The Card

The Card, A Story Of Adventure In The Five?by Arnold Bennett

The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Card, A Story Of Adventure In The Five
Towns, by Arnold Bennett This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net
Title: The Card, A Story Of Adventure In The Five Towns
Author: Arnold Bennett
Release Date: July 22, 2004 [EBook #12986]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CARD ***

Produced by Jonathan Ingram, Carol David and PG Distributed Proofreaders

WORKS BY ARNOLD BENNETT
NOVELS
A MAN FROM THE NORTH ANNA OF THE FIVE TOWNS LEONORA A GREAT MAN SACRED AND PROFANE LOVE WHOM GOD HATH JOINED BURIED ALIVE THE OLD WIVES' TALE THE GLIMPSE LILIAN MR. PROHACK LORD RAINGO IMPERIAL PALACE HELEN WITH THE HIGH HAND THE PRICE OF LOVE CLAYHANGER HILDA LESSWAYS THESE TWAIN THE ROLL CALL THE CARD THE REGENT THE LION'S SHARE THE PRETTY LADY RICEYMAN STEPS THE STRANGE VANGUARD ACCIDENT
FANTASIAS
THE GRAND BABYLON HOTEL THE GATES OF WRATH TERESA OF WATLING STREET THE LOOT OF CITIES HUGO THE GHOST THE CITY OF PLEASURE
SHORT STORIES
THE NIGHT VISITOR TALES OF THE FIVE TOWNS THE MATADOR OF THE FIVE TOWNS THE GRIM SMILE OF THE FIVE TOWNS ELSIE AND THE CHILD THE WOMAN WHO STOLE EVERYTHING
BELLES-LETTRES
JOURNALISM FOR WOMEN FAME AND FICTION HOW TO BECOME AN AUTHOR THE TRUTH ABOUT AN AUTHOR MENTAL EFFICIENCY HOW TO LIVE ON TWENTY-FOUR HOURS A DAY THE HUMAN MACHINE LITERARY TASTE THE FEAST OF ST. FRIEND HOW TO MAKE THE BEST OF LIFE THE RELIGIOUS INTERREGNUM MARRIED LIFE THE AUTHOR'S CRAFT LIBERTY OVER THERE BOOKS AND PERSONS SELF AND SELF-MANAGEMENT THINGS THAT HAVE INTERESTED ME THINGS THAT HAVE INTERESTED ME (Second Series) THINGS THAT HAVE INTERESTED ME (Third Series) THE SAVIOUR OF LIFE
DRAMA
POLITE FARCES CUPID AND COMMON SENSE WHAT THE PUBLIC WANTS THE HONEYMOON THE LOVE MATCH DON JUAN THE GREAT ADVENTURE THE TITLE JUDITH SACRED AND PROFANE LOVE BODY AND SOUL THE BRIGHT ISLAND MR. PROHACK
MISCELLANEOUS
THEIR UNITED STATE PARIS NIGHTS OUR WOMEN THE LOG OF THE "VELSA" MEDITERRANEAN SCENES
* * * * *
(In Collaboration with EDEN PHILLPOTTS)
THE SINEWS OF WAR: A ROMANCE THE STATUE: A ROMANCE
(In Collaboration with EDWARD KNOBLOCK)
MILESTONES LONDON LIFE

THE CARD
A STORY OF ADVENTURE IN THE FIVE TOWNS
BY
ARNOLD BENNETT
First Published (Crown 8vo), February 23rd, 1911
PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN

CONTENTS
I. THE DANCE 7
II. THE WIDOW HULLINS'S HOUSE 27
III. THE PANTECHNICON 48
IV. WRECKING OF A LIFE 71
V. THE MERCANTILE MARINE 89
VI. HIS BURGLARY 112
VII. THE RESCUER OF DAMES 132
VIII. RAISING A WIGWAM 153
IX. THE GREAT NEWSPAPER WAR 177
X. HIS INFAMY 196
XI. IN THE ALPS 218
XII. THE SUPREME HONOUR 240

THE CARD
CHAPTER I
THE DANCE
I
Edward Henry Machin first saw the smoke on the 27th May 1867, in Brougham Street, Bursley, the most ancient of the Five Towns. Brougham Street runs down from St Luke's Square straight into the Shropshire Union Canal, land consists partly of buildings known as "potbanks" (until they come to be sold by auction, when auctioneers describe them as "extensive earthenware manufactories") and partly of cottages whose highest rent is four-and-six a week. In such surroundings was an extraordinary man born. He was the only anxiety of a widowed mother, who gained her livelihood and his by making up "ladies' own materials" in ladies' own houses. Mrs Machin, however, had a speciality apart from her vocation: she could wash flannel with less shrinking than any other woman in the district, and she could wash fine lace without ruining it; thus often she came to sew and remained to wash. A somewhat gloomy woman; thin, with a tongue! But I liked her. She saved a certain amount of time every day by addressing her son as Denry, instead of Edward Henry.
Not intellectual, not industrious, Denry would have maintained the average dignity of labour on a potbank had he not at the age of twelve won a scholarship from the Board School to the Endowed School. He owed his triumph to audacity rather than learning, and to chance rather than design. On the second day of the examination he happened to arrive in the examination-room ten minutes too soon for the afternoon sitting. He wandered about the place exercising his curiosity, and reached the master's desk. On the desk was a tabulated form with names of candidates and the number of marks achieved by each in each subject of the previous day. He had done badly in geography, and saw seven marks against his name, in the geographical column, out of a possible thirty. The figures had been written in pencil. The pencil lay on the desk. He picked it up, glanced at the door and at the rows of empty desks, and a neat "2" in front