The Grand Babylon Hotel E-Book

Arnold Bennett

• Herausgeber: Arnold Bennett
• Kategorie: Poesie und Drama
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2016

Beschreibung

Enoch Arnold Bennett (27 May 1867 – 27 March 1931) was an English writer. He is best known as a novelist, but he also worked in other fields such as journalism, propaganda and film (font. Wikipedia)

Leseprobe

The Grand Babylon Hotel

Arnold Bennett

Table of Contents

The Millionaire and the Waiter

How Mr Racksole Obtained his Dinner

At Three A.m.

Entrance of the Prince

What Occurred to Reginald Dimmock

In the Gold room

Nella and the Prince

Arrival and Departure of the Baroness

Two Women and the Revolver

At Sea

The Court Pawnbroker

Rocco and room no. 111

In the state Bedroom

Rocco Answers some Questions

End of the Yacht Adventure

The Woman with the red hat

The Release of Prince Eugen

In the Night-time

Royalty at the Grand Babylon

Mr Sampson Levi Bids Prince Eugen good Morning

The Return of FÉ59 Babylon

In the Wine Cellars of the Grand Babylon

Further Events in the Cellar

The Bottle of Wine

The Steam Launch

The Night Chase and the Mudlark

The Confession of Mr Tom Jackson

The state Bedroom once more

Theodore is Called to the Rescue

Conclusion

Chapter one. The Millionaire and the Waiter

‘YES, sir?’

Jules, the celebrated head waiter of the Grand Babylon, was bending formally towards the alert, middle-aged man who had just entered the smoking-room and dropped into a basket-chair in the corner by the conservatory. It was 7.45 on a particularly sultry June night, and dinner was about to be served at the Grand Babylon. Men of all sizes, ages, and nationalities, but every one alike arrayed in faultless evening dress, were dotted about the large, dim apartment. A faint odour of flowers came from the conservatory, and the tinkle of a fountain. The waiters, commanded by Jules, moved softly across the thick Oriental rugs, balancing their trays with the dexterity of jugglers, and receiving and executing orders with that air of profound importance of which only really first-class waiters have the secret. The atmosphere was an atmosphere of serenity and repose, characteristic of the Grand Babylon. It seemed impossible that anything could occur to mar the peaceful, aristocratic monotony of existence in that perfectly-managed establishment. Yet on that night was to happen the mightiest upheaval that the Grand Babylon had ever known.

‘Yes, sir?’ repeated Jules, and this time there was a shade of august disapproval in his voice: it was not usual for him to have to address a customer twice.

‘Oh!’ said the alert, middle-aged man, looking up at length. Beautifully ignorant of the identity of the great Jules, he allowed his grey eyes to twinkle as he caught sight of the expression on the waiter’s face. ‘Bring me an Angel Kiss.’

‘Pardon, sir?’

‘Bring me an Angel Kiss, and be good enough to lose no time.’

‘If it’s an American drink, I fear we don’t keep it, sir.’ The voice of Jules fell icily distinct, and several men glanced round uneasily, as if to deprecate the slightest disturbance of their calm. The appearance of the person to whom Jules was speaking, however, reassured them somewhat, for he had all the look of that expert, the travelled Englishman, who can differentiate between one hôtel and another by instinct, and who knows at once where he may make a fuss with propriety, and where it is advisable to behave exactly as at the club. The Grand Babylon was a hôtel in whose smoking-room one behaved as though one was at one’s club.

‘I didn’t suppose you did keep it, but you can mix it, I guess, even in this hôtel.’

‘This isn’t an American hôtel, sir.’ The calculated insolence of the words was cleverly masked beneath an accent of humble submission.