diff options
Diffstat (limited to '41058-0.txt')
| -rw-r--r-- | 41058-0.txt | 11913 |
1 files changed, 11913 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/41058-0.txt b/41058-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..103a31d --- /dev/null +++ b/41058-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11913 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 41058 *** + +THE WIZARD OF WEST PENWITH, + +A Tale of the Land's-End; + +BY + +WILLIAM BENTINCK FORFAR, + +AUTHOR OF "PENTOWAN," "PENGERSICK CASTLE," +"KYNANCE COVE," &c., &c. + +PENZANCE: +W. CORNISH, THE LIBRARY, + +1871. + + +[Illustration: THE AWFUL RIDE. See Page 49.] + + + + +PREFACE. + + +In writing my Cornish Tales I have always endeavoured to pourtray the +Cornish character in all its native wit and humour, for which the +genuine west-country miners are so proverbial. And I have generally +taken for the foundation of my Stories incidents which have really +happened in the localities wherein the actions of my little dramas have +been laid. + +The scene of my present story is laid in the neighbourhood of the +Land's-End, and most of the characters were well-known there in days +gone by;--the names only being fictitious. + +The fall of the horse over the cliff is still in the remembrance of some +old people in the neighbourhood; and the circumstance is related by the +Guides who shew the beauties of the Land's-End scenery to strangers. The +marks of the horse's hoofs in the grass at the edge of the cliff are +preserved to this day. + +The Wizard (or Conjuror as he was called) was a notorious character at +St. Just, some fifty years ago;--and the horrid murder related in these +pages; and the mistaken identity of the guilty parties are also +veritable facts. + +Mr. and Mrs. Brown were well-known characters, and are drawn from real +life. + +This brief sketch of some of the scenes and characters to be found in +this little volume may perhaps add an interest to it, and induce a large +number of the lovers of Cornish lore to honour it with a perusal. + +PLYMOUTH, +March, 1871. + + + + +CONTENTS. + + +CHAPTER PAGE + I. Mr. Freeman 3 + + II. The Wreck near the Land's-End 8 + + III. Alrina 12 + + IV. The Unexpected Meeting 16 + + V. John Brown and his favorite mare Jessie 21 + + VI. The Family Party 25 + + VII. Murder most foul 30 + + VIII. The Wizard 36 + + IX. Love and Mystery 40 + + X. Alrina's troubles increase 42 + + XI. Frederick Morley obstinately determines to ride + the mare 45 + + XII. The awful ride 47 + + XIII. Its consequences 50 + + XIV. Mrs. Brown tells the Conjuror a bit of her mind 53 + + XV. The mysterious stranger at the Penzance Ball 56 + + XVI. Josiah's astonishment at the effect produced by the + display of his Treasure-trove 60 + + XVII. The borrowed feathers of the peacock fail to conceal + entirely the plumage of the jackdaw 64 + + XVIII. The birds have taken flight 67 + + XIX. The mysterious encounter 71 + + XX. Aristocratic connections 76 + + XXI. The Love-chase 81 + + XXII. Alrina's first Love-letter 88 + + XXIII. The Secret 92 + + XXIV. Man is born to trouble and disappointment as the + sparks fly upwards 98 + + XXV. Retrospection and recrimination 106 + + XXVI. Squire Pendray gets on his stilts and views + Lieut. Fowler from a lofty eminence 113 + + XXVII. The step in the wrong direction 117 + + XXVIII. By doing a little wrong, great good is accomplished + in the end 122 + + XXIX. Mrs. Brown and Mrs. Trenow indulge in a croom + o' chat, while Cap'n Trenow gives some sage + advice in another quarter 125 + + XXX. The two sisters pierced through the heart 134 + + XXXI. Out of Scylla and into Charybdis 139 + + XXXII. Alrina's troubles are increased by an unexpected + discovery 143 + + XXXIII. Alrina visits a kind friend and makes a proposal 149 + + XXXIV. Captain Courland's return and his wife's anxiety 154 + + XXXV. The desperate plunge 159 + + XXXVI. The broken reed 168 + + XXXVII. Josiah's lonely midnight watch in the Conjuror's + house 174 + +XXXVIII. The Search 179 + + XXXIX. The unexpected meeting and mysterious communication 184 + + XL. Miss Pendray's singular accident 191 + + XLI. Mysterious sounds are heard issuing out of the + earth at midnight. The curious cottage on the + heath 195 + + XLII. The poor dumb girl's sudden resolve, and its + consequences 202 + + XLIII. The Confession 206 + + XLIV. Mrs. Brown enjoys another croom o' chat with + Mrs. Trenow, and receives an unexpected + visitor 210 + + XLV. An awful catastrophe 219 + + XLVI. The dreaded interview 224 + + XLVII. Mysteries explained 229 + + XLVIII. A brilliant Cornish diamond discovered and + placed in a golden casket 232 + + XLIX. The wedding-bells 239 + + + + +The Wizard of West Penwith. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +MR. FREEMAN. + + +Very near the most westerly point of Great Britain, and not very far +from the promontory called Cape Cornwall, you may see, as you glide +along the coast in your pleasure-boat of a calm summer's evening, a +pretty little fishing-cove, in shape like a horse-shoe,--the two extreme +points being formed by the projecting rocks on either side of the +entrance,--the interior, or curved part, immediately under the main +land, having a beautiful beach of white sand, on which boats can land +with safety, when piloted by those who know the coast outside; for the +little cove is guarded by hidden rocks, and is as safe in rough weather +against invasion by the uninitiated, as if it had been fortified by a +range of well-appointed batteries. Above this beach the cliffs rise +gradually, and various zigzag footpaths are formed by the constant tread +of the sailors and others who frequent the cove in going to and coming +from the main land. + +About a mile inland is a village of some importance, inhabited by +sailors of various kinds, and miners and small farmers who occupy a few +acres of land, and fill up their spare time by working at the +neighbouring mines, either as mine labourers, or as carriers with their +horses and carts. + +This part of the coast of Cornwall is almost studded with mines, whose +lodes, for the most part, run out under the sea; and although they are, +consequently, very expensive to work, yet many of them have given large +and continuous dividends to the adventurers. + +As many of these rich mines were discovered by accident, it may easily +be imagined that the smallest indication of a metallic lode in the +neighbourhood causes great excitement, and often leads to the +expenditure of large sums of money in forming companies and searching +for the riches, which in very many instances are never found. + +The village of St. Just was not, at the period when our story commences, +the important place that it is at present;--it could even then, however, +boast of a tolerably comfortable inn in the square, and an inferior +public-house in the outskirts of the village. + +On a dark, tempestuous, winter's night, there sat in the kitchen or +public room of the inn, a goodly company, who had assembled to see the +old year out and the new year in--and more than this; for they would +also on this night witness the termination of one century, and the +commencement of another. A huge fire was burning on the hearth, and two +or three of the older men had ensconced themselves in the +chimney-corner. In those days the fire was made on the flat stones in +the chimney in these old houses, with wood and sticks, or peat; and +there was room round it, for those who did not mind the smoke, to sit +and enjoy a close proximity to the fire, while the others sat round +outside the fireplace, having a small table before them, on which was +placed the foaming eggy-hot, and the hot beer and sugar, made more +potent by the addition of an unlimited quantity of brandy. The wind was +howling dismally in the open chimney, and rattling the doors and +windows, as if angry at being shut out. As the night advanced the storm +seemed to increase; but the comforts of the bright fire and warm room, +and the good cheer before them, made the party feel the more happy and +exhilarated, from the reflection that they were sheltered from the storm +without. The song and jest went round, and many a thrilling story was +told by the elders in the chimney-corner, which made some of the younger +men draw closer to the fire and take an extra glass of the warm liquor +with which the table was supplied; for superstitious fear was indulged +in by all, more or less, in those days, and both old and young, rich and +poor, loved to hear a tale of horror, although it invariably made them +afraid of their own shadows, until daylight appeared again to dispel the +vapours of the night, and the toils of the day left no room for idle +thoughts or fancies. + +In the innermost recess of the chimney-corner, almost hidden by the +smoke, sat a sedate looking man, who appeared so absorbed in his own +thoughts, that he did not seem to take much interest in the tales that +amused and interested his companions so much, except that, when a tale +of more than usual horror was told, a slight smile would steal over his +countenance, and he would change his pipe from one side of his mouth to +the other. In years he might have been about fifty, but in appearance he +was ten years older at least; not from any natural defect or want of the +usual stamina and vigour generally displayed by men of his age, but from +an eccentric habit he had contracted of affecting the old man,--for what +reason was best known to himself. His habits and mode of life were very +different from those of Cornishmen generally;--he had come into the +neighbourhood some years before in a mysterious manner, but how he came, +or where he came from, no one seemed to know. He had acquired somehow a +good deal of useful knowledge, and therefore he had the power frequently +of working upon the superstitious fears of his neighbours; and, +although he did not pursue any particular trade or calling, he did not +seem to want for money, for he lived comfortably and paid liberally for +his supplies; and, although he was reserved and unsociable as a general +rule, yet he liked meeting his neighbours in the public room at the inn, +where he could sit in the chimney-corner and smoke his pipe, and listen +to their conversation, which he seldom joined in; and when he had +gathered from them all the information they could impart, he would +occasionally gratify them by telling some thrilling story. + +It was generally believed that he had something on his mind which +troubled him at times, but what it was no one could tell. There he sat, +as usual, on this tempestuous night, smoking his pipe and listening to +the conversation of his companions. + +At length one of the party, addressing him, said,-- + +"Come, Maister Freeman, we've all had our turn; now you tell es one of +your stories,--they be clain off, they be." + +"Well," said he, taking his pipe out of his mouth, and knocking out the +ashes on his hand, "I'll tell you a tale; but remember, mine are true +stories. The one I am about to relate happened in your own +neighbourhood. Your superstitious fears will, perhaps, make you afraid +to visit the spot again, if I tell it on such a terrible night as this, +after the stories you have already heard." + +"No! no!" exclaimed his audience, "out weth et, whatever 'tes, Maister." + +"Well, then," he began, "you all know the ruins of the old chapel above +Cape Cornwall, called Chapel Carn Brea, and the little hillocks that +surround it like graves in the churchyard." + +A shudder passed round the room at the mention of this well-known spot, +for it was believed by most people that those ruins of the old chapel +were haunted by evil spirits; so the little circle drew their seats +nearer to the chimney, and instinctively looked round, as if they +expected to see some sprite or pixey enter through the keyhole at the +bare mention of so uncanny a spot at this hour of the night. + +"Those little mounds or hillocks," continued Mr. Freeman, "are said to +be the graves of the Druid priests and ancient kings of Cornwall, and it +is also said that all their riches were buried with them; but it was +never known whether this was so or not, for no one had had the courage +to disturb the remains of these holy men. I had no such scruples,--so +one moonlight night, soon after I came here to reside, I took my pickaxe +and shovel, went up to the old ruins, and selected the largest mound and +began my work with a hopeful mind, for I believed that I should be +rewarded in the end by a rich booty. The earth on the top was soft and +easy to work, but as I got down it became harder. I worked with a will +for several hours, and got down several feet before the day began to +dawn. It was a lonely spot, in the dead of the night, to be working +in:--I could hear the waves as they dashed against the high cliffs under +Cape Cornwall, and I sometimes fancied I heard voices calling to me out +of the waves. I must confess, my courage nearly failed me, more than +once; but I took several pulls at my brandy-bottle, and thought of the +treasure underneath, and worked on. + +"When the day began to dawn I left my work, intending to come the next +night and finish it. I knew that no one would venture there if they +could avoid it, even in the daytime, but I did not wish to be seen +working there;--the sight of an open grave in that spot would, I well +knew, scare people away, even if anyone was bold enough to approach it +during the day. A few hours' work more, I thought, would bring me to the +bottom, and then I should reap my reward. So the next night I took my +tools again and repaired to the spot, when, to my utter astonishment, I +found the grave filled in, and all my labour lost. + +"In vain I looked about for some clue to the mystery; I could see no +one; so I set to work again, and soon threw up the loose earth, and came +down to the hard ground. I worked harder than any man ever worked for +his daily bread, and at last my pick touched something hard, which I +fancied at first was a rock. I carefully cleared the earth round it, and +found that it was a large stone slab, and, from the sound, I was +convinced it was hollow beneath. The moon was shining brightly, and +threw its light right into the grave, so that I could see the stone +distinctly, and could discern figures cut on it. Here, then, was the +coffin, no doubt; and it doubtless contained the coveted treasures. I +tried to raise the cover, but it baffled all my skill and strength;--I +found that the pit would have to be made much larger, and even then it +might require the united strength of two or three men to get the cover +up. I was then in the grave, which was deep enough to hide me entirely +from the view of anyone on the surface. While I was thus deliberating +what I should do, I heard a loud shriek just above my head. I got up, +with some difficulty, expecting to see some unfortunate traveller +transfixed superstitiously to the side of the grave, with his hair +standing on end, and his knees knocking together with fear and terror; +but there was no one to be seen. Again I was obliged to abandon my work +for the time, and again I returned the next night and found the grave +filled in as before. They say 'the third time is lucky,' said I to +myself,--so, nothing daunted, I went to work again, for I had now proof +positive that there was a hollow stone coffin underneath, which no doubt +contained the coveted treasure. + +"Who the intruder was I neither knew nor cared, except that I did not +like the trouble of going over my work so many times, but now I was +determined to complete it. + +"I got down to the stone slab again, and this time I had lengthened the +grave considerably at each end, and I thought I might be able to raise +the lid. I drove the point of my pick under the stone, and was about to +raise it, when I heard the same shriek I had heard on the previous +night,--and I felt at the same time a shower of earth falling all round +me. + +"'Self-preservation is the first law of nature,' and so, to escape being +buried alive, I scrambled out of the grave as fast as I could; and on +looking over the heap of earth, thrown up round the sides of the grave, +I saw a figure moving swiftly away,--but whether it was a man or a +woman, or an imp of darkness, I could not tell, for my toe slipped out +of the notch I had made for a footstep, and I fell headlong into the +grave again; but, fearing another shower of earth, I scrambled out the +best way I could, and went home, determined to give up my search after +riches; for I felt sure that, as I had failed the third time, it was +useless to attempt again." + +"Zackly like that," said the landlord, who had been busily supplying his +guests with more liquor at intervals, during the recital of the +tale;--"who wor she, I wondar?" + +"Who should she be but one of the pixies?" replied a tall, stout, +well-built young man, who had been listening with breathless attention +to the story. + +"Hould thy tongue, 'Siah Trenow," said an elderly man, rising from his +seat in the chimney-corner, and taking a long pull at the jug of hot +beer and sugar which the landlord had placed on the table;--"thee'st +nevar knaw nothen. I'll tell 'ee, na, tes like as this here. How could a +pixie handle a showl for to showley in the stuff again, I should like to +knaw; and where could a pixie get a showl from?" + +"What wor aw like, so fur as you could see, Maister Freeman?" continued +he, turning round to where that gentleman had been sitting a minute +ago,--when, to his astonishment, he saw that the seat was vacant. + +"Why he's gone like the snoff of a candle, soas!" + +"That's zackly like he, na," said the landlord; "he'll tell a story till +he do bring 'ee up to a point, and then lev 'ee to gees the rest; esn't +et so, Peggy?" + +"I'll tell 'ee, soas," said the young man who had been addressed as +''Siah Trenow,' but whose proper Christian name was 'Josiah,' "he do +knaw bra' things. Why, he ha' got a gashly g'eat room up there that +nobody can go in but he, where he do count the stars, so they do say." + +"Iss fie," said the landlord, whose name was Brown; "many people can +tell about the conjuring and things, up there." + +"Hush, Brown," exclaimed his wife; "you do knaw that when we lost so +many pigs you wor glad enough for to go to Maister Freeman for to knaw +something about them; and he tould 'ee, so you said, and you b'lieved +every word he tould 'ee,--so don't you bark nor growl. His dafter, Miss +Reeney, tould me last week that she shud think that Old Nick wor up +there sometimes weth her fe-a-thar, they do keep such a caparous,--and +I've got my thofts, too, soas!" + +"Come! come! Mrs. Brown," exclaimed 'Siah Trenow, rising up in an +excited manner; "don't you bring Miss Reeney's name in weth her +fe-a-thar's doings, or else I'll----" + +"Arreah! thon," replied Mrs. Brown; "that's the way the maggot do jump, +es et? Iss sure! Miss Reeney es a bra' tidy maid; an' f'rall she do +prink herself up so fine sometimes, and b'en to boarding-school, and all +that, and do knaw bra' things, she ha' got nothin' to do weth her +fe-a-thar's conjuring-room upstairs, I do believe in my conscience, +soas; and ef 'Siah ha' got a mind to her, there's wus than she a bra' +deal;--but he do hold his nose brave an' high, soas, don't aw?" + +"Miss Reeney esn't the only woman that do live in that house, you knaw," +said the old man who had spoken first, with a knowing wink. + +"No, sure, there's Miss Freeman herself," said Mrs. Brown, pursing up +her lips; "she's a good catch, they do say." + +"That's very well," said Mr. Brown, laughing at his wife's wit. + +"Brown," said that good lady, "mind your own business;--what have you +got to say about Miss Freeman, I shud like to knaw?" + +This remark shut up poor Mr. Brown entirely; and whether this discussion +of the merits and demerits of Miss Freeman and her niece Alrina +(familiarly called Reeney) would have proceeded much further, it is +difficult to say; for just at that moment a man, who had evidently been +out for a considerable time in the storm, burst into the room, and said +there was a vessel wrecked off Pendeen Point. + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE WRECK NEAR THE LAND'S-END. + + +The sound of a wreck was sufficient, at any time, to rouse the most +lethargic; and old and young rose at once, and left the comfortable fire +and warm mixtures, and crowded round the new comer to hear the +particulars. All he could tell them, however, was that there was a +vessel in distress off the Point; he and several others had heard the +gun. She was not a wreck yet, the man said, but it could not be long +before she must strike,--for the weather was terrific, and the wind was +blowing right in; so he ran up to the village to give the alarm. There +was not a moment's hesitation among the listeners,--everyone prepared to +go down to the Point at once. + +Some took ropes, and some took baskets, or bags, or whatever came to +hand; and each man got his lantern, and away they started to the scene +of distress. The wind was blowing a fearful hurricane, and the rain was +falling heavily, beating into the faces of the foremost, and almost +taking away the breath of the older and weaker of the party. As they +proceeded, others came out of their houses and joined them,--women as +well as men. On they went through the storm, with their hats and bonnets +tied down with handkerchiefs or pieces of string, to keep them from +being blown away. Noble creatures! thus to brave the storm on such a +night as this, for the sake of saving the lives and relieving the +sufferings of their fellow-creatures in distress. + +To save life, however, was not the only object these poor people had in +view; nor was it, I fear, the principal one with a great many. When a +vessel was wrecked on the Cornish coast, in those days, it was believed +by most of the lower orders, that all that was washed ashore, became the +undoubted property of anyone who was fortunate enough to pick it up; and +so a wreck was looked upon as a God-send, and everyone took care of +himself, and sometimes returned with a rich booty. + +At length they arrived at the Point, or as near it as it was prudent to +approach in this dreadful storm. The night was too dark for them to +distinguish the vessel; but as the gun was fired at intervals, the flash +enabled them to see that she was not far from the rocks, on which she +might strike at any moment, and all must perish; for no boat could go +out to their rescue, nor could a boat from the vessel live a single +moment in such a sea. + +Although the watchers remained some hundreds of yards from the Point, +the sea dashed up every now and then against the high cliff, and +drenched them with its spray; but still they continued to watch--their +lanterns giving out a dim line of light as they stood closely packed +together, sheltering one another from the wind and rain. Another gun was +fired, and the watchers saw that the vessel was close upon the breakers. +A dreadful shriek was now borne towards them by the wind, which was +blowing towards the shore, and now they knew that all was over and that +the vessel had struck, and was most likely dashed in pieces. + +Nothing more could be done till daylight appeared; so many of the +watchers sought the shelter of the rocks to wait for it, in order to +begin their work; for with that wind, and the tide beating in, the +contents of the vessel must wash on shore very quickly. The crew must +all have perished,--of that there was no doubt. The dreadful shriek +they had heard was that of the drowning crew. The only anxiety now was +concerning the valuables which might come in with the tide. + +As the day dawned, the storm abated a little, and, towards morning, many +of the villagers were seen approaching the Point;--among them, Mr. +Freeman was conspicuous. He came along feebly, keeping the even tenor of +his way,--now speaking to one, and then to another, as he was overtaken +and passed on the road by the more energetic and youthful of the +wreckers, who were all too intent upon the gains in prospect to pay much +attention to an infirm man, although they knew not in their haste and +thoughtlessness that their actions were watched and noted down in the +memory of one who did not often forget a slight. + +Long before it could properly be said to be daylight, the approaches to +the little cove were covered with people, watching for the prizes which +they expected every wave would wash in. The beautiful white sand was +covered with foam, and frequently a huge wave would come dashing in and +break beneath the very feet of the most daring and reckless of the +watchers, who had approached to the verge of the rocks which bounded the +innermost circle of the cove. + +No one, as yet, could venture on the sand with safety, and it was yet +too dark for the watchers to see far before them, for the daylight on +that tempestuous morning was a long time making its appearance. A long +and eventful year had just terminated, and the new year seemed very +unwilling to take up what the old year had left it to do; but the laws +of nature must be obeyed, and so the new year's morning came at last, +and, with it, the prizes so much coveted by the wreckers. + +Timber, casks, and boxes (some empty and some full) came washed in to +the very feet of those who were standing on the lowest rocks; but, +before they could reach them, they were carried out again by the +receding tide. There were some adventurous enough, however, to make a +grasp at the prizes as they came rolling in; but they would have met +with a watery grave, had they not been held back by the more prudent. As +the tide ebbed, it left the little cove comparatively free from danger, +and then many prizes were seized and carried away by the eager finders. + +Mr. Freeman having no wish or intention, apparently, to appropriate any +of the unfortunate sailors' property to himself, wandered about from one +place to the other, watching for the bodies that he knew must be washed +on shore soon, in order to ascertain, if possible, by the appearance of +the sailors, or from any papers they might have about them, the name of +the ship, and her cargo and destination. In the course of the day +several bodies were washed ashore; but, even in this short time, they +were so disfigured by the sharp-pointed rocks against which they had +been dashed by the angry sea, that there were no traces left in any of +them of the "human face divine," and even their clothes had been torn +off by the merciless rocks and waves. + +In the course of his wandering along the coast, Mr. Freeman surprised +several parties dividing and disputing about the property which had been +washed on shore in different parts. Here would be seen, perhaps, +half-a-dozen men quarrelling about the possession of a cask of wine or +brandy, and, in the _melèe_, the top would be knocked in, whilst, in +their eagerness to get at its contents, the cask would be overturned, +and the whole contents spilt on the sand. In another place might be seen +half-a-score women squabbling about the possession of a cask of fruit or +provisions. At length, in turning a sharp point of rock, he came +suddenly on a man and two women who were kneeling on the sand between +two rocks, intently examining the contents of a large sea-chest which +they had broken open. Mr. Freeman stood behind a rock for a few minutes, +concealed from their view, and watched their proceedings, as, one by +one, they took the things out of the chest, with the evident intention +of dividing the spoil. He had not before interfered with any of the +wreckers in their unlawful plunder, but he now stepped forward and +commanded them to replace all the things in the chest and put on the +cover. The two women started to their feet at once (for there was a +superstitious dread among the people generally at being "ill-wished" by +"The Maister" if they thwarted him); while the man remained kneeling +over the chest, holding in his hands the last article which he had taken +from it, in seeming doubt as to whether he had better put it back or bid +defiance to the apparently feeble form before him, when Josiah Trenow +jumped over a rock into the little cranny, and asked what was the +matter. + +"That chest," said Mr. Freeman, "must be taken care of; I have reasons +which I shall not make known at present. If you will get it taken to +some safe place, Josiah, I shall feel much obliged to you. In my own +house it will be safest, I think." + +"By all mains, sar," replied Josiah; "the best place I do knaw es your +awn house, Maister. So come, boy," continued he, addressing the man, who +was still kneeling by the side of the chest, and looking with longing +eyes at its contents, which seemed very valuable, "you and I'll carr'n +up." + +However reluctant the man was to relinquish the prize, he had not the +foolhardiness to oppose two such powerful antagonists. In stature and +physical strength and courage, Josiah Trenow was the acknowledged +champion of the parish, and very few men liked to be pitted against him, +either in the ring or in more serious combat; whilst Mr. Freeman's +well-known ability in foretelling the future and relieving those who +were possessed of evil spirits, and even ill-wishing people himself (as +they believed), rendered him an object of dread to the superstitious and +weak-minded, of which there were not a few in those days. Josiah had not +much difficulty, therefore, in procuring sufficient assistance to carry +the chest to Mr. Freeman's house. + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +ALRINA. + + +Mr. Freeman's house seemed, in many respects, as unsociable as its +master; for it was one of those oldfashioned farm-houses one meets with +occasionally in remote, out-of-the-way places, without having a farm +attached to it,--the farm formerly held with the house having been added +to an adjoining farm belonging to the same proprietor, on which there +happened to be a larger and better house. It was, even then, an +oldfashioned house, with an entrance-hall, if such it might be called, +into which you entered from the front door. On the right was the parlour +or best sitting-room, and on the left the common sitting-room where the +family generally sat. Opposite the front door were the stairs, and on +each side of the stairs there was a door,--the one leading into the +kitchen, and the other into the little back garden. Over the best +parlour was Mr. Freeman's private room, into which no one was permitted +to enter except those whose superstition led them to consult "The +Maister," as he was generally designated, and to seek his aid in +extricating them from some dire misfortune, and then great preparations +were made before the visitors were admitted into this mysterious room. + +Mr. Freeman was a widower--so it was said--and his sister kept his +house, and exercised strict dominion over his only daughter, a young +girl of eighteen. + +Miss Freeman, the sister, it was generally believed, knew more of her +brother's secrets than she liked to tell; and many a severe reprimand +did Alrina receive from her aunt for her curiosity, in trying to pry +into secrets which the elder lady thought she had no right to concern +herself about. Alice Ann, the servant of all work, was one of that +neighbourhood, and therefore spoke the broad Cornish dialect; but +Alrina, who had received a tolerably good education, as times went, had +not been infected by the dialect, which is so very contagious when +almost everyone speaks it around you. She had just attained her +eighteenth year; but, from her rotundity of figure, and womanly manners, +she might have been taken for a girl of that age two years before, at +least. She had been kept at a boarding-school in one of our large towns +almost from her infancy, and had seen very little either of her father +or aunt until recently, and therefore she knew little more of them, or +their habits and pursuits, than a stranger, until she left school about +twelve months before. In stature she was about the middle height,--very +fair, with bright auburn hair, which some were malicious enough to call +red, but "golden" would have been the more correct term. Red hair is not +generally admired, but there was such a golden hue cast over Alrina's +hair, that made her soft blue eyes look softer in the contrast. +Hogarth's line of beauty was displayed in the contour of her figure; and +such a pretty little foot and ankle might be seen as the rude wind waved +the drapery aside, when, like a fairy, she glided over the rocks--so +bold and varied on those high cliffs--that, taken _tout ensemble_, she +was just the very girl a man would fall in love with at first sight. +There were so many beauties visible at once, and such a happy +combination of them all; and then the pretty dimples in her cheeks, when +she smiled, betokened a temper mild and amiable, and yet with spirit +enough to resent a wrong, and assert her own rights against all the +world. And thus, although she was obliged to put up with many +indignities from her aunt, she managed, by her tact in yielding in minor +points, to have her own way in greater, and, to her, more important, +ones. + +Alrina was in the kitchen assisting Alice Ann on the morning after the +wreck, her aunt having gone into the village on some domestic errand, +and for a quiet gossip with some of her numerous friends. + +"Did my father say he would return to dinner, Alice Ann?" said Alrina, +as she prinked the paste round the edge of the pie she had just made. + +"No, he dedn't," replied Alice Ann. "When do he say what time he'll be +home, or where he's going to?" + +"I am tired of all this mystery," said Alrina;--"I wish I knew the +meaning of it all. That room upstairs puzzles me very much. I should +like to peep into it one day, and see where all the noise comes from, +when those 'goostrumnoodles' come here to know who has ill-wished them, +and wait in the best parlour while my father goes upstairs to prepare +the room for their reception." + +"So shud I too, Miss Reeney," replied Alice Ann; "but 'tes no good to +try, I b'lieve; for I tried to peep in through the keyhole one day, and +a blast of gunpowder came out and nearly blinded me." + +"Hush! here he comes," said Alrina, who heard her father's footstep in +the passage. + +"Alrina," said he, opening the kitchen-door, "give these men some beer +for bringing this chest up from the cove. Take it to the top of the +stairs, men, and I shall be able to put it under lock and key myself +till the proper owner comes to claim it." + +While the other men were taking the chest upstairs, and drinking their +beer, Josiah went into the kitchen to speak to Alice Ann, for whom he +had a sneaking kindness, as the gossips said, although Mrs. Brown tried +to insinuate that it was for the sake of the fair Alrina herself that +Josiah so strenuously defended the sayings and doings of the family. + +"You've had a bra' night of it, I s'pose," said Alice Ann,--"fust weth +your drink up to Maister Brown's, to watch in the new year, and then +weth your walk to Pendeen to watch in the wreck. What have 'ee picked +up, thon, 'Siah?" + +"Why nothin' at all, Alice Ann," replied he, "'cept the g'eat chest +that's carr'd up in the Maister's room." + +"What is that chest brought up here for?" said Alrina, returning from +giving the men their beer; "I think we've got lumber enough here +already." + +"So shud I, Miss Reeney," replied Josiah; "but I'd see the inside of a +good many things ef I wor you." + +"Come, Josiah," exclaimed Mr. Freeman, "we'll go down to the cove again; +there may be more valuables washed in, and more dead bodies +perhaps,--living ones I don't expect to see." + +Even the bright eyes of Alice Ann were not sufficiently attractive to +keep Josiah from trying his luck once more in search of the stray +treasures which the sea might yet wash in. + +While the men went down into the cove, and over the rocks, in search of +treasure, Mr. Freeman took the higher road which led to the Point, and +there he stood watching the waves as they dashed against the bold cliffs +and fell back again into the white foam beneath, enveloping all the +surrounding objects in a hazy mist. + +About a quarter of a mile from the promontory on which Mr. Freeman +stood, rose a large cluster of high rocks, over which the sea rolled at +intervals. As the mist cleared occasionally, Mr. Freeman fancied he +could see something move in a crevice of one of the topmost of those +rocks; but, after looking again and again, he began at last to think it +was nothing but imagination, for it seemed as if it was impossible for +any living creature to remain on those rocks so long in safety. He could +not rest satisfied, however, so he sought Josiah and brought him to look +at the object also. + +"'Tes a man or a woman, I do b'lieve!" exclaimed Josiah, after looking +on the object for some time through a glass which he had borrowed from +one of the wreckers; "but how he got there, or how long he'll stay +there, I don't knaw." + +It was impossible for any boat to go out, and it seemed almost certain +that he must perish, whoever or whatever it was. They made signals by +holding up their handkerchiefs tied to a stick, that the poor creature +might have the consolation of knowing he was seen, and cared for; and +that was all they could do. + +Night came on once more, and all hands returned to their homes to rest +after the fatigues of the past day and night, and examine the treasures +they had picked up. + +Josiah had been so much engaged in attending on Mr. Freeman, that he had +not succeeded in picking up anything worth carrying home. He thought, +therefore, he would remain at the Cove a little longer; so he stole +round the Point, and stooped down between two low rocks to conceal +himself until the others were gone; and as he stooped, he saw something +partially buried in the sand a few yards from him. At first he thought +it was a rock; but the waves, as they rolled over it, seemed to move it. +He watched for an opportunity when the waves receded, and at last he ran +out, at the risk of his life, and seized his prize. It was as much as he +could do to pull it up out of the sand, in which it was embedded;--he +succeeded, however, and got back to his hiding-place in safety, but not +without a good wetting, for a wave washed completely over him while he +was getting up the object of his cupidity, and he barely saved himself +from being carried out to sea, and that was all. It was a small box, +very strongly made, and very heavy. There was something valuable inside +it, he had no doubt; so he took off his coat, which was very wet, +wrapped it round the box, and made the best of his way home with his +treasure. + +The next morning Mr. Freeman was early at the Point, but could see +nothing of the object which had before attracted his attention, and he +supposed it must have perished;--but he did not like to give it up; and +towards the middle of the day, the sea having calmed down a good deal, +he induced some stout sailors to go out to those rocks, and see if there +was anything there or not. + +It was a perilous undertaking; but the boat was got ready and manned, +and four brave fellows started amid the shouts of their comrades on the +beach. After a severe struggle with the waves, they succeeded in getting +near the rocks, but it was impossible yet to land,--so they returned for +more help, and to wait till the tide was lower. They saw something lying +between two of the rocks, they said, but what it was they couldn't tell. + +When the tide was at its lowest, the sea having subsided yet a little +more, two boats were manned, and ropes and grappling-irons, and all that +was deemed necessary, were put on board; and this time two of the boats' +crew succeeded in landing on the rock, where they found a man, +apparently lifeless, grasping a sharp rock so firmly, that it was with +difficulty they were enabled to extricate him;--it seemed like a death +grasp; but, on examination, they found that he still breathed. They +brought him on shore and rubbed him, and poured a little brandy down his +throat, which revived him; and he was carried at once to the inn, where +every attention was paid to him. It was at first thought he would sink +from exhaustion and the want of food for so many hours, but, after a +night's sleep, he rallied so as to be able to thank his deliverers, and +to give them some information respecting himself, as well as of the +vessel which had met with such a melancholy fate. + +The ship was an East Indiaman, he said, returning to England with a +valuable cargo. The captain died on the voyage, and the mate was too +fond of the brandy-bottle, and flirting with the lady-passengers, to +attend to his duty, so he missed his reckoning and got on the rocks +before he expected, notwithstanding the warnings that were given him by +the sailors. The storm arose so suddenly that even the most wary were +caught. + +The lanterns on the cliffs deceived them too, he said; for they seemed +to be close to the edge of the cliff, whereas they were some distance +inland. The boats were launched, and filled, but he believed everyone +perished. He got hold of some spars that were floating round the wreck +when she broke up, and held on as long as he could, but was eventually +lifted on to the rocks, where he was so providentially found;--he got +jammed between two sharp rocks, and there he held on with all his might; +but he could scarcely keep his position, for when the storm was at its +height the sea washed over him continually. There were several +passengers on board,--some bringing home gold, and others indigo and +other kinds of wealth, but all had perished. He was one of the crew, he +said, and therefore had not lost much. The ship belonged to the East +India Company, and so he supposed they could afford to lose a little; +but he believed they had taken care of themselves by insurances. + +The poor man was well treated, and when sufficiently recovered a +subscription was made for him, and he was sent on to his friends. + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE UNEXPECTED MEETING. + + +Although Mr. Freeman was not at all inclined to be sociable or familiar +with his neighbours himself, yet he did not object to his sister and +daughter being on friendly terms with them;--indeed he rather wished it, +and was never more pleased than when they were visiting at the +farm-houses in the neighbourhood, or giving entertainments at home--at +which he was seldom seen except in some mysterious manner. Strange +noises would sometimes be heard in "The Maister's" private room, in the +dusk of the evening, before the candles were brought in; and, in the +midst of the terror of the visitors, and almost before the noises had +subsided, Mr. Freeman would walk quietly into the room, and relate some +thrilling story, and disappear again in the same mysterious manner. +These scenes would be talked over the next day by the gossips, and after +going the round for a few days, the most extraordinary additions would +be made and circulated. And so he became a man of great importance, and +was looked upon as a superior being, and people feared him and believed +that his powers were much greater than they really were. + +He was greatly assisted in obtaining information respecting his +neighbours, by his sister, who was a shrewd woman, and who by her tact +and cunning could lead on her friends imperceptibly to talk of their own +and their neighbours' private affairs. She would impart those secrets to +"The Maister," who stored them in his memory till opportunities arose +for using his information with advantage. And when those ignorant people +applied to him to be informed by whom they were ill-wished, or to +recover their property, perhaps, which had been stolen, he could guess +pretty nearly who the culprits were likely to be, having possession of +these little secrets (long since forgotten by them); and he would so +work upon their fears, that the property would be restored in some +mysterious way, and he then would have the credit for getting it back by +some supernatural agency. + +Alrina had a good deal of her father's fondness for the mysterious, but +in her it took a more romantic turn. She would spend whole days, +sometimes, in wandering over the cliffs and examining with curiosity the +ruins of chapels and ancient fortifications, of which there were several +in that locality; and the tumuli in the neighbourhood of the chapels, +supposed to contain the ashes of the Druids and other holy men, afforded +great scope to her imagination. Her father, as we have seen, was not +very regular in his habits--indeed it would not have suited his purpose +to be so--and her aunt was sometimes so intent on sifting out any little +secret gossip, and relating it to "The Maister," that Alrina was often +left for days without the supervision of either her father or aunt, and +so she wandered about alone. + +She was sitting, one fine morning after the shipwreck, under the shelter +of some high rocks at the Land's-End, watching the vessels as they +passed round the point--some inside and some outside the Longships, when +she heard herself addressed by some one overhead, and, on looking up, +she saw a handsome young man looking down on her from the rocks which +overhung her resting-place. It was some stranger, evidently, for he +merely said, "You seem fond of seclusion, fair lady;"--but when she +looked up, he exclaimed, "Alrina! can it be possible?" and in a moment +he was at her side. + +A crimson flush overspread her face, extending almost to the roots of +her hair, as she jumped up, and extended her hand towards the intruder, +who clasped her in his arms, while she exclaimed, without attempting to +extricate herself, "Are my dreams and hopes so soon realized? Where have +you been? How did you get here?" + +"I have surprised you, Alrina," replied he, pressing his lips to her +cheek; "and I assure you when I left England, two years ago, so +unexpectedly, I thought it would have been a longer separation; but it +was cruel of you, Alrina, not to keep your appointment that night, +knowing it was the last opportunity I had of seeing you before I quitted +England!" + +"Indeed, Frederick," replied Alrina, "it was not my fault. You know that +one of the servants at the school discovered our secret meetings in the +garden, and told Mrs. Horton, who had the window nailed up through which +I used to get out, and----" + +"Yes!" said the gentleman, hastily; "but I bribed the other girl, who +was not so scrupulous, to manage one more meeting, as it was the last +night before my departure, and she faithfully promised to do so." + +"Circumstances seemed to thwart us in every way," replied Alrina. "The +young lady who slept in my room was suddenly taken ill, just after we +went to bed, and the servant who betrayed us before was desired to +remain with her all night, so that I was a prisoner." + +"I see it all," said he; "and this explanation has relieved my mind from +anxious thoughts. But why did you not write me?" + +"That was impossible," replied Alrina; "for I was taken from school +almost immediately, and didn't know where to address a letter to you. I +wrote to your sister, who had been a day-pupil at the same school, and +through whom we first became acquainted, but, not having her exact +address, I suppose the letter never reached her." + +"Never mind, Alrina," said he, as he took a seat by her side in the +little sheltered nook she had before occupied; "we have met at +last;--and now I will tell you something more about myself and my +position than I thought it necessary to tell, or you to ask, in any of +our clandestine meetings,--we had other things to think of and talk +about then. I have since been knocked about in the world, and the +romantic passion of my boyhood has lost, perhaps, much of its romance, +but the love I then felt for you still remains in all its purity and +devotion." + +"I never doubted that," replied Alrina, looking fondly at him, as she +used to do;--for her romance had not been rubbed off by contact with the +world, but, on the contrary, had increased;--her life had been one of +romance and mystery from her childhood, and everything around her seemed +veiled in mystery. + +"I have never ceased to think of you, and to wonder where you had gone, +and whether I should ever see you again," she continued. "These rocks +have been my refuge from the monotony and mystery of home; and here I +have ofttimes given vent to my feelings, when I thought and knew I was +unobserved. But tell me," she continued, looking up into his fine manly +face with love and admiration, "where you have been, and what you have +been doing, since we last met." + +"I had just obtained my commission in the 63rd Regiment of Light +Infantry," he resumed; "and my fondest hopes, as I thought, were +realized when I met you walking in solemn procession with the other +young ladies of Mrs. Horton's seminary. I was struck with your +appearance, and I asked my sister, who was, as you have said, a +day-pupil at the same school, who you were. All she could tell me was +that your name was Alrina Freeman; and, I suppose, that was all I wanted +to know just then. She took a note to you from me, and the next time I +met the school procession, there was a mutual recognition; several notes +passed between us; and at last you consented to a clandestine meeting in +the garden. Our meetings were discovered. My regiment was ordered abroad +suddenly, and, owing to the circumstances already related, we did not +meet again before my departure. I returned with my regiment about a +month since, and made all the inquiry in my power, but without avail. I +went to the school. The mistress was dead, and the school given up. I +had a month's furlough; and, hearing that an old schoolfellow had an +appointment at a signal-station near the Land's-End, I packed up my +traps in a carpet-bag, and arrived at my friend's station, at +Tol-pedn-Penwith about a week since. My friend is a bachelor;--he is +several years my senior, but a right jolly fellow. His name is Fowler. +He introduced me to the squire's family at Pendrea-house. The squire has +been a queer old chap in his time, I believe; but his wife seems a good +old soul, and the two daughters are charming;--but the name of Freeman +was always in my thoughts. In the course of conversation after dinner at +the squire's the other day, some one said that there was a celebrated +conjuror residing near the Land's-End, whose name was Freeman. I felt a +thrill run through me at the name, and I determined on paying him a +visit; for I thought that if he was so clever as he was reported to be, +he might be able to assist me with some information respecting her I so +anxiously sought, especially as he bore the same name. You have heard of +him, I dare say. I came out to-day alone, determined to see the +conjuror, and get all the information I could before I returned; and +seeing a young lady go down over the rocks, I was seized with a little +romantic curiosity, and followed, when, as I looked over the rocks above +your head, I caught sight of your face, as you turned your head to watch +the course of a vessel which was passing. I was not quite sure even +then, not expecting to see you here,--so I spoke to you, as to a +stranger, and when you looked up at me I saw I was not mistaken; and +now," continued he, pressing her hand and laughing, "I need not go to +the conjuror." + +"I do not know that," said Alrina, in a thoughtful tone; "I think it is +most likely you will have to go to 'the conjuror,' after all, if you +wish to know anything more of my family, for the person you call 'the +conjuror' is my father." + +"Your father!" exclaimed Frederick, in great surprise. "No! no! you are +joking." + +"I am not, indeed," replied Alrina; "there is some mystery hanging over +my relatives, that I have never been able to unravel, especially as to +my father;--my mother I don't remember; she died when I was very young, +I believe. Where we resided before we came here I don't know. My father +is very clever,--there is no doubt about that,--and he manages to awe +the people here into the belief that he knows more than he really does; +and he has a mysterious room which is only entered by himself and those +whose fears and superstition he wishes to work upon. My aunt knows +something of these mysteries--how much I don't know;--but I know nothing +of them; I am kept entirely in ignorance; they don't seem to like to +trust me. Oh! how wretched it makes me feel; for I sometimes fancy it +may be too dreadful to be told, and then I come out alone, and wander +over the rocks, and think of those few happy moments of my life, never +to be forgotten. It is very, very hard to feel that no one has +confidence in me;" and she burst into tears. + +"Don't distress yourself about these things now, dearest Alrina," said +her companion, taking her hand. "I will protect you with my life; and I +will see the conjuror and his secret chamber before I leave this +neighbourhood, and bring him to his bearings, or my name is not +Frederick Morley!" + +"Oh! but if there should be some dreadful secret," replied Alrina, +sobbing, as her lover pressed her to his heart, "we could never be to +one another as we have hoped; and now that you know who my father is, I +fear you will look cold upon me too, like the rest of the world, and +that would kill me. Oh! Frederick, after all my dreams of happiness, if +I should lose your love when I feel I want it most, and when the fondest +hope of my life seems almost realized by your return so +unexpectedly,----" + +"My dearest Alrina," said Morley, "you will find no change in my +affections or feelings. I will sift this secret out to the end, cost +what it may, and nothing shall separate us now." + +Thus did the two youthful lovers talk on, until it was time for them to +separate; and so earnest were they in their conversation, and on the +renewal of their former loves, that they did not perceive the head that +was projecting from the overhanging rocks, nor the eager eyes and ears +which had seen and heard all that had passed between them. + +"Ho! ho!" exclaimed the individual to whom the head belonged, as it +walked quietly away, when the interview between the two lovers was +drawing to a close; "secrets worth knowing!" + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +JOHN BROWN AND HIS FAVOURITE MARE "JESSIE." + + +Mr. and Mrs. Brown, who now kept the "Commercial" inn at St. Just, had +formerly lived, for many years, in the service of one of the ancient +aristocratic Cornish families in that neighbourhood,--the one as +coachman, the other as cook. Mr. Brown was rather effeminate and +methodical in his manners and habits, and particularly neat in his +dress. His hair, which he always kept short, was as smooth and sleek as +one of his master's coach-horses. He invariably wore a brown coat, +always nicely brushed, with light waistcoat and breeches; a white +neckerchief enveloped his neck, in which was enclosed a thick pad, and +tied in a neat little bow in front. His hat, which he wore continually +indoors and out, always looked as if it had just come out of the +hatter's shop; and as to his shoes!--if Mr. Brown was more particular in +one part of his dress than another, it was in the polish of his shoes, +which did credit to "Warren's Jet Blacking" and their master's energy +and skill,--for he invariably gave them an extra polish himself before +he put them on of a morning, after Bill, the stable-boy, had done his +best. If he was not quite the first groom of the chamber indoors, where +his wife held rule, he could certainly boast of being first groom of the +stall, when he got into the stables, where it was natural to suppose he +was in his element, from having been so many years coachman in a +gentleman's family. + +He was a good judge of horseflesh, and had the sweetest little mare in +the stable that you would wish to set your eyes upon--a perfect picture +of a horse--a bright bay, with black tail and mane. And, although it was +January month, when most horses have their winter coats, yet, what with +grooming and clothing, and regular feeding and exercise, Mr. Brown's +mare Jessie was as sleek and smooth as if it had been the height of +summer, so well was she taken care of and petted by her master. This was +his hobby, and in this he spent most of his time, and a good deal of his +spare cash. + +If Mr. Brown was too effeminate for a man, Mrs. Brown was certainly too +masculine for a woman,--at least so Mr. Brown thought sometimes, +although he had neither the courage nor the ill manners to say so. She +was neat, in her dress also, but not quite so particular as her husband. +A chintz gown, looped up through the pocket-holes,--a large coloured +silk handkerchief thrown over her shoulders, and pinned down in front +and confined at the ends by the wide string of her cheque apron, formed +the general character of Mrs. Brown's dress; and, like her husband, she +invariably wore her bonnet indoors and out. + +The general business at "The Commercial" was not very extensive, but as +Mr. and Mrs. Brown had no children, and had saved a little money, they +kept on the house--which was their own property--more for amusement than +profit. They kept one servant indoors (a sort of maid-of-all-work), +whose name was Polly, and a boy in the stables to attend to Jessie the +mare, and do other little jobs to help the women. Mr. Brown made himself +useful in the house if required, when customers came in, by drawing beer +and attending to their wants, but he never did a single thing without +calling some one to help him; sometimes it was Polly, and sometimes +Billy, and sometimes even Peggy his wife; but he generally, poor man, +had to do the work alone, whatever it was, although fortunately it was +never very laborious. + +On the afternoon of the day on which the two lovers met at the +Land's-End point, Mr. and Mrs. Brown were sitting in the kitchen +alone,--the latter having sent Polly upstairs, to brush up a bit, while +she went on with some work she had in hand for her husband. She was +knitting him a pair of white lamb's-wool stockings, for general wear, if +the truth must be told. + +"I wish the boy was come to take the mare out a bit, I think," said Mr. +Brown, "this beautiful afternoon. I shall go out a mile or two myself if +he don't come soon." + +"I tell 'ee what et es, Brown," said his wife; "there's more fuss made +about that mare than ef she'd b'en a cheeld. I'd have a glass case made +for har ef I wor you!" + +"Don't 'ee be vexed, Peggy, 'cause I do take care of the poor thing. +There's the boy coming, I do believe," said he, rising from his seat, +and going towards the door. "Your sarvant, sar," he continued, as he met +a tall handsome young man in the passage; and without waiting for a +reply from the stranger, he returned to the kitchen, rubbing his hands, +followed by the stranger, and exclaiming, "Bless my life, Peggy! bless +my life!--es the best bedroom ready upstairs? here's a gentleman, my +dear!" + +"Gentleman sure 'nuff!" said his wife, looking unutterable things at her +husband, and curtseying at the same time to the stranger;--"gentle or +semple is all the same to you, I believe, John Brown." + +"Now, don't put yourselves out of the way for me, my good friends," +said the stranger; "all I want is something to eat at once, and a +'shake-down' here for a night or two." + +"We've got nothing in the house to eat, I do believe," said Mr. Brown; +"have us, Peggy? And as to a 'shake-down!'--why we don't have many +visitors here to sleep!" + +"Brown!" said his better half, in an authoritative tone, "go and look to +the mare!"--and she pointed significantly to the door, through which Mr. +Brown made his escape, calling Billy, by way of covering his retreat, +without being further exposed to the stranger; for he saw he had gone a +little too far, in taking it upon himself to answer for what could or +could not be had in the house. + +The stranger, in the meantime, had thrown himself carelessly into Mrs. +Brown's seat, and extended his legs before him, as if he was quite at +home, and was accustomed to make himself comfortable wherever he +happened to be. + +"Now then, Mrs. Brown," said he, "a glass of your best ale to begin +with, and then something to eat, for I'm devilish hungry." + +"I can give 'ee some eggs and a rasher at once, sar," replied Mrs. +Brown; "but ef you can wait 'bout half-an-hour or so, you shall have a +roast fowl and taties." + +"I'll have the eggs and bacon by all means," said he; "I couldn't wait +half-an-hour for all the fowls in your yard;--and while you are dressing +the eggs and bacon, I will try if I can get some one to fetch my +carpet-bag." So he sauntered into the stable, where he found Mr. Brown +admiring his mare Jessie. + +"Isn't she a beauty, sir?" said the landlord, combing his horse's tail +with a comb he kept in his pocket for the purpose. + +"She is a handsome creature, certainly," said the stranger, looking at +the mare with the eye of a connoisseur; "but what can you possibly want +with a horse of that kind in this rough country?" + +"That's to me, sir--asking your pardon," replied Mr. Brown, touching his +hat. + +"Oh! of course, of course," said the stranger; "I meant no offence. I +came out to know if you could get anyone to go to Tol-pedn-Penwith +signal-station, where I have been staying, for my bag." + +"Tol-pedn-Penwith signal-station, sir!" replied Mr. Brown; "why that's +Lieutenant Foster's 'cabin,' as he calls it, near Lamorna Cove?" + +"That's the place," said the stranger;--"could you send anyone?" + +"Yes, sir, certainly; when my boy Bill do come in, he shall take the +mare and ride down there,--it'll be very good exercise for her this fine +a'ternoon. Drat the boy, I wish he was come!" + +Bill soon made his appearance, and was despatched on the mare with a +note to Lieutenant Fowler, written on a leaf torn from the gentleman's +pocket-book, while Mr. Brown walked round the mare twice, and used his +comb on her tail and mane. + +"Isn't she a beauty, sir?" said he, as the boy cantered off. "Easy! +easy, now!" exclaimed Mr. Brown, calling after the boy; "ride her +gently. Wo! ho! Jessie! gently, lass, gently!" + +These remarks might as well have been addressed to the wind as to the +boy or the mare, who seemed both intent on a gallop, and away they went +at full speed. + +"Drat the boy," said Mr. Brown; "he'll wind her--that's a sure +thing--one of these days; and then where'll the money come from to buy +another? But no money could do it! Why, I wouldn't take a hundred +guineas for that mare, sir, if it was offered to me to-morrow morning! +she's worth her weight in gold, sir, that mare is!" + +"Don't fidget about the mare, Mr. Brown," said the gentleman; "she'll be +all right; a little gallop will do her good. And now I shall try Mrs. +Brown's cookery,--it smells very good;" and he returned into the house +to appease his appetite, while the landlord went into the stable to +lament once more over the wilfulness of that scamp of a boy, as he +called him, and to see that all things were ready for his pet when she +came back. And, having done all this, he returned to the kitchen, where +he found the stranger smoking a pipe in the chimney-corner after his +frugal repast, and chatting with Mrs. Brown as if they had been old +acquaintances. + +"Come, Mr. Brown," said he, "I'm going to have a glass of brandy and +water, and you must take one too; so mix them, if you please, and come +and tell me all the news." + +"Polly! come and get the hot water and sugar for the gentleman," said +the landlord, calling to the maid, who was upstairs, as he went towards +the bar to get the two brandies. "Come, Poll! Poll! Polly!" But as Polly +did not come, he was obliged to bustle about himself; for he received no +help from his wife, although he called to her several times from the +bar. At length all things were placed on the little table, and the +stranger began to ask about "The Conjuror." + +"The what!" exclaimed Mrs. Brown, dropping her needles, and looking up +in surprise and alarm,--while poor Mr. Brown stopped short in the act of +putting his glass to his lips. + +"Hallo!" exclaimed the stranger; "you look as if you had heard some +fellow talking treason against His Most Gracious Majesty the King--God +bless him!"--and the stranger lifted his hat, which he had kept on out +of compliment to his host and hostess. "I mean Mr. Freeman, then," he +said, correcting himself; "I have heard such wonderful accounts of him, +that I should like to know what he can really do." + +"He would shaw you what he could do, very soon, ef he heard you speak +that word, I reckon," replied Mrs. Brown, getting up from her seat and +going to the door of the kitchen, and looking into the passage and +closing the front door. + +"He doesn't like being called a 'conjuror,' then," said the stranger. + +"Like it?" said Mrs. Brown, drawing her chair nearer to the +chimney-corner; "iss,--just as much as you would like to be called '_no +conjuror_!'" + +"That's very well," said Mr. Brown, venturing on a laugh, now that his +courage was being wound up by the brandy and water. + +At this moment there came a clatter down the road, as of a horse at full +gallop. + +"Drat the boy!" exclaimed Mr. Brown, rising in great excitement; "he +can't be come a'ready, can aw? To ride the mare like that es too bad! +too bad! I'll kill 'n ef 'tes he. Iss fie! tes; for she's stopped at the +stable-door. Dear lor'! Polly! Polly!" + +When Mr. Brown went out, followed by the stranger and Mrs. Brown, there +was the mare sure enough, standing at the stable-door without a rider, +trembling from head to foot, and covered with foam and mud, with +scarcely a dry hair on her body. + +"Drat the boy!" exclaimed Mr. Brown; "he's killed--that's a sure +thing--and the mare is ruined. Wo! ho! my darling; wo! ho!" And he took +the mare's nose into his arms, and caressed it as if it had been a +favourite daughter, while the stranger examined her all over, but could +find no wound or injury whatever. She had evidently been frightened, for +she was trembling still. They led her into the stable, and then began to +think of the boy. + +"I'd go and search for him," said the stranger, "but I don't know which +way he went." + +"No, nor yet I," said Mrs. Brown; "there's no knowing where that boy do +go, when he's out; he's mighty fond of taking the narrow roads and bye +lanes instead of the high road. There's two or three ways of going to +Tol-pedn-Penwith from here; and like enough he went the way that nobody +else would go ('cept 'The Maister')." This latter sentence she spoke +almost in a whisper. + +"While we are talking here, the boy may die," said the stranger, "if +he's thrown and seriously hurt." + +"The mare is all right," said Mr. Brown, coming out of the stable; "and +now, if missus will get Polly to make a 'warm mash,' and give it to her +at once, you and I'll go, sir, and see what can be done for the poor +boy." + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +THE FAMILY PARTY. + + +The two young officers had been invited to dine at Pendrea-house on that +day, at two o'clock--the squire's usual dinner-hour. Lieut. Fowler had +some writing work to do--rather an unusual occupation for him. However, +as it was a report to be sent to head-quarters, which he had put off +from day to day, he said to his friend in the morning, during breakfast, +"The writing be blowed! but 'needs must when the devil drives!' so you +go out, old fellow, and take a stroll, and leave me here to kick my +heels under the table for a few hours. Two o'clock sharp, mind, and then +we'll put our legs under the squire's mahogany, and tuck into his old +port like trumps. That's an amusement which suits me a devilish deal +better than quill-driving, if I must tell the honest truth for once in +my life." + +Two o'clock arrived, but Morley did not make his appearance. "The deuce +take the fellow," soliloquised the lieutenant; "he'll lose his dinner +and get out of the squire's good books. By Jove! though, perhaps he went +in to have a lark with the girls in the morning, and so he did not think +it worth while to come back. I'll just wash the ink off my paws, and +toddle down as quick as I can; the squire won't like being kept waiting. +'Tis devilish lucky the old chap doesn't require a fellow to dress for +dinner every time he tucks his legs under his mahogany;--I don't like +getting into harness very often, unless duty calls--and then we must +obey." + +While the jovial officer is washing his hands, we will just look round +his little "cabin," as he called it. + +The little dwelling in which the commander of the signal-station +resided, was certainly fitted up more to resemble a cabin on board ship, +than the habitation of a landsman. On the ground floor there was a small +room, or lobby, into which you entered at once from the front door. +Opposite this door there was a door leading into the sitting-room, and +beyond that another door led from the sitting-room into the kitchen. On +the right, as you entered the lobby, were the stairs, leading to the two +bedrooms, which led one into the other, like the rooms below. And in the +ceilings were fixed iron rings, to which the hammocks were slung at +night, and unshipped by day, the same as on board ship, so that these +rooms might also be used as sitting-rooms, if required, in the daytime. + +There were three men kept at each of these stations, besides the +officer, and they had a separate cabin appropriated to them, adjoining +the principal one. Their duty was to attend upon the officer; hoist +signals of flags and balls, to give notice of the approach of an enemy's +ship; or to signal to English ships orders from head-quarters. And these +signals could be communicated to and from London in a very short +time,--although not so quickly, nor so accurately, as by the telegraph +of the present day. + +It was not long after two when Lieut. Fowler got down to Pendrea-house, +where he found the squire with his watch in his hand. + +"Half-an-hour is soon lost, my boy," said the old gentleman, as the +lieutenant entered the drawing-room; "but where is your friend?" + +"Hasn't Morley been here, sir?" asked Fowler, in some surprise. + +"No," replied the squire, "I haven't seen him,--have you, girls?" + +This last question was addressed to two young ladies, whom Lieut. Fowler +now approached, and greeted as old acquaintances. They had seen nothing +of Mr. Morley, they said, since the day before, when they had all walked +to Lamorna Cove together. + +"That's queer," said the squire; "but he's a stranger, and may have +missed his way,--so we'll give him a quarter-of-an-hour's grace." + +And during this quarter-of-an-hour--the most awkward one in the whole +twenty-four hours--we will introduce the reader more formally than we +have hitherto done, to Squire Pendray and his family, the present owner +and occupiers of Pendrea-house. + +The squire was a purse-proud man, who had made a good deal of money, no +one knew how, and purchased Pendrea estate many years before. He wished +to rank among the ancient aristocracy of the county,--and his wealth +enabled him to mix with them, and to be on a seeming equality; but in +those days ancestral pride was very strong, and those who could boast of +an ancient aristocratic pedigree, however limited their means might be, +looked down with contempt on the man of a day, who had nothing but his +riches to recommend him. The rich man was tolerated and patronized for +the sake of his wealth, but he was still looked down upon as an +inferior. Squire Pendray was one of these. But he was as proud of his +riches as they were of their pedigree, and so he did not see nor care +for their patronizing airs;--besides, he, in his turn, patronized those +whom he considered inferior to him in wealth, and he was satisfied. Some +said he was connected with the smugglers, and that they brought goods up +to some of his subterranean vaults, through a secret passage which led +from a cavern at Lamorna Cove up to Pendrea-house. Where the entrance +from the house to these subterranean vaults was, no one could tell but +the squire himself. + +Mrs. Pendray was a homely, good sort of woman,--kind and hospitable, and +very much beloved by the poor of the parish, to whom she distributed her +bounties with a liberal hand. + +Her two daughters will require a more elaborate description; for they +were considered the "belles" of the west, and were toasted by all the +young men of the neighbourhood at their after-dinner orgies--a custom +very prevalent at that period. + +The elder of the two sisters, Matilda--or Maud, as she was generally +called--was a brunette, with dark hair and eyes, and a profile so +regular and perfect, that, when the countenance was still and in repose, +as it were, you might, without a great stretch of imagination, have +fancied it a piece of tinted sculpture,--but the slightest thing would +rouse it into animation, and then the dark eyes would flash like a +piece of polished steel when struck by the electric fluid. She wore her +hair in bands, which contrasted well with her high intellectual +forehead, and added dignity of expression to her handsome features. Her +stature was lofty, and her form elegant and symmetrical; and when she +walked across the room there was majesty in her step, as if her foot +disdained the ground it trod upon. She delighted to wander out alone +over the highest headlands, when the wind was raging with its wildest +fury, and to stand and watch the foaming waves, as they surged and +dashed against the perpendicular cliffs, until she was saturated with +the spray and in danger of being blown over into the abyss beneath. + +Blanche was as unlike her elder sister as it was possible for her to be. +She was fair, and her beautiful auburn hair hung in graceful ringlets +over her soft young cheeks, as if to hide her blushes, which the merest +trifle would call forth. She was just seventeen. Her sister was four +years older; but, in person and manners, you would think there was a +greater difference of age between them. While Maud walked out to witness +the storm in all its majesty, from those bold cliffs, Blanche would take +some quiet book of poetry, and sit alone, and read, in the little room +upstairs, which their mother, years ago, had set apart for her two +daughters. And when the early spring brought soft and balmy sunshine, +Blanche would take her book and wander out alone--not to the towering +cliffs, and bold headlands, but along the sheltered paths which led down +to Lamorna Cove, gathering wild flowers by the way. And there she would +watch the rippling waves, as they came dancing in over the beautiful +white sand, sparkling in the sunshine; and when her eyes were weary with +watching the calm unruffled sea, she would sit beneath some sheltered +rock, and read, and weep over some sad tale until her eyes grew dim, and +then would rise again and search for some rare shell, or tiny piece of +seaweed, she had read or heard of, as being found at Lamorna Cove. + +Lieut. Fowler, whose occupation caused him to wander everywhere along +the coast, in search of smugglers, or enemies' ships, would often come +suddenly on one or other of the sisters, and would then escort them home +and dine with the old squire, who liked him, and was fond of having him +there to while away an afternoon in social chat; for the lieutenant, +although not more than thirty years of age, had seen a little service, +and could tell tales that even Maud would sit and listen to. But, for +the gentle Blanche, those tales of hardship and suffering, and deeds of +daring, and hairbreadth escapes, had a deeper charm than she dared to +confess even to herself. He was not a handsome man by any means, but he +had a fine noble bearing, and courage and daring were marked in his +broad forehead. He was sometimes the only person they saw for weeks, +and, therefore, the two sisters enjoyed his society, and were always +glad when their papa asked him to dine. He admired them both, and not +being in a hurry to marry, or having been knocked about too much in the +world to have time to think of it, he did not see the danger he was +daily and hourly incurring by being on such intimate terms of friendship +with these two fascinating girls. + +The old squire was very fond of his children, indulging them in most of +their caprices, and he did not see any danger or impropriety in allowing +them to be on intimate terms of friendship with a man whom he himself +liked so well, and who was, in fact, so necessary in assisting him to +pass away his time, with pleasure and comfort, in that dull +out-of-the-way place. It had also been a great pleasure to the squire's +family to receive the lieutenant's friend, Frederick Morley, at their +house; for he, too, was a very gentlemanly man, had seen a good deal of +the world, and could tell them of foreign scenes and manners, which very +much delighted them all. He was more romantic and impressible than his +friend. It was therefore evident that Miss Pendray preferred his society +to that of the more matter-of-fact Lieut. Fowler, and would take him to +her favourite wild cliffs, and point out the beauties she saw in them, +to which he listened with marked attention, entering into her feelings, +and admiring her pursuits, more than any other man she had been +accustomed to meet; but still there was something sad in his manner, +sometimes, which she could not account for. It seemed to her as if he +had met with some heavy affliction in days gone by. This thought was +impressed on her more than ever to-day; for he had not arrived in time +for dinner,--so they sat down without him. As the day passed slowly on, +and he did not appear, it made the whole family think the more of him. +After dinner, Miss Pendray asked Mr. Fowler if there was anything +pressing on his friend's mind, as, she said, she had often observed him +sad and thoughtful, when all had been merry and cheerful around him. Now +that the subject was mentioned, everyone seemed to have observed the +same; and they urged the lieutenant to tell them--if he knew, and it was +not a secret which he felt bound to keep--what it was that made the +young soldier look so sad at times when others were gay. + +"My friend, Frederick Morley, has been a romantic dreamer all his life," +said the lieutenant. "He was the same at school,--sometimes as gay and +reckless as the worst of us, and at other times sad and low-spirited, +even when his companions were in their gayest mood. About two years ago, +before he went abroad with his regiment, poor Fred had a romantic +love-affair at the town in which his regiment was quartered. His sister +was living in the same place, with her aunt; and Fred fell desperately +in love with a boarding-school miss, and as his sister was a day-pupil +at the same school, she was the messenger between them. Since his +return he has searched everywhere for the girl, but cannot succeed in +finding her. This much he has told me, but he will not divulge her name. +So you see, ladies, my poor friend has enough on his mind to make him +sad." + +"Yes," replied Miss Pendray; "but this affair is of recent date, and you +say he was the same at school;--it was not a love-affair then, I +presume." + +"Oh! no," said the lieutenant, in a grave tone; "there was another cause +for his melancholy then, but that is all blown over, and therefore, +perhaps, it is as well to leave it rest in oblivion. He never speaks of +it now, and so, I suppose, he wishes it to be forgotten." + +"Oh! do tell us, Lieut. Fowler," said Blanche. "Poor young man! it must +have been some dreadful tale, I'm sure, to prey on his mind thus, for so +many years;" and she looked at him so beseechingly, that he could not +refuse,--indeed, why should he decline to make his friends acquainted +with the history of a young man whom he had introduced to their house? +The story threw no disgrace on his young friend; and if he scrupled to +tell them the true story, they might suspect it was some crime or +indiscretion which his friend had himself been guilty of. So, looking at +the sweet girl who sat opposite him, with her fair curls thrown back +from her face, the more easily to catch every word that was spoken by +him whose tales she loved to hear, he said he would relate the story as +well as he could. But it was a sad tale; and as it is likely to be a +long one, and probably an interesting one, we will give it a chapter to +itself. + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +"MURDER MOST FOUL." + + +"My friend's father," he began, "was an East-Indian merchant. He married +a native, by whom he had three children--two sons and a daughter. The +eldest son was several years older than the other two children, and he +received the best education that could be got in India, and was taken +into his father's factory to assist him, when he was very young. Their +mother died soon after the birth of her daughter; and, when they were +old enough, it was thought advisable to send the two younger children to +England, under the care of their aunt (Mr. Morley's only sister), to be +educated; and, as Mr. Morley was anxious to visit England once more, and +thought he could make more of his merchandize, by coming himself and +seeing how the markets stood, than his agents seemed to be making for +him, he determined to bring the children over himself. So he freighted +a vessel with a valuable cargo, and arrived in England safely with his +two children, having left his eldest son behind, to manage the business +in India. His sister resided at Ashley Hall, a country-seat about five +or six miles from Bristol. The children enjoyed the country air +exceedingly, and the scenery--so different from India--and the old +gentleman enjoyed it as much as they did. He visited Bristol almost +every day, and watched the markets, sometimes doing business and +sometimes not. He very often walked there and back, by way of exercise, +when the weather was fine. One day, about the middle of January, the +weather, although cold and sharp, being dry, he determined he would +walk, as he had so often done before, for he thought he should be able +to keep himself warmer in walking than driving. He did a good bit of +business that day, and had a considerable sum of money about him. + +"It was a risk to walk home alone, but Mr. Morley had so often done it +before, without meeting with any accident, that he thought he would +start early, and in two hours he should be at the end of his journey. So +he buttoned up his great coat, and took his big stick in his hand, and +started. The stick was a very peculiar one, which he had brought with +him from India. It was very heavy for its size, and had large sharp +knots towards the big end,--not very handsome, but still it was +peculiar, and so it had many admirers. 'A good blow from this would +settle a stouter fellow than I am likely to meet with to-night, I +fancy,' said Mr. Morley, as he looked with pride on the formidable +weapon he held in his hand; and he strode down the street, with the cold +wind blowing in his face. + +"Before he got a mile out of the town, it began to snow heavily; but +still he trudged on against the wind, which was blowing strong, and +beating the snow into his face, which made him hold his head down, so +that he did not remark a turn in the road, about three miles +out,--indeed, by this time, the road and hedges were covered with snow, +and anyone who knew the road even better than he did might have taken +the wrong turn. On, on he walked for several miles, when he began to +think he had missed his way,--for he now observed that he passed no +houses on the road, as he was accustomed to do when he walked home +before. At length, after walking some distance further, he saw a light, +and, thinking it might be a roadside-inn, he made towards it. On +approaching cautiously, however, he found it was not an inn, but a +solitary cottage, partly surrounded by a garden--the entrance to which +was through a small gate at the side; and nearly opposite this gate +there was a window. The light that he had seen, came from a window in +front of the house, facing the road. It was getting dark, but the white +snow threw a shadow of light all round, and he opened the little gate, +went round to the front, and looked in at the window, which was but +partially covered by a thin blind, and there he saw a woman sitting by +the fire alone. The room seemed comfortably furnished, and the table was +evidently laid for supper. + +"It was now getting late, and Mr. Morley was cold and tired and hungry, +for he had been walking several hours; so he knocked at the door, which +was quickly opened by the woman he had seen sitting by the fire. She was +apparently about forty years of age, but not very prepossessing in +appearance, nor very courteous at first, but any shelter was better than +being out in the snow on such a night as this. He explained to her that +he had missed his way in going to his sister's house from Bristol; and +he begged her to let him partake of her meal, and rest a little, and +warm himself--for which he said he would willingly pay handsomely; and +he moreover said, incautiously, that he had more money about him than he +thought it was prudent for him to travel any further with alone that +night. This communication seemed to warm the woman's heart. She placed a +chair by the fire, and proceeded to get him some refreshment at once. + +"'It is a dreadful night!' she said; 'and it has come on so suddenly +too. Who'd have thought it this morning?' + +"'No indeed,' said Mr. Morley. 'This seems a lonely place for a +habitation. You have a husband, of course. He is out on business, I +suppose.' + +"'No, sir, I have no husband. My father and brother live here with +me;--they are engaged in the seafaring line. My mother has been dead +some years.' + +"'You are not far from the sea, then?' enquired Mr. Morley. + +"'No,' she replied; 'a very short distance. I expect my brother home +soon, and was preparing supper for him. My father I don't expect home +for the night, so you shall occupy his room, if you please. It is on the +ground-floor, and looks into the garden. His business often keeps him +out late. We are gone to bed frequently when he comes in, and then he +can go into his room on the ground-floor without disturbing us. I +believe that was his fancy for having his bedroom there.'" + +"Why, Fowler!" exclaimed the squire, "you are making quite an +interesting story of it. What it will end in, I haven't the slightest +idea; but go on." + +"I'm afraid I am tiring you," replied the lieutenant; "but I have heard +the story repeated so often, that it is quite familiar to me." + +"Oh! do go on," said Blanche, looking at him earnestly; "it is quite +like a tale one reads in the old romances." + +"Old romances!" said her mamma, in alarm; "why where on earth have you +met with any old romances, I should like to know, child?" + +"Well, if you would like to hear the end of my tale," said the +lieutenant, "I will proceed; but I haven't much more to tell. Let me +see. Where was I? Oh! the bedroom." + +"Mr. Morley, having warmed himself and taken some refreshment, said he +was feeling very tired and sleepy, and should like to lie down for a few +hours, if perfectly convenient. The brother had not come in, so he +followed his hostess into the little bedroom, leaving his hat and stick +in the sitting-room. It was a comfortable little room enough. The bed +was small, and very near the door,--so near, that immediately you opened +it you faced the side of the bed, and you had to close the door again +before you could pass down by the side of the bed into the room. On the +other side of the bed, nearly opposite the door, stood the wash-stand, +and dressing-table, and one chair. The window faced the foot of the bed. + +"Mr. Morley looked out at the night. It was very dark, and still snowing +a little. When he began to reflect on the acknowledged irregularity of +the men in the house, he did not feel very comfortable; for their +calling was evidently not a very reputable one. The woman seemed +superior in her manner and address to her present situation; but there +was a cunning, restless expression in her eye, which he did not at all +like. They might be a gang of desperadoes connected with the smugglers +that infested the coast. He did not like his position at all;--he was +unarmed, and in their power, and he had left his stick in the +sitting-room. If he went back for it, it would cause suspicion. He +determined, therefore, to lie down on the bed without taking off his +clothes, and be off in the morning as soon as he could see. There was no +lock to the door, nor bolt to the window, as far as he could find. He +tried the door cautiously, and found it was barred outside, and so was +the window;--so far, then, he was a prisoner. He threw himself on the +bed to rest, but not to sleep; and after some time he heard a man come +in at the front door. Then there was a savoury smell, and a good deal of +talk in whispers,--and then the brandy was asked for, and all was quiet. + +"After a time he saw a man approach the window outside. He had the +appearance of being intoxicated. He opened the window after a little +trouble, and prepared to come in. + +"'This is the father, no doubt,' thought Mr. Morley, 'come home +unexpectedly, and evidently very much intoxicated.' + +"The man seemed too drunk to listen to reason, even if Mr. Morley had +got up and spoken to him; and a quarrel with him, in that state, would +be very unpleasant, and bring the other members of the household also +upon him. Besides, no doubt these men carried arms with them, wherever +they went; and if this man found a stranger in his bedroom, he would not +hesitate to shoot him, especially in his present state. + +"What should he do? There was not a moment to be lost. The old man had +by this time tumbled into the room through the window. He would be on +the bed in a minute, for he was getting up from the floor. Mr. Morley +therefore slid down the side opposite the door, and got under the bed, +intending, as soon as the man was asleep, to get away from that house at +all risks. + +"The old man threw himself on the bed, and was soon fast asleep. + +"The door was now gently opened, and he heard a few heavy blows struck +with a heavy bludgeon on the poor old man's head, as he lay sound asleep +on the bed. There was a deep moan, and then the door was closed again. + +"'Murder!' he said, as he crept from under the bed. He felt the body in +his fright; it was too dark to see it. There was no motion. Blood was +flowing from the wounds,--he could feel it, warm and clammy, although he +could not see it. He knew not what to do. The blows were no doubt +intended for himself, and if he raised an alarm he would still be +victimized. He was in an agony of fright and terror. His only thought +was to save his own life; for if the murderer discovered that he had not +killed his intended victim, he would be back again, no doubt, to finish +his work. He snatched up the hat that the old man had dropped on the +floor, thinking in his frenzy that it was his own, and got out of the +window, which had not been fastened again, and fled through the snow, he +knew not where." + +"Oh! Mr. Fowler," exclaimed Blanche, shuddering; "this is too horrible. +Oh! don't go on! I can't bear it;"--and she placed her hands before her +eyes, that had before been so intently gazing on the speaker. + +"Nonsense!" exclaimed the squire; "we've heard the beginning; now let's +hear the end. Go on, Fowler. Those who don't wish to hear any more can +leave the room." + +No one left the room; so Mr. Fowler continued:-- + +"The brother and sister were horror-struck, on entering the room the +next morning, to find that _their father_ had been murdered instead of +the stranger, and that the stranger had escaped, and was probably then +giving information to the authorities. Their first thought was +self-preservation. Circumstances favoured the guilty pair. The stranger +had evidently touched the murdered man, and had blood about his +hands--for there were stains on the window-frame--and he had worn away +the murdered man's hat, and left his own behind; and it was with _his +stick_ that the murder had been committed. Here was circumstantial +evidence enough; so the guilty pair lost no time in rousing the nearest +neighbours and constables; and information was given to the magistrates +by the brother and sister, accusing the stranger of the murder, which +appeared on the face of it very plausible; for the accused man's stick +and hat were found in the bedroom, and the name 'Morley' was written +inside the hat. The stick was covered with blood, and the sharp knots +corresponded with the marks in the murdered man's head. The stick was +easily identified. The murdered man's hat was missing too. But what +motive could such a man as Mr. Morley have had for committing such a +crime?" The woman said he might have been tipsy, and lost his way in the +snow, and finding the window so near the gate, and so easy to enter, he +had perhaps gone in, and a struggle might have taken place between him +and her father, who slept in that room. There was money in that room +too, she said; but it was not believed that Mr. Morley would murder +anyone for the sake of money. No one wished to believe him guilty; but +what could they do in the face of this circumstantial evidence? There +were his hat and stick, which he admitted at once were his--his name was +in the hat--and the stick was covered with blood. He was easily traced +in the snow, and when overtaken he was walking like a maniac. His hands +were bloody and so were his clothes; and he had the murdered man's hat +on his head. + +"The sister told the tale before the magistrates very plausibly. It +might have been done in self-defence, she said. He might have got in at +the window, perhaps, for shelter; but why not have come round to the +door, and why did he not alarm the house, instead of going off in that +unaccountable way. + +"He told his own tale, and concluded by saying that he had a +considerable sum of money about him, which he had lost or was robbed of. +No money was found, however. + +"His tale did not appear plausible. The woman founded her belief that he +was tipsy, she said, on the fact of his having come so much out of his +way, if he was really only going from Bristol to Ashley Hall. He was a +comparative stranger in England, and very few knew him except in the way +of business. + +"The circumstantial evidence was so strong that the magistrates could do +no other than commit him to the county gaol to await his trial for +murder at the next assizes. + +"The assizes came, but there was no evidence against Mr. Morley, and he +was acquitted. + +"The brother and sister had found the bag of money, no doubt, which he +had dropped in his agitation, and had absconded no one knew where. They +were afraid of the close cross-examination to which they would be +exposed, and under which their evidence must have broken down. + +"Mr. Morley returned to India immediately, leaving his two children in +their aunt's care. It was a severe shock, from which he never +recovered. He felt that although he was innocent, yet the stigma of his +having been committed to prison on a charge of murder would still hang +over his family, until it could be properly cleared up by the conviction +or confession of the real murderer. He died soon after his return to +India; and on his death-bed he enjoined his children to make every +search in their power after those wicked people, who had so cruelly +murdered their own father and thrown the guilt upon him." + +"Can you wonder, now, ladies, that my friend should feel low-spirited +sometimes?" + +"It is indeed a dreadful tale," said Miss Pendray. "I wonder what became +of the guilty parties?" + +"It is that which is preying on Morley's spirits," replied Mr. Fowler; +"he has searched and enquired everywhere--at home and abroad--but as yet +to no purpose. They have, no doubt, taken feigned names; but they will +be found out one day, I have not the slightest doubt." + +"Now let us change the subject, and speak of the living," said the +squire. "What has become of young Morley, I wonder?" + +"I shall have a search for him to-morrow morning," said the lieutenant. +"I fancy he is gone to St. Just, for he is anxious about his brother, +who was expected from India about this time, having amassed a large +fortune, besides what his father left, which he was about to divide +between the three children, according to his father's will. The wreck of +the Indiaman, the other day, has upset him rather; for he has an idea +that his brother might have been one of the passengers." + +"Poor young man!" said Mrs. Pendray; "how many troubles he has had to +bear, for one so young!" + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +THE LAND'S-END CONJUROR. + + +Mr. Brown and his companion returned, after a three-hours' search, +without having found the boy or learnt any tidings of him. The mare had +eaten her warm mash, and Mrs. Brown had procured the assistance of +Josiah Trenow to give her a good rub-down and make her comfortable, and +he was having a glass of beer after his exertions, when Mr. Brown and +his companion came in. + +"Thank 'ee, 'Siah," said Mr. Brown; "I do b'lieve the mare ha'n't had +such a rub-down for a month. Look here's a great strong arm, sir," he +continued, taking Josiah by the arm, while he called the gentleman's +attention to it. + +"I shouldn't like to engage in single combat with him," replied Mr. +Morley, smiling, "if he is as strong as he looks." + +"No fie! no fie!" said Mr. Brown. "Peggy! Peggy! Polly! Polly! Why the +women are all run away after the boy, I s'pose. Peggy, my dear!" + +"Well, landlord," said Josiah; "what news have 'ee got about the boy?" + +"Why no news," replied Mr. Brown, sitting down thoughtfully in his +wife's chair, a liberty he seldom took, unless he was "up in the +clouds," as she called it. "Sit down, sir, if you please. Why, a good +many people seed the boy and the mare go up, an' a fine passle seed the +mare come down again all of a rattle, without the boy, but nobody seed +the boy thrawd, an' nobody have seen the boy since, so far as we can +hear. Whisht, esn't et, 'Siah, boy?" + +"Whisht! iss fie, 'tes whisht enough," said Mrs. Brown, coming +downstairs to hear the news too. + +"That boy es so sure ill-wished as ever anybody wor in this world," said +Josiah; "he's in a queer por, an' ha' be'n so for a bra' bit." + +"Why what are 'ee tellen', 'Siah," said Mr. Brown; "how shud 'ee think +so, boy?" + +"Why for many things," replied Josiah; "the boy Bill wor took out of the +workhouse, worn't aw? and he ha'n't growd since--not an inch, I do +b'lieve. He can hardly reach to the mare's shoulder, and yet he do keep +that mare in good condition, with her summer's coat up all the year +round, like the squire's hunter, and better too, I b'lieve. He's mighty +fond of going out by night, too. I've seed that boy, when I've been +coming home from bal, two or three o'clock in the morning, going up by +Chapel-Carnbrea by hisself, whistling." + +"What! our boy Billy whistling that time o' night?" said Mrs. Brown; +"dear lor'! I should think he'd be afeard of the pixies. And up there, +too!" + +The conversation was evidently getting too dismal for Mr. Morley, and he +changed the subject by ordering a glass of brandy and water for himself, +and one each for Mr. Brown and Josiah. + +"Come, Polly," said Mr. Brown, as he went to get the brandies. "Polly! +Polly! pretty Polly!" + +He got no assistance, however; for Polly was gone out on some errand for +her mistress; and it really seemed as if he called the people about him +more from habit than anything else, for, like him who called spirits +from the vasty deep, poor Mr. Brown was not very much distressed or +astonished if they didn't come. While they were drinking their brandy +and water, the conversation turned again on the marvellous; and Mr. +Brown said, "I wondar ef 'twould be any good to ask 'The Maister' about +it." + +"About what?" asked Mrs. Brown. + +"Why about the mare, to be sure," replied her husband; "she's ill-wished +as much as ever the boy es. Something frightened her more than human, +I'm sure;--what do you think, 'Siah?" + +"Well," said Josiah, "I never seed a beast tremble like that afore. I +worked my arms off, purty nigh, afore she begun for to dry, an' then she +dried up all of a rattle, an' snorted brave." + +"I'll go up now and ask 'The Maister,'" said Mr. Brown; "the mare es +ill-wished, I do b'lieve;"--so he drank up his brandy and water, and +started at once. + +It was not, even then, very late, and Mr. Freeman's house was but just +outside the village. + +"The Maister" was at home, the maid said. What did Mr. Brown please to +want. + +"I do want to speak to him 'pon private business," replied Mr. Brown. + +So Alice Ann shewed him into the best parlour, and left him there in the +dark, as she had orders to do to all visitors who came to "The Maister" +on private business. + +Very soon he heard a rumbling noise in the room above, and then a +clanking of chains; and then he heard a voice, as if coming from the +floor of the room he was sitting in, telling him to beware of what he +was doing,--to keep all things secret,--and to tell "The Maister" all; +and then all would be well. All these mysterious sounds--coming +sometimes from above, and sometimes from one part of the room he was in, +and sometimes from another, when everything was shrouded in +darkness--were calculated to strike terror into a stronger mind than +poor Mr. Brown possessed; so that when Alice Ann came to the door and +asked him to follow her upstairs, he was confirmed in his belief that +"The Maister" was connected with "The Prince of Darkness," and was +prepared to see hobgoblins and spirits dancing about as he entered the +awful room. + +Alice Ann knocked at the door three times, and at the third knock the +door flew open, and Mr. Brown was pulled in by some invisible hand, and +the door was closed again. He remained standing just inside, having a +screen of thick black cloth hanging before him, to prevent his seeing +what was in the room. He thought his last hour was come, and trembled +until his knees knocked together, and his teeth chattered in his head. +At last, a voice from the furthest corner of the room said:-- + +"John Brown, your business is known, without your telling it--as most +things are. Are you prepared to go through the ordeal necessary to free +the mare from evil hands, and the boy from witchcraft?" + +"Oh! ye-es, Maister," said the poor man, in a tremulous voice: "I'll do +anything. I do know that your power is great, and your knowledge is +greater." + +"Then down on thy knees, trembler, and do my bidding to the letter, or +woe be unto thee! And listen to what is now to be spoken." And down +flopped poor Mr. Brown on his knees, and awaited the ordeal, which he +interrupted occasionally, by sundry interjections and parenthetical +remarks of his own. + +(_The Conjuror_) "You have a gentleman staying in your house?" + +(_Mr. Brown_) "Oh! yes; and a very nice gentleman he is." + +(_The Conjuror_) "He admires your mare?" + +(_Mr. Brown_) "He do so." + +(_The Conjuror_) "He must ride her!" + +(_Mr. Brown_) "He shall, Maister. (Oh lor'! a wild harum-scarum like he +to ride the mare. Oh lor'! Peggy! Peggy! Oh lor'!)" + +(_The Conjuror_) "Now listen. That gentleman must, within three days +from this time, ride the mare to the Land's-End point, and look over the +point, and the spell will be taken off which now hangs over the mare, +and the boy will be restored. If not, beware of what may befall you and +your household. The rider must have no friend or assistant within fifty +yards of the point." + +(_Mr. Brown_) "Oh lor'! Peggy! Peggy! What shall I do? No mortal man +would do that. Oh lor'!" + +A bell was now struck in the further end of the room, and the black +curtain was drawn up suddenly, when the room appeared to be all on fire. +There was a brilliant red light shed all around, and a thin vapour +filled the room, through which he saw the conjuror standing, dressed in +a black gown, and white wig, surrounded by ornaments composed of what +seemed to be silver, and small mirrors, which reflected the furniture of +the room, and multiplied them twentyfold. The conjuror then said, in a +solemn voice, "Do my bidding, or beware! your doom is fixed!" + +The black curtain was then suddenly dropped again, and, after a few +minutes, the door was opened as before, and Mr. Brown was pushed out by +some invisible hand, and the door was locked on the inside. + +Thus did this pretended necromancer work on the superstitious fears of +the ignorant and weakminded, and make them believe that he knew more of +their affairs than he really did; and thus did he gain a power over them +which no reasoning or persuasion could shake. + +This is no exaggerated picture; for, at that period, there were numbers, +with less pretensions than Mr. Freeman, both men and women, who +practised these arts and received handsome incomes--not only from the +illiterate and ignorant, but from people in the higher walks of life, so +rife was the feeling of superstition which prevailed at that period, not +only in the county of Cornwall, but throughout the whole kingdom of +England. Well-to-do farmers, it was well known, paid one of these +emperics annual salaries to keep the _evil eye_ from their cattle. It is +not to be wondered at, therefore, that poor Mr. Brown should place +implicit reliance on what such a notable man as "The Maister" should +tell him, and determine to have "The Maister's" commands carried out to +the very letter, if it were possible that it could be done. If he had +been commanded to ride the mare to the brink of the Land's-End point +himself, or over it, he would have done it, without hesitation; but how +was he to get a stranger to do so for his benefit? It required +consideration; and, as two heads are better than one, he determined to +consult his wife at once, and they could put their heads together, he +thought, and the thing would be managed somehow,--for he had great faith +in his wife's wisdom; so he went home to sleep upon it. + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +LOVE AND MYSTERY. + + +The next morning, Alrina met her lover again by appointment, on the +rocks below Cape Cornwall; and here they renewed their former +protestations of love and constancy, and the hours passed pleasantly +away. But sunshine will not last for ever, and the brighter the sunshine +the darker will the cloud seem that obscures it for a time. In the midst +of their happiness a cloud passed over the countenance of Morley, and he +became thoughtful. + +"Tell me," said Alrina, "what has caused this sudden gloom?" + +"It is nothing, dearest," said he, putting his arm round her waist; "I +was just thinking how much more need we have of mutual sympathy than +either of us imagined. You have your secrets which you wish to +discover,--I mean as to your mother's and your father's early history, +and your own, and that secret which you seem to think your father has +hidden in his breast." + +"Indeed, Frederick," replied Alrina, "I scarcely wish now to discover +those secrets,--for I fear the knowledge of them, whenever they are +discovered, may deprive me of that which I prize more than anything else +on earth--your love!" + +"No, never!" replied her lover; "whatever your father may have done, or +whatever those secrets may be, as to the early history of your family, +will not alter my love for you, dear Alrina! I have a secret too," +continued he; "and mine is a terrible one--one that would terrify you, +were I to tell you--and therefore it is better, perhaps, kept where it +is; I can bear it better alone. But we are only dreaming--don't cry, +Alrina;--all will be well in the end." + +"But you have a terrible secret too, you say, Frederick?" she replied +through her tears. "I have told you all I know of myself; is your's a +secret to be kept from me? are you afraid to trust me, too?"--and the +poor girl burst into tears, and would not be comforted. She felt herself +an object of distrust to all, and her heart could not bear up against +such cold suspicion. + +"Be calm, dear Alrina," said Frederick, in a soothing tone; "I have +nothing to conceal that you may not know. It will do you no good to know +it, and it may prey on your sensitive mind too much, and therefore do +more harm than good; but if you wish to know all, and you think you can +bear to hear it, I will tell you the whole,--but you must be calm." + +"Oh! yes," replied Alrina, drying her tears; "I would rather know all. I +will be firm. I can bear anything with you, or for you." She placed her +hand in his, and looked up into his face with earnest love, as he +related to her the tale of his father's adventure in the snow, and his +accusation and acquittal for want of evidence. He told her also of his +brother, and that he was expected home from India about this time, and +how he feared he might have been in that Indiaman that was wrecked on +the coast but a few days before. + +"Oh! Frederick, don't distress yourself about imaginary evils," said +Alrina; "bad news flies fast enough. A thought struck me while you were +relating that dreadful tale,--my father!" + +"Your father!" exclaimed Frederick, hastily. + +"Yes," she said; "why not ask him to help you in unravelling this +terrible secret. He is very clever, and knows many things that other +people scarcely dream of. People come here to consult him from all parts +of the country, and they generally go away satisfied; so I suppose he +tells them what they require to know. He is gone to some distant part +to-day, I believe, to cure some poor wretch who thinks he is ill-wished. +Remember, I have no confidence in that part of his scientific +pretension; but I know he has a clear head to sift out a mystery, and +has resources which few else have, from keeping all these +'goostrumnoodles' under his thumb, and some of the sharpest of them in +his pay." + +"I will think of this," said Morley, smiling; "and if I become a convert +I will still consult the conjuror." + +He then began to talk of his sister, Alrina's former schoolfellow. She +had left school, he said, and was living with their aunt, Mrs. Courland, +who had returned to her old house again near Bristol, where they were +staying when that sad affair happened to their father. Alrina must go +and see them. + +The time passed swiftly on in such sweet converse, and they lingered on +and on--rising frequently to separate, and sitting down again; and in +the intensity of their love they neither of them saw that curious head, +nor those curious eyes and ears, which were watching them again, and +noting all their words and actions. + +"Ho! ho!" said the individual, as it bore that curious head away on its +shoulders; "_more secrets worth knowing!_" + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +ALRINA'S TROUBLES INCREASE. + + +Josiah Trenow resided with his father and mother in a small but neat +cottage, about a hundred yards from Mr. Freeman's house; consequently, +it was easy for Alrina or Alice Ann, when their elders were out of the +way, to run in and have a quiet gossip with Mrs. Trenow. Her husband was +underground-captain at Botallack mine, so that he was not much at home +during the day. + +Alrina could not settle down to anything when she returned to her +father's house after her interview with Frederick Morley, related in the +last chapter. She tried to work, but she could not get on. She then took +a book, but could not fix her attention on the pages; and after sitting +half-an-hour with the book in her hand, she found that she was holding +it upside down. + +Her father had returned, and had been closeted with her aunt ever since, +and it was as likely as not that Alrina would not see either of them +again for the night. They did not trust her with any of their secrets, +of which they seemed to have a good many; and her lover had imparted a +secret to her to-day, which made her feel very unhappy on his account; +but he had trusted her, and confided in her, so that was some +consolation; but then, if there should be any dreadful secret connected +with her past history, or her mother's, of whom she knew nothing, and +she were to lose his love in consequence, what should she do? She would +have no one then on whom she could lean for support and consolation in +her trials. All these thoughts, crowding one upon the other, made her +feel very sad, and she burst into tears, as she sat down in the little +parlour. Poor girl! how sad to be in the midst of relatives and friends, +and yet to feel that no one cares for you! Better to be a recluse at +once--far better. + +Alice Ann knew that her young mistress had something on her mind that +distressed her, but she did not feel herself competent to advise or +console her. She peeped in at the door, however, and said,-- + +"What's the matter, Miss Reeney? I shud think you'd lost your sweetheart +a'most!" + +"No, no, Alice Ann," she replied, wiping away her tears; "if I had one, +like you, and everything was going on smoothly, like your affairs, +perhaps it might raise my spirits a little." + +"'Tesn't all so smooth as you may think," said Alice Ann; "I ha'n't se'n +sight nor sign of 'Siah (ef that's what you do main) sence the day after +the wreck, when he an' 'The Maister' had such a tussle up in the +'private room.' I looked in through the keyhole, but I couldn't see +much. When 'Siah came out aw looked all flushed, but I don't think aw +wor frightened, like some of them are when they do come out. Hes +fe-a-thar an' mother ha'n't seed much of 'n neither since then, I +b'lieve. I wish you could stay for to run down there, an' ax about 'n a +bit, Miss Reeney." + +That was a happy suggestion. A good long chat with Mrs. Trenow, and, +probably, another secret, would relieve her mind a little from the heavy +weight she felt pressing upon it--almost more than she could bear. + +She found Mrs. Trenow alone, with a basketful of coarse worsted +stockings before her, belonging to the men, which she was "mending a +croom," she said. + +"How are 'ee, Miss Reeney, my dear," said she, as Alrina entered; "the +sight of you es good for sore eyes! Why, I ha'n't seed 'ee for ever so +long." + +"No," replied Alrina; "I have been pretty much engaged, and my aunt has +been out more than usual lately, and so I have been housekeeper, you +know." + +"Iss sure," said Mrs. Trenow, looking at her visitor over her +spectacles. "You ha' seed an' heerd bra' things lately, I s'pose. They +do say 'The Maister' es worken' the oracle purty fitty sence the wreck." + +"What do you mean?" exclaimed Alrina, in surprise. + +"What do I main?" asked Mrs. Trenow, taking off her spectacles, and +closing the door;--"why, this here es what I do main. The best of the +things that wor picked up from that wreck es up in 'The Maister's' +private room, and more wud ha' b'en there, ef et worn't for one thing +more than another. There ha' b'en more people ill-wished, and more +cattle an' things dead, sence that night, than wor ever knaw'd to be +afore in so short a time; an' where shud they go to ef et worn't to 'The +Maister?'--and what wud he do for them ef they dedn't cross his hand?" + +"I don't at all understand you!" said Alrina, more surprised than ever. + +"No, I s'pose you don't, my dear," replied Mrs. Trenow; "you must go +abroad for to hear news about home, so they do say. An' poor Maister +Brown, too, ha' b'en up there, an' came home frightened out of his life. +Our 'Siah wor up to 'the public' when aw came in. He wudn't spaik a word +then, so 'Siah said; but to-day Mrs. Brown told 'Siah all about et. But +'tes a secret, my dear;--hush!" + +"What is it, Mrs. Trenow? don't keep me in this suspense," said Alrina, +in an excited manner; "do tell me what has happened." + +"Happened!" replied Mrs. Trenow; "why, nothen' ha'n't happened yet, that +I do knaw of; but how he'll git 'n to do it I don't knaw. I wudn't ef I +wor he." + +"What! is Josiah to do something for Mr. Brown?" asked Alrina. + +"No, my dear, not 'Siah," replied Mrs. Trenow. "There's a young +gentleman up there stopping, so 'Siah said, and he must ride Maister +Brown's mare to the edge of the cliff 'pon the Land's-End point, an' +look over, to save the man and the boy from witchcraft. Now, mind you +don't tell nobody, for 'tes a secret, my dear, down sous." + +"I'd see them both at the bottom of the sea first," said Alrina; "why +should a stranger be mixed up with Mr. Brown's misfortunes?" + +"Why! sure nuff!" replied Mrs. Trenow; "you may say Y or X, whichever +you mind to, but ef 'The Maister' do give the orders to the likes of Mr. +Brown, 'tes likely to be done, ef et can be any way in the world." + +"What did my father know of the stranger, to give such an order as +that?" said Alrina. + +"That I do no more knaw than a child," replied Mrs. Trenow; "but here's +fe-a-thar; mayhap he can tell." + +"Your sarvant, Miss Reeney," said Captain Trenow, as he entered the +room; "you're a stranger, ma'am." + +"Not much of a stranger, Captain Trenow," said Alrina; "but you are so +seldom at home when I can run down for a gossip with your good wife." + +"Zackly like that," said the captain; "she's a bra' good hand for a +gossip, I do b'lieve. I'll back har agen the parish for tongue, Miss +Reeney. She don't do much else, I b'lieve in my conscience." + +"Areah! then," said his wife, indignantly; "I shud like to knaw how +you'd get your victuals cooked, and your clothes mended, ef I was so +fond of gossipping as some people I do knaw?" + +"Are 'ee going for to see the gentleman ride over the cliff to-morrow, +Miss Reeney?" said Captain Trenow, by way of changing the subject. "I do +hear that he's determined upon et, 'cause somebody said he cudn't. More +fool he, I do say." + +"Oh! Captain Trenow," said Alrina, in the greatest terror; "don't let +him do it--pray, don't." + +"Me! Miss Reeney," said the captain;--"why, I don't knaw the gentlemen. +Nobody here have ever seed 'n, 'ceps 'Siah an' the landlord's people." + +"But won't Josiah prevent him?" said Alrina. + +"That I can no more tell than you can, ma'am," replied Trenow. "'Siah es +gone up there now." + +"Why, Miss Reeney!" exclaimed Mrs. Trenow, who had been looking +intently on Alrina for the last few minutes; "I shud think that strange +gentleman wor your sweetheart, ef I ded'nt knaw that you never clapp'd +your eyes upon om in your life. 'Siah do say, f'rall, that he's a likely +young chap enough." + +This last expression of Mrs. Trenow's put Alrina on her guard. She did +not, at present, wish the gossips of St. Just to know that Frederick +Morley was either her friend or her lover; nor would he, under existing +circumstances, have wished it either. There were secrets on both sides +to be discovered and explained, before it would be prudent for them +openly to declare their attachment to each other. Frederick had not yet +even seen Alrina's father, and she was as yet entirely under her +father's control. She went home, therefore, with a sad heart; and +nothing that Alice Ann could say or do, could induce her to tell her +what she had heard, nor why she was so sad. She hoped that it might not +be true,--that was her only consolation. But it was true, nevertheless. + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + +FREDERICK MORLEY OBSTINATELY DETERMINES ON RIDING THE MARE. + + +When Frederick Morley returned to the inn, after his meeting with +Alrina, he found his friend, Lieut. Fowler, there in deep conversation +with Mr. and Mrs. Brown. + +"Hallo! old fellow," he exclaimed, as his friend entered; "a pretty +fellow you are, to keep the squire's dinner waiting, and two pair of +bright eyes languishing for something more sprightly than a poor +lieutenant R.N. to rest their weary lids upon. Why, where the deuce have +you been? You are not _ill-wished_, too, are you?" + +"It seems very like it," replied Morley; "for I seem to bring trouble +wherever I go. Only last night, when I simply wanted a note taken over +to you, and my bag brought back, the boy was taken off by the pixies, +and the landlord's mare caught St. Vitus's dance, or something +worse,--so the sooner I return to the place from whence I came, the +better." + +"I don't know that," replied Fowler; "for you have work cut out for you +here, it seems." + +"What do you mean?" replied his friend, smiling. "The French haven't +landed, have they? and you want me to take the command of the +volunteers?" + +"No, no," said Fowler; "but our friend, Mr. Brown, has been to the +conjuror about his misfortunes; and what do you think he told him?" + +"I'm sure I don't know," replied Morley; "some humbug, I suppose." + +"Nothing of the kind, I assure you," replied Fowler. "He merely said +that it would depend on the courage and skill of the person who was the +innocent cause of the misfortunes, to extricate him out of them." + +"If you mean me," replied Morley, "you know I don't want for pluck; as +to the skill, that's another thing,--that will depend on what there is +to do." + +"Well, then, Mr. Brown has confided to me the history of his visit to +the conjuror," said the lieutenant, "and he told him that the gentleman +(meaning you) must ride the mare to the edge of the cliff at the +Land's-End, and look over,--having no friend or assistant within fifty +yards of him." + +"Ha! ha! ha! that's easy enough," said Morley; "I was considered the +best horseman in my regiment, and I am passionately fond of riding. Why, +I have jumped on the back of a colt that had never been haltered before, +and broken it in, so that a child could ride it, before I got off its +back again. I know the secret, and can tame a horse by whispering in his +ear. So you may consider your misfortunes at an end, if that will do it, +my good friend Brown?" + +"No, sir," said Mrs. Brown, very decidedly; "there shall be no such risk +as that run for anything belonging to me. Lev the mare alone,--she'll +get round again; an' ef she don't, 'twas no fault of yours, sir." + +"But, ef the gentleman esn't afeard," chimed in poor Mr. Brown, "why +not----" + +"Brown!" said his wife, in a voice which made him start; "I wish to +gracious 'The Maister' had told you to ride the mare yourself. I b'lieve +you wud have b'en fool enough to have done et, and then I shud ha' got +rid of two troubles together. Drat the mare!" And, in her anger, she +took up a large bunch of furze, and threw it on the fire, which was +burning on the hearth, and sent it blazing up the large chimney, while +her husband shuffled away towards the door, intending to go into the +stable, his usual place of refuge from the two fires, which generally +blazed together within; for when his wife was in one of her tantrums, +and exercised her tongue more than usual, she generally put a good blast +into the chimney, and they blazed away together. Before poor Mr. Brown +reached the door, however, he was brought up "_with a round turn_," as +Lieut. Fowler expressed it, by the sweet voice of his wife, who said, +sharply,-- + +"Brown! did you hear Lieut. Fowler ask for a glass of ale for self and +friend?" + +"No, Peggy, dear, I dedn't," said he; "but I'll draw the glasses, of +course I will. Polly! Polly! Why, wherever es that maid?" + +So the glasses of ale were drawn, although the order was entirely in +Mrs. Brown's own imagination; for neither of the gentlemen had given +one;--but it was the very thing they both wished, and, no doubt, would +have ordered very soon, had not their wishes been anticipated by the +landlady, who always had an eye to business. + +The two gentlemen then took a stroll together, and Lieut. Fowler tried +to dissuade his friend from this rash and foolish undertaking, but to no +purpose. He was determined to do it, he said,--it was just the thing he +liked; for English sports were so tame, after those he had been +accustomed to for the last two years. Hunting tigers and Lions,--that +was the sport for him. + +"If you are really determined," said Fowler, "I shall bring the girls up +from Pendrea-house to have a look at you; but I think you will alter +your mind before the morning." + +Mrs. Brown had prepared a very nice dinner, and so the friends enjoyed +two or three hours' social chat. Morley had heard no tidings of his +brother, he said, nor had anyone found anything that was likely to have +been his, as far as he could learn; and so he supposed he was not in +that ship. But he should remain a day or two longer, he said, to make +further search. + +When his friend rose to leave, Morley said he would go out a little way +with him, and he would ride the mare to try her temper and her paces. + +Mrs. Brown was obliged to yield when she found that the gentleman was +determined on the feat, and she trusted that the well-known good temper +and tractability of the mare would carry them both through with +safety,--although the fright into which the mare had been thrown two +days before, without any apparent cause, as it seemed, tended to weaken +Mrs. Brown's confidence in the perfect steadiness of her husband's pet. + + + + +CHAPTER XII. + +THE AWFUL RIDE. + + +The eventful morning arrived. But it had been kept a profound secret, +fearing that, if a rumour of this dangerous feat being about to take +place got generally known, there would be a concourse of people on the +ground,--and the mare, however steady she was, might get frightened. + +Mr. Brown walked up early to the point, and sat behind a rock, from +whence he could have a good view without being seen. Lieut. Fowler and +the young ladies from Pendrea were early on the ground also; and they +took their stations also behind some rocks, but in a more conspicuous +place than Mr. Brown. There were a few other spectators, but very few, +scattered about among the rocks. They waited some time in anxious +expectation, but no rider appeared. + +"Morley has altered his mind, no doubt," said Lieut. Fowler to the +ladies; "and I am glad of it; for it is a dangerous feat to perform, on +a strange horse." + +"Oh! I wish it may be so," said Blanche; "for, although I came to oblige +Maud, I shall shut my eyes when he goes down to the point." + +"Nonsense," said the majestic Maud; "I don't think I should be afraid to +perform the feat myself, if I were a man;--I should like it. But here he +comes. I thought he wouldn't shew the white feather." + +At that moment the object of their solicitude came towards them, mounted +on the famous mare, Jessie. She had been well fed, and carefully +groomed, and her master's comb had evidently gone through her tail and +mane more than once that morning. + +Morley took off his hat to the ladies, and chatted with them a few +minutes, laughing at the idea of there being any danger in his riding +quietly to the point and back. The ladies admired and patted the +beautiful creature he was riding; and even Blanche thought there could +be no danger on such a beautiful quiet animal as that. + +Lieut. Fowler, however, even then, tried to dissuade his friend from the +attempt. + +"Don't be such a faint-hearted old codger," said Morley, laughing. And, +taking off his hat again to the ladies, he cantered easily down towards +the point. + +The promontory, clothed with short grass, slopes gently down towards the +extreme point of the Land's-End for about fifty yards, and then breaks +off suddenly, and the cliffs go down perpendicularly some two or three +hundred feet, except that, here and there, in the side of the cliff, at +various distances, may be seen, by a person whose head is steady enough +to look down, projecting rocks just sufficient to break the fall, but +not large enough for a body to rest upon for a single moment. + +At the bottom, the sea washes the base of the cliffs, coming booming in +with every wave, and surging and dashing against the rocks and cliffs +beneath, sending its spray sometimes in rough weather completely over +those towering cliffs,--a fearful sight for a man with a steady head to +look down upon, but for a horse! + +On comes the bold rider,--steadily,--carefully. The mare doesn't like it +at first, and turns round when she is within a few yards of the edge of +the precipice. The turf is soft, and she capers a little. The rider pats +her neck, and turns her head again, gently, towards the cliffs. She goes +on gently! gently! he patting her neck, and sitting steadily on her +back. At last they are standing on the very edge of the precipice, and +are both looking over. Hurrah!! The deed is done!! All eyes are bent on +the bold rider, and are holding their breath. A single false step, even +now, would precipitate them into the abyss below, and both must be +dashed in pieces. Awful thought! The deed is done, however, and Mr. +Brown's misfortunes are at an end. The rider turns his horse to ride +back to his friends in triumph. He has just turned her head round +towards the green turf again, when something attracts the mare's +attention. She trembles! Her back is towards the precipice,--her hind +feet close to the edge of the cliff! Neither horse nor rider sees the +extent of the danger, for their backs are towards it. The mare refuses +to proceed; the rider urges her; she rears! Another moment and they must +be dashed in pieces,--nothing can save them. All is breathless anxiety +among the spectators. No one has the presence of mind to speak. A voice +at this moment is heard distinctly, stentorian in its anxiety,--"_Throw +yourself off the horse, and hold on!!!_" The young officer obeys the +voice instantly, as if it had been a command from his superior officer. +He flings himself off, and holds on by the turf, _like grim death_, +digging his fingers into the soft ground to hold on the firmer; for he +now hears the horse go down over the precipice,--down! down! bumping on +the projecting rocks in the fall, and _screeching_, as horses and all +animals will do in extreme danger and suffering. The rider had fallen on +the turf, it is true; but he had barely saved himself, for _his legs +dangled over the edge of the precipice_! + +He could not stir. He felt as if he was holding himself up by his +fingers, which he had dug into that soft turf, and this seemed giving +way every instant; but it was not so in reality. His body was safely +lodged on the ground, although his feet were hanging over, and as long +as he could hold on he was safe; but he couldn't hold on so very long. +And then--oh! horror!--his terror and fright caused him to fancy a +thousand horrid deaths in an instant of time. Before he had been lying +on the turf two minutes, however, a tall, strong-built, powerful-looking +man, came bounding down towards him from one of the rocks just above, +and, seizing him round the waist, lifted him up in his strong arms, and +carried him to a safer resting-place. By this time he had fainted, and +was unconscious of the attentions which were being paid him. + +His providential deliverer was no other than Josiah Trenow, who had come +there to see the feat, and was standing behind a rock, at no great +distance from the point. And he it was who had the presence of mind to +shout to the rider to throw himself off, when he saw the horse rear; and +it was his strong arm that lifted the poor terror-stricken man from his +perilous position. + +Had it not been for the presence of mind of this bold strong man, the +young officer might still have gone over; for he had not the power to +move a limb, and, when he fainted, and let go his hold in the grass, he +must have followed the horse,--down! down! Oh! terrible fate!!! + + + + +CHAPTER XIII. + +ITS CONSEQUENCES. + + +No one thought of the fate of Mr. Brown's favourite mare. All the +spectators clustered round the prostrate man. Maud Pendray looked on him +as a hero; she seemed to worship him with her eyes. Blanche wept tears +of joy that he was saved from what everyone thought inevitable +destruction. Poor Mr. Brown didn't know what to say or do. He called +upon Peggy, and said several times, as if talking to his pet, "Wo! ho! +Jessie! gently, mare! steady, now!" And then the poor man sat down on a +rock, apart from the rest, and burst into tears. + +Those of the party who alone were equal to the occasion, were Lieut. +Fowler and Josiah Trenow. They collected the few men together who +happened to be present, and, between them, they carried the +terror-stricken man to "The First and Last Inn," at Sennen--that being +the nearest public-house to the scene of the accident. + +A man on horseback was despatched to Penzance for a surgeon, and the +patient was put to bed at once. + +A fortnight passed away, and the patient was fast recovering, but he +could not shake off the gloomy and depressing thoughts, which were +continually recurring, whenever he heard the sea, or saw the cliffs. + +One day, the surgeon announced that there was to be a grand ball at +Penzance, in about a fortnight,--the precise day was not fixed; and he +advised his patient to go. Change of scene, and the excitement of the +music and the dancing, and the company, he thought, would draw his mind +away from those ever-present and depressing thoughts. His friend Fowler +had promised to go with the Pendray party, and they were all delighted +to learn that Morley had consented to join them also. + +Poor Alrina! it was an anxious day for her. She knew that her lover was +gone out on the mare to attempt that daring feat; and she knew, also, +the extent of the risk he was incurring,--for she had often, in her +solitary rambles, walked down to the edge of the Land's-End cliffs, and +looked over, out of curiosity, and it made her shudder when she thought +of him. Even should he be able to get the mare down to the +brink,--sitting there at the mercy of the horse, one false step, or a +moment's giddiness, must be fatal to both. In the midst of her +meditations, news was brought that the horse and its rider had both +fallen over the cliff, and were dashed in pieces. She threw herself on +her bed, and tried to believe that the report was false; but no,--she +feared it must be true, for she had before worked her mind up to the +belief that the feat could not be accomplished in safety. + +She was overwhelmed with grief; and when Alice Ann came up, a few hours +afterwards, and told her that Josiah was downstairs, and had brought a +message for her from Mr. Morley, the sudden and blessed news that he was +alive, affected her almost as much as the dreadful news of his death had +done. She was quite overcome by her feelings. Sometimes she would laugh +heartily, and then burst into a torrent of tears, until it ended in a +violent fit of hysterics. + +It was a long time before Alice Ann could pacify her, and she dared not +call in the assistance of Miss Freeman, for she knew that her aunt did +not sympathize with "young ladies' vagaries," as she called them. +Besides, she was again closeted with her brother, who had been from home +nearly all the day, and had but just returned. + +When she was sufficiently recovered, Alrina saw Josiah, and received the +kind message which her lover had sent her; and from Josiah she heard the +true but sad tale. He told her all, from the beginning. Mr. Morley was +as weak as a young baby, he said, and for hours after the accident he +trembled all over, as he lay in bed, so that the bed shook under him. +The doctor had desired that he should be kept perfectly quiet, and that +a watch should be kept with him, night and day; for he feared delirium. +He had left Mr. Fowler with him now, he said; but Mr. Morley had +requested Josiah to return as soon as possible, and stay with him also; +for he had a strange nervous feeling that he was _still falling_, and +nothing relieved him but feeling Josiah's strong arm round his +waist;--he felt safe then, and so Josiah had sat for hours on the poor +terror-stricken young man's bed, holding him in his arms; and the +sufferer would cry out like a little frightened child, if his supporter +did but move, and beg him not to let him fall over,--for he could not +divest himself of the idea that he was still on the brink of the +precipice. + +Alrina listened with profound attention to Josiah's description of the +scene, and of her lover's present prostrate condition. She longed to go +to him, and to be his nurse; but there were many reasons, both on his +account, and her own, why she should not do so. + +She wrote a short note, which Josiah promised to deliver into his hands; +but he said he could not promise to bring an answer in writing, for Mr. +Morley's hand trembled so that he could not hold a pen, nor even the +glass in which he took his medicine. + +Although her mind was set at rest in a measure, yet Alrina had enough +to occupy her thoughts till bedtime, and so she retired to her room +again, and desired Alice Ann to tell her aunt, if she enquired after +her, that she had a headache, and was gone to lie down a little. + +Before she had been in her room long, however, Alice Ann came to the +door, and said "The Maister" wanted Miss Reeney at once. + +"My father!" exclaimed Alrina; "what can he possibly want!" + +"I do no more knaw than you," replied Alice Ann; "but he told me to +fetch you down, f'rall I told'n you wor gone to bed poorly." + +"Well, I suppose I must obey," said Alrina, heaving a heavy sigh. "I +wonder what he wants me for? it is so unusual for him to send for me. I +wish I knew why he was so cruel as to order Frederick to perform that +perilous feat to-day,--some hidden motive, no doubt. I'll try and find +it out. I've a great mind to ask him, point blank; but then----" + +"Come, Miss Reeney," said Alice Ann, coming to the door again; "'The +Maister' es axing when you're comin', so I told'n you wor dressin'." + +When Alrina came out into the front passage from her bedroom, which was +in the back of the house looking into the little garden, she found her +father waiting for her near the door of his "private room." He opened +the door and desired her to follow him. + +Her curiosity was to be gratified, then, at last, but not in the way she +very much liked, for she fancied that this interview would not be a very +pleasant one,--why, she didn't know. Perhaps her father was now about to +reveal some of those mysteries which hung over them. At another time she +might not have felt these painful forebodings, but her nerves had been +unstrung by the events of the day; and she felt now as if an unkind +word, or an unexpected disclosure, would upset her again. So much more +terrible are imaginary misfortunes and troubles oftentimes when seen at +a distance, than they are in reality, when they actually take place. + +Mr. Freeman took his seat at the top of the room, near a large table, +and pointed to a chair, which Alrina felt was intended as an invitation +for her to be seated also. This gave her courage to look round the room. +There were some large boxes about, and several cupboards and a few more +chairs; but, in general appearance, the room was pretty much like other +sitting-rooms, except that it required to be dusted, she thought. And, +when she had finished her survey of the room, she had time to look at +her father again, before he spoke. He was evidently trying to overawe +her, and when she found out that, it gave her fresh courage. + +Mr. Freeman, as he sat in that large, curiously-fashioned chair, seemed +a fine-looking man,--much younger in appearance than he generally +looked; because, as we have before stated, he affected the old man, and +seemed to wish to be thought much older than he really was. + +"Alrina," he said, at length, "how did you become acquainted with that +young man?" + +"What young man?" said she, as innocently as she could. + +"Alrina!" he said again, looking at her sternly; "you know whom I mean, +and therefore let's have no prevarication." + +"His sister was one of my schoolfellows," she replied, "and she +introduced me to her brother." + +"Oh!" replied her father, smiling; "and you each became affected with +that incurable malady which silly people call 'love;' and you have met +him again? And where is your old schoolfellow now, pray?" asked Mr. +Freeman. + +"She is residing with Mrs. Courland, I believe," replied Alrina, "at +Ashley Hall." + +"Thank you, Alrina. That was all I wanted to know. Now, you can go to +your room again, if you don't feel well, and let the servant bring you +up some tea. Good night." + +So, then, this terrible ordeal in the "private room," which Alrina had +dreaded so much but a few minutes before, and racked her brain to +imagine what her father could possibly want of her, had ended in his +asking a plain simple question or two, and her giving him answers to +match. And although she had intended to ask him why he had been so cruel +as to order that dangerous feat to be performed by that young stranger, +and many other important questions, she had been dismissed so abruptly, +that she had actually said nothing. + +The whole scene seemed so absurd that she burst into a hearty laugh when +she reached her own little bedroom once more. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV. + +MRS. BROWN TELLS THE CONJUROR A BIT OF HER MIND. + + +Poor Mr. Brown! he remained on the rocks long after the other spectators +had left, and would have remained there much longer, had he not been +roused from his reverie by a gentle tap on his shoulder. + +"Billy," said he, looking up; "let's go into the stable and have a look +at Jessie, boy. She must have a good rub-down and a warm mash to-night." + +"Come along," said the boy. And, taking Mr. Brown by the arm, he led him +home to his amiable but eccentric wife. + +"What! Billy!" she exclaimed, as the pair entered the kitchen; "where, +in the name of goodness ded you spring from?" + +"Why, I ha'n't b'en away, have I?" replied the sly boy. + +"Now, that's enough--a plenty," said Mrs. Brown, looking at the boy with +her keen grey eyes. "I can see through a millstone so well as most +people. I ha'n't b'en away, says aw!" + +"No, have I?" said he, looking innocently at his mistress. + +"Areah, thon! Now, I'll tell 'ee, Billy. He that ha' b'en your maister +the last three days, may take 'ee for the next three days, for what I do +care; for in my house you sha'n't stop,--there, na. My eyes ha' b'en +opening wider and wider evar sence last night. A croom of chat with one, +and a croom of chat with another, have opened them so wide, that I can +see round a corner a'most." + +"I don't knaw what you do main," said the boy. + +"Iss you do," replied Mrs. Brown, shaking her head; "so you march,--and +dont you come anist my door agen for a bra' spur." + +The boy saw that his quondam mistress was in earnest; so he took the +hint and made himself scarce. + +"And now, Mr. Brown," said she, turning to her husband, who had seated +himself in the chimney-corner, "what do you think of yourself, I shud +like to knaw? Your Jessie mare es come to a purty pass, esn't she? Ef +the young gentleman had gone over cliff too, I shud nevar ha' b'en good +no more. To go for to slock the young gentleman into et like that wor a +shame, an' so et wor. You an' 'The Maister' too oft to be +spefflicated,--iss you ded." + +"'The Maister' wor right, Peggy," said Mr. Brown;--"the boy es come +back. Wo! ho! Jessie! gently, mare! steady, now! Wo! ho!" + +"John Brown," said his wife, "I ha' thoft for a bra' bit that there was +but one biggar fool than you in the world, an' that's me, for marryin' +such a g'eat lazy, knaw-nothen' pattick. John Brown, go to bed!" And +this command was given in such an authoritative tone, that Mr. Brown +took it literally, and, lighting a bed-light, although it was broad +daylight, he took off his shoes at the bottom of the stairs, as was his +wont, and went to bed in right earnest; and in ten minutes he was fast +asleep. + +"Well, that's a comfort," said Mrs. Brown. + +"What's a comfort?" said Mrs. Trenow, who had come in to have a croom of +chat with the landlady; "you've had your drop of gin an' peppermint, I +s'pose?" + +"No, sure, I ha'n't," replied Mrs. Brown; "but we will now, for I do +feel that there's something wantin', cheeld vean." + +So the two gossips were very soon seated comfortably over their little +drop of cordial, seasoned with a pinch of snuff; and they wound up their +moderate carousal with a cup of tea. + +"You said something wor a comfort when I came in," said Mrs. Trenow. + +"Iss fie! hark!" replied Mrs. Brown, turning up her ear in a listening +attitude. + +"You've got a pig bad, I s'pose?" said Mrs. Trenow; "but what comfort +there es in that, I caen't tell. Ill-wished again, I s'pose? Semmen to +me 'The Maister' ha' got bra' work now." + +"No, my dear, tesn't the pig. Hark again!" said Mrs. Brown. + +"Why, 'tes up in the chamber, to be sure," replied Mrs. Trenow, +listening. + +"Iss fie, 'tes up in the chamber, sure nuff," said Mrs. Brown; "and +there he'd sleep and snore till to-morrow dennar-time ef I dedn't +rouse'n out." + +"Dear lor'! like that, es aw? Whisht too 'pon om, now that the mare es +killed, I s'pose," said Mrs. Trenow. "Do 'ee think that 'The Maister' +had any grudge agen that young gentleman, do 'ee?" + +"What shud he knaw 'bout the young gentleman?" returned Mrs. Brown. +"I'll tell 'ee, Mrs. Trenow, 'The Maister' wean't lev you nor me knaw +what he do think; for thinken' es one thing and spaiken' es another, +weth he, I'll assure 'ee." + +"But the boy came back to the very minute, I do hear," said Mrs. Trenow, +who could not be persuaded out of her belief in "The Maister's" wisdom. + +"I tell 'ee, Mrs. Trenow," said Mrs. Brown, in a confidential whisper; +"'tes my belief that ef they two wor to take off their shoes you wud see +two cloven hoofs,--iss I do." + +"Oh! lor!" shrieked both the women, as they looked up, after their +little confidential whisper; for behind them stood Mr. Freeman himself. + +"A glass of mild ale, if you please, Mrs. Brown," said he, in his +blandest tone, as he took his usual seat in the chimney-corner. + +"Yes, sir," said the landlady. And while she was drawing the ale, Mrs. +Trenow took the opportunity of slipping out. Mrs. Brown was as shrewd +and cunning in her way as Mr. Freeman was in his, and, while she was +drawing the glass of ale, she began to reflect on the probable purport +of this early visit; for "The Maister" seldom came there until much +later in the evening, when he knew he should find some of those +peculiarly constituted individuals there, whom Alrina generally +designated "goostrumnoodles," and whom he seldom found much difficulty +in frightening to his heart's content. On these occasions, Mrs. Brown +never interfered; for she had an eye to business, and she knew that the +more terror there was produced in the brains of these poor numskulls, +the more stimulants they would consume. But, now, there was no occasion +for any dissimulation; and so she determined she would tell "The +Maister" a bit of her mind,--for she believed that he had some hidden +and wicked motive for prompting her husband to induce that young +gentleman to undertake so dangerous a feat as the one he had attempted +that day. + +"Your husband has met with a serious loss to-day," said Mr. Freeman. + +"Iss; and I s'pose you are come down for to make et good," replied Mrs. +Brown, rather tartly. + +"Me!" said Mr. Freeman; "what have I to do with Mr. Brown's losses, more +than having a feeling of sympathy for the misfortunes of an old friend?" + +"You dedn't tell Brown that the young gentleman must ride the mare up +there, I s'pose?" said Mrs. Brown, taking a cunning side glance at her +visitor. + +"What motive could I have had for such a suggestion as that?" asked Mr. +Freeman, looking innocently at Mrs. Brown; "and who could possibly have +said that I had anything to do with the matter?" + +"I tell 'ee, Maister Freeman," said Mrs. Brown; "there's more of your +doin's knawn than you do think. What you got out of that wreck es knawn +to a bra' many, f'rall they're afeard for to spaik et out, down sous." + +This made Mr. Freeman wince a little; for he had such confidence in his +own cunning and ability in frightening and deceiving his neighbours, +that he never for a moment supposed that they would presume to speculate +on, or try to pry into, his private gains, or discuss his actions or +motives. + +His eyes were now opened, and Mrs. Brown perceived that he felt very +uncomfortable--a most unusual and impolitic feeling for him to exhibit +in the presence of so shrewd a woman as Mrs. Brown, who drew her own +conclusions therefrom; and after her visitor had drank his ale, and left +her alone once more, she sat down, and, putting "this against that," saw +the "ins and outs of things," as she expressed it, more clearly than she +had ever done before. + + + + +CHAPTER XV. + +THE MYSTERIOUS STRANGER AT THE PENZANCE BALL. + + +Frederick Morley was getting strong again, and had met Alrina several +times, and pressed her to go to the ball at Penzance; but this she could +not think of doing, she said. Neither her father nor her aunt would +sanction that, she was quite sure; for, although her education had been +such as so fit her for ball-room society, and her beauty eminently +qualified her for a ball-room belle, yet the equivocal position of her +father, and the mystery which appeared to hang over them all, precluded +her from enjoying at present the society of him she loved so much, in +that sphere to which he of right belonged. He was unwilling to go +without her, and had almost made up his mind not to go; but she knew it +would do him good to mix in the society to which he had been accustomed, +and she knew, also, that if he declined accompanying the Pendray party +to the ball, his motives would be canvassed, and their secret love, +which it was best for the present should be concealed, might become +known; and so Alrina persuaded him to go. + +Carriages were sent out from Penzance to take the Pendray family and the +two officers to the ball, which was expected to be a very aristocratic +affair. When they arrived at the hotel, they found that the best +sitting-room and bedroom--which Squire Pendray wished to have secured +for his party--had been engaged that morning by a strange gentleman, who +came in from Hayle in a carriage-and-four, the waiter said. He was +dressed like a foreigner, and had a large trunk with him, but no +servant. He seemed rich, and gave orders as if he had been accustomed to +be waited upon by a good many servants, and would not be satisfied with +any but the best rooms. He took two tickets for the ball, the waiter +said, and therefore, he supposed, he expected a friend, but no one had +yet arrived. + +The ball was a very brilliant one, for a country ball in those days, and +everyone seemed in anxious expectation for the entrance of the +stranger--especially the young ladies. Miss Pendray looked splendid. She +had impressed Frederick Morley into her service, as her favoured beau; +for she had taken a great interest in him since his accident, and had +paid him marked attention,--indeed, she now looked upon him as a hero, +whom she could almost worship. Such deeds of daring had a charm for her +which few else could understand. But still, he did not come up to her +standard of manly perfection. There was scarcely enough of that romantic +devotion towards herself displayed, which she so much required, and +demanded from those she took an interest in. This placed Morley in a +very awkward position, for he could not help seeing that he had +attracted Miss Pendray's attention, and that she seemed more pleased +with his society than that of any other gentleman of her acquaintance. +But he could not return it as she evidently would have wished him to do; +for he had a secret treasure concealed within his breast, far dearer to +him than all the charms of person and mind and fortune which Miss +Pendray possessed. He would not exchange his Alrina's love for the +fairest and brightest jewel that the world could bestow; for, without +her, all the world to him would be an empty and worthless blank. + +He enjoyed the ball as much as he could do in the absence of her who was +uppermost in his thoughts. The excitement of the music, the company, and +the dancing, brought back reminiscences of similar scenes abroad. His +wonted spirits returned, and he entered thoroughly into the pleasures of +the moment, and forgot for a time the scene on the cliffs, the horse's +screech of terror, and the sound of his falling from rock to rock, as he +went down over that awful precipice, while he himself was dangling on +the very edge. He danced with all alike,--one lady was the same, to him, +as another, there,--and he did not notice that Miss Pendray had +withdrawn from the dancing, and was sitting alone at one end of the +room, when the stranger entered. All eyes were directed towards the +door, as the waiter showed him in; but his eyes were evidently attracted +by the magnificent form of Miss Pendray, as she sat alone on a seat +nearly opposite the door. + +One of the stewards immediately went up to him, introducing himself as +"steward," and offering to present him to a partner. + +The stranger bowed, and expressed a wish to be presented to the lady who +was sitting opposite. + +He gave his name to the steward who introduced him to Miss Pendray as +"Mr. Smith." The stranger was the topic of conversation throughout the +room. He certainly looked like a foreigner. His dress was that of an +Indian gentleman of rank of those days. His coat was of the finest +purple satin, trimmed and ornamented with gold; a white satin waistcoat, +tastefully embroidered with silver; and white kerseymere breeches of the +finest texture, fastened below the knee with a silver band; the white +silk stocking displaying to advantage a finely-turned leg,--his shoes +being fastened with small gold buckles. He was a tall, fine-looking man, +apparently between forty and fifty years of age--nearer the former, +perhaps, than the latter. He seemed to be making himself very agreeable +to Miss Pendray; for she became full of animation, and her handsome +countenance lit up radiant with beauty. + +The stranger would not dance, but was introduced, by turn, to almost all +the ladies of note in the room. Miss Pendray, however, was the principal +attraction, and he returned to her side again and again. + +Frederick Morley looked at the stranger several times with earnest +attention, and, after a time, became absorbed in thought. He was not +jealous of the attention bestowed on him by the lady whom he had led +into the room. No, it could not have been that. He did not care enough +for Miss Pendray to feel jealous of her attentions being bestowed +elsewhere. No, it was not that. He watched the stranger narrowly, and he +came to the conclusion that he was not the person he assumed to be. +"Smith" was a feigned name, evidently. His dress and ornaments betokened +him to have been a resident in India. India was a country familiar to +Morley by name, and dear to him, as having been the residence of his +father for so many years, and the birthplace of his mother, his brother +and sister, and himself. He had not seen his brother since he and his +sister were brought over by their father, when they were children, and +when that never-to-be-forgotten calamity befel his father, which +shortened his life. That false accusation was still hanging over the +family. He had been reminded of it, in almost every letter he had +received from his brother since their father's death; and, in his last +letter, he said he had wound up their father's affairs, and his own, in +India, and he intended to return to England by the next ship, to arrange +the property according to their father's will, and to make a strict +search after the wretches who had murdered their own father, on that +terrible night, and caused the suspicion and accusation to rest on an +innocent man. He would travel all over England, he said, and spend the +whole of his fortune, to clear his father from that foul suspicion. + +Frederick had but a very faint recollection of his brother; but a +strange, unaccountable idea, took possession of him during supper. He +thought he observed the stranger start once or twice, when the name of +"Morley" happened to be spoken by anyone at the table--as was frequently +the case; for Frederick was a stranger too, and, therefore, received +great attention from the stewards, and, indeed, from the ladies, whose +goodness of heart frequently prompts them to show greater attention to +strange gentlemen than to those whom they are in the habit of meeting +every day. + +Ever since he had heard of the wreck of that East-Indiaman at Pendeen, +he had been persuading himself that his brother might have been one of +the passengers on board that ill-fated vessel; and, as very few bodies +had been washed on shore, it was probable that one of the boats might +have withstood the storm, and, when the sea was more tranquil, they +might have landed somewhere on the north coast. It was possible. There +was just sufficient possibility in it to keep alive hope. + +What if this stranger should turn out to be his brother? It was scarcely +probable; but yet the idea had seized hold of him, and he could not get +rid of it. + +The discovery and exposure of those wretches, who had been the means of +hastening their father's death, and embittering his last moments, was +the constant theme in all his brother's letters, and seemed uppermost in +his thoughts. Year after year he longed to be able to give up his +business in India, and return to England seemingly for that one purpose. +He had witnessed the effect the stain of this false accusation had +produced on his father's mind and bodily health, and had seen him pine +away under it; and he had received his father's dying injunction to sift +the affair to the bottom as soon as he could return to England. + +He had refrained from marrying in India, that he might have no ties to +keep him there after his business affairs were wound up. He would, of +course, change his name in searching after the fugitives, and he might +have commenced at once, Frederick thought, however remote the chance of +his finding them on the narrow strip of land which terminates the +kingdom of England. + +In spite of its improbability, Morley could not divest himself of the +idea which had taken such a deep hold of him, and he determined on +speaking to the stranger after supper, and asking him if he had ever met +with a merchant of the name of Morley in India. He was disappointed, +however; for, almost immediately after supper, Frederick was seized with +one of his nervous attacks, and it was as much as his friend Fowler +could do to support him to his room; and when he came down to a late +breakfast, he found that the stranger had gone out for his morning's +walk. + + + + +CHAPTER XVI. + +JOSIAH'S ASTONISHMENT AT THE EFFECT PRODUCED BY THE DISPLAY OF HIS +TREASURE-TROVE. + + +Josiah Trenow had been in constant attendance on Frederick Morley, ever +since the accident. It may appear strange that a young man so strong and +brave as Morley, and who had seen so much service abroad, and been +engaged in the most dangerous sports that can possibly be pursued, +should have been so entirely prostrated by this accident; but so it was. + +It was Josiah's strong arm that had lifted him up from his perilous +position on the cliffs; and, for many days, he did not feel safe unless +that strong arm was near, to be thrown round him when the terrible +thought of his perilous situation seized him; and Josiah was beginning +to like his young master--for such he seemed now to have become, without +any formal agreement having been entered into between them. + +While his young master was at Penzance attending the ball, Josiah went +to the mine where he had been working, to put things straight, and to +see the captain, and get another man put in his place; for Morley had +asked him to remain with him until he was obliged to join his regiment +again--which would not be for some time, as he had obtained an extension +of leave, in consequence of the accident, and the strong certificate +sent to head-quarters from the surgeon who attended him. He had remained +at "The First and Last Inn," at Sennen, ever since,--partly to be near +his friend Fowler, and partly because he fancied the removal to another +place might cause a return of those dreadful feelings of nervous terror +which he had now in a measure overcome. + +On the morning after his return from Penzance, Josiah came into his +master's room, after breakfast, carrying a small box under his arm, +which appeared to be very heavy, and, placing it on the table, he said, + +"I've got something here, sar, that I do want you to see. I picked 'n up +in the sand after the wreck, an' I oppened om, an' wor frightened sure +'nuff." + +"Frightened at opening a small box!" said Morley, smiling; "I thought +your nerves were stronger, Josiah." + +"You shall see for yourself," returned Josiah. And he proceeded to take +out the screws with which the box was fastened, when, to Morley's utter +astonishment, he saw that the box was filled to the brim with Indian +gold coins, and, in one corner of the box, closely packed down, there +was a piece of thick white writing-paper, neatly folded up. + +"There, sar," said Josiah; "es et any wonder that I shud be frightened?" + +"No, indeed!" said his master, taking up a few of the coins, and +examining them; "there must be many thousands of pounds in this little +box. Why, you're a lucky man, Josiah. And you consider these all your +own, of course, according to the doctrine of all Cornish wreckers?" + +"No, I don't sar," replied Josiah; "but I caen't tell whose they are,--I +wish I cud. I b'lieve that paper wud tell, ef so be that I cud read 'n; +but I caen't read writen', f'rall I can read prent, ef they're brave an' +big letters. I carr'd that paper up to Maister Freeman, but I dedn't +car' up the box,--no fie! Ef you had seed his face when he looked 'pon +the paper fust, you'd never forgit 'n no more. 'Twor whisht sure 'nuf." + +"Well, what did he say?" asked Morley, who felt more interested in +hearing something about the conjuror, who had so nearly caused his +death, than curiosity as to the contents of the paper. + +"Say?" exclaimed Josiah; "why, nothen' for a bra' bit. He read 'n down +twice, quite study, like, an' then aw looked up 'pon me, like one +startled, an' folded up the paper. An' then he said, 'Josiah,' says he +to me, 'I can't make this out 'less I do see the box that 'twor in; +bring et to me at once,' says he. ''Tes an unlucky thing for you to keep +in your house,' says he; 'your pigs will die, and, maybe, you'll all be +laid down, and rise no more,' says he. 'Bring the box, and all the +contents, within one hour,' says he, 'or else you are all doomed,' says +he. An' weth that he wor goen' for to put the paper in his pocket; but I +catched 'n by the arm, and made 'n screech ten thousand murders, an' +drop the paper, an' I very soon picked 'n up agen. An' then he tore to +me, an' tried for to catch the paper agen; but I wor too quick for 'n, +an' I tripped 'n up weth my toe, an' left 'n lyin' 'pon the planchen'; +and then I trapesed away down ste-ars. I reckon the maid Alice Ann wor +frightened too; for I b'lieve in my conscience she wor harken' outside +the door,--for I nearly knacked har down, poor soul, but I cudn't stop +to see." + +"Let me see the paper," said Morley, who was now as anxious to see it, +as he had been indifferent before. + +So Josiah took it out, and unfolded it very carefully; and if he had +been astonished to see the strange appearance of Mr. Freeman's +countenance when he perused that paper, he was perfectly astounded now, +to see the effect the perusal of it was producing on Mr. Morley; and he +began to think that the box and all it contained were bewitched, as Mr. +Freeman had said, and he entertained serious thoughts of carrying it +down to the cliffs and throwing it over. At length, Mr. Morley, having +finished the perusal of the paper for the third time, leaned his elbows +on the table, supporting his head with his hands, in which he still +clutched the paper, and sobbed aloud; for his nerves were still too weak +to bear up against any sudden shock without giving vent to his feelings. + +Josiah stood looking at his master and the box alternately, having a +confused idea of a shipwreck and a man and horse falling over cliff, +with a box of gold tied to them as a weight to pull them down. At last +Mr. Morley recovered sufficiently to see that Josiah was looking +bewildered; so he thought it right to read the paper to him, which did +not, however, enlighten him very much till further explanation was +given. + +The mysterious paper contained these words:-- + + + "_I, Alexander Morley, on my dying bed, enjoin my two sons, William + and Frederick Morley, to make the strictest search for those two + wretches, who committed the murder, of which I was accused, and to + use all possible means to bring them to justice, or to induce them + to confess their crime, that my bones may rest in peace. The + contents of this box to be used in the prosecution thereof._ + + "_Alexander Morley._" + + +"Well," said Josiah, "I ar'n't much furder footh, I think." And he +looked at his master with a vacant stare. Mr. Morley, therefore, thought +it best to entrust this faithful and honest man with the whole +circumstances relative to the murder, which made him stare more than +ever; but it was not a vacant stare now. + +"You must let me take this paper, Josiah," said Mr. Morley; "and perhaps +I had better take care of the box also, for the present." + +"By all mains, sar," said Josiah; "for, putting this and that together, +'tes surely your father's box, and sent here for a wise purpose." + +"This accident has brought many sad reflections into my mind, Josiah," +replied Mr. Morley. "I cannot now have any doubt of the fate of my poor +brother. He was, no doubt, bringing this valued box home, that we might +proceed together in the search. He is gone; but Providence has thrown +this box in my way, as a powerful incentive to use my utmost exertions, +single-handed, to perform the task allotted to my brother and myself by +our poor father." + +"You sha-ant go by yourself, sar," said Josiah; "I'll help 'ee as far as +I can, ef you'll lev me to." + +"You shall," replied his master. "I am indebted to you for my life, and +for the discovery of this box, so that our destinies seem blended +together, in an unaccountable manner. You shall not go unrewarded, I +assure you. We will use this money, as it is ordered, in searching for +the guilty parties." + +"Zackly like that," returned Josiah; "an' ef I wor you I wud ax Maister +Freeman. Whether et wor his conjuring knawledge, or what, I caen't tell; +but semmen' to me I thoft he knawed somethen'." + +"No, no," replied Morley; "it was the wish to get the gold into his +possession that made him look so odd. He is avaricious, and he thought +to frighten you into the foolish act of bringing the box to him, when he +would either have kept it altogether, or have taken a large toll out of +it." + +"Well, sar," said Josiah, "I'll allow you for to knaw best; but ef I wor +you, I'd see Maister Freeman;--he might look to his books an' tell 'ee +somethen' more than you do knaw now." + +This seemed very good advice; for, even if Mr. Freeman knew nothing, +Frederick thought he should at least see the conjuror in his "sanctum," +as he was going to him on business, and he might have a chance of seeing +Alrina, whom he had not met for several days; for she did not keep her +last appointment with him two days before the ball, and he feared she +might be ill, or might have been prevented by some lynx-eyed Duenna, as +she had been before, when he blamed her without cause. So, for all these +reasons, Frederick determined he would visit the lion in his den, and +make him divulge all he knew respecting the contents of that paper, if +indeed he knew anything--which, however, the unhappy young man very much +doubted. + + + + +CHAPTER XVII. + +THE BORROWED FEATHERS OF THE PEACOCK FAIL TO CONCEAL ENTIRELY THE +NATURAL PLUMAGE OF THE JACKDAW. + + +The strange gentleman who had caused such a sensation at the ball, and +who called himself "Mr. Smith," continued to reside at the hotel, at +Penzance, in a style which evinced great wealth, and perhaps rank, as +the inhabitants generally thought; so he was called on by most of the +aristocracy of the neighbourhood, and invited to dine at their houses. +He frequently rode out to the Logan Rock, or Lamorna cliffs, where he +met Miss Pendray--sometimes by appointment, and sometimes by accident. +She seemed quite fascinated with the mysterious stranger, and would meet +him in the roughest weather, and wander with him over the cliffs, while +he related to her tales of romance and horror, which delighted and +fascinated her; and she would look into his face, and allow him to hold +her hand, as they sat side by side on the rocks, while he poured into +her willing ear those tales she so delighted to listen to,--and by +degrees he blended, almost imperceptibly at first, his own feelings with +the more romantic scenes which he depicted so well, and shadowed forth, +at length, in vague but unmistakeable language, his love and admiration +of the beautiful creature by his side, until the majestic Maud was +subdued into a mere mortal and received his protestations and vows of +love and constancy, and returned them as fully and freely and +confidingly as her sister, the gentle and innocent Blanche, would have +done to him she loved above all others on earth. But, although he was +always so ready and anxious to meet Miss Pendray out of doors, he +avoided going to her father's house. She would frequently ask him the +reason of this, but he would never satisfy her. On one occasion, after +an unusually tender and protracted meeting on the cluster of rocks +surrounding the Logan Rock, when he thought he had gained sufficient +power over her, he asked her to elope with him; at which she was at +first highly indignant. She drew herself up instantly to her full +dignity, and, looking down with scorn on her lover, while her eyes +flashed with indignation, she said, + +"Do you take me for a silly school-girl, that you presume to make such a +proposition to me? No, sir! while I reside under my father's roof, it +must be from his hands, and from his house, that I must be claimed and +taken, if at all." + +"Nay," exclaimed her companion, in the greatest alarm and humiliation; +"I meant not to offend you. My life has been one of romance from my +childhood, and I thought you possessed the same romantic ideas, but in a +loftier, and, I perceive, more chivalrous, form. Pardon me. The +anticipation of the possession of a jewel so valuable, dazzled and +disordered my brain, and I feared its loss, if left to others to +decide; your father might refuse his consent, and a thousand things +might happen in the delay, to deprive me of the possession of her on +whom my happiness and life depend. But your wishes shall be as commands +to me;--it shall be done methodically, and in as businesslike a manner +as other poor mortals perform the same ordeal: I will ask your honoured +father, who will doubtless give us his blessing: we will go to the +parish church and be united, as the Cornish clodhoppers are accustomed +to be, and have a quiet dinner, and after tea we will jog into Penzance, +and spend the honeymoon in some comfortable lodgings. Let me go now, and +speak to the good squire," continued he, taking her hand, and kneeling +on the grass at her feet. + +"Oh! Mr. Smith," she said, relenting a little; "you have drawn a very +rustic picture truly of the marriage ceremony. The one great event in +woman's life should be a little more brilliant and exciting than that, +certainly." + +"Yes, yes," said he, rising and kissing her hand; "I knew you would not +be satisfied with a humdrum marriage, and so I went, perhaps, a little +too far the other way." + +"Oh! Mr. Smith," she said, turning from him, and covering her eyes with +one hand, while he retained the other, "I am afraid I am doing wrong, +even now. I ought not to be here,--I know I ought not, and yet----" + +"Do not speak thus, dearest Maud," said he; "you know my devoted +attachment to you, and my admiration of your noble character, and the +beauties of your mind and person. Your majestic and dignified form, and +the brilliancy of your eyes, attracted my attention when I entered the +ball-room at Penzance, and----" + +"Allow me to remind you," replied Miss Pendray, rather haughtily, "that +I do not like gross flattery; it is repugnant to my nature; I cannot +endure it." + +These expressions were uttered abruptly and incautiously, and the fair +lady was aware immediately that she had said too much; but she was so +much accustomed to have her own way at home, and to be treated with the +greatest deference and respect by all, and was moreover so conscious of +her own perfections, that any plain allusion to them was quite repulsive +to her; it was not the first time that this mysterious stranger had +mixed up a little vulgarity, as she deemed it, with his more refined +conversation, and interesting and romantic tales. She did not quite +understand him even now. She had never before taken him up so sharply, +although she had often wished to do so; but she feared to wound his +feelings. She had now, in the excitement of the moment, expressed her +thoughts more fully than she intended, and she felt sorry, and would +have given worlds to recall those last expressions. She was relieved, +however, from her embarrassment on that account; for, just at that +moment, as she turned to reassure him, a gentlemanly looking man +suddenly emerged from behind one of those lofty rocks at a little +distance from where the lovers were standing, and approached towards +them. Miss Pendray's back was turned towards the intruder, so that she +did not notice his approach; but, as she was about to speak to her +companion, she saw such a terrified, horrible expression come over his +countenance, as he gazed at the gentleman who was now rapidly +approaching them, that she turned round instinctively to see what it was +that had so absorbed his attention, when she found herself almost face +to face with the stranger, as he jumped down from a rock near her. She +uttered a little shriek at the suddenness of the surprise, but +immediately recovered herself sufficiently to take a hasty glance at his +personal appearance, before he spoke; for he was a remarkable looking +man. He was considerably above the middle height, strongly built, and +robust. His hair was almost white, although, from his fresh complexion +and general appearance, he was evidently still a young man--perhaps +scarcely forty. His face was tanned with the sun, as if he had lived +long in a warm climate. He had the appearance of a gentleman, and, from +his manners, he evidently was one. + +"I beg your pardon, madam," he said, "for thus intruding on you. I +assure you it was quite unintentional. I was searching for Lieut. +Fowler. His men, at the station, told me he was out on the coast, near +by, somewhere; and, as I wished to see him, I thought I would take a +stroll, with the chance of falling in with him, rather than wait indoors +this beautiful morning." + +"Pray don't apologize," replied Miss Pendray; "I often meet Lieut. +Fowler on the cliffs, and this is not at all an unlikely place to meet +with him." + +"Thank you," said the stranger; and, taking off his hat to the lady, he +passed on in search of the lieutenant, while Miss Pendray turned round +towards Mr. Smith, whom she expected to find recovered by this time from +the shock, or whatever it was, that made him look so odd, and prevented +him, as she thought, from speaking to the intruder, who was now out of +sight. But where was Mr. Smith? He was nowhere to be seen. She looked +all round, and climbed to the topmost rock, but could see no trace of +him. It was very odd, she thought; and that demoniacal look haunted her. +What could it mean? Did he know that stranger, and fear him for some +reason? No, that could scarcely be; for he evidently saw Mr. Smith, but +he showed no signs of recognition. She knew not what to think. What did +she know of Mr. Smith? Who was he? Where did he come from? He was +comparatively a stranger to her. These were questions which she now +began to ask herself, as she walked slowly home; and she now began to +think that she had acted wrong, in meeting a mere stranger so often, +clandestinely, and allowing herself to be led away by his fascinating +conversation, after knowing him little more than a fortnight. These +reflections smoothed and softened her naturally bold and daring spirit, +and, instead of feeling a wish now to soar to the top of the loftiest +rocks and cliffs, and look danger in the face without shrinking, she +felt subdued and melancholy, and instinctively took the path which led +down towards Lamorna Cove--the spot so loved and admired by her gentle +sister. + +Here she met Blanche and Lieut. Fowler searching for some rare shells on +the beach, to whom she recounted her adventure with the strange +gentleman with the white hair, but she did not mention the other in whom +she was more interested. + +Lieut. Fowler knew no such person, he said, as Miss Pendray described. +Perhaps it was some inspecting officer. He could not have come on duty, +however, for in that case he would have been in uniform. But whoever it +was, he thought he had better go and see him; so he took leave of the +two sisters, and walked away in the direction of the signal-station at +Tol-pedn-Penwith, wondering who his strange visitor could be. + + + + +CHAPTER XVIII. + +THE BIRDS HAVE TAKEN FLIGHT. + + +Frederick Morley determined on going to Mr. Freeman's house, and taking +a copy of that document with him, when he hoped to be able to induce the +"man of cunning" to tell him what he knew relative to the contents of +that paper which Josiah had found in the box; for Josiah seemed so +convinced of his being able to enlighten his master, that he was +beginning himself to feel that the visit might turn out more successful +and satisfactory than he at first imagined. + +"I'll go weth 'ee, sar," said Josiah; "an' ef we caen't, both of es, +make 'n tell, why 'twill be whisht sure nuf. I'll maul 'n brave ef aw +don't tell everything; for I'm sure, semmen to me, that he wudn't look +like that there, ef he dedn't knaw somethen'." + +"No, no, Josiah," replied his master; "we must not resort to personal +violence. You shall go with me, for you know him,--I do not,--and we +shall soon see by his manner what he knows, although I have my doubts, +still, as to his real knowledge of anything connected with this affair. +It is his object to pretend to know more than he really does, in order +to mislead ignorant people; and he thereby induces them to communicate +enough to enable him to guess at the rest,--and so he gets credit for a +vast amount of prescience more than he really possesses." + +As they walked on slowly towards St. Just, on their important errand, +Morley's mind was filled with various thoughts and conjectures, all of +the greatest moment to him. He might now be on the point of having his +great secret unravelled, or at least of gaining some intelligence +respecting it, and he was about to see Alrina's father, and perhaps +herself. He should now also know the reason why she had not kept her +last appointment with him. All these serious reflections passing through +his mind, made him silent. It was likely to be an eventful day for him. +What Josiah's thoughts were we do not know--our little bird is silent on +that point. Perhaps he was also thinking of his Alice Ann; but this +thought did not seem to disturb him. His love was not quite so ardent, +perhaps, as his master's, or his love might probably be running more +smoothly; for he disturbed the air now and then by whistling snatches of +some old song or country jig, shewing thereby to his companion, if he +felt any interest in knowing the fact, that his faithful attendant's +thoughts didn't trouble him much. At length, after a weary walk, though +not by any means a long one, they arrived at the verge of the village; +and now Josiah took the lead, as he knew every house and almost every +stone in the place. The village was very quiet, for most of the men were +out at their work--some at the mine, and others at their little +farms--while the women were busy indoors, cleaning up a bit, and +preparing the men's dinners. + +They passed the "Commercial" Hotel, which seemed to be taking its +morning nap, and reposing its dignity in the sun, which was shining +brightly on its whitewashed walls, and looking in at the windows, and +stretching itself, as far as it could, in at the open door, making the +fine sand, with which the passage was strewed, sparkle again. The +stable-door was shut,--all was quiet there. Poor Mr. Brown's occupation +was gone. Morley shuddered as he thought of the beautiful mare; but they +passed on in silence until they arrived at the further end of the +village, when Josiah stopped opposite a neat looking farm-house, and, +after a few minutes' reflection, exclaimed, + +"Dash my buttons! why they're gone, to be sure." + +This expression, which was said in an excited tone, recalled Morley from +his reverie, and, looking up, he saw that the house they were standing +opposite, seemed to be deserted and shut up. The window-shutters were +all closed, and the garden-gate was locked. + +"That's unlucky, if this is the house," said Morley; "but they may not +be gone far. Let us enquire somewhere." + +"Zackly like that," replied Josiah, in a sort of bewildered manner, +while he led the way to a cottage at a little distance off, which he +entered very unceremoniously, bidding his master to follow him. + +"Where's 'The Maister' gone?" said he, addressing an elderly woman, who +was up to her elbows in soapsuds, washing at a small washtub. + +"Your sarvant, sar," said Mrs. Trenow, wiping the soapsuds from her +hands and arms, without noticing her son's question. + +"Set down, sar, ef you plaise," said Josiah, placing a chair for his +master; for he saw that he was fatigued. "Mother es like somethen' +that's very good to eat when 'tes boiled sometimes," continued Josiah; +"she don't always go foreright when she's wanted to." + +"Areah, then," said his mother; "the world es come to a purty pass, when +cheldern do begin for to taich their mothers manners." + +"Hush, mother," said Josiah, laughing, and slapping the old lady on the +back. "How are 'ee, thon? I ha'n't seed 'ee for a bra' bit." + +"No fie, you ha'n't," replied Mrs. Trenow. "He's gone, cheeld vean, an' +joy go weth 'n, says I." + +"You are speaking of Mr. Freeman, I presume," said Mr. Morley. "I came +here almost on purpose to see him, and we found the house shut up. Can +you give us any information respecting his movements?" + +"No, sar, I caen't," replied Mrs. Trenow. "About a week ago, or so--I +caen't tell to a day--Miss Freeman (that's 'The Maister's' sister, sar) +told Alice Ann (that's the maid, sar) that she might have a holiday in +the afternoon; an' glad enough the maid wor to have her holiday, I can +assure 'ee, sar. Well, she went out and stayed away till brave an' late +in the evenin', an' she went home thinkin' she shud have a bra' scold +for stayin' out so long; but when she came to the gate, she found it all +fastened up, an' the winder-shutters up, an' the house looking quite +whisht like." + +"That's very strange," said Morley; "but where are they gone?" + +"That's the very thing, sar," replied Mrs. Trenow. "'Where are they +gone?' says you; and 'where are they gone?' says everybody, 'ceps Mrs. +Brown,--she don't say nothin'. The maid's clothes wor left there for +har, an' that's all she'll tell." + +"Thank you, Mrs. Trenow," said Morley; "I think we must ask Mrs. Brown, +Josiah." + +"I b'lieve we must, sar," replied Josiah, thoughtfully. "Where's Alice +Ann, thon, mother; she esn't gone after them, I s'pose?" + +"No, no; she's up to har aunt's stopping a bit. Har fe-a-ther an' mother +do live a bra' way off, you knaw." + +"Now, I'll tell 'ee, sar," said Josiah; "you go up to Mrs. Brown's an' +knaw all you can, an' I'll go down an' see what Alice Ann have got to +say,--an', between es, we may find out somethen'." + +"Quite right, Josiah," returned his master, "that is a very good plan." +And each of them went his way on a voyage of discovery. + +Mrs. Brown was laying the cloth for the midday meal when Morley entered, +and her husband was sitting in the chimney-corner. The old lady was +overjoyed to see her visitor, and, running towards him, she took his +hand in both hers, and kissed it, saying,-- + +"I am glad to see you once more, Mr. Morley. It was a miraculous +escape; an' I hope it will be a warnin' to you, not to risk your life +agen at the biddin' of a rogue an' a fool." + +"My dear Mrs. Brown," replied Morley, "it was a narrow escape; but the +beautiful mare is gone! What does Mr. Brown do, without his Jessie +mare?" + +"The name of the mare roused Mr. Brown from his lethargy, and, coming +out of his corner, he said,-- + +"Where's my hat, Peggy? I'm goin' to get Jessie mare out, for the +gentleman to try her a bit before to-morrow. Come, sir. Wo! ho! Jessie; +wo! ho. Come, Polly! Poll! Poll! Polly! Where's that maid gone, Peggy. +Billy, boy, come an' saddle the mare." + +His hat, which was on his head, shone as brightly as ever, but his +internal brightness was gone. He never recovered the shock of seeing his +mare fall over the cliff, and the narrow escape of its rider. It was +very true he hadn't much to lose, poor man, intellectually. His one idea +was centred in the mare, and they both went together. He wandered in and +out of the house continually, and, as he didn't interfere with others, +no one interfered with him. + +"Poor man," said Mr. Morley, looking after him. + +"It's a blessin', Mr. Morley," said Mrs. Brown, "that the mare es gone. +She was no use here; and she was eatin' her head off, as the sayin' is. +What is, is best, I b'lieve." + +"My errand to St. Just," said Morley, "was principally to see Mr. +Freeman, and I find he's gone away." + +"Iss, he's gone, an' joy go weth 'n," replied Mrs. Brown. + +"Where is he gone," said Morley; "do you know?" + +"All I do knaw es this," replied Mrs. Brown. "He came here about ten +days ago, an' said he wor goin' to take his daughter for a little trip, +as she dedn't seem well,--she was so low-spirited, he said,--and he +asked me to take care of the maid Alice Ann's clothes for har, untel she +came back; for p'raps she wud be back before they wud. I thought they +wor goin' to Scilly, p'raps, or to Truro. And away they went, and Alice +Ann came for har clothes the next day. She dedn't go. Where they're +gone, I can no more tell than you can." + +"That's very strange; I wish I knew where they were gone," replied +Morley, thoughtfully. + +"You may wish agen, I b'lieve," returned Mrs. Brown; "he'll turn up +again one day, like a poor penny. Come, sir, have a snack weth us; we're +just going to dinner." + +So poor Mr. Brown was called in, and the three sat down to a nicely +seasoned beef-steak pie, which Morley enjoyed very much after his walk, +notwithstanding his disappointment. + +Josiah gained very little more information than his master. Alice Ann +told him that, for several days before they left, her young mistress, +Alrina, was confined to her room. She seemed drowsy, like, the girl +said, and didn't care to move nor to speak. + +"I do b'lieve, Siah," said she, speaking in a half whisper, "that she +had some doctor's trade gov to har for to put har to slaip,--I do, sure +nuf; and they took har away in a post-chaise while she wor slaipen'." + +Morley thought that if he could find where the post-chaise came from, he +might, by bribing and questioning the postboy, gain some clue to their +probable destination;--for, in addition to his anxiety to see Mr. +Freeman, which was now confirmed more than ever, he was doubly anxious +for the safety of Alrina, whom he was convinced her father and aunt were +persecuting--perhaps on his account, but why, he could not imagine; for +he was not aware that Alrina's relatives knew of his attachment to her, +or that he had ever met her. He little knew the resources of the "man of +cunning" for obtaining information of what took place in that +neighbourhood. He left a hasty note for his friend Fowler, stating that +he was unexpectedly called away on important business; and, taking +Josiah with him in the combined capacity of companion, assistant, and +valet, he proceeded on his travels in search of the fugitives. + + + + +CHAPTER XIX. + +THE MYSTERIOUS ENCOUNTER. + + +We left Lieut. Fowler on the road between Lamorna Cove and the +signal-station, at Tol-pedn-Penwith. Various were the conjectures that +passed through his mind during his walk, as to who the stranger could +be, but to no purpose. He could not think of any of his relatives or +acquaintances, who would be likely to be in that neighbourhood, without +apprising him of their intended visit. If it should turn out to be a +good companionable fellow, he wouldn't mind, but then, he was an old +grey-headed man, as he construed Miss Pendray's description of the +stranger. His friend, Frederick Morley, had gone off in rather an +unceremonious manner, and had left him again to the resources of the +Land's-End for amusement and companionship; and he had therefore been +more frequent in his visits to Pendrea-house, and more attentive to the +young ladies, than during his friend's visit. + +It was not often that Miss Pendray favoured Fowler and her sister with +her company; for, as the reader already knows, she had more attractions +elsewhere; and so accustomed were her friends to her romantic wanderings +over the bold cliffs alone, that the innocent Blanche was continually +Lieut. Fowler's only companion, and the time generally passed so +pleasantly that neither of them regretted the absence of a third party. + +When Miss Pendray came upon them so suddenly and unexpectedly on that +eventful morning, they were in the midst of a very interesting, but, to +Blanche, rather an embarrassing, _tête-à-tête_. The gentleman was trying +to make himself understood, without saying what he meant, in so many +words; and the lady, although--sly little creature--she knew quite well +what he meant to say, and wished from her heart he would say it out +boldly, and not be hammering and stammering about it so--making her +every moment feel more nervous and embarrassed, and himself too; yet she +would not help him, even by a look, but kept turning a pebble round and +round with her foot, and looking as steadily on the sand as if she was +endeavouring to look underneath it, for some rich treasure supposed to +be buried there. + +In the midst of all this, came the majestic Maud, with the tale of her +adventure with the remarkable stranger with the white hair. Wasn't it +provoking to be interrupted just at that critical time? Fowler felt that +it was downright----we won't say what. He wished the white-headed +stranger was at the bottom of the sea, and Maud on the top of the +cliffs, or anywhere, rather than there, at that moment. However, the +spell was broken; there was no help for it now; and he had nothing to do +but just walk home to see who this confounded fellow was, and what he +wanted. + +With all these reflections passing through his mind, as he neared his +little cabin, he was not prepared to receive the stranger very +cordially, nor to give him a very hearty welcome. He was told by the +men, as he came up, that the gentleman was inside; and, as he passed the +window of his sitting-room to reach the front door, he looked in, +thinking he might catch a glimpse of the fellow before he went in. He +caught more than a glimpse of him; for the stranger was standing at a +little distance from the window, looking out over the bold headland at +the sea in the distance, apparently absorbed in thought. + +Fowler started, and turned pale, as if he had seen a ghost, and was +obliged to hold by the railing of the little porch for a minute, before +he could recover himself sufficiently to enter. + +Sailors are not easily alarmed at trifles; so he soon got over the +effects of his shock, or whatever it was, and, entering the room, in his +usual boisterous, sailor-like style, exclaimed, louder than there was +perhaps any occasion for,-- + +"Mr. Morley! how are you? I'm glad to see you once more." + +This stentorian reception made the stranger start, and, turning round, +he said, bowing to his host,-- + +"Lieut. Fowler, I presume. But how you should know that my name is +Morley, I am at a loss to conceive, as I am pretty sure we have never +seen one another before, and am quite sure you did not expect me." + +Fowler passed his hand across his eyes, as if trying to recall +something; and then he said abstractedly, as he placed a seat for his +guest,-- + +"Not seen you before? surely, yes!--and yet, no! that cannot be." And he +seemed so bewildered, that the stranger proceeded to explain; for he now +began to see that the lieutenant was labouring under a mistake. + +"You see the likeness to my poor father," said he. + +"Ah!" exclaimed Fowler, starting up; "I see it all now. When I last saw +your father, fifteen or sixteen years ago, he was the exact image of +what you are now. He was older, of course, but there was the same +remarkable white hair. Yours no doubt became white prematurely, causing +you to look older than you really are. When I saw you standing at the +window, I thought I saw your father standing before me. The likeness is +most remarkable; and, almost before I had recovered myself, and without +reflecting for a moment, I rushed into the room to welcome my old +friend." + +"I have heard my father mention the name of Fowler often," replied Mr. +Morley, "with expressions of gratitude for kindnesses bestowed by your +family--both on himself, and on my brother and sister, who were left +here after that terrible catastrophe, of which I believe you are fully +aware." + +"It is true," returned Fowler, "that, in your father's younger days, he +was intimate with my father, who also resided in India, but returned to +England on account of his health, some time before yours came over with +his two children. Your father often came to see him before that dreadful +catastrophe, but never came after. He said he would never see his old +friend again, until that foul stain was wiped from his name. My father +did not, of course, believe that he was guilty, although the +circumstantial evidence was so strong. It preyed on his mind, however, +and, in his weak state, he could not bear up against the feeling that +his friend was wrongfully accused; and he, like your father, pined under +it, and passed away from among us in a very short time; but his death we +were prepared for. Your father was a strong man then. But how did you +find me out, Mr. Morley?" + +"By the merest accident," replied Mr. Morley; "indeed, when I came here, +I had no idea that you were at all connected with my father's old +friend, although the name was familiar to me,--very familiar, I may say; +for I knew your eldest brother in India intimately. He remained there +long after your father left, and married a native, by whom he had one +child--a daughter, I think. I shall never forget his kindness. He was +the only friend whom I could depend upon, when my poor father died. He +remained with me, day and night, until the last. His wife I never saw +much of: she died in giving birth to her second child which was +still-born. Your brother then made up his mind to come to England. He +would not do so while his wife lived; for he did not like introducing a +native as his wife, to his English relatives and friends. He was in good +spirits when I took leave of him, and we both looked forward to meeting +in England ere long; but, alas! he never reached his native shore alive. +The ship was wrecked somewhere on this dangerous coast, and he and his +little daughter perished. His body was found afterwards, but the child's +was never heard of again. It makes passengers, and even sailors +themselves, almost dread to approach this rock-bound coast. It is to be +hoped that, ere long, warning-lights or beacons will be erected all +round the coast. They are beginning to do so, I see; but there are more +wanted yet." + +"True," replied Fowler; "there are few families residing along the +Cornish coast who have not had to lament the loss of some relative or +friend in the merciless waves. But I am curious to know to what lucky +accident I am indebted for this visit?" + +"You have had another of those dreadful disasters on the coast," said +Morley. "Another East-Indiaman has lately been wrecked here. I was a +passenger on board that vessel. The weather was rough for several days +before, and we touched in at the Scilly Islands, where I landed, taking +a trunk with some clothes and a few valuables with me; and, meeting with +an old friend of my father's there, Mr. Samuel Lemon, the collector, +whom you know well, he pressed me so heartily to remain at his house, +that I determined to spend a few days there, and partake of his kind +hospitality, and I permitted the ship to proceed to her destination +without me; and a miraculous escape I have had, for I find that all on +board perished." + +"Not all," replied Fowler; "there was one sailor saved. It was a +miraculous escape, indeed. But you must have had some property on +board?" + +"I had a large chest containing some valuable clothes, and silks and +jewellery, and a considerable sum in hard cash," replied Mr. Morley, +"and, what I valued more than anything else, a small box, which belonged +to my poor father, into which he had placed, with his own hands, some +thousands of gold coins, and a written injunction to his two sons, to +use their utmost exertions to find out the wretches who committed that +foul murder of which my poor father was accused; and he directed that +those gold coins should be expended in the search. My object, therefore, +in coming to the Land's-End first, instead of going on direct to my +relatives, was, with the hope that this property might have been washed +ashore somewhere on the coast, and my good friend Mr. Lemon told me +that Mr. Fowler, the lieutenant at this station, would be the most +proper person to apply to for assistance and information." + +"You may rely on my doing all I can for you," replied Fowler; "but I +have not heard of any boxes answering the description of yours being +picked up anywhere, and I fear there is little chance of their being +washed on shore now; for their weight would sink them deeper and deeper +in the sand, and the calm weather we have now would not throw them up. +You have not lost all your property, I hope!" + +"Oh! no," said Mr. Morley; "I had sent home the bulk of my fortune, and +my father's, through agents, some months ago. That, I am happy to say, +is safe enough. All I regret now is the loss of that little box." + +"Your brother was a true prophet, after all," said Fowler, thoughtfully. + +"My brother!" exclaimed Mr. Morley; "where is he?" + +"Oh! I forgot to tell you," replied the lieutenant; "I was so interested +in the history of your miraculous escape. Your brother was my guest for +several weeks, until he met with an accident at the Land's-End." And he +proceeded to relate to his visitor the exciting tale of the fall of the +horse over the cliffs, with his brother's narrow escape, and the belief +that Frederick still entertained, that his brother was one of the +passengers on board that ill-fated vessel. + +After dinner, the two gentlemen walked up to Sennen, and enquired at +"The First and Last Inn" whether anything had been heard of Frederick +Morley. Nothing had been heard of him, the landlord said; but a letter +had been brought there for him that day, by a boy who said he was going +on to St. Just, and would call again for an answer should the gentleman +return in time. The letter was addressed, in a neat female hand, to +"Frederick Morley, Esq., 'First and Last Inn,' Sennen, Cornwall." + +"Who was the boy?" enquired the lieutenant of the landlord. + +"I don't know," replied he; "but my wife do say that she es sure 'tes +the same boy she ha' seen riding the mare that went over cliff." + +"I thought as much," said Fowler. "We must see that boy, and I have no +doubt we shall find him in his old quarters at St. Just." + +So the two gentlemen extended their walk to St. Just in search of the +boy. + +Neither of them had the slightest idea from whom the letter could have +come, unless it was from Morley's aunt or his sister; and in that case +there would most probably have been a postmark. + + + + +CHAPTER XX. + +ARISTOCRATIC CONNECTIONS. + + +Mrs. Courland, Frederick Morley's aunt, had been a celebrated beauty in +her youth. Her father, the Rev. Octavius Morley, was a scion of a high +family, with a small preferment; and his wife was also of aristocratic +birth. Too poor to put their only son, Alexander, into a leading branch +of one of the learned professions, and too proud to allow him to work +his way on as a merchant in England, they wisely sent him to India with +a friend, who soon put him into the way of making a rapid fortune; for +he possessed business talents of no ordinary kind, and steady and +persevering habits of industry. Having thus provided for their son, +their only care now was the education and marriage of their daughter, +who at nineteen was one of the loveliest girls that can possibly be +imagined. Rather above the middle height, elegant in form, and graceful +in all her movements, she attracted admirers wherever she went--very +much to the annoyance of her parents, who destined her either for one of +the aristocracy or for some rich Indian merchant. High birth, or riches, +were indispensable in the aspirant to Isabella Morley's hand; her heart +was left out of the question entirely by her honoured and honourable +parents. Not so by the young lady herself;--she had already fixed her +affections on a young officer, whom she had met at a ball to which she +had been taken by a lady friend with whom she had been staying in a +neighbouring town. He was the younger son of a country squire in an +adjoining county; but as he was neither rich nor noble, his alliance was +not deemed eligible by the aristocratic parents of Miss Morley, and they +therefore discouraged the intimacy, when they became aware of it, +although they did not positively forbid it; for they did not really +believe that a young man in his position--a lieutenant in a light +infantry regiment only, and the younger son of an obscure country +squire--would presume to approach the only daughter of such high-born +parents, except in the way of common politeness and courtesy. And, +besides, they placed implicit confidence in the lessons of ambition they +had taught their daughter; and therefore, having heard the rumour of +this flirtation in a casual way, and not knowing to what extent it had +already gone during her visit at Middleton, the young officer was +received with politeness when he called to enquire for the young lady, +after her return from her visit. + +These calls were repeated again and again, and _têtes-à-têtes_ were +observed in the garden and shrubbery, and Mrs. Morley began to open her +eyes to the true state of things, when it was too late. Cupid had by +this time planted his arrow too deeply to be easily eradicated. The +gentleman was forbidden the house, and the young lady was kept in +strict seclusion for some time; but, "Love laughs at locksmiths,"--and +the two lovers managed to meet, notwithstanding the locks and bars. + +Mrs. Morley's aristocratic notions could not be properly satisfied +without a lady's-maid, such as she had been accustomed to in her +father's house. But she soon found that a grand, high-and-mighty +lady's-maid, such as she and her sisters had been accustomed to at home, +would not put up with the inconvenience of a small vicarage-house in the +country, where a suitable number of servants could not be kept, and, +consequently, she was continually changing. This was both annoying and +expensive; so when her daughter left school, at seventeen, Mrs. Morley +hired a young woman whom they met with at a watering-place where they +happened to be rusticating that summer. She was the daughter of a +sailor, with whom they lodged; and Mrs. Morley found her so shrewd and +useful in most respects, that she pressed her mother to allow her to go +back with them in the capacity of double lady's-maid--to attend on +herself and daughter. + +Miss Fisher was apparently bold enough, and certainly old enough, to +have decided for herself,--for she was upwards of thirty years of age; +but she had cunning enough to read Mrs. Morley's character, through and +through, and she knew that a seeming deference to her mother's opinion +would have great weight with her new mistress. The old woman did not +like to part with her, but she knew it would be useless to oppose it, as +she saw that her daughter had set her mind on accepting the situation, +and so she consented; and Mrs. Morley returned to the vicarage with a +lady's-maid to her mind, as she thought. Miss Fisher proved all she +could wish, yielding to her in everything, as she supposed; instead of +which, the new lady's-maid, while seeming to yield, and, indeed, +yielding sometimes, in smaller things, very soon gained such an +ascendancy over her mistress, that, by a little clever manoeuvring, she +could turn her any way she liked. Miss Morley was not so easily ruled; +nor did Miss Fisher seem to wish it,--she appeared to have taken a great +fancy to her young mistress, and would do almost anything to please her; +and many a scold and reprimand did she prevent by her tact and cunning. + +Two years rolled over their heads, and Miss Fisher still acted in the +capacity of lady's-maid to both mother and daughter; and when the latter +received the invitation to pay a visit to her friend at Middleton, for +the express purpose of attending the ball which was about to take place +there, Mrs. Morley, in order that her daughter might be properly dressed +and taken care of, and also to display the aristocratic style of her +establishment, dispensed with the services of Miss Fisher for a time, +and allowed her to accompany Miss Morley to her friend's house. They +were more like companions than mistress and maid; for Miss Morley +confided all her little secrets to Miss Fisher, and she was therefore, +of course, made acquainted with the attentions of the young officer; and +as Miss Fisher highly approved of his person and manners, and the pretty +presents he occasionally gave her, she determined on favouring the +lovers, and doing all in her power to assist them,--so that clandestine +meetings were easy, although the young officer was forbidden the house, +and the young lady was under close confinement indoors. She was +beginning to exhibit signs of ill health, from the close confinement and +anxiety to which she was subject, and Miss Fisher suggested change of +air and scene. She was in the confidence of Mrs. Morley, who relied on +her, and believed all she told her. The young officer's regiment was +ordered abroad, she said, and therefore there could be no danger in that +quarter. This Mrs. Morley knew to be true, for her husband had been +making enquiries. Miss Fisher, however, managed to deceive her mistress +as to the time, telling her he was to sail immediately, and begging to +be allowed to take Miss Morley home to her father's house for a short +time, as she wanted to see the old people, and she thought the sea-air +would quite restore her young mistress's health, and the change of scene +might cause her to forget this foolish love-affair. So said the +designing Miss Fisher; and the pair went to old Mr. Fisher's house, +there to reside in strict seclusion, and luxuriate in country-walks and +sea-breezes. But, strange to say, they had not been there many hours, +before the young officer made his appearance there also, and the bloom +of health soon returned to the cheeks of the young lady, without the aid +of the sea-breezes--although they were often felt, as the two lovers +took their delightful walks over the rocks and along the cliffs. Lieut. +Marshall's time was nearly up; but a few more days remained before he +would be obliged to leave her he loved so much. He could not bear the +thought;--he was going to the battle-field, and might never see her +more; or, if he lived to return, he might find her the bride of another. + +"Never! never!" replied Miss Morley; "I will never be another's bride. I +am pledged and bound to you, dear James, by a sacred oath; I will die +rather than break my vow. Yours, and yours only, till death parts us." + +"I fully believe and trust in your good intentions, dearest Isabella," +said he; "but, should a rich man offer himself, you will be compelled to +break that vow, made only to me. Let us bind ourselves before the altar, +dearest; then nothing can sever us." + +Thus did he reason with the fair girl, and persuade her, when she had no +one to guide her aright; and so ably was the young officer supported in +his arguments, by the artful Miss Fisher, that they were married, and, +within a week after, were separated--perhaps never to meet again. + +Miss Morley (now Mrs. Marshall) returned to her father's house with a +heavy secret in her breast--one that she could not reveal. Letters came, +through Miss Fisher, which cheered her. Months rolled on. Her husband's +name was seen sometimes in the newspapers, and commented on by her +parents, little thinking how near and dear he was to her whom they +imagined cured of that foolish love-affair. + +At last there came an account of a great battle, and, amongst the list +of killed, was the name of Lieut. James Marshall. The shock was +terrible. Luckily there was no one in the room at the time but Miss +Fisher, who immediately rang for assistance, and took her to her room. +She was confined to her bed for several days; and when she got a little +better, Miss Fisher prevailed on Mrs. Morley to allow her daughter to +try change of air and sea-breezes again, as they had been so beneficial +before. So they went once more to old Fisher's house, by the seaside, +where she stayed several months, keeping up a continual and cheerful +correspondence with her parents, who were so pleased with her apparent +recovery, that the visit was prolonged, week after week, and month after +month. At last a letter came, peremptorily requesting her to return at +once, for reasons that would be explained when she arrived. + +Old Mrs. Fisher had died during her stay with them, so that Miss Fisher +felt bound now, she said, to remain with her father, who did not like +being left alone, although he was a strong able man yet, and did +something in the seafaring line beyond fishing--but what it was Miss +Morley (now Mrs. Marshall) could not make out;--they were very secret +about that. About this time also Miss Fisher's only brother, of whom she +had often spoken to her young mistress, returned, after a long absence. +He was a handsome young man, and was much struck with the beauty of +their visitor, and, not knowing at first her position, he began to pay +her marked attention. This did not suit Miss Fisher's plans, nor was it +at all agreeable to Mrs. Marshall. She therefore determined to leave at +once, although she was not quite recovered, and would be obliged to +trust to the safe keeping of Miss Fisher a secret which, if revealed, +would probably cause her parents to cast her off for ever. At first, and +before she was so completely in her power, she had placed the utmost +confidence in the fidelity of her maid; but during her last visit to the +old fisherman's cottage, her attendant's character had displayed itself +in its true colours. She now saw that Miss Fisher was working entirely +to suit her own wicked ends, and that her secret would only be safe, +while she could supply that wicked woman with funds sufficient to +satisfy her avarice. Mrs. Marshall was surprised and shocked at the +sudden change which she observed in Miss Fisher's manner towards her, +and could not account for it in any way, as she had always hitherto been +so kind. It was not Miss Fisher's fault, however, entirely; for the idea +of making money out of their too confiding visitor, was suggested by +the brother. He was piqued at her indignant rejection of his attentions, +and, having wormed the secret out of his sister, he suggested the plan +which she was only too ready to carry out. She now saw the advantages to +be derived from having this beautiful woman so completely in her power; +for she was quite sure that ere long her parents would insist on her +marrying some rich man;--she knew that their hearts were bent on this, +and there was nothing now to prevent it, except the opposition of the +young lady herself, whom Miss Fisher well knew now how to overcome. + +When Mrs. Marshall returned, she found that her father had become +acquainted with the captain of an East-Indiaman, who brought letters of +introduction from her brother. He was about forty years of age,--not +very prepossessing in appearance, nor gentlemanly in manners, but he was +rich, very rich, her brother said. So here was a husband for Isabella, +to whom Mr. and Mrs. Morley did not object--quite the contrary. + +The captain was much struck with the beauty of Miss Morley (as she was, +of course, still called at home), who looked more lovely than ever since +her last illness. The rough captain paid her most devoted attention, and +it was evident that he had fallen desperately in love with her. + +Her parents and all her friends persuaded, and even urged, her to accept +Capt. Courland's offer; and Miss Fisher urged it also most strongly, for +many reasons. Having lost her first love, Miss Fisher said, she thought +she ought to make a sacrifice now, to atone for her disobedience to her +parents in her first marriage. + +Money was a great consideration too--very great--to Mrs. Marshall +now,--why, we need not enquire. Ladies are not exempt from that passion +any more than men. She was a long time bringing her mind to the point, +but she did consent at last. She stipulated, however, for a very +handsome allowance as pin-money, to do what she liked with, and a +liberal jointure in case of the death of her husband. This made him +think odd things. "_A liberal jointure, in case of his death_," was an +awkward clause to be suggested by a young bride. However, this made him +think she was a good woman of business, and that he should have more +than beauty in his wife, after all. So they were married. And he went +his voyages as usual, and returned to his lovely wife every nine or ten +months, and spent a few months with her, and then off again, leaving +plenty of pin-money behind, and a most liberal allowance for maintaining +a large establishment. + +Capt. Courland was very intimate with his wife's brother, Mr. Alexander +Morley, the Indian merchant, and brought him to England when he came +over with the two children, and took him back again, after that dreadful +murder and false accusation. + +Mrs. Courland seemed to feel it more than anyone. She had now been +married to Capt. Courland, some three or four years, and he treated her +with the greatest kindness and liberality; but still she seemed unhappy. +She appeared not to have got over the loss of her first love,--something +seemed preying on her mind always. While her husband was at home, she +strove against this melancholy feeling, and exerted herself to the +utmost to return his kindness; and he, knowing nothing of the former +love-affair, and seeing her only at her brightest, when she did violence +to her feelings to please him, during the short time he remained at +home, was happy in possession and love, as he believed, of his beautiful +wife. + +It was a relief and a comfort to her to have her little niece, Julia +Morley, with her. The superintendence of her infant education (for the +little girl was then but five years old) amused her, and relieved her +mind from other thoughts. And when she was old enough to go to school, +she removed into a town with her, and took a house there that she might +keep her still under her own eye, and sent her to a boarding-school, as +a day-pupil, attended by a servant; and here Julia became acquainted +with Alrina Freeman, and they became bosom friends, as schoolfellows; +but Alrina was not permitted to visit or leave the school at all. These +injunctions were strictly laid down by her aunt, when she placed her at +school; and Mrs. Horton, who was a strict disciplinarian, carried out +her orders to the very letter. + + + + +CHAPTER XXI. + +THE LOVE-CHASE. + + +Frederick Morley and Josiah met with very little success at Penzance. No +one had seen the Freemans, and no post-chaise from there had gone to St. +Just, except with pic-nic parties, for a considerable time. There was +not much difficulty in finding out this; for there were but few hackney +carriages in the town at that time. + +Determined to discover the fugitives, the travellers went on to Truro, +by way of Hayle, and there they were more fortunate. A party, answering +their description as to number, had passed through that town about four +or five days before. + +Morley bought a couple of horses at Truro, and on they went in pursuit; +for he found, by dint of the strictest enquiry, that a man and woman and +a young girl had gone on by Russell's waggon. These persons answered the +description pretty nearly in all but the dress; but they might have +changed their dresses; so Morley determined on following the waggon, +which was four days at least ahead of them. On they went, however, over +the great London road, tracing the waggon, which they were rapidly +gaining on, and changing their tired horses for fresh ones occasionally, +for which accommodation Morley had to pay very dearly sometimes. They +enquired continually at the wayside inns, where the waggon stopped to +change horses, or for refreshment, and at first the answers were +satisfactory. The fugitives had generally been seen by some one at the +refreshment-houses, either in the house or having refreshment taken to +them in the waggon. This was, so far, satisfactory; and on the two +pursuers went, and came up with the waggon at Bristol. + +The great lumbering vehicle was standing at the door of one of the +second-class inns, to which they had been directed--the horses having +been taken out, and the waggon unloaded. Morley thought it strange that +it should be empty; for the same waggon generally went through to +London; and while Josiah saw the horses taken care of, his master +entered the inn and sought an interview with the driver, who informed +him that he had brought three such persons into Bristol, and they were +gone on in another waggon; for he had the misfortune to break his +axle-tree as he entered the city, and was obliged to shift his load into +another waggon, which was ten miles on the road by that time at least. + +Fresh horses were procured, while the two travellers partook of a hasty +refreshment, and on they went again with renewed hope; for the fugitives +would not suspect pursuit, and would not, therefore, be prepared for +escape. + +That Mr. Freeman knew something of the parties connected with that +document, Morley felt convinced now, having brooded over it so long, and +had it constantly dinned into his ear by Josiah, who had held the belief +from the first; but perhaps, after all, "the wish was father to the +thought" in Morley's case. Now that he was drawing near the objects of +their pursuit, a thousand reflections crowded into his mind; but, +although the hope of finding some clue to "his secret" was very +powerful, yet the hope of meeting Alrina once more, and rescuing her +from the bondage which seemed now to enthral her, was uppermost. + +In the midst of these reflections, the sight of the heavy waggon +lumbering slowly up a hill, a little distance ahead of them, as they +turned a corner, sent a thrill through the frames of both. There they +were, and a brisk trot would bring the pursuers alongside of the waggon +in a few minutes. + +They spurred on their horses in great excitement, as if they thought the +waggon would run away; but it still lumbered up the hill at its usual +snail's pace, drawn by its eight fine horses, with the bells over the +collars jingling at every step. The riders soon came up with them; and, +jumping off his horse, and throwing the reins to Josiah, Morley sprang +into the waggon, and was greeted by the hindmost driver, who was walking +by the side of his horses, with a hearty crack of the whip, which made +his back sting most unpleasantly, and brought him round to face his +assailant, before he had time scarcely to look into the waggon. + +"What business have you in my waggon?" cried the principal driver; for +there were two. + +"I came in search of the three passengers that you have here," replied +Morley, who was still feeling the effects of the crack of the whip, +although he thought it best not to resent it just then, as he saw at +once that the driver was in the right. + +"I've got no passengers here now," replied the driver. "We brought three +coves along, as you say; but they left us about ten miles back, or so, +and turned down a narrow lane. They're a queer lot, I reckon; and that +young girl is afraid of her life of the old birds." + +This was a terrible disappointment to Morley, after having his hopes +raised so high at the sight of the waggon, and thinking he was about to +reap the reward of all his trouble and fatigue. + +"Did they say where they were going?" asked Morley. + +"Not they," replied the driver; "he's as close as a box--that old +chap--and the old woman is upon the next stave of the ladder, I +b'lieve." + +Morley gave the drivers a small piece of money for their information, +and the detention he had caused them, and held a consultation with his +faithful ally. + +"We must follow them, my friend," said Morley, looking very much +disconcerted. "Alrina is persecuted and ill-used by her father and aunt, +according to that man's account. But why? There lies the mystery. She +must be rescued, at all risks, and that at once." + +"Zackly like that," replied Josiah, thoughtfully; "but which lane ded +they go into, I wondar. I seed powers of lanes both sides." + +"True," said Morley; "I forgot to ask which lane." + +"'Twud ha' b'en all the same ef you had, I b'lieve," replied Josiah, +"for most of the lanes wor alike, so far I could see, as we came along." + +"We are losing time. Mount, man, and follow me; we must find them." And, +suiting the action to the word, Morley vaulted into his saddle, and +Josiah followed his example. + +They turned and rode back in silence for some miles, passing numerous +lanes on each side of the road; but the driver said the party left him +about ten miles back. The two travellers had not retraced their steps, +however, many miles, when they were accosted by a little beggar-boy, who +was coming out of rather a wide lane into the turnpike-road. + +Morley gave the boy something, and asked him if he had seen three +travellers--a man and two females--pass up that lane. + +"Yes, sir," replied the boy. "The man and the young woman turned down +another lane a little way on, and the old woman went up to the house." + +"What is the name of the house, boy?" said Morley. + +"Ashley Hall, sir," replied the boy. + +"Indeed!" exclaimed Morley; "I had forgotten the locality. I never +approached it from this road before." And, setting spurs to his horse, +he rode on as if Old Nick was at his heels, instead of his faithful +friend and follower, Josiah. At the end of the lane, there was a neat +lodge, at which the impetuous gentleman was obliged to pull up. + +"You ha' found a bra' keenly lode, I s'pose," said Josiah; "'tes looken' +brave an' keenly, I must say. The gozzan an' the indications do 'token +somethen' good furder in." + +"Oh! I forgot to tell you," said Morley, "that this is my aunt, Mrs. +Courland's, place. I haven't seen her since my return; and this old +place I haven't seen since I was a boy,--for my aunt left it for a long +time, in order to be near my sister when she was at school. I meant to +have seen her much sooner, but that foolish accident at the Land's-End +frustrated all my plans. We will take up our abode here, Josiah, at +present, and go out scouring the country every day. We will make this +our head-quarters." + +"Very good quarters to be had here, I'll be bound," returned Josiah. +"That's a grand house, sure nuf, that es," continued he, as they rode up +to the front door. + +They were admitted at once, when the man saw the name on the card which +Morley gave him; and, desiring another servant to take care of Josiah, +he conducted Frederick into the drawing-room, where he found his sister, +alone, making delicious sounds on the pianoforte--which had just +superseded the harpsichord, and was then quite the rage among the +affluent. She was delighted to see her brother, although she scolded him +for not coming to see them before. When he told her the reason, however, +and recounted the scene of the accident, which he could not, even then, +look back upon without a shudder, she readily forgave him. She offered +him some refreshment, which he was very glad to have; for he had ridden +far, and had been harassed by anxious and exciting thoughts for several +days. They had dined long ago, Julia said, and immediately after dinner +her aunt was called out of the room on business, and had not yet +returned. "Some more buildings, or improvements, or alterations, going +on, I suppose," she continued, in a more subdued tone; "wealth has its +troubles, Frederick, as well as poverty." + +"True," replied her brother; "and I really think wealth brings most +trouble very often. Aunt Courland has something of importance to settle +to-night, I should think." + +"Oh! I never mind her absence," replied Julia; "she has often +engagements that occupy her a whole day, and I see nothing of her from +breakfast till tea-time. But I'll go and see where she is now; she will +be glad to know that you are here; and none of the servants would +disturb her, I'm sure." + +Julia found her aunt, alone, in a little room looking out into her +private garden, from which there was a private communication with the +lane which branched off from the entrance-gate and skirted the gardens +of Ashley Hall. Mrs. Courland had evidently been weeping, and had gone +through some agitating scene; for she trembled still, as Julia felt when +she kissed her. She soon recovered, however, and accompanied her niece +into the drawing-room to welcome her nephew, who was a great favourite. +He, too, saw that something had agitated her, and he asked her what had +happened to upset her so. + +"Nothing," she said; "it will be all over in a few minutes." And she did +get better; but still a cloud hung over her countenance, which she could +not altogether dispel, although it was evident she made a great effort +to do so. + +The next morning, Morley and Josiah were on horseback before the ladies +were stirring. Josiah had gained some useful information from the +servants, as to the locality and the different lanes, and where they led +to, and how far they were from the sea. + +They rode all day without success. Every lane they saw they explored as +far as they could, and enquired everywhere, but could gain no tidings of +the fugitives; and they returned late, weary and out of heart. + +Day after day was passed in the same way, and with the same result. Mrs. +Courland requested that Frederick would use her horses to relieve his +own, so that he had always fresh horses at his command. One day they +rode along a narrow lane which seemed to lead to the sea. It was a +lonely road, skirted on each side by deep woods of tall forest-trees. +Not a house or human habitation was to be seen for miles. At length, as +they approached nearer the water, the trees appeared more stunted and +dwindled down to short coppice-wood. Still the road was lonely and +destitute of human habitation. + +Suddenly they came upon a solitary cottage, surrounded by what had once +been a garden, but which was now filled with weeds and rank grass. + +The entrance into the garden seemed to be at the end, through a little +wicket-gate, which had fallen off its hinges; but as the low wall of the +garden had fallen down in several places, Morley had no difficulty in +entering; so, leaving his horses to the care of Josiah, he made his way +through one of the gaps in the wall, and approached the front of the +cottage. The door was locked and the house seemed deserted. He looked in +at the windows, and, to his surprise, the house seemed furnished, and +everything in the rooms appeared as if they had been recently used. This +was very strange, Morley thought; so he went round the house, and, in +one end, he observed a window, rather larger than the front window; and, +looking into the room, he saw that it was a bedroom on the ground-floor, +which appeared as if it had been lately occupied. A sudden thought now +flashed across his mind, as he looked again in at that window; and, +returning to Josiah, he said,-- + +"We must make some enquiries about this house, Josiah; it seems to be +shut up,--and yet the interior has the appearance of having been lately +occupied." + +"'Tes a whisht old house, sure nuf," replied Josiah; "a purty place for +pixies and ghostes, I reckon." + +They mounted their horses again, and rode on about a mile further, when +they arrived at a farm-house. The farmer informed them that he had not +resided in that neighbourhood more than four or five years; but he had +heard that the house Morley was enquiring about, was haunted. A horrible +murder had been committed there many years ago, the farmer said, and no +one had resided there since. + +"To whom does it belong?" asked Morley. + +"I have heard that it belonged to the old man who was murdered there," +replied the farmer. "The son and daughter lived there with him, I +believe; but after the murder they went off, no one could tell where, +and they have never been heard of since." + +"Do you know the names of these people?" enquired Morley. + +"Well, I have heard," replied the man; "but I have forgotten." + +Morley's conjecture was confirmed. This was, no doubt, the very house in +which that dreadful murder was committed, of which his poor father had +been accused. The murderers had gone to some distant part of the +country, no doubt, or perhaps gone abroad, and left the house and its +contents just as they were, fearing to return lest they should be +discovered; and no one else would venture near the house, on account of +their superstitious fears of ghosts. The premises would not be worth +much, in that lonely district; indeed, no one would purchase them after +what had happened; and so the risk of returning was not worth incurring, +especially as the guilty parties must have taken away a considerable sum +with them; for the money which Mr. Morley had with him at the time, and +which he must have dropped in his agitation, at the time he slid down +from the bed, was, no doubt, picked up by the fugitives and carried off. +This was enough to enable them to live comfortably for a long time. + +It was getting late; so Morley enquired the nearest way to Ashley Hall, +and returned by a short cut which the farmer pointed out, determined to +explore the interior of the house the next morning. + +Julia ran down to meet her brother when she heard he had returned, and +begged him to have his dinner in the breakfast-parlour, if he didn't +mind, as her aunt was engaged with a stranger in the dining-room. + +"What! more mysterious visitors, Julia?" said her brother, smiling; +"why, my aunt Courland must be worried out of her life." + +"Yes. Now eat your dinner, like a good boy," replied Julia, leading her +brother to the table, which was already laid for dinner; "and then, if +you are very good, I will tell you a grand secret." + +"Hallo!" exclaimed Frederick, eating at the same time--for he was very +hungry; "why, this place ought to be called 'The Castle of Mystery' +instead of 'Ashley Hall.' You seem to have more secrets here than were +contained in 'Blue Beard's' secret chamber. But the tables are turned +here, and the ladies hold the secrets, and the poor men have to guess." + +"Heighho!" cried his sister, with a sigh; "I am sorry to say we haven't +many men here to hide secrets from. Their visits are 'like angels' +visits, few and far between.'" + +"Now, one glass of wine," said Frederick, who had been going into the +substantials heartily while his sister had been talking;--"one glass of +wine, my little sister, and then for your secret." + +"Two glasses, Frederick dear,--I must insist on your taking two glasses +at least; for I want to make you able to hear my terrible secret without +fainting outright." And she kissed him so kindly as she said this, that +he could not refuse his little sister's request. + +"Two glasses, then," said he, "if it must be so." + +When he had finished his two glasses of wine, she said she had such a +surprise for him in the dining-room, where perhaps he would have to take +another glass of wine. + +"You little mysterious puss," said he, as he drew her arm within his, +and suffered her to lead him to the dining-room. "What can you have to +shew me?--it isn't a lover, is it?" + +"Oh! no," replied she, sighing; "animals of that genus don't acclimatize +at Ashley Hall--the atmosphere here is too cold for them." + +"You little satirical minx," said he, as his sister threw open the +dining-room door, and introduced him to their eldest brother, William, +from India. + +It was a surprise indeed. The two brothers embraced most affectionately, +and then they looked at each other for some minutes. At last Frederick +said,-- + +"My recollection of our poor father is but faint--I was only ten years +of age when I last saw him; but it seems to me as if I saw him standing +before me now." + +"Yes," replied his brother; "the likeness has been remarked by all our +friends in India." + +"I was painfully struck with it," said Mrs. Courland, "when William +entered the room this morning. I felt as if my poor brother had come +back again, to bring to light that awful catastrophe. My thoughts went +back to that awful time, and I shuddered as he entered. I can scarcely +get over it now." + +"It shall be discovered, my dear aunt," said the elder brother--whom in +future we will call Mr. Morley. "We will not return till the guilty +parties are brought to light." + +A sudden change came over the countenance of Mrs. Courland as these +words were pronounced, in the solemn voice so like her poor brother's, +that alarmed her nephews. Julia had seen those fits on her before; and +she motioned to her two brothers to be quiet, while she held her aunt's +throbbing head to her bosom. + +It soon passed away; and then she rose and begged her two nephews to sit +a little over their wine, as she knew they must have much to say to each +other. + + + + +CHAPTER XXII. + +ALRINA'S FIRST LOVE-LETTER. + + +The wine and dessert had remained on the table, although all but +Frederick had dined long ago. The two brothers sat over their wine, as +Mrs. Courland had requested them to do; but their time was otherwise +employed than in drinking wine. Mr. Morley related to his brother the +history of his life, from the time of their father's death, and his +miraculous escape from the shipwreck. Frederick, in return, related to +his brother the incidents of his life,--his miraculous preservation on +the cliffs at the Land's-End; Josiah's prompt assistance; the discovery +of the box of gold; the conjuror;--indeed, all except his love-affair. +That he retained as a secret still. They had much to tell, and the +brothers sat late. + +It was a great relief to Mr. Morley's mind to know that their father's +box was safe. That Mr. Freeman knew something about the parties, he had +no doubt whatever, and he was now as anxious as his brother was to find +him, in order to obtain any information he might be able to give them; +for Josiah, who had been sent for into the dining-room, to give them a +description of the "man of cunning," and his habits and mode of life, +said that "The Maister" knew "bra' things." + +Alrina was mentioned by Frederick; but he did not tell all respecting +her, nor did he so far confide in his brother as to tell him of the +plighted troth which existed between them. Mr. Morley guessed, however, +that there was something more than disinterested friendship in his +brother's anxiety on her account. + +The discovery of the house in which the murder had been committed was +also told; and the brothers determined to go to the deserted house again +the next day, and effect an entrance, when they might possibly discover +some clue to the mystery. + +When they were about to separate for the night, Mr. Morley gave his +brother a letter which he said had been left at the "First and Last Inn" +for him; but as he supposed it had come from Ashley Hall, he did not +think of giving it to him before, as he had no doubt heard its contents +from the lady herself. Frederick took the letter and put it into his +pocket, intending to read it in his bedroom. He could not imagine who +could have written it. It could not have been either his aunt or sister; +for they would no doubt have mentioned it, if it had come from them. + +The ladies had retired long ago; and the brothers, being tired, followed +their example. + +When Frederick had closed the door of his room, he took out the letter +and examined the address, which appeared to be written in pencil. He did +not know the handwriting. It was a neat lady-like hand. At first he +thought of Miss Pendray,--but what could she have to write him about? At +last he broke the seal, and was astonished as well as delighted, to find +that it was a letter from Alrina--a short letter evidently written in +haste. So he sat down and almost devoured its contents. + + + ALRINA'S LETTER. + + _My own dear Frederick_, + + _May I call you so? Yes; I feel I may,--and yet I scarcely know + what to say or how to begin a letter to you. But who else can I + look to? Oh! Frederick, I am very, very unhappy. My father + discovered our meetings. He knows our secret,--by what means I know + not._ + + _I was in a state of stupor for a long time, and when I recovered + myself I was in a strange place. How I was conveyed here, or when, + I do not know. I am puzzled and bewildered._ + + _The house is surrounded by high walls on every side. My father has + been absent,--I have only seen him once. I think this house must be + near the sea; for the owner dresses like a sailor, and I overhear + conversations which lead me to believe he is connected with + smugglers. His wife is older than he is. Oh! Frederich, she is such + a tyrant, and treats that poor girl shamefully. (I forgot to say + they have a young girl living with them, whom they call their + niece.) Poor girl! I pity her; but I am not allowed to speak to + her,--indeed, she seems to forbid it herself, by placing her finger + on her lips whenever I happen to meet her. I hear her cries, poor + child!_ + + _There is some mystery about her,--I feel convinced of this. I hear + whisperings. My aunt is in the secret, whatever it is. The two + women have been closeted continually. I am closely watched and + guarded--I know that; so that I amuse myself by watching too, and + listening; but I cannot learn much. Yesterday the man went out, and + took the girl with him; and soon after, my aunt told me she was + going a short journey, and I must remain here until her return. I + am accustomed to hear of her short journeys. She often went from + home; but the journeys appeared to be long ones,--she generally + stayed away a fortnight. All is mystery. The old woman keeps guard + over me. The boy Billy, whom you may have seen in poor Mr. Brown's + stable, came with my father, and he managed to get me this sheet of + paper and a pencil unknown to anyone. I am writing now as a + prisoner; for the old woman locks me in when she is not with me. I + am thankful to be alone, for then I can think of you,--and oh! how + pleasant the thought. When I shall see you again I know not,--and + whether I shall be able to send this letter after I have written + it, God only knows; but it is a pleasure, in my solitude, to write + my thoughts and my troubles, to one who will feel for me. I shall + try to send this by the boy, should he ever come here again. Hark! + I hear the bolt of the door drawn back. She comes! Adieu!_ + + _Your fond and loving_ + ALRINA. + + +Frederick read Alrina's letter over and over again, as he paced the +floor of his bedroom in mad agitation. He had wasted his time by coming +after this waggon, while his Alrina was probably still within a few +miles of her former habitation. Had he received this letter before he +started, he might have rescued her; but now! it may be too late. Several +days had passed,--days? yes, nearly a fortnight since that letter was +written. "Fool! madman! idiot!" he exclaimed as he paced the floor. "Why +did I not enquire more strictly before I took this fool's journey?" + +Exhausted nature gave way at last, and, throwing himself on the bed, he +slept heavily till Josiah came to call him for their usual early +morning's ride. He had not taken off his clothes, so that, after a +refreshing wash, he went out into the garden followed by Josiah. The +fresh morning air invigorated him, and restored tranquillity to his +mind; and he was enabled to tell his faithful follower the principal +contents of the letter. + +"Well, sar," said Josiah, "that's a whisht job sure nuf; but what's done +caen't be helped. Ef har fe-a-ther es a conjuror, you arn't, I s'pose; +so how cud you tell that she wor there?" + +"True," said Frederick, who now began to see the folly of reflecting on +himself for coming to Bristol instead of remaining in Cornwall--a +mistake which it was impossible he could have seen the result of. + +"We have done something by coming here, however," he continued, +reflectively; "we have discovered that lonely house. Now, I think you +had better remain here with my brother; for I feel convinced that by +entering that house, some discovery will be made. In the meantime I will +return and seek Alrina and her father. If I can find that boy, I shall +succeed without a doubt in rescuing her." + +"Iss; but semmen to me that two 'f's' do belong to that," said Josiah. + +"What do you mean by 'two f's?'" exclaimed Frederick. + +"Why, the fust es, _ef_ you cud find the boy," replied Josiah; "and the +next es, _ef_ she's there still. You don't knaw that boy so well as I +do; but 'tes no harm to try. I'll go home, or stay here, whichever you +plaise; but there's one thing I ha' got to say, that I b'lieve we wor +'pon a good scent, after all." + +"What do you mean?" asked Morley. + +"Why, I heard somethen' spoke down in the servants' hall last night, +that I ha' b'en thinken' about a bra' deal; but I cudn't, to save my +life, make the two ends to 'kidgey' like; but your letter ha' opened my +eyes all abroad." + +"You are speaking in enigmas, Josiah," said his master. + +"I don't knaw what sort of things they are, not I," said Josiah; "but +putten' this agen that, I can see a bra' way this mornen', I think." + +"What are you driving at?" said Morley, looking puzzled. + +"Why, this here es about the size of et," replied Josiah, looking very +wise,--"Miss Freeman wor in that woggen, so sure as my name es 'Siah +Trenow." + +"How can you possibly know that?" cried Morley, very much excited. + +"Well, I don't knaw et zackly," replied Josiah; "but the porter said, +last night, that there ha' b'en a woman up there two or three times +spaken' to Mrs. Courland, an' he watched her in an' out o' that little +gate in the garden; and by what he said, I do b'lieve 'tes she. He +chalked her out zackly, semmen to me." + +"Whatever could she be doing here?" asked Morley. "It is quite absurd to +think of such a thing." + +"Zackly like that," said Josiah; "but I do b'lieve 'twor she, an' that +man an' the little maid wor the ones that Miss Reeney spoke about. 'Tes +some new manoeuvre of 'The Maister's,' I'll be bound, an' I shall watch +like a cat watching a mouse. Dedn't Miss Reeney say that he knaw'd all +about you, an' everything. He wor watching you when you dedn't knaw et, +down there, I'll be bound. An' now he ha' sent she for to tell your aunt +somethen'." + +At this point of their conversation, they were joined by Mr. Morley, to +whom Frederick read the most material portions of Alrina's letter, and +Josiah repeated his suspicions that Miss Freeman was lurking about the +neighbourhood. If so, they had no doubt she was there on some errand +from her brother respecting Frederick Morley. What it was they couldn't +imagine. It was arranged therefore that Frederick should return to +Cornwall again in search of Alrina and her father; while Mr. Morley and +Josiah should remain at Ashley Hall, for the purpose of making what +discovery they could in the deserted house, and of finding out whether +Miss Freeman was really in the neighbourhood, and what she was about. +So, after an early breakfast, their plans were formed, and Mr. Morley +and Josiah proceeded to the deserted house, while Frederick rode on the +wings of love to the rescue of his imprisoned enchantress. + + + + +CHAPTER XXIII. + +THE SECRET. + + +Mrs. Courland was expecting her husband's return about this time. She +was anxious and nervous. He was a good, kind husband, and she +endeavoured to do all in her power to make him happy. It was a great +trial to her to look that kind, good man in the face, and know that she +was keeping a secret from him which he ought to have known from the +beginning. It made her unhappy,--miserable,--and she dreaded his return. +Should he discover it now, and find that she had been deceiving him for +so many years, it would be dreadful. And now he was on his last +voyage;--he would now retire from the sea and live at home. How should +she be able to keep the secret then? Some trifling circumstance might +occur at any time, to discover it; and then his kind affection would be +lost to her. He would not--he could not--look upon her with his wonted +loving confidence, after the discovery of her deception. Oh! why had she +kept it from him? + +Julia knew that her aunt was anxious about her husband's return, and she +did not disturb her therefore when she retired after breakfast to her +little private room. + +She retired, as usual, that morning, and sat brooding over her sorrows +and anxieties, until she became quite low-spirited; for the more she +thought of her difficult and unpleasant situation, the more guilty and +blameable she seemed in her own estimation; and, placing her hand before +her eyes, she wept in the bitterness of her heart. + +Still comparatively a young woman, and still beautiful, and the +admiration of all, when she chose to enter into society,--possessed, +also, of considerable wealth, a noble mansion, and a splendid +establishment--all, in short, which the world could bestow,--and, above +all, being blessed with a kind and indulgent husband,--yet, with all +these advantages, there sat that handsome and gifted lady in the midst +of all this splendour, a miserable, unhappy woman. + +A gentle tap is heard at the little door leading into the garden, which +makes her start and turn pale. Strange that so gentle a tap should +frighten her so much. Where are all the servants, that she should be +obliged to open the door herself? She seems to dread the admission of +the visitor; and yet she rises almost immediately, and unbolts the +little door and admits the intruder on her privacy. + +The visitor enters unceremoniously, and closes the door, as if she had +been accustomed to visit the beautiful owner of the establishment often. +She was a tall, masculine-looking woman, apparently about fifty years of +age, with an eye that betokened both boldness and cunning, and a +restless uneasy expression by no means pleasing. The compressed lips +expressed great determination of character, and the strong and well-knit +frame seemed formed more according to the model of the ruder than the +softer sex. + +This was the visitor who had just been admitted into Mrs. Courland's +private room. + +"Am I never to be at rest?" said the lady in a supplicating tone, as she +took her seat again. "Say, once for all, what will satisfy you, and +leave me in peace. This continual worry and anxiety is killing me." + +"You know," replied the visitor, "that I am not asking for myself. It is +in the cause of another that I occasionally trouble you. The poor child +must be educated according to the station she may one day fill; and her +maintenance must be cared for. And those who take the trouble, and keep +the secret, must be rewarded--and that with liberality." + +"I know all that," said Mrs. Courland, "and am willing to make a +sacrifice. What will suffice? say!" + +"I am acting for another, as you know; and my instructions are, five +hundred pounds--not a penny less," said the woman, sternly. + +"I cannot comply with your exorbitant demand," replied Mrs. Courland, in +an abject tone; "I have not so much money in the house. My husband's +allowance is all exhausted,--you have been a continual drain upon me. I +expect him almost hourly, and then my supplies will be almost unlimited +again. Pray leave me now, and let me have a little time to recover +myself before his return. Then you shall be liberally rewarded." + +"I cannot wait," said the visitor; "or, if I do, the money must be +supplied _by himself_, and all must be known." + +"Oh! no! no! not that," cried Mrs. Courland, almost in despair. "He is +kind--most kind. Spare him the knowledge of that which has been kept +from him so long, to my bitter, bitter cost. Oh! would that he had known +all at the beginning. It would have saved me many unhappy hours." And +the poor lady wept, as if her heart was breaking. Her unwelcome visitor +seemed moved, and begged her not to distress herself so. + +"You have not seen the child?" said she. "Let me bring her to you. Why +not take her here? she might be a comfort to you. Her misfortune and +dreadful calamity may induce you to pity, if you cannot love her, and +will afford some occupation for your leisure hours. She is within call; +I will bring her in." And before Mrs. Courland could collect herself +sufficiently to decide what she would do, or to ask another question, +the woman had disappeared. + +The grounds of Ashley Hall, as we have before said, were skirted on one +side by a narrow lane, very little frequented,--the hedges on each side +being overgrown with brambles and thick thorn-bushes. In this lane, +there was a door which led into Mrs. Courland's private room, through a +small garden, which she called her own private property--no one being +permitted to enter it, except herself, and the gardener, who at stated +times was admitted to keep it in order. + +Outside this little door in the lane, on the morning of this woman's +visit to Mrs. Courland, stood an elderly man, dressed in the garb of a +sailor, and a young girl, about fifteen or sixteen years of age--she +might have been a year or two more, or she might have been less; it was +difficult to determine. She was plainly dressed, and looked clean and +neat; but her general appearance was not at all prepossessing. She was +short and stout; and extreme vulgarity and impudent assurance, mingled +with cunning, were depicted in her forbidding looking countenance, which +was deeply pitted with the small-pox;--and yet, with all this, there was +a look of melancholy which seemed to indicate that the girl was unhappy. +Continued ill-treatment had perhaps produced this harsh and repulsive +expression of countenance which she now exhibited. + +"We must try what effect the girl will have," said the woman, as she +merged into the lane through the little private door, after having kept +her companions waiting a considerable time. "The lady says she has not +much money in the house, and won't have till the captain comes home." + +"She be hanged!" replied the man. "That's her game. Not money in a +house like that? Tell her to pawn her jewels, or sell her carriage. I +tell you, mistress, if you can't manage better than that, I shall go in +myself and play Old Nick with her." + +"Hush!" said the woman. "Let me take the girl in. That will be best. +Leave it to me, Cooper; I know how to manage her." + +"Now, mind," cried the man; "no nonsense,--money down, or else there'll +be the devil to pay. I won't wait one day longer. I've got other fish to +fry, and I don't like dancing attendance upon a parcel of women, like +this." + +Leaving the man alone in the lane, in not a very good humour, the woman +took the girl with her into Mrs. Courland's private room, where she +found that lady still weeping and in great agitation. + +"I have brought the child," said the woman, as she entered, "and I +intend leaving her here on your hands. I have a bold partner outside, +who will publish it far and near, and your husband will know all +immediately on his return. I have sufficient proof of all, as you have +seen before." + +"Oh! spare me! spare me!" cried the poor lady, as she looked at the girl +through her tears. "Oh! terrible fate. Not that! _She_ cannot be the +child. Oh! in pity take her away, and say there is some mistake. Oh! +dreadful. His child can never be like that!" And she turned her head +away, as if she loathed the sight of one so hideous. Had she been a +handsome girl, she might have reconciled herself to her fate; but to +have a low, vulgar, hideous creature there, and to present that creature +to her husband now,--she could not do it. Better die a thousand deaths +than face this terrible ordeal. Her husband would despise and hate her, +as much as he loved her now, when he discovered the extent of the +deception that had been practised upon him. He would be at home now +continually; and she would have to bear his frowns, day by day, without +relief. She presented to her own mind the darkest side of the picture, +and painted it in the dullest and blackest colours, like all who give +way to these low desponding thoughts. While these gloomy reflections +were passing in Mrs. Courland's mind, the woman disappeared through the +little private door, and left the poor girl standing in the middle of +the room. Here was a new difficulty. What could she do with that +repulsive looking girl? She ran out through the little garden and opened +the door leading into the lane. There was no one to be seen;--both the +man and the woman had either gone off very quickly, or were concealing +themselves behind some of the overgrown thorns and bushes. The girl was +left on her hands, evidently, and she must make the best of it. Perhaps +she might know where to find her friends, and might be induced to go to +them if she was provided with some money. Consoling herself, as well as +she could, with these reflections, Mrs. Courland returned to the room, +where she found the girl standing in the same place, and looking, with +stolid astonishment, at the elegant and costly ornaments which decorated +the room, and exhibited the refined taste and great wealth of its owner. + +Mrs. Courland seated herself once more, and tried to look at the poor +half-frightened girl with less abhorrence: but it was of no use. She +could not endure the sight of her: and the idea of keeping her there was +quite out of the question;--she must get rid of her, at all risks, cost +what it would. The girl, seeing that she was not noticed, turned round +to look at the beautiful bijouterie with which some of the tables and +the mantel-piece were strewed; and she was now standing with her back to +the mistress of the apartment. + +Mrs. Courland summoned up resolution enough at length to speak to the +girl, but she did not seem to notice it. Again Mrs. Courland addressed +her, but she neither replied nor turned towards the lady. + +"You are obstinate, girl," said Mrs. Courland. "I will soon let you know +who is mistress here;"--for she felt her dignity insulted, which she was +not accustomed to; and rising from her chair impatiently, she approached +the girl, and, taking her by the shoulders (for the girl's back was +still turned towards her), she gave her a hearty shake, which came so +unexpectedly, that the girl jumped round, and seized the lady by both +her wrists, giving at the same time a hideous and unearthly scream, and +looking more like a fiend than anything human. But, seeing that she had +frightened her, she released her grasp, which had been so strong and +powerful, that the marks of her hard, bony fingers were left on the soft +and delicate flesh of the lady, who dropped into a seat, terrified and +exhausted. Her situation was even worse than she had anticipated. + +_The girl was evidently deaf and dumb!_ + +She could not turn such a helpless unfortunate out into the world, +alone;--even if she filled the poor creature's pockets with gold, she +could not help herself nor make her wants known, and she would be +robbed. What was she to do? The woman, it was evident, meant to leave +her there: and now all must be known. + +The poor girl was still standing in the same place, looking at the lady +with a penitent countenance; for she saw, with natural instinct, that +she had done amiss. She had been accustomed to ill-treatment, and any +resentment she evinced subjected her to a more severe punishment; and so +she had become hardened and vindictive, and would take some opportunity +of doing her persecutors some mischief, treacherously, for which she +often got double punishment; so that she was always conquered, and her +temper became sour and morose, which gave an unpleasant expression to +her countenance, that, but for the ravages made on it by that dreadful +disease, the small-pox, might not have seemed so forbidding and +repulsive. A mingled feeling of pity and compassion took possession of +Mrs. Courland's mind, as she sat gazing at the poor creature, who now +looked so penitent, and seemed to be begging for pardon, in her way. The +expression of her countenance was quite altered and subdued. She now +felt the pride of being the conqueror over that delicate and beautiful +lady, by the strength of her sinewy hands; for there was no hand +uplifted here to fell her to the ground for her temerity and rudeness. +She saw, too, that the lady had been weeping, and that her delicate +wrists had been hurt by her powerful grasp; for the marks of her fingers +were still visible there. + +She had never, perhaps, been taught to kneel in worship or in penitence +to any higher being than the man and woman with whom she resided--and to +them only by accident, when struggling for the mastery, or in +endeavouring to evade the severity of her daily punishment. Her natural +instinct now plainly indicated to her, that she was standing in the +presence of a superior being, whom she had injured, and who bore the +pain without resenting it. She could not express her penitence and +sorrow for the pain she had inflicted, in words; so she threw herself on +her knees before the lady, and, bending her head almost to the floor, +burst into tears--the first she had shed, perhaps, except in pain or +anger, in the whole course of her life. + +Mrs. Courland's heart was touched at the natural homage and contrition +of this poor afflicted girl. She raised her from the floor and placed +her in her own chair, signing to her to remain there. + +The lady then left the room, and returned in a short time, and placed +upon the table, with her own hands, a little tray containing luncheon +for two,--dainty meat and wine, such as the poor girl had scarcely ever +seen before. She ate ravenously, and would have drank the whole contents +of the small decanter of wine, had she not been prevented. But the +kindness of those few minutes had subdued her into humble submission, +more than all the beatings and harsh treatment which she had before been +accustomed to receive to compel obedience. + +So far, all was managed easily; but the girl must sleep +somewhere--unseen and unknown. There was a small apartment within that +private room, which might be used as a sleeping-room. Mrs. Courland made +a sign to the girl, which she quickly understood, and in her strong arms +she carried in a small couch; and with shawls and rugs, which Mrs. +Courland managed to bring from other parts of the house, they made a +comfortable bed and hiding-place for the stranger for the present, until +Mrs. Courland could decide on the best course to be adopted. + +She could scarcely make up her mind to believe it; and yet it seemed +but too evident that this was the child she had grieved over so long, +and so often wished and yet dreaded to see. The plainness of the girl's +features she might yet get accustomed to, and art might be brought to +her aid to improve her appearance;--the vulgarity in her manner might +also be softened and ameliorated. But that sad calamity,--oh! that was +dreadful,--no art could get rid of that. + + + + +CHAPTER XXIV. + +"MAN IS BORN TO TROUBLE AND DISAPPOINTMENT, AS THE SPARKS FLY UPWARDS." + + +Frederick Morley, in the meantime, was hastening on his journey. Love +added speed to his horse's feet, and strength to the rider; and by dint +of frequent changes on the road, he was not many days reaching Truro +once more, where he halted to refresh himself and to deliberate on what +course he should adopt. + +It was a lone house, Alrina had told him in her letter, near the +seaside, she believed, surrounded by a high wall, and not very far, she +thought, from her former abode; because she must have been taken there +during the night, so that the distance could not have been great. This +was a very vague description. There were many lone houses, in those +days, near the sea, surrounded by high walls;--indeed, the exception +was, to see a lone house, without having a high wall round it, for the +protection of the inmates against the lawless bands who infested the +sea-coast in those troublous times. His course seemed to be, to go to +the Land's-End at once, and see Lieut. Fowler, who might have heard +something, or perhaps have seen the boy. He determined, however, to go +by the road which would take him nearest to the sea; and, in his +journey, he could look out for the house in which his Alrina was +confined, and, to make sure of not passing her by this time, he +determined he would effect an entrance by some pretence or other, into +every house he saw surrounded by high walls in the course of his +journey. + +Having decided on this course, and taken some refreshment, he started on +his exploring expedition; but he was obliged to ride the same tired +horse, for there was not another to be had in the town. The horse, +however, having been well fed and groomed, the ostler assured him that +the animal was as fresh as a hunter going to the meet, and would carry +him a long journey yet before sunset. So Frederick mounted once more, +and, with whip and spur, got over a good bit of ground in a very short +time; for the horse was one of those plucky animals that will run till +they drop, under the spur of an impatient rider. Frederick did not +intend to be cruel; but he wanted to get on, and the horse seemed +willing to go, so on they went at a good pace, and soon neared the +sea-coast. The horse was flagging a little, but whip and spur kept him +up to the mark, and on they went still. They passed several farm-houses +surrounded by walls; but none of them at all answered the description +Alrina had given of her prison. At length Frederick thinks he sees, at +some distance ahead, some high dark walls, and he fancies he discerns +the roof of a house just peeping above them. "This must be the very +house," cried he, in the greatest excitement; so he urged the horse on, +thinking of nothing but the rescue of his Alrina. The road was rugged +and the horse was tired. He stumbled over a loose stone going down a +gentle declivity towards the building; and, not having sufficient +strength left to save himself, he fell heavily. The rider was thrown +with violence against the wall; he was stunned, and lay insensible and +bleeding beneath the wall of the house he had been so anxious to reach. + +The shadows of night are closing in all round, and the man and horse are +still lying in that lonely road, no one having passed since the +accident, nor has the garden-door been opened. At last a boy comes out; +and, seeing that some accident has happened, he returns to the house, +and a man and woman come out with him and examine the bodies. The horse +is dead--the man sees that at once; but the rider breathes and is +bleeding still. The man goes back to the house, taking the boy with him, +while the woman runs for some water, with which she bathes the face of +the wounded man, and washes away the congealed blood. The man and boy +presently appear again, carrying a board. The three, then, with their +united strength, place the wounded man on the board, and carry him in, +leaving the horse by the roadside. The wounded gentleman is placed in a +comfortable bed, and the man dresses his wounds and applies remedies +with considerable skill. Life is preserved, but delirium comes on, +caused by a slight concussion of the brain. No surgeon is sent for;--the +man says he can cure him himself; and the woman and the boy, having +apparently implicit confidence in his skill, yield to his wishes. They +watch with the sufferer throughout the night, and the boy is despatched, +in the morning, to the nearest town, for medicines and other things +necessary for the patient's use and comfort. + +Several days and nights pass, and the patient is still delirious. The +man continues most attentive and skilful. The patient gradually gets +better. He is out of danger; and, one evening, the man, after giving the +woman the most minute instructions as to her treatment of the invalid, +leaves, desiring her to keep strict watch over him, and keep the doors +locked, so that he may not get away from the house until his return. +The boy was left to assist the woman in attending on the invalid and +keeping watch. + +Frederick had now been an inmate of this lonely house about a week. He +was fast recovering from the effects of the fall, but still too weak to +leave his bed, although he wished most earnestly to get away, or to have +his questions answered; for he didn't at all remember what took place +after the horse fell, nor did he know where he was, nor who his +attendants were. + +The woman pretended not to know anything, and the boy generally evaded +the questions, or answered very wide of them. The morning after the +departure of the man, under whose skilful treatment Morley was +progressing so favourably towards recovery, the boy entered the room +with a cunning smile on his countenance, and said that he had a letter +for the invalid. + +"A letter!" said Morley, feebly, "who can possibly have written a letter +to me? no one but those I have seen about me, know where I am." Taking +the letter from the boy, however, he was astonished to find that it was +from Alrina. He was too anxious and impatient to read it, to think of +the bearer, or to ask any questions concerning the letter or its writer, +until he had read its contents, which he did with such eagerness, that +the boy was alarmed lest the invalid should relapse into delirium +again;--not that he was easily alarmed or frightened at anything he saw +or heard, but he knew that if the gentleman became delirious again, it +would give him extra trouble. + +In her letter, Alrina complained of her lot. She had thought, she said, +that Frederick would, at least, have written her a line in reply to her +first letter. She felt, now, that she was deserted by all. Everything +seemed going against her. Her aunt had not returned yet; but her father +came frequently, and she felt convinced there was some terrible secret, +which they endeavoured to keep from her, but she was determined to find +it out. The boy seemed willing to befriend her, she said, but she was +almost afraid to trust him. And so she went on to the end of the letter, +in the same desponding strain; winding up by asking Frederick, if he +really loved her to lose no time in coming to her rescue, or, at least, +to write a line, that she might know there was, at least, one person in +the world who cared for her. It was a melancholy letter from beginning +to end, and its perusal made her lover wretched. She was evidently under +restraint somewhere; but where? that was the question: even if he knew, +it was impossible for him to go to her at present; he was too weak. The +boy who brought her letter might know something, and he turned to ask +him, but he had left the room. He tried to get up; the exertion was too +much for him, and he sank back on his pillow again. His only resource +was to read the letter again and again. The more he reflected on +Alrina's position, however, and on the unfortunate circumstances which +had prevented his receiving her first letter in time, and his consequent +inability to render her that assistance and consolation which he would +have given worlds to have been able to do, the more irritated and +unhappy did he feel; so that when the boy returned, he was in such a +high state of excitement, that his attendant was afraid, at first, to go +near him. + +The wish for further information, however, which he believed the boy +could give him, caused Morley to subdue his feelings, and to induce him, +by the promise of a reward, to be a little more communicative than he +had hitherto been. By degrees, the boy approached the bed cautiously, +when Morley asked him, as mildly as he could, when and where he had +received the letter, and if he knew where Alrina was at that moment +confined, with many other questions too numerous for the boy to answer +without a little time and consideration. Before he answered any of them, +therefore, he gave that cunning smile, which had so annoyed Morley +before, and which now irritated him beyond measure, when he was so +anxious to hear something of her to whom he felt he had unwittingly +given cause for complaint; but he soon saw that he should get nothing +out of the boy by threats or angry expressions, so he changed his +tactics, and extracted the information he wanted by asking one question +at a time. That was certainly the oddest boy he had ever met with, he +thought; for, although, judging from his diminutive stature, no one +would have supposed him to be above eight or nine years of age, yet, +from his shrewd knowledge of the world, and aged expression of +countenance, he might have been eight- or nine-and-twenty. He was the +same boy whom Mr. Brown formerly employed to look after his mare; and it +was said, even then, and generally believed, that he was in constant +attendance on Mr. Freeman, and knew a good many of his secrets. + +He was found one night, when quite an infant, lying at the door of a +farm-house in the neighbourhood of St. Just, wrapped up in coarse +flannel; but it was never discovered who put him there, nor who the +child's parents were. He was placed in the poor-house; and when he was +old enough, he was apprenticed to one of the farmers of the district; +but he would never settle down under one master,--and after trying to +subdue him, without success, his master gave him up to his own +inclinations, and so he got his living by doing odd jobs. From his +constant intercourse with Mr. Freeman, he lost the broad Cornish dialect +in a measure, and only spoke in that way when he was associating with +the miners. He was fond of going into Penzance and mixing with the +gentlemen's servants there occasionally, from whom he picked up many a +slang expression, which he would retail to the frequenters of Mr. +Brown's bar, very much to their amusement. He was an awkward individual +to gain information from; so Morley was obliged to deal with him +accordingly, and put his questions with caution:-- + +(_Morley_) "I think I have seen you before, my boy?" + +(_Boy_) "I shouldn't wonder if you had, sir; and, maybe, I've seed you +before." + +(_Morley_) "You kept that mare like a picture;--I never saw a better +groom, either at home or abroad." + +(_Boy--smiling_) "It wasn't much odds, as it turned out, sir." + +(_Morley_) "No, no; but that doesn't alter the fact of your ability as +groom. Now, tell me--there's a good fellow--who gave you that letter." + +(_Boy--still pleased_) "Why, Miss Reeney, to be sure." + +(_Morley--excited_) "What! Alrina herself? Where did you see her?" + +(_Boy--putting on his cunning look again_) "Where? why here, to be +sure." + +(_Morley--more excited_) "Here! what, in this house?" + +(_Boy_) "To be sure; why not? She called to me through the keyhole +upstairs, and shoved the letter out under the door, and told me to take +it as before. I couldn't ask her anything, for I heard Mrs. Cooper +coming upstairs." + +(_Morley--rising up in bed in the greatest excitement_) "Oh! take me to +her!--or, stay, take a message to her at once; tell her I am----" + +(_Boy_) "Stop, stop, sir; you must lend me a horse to do that." + +(_Morley_) "I thought you said she was here, in this house." + +(_Boy_) "So she was; but 'The Maister' took her off with him last +night." + +(_Morley_) "Then that was Mr. Freeman who attended me; and Alrina has +been here all the time, and did not come near me! Oh! cruel, cruel! she +must be offended, indeed. Didn't she ask or try to come to see me?" + +(_Boy_) "No, she didn't, sir, 'cause she didn't know you was here." + +(_Morley_) "Not know it? strange!" + +(_Boy_) "Nothing strange at all, sir, that I can see; I have seed +stranger things than that, a bra' deal. She was kept at the top of the +house, and you down here--under lock and key, both of 'ee; and last +night 'The Maister' took her off with him. Where they're gone, I can't +say,--I heard 'The Maister' tell Mrs. Cooper something about America." + +(_Morley_) "America! do you think he intends to go there?" + +(_Boy_) "I do no more know than you do, sir. F'rall I've b'en with 'The +Maister' so often, an' have seed a good many of his quips and quirks, +and helped in them too, I do no more know what he do main by what he do +say, than a cheeld unborn. He ha' got something upon his mind, that's a +sure thing." + +The boy was beginning to throw off his reserve, as Morley thus +cautiously questioned him; but he saw that if he put his questions too +pointedly, the boy would "shut up" again; so he asked a few gossipping +questions about Mr. and Mrs. Brown, and Mrs. Trenow, which took the boy +off his guard, and he went on talking. It seemed at last as if it were a +relief to him to talk of "The Maister," as he called Mr. Freeman, in +common with most people of the neighbourhood,--and, in relieving his +pent-up mind, he told, perhaps, more than he intended; but he seemed to +feel that Mr. Morley was a gentleman who wouldn't betray him, and so he +threw off his reserve and trusted him. + +"You've heard of Chapel Carn Brea, I s'pose, sir?" asked the boy. + +"Yes; I've been there," replied Morley; "it is one of the curiosities of +the neighbourhood. No doubt it was a handsome building at one time; and +those mounds near it are tombs, no doubt." + +"You're right, sir," said the boy; "I've heard 'The Maister' tell +stories in Mr. Brown's bar, about that place, that would make your hair +stand on end, ef you b'lieved it all. The men he told it to, b'lieved +every word; and they wud no more go anist Chapel Carn Brea in the night, +than they wud clunk boiling lead. I've b'en there by night an' by day; +for I wor curious to find out somethen'." + +"You were not likely to find anything there," said Morley, +carelessly--which threw the boy completely off his guard; and, being in +a communicative mood, he went on,-- + +"I saw something there one night, that made me feel uncommon queer, sure +nuf; and I b'lieve that 'The Maister' ha' got some notion that I do knaw +somethen'; for he slocked me up there for to try to frighten me more +than once. It was somethen' that I'm sure he must have put there inside +one of the walls, that went off like a clap of thunder, and frightened +the mare, that night when I was throwed; and I'm sure 'twas his doing, +for, when I came to myself, I was upon a bed in 'The Maister's' house, +and nobody but his sister knaw'd a word about et. He gave me some stuff, +and I soon got about agen. He went out the next morning, and Miss +Freeman kept me there under lock and key; and when he came home in the +afternoon, he told all about the mare, and how poor Mr. Brown was +sitting down 'pon a rock by hisself, fretting about it, and he sent me +up to bring him home." + +"So you never saw anything more than that at Chapel Carn Brea, after +all?" said Morley, by way of bringing the boy back to the secret he +seemed about to tell,--for he saw, by his manner, there was something +more, and he was anxious to know all he could about this man, although +his thoughts were, even then, dwelling, with intense anxiety, on the +probable sufferings, both in body and mind, of his Alrina. + +"Iss I have," cried the boy, eagerly; "but I never told it to a single +soul, from that time to this. Now, mind, you must promise that you'll +never tell." And, without waiting for the promise, he went on eagerly +with his tale. "When 'The Maister' came here to live first," resumed the +boy, "I was but a little chap." + +"So I should suppose," said Morley, smiling, "even if you were in +existence, which I very much doubt,--for that must be fourteen or +fifteen years ago, according to the account of Mrs. Brown and Josiah +Trenow, and others of the neighbourhood; so I fancy you are about to +tell me a tale in imitation of your master." + +"No, no," replied the boy; "you don't know what I'm going to tell, and +p'rhaps you won't. I'm older than I do look, I can tell 'ee. I'm no +cheeld, f'rall I do look like one to a stranger, I dare say." + +"Well, how old are you?" said Morley; "for I confess I have been puzzled +several times as to your age. In stature you are but a very little boy; +but when I look into your face, and hear your shrewd remarks, I fancy +you may be almost any age." + +"Well, sir," replied the boy, looking pleased at the gentleman's having +noticed him so much as to be puzzled about his age; "I'm above twenty, +but how much I don't exactly know." + +"Billy!" cried a rough voice from below,--"Billy! I say. Where the devil +is that rapscallion?" + +"There!" said the boy; "Cap'n Cooper is come back, and the old woman is +gone out, I s'pose. There'll be the devil to pay if I don't go down." +And away he ran, leaving Morley in a most unpleasant state of suspense; +for he had calculated on gaining a great deal of information from the +boy, both with regard to Mr. Freeman, and, what he was still more +concerned about, the probable movements and present abode of Alrina. + +It was evident, from what the boy said, that he was a prisoner. He +wouldn't have minded the old woman and the boy so much; for he thought +he might be able to work upon their feelings, by bribes and fair words, +sufficiently to induce them to connive at his escape; and he speculated +in his mind, even while the boy was talking with him, that he might be +able to prevail on him to leave Mr. Freeman and follow him as groom and +valet, when he might be of the utmost assistance in many ways. But now +it seemed as if all his aerial castles were dissolving into the element +of which they were composed; for here was a more formidable jailor, if +he might judge by the rough voice and the commanding tone of the fresh +arrival. This was the master of the house, he had no doubt, from the +name;--Cooper was the old woman's name, he knew. These thoughts drove +him almost mad, and he lay back on his pillow and gave himself up to +despair. "Alrina!" cried he, in his agony; "I feel that all things are +working against us; but oh! Alrina, forgive your Frederick,--it was not +my fault. Alrina! Alrina!" And, after raving like a madman for some +minutes, he fell back exhausted. + +In the meantime, the boy, locking the door behind him, as he passed out +of the room in which Morley lay, hastened downstairs to meet the master +of the establishment. + +"Hallo!" exclaimed that gentleman, as he stood with his back to the +fire; "where's all the people?" + +"How should I know?" replied the boy, in the same unceremonious +manner,--for he feared no one but "The Maister," and could be as +impertinent as the greatest blackguard in the parish when he chose to +be, for which he frequently got punished by those who didn't know him +well, and these he generally took some opportunity of retaliating upon, +so that no one gained much by punishing little Bill. + +It was evident that the captain was out of sorts, and was inclined to +vent his spleen upon anybody or anything that happened to come in his +way. + +"Confound your impudence," said he, advancing towards the boy, with his +uplifted fist ready to make a blow at him, when he got near enough; +"I'll knock you into the middle of next week, you young rascal!" And he +struck at the young offender with such force, that the boy would have +been seriously injured, had he not nimbly jumped on one side. The +impetus of the blow not being checked by coming in contact with the +boy's head, sent the man forward, and he was caught in the arms of his +loving wife, who entered at that moment, and they both fell headlong on +the floor together, at which the boy laughed and ran out of the room. + +Nothing makes a person feel so awkward and foolish as when he measures +his length on the floor by an accidental fall; and Captain Cooper and +his better half felt quite ashamed of themselves, as they scrambled up +from their ignominious position. Fortunately there were no spectators; +for the boy had escaped, and was keeping out of sight for the present, +but not out of hearing. A little corner sufficed for a hiding-place for +him, and thus he frequently picked up a good many odd secrets, which he +repeated to "The Maister" when he was assisting him in any of his +necromancy, and obtained credit even from "The Maister" for shrewdness +beyond his years. + +"Where's Freeman?" asked the man, opening a cupboard and taking out a +bottle of brandy and a glass to solace him after his fall. + +"Gone," replied the woman, shaking herself to rights again; "he started +last night, and took Alrina with him." + +"The devil he did!" exclaimed the man, drinking off a full glass of the +exhilarating liquor; "that's a queer game, when he promised to----" + +"Don't you know that his promises can't always be kept?" said the +woman. "Circumstances alter cases. There's been a circumstance here." + +"A what!" cried the man, in an angry tone; "why, you're getting so bad +as the boy, Jenny Cooper." + +"Hush, Cap'n! I've got something to tell 'ee," replied his wife; and +seating herself on a low chair, opposite the fire, and blowing it up +lustily with the bellows at the same time, she related to her husband +the accident, and told him the young gentleman was still in bed +upstairs. + +"Whew!" whistled the captain;--"then his game is up for a spur, and +t'other is out of the way and off the scent,--so no herring-pool, after +all; but where is the old man gone to?" + +"I don't know," replied his wife; "but I shouldn't wonder if he's gone +down to the old place again, now the coast is clear. He'll be noted +again in St. Just, now that the breeze is blown over, and the scent is +in another quarter, as you do say it is." + +"Right you are," rejoined the captain, looking more pleased than he had +looked yet since his return. "And now I'll tell you our bit of spree." +And he related to his wife the expedition to Ashley Hall, and how his +companion had left the girl with the lady, thinking to frighten her into +submission to their terms, and that, when she went back again the next +day, to see how the land lay, she found the little door in the lane +locked and barred on the inside, and when she applied for admission, at +the front entrance, she was told that Mrs. Courland could not see her. +"So she's in a fix," continued the man; "but she stayed behind, and +she'll blow the gaff, if they don't come to, soon. I should have stopped +too, but I thought my old friend might want to be off at once, and so I +came back to get all things right and straight for the trip." + +"And you'd better get things right and straight now," said his wife; +"for he may be going off all the same, for what I do know." + + + + +CHAPTER XXV. + +RETROSPECTION AND RECRIMINATION. + + +Mr. Morley wrote to Lieut. Fowler from Ashley Hall, saying that he had +found his brother and Josiah Trenow there, and that they had discovered +a house, which they had every reason to believe was the scene of the +murder. He informed his friend also that he and Josiah would remain +there a little longer, to make further search, but that Frederick had +gone down into Cornwall in search of a party who had slipped through +their hands, so far. + +In consequence of this letter, Lieut. Fowler was in daily expectation of +seeing his friend Frederick Morley at Tol-pedn-Penwith. And the ladies +at Pendrea-house were in anxious expectation too; for, now that they +knew more of his history, which seemed so fraught with romantic +interest, he had become quite a hero in their eyes. Day after day +passed, but he did not arrive. The ladies were alarmed, and feared some +accident had befallen him; but Fowler ridiculed this idea, and +attributed his non-arrival to the strictness of the search he was no +doubt making. Who the party was that Frederick was in search of, Fowler +didn't know, for the finding of the box by Josiah had been kept a +secret. The search after Mr. Freeman was merely to get his help to +unravel the mystery of that document, which Josiah seemed to think, from +his manner, he knew something about, although it was most probable, as +Frederick suggested at first, that Mr. Freeman pretended to know more +than he really did, in order to induce Josiah to leave the box and its +contents with him. As a drowning man will catch at a straw, so did +Frederick catch at this little incident, improbable as he really thought +it, in the hope that it might assist him in his search, or that the +conjuror, by his skill, might be able to give him some clue to the +mystery. Fowler knew nothing of all this, nor did he know of his +friend's devoted, and, it may be added, romantic, attachment to the +daughter of the celebrated Land's-End conjuror. Had he known it, he +would, no doubt, have tried to convince his friend of the folly and +absurdity of such a connection. But love is blind; and it would probably +have required more eloquence than Lieut. Fowler possessed to have +persuaded Frederick Morley that the lovely and fascinating girl whom he +loved so passionately from the first moment he saw her, as a schoolgirl, +was unworthy of his affection, because her father did not move in the +first circles of society. Luckily Fowler was ignorant of this +attachment; and so his friend had been spared the annoyance of a +discussion with him on the subject. The old squire was as anxious as any +of them to see the young soldier once more. But he didn't come. + +Miss Pendray's mind was ill at ease--that was evident to all who knew +her. She still wandered over the cliffs, and braved the storm; but it +was not now, as it used to be, for the sake of looking at the bold +scenery. Her wanderings had now a more definite object;--she hoped, +every time she climbed those lofty cliffs, that she should meet with +someone to share her admiration of the beautiful scenery. She had become +accustomed to those pleasant meetings with one of the opposite sex; and +she felt a vacuum--a loneliness--that she had never felt before. The +stranger whom she met at the ball, and who seemed so enamoured of her, +had disappeared in a most unaccountable manner. She was beginning to +like his attentions, although there was something in his manner, +sometimes, which did not please her;--she told him as much, the last +time she met him. Perhaps he was offended; for she had never seen him +since the sudden appearance of that handsome man, who had intruded upon +their privacy at the Logan Rock. It was a strange coincidence--those two +men, meeting in that strange way. She was much struck with the +appearance and gentlemanly manners of the gentleman with the white +hair;--she couldn't put him out of her mind for the whole day; and, the +next evening, when Lieut. Fowler brought him to Pendrea-house, after +their return from St. Just, she thought him the most fascinating man she +had ever seen. There was an open frankness and ease in his manner, which +were wanting in Mr. Smith. As she reflected now on the difference +between the two men, she felt that Mr. Smith's manners seemed put on for +the occasion, and that he required to be on his guard, and to be always +watching himself, as it were, to prevent some hidden vulgarity from +peeping out under his apparently assumed garb of refinement. It was not +so with Mr. Morley;--he was a gentleman intuitively, and, therefore, had +no occasion to watch himself lest he should say or do, inadvertently, +anything he would be ashamed of. Mr. Morley, too, was much struck with +Miss Pendray's beauty; but he did not tell her so, point blank, as Mr. +Smith had done on more than one occasion. He asked her to shew him some +of her favourite scenes on the cliffs, with which he expressed himself +highly delighted, and he pointed out beauties in the rocks and cliffs +and headlands, which she had not observed before, and described to her, +in glowing colours, some of the magnificent scenery he had himself +witnessed in the East. And so they continued, day after day, to walk +together--sometimes over the cliffs and sometimes on the smooth sands +beneath--admiring the beauties of Nature, almost with the same eyes and +the same thoughts. They seemed to have so many ideas in unison, and each +became so fascinated with the other, that when the time arrived that Mr. +Morley thought he must in duty visit his relatives, they parted, with +sorrowing hearts, although neither of them knew what a pang the other +felt at parting. + +Miss Pendray had not been accustomed, in that out-of-the-way place, to +meet with men of that stamp;--she had never before come into contact +with a congenial spirit. Frederick Morley was better than most she had +been in the habit of meeting; but he would, occasionally, appear so +absorbed in his own thoughts, that he was, at times, scarcely +companionable. Mr. Smith was bold and clever, evidently, and as romantic +in his ideas and pursuits as she could possibly desire, and frequently +fascinated her with his thrilling stories; but there was something in +his manner sometimes that did not satisfy her; and his aversion to join +their domestic circle seemed most strange. + +Mr. Morley was quite different, in every respect; and, now that she +wandered over the cliffs alone, day after day, she could reflect on the +difference between the three men. She had always looked down with pity +on her younger sister's susceptibility, and often upbraided her for +exhibiting, so unreservedly, her attachment to Lieut. Fowler, who was +not at all suited to her, either in age or position, Miss Pendray +thought. + +The gentle Blanche could now turn the tables on her more prudent and +high-minded sister; for she saw that the handsome Mr. Morley had made a +conquest, and that the majestic Maud watched his every look and action, +and was pained, beyond measure, when, even in common politeness, he paid +the slightest attention to anyone else. + +While Maud and Mr. Morley were thus revelling in each other's society, +over the bold cliffs and headlands, Blanche and her lover were taking +their quiet walks along the rocks and sands beneath, where they would, +ever and anon, stop and rest themselves, and look out on the broad ocean +which lay before them, talking of the future, and hoping that all might +turn out smoothly in the end; for, although Blanche quite understood +what her lover meant now, and returned his love with the fondest +affection, and wished to her heart that all could be settled at once, +yet she was still afraid for her father to be spoken to on the subject, +lest he should get angry, and forbid their intercourse altogether. Poor +silly child! her timid nature feared she knew not what; and the more her +lover urged her to allow him to ask her father's consent, the more did +she recoil from the ordeal, dreading what the answer might be. She knew +her sister's thoughts and opinions on the subject, and she feared her +father might hold the same opinion, for they were much alike in pride +and lofty bearing; and so her timid fear overcame her prudence, and she +held her lover back from doing that which he well knew and felt he ought +to do, in common honesty and honour. But he loved his darling Blanche +too well to thwart her; and so the two went on in tender communing, and +each day brought fresh arguments on either side--the one, in manly +uprightness, urging the appeal to the father for his sanction to their +union; the other, in timid maidenly reserve, dreading the answer her +stern parent might give, and controlling her fond lover, who felt he +could not disobey her. + +"Only wait a little longer," she said, one day, as she sat listening to +his arguments, and looking up at him so earnestly;--"you don't know papa +so well as I do. In most things he is so kind; but I fear in this he +would not be so." + +"Why do you think so, dearest Blanche?" he replied, taking her hand in +his; "he seems to like me, and is continually asking me to come to +Pendrea-house. What objection can he have? have you ever heard him say +he disliked me, or----" + +"Oh! no! never," she replied; "but Maud and papa seem to hold the same +opinions on many points; and she has spoken to me often of the disparity +of age, and seemed so utterly against it, that I fear papa will think so +too." + +"It shall be exactly as you wish," said he; "but I would much rather +know my fate at once, than wait in suspense;--what good end can it +answer to delay it?" + +"Oh! don't talk in that way," replied Blanche, bursting into +tears;--"you know how much I should wish it settled, too; but then, if +papa should be angry, and refuse to give his consent, I should never see +you again. I cannot bear to think of that." + +Poor little innocent timid Blanche! she knew not what troubles her +timidity was bringing on them both. It was her first love; and, +childlike, she thought only of her present pleasure. She felt like one +in a pleasant dream, gliding through the air on azure clouds, wafted +gently onwards by a zephyr's breeze, with her lover ever by her side to +protect her from harm; and she feared lest the slightest change in their +present position should cause an angry storm to rise, and overturn all +their blissful happiness. She did not know, poor girl, in her ignorance, +of the changes and chances that are continually going on in the world, +where the greatest pleasures and the severest pains and trials last but +for a season, and they are gone, and old Time keeps on the even tenor of +his way, and pains and pleasures live only in the memory, and fade away +as time rolls on, leaving, in the end, but a faint shadow of the past. + +Blanche knew not this; and, anxious to secure present happiness, she +induced her lover, in the very innocence of her young heart, by tears +and entreaties, to delay his application to her father for a time, in +defiance of his better judgment; for he was older, and knew the world +much better than this poor innocent girl, but still he yielded, and they +loved on in secret. + +While Maud was so engrossed with Mr. Morley, there was no one to watch +and overlook them; but when he was gone, it seemed to her as if all her +occupation was gone too,--she had nothing left but to wander out alone +and think of him whose image ever haunted her;--and, in her wanderings, +she often surprised Blanche and her attendant lover, in one of their +favourite haunts. And, wanting some better occupation, she would chide +her sister when they were alone together. At first, Blanche didn't mind +it much; but its frequent repetition angered her, and she spoke up +sharply to her sister, contrary to her wont, which made Maud speak her +mind more freely. And as they sat at work alone, one afternoon, she +renewed the old subject:-- + +"I must tell you, Blanche," she began, "that I think it is very wrong +in you to encourage Mr. Fowler to pay you such marked attention, when, +perhaps, he means nothing, after all." + +"I will not allow anyone, in my presence, to impeach Mr. Fowler's +honour," replied Blanche, looking up from her work, her cheeks burning +with indignant pride; "I have the most perfect confidence in his +honourable intentions, and therefore I will not hear him traduced." + +"There we differ," returned her elder sister, hastily; "and, let me tell +you that, were his intentions ever so honourable, papa would never +sanction the engagement of a daughter of his to Lieut. Fowler." + +"And, pray, what would be the objection?" asked Blanche, indignantly. + +"There are several," replied her sister; "I know papa's opinion of his +position pretty well, for I have already sounded him on it." + +"And what right, let me ask, had you to sound papa on a subject which +you know nothing about?" asked Blanche;--"that subject has never been +named by Mr. Fowler, either to you or to papa, that I am aware of." + +"Then it ought to have been," replied Maud, "and that would have settled +the matter at once. It is neither honourable nor manly in Mr. Fowler to +ensnare your affections, and wish you to meet him clandestinely, as I +fear and know you too often do. What his intentions are, I don't know; +but, if I may judge from this circumstance, they cannot be honourable, +and it is time papa took some measures to prevent it, before it is too +late." + +"I am surprised, Maud," replied her sister, coolly, "that you, above all +others, should accuse me of doing the very thing that you have been +doing yourself for the last two months." + +"Me!" exclaimed the majestic Maud; "how dare you say such a thing?" + +"Yes, you!" replied Blanche. "If I have walked occasionally with papa's +old friend, Mr. Fowler, I have done so openly, and with him only,--while +you have had three strings to your bow, two of whom I know you met +clandestinely, often and often, my prudent sister. What has become of +the stranger you met at the ball, who called himself 'Mr. Smith?' did +you think your meetings with him were not known? And, having lost him, +you carried on the same game with Mr. Morley. Did either of these +gentlemen ask papa? If not, I say they ought to have done so, before +they induced you to meet them so often, clandestinely, at the Logan +Rock,--a nice secluded place for lovers to meet at, truly?" + +The timid Blanche had never spoken so fearlessly and sharply to her +sister before, and Maud was perfectly astonished. She felt conscious, +all at once, that the tables were turned on her deservedly--for she had +an inward conviction of the truth of what her sister had said; but, like +most people whose minds are filled with one great and absorbing passion, +she neither saw nor knew that her actions were observed and commented on +by the lookers-on in the outer world. Although she looked upon the world +in general with cold indifference, and would sit for hours as inanimate +as a statue, her handsome features looking, in repose, like a piece of +beautifully-chiselled, tinted, marble; yet, when anyone approached in +whom she took a more than ordinary interest, or any subject was +introduced which it pleased her to discuss, her countenance would light +up instantaneously, and you might see the fire of her soul shine out +with dazzling brilliancy, in her dark flashing eyes. Nothing, then, +could control the ungovernable passion that dwelt within; and the longer +it had lain dormant, the stronger would it now burst forth, seeing +nothing but that one object on which her mind was then intent. With such +an all-absorbing passion had she, during the last few days of his +sojourn among them, loved Mr. Morley. At first she was passive;--she +walked with him, and pointed out the beauties of the scenery, and +listened to his description of the scenes he had passed through in +India, with pleasure, certainly, but not with the rapture she now felt +in all he said or did. She liked him, at first, as a highly-gifted +gentlemanly companion,--when, all at once, she was seized with that +ungovernable love for him, which prevented her from seeing anything +else; nor did she care, in her mad passion, if the whole world was +looking on,--she was blind to all but him. She, like Blanche, thought +but of her present happiness, but, unlike Blanche, she thought not of +her father's consent nor dissent; and so she was taken quite by +surprise, when she found that all her doings had been seen and commented +upon. She had been like a little playful child, who covers its head, and +thinks, poor little innocent, that, because it cannot see the company +around, it cannot be seen by them. Maud was shocked at the discovery. It +roused another passion within her--that of anger; and, rising from her +seat, with a haughty frown, she swept from the room, and left her poor +timid sister trembling and frightened, wondering what she had said or +done to cause such a terrible commotion within her sister's breast. + + + + +CHAPTER XXVI. + +SQUIRE PENDRAY GETS ON HIS STILTS, AND VIEWS LIEUT. FOWLER FROM A LOFTY +EMINENCE. + + +When Lieut. Fowler called at Pendrea-house the next morning, to take +Blanche out, as he had promised, to finish a sketch she was making of a +scene near the Logan Rock, he was met at the door by the old squire +himself, who, bowing stiffly asked his visitor to grant him a few +minutes' conversation in the library. + +"This is an odd reception," thought Fowler; "the old gentleman is up on +his stilts this morning." But, however, as he knew the squire was very +uncertain in his temper, he followed him in silence; and, when they had +entered the room, the squire requested him to be seated, and, after a +moment's pause, in which he seemed to be considering how he should +begin, he said, rather abruptly,-- + +"I have not deserved this at your hands, Lieut. Fowler." + +"What, sir?" said Fowler, in the greatest surprise. + +"When you came into this district," continued the squire, without +noticing Fowler's remark, "I invited you to my house; and my family and +myself have tried to make it as agreeable as we could to you, as you +seemed lonely up there by yourself; and the return I have had for all my +kindness, has been your undermining the innocent simplicity of my +youngest daughter, and, in an underhand and clandestine manner, gaining +the affections of an unsophisticated, simple girl, and inducing her to +meet you in bye-places unknown to her family." + +"My dear sir!" exclaimed Fowler, scarcely knowing what he said--he was +so taken by surprise; "I protest----" + +"It is of no use your denying it," continued the squire; "for I am in +possession of the fact that you have destroyed my child's peace of mind, +without ascertaining whether your attentions would be agreeable to me or +not." + +"I acknowledge that I love your daughter, squire Pendray," replied +Fowler; "but I hold her and all your family in too high respect to do +anything underhand or clandestinely, to gain her affections; and I tell +you, sir," he continued, rising with calm dignity, "I have not done so; +and, if you had not been Blanche's father, I would not submit quietly to +be taunted in this way. I should have communicated my feelings to you +long ago, but----" + +"But what, sir!" exclaimed the squire, rising from his seat also. + +"But for a timid feeling which Blanche possesses," replied Fowler, +"that----" + +"Whatever fears Blanche might have had, sir, they ought not to have +prevented you from acting as an honourable man and a gentleman. You are +many years older than my daughter, Lieut. Fowler, and ought not to have +led her away thus. It is well, perhaps, that the discovery has been made +before it was too late. You have taken advantage of my hospitality, sir, +and I desire you will not enter my doors again; and whatever there may +have been between you and my daughter, it must cease. Sir, I wish you a +very good morning." And, bowing to his visitor, the crusty old gentleman +opened another door, which led to the upper part of the house, leaving +Lieut. Fowler standing in the middle of the room, and wondering what +could be the meaning of all this, and who could have informed the squire +of his attachment to his daughter, and of their meetings. He was +conscious of the rectitude and earnestness of his intentions, and knew, +of course, that he had been prevented from making them known to her +father, only by the earnest intreaty of Blanche herself. But he could +not compromise her--indeed he had not an opportunity of doing so, even +if he wished; for, before he had time to reply, or to defend himself, +the old gentleman was gone, and there was no one to receive his +explanation. At first he thought that, perhaps, Blanche might have been +questioned by her father, and had been induced to confess their +attachment and their frequent meetings, without having had the courage +or the opportunity to explain the reason. + +He could not remain in the house, of course, nor could he call again, +after what had taken place; but he thought he should like to hear from +Blanche herself how far she was implicated (unintentionally, he was +quite sure) in divulging their secret, and thus causing his dismissal +from a house which he had visited with so much pleasure ever since he +had been in Cornwall. He determined, therefore, that he would see +Blanche, if possible, before he left. So he rang the bell. The servant +who answered it said, in reply to his request to see Miss Blanche for a +moment, that she was confined to her room with a headache, and could not +see him; so he had no alternative but to leave the house. + +How little do we know what a day may bring forth! As he walked away from +that house where he had been accustomed to be received almost as one of +the family for a period of four or five years, Lieut. Fowler began to +reflect on the changes and vicissitudes of human life, and how easily +the merest trifle, light as air, will sometimes turn the scale. From his +first introduction to squire Pendray, to the present time, they had +been, as it were, boon companions; for the squire, although an old man, +was a jolly companion over his wine, and would frequently, even then, at +his advanced age, take his gun and have a day's sport with his friend, +and keep up with him too, to the end of the day without flagging, and +would enjoy the bachelors' dinner, and a glass of grog afterwards, at +the lieutenant's little cabin, where the dinner was cooked by a jolly +tar, and served up in sailor fashion, as much as if the table was +spread with the daintiest dishes, and everything was done in the first +style of fashion. And, only two days before, when Fowler dined at +Pendrea-house, he thought, as they sat at their wine after dinner, that +it was impossible his old friend could refuse him his daughter's hand, +if he could only be permitted by her to ask the question; for he had +been always treated more like a brother by the young ladies, than like a +stranger. And now, without even allowing him an opportunity of +explaining his conduct, or of exculpating himself from the insinuations +thrown out against his character as a man of honour and a gentleman, he +is unceremoniously expelled from the house, and forbidden all further +intercourse with her for whom he would willingly lay down his life. + +That some secret enemy had been at work, he had not the slightest doubt; +but who it could be, he could not imagine. He was not, therefore, in a +very serene state of mind, when he arrived home, as his men soon +discovered. He ordered them out on night duty, and said he should +himself take a long round and inspect all the outposts during the night. + +Blanche had not heard of her lover's having been at the house. She was +not very well, but a walk in the fresh air would have done her good, and +she sat in her room expecting to be informed by her maid, as she had +directed, when Lieut. Fowler called; but none of the female servants saw +him come in, and they did not know he was in the house; for he had been +admitted, as will be remembered, by squire Pendray himself, who, +anticipating that Lieut. Fowler would probably try to see his daughter +before he left the house, desired the footman to say that Miss Blanche +could not be seen; and so the servant was prepared with his answer +before the question was asked. Hour after hour passed away, and still +Blanche waited in anxious expectation, but he did not come--as she +supposed; and at length she went down into the drawing-room to join her +mother and sister. + +Maud had done her work cleverly and successfully, and she was satisfied +with herself;--she had avenged the unpleasant insinuations and +reflections cast upon her by her younger sister; and she had prevented +her, she believed, from being ensnared into a connection which was not +deemed eligible in any way for a daughter of the house of Pendray. + +Nothing was said by either of the ladies about Lieut. Fowler; and so +Blanche remained in ignorance of his visit and its termination. Day +after day passed away, but Lieut. Fowler did not make his appearance, +and Blanche became alarmed. She walked out occasionally with the hope of +meeting him at one of their favourite haunts, but he did not come. Maud +would now accompany her sister, which was very unusual, their pursuits +and ideas being so widely different. Blanche could not understand it; +and, after their late conversation, she did not like to mention the +name of Fowler to her sister, and so they went on--each having a secret +and reserving it in her own breast, fearing, and yet wishing, to talk to +each other with that confidence which should have existed between two +sisters, who had scarcely ever been separated in their lives. + +Blanche, at length, began to feel unhappy and uncomfortable. She +declined going out when her sister asked her, and would sit in her own +room, with her door locked, all day long, and never join the family, +except at meal-times, when she shewed evident signs of mental distress. +The tears would sometimes chase each other gently down her cheeks, as +she sat pretending to eat--for it was a mere pretence;--she had no +appetite, and merely came to the table because she was obliged to do so, +to prevent being questioned. She feared he was ill, but she dared not +ask; and thus, poor timid child, "she let concealment, like a worm i' +the bud, feed on her damask cheek," and pined away in lonely sadness. + +Squire Pendray and his eldest daughter divined the cause of Blanche's +melancholy; but, instead of commiserating and consoling her, they +privately denounced Lieut. Fowler as the cause of it all. And, the more +Blanche gave way to her secret grief, and pined for the loss of him +whose presence seemed almost necessary to her existence, the more did +they censure and reproach their former friend. + +The only comforter--if such it might be deemed--whom Blanche had, was +Mrs. Pendray, her kind indulgent mother. She, poor lady, knew nothing of +the love affair, and attributed her darling daughter's illness to +another cause, and overwhelmed the sufferer with well-meant attentions, +and loaded her with dainties of all sorts--none of which could Blanche +touch. + +The old squire was concerned to see his little pet pining away, and +refusing all nourishment; but his pride would not permit him to yield in +any one particular. + +Miss Pendray, too, had her moments of secret anxiety; for Mr. Morley had +not written to anyone, as far as she knew, since his first letter to +Lieut. Fowler, and he had now been gone a fortnight. Lieut. Fowler might +have heard, perhaps, but she had been the means of precluding the +possibility of knowing; for it was in consequence of her tale-bearing to +her father that he had been forbidden the house. She did not, perhaps, +calculate on the mischief she was doing, when her pride and her +ungovernable passion prompted her to betray her sister. + + + + +CHAPTER XXVII. + +THE STEP IN THE WRONG DIRECTION. + + +It was a curious fact that everyone who spoke of Mr. Freeman, wound up +their description of him by saying that he had something on his +mind;--but what that something was, or by what means they had +ascertained the fact, or why they had come to that conclusion, they +could not tell. There was, certainly, some mystery about him, inasmuch +as he kept a good deal to himself, and generally appeared thoughtful and +taciturn. He had come to St. Just from some distant part of England, +many years before, and had bought the house in which he resided, and +lived there alone for some time. Then Miss Freeman came. He called her +his sister;--some said she was his wife; but, as neither of them cared +much what was said about them, gossips got tired at last, and allowed +them to be what they were--brother and sister. + +Years rolled on; and Mr. and Miss Freeman continued to reside at St. +Just, and to mix occasionally with the people, but no one seemed really +to know them a bit better than they did at first. Their motto seemed to +be, "to hear, see, and be silent." + +One hot summer, an epidemic broke out in the parish. There was no doctor +nearer at that time than Penzance. It was too expensive for the poor to +send for him at such a distance, and many of them died for want of +medical assistance. + +Mr. Freeman did not, at first, take much notice of it,--he kept aloof. +At length, a boy who went errands for him, and did other jobs, caught +the infection. Mr. Freeman went to see him, and gave him some medicine +which cured him. This got abroad, and Mr. Freeman was sought after, and +he cured many others. + +When the epidemic among the human beings was over, there came one among +the cattle and pigs. It was rumoured that the evil eye was upon them, +and that they were ill-wished. Mr. Freeman was applied to again. He had +been reading the minds of the people, and getting at their secrets while +he was attending them. And, storing up in his memory the petty strifes +and bickerings among them, he could tell pretty nearly how they were +affected towards each other; and the little boy he had cured of the +fever, and who was now his factotum, assisted him; so that, by a few +lucky cures of their cattle, and a very slight hint at someone with whom +the ill-wished party was at variance, the ill-wisher was sufficiently +indicated to procure "The Maister"--as he was now beginning to be +designated--a brilliant reputation, which he profited by considerably; +and the people feared him and honoured him, for his wonderful knowledge +and ability;--but, notwithstanding all his skill, everyone thought that +"The Maister" had something upon his mind. The brother and sister were +an odd pair,--no one could understand them,--and so they ceased to be +much talked about after a time. Their movements were very uncertain. +They would lock up the house and go away, and stay away for weeks, +sometimes. Some of their neighbours wished they would stay away +altogether; but they would not venture to say so, even to themselves; +for they believed that "The Maister" could read their very thoughts +almost. + +Years rolled on; and one day, Miss Freeman, having been absent longer +than usual, brought home a beautiful young lady with her. Here was food +for another gossip. Who was she? She was not like Miss Freeman, nor was +she much like "The Maister;" but they were told she was his daughter. He +had been left a widower when Alrina was very young, Miss Freeman said, +and so she had been at school ever since, agreeably to her mother's +dying request. Gossip wore itself out in this instance also; and Alrina +was allowed to settle down as Mr. Freeman's daughter,--indeed, there was +no one to dispute it; why should they? + +The idle gossip of a country village may suggest and insinuate many +things; but the proof is generally wanting when they come to the test. +Miss Freeman went to fetch the young lady, certainly;--and why not? +Gossip was at fault, and Alrina resided quietly with her father and +aunt. + +Whether Mr. Freeman intended to prevent his daughter from having any +intercourse at all with young men of about her own age, or whether he +had any objection to Frederick Morley individually, certain it is, that, +as soon as he discovered their meetings, he contrived to confine his +daughter to the house, by giving her some powerful narcotic. And, +leaving her in the care of his sister, he went to Portagnes, to make +arrangements for their removal to the house of Capt. Cooper, which was +more calculated for seclusion and confinement than his own. + +The two men were well suited to each other, and played a good game. +Capt. Cooper was bold, rough, and daring, and was the captain of a nice +little vessel in which Mr. Freeman held a large share. And in this he +would go across the water for contraband goods, and Mr. Freeman assisted +him in disposing of them in some of the large towns where he had +friends;--and many a daring adventure had Capt. Cooper been engaged in, +and many a clever run had he made, and evaded the officers of the +customs, and effected landings almost under their very eyes. His house +was a very large one; and underneath, there were commodious cellars, +which were of great use in concealing the contraband goods. + +Why Frederick Morley's appearance at the Land's-End had made these men +so uneasy, it is difficult to say. He was a soldier, and was on intimate +terms of friendship with Lieut. Fowler, the avowed enemy of smuggling; +and, if allowed to meet Alrina as a lover, secrets might be told which +she could not help knowing, they thought. This was one reason, perhaps, +why they wished to get rid of him. But they hadn't succeeded yet. Mr. +Freeman tried the ride on the mare to the Land's-End point, but the +rider was preserved. Now he was completely in their power, but they were +puzzled what to do with him. Alrina had been removed out of his way +again, and the secret of his being there had been kept from her, but the +boy knew it. He was the first who discovered him, when he was lying +insensible under the garden wall. The boy was useful to them, but they +feared him; for he knew too much, and, with all their shrewdness, they +could not fathom him. He might betray them any day. He knew enough of +their secrets; and, although he knew nothing criminal against them, he +was a check upon them,--otherwise Cooper would not have hesitated to get +rid of their troublesome visitor very quickly. Mr. Freeman, too, might +have got rid of him by allowing him to perish when they found him +outside the garden wall, wounded; but both the woman and the boy would +have procured medical aid, if he had not used his utmost skill in +restoring him,--and this would not have suited Mr. Freeman at all just +at that time and in that place; so he used his utmost skill, and cured +him, and there he lay a prisoner still. + +That unfortunate girl, before mentioned, had been a source of profit to +them all, notwithstanding her infirmity. Cooper and his wife had had her +in their keeping from her infancy. The neighbours thought she was their +own child; but they always called her their niece, and the poor girl was +pitied for her dreadful calamity, and for the unkindness with which most +people knew she was treated. + +At stated periods, Miss Freeman would go to Ashley Hall, or wherever +Mrs. Courland happened to be, and work upon her fears, as she best knew +how; for Miss Freeman was a shrewd and cunning woman, and the best +suited of the party for an expedition of this kind. And the dread of her +husband's knowing her secret, generally induced Mrs. Courland to comply +with the exorbitant demands made upon her. She had been applied to for a +large sum, but without effect, for she candidly told them that she had +not the money. This did not satisfy them. They wanted a large sum for a +particular purpose, and they might not be able to come again for some +time. They did not believe Mrs. Courland's statement, that she had not +the money; and, in order to terrify her into compliance, the girl was +brought and left on her hands, as we have seen. + +A tender chord was struck in the heart of Mrs. Courland by that look of +penitence and sorrow which the poor afflicted girl put on, when she +found that she had injured one who bore the pain without resentment. +When the poor girl dropped on her knees, and gave vent, to her feelings +by a gush of tears, the lady yearned towards her, and, looking at her +with compassion, she said, "Yes, it may be so;"--and, from that moment, +she made up her mind to keep the poor creature with her, and teach her +all she was capable of learning. She would, by this, be preserving the +girl from the ill-treatment which she saw by her countenance and manner +whilst the woman was in the room she had evidently been subject to, and +she would also, by this act, save herself from the continual annoyance +of this woman's visits and importunity. She might keep this poor girl as +a dependant, and account for her presence there, by saying that she came +into the garden through the little private door from the lane, and fell +on her knees in a supplicating attitude, which she (Mrs. Courland) +understood to mean, "Take care of me,"--and she had taken care of her, +out of compassion. This was, in fact, true, as far as it went; and of +course the girl herself could not betray her. So, instead of concealing +the girl in the little inner room, as she had intended, she sent for her +niece and told her the tale. + +It seemed so romantic, that Miss Morley was delighted, and amused +herself by trying to talk to the girl by signs, which she soon found she +understood with remarkable quickness; for, in all but the power of +speech and hearing, she was shrewd and intelligent. This was a new +occupation for Mrs. Courland; it opened out a new life to her; it +relieved her mind from the anxieties which had almost overwhelmed her +before. + +Her husband might come now,--she was not afraid of the tales of her +persecutors. She knew the worst, and was no longer harassed by suspense. +She could tell him as much or as little as she pleased,--her silent +protége could not enlighten him further; and the people she so much +dreaded before, she would not admit to her presence again. + +A suitable wardrobe was procured for the delighted girl; and Julia, +assisted by Mrs. Courland's own attendant, succeeded in making her look +quite presentable in a short time. They were very much amused at her +utter astonishment, when she looked at herself in the glass, after they +had dressed her and arranged her hair, according to the "mode,"--she +could not make it out at all. She looked into the glass and smiled, as +if pleased with the change, and then looked round, as if trying to find +her former self. They then proceeded to teach her how to conduct herself +in keeping with her dress, especially in the etiquette of eating and +drinking among well-bred people; and it was astonishing, how soon she +learned all they wished to teach her. The next puzzle was to find a name +for her; and, as she seemed remarkably fond of flowers, they called her +"Flora;"--not that it made any difference to her, poor girl, whether she +had a name or not; but it enabled her kind friends to designate her the +better when speaking of her. + +Mr. Morley and Josiah, in the meantime, had effected an entrance into +the deserted house, through the window in the end, which entered into +the bedroom on the ground floor. One glance sufficed to convince Mr. +Morley that this was the house,--he had heard it described so often by +his father. There were dark marks on the floor still, and the bed was +blood-stained, although time had softened it down into a faint tinge +only. + +That bed appeared never to have been touched since that fatal night, +except to remove the dead body of the murdered man from it; and the +other rooms also seemed as if they had been lately occupied, except that +everything was covered with dust and cobwebs, and the rats and mice had +made sad inroads into the bed-curtains and everything that they could +convert into food, or make an impression on with their sharp teeth. An +old rat came out of one of the bedrooms to meet them as they mounted the +stairs, and seemed astonished and indignant at the intrusion; but when +he saw that the intruders were not to be daunted by looks of defiance, +he turned and scampered back again to his old quarters between the +blankets. The beds had remained as they were when the fugitives left; +and on turning down the covering of the bed to which the rat had +directed its course, Josiah discovered a nest of young rats comfortably +settled. They soon scampered off, however, and, in their retreat, roused +others; and there was a precious noise through the house, as the inmates +rattled downstairs. No wonder that the house had the name of being +haunted. These noises had been heard before, no doubt, when some daring +thief had attempted to get in to rob it; and their superstitious fears +preserved the house and its contents from invasion. It was very easy to +account for the last occupiers having left all things as they were; for +they were, no doubt, glad to get away as soon as possible, after they +had thrown the scent off from themselves by accusing another; and Mr. +Morley's money, which they must have taken with them, was amply +sufficient to compensate them for the loss of the house and furniture, +and to provide them with all they would require for a very long time. + +The rooms were all in the same state. Some of the drawers and cupboards +were partially open, while others were locked, but the keys had been +left in them. Everything betokened a hasty flight. In some of the +drawers were found a few articles of clothing, both male and female; but +these were moth-eaten and discoloured. There were no papers of any kind +to serve as a clue to the discovery of the parties. + +In searching one of the drawers in what appeared to have been the +bedroom of a female, Josiah found a gold earring, of a peculiar pattern, +with a small diamond in the drop end of it. This he put into his pocket, +with the intention of giving it to the dumb girl, to amuse her; for all +the household, at Ashley Hall, had already begun to take an interest in +her, and she was getting quite at home with them, and familiar with +every part of the house, and she could now make herself understood, +without much difficulty. Mr. Morley thought it was very strange that +such a valuable ornament should be found in such a house. Those +earrings, however, might have been a present from some rich lady for +services performed. The other earring might have been lost; or this may +have been a stray one, taken in a hurry, among other trinkets, which the +owners of that house might have appropriated to themselves from time to +time, when they found an opportunity; for it was evident, from the +circumstances that had occurred in connection with that murder, that +plunder was their principal object. + +When Josiah gave Flora the ornament in the evening, she looked at it at +first with pleasure, and thanked the donor in her way. She then took it +into another part of the room, and examined it more minutely, and +admired every part of it. At last she gave a start, and her countenance +became overclouded with an expression of terror and pain. This was in +the servants' hall. And, running up to Josiah, she became quite +outrageous, pointing to the ornament as if in anger; and then, making a +sign, as if she thought it had come from a long way off, she threw it on +the floor, and would have stamped on it, had not Josiah snatched it up. +They could not at all understand what she meant. Josiah was about to put +the earring into his pocket again, when she snatched it out of his hand, +and ran out of the room. Nothing more was heard or seen of the ornament; +and so they supposed she had thrown it away or destroyed it. + +Mr. Morley was now beginning to feel uneasy about his brother; for he +had heard from his friend Fowler twice, and in both letters he said he +had seen nothing of Frederick. So Mr. Morley determined to return to +Cornwall again without delay. + + + + +CHAPTER XXVIII. + +BY DOING A LITTLE WRONG, A GREAT GOOD IS ACCOMPLISHED IN THE END. + + +Frederick Morley's state of mind can better be imagined than described, +at finding himself a prisoner in the house which he intended to have +entered as the bold deliverer of his beloved Alrina, who was, perhaps, +by this time on her voyage to America. The boy continued to attend upon +him, and he was beginning, Morley thought, to take an interest in him, +and to pity his position; for Frederick, who was now getting strong +again, had proposed taking him into his service,--at which he seemed +pleased, although he did not say whether he would accept the offer or +not. Cunning boy! he knew very well that he was watched closely by +Cooper and his wife. + +"What the devil were you and that chap whispering about?" said Cooper to +the boy, one day, when the latter came down from attending on the +invalid. + +"If your ears had been long enough you would have heard," replied the +boy, in his usual saucy way. + +"Come, none of that!" said the man. "I wish 'The Maister' would come and +take him off, or give the orders what to do with him; for I don't like +this shill-i-shall-i game." + +"Nor I," said the boy; "I'm tired too with this work. I'd rather be out +than here tending 'pon the sick, like a maid. I tell 'ee what I'd do, ef +I wor you, Cap'n,--I'd give'n the run of the cellars." + +"What's the good of that, you fool?" replied Cooper, looking as if a +bright thought had struck him all at once. + +"Why, I'll tell 'ee," said the boy, coming closer to the man, and +whispering in his ear,--"he'd be starved to death, or else he'd run his +head agen the walls and batter his brains out." + +"You young rascal!" exclaimed Cooper, looking at the same time more +pleased than he intended to look; "you don't think I'd treat the young +fellow like that, do 'ee? He never did any harm to me. If 'The Maister' +ha' got a mind to do it, he may, but I sha'n't." + +"You're turned chickenhearted all at once," said the boy. "I tell +'ee,--I don't like to be shut in here all day, when a turn of the key in +the cellar-door would settle it all, and give me my liberty once more; +and I tell 'ee, Cap'n, ef you don't like to do et, give me the key of +the cellar, and I'll put 'n in there this very night, and nobody will be +the wiser." + +This was what Capt. Cooper would like to have done days ago; but he +feared a betrayal on the part of the boy; but now that the young rascal, +who was the acknowledged protége of Mr. Freeman, had proposed it +himself, he thought he might avail himself of the opportunity, and his +friend would thank him when it was all over, and he should be very glad +himself to get rid of an enemy so formidable. These were his thoughts +and reflections. Why he made them, or what reason either of them had for +their antipathy to this young man, did not appear. That they had this +antipathy was very evident,--and that their wish to get rid of him was +about to be accomplished, was now vividly apparent to the mind of Capt. +Cooper without the possibility of any blame being attached to him. He +had sufficient control over his feelings, however, to prevent his +showing the real pleasure it gave him, to the boy; but he stipulated +that, to prevent an escape, he should himself be present to unlock the +door, and put the prisoner into this safe stronghold. + +The boy then went back to the prisoner, and told him that Capt. Cooper +had granted permission for him to take a little exercise on the beach +that evening; at which Morley was much pleased, for he felt almost +suffocated, shut up in a close room for so long a time. Anywhere, he +thought, was better than that. So, when the boy came in the evening to +let him out, he almost leaped with joy. At the bottom of the stairs they +were joined by Cooper, and the three went down another flight of steps, +which seemed to Morley dark and dismal. The boy whispered to him that he +would soon be in the open air, but that it was necessary they should +reach it by a circuitous route. The man also spoke kindly to him; and +down they went, till they came to a door, which the man unlocked,--and, +in his eagerness to secure his prey, he gave his prisoner a push, which +sent him headlong down another flight of steps. + +The sudden fall stunned Morley for a few minutes; but he soon recovered +himself, and, on looking round, he found that he was in what seemed to +him to be a dark dungeon. This was worse than all. The boy had betrayed +him! This he was now convinced of, and he should be left there in that +dark cold dungeon to perish. He groped his way round the place as well +as he could, and felt that the walls were damp. He stumbled over some +casks and boxes, as he went cautiously along; and by degrees, as his +eyes became accustomed to the darkness, he could see that he was in an +underground cellar, not very large nor very high; but in going round by +the wall, he found that this small cellar communicated with a large one, +which he groped his way into, through a small archway. Here he sank down +on the floor from sheer exhaustion, and began to reflect on his +situation. + +Everything seemed going against him. It was evident, from the way in +which the man had pushed him down the stairs, that he was anxious to get +rid of him, and would perhaps resort to some speedy way of doing so; and +he feared and believed the boy was in league with him. Why Mr. Freeman +should have taken such a dislike to him he could not imagine, for he had +never seen him that he was aware of. Altogether, it was a mystery which +he could not understand; so he gave himself up to despair, and made up +his mind that he would never be permitted to leave that place again. +Whether his death would be a lingering one of starvation, or whether it +would be a quick one by assassination, he could not of course tell;--he +almost wished it might be the latter, for the suspense was dreadful. + +Hour after hour passed away, and there he sat brooding over his unhappy +fate, but no one came to end his woes. Night came on,--he could feel it +although he could not see it, for all was cold and dark and dreary +around him. The damp was coming out from the walls, and he felt a chill +pass through his frame; for he was still weak from his late illness. +Exhausted nature was giving way, and sleep was falling on him. He tried +to keep awake; for he feared that if he slept in that place he should +never wake again. He got up and tried to rouse himself and keep awake by +walking to and fro, but it was of no use. His thoughts were terrible. It +was better to suffer death than continue in that state of awful +suspense. He sat down at last on an empty box, and yielded to that +oblivion which soothes and invigorates the frame, while it relieves the +mind from harrowing and disagreeable thoughts and feelings. + + + + +CHAPTER XXIX. + +MRS. BROWN AND MRS. TRENOW INDULGE IN A CROOM O' CHAT. WHILE CAP'N +TRENOW GIVES SOME SAGE ADVICE IN ANOTHER QUARTER. + + +The gossips of St. Just were spared the necessity of inventing idle +tales to keep conversation alive,--a practice so prevalent in small +communities, where the events that happen in everyday life are generally +so uninteresting and monotonous. Events had happened within the last few +months which gave ample scope to the most inveterate and accomplished +gossip for exercising the art of conversation to the fullest extent, and +yet be most truthful; although they still had the power of embellishing +the facts according to their own lively fancy and vivid imagination. +They could talk of "The Maister" now with the utmost freedom; for he was +no longer in the neighbourhood to pry into their secrets, and read their +thoughts, and ill-wish them for talking of him and his doings. And, as a +reservoir of water that has broken through the embankment, after having +been pent up till it was full almost to overflowing, rushes with greater +force on its first outburst,--or the pent-up steam in a mighty engine +when suddenly let loose,--so did the long-restrained tongues of the +gossips of St. Just now pour out, to their hearts' content, their secret +spleen and antipathy to their dangerous and dreaded neighbour, Mr. +Freeman. There was not a house in which some scandal was not going on +continually;--and this was not confined to the women, the men being +equally intent on "giving the devil his due," as they termed it. + +Business was brisk at the "Commercial" Inn. The afternoons were +generally devoted to a gossip over a dish of tea and a drop of +"comfort," between Mrs. Brown and a few of her intimate female friends, +after which the kitchen was occupied until a late hour by the men, who +would drink a double quantity of beer if anyone could be found to amuse +them by relating some fresh tale. + +The chair in which Mr. Freeman had been accustomed to sit in the +chimney-corner, was generally left unoccupied by a seeming tacit +consent, the better to enable the speaker for the time being to +designate the person of whom he was speaking, without mentioning any +name, by simply nodding his head towards the vacant chair;--for they +were, even now, afraid that "The Maister" might be listening to them in +secret. + +Of all her female acquaintances, Mrs. Brown preferred Mrs. Trenow for a +quiet gossip, because, living very near "The Maister's" house, and +having been on intimate terms of friendship with both Alrina and Alice +Ann, she could impart as well as receive information. + +The whole neighbourhood was teeming with news. Events of the most +thrilling interest were happening every hour--and, being told and retold +from house to house, they lost nothing in their transit--when, one +afternoon, Mrs. Trenow paid her accustomed visit to her old friend Mrs. +Brown, whom she fortunately found alone, with the exception of her +husband, who was sitting in the chimney-corner, thinking of nothing, and +whistling for want of thought. + +As she entered, Mrs. Trenow closed the door after her, and looked round +the room in a mysterious manner, much to Mrs. Brown's surprise,--for +they had lately fallen into the habit of discussing their subject rather +more openly, in the conscious security of the absence of the evil-eye. + +"Arrah, then!" exclaimed Mrs. Brown, smiling; "the Franch are landed +sure nuf now, then, I s'pose. Ef so, we'll put up a red coat to John +Brown, and stick 'n out afore the door to frighten them away." + +"I don't knaw nothen' 'bout the Franch, not I," replied Mrs. Trenow, +drawing her chair as close to the landlady as she could, and bringing +her face almost close to the ear of her friend; "but he's come back, +cheeld vean!" + +"Who's come back?" asked Mrs. Brown,--in a tone, however, which seemed +to require no answer. + +"I wor setten' up brave an' late, doen a bit of menden'," continued Mrs. +Trenow,--"for, what with one body an' another comin' in chatting, I +haan't done much by day lately--when I heard footsteps outside, and a +woman's voice, complaining of a long walk, and how glad she was to get +home once more. So, after they were gone by, I opened the door an' +looked out, an' there I seed a man an' a woman. It was bright moonlight, +you knaw,--an' who shud they be, but 'The Maister' and Miss Reeney. I +cud see them so plain as I can see you now, as they went in through the +little gate. Alice Ann was sent for again to-day, an' there they are. +Where Miss Freeman es I caan't tell. They came back in a vessel, the +maid said, an' wor out a bra' while. Where they've b'en to she cudn't +tell, nor Miss Reeney neither, I b'lieve, for she wor kept fine an' +close; but I shall knaw more another time,--Alice Ann cudn't stop more +than a minute." + +"Well, I'm glad they're come back, for one thing," said Mrs. Brown--"an' +that's for the sake of Miss Reeney, poor young lady; I b'lieve she's +dragged about more than she do like." + +"Iss fie!" replied Mrs. Trenow, whispering into Mrs. Brown's ear again; +"she's grieving about that young chap, so Alice Ann do say. She wor took +away in the night, you knaw, an' never so much as wished 'n well; an' +now she don't knaw where aw es, f'rall she ha' sent two letters to un; +and she do b'lieve he's dead, for she haan't had a single line from him, +evar sence he have b'en gone. An' our 'Siah said that he wor mad after +har; an' ef he's alive he wud ha' found har somehow,--that's my b'lief." + +"Well, all I can say es," chimed in Mrs. Brown, "that I'm sorry for them +both. I took a mighty fancy to that young man. 'Tes whisht; but I caan't +think that he's dead at all. But what's become of 'Siah?" + +"Here!" exclaimed that individual, in a stentorian voice, which made the +two friends jump from their seats, as he stalked into the room. "Why, I +might ha' walked off weth your poor dear husband, Mrs. Brown, and you +wud nevar ha' know'd et; for I was standen' behind your backs a bra' bit +afore I spok', an' you nevar heard or seed me." + +"No, sure," said his mother; "we wor just then spaiken' about you and +your young master;--why, where have 'ee b'en, Siah; we thoft you wor +lost, but I'm glad you're come back, for more reasons than one. Miss +Reeney will be more contenteder now,--I s'pose he'll make et up now, +Siah. Ef they're so mazed about one t'other as you do say, why the +sooner they're married the better." + +"Married!" exclaimed Josiah; "I wish they cud be, poor souls; but where +es aw, says you?" + +"Where es aw!" asked both the women in a breath; "why, come home weth +you, I s'pose,--where else shud aw be?" + +"No fie," replied Josiah, in a more serious tone; "I wish aw wor. He +started from Ashley Hall a fortnight ago, or more, an' said he wor +comin' down here for to sarch for somebody, an' we thoft for to find om +here. Maister Morley, hes brother, es over to Leeftenant Fowler's. Mr. +Frederick not here! that's whisht, thon. What core to bâl es fe-a-ther +this week, mother?" + +"He'll be home from bâl about six o'clock to-night," replied Mrs. +Trenow. + +"I'll have a glass o' brandy toddy, ef you plaise, Mrs. Brown, an' then +go home to ax fe-a-ther's advice. He ded used to have brave thofts about +things." + +Captain Trenow was very glad to see his son returned safe and sound: +for, as he had never been a great traveller himself, he could not +understand the pleasure to be derived from locomotion and change of +scene. "I can get along brave here," he would say, "where I do knaw +everybody: but how I should get along among strangers I caan't tell. I +shud be in a whisht porr sometimes, I reckon." + +But notwithstanding his father's modest opinion of himself, Josiah held +his knowledge and shrewdness in high estimation; so he related to his +parent the whole of his adventures, from the time he left home until his +return, and then asked his advice upon the whole--not only as to his own +course, but as to the course he would advise his patron Mr. Morley to +pursue, and especially as to the search it seemed incumbent on them to +make after his young master. + +"I'll tell 'ee, boy," said Captain Trenow, after he had heard his son's +story, and had ruminated over it for some minutes,--"'tes like as this +here, you knaw--he's kidnapped, that's what he es!" + +"Hould your tongue, do," replied his son; "that's nonsense. Why, who wud +kidnap he, I shud like to knaw. What good wud that do to anybody? What +do anybody knaw about he, for to go for to kidnap 'n? No, no, ould man; +touch your pipe a bit. They'd be glad for to bring om back agen, I +reckon; for he's brave an' heavy, mon. No, he's no more kidnapped than +you are; he's fell in a shaft, more likely." + +"Like enough! like enough!" replied the father, seriously; "we must +sarch, boy,--come!" And the kind-hearted miner rose at once, and took +his hat with the intention of proceeding at once to search and drag +every open shaft in the neighbourhood. But Josiah thought they had +better see Mr. Morley first, and inform him that no tidings of his +brother could be obtained at St. Just or the neighbourhood. + +After a good supper, therefore, the two men started for +Tol-pedn-Penwith, where they arrived just as the two gentlemen were +about to retire for the night. + +Mr. Morley was much concerned when he found that his brother had not +been seen or heard of at St. Just; for he had fully made up his mind +that he would visit that place first in his search after the girl he +seemed so devotedly attached to; and would naturally endeavour to trace +the fugitives, in their journey from thence round the sea-coast, to the +solitary house in which Alrina said, in her letter, she was then +confined. + +"I am inclined to think," said he, at length, after a little +consideration, "that Captain Trenow's conjecture may be true, and that +my brother has been treacherously entrapped by some lawless band of +ruffians, for the sake of gain. I scarcely believe he is +murdered,--Cornishmen, from what I have heard of them, are not such +cold-blooded villains as that,--and I am inclined to hope and believe +that he has not fallen into a shaft; but wherever he is he must be +found." + +"With the morning's dawn," said Lieut. Fowler, "we must commence the +search all along the coast, from the Land's-End to Truro. He was last +seen at the latter place, you say?" + +"Yes," replied Mr. Morley; "we traced him there, but could gain no +further intelligence of him." + +"If Captain Trenow and Josiah can go with us," said the lieutenant, "I +think they will be of greater service than my own men; for, in the first +place, I shouldn't like to take so many of us off duty, and, in the next +place, I think these two strong miners will be able to assist us in +exploring the shafts in our way, and may tend to prevent any suspicion +being attached to our search; whereas, a party of my men searching and +exploring the coast, would attract suspicion at once, and put the whole +neighbourhood on their guard." + +Captain Trenow and Josiah readily consented to accompany the two +gentlemen; and, after a few hours' sleep, and a hearty breakfast, they +started on their expedition. + +For two whole days they searched unceasingly, exploring every shaft they +came near,--the two miners having brought ropes, by which one of them +was frequently lowered down, to search for their young friend in the +bowels of the earth. Houses were entered and searched thoroughly, and +all manner of questions asked of the inmates, very much to the +astonishment and terror of some of them, but all to no purpose. Yet on +they went, searching still, and searching everywhere. At length, towards +the end of the third day, they arrived at a solitary spot, which +attracted the attention of Mr. Morley. It was a house surrounded by high +walls on every side. + +"This," he exclaimed, "appears to answer the description given in that +letter, better than any place we have seen yet! Courage, my comrades! we +have found the spot at last." + +As they approached the outer door of the garden, they saw in a ditch by +the side of the wall, the carcase of a dead horse, on which the crows +were feeding so ravenously that they did not perceive the intruders +until they were almost close upon them, when they rose in a cloud that +almost darkened the sky, making a discordant noise, and flapping the air +with their wings, which was heard distinctly until they settled down +again in a neighbouring field to wait a favourable opportunity to return +again to the feast from which they had been so suddenly dispersed. + +Here was the spot, then, wherein, if not Frederick Morley, they felt +pretty certain his loved Alrina was confined; and it should go hard, +they said, if a clear discharge was not made of all prisoners inside, +whoever or whatever they might be. Lieut. Fowler and Mr. Morley were +armed with a brace of pistols each, while Capt. Trenow and his son had +only their stout cudgels to depend upon. + +"Never mind," said Capt. Trenow; "a stout cudgel and a strong arm ha' +beat a good many men afore now, and may again;--I arn't afeard; art +thee, 'Siah boy?" + +"No fie," said Josiah, flourishing his cudgel round his head, and +grinding his teeth with energetic determination; "I'll scat them all +abroad 'pon the planchen' ef I do come nigh them." And down came the end +of the cudgel on a log of wood near him, with such a crash, that the +crows were frightened once more, and rose like a rushing mighty wind, +and settled down again one field further off. + +Whether it was the noise of the crows, or the sound of Josiah's cudgel +on the log of wood, or a sudden impulse of female curiosity to see who +the strangers were, the door was opened from the inside just at that +moment, and a female head peeped out, and as suddenly Josiah sprang at +the door, pushing it wide open, and asked as deliberately as he could +under the circumstances, "ef the lady wanted to buy a hoss?" + +"A hoss!" said the woman, taken quite by surprise; "no,--how ded 'ee +think so?" + +"Why, the crows are getten' fat upon the hoss you lost last week, and so +I thoft you'd be wanten' another," replied Josiah, with the greatest +coolness. + +"Oh! that wasn't ours," said the woman, taken off her guard by the +coolness of Josiah,--"that belonged to a young gentleman that----" + +"Hold your jaw and bar the door, and be d----d to you!" exclaimed a man, +coming out of the house in a rage. + +"This looks suspicious and businesslike," said Lieut. Fowler, as he +rushed into the garden after Josiah, followed by their two companions. +The woman had disappeared at the first rush, but they were met midway +between the door of the house and the outer door of the garden, by a +rough, strong-built man, who seemed half sailor and half miner by his +dress. + +"What the devil do you want here?" said he, addressing Lieut. Fowler, +who was now the foremost of the party. "I'm d----d if I don't see light +through you in about two twos." And he drew a pistol from a side-pocket, +and presented it at the lieutenant's breast. + +"Two can play at that game," exclaimed Fowler, drawing a pistol from his +breast-pocket. + +"And three!" cried Mr. Morley, drawing his pistol also. + +"Now, I'll tell 'ee, soas," said Capt. Trenow, putting his cudgel very +coolly between the parties, and addressing the stranger on whom they had +intruded,--"'tes like as this here, you knaw; two to one es brave +odds,--the one might be killed--sure to be, I s'pose. Ef you've got any +more of your sort inside, comrade, bring them out and then we'll fight +fe-ar; or, ef you haan't got no backers for to fight, why lev es have a +croom o' chat. Now, I've done, soas; spaik the next who will. As for +fighten, I can stand a bra' tussle; but as for spaiken, I arn't wuth +much." + +No backers--as Capt. Trenow called them--came out; and, as the occupant +of the house sew that he was left so sadly in the minority, and felt, no +doubt, that he had been the first aggressor, by presenting his pistol at +the breast of a king's officer, as he knew Lieut. Fowler to be by his +dress, he began to make apologies as best he could, very much to the +amusement of Capt. Trenow, who really seemed to be the coolest of the +party, and, like a good and experienced general, was equal to the +occasion, and could by his coolness and shrewd common sense, persuade +where he could not command. And he very soon led the way into the house, +as if he had been the owner of it, and was followed by all the party. + +As resistance was quite out of the question, against four armed men, and +one of them a king's officer in authority, Capt. Cooper made a virtue of +necessity, and became very civil and obsequious. + +What the object of this visit was he was puzzled to imagine. If it was +in search of contraband goods he was safe; for they had all been +disposed of long ago. He was not left long in suspense, however; for Mr. +Morley was too impatient to find his brother to delay his enquiries, and +he thought the bolder he did so, the better. + +"We are in search of a gentleman," said he, "whom we have traced almost +to your door. If he is here you had better say so at once, and produce +him. If you decline, we shall proceed in our search; and if we find him, +after a denial by you, the consequences may be serious to you and your +household. If, on the other hand, you tell us honestly where he is, and +produce him, if in your power, you have nothing to fear." + +"If you will tell me the name of the gentleman," replied Cooper, +cautiously, "I will inform you if I have seen him or not. I am +accustomed to see gentlemen here on business often. But this much I will +tell you, that unfortunately at present the only inmates of my house are +myself and my wife; otherwise, perhaps you would not so easily have +entered." + +"The name of the gentleman we are in search of is Mr. Frederick Morley," +said the interrogator. "Have you seen him?" + +The mention of that name seemed to cause the smuggler to start +involuntarily; but he soon recovered his former coolness and said, "I +have no such person here; but, to satisfy yourselves, you are at full +liberty to search my house; I will get the keys." And he left the room +in search of his wife, who was not far off; and as he left the room, +Josiah slid out after him unperceived, and saw him give a key to his +wife, instead of taking any from her, and whisper something in her ear: +so he determined to watch below while the others went upstairs. He had +hid himself behind a door in a dark passage, from whence he watched the +momentary interview between Captain Cooper and his wife, unperceived by +them; and when Cooper returned to the party in the front room Josiah +took off his shoes and followed Mrs. Cooper stealthily down some dark +stone steps. It was so dark that even she was obliged to grope her way +down. Once or twice she stopped and turned round and listened as if she +fancied she heard someone following her; but Josiah was accustomed to +grope his way in the dark underground, and could, therefore, perhaps, +see better than she could under present circumstances; so he continued +to dodge her footsteps, until she arrived at a small secret door in the +wall on the right hand, which was so artfully concealed that a stranger, +even with a lamp in his hand, would most likely pass it, believing it a +part of the wall itself. Mrs. Cooper had evidently found the door by +counting the steps as she descended, and she now groped about with her +hand to find the keyhole, which she was not long in doing, for she had +evidently performed the feat many times before. When she had opened the +door Josiah heard her go down some more steps, into what he thought a +dungeon or vault; and he listened at the door, which she had left ajar. +When she was at the bottom of the steps, he heard her call to someone in +a low whisper, saying, "Sir! sir! where are you? follow me and I'll save +you. Come quickly!" + +Josiah now determined at all risks to follow the woman, and see the end +of it and rescue the prisoner if possible; for he now firmly believed +that his young master was incarcerated here, and that it was to him the +woman was calling, perhaps with the intention of murdering him, or +getting rid of him in some way; so he put on his shoes again and +approached the spot from whence the woman's voice proceeded. She +evidently took him for some other person, and, seizing him by the hand, +she dragged him along after her through the darkness, until they heard +the sea dashing against the rocks, when she said in a hurried and +agitated manner,-- + +"The smugglers are seeking your life;--fly if you would be saved. At the +end of this passage you will find an outlet. Run for your life! the +smugglers are after you! Fly! fly!" + +The truth now flashed on the mind of Josiah, and he saw exactly how +matters stood. It was evident that someone, most probably his young +master, was confined in that dungeon, and, fearing detection, she had +been sent to convey the prisoner away, and, by frightening him, and +pointing out a way of escape, induce him to run into the sea over the +rocks, at the entrance to the cavern, which perhaps communicated with +this dungeon, or, it might be, to jump over a precipice. + +She had evidently mistaken Josiah, in the dark, for the prisoner, and he +was determined to turn the tables on her; so, seizing her by the wrist +in his powerful grasp, he exclaimed, in a stentorian voice which struck +terror into the affrighted woman, and made her sink on the ground as if +she had been struck by a thunderbolt,-- + +"You cold-blooded old hag! tell me who you ha' got here locked up in +this gashly old place, or else I'll carr' you where you wanted me to +run, an' throw 'ee into the sea, and hold your head under water till +you're so dead as a herren'." + +"Oh! sir," said she, gasping and writhing with the pain that Josiah's +strong hand was inflicting; "it wasn't my doing,--'twas that boy; he put +the gentleman here." + +"Come, come," said Josiah; "no nonsense! Was it Mr. Frederick Morley or +who was it?" + +"Oh! sir," screamed the woman, "I b'lieve that was his name." + +"Then where es he gone to?" said Josiah. + +"Oh! sir," cried the woman; "I'm afraid he must be dead." + +"Dead!" exclaimed Josiah; "ef so, I'll break every bone in your body, +and your husband's too, and burn the house over your heads. We must have +a light and sarch." So saying, he dragged the woman back towards the +steps which led up to the dark passage, while she continued to scream +from the pain she was suffering; for he did not relax his grasp in the +least. + +When they had emerged on the main stairs again, Josiah flung the door +wide open that there might be no difficulty in finding it again, and +called out lustily for a light. + +The woman's screams and Josiah's vociferous calls for a light, reached +the ears of the searchers upstairs, and they all ran down in great alarm +to enquire what had caused such a terrible commotion. + +"He is here!" exclaimed Josiah, when his friends appeared;--"bring a +light quickly." + +Captain Trenow had seen a lantern in the kitchen as they passed, and, +being accustomed to emergencies in his daily occupation as a miner, he +went back, and, lighting the candle, appeared again with the lantern in +his hand, before the others had recovered from their surprise. + +Captain Cooper at first put a bold front on it, and denied all knowledge +of the young gentleman, until he saw the cellar door wide open and knew +there was now no escape. He then maintained a sullen silence, and +preceded the party down the narrow steps into the cellar. It was deemed +advisable to send him in first, coupled with Captain Trenow, fearing +treachery. Josiah still kept his hold on the woman. + +On they went in double file, slowly and cautiously, searching every nook +and corner, looking behind old casks, and turning up old canvass bags +that lay about in corners; but no trace of their missing friend could be +found. + +Capt. Cooper now began to hold up his head again. It had evidently +turned out better than he expected, and he called his wife a doating old +fool, to tell such lies and deceive the gentlemen in that way. They had +searched the whole of his house and premises,--and what more would they +have? He might complain, but he wouldn't, he said. They naturally felt +alarmed about the young gentleman,--who would not? He had no hesitation +in telling them that Mr. Freeman and his daughter Alrina had lodged at +his house for a few weeks, for change of air for the young lady, who was +delicate; but they had left, and, he believed, had gone back to St. +Just. + +What could they do, therefore, under the circumstances, but thank Capt. +Cooper for allowing them to search for their friend, and to bid him +adieu? Josiah, however, still held his opinion that his young master had +been confined in this dungeon, and had been got rid of somehow. He was +not at all satisfied. He must have been starved to death there, he said, +and the rats might have eaten him, and he believed they had. This idea, +however, was not entertained by the others of the party, although they +knew not what else to think. + + + + +CHAPTER XXX. + +THE TWO SISTERS PIERCED THROUGH THE HEART. + + +Our story now takes us back to Pendrea-house, where we left several of +its inmates ill at ease both in body and mind. For, as some mighty +warrior, who has borne the burden and heat of the day on the +battle-field, and received bravely many a thrust from the point of a +lance without flinching, when he retires to his couch after his +fatigues, is worried and tormented almost beyond endurance by the bite +of a small mosquito,--so were the inmates of Pendrea-house--one and +all--disturbed and thrown out of their natural course, by the +sharp-pointed arrows of a certain little mischievous creature, who is +generally represented as a little innocent-looking, chubby-faced boy, +with tiny wings and a laughing eye. He had shot many an arrow at Miss +Pendray before, which merely grazed the surface of her smooth delicate +skin, and the wounds disappeared almost as quickly as they had been +inflicted, leaving scarcely a trace behind. But now his arrow had +pierced deeper, and caused a wound which disturbed the peace of mind of +this haughty beauty. Mr. Morley had paid her great attention during the +short time he had been in the neighbourhood, and had given unmistakeable +proofs of his admiration of her, and she had been fascinated by his +handsome person and agreeable manners and conversation, and had met him +more than halfway, and displayed without disguise the interest she took +in him and the pleasure she felt in his society. Yet he never once spoke +to her on the subject nearest her heart, and had left the neighbourhood +abruptly, without seeing her or bidding her farewell; and now he had +returned with Lieut. Fowler, and left again without seeking an interview +with her, or even calling at Pendrea-house. She felt that she had been +deceived by his attentions, and that he was perhaps after all only +trifling with her. This her proud haughty spirit would not brook, and +she tried to drive his image from her thoughts, but she could not +succeed; for the more she tried to pluck out the little barbed arrow +that had already pierced her heart so surely and sharply, the deeper did +it penetrate, and the wound was now becoming almost unbearable. + +She tried to soothe her troubled mind, by taking her accustomed walks +along the cliffs, and sitting in solitary meditation on the bold +headlands, and watching the waves as they came surging and dashing +against the rocks beneath her feet. His image haunted her still, and +made her very miserable. She might now have sympathized with her poor +suffering sister; for she well knew the cause of her illness, although +her mother and her attendants attributed it to a different cause; but +her proud haughty spirit would not stoop to condole or sympathize with +one who had so boldly accused her of unseemly behaviour--even although +that one was her only, and till now her darling, sister. So the poor +little innocent Blanche continued to suffer in secret, having no one to +whom she could confide her sad tale. There was one consolation, however, +which she possessed unknown to anyone in her father's house except her +favourite maid, who was, as she termed it, "keeping company" with one of +Lieut. Fowler's men;--this was a letter which Lieut. Fowler had +contrived to send her through this medium; wherein he explained to her +the circumstances of his dismissal from the house, and the +cause,--reiterating his protestations of unalterable attachment, and his +determination to possess the object of his fond affection at all risks +and against all opposition, if Blanche was as true and devoted to him as +he believed her to be. + +This letter distressed while it consoled her; for she now felt in its +fullest force that it was owing to her own weakness and persuasion, +that Lieut. Fowler had incurred her father's displeasure, and she felt +also that she ought to sacrifice everything to exonerate her generous +and fondly devoted lover from the disgraceful suspicion attached by her +father to his conduct. She believed that her sister, who inherited all +her father's pride and aristocratic notions, had set him against Lieut. +Fowler, by relating with considerable exaggeration their apparently +clandestine meetings, which seemed no doubt, as she had represented +them, very reprehensible, and sufficiently culpable to justify her +father in acting as he had done. + +Blanche, therefore, thought that, if she could find an opportunity of +speaking to him alone, and explaining the nature of their meetings, +which were not clandestine, as her sister very well knew,--for she +generally knew when and where they met, and was frequently asked to join +them,--and if she could at the same time explain to her father that it +was by her own persuasion, and at her earnest request, that Lieut. +Fowler had refrained from naming his intentions to him earlier, he might +at least be induced to alter the harsh opinion he had formed of his +former friend. This she determined she would do;--she would take all the +blame on herself, to exonerate him who was all in all to her, and who +would, but for her, have boldly and honourably asked her father's +consent to their happiness long ago. + +Squire Pendray was very fond of his children, especially of his little +pet, the gentle Blanche,--indeed, no one could help liking her. She +possessed the good-natured simplicity and kindness of her mother, and +was beloved by the poor as well as the rich; and many a little act of +charity did this gentle, loving, girl do for the poor and needy, whose +cottages she often visited in the course of her rambles. + +Maud was kind and charitable to the poor also, and distributed her +bounties as freely and largely as her sister, and perhaps more so; but +her gifts were given with haughty pride, and the recipients were made to +feel their dependent inferiority, by the manner in which they were +bestowed. It was not so with Blanche;--she gave as if she were receiving +a favour instead of bestowing one. She conversed with the poor +recipients of her bounty, and freely entered into all their little +troubles, and sympathized with them as if she were one of themselves; +and yet they never presumed on her condescension, but looked upon her +almost as a being from another world, come down to minister to their +wants; and so her gifts were doubly valuable, and she was almost +worshipped in the parish. + +The squire was a shrewd man of the world, and was proud in the enjoyment +of his wealth and position, and happy in the possession of two such +lovely daughters; and it was with feelings of the deepest regret, that +he saw them both pining away under the influence of some secret malady +of which he knew not the cause. The best medical advice that could be +procured was called in, but to no purpose,--the doctors could do them no +good whatever. At last, when all their efforts had failed, Mrs. Pendray +said to her husband one night, when they were sitting alone in the +dining-room, taking their solitary supper,-- + +"I tell you what it is, squire,--those two girls are ill-wished, as sure +as you are sitting in that chair." + +"Ill-wished! nonsense!" replied the squire; "who can have ill-wished +them, I should like to know? What harm have those two innocent girls +done to anyone, to cause them to be ill-wished. No, no, I can't believe +it." + +"Well, whether you believe it or not," returned his wife, "I do,--in +fact I'm sure of it. What has happened to one may happen to another, any +time. There was Farmer Pollard's daughter, two years ago,--she pined +away, just as Blanche is doing now, and nothing seemed to do her good +until her father applied to the conjuror." + +"Yes, I remember that case," said the squire; "and the conjuror +discovered that she was ill-wished by another young woman, through +jealousy. But that can't be the case with either of our daughters." + +"There are many ways of ill-wishing, and many causes and reasons for +doing so," replied Mrs. Pendray. "I was talking with Mrs. Pollard about +it only yesterday, and she says that it may be that someone has a grudge +against you; and so they may have ill-wished our dear children out of +revenge, knowing how dear they are to us." + +"If I thought that," said the squire, rising passionately, and pacing +the room, "I would horsewhip the fellow within an inch of his life, +whoever he is;--he should have some cause for his ill-will, at any +rate." + +"You forget, my dear," replied his wife, "that you do not know who the +party is; and I only know of one way by which you can find out your +enemy." + +"And that is by going to the conjuror, I suppose," said the squire, in a +sarcastic tone. "I don't dispute his skill, for I have seen proofs of it +among our neighbours; but I don't like the fellow,--and I believe there +are many of the same opinion as myself respecting him, but they are +afraid of him, and dare not speak their minds; for he has great power, +and manages to know what is going on around him, and even what is said +about him, in a most unaccountable manner; but I tell you I don't like +the fellow, and I wouldn't go near him if all my family were dying." + +"Oh! don't say that," said Mrs. Pendray, putting her handkerchief to her +eyes to wipe away the tears which were trickling fast down her cheeks; +"you would not see our poor children pine away, and do nothing to avert +the calamity,--I'm sure you would not. Nothing seems to relieve +them;--the doctors have given them up; and now, alas! we have but one +sad prospect before us. After all the love and care we have bestowed +upon them from their infancy, and the many happy years we have devoted +to our darling children, and the pleasant future we looked forward to, +it is very hard thus to be deprived of them, and to see their strength +failing them, and the hand of death stealing over them in their prime, +when one word from their father would restore them,--yes, one sentence +spoken by their father, would restore them to their former health, and +relieve their parents from present grief, and a future of unmingled +misery and woe." And--overcome by her feelings, and the sad thoughts +that arose in her mind at the melancholy picture she had drawn--the poor +old lady gave way to a burst of grief, which touched the sterner heart +of her proud husband, who averted his head and brushed away a tear with +his hand, as he continued to pace the room in great agitation. + +It may seem strange in these enlightened days, that persons in the +position of Mr. and Mrs. Pendray should believe for one moment, that one +person had the power to ill-wish another, or that it was in the power of +any man, however skilful in the occult sciences, to counteract their +evil imprecations. Yet such was the case. Superstition was rife in those +days, as we have said before, even among the best educated; and many a +poor old woman had suffered seriously, for exercising the power of +witchcraft which she supposed she possessed. + +The district of the Land's-End was rather too remote for this crime to +be visited with severity by the authorities, and so the Land's-End +conjuror was left undisturbed,--indeed, he was too cautious, generally, +in his dealings with those who sought his aid, to give his enemies any +handle that they could take hold of against him. Like the master of a +puppet-show, he knew the mechanism of his figures, and knew what strings +to pull to make them work according to his will;--the only difference +was, that he exercised his skill on the minds of his figures instead of +their limbs. + +Squire Pendray was a man of good common sense, and a magistrate, and yet +he had not escaped the common feeling of superstition which prevailed at +that time--not only in Cornwall, but in every other part of the kingdom. +It was not, therefore, from any want of confidence in the skill of the +conjuror, that he declined asking him to exercise it, but simply +because, as he said, "he didn't like the fellow." Probably he would have +been puzzled to have given a reason for this strong dislike to a man he +scarcely knew; for Mr. Freeman avoided coming in contact with the +squire, as much as he possibly could, and they had scarcely ever met. No +doubt the conjuror had his reasons for this. It would not have been +convenient for him at all times to have had the squire prying into his +little secret doings. + +Mrs. Pendray had appealed to her husband's feelings, and revived in his +breast those chords of tender affection which she so well knew he +possessed, but which had, in a measure, lain dormant since his children +had grown into womanhood, and were able to take care of themselves. It +seemed now, however, as if his daughters had returned to their childhood +again, and required the tender care of their mother as much as ever they +did. + +"It is very hard," said Mrs. Pendray, still sobbing, and speaking more +to herself than to her husband, "that, after all our care of the dear +girls for so many years, they should be allowed to die now, because +their father has some foolish scruples about asking the assistance of +the only man that can relieve them from the spell that has been cast +around them." And the poor old lady's grief burst forth afresh, while +the squire continued to pace the room more slowly and thoughtfully; for +conflicting passions agitated his mind, and he was debating within +himself between his hatred of the man of science and his love for his +children. At length parental affection prevailed, and he determined to +lay aside the hatred which he somehow entertained towards the conjuror, +and be a supplicant at his door the next morning, for his aid in +relieving his daughters from the spell by which he now felt convinced +they were bound. It was a severe struggle; but he had made up his mind +to go through with it, and no obstacle would now prevent him from +carrying it out. + + + + +CHAPTER XXXI. + +OUT OF SCYLLA AND INTO CHARYBDIS. + + +We left our hero, Frederick Morley, fast asleep in the inner cellar at +Capt. Cooper's house. He slept soundly--for he was quite exhausted--and +dreamed of Alrina, whom he fancied he saw bending over him, and watching +him as he slept; but it seemed as if he had lost all power over +himself,--he could not speak to her. At last she glided gently away, and +beckoned him to follow her, but he could not move. He seemed spellbound; +and she faded away in the darkness, leaving him to lament his fate on +his cold, damp couch. He continued to sleep on for some time, until he +was roused by a voice which seemed to come from the innermost recess of +the dungeon. He started up--for he thought his hour was come--and +prepared himself to yield to the cold-blooded assassination which he +believed was now to put an end to his earthly career. He could not +defend himself, for he could not see from what point the blow would +come. It was, however, a gentle voice that called him,--a woman's voice, +he thought; he could not hear it distinctly, but still it called to him +in the distance. Could it be Alrina? Had she, whom he had followed so +long, hoping to be her deliverer, come to rescue him? But how could she +have discovered him, and how did she get there? He knew not what to +think. He answered in the same low tone, and approached the spot from +whence the sound appeared to come, and was taken by the hand by +someone--not by Alrina, however, but by his little attendant, Bill! + +"Hush!" said the boy; "follow me, and you will be saved,--quick! before +we are discovered." + +The boy still held him by the hand, and drew him on; for the place was +still very dark. They entered a narrow passage, and the boy dragged him +on and on through the darkness. At last he heard the sea, and saw a +glimmer of light in the distance; and presently a gentle breeze, which +was wafted towards him, convinced him that they were approaching the +outer world once more. They were now in a large cavern, into which the +sea flowed, and he saw a small boat moored to a rock within the cavern. + +The boy told him to jump into the boat; and in a moment, the mooring was +loosened, and the boy was by his side in the boat, which he skilfully +pushed out with one of the oars, and they very soon rode on the open +sea. The boy then gave Morley the other oar, and they pulled out with +all their might; for Morley felt that he was being rescued from the jaws +of death. + +When they were fairly out on the broad ocean, the boy said, "Now, sir, +you take both the oars--you are stronger than I am--and I'll steer." So +they glided swiftly over the still blue water;--for Morley had practised +the use of the oar, both at home and abroad; and the feeling that every +stroke of his oar placed a greater distance between him and the vile +wretches who had evidently sought his life, gave additional strength to +his arm, and he struggled against nature, and for a time forgot the +weakness and exhaustion which had overcome him in the cellar and caused +him to fall asleep in the midst of the danger that surrounded him. + +The subterranean passage through which they had passed, had been +excavated many years before. There was a large natural cavern running in +for some distance under the cliffs from the sea, in the entrance to +which there was water enough to float a boat at high-tide; and beyond +the flow of the tide were large rocks, which prevented the water, except +at very high tide, from encroaching on the interior of the cavern. In +this cavern the smugglers formerly secreted their contraband goods: and +many of them, being miners as well as smugglers, and being in the +employ of a former owner of the house long before Cooper occupied it, +they, at his suggestion and by his order--he being a great smuggler +himself, and having made a large fortune by the trade--excavated a +communication between that cavern and the cellar underneath his house, +by which means smuggled goods could be secreted easily and safely. Very +few people knew of this passage except the parties immediately +concerned. The boy, however, had been found useful on many occasions, in +watching the revenue officers, and putting them on a wrong tack, and, +thus knowing the secret passage, formed this plan for rescuing Morley +from almost certain death. + +The night was calm and serene, and everything around them was still. +Several small vessels were lying in the little cove--some ready to go to +sea again with the next tide, having discharged their cargoes,--and +others just come in, waiting for the dawn of day to begin their work of +discharging their cargoes of coal and timber into the merchants' yards; +and as the little boat glided by, the watch on deck would sing out, +"Boat ahoy! what ship?" or, "Good night, shipmates;" and then all was +still again; for the appearance of a small fisherman's boat going out at +that hour of night did not arouse the least suspicion, and on they went +swiftly and steadily. + +The moon was shedding her soft pale light all around; and the oars, as +they were "feathered" by the skilful rower, cast showers of silvery +spray back into the water again at every stroke. Some of the white +granite cliffs shone brightly in the moonlight, as its rays fell full +upon them; while others, hid in shadows, seemed like some huge monsters, +indistinct and terrible, towering above their lighter companions until +they appeared almost lost in darkness, and imagination pictured them +higher by many degrees than they really were. + +On, on they went, bravely and swiftly; for the fear of pursuit impelled +the rower to exert his strength to the utmost. But the strength of man +will not always obey his will, and ere long he fell back in the boat +exhausted and faint. He had but very recently, it will be remembered, +risen from a bed of sickness, and the exertion and anxiety had been too +much for him. His pluck had not deserted him, but he had exerted his +strength beyond its power. Nature at last gave way, and he fell back +insensible. His fall was sudden, and he dropped both the oars into the +water. The boy was too much frightened to think of anything but his +companion at the moment; so the oars drifted away, and the boat was left +to the mercy of the waves, while the boy did all he could to revive the +prostrate man. + +He had brought no provisions with him--not even a can of water; for he +thought that a few hours' rowing would bring them to the next cove, +where they would land without suspicion, and procure anything and +everything they wanted. Poor boy! he could do nothing but watch the +invalid, and support his head on one of the thwarts of the boat, and +this he did for a considerable time,--it seemed to him an age. At last +kind nature came to his rescue, and the invalid opened his eyes to the +boy's infinite relief, and in a short time he had so far recovered as to +be able to comprehend their perilous situation. Fortunately it was a +calm night, but there they were helpless and exhausted, and drifting out +to sea with no provision on board. Morley gradually regained his former +vigour of mind, if not of body, but it was only to bewail their sad +fate. + +Out, out they went to sea, drifting further and further from the land, +with no power to control the course of their frail bark. At length, as +morning dawned, the current changed, and they were drifted back again; +and here they exchanged the calm tranquillity of their former position +for the rough encounter between the two channels--always turbulent and +often dangerous, but in a little boat without oars to guide her course +doubly so. The rudder was of very little use in that turbulent sea. They +saw the rocks with which that part of the coast abounds, and dreaded +lest an unfortunate roll of the boat or an angry wave should drive it +headlong upon one of those rocks and dash her in pieces. Hour after hour +passed away in dreadful uncertainty. The turn of the tide again drifted +them out to sea in another direction. They heard the roar of the Wolf +Rock, and knew from that circumstance that they were drifting towards +the Scilly Islands. They now gave themselves up to despair; for it +seemed almost next to impossible that they could pass this Wolf Rock +safely without oars or any means of keeping the boat under control. + +Want of food for so many hours in his already weak and exhausted state, +rendered Morley entirely helpless, and listless to all that might happen +to them. He lay down in the bottom of the boat without the power to move +or speak. The boy bore up as bravely as he could, and tried to support +his companion; but he too gave way after a time, and then they lay side +by side in the bottom of the boat, expecting every minute to feel a +crash against the rock, and then all would be over. + +At last it came--a bump! a crash! The water seemed filling their mouths +and ears. They revived for a moment, and were fully alive to their awful +position. All the actions of their past lives rushed into their minds, +and they seemed to live their lives over again, in that short moment of +time. + +Alrina's form was vividly present to Morley's mind for an instant, and +then all was blank! + + + + +CHAPTER XXXII. + +ALRINA'S TROUBLES ARE INCREASED BY AN UNEXPECTED DISCOVERY. + + +Mr. Freeman had returned to St. Just with his daughter, but neither of +them had appeared much in public since. The servant, Alice Ann, said +that her young mistress was looking very whisht and palched, and "The +Maister" worn't like hisself at all. He was continually locked in his +private room, and she had seen him through the keyhole more than once, +upon his knees before a great chest, taking things out and putting +things in. + +"What sort of things be they, then?" Mrs. Trenow would ask; for to her, +as her nearest neighbour and the mother of her sweetheart, Alice Ann was +most communicative. + +"Why, powers of things," would be the reply; "silks and satins, all +foreign like, and gold and silver I b'lieve--a purty passle." + +Miss Freeman had not returned, so that there was no one to watch +Alrina's movements, and she might have gone out and stayed out all day +if she liked, but she did not care to move. She would sit in her room +all day long, and scarcely touch the little dainties with which Alice +Ann tried to tempt her; nor did she care to speak, unless her faithful +attendant broached the subject of all others which she well knew +occupied her young mistress's every thought. Days and weeks and months +had passed away, and yet she had heard nothing of Frederick. She had +written him, but he had not replied to her letters. Alice Ann tried to +console her; but what could she, a poor ignorant country-girl, say by +way of consolation to one possessing the refined and sensitive feelings +of Alrina. + +It was hard to believe; and yet, what could she think? He had deserted +her! Perhaps he had met with another more to his taste, and more suited +to him in position and fortune--one whose family history could be +clearly set forth, and over whose heads no dark mystery hung. It was +natural, she thought, that on reflection he should shrink from uniting +himself with one whose family were so obscure and in many respects +objectionable. + +Many days did this poor girl sit brooding over her sad fate. She would +release him from his engagement with her; it was right, she thought, +considering all things, that she should do so, and she determined in her +mind she would do so. She would like to see him once more, however, just +to tell him this. When she had made up her mind to this step, she felt +more tranquil and resigned to her fate, and she now began to walk out as +usual, and wander over the rocks--perhaps with the dim hope that she +might one day fall in with Frederick in the course of her rambles, as +she had done before, when she could tell him her determination. Poor +girl! she knew not her own weakness; for had he, whose image she had so +fondly cherished from her childhood, appeared before her at that time, +her fancied courage would have forsaken her, and she would have taken +him back to her heart and forgiven him, even did she know beyond a doubt +that he had deserted her for another. + +Alas! she little knew how impossible it was for him to appear before her +then, as she secretly hoped and wished he would; nor did she know, poor +girl, how near he had been to her when she was under Cooper's roof. +Conflicting thoughts occupied her mind for several days. It was a hard +struggle; but she conquered her feelings, and the trial did not appear +to her so painful, now that she had fully made up her mind that it was +her duty to put an end to the engagement on account of this dark mystery +which hung over her family history. She felt that in doing this she was +acting honourably towards him whom she could not help loving still with +all the ardour of a first love. This she thought she could bear better +than the belief that he had deserted her;--she could not bear that, nor +would she think so again. She felt that it was her own act now, as she +had made up her mind that it should be so--not out of any angry feeling +which she bore towards Frederick, but out of pure love for him, and a +reluctance to place him in a position which might hereafter cause him +pain, and, when the first ardour of love was over, make him ashamed of +his wife's relatives. + +When she had fully made up her mind to this, she felt more at ease, and +would sit for hours on the rocks, in calm reflection on the past, and +hopeful meditation on the future. And thus she would pass whole days +without moving from the spot, watching the broad clear sea, and the +vessels passing and repassing, and the graceful gambols of the +sea-birds, as they flew from rock to rock, or took their flight far out +to sea--never heeding the meal-time hour, nor seeming to want food or +sustenance until her return, when her faithful attendant would upbraid +her for staying so long without food, and force her to eat some little +nice thing she had prepared during her young mistress's absence, with +which to tempt her appetite. + +In the meantime, her father continued to be occupied in his private room +all day long, looking over papers, and examining the contents of that +large chest. + +One morning, while he was so engaged, there came two tall men to the +outer gate of the little garden, who seemed impatient to enter; but not +knowing the secret spring by which the gate was opened, they shook the +gate in their impatience, and called loudly to the inmates (if there +were any) to open and let them in. + +Mr. Freeman's private room overlooked the little garden; and on going to +the window to ascertain the cause of all this noise, he started back +like a man shot, and trembled all over like an aspen leaf. Alice Ann +was surprised too when she recognized one of the visitors, but hers was +evidently a feeling of pleasure; for there stood her old lover Josiah, +accompanied by a tall handsome gentleman, with remarkably white hair for +a man of his age, as he did not look above forty. + +"Dash the old gate," said Josiah, shaking it to and fro; "you're buried +up brave, I think." + +"Iss fie," replied Alice Ann, opening the gate; "we do knaw who to keep +out and who to lev in." + +"Where's 'The Maister'?" asked Josiah, as they entered the little +garden. + +"How shud I knaw?" returned the girl; "in his skin, I s'pose." + +"Is Mr. Freeman at home, my good girl?" said Mr. Morley; "for I am very +anxious to see him." + +"He wor up in his room a bit a while ago, sar," replied Alice Ann, +dropping a curtsey to the gentleman, "for I heard a purty caparouse up +there." + +"Tell'n that there's a gentleman do want to see un 'pon partic'lar +business," said Josiah, "an' be quick about et." + +"Not sure nuff I shaan't," replied the girl. "He said he mustn't be +disturbed for nobody. Ef you'll stop till Miss Reeney do come in, she'll +go up, maybe,--_I_ shaan't, there na." + +The girl was not to be persuaded; so Mr. Morley walked into the common +sitting-room, as he saw the door open, while Josiah followed Alice Ann +into the kitchen, to persuade her, perhaps, to go up to her master; or, +probably as they hadn't met for some time, they had little secrets to +communicate, into which we will not be so rude as to pry,--indeed, these +little secret meetings between lovers are seldom interesting to +lookers-on. + +Josiah and Alice Ann would not have finished their _tête-à-tête_ for +some time longer, had not a thundering rap at the front door with a +large stick, roused them from their pleasant conversation. + +"Dear lor'! how my cap es foused, soas," said Alice Ann, as she jumped +from her seat, and surveyed herself in a small looking-glass which hung +in the kitchen; "whoever can be come now, I shud like to knaw. Drat +thom!" And away she went to answer the knock. + +"I want to see the conjuror," said Squire Pendray, in his pompous +manner; for he it was who had disturbed the two lovers so cruelly. + +"The what, sar?" exclaimed Alice Ann, opening her eyes to their fullest +extent; for to call her master "the conjuror" was an offence for which +she was sure the enquirer would suffer if her master heard it,--and what +couldn't he hear? + +The squire now became aware of his error; for he asked in his blandest +tones if Mr. Freeman was at home. + +"He wor home a bit o' while ago, sar," answered Alice Ann, curtseying +very low; for she knew the squire was a very great man, and a +magistrate. + +"Tell him I wish to speak to him in a case of life and death," said the +squire. + +"Iss sar," said the girl, curtseying again, lower than before, and +leading the way into the usual waiting-room, into which persons on +urgent business of this kind were generally shewn. + +Mr. Morley had walked into the common sitting-room, almost without being +bidden; for, although the little waiting-maid had seemed so cool in the +reception of her lover, she thought too much of him at the time to pay +much attention to the gentleman he brought with him. She now went up and +knocked at "The Maister's" door; and receiving no answer she peeped in +at the keyhole. There was the great chest still open on the floor, but +she could see nothing of her master, nor hear him. She knocked again a +little louder,--still no answer. She then called to him; but no notice +was taken of it, and she became alarmed. She tried the door,--it was +locked. She then went down to consult with Josiah, who thought they had +better tell the two gentlemen; so Alice Ann went into one room, and +Josiah into the other, to inform the respective occupants how matters +stood,--and then there was a general consultation as to what steps +should be taken. Each gentleman was surprised to see the other there; +but their thoughts were too much occupied in deliberating what was to be +done, to ask any questions. + +It was the general opinion that Mr. Freeman had either died suddenly +from natural causes, or that he had committed suicide. Mr. Morley +thought they ought to break open the door; but this Alice Ann would not +consent to at all. She knew her master's power, and remembered the +dreadful noises she had heard in that room, and the scenes which she +believed had been enacted there, from the appearance of the poor victims +when they came out. The squire also had some kind of superstitious dread +of interfering with the man of science, who was so much feared in the +neighbourhood; and Josiah, although so powerful in bodily strength, had +a touch of this same superstition too. At last it was determined to send +someone in search of Alrina, and to wait her return. + +After some considerable time, which appeared longer than it really was +to those who were waiting, Alrina returned, and was greatly surprised to +find the house occupied by two strangers;--Josiah she had known long +before. They were both much struck with her beauty and quiet ladylike +manner, and explained to her their position. They had come to see Mr. +Freeman on business, and it appeared he had locked himself in his room, +and could not be heard inside, nor would he answer to the calls of the +servant. Alrina was very much alarmed; but she said her father was very +peculiar, and would often refuse to answer when he did not wish to be +disturbed. She went up to the door herself, with the same result; and, +after hesitating for some time, she at length consented that the door +should be forced. This was easily accomplished by Josiah with the aid of +the kitchen poker; and the whole party entered the sacred room, +expecting to see some dreadful sight,--what, they could not imagine. + +There stood the chest wide open, as the girl had seen it through the +keyhole; but no one thought of looking into this,--their whole thoughts +were centred in the fate of the owner himself. They searched everywhere, +but no trace of him could be found. Alice Ann suggested that he had +probably gone up the chimney in a flash of fire, and that he might be on +the housetop at that very moment, looking in upon them, or riding +through the air on a broomstick. "We've heard of such things, you knaw," +said she. + +They were roused from their speculations on the mysterious disappearance +of "The Maister" by an exclamation from Mr. Morley, who had been +narrowly examining the room, and was now standing transfixed before the +large chest, which was open, and from which some things had been taken +out on the floor. + +"As I live," he exclaimed, "this is my chest! How could this have got +here?" + +"That's the chest," replied Josiah, "that 'The Maister' found after the +wreck, and told us to bring up here,--for what, we cudn't tell." + +"That chest contained money and papers of great value," said Mr. Morley; +"it has been overhauled evidently to some purpose, and no doubt +everything valuable is gone." + +"Oh! no, sir!" cried Alrina, in a pitiable tone; "don't accuse my father +of robbery,--he would never do that, I am quite sure." + +"My dear young lady," said the squire; "your father shall not be accused +of anything that cannot be fully proved; but I am bound to say it, +however painful it may be to you, that I have had my suspicions for some +time, and so have my brother magistrates. He could not have lived +without money, and the mystery is where he got it from. Now, pray be +calm, while Mr. Morley examines his chest." + +"'Morley!'" cried Alrina; "did I hear you rightly, sir? did you call +that gentleman 'Morley?'" + +"My name is Morley," said that gentleman, taking her hand; "I am the +brother of one whom I know you have been led to believe will take you +out of your present position, and raise you to his station in life." + +"No, sir," replied Alrina, indignantly,--"my family shall never be a +disgrace to anyone; and, let me tell you, sir, that neither you nor your +brother shall ever be disgraced by me! I will never be the wife of a man +who might afterwards despise me." + +"That was nobly spoken," said the squire; "you're an honour to your +sex. Gad! I wish my daughters could speak like that, and send the +jackanapes about their business that come swarming about my house." + +"Dear lor'! what a handsome coat," exclaimed Alice Ann, as she saw Mr. +Morley take a richly embroidered coat from the chest. + +"Yes," said he, holding up the coat and admiring it; "that coat cost me +a great deal of money. I had it made to wear at a grand fancy-dress ball +in Calcutta; and there are other parts of the dress to match, somewhere. +Oh! here they are; you have never seen anything like that in England, +squire, have you?" + +"Gad! but I have, though," exclaimed the squire; "if not that same +dress, there was one very like it worn by a stranger at our last ball at +Penzance. And now I begin to think,--why, it must have been Freeman +himself disguised. I never saw him very near that I remember, for he +always avoided me: but it struck me at the time that I had certainly +seen that face somewhere before, but he looked much younger than he can +possibly be." + +"Aw! 'The Maister' esn't so old nor yet so ugly as he do make out to +be," said Josiah. + +After searching still further, Mr. Morley found the bag in which his +money had been placed, but the money was all gone and the papers also. + +"Now!" exclaimed he, jumping up from the kneeling posture in which he +had been for the purpose of examining the contents of the chest; "here's +proof enough. Now let us use all our exertions to secure the man." And, +leaving Alrina and Alice Ann to take care of themselves, the two +gentlemen left the house more quickly than they had entered it, followed +by Josiah. But the object of their search had got the start of them by +several hours; for his fear so overcame him at the sight of Mr. Morley +entering his house--(why, was best known to himself)--that he opened the +room door at once, and locked it behind him, putting the key into his +pocket, and escaped through the back door, and over the back garden +wall, while Alice Ann was opening the front garden gate to let Mr. +Morley and Josiah in. And, making his way as fast as he could to the +cove, he there got a boat which took him out to Cooper's little cutter, +which was anchored a short distance out waiting for orders. It was his +intention to leave the country in this cutter, as soon as he had +arranged his affairs; for he found things were going against him, and +that his power was failing fast; but he did not intend to have gone +quite so soon. He had secreted a considerable sum in gold and jewels +round his person, inside his clothes, several days before,--so that, in +this respect, he was quite prepared for whatever might happen at any +time. + +The three pursuers traced him to the seaside, and were just in time to +see the cutter which bore him away. But the little vessel had gone too +far for any attempt to be made to follow her, with the least chance of +success; so they retraced their steps with disappointed looks and +feelings. + + + + +CHAPTER XXXIII. + +ALRINA VISITS A KIND FRIEND AND MAKES A PROPOSAL. + + +Alrina's cup of misery was now full to the brim. It had required but one +drop more to fill it, and here it was. Her lover had deserted her--that +was most certain; but she had forgiven him, and made up her mind that +she would exonerate him from all his vows,--indeed, she would insist on +breaking off the engagement for ever, on account of the dark mystery +which hung over her family history. + +But while the mystery was concealed, whatever it was, there was still a +hope that it might turn out in the end that there was no mystery at all, +and all might still be well. She secretly hoped this, although, in her +magnanimity, she considered it her duty to exonerate her lover from all +ties. But now the mystery was solved. It was no longer dark and +concealed, yielding a hope, however slight, that it might have existed +merely in her own imagination. It was no longer dark or mysterious. Her +father had robbed Mr. Morley (her lover's brother) of a considerable sum +of money, and had purloined his valuable papers, and had moreover gone +to a public ball at Penzance, dressed in Mr. Morley's clothes. There was +no getting over this;--there was no mystery here. All this could be +fully proved,--and he had gone off, no one knew where. + +What was she to do? She was left without a friend and penniless. There +was the house, it was true; but she could not live there without a penny +to buy food. + +Squire Pendray told the sad story when he returned home; and good Mrs. +Pendray went herself to Mr. Freeman's, and begged Alrina to go home with +her, and live with them as one of her daughters. This kind offer Alrina +respectfully declined. Mrs. Pendray then offered her a supply of money +to purchase necessaries until her father's return. + +"My father will never return, madam," said she, with dignity; "he +cannot. And, although I thank you from my heart for your kindness, I +cannot accept charity,--no, madam, I must gain my own livelihood, as +many a poor girl has done before." + +So the good lady, having failed of success in her good intentions, took +an affectionate leave of the noble girl, begging her to reconsider her +determination, and to come to her still if she altered her mind. "I +shall watch over you, my dear," said the good lady at parting, "and +shall get information brought me of your progress. Good bye! And may the +Almighty Giver of all good watch over and protect you." + +This disinterested kindness was almost overpowering. It was as much as +Alrina could do to prevent herself from giving way to her feelings. She +had borne her lover's supposed desertion, and the discovery of her +father's disgrace without shedding a tear, or allowing anyone to +discover how much she was affected by them. Now she could bear up no +longer. Mrs. Pendray's kind offer of protection and charity made her +feel the full force of her situation, and she returned to her room, and, +throwing herself on her bed, wept bitter tears of distress, mingled with +feelings of anger and wounded pride. She had been deserted, disgraced, +and humiliated. Long did she remain in that state of desponding +wretchedness. It was not in her nature to give way to her feelings, and +weep for every trifling thing that went wrong; she had been brought up +in a sterner school. But when she did give way, hers was not an ordinary +fit of weeping and then over; no, when she wept, it was a terrible +outbreak of pent-up feelings, like a large reservoir of water bursting +its banks, and carrying all before it. Nothing could stop it, until it +had spent itself out. And so it was now with Alrina;--she tossed and +rolled on her bed in her agony of mind, and wept until she became +exhausted, and then fell into a sound sleep, from which she awoke after +some hours, refreshed and renovated both in mind and body. She bathed +her eyes and face in cold water, and rearranged her hair, and sat in her +chair by the side of the dressing-table, calm and dignified, and began +to think of what she should do for the future. + +The past was gone for her. She must leave the house at once, and lock it +up, after allowing Mr. Morley to take what remained of his property. + +She rang for Alice Ann, and told her her determination, and offered her +some money--all she had in the world--in payment of her wages for the +past few weeks. This the poor girl as indignantly but respectfully +refused, as Alrina herself had refused but a few hours before the +proposed kindness and protection of Mrs. Pendray. + +"Why, she's maazed, I reckon," said Alice Ann, looking at her young +mistress as if she were some dangerous animal; "do 'ee knaw what you're +tellen' of, do 'ee?--_you_ go out for to get your livin'--no, no,--tarry +here, Miss Reeney, an' I'll tend 'ee the same as I do now, an' nevar +take a penny. An' as for meat,--'where there's a will there's a +way,'--we'll take in stitchen' an' sawen', I cud used to do plain work, +brave an' tidy; an' you cud do the fine work. We'll get along, nevar you +fear." + +"It is very kind of you, Alice Ann, to offer to help me to live," +replied Alrina; "but it cannot be,--I shall not remain in this house +another night after what has happened, if I can possibly help it. I +shall go out now for a short time, and when I return we will arrange for +the future." So saying, she put on her bonnet and shawl, and went down +the road, leaving Alice Ann at a loss to conjecture what she meant to +do, or where she could be going in such a hurry. + +"She's gone to chat it over weth somebody, I s'pose," said the girl, as +she stood at the door and watched her young mistress walking quietly +down the road. + +Alice Ann was right in a measure. Alrina was going to chat it over with +somebody, but not for the purpose of asking advice, nor by way of idle +gossip. She had fully determined in her own mind what she would do; and +when she had fully made up her mind to a thing it was not an easy matter +to turn her from her purpose. + +Mrs. Trenow's house was generally her favourite resort when she wanted a +quiet chat; but, to Alice Ann's surprise, she passed that house now, and +went on into the heart of the village, and she soon lost sight of her, +and returned into the house to put things in order, and prepare the tea +against her young mistress returned. + +Alrina stopped before the door of the "Commercial" Inn as if doubtful +what she should do. After a moment's hesitation, however, she walked +quietly in. Mrs. Brown had been working very briskly at her needle, +mending some old garment after a fashion; for she was no great hand at +that sort of work,--knitting she could get on with tolerably well, +because it required very little skill, and was therefore rather pleasant +work. She was now sitting looking at her work with an angry brow; for, +after all her trouble, she had put on the wrong piece. She had sat for +several hours, stitch, stitch, at that garment, patching it up, as she +thought, to look nearly as well as ever, and now all her labour was +lost, for the piece must come off again;--it would never do as it was. + +"Drat the old gown!" said she; "here have I be'n worken' my fingers to +the bone, an' puzzlin' my brain till I'm all mizzy mazey, an' thinken' I +had done a bra' job,--an' there it is." + +"Send for the tailor, Peggy! send for the tailor, to be sure," said Mr. +Brown from his place in the chimney-corner, from whence he seldom +stirred now; for he had become feeble in body as well as in mind, since +the shock he had experienced by the terrible death of his favourite +mare. Mrs. Brown was very kind to him and indulged him as far as she +could; but she could not help being irritated sometimes by his silly +remarks; for he prematurely declined into second childhood. + +"Send for a fool! and that's you, John Brown," replied his wife, +testily, as she turned the garment in different directions to see if +she could make it do at all, without ripping out the piece again;--but +it was of no use, out it must come. + +"If that lazy maid we've got here could stitch a bit tidy she wud be +some help," soliloquized the old lady; "but she's no good but to scrub +the floors, and tend the pigs,--she caen't draw a pint of beer fitty. +And there's Grace Bastian, the only decent maid we had in the parish for +to do a bit of sewing-work, she must prink herself off to Penzance too. +I don't knaw what's come to the maidens, not I. Miss Reeney! how are 'ee +my dear? Come in an' sit down;--why, you're quite a stranger," continued +the good landlady, as she rose to place a chair for her visitor. + +"Yes, I've been very much occupied since our return," replied +Alrina;--"but what are you about, Mrs. Brown?--you seem to have mended +your dress with a piece of a different colour. Why, here's a piece that +would have matched it exactly, and, if stitched in neatly, no one would +find out that it had been mended." + +"That's the very thing I'm thinken' about," said Mrs. Brown. "Here have +I be'n stitch, stitch, nearly all the day, putten' on that piece, an' +when I had finished it I found I had put on the wrong one; but I caen't +stitch any more to-day,--my head is bad already." + +"Let me see," said Alrina, taking the dress, and matching the right +piece on it;--"there, Mrs. Brown, that would do nicely, would it not?" + +"Yes, my dear; but the thing is to stitch it in." + +"Lend me your scissors, and I will soon manage it," replied Alrina. +"There," continued she, as she ripped off the piece that it had taken +Mrs. Brown so long to put in; "that's soon done. Now, lend me your +needle and thimble,--I'll put in the piece, while we gossip a little of +the latest news imported. Your thimble is too large;--haven't you a +smaller one in the house?" + +"I believe our maid Polly have got one somewhere," said Mrs. Brown; +"I'll sarch for it." + +"Poll! Poll! Polly!" said Mr. Brown, catching at the familiar sound: +"come out in the stable, Polly,--the mare must want her gruel by this +time. Wo! ho! Jessie, my beauty--wo! ho! mare!" + +"Will you be quiet, John Brown?" said his wife, as she came downstairs +with the thimble. + +"Here, Miss Reeney, I s'pose this is too big for your little finger." + +"Never mind, Mrs. Brown," said Alrina, who had by this time pinned on +the proper piece; "I'll make this do." + +The work now went on briskly--Mrs. Brown knitting, and Alrina stitching +and gossipping between. While the work was going on, two miners came in, +and asked for a pint of beer. + +"Let me draw it, Mrs. Brown," said Alrina, putting down her work--"it +will be a change of work too." + +"Well, you shall if you are fancical," replied Mrs. Brown, smiling. +"Take the brown jug, my dear--that's a pint exactly--and draw it out of +the end cask. Blow off the froth and fill up again,--our customers don't +like the jug half full of froth, I can assure you." + +So Alrina drew the beer, and received the money, as if she had been +accustomed to it all her life, very much to the astonishment of the two +men, who seemed puzzled at being tended by Miss Reeney;--but they liked +it very well, nevertheless, and ere long asked for another pint, for the +sake, no doubt, of receiving it from so fair a cup-bearer. + +The two men were in a little room leading out of the kitchen, so that +neither party could hear distinctly the conversation of the others,--nor +was there much said by either party, indeed, worth the trouble of +listening to. + +When the men were gone, Mrs. Brown said, "Why, I shud think you had been +used to the bar all your life, to see how handy you are; and you've +nearly finished the work that I wor all the day about. Your husband will +have a treasure, whoever he is." + +"I shall never be married, Mrs. Brown," said Alrina, with a heavy sigh. + +"Iss, Iss, you'll be married fast enough, and I think I can tell his +name, though I'm no conjuror, asking your pardon." + +"I have not seen the man yet that I would marry," returned Alrina, with +an effort. + +"Oh! fie!" said Mrs. Brown; "you mustn't say so to me; I wasn't born +yesterday, an' I can see a bra' way, though tes busy all, I'll allow." + +"What I have told you is perfectly true," replied Alrina; "and so far +from thinking of marrying, I am going to try to get my own living,--will +you take me into your service?" + +"My dear young lady," replied Mrs. Brown, taking off her spectacles, and +looking at Alrina steadily and seriously, "you mustn't make game of your +elders, nor look down with scorn upon those you may consider inferior in +station to yourself,--but that remains to be proved. Take her (a +boarding-school young lady) into my service! Did you hear that, John +Brown?" + +John Brown didn't hear that, or if he did he didn't understand it, for +he made no reply. + +"You seem as if you didn't understand me, Mrs. Brown," said Alrina. + +"No, sure, I don't understand your meanin' at all," replied Mrs. Brown. + +Alrina then related the circumstances of the morning to Mrs. Brown, whom +she knew she could trust, and whose advice she knew she could rely on, +for she was a shrewd intelligent woman. When she had finished her tale, +Mrs. Brown took her hand, and said, "You must forgive me for my hasty +speech just now. 'Tes an ugly business, but you shall never want a house +to shelter you, nor a bit of morsel to eat while I have got it for you." + +"You don't understand me now," said Alrina; "I will never accept +charity, either in the shape of food, raiment, or shelter. What I ask +you to do is this,--to take me into your service, to help you, as I have +done this afternoon, for instance. I will take the burden of the house +off your shoulders, and do the sewing, and attend to the bar. Poor Mr. +Brown is not able to do anything now, and indeed requires more of your +attention than you have time to give him, and I cannot but remember that +it was in consequence of some advice given him by my father (for what +reason I know not), that Mr. Brown lost his mare, and became in +consequence almost imbecile; and it is my duty, if possible, to repair +the injury that has been done. I cannot return the mare, nor give Mr. +Brown renewed strength; but I can help you, and by that means you will +have more time to devote to his little comforts. I don't want money;--I +merely want a home with a respectable family, to whom I can render +services sufficient to remunerate them for their kindness, without +having the feeling that I am maintained merely out of charity. Now do +you understand what I mean?" + +"I do," replied Mrs. Brown, "and it shall be as you wish, and I shall +always respect and honour you for the noble and independent way in which +you have acted." + +This being settled, Alrina went back to her father's house, to inform +Alice Ann of what she had done; and, having arranged with Mrs. Brown +that Alice Ann should sleep at her house also for a night or two, she +locked up the house where so many evil deeds had been performed, and +took up her residence at the "Commercial" Inn, as barmaid and general +superintendent of the stitchery of the household. + + + + +CHAPTER XXXIV. + +CAPTAIN COURLAND'S RETURN AND HIS WIFE'S ANXIETY. + + +The man of cunning had proved himself more than a match for his +pursuers. He had got the start of them, and was now out of their reach. +So the squire and Mr. Morley, accompanied by Josiah, prepared to retrace +their steps, angry and crestfallen at having been thus outwitted. They +walked on in silence until, on rounding a rock, they met Lieutenant +Fowler and one of his men, who were evidently out on duty. Fowler seemed +quite taken by surprise, and scarcely knew what to do; but he +instinctively touched his cap to the squire, and, shaking Morley by the +hand, was about to pass on. The squire, however, was too much engrossed +with the matter in hand to remember his late treatment of the +lieutenant, or the cause of it, and Morley was ignorant of the whole +matter. So they both greeted Fowler heartily, and told him the whole +affair, and pointed out the vessel which was bearing away their crafty +deceiver. Fowler put his glass to his eye, and scanned the horizon after +having looked attentively at the vessel. + +"She'll be back again" said he, "before long; there's a storm rising." + +"No! no!" replied the squire; "that fellow will not return to this coast +again if he can by any possibility keep away; they'll probably reach the +Scilly Islands before the storm comes on." + +"We shall see," said the lieutenant; "my men shall keep a good watch, +however, all night. Good day gentlemen." And he touched his cap again, +and was moving off. + +"Where are you going in such a hurry, my dear fellow?" said Morley, "I +haven't seen you for an age. Come! I'm going up to your station to have +a serious chat with you." + +"Go on, then; I shall be home soon; but I must go round to see what the +other men are about, whom I sent, some time ago, to watch a suspicious +looking craft, round the next headland. Go up to my cabin, there's a +good fellow; for I want to have a serious chat with you too." So saying, +he walked on, having seen that the squire had got on his stilts again +after the first impulse had subsided; for he had walked on without +taking any further notice of Fowler. + +Mr. Morley, true to his appointment, declined the squire's pressing +invitation to dine with him at Pendrea-house, and proceeded towards +Tol-pedn-Penwith station, where he had not been very long before his +friend returned. After dinner, Fowler confided to him his secret, and +the manner in which he had been treated by the squire. Morley at first +treated it as a joke, saying, "Faint heart never won fair lady;" but on +reflection he thought there must be some mistake, and that a mutual +explanation would set all things right, which he undertook to perform. +But he was so anxious about his brother that he could not settle his +mind to anything until he had found him or ascertained his fate. He had +evidently been at Cooper's house,--that was pretty certain, from what +the old woman had said,--and it was also certain that he was not there +now, for they had searched everywhere, nor was he at the Land's-End, nor +St. Just; nor had any trace of him been seen in that neighbourhood by +anyone, and the boy had not been seen either, for some time. Mr. +Morley's only conjecture now was, that he had probably escaped from +Cooper's cellar, and had returned to Ashley Hall, thinking that, as +Josiah had seen Miss Freeman there, Alrina might be there also, +concealed somewhere; and he no doubt thought that he would there also +have the advice and assistance of his brother and Josiah whom he had +left there; for Mr. Morley knew that neither of his letters had reached +him, because he found them both lying at the Penzance post-office. He +therefore determined at once to return to Ashley Hall. The more he +thought of it, the more was he confirmed in this belief, and he also +felt certain, that, having escaped through the underground cellar, and +no trace of him having been discovered in the neighbourhood, his brother +had, to avoid pursuit and suspicion, gone on board some vessel, bound to +Bristol, and proceeded thither by water. + +Mr. Morley wished to see Miss Pendray once more before he left; but his +sense of duty prevailed over love, and he determined to start at once, +that very night, and to leave nothing untried until he found his +brother--dead or alive. He would have gone to Pendrea-house, just to see +her for a moment, and take leave of her, but he was afraid to trust +himself. She would have kept him on and on, he feared, until the chance +of finding his brother might be gone. He knew her powers of fascination, +and he would not trust himself to them. He would come back to love and +pleasure with greater satisfaction after he had performed his duty. + +He took the faithful Josiah with him; and so hasty was their departure, +that poor Josiah had not time to return to St. Just, to take leave of +Alice Ann, and so they did not know of the change that had taken place +in the abode of the mistress and maid. + +So sure did Mr. Morley feel, now, that Frederick had returned to Ashley +Hall by water, that he did not make any inquiry on the road, but rode +night and day, hiring fresh horses at every stage, until they reached +the hall. Why he was so confident of finding his brother there he could +scarcely tell; but as that was the only hope he seemed to have, and the +only probable place to which he thought he could have gone, he seized it +as the "forlorn hope," as it were, and brooded on it, so that it became +fixed in his mind, and he would not allow any other thought to supersede +it. How great was his disappointment, then, when he arrived at the hall, +to find that his brother had not been seen there, nor had anything been +heard of or from him, since he left it some weeks before. It was like a +death stroke. He could scarcely believe it. He could not bring his mind +back to the thought that his brother was lost. He searched everywhere. +Mrs. Courland and Julia were alarmed also when they heard how matters +stood, and even the poor dumb girl was alarmed and agitated; for she saw +there was something amiss, but she didn't know what it was, and no one +had the time or the inclination to tell her; so she wandered about the +house, unheeded. + +Captain Courland had returned, and had now given up the sea, having +realized a handsome fortune, and looked forward to spending the +remainder of his life in peace and happiness, with his beautiful wife, +and her niece, Julia Morley, whom they had adopted as their own, and +whom they were both very fond of. The first day of his arrival was a +very happy one to him. He revelled in the society of his wife and niece, +and nothing occurred to mar his happiness. Flora was kept out of the way +in Mrs. Courland's private apartments, where she had first been +introduced to the house. These rooms had been fitted up expressly for +her. Here she had every amusement she could enjoy, and she liked being +here alone, and would frequently spend whole days there, and in the +little garden adjoining, planting, and watching, and cultivating the +flowers, of which, as we have said before, she was passionately fond. A +slight hint from Mrs. Courland that there was company in the house, was +quite enough to keep her in her apartments the whole day; for she did +not like mixing with strangers. She always seemed to have a dread, lest +she should meet with someone she had seen before, and who she feared +would take her away and beat her. + +Mrs. Courland knew whom she meant, but to the others this was a mystery. +Mrs. Courland still dreaded the introduction of this poor girl to her +husband, although she knew his kind heart would compassionate a poor +helpless creature thrown upon her charity, as she had represented it, as +much as the other members of the family had done. But she did not feel +the same repugnance at deceiving them, as she did at deceiving her +husband. She had already deceived him by keeping this secret from him. +And now, by the introduction of this poor girl into his house, the +secret might be disclosed at some unlucky moment. She at first decided +on introducing her at once on his return, and telling him the story she +had framed; but her courage failed her, and she thought she would put it +off until his return from London, where he was going the day after his +arrival, to arrange his business with the principal shareholders of his +ship. He was detained there some days, and had not returned when Mr. +Morley and Josiah arrived, although he was hourly expected. All was +confusion throughout the house at the intelligence brought by Mr. +Morley, that his brother Frederick could nowhere be found. He was a +general favourite there, and all the household turned out for this +hopeless search, leaving poor Flora a wanderer through the house. + +While the search was going on, Captain Courland returned from London, +and, finding none of the servants in their accustomed places, he walked +into the breakfast-room, where he saw a young lady standing at the +window, with her back towards him as he entered, looking intently into +the garden below. At first he thought it was his niece Julia, and he +asked her what had occurred in the house to make such a scarcity of +servants, and where her aunt was; but, to his great surprise, she took +no notice of him,--so he went up close to her and tapped her on the +shoulder, when she turned suddenly round, and gave a peculiar, +disagreeable scream, and ran out of the room. He thought this very +extraordinary. He could not imagine who the young lady could be, who +seemed so much at home in his house, and who treated him with such rude +contempt. He sought his wife for an explanation. On his mentioning the +circumstance to her, she seemed taken quite by surprise, and hesitated, +and looked confused while she told him her tale. He thought it very +strange that she had not mentioned this circumstance to him in any of +her letters, and he asked her rather harshly why she had not mentioned +it when he was home for a day and a night, on his first arrival from +sea. He spoke more harshly to her than he had ever done before, perhaps +without intending to do so; but the consciousness that she had done +wrong, and the fear lest her secret should yet be discovered by him, +overcame her, so that, instead of explaining the reason, which she might +easily have done, she burst into tears, which pained him, and made him +think there was something more in this affair than he had yet heard; +but, in the goodness of his heart and his devoted affection and love for +his wife, he never suspected for a moment that she had done any wrong, +or was concealing anything from him of a serious nature; while she, +poor, timid, guilty creature, read his thoughts by her own, and fancied +that her husband was looking into her heart, and reading there her +guilty secret. + +Had she possessed the moral courage to tell the truth in the beginning, +when they were first married, all would have been well. But she had +retained the secret in her own breast so long, and thereby deceived her +husband, that the telling of it now would be like the confession of a +twofold guilt. And if she had not the courage to tell her secret, when +it was but a little secret after all, how could she tell it now, when +years of deception had been added to it. And so, by this little +accidental discovery of nothing, as it were, her courage deserted her, +and the resolution she had formed of explaining the way in which the +poor dumb girl became an adopted inmate of his house, was told in a way +to create suspicion rather than allay it. + +As his wife had adopted this poor creature, Captain Courland tacitly +consented; for, although he felt that there was something that he could +not understand in the matter, he had the heart of a true British sailor, +and would not willingly wound the feelings of a woman if he could avoid +it, especially in such a trifle as this; and more especially as the +offender, if such she could be deemed, was his beautiful wife, to whom +he was attached with the most ardent and devoted affection. After a time +he became quite attached to the poor dumb girl: she amused him, and he +would spend hours in her private room, while she taught him to talk +with his fingers; and she was interested in her task, and would laugh +such a hearty, ringing laugh when he made a mistake, that the jovial +captain would throw himself back in his chair, and laugh, too, till his +sides shook;--and then he could burst out with a nautical phrase in her +society with impunity, which, when he attempted unwittingly in the +presence of his wife or niece, caused a gentle reprimand, and he was +obliged to "knock under," as he expressed it. + +Mr. Morley and the captain were old friends. They had met often in +India; and no one was more concerned than Captain Courland at the loss +of Mr. Morley's brother. Many days were spent in scouring the country in +endeavouring to find some trace of him, but, alas! without effect. Nor +could they gain any intelligence of the strange woman whom Josiah had +seen, at a distance, and who, he verily believed, was Miss Freeman. + +All their efforts having proved fruitless, Mr. Morley determined to +retrace his steps back to Cornwall once more; and Captain Courland, +feeling a deep interest in the discovery of his friend's brother, +proposed to his wife that they should accompany their friend there, and +help him in the search. This was the very thing Mrs. Courland wished--to +get away from the hall and its now unpleasant associations, and, above +all, to leave the object of her fear and guilt behind her. She believed +that Flora would be quite happy in the undisturbed possession of her +favourite rooms, and she could depend on her being taken care of by the +servants, for they all liked and pitied her. This would be a great +relief to her mind; and then she could give to her husband her undivided +attention, without the constant dread of discovery. But when the time of +departure arrived, to her great surprise and annoyance, Captain Courland +made arrangements for taking Flora in the travelling carriage with them, +and was quite angry at his wife's even hinting that Flora would be far +happier at the hall. The captain had become so attached to her, that she +seemed necessary now to his amusement and occupation. So she accompanied +them. + + + + +CHAPTER XXXV. + +THE DESPERATE PLUNGE. + + +Alrina had been at Mrs. Brown's several days, and was beginning to like +her employment, and to make herself very useful in the house, when one +evening, a strange-looking man came rushing in, and asked for a glass of +brandy, which he drank off in a hurried manner, and then said he had +seen a ghost. He had such an odd look, and seemed to speak in such an +incoherent manner, that both Mrs. Brown and Alrina thought he was +deranged: but, knowing the suspicious treachery of persons in that +state, they feared to let him see their timidity, lest he might do them +some injury. So Mrs. Brown pretended to believe in his statement, and +questioned him as to what the ghost was like, and where he had seen it. +The man was well known to Mrs. Brown, as a poor half-witted creature, +who wandered about in a kind of melancholy state, but perfectly +harmless: and the neighbours were kind to "Mazed Dick," as he was +called, and gave him meat, and occasionally Mrs. Brown's customers would +give him a glass of beer, at the "Commercial," for the sake of having a +little amusement; for "Mazed Dick" could perform various little feats of +dexterity, such as standing on his head, climbing a greasy pole, or +dancing in a grotesque manner, or allowing a whole pint of beer to be +poured down his throat, as through a funnel, without closing his mouth. +But Mrs. Brown had never seen him so excited before as he seemed to be +now, nor had he ever asked for brandy before; and after he had drank it, +she wished she had not given it to him. Without answering Mrs. Brown's +questions, he continued to talk in the same incoherent way, sometimes +laughing by way of interlude, and sometimes screaming as if he suddenly +saw some terrifying object before him. It was no use to ask him any more +questions, so they let him go on in his own way,-- + +"Down 'tween the rocks, Mrs. Brown, ma'm, a g'eat big ship (ha! ha! +ha!), bottom up, Mrs. Brown, ma'm, bottom up, ma'm (ha! ha! ha!), kegs +of brandy. Mrs. Brown, ma'm, kegs of brandy (ha! ha! ha!). Little Dick +creepy crawly, creepy crawly, up the top of the bottom (oh! +lor'!),--slip down agen,--see a g'eat hole, Mrs. Brown, ma'm. Dick put +in his hand to take out a keg of brandy (oh! lor'! oh! lor'!), catch +Dick's hand (oh! lor'! oh! lor'!) Dick run away,--a ghost!--a ghost!" + +From this story they gathered that a ship had been wrecked, and thrown +ashore with its bottom up. Some men who had seen "Mazed Dick" running +towards the public house, followed him, thinking he was in a good mood +for one of his performances; but on hearing that there was a wreck on +the coast, they started at once for the spot, taking Dick with them as a +guide, who continued to repeat the same jargon until they arrived at the +cove, where they saw a small vessel, as "Mazed Dick" had described it, +jammed between two rocks, with her bottom up. To climb up the side of +the vessel as she lay thus, bottom up, was a difficult task; for the +sides were slippery. No one but little Dick could do it; so he, to show +his dexterity, climbed up at once like a cat, and put his hand into the +hole, which they could see as they stood on the rock. He had no sooner +done so, however, than he began to scream and kick about his legs in a +vain effort to get clear and slide down again; but no,--there he was +held, as it seemed, by some invisible power inside. What could it be? +Whatever it was, however, it had not the power of holding its victim in +that position long; for poor Dick was soon released, and came sliding +down again among his companions, exclaiming, "A ghost! a ghost! oh! +lor'! oh! lor'!"--and this was all they could get out of him. He could +give no account of what he had seen or felt. So it was determined to +send for a ladder and examine this mysterious affair thoroughly. + +The ladder was soon procured, and with it a host of wreckers, both men +and women, although it was now getting dusk, and they would not be able +to see what was inside when they got to the hole; so lanterns were +procured, and there was a parley as to who should go up. All had been +eager to reach the spot, and would have braved any visible danger either +by sea or land; but there was a mystery about this which their +superstitious fears deterred them from attempting readily. In the midst +of their hesitation, Captain Trenow came down to see what it was all +about, and he volunteered at once to climb the ladder, and examine the +interior of the vessel; for he believed it was nothing but "Mazed +Dick's" timidity that made him scream, or perhaps one of his mad tricks. +So up went the brave old man, carrying a lantern in his hand; and, after +looking in at the hole for a few minutes, holding the lantern now on one +side and now on the other, to enable him to see every part of the +interior, as far as the size of the hole would admit, he came down +again, and said very deliberately,-- + +"'Tes a whished sight, soas!" + +"Why, what ded 'ee see, cap'n?" cried a dozen voices. + +"Why, I seed two men and a boy, so well as I cud make out," replied +Captain Trenow. + +"Dear lor'!" exclaimed the women; "the crew starved to death, poor +souls! That's whisht, sure nuff." + +"'Tes whishter to be standen' here like a passle of fools," said Captain +Trenow; "they mayn't be all dead, an' I don't think they are. Lev the +women run up to church-town for some blankets and sails an' things, and +some brandy, an' some of the men go down to bâl for some ropes an' +planks, an' a hatchet or two, and a saw; for the hole esn't big enough +to hale a man through." + +Here was the master mind equal to any emergency; and, so accustomed is +the bâl captain to be obeyed by the miners under him at the bâl, that +Captain Trenow's commands were obeyed to the letter, such discipline +being as necessary in mining operations, where there is so much risk and +danger, as in a military army on the field of battle. In an incredibly +short time, the men returned with ropes, and planks, and more ladders, +accompanied by some of the mine-carpenters, who had not left work in +consequence of a breakage at the mine. + +"Go up," said Captain Trenow to the carpenters, "and enlarge that hole +three or four feet each way." And up they went at once and commenced +their work without asking a question; and very soon an opening was made +large enough to bring up any thing that might be below. + +By this time the women had arrived also, with plenty of blankets and old +sails, and brandy, accompanied by many more people from the village. +Captain Trenow, with three or four of the strongest men of the party, +now went up the ladders which were placed against the side of the +vessel, taking shorter ladders with them, which they let down through +the opening that the carpenters had made, taking ropes and blankets and +sails with them. On descending into the vessel they found two men and a +boy--the two men lying at the bottom, apparently dead, or in the last +gasp, while the boy was lying on a cask near the hole. He was alive, and +still retained the use of his limbs; and it must have been he who had +seized poor Dick in that mysterious manner. They were soon got out of +their perilous situation; and that infallible remedy--brandy--having +been applied to their lips, it was ascertained that they were all alive. +The boy revived considerably, but the two men, with all the remedies +Captain Trenow's experience applied, only revived sufficiently to +exhibit signs of life. + +They were speedily conveyed to the "Commercial" Inn, and Mrs. Brown and +her fair assistant prepared comfortable beds for them, while Captain +Trenow and one or two strong, trusty men remained to watch them during +the night. A little food was given them frequently; for Captain Trenow +saw that they were suffering principally from exhaustion and want of +food. + +The boy did not require much attention; and, after a moderate allowance +of food, he fell fast asleep. Mrs. Brown's household also went to bed, +at Captain Trenow's earnest request, while he and one of the miners +remained in attendance on the invalids all night. The boy slept soundly +till morning, when he awoke refreshed, but hungry; so he went downstairs +in search of something to eat. Mr. Brown was the only one stirring, and +he was in the back kitchen giving a finishing polish to his shoes. + +"What! Billy, boy!" said he, as the boy entered; "come, 'tes time to +look to the mare. Come, boy! come!" And he led the way into the stables, +as he used to do, and the boy followed him; for he knew that was the +only way to get anything to eat. "Mare first and breakfast afterwards," +was always Mr. Brown's motto. + +The sad reality very soon exhibited itself to poor Mr. Brown's shattered +brain; and he sat down on the pail which was standing useless against +the wall with its bottom up, and bewailed his loss. + +"Iss, boy," said the poor man; "I seed them both go over cliff,--and +that poor young gentleman to be killed too. 'Twas whist, Billy, boy. +Semmen to me I can see them now tumblen' over. I've seed his ghost +since, boy, I have." + +When Mr. Brown had exhausted himself with his monotonous lamentation, on +the loss of the mare and the young gentleman, the boy went up close to +him, and whispered something in his ear which made him start; and, +jumping up, he proceeded into the house at once, exclaiming, "Peggy! +Peg! Peg! Peggy! my dear,--here's that gentleman; get breakfast quickly. +What! Miss Reeney downstairs already! Good morning, ma'am. Come to see +"The Maister," I s'pose. Get breakfast quickly, Peggy! Ods my life! how +hungered they'll be! Out exercising the mare, es he? That's brave. Get +the corn ready and a clean wisp o' straw to give her the first rub weth. +Ods my life! how glad I am." + +"Hoity! toity! what's all the fuss?" exclaimed Mrs. Brown, as she came +slowly downstairs; "one wud think that the French were landed." + +"And so they are, I b'lieve, o' my conscience," said Mr. Brown. + +"Hold your tongue, John Brown!" said his wife, angrily, as she proceeded +to get the breakfast. She had not seen Alrina or the boy; for the latter +made a signal to Alrina to follow him out into the little garden at the +back of the house, while Mr. Brown was giving his silly and futile +orders about the mare, which his wife was now too much accustomed to, to +notice. + +Imagine Alrina's astonishment, when she heard from the boy, that her +father and lover were both in that house. What should she do?--That was +the first question she asked herself; and it was as quickly answered in +her own mind. She must do her duty; and her first duty was to attend to +her father, however disgraceful his conduct might have been. And, under +the circumstance, it was her duty also to avoid meeting her lover, both +for her own peace of mind and for his;--for she had fully determined +that nothing should induce her to continue an engagement, which must +bring disgrace on him and misery to her;--she could never endure to +marry a man whose family would despise her. She learnt the whole history +of his escape from the boy, and she shuddered when he told her of the +dreadful moment, when the boat bumped against the rock, as they thought, +but which in reality was a vessel they could not see, as they lay in the +bottom of the boat, faint and exhausted. They were picked up and taken +on board, but his master was so exhausted that he was unconscious all +the time. The boy soon discovered, he said, that the principal person on +board was no other than his old master, Mr. Freeman, who treated them +both very kindly; but a storm arose that night, and drove the little +vessel back again towards the Land's-End. He and Mr. Freeman were below, +he said, attending to the invalid, when the vessel struck on a rock, +and her mast was blown over somehow, and they felt the vessel turn on +her beam ends. The hatches had been closed down over them when they went +below, for the sea was washing over the deck. The two sailors must have +been washed overboard. How long they were in that awful state, beating +about, the boy did not know; it seemed an age. He was the strongest of +the party, he said; and, when he found that the vessel was at last +stationary, he got on a cask to be as near the hole which the rocks had +made in her as possible, and it was in this position that he caught the +man's hand; but he was too much exhausted to speak. + +Alrina consulted her good friend, Mrs. Brown, as to what she should do +with her father; and it was ultimately decided that he had better be +removed at once to his own house. + +Who the other invalid was, Alrina did not say. Mr. Freeman seemed in a +very precarious state; and if he was to be removed at all, Captain +Trenow thought it should be done at once. It was early, and few people +were stirring as yet in the village; and so the poor unconscious man was +removed gently and quietly to that house which he had left but a short +time before, knowing and feeling that his return to that place must end +in public disgrace and punishment. His faithful daughter, as in duty +bound, made everything as comfortable about him as she could, and her +attendant, Alice Ann, came back at once to her young mistress's +assistance. + +In undressing him to put him into bed, Captain Trenow discovered a belt +round his waist, which, on being opened, was found to contain a +considerable sum of money, principally in gold, and a quantity of +diamonds and other jewels apparently of great value. The money Captain +Trenow persuaded Alrina to take into her possession, and to use as much +as was necessary for the maintenance of the house and for comforts for +the invalid, while the jewels he placed in a drawer in Mr. Freeman's +private room, under lock and key. It was evident that he had been +preparing for flight for some time, and had secured enough of "the +needful" to enable him to live comfortably in some distant country. Of +his daughter's comfort he cared nothing; for he did not leave a single +shilling behind for her, and yet she forgave him all, and came back +again to the house she thought she had quitted for ever, to be his +guardian and ministering angel. + +A surgeon was sent for from Penzance, who said it was doubtful whether +his patient would recover. By care, and attention, and good nursing, he +might rally. + +Frederick Morley--for he was Captain Trenow's other patient--was +recovering slowly, when he learned that Mr. Freeman had been taken home, +and that his daughter was there also. He immediately got up, weak as he +was, and walked towards Mr. Freeman's house, determined to see Alrina, +whose image had been ever present to his mind, night and day, and from +whom he was now fully determined no power on earth should separate him. +When he arrived at the house he was told that Alrina was in attendance +on her father, who was not able to leave his bed. + +He waited some time in the little parlour before the object of his +adoration made her appearance, as she was obliged to school herself into +the proper state of mind in which she wished to appear, before she met +him to whom she must now say farewell for ever. + +She had been expecting this visit, and had been preparing herself for +the meeting, and thought, poor girl, that she could be firm;--but now, +when the time was actually come, she found that it was more than she +could go through. She came at last, pale and trembling, but firm. And +when Frederick rushed towards her with the impetuosity of a warm-hearted +lover, from whom his darling had been separated so long, she recoiled +calmly and coldly from his embrace, and requested him, in a dignified +manner, to be seated. + +"Alrina!" exclaimed he, in surprise; "what is the meaning of this +coolness? After so long an absence, I expected to have been received by +you in a very different manner. What have I done to deserve this? Or has +some vile calumniator been poisoning your mind against me? Tell me, +dearest!" And he attempted to approach her again, his eyes beaming with +the fondest love and devotion. + +"Mr. Morley!" said Alrina, restraining her feelings with a strong +effort; "circumstances have changed since we last met; and I am +compelled, more for your sake than mine, to tell you that all further +intercourse must cease between us." + +"Alrina!" exclaimed he, passionately; "what can you mean?--Can I believe +my ears,--that she, whom I so fondly and devotedly love, can coldly and +deliberately tell me that our intercourse must cease, without assigning +any reason. Tell me at least this. What cause have I given you for +treating me thus?" + +"None!" said she; "none! you have been to me more than I deserve. It is +not that, oh! no!" + +"You have seen another whom you love better," said he. "Tell me,--only +tell me, and relieve my racking brain,--anything is better than this +suspense. I will never give you up,--I swear I will not! The villain who +has supplanted me shall die!" And he paced the room in mental agony, +while poor Alrina scarcely knew what to do. She had made up her mind to +do her duty; and she was determined, for his sake more than her own, to +go through with it. He must not think he had a rival; it would endanger +some innocent person, perhaps; nor could she make up her mind to tell +him of her father's disgrace. He would hear it, of course,--he must know +it; but it should not come from her. What should she do? + +There was only one alternative that seemed open to her. She must take +all the blame on herself, and bear all his wrath, or scorn, or hate, or +whatever it might be, on her own shoulders. However painful, it must be +done. And, rising with as much coolness as she could command at that +awful crisis, she said, in a trembling voice,-- + +"Mr. Morley, we must part now and for ever; for I feel I cannot love you +as I ought." + +"Oh! Alrina!" he exclaimed, taking her hand, which she could not +prevent; "do not say so! oh! do not say so,--you cannot mean it,--say +you do not mean that. Not love me! Oh! Alrina! after all----" + +"I cannot stay longer," said she, hastily withdrawing her hand; "I can +only repeat that I cannot love you." And, in an agony of mind, which it +would be impossible to describe, she rushed to her own room, and, +locking the door, threw herself on the bed, and wept bitter tears of +agony unspeakable. + +Morley remained motionless for some minutes, as one thunderstruck. It +seemed as if he had received his death blow. To be treated thus coldly +by one who, but a short time before, had expressed the warmest affection +for him, was inexplicable. He could not understand it. There was only +one solution that presented itself to his disordered mind. She loved +another! And that thought rendered him desperate,--it maddened him. + +Revenge was his first thought. But how, and on whom? He staggered out of +the house like a drunken man, and directed his steps unconsciously +towards the sea. Life had become a burden to him within the last short +hour. He had nothing now to live for. He looked down into the deep blue +sea, as he stood on the rock. All his former hope of life and happiness +had faded away like a shadow. He could have lived on with the hope that +she might one day be his, knowing that she loved him still. But, now, +she had told him that she could not love him, and had bade him farewell +for ever! He could not endure the thought. Her coldness and the apparent +cause thrilled through his frame. This feeling of jealousy maddened him; +his brain reeled. One plunge into that deep blue water, and all his +mental sufferings would be ended. The waters would open to receive him; +and when they closed over him again, all the cares and troubles of this +life would be over, and she would be free from the dread of his +presence, if indeed she feared it. + +His brain was on fire; he was mad; a temporary insanity had seized him; +and he thought only of escaping from present troubles. One short plunge, +and all would be over. Alas! he thought not of the future. What mortal, +when in that state of frenzied madness, does think of that? + +For if, he did,--if, in the act of making his quietus by self +destruction, one sane thought remained,--"that dread of something after +death--the undiscovered country from whose bourne no traveller +returns--would puzzle the will; and make him rather bear the ills he +has, than fly to others that he knows not of." Man's life is not in his +own hands. He who gave it, and He alone, has the right to take it when +it shall please Him so to do. Morley thought not of the future, but only +how to escape from "the pangs of despised love," which now oppressed +him. And the more he thought of this, the more did his brain seethe and +boil, till he could bear it no longer; and, taking a desperate leap from +the high rock on which he stood, he plunged into the deep blue water +that lay so tranquil at his feet. + +A splash was heard as the waters opened to receive their prey; and then +they closed around and over him, and down he went,--down! down!--five +fathoms deep, or more, for the water here was deep enough to swim a +three-decked ship with all her thousand men on board, and guns and +ammunition. 'Twas an awful plunge, not like the plunge of the agile +swimmer, who jumps from off a rock and dives until he touches the +bottom, only to rebound and then come up again some few yards ahead, and +strike out boldly with head erect, braving the restless sea, and riding +over each wave buoyant and graceful as a sea-bird, whose element it is. +The plunge of the victim of self destruction has a sadder and more +decided sound. Down he goes to the bottom, a dead weight, with all his +sins upon his head; for in that short space of time, all the actions of +his past life crowd on his mind, and he lives his life over again, as it +were, in a single moment. + +And so went down the body of Frederick Morley to the bottom. But as his +body touched it, up it came again buoyant in that unruffled sea. Ere it +rose to the surface of the water, another splash was heard, and a stout +strong swimmer came breasting the waves, ready to catch the rash young +man as soon as he appeared; and, seizing him in one of his strong arms, +he swam with him to the shore and landed him in safety. + +Frederick had not been under water long enough to receive any serious +injury, although the salt water in his mouth and eyes and ears, made him +feel very uncomfortable. And this might have a very serious effect, +after his late sufferings and confinement; for he had risen from his bed +to go to Alrina, on learning that she was at home, when he ought to have +remained quiet for a little longer, in order to be fully equal to the +double shock he had sustained. Perhaps had he been in robust health, he +would not have taken this rash step; but his nerves were weak. The +plunge into the water, however, had tended to cool his fevered brain; +and, when he turned to thank his deliverer, after he had recovered a +little, what was his surprise to find that he was indebted again for his +life to that noble fellow, Josiah Trenow, who had thus saved him a +second time from the jaws of death. + + + + +CHAPTER XXXVI. + +THE BROKEN REED. + + +Mr. Morley and Josiah had left Ashley Hall before the family could get +ready for the journey, and had travelled with speed and arrived at +Lieutenant Fowler's station on the morning of Frederick Morley's visit +to Alrina; and as Josiah had been hurried away without seeing Alice Ann, +he was anxious to know what had become of her; so, under pretence of +going to see his mother, he hastened to St. Just at once, and made +direct for Mr. Freeman's house, little thinking of the changes that had +taken place there during his short absence. He learned from Alice Ann +all that she knew of the history of the past few weeks, and she ended by +telling him that Mr. Frederick Morley had been there that morning, and +that something had happened between him and Miss Reeney, for that she +was locked in her room sobbing and crying her eyes out a'most, and Mr. +Frederick was gone down towards the sea, raving like a mad bull. + +Josiah thought there must be something very much amiss, but what it was +he could not imagine. However he deemed it prudent to follow his young +master; and it was lucky he did so, for he reached the spot barely in +time to see him throw himself from the rock into the sea. Josiah was an +expert swimmer so he did not hesitate a moment, but throwing off his +coat and hat, he plunged in after the demented youth, and saved him, as +we have seen. Now that he was cool and collected once more, Morley +seemed quite ashamed of the act he had attempted, and shuddered at what +might have been his fate, had he not been thus fortunately rescued; nor +would he satisfy his faithful follower as to whether it was accident or +not. After sitting in the sun to dry themselves a little, they walked +back to the inn, where they found Lieutenant Fowler and Mr. Morley +waiting their return. Fowler had not heard, until the night before, of +Frederick's miraculous escape from his imprisonment at Cooper's, and his +preservation in the vessel which had borne away Mr. Freeman from the +hands of justice;--and they came on to see Frederick, whom they expected +to find in bed, and to learn the truth about the return of Mr. Freeman; +for Fowler had heard only a rumour of that as yet,--the gossips being +still afraid to speak out openly about him, lest evil should come upon +them. + +Josiah had heard every particular from Alice Ann; and Mr. Morley, being +determined that he should not elude them this time, desired Josiah to +watch the house lest any one should escape, while he and Fowler +proceeded to Pendrea, for the assistance of the squire, whose warrant as +a magistrate would be necessary for the apprehension of the guilty +party. Josiah recommended Frederick to go to bed at once, for he feared +serious consequences would result from his remaining in his wet clothes +any longer, and he told the other gentlemen that their friend had +slipped off a rock into the water. They sat by his bedside for a little +time after he was in bed, and heard his adventures, and then proceeded +on their more important business. They refrained from telling Frederick, +however, the name of the party they were in search of, fearing the +consequences, in his present weak state, and knowing the pain it would +cause him, to find that it was Alrina's father whom they accused. + +Fowler forgot his own wrongs in his anxiety to serve his friend; and it +was not until they were within a short distance of Pendrea-house, that +he remembered his position with regard to the squire and his household, +and he scrupled to go on. + +"Nonsense, my dear fellow," said Mr. Morley; "you are going on a very +different errand now. That was pleasure, this is business; besides, we +don't know what it may lead to." + +Thus persuaded, but certainly not against his inclination, Fowler went +on without again alluding to the subject, well knowing the old adage +that "faint heart never won fair lady." + +The squire was at home, and received his two visitors with politeness if +not with cordiality; for his wife had got a crotchet into her head about +Mr. Morley and her eldest daughter, which had been told her by one of +the servants, and she had told it to the squire; and, putting this +against that, as he expressed it, he thought he saw clearly that Mr. +Morley had been trifling with his eldest daughter's affections, as +Fowler had been doing with her sister; and so he came to the conclusion, +without the aid of the conjuror, that the conduct of these two men had +caused the sudden and alarming change which they had observed in the +health and spirits of their two daughters, and which had baffled the +skill of all the doctors. Had Mr. Morley and Lieutenant Fowler, +therefore, called in the ordinary way, and claimed his friendship, they +would not probably have been admitted; but they now came on business in +which the squire was himself much interested; so he filled up a warrant +and agreed to accompany them to see the end of it. They could take a +constable from the village, as they passed, he said. + +The old squire did not forget his hospitality, in his pique at the +treatment he believed his daughters had received at the hands of these +two gentlemen. They were both gentlemanly men, and they were now engaged +in one common cause with himself, the punishment of a man whom the +squire had suspected and watched for some time, and who, they now +discovered, was a villain of the deepest dye. Mr. Morley had suspicions +even beyond what, at present, he thought it prudent to communicate to +the other two gentlemen. The squire unbent and came down from his +stilts, before they had conversed five minutes, and ordered lunch, which +he might in those days have termed dinner; after which the three +gentlemen started on their expedition. And so eager and anxious were +they in concocting their plans for the capture of the man who had so +cunningly eluded them before, that, if the ladies were not forgotten by +some of the party, they were certainly not alluded to. Perhaps this was +avoided from policy by the two visitors;--the stilts might have been had +recourse to again, if that subject had been revived just then in the +mind of the crusty old squire. + +The ladies knew that the two gentlemen were in the house, and expected +to be summoned into the drawing-room, but they were disappointed. The +three gentlemen lunched alone, and then started on their expedition. An +experienced constable was procured at the next village, and on they +went, a formidable party, determined not to be outwitted again by that +cunning man. They found the trusty Josiah watching closely when they +arrived near the house; no one had gone in or come out, he said, since +he had been there. He had not even seen Alice Ann come out, and he would +not venture too near the house for fear of causing suspicion. They knew +the depth and cunning of the man so well, that it was necessary to use +every precaution. He might feign extreme illness in order to put them +off their guard, and might again escape. So it was arranged that +Lieutenant Fowler and Josiah should watch the outside of the house, +while the other two went in, accompanied by the constable, who was well +up to his work, having been sent down from a larger place some years +ago, and recommended to the office by a gentleman high in authority. + +"'The Maister' es very bad in bed, sar," said Alice Ann, making a low +curtsey to the squire, as she opened the door; "Miss Reeney es up in har +room, very bad too, for what I can tell; for I haan't seed har for a +bra' bit. I'll call har down, sar. Step inside, ef you plaise." And she +ushered them into the best parlour. + +As the house was well watched and guarded, the squire and Mr. Morley +thought it would be but courteous to see the daughter, and smooth it +over to her as well as they could. Justice must have its course, but it +would have been cruel to have distressed the poor innocent girl more +than was absolutely necessary. They intended to try to get her away +somewhere first, and then she would not feel the disgrace so much. The +constable, however, was for executing his warrant at once without +showing favour or affection to anyone, man, woman, or child; and if the +magistrate had not been there in person to check him, he would have made +short work of it; for he was a rough, determined character, and had been +in office long enough to be hardened in the stern duties he was +sometimes obliged to perform. He had suffered for showing too much +lenity to persons in his early career and he was determined that +shouldn't happen again. + +After a short time, Alrina made her appearance, pale and wretched, with +swollen eyes, and a fevered brow, which her visitors, who knew not the +real cause, attributed to her grief and anxiety for her father. The +squire told her as gently as he could, that they had an unpleasant duty +to perform, which must be done; and he advised her to leave the house, +and seek the protection of some friend. + +"Alas!" she replied; "what friend have I to fly to? I have no one in the +world but my father and my aunt, to look to for protection. My father +lies upstairs on a bed of sickness, and he has no one but myself to +nurse him; and where my aunt is I know not. Oh! gentlemen, have pity on +me, if not on my father;--he is my father, whatever evil he may have +done. Spare him for my sake! Consider, squire Pendray, you have +daughters of your own,--consider their feelings if placed in my +situation. My poor father to be taken from a bed of sickness, where I +have endeavoured to do all in my power to relieve his sufferings, and to +ease his pain,--to be taken out by the rough hands of the executors of +the law, and cast into a cold damp prison! Oh! gentlemen, on my knees I +beg you to allow him to remain here with me. It may not be long." And, +falling on her knees, she clasped the squire by the hand, and burst into +a flood of tears. + +It was an affecting sight. The squire remembered his own daughters, and +their fond affection for their father, and would have relented; and Mr. +Morley, although he was the one most aggrieved, turned away from the sad +scene. It was heartrending to see one so young and lovely on her bended +knees, praying for her father's relief from present punishment. + +It was but a slight request after all. + +"Why not let the constable remain here?" said Mr. Morley at last. "Two +if you like." + +"Yes! two!" exclaimed Alrina, rising suddenly, and approaching Mr. +Morley; "only allow my father to remain here under my care and nursing, +until he is able to be removed (if it must be so), and I will ask no +more. Oh! squire Pendray!--Oh! Mr. Morley!" continued she, appealing to +each of them by turns; "think what it is to have a father taken from +you, and in this way! Let him remain here,--oh! pray, let him remain." + +The constable was made of sterner stuff. He had been constable many +years, and knew his duty when he had a warrant placed in his hands; and, +seeing that Mr. Morley had given way already, and that the squire would +soon follow his example, he thought it was time to speak. + +"I tell 'ee what et es, squire," said he; "you have put a warrant in my +hands agen John Freeman, the Land's-End conjuror, and what not, and Mr. +Morley's oath es gone forth agen him; and ef you wink at et now, and the +man shud escape, what do you think will be the upshot of et? Why, we +shall have to take the conjuror's place for compromising a +felony,--that's about the time o' day, gentlemen. I've suffered before +for tender-heartedness, and I don't mean to do et agen; so ef miss will +show me the room I'll follow her, or else I'll find et out by myself." + +Alrina now turned to the constable and besought him to pity her, and, if +it must be so, to remain there, and she would make him as comfortable as +possible. + +"Oh! sir!" she said, "if you have a daughter, think of her feelings, +should her father be taken from her, as you would take away mine,--oh! +in pity think of that sir!" + +"That's the very thing I'm thinking about, miss," replied the constable; +"and I'm thinking that my daughter wud have to go through the same trial +as you are going through now, ef I wor to lev the conjuror go. No! no! +miss, rather he than me, axing your pardon. Why lor' bless you, miss, +tesn't much when you're used to et. We'll take care of the old +gentleman, as much as ef he had be'n the old gentleman hisself. I've got +a tidy little covered cart outside, and we'll clap 'n in, and travel to +Penzance to-night, and to-morrow mornin' he'll be broft before the +magistrates and committed, ef he's guilty,--and he's sure to be, I +s'pose,--and then on to Bodmin. Why, 'twill be a nice little ride for 'n +miss." + +"Oh! don't, please don't, paint such a terrible picture as that," said +Alrina, looking' up at the inexorable constable, with the tears +glistening in her eyes. + +"Come," said he, "I'm not going to be made chicken-hearted. Show me the +way to his room,--we're wasting time." And he led the way out of the +room, followed by the others. + +Alrina, now, seeing that tears and entreaties would not avail, preceded +the party upstairs; but when she arrived at her father's bedroom-door, +she stopped and begged the constable to allow her to go in first, to +break the nature of their business to him, and prepare him for their +approach. + +"No!" said the constable, sharply, placing his hand on the handle of the +door; "that dodge won't do, my pretty lady. A cunning man and a shrewd +woman are a match for the devil, when they get together." So, seeing she +had no alternative but to open the door and admit them, Alrina, with a +trembling hand, lifted the latch, and, preceding the others, hastily +gained the side of the bed, and, kneeling down, begged her father not to +be frightened, for he would be treated kindly. She said this without +looking on his face; for she knew she could say nothing to comfort him, +and she did not like to witness the shock which this untimely intrusion +must occasion, and so she pressed her face on the bed, as she knelt, and +said these few introductory words, and waited to hear what he would say +to his unwelcome visitors. No one spoke for a few minutes. A deathlike +silence prevailed throughout the room. At last the constable broke the +spell by saying,-- + +"Escaped again, by George!" + +"Escaped!" cried Alrina, jumping up from her kneeling posture; "thank +God for that. But how escaped? how could he----?" + +She did not finish her sentence; for, looking down where she had dreaded +to look before, the awful truth was but too evident. There was no +mistaking it. There lay the earthly remains of her poor deluded father, +it was true, but the spirit had indeed escaped, and fled to regions +unknown! + +The shock was too great for her. She had suffered the severest mental +agony that day that it was possible for mortal to bear. She had borne up +bravely while there appeared a chance of saving her father from +disgrace; but now she broke down altogether, and fell on the floor +insensible. Alice Ann had followed the intruders into the room; and, as +all her efforts to rouse her young mistress were in vain, she asked the +gentlemen to assist in carrying her into her own room. + +Fowler and Josiah were called in, and a consultation was held as to +where Alrina should be placed for the present. She could not remain +there, under the circumstances,--that was very clear. Several plans were +proposed and discussed, but nothing could be decided on for her. She +might object to them all when she recovered her senses. At last Squire +Pendray proposed that she should be conveyed to his house, where he was +sure she would be taken care of; and he felt, moreover, although he did +not express it, that the companionship of such a noble strong-minded +girl might lead to the recovery of his own daughter. This was thought an +excellent plan, and everyone declared that the squire was most kind and +considerate. But then came another difficulty. She would not accept his +offer now, he feared, any more than she would the offer that was made +her by his wife, before. And in this he thought she acted +foolishly,--more foolishly than he should have imagined from the good +sense she had displayed in other respects. + +Under these circumstances, he thought, they must get her to +Pendrea-house by stratagem, and, when there, he felt sure she would like +it too well to run away, and he was sure his family would approve of the +plan, and would make her as comfortable as possible. So it was arranged +that she should be taken carefully, in her present unconscious state, +and placed gently in the covered cart, well wrapped up, and that Alice +Ann should go also to take care of her, on the road. This plan Alice Ann +thought capital. So the poor unconscious girl was carried out gently by +Josiah in his great strong arms, and placed comfortably in the covered +cart, with Alice Ann by her side, and Josiah was left in charge of the +house and the dead body of its late owner. + +Mr. Morley said he must go and see his brother again; for he feared that +the sufferings and privations he had lately undergone, had seriously +impaired his health and undermined his constitution. So he went on to +"The Commercial" inn, while the squire and Lieut. Fowler proceeded +towards their respective homes; and as their road lay the same way for +some distance, they walked together. Fowler made himself so agreeable to +the old gentleman during their walk that he was sorry to part with him +when their roads turned in different directions. He did not ask him, +however, to continue his companion all the way to Pendrea-house; but +during his solitary walk after they had parted, he began to think that +such an agreeable fellow could never really be the villain he supposed +him to be with regard to his conduct towards his daughter. His opinion +of him was softened a good deal; and if a satisfactory explanation of +his conduct could have been given just then, and a proposal made in a +straightforward honourable way, the old gentleman would, no doubt, have +consented, rather than leave his daughter pine away thus,--the cause of +which he now devined so truly. But the explanation did not come, nor was +the proposal made; so the old squire walked home alone to prepare his +family for the reception of their visitor, who was being brought slowly +round by the broad road, while he and Fowler had taken a short cut +across the common. + + + + +CHAPTER XXXVII. + +JOSIAH'S LONELY MIDNIGHT WATCH IN THE CONJUROR'S HOUSE. + + +Mr. Morley found his brother still in bed; not because he was too ill to +get up--for the walk and the cold bath had done him good--but for the +simple reason that he had no clothes to put on. Those he wore in the +morning were too wet, and he had not yet received a fresh supply from +the "First and Last" inn, at Sennen, where he had left his things when +he started so suddenly on his journey some weeks before. So Mr. Morley +sat by his bedside, and got him to relate his adventures, which he did +very faithfully, until he came to the adventure of that morning; and +then Mr. Morley saw there was a reluctance to tell all. But he was +determined to know everything, and he pressed his brother to confide in +him; and, after some little hesitation, he told all, except his attempt +at self-destruction. He didn't tell that; but he dwelt long on the +conduct of Alrina, and asked his brother if he could give him any clue +to the discovery of Alrina's motive for treating him so coldly and +cruelly. + +"Yes," replied his brother; "I think I can fathom it; and although I +think Miss Freeman is a noble girl, yet I think, when I have related to +you my adventures of the last few weeks, you will think that she is +right, and that you have luckily escaped being mixed up in a most +unpleasant affair, that must have embittered your whole life, had not +that noble girl been more prudent than yourself." + +It will be remembered that Frederick knew nothing of his brother's +search at Mr. Freeman's house, when he found his chest there, and the +money gone,--nor did he know of the second attempt, that morning, to +secure the man of cunning, nor of his death,--nor, indeed, had he heard +of his brother's success in entering the deserted house near +Bristol;--so that Mr. Morley had a long and interesting tale to relate. + +Frederick was very much excited several times during the recital, and +seemed to drink in every word, as it were, especially when his brother +arrived at the latter part of his recital, wherein Alrina pleaded so +piteously for a delay of her father's punishment. + +A long silence ensued when the tale was ended. At last Mr. Morley +said,-- + +"Now, do you see Miss Freeman's motive for her treatment of you this +morning?" + +"Noble girl!" exclaimed Frederick; "I see it all, she knew her father's +guilt, and did violence to her feelings to save me from being involved +in the sad affair. But after all, I cannot understand why she should say +she couldn't love me;--why not have told me all, and have left it to me +to act according to the dictates of my own feelings?" + +"She knew you better than you knew yourself," replied his brother; "and +I repeat that she acted nobly, and you ought to consider yourself lucky, +that you have escaped a life of misery; for, however deeply you may love +this girl now, in the warmth of a first and youthful love, you would +find that your ardour would cool considerably, when you saw the world +looking coldly on your wife, and avoiding her society, as the child of a +felon, and worse, perhaps, however good and lovely she may be in +herself. No! no! take my word for it, my dear brother, you will thank +her for the course she has pursued, when you have calmly reflected on +it." + +"Never!" said Frederick, passionately; "instead of weakening my love for +her, this noble conduct of hers, has endeared her to me a hundred-fold. +What care I for the sneers of the world, if I have Alrina's love? I will +go to her at once, and have a full explanation; and if, as you think, +she declined my love for the sake of preventing my being subjected to +the sneers and scorns of the world, I will compel her to marry me." + +"Stay," said Mr. Morley; "you must first ascertain that my conjecture +is the right one; but I wouldn't advise you to see her yourself. Let me +see her for you." + +"No," said his brother; "I will see her myself." And as his clothes had +arrived by this time, he dressed and accompanied his brother back to +Tol-pedn-Penwith, where Lieutenant Fowler had no difficulty in +accommodating them both, although his house was so small. He ordered an +extra hammock to be slung up in the largest of the sleeping apartments, +where the two brothers slept soundly till a late hour the next morning, +as they were both very tired. + +Josiah, in the meantime, kept watch and guard over "the Maister's" house +and its contents. It was pleasant enough while the daylight lasted; but +when night came on, and darkness covered the face of the earth, Josiah +thought it was very whisht to be there in that house all alone. So he +went down to his father's, and had a good supper, and something to +drink. This made him feel very comfortable, and he wished them all +good-night, took a lantern with him, and went back again to his solitary +watch. + +Josiah was a courageous man at all times when there was any real danger +to be feared, and a strong man, as everybody knew. The man must be more +than mortal who could make Josiah afraid, but he had a strong +superstitious feeling in his composition; and who had not in those +days?--and if there was an excuse for the feeling at all, it certainly +might be excused in such a case as this. Here was the man who had been +the dread of the neighbourhood, and who was believed to have dealings +with the Evil One, lying dead in that lonely house, where so many evil +deeds had been done, some of which had been discovered within the last +few days. That he was a man to be feared and dreaded no one doubted; but +whether he really had the power which many gave him credit for, remained +to be proved yet. Josiah thought that perhaps it would be his fate to +prove this; and it cannot be denied that he felt rather uncomfortable, +when he found himself seated in the kitchen of that house, not only +without the pleasant society of Alice Ann, but, as he well knew, without +having any human habitation within some distance of him. + +His mother had kindly given him a flask of brandy, that he might indulge +in the prevailing amusement at that period, of "keeping his spirits up, +by pouring spirits down;" and so he sat down in the chair usually +occupied by Alice Ann, having first placed a glass and some water on the +table, and began to reflect on the vicissitudes of human life in +general, and of his life in particular; and then he began to speculate +on the prospects of happiness which seemed to loom in the future, when +he should have led Alice Ann to the altar, and settled down as a married +man. These thoughts were all very pleasant, and so was the +brandy-and-water. The candle was burning brightly and so was the fire, +and he thought he was "getten on brave." + +He had got nearly to the bottom of the second glass of +brandy-and-water, and was beginning to feel quite comfortable and happy. +He only wanted one thing to add to his perfect happiness he thought, and +that was the pleasure of Alice Ann's society. It was drawing towards +midnight, and he was feeling drowsy, so he dropped off into a sound +sleep as he sat in his chair, and dreamed of her he last thought of +before he fell asleep. He fancied he heard her upstairs, brushing out +the rooms, and knocking the furniture about, as servants frequently do, +merely to show that they are doing something. She was making a +tremendous noise certainly, he thought, and he called to her, in his +sleep, not to make so much noise, to disturb "The Maister." But the +noise continued, nevertheless; and when he awoke he found the candle +burnt down in the socket, and the fire nearly gone out; so he +replenished the fire first, and then looked about for another candle, +but before he could find one, he heard, as he thought, a strange noise +in "The Maister's" room. What could it be? No one could have got into +the house; he had locked the doors,--he was sure of that, but still +there was a noise--that was evident; and someone was walking up and down +the room upstairs. What could it be? + +The candle, which had been flickering in the socket, and wavering +between life and death, as it were, for some seconds, now went out +entirely, and left Josiah in perfect darkness. He searched in vain for +another candle,--he couldn't find one anywhere; and then he tried to +find the door of the kitchen, but he could not find it. He went round +and round the room, as he thought, but no door could he find; so at +length he came back to his chair again, which he found by the aid of the +glimmer of light from the fire which he had nearly extinguished in his +haste to replenish it, when he saw the candle flickering away. + +He now fully made up his mind that he was spellbound, and that "The +Maister's" spirit was walking through the house; but as the noise had +ceased he became a little more reconciled, and helped himself to some +more brandy, after which he fell fast asleep again, and when he awoke it +was broad daylight. + +He rubbed his eyes and looked about the room, forgetting for a moment +where he was; and then he began to think of his absurd fancies about +being spellbound and "piskey-led," and such nonsense; and he laughed +aloud and went out into the fresh morning air. The doors were barred and +all secure, as he had left them when he came in the night before. But +still he heard those strange noises in his ears, and he could not get +rid of the feeling that the "The Maister's" spirit was walking in his +room last night. He locked the door behind him, and went down the road +towards his father's house to breakfast. + +"Why, 'Siah, boy," said Captain Trenow, laughing, as his son +approached, "you're looking so whisht as ef you'd seed a ghost. "The +Maister" dedn't trouble 'ee in the night, ded aw?" + +"I caen't tell," replied Josiah, "what et wor, but I heerd a bra' noise +in the night." + +"Why, what are 'ee tellen?" exclaimed Mrs. Trenow, coming to the door; +"I always thoft hes sperit wud walk, ef anybody's ever ded." + +"Nonsense!" said Captain Trenow; "you're two patticks, both of 'ee." + +Josiah would not be persuaded out of the belief, however, that "The +Maister's" spirit was walking in his room last night. + +"I'm no coward, fe-a-thar, and that you do knaw," said he; "but I arn't +fitty for to stop up there another night by myself, nor I wean't nether +to plaise nobody,--there, na." + +His father turned the whole tale into ridicule, and laughed at the idea +of noises being heard in "The Maister's" chamber, when there was no one +in the house but Josiah. + +"I'll tell 'ee, my son," said the old man, at length, with a wicked +twinkle in his eye; "the brandy was too strong, I reckon. Ha! ha! ha!" + +Josiah was about to reply indignantly to this insinuation, when they +were disturbed by a knock at the door. + +"Dear lor'!" said Mrs. Trenow, rising to open the door; "why, who can be +come so early, I wondar?" + +She soon returned, saying that the undertakers wanted to go in to do +their work. + +"Aw! iss, sure," said Josiah; "the door es locked, sure nuff." + +"Come," said Captain Trenow; "we may as well go down too, and make sure +that no more noises shall be heard. I shudn't like for 'ee to be +frightened worse than you are, boy." + +So they went down together; and, as Josiah unlocked the door, his father +said in a sarcastic tone,--"Now, don't you be frightened, my son." + +Josiah did not answer, but led the way upstairs to "The Maister's" +bedroom, which adjoined the mysterious room, so often referred to in +this history; and having unlocked the door, he led the way into the room +where only a few hours before that affecting scene had been witnessed, +which we have before recorded. + +The awful escape from the hands of justice of one who seemed deserving +of a severe punishment, and the consequent shock to the nervous system +of a lovely and noble-minded girl, who would have braved everything to +save her father from ignominy and suffering,--this scene was no novelty +to the undertaker's mermidons. They were accustomed to view dead bodies +continually, in their calling. They had been working all night, in order +to be in time, and they had brought the fruits of their labour with +them, and proceeded, without ceremony, towards the bed, when they +started back in amazement! for,--the bed was empty! + +"The Maister" was gone!--fled! But where?--that was the question. They +searched the room, but found nothing. There was a communication, +however, between the bedroom and "The Maister's" private room which no +one remembered ever having seen before;--it must have been concealed by +some paintings hung against the wall. It was open now--wide open. They +went through, into the mysterious room, and there they found that the +drawers had been opened and ransacked, and all the valuables taken away. +The belt containing the diamonds and jewels, which had been put into one +of the drawers in that room, was gone. Captain Trenow was the first to +discover this; for he had found it in undressing "The Maister," and he +it was who had suggested to Alrina the propriety of locking it up in one +of those drawers. + + + + +CHAPTER XXXVIII. + +THE SEARCH. + + +The news soon spread that the conjuror--body and soul--had vanished from +the room in which he was supposed to have died; and various were the +reports that got into circulation. Some said they didn't believe he had +been there at all; others thought he wasn't dead when the squire and +party left him; while others again believed that he was really dead, but +that, by some supernatural agency, he had been resuscitated and taken +away through the keyhole, or up the chimney, and that probably he was +then wandering about invisible. And those who held this belief were +pitiable objects; for they feared to speak a word against "The Maister," +lest he should instantly appear in his bodily form, and annihilate them +as they stood. The dread of "The Maister" and his evil eye was bad +enough when he was alive and in the flesh, but now it was ten times +worse. Little knots of gossips might be seen here and there, holding +private conversations in whispers;--but that was all nonsense, the +believers in the supernatural would say. If "The Maister" was walking +about invisible he could come close enough to hear them, whisper so low +as they would. + +Josiah was rather glad than otherwise that things had turned out as they +had; for his father didn't laugh at him now for fancying he heard noises +in the night. Captain Trenow thought it was Josiah's duty to go and +inform the gentlemen at Tol-pedn-Penwith what had happened, and Josiah +was of the same opinion, but he said he wouldn't go unless his father +went with him. + +"What! afeard to go up there in the day-time now, art aw?" said his +father; "why, we shall be forced for to have a little maid for to lead +thee about soon." + +"No, no," said Josiah, smiling; "I arn't afeard. Tesn't that altogether, +but you knaw what 'twas this mornin' when I told the story, and it may +be the same up there,--sure to be, I s'pose, weth them youngsters, that +don't believe in no such thing as ghosts. No, no, I arn't going for to +be made a maagum of, don't you think et." + +"Well, ef that's the case," said his father, "why, I'll go too." + +So away the two men started at a brisk pace; and it was well they both +went, for the gentlemen could scarcely believe the tale, although it was +confirmed in a most solemn manner by the old man, who did not look or +speak as if he was trying to deceive them. + +As the squire had taken an active interest in the affair, it was thought +advisable to consult him before they took any steps to follow the +fugitive, for although they did not believe that there was anything +supernatural connected with it, they were at a loss to conjecture what +it was, or how such a strange affair could have happened. + +They appeared a formidable party as they emerged from the lieutenant's +cabin, each man stooping to avoid knocking his head against the upper +part of the low doorway as he came out. They were all tall and +strong-built,--indeed you would not meet with five such fine-looking men +again in a good distance. They were embarked in one common cause; so +they kept together, and approached Pendrea-house, a strong body. + +Alrina, after a good night's rest, seemed more cheerful, and was pleased +at the little attentions shewn her by Mrs. Pendray and her daughters. +Blanche was most attentive to her;--she would not leave her for a single +moment, and seemed to be continually thinking what she could do more +than she had done to make their guest comfortable. Maud received her +kindly and paid her great attention, but it seemed constrained; she +appeared to look upon her as an inferior, almost an infected, being, +from her unfortunate connection with that man, whom everyone now spoke +of with disgust and abhorrence; for all his evil doings that had yet +been discovered were now pretty generally known and perhaps exaggerated. + +In the course of the morning, as Alrina regained her wonted composure, +her situation became more apparent and galling. She could not but +appreciate the kindness of the family, and especially the delicate +attention of the gentle Blanche, for whom Alrina conceived an almost +intuitive love, as for a dear sister; and therefore, for the present, +she thought she must accept their kindness, and when all was done that +was necessary for the interment of the remains of her poor erring +father, she would seek some employment by which she might maintain +herself without being a burden on others. + +The money and jewels which Captain Trenow had found on her father's +person, she determined she would not touch; for doubtless they had +belonged to others and had been unlawfully obtained. Poor girl! +notwithstanding all that the ladies at Pendrea were doing for her, and +the kind attention they bestowed on her, she was ill-at-ease. She had +many heavy thoughts and afflictions weighing her down, which her kind +friends knew not of. Her father's death was not the greatest. Alas! she +had, in her loftiness of soul, discarded the only being in the world who +could have relieved her present sufferings and made everything smooth +and bearable for her at this terrible juncture. She had decided on her +course, however, in that respect; and the deep love she felt for him +made her now more than ever determined not to bring disgrace upon him. +After the treatment he had received at her hands, however, she did not +believe he would ever come near her again, or think of her but with +disdain;--indeed she did not deserve that he should,--she had taken her +course, and she felt that she did not deserve his love or pity any more. +This thought racked her brain, and rendered her silent and reserved. Her +kind friends imputed it to her grief for her father's death, and the +circumstances under which it had taken place. They knew now the strange +story of the body having disappeared; but the squire thought it best not +to let Alrina know this until they had ascertained more fully concerning +it, and for this purpose he cheerfully received the formidable party +that now sought his aid and co-operation. + +They sat long in consultation,--one suggesting one plan, and one +another. Frederick Morley, however, did not feel capable of joining in +their deliberations. He walked to the window, and looked out on the +dreary scene which bounded that wing of the house; but nothing that he +could see without seemed so dreary, at that moment, as that which he +felt within. He didn't care for the old conjuror, he said to himself, he +might go to the devil if he would,--perhaps he was gone there. He wanted +to see Alrina, and he knew that she was in that house, but how could he +get an interview with her without betraying their secret? + +He excused himself to the squire, and went out into the garden. Here he +met one of the female servants, whom he had seen before in his former +visits to the house with Lieutenant Fowler. He entered into conversation +with her, and asked her in what he thought a disinterested off-hand +manner, about Miss Alrina Freeman. But the shrewd girl saw at once how +matters stood, and she pitied them both. He tore a leaf from his +pocket-book, and wrote a few hurried lines in pencil, and asked her to +convey them to Miss Freeman, which the girl undertook to do as soon as +the way was clear. Cunning girl! she knew at once, almost by instinct, +that there was something between those two, which they did not wish the +world to know at present. Even the prospect of having these few lines +conveyed to Alrina was some relief to Frederick and he returned to his +friends, who were still deep in consultation, but no plan had as yet +been decided on. At length Captain Trenow, who had listened to all their +plans without giving an opinion, said,-- + +"I'll tell 'ee, gentlemen,--'The Maister' dedn't walk off by hisself, +that's a sure thing. Now, who helped 'n?--that's the point. Who are his +friends? Tell me that, and we may guess, purty nigh, where he's likely +to be carr'd to. + +"Why I'll tell 'ee, fe-a-thar," said Josiah; "I b'lieve the friends he +ha' got are them that slocked away Maister Frederick Morley here, and +pocked 'n down in the cellar." + +"Zackly like that," replied his father, looking at the gentlemen in a +knowing way; "'Birds of a feather do flock together.'" + +"A good thought!" exclaimed Mr. Morley, rising. "Don't let us lose any +time, but proceed at once." + +Horses were procured from the neighbouring farmers--for there were no +gigs or dog-carts in those days at the Land's-End--and they started on +their expedition; but lest so formidable a party should alarm the +neighbourhood, they agreed to go by different routes and to meet at +Portagnes, and to go in a body to Cooper's house; for that the body of +the conjuror was taken there no one seemed to doubt;--it was the only +place they could think of at all likely. For, although one of the party +strongly believed that the noises he heard, and the removal of the body, +were caused by supernatural agency, he did not express his thoughts on +that point, but followed the others, fully persuaded that they would +find their labour in vain. + +Frederick Morley lingered behind his party a little, and under pretence +of having left something behind at Pendrea, he returned there, promising +to overtake his brother and the squire shortly. Fowler had gone another +way, accompanied by Captain Trenow and Josiah. + +Frederick had indeed left something behind at Pendrea, and, knowing that +Alrina was there, he determined not to leave that place without having +an interview with her, and hearing from her own lips an explanation of +her conduct; and if it was from any feeling of delicacy, or as he deemed +it foolish fear, that by uniting herself with him she would be bringing +disgrace upon him and his family, he would insist on her recalling her +vow, if she had made one; and if she still loved him as he believed she +did, nothing on earth should prevent him from making her his own, and +claiming it as his right to cherish and protect her against all the +world. + +This feeling had become a thousand times stronger than ever now, since +he knew that she so much wanted protection. It strengthened his love, if +possible, and made him more determined than ever not to leave that +place without seeing her, and compelling her to give up her foolish +scruples, and become his wife without delay; and the more he thought of +her present destitute position, the more did he blame himself for ever +having left her. + +In the meanwhile, the squire and Mr. Morley pressed on their horses +towards Portagnes, thinking that Frederick would overtake them; but as +he did not, they supposed he had taken the other route, and had joined +Lieutenant Fowler's party. They met according to appointment; but +Frederick was not there. No one had seen him since he left them to +search for what he said he had left behind at Pendrea-house. However, +every moment was of consequence now, and they determined on proceeding +at once to Cooper's house, where they believed they should find the +fugitive. No one except Josiah doubted this for a moment; so it was +determined that the outside of the house should be closely watched, by +two of the party, while the others effected an entrance, by force if +necessary. The constable, with his warrant, had accompanied Fowler and +his party; and the lieutenant had left orders for two of his men to go +round by water to the entrance of the cavern, and keep a look-out +there,--so that escape was now impossible. + +Lieutenant Fowler and Josiah watched outside, while the other three, +accompanied by the constable, proceeded to effect an entrance into the +house. They found the outer door of the garden unlocked, and they +thought they should gain an easy entrance; for the fugitives had +evidently either not returned there or were confident of their security. +These thoughts passed through the mind of each as they passed from the +outer door, through the garden, to the door of the house. Here, however, +they found an obstacle, for the door was bolted. They knocked several +times, and, no answer being returned, they held a consultation as to the +best way to break open the door, when a head protruded from one of the +upper windows, and they were asked, rather sharply, what they wanted. + +"Come down, you old hag, and open the door, or we'll break it open," +said Mr. Morley, in an angry tone, giving the door several knocks at the +same time with his walking-stick. + +"Don't be so hasty, gentlemen," said the woman; "I was fool enough to +let you in last time, but you shan't come over me so easy again, I can +tell 'ee. You should oft to be ashamed of yourselves,--iss you ded--for +to come here with your staves and clubs to frighten a poor lone woman +like me." + +"Come down, you miserable specimen of humanity," said the squire, "and +open the door, or it shall be broken open, and your house ransacked from +top to bottom, and you will not be let off so easily this time, I can +tell you." + +"What did you please to want gentleman, when you do get in?" asked the +woman, in what the squire thought a very impertinent tone. And he was +about to reply, in a manner which would have given the woman an +opportunity of keeping up the conversation, and thereby keeping them out +of the house for a considerable time longer, when the constable thought +it was time for him to begin; for he was a shrewd man in his way, and +saw the woman's object. He believed she was keeping them in conversation +outside, in order to give the other inmates time to get away or to +conceal themselves in the house somewhere; so he said in as commanding a +tone as he could,-- + +"You know me, good woman, don't you?" + +"No, I don't," she replied, "and, what's more, I don't want to." + +"I'm the head constable of the district I am," said he; "and I claim +entrance, in the King's name, under a bench warrant." + +"I don't care if you're the tail constable; you shan't come in here," +replied the woman, shutting down the window. + +"Thank you for nothing," said the constable; for at this moment the door +was opened from the inside by Captain Trenow, who had gone round the +house to reconnoitre, while the others were still trying to persuade the +old woman to let them in; and, finding a window open at the back of the +house, he entered that way, and now admitted the whole party. The old +woman protested there was no one in the house but herself, and so it +turned out; for they searched everywhere--upstairs and down--in the +cellars and even out to the extremity of the cavern. There was no one +there; so they beat a retreat and went back to the house they had before +met at, hoping that by this time Frederick had arrived; but in this they +were also disappointed. He was not there, nor had he been seen by +anyone; so, after partaking of a hasty refreshment, they turned their +horses' heads once more in the direction of the Land's-End, crestfallen +and disappointed. + + + + +CHAPTER XXXIX. + +THE UNEXPECTED MEETING AND MYSTERIOUS COMMUNICATION. + + +While the gentlemen were holding their consulation at Pendrea-house, the +ladies of the establishment were variously occupied. Mrs. Pendrea was +superintending the cooking of some nice little sweet dish for a poor +sick child in the neighbourhood, and the two young ladies were seemingly +playing at hide-and-seek with one another, and wandering from room to +room, in hopes of hearing something, or of catching a sight of their +lovers; while Alrina was left alone to meditate on her sad fate. + +She had not been alone long, however, before the door was opened +cautiously, and a servant entered, and closing the door after her in a +very mysterious way, and, approaching the couch on which Alrina was +resting, she put her finger on her lips, as much as to say, "Be silent," +and gave Alrina a slip of paper on which was written, or rather +scrawled, hastily in pencil-- + + + "_Dearest Alrina.--I am wretched,--miserable! Grant me an interview + for a few minutes. I have something of the greatest importance to + communicate. I will be in the garden at the back of the house as + soon as the other gentlemen are gone. I shall go out with them to + prevent suspicion, and return on some pretence. The faithful bearer + of this will assist you and let you know when._ + + "_Adieu--my dearest love,_ + "_Frederick._" + + +When her attendant saw the agitation into which the young lady was +thrown, on the perusal of this scrap of paper, her former conjectures +were confirmed, and she determined to do her best to assist the two +lovers. She had a sympathetic feeling, and she retired to the window +under pretence of putting the blind straight, while Alrina perused, and +reperused, these few pencilled lines, so dear to her. She thought but a +few hours ago that she had overcome every feeling but that of duty and +honor, and that she could look upon him whom she so dearly loved, as a +brother. It was for his good that she had decided on this course; and +she believed that she should have firmness and courage to carry it out +to the end; and but a short time ago she felt so strong in her mind and +will, that she wished to see him once more to tell him so again. But she +then feared that no opportunity would ever offer, and that she should +never see him again to explain to him fully the state; of her mind, and +her real motives of action; for she felt that she had wronged him in +what she had said, and wounded his feelings when she told him she could +not love him. She knew she ought not to have said that; but what else +could she say? Her father was alive then, and might recover; she could +not tell her lover of her father's faults and crimes; and what was she +to do? Now, that he was dead, all was known, and Frederick believed, she +must now know all too, and she could now tell him why she could not +marry him; and she wished and longed to see him once more--only once +more--and now the opportunity had come; it might never come again. But +her heart failed her; she could not see him and tell him calmly that +they must part for ever, and explain her reasons fully, so as to make +him understand clearly what she meant. No, she could not do this; and +yet she felt that she must see him once more. So she decided on obeying +the promptings of her heart; and calling the maid to her, she said she +wished to be informed when the gentlemen left, and then she would walk +in the back garden a little. It was not at all necessary to explain +anything further to that shrewd girl, for she immediately saw how things +stood, and managed accordingly. + +The Pendrea ladies were summoned to the drawing-room, almost immediately +after the departure of the gentlemen, to entertain Captain and Mrs. +Courland and their niece, who had come to return the call the squire and +his lady had made on them a few days before at Penzance, where they had +taken lodgings. Nothing could be better for the interview between the +lovers. + +Grace, the go-between, as she styled herself, was delighted. She +immediately went to Alrina's room, and informed her that all was ready, +and that the coast was clear; which information rather astonished the +young lady,--for she could not conceive how Grace should know that she +wanted the coast clear; unless Frederick had told her more than she +thought was prudent. However, she had made up her mind to go through +with it; and, having put on her bonnet and shawl, which the prudent +Grace had brought with her, followed her conductress into the garden, +when Grace shewed her prudence again by withdrawing and leaving the two +lovers to themselves. + +Alrina trembled at the thought of the terrible trial she was about to go +through, and her heart throbbed at every step as she walked down the +narrow pathway of the little garden, which was at the very back of the +house, secluded from view and sheltered by high walls, with no window to +overlook it, although, when you were inside, every part of it was +exposed enough, for the trees were very few and stunted. + +Frederick had not arrived, evidently, unless he was concealed in the +little arbour at the bottom of the garden. Alrina walked down to it and +looked in. No, he was not there,--something had detained him, no doubt. +She waited, and waited, and walked up and down; still he did not come. +She was getting cold. She climbed up so as to look over the wall, but +could see nothing of him; and now she began to think he had deceived +her. He had taken this course to be revenged for the insult she had +offered him, when she told him--he to whom she had so often before +avowed the fondest love--that she could not love him. Yes; he had indeed +been revenged, and she felt that she deserved it all. + +But hark! she hears a footstep approaching towards the garden-door. Her +ears are quick; they have been listening intensely for some time. Yes! +it must be. She rushes towards the door, and is caught in the arms of +two lovely girls. + +"Alrina, you naughty girl," exclaimed Blanch, "how could you be so +imprudent as to come out in this cold wind? + +"Alrina!" exclaimed the young lady; "can it be possible? you, here!--and +have I found you at last, my darling schoolfellow!" And the two girls, +in their gushing love, embraced most lovingly and affectionately; and +then there were explanations to be given and rereceived, and Blanche led +the way into Alrina's room, where Julia informed Blanche how they had +been at school together, and how her brother Frederick had fallen in +love with Alrina, when she was out walking, and how she had carried +letters and messages between them, and how her brother had searched for +Alrina everywhere, when he returned from abroad, and had written her to +search everywhere for his lost lady-love too; and kissing Alrina, in her +girlish way, she said, "Oh! how glad Frederick will be to find you +here." + +Alrina could do nothing but kiss her friend, in return for all her kind +expressions and caresses. What could she say? She felt glad--very +glad--to see her old schoolfellow; but, under the circumstances, it was +mixed up with too much pain and sorrow to give her any permanent +pleasure. + +Very soon Julia was summoned to attend her uncle and aunt on their +return to Penzance. They had taken a very substantial lunch while the +three girls had been having their _tête-à-tête_. + +Captain Courland and his party had travelled by easy stages, for they +had come all the way in their own carriage with post-horses. It was one +of those old lumbering carriages intended to hold six inside--a regular +family coach. + +"Well, ladies," said the Captain, as he seated himself; "I wish you +would take pattern by Mrs. Pendray; she had no hoops, nor farthingales +on,--a plain homely woman. No nonsense,--everything above board." + +"Yes, my dear," replied Mrs. Courland; "a very pleasant, agreeable, +little woman, as I have met with for a long time; but in the country +they are not always dressed for receiving visitors." + +"And didn't you like Blanche, aunt?" asked Julia; "she is such a dear +girl." + +"A nice little girl enough, I dare say," said the captain, answering the +question for his wife; "but her elder sister seemed to snub her, I +thought. 'Shiver my mizen,' thinks I, I'd haul down your topgallant +sails, miss, if I were your father." + +"My dear," said Mrs. Courland, "I wish you would try to forget your sea +terms when you are in the society of ladies. I observed Miss Pendray +looking at you with astonishment several times, when you were giving out +some of your elegant expressions." + +"I wish the squire had been home," replied her husband, without noticing +the remarks of his wife; for he was accustomed to these rebukes,--not +that she said them or meant them ill-naturedly, but she inherited her +mother's aristocratic notions, and could not endure anything approaching +to vulgarity or coarseness. She had not had very much of her husband's +society in former years, for he was only at home for a few months at a +time, and then his time was very much occupied, being the principal +owner of the ship he commanded. But, now he had nothing to do, and was +at home constantly, so that his elegant and accomplished wife had more +frequent opportunities of experiencing his rough sailor-like manner; not +that he was at all a coarse-minded man,--it was only his manner, which +he had naturally imbibed from the persons he was obliged to come into +such close contact with on board ship. He was naturally kind-hearted in +the extreme, and would do any good that lay in his power for a fellow +creature in distress; but he couldn't overcome his habit of using +nautical expressions, nor indeed did he try to now. He did try at first, +years ago, to speak a little more "dandified," as he called it, to +please his beautiful wife; but he found it too hard to accomplish, and +so he gave up trying, and contented himself with listening to her +lectures, good-humouredly, which he said came in at one ear and went out +at the other: and so he had listened patiently now to her remarks, and +then continued the conversation as if nothing had been said on the +"vexed" subject by his sensitive wife. + +"I wish the squire had been home," said he; "he's a jolly fellow. I hate +to be stuck up with a parcel of palavering women, and be obliged to sit +bolt upright in my chair and take out every word and look at it before I +speak, or else be hauled over the coals for it." + +"I'm sure you behaved very well to day, uncle," said Julia; "I saw Miss +Pendray looking at you several times, as if she admired your blunt, +straightforward manners." + +"Did you?" replied the captain, looking rather pleased; "I looked at her +too when she got round to the starboard-tack. Brace my rigging, says I +to myself; but you're as tight and well built a frigate from stem to +stern as ever I clap'd my two eyes upon, save one." + +"It was well you put in that saving clause, uncle," said Julia, +laughing; "or you would have made Aunt Courland jealous." + +"No, no," said the captain, taking his wife's hand affectionately, "I'm +a rough knot; but if she never makes me jealous, I shall never make her +so. Everything is upright and downright and aboveboard with me. No +secrets from my wife, no, no; and I don't think she has any secrets or +mysteries from me, although we do have a breeze now and then about the +lingo." + +"Talking of mysteries," said Julia, turning to her aunt; "who do you +think I met at Pendrea? You'll never guess, so I may as well tell you. +Why, no other than my old friend and schoolfellow, Alrina." + +"Indeed!" exclaimed Mrs. Courland; "you quite surprise me, where did she +come from?--how did she get there?" + +"I don't know," replied Julia; "for just as I was about to enquire all +the particulars, I was summoned to attend you." + +"Has Frederick seen her, or does he know she is there," asked Mrs. +Courland, with more than her usual energy. + +"I know no more than I have told you," replied Julia; "I only met her a +short time before we left; for Blanche and I had been wandering over the +curious old house, and we were just going to have a peep at what they +call their garden, when Alrina came rushing out to meet us. I was struck +with her peculiar beauty at once, for I didn't at first know her until +Blanche mentioned her name. She was but a girl when I knew her at +school; she has now grown a beautiful woman,--oh! so beautiful, Aunt, +and so fair, with that auburn hair which you admire so much. I have seen +someone very like her, but I can't remember who it is. The expression of +her countenance when she met us, was so like an expression I have seen +in some one before; but who it is I cannot remember,--it was so +strange." + +"We must ask the family to visit us at Penzance, my dear, and bring this +wonderful stranger with them," said Mrs. Courland, thoughtfully; "I +should like to know something more about her, and where she has been +hiding so long, that no trace of her could be found." + +"Oh! yes, Aunt," said Julia; "for the sake of Frederick, I'm glad she is +found again; he was so passionately devoted to her." + +"For his sake, perhaps, it would have been better if she had never +crossed our paths again," replied Mrs. Courland, talking to herself +rather than to her companions; "but the destiny of all must be +fulfilled. There is some mystery about this girl,--I am convinced there +is." + +"So am I," replied Julia; "and I shall not rest till I have found it +out." + +"Mystery!" exclaimed Captain Courland, in a voice which startled the two +ladies; "I hate mysteries. Everything open and aboveboard, say +I,--there's no occasion for mystery. I'd throw the lubber overboard, and +let him sink into Davy Jones's locker, if he didn't out with it at once, +whatever it was. 'Speak the truth and shame the devil,'--that's my +motto. I'll have no mysteries hid from me--no matter who it +is--overboard he'll go--damn me!" + +This outbreak was so sudden and so unexpected, that it made the two +ladies feel very uncomfortable, especially the elder lady, whose +conscience smote her, and made her feel that, some day, the secret she +was keeping so rigidly from her husband might be revealed to him, and +then all her happiness would be gone. For she now saw, from this sudden +outburst of feeling, how angry he could be, and to what lengths he could +carry his vengeance, if he ever found out that terrible secret, and +discovered how long he had been deceived. It was a dreadful thought and +she shuddered at it, and lay trembling in the corner of the carriage, +while Julia, having no such pricks of conscience, and being, on the +whole, more amused than otherwise at the Captain's burst of passion, +apparently without a cause, answered him in his own language as far as +she could: for she believed that it was only a reminiscence of something +that might have happened on board ship, that had so roused him; and +turning to him, with a laughing eye, she said,-- + +"There's rough weather where you're sailing, Captain, I believe." + +"Rough!" said he: "yes;--but rough or smooth, I'll have the whole of the +crew overhauled from the first mate down to the loplolly-boy; I'll make +a clean sweep. Mysteries, indeed, on board my ship!" + +"Why, whatever do you mean, Uncle?" said Julia, now getting alarmed in +right earnest. + +"Why! this is what I mean," replied he searching his pockets; "I'd +forgotten all about it, till you began to talk about mysteries and such +nonsense. When I went out to have a look about the place there, after +lunch, a queer-looking 'son of a gun' came and gave me this letter, and +cut off again as if the devil was at his heels. Now, you just read that, +and see if I haven't enough to make me look out for squalls! what the +devil is the meaning of it? I don't know!" + +Julia took the letter from her uncle, and read the contents--first to +herself and then aloud:-- + + + "_Noble Captain.--A secret mystery, which now hangs over you and + your's, is about to be revealed; but fear nothing; be firm, and + bear it as a brave sailor ought to do, and it will add to your + happiness:--but should you be led away by passion, or weakness, and + receive it otherwise, misery and woe will be the portion of you and + your's for ever. Bide your time--you will have further notice._ + + "_A Friend,--who was formerly an Enemy._" + + +Julia read this strange epistle through two or three times, and so +intent was she in endeavouring to discover what it could mean, and who +the writer could be, that she did not notice the agitation of Mrs. +Courland, and the anguish of mind she was suffering as she lay half +concealed in the corner of the carriage; and the captain was too much +engrossed with his own irritating thoughts to pay any attention to +anyone else. So the poor lady was not disturbed by anything but her own +thoughts until they arrived at their lodgings, when she rushed upstairs +and gave vent to her feelings, harrowing up the most dreadful +consequences from this revelation, which she had no doubt was that of +her own secret. But, when she became more calm, and began to reflect a +little, she saw how absurd it was of her to anticipate evil so readily. +She had forgotten, in her haste, that she was now many, many miles away +from anyone who could possibly know her secret, and, as she became calm +again, she thought how very foolish she had been,--but so it is--an evil +conscience will start at a shadow. When the mind is constantly brooding +over one subject, and that, the consciousness of a crime committed, the +guilty perpetrator of the deed fears to look an upright, honest man in +the face; for he has the feeling that his breast is transparently open +to his gaze if he only gives him the opportunity to look in: and so he +slinks away, fearing that, in an unguarded moment, the transparency may +be penetrated. Just so did Mrs. Courland feel when she heard her husband +speak in those terrible and decided tones of his horror of secrets and +mysteries, well knowing that she was keeping one from him in her own +bosom which she ought to have told him long ago. And then that letter! +Could it be that _her secret_ was about to be revealed? She would have +given worlds to know: it would be a relief to know even the worst:--the +suspense was dreadful. + +Every moment, during the latter part of their drive home, she expected +her husband would say that he knew all, and denounce her as a faithless +deceitful wife. She had consented to come into Cornwall, thinking that +she would be here removed from any chance of a discovery, but she found, +to her sorrow, that her guilt followed her even here--at least, so she +believed in her weak and self-accusing mind. + + + + +CHAPTER XL. + +MISS PENDRAY'S SINGULAR ACCIDENT. + + +Alrina thought her cup of misery had been full long ago: but here was +another drop added to it. She was now fully convinced that Frederick had +taken her at her word and given her up, and, to be revenged of her +treatment of him, had induced her to come out into the garden, merely to +shew her that he could be as indifferent to her feelings as she had been +to his; and now Blanche knew her secret love, and would of course tell +it to all the family; and Julia would return, no doubt, and endeavour to +renew their former friendship until she discovered who she was, and what +her miserable father had been, and then she would spurn her. + +Blanche returned to her after the visitors had departed, and began the +usual good-humoured badinage which passes between young ladies when a +secret love is discovered: she spoke in a playful manner at first: for +she did not know how serious it was, and she intended, if Alrina had +placed confidence in her, and told her, as a friend, of her secret love, +to have imparted to Alrina, in return, her own sorrows; and she was +surprised and grieved to find that, although she could see clearly there +was something very much amiss which preyed on Alrina's mind, yet her +friend did not seem to have sufficient confidence in her to tell her +what it was; so, to gain Alrina's confidence, in some degree, she told +her own secret first. It took a long time in the telling, although there +was not really much to tell; but it was the theme on which she had been +dwelling for weeks, and weeks, and as it was uppermost in her own +thoughts, she fancied it must be interesting in its minutest details to +everyone else. She had never spoken of it before to a single human +being, and now that she had commenced, and found, as she thought, a +willing and attentive listener, she dwelt on every trifling incident. + +Alrina's thoughts were otherwise engaged, but she sympathised with the +gentle confiding creature who was pouring her thoughts and feelings into +her ear, and, when she had told her tale, Alrina said:-- + +"My dearest Blanche, there is some misunderstanding in all this--someone +has poisoned your father's mind: let some mutual friend but come between +and explain, and all will be well. But _my_ love, alas! is past all +healing! It cannot be! it cannot be!" and she burst into a flood of +tears, which Blanche tried in vain to assuage. + +Early in the evening, Squire Pendray returned, bringing Mr. Morley with +him, for the latter believed that his brother had remained behind at +Pendrea-house for some private reason of his own, instead of following +them to Portagnes; and, moreover, Mr. Morley was very anxious to see +Miss Pendray once more, after having been absent from her so long. He +had not, it is true, pointedly asked her the question, but he had seen +sufficient of her to believe that his attentions were appreciated by +her, and that he had a fair chance of being accepted, should he venture +on that important step: and this step would have been taken long ago, +but for his anxiety to secure the vile wretches who had so stained the +character of his father, and brought him to an untimely end. He had +spoken to the squire on the subject, during their ride home, and +although he was rather inclined to get on his stilts again at first, +believing that Mr. Morley had been trifling with his daughter's +feelings, yet, when all was explained, he promised that if Mr. Morley +and his daughter could make matters up, as he termed it, he would not +object. And, while the squire went to acquaint his wife with the result +of the day's search, Mr. Morley went in search of the fair creature +whose charms had so entirely enthralled him: and so sure did he feel +that his brother Frederick had returned to Pendrea, and was there +comfortably ensconced, that he did not even enquire for him when he +returned. Oh! Cupid! Cupid! thou little perverter of men's thoughts and +tormentor of women's minds! + +Alrina had scarcely recovered herself when Mrs. Pendray entered the +room and told the two young girls the whole story of the mysterious +disappearance of Alrina's father, and the fruitless search which had +been made for him by the gentlemen that day: the squire thought it best +that Alrina should be told the whole now, as there seemed no chance of +their being able to discover the body, or the parties who were concerned +in taking it away. This news came upon her so suddenly, that she could +scarcely realize it. That her father possessed more shrewdness and +knowledge than most other people she fully believed; but she did not +believe in his being possessed of any supernatural power, as many in the +neighbourhood did; and she therefore thought that the body had been +removed by some of his wicked assistants, to gratify some private end of +their own. Instead of giving way to tears again, she merely asked the +favor of being left alone for the remainder of the night, that she might +think on what course would be best for her to pursue under the +circumstances; and, so earnestly did she urge this, that her friends +were prevailed on to yield to her wishes, and she was left to her own +meditations. The gentle Blanche was very loth to leave her thus, after +the mutual understanding that had so lately sprung up between them; but, +as Alrina assured her that she required repose and meditation after the +excitement she had undergone, and that she should be better in the +morning, her kind friends retired, begging her at the same time, to +summon the domestics if she found she required anything more before they +retired for the night. + +Mr. Morley sought Miss Pendray every where, in doors and out, but she +was no where to be found. One of the servants had seen her go out soon +after Captain Courland and his party left; but no one had seen her +since.--She had not returned. + +This, however, was not at all unusual; she often wandered out alone, and +stayed away for hours. No one took much notice of her eccentricities. + +Mr. Morley enquired where she was likely to have gone. No one could +tell: she might be gone to the Logan-Rock; or she might be, even then, +sitting on one of the lofty rocks above Lamorna Cove, where she +sometimes sat for hours watching the waves; or she might even be gone on +so far as Tol-pedn-Penwith.--It was very uncertain which route she might +have taken. One thing, however, the household were pretty certain +about,--she was on the high cliffs somewhere, for she seldom went +underneath. + +Mr. Morley was determined to find her, and bring his suit to an issue at +once; and he thought that, if he could have the good fortune to meet her +alone on one of those distant headlands, he would have ample time to say +all he had to say during the walk back; so he started in pursuit. + +Miss Pendray's proud spirit could not brook the repeated slights to +which she had been subjected by Mr. Morley, as she thought, and the +indifference with which he had treated her: he had been at Pendrea-house +again, and had not thought proper to see her or even to inquire for her. +So, as soon as Captain Courland and his party were gone, she went out in +no very amiable mood, and walked along the edge of the highest cliffs at +a brisk pace; and so absorbed was she in thought, that she did not seem +to notice the wild scenery, which generally had such attractions for +her, nor did she think of the distance she was walking, until she found +herself standing on one of the highest and most dangerous of the +headlands to be found on that part of the coast, many miles from +Pendrea-house, and no great distance from Tol-pedn-Penwith. She had, by +this time, worked herself up to such a pitch of anger and +disappointment, that she did not see her dangerous position. As she +thought of the treatment she had received, she stamped her foot +indignantly, and, in doing so, the crumbling rock on which she was +standing gave way, and, with a shriek, she fell with it; but, +fortunately, there happened to be a ledge of rocks a few yards down, +standing out from the cliffs, which broke her fall and saved her from +being engulphed in a watery grave, if she was not dashed in pieces by +the fall from that great height. She was stunned by the shock, and lay +insensible for some minutes on the narrow slip of rock which had so far +saved her life. When she recovered her senses again she was afraid to +move, lest this rock should give way too; and she shuddered as she +looked down on the foaming water, which dashed against the rocks some +hundred feet beneath her. And there she lay, in unspeakable terror, +fearing that the next moment she might be precipitated into the abyss +below. + +Dreadful suspense! she had scarcely ever known what fear was until now. +The shades of evening were fast gathering round her, and the fear of +having to remain all night on that dread spot roused her, and something +of her wonted courage returned. Looking about, she saw that the ledge of +rock on which she was lying appeared to be the entrance into a cavern; +but how large it was, or whether it was merely a chasm in the rock +extending down to the sea, she did not know. She crept cautiously in, +feeling her way, as she went. For several feet she found the rocks hard +and firm; here she could rest securely. She sat and looked out on the +broad ocean before her; and the more she reflected on her awful +situation, the more disheartened did she feel. She saw nothing before +her but a lingering death. No boat could approach the rocks underneath; +indeed she could not be seen, unless she ventured out on that narrow +ledge of rock again. When she had rested herself a little, she explored +a little further, creeping cautiously along in the dark cavern. At last +she thought she saw a light. She stopped, and looked around. The cavern +was dark, except just at the entrance; but these lights seemed to be +coming from the further end. She crept on a little further, and was at +last convinced that this light came from some opening in the interior; +but whether it came from above or below she could not tell;--perhaps it +came from below. There was probably, she thought, a deep chasm running +down to the sea from the interior of the cavern, and if she ventured too +near she might be in danger of falling through. She crept a little +nearer, and then sat on a rock to meditate on her position, keeping her +eyes steadily fixed on this faint stream of light at the extremity. She +was now begining to feel cold and uncomfortable; her delicate hands and +arms were lacerated by the rocks, and her fingers were sore from holding +on to them so firmly: in her fear and anxiety for her safety, she did +not feel these injuries before, but now her scratches and bruises were +beginning to make themselves felt, and there she sat in the greatest +agony, both of body and mind. + + + + +CHAPTER XLI. + +MYSTERIOUS SOUNDS ARE HEARD ISSUING OUT OF THE EARTH AT MIDNIGHT. THE +CURIOUS COTTAGE ON THE HEATH. + + +The party who had gone in search of the body of Mr. Freeman and his +guilty associates separated as they approached their respective homes: +Captain Trenow and Josiah went to St. Just, Squire Pendray and Mr. +Morley went to Pendrea-house as we have seen, and Lieutenant Fowler +proceeded on his solitary journey towards his own cabin at +Tol-pedn-Penwith signal-station. On turning a sharp corner in the road, +he met one of his men, who had been ordered out on night-duty, and who +ought to have been watching the coast instead of travelling along on the +public road. + +The man touched his cap to his commanding officer, who spoke rather +sharply to him as he returned the salute. + +"What brings you here, Braceley?" said he, "when your orders were to +keep close to the cliffs to-night;--for there's mischief afloat, and we +want the coast well watched." + +"Yes, sir," replied the man; "I have obeyed orders, and have heard +something that I thought best to report at once, and I came this road, +thinking to fall in with your honor." + +"Well! what is it?" said Fowler; "bear a hand, and out with it; for it's +cold standing here in the wind." + +"By the powers! sir," said Braceley, looking very solemn, "I believe +'The Maister' isn't far off, for I've heard queer sounds." + +"Sounds," said Fowler; "nonsense, man, what do you mean?--This is one of +your confounded Irish superstitions." + +"No, sir! by the Holy St. Patrick, 'tis no superstition, nor anything of +the kind," replied Braceley, coming nearer to the officer: "I was coming +along over the cliffs, sir, and I heard voices in the air over my +head,--and I spoke to them, and they answered again. Spirits, I'm sure +they were, your honor! 'The Maister' is here, says I,--and I tould him +to be aisy while I called the praist." + +It was a queer story; but as nothing was too strange or improbable to +believe, in connection with "The Maister," after what had happened +within the last few days, Fowler determined he would go and see what it +was himself; so he accompanied the man in silence, until they arrived at +the spot where Braceley said he had heard those extraordinary sounds. It +was now getting dark, and the place was very lonely; not at all the +place that a nervous man would like to be in at night, if he heard +anything that he could by any means imagine was caused by supernatural +agency. Fowler had none of that superstitious feeling in his composition +which was so prevelant everywhere at that period, and he laughed at his +companion, who possessed a good deal of it, and told him that what he +fancied he had heard was entirely in his own imagination. The man could +not be persuaded, however, and they listened for minutes, but heard +nothing, and Fowler said, in a jeering, tone, "'The Maister's' ghost, no +doubt, Braceley! you shall have a guard of nanny-goats when you turn out +on night-duty again." + +He had scarcely finished his sentence, before they heard the most +piercing sounds rending the air all round them. Fowler was startled; the +sounds came upon them so suddenly: he listened, but could not make out +where they came from; sometimes they appeared above their heads, and +then again beneath their feet: he did not believe in the supernatural, +but he really didn't know what else to impute it to. His companion, +however, had no doubt whatever but that it was "The Maister's" spirit +hovering about, seeking rest. Neither of them spoke, but they walked on +towards the edge of the cliff, and, on approaching a deep hole or +opening in the rock, about fifty yards from the extreme edge of the +cliff, Fowler was convinced that the sounds were coming up from +underneath. This opening was partially concealed by the overhanging +rocks, and might be passed unobserved by a casual visitor. He however +knew the place well, for he had once, on his first coming to +Tol-pedn-Penwith, made a good seizure of kegs in the cavern beneath. +When they arrived at this place, he called down lustily and asked who +was there, although he could scarcely believe that it could be any human +being. He was soon convinced, however, and astonished beyond measure, +at hearing a well-known voice calling up to him in tones of the +bitterest anguish:-- + +"Oh! good sir, whoever you are, assist me out of this dreadful place; I +fell from the precipice several hours ago, and crept in here. I am +wounded, and bitterly cold. Oh! good Christian, make haste." + +"Don't distress yourself any more," replied Fowler; "you shall be +extricated at once; I know the cavern. I am Fowler of the +signal-station: I will be down to protect you in a few minutes." + +In her distress and fear, Miss Pendray had evidently not recognised his +voice so easily as he had recognised hers. He desired Braceley to +proceed at once to the station, and get ropes and lights, and all the +assistance he could. Braceley had a blue-light in his pouch, which +Fowler lit, and fired a pistol, which he knew would bring any of his men +who were within hail to the spot at once. He then descended cautiously, +by the aid of the light, to reassure the unfortunate lady, and to +convince her that relief was at hand. It was a perilous adventure; but +Fowler had been down before; and so he knew that the opening did not +descend perpendicularly. He had first to slide down over a smooth rock, +almost perpendicular, for several yards, and then to jump on a flat +rock, and then slide on again, and so on alternately; but in the descent +the greatest caution was necessary, lest, in jumping on one of the +narrow flat rocks, he should slip and be carried by the impetus headlong +down to the bottom. + +Miss Pendray was still sitting on the rock, afraid to move, when Fowler +jumped down at her side, carrying the light in his hand. She could +scarcely express her joy and gratification. She clasped his arm tightly +with both her hands and seemed afraid to let go her hold. She forgot all +her former animosity, and thought only of her present perilous position +and his ability and willingness to save her. + +Braceley soon returned with ropes and lights and more assistance, and +they were not long in getting Miss Pendray up from her perilous +position. She was most grateful for the attention and almost miraculous +assistance of Lieutenant Fowler. She was not so much bruised but that +she was able to walk, although her limbs were sore, and her arms and +hands were lacerated fearfully. Fowler accompanied her as far as the +door of Pendrea-house, where he was about to take his leave, but she +would not suffer it: she almost compelled him to come in; for she felt +that, after all he had done for her that night, it was incumbent on her +to dispel some of the clouds which had for some time hung over his +happiness, and which she could not but feel she had been the means of +gathering around him and her gentle sister, and which this evening's +adventure had determined her to make amends for, by explaining to her +father the true state of the case; for she well knew that she had +exaggerated, to use a mild expression, when she told him of the +clandestine meetings of her sister and the lieutenant. Anger and wounded +pride had led her to commit this treacherous and ungenerous act, towards +her younger sister, whom she ought rather to have advised and reproved +in private if she had seen anything wrong in her behaviour. This act had +been repented of often by Miss Pendray, but her proud spirit would not +bend to acknowledge her fault: now she was determined on acknowledging +the part she had played, and, if she could not be happy herself in the +possession of the love of the only man who had ever really gained her +affections, she would at least have the satisfaction of knowing she had +made two others happy, by candidly confessing her own dissimulation. + +Mr. Morley, in the meantime, had gone on in search of her; but, as she +had considerably the start of him, he did not overtake her. He walked +over the cliffs for some distance, until he felt convinced that she +could not be gone in that direction; for he did not believe that any +lady would walk even so far as he had gone, on those high cliffs alone +at that hour; so he struck into a path which seemed to lead towards the +high road, thinking that would be the safer way for him to return, as he +was not familiar with the coast. He walked on for some distance, until +he came to a spot where several paths met, and here he was puzzled; +however, he took the one which seemed the most probable, although he had +by this time almost entirely lost his bearings, for he was now on low +ground, and could not see the cliffs or the sea. He walked on briskly +for a considerable time, when he halted again, for he felt convinced he +had missed his way. There was no house or human habitation to be seen, +nor could he see anyone of whom he might enquire; so he walked on again. +The twilight was now getting more decided in its character, and the +shadows of night were closing in, and he began to fear that he might be +kept wandering over that dreary heath all night; for he frequently came +upon some other path branching off from the one he was pursuing, and he +would sometimes be tempted to try a fresh one. At length he thought he +perceived smoke rising at some little distance, and he made sure now +that he should meet with some one to direct him; for it evidently arose +from a cottage at no great distance. He thought of his father's +adventures in that lonely cottage, on that dreadful night, and he braced +up his nerves and walked manfully forward; when, on turning into a +narrow lane which seemed to lead to the cottage, a man ran against him, +and nearly knocked him off his legs. Mr. Morley was a tall, powerful +man, and was armed with a stout stick which he instantly raised above +his head, ready to strike if he found that foul play was intended. The +uplifted hand descended, but not to strike; for Mr. Morley, to his great +surprise recognized in the ferocious and excited individual before him, +his brother Frederick. + +"Where on earth did you spring from?" he exclaimed; "I thought you were +at this moment comfortably closeted with that unhappy girl you seemed so +infatuated with." + +"I left you with the intention of seeing her and having a mutual +explanation," replied Frederick, "and she, no doubt, now feels that I +have deserted her." + +"No! no! she can't think that," said Mr. Morley; "but better she should, +perhaps, than that you should unite yourself to the daughter of this +man." + +"But suppose she is not his daughter?" replied Frederick, looking +earnestly at his brother, and speaking hurriedly and anxiously. + +"That is a ridiculous speculation," said Mr. Morley, "after what we have +heard and know. Of course she is his daughter; there can be no doubt +about that: she has been known as such, at any rate, in this +neighbourhood; and even the association with such a wretch must carry +contamination with it. Give her up Frederick! let me entreat you to give +her up!" + +Frederick did not reply; but, taking his brother's arm, he led him back +to the cottage which he seemed to have just quitted. + +It was a lone cottage, and, but for the smoke which Mr. Morley saw +issuing from the chimney, might have escaped his notice in the dim +twilight: it consisted of several rooms, covering a considerable space, +but they were all on the ground-floor. The house was commonly built, the +rooms entering one into the other, without having any passages between +them. There were several doors in the walls, by which a person could +enter or escape, if necessary, and puzzle his pursuers. On entering the +outer room, by the principal entrance-door, Mr. Morley perceived an old +woman sitting at a table, on which were the remains of a substantial +meal, and a good supply of liquor in a small wooden barrel or keg. The +woman had just filled a jug from the barrel, and seemed about to carry +it to some other part of the house; but on the entrance of the gentlemen +she placed it on the table. She was a tall large-boned woman, with a +commanding appearance, and looked as if she was accustomed to be obeyed; +and yet there was an expression of low cunning in her countenance which +was not at all pleasant, and which made strangers feel uncomfortable and +suspicious. She was believed in the neighbourhood to be a witch, and +people went to her to have their fortunes told, and she very often told +them true, for she had her secret spies about as well as "The Maister"; +but, from want of education, her prophecies were seldom so startling or +so well or plausibly expressed as his were. It was generally believed +that they were connected in business, and that they played into each +other's hands, although no one had ever seen them together. + +Sitting by the fire, on a low stool, was a grotesque looking being, +somewhat between a man and a monkey; not that he was particularly +ill-formed, but the expression of his countenance as he intently watched +the woman's movements, had something ludicrous in it, and but for the +wild stare which occasionally lit up his countenance, he might be an +idiot or an imbecile. + +"Ha! ha!" cried he, jumping up and skipping about in a ludicrous manner, +as the two gentlemen entered; "'Maazed Dick' es the boy! 'Maazed Dick' +es the boy! Letter to the young maister;--get him down here! get him +down here! Letter to the cap'n; frightened out of his wits! frightened +out of his wits! ha! ha!" + +"Richard!" said the old woman, in her most commanding tone; "hold your +tongue and sit down." + +This seemed to have the same effect on "Maazed Dick" as the sharp +command of a sportsman has on a well-trained spaniel dog;--he ceased his +antics and retained his seat by the fire, keeping his eyes fixed on her +of whom he seemed to stand so much in fear. + +The old woman then, turning to the two gentlemen, said, "What's your +will, gentlemen? and what do you want here at this hour of the night?" + +"This is my brother," said Frederick, "and I want him to hear from your +lips what I have heard to-night: it may tend to convince him that he has +formed a hasty opinion and that all may yet be well." + +"Frederick Morley," she said, rising and extending her hand in a +commanding attitude, "you have heard all you will hear from me; do my +bidding and you may know more: if you neglect it, or tell what you have +heard to any human being, except the one named to you, it were better +you had never been born." Saying which, she took up the jug again which +she had placed on the table, and, waving her hand towards the door at +which the two gentlemen had entered, disappeared into an inner room, +bolting the door after her; and, almost at the same moment, "Maazed +Dick" took up the keg of brandy from the table and disappeared also, +somewhere in the wall, but where, the visitors could not tell; he could +not have gone through the wall, that was very certain: there was +evidently a secret cupboard somewhere in the wall; but, if so, it was +very ingeniously concealed. + +As there seemed no chance of learning any more, Frederick led the way +out of the house and walked on at a rapid rate, followed by his brother, +until they arrived at the end of the lane leading to the cottage. He +seemed so excited that Mr. Morley became alarmed, and insisted on +knowing what strange infatuation had seized him. + +"You heard what that woman said," replied Frederick; "I feel that all +my future happiness depends on my obeying her instructions, and I must +do so." + +"Nonsense!" said his brother: "it is perfectly ridiculous to suppose +that the old hag we have just seen can know anything or do anything that +can possibly influence your happiness in any way." + +"She has not told me much, it is true," replied Frederick; "but she has +told me enough to convince me that she knows more; but, however little I +have heard, I am bound not to tell it even to you." + +"Come! this is going a little too far!" said Mr. Morley, in a serious +tone; "we are engaged in a common cause, and circumstances have +prevented our pursuing our object together for several weeks: we must +not separate again until these dark deeds are brought to light." + +"I am convinced," replied Frederick, "that something will come out of my +adventure this afternoon, which will throw a light on the whole. I wish, +from my heart, I was at liberty to tell you; but it cannot be. I must +work alone for a short time longer,--it may be a very short time. You +are, I presume, going on to Fowler's station:--if so, we must separate, +for my way lies in another direction." + +"No," replied he, "I was going to Pendrea-house. I went out in search of +Miss Pendray, and I believe I missed my way somewhere; I don't exactly +know where I am." + +"Fortunately, then," said Frederick, "you have been walking in the right +direction, although not in the most frequented road: if you take the +next turning on the right you will soon be at the end of your journey." + +"But you will surely come with me," said Mr. Morley, taking his brother +by the arm. + +"My dear brother," said Frederick, looking earnestly at Mr. Morley; "it +grieves me to be obliged to refuse to accompany you to Pendrea-house +to-night, for many reasons; for I have another duty to perform which I +feel convinced is of vital importance to more than one, but the nature +of which, as I said before, I cannot now explain to you. Believe me, as +soon as I have accomplished the task I have solemnly promised to +perform, you shall know all." + +As Mr. Morley saw that his brother was in earnest, and seemed determined +to have his own way, he did not press him further, but bade him +God-speed, and returned to Pendrea-house, which he reached soon after +the arrival of Miss Pendray and Lieutenant Fowler. + + + + +CHAPTER XLII. + +THE POOR DUMB GIRL'S SUDDEN RESOLVE AND ITS CONSEQUENCES. + + +Mrs. Courland remained in her room, for a considerable time after their +return from Pendrea-house, reflecting on the events of the day, and +especially on the unaccountable and unusual conduct of her husband. What +could be the meaning of that letter?--Who could have written it? While +these distracting thoughts were racking her brain, Flora, her poor dumb +protegé, entered softly, unperceived by her protectress, and, leaning +over the couch in which Mrs. Courland was reclining absorbed in thought, +touched her cheek with her lips, and looked at her with a tender +sympathizing expression, as if she knew that her protectress was +unhappy, and was conscious that it was not in her power to comfort her, +although she longed to be able to do so; but the events of the day, and +the thoughts that had since passed through the mind of Mrs. Courland, +had made the sight of this poor girl hateful to her. She had wished, in +her heart, within the last hour, that this source and evidence of her +deception could be blotted out from the face of the earth. She wished, +in her agony, that she could be in any way got rid of and her existence +drowned in oblivion; for, even here, in this remote place, she seemed to +be followed by her dread enemies, and she believed that her secret was +about to be discovered; the thoughts of those who have committed an evil +deed, of however trivial a nature, being always suspicious and uneasy. + +Mrs. Courland seemed suddenly to have changed her nature: from a gentle, +beautiful woman, the sight of her she now so much dreaded seemed to have +turned her into a demon in human form. She rose from her reclining +position, and, seizing the poor dumb girl by the hair, dragged her down +on the couch. What she meant to do, in her frenzy, it is difficult to +say; for the action and look of the lady, together with the pain she +inflicted on the poor girl, and the terror she felt, brought back the +remembrance of former days, and all her old ferocity and strength +returned; and, seizing Mrs. Courland by the wrists, she made her let go +her hold, and pressed her back on the couch with all her might, until +she screamed for help, and the servants ran in and extricated her from +her perilous position. + +It was more from the fear of what might happen than from what had +already occurred, that Mrs. Courland gave the alarm; for she felt that +she was as nothing in the hands of her protegé, when she chose to put +forth her strength and her passions were roused. She had conquered +again; and again did she seem to regret the part she had taken, when she +saw that poor delicate lady powerless in her grasp. She released her +hold at once, and the servants, having seen no violence used, believed +that their mistress had been seized with giddiness, as she had told them +she had, and that Flora, in attempting to support her, had, from over +anxiety pressed her arms more tightly than she intended. + +Flora, however, felt that Mrs. Courland had, without any apparent cause, +treated her as her former associates had done: she saw and understood +the look of determined hate and fury which was depicted in her +countenance when she rose so suddenly from her couch and seized her by +the hair. That look haunted her; she could not bear to think of it. She +could not tell her thoughts to anyone, and she determined, in her own +mind, that the lady, who had been so kind to her, should not have cause +to look on her with hatred and scorn again. She would go away; she would +die,--perhaps drown herself; she did not care what death it was; there +was nothing worth living for now. All the world seemed to be possessed +of the same evil passions, she thought,--they only wanted to be brought +out. She put on an old bonnet and a shawl and went out: the coast was +clear, for all the household were in attendance on Mrs. Courland. She +walked through the town, and beyond it,--far out into the country. + +It was getting late, and yet she walked on, not knowing where and +without having any fixed purpose. On, on, she walked, sometimes on the +broad road and sometimes through bye-lanes, she did not care where: her +only object was to get away as far as she could, and to avoid being +overtaken. At last she felt weary and sick at heart, and now she wished +to meet with some house where she could rest herself a little; but there +was no house to be seen anywhere: she had passed several at the +commencement of her journey, but she did not feel so weary then, and had +walked on. It was no use stopping in the lonely road, so on she walked +again till her feet were sore; for she had come out in her thinnest +indoor shoes. At length, when nearly exhausted, she saw a man coming +towards her. She was frightened, and tried to hide herself behind a low +hedge, but the man perceived her dress fluttering in the breeze, and he +approached and spoke to her. She did not answer him but made signs to +him, which he understood, for he had seen her before. It was Frederick +Morley whom she had thus opportunely met. He had seen her before at his +aunt's house, and he wondered to see her out alone at that hour, and in +such a place, and made signs to go back; but she stamped the ground, and +signified her intention of going on further away from her former +protectress. Frederick saw that something had happened, but what it was +he did not know, nor could she make him understand; she must be +protected, however, for the night, until Captain Courland's family could +be communicated with. He had just parted from his brother, and he at +first thought of calling after him, and asking him to take her with him +to Pendrea-house; but, on reflection, he thought this was a liberty that +neither of them ought to take, as they were both comparative strangers +to the Pendray family. He thought of the cottage he had just left, and +that, perhaps, the old woman would not object to give the poor dumb girl +shelter for the night; so he took her there, and the old woman received +her with more warmth than Frederick expected, or than was at all +necessary, he thought, under the circumstances. + +Although Flora was very tired and hungry, and was glad to rest herself +after her long walk, yet she did not appear at all comfortable. She +seemed to look at the woman with dread and suspicion, but she was too +tired to walk any further, so, after she had partaken of some +refreshment, she followed the woman into an inner room, where there was +a bed prepared for her. The old woman then gave Frederick some further +instructions and enjoined haste and secrecy, and he again commenced his +journey on the mysterious errand which had so puzzled his brother. + +While her protegé was wandering through the lanes alone and trying to +get further and further away, and seeking some obscure place where she +should hide herself for ever, Mrs. Courland was receiving the attentions +of the whole household. Her kind husband was much grieved to find his +beautiful wife in this excited, and yet apparently helpless, state. She +seemed to be suffering great pain too, but she kept the cause of it from +them as much as she could, and covered her arms and wrists that they +might not see the full extent of the bruises which the strong hands of +Flora had made on her soft delicate flesh. The kind attention of her +husband reassured her of his continued love and esteem, and she began to +think that the mysterious letter might have been a mere hoax after all, +and that she had nothing to fear: and as these thoughts occupied her +mind in rapid succession, she began to feel more tranquil, until at last +she came to the conclusion, that, even if her secret was discovered her +husband would forgive her; and then she began to feel ashamed of her +conduct towards the poor innocent cause of all this, and she sent her +maid in search of Flora that she might atone for the part she had taken +as the first aggressor, and make her protegé understand that she was +forgiven also for the pain she had inflicted on her protectress. + +The servants searched everywhere throughout the house, but Flora could +nowhere be found. Her bonnet and shawl were gone, and so they supposed +she had taken a stroll through the town, alone, as she was very fond of +doing, and would return when her curiosity was satisfied. + +Several hours passed by, but Flora did not make her appearance, and the +household became alarmed; they fancied a thousand things. She might have +missed her way and gone too near the sea, and have fallen in; or she +might have been entrapped by some lawless gang of sailors and taken to +one of their haunts. Captain Courland and the man-servant searched the +town all over; they were out nearly all night, and, as soon as it was +light in the morning he and the man started for St. Michael's Mount, in +the vain hope that they might find her there, for she had often +expressed a wish to see the interior of the ancient castle which +appeared to her to be built almost in the clouds. She had the most +romantic fancies sometimes, and amused her friends very much by the +manner in which she expressed her feelings by signs and pantomimic +dumb-shew. + +All who knew her, loved and pitied the poor dumb girl, and they all +joined in the search right heartily. Julia begged to be allowed to +accompany her uncle; and the women-servants, and even the landlady +herself, went out into the town and explored every part they could think +of, leaving Mrs. Courland in the house alone. She could not rest, so she +got up very early; but she was not equal to the task of joining in the +search. She was sitting alone in the drawing-room, when she heard a +hasty step coming up the stairs. Her first thought was, that Flora was +found, and that some one had been sent to inform her of the fact. +Without further reflection, she rushed towards the door in the greatest +excitement, exclaiming--"Is she found? Is she found?" + +"Yes, my dear aunt," cried Frederick Morley, catching Mrs. Courland in +his arms as he hastily entered the room,--"the lost is found;" and, +leading her to a seat, he explained to her that her daughter was found +and was now with kind friends, and that all was about to be divulged; +for the parties who possessed the secret, having already prepared +Captain Courland for it, he said, had determined to publish everything: +but they did not wish to do it to the injury of Mrs. Courland, and were +willing to give her the opportunity of informing her husband herself if +she preferred doing so. The parties had other secrets to communicate +also of the greatest importance, and they wished Mrs. Courland to meet +them at a certain house in the neighbourhood immediately. Frederick knew +the house, he said, and had been commissioned to bring his aunt there +without delay, as it was of the greatest importance. She hesitated at +first, but, knowing what those people were, she thought, on reflection, +that it would be wise for her to meet them and hear what they had to +communicate, provided Frederick would go with her, and protect and +assist and counsel her, which he promised he would do. He had engaged a +conveyance; so, dressing herself in the commonest things she had, she +accompanied her nephew to the outskirts of the town where the carriage +was waiting, to avoid suspicion. + +When they arrived within about a quarter of a mile of the cottage, they +got out and walked the remainder of the distance, leaving the carriage +in the road. Frederick could tell Mrs. Courland little more than he had +already told her; and she was impatient to reach the place of meeting +that she might know what those wicked people really intended to do, and +what other secrets they had to communicate; for she felt that this +suspense and uncertainty were worse than the reality, whatever that +might be. + +They found the old woman in the outer room of the cottage, anxiously +expecting their arrival. She received Mrs. Courland with a curtsey, +saying,-- + +"It is well, madam; you have been prompt in attending to my request. Had +you delayed your coming but a few hours, you would have been too late." + +"Too late!" said Mrs. Courland; "what do you mean? Has the poor +afflicted girl met with an accident, or what has happened to her?" + +Instead of replying, the old woman led the way into the interior of the +house and beckoned her two visitors to follow her. They passed through +two or three rooms, some furnished as sitting-rooms and some as +sleeping-apartments; at last they came to an empty, unfurnished room, +where the old woman desired them to wait while she prepared the invalid +for their reception. In a few minutes she opened the door, and asked +them to walk in. + + + + +CHAPTER XLIII. + +THE CONFESSION. + + +It was a comfortable and well-furnished bedroom; but instead of finding +Flora there, as Mrs. Courland expected, the bed was occupied by an +elderly woman, who appeared very ill, and was sitting up in the bed +supported by pillows. She motioned her visitors to be seated, and then +said in a feeble voice,-- + +"You do not recognise me, Mrs. Courland: illness makes great changes in +the human frame. The name you first knew me by was Fisher; I then +changed it more than once, for reasons you shall know presently." + +"I remember you, now," said Mrs. Courland involuntarily, shrinking +further from the bed, as if still afraid of the poor helpless creature +before her. + +"I am not long for this world," said the invalid; "and before I die I +wish to make some amends for the misdeeds I have done during my life, +and they have been many. I have requested Mr. Frederick Morley to attend +with you, for a part of the revelations I am about to make concerns him +also." + +"Do you know anything," exclaimed Frederick, "of the wretches who----?" + +"Don't interrupt me, if you can possibly help it," she said; "for I feel +my strength failing me, and I don't know if I shall be spared even long +enough to finish my recital. My father was not a poor fisherman, as you +supposed when you and your mother came to lodge with us. He was pursuing +a lawless employment,--sometimes bringing in great earnings, and +sometimes nothing. He had seen better days. In his youth he was captain +of a large trading vessel, and my brother and myself received a good +education. My father amassed considerable property,--more than he could +possibly have done by legitimate trading; and he was suspected, and +watched, and found out. He had turned his vessel into a smuggler, and, +under cover of fair trading, clandestinely carried on a lucrative trade +in all sorts of contraband goods. He was convicted, and fined heavily, +and, in fact, ruined. + +"We then retired to the small fishing-cove where your mother found us. +My brother had gone to France to reside some time before, and acted as +my father's agent there. He was very shrewd and intelligent, but a +determined character, and one who would never forget nor forgive an +injury. He was naturally cunning and crafty; and his smuggling pursuits +tended to sharpen his natural gifts in this respect. + +"Our fortune was at a low ebb when we first became acquainted with you; +and we were glad of the assistance of an aristocratic lodger. I saw your +mother's weak points, and your love of gaiety and admiration; and I +thought that, by residing with you in the confidential capacity of +lady's-maid, I could benefit myself in many ways. Your clandestine +marriage, and the birth of your daughter, which I persuaded you to keep +secret from your parents, gave me a double hold upon you. + +"After the death of your husband, and while you were with us on a visit +to recruit your health, my brother returned. He fell desperately in love +with you;--you refused to receive his addresses, and spurned him from +you with scorn. He was desperate. He begged me to intercede for him, +which I promised to do, but did not; for your marriage with my brother +would not have suited my purpose at all. I knew your parents wished you +to marry some rich man, and, as I was now the keeper of your secret, I +knew that if you married according to your parents' wishes, I could make +my own terms with you. You were summoned home, and eventually married +according to their wishes and mine. + +"My mother died. Your little daughter was left in my care, and I was +well paid. I sent her to school, but I watched her most carefully;--I +could not afford to lose her, for she was my nest-egg: and she grew a +lovely girl, just like you when you were her age." + +"How is it possible that she can ever have been even good-looking?" +exclaimed Mrs. Courland;--"but that dreadful spoiler of the human +face--the small-pox--has done its work: it was that, no doubt, that +altered her so much." + +"She was a lovely girl," continued the invalid, without noticing Mrs. +Courland's interruption. "My brother would gaze on her countenance for +hours without speaking, and then he would leave the room in a rage. He +hated the name of Morley, because it was under that name that he first +knew you, and was spurned by you. He seldom took much notice of the +child, except to gaze on her until he had worked his mind up to a state +of maddening jealousy. + +"We never lost sight of you. Wherever you moved, we followed, and lived +near you under feigned names, in order to worry you by continually +draining your purse, and threatening to expose your duplicity and deceit +to your husband by producing the child and telling him all, of which we +had ample proof, and have still. My brother would not see you +himself,--he could not bear it, he said. I was always your tormentor; +and when I brought the dumb girl to you, I thought the sight of her +hideous features, and her infirmity, would have so disgusted you, that +you would have given us what we asked, rather than have her left on your +hands as your acknowledged daughter. We were mistaken. You kept her, +believing her to be your child; and you thought that, by doing this, and +denying me an interview, you would be free from further worry, and there +could be no danger of the girl telling anything of her former life or +associates; and if we tried to expose you to your husband, he would not +believe us. + +"Since that girl has been with you, we have had other things to think +of; and our anxiety for my brother's safety prevented our taking the +steps we intended with regard to your secret. _That poor dumb girl is +not your daughter_, Mrs. Courland." + +"Oh! thank God for that!" exclaimed Mrs. Courland, rising in the +greatest excitement. "I hope you are not deceiving me again. If you can +produce her, and I can be satisfied that she really is my daughter, I +will acknowledge her in the face of all the world, and tell my husband +all, and throw myself on his mercy. I have suffered years of torture, +from having followed your advice in the beginning. Oh! had I but acted a +straightforward part, and kept no secret from my husband, my life would +have been much happier. I see my error now, and am determined to keep +the secret no longer. Where is she? let me see her at once; don't keep +me in suspense." + +The invalid had exhausted her strength in the recital of her tale, and +this outburst of Mrs. Courland's quite upset her. She could not speak +again for several minutes, until Frederick Morley handed her the glass +which she seemed to wish for, and which was standing on the table more +than half full of brandy. This, which she drank off at once, seemed to +give her new life and energy. Then, turning to Frederick, she said, in a +gayer tone than before,-- + +"You will be glad to hear, Frederick Morley, that the lovely girl to +whom you are so devotedly attached, is not the daughter of John Freeman, +the Land's-End conjuror, but _the daughter of your aunt--Mrs. +Courland_." + +"Alrina, of whom I have heard so much, my daughter!" exclaimed Mrs. +Courland; "impossible!" + +"Oh! this is indeed too good to be true!" cried Frederick; "I cannot +believe it. What proof is there of this?" + +"Proof in abundance," replied the invalid; "I am ready to make an oath +of the fact before a magistrate; and my brother----" + +"Your brother!" said Frederick; "where is he? is he still alive?" + +"I was about to say that my brother could have confirmed my statement. +Captain Cooper and his wife can also bear witness to the fact; but, even +if there were no other evidence, _the likeness_ would be sufficient to a +person who knew Mrs. Courland as Miss Morley." + +"Let me see her!" said Mrs. Courland; "where is she? It is very strange +that I have never seen her, although I have heard so much about her. Why +did you never let me see her?" + +"That would not have suited our purpose," replied the invalid; "you +would have braved all risk of your husband's displeasure, and taken her +home long before, if you had seen her. I think you would have seen the +likeness yourself. No, no, my brother's revenge was not complete. I led +you, from the first, to believe that she was disfigured by the +small-pox, and rendered very ugly and forbidding; but I never said she +was dumb,--indeed, it was not our intention to have left the other girl +with you entirely; it was only to frighten you into granting us the +money that we required, that the poor girl was taken into your house. My +brother knew that he must be found out, ere long, and he wanted all the +money he could get to carry with him; for he had made all his +preparations for leaving this country, and his associates and +accomplices wanted their share of the hush-money also. It was the last +we should get from you, and so we demanded a large sum." + +"But my daughter!" said Mrs. Courland--"if in reality she is such--pray +let me see her. Where is she?" + +"Your daughter, madam, is now at Pendrea-house, as Frederick Morley +knows. Let him go there and fetch her, while you remain here; for I have +something more to tell you in connection with this affair, which will +convince you I am not deceiving you now. Tell Alrina," continued she, +turning to Frederick, "that her aunt, Miss Freeman, is on her death-bed, +and she must come at once." + + + + +CHAPTER XLIV. + +MRS. BROWN ENJOYS ANOTHER CROOM O' CHAT WITH MRS. TRENOW, AND RECEIVES +AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR. + + +While the other gossips were going from house to house, collecting and +retailing the news respecting the mysterious disappearance of "The +Maister," Mrs. Brown and Mrs. Trenow were having a serious chat over +their "drop of comfort," according to custom. + +"So, you don't think he's carr'd away by the pixies, then," said Mrs. +Trenow. + +"No, I don't," replied Mrs. Brown, "'tes some of his hocus pocus work, +you may depend. I'm glad the old cap'n es gone weth Siah to see the +gentlemen. They'll find 'The Maister' somewhere, I'll be bound, afore +come back." + +"No, no more than you will, cheeld vean," said Mrs. Trenow. "The Pixies +have got 'n, or something wuss, so sure as my name es Mally Trenow. +They'll be home soon, I shudn't wonder, and then we shall knaw. They've +be'n gone evar since the mornin', an' now 'tes come brave an' late. Aw! +here they are, sure nuff,--'spaik o' the Devil and his horns will +appear.' Well, where's 'The Maister,' soas," continued she, addressing +her husband and son as they entered. + +"We do no more knaw than you do, old woman," replied her husband; "we've +sarched everywhere we cud think upon, and now we've returned, like a bad +penny. Two glasses o' brandy toddy, Mrs. Brown, ef you plaise, for we've +had a bra' tramp." + +"Iss sure," said the landlady, proceeding to execute the order; "you +must want somethin' to drink after your hard day's work; but you haven't +be'n to the right place, I reckon." + +"No fie, we ha'n't be'n to the right place, sure nuff," said Josiah. + +"You shud oft to ha' kept a sharper look-out, Siah," said Mrs. Brown, +taking a side glance at Josiah, as if she meant something more than she +said. + +"Zackly like that," said he, looking very serious, as he sipped his +brandy and water; "'Needs must when the devil drives' es an old sayin' +and a very true one; and I tell 'ee, Mrs. Brown, you may laugh so much +as you will, and squinny up your eyes till they're so small as the +button-holes of my jacket; but 'tes my belief that the Devil es at the +bottom of et all. He put me to sleep, and fastened the door, so that I +cudn't get out; and he took away 'The Maister' to have his +desarts,--that's my belief, down sous; and now you've got it all." + +Mrs. Trenow looked very serious at her son's earnestness; for she +herself held the same opinions, although she didn't express them;--but +Mrs. Brown continued to look at Josiah in her sarcastic way, without +uttering a word. + +"Where's Alice Ann, mother?" asked Josiah, at length breaking the +silence. + +"She's gone up to her aunt's again for a bit," replied Mrs. Trenow; "the +ladies wanted her to stop over to Pendrea-house too, I b'lieve; but she +thoft that one stranger wor enough for them to take in; and they wor +very kind to take in the one that wanted it most. Poor Miss Reeney! +she's worth her weight in gold. Talk about Cornish diamonds, soas! why, +she's a Cornish diamond, every inch of her, and a bright one too. But +where ded 'ee lev the young gentleman, 'Siah, boy?" + +"Aw! he's right enough, I reckon," replied Josiah; "I thoft how 'twould +be. When we went to sarch for 'The Maister,' he went to sarch for +somebody else, I reckon; and I s'pose he found her, for we nevar seed he +no more for the day." + +"That's very well!" chimed in poor Mr. Brown, from his seat in the +chimney-corner. "We sarched for the boy everywhere; but the mare came +home safe. Wo! ho! my beauty; she shall be rubbed down, she shall! The +boy came back at last, f'rall, zackly to the time,--dedn't aw, Peggy, my +dear?" + +"John Brown!" cried his wife; "hould your tongue!"--which had the +desired effect of stopping that unruly member, and bringing John Brown +back to the contemplation of the fire on the hearth--and nothing more. + +Early the next morning--very early indeed--almost before the sun had +taken down his shutters, Mrs. Brown was awoke from a sound sleep by +someone, as she thought, knocking gently at the front door. She +listened, and heard the same sound again, rather louder than before. At +first she thought it might be some sailor or fisherman who had been out +fishing all night, and wanted his morning's dram to warm him. + +"You must wait, whoever you are," said she to herself, as she turned +round to have a second nap. Still the knocking continued at intervals, +and prevented her from indulging in her morning's nap. "Whoever can it +be?" said she, as she sat up in the bed and listened; "I don't think it +can be any of the sailors; for they'd have rapp'd the door down by this +time, or else have gone away. I'll see who it es, at any rate." So she +went to the window, and, drawing back the blind a little, saw a figure +standing under the window which very much astonished her. It was not a +sailor, certainly. She put on some of her clothes, and went down as +quietly as she could, and opened the door to----Alrina! + +"Why, wherever ded you come from?" exclaimed Mrs. Brown; "why, you're +mazed, to be sure, Come in, do, and sit down, while I do light the fire +and fit a cup o' tea for 'ee. Dear lor'! wonders will nevar cease. Miss +Reeney here this time in the mornin'!" + +It was indeed Alrina, exhausted and hungry. She had walked all the way +from Pendrea-house to St. Just through the night. Her father's death she +had borne bravely, after the first shock, and she intended to have +remained at Pendrea-house until after the funeral, and then to have gone +into some respectable service to gain her own livelihood, as companion +to some invalid lady, or nursery governess. She was very grateful to her +kind friends, but she could not impose on their good nature. Then came +that cruel treatment which she supposed Frederick had planned, in order +to be revenged for the coolness she had shown towards him. She deserved +it,--she knew she deserved it; but it was hard to bear. Then came +Blanche's discovery of her secret love, and, to crown all, the news of +the mysterious disappearance of her father's body. Her friends would +still be kind to her--she knew that--and would pity her, and alleviate +her painful position as much as lay in their power. Of this she was +quite sure: but this was repugnant to her feelings;--she would rather +die, than live to be pitied,--she could not bear to think of it. She +requested to be left alone for the night, as she was tired and wanted +rest. + +What should she do? If she remained there till the morning, and named +her intention of leaving, the family would not hear of it; they would +compel her to remain, and would probably watch her, in their kindness. +After thinking over her position for some time, she made up her mind +that she would leave at once, or at least as soon as the house was +quiet. She would find her way to the road as well as she could; and then +she would go direct to St. Just, where she would be able to learn the +full particulars of this mysterious affair. + +The house was not quiet until late. Miss Pendray's adventure caused +great commotion, and kept the servants up late; but the interest they +took in their young mistress's adventure, and their concern for her, and +joy at her narrow escape, drove all thoughts of their visitor out of +their heads, and she was left quite undisturbed. She wrote a letter to +Mrs. Pendray, thanking her for all her kindness, and saying that +circumstances compelled her to leave; and when the house was perfectly +quiet, she put on some of the warmest clothing she had with her, and +went out into the cold night. She missed her way several times, but at +length got into the broad road, which she knew pretty well, and arrived +at Mrs. Brown's house, where she knew she would meet with a hearty +welcome, before any of the inhabitants of St. Just were astir. + +It was early, too, when Frederick Morley arrived at Pendrea-house that +morning in search of Alrina. In his haste and excitement to communicate +the delightful intelligence he had just learned to the one nearest and +dearest to his heart, he quite forgot the carriage which was waiting in +the lane, so that he was some time in reaching the house; and when he +arrived at the door, he was exhausted and out of breath, and totally +unfit for the duty which he had come there to perform. So he thought his +best plan would be to have a private interview with his brother, and ask +him to be the bearer of the message to Alrina from her supposed aunt. + +Mr. Morley was very much surprised at the tale his brother told him. He +could hardly believe it could be true; but as Frederick said that Mrs. +Courland seemed satisfied that Alrina was her daughter, and was at that +moment receiving more proofs of it, he felt bound to adopt the belief +too, and promised to see Alrina at once, and induce her to go to the +cottage to see her aunt. + +Frederick thought that, after what had occurred, it would be better for +his brother to see Alrina alone; for, although he had started with the +full determination of seeing her himself, and bringing her with him to +the cottage to hear the welcome and delightful news, yet, when he +considered the manner in which she had treated him in their former +interviews, and remembered also that he had solicited an interview with +her the day before, and had not kept his appointment, his heart failed +him, and he proposed that his brother should see her alone, and he would +wait his return. + +After some little time, Mr. Morley returned, saying that he had sought +an interview with Alrina through her friend Blanche, who immediately +went to her room, and found no one there. On the table she found a +letter, expressing her deep gratitude to Mrs. Pendray and all the family +for the great kindness they had shown her in her distress, but stating, +at the same time, she could not, after all that had occurred in +connection with her and her's, trespass on their kindness any longer. +She knew that their goodness and kind hospitality would not permit her +to leave them, she went on to say, if she remained to take leave of +them; and, therefore, to avoid pain to all parties, she had taken this +step, which she felt seemed like ingratitude,--but it was not so. From +her heart she thanked them all; and should she succeed in getting into +some situation, whereby she could gain her own livelihood honourably, +they should hear from her. If not,--God only knew what might become of +her. + +Mr. Morley read this much from the letter which he held in his hand, and +then handed it to his brother. + +"Gone!" cried Frederick, at length; "gone! just as the dark cloud was +being lifted, which had obscured her so long! Can it be possible? Gone! +But where can she have gone to? She had no friends--she has often told +me this--no friends but her father and aunt." + +"She is most probably gone to her father's house, to enquire for herself +into this mysterious affair," said Mr. Morley. + +"Yes," exclaimed Frederick; "she is gone back to the old house, no +doubt. I will go there immediately, and seek her." + +"Stay," replied his brother; "let us first consider what is best to be +done. I think I had better go to St. Just in search of Alrina, while you +return to the cottage to inform our aunt of her sudden disappearance." + +"That, perhaps, will be the best arrangement," said Frederick; "I will +be guided by you, for I know not what to do or say,--I am quite beside +myself. My brain seems bewildered; I cannot think steadily on any +subject. Let us go at once; I shall not rest till she is found. She is, +perhaps, even now, out on the cold bleak common. The whole country shall +be roused to search for her. Oh! why did I permit myself to be led away +by that wretched scarecrow;--but he said she was there,--yes, he told me +Alrina was at that cottage awaiting my arrival, and the letter he +brought confirmed his statement. Oh! cruel, cruel fate!" + +"It will doubtless turn out all for the best," said Mr. Morley. "Had you +neglected the message of that unfortunate woman, she might have died, +and then her secret would never have been told, and Alrina would have +lived on, believing herself still the daughter of that guilty wretch." + +"True," replied his brother; "I will believe in the wisdom of Divine +Providence. We see His hand in all things. I will trust, and all things +may yet be well." + +The brothers did not think it advisable to tell Squire Pendray's family +anything respecting their aunt in connection with Alrina;--they merely +expressed their great concern at her abrupt departure. + +Sir. Morley had not an opportunity the night before of seeing Miss +Pendray alone,--indeed, she was too much excited and overcome by her +late adventure, to receive his addresses with composure, and he was too +much rejoiced at her safety, and anxious that she should seek repose +after the terrible shock she had undergone, to think of himself. She saw +how anxious and concerned he was, and she was pleased at it. Her object +was gained; for she saw that he was feeling more than he could express +on her account. + +Lieut. Fowler was prevailed upon to stay and partake of their evening's +meal: for, although the squire had not forgotten his former opinion of +the lieutenant, which he in a measure still entertained, yet he had been +the means of preserving the life of his favourite daughter; and +ingratitude was not one of the squire's failings. Fowler would not, +however, intrude on the squire's hospitality longer than politeness +compelled him, but took his leave of them as soon as he possibly could +after supper. + +Mr. Morley had arrived some time before; and nothing was talked of but +Miss Pendray's accident. Almost immediately after Fowler left, Miss +Pendray rose from the table also, and, pleading fatigue, retired for the +night, leaving the others to entertain their visitor. Soon after she +left the room, a message was brought, that the squire was wanted on +business. + +"Dear me," said he, "who can want me at this time of night: it can't be +to tell me that the conjuror is found, I suppose." + +It was no stranger that wanted him. Miss Pendray had sent for him to +explain and atone for the injury she had done her sister and Lieut. +Fowler by her mischievous tale-bearing: she felt that she could not rest +until she had made that atonement which was due to them both. + +The squire was astonished to hear the confession of the proud and +haughty Maud, and, had it been at any other time, he would have been +very angry; but the recollection of her late sufferings and miraculous +escape, and the preservation of her life by Lieut. Fowler, subdued him, +and he promised to forget and forgive, provided he found that all was +straight and above board. But he was determined that he would not be the +first to invite him back to his house; for he still believed that Maud +had exaggerated a little in her estimation of Fowler's conduct, out of +gratitude for her own preservation. However he returned to the +supper-table a happier man then he had been for many a day, and paid +more than usual attention to Blanche, who could not understand the +change. + +Mr. Morley determined that he would not leave that house again without +knowing his fate; and, when breakfast was over, he told Frederick that +he had something of importance to settle there before he could leave, +but that if he would go back to the cottage, and relieve their aunt's +anxiety and send her back to Penzance in the carriage, he would meet him +at the cottage as soon as he had finished his business, and they would +then go on to St. Just together. + +This pleased Frederick very much, for he wished to go with his brother, +but did not press it before, as Mr. Morley seemed to think he had better +go alone: Frederick, therefore, returned at once to the cottage, where +he found his aunt and Miss Freeman anxiously waiting his arrival with +Alrina, and they were very much distressed when they heard that she had +left Pendrea-house unknown to the family. Mrs. Courland had received +sufficient proofs to satisfy her, she said, that Alrina was her +daughter, and she was most anxious to see her, that she might have the +further test of the likeness. As that was impossible, at present, +Frederick persuaded her to return to Penzance at once, fearing Captain +Courland might return before her and might be angry at her absence, +which she could not at present explain to him. + +Mr. Morley did not keep his brother waiting very long, for his business +was soon over. Miss Pendray knew quite well what he wanted, when he +requested an interview with her; for she saw by his manner the night +before, and from the tender concern he appeared to take in her +miraculous escape, and the expression of his fine handsome countenance +when he looked at her, that he felt a deeper interest in her than she +had before supposed from his seeming-indifference to her during the past +few months. Perhaps she measured his feelings by her own, and when they +met, each being anxious for the other's love, and well-knowing their own +feelings, and each being ready and willing to meet the other more than +halfway, the betrothal was soon settled, and Mr. Morley left the house a +happy man. + +Horses were procured, and the two brothers were not long in reaching St. +Just. They put their horses in Mr. Brown's stable, and went in to +consult Mrs. Brown. She had heard Alrina's account of her having left +Pendrea-house without taking leave of the family, and her reasons for +doing so, and she also knew her determination as to the future, and her +wish to avoid being seen by any of her former acquaintances at present. +Mrs. Brown listened attentively to the tale the two gentlemen +told:--that Miss Freeman, Alrina's supposed aunt, was lying at a cottage +near Pendrea-house on her death-bed, and wished to see her niece before +she died. + +This was very "whisht" Mrs. Brown thought, and Alrina ought to go and +see her aunt; for, however wicked "The Maister" had been, she never +heard that Miss Freeman had been concerned in his wicked doings, so she +determined that she would persuade Alrina to go. After thinking +therefore for some minutes she said,--"I was tould not to let anybody +knaw where Miss Reeney es, but in a caase like this, when a relation es +upon her death-bed, I think she oft to go.--Stay here, gentlemen, for a +few minutes, and I'll go and fetch her." + +"I think we had better accompany you," said Mr. Morley, "for I fear she +will take alarm and be off again." + +"As you plaise, gentlemen," she replied, "you may go by yourselves if +you like: she es now in the ould house trying to find out the mystery: +you are gentlemen and men of understanding, and your judgment, perhaps, +es better than mine." + +So they went to the old house, where so many scenes of different kinds +had been enacted within the last few months. Here they found Alrina, +wandering through the rooms alone. She was perfectly calm, and talked +to them both in a quiet and dignified manner. She looked pale and +care-worn, and bowed down with grief and suffering. The beautiful +roseate hue which formerly gave such a charm to her delicate complexion +was gone, and her bright laughing eye was now cold and stern. Frederick +could scarcely trust himself to speak,--the change which had come over +Alrina within the last few days quite shocked him. Mr. Morley took her +hand gently and led her to a seat, while he told her of the illness of +her whom she had been taught to call aunt: he then imparted to her the +tale he had heard his brother relate. She seemed like one in a dream +while he went on unfolding the dark cloud, and displaying, by degrees, +the silver lining; and when he had finished his tale, she looked from +one to the other of the visitors, without uttering a word; she seemed to +be trying to realize it all. At last she burst into tears, +exclaiming,--"Oh, Mr. Morley, can this be true?--Can it be really +true?"--and, giving way again to a burst of hysterical tears, which she +seemed to have no power to control, she rose and hurried out of the +room. + +The brothers heard her go upstairs; and there they sat in silence: +neither of them spoke for several minutes; at length Mr. Morley +said,--"Poor girl! how sensitive she is!--the prospect of a happy future +has affected her more than the misfortunes to which she had almost +become reconciled before. I hope it will not have any serious effect on +her: but what can we do?" + +"I'll go for Mrs. Brown," said Frederick, whose feelings were ready to +burst forth also; and, had he not thus escaped into the open air, he +felt that he should have been unmanned, and have made a fool of himself +before his sterner brother. + +Mrs. Brown readily accompanied Frederick, and by the time they arrived +at the deserted house he had recovered something of his former spirits. +Mr. Morley told Mrs. Brown that Alrina was overcome at hearing the news +they had communicated, and had gone upstairs in hysterics. They did not +tell her the extent of the news, so she naturally concluded it was +hearing of the serious illness of her aunt that had so affected her. + +Mrs. Brown went upstairs, and remained there so long with her charge, +that the gentlemen began to think it was a more serious matter than it +really was: at length they came down together. Alrina was still very +pale, and her eyes were swollen with weeping; but she was tranquil and +more composed,--almost cheerful. She was leaning for support on Mrs. +Brown, who looked on her sweet face and smoothed it with her hand +caressingly, as ladies will sometimes smooth and caress a favourite +lap-dog, playing with it as it were, and fondling it, while she +expressed her love by kissing the smooth white forehead. It was a +touching scene,--that kind, good, old woman leading in her whom she +loved and respected so much, and caressing her as if she were a little +child, while she looked up so lovingly in return, thanking by that look +her kind friend who had been to her a second mother, and feeling that to +express her gratitude in any other way would be more than she could do. + +Mr. Morley, at that moment, thought he had never seen so lovely a +creature before; and Frederick,--we will not tell his thoughts,--we +cannot. + +Alrina had told her kind friend all, and now Mrs. Brown wished to hear +it all over again from Mr. Morley, who told his tale once more; and, +with Frederick's assistance, a little more was added which he had not +before remembered. + +Alrina had not yet begun to realize her position:--her thoughts seemed +to be wandering; her brain was bewildered, and she knew not what to say; +her future had seemed before obscured by a dark cloud,--she could see +nothing but gloom before her; now the cloud seemed brighter, but it was +not quite dispelled. She had met with so many disappointments in her +short life, that she feared there might be a greater one than she had +hitherto felt still in store for her. What, if this tale should turn out +to be a fabrication of her aunt's,--and after she had buoyed herself up +with the hope of future happiness, it should be discovered that she was +not Mrs. Courland's daughter after all? This overthrow of all her hopes, +after having tasted of their pleasures, would be worse than remaining as +she was. All these thoughts, and a thousand others, passed through her +mind in rapid succession as she sat listening to the tale for the second +time, and hearing questions asked by Mrs. Brown which the two young men +could not answer; for Frederick knew nothing more than what he had heard +Miss Freeman relate to his aunt: he had seen no proof; all he could say +was, that his aunt seemed perfectly satisfied when he returned to take +her to the carriage, and was most anxious to see Alrina, that she might +judge of the likeness, as far as a person can judge of her own likeness. + +Mrs. Brown thought that, at all events, it was Alrina's duty to go and +see her aunt at once: but she could not go alone, nor could she go with +the gentlemen without some female companion. Mrs. Brown could not leave +her husband so long, nor the business; she suggested, therefore, that +Alice Ann should be sought,--she was in the neighbourhood she knew. +"Josiah will find her," said she, "if one of the gentlemen will run down +to Captain Trenow's house and ask him." + +Frederick volunteered to go; for although he was happy at having Alrina +to gaze upon, yet he was not comfortable, nor was she, evidently; for +neither knew how the other felt. They had both done violence to their +feelings,--the one intentionally, the other unwittingly, and a mutual +explanation was necessary before they could be certain how they now +stood towards each other. Frederick could scarcely bring himself to +believe that Alrina really meant that she had ceased to love him;--he +could not think that, after what had passed between them. But she had +told him so, and was he not bound to believe her? If so,--if that was +really true, he must try and win her love back again. He could not give +her up,--he would not. These were his reflections as he hastened on his +errand. + +Josiah was gone to Tol-pedn-Penwith signal-station, Mrs. Trenow said, in +search of his young master. He must have gone the other road, and so he +had missed him. + +Frederick told Mrs. Trenow his errand, saying that Miss Alrina had come +back to see the old house once more, and she wanted Alice Ann. + +"I'll run up for her myself, sar," said she, "tesn't very far. I'll just +clap up my 'tother cap fust. Where shall I tell her she'll find her +missus?" + +"I think you had better tell her to come to Mrs. Brown's," replied +Frederick. + + + + +CHAPTER XLV. + +AN AWFUL CATASTROPHE. + + +Mrs. Trenow was not long in executing her errand, and Alice Ann was +quite delighted at the thoughts of being once more in attendance on +Alrina. + +There were no conveyances to be had, so that the gentlemen were puzzled +how they should convey Alrina and her attendant across the country to +the place of rendezvous. Alrina had already walked from thence to St. +Just, that morning, or rather in the course of the night; so that, +although the distance was not more than six or seven miles, her walking +back there again was quite out of the question. It was decided that +Frederick should ride straight to Penzance, as fast as he could, to +inform his aunt that Alrina had been found, and to send a carriage for +her if his aunt wished it; and Alice Ann proposed that Alrina should +ride on the other horse to the cottage, while Mr. Morley and herself +walked by her side. As no better plan could be thought of, Alice Ann's +suggestion was adopted, and the party set out at a slow pace, which gave +them time for reflection and conversation on the road. Alice Ann could +tell them many a legend connected with the different places they passed, +and especially about Chapel Carn-Brea, where many a terrible deed had +been done, she said, in times past, and where ghosts might be seen +walking now, if anyone had the courage to go there at the midnight +hour. "That boy, Bill could tell a sight of stories about this and +that," said she, "I b'lieve he and 'The Maister' ha' be'n there brave +an' often together." + +"I wonder what has become of that boy?" said Alrina, joining for the +first time in the conversation, "I am sure he knows a great deal about +many things that are mysteries to other people." + +"He do so," replied Alice Ann, "he wor the cutest chap for his size that +evar I seed; and as for tongue, why, he would turn 'ee inside out in a +minute, ef you dedn't keep your eyes abroad. What's become of he I +caen't tell; but I can give a purty near guess, and so can Mrs. Trenow +too, so she do say." + +"Who was this boy?" asked Mr. Morley, "where did he come from?" + +"I can no more tell than you can, sar," replied Alice Ann, "he wor found +one night when he wor a cheeld, outside the workhouse door, an' wor +broft up by the parish, so I've heard; for tes a bra' many years +ago,--f'rall he's so small." + +"Do you think he knew anything of my fa----, of Mr. Freeman's mysterious +doings?" asked Alrina, who seemed now to take more interest in the +conversation than she had done during the first part of the journey. + +"Do I think?" replied Alice Ann, "I do knaw that he ded. 'Siah have seed +that boy up to Chapel Carn-Brea in the middle of the night, when he ha' +ben coming home from Bâl, and 'The Maister' havn't ben very far off, an' +he whistling like a black-bird, that time o' night. I tell 'ee Miss +Reeney, that boy Bill wor no good. What's become of the boy? says +you.--What's become of 'The Maister?' says I. Find the one, and you'll +find the t'other; that's my b'lief." + +Thus they wiled away the time during the journey, until they arrived at +the brow of the hill which overlooked the cottage to which they were +directing their steps. Mr. Morley had turned round when they arrived on +this eminence in the morning, to view the surrounding neighbourhood, and +to mark the spot, that he might be able to find it again easily, for it +was situated in rather a secluded valley, the approach to which was by a +narrow path branching off from the main road. Everything looked serene +and calm then, and, but for a thin jet of smoke rising from one of the +chimneys and curling up against the clear blue sky, the cottage and its +locality would have passed unobserved by a casual traveller; for it +stood very low, as we have said before, all the rooms being built on the +ground-floor: the walls were rudely built of clay--earth and straw +wetted and well mixed together,--called in Cornwall, "Cob;" the roof was +thatched with straw; and the partitions, inside, were made of thick +wood, collected, from time to time, from the wrecks of vessels, with +which that part of the coast of Cornwall abounds in the winter season. + +As the party halted now on the top of this eminence, to enable Mr. +Morley to reconnoitre and take his bearings, to guide him in the +selection of the right path leading directly to the cottage, he saw, +instead of a thin curl of smoke, such as he had seen in the morning, a +large volume of black smoke rising from the spot, almost darkening the +sky; and, at short intervals, a long tongue of fire would rise into the +air above the smoke, and disappear again, as a darker and more dense +volume of smoke issued forth. + +"The cottage is on fire!" exclaimed Mr. Morley. "Follow me, as well as +you can; take the second turning to your right:" and away he ran, +leaving the two females to take care of themselves and the horse, and to +find their way to the cottage as well as they could. + +When Mr. Morley arrived at the spot, an awful sight presented itself to +his view. The cottage was in flames, which the straw roof and wooden +partitions were feeding most bountifully; and, as they consumed the dry +conbustible on which they were feeding so greedily, their long tongues +would issue, in fantastic spurts, from the doors and windows on the +leeward side of the building. It was a fearful sight; a good number of +men and women were already there, attracted by the smoke, which could +now be seen far and wide. Josiah had been there some little time: he had +received intelligence of the fire, as he was returning from the +signal-station, and he hastened down to the spot at once, having sent a +messenger on to Lieut. Fowler with all speed. Josiah, and the few +persons who were there when he arrived, did all they could in carrying +buckets of water from a well at a short distance off; but their efforts +seemed at first to be increasing the fire rather than abating it. They +continued however to pour water into the rooms on one side of the +building which seemed the most likely to be inhabited, and, by opening +the doors and windows on the other side, they, in a measure, diverted +the fire to that side; but whether they were doing right or wrong they +could not tell; they could only conjecture on which side the inmates, if +any, were located. + +Lieut. Fowler and his men, followed by a number of people from the +surrounding neighbourhood, had just arrived, and the lieutenant was in +the act of marshalling his men, when Mr. Morley rushed down among them, +in the greatest excitement, asking all sorts of questions, as to how the +fire had originated, and if there were buckets enough, and if the +inmates had been got out; but instead of replying, Fowler took him by +the arm, saying, "Take half a dozen men to the well, Morley, with +buckets and ropes, and keep them there. Let them fill the buckets as +fast as they can, and I will organize a double row of men and women from +thence to the cottage to pass the full buckets up and the empty ones +down; and my men and Josiah will then pour the water where it will be +most available for extinguishing the flames." And to Squire Pendray, who +also arrived about the same time, he allotted the task of keeping the +double row of men and women steady at their work. + +The commanding voice of the officer, and the example of his men, +accustomed to obey, very soon restored order, where there was nothing +but confusion before; and, by his judicious management, and the courage +and bravery of his men, assisted by the strong arm of Josiah, the flames +were soon got under sufficiently to enable some of them to enter the +house. Fowler set a guard outside each door to prevent the mob from +entering, and then, taking Mr. Morley and the squire with him, they +entered the house followed by Josiah, and opened some of the inner-doors +to let out the smoke, when something flitted by them and rushed into the +interior of the house; but whether it was a man or a woman they could +not make out. Josiah however, seemed to know what it was, for he +followed immediately in full chase, leaving the others behind, who +thought their most prudent plan was to emerge into the air to refresh +themselves, and be prepared for anything that might turn up; for, in a +very short time, the smoke would have evaporated sufficiently to enable +them to go through the house with ease and impunity. Josiah did not +return; so after a few minutes, the three gentlemen entered the house +again. The entrance-rooms were not very much damaged; but as they +proceeded, the ravages of the fire were fearful. The straw roof was +entirely destroyed, from one end to the other. They passed into one +room, if a room it could be called now, where the fire seemed to have +raged in its greatest fury, and, looking into what was once another +room, divided from the place where they stood by a thick wooden +partition, they beheld a sight which made them shudder. The door, which +was not so thick as the partition, was burnt to ashes, and a portion of +the thick partition was also burnt: it was evident that the interior of +the room had been partially preserved by the water which Josiah and the +first comers had thrown in when they first arrived; but it had been the +scene of a great conflagration, and the smoke had hardly cleared away +yet: the walls were blackened, and the ornaments and pictures which hung +against them had dropped off with the heat. It had evidently been a +well-furnished room, the remains of which were still to be seen. The bed +was reduced to ashes, and it seemed as if the flames from the bed had +communicated to some inflammable substance in the room, and thence to +the straw roof which was not protected or covered on the inside, and was +at no great distance above the head of the bed. But their attention was +not long confined to the destruction of the bed and the other furniture +of the room; for a more awful spectacle presented itself to their view. +On the floor, in a corner of the room, lay two females, the elder one +having her hand entwined in the long hair of the younger, who grasped +the elder woman's arms in a strong determined grip. That it had been a +death-struggle there could be no doubt; but how they got there, or what +the struggle was about, neither of the three gentlemen could divine. But +there they lay, behind the door, dead!--They had been suffocated, no +doubt by the smoke: their clothes were burnt and their flesh had been +scarred by the fire. + +The younger of the two, seemed well dressed, as far as they could judge +by the little that was left of it, and she must have been a well-formed +comely figure, in the hey-day of youth: the elder was an emaciated +figure, evidently the occupant of the bed which had once stood in the +middle of the room. It was a dreadful sight, and the three gentlemen +left the room in search of information as to their identity, when they +met Josiah, holding a boy by the arm. Mr. Morley pointed to the room +from which they had just retreated, and looked enquiringly at Josiah. +"Iss, sure I've seed them!" said he, "and 'tes a whisht sight, sure +'nuff; but there's a whisheder sight for 'ee to see yet. This way ef you +plaise, gen'lemen:" and he led the way, still holding the boy by the +arm, till they came to a room at the other end of the house, which +seemed to have suffered more from the fire than any they had yet seen; +for this end had been neglected by them all, supposing that nothing of +any consequence would be found there. + +This part seemed more securely built, and to have been better furnished +than any of the other rooms. The partitions were of thicker wood, and +the doors and windows were better finished with bolts and locks: the +door had not been burnt through, as the other doors and partitions had +been. Josiah said he had burst open the door from the outside, and it +now stood wide open. On the floor lay the body of a man, whose lower +extremities were literally burnt to a cinder; but his features, although +blackened by the action of the fire, were still discernible. One look +was enough! The whole party hurried from the scene with horror depicted +in their countenances, and it was not until they got out into the open +air, that either of them could find words to express their horror and +dismay at what they had just witnessed. + +Josiah still held the boy by the arm, who seemed very much distressed. +Outside the door they encountered Alrina and Alice Ann, who were most +anxious to hear all particulars. + +"You shall know all, after we have made the necessary enquiries," said +Lieut. Fowler. + +At this moment a carriage drove up to the scene, and the post-boy handed +a letter to Mr. Morley: it was from his aunt, begging him to bring +Alrina to Penzance at once; he therefore told the squire and Lieut. +Fowler that he was obliged to go to Penzance, but would be back again +immediately; so the squire requested all the others of the party to go +on to Pendrea-house and wait until Mr. Morley's return; for he said they +must need some refreshment after the fatigues of the morning. Josiah +took charge of the boy; for they all believed he could enlighten them on +all that had happened. Alice Ann accompanied her mistress and Mr. Morley +in the carriage to Penzance. + + + + +CHAPTER XLVI. + +THE DREADED INTERVIEW. + + +Her husband had not returned when Mrs. Courland reached their lodgings +after her early journey to that ill-fated cottage. + +This was fortunate, in many respects: it gave her a little time to +reflect on the events of the morning, and to prepare herself for the +ordeal she had yet to go through. Had Captain Courland returned before +her, she must have accounted, in some way, for her absence, and that +might have led to a premature confession, which she thought had better +not be made until she had seen Alrina, and been fully convinced that the +likeness could not be mistaken. She had received quite sufficient proof +from Miss Freeman of the identity of the child, and she had, moreover, +received from her a sealed packet, which she said would reveal all more +clearly, and other mysteries besides; but she made her promise, most +solemnly, that the packet should not be opened until after her death, +which she knew could not be far distant, she said. + +While Mrs. Courland was deliberating on these important matters, her +nephew, Frederick Morley entered the room in great haste, telling her +that he had found Alrina, and that she was gone on with his brother to +see Miss Freeman, and he was to send a carriage for her if his aunt +wished it. + +"That is my first wish, at present," replied Mrs. Courland; "I must see +Alrina before I confess my life of deception to my husband. Oh, how can +I tell him that I have been keeping this secret from him and deceiving +him for so many years! How could I have deceived him, who has been so +kind and good to me! It was his goodness that made me keep it from him: +I didn't like to wound his feelings: he will never forgive me--he +cannot! Oh, Frederick, how can I look into his honest face, and confess +my guilty secret!" and burying her face in the soft cushions of the +couch on which she had been reclining, she burst into tears. + +"My dear aunt," said Morley, "you are wrong to meet trouble half-way: my +uncle's goodness of heart will forgive all; and, when he sees Alrina, he +will take her to his heart as if she had been his own child:--I know he +will!" + +"No!" replied Mrs. Courland, "--you don't know him: he has the most +utter abhorrence of deception--he hates secrets and mysteries: he +expressed his opinion, in the severest manner, on this subject, only a +few days ago. Oh, I cannot--I cannot go through with it! Should he even, +in kindness, forgive the deception, he would look upon me with scorn and +suspicion during the remainder of my life: oh, that would be +terrible!--I could not bear it!--I could not live in such a state!--I +should be wretched and miserable!" + +"But consider, aunt," urged Frederick, "if you believe Alrina to be +really your daughter, what injustice you will be doing her by +withholding this confession.--What is to become of her? Would you send +your daughter out into the world a houseless wanderer? Think of this, my +dear aunt; oh, let me beg of you to think of this poor girl! Will you +spurn her from your door, after permitting her to know what has been +told her to day?--It would be cruel--most cruel! Uncle Courland must +know it then; although Alrina would rather die than tell it herself; +this I am sure of; but others would not be so scrupulous. Consider, +aunt,--consider, before you send your daughter out unprotected into the +wide world; those she once looked to for protection are gone,--scattered +abroad on the face of the earth. Consider, Aunt Courland, her position +and yours." + +Frederick spoke with energy and warmth; for, in pleading the cause of +Alrina, he was pleading his own cause too. + +For some minutes after he had finished Mrs. Courland remained with her +face buried in the cushions; at length she rose and wiped her eyes, +which bore evidence of the tears she had shed, and the hard struggle +that had been going on for the last few minutes in her breast, to subdue +her haughty, proud, spirit to the task of making this humble confession +of guilt, which she now felt she must and would make, whatever the +consequences might be. Frederick had touched a tender chord in the +mother's breast, and, rising with calm dignity, she approached the table +and wrote a brief note, which she desired Frederick to send to his +brother at once, with a carriage to bring him and Alrina to the hotel to +wait the result of her dread interview with her husband: but whatever +that result might be, she said her daughter should be cared for as her +daughter. + +Frederick lost no time in despatching the carriage, and waited +impatiently its return to the hotel, where Alrina would remain until +after Mrs. Courland's interview with her husband, the result of which +Frederick still seriously feared and doubted. For although he could +scarcely believe that the captain would refuse to take in this poor +wanderer as one of his household, yet he knew his temper was sometimes +hasty and impetuous, and he might say things in the first burst of +passion, which he might be sorry for after, but which would decide his +aunt in her course; for she possessed the haughty pride of her +aristocratic ancestors, and would never bend to ask, as a favour, that +which, in a hasty moment, might be denied,--even though the denial were +made madly, in the heat of passion. Frederick, therefore, although he +had urged the confession, and painted its reception by his uncle in as +mild colours as he could, still dreaded the meeting of two such spirits, +for such a purpose. But it must be done: and he thought "If it were +done, when 'tis done, then 'twere well it were done quickly." + +Captain Courland returned soon after Frederick left, disappointed and +out of spirits: they had not succeeded in discovering the slightest +trace of the fugitive. + +Julia was not satisfied with the search that had been made the night +before, and she was gone to some houses a little way out of the town, +which she knew Flora was fond of visiting sometimes; so the captain +returned alone. He observed that his wife's spirits were unusually +depressed. She had been weeping, evidently; but he imputed it to her +anxiety for their poor afflicted protegè. She was sitting on the couch, +resting her arm on a table, and supporting her throbbing brow with her +hand. + +Her husband seated himself by her side, and, taking her other hand in +his, affectionately, tried to comfort her by saying that he had no doubt +Flora had wandered out into the country and missed her way, and, from +her infirmity, she could not, perhaps, make anyone understand who she +was nor where she came from. "So cheer up my dear," said he, "all will +turn up well in the end, no doubt." + +"My dear husband," said she, withdrawing her hand, "I am not worthy that +you should treat me so kindly: I have a dreadful secret to unfold to +you, which I feel I have kept from you too long." + +"A secret!" exclaimed her husband, rising hastily, "I tell you I don't +like secrets: everything right and straight and above-board--that's my +plan! I don't want to hear any secrets! Who says that my wife has been +keeping a secret from me? I don't believe a word of it! Who says it, I +should like to know? I'll have him strung up to the yard-arm!" + +He seemed in such agitation, as he hurriedly paced the room, that his +poor wife trembled for the result. She saw that a crisis was close at +hand, and probably her happiness was gone for ever: but she had made up +her mind to tell her secret, and she was determined to go through with +it, let the consequences be what they would. So she asked her husband, +in as calm a tone as she could command, to sit and listen for a few +minutes to what she had to say, and then she should throw herself on his +mercy, and would submit to any punishment he might think she deserved; +but she begged him to hear her tale to the end before he judged her. + +This serious appeal took the captain quite by surprise. He didn't know +what to do or say, so he took a chair, and prepared for the worst. + +With averted eyes, his guilty, trembling wife commenced her tale and +told all: her former marriage, the birth of her daughter, and the +concealment of the child by Miss Fisher: her treachery and heartless +importunities for money, and threats: and, above all, her own weakness +and guilt in keeping the secret from her good, kind husband. + +When she had finished, she leaned her head on her hands, and burst into +a torrent of tears. She had been keeping her feelings under control +during the recital, that she might not interrupt the narrative which she +had to relate. She could not restrain them any longer; and now she +expected a terrible outburst of passion from her husband. The crisis was +at hand. She waited the awful doom which she felt she deserved; but it +did not come. She dared not look at her husband. + +He had sat perfectly still and silent all the time she had been +speaking, and after she had finished he was silent still. At length he +rose, and approaching the couch seated himself by the side of his poor +weeping, trembling wife; and, taking her hand as he had done before, he +said,--"I knew my darling wife had no secrets that her husband was not +cognizant of." + +"No secrets!" she exclaimed, looking up in astonishment,--"I have been +confessing the knowledge of a secret that I have been keeping from you +for years and years, to my sorrow and shame!" + +"I heard what you have been telling me," replied her husband, "but you +have told me nothing that I didn't know before. Why I have known all +that for years." + +"You have known it!" exclaimed Mrs. Courland, in amazement. "How is it +possible! Who can have told you!" + +"Well, now 'tis my turn to spin a yarn, as we sailors say," replied the +captain. "Your first husband's name was Marshall, he had a brother in +the Indian army. After your poor husband was killed, his brother came to +England. He had been informed of the secret marriage; and he had been +enjoined by his brother, in his last letter, after he received the wound +of which he died, that when he came to England, he would see his wife, +and do all he could for her. He came to England in my ship, and he saw +you." + +"He did," replied Mrs. Courland.--"It was soon after the birth of my +little girl. He came to Fisher's cottage. Miss Fisher told him a +plausible tale, saying his brother wished that the marriage should never +be known until he came home to claim me as his wife. As the marriage had +been kept secret so long, it was thought best to keep it so entirely. I +was sent for to come home to my father's house, where I found you +waiting my arrival. You paid the most devoted attention to me.--You were +rich.--My parents and all my friends urged it, and we were married. I +was persuaded by Miss Fisher not to tell my secret, and so it was kept; +and it has been a burden on my mind from that time to this." + +"My beautiful wife," said the captain, kissing her affectionately, +"Marshall returned with me to India, after our marriage, and he told me +the secret, so that you see I have known it almost as long as you have +known it yourself; but I never mentioned it, fearing to distress you, +well-knowing that you had been imposed upon by a designing avaricious +woman." + +"My good, kind indulgent husband!" exclaimed his wife, caressing the +bluff old sailor, as if he had been a little spoiled child. + +"And now that we have had all these explanations," said the captain, +"and might be happy with our daughter, she is lost!" + +"She is found!" exclaimed Mrs. Courland: "our nephews have found her, +and by this time she is in Penzance; we will send for them." + +A servant was despatched to the hotel, which was very near, and in a few +minutes, Mr. Morley appeared with a beautiful girl leaning on his arm. + +Both the captain and Mrs. Courland were struck with her extreme beauty, +and the captain at once exclaimed,--"Isabella Morley the second, by all +that's beautiful!" + +"No, sir!" replied Mr. Morley,--"not Isabella Morley, but Alrina +Marshall!" + +"My long lost child!" exclaimed Mrs. Courland, rushing towards Alrina, +and embracing her tenderly, "I see the likeness myself!" + +"Good heavens!" cried the captain, "is this our daughter? Then what has +become of the other?" + +"What other?" exclaimed Mr. Morley and Mrs. Courland in a breath. + +"Why, the poor girl we have been in search of all night," replied the +captain: "I concluded she was the lost child!" + +"Alas!" said Mr. Morley,--"she is indeed lost!" And he briefly related +the dreadful catastrophe which he had witnessed so recently, which threw +a gloom over the whole party. They soon recovered their spirits, +however, and, leaving the newly-formed family group to enjoy their +unexpected happiness in quietude, Mr. Morley accompanied by Frederick, +who had remained at the hotel while his brother took Alrina to her +newly found parents, hastened, as fast as possible, back to +Pendrea-house, to assist in unravelling the mysteries connected with +that ill-fated cottage and its unfortunate inmates. + + + + +CHAPTER XLVII. + +MYSTERIES EXPLAINED. + + +Josiah did not let go his hold of the boy until they were safely seated +in a room at Pendrea-house. And, even then, he would not let him go +until the door was bolted, and he had seen that all the windows were +fastened, and had even looked up the chimney. + +"He ha' ben in queer places in his time I reckon," said he, "and seed a +bra' many things: he ha' gov'd us the slip oftener then he will again." + +Refreshments were ordered in and done justice to by all; and, when Mr. +Morley and his brother arrived, the squire requested all the party to +attend him in his library or Justice-room, as the domestics persisted in +calling it. + +Josiah still kept the boy in custody, and when all were assembled, +Squire Pendray said, addressing the boy,--"It appears that you can +enlighten us on all we want to know respecting the inmates of this +house, and we wish you to relate all particulars respecting them. You +can gain nothing, now, by keeping anything back; but may benefit +yourself a good deal by confessing everything, and informing us who were +there, and how they got there, and the origin of the fire, if you know. +Fear nothing: I tell you, in the presence of these gentlemen, that you +shall not suffer, in any way, for what you may reveal to us. If you do +not tell us the truth, and we think you are concealing anything that you +ought to reveal, you must suffer the consequences." + +The boy looked from one to the other, and seemed to hesitate for several +minutes before he spoke. His eyes were directed more than once towards +the door, as if he expected to see someone enter to relieve him of his +perplexity; no one came, however, and he seemed to feel that he was +standing alone in the world. His old friends (if friends they were) +could help him no longer, and his shrewdness told him he had better make +a virtue of necessity; so after a short pause, as if collecting his +scattered thoughts, he began his confession. He had been too much mixed +up with the conjuror to have imbibed very much of the Cornish dialect, +although he sometimes used it. Thus he began in very intelligible +English,--"'The Maister' saved my life, gentlemen, by his knowledge in +medicine, and I was grateful for it. He took a liking to me, and I +helped him in his business: call it what you will,--conjuring if you +like. I never grew after he took me into his service at eight years old: +perhaps I don't look more than that now, but I am eight-and-twenty. I +was useful to 'The Maister' on account of my size: I could worm out a +little secret by hiding in odd corners, and I never forgot what I heard; +I liked the post, and gloried in seeing the astonishment of some of the +people to whom 'The Maister' told some secrets he had heard through me, +which they thought no one else knew but themselves. Our adventures were +varied and frequent; the last was an awful one, when we came on shore +under St. Just in a vessel bottom uppermost. 'The Maister' persuaded me, +when I went to see him at his house afterwards, that he had been the +means of saving my life again, in return for which he wanted my +services. He expected the officers of justice. He was not so ill as he +pretended; but it would not have been safe for him to be taken away by +his friends then, nor to be supposed to have escaped in the ordinary +way; he would have been traced at once. I had the means of getting into +his room at anytime from the back premises, through a passage that no +one knew but ourselves. He had some drug by him which would cause the +party taking it to appear dead for a short time. I was in the room when +the constable and some of you gentlemen were below entreating Miss +Reeney to take you up into his room. We heard you coming: I gave the +mixture to 'The Maister,' and crept under the bed, and when you entered +you pronounced him dead, and left almost immediately. Another mixture, +which he had previously prepared, and which I had ready to give him, +restored him at once; and that night, with the assistance of our +friends, whose names I need not now mention, whom I had communicated +with by means of the poor fellow commonly called 'Mazed Dick,' whose +swiftness of foot is well known, we got 'The Maister' away, and the +report that he had been taken away by the spirits favoured us. We +brought him to the cottage that was burned down to-day, where we knew +Miss Freeman had been for some weeks confined through illness, brought +on by exposure to the cold; she fell and fractured a limb, in walking +from Penzance to Lieut. Fowler's station, where she was going on some +errand in connexion with that dumb girl--what it was I don't know. She +slipped her foot and fell and broke her leg, and there she lay, on the +cold ground, all night, until she was discovered by 'Mazed Dick' in one +of his rambles, and was taken to his brother's cottage. I could not +desert my master; I believed in his power, and do still. He was +recovering fast: he could get up and walk about his room, and intended +being off in a few days; I was to have gone with him. This morning, to +my surprise, I saw the dumb girl come out of a room at the further end +of the house; the mistress of the house, and her son, 'Mazed Dick,' were +gone away, and the outer door was locked: I watched her, but was not +seen by her. She peeped into several rooms, and tried the door of the +one in which 'The Maister' was; but that was always kept locked and +bolted on the inside. She then went on to the room in which Miss Freeman +lay in bed. She seemed to know her at once; for she darted into the +room, and drew something from her bosom; it seemed like an ear-ring, as +well as I could see it; and she pointed and made signs, which Miss +Freeman seemed to understand, and which seemed to irritate her very +much. Miss Freeman had a lighted candle, on a small table, by her +bedside, for the purpose of reading some papers. The room was very dark, +although it was early in the morning, but the windows were small, and +half-hid by the thatch of the roof, which hung down over them. She tried +to snatch at what the girl held in her hand; and, in doing so, she +overturned the candle on the bed, when a bottle of something inflammable +fell with it, and the bed in an instant, was in a blaze. She seized the +girl by her hair, and dragged her on to the bed, when they both caught +fire, and the poor girl seized the woman by the arms to make her let go +her hair, and so she pulled her out of bed, and they both fell together +on the floor, a mass of flames. I could not assist them, so I ran out +through a side-door which I knew how to open, in order to call +assistance, when I met Josiah, and he sent me on to Lieut. Fowler, but I +believe Josiah didn't know who I was, he seemed so frightened at what I +told him. When I met him again, it was at the door of 'The Maister's' +room. He had followed me when I ran through on my return from Lieut. +Fowler's. The door was locked and bolted on the inside. I told Josiah +whose room it was, and he forced the door open; for the wood in which +the bolts were fixed was still burning, and easily gave way: the fire +had reached this room and blazed in all its fury; and I suppose, from +the burning of the roof and the wood all round, the bolts of the door +soon became too hot for 'The Maister' to touch them, and so he was burnt +to death. That is my tale, gentlemen, and all I have spoken is the +truth." + +So saying, the boy or man which ever he might be called, placed his +hands before his eyes and awaited the result of his communication: +whether the thought of the awful death of "The Maister," whom he seemed +to have looked up to with fear and gratitude, drew a tear from his eyes +or not, was not known. His tale was believed; and, after a consultation +among the gentlemen present, it was agreed that something should be done +for the poor fellow, on his promising to lead a new life and give up all +evil practices in future. This he very readily and sincerely +promised,--and the party separated for the present, as Mr. Morley said +he must return to Penzance to see his uncle and aunt previous to his +commencing, in company with his brother, the search after the wretches +at whose hands his poor father had suffered such grievous wrong, and +which had been retarded by the occurrence of recent events. Now they +would have nothing to retard their search, he said,--and he would not +rest until he had found them and brought them to justice or confession. + + + + +CHAPTER XLVIII. + +A BRILLIANT CORNISH DIAMOND DISCOVERED AND PLACED IN A GOLDEN CASKET. + + +Julia was very glad, when she returned, to find her old schoolfellow +Alrina with her uncle and aunt; and astonished beyond measure, when she +learned that she was also her cousin. The story, altogether, was so +romantic, she said, that it reminded her of something she had read a +long time ago in one of the old Romances at Ashley Hall; and she was so +interested in it, that, when her aunt had finished her recital, she +begged her to repeat it over again; but this she was prevented from +doing, even had she intended it, by the arrival of Mr. Morley and +Frederick. + +Julia had not seen much of her brothers lately; she received them, +therefore, with warmth, especially Frederick, whom, being nearer her own +age, and better known to her from their having been thrown together in +their childhood, she loved with the tenderest affection. She saw that +the meeting between him and Alrina was not what it ought to have +been,--nor did the coolness wear off: so she took Alrina out of the +room, on some pretence, and asked her the reason; for she knew that two +fonder hearts never pledged their troth to one another than those two. +Alrina hesitated, at first, and seemed at a loss what answer to give, +until Julia reminded her that they were now not only old friends and +schoolfellows, but were near relatives, and, unless there was some +secret that could not be revealed, she should feel very grieved if her +newly-found cousin could not place sufficient confidence in her as a +friend, to tell her what had caused the coolness between two, who, but a +short time ago, seemed so devoted to each other. "If Frederick has said +or done anything to annoy or displease you," she said, "I am sure it was +unintentional on his part; and, if you will tell me, in confidence, I +will do my best to set all things right." + +Still Alrina hesitated, and Julia began to suspect that the coolness she +had observed was caused by something more serious than she had at first +imagined; but, whatever it was, she thought it had better be explained, +and, as Alrina did not seem inclined to speak, she went on with her +persuasive arguments. "Consider, Alrina dear, what years of pain and +mental suffering my poor aunt endured on account of her reticence. Had +she revealed her secret in the beginning, she would have been much +happier, and your life would not have been subject to so many changes +and vicissitudes as you have experienced. If your secret is not one that +you cannot reveal, pray unburden your mind to me, as your near relative +and dearest friend." + +Thus importuned, Alrina felt that she could not any longer refuse her +confidence to her friend, and, putting her arm round Julia's waist, she +led her into her own little room, which had already been prepared for +her, and there she told her all, as they sat folding one another in a +fond sisterly embrace. + +"You noble girl!" exclaimed Julia, when her cousin had finished the +recital of her troubles, and had told with what bitter pain and anguish +she had done violence to her feelings, by telling Frederick that she +could not love him, in order to save him and his family from marrying +one whose father's evil deeds must throw disgrace and shame upon all +connected with him. + +"I would rather have died than brought this disgrace on Frederick and +his family," cried Alrina; "and, having thus discarded him who is dearer +to me than my life, how can I think that he will ever look upon me again +in any other light than as a fickle wayward girl: he can have no further +confidence in me;--indeed, I will not ask it; I do not deserve his love +or confidence after my cruel treatment of him." + +"We shall see,"--replied Julia, smiling and kissing her friend +fondly,--"We shall see, my sweet cousin." + +While the two cousins were having their confidential chat, Captain and +Mrs. Courland and their two nephews were talking over the events of the +past few days, and Mr. Morley related to his uncle and aunt the boy's +confession. + +"Before you leave us to prosecute the search you are so anxious about," +said Mrs. Courland, addressing the two young men, "I should like to open +the packet entrusted to me by Miss Freeman (or Miss Fisher as I always +called her): she is dead now, poor woman; so that my promise is at an +end." + +"Yes!" said the captain, "let it be opened, now,--we won't keep any more +secrets or mysteries here." + +The packet was therefore produced and opened. It contained a long +manuscript, written in a neat hand, and was headed,-- + + "_The Confession of Maria Fisher, alias Freeman_":-- + +and Mr. Morley, being requested to read it, read as follows:-- + +"I, Maria Fisher, alias Freeman, being on my death-bed, make this +confession as the only atonement and reparation I can make for the evil +deeds I have done during my life: I have injured almost beyond +reparation, the whole of the Morley family. + +"First Isabella Morley was the victim of my avarice. I kept her little +daughter, to serve my own ends, and palmed off the poor dumb girl (of +whom more anon) on her as her child. Alrina, whom I called my niece, is +Isabella Morley's daughter. Proofs sufficient can be found.--The Coopers +know all: and my sinful brother knows all.--Sift it out. That poor dumb +girl was found by Cooper, washed on shore from a wreck: he picked her up +and carried her to his house. She had a peculiar pair of ear-rings in +her ears, very handsome and costly: I have one in my possession now--the +other I have missed. Her linen was marked '_Fowler_.' We have since +learned that Lieut. Fowler's brother and his little daughter were +wrecked on this coast on their voyage from India. He was drowned; the +child was saved. The Coopers know more;--my brother knows all. This +child's infirmity was useful to us: she was kept at the Coopers'. Sift +this out to the bottom to: here is the clue:"-- + +"Oh, miserable woman!" exclaimed Mrs. Courland,--"what a life of sin and +wickedness she must have led!" + +"Yes!" replied Mr. Morley.--"but that is not all: let me go on. The +remainder of the manuscript is not quite so legible: it seems to have +been written under the influence of stimulants: it is blotted, and some +words are erased with the pen and written over again: I will read it as +well as I can, but you must give me time." And, having smoothed out the +manuscript, and turned his chair, so as to let the light fall full on +the paper, he resumed his task. There were many stoppages in the course +of the reading, and many exclamations of surprise and horror, which we +will not notice here, but let the confession go on smoothly, to avoid +confusion and tediousness. + +"If the first part of my confession has startled the reader (whoever he +may be)" it went on, "let him close the MS.--What has been told, is as +nothing to what remains. How to approach this part of my confession I +know not. Brandy will assist me. Brandy! Brandy! That will drown my +better thoughts, and bring me back to that dread night, and help me to +tell my tale as fearlessly and heartlessly as the deed was committed. + +"Now I can go on again. Mrs. Courland, the once beautiful Isabella +Morley, had returned to Ashley Hall. My brother and myself followed, and +took a lone cottage near the sea-coast.--Our father lived with us. He +was a rover, though an old man: unsteady and intemperate in his habits: +he was useful to the smugglers, and they paid him well for his +assistance. My brother took a higher walk in the smuggling line. He got +connected with some of the Cornish smugglers,--Cooper among the rest; +and they bought a little vessel of which Cooper was the captain; and my +brother, living at a distance, and being connected with merchants, sold +the goods. One night!--I shall never forget that night!--a gentleman was +driven to seek shelter in our cottage from the snow: he had missed his +way.--My father and brother were both out. My father's bedroom on the +ground-floor, was vacant: I did not expect him home that night, so I put +the gentleman there to sleep.--To sleep! Yes!--It might indeed have been +a long sleep! + +"My brother returned. I told him Mr. Morley had entrusted me with his +name;--he had money, too, he told me,--a large sum. My brother hated the +name of Morley: he had been spurned by a Morley:--his love had been +rejected with scorn:--he was a man of strong passions. The brother of +her whom he now hated as much as he had loved before,--the man who had +introduced the rich captain to Isabella, and so overturned his hopes of +marriage with the lovely creature he had so passionately loved, was in +his power. Revenge seized hold of him. He called for brandy: he drank +deeply, and raved like a madman; then he became more calm. He took Mr. +Morley's stick and examined it: it was a curious stick. I left him still +drinking, and retired to my bedroom. + +"I knew not the extent of that night's work until the morning; when, oh, +horror!--my brother had murdered our father instead of ----! What was to +be done? My brother's ready wit hit on a plan. The intended victim was +gone; perhaps to inform the authorities. He had worn away the murdered +man's hat. His hat with his name in it, was left: it was with his stick +the murder had been committed: he was accused and committed. My brother +found the bag of money; we fled into Cornwall, changed our names to +Freeman, and took up our abode at St. Just: that money enabled us to +live comfortably. My brother was clever, and earned money in other ways +easily. My confession is finished. My conscience is satisfied. The minds +of the Morleys are relieved. When this is read I shall be no more, and +my brother and the Coopers will be out of your reach. Search,--sift as +you will, you can know no more!--We have outwitted you!--Ha! ha! ha!" + +The latter part of the manuscript was blotted and stained, as if brandy +had been spilt over it, and the writing was almost illegible, indicating +the unsteadiness of the hand that wrote it. + +When Mr. Morley had finished he threw the MS. on the table and +exclaimed,--"I had my suspicions of that fellow from the first. Our +minds are now set at rest, and we can publish this document to satisfy +the public of the perfect innocence of our father, and the double guilt +of those wicked, lawless people." + +"I think," said Captain Courland, "that it is sufficient that you are +satisfied, yourselves, and that the guilty parties have confessed:--the +public have forgotten all the circumstances long ago, and stirring it up +again, now, can answer no good end." + +"Perhaps you are right sir," replied Mr. Morley, "the guilty wretches +have had their reward in this life!" + +"What a shocking death it must have been," said Mrs. Courland, with a +shudder: "torture and pain the most acute and agonizing. How rarely the +guilty escape punishment, even in this life." + +"I should like our good friends, the squire and Fowler, to hear this +confession," said Frederick, "for they knew the story of the murder, and +all the circumstances connected with it, and felt, I am quite sure, a +deep interest in our search after the guilty parties." + +"Of course," said the captain;--"they ought to be informed at once; and +I have been thinking of inviting them all here. What do you think of it, +my dear?" he continued, addressing his wife. "We cannot have so large a +party to dinner at our lodgings, of course; but there is no reason why +we shouldn't ask them all to dine with us at the hotel." + +"I should like it above all things," replied Mrs. Courland, "and, if +Frederick will undertake to deliver the invitations, I will write them +at once, and invite the whole party for to-morrow. The ladies must come +also, or I shall have nothing to do with the party." + +"The ladies, by all means," said the captain, as his wife opened her +writing-desk. + +"I really think I must petition for Josiah to be invited, to be +entertained by Alice Ann," said Mr. Morley, smiling. + +"Of course," said the captain, in high glee: "and that poor boy mustn't +be left out. Shiver my topsails!--young sirs--we'll have a jovial party! +I'll go down to the hotel myself in the morning and superintend the +selection of the wine: we'll have the very best the landlord has in his +cellar.--and plenty of it too.--The squire is a two-bottle man--I'll +take my Solomon Davey to that!" + +While Mrs. Courland was writing the notes, Mr. Morley took up the MS. +again, and, on turning over another sheet, he exclaimed,--"here's +something more!" + +All ears were instantly attentive, and he read on:-- + +"I, Maria Fisher, alias Freeman, as an atonement, in some degree, for my +sinful conduct towards her, give and bequeath to Alrina Marshall, +formerly known as Alrina Freeman, the daughter of Mrs. Courland of +Ashley Hall, all my worldly goods and moneys now in my possession or in +the possession of my brother, John Fisher, alias Freeman, belonging to +me, and all property of any kind which I may possess at my death; and I +hope I shall be pardoned for my sins." + +This document was written in a legible hand, as if after due +deliberation, and properly signed and executed. It, however, gave very +little pleasure to the parties concerned, except that it shewed a shadow +of proper feeling on the part of Miss Freeman to make amends for past +misconduct. + +The notes were at length written, and Frederick was despatched with +them. The captain thought they might have been sent by a servant, but +Frederick would not hear of it. He wished to be the bearer of the +welcome news to Fowler, he said, with whom he should remain for the +night, as he had had riding and excitement enough that day already. + +When Alrina and Julia returned to the drawing-room after their +tête-à-tête, Frederick was gone: it was evident, therefore, Alrina +thought, that he didn't care for her now: she had offended him beyond +forgiveness, and he had given her up; she felt that she deserved it, and +that feeling made her more wretched than ever; she had treated him +shamefully, and had, she thought, wounded his feelings unnecessarily. +Had he treated her cruelly, she could, and would, have forgiven him; but +she could not seek him out, and ask him to forgive her. No, she could +not do that--besides, he seemed to avoid her. What could she do? She +must endeavour to bear it. She slept very little that night;--her +thoughts were too much occupied. The pleasure and happiness she felt at +the course events had taken in her worldly career, were quite absorbed +and overbalanced by the painful reflections she experienced with regard +to the hidden secrets of her heart. In the midst of all the newly +acquired pleasures of birth and fortune, and a happy home, her heart was +crushed and sad. + +Mrs. Courland could not make it out. She thought her daughter would have +been to her a delightful companion, and she had looked forward to years +of happiness; but she found Alrina silent and reserved. She asked Julia +if she knew the cause, and she told her aunt all. They both honoured and +respected Alrina for her noble conduct:--they both knew, very well, that +it only required a kind friend to explain to Frederick the state of +affairs, and all would be well. + +Mrs. Courland took the first opportunity of telling her husband how +nobly their daughter had acted (for she kept nothing from him now), at +which the old gentleman expressed the highest gratification. "We have +found a treasure, my dear;" said he, "many have searched among the +Cornish mines, and spent their all in the search, without finding such a +precious jewel as we have discovered here:--we will preserve her as the +most valued diamond that ever was discovered in Cornwall." + +"Don't be so absurd," replied Mrs. Courland, smiling, "I'm really +afraid our long-lost child will be spoiled if she remains with us." + +The captain's dinner-party was a right jolly one: and, soon after the +desert was set on the table, and the servants had withdrawn, he +said,--"I am not in the habit of throwing a wet blanket over any +company, especially when I have invited the party to my own table; but I +am sure you will all like to hear what these wretches say for +themselves: so, before we begin to enjoy ourselves, I will ask Morley to +read the confession which was placed in Mrs. Courland's hands a few days +ago." + +Mr. Morley, accordingly, read Miss Freeman's confession, at which all +the party were horror-struck, although several of them had heard it +before. + +Lieut. Fowler was perfectly astounded to learn that the dumb girl was +his niece, and was grieved at her sad end. + +"Now," cried the captain, when Mr. Morley had finished, and all had made +their remarks on the sad fate of the inmates of the cottage, "splinter +my topmast! but we'll have no more of this! Pass the bottle, squire, and +we'll drink to the health of my newly-found daughter:--she's a noble +girl! we have found her among the Cornish mines, and so we'll christen +her _The Cornish Diamond_!--ha! ha! ha!" and the old gentleman leaned +back in his chair and laughed right merrily. It was one of his old, +hearty laughs, such as he used to indulge in when he was in Flora's +room, and thought no one heard him;--a sort of exhilarating laugh, which +no one could help joining in, without great difficulty: and all, except +two of the party, did join in it,--even the glasses on the sideboard +echoed their sympathy. There were only two who did not join in the +laugh, and they were Alrina and Mrs. Courland. The former felt that it +tended to make her more conspicuous than she wished just at this time, +and she blushed up to the very roots of her hair, as we have seen her +blush before; while the latter was shocked at the vulgarity (as she +deemed it) of her husband, and dreaded lest he should expose his free +and easy manner still further to the Pendray ladies; so, in order to +check it, as she thought, she said, with quiet dignity, when the +merriment had a little subsided, "My dear, you really must remember that +you are not on board ship.--What will the ladies think?" + +"I tell you what it is, Mrs. Courland;" he replied, in perfect good +humour, "you've had it your own way a long time, and have put a stopper +on my lingo often enough; I mean to steer the ship my own way for once, +and to-morrow you shall take the helm again if you like. So, drink my +toast, ladies and gentlemen:--'The Cornish Diamond!' and a brighter one +was never discovered in the best of our mines. No heeltaps, mind! Fill +what you like; but drink what you fill!--that's my rule." + +Many other toasts were drank, and everyone except the party most +concerned and one other, spent a right merry evening. These two +melancholy ones were Alrina Marshall and Frederick Morley. + +Julia saw how unhappy they were, and, in the course of the evening, she +took Frederick aside, and told him (in confidence) the state of Alrina's +mind, and explained to him her reasons for saying that she could not +love him. He fully believed it, he said; for there was nothing too noble +and disinterested to believe of Alrina; and he only wanted an +opportunity to throw himself at her feet, and beg her to recall the rash +declaration she had made. + +"Come with me, then," said Julia; and she conducted him into a small +room, in which Alrina was sitting waiting for her cousin, who had +excused herself for a moment, having this object in view; and the +mischievous creature, having brought the two glumpy ones together, as +she called them, left them to fight it out in their own way. There was +no fighting, however; for, when they appeared again, they were the +merriest of the party. + + + + +CHAPTER XLIX. + +THE WEDDING BELLS. + + +The next morning gossip was rife in Penzance: nothing was talked of but +the captain's dinner-party, and the circumstances connected with it. + +Three pairs of lovers walked out from the hotel in different directions, +while Julia took a quiet walk with her uncle and aunt, who pretended to +pity her, because she was not so fortunate as the other three young +ladies of the party. They little knew what was going on behind the +scenes; for, if the truth must be told, Julia had received a letter, +that very morning, from the most devoted love-sick swain that ever wrote +sonnets to the moon, or vowed eternal constancy to the most lovely of +her sex. So Julia was perfectly happy, whatever her good uncle and aunt +might think. + +It was very hard, Captain Courland said, to be obliged to give up his +daughter again, as soon as he had found her, but Frederick was a good +fellow, and he should have her; and to enable him to procure a suitable +casket to keep the precious _diamond_ in, the captain gave him a +handsome sum as a wedding present. + +Maud was so happy in the consciousness of having gained the affections +of the only man she had ever known who possessed a congenial spirit with +her own, that she used all her persuasion with her father, in favour of +Lieut. Fowler's hopes with regard to her sister. The squire was taken by +surprise he said: to lose one daughter was bad enough, but to lose both +at the same time, was more than he could consent to. However, he +promised to talk it over with the captain over a bottle of wine after +dinner: and, either the wine had a peculiarly persuasive flavour, or the +captain was more than usually eloquent; for the consent was given the +next day, and it was agreed that the three weddings should take place at +Penzance on the same day; as soon as the necessary preliminary +preparations could be made. + +Josiah and Alice Ann had not been idle. Perhaps love-making is +infectious; if so, they caught the infection from their betters; for +Josiah popped the question, and was accepted, about the same time that +their master and mistress (Mr. Frederick and Miss Alrina) were making up +their little imaginary differences at the hotel. + +While the ladies were making their preparations for their weddings, the +gentlemen, finding time hang heavily on their hands, proposed going to +the conjuror's house, at St. Just, and having a regular overhaul, as +Lieut. Fowler expressed it. + +Alrina's consent was asked, and granted, as a matter of course; for what +had she to do with the conjuror's house now? So they went, and in their +search, they found money and jewels of great value; for, in his haste to +get away, the conjuror had not taken very much with him;--the belt was +gone, and this had, no doubt, been refilled. There was no one to claim +the property, nor to hinder them in their search, so they made a minute +investigation; and that nothing might escape them, where they supposed +or imagined there was a secret drawer, they did not hesitate to break +the piece of furniture in which they suspected it into a thousand +pieces. There could be no doubt, now, as to the disposition and +ownership of the property. The conjuror's nearest relative and +representative was his sister, and she had disposed of all her property +to Alrina. But Alrina, fortunately didn't want it now; so, after +consulting her good friends on the matter, it was decided that Squire +Pendray should lay out a portion of it for the benefit of the boy Bill, +and Mazed Dick and his mother, according to his judgment; and that the +remainder should be given to the poor and for charitable purposes. + +There was nothing wanting that money could procure to render the wedding +everything that could be desired by the most fastidious of gossips. + +Mr. Morley and Frederick presented Josiah and his wife with a handsome +sum of money on their marriage, which took place soon after their own, +to enable them to purchase a farm, to which the happy couple retired +after their wedding. + +Mr. and Mrs. Brown continued to keep the "Commercial" hotel for several +years, and were visited, frequently, by Mr. Morley and his brother and +their wives. But, of all her friends and customers, Mrs. Brown often +declared that she never loved anyone half so much as she loved Miss +Reeney, who was worthy, she said, of the name Mrs. Trenow had given +her,--"THE CORNISH DIAMOND!" + +[Illustration: FINIS] + +PRINTED BY W. CORNISH, THE LIBRARY, PENZANCE + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Wizard of West Penwith, by +William Bentinck Forfar + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 41058 *** |