Potter?”

“Growing well, milady.”

“That is good to hear, my dear Potter,” D’Arcy smiled. “How’s the old Dido faring?”

Will thought briefly, returning to being a Navy warrant officer.

“The carpenter built a new mizzen t’gallant top, Sir. The standing rigging was replaced, too. It was too cold and wet for paint work, but that will start soon now. Cabin and wardroom were freshly painted though. The Master received a bundle of new charts from the Admiralty. That’s all I can recall, Sir.”

“So she can be reactivated presently?”

“I believe so, Sir. I’m not the right man to ask though.”

“Well, I trust your judgement, Mister Potter. I wouldn’t mind having her back.”

“Well, not yet, my dear,” Lady Montgomery smiled, looking at her niece, who blushed prettily.

“Of course! I am bound for a far more delightful duty soon,” D’Arcy returned, smiling at Penelope Montgomery.

Will understood. D’Arcy’s courtship of Percy’s sister must have progressed considerably. He said nothing though, being aware of his ignorance of when and how to respond to the news.

Fortunately, the arrival of Percy himself and his uncle ended this line of conversation. Percy was visibly pleased by seeing Will and shook his hand vigorously.

“I am glad that you could arrive in time, Will. It is good to see you. How are Abigail and Horace?”

“They’re both in good health. Abigail is shrinking and Horace is growing, so everything is as it should,” Will responded jokingly, causing slightly scandalised looks from the ladies, but chuckles from the men.

“I heard that you work at the victualling yard again. How do you get along with — wait — Parry?”

“Mister Croft and Mister Parry are my new best friends,” Will joked. “I helped them out in the rush of returning provisions, and now a letter from your uncle arrived, too. Thank you, Sir!”

“The letter was intended for just this purpose,” Sir Algernon grinned. “How good of you to come, Mister Potter! My friends and I were looking forward to seeing you again. Those artefacts you and Percival collected have been cleaned and polished and will look splendid. Will you believe that His Majesty demanded a private viewing last week? It was quite the success, too. The Army gifted him a stone stele with inscriptions in three different alphabets which they collected from the French war booty, and he showed a lively interest.”

“I am happy for my small contribution in pleasing His Majesty,” Will fairly gulped.

Mister Montgomery laughed. “Yes, with the war over for the time being, interest in the arts is soaring. Percival was there and was introduced to His Majesty.”

Will felt no jealousy at all, only relief that he had escaped an introduction to King George. He would have been scared to death. Percy was uncomfortable though.

“I’m sorry that you couldn’t be there, too, but the visit was on very short notice.”

“Never mind, please!” Will gasped. “The thought alone...”

Sir Algernon smiled benevolently. “We would have made it easy for you, my dear Mister Potter. Just like we shall make it easy in three days. There will be a bevy of important personages in presence, but we shall look out for you.”

“I-important personages? W-who, Sir Algernon?” Will could only stammer.

“His Royal Highness, the Duke of Clarence, for one? Clarence will be easy; he’s Navy, as quite a number of gentlemen will be, now that the armistice is in place and the ships laid up. Mister Thomas Young has stated his interest, too. He is one of the brightest minds of which England can boast, a professor of natural philosophy at the Royal Institution.”

“Good Lord!” Will said weakly.

Over the next two days, Will was shown around London by Percy who had been given a few days leave from his position as his uncle’s aide. Still, Will had a chance to see and visit the Admiralty with his friend. Sir Algernon even introduced him to three members of the victualling board, casually calling Will his protégé, and the gentlemen were exceedingly friendly to the lowly purser of a sixth rate, asking him about his service so far and offering their felicitations for his quick rise.

Percy and Will spent an evening at the Drury Lane Theatre, watching a comedic piece. Attendance was rather low since the popular leading actress had to be replaced by her understudy due to a severe cold, but Will enjoyed the play anyway. The young understudy, one Anita Heyworth, was certainly worth the admission fees, being both charming and witty. Percy was completely smitten by her and he cajoled Will into trying to meet the actress at her dressing room door. Alas, an usher was guarding the door, explaining to the young men that Miss Heyworth did not receive admirers, being in mourning over her fiancé, the late Commander Stirling. Still, it was an exciting evening for Will and Percy.

In the next evening, after another day of gawking at tall buildings and beautiful women, Will was dragged along to a small soiree held by one of Lady Montgomery’s friends, giving him a chance to practice the art of speaking without saying anything. For the most part, he was recognised as a being of no consequence and left alone, something he appreciated greatly. Even Percy was ignored by those ruling the salon, and in the end, the two young men simply enjoyed the excellent food and the well aged wines, watching the posturing of the other guests with a degree of amusement.

The next day was a Sunday, and after a hasty breakfast, Will and Percy dressed carefully in their best shirts, breeches and coats, for Mister Carver was expecting them at the first public showing of their Egyptian finds. Captain D’Arcy showed up, too, to accompany Penelope Montgomery to the matinée. Seating was cramped in the Montgomeries’ coach, but it was only a short ride to Mister Carver’s city house.

If Will was awed by Sir Algernon’s house, Mister Carver’s looked like a palace to him. It was shaped like an H, with a large courtyard in front of the centre, framed on both sides by the side wings. Will estimated that his own house of which he was so proud would fit four times over into each of the wings alone, and five times into the centre. The entire first floor of the centre was formed as a vestibule, and here, their Egyptian finds were displayed.

Mister Carver welcomed the Montgomeries, Captain D’Arcy and even Will with friendly politeness, the latter after looking his appearance over and nodding with satisfaction.

“Gentlemen, ladies, thank you for coming. I expect the other invited guests to arrive presently. I hope that you will enjoy this matinée to the fullest. I would ask Captain D’Arcy and Messieurs Montgomery and Potter to station themselves close to me during my welcome address!”

Obviously, Carver planned to name D’Arcy as the principal procurer of the exhibits. Although Will was a little piqued, he quickly reasoned that this would take attention away from him. A quick glance at Percy showed that his friend was harbouring similar thoughts.

“Did you read up on old Egypt?” Percy asked under his breath. “They’ll ask D’Arcy, and he’ll send them to us.”

“I found the second Volume of the Universal History in a book shop in Plymouth. What Gibbon wrote about Egypt only deals with the times of Julius Cesar and later. The Universal History goes much deeper.”

“I’ll have to borrow that from you,” Percy answered eagerly, but then he gave his friend a quizzical look. “You know, knowing how hard it was for you only last spring to understand history books, your ability to learn astounds me. You told me that all you had growing up was the Sunday school in Shaldon, and now you read up about the history of Egypt.”

Will shrugged. “Learning always came easy for me. Even in Sunday school, the Reverend gave me extra reading, and Master Williams taught me the numbers.”

Percy shook his head. “With the right family background, you’d be a captain already.”

Will shrugged again. “Who knows? I wouldn’t have been forced to volunteer, I wouldn’t have met Mister Evans, and I’d have missed out on meeting Abigail. I think I have it good.”

Percy nodded. “Valid points. Fate has been kind to you only after you volunteered.”

There was no way to continue this line of conversation, for the first invited guests arrived. Percy and Will stood near Mister Carver, together with their captain.

“If anybody asks me about Egypt, I’ll send them to you, Percy,” D’Arcy whispered. “I slept through history at Eton.”

It was telling that D’Arcy was already on a first name basis with Percy.

“We had better refer any questions to Will here. He’s taken up studying history in his spare time it would seem.”

D’Arcy gave Will an amused look. “Again you contrive to astound me, Mister Potter. What brought that about?”

“Mister Montgomery knew so much about history when we called at Malta. I became interested, and he let me have his old history book, Sir.”

“History, playing chess; Percy has a salutary influence on his fellow officers,” D’Arcy smiled, patting his future brother-in-law’s shoulder. “He’ll make a great captain one day.”

The vestibule was filling up with guests now, and most immediately wandered off to view the exhibits. Others stood together in small groups chatting idly whilst still others were mostly interested in the food and wines. A huge clock had chimed the half hour when Mister Carver spoke up.

“Dear guests and fellow philosophers! I wish to welcome you to my humble home and to the small but significant exhibit of artefacts from Egypt, which are jointly owned by my friends, Mister Montgomery and Mister George Harrington, whom you all know. We owe this opportunity to Captain Reginald D’Arcy and his officers of the Dido frigate, who, whilst supporting the recent successful campaign in Egypt, contrived to discover most of the pieces which are on display today.”

He interrupted, giving the three officers an opportunity to accept the polite applause. D’Arcy smiled at their host and shook his head.

“Gentlemen and ladies, this is too much praise for me. The recovery of these remnants from a long extinct empire is entirely due to the initiative of my 1st Lieutenant, Mister Percival Montgomery, and Mister William Potter. All I did was to sign their shore leave and to allow these exhibits to be stored in Dido’s hold.”

“I stand corrected,” Mister Carver smiled. “I ask you now to view the exhibits. If you have questions, we have amongst us at least three gentlemen who are knowledgeable of the ancient history of Egypt and their rulers, the Pharaohs. You should also know that the French expedition force discovered a stone stele showing the same text in three different scripts. The Army took possession of it on the occasion of the French surrender and gifted it to the King. It will be on display soon, hopefully allowing our learned members to decipher the heretofore unknown scripts.

“We also exhibit a stone figurine depicting the mythical Sphinx. This was loaned to us by Messieurs Montgomery and Potter. It is the first such sculpture to be seen in England. I wish you much enjoyment and enlightenment!”