Darkness and Fog

By melissa amy

The Grill is the membership maximum hard of get entry to withinside the world. To be
located on its rolls distinguishes the brand new member as significantly as aleven though he
had acquired a vacant Garter or were caricatured in “Vanity Fair.”

Men who belong to the Grill Club in no way point out that truth. If you have been
to invite one in all them which golf equipment he frequents, he's going to call all shop that
precise one. He is afraid if he informed you he belonged to the Grill,
that it might sound like boasting.

The Grill Club dates lower back to the times whilst Shakespe

• Language: English
• Publisher: Amy Melissa
• Release date: Nov 4, 2022
• ISBN: 9791222020068

Book preview

Darkness and Fog

Amy Melissa

CHAPTER I

The Grill is the membership maximum hard of get entry to withinside the world. To be

located on its rolls distinguishes the brand new member as significantly as aleven though he

had acquired a vacant Garter or were caricatured in Vanity Fair.

Men who belong to the Grill Club in no way point out that truth. If you have been

to invite one in all them which golf equipment he frequents, he's going to call all shop that

precise one. He is afraid if he informed you he belonged to the Grill,

that it might sound like boasting.

The Grill Club dates lower back to the times whilst Shakespeare’s Theatre stood

on the existing webweb page of the Times office. It has a golden Grill which

Charles the Second provided to the Club, and the unique manuscript

of Tom and Jerry in London, which became bequeathed to it via way of means of Pierce Egan

himself. The participants, after they write letters on the Club, nevertheless use

sand to blot the ink.

The Grill enjoys the difference of getting blackballed, with out

political prejudice, a Prime Minister of every birthday birthday celebration. At the equal sitting

at which this type of fell, it elected, resulting from his brogue and his

bulls, Quiller, Q. C., who became then a penniless barrister.

When Paul Preval, the French artist who got here to London via way of means of royal command

to color a portrait of the Prince of Wales, became made an honorary

member--best foreigners can be honorary participants--he stated, as he signed

his first wine card, "I could instead see my call on that, than on a

photograph withinside the Louvre."

At which Quiller remarked, "That is a satan of a compliment, due to the fact

the best guys who can examine their names withinside the Louvre to-day had been

useless fifty years."

On the night time after the first-rate fog of 1897 there have been 5 participants in

the Club, 4 of them busy with supper and one studying in the front of the

fireplace. There is best one room to the Club, and one lengthy desk. At

the a long way stop of the room the hearthplace of the grill glows purple, and, whilst the

fats falls, blazes into flame, and at the alternative there's a large bow

window of diamond panes, which appears down upon the road. The 4 guys

on the desk have been strangers to every different, however as they picked on the

grilled bones, and sipped their Scotch and soda, they conversed with

such captivating animation that a traveler to the Club, which does

now no longer tolerate site visitors, could have counted them as buddies of lengthy

acquaintance, sincerely now no longer as Englishmen who had met for the primary

time, and with out the shape of an introduction. But it's miles the etiquette

and subculture of the Grill, that whoever enters it have to talk with

whomever he reveals there. It is to put into effect this rule that there's however

one lengthy desk, and whether or not there are twenty guys at it or , the

waiters, helping the rule, will region them facet via way of means of facet.

For this motive the 4 strangers at supper have been seated collectively, with

the candles grouped approximately them, and the lengthy period of the desk cutting

a white direction via the outer gloom.

I repeat, stated the gentleman with the black pearl stud, "that the times

for romantic journey and deeds of silly bold have passed, and that

the fault lies with ourselves. Voyages to the pole I do now no longer catalogue

as adventures. That African explorer, younger Chetney, who became up

the day before today after he became speculated to have died in Uganda, did not anything

adventurous. He made maps and explored the reassets of rivers. He became

in steady chance, however the presence of chance does now no longer constitute

journey. Were that so, the chemist who research excessive explosives, or

who investigates lethal poisons, passes via adventures daily. No,

‘adventures are for the adventurous.’ But one not ventures. The

spirit of it has died of inertia. We are grown too practical, too simply,

above all, too sensible. In this room, for instance, participants of this

Club have, on the sword’s point, disputed the right scanning of one

of Pope’s couplets. Over so weighty a count as spilled Burgundy on a

gentleman’s cuff, ten guys fought throughout this desk, every together along with his

rapier in a single hand and a candle withinside the different. All ten have been wounded. The

query of the spilled Burgundy worried however of them. The eight

others engaged due to the fact they have been guys of ‘spirit.’ They have been, indeed, the

first gents of the day. To-night time, have been you to spill Burgundy on

my cuff, have been you even to insult me grossly, those gents could now no longer

recollect it incumbent upon them to kill every different. They could separate

us, and to-morrow morning seem as witnesses towards us at Bow Street.

We have right here to-night time, withinside the humans of Sir Andrew and myself, an

instance of the way the approaches have changed."

The guys across the desk became and glanced closer to the gentleman in

the front of the fireplace. He became an aged and truly portly man or woman,

with a kindly, wrinkled countenance, which wore constantly a smile

of virtually infantile self belief and good-nature. It became a face which the

illustrated prints had made in detail acquainted. He held a ee-e book from him

at arm’s-period, as though to modify his eyesight, and his brows have been knit

with hobby.

[Illustration: 03 The men around the table turned]

Now, have been this the eighteenth century, endured the gentleman with

the black pearl, "whilst Sir Andrew left the Club to-night time I could have

him sure and gagged and thrown right into a sedan chair. The watch could now no longer

interfere, the passers-via way of means of could take to their heels, my employed bullies

and ruffians could bring him to a few lonely spot in which we might guard

him till morning. Nothing could come of it, besides introduced recognition to

myself as a gentleman of adventurous spirit, and in all likelihood an essay in

the ‘Tatler,’ with stars for names, entitled, allow us to say, ‘The Budget

and the Baronet.’"

But to what stop, sir? inquired the youngest of the participants. "And

why Sir Andrew, of all humans--why must you pick out him for this

journey?"

The gentleman with the black pearl shrugged his shoulders.

"It could save you him speakme withinside the House to-night time. The Navy Increase

Bill, he introduced gloomily. It is a Government measure, and Sir Andrew

speaks for it. And so first-rate is his have an effect on and so big his following

that if he does--the gentleman laughed ruefully--if he does, it will

cross via. Now, had I the spirit of our ancestors, he exclaimed, I

could convey chloroform from the closest chemist’s and drug him in that

chair. I could tumble his subconscious shape right into a