diff options
Diffstat (limited to '44362.txt')
| -rw-r--r-- | 44362.txt | 16726 |
1 files changed, 0 insertions, 16726 deletions
diff --git a/44362.txt b/44362.txt deleted file mode 100644 index d740afa..0000000 --- a/44362.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,16726 +0,0 @@ - THE ADVENTURES OF HARRY ROCHESTER - - - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost -no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it -under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this -eBook or online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license. - - - -Title: The Adventures of Harry Rochester - A Tale of the Days of Marlborough and Eugene -Author: Herbert Strang -Release Date: December 05, 2013 [EBook #44362] -Language: English -Character set encoding: US-ASCII - - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ADVENTURES OF HARRY -ROCHESTER *** - - - - -Produced by Al Haines. - - - - -[Illustration: Cover art] - - - - -[Illustration: The Fight in the Castle Yard] - - - - - The Adventures of - Harry Rochester - - A Tale of the - Days of Marlborough and Eugene - - - BY - - HERBERT STRANG - - AUTHOR OF "TOM BURNABY" "BOYS OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE" - "KOBO: A STORY OF THE RUSSO-JAPANESE WAR" - - - - Illustrated by William Rainey, R.I. - - - - NEW YORK - G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS - 27 AND 29 WEST 230 STREET - 1905 - - - - -"Honour hath three things in it: the vantage-ground to do good; the -approach to kings and principal persons; and the raising of a man's own -fortunes." - ---_Bacon_. - - - - -_My dear Tom,_ - -_You received my former books so kindly that I feel assured you will not -object to have this volume inscribed with your name. I am not the less -convinced of this because you know well the country in which my opening -scenes are laid, and I had the pleasure last year of playing cricket -with you within a few miles of the village here disguised as Winton St. -Mary._ - -_I hope you will bear with me for one minute while I explain that in -writing this book I had three aims. First, to tell a good story: that -of course. Secondly, to give some account of the operations that -resulted in one of the most brilliant victories ever gained by our -British arms. Thirdly, to throw some light--fitful, it may be, but as -clear as the circumstances of my story admitted--on life and manners two -hundred years ago. History, as you have no doubt already learnt, is not -merely campaigning; and I shall be well pleased if these pages enlarge -your knowledge, in ever so slight a degree, of an interesting period in -our country's annals. And if you, or any other Christ's Hospital boy, -should convict me of borrowing a week from the life of a great -personage, or of antedating by a little a development in our national -pastime--well, I shall feel complimented by such evidence of careful -reading, and not be in the least abashed._ - -_I take the opportunity of this open letter to acknowledge my -indebtedness to the monumental "Memoires militaires relatifs a la -succession d'Espagne" issued by the French General Staff; to Mr. Austin -Dobson for a detail which only his perfect knowledge of the 18th century -could so readily have supplied; and to Lord Wolseley's brilliant life of -Marlborough, which every student of military history must hope so -competent a hand will continue and complete._ - -_Yours very sincerely,_ - _HERBERT STRANG._ - -_Michaelmas Day, 1905._ - - - - - *Contents* - - -_Chapter_ I - The Queen's Purse-Bearer - -_Chapter_ II - Sherebiah Shouts - -_Chapter_ III - Master and Man - -_Chapter_ IV - Mynheer Jan Grootz and Another - -_Chapter_ V - A Message from the Squire - -_Chapter_ VI - My Lord Marlborough makes a Note - -_Chapter_ VII - Snared - -_Chapter_ VIII - Flotsam - -_Chapter_ IX - Monsieur de Polignac Presses his Suit - -_Chapter_ X - Bluff - -_Chapter_ XI - The Battle of Lindendaal - -_Chapter_ XII - Harry is Discharged - -_Chapter_ XIII - Concerning Sherebiah - -_Chapter_ XIV - Harry Rides for a Life - -_Chapter_ XV - The Water of Affliction - -_Chapter_ XVI - Knaves All Three - -_Chapter_ XVII - In the Dusk - -_Chapter_ XVIII - A Little Plot - -_Chapter_ XXI - Marlborough's March to the Danube - -_Chapter_ XX - The Castle of Rauhstein - -_Chapter_ XXI - Across the Fosse - -_Chapter_ XXII - The Fight in the Keep - -_Chapter_ XXIII - Blenheim - -_Chapter_ XXIV - The Wages of Sin - -_Chapter_ XXV - A Bundle of Letters - -_Chapter_ XXVI - The New Squire - -_Chapter_ XXVII - Visitors at Winton Hall - - - - - *List of Illustrations* - - -_Plate_ I - The Fight in the Castle Yard . . . . . . _Frontispiece_ - -_Plate_ II - Harry makes a Diversion - -_Plate_ III - My Lord Marlborough - -_Plate_ IV - At the Last Gasp - -_Plate_ V - "Mon Colonel, we are surrounded!" - -_Plate_ VI - The Stroke of Eight - -_Plate_ VII - "Fire and Fury!" shouted Aglionby - -_Plate_ VIII - Mein Wirth is Surprised - - - - *Map And Plan* - - -Map of the Low Countries in 1703 - -Plan of the Battle of Blenheim - - - - - *CHAPTER I* - - *The Queen's Purse-Bearer* - - -Winton St. Mary--Cricket: Old Style--Last Man In--Bowled--The Gaffer -Explains--More Explanations--Parson Rochester--"The Boy"--Cambridge in -the Field--Village Batsmen--Old Everlasting makes One--The Squire--An -Invitation--Lord Godolphin is Interested--An Uphill Game--Young -Pa'son--The Winning Hit - - -"Stap me, Frank, if ever I rattle my old bones over these roads again! -Every joint in me aches; every wrinkle--and I've too many--is filled -with dust; and my wig--plague on it, Frank, my wig's a doormat. Look at -it--whew!" - -My lord Godolphin took off his cocked hat, removed his full periwig, and -shook it over the side of the calash, wrying his lips as the horse of -one of his escort started at the sudden cloud. My lord had good excuse -for his petulance. It was a brilliant June day, in a summer of glorious -weather, and the Wiltshire roads, no better nor worse than other English -highways in the year 1702, were thick with white dust, which the autumn -rains would by and by transform into the stickiest of clinging mud. The -Lord High Treasurer, as he lay back wearily on his cushions, looked, -with his lean, lined, swarthy face and close-cropt grizzled poll, every -day of his fifty-eight years. He was returning with his son Francis, now -nearly twenty-three, from a visit to his estates in Cornwall. Had he -been a younger man he would no doubt have ridden his own horse; had he -been of lower rank he might have travelled by the public coach; but -being near sixty, a baron, and lord of the Treasury to boot, he drove in -his private four-horsed calash, with two red-coated postilions, and four -sturdy liveried henchmen on horseback, all well armed against the perils -of footpads and highwaymen. - -It was nearing noon on this bright, hot morning, and my lord had begun -to acknowledge to himself that he would barely complete his journey to -London that day. - -"Where are we now, Dickory?" he asked languidly of the nearest rider on -the off-side. - -"Nigh Winton St. Mary, my lord," replied the man. "Down the avenue -yonder, my lord; then the common, and the church on the right, and the -village here and there bearing to the left, as you might say, my lord." - -"Look 'ee, Frank, we'll draw up at Winton St. Mary and wet our whistles. -My lady Marlborough expects us in town to-night, to be sure; but she -must e'en be content to wait. Time was----eh, my boy?--but now, egad, -I'll not kill myself for her or any woman." - -"'Twould be a calamity--for the nation, sir," said Frank Godolphin with -a grin. - -"So it would, i' faith. Never fear, Frank, I'll not make way for you -for ten years to come. But what's afoot yonder? A fair, eh?" - -The carriage had threaded a fine avenue of elms, and come within sight -of the village common, which stretched away beyond and behind the -church, an expanse of rough turf now somewhat parched and browned, -broken here by a patch of shrub, there by a dwindling pond, and bounded -in the distance by the thick coverts of the manor-house. My lord's -exclamation had been called forth by the bright spectacle that met his -eyes. At the side of the road, and encroaching also on the grass, were -ranged a number of vehicles of various sizes and descriptions, from the -humble donkey-cart of a sherbet seller to the lofty coach of some county -magnate. Between the carriages the travellers caught glimpses of a -crowd; and indeed, as they drew nearer to the scene, their ears were -assailed by sundry shoutings and clappings that seemed to betoken -incidents of sport or pastime. My lord Godolphin, for all his coldness -and reserve in his official dealings, was in his moments a keen -sportsman; from a horse-race to a main of cock-fighting or a -sword-match, nothing that had in it the element of sport came amiss to -him; and as he replaced his wig and settled his hat upon it his eyes lit -up with an anticipation vastly different from his air of weary -discontent. - -"Split me, Frank," he cried in a more animated tone than was usual with -him; "whatever it is, 'twill cheer us up. John," he added to the -postilion, "drive on to the grass, and stop at the first opening you -find in the ring. Odsbodikins, 'tis a game at cricket; we'll make an -afternoon of it, Frank, and brave your mother-in-law's anger, come what -may." - -The postilions whipped up their horses, wheeled to the right, and drove -with many a jolt on to the common, passing behind the row of vehicles -until they came to an interval between one of the larger sort and a dray -heaped with barrels of cider. There they pulled up sideways to the -crowd, over whose heads the occupants of the calash looked curiously -towards the scene of the game. It was clearly an exciting moment, for -beyond a casual turning of the head the nearest spectators gave no heed -to the new-comers. A space was roped in at some distance in front of -the church, and within the ring the wickets were pitched--very primitive -compared with the well-turned polished apparatus of to-day. The stumps -were two short sticks forked at the top, stuck at a backward slant into -the turf about a foot apart, with one long bail across them. Nothing had -been done to prepare the pitch; the grass was short and dry and stubby, -with a tuft here and there likely to trip an unwary fielder headlong. -There was no crease, but a hole in the ground. Nor was there any -uniformity of attire among the players: all had the stockings and -pantaloons of daily wear, and if there was any difference in their -shirts, it was due merely to their difference in rank and wealth. - -"Over" had just been called as Lord Godolphin and his son drove up, and -something in the attitude of the crowd seemed to show that the game was -at a crisis. The umpires, armed with rough curved bats somewhat like -long spoons, had just taken their new places, and the batsman who was to -receive the first ball of the new over was taking his block. A tall, -loose-limbed young fellow, he held his bat with an air of easy -confidence. - -"Egad, sir, 'tis Gilbert Young," said Frank Godolphin to his father. "I -knew him at Cambridge: a sticker. Who's the bowler? I don't know him." - -The bowler was a youth, a mere stripling of some sixteen or seventeen -years, who stood at his end of the wicket, ball in hand, awaiting the -word to "play". His loose shirt was open at the neck; his black hair, -not yet cropt for a wig, fell in a strong thick mass over his brow; and -as he waited for the batsman to complete his somewhat fastidious -preparations, he once or twice pushed up the heavy cluster with his left -hand. - -"Gibs was ever a tantalising beast," said Frank aside. "Hi, you fellow!" -he shouted to a broad-shouldered yokel who stood just in front of him by -the rope, "how stands the score?" - -The man addressed looked over his shoulder, and seeing that the speaker -was one of the "quality" he doffed his cap and replied: - -"'Tis ninety-four notches, your honour, and last man in. Has a'ready -twenty-vive to hisself, and the Winton boys can't get un out." - -"Play!" cried the umpire. The batsman stood to his block, and looked -round the field with a smile of confidence. The bowler gave a quick -glance around, took a light run of some three yards, and delivered the -ball--underhand, for round-arm bowling was not yet invented. The ball -travelled swiftly, no more than two or three feet above the ground, -pitched in front of the block-hole, and was driven hard to the off -towards a thick-set, grimy-looking individual--the village smith. He, -bending to field the ball, missed it, swung round to run after it, and -fell sprawling over a tussock of grass, amid yells of mingled derision -and disappointment. - -"Pick theeself up, Lumpy!" roared the man to whom Frank Godolphin had -spoken. But the ball had already been fielded by Long Robin the tanner, -running round from long-on. Sir Gilbert meanwhile had got back to his -end of the wicket, and the scorer, seated near the umpire, had cut two -notches in the scoring stick. - -Again the ball was bowled, with an even lower delivery than before. The -batsman stepped a yard out of his ground and caught the ball on the -rise; it flew high over the head of the remotest fieldsman, over the -rope, over the crowd, and dropped within a foot of the lych-gate of the -church. Loud cheers from a party of gentlemen mounted on coaches in -front of a tent greeted this stroke; four notches were cut to the credit -of the side, bringing the score to a hundred. There was dead silence -among the crowd now; it was plain that their sympathies lay with the out -side, and this ominous opening of the new bowler's over was a check upon -their enjoyment. - -Sir Gilbert once more stood to his block. For his third ball the bowler -took his run on the other side of the wicket. His delivery this time -was a little higher: the ball pitched awkwardly, and the batsman seemed -to be in two minds what to do with it. His hesitation was fatal. With a -perplexing twist the ball slid along the ground past his bat, hit the -off stump, and just dislodged the bail, which fell perpendicularly and -lay across between the sticks. Sir Gilbert looked at it for a moment -with rueful countenance, then marched towards the tent, while the crowd -cheered and, the innings being over, made for the stalls and carts, at -which ale and cider and gingerbread were to be had. - -"Egad, 'twas well bowled," ejaculated Lord Godolphin; "a cunning ball, a -most teasing twist; capital, capital!" - -"I'll go and speak to Gibs," said Frank. "Will you come, sir?" - -"Not I, i' faith. 'Tis too hot. Bring him to me. I'll drink a glass -of cider here and wait your return." - -There was a cider cart near at hand, and his man Dickory brought my lord -a brimming bumper drawn from the wood. He winced as the tart liquor -touched his palate, unaccustomed to such homely drink; but it was at -least cool and refreshing, and he finished the bumper. As he gave it -back he noticed an old man slowly approaching, leaning with one hand -upon a stout knobby stick of oak, and holding in the other a rough -three-legged stool, which he placed between my lord's calash and the -rope. He was a fine-looking old man, dressed in plain country homespun; -his cheeks were seamed and weather-beaten, but there was still a -brightness in his eyes and an erectness in his figure that bespoke -health and the joy of life. He sat down on the stool, took off his hat -and wiped his brow, then, resting both hands on his stick, looked -placidly around him. There was no one near to him; the space was clear, -for players and spectators had all flocked their several ways to get -refreshment, and for some minutes the old man sat alone. Then Lord -Godolphin, to ease his limbs and kill time, stepped out of his carriage -and went towards the veteran. - -"Well, gaffer," he said, "have ye come out to get a sunning?" - -The old man looked up. - -"Ay sure, your honour," he said, "and to zee the match. You med think -me too old; true, I be gone eighty; come Martinmas I shall be -eighty-one, and I ha'n't a wamblen tooth in my head--not one, old as I -be. A man's as old as he feels, says my boy--one o' the wise sayens he -has: I ha'n't felt no older this twenty year, nay, nor twenty-vive year -neither." - -"By George! I wish I could say the same. What's the match, gaffer?" - -"Well, they do say 'tis for a wager; 'tis all 'I'll lay ye this' and -'I'll lay ye that' in these days. I don't know the rights on't, but -'tis said it all come about at a supper up at Squire's.--Do 'ee know -Squire? Eh well, there be the house, yonder among the trees. Squire's -son be hot wi' his tongue, and at this same supper--I tell 'ee as I -yeard it--he wagered young Master Godfrey of the Grange he'd bring -eleven young gen'lmen from Cambridge college as would beat our village -players at the cricket. A hunnerd guineas was the wager, so 'tis said. -Master Godfrey he ups and says 'Done wi' 'ee', and so 'tis come about. -The Cambridge younkers be all high gentry, every man on 'em; our folks, -as your honour med see, be just or'nary folks in the main: there's Long -Robin the tanner and Lumpy the smith--he that turned topsy-turvy -a-hunten the ball by there; and Honest John the miller: Old Everlasten -they calls un, 'cause he never gets cotched out nor bowled neither: ay, -a good stick is Old Everlasten, wi' a tough skin of his own. And there -be Soapy Dick the barber, and Tom cobbler, and more of the village folk; -and the only gentry among 'em is Master Godfrey hisself and pa'son's -son, and he don't count for gentry wi' some. Do 'ee know pa'son? a good -man, saven your honour, ay, a right good man is Pa'son Rochester, and -stands up to old Squire like a game-cock, so he do--a right good man is -pa'son, ay sure. And his son Harry--well, to tell 'ee the truth, I'm -main fond of the lad; main fond; 'tis a well-favoured lad, well spoken -too, and he thinks a deal o' me, he do, and I thinks a deal o' he. Why, -'twas he bowled that artful ball as put out t' last man from Cambridge -college.--There, my old tongue runs on; I don't offend your honour?" - -"Not a whit," said my lord. "The young bowler is the parson's son, eh? -Bred for a parson too, I suppose?" - -"He's over young yet, your honour, but a month gone seventeen. He said -to me only yesterday: 'Gaffer,' says he, 'what'll 'ee do 'ithout me when -I go up to Oxford?' He be gwine come October, a' believe. 'Twas at -Oxford college they made his feyther a pa'son, so belike the lad'll put -on the petticoats too, though sure he's fit for summat better. But -he'll make a good pa'son if he takes arter his feyther. Bless 'ee, -Pa'son Rochester be the only man in the parish as a'n't afeard o' -Squire. I be afeard o' Squire, I be, though 'ee med not think it. Ah! -he's a hard man, is Squire. A' fell out with pa'son first 'cause he -wouldn't be his chaplain--goo up t' hall an' say grace and eat the -mutton and turmuts, an' come away wi'out pudden. Wi'out pudden!--I -wouldn't goo wi'out pudden for no man; that's why I first took a fancy -for pa'son. Then Squire, he wanted to fence in a big slice of this -common land, as ha' belonged to the folks of Winton Simmary time wi'out -mind; and pa'son stood up to 'n, and told 'n flat to his face 'twas agen -the law, an' he had the law on 'm, he did; an' the wise judges up in -Lun'on town said as how Squire were wrong. But Lor' bless 'ee, Squire -be as obstinate as a pig; he don't care nowt for judges; he ups and -'peals to King Willum hisself. Then King Willum dies, poor feller, an' -Queen Anne sits proud on the gold throne, an' there 'tis; 'twill take a -time for her poor woman's mind to understand the rights o' the matter; -her don't know pa'son so well as we." - -"Or she might make him a bishop, eh? Perhaps I can put in a word for -him," said my lord jestingly. - -The old man stared. - -"And who med 'ee be, your honour, if I mebbe so bold to axe?" he said -slowly. - -"I? Oh--well, I have care of the Queen's purse." - -"There now, and I've been talken to 'ee just as if 'ee were a knight or -squire, when I med ha' known 'ee by your cut for one of the mighty o' -the earth. But 'ee'll forgive a old man--ay, gone eighty year. I was -born three year afore Scotch Jamie died; no sart of a king was Jamie, a -wamblen loon, so I've yeard tell. And Charles One, he was well-favoured -before the Lord, true, but not a man of his word. Nay, Noll Crum'ell -was the right sart o' king; I mind un well. I was a trooper in his -regiment, and we was as fine a set o' men as ever trod neat's leather, -true, we was. I rode wi' un to Marston Moor in '44, nigh zixty year -back. Ay, a right king was old Noll. And I fought in Flanders when -Noll was friends with the French king; but I left that line o' life when -Charles Two come back with his French madams; and now we be a-fighten -the French, so 'tis said; 'twas what us Englishmen was born for, to be -sure; ay, that 'tis." - -Here my lord's attention was attracted towards a group of villagers -approaching. They were led by a short well-set-up fellow with a -humorous cast of face; his thumbs were stuck into his arm-pits, and as -he walked he was singing to the accompaniment of a flute played by the -man at his side. The old man looked towards him and smiled -affectionately. - -"'Tis my boy a-comen," he said. "Was born in '59, your honour, the year -afore Charles Two coom back; and I chrisomed un Sherebiah -Stand-up-and-bless out of Nehemiah nine; a good boy, though wilful." - -The boy of forty-three was singing lustily: - - "'Twas on a jolly summer's morn, the twenty-first of May, - Giles Scroggins took his turmut-hoe, and with it trudged away. - For some delights in hay-makin', and some they fancies mowin', - But of all the trades as I likes best, give I the turmut hoein'. - For the fly, the fly, the fly is on the turmut; - And 'tis all my eye for we to try, to keep fly off the - turmut." - - -"Mum, boy, mum!" said his father. "The boy has a sweet breast, your -honour," he added, turning to Godolphin, "and 'tis my belief 'twill lead -un into bad company in the days o' his youth. He _will_ sing 'Sir Simon -the King' and 'Bobbing Joan', and other sinful ditties. Ah! I had a -good breast in my time; and you should ha' yeard Noll's men sing as we -marched into Preston fight; I could sing counter to any man.--Boy, doff -your hat to the Queen's purse-bearer.--Ay, 'twas psa'ms an' hymns an' -speritual songs in my time, as the Book says." - -"Sarvant, yer honour," said the new-comer, bobbing to Godolphin. -"Feyther been taken away my good name? 'Tis a wise feyther knows his -own child; feyther o' mine forgot that when he named me Sherebiah -Stand-up-and-bless. Beant the fault o' my name I ha'n't took to bad -courses. But there, he's a old ancient man, nigh ready for -churchyard--bean't 'ee, dad?" - -"Not till I make a man on 'ee, boy." - -"May I present my friend Sir Gilbert Young, sir?" said Frank Godolphin, -coming up at this moment through the gathering crowd. - -My lord bowed and swept off his hat in the courtly fashion of the day, -in response to a still lower salutation from the young Cambridge man. - -"I am honoured, my lord," said Sir Gilbert. - -"My lard, i' fecks!" ejaculated Sherebiah's father, with a startled -look. "My lard,--an' I ha'n't even pulled my forelock! Boy, doff your -cap to my lard! And the Book says, 'They shall stand afore princes', -and I'm a-sitten!" - -The old fellow began to struggle to his feet with the aid of his staff, -but Godolphin laid his hand on his arm, and pressed him down. - -"Sit fast, gaffer," he said. "See, the players are coming out again. I -am pleased to have met one of Noll's veterans so hale and hearty, and I -hope your son will turn out as great a comfort to you as mine." - -He put his arm fondly through Frank's, and returned to his carriage. -The crowd was collecting about the rope, and the Cambridge men were -already taking their places in the field. Their score of a hundred was -higher than the average in those days, and the villagers were eagerly -discussing the chances of their team excelling it. They had seen nothing -of the other side's bowling powers, but as they compared notes on the -various merits as batsmen of Honest John, and Long Robin, and Lumpy, and -the rest, many of them shook their heads and looked rather down in the -mouth. - -The first pair of batsmen came to the wickets. They were Old -Everlasting and Soapy Dick. The former took the first over, bowled by -Gilbert Young, the captain of the team, and calmly blocked every ball of -the four, giving a wink to his friends in the crowd when over was -called. Soapy Dick, at the other wicket, was a little man with very red -hair brushed up into a sort of top-knot in front. He handled his bat in -a nervous manner, and was made still more nervous by the cries of the -crowd. - -"Hit un, Soapy!" cried one yokel. "Doan't be afeard, man." - -"Gi't lather, Soapy!" shouted another, whose cheeks cried out for the -barber's attentions. - -Dick grinned mirthlessly, and fixed his eyes on the bowler at the other -end. The ball came towards him--a slow, tempting lob that was too easy -to let pass. Dick lifted his bat and smote; the ball returned gently to -the bowler's hands, and a roar of derision sped the shame-faced little -barber back to the tent. One wicket down, and no notches!--a bad -beginning for Winton St. Mary. - -Lumpy was the next to appear. He waddled across the grass turning up -his sleeves--a fat little fellow with bandy legs, and arms as thick as -most men's thighs. As he stood to take his block, he seemed to handle -the bat with contemptuous surprise, as though wondering what use that -was to a man accustomed to wield the sledgehammer at the anvil. -Satisfied with his position, he planted his feet firmly, drew his left -hand across his mouth, and glared fiercely at the bowler. He was not to -be so easily tempted as poor Soapy Dick had been. He waited for the -ball, and as it rose brought his bat down upon it with a perpendicular -blow that appeared to drive it into the turf, where it lay dead. The -Cambridge men roared with laughter, the crowd applauded vigorously, and -Lumpy once more wiped his mouth on the back of his hand. The third ball -of the over came, pitching slightly to leg. Lumpy jumped completely -round as the ball reached him, and with a tremendous swipe sent it high -over long-stop's head into a patch of gorse, whence it was not recovered -until he had had three notches cut to his credit. The last ball of the -over thus came to Old Everlasting, who solemnly blocked it, and beamed -upon the spectators with his usual smug smile. - -Lumpy had but a short life, after all. There was no cunning about him; -if he hit a ball it was bound to travel far, but he struck out every -time with the same violence, and when he missed could hardly recover his -balance. In twenty minutes he had scored eleven notches, Old -Everlasting having consistently done nothing but block the balls that -fell to him; then, in hitting out, Lumpy, never too steady on his bow -leg's, overbalanced himself and fell flat, and the long bail was -promptly knocked off by the wicket-keeper. Two wickets down for eleven. - -After this, disaster followed disaster in such rapid succession that the -villagers looked blue. Long Robin the tanner was caught second ball, -and was afterwards heard complaining bitterly of the bad leather the -ball was made of. Tom the cobbler came to the wicket with a bat of his -own--one that he kept hanging behind his kitchen door, and took down -every week for a thorough greasing. He scored six notches, then hit a -ball into his wicket, and in the tent afterwards explained to his -cronies that another week's greasing would have prevented the accident. -Four wickets were now down for seventeen, and Godfrey Fanshawe himself -came in, amid a great outburst of cheers from the crowd, with whom he -was very popular, and who looked to him, as the originator of the match -and the captain of the team, to retrieve the fortunes of the day. He -snicked his first ball for one; then Old Everlasting evoked intense -enthusiasm by poking a ball between slip and point, and scoring his -first notch. The score rose slowly to thirty-one, Fanshawe making all -the runs, and then he ran himself out in trying to snatch an extra from -an overthrow. The fifth wicket was down. Fanshawe was reputed the best -batsman in the team, and Winton St. Mary was still sixty-nine behind. -There was much shaking of the head among the villagers, and they waited -in glum silence for the next man to appear. - -"Look 'ee!" exclaimed the old trooper suddenly, "beant that old Squire -a-comen down-along by covert fence?" - -"True, Gaffer Minshull," said a by-stander; "what eyes 'ee've got, for a -old ancient soul! 'Tis old Squire sure enough, and young Squire and the -Cap'n wi' un." - -Old Minshull leant forward on his stick, and with pursed lips peered at -the three figures approaching. One was a burly man in the prime of -life, dressed in semi-military garb--a feathered hat, long red coat -marked with many stains and wanting some buttons, leather breeches, and -spurred boots. His features were coarse and red, his eyes prominent and -blood-shot; he walked with a swagger, his left hand on his sword-hilt. -The second was a youth of some twenty years, dressed in the extremity of -foppishness. A black hat, looped up and cocked over one eye, crowned a -full auburn wig fastidiously curled. The coat was blue, the waistcoat -purple, open to display a fine holland shirt. A laced steinkirk was -tucked in at the breast. The breeches matched the vest, the stockings -were of red silk, the shoes had high red heels and large silver buckles. -In Mr. Piers Berkeley's mouth was a toothpick; from one of the buttons -of his coat dangled an amber-headed cane. - -The third figure was a striking contrast to the others. He was tall and -thin and bent, with pale wrinkled cheeks and bushy white eyebrows that -ill matched his dark wig. He scarcely lifted his eyes from the ground as -he moved slowly along, leaning heavily upon a silver-knobbed stick. His -dress was fusty and of a bygone mode; to a Londoner the old man must -have resembled a figure out of a picture of Charles the Second's time. - -"Who's this queer old put ambling along, Frank?" asked my lord. "The -rascals there avoid him as he had the plague." - -"On my life I don't know, sir," replied Mr. Godolphin. "The fellow with -him might stand for Bobadil himself." - -"Or for Captain Bluffe in Mr. Congreve's play." - -"And the young sprig wants a kicking." - -"Sarvant, my lord," put in Sherebiah, who was standing by; "'tis old -Squire, and young Squire, and---- No, I won't say 't; a wise head keeps -a still tongue; I won't say 't, leastways when a fowl o' the air med -carry it where 'twould do me and feyther o' mine no manner o' good." - -The crowd parted with a kind of sullen unwilling respect to make way for -the new-comers. Suddenly the squire paused, as the elder of his two -companions addressed him; flashing an angry glance at him, he said a few -vehement words in a low tone that no one else could hear. Captain Ralph -Aglionby laughed aloud, shrugged carelessly, and sauntered across the -common towards the tent. The squire followed him with a dark glance for -a moment, then resumed his slow progress with his son, and came to -within a few feet of Lord Godolphin's carriage. - -"Your lordship's servant," he said with a profound bow, copied with -elaborate elegance by his son. His voice was thin and hard, a voice -that set the teeth on edge. "I heard your lordship was on the ground, -and made bold to come and pay my duty to your lordship." - -"I am vastly beholden to you, Mr.----" - -"Berkeley, my lord, Nicolas Berkeley of Winton Hall; and would your -lordship but favour me, I should be proud, when the match is over, to -offer your lordship a cover at my table--poor country fare, I fear, but -such as it is, freely at your lordship's disposal." - -"'Tis handsome of you, Mr. Berkeley, but I fear our business will not -permit us to accept of your hospitality.--Ah! I perceive the next -batsman is coming to the wicket. I hope you're as keen a sportsman as I -am myself, and will forgive me if I fix my attention on the game." - -Mr. Berkeley bowed again with expressionless face, and after a moment's -irresolution moved away. Gaffer Minshull might have been observed to -lick his old lips with appreciation at this the very courtliest of cold -shoulders. Piers Berkeley, the young squire, stayed for a minute or two, -gazing with silly face at my lord; then, finding that he remained -unnoticed, he stuck the head of his cane into his mouth and walked away -sucking it. - -The game was resumed. For an hour it was tedious watching. The new -batsman snatched a run now and then, while Old Everlasting blocked every -ball that came to him with the same want of enterprise and the same -boundless self-satisfaction. At length his partner was caught in the -long field; the sixth wicket had fallen, and the score was no more than -forty-five. - -"Give you three to one against the rustics, Frank," said Lord Godolphin. - -"I'll take you, sir, though 'tis a risk. Who's our next man?" - -"'Tis our bowler friend, the young sprig of a parson, unless I mistake," -said my lord. "What's the lad's name, gaffer?" - -"'Tis Henry Winterborne Rochester, my lard, by the water o' baptism; too -rich a name for poor folks like we. Young pa'son we calls un mostly." - -"A limber youth. I like his looks, eh, Frank? Does he bat as well as -he bowls?" - -"Middlen, my lord, middlen," said Sherebiah. "Has a good eye, but a -deal o' growen to do afore he can smite the ball as it should. But -there, my lord, he as can't do what he would must do what he can, as you -med say." - -"Nothen truer, boy," said his father approvingly. "Ay, 'tis a pretty -lad. Gi' un a cheer, souls." - -"Mum, feyther," expostulated Sherebiah. "Old Squire's comen back-along -this way; little sticks kindle fires, as you med say." - -"True. I be a timbersome man, afeard o' Squire, though you med n't -think it. Well!" - -But though Gaffer Minshull forbore to cheer, the rest of the crowd had -no scruples, and the warmth of their greeting brought a flush to the new -batsman's honest face. He stood at the wicket with quiet ease and -watched Old Everlasting block the last ball of the over; then he glanced -around, stooped to his bat, and fixed his gray eyes steadily on the -bowler. - -The rest of the afternoon provided an unfailing subject for gossip in -the village for six months afterwards. Playing at first with patient -wariness, Harry never let a ball pass his bat, but treated all with a -respectful consideration that was as noticeable as his graceful style. -He played two overs without getting a notch; then, after another -excellent blocking performance by his partner, came a change. The first -ball of the next over was rather loose; Lord Godolphin, who, perhaps -alone of the spectators, kept his gaze fixed on the batsman's face, saw -his lips come together with a slight pressure and his eyes suddenly -gleam--and there was the ball, flying straight over the bowler's head, -passing between two coaches into the road. Gaffer Minshull was on the -point of raising his stick to wave it, but was stopped by his son with a -"Mind old Squire, feyther o' mine." - -"Varty-vive and vour makes varty-nine," muttered the old man. "I could -do a bit o' cipheren in my time. Ay, varty-nine." - -Nothing came of the next ball, but the third rose most happily to -Harry's bat, and with a neat little cut he sent it under the rope among -the crowd, who nimbly parted to let it roll. Three notches were cut to -his credit. Old Everlasting complacently blocked the next ball, and -Harry treated the bowler at the other end with great respect till the -fourth ball, which he snicked away for a single. Getting back thus to -the wicket at which he had started, he delighted the spectators by -driving every ball of the over, at the close of which the score had -risen to sixty-three. - -"'Tis the eye doos it," said the old man delightedly; "Master Harry -has'n clear an' steady. Ay sure, a' would ha' made a good captain for -Noll Crum'ell; if so be he's a pa'son, all the use he can make o' his -eye, 'twill be to tarrify poor sinners like you an' me, my lard." - -But misfortune was in store for the Winton St. Mary men. Old -Everlasting had the first ball of the next over, delivered by a new -bowler, a lanky fellow with a tremendous pace, for whom two long-stops -were placed. The batsman was taken by surprise; he missed the ball, the -stumps went flying, and Old Everlasting walked away scratching his poll, -rejoicing in the magnificent score of one. Harry accompanied him to the -tent, and held a short conversation with the next man. The fruit of -this was seen as soon as they reached the wickets. The first ball -missed bat, stumps, wicket-keeper, and both long-stops; Harry called his -partner for a bye, and though there was plenty of time for a second run -he was contented with a single, thus securing the next ball. This he -hit round to leg, a stroke that ought to have made two, but his partner -was somewhat bulky, and suffered for his misfortune by being promptly -run out after one run had been scored. - -Eight wickets were now down, and the score was sixty-five--thirty-five -behind that of the Cambridge eleven. A restlessness was observable in -the crowd; it seemed impossible that the home team could win; and there -was general despondency when it was noticed that the incoming batsman -was a spindle-legged fellow known as Soft Jemmy, who did odd jobs about -the village. Only Sherebiah still appeared full of confidence. - -"A fight bean't lost till it be won," he said. "Keep up your sperits, -souls." - -Soft Jemmy never got a chance to miss the ball. Such scheming was never -seen on a cricket-field before. Harry had privately instructed Jemmy to -do just as he was told, and the half-witted youth at least knew how to -obey. When Harry called him he ran; when told to stand in his ground he -remained fixed like a post; and so, snatching byes, blocking, hitting -when it was safe, Harry defied all the bowling, and the score rose by -ones and twos and threes. A change came over the attitude of the -spectators. From dejection they passed to almost delirious joy. Every -hit was cheered to the echo; every little manoeuvre of "young pa'son" -added to their delight. The effect on the out side was equal and -opposite. They became irritated at the altered aspect of the game. -Bowlers bowled wildly; fieldsmen fielded loosely, and got in one -another's way; and the more agitated they became, the more coolly and -confidently did Harry ply his bat. At last, stepping out to a full -pitch, he made a magnificent drive over the bowler's head, and brought -the total to a hundred and two. - -The cheer that rose from the crowd might have been heard a mile away. -Some of the men made a rush for Harry, and bore him shoulder-high to the -tent. Others flew to secure their winnings, and celebrate the famous -victory in cider or home-brewed ale. Gaffer Minshull was with -difficulty dissuaded from whirling his hat round on the top of his -stick, and nothing could check his gleeful exclamation: - -"A flick to young Squire; a terrible douse, ay sure!" - -"By George, a notable match!" said Godolphin. "Your young parson is a -lad of mettle, gaffer; he'll be a sportsman an he lives long enough. -Here, man, drink his health, and tell him from me that the Lord -Treasurer loves pretty play. Come, Frank, we'll drive on." - -He flung a coin to the old man, remounted his carriage, and drove off. -Gaffer looked at the money, then after the calash. - -"Ah, 'tis a mighty fine thing to hold the Queen's purse, my lads, mighty -fine! There be a power o' these same shinen bright ones in the Queen's -purse; eh, lads?" - -A shout came from the distance, and the eyes of the small group around -old Minshull were turned towards the road. Lord Godolphin's carriage -had broken down. The axle had snapped in two; the horses were plunging, -and my lord and his son were clinging to the sides of the vehicle. A -score of sturdy fellows rushed to lend a hand, and Gaffer Minshull was -left to himself. - - - - - *CHAPTER II* - - *Sherebiah Shouts* - - -An Angling Story--Old Izaak--Landed--Breakfast--Marlborough's Smile--The -Story of a Potticary--Dosed--On the Horizon--Highwaymen--A Man of -Peace--Behind the Scenes--Nos Duo--Promises--Black John -Simmons--Sherebiah is Troubled - - -"'Tis here or hereabouts, baten years ha'n't tooken my memory. True, -feyther o' mine calls me boy, and so I be to a old aged man like him; -but when a man's comen on forty-four, and ha' seen summat o' the -world--well, - - "'Man's life is but vain, for 'tis subject to pain - An' sorrow, an' short as a bubble; - 'Tis a hodge-podge o' business, an' money, an' care, - An' care, an' money, an' trouble.' - -Ay, 'tis so, 'tis so!" - -Sherebiah sighed, but the sigh ill became his round, jolly face; it was -merely to chime with the words of the song. He was walking, about six -o'clock on the morning after the cricket-match, along the bank of a -little hill-stream, rod in hand, yet not expecting to halt for a while, -for he took no pains to moderate his voice. He was not alone. His -companion was the youth who had won the match for Winton St. Mary on the -previous day--Harry Rochester, the parson's son. Each carried a -rod--the huge clumsy rod of those days, nearly seventeen feet in length; -each was laden with wallet, landing-net, and other apparatus; and in -fact they had already had an hour's sport with ground-bait, having risen -from their beds soon after three on this ideal angler's morning. A haze -lay over the ground, and a light rain was falling. - -Sherebiah was several yards ahead, scanning the banks. His voice sank a -little as he repeated the lines: - - "'Tis a hodge-podge o' business, an' money, an' care, - An' care, an' money, an' trouble." - - -"Cheer up!" said Harry, behind him. "I like the second verse best, -Sherry: - - "'But we'll take no care when the weather proves fair, - Nor will we vex now though it rain-- - - -He was interrupted by the sudden halt of Sherebiah. The man had swung -round; his lips were shot out in the motion of shooing, a warning finger -was held up. Harry's voice died away, and he hastened to his -companion's side. - -"Yonder's the spot," said Sherebiah in a whisper, pointing to a large -pool, shaded with willows, some thirty yards ahead. "Mum's the word! -They be sharp-eared, they trouts. 'Tis there I took ten lusty nibblers, -ten year agoo come Michaelmas. Faith, 'twas all I could do to carry -'em; ay, and I shouldn' ha' got 'em home but for Tom Dorrell, t' carrier -from Salisbury, who came trundlen along in his wagon. He be dead an' -gone, poor soul, as must we all." - -"And what did you do with them?" asked Harry with a smile. - -Sherebiah was famous for his angling stories, and they had perhaps as -much foundation as most. No one in the country-side knew the ways of -the trout as he did; but he was equally at home in trolling for jack or -pike, roving for perch, and sniggling for eels. None could match his -knowledge of the flies in their several seasons: the hour of the day at -which each is most killing; the merits of the silver twist hackle and -the lady-fly, whether for dapping or whipping; when to use the black -gnat, when the blue; under what conditions of the evening sky the shyest -trout will rise to a red spinner. And who could tie a fly like -Sherebiah Minshull? Many a time Harry had examined his rich store of -materials--as varied as the contents of a witch's cauldron: feathers of -every bird that flies, manifold silks and wires and hooks, wax and -needles, hog's down and squirrel's fur. Many a time had he watched him -dress a fly and thread a bait, and admired his dexterous whipping of the -streams. - -"What did I do wi' 'em?" Sherebiah had sat down with legs far apart, -and was carefully selecting a fly from his case. He spoke always in a -whisper. "Well, 'tis ten year since, and my memory bean't what it was; -but now I mind on't, I gi' one to Tom carrier for his lift, and a couple -to miller up by Odbury, and one to Susan Poorgrass at Sir Godfrey's--I -was a-courten then; her wouldn't ha' me, thank the Lord!--and a couple -to Ned Greenhay, Sir Godfrey's keeper as was, for a brace o' leverets; -and to please feyther o' mine I took three up to the Hall. Zooks! and -small thanks I got, for old Squire hisself come to the door, and gi' me -a douse, he did; said if I didn't find summat better to do than go -traipsen the country-side, poachen or wuss, he'd commit me for a rogue -and vagabond. An' th' old curmudgeon kept the fish; ay, he did so!--Ah! -ha' got it; 'tis a fly that cost me more time in the maken than a dozen -others; a beauty, to be sure; eh, Master Harry?" - -He proceeded to put it on his hook. It was an artificial oak-fly, blue, -green, brown, and orange so cunningly mingled that no trout could fail -to be deceived. - -"We'll now see some sport," continued Sherebiah, still in a whisper, as -he prepared to cast. "I can't abide bait-fishen; sport, i' faith! 'tis -mere bludgeon-play. True, it fills the pot, but there's no pleasure in -'t. 'Tis no pastime for a true bob." - -"Why, Sherry, 'twas only yestere'en I was reading in a most excellent -book of angling by Master Izaak Walton, and he, it seems, held little to -the fly. His discourse is in the main of bait." - -"Why, there 'tis. I met Master Walton once, a-fishen in the Itchen -above Winchester--a quaint man, with a good breast for a song, for all -he was ripe for the grave. Myself I was but twenty or so, he a man of -fourscore and upward; ay, a fine hale old man, wi' a store o' memories. -We fell into talk; a' told me how a' once rid to Lunnon wi' a rich jewel -o' King Charles's in his doublet; ay, he was a royal man, wi' a jolly -red face, but no harm in un, not a whit; and learned, too--but no -angler. No, faith, no angler, for a' talked o' fishen down stream, a' -did, when ne'er a child but knows fish lie wi' their heads up stream. Ye -cotch fish as 'ee do Frenchmen, from behind! Now, hook's ready. Mum, -Master Harry, while I cast." - -He dropped his fly deftly into the still pool, watching it with keen -eyes and pursed lips. Meanwhile Harry had chosen an orle fly, and made -his cast a little lower down. The anglers were silent for some minutes. - -"What's that?" asked Harry suddenly, looking up as a distant sound of -wood-chopping reached his ears. - -"Mum, boy!" whispered Sherebiah in reply. "There, I beg pardon, Master -Harry, but you've scared away a samlet just as he opened his jaws. -That? 'Tis Simon forester, belike, fellen Sir Godfrey's timber. Now, a -still tongue----" - -He broke off, rose, and followed his line stealthily for a yard or two. -The surface of the water was disturbed, and Harry caught a glimpse of a -gleaming side. There was a splash; the rod bent; then Sherebiah -hastened his steps as the fish went away with a rush. - -"He's a-showen fight," whispered Sherry. "Whoa! he's sounded, Master -Harry; a big un. Pray the tackle may hold! Ah! he's clear, and off -again! Whoa! whoa! Nay, my pretty, 'ee may fight, but I'll land 'ee." - -For ten minutes the contest continued; then the angler got in his line -slowly, and beckoned to Harry to assist him. The fish was carefully -drawn in; Harry stooped with his net at the critical moment, and with a -sudden heave landed a fine four-pounder, which he slipped into -Sherebiah's creel. - -"That's the way on't, Master Harry," said Sherebiah contentedly. "Had -no luck yourself, eh? What be 'ee a-fishen wi'?" - -"An orle." - -"Ah, 'tis an hour or two too early in the day for that, mebbe. Still, -these waters of Sir Godfrey bean't often fished since young Master -Godfrey went to Cambridge college, and the trout mayn't be over -squeamish. Stick to 't!" - -An hour passed, and both anglers were well satisfied. Sherebiah's fly -proved irresistible, either from its cunning make or the wary skill with -which he whipped the stream. Four fat trout had joined the first in his -basket; two had rewarded Harry's persistence; then he laid down his rod -and watched with admiration the delicate casts of his companion. -Sherebiah landed his sixth. The haze having now disappeared, and the -sun growing hot, he wound up his line and said: - -"Rain afore seven, fine afore 'leven. I be mortal peckish, Master -Harry; what may 'ee have in your basket, now?" - -"Powdered beef, I think, Sherry; and Polly put in a cate or two and some -radishes, and a bottle of cider; plain fare, you see." - -"Well, hunger's the best saace, I b'lieve. We poor folks don't need to -perk up our appetites. I warrant, now, that mighty lord we saw -yesterday would turn up his nose at powdered beef. Fine kickshawses a' -had at Sir Godfrey's, no doubt. To think o' such a mighty lord, the -Queen's purse-bearer an' all, bein' kept in a little small village by -rust or dry-rot, just like a ordinary man! Old Squire would ha' liked -to gi' him a bed, I reckon; but Sir Godfrey were aforehand, an' there he -lies till this mornen: axle was to be mended by six, if Lumpy had to -work all night to finish the job. Med I axe 'ee a question, Master -Harry? Do 'ee think that shinen piece a' flung to feyther were his own, -or out o' Queen's purse?" - -Harry laughed. - -"Lord Godolphin doesn't go about the country with the Queen's purse -slung at his waist, Sherry. What he meant was that he was Lord -Treasurer, the Queen's chief minister, the man who rules the country, -you know." - -"Well, now, if I didn't think it'd be folly to carry the Queen's purse -loose about the country! Then 'tis Lord Godolphin says we're to fight -the French?" - -"Yes, he and my lord Marlborough between them." - -"Ah! there 'tis. My lord Marlborough bean't free with his money like -t'other lord. _He_ wouldn't ha' given old feyther o' mine nothen. Why, -I was at Salisbury in '88 when my lord--Lord Churchill he was then, to -be sure--was there to meet King Willum, and I held his horse for 'n, and -he gi' me--what do 'ee think he gi' me, Master Harry?" - -"Well?" - -"Nowt but a smile! What med 'ee think o' that for a lord? 'Thank 'ee, -my man,' says he, and puts his foot in the stirrup and shows his teeth -at me, and rides off! Lord! Now t'other one, the Lord Godolphin, he is -a lord, to be sure, a fine free-handed gentleman, though he ha'n't got -such fine teeth. I like a lord to be a lord, I do." - -"My lord Marlborough is indeed rather close-fisted, they say." - -"Ay, but I ha' knowed a wuss. Did ever I tell 'ee of Jacob Spinney the -potticary? I was a growen lad, and feyther o' mine wanted to put me to -a trade. So he bound me prentice to Jacob Spinney, that kept a -potticary's shop by Bargate at S'thampton. Zooks! Jacob was a -deceiver, like his namesake in the Book. A' promised feyther he'd gi' -me good vittles and plenty on 'em, bein' a growen lad; but sakes, I -never got no meat save at third boilen; 'twas like eatin' leather. A' -said I was growen too fast, a' did, and he'd keep me down. Pudden--I -never put my lips to pudden for two year, not once. I took down -shutters at zix i' the mornen, and put 'em up at eight o' nights; -betwixt and between I was pounden away at drugs, and carryen parcels, -and scrubben floors and nussen mistress' babby: ay, what med 'ee think -o' that? If so happened I broke a bottle, or overslept five -minutes--oons! there was master a-strappen me to a hook in the wall he -kept o' purpose, and layen a birch over my shoulders and keepen me on -bread and water or turmuts not fit for a ox. I dwindled crossways to a -shadder, Master Harry, I did so, and every week th' old villain made me -write a letter to feyther, sayen as how I was fat and flourishen like a -green bay tree. Do what a' would, however, I growed and growed, at -fourteen a long slip of a feller all arms and legs. Two mortal year I -put up wi' un; then I got tired. One day, mistress was out, and I was -rollen pills in the little back shop, when master come in. He was in a -terrible passion, goodness alone knows what about. He pitched into me -for wasten his drugs and eatin' up all his profits, and hit me with his -cane, and sent me spinnen agen the table, and knocked off his best -chiney mortar, and there 'twas on the floor, smashed to atomies. Bein' -his own doen, it made his temper wuss, it did, and he caught me by the -hair and said he'd skin me. I' fecks, I were always a man o' peace, -even as a boy, but I'd had long sufferen enough, and now my peaceful -blood was up. I wriggled myself free--and there he was, flat on the -floor, and me a-sitten on him. He hollered and cussed, for all he was a -Puritan; and, haven respect unto my neighbours, I stuffed a handkercher -into his mouth. There I sits, a-thinken what to do wi' un. 'Twas in -for a penny in for a pound wi' me then; I'd have to run, 'dentures or no -'dentures, and it seemed fair to have my pen'orth afore I went. There -was that hook I knowed so well, and that strap hangen still and loose: -'I'll gi' un a taste o' the birch he be so uncommon fond on,' thinks I. -So I hoists un up, and soon has un strapped ready; but looken at un I -thinks to myself: 'You be a poor wamblen mortal arter all, skinny for -all the pudden you eat. I'll ha' mercy on your poor weak flesh.' -Besides, I had another notion. So I casts un loose and sits un on a -chair and straps un to chair-back, hands to sides. - -"You med have heard of Jacob Spinney's famous mixture for pimples? -Well, 'twas knowed all over Hants and Wilts. 'Twas a rare sight o' -market days to see the farmers' wives a-troopen into the shop for -bottles o' the mixture. But th' odd thing was, Spinney hisself was -owner of a fair pimpled face, yet never did I know un take a dose o' his -own firm cure. 'I pity 'ee,' says I to un, as he sat strapped to the -chair; 'poor feller, wi' all those pimples. Shall have a dose, poor -soul.' Many's the bottle I'd made up: 'twas brimstone and powder o' -crab and gentian root in syrup. Well, I mixed a dose all fresh afore -his eyes, and got a long wooden spoon, and slipped the handkercher out -o' his mouth and the dose in. The ungrateful feller spets it out and -begins to holler again; so in goes the handkercher, and says I: 'Ye -don't know what's for your own good. Bean't it tasty enough? Ah, -Master Spinney, often and often 'ee've physicked me; what's good for me -without pudden will be better for 'ee with; you shall have a dose.' So -I made un a dose o' senna and jalap and ipecacuan, but I was slow with -the handkercher, and afore I could get the spoon in he had his teeth -clinched tight. But I hadn't nussed the babby for nothen. I ups with -finger and thumb and pinches his nose; he opens his mouth for breath, -and in goes spoon, and sputter as he med he had to swaller, he did. - -"Ah, I was wild and headstrong in they young coltish days. I bean't so -fond o' pudden now. Not but what they mixtures did Jacob Spinney a -world o' good, for his next prentice had a easier time nor me, steppen -into his master's business when he was laid in churchyard. _I_ got no -good on 'em, to be sure, for I had to run away and try another line o' -life, and ha' been a rollen-stone ever since. Ay well, 'tis all one to a -man o' peace." - -During his narrative the breakfast had been finished. - -"Well, Sherry, when I'm out of sorts I'll come to you," said Harry, -rising. "Now, while you pack up, I'll go a stroll up the hillside; -there'll be a good view now the day is clearing, and maybe I'll get a -glimpse of Salisbury spire." - -He left the river-bank and strolled leisurely up a gentle ascent, which -gradually became steeper until it terminated somewhat suddenly in a -stretch of level ground. Fifty yards from the edge rose a long grassy -mound, a well-known landmark in the neighbourhood. It was, in fact, a -barrow, dating centuries back into the dim ages--the burial place, -perhaps, of British warriors who had fought and fallen in defence of -their country against the Roman invader. Harry had always felt a -romantic interest in these memorials of the past, and more than once had -stood by such a barrow, alone in the moonlight of a summer night, while -his imagination called up visions of far-off forgotten things. - -He sat down now with his back to the mound, and allowed his eyes to rove -over the prospect. Tradition said that three counties were visible from -this elevated spot, and on a clear morning like this it seemed likely -enough that report said true. Far to the left, peeping over the bare -contour of Harnham Hill, rose the graceful spire of Salisbury Cathedral, -at least fifteen miles away as the crow flies. His eye followed the -winding course of the little stream below him, losing it here and there -behind some copse or knoll, tracing it again to its junction with a -larger stream, till this in its turn was lost to view amid the distant -elm-bordered meadows. Nearer at hand he saw the old Roman road, -grass-grown and silent now, bounding the park of Sir Godfrey Fanshawe, -crossing the stream by an ancient bridge, and running into the London -road at some invisible point to the right. It was a very pleasing -prospect, brilliant beneath the cloudless sky, and freshened by the -early morning showers. - -As he looked along the forsaken highway, once trodden perhaps by the -legions of Constantine the Great, his glance was momentarily arrested by -a small moving speck in the distance. "Some wagon from one of Sir -Godfrey's home farms," he thought. It was approaching him, for it -passed out of sight into a clump of trees, then reappeared, and was -again hidden by an intercepting ridge. The road was downhill; in -fifteen or twenty minutes, perhaps, the wagon would pass beneath him, at -a point nearly three-quarters of a mile away, where the highway skirted -a belt of trees perched on the side of a steep declivity. Between him -and the road lay a ditch which, as he knew, was apt in winter-time to -overflow on to the meadows and the lower parts of the track, making a -sticky swamp of the chalky soil. But it was dry now, and the floodings -were only indicated by the more vivid green of the grass and the tall -reeds that filled the hollow on this side. On the other side a strong -stone wall edged the road, marking the boundary of Sir Godfrey's park; -it was overhung with elms, from which at this moment Harry saw a -congregation of rooks soar away. - -Thus idly scanning the roadway, all at once his eye lit upon the figure -of a horseman half concealed by the belt of reeds in the hollow. He was -motionless; his back was towards Harry, his horse's head pointing -towards the road, from which he was completely screened by the reeds and -the willows. - -"What is he doing there?" thought Harry. He rose, and walked towards -the edge of the descent. Narrowly scanning the brake, he now descried -two other horsemen within a few yards of the first, but so well -concealed that but for his quickened curiosity he would probably never -have discovered them. For all he knew, there might be others. "What is -their game?" His suspicion was aroused; the vehicle he had seen -approaching was perhaps not a wagon; it might be a chaise belonging to -Sir Godfrey; it might be---- "Why, 'tis without a doubt Lord Godolphin -himself on his way to London, and coming by the shortest cut." There -was no need for further speculation; in those days the inference was -sure: a carriage in the distance, a party of horsemen lurking in a copse -by the roadside---- "'Tis highway robbery--ah! the Queen's purse!" - -Harry unconsciously smiled at the thought. His first impulse was to -warn the approaching travellers. But the carriage was at present out of -sight; he could not make signals, and before he could reach the stretch -of road between the ambuscade and their prey, the travellers would -certainly be past, while he himself might be seen by the waiting -horsemen, and headed off as he crossed a tract of open country. Moving -downwards all the time, he in a flash saw all that it was possible to -do. The stream passed under the roadway some twenty yards beyond the -spot where the horsemen were lying in wait; the banks were reedy, and -might screen an approach to the copse beyond the wall. There was a bare -chance, and Harry took it. - -He raced downhill towards Sherebiah, who was sitting on the bank still, -placidly smoking his pipe; landscape had no charm for him. - -"Sherry," said Harry in jerks, "Lord Godolphin or someone is driving -down the road; highwaymen hiding in the reeds; in five or six -minutes--come, come, we have no time to lose." - -"Then we'll go home along," said Sherry, putting his pipe in his pocket -as he rose. - -"Nonsense! we can't slink away and leave them to be robbed." Harry took -Sherry by the arm to drag him along. - -"What be the good? Fishen-rods bean't no match for pistols, and bein' a -man o' peace----" - -"Come, I can't wait. I'll go alone, then." - -He released the man's arm and stepped into the stream. Sherebiah -hesitated for a moment; then, seeing that Harry was in earnest, he -dropped his tackle and strode forward, saying: - -"Zooks, not if I knows it! I'm a man o' peace, sure enough, but -fairplay's a jewel. Have at the villains!" - -He followed Harry into the water. Side by side they raced on, dodging -the weeds, scrambling over occasional rocks, slipping on the chalky -bottom, making at top speed for the bridge. As they approached this -they went more slowly, to avoid being heard. Fortunately, at the point -where the road crossed the stream there was a line of rocks, over which -the water plunged with a rustle and clatter, drowning the sound of their -footsteps. They had to stoop low to avoid the moss-grown masonry of the -arch; as they emerged on the farther side they heard a muffled -exclamation from one of the horsemen, and climbing the steep face of the -tree-covered slope towards the wall they heard a shot, then another, -mingled with shouts and the dull thuds of horses' hoofs on the -turf-covered road. - -On the way Harry had explained his plan in panting whispers. Running -along now under cover of the wall, they came opposite to the scene of -the ambush. - -"Now, Sherry, do your best," said Harry, as he prepared to mount the -wall. - -Instantly a new clamour was added to the uproar in the road. - -"This way!" - -"Shoot 'em!" - -"Lash the noddy peaks!" - -"Pinch their thropples!" - -"Quoit 'em down!" - -"Haick! haick!" - -By this time Harry was on the wall, by favour of Sherebiah's strong arm. -A slug whizzed past his head and sank with a thud into the trunk of a -tree just behind; next moment the horse-pistol from which it had been -discharged followed the shot, the butt grazing Harry's brow. There was -no time to take in the details of the scene. Harry made a spring for -the masked horseman who had fired at him, two yards from the wall; but -the fellow, alarmed by the various shouts and the sudden appearance of -Sherebiah at Harry's side, dug the spurs into his steed's flanks and -galloped off down the road, over the bridge, and out of sight. One of -his companions lay motionless on the road; the others had ridden away at -the first alarm from the wall. - -Harry mopped his brow and looked about him. Lord Godolphin stood -upright in the carriage, his lips grimly set, a smoking pistol in his -hand. His son was on foot with drawn sword; a postilion was crawling -out of the ditch all bemired, pale and trembling. - -"Odzooks!" cried my lord, "a welcome diversion!" - -[Illustration: Harry makes a Diversion] - -He was perfectly cool and collected, though his hat was off and his wig -awry. "A thousand thanks, my men. Whew! 'twas in the nick of time. -Where are the rest of you?" - -"There are no more, my lord," said Harry, lifting his cap. - -"No more! But the shouts, then?--I heard a dozen shouting, at least. -Are the rest on the other side of the wall?" - -"All on this side, my lord," said Harry with a smile. "Here is the mob." - -He indicated Sherebiah, who touched his cap and bobbed to his lordship. - -Godolphin stared, then chuckled and guffawed. - -"Egad! 'tis a rare flam. Frank, this fellow here did it all, shouted -for a dozen; by George, 'twas a mighty neat trick! And, by George, I -know your face; I saw you yesterday, I believe! What's your name, man?" - -"Sherebiah Stand-up-and-bless Minshull, my lord," said Sherry, "by the -water o' baptism, your honour, for I was born while old Rowley were in -furren parts. If a'd been born two year arter, my lord, I med ha' been -chrisomed wi' less piety." - -"I remember you, and the old gaffer your father--a fine old fellow. -Well, my man, your name suits me better; 'tis for us to stand up and -bless, eh, Frank? And here's a guinea for you." - -Sherebiah put his hands behind him and looked down at the coin in my -lord's hand. - -"Nay, nay, my lord," he said slowly. "True, I did the shouten, or most -on't, but 'twas Master Harry his notion. Pa'son's son, you see, my lord; -know'd all the holy story o' Gideon; says to me, 'Sherry,' says he, -'shout high and low, bass and tribble, give it tongue,' says he; and I -gi'd it tongue, so I did." - -Both gentlemen laughed heartily. - -"I recognize you now," said my lord, turning to Harry, who looked -somewhat embarrassed. "Surely you are the hero of yesterday's cricket -match? You swing a straight bat, my lad, and, stap me! you've a quick -wit if you devised this late surprise. How came you on the scene?" - -"We'd been fishing yonder, my lord, and I chanced to spy your carriage -and the villains waiting here, almost at the same time. It was clear -what they were about, and as there was no time to warn you we came along -the stream, and--Sherry shouted." - -His smile as he said the last words met an answering smile on Lord -Godolphin's face. - -"A mighty clever trick indeed--eh, Frank? We're beholden to you. 'Twas -a mere chance that I sent my mounted escort on ahead by the highway to -arrange a change of horses, never thinking to be waylaid at this time o' -day." - -"Ay, 'twas the Queen's purse, my lord," struck in Sherebiah. "To know -Queen's purse-bearer were a-comen along old road like a common mortal, -'twere too much for poor weak flesh and blood." - -"The ignorant bumpkins mistook your meaning," said Frank. - -"So it appears. But come, you're the parson's son, I believe. I forget -your name?" - -"Harry Rochester, my lord." - -"Going to be a parson yourself, eh?" - -"I am going up to Oxford in October, my lord; my father wishes me to -take orders." - -"Ah! And your own wish, eh?" - -Harry hesitated. - -"Come, out with it, my lad." - -"I had thought, my lord, I should like to carry the Queen's colours; but -'tis a vain thought; my father's living is small, and----" - -"And commissions in the Queen's army sell high. 'Tis so, indeed. Well, -I heard something of your father last night at Sir Godfrey's; you can't -do better than follow his example. And hark 'ee, if ever you want a -friend, when you've taken your degrees, you know, come and see me; I owe -you a good turn, my lad; and maybe I'll have a country vicarage at my -disposal." - -"Thank you, my lord!" - -"And now we must get on. Dickory, you coward, help these two friends of -ours to remove that tree. The villains laid their ambush well; you see -they felled this larch at an awkward part of the road." - -"And I thowt 'twas Simon forester a-choppen," said Sherebiah, as he -walked towards the tree. - -"What shall we do with this ruffian on the road?" said Frank Godolphin. -"He appears to be stone dead. 'Twas a good shot, sir." - -"Leave the villain. You'll lay an information before Sir Godfrey or -another of your magistrates, young master parson. Did you recognize any -of the gang?" - -"No, my lord. I only saw the masked man. Perhaps Sherry was more -fortunate." - -"Not me neither," said Sherebiah hastily. He had gone to the fallen -man, looked in his face, and turned him over. "'Twas all too quick and -sudden, and my eyes was nigh dazed wi' shouten." - -"Well, well, Sir Godfrey's is near at hand; go and inform him, and he -will scour the country. We must push on." - -The tree was removed; the bedraggled and crestfallen postilions resumed -their saddles, and with a parting salutation my lord drove off. Harry -stood looking thoughtfully after the departing carriage. - -"Master Harry," said Sherebiah, coming up to him, "this be a bad -business. The man bean't dead." - -"He's saved for the hangman, then." - -"Ay, and who med 'ee think he be?" - -"You do know him, then! What does this mean, Sherry?" - -"Well, I be a man o' peace, and there's mischief to come o' this day's -piece o' work, sure as I'm Sherebiah Stand-up-and-bless. 'Tis black -John Simmons, Cap'n Aglionby's man." - -"A scoundrel his master may well be rid of." - -"Ay, if the man were dead! But he be alive; the lord didn't shoot'n at -all; 'a fell off his horse and bashed his nob; an' he's got a tongue, -Master Harry." - -"Well, what then? If he rounds on his fellows, so much the better. -What are you afraid of, Sherry?" - -"I bean't afeard, not I; but the Cap'n----" - -He paused, and Harry looked at him enquiringly. Sherebiah turned away. - -"Ah! little sticks kindle fires, little sticks kindle fires, they do." - - - - - *CHAPTER III* - - *Master and Man* - - -A Midnight Summons--A Warm Reception--Righteous Indignation--Aglionby -Retorts--The Berkeley Arms--A Village Sensation--The Constable's -Story--Aspersions--Unimpeachable References--Waylaid--Squaring -Accounts--The Captain Rides Away - - -The clock of St. Mary's church had just chimed the first quarter after -midnight, and the deep note of the lowest bell was dying away over the -tree-tops, when the sound was intercepted by the distant clink and -clatter of iron-shod hoofs on the hard road, approaching from the -direction of Salisbury. The horse's pace was slow, and there was -something in the fall of the hoofs that betokened a jaded steed. It was -a clear calm night; the air carried every sound distinctly; and nothing -broke the stillness save the footfalls of the horse, an occasional -murmur from the birds in the trees, and the whirr of wings as a solitary -owl, disturbed by the nocturnal rider, left its search for food and -rustled back to its nook in the tower. - -The horseman came presently to the church, wheeled round to the right, -and urged his flagging beast along the road leading to the manor house. -Arriving at the park, he flung himself from the saddle, hitched the -bridle over his left arm, and turned the handle of the massive iron -gate. But there was no yielding to his push: the gate was locked. The -man shook and rattled the handle impatiently, to assure himself that he -was not mistaken, then turned aside with an inarticulate rumble of -anger, and went to the lodge, a low ivy-grown cottage abutting on the -road. He tapped on the small latticed window with the butt of his -riding-whip; there was no reply. The horse by his side hung its head -and breathed heavily; it was jaded to the point of exhaustion. Again he -rapped on the glass, growling between his teeth; and when his summons -still met with no response he dealt so smart a blow that one of the -thick square panes fell in with a crash. A moment later a voice was -heard from within. - -"Away wi' 'ee! Who be you, a-breaken an honest man's rest at this -fearsome time o' night?" - -A night-capped head appeared at the hole, just visible in the faint -illumination of the clear summer sky. - -"Open the gate, Dick," said the rider impatiently. "Ods my life, will -you keep me waiting here, will you?" - -"Be it you, Cap'n?" - -"Zounds, man, must I tell you my name? Ha' ye never seen me before! -Stir your old stumps, or by the lord Harry----" - -"Squire give orders t' gate were to be locked and kep' locked; not a man -to come in, not a soul. They's my orders, ay sure, Cap'n." - -"Orders! orders!" cried the other in a burst of passion. "Adslidikins, -if you're not at the gate with the key inside of two minutes I'll put a -slug through your jolt head, you mumper, you miching rogue you!" - -And indeed Captain Aglionby displayed a monstrous blunderbuss, and -pointed it full in the face of the scared lodge-keeper. For an instant -the man hesitated; then, muttering to himself, he disappeared from the -window, and soon afterwards emerged from the side door within the -palings, his night-gown showing beneath a heavy driving coat. He came -towards the gate with the key--a bent old man, tottering and mumbling. - -"I shall lose my place; Squire give orders, a' did, not a soul to come -in; to drag a aged man from his nat'ral sleep an' lose him his place an' -all; well, I was forced; no man can zay as I warn't forced; mumper as I -be, I vallies my little bit o' life, and----" - -"Hold your tongue, you old flap-eared dotard, and make haste, or I'll -pink your soul. Don't you see the jade's dead-beat; 'tis time I stabled -her." - -The man turned the key and slowly opened the gate. With a grunt the -captain led his horse through, and, without so much as a glance at the -lodge-keeper, proceeded up the quarter-mile drive leading to the house. - -"Old Nick's not abed," he said to himself as he cast his eye over the -house front. A light shone from a window in the turret over the porch. -"The old nightbird! Lock me out! Oons!" - -He threw the bridle over an iron post at the side of the entrance, and -walked round a projecting wing of the building till he came to a small -door in the wall. He turned the iron ring, pushed, rattled; the door -was fast shut. Cursing under his breath, he was proceeding towards the -servants' quarters when he heard the creak of a key turning, and, -wheeling round, came to the postern just as it was opened by Squire -Berkeley himself, his tall, lean, bent figure enwrapped from neck to -heel in a black cassock-like garment, a skull-cap of black velvet -covering his head. He held a lighted candle; his piercing eyes flashed -in the darkness. - -"Hey, Squire!" cried the captain in a tone of forced good-humour, "I had -much ado to rouse old Dick. 'Tis late to be sure; but if you'll give me -the key of the stables I'll settle Jenny for the night and get to bed." - -He made as if to enter, but Mr. Berkeley spread himself across the -narrow doorway. - -"Who are you, sirrah," he said, "to break into my park against my -express orders?" - -There was contempt in his cold incisive tones, and anger with difficulty -curbed. - -"Why now----" Aglionby began. - -"Who are you, I say? And what am I, that my orders are defied, and my -house made a common inn, a toping house for you and your toss-pot -ruffians? Go--go, I say!" - -The captain was for a moment staggered; the old man's manner left no -room for doubt that he was in earnest. But Aglionby was too old a -campaigner to cry off so easily. In a tone half-conciliatory, -half-aggrieved he said-- - -"Fair and softly, Squire! this is but scurvy treatment of a tired man. -Look you, I've been in the saddle this livelong day; the mare's -well-nigh foundered; and for myself--gads so, I could eat an ox and -drink a hogshead. To-morrow, in a few hours, I'll bid ye good-bye--for a -time, if ye want a change; but to-night--no, Squire, 'tis not hospitable -of you, 'tis not indeed." - -"You dally with me!" cried the squire, the hand that held the candle -shaking with passion. "You set no foot within this door--now, nor ever -again. Begone, while there is time." - -"While there is time! Look ye, Master Berkeley, I will not brook -insults from you. Yesterday you must put an affront on me in the -presence of my lord Godolphin, shoving me out of the way as I were a -leper, and at the very moment, stap me! when I might ha' paid court to -his lordship, and got the chance o' my life. Adsbud, I was not good -enough to approach my lord, to accost him, have speech with him----" - -"An omission you have since repaired," interjected the old man with a -meaning look. The captain started, and there was a perceptible interval -before he resumed, in a tone still more blusterous-- - -"Ods my life, what mean you now? You took care I should not meet my -lord in your company; and, i' faith, he showed he wanted none of that -neither." - -"Hold your peace and begone!" cried the squire in a fury. "You think I -know nothing of your villainies? How many times have I harboured -you--ay, saved you perchance from the gallows! How many times have you -eat my food, rid my horses, browbeat my servants, roistered it in my -house, till I could bear with you no longer, and then betaken yourself -to your evil practices abroad, consorted with villains, run your neck -well-nigh into the hangman's noose, and then come back with contrite -face and vows of amendment, to fawn and bluster and bully again? Out -upon you! Your rapscallion of a servant is even now laid by the heels, -and to-morrow will have to answer to the charge of waylaying the Lord -Treasurer. He's a white-livered oaf, and his tongue will wag, and -you'll companion him before Fanshawe, and you'll swing on the same -gibbet." - -At the mention of his man's plight the captain's face had fallen; but -when Mr. Berkeley's tirade was ended he broke into a laugh. - -"Ha! ha! Squire, now I come to understand you. 'Tis your own skin you -have a care for! Ha! ha! I might have known it. I am to be haled -before Sir Godfrey, am I? and to hold my tongue, am I? and to be mum -about certain little affairs in the life of Master Nicolas -Berkeley--that paragon of virtue, that pampered, patched old interloper, -am I? By the lord Harry, if I stand in manacles before Sir Godfrey, you -shall bear me company, you painted pasteboard of a saint!" - -Berkeley's pale face blanched with fury. For a moment he was incapable -of speech. Then he stepped forward a pace; the hand holding the candle -shook so, that the grease sputtered upon his gown. His voice came in -vehement passionate whispers: - -"You threaten me! Do your worst--I defy you!--Back to your wallow, -bully!--begone!" - -He suddenly withdrew within the doorway, slammed the door, and bolted -it. - -"Whew!" whistled the captain, left standing outside. "'Tis the worst -passion ever I saw him in. Defies me! Well, Master Nicolas, would I -could afford to take you at your word! A plague on Simmons! I thought -he was dead. He'll split, sure enough, and there's an end of Ralph -Aglionby. Jenny, my dear, you're a sorry jade, but you'll have to bear -my carcase till we're out of harm's way. We have five or six hours -before the world's astir. Do your best, my girl, and we'll cheat 'em -yet." - -Captain Aglionby led his tired steed down the drive to the gate, roused -Dick the lodge-keeper with scant ceremony, and in a few minutes was -riding slowly towards the village. As he came into the principal -street, he was surprised to notice that the only inn was lit up, a most -unusual circumstance at that time of night. The door stood open, and -there were lights in several of the rooms on the ground floor. A -feeling of apprehension seized upon him; he could not but connect these -lively signs with the events of the morning, and especially with the -capture of his man. Could the fellow have blabbed already? He was just -making up his mind to spur the mare past the inn, over the bridge, on to -the London road, when two persons came to the door and caught sight of -him. One was Mistress Joplady, the buxom hostess; the other William -Nokes, the village constable. It was too late to evade them: indeed he -heard the hostess exclaim, "Well, I never! 'tis the Cap'n hisself, -sure." Resolving like a wise man to make the best of it, he rode up to -the door, dismounted, and, swaggering, with his usual air of assurance -said: - -"Egad, mistress, I'm glad to find you afoot. My mare's dead-beat, has -carried me nigh forty miles this day; send Tom ostler to stable her, -like a good soul; and give me a bite and a bed. I didn't care about -disturbing the squire at this time o' night." - -The captain was no favourite with good Mistress Joplady, but she -received him now with something more than her usual urbanity. - -"Come away in, Cap'n Aglionby," she said. "Sure your name was in our -very mouths. Strange things be doing--ay, strange things in Winton -Simmary; bean't it so, William Nokes? Take the cap'n into the parlour, -William; a few souls be there, Cap'n, not fit company for the likes o' -you, to be sure, but they'll tell 'ee summat as'll stir your blood, they -will so. Tom'll see to Jenny, so be easy." - -Captain Aglionby followed the constable into the parlour, where a group -of the village worthies were assembled. They were neither smoking nor -drinking, a sure sign that they had something momentous to talk about. -A silence fell upon the company as the captain clanked into the room, -and one or two of the more active-minded of them threw a quick glance at -each other, which the new-comer did not fail to note. - -"A fine night, men," said the captain jovially. - -"Ay, 'tis so." - -"And a late hour to find the Berkeley Arms open." - -"Ay, 'tis latish, sure enough." - -"Any news from the army in Flanders? A post from London, eh?" - -"Nay, not 'zackly that." - -"Odzooks! speak up, men," cried the captain impatiently. "Why are they -all mumble-chopped to-night, mistress?" he asked, turning to the -hostess, who had followed him with bread and cheese and beer. - -"Ah, they be pondering strange things," returned Mrs. Joplady. "Tell -the cap'n all the long story, William Nokes." - -The constable, fingering the hat in his hand, looked for sympathy into -the stolid faces of his fellows, cleared his throat, and began: - -"Cap'n, your sarvant. Eight o'clock this mornin', or mebbe nine--'twixt -eight and nine, if the truth was told--comes Long Tom from the Grange, -Sir Godfrey's man, as ye med know, Cap'n. Says he to me, 'Constable,' -says he, 'Sir Godfrey commands 'ee as a justice o' the peace to bring -your staff and irons and other engines,' says he, 'up along to Grange, -wi'out remorse or delay, and arrest a prisoner in the Queen's name.' -You may think what a turn it gi' me, souls, so early in the mornin'. -'Be he voilent?' says I. 'Can I arrest the villain all alone by -myself?' 'Ay sure,' says he; 'there's no knowin' what a tough job -'twould be an he were sound and hearty, but he's dazed, so he be, wi' a -crack in the nob, and won't give no trouble to no mortal constable, not -a bit,' says he. 'A crack in the nob,' says he; didn't he, souls?" - -A murmur of assent came from the group. - -"So I ups and goos wi' Long Tom hotfoot to the Grange, and Tom he tells -me by the way the longs and shorts on't. Seems 'twas Sherry Minshull as -cracked his nob, leastways he picked un up, he and young master pa'son -betwixt 'em, an' hoisted him on a cart o' Farmer Leake's, an' so carried -un to Grange and laid un afore Sir Godfrey. 'Twas highway robbery, -Cap'n, a-took in the very act, a-stoppen the carriage o' the high lard -as come this way yesterday, or day afore, as 'ee med say, seein' 'tis -mornin' now by the rights on't. And Sir Godfrey commits un, he do, -dazed as he were wi' the crack in the nob, and hands un over to the law, -and says, 'Constable,' says he, 'keep the knave fast in the lock-up, an' -hold un till I gets word from my Lard Godolphin in Lun'on.' They be his -words, Cap'n." - -"Well, well, cut your story short, man. Adsheart, ye've more words than -matter." - -"Ay, but wait to th' end, wait to th' end," put in a voice. - -"The end of a rope 'twill be, and not for one neither," added another. - -The constable looked a little uncomfortable. - -"So I had un fast in the lock-up, Cap'n," he went on, "and 'twas the -talk o' the village all day long. Squire himself heard on't, and down -he come, so he do, and bein' hisself a justice o' the peace he goos into -the lock-up and zees the man, and axes un questions, not for my ears, me -bein' a constable; nay, I stood guard at the door; and when Squire coom -out he says to me, 'Constable,' says he, 'keep a good guard on un; he -deserves hangen, ay, and his mates too.' Never seed I Squire so -mad-like; 'twas 'cos it was a lard, maybe, and on his own ground, as 'ee -med say." - -"Ay, and nearer nor that," said a voice. - -The captain put down the tankard from which he was quaffing, and glared -round the faces. They were blank as the wall behind them. - -"And now what'll he say?" pursued the constable. "He were mad afore, ay -sure; now he'll ramp and roar worse nor the lion beast at Salisbury -Fair. Ye med not believe it, Cap'n, but 'tis true for all that; the -godless villain ha' dared Squire an' Sir Godfrey an' me an' all; ha' -broke his bonds an' stole away, like a thief i' the night, as the Book -says." - -"What!" cried the captain, leaning forward and thumping the table. -"Escaped, has he?" - -"A' has so, like a eel off the hook." - -"Ha! ha! Stap me! eels are slippery things. But 'tis a rub for you, -master constable. You'll lose your place, i' faith, you will." - -"Why now, it be no sin o' mine. I left un snug in lock-up, I did, door -double-locked and bar up, an' went to take my forty winks like a honest -poor man; an' no sooner my back turned than out skips the pris'ner, like -Simon Peter in the story. There be witchcraft in't, an' that 'ee ought -to know, Cap'n, seein' as the villain be your own sarvant." - -"Eh, fellow?" - -"Sakes alive, I thowt as 'ee knowed that all the time! Sure 'twas John -Simmons, your honour's own body-slave, so to speak. An' I was main glad -to see 'ee, Cap'n, 'cause now 'ee know un for what he is, 'ee'll help me -to cotch un, in the Queen's name." - -"Knows where he be, I'll be bound," said one of the group in a low tone. -The captain sprang from his chair, ran round the table, and, before the -speaker could defend himself, he caught him by the throat and hurled him -to the floor. - -"Zounds, loon!" he cried in a passion, "what do you mean? Will you -affront me, eh? will you mouth your cursed insults to my very face? -Odzooks, I'll slit your weazand, hound, and any man of you that dares a -hint o' the sort, so 'ware all!" - -The men looked abashed and uncomfortable; the hostess was pale with -apprehension, and the constable edged away from the irate captain. His -burst of passion over, he turned to Mrs. Joplady and spoke in quieter -tones. - -"I brook no insolence, mistress. I don't answer for my servant's deeds -behind my back. I've been away all day, as poor Jenny will bear me -witness; was I to know my fool of a servant would play highwayman in my -absence? 'Tis a useful fellow, civil, too, beyond most; I picked him up -in London; he was in truth commended to me by no less than his grace the -Duke of Ormond, who tapped me on the shoulder in the Piazza at Covent -Garden, and said, 'Aglionby, my bawcock, you want a servant; I know the -very man for you!' Could I suspect a man after that? How he got mixed -up in this business beats me. And as for helping master constable to -repair his carelessness--adsbud, 'tis not likely. The man in truth is -no longer servant of mine. I am on my way to serve the Queen in -Flanders, and this very day arranged with my friend Sir Rupert Verney to -take the fellow off my hands. You may hang him, for me!" - -"There now, Sam," said the hostess, turning to the man who had been -felled, and was now at the door glowering; "your tongue runs away wi' -'ee. Beg the cap'n's pardon, and don't go for to make a ninny o' -yourself." - -"Never mind, my good woman," said Aglionby loftily. "The yokel knows no -better. Now, I'm tired out; give me a bed, good soul, for I must away -at sunrise--and egad, 'tis past one o'clock! Good-night to 'ee, men; -and I hope Sir Godfrey will forgive you, constable." - -He went from the room, and soon afterwards the hostess bade the -villagers get to their beds, and closed the inn for the short remnant of -the night. - -Before seven o'clock next morning the captain was on horseback. The -ground was wet; it had been drizzling for several hours, but a misty sun -was now struggling up the sky, and Tom ostler foretold a fine day. The -captain rode off, answering with a bold stare the suspicious and -lowering glances of the few villagers who were on the spot. He was in -high spirits; the anxieties of the past night were gone; and as he rode -he hummed a careless tune. He had ridden but little more than a mile -when, from an intersecting lane, a man stepped out and gripped the -horse's reins. - -"Get off that there horse!" he said bluntly. - -"Gads so, Sherry, you gave me quite a turn," said the captain with -unusual mildness. "Don't hinder me, man; I'm off to Flanders, and, i' -faith, that's where you ought to be yourself, if all was known. Come, -what's the meaning o't?" - -"Get off that there horse!" repeated Sherebiah. "I'm a man o' peace, I -be, and I settles all scores prompt." - -There was a look of determination in his eyes, and in his right hand he -grasped a knobby cudgel. - -"Right! but we've no accounts to settle.--What!" he cried, as he saw -Sherebiah's cudgel raised, "you play the bully, eh? Gadzooks, I'll ferk -ye if----" - -He was drawing his sword, but the cudgel fell with a resounding whack -upon his knuckles, and with a cry of pain he scrambled to the ground and -stood, a picture of sullen rage, before his intercepter. - -"I'll thank 'ee for your pistols," said Sherebiah, removing them from -the holsters as he spoke. "Nay, don't finger your sword; I be a man o' -peace, and you know my play with the quarterstaff. Jenny, old girl, -crop your fill by the roadside while I have a reckonen wi' Cap'n -Aglionby." He laid a curious stress upon the title. "Now, Ralph, you -be comen wi' me into wood yonder. 'Tis there we'll settle our score." - -Seizing the captain with his left hand, he led him down the lane, -through a gap in the hedge, into a thin copse of larches, until he came -to a narrow glade. Aglionby assumed an air of jocular resignation; but -that he was ill at ease was proved by the restless glances he gave -Sherebiah out of the corner of his eye. - -"Off wi' your coat!" said Sherebiah, having reached the centre of the -glade. "Off wi't! I be gwine to pound 'ee; you can defend yourself, -but you'm gwine to be pounded whether or no." - -"Confound you, man, what have I done to you? Why the----" - -"Off wi't, off wi't! Least said soonest mended. Great barkers be no -biters, so it do seem; doff your coat, Cap'n Aglionby!" - -"Well, if you will!" cried the captain, with a burst of passion. "I'll -comb your noddle, I'll trounce you, for an insolent canting runagate -booby!" - -He flung his coat on the wet grass; Sherebiah laid down the cudgel and -followed his example. - -"Come on, Cap'n Aglionby!" he said. "'Tis not, as 'ee med say, a job to -my liken, trouncen a big grown man like you; but 't ha' got to be done, -for your good and my own peace o' mind. So the sooner 'tis over the -better." - -To a casual onlooker the two would have seemed very unequally matched. -The captain stood at least a head taller than his opponent, and was -broad in proportion. But he was puffy and bloated; Sherebiah, on the -other hand, though thick-set, was hard and agile. - -As if anxious to finish an uncongenial task with the least delay, he -forced matters from the start. The captain had no lack of bull-dog -courage, and he still possessed the remnant of great physical strength. -To an ordinary opponent he would have proved even yet no mean -antagonist; and when, after a few sharp exchanges, Sherebiah's punishing -strokes roused him to fury, he rained upon the smaller man a storm of -blows any one of which, had it got home, might have felled an ox. But -Sherebiah parried with easy skill, and continued to use his fists with -mathematical precision. Once or twice he allowed the captain, now -panting and puffing, to regain his wind, and when the burly warrior -showed a disposition to lengthen the interval he brought him back to the -business in hand with a cheery summons. - -"Now, Cap'n Aglionby," he would say, "let's to 't again. Come, man, -'twill soon be over!" - -At last, beside himself with rage, the captain attempted to close with -and throw his opponent. He could scarcely have made a more unfortunate -move. For a few moments the two men swung and swayed; then Aglionby -described a semicircle over Sherebiah's shoulder, and fell with a -resounding thud to the ground. Neither combatant was aware that for -some time a spectator had been silently watching them. Harry Rochester, -coming whistling through the trees, had halted in surprise, at the edge -of the glade, as his eyes took in the scene. - -"There now, 'tis over and done," said Sherebiah, stooping to pick up his -coat. "That score's wiped off. Stand on your feet, man! And I'll -trouble 'ee for your sword." - -The captain staggered to his feet. He was in no condition to refuse the -victor's demand. - -Sherebiah took the weapon and broke it across his knee. From his own -pocket he then took the captain's pistols. He carefully drew their -charges, and handed them back. - -"Now, hie 'ee to Flanders," he said. "You've done more fighten this -mornin' than you'll ever do there. You'll find Jenny on the road." - -The captain glared at him, and seemed about to reply. But he thought -better of it, and with a vindictive glare walked slowly away. - -"What's it all about, Sherry?" said Harry, stepping forward when -Aglionby had disappeared. - -"Ah, that be 'ee, sir? 'Twas only a little small matter o' difference -'twixt Cap'n Aglionby and me. We're quits now." - -"You'll have to get Mistress Joplady to give you a raw steak for your -eye." - -"Ay sure, Cap'n did get in a hit or two," replied Sherebiah placidly. - -"I didn't know you were such a fighter." - -Sherebiah gave him a quick look out of his uninjured eye. - -"Nay, I bean't a fighter, not me," he said. "I'm a man o' peace; I be -so." - - - - - *CHAPTER IV* - - *Mynheer Jan Grootz and Another* - - -The Gaffer Chops Logic--In Print--The London Coach--Simple Annals--A -Village Hampden--Bereft--An Offer of Service--A Hearty Send-off--Outside -Passengers--Introductions--Contractor to the Forces--Followed--The Man -on the Road--Sherebiah Muses - - -It was a dull, damp day towards the end of November, a little more than -four months after Captain Aglionby's unhappy departure from Winton St. -Mary. There was again great bustle at the Berkeley Arms; Mistress -Joplady's ample face was red with exertion, and her voice, when she gave -directions to her servants, was raised to an acrimonious pitch far from -usual with her. The whole village appeared to be gathered either within -or without the inn. Gaffer Minshull was there, seated with his back to -the wall and leaning on his inseparable staff. Lumpy, Soapy Dick, Long -Robin the tanner, Old Everlasting the miller, stood in a group about the -door, talking to the ostler, who stood guard, with arms akimbo, over -four brimming pails of water ranged along the wall. - -Soft Jemmy was standing a yard or two away, watching with open mouth a -man who, straddling across a step-ladder, was smearing the ancient -sign-board with daubs of black paint, obliterating every trace of the -crude heraldic design that had marked the inn's connection with the lord -of the manor. When the board was one unbroken black, the painter -descended the ladder with his brush and can, winked at Jemmy, and went -into the inn to "mix the flavours", as he said in passing. The -half-witted youth contemplated his handiwork for some minutes in mild -surprise; then he walked towards old Minshull and addressed him -timorously: - -"Gaffer, I'm afeard my poor yead won't stand the wonder on't, but it med -do me good to know why John painter ha' covered that noble pictur wi' -the colour o' sut." - -"Why, boy, black's for sorrow, as 'ee med know wi'out tellen an 'ee -weren't so simple, and 'tis a black day for Winton Simmary, so 'tis." - -"Why be it more black to-day than 'tis a-Sunday?" asked the youth. -"'Tis Tuesday, gaffer, bean't it? and new pa'son didn't holler it in -church for a holy day." - -"Boy, your poor yead won't stand high things, 'tis true, but 'ee know -young pa'son be off to Lun'on town to-day, an' that's why all the souls -be here, to see the last on un." - -Jemmy looked up again at the defaced sign-board, puzzling his poor -brains to find some connection between it and the departure of "young -pa'son". - -"'Tis a shame, gaffer," said Honest John, "to deceive the poor lad, when -you know the sign bean't painted out for no such thing." - -"Why, there now," returned old Minshull, "bean't it all one? I axe 'ee -that, souls. Young pa'son be a-gwine to Lun'on 'cause his poor -feyther's dead an' gone; Pa'son Rochester be dead an' gone 'cause o' the -fight; an I weren't afeard on un, I'd say the fight were all along o' -Squire; and Mis'ess Joplady ha' changed the ancient sign of th' inn -'cause her can't abear to think on't. Bean't that gospel truth, souls -all?" - -The group looked impressed with the old man's logic. Mistress Joplady, -coming for a moment to the door, had overheard his concluding sentences. - -"'Tis true," she said, wiping away a tear. "I never liked Squire; -nobody never did as I ever heerd on; but when pa'son died I couldn't -abear him. One thing I'm thankful for from the bottom o' my heart, and -that is, that my house is college property, like the church, and I can -snap my vingers at Squire, and I do." She suited the action to the -word. "Has been the Berkeley Arms for a hunnerd years, but 'twill be so -no longer. When paint's dry, up goos the yead o' Queen Annie, bless -her! a poor soul as ha' lost all her childer, like myself, and the -Queen's Head it'll be for ever more." - -"Ay, things be main different in village now, sure," said Lumpy. "To -think what mighty changes come in a little time! Zeems only a few days -sin' young pa'son won that noble match--you mind, souls, the day the -lord's carriage broke under the weight of the Queen's purse--ay, the day -afore he were stopped in old road. I never understood the rights o' -that bit o' work. Gaffer, hav 'ee got that printed paper ye read, where -the Lun'on talk be given like the words of a book?" - -Old Minshull slowly drew from his pocket a folded sheet, rather dirty, -worn at the edges, and falling apart at the folds. He opened it out -with great care, and spread it on his knees. - -"That's he," said Lumpy. "Gaffer, you be a scholard; read it out loud -to us again." - -"Ay, an' don't need spectacles neither," said Minshull proudly; "well, -listen, souls." - -Very slowly, and with as much deliberation as though he were reading it -for the first instead of the hundredth time, and moving his forefinger -along the line, the old man began to read the account of the attempted -robbery of Lord Godolphin which the _Daily Courant_ presented to the -London public a week after the event. The names of the principal -persons concerned appeared with a dash between the initial and final -letters, and Godolphin's was read by Minshull as "Lard G line n". After -briefly relating the incident, the writer of the paragraph added: - -"'Tis said the Prisoner that broke jail was a Servant of a Captain -A----y, a Guest at that time of Esq. N----s B----y. The gallant -Captain's Commission (as it is credibly reported) is not under the seal -of her Gracious Majestie, or King William lately Deceas'd of Noble -Memorie, but of the Czar of Muscovy. 'Tis vouch'd by some 'twas none -other than the Great Cham." - -"Ay, that's print," said Soapy Dick at the conclusion of the reading. -"The 'Cap'n A line y' was Cap'n Aglionby sure enough, an' some did zay -as how 'twas he let the pris'ner out o' lock-up, and so brought shame to -Will'm Nokes." - -"Ay, an' some did say as how the Cap'n hisself made one o' the cut-purse -rogues as waylaid the lard," said Honest John. - -"Old wives' tales," said Minshull. "My boy Sherry be wise for his -years, an' he says Cap'n couldn't ha' let prisoner out, 'cause a' were -miles away at the time. And as for Cap'n bein' on the road--why, when -Sir Godfrey coom in all the might o' the law to 'stablish the truth, -Squire up and said as how Cap'n was abed and asleep on that early mornen -when the deed was done." - -"Ay true, Squire said so; but did a' take his dyin' oath like a common -man? Tell me that, souls." - -At this moment the conversation was interrupted, and the villagers were -thrilled into excitement by the distant tootle of a horn. - -"Here be coach at last," cried the ostler. "Ten minutes behind time, -and no sign of young Master Rochester. Giles coachman won't wait, not -he." - -But as the coach came in sight at a bend of the road, two figures were -seen hastening along from the direction of the rectory. One was a tall -youthful form clad in black from his low felt hat to his buckle shoes. -His steinkirk was black, and its fringed ends were tucked into a black -waistcoat. Black were his plain drugget coat and breeches, black also -his woollen stockings. Nothing redeemed the sable hue of his garments -save his cambric shirt, the white front of which was much exposed, in -the fashion of the time. Harry Rochester's face was pale, its -expression sad. - -His companion, a head shorter than himself, was Sherebiah Minshull, clad -in the sober brown of ordinary country wear, and trudging along steadily -under the weight of a fair-sized valise. Winter or summer, his -appearance never varied: his firm round cheeks were always ruddy, his -blue eyes always bright; and his expression, now as always, was that of -placid self-content, well becoming "a man of peace". - -The two drew nearer to the inn, where the group had by this time been -enlarged by the accession of the greater part of the village population, -women and children, workers and loafers, mingled in one interested -throng. As Giles Appleyard was at that moment explaining to the -passenger at his side, he had never seen such a crowd at Winton St. Mary -before, though he had driven the coach, good weather and bad, for -fifteen years come Christmas. It reminded him of the crowd at Salisbury -Fair. - -"And seein' as how I've been laid up wi' a bad leg for two months," he -added, "I'm behind the times, I be; news travels slow to them as don't -drive coaches, and, i' feck, I know no more than the dead what this -mortal big crowd do mean, i' feck I don't." - -But many voices were ready to tell him when, having pulled up his four -steaming horses at the inn door, he descended with grave deliberation -from his perch, saluted Mistress Joplady with the gallantry of the road, -and entered her house "to warm his nattlens", as he said, with a tankard -of her home-brewed. Young pa'son was a-gwine to Lun'on town! It seemed -a slight cause for such an unwonted scene; in reality it was a momentous -event in the life of Harry Rochester and in the history of his village. -Small things bulk large in the imagination of rustic folk; a journey to -London came within the experience of few of them; and the departure of -young pa'son, following so closely upon two such notable events as the -cricket match and the attack on the Lord High Treasurer, had already -furnished unfailing material for gossip, and would be the theme of -comment and speculation for a year to come. - -It was all along of old Squire, they said; and the coachman, for the -first and only time in his career, delayed his departure for some -minutes after the horses had been watered, in order to listen to the -story. A few days after Lord Godolphin's flying visit, Squire Berkeley -had fenced in a piece of land which time out of mind had been regarded -as part of the village common. Old Gaffer Minshull, whose memory went -back fifty years, was called up to tell how in the year '53, just before -Christmas, the then parson had held a prayer-meeting on that very spot -to celebrate the making of Noll Crum'ell Lord Protector; he remembered -it well, for it lasted five hours, and old Jenny Bates fainted on the -ground and took to her bed from that day. - -"Ay, 'twas a holy spot, an' Squire med ha' feared to touch un, as the -old ancient folk feared to lay hands on the Lord's holy ark; but, bless -'ee, Squire bean't afeard o' nothen, nay, not o' the still small voice -pa'son do zay be inside on us all." - -When the ground was fenced in the good parson was disposed to carry the -matter to law. But though he had already won one case (a matter of -right of way) in the courts, the only result was that the squire had -carried it to appeal, trusting in the power of the purse. The angry -villagers therefore determined to take the law into their own hands. -Without consulting the rector, they assembled one evening towards the -end of October, and hastening in a body to the disputed space, began to -make short work of the new fencing. But the squire had got wind of -their intention, by some witchcraft of his own, they believed: he soon -appeared on the scene at the head of a gang of his own men. There was a -fight; heads were broken, and the squire's party were getting badly -mauled when the rector suddenly arrived and rushed between the -combatants. - -"Ay, poor pa'son, I zee un now, I do," said Gaffer Minshull feelingly, -"goen headlong into the rout wi' all his petticoats flyen! A fine -upstanden man was pa'son, as ought to ha' been a man o' war. A' stood -in the eye of Squire, an' Squire opened on un, gave tongue to a deal o' -hot an' scorchen words, a' did. But pa'son took no heed to'n, not he: -he spoke up fair an' softly to Squire's men, and wi' that way o' his a' -made 'em feel all fashly like; a' had a won'erful way wi' 'n, had -pa'son; an' they made off wi' their broken heads, they did; an' Squire -was left a-frothen an' cussen as he were a heathen Frenchman or Turk. -Ah, poor pa'son! Such a fine sperit as he had, his frame were not built -for 't; wi' my own aged eyes I seed un go blue at the lips, and a' put -his hand on his bosom, a' did, an' seemed as if all the breath was -blowed out of his mortal body; and a' went home-along a stricken soul, -and two days arter his weak heart busted, an' young pa'son had no -feyther--ay, poor soul, no feyther, an' my boy Sherebiah be nigh -varty-vour, and here I be. 'Tis strange ways Them above has wi' poor -weak mortals--strange ways, ay sure!" - -Mr. Berkeley took advantage of the rector's death to pay off old scores. -The legal actions which Mr. Rochester had taken, on behalf of his flock, -collapsed for want of further funds; he had already seriously -impoverished himself by his open-hearted generosity; and when the squire -came down on the dead man's estate for the law costs, Harry found that, -after all debts were paid, he was possessed of some twenty guineas in -all wherewith to start life. - -His project of going to Oxford was necessarily abandoned. He was at a -loss to find a career. Educated by his father with a view to entering -the Church, he was fairly well grounded in classics and mathematics, and -had in addition a good acquaintance with French, and a great stock of -English poetry; but his knowledge was not marketable. He was too young -for a tutor's place, and had no influence to back him; friendless and -homeless, he was at his wits' end. - -Then one day he bethought him of Lord Godolphin's promise. It had been -frank and apparently sincere. My lord, it was true, had spoken of a -country benefice when Harry's Oxford days were over; but Harry reflected -that the slight service he had rendered was not likely to appear greater -with the lapse of time, while his need was actual and urgent. Why not -take the Lord Treasurer at his word, journey to London, and put his case -before the man who, in all the kingdom, was the most able to help him if -he would? - -He mentioned the matter to Gaffer Minshull, rather expecting that the -sturdy veteran would pour cold water on his idea. To his surprise the -old man urged him to carry it out, and overbore the objections which -every high-spirited lad, even in those days of patronage, must have had -to soliciting favours from the great. His eagerness was partially -explained to Harry when the old fellow added a suggestion of his own. -He was seriously concerned about his boy Sherebiah. In spite of strict -injunctions to have nothing to do with the expedition against the -squire's fencing, Sherebiah, man of peace as he was, had been attracted -to the scene as a moth to a candle. At first he had watched events from -a distance, among other interested spectators; but when he saw the fight -at its beginning go against the villagers, owing to the superior -training of the squire's men, many of whom were old soldiers, he could -contain himself no longer. At the head of the waverers he dashed into -the affray, and set such an example of valour that it would have gone -hardly with the enemy but for the opportune arrival of the rector. - -From that moment Sherebiah was a marked man. Whatever reasons the father -had for fearing Mr. Berkeley were strengthened when it became evident -that the squire had marked and would resent the son's action. Sherebiah -had been doing no good in the village since he suddenly returned to it, -from no one knew where, a few years before. His father was anxious that -he should go away for a time, at least until the squire's anger had -cooled. He welcomed the opportunity afforded by the approaching -departure of Harry. - -"Let un goo wi' 'ee," he said. "'Tis a knowen boy, handy, with a head -full o' wise things he's larned in the world. He'd be proud to sarve -'ee, ay, that he would." - -"But, gaffer, I can't afford a servant. Twenty guineas are all I have, -and I know not what may happen. If Lord Godolphin fails me, my money -will soon be gone, and then there'll be two poor fellows instead of -one." - -"Never fear. I bean't afeard for 'ee. And what does the Book say? -Why, 'twas the holy King David as said it hisself: 'Once I were young,' -says he, 'and now I be old; but never ha' I knowed the righteous -forsaken, nor his seed a-beggen bread neither.' That's what he said, -and he knowed a thing or two, so he did." - -"Perhaps he didn't know everything, gaffer. Well, you're set on it, I -see. Sherry would certainly be better out of the squire's way; so he -can come with me, and as soon as I find something to do he had better -look for employment, and London ought to be a good place for that." - -Thus it happened that, on this November morning, the two passengers who -had booked places in the Salisbury coach for London were Harry Rochester -and Sherebiah Minshull. - -The story took a long time in the telling in the parlour of the inn, and -Giles Appleyard was somewhat perturbed when he saw by the big clock in -the corner that his departure was overdue. He drained his tankard, -wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, and went out, calling loudly -to the passengers to take their places. Harry shook hands all round; -every man had something to say to him that was intended to be pleasant -and encouraging, but was in many cases the reverse. His heart was full -as he thought of leaving the good folk among whom he had lived and whose -kindly feeling for him was so evident. When, last of all, Mistress -Joplady flung her arms round his neck and hugged him to her ample bosom, -and then wiped her eyes with the corner of her apron, he felt a lump in -his throat, and was glad to escape and mount to his place on the roof of -the coach. - -"All right, Bill?" shouted the coachman over his shoulder. - -"Ay." - -"Let goo, ostler." - -And gathering up the reins he cracked his whip, and with a clatter and -rumble the heavy vehicle, amid a volley of cheers, lurched forward on -the way to London. - -The journey of nearly seventy miles was not likely to be pleasant. The -stage-coaches of those days were large and clumsy structures, with hard -springs. The inside passengers were jolted and jostled; the outside -passengers had no proper seats, but found what sitting room they could -among the packages and bundles. On this morning, there was only one -other passenger on the roof of the coach, a stout broad-faced man -dressed in brown clothes much like Sherebiah's. He had retained his -seat during the scene of farewell, and sat solemnly munching a thick -sausage, scanning the crowd out of shrewd little twinkling eyes that -seemed a size too small for the other features. When his sausage was -finished, he filled a huge pipe and sat puffing in stolid silence. - -For some time after the coach started, no word was spoken by the three -passengers. Harry was wrapt in his thoughts, brooding over the past, -dreaming about the future. Sherebiah had lit his pipe as soon as he was -settled, and smoked on contentedly, stealing a glance every now and then -at the broad figure separated from him by a large travelling trunk. He -seemed to find some amusement in these occasional peeps at his -neighbour, who by and by returned his glance. - -"Mizzly mornen," said Sherebiah, with a nod. - -"Zo," grunted the other. His eyes were resting on Sherebiah's pipe. - -"Tobacco be a great comfort," said the latter, noting the look. "Master -Harry there, he bean't come to 't yet; true, 'tis not for babes an' -sucklens; but I took to 'bacca when Susan wouldn't take me, and 'tis -better nor any wife." - -"Where you get dat pipe?" asked the stranger, in a slow pleasant voice -with a foreign accent. - -"This pipe! Why, over in Amesbury; see, 'tis marked wi' the gauntlet, -sure token of a Amesbury pipe, an' there's no better in the land. Why -med 'ee axe such a feelen question, now?" - -"Once I zaw a pipe like it, wid de mark on it--de gauntlet, you zay." - -"Oh! I say, master, what part o' the land med 'ee hail from? Your -tongue makes me think 'ee med be a Dutchman, though I wouldn't say so to -your face." - -The man looked at his interrogator without replying. He stuffed the -tobacco down into his pipe with a fat forefinger which exactly fitted -the bowl. - -"You know Amsterdam, my vrient?" he said. - -"Ha' been there, mynheer; so 'tis Amsterdam you hail from! Well, I ha' -been in wuss places. Ay, ha' seed summat o' the world, I have, and I -knowed 'ee by your cut for a Dutchman." - -There was silence again for a space. Both the men sat smoking, heedless -of all things around them. They finished their pipes at the same -moment, and, moved by a mutual impulse, each handed his pouch to the -other. - -"Virginia," said Sherebiah laconically. - -"Ah! Barbados," returned the other. "My name, Jan Grootz." - -"And it becomes 'ee," said Sherebiah. "Now mine bean't so good a match; -'tis over long for one o' my inches, and over proud for a man so meek: -Sherebiah Stand-up-and-bless Minshull in the church book, but plain -Sherry to them as I takes to, like young pa'son there." - -Harry was roused from his reverie at hearing himself mentioned. He -looked for the first time at his fellow-passenger, who at that moment -lifted his podgy right hand and pointed to a windmill in full sail a -little distance from the road. - -"Ay sure, minds 'ee of home; your country's full of mills, to be sure. -Mebbe you be a miller, now?" - -The Dutchman waited to blow a great cloud from his mouth before he -answered. - -"A sailor," he said; "but I have mills." - -"A skipper," rejoined Sherry, looking over his costume. "'Tis not for me -to say, but to mortal eye you be more like a varmer.--'Tis a skipper -from Holland," he added, including Harry in the conversation, "that has -a mill or two to his name and smokes 'bacca out o' Barbados." - -"Jan Grootz," said the Dutchman. - -Harry acknowledged the introduction, and remarked on the slowness of -their progress over the rough road. On this Mynheer Grootz volunteered -the remark that, having come all the way from Bristol, he would be glad -when the journey was ended. By degrees he became still more -communicative; and when the coach pulled up at Basingstoke for the -mid-day meal, Harry had learnt that the Dutchman had been to Bristol to -inspect a vessel of which he was part-owner, and which had come most -fortunately to port after being first knocked about by a French -privateer, then badly damaged by a storm. It was to the storm that she -owed her escape from the Frenchman, and to her captain's seamanship her -escape from the storm. Grootz was particularly gratified at her safe -arrival, for she represented a large amount not only to him personally, -but to others who could ill afford to lose on a venture upon which he -had persuaded them to embark. - -When the journey was resumed, the conversation became still more -friendly. Harry liked the look of the Dutchman. His broad face with -its wide nose and little eyes was not handsome, but its expression -inspired confidence; and the careful slowness of his speech, and his -habit of pointing with his forefinger when he wished to be emphatic, -were a little amusing. He asked no questions, but Harry by and by found -himself explaining his own position and relating the events that had led -to it, and told him of his projected visit to Lord Godolphin. At this -up came the forefinger. - -"Ah, my young vrient, you are de son of a minister: ver' well: you know -de good Book: ver' well: 'Put not your drust in princes;' de words are -drue. I tell you dis; besides my mills and my ships, I do oder dings; I -supply food for de men and horses of de English and Dutch armies; and I -have met princes; yes--I, Jan Grootz. I tell you dis; wid a good honest -merchant of London or of Amsterdam, I care not, man knows where he -stand; his foot is on de solid rock; but wid dukes and grand-dukes and -oder princes--ah! man tread a quicksand. Dey promise, but do dey pay? -You are good boy, I dink; mind you, I do not say I know, for outside do -not always speak drue; de apple may be red, and all de time a maggot at -core. I tell you dis; seven year ago I make contract over hay wid young -captain of Bavarian Elector; it was in Namur campaign; he look good, he -speak good, I am well content; but donder! my hay I lose, and 3242 -thalers 3 groschen beside. Dis den I tell you; avoid arms and de law, -drive some honest trade: zo you respect yourself, and oder people dey -respect you. You owe noding; nobody owe you; you are a man." - -Ever since the departure from Basingstoke, Sherebiah, sitting just -behind Harry, had taken no part in the conversation, but appeared to -find something curiously interesting in the road behind, for after once -or twice looking over his shoulder he at last faced round altogether, -and sat with his back to the horses. Just as the Dutchman finished his -speech--the longest to which he had yet given utterance, and one that -his slow delivery lengthened beyond its natural extent--Sherebiah turned -round, tapped Harry on the shoulder, and in a low tone said: - -"Summat's i' the wind." - -"What do you mean, Sherry?" - -"Wind yourself about and look down the road behind." - -"Well, I see nothing--stay, there's a horseman just topping the hill, a -good mile behind us: what of that?" - -"Why, 'tis like this. He always is a mile behind: that's where 'tis. I -seed him afore we come to Basingstoke; but he didn't come to the inn to -eat his vittles, not he. I seed him again when we was a mile this side -o' Basingstoke; what had he been doen, then, while we eat and drank? We -stop, he falls behind; when we trot, he trots; 'tis as if he were a bob -at th' end of a line, never nearer never vurther." - -"You think we are being followed?" - -"That's what I do think, sure enough." - -"A highwayman?" - -"Mebbe, mebbe not; most like not, for 'tis not dark enough, and he's -always in sight." - -"Perhaps he thinks he can't be seen." - -"Not reckonen on the height of the coach roof? But I seed him, I did, -two hours an' more agoo." - -"Why should he follow the coach, I wonder? He may belong to someone -inside." - -"Mebbe, mebbe not; 'tis curious anyways." - -"Well, the fellow is clearly dogging the coach; if your curiosity -troubles you, suppose you slip off a mile before we reach the next -post-house and try to get a nearer look at him as he passes? You can -catch up the coach while they change horses." - -"Ay, I will, sure. We be nigh the river now; over the bridge and we -come to Hounslow heath, a fearsome place for highwaymen. We change at -the Bull and Gate, then run straight into Lun'on: oh, I know the road." - -It was late in the afternoon by the time the coach reached the inn where -the last change of the journey was made. Ten minutes before, Sherebiah -nimbly slipped down, crept through a gap in the hedge, and waited for -the pursuer to appear. Presently he heard the clatter of hoofs; the -sound grew louder, but all at once began to diminish. Scrambling back -into the road, he was just in time to see the horseman strike off at -full speed along a by-road to his left, which led, as Sherebiah knew, to -London by a course only a mile or two longer than the main highway. The -man must evidently have changed his horse somewhere on the road, and -could only have taken the detour in a desire to arrive in London ahead -of the coach. - -Sherebiah stared long and earnestly at the retreating figure. He -frowned and looked puzzled as he set off to overtake the coach. The -driver was mounting the box as he came up. - -"Well, what do you make of it?" asked Harry. - -"He be gone off by a side road," replied Sherebiah. - -"So your curiosity is not to be satisfied after all?" - -"Well, he rid away hard to the left, wi' his back towards me, an' 'tis -growen duskish, an' nowt but a owl could see clear." - -But when Sherebiah clambered to his place he wore a sober look which did -not escape the clear little eyes of Jan Grootz, who silently extended -his pouch to him. Sherebiah refilled and puffed away, every now and then -removing the pipe from his mouth and staring contemplatively at the -bowl. - - - - - *CHAPTER V* - - *A Message from the Squire* - - -The Old White Hart--A Letter for the Captain--Visions--Aglionby gives -Instructions--The Watch--Half-Truths--Ways and Means--Hard Thinking - - -Sherebiah sat very silent for the rest of the journey. The coach jolted -on rapidly towards the great city: passed the market-gardens of -Hammersmith, the open fields of Kensington, along Piccadilly, where the -first street-lamps shed a dim oily light, through Holborn, at last -pulling up at the Angel and Crown in Threadneedle Street. It was past -nine o'clock, dull and murky, and few people were about. But a small -crowd was gathered at the door of the inn to meet the coach, and -Sherebiah, as he shouldered the luggage and moved towards the door, shot -a keen but unobtrusive glance at the faces of the men. His movements -were somewhat too slow for Harry, who, eager to ease his limbs after a -whole day's stiffness and discomfort, entered the hostelry first. All -at once Sherebiah quickened his step, hastened into the lobby, set the -luggage down at the foot of the stairs, and then, making a mumbled -excuse to Harry, slipped out behind one of the inn servants, and looked -narrowly at the diminishing crowd. He was just in time to see a man, -whom he had already noticed on the outskirts of the group, saunter away -in the direction of London Bridge. Appearances are deceptive, and -Sherebiah was not sure that he was right, but he thought the man bore a -resemblance to the rider whom he had seen following the coach, and of -whom he had caught one nearer glimpse as he turned into the by-road. He -followed the man, stepping as quietly as his heavy shoes allowed, -accommodating his pace to that of the man in front, and taking advantage -of the shadow afforded by the penthouse fronts of the closed shops. The -man quickened his steps as he approached the bridge. Sherebiah pursued -him at a discreet distance over the narrow roadway, beneath the rickety -four-story houses that towered above the bridge over almost its entire -length, through Traitor's Gate, and on into Southwark. The man went -along one narrow street, and at last passed under a low archway. -Walking even more stealthily, Sherebiah still followed, and found -himself in the spacious yard of the Old White Hart Inn. This famous -three-storied hostelry was built about three sides of a square. Along -two sides of the upper story ran a balustraded gallery, with wooden -pillars supporting the sloping roof. All was quiet. Sherebiah, keeping -in the shadow of the arch, peeped round and saw the man he followed -standing at the door waiting for an answer to his summons at the bell, -which hung on the outer wall under a gabled cover. After a little time -the door opened and the porter appeared. - -"Be Cap'n Aglionby within?" said the man. - -"Ay, and abed and asleep. What do you want wi' him?" - -"I want to see un." - -"A pretty time o' night! House was shut up an hour ago--no business -doin' these hard times. Why didn't you come sooner?" - -"A good reason, 'cause I be only just come to Lun'on. I has a message -for Cap'n Aglionby." - -"Well, needs must, I s'pose," grumbled the servant. "I'll go up and wake -the captain, and be cursed horrible for my pains. Who shall I say wants -him?" - -"Tell un a friend from the country." - -The porter went into the inn, and soon reappeared in the gallery at the -top of the house, where he tapped at the door of one of the bedrooms -opening from it. He tapped once, twice, thrice, and received no answer; -then to his fourth knock came a response the tone of which, though not -the words, could be heard in the yard below. A colloquy ensued, of -which only the share of the inn servant was distinctly audible to -Sherebiah. - -"A man from the country, Cap'n, to see you." - -Mumble from within. - -"So I told him, but here he bides." - -More mumbling. - -"Didn't tell me his name; a man from the country was all he said, and I -knows no more." - -The answering mumble was of higher and impatient mood. Then the man -came slowly downstairs, grumbling under his breath all the way. - -"You're to go up," he said to the stranger. "'Tis number thirty-two. -And fine tantrums he be in, waked out of sleep; as if I ain't waked out -of sleep or kept from it day and night, and all year long." - -The man entered the inn after the servant, and began to ascend. -Sherebiah meanwhile, looking around, had espied another stairway at the -opposite angle of the courtyard. Darting across on tiptoe, he mounted -quickly, quietly, and reached the gallery above in time to see the -messenger disappear into the captain's room. He hurried along, and, -relying on the porter's complaint of the paucity of business, he opened -the door of the adjacent room and slipped in, leaving the door ajar. -Through the thin partition he heard the murmur of voices in the next -room, but could not catch a word distinctly. In a few moments, however, -there was a crash as of a chair being overthrown, followed by a torrent -of execrations from the captain. Then the door of the next room opened, -and Aglionby came out on to the gallery accompanied by his visitor. - -"Hang you and the squire too!" said the angry warrior. "The tinder's -wet, and I can't light my candle. Give me the letter and I'll read it -by the light of the lantern yonder, and catch my death o' cold withal." - -Shrinking back into the darkness of his room, Sherebiah caught sight of -Captain Aglionby as he passed the half-open door on his way to the -single lantern that feebly lit up the gallery. He had pulled on his -breeches and stockings, but for the rest was in night attire. The -lantern swung from a hook at the corner of the gallery, three rooms -beyond that into which Sherebiah had ventured. Standing beneath it, the -captain broke the seal of the letter given him by the visitor, and read -rapidly under his breath. The reading finished, he stuffed the paper -into his pocket and chuckled. - -"Stap me, he begs and prays me now!" he exclaimed. "See, Jock, tell me -what ye know of this. Ye ha'n't read the letter, ha' ye? By the Lord -Harry, I'll slit--" - -"Nay, nay, Cap'n," interrupted the man; "I know nought o' the letter. -I'll tell 'ee how it all come about. I was openen the gate for Squire, -when--" - -"Speak lower, man; your brazen throat'll wake the house." - -"I was openen the gate for Squire," resumed the fellow in a lower tone, -which was, however, still audible to Sherebiah's straining ears, "when -who should come by but young master popinjay dressed all in his black. -He never bobbed to Squire, not he; never so much as cast eyes on un; but -when Squire saw the young swaggerer he stopped still as a stone, and -looked after un dazed like. Then he put his arm on the gate, a' did, -and leant heavy on it, thinken mortal hard; 'twas a matter o' five -minutes afore he lifted his head again, and never seed I a stranger look -on any man's face than I seed then on Squire's. A' jumped when his eyes -fell on me; 'What be staren at, fool?' says he, in one of his rages. -'Shall I run for doctor?' says I; 'you do look mortal bad.' 'Nay,' says -he, ''tis nothen; a little faintness; 'twill pass.' I touched my cap, -as becomes me, and Squire went into park and shut gate behind un. But a' -hadn't walked more nor three steps when a' stops, swings about, and -'Jock!' says he, 'order post-horses for Hungerford road to-morrer. And -come up to hall inside of an hour; I shall ha' a job for 'ee.' - -"Well, I went up to hall after I'd ordered horses, and Squire give me -this letter. 'You'll ride to Lun'on to-morrer, and take this letter to -Cap'n Aglionby at White Hart, South'ark. And you'll tell the cap'n -where young Master Rochester be stayen.' 'How'll I know that, Squire?' -says I. 'Pon that he burst into one of his terr'ble rages again. 'How, -fool!' says he; 'why, keep the coach in sight, and see that 'ee make no -mistake.' So here I be, Cap'n, and young Master Rochester he's at Angel -and Crown in Threadneedle Street." - -"Thank 'ee, Jock; I know the house. And is the young springald alone?" - -"Not he; has Sherry Minshull with un, a-carryen his belongens." - -"Zounds and thunder! did Sherry see you?" - -"No, i' feck; I kept too far from coach to be seen for sarten, and at -Angel and Crown Sherry was too heavy laden to spy me." - -"Well for you, well for you! Jock, you'll come and take up your -quarters here; there's plenty of room. I'll tell 'em to gi' ye a bed." - -"What about the horse, Cap'n? I left un at Angel and Crown." - -"Let him bide till morning; then you can bring him here too." - -"But Squire, Cap'n,--won't he expect us back, me and horse?" - -"Not he; 'tis here written; I'm to keep you if there's any work for you, -and odzooks! I'll ha' some work for you, never fear. Jock, if your -story has made you as dry as it has made me you're main thirsty; go down -and bring up beer for two, and a lighted candle. I'll ring and wake -that rascal by the time you get to the foot of the stairs." - -The man went down by the way he had come, and the captain returned to -his room. As soon as the coast was clear, Sherebiah slipped out into -the gallery, carrying his shoes to avoid noise, ran down the outer -staircase, stood for a few moments at the foot to make sure that all was -safe, then darted across the yard and out at the gate. The street was -quite deserted, and Sherebiah, secure from molestation, walked slowly -along towards London Bridge, deep in thought. His friend Harry had been -followed to London at the orders of the squire; what was the meaning of -that? Surely Mr. Berkeley did not intend to wreak vengeance on the son -for the baffled opposition of the father? What had Captain Aglionby to -do with the matter? Rumour the omniscient had informed the village that -the captain's departure had been occasioned by a violent quarrel with -the squire; yet it was plain that the squire knew the captain's -whereabouts and was enlisting his aid in some project. Sherebiah wished -that he could get a sight of Mr. Berkeley's letter; he was puzzled to -account for the old man's shock as Harry passed the gate; but try as he -might to piece these strange circumstances together, all his cogitation -suggested no clue. - -So absorbed was he, so mechanical his movements, that he started -convulsively when, just as he had passed through Traitor's Gate, a man -stepped suddenly before him from a narrow entry and bade him stop in the -Queen's name. Looking up, he saw that his way was barred by a corpulent -constable in cocked hat and laced coat, with a staff two feet longer -than himself, and half a dozen ancient and decrepit watchmen with -lanterns and staves. - -"Stand!" cried the constable. "Give an account of yourself." - -Sherebiah took his measure. - -"Not so, neither, master constable. Out o' my way; 'tis a late hour, -and I ought to be abed." - -He made to move on, but the constable stood full in his path, and the -watchmen grouped themselves behind their superior. - -"You may be a villain for aught I know," said the constable, "or even a -vagrom or thief. Why abroad at this hour o' night?" - -"I'm as sober as a judge," replied Sherebiah, "and neither thief nor -vagrom. Stand aside, master constable." - -"Well, 'tis dry and thirsty work watching o' nights, and there be seven -of us, and a shilling don't go far in these war times; we'll take a -shilling to let ye pass; eh, men?" - -The watchmen mumbled assent. Sherebiah laughed. - -"A shilling? 'Tis a free country, master constable, and a sober -countryman don't carry shillings to buy what's his. And seems to me, so -it does, as ye've had drink enough a'ready; out o' my way, I say!" - -"Arrest him, men!" cried the constable, angry at being disappointed of -his expected tip. - -The words were scarcely out of his mouth when with sudden energy -Sherebiah threw himself against him, at the same time placing a leg -behind his knee. As the constable fell, Sherebiah dashed at the -watchmen, toppled two of them over, their fall being accompanied by the -crash of their lanterns, scattered the rest, and ran rapidly across the -bridge. This unexpected onset from one whom they had taken for a simple -and timid country bumpkin was too much for the watch. They made no -attempt to pursue the fugitive, but returned surly and crestfallen to -their lair. - -"Where on earth have you been, Sherry?" asked Harry, as his man -re-entered the inn. - -"Payen a visit to a cousin o' mine, Master Harry. And I was nigh put in -lock-up, I was. Was stopped by the watch, but I toppled un over, I did. -I'm a man o' peace." - -"If you are let alone," said Harry, laughing. "I feared some harm had -happened to you. Our Dutch friend tells me London is an ill place at -night for a stranger." - -"Ay, and by day too, Master Harry," rejoined Sherebiah earnestly. "If I -med make so bold, I'd say, get 'ee to-morrow a good cane,--none of your -little small amber-tipt fancies as fine gentlemen swing in their dainty -fingers, but a stout length of oak or birch, fit to crack a pate." - -"I have a sword, Sherry, and can use it, thanks to you." - -"Ay, but 'tis not always easy to draw a sword in time in a street brawl, -and there be light-fingered gentry as can coax a sword from the scabbard -and the wearer none the wiser till it be too late. Be it your poor -feyther's sword you ha' brought, sir?" - -"Yes, the silver-hilted one; I showed it you once, Sherry." - -"Well, 'tis right for a gentleman to wear a sword, though I marvel, I -do, at a holy man o' peace like pa'son haven such a deadly piece o' -furniture." - -"Ay, and I've often wondered how a man of peace like yourself is able to -handle a sword so well. You made a swordsman of me, Sherry; how did you -become one yourself?" - -"Ah, sir, 'tis a many things a man o' peace has to know in the way o' -dressens. I believe in peace with a cudgel in your hand. Them as wants -peace be most like to get it an they be ready for war." - -"You remind me of what Master Butler says: - - 'There's but the twinkling of a star - Betwixt the man of peace and war'. - -But the hour is late, Sherry, and I must be up betimes in the morning, -for my visit to Lord Godolphin." - -"You bean't gwine to see the high lard to-morrer, sir? Better larn to -find your way about this tangle o' busy streets first. 'Tis as easy as -sucken eggs to lose your way." - -"I have made up my mind to go to-morrow. You see, I must lose no time. -I have only twenty guineas, as you know, and by to-morrow two of those -will be gone. And I sha'n't rest till I have tried my luck. -Good-night, Sherry! Wake me at seven." - -Left to himself, Sherebiah ordered a pint of small beer, and sat for an -hour longer, ruminating, with knit brows and compressed lips. More than -once he got up and walked round the deal table, stopping to take a pull -at the tankard, heaving a sigh, then going on again. He was disquieted. -The sudden discovery that the squire's animosity was pursuing Harry no -less perplexed than disturbed him. Harry and Mr. Berkeley had never met -at close quarters; there had been no intercourse between hall and -parsonage. A personal cause of offence was, as it seemed to Sherebiah, -out of the question; yet it was strange that the squire's hatred of the -father should extend to the son. At length, muttering "No one can tell -what's what with the likes o' old Squire," Sherebiah brought his big -fist down on to the table with a bang that made the pewter jump and -rattle, and fetched the drawer from his place in the bar. - -"What d'ye lack?" said the man. - -"Nothen, sonny, nothen. 'Tis a way o' mine to hit out when I be -a-thinken, a bold way for a man o' peace, true. Bacon at half arter -seven, drawer,--and we be country eaters, mind 'ee. Good-night!" - - - - - *CHAPTER VI* - - *My Lord Marlborough makes a Note* - - -London Streets--A Chair!--A Great Man's Portals--An Effort of -Memory--Patronage--Marlborough--A Step in the Peerage--A Memorandum--A -Friend in London--A Dinner at Locket's--Mr. Colley Cibber--Great -Expectations--A Thick Stick--Prevarication - - -Harry was awake long before Sherebiah tapped at his door next morning. -His projected visit to Lord Godolphin gave him some concern. He had no -tremors of shyness at the thought of meeting the Lord Treasurer; but, -ignorant as he was of London ways, he knew not how to time his visit, -and could hope for no counsel on that point from Sherebiah. He was too -much excited to do justice to the crisp rashers which were placed before -him at the breakfast-table, and felt little disposed to converse with -Jan Grootz the Dutchman opposite. Sherebiah had taken upon himself to -wait at table, but, as a privileged servitor, did not think it -unbecoming to throw in a word here and there. He gave Grootz his views -on the price of oats and the policy of King Louis of France with equal -assurance. - -"Know ye where de lord live?" asked the Dutchman suddenly. - -Harry had forgotten that he had mentioned his errand to his -fellow-passenger, and for the moment repented his confidence. Before he -could reply, Grootz went on: - -"He live over against the Queen's Wood Yard, by Thames-side, leading to -Scotland Yard. My vrient John Evelyn built de house. I have been -dere." - -"Oh!" exclaimed Harry. "Then can you tell me the best time to visit -him?" - -"Ja! De best time, it is ten o'clock, before he go to de palace. He -rise late; he has many visitors; I zee him myself in his dressing-gown -before his zervant have curled his wig, and I wait my turn two hours. -And when you zee him, you zall lose no time; he like man to speak out, -mark you." - -The Dutchman spoke very slowly, not interrupting his meal, and wagging -his fat finger as he concluded. - -"And how shall I go? Shall I walk?" - -"I' feck, no," said Sherebiah from behind. "The night have been rainy, -and the streets be mushed wi' mud; you'd be spattered from head to heel, -Master Harry. Nay; you med walk as far as the Exchange and buy 'ee a -pair o' gloves there for seemliness, and then get your shoes brushed by -one o' the blackguards at the corner. Then you can take a chair; 'tis a -shilling a mile, and easier goen nor the hackneys, for the chairmen walk -on the pavement, and you won't get jolted nor splashed so bad." - -"Ja, and I tell you dis," added the Dutchman. "Short poles, and short -men; zo, dey take not zo much room, and if dey upzet you, why, you do -not fall zo much." - -"Ay, and don't let 'em chouse 'ee out o' more than their due," said -Sherebiah. "I know they men. If they think a man be up from country, -they look at un and then at the shilling, up and down, and miscall un -wi' such brazen tongues that he'll pay anything to save his ears. A -shilling a mile, Master Harry, no more." - -"Zo! De counsel is good. But I give you a better: go not at all. -Lords! I tell you dis before: an honest merchant is worth two, dree, no -man zay how many lords; and de Book zay, 'Put not your drust in -princes'. Still, I wish you good luck, my young vrient, Jan Grootz; zo!" - -He squeezed Harry's hand in his own great fist, and then, having -demolished his mountain of food, filled his pipe and set forth for the -Custom House on Thames bank. Two hours later, Harry left the inn under -Sherebiah's guidance, and for the first time in his life trod the -streets of London. Filled though his mind was with the approaching -interview, which might mean so much to him, he was yet able to take an -interest in the strange scenes that opened before his inexperienced -eyes: the brilliant shops, each with its sign of painted copper, pewter, -or wood hanging from iron branches; the taverns and coffee-houses, -already crowded with people eager to hear and discuss the news, and -perhaps to get a peep at the morning's _Courant_; the court and -porticoes of the Royal Exchange, to which merchants were flocking; the -crowds of money-dealers in Change Alley, looking for clients. He went -up to the gallery on the first floor of the Exchange, and bought a pair -of gloves from a neat and pretty girl at one of the booths; then -strolled along, admiring the rich and dazzling display of silks and -jewellery which a few hours later would attract all the fine ladies in -town. - -Descending to the street again, he passed up Cheapside and through St. -Paul's Churchyard, down Ludgate Hill and through Ludgate, where he -beheld impaled on stakes a row of hideous heads of traitors, one of -which, Sherebiah told him with indignation, was that of Noll Crum'ell. -Then skirting the Fleet Ditch, once navigable, but now a noisome slimy -sewer, he came into Fleet Street, through Temple Bar to the Strand, and -at length arrived at Charing Cross, where he was nearly overturned by a -hasty chair-man, whose "By your leave!" was not yet familiar to his -ears. At Charing Cross stood a number of boys with boxes before them on -the pavement, and cries of "Clean your shoes!" "London fucus!" "Best -Spanish blacking!" came in eager competing tones. Sherebiah selected -one whose stand was in front of a barber's shop. - -"Here's the blackguard for 'ee, Master Harry," he said. "He'll shine -your shoes while barber shaves my stubble. A penny; no more." - -When the shoes were polished and the stubble mown, Sherebiah called up a -couple of chairmen who were sitting on their poles near by. - -"Do 'ee know my Lord Godolphin's noble house?" he asked. - -"Ay; servant, sir." - -"Well then, carry my young master to that very house, and see 'ee don't -jolt 'n, or drop 'n, or let 'n get splashed. 'Tis under a mile, Master -Harry," he whispered at parting. - -Harry would rather have walked. The men took what care they could, but -the press of people was so great that they had to dodge at every few -steps, and their fare gripped the seat to prevent himself from being -knocked against first one side, then the other, of the conveyance. At -the corner of Whitehall, as they turned into Scotland Yard, a passing -dray splashed up a shower of liquid mud, and Harry felt a moist dab upon -his nose. Fortunately the spot was soon removed with his handkerchief; -and when, after crossing by the Charcoal House and through the Wood -Yard, the chairmen at length set him down at the door of Godolphin's -house, he would have felt no anxiety about his personal appearance, if -he had been sufficiently self-conscious to think about it. He had put -on his best coat, silk stockings, and buckle shoes; at his side he wore -the sword about which he had spoken to Sherebiah. He sprang alertly up -the steps, and looked about him with a keen quick gaze that bespoke a -definite purpose. - -The great entrance-hall was thronged. Servants, officers, government -officials, men about town, stood in groups or moved here and there in -pursuit of their several objects of business or pleasure. No one -appeared to remark the presence of the new-comer, who walked quietly -through the throng towards the broad staircase. At the foot a -gorgeously-dressed flunkey was standing, to whom one or two gentlemen -had already applied for information. As Harry was about to address him, -his attention was attracted by a woolly-pated wide-grinning black boy, -who at that moment ran down the stairs. He carried a silver tray, on -which a cup and jug of fine porcelain jingled as he ran. - -"Done, Sambo?" asked the tall flunkey at the stair-foot. - -"Yussir!" replied the boy with a white grin. "My lord jolly dis mornin; -oh yes; drink him chocolate without one cuss. Gwine to begin work now; -oh yes." - -"Can I see the Lord Godolphin?" asked Harry, stepping up to the servant -as Sambo disappeared. - -The man gave Harry a stare, but answered respectfully: "My lord's levee -is over, sir. The nigger brings down the tray when the last visitor has -gone." - -"I have come specially to see my lord, and----" - -"Have you an appointment, sir?" - -"I think if you will take my name to my lord he will see me." - -Harry spoke quietly; he was determined not to be turned from his purpose -by mere formality or red tape. The man eyeing him saw nothing but -self-possession and confidence in his air. - -"My lord is now engaged with his correspondence," he said. "He does not -brook interruption." - -"My name is Harry Rochester; I will answer for it that you will do no -wrong in acquainting his lordship." - -After a moment's hesitation the man beckoned to a fellow-servant, and -gave him Harry's message. He went upstairs, and returning in a few -minutes said: - -"What is your business with my lord, sir? His lordship does not -remember your name." - -There was the suggestion of a sneer in the man's voice. With hardly a -perceptible pause Harry replied: - -"Tell his lordship I am from Winton St. Mary, at his invitation." - -A faint smile curled the lips of the two flunkeys. The second again -mounted the stairs. When he descended, his face wore its usual -expression of deference and respect. - -"Be so good as to wait upon his lordship," he said, and led the way. - -In a few minutes Harry found himself, hat in hand, making his bow to -Lord Godolphin in a large wainscoted apartment. Four large candles -burnt upon the mantel-piece, daylight being kept out by the heavy -curtains on either side of the narrow window. A huge log fire filled -the chimney-place; beyond it stood a broad table littered with papers, -which at that moment a young man was sorting by the light of a shaded -candle. Lord Godolphin was in dressing-gown and slippers. - -"Well, sir?" he said. - -"My name is Rochester, my lord." - -"I am aware of that. I do not recall it. Well?" - -My lord's tone was cold and uninviting. - -"Your lordship will permit me to mention a little incident on the Roman -road by Sir Godfrey Fanshawe's park, when----" - -"Stay, I remember now. You are the lad they called the young parson, -eh? I have a poor head for names. When my man spoke of Winton St. Mary -I supposed you might be a messenger from the gentleman who entertained -us there." - -Now that Harry was actually face to face with the Lord Treasurer, he -felt some diffidence in opening the subject of his visit. My lord, in -spite of his deshabille, seemed far less approachable than he had been -on the old Roman road. Then he was the country sportsman; now he was -the chief minister of the Queen. - -"Your shouting friend with the scriptural name--how is he?" he asked in -a somewhat more cordial tone. - -"He is well, my lord; he is with me in London." - -"And your father: has he won his case against the squire? I heard -something of him at Sir Godfrey Fanshawe's, I think." - -"My father is dead, my lord." - -"Indeed! Pray accept my condolences. And now, tell me what brings you -here." - -"Your lordship may remember, after the scene with the highwaymen----" - -"Yes, yes; you did me a service, you and your man; what then?" - -"It was but a slight service, my lord; I do not presume on it; but you -were so good as to say that if, at some future time, I should find -myself in need of assistance, I was to come to your lordship." - -"Why, I did speak of a country parsonage, I believe. But you,"--he -smiled--"why, I really may not venture to set you up in a cure of souls. -You have to take your degrees yet." - -"That is impossible, my lord. My father impoverished himself in his -feuds with Mr. Berkeley; when his affairs were settled I found myself -possessed of but a poor twenty guineas. I have given up all thought of -going to Oxford; I must seek a livelihood." - -"H'm!" - -Lord Godolphin looked him up and down, as though estimating his chances -of making his way in the world. - -"You wear a sword," he said. "Rochester--you are no connection of the -earl's?--no, of course not, he is a Wilmot. Where do you spring from?" - -"My grandfather was a soldier, my lord; I have heard that he died young, -but my father seldom spoke of these matters; we have no relatives." - -"H'm! I bethink me now, you yourself have an itch for martial life. -All boys have, I suppose. Young Lord Churchill was cut to the heart a -few months ago because my lady Marlborough would not permit him to -follow his father to Flanders. Well, to be frank with you, I see no way -of helping you. With twenty guineas you can no more buy a commission -than you can enter yourself at a college. To enlist as a common soldier -would be a last resource to one of your breeding. There are too many -young scions of good stocks for the lesser places at court to go round -among them. Yet I would fain do something for you." - -He began to saunter up and down the room, his hands clasped behind him, -stopping for a moment to listen as the sound of cheers came from the -street. Suddenly the door was opened, and the voice of the servant was -heard announcing a visitor. - -"My lord Marlborough." - -Harry looked with eager curiosity as the great soldier entered the room. -He saw a tall, singularly handsome man, with short curved upper lip, -firm chin, long almond-shaped eyes, and a calm benignity of expression. -John Churchill, Earl of Marlborough, was at this time fifty-two years of -age. As captain-general of the English forces, in the summer of this -year, 1702, he had opened in concert with the Dutch a campaign in -Flanders against Louis the Fourteenth of France,--a new campaign in the -great war of the Spanish Succession which the policy of William the -Third had bequeathed to his sister-in-law. Venloo and other towns had -been captured by the confederate armies, Liege had been reduced, and the -forces having gone into winter quarters, Marlborough had returned to -England to support the Occasional Conformity Bill. He was a close -personal friend of Godolphin, and allied to him by the marriage of -Francis Godolphin to his daughter Henrietta. - -"Welcome, my dear lord!" said Godolphin, starting forward to meet the -earl. "I did not know you had arrived." - -"I am but just come from waiting on the Queen," said Marlborough. "I -arrived late last night." - -"You are welcome indeed. All men's mouths are full of your praises." - -"Ay," returned Marlborough with a smile; "your Londoners have lusty -throats. And I have a piece of news for you." He dropped his voice: -the secretary had vanished through a further door: Harry stood in a -quandary, the noblemen both seeming to ignore his presence. "The Queen -has been pleased to express her wish to make me a duke." - -Godolphin laid his hand on his friend's arm, and said cordially: "I -congratulate you, Jack, with all my heart. Why, this very morning I have -a letter from Churchill at Cambridge; there are shrewd wits there; he -says 'tis whispered you are to be raised in the peerage, and the boy, -young dog, begs me to tell him what his own title will be then." - -"Ah! 'tis over soon to talk of it. I must acquaint my lady first, and -methinks she will object." - -"Stap me, Jack! 'tis few women would hesitate to exchange countess for -duchess.--God bless me, I'd forgotten the boy! My lord, this is the -hero of the little adventure at Winton St. Mary I writ you of. 'Twas he -that inspired the stout fellow to shout, and scared the highwaymen out -of their five wits." - -[Illustration: My Lord Marlborough] - -Marlborough looked towards Harry, who flushed and bowed. An idea seemed -to strike Godolphin. Linking his arm with the earl's, he led him slowly -to the other end of the room, and stood there talking earnestly to him -in tones too low for Harry to catch a word. Once or twice both glanced -at the tall youthful figure standing in some natural embarrassment near -the door. Once Marlborough shook his head and frowned, upon which -Godolphin took him by a button of his laced coat and spoke more -earnestly than before. At length Marlborough smiled, laid a hand on -Godolphin's shoulder, and spoke a few words in his ear. Then he turned -about, and coming slowly towards Harry, said, in his clear bell-like -tones: - -"My lord Godolphin tells me you have lost your father and are all but -penniless. 'Tis an unfortunate situation for a lad of your years. You -would serve the Queen?" - -"Ay, my lord." - -"You have a quick wit, my lord says. I may make some use of you. Write -your name on a piece of paper, and the name of your lodging." - -Godolphin motioned him to the table, where he found paper and a pencil. -He wrote his name and the name of his inn, and handed the paper to -Marlborough, who said, as he folded it and placed it in his pocket: - -"I will send for you, Master Rochester, if I can serve you." - -"My lord, I am much beholden to you--" began Harry. - -Marlborough interrupted him. - -"'Tis my lord Godolphin you should thank for his good word." - -"'Faith, my lord," said Godolphin, "'tis due to Master Rochester that -the Queen is served by her present Lord Treasurer. I am glad, my lad, -that my friend Lord Marlborough chanced to come upon us here, and I hope -you will have reason to be glad also. Now, you will excuse us; we have -matters of state to speak of; I wish you well." - -Harry murmured his thanks and bowed himself out. His nerves were -a-tingle with his unexpected good fortune. To have seen and spoken with -the greatest man in the kingdom was itself an unforeseen privilege; and -the prospect of assistance from such a powerful and august personage -filled him with elation. The earl had shown no great cordiality, it was -true; but Harry was inclined to draw good augury from the few words he -had uttered. They were probably more sincere than a warm volubility -would have been. He left the house with a sparkling eye and a springy -gait, and looked eagerly around to see if Sherebiah were near at hand to -hear his news. But Sherebiah was nowhere to be seen. Having no -particular business, now that his great errand was accomplished, Harry -walked through Whitehall into St. James's Park, in the hope that he -might catch a glimpse of Queen Anne herself. The guard had just been -changed at St. James's Palace, and a stream of people met him as he -strolled along the Mall. He was interested in watching them--the fine -ladies with their hoops and patches, the beaux with their many-coloured -coats, canes dangling at their buttons, toothpicks between their teeth, -and snuff-boxes in frequent use. So absorbed was he that he was -startled when all at once a hand struck him a hearty blow on the -shoulder, and a voice exclaimed: - -"Hey, Harry, what make you, ogling the ladies?" - -He turned and saw his friend Godfrey Fanshawe, the captain of the -cricket team to whose victory he had so much contributed. The two young -fellows shook hands heartily. - -"What brings you to London?" continued Fanshawe. - -"I've come in search of fortune, like Dick Whittington. You heard of my -father's death?" - -"Ay, but nothing since. They seldom write letters at home." - -Harry then explained the course of events which had brought him to -London, concluding with his recent interview with Marlborough and -Godolphin. - -"Egad, man!" exclaimed Fanshawe, "you're in luck's way indeed. Would -that I stood so well with the two greatest men in England. My lord -Marlborough will gazette you an ensign of foot or a cornet of horse; and -my cornetcy, I may tell you, cost my father a pretty penny. What luck, -Harry, if we make the next campaign together! The earl will surely go -back to Flanders when the winter is over." - -"I should like nothing better." - -"Where are you staying?" - -"At the Angel and Crown, in Threadneedle Street." - -"You must leave that and come westward. Are you alone?" - -"Sherry Minshull is with me at present; but he'll get work for himself -as soon as I am settled." - -"Sherry's a handy fellow; egad, I know no better! He'll tie a fly with -any man, and is as good with sword or quarterstaff as he is with his -fists. Well now, 'tis drawing towards dinner-time; come and dine with -me; the people of fashion here dine at four, but I stick to country -habits. We'll go to Locket's at Charing Cross; you're my guest to-day. -And we'll go to the play this evening; the first time, I warrant you, -you've seen a play. Come! I stand well with the people at Locket's, and -the sharp air this morning has given me an appetite." - -It was but five minutes' walk to Locket's tavern. Entering, Fanshawe -bowed with elaborate courtesy to the fair dame in charge, and called for -the card. - -"There's boiled beef and carrots, I see, and a goose, and look, a calf's -head. I adore calf's head. What say you? Yes? Boy, bring calf's head -for two, and quickly." - -With calf's head and cabbage and a wedge of Cheshire cheese, the two -young fellows appeased their unjaded appetites. Fanshawe sat for some -time finishing his bottle of wine, Harry contenting himself with small -beer. Then, as there still remained a few hours to while away before -theatre time, Fanshawe proposed a row on the river. Harry eagerly -assented; they sallied forth, took boat at Westminster stairs and rowed -up to Chelsea, returning to Westminster in time for the performance of -Mr. Colley Cibber's new play, "She would and she would not", by Her -Majesty's Servants at Drury Lane. Harry was delighted with his first -visit to the theatre. He was tickled at the unabashed impertinence of -Trappanti the discarded servant, played by Mr. Penkethman, one of the -best comedians in London, as Fanshawe informed him; and fell in love -with Hypolita the heroine, a part which suited Mrs. Mountford to -perfection. But he was perhaps most interested in Mr. Colley Cibber -himself, who played the part of Don Manuel the irascible father. His -pleasure was complete when, after the performance, Fanshawe took him to -the Bull's Head tavern, and showed him Mr. Cibber with his paint washed -off, surrounded by a circle of actors, soldiers, lords, and even -clergymen. He had never seen an author before. Mr. Cibber had no -presence to boast of, with his thick legs, lean face, and sandy hair; -but the liveliness of his conversation gave him a sort of pre-eminence -among his coterie, and made a considerable impression on a youth ready -to admire and wonder at anything. - -Fanshawe appeared quite at home among the company. He was indeed a -frequent visitor at the Bull's Head after the play, where all were -welcome on condition of providing their quota towards the general -hilarity. Fanshawe was the lucky possessor of a fine baritone voice, -and his spirited singing of west-country songs had won him instant -popularity. On this night, in response to the usual call, he began-- - - "Tom Pearce, Tom Pearce, lend me thy grey mare, - All along, down along, out along lee; - For I want for to go to Widdicombe Fair, - Wi' Bill Brewer, Jan Stewer, Peter Gurney, Peter Davy, - Dan Whiddon, Harry Hawk, - Old uncle Tom Cobleigh, and all"; - -and by the time he reached the end of the third of the eight stanzas, -the whole company were ready to join him in trolling the chorus, - - "Old uncle Tom Cobleigh and all". - - -It was late when Harry reached the Angel and Crown. Sherebiah was -marching up and down before the tavern, blowing great clouds from his -pipe. - -"Hey now, Master Harry," he said, with an expression of mingled wrath -and relief; "'tis a mighty scurvy trick you have played me, i' feck 'tis -so. Here we are, your second day in London, and you must go off along -by your lone self on who knows what errand o' foolery. Ay, 'tis strong -words for me, and a man o' peace and all, but not too strong, seee'n as -I knows the wicked ways o' the town and you be unfledged. Zooks, sir, -I've been in a terrible way, thinken all manner of awsome an' gashly -things, as how you med ha' been trepanned, or slit by the Scourers, or -trampled by some high lard's horses, or rifled and beat by footpads, or -'ticed into a dicing den by sweetners always on the look-out for a -country gudgeon, or----" - -"Hold, Sherry, you forget yourself," said Harry, who was, however, not -displeased to find the honest fellow so solicitous about him. "In -truth, I forgot all about you. I can take care of myself, I think. I -dined with Mr. Godfrey Fanshawe, whom I chanced to meet, and we went to -the play afterwards, and I never laughed so much in my life. Mrs. -Mountford's a beauty, Sherry, and Mr. Cibber--when he doesn't -squeak--has the pleasantest voice ever I heard--nay, not that, after -all; 'tis not so pleasant as my lord Marlborough's. What d'ye think, -Sherry? I met the earl himself at Lord Godolphin's, and he has my name -on a scrap of paper, and to-morrow or next day I shall hold the queen's -commission, and then off with the troops to Flanders, and I shall make -my fortune, man, and then----" - -"Huh!" put in a voice from the doorway. "Haastige spoed is zelden -goed." - -Harry's excitement was dashed by the slow drawl of Mynheer Grootz, whose -little eyes were twinkling as he puffed at his big pipe. - -"Ay, a true word," said Sherebiah. "'More haste, less speed,' as the -Dutch words mean put into rightful language. 'Counten chickens afore -they be hatched,' as ye med say." - -Though he was a little nettled, Harry had too much good sense not to see -that his elation had carried him too far. He could laugh at himself--an -excellent virtue in man or boy. - -"I am an ass, Mr. Grootz," he said; "but really I did not expect such -good luck. My lord Godolphin was very kind, and so was the earl, and as -he used but few words I do think he meant what he said. I am sorry my -absence made you uneasy, Sherry; but I don't understand why you should -imagine all manner of harm." - -"An ye knew----" began Sherebiah; but he paused, hemmed, and changed his -sentence. "All's well as ends well, Master Harry; I axe your pardon for -my free words; and here be a fine stout piece of ash I bought in Fleet -Street for your hand. Feel un; 'twill crack a pate as quick as speaken, -and I'll be more easy in mind knowen you have such a good staff in -company." - -"Thanks, Sherry!" said Harry with a laugh, weighing in his hand the -stick with which the man presented him. "But I'm a man of peace, you -know, eh?--at present. Now let's to bed." - -As they went from the room Harry remarked, "By the way, Sherry, how is -it that you know Dutch?" - -"Me know Dutch? Why, sir, what makes ye think I know that outlandish -tongue?" - -"Why, didn't you tell me just now the meaning of what Mynheer Grootz -said to me?" - -"Ay, so I did, now. It must ha' been as a dog knows his master's -speech, or just as I knowed the meanen o' the holy things your good -feyther was used to speak in the high pulpit, for egad, word by word I -knowed no more than the dead what a' said, not I." - -The explanation struck Harry as rather lame, but he merely said, with a -laugh: - -"Well, you'll make a very faithful watch-dog, Sherry. Good-night! I -shall sleep well;--if I don't dream too much of battle and glory." - - - - - *CHAPTER VII* - - *Snared* - - -Hope Deferred--Motes in the Sunbeam--Mynheer makes an Offer--Sherebiah -on Guard--New Quarters--Tumblers--Solvitur Ambulando--Doubling--Sick at -Heart--Too Late--A Debit Balance--Gloom--Cold Streets--Three -Sailors--Muffled - - -Several days passed--days of unfailing happiness for Harry. Though he -spent hours in roaming the town, there was always something fresh to -see, something novel to capture his interest. He saw the state entrance -of the new Venetian ambassador. He visited the Tower, the Abbey, and -St. Paul's, saw Winstanley's water-works in Piccadilly near Hyde Park, -and witnessed a football match at Covent Garden. He accompanied -Fanshawe several times to the theatre, and somewhat offended that -sparkish young gentleman by constantly refusing to join him in -card-parties and night escapades in the streets. He saw a back-sword -match at the Bear Garden in Hockley in the Hole, and a billiard match at -the Greyhound Coffee-house near Monmouth Street. Apart from these public -sights, he found endless diversion in the ordinary street scenes: the -markets, the itinerant vendors, the acrobats, or posture-masters as they -were then called, who performed their dancing and tumbling in squares -remote from the traffic. It amused Harry that Sherebiah never tired of -these mountebank tricks, but would stand and watch them with unflagging -interest by the hour, applauding every neatly executed feat, and -criticising with unsparing severity every instance of clumsiness or -bungling. Soldiers, on the other hand, apparently did not interest -Sherebiah. Harry liked to watch them drilling on the Horse Guards' -parade or in Hyde Park; but on these occasions Sherebiah always strolled -away, waiting with impatience until his young master had satisfied his -curiosity. - -"They won't kill you, Sherry," said Harry once, laughing as the man -sheered off. "Their muskets are not loaded." - -"True. But 'tis no pleasure to me to see such men o' war. Feyther o' -mine were a trooper; he be always talken on it; I be a man o' peace, I -be." - -Every day when he came down to breakfast, and when he returned in the -evening, Harry eagerly looked for a message from Lord Marlborough. But -the days passed; a week flew by; and still no message came. After the -second day he made no reference to the matter; Sherebiah and Grootz -considerately forbore to allude to it. But they watched him with shrewd -eyes, and saw, through all the curiosity and pleasure he took in his new -life, a growing sense of disappointment and anxiety. He had built high -hopes upon the interview at Godolphin's; as boys will, he had allowed -his fancy to outstrip his judgment, and had added a good deal of -embroidery to the simple facts. Already in imagination he saw himself -carrying the Queen's colours, performing heroic deeds in the field, -winning golden opinions from the general, coming home laden with honour -and substantial rewards, perhaps to gain, as the acme of bliss, an -approving smile from the Queen herself. And he would wake from these -day-dreams to the sober reality---that the desired message from -Marlborough had not come, and meanwhile time was fleeting by, and every -day saw his little stock of money diminished. - -He had resisted Fanshawe's recommendation to change his lodging. -Charges were higher, Sherebiah informed him, in the more fashionable -parts, and he knew that he could not afford to run risks. At first he -had not been parsimonious; he was not extravagant by nature, but he had -not hesitated to buy a trifle that pleased him, to give largesse to the -ballad-singers and street musicians, to pay his eighteenpence for a seat -in the pit at Drury Lane or Lincoln's Inn Fields. But he gave all this -up, and thought twice about spending a penny. He bought only the -strictest necessaries, and for his amusement depended on the sights of -the streets, the parks, and the river, and such entertainment as could -be had at the coffee-houses, where for a penny he could obtain a dish of -coffee, read the _Daily Courant_ with its manuscript supplement, or -Dawks's _News Letter_, and hear all the news of the day discussed with -more heat than information by arm-chair politicians. - -One day the _Courant_ announced that the Queen had been pleased to -confer the dignity of a dukedom upon the Earl of Marlborough, and that -the House of Commons would be asked to grant him an annual pension to -match his new rank. Harry remembered what he had heard pass between -Marlborough and Godolphin, and when the coffee-house gossips -supplemented the official intimation with the rumour that the Countess -Sarah had been violently opposed to her husband's elevation in the -peerage, he understood the meaning of the peculiar tone in which -Marlborough had spoken of acquainting her ladyship. The new duchess was -the theme of much conversation and many jests in these free-spoken -assemblies. Marlborough was a very great general; everybody was agreed -on that; but it was doubted whether he was master in his own house; some -said he was henpecked; one plain blunt fellow declared in Harry's -hearing that the duke was as much afraid of his missis as any Thames -bargee. Harry was not interested in Marlborough's domestic affairs, but -his heart sank when he reflected on his own insignificance beside the -great man whom the Queen was delighting to honour. After all, how could -he expect a man of such eminence, immersed in state affairs, with all -the responsibility for conducting a great campaign, to remember a -country youth whom he had seen once, and who had made, perhaps, as deep -an impression on him as a fly might make on a lion. - -That night Harry was eating his supper, somewhat moodily, when Mynheer -Grootz, sitting opposite, made him a sudden proposition. - -"I tell you dis," he said. "I go back to my country zoon. I have -business wid de armies; I sell hay for de horses, meal for de men. You -are quick, I see dat; you speak French, enough for my purpose; I give -you good wages if you come and help me in my business." - -Harry flushed. The Dutchman dipped a hunk of bread into his soup and -filled his mouth with it, looking down at the bare deal board the while. - -"I thank you, Mynheer," said Harry with some constraint. "I have -another purpose, as you know." - -Up came the fat forefinger, moist with gravy. - -"I speak plain to you. You have pride; I alzo. But I have mills, and -ships, and vields; dey are mine; I am rich--ja, rich; I, Jan Grootz. My -fader, he was a poor weaver in Dort; he work hard and die poor; I work -hard, and grow rich. I have what for to be proud. You are a gentleman; -dat is zo; it is good to be a gentleman; it is not good to be poor. And -more, it is not good to zee money go every day, every day, and wait for -some prince to fill de empty purse. You have pride; for what? For -white hands, and by and by an empty stomach. My hands, dey are not -white, naturlik; but my stomach is full, and I stand up before any -prince; Jan Grootz; zo!" - -He spread his broad hands before Harry, as though he were proud even of -their horny skin. The action brought a smile to the lad's gloomy face -and dulled the edge of his irritation. - -"I won't debate the matter with you," he said. "I'm not afraid of work, -I hope, and maybe my white hands may be red enough before long. I won't -despair of my lord Marlborough yet; and I know your intention is -friendly, Mynheer." - -The Dutchman grunted, and applied himself again to his meal. - -Great as were Harry's anxieties, Sherebiah's were perhaps even greater. -He also was disappointed by the forgetfulness or neglect of Marlborough, -and concerned at the constant drain upon his young master's purse; but -he had further causes of trouble of which Harry was unaware. Ever since -their arrival in London Sherebiah had been possessed by a dread of -impending ill. He had always in mind the interview between Captain -Aglionby and the squire's man at the White Hart tavern, and day by day -expected it to bear fruit to Harry's harm; but for reasons of his own he -hesitated to tell him the plain truth. He stuck like a leech to Harry -when he went walking, and many times when the lad would rather have been -alone with his dismal thoughts he found Sherebiah at his heel, like the -watch-dog to which he had compared him. He did not know that even when -he succeeded in eluding his too solicitous henchman, it was only in -appearance; for Sherebiah, armed with a stout ash cudgel, was seldom -many yards behind. Many a night after Harry had gone disconsolate to -his bed, the man wended his way to Southwark in the hope of making a -further discovery; but he never saw the captain or anyone whom he knew -to be connected with him, and when at last he found an opportunity of -making a discreet enquiry at the hostelry, he was more alarmed than -pleased to find that Captain Aglionby had departed some time before, and -that nothing had since been heard of him. - -One morning, when they had been for about a month in London, when -Parliament had been prorogued, and a new year had opened, Sherebiah -surprised Harry by suggesting that they should remove to an inn near -Leicester fields. - -"Why, you were against it when Mr. Fanshawe proposed it. How is it that -you have changed your mind, Sherry?" - -"Well, sir, 'tis this way, if I med be so bold. Your money be gwine -fast, and 'twould never do to begin a more humble way o' liven here. -Nay, what I say is, if you must pare and scrape, go where you bean't so -well known, and then nobody'll think the worse on 'ee for't." - -"Hang me, who talked of paring and scraping, Sherry?" cried Harry -impatiently. - -"I axe your pardon, sir," said Sherebiah earnestly, "but I were not born -yesterday. Here are we, four weeks in Lun'on, and you know yourself how -many golden guineas you brought wi' 'ee, and how many be left. Sure I -bean't a great eater myself, but even my little small morsel ha' got to -be paid for. Master Harry, 'twill be best for 'ee to do as I say. Ay, -an' if I knowed 'ee wouldn't up and rate me, I'd say another thing, I -would so." - -"Well--what's that?" - -"Why, I'd say, hand over your purse to me. Nay, sir, don't be angry; -ye're not wasteful, no; but if we go to another house, I can save 'ee -many a penny here and penny there in ways you wouldn't so much as dream -on. I know Lun'on folk, you see; ay, I know 'em well." - -In the upshot, Sherebiah had his way on both points. The reason for his -change of front was that on the previous afternoon he had seen the -squire's man Jock hanging about the inn, and had found out subsequently -that Captain Aglionby had returned to his old quarters at the White -Hart. It was just as well, he thought, to take one step further from -danger by changing their lodging. When this was done, and Sherebiah -kept the purse, Harry was amazed to find how much further his money -went. It would not have surprised him if the weekly bill had been -reduced by a small amount; but when he discovered that, though he fared -quite as well, the expenses were not half what they had been, he began -to think that Sherebiah possessed some talisman against the cupidity of -London innkeepers. He found, too, that he was left much more to -himself, and wondered why, with the change of lodging, Sherebiah's -watchfulness appeared to have diminished. - -He was walking with Godfrey Fanshawe one cold January afternoon by Pye -Corner, when he was attracted by a crowd of people gazing at a street -show that, to judge by their laughter and applause, was exceedingly -entertaining. Elbowing their way through the stragglers on the -outskirts, the two young fellows arrived at a position whence they could -see what was going on. A group of posture-masters were performing, and -at the moment of Harry's arrival, a short thickset man, dressed in -fantastic costume, and with painted face, was dancing on his knees with -his toes in his hands, keeping time to the music of a flute and a -violin. The tune was a merry one, and the movements of the acrobat -irresistibly funny, so that every member of the crowd roared with -laughter. - -"Adzooks!" exclaimed Fanshawe, "the fellow's face is the funniest part -of the performance. Look'ee, Harry, 'tis as sober as a judge's on -assize; one would think 'twere a hanging matter." - -Harry had been so tickled by this odd mode of dancing that he had not -noticed the performer's features. He glanced at them now, started with -a sudden gasp, and cried: - -"By the Lord Harry, 'tis----" - -"'Tis what?" said Fanshawe, looking at him in surprise. - -"Oh, nothing!" - -"Come, I scent a mystery. Unravel, sir!" - -"'Tis nothing. See, Fanshawe, the dance is over. Let us go on." - -Without waiting for his companion, he pushed his way back through the -crowd. - -"Faith, I don't understand you of late, Rochester," said Fanshawe in a -half-vexed tone, when he overtook him. "You're moody, full of whimsies, -all starts and surprises. Would to Heaven that the duke would bethink -him of that paper you gave him! You need settling in life. Why don't -you go to him, or to Lord Godolphin again? 'Tis few suitors but would -show more perseverance." - -"Not I. 'Twas against the grain to beg even one favour. I'd rather -earn my bread by scraping a fiddle, or dancing on my knees like--like -the poor fellow there." - -"Well, let me tell you, you'll rue your independence. Adsbud, who would -get on in this world if he didn't pay court to the great! Your -starveling poet writes a flattering dedication to a lord--for pay! Your -snivelling parson toadies to the lord of the manor--for a meal! I -except your father, Harry; he was a rare one. 'Tis the way o' the -world; we must all do it, or pay the penalty." - -"Be the penalty what it will, I'll pay it rather than play lick-spittle -to any man." - -Fanshawe shrugged. "By the way," he said, "Mr. Berkeley is in town--to -pay his court to someone, I swear. 'Tis said he is buying a commission -for that cub his son; pray Heaven it be not in my regiment! That's the -way o' the world again. Here's Piers Berkeley, the young popinjay, all -grins and frippery, like to carry the Queen's colours in a fine regiment -because his father has a long purse, and you, a deal more fit for it, -kicking your heels for want of a rich father or a richer patron. I fear -'tis all up with your chances now; but I wish you luck. I go to -Flanders in a week; home to-morrow to say good-bye; who knows when we -may meet again!" - -The two friends bade each other a cordial farewell; then Harry returned -sadly to his lodging. Some two hours later Sherebiah came back. - -"What do 'ee think, Master Harry?" he said. "I ha' seed old Squire." - -"I knew he was in town," replied Harry. "And what do you think I've -seen, Sherry?" - -Detecting a something strange in his tone, Sherebiah gave him a hard -look. - -"I never was no good at guessen," he said. "Mebbe the German giant at -Hercules' Pillars, or the liven fairy in Bridges Street." - -"No, 'twas no giant and no fairy, but a short man--about your height, -Sherry--with a round face--just as round as yours--and a solemn -look--like yours at whiles; and what think you he was doing? He was -dancing on his knees, with a crowd of numskulls round him grinning at -his capers, and----" - -"There now, 'twas sure to be found out, I knowed it. 'Twas me--I don't -deny it, 'cos bean't no good." - -"Now I know why you wanted to keep the purse, you old dissembler. You -eke out my little store with the pence your antics fetch. Sherry, I -love thee; I do indeed. But how did you learn those fantastic tricks -with your knees?" - -"Oh, I ha' done a bit o' tumblen in my time; ay sure." - -"You seem to have done a bit of everything. But when? and why? You -must tell me all about it." - -"Some day mebbe. Ha' led a motley life for a man o' peace; so 'tis. -'Twould make old feyther o' mine drop all his old bones in a heap if so -be as he knowed all my lines o' life. The time'll come to tell 'ee, -sir, but 'tis not yet, no." - -That was the end of Sherebiah's acrobatic performances. From that day he -stuck to Harry more closely than ever; and the weekly bills increased. -They had been in town now for nearly two months, and by dint of the -greatest economy Sherebiah thought that the money might last for a -fortnight longer. Then the wolf would be at the door. Harry had not -told his man of Jan Grootz's offer, though he surmised, from a word -Sherebiah let fall, that he knew of it. Hoping against hope, he waited -and longed for some sign from the duke. Every day Sherebiah went to the -Angel and Crown to see if a letter had come, and every day he came back -disappointed. He had not given the host his new address, for reasons of -his own; and when on one of his visits he learnt that a man had enquired -for the present whereabouts of Mr. Harry Rochester, he hugged himself on -his prudence. He would not have been so well pleased if he had known -that on the very next day, when he returned from the Angel and Crown by -a roundabout way to his inn in Leicester Fields, he was shadowed by a -man who had waited for several hours for the opportunity. And he would -undoubtedly have counselled a second change of abode if he had known -that the spy, after assuring himself that Harry Rochester was a guest of -the inn, had gone hotfoot to Captain Aglionby. - -Another week went by. On Saturday night Sherebiah counted up the -contents of his purse, and found that by the end of the next week he -would have spent the uttermost farthing. - -"I give it back to 'ee, sir," he said. "Come Monday morn, I go to find -work." - -"Not so fast, Sherry. We share alike; when you go to find work, I go -too. The duke may send for me even at the eleventh hour." - -"A plague on the duke! I wish I may never hear of dukes again to th' -end o' my mortal days. A duke's a bubble, and that's the truth on't. -Better be an honest man, as Mynheer Grootz says." - -"'Tis mere forgetfulness, I am sure, Sherry. He has mislaid the paper, -I suspect, and his mind being filled with weightier matters, has -forgotten that even so insignificant a person as myself exists." - -"'Tis my belief he never did a kindness to man, woman, or child in all -his born days. Why, all the chairmen and hackney coachmen know un; ay, -and madam his duchess too. My lady will haggle with an oyster-wench -over a ha'penny, and the only thing my lord gives away for nowt is his -smile. Hang dukes and duchesses, say I!" - -"Well, Sherry, I can't gainsay you, because I don't know. We'll give -him three days' grace, and then----" - -He sighed. The world looked black to him. He knew no trade, had -practised no art, had no means to enter a profession. He turned over in -his mind the possible openings. He could not apprentice himself to a -merchant or handicraftsman, for that needed money. He might perhaps get -a clerkship in a goldsmith's or a warehouse; Sir Godfrey Fanshawe, no -doubt, would vouch for his respectability! He almost envied the footmen -of gentlemen of quality, who wore a livery, earned six pounds a year, -and a crown a week extra for gloves and powder. He writhed on his -sleepless bed that night as he contrasted his present circumstances with -his former prospects and his recent imaginings. A clergyman,--an -officer of the Queen's, forsooth! he was a pauper, a beggar, with -nothing but his health and his wits. Then he rated himself for his -despondency. "Fancy snivelling," he said to himself, "because a duke -hasn't the grace or the time to remember a promise! What would my -father think of me? Here have I wasted precious time waiting on a duke's -pleasure when I might have been turning the weeks to some profit. And I -was too proud to accept the Dutchman's friendly offer. Egad, I'll go to -him on Monday and beg him to give me employment; sink my pride for good -and all." - -So possessed was he by his determination that Sunday passed all too -slowly. On Monday morning he walked early to the Angel and Crown and -asked for Mynheer Grootz. The landlord replied that Mynheer Grootz had -left the inn on Friday, removing all his baggage. He was about to sail -for Holland, and, as the wind favoured, it was probable that his ship -had already left the Thames. This news was a terrible damper. Harry -had built confidently on the anticipated interview. Mingled with his -gratitude for the coming favour, he even felt a pleasant glow at his -condescension in accepting service so much beneath him. And now this new -house of cards was toppled down! He turned gloomily away, and wandered -aimlessly through the streets, disposed, under the first sting of the -disappointment, to believe that fate had indeed a spite against him. He -was glad he had said nothing to Sherebiah of his intention, being in no -mood to endure condolences, in word or look. "What a useless loon I -am!" he said to himself bitterly. "Sherry can earn his living by -tumbling in the streets, and maybe in dozens of other ways; I can do -nothing. Even Piers Berkeley has a commission in the army--that puppy!" - -But Harry was never long in the dumps. He was only a boy, and the -misfortunes that had befallen him so suddenly were sufficient excuse for -his passing fits of moodiness; but his was naturally a sanguine temper, -and by the time he reached the inn his brow had cleared and he was able -to eat his dinner with good appetite. - -"The last but one, Sherry," he said with a smile. "After to-morrow the -purse will be all but dry, and then I shall have to earn my bread. What -do you say? Will you teach me to stand on my head, to begin with?" - -"Zooks, sir, dont'ee put it so terrible low. Look'ee, now, I ha' some -score o' guineas behind my belt; ye're welcome to the loan on 'em till -your ship do come home." - -"You're a good fellow, Sherry, but I couldn't think of it. Do you want -to make me still more ashamed of myself?" - -"Well then, sir, why not go to my lord Marlborough's noble house and -walk up and down outside till the duke comes out, and stand full in his -path and catch his eye--or mebbe his missis'; her med be taken wi' 'ee -and command her good man to remember 'ee, for by all accounts she----" - -"Hold your tongue, sirrah!" cried Harry with a touch of anger. "Hang -about a great man's door, like Lazarus waiting for the offal! No -indeed. Nay. To-morrow we shall be adrift; pray God a fair breeze will -carry us into port. Sherry, you had better go and tell the landlord we -shall leave him to-morrow. Ask for the reckoning; we will pay the score -and begin the morning at least free men." - -In half an hour Sherebiah returned with the bill. Harry pulled a long -face as he glanced at it. He untied the purse-strings and laid his -money out on the table. - -"'Tis worse than I thought," he said ruefully. "In some unconscionable -fashion the bill mounts higher this week; I am ten shillings short -without vails to the servants." - -"Ah, I know Lun'on folk, I do. But don't let that trouble 'ee, sir; ten -shillens won't make a great hole in my store." - -"But I won't have your money. Nay, Sherry, call it a whim of mine; 'tis -our last day; the charges are mine; to-morrow we must start afresh. I -have some trinkets in my box; their worth I know not; but you can take -one or two to a goldsmith's and place them with him until the luck -turns. You will do that better than I." - -He left the room and came back with a miniature set in gold and a brooch -of antique make. Sherebiah looked at them with a deliberative air. - -"Baubles like these sell for next to nowt," he said. "'Tis not all gold -that glitters. But I'll take 'em, sir, and cheapen 'em as best I may. -Be I to pledge 'em in my name or yours?" - -"It doesn't matter--whichever you like. I'll sit by the fire and read -while you are gone." - -"Ay, 'tis a raw and nippen afternoon, and there be true comfort in a log -fire." - -He flung his cloak over his shoulders and was gone. Harry went to his -room and brought down a volume of his father's containing Mr. John -Milton's poem of "Samson Agonistes". In the dark afternoon he read for -some time by the light of the fire, finding a certain melancholy -pleasure in fitting Samson's woeful laments to his own case. - - "So much I feel my genial spirits droop, - My hopes all flat", - -he murmured, and then closed the book over his finger and gazed into the -ruddy cavern of the fire till his eyes ached. Sherebiah seemed a long -time gone; a feeling of restlessness stole upon Harry. He let the book -fall from his hand, rose, and paced about the room, stopping once or -twice at the narrow window to look out into the street. The air was -misty, the pavement sticky with mud; every passing horse stepped under a -blanket of vapour; the wayfarers were muffled about their necks and -walked as though bent under a load. Harry fidgeted, wondering why -Sherebiah was so long. His reading had not cheered him; his musing did -but increase his gloom. At last, unable to endure inaction longer, he -put on his cloak and hat, took up the cudgel without which, in deference -to Sherebiah's advice, he seldom went abroad, and sallied forth into the -street, to walk off his fit of the dumps, if that might be. - -By the flickering light above the door he saw three sailors lurching up -the street. He passed them, giving them but a casual glance, turned -into the Strand, and spent some time looking listlessly into the lighted -shops. At the door of a coffee-house he noticed a group gathered about a -newspaper pasted on the wall. A manuscript supplement had just been -affixed to it. When he could get near enough to see the writing, he -felt a momentary interest in the announcement he read. - - -"The Duke of Marlborough has rid post to Cambridge, call'd thither by -the desperate state of the Marquis of Blandford. It is now 'stablish'd -beyond doubt that the young Lord is suffering from the Small-Pox." - - -Even the great duke had his troubles. Lord Blandford was, as Harry -knew, Marlborough's only son; he was the Lord Churchill who had written -to Godolphin with boyish curiosity to know what his title would be when -his father became a duke. Harry passed on, more than ever convinced -that the great man, beset by cares public and domestic, could have no -time to think of the small concerns of a country parson's son. - -He turned into the Savoy and came by and by to the Temple Gardens, -forlorn and desolate in the chill February evening. Not far behind him -three sailors were sauntering in the same direction, on their way -perhaps to rejoin their vessel in the Thames. The damp cold air struck -Harry to the bone; he shivered and drew his cloak closer around him, and -was on the point of turning to retrace his steps when there suddenly -stood before him a woman, thin-clad, bare-headed, with a whining child -in her arms. - -"Spare a penny, kind sir, to buy bread. My lips have not touched food -the livelong day, and my little boy is fair starved. Oh, sir, have pity -on a poor lone woman; spare a penny, kind sir." - -Harry stopped and looked at the thin haggard cheeks, the dark-rimmed -eyes, the hair hanging in loose damp wisps over the brow. The child's -feeble moans stabbed him like a knife; its poor pinched wizened face was -a speaking tale of woe. Loosening his cloak, the woman all the while -continuing her monotonous complaint, he untied his purse. It contained -a guinea and one crown piece. At that moment the three sailors passed -him, talking loudly, and laughing coarsely as they jostled the woman in -their path. - -"The poor creature's need is greater than mine," he thought. "Sherry -will bring back some money. Here you are," he said, handing her the -guinea. "And for God's sake take your little one out of the damp and -cold! Good-night!" - -Harry moved on, impressed by the spectacle of a misery deeper than his -own, and pursued by the voluble thanks of the poor woman. He had -forgotten his purpose to turn back; and was only recalled to it by the -sight of the three sailors rolling on ahead. They were walking arm in -arm, and from their gait Harry concluded that the middle one of the -three was intoxicated, and needed the support of his comrades. One of -them glanced back over his shoulder just as Harry was turning. The next -moment there was a heavy thud; the drunken sailor was on the ground, the -others bending over him. A hoarse cry for help caused Harry to hasten -to the group. - -"What is amiss?" he asked. - -"Be you a surgeon, mate?" replied the man, a thickset and powerful salt. -"Bill be taken wi' a fit, sure enough. A's foaming at the mouth." - -"No, I'm not a surgeon. I thought he was drunk." - -"Not him. Belay there; let the gentleman see." - -Harry went to the man's head and leant over, peering into his face. -Instantly the fallen sailor flung his arms round Harry's legs and pulled -them violently towards him. Unable to recover himself Harry fell -backward, and before he could cry out a cloak was flung over his head -and a brawny hand had him by the throat. Through the folds of cloth he -heard the men with many oaths congratulate themselves on the ease with -which they had accomplished their job. For a few moments he struggled -violently, until he felt that resistance was hopeless. Then the cloak -was tied about his neck, and he felt himself carried by two of the -three, one having him by the head, the other by the heels. They walked -swiftly along, and, not troubling to keep step, jolted him unpleasantly. -There was a singing in his ears; he gasped for breath; and soon his -physical discomfort and his fears were alike annihilated. He had lost -consciousness. - - - - - *CHAPTER VIII* - - *Flotsam* - - -Under the Leads--A Thames-side Attic--A Man of Law--A Matter of Form--A -Question of Identity--A Fine Mesh--A Dash for Freedom--Help in Need--For -the Plantations--Visitors on Board--Ned Bates--In the Foc'sle--Sailor's -Knots--An Old Coat--Odds and Ends--A Soft Answer--Overboard--A Dead -Heat--A Sea Lawyer--Grootz Protests--A Stern Chase--Sherry's Story--To -the Low Countries - - -When Harry recovered his senses he found himself tied hand and foot, and -with a cloth gag between his teeth. It was pitch dark; he could hear -nothing save a faint scratching near at hand; mice were evidently at -their nocturnal work. He lay still perforce; he found it impossible -even to wriggle over on to his side. Here was indeed a culmination of -his misfortunes. - -He tried to think, but the sudden attack and his subsequent -unconsciousness had left his brain in a whirl. Gradually the sequence of -events came back to him: his walk through the streets towards -Blackfriars, the beggar woman, the three sailors, the pretended fit. -What was the meaning of it? Had he been marked by the press-gang, and -trepanned to serve Her Majesty on the high seas? Had he been kidnapped, -to be robbed or held to ransom? Hardly the former, for a knock on the -head would have served the kidnappers' ends. Hardly the latter, for no -one could have taken the pains to waylay for such a purpose a penniless -youth with no friends. - -Suddenly he remembered the vague uneasiness shown at times by Sherebiah; -his earnest warnings; the cudgel which after all had proved useless. -Sherebiah, it seemed, had had more definite reasons for alarm than he -had avowed; why then had the silly fellow not spoken his mind freely? -Who was the enemy? What motive could any person in the wide world have -for kidnapping one who was even yet a boy and had, so far as he knew, -done no harm to a living soul? The more he thought, the more he was -puzzled. - -He was in pain. The cords cut into his flesh; his throat was parched; -he could not swallow. How long was this torture to continue? Where was -he? Where were his capturers? He longed for a light, so that he might -at least see the prison in which he was confined, and so diminish even -by one his terrible uncertainties. But no light came, no voice or -footfall sounded gratefully upon his ear; and presently a lethargy stole -upon his mind and all things were again in oblivion. - -He was roused by a light flashed in his eyes. Dazed and still only half -conscious, he saw an unknown face bending towards him, and a hand -holding a candle. The man grunted as though with relief to find the -captive still alive; then, setting the candle upon the floor, he removed -the gag. Harry tried to speak, but no word issued from his lips. The -man went from the room, leaving the candle still burning. By its light -Harry saw that he was in a narrow attic, with rough beams supporting a -slanting roof, and whitewashed walls. There was a sky-light above him; -he could hear the first patters of a shower of hail. - -Presently the man returned bearing a can and a hunk of bread. Lifting -Harry, he held the can to his lips. The prisoner drank the beer -greedily. - -"Where am I?" he asked, recovering his voice. - -"Hold your jaw!" was the surly answer. "You are where you are." - -"Why am I brought here? What is to be done with me?" - -"Hold your jaw, I say! Ye'll get nothing out of me. Keep a still -tongue; for if ye raise your voice someone I know will find means to -quiet ye." - -"But I insist on knowing," cried Harry in indignation. "Why was I dogged -and attacked in the streets, and brought captive to----" - -"Stow it! Least said soonest mended. Behave wi' sense and ye'll be -treated according; otherways--well, I won't answer for't." - -"Loose my arms then." - -"Well, I'll do that for 'ee, and legs too; don't think ye can run away, -'cos ye can't. Here's your supper; dry, but 'tis drier where there's -none. I'll leave ye to't." - -Untying the cords, the man gave the bread into Harry's hand, took up the -candle, and went out, locking the door behind him. Harry could not eat; -his limbs were cramped with his long immobility; when he stood his knees -hardly supported him. But it was pleasant to be able to use arms and -legs once more, and after a time his aching pains abated. He groped -round the room, shook the door, and found it fast. He could just touch -the sky-light with his outstretched hand, and he felt that the glass was -loose; but he could not remove it unless he stood higher, and groping -failed to find any chair or stool. Escape was impossible; he could but -wait for the morning. - -He lay awake the greater part of the night, but was sound asleep when -the same man re-entered with his meagre breakfast. The morning brought -no comfort. A gray dawn struggled through the grimy sky-light, -revealing the nakedness of the room. Cobwebs festooned the beams; the -boards of the floor were dirty and mouldered; the walls in places were -green with damp. Harry took silently the food offered him; he was not -encouraged by the previous night's experience to question his taciturn -jailer. The morning passed slowly, irksomely; when the man returned -with another meal at noon, Harry ventured to address him. - -"How long am I to remain caged here?" - -"I can't tell 'ee, 'cos I don't know." - -"You're not one of the sailors who trapped me?" - -"Lord, no. I wouldn't be a dirty swab for nothing 'cept to 'scape the -gallows." - -"Who employs you in this turnkey business?" - -"That's my business." - -"Don't be surly. I've done nothing to you." - -"Well, that's true. You ha'n't done nothing to me. That's true enough." - -"Will you do something for me, then? You're a good fellow, I'm sure." - -"Nay, nay, you don't come over me, young master. Soft speeches ain't no -good for a tough un like me. When I goes out I locks ye in, and if ye -holler till ye bust, 'tis no good, not at all." - -"I didn't mean that. 'Tis dull as death lying on these rotten boards -with nothing to do; bring me the morning's paper and I'll thank you." - -"Well, that's harmless enough, to be sure. Gi' me twopence and I'll buy -ye a _Courant_." - -"'Tis only a penny." - -"True; t'other penny's for me." - -Harry smiled and felt for his purse. It was gone. - -"Plucked clean, eh?" chuckled the man. "Trust your Wapping swab for -that. All the same you shall have the paper." - -He returned with the morning's _Courant_, already well thumbed. Harry -ran his eye over the meagre half-sheet; there was nothing that -interested him except the announcement of Lord Blandford's death at -Cambridge. - -"The duke has lost his heir," he thought. "He was a little older than -myself. Perhaps it is my turn next." - -The day wore on. In the afternoon the door opened and a stranger -entered along with the custodian. By his cut Harry guessed him to be a -lawyer's clerk. His movements were soft and insinuating; his face was -wreathed into an artificial smile. - -"Good-morning, sir!" he said softly, bowing. "I have waited upon you to -complete a little matter of business; a mere formality. The document is -quite ready; I have here inkhorn and quill; I have only to ask you to -write your name at the foot." - -He unrolled the paper he carried, and signed to his companion to bring -the writing materials. - -"Ah! there is no table, I see. You can hardly write on the floor, sir; -James, fetch a table from below.--Your furniture is scanty, sir," he -continued as the man went out; "in truth, there is nothing to recommend -your situation but its loftiness. You are near the sky, sir, and very -fortunately so, for 'tis murky and damp in the street.--Thank you, -James! Now, sir, everything is in order; you will, if you please, sign -your name where I place my finger, there." - -Harry took the pen offered him, and dipped it in the inkhorn. He gave -no sign of his amazement. - -"Yes," he said, "with pleasure--when I have read the paper." - -"Surely, sir, at this stage it is unnecessary. Why delay? I assure you -that the document is perfectly in order, and the phraseology of us men -of law is--well, sir, you understand that a scrivener is paid so much a -folio, and he has no temptation to be unduly brief: he! he!" - -"Still, if you do not object I will read the paper. It is merely a -form, as you say." - -"Very well, sir," said the man with a patient shrug. - -He lifted his hand from the paper, and Harry bent over the table to read -it. The writing was clerkly and precise; the sentences were long and -involved, with no support from punctuation; but, unfamiliar as he was -with legal diction, Harry had no difficulty in making out the gist of -the document so obligingly placed before him. His heart was thumping -uncomfortably, for all his cool exterior; and he deliberately read down -the close lines slowly in order to gain time to collect his thoughts. -The request to sign the paper had been surprising enough, but his -bewilderment was increased tenfold when he found what it was that he was -asked to sign. - -Stripped of its verbiage, the document stated that whereas Christopher -Butler, gentleman, lately residing in Jermyn Street over against the -Garter Coffee-house, had been acquitted of all his debts by the good -offices of John Feggans, merchant of the City of London, the said -Christopher Butler hereby entered into an indenture to serve the said -John Feggans in his Plantations in the island of Barbados for a period -of five years. There were qualifications and provisos and penalties -which Harry passed over; then, having read the principal articles again, -he looked up and said: - -"Why should I sign this?" - -"Sir!" said the attorney in surprise. - -"Why should I sign this? What have I to do with Christopher Butler or -John Feggans?" - -The lawyer looked round at the other man as though asking whether he had -heard aright. - -"I am at a loss to give you better reasons than you know already. Who -should sign it if not you?" - -"I am afraid I must trouble you to explain. See, I find that -Christopher Butler, having incurred debts to a large amount, has -assigned these debts to John Feggans, who has paid them, and that -Christopher Butler indentures himself a slave to John Feggans, to win -his release by working in the Plantations. I ask you, what have I to do -with all this?" - -"Christopher Butler asks that?" - -"Who? What did you say?" - -"Christopher Butler--yourself." - -Harry laughed, so great was his sense of relief. It was all a mistake, -then; he had been seized by mistake for some poor wretched fellow who -had lost all his money and been forced to adopt this, the last resource -of impecunious spendthrifts. - -"Pardon me," he said. "There has been a mistake. My name is not -Christopher Butler." - -He smiled in the attorney's face. The little man looked staggered. - -"Not Christopher Butler?" - -"Certainly not. My name is----" - -Harry stopped. Some instinct of caution warned him not to disclose his -real name at present. - -"My name is neither Butler nor Christopher," he added. "Now, pray let me -go." - -"Sir, I have my instructions. I must make enquiries. This is unlooked -for, most perplexing. Pray excuse me for one moment." - -He hurried from the room, leaving the door open. The surly custodian, -who had followed the colloquy with evident interest, showed that he was -not a bad fellow at bottom. - -"I'm right glad, that I am," he said. "'Twas my own thought you was too -young to be such a wild dog, or else you was a most desperate wild one." - -Harry did not reply. Through the open door he heard loud voices -proceeding from a room below. He could not catch the words, but there -was something in the tone of the loudest voice that sounded familiar. -He had no opportunity of forming a conclusion on the matter, for the -speaker's tone was instantly moderated, as though in response to a -warning. Immediately afterwards the attorney returned, accompanied by a -low-browed fellow in a lackey's livery. The lawyer's smile was as bland -as ever as he came into the room. - -"'Tis not unusual for a man to change his mind, Mr. Butler, but in this -case I fear 't will be a little awkward. I am instructed that you are -the Christopher Butler named in this indenture, and have to insist on -your affixing your signature to it." - -"Nonsense!" said Harry impatiently. "I tell you my name is not Butler, -and I refuse to sign the paper. 'Tis a preposterous error. I never was -in debt in my life; I know nothing of Feggans; indeed, know hardly a -soul in London; why, I never was in London till a month or two ago." - -"My dear sir, my dear sir," said the lawyer, as though expostulating -with a hardened liar. Turning to the lackey, he asked: "You see this -young gentleman?" - -"Ay, ay, I do so." - -Harry started. The accent was pure Wiltshire, and fell on his ears like -a message from home. He scanned the man's features, but did not -recognize him. - -"What is his name?" went on the lawyer. - -"Butler; ay, 'tis Butler, sure enough." - -"Where did you see him last?" - -"In the Fleet prison, to be sure, ay, and on the common side, too." - -"You are sure of this?" - -"Ay, faith, sure enough. I seed the gentleman often at maister's; -many's the time I called a hackney for'n in the darkest hour o' night, -thinken as them as goo fast won't goo long." - -"And you were present with your master when this little matter of -business was arranged?" - -"I was so, ay." - -The lawyer looked with his eternal smile at Harry. - -"Now, sir," he said, "you will no longer delay to put your hand to this -document." - -Harry had been thinking rapidly. He gave up the hypothesis of error; -the lawyer's visit was clearly part of a deliberate plot; it mattered -little whether he was privy to it, or was innocently carrying out his -instructions. No doubt there was a _Christopher Butler_ who had thus -sold himself to pay his debts, but somebody had determined to substitute -Harry for the real man. He had noticed that the name Christopher Butler -was written in pencil every time it occurred in the document, all else -being in ink; and it suddenly flashed upon him that the object had been -to entrap him into signing his real name, which would then be -substituted for the name pencilled in. He gave the lawyer a long look, -put his hands behind his back, and said: - -"It is waste of time. I refuse." - -Again the lawyer smiled and shrugged. - -"'Tis immaterial, sir. This is but a duplicate; the original was signed -three days ago in the Fleet. I have now to----" - -"Liar!" shouted Harry, springing forward, his face aflame. The door -stood open; only the lackey was in a direct line between the prisoner -and freedom. Before the man's slow rustic mind had accommodated itself -to the situation, he was sent reeling against the wall by a straight -blow between the eyes. Harry was already out of the room, at the top of -the staircase, when the little attorney seized him from behind and -shouted for help. The taciturn jailer stood looking on. There were -cries from below and a stampede of feet, and before Harry, with the -lawyer clinging to him, had descended more than four steps he was met by -the three sailors. Swearing hearty oaths they threw themselves upon -him, and in five minutes he was back in the attic securely trussed up. - -Even his surly jailer, bringing him food, looked at him with a touch of -sympathy. Harry's haggard eyes met his with a mute appeal for help. - -"Odsbud!" exclaimed the man, "'tis hard on a mere stripling. If your -name bean't Christopher Butler, what be it?" - -"My name is Harry Rochester. 'Tis a vile plot. You believe me?" - -"Ay, I believe ye. Tain't in reason that a boy should ha' got ocean -deep in debt." - -"Will you help me? You see what a snare is about me. Will you go to -the Star and Garter in Leicester fields and ask for Sherebiah Minshull? -Tell him where I am, and what they are going to do with me." - -"But what'd be the good, mister?" - -"He would find a way to help me. You would know that if you knew him." - -"And how much might ye be willing to pay, now?" - -"I haven't a penny, as you know, but he had some money. Lose no time; -pray go now, at once." - -"Well, the truth on't is I'm paid by t'other party." - -"Who is it? What is the name of the man who has hired you?" - -"Faith, I don't know, but he have a fine long purse, and 'tis a fine -swashing gentleman. Howsomever, I'll go to the Star and Garter as you -say, and see your man--what be his name? Minshull; good; I'll go soon, -and--Coming, sir, coming," he added in answer to a hail from below. -"I'll go afore 'tis dark, 'struth, I will." - -He left the room, and Harry felt a momentary glow of hope. It was -dulled immediately. The three sailors re-entered. Without ado they -again bound his arms, which had been loosed to allow of his lifting his -food, and carried him downstairs. Daylight was fading. At the door -Harry looked eagerly around for some person whom a cry might bring to -his rescue. Alas! the house was in a blind alley, and no one but his -captors was in sight. He did raise his voice and give one resounding -call. A gag was instantly slipped into his mouth, and he was hurried to -the open end of the alley, where a hackney coach stood waiting. Into -this he was thrown; two of the sailors got in with him, the third -mounted to a place beside the driver, and the vehicle rumbled and jolted -over the rough cobbles. - -Some twenty minutes later it pulled up at the Tower Wharf, where Harry -had vainly sought for Jan Grootz a few days before. It was now night, -and as he was lifted out and borne towards the wharf side, Harry saw by -the light of naphtha torches a busy scene. Sailors, lightermen, -stevedores were moving hither and thither; the ground was strewn with -bales and packages; the last portions of a cargo were being transferred -to the hold of a barque that lay alongside. No one paid attention to -the not unusual spectacle of a young fellow going unwillingly to a -vessel bound for the Plantations. Harry's captors, joking, chewing, -spitting, shoved him with no tender hands on to the gangway. At the -other end of it stood a dark-featured, beetle-browed old seaman, the -captain of the vessel, bawling orders to this and that member of his -crew. - -"Ha!" he cried, as he saw the new-comer hauled along in the sailors' -arms; "this be the springald? Zooks! ye are none too soon: tide turns -in half an hour." - -"Here we be, sir, true; and this be Christopher Butler, mark you, for -the Plantations." - -"Papers?" roared the captain, spitting into the river. - -"All taut, sir," replied the man, producing the document that Harry had -refused to sign; it bore a signature now. - -"Obstropolous, eh?" - -"Changed his mind, sir, it seems, since signing on; ha' give us some -trouble." - -"Oons! We'll cure that. All aboard! Stow the cockerel in the foc'sle; -strap un to a plank; we'll have no 'tarnal tricks." - -As Harry was lugged forward he noticed two figures standing beneath a -lamp swinging to one of the yards. He started, and involuntarily -increased his weight upon his bearers. One of the two came forward a -step towards the captain and, tapping a snuff-box, said: - -"Whom have we here, captain?" - -"A young puppy as ha' run through a duke's fortune and goes as -redemptioner where I've carried many a man before him." - -"Indeed! So young! 'Tis sad, the wastefulness of young men in this -age." - -He took a pinch of snuff and stepped back again. Harry had scanned his -features and heard what he said. His heart almost stopped beating with -surprise, for the speaker was Mr. Berkeley, the squire, and his -companion was Captain Aglionby. "Did they not recognize me?" he -thought. Surely if he could appeal to the squire he might even yet, at -the last moment, be saved. He struggled with his captors, but they -tightened their hold upon him and wrenched his limbs with brutal -callousness. He was carried to the sailors' quarters in the foc'sle. -His bonds were loosed for a moment; then he was laid on a plank and -lashed to it. There was a sudden commotion. The captain roared an order -to his men, then went to the side to meet a custom-house officer who had -just come aboard with two men. An observer would have noticed that Mr. -Berkeley hastily turned his back and retreated into the shadow. - -"Thought you'd forgot us, sir," said the captain. - -"No, no. But we won't keep you long; you want to catch the tide." - -The rummaging crew began a perfunctory inspection of the vessel. When -they were out of sight Mr. Berkeley came forward and spoke in a low tone -to the captain. - -"Right, sir," he replied, and sent a man forward with orders to place -Harry in a bunk in the darkest part of the foc'sle and cover him up. -Consequently, when the custom-house officer reached the sailors' -quarters, where several of the crew were lolling about, Harry lay -hidden, half-stifled beneath a tarpaulin. - -"What's this?" asked the officer. - -"That!" cried the ship's mate with an oath. "That's Ned Bates, come -aboard mad drunk after a spree. 'Tis the same every voyage, and the -medicine's a dose of rope's end to-morrow." - -The officer laughed and passed on. The inspection was soon completed; -the officer accepted a pinch of the captain's snuff and left the vessel -with his crew, watched by Mr. Berkeley and Captain Aglionby from the -corner of a shed on the wharf. In a few minutes the ropes were cast -off, and with creakings and heavings the ship moved into the current and -began to float down on the ebb-tide towards the sea. - -The tarpaulin was pulled off Harry by a man who took the opportunity to -curse him. The gag was removed from his mouth; then he was left to -himself. He thought he had reached the lowest depths of misery. -Something he had learnt of the awful fate in store for him in the -Plantations. Many such poor wretches as himself had sailed across the -seas in the hope of redeeming themselves from debt by years of -unremitting toil. On their arrival they had become, body and soul, the -property of their masters. Treated as no better than convicts, they were -put to the most degrading labour, and their employers contrived to keep -them, even as labourers, so deeply in debt for clothes and the common -necessaries of life that the day of redemption never dawned for them, -and they lived and died in abject slavery. This was to be his fate! -What a declension from the bright destiny that seemed to be before him -but a few months ago! - -The foc'sle was dark and noisome. The smell of bilge water and the reek -of the lamp affixed to the side nauseated Harry. Physically and -mentally, he was desperately wretched. And through all his misery he -was overcome by sheer puzzlement. Hitherto he had surmised that, being -young and strong, he had been marked as an easy prey by the professional -kidnappers who prowled the streets of London, trepanning unfortunate -young men likely to fetch a good price with shipmasters or unscrupulous -colonial merchants. But the unexpected sight of Mr. Berkeley in Captain -Aglionby's company on deck had startled him into a new theory. Many -things recurred to his mind. He remembered the bitter feud that had -subsisted between his father and the squire; the disappearance of -Captain Aglionby after a quarrel, as village gossip said, with Mr. -Berkeley; the horseman riding after the coach; the strange warnings he -had received from Sherebiah. He could not but feel that these incidents -were in some way connected; he began to be convinced that his present -situation was due ultimately to the enmity of the squire--the gaunt, -sinister old man who was indirectly responsible for his father's death. -But though this was his conclusion, he was none the less puzzled. Why -should the malignity of the squire pursue the son, now that the father -was removed? What harm had _he_ ever done, or could he ever do, to the -lord of the manor? Was the squire so unrelenting, was his malice so -remorseless, that he must bring black ruin upon a boy in vengeance for -his baulked will? It seemed inconceivable. Yet what other motive could -he have? The more he thought of it, the more puzzled Harry became. - -The vessel was slowly threading its way down the river among the many -vessels, large and small, that lay at their moorings. At times it -stopped altogether, and from the deck resounded shouts and oaths at the -obstacles that checked its course. By and by some of the sailors came -forward for a spell of sleep, and Harry, kept wide awake by his hunger -and discomfort, saw them tumble into their bunks and soon heard their -snores. - -It would take several hours to reach the open sea. Was there a chance -that, before the vessel left the Thames, he might even yet escape? To -make the attempt was mere instinct with a high-spirited boy. The odds -seemed all against him. To begin with, he was bound hand and foot to a -plank, so that it was impossible even to bend his body. Suppose he rid -himself of his bonds, there would be many of the crew on deck while the -vessel threaded the crowded water-way, and he would be seen if he sprang -overboard; and how could he free himself from the ropes? The idea had -not come to him for the first time. When he was being trussed up he had -remembered an old trick taught him by Sherebiah, acquired during his -mountebank days, when he had mystified rustic spectators by escaping -from ropes tied by the most expert hands in the village. He had so -stiffened his muscles that he could wriggle out of any ordinary knot. -But the situation was rendered more difficult by the plank. He could -not lift himself, nor turn on his side. Lying on his back, he tried to -ease the pressure of the ropes by the muscular movements he had -practised with Sherebiah in sport. But he found, not to his surprise, -that sailors were more skilful than anyone who had previously -experimented with him. The tension was so great that he had the barest -margin to work upon. Force was useless; it would only have the effect of -cutting into his flesh and causing his hands and wrists to swell. But -his whole mind was now bent upon one desperate venture, and, while the -men snored around him, he began to strain on the ropes. - -For some time all his straining was of no avail. At last he felt the -rope about his wrists give a little. Taking advantage of the slackened -tension, he contrived, after what seemed an hour to him, to turn his -joined wrists outwards, and in a few more minutes they were free. They -ached intolerably; he felt as if all power was gone from them,--as if he -could never grip anything firmly again. He waited until the numbing pain -was abated, then set to work to free his elbows. These had been -separately tied, and after many unsuccessful efforts he almost -despaired. At length, however, he managed to shift his elbows down over -the edges of the plank, which he was then able to use as fulcrums. -Pressing as hard as possible, he forced the ropes slightly slack, then -jerked himself sideways and almost on to his face. In doing so he more -than once interrupted the snores of the man beneath him, and once -desisted in alarm as the fellow growled out an oath. At last his elbows -were free, and he lay panting with exertion and hope. - -But now that the upper part of his body was unbound, he found himself -confronted by an unexpected difficulty. The board to which he was -strapped extended down to his heels, and the knot being tied at the far -end, he was unable to reach it. A man is never so agile with his ankles -as with his wrists, and the plank had effectually prevented Harry from -making use of Sherebiah's trick in regard to his feet. It was -impossible to reach the knots with his hands, for the roof of the -foc'sle was so low that he could not rise to an upright posture in the -bunk. He worked away at the upper part of the rope, but it was so taut -that he could not ease it appreciably. He found himself making even -more noise than before, and dreaded lest one of the crew should awaken -too soon. Breathless with his exertions, he lay still to think. Was he -to be baffled after all? Some hours must have passed since the vessel -left her moorings, and though her progress had been interrupted and was -always slow, yet she was drawing nearer and nearer to the mouth of the -river, bringing him nearer and nearer to his doom. - -A dull dazed hopelessness was gaining possession of him. He lay with -wide-open eyes, staring at nothing; then caught himself following the -slight pendulous motion of a seaman's coat that hung from a nail in one -of the beams. To and fro it swung, with a regularity that became at -last desperately annoying. But all at once that rough stained garment -became to him the most interesting and important thing in the world. It -seemed to shed a bright ray of hope. Never a seaman but had a knife; -fervently did Harry pray that the owner of this coat had not emptied its -pockets. Stealthily he bent over. The right-hand pocket was easily -within reach. He put his hand in, and drew out one after another a -pipe, a pouch, a flint, a steel, a tinder-box, a string of beads, a -corner of mouldy biscuit, a horn snuff-box, a tattered letter, a plug of -black tobacco, a broken comb, a red handkerchief, and a nutmeg; but no -knife. He could only just touch the left-hand pocket; he could not put -his hand in. He pulled at the coat, and held it with one hand, bringing -the pocket within reach; then he plunged the other hand into its depths. -He touched a metal case; it clicked against something, and he held his -breath, hoping the sound had not been heard. No one spoke or moved. He -felt further; his heart gave a great leap for joy, for he could not -mistake the touch of the rugged handle of a clasp-knife. Eagerly he -drew it out; to cut the rope was the work of an instant; he was free. - -But he was not yet out of danger. His limbs were loosed, but he was -still imprisoned in an outward-bound ship. There was only one way of -reaching safety: to gain the deck, spring overboard, and swim to land. -He knew nothing about ships; he could row and swim, but till he came to -London he had seen no vessel larger than a rowing boat. He guessed that -while the barque was still in the Thames only a small portion of the -crew would be on duty; but he did not know at what part of the ship they -would be, nor where he would run least danger of detection. It was -still dark; he might easily stumble as he moved about amid unfamiliar -surroundings, and there was the risk that, even if he reached the -bulwarks safely and sprang over, he might never succeed in reaching land -alive. He did not know the width of the stream; he had been so long -without food and had expended so much energy during the last few hours -that he was in no condition to endure long fatigue. It would perhaps be -better to rest for a little, and seize a moment as day was breaking, -when there would be light enough to guide his steps. - -His body was still tingling from the strain of the ropes, but with the -passing minutes his physical ease increased, and he was able to think -more and more calmly. He heard the clang of a bell. Immediately -afterwards a sailor came into the foc'sle, woke the man below Harry, -and, when he had tumbled grumbling out of his berth, lay down in his -place. It was a change of watch. - -"Where are we, Bill?" asked the man who had been roused. - -"Opening up Gravesend," was the reply; "and a dirty night. Raining -hard, a following wind; we'll make a good run out." - -The man was asleep as soon as he had finished the sentence, and Harry -was reassured by his snores. Gravesend, he supposed, was a river-side -village; if he could make his dive there he might find helping hands on -shore. He wondered what the time was; the bells that he heard at -intervals conveyed no information to him. He raised himself on his -elbow and glanced round. It seemed to him that, in the opening to his -left, the darkness was thinning; and the vessel was heaving to. The -time had come for his venture. - -He sat up as high as his confined quarters allowed and surveyed his -position. There were five men within the narrow space, all asleep, -snoring in various keys. From above came now and then the sound of a -voice and the tramp of feet; nothing else was to be heard. Slipping his -leg over the side of the bunk, Harry paused for a moment, then slid to -the floor. His knee knocked the edge of the bunk below; the seaman -turned over with a grunt and asked sleepily, "Be it time already?" It -was better to answer than to remain silent, thought Harry. Making his -voice as gruff as possible, he said quickly: - -"No; keep still, you lubber." - -"Lubber yourself; I'll split your----" - -His threat ended with a snore. Harry waited a moment to assure himself -that all was quiet again; then, divesting himself of his long coat, -which he knew would be a serious encumbrance in the water, he groped -cautiously towards the opening, now showing as a gray patch in the -gloom. Rain and sleet beat in upon him as he halted for a moment and -threw a quick glance around before emerging on to the deck. In the -waist of the vessel on the port side two men were hauling up casks, -probably belated provisions, from a river craft lashed alongside; three -or four seamen were high up in the rigging, and the mate was bellowing -to them hoarse commands in what to Harry's landsman's ears was a foreign -tongue. Harry felt that it was now or never; but, even as he prepared -to spring, there was a heavy footfall above, and a man dropped from the -foc'sle deck and alighted a couple of yards away. He swung on his heel -to enter the foc'sle, and the two stood face to face. - -Harry recognized the broad coarse features of the sailor to whose -feigned fit his easy capture was due. The man's first impression was -evidently that Harry was one of the crew; he quickly saw his mistake, -but before his thought could translate itself into action Harry, who had -the advantage of being strung up for just such a meeting, sprang upon -him as a bolt from a bow. Reeling under a deftly planted blow the man -slipped and fell heavily to the deck. Harry was past him in an instant, -gained the side of the vessel, and, vaulting lightly on to the bulwark, -had dived into the river before the astonished seaman could recover his -breath to shout an alarm. In a few seconds Harry rose to the surface, -shook the water from his face, and struck out for the shore. - -Behind him he heard the angry shouts of the sailors, and afterwards the -click of oars working in the row-locks. A boat was evidently in -pursuit. No doubt the craft alongside had been cast loose, for there -could not have been time to lower a boat. Could he reach land in time? -His dive had been so hasty that he had not had time to look around and -select his course. But now, through the pelting rain, he gazed ahead to -find the nearest way to safety. Judging by the noise of the oars, the -boat was rapidly overhauling him, for although he had left his coat -behind, he made but slow progress in his water-logged clothes. His view -of the shore was intercepted by a few small one-masted vessels lying at -anchor, and by a large brig moored about a hundred yards off the clump -of trees that formed the western boundary of Gravesend. If he could -gain the other side of the brig he thought he might dodge his pursuers. -But he doubted whether his strength and speed could be sustained so -long. The seamen were pulling with a will; the master himself was in -the boat urging them on with oaths and execrations. - -Harry swam on gamely, changing his stroke in the effort to husband his -strength. But he had only had a couple of minutes' start, and looking -over his shoulder he saw that with the best will in the world he must -soon be overtaken. Only twenty yards separated him from the boat; he -had just come opposite the poop of the stationary brig; he wondered -whether a shout would bring anyone to his assistance, when a small skiff -appeared from round the stern of the vessel, only a few feet distant -from him. It had just put off from the brig and was swinging round -towards the shore. Harry gave a hail; the men in the boat rested on -their oars; collecting his remaining strength in a few desperate strokes -he got alongside, and clutched the gunwale just as he felt himself at -his last gasp. At the same moment the pursuing boat came up, and the -man at the tiller had some ado to avoid a collision. - -[Illustration: At the Last Gasp] - -"Back water!" roared the master. - -The way on the boat was checked; it came to a stop a few yards beyond -the skiff and nearer the shore. Meanwhile Harry had been dragged on -board the skiff, and lay drenched, shivering, gasping across the -thwarts. - -"Cotched, the villain!" cried the ship's master exultantly. "Pull -alongside, men." - -A few strokes brought the two boats together. - -"I'll thank ye to hand un over," said the master. "Zooks! he shall pay -for this." - -He received no reply, but instead a voice which Harry, half dead as he -was from cold and fatigue, recognized with a leaping heart, ordered the -crew of the skiff to pull back to the brig. - -"Hi!" roared the master, as the boats parted, "are ye deaf or what? -Hand over that there runaway; 'tis a deserter. Pull after 'em, men." - -The boat started in pursuit, the master shouting with increasing anger. -The skiff came below the brig's stern, where a rope ladder was hanging -over the side. - -"Gi' un up, d'ye hear? Gi' un up, or 'twill be the worse for ye." - -"Gif him up! Ja, ja; certainly, but not now, mine vrient; not now, and -not to you. Dat is not my way. We do not dings zo in Holland." - -"What in thunder are ye gibbering about?" roared the master--"you dirty -swab of a Dutchman, you! I tell you he is a deserter. Hand un over, or -I'll have the law of ye." - -"De law! Zo, mine vrient. We will talk over dis matter as good -vrients." - -Grootz sat down, while the men on the brig prepared to haul Harry, now -limp with utter exhaustion, on deck. - -"I, Jan Grootz, find dis young man in de river; ver well. He float in -de river; well again; he is what de law call flotsam--dat is zo. Now, -mine vrient,"--here Grootz's fat forefinger began to waggle--"flotsam, -say de law, belong to de sovereign, dat is, to de lady Queen Anne. What -is for me to do in such a case--for me, Jan Grootz? I render to -Caesar--who is de Queen--dat which is Caesar's--dat which belong to de -gracious majesty Queen Anne. Derefore I gif up dis young man to de -Queen's officer at Gravesend--perhaps, when he is dry. Zo!" - -While this speech was being delivered in the Dutchman's slow drawl, with -a placid persuasiveness suited to a discussion between friends who did -not see quite eye to eye, the master had been growing purple with rage. -He was about to explode into invective when he saw that Harry was being -swung up. - -"Give way, men!" he shouted. "Run her alongside." - -He held himself in readiness to board the skiff as soon as he came -within leaping distance. But Grootz, with an activity little to be -expected in so burly a frame, seized an oar that had been shipped by one -of his men now lending a hand in hoisting Harry on board, and, springing -to his feet, with a shrewd thrust sent the master spinning over the side -of his boat into the river. He came up nearly a dozen yards away; his -crew pulled towards him, and when he was at last hauled into the boat he -was fifty yards down the river. He had evidently shipped a good deal of -water, for Grootz's blow must have knocked the breath out of his body; -the purple hue of his cheeks had given place to a mottled sickliness. -He gasped and puffed and swore; but Harry was by this time safe on board -the brig; to take him by main force was clearly impossible; and the -discomfited master had no alternative but to regain his own vessel. - -Harry was carried to the cabin, his wet clothes were taken off, he was -wrapped in blankets and forced to swallow a good bumper of cordial -before the Dutchman would allow him to speak. - -"Zo!" exclaimed Grootz when he was comfortable. - -"You saved my life, sir," said Harry warmly. "I was nearly done." - -"Zo!" - -"They were taking me to the Plantations. I never heard from Lord -Marlborough. They trapped me. All my money was gone. I went to the -Angel and Crown to find you, to ask you to give me work; you had -sailed." - -"Zo! talk no more. Flotsam! Gunst! I tell you dis, my vrient; put not -your drust in princes: every man learn dis zoon or late: better zoon. -Zo!" - -The honest Dutchman left Harry to sleep while he resumed his interrupted -journey to the shore. But he had barely reached the deck when he heard -himself hailed by a stentorian voice from a wherry sweeping by under -full sail and the rapid ply of oars. - -"Ahoy there! Ha' ye seed a ship named the _Merry Maid_ a-sailen -down-along this way?" - -"Ja, ja!" cried Grootz, chuckling; "what for you ask?" - -But the man gave him no answer; only called to the two men rowing the -wherry to pull more lustily. - -"Hi!" shouted the Dutchman in his turn; and though his voice was usually -low he could roar at need. "Hi! you be too late!" - -The man did not turn his head. - -"Hi! she is two mile ahead!" - -Sherebiah gave no sign. He was rapidly passing out of earshot. - -"Hi!" shouted Grootz still more loudly. "Sherebiah, stop! Mynheer -Harry is here!" - -Sherebiah jumped up so violently that, heavy as the wherry was, he -almost upset it. - -"Master Harry?" he roared. - -"Ja! I tell you." - -The wherry slewed round and headed toward the brig. Grootz lit his pipe -and watched, his little eyes twinkling with amusement. Sherebiah looked -positively aggrieved when he came aboard. - -"Oons! 'tis sinful to tear a poor mortal man's heart out, 'tis so. Here -be I, a-chasen a villanous creature, the _Merry Maid_ by name, thinken -as Master Harry were a forsaken prisoner aboard on her, and 'tis all -much ado about nothen, and he a-laughen in his sleeve along o' your -cargo! I wouldn' ha' thowt it, not I. Where be the deceiven -trickster?" - -"Asleep," said Grootz, with a puff of smoke. "Flotsam!" He chuckled -and guffawed; it was a joke that would last his lifetime. - -"What your meanen may be I don't know, Mynheer; but 'tis me as ought to -be sleepen. No sleep ha' I had, not a wink, since Master Harry played -this trick on me; ay, 'twas sinful. And I'll punch Ralph Aglionby's -costard, I will so, first chance I gets." - -"Tell me about it," said Grootz. - -Sherebiah related how, on returning to his inn with the money for which -he had pledged Harry's trinkets, he was surprised to find his young -master absent. As time passed on, and he did not make his appearance, -Sherebiah became thoroughly alarmed. About seven o'clock in the evening -he hurried off to Southwark, and enquired of the porter at the White -Hart whether Captain Aglionby was within. The captain had left a week -before, said the porter, in company with a tall, bent, shabby old -gentleman. Sherebiah's worst fears were realized. For weeks he had -expected the stroke, and now it had fallen suddenly, and at a time when -he was not at hand to parry it. He hastened at once to the house in -which, as he had made it his business to know, Mr. Berkeley was staying. -Neither the squire nor Captain Aglionby was at home. Sherebiah -thereupon took his station at a convenient spot near the house whence he -could see without being seen, and some time after midnight was rewarded. -The two men he sought returned together. Allowing a little time to -elapse, he went to the house and asked to see Captain Aglionby, giving -the servant a vague message which he believed would bring the captain to -the door. Instead of him, however, Mr. Berkeley himself appeared. To -Sherebiah's question as to what had become of Harry, the squire replied -coldly that he knew nothing about him, and shut the door in his -questioner's face. - -"Ay, I were a fool to ask un," admitted Sherebiah ruefully. "I had -ought to ha' thowt o' poor old feyther o' mine." - -Sherebiah was determined to have his question answered somehow. He was -early at his post next morning, keeping a careful eye upon the door of -the house. He saw the squire and Captain Aglionby issue forth together -and visit a lawyer up four flights of stairs in a house near Holborn -Bars. He followed all three to a house in a blind alley farther east, -never suspecting that Harry was there confined. He shadowed them when -they left, saw them enter a coffee-house, followed them when they came -out, and then lost sight of them. Returning to his own inn to enquire -whether anything had been heard of Harry, he found that a man had called -an hour before and left a message for him, asking him to call without -delay at an address in Smithfield. Hastening there at once, he learnt -from Harry's late jailer how he had been kidnapped and shipped off to -the Plantations. At full speed he rushed to the wharf, only to learn -that the _Merry Maid_, William Shovel master, had just taken the tide -and was now on her way to the sea. - -"You med ha' knocked me down wi' a feather. I sat me down on a box -under a gashly torch, and thinks I, 'Rafe Aglionby be too much for 'ee -this time, Sherebiah Stand-up-and-bless.' I stood up, I did; time an' -tide waits for no man; 'twas a sudden thought; I seed a sailen wherry -alongside wharf, and two big swabs hangen round. I showed 'em a crown -a-piece, and said there's more to foller, and mebbe summat out o' the -Queen's purse too; and here I be, all my poor mortal flesh a-wamblen -like a aspen. 'Tis tooken a year off my life, ay, 'tis so." - -Jan Grootz smiled. - -"Mine good vrient," he said, "I tell you dis. You will come ashore with -me; we will go to your inn and fetch your goods. It will delay us, but -only one day. Den my ship sails; Amsterdam; you will come?" - -"Sakes! What about Master Harry, then?" - -"He alzo." - -"Oons! Be that th' order o' the day? Well, 'tis a long lane has no -turnen. Will there be time for me to go and ha' a few words wi' Rafe -Aglionby?" - -"No." - -"Well, I'll save 'em up. A rod bean't none the wuss for bein' salted. -Ay, and I were not always a man o' peace!" - - - - - *CHAPTER IX* - - *Monsieur de Polignac Presses his Suit* - - -Scenes in Holland--Feeding an Army--A Tulip Bulb--On the Road--The -Captain's Man--A Break-Down--Double Dutch--The Captain Again--A -Diversion--An Entry--An Exit--Hospitality--Confidences--Rejected -Addresses--Palmam qui Meruit--Persuaded--Adele - - -"Hundred barrels pork, tousand quarters flour, five hunderdweight -sausages, twenty gallon schnapps, for de garrison of Breda. Ver well, -Monsieur de Tilly, de order shall be done." - -Mynheer Jan Grootz put down the paper from which he had been -translating, and pushed a pair of horn spectacles up his brow. - -"Mynheer Harry," he continued, "you will see to dis. Such an order -yesterday could not have been met--no. But wid Peter Kolp's man coming -from Helmund it is to-day anoder ding. In Helmund, wid Peter Kolp, dere -is pork, flour--plenty; yes, my poor vrient Kolp dink dere is too much; -he alzo would supply de army. 'Grootz,' he say, 'ask too high prices. -As for me, Kolp, I am a cheap man. But Grootz, he is a sad rascal.' -But I tell you dis: dey say my poor vrient Kolp forget his measures and -weights, he dink fourteen ounces weigh one pound, and sometimes, dey -say, he dink ten barrel bad pork make twelve good; so my poor vrient is -not now permitted to contract no more; and he sell me his stores. -Truly, he is a cheap man! Zo!" - -There was a chuckle of satisfaction in the concluding word. - -"You will start early in de morning, Mynheer Harry," he resumed, "wid -ten carts; Helmund is twenty mile beyond Tilburg, and Tilburg fifteen -beyond Breda. You will get de stores from Kolp at Helmund and return -wid dem to Breda and hand dem over to the commissary dere. Take wid you -your man Sherebiah, and Piet Brinker to show you de road; he will pick -drivers for de carts. We hear noding of forayers lately; zo I hope you -have a safe journey, And, Mynheer Harry, never forget dat poor Kolp -cannot count, and do not know good pork from bad, and mistake chalk for -flour. You will examine dese little matters wid much care; zo?" - -The merchant replaced his glasses on his nose and proceeded to dictate -an invoice to one of his clerks. He sat at a desk in a low-pitched room -next to the roof of a gabled house near the Gevangen Poort in -Bergen-op-Zoom. The lower floors were devoted to the living apartments; -the warehouse and offices were at the top, goods being raised and -lowered by means of a crane-like apparatus that projected from the wall -like a yard-arm. It was not Mynheer Grootz's home; that was at the -Hague; but Bergen-op-Zoom at the head of the eastern arm of the Scheldt -was for the present his business head-quarters, conveniently situated in -regard to the scattered armies whose wants he had to supply. - -[Illustration: Map of Part of the LOW COUNTRIES in 1703.] - -It was early in the month of June. For more than three months Harry -Rochester had been engaged with the worthy Dutchman, who was kept busy -morning, noon, and night in provisioning the allied forces now entering -upon a new campaign. He found his employment very much to his taste, -and his employer the best of friends. Grootz never alluded to the time -when his offer of employment had been slighted, and Harry often smiled -as he remembered the pride with which, in the days of his high -expectations, he had refused to cast in his lot with a mere merchant. -The novelty of the scenes amid which he found himself on his arrival in -Holland had banished his ambitions for the time. The flat country, with -its dunes and dykes, its endless canals and innumerable windmills; its -quaint towns, in which chimneys and steeples and masts seemed so -curiously jumbled; the stolid, hospitable people--the men with their big -pipes and snuff-boxes, the women with their characteristic head-dress, -the girls with the riband of maidenhood at their right brow; the strange -customs--the _spionnen_ at the windows, an arrangement of mirrors by -which from the upper rooms all that passed in the street below could be -seen within; the placard at the door when a child was born; the -incessant scrubbing that went on indoors and out; the _trekschuiten_ and -_pakschuiten_ that conveyed goods and passengers along the canals, drawn -sometimes by horses, more often by a stout mynheer and his vrouw; the -storks nesting among the chimney-pots; the stiff formal gardens with -their beds of tulips--everything interested him; his low spirits -vanished into thin air, and he enjoyed life with a zest he had never -known before. - -His duties had taken him into many parts of the country. In March he was -at the Hague when the Duke of Marlborough returned to resume command of -the forces, and he did not even feel a pang when, a humble member of the -crowd, he saw the great soldier whose forgetfulness or insincerity had -so woefully disappointed him. He knew the potteries of Delft, and the -cheese-factories of Gouda; he had heard the great organ of Haarlem, and -the sweet carillons of Antwerp, and practised skating for the first time -on a frozen arm of the Y. Finding it difficult to get on without a -knowledge of Dutch, the only language understood by his teamsters and -the country people, he had thrown himself energetically into the study -of the language; and he had, besides, picked up a smattering of everyday -German phrases from one of his men, a German Swiss. After his natural -British diffidence in adventuring on a foreign tongue had worn off, he -delighted to air his new accomplishment with the comely juffrouws whom -he met in the course of his journeys. He dropped into the routine of -the business so rapidly that Mynheer Grootz once told him he was a born -merchant--a compliment which, to his own surprise, did not give the -least shock to his dignity. - -His intelligence and energy completely won the old Dutchman's -confidence, and more than once he had been entrusted with the delivery -of supplies to the army in the field. It was not always possible for -the military authorities to furnish convoys for these consignments, and -they were therefore usually accompanied by well-armed men to guard -against the danger of surprise by robbers and freebooters. Many small -bands of outlaws were abroad in Holland and Germany, taking advantage of -the disturbed state of the country to prey upon the inhabitants, under -the pretence of making requisitions for one or other of the contending -forces. These marauders terrorized the remoter districts. Hitherto -Harry had been fortunate in avoiding any danger of this character. -Grootz was as phlegmatic and silent as ever, but he showed in his quiet -way that he was pleased with the lad's unvarying diligence and success. - -Harry woke early. The sun was bright but the air cool, and he felt full -of vigour, eager to set off on this the longest expedition he had yet -taken. Mynheer Grootz was a bachelor, and his breakfast-table was -served by a buxom old housekeeper who, after a brief season of jealousy, -had capitulated to Harry's cheerfulness and courtesy. At breakfast the -merchant in his slow, ponderous manner repeated his customary warnings -to Harry to guard against surprise, and to be punctilious about getting -a formal receipt for his supplies from the commissary of the force to -which they were to be delivered. - -"Here is de paper," he said, handing it to Harry. "Make him sign it; he -may be a count or marquis or someding of de sort, and I trust none of -dem." - -Harry laughed. "Put not your trust in princes" seemed to be the prime -motto of his host's business career. - -"Very well, Mynheer," he said. - -"And here is a packet I wish you to deliver. Not for de army, dis; no; -it is for a vrient of mine dat live a few miles dis side of Helmund. I -promised her a tulip bulb; dis is it." - -He handed to Harry a small packet, on which the address was written. - -"The Comtesse de Vaudrey," he read aloud. "That is a French name?" - -"Ja! De lady is French, a widow, of a family dat had to leave France -because of the persecutions. She is French, but a vrient alzo. If you -need help, she will give it." - -"I hope she is not a very great lady. I have met no lady here higher in -rank than a burgomaster's vrouw, and I thought she rather looked down on -me." - -"The comtesse is mine vrient," repeated Grootz in a tone that implied -there was no more to be said. - -A few minutes afterwards they left the breakfast-room. At the outer door -ten empty wagons were already waiting with their drivers, and as Harry -prepared to mount to his place on the foremost, Sherebiah came up with -the remains of his breakfast in his hand. Grootz repeated his warnings; -Harry smiled and waved his good-bye to Gretel the housekeeper, who stood -at the door with her hands folded in front of her ample person, and the -line of carts moved off. - -The Harry Rochester in charge of the convoy was a different being from -the pale thin youth who had left England four months before. His work -had had the effect of hardening his muscles and developing his physique; -and constant exposure to the air and sun had browned his cheeks and -brightened his eye. But Sherebiah presented a still greater contrast. -From the moment of landing on Dutch soil he had ceased to shave, with -the result that his lips and cheeks and chin were now covered with a -thick growth of stiff brown hair. Harry did not like the change, but -when he asked the reason of this departure from old habit Sherebiah -merely said that he had concluded shaving to be a waste of time. The -reply was hardly satisfactory, but Sherebiah was never communicative -unless he wished to be so, and Harry let the matter drop. - -The roads were heavy, and the horses were of the large-limbed variety -that spell endurance rather than pace. Empty as the wagons were, only -twenty miles were made that day, and Harry decided to stay for the night -at the Crown Inn at Breda. The town was garrisoned by four battalions -of infantry, four regiments of cavalry, and a regiment of dragoons, and -it was for these that the supplies were required. Harry sought out the -commissary, and promising to deliver the goods within two days, went for -a stroll through the town, leaving Sherebiah to bespeak supper at the -inn. He roamed through the winding streets, one of which ended with a -windmill; admired the warm-toned old house-fronts; William the Third's -chateau, encircled by the river Merk; and the fine Hervormde Kerk, with -its lofty octagon tower and bulbous spire. On returning to the inn he -was met by Sherebiah in some excitement. - -"What med 'ee think, sir? Who'd 'ee believe I ha' seed?" - -"Well?" - -"John Simmons, sir, large as life." - -"Captain Aglionby's man--the man who got a crack on the head on the -Roman road?" - -"The very same." - -"I have often wondered how he managed to escape from old Nokes the -constable. 'Twas whispered that the captain himself had a hand in it. -I suppose he came to this country for safety." - -"Ay, not for riches, so 'twould seem," replied Sherebiah rather -hurriedly. "A' was down at heel, more like a ragged vagrom than the -smart soul as drank his pint at the Berkeley Arms. Mother Joplady -couldn' abide un." - -"Did he see you?" - -"Not him. Nor I don't want to see un, the mumpen cockney.--Supper's -ready, sir." - -Next morning Harry proceeded with his convoy along the Eyndhoven road -and arrived late at his destination, Helmund. Almost the whole of the -following day was occupied in loading his wagons and procuring extra -carts to carry the stores collected by Grootz's client, Peter Kolp. At -his first interview with that "poor friend" of Mynheer Grootz, Harry -made it clear that, as a matter of form, the provisions would be -carefully tested in quality and quantity, with the result that they were -found to be excellent and full weight. It was four o'clock before he -was ready to start for Breda. He followed a different route on his -return journey. Madame de Vaudrey's house, Lindendaal, lay on the upper -road toward Boxtel--a safer road to travel, as a report had come in that -the French had made their appearance near Turnhout, to the south, and -were coming apparently in the direction of Eyndhoven. - -Unluckily, the convoy had proceeded only a few miles on its return to -Breda when, as it was crossing the Aa river, one of the horses took -fright and toppled the cart into the water. Fortunately the stream was -sluggish and shallow, but Harry saw that it would take some time to -extricate the wagon from the mud and collect what part of its load was -worth saving. Leaving Piet Brinker in charge of the work, he decided to -push on himself with the remainder of the convoy, deliver the packet he -carried for Madame de Vaudrey, and wait for the rescued wagon to -overtake him. He knew that, with the hospitality universal in Holland, -the countess would not allow him to proceed unrefreshed, and he was in -truth not a little glad of the opportunity of seeing the lady whom -Grootz had so emphatically called his friend. He therefore drove on. -The wagon wheels ploughed deep furrows in the heavy sandy roads, and the -big Dutch horses plodded on steadily but slowly. The road wound by and -by through avenues of elms, pruned of their branches in the Dutch way, -and looking to Harry's English eyes very starved and ugly. At length he -came to a wall on the right that appeared to enclose a park of some -considerable size. A peasant was passing, whom he hailed, asking in -Dutch whether this was the house of Madame de Vaudrey. The man looked -stolidly at him without replying. Sherebiah repeated the question, -using a different phrase. The Hollander answered at once that this -certainly was Lindendaal, the chateau of the French lady. Harry sprang -from his wagon, ordered the drivers to draw up by the side of the road, -which was here parallel with a narrow canal, and entered the gate -accompanied by Sherebiah. - -"I'll tell you one thing that puzzles me, Sherry," he remarked, as they -passed up an avenue bounded on both sides by a breast-high balustrade of -stone. "You and I have been in this country the same time, and seen -each as much as the other of the people, and yet you have beat me -altogether in picking up the language, hard as I have worked at it. I -don't understand it." - -"Ah well, Master Harry," said Sherebiah, "'tis like that sometimes, so -'tis. You be a scholard, with book larnen and all that; I be, true, a -poor common mortal, but mebbe my ear be quicker 'n some." - -"Still, the time is rather short for you to have learnt to speak the -language so well as you do. Your knowledge has grown as quickly as your -beard." - -"True now, mebbe so; Samson in the Holy Book growed amazen clever wi' -his locks; but I never thowt afore as how it med be the same in these -days." - -Harry laughed. - -"It looks very English, doesn't it?" he said, pointing to the house. It -was square, with a veranda painted blue, under which were several -windows opening to the ground. In front was an open semicircular space, -around which were parterres of brilliant flowers; these were separated -from the park and orchard by a prolongation of the balustrades that -lined the drive. There were dormer windows in the roof, and at one -angle rose a kind of belfry surmounted by a weathercock. - -"Give me the packet, Sherry; you had better remain at the door while I -go in." - -"Ay, or mebbe I med find my lone way to the kitchen?" - -"No, no; remain at the door until I have seen Madame de Vaudrey. I -can't have you coquetting with her maids." - -Harry went to the door, which stood open, the afternoon having been -warm. A spare, anxious-looking man-servant came in answer to his ring. - -"Is Madame de Vaudrey within?" he asked in Dutch. - -The man's accent when he replied in the affirmative left no doubt that -he was a Frenchman. Harry explained his errand in French, whereupon the -man said in the same language that his mistress was for the moment -engaged, but that if Monsieur would wait no doubt she would see him -shortly. He led Harry through the wide hall, up a handsome oak -staircase into a little ante-room, where, begging him to be seated, he -shut the door upon the visitor. - -Harry was immediately aware of voices engaged in conversation on the -other side of the folding-doors that formed one wall of the room. At -first the sounds came to him as murmurs in different tones, but after a -time they became louder, and though he could not distinguish the words -it was plain that one at least of the speakers was very angry. At -length he heard the fierce clanging of a bell below; a few moments -after, the manservant came running into the ante-room and threw open the -folding-doors. Harry, looking into what was evidently the drawing-room, -saw a group of four. One was clearly the lady of the house, short, -stout, dressed in a costume little resembling the Dutch housewife's -usual attire. She was very angry, talking vehemently, and gesticulating -with her plump white hand. By her side stood a younger lady, half a -head taller, slim and graceful, perfectly still and collected, though -her cheeks were flushed. Opposite to the two ladies, their backs to the -four windows which lit the other end of the room, were two men, one very -tall and lean, with thin lips. The other was but little shorter and a -good deal stouter. Harry's attention had been at first attracted to the -ladies; the burlier of the two men was the last of the four to be -noticed; and it was with a shock of amazement that he recognized in his -figure and blotched red face no other than Captain Aglionby. - -"Allez-vous-en, allez-vous-en!" the elder lady was repeating. "Quittez -ma maison, tout de suite; je vous l'ordonne, je l'exige, je le veux -absolument; retirez-vous, messieurs, d'ici, et au plus vite!" - -Aglionby laughed. None of the four had yet caught sight of Harry -standing back in the darker ante-room. The lady turned to the manservant -and ordered him to eject the unwelcome visitors. The servant hesitated -to attempt a task clearly beyond his strength. Aglionby put his hand on -his sword, and then laughed again brutally as he recognized that he had -nothing to fear. All the time the taller man stood quietly watching the -scene, occasionally moistening his lips; and the girl remained in the -same tense immobility, her eyes never leaving the face of Aglionby. - -Harry felt it was time to intervene. - -"Perhaps I may be allowed--" he began. At the first word the captain -swung round as if on a pivot and stared. His puffed crimson face turned -a sea-green as he saw advancing towards him, fresh, lithe, confident, -the youth whom he fondly imagined by this time leading a slave's life in -a Barbados plantation. The other man did not stir; but the two ladies -looked towards the speaker with a sort of startled surprise. Stepping -towards the elder, Harry continued: - -"Perhaps I may be allowed to offer my services. If Madame will be so -good as to retire, I will--reason with these gentlemen." - -Madame de Vaudrey clasped her hands and looked indecisively at the -new-comer, as though doubting the propriety of accepting the -intervention of a stranger. Harry was on the point of explaining who he -was, when the matter was settled in an unexpected way. The girl moved -to her mother's side and took her by the hand. Then, turning to Harry, -she said in clear, cold tones: - -"If Monsieur will rid the house of these two men he will do my mother a -great service. Come, Mamma!" And then, without another glance at any -of the three, she led Madame de Vaudrey, still half-resisting, from the -room. - -The colour had been gradually returning to Aglionby's face, and when the -ladies had disappeared his purple hue was deeper than ever. But the -surprise of Harry's presence was so great that for the moment the -doughty captain was nonplussed; his anger was at boiling-point, but he -was clearly at a loss what course to take. His companion stood -expectant, a slight smile still on his face--a smile rendered peculiarly -disagreeable by a twitching of the mouth that drew one corner -perceptibly upwards towards the left ear. - -The interval of silence seemed longer than it really was. - -"I am sure, gentlemen," said Harry with great urbanity, "you will see -the propriety of at once relieving Madame de Vaudrey of your presence." - -Then the storm broke. Glaring with rage, unable to stand still, -stuttering in his speech, Aglionby roared: - -"You insolent puppy, you low-born cully, you--how dare you speak to me! -What are you doing here? Stap me, I'll run you through the midriff and -rid the world of a bit of vermin!" - -"I shall be delighted to give you an opportunity--outside," said Harry -quietly. "Meanwhile, the door is open, and by making your exit you will -please not Madame de Vaudrey only, but me and, it appears, yourself." - -"Adsbud, I'll--I'll----" stuttered Aglionby, half drawing his sword. -Harry had his right hand on the hilt of his own weapon, the third man -was still watching the scene, when an unlooked-for diversion occurred. -Harry was between the two rooms, the two men opposite him with their -backs to the drawing-room windows, which were open. It happened that a -flight of steps led up from the garden to a balcony beneath these -windows. At this critical moment a fourth man came suddenly into the -room from the outside. Before any of the three could perceive what was -happening, the new-comer, with a long acrobatic spring, simultaneously -imprisoned in his arms the necks of Aglionby and his companion, and -half-throttling them dragged them past Harry, through the ante-room, -into the corridor, and down the staircase. Harry followed, himself -somewhat amazed at their helter-skelter progress--bumping down the -stairs, struggling vainly in Sherebiah's vice-like grip, swaying against -the balusters first on one side then on the other, the wood-work -creaking and groaning under the pressure. Half-way down the men lost -their feet altogether, and were incapable of resisting the rush with -which their captor hauled them across the vestibule and through the open -door, where he pulled up with a sudden jerk and shot them down the -flight of shallow steps on to the drive in front. The whole proceeding -scarcely occupied more than half a minute, so sudden had been the onset, -so helpless were the two men, gasping half-strangled in Sherebiah's -merciless hug. - -Harry ran down the stairs, expecting to find his man engaged in a battle -royal before the house. But when he reached the door he saw Aglionby -and the Frenchman already halfway down the drive towards the road. They -had not waited, then, to demand satisfaction of him. Smiling at his -recollection of their headlong descent, he went upstairs again, and was -met by Madame de Vaudrey, who had come from another room at the sound of -scuffling. She was very pale. - -"They are gone, Madame," said Harry at once, to reassure her. - -"Oh, Monsieur, I thank you, I thank you with good heart! Your help at -the precise moment was so precious. I cannot thank you too much." - -"It was my servant, Madame--a very useful fellow. He did it all himself. -I am glad we happened to be at hand. This unforeseen incident has -prevented me, Madame, from explaining my presence here. I have called -to leave a packet entrusted to me by Mynheer Grootz, a friend of yours, -I think." - -"Oh! it is my tulip bulb. Mynheer Grootz promised to send it me. Yes, -he is a friend of mine indeed. But are those men really gone? Will -they not overpower your brave servant? They are bad men--oh, they are -bad! I fear them." - -"I saw them going down the drive. And my man knows how to take care of -himself," said Harry. "They will not trouble you again at present. And -now, Madame, as I have Mynheer Grootz's packet in the ante-room, if you -will allow me to place it in your hands I will take my leave and proceed -on my way." - -"Mon Dieu, non!" cried the lady. "You must allow me to give you some -refreshment, and your brave man too--if he is really safe! Jean," she -called to the servant, "bring wine and cakes and fruit to the -drawing-room. But first see if this gentleman's servant is safe." - -"He is, Madame," replied the man at once. "The men from the stables and -the garden were coming to the door: Mademoiselle had fetched them: and -they were too many for Monsieur de Polignac and the other." - -"How thankful I am! Bring the brave man up with you. Now, Monsieur--I -do not know your name?" - -"It is Harry Rochester, Madame; I am English." - -"Indeed! Come into the drawing-room and rest. Jean will bring -something to eat and drink immediately." - -She led the way into the room, gave Harry a comfortable chair, and sat -opposite to him, folding her plump hands on her lap, and heaving a sigh -of satisfaction and relief. The servant soon reappeared with a tray, -and when Madame de Vaudrey had seen Harry supplied with drink and food -that pleased him, she dismissed her man, read the letter Mynheer Grootz -had enclosed with his gift, and began to talk. - -"You are English? That is interesting. My dear husband's mother was -English, so that my daughter has a little--a very little, of -course--English blood in her. I cannot tell you how thankful I am that -you came when you did. That is also another debt I owe to Mynheer -Grootz. He writes very amiable things of you. I was at my wits' end, -Monsieur Rochestair; I will tell you about it.--Do you like that wine?" - -"Thank you, it is excellent." - -"I am so glad! You speak French very well for an Englishman. My -daughter wishes to learn English. She takes after her father, not after -me. I wonder where she is?" - -Harry followed her glance to the door; he too had wondered what had -become of the tall girl who had shown so much decisiveness of character -at an awkward moment. But she did not appear. - -"Well," continued the amiable hostess, "let me tell you all about it." - -Mynheer Grootz's recommendation was clearly a passport to her favour. -She leant back in her high chair, and in her clear, well-modulated voice -told Harry what he was, it must be confessed, curious to hear. It was -three years since her husband, the Comte de Vaudrey, died. He was a -student, not a man of affairs; and his fortune suffered through his lack -of business-like qualities. The estate, a small one, purchased by his -father when as a Huguenot he fled from France at the revocation of the -Edict of Nantes, was now much encumbered. Monsieur de Vaudrey had -bought the best perspective glasses and other expensive scientific -instruments, had spent large sums on rare books and specimens, and had -so embarrassed himself that he had to apply to the Amsterdam bankers, -who advanced him money on a mortgage of the estate. Not long afterwards -he died. - -"It is only a year ago," continued Madame de Vaudrey, "that we learnt -that we were to have a neighbour. The estate adjoining our own had been -in the market for many years, and we heard that it had at last been -purchased by a Monsieur de Polignac, a Frenchman, and a Huguenot like -ourselves. We were rejoiced at the news; a neighbour of our own race -and faith would be so charming, we thought. And so indeed he was, at -first. I thought his visits to his estate too few; he was so often at -the Hague; when he came to see us he was so debonair, so gracious, that -I liked him well. With my daughter, quite the contrary. It was -prejudice, I told her; but from the first she looked on him coldly. -Then all at once he became a more frequent visitor, and I saw--yes, a -mother's eyes are keen--that he had pretensions to my daughter's hand. -I did not oppose him; he was rich, noble, a Huguenot; but Adele--certes, -Monsieur Rochestair, no maiden could ever have given less encouragement. -The first time he was refused he smiled--he does not look well when he -smiles, think you?--and said that he would still hope. But though I -thought the match a good one, I would not persuade my daughter: she is -all I have, Monsieur, and so young. He went away; then a few days ago I -am astonished to see him reappear in company with Captain Aglionby, who -is visiting him. Now first I begin really to dislike Monsieur de -Polignac." - -"Did you know Captain Aglionby before, then?" asked Harry in surprise. - -"Yes; that is why. I know him, and I think no friend of his can be a -good man. Captain Aglionby stayed for a month in this house some five -years ago. No, he was not a welcome guest; he was brought here to -recover from a wound he had received in a skirmish near by; ah, -Monsieur, he is an odious man! I hate his loud voice, his turbulence, -his rodomontade; imagine, three times, Monsieur, three times he -intoxicated himself in my house, and excused himself with the plea that -he had done so many times with the Czar of Muscovy. He used to force -himself into my husband's study, meddle with his things, spoil his -scientific experiments--my husband was discovering a plan to get gold -from sea-water, and we should have been so rich! But the odious captain -ruined all. I am sure he did, for the experiments came to nothing." - -"Why did you put up with it?" - -"Alas! what could we do? My husband was a man of tranquil soul who had -lived so long with his books that he could not deal with men. As for -me--you see me, a poor helpless woman! and Adele was then only eleven! -judge then my surprise and alarm when I see Captain Aglionby in company -with Monsieur de Polignac. Still more to-day, when Monsieur de Polignac -comes once more to urge his suit. Adele refuses him with scorn. And -then--oh, the villain!--he tells me he has bought from the Jews of -Amsterdam the mortgage on this estate, and if Adele will not be his -wife, then he turns us out--think of it, Monsieur; turns two defenceless -women out. This it is that changes me, a weak woman, into a fury, as you -see." - -Harry forbore to smile at Madame de Vaudrey's placid impersonation of a -fury. - -"They are a couple of villains indeed," he said. "It was truly -fortunate that I came with Sherebiah at the right moment." - -"Yes, indeed; a thousand thanks! And only think of it: just before you -came Captain Aglionby, odious man, had dared to hint that when we were -thrust out of our home he would do me the honour to marry me. Truly an -honour! No, I never forget my dear husband; no, never! Ah, this is the -dear brave man, your servant?" - -The door had opened, and Sherebiah came in awkwardly, turning his hat -between his hands. Madame de Vaudrey rose and, smiling upon him, said: - -"I give you a thousand thanks. You are a hero; how strong! how bold!" - -Sherebiah bobbed. - -"Madame de Vaudrey thanks you," said Harry. - -"'Tis handsome of the lady, sir, and I'm obleeged, and axes you to put -my sarvices into French lingo, sir." - -He bobbed again. - -"What about Captain Aglionby?" asked Harry. - -"Well, sir, I reckon he be madder than a March hare. Nigh to bust -hisself, and hot as pepper. Would ha' slashed me, man o' peace as I be, -if 'tweren't for half a dozen Dutch coofs wi' pitchforks and other -articles o' warfare drawn up below, wi' the young lady at their head. -Ay, she be a warrior bold, sure enough: I never seed such a piece of -female manliness all my life long. 'Twas with a flashen eye and a pink -rose on each pretty cheek her stood and ordered 'em out. Ay, an -uncommon upstanden piece o' womankind her be, to be sure." - -Harry was glad that Madame de Vaudrey's ignorance of English could not -fathom this plain-spoken tribute to her daughter's charms. - -"They are really gone, then?" he said. - -"Why, yes, both on 'em; the long beetle chap as well. He be a next-door -neighbour, it seems, and a mighty unpleasant neighbour he must -be.--Thank 'ee kindly, mum," he added, as Madame de Vaudrey offered him -a glass of wine, "but if 'ee don't mind, I'd rather wet my whistle with -a mug of beer in the kitchen." - -The lady smiled when this was interpreted. - -"You English are like the Hollanders in that," she said. "Certainly. -Jean, take the brave man to the kitchen and treat him well." - -Sherebiah pulled his forelock and departed with alacrity. - -"We must shortly be going on our way, Madame," said Harry. "I have a -convoy of provisions for the garrison at Breda, and my wagoners are even -now growing impatient, I doubt not." - -"But, Monsieur, I cannot hear of it. You cannot reach Breda to-night; -and suppose those odious men return? You must be tired. Do me the -favour to stay here for the night; and we can find a bed for your man -also." - -"But the wagons?" - -"Let them go on to the village; it is but half a league away. They can -remain at the inn there. Monsieur, I insist; and besides, I have to -write a letter of thanks to my friend Mynheer Grootz." - -Harry had no reason for refusing an invitation so cordial. Madame de -Vaudrey beamed when he accepted, and, begging to be excused, went off to -make arrangements with her servants. Left to himself, Harry looked -round the room. It was richly furnished; the tables, cabinets, and -chairs were of French make, in highly polished rose-wood; chairs and -sofas were covered with crimson velvet, and two cabinets were filled -with beautiful porcelain and Dutch china. The pictures upon the walls -were all French, except one--a portrait, evidently by a Dutch hand and -of a comparatively recent date. It represented a man's head, with dark -complexion and wistful melancholy eyes. Harry was attracted to it by a -slight resemblance to his father; not in the features, which were quite -unlike, but in the curious sadness of the expression. His thoughts were -carried back to his old home at Winton St. Mary, and the quiet life with -his father there; a mist came before his eyes, and he fell into a -reverie, standing thus before the picture. - -So rapt was he in recollection that he did not hear the door open behind -him, nor turn to see the entrance of Adele de Vaudrey. For a moment the -girl stood in the doorway, holding the handle. An onlooker would have -seen a strange shifting of expression upon her face as she paused in -hesitation whether to advance or retire, to speak or to remain silent. -It was but for a moment; her lips softened, her long lashes drooped down -upon her eyes; and closing the door as noiselessly as she had opened it -she slipped away. - - - - - *CHAPTER X* - - *Bluff* - - -A Stroll--A Fair Cook--Love and Duty--An Arrival--General van -Santen--Raiders--A Dozen all Told--Rallying the Peasants--Desperate -Counsels--The Masqueraders--Strategy--A Ruse de Guerre--Stage -Effects--Final Touches--In Sight--At the Door--Ransom--A Turn of the -Screw--Phantom Forces--Dilemma--Discretion--Courtesies - - -"Ah, my dear Monsieur Rochestair, pardon me for leaving you so long. I -have been to prepare your room." - -"Thank you indeed, Madame!" - -"You were looking at the portrait? It is my dear husband. Is it not a -fine head? Can you imagine, after seeing it, that I could put that -odious captain in his place? Not that I should think every man bad -unless he resembled my husband. No, that would be unjust. But come and -see my garden, Monsieur Rochestair. It is beautiful outside now that -the sun is going down." - -"I shall be delighted. I have noticed how the scent of the flowers -comes to us here through the windows." - -"Yes, I love flowers. Mynheer Grootz knows that." - -Madame conducted Harry through the grounds. They were laid out with -more freedom than was usual in Holland, and reminded him at many a turn -of well-tended parks at home. The house was surrounded by its garden; -beyond this was an expanse of lawn and thin park bounded by a wall. -Beyond this again, Madame de Vaudrey explained, lay the orchard -belonging to the far larger estate now owned by Monsieur de Polignac. -At a considerable distance from the house on the eastern side Harry -remarked a large open stretch of ground, roughly circular in shape, -covered with grass that grew wild and was left uncropt, Across the -middle of it ran a ditch, now apparently dry, passing under the garden -wall and the road, and evidently connected with the canal. Near to the -spot where the ditch disappeared beneath the wall stood a large -dilapidated building, like the storehouse usually attached to a Dutch -mill. - -"You wonder at our neglect of this part of the grounds," said the lady -with a smile. "But that is our skating pond. In winter we open the -sluices at the canal end of the ditch; it fills, the water overflows, -and thus we flood the field. Then comes the frost, and we have, I think, -the finest skating pond in Holland, and quite safe. We used to hold -tournaments, people came from miles around; but alas! since this -terrible war has recommenced we have almost forgotten those pleasant -sports of winter. I do hope it will soon come to an end. I never could -understand what men are fighting about. My dear husband used to speak -of the balance of power; the French king wishes to rule everybody, he -told me; certainly King Louis is a bad man; he has behaved disgracefully -to us poor Huguenots; and I dare say you English are quite right in -helping the Dutch to punish him. But war is so terrible. My dear -husband was trying to invent something that would enable one army to -make another army senseless without killing them; I know nothing about -it, but the idea was excellent; and if the truth were known I dare say -it was that odious Captain Aglionby who spoilt that too." - -Thus the good lady kept chattering to Harry as she conducted him over -her little estate. The evening was drawing rapidly in; a light mist was -rising, and Madame shivered a little as she turned back towards the -house. A moment afterwards her daughter met her. - -"Mother," she said, "you should not be out in the damp air. You know it -is bad for you." - -"Yes, my dear," replied Madame de Vaudrey, submitting to be enwrapped in -a large woollen shawl which her daughter's fair hands wound about her -head and shoulders. "I have been showing Monsieur Rochestair our little -property--alas! soon to be ours no more. I told Monsieur why, Adele." - -The girl's cheeks flushed, but she said nothing. - -"I did not tell you, Madame," said Harry, "that I happen to know -something of Captain Aglionby." - -"Indeed! nothing but what is perfectly odious, I am sure." - -"I have reason to believe that he was concerned in an attempt to ship me -to our plantations in Barbados. My man tells me----" - -"Monsieur," interrupted the girl, "my mother is subject to chills. You -are staying with us to-night; will you hasten to the house with my -mother and tell us the story at supper?" - -"With pleasure, Mademoiselle." - -Harry felt a little in awe of this very decisive young lady, with her -scornful lip and clear uncompromising tones. She hurried in advance to -the house, and was waiting in the panelled dining-room when the others -appeared. The table looked very inviting with its spotless napery, -shining plate, and vases of flowers, and Harry found the meal much to -his taste after the plain fare of Dutch hostelries. Besides such staple -viands as Westphalian ham and bag-puddings--one variety of these, filled -with raisins and spices, was excellent--there were dainty French -dishes--confections of fruit and cream which surprised even Madame la -Comtesse. - -"Ah, you rogue!" she exclaimed; "I see now where you hid yourself this -afternoon." - -"Mademoiselle likes cooking?" Harry ventured to say. - -"By no means, Monsieur, I dislike it exceedingly." - -"Oh!" - -"I knew we had nothing ready, Mamma," added the girl, "and you would not -have liked Monsieur to think little of your hospitality." - -During the meal Harry gave the ladies an account of himself, speaking of -his early hopes and ambitions, his disappointments, the vain waiting for -a message from Marlborough, the strange animus of the squire, the -kidnapping, the interposition of Mynheer Grootz. His hearers were -deeply interested; even Mademoiselle, though she said little, and seemed -to curl her pretty lip when her mother's curiosity or indignation showed -itself in little vivacious exclamations,--Mademoiselle kept her eyes -fixed on Harry as he spoke, though whenever he happened to glance -towards her she was looking away and appeared unconcerned. - -"Ah, there now!" cried the comtesse, when Harry mentioned, without a -trace of bitterness, Marlborough's failure to keep his promise; "that is -my lord duke's character. He is mean, he is selfish, he loves no one but -himself." - -"And the duchess," put in Harry. - -"But that is his duty. It is his duty to love his wife. I did not say -he was a monster." - -"Did you love papa from duty?" asked Adele simply. - -"I never said that, Adele. Of course it is a woman's duty to love her -husband, but your dear father was so good, so kind, so fond of me that -no one could help loving him." - -"Mynheer Grootz is good and kind, but you don't love him." - -Madame de Vaudrey flushed. - -"You say such odd things, Adele. I can't think how it is. I never said -such things when I was a girl. Mynheer Grootz is good, and kind; you -are right; and if it were my duty----" - -"Oh, Mamma," cried Adele, "do forget the word duty! I am sure none of us -either loves or hates from duty.--Would Monsieur like some strawberries -and cream?" - -Harry went to bed that night very well pleased with himself, his -hostess, and her daughter. He liked the little, simple, talkative -countess; he was piqued by Adele's reserve, coolness, indifference--he -hardly knew what to call it; the something which seemed to indicate that -Harry Rochester was a creature far too insignificant for the notice of -Mademoiselle Adele de Vaudrey. "And she is clever, too," he thought. -"Faith, how she sent Aglionby to the right-about! Polignac is a -scoundrel; what will they do if he turns them out? And how did he come -across Aglionby? She will not marry him, at any rate; that's one -comfort." - -It is very unromantic, but the truth must be told. Thoughts of Adele did -not keep Harry one instant from sleep. His bed was a dark -mysterious-looking box, with brown damask curtains drawn closely round -it. Withdrawing the curtains, he saw a magnificent quilt of crimson -satin, snowy sheets, a lace-trimmed pillow. He scrambled up, barking -his legs against the high boards composing the sides, and the moment he -laid his head on the pillow forgot Aglionby, Marlborough, Adele, and -duty. - -When Madame de Vaudrey bade good-night to her daughter she said: - -"Eh bien, fillette; je l'aime, le bel Anglais. Il est brave, -intelligent, modeste, parfaitement aimable, n'est-ce pas?" - -"Oh, petite maman, que voulez-vous? Est-ce que je _dois_ l'aimer, moi -aussi?" - -And kissing her mother on both cheeks Adele ran off laughing. - -Harry was awakened in the morning by the loud singing of the birds. He -had left his window wide open, and the scent of flowers and perfume from -the fir wood at the extremity of the estate gave him fragrant greeting. -He sprang out of bed, and stood at the window inhaling the luscious -odours, listening to the song of the birds and the incessant hoarse -croak of the frogs, gazing at the grass glistening with dew. "I should -like a week's holiday here," he thought. "Ay me! it is breakfast, and -then for Breda!" - -But he had only just left his room when he heard below a violent -clanging of the bell, followed by a strange voice speaking in the hall, -and a hasty running to and fro. Hurrying downstairs, he met Adele de -Vaudrey at the foot of the staircase. - -"Come with me, Monsieur," she said the moment she saw him. "Mamma is -not down yet." - -She preceded him through the hall door, at which he now saw a light -calash drawn up, and behind it ten horses, nine of them sat by Dutch -dragoons, the tenth being the steed of the soldier who stood at the -door, and whose voice it was that Harry had heard. From the horses, -clouds of vapour rose into the fresh morning air; the pace had evidently -been forced. In the calash were two men: the elder, in the uniform of a -Dutch officer of high rank, reclined on the cushions, half-supported by -a young aide-de-camp seated at his side. He was deathly pale; his eyes -were closed. - -As Mademoiselle de Vaudrey, followed by Harry, came to the door of the -carriage, the aide-de-camp without changing his position addressed her -in Dutch. - -"It is as you see, mejjuffrouw. It is General van Santen; he is -desperately wounded. We hoped to reach Breda, but the general swooned a -few minutes ago and I dare not drive farther." - -"Bring him in at once," said Adele. "The soldiers can lift him. Never -mind about explanations now. One of the soldiers must ride on to the -village for the meester; it is only half a league. Monsieur," she -added, addressing Harry in her quick, decisive tones, "assist; I will -warn Mamma." - -She ran back into the house. The inanimate general was carefully -carried into the hall. He was a fine soldierly man, with a strong -rugged face of English rather than Dutch cast. Harry remembered that -Mynheer Grootz had mentioned General van Santen as a friend of his, and -one of the ablest and most trusted of the lieutenants of William of -Orange. Madame de Vaudrey had by this time come from above, and stood -in pale expectation. The general was laid upon a sofa in the -reception-room, and Adele had already provided a basin of water and a -bottle of smelling-salts with which she endeavoured to revive the -wounded officer. - -"What is it?" cried Madame de Vaudrey, who had left these ministrations -to the hands of her capable daughter. - -The aide-de-camp explained that General van Santen had left the Duke of -Marlborough's camp late at night on his way to the Hague. In the faint -dawn he had suddenly come upon a French raiding-party which had -apparently made a dash from Lierre. It was known that Tserclaes had -advanced from the main French army in order to protect Antwerp. The -general had dashed through with his men, but not rapidly enough to -escape a bullet which had lodged in his groin. With great difficulty he -had kept the saddle as far as the next village; but there, exhausted by -the effort and by loss of blood, he had been placed in a hastily -prepared carriage and driven on in the hope of arriving at Breda in time -to warn the garrison. His wound had proved even more serious than was -supposed; he had lost consciousness, and his aide-de-camp had deemed it -necessary to halt at the first house and ask for assistance. - -"In what direction are the raiders coming?" asked Harry. - -"In this direction, Mynheer," replied the aide-de-camp. - -"And how far away were they when this happened?" - -"About ten miles." - -"So they may be here within an hour?" - -"If they ride on at once, but they will probably stop to plunder." - -"Can they be checked?" - -"Alas, Mynheer! there is no force near at hand." - -"Surely they will raise the country?" - -"But they are mounted, and the country people cannot cope with them. -Even if the news is carried to Helmund there are none but burghers -there, and they are useless against cavalry, except behind their own -walls." - -"And how many do the raiders number?" - -"More than a hundred, as I judge, Mynheer." - -Madame de Vaudrey stood in agitated silence while this rapid colloquy -was in progress. Adele was still bathing the wounded man's temples; no -one present had sufficient knowledge to attempt more than the roughest -of means to bind the wound. In a few minutes the general opened his -eyes. - -"Where am I?" he asked, feebly. - -"In the house of Madame de Vaudrey," said that lady. - -"How far from where I was shot?" - -"Only a few miles," replied the aide-de-camp. - -"Then someone must ride to Breda for help, and take my despatches. They -must be at the Hague to-night." - -"I will write a note to the commandant," said the aide-de-camp, "and -send one of the troopers." - -"No, no, lieutenant, you must ride yourself. I can't trust the -despatches to a trooper." - -"But I do not care to leave you, general." - -"It is my wish. The enemy can only capture me, but they may do -unheard-of mischief around. Delay no longer: ride fast." - -The exertion of talking was too much for him, and he swooned again. -Loth as he was to go, the aide-de-camp could not ignore the general's -express instructions. Before leaving he took Harry aside and asked him -to consider himself in command of the troopers. - -"You're not strong enough to beat off the enemy," he said, "but it will -be well for the men to have someone to look to in emergency. Don't let -the general fall into the enemy's hands if you can help it." - -Harry hesitated. His first duty was undoubtedly to secure the safety of -the convoy, for the sake both of the Breda garrison and Mynheer Grootz. -On the other hand, he scouted the idea of deserting the ladies in their -predicament. Further, the raiding-party were upon the road behind him; -they had clearly swept round Eyndhoven, avoiding Helmund, and in all -probability were on the heels of the general. Even if he got his convoy -safely away from the village it could only move at a walking pace. In -an hour or two it must be overtaken, and he would thus do no good either -for himself or the ladies by instant flight. He therefore made up his -mind to remain at Lindendaal, and assured the aide-de-camp that he would -do his best. But when the lieutenant had ridden off, and Harry -reflected on the position of the ladies, he thought it worth while to -suggest that they should start at once for Breda in order to be out of -harm's way. Adele answered at once for her mother. - -"Impossible, Monsieur! We cannot leave the general; we will not leave -the house. Consult your own duty." - -Her tone was not to be gainsaid. Harry went into the hall, wondering -what he could do for the best. He met Sherebiah at the door. - -"Eh, sir, 'tis a pretty pickle o' fish." - -"What are we to do, Sherry?" - -"As a man o' peace, I say cut and run." - -"Can't we defend the house?" - -"Wi' ten Dutch dragoons and a gardener and a maid or two? And two -hundred French, so 'tis said!" - -"But men will come in from the villages round." - -"Ay, on foot, and with pitchforks and flails. Not much good against -swords and carbines." - -At that moment a man galloped up from a village some eight miles down -the road, with news that the French were already sacking and burning. -They had first demanded a ransom, and the sum required not being -forthcoming within the short time allowed, they had begun their ruthless -work. A few moments afterwards one of Harry's teamsters rode up on a -cart-horse. He had heard the news from the aide-de-camp as he passed -through the village where the convoy had put up for the night, and come -back to ask for orders. Harry caught at the chance of delay. The -French, it appeared, first demanded a ransom; could they be put off and -time be gained for relief to arrive? The question suggested a plan that -might be tried in default of a better. - -"Ride back, Piet," said Harry, "and bring up the wagons as fast as you -can, and as many of the villagers as you can muster--with arms, if they -have them." - -His idea was to barricade the road; every minute's delay was a minute -gained, and as the news spread he believed that the Hollanders had -courage and spirit enough to strike a blow in defence of their homes. -In point of fact, Piet had hardly departed to fulfil his errand when -Dutchmen came up in ones and twos and threes, some on great lumbering -farm-horses, others on foot, all hastening towards Breda in the hope of -escaping the devouring French behind them. A few had firelocks, some -had bills, others staggered along under the burden of household -valuables they hoped to save from ruin. Harry set Sherebiah to -intercept them all as they came up and to bring them within the grounds, -and as their number swelled he reverted to his original idea of -defending the house. - -It was a counsel of desperation. The house had several entrances, each -one of which must be manned; it was too large to be held by so small a -garrison. The outhouses would afford cover to an attacking force. -Including the ten dragoons, there were only at present fourteen -well-armed men among the ever-growing crowd; he could not improvise -arms, and little effective work was to be expected from an untrained -rabble, however courageous, pitted against regular troops. Further, to -defend the house from within would inevitably lead to its being fired -and blown up, and Madame de Vaudrey would profit not a jot. If the -house was to be saved it must be by preventing the enemy from reaching -it. What chance was there of effectually barring the road against the -raiders? He went out to investigate. - -As he reached the park gate he was met by two men who had just come on -foot from the village. One was a yeoman, the other a soldier belonging -to some infantry regiment--a man probably on furlough. Harry was struck -by the similarity of their costumes. Their hats were almost alike; -their doublets and knee-breeches of similar dark materials; but for the -red collar and the bands around the sleeves, there was very little at a -distance to distinguish the soldier from the civilian. A sudden notion -flashed through Harry's mind. It was a chance in a thousand; the risks -were great; the odds were all against success; but on the other side -there was the imminent danger of destruction to the house, ruin to the -owners, the capture of the Dutch general, and the subsequent burning of -the village. - -"We'll try it," he said to himself. "Sherry, send every man up to the -house, and let me know the instant our wagons appear." - -"Ay, I will, sir.--'Tis a pretty ticklish time o' day for a man o' -peace," he muttered under his breath. - -Harry ran back to the house. The doctor from the village overtook him -on horseback, and they entered together. Mademoiselle de Vaudrey showed -some surprise when she saw Harry, but she made no comment. - -"Mademoiselle," said Harry, "the general is in good hands now. May I -ask your assistance?" - -She gave him a keen glance, rose at once from her knees, and followed -him from the room. - -"Mademoiselle," continued Harry eagerly, "have you any red ribbon, silk, -stuff, anything, in the house?" - -"Perhaps. Why do you ask?" - -"Will you find all that you can, and with your maids sew red bands round -the collars and cuffs of the men?" - -"To make them look like soldiers--is that what you mean?" - -"Yes," replied Harry, delighted that she seized his meaning so quickly. - -"I will do so at once. Send the men to the hall." - -Harry next called up old Jean, and bade him fetch the gardener. When -the man appeared, Harry asked him to gather as many sticks as he could, -by preference wood with the bark on, about five feet in length, and -stack them at the back door. A few minutes afterwards a message reached -him from Sherebiah that the wagons had arrived. He ran upstairs and, -regardless of ceremony, called out: "Mademoiselle de Vaudrey!" - -Adele came out of a room, holding a strip of red ribbon. - -"Mademoiselle," said Harry, "I must go to the gate. Will you make every -unarmed man look as much like a soldier as possible, and see that each -is provided with one of the sticks that the gardener is now collecting?" - -"Yes. Is there anything else?" - -"Is it possible to run up a flag on the belfry-tower?" - -"If you say it is to be done, it shall be done." - -"I do not want the flag hoisted at present; but if you will prepare to -do so----' - -"Very well," interrupted the girl. - -Harry thanked her with a look, and ran downstairs three steps at a time. -He called to one of the dragoons to accompany him, and hastened again to -the gate, meeting on the way several men whom, in obedience to his -instructions, Sherebiah had sent up from the road. - -"Sherry," he said, "ask this fellow if a cavalry troop on the march is -preceded by an advance guard. He won't understand my Dutch." - -"I can tell 'ee that," said Sherebiah instantly. "They do so. A patrol -goos ahead, mebbe a quarter of a mile." - -"Oh! Now, mark my plan. Mademoiselle de Vaudrey is making some of the -Dutchmen look like soldiers; we've no muskets for them, but at a -distance I hope sticks may serve as well. I am going to post these -make-believe soldiers around the wall of the estate among the trees; it -will look as if the orchard and woods are manned. They will remain -concealed until a flag appears on the tower; then their sudden -appearance will, I trust, make an impression." - -"Ay, sir, 'tis famous. But if the patrol gets much past the house, -'twill be labour lost, for they will be near enough to see 'tis all my -eye." - -"Yes, that must be avoided. What can be done?" - -"I tell 'ee, sir. Leave three o' the wagons on the road, half a mile or -so towards the village, where the road bends; I reckon Piet and Hans and -me can keep any French patrol a-diddle-daddlen until the flag runs up. -Then--do 'ee see, sir?--dragoons slip out of copse and trounce the -Frenchmen, Piet and me and Hans draws the wagons across the road: and -there be a barricade." - -"A capital notion! I will leave that to you, then.--Ah! here is a man -from the other direction. He may have news of the enemy." - -A countryman, with his wife and family, had just driven up in a cart. -From him Harry learnt that the French were sacking isolated farms on the -road, and might be expected within the hour. Harry at once went back to -the house, ran up the stairs, and again called for mademoiselle. - -"May I go up to the roof and see if I can descry the enemy?" he asked. - -"I will take you." - -She led the way to the turret stair, and in a few moments Harry stood -upon the roof, whence on fine days a clear prospect for many miles could -have been obtained. The morning was somewhat overcast, and the haze -limited his view. But in one quarter he seemed to see a blackness that -could only arise from the smoke of burning houses. Between him and the -cloud appeared the gables of a house larger than Madame de Vaudrey's -chateau. - -"That belongs to Monsieur de Polignac," said Adele in reply to his -question. - -"The French will come to that first; that will gain a little time for -us." - -At that moment his eye caught the large barn-like building at the -extremity of the Vaudrey estate, just beyond the ditch running into the -canal. In a flash a new idea set his pulse leaping. Hitherto his only -aim had been to delay or daunt the enemy until help could arrive from -Breda or some nearer point. But the recollection of what he had seen -when going round the estate on the previous evening suggested a daring -scheme which made him tingle with excitement. Adele looked at him in -silent curiosity as he stood for a few moments pondering the situation. -Then he turned suddenly to her. - -"Mademoiselle, who opens the sluices of the ditch when you make your -skating-pond?" - -"Jacques the gardener." - -"Thank you! I will go to him." - -He turned at once to descend. As he came to the head of the staircase -he noticed a mass of coloured stuff lying at the foot of the belfry. - -"Ah, the flag!" he said. "Thank you, Mademoiselle!" - -A glance upward assured him that the running-line was in order; then -without another word he went down. Finding the gardener, he hurried -with him to the park entrance. His wagons were drawn up outside. He -ordered three of his teamsters to drive their carts into the thicket -beyond the outbuilding down the road. - -"The enemy will have a rearguard," he said. "As soon as that has well -passed, bring your wagons into the road and block it between the wall -and the canal. I will send a dozen men and two of the dragoons to -remain in hiding with you. Now, Jacques, go to the ditch and open the -sluices. How long will it take to flood the field to a depth of seven -or eight inches?" - -"Not more than half an hour, Monsieur." - -"Very well. Stay; have you a boat anywhere on the estate?" - -"A punt, Monsieur. I go to market in it on the canal." - -"Where is it?" - -"In the old barn yonder, Monsieur." - -"Bring it out and float it in the ditch half-way across the field. Moor -it so that it doesn't drift." - -The man hurried away. - -"'Tis all ready, sir," said Sherebiah, coming up. "The road is blocked -towards the bend, and the men be hidden in the wood. Med I ask, sir, if -shouten would be any use?" - -Harry smiled. - -"We found it useful once, eh, Sherry? Certainly; when you see the flag -go up, the more noise you make the better, especially if you can make a -din with garden tools, or anything of steel." - -"Trust me, sir; I ha'n't served wi' a travellen show for nothen. I'll -show 'em the way, ay sure." - -"Mind, not a movement till you see the flag. Now, to your places." - -He returned once more to the house. Adele met him at the door. - -"I have done all you said. Is there anything more that I can do?" - -"Thank you, Mademoiselle! nothing, I think. I wish to see Madame de -Vaudrey now." - -They went together into the reception-room. The general had recovered -consciousness, and lay prone on the couch. The doctor was at the window -talking to Madame de Vaudrey, who was clearly in a state of intense -agitation. - -"Oh, Monsieur Rochestair," she said as Harry entered, "have they sent -help to us yet?" - -"No, Madame, I fear there has scarcely been time." - -"What shall we do? what shall we do? I fear we shall all be ruined." - -"Pray calm yourself, Madame," said Harry quietly. "Doctor, is it -possible to remove the general to another room?" - -"I do not advise it. He is comfortable; I hope he will sleep." - -"Meester, let us take him to the dining-room," said Adele in Dutch. - -"It would be a pity, and----" - -"Do you wish it, Monsieur?" she interrupted, turning to Harry. - -"Yes, Mademoiselle." - -"Then he shall be removed. Meester, be so good as to have the general -removed at once. The men can lift sofa and all." - -Adele herself called four men in from the front of the house, and the -general was quickly carried across the hall into the dining-room. Harry -was left with the two ladies. - -"Madame," he said, "will you remain here with Mademoiselle? Be seated; -take up your needle-work; try to look as though there were nothing to -fear." - -"How can I? how can I? when every moment I fear to see my house in -flames." - -"Mamma," said Adele, "it is necessary. Monsieur is planning to save us; -we must help him. Come, I will fetch your spinning-wheel. Monsieur, we -will do our best, I give my promise." - -"Thank you, Mademoiselle! When the French arrive, an officer will -enter; I will bring him in here; show no concern; leave the rest to me." - -He went out, sent into the woods all the men who were still about the -house save two of the dragoons, whom he placed in a cloak-room off the -hall. Then he ran up again to the roof. - -Looking eagerly down the road, he caught sight of four horsemen -approaching at a trot. They were about a mile away. Beyond them the -road was concealed from view by a clump of trees. He saw at a glance -that Jacques had fulfilled his instructions to the letter. Where half -an hour before had been a bare field there was now what appeared to be a -broad lake, with a solitary punt floating at about the middle of its -surface. Scanning the boundaries of the estate he failed to descry a -single human figure. He drew a long breath; all his preparations were -complete; what would be the outcome? - -The four riders were drawing nearer, and behind them he now saw the -helmets and lances of the main body. They were as yet too far away for -him to estimate their number. Taking care to keep out of sight himself, -he watched the patrol of four, and saw two of them dismount at the old -barn and enter. - -"They have left Monsieur de Polignac for the present," he said to -himself. "I wonder why." - -After a few minutes the two horsemen emerged from the building, -remounted, and rode on with their companions. Then Harry slipped down -the stairs, instructed old Jean, who was trembling in the hall, to -conduct to the reception-room any soldier who came to the door, and then -walked quietly in and rejoined the ladies. - -"They are coming?" said Adele. - -"Yes. They will be here in a minute." - -Madame de Vaudrey gave a gasp and let her hands fall to her sides. -Adele jumped up, slipped a skein of wool over her mother's hands, sat on -a stool opposite her, and began to wind the wool into a ball. A few -seconds later the clatter of hoofs and the clank of sabres came from -without. Then a heavy tread was heard in the hall, and a loud voice -called for the master of the house. There was a moment's pause; Jean -opened the door, stood on one side, and in a quavering voice announced: - -"Madame, Monsieur demande----" - -His voice broke, he could say no more. The ladies looked up, Madame de -Vaudrey with pale cheeks and twitching lips, Adele with unmoved -countenance and stony stare. After one glance she placidly resumed her -winding; Harry, with his hands in his pockets, strolled over from the -window. - -"Well, my man, what do you want?" he said. - -The sergeant involuntarily saluted. He looked by no means comfortable. -His eyes went from one to another of the silent group. - -"Monsieur--Mesdames----" he began; then, recovering his self-possession -and putting on a swaggering air, he continued: "To resist is vain. The -commandant will decide. I have warned you, Mesdames--Monsieur." - -"It is very good of you," said Harry blandly. "Your boots are marking -the carpet; perhaps you will wait outside." - -The man's cheeks purpled; without another word he abruptly turned and -went out. At the front door he stationed two of his companions, and -rode back to meet the advancing troop, the sounds of whose approach were -now echoed from the surrounding woods. From the window Harry saw the -sergeant make his report to the officer at their head. The commandant -smiled and rode on. Two minutes later his spurs rang on the stone steps, -and Jean showed him into the room. - -"Madame, voila encore un visiteur." - -In obedience to a hint from Adele, Madame de Vaudrey rose and made a -curtsy. Harry smiled as he saw Adele's low mocking obeisance. The -officer doffed his cocked hat, laid it with both hands upon his heart, -and bowed. - -"Madame--Mademoiselle--Monsieur," he said. - -He was a tall, stout, florid man of some forty years, with large nose -and bloated cheeks. His costume was very rich, plentifully bedecked -with gold lace and decorations, spick and span in all its appointments. -"More like a courtier than a soldier," was Harry's first impression. His -few words of salutation had been uttered in a strong German accent. - -"Madame, Monsieur," he said, "I have the honour to be a colonel of -dragoons in the service of his highness the Elector of Cologne, who, as -you are doubtless aware, is in alliance with His Majesty of France. I -regret exceedingly to have to discommode you; it is a painful duty; but -what would you?--war is war. My duty, Madame, Monsieur, is to levy -contributions on the enemy's country. Alas! that I am obliged to treat -you, Madame, Monsieur, Mademoiselle, as enemies, but duty is duty. Not -for all the world would I render it more disagreeable than necessary to -such charming ladies, and to your excellent son, Madame; but I must -request you to hand over to me five thousand florins--that, I am sure, -you will regard as a most modest estimate of the value of your -delightful house. I regret that I can allow only five minutes for the -completion of this little transaction; in five minutes, Madame, -Monsieur, with five thousand florins I pass on with my men. It pains me -to say it, but if the money, or its equivalent--in plate or jewels, -Madame, what you please--is not forthcoming within five minutes, I must -with the very greatest regret take what I can find and burn the place. -The notice is short, it is true; but Madame will understand; we soldiers -have no time to spare, and my orders are positive; every house that is -not ransomed is to be burned. Ah!" he ejaculated as he caught sight -through the window of smoke in the distance, "I fear my men have already -set fire to your barn. It is an excess of zeal, but, as the proverb -says, the appetite grows with eating; we have had to light many such -bonfires of late!" - -This speech had been delivered with the greatest deference. At its -conclusion the colonel lugged out a big timepiece, and held it open in -his left hand. - -"From now five minutes, Madame, Monsieur." - -Madame de Vaudrey had listened with terror in her eyes. She was -beginning to speak, but Adele called suddenly "Mamma!" in a warning -tone, and the lady sank back in her chair, looking at Harry as he -advanced a step or two towards the officer. Harry's throat felt -somewhat dry; his heart was thumping unpleasantly; but he was to all -appearance perfectly self-possessed as he said: - -"Mademoiselle, will you see what can be done?" adding in an undertone -the two words, "the flag!" - -Adele nodded. - -"Pardon, Monsieur." She curtsied to the officer as she went past him -into the hall. - -"Before discussing the amount of our contribution, Monsieur le Colonel," -said Harry, "may I enquire by what right you make this demand?" - -The officer looked him up and down. - -"Certainly, you may enquire, Monsieur. I answer: by the right of a -hundred sabres, and the practice of war. In my turn, may I beg of you to -let this explanation suffice. Time presses. But for the presence of -Madame"--he bowed to Madame de Vaudrey--"I should have regarded your -question as a mere impertinence, and treated it--and you--accordingly." - -Madame de Vaudrey looked anxiously from one to the other, and heaved a -sigh of relief as Adele returned and resumed her seat by her mother's -side. - -"I marvel, Monsieur," said Harry, after a quick exchange of glances with -the younger lady, "that a soldier of your rank and experience, -acquainted with the practice of war, should, in your unfortunate -position, permit himself such language." - -"Comment! My unfortunate position!" The big man swelled, his red -cheeks empurpled. Turning to the ladies he said: "Is the young man -mad?" - -"You shall judge, Monsieur," said Harry quietly. "Do me the favour to -place yourself at the window." - -He had just caught sight of one of the colonel's dragoons galloping up -the drive towards the house. - -"That is one of your hundred sabres, I presume. He is hastening to -inform you that he has met Dutch troops belonging to General van Santen -half a mile up the road. In the other direction--this way, Monsieur--you -can just see our men barring your retreat. You observed, no doubt, a -canal on your left as you rode along; it is twenty feet deep; and if you -will condescend to come to the back windows"--the captain followed him -as in a daze--"you will see a large Dutch force occupying yonder woods, -which, save the lake on our right, are your only line of retreat." - -The colonel's astonishment was no greater than Madame de Vaudrey's. She -rose from her chair and moved towards the window, but was checked by -Adele's restraining hand. The girl's eyes were shining, a spot of red -burned on either cheek. The colonel stared and stared at Harry, who -stood with a slight smile upon his lips, at the ladies, at the figures -which appeared among the trees beyond the wall--heads and shoulders, -with cocked hats and red collars, and at every shoulder a musket. - -"Comment! comment!" he spluttered; then without another word he hurried -from the room, followed by Harry, just in time to meet the dragoon at -the outer door. The man saluted. - -"Mon Colonel," he said in a fluster, "there is a barricade at the bend -in the road half a mile beyond us held by Dutch troops. My comrade -Gustave was knocked off his horse by----" - -"Donnerwetter!" cried the colonel, relapsing into his native language. -He sprang heavily into his saddle on the charger held in waiting by one -of his troopers. - -"I suppose, Monsieur le Colonel," said Harry carelessly at his elbow, -"you are counting the cost of resistance?" - -The officer was looking anxiously and indecisively about him, clearly at -a loss what course to take, but as clearly eager to make a fight of it. - -"I must warn you, Monsieur," added Harry, "that the least resistance -will rob you of all chance of quarter. The whole countryside is roused -to fury by the news of your exploits. My general has with him not only -his own men but a large force of peasants from the villages. If it -comes to a fight, he may not have the power, even if he had the -inclination, to protect you from their vengeance. They are barbarous in -their methods, these peasants; but then, as you know, Monsieur, they -have been provoked." - -At this moment there was a sharp report. A cornet of the French horse, -seeing the barricade of carts suddenly run across the road by the barn, -had sent a party of his men back to investigate. One of the troopers as -they approached was shot from behind the barricade and fell from his -horse. The echo of the shot had hardly died away when there came two -reports from the barricade up the road, accompanied by a faint shout. -The colonel gathered up the reins; a dragoon came galloping up the drive -crying: - -"Mon Colonel, we are surrounded!" - -[Illustration: "Mon Colonel, we are surrounded!"] - -"You see, Monsieur," continued Harry, "you are in a ring fence. It is -for you to make your choice, and at once, between surrender -and--annihilation." - -Harry had not misjudged his man. Utterly bewildered, the colonel gazed, -like a caged animal, helplessly around him. At the end of the drive his -men could be seen rigid and expectant. Behind him, beyond the wall, he -saw the figures as he supposed of Dutch troops armed, and with all the -advantage of position. The sun, breaking through the clouds, glinted -upon steel which, at the distance, he could not be expected to recognize -as bill-hooks, pruning-knives, and whatever other implements the -premises had afforded. At a little distance down the road he saw, -through gaps between the trees that lined the wall, his patrol galloping -back to the main body. Trying to collect himself, he at length set off -at a slow trot towards the gate. Harry at once signed to the two Dutch -soldiers hidden in the cloak-room to come out, and ordered them to stand -at attention one on either side of the door. The leader of the French -patrol pulled his horse up on its haunches at the road end of the drive. - -"The road is blocked, mon Colonel," he said, "with a barricade of carts -and beams held by a strong force of the enemy. We cannot estimate their -numbers; they keep under cover; but one of the men is killed by their -fire, and by their shouts there must be at least a hundred." - -Without a word the colonel rode across to the brink of the canal. The -lowness of the water and the height of the bank showed at a glance that -any attempt to swim his horses across would be disastrous; they could -never scramble up the opposite side. The men might cross and crawl up, -but a moment's reflection showed what the fate of a small body of men -would be, retreating on foot through a hostile country. The colonel -looked down the road; the blazing barn inspired uncomfortable thoughts. -He had seen many such conflagrations of late, and knew well that the -peasants would take a full toll of revenge if he fell into their power. -Wheeling round, he for the first time caught sight of the two Dutch -soldiers standing behind Harry on the steps of the house. This seemed -to bring home to him the hopelessness of his position; muttering a curse -he walked his horse slowly up the avenue. Harry came forward to meet -the scowling officer. - -"It is the fortune of war, Monsieur. I see you have chosen the wiser -course. You surrender to superior numbers. I am authorized by my -general to accept your surrender. You will receive honourable -treatment; he knows how to appreciate a gallant warrior; but the -peasants----" - -The colonel tried to smile. - -"I am concerned--I say it frankly--for the safety of my men. With your -troops,"--he shrugged--"we might take our chance; but your peasants, -your burghers--parbleu! we know them; they are savages, they are tigers. -To whom, Monsieur, have I the honour of yielding my sword?" - -"Immediately, Monsieur, to me; my name is Harry Rochester, an Englishman -at present in the--in the Dutch service; ultimately to General van -Santen, to whom I shall have the honour to introduce you in a few -minutes. Now, Monsieur le Colonel, you will direct your men to ride up -the avenue, dismount, stack their arms in front of the house, and fasten -their horses to the garden palings behind. Sergeant," he added, turning -to one of the sentinel dragoons, "ride at once to the general and -acquaint him that Monsieur le Colonel----" - -"Baron von Schummelpincken." - -"That the Baron von Schummelpincken has surrendered. Send a dozen men to -take charge of the horses. In twenty minutes we shall be in camp." - - - - - *CHAPTER XI* - - *The Battle of Lindendaal* - - -A Hitch--A Charge in Flank--Irregular Warfare--Called Off--A -Suggestion--Compliments--Thanks--Adieux--Luck--After the Fair--A Triumph - - -To his credit, Colonel the Baron von Schummelpincken did his best to put -a good face on the predicament in which he found himself. He rode back -to his men to inform them of the arrangement. The moment he had gone, -Adele de Vaudrey came out, her face aglow with excitement. - -"Monsieur," she said, "General van Santen asks what the uproar, the -firing, means; shall I tell him?" - -"As you please, Mademoiselle." - -"It is as you please, Monsieur." - -"The day is not ended yet, Mademoiselle." - -"I will say nothing, Monsieur." She went into the house. - -The sergeant had spurred across the meadow behind, through a gate in the -wall, into the orchard and wood. In a few minutes he reappeared with his -comrades, who came at a trot towards the house. Their pace was -leisurely, but a keener observer than the colonel, who at this moment -was half-way up the avenue at the head of his troops, might have noticed -that the horses' flanks were heaving violently. The men had in fact -galloped at full speed from the horns of the position in obedience to -the sergeant's signals, and only checked the pace in response to a -suggestion of Sherebiah, who had made the best of his way after them. -Harry ordered the ten dragoons to draw up in line at right angles to the -house. - -"Sherry," he said, as the man came up puffing, "bring me one of the -dragoons' horses." - -He mounted just as the colonel emerged from the avenue. Sherry stood by -his side at the nearer end of the line of dragoons. - -The colonel, some dozen yards ahead of his men, came to Harry and handed -him his sword. Harry politely returned it, a compliment which the -officer courteously acknowledged. - -"Monsieur," said Harry, "we understand the arrangement? Your men will -pile arms in front of the house, file off to right and left, tie their -horses to the palings, then pass round on foot to the rear of the -house." - -"Certainly, Monsieur." - -Harry watched eagerly as the troopers came two by two up the drive and -did his bidding with the precision of automata. Events had crowded so -thickly that he had scarcely had time to think; but now he could hardly -sit still on his horse, so intense was his anxiety to get the whole -scene over. Everything appeared to be answering to his wishes; his -arrangement for the French dragoons to file off in opposite directions -was a precaution to divide the force; they began to pass behind the -house one by one. About half of the troop had thus piled their arms and -fastened their horses; the clock in the belfry-tower struck the first -note of noon, and Harry was already congratulating himself that almost -by the time the last of the leisurely Dutch chimes was ended his ruse -would have been completely successful, when a loud voice was heard from -the road. - -"Mon Colonel! mon Colonel! they are only peasants and burghers. It is a -trick, a trick!" - -There was an instant halt. Harry's heart was in his mouth; Sherebiah -muttered, "Zooks! 'tis hot 'taties now!" The colonel, his face aflame, -spurred his horse from the pillar at the end of the avenue, and, drawing -his sword, vociferated: - -"A moi! a moi!" - -For a moment Harry felt that all was lost. But only for a moment, for -in that instant he saw that with his handful of men in line he had the -advantage of the troopers debouching two by two from the balustraded -drive. Turning to the dragoons at his side he shouted "Charge!" and -dashed straight at the enemy. It was in the nick of time. A few -seconds later they would have been ready; at this precise moment they -were awkwardly placed. Half a dozen men of the nearer file were leading -their horses towards the palings; beyond them the armed and mounted men -were approaching from the drive, and eight files presented their flank -to Harry's little force of ten. As he charged, the dismounted men -scattered like hares before him, and the sixteen armed troopers had -barely time to wheel round to meet the onslaught before Harry and his -Dutchmen were upon them. All the advantage of impetus and direct attack -was with the Dutch. Harry, grasping his sword, came full tilt upon a -burly Alsatian. Almost before he had realized it he had passed over the -dragoon and his horse, and, parrying a swinging cut from the man behind, -had shortened his arm and thrust him through the shoulder. The man -dropped his sabre and fell from his horse, which wheeled round and -plunged madly through the dismounted men on the farther side. - -In a trice Harry was through the mellay, and bringing his horse up on -its haunches, wrenched it round so that he might take stock of the new -situation. He found that the majority of his Dutch troopers had stuck -close to him, and with the readiness of old campaigners were already -wheeling round to face the discomfited enemy. A dozen men were on the -ground, including the portly colonel; several horses were careering -wildly through the small open space, impeding the movements of the -dismounted men who had made a dash for the piles of arms in front of the -porch. The French troopers were still filing up the drive, but the -sudden uproar had startled the horses. The riders were too much -occupied with their steeds and too closely packed to make effective use -of their pistols; the one or two who fired aimed erratically, and no one -was hurt. But Harry saw that the only course open to him was to charge -again and again until the peasants, summoned by the noise of the fray, -could come to his assistance. It was fortunate that the remainder of -the enemy's troop could only debouch two by two from the drive; the -stone balustrade on each side of it prevented them from deploying until -they entered the open space in front of the house. Two horses that had -been rolled over near the entrance to the drive were plunging and -kicking, hindering the advance of the leading troopers, who were now -being pressed by the men behind. Once more the little band of Dutchmen -hurled themselves at the head of the enemy's force, and with the same -result, though Harry was instinctively aware, when he again emerged from -the mellay, that his followers were fewer in number. Among them, -however, he noticed Sherebiah, who had possessed himself of a sword and -pistol from the stand of arms and a horse from the palings, and was -comporting himself as though, so far from being a man of peace, he had -as much experience of warfare as any trooper present. Two of Madame de -Vaudrey's gardeners also had appropriated weapons, and were holding at -bay a group of the disarmed enemy who hovered round, trying to dash in -and recover their arms. - -Harry saw little of this, however. He wheeled his horse once more to -repeat the charge. He was followed now by only six men; at least a -dozen fresh troopers had debouched from the drive, but, like their -comrades, they had not time to form before the dauntless seven were upon -them. The odds were heavier now; only two succeeded in getting through; -the rest were checked. Then ensued a series of fierce duels, the little -group of Dutch being broken up and driven back by the weight of the -files pressing through as rapidly as they might into the open space. -Harry, engaged with a stout trooper, felt with a sinking heart that the -game was up; his arm was wrung with hacking and thrusting; his opponent, -fresh to the fight, closed with him, leant over his saddle, and tried to -grip him by the throat. At this moment there was a fierce shout, -followed by a perfect babel of cries. The trooper fell from his horse, -transfixed in the nick of time by Sherebiah's sword; and when Harry -after a few seconds was able once more to take in what was happening, he -saw the place thick with burghers and peasants who were falling upon the -enemy from both balustrades. Some had leapt on to the coping and were -dealing heavy blows at the dragoons and their horses with sticks, hooks, -scythes, and all kinds of strange implements; others were jabbing -through the interstices of the balustrades; all were shouting, smiting, -felling with a fierce vehemence that brooked no resistance. A panic -seized upon the enemy; the unarmed men bolted to the stables behind the -house and barricaded themselves there; the last files of the dragoons -threw down their arms and begged for quarter; and, turning to Sherebiah, -Harry bade him cry to the peasants, with the full force of his lungs, to -hold their hands. - -A lull succeeded the turmoil. A crowd of the Dutch were hastening -towards the stables to burst open the doors and make short work of the -men sheltered there. To them Harry galloped up. - -"Men," he said, "halt! in the name of General van Santen. The victory -is ours. We must await the general's orders." - -The mob hesitated, then, with obedience compelled by their young -leader's mien, stood in sullen silence. Harry rode back to the opening -of the drive, stationed two of the Dutch dragoons there, and addressed -the colonel, who, with a lacerated cheek and contused shoulder, leant -against the palings, a picture of chagrin, pain, and baffled rage. - -"Monsieur, 'twas not well done. Your parole was given. But you are -hurt; go to the house--you will find tendance there." - -At this moment another horseman suddenly appeared on the scene, -galloping up from behind the house. Wheeling his horse in some -surprise, Harry found himself face to face with Madame de Vaudrey's -neighbour, Monsieur de Polignac. He looked greatly perturbed; his mouth -was twitching; the air of cynical detachment he had worn in Madame de -Vaudrey's drawing-room had quite disappeared. - -"Monsieur, what is this, what is this?" he cried. - -"As you see, Monsieur--a skirmish," replied Harry. "We have captured a -raiding-party--and doubtless saved your house from the flames." - -"But--but--do you not see your peril? You are not a soldier; these men -are not soldiers, the most of them; to wage war is for you quite -irregular; if caught by the French--and I hear, Monsieur, rumours of a -general advance in this direction--you will all be hanged." - -"I will take my chance of that," said Harry. "I thank you, -nevertheless, for your warning, Monsieur." - -"Bah! I counsel you to release your prisoners--without arms, it is -understood--and send them back to their lines." - -"That is a matter for General van Santen, Monsieur. Would you care to -repeat your advice to him?" - -Polignac gave him a savage look, opened his mouth to speak, thought -better of it, and, setting spurs to his horse, galloped away. - -The scene of this tempestuous little fight differed greatly from its -appearance a short half-hour before. Thirty men, of whom twenty-four -were French, lay killed or wounded, with a few horses. The stone -balustrades were broken in several places; the flower-beds were -trampled; the gravel was ploughed up; shattered muskets, swords, -scabbards, pistols, hats, cloaks, strewed the ground. - -"Carry the dead to the garden," said Harry. "Take the wounded to the -outbuildings and attend to them; there is a doctor in the house. A -dozen of you take arms from the pile there and guard the prisoners; lock -them up in the stables. Sherebiah, I leave you in charge." - -Then, hot, weary, hatless, his coat showing several rents, Harry -followed the wounded colonel into the house. - -"Monsieur," said Adele, meeting him, "the general insists on seeing you. -He was with difficulty restrained from rising and taking part in the -fray. You are weary; a cup of wine will refresh you." - -Harry gladly quaffed at the cup she presented to him. Then he followed -her into the dining-room. The general frowned when he saw him. - -"I want to see the leader," he exclaimed testily. - -"This is he, Monsieur," said Ad<ble. - -"You, Monsieur!--Mademoiselle, a youth, a boy--absurd!" - -"It has been my good fortune, Monsieur," said Harry. - -The general looked blank with astonishment. He half-raised himself on -his cushions, sinking back with a groan. - -"They would tell me nothing, save that the French were discomfited. -Explain, from the beginning." - -Harry gave a rapid narrative of the late events. He spoke always of -"we", seeming to include Adele, the general himself, and even Madame de -Vaudrey, who had joined them, among those who had planned the ruse. -Every now and then the general broke into his story with exclamations of -surprise and pleasure and praise. - -"A daring, a clever scheme," he said as Harry concluded. "You are an -Englishman, they tell me; a soldier, I presume?" - -"No, Monsieur le General, I have not that honour." - -"That is the army's loss. You have shown great quickness, great skill, -and no less courage. I compliment you, Monsieur." - -"I did what I could, of course, Monsieur; but things would have ended -very differently but for the peasants' bold attack at the last." - -"Bah! I know them; they would have done nothing without a leader, but -with a leader they will fight--yes, and well. I doubt whether, in point -of military honour, the French colonel--whom I will tax on the subject -presently--did right to reassume command after he had yielded his sword; -still, much may be forgiven him; naturally he was chagrined and -perturbed; and he is moreover wounded, as I hear." - -The general spoke with difficulty; he was very weak. - -"You have saved your convoy; that is well. You will wish to take it to -Breda. I fear I cannot move. Madame la Comtesse, I shall be your -patient for a time----" - -"Monsieur, I am honoured," said the lady. - -"But the prisoners must be carried to Breda also. Monsieur, that -duty--that honour--must be yours. You have laid many under an -obligation: Mynheer Grootz, your excellent employer; the garrison at -Breda; Madame la Comtesse, whose house you have saved; and -myself--especially myself, for without doubt you preserved me from -capture, and in my wounded state capture might very well have finished -me." - -"I hope for your speedy recovery, Monsieur." - -"I thank you. Now, you will take six of my troopers with you; armed -burghers will serve for the remainder of your escort. I marvel that -help has not ere this reached us from Breda; you will report to my -aide-de-camp, whom you will doubtless meet there or on the road. Your -name, Monsieur, is----" - -"Harry Rochester, Monsieur." - -"Mademoiselle will note it down for me. My friend Mynheer Grootz will -have a visit from me. I am fatigued; Mademoiselle, a little cordial -from your fair hand. Monsieur, I bid you farewell." - -Harry bowed and left the room, tingling with pleasure at the general's -praise. He went to the reception-room and gladly stretched his weary -limbs on a low couch there. Madame de Vaudrey followed him. - -"How can I thank you!" she exclaimed. "I do thank you, from my heart, a -thousand times. How brave! I trembled, I wept when I heard the horrid -sounds; I could not look; Adele looked and told me; I thought you would -be killed; I was overcome, I could only pray. Oh! Monsieur, what can I -say? I can say nothing; I can only--yes; tiens! I kiss you." - -At another time Harry might have been embarrassed; he was now so tired -that he could but accept passively all the motherly cares lavished on -him by the comtesse. She brought him food with her own hands, smoothed -his hair, begged him vainly to accept a ring as a token of her -admiration and gratitude; offered to give him a coat of her late -husband's to replace his own torn garment. Harry stood it all as long as -he could; at last, parrying another kiss, he sprang up and declared it -was time he set off with his prisoners and the convoy. - -The prisoners capable of marching numbered eighty-five. The remainder -were too badly wounded to be moved. Gathering his escort, he had the -stable door unlocked and the prisoners paraded, and sent Sherebiah to -marshal the convoy. All was at length ready. It was half-past one when -he stood at the door to take leave of Madame de Vaudrey. - -"Adieu, Monsieur Harry!" she said. "Au revoir!--that is what I mean. -You will come and see us again?" - -"Nothing would delight me more, Madame." - -"And stay; convey my thanks to Mynheer Grootz for the tulip bulb; you -will remember that? and yourself take the thanks of a mother and -daughter. Adele!" she called, "Monsieur Rochestair is departing. Come -and bid him farewell." - -"Adieu, Monsieur!" said Adele, coming forward. "I add my thanks to -Mamma's for the great service you have done us." - -"I could have done little, Mademoiselle, without your aid." - -A flicker of pleasure passed over the girl's face; then, with a return -to her wonted coldness, she said: - -"You are pleased to flatter, Monsieur. But I see there are still -knights-errant in the world. Adieu!" - -There were tears in Madame de Vaudrey's eyes as she put her arms up and -kissed Harry on the cheek. He bowed over her hand, then sprang on to -the horse of one of the captured dragoons, and cantered after the line -of wagons and men already moving up the road. As he reached them he had -the impulse to turn for a last look at the chateau. The turret was just -visible above the tree-tops, and upon it he saw a female figure -motionless. - -"One of the maids hauling down the flag, I suppose," he thought. - -Then he set his face towards Breda; it was Adele who stood there -watching until he was out of sight. - -"What a lucky dog I am, Sherry!" he remarked to his sturdy henchman as -they rode side by side. - -"Ay sure, Master Harry, 'tis better to be born lucky nor rich. But -speaken for myself, I doan't zackly see there be much luck about it." - -"Oh yes! there is. 'Twas merely luck that Mynheer Grootz had to send me -this way; mere luck that he had promised Madame de Vaudrey a tulip; mere -luck that the French chose that very day to come raiding; mere luck that -the place lent itself so easily to a trick----" - -"Ay, and mere luck that 'ee happened to be born wi' a headpiece; mere -luck that 'ee can handle a sword and sit a horse; mere luck that 'ee've -got sojer's blood a-rompen through your veins. Daze me, if all that be -luck--well, Them above med as well ha' no finger in poor mortal pies at -all." - -"Well, well, Sherry! But confess, 'twas odd to come upon Captain -Aglionby again, and in that house; what do you say to that?" - -"Say! I say 'tis old Satan hisself playen pranks, and we'll ha' to keep -an eye on the villain." - -"I laughed to see their heads in chancery; 'twas well done, Sherry, to -haul them down the stairs as you did. What has become of the captain -to-day, I wonder?" - -"Trust me, he be doen mischief somewheres. I knows Cap'n, ay, I do." - -From the stout Baron von Schummelpincken downwards the prisoners wore a -crest-fallen air. Save for the colonel and his subalterns they all -marched on foot, the horses being tied head to tail as Harry had often -seen at English country fairs. They had been marching for about an hour -when the head of the convoy met General van Santen's aide-de-camp -galloping at breakneck speed. He reined up when he noticed soldiers -among the men. Harry cantered to his side. Explanations were rapidly -exchanged. The Dutchman laughed heartily when he heard how the enemy -had been fooled. - -"To tell the truth," he said, "I should never have thought the general -capable of such a stratagem." - -"Indeed!" said Harry. - -"I wish I had been there. It would have been more fitting that I should -take the prisoners to Breda than you, a sutler, I suppose you call -yourself." - -"I don't think it necessary to call anybody names, Mynheer, myself least -of all. The general expected assistance; why has it not accompanied -you, Mynheer?" - -The officer explained that on reaching Breda he had found that -practically the whole garrison was engaged in a reconnaissance in force -towards Antwerp, where General de Bedmar was showing signs of activity -that gave the confederate generals some concern. Only two troops of -horse had been retained in the town, and these had strict orders not to -leave the place. Infantry would be of little use against the French -raiders, and indeed it was impossible that they should reach Madame de -Vaudrey's house in time. The aide-de-camp had been accordingly provided -with a fresh mount and sent on to the main body, from which a squadron -had at once been detached. But the corps, when he overtook it, was a -good ten miles beyond Breda, and the relief squadron could not start for -the Helmund road until the afternoon. It was now some twenty minutes -behind the aide-de-camp, who had ridden forward to convey to the general -the news of the coming reinforcement. - -He continued his journey, and Harry cantered on to overtake the convoy, -which had moved on while the conversation took place. Some minutes -later a cloud of dust in the distance heralded the approaching force. -When the two bodies met, Harry had reluctantly to tell his story over -again. The commander of the squadron pressed him for more details than -the general's aide-de-camp had done, and being a shrewd man he soon put -two and two together. - -"The honour of the day is yours, my friend," he said to Harry, "and by -my soul you shall ride into Breda at the head of the column." - -Harry protested; he did not relish the idea of heading a sort of circus -procession. But the Dutchman insisted; General van Santen had laid the -duty upon Harry, and he saw no reason to relieve him of it. He sent a -couple of his troopers on in advance to announce the event. Thus it -happened that when, in the dusk, Harry headed his convoy through the -gates, he was met by a great concourse of the populace, men, women, and -children huzzaing and waving hats and kerchiefs with vast enthusiasm. -All the pretty girls of the town, in their quaint bonnets and short -skirts, pressed around the horse to see the young Englishman, and a -comical little Dutch boy, with a toy drum slung over his shoulder, -placed himself in front of Harry's horse and proudly tattooed him -through the streets to the burgomaster's house. The burgomaster himself -made a very flowery speech of congratulation, to which Harry returned -the best acknowledgment he could; and he was heartily glad when the tide -of compliments ebbed and he had leisure to make formal delivery of his -prisoners. - -He had not yet escaped, however. He was resting in his inn when a -messenger entered with an invitation to an impromptu banquet organized -at the burgomaster's. In vain Harry pleaded that he was in no trim for -fine company. The burgomaster's own tailor undertook to make him -presentable; he had to sit through a long Dutch feast and respond to the -toast of his health. Even then his labours were not ended. After the -banquet the company adjourned to the council chamber, where all the -beauty of the town was assembled. Harry had to lead off the dance with -the burgomaster's wife, a stout vrouw of forty-five years and fifteen -stone. He did his duty manfully, dancing the stately dances of the day -with unflagging spirit, and winning universal praise by the modesty with -which he wore his honours. The assembly broke up at a late hour; Harry -was dog-tired, and went to bed convinced that it was mighty hard work to -be a popular hero. - - - - - *CHAPTER XII* - - *Harry is Discharged* - - -Rheum and Rum--Gall--Without Ceremony--A Question of Precedence--Res -Angustae--The Raw--To Scheveningen--Punctuality and Despatch--From the -Dutch Side--Temptation--Renunciation--Gretel--Misgivings - - -"Atchew!--confusion! This pestilent country--atchew!--will be the death -of me. 'Tis one eternal---atchew!--rheum! Stap my vitals! I wish I -were dead. Atchew! atchew!" - -Captain Aglionby sat in the topmost room of a high house in one of the -less savoury quarters of the Hague. His nose was redder than ever; his -cheeks more puffed; his eyes looked like boiled oysters. A thick -woollen comforter swathed his neck. Though it was the height of summer, -a big log fire blazed in the hearth; window and door were fast shut; and -in a temperature of something over eighty degrees the captain was doing -his best, according to his lights, to cure a cold. - -He was seated at a table drawn close to the fire. Upon the table stood -a bottle nearly empty, a beaker, a basin of sugar, an inkhorn, a -table-book of writing-paper, and a sheath containing quills. A kettle -sang on the fire. When his sneezing fit was over, the captain poured -the last of his rum into the beaker, sugared it, filled up with boiling -water, and gulped half of the mixture into a throat inured to fiery -passengers. Water streamed from his eyes, and his blotched brow broke -into a profuse perspiration. He wiped his face with a large red -handkerchief, smacked his lips, and, bending over the table, selected a -quill. - -"Hang writing!" he muttered. "I never writ a letter but I rued it. -Atchew! And with this cursed cold! Well, the sooner begun, the sooner -done; so here's to it. Atchew!" - -He cut his quill, dipped it in the ink, and began: - - -"Mr. BARKLEY. Sir." - - -It would have been quite evident to an onlooker that the captain was not -a practised penman. He wrote very laboriously, frowning at every -stroke, and licking his lips often. Like most illiterate people, he -repeated half aloud the words as he wrote them, and being so unused to -giving visible expression to his thoughts, he commented as he went -along. He was never at a loss how to spell a word, for in those days -men spelt as they pleased, and bad spelling might almost have been -regarded as one of the marks of a gentleman. - - -"Sir. This will, I hope, finde you well. For myself, I am afflicted -[atchew!] with a voilent Rheum, the wch I feare will turne to an -inflamatn of the Longs. [Egad! that'll please the old niggard!] I -command the sarvices of the best Potticary in the place, but finding his -nostrums vain, for three dayes have eate nought but Water Gruel. 'Tis -said that Rumm is a speedie Cure, but that I eschew. [Atchew!] My -Hande shakes with the feaver, & I shd not rite to you now had I not -Surprizing Nuse to give. You must knowe that, visitting at the house of -Mme de Vodray, where your he sarvant is ever an honour'd guest, [that's -worth fifty guineas to me!] what was my vaste Amazement to finde there -that yonge Cockerell H---- R---- swaggering it as one of the beste. It -passes my wit to divine how he escap'd from the _Merrie Maide_, & hope y -may recover the Passage Money, the wch methinks will be difficult. -[Atchew! He won't get a penny o't.] 'Tis passing strange the boy is -here, not lesse that he is acquaint with the Vodrays; & moreover with -him is my pestilent cozn S---- M----, of whom more hereafter, 'twill be -easie to deal with him, whereto I have already things _in Traine_. -H---- R---- is employ'd with one Grootz, a merchant of Substance, & one -that hath large Contracks with the confederate armies. The boy being -out of yr way, y have belike no further cause against him, & wd wish no -further stepps taken, comming & going is like at any time to Cooke his -Goose, but if I mistake in this 'twould be well to sende 100 Guineas by -the same Hande as wont, & I wd endevour to bring the matter to a safe -and speedie End, in wch case I wd make bold to aske for a further Summe -of 200 Guineas for to requite my Zeale in the sarvice of my honour'd -Frende & Patron." - - -"Atchew! Writing is plaguily dry work," he muttered, breaking off at -this point, "and the bottle's empty." - -He tugged at a bell-pull, and resumed his letter. - - -"'Twill be no light Taske, seeing the yonge man hath captured of late a -Partie of above 100 French in an Affaire near Breda, the wch I doubte -not will give him some Consekence with the Dutch no less than himselfe, -of the wch Affaire 'tis like an Account will be printed in the -_Courant_. [Sure 'twill give Nick a start.] I must add that Living is -_verie Deare_ here. For my Creditt sake and the furtherance of youre -Ends, I have hired a Magnifficent Appartment, for the wch I have to paye -a sweete Rent. Hence it is verie nessessarie I have the Guineas without -delai. Waiting yr commands & so subscribe myself yr ever humble and -obediant - -RALPH AGLIONBY, Captain." - - -"Atchew! There, 'tis done, and writ fair." He flung his pen on the -table. "And I'd fain know what the squire has against the knave; 'tis -more than pique, I promise you. Where's Simmons, confound him!" - -He sanded the wet paper, folded it, sealed it with yellow wax, and wrote -the superscription: - - -_For Nicolas Barkley Esqre_ - _at his house_ - _Winton St. Mary_ - _nr Salisbury, England_ - - -This done, he tugged again at the bell-pull, blew his nose with sounding -ferocity, and stuck his legs into the hearth with the air of a man who -had successfully achieved a stupendous task. - -The door opened, and John Simmons entered. - -"Hang you, sirrah! why don't you answer my bell at the very moment, sir? -Go get me a bottle of rum." - -Simmons, pallid, frowsy, scared-looking, stood hesitating in the -doorway. - -"Are you deaf, clodpoll?" roared the captain. "A bottle of rum, and -instantly!" - -"Yes, Captain, and the--and the money, sir?" - -"The money, you dog! Where is the crown-piece I gave you this morning?" - -"I had to buy the dinner, sir, and----" - -"Zounds! You'll answer me, will you? You're the most pestilent knave -man ever had to serve him. 'Tis money, money, all day with you. Would -that Sherry Minshull had left you to the hangman! Begone, sirrah! -and----" - -"Pardon!" said a voice in French from the door. "If I am in the -way----" - -"Come in, Monsieur," said Aglionby, springing to his feet. "And you, -booby, be off and do my bidding." - -Simmons vanished precipitately. Monsieur de Polignac gasped as he -entered the overheated room. - -"Phew! It would roast an ox." - -"Shut the door. I am nursing a pestilent rheum." - -"So it appears. You are in an ill humour, my friend; I fear my news -will not cheer you." - -"Spit it out and have done with it, then." - -"Well, this is it. A commission has been made out, I hear, appointing -your young Englishman a cornet in the Anspach dragoons." - -"What young Englishman?" - -"The young man whom we met at Madame de Vaudrey's." - -The captain swore a hearty British oath. - -"Where learnt you that?" - -"A la bonne heure! It is true. I have it on authority I cannot doubt. -Van Santen pressed it; his influence prevailed. There were several -vacancies in the regiment; it lost heavily in the action at Eckeren a -few weeks ago. This boy gets the senior cornetcy. We owe it to -ourselves, Monsieur le Capitaine, that the junior cornets get an early -step." - -"Peste! We do owe it to ourselves; or, I should rather say, we owe it -to yourself. For me, I have knocked about the world too long to take -umbrage easily; and look you, Monsieur, my family, although gentle, -indeed I may say noble, cannot compare with yours in quartet-ings and -such fal-lals. I understand your sentiments; as you say, something must -be done." - -"And at once, for which end I have come to see you. My position, as you -perceive, is delicate; for myself, I would seek a quarrel with the -bantling and spit him on my rapier without remorse. But affairs of -state--you understand me; that alters the case. I must not appear. I -propose to you this: to affront the boy, provoke him to a duel; you a -veteran, he a tyro; it will be a matter of seconds. Voila!" - -The captain gazed steadily at Polignac for a few moments, then said: - -"Look you, Polignac, no man ever accused Ralph Aglionby, late captain in -the Preobrashenski Grenadiers, of lack of courage--no man, that is to -say, that lived to tell of it. Had you made the proposition twenty -years ago, I should by this time have been half-way down the stairs on -the way to kill this young springald. But twenty years make a -difference. My courage is the same, look you; but the years have -enlarged my girth--and my discretion. On the point of honour I am as -sensitive as ever I was, but I have learnt to have patience--and -consideration. Say I engage this peddling fool; what happens? I kill -him and baulk you of your revenge. Where are you, my friend? Or -suppose, by some vile contrivance, he kills me; where am I? No, no, -Monsieur; the right of place belongs to you. Who am I, a broken -soldier, a poor unnecessary captain of grenadiers, to take precedence of -you?" - -"You have most admirable patience," sneered Polignac, "and I am -overwhelmed by your consideration. I thank you, Monsieur le Capitaine, -and bid you adieu." - -"Stay, my friend; why this haste? I have consideration, as you say. -Would the world be better for the loss of you or me? are there not more -ways of getting even with a man than making one's self a target for his -pistol or a sheath for his sword? You remember Marillier, and Aubin, -eh? Sit down, and let us talk this over like reasonable men." - -Polignac sat on one of the rickety chairs in silence. - -"Your memory is jogged, eh? You remember the dark lane, and the light -in the window, and----" - -"Enough!" exclaimed the other impatiently. "My memory is as good as -yours. This is different. I must be circumspect. Were we in -Paris--then! But here at the Hague, I am not my own master; I have -weightier interests to consider. An incautious step, even a chance -word, may ruin a dynasty. My own life--I do not consider it; but when -one is playing for a crown one has duties, responsibilities. If you see -your way--well, I am not one to dissuade you; and if a few guilders----" - -Aglionby's red eyes gleamed. - -"Well, Monsieur, as you put it so, I own 'tis in a measure a question of -money. In truth 'tis desperate hard lines that I, who have ruffled it -with the best and got drunk with the Czar of Muscovy himself, should be -so hard driven as that I cannot offer due hospitality to a friend. Look -at this wretched lodging; was ever gentleman, by no fault of his own, -mark you, reduced to such straits!" - -Polignac, glancing at the mean furniture and the empty bottle, agreeably -assented, but concealed a smile. - -"Well," he said, "might I ask leave to send out for a bottle of wine?" - -Aglionby jumped up with alacrity. - -"You say so? 'Tis the mark of a true friend." He pulled hard at the -bell-rope. "My man will be here instantly; and, Monsieur, let it be -sack--sack, as you love me." - -Simmons reappeared without delay, and was despatched for a bottle of -sack. With the energy of pleasurable anticipation the captain pursued: - -"Now, my dear Polignac, mark--before attempting the house 'tis well to -poison the dog; aha! that is only my way of putting it, eh?" - -"Of course. A figure of speech; but from the life!" - -Aglionby flung him a suspicious glance; at times he had an uneasy -feeling that Polignac was quizzing him. But after a momentary pause he -went on as before. - -"The dog in this case--and a low cur it is--is the young cockerel's -servant--the same that embraced you so cordially at Madame de Vaudrey's. -Ha! ha! I can relish the comical side of it e'en though he embraced me -also!--and before the charming mademoiselle too!" - -He guffawed uproariously. He felt that he was now getting tit for tat -for Polignac's covert sneers, often rather suspected than understood. -But he was not a little startled by the effect of his words and -laughter. Polignac flushed purple with rage; his mouth took a very -decided twist towards his left eye. Springing up suddenly he cried: - -"Morbleu, Monsieur, a truce to your pleasantries! and keep the lady's -name out of it, or by the----" - -"No offence, no offence, my dear fellow," interposed the captain -hastily. "I'm but a plain soldier--just an honest, bluff, outspoken old -campaigner; we blades don't pick and choose our words like you fine -gentlemen of the courts; though in truth when I was in Russia my manners -were as good as the best." - -Polignac resumed his seat reluctantly without a word. After a short, -strained silence Aglionby went on: - -"The first thing, as I was saying, is to get this dog out of the way. -Burn him! he follows his master like a shadow. The man removed, the -rest is easy. A week from now, and he shall lie his length in six feet -of good Dutch soil, or my name isn't Ralph Montacute Aglionby. Leave it -to me, Monsieur; there will be necessary expenses; say fifty guilders, a -small sum, and at one time----" - -"Send to my chambers; you shall have the money. And by the way, here is -a packet for Captain Rudge of the _Skylark_. He sails with this -evening's tide. Bid him have the greatest care of it; should he run -into danger he must destroy it.--It is arranged, then? I shall hear -from you?" - -"Within a week, on the word of a gentleman." - -"Then for the time, adieu!" - -When Polignac had gone, Aglionby looked curiously at the packet -entrusted to him. The address ran: - - -_For Mistress Consterdine_ - _to be left at the coffee-house,_ - _by the Cockpitt, Whitehall, London._ - - -It was carefully but not conspicuously sealed. The captain turned it -over and over in his dirty hands; they itched to open it. "To judge by -his rage," he muttered, "he's certainly smit with Mademoiselle de -Vaudrey. 'Tis not merely his interest is engaged." He sat musing for a -moment. Then his eye fell on a broadsheet, marked with many circular -stains, that lay on one of the chairs. He took it up and searched for a -passage which he had clearly already read. Lighting upon it, he read: - - -"The report goes that Coy's Horse embark at Harwich for Ostend on Friday -the 16th current. They will join the forces now operating under General -Lumley in Dutch Flanders." - - -"With a fair wind they'll make port to-morrow. Then, Sherebiah -Minshull, my sweet coz, we shall begin to square accounts,--you and I." - -Stuffing the two packets into his capacious pocket, he clapped on his -hat, flung a cloak over his shoulders, wound the comforter more tightly -about his neck, and made his way out, sneezing half a dozen times as he -met the cooler air of the street. He walked along the Lange Pooten, the -chief business thoroughfare, into an open space known as the Plein. As -he was crossing this he caught sight of a figure hastening into one of -the larger houses, and almost involuntarily he stepped aside into a -doorway until all danger of being seen was past. - -"What is the puppy doing here?" he muttered, passing on his way to the -old road to Scheveningen. After a pleasant woodland walk of two miles -he reached that little fishing village, and found, as he expected, -Captain Rudge, owner and skipper of the sloop _Skylark_, a fast sailer -which ran to and fro between Scheveningen and Harwich. To him Aglionby -confided his own letter and Polignac's. Then he retraced his steps, and -at the Hague took horse for Rotterdam. It was near midnight when he -returned and wearily climbed the lofty stair to his attic room; but -though he was fatigued, and his cold perceptibly worse, he seemed well -satisfied with himself, and chuckled many a time before he had drained -to the dregs the bottle of sack he had broached with Monsieur de -Polignac. - -The person from whose sight he had shrunk in the afternoon was Harry -Rochester himself, who had just returned from a visit to Marlborough's -camp at Hanneff. Mynheer Grootz was up to his eyes in business, and the -wide area over which the confederate forces were spread taxed his -resources to the utmost. He had now come to the Hague to confer with a -committee of the States General and arrange further contracts, and had -instructed Harry to meet him there on the completion of his own errand. - -"Well, my boy," said Grootz on his arrival, "I did not expect you zo -zoon." They were now on such friendly and familiar terms that the -Dutchman had dropped the formal address. "How have you fared?" - -"Excellently, Mynheer," replied Harry. "The commissary was well content -with your arrangements, and said--'tis no harm to repeat it--that were -all Dutchmen like Jan Grootz he would be spared a peck of trouble." - -"Dat is goot," said Grootz, evidently well pleased. "Dat is how I do my -business; always in time, always ready, always sure." - -"I had hoped to catch a glimpse of my lord Marlborough himself, but -'twas not to be. Whatever may be said of his meanness and selfishness, -Mynheer, 'tis certain he is adored by his army. The soldiers are full -of courage, confident in my lord's genius, and all afire to meet the -French. They say, indeed, that if my lord were but free of restraint, -not bound to take counsel with your politicians here, one campaign would -see the end of the war." - -"Dey zay!--Yes, well, it may be zo. My lord is a fine soldier--none -would deny it--for all he dink little of de rules of war. But as for de -field deputies--my countrymen--dey alzo have reason. To Lord -Marlborough and you English, my boy, a defeat mean much; dat is zo; but -to my country--ah! much more. To us it mean ruin, every village and -town overrun, our polders spoiled, our homes destroyed, everywhere black -misery. Dis poor country know it all too well; we have suffered--ah -yes! we have suffered before too often. For my lord, it is a game -wherein he can noding lose but glory; for us it is a struggle of life -and death. True, for myself, I zay in war, as in business, to follow a -bold course is best; but I do not derefore blame our statesmen dat dey -move zlowly; no, I do not blame dem." - -Harry had seen more than once lately that beneath the stolid exterior of -the merchant beat a heart warm toward his fatherland and his friends. -He could not but recognize much to sympathize with in the Dutch point of -view, and began to realize what it meant to the Hollanders to have their -country turned into a cockpit for the political contentions of rival -monarchs. - -A slight pause followed Grootz's earnest speech; then suddenly, with a -change of tone, he said: - -"Now, Mynheer Harry, I have a ding to zay. Dere are reasons why I find -it now necessary to discharge you from my business." - -Harry gasped and looked very blank. The merchant nodded solemnly; up -came his fat forefinger; and he continued with even more deliberation -than usual: - -"Dat is zo. I tell you dis; I find no fault wid you; none in de world; -but all de same, I zay dat it is necessary you go." - -Harry was so much taken aback that he found it difficult to speak. - -"Why--'tis sudden--what can--surely--" his tongue stumbled over half a -dozen questions before, with an effort to command himself, he said: "Of -course, Mynheer, if there is nothing more for me to do, I must perforce -seek other work. You have been very kind to me; 'tis but poor thanks I -can give you for what you have done." - -"What I have done! Gunst! it is noding. And you: it needs not to zeek -oder work; it is found. Hearken to dis." - -He took up an official-looking paper that lay at his hand and read in -Dutch: - - -"Mynheer Henry Rochester is appointed to a cornetcy in the Anspach -dragoons in succession to Mynheer Lodewyk van Monnen deceased." - - -Harry flushed to the eyes. - -"'Tis a mistake, Mynheer, surely. I have not sought this; I know -nothing of it." - -"A mistake! Not at all. General van Santen come to me and zay, -'Grootz, you have in your business a young man dat has no business to be -in your business; he is a soldier, noding less, and we have need of -such;' dat is what he zay, and more, and he go straight off to put down -your name for a commission. And here it is, in de gazette. Dat is why -I discharge you, before--" (Mynheer Grootz made a brave attempt to be -jocular)--"before you discharge yourself." - -Harry was silent. His nerves were tingling, his blood sang in his -veins. Here was the opening to a career after his own heart. All his -earlier longings came back to him; the inward struggle with which he had -acquiesced in his father's desire that he should enter the Church; the -light of hope that shone on him at his interview with Marlborough; the -agonizing dissolution of his castle in the air. And now, unsought, what -he had sought in vain had come to him, the aspiration of his boyhood was -about to be fulfilled. All this flashed through his mind in a moment of -time,--and there was Jan Grootz, smiling out of his kindly little eyes. -Jan Grootz!--what he owed to him! But for Jan Grootz he might now be a -hapless slave in the Plantations, with no ray of light upon the endless -vista of the years. To Jan Grootz he owed his health and freedom, his -training in dealing with men; more than all, he had met in Jan Grootz a -man whose character compelled his respect and admiration, and whom -indeed he had begun to love. Would it not be the worst of ingratitude -to leave him now? - -The temptation was strong, the inward struggle sharp. But it was only a -few moments after the staggering announcement when he bent forward and -said: - -"Mynheer, I cannot accept this offer--this splendid offer. 'Tis -exceeding kind of General van Santen; I owe him my hearty thanks; but -'tis not to be thought of, save you yourself wish to be rid of me, and -that I must doubt, since 'tis but a week since you told me I was useful -to you. I will see the general, and explain to him the reason why I -decline this commission; I must do so at once." - -He made towards the door, as though eager to avoid dalliance. Grootz's -broad plain face was transfigured by delight and pride and -gratification. Catching Harry by the arm, he drew him back, laid his -hand on his shoulder, and said: - -"No, Harry, my dear lad, I tell you dis; you must not do dis ding. I do -not zay I shall not feel your loss"--there was an unusual note of -tenderness in his voice--"true, it is not long dat we have worked -togeder, but already I regard you--jawohl, regard you as a son, and to -miss your bright face, your willing service----hoot! by den donder, I am -not myself to-day." - -"'Tis too kind of you, Mynheer." - -"Nay, nay; I am not zo weak. I am at one wid General van Santen: you -are made for a soldier. 'Tis de work you yourself would have chosen; -now 'tis de tide of fortune, dat you dare not miss. I tell you dis; I -am made up in my mind, fixed, noding can move me. I salute you, Mynheer -Rochester, cornet in de Anspach dragoons." - -"Indeed, 'tis too good of you, Mynheer." - -"Not zo. And dis I tell you alzo. You know me, Jan Grootz; I -prosper--God prospers me. I regard you as my son: well, 'tis a fader's -pleasure to provide for his son at de beginning of dings, just as 'tis a -skipper's pleasure to zee his ship sail taut and trim. You will have -heavy charges: clothes, equipment, a horse to buy. Dose charges, you -will permit me, zall be mine. 'Tis but right you should take your place -wid de best. I have no kith nor kin, nor like to have; de pay for -dragoons is little enough; I add a hundred guilders a month; dat will -suffice, dink you?" - -"But, Mynheer----" - -"Poof! no buts. I zall do as please me. Now, I am hungry: let us go to -de parlour. And dere is your man to tell; he will, no doubt, continue -to be your servant." - -They went from the room, Grootz keeping his hand affectionately on -Harry's shoulder. The table in the parlour was already laid, and in -answer to the bell old Gretel appeared with a tureen of soup. - -"Gretel," said the merchant, "Mynheer Harry is about to leave us." - -"There! Something inside told me, Mynheer, you would not keep him -long." - -"'Tis not of my own will, Gretel," said Harry at once. - -"No," added Grootz. "The lad was not eager. He is to be an officer of -dragoons." - -The old woman curtsied and grunted. - -"A rare exchange!" she said. "To my mind 'tis better to sell corn than -to stand up to be shot at, and a deal safer. But I wish you good luck, -Mynheer." - -"Thanks, Gretel, for that and for all your kindness to me. Is Sherry -downstairs?" - -"Ja, Mynheer." - -"Send him up, if you please. I must tell him the news." - -"Oh! he will not be pleased. He has a scorn of soldiers, never a good -word to say for them. He is in the right." - -Harry smiled as the privileged old housekeeper hobbled out. Sherebiah -soon appeared. - -"Sherry," said Harry, "I have a thing to tell you. General van Santen -has recommended me to the heads of the Dutch army, and I am made an -officer of dragoons." - -"Zooks!" was the man's astonished exclamation. - -"We shall still be together, you and I. I shall want a man, of course; -and you will not object to the place?" - -"Well, sir," said Sherebiah slowly, looking down at his boots, "'tis an -awk'ard matter for a man o' peace. 'Tis a line o' life I ha' no love -for. To be sarvant to a man o' war is next to bein' a man o' war -yourself. Not but what I'd be proud to sarve 'ee, Master Harry; no man -more; but them as take the sword shall fall by the sword, as the Book -says, and I take that for a warnen to have none on 't." - -"A lame argument, Sherry." - -"True, sir, haven no larnen I feel it so. And will 'ee go shoulder to -shoulder with our English sojers?" - -There was a note of anxiety in his voice. - -"That I can't say. I hope that my regiment won't be left out in the -cold." - -"Well, sir, there's a providence in't. Them above knows what they're -about, to be sure, in a general way, and I bean't agwine to set up for -knowen better. I'll sarve 'ee, sir, polish your breastplate, currycomb -your horse, oil your boots, clean your pistols, keep an eye on the -sutlers, and----" - -"You seem to have a good notion of your new duties," said Harry, -laughing. - -"Pretty good, sir, for a man o' peace," said Sherebiah imperturbably. -"And when do 'ee mount your horse as a sojer, Master Harry?" - -"Zoon," put in Grootz. "General van Santen himself will introduce him -to his broder officers; he tell me zo." - -"Ay, so. Well, 'tis a world o' changes. For you, sir, 'tis a change -for the better, barren 'ee bean't killed; for me,--well, the truth on't -is, I fear 'tis the beginnen o' the end for Sherebiah -Stand-up-and-Bless." - - - - - *CHAPTER XIII* - - *Concerning Sherebiah* - - -A Summons--Coy's Horse--Vain Search--A Clue--Sentenced--Confession--A -Quiet Mind--A Friend in Camp--The Informer--Intercession--Who Goes -There?--Hit--The Mantle of Night--In a Ditch - - -One evening, a few days after he had received news of his commission, -Harry returned home somewhat later than usual from his customary stroll. -He was fond of walking through the pleasant woods to Scheveningen, and -watching the herring-boats as they sailed out for the night's work. He -would chat with the fishermen, and had indeed by his frank manner, and -perhaps an occasional gift of tobacco, established himself as a -favourite with them. - -On this evening, feeling a little tired, he threw himself into a chair -in the parlour, and sat musing, gazing into the glowing sky as the sun -went down. By and by old Gretel entered and began to lay the supper. -She had gone in and out two or three times in silence before Harry -bethought himself and said: - -"Why, Gretel, how is it Sherry is not helping you to-night?" - -"By den donder, Mynheer, you may well ask! He seems bewitched since the -great news. Not half so helpful to my poor old bones as he was." - -"But where is he?" - -"He has not returned yet." - -"Returned from where?" - -"Why, Mynheer, he went out at once after receiving your message, -and----" - -"My message!" - -"Ja, Mynheer, the message sent by the boy." - -"What boy? Come, Gretel, I sent no message. I know nothing about a -boy. Tell me all you know." - -"It was about four o'clock, Mynheer, a boy of twelve or so came to the -door--a stranger to me. He asked for Sherry Minshull--no mynheer to his -tongue. I called to Sherry, and heard the boy say, 'Mynheer Rochester -wishes you to come----' then the big bell of the Groote Kerk tolled, and -I heard no more. But Sherry reached down his hat and said he was going -to you, and he and the boy went away together." - -Harry was puzzled, and a little uneasy. He rose from his chair. - -"Are you sure you heard the boy mention my name?" - -"Quite sure. And Sherry must have thought there was need for haste, for -he left his dish of coffee half full, and he is too fond of mocha to do -that without a reason." - -Just then Mynheer Grootz came in to supper. When Harry had informed him -of the strange message and Sherebiah's continued absence, he was at -first disposed to make light of the matter. - -"Gretel is growing hard of hearing," he said. "Maybe she mistook de -name." - -"Don't you think, Mynheer, 'twould be well to make enquiry before it is -dark? I am strangely uneasy about Sherry." - -The merchant consented to accompany Harry into the streets. Everybody -knew him and answered his questions readily enough; but none of the -porters of the neighbouring houses, or the watchmen who patrolled the -streets, had seen Sherebiah or the boy, though some of them owned that -they knew the former well by sight. By and by, however, they came upon -an old soldier smoking his evening pipe outside his cottage--the lodge -to one of the larger houses in Gedempte Spui. Grootz put the usual -question. - -"Did you see an Englishman--stout, with a beard, and his hat on one -side, pass by a few hours ago with a boy of twelve or thereabouts?" - -The soldier removed his long pipe, spat, and appeared to meditate before -replying. - -"Yes--now I think of it; I believe I did see a man of that cut, though I -would not be sure. He might not have been an Englishman. He was stout, -certainly, and had a beard; as for his hat, I didn't notice it, for the -truth is, I had been looking at some other Englishmen, a party of Coy's -Horse; my old corps served side by side with them in '97. Yes, and -there was a man among them I knew too; a paymaster--Robins, I mind, was -his name--donder! what a temper he had! It was a curse and a blow with -him. Ay, it is a hard life, the soldier's. They halted at the inn over -by there, and I was just going over to drink a glass with them for old -times' sake when the Baron's coach came up and I had to open the gates. -A lodge-keeper, see you, is a sentry with no change of guard." - -"Ja, ja! But the Englishman and the boy--which way did they go?" - -"Which way? Let me see. They might have gone down the road: no, now I -bethink me, I believe they went up the road; but there, I can't be sure. -The sight of the English horse, men I fought side by side with in '97, -before I got my wound----" - -"Ja, ja! Thank you!" - -They escaped his further reminiscences by walking on, past the inn, past -a row of cottages with the inevitable bright green shutters, until they -came to the watch-house at the cross-roads. Grootz put the same -question to the watchman. - -"No," he replied. "I saw no Englishman with a boy. But I saw a party of -English horse; they had come in from Rotterdam, and I heard afterwards -at the inn they were on the track of a deserter." - -It was now almost dark; to continue the search further would be vain. -They returned home to their belated supper, Grootz promising to set -exhaustive enquiries on foot in the morning. - -That night, for the first time for many months, Harry was unable to -sleep. He was oppressed by perplexity and uneasiness. From whatever -point of view he looked at Sherebiah's disappearance it seemed equally -inexplicable. He could divine no motive for a message sent to Sherebiah -in his name; the man appeared to be on very good terms with Dutchmen and -was unlikely to have private enemies. Harry was almost forced to the -conclusion that Gretel had been mistaken, after all, and that Sherebiah -would by and by return with a simple explanation of his absence. He -might have met a friend, and be spending a convivial evening with him. -Perhaps--the thought came like an illumination--one of the English -troopers from Rotterdam was a friend of his--a Wiltshire man, possibly. -The suggestion allayed his uneasiness, and he fell asleep half expecting -to be called by Sherebiah as usual next morning. - -But Sherebiah did not return that night. It happened next day that -Mynheer Grootz was early summoned to a conference with a committee of -the States General, and when after a prolonged discussion he was -released he had to start at once for Leyden on important business. It -was late before he returned. Harry meanwhile had lost no time in -pursuing enquiries in every likely quarter, but in vain. Sherebiah had -not returned; nothing had been heard of him; and there was nothing for -it but to wait yet another day. - -He was again wakeful, and his thoughts turned to the errand on which the -party of English horse had come. He pitied the unfortunate wretch for -whom they were in search--some poor fellow, perhaps, who had escaped in -the hope that he would be less easily tracked in a foreign land. The -punishment for desertion had become much more stringent and summary of -late owing to the prevalence of the offence. Harry himself remembered -one bleak morning in London when, having gone early into Hyde Park, he -had been the unwilling spectator of the shooting of a deserter. Had -they caught the man? he wondered. "I hope----" he thought, then -suddenly a strange suspicion flashed upon him. Surely it was -impossible; yet---- In a moment slumbering recollections awoke. He -remembered that many times, when approaching English soldiers in London, -Sherebiah had sidled away and disappeared. He remembered how, more than -once, Sherry had shown a knowledge of military matters singularly -intimate for a civilian; how insistently he had always proclaimed -himself a man of peace; how hardily he had behaved in the fight at -Lindendaal. These facts, and many a slight hint scarcely regarded -before, combined to convert a chance surmise, almost dismissed as -absurd, into a strong presumption little short of certainty. - -He sprang out of bed, dressed quickly, ran downstairs with his slippers -in his hands, and, noiselessly drawing the bolts, hurried along the -silent street towards the inn on the Rotterdam Road at which the patrol -had halted. Though it was late, the people of the inn were still up. -He asked for the landlord, and had not conversed with him for more than -a minute before he was convinced, from what was said of the prisoner, -that it was indeed Sherebiah. The troopers had brought with them a led -horse; on this they had mounted the deserter, strapping him on each side -to a dragoon, and then ridden off at once towards Rotterdam, _en route_ -for Breda. Returning to the house, Harry woke Mynheer Grootz, told him -of what he had learnt, and proposed to start at once for Breda to allay -or confirm his suspicion. From this the merchant dissuaded him. A -night ride would be attended with difficulty and danger; if he started -early in the morning, he might still overtake the dragoons before they -reached Breda. Accordingly he went back to bed for a few hours. At -dawn he rose, and by five o'clock was galloping towards Rotterdam on the -best horse in Grootz's stables. - -At Rotterdam he learnt that a body of English horse, consisting of units -of several regiments, had left for Breda on the previous afternoon. -Waiting for an hour to rest and bait his horse he pushed on to Breda, -arriving there about one o'clock in the afternoon. Without delay he -sought out the officer to whom he had delivered his convoy of provisions -a few weeks before, and enquired whether he knew of the arrest of an -English deserter. - -"Ay, and a notorious character, it appears. 'Twas not merely desertion -they had against him, but mutiny, and a murderous attack on an officer. -He fought like a cat when he was arrested; 'twas a foolish trick, for -they were ten to one, and in a little he was overpowered. He was tried -by court-martial this morning at nine, and the trial was short." - -"Was sentence pronounced?" - -"Of course; he had no defence; he was sentenced to be shot." - -"There is no appeal?" - -"None. The sentence will be laid before my lord Marlborough for -confirmation; a matter of form. But pray why do you take so much -interest in the man?" - -"He is my servant, comes from my village, has done me right faithful -service. Good God! to think that he should come to this end!" - -The officer shrugged. - -"Unhappy chance indeed. 'Tis seven years or more since he deserted; -doubtless he felt secure. I am sorry for you. He'll get no more than -he deserves." - -"Could I see him?" - -"Certainly; he is confined in the town-house; I will take you to him -myself." - -In a few minutes Harry was ushered into a dark room in the basement of -the town-house. A candle was lit; he was left alone with the prisoner, -and the door was locked behind him. - -"Oh, Sherry, my poor fellow, who would have thought you would come to -this!" - -"Master Harry, 'tis good of 'ee to come and see me. Ay; poor feller! you -med well say so; but to tell 'ee the truth, 'tis a load off my back." - -"Yes, I understand. I know now why you always scouted the soldiers in -London. Why didn't you tell me? I would never have brought you to this -country, with our soldiers here, there, and everywhere." - -"Tell 'ee! Not me. Why, you and me would 'a had to part company that -minute. Besides, 'twarn't zackly a thing to be proud on, look at it how -'ee will. 'Twas ill-luck I were nabbed, to be sure; but I've had nigh -eight year as a man o' peace, and I s'pose 'twas time the lid were putt -on the copper." - -"And they'll shoot you!" - -"Bless 'ee, I bean't afeard o' that. I've been shot at; ay, many's the -time: at Sedgemoor, and Walcourt, and other cities o' destruction. I -can stand fire wi' any man. Nay, the one thing as troubles me is how -poor old feyther o' mine'll take it. The poor ancient soul never dreams -I desarted; and zooks! 'tis that'll hurt un more'n my bein' a corpse; -his boy a desarter, and him a trooper of old Noll's! Ay, that'll hurt -un, 'twill so. And then there's you, sir; how be I agwine to leave 'ee, -wi' old Squire and Rafe Aglionby a-seeken whom they may devour, and no -one you can trust to polish your breastplate and oil your boots? Ay, -the way o' transgressors is hard; the wages o' sin is death; many's the -time I've yeard they holy words from the lips of pa'son your good -feyther, never thinken in my feeble mind he were aimen at me." - -Harry was at a loss for words. Sherebiah was so perfectly resigned to -his fate that any attempt at consolation would seem an impertinence. - -"How came you to desert?" he asked, to gain time. - -"Why, I'll tell 'ee about it. I was a corporal in Coy's horse; med ha' -been a sergeant long agoo, indeed. But there was a paymaster o' that -regiment, Robins by name; a good sojer, true, but with his faults, like -any other mortal man. He was hot in his temper, and crooked in his -dealens. Us men was bein' cheated, right and left; our pay was small -enough, but we never got it: a penny here and a ha'penny there bein' -took off for this or that. Ay, and he was a knowen one, he was. All -done so soft and quiet-like. We stood it a long time; at long last, -'twas more'n Minshull blood could stomach, and one mornen I up and spoke -out; you see, I warn't a man o' peace then. Well, Robins bein' fiery by -nature, he got nettled; I should myself; but 'tis one thing to get -nettled, and another to use yer fist. Robins he used his fist, and not -bein' zackly meek as Moses, I used mine, and he fell under. Two or -three of my mates standen by saw it all. Robins he raved and called on -'em to arrest me, but they wouldn't. But 'twas all up wi' me; I knowed -that well enough; if Robins took a spite agen a man he med as well be a -dead dog. I had no mind to be a dead dog just then, so I bolted; and -that's how I come to be such a man o' peace." - -"But surely if you explained that, your punishment wouldn't be so -heavy." - -"Explain! Bless 'ee, 'twould be no good in the world. To strike a -officer be mortal sin. Nay, I've nowt to say for myself; I must just -take my wages." - -"How did you manage to elude them so long?" - -"Oh! the regiment was out o' my way: been quartered this many year in -Ireland. 'Twas just my bad luck that they should ha' been sent for on -this campaign. Ah, well! a man can die but once; I've kep' the -commandments, and that's more'n Robins can say; and there's no -commandment 'Thee shall let a man hit 'ee and say thank 'ee'. I bean't -afeard o' Them above, and I'll meet 'em with head up and eye clear, like -a English sojer." - -"When is it to be?" - -"They didn't tell me that. 'Twill not be long, you may be sure. My -lord Marlborough has only got to scribble his name on the paper, and -he'll never remember 'twas me as held his horse at Salisbury in '88 and -got nowt but a smile.--Master Harry, belike I sha'n't see 'ee again in -this world. When you go home-along, you'll say a word o' comfort to the -old ancient gaffer, won't 'ee? Tell un all the truth; tell un I be main -sorry to vex his old gray hairs,--though not for punchen Robins. Gi' -him my dear love: his boy, he calls me, poor soul: and say as how I were -quite easy in mind and not a bit afeard. He's a trooper of old Noll's, -you see." - -"I'll give him your messages," said Harry with a gulp,--"if ever I get -back alive." - -"Ay true, ye med not. The corn-dealen was a safer line o' life.--What! -time's up."--A sentry had thrown open the door.--"Good-bye, Master -Harry; God bless 'ee! and I hope you'll get a man as'll polish your -'coutrements to your mind. This time to-morrow, belike, I shall be a -true man o' peace." - -Harry shook his hand in silence; he could not trust himself to speak. -He was angry at what he thought the essential injustice of the sentence. -Sherebiah had only struck the paymaster in self-defence, and in the -original cause of dissension had right on his side. But Harry knew what -military discipline meant; it was rigid as iron. Still, he could not -help asking himself whether even now it was impossible to get the whole -circumstances considered and the sentence revised. He thought of making -a personal appeal to Marlborough, but soon dismissed the idea, for -Marlborough had doubtless forgotten him, and he had no force of -persuasion to bring to bear. Suddenly, as he walked slowly along the -street, he remembered Godfrey Fanshawe; he was an officer in a companion -regiment, Schomberg's Horse; he would ask his advice. He enquired for -the quarters of the regiment, found that it was encamped a short -distance out on the Tilburg road, and hastened thither with an anxious -heart. - -The troops were under canvas, and Harry found Fanshawe joint occupant of -a tent with a fellow subaltern. - -"Hullo!" he cried when he saw Harry. "I wondered when I should run up -against you. I have heard all about your feat--rescuing beauty and all -that. What in the world brought you to this country?" - -"'Twould be long in the telling. You shall know all in season. I am -here on a very special errand. You remember Sherry Minshull?" - -"As well as I do you. Many's the trout we've caught together. A right -good fellow!" - -"At this moment he is lying under sentence of death in the town-house at -Breda. Unknown to me, he had been a soldier, and deserted after -thrashing an officer----" - -"D'ye know him, then?" interposed the other lieutenant. - -"He is my man." - -"Oh! Sorry for you both. I had heard about it from an officer of -Coy's--Cadogan's, I should say; their name's changed." - -"Do you know, sir, how he came to be smoked?" - -"'Twas an Englishman peached--a soldier of fortune, as it appears, who -wished to be nameless. He met the men of Cadogan's when they landed at -Rotterdam, and arranged a trick by which they got him alone on the open -road. 'Twas rather cleverly managed." - -"And a dirty mean thing to do," said Fanshawe warmly. - -"Can't something be done for him?" asked Harry. - -"'Tis hopeless," was Lieutenant Tettefall's reply. "Robins was very -vindictive; he painted the man in the blackest colours in his evidence -before the court-martial, and not one of the officers of the court knew -your man. He has a double offence to answer for; 'tis certain he'll be -shot as soon as the forms are completed." - -Harry's face was then the picture of blank despair. - -"On my life, 'tis a thousand pities!" said Fanshawe. "I fear there is -not the ghost of a chance for him." His face gloomed for a moment; then -his high spirits asserted themselves. "But come, Harry, 'tis no good -taking on about it; come and forget it over a bottle. I want to hear -your story." - -"No, I'm in no humour for racketing. Would to God I could do something -for the poor fellow! Would the colonel intercede if we asked him?" - -"Not he. He would laugh and crack a joke. If Sherry were a Dutchman, -now! The duke is very sweet to the Hollanders at this time, and a word -from one of the States might turn him." - -"General van Santen!" exclaimed Harry. "I had not thought of him. -'Twas he I happened to be of use to, and Sherry did his share too. Yes, -'twould be no harm to try him. Do you know where he is?" - -"At Lillo," said Tettefall, "full thirty miles away." - -"I'll ride there. Fanshawe, can you lend me a horse? Mine brought me -from the Hague, forty miles and more, and is done up." - -"I'll lend you mine. I'd like to save Sherry, but 'tis a poor chance. -Leave your horse; I'll send him and another to meet you on the way back, -in case you have to ride for it." - -"'Tis good of you. Do you know the road?" - -"The easiest for you is by Bergen-op-Zoom. You are less likely to be -interrupted that way than by the Antwerp road; our forces are camped at -Calmpthout on that road, and you might be delayed in passing through the -lines, to say nothing of falling in with the French beyond." - -"Thanks and thanks again!" - -"You'll have to ride hard," added Tettefall. "The duke's at Thielen, -twenty miles east of Lillo; and there's no time to lose." - -"No, I will start at once." - -"And good luck go with you!" - -Harry was soon riding at a smart pace along the road to Bergen-op-Zoom, -whence he made due south for Lillo, reaching that small fortified place -about seven o'clock in the evening. To his intense disappointment he -found that General van Santen was at the British head-quarters at -Thielen. He had been absent all day, but was expected to return before -night. Had it not been so late Harry would have started to meet him on -the road, but he did not care to risk missing him. He waited -impatiently; the general arrived soon after nine, and when he had heard -Harry's story he consented at once to write to Marlborough, mentioning -that the bearer of the letter had earned some consideration by his -excellent stratagem at Lindendaal, where the condemned man also had done -good service. Armed with the letter, Harry set off at ten, hoping to -cover the twenty miles to Thielen before the duke had retired to rest. - -Before starting, General van Santen warned him that parties of French -horse were out observing the movements of the confederate army. Finding -that he was not familiar with the road, the general sent one of his own -orderlies with him, warmly wishing him success. - -The two riders struck across the fields and by narrow bridle paths -almost due east, and passing through one or two ruined villages--among -them Eckeren, the scene of the Dutch defeat on June 30th--came to the -site of the French camp, vacated and burnt on the approach of -Marlborough some ten days before. The air was murky, the sky dark, and -Harry was glad of his companion. He was oppressed by the louring -prospect of Sherebiah's fate, and the heaviness of the night was not apt -to lighten his care. They had ridden for about a third of the distance, -and had just left the highway for a cross-road that saved a mile, when -all at once, from behind a hedge, there came a sharp challenge in -French. - -"Who goes there?" - -"A friend," said Harry, and, pulling up, walked his horse slowly -forward. - -"Halt, and give the countersign!" said the voice peremptorily, and -dimly, a few yards before him, Harry saw a horseman come into the road. - -"Now for a dash; keep close!" whispered Harry to the orderly. - -Setting spurs to his horse, he rode straight at the piquet, hoping that -when the inevitable shot was fired it would miss him in the darkness. -As the horse sprang forward there was a report and a blinding flash, and -a choking sob behind. Harry closed with the Frenchman. There was no -time to draw his sword, and he did not wish to raise a further alarm by -discharging his pistols. Forcing his horse against the flank of the -enemy's, he struck the man with all the weight of his fist, and, taking -him by surprise, knocked him from his saddle. He turned to look for his -companion; he was prone on the ground, and his startled steed had taken -flight. Dismounting in haste, Harry found in a moment that the man was -dead, killed by the shot intended for himself. At the same instant he -heard a sound of hoofs from behind on his right. Springing on to his -horse he set him at the gallop across a flat grassy plain, bearing, as -nearly as he could judge, due east. Suddenly he heard the thud of more -hoofs, still on his right, but this time in front of him. Evidently he -was being headed off by another party approaching from the south-east. -He swerved to the left, intending to make a detour; as he did so, there -was the report of a carbine from behind a hedge a few yards away. He -felt his horse quiver, but it galloped on, the man who had fired -plunging through the hedge in hot pursuit. - -Harry's nerves were now at high tension. It was clear that he had -stumbled upon a piquet or patrol, or even a more numerous party of the -enemy, and the odds were in favour of his meeting the same fate as the -poor fellow his guide. Unhappily his horse was beginning to flag. -Bending forward to encourage it, and patting its neck, he felt that his -hand was covered with blood. The horse had been struck. Harry -remembered how it had quivered. The wound accounted for its laboured -breathing; it was a good horse, and, not having as yet been seriously -pressed, could have held its own with those of the troopers behind. But -it was plain to Harry that, with the horse severely wounded, the race -must now be short, and the result inevitable. The distance between -himself and his pursuers was already lessening; a glance behind showed -him four dark figures close upon his heels; a few seconds would decide -his fate. - -At the moment of danger, some men lose their heads, others are braced to -the quickest exercise of their faculties. Harry, fortunately for -himself, was of the latter class. He saw that to ride on must mean -speedy capture; the only chance of escape was to dismount and slip away -on foot. But the country here was quite open, he would instantly be -seen. He peered anxiously ahead; yes, there, against the indigo sky, -was a dense mass of black; it was a plantation of some kind; could he -but gain that, there was a bare possibility. He dug his spurs into his -panting steed, with pity for the poor wounded beast carrying him so -gallantly; but he dared not spare it; apart from his own fate, another -life hung in the balance. A brief effort was needed; the horse nobly -responded, and by the time it reached the edge of the wood had slightly -increased the gap between pursuer and pursued. Pulling up suddenly, -Harry sprang from the saddle, struck the trembling animal with his -scabbard, and as he slipped among the trees heard it dash forward. - -Being wounded, Harry argued, the horse would certainly slacken its pace -when no longer urged by the voice and spur of its rider, and must soon -be overtaken. The enemy would immediately guess his device, and if the -wood should be of no great extent, they would probably surround it, wait -till morning, and capture him at their leisure. He waited breathlessly -for the coming of the enemy; he saw them sweep past, bending low in -their saddles, two men abreast, like phantom horsemen, so quietly did -they ride on the turf. His heart gave a jump when he estimated them as -at least half a troop. When they were past he left the wood, and ran -across the open plain at right angles to his previous line of flight. - -As he expected, his manoeuvre was soon discovered. He heard the -Frenchmen call to one another; then the thud of returning hoofs on his -right, and in a few minutes he saw several dark forms approaching. They -were spreading out fanwise. Only the men at the right of the line were -directly approaching him at a trot, searching the ground as they rode. -The sky was lightening behind them; the moon was rising; fortunately, -Harry being on foot, the pursuers could not see him so clearly as he saw -them. - -In a moment he perceived that it was a race between him and the man at -the end of the line. If he could get beyond the point at which the -trooper's present line of march would intersect his own path, he had a -reasonable chance of safety. To his dismay he noticed that the man was -edging still farther from his comrades, as though suspecting that he was -not taking a sufficiently wide sweep. Harry was now panting with his -exertions, and in a bath of sweat; he could run no faster over the heavy -ground; he felt that the game was up, wondering indeed that the "view -halloo!" had not already been given. Plunging blindly, despairingly, -on, he was almost at his last gasp when he suddenly fell headlong. He -had stumbled into an irrigation ditch. It was overgrown with weeds; in -the stress of war the culture of the fields had been neglected; the -bottom was dry. The weeds grew high on either side; Harry scrambled on -hands and knees into the rank vegetation, and lay still, his flanks -heaving, his breath coming and going in quick pants which he felt must -be audible yards away. - -For some seconds he heard nothing but his deep breathing and the -thumping of his heart; then the beat beat of hoofs drawing nearer. A -horseman passed within a few yards of him, luckily on the right. -Another few seconds, and the Frenchman ejaculated an angry "Nom d'un -tonnerre!" as his horse struck the ditch and stumbled. He called to his -left-hand man, and Harry, cautiously peering through the enveloping -weeds, saw him alight and begin to examine the ditch. But he moved away -from the fugitive. As soon as he was at a safe distance, Harry, who had -by this time recovered his breath, crept out and stealthily crawled -along the watercourse on hands and knees. For some minutes he continued -this arduous progress, rejoicing to hear the men's voices receding -moment by moment. Then, judging it safe, he rose and broke into a trot, -left the ditch by and by, and continued to pound over fields and paths, -through hedges and over ditches, for what seemed to him miles. Then he -stopped. All sounds had now ceased save the chirp of crickets, the -raucous cry of the corn-crake, and the croak of frogs. He had lost his -way; he knew not whether he was near a highway; he was dead tired, his -knees trembling under him. But he remembered Sherebiah spending his -lonely vigil in the town-house of Breda, waiting for the dawn of his -last day, and he set his lips and breathed a vow that the faithful -fellow should not die if the last ounce of energy would save him. - - - - - *CHAPTER XIV* - - *Harry Rides for a Life* - - -The Hour before Dawn--A Trivial Interruption--Recollections--Another -Memorandum--The Road to Breda--The Town Clock--Seven Minutes--Against -Time--Orange Wins - - -Years afterwards, when Harry was a father and a grandfather, and the -children came about his knees clamouring for a story, nothing held them -more entranced, nothing caused them such delicious creepiness, as his -account of the hours that followed his escape from the French. - -"There was I," he would say, "in the dead of night, a white mist rising -from the fields, growing thicker moment by moment--and I knew not where -I was, knew not but an unlucky step might bring me again among the -enemy. My knees were trembling under me; my mouth was parched; my breast -like to burst with the striving of my breath; I was ready to drop and -sleep as I fell. But the thought of my faithful servant in that prison; -of his being led out and blindfolded, and standing up helpless to be the -mark of bullets; of his poor old father that doted on him--ah! my boys, -those thoughts were like a goad to me; 'twas as if I was urged on by -some unseen power. - -"I could not now see the stars, so thick was the mist. I could not -choose my way. I could but go forward at a venture, praying that my -steps might be directed aright. I staggered into slimy ditches; forced -my way through quickset hedges, waded weedy streams; once I came full -upon a river that I must needs swim. There was never a cottage light to -guide me, for though I crossed many a field of corn and flax, many a -broad space of pasture land, I came nowhere near a house or farm, and -durst not turn aside, feeling as if some strange power bade me go on and -on. I know not for how many hours I struggled on thus, taking no count -of time; nor did I feel conscious of my great fatigue, but moved on as -though I was a soul without body. - -"It grew darker and darker. The night seemed to press upon me, the mist -was like cold clammy hands seizing me to hold me back. Then all at -once, going blindly as I did, I well-nigh struck my head against a low -wall, and was immediately conscious of the smell of tobacco. 'Twas like -a breath of heaven to me, boys. I cried aloud, and the echo of my voice -seemed that of a startled ghost. A rough voice answered me; I stood -still, my heart thumping against my ribs. Footsteps drew near, and I -saw the blessed light of a lantern, and in a moment a man had me by the -sleeve, and drew back his hand with a cry, for my garments were cold and -wet, and the light was flashed in my face, and I saw a big Dutch farmer, -who took his pipe from his mouth and bade me tell whence I had come and -what was my business. - -"What I said I know not now, boys, but soon I was wrapped in a cloak, -lying upon hay in the bottom of a jolting wain, and my new-found friend -driving through the dawn towards Thielen. I fell asleep, and when the -farmer's heavy hand stirred me, I was in Thielen, and all around me were -soldiers and horses and wagons; 'twas the great duke's camp. The -village clock was striking four; the sky was already bright; the camp -was astir, for the duke purposed that day to bridge the Nette. - -"What figure I cut you may imagine. Wet, cold, dishevelled, my face and -hands and clothes all bemired, I crawled as best I might from the cart, -and staggered to the house where the duke was quartered. There was a -sentry at the door: when I said I wished to see the duke he flouted me, -laughed in my face, and was for turning me away. But I was in no mood -to be delayed. I took from my tunic the sodden letter of General van -Santen, and showed it to the fellow, bidding him on peril of his life to -stay me. 'Twas enough: he called to a servant; they talked together, -eyeing me as though I were some sorry cur: then the man roughly bade me -follow him, and within a little I stood in a small chamber, looking with -dazed eyes at the man seated at a table there: 'twas my lord Marlborough -himself." - - -"A letter from General van Santen, my lord." - -Marlborough looked up as the servant spoke, but did not straighten -himself from his bent position at the table, nor remove his hands from -the pair of compasses that were stretched on the map there outspread. -Several officers were grouped about him; at a smaller table sat a -gentleman dealing with a mass of correspondence. - -"Mr. Cardonnel," said the duke briefly; then resumed his discussion with -the officers. - -The secretary turned sideways and took the letter. He broke the seal, -ran his eye hurriedly over the paper, then laid it on the table. - -"It shall be looked to," he said, and bent again to his writing. - -Harry stood for a moment; all his blood seemed to run cold. Then, his -whole body a-tingle, he stepped forward. - -"Pardon me, sir, the matter is most urgent; 'tis a case of life or -death. If you would be so good as to lay the letter at once before my -lord----" - -Mr. Cardonnel turned and stared with a sort of scornful wonder at the -dishevelled, bedraggled object who addressed him in an English and a -cultivated accent. - -"'Tis too late. My lord's despatch left last night; the man will be -shot in a few hours; the matter must e'en take its course." - -"Sir, may I beg of you----" Harry's voice, unknown to himself, was -raised to a tone of passionate entreaty. "My lord----" - -"What is it, Mr. Cardonnel?" asked Marlborough. - -"General van Santen, my lord, asks the pardon of the deserter Minshull, -sentenced by court-martial to be shot. 'Tis too late." - -"Write and tell the general so, and be done with it." - -"My lord," broke in Harry, "do but read the general's letter. I have -rid and run all night to deliver it; the execution will not yet have -taken place, and I know well----" - -"Who are you, sir?" - -The duke looked puzzled at the discrepancy between the tone of voice and -the disreputable appearance of the youth before him. - -"My name is Rochester, my lord, the letter--I entreat your lordship to -read it--will tell the rest." - -Marlborough signed to the secretary, received the letter from his hand, -and read it quickly. It was not long, and the last paragraph read as -follows:-- - - -"Perchance, my lord, you may feel that the man's gallantry in the affair -at the Comtesse de Vaudrey's may be set against his offence, which -though heinous was not unprovoked and is now some years old. If your -lordship can reconcile it with the demands of discipline to pardon this -unfortunate man, you will I trust find that your clemency is not -ill-bestowed." - - -Marlborough fixed his eyes upon Harry. "I understand from this letter -that the man is your servant?" - -He spoke in the low pleasant tone that never varied, whether he -addressed peer or peasant. - -"Yes, my lord, a very true and faithful servant." - -"And your name is Rochester? Have I not met you before?" - -"Yes, my lord, well-nigh a year ago." - -"Where?" - -"At my lord Godolphin's." - -"At my lord Godolphin's?" A slight ruffle marked his broad white brow. -He looked keenly at Harry. All at once his expression changed. "I -remember. I had clean forgotten it. You are the young fellow who -intervened in my lord's roadside adventure? Ah! and now I bethink me, -'twas your man that did the shouting. The same man?" - -"Yes, my lord." - -"That is enough.--Mr. Cardonnel, make out at once an order pardoning the -man--what is his name?--and discharging him from the army.--The man -whose lungs saved the Lord Treasurer has decidedly a claim to -indulgence. But I fear, Mr. Rochester, you are late. These little -matters are usually determined by eight o'clock in the morning. It is -near five: 'twill be some little time before I can despatch an orderly, -and there are fifty odd miles to ride." - -"With your leave, my lord, I will go myself." - -"So be it. Mr. Cardonnel will give you the pardon and discharge. It -rests with you. I hope you will be in time. Don't spare your horses." - -"I thank you, my lord, from the bottom of my heart." - -"There, no more: get to horse. Yet one moment: did I not--I seem to -remember it--did I not promise to do something for you?" - -"'Twas not a promise, my lord." - -Marlborough smiled, and looked at the boy with approval. - -"But I intended it as such. I wrote your name, I recollect; papers have -a trick of losing themselves: I should have done something for you but -for sheer forgetfulness.--Mr. Cardonnel, will you please make a note? -Mr.--your full name, sir!" - -"Henry Winterborne Rochester." - -"Mr. Henry Winterborne Rochester for an ensigncy.--I had heard of the -ruse at the Comtesse de Vaudrey's: naturally I did not connect it with -you. You are with Grootz the contractor, I believe?" - -"I was, my lord, but I have just been commissioned cornet in the Anspach -dragoons." - -Marlborough and the group of officers laughed outright. - -"Begad, my lord, you're behind the fair," cried Colonel Cadogan, a big -burly Irishman of twenty-eight, Marlborough's quartermaster-general. - -"Ay, indeed, an angel has stirred the pool. But I am delaying you, Mr. -Rochester; you must ride hard. Good-bye!" - -Harry had been itching to get away. Every moment was of importance. -Bowing himself out, he hurried to the inn where Fanshawe had promised to -stable a horse. It was there ready saddled, in charge of a trooper of -Fanshawe's regiment, who said that Harry's own charger Orange was -awaiting him half-way to Breda. Harry leapt to the saddle, flung a coin -to the man, and in less than two minutes was making his way at a sharp -trot among the press of villagers and soldiers thronging the street. -Clear of the village he went at a canter through the camp, where all was -bustle in preparation for the day's march: then, gaining the free -highroad, he set his steed to the gallop. Some minutes later he heard a -village clock strike five. - -Two hours after Harry started on his ride, Godfrey Fanshawe left his -tent in company with Lieutenant Tettefall, and mounted his horse to ride -into Breda. He had passed a sleepless and anxious night, his mind -haunted by the impending fate of Sherebiah, with whom he had spent many -a pleasant day on the banks of the Avon, or in the coverts of his -father's estate. The execution had been fixed for eight by the clock of -the Hervormde Kerk near the market-place, Marlborough's despatch -confirming the sentence having arrived late on the previous evening. -Fanshawe had seen the major in command, explaining that Harry had gone -to see the duke with a view to a remission of the sentence. The major -had laughed at the idea, swearing that he would not delay the execution -a moment. - -Galloping into Breda, Fanshawe's first care was to enquire whether Harry -had arrived, or whether any message had come from Marlborough -countermanding the execution. But nothing had been heard of the one or -the other. Fanshawe made a last appeal to the major, but Robins had -that officer's ear, and had convinced him that the condemned prisoner -was a rascal of whom the army would be well rid. - -At a quarter after seven the regiment was paraded and marched to the -castle park, where the execution was to take place. Fanshawe meanwhile -paced moodily up and down, watching the inexorable clock. Suddenly, as -he looked at its face for the tenth time, he remembered a legend of the -Civil War, which his father had told him: the story of a Royalist -trooper who, condemned to die at the ringing of the curfew, had been -saved by the heroism of his sweetheart, who climbed the belfry tower, -caught the clapper of the bell, and with her delicate hands had -prevented the fatal sound. His recollection suggested an idea. There -was still forty minutes to spare. - -At the park gate a knot of idlers had gathered to see the condemned man -pass to his doom. Singling out from among these a likely youth, -Fanshawe held with him a rapid conversation in whispers; and the two -hurried away. - -They went straight to the sacristan of the Hervormde Kerk, whose cottage -was known to the Dutch youth. By the aid of this interpreter Fanshawe -explained to the old man that, being much interested in church clocks, -he would like to climb the tower and see the mechanism, at the same time -slipping a coin into the man's hand. The sacristan was a feeble, -tottering old fellow, and was persuaded without difficulty to hand over -the key of the tower, on the promise of the English officer to return it -within an hour. Armed with the key, Fanshawe then hurried under the -boy's guidance to the chief clock-maker's in the town. His shop was not -yet open for business, but when he learnt that a clock was in urgent -need of attention he agreed to send a young apprentice to oblige the -Englishman. At twenty minutes to eight Fanshawe with the young -clock-maker ascended the church tower. The boy remained at the door. - -The clock chimed the three-quarters. - -"Pray God Harry arrive in time!" was Fanshawe's thought as he returned -to the park gate. - -The clock was too far off for any movement of the hands to be noted. -Had it been nearer, a close observer comparing with his own watch might -have seen that from this time the long hand of the clock advanced one -minute for every two. - -It still marked ten minutes to eight when Sherebiah, with bound wrists, -came up under guard. He smiled serenely when, entering the park, he saw -Fanshawe, whose pale anxious looks betrayed his suffering. - -"Don't 'ee take on, now, Master Godfrey," he said. "Let 'em aim well and -ha' done wi't. Bless 'ee, I bean't afeard. But, Master Godfrey, where -be Master Harry? To say good-bye, I mean." - -"He--he couldn't come, Sherry." - -"Ah! Well, 'tis no sight for a man o' peace, and he ha'n't donned the -breastplate yet. Gi' un my love and respect, an 'ee please, sir; and -axe un to remember the old gaffer." Fanshawe gripped his hand, and he -passed into the park. "Nay, I won't ha' my eyes tied up," he said to -one of the firing squad who approached to bandage him. "Must, must I? -Well, I'm not one to go agen the law at the last. Got a clean firelock, -mate? Ah! there's the bell a-dingen. Tell Robins--nay, I was gwine to -forgive un, but I won't; I'll leave that for Them above." - -By this time he was standing, with eyes bandaged, against the wall. He -ceased to speak; the last stroke of eight had already sounded from -several steeples; but the clock of the Hervormde Kerk still wanted seven -minutes of the hour. Fanshawe's eyes were riveted on the hands; the -soldiers stood at ease, waiting. - - -Meanwhile, what of Harry? - -The road through Turnhout to Breda passes through a wide moorland region -and crosses the river Merk. It was a somewhat heavy road at the best, -and the recent passage of troops and baggage wagons had made it rutty -and uneven. Harry had started at a stiff gallop; his horse was fresh, -and seemed to catch the infection of his eagerness. On he went, -scarcely varying his pace, his head low, his ears bent back for his -rider's encouraging words. At that hour the road was free; Harry met -with no obstruction. He dashed through Turnhout, crossed the river to -Hoogstraaten, and there found his own black charger awaiting him. He -was not quite half-way to Breda. - -"Orange, my beauty, you must go as you never went before," he cried, as -he set the animal at a gallop. The horse pricked his ears in response. -He galloped on for mile after mile, scattering dust around him, getting -many a stare of wonderment from the peasants at work in the fields. As -the miles slipped by, Harry anxiously watched his gallant steed. Great -flakes of foam fell from the animal's quivering lips; his nostrils were -distended wide; his white eye-sockets were rimmed with red; and still he -galloped, panting, striving nobly to respond to the caressing pats and -cheering words of his master. - -"Twenty minutes more, old fellow!" whispered Harry in the beast's ear. -"Twenty minutes; if you can only hold out!" - -He was nearing the end of his ride, but the poor horse was in distress. -Spots of blood crimsoned the white foam; Harry fancied that he saw -despair in the animal's starting eyes; and when, still a mile on the -wrong side of Ginneken, he heard the little church clock strike eight, -his heart sank within him. He dared not press the horse further; he -might urge it to a short spurt, but the effort would probably be its -last; and he had still three miles to go! - -"Well done, Orange, my beauty!" he cried, patting its ear. "Good horse! -Near home now; a few minutes more, old fellow, and then----" - -Thus he rode on, inspiriting words on his lips, black despair at his -elbow. He knew what military punctuality meant; his ears were strained -to catch the sharp rattle of musketry. How far could a volley be heard? -He could not pause to speculate on the question; all he could hear was -the ringing of his flagging steed's hoofs. - -He was a mile from Breda. He saw the whole of the little town before -him, smoke rising from the chimneys; he overtook a few carts slowly -wending towards the market, and heard the wondering exclamations of the -wagoners as his blood-flecked steed flashed by. His eyes were straining -towards the church tower; pray God the Ginneken clock was fast! But he -was too far away to see the hands. On he rode; he came to the open -gate; the sentry challenged him, but he was gone before the man had -finished the phrase. Now he dug his spurs into the horse's heaving -flanks for a last spurt; he clattered through the ill-paved street, -shouting to the pedestrians to make way; into the busy little -market-place, cumbered with the stalls of apple-women, poulterers, and -other purveyors. Boys scurried like rabbits out of his path; women -raised shrill cries as stalls were thrown down and apples rolled wide; -dogs barked and girls shrieked; but he was past; the church clock said -one minute to eight! Out of the market-square, round the corner,--and -there was Tettefall, hastening to meet him. - -"To the park!" cried the lieutenant. - -Harry shouted in the horse's ear. In half a minute he was in at the -park gate, and saw as in a mist the red uniforms of the firing-party, -the solitary figure of the condemned man, and the officer in advance of -the line with his eyes on the clock. - -"Saved!" he cried, flinging the duke's order into the air. In a moment -he was off the horse, which sank a trembling, heaving heap upon the -ground. - -"Just in time--thank God!" gasped Harry, as he sat with the horse's head -between his knees. - -And upon his dazed ear there fell the first chimes of the beneficent -clock, mingled with the loud curt tones of the officer in command as he -gave his squad the order to march. - -[Illustration: The Stroke of Eight] - - - - - *CHAPTER XV* - - *The Water of Affliction* - - -The New Cornet--A Visit to Lindendaal--Fanshawe is Presented--The Family -Skeleton--Madame Protests--Mademoiselle Insists--Mynheer is -Mysterious--A Silent House--The Law Allows It--Not in the Bond--In the -Canal--Sherebiah Owns Up - - -By his famous ride from Thielen to Breda Harry became doubly a popular -hero. Neither citizens nor soldiers, Dutch or English, felt any -particular concern with Sherebiah; but Harry's feat, coming before the -memory of his former exploit at Lindendaal had died out, raised him to a -pitch of estimation that might well have made him vain, but which in -truth he found only embarrassing. Fanshawe, on the other hand, whose -ready device with the clock had, as Harry was the first to acknowledge, -really been the means of saving Sherebiah, was regarded with cold -unfriendliness and even dislike by the townsfolk. To tamper with the -town clock they regarded as a monstrous and unpardonable offence, and -there was some talk of laying a formal complaint before the Duke of -Marlborough. The proposal was warmly debated in the borough council, -and the burgomaster had to exercise all his tact to prevent the hotter -heads from carrying the day. - -As for Sherebiah, he was a different man. By his formal discharge from -the army the cloud that had pressed upon him for nearly nine years was -dissolved; and now that he had become by official licence, as it were, a -man of peace in good earnest, he developed, not merely an unexpected -lightness of spirits, but a surprising partiality for the company of -soldiers. Every leisure moment he now spent in camp or barrack, -retailing endless anecdotes of his former experiences as a man of war, -and basing on these a right to criticise and instruct which younger men -admitted with humility, to the immense disgust and chagrin of Robins. - -A few days after the incident, Harry's regiment marched into quarters at -Breda, and General van Santen himself paid a flying visit to the town in -order to introduce the new cornet to his messmates. Harry was welcomed -with open arms, less through the general's sponsorship than through the -fame of his own exploits and the proof he had given of courage and -daring. One little fact also, which leaked out in course of time, did -much to consolidate Harry's reputation as a thoroughly good fellow. He -made it his business to find out the relatives of the man who had been -killed during the night ride from Lillo. The poor fellow had left a -wife and six children, the eldest a boy of sixteen--a slow, earnest, -dogged youth who was overcome with shyness when Harry, at the interview -with his tearful mother, asked to see him. Harry liked the look of the -boy, and offered to apprentice him to an armourer. The mother gladly -accepted; and Mynheer Grootz further undertook, at Harry's persuasion, -to provide employment for the widow and those of her children who were -of age to work. This solicitude of Harry for the family of a man who -after all had only been killed by the fortune of war, and had no claim -upon him, made an impression on the officers of his regiment; and though -it was never mentioned in his presence at mess, it doubtless accounted -in large measure for his popularity with officers and men. - -For some weeks Harry was fully occupied in learning his new duties, -practising with sword and rapier, and improving his knowledge of Dutch: -Sherebiah's command of the language was of course no longer a mystery. -Schomberg's Horse, to which Fanshawe belonged, being likewise quartered -outside Breda, Harry often had opportunities of conversation with his -friend. Naturally Fanshawe was amazed to hear of the strange enmity of -Mr. Berkeley, and shrewdly guessed that the soldier of fortune who had -informed on Sherebiah was Captain Aglionby. - -"And mark my words," he said, "'twas another move against you. Sherry -seems to have been a sort of watchdog to you; him out of the way, so -much the less difficulty in aiming at you. Though what cause the squire -has to wish you ill it passes my wit to divine." - -"And mine too. 'Tis a desperate revenge on me for being my father's -son." - -"Have a care, Harry. Having gone so far they will not easily be -baulked, and in these cut-and-thrust times a blow in the dark, eh?--exit -Harry Rochester." - -"I'll be on my guard, never fear; and I still have Sherry." - -Harry had not forgotten his friends at Lindendaal. He rode over one -free afternoon some three weeks after joining his regiment, and found -that the ladies had heard of his promotion, and of his ride, from -Mynheer Grootz. Madame de Vaudrey was ecstatic in her congratulations, -and only deplored that his new coat was not more brilliant. - -"It suits you well, mon ami," she said, "but for myself I should like -better the red than the blue." - -"Indeed, Madame," replied Harry with a laugh, "I hadn't given it a -thought. There's one advantage in a dull garb: it presents a less -conspicuous mark to the enemy." - -"A point, Monsieur, to which also you had not given a thought till this -moment," said Adele. - -Harry laughed; then, changing the subject, he added: "Have you heard or -seen anything more of Monsieur de Polignac and his friend?" - -"Nothing, Monsieur Harry," said the comtesse. "And indeed we do not -wish to. I only fear lest his silence augurs no good for us. As for -his friend, that odious captain----prrrut!" - -Madame's indignation was too great for articulate expression. The idea -of Aglionby daring to pay his addresses to her was too monstrous. As -was her wont in this mood, she prattled away about her late husband, -Harry listening sympathetically and wondering at the half-smile on -Adele's face. When taking his leave, he said: - -"An old friend of mine, an English officer, is in camp at Breda. May I -bring him, Madame, to call on you one day?" - -"I shall be charmed, mon cher ami." - -"Fanshawe speaks little French, I fear, but----" - -"Ah bah!" interrupted the lady, "that matters nothing at all. Adele -shall teach him." - -"I shall be charmed, as Mamma says," said Adele. - -Harry smiled; nevertheless the suggestion set him thinking as he rode -back, and he felt a shade of annoyance when Fanshawe, to whom he -mentioned the circumstance, laughed heartily and quoted: - -"'Amo, amas, I love a lass'. Is she pretty, Harry? By George! I like -the notion." - -The two rode out together in the following week; Fanshawe made a good -impression on Madame de Vaudrey, and his stammering French and -good-humoured laughter at his own mistakes appeared to form a bond of -union between him and Adele, for she was soon chatting and smiling with -a friendliness and freedom quite different from her reserved attitude -towards Harry. Fanshawe talked and laughed gaily all the way back; -Harry on the contrary was decidedly glum; and when Sherebiah came to him -at night as usual for orders his master's unaccustomed moodiness did not -escape him. - -"What med be the meanen o' this?" he muttered as he went away. - - "'Yanker didee dudel down - Dida dudel launter----' - -I must ride out-along to Lindendaal one o' these fine days, and putt a -question to Katrinka--ay sure." - -One afternoon in the second week of September Harry, having finished his -duties for the day, paid a visit by himself to Madame de Vaudrey. He -found the good lady in tears, and Adele with very pale cheeks and a -suspicious redness about her eyes. - -"Oh, Monsieur Harry!" cried the comtesse as he was shown in, "how glad I -am to see you! This is a moment when I need a friend. Look at this -letter from that odious Monsieur de Polignac. My poor dear husband! I -am glad--it is horrible to say it--but yes, I am glad he did not live to -see this terrible day. Read it, cher ami." - -Harry looked at the letter. It was a curt and formal note from Polignac -intimating that, failing compliance with his suit, he was resolved to -foreclose his mortgage on the estate one month from the date of the -letter, as the terms of the deed provided. He still offered -Mademoiselle his hand and heart; did she accept him as a husband he -would immediately destroy the mortgage; he gave her a week to decide. - -"The villain!" ejaculated Harry. - -"He is within his right, Monsieur," said Adele. - -"Right! Legal right, yes; no doubt it is so; but who but a villain -would put the matter in this way!" - -"What I do not understand," said Madame de Vaudrey, "is his motive. If -Adele were a great heiress, I can understand that he should press his -suit; but she is not; this poor little estate would not tempt an -ambitious man; and as for herself, she has shown her aversion so -plainly----" - -"I hate him!" cried the girl, with a vehemence that surprised Harry, so -unlike was it to her usual cold self-contained air. - -"It is wrong to hate," said her mother; "but the dear girl has no liking -for him, and how should a man desire for a wife one to whom he is so -indifferent?" - -"Tell me," said Harry, "is the mortgage for a large sum?" - -"Alas! yes, for several thousand guilders; that is for the estate alone: -the house is separately mortgaged, and the mortgagee in that case is -content to receive his interest." - -"Have you no relatives who would advance the money?" - -"Not one. We are poor exiles, and have not, I believe, one relative in -the wide world." - -Harry was greatly distressed. It was clear that Adele would never -consent to marry Polignac, even if her mother wished it; and there was -no escape from the dilemma save by raising the money. - -"Are you quite sure you are so fully in the man's power?" he asked. - -"I know it too well. There is no flaw in the documents; my dear -husband's lawyer is a good man; we have no way of escape." - -"Of course you have consulted him?" - -"Yes; he can do nothing. It is law, he tells me; we have no other -property the sale of which might pay off the mortgage; I have nothing -but my jewels, the gifts of my dear comte, and they would not bring -one-tenth of the sum we need. The income from the estate would enable -us to pay off the mortgage in ten years if we were given time." - -A ray of light struck suddenly upon Harry. - -"Does Mynheer Grootz know?" he asked. - -"Oh no! Mynheer Grootz is indeed a friend, but he could do -nothing--nothing." - -"I am not sure of that. I think he should be told. It is a matter of -business; he is a shrewd man of business; he may be able to see a way -out of the difficulty that we are ignorant of; with your leave I will -put the case to him." - -"No, Monsieur Harry, I forbid it. I prefer that Mynheer Grootz should -not know. He has enough to do, I am sure, without being troubled with a -poor woman's affairs. I do not say he has not a good heart; he has; he -knows how fond I am of rare tulips, and has so kindly given me bulbs; -but no, I could not seek other favours from him, I could not indeed. -Besides, the lawyer has said, nothing can be done; Mynheer Grootz can do -nothing against the law." - -"True, Madame; and yet--it is a chance; it can surely do no harm----" - -"You do not understand, Monsieur; it may do the very greatest harm." - -Harry was mystified, especially as he fancied he detected the glimmer of -a smile on Adele's face. - -"I do not understand----" he began. - -"Mother cannot explain," said Adele quietly. "I do not agree with her; -I think she is quite mistaken; certainly Mynheer Grootz should be told." - -"Adele, you are a child; one cannot expect you to understand." - -"Maman cherie, do you think so? You are a goose, petite Maman. -Monsieur, believe me, it will be the very best thing in the world to -consult Mynheer Grootz." - -"Adele!" - -"It will, Mamma. It is a poor chance, I fear, but ought we to neglect -even the least? and you do not wish me to marry Monsieur de Polignac?" - -"Mon Dieu, non! A thousand times no! The odious man!" - -"Then, Madame," said Harry, "I will venture to see Mynheer Grootz as -soon as I can,--or perhaps write to him." - -"Eh bien! it is against my will. I protest; I can do no more. You will -tell him I protested?" - -"Certainly, I shall not forget. I will let you know what he says; -perhaps he will come himself. Madame, have a good heart; why, if all -else fails, there is my man Sherry; you remember how he embraced the -gentlemen?" - -Adele laughed, but the comtesse was too much distressed to see any -humour in the situation. Harry was surprised at the flutter into which -his simple suggestion had thrown her, and rode away feeling puzzled at -the strange ways of women. - -He was spared the necessity of writing to Mynheer Grootz, for on -reaching his quarters he learnt that the merchant had called during the -evening, and had left word that he might be seen next afternoon after -his business with the commissary was concluded. He heard Harry's story -quietly. - -"Leave it to me, Harry," he said, his little eyes twinkling. "I will -promise dis Monsieur de Polignac a little surprise. He is a noble; zo I -guess by de name. Dey are all de same, dese nobles; and I promise -Monsieur de Polignac zall be made to know dat dis is Holland, not -France, and moreover dat one honest Dutchman is match for a score of -rascal French. Dis man dink he have only a woman to deal wid; well, he -zall be undeceive." - -"Will you see Madame de Vaudrey, then, or write to her?" - -"No, neider will I zee her, nor write to her. But you--you will tell -her by no means to answer dis Monsieur de Polignac. He will foreclose -in a month, you zay? Very well. He zall meet wid a surprise. Now tell -me one ding. Madame la Comtesse--did she ask you to come to me?" - -"Quite the contrary, Mynheer; she did not wish it, I did not understand -why; the reasons she gave were somewhat lame." - -Then for the first time in Harry's knowledge of the Dutch merchant he -saw him excited. - -"By den donder!" he exclaimed, slapping his thigh. Noting Harry's glance -of astonishment he chuckled again, adding: "I tell you dis; you alzo -zall zee someding." He wagged his forefinger knowingly. - -"You have told me nothing," said Harry with a smile. - -"No, dat is true. In good time. You do not yet know me, Jan Grootz." - -Harry gave Madame de Vaudrey the Dutchman's message, and after that -found only one opportunity of visiting her for nearly a month. On that -occasion she showed him a final letter from Polignac, announcing that on -a specified day he would attend at the house to receive payment of his -mortgage, or, in default, possession of the property. The comtesse had -heard nothing from Grootz, and was in great distress, refusing to be -comforted when Harry assured her that all would be well. On his return -to Breda he wrote to Grootz informing him of Polignac's letter, and next -day received a reply asking him to arrange if possible to keep the day -named free. - -Early on the morning of that September day, Grootz with Harry, -Sherebiah, and two men with large bags slung at their saddles, rode out -from Breda to Lindendaal. When the door was opened by old Jean, and they -had entered, Grootz bade him close it and slip one of the bolts half-way -into its socket. After a short conversation with the servant he went -into the reception-room, had the bags laid on the table, threw himself -into the biggest chair, and calmly lit his pipe. - -"Madame abhors tobacco, Mynheer," Harry ventured to say. - -"Huh! Zo I now remember. It is a pity; I must put out my pipe, even -though she be not here." - -"She is gone from home, then? I fancied so by the manner of your -entering." - -"Ja! At dis moment she and de juffrouw are, as I suppose, fast asleep -in Breda. Dey come dere last night." - -"Oh! And we receive Monsieur de Polignac?" - -"Dat is zo; we receive Monsieur de Polignac." - -Deprived of the solace of his pipe, Grootz settled himself to sleep in -his chair. An hour or more later he was wakened by Harry. - -"Here they are, Mynheer!" - -"Zo!" - -He was up in a moment, and from the window saw Polignac, accompanied by -Aglionby and two sturdy henchmen, walking up the drive towards the -house. - -"Zooks!" exclaimed Sherebiah, "here be Rafe Aglionby again. 'Twill be -no cuddle this time if I lay hands on him. No thanks to he I be not a -dead corpse to-day." - -"Sherebiah, it is my turn," said Grootz solemnly. - -"Zackly, Mynheer, all fair and no favour." - -The four men came to the door, and the bell gave forth a resounding -clang. All was silent within the house, and Jean at Grootz's orders -paid no heed to the appeal. Again the bell sounded; again there was no -response. Then Aglionby with an oath began to hammer on the door with -his riding-whip. Even this noisy summons being disregarded, after a -moment's consultation Polignac ordered one of his men to burst in the -door. It yielded easily to his force, and the four trooped in--to find -themselves confronted by Grootz, with Harry and Sherebiah behind him. -At the same moment six of the men about the estate came quietly from -behind the house and arranged themselves in two parties on both sides of -the entrance, outside, and out of view from within. Jean had fulfilled -his instructions. - -Polignac halted in some embarrassment when he saw Grootz, and Aglionby -looked far from comfortable at this unexpected meeting with the two men -he had injured. - -"Messieurs, I ask you," began Grootz in slow, halting French, "what is -the meaning of this forcible entry?" - -"Pardon, Monsieur," replied Polignac, recovering his sang-froid -instantly. "I have not the pleasure. I came to see Madame la Comtesse -de Vaudrey." - -"Zo? And permit me to ask, what is your business with Madame la -Comtesse de Vaudrey?" - -"Before I reply, permit me to ask by what right you question me, and -what you are doing here?" - -"Decidedly, Monsieur. My name is Jan Grootz; I am here by the power of -attorney I hold from Madame de Vaudrey. I beg you see it is in due -form." - -He exhibited a roll of parchment which Polignac glanced at; he was -patently annoyed; his mouth twitched towards his left ear. Aglionby -meanwhile had edged towards him, evidently with the intention of -whispering something; but Sherebiah noted the movement and exclaimed: - -"Keep a still tongue, Rafe Aglionby, 'ee were best, I tell 'ee." - -"You are aware, then, Monsieur," said Polignac, "that I come according -to due notice as required by law to demand payment of a bond, or -possession of this estate, as provided in the deed?" - -"Yes; I know it; what is the amount payable under the bond?" - -"Fourteen thousand guilders, Monsieur." - -Grootz pointed through the open doorway of the reception-room to the -bags upon the table. - -"There is the money, Monsieur. You will please to count it, and give me -a quittance, and hand the bond to me to be destroyed." - -With disappointment and rage written upon his face, Polignac proceeded -to count the money with Aglionby's assistance. It was a longish -process, and neither of the men felt quite at ease under the gaze of the -onlookers. At last it was finished; Polignac wrote a receipt, and gave -the cancelled bond to Grootz. Not a word was spoken while these -formalities were complied with. Harry noticed that Sherebiah had placed -himself between Aglionby and the door. - -"Zo!" said Grootz. "Wait one minute, Monsieur." He unrolled the deed, -ran his eye over it, then looked up and said with deliberate gravity: -"Permit me to draw your attention to the fact that the property named in -this document is the land belonging to the estate. It does not include -the house and its appurtenances. Wherefore it appears, Monsieur, that -you, with a band of ruffian hirelings, have violently broken into the -private house of a lady who enjoys the protection of the Dutch flag. -That is, permit me to observe, Monsieur, a breach of the law, and -subjects you to a penalty--heavy, no doubt; I do not know the law. But -for the present, since the law moves somewhat slowly, it would not -surprise me if the servants of Madame la Comtesse, who are devoted to -their mistress, should prefer to anticipate the sentence. They may be -disposed to do what every honest and indignant Hollander would certainly -do in the circumstances." - -At a signal the half-dozen Dutch servants moved to the door and blocked -the entrance. - -"Men," said Grootz to them, "these gentlemen, who are not Hollanders, -have broken into your mistress's house. I do not give you any advice; -but for myself I do not think it would be a breach of the law if you -should throw these gentlemen into the canal yonder.--Do not be alarmed, -gentlemen; it is cold, I fear, and dirty, but as honest Hollanders -Madame de Vaudrey's servants will not allow you to drown, for all their -indignation." - -Half-way through this speech Polignac and Aglionby had both made to draw -their swords; but the six Hollanders seized upon them; in a trice they -were overpowered. Their two men looked on, trembling. Polignac, white -to the lips, held his peace; but Aglionby, after wriggling vainly in the -hands of his captors, turned his head towards Sherebiah and cried: - -"Zounds, Sherry, you will not stand by and see your own cousin so -misused. 'Tis a vile plot. I have done nothing; what are the ladies to -me? what is Polignac to me? Sherry, unhand these boors; I shall catch -my death of cold; Sherry, I say, blood is thicker than water----" - -"Ay sure, but it bean't so cold." - -"Od rat you!" shouted the enraged captain as he was hauled with Polignac -out of the house. He kept up his clamorous entreaties and oaths until -the very moment when, with a sounding splash, he was heaved into the -canal, and with spluttering breathlessness struck out with Polignac for -the other side. A moment's observation sufficed to show the Hollanders -that their victims could swim; they watched the scene with Dutch -stolidity, Grootz placidly smoking his long-deferred pipe. - -"Ay, 'tis the water of affliction, as the Book says," remarked Sherebiah -sententiously as he watched the swimmers gain the farther bank, clamber -up, and slink away, Aglionby obviously pouring out the vials of his -wrath upon the miserable Frenchman. "'Tis the fust time for many a day -cold water have gone down Rafe's throat, and mebbe he's changed his mind -by now about blood bein' thicker 'n this water." - -"I admire your strategy, Mynheer," said Harry to Grootz. - -"Zo! We must send dis money to Polignac; his house is near at hand. -Dere is one ding to zay: de house is mine, after all. I paid off de -mortgage last week--let us zay, for a friend. Dat is all dat Madame -need know: Grootz has paid de bonds--both bonds, house and land--for a -friend: a matter of business; you understand." - -"Very well, Mynheer; I will be diplomatic if she asks for more -information." - -But Harry was as much puzzled by Grootz's attitude as he had been by the -lady's. - -"So Captain Aglionby is your cousin?" he said to Sherebiah later in the -day. - -"Ay, to be sure: old feyther's sister's son. A fine loven feller for a -coz, bean't he, sir?" - -"He has got off too lightly, Sherry." - -"Mebbe, but he'll come to his reckonen some day. You mind seein' me -trounce un the day arter I shouted for the noble lord?" - -"Yes, and you would not tell me the reason." - -"Nay, I was 'shamed for my blood. Folks thowt 'twas Rafe as loosed John -Simmons. 'Twarn't him; 'twas me." - -"You!" - -"Ay. I knowed as the highway business were a trick o' Rafe's, and I -knowed as how Simmons would split on un. Fat'll be in fire then, thinks -I. Rafe'll go to hangman, and poor old feyther o' mine'll die o' shame -at such a kicken end for his own sister's child. I couldn't stand that, -sir, so when Willum Nokes was a-snoren I took down keys from the nail -and had Simmons out in a twink." - -"But that doesn't explain why you fought the captain." - -"Ay, but it do. Here was I, goen agen the law, diddlen Sir Godfrey and -other high justices, cheaten hangman and all--and what for, I axe 'ee? -'Cos Minshull blood was cussed wi' mixen wi' Aglionby's. Aglionby blood -had got to pay, someways, and so it did, to be sure, for I took a -half-pint or so out of Rafe that mornen." - - - - - *CHAPTER XVI* - - *Knaves all Three* - - -Labour Lost--Elegant Extracts--Hard Hit--A New -Departure--Fishing--County Families--Sack - - -Captain Aglionby sanded the paper he had just written upon, and leant -back in his chair with a sigh of satisfaction. He heard the sound of -footsteps on the stairs. - -"Here, Mynheer," said the voice of his landlord. - -With an instinctive movement he covered the letter, and turned on his -chair, in time to see the door open and a visitor enter. He stared for -a moment in speechless amazement; then, attempting clumsily to shove the -letter entirely out of sight beneath a plate containing the crumbs of a -fish pate, he got up and said: - -"Why, Mr. Berkeley; adzooks! 'tis the last man I could have expected to -see, the last man--though a pleasant surprise, an uncommonly pleasant -surprise." - -"Humph!" grunted the old man, with a glance round the mean room. "I -feared you would resent my too abrupt entry. After what I had learnt in -your letters about your magnificent, expensive, modish apartment, I -could not suppose I was walking straight into your parlour--h'm! study; -h'm! bedroom and--pantry, h'm!" - -"No apologies, my friend, I beg. You take me at a disadvantage, having -but just consumed my modest repast----" - -"Fish! My nose informs me. 'Tis the fortieth smell that has offended -my senses within a quarter of an hour. 'Twas somewhat difficult to -discover your--mansion. You are not, it appears, so well known at the -Hague as you give out; and when I named you at my inn, with your -address, I was advised to bring an escort. I came alone----" - -"Ah! Nicolas Berkeley knows how to take care of himself--eh, Squire?" - -"But had I known to what an ordeal, to what a series of ordeals, my -nostrils would be exposed, I doubt I could not have plucked up the -courage." - -"'Twas ill done to come upon me so suddenly. The smells--hang me, -Squire, I have smelt worse when I was the guest of the Czar of Muscovy. -But had you given me a week's, a day's notice, I would have made ready -an entertainment worthy of you, my old friend." - -"No doubt, no doubt----" - -"And indeed I was on the point of writing you when you entered." - -"Ay, on the point of; you write to me twice a day, do you? for unless I -mistake, you have already writ once to-day. Under the plate, Captain -Aglionby--surely I see writ on the paper there some semblance of my -name." - -"'Tis so; what eyes you have for your age, Squire! I was just trying a -new pen, and so full were my thoughts of my generous friend and patron -that the pen ran of its own accord, mark you, into the familiar curves. -And as I know how you abhor a letter, I will e'en tear up the paper -and----" - -"Stay!" cried the old man, taking a sudden step forward; "knowing the -pains you take in writing, 'tis pity they should be wasted. I set out -designing to conduct my son to the army: I find I am embarked on a -voyage of discovery; give me the paper." - -The command was uttered in a tone that broke down Aglionby's bravado. -He drew the letter from below the plate, and handed it in sullen silence -to the squire. The old man pressed his lips grimly together as he -unfolded the yet unsealed paper. Aglionby stuck out his legs wide -apart, thrust his hands into his breeches pockets, and hung his head in -moody dudgeon. - -"'Tis excellent pen-work; your hand grows fluent. '_I thank you for the -hundred guineas received_'"--Mr. Berkeley read aloud with deliberation -and a dry emphasis that made Aglionby wince--"'_and trust the two -hundred for which I beseeched you in my last will not tarry._' To pay -your landlord, I take it, for this--magnificent apartment." - -"A man must live," said the captain sullenly. - -"Ay, eat and drink, and sponge upon his betters for his cakes and ale." - -"Oons! Squire, 'tis rum." - -"A foul-smelling liquor.--What is this?--'_do violence to natural -affection in the service of a munificent patron--inform on a -cousin--Sherebiah Minshull condemned to be shot--my lord -Marlborough--young Mr. Rochester--rid up in the nick of time._'"--Mr. -Berkeley's brow darkened as he read.--"Let me come to the end of it. -'_A visit to the Comtesse de Vaudrey in the interest of my -patron--violent assault--in the mellay stumbled into a canal--costume -totally ruined and cannot be replaced under ten guineas_'--I observe -'tis shrunk at the sleeve; I thought maybe you had grown, to match your -magnificent apartment! Now, sirrah, how much of this precious epistle -do you expect me to believe? A fine story, in truth, of the ills you -suffer in your constant zeal for your 'munificent patron': is it all of -a piece with your 'magnificent apartment'? What have you done with, and -for, my hundred guineas?--what, sirrah, your answer!" - -Aglionby felt that he was being wronged; he had, in fact, done all in -his power; it was not his fault that failure had dogged him. -Undoubtedly appearances were against him, and the biting emphasis of the -old man's delivery, the cold sneer that lurked in every repetition of -his pet phrases, robbed him of speech. He writhed under the lash. -Standing over him, the squire gave rein to his temper. - -"You take me for a fool, do you, with your cock-and-bull stories!--you -flam me off, rat me! with your 'magnificent apartment', your 'munificent -patron', your 'constant zeal', which I--I, you swashbuckling villain--am -to pay for! Where are the two hundred guineas paid to the captain of -the _Merry Maid_?--the fifty guineas to your footpad friends in -Wapping?--the hundred sent you but a few weeks past? How has your zeal -furthered my interest? Zeal, forsooth! there's a many of your cut-throat -gossips would sink you as a disgrace to the craft, for at least they -hold to their bargains and are not swindlers as well as----" - -"Fire and fury!" shouted Aglionby, springing to his feet and drawing his -sword. "'Tis not to be borne! Clap a bridle on your canting tongue or -I'll run your bloodless carcass through!--as I've done with many a -better man. D'ye hear, you old Pharisee! Your white hairs under your -wig sha'n't preserve you if Rafe Aglionby is roused. And where would -you be, rot you--Squire Berkeley of Winton Hall--you and your -guineas--if I told what I know?" - -[Illustration: "Fire and Fury!" shouted Aglionby] - -Mr. Berkeley had drawn at the same moment, and the two stood glaring at -each other over the chair. The old man, his face livid with passion, -was in nowise daunted by the other's threats; Aglionby's cheeks were -purple, and the veins on his brow stood up like whipcord. For some -moments both stood tense, each leaning towards the other; then the -squire dropped his sword back into the sheath, gulped, and said: - -"Well, well, maybe I was hasty. But you have a great deal to explain, -Aglionby--a very great deal to explain." - -"As I could have done, had you but given me time instead of treating me -as you would a common pickpocket. By George! Mr. Berkeley, Rafe -Aglionby is not the man to stand that mode of dealing, as you well know, -for all the luck has been against me these late years. Who could have -supposed that young Rochester, sink him! would escape from the _Merry -Maid_? Was that my fault, pray? By what I can make out he jumped -overboard off Gravesend and got aboard a Dutch brig, and the rascally -Hollander--one Grootz, a smug corn-dealer--refused to give him up. -Could I help that? Then, when I had my snivelling cousin Sherebiah fast -in the net, could I prevent my lord Marlborough from signing his -discharge and undoing all my work? Could I? I've had the worst of luck -all through; and foul words won't mend matters. And, beshrew me, you -were not over successful yourself with the cockerel's father, for all -your guineas. The youngster's a chip of the old block, and a precious -hard chip too, rot him! But I've vowed to carry the thing through; -besides your affair, I've now one or two private accounts to square with -him; and if you have patience and a trifle more courtesy--by George! -you'll have no cause to complain of Rafe Aglionby." - -The words came from him in a torrent. He felt that he had a real -grievance, and, as often with rogues, the possession of a grievance lent -him words if not eloquence. But the squire still looking doubtful, -Aglionby picked up a stained copy of the _Amsterdam Courier_ that lay on -a chair, and pointed to a paragraph giving in French an account, -somewhat distorted but substantially accurate, of Harry's exploit on -behalf of Sherebiah. As the old man read it he pressed his thin lips -together in vindictive rage. - -"There for you!" pursued the captain. "'Tis the talk of the town. The -youngster is making friends on all sides; he owns a commission in the -Dutch army----" - -"What!" - -"'Tis true; a booby general got him the commission, and the lubber -Grootz pays. 'Tis becoming more and more difficult to get at him; but I -have a scheme--a pretty scheme, egad!--that can scarcely fail this time. -All I need is a small sum to go on with--rat me, Squire, will you still -sneer? On my soul, I----" - -"Tut, Captain, your skin is surely thinner than it was." - -"And yours would be thin had ye not your guineas to line it with. Hang -me, Berkeley, a word from me----" - -"Come, come," said the squire quickly, "'tis not for old friends to fall -out. You were talking of your scheme." - -"I was saying that all I need is a small sum in advance--the rest may -wait till the thing is done." - -"And what is your scheme? You do not expect me--no offence, -Aglionby--to buy a pig in a poke this time." - -"'Twere better, maybe----" Aglionby was beginning, but just then a -footstep was heard on the stairs. He evidently recognized it. -Hesitating for a second he lowered his voice and continued hurriedly: -"'Tis one of the men engaged in the job. I will call on you later at -your inn. 'Twould be amiss were he to know you had any concern in it." - -Berkeley looked suspiciously at the captain, but, unable to fathom his -embarrassment, he picked up his hat and slowly moved towards the door. -It opened in his face, and Polignac appeared. He stepped back -courteously to allow the older man to pass. They bowed to each other, -with a mutual glance of keen scrutiny. The squire bade Aglionby -good-day, refusing his attendance; and as he passed down the stairs -Polignac entered the room. - -"Who is your visitor, captain?" he asked. "An English milord, by his -appearance." - -"Yes; a friend from England--an old friend of my family: a neighbour: in -fact, our estates join--or all but, for 'tis but a narrow trout-stream -divides 'em." - -Aglionby's manner was still a little flurried. His mind was not very -quick, and took time to adjust itself. Polignac threw his hat upon the -table, sat astride of a chair, and went on with admirable gravity: - -"And the fishing--it is often, without doubt, what we Frenchmen call an -apple of discord. I have known so many disputes." - -"The fishing! oh!--yes!--well, that arranges itself. It is quite -simple: we take one day, he takes the next." - -"Tour a tour. Admirable! You English are the people for transactions! -I must make the acquaintance of your so accommodating friend and -neighbour. Is he--how shall I say it?--one of us?" - -"No. He takes no part in affairs. He cultivates his estate. His call -now is merely in way of friendship." - -"Ah! that is indeed amiable. Parbleu, he has the look! And what is he -doing in this country?" - -Aglionby was growing restive under the cross-examination. He had the air -of a witness who fears that he may be enticed into an admission against -his will. But he had not the wit to fence with his visitor. - -"Nothing," he replied curtly. "He comes with his son, that is in the -army, and now joins his regiment." - -"He has a son in the army? My dear friend, certainly you shall present -me. I desire of all things to extend my acquaintance among your -countrymen--in furtherance, it is understood, of my cause--of our cause, -pardon me." - -"I fear you will find little encouragement with him. He hates your -countrymen as one hates a toad." - -"The amiable man!" - -Aglionby's constrained manner had betrayed him to his astute visitor, -whose curiosity was now effectually aroused. - -"Then, my good captain," he continued, "it shall be my pleasing task to -convert him. Indeed, you must present me. He shall be a recruit--a -little aged, perhaps, but what matters that? In truth, it is an -advantage, if his estates are as large as you say." - -"I did not say his estates were large." - -"But they march with your family's--is it not so? And unless I deceive -myself, the D'Aglionbys are--how do you say it?--milords of the manor of -half the comte of Viltshire. You remark, my dear captain, what a memory -I have, even for your barbarous English geography." - -The captain, more and more restive, fidgeted on his chair. - -"Parbleu, monsieur," he said doggedly, "you must allow me to be the -judge who among my friends is likely to be of use to us. This one, I -say, is not; you must be content with that." - -Polignac, seeing that nothing was to be gained by pressing the matter in -the captain's present mood, adroitly changed the conversation. - -"Eh bien! As you will, my good captain. You know my zeal in the cause, -and Tout fait nombre, as we say in France. Now, my friend, how goes our -affair--yours and mine, I mean?" - -Aglionby's face cleared. He was now on surer ground. - -"Admirably, admirably, monsieur. Look you, I have arranged with some -six stout fellows--every one to be depended on. Nothing remains but to -choose the hour and the place. And besides, I have set Simmons on the -watch: he comes here to report at five o'clock." - -"And it is now half-past two. If it pleases you, mon brave,--there is -time--we will have in a bottle of sack and drink success to our -enterprise." - -"If it pleases me! Parbleu, Polignac, I've drunk nothing but rum since -Berk----since the last remittance from my agent was spent. A bottle of -sack! Many I've emptied with the Czar of Muscovy, whose head, mark you, -is not as strong as mine. Certainly, a bottle of sack--the money, my -friend?" - - -Some two hours later, Aglionby left the inn at which Mr. Berkeley was -putting up. His mood and mien were jovial; his rubicund cheeks even -more ruddy than usual. He was too old and tough a campaigner, and too -well seasoned by his experiences in Russia, to allow himself to be -overtaken in liquor; but he was certainly in an unusually buoyant -humour, and trod the street with a confident swing. As he passed along, -he jingled the money in his pocket, and appeared to take an uncommon -pleasure in the sound. His brow was clear, his eye bright, and he held -half-audible communion with his thoughts. - -"'Tis a hard world, Rafe my boy; odso, 'tis a hard world. 'Tis not -often a man gets paid for doing what he would gladly do for nothing. -Ay, and 'tis less often he gets paid twice, begad! Rafe, my bully boy, -you're in luck. Stap me, we'll break another bottle of sack and drink -to your success. Nay, nay; hold a little: business before pleasure. A -draft from our Hebrew friend--egad, they're the one good thing I know in -Amsterdam; that is easily got; then a letter to the Elector's -chamberlain; oons! 'tis more difficult, but to be faced; I'm no -scholard, hang it, but I can pay some poor scrivener that is, whether -'tis to be Latin or French; and to be Captain Rafe once more's worth a -dollar or two for pen-work. Then for a bottle at the Goudenhoof'd. And -to-morrow, my friend Rochester and my excellent coz with the scripture -name--to-morrow, by the lord Harry, our final reckoning!" - - - - - *CHAPTER XVII* - - *In the Dusk* - - -Katrinka--Filial--Fine Feathers--A Practical Joke--Up a Tree--A Trap--In -Waiting--The Last Minute--A Bolt from the Blue--Ad Misericordiam--A -Theory--With Thanks - - -Harry had for some time been itching for an opportunity of active -service in his new calling. Garrison life, with its drilling and -exercising, was all very well, and he had much to learn; but the -business of a soldier was to fight, and he was eager to take his share -in the campaign, on the issue of which so many important interests -depended. His chance came at last, and though the result was too tame -for his active spirit, he felt that it was at least a beginning. - -At the end of the first week in September his regiment received orders -to join a corps forming under General Brulau to begin the investment of -Limburg, a little hill-town south-east of Breda. On the 10th the force -of twenty-four squadrons encamped before the town, cutting off all -access, and occupying the approaches and the lower town without -resistance. Some ten days later the Duke of Marlborough arrived with -his main force; batteries played night and day on the upper town, and -made so wide a breach that orders were given for a grand assault. At -this point, however, the French commander, seeing the futility of -resistance and the hopelessness of relief from the outside, beat a -parley, and in less than twenty-four hours agreed to surrender. On the -28th the garrison of 1400 men laid down their arms and marched out. The -duke, having taken possession of the place, announced that the campaign -was closed, and the army would at once go into winter quarters. Harry -therefore returned to Breda without having drawn his sword, and had to -reconcile himself to the thought of a long winter of inaction. - -One morning a messenger came to him from Mynheer Grootz, bearing a -present of tea and Japanese ware from the merchant to Madame de Vaudrey, -part of a cargo from the east which had eluded the French warships and -privateers that scoured the narrow seas. Since the incident of -Polignac's discomfiture at Lindendaal, Grootz had been assiduous in -paying little attentions of this kind to the ladies, and often sought -Harry's aid in conveying his presents. Harry was somewhat amused at -this amiable side of his former employer's character; Grootz was not on -the surface a likely squire of dames. No doubt, Harry thought, he was -anxious about the welfare of the ladies in their solitary position, with -no master of the house, but only a number of faithful though not too -intelligent servants. He was nothing loth to be the medium through whom -these gifts reached Madame de Vaudrey, and he found that Fanshawe was -always very ready to accompany him on these and other occasions. - -It happened that on this day Harry was on duty, and saw no opportunity -of getting away until the evening. Having been absent from Breda for -nearly three weeks, he was anxious to learn how things were at -Lindendaal. The proximity of Polignac always gave him some uneasiness, -and though that gentleman's hold on the ladies had been effectually -snapped, Harry felt by no means sure that he would accept his rebuffs as -final. He therefore sent for Sherebiah, and ordered him to ride over -with Mynheer Grootz's parcel. Sherebiah's eagerness to set off amused -his master. - -"You want to see Katrinka--is that it?" he said. - -"Well, sir, her do have a good hand at griddle-cakes, and I ha'n't -tasted ne'er a one for three weeks." - -"'Tis cupboard love, eh, Sherry?" - -"The truth on't is, Master Harry, I be a-thinken o' old gaffer at home. -He's had a deal of trouble wi' maids and housekeepers; can't get ne'er a -one to cook his bacon to his mind, and besides has a sweet tooth for -griddle-cakes. Katrinka be a rare buxom wench; not a beauty, sure, -though handsome is as handsome doos; and when I found out her tidy ways -and light hand wi' the kickshawses--well, says I, she be the right maid -to keep old feyther o' mine above-ground for another ten year." - -"Oh! and have you put the matter to Katrinka?" - -"There's the rub, sir. Her be in the main willen, but there's a worm in -th' apple. The truth on't is, sir, her have high notions." - -"Indeed! She wants to be something better than a nurse-cook, eh?" - -"Not zackly that, sir; her notions be husband high, sir; her won't make -griddle-cakes for feyther o' mine not unless her be his darter, which is -a backward way o' sayen, marry me." - -"That's terrible, Sherry." - -"It med be wuss, Master Harry. I ha'n't no fears myself, but 'tis old -feyther I be thinken on. 'Ee see, I'm his boy; though I be forty-five -by nature, to his old aged life I be but a younker yet; and I be afeard -he'd think me a forrard youth did I venture a word about marryen." - -Harry laughed outright. - -"Take my advice, Sherry," he said. "If Katrinka's a good girl, get the -knot tied; we sha'n't be home again for a year at least; you can break -it gently to the old man, and sing the praises of your wife in respect -of bacon and girdle-cakes and other housewifely virtues." - -"Thank 'ee, sir; and 'ee won't mind if I be a bit late back, 'cos 'twill -take a good time to talk over all that wi' Katrinka; her be terrible -slow wi' her mind, sir." - -"All right! Get along; and you may give her a kiss from me. 'Tis the -chubby one, isn't it?" - -"True, sir; a apple face, wi' a dimple in the chin, and eyes as blue as -her chiney, and hair this side o' red, and----" - -"There, there. You're in a bad way, Sherry; go and get it over, man." - -Not long after Sherebiah's departure, Fanshawe came in. - -"What do you think?" shouted Harry. "That old oddity Sherry is in love -with Katrinka, one of the maids at Lindendaal, but was afraid to pop the -question lest his father thought him too young. He has gone over to -Lindendaal to-day; I fancy 'twill be a settled thing by the time he -returns." - -"Oh!" Fanshawe appeared somewhat constrained. "The fact is, Harry, I am -riding to Lindendaal myself, and I came to see--to ask--that is, have -you any message for the ladies?" - -"No; as it happens, Sherry is taking them a parcel from Mynheer -Grootz.--You've got a new coat, surely?" - -"Ay; you see my old one was faded; things bleach soon in this -country----" - -"And a new hat, I declare!" - -"The old one was too vexatious shabby. Then you have no message?" - -"No; Sherry conveys my regards. You'll have his company back; I suppose -you will be rather late, and 'twill be no bad thing to have a companion; -there have been one or two robberies by night on the Helmund road." - -Until the evening Harry was fully occupied. The regimental -riding-master had begged his assistance in training a number of -recruits, and, since example is better than precept, he had been for -several hours on horseback, showing the Dutch youths the manage of their -steeds. When this was finished he had a turn at the foils with the -quarter-master, who had taken a fancy to him, and was wont to declare -him one of the best swordsmen in the army. After his evening meal he -felt he should like to stretch his legs, and, guessing that Fanshawe and -Sherebiah would soon be on the way home, decided to walk out and meet -them. It was a fine still evening, the road was dry, and a spin of a -couple of miles, as far as a big chestnut-tree that marked the limit of -the Sunday promenaders, would pleasantly end the day. - -The sun was going down as he left the walls of Breda behind him, -throwing a long shadow on the road. He did not hurry his pace, but -ambled easily along, musing as a walker will, and paying little heed to -things around him. His thoughts were bright and clear, for he was in the -pink of physical health, and he felt that Providence was very good to -him. It was just a year ago that his father had died, and all the -prospect looked black. How strangely things had turned out! The very -event that had seemed to fling a pall over his life had really proved -the entrance to the career nearest to his heart. He was already -impatient for the winter to be over; surely with the next spring the war -would be prosecuted more vigorously, and the Dutch authorities would not -hang like a drag upon the wheels of Marlborough's plans! He was -ambitious, as every young officer must be, to distinguish himself; and -in his ambition there was a spice of _amour propre_; he felt that he -should dearly like to prove to the great duke himself that he would have -done no discredit to his sponsor if his commission had been an English -one. But a Dutch cornet, he thought, would have little chance of coming -under Marlborough's personal notice; and, after all, what did it matter? -Duty was duty, wherever and for whomsoever it was done. - -Thus weaving a chain of imaginings, he came to the big solitary tree -before he was aware of it. He halted; Fanshawe and Sherebiah were not -in sight; the dusk was thickening, and he did not care to walk farther; -yet, having come so far, he was loth to go back without them. Surely -they could not be long now! Opposite the tree there was a gate into a -field. He climbed on to that, and sat with his feet tucked below one of -its bars, intending to wait their arrival. From his higher position he -now descried two figures in the distance; in another moment he saw that -they were horsemen. "Here they are at last!" he thought. - -A whimsical idea flashed into his head. They would not expect to see -him; he felt sportive, the boyish instinct for fun asserting itself. -What if he could surprise the two--dart out on them unawares and make -them jump? The tree opposite overhung the road for several yards, its -foliage was still fairly thick, for the season had been mild; the autumn -frosts and gales had not yet begun; and it would provide ample shelter. -He sprang off the gate, ran across the road, leapt the ditch at the -side, scaled the trunk with an agility bred of long practice in -Wiltshire, and was soon hidden among the leaves, some fourteen feet -above the road. He filled his pocket with burrs he found still clinging -to the branches, laughing inwardly as he pictured Fanshawe's -consternation when he should receive one of those prickly missiles on -his head. - -Soon he heard the measured beat of the approaching horses. Peering -between the leaves, he was disappointed to notice that the riders were -not Fanshawe and Sherebiah after all. One of them, a bulky man, had a -familiar appearance, the other was masked; but in the first Harry -recognized Captain Aglionby, and the second in figure and bearing -unmistakably recalled Monsieur de Polignac. Harry wondered what was the -meaning of the mask; knowing his men, he had little doubt that some -villainy was afoot. His wonder gave way to uneasiness when he found -that, instead of passing the tree, they dismounted and stood exactly -beneath him. They opened the gate on which he had been seated a few -minutes before, and led their horses through into the field, along the -stone dike at the edge, and at some distance from the gate, as Harry -could just see in the gathering darkness, secured them to the wall, -after some difficulty in finding anything to hitch them to. Then they -returned to the road, talking in low tones, and looking expectantly up -and down. - -"'Sdeath!" muttered Aglionby, "what has become of them?" - -"Rate encore une fois?" sneered Polignac, inferring the other's meaning -from his tone. - -"Parbleu!" growled Aglionby, adding in French: "They ought to have been -here a quarter of an hour ago. They cannot be long now." - -Harry's curiosity was growing. The two men were clearly expecting -somebody; for a moment he wondered whether Aglionby was meditating -another attempt on Sherebiah, but it could hardly be that, for the -captain had looked towards Breda as he spoke, not in the other -direction. He listened with all his ears. - -"They may as well stay away altogether if the others are here before -them. We are only ten minutes ahead." - -"Nearer twenty, if you believe me. They were riding slowly when we saw -them--a mile behind; and we saved several minutes by the short cut -through the wood. There is time yet." - -As he spoke, three figures could be dimly seen coming along the road -from the direction of Breda. Aglionby and his friend at once shrank -back behind the dike, but after a moment's scrutiny, being apparently -satisfied, came out again and stood waiting by the side of the road. -The three men approaching caught sight of them and hastened their steps, -to be received with curses when they reached the spot. One of the men, -an Englishman, sullenly defended himself. - -"It is all due to that confounded church clock. It has never gone right -since Mr. Fanshawe tampered with it. But we are in time, Captain." - -"No thanks to you," growled Aglionby. "Where is the rope?" - -One of the other men opened a sack he carried, and produced a stout rope -some thirty feet long. - -"Take one end," said Aglionby, "and fix it to the gatepost; at the top, -fool, not the bottom. You, Simmons, take the other end and loop it once -round the tree. And quickly, do you hear?" - -While the men were obeying his order, Aglionby put on a mask, not, as in -Polignac's case, as a precaution against recognition by the hirelings, -but by the victims. - -By this time Harry's uneasiness had become real alarm. Motionless in the -tree, he durst not rustle the leaves to make a peep-hole; he could only -judge of what was going on below by the words he heard. It was clear -that a carefully planned attack was to be made upon someone; he could -not doubt that the someone was Sherebiah; both Polignac and the captain -had heavy scores to pay off. Fanshawe would be involved in the same -peril. His notion of playing a trick was forgotten; there was serious -work for him to do. - -"Let the rope lie on the road," he heard Aglionby say, "and you men -remain at the tree ready to raise it and draw it taut at my signal." - -Harry saw through the scheme in a flash. The rope was to be pulled taut -across the road to stop the progress of the horsemen, and in the -confusion the victim was doubtless to be attacked, every advantage being -on the side of the ambuscaders. And at this moment his ears -distinguished the faint distant beat of hoofs on the road. - -"Captain," said one of the men, "what if I were to climb the tree and -pick them off from above?" - -Crouching against the stem Harry felt his heart-beats quicken. The -suggestion if promptly acted on would be fatal to the project he had -already formed to turn the tables upon the unsuspecting party beneath. - -There was a moment's pause. Then another voice in low tones -interjected: - -"I hear horses on the road." - -"No," interposed Polignac, replying rapidly to the man's proposal. "We -must have two men at the rope if they are riding abreast; that leaves -only three when we stop them; it is easy to miss in this dark night, and -they are both ready with their weapons. Remember, there must be no -noise; one volley, then cold steel, lest we have the Breda garrison upon -us." - -Harry wore his sword, and had with him the pistol without which he never -stirred abroad. He had been rapidly deciding upon his course. If he -was to be of any use, he must warn his friends before they came within -range of the ambuscade; yet he durst not fire too soon, for the only -result would be to bring them up at a gallop, and they would then almost -certainly fall victims. Now that almost complete darkness had fallen, -he ventured to make an opening in the foliage and to peer cautiously -down. - -He saw Aglionby and Polignac on the other side of the road crouching -behind the gate-posts. Two men had concealed themselves behind the -tree's thick trunk, holding the slack end of the rope; the third waited -near them, pistol in hand. Though Harry could not see weapons in the -hands of Polignac and Aglionby, he had no doubt that they too had -pistols, ready to be used as soon as the riders were brought to a -stand-still. On the side overhanging the road, the tree had been lopped -of one or two lower branches, but a fairly thick bough ran out on the -other side just above the man holding the pistol. Quickly, for time -pressed, yet with great caution in order to avoid the slightest noise, -Harry crept from his perch over the road, sliding backward down the -branch until he reached the trunk. Then, holding his sword lest it -clinked against the tree, he straightened himself and turned round, -steadying himself with his free hand. One careful step brought him to -the fork of the horizontal stem and the parent trunk. He heard the -hoof-beats coming very near; the riders could be but a few hundred yards -away; fortunately the growing sound was loud enough to drown the slight -rustle he could not avoid; and besides, the men below were too much -preoccupied with their stratagem to have wits for anything but their -advancing victims. - -Harry's feet were now wedged somewhat awkwardly; he felt by no means -secure, and was for an instant perplexed how to dispose of his sword, -for in drawing his pistol with the right hand he would need the left to -maintain his equilibrium. He hit on a solution. Grasping the lower -part of the scabbard with his knees he prevented it from rattling -against the tree trunk; then, resting on his left hand, he bent over to -get as clear a view as the circumstances afforded of the man immediately -beneath. For a second he hesitated. It went against the grain to fire -at the unsuspecting wretch; but the sound of the hoof-beats now -certainly within musket-shot banished his hesitation and clinched his -resolve. It was life against life: the lives of Fanshawe and Sherebiah -against those of the villains ambushing them. Taking careful aim he -fired. The cry of the wounded man was smothered by his own shout: - -"Stop, Fanshawe! Jump the ditch and make for the tree!" - -Without waiting to learn the result of his warning, he sprang round, -heedless now of what noise he made, and, swinging by a branch to his -right, dropped to the ground just behind the two other men, who had let -go of the rope in their alarm and were transfixed with terror and -amazement, staring into the black depths of the tree above them. One of -them faced round as he heard the thud of Harry's descent. Without -pausing to draw his sword Harry hurled himself at the man, hit out at -him with all his strength, and felled him to the ground. The other, the -first moment of paralysis past, whipped out a pistol and snapped it -before Harry had time to recover himself. It missed fire; Harry closed -with the man. There was a brief, sharp struggle; in the midst came -Sherebiah's voice: - -"Where bist, sir, where bist?" - -"Here; by the tree; get a grip of this knave!" - -At the sound of Sherebiah's voice Harry felt his opponent's efforts -relax; the man tried to free himself; but Sherebiah had ridden his horse -up to the tree, and bending low from the saddle to distinguish between -the combatants, he brought the butt of his pistol down on the man's -head. He fell without a groan. - -Now Fanshawe dashed up. His horse had slipped at the ditch, thus giving -Sherebiah a slight start. - -"Two men on the other side of the road," panted Harry. "Follow me!" - -Springing across the ditch he gained the other side of the road, and -vaulted the gate. Fanshawe and Sherebiah had to dismount to follow him, -for the road was too narrow to allow of their leaping the gate. -Aglionby and his companion had not waited; discovering that their plan -had failed, they had hurried away towards their horses. But they had -not gone far. Harry heard a noise ahead; there was a chance of -overtaking them before they gained their saddles. He dashed on over the -stubble, and soon descried a broad figure lumbering along; from its -stertorous breathing he guessed it to be Aglionby, an opinion confirmed -immediately by the mingled oaths and entreaties which the captain sent -after Polignac, who being lighter of foot had far outstripped his -fellow-conspirator. Hearing Harry's step just behind him, Aglionby at -length halted, swung round, and fired his pistol. But hard running and -breathlessness flurried him and spoilt his aim; the ball whistled -harmlessly past. So impetuous had been Harry in pursuit that he had had -no time to draw his sword. He struck out at Aglionby, who only half -warded the blow, staggering backward and endeavouring to parry this -lively attack. Seeing his opportunity, Harry closed and tripped the big -man up with a favourite fall taught him by Sherebiah; and Fanshawe -coming up with Sherebiah at this moment, Aglionby was secured in a -trice. - -"That cursed coward!" he spluttered, as they led him back to the road. -"Odsnigs! I'll be even with him for this." - -"Nay," said Sherebiah, who had him grimly by the collar, "'ee'll never -be _even_ wi' un, Rafe Aglionby. Your carcass'll need a longer rope." - -"'Tis all a mistake, coz, on my honour," pleaded the captain. - -"Don't 'ee coz me, I disown 'ee. I'll see a villain hung; and that'll -be no mistake." - -"Leave him to me, Sherry," said Harry, "and go and see to the man we -hit." - -A short examination proved that the man Harry had shot was less -seriously wounded than he who had fallen to Sherebiah's pistol-butt. -The third man whom Harry had knocked down had escaped in the darkness. -The other two, injured as they were, were unable to walk, so Harry had -them hoisted on to the horses, where they were held up by Fanshawe and -Sherebiah. With Aglionby in his own keeping Harry led the march to -Breda. On arriving there, all three prisoners were handed over to the -Dutch authorities, and Harry asked Fanshawe to his rooms to talk over -this adventure of the road. - -"Faith," said Fanshawe, when Harry had explained his presence on the -spot, "'twas a mercy you had the thought to walk out. But it passes my -understanding why that fellow Aglionby should have been minded to waylay -me." - -"'Twas not you, 'twas Sherry that was the intended victim. I told you -of the neat way he bundled the captain out of Madame de Vaudrey's house; -that was only one of several affronts the bully has had to suffer. And -I rather suspect that you were mistaken for me." - -"How so?" - -"'Twas part of the scheme of old Berkeley's to get rid of me; of that I -am sure. And the other fellow, the Frenchman, must be pretty sore at -his two discomfitures." - -"You will, of course, inform against him." - -"'Twould be little use, I fear. He was masked; I knew him only by his -voice, and my testimony would not suffice to convict him on that ground -alone." - -"Did Aglionby say nothing as you walked into the town?" - -"Nothing. I plied him with questions, but he held an obstinate silence; -scarce opened his mouth except to say 'twas all a mistake." - -"I am not sure you are right. Don't you think it may have been the -Frenchman's plan--to get rid of me?" - -"Why of you?" - -"Well, you told me he is a suitor for Mademoiselle's hand----" - -"What then?" - -"He may have looked on me as a rival." - -"Come, that's a good joke. You've known Mademoiselle for little better -than a month." - -"Ah! One can see you're young, Harry, and fancy free; I wish I were. -But your Monsieur de Polignac might have spared his pains." - -"You're talking in riddles, Fanshawe; speak plain English, man." - -"Well, 'twas true." - -"What was true?" - -"She wouldn't have me." - -Harry stared in puzzlement. Then a light dawned, and he smiled. - -"You don't mean to say you've been on your knees to Mademoiselle Adele?" - -"Indeed I have! By George, Harry! isn't she a splendid creature? But -she wouldn't have me: that's all over; life isn't worth living now: I -don't care how soon a bullet puts an end to my miserable existence." - -Fanshawe sighed lugubriously; Harry laughed. - -"Poor fellow! is it so bad as that? She didn't fall a victim to your -new coat, then?" - -"'Tis all very well for you to laugh. Wait till you suffer just such a -rebuff." - -"Tell me what you said." - -"How do I know what I said? I only know what she said. She dropt me a -curtsy, the hussy, and thanked me for the honour, and said she had no -mind to a husband and would never wed, but stay with her mother. And -then she opened the harpsichord and said: 'Don't let us be children, -Monsieur. Sing me that amusing song of yours and be amiable.' And 'pon -my word, Harry, I couldn't resist; she has a masterful way; and when her -mother came in there was I trolling 'Widdicombe Fair' as if there'd been -never a word of love betwixt us." - -"Cheer up! you were too sudden. Wait a few months and then try your -luck again." - -"Never! I know she won't look at me. And take my advice, Harry. If -ever you fall in love with a girl, don't make yourself cheap and sing -cheerful songs. Egad, if I'd sung dying ditties and sighed like a -furnace I might have had a different tale to tell. I'll go to quarters; -but I sha'n't sleep; I know I sha'n't; good-night!" - - - - - *CHAPTER XVIII* - - *A Little Plot* - - -Father and Son--A Message from Breda--An Afternoon Call--When Greek -meets Greek--The Tug of War--Pourparlers--The Merk--Two Men and a -Sack--Snatched from the River--Cousin Rafe--Scant Gratitude--A Ray of -Light - - -One afternoon Squire Berkeley sat solitary in his inn at the Hague, -warming his lean, withered hands in the blaze of a log fire. The air -was cold, and it had been raining heavily for hours. The old man had -laid aside his wig; a black velvet skull-cap covered his white hair to -the ears; and, clad in the long cassock-like garment of rusty black that -he always wore indoors, he might have passed, with his thin haggard -cheeks, for an ascetic dignitary of the Church rather than the -prosperous lord of an English manor. - -He sat in a high-backed chair, staring into the fire. His lips moved as -he communed with himself, and the expression of his face showed that his -thoughts were none too pleasant. Once or twice he clenched his teeth -and brought his closed fist heavily down upon the arm of the chair; he -sighed often, and looked the very image of a sad, anxious, embittered -man. - -Presently the door opened noisily and, with a gust of keen air that made -the squire shiver, a young man entered the room. It was Piers Berkeley, -the squire's son. He was dressed as usual in the height of fashion, but -presented a bedraggled woebegone aspect now, his finery effectually -ruined by the rain. - -"Split me, father," he cried in a peculiarly high and affected tone of -voice, "I'm verily the most wretched man on earth." - -"What is the matter?" said the old man, turning half round. "Why have -you left your regiment?" - -"Why! Stap my vitals, 'tis what I wish to know. I've rid post from -Breda through the most villainous rain ever I saw. Look, I'm splashed -to the eyes; my third best wig is utterly ruined; the colour of my -waistcoat has run; 'twas a heavenly puce, and I'll be even with the -tailor, hang him! that swore the colour was fast. As for my new -jack-boots--look 'ee, they're not fit for a ploughman. And why! You may -well ask." - -"Well, you have a reason, I suppose. You want more money for your -drunken orgies--is that it?" - -"Hark to that, now! Was ever poor wretch so scurvily used by his own -father! Why----" - -"Come, a truce to your prating. Your reason, sir, and at once." - -"A warm welcome, egad! Well, sir, I've a something for you, a -billet-doux; ha! ha!" - -The squire sprang up with an agility surprising in a man of his years. -There was a look of expectancy, almost of joy, in his eyes, and he held -forth his hand eagerly. - -"Give it me," he said. - -"You will deal handsomely by me," said the youth; "consider, 'tis not -every son would ride through pelting rain and spoil his garments withal -for----" - -"Give it me, I say," cried the old man passionately. - -Piers took from an inner pocket a letter, sealed with a big red seal. -The squire's eyes gleamed as he took it and saw the handwriting of the -address; his hand trembled as he tore away the seal and unfolded the -paper. Then came a sudden change. The pallor of his cheeks became a -deathly white, his features were distorted with rage, he muttered a -curse and flung the letter to the floor. - -"Gadzooks, 'tis not a billet-doux, then," piped his son, stooping to -pick up the paper. - -"Let it lie!" shouted the old man. "Lay not a finger on it, you--you -puppy!" - -"Why, there now," said the youth in an aggrieved tone. "That is all the -thanks I get for adventuring myself in the fury of the elements, and -ruining past cure as fine a coat as ever was seen in Spring Garden." - -"Silence! Hold your foolish tongue! You're a useless fool! You're a -scented fop, the mock of every farthing playwright in the kingdom. -Heavens! what have I done that I should be cursed with a brainless, -senseless coxcomb that can do nothing but squander good money in -fal-lals and worse!" - -"Odsnigs! 'tis most villainous injustice. I can do many things, egad. -I can make a good leg, and trounce a watchman, and pink a cit, and----" - -"Out of my sight, out of my sight!" cried the exasperated father, -stepping forward with uplifted hand as though to strike the poor fool. - -"Zoons! I protest this----" - -But he left the sentence perforce unfinished, for the squire caught him -by the shoulders and exerting all his strength thrust him from the room, -turning the key, and standing for a moment with hand on heart to recover -his breath. Then he suddenly opened the door again, caught the young -man before he had gone three steps, swung him round, and holding him in -a firm grip said: - -"See that you say nothing of this. You know nothing of that man, that -Aglionby, except that you met him on the packet-boat; you hear me? -Presuming on that acquaintance he sought your assistance; you have wit -enough to remember that? And you are not to go near him again." - -"Egad, I've no wish to. Once is enough. A prison cell is no place for -me. I had to hold my nose; and egad, to use a whole bottle of scent -afterwards." - -The old man pushed him contemptuously away, returned to his room, and -again locked the door. He picked up the letter, sat down in his chair, -and, crouching there, seemed to have shrunk even to less than his former -meagre bulk. He read the letter again. It ran:-- - - -"SIR, - -"Fate is against me. In pursuit of the Businesse you wot of, I am at -this present layd by the heels, in Jail, under sentence to be Hang'd. -Young Rochester & my Cozen have done it. 'Tis nessessarie for you to -pulle me out of this Hole, & speedilie, or _I'll tell All I knowe_. The -Meanes I leave to you; I advize to comunicate with Mr de Poliniac at his -house in the Plein; he will helpe: he has _Goode Reasone_, for at a -Worde from me he'll _swing too_. No more at this Present from yr humble - -"RALPH AGLIONBY. - - -"P.S.--I knew your Sonne was in Breda. He _knowes Nothing_." - - -The squire tore up the paper and flung the pieces on the fire. For a -few moments he sat in thought; then he rose and went into an ante-room, -returning soon in his outdoor attire--wig, cocked hat, and long cloak. -A few minutes later he was walking at a brisk pace through the rain -towards the house mentioned in Aglionby's letter. He knocked at the -door; there was no answer; the green shutters were closed, the house had -the appearance of being shut up for the season. He knocked again, and -yet again, with growing vehemence, attracting the attention of -passers-by. At length the door was opened for a few inches. Mr. -Berkeley pushed it, but it was on the chain. - -"Qu'est-ce que Monsieur demande?" said a voice. - -"Monsieur de Polignac." - -"Monsieur is not within," said the same voice in English, the speaker -having detected the squire's nationality by his accent. - -"Where is he?" - -"Pardon, Monsieur, I am not sure where my master is at this moment; but -if Monsieur will leave a message----" - -Something in the man's manner assured Mr. Berkeley that he was lying. - -"Look 'ee, my man," he said sternly, "I counsel you to bethink yourself. -I will walk for five minutes, in the rain; you will have time to -acquaint your master that an English gentleman whose name is probably -unknown to him desires to see him on a very urgent matter--in the -interest, mark you, of himself. An urgent matter, mark you. In five -minutes I will return." - -On returning Mr. Berkeley was instantly admitted. The manservant, -cowering beneath his stern look, led him meekly to a room off the hall, -where he found Polignac in long cloak and jack-boots, evidently on the -point of departing on a journey. The squire gave him a keen glance, and -was not surprised to find that it was the same man whom he had met at -the door of Aglionby's attic some months before. - -"Monsieur de Polignac?" he said. - -"That is my name, Monsieur." - -"My name is Berkeley. I met you at Aglionby's. It is for him I come. -I desire a word with you." - -"I am at your service, Monsieur. Shall we be private?" - -"It will doubtless be better so." - -Polignac shut the door, and offered Mr. Berkeley a seat. - -"Thank you, I will stand; I need not detain you long." - -"As you please, Monsieur." - -"You have heard, Monsieur, of the plight into which our friend Captain -Aglionby has fallen?--I say _our_ friend." - -"I will not dispute the phrase, Monsieur. I had heard, as you surmise." - -"Pardon me--as he is our friend--am I right in assuming that the news -may have some little connection with your purposed journey?" - -"Since, as you say, he is _our_ friend, I do not deny it, Monsieur." - -"So that it will be, let us say, not disagreeable to you if some means -of--of cheating the hangman--I am a plain blunt man, Monsieur--should be -discovered?" - -"Pardon me, Monsieur, I do not follow you." - -Mr. Berkeley looked at him keenly. - -"I have had a letter from our friend," he said slowly. - -"And I also, Monsieur." - -"He solicits my assistance." - -"And mine." - -"I came at once to see you." - -"And I, Monsieur, leave at once for Paris." - -"Ah!" - -Polignac, leaning against the window-frame, had an inscrutable smile -upon his face. - -"I will sit down," said Mr. Berkeley, placing a chair with its back to -the door; "I find our interview will last a little longer than I looked -for." - -"As you please, Monsieur. You will permit me?" - -Polignac seated himself at the table. - -"It appears, Monsieur," said the squire, "that I should have said _my_ -friend." - -"Again, Monsieur, I will not dispute the phrase. His family estates -join yours, I understand?" - -"What?" - -"I do not know; I only repeat what your friend told me." - -"Yes, I understand," said Mr. Berkeley hurriedly, feeling that by his -unguarded exclamation he had lost one point in the game. "Not precisely -adjoin, but the phrase is sufficiently exact: we are neighbours." - -"And naturally you are concerned at the hapless situation into which -your neighbour's evil star has brought him." - -"That is so, Monsieur." - -"Especially seeing that his evil star's influence extends also to you; -is it not so?" - -"As a neighbour and friend, you mean, Monsieur?" - -"No, I do not mean that. I cannot say, like you, Monsieur, that I am a -plain blunt man, but I think with small effort you will understand my -meaning. I put myself in your place. Suppose, I tell myself, a -neighbour of mine, whom I had found useful, had in the course of some -enterprise on my behalf been so unlucky as to come into the grip of the -law; naturally I should feel deeply concerned in his fate, and certainly -I should do all in my power to save him, especially if I knew that the -said enterprise was one that the law would look unkindly on. Such would -be my sentiments, Monsieur, and I do not suppose myself different from -other men." - -"The case is so well put, Monsieur, that it would seem to fit your -situation to a nicety." - -"Appearances are then deceitful, Monsieur. Strange to say, I had the -same thought with regard to you. Your friend the captain is not a hero, -certainly not a martyr, and even though a few vindictive words at the -last would not save his neck, yet to a man of his disposition it would -sweeten his end to know that another shared his fate." - -Mr. Berkeley had been growing visibly restive. How much did this -suavely malicious Frenchman know? He dared not question him plainly. - -"You speak, Monsieur, of a few vindictive words. It is clear to me that -Aglionby has threatened you----" - -"And I care not a jot for his threats," interrupted Polignac. "As you -are aware, I am about to depart for Paris; eh bien! Monsieur le -Capitaine's threats will not reach me there." - -"But if I save him, Monsieur?" - -Polignac's mouth twitched. - -"He is a vengeful man," pursued the squire. "I should have no object in -concealing from him your notions of the obligations of friendship; and -since it appears that you, on your side, permit yourself to talk of an -'enterprise' and 'the grip of the law', does it not occur to you that -the captain, and I myself as his friend, might make things--well, very -unpleasant for you? And remember, you are not in Paris yet." - -There was a moment's silence, taking advantage of which Mr. Berkeley -leant forward and, tapping Polignac's knee, added: - -"Come, Monsieur, let us understand one another. It is to my interest -that Captain Aglionby should not die--by the hangman; it is to your -interest--correct me if I am wrong--that he should not live, or you will -find this country shut to you. Our interests appear to clash; but is it -not possible--I throw out the suggestion--to reconcile them--to gain -both our ends?" - -Polignac smiled. - -"Let us talk as friends, Monsieur," he said. - -An hour passed before Mr. Berkeley left the house. It was still -raining, but his gloomy expression had given place to one of fierce -satisfaction. Polignac bade him a cordial adieu at the door, and as -soon as he was gone called his servant. - -"Antoine," he said, "unsaddle my horse. I do not ride to-day." - - -One evening, at dusk, Harry Rochester, whom no experience could cure of -his habit of taking solitary strolls, was seated on a bridge spanning -the Merk at a short distance outside Breda. His thoughts were anything -but pleasant. Aglionby and his associates, though defended by the -sharpest criminal lawyer in Holland, had been condemned to death, and -the execution had been fixed for the morrow. Harry knew that the -captain richly deserved his fate; his action in betraying his cousin -Sherebiah in itself put him beyond the pale of pity, to say nothing of -his persistent offences against Sherebiah's master, which Harry was more -ready to forgive. But despicable as the man was, Harry, almost in spite -of himself, felt a certain compassion for him. He had learnt from -Sherebiah something of his history. His mother, old Gaffer Minshull's -sister, had died when Ralph was very young, heart-broken by her husband, -one of Cromwell's Ironsides, yet a hypocrite of the most brutal type. -Aglionby had received a fair education, but had run wild from boyhood, -and as a mere youth had decamped or been driven from his father's house -and gone out into the world to seek his fortune. Sherebiah had lost -sight of him for years; suddenly he had reappeared at Winton St. Mary, -seared with travel and hard faring, and full of stories of adventure and -prowess in all parts of Europe, especially in the service of the Czar of -Muscovy. Harry knew as much as Sherebiah of his subsequent career, and -shared the surprise of the whole village at the strangely close -acquaintanceship between the captain and the squire. - -This was the man who was to die next day, and Harry, sitting on the -bridge, one hand clasping his knee, almost wished that he had let the -villain go. He had been brought up in the worst school; all his life -long he had been an Ishmael, his hand against every man, every man's -hand against him. His mother had been a Minshull: surely there was some -seed of good in him; mayhap his villainies were only the desperate -expedients of a man who had no means of livelihood; certainly he could -have no cause of enmity against Harry, and his machinations must be put -down to the man who employed him. His approaching fate weighed also -upon Sherebiah, who had for days gone about with restlessness and -anxiety printed upon his usually jocund face. Certainly the good fellow -had no reason to love Aglionby, but after all they were of the same -blood, and Sherry appeared to fear keenly the shame and disgrace. - -Looking over the glooming river, idly watching the rolling water and the -scattered buildings upon the bank, Harry suddenly perceived a small door -open in the face of a store or warehouse some few yards to his left. -The door was some thirty feet above the river, and gave upon a narrow -platform to which goods were hoisted by a crane from barges below. As -the door opened, inwards, a head appeared. The owner looked for some -time up and down the river, over which darkness was fast falling. All -was quiet; no traffic was passing; no craft indeed was to be seen save -one small boat, moored to a post on the bank some yards on the other -side of the bridge. - -The head disappeared, but immediately afterwards two men emerged from -the doorway, coming sideways through the narrow opening. Between them -they carried a large sack which their exertions showed to be heavy. -They came to the edge of the platform; they laid their burden down; -then, giving a quick look around, with one push they toppled it over, -and it fell with a sounding plump into the water. It disappeared below -the surface; after a moment the two men returned into the warehouse, and -the door was shut. - -The rivers were such common receptacles of rubbish that Harry would not -have given a second thought to this incident but for a certain -furtiveness in the manner of the two men. He wondered what the sack -contained. All at once he saw it reappear on the surface, several yards -nearer to him; the stream was flowing fast in his direction. - -"'Tis maybe a superfluous dog," he thought, for only an animal was -likely to rise after such an immersion. Yet it was large for a dog. - -The sack came steadily towards him: it was about to pass under the -single arch of the bridge: he leant over to watch it: and with a start -of amazement saw dimly a white human face. At that same moment the -bundle sank again. Harry could not know whether it was man or woman, -whether alive or dead, but without an instant's hesitation he ran to the -other parapet, sprang on it, and dived into the river. A drowning man -rises three times, he had heard; perhaps there was a chance to save this -poor wretch, whoever it might be, and foil his murderers. - -Coming to the surface with a gasp, he looked around for any sign of the -dark bundle, fearing lest in the blackness of the encroaching night he -might lose it altogether. For some seconds he saw nothing; then, a few -yards away, it bobbed up. Three or four vigorous strokes brought the -swimmer to it just as it was going down once more. He seized it with -his left hand and, supporting the head above the water, made for the -bank, luckily no more than seven or eight yards distant. He hauled the -heavy object up the sodden slope, stooped down to examine it, and saw -that it was a man tied up to the neck, and with a gag about his mouth. -It was the work of a moment to tear away the gag. He placed his hand -over the man's heart: did it still beat? He could not tell; all feeling -seemed to be deadened within him by his excitement and strain. The man -made no sound or movement. Harry shivered and thought he must be dead; -of the means to resuscitate a half-drowned man he knew nothing. - -A few seconds passed; then he heard hasty footsteps behind him, and -turned just as Sherebiah sprang down the slope. The faithful fellow had -been again playing his part of watch-dog; he had seen Harry's plunge -into the river, and raced round the embankment in alarm. - -"Fecks, you give me a jump, sir," he panted. "What's amiss?" - -"Ah! Sherry, look; 'tis a man, in a sack; the poor wretch is drowned, I -fear." - -"'Tis murder then. Let's see, sir." - -He stooped down, cut the fastenings of the sack, and pulled it off the -body. - -"Now sir, lend a hand. Fust thing is to pour the water out of un." - -"He was gagged, Sherry." - -"Then that saves our time. A gagged man can't ship many gallons o' -water. Leave un to me, sir." - -He quickly opened the man's coat and vest, bent over him, and pressed -heavily beneath his lower ribs. Then he sprang back, and again bent -forward and pressed. After repeating these movements several times, he -went to the man's head, took his arms and pulled them back till they met -behind, then jerked them forward upon his breast. A gurgling sound came -from the man's lips. - -"He be alive, sir," cried Sherebiah. "Another minute or two and we'll -have un on his feet." - -A great sigh escaped from the prostrate form. - -"Well done, master," said Sherebiah, ceasing from his exertions. -"You've got your breath again, thanks be. Now, take your time, and don't -get up till 'ee feel disposed: only bein' drippen wet the sooner you be -dry the better, so----Sakes alive! Master Harry, 'tis my -good-for-nothen cousin Rafe Aglionby, and no one else." - -"Good heavens!" - -"Rafe, man, can 'ee open your eyes? 'Tis me and Mr. Rochester; you be -safe." - -Both Harry and Sherebiah were now stooping over the captain. His eyes -opened; the same choking sound came from his lips. For some minutes he -lay gasping, wriggling, endeavouring vainly to rise, the others watching -him the while with mixed feelings. His recovery of consciousness was -slow: at last his movements ceased, he heaved a great sigh and looked up -with intelligence. - -"How be'st come to this?" asked Sherebiah. "Thowt 'ee was ripe for -hangman this time, coz." - -"Rot you!" spluttered the captain, struggling to his feet. "Hands off! -Shall I never be quit of you!" - -"Zooks! That's your thanks! Come, Rafe, blood's thicker nor water, as -'ee said yourself: you've broke prison sure enough, but they'll be after -'ee afore mornen. Mr. Rochester ha' saved 'ee from drownen, but you must -put a few miles betwixt 'ee and hangman afore you can rest easy. How -be'st come to this, man?" - -"Let me go, I tell you." - -"But you be drippen wet, Rafe; you'll cotch your death o' cold;--and -faith, so will Master Harry. Better get home, sir, and change your -things." - -"No hurry, Sherry. Captain Aglionby, believe me, you must make yourself -scarce. You've done me many an ill turn, for what reason I know not. -But that's past now; I have no wish to give you up to the hangman. -There's a boat moored to the bank a few yards down: you had better take -that, and row through the night. Sherry, you're dry; change clothes with -the captain." - -"I'll have none of his clothes. I'll take the boat. Out of my way!" - -Escaping from Sherebiah's grasp, Aglionby stumbled away in the direction -of the boat, the other two watching him in silence until the darkness -swallowed him. - -"Unthankful viper!" muttered Sherebiah. - -"To save a foe's life is an injury never forgiven," said Harry with a -shrug. "I'm shivering, Sherry: let us get back." - -"Ay sure. But I'd like to know what be the true meanen o' this. To be -saved out o' jail and then chucked into river--why, in a manner o' -speaken 'tis out o' fryen-pan into fire. One thing 'tis sure: my coz -Rafe bean't born to be hanged nor drownded neither: question is, will it -be pison or a dagger-end? But you be mortal cold, true; we'll -home-along, sir." - -They returned to the city, and were passing a large inn in the -market-place when Harry suddenly touched Sherebiah on the arm. - -"Sherry, you see that man at the door of the coach there? 'Tis one of -the men I saw fling Aglionby into the river. I know him by his cap." - -"I' feck, we'll have a nearer sight on un, and see who he be speaken to -in coach. Keep close, sir, and we'll take a peep at 'em unbeknown." - -Crossing to the other side of the street, and keeping well in the -darkness, they quickly made their way towards the coach, and reached a -position whence, by the light of the inn lamp, they could see into it -without being seen. Each turned to the other in silence, astonishment -and conviction in their eyes. The occupants of the coach were two: Mr. -Berkeley and Monsieur de Polignac. It was to the latter that the man at -the door was speaking. They were clearly at the end of their -conversation; the man touched his cap and withdrew, and as the coach -drove off, a look of gratification shone in the faces of its two -occupants. - -"What do you make of that, Sherry?" - -"Make on't! 'tis plain as a pikestaff. Dead men tells no tales; that's -what I make on't, sir. Rafe Aglionby knows a mort too much for they two -high-liven villains; that's where 't is: they got un out o' jail to stop -his tongue at scaffold foot, and then pitched un in the river to cool it -for ever. 'Tis a mortal pity we let un go, sir, for't seems to me we -ought to know what he knows, and get to the bottom o' the squire's -desperate work agen you. But you always was a tender-hearted Christian, -like your feyther afore 'ee." - -"I couldn't let murder be done before my very eyes, Sherry." - -"Ah, you'll have to see wuss now you be a man o' war, sir. Well, 'tis -heapen coals of fire on his yead, as the Book says, and mebbe Them -above'll reward 'ee for't; ay, so." - - - - - *CHAPTER XIX* - - *Marlborough's March to the Danube* - - -A Foreigner at the Hall--War Again--Good-bye!--Comparisons--Up the -Rhine--A Bold Stroke--Marlborough's Way--Despatches--A Mission to -Eugene--Fanshawe Missing--The Road to Innsprueck--Zum Grauen -Baeren--Mein Wirth--Breakfast at Three--The Second-best Room--A -Trap-Door--Midnight Visitors--A Hasty Toilet--A Sound on the -Stairs--Through the Copse--Stampede--The Lieutenant of the Guard--At -Obermiemingen--The Little Abbe--Max Berens--A Surprise Visit--Mein Wirth -Explains--Injured Innocence--In the Net--Hobson's Choice--The Missing -Messengers--In Terrorem - - -No soldier worth his salt ever endured the long idleness of winter -quarters patiently, and Harry Rochester was not an exception to the -rule. As the weary months passed slowly by, he grew tired of the -endless drilling and exercising, varied by marching and sham fights. He -was very popular with his captain, Willem van der Werff, and the other -officers of the regiment, but found himself unable to take much interest -in their amusements. Beer-drinking was not to his taste; the Dutch -comedies performed at the theatres were dull, and the paternal -government prohibited the performance of lighter French pieces. As the -winter drew on he had opportunities of skating, and became so proficient -as to win a prize at a regimental match; but the frost was not of long -duration. He was not a fellow to allow time to hang on his hands. He -practised broadsword and sabre with Sherebiah, read a great deal of -Dutch, studied all the military histories on which he could lay hands, -and spent many an hour poring over maps until he had the geography of -all central Europe at his finger-ends. - -No great news came from the outside world. In November the Netherlands -suffered in some degree from the fierce storm that swept through the -Channel, strewing the English shores with wrecks, ripping off trees at -the roots, blowing down churches and houses. In the same month also the -Archduke Charles passed through Holland _en route_ for England and -Spain, to assume in the latter country the sovereignty which was the -bone of contention between his father the Emperor and King Louis of -France. - -Almost the only relaxations in Harry's life were his visits to Madame de -Vaudrey's house, where both he and Fanshawe were always welcome guests. -They formed with Mynheer Grootz a little house-party there during the -New Year week. It happened that on the last day of the year 1703 -Sherebiah received a letter from his father: a rare event. One piece of -news it contained was much discussed at Madame de Vaudrey's table. - - -"And now I must tell you," wrote old Minshull, "as Squire hev had a -Visiter for a matter of munths. 'Tis a tall blacke Frenchman by his -looks and Spache, a tarrible fine gentleman, with a Smile & a twitching -Mouthe. Squire & he be alwaies together, moste particler Frendes it do -seeme. None of us soules can't abide him, nor the Qualitie neither. -For myself, I don't like his Lookes, not me, & 'tis luckie he can't -understand English, for being a Man to speake my Minde I say things nowe -and again as would turne his blacke Hair white." - - -Harry had already mentioned having seen Polignac drive away from Breda -in company with the squire. - -"The odious man!" cried Madame de Vaudrey, when Harry translated the -gaffer's letter. "I only wonder that the other man, that insolent -captain, is not with them. I wonder where he is?" - -"I don't know," said Harry, who had kept his own counsel regarding the -last he had seen of Aglionby. - -"I hope he will never cross my path," said Mynheer Grootz. "He is truly -a villain, a dastard: to inform on his cousin, and to plan the attack on -Harry, and to have the insolence to pay court to Madame la Comtesse!" - -"Yes, indeed," said the lady, "and my dear husband not four years dead! -Who is the squire that your old friend writes of, Harry?" - -"He is lord of the manor at my old home, Madame. His son is in one of -our foot regiments, and Mr. Berkeley came over to Holland with him: it -was then he met Monsieur de Polignac." - -"Qui se ressemble s'assemble. What is the name of the bad old man, -Harry?" - -"Berkeley." - -"Berkeley!" Madame de Vaudrey puckered her brow and appeared to be -reflecting. - -"How ugly your English names are!" exclaimed Adele, "and how difficult -to say! I cannot even yet say Rochestair properly." - -"You say it better than you say my name," said Fanshawe gloomily. - -"But then I have known Monsieur Rochestair longer," returned Adele. -"Shall we go into the drawing-room, Mamma? I do so want to hear -Monsieur Fanshawe sing that amusing song of his again." - -Fanshawe glowered. He knew that Adele was teasing him, and wished with -all his heart that he could recall the luckless moment when he had first -amused her with the song of "Widdicombe Fair". Harry's eyes twinkled. - -"Yes," said Madame de Vaudrey, "you young people can precede us to the -drawing-room. I have a little matter of business to talk over with our -good friend Mynheer Grootz." - -Then Adele's eyes caught Harry's, and they both smiled as at some secret -known to them alone. - -Time passed away, and at length, when the winter was gone, and the gray -Dutch sky was rifted with the blue of spring, came the welcome news that -Marlborough had arrived at the Hague and that a great campaign was to -open. No one knew what the duke's plans were, but there was a general -feeling that stirring events were preparing, and a universal hope that -the long series of small engagements, sieges, marches and -counter-marches would be brought to an end by a decisive pitched battle. -Mynheer Grootz was working night and day at commissariat business, and -for weeks there was a continual bustle of preparation: the cleaning of -arms, the testing of harness, a thousand-and-one details that employed -countless people beside the soldiers. - -At length a day came when, all preparations completed, the eager troops -were ready to march out. Harry and Fanshawe, accompanied by Sherebiah, -rode over to Lindendaal one evening to take farewell of the ladies. -Fanshawe was in the dolefullest of dumps. Notwithstanding Adele's -refusal of him, he had still nursed a hope that time might prove on his -side, but found every hint of a sentimental nature adroitly parried, and -now feared that with his absence his last chance would disappear. His -spirits were raised a little by the warmth, and indeed effusiveness, -with which she bade him good-bye. - -"I shall hope to hear great things of you, Monsieur," she said, "and to -learn that you have come through the campaign unscathed." - -"Your good wishes shall be my talisman, Mademoiselle," said Fanshawe -gallantly, bowing over her hand. - -Harry meanwhile had taken leave of Madame de Vaudrey, who held both his -hands and spoke to him with a quite motherly tenderness. Then he turned -to say good-bye to Adele. She had disappeared. Fanshawe had already -gone out to the front of the house to see that his horse's girth was -rightly strapped, and Harry followed, thinking that Mademoiselle had -perhaps accompanied him to the door. But as he passed through the hall, -he saw through the open door of the dining-room that Adele was there, -standing at the window with her back to him. - -"There you are, Mademoiselle," he said, entering the room; "I was -looking for you. It is a longer good-bye this time." - -She turned round slowly, and her back being to the sunset glow he could -scarcely see her features. She held out her hand, and said slowly, with -perhaps a little less cordiality than he had unconsciously expected: - -"Adieu, Monsieur Harry!" - -He took her hand, hesitated for a moment, and then was gone. - -As he left the porch he saw Sherebiah coming round from the garden with -his arm unblushingly about the waist of Katrinka, the prettiest -maidservant of the house. The honest fellow led the girl up to his -master. - -"I've done it, sir," he said. "Her've said it. Feyther o' mine may -think what a' will, but, an't please Them above to bring me through, by -next winter there'll be a Mistress Minshull once more to comfort his old -aged soul. Eh, Katrinka, lass?" - -The girl looked shyly up and dropt a curtsy. - -"'Pon my soul, Sherry, you're a lucky fellow," said Harry. "My old -friend will be pleased, I promise you. And look 'ee, I'll give you five -minutes to say good-bye to Katrinka while Mr. Fanshawe and I ride on." - -"Thank 'ee, sir! I'll catch 'ee up, soon as her be done." - -"Sherry has had better luck than you, Fanshawe," said Harry with a -smile, as they rode off. - -"Yes, confound him! But hang it, Harry, I'll not give up hope yet. She -was very kind to me when she said good-bye, and, by George! if I only -escape a Frenchman's bullet and can manage to come off with flying -colours and a neat little sabre-cut--who knows? she may be Mistress -Godfrey Fanshawe yet." - -Harry was silent. He felt a little surprised, perhaps a little hurt, -that Adele should have shown more warmth to Fanshawe, a friend of later -date. He did not know what he had expected; he could not, indeed, have -put his thoughts into words; but the coldness of Mademoiselle's -farewell, so strongly contrasting with Madame's affectionate manner, had -left him vaguely dissatisfied and made him disinclined to talk. -Fanshawe, however, was in high spirits, and chattered freely as they -went side by side at a walking pace along the road to Breda. Sherebiah -by and by overtook them, and kept a few yards behind. He too was in -capital spirits, and, having no one to converse with, was humming as he -rode: - - "So Tom Pearce he got to the top o' the hill, - All along, down along, out along lee; - And he seed his old mare a-maken her will, - Wi' Bill Brewer, Jan Stewer, Peter Gurney, Peter Davy, Dan - Whiddon, Harry Hawk, old Uncle Tom Cobleigh and all, - Old Uncle Tom Cobleigh and all. - - "So Tom Pearce's old mare, her took sick an' died, - All along, down along, out along lee, - And Tom, he sat down on a stone, an' he cried, - Wi' Bill Brewer, Jan Stewer, Peter Gurney, Peter----" - - -"Confound you, Sherry!" cried Fanshawe, who had been so busy talking -that not till this moment had he recognized the song. "Hanged if you -are not always singing that wretched 'Widdicombe Fair'!" - -"Beg pardon, sir. No offence. 'Tis a favourite ditty o' mine, and, -axin' your pardon, I thowt 'twas one o' yourn too." - -"Nay; anything else, anything else, my good fellow, not that, as you -love me." - -"Very good, sir. I be in a mind to troll a ditty, 'tis true, and if my -tenor tones don't offend 'ee, I'll try a stave o' 'Turmut-hoein'." - -Next morning, under a bright May sun, the troops in Breda marched out to -join the Duke of Marlborough at Ruremond. As Harry's troop passed -Lindendaal, and he caught a glimpse of fluttering handkerchiefs at the -windows, he could not help wondering whether he should see those kind -friends again. - -At Ruremond the troops were reviewed by the duke himself; thence they -marched to Juliers and Coblentz, where they halted for two days to allow -the Prussian and Hanoverian levies in British pay to unite with them. -Everybody had expected that the march would be continued up the Moselle, -with the purpose of coming to grips with the French army under Marshal -Villeroy. But to the general astonishment orders were given to cross -that river by the stone bridge, and then the Rhine by two bridges of -boats, and to proceed through the principality of Hesse-Cassel. The new -orders were eagerly discussed by the officers of all the corps, but -Marlborough had kept his own counsel, and indeed at this time his plan -was known to scarcely anyone but Lord Godolphin, with whom he had talked -it over in outline before leaving England, and Prince Eugene of Savoy, -to whom he had entrusted it in correspondence. - -The plan must have seemed hazardous, even reckless, to soldiers who held -by the old traditions; but it was one that displayed Marlborough's -military genius to the full. He had divined the true meaning of the -recent movements of the French armies, and determined on a great effort -to defeat the aim of King Louis so shrewdly guessed at. Relying on his -ally, the Elector of Bavaria, the French king had resolved to make a -strenuous attack upon the Emperor in the heart of his own dominions, -Vienna. If Austria were crushed in one great battle, Louis had reason -to expect a general rising of the Hungarians, by which the empire would -be so much weakened that he could enforce peace and secure the triumph -of his policy on his own terms. Already a French army under Marshal -Marsin had joined forces with the Elector of Bavaria; other armies were -rapidly advancing to reinforce them, and the combined host would be more -than a match for any army that the emperor could put in the field -against it. - -Marlborough saw only one way to save the empire: he must prevent if -possible the junction of the several French armies, or, if that were -impossible, defeat them in a pitched battle. But he knew that the -States of Holland would shrink from the risk of an expedition so far -from their own borders; he therefore gave out that his campaign was to -be conducted along the Moselle, and only when he was well on his way, -and it was too late to oppose him, did he reveal his full design. -Fortunately the Dutch Government rose to the opportunity; they sent him -the reinforcements and supplies he asked for, and were satisfied with -the detachment of one or two small forces to keep watch on Villeroy, who -had crossed the Meuse and was threatening Huy. For himself, Marlborough -intended to press forward with all speed towards the Danube, join Prince -Louis of Baden and Prince Eugene of Savoy, and give battle to the -combined French and Bavarians on ground of his own choosing. - -For Harry this famous march was attended with endless novelty and -excitement. Every morning at dawn camp was struck, and for five or six -hours, with occasional halts, the troops marched, covering twelve or -fifteen miles, and bivouacking about nine o'clock, thus completing the -day's work before the sun grew hot. All along the route supplies for -man and beast were furnished by commissaries, whose duties were so well -organized that everything was on the ground before the troops arrived, -and they had nothing to do but pitch their tents, boil their kettles, -and lie down to rest. Everything was arranged and carried out with -matchless regularity and order; Marlborough himself had a thorough grasp -of the details, and showed such consideration for his men that on -personal grounds he won their admiration and confidence. The passage of -so large and miscellaneous a force, consisting of English, Dutch, -Prussians, Danes, and levies from several of the minor German states, -might well have been attended by many disorders; but Marlborough always -displayed great humanity in his dealings with the people of the country -through which he passed, and in these matters an army takes its cue from -the commander-in-chief. - -After quitting Coblentz, the duke went forward a day's march with the -cavalry, leaving the artillery and foot to follow under the command of -his brother, General Charles Churchill. Unfortunately rainy weather set -in towards the end of May, and the roads were rendered so difficult that -Churchill's force lost ground, and by the time Marlborough reached -Ladenburg, on June 2, was four or five days behind. This delay gave the -duke some little cause for anxiety, for he had learnt that Prince Louis -of Baden, a brave but sluggish general of the old school, had allowed -reinforcements to reach the Elector of Bavaria, and failed to seize an -excellent opportunity of defeating the combined force. Marlborough, -wishing on this account to hurry his advance, sent back two troops of -Dutch horse to assist his brother with the cannon. One of these -happened to be Harry's. The heavy Flemish horses were serviceable in -dragging the guns, but the rains were so persistent and the soft roads -so cut up that when Churchill reached Maintz he was still some five -days' march behind the duke. - -Late on the night of June 3, when the camp was silent, a courier reached -Maintz with the following despatch from Marlborough at Ladenburg:-- - - -"I send this by express on purpose to be informed of the condition you -are in, both as to the troops and the artillery, and to advise you to -take your march with the whole directly to Heidelberg, since the route -we have taken by Ladenburg will be too difficult for you. Pray send -back the messenger immediately, and let me know by him where you design -to camp each night, and what day you propose to be at Heidelberg, that I -may take my measures accordingly." - - -General Churchill was roused from sleep to receive the despatch. He at -once wrote his reply, but on sending it out to the messenger learnt that -he had been suddenly seized with illness, and was unable to ride. -Churchill then sent for Captain van der Werff, and asked him, since he -had already ridden the Ladenburg road with his troop, to despatch the -letter by one of his subalterns. The captain, who knew of Harry's -relations with Marlborough, pleased himself with the thought of bringing -the two together again, and, to Harry's unbounded delight, ordered him -to ride at once to Ladenburg. Before he went he was summoned to the -bedside of General Churchill, and saw the tall, thin, battered form of -that excellent soldier in the unheroic attire of night-shirt and cap. -From him he learnt, in case of accident, the gist of the message, which -was that Churchill undertook to arrive at Heidelberg on June 7. Harry -started before dawn, and reached the camp at Ladenburg early. He had -crossed the Neckar by the bridge of boats used by Marlborough's troops -on the previous day, and found the army encamped along the river-side -opposite the town. The usual daily march had been pretermitted, in -order to allow time for the infantry to make up something of the ground -it had lost. - -When Harry was taken into the presence of the commander-in-chief, -Marlborough was engaged in conversation with Count Wratislaw, the -emperor's agent, Colonel Cadogan, his quartermaster-general, and other -officers of his staff. The duke had learnt that Prince Eugene of Savoy -was on his way to join him, and was anxious that the meeting should take -place as soon as possible, so that the plan outlined in their -correspondence might be discussed in full detail. He had sent two -messengers with letters to meet Prince Eugene, informing him of his -whereabouts and urging him to hasten his coming; but neither had -returned, and he could not but fear that some mischance had befallen -them. But it was a characteristic of Marlborough's that, whatever his -difficulties and anxieties, he preserved always the same outward -appearance of settled calm--a great factor in his power over men. - -He received General Churchill's letter from Harry's hand with a pleasant -smile and word of thanks, and bade him wait, to see if it demanded an -answer. Then he resumed his conversation, which was conducted in -French. Before long Harry, though he remained at a distance too great to -allow of his hearing what passed, judged from the glances thrown -occasionally in his direction that something was being said about him. -Presently Marlborough beckoned him forward. - -"Mr. Rochester," he said, "I have an errand for you. I wish to -communicate with Prince Eugene of Savoy; two of my officers whom I sent -to him have apparently miscarried; I wish to try a third. You have had -experience in getting about the country, and I know from one or two -incidents in your late career that you have your wits about you and can -make good speed. You will carry a letter from me to Prince Eugene. I -will inform your colonel that I have employed you on special duty.--Mr. -Cardonnel, be good enough to write from my dictation." - -He dictated a short note to his secretary. - -"You understand French, of course, Mr. Rochester?" - -"Yes, my lord." - -"Then I need not repeat my message. You will keep it in mind in case -circumstances should require you to destroy the letter. You may meet -with danger on the road; otherwise I am at a loss to know why I am -without a reply to my two former letters. You must therefore be on your -guard. You will use all dispatch, hiring fresh horses wherever it may -be necessary--without, of course, incurring needless expense. I opine -that you may meet Prince Eugene at Innsprueck; Colonel Cadogan will -furnish you with a map; your best road will lie through Heidelberg, -Wisloch, and the Swabian Alb. When you reach the prince you will -doubtless be fatigued; his reply may be sent by another messenger, to -whom you will give such hints for his guidance as your own journey may -suggest. In that case you need not unduly hurry your own return, and on -your way back you may find it possible to make enquiries regarding the -fate of my missing messengers: they were Lieutenant Fanshawe of the Duke -of Schomberg's Horse, and Lieutenant Buckley of Colonel Cadogan's. Do -you know either of them?" - -"Lieutenant Fanshawe is an old friend of mine, my lord," said Harry, -"but I don't know Lieutenant Buckley." - -"Very well. His Excellency Count Wratislaw here will, I doubt not, -favour you with a letter of safety which will avail you with any of the -civil authorities whose assistance you may need _en route_; but since -'tis advisable to attract as little attention as possible, I counsel you -to make no use of the letter except on emergency. 'Twill be common -knowledge along the road whether the prince has passed on his way to the -army, so that you should meet with no difficulty in finding him. -Perhaps, the two lieutenants having apparently come to grief, 'twould be -well for you to ride incognito. What is your opinion, Colonel Cadogan?" - -"Faith, my lord, let him go as a young English milord making the grand -tour." - -"But he would then need a servant and baggage." - -"Give out that his servant has broken his leg or is laid up with the -colic, and he is riding post to Venice; his wits will invent a reason." - -"I think, sir, I would rather go as I am," said Harry. "My errand would -not then be complicated." - -"The simpler way is often the best," said the duke. "Very well. Here is -the letter; I will send you Count Wratislaw's shortly; you will then set -off at once." - -Harry bowed and withdrew, feeling highly elated at being entrusted with -this mission. It was an expedition on which he would gladly have had -the company of Sherebiah; but there was no time to send for him; -besides, one might go more safely than two. An hour later, furnished -with a supply of money by Colonel Cadogan, he rode off on a fresh horse, -passed through Heidelberg without delay, by favour of Count Wratislaw's -safe-conduct, and struck into the long straight road that led due south -through Leimen and Wisloch. - -What had become of Fanshawe, he wondered. It was a friendly country; -the enemy were, so far as he could gather, no nearer than Ulm on the -Danube, so that it was little likely that Fanshawe had fallen in with -French or Bavarian troops. On the other hand, the country was infested -with spies, and here and there in out-of-the-way spots bands of outlaws -were said to have fixed their haunts, whence they made depredations on -neighbouring villages. But it was useless to speculate on what might -have happened, and Harry took care not to awaken curiosity or suspicion -by any premature enquiries. Stopping merely to change horses at posting -inns and to snatch a light meal, he reached Stuttgart about six o'clock -in the afternoon, having ridden sixty miles since he left Ladenburg. -This, with his previous ride from Maintz, had made him stiff and sore; -but, tired as he was, he determined to push on after a short rest, and -reach, if possible, the little town of Urach that night. - -Soon after leaving Stuttgart he entered the district known as the -Swabian Alb, a country of wooded mountains and picturesque, well-watered -valleys, now in all their midsummer glory. The road became steeper -after he had crossed the river Neckar, and as his horse was labouring -somewhat he began to wish that he had remained to sleep in Stuttgart. -He was still some miles short of Urach when he came suddenly upon an -inn, standing back from the high-road, and nestling among a group of -tall, full-leaved beeches. It bore the sign "Zum grauen Baeren". The -pleasant situation and the warm colours of this Swabian hostelry were -very inviting to a tired man. His mouth was parched with thirst; his -horse was panting and steaming; and a short rest would do both of them -good. A moment's hesitation; then he wheeled to the left, and was met -by the landlord, who rose from a bench before the inn, where he was -smoking his evening pipe along with a squat companion looking like a -farmer. The landlord was not so attractive in appearance as his inn, but -he gave Harry a suave greeting in German, and asked how he could serve -the noble Herr. Harry had picked up a word or two of German in Holland, -and asked in that tongue for the refreshment he desired; but at the -first word the landlord gave him a sharp yet furtive look, immediately -effaced by his wonted bland smile. He went into the inn, and soon -returned with a cup of wine, while an ostler brought a pail of water for -the horse. - -Harry was glad to rest his aching limbs on the bench, and to sip the -cool Rhenish. The landlord, standing by him, showed a desire to be -conversational. - -"The noble Herr is for Urach? He will scarcely get there to-night." - -He spoke now in a mixture of German and bad French. - -"Why, is it so far?" said Harry. "I thought I was nearly there." - -"True, Excellency, it is not very far; but the town council has become -somewhat timid since the French and Bavarians came prowling along the -Danube, and the gates are shut at half-past seven." - -"A solitary horseman will not scare them," said Harry with a smile. -"They will surely open to me." - -"Not so, Excellency. The order is stern. Why, only yesterday a -Rittmeister passing to join the forces of the Prince of Baden was -refused admittance just after the clock had struck, and had to come back -to this very inn. Donner, was he not angry, the noble Herr! But anger -cannot pierce stone walls; the gentleman uttered many round oaths, but -he came back all the same. Was it not so, Hermann?" - -His thickset companion assented with a rough "Jawohl!" - -"Well, I can but try," said Harry, thinking of Count Wratislaw's letter -as his open sesame. "I shall ride on in a minute or two." - -The landlord lifted his eyebrows. - -"The noble Herr has perhaps more persuasion than the Herr Rittmeister. -But if you find it as I say,--well, there is good accommodation within." - -He went into the inn with his companion, leaving Harry on the bench. -Harry reflected. It was absurd to tire himself needlessly; he had -ridden with brief intervals for nearly eighteen hours since he left -Maintz, and felt by no means eager to get into the saddle again. -Perhaps it would be best to close with the man's offer, sleep at the -inn, and start fresh early in the morning. Yet he hesitated; there was -something about the landlord that he did not like; he felt for him one -of those unaccountable antipathies that spring up at a word, a look, a -touch. But the feeling was vague and unsubstantial; after a moment he -dismissed it as unreasonable, and concluded that his best course would -be to take his rest now rather than run the risk of having it deferred -for some hours. - -He went into the inn. - -"The noble Herr decides to stay?" said the landlord. "Well! I would not -persuade, but I think you are right, Excellency. Johann, take the -gentleman's horse to the stable. I will see then that a room is -prepared. And you will like supper, Excellency?" - -"Yes. Anything will do." - -He accompanied the ostler to the stable and saw the horse well rubbed -and fed. - -"Whose horse is that?" he asked, noticing a sorrel in the next stall. - -"He belongs, Excellency, to the gentleman now with the host, by name -Hermann Bart, a farmer of the district." - -"Oh! he looks a strong beast--the horse, I mean. I shall want to be off -at dawn; you'll see that my horse is ready?" - -Returning to the inn, he ate the plain supper brought him by an old -woman as deaf as a post. While he sat at table the landlord stood -opposite him, attentively anticipating his wants. - -"I can have a light breakfast at three, landlord?" - -"Certainly, Excellency; we are early birds here, though in these times -there are few travellers along the road, more's the pity." - -"Ah! Is there any news of the armies hereabouts?" - -"Why yes. Only yesterday--so it is said--the Elector of Bavaria crossed -the river at Ulm, and the Prince of Baden, who 'tis to be hoped will -beat him, stands somewhat higher up at Ehingen across the mountains -yonder." - -"You have not been troubled yourself by the soldiers?" - -"Never a whit, Excellency. And I trust I never shall be. They march, -you see, along the rivers, and my little place is out of their route. -You are travelling far, mein Herr?" - -"Not a great distance," replied Harry, thinking it prudent to give no -information. The landlord made no attempt to press him, but kept up a -desultory conversation until he had finished his supper. - -"I will go and take a look at my horse, and then turn in." - -He went out to the stable, and noticed that the second horse was gone. - -"Your friend the farmer has gone home then?" he said to the ostler. - -"Yes, Excellency, some time ago." - -"My horse is comfortable, I see; good-night!" - -As he left the stable he heard the man behind him whistling as he gave -the cobbles a final sweeping for the night. The tune seemed familiar, -but Harry was not sufficiently interested to give another thought to it. -The landlord met him at the door with a lighted candle and led the way -to his room. - -"It is a small room, Excellency," he explained apologetically; "not such -a room as befits a gentleman of your rank. But the truth is, the heavy -rains of late have found out a weak spot in the roof, and my large -guest-chamber is consequently very damp. The small room here to the -left is, however, very comfortable; it was last occupied by an Austrian -nobleman who slept through the night without turning an eyelid." - -"Then it will suit me very well," said Harry. - -"Breakfast at daybreak, you said, Excellency?" - -"Yes." - -"You will want nothing more to-night?" - -"Nothing. Good-night, landlord!" - -Harry shut the door and shot the bolt. He thought the Austrian nobleman -must have been easily satisfied. The room was about twelve feet by -seven, and contained nothing but a bed and a chair. There was one small -window opening on to the courtyard some thirty feet below, the view of -the yard being partially obstructed by a projecting wing of the house -immediately beneath. The air of the room being very stuffy, he opened -the window wide; then he undressed, blew out the light, and got into -bed, pulling out the blanket, which seemed somewhat frowsy, and finding -enough warmth in the light coverlet. - -But he found it impossible to sleep. He was in fact overtired, and -bodily fatigue often makes the mind only more active. He fell a-musing, -and wondered what it was in the landlord's manner that he disliked. -Through the window came the sound of the stableman's whistle as he -locked the yard gate, and Harry tried in vain to recollect where he had -heard the tune before. The ostler was a happy fellow, evidently; -perhaps his master was better than he appeared. The whistling ceased, a -door banged, presumably the man had gone to bed; "and he'll sleep as -sound as a top," thought Harry. He turned over on to his back and -stared at the ceiling, which consisted of thick beams with rough boards -between. By and by he noticed a dark square outline in the planking -just above him. He could not see it distinctly, for the beams of the -rising moon did not fall upon it directly, but across the bed, making -the room itself fairly light. For a time he looked idly at the square; -it was evidently a trap-door. He began to be curious about it, then was -aware of an indefinable, inexplicable sense of uneasiness, of -insecurity. He felt that he could neither withdraw his gaze from the -trap-door nor put it from his thoughts. He turned on to his right side, -away from the window, but in a few moments was on his back again, -staring up as before. - -"This is ridiculous," he said to himself impatiently. "I wonder whether -the thing has a bolt." - -He rose, and, standing on the bed, found that with outstretched hand he -could just reach the boards. Exploring the edge of the trap-door with -his fingers he soon discovered that there was no bolt, though there had -evidently been one at some time, for on a second search he felt an iron -socket let into one of the adjacent joists. He raised himself on -tiptoes and gently pushed at the door. It rose slightly; clearly it was -not fastened above. No glimmer of moonlight came through the small gap -between the trap and the ceiling; therefore it did not give directly -upon the roof, but probably opened into an attic or loft. There was -nothing more to be discovered, and indeed he scarcely felt that he -needed to discover more, for his uneasiness had already been largely -dissipated by action. He lay down again, and tried to sleep. - -This time he was successful. How long he slept he did not know. He -suddenly awoke, and at the first moment of consciousness remembered the -ostler's tune; he identified it now; it was something like Fanshawe's -song of "Widdicombe Fair". He was not enough of a musician to decide -how close was the resemblance; country songs of different nations were, -he supposed, often alike. Glad that his puzzlement was gone, he settled -himself once more to sleep. - -All at once his senses were roused to full activity by the sound of two -or more horses approaching the inn, at a walk, as he knew by the fall of -the hoofs. It was very late for travellers; besides, travellers would -probably have ridden up at a trot; he wondered who the riders could be, -and listened intently. In a few moments the sounds ceased; then through -the open window came the murmur of low voices. Springing quietly out of -bed, he went to the window and peeped cautiously out. Five men were -leading their horses into the copse immediately opposite to the inn. -The short squat figure of one of them reminded him of the farmer whom he -had seen with the landlord a few hours before; he seemed the shorter by -contrast with the next man, a tall massive figure. They went quietly, -and disappeared into the copse; soon afterwards four of them emerged -from the trees and approached the inn. Not a word was spoken; the men -were apparently walking on tiptoe; but there came the slight sound of a -door opening and closing, then dead silence again. - -By this time Harry was as wide-awake as ever he had been in his life. -His uneasiness returned in full force, and was now magnified into -suspicion. The landlord's furtive look and unsatisfactory manner; the -story of the closing of the gates of Urach; his lame explanation about -the room; the absence of a fastening to the trap-door; the disappearance -of the landlord's forbidding companion; the reappearance of the same man -with a number of others; their stealthy movements, and the fact that -they had tied their horses up in the copse instead of bringing them into -the courtyard--all these were links in a chain of suspicious -circumstance, of little significance singly, but disturbing when taken -together. And the stableman's tune--what did that mean? Was it -actually the tune of "Widdicombe Fair", and not merely one resembling -it? Had the ostler heard it from Fanshawe's lips? Was he on the track -of the explanation of the disappearance of one of Marlborough's -messengers? - -Quickly and noiselessly Harry slipped on his clothes. His first duty -was, of course, to deliver the duke's letter; nothing must interfere -with that. His suspicions might be utterly groundless, but on the other -hand they might be only too well justified. He must be on the safe -side; it was necessary to put himself out of harm's way. - -Only one staircase led to his room: it sprang from the narrow -entrance-hall of the inn, on each side of which were the doors of the -rooms on the ground floor. He could scarcely hope to be able to pass -down, however stealthily, without being discovered; and even if he did -succeed in this and left the inn, he would be immediately seen by the -fifth man, who, he guessed, had been left in the copse to keep watch on -the front door. The staircase being given up, there remained only the -window and the trap-door. By placing the chair upon the bed and -mounting it he might manage to swing himself up through the trap-door; -but it flashed upon him that if any mischief were intended the midnight -visitors would certainly approach through the attic or loft above. He -remembered passing, at the head of the stairs, a door which he had taken -to be that of a cupboard; it might be the entrance to a stair leading to -the loft, and if he tried that exit he would certainly be in an even -worse trap. - -A glance from the window determined his choice. There was a drop of -about fifteen feet from it to the roof of the outbuilding. In the -moonlight he caught sight of what appeared to be the top of a drain-pipe -from the roof of this lower building to the ground. The drain-pipe -would form an easy means of descent could he gain the roof. There was -only one way to do that: to descend by aid of a rope. Without hesitation -he drew the thin coverlet from the bed, and tore it across the middle. -Knotting the two pieces together he rolled up a clumsy but serviceable -rope. The window was only two feet from the bed-post. He tied the rope -to this, slung his boots round his neck, wrapped his scabbard in a -corner cut from the blanket, to prevent its clanking, and prepared to -descend. - -It was fortunate that the window was already open, for the creaking of -the frame might have attracted attention. There was a risk that the man -in the copse might see him as he got through the window; but the moon -was now above the house, and the overhanging roof cast a deep shadow -over all below. - -He had his hand on the broad window-sill, preparing to begin the -descent, when an idea gave him pause. How ridiculous he must appear if -his suspicions turned out to be baseless, and he had slunk like a thief -from the house! How humiliating would be his situation if he were caught -in the act and treated as a doubtful character! He could not be -suspected of stealing; there was nothing to steal; but he might be -thought to be running away without paying. He could prevent that, at -any rate. He put a gold piece on the chair. - -"That's double pay," he thought. - -But still he hesitated. No man cares to look a fool, and he would -certainly look very foolish if his imagination proved to have run away -with him. But what is that? A slight creak on the stairs, then another. -Now a faint rustle outside the door. Holding his breath he listens. -Yes, the supposed cupboard door is being opened; a moment, then he hears -the faint but unmistakable creak of footsteps on the crazy stairs -leading to the attic. He hesitates no longer. In two minutes at the -most the intruders will have come through the trap-door into the room. -Throwing one leg over the window-sill, he grasps his rope with one hand -and the sill with the other; over goes the other leg, and now he is -hanging by the frail rope. He feels the soft material yield to his -weight; it is stretched to its full extent; it holds! He needs it for -only a few feet. Down he glides: his feet touch the slates of the -outhouse; now he is in full view from the copse save that a -chimney-stack on the roof throws a black shadow all around him. Will he -escape notice? Keeping the chimney between him and the copse he crawls -slowly over the slates and finds as he had hoped that the rain-water -pipe is out of sight. He slips over, grasps the pipe, and is half-way -down when there is a noise in the room above; and as his feet at last -touch the ground he sees two faces at the open window and hears loud -shouts. - -He had already resolved on a risky experiment; it appeared his only -chance of escape. He had noticed that the country around, though hilly, -was bare of vegetation except about the inn, where trees had been -planted to tempt wayfarers. He knew that as soon as he got away from -the buildings his figure would be seen in the bright moonbeams, and he -was bound to be ridden down. The shouts from the window might be -expected for the moment to hold the attention of the man on the watch. -Relying on this, Harry darted across the road in the shadow of the -outbuildings and dived into the copse some twenty or thirty yards from -the place where the men had entered with the horses. Bending low, -moving rapidly, yet with all possible caution, among the trees, he bore -to the left towards the single watcher, whom he could now hear on the -road shouting in answer to the men in the house. Harry could not -distinguish their words, but judged from the vehemence of their tone and -his own consciousness of his design that they were bawling to the -sentinel to return to the horses he had left. It was a question which -should reach them first. The copse was almost dark; a glint of light -from the moon filtered through the foliage here and there. Running in -his stockings Harry made no noise; but he could already hear the heavy -trampling of the man as he plunged through the trees somewhere to his -left. - -Suddenly he came to a narrow clearing; on the other side he saw the -horses tethered to the trees. Keeping just within the edge of the copse -he ran round at his utmost speed towards the animals, and just before he -reached them saw that their guardian had arrived at the end of the -clearing nearest to the road and had stopped in the attitude of -listening. There was much hubbub from the direction of the inn, and by -the sounds Harry knew that several men were crossing the road towards -the copse. The horses were between him and the solitary sentinel. -Coming to the nearest, he cast off its bridle, then, vaulting to the -saddle, he drew his sword and cut the bridles of the others, which were -standing head to head, loosely attached to the projecting branch of a -small tree. The man gave a shout and rushed forward when he saw Harry -on the horse. It was a moment for quick decision. Smartly hitting the -four intervening horses with the flat of his sword, Harry set them -scampering through the edge of the copse. The man could not evade them, -and in a moment he was knocked down. Harry meanwhile, trusting to the -darkness, followed on the heels of two horses which were heading through -the clearing towards the inn. At the outer edge of the copse he was -encountered by two men who attempted to catch his rein. Toppling one -over and cutting at the other he gained the highway; then set his -borrowed steed to a gallop and rode on towards Urach. "A near shave!" he -thought. He stopped a few hundred yards from the walls to put on his -boots, then rode up to the gate. - -It was shut, and he had some difficulty in rousing the gatekeeper. When -the man came at length to his summons, he refused point-blank to allow -the rider to enter. - -"I can't wait," cried Harry. "Seek the officer of the watch; I'll not -answer for what may happen if you delay me." - -The gatekeeper went away grumbling and returned with the lieutenant of -the town guard, who held a pistol and asked Harry's business. - -"I am on a mission for my lord Marlborough," said Harry. "This letter -from his Excellency Count Wratislaw will satisfy you." - -The officer tried to read the letter by the light of the moon, but -finding this impossible, waited until the gate-keeper had lit his horn -lantern. Then, having read the letter, he ordered the man to open the -gate. - -"Will you ride farther to-night, Monsieur?" he asked. - -"No, I am dog tired," replied Harry. "Will you direct me to a lodging?" - -"Permit me to offer you the hospitality of my own quarters. The inns -are all closed, of course; you are a very late traveller, Monsieur." - -"Yes, I have been somewhat delayed on the road. If you will give me -sleeping quarters for a few hours I shall be obliged to you." - -In less than a quarter of an hour he was fast asleep. At four he was -wakened, according to instructions given before he turned in. Stiff and -sore as he was, he meant to ride on at once, for the sooner his mission -was completed the sooner would he have the opportunity of seeking an -explanation with the innkeeper, which he promised himself should be a -thorough one. The lieutenant of the guard, a pleasant fellow, had a -light breakfast ready, and was eager to give information about the road. -From him Harry learnt that the highway to Biberach would lead through -the lines of Prince Louis of Baden. Though he had no instructions to -avoid the prince's army, he thought it very probable that he would best -serve the duke by preventing gossip. So, finding that by diverging -somewhat to the right and taking the road by Riedlingen he would pass -outside Prince Louis's lines and lose little time, he decided to adopt -this course. Thanking his entertainer, and promising to call on him on -the way back, he set off on his ride. Not a word had he said about his -adventure at the inn. It would be time to deal with that when his duty -was done. - -Harry rode a hundred miles that day, reaching the town of Immenstadt in -the evening. He met with no adventure on the way; he found ready -service at the inns at which he stopped to change horses, rest, and eat. -But at the day's end he felt all but worn out. The sun had shone -brilliantly, scorching his face, neck, and hands, and causing much -discomfort to his horses. They suffered, however, less than he, for -while the steeds were changed at short stages, the rider was always the -same. He got some little relief by walking up the steepest hills along -the road. His physical state and his preoccupation made him oblivious -of the scenes through which he passed; afterwards he had but the vaguest -recollections of hill ridges, bosky dells, blue lakes, and dark masses -of rock, with a miry road winding among them, and here and there inns -where he was thankful to rest awhile. - -He slept that night at Immenstadt, rose reluctantly early next morning, -and started for what he hoped was the last stage of his journey. About -ten o'clock he arrived at the little village of Obermiemingen. As he -rode in, he noted signs of excitement in the street. The whole -population seemed to be gathered about the inn. At the door stood a -heavy travelling coach with four horses, two of them saddled for -postilions. His arrival diverted the attention of some of the peasants -to himself, and they parted to make way for him. Dismounting stiffly he -went to the inn-door and called for the host. After some time a servant -came to him and explained that mine host was engaged at that moment with -his Excellency Prince Eugene of Savoy, who had driven up shortly before -attended by two officers and thirty troopers. - -"Then I am in luck's way," said Harry. "I have a letter to his -Excellency: conduct me to his room." - -Two minutes later he found himself in the presence of the renowned -soldier: the man who, mocked at in the French court as the "little abbe" -and refused employment by King Louis, had ever since lived for nothing -else but to prove himself a thorn in that monarch's side. He was of -somewhat less than the middle height, dark-complexioned, with refined -though not small features, and large flashing eyes. Harry presented his -letter; the prince having read it, laughed and said: - -"My lord Marlborough is anxious, Monsieur. But a few hours ago I -received a message from him--dated several days back, it is true: you -have had better fortune than the first messenger. The letter was -brought to me at Innsprueck by a farmer from the Swabian Alb; the -courier, an officer of my lord Marlborough, had fallen from his horse, -it appears, and being conveyed to a cottage the children had made free -with his wallet while he himself lay insensible and their elders were -attending upon him. For myself, I suspect it was the elders who were -curious. But the letter contained no more than this one you have -brought, so their curiosity reaped but little gratification.--Now, are -you to carry my answer to my lord?" - -"If your Excellency wishes," said Harry, "but my lord duke told me I -might use another hand if I were fatigued." - -"And that you certainly are. You must have come at great speed, and I -will not tax you further. Very well. I am proceeding to Immenstadt; -there I shall await a communication from Vienna, and then go directly -forward to my meeting with the duke. I will acquaint him of my design -by a messenger of my own. Pray refresh yourself now, Monsieur." - -In a few minutes the prince drove off with his escort, and Harry enjoyed -a sort of reflected importance. He was given the best the inn could -afford, and provided, after some delay and difficulty--his request was -almost incomprehensible to the landlord--with the luxury of a bath. He -remained in Obermiemingen until the heat of the day had spent itself, -then cantered easily back to Immenstadt, where for the first time for -many days he slept the round of the clock. Reporting himself to Prince -Eugene next morning, he learnt that the expected messenger from Vienna -had not yet arrived, and having nothing to detain him there he started -on the road back. There was no need for hurry; that day he rode seventy -miles, to Riedlingen; then next morning he went on to Urach, where he at -once looked up the amiable lieutenant of the guard who had treated him -so well on his way through. - -"You are back then, Monsieur?" said the lieutenant, greeting him -heartily. "I did not tell you before, but the truth is I was not at all -sure you would reach your destination safely." - -"And you didn't wish to frighten me! But why, Monsieur?" - -"There are bands of marauders in the hills; deserters, broken men, and -what not, ready to snap up any unsuspecting traveller who promises to be -worth it. They have done much damage in the neighbourhood, robbing and -plundering undefended farms and hamlets, and though we are strong enough -here to beat them off we cannot risk an expedition against them, and -Prince Louis of Baden is too much occupied, I suppose, to give any heed -to our requests for assistance." - -"Well, Monsieur," said Harry, "I was not ignorant of what you have told -me. And indeed I want to ask your help in a matter not unconnected with -it. Two messengers from my lord Marlborough's army have disappeared -somewhere in these parts; I think I have a clue to their fate, and wish -to follow it up. Can you procure me the services of a stout, sensible -fellow to ride with me?--a man thoroughly to be depended on, and one who -will face danger if need be." - -"I know the very man," said the officer instantly; "one Max Berens, who -was servant to a French officer until the beginning of the war, but, -refusing to fight against his own people, is now out of employment. He -is a young fellow, strong, honest, intelligent; I know him well. I will -send for him." - -Harry liked the look of Max Berens when he appeared. He reminded him not -a little of Sherebiah, of whom he might have been a younger and a -slighter copy. Max readily accepted Harry's offer of a week's service, -and promised to be ready with horses at seven o'clock that same evening. - -At that hour the two rode north towards the wayside inn. On the way -Harry asked Max if he knew anything of the landlord. - -"Little enough, Monsieur. He's a sly fellow, and demands high prices; -but there, the same could be said of any innkeeper." - -As they drew near the inn they made a detour, and, entering the copse -from the farther side, tied up their horses and came through the trees. -Dusk had already fallen, and as the sky was overcast the evening was -blacker than is usual at the time of year. The inn was in darkness -except for a light in the kitchen. Followed by Max, Harry emerged from -the copse, crossed the road, and rapped smartly on the closed door. It -was opened almost immediately by the landlord himself, who, seeing two -men on foot, and not recognizing Harry in the darkness, said: - -"Come in, gentlemen. What are your commands? I will bring a light in a -moment." - -Returning with a candle, he now saw who the first of his visitors was, -and looked very uncomfortable. - -"I have very little in the house, Excellency----" he began -deprecatingly. Harry cut him short. - -"Pray don't be distressed. I left hurriedly--you remember me, -landlord?--and we have a little reckoning to make together. It need not -take long.--Max, stand at the door, and see that our good host and I are -not disturbed.--Now, landlord, we will have a little talk." The kitchen -door was open and the room empty. "This will do quite well; I repeat, -we shall not remain long." - -The man looked relieved, Harry thought; but he said nothing, merely -brushing a chair for his visitor. Harry sat down, removed his hat, and -leant back, stretching his legs for comfort after his ride. - -"Yes, landlord, I left your house somewhat hurriedly, I fear, and at an -unseemly hour." - -The man shot a quick glance at him; but, having now had time to collect -his wits, assumed an air of friendly concern, and began to speak with -great volubility. - -"The noble Herr had indeed a miraculous escape. Your excellency will -remember--I told you of the marauders. They are dangerous knaves; they -stick at nothing; only the other day they sacked and burnt a farmhouse -in the hills, and killed all the inmates--man, wife, three children, and -a dozen servants. Glad indeed was I to find that your excellency had -eluded them. They must have spied upon your coming; yes, dangerous -villains, I say. We should have had troops to protect us, but his -highness Prince Louis--whom God defend!--cannot spare a man, it is said, -so hard is he pressed by the French; and we poor Swabians are at the -mercy of these robbers, the offscourings of all the armies. Ah, your -excellency, these are bad times for us poor folk, bad times indeed; not -that it becomes me to complain when our noble rulers think it necessary -to make war; but it is the poor who suffer. It is we who are taxed to -keep the soldiers afoot; the bread is taken out of our children's -mouths; we are murdered and robbed, our houses are plundered and -burned----" - -"Except in your case, mein Wirth," said Harry, interrupting the man's -hurried, nervous, inconsequent speech. "You seem very comfortable here; -I see no signs of plunder or burning." - -"No, your excellency, they--they--they were disturbed." - -"Disturbed!" - -"Did I say disturbed? I meant alarmed--alarmed, mein Herr. Your -excellency's escape--for which Heaven be thanked!--caused them to hurry -off;--yes, to hurry off, for, of course, they feared the guard from -Urach; that is how it was: your excellency understands?" - -"Perfectly. And which way did they go?" - -"Which way, your excellency?" The man's tone was expressive of the -greatest surprise: he was gaining confidence. "How should I know? They -galloped away; that was all I knew----" - -"Ah! And where did they get the horses?" - -"The horses! the horses! Ah yes! the horses." Mine host was now -floundering desperately. "Why, of course, they caught the horses and -then galloped away--you understand?" - -"Excellently. And my horse--you have that in your stable still?" - -"Your horse! Yes, of course; it must be there; I will go and saddle it -myself for your excellency." - -"Not so fast. There is no hurry, my friend. They caught the horses and -galloped away. And where are they now?" - -"What strange questions, Excellency! Where are they now? How should I -know! It is announced they went away towards Ulm: one can never tell -with such wretches: they are here to-day and gone to-morrow. To look -for them would be like looking for a needle in a haystack." - -"That's a pity, landlord; I fear you must make up your mind for a long -search." - -"A search! I, Excellency?" - -"Yes, you. And we will, if you please, start at once." - -Harry said this in the same quiet matter-of-fact tone in which he might -have said, "I will have breakfast at eight". The landlord looked -dumbfounded, his head hanging forward, his eyes fixed in a wild stare -upon the face of the visitor. Harry sat up in his chair and spoke very -slowly and distinctly, leaving time for the words to sink in. - -"I have come, landlord, either to find our midnight disturbers, or to -deliver you in their stead to the magistrates of Urach. Which it is to -be depends entirely on you. No; it is useless to protest"--the man was -rubbing his hands nervously together, and stammering an -expostulation--"I have the strongest proof that you were associated with -the villains in the trap set for me three nights ago. You can make your -choice between returning with me to Urach, where there is plenty of rope -and a serviceable gallows-frame in the market square; and yielding me -sincere and instant help in the little enquiry I am about to make. I do -not wish to hurry you: you shall have a few minutes to think it over. -Bring me a cup of wine." - -The man moved to the cupboard as in a dream. Harry took the cup he -offered, and as he sipped it, watched the landlord return the bottle -mechanically to its place on the shelf, take up a plate and put it down -again, cut half through a loaf of bread and leave the knife in it, flick -imaginary crumbs from the clear table. He looked like a rat in a trap. -He glanced at the window, then at the door, and appeared for a moment to -measure his chances in a struggle. But Harry's air of confident -self-possession, and the knowledge that a sturdy henchman held the door -within a few feet of him, daunted any impulse to active resistance. At -length, drawing a napkin nervously through his fingers, and trying to -assume an air of dignified forbearance, he said: - -"I am in your excellency's hands. I protest; but since you doubt me, I -am willing to accompany your excellency to Urach, and prove my innocence -to the magistrates. I am well known in Urach, and permit me to say, I -shall require good compensation when you are forced to admit your -mistake." - -"Your expectation shall not be disappointed," said Harry quietly. "We -will, then, start at once." - -"But it will be near midnight when we arrive, your excellency being on -foot----" - -"You have my horse in your stable, I thought?" - -"I was mistaken,--a moment's forgetfulness, mein Herr. The horse--the -other day--I mean----" - -"Yes, I understand. Nevertheless, we will start at once." - -"But, Excellency, nothing can be done until the morning. If you will -wait----" - -"For another visit from your friends? no." - -"Not my friends, Excellency. I am an honest man. But as you will. I -will awaken the ostler and leave him in charge of the inn." - -He made quickly towards the door, but Harry, who had seen through all -his attempts to gain time and make an opportunity to get away, -interposed. - -"Ring your bell there: that will waken him. But you will not leave him -in charge of the house: he will come with us, and your servant also. -The inn shall be shut up, and I doubt not your good fortune in escaping -the attentions of the marauders will still hold. I will give you five -minutes to get ready." - -The landlord, seeing that his last hope of communicating with his -friends was gone, recognized that the game was up. His assurance -collapsed; he became merely sullen. - -"What is it that your excellency wishes me to do?" - -"As I said: first to choose between complying with my demands and facing -a public trial for treason at Urach." - -"What are your excellency's demands?" - -"First make your choice." - -"Your excellency will guarantee my safety if I comply?" - -"I cannot answer for that; but I will do what I can." - -The man's face gave signs of a final mental struggle; then he said: - -"I will do as your excellency wishes." - -"A wise choice: it gives you a chance of saving your neck; there is none -at all the other way. A few questions first. How many travellers--let -us say officers of the English army--have you trapped as you tried to -trap me?" - -The man hesitated. - -"Quick!" cried Harry, "no paltering now. You know the alternative." - -"One, your excellency," was the reluctant, sullen admission. - -"And what became of the other?" - -"He was waylaid on the road." - -"The first, or the second?" - -"The second." - -"And the officer captured here--what was he like? Was he tall or short?" - -"He was tall, Excellency, with fair hair and blue eyes. He was always -whistling." - -"These officers--where were they taken to?" - -"To the hills." - -"In what direction?" - -"Towards Geislingen." - -"Where are they now?" - -The man dropped his eyes and fidgeted. He had been growing restive -under this examination; his tone had become more and more sullen. - -"I--I don't know, Excellency," he stammered. - -"Come, refresh your memory. Remember--they have to be found; I must -have an answer, and an exact description of the spot: out with it!" - -The landlord could hardly have looked more uncomfortable if a -thumb-screw had been applied. For a few moments he strove with himself; -then muttered: - -"I don't know: the castle of Rauhstein--when I last heard." - -"And when was that?" - -"Yesterday." - -"The castle will not have moved, eh? Where is it?" - -"About ten miles away." - -"Who owns it?" - -"Nobody: it is a ruin. The land belongs to the Graf von Rauhstein." - -"But it is not so much a ruin that it cannot shelter your friends. How -many do they number?" - -"Two hundred or more." - -"What are they?" - -"All kinds: soldiers, outlaws--French, Bavarian, Swabian." - -"And who commands them?" - -"A Bavarian captain: by his speech, a foreigner born." - -"That is enough, I think. We will prepare to start." - -"To start, Excellency! Whither?" - -"For the castle." - -"But--but, Excellency," stammered the man, "you do not mean it? You -would not venture there, you and I and two men? You--we--they would -murder us all." - -"We must risk that. As for you, your risk will be equally great, or -greater, if you stay here: if the two officers are not safe in Urach by -to-morrow night, a detachment will be sent to arrest you. You -understand?" - -The landlord was chapfallen and pallid with mingled fears. On the one -hand, the vengeance of the associates he had been constrained to betray; -on the other, the retribution of the burghers of Urach. - -"Excellency," he said falteringly, "I have given you information. You -have promised to guarantee my safety----" - -"No," interrupted Harry; "I said I would do what I could." - -"I trust to you, Excellency: you will have mercy upon a poor man; in -these days it is hard to live; I did not mean any harm to the officers; -I insisted their persons should not be injured: I was under compulsion, -fearing----" - -"Enough!" said Harry, to whom the man's cringing and whining were more -distasteful than his former attitude. "Give my man the key of your -stable: he will saddle your horse. We shall not need to awaken your -servant, after all. You will lead the way to the castle. And one word -before we start: try to mislead us or play us false, and you will be -immediately shot. I give you my word for that. Now, put on your hat." - - - - - *CHAPTER XX* - - *The Castle of Rauhstein* - - -The Hidden Way--In the Fosse--Below the Dungeons--Out of the Depths--A -Sleeping Castle--The Stairway in the Keep--Counting the Chickens--The -Battlements--A Breakneck Descent--A Friendly Shower--A Narrow -Margin--Eugene Laughs--A Bold Stroke--Eugene's Double--"Our Good Prince -Eugene"--Mein Wirth as Postilion--An Empty Pistol - - -It was about nine o'clock, and a dark night, when Harry with his two -companions set off on horseback towards the castle of Rauhstein. When -Harry mentioned their destination to Max, the man said that he had known -the district from boyhood, and was well acquainted with the castle and -its precincts, so that it was unnecessary to take the landlord as guide. -But the latter could not be left to himself except under lock and key, -and Harry decided that it would be at once safer and more convenient to -have him with them. Max led the way along a horse-track that zigzagged -over the limestone hills, Harry followed with the landlord, their horses -being securely linked together. Harry had unbuttoned his holsters, -displaying two pistols; the sight of them, he felt, would keep the -landlord on his good behaviour. - -The track was tortuous, skirting rugged spurs of rock, crossing narrow -ravines, and here and there a mountain brook, passing through black -clumps of beech forest that dotted the slope. The riders were -surrounded by a vast silence, broken only by the cries of night birds -and the croak of frogs in the pools. The horses' shoes clicked on the -hard ground; it would clearly not be safe to approach too close to the -castle on horseback, and as they rode Harry quietly asked the landlord -how the ruin was situated, and whether there was any cover within a -secure distance. He learnt that the castle was built against the -hill-side, so that it was inaccessible from the rear; it was almost -wholly in ruins, but the keep and one or two adjacent parts had been -recently made habitable by the marauders. There was a fosse, now dry; -the drawbridge had disappeared, and was replaced by a rough bridge of -planks. The landlord knew of no entrance but this; it was guarded day -and night, but no watch was kept on any other part of the building. -There were no trees in the immediate neighbourhood of the castle, but -about half a mile before it was reached an extensive plantation of beech -covered a valley to the right of the track, and in this the horses could -be left. - -It was past eleven before the three riders reached the beech plantation. -There alighting, they tied their horses to trees well within the clump, -and proceeded on foot. It occurred to Harry that if the animals chanced -to whinny they might be heard by any member of the garrison who happened -to be without the walls; but Max told him that the two tracks leading to -the castle from the Urach highroad were both a considerable distance to -right and left of the hill path by which they had come, so that there -was little fear of such an untoward accident. - -They climbed up the path in silence, the darkness being so deep that -they could not distinguish the outline of anything more than a few yards -away. It was therefore almost unawares that Max himself, for all his -knowledge of the country, came upon the main road into which the track -ran, about a quarter of a mile from the castle. Here he stopped. - -"Monsieur," he said, "I heard what the landlord said to you. It is all -true; but though he speaks only of the entrance by the plank bridge, I -know, and he may know too, of another--one that I discovered by chance, -rambling here with some comrades many years ago. It is a small broken -doorway opening from the fosse, much overgrown with bush and trees, and -indeed so well hidden that I almost doubt whether I could find it after -this long time." - -"Well, Max, you must try. I don't want you to go into the castle -yourself: I suppose you have not seen it since the marauders have -sheltered there?" - -"No, Monsieur." - -"Then I must go myself. The fosse is dry, you say?" - -"Yes, Monsieur." - -"Then we can all three go down into it, and the landlord and I will -remain hidden while you search for the secret entrance. Whither does it -lead?" - -"To a tunnel that rises gradually up the hill, and enters the castle -near the dungeons below the keep." - -"Lead on, then. We will go to the left, and walk warily to escape the -ears of the sentry at the gate." - -In a few minutes they came to the edge of the fosse. They clambered -carefully down, assisting their steps by the young trees which thickly -covered the steep side. When they reached the bottom, Max went forward -by himself to explore. His movements caused a rustle, but being -followed by the scurrying of rabbits disturbed in the brake, such slight -customary noises were not likely to alarm the sentry, even if he should -near them. - -Harry had his hand on the landlord's wrist as they waited minute after -minute. Max was gone a long time. All was silent now save for the -murmurs of birds and the chirping of insects. At length, after what -seemed to Harry's impatience hours of delay, the man groped his way -back, and whispered: - -"I have found it, Monsieur." - -"That is well. Now lead us to it." - -"You will not take me into the castle, Excellency?" murmured the -landlord in affright. - -"Have no fear. Be silent." - -The three went into the tangled mass of tree and shrub, and Max had no -difficulty now in taking a pretty direct path to the opening of the -tunnel. When the bushes were pulled aside, they revealed to the -touch--for to see was impossible--an arch of crumbling brickwork not -more than five feet high. Evidently a man could not walk upright -through the tunnel. - -"Did you ever get into the castle this way?" asked Harry. - -"Yes, Monsieur, but it was fifteen years ago." - -"So that the tunnel may be blocked now?" - -"Certainly." - -"Or it may be the haunt of wild beasts?" - -"Nothing wilder than rabbits, I should think." - -"Well, it is not too pleasant a task to crawl through there in the dark, -but it must be done. Now, Max, you will return to the place where we -left our horses; the landlord will go with you. Here is one of my -pistols; you know what to do with it if need be. Wait for me there: if -I do not come to you within say a couple of hours, ride to Urach, and -tell the lieutenant of the guard what has happened." - -Max hesitated. - -"Let me go, Monsieur," he said. "Why should you run into the jaws of -danger? They are desperate men, these brigands." - -"Thank you, Max! but it is my task. Do my bidding, my good fellow; I -have counted the cost." - -He waited until the two men had crept away; then, crushing the feeling -of eeriness that affected him in spite of himself, he bent his head and -went forward into the tunnel. There was at once a scurry of animals -past his legs; he felt the furry coats and tails of rabbits brush his -hands; but he went slowly forward, touching the wall at his right to -guide himself, and wondering how long the tunnel was, and whether there -was enough air to carry him through to the end. The atmosphere was -stuffy, with mingled smells so nauseating that Harry quickened his pace, -eager to escape into purer air again. He had not thought to count his -steps when he first entered the tunnel, but began to do so after taking -about a dozen. At the fortieth of his counting the wall to his right -came to an end. He stopped, and, raising his hand above his head, found -that it was not obstructed by the roof: he had evidently come to the end -of the passage. He stood upright and listened; he could hear nothing. - -Extending his arms, he found that he was in a narrow passage. Max had -said that the tunnel led below the keep: there must, then, be a -staircase somewhere. Harry went cautiously forward, stopping at every -few steps to listen, and placing his feet with great care to avoid -coming unawares upon some obstacle. At length his foot touched what -felt like a stone step in front of him; another moment, and he was sure -he had come to the expected staircase. It was pitch dark; he mounted -carefully, and found that the stairs wound round and round. He had just -counted fifteen steps, when his head came into violent contact with -something above. The blow brought tears to his eyes, and he rubbed his -head vigorously, as he had been wont to do after a knock in his childish -days. - -Feeling with his hands, he discovered that the staircase was roofed over -with stone. It appeared to be a slab let down into sockets; yet no, on -the left side there was a space of about a finger-width between the -stone and the wall, on the right there was no such space. He paused; -the stone was so broad that to lift it was clearly impossible; it had -never been intended to be moved from below. He bent his head, hitched -his left shoulder, and shoved hard against the stone. It did not yield -by the smallest interval. For a moment he was puzzled. Then a possible -explanation of the space between the stone and the wall at the left -occurred to him. Perhaps the stone moved on a pivot? He went to the -other side and set his right shoulder to it. At first he felt no -yielding; but exerting all his strength he shoved again, the stone -slowly gave, and with continued pressure moved over until it came to a -vertical position, leaving space enough for his body to pass through. -He ascended, keeping his hand on the stone to prevent it from falling -back noisily into its place, clambered on to the floor above, let the -stone carefully down, and stood up to collect himself before proceeding -farther. - -Now that he had come thus far, he felt a chill shrinking from what lay -before him. He was alone in a strange place, within a few feet of -desperate and unscrupulous ruffians, who would kill him with no more -compunction than they would spit a hare. The unknown peril might well -give the bravest pause. But a thought of his duty stilled his tremors. -He had a duty of service to Marlborough, and a duty of friendship to -Fanshawe; remembering them, he steeled his soul. - -If his hazardous visit was to prove of any service he must discover the -nature and position of the defences. He knew little about the -construction of castles, but Max had said that the entrance led to the -keep, which was the only part of the ruin still habitable. The inmates -must therefore be somewhere near him, and it behoved him to move warily. -He was apparently in a stone-flagged passage. He took off his boots and -slung them round his neck; then went forward a few steps, and came upon -another passage at right angles, the farther end being faintly lit as -from a distance. Stealing down this, he saw on his right hand the -arched entrance to what was clearly the great hall of the keep, a long -bare chamber illuminated by two or three smoky candles. Along the walls -lay a number of men, sleeping on mattresses, cloaks, bundles of straw. -At the farther end was a large table, at which two men were seated, -bending forward with heads on their crossed arms, as though dozing. The -table was covered with pots and tankards and metal plates. Taking this -in at one swift glance, Harry turned to see what lay in the other -direction. - -A few feet from him was the bottom of another winding stair, which, he -conjectured, led to the top of the keep. In the wall to his right there -was a narrow opening giving on the courtyard, where he heard the -movements of many horses. He was wondering whether, finding the doorway -into the courtyard, he might venture to steal across it and explore the -other side, when he heard voices from the hall behind him. Quick as -thought he slipped back into the dark passage he had first entered, and -waited there with beating heart. Peeping round the corner, he saw two -men--doubtless the two who had been bending over the table--pass as if -towards the staircase. He heard their spurred boots ringing on the -stones, and knew by the sounds that they were ascending the stairs, to -relieve guard, he guessed, at the top of the keep. There was evidently -nothing to be discovered by remaining where he was; if he followed the -men he might find a means of exploring the upper part of the fortress. -He ran lightly along the passage, and began the ascent of the winding -stair, finding himself soon in total darkness. But after about a dozen -steps the staircase began to be faintly illuminated from above. Harry -paused for a moment to listen. He heard nothing but the footsteps of -the men who had preceded him, and was just going on when, through a -loophole in the wall to his right, he heard the clatter of a horse's -hoofs and the shout of a man. He held his breath and stood still. The -horse had evidently just come over the bridge and through the archway -into the courtyard. There were now sounds of many voices below; the -hoof-beats suddenly ceased, and shortly afterwards Harry heard hurried -footsteps on the stone passage he had lately left, and voices growing in -volume and echoing in the circular space of the winding stair. Several -men were ascending. If he remained where he was he must inevitably be -detected; his only course was to continue his ascent. But he had not -taken three steps before he heard footsteps above him; the sentry who -had been relieved was coming down. His heart was in his mouth. But the -men below were the nearer; there was just a chance that if he went -higher he might come upon some temporary hiding-place, and in his -stocking feet he made no sound that would betray him. - -Up then he went; the light was becoming stronger; and a turn of the -staircase brought him opposite the doorway through which it shone. The -door was gone. He hesitated but for a moment; below and above him the -footsteps were perilously near; on the wall of the room he saw two long -military cloaks hanging to the floor; they would conceal him. Peeping -into the room, he noted with one rapid glance a smoky guttering candle -and a figure recumbent on a mattress. He went in on tiptoe, and slipped -behind the cloaks. The slight rustle he made disturbed the slumbering -man. - -"Qui va la?" came the sleepy question. - -Harry stood still as a stone, and felt his heart thumping against his -ribs. - -"Qui va la?" repeated the voice in a louder tone, and by the increased -light in the narrow crack between the cloak and the wall Harry guessed -that the man had risen on his elbow and snuffed the candle. An -answering voice came from the doorway. - -"Sebald Schummel, mon capitaine." - -"Ah! Bien! Donnez-moi de vos nouvelles." - -Harry felt a cold shiver down his back, and an impulse to pull aside the -cloak and confirm by sight the evidence of his hearing. The voice was -the voice of Captain Aglionby. Here was a discovery indeed. But he had -scarcely time even to be surprised, for he was listening intently to a -conversation that absorbed all his thought. - -"The prince has arrived in Urach," said the new-comer. "He leaves at -five in the morning on his way to Stuttgart. He travels by coach." - -"Ah! what is his escort?" - -"Two aides-de-camp and thirty dragoons, mon capitaine." - -"A bagatelle! The game is ours!" - -"Yes, mon capitaine," said another voice; "he will not easily escape -us." - -"Parbleu! He shall not. You are sure of the hour, Sebald?" - -"Yes, Monsieur; and I have left a trusty man to send us word if it is -altered." - -"He is not likely to change his route?" - -"There is no reason for it, mon capitaine, and our men are watching -every road." - -"Good! Your news is welcome, Sebald. Go and eat; I will consult with -Monsieur le Lieutenant here; you shall have your orders by and by." - -Two or three men left the room, and the captain was alone with his -lieutenant and Harry. The latter had already heard enough to set all -his wits on the alert. The conversation that ensued, though carried on -by both the speakers in continuance of a former discussion, gave Harry -little trouble to understand. It was evident that the marauders under -Captain Aglionby's lead were planning to intercept Prince Eugene on his -way to meet Marlborough, and Harry listened with a flutter at the heart -as all the details were arranged. The ambuscaders, divided into three -bands, were to station themselves at a point about two miles north of -the wayside inn, where the road narrowed. Two of the bands were to -conceal themselves in the woods on either side of the road, the third -some distance behind them, towards the inn, to cut off any escape -rearwards. - -"Monsieur le Prince will sleep hard to-morrow," said Aglionby with a -chuckle, when he had arranged the composition of the bands. "Now, as we -must start in an hour or two, do you go down and rouse the men; I will -follow in a minute and give them their orders. What sort of night is -it?" - -"Dull, with a threat of rain." - -"Ah! we shall want our cloaks. Well, rouse the men; our bird will have -his feathers clipped long ere this to-morrow." - -Harry had gone cold at the mention of the cloaks, and gripped his -pistol. But the lieutenant went from the room without disturbing him, -and Aglionby shortly afterwards followed. Harry heaved a silent sigh of -relief, waited until the sound of his footsteps had quite died away, -then left his hiding-place and hastened to the staircase. - -He was in no doubt what to do. To descend, now that the garrison was -awakened, would be to court instant detection. The alternative was to -go higher up the keep, and endeavour to find some way of escape over the -ruined battlements. He mounted a few steps; the moon had risen, and her -light, fitfully shining between masses of flying scud in the sky, lit up -the staircase through the narrow openings at intervals in the wall. A -few steps more, and on his right Harry saw a low doorway, this also -without a door, leading directly on to the battlements. He peered up the -outer wall of the keep, and saw that a sentinel at the top must almost -certainly descry a figure moving along below. But escape he must; -Prince Eugene must be warned in time, and Urach was several miles away. -He longed for a friendly cloud to obscure the moon while he made a dash; -and, pat to his wish, a dark mass of thunderous density cut off every -gleam. Without another moment's delay Harry sprang on to the broken -masonry, and, taking sure foothold in his stocking feet, ran towards a -tower at the left-hand corner of the enceinte, hoping there to find an -exit. The upper part of the tower was almost wholly in ruins, but the -lower part was in good preservation, and to his disappointment Harry -found that the only doorway led into the courtyard, in which he already -heard the bustle of preparation. There was nothing for it but to pursue -his way along the battlements to the tower at the right-hand rear -corner. Entering this, he discovered a postern on the outer wall. It -was twenty feet above the summit of a steep slope leading to the level -ground a hundred yards away. Harry looked out, and saw that below the -postern the masonry had crumbled and fallen, and was now covered with -undergrowth and ivy clinging to the tower wall. To make his descent -here he would have to risk a broken limb, perhaps a broken neck, but -there was no other means of exit that he could discover, and it was -necessary that he should get quickly away with Max and the landlord -before the marauding band rode out. Clinging to a strong tendril of -ivy, he leapt on to a precarious corner of broken brickwork, lost his -footing, checked his fall by clutching at a shrub, found a firmer -foothold a little below, and so made the complete descent to the edge of -the slope, where he stayed his progress by again grasping the ivy. - -The air was warm and close, foreboding thunder, and by this time Harry -was bathed in sweat. He rested for a few moments at the foot of the -wall. The jagged masonry had cut holes in his stockings and made his -feet bleed. Between him and level ground was a steep declivity of -almost bare rock, so precipitous that to walk down it was impossible, to -run dangerous. He pulled on his boots, lay on his back, and slid down -feet foremost, with some bumps and bruises, but with more serious injury -to his apparel. As he reached the level a loud rumble of thunder broke -above him, and he felt the first large spots of a shower. He was far -from the place where he had left his companions, and to reach it he -would have to cross the direct road to the castle gate. To avoid -discovery it seemed best to creep down into the dry overgrown fosse, and -steal his way along until he gained the spot on the other side of the -plank bridge where he had descended to find the tunnel. Even under the -bridge the vegetation was rank and thick enough to conceal him, and he -had no fear of his movements being heard, for the rain was now pattering -fast. This, then, he did; in a few minutes he came to the place where -he had parted with Max, and, scrambling up the side of the fosse, struck -into the road and hastened towards the trees. He wandered for some time -among them without finding the men of whom he was in search, and at -length risked a low call. - -"Is that you, Monsieur?" came the reply in Max's voice from near at -hand. - -"Ah! I was afraid I had lost you. Have you the landlord safe?" - -"Yes, Monsieur. I had almost given you up." - -"Lead out the horses. We must get to Urach as quickly as possible. And -not by the road: do you know a way across the hills?" - -"Yes, but it will be difficult to find in the dark, and hark to the -rain!" - -"Yes, it is raining hard, but you must try to find the way; I dare not -risk the road. Lead on, Max; I will follow you with the landlord." - -Max led his horse through the wood, the others close behind him. -Crossing the road, he entered a narrow ravine, left this at a cleft on -the right, and taking a tortuous course, rising continually, he came -after some twenty minutes to the crest of a rocky hill. - -"It is all right, Monsieur," he said. "The way is easier now and we can -mount. The rain is over, too." - -"Well for us! Now, Max, at your best pace, provided it is not -neck-breaking." - -The three set off, the landlord uttering many groans and lamentations as -he jolted in his saddle. Harry did not address him; he had too much to -think of. If, as Aglionby's messenger had said, there were spies in -Urach and around, it was likely that the entrance of three riders into -the town at so late an hour would be noticed, and might awaken -suspicion. Harry's wish was not merely to foil the ambuscade, but to -turn the tables on the ambuscaders. As he rode he decided what to do. - -"Max," he said, riding alongside of the man where a difficult part of -the track caused a slackening of the pace; "Max, tell me when we come -within about half a mile of the town; we will halt there." - -"We leave the hills and strike the road at that distance, Monsieur." - -"Very well; we will stop before we reach the road." - -It was two o'clock in the morning when the three riders came to a halt -within a little dell concealed from the road by an intervening hillock. - -"Remain here with the landlord and my horse, Max," said Harry. "I am -going on foot to the town." - -At the gate-house he gave the password and was at once admitted. He -went to the lodging of the lieutenant of the guard, woke him, and told -him in a few words what he had discovered. - -"Mon Dieu!" cried the lieutenant, "you are just in time. The prince -decided last night to hasten his going; he sets off at four. He will -have to remain here, or go back, for his escort are no match for these -brigands, even with our burgher guard, who in any case are not permitted -to leave the town. The prince must either wait here until he can get a -force from Prince Louis of Baden, or try another road." - -"The roads are watched. But I think the prince had better carry out his -original intention and leave here at five." - -"But he will certainly be captured." - -"Not certainly. I should like to see him. I left Max and that rascal -of a landlord half a mile out. The town is quiet; do you think it will -be safe to send for them?" - -"Oh yes! I will do that. You will find the prince at the Rathhaus." - -"Will you lend me a change of things while mine are drying?" - -"Of course! The sleeves of my coat will be short for you, I fear, but -you will not need it long." - -To change was but the work of a few minutes; then Harry hastened to the -Rathhaus. The guard made some demur to admitting him at such an hour, -but yielded when he assured them that his message was urgent, and he was -conducted to an aide-de-camp, who on hearing his story in outline did -not scruple to awaken the prince. Harry was not prepared for the -reception his news met with. The prince broke into a roar of laughter. - -"A right tit-for-tat for the Duke de Vendome," he said. "Two can play at -coney-catching! You are surprised at my levity, young sir; but the -truth is, I tried to play the same game on the duke two years ago: -attempted to seize him in his house at Rivalto on the banks of the Lake -of Mantua. I sent fifty men in boats to capture him; but they killed -the sentinel instead of carrying him off, as I intended; the noise drew -the guard to the spot, and my men had to re-embark to save their skins. -Well, in war let him trick the other who can: I am obliged to you for -your warning. Un homme averti en vaut deux: we'll be even with the -tricksters. What shall we do, lieutenant?" - -"It would seem that we must take another road, Monsieur le Prince," said -the aide-de-camp. - -"Ma foi, non; we'll cut our way through them. I never turned back on my -enemy yet." - -"They are too many, your highness. Your thirty men could not cut their -way through two hundred." - -"Then we must go another way." - -"They have spies on the roads, Monsieur," said Harry. "Your highness -would have to make a wide detour, and that would give the brigands -plenty of time to sweep round and intercept you. If I might suggest a -plan that occurred to me----" - -"Go on." - -"It is that your highness's coach should set off at the time arranged, -attended by a portion of your escort----" - -"Empty?" - -"Not so, Monsieur. A man might take your highness's place. The -brigands would imagine their scheme was prospering; the scouts would be -drawn off; and after an interval your highness with the remainder of the -escort could safely take the western road and be well on the way to -Stuttgart before the trick was discovered." - -"Aha! And who is to personate me? Not yourself? You have too great an -advantage of me in inches." - -"My ambition is less, your highness. I have a man of about your height; -if you would deign to let him wear your wig, hat, and cloak for a few -hours, I think he would make a personable copy of your highness." - -The prince laughed. - -"Well, you have a ready wit, my lad. But it would be running into the -jaws of the wolves; I should lose half my escort and my coach, and you -and your man your lives. They would not spare you when they learnt how -you had tricked them." - -"It would be a cheap purchase of your highness's safety. Besides, I -think we might manage to escape the wolves, as your highness is pleased -to call them." - -"Indeed! Come, you are a young strategist; what have you in your mind?" - -"To get into the castle, Monsieur le Prince, while the greater part of -the brigands are absent, and to hold it until a force can be sent from -Stuttgart to our assistance." - -"A bold scheme, by my faith! What reason have you to suppose you could -surprise the castle? It will not be left unguarded." - -Then Harry gave a rapid narrative of what had happened since his -adventure at the inn. Prince Eugene listened with close attention, his -eyes lighting up with excitement and pleasure as he heard the details of -the plan Harry had thought out as he rode from the castle. - -"Parbleu!" he exclaimed at the end, "a bold scheme indeed, one after my -own heart; I should like of all things to be with you in it. And you -think my cousin Marlborough's two messengers are now in the castle?" - -"I have no doubt of it, your highness; and as one of them is an old -friend of my own, I have a strong personal reason for making the -attempt." - -"Well, I will not stay you. Rather I will say, Good luck to you! You -deserve to succeed. I make no doubt that I shall be able to send you -from Stuttgart a squadron or two of Prince Louis of Baden's horse, and -if you and they can annihilate this pestilent band of outlaws you will -do a service to the Emperor--a service that I shall take care is not -forgotten. Time is pressing; my valet shall give you the suit I wore -yesterday; I shall not need to trouble your man to lend me his in -exchange, as I have another with me--a plain costume that will tell no -tales. Ma foi! I could wish that for the next twelve hours he were -Eugene of Savoy and I--what is his name?" - -"Max Berens, Monsieur." - -"Write his name, Lieutenant; if he were a courtier he would doubtless be -content with the bare honour of filling my clothes for the nonce, but -being a sensible man he will prefer a more tangible recompense. I shall -see to it. Well, you have woke me from sleep, Monsieur; now I will ask -you to leave me while I dress. And as we must be secret about this -disguise, lest there be spies in the town, I shall not see you again -until I meet you, as I hope to do, in my lord Marlborough's camp. Send -your man here; I will take care that he is treated with the deference -becoming his rank. Ha! ha! it is an excellent joke." - -Harry went away delighted with the readiness with which the prince had -entered into the spirit of his scheme. It was full of danger; he was -under no illusion as to that; but this lent an additional zest to the -adventure; he had thought out his plan carefully, and reckoned on -finding an invaluable coadjutor in the landlord. - -At five o'clock, in the cool of a fine morning, the prince's gilded -coach drew up at the door of the Rathhaus, with fifteen dragoons in full -riding trim. A carpet was spread from the entrance across the path to -the coach, and one of the town officials stood in waiting to show the -great man to his seat. By and by a figure in cocked hat, full wig, -laced coat, and corslet came out with a fair counterfeit of Eugene's -active gait; he gave a somewhat stiff acknowledgment of the salutes of -the soldiers and the respectful obeisance of the local magnates and the -crowd of interested townspeople, and stepped quickly into the coach. -Harry followed him. The door was shut, the word given to the two -postilions, and amid the cheers of all Urach the vehicle rattled over -the stones, out at the gate, into the open highway. No one but the -principals in the little drama, and the fifteen picked men of the -escort, knew that the man to whom they had just shown such deference was -not Eugene of Savoy, a prince of a sovereign house, but Max Berens, the -simple son of a shoemaker. - -Harry had been at the pains to drill his companions in the part they -were to play. He had learnt from Max that there were two roads leading -from the main highway to the castle. Of these the one nearest to Urach -was the better; it branched off about a mile on the town side of the -inn. The other was a more circuitous and difficult track across the -hills, leaving the highroad at a point rather more distant from the inn -on the farther side, and only a few yards from the spot chosen for the -ambuscade. Between the two cross-roads the highway took a somewhat -irregular course, and while it was visible from point to point, only a -few yards of the intervening portion could be seen from either of the -by-roads, owing to its windings and the undulations of the ground. When -the coach, therefore, should arrive at the first road it would be -descried by the ambuscaders, but would then disappear from their view, -not becoming visible again until a short distance before it reached -them. On this fact Harry reckoned for the successful accomplishment of -the first part of his scheme. - -A mile out of Urach, Harry found the landlord awaiting him in charge of -one of the town guard. He was taken into the coach, which then drove -rapidly on. On arriving at the cross-road, instead of going straight -forward towards the inn and the ambush, it swung round to the right, and -at Harry's orders the postilions whipped up the horses and drove at a -headlong pace towards the castle. The actual turning could not be seen -from the place of the ambuscade, and Harry confidently expected that the -brigands, having caught sight of the coach the moment before it left the -road, would await its coming without suspicion. Its non-appearance -after a time would surprise them; they might suppose it had stopped at -the inn to bait the horses; they would allow for this, and a -considerable time would elapse before they discovered the truth. This -interval would, he hoped, give him so long a start that he would have -ample time to play his trick upon the garrison. - -About half a mile from the castle, Harry ordered the postilions and -escort to halt at a spot where they were hidden from the garrison by a -stretch of rising ground. He then dismounted four of the dragoons, bade -them get into the coach, and made the landlord change places with the -postilion on one of the sear horses. In his hand he placed an empty -pistol. - -"When we drive on," he said, "you will point that at the back of the -postilion in front of you, and look as grim as you please. When we come -within earshot of the sentry at the bridge--I will give the word--you -will shout to him to let us through quickly: 'Here we are!' you will -cry. I have let down the window, you observe; Berens will be a few feet -behind you with a loaded pistol: you understand?" - -Then turning to the eleven dragoons who were still on horseback, he -said: - -"Now, men, you know your part. Wait till we are over the bridge, then -gallop up at full speed with sabres drawn and pistols cocked, ready for -anything." - -"What about the four horses, Herr Capitan?" asked one of the troopers. - -"We must leave them. Tie their heads together and string them to that -tree yonder: we may get them by and by; if not, the coach horses will -serve. Now; all ready! Drive on, landlord." - -The two postilions--the foremost a stalwart dragoon--whipped up the -horses, which dashed forward at a furious gallop towards the castle. It -was a tight squeeze in the coach--Harry, Max, and the four big troopers -jammed together in a narrow space. - -"Level your pistol, landlord!" cried Harry. - -The pale perspiring landlord held his harmless weapon in his left hand, -covered by the loaded pistol of Max in the coach. On they drove, -ploughing up the soil heavy with last night's rain, the horses straining -at the traces. They were within thirty yards of the bridge. - -"Shout, landlord!" said Harry in a loud whisper through the open window. - -"Here we are! here we are!" cried the man. - -"Louder!" - -"Here we are!" He almost shrieked the words. - -"The others are behind!" prompted Harry. - -"The others are behind!" cried the landlord. - -The sentry at the farther end of the bridge gave an answering shout; the -boards that served for a gate were removed; the coach clattered and -rumbled over the rocking creaking planks, and the postilions pulled up -their reeking horses in the courtyard of the castle. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXI* - - *Across the Fosse* - - -Shoulder to Shoulder--Wrecking the Bridge--Well Found--The Dungeons of -Rauhstein--The Castle Cook--The Enemy's Plan--Unwilling Help--A -Parley--The Bridge Builders--At Short -Range--Supper--Counsel--Fireworks--Long Odds--A Rush--From a Sling--A -Covered Way--Firing the Train--Shambles - - -The shouting and the clatter of the coach had drawn the garrison into -the courtyard. From these twenty men, the remnant of the brigand band, -a great cheer went up, and they pressed forward eagerly to see the -princely captive. Two or three of them were unarmed, but the rest, with -the habit of seasoned warriors, had their swords in their belts and -carbines slung at their shoulders. - -"Well done, Otto!" cried one, slapping the landlord on the back. - -But at that moment both doors of the coach were flung open, and out of -each sprang a man with a pistol in the left hand and a sword in the -right. These were followed by others, and before the astonished -garrison realized the situation, six fully armed men were among them, -and one, a tall, dark, lissom young fellow, all fire and energy, was -calling on them to surrender. A few, cowed by the pistols pointed -within a foot of their heads, and taken utterly aback by this astounding -change of scene, flung down their carbines from sheer inability to -think; but the more nimble-witted, and those on the outskirts of the -little group, scurried away, under cover of their comrades, out of -range, unslinging their carbines and drawing their swords as they ran. - -Meanwhile the foremost postilion, in obedience to orders previously -given by Harry, whipped up his horses and drove them at a gallop round -the courtyard, narrowly escaping a bullet from the carbine of one of the -garrison, until he came opposite the gateway, where he drew up so as to -present the side of the coach to the opening, and cut the traces. The -garrison, having by this time perceived by how small a body they were -confronted, came forward in a compact mass against the little band. -Carbines cracked, pistols flashed, steel rang on steel, and with shouts -and oaths the two bands engaged. Harry was not in this mellay, for in -the confusion he had slipped away and rushed through the archway, just -in time to see the sentry striving with might and main to hurl the -planks of the bridge into the fosse. He had caught sight of eleven -dragoons in Austrian uniform galloping up from the valley half a mile -away. The man turned as he heard Harry's approach, snatched up his -sword, which he had dropped for his work with the planks, and threw -himself into his guard in the nick of time to meet the attack. Harry -felt that it was not a moment for fine sword-play; the man was a burly -fellow, clumsy, and to appearance dull of wits. Running a risk which -would be fatal if his opponent were a keen swordsman, Harry gave him an -opening. It was instantly accepted, but the thrust was parried with -lightning rapidity, and before the man could recover himself Harry's -sword had ploughed a deep furrow in his forearm, and with a yell of pain -he let his own weapon fall to the ground. Stepping back at the same -moment with the instinct of self-preservation, he tumbled headlong into -the fosse. - -Immediately Harry wheeled round and dashed back to the support of his -men, now engaged in a desperate and unequal battle. Their backs to the -coach, they were facing dauntlessly thrice their number of infuriated -brigands, who had discarded their firearms and came to the attack with -swords flashing in ever-narrowing circles. One of the dragoons had -already fallen; but his comrades were all tough soldiers tried on many a -battle-field, recking nothing of the odds, every man with full -confidence in himself and his fellows. They were ranged in a quarter -circle against the coach, with just enough space between them to allow -free play with their weapons. Twice already had they beaten back the -enemy; a third and more determined onslaught had somewhat broken their -formation, and two men had been wounded and forced back, exposing the -flank of the others. Harry sprang through the coach just in time to -close the gap. He hurled himself into the fray with a shout; the enemy, -taking him for the advance-guard of reinforcements, fell back for a -moment; and before they could recover and return to the charge there was -a thunderous clatter on the bridge, the eleven troopers flung themselves -from their steeds, and scrambling man by man through the coach gave -threefold strength to the hard-pressed line. - -"Charge!" shouted Harry in his clear, ringing voice. - -The men surged forward with a roar of exultation, scattering the -brigands to the limits of the courtyard. Two or three bolted like -rabbits into the keep; the rest cried for quarter and flung down their -arms; the din of battle suddenly ceased, and some seventeen -panic-stricken prisoners were the prize of the victors. - -"Max, go into the keep, up the stairs to the top, and tell me what you -see." - -From the parapet of the keep Max shouted that he saw a large troop of -horse not a mile away, galloping amain towards the castle. - -"Men, with me!" cried Harry. - -Twelve dragoons sprang through the coach after him, and with haste -helped him to draw the planks of the bridge within the archway. They -had completed their task save for the last plank when the foremost files -of the enemy galloped up, checking their horses at the very brink when -they saw the unbridged gap before them; no horse could cross on a -two-foot plank. Harry withdrew his men just in time to escape the -bullets fired at them by the baulked and enraged brigands. At the last -moment he himself stooped, lifted the end of the plank, and hurled it -into the fosse. A slug whizzed past his head; he dashed back under the -archway, through the coach, breathless but safe. - -As he stepped through the coach into the courtyard he heard a groan. -His wounded men had been carried into the keep; at the moment no trooper -was near. Bending down, he looked beneath the coach, and saw the -landlord lying flat on his face, his head buried in his arms, groaning -dismally. - -"Are you hit, landlord?" asked Harry. - -"Lord have mercy on my soul!" groaned the man. - -"Never mind your soul; are your limbs sound? Come out, and let me look -at you." - -A palpitating mass crawled from beneath the vehicle. Dirty, chap-fallen, -and dishevelled, but unhurt, the landlord stood in trembling and pitiful -cowardice. - -"Where are you hurt? Come, I've no time to waste. Why," he added, as he -turned the man round and examined him, "you haven't a scratch. You're a -pretty consort of ruffians! Get away into the keep and make yourself -useful, or----" - -The man scrambled away in limp despair, and Harry smiled grimly as he -went about his pressing task. - -He knew that he was safe for a time. The two hundred men outside were -completely cut off from their quarters. "If they want their castle they -must come and take it," thought Harry. They could only enter by one of -three ways: the main entrance, if they repaired the bridge--but that -could be prevented by marksmen within; the tunnel--but that could be -blocked up; the tower by which he himself had escaped--but one or two -men there could easily prohibit access by the slope and postern. Harry -set a sentinel at each point, and then made a rapid survey of the -position. - -He found that the castle contained, besides a huge quantity of plunder, -a plentiful stock of provisions, arms, and ammunition. There were -indeed many bags of powder ranged carelessly around the walls of the -courtyard, and these Harry had removed to a more secure place in one of -the towers, and covered with sacking. He then went up on the -battlements to see what the enemy were about. They had withdrawn to a -knoll at some distance and dismounted, and an exciting discussion -appeared to be going on among their leaders. Harry called to Max to -remain on the look-out and report any fresh movement among them; then he -prepared to visit the dungeons. - -The prisoners had been secured in the hall of the keep. - -"Which of you acts as warder?" asked Harry, entering the hall. - -"Zooks! if it an't young Mr. Rochester!" said an amazed voice in -English. "I be the warder, Mr. Rochester." - -"You, John Simmons! Now, answer me quickly: are there any prisoners -below?" - -"There be two, sir, certainly, and I was against it--that's the truth, -sir; I was against it, but the capt'n he would cool their courage, he -said, and what could I do, sir?--though it did cut me to the heart to -serve Mr. Fanshawe so----" - -"Hold your tongue, knave! Take me to the place at once." - -"I was against it," muttered the man, as he led the way out of the hall, -through the stone passage, into a room near the spot at which Harry had -ascended from the tunnel. Here he lifted a slab in the floor, and let -down a rope ladder, coiled beneath it, into a pit of blackness. - -"They are there?" exclaimed Harry in horror, as he peered down, and -found himself unable to discern anything. - -"I was against it," murmured Simmons again. - -"The inhuman fiends!" cried Harry. "Fanshawe, are you there?" he called -into the mouth of the dungeon, his voice echoing strangely from the -hollow. - -"Yes," came the faint answer. "Who are you?" - -"'Tis Harry Rochester, old fellow. We'll have you out in a trice,--and -Lieutenant Buckley, too; is he with you?" - -"Ay. Is the ladder down?" - -"Yes. Come along; we're all friends here." - -Soon Fanshawe's fair head appeared above the hole. Harry caught his arm -and helped him to step on to the floor. - -"God bless you, Harry!" he said feebly. His cheeks were drawn and pale; -his eyes sunken and haggard; his hair was dank and disordered; and he -tottered and would have fallen but for Harry's sustaining arm. After -him came a young officer whom Harry did not know. He, too, showed signs -of suffering, but his incarceration was shorter by several days than -Fanshawe's, and he was not so much overcome by the sudden return to -light and liberty. - -"Poor old fellow!" said Harry, linking his arm in Fanshawe's. "Come and -let me make you comfortable. I'll tell you all about things by and by, -and hear what you have to tell. We must get you right first. Aglionby -shall pay for this!" - -The two luckless prisoners were taken to the hall and given food. - -"I've fed 'em twice a day reg'lar," said Simmons. "They ha'n't wanted -for nothing, and I was against keeping 'em shut in that there damp and -foul hole." - -"Silence, fellow! Go and bury the men killed in the fight. Then come -to me." - -Having made Fanshawe and Buckley as comfortable as possible, Harry -selected one of his own men to act as store-keeper, and then, as a -sudden idea struck him, called for the landlord. The man could not at -first be found, but after some search was discovered and hauled with -many gibes into Harry's presence. - -"Cease whimpering and listen to me," said Harry. "You must do something -to earn your food. You shall be cook. Doubtless you know the -arrangements of this place; go and prepare a good meal for the men, and -do your best; it will be to your interest." - -Ascending then to the top of the keep, he sent Max down to get some -breakfast, and looked around. The enemy were not in sight. They had -evidently withdrawn into the copse about half a mile distant; perhaps -under cover of it they had drawn off altogether. But knowing their -leader, and imagining the fury with which he must have seen the -frustration of his carefully-laid plans, Harry could not believe that he -would tamely accept the check as final. Aglionby, whatever his faults, -did not lack courage. He was not likely to throw up the game at the -loss of the first trick. He would probably assume that it was Prince -Eugene himself who had stolen a march upon him; in that case he would -suppose that he had the prince caged in the castle; and whatever -advantage he had expected to derive from the capture of the prince would -induce him to strain every nerve to prevent him from escaping. His aim, -Harry supposed, had been to hand Prince Eugene over to the Elector of -Bavaria, and reap much credit as well as a more tangible recompense. In -order to entrap the prince he had sent on Fanshawe's letter by another -hand. If he returned to the Elector's army without his prize, when the -odds had seemed all in his favour, he would become the laughing-stock of -the camp. Harry therefore felt certain that he would attempt to retake -the castle at whatever cost. - -If he should succeed, Harry knew that he himself need expect no mercy. -Aglionby had a long account against him; time after time his plans had -been foiled; the sole item on the credit side, the saving of his life at -Breda, was likely, in a man of his disposition, only to deepen his -rancour. - -He would, of course, sooner or later find out his mistake in regard to -Prince Eugene; and when the discovery was made he would expect the -prince to send a force at the first opportunity to relieve the men, -whoever they were, who had captured the castle, or at any rate to avenge -their fate. In either case Aglionby would lose no time, but would hasten -by all the means in his power any attack he might meditate. So far as -Harry could judge, he had nearly three hundred men under his command; it -would not be long before he learnt, if indeed he did not already know, -that the present holders of the castle did not number more than a score. -In the circumstances he would almost certainly attempt to take the place -by assault, and the obvious point of attack was the gateway. The bridge -was broken down; the fosse was too deep to be filled up; the attackers -would therefore have to construct another bridge, and the fosse being -little more than twenty feet wide, they could easily rig up a portable -platform strong enough to carry them to the assault. There was plenty -of timber in the neighbourhood; with the force at his disposal Aglionby -might make a serviceable bridge in a few hours. - -Meanwhile, what was Harry to do with the prisoners? The question gave -him some trouble. He had plenty of provisions; there would be no -difficulty in feeding them; but if he kept them in the castle they would -require a guard of at least one man day and night, so that of his own -little band two men would practically be lost for effective defence. -If, on the other hand, he let them loose, he would add eighteen men, -fourteen of whom were unhurt, to the enemy's strength. Deciding that on -the whole it would be best to keep them, he went down to settle their -fate without loss of time. - -He gave them one by one the option of making himself useful in the -defence of the castle, or of being lowered into the dungeon whence -Fanshawe and Buckley had just been released. With one consent the men -elected to avoid the dungeon. Harry at once set some of them to collect -stones from the more ruinous parts of the castle, and to pile them up -across the gateway, leaving loopholes for musketry fire. Others he -ordered to take a supply of heavy stones to the summit of the keep, and -to stack them there out of sight from the distant copse. Three armed -men accompanied each squad to prevent treachery. In pursuance of the -plan of defence that was forming in his mind, Harry went himself to the -most dilapidated of the three towers, and selecting two or three -specially large blocks of stone, weighing at a guess about a -hundred-weight each, he had them loosened from the debris and carried up -the winding stair of the keep. In the courtyard he saw a number of -stout poles, for which a use at once suggested itself. As they would -not go up the winding stair, he got one of the men to splice several -lengths of rope, and the long rope thus formed was let down from the top -of the keep and knotted to one end of the poles, which were then drawn -up the tower on the side facing the courtyard. - -When these tasks had been completed, the prisoners were placed in the -ground-floor room of one of the towers, and a man was set over them, -with orders to shoot any who should attempt to move from the place. -Harry divided his garrison into watches as on board ship, each watch to -be on duty for four hours. Every man had his post, and, entering into -their young leader's spirit, the dragoons accepted readily the duties -laid upon them, and showed themselves full of a light-hearted confidence -that augured well for their success. One and all they were hugely -delighted with the trick, and discussed it among themselves with much -merriment, exasperating Max, however, by the mock deference they still -paid to him as Prince Eugene. - -As soon as he had a spare moment, Harry got from Fanshawe and Buckley an -account of their experiences. As he had guessed, Fanshawe had been -captured at dead of night in the inn, his captors coming through the -trap-door. Buckley had been misdirected by the landlord, and, losing his -way, had fallen into an ambush. Both had been kept in the dungeon day -and night, and fed twice a day. In his turn Harry related the chain of -adventures which had ended so happily for them, and when he told them -something of his plans for the future they both declared themselves well -enough to assist him. This, however, he would not allow for the -present, promising to avail himself of their help as soon as they had -had time to recover from the effects of their confinement. - -Just before noon, the man on the look-out at the gateway announced that -one of the enemy was approaching with a flag of truce. Harry climbed up -to the battlements to the left of the keep, and as soon as the man was -within earshot demanded his business. Speaking in French, the messenger -said that he had come at his captain's order to say that if Prince -Eugene surrendered, he would be granted honourable treatment, and -conducted to the camp of his highness the Elector of Bavaria, his men -being allowed to go free. If these terms were rejected, the castle -would be stormed and every member of the garrison would be put to the -sword. The decision must be made in half an hour. Harry smiled. - -"You may take our answer now," he said. "Tell your captain that -soldiers of the confederate army do not yield to brigands and -cut-throats." - -The messenger rode back to the copse, and for some hours there was no -further sign of the enemy, except for a few men who were noticed moving -about a stretch of marshy ground about a mile from the castle. Harry -wondered what their object could be, and calling Max to him, asked what -there was on the marsh that they were likely to find useful. - -"There is nothing there, Monsieur, but mud and reeds." - -"Reeds! Of course. They are cutting reeds to bind together lengths of -timber for a bridge. I heard the sound of chopping from the copse this -morning. Well, Max, I think we are prepared for them." - -Soon after three o'clock a body of about two hundred men was seen -approaching on foot in open order. When within musket-shot they took -what cover the irregularities of the ground and the scattered shrubs -afforded, and opened fire on every embrasure. Among them Harry had no -difficulty in recognizing the burly figure of Aglionby. Word was passed -round among the defenders to make no reply. The enemy were at present -too far off to do much damage, or for the fire of the garrison to be -effective. A few minutes later Harry, who had posted himself on the -keep, so that while invisible himself he could see everything, observed -a small body of men emerge from the copse, bearing a number of narrow -palisades, consisting, as he discovered on their nearer approach, of -thin logs roughly bound together. When they had come within about two -hundred yards of the castle, the main body of the enemy directed a more -continuous fire upon the battlements and loopholes, many advancing close -up to the edge of the fosse. Still there was no reply from the -defenders. The bridge-bearers came up at a slow run. - -Harry had disposed of his little force as follows. Three men were -stationed on the top of the keep, four at loopholes on the stairways -half-way up each side, five behind the barricade of stones in the -gateway, and one to carry orders from his own position on the keep to -the men below. As soon as he saw the bridge-bearers approaching he -instructed his dragoons to fire when he gave the word, but only at the -men carrying the palisades. The extemporized bridge was in four -sections, each about two feet across, and carried by six men. - -The twenty-four came on, halted at the brink of the gully, and prepared -to raise their palisades. Then Harry gave the word. The troopers below -had been instructed to fire at the left-hand sections, those above at -the right-hand sections. At the word they sprang up, thrust their -muzzles through the embrasures and loopholes, and, undeterred by the -patter of the enemy's bullets around them, took deliberate aim. The -effect was all that Harry had hoped. The range was short; the men were -old campaigners of iron nerve, and almost every shot told. Two or three -men in each section of the bridge-bearers fell; the rest, dismayed by -the fate of their comrades, loosened their hold on the palisades, which -dropped back on to the farther side of the fosse. There was a rush -among the bolder spirits to supply their places, and Aglionby himself, -his red face purple with fury and excitement, threw himself at the head -of his men, who strove with desperate haste to raise the palisades once -more. But there was no cessation of the fire from the walls. Harry had -taken the precaution of collecting from the stock of arms four muskets -for each man, so that they needed to waste no time in reloading. No -sooner had the palisades begun to rise again than a second fusillade -burst forth from the castle; again the unwieldy poles fell clattering to -the ground; again the men who had survived rushed back out of range. -Aglionby and one or two others at first refused to budge, and took -shelter behind the timber; but when they found themselves deserted they -at length scoured away after the rest, and the whole force drew off. - -"Fire no more," cried Harry. "Let them look to their wounded." - -Finding that the firing from the castle had ceased, a party of the enemy -ventured to the edge of the fosse and removed the hapless men there, -some stark dead, others wounded more or less severely. Half a dozen men -remained on watch at points surrounding the castle; the rest withdrew to -the copse; and the members of the garrison, not one of whom was hurt, -rejoiced in the repulse of this first assault, and went in relays to eat -the meal which Otto the landlord had prepared for them. - -No further movement of the enemy was observable. Max suggested that they -had encamped in a large open glade within the wood. As night drew on, a -slight glow above the tree-tops and thin columns of smoke proclaimed -that camp fires had been lighted. Evidently, then, the enemy had not -relinquished their hope of recapturing the castle. They were, of -course, aware that its present garrison could not escape, for the plank -bridge could not be collected and replaced unobserved; without it the -inmates could only leave on foot, and they would thus easily be -overtaken by the horsemen. - -Harry sat down with Fanshawe and Buckley to eat his supper and discuss -the situation. He was most apprehensive of a night-attack. - -"They would have far better chances than by day," he said, "for their -numbers would tell against us, and we should have to divide our force so -as to guard points that might be threatened at any moment." - -"But the battlements are inaccessible," said Fanshawe. - -"The tower by which I escaped, you remember, is not. 'Tis difficult of -approach, indeed, but not impossible to resolute men. I should have to -leave at least one man to guard the postern. Of course, I shall block -up the underground entrance by the tunnel; a few stones piled on the -trap will prevent it from being lifted from below. But in the darkness -'twill not be so easy to hinder the enemy from throwing a bridge across -the fosse: that is most to be feared." - -"Defend it with a mine," suggested Buckley. - -"A good thought!" - -"And easy to do. The soil at the edge of the fosse will be soft: dig a -hole and bury half a bag of powder in it. Pack it tightly with earth and -stones; you can lead a train of powder through the barricade into the -courtyard." - -"Take care it is out of the reach of stray sparks from the men's -matches," said Fanshawe, "or there'll be an explosion too soon and all -spoilt." - -"You're good counsellors, both of you. We'll make something of this -defence among us." - -Harry waited until dusk before carrying out Buckley's suggestion, in -order that his movements might not be seen by the enemy. Having removed -several stones from the barricade, he set two men to dig a hole near the -gateway, filled it with a large charge of powder, and rammed down the -earth upon it, taking care that several large stones were placed near -the surface. Then the barricade was restored, and the garrison -rearranged, only two men being now left in the keep, the rest being -ordered to take up their position in the courtyard. - -These arrangements had only just been completed, and those of the -dragoons who were not on watch had just turned in, when a body of men -was heard approaching. The garrison was instantly called to arms, and -Harry went up to a coign of safety in the battlements to await events. -It was almost pitch-dark: he dimly saw black masses moving about on the -farther side of the fosse; but he had resolved not to waste powder and -shot by opening fire with uncertain aim, and the enemy, finding their -progress unmolested, came, as his ears told him, right up to the fosse. -He wished he had some means of throwing a light on the scene, but knew -of nothing in the castle sufficiently inflammable for the purpose. - -After a time the noise outside, strikingly in contrast with the absolute -silence in the castle itself, increased; the sound was like that of men -slowly moving forward with heavy loads. Harry heard the clank of stone -against stone, low whispers from across the fosse, less guarded commands -from a short distance farther back, where work of some kind was -evidently in progress. As Harry listened, his uncertainty as to what -was going on at length became intolerable, and racking his brains to -devise some means of making a light he at last hit upon an idea. The -cushions of the coach were probably stuffed with hay; that would burn, -and if smeared with grease might give a blaze strong enough to illumine -the scene for a few moments. He immediately had the cushions ripped up, -and found that their stuffing was as he had guessed. There was a good -stock of candles in the store-room; some of these were melted down and -the grease poured into the long bundle of hay made from the cushions. -The mass was carried to the top of the keep, weighted with a stone, -kindled, and thrown down. It fell steadily, the flame increasing as it -gained impetus, casting a yellow glare upon the walls of the castle and -its surroundings. Its appearance caused a sensation among the enemy: as -it reached the ground several men rushed forward and stamped it out; but -it had already fulfilled its purpose, and Harry had seen all that he -wished to see. - -At the brink of the fosse the enemy had constructed a low parapet: a -large supply of stones was stacked about thirty yards to the rear, and -men were still adding to the store from the scattered debris in the -fosse and at the base of the ruined walls. The intention was clear: -protected by the parapet, the enemy hoped to throw their bridge across -the fosse in safety. With this knowledge Harry's fear of a night-attack -was removed, for if the enemy intended to assault in the darkness the -parapet would be unnecessary. They had apparently not cared to risk -such an enterprise. The bridge would be none too wide even in daylight -for the passage of a body of men rushing pell-mell over it. The attack, -then, was probably to be deferred until dawn. Having completed their -task the enemy by and by drew off, and in anticipation of desperate work -on the morrow Harry went to snatch a brief sleep, leaving Max as -responsible head of the watch. - -In the cool glimmering dawn of that June morning Harry was awakened by -Max with the news that the brigands were moving from the copse. He -hastened at once to his post, and saw that the parapet extended for some -twenty yards along the farther side of the fosse, with a gap in the -centre protected by a traverse. The enemy came forward rapidly, took up -the palisades they had vainly endeavoured to throw across the fosse on -the previous day, and under cover of the parapet began to rear them. As -Harry had feared, musketry fire from the castle was almost wholly -ineffectual: only the men on the top of the keep got an occasional -chance as the besiegers incautiously moved away from their breastwork, -thus exposing the upper part of their bodies. The long palisades were -slowly reared on end, and lowered as slowly across the fosse, till the -end nearer to Harry rested on the base of the barricade beneath the -archway. When the last section was in its place, the fosse was spanned -by a bridge wide enough to allow four men to cross it abreast. - -Harry felt a tightening at the heart as he realized the magnitude of the -task he had set himself. His force, reduced by his losses to eighteen, -including himself and the two English officers, who were scarcely -effectives, was outnumbered by nearly eighteen to one. And the enemy -were no feather-bed warriors. Looking at their motley array, he -recognized that he had to contend with some of the fiercest, most -desperate, least scrupulous men of war that Europe could produce. Their -nationalities were as varied as their costumes. His inexperienced eye -could not distinguish their types: but he saw small men and big men, men -fair, men dark, old and young; some were born dandies, as their attempts -at decoration in adverse circumstances showed; others born -tatterdemalions, who even in affluence would have held the decencies of -costume in derision. About a hundred seemed to be regular soldiers of -the Elector of Bavaria's army. Only one bond held them together: a -common love of lawlessness and rapine. He felt a new respect for -Aglionby; only a man of some moral force, however perverted, could have -imposed his leadership on such a heterogeneous crew. - -At the moment Aglionby was in consultation with a few others at some -distance, and out of range of the clumsy firearms of those days. Among -the little group Harry singled out two men as of more consequence than -the rest: a tall fellow matching the captain in height and bulk, wearing -a red sash--the same man he had seen approaching the inn,--and a small -active man in whose cap a peacock's feather was jauntily stuck. They -were evidently discussing with great animation their plan of attack. - -As nearly as Harry could judge, about a hundred men were crouching -behind the parapet. A body nearly two hundred strong was held in -reserve near the leaders. Against these Harry had five men in the -gateway, three at the summit of the keep, three half-way up, and Max as -lieutenant and aide-de-camp. - -Suddenly the group of leaders parted, a bugle rang out, and -simultaneously with a fierce discharge of musketry from the parapet two -men dashed forward from each end of the gap on to the bridge. At a -second's interval these were followed by another four, while several men -rushed from the reserve towards the far end of the parapet to fill their -places. Three fell under the first volley from the defenders, but the -rest sprang forward unhurt, and gaining the other side began to clamber -up the barricade, to tear down the stones, or, thrusting their muskets -through the loopholes, to discharge them hap-hazard at the garrison -within. But three of the defenders of the gate had held their fire, -and, boldly mounting a low platform of stones just inside the barricade, -they discharged their pieces point-blank into the mass of men now -crowding with shouts across the bridge. The brigands, Harry noticed, -were headed by the big red-sashed Croatian he had seen in consultation -with Aglionby. They recoiled but for a second, then surged forward -again, and, yelling with fury, hurled themselves against the breastwork. -Eugene's troopers, led by Max, held their ground in silence, save for a -muttered exclamation when one of their adversaries fell reeling into the -fosse. - -It was not long before the weight of numbers began to tell; portions of -the barricade had been pulled down; the gallant defenders were hard -beset. Calling to the two men in the keep, Harry rushed down and flung -himself into the fray, shouting to Max to go to the top of the keep and -carry out orders he had previously received. Max hurried away, and Harry -lost count of time as he engaged in a desperate hand-to-hand fight -across the fast crumbling barricade. Standing upon their platform the -defenders still had the advantage of position, and Harry and his two men -being fresh, the enemy for some few minutes gained but little. Then, as -the attackers were once more beginning to make headway, there was a -terrible crash on the bridge. The fighting ceased as by magic; all was -still. A huge mass of stone, swung outwards from the top of the keep, -had broken with terrific force through the light palisades, leaving only -one section intact, and carrying with it into the fosse nearly a dozen -men. The survivors on the castle side, seeing themselves almost cut -off, were seized with panic and made a simultaneous rush for safety, the -big Croatian pushing his weaker and wounded comrades into the fosse in -his reckless haste to regain the opposite bank. - -Harry gave a gasp of thankfulness and relief,--and turned to see -Fanshawe and Buckley, who, weak as they were, had come up unknown to him -towards the close of the fight to bear a hand. - -"Thank you, old fellow!" he said to Fanshawe, "we have scored one." - -But he turned again, and, leaning on the barricade, anxiously scanned -the field. The leaders of the enemy were once more in earnest -consultation. They must have lost at least twenty men in the short -sharp struggle; but the defeat seemed only to have enraged them. During -the first part of the fight Max had been full in their view, and as he -still wore the prince's costume the brigands were no doubt convinced -that Eugene himself was the head and front of the defence, and were -buoyed up by the hope of capturing him. For some minutes the discussion -among the leaders continued; then, as having come to a decision, they -moved off with their men towards the copse, and, save for half a dozen -who remained to watch the castle, were seen no more for some hours. - -Their absence gave Harry an opportunity of attending to his wounded. He -found that three were somewhat seriously hurt, and one was rendered hors -de combat. His total force was now reduced to fourteen, including -himself, his brother officers, and the two men on guard. - -Towards mid-day, under a broiling sun, the enemy again appeared. This -time, in addition to palisades freshly made, they carried with them a -number of rough frameworks penthouse shaped, fashioned from stout -saplings bound together, like the bridge, with withies from the marsh. -Evidently there was a man of resource among them. Each of the frames -formed a kind of wooden tent, two yards long, some three to four wide, -and six feet high, requiring the united strength of half a dozen men to -carry. But there was no lack of men, and the bearers, protected from -bullets from above by the roof of these shelters, came safely almost to -the edge of the fosse. The new palisades were thrown across, but this -time the materials were stronger. One of the sheds, its end closed with -light logs, was rushed across the bridge by a dozen strong men. A -second was joined to it, then a third, and so on until a continuous -corridor stretched across the fosse. The lashings holding the logs -together at the inner end being cut, from out of this testudo sprang -brigand after brigand, who came impetuously up to the barricade and -instantly engaged the defenders in a furious hand-to-hand combat. Max, -whose marksmanship with his huge sling had been so effective before, -hurled stone after stone down upon the testudo, but they were turned off -by the sloping roof, and though the bridge creaked and groaned under the -impact it did not give way. - -It was fortunate for the defenders that only a few men at a time could -make their way through the shed, and the space at the end was too narrow -to allow of a great accession of numbers unless the foremost could scale -the barricade. The enemy had again lost heavily at their first onset, -but as soon as one man fell his place was supplied, and no respite was -given to the little band within. Shoulder to shoulder Eugene's men -formed a wall of steel across the gateway: again and again they beat -back the enemy at the breastwork. But against such odds they could not -hope to escape unscathed; there were no reserves; and of the enemy there -was still a host ready and eager to fill the gaps. One man and then -another of the troopers fell, this one to rise no more, that to crawl -away and stanch his wound. Seven men were now all that was left of the -fighting line, and when Fanshawe and Buckley came up and insisted on -sharing their comrades' peril, Harry felt that he dared no longer delay -the playing of what might prove his last card. With a word to Max to -keep up the fight, he slipped for a moment out of the press, struck a -flint, kindled some tinder he had kept in readiness, and then, shouting -to his men to make for the keep, and waiting till they had begun to run, -he lit the train. - -At the last moment a trooper fell, so badly hurt that he could not move. -Harry sprang forward, caught the man by the belt, and dragged him into -the courtyard towards the keep. The enemy, astonished at the sudden -flight of the garrison, hesitated for a moment before charging across -the obstacle which so far had held them off. Then, just as they leapt -forward over the barricade, now an irregular heap of stones, there was a -blinding flash behind them, and a deafening roar. The ground rocked; -fragments of the dilapidated walls fell inwards and outwards; a dense -cloud of dust and smoke bellied over the scene, and the air was rent by -the cries of men in agony. - -Disregarding the falling stone-work, Harry ran forward to the archway, -his eyes smarting with the fumes. As the cloud gradually settled, he -saw crowds of the enemy huddled together on the farther side of the -fosse, their eyes aghast intently fixed on the archway. But of the -bridge, and the sheds, and the stream of men who a minute before had -been pressing forward exultantly across the fosse, not a vestige -remained. Wood and men lay an indistinguishable mass at the bottom. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXII* - - *The Fight in the Keep* - - -Soldiers All--The Silent Watches--Twice a Traitor--The Oubliette--The -Horizon--Fanshawe Volunteers--A Powder Barrel--Nearing the -End--Allies--Von Stickstoff--More Stickstoff--The Confederate Camp--The -Anspach Dragoons--At the Sword Point--A Brief Respite--The Fight on the -Stairs--The Last Stand--The Anspachers - - -Harry was sick at heart when he came to examine his losses. Three of -his men were dead, nine badly wounded, there was not one but bore marks, -in bruise or cut or strain, of the desperate strife in which they had -played such manful parts. He arranged for the burial of the three -gallant troopers; then, heavy-hearted as he was, set to work with -indomitable pluck to repair the damage done to the defences. The -prisoners were pressed into the service; the barricade was restored, and -another mine was dug, though from the crack that showed in the masonry -of the archway Harry feared that a second explosion would bring half the -keep tumbling about his ears. - -Having done all that could be done, and shared a meal with his devoted -men, Harry went with Fanshawe and Buckley to the top of the keep to -discuss the future. - -"Our state is parlous, Fanshawe," he said. "Another assault will wipe -us out." - -"We have a breathing-space. The brigands have had enough for the -present. Their ill-success must have daunted them." - -"But Aglionby will not give up yet. He is playing for a high -stake.--What is doing yonder?" - -In the distance he saw two wagons and a band of some fifty men making -their way across the hills towards the copse in which the enemy were -encamped. - -"Reinforcements, it appears," said Buckley. "Perhaps food; they will -raid every farmhouse round." - -"We must say nothing of this to the men," said Harry. "'Twould -dishearten them." - -"It seems you have no choice but surrender," remarked Buckley. - -"Never--unless you and Fanshawe as my superior officers take the -responsibility." - -"Not I," said Fanshawe. "'Tis absurd to think of! The men are devoted -to you; and Prince Eugene put you in command; you have done wonders, and -whatever be the end, we'd be fools to interfere--eh, Buckley?" - -"Certainly." - -"Then I won't surrender. Say we make terms, think you the enemy would -hold to them, finding the prince not here? They would wreak vengeance -on us for their disappointment and their losses. They are in the main -freebooters, the scum of the French and Bavarian armies, as near savages -as men can be. We could expect no mercy at their hands. Besides, -Aglionby will by and by discover, if he have not already done so, that I -am here; and he has too many scores to pay off to deal very tenderly -with me or my men. We can but hold out to the last, and hope that help -may come in time." - -"The prince must by this be in our camp," said Fanshawe. "What if we -tell the enemy they are on the wrong scent?" - -"'Twould avail us nothing. Aglionby would not believe the story, or, if -he believed it, would scout it publicly so as to keep his men together. -He would be the more deeply embittered against us." - -"You are in the right," said Fanshawe. "Pray God help comes to us, -then." - -"We can still hold the keep," said Harry. "One man on the winding stair -can hold many at bay; we must fight against time." - -That night Harry could not sleep for the harassing problem of the -continued defence of the castle. True, his object had been gained; -Prince Eugene had got off in safety; he himself had fought a good fight; -but it was clear that unless help came soon his defence must be broken -through by sheer force of numbers. He was resolved to die rather than -fall a captive into Aglionby's hands; but the longing for life was -strong within him. He thought of all that had passed during the two -years since his meeting with Lord Godolphin: the strange vicissitudes, -the ups and downs of fortune; the inexplicable enmity of Mr. Berkeley; -his pleasant relations with Mynheer Grootz and the ladies of Lindendaal; -the chances which had served him so well and brought him so near the -realization of his dearest longings. It was hard to think that at this -moment, when the confederate army under the greatest generals of the age -was moving towards events of high moment, he should be cut off in this -obscure spot and robbed of the opportunity to which he had looked -forward so eagerly. - -He did not think only of himself. He remembered his -companions--Fanshawe, Buckley, the faithful Max, the brave troopers -whose fate was linked with his. Their lot was worse than his, for they -had ties--parents, children, relatives, to whom they were dear: he -himself was alone in the world. Apart from Mynheer Grootz, who he knew -loved him; Madame de Vaudrey, whose feeling for him was warm; Sherebiah, -whose affection was perhaps the closest of all; there was no one to be -interested in his welfare. Thinking of Madame de Vaudrey he thought of -her daughter, and was dimly conscious that he would have liked to stand -well in her eyes--to break through that cold reserve of manner she had -always shown to him, and win from her one look or word of approval. -Fanshawe, he knew, still nourished a hope of winning her; it seemed to -depend on him whether Fanshawe should have another chance. - -He lay awake, thus musing, and gazing at a star that shone through the -loophole in the wall. By and by he felt a strange uneasiness, -unconnected with his previous train of thought. All was quiet; not even -the hoot of an owl broke the stillness. Unable to account for his -feeling, he rose and went to the top of the keep. - -"Is all well?" he asked the sentry there. - -"All is well, Monsieur." - -"You have seen or heard nothing?" - -"Nothing, Monsieur, but the scurry of rabbits in the fosse." - -"Good-night!" - -He returned to his bed and lay down again. But still he felt uneasy; -again he was impelled to rise. This time he went down into the -courtyard. Max was on duty there. The horses were ranged round the -walls; the coach stood in the corner to which it had been hauled; -everything was as it had been. He went into the large hall: the -prisoners were all asleep, the sentry on guard. Something led him to -continue his round; he was determined to allay his restlessness by -examining every nook and cranny of the castle. Taking a lighted candle, -he made his way into the lower part of the keep. He arrived at length -at the chamber to which there was access from the tunnel. He started, -and stopped short in amazement and consternation. The stones which had -been heaped on the trap-door had been removed. With a muttered -imprecation on the man who he supposed had carried the stones up the -keep for use with the sling, he was turning to order someone to replace -them when he noticed that several stones were piled in a corner near at -hand. He stood still, puzzled at this strange meddling with his work. - -At this moment he heard a slight sound beneath him, and saw a tremor in -the stone trap-door. Could he believe his eyes? One end of the stone -was rising. Quick as thought he blew out his candle, and backing behind -a pillar drew a pistol from his belt. His fascinated eyes were fixed on -the slowly moving stone. There was now a ray of light at its edge; he -heard whispering voices. Steadily the heavy slab was pushed into a -vertical position; then appeared the head, the shoulders, the body of a -man. By the light of the sputtering candle he carried Harry recognized -Otto the landlord. Now he saw the meaning of all that had puzzled him. -The man, alarmed for his safety if, as must seem inevitable, the -brigands captured the castle and found him there, apparently an -accomplice in the trick played upon them, had sought to purchase his -peace by leading them through the secret passage. Harry felt a keen -pang of self-reproach that he should not have foreseen this development -and taken steps to prevent it. - -[Illustration: Mein Wirth is surprised] - -But he was instinctively bracing his muscles for the impending struggle. -The landlord was now through the opening; he stepped on to the floor of -the room and bent down to assist the next man. Slipping the pistol back -into his belt, Harry made two bounds and was beside the stooping figure. -The man heard his footfall and instantly straightened himself; but even -as he raised the hand holding the candle to ward off the imminent blow, -Harry struck him full upon the chin, and with a stifled gasp he fell -headlong to the stone floor. Then Harry, throwing all his weight -against the slab, hurled it with a crash into its place. The landlord's -candle was guttering, still feebly alight, on the floor. By its glimmer -Harry hauled from the corner one after another of the stones that had -been removed, and piled them with desperate haste upon the trap until -the way was again effectually blocked. - -Then, picking up the candle, he examined the prostrate body. The man -was stunned. Harry, for all his anger, could not help pitying the poor -craven wretch. But only one course was open to him. The crashing sound -had already brought Max and two other men to the spot. - -"Lower him into the dungeon," cried Harry. - -And the dark hole in which Fanshawe and Buckley had spent nights and -days now received the senseless body of the traitorous landlord. - -Sleep was banished for the rest of the night. The alarm had gone -through the garrison, and every man was on the alert. It was clearly -imperative to provide against a possible attack by way of the -underground passage. Such an attack was, in truth, not very likely. -Only one man could pass the slab at one time from below, and save by -mining operations the enemy could scarcely force a way through the ton -of stones which Harry now caused to be heaped above it. But it was -necessary to set a watch at this point, and as he could not spare -another man from his already too much diminished force he decided to -withdraw the man from the tower by which he had escaped from the castle, -and to release the prisoners. - -Before he did this, however, he resolved to employ them once more in -strengthening his defences. It was pretty evident that the result of -another assault would be to drive him into the keep. The entrance to -this from the courtyard was without a door; it was necessary to block it -up, leaving only a narrow gap that could be easily closed. He employed -the prisoners to pile the largest stones that could be found flush with -the doorway, in such a manner that the enemy, approaching from the -outside, should be unable to get a hold upon them or push them away. A -narrow opening was left, and heavy stones were placed on the inside, -near at hand, to block it up when the time should come. At the same -time a large supply of missiles was conveyed to the top of the keep. - -It was clear from the movements of the enemy during the day that they -were far from abandoning the siege. No doubt they had been encouraged by -the arrival of reinforcements. Sections for a new bridge were brought -in the afternoon and placed close to the fosse, together with the -sections of a second testudo. These were certain indications of another -attempt on the gateway. - -Many times during the day Harry went up the keep and looked anxiously -northward for the expected succour, always to be disappointed. He could -not believe that Prince Eugene had left him to his fate; something must -have happened to detain the relieving force, and Harry thought with -anguish of heart that it might arrive too late. Then an idea struck -him. Why not send out a messenger to hasten the troops if they were -indeed on the road? There was one serious objection: the garrison could -not safely spare a man. He mentioned his idea to Fanshawe. - -"Let me go," said his friend instantly. "I am of little use as a -fighting man; my strength is not equal to a fight so desperate as the -last. But if I can get away, I might find a horse in a neighbouring -hamlet, and I could at least keep my seat in the saddle. And an officer -would prove a better messenger than a trooper." - -Harry accepted the offer. Fanshawe might fall into the hands of the -enemy, but he was willing to face the risk, and under cover of night -there was a reasonable hope that he might elude them. About ten o'clock -he clambered along the battlements towards the rearmost tower, and -there, assisted by a rope, he made his exit by the postern, slid down -the slope more riskily ventured by Harry on his first visit to the -castle, and, taking a wide sweep, disappeared into the darkness. - -When Harry returned to the keep, he was informed by the sentry that he -had heard dull movements beneath the trap-door. The sounds had now -ceased. Harry's conclusion was that the enemy had been searching for a -weak spot in the passage, and having failed had finally given up any -notion of effecting an entrance there. He arranged with Buckley to take -the watch from midnight till dawn. - -With the first glimmers of daylight Harry carried out his resolve to -release the prisoners. The odds were so heavy against him that one man -inside was now worth thirty out, and with no prisoners to guard he could -add one to his effective force. Rapidly marshalling them, he led them -to the ruined tower, and let them down by a rope as Fanshawe had been -let down in the night. The movement was seen by one of the enemy's -scouts, and before the prisoners had all reached the ground a crowd of -their comrades had gathered at the foot of the slope to meet them. -Their appearance seemed to create great astonishment; they were -surrounded and eagerly plied with questions. One result of their release -was that a new point of attack was disclosed to the enemy, who had -apparently not dreamt hitherto of making an attempt by the postern. -Harry saw a small body detach themselves from the main force and -approach the slope; but knowing the difficulty of an assault uphill upon -such a narrow opening he doubted whether they would push an attack home; -still, it would have the effect of engaging one at least of his men. - -It was very early in the morning; the enemy had everything ready; but -they appeared to be waiting for something. Once more Harry scanned the -horizon vainly for sign of helmet or lance. Suddenly there was a deep -rumbling roar from the interior of the keep; an exultant shout rose from -the enemy's ranks, and rushing forward at full speed they began to throw -their new bridge across the fosse. Shouting to his men to hold the -gateway to the death, Harry hastened down to the entrance of the keep, -where he was met by stifling fumes of gunpowder. Then he rushed up the -winding stair to the first floor, and saw Buckley staggering towards -him. - -"I had just been relieved," panted Buckley. "The explosion occurred the -moment after I left the spot. It stunned me for a few seconds. The -poor fellow who took my place must have been blown to atoms." - -"They laid a charge last night, 'tis clear," said Harry. "But they can't -follow up at once; they must wait until the fumes have cleared away, and -that will take time: there are no vent holes. Remain at the top of the -stair; with your musket and pistol you can hold several off for a time. -They are assaulting the gateway; I must go." - -Harry, having proved the futility of dropping missiles upon the testudo, -had concentrated his whole force, save Buckley and the man in the tower, -at the gateway. He noticed that the new bridge was higher at the -farther side of the fosse than at the end near the castle. The reason -was soon evident. The testudo this time was not blocked up by logs, and -Harry behind his barricade could see through its entire length. A -screen of saplings was suddenly raised over the farther end of the -bridge; it was as suddenly removed; and down the inclined plane rolled a -small keg of powder, with a burning fuse attached. - -"Back, men, back!" he shouted. - -The command was only just in time. They were but a few yards from the -barricade when there came a roar like thunder, followed by a second as -Harry's own mine was exploded, and through the swirling smoke fierce and -derisive cheers. Holding his breath and stooping low, Harry rushed back -to see what damage was done. The barricade had disappeared; the archway -was in ruins; and the enemy were flinging another bridge across the -fosse to replace that destroyed by the explosion. So far as the defence -of the gateway was concerned, Harry saw that the game was up. At the -best he could but delay the enemy for a few minutes, and even then he -would risk having his men cut off from the keep. Recalling the man from -the farther tower, he collected his little band, ordered them to fire -one volley into the advancing ranks, and then withdrew through the -barricaded doorway into his last defence. - -At that moment he heard the dull sound of a shot above. Buckley must be -beset! Giving Max orders to hold the courtyard entrance, and sending a -man to hurl down stones from the roof upon the enemy crowding below, he -took two men with him to assist Buckley, whom he found hard pressed near -the head of the other stairway. Sword in hand, he was holding the -narrow winding passage against the big red-sashed Croatian, who was -making a desperate thrust at him with a half-pike, the head of which had -been severed by the Englishman's blade. - -"Steady, Buckley! I am here!" shouted Harry. - -He drew his pistol from his belt, slipped under Buckley's arm, and just -as the Croatian hurled himself up the last step intervening between -himself and his foe, Harry fired point-blank at his heart, and he fell -back upon his comrades. The narrow stairway was choked with men; the -din of their shouts echoed and re-echoed from the winding walls, and -above all the uproar Harry distinguished the tones of Aglionby, yelling -to his men to make way for him to pass. - -When Fanshawe left the castle he walked steadily on for some hours, -making a wide circuit round the enemy's position, guiding himself by the -north star. His progress was difficult over the hills in the darkness. -He had to scale bluffs, to creep up rocks, to spring across ravines, to -wade through swamps at the risk of being engulfed, to skirt patches of -wood--though in one case, finding that he was being taken too far out of -his course, he plunged boldly into a copse, trusting to his good fortune -to bring him safely out at the other side. Thus delayed, it was long -before he felt sure that he was safe. - -At last he struck into a narrow pathway leading north-west. Proceeding -more rapidly along this, he was brought, after walking for some four -hours, into what was apparently the highroad along which he had passed -with Marlborough's letter about ten days earlier. He was very tired, -but resolved to press on until he reached a village. Another hour's walk -brought him to a hamlet with a modest Gasthaus. He knocked up the -landlord, and with some difficulty persuaded the suspicious man to -provide him with a horse. No troops, he learnt, had passed through. -The landlord had been told that firing had been heard among the hills in -the direction of Rauhstein; he did not understand what it could be, for -the castle was in the possession of brigands, and he did not think the -prince's men were near enough. - -Staying at the inn but to eat a little food, Fanshawe rode on, and -suddenly, some little while before dawn, came on a picket of four men -upon the road. He was challenged; the speaker was evidently a German, -and of German Fanshawe knew not enough to frame a sentence. He tried -French; but that raised the sergeant's suspicions; he mentioned the -names of Marlborough and Prince Eugene, with no better success; and he -was marched off under guard into the neighbouring village. - -His escort halted at a small cottage, and the sergeant entered. Colonel -von Stickstoff was in bed. He was awakened, but the colonel was nothing -if not a stickler for etiquette, and he declined to see Fanshawe until -he had made some preparations. When Fanshawe was marched in, therefore, -he found himself confronted by a short, stout, pompous little officer, -with his tunic buttoned tight, a rug across his knees, which were -guiltless of breeches, and a large flaxen wig set awry over his -nightcap. The quarter-master was summoned, and an interrogation began. - -"Who are you, sir, and what have you to say for yourself?" asked the -officer in German. - -Fanshawe tried to explain in French, of which he had obtained a -smattering. - -"Ha! You are a Frenchman! Take that down, quartermaster. Everything -must be done in order." - -This was somewhat embarrassing. Fanshawe might understand the German's -French, but he must necessarily be ignorant of what was said to the -quarter-master in German. - -"I am an officer in my lord Marlborough's army," he said haltingly. - -"Take that down, quarter-master. A Frenchman in Lord Marlborough's -army. In what regiment, Monsieur?" - -"In Schomberg's Horse." - -"Take that down. Now, Monsieur, explain to me how it is that you, a -Frenchman in Lord Marlborough's army, are here, ten miles from his camp -at Gros Heppach." - -This was good and unexpected news. Fanshawe at once proceeded to make -it clear that he was an Englishman, then explained in as few words as -possible whence he had come and the urgency of his mission. - -"Take that down," said the colonel, translating to the quarter-master. - -The man wrote slowly, and Fanshawe was growing more and more restive. - -"I beg you to note, Monsieur," he said, "that while we are talking -Prince Eugene's men are possibly being massacred by the brigands. They -are at least forty to one." - -"Ha! Take that down. The enemy is in force; we must adopt every -precaution. No doubt they are an advance-guard of the Elector's army. -How many do the enemy number?" - -"Some three hundred." - -"Three hundred!--And I have only two hundred and eighty-three. We are -outnumbered. Take that down. We must arrange a _postirung_, according -to rule, quartermaster; note that, strictly according to rule. I will -write you the instructions. Lieutenant Spitzkopf will advance with ten -men three hundred and twenty paces in front of our position; Lieutenant -the Baron von Blindwurm will post himself with five men two hundred and -sixty paces on our right flank--or is it two hundred and forty? Hand me -my manual, quarter-master." - -"There is a swamp there, Excellency," suggested the quarter-master -doubtfully. - -"Then they must post themselves in the swamp. A _postirung_ is a -_postirung_; let there be no mistake about that. Let me see; yes, here -it is: page one hundred and nine: 'Superior force: detachment in -presence of, what steps to take'. Yes, it is quite clear; we must -secure our position and send for reinforcements. 'Send for -reinforcements': that is it. You will at once send a messenger to -Stuttgart; I will write a despatch to the general while he is saddling -up." - -Then turning to Fanshawe he said: - -"I regret, Monsieur, that, having failed to give the countersign, you -must consider yourself under arrest until your bona fides is -established. Quarter-master, take the prisoner away; see that things -are done in order, and be sure to wake me up when the enemy are -sighted." - -Fanshawe protested, but the colonel was evidently impatient to get back -to bed, and waved him peremptorily away. He was led out and deprived of -his arms, boiling with anger, and, feeling that every moment was of -importance, in a state of desperation. This was the officer to whom -Prince Eugene had entrusted the urgent task of relieving his hard-beset -troopers! The confederate camp was only ten miles distant; if only he -could find some means of sending word thither of the dire straits in -which Harry was! - -As he passed along the street with his escort, he saw a number of horses -approaching, apparently from being watered. The first, a fine charger -lighter in build than the average cavalry horse of the period, was led -by a groom, who at this moment tethered the animal to a post a few yards -from his commandant's cottage. The trooper into whose custody Fanshawe -had been confided was marching on his right hand, carrying not only his -own carbine but the prisoner's sword and pistols. Fanshawe saw a bare -chance of escape and unhesitatingly took it. With a sudden movement he -deftly tripped the man up, sprang to the post, unhitched the reins, and -before the onlookers could collect their scattered wits was on the -horse's back and twenty yards down the road. There was a great hubbub -behind him; fortunately none of the troopers was at that time armed. -Suddenly he bethought him of the vedette whom the extreme caution of the -commandant had doubtless caused to be posted in the rear of his force. -He might come upon him at any moment. Taking the first turning to the -right he set spurs to his steed, dashed along a lane, leapt a fence, and -plunged into an orchard. From his study of the map previous to his ride -with Marlborough's message he remembered that Gros Heppach lay on the -Goeppingen road, to the north-east of his present position. If he could -strike this by a path over the hills he might yet succeed. He spurred -on, the rising sun enabling him to choose the easiest ground, and by and -by came upon a rough country track leading in the right direction. He -galloped along at break-neck pace, and gaining a little eminence, his -eyes were gladdened by the sight of white tents dotting the valley some -three miles below him. - -He sped down the hill, and soon came plump upon a Dutch outpost, which -had evidently seen him from afar and prepared to stop him. Reining up, -he asked to be taken at once to Lord Marlborough. The Dutchman did not -insist on explanations, recognizing him as an English officer, but sent -a man at once to conduct him to headquarters. He had but just reached -the outer circle of the camp, when he saw Colonel Cadogan riding slowly -along in company with another officer whom he did not recognize. Without -hesitation he rode up to the colonel, saluted, and begged to be allowed -a word with him. His explanation was soon made, and to his surprise -Cadogan burst into a great laugh and cried in French: - -"This concerns your highness. The troopers who played the trick on the -brigands, and that young daredevil Rochester, are trapped in a castle." - -"Nom d'un tonnerre!" cried Prince Eugene. "Are they not relieved? I -ordered a detachment of Wuertembergers to ride out to them two days ago -as I passed through Stuttgart. What has become of them?" - -"It appears," said Cadogan, still laughing, "that they are on the road, -but the colonel is learned in the art of war and is advancing by -strategical moves." - -"Sacrebleu! He must be one of Baden's men. That young countryman of -yours, Colonel, must be saved." - -"Yes, though he is a Dutchman now. Mr. Fanshawe, your friend's regiment -is close by; you had better take a squadron and ride out at once. I -suppose a troop or two of Dutch dragoons will be a match for the -brigands?" - -"Certainly, sir,--of the Anspach dragoons." - -"Very well, lose no time. I will mention the matter to the duke, to -whom you will, of course, report yourself at the earliest opportunity. -Good luck to you!" - -Fanshawe rode off, and within a quarter of an hour was leading some two -hundred of Harry's troopers, Captain van der Werff at their head, and -Sherebiah among them, along the shortest road to the castle of -Rauhstein. - - -The winding staircase of the keep was ampler than in most castles of the -kind. Two men could mount abreast, but it was only possible for one to -find room for sword-play. The attackers soon adapted their tactics to -the conditions. One man pushed to the front with sword and pistol; -another just behind supported him with pistol and pike. Not long after -Harry came upon the scene, Buckley, all but sinking under the strain, -had to be assisted up the staircase. This gave the brigands a momentary -advantage, for Harry was left with only one swordsman to stem the rush. -There was no room for his companion by his side; he therefore sent him -aloft to bring large stones to hurl upon the mob. Not for the first -time he had reason to congratulate himself on the hours he had spent -with Sherebiah and the Dutch instructor of his regiment in practising -with sabre and rapier. His was the advantage of position, but the enemy -were always two to one, and had they had patience to recharge their -pistols after the failure of their first flurried snap-shots, or -boldness enough to press forward regardless of the loss of the first few -men, they could have borne him down with ease. - -Only a few minutes had elapsed after Harry's arrival at the stairhead -when he heard a well-known voice storming below. The enemy gave back -for a moment, then Captain Aglionby pressed upward and engaged Harry -hand to hand. Harry was sufficiently occupied in parrying the captain's -vengeful attack without the necessity of guarding against the pike that -threatened every moment to impale him. This he could only turn aside; -he had no time for a sweeping cut to sever its head. Fortunately for -him the captain and his supporter impeded each other on the stairway. -Yet Harry saw that the struggle could not last long, and fervently hoped -that the man he had sent for missiles would return in time. The clang -of weapons and the shouts of men rang through the stone-walled spaces. -Aglionby had learnt from the released prisoners of the trick that had -been played upon him, and his fury found expression in the violence of -his onslaught and the venom of the curses he hurled upon his -nimble-wristed opponent. Harry said never a word, but kept his eye -steadily upon the captain, turning aside stroke and thrust. - -At length he heard a footstep behind him. A stone as large as a man's -head struck the wall immediately below him on his left. Narrowly -missing Aglionby, it rebounded from the curved surface and struck the -pikeman below him with a terrible thud. With the steadiness of an old -campaigner the captain did not so much as wince, but continued his -attack with still more savage energy. When, however, another stone -hurtled down the stairway, maiming two other men below him, the rest of -his followers turned tail and fled helter-skelter to the foot. A third -stone grazed Aglionby's arm; then, seeing himself deserted, he backed -slowly down the stairs. - -The attack having been thus for a time repulsed, Harry left two men on -the stairs with pistols ready charged and a supply of stones, and -hurried across to the other staircase to find how things had gone there. -It was with unutterable relief he saw that the assault of the enemy on -the entrance to the keep had so far been beaten off by the combined fire -from the doorway and the hurling of heavy blocks of stone from the top -of the building. But the enemy were preparing another move. Finding -that they could not force the obstacle, nor approach near enough to tear -it down, they were about to try the effect of an explosion. A keg of -powder had been rolled to the entrance by a lucky rush between the -falling of two of the dreaded stones from above; now, hugging the wall -so as to avoid the fire of the defenders, they were laying a train. - -Harry saw that it was only a matter of minutes before the barricade at -the entrance to the keep would be blown in. He utilized the time by -bringing down a further supply of stones from the battlements and -storing them within easy reach of the inner stairway. He could not -prevent the explosion, or raise further obstacles to the progress of the -besiegers; he could but defend every inch of the staircase, and retreat, -if it must be so, step by step to the top of the keep. Almost -despairing now of relief, he was prepared to fight to the end, and, -looking round on his little group of stalwarts, he saw no sign of -wavering on their part. Eugene's men were worthy of their master. - -Half an hour passed; the pause lengthened itself to an hour; yet the -train had not been fired, the attack had not been renewed. Had the -enemy some still more desperate device in preparation? Instinctively he -looked far out over the country; but through the sun-shot haze he -descried no sign of a friendly force. Then the watchman whom he had -left on the roof saw a thin ribbon of flame dart from the outer gateway, -along the wall, to the barred doorway of the keep. There was a -deafening roar, followed by the crash of ruining stone-work and the -vociferations of the exultant forayers, who swarmed forward to clear -away the rubbish. Their ingenuity was inexhaustible. When the mingled -smoke and dust had eddied away, Harry saw that they bore with them stout -shields of wood, each carried by two men, intended to ward off the -missiles he was preparing to launch upon them as they mounted the -winding stairs. This was the explanation of their long stillness. -Running down, he heard from his left the din of fierce strife in the -stairway leading to the dungeons. The enemy were attacking at both -points simultaneously. - -Then began the last bitter struggle: the besiegers pushing relentlessly -before them the long upright shields that occupied almost the whole -height and breadth of the stairway; the besieged contesting every step, -hacking and thrusting, splitting the shields with the jagged boulders -from the ramparts, lunging with sword and pike through the narrow spaces -at the sides, yet moment by moment losing ground as fresh men from below -came up to replace their wounded or exhausted comrades. A din -compounded of many separate noises filled the narrow space--the crash of -stones, the creak of riven wood, the clash of steel upon steel or stone, -the crack of pistols, the cries of men in various tongues--cries of -pain, of triumph, of encouragement, of revenge. Desperately fought the -little garrison, every man loyal, resolute, undismayed. They had no -reserves to draw upon; theirs but to stand staunch against fearful odds, -and, if it must be, die with courage and clear minds. With labouring -breath, drenched with sweat, sickened by the reek, battle-worn and -weary, they plied their weapons, hurled their missiles, grimly gave blow -for blow. Back and ever back they were driven by the remorseless -shields; forced from the lower stairways they are now collected--a -little band of seven--on the single one above; Harry and Max in front, -two pikemen behind, and behind these, three who turn by turn smite the -mass thronging below, over the heads of their own comrades, with -cyclopean masses which only the strength of despair enables them to lift -and hurl. Now a stone crashes clean through one shield, ay, through -two, making its account of the bearers, and giving pause to the -brigands. Now a pike transfixes a limb, a sword cleaves a red path, a -bullet carries death. But the enemy press on and up; like an incoming -tide they roll back a little after every upward rush, rising, falling, -yet ever creeping higher, soon to sweep all before them. - -Now only six men hold the narrow stair. The dimness of the scarce lit -space below is illumined from above; a yell of triumph breaks from the -brigands' throats as they realize that they are nearing the top of the -turret. The cry is like a knell to the hearts of Harry Rochester and -his devoted five. Only a few steps, and they must be forced upon the -roof, driven against the parapet, at bay to the horde of wolvish outlaws -already exulting in their victory. Aglionby has gone, sore hurt by a -thrust from a pike; but a doughty leader is still left, the lithe -Frenchman whose peacock's feather flickers hither and thither in the -van. Mechanically the defenders wield their weapons, cast their last -stones; the force is gone from their strokes, their dints fall ever -feebler and feebler upon the steel-edged wooden wall that thrusts them -upward without mitigation or remorse. Never a man dreams of yielding; -Buckley falteringly whispers a word of final cheer; there is no mercy -for such obstinate fighters from the savage outlaws, afire with the lust -of blood, infuriated by the checks and losses of the past desperate -days. - -They are at the upmost turn of the stairway now, their heads already in -the pure clear air of the bright June morning. The imminence of the end -nerves them for a last despairing rally. Through the gaping joints of -the battered shields they make so sudden and trenchant an attack on the -foe that for a brief moment the upward movement is checked. A rebound: -already the feathered Frenchman leaps upward as on the crest of a wave, -when a confused shout reverberates through the hollow turret, a message -is sped with the rapidity of lightning from base to summit; all is -hushed to a sudden silence; then, while the six stand in amazed -stillness, the Frenchman swings round and, amid the clatter of wood and -weapons, flees headlong down the stairs at the heels of his scurrying -comrades. Bewilderment for a moment possesses the six, as, with the -vision of death before their eyes, they rest heavily on their weapons. -Then Buckley, nearest to the parapet, with a shout that breaks into a -sob, cries: - -"They flee! they flee!" - -Three bounds bring Harry to his side. With elbows on the parapet he -gazes hungrily into the open. The four press about him. Between the -castle and the copse men are scampering like scared animals, a few on -horseback, most of them on foot. And yes--in the distance, moving -across the hills from the north-west,--what is it that causes Harry's -heart to leap, his blood to sing a song of tempestuous joy in every -vein? One look is enough; he cannot be deceived; in the horsemen -galloping amain towards him he recognizes his own regiment, the Anspach -dragoons. One moment of self-collection: then he turns to his men. - -"We are saved, my men," he says quietly. - -And from the parched throats of the five war-scarred warriors on that -ancient keep rises a hoarse thin cheer, that floats away on the breeze, -and meets the faint blare of a bugle. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXIII* - - *Blenheim* - - -Compromising Papers--A Jacobite Agent--Praise from Eugene--A -Contrast--Sherebiah Resigns--Foreign Ways--A Divided Command--The Duke's -Day--The Field of Battle--"The Doubtful Day"--A Famous Victory--A -Fugitive--Coals of Fire--A Revelation--Warnings--Silence--A Soft -Impeachment--Down the Rhine - - -Never a more cordial meeting took place between friends than the meeting -of Harry with Godfrey Fanshawe. The latter, with Sherebiah, rode -straight for the castle, while Captain van der Werff and his dragoons -swept upon the scattered forayers, exacting a terrible retribution from -all within reach of their sabres. The moment when the friends met in -the courtyard was too tense for speech. Buckley, weaker than the others -after his imprisonment, almost sobbed; Eugene's three dragoons sat down -on the flagstones and, resting their heads on their crossed arms, sought -the blessed oblivion of sleep. Harry's overwrought body was all -a-quiver; his trembling lips stammered out broken and inconsequent -phrases; and Fanshawe wisely left him to Sherebiah's tendance. - -It was not till much later in the day that the story of the siege was -told. Harry's fellow-officers were unstinted in their admiration of his -pluck and resourcefulness. He on his side was provoked to mirth by -Fanshawe's story of the methodical Colonel von Stickstoff, though he was -serious enough when, turning to his friend, he thanked him earnestly for -what he had done to hasten the relief. - -When Captain van der Werff arrived, he made a thorough search through -the castle, and discovered in the cellars a large and motley collection -of plunder gathered by the outlaws. There were costly church ornaments, -bullion, pictures, pieces of tapestry, jewelry, arms, clothes, articles -of furniture, but no plate; this, he concluded, had been melted down to -avoid the risk of discovery. In the dungeon was found the shattered -body of the landlord of the Zum grauen Baeren, killed by the explosion -engineered by his own friends. Harry could not but reflect on the -nemesis which had pursued this man of crooked ways. - -Preparations were made in the late afternoon for riding back to the -confederate camp. Many of the stricken brigands had surrendered to -Captain van der Werff's dragoons, and were escorted into Urach to be -dealt with by the civil authorities. At Harry's suggestion the bodies -of the slain were examined by Sherebiah, to see if Aglionby was among -them; but he was not recognized; it was probable that he had escaped. -Before the castle was finally deserted, Aglionby's room was searched. -In a wallet beneath his bed a large number of papers was found, -consisting of letters, tavern bills, private memoranda, gazettes, and a -parchment conferring the rank of captain in the dragoons of the Elector -of Bavaria upon Ralph Aglionby, late of the Preobrashenski regiment of -his imperial majesty of Muscovy. - -Harry looked through all these papers himself, hoping to find some clue -to the inveterate animosity of Mr. Berkeley. But though he was -disappointed in this, he discovered three papers which seemed to him of -particular interest, and which he kept carefully apart from the others. -The first was a brief note in French from Monsieur de Polignac, written -from the head-quarters of Marshal Tallard, congratulating Aglionby on -his commission in the Bavarian forces, and asking him to meet the writer -as soon as circumstances permitted. From this Harry concluded either -that Polignac had not been concerned in the attempt to drown Aglionby in -the Merk, or that he was a man of consummate and unblushing duplicity. - -The second was a letter from Mr. Berkeley himself, written long before. -The squire spoke of enclosing money, and referred to the matter of H---- -R----, hoping that the captain would make a better job of this -commission than with the M---- M----, by which Harry understood the name -of the vessel that had carried him down the Thames. The letter -continued: - - -"I shall require of you cleare proofe of your profess'd Zeale in my -service before I despatch any further Remittance. It will beseeme you -to send me an Attested Copie of such _Forme of Certificate_ as is usual -in Holland. Let nothing stande in the way of this moste necessarie -Document; I doubt not that among the _Notable People_ with whom you at -present consorte there will be founde a _respectable_ Attorney to whom -the Businesse may be with suretie confided." - - -This letter left no possibility of doubt that Mr. Berkeley was prepared -to stick at nothing to remove Harry; but it threw no light on his -motive, and Harry was as much perplexed as ever. - -The third of the papers was a letter from a certain Anne Consterdine in -Westminster, addressed to Aglionby at the Hague. - - -"This is to advise you", it ran, "that the Packett from M. de P---- -despatch'd by the hands of the Honnest Captin came safely to my hands. -The Gratification that you use to recieve will be pay'd to you at the -same Place as afore. I am bid by the _Friende_ at St. J---- to say that -besides this your Name & Services have been noted with a speciall Marke, -& will be _rewarded_ with all Rightfull Diligence when the _Good Shippe_ -you wot of comes safe to Port." - - -To Harry this letter was a mere enigma; it bore no special significance; -but he gained enlightenment when he showed it to Fanshawe. That young -man was three years older than Harry, and had moved in a more varied -society. - -"By Jove!" he exclaimed, on reading the letter, "your friend Aglionby -has many irons in the fire. 'Tis clear he is a go-between, and the -correspondence, being betwixt Westminster and the Hague, can mean but -one thing. The 'good ship', too--what can that be but the ship that is -to convey the Pretender to England to assume his father's crown? Your -Aglionbys and Polignacs are Jacobites, Harry; there will be another bone -to pick with them." - -The plunder was packed into Prince Eugene's coach; the wounded dragoons -were set on horseback and taken into Urach for treatment. Then, after -the destruction of what ammunition remained in the castle, Harry rode -with his comrades and Eugene's three dragoons from the memorable scene, -and before sundown entered the confederate camp at Gros Heppach. The -news of their coming had been already spread by a man riding in advance, -and their entry was made amid the clamour of thousands of shouting men -and drums and fifes. In a sort of triumph Harry was escorted to -head-quarters, where, in the presence of Marlborough and Eugene and -officers of their staffs, he had to tell over the story of the ruse and -the subsequent siege. He remembered afterwards how differently the two -great generals had heard him. Prince Eugene ever and anon broke into -exclamations, slapped the table, crossed and uncrossed his legs, was up -and down, restless and excited. Marlborough listened throughout with the -same tranquil attentiveness, scarce moving, saying never a word. When -the story was ended, Eugene cried impetuously: - -"Ma foi, my lord, this is a lad of mettle. He has done right worthily, -and merits much at our hands. For myself, I beg him to accept at once -this ring; you did me a gallant service, Monsieur, and it will not -displease you to wear as a token of my thanks a ring from the finger of -Eugenio von Savoye." - -"I add my thanks to his Excellency's," said Marlborough quietly. "If I -mistake not, my secretary already has your name on a list for -advancement; it is a long list, but no name has more merit than yours. -You will see to it, Mr. Cardonnel, that Mr. Rochester is not -overlooked." - -"Parbleu, my lord!" exclaimed Eugene, "I am for speedier measures. The -lad is an officer of Dutch dragoons, I believe. I ask for his services -as aide-de-camp to myself; and, ma foi, I give him a commission in my -own hussars. Monsieur, you will not object to the transfer?" - -"Your Excellency does me too much honour," said Harry, his breath almost -taken away by such good fortune. - -"That is settled then, with my Lord Marlborough's consent?" - -"I have no objection, your Excellency. And the young man could not be -in better hands." - -"Then I will see your colonel, Monsieur, and the matter shall be -arranged as speedily as possible." - -Harry felt some natural elation at this surprising change in his -fortunes. He was a little amused, too, to think that this was the third -time he had come under Marlborough's notice, and each time the -benevolent intentions of the duke had been anticipated. He could not -but contrast Prince Eugene's impetuous generosity with Marlborough's -placid goodwill; it was not till long afterwards that he understood what -obstacles lay in the duke's way. Marlborough was continually being -pestered with applications from people of importance at home on behalf -of their friends and connections; and in the then state of politics he -could not afford to set aside the requests of those whose support he was -so deeply concerned in retaining. Harry never had reason to doubt the -kindness of Marlborough's feeling towards him, and as he gained -knowledge of the complex intrigues in which the public men of those days -were enmeshed, he thought of the duke without bitterness. - -Before many days he was gazetted captain in the Imperial service, and -left his regiment to join Prince Eugene. His departure was signalized by -a banquet got up by his fellow-officers, at which he was embarrassed by -the many complimentary things said of him. He parted from his old -comrades with regret, tempered by delight at the prospect of close -service with the great general who had so highly honoured him. - -Since his return to camp, he had remarked a strange and unaccustomed -moodiness in Sherebiah. The worthy fellow went about his duties with -his usual care and punctuality, but he was abnormally silent, seldom -smiled or hummed country songs as he had been wont to do, and appeared -to be in a state of chronic antagonism to Max Berens, whom Harry had -taken as additional servant since their adventure together. Harry -affected to ignore Sherebiah's change of manner; but in reality it -amused him, and he was in constant expectation of something that would -bring matters to a crisis. - -One morning Max came to him in a state of exaltation. Prince Eugene, -unwilling that a man who had worn his clothes to such good purpose -should remain unrewarded, had not only presented him with the suit, but -had purchased for him the Zum grauen Baeren on the Urach road. Max said -he was loth to leave his new master, but could not throw away so good a -chance of settling in life, and added that as Mr. Rochester's Englishman -apparently disliked him, the prince's gift had come most opportunely. - -Max had hardly left Harry's presence when Sherebiah entered. He doffed -his cap and fingered it uncomfortably, his usually cheery face wearing a -portentously lugubrious look. - -"Well, Sherry, what is it?" asked Harry. - -"Well, 'tis like this, sir. 'Tis a sayen, a' b'lieve, when in Rome do -as the rum uns do. These be furren parts, and there be furren ways o' -doen things. Seems like now as if I bean't no more use, and I've been -a-chawen of it over, and the end on't is, I be come to axe 'ee kindly to -gi' me my discharge, sir." - -"Indeed, Sherry! you surprise me." - -"You see, sir, I be nowt but a Englishman,--a poor honest Wiltshire man; -you can't make a silk purse out o' a sow's ear, and nothen'll make a -furrener out of a home-spun countryman." - -"That's true enough, Sherry, but you're right as you are." - -"Nay, sir, axen your pardon. True, I ha' still got a bit o' muscle, and -can handle a sword featly; but I'm afeard I can't brush a coat nor fold -a pair of breeches like a furrener, let alone wearen on 'em. Zooks! -suppose a man do get inside of a high prince's goodly raiment, do it -make un a whit the better man?--I axe 'ee that, sir. Many's the time -I've seed a noble coat on a scarecrow in a turmut-field, sir." - -Harry remembered that of late Max had made the care of his clothes his -special province. - -"Furren ways and furreners," continued Sherebiah, "I can't abide 'em, -and but for bein' a man o' peace I'd find it main hard to keep my hands -off 'em, be they in prince's fine linen or their own nat'ral smalls, -sir." - -"You don't like foreigners, eh?--Katrinka, eh?" - -Sherebiah was nonplussed for a moment, but recovered himself with his -usual readiness. - -"Ay, but there's a deal in the bringen up, sir. You can break a colt, -and tame wild beasts, and make summat o' crabs wi' graften. Katrinka be -a young wench, and teachable; bless 'ee, I've teached her how to fry a -rasher and make a roly-poly; her be half Wiltshire a'ready, and sings -the song o' turmut-hoein' like a bird. And 'tis my thought, sir, bein' -discharged, to have our names cried and do the lifelong deed, and goo -home-along and bide wi' feyther." - -"Well, if your mind's set on it, I suppose I must be content to lose you -both." - -Sherebiah ceased twiddling his cap and looked startled. - -"Both, sir!--did I rightly hear 'ee say both?" - -"Yes, you and Max." - -"Hoy! be it the holy state o' matrimony wi' he too?" - -"I shouldn't wonder. Prince Eugene has made him a present of the Zum -grauen Baeren inn, and he'll want a wife to help him." - -Sherebiah looked thoughtfully at the floor. - -"The striplen be a good enough feller," he said slowly. "Barren his -furren blood, which he couldn't help, poor soul, he bean't a bad feller. -He looks uncommon spry in the prince's noble garments--ay, he do so." - -Sherebiah paused, and began to twiddle his cap again. Harry waited -patiently. - -"I'm a-thinken, sir, 'twould be onbecomen in a Wiltshire man to let his -duty goo by, in furren parts an' all. Bean't in reason for both to take -our discharge all o' a heap, and if the young man Max goos, I bides, -leastways till 'ee set eyes on a plain Wiltshire man as 'ee'll fancy -better." - -"Well, that's all right, Sherry. Now I think the best thing you can do -is to go and wish Max good luck." - -He could not help smiling at Sherebiah's obvious relief at the turn -things had taken. Sherebiah heaved a deep sigh; then, as he observed -Harry's amused expression, a broad grin overspread his features, and he -moved away. - -With the arrival of Prince Eugene the campaign entered upon a new phase. -Dissimilar as they were in character and temperament, the prince and the -duke at once became fast friends. Eugene not merely fell under the -spell of Marlborough's personal force of character; he recognized his -transcendent genius, and threw himself with enthusiasm into his plans. -Unluckily, the Prince of Baden was a man of a different stamp. He was a -soldier of the old school, brave as a lion, but wanting in judgment, -cautious, methodical, a stickler for form. He joined the others in -counsel at Gros Heppach, and being the eldest in rank expected that they -would yield him the chief command. But the execution of their plan, so -daringly conceived, demanded qualities he did not possess, and -Marlborough had to exercise all the tact and patience of which he was so -consummate a master. With much difficulty he persuaded the prince to -share the command with him on alternate days, but not all his diplomacy -availed to induce him to depart for the Rhine army. He insisted on -remaining with Marlborough on the Danube, and Eugene had reluctantly to -accept the other charge. On the 14th of June, therefore, Eugene left -for Philipsburg, to watch Marshal Tallard, who was marching along the -Rhine to join forces with the Elector of Bavaria. Harry accompanied -him. - -Then began a fortnight of wearisome marching, in cold and rainy weather. -The Elector of Bavaria was by this time aware that Marlborough's design -was to attack him, and in order to cover his dominions and check the -confederate army until the expected reinforcements reached him he sent -General D'Arco to occupy the Schellenberg, a height commanding -Donauworth, on the north bank of the Danube. Hearing from Eugene that -Tallard and Villeroy were at Strasburg organizing these reinforcements, -Marlborough decided immediately to attack the Schellenberg. It happened -to be his turn of command; he knew that if the day was allowed to pass -Baden would find reasons for postponing the attempt, and after a hard -march he threw his weary troops upon the position and carried it with -heavy loss against an obstinate defence. - -A diplomatic attempt to detach the Elector from his alliance with France -having failed, Bavaria, now open to the confederates, was put to fire -and sword. Marlborough, one of the humanest generals that ever lived, -refused to allow his own forces to engage in the work of burning and -pillage, and did his utmost to restrain the excesses of the German -soldiery. - -Eugene meanwhile, having failed to prevent the junction of Tallard with -Marsin and the Elector of Bavaria, paid a hurried visit to Marlborough -at his camp at Sandizell to concert operations against the now -formidable enemy. Luckily, Prince Louis of Baden agreed to lay siege to -Ingolstadt, and his colleagues were relieved of the presence of one -whose captious temper was a continual stumbling-block. - -During Eugene's absence news reached his camp that the enemy were -hastening towards Lauingen with a design to cross the Danube. Harry was -despatched to Sandizell with this important information. He met the -prince on the road back; the latter immediately returned to Marlborough, -who decided to reinforce him, and moved his own camp to Schoenefelt, -nearer the Danube, in order to be able to co-operate with him should -occasion arise. Late at night on Sunday, August 10, Eugene sent word to -Marlborough that the enemy had crossed the river at Lauingen. Marching -out at once he joined the prince, and early on Tuesday morning they went -towards Hochstadt, where they intended to make their camp. On a hill -two miles east of that town they caught sight of some squadrons of the -enemy. Not knowing whether this was merely a reconnoitring party or the -advance-guard of the main force, the two generals mounted the church -tower of Dapfheim, and through their glasses saw that the whole army of -the enemy was in full march in their direction, and that a camp was -being marked out on the very ground chosen by themselves. They -instantly determined to attack. - -On the north bank of the Danube, at the head of a loop of the river, -lies the little village of Blindheim, or, as it was spelt by -Marlborough, Blenheim. At the eastern extremity of the loop the Danube -is joined by the brook Nebel, shallow and narrow, formed by many -rivulets flowing from a range of wooded hills three miles to the north. -In those days the ground between these various branches was an undrained -swamp. The Nebel flows through two villages, Unterglau a mile above -Blenheim, Oberglau three-quarters of a mile farther north. - -[Illustration: Battle of Blenheim, 13th August, 1704.] - -Tuesday night was spent in preparation for the coming battle. At three -o'clock on Wednesday morning the confederate army moved slowly out. A -light mist hung over the ground, but after three hours' march they came -in sight of the enemy, and the cannon opened fire while the troops -deployed into line. - -The enemy, west of the Nebel, were in two main divisions, the right -under Tallard resting on Blenheim, the left under Marsin and the Elector -of Bavaria higher up the brook, occupying the villages of Oberglau and -Unterglau, the rear being in the village of Lutzingen. On the -confederate side, Eugene commanded the right, opposite Marsin, while -Marlborough was opposed to Tallard. - -The confederate troops, composed of English, Germans, Dutch, and Danes, -were all in the highest spirits. The victory of the Schellenberg had -heartened them; they had unbounded confidence in their generals. As he -mounted his horse that morning Marlborough said quietly, "This day I -conquer or die," and officers and men alike caught the infection of his -brave, calm spirit. - -The ground on which Prince Eugene's division was to be posted was broken -by branches of the Nebel and became uneven as it rose towards the hills. -For this reason it took the prince some time to get his men into -position. Marlborough's force was earlier posted, and he occupied the -interval until he should hear from Eugene that all was ready by having -prayers read at the head of each regiment. About twelve o'clock a -message came from Eugene that he was prepared. "Now, gentlemen, to your -posts," cried Marlborough to the officers with whom he had been -breakfasting. Up sprang the big Lord Cutts, deputed to open the attack -on Blenheim--a gallant leader, nicknamed Salamander from his careless -daring under fire. Up sprang General Churchill, and galloped off towards -Unterglau, already set on fire by the cannonade. Up sprang General -Lumley, hero of the cavalry charge at the Schellenberg. From brigadier -to bugler, every man was determined to "conquer or die". - -Blenheim was filled with French, seventeen battalions of Tallard's best -troops hampering each other's movements there. So strongly was the -village defended that the English troops were twice compelled to retire. -Marlborough's foreseeing eye marked the urgency of the moment. The -enemy must be prevented from pursuing their advantage. In spite of -artillery fire in flank and cavalry charges in front he got his horse -across the stream and the intervening marshes. Tallard was late in -meeting the movement. He allowed the first line of English to form up -on his own side of the brook before he ordered a strenuous attack. Then -Marlborough reinforced his lines, and having assured himself that they -could hold their own, galloped to the left to see how things were faring -toward Blenheim. - -Meanwhile on the right Eugene had fought with varying success. A -dashing cavalry charge broke the enemy's front line, but from the second -his horse recoiled, and he brought up his Prussian infantry to stem the -tide. At Oberglau also the Prince of Holstein's division was thrown -into confusion by the gallant Irish brigade, which flung itself upon the -Germans with the fierce valour for which these exiles were renowned. -Here, too, Marlborough's all-seeing eye marked the crisis. Galloping to -the point of danger, he ordered up battalions and squadrons that had not -yet been engaged, and in his turn threw the Irish into confusion. - -The summer afternoon was drawing on; for five hours the battle had -raged, and neither side had yet gained a substantial advantage. But -soon after five, having seen all his cavalry across the Nebel, the duke -rode along the front, and gave orders to sound the charge. At the -trumpets' blare 8000 horsemen, splendidly mounted, moved up the slope in -two lines towards the enemy, first at a gentle trot, quickening their -pace until it became a gallop. One slight check from the terrible fire -of the French musketeers, then they swept forward irresistibly. The -enemy recoiled, broke, fell into disorder, and fled, the infantry -towards Hochstadt, the cavalry towards Sondersheim, on the river bank. -Then was seen Tallard's fatal mistake in crowding so many men into the -narrow streets of Blenheim. Catching the panic from their flying -comrades, they turned hither and thither, not knowing how to find -safety. Some plunged into the river, only to be borne away on its swift -current and drowned. Others sought to escape towards Hochstadt, but -every avenue was blocked. In rage and despair they maintained a -stubborn fight until the evening dusk descended, and the hopelessness of -their plight counselled surrender. - -At the head of his shouting cavalry Marlborough himself had chased -thirty squadrons down the steep bank of the Danube to destruction. He -had but just returned when he was met by an aide-de-camp with a prisoner -no less notable than Marshal Tallard himself. The duke put him into his -own coach, and sat down to pencil that famous note to his duchess which -gave England the first tidings of this glorious victory. - -The victorious army bivouacked on the field, taking possession of the -enemy's standing tents, with a great store of vegetables and a hundred -fat oxen ready skinned for the pot. - -During this great action Harry had been hither and thither in all parts -of the field, bearing Eugene's orders to his divisional commanders. Of -the details of the fight he saw little, but was well pleased at the -close of the day when the prince thanked him in the presence of his -staff, and invited him to his own supper table. - -During the next few weeks the troops marched towards the Rhine, the -duke's objective being Landau, which he hoped to take before the close -of the campaign. One afternoon Harry went on in advance with Sherebiah -from Langenhandel to Weissembourg, to secure quarters for Prince Eugene. -His errand accomplished, he was sitting at dinner in the inn when -through the open window came the sound of hubbub in the street. - -"What is it, Sherry?" he asked. - -"'Pears to be a crowd of Germans a-setten on to a wounded Frenchman, -sir. He have his arm strapped, and----why, sakes alive! 'tis black John -Simmons hisself." - -"Indeed!" cried Harry, rising. "Then the captain will be near at hand. -Out and bring the fellow in." - -Sherebiah issued forth and shouldered his way through the growing crowd. -When Simmons caught sight of him, his jaw dropped and he turned to make -away; but Sherebiah was at his heels in a twinkling, and soon he dragged -him through the throng and into the inn. The man looked even more -woebegone than when Harry had last seen him, and his drawn face -betokened keen suffering. - -"Cotched again!" said Sherebiah. "Stand there afore Master Harry and -speak your mind." - -"How come you here, Simmons?" asked Harry. - -The man explained that after the rout at the castle he had escaped with -his master to the Elector's camp and been with the army at the battle of -Blenheim. He had ridden out of the fight with Aglionby, but being -wounded had fallen from his horse and been callously left to his fate by -the captain. Contriving to evade capture, he had wandered from village -to village, and, reaching Weissembourg, had been sheltered there by a -cottager until all his money was gone. Then he was turned out neck and -crop, and was being hustled out of the village when Sherebiah -intervened. His wound had not been properly treated, and he was in a -sorry plight. - -Harry could not help pitying the poor wretch whose service had been so -ill-requited by his master. Properly he was a prisoner of war--one of -the 13,000 who had fallen into the hands of the victors. But he was a -fellow-countryman after all, and possibly had been an honest fellow -until he came under Aglionby's sinister influence. Harry had not the -heart to let him go to his fate. - -"Sherry, look to his arm," he said. "Let us see what sort of a leech -Jacob Spinney made of you. Then give him some food and find him a -lodging." - -Several days passed, and Harry, in the bustle of camp life, had almost -forgotten the incident, when one morning Simmons presented himself and -asked to be allowed to speak a word. His arm was nearly healed, and he -looked a cleaner, trimmer fellow. - -"Ah, Simmons!" said Harry, "you're better, I see. What have you got to -say?" - -"First to thank you, sir, for your kindness, which I know I don't -deserve. Sherebiah Minshull has treated me well." - -"I'm glad of that. Now is there anything else I can do for you?" - -"I've been thinkin', these few days, sir, and ponderin' on my past life; -and there's a thing I believe you ought to know." - -"Well, speak up, man." - -"'Tis summat I heard pass between Cap'n Aglionby and the Frenchman, -sir." - -"That's enough: I'm not interested in the doings of your rascally -employer." - -"But you are, sir, unless I be much mistaken. The matter concerns the -French lady near Breda, and the young mistress--partickler the young -mistress, sir." - -Harry was now all attention. - -"Speak on then, and use few words." - -Simmons then related that, some few days before the battle of Blenheim, -Monsieur de Polignac had come secretly into the camp and paid a visit to -Aglionby. (Harry remembered the letter making the appointment he had -found in the castle.) The opening of the interview had been stormy; -Aglionby had accused Polignac of being a party to the attempt on his -life at Breda, and at first refused to accept his assurances that he -knew nothing whatever of the matter. But Polignac spoke him fairly, -declaring that his connection with Mr. Berkeley had been limited to -planning Aglionby's rescue from prison. The Captain's suspicions being -at last lulled, Polignac opened up the subject of his visit. Of the -remainder of the interview Simmons had but hazy ideas: he had listened -through a hole in Aglionby's tent, and the conversation being conducted -in low tones and in French, of which he had only a smattering, he had -missed a good deal of it. But he had heard enough to know that the -Mademoiselle of whom the two spoke was Mademoiselle de Vaudrey, and that -Polignac was bargaining with Aglionby to aid him in an attempt to get -possession of the young lady. - -"One thing I heard plain, sir," said Simmons in conclusion, "and that -was that the cap'n was to get a good bit o' gold when the Frenchman -married the lady, and a good bit more when he came into the estates." - -"What estates?" - -"That I can't tell you, sir; 'the estates' was all I heard--_terres_ was -the word as was used." - -"Oh! And why do you betray your master?" - -"Well, sir, he've led me a dog's life for years; holds over me that -hangin' business on the old road; and then after I'd served him faithful -leaves me to shift for myself with a bullet in my arm. I don't owe him -no thanks." - -Harry stood in thought for a few moments. - -"You're a Londoner, I think, Simmons?" he said at length. - -"Ay, sir." - -"What trade were you bred to?" - -"A joiner, sir." - -"Well, if you'll promise me to go straight back to London and work at -your trade, I'll contrive to send you down the Rhine with the prisoners, -and give you a little money to start you." - -"Thank 'ee kindly, sir!" - -"Very well. Sherebiah shall take you to Hanau and see you safely -lodged. Remember, you've your character to build up afresh. If you -stick to your trade, and keep out of the way of folk who want to use you -for dirty work, you may become a decent citizen yet." - -"On my soul I'll try, sir. 'Tisn't every one would give a poor fellow a -chance, and I thank 'ee true, sir." - -Harry dismissed the man in Sherebiah's care. He was greatly disturbed -by his news. It was clear that Polignac, having failed to win -Mademoiselle de Vaudrey by fair means, and by the attempt to bring -pressure to bear, so happily frustrated by Mynheer Grootz, was now -determined to resort to desperate measures. Something must be done at -once to put Madame de Vaudrey on her guard. He would have liked to -convey the warning himself, but felt the impossibility of asking from -Prince Eugene leave of absence for so long a journey until the campaign -was ended. The only other means open to him was to write. Couriers were -constantly going backwards and forwards between the armies and the Hague -and other towns; he might avail himself of one of these to send his -urgent message. - -Harry lost no time in putting his decision into effect. He wrote both -to Madame de Vaudrey and to Mynheer Grootz, telling them that Aglionby -and Polignac were scheming to abduct Mademoiselle, and also that they -were in league with the Jacobites in France and England. This latter -fact would give Grootz a free hand in dealing with them, even if he -detected them in no overt act against Mademoiselle de Vaudrey. It was -two days before Harry could send off his letters, which for greater -safety he entrusted to an official despatch-rider, by permission of -Prince Eugene. The post would take several days; it would be towards -the end of the first week in October before a reply could be expected. - -Time passed away, and Harry was anxiously waiting, when, two days before -the earliest date on which a letter could be received from Grootz, he -was unexpectedly sent by Prince Eugene on an urgent private errand to -Vienna. He was accompanied by Sherebiah, now again his constant -companion. They made as much speed as possible, but nearly a month -elapsed before Harry was able to report the success of his mission to -the Prince, then in the confederate camp before Landau. As soon as he -had seen the prince, he enquired whether a letter had arrived for him -during his absence, and felt a great sense of relief when a packet was -given him addressed in Grootz's big business hand. - -But his feeling was changed to the keenest anxiety when he found that -the letter, though written more than a week after the date at which -Grootz might reasonably be supposed to have received his letter, made no -reference to the news he had sent, and had clearly been despatched in -entire ignorance of the threatening danger. Long afterwards he learnt -that the courier had been accidentally drowned in crossing a river at -night, and his letters had been lost. He dreaded to think what might -have happened in the interval. He wrote another urgent letter to -Mynheer Grootz, and despatched it by a special messenger; but the bare -possibility of a mishap alarmed him, and he could never put the subject -from his thoughts. He woke at night under the pressure of his anxiety; -if only he could himself go to Lindendaal to see that all was safe! But -while the siege was still being prosecuted, and the prince had constant -need of his services, he could not bring himself to ask for leave. - -His difficulty was solved for him by the prince himself. His evident -preoccupation, and a slight mistake he made in noting down a message, -attracted that astute gentleman's attention. He spoke to Harry on the -matter; by this time they were on such terms that Harry felt no -difficulty in opening his mind; and he explained that having become -aware of a plot likely to injure some friends of his, and fearing that -his letter of warning had miscarried, he was in considerable anxiety on -their behalf. - -"Naturally," said the prince. "Who are these friends of yours?" - -"A French refugee lady and her daughter, Monseigneur, who live near -Breda." - -"Ah! What is their name?" - -"De Vaudrey, Monseigneur." - -"Are they relatives of yours?" - -"No, Monseigneur." - -"A mere matter of friendship, eh?" The prince's eyes twinkled. "Now, -my boy, confess: you are in love." - -"No, indeed, Monseigneur." - -"Well, the symptoms are not unusual. You ought to know best, of course; -but in any case you had better get the matter off your mind. This weary -siege cannot last more than a few days longer; we hear that the enemy -are on the point of surrender; we shall go into winter quarters -immediately, I suppose, and I shall be able to dispense with your -services until the spring. Pack off to Breda and see your--friends, -holding yourself in readiness, of course, to come back to me when -summoned." - -Harry was too much pleased at the opportunity of assuring himself that -all was well to think it necessary to make any protestation about his -motives. Thanking the prince, he finished off one or two small duties -and went to arrange with Sherebiah for their journey. Before he left he -came across Fanshawe in camp, and, without disclosing his reasons, told -him where he was going. - -"Then will you do something for me?" asked Fanshawe eagerly. "Will you -carry a letter for me? I love that girl, Harry. I can't get over it. -I made a mistake last time. I ought to have known that our English ways -would not answer with French ladies. I spoke to Adele herself; I ought -to have spoken to her mother. If you will take it, I will write a -letter to Madame de Vaudrey asking permission to pay my addresses to her -daughter; that may give me a chance; don't you think so, Harry?" - -"I don't know," said Harry. He felt strangely unsympathetic with -Fanshawe at that moment. "I will take your letter if you are not long -about it: I ride for Maintz to-night." - -"Thanks, old fellow! Wait till you're in love; then you'll know how a -fellow feels; I shall have no peace of mind till I know my fate." - -A few hours after this, Harry left the camp with Sherebiah, carrying the -letter on which Fanshawe's fate depended. To save time he had decided -to take boat at Maintz, and sail night and day down the Rhine. Ten -hours later he had bought a big boat, engaged a man who knew the river, -and begun his journey. With the aid of the stream and oars, and -proceeding continuously, he could save a day or two on the land journey. -His plan was to engage fresh crews at every important stopping-place, so -as to have relays of sturdy oarsmen and to get out of them all the work -of which they were capable. The Germans were naturally not so eager as -himself, and grumbled a good deal at the exertions demanded of them. -"Unerhoert! unerhoert!" was the exclamation he frequently heard from -their lips. But he never relaxed his determination, and found liberal -pay a ready stimulus. - -Thus, without mitigation of pace, the boat rushed down the river. As -one after another the river-side towns were passed, Harry felt a -satisfaction mingled with an impatience too great to allow of his taking -much interest in the scenes. The ugly, dirty garrison town of St. Goar, -the fortress of Hesse-Rheinfels, the famous Rat tower of the Hatto -legend, Coblentz, Cologne, Duesseldorf, were only so many stages of his -uneventful journey. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXIV* - - *The Wages of Sin* - - -Promenade a Berlin--A Sudden Stop--Grootz Chuckles--Place aux Dames--The -Last Two Miles--Polignac Pays the Penalty--Zo! - - -About four o'clock on a November afternoon, fine for the time of year, -two horsemen rode up to the inn at Eyndhoven. Huge clouds of steam rose -from their horses into the cold air; the panting of the beasts told of a -forced pace. Dismounting, the riders called for refreshment and a -change of horses: they were anxious to push on at once. - -When their hasty meal was finished, while the master was paying the -bill, the man went into the inn yard and tried to enter into -conversation with a servant standing there in charge of a large empty -travelling carriage. - -"Whose carriage is that?" he asked. - -"Monsieur de Polignac's," was the surly answer. - -The man started slightly, but no one would have suspected anything but -pure curiosity from the tone of his next question. - -"Who is it waiting for?" - -"Monsieur de Polignac." - -The reply was still more surly. - -"The roads will be heavy for travelling. Bad enough for horsemen, worse -for coaches. Maybe the gentleman is not going far?" - -"Maybe not." - -"The Breda road?" - -"What is that to you?" - -"No offence, comrade. A man may ask a question, to pass the time. Bid -you good-day!" - -Seeing that he was unlikely to get any further information he sauntered -off, but disappeared as quickly as possible into the inn. - -"Mounseer's coach is in yard, sir," he said quietly, "and a-waiten for -Mounseer." - -"Ah! Are we in time, Sherry? Call the ostler." - -When the man appeared, Harry slipt a coin into his hand. - -"Monsieur de Polignac is making a journey. Tell me all you know about -it." - -The man replied that the coach had been sent to the inn two days before. -Monsieur de Polignac was expected at any moment. He had recently sold -his estate and was leaving for Germany. It was thought that he wished -to take his departure quietly, for he had always been unpopular with his -tenants, and he ran the risk of a hostile demonstration if the time of -his setting out were known. He probably intended to slip secretly away -from his house and make his real start from Eyndhoven. A large quantity -of his baggage had passed through the town a few days before; but, -strangely enough, a carter coming in had reported that Monsieur's wagons -were going south, which was certainly not towards Berlin, the alleged -destination. On the road they had taken there was great danger of their -falling into the hands of the French, for it was not more than five or -six leagues from Marshal Villeroy's lines, and Monsieur as a Huguenot -refugee would meet with scant consideration from his countrymen. - -"Has Monsieur de Polignac himself been to Eyndhoven lately?" asked -Harry. - -"No, Mynheer; the arrangements were made for him by an English officer -who fought at Blenheim, where the great duke gave the French such a -drubbing a few months back. He was a masterful man; gave orders that -the horses were to be ready at a moment's notice and to be kept in good -condition. Only this morning a messenger came with instructions for the -coach to be ready by eight o'clock to-night, with a stock of wine and -provisions which Monsieur will take with him." - -Harry was perturbed at this news. It was clear that Polignac intended -to depart in haste; but whether on political grounds, having found his -character as spy detected, or in pursuance of the plot hinted at by -Simmons, it was impossible to know. If the latter, there was certainly -not a moment to lose, and it behoved to push on with all speed to -Lindendaal. Fresh horses had been waiting for some minutes. Harry and -Sherebiah were soon in the saddle, and set off at a gallop along the -miry road, into the gathering night. - - -Some hours previously a traveller approaching Lindendaal from the -opposite direction had passed through Breda. He had found it impossible -there to get a change of team for his coach; all the horses in the town -were out, conveying to their homes the gentry of the countryside who had -come into Breda for a grand ball given the night before by the officers -of the garrison, the finale of a week of entertainments. Not even -Mynheer Grootz's liberal offers sufficed to secure a team at once. The -motive of his journey was clearly urgent, for instead of waiting a few -hours until some of the hacks returned, he pushed on at once with his -tired animals to Tilburg, four leagues farther on the road. There he -succeeded in hiring fresh horses, and without delay continued his -journey. - -He was himself very much fatigued, having risen from a sick bed on -receiving the letter sent him by Harry from Landau. As he drew out of -Oerschot, where the team was again changed, he pulled up the wooden slat -blinds, and settled himself in the corner of his seat for a short nap. -So much exhausted was he that he was still sound asleep when, nearly two -hours later, the coach reached the end of the park wall of Lindendaal. - -It was now growing dark. All at once Grootz was roused from sleep by -the stopping of the coach. In his half-awake condition he thought that -he was at his journey's end, and was rising to lower the blinds when -there was a shout and the report of a pistol-shot. Wide-awake in an -instant he groped in the darkness for his own pistol. But just as he -laid his hand upon it the coach jolted on again, throwing him back into -his seat. It was rattling and swaying from side to side, the horses -being urged to their utmost speed. His first impulse was to let down -the blinds and endeavour to get a shot at one of the men who had waylaid -him. Then he hesitated; a sudden thought had occurred to him; he gave a -quiet chuckle, and peeped through the slats of the blinds, first on one -side, then on the other. He could just see that a horseman was riding -at each side of the carriage, and through the small window at the back -he saw a third following. He smiled grimly, and, holding his pistol -ready, waited for what he suspected must happen before long. - -His own postilion, he guessed, had been killed or wounded by the -pistol-shot he had heard, and the coach was now driven by a stranger. -He was thus one against four. He might shoot one of them, but would -clearly be at the mercy of the three others. It was a lonely road; -there was nothing for the present to be gained by resistance, and -besides, he had a further reason for biding his time. Delay would not -worsen his own situation; while if his suspicions were correct the -longer he remained passive the better his purpose would be served. - -After a headlong, rattling, bumping flight of about two miles, as it -seemed to Grootz, he heard the horseman on his right shout an order to -the postilion. The coach was pulled up; the horseman threw himself from -the saddle, and wrenching open the door peered in. - -"I regret, Madame, the necessity----" - -He started back, for in the waning light he had just become aware that -there was but one figure in the carriage, and that clearly the figure of -a man. - -"Triche, morbleu!" he cried in fury. "Someone shall pay for this. Come -out, or I will empty this pistol into you!" - -The only answer was the click of a pistol within the coach, and a flash -from the corner. Grootz's weapon had missed fire. Whipping his own -pistol from his belt Polignac fired; and the Dutchman fell back, hit in -the shoulder. With a cry to his companions Polignac sprang on his -horse, and galloped furiously back along the road he had come, the other -two horsemen hard at his heels. Immediately afterwards the postilion cut -the traces and set off in haste after his employer, leaving Grootz, the -coach, and one horse to themselves. - -Five minutes later, from the Eyndhoven direction, up rode two horsemen -at speed. It was now almost totally dark; the coach could barely be -discerned in the middle of the road, and Harry, who was foremost, pulled -up only just in time to save his horse's knees. In a moment he was out -of the saddle; Sherebiah was by his side, and while the man held the -horses, Harry, anxiety tearing at his heart, looked into the coach. -There was a huddled heap upon the floor. - -"Steel and tinder!" he cried to Sherebiah. - -A light was struck. - -"Good heavens! it is Mynheer Grootz." - -He bent down and touched the wounded man's hand, fearing he might be -already dead. The touch revived Grootz from his swoon. - -"On to Lindendaal!" he said faintly and brokenly. "Leave me! Ladies in -danger. Take care. Desperate men: four; at once!" - -Loth as Harry was to leave his friend in so ill a plight, the imminence -of the peril to which the ladies were exposed was predominant. - -"I will send a man back to you, Mynheer," he said. "Sherebiah, we must -hasten." - -The short halt had given the horses time to recover their wind. They -had not travelled far, nor had they far to go. The two sprang to their -saddles, and as they rode off into the darkness there was a look on -Harry's face that boded ill for Polignac or any of his party. Never -before, even when carried bound on board the _Merry Maid_, even when his -own life had been attempted, had he felt the overmastering desire for -vengeance that burnt within him now. The sight of his friend and -benefactor wounded and helpless had quickened his indignation with -Polignac and his crew into a fury of resentment, and at the back of his -consciousness there was another and a subtler feeling which he did not -pause to analyse. With eyes staring into the distance, ears strained to -catch the slightest sound, every sense on the alert, he led the way over -the heavy miry road, Sherebiah a short length behind. If anyone could -have seen the riders' faces he would have been struck by the contrast -between their expressions. Harry's was grim and tense with white rage; -Sherebiah's round cheeks wore their settled look of cheerful -placidity--the unruffled carelessness of a man of peace. - -It was a furious gallop, over the two miles from the halted coach to the -gates of Lindendaal. Harry's eager eyes at length caught a twinkle of -light ahead to the right of the road. A moment later the faint sound of -a shout came down the wind, then the crack of a pistol-shot. Digging his -spurs into his steed's heaving flanks he drew his sword; it was a matter -of seconds now. He flew past the ruined barn, standing bare and black -on the right; and there, before him on the road, shone a light, from a -carriage lamp as he supposed. Now mingled with shouts and oaths he -heard the clash of steel; in a moment there loomed up before him at the -entrance to the balustraded avenue a dark still mass, and in the yellow -glare of the lamp he perceived two men on foot fighting desperately. He -was still some yards away when he saw the man farthest from him shorten -his sword and run his opponent through the body, then with lightning -speed prepare to meet the horseman, whether friend or foe, whose coming -the ring of hoofs had announced. As he dashed forward, Harry recognized -in the sinister features and the wry mouth the evil face of Polignac. -Leaning low over his horse's neck he made a sweeping blow with his heavy -cavalry sabre that would have cut the Frenchman's spare frame into -halves had he not with rare presence of mind sunk on one knee and -allowed the blade to swish harmlessly over his head. - -Harry was carried on for some yards before he could check the impetus of -his horse, and then he found himself in the thick of a fight in which he -could distinguish neither friend nor foe. A fierce oath on his right, -however, proclaimed the identity of one of the group, and, turning, he -saw the bulky form of Captain Aglionby on horseback outlined against the -light from the distant house. Leaving Polignac for the moment Harry -made straight for his elder enemy, who was wheeling to deal with the -new-comer. It was no moment for nice sword-play on either side; cut and -thrust, lunge and parry--thus the two engaged in the dark. Blade -clashed on blade, horse pressed against horse, their hoofs struck -sparks; nothing to choose between the combatants except that Aglionby -was between Harry and the light. - -Suddenly the captain made a supreme effort to quell his assailant by -main force for good and all. Rising in his saddle, he brought his sword -down with the full weight of his arm. But, thanks to the friendly light -from Lindendaal, Harry saw the movement in time. Parrying the swashing -blow with ease, he replied with a thrust that tumbled the captain -groaning from his saddle. The horse plunged and galloped madly into the -night. Harry did not wait to discover the full effect of his blow, but -wheeled round to find Polignac, the duel on his left having terminated -in the flight of one of the parties and pursuit by the other. - -At the moment of wheeling he heard the voice of Sherebiah at his elbow. - -"Hold, sir! 'Tis done. Mounseer ha' paid his score." - -"You have killed him?" - -"My sword went through un. He be on ground: no risin' for he." - -"Then secure Aglionby. He fell from his horse a few yards up the road." - -He himself sprang from the saddle and ran to the door of the coach. -Wrenching it open, he saw by the light of the lamp Adele de Vaudrey -erect on the seat, supporting the unconscious form of her mother. The -girl's cheeks were the colour of death; her lips were ashen; upon her -face was the fixed look of resigned despair. - -"Mademoiselle," cried Harry breathlessly, "all is well. You are safe." - -A sob broke from the girl's dry lips; tears welled in her eyes. - -"Mother has swooned," she said in a whisper. - -Harry darted to the canal side, stuck his handkerchief on the point of -his sword and let it down to the water, returning with it dripping wet -to the coach. Bathing the lady's temples they revived her, and Adele -whispered the news that they were safe. Madame's nerves were quite -unstrung; incapable of heeding what was said to her she wept and laughed -alternately, to Harry's great alarm. - -"We must get her home," said Adele. - -"Yes; I will find a man to lead the coach. You will not mind my going: -Mynheer Grootz is wounded two miles away." - -"Oh, Monsieur Harry, go then at once. I can take care of Mother." - -Harry ran back to the road to find Sherebiah, who in his absence had -made an examination of the ground with the aid of the carriage lamp. -Polignac was stone dead; his body lay at the very brink of the canal. -There was no sign of Aglionby or of the other two men, though traces of -blood were found on the spot where the captain had fallen. Of the house -party two men were badly wounded; these Harry despatched to the house -for ministration while himself with Sherebiah hurried back at full speed -to Mynheer Grootz. The coach stood undisturbed where they had left it. -Grootz lay on the seat, conscious but very weak. - -"Well?" he said, as they appeared. - -"Well, thank God!" replied Harry. "The ladies are safe, Polignac is -dead, Aglionby and the rest have fled." - -"Zo!" - -Quite content, the merchant said no more. He was taken at a walking -pace to Lindendaal. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXV* - - *A Bundle of Letters* - - -Jealousy--Hard Facts--A Special Plea--Family History--Brother and -Sister--Marriage Lines--A Fair Claimant--Air Castles - - -Some hours later, when Madame de Vaudrey had been composed to sleep, and -the three patients made as comfortable as possible pending the arrival -of the doctor, who had been summoned from the village, Adele left her -mother's bed-side and joined Harry in the dining-room. - -"I must thank you," she said, advancing to him with outstretched hands. -"We have always to thank you. It seems to be fated that you should save -us from that bad man." - -"He will trouble you no more, Mademoiselle." - -Adele looked a question. - -"Yes, he is dead." - -The girl shuddered, and looked involuntarily towards the sword at -Harry's side. - -"No, it was not I; it was my man." - -There was a look of relief in Adele's face. - -"How thankful to God we must be that you came in time, Monsieur!" - -"Did Madame not get my letter?" - -"Did you write a letter?" - -"Yes; I learnt some time ago that this plot was hatching, and I wrote -twice. The first letter, I know, must have miscarried, but the -second--it should have reached you, for I am sure Mynheer Grootz must -have received a letter written at the same time. That is why he is here -now." - -"We have been away from home: stay, Monsieur, I will enquire." - -She soon returned with the letter unopened. - -"It came three days ago," she said. "We have been for a week in Breda; -there were festivities given by the officers of the garrison, and the -servants did not think to send the letter, knowing that we should soon -return. M. de----he must have found out the time of our departure, and -so planned to waylay us. But we were late in starting; Mother was -fatigued; and I see how it happened. Mynheer Grootz's coach was taken -for ours; when the--the man found that it was not, he thought it had -been sent on in front to deceive him. Oh, Monsieur Harry, but for your -letter to Mynheer Grootz, and your coming so soon yourself----" - -"Think no more of it, Mademoiselle. I cannot say how glad I am that I -happened to be able to serve you. Forgive me; you are worn out; it will -not do to have another invalid, you know----" - -Adele smiled in answer. - -"Yes, I will go to bed," she said, "and I do thank you for Mother and -myself." - -She clasped his hands again, then ran from the room. Harry had never -seen her so much moved. Hitherto she had always been so cold, so -reserved, seeming to grudge the few words that courtesy demanded. Even -when something claimed her active help, as in the stratagem by which -Lindendaal had been saved from the raiders nearly eighteen months -before, she had acted, indeed, with decision and courage, as a good -comrade, but had at once relapsed into her former attitude of aloofness, -almost disdain. With Fanshawe, on the contrary, she had been frank and -gay, ready with quip and jest, gently correcting his French, merrily -laughing at her own attempts to speak English, never wearying of -accompanying on the harpsichord his west-country songs, which she -quickly picked up by ear. Fanshawe was thoroughly in love with her--and -Harry remembered with a pang that he bore a letter from Fanshawe to her -mother, once more urging his suit. - -"Confound him!" he thought, and, his hands tight clasped behind him, he -strode up and down the room with compressed lips and lowering brow. - -He had no doubt now of the relationship in which he stood to Fanshawe; -he was both his rival and friend. He tried to face the situation calmly. -Fanshawe was a good fellow, an officer in the English army, and heir to -a baronetcy and a fine estate. He could sell out at any moment, and -doubtless enjoy by the liberality of his father an income sufficient to -maintain a wife in something more than comfort. It gave Harry a pang to -contrast his own position. He had no property, no family influence, -nothing beyond his pay and the income so generously allowed by Mynheer -Grootz. True, he was now in the service of Prince Eugene, and the -circumstances in which he had joined the Austrian service gave him a -good prospect of ultimate advancement; but it might be many years before -he could venture to ask a lady to share his fortunes. Besides, if -Mademoiselle de Vaudrey was indeed heiress to an estate, as Simmons had -reported, a poor man could not seek her hand without incurring the -suspicion of being a fortune-hunter: the mere suggestion brought a hot -flush to Harry's cheeks. No; he could but stand aside. Fanshawe had -failed once; he might yet succeed; and if it should so turn out, Harry -could but wish his friend joy and go his way. - -"Heigh ho! Some fellows are lucky!" he thought, and, heaving a -tremendous sigh, he went to bed. - -A good night's rest, and the knowledge that Polignac could never disturb -her again, cured Madame de Vaudrey's hysteria, and she came down next -morning somewhat pale, but in her usual health. After breakfast Harry -took the first opportunity of finding his hostess alone, to deliver -Fanshawe's letter. She smiled as she took it and noticed the -handwriting. - -"From that dear Monsieur Fanshawe, is it not?" she said. - -"Yes, Madame." - -"What can he have to write about, I wonder? Do you know, Harry?" - -"Fanshawe told me, and--well, he asked me--that is, I promised to put in -a word for him." - -"Vraiment! Then I think I guess the subject of his letter. Come, mon -ami, what have you to say for him, then?" - -The comtesse watched Harry with a twinkle of enjoyment. Her mother's eye -had penetrated the state of the case. - -"Godfrey is a good fellow, Madame; amiable--you know that; he will be -rich some day; he--sings a good song; he--in short, Madame, he is very -fond of Mademoiselle, and--and----" - -"And would make a good husband, you think? Well, my dear Harry, I shall -tell Adele that he has written to me, and repeat what you have said in -his behalf; but you know her: she has a mind of her own; and I can only -give her my advice." - -And she left Harry in a tormenting perplexity as to what her advice -would be. - -It was a week or two before Mynheer Grootz was well enough to leave his -room, and during those days his kind attendants were careful to avoid -all but the most necessary references to what had happened. He was told -that Polignac was dead and the hue and cry was out after Aglionby, and -his convalescence was not retarded by any fears on the ladies' behalf. -One morning, when the doctor allowed him to come downstairs, he sent -Harry to find Madame de Vaudrey. It was time, he said, that the motive -of Polignac's recent attempt should be seriously considered. - -"Madame," he said in French, when with Harry they were closeted in the -reception-room, "it has not yet been told you, but we have reason to -believe that Polignac urged his suit upon Adele because he had -information that she is heiress to some estates." - -"As she is--heiress to Lindendaal." - -"Yes, but the estates in question must be of greater value. Your little -estate here is not of so much worth as to account for Polignac promising -large sums to Aglionby, first on his marriage with Adele, secondly on -her succession to her property. Tell me, Madame, know you of anything -that could give colour to the beliefs of these wretches?" - -"Nothing, my friend. My husband, as you know well, was a refugee, an -exile: his family estates in France were confiscated long ago. As for -me, I had nothing but my poor little dowry. No relatives of mine are -owners of estates." - -"But on Monsieur le Comte's side: his mother: she was an Englishwoman, I -believe?" - -"Yes. I know little of her; she died very soon after the birth of her -only child, my dear husband." - -"What was her name?" - -"I do not remember. Certainly I have heard it, but it is many years -ago, and English names are so difficult to keep in mind." - -"But Monsieur le Comte--had he not some souvenir of his mother?--some -portrait, or heirloom, or family papers?" - -"I never saw any. But I have upstairs a box in which I treasure many -little things that were his: perhaps you would like to see it?" - -"Certainly. It would be as well." - -Madame de Vaudrey sent a servant to a private room in the turret, whence -he returned presently with a leather-covered brass-studded box. After -some search the key was discovered, the box was opened, and the comtesse -took out, one after another, various memorials of her dead husband. -Among them was a bundle of papers tied up with ribbon; this she laid -with trembling hands before her friend. - -"You permit me, Madame?" he said. - -She nodded through her tears. - -Grootz untied the ribbon, and unfolded the topmost paper. A cursory -glance showed that it threw no light on the subject all had at heart. -Several other papers were examined with a like result; then, nearly at -the bottom of the bundle, Grootz came upon a smaller packet separately -tied. The outer wrapper bore, in a faded, delicate handwriting, the -words: "Dernieres letters de la famille de feu ma chere femme". Harry -got up and leant towards him in some excitement. - -"Wait, my son," said Grootz; "let us proceed with quietness." - -He opened the topmost letter, and read it slowly through. - -"It tells us nothing," he said. "It begins 'My dear sister', and ends -'Eustace'. We go to the next." - -Unfolding this, he saw at the top the date June 12, 1659, and an address -in London. - -"This is in the same hand," he said. "It is cramped; Harry, your eyes -are young; read it, my boy, aloud." - -Harry took the letter and read: - - -"MY DEARE SISTER, - -"It will please you to heare the Affaire goes according to our hopes. -The people are well dispos'd to the Gentleman you wot of, & the rule of -the Saintes is abhorr'd of the moste. But businesse of State holds -lesse in your Estimation than the fortunes of your brother, and I have a -peece of Newes that will put your gentle heart all in a Flutter. What -do 'ee think, sweete? You never had a sister: will you thanke me if I -give you one? There! not to keepe you on tenterhooks, I designe--now is -yr heart going pit-a-pat--to wed: ay, Mary, your brother has met his -fate. This daye weeke the Knot is to be ty'd. I knowe the questions -that at this Newes flocke into your mind: is she black or faire, tall or -short, of court or cottage? I am not carefull to answer; you shall love -her, my sweet; 'tis the fairest, dearest ladie lucky man ever wonne, -yonge, freshe, winsome as you could wishe. I dare not, as you may -beleeve, wed in my owne name; 'tis too perilous as yet, my Businesse -being what it is; indeede, Lucy herselfe knows not of my family, for -being so yonge and simple, she might let fall in an unwatch'd moment -what might bring me to the block. She shall knowe all in due season. I -have not open'd my Designe to our brother, for in truthe I find no -reason to truste him; his warm professions of Zeale for us seeme to me -but Flams. I feare he has play'd throughout a Double Game. He stands -exceeding well with the Godly Partie, & having been at Paines to enquire -thro' a sure friend I can heare of nothing done in our behalfe, but -rather of endeavors to feather his owne nest. But enough of that; if -our hopes are crown'd, as praye God they may be speedilie, Nicolas will -have----" - - -Harry paused as he read the name. - - -----"Nicolas will have no choice but to quitte the Hall, and make what -Profitte he may of his owne farmes. Ask in yr prayers that the Happie -Daie be hasten'd. And now no more from your righte loving Brother -EUSTACE." - - -Harry laid the letter down, and looked at Mynheer Grootz. - -"Why did you pause?" asked the Dutchman. - -"'Twas a thought I had, Mynheer. It may be vain. Before I say more, -will you look at the next paper?" - -"He!" exclaimed Madame de Vaudrey, "I am becoming curious." - -Mynheer Grootz with the same imperturbable calm unfolded the next paper -of the bundle. - -"This," he said, scanning it over his spectacles, "is not a letter; it -is a document. It records the marriage, in the Huguenot church in -Paris, on May 2, 1658, of Louis Marie Honore, Comte de Vaudrey, aged 34, -with Mary Berkeley,"--he pronounced the name in three syllables, foreign -fashion--"aged 22, daughter of John Berkeley Esquire of Winton Hall, in -the county of Wiltshire, England." - -"'Tis found!" cried Harry, springing up in excitement. "We call the name -Barkley in England; Madame, Monsieur le Comte was the son of Mr. -Berkeley's sister; he is the squire of my own village Winton St. Mary; -without a doubt it is his estates to which Mademoiselle is heiress. What -a discovery we have made!" - -"Stay, Harry," said Mynheer Grootz quietly; "did you not tell me that -your squire has a son?" - -"Yes, yes, but now I remember: at home I have heard it said that Mr. -Berkeley was lord of the manor only by default of other heirs: yes, it -comes back to me now: the villagers did not like him; they grudged him -his estate; he was stepson of the former squire, and step-brother of the -lady who became Comtesse de Vaudrey." - -"Still I do not understand. The lady had a brother--the gentleman whose -name was Eustace; being employed in state business, to do with the -restoration of your King Charles, I think, he was doubtless the elder of -the two: he would be his father's heir, and his children after him. The -letter, you see, announces his approaching marriage." - -"You are right, Mynheer. I heard him talked of, too; he was killed in a -fray with highwaymen on the Dover road, when he was returning from -France, after King Charles came back, to claim his estates. Yes, the -squire's family history is well known in the village; but I never heard -of a Mistress Eustace Berkeley; perhaps the marriage did not take place -after all." - -"It would seem so." - -"It must be so," cried Harry. "Do you not now see Captain Aglionby's -part? When he stayed with you, Madame, six years ago, he must have -discovered Monsieur le Comte's relationship with Mr. Berkeley; that -explains his hold over the squire; it explains also the scheme arranged -between him and Monsieur de Polignac. Indeed, it is clear as daylight: -the captain bled Mr. Berkeley on pretence of keeping his secret; and he -sold that secret to Polignac." - -"The odious man!" exclaimed Madame de Vaudrey, who sat in a state of -perfect amazement as link after link was added to the chain. - -"A very villain!" said Grootz, smiting the table. "Madame, it appears -that Adele is indeed the rightful owner of the estates now held by this -miscreant Berkeley, and I, Jan Grootz, will make it my business, as soon -as I am recovered, to see that right is done." - -"And it is to Harry that we owe it all! Oh, my dear Harry, Adele shall -thank you! If only my dear husband could have lived to bless you too!" - -"Zo!" exclaimed Grootz. "But, Madame, I have a thing to say. Adele -shall thank Harry; yes; but I say tell her nothing until I have been to -London, and with the aid of English law have overthrown the villain -Berkeley. It will be best; yes, it will be best." - -"Very well, my friend. Dear Adele! to think of her as lady of an -English manor! She has thought much of her English grandmother: she -will love to live in England; I have no English blood in me, and I dread -the sea; but I must live with her, of course I must." - -Grootz compressed his lips. - -"Il ne faut pas vendre la peau de l'ours avant de l'avoir tue," he said -sententiously. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXVI* - - *The New Squire* - - -Jonahs--Step-brothers--Whose Gain?--The Female Line--The End of the -Story--Treason--The Fleet--In Italy with Eugene--Home--Adele Studies -Geography--Lady Bountiful--Minshull Remembers--A Warning from Mr. -Tape--Mr. Tape at Hungerford--Exit Harry Rochester--At the Gate--A Royal -Feast--What's in a Name?--A Rustic Moralist--Wedding Bells - - -Giles Appleyard, giving a flick to the off leader, scraped his -well-rasped chin over the stiff collar of his coat and addressed the -outside passenger who had just mounted his coach at Basingstoke. - -"Why, Willum Nokes," he said, "'tis many a long day since I set eyes on -your noble frame. How's the wicked world sarven 'ee, Willum?" - -"Fairish, Giles coachman, on'y fairish. A've never bin the same man -since that tarrible day when John Simmons gi' me the go-by. Ay, I were -constable then, a-sarven the Queen and Sir Godfrey, and wi' the bodies -of all the souls in Winton Simmary under me. Now I be on'y parish -beadle at Basingstoke, sarvant to pa'son, and rulen over none but the -misbehaven childer in church." - -He sighed and shook his head. - -"Ay, and th' on'y thing as keeps me above ground is a journey once a -year to th' old place, where I wanders round a-thinken deep things o' -the noble line o' life as used to be." - -"Ay, poor soul, 'ee did truly make a gashly fool o' yerself that day, -Willum. Well, better a live fool than a dead 'oss, as you med say." - -"An' yerself, Giles--you looks hale an' hearty as ever I seed 'ee." - -"Ay, Willum, I goos up an' down the world rain or shine, merry as a -grig." - -"'Ee must see a powerful deal o' life, Giles; all sarts an' perditions -o' men, as pa'son sings in church. Who med be your insides to-day, if I -med axe so homely a quest'on?" - -"Only two to-day, Willum. There be little travellen for a week or two -arter Christmas. One on 'em be a Dutch skipper; I mind I carried un -once afore; ay, 'twas the same day as young pa'son Rochester and Sherry -Minshull rode a-top, all agwine to Lun'on. Young pa'son be now a sojer, -so 'tis said, an' hob-a-nob wi' the mighty o' the earth. The way o' the -world, Willum; some goos up, like young pa'son; some goos down, like -Willum Nokes; some goos steady, like Giles Appleyard; eh, soul?" - -"Ay, 'tis constables goos down, a' b'lieve. But who be your other -inside, coachman?" - -"Why, no one an't telled me, but I'd take my affidavy afore any justice -o' peace 'tis a limb o' the law. I knows they sart. They ought to pay -double; for why? 'cause bean't safe to carry; last time I carried a -lawyer fore off wheel broke as we trundled through Winterslow. When I -seed this chap at Angel and Crown this marnen, says I to myself, -'Zooks!' says I, 'what poor mortal soul be agwine to suffer now?'" - -For the rest of the journey coachman and passenger exchanged gossip on -their common acquaintances. William Nokes alighted at the Queen's Head, -at Winton St. Mary, and shook his head in sympathy with Mistress Joplady -when he saw the two inside passengers descend from the coach and enter -the inn. - -"One a furrener, t'other a lawyer!" he muttered. "Ah! what tarrible -things some poor souls ha' got to putt up wi'!" - -Mistress Joplady, however, welcomed both her guests with her wonted -heartiness, and with her own hands plied the warming-pan for their beds. - -At ten o'clock next morning the two strangers left the inn together. -One of them carried a small portfolio. They went through the village, -across the common, and, entering the park gates of Winton Hall, walked -up the long drive to the porch and asked whether Mr. Berkeley was at -home. After a few minutes' delay they were invited to step in, and -conducted to a little room in the turret, where they found the squire in -cassock and skull-cap, warming his withered hands at the fire. - -"Mr. Berkeley?" said the elder of the two. - -"That is my name. What is your business?" - -"My name, sir, Jan Grootz. My friend Mr. Swettenham Tape, of Lincoln's -Inn." - -"Well?" - -"You will permit me to take a chair; dank you! And my friend Mr. Tape; -dank you!" - -At the mention of his name, Mr. Berkeley flashed a shrewd glance under -his bushy white eyebrows at the Dutchman, then gripped the arms of his -chair, and waited. - -"Mr. Berkeley, my business will not hold you long. You will pardon if I -begin at de beginning and tell you a little history?" - -The squire kept his eyes fixed on his visitor, but said nothing. Taking -his silence as permission to proceed, Grootz settled himself in his -chair, with his plump right hand ready to punctuate his sentences. - -"Dis history dat I tell you, sir, I hope you will find it interesting. -It is ver much about yourself; you are old man, but of dose old men, -pardon me, who regard demselves as de most interesting subjeck in de -world; zo! De history begin long ago; zixty-vive year indeed, when your -shadow first zink over dis place." Grootz's hand made a comprehensive -sweep. "You were den Nicolas Heller, an eleven-year boy; your moder, a -widow, she had married Mr. John Berkeley, a widower, wid two children, -one"--here the forefinger wagged--"Eustace Berkeley, a nine-year boy; de -oder, Mary, a child four year. On your moder Mr. Berkeley settle de -farms of--of----" - -"Winton Chase and Odbury," said Mr. Swettenham Tape, speaking for the -first time. - -"Zo; de farms of Winton Chase and Odbury; you took de name Berkeley, and -after your moder dese farms should become yours. Dree years go, your -moder die; Mr. John Berkeley is again a widower, and never marry no -more. War had broke out, he take part wid de king and fight in de vield, -your step-broder alzo whenever he is of age to bear arms. But Nicolas, -poor boy! is not strong, he is always at home to care for de estates; -besides, he do not love de king; no, Nicolas never love nobody--nobody -but himself." - -Grootz paused and bent a little forward in his chair; the squire had not -moved a muscle. - -"De king is killed, Oliver Cromwell is ruler in de land, and after de -battle of Worcester, Mr. John Berkeley, his son and daughter, go for -safety to France. But Nicolas--he find dat he is a Puritan, a saint in -heart; he give money--it was not his to give--to de Parliament side, and -he speak of his stepfader--of de man, mark you, to whom he owe -everyding--as a traitor, a malignant. At same time he write letters to -de traitor in France telling how he work to keep his estate for him, if -chance come he zall return and enjoy his own. How kind is Nicolas! zo! - -"Time flows; de chance come; King Charles wears his fader's crown, but -Mr. John Berkeley is not alive to return alzo. In 1658 he die. But his -son, Nicolas' stepbroder Eustace, what of him? In June 1660 he come -back to claim his inheritance, but he never see his home. No, on de road -he is set upon and murdered." - -Still the old man sat rigid in grim silence. - -"De murder of Eustace Berkeley, whom do it profit? De men who killed -him?--not zo; dey stay not to empty his pockets. It profit nobody but -Nicolas Berkeley. Dink you not dat is singular? To me it is very -singular. Zo!" - -The Dutchman spoke always with the same careful deliberation. His tone -now became stern. - -"I come now, Mr. Berkeley, to someding dat interest you more. Mr. John -Berkeley had, not only a son, but alzo a daughter." The keen-eyed -Dutchman noticed a slight twitching of the squire's brow. "Ah, I -thought dat would interest you! De daughter, Mary, marry in Paris de -Comte de Vaudrey, a nobleman, a Huguenot; dat is not long before King -Charles come back. Her broder Eustace risk his life to come to England -on service for his sovereign; he write letters to his sister; -interesting letters; I take leave to read you someding he said." - -He took the portfolio from the lawyer's hands, selected a paper from it, -and read the following passage:-- - - -"'I feare he has play'd throughout a Double Game. He stands exceeding -well with the Godly Partie, & having been at Paines to enquire thro' a -sure friend I can heare of nothing done in our behalfe, but rather of -endeavors to feather his owne nest. But enough of that; if our hopes -are crown'd, as praye God they may be speedilie, Nicolas will have no -choice but to quitte the Hall, and make what Profitte he may of his owne -farmes.' - - -"Zo! dis letter, and oders, was received by Madame la Comtesse de -Vaudrey--dat is, Mary Berkeley--when her husband was absent from Paris. -He return; de poor lady is dying; she leave a little boy. He write to -Eustace from Paris; he get no reply; he write again, dree times in all; -still no reply, and he dink his wife's friends English and care not any -more. As for him, he has pride and keep silence, and believe Eustace -Berkeley is now lord of Winton Hall. - -"Zo time pass. Den come trouble to de Huguenots in France, and de Comte -de Vaudrey take refuge wid his son in Holland. He read no English; but -he keep dings dat belong to his wife, among dem de letters of Eustace. -His son Louis marry in Holland a Huguenot lady. Fader, son, both are -dead, but"--he wagged his forefinger impressively--"but Louis Comte de -Vaudrey leave a daughter, Adele, and it is on behalf of Mademoiselle -Adele de Vaudrey I wait upon you to-day. I know well dese dings are not -new to you; I know dat. It is now some years when Captain Aglionby--an -adventurer, a cut-droat--discover how Mademoiselle Adele is related to -de house of Berkeley. Already he know someding of you; he have an uncle -Minshull dat live on your estate. He see a chance to feader his very -bare nest, and he take it. You are de squire, he dink; a rich man; you -will pay well to keep de secret. He come to you; you do pay well; you -become his generous patron, and he do your dirty work. But sometimes -you lose temper, and give him hard words and close your purse. Perhaps, -dink he, he may find yet anoder rich man who will buy de secret. Such a -man is Monsieur de Polignac. Your Aglionby take money from you, and -bargain wid Polignac to get more money when he become by marriage owner -of dis estate and turn you out. But de plan is found out; we have -settle with Polignac; he is dead; we search for Aglionby; he hide -himself; and now, Mr. Berkeley, it is your turn. I come to you to -demand, on behalf of Mademoiselle Adele de Vaudrey, possession of her -property in seven days from dis present day. My friend Mr. Tape of -Lincoln's Inn have copies of all de papers; he will show dem, at proper -time, to your lawyer. De history is now at end, Mr. Berkeley. I dank -you for your zo-patient hearing. It is now to you; zo!" - -Mr. Berkeley had spoken never a word. For a few moments he remained -motionless in his chair; then, lengthening his arm, he pulled a -bell-rope at his side. A servant entered. - -"Thomas," said the squire in his thin hard voice, "show these gentlemen -to the door." - -Grootz and the lawyer glanced at each other. The latter gave a slight -shrug and began to tie up his portfolio. Grootz rose. - -"I have de honour, Mr. Berkeley, to wish you good-day." - -And with his companion he left the room. - - -An hour later the village was startled by the news that the squire had -had a stroke. A man had ridden to Salisbury for the physician, and the -gossips at the Queen's Head were already discussing the expected -succession of "young squire" to the estates. But in the afternoon the -report was contradicted. The squire had merely been seized with a -fainting fit; he had recovered and was to all appearance his usual self. - -A week passed; Mr. Berkeley had received from Mr. Swettenham Tape of -Lincoln's Inn a formal demand for the surrender of the property, to -which he made no reply. At the end of the week Mr. Tape filed a suit in -chancery. But the mills of the law grind slowly. Grootz had returned -to Holland, a new campaign had opened, and Harry Rochester was with -Prince Eugene in northern Italy before Mr. Swettenham Tape had all his -affidavits sworn. - -A few weeks before the case was to be opened before Lord Chancellor -Cowper, a bailiff armed with a warrant, and accompanied by two strong -tipstaves, appeared at the house of a Mistress Consterdine near the -Cockpit, Whitehall. The bailiff gained admittance, and when after some -time he returned to the street he was accompanied by a tall bulky man in -semi-military garb, with whom he and the tipstaves entered a hackney -coach and were driven to Newgate. The prisoner was at once brought -before the magistrate and charged under the name of Ralph Aglionby with -entering into a treasonable conspiracy on behalf of the exiled Stuarts. -In addition to the letters taken in his lodging, other papers that had -been brought from Germany were put in by the Crown, proving Aglionby to -have been in the service of Her Majesty's enemies; and a man Simmons, a -joiner in London, who had received a free pardon, gave evidence that -Aglionby had fought with the Bavarians at Blenheim and elsewhere, -holding a commission in the Elector of Bavaria's forces. His papers -were found to include letters from Mr. Nicolas Berkeley of Winton Hall, -forwarding sums of money to Aglionby in Holland. The sequel to this -discovery was the arrest of Mr. Berkeley at his inn in Soho, and his -inclusion in the indictment for conspiracy. - -The trial came on in due course. Captain Aglionby's connection with the -Jacobites was fully established, and he was sentenced to be transported -to the Plantations for twenty years. Mr. Berkeley's complicity was not -so clearly shown, though he could bring no evidence to prove his -statement that the sums remitted to his fellow-prisoner were payment for -private services totally unconnected with the Jacobite cause. The -circumstances were suspicious, and the judge considered that he showed -great lenience in condemning Mr. Berkeley to pay a fine of L500. -Although he had for years enjoyed a large income, he had but little -ready money at command. He had spent large sums in purchasing lands -adjoining the Winton property, and the extravagance of his son had been -a constant drain upon his purse. With the civil action de Vaudrey _v._ -Berkeley pending in the court of chancery, he found some difficulty in -borrowing sufficient money to pay his fine. - -The chancery suit came on for hearing. The claimants had engaged the -highest counsel of the day, and brought a great array of evidence, -documentary and oral, from Holland. Mr. Berkeley's case was ably -argued, but the evidence was irresistible; the decision was given -against him; he was ordered to produce the title deeds of the property, -and to render an account of all that he had derived from the estates -since his illegal usurpation of them forty-five years before. He wished -to appeal; but, discredited by the result of the trial for conspiracy, -he was unable to raise the necessary funds. He was moving heaven and -earth to overcome his difficulties when payment was demanded of the sum -he had borrowed to meet the fine, and as the money was not forthcoming -he was arrested and thrown into the debtors' prison in the Fleet. - -It was December before the case was finally decided. As soon as Mynheer -Grootz was released from his business cares by the armies going into -winter quarters, he accompanied Madame de Vaudrey with Adele and part of -their household to England, and saw them installed in Winton Hall. At -Adele's wish, Mr. Berkeley was not pressed for the costs of the suit he -had lost; but his other creditors were relentless, and determined to -keep him in the Fleet prison until the income from the farms he -inherited from his mother should have enabled him to pay his debts. - -It was many months before Harry learnt of the success of Grootz's -efforts on behalf of Adele. In March, 1705, he left Austria with Prince -Eugene for Italy, where the prince's cousin, Victor Amadeus the Second -of Savoy, was maintaining a difficult struggle against Marshal Vendome. -He was with the prince at the indecisive battle of Cassano in August, -and spent the winter in Turin. There letters reached him from England -telling how Adele had taken up her residence at Winton as lady of the -manor, and when he wrote his warm letter of congratulation he said to -himself that his fate was now sealed. At Turin also he received a -letter from Fanshawe reporting his father's death and his own -determination to sell out and live on his estate. This news gave Harry -a fresh pang, for, though he knew that Fanshawe's suit had been again -rejected, he felt that as next-door neighbours Adele and he would see -much of each other, and their constant companionship might at length end -in a match which on many grounds must be considered excellent. - -Next year he served Prince Eugene as aide-de-camp at the battle of -Calcinate in April, and again five months later at the brilliant victory -of Turin, when the prince, by his total defeat of the Duke of Orleans -and Marshal Marsin, finally saved Savoy from the clutches of King Louis. -His own services did not go unrewarded. The prince gave him the -colonelcy of an imperial dragoon regiment, and held out hopes that if he -remained in the emperor's service he might before long gain an estate -and a title of nobility. But a few days after the battle, he received -from England a letter which altered the whole course of his life. It -was a short note from Madame de Vaudrey, written at Winton nearly three -months before. Certain circumstances had come to light, wrote the lady, -that rendered his presence at Winton desirable as soon as he could -obtain leave. It was nearly four years since the black day on which he -had left his home so sadly; he was hungry for a sight of the old scenes -and the old faces, and felt something more than curiosity to see Adele -de Vaudrey as lady bountiful of the parish. He went at once to Prince -Eugene with the letter; the prince drew from him the whole story of his -connection with the family of Lindendaal, and with a twinkling eye -consented to his immediate departure for England. - -"The French will give us no more trouble here," he said. "My next -battle will be fought on other soil. I said before, you remember, that -you were in love. You thought not. We shall see. Go home; but the war -is not over. I shall hope to see you at the head of your regiment in -the next campaign." - -Sherebiah was as much delighted as his master at the thought of seeing -home again. - -"To tell 'ee the truth, sir," he said, when Harry ordered him to make -preparations for departure, "I be a-thinken o' Katrinka. I don't feel -happy in my mind at the notion o' her at Winton Simmary wi'out me. Why, -old feyther o' mine, ancient soul as he be, if he knows what a hand -her've got for griddle-cakes--zooks! sir, he'll be a-marryen her -hisself, never thinken as I be more'n a boy." - -One October day Harry and Sherebiah embarked at Leghorn for the voyage -home. Their vessel made quick sailing as far as Gibraltar, where Sir -George Rooke had planted the flag of England two years before; but was -beset by contrary winds in the Atlantic, beat about for days in the Bay -of Biscay, and reached Southampton sadly buffeted six weeks after -leaving Leghorn. The travellers lost no time in taking horse, and rode -up to Winton Hall late one November evening. Harry was received with a -warmth of greeting that made him glow with pleasure. Even Adele welcomed -him with more frankness than she had ever before shown him, though he -detected a different constraint, a something new in her manner, that -puzzled him. The evening was spent in talking over old times and the -strange events that had happened since their last meeting. Mynheer -Grootz, Harry learnt, had visited Winton more than once since he had -installed Adele in her property nearly a year before, and was coming -over to spend Christmas with them. Godfrey Fanshawe, now Sir Godfrey, -was a frequent visitor and had been the means of introducing them to -many of the best people in the county, who had welcomed Adele with open -arms. Madame afterwards told Harry privately that Sir Godfrey had once -more proposed to Adele, and been finally refused. Adele herself looked -older and more womanly. She had acquired considerable fluency in -English, and was fond of going about among the villagers, taking the -keenest interest in ways of life and thought so novel to her. - -"But the dear girl is not happy," said Madame with a sigh. "No, she is -not happy. I fear she is home-sick. We have sold Lindendaal and repaid -Mynheer Grootz's friend who so generously bought up that odious man's -mortgages. But Adele was happier at Lindendaal than she is here. She -has been restless ever since we came to England, and you would be -surprised to know, Harry, how she throws herself lately into the details -of this horrible war. The _Courant_ comes to us every day by the coach -from London, and the house is littered, perfectly littered, mon ami, -with maps of Italy. Decidedly she is a changed creature." - -"Mamma," interrupted Adele, "don't give Monsieur Harry a wrong idea. I -am happy enough, but----" - -"He! voila!" exclaimed Madame with a little gesture. "She is happy, -but----" - -"And what is this business that required my presence?" said Harry, to -relieve the girl of her manifest embarrassment. - -"Oh! Adele must explain that. It has been her affair always." - -"Really, Mamma, I think you should explain. You wrote to Monsieur -Harry." - -"Eh bien! but it was you who told me what to say. No, I leave it to you: -I have no head for affairs, especially for affairs so complicated. But -it is growing late, and Harry must be tired. We will let him have a -good night's rest: then to-morrow, ma cherie, you can have a whole -morning together." - -The morning turned out bright, and after breakfast Adele proposed a walk -round the grounds. Harry was nothing loth, and when Madame did not -offer to accompany them, he concluded that, living in England, she had -decided to conform to English ways. In the course of that ramble Harry -heard a story that amazed him. - -During the past year Adele had made many friends among the villagers, -and one friend in particular, old Gaffer Minshull. She had been -specially gracious to him for the sake of Katrinka, who, however quick -she might be in learning how to cook Wiltshire bacon and to sing -Wiltshire songs, was certainly slow in learning Wiltshire English. The -Lady Squire, as he called her, had become a great favourite with the old -man, and, as she grew accustomed to his dialect, he talked to her freely -about the village, the late parson, and the late squire, of whom he was -no longer "afeard". Adele, like everyone else, had always been puzzled -about Mr. Berkeley's hatred of Harry, and she asked the old man whether -he knew of any reason for it beyond his being the son of the squire's -sturdy opponent, Parson Rochester. Minshull confessed that he was as -much perplexed as she. The old squire's man Jock had told him of the -incident witnessed at the park gate on the day of Harry's departure for -London, when, seeing him walk by, Mr. Berkeley had looked as if he had -had a shock; and he remembered that Squire had left the Hall in a -post-chaise the next day, though whither they went Jock never would -tell. - -This set Adele thinking. She made further enquiries of the old man. -Had not the squire a brother? At the question Minshull looked hard at -her, and replied with some hesitation that such was the case; he had a -brother, or rather a step-brother. Adele enquired what had become of -him; she knew, for Grootz had made no secret of his discovery; but she -asked in order to get more information. He died, said the old man, on -the Dover road; a fine young man, though he did hold to that false -Charles One and his light son Charles Two. Then insensibly the old man -was led on to talk at large; he seemed anxious to ease his mind of a -burden; and with the garrulity of old age, and being no longer "afeard" -of the squire, he at length poured out the whole pitiful story. - -Forty-seven years before, in '59, when he was a Republican trooper and -his regiment was stationed at Blackheath, he was passing one morning -through London on his way back to camp after--he was ashamed to confess -it--a riotous night. Suddenly he was called into a church to witness a -marriage. No one was present save the clergy, bride and bridegroom, and -the other witness, apparently a lady's-maid. In his half-fuddled state -he had no clear recollection of anything beyond the facts that he signed -his name and came away with a guinea. - -About a year later, after the Restoration, when his regiment was -gloomily expecting the order for disbandment, he was strolling one -evening in the direction of Shooter's Hill, and attracted by a crowd -about an inn door. A young gentleman had been discovered a few miles -down the road, lying unconscious, and severely wounded. He had been -brought to the inn, and soon afterwards his servant appeared, a -Frenchman, who had fled when his master was attacked by footpads. From -him it was learnt that the name of the wounded man was Berkeley, and -that he was on his way to Winton St. Mary to take possession of the -family estates. Minshull, out of sheer curiosity, asked with many other -bystanders to be shown the unfortunate gentleman, and to his amazement -he recognized him as the bridegroom whose wedding he had witnessed -nearly a year before. A message was sent to Winton St. Mary, and two -days later Mr. Nicolas Berkeley appeared on the scene. Minshull -meanwhile had hung about, partly out of curiosity, partly out of -interest in the man whose murder had followed so quickly upon his -marriage. - -The wounded man never recovered consciousness. He died soon after his -brother's arrival. Minshull found an opportunity of speaking to the -squire, and condoled with him on the loss of so handsome a brother, and -on the sad plight of the young widow left to mourn his loss. Mr. -Berkeley had appeared surprised at the mention of a widow, and asked the -trooper to tell him all he knew. This was very little; he could not -remember the church where the marriage had been performed, nor the name -of the bride; all he was sure of was the identity of the bridegroom; he -did not even remember the name Berkeley. The squire had shaken his head -and frowned: a secret marriage!--there was something suspicious in that; -his brother had some reason to be ashamed of his alliance: he would look -into it; but for the present it was best to drop the curtain on the -episode. He had then offered the trooper a situation at the Hall, which -Minshull, with no settled livelihood after nearly twenty years' military -service, eagerly accepted. He received good wages, and by and by a -cottage on the estate. He was well aware that the squire treated him -thus generously to keep his mouth shut, and though many times he had -felt the prick of conscience, he was so comfortable, and, as time went -on, so much afraid of the squire, that he had never broken the tacit -pact between them. - -Old Minshull's story worked so powerfully upon Adele's imagination that -she became at length ill at ease. What had become of the bride whose -marriage he had witnessed? Adele remembered how Eustace Berkeley had -spoken of her in his letters to Mary de Vaudrey; she remembered, too, -that he had married under a feigned name. Her uneasiness grew so -intolerable that she persuaded her mother, not without difficulty, to -put the facts before the same lawyer whom Mynheer Grootz had -employed--Mr. Swettenham Tape of Lincoln's Inn. He warned her that -enquiry might result in the loss of her property, but she insisted on an -investigation, and as it promised to be an interesting enquiry, the -attorney took it up with enthusiasm. - -One of his first steps was to interrogate Mr. Berkeley's man Jock, who -had driven with his master to Hungerford on that November day three -years before. As the result of the interview, the lawyer himself made a -journey to Hungerford, where he called at the parsonage and had a -conversation with the vicar, enquiring particularly about his -predecessors in the living. He learnt that the former rector had died -in 1680 at the age of sixty-eight, leaving a grandson, his only -daughter's child, a young man of twenty-one who had just taken deacon's -orders. The grandson's name was Rochester. Did the vicar know anything -of the young man's father? Nothing but the vaguest rumours; it was -generally understood that Lucy Rochester's husband had deserted her a -few months after their marriage, and that was naturally a subject on -which the family would say nothing. Was the lady still living? She had -died ten years before her father. If Mr. Tape desired further details, -there was one person who might gratify him if she wished: the wife of -the landlord of the Bear Inn, who had been lady's-maid to Mistress -Rochester. - -The attorney hastened to the inn, engaged a room for the night, and took -the first opportunity of having a gossip with Mrs. Pemberton, the -hostess, a comely, pleasant old dame of near seventy years. She had the -keenest recollection of the one romantic incident of her life. Mistress -Lucy!--of course she remembered the sweet pretty creature. She had been -with her in London the year before the King came back, when she was -visiting her aunt. And Mr. Rochester, too--ah! such a handsome young -gentleman; but a wicked deceiver, she feared. He had protected Mistress -Lucy from footpads one evening: that was the beginning of it, and the -end was a marriage, and a sad end it was, for Mr. Rochester went away to -France three months afterwards, on some urgent business which he did not -explain, and he never returned. Mrs. Rochester remained for nearly a -year in London, then returned to her father at Hungerford with her -infant son, a bonny boy who grew up a blessing to her, and became a -parson, and died only three years back at Winton St. Mary, she had -heard. - -Mr. Tape asked whether she remembered the church in which the wedding -had taken place. To be sure she did; it was St. Andrew's Undershaft; -she remembered how dark it looked, and how awed the other witness had -appeared to be, a rough soldier who was fetched in from the street, and -was a little overtaken with liquor. And, strange to say, this was the -second time she had been asked about this incident of long ago, a -miserable-looking old gentleman having called upon her three years -before; after talking with her, he had left the house without so much as -asking for a tankard of her home-brewed. - -On returning to London, the attorney examined the register of St. -Andrew's Undershaft, and made a copy of the entry of a marriage on June -19, 1659, between Eustace Rochester, bachelor, of St. Andrew's parish, -and Lucy Fleming, spinster, of Hungerford. The information given by -Gaffer Minshull and Mrs. Pemberton was then embodied in affidavits, and -the whole case being complete, Mr. Tape laid the result of his -investigations before Madame de Vaudrey and her daughter, and asked for -their instructions. - -Harry had listened to Adele's story, as they rambled round and round the -park, with a strange mixture of emotions. Astonishment was perhaps the -dominant one, but there was also the happiness of knowing something -about his family, and dismay at the knowledge that he, and not Adele, -was the rightful owner of the Berkeley estates. - -"Why, then you are my cousin, Adele!" he said. - -"Yes, Harry,--and you are head of the family." - -"How plain it makes everything! And do you know, I pity the wretched -old man who has lived for nearly fifty years with these crimes on his -conscience. He must have led a miserable life." - -"That is why I am glad all is discovered. I should lead a miserable -life too if I found I was enjoying what did not belong to me." - -"But that is nonsense, Adele. You don't imagine I shall take the -estates? Not I. The good folks here adore you already; I won't take -from them their lady squire." - -"You must." - -"No, no! Only weak or foolish sovereigns abdicate, Adele: you are not -weak or foolish. Besides, I have my career. I am on the high road to -preferment. Prince Eugene has given me a regiment, and--I didn't mean -to tell you this--promises me an estate and a title in Austria." - -"And you know perfectly well that you would rather be plain Mr. -Berkeley, an English squire, than count or prince or royal highness in -Austria. No; I will not listen to you: if you insist on being an -Austrian--well, I shall give up the estates to the crown: Queen Anne -shall be lady of the manor." - -"You cannot: you are not of age, and Madame would never hear of it." - -"Mr. Henry Berkeley, I have only two years to wait." - -They had come round to the gate leading from the park to the graveyard. - -"Come and see the monument the people put up in the church to your -father, Harry," said Adele, with a change of tone. He opened the gate -for her; she passed through, then turned, and said: "It is you or Queen -Anne, Mr. Berkeley." - -Harry was on the other side of the gate. They looked into each other's -eyes. He knew her strength of character: he had no doubt that she would -do anything to which she had made up her mind. He was troubled, and, -resting his arms on the upper bar of the gate, stood thus pondering. - -"Adele," he said presently, "but for me you would stay at the Hall?" - -"If I were the rightful owner, certainly; but now it is clearly -impossible." - -"Not quite impossible, Adele, even so." - -He waited for an answer, but she was unexpectedly silent, her eyes cast -down. - -"Not quite impossible, Adele. If you will not stay for any other -reason--tell me, Adele, will you not stay for my sake?" - -Still she made no answer, only looked up with a shy startled glance. -But in that look Harry found courage to repeat his question. - - * * * * * - -"Never did I ply my fark at such a roaren dinner--never in my born days; -I tells 'ee true, souls." - -"Ay, I seed 'ee myself, Lumpy, a-scoopen chidlens an' plum-pudden an' -furmenty into your thropple till I thowt 'ee'd bust. 'Twere noble -eatin', to be sure." - -"Ay, Soapy, an' cost a pretty penny, I warrant. Squire Harry be a -different sart o' feller to old Squire as was. Never did he gi' us a -warmen-up, nor never would, if there'd ha' bin farty weddens." - -"Why bean't every day a marryen day? 'T'ould keep all our innards warm -an' cosy 'ithout us doen a hand's turn." - -"'T'ould be the ruin of a poor stunpoll like 'ee, Jemmy. I'm afeard -'ee'll never be a man, an' if 'ee got your vittles so easy 'ee'd be more -like a fatted calf 'n ever." - -"Ah! I knows my dumb brain be weak by natur'. I mind how dazed I were -the black day young pa'son went to Lun'on, and John painter made Mis'ess -Joplady's pictur' the colour o' sut." - -"An' it'll be the colour o' sut to-morrer, souls, I gi' my word for -that. They tells me 'tis treason, but John painter do blot out Queen's -yead to-morrer, and inn turns to Berkeley Arms again." - -"Like a 'ooman, changes her name at a wedden.--Ah! here be neighbour -Minshull; a scantling o' cheese and a mug o' old stingo for gaffer, -Mistress Joplady; he'll want a summat to comfort un, poor aged soul, -this night o' fearsome joy." - -"True, Tom cobbler, I be gone eighty-vive. I ha' seed un home-along, -souls; my boy Sherebiah be a man at last, an' I be proud as a -grandfeyther a'ready. Never did I think my boy an' young pa'son 'd say -the awful words in church the same day. 'I take thee, Addle,' says -Master Harry in a feelin' key, and 'I take thee, Katrinka,' says my boy -when the gentry was done; and they little small words do have a world o' -better or wuss in 'em." - -"Ay, gaffer; 'ee can sing 'Now lettest thou thy sarvant depart', wi' a -honest mind, hey!" - -"Hoy! Not me! I bean't got no vurther 'n 'My soul doth magnify' yet. -I'll bide a bit longer afore I goos to churchyard, trust me. My boy as -was do say there'll be another wedden afore long; the Dutchman and -Mis'ess Addle's mother be a-comen to't. He've been sweet on her, a' -b'lieve, for many a forlorn day. My boy ha' carried many a noble gift -from the man to th' 'ooman." - -"Two furreners makes a better match nor one o' one sart, t'other o' -t'other. Mistress Addle be a goodly maid, nesh as a ripe apple; but her -be French; that you cannet deny; and French and English be like oil and -vinegar." - -"And what do mix better in a sallet-dressen?--tell me that, souls." - -"Ay, Mistress Joplady, we cannet gainsay 'ee on a matter o' that -homeliness; but what med 'ee say o' the name? Addle! it bean't a very -coaxen name for a squire's lady, be jowned if it be." - -"Dear lamb! to take her name in vain! You, Soapy Dick you, we all knows -'ee for a addle-pate; else your hair wouldn' grow so fiery red. What do -a bide-at-home like 'ee know o' high names an' titles? Addle be the -true French for a bloomy cheek--Sherry Minshull telled me so hisself. -Bean't that the true meanen on't, gaffer?" - -"Sherry's yead be full o' rare knowledge, Mis'ess. But daze me, name or -no name, 'tis all one: French her were, English her be; and if any -twanken feller do say her bean't good, and comely, and a comforten wife -for young Squire--why, old as I be I'll try the thickness of his poll, I -will so." - -"I'll help 'ee, gaffer. My weak head cannet make no goodness out o' -Addle, but her gi' me a zilver zixpence for choppen wood, her did, and -if I cracks a poll wi' 'ee, mebbe her'll gi' me another." - -"Ay, hers be a good heart, 'tis true. Why, her went along to Grange and -begged and prayed young Sir Godfrey to putt poor Willum Nokes back into -'s ancient place o' constable. And Sir Godfrey he can't refuse her -nothen, for all her have refused he, as 'tis said; and so wi' noo year -poor Willum'll be back in his little small cottage, a-rulen over parish -in the Queen's name once more." - -"Such changes as the world do see! Look 'ee, souls, I be eighty-vive, -and I've seed a mort o' things in my time. I ha' growed like a oak from -boy well-nigh to grandfeyther, an' seed six high and mighty sovrans goo -to yearth: two Jameses, two Charleses, Noll Crum'ell, and Dutch Willum -to end the tale. Ay, the world be full o' ups and downs. To think, now, -that old Squire--him as once I were so tarrible afeard on--be now eatin' -the bread and water of affliction in a Lun'on prison-house! And they do -say as how his son Piers be joined in matrimony to a Dutch 'ooman o' -great tonnage, full o' years an' goold pieces. An he were a right youth -a'd pay his old feyther's debts an' set the captive free; but not he, I -warrant: he'll lay out all the goold th' old wife gies un on wigs and -furbelows. And there be Squire Harry--young pa'son as was: who'd a -thowt, when his poor feyther went under ground, 'twas a rightful squire -Bill sexton had dug for, and the boy a-droppen warm tears into his -holler grave ought to ha' been squire that minute in his place? Ay, I -mind the sermon as pa'son spoke out in church fust Sunday arter news -come o' Master Harry bein' true squire. I seed un climb pulpit steps, -and I know'd by the spread o' his petticoats summat awful for poor -sinners was a-comen, an' I felt all leery down the small o' my back. -'God is the judge,' says pa'son in his slow, tarrifyen way: 'he putteth -down one, and setteth up another.' That were the holy text, out of Thy -sarvant David's psa'ms, and daze me if pa'son didn't scarify old Squire -as if 'twas pa'son hisself was choused out o' his rightful proputty. -'Twas a powerful bit o' preachen; every 'ooman there was took wi' a -longen to let the water-drops tummle, but none on 'em durst begin till -Mis'ess Addle's mother set the key. Then 'twas a little Noah's flood; -you mind, souls?--such a fall o' tears bean't seed in Winton Simmary -since pa'son told us Princess Henrietta were dead in France." - -"And be Squire Harry a-gwine to gi' up the trade o' killen, and bide at -home wi' poor peaceful folks like we as never slays nowt but pigs and -other beasts o' the field?" - -"Ay, 'tis so. My boy do zay he med ha' been a knight or lard at a word -wi' Prince Eugene; but bless 'ee, he've got his lands to look arter, and -we poor folks besides, and like his feyther afore un he have a true -heart for home an' friends. Why, he wouldn' gi' up the charge o' we -poor souls, not to be the Lord's anointed." - -"Hark 'ee, Gaffer Minshull; bean't they the bells at last?" - -"Ay, 'tis so. Pa'son commanded a peal at zeven o'clock by way o' holy -consolation to bride an' bridegroom. Old Everlasten ha' took his coat -off; 'tis he do call the changes; and i' feck, the bells 'll romp -through a rare randy afore he've done wi' 'em. Now, sonnies, what d'ye -say to wenden out-along an' callen choir and orchestry together? Then -we'll march up t' Hall, and sing 'em a lively ditty as 'll cheer 'em up -arter the Christian doens o' the day. Sackbut, psalteery, an' all sarts -o' music, says the Book; we cannet muster they holy instruments, to be -sure, but wi' fiddle and bass-viol and serpent, and a little bit o' -tribble an' bass, we'll make a shift to raise a goodish randy toon. -What d'ye say, sonnies?" - -"Be jowned if it bean't a fine notion for such a old aged martal. Ay, -let's out-along and make all the nise we can." - -"A thimbleful afore 'ee goos, souls. Mugs all, an' lift up your hearts -in a noble cheer for Squire an' Lady Squire, wishen 'em long life an' a -happy end. All together now; spet it out o' your wynd-pipes; hurray! -hurray! hurray!" - - - - - *CHAPTER XXVII* - - *Visitors at Winton Hall* - - -Weather-bound--A Home Circle--Marlborough Unbends--Of Princes--A Certain -Harry Rochester - - -One January evening, in the year 1712, a little group was gathered in -the turret-room of Winton Hall. The wind was roaring without; snow had -been falling steadily all day; but within all was warmth and peace. A -big wood fire blazed on the open hearth, lighting up with its ruddy -glare as charming a scene as any English country-house could show. It -was the children's hour; little Eustace Berkeley, a sturdy boy of five, -stood by his mother's knee on one side of the hearth, and on the other, -Mary, two years younger, nestled in her father's arms. - -Squire Berkeley looked up from his copy of the _Courant_. - -"The duke is dismissed from all his offices, Adele." - -"What that mean, Faver?" said the boy instantly. - -"The Queen has sent away the great man who fought her battles so -bravely; he will hang up his sword and perhaps never use it again." - -"Why did the naughty Queen send the great duke away, Faver?" - -"Why naughty tween send dute away?" echoed Mary, a golden-haired fairy, -the image, as Mevrouw Grootz was wont to declare, of Adele at the same -age. - -"Because the Queen does not like him as she used to do. She likes -somebody else better, and there are unkind people who whisper in her ear -stories about him that are very likely not true. He is a great man, -Eustace, and there are always little men to say unkind things about the -great." - -"Are you a great man, Faver?" - -"No, my son; I am a plain English squire, that would rather live here -with you all than in any king's palace." - -"But your father might have been a great man," said Mistress Berkeley. -"A great prince----" - -"Nay, nay, my dear," interrupted the squire, "leave that story till the -children are older. It is bed-time now, my chicks. Hark how the wind -roars! Think of the little birds out in the cold; they have no warm -cosy cots like yours. In the morning, remember, we are to make a figure -of the great duke in the snow.--But what is that?" - -The deep-toned house-bell had clanged in the hall below. - -"'Tis late for a visitor, and in this snowstorm too!" - -He threw open the door, and stood waiting. In a few moments a man -appeared. - -"An't please 'ee, sir, a coach be snowed up a hunnerd yards or so beyond -church, an' the travellers be come afoot to axe if 'ee'll give 'em -shelter." - -"Of course! I will come down. Tell Dick to take a couple of horses and -haul the coach out of the drift, and ask Sherebiah to prepare some hot -cordial." - -He followed the man downstairs. Just within the doorway stood two white -figures muffled up to the ears in long cloaks. They doffed their -snow-laden hats as Harry appeared, and the elder came forward. - -"I crave your pardon, sir," he said in smooth mellow tones that revived -old memories and quickened Harry's pulse--"I crave your pardon for -troubling you at such an unseasonable hour, but my coach is blocked in a -drift a hundred yards or so beyond the church, and as my friend Lord -Godolphin is far from well, I have come to ask your hospitality until we -can free the coach and return to the inn. I am the Duke of -Marlborough." - -"Your grace is heartily welcome. But pray do me the honour to accept -beds for the night. The inn is near a mile away, and you are cold and -wet. Let me remove your things. I have already sent a man to bring -your coach to my stables, and there is a good fire above." - -"I thank you. I cannot resist your invitation. To whom are we indebted -for our welcome?" - -"Henry Berkeley, my lord; this is Winton Hall." - -"Ah! I remember the name. There was some little romance, if I mistake -not, about the inheritance a few years since. Thank you, Mr. Berkeley! -this is indeed a haven of refuge to worn-out travellers." - -Divested of their outer garments and provided with slippers, the two -noblemen preceded their host up the stairs. At the door of the -turret-room he advanced a few paces. - -"My dear, his grace the Duke of Marlborough and Lord Godolphin. They -are our guests to-night." - -Mistress Berkeley rose and made a sweeping curtsy, blushing prettily, -and throwing a half-startled, half-amused glance at her husband. The -children made round eyes of wonder. - -"Madame, 'tis a charming welcome. We were driving to my lord Pembroke's -at Wilton Park, and were besnowed. 'Tis indeed a delightful -transformation." - -He patted the children's cheeks playfully. Lord Godolphin, who was -evidently ill, had already thrown himself wearily into a chair. - -"Well, my little man, what is your name?" asked Marlborough of the boy. - -"Eustace Berkeley, sir." - -"A pretty name, egad. And what would you like to be when you are a man, -eh?" - -"A soldier, and wear a red coat, and a sword, and fight for the Queen." - -"A proper answer, indeed. Well, if you grow strong, and do what your -father and mother tell you, you may be a soldier one day, and -perhaps--who knows?--a great man." - -"I do not want to be a great man." - -"Why not, my boy?" - -"Faver says people are not kind to great men, and the Queen likes -somebody else better, and sends them away." - -"A little philosopher already, Mr. Berkeley," said my lord, smiling at -the child. "Well, well, my little fellow, be a good man; not even the -Queen could wish you better than that." - -"'Tis the children's bed hour, my lord," said Mistress Berkeley. "I -pray you excuse me." - -As mother and children left the room, Sherebiah, who as butler at Winton -Hall had settled down as a very comfortable man of peace, entered with a -tray on which were silver tankards of mulled wine. The good fellow -looked not a day older than when he had led Katrinka to the altar six -years before. He placed the tray on a table and silently withdrew. The -guests sipped the grateful liquor and sat in tired silence gazing into -the fire. - -Presently Mistress Berkeley returned. - -"Supper is served, my lords," she said. - -"A sweet word to famished men." - -The duke offered her his arm and led the way to the supper room, -followed by Lord Godolphin and Harry. At the table he kept up an -animated conversation with his hostess, yielding as all men did to the -charm of a rarely gracious personality. Lord Godolphin was as little -inclined to talk as to eat. When the cloth was removed, and Sherebiah -had placed bottles on the table and left the gentlemen to themselves, -Marlborough crossed his knees and said: - -"Egad, Mr. Berkeley, you are a lucky man, with such a wife and such -children. We could not have fared more happily--eh, my lord?" - -"Nay indeed," replied Godolphin, thawing a little. "We could never have -reached Wilton to-night. The wind, hark you, is gaining in fury--a -sorry night for travellers." - -"Ay; that poor wretch at Basingstoke is well quit of his troubles. A -sad case, Mr. Berkeley; but too common, I fear. 'Twas a broken soldier; -they had clapt him in the stocks as a vagrant; never in my life saw I a -more piteous object. He was outside the inn, and hailed me as we -alighted to dine and change horses. Had fought at Blenheim, he told me, -captain in a Hanoverian regiment, Aglionby by name, and lately returned -from the Indies. We had him released; but the poor fellow was even worse -than he seemed; for he died of a sudden before we left the inn. He was -on his way to this very village to see a cousin, I bethink me he said. -'Tis thus we serve the men who have fought our battles." - -There was a note of bitterness in Marlborough's voice. - -"Your pity, I fear, was ill-deserved, my lord," said the Squire. "I -know the man. He fought at Blenheim, indeed, but on the other side, and -for treasonable practices was sent some six years ago on a long term to -the Plantations. He must have escaped." - -"Poor wretch! He had a miserable end. In spite of what you tell me, -Mr. Berkeley, I pity him. Such is the fate of too many loyal soldiers -also, the innocent victims of war. You who live a quiet country life -have certainly chosen the better part. The prizes of court and camp are -in the end but Dead-Sea fruit. 'Put not your trust in princes': 'tis -the truest of warnings, as we old stagers--eh, my lord?--have reason to -know." - -A cheerful fire, good fare, and a fine vintage of much-travelled Madeira -had completed the good impression made by the host. The elder men began -to talk freely, with none of the constraint which the presence of a -younger man and a stranger might in other circumstances have produced. -Harry was amused to find that the passage of years had altered him -beyond recognition, and wondered when a suitable opportunity would occur -of recalling himself to the recollection of his guests. All at once -Lord Godolphin said: - -"'Tis strange, Mr. Berkeley, that I am for the second time detained in -this village by an accident. My host on that occasion was, I think, a -Mr. Fanshawe. Is he still living? It was ten years ago." - -"Sir Godfrey Fanshawe is dead, my lord; his son now owns the Grange." - -"It all comes back to me. We were travelling to London--Frank and I, -Jack--and our coach broke down as we left a cricket match. Sir Godfrey -Fanshawe was good enough to give us beds for the night, and we had gone -but a few miles on the road next morning when we were pulled up by a -fallen tree, and in a trice were looking down the muzzles of -half-a-dozen horse pistols. I had sent some of my young men ahead to -arrange a change of horses; the others bolted, and there we were in the -midst of the gang. 'Twas an uncommonly tight place; Frank, always handy -with his pistol, got in a shot, but in another half-minute we should -have been stripped or worse when there came from the wall at our left a -wild hullabaloo worse than a dozen Thames bargemen touting for a fare. -The rascals turned tail and bolted; over the wall sprang a man and a -boy, and egad, I remember now how I laughed when they told me they'd -done the trick betwixt 'em. 'Twas a rare flam. And the boy----" - -"I think, my lord----" began Harry, feeling somewhat uncomfortable; but -Marlborough, setting his glass down on the table, bent forward and -interrupted. - -"Egad, Godolphin, you bring things back to me. The boy--we were always -going to do something for him. He found his way to the Low Countries, -and showed himself a lad of mettle. I came across him once or twice; -noted him--for the second time, by the way--for an ensigncy, and found -that he was already a cornet in a Dutch regiment. He did well with -Eugene, I believe. Rochester--that was his name--Harry Rochester. I -wonder what became of him! Certainly he owed nothing to -patronage--yours or mine. Wasn't he the son of the parson here? Mr. -Berkeley, has he ever revisited these parts? 'Pon my soul, I should -like to meet him again." - -"I was about to explain, your grace, that--I am that Harry Rochester." - - - - - * * * * * * * * - - - - - *A Selection from the Catalogue of* - - *G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS* - - *Complete Catalogues sent - on application* - - - - - *The Light Brigade - in Spain* - - *or* - - *The Last Fight of Sir John Moore* - - *By Herbert Strang* - - Author of "Tom Burnaby," etc. - - With a Preface by Lieut.-Col. WILLOUGHBY VERNER. - - Illustrated by William Rainey, R.I. 12mo. $1.50 - - -"In 'Boys of the Light Brigade' Mr. Strang draws upon the resources of -the Peninsular War, and succeeds in extracting much freshness from -well-worn themes, as Moore's retreat to Corunna and the heroic defence -of Saragossa. The personal interest of the story is kept at a high -tension.... It is a book which no boy will be able to put down when -once started. The volume is provided with excellent maps and plans of -the scenes in which the incidents take place."--_The Standard_. - -"This author has fairly earned the right to be accepted as the -legitimate successor of the late George A. Henty in furnishing -entertainment for youth. Like Henty, Strang manages to galvanize the -dry bones of history into a close semblance of glorious life.... The -present volume contains vivid and spirited descriptions of campaign life -in Spain ... with many rare and interesting episodes.... This is good -reading for young and old."--_Chicago Post_. - -"The author describes graphically with truth to history the last fight -of the British commander, Sir John Moore. It is a stirring military -story in the manner of those written by the late George A. Henty, but -really with more authenticity."--_Philadelphia Press_. - -"An interesting story, with extra good measure in its incidents and -character ... and with some pretty little love passages."--_Cleveland -Leader_. - - - - * * * * * * * * - - - - - _BY THE SUCCESSOR TO HENTY_ - - *KOBO* - - *A Story of the Russo-Japanese War* - - *By HERBERT STRANG* - - Author of "The Light Brigade in Spain," etc. - - _Illustrated by William Rainey, R.I. 12mo, $1.50_ - - -"It is a dashing romance for boys, founded on the Russo-Japanese War and -worthy of the late Mr. Henty at his best. A story that every schoolboy -will enjoy and one that will be read with much pleasure and profit by -many older readers as well."--_Cleveland Leader_. - -"The story throughout bristles with adventures, it is well written and -the author shows intimate knowledge of Japanese character and -customs."--_San Francisco Bulletin_. - -"In one respect Mr. Strang's tale is even better than many of the late -G. A. Henty's. It has more dash and dialogue. These are strong points -in the work of this writer, who is destined to fill the place vacated by -the lamented author of 'Under Drake's Flag,' and 'With Clive in -India.'"--_The Dundee Advertiser_. - -"For vibrant actuality there is nothing to come up to Mr. Strang's -'Kobo.'"--_The Academy_. - -"A great amount of actual military history is incorporated with an -exciting and romantic plot."--_The Westminster Gazette_. - - - - * * * * * * * * - - - - - *By ELBRIDGE S. BROOKS* - - -Historic Boys. Their Endeavors, Their Achievements and Their Times. -With 29 full-page illustrations. 8vo, pp. viii + 259. - - -Historic Girls. Stories of Girls Who Have Influenced the History of -Their Times. 8vo, illustrated, pp. viii + 225. - - -Chivalric Days and Youthful Deeds. Stirring Stories, presenting -faithful pictures of historic times. Illustrated, 8vo. $1.25 - - -Heroic Happenings. Told in Verse and Story. Illustrated, 8vo. $1.25 - - -Great Men's Sons. Stories of the Sons of Great Men from Socrates to -Napoleon. Fully illustrated, 8vo. $1.25 - -Including the Sons of Socrates, Alexander, Cicero, Marcus Aurelius, -Mahomet, Charlemagne, Alfred, William the Conqueror, Saladin, Dante, -Tamerlane, Columbus, Luther, Shakespeare, Cromwell, Peter the Great, -Napoleon. - - -The Long Walls. An American Boy's Adventures in Greece. A Story of -Digging and Discovery, Temples and Treasures. By E. S. Brooks and John -Alden. Illustrated by George Foster Barnes. 8vo. $1.25 - - - - * * * * * * * * - - - - - *FOR YOUNG PEOPLE* - - *ROYAL ROGUES* - -By ALBERTA BANCROFT. With Illustrations by Louis Betts. 12mo. $1.25 - -There are few healthy-minded folk, whatever their time of life, who will -not confess to a fondness for fairy tales of the right sort. "Royal -Rogues" has that quality which makes a children's book win the hearts of -grown-ups. The heroes are merry twin rogues, king's sons of course, but -with a strain of fairy blood in their veins. Wildly strange and -delightful are their explorations in the realms of fairyland. - -"A charming story ... must be accounted one of the prettiest and -cleverest of modern fairy stories."--_Worcester Spy_. - - - *ON BOARD A WHALER* - -An Adventurous Cruise through Southern Seas. By THOMAS WEST HAMMOND. -With 16 full-page illustrations by HARRY GEORGE BURGESS. 12mo. $1.25 - -"Thrilling throughout.... In the name of American youth, we thank Mr. -Hammond for resuscitating a memory that had slumbered so long."--_Com. -Advertiser_. - -"The yarn he spins of that and other trips in search of oil is one of -the best I ever read. It is indeed a thrilling, exciting, dangerous -story of the sea, a tale of personal experience put into book form by as -brave a sailor as ever chased whales, and it is full of that local color -which makes a fellow's blood tingle as he turns the pages. The -illustrations are excellent."--HENRY HAYNIE in _The Boston Times_. - - - *G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS - NEW YORK LONDON* - - - - * * * * * * * * - - - - *By HERBERT STRANG* - - -The Adventures of Harry Rochester: A Tale of the Days of Marlborough and -Eugene. - -The Light Brigade in Spain; or, The Last Fight of Sir John Moore. - -Kobo. A Story of the Russo-Japanese War. - - - - - - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ADVENTURES OF HARRY -ROCHESTER *** - - - - -A Word from Project Gutenberg - - -We will update this book if we find any errors. - -This book can be found under: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/44362 - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no one -owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and -you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission -and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, set forth in the -General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to copying and -distributing Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic works to protect the -Project Gutenberg(tm) concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a -registered trademark, and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, -unless you receive specific permission. If you do not charge anything -for copies of this eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may -use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative -works, reports, performances and research. They may be modified and -printed and given away - you may do practically _anything_ with public -domain eBooks. Redistribution is subject to the trademark license, -especially commercial redistribution. - - - -The Full Project Gutenberg License - - -_Please read this before you distribute or use this work._ - -To protect the Project Gutenberg(tm) mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work (or -any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project -Gutenberg(tm) License available with this file or online at -http://www.gutenberg.org/license. - - -Section 1. General Terms of Use & Redistributing Project Gutenberg(tm) -electronic works - - -*1.A.* By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg(tm) -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all the -terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy all -copies of Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic works in your possession. If -you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project -Gutenberg(tm) electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the -terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or -entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. - -*1.B.* "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few things -that you can do with most Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic works even -without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See paragraph -1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg(tm) electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement -and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic -works. See paragraph 1.E below. - -*1.C.* The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the -Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of -Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic works. Nearly all the individual works -in the collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an -individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are -located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you -from copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating -derivative works based on the work as long as all references to Project -Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the -Project Gutenberg(tm) mission of promoting free access to electronic -works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg(tm) works in compliance with -the terms of this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg(tm) name -associated with the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this -agreement by keeping this work in the same format with its attached full -Project Gutenberg(tm) License when you share it without charge with -others. - - -*1.D.* The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in -a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check -the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement -before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or -creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project -Gutenberg(tm) work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning -the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United -States. - -*1.E.* Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: - -*1.E.1.* The following sentence, with active links to, or other -immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg(tm) License must appear -prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg(tm) work (any work -on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the -phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, -performed, viewed, copied or distributed: - - This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with - almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away - or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License - included with this eBook or online at http://www.gutenberg.org - -*1.E.2.* If an individual Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic work is -derived from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating -that it is posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can -be copied and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying -any fees or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a -work with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on -the work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs -1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the -Project Gutenberg(tm) trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or -1.E.9. - -*1.E.3.* If an individual Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic work is -posted with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and -distribution must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and -any additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms -will be linked to the Project Gutenberg(tm) License for all works posted -with the permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of -this work. - -*1.E.4.* Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project -Gutenberg(tm) License terms from this work, or any files containing a -part of this work or any other work associated with Project -Gutenberg(tm). - -*1.E.5.* Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg(tm) License. - -*1.E.6.* You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any -word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or -distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg(tm) work in a format other than -"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version -posted on the official Project Gutenberg(tm) web site -(http://www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or -expense to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a -means of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original -"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include -the full Project Gutenberg(tm) License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. - -*1.E.7.* Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg(tm) works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -*1.E.8.* You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic works -provided that - - - You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg(tm) works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed - to the owner of the Project Gutenberg(tm) trademark, but he has - agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid - within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are - legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty - payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in - Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg - Literary Archive Foundation." - - - You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg(tm) - License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all - copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue - all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg(tm) - works. - - - You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of - any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of - receipt of the work. - - - You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg(tm) works. - - -*1.E.9.* If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project -Gutenberg(tm) electronic work or group of works on different terms than -are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing -from both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael -Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg(tm) trademark. Contact the -Foundation as set forth in Section 3. below. - -*1.F.* - -*1.F.1.* Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg(tm) collection. -Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic works, and the -medium on which they may be stored, may contain "Defects," such as, but -not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or corrupt data, transcription -errors, a copyright or other intellectual property infringement, a -defective or damaged disk or other medium, a computer virus, or computer -codes that damage or cannot be read by your equipment. - -*1.F.2.* LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right -of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg(tm) trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg(tm) electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal fees. -YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY, -BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE PROVIDED IN -PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE TRADEMARK OWNER, AND -ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR -ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES -EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. - -*1.F.3.* LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with -your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with -the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a -refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity -providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to -receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy -is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further -opportunities to fix the problem. - -*1.F.4.* Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS,' WITH NO OTHER -WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO -WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. - -*1.F.5.* Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. -If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the -law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be -interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by -the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any -provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. - -*1.F.6.* INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic works in accordance -with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, -promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic works, -harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, -that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do -or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg(tm) -work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any -Project Gutenberg(tm) work, and (c) any Defect you cause. - - -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg(tm) - - -Project Gutenberg(tm) is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers -including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists -because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from -people in all walks of life. - -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg(tm)'s -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg(tm) collection will remain -freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure and -permanent future for Project Gutenberg(tm) and future generations. To -learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and -how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 and the -Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org . - - -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive -Foundation - - -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the state -of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal Revenue -Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification number is -64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at -http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/pglaf . Contributions to the -Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the -full extent permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. - -The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. -S. Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered -throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at 809 -North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email -business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact -information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official page -at http://www.pglaf.org - -For additional contact information: - - Dr. Gregory B. Newby - Chief Executive and Director - gbnewby@pglaf.org - - -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation - - -Project Gutenberg(tm) depends upon and cannot survive without wide -spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. - -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations where -we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND -DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular state -visit http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate - -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. - -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make any -statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from outside -the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. - -Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other ways -including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To donate, -please visit: http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate - - -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic -works. - - -Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg(tm) -concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared -with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project -Gutenberg(tm) eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. - -Project Gutenberg(tm) eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. unless -a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily keep eBooks -in compliance with any particular paper edition. - -Each eBook is in a subdirectory of the same number as the eBook's eBook -number, often in several formats including plain vanilla ASCII, -compressed (zipped), HTML and others. - -Corrected _editions_ of our eBooks replace the old file and take over -the old filename and etext number. The replaced older file is renamed. -_Versions_ based on separate sources are treated as new eBooks receiving -new filenames and etext numbers. - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: - - http://www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg(tm), -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. |