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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..7aa7c46 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #52833 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/52833) diff --git a/old/52833-0.txt b/old/52833-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 7295958..0000000 --- a/old/52833-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2200 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Chambers's Journal of Popular Literature, -Science, and Art, No. 733, January 12, 18, by Various - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Chambers's Journal of Popular Literature, Science, and Art, No. 733, January 12, 1878 - -Author: Various - -Editor: William Chambers - Robert Chambers - -Release Date: August 18, 2016 [EBook #52833] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CHAMBERS'S JOURNAL, JAN 12, 1878 *** - - - - -Produced by Susan Skinner and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - -[Illustration: CHAMBERS'S JOURNAL - -OF - -POPULAR - -LITERATURE, SCIENCE, AND ART. - -Fourth Series - -CONDUCTED BY WILLIAM AND ROBERT CHAMBERS. - -NO. 733. SATURDAY, JANUARY 12, 1878. PRICE 1½_d._] - - - - -THE JUBILEE SINGERS. - - -One of the most interesting and vivid of our recollections is that -of witnessing some scenes in negro slavery in the United States, now -upwards of twenty years ago--very nearly the close of the iniquity; -but of that nobody was aware. There was a novelty in seeing fairly -dressed men and women brought out for sale by public auction, and -in observing how the persons who came to buy carefully examined the -men's hands and the flexibility of their fingers, looked into their -mouths to make sure of their teeth, and having effected a removal of -the coats and shirts, scanned the bare backs to discover whether they -had suffered by the lash. Just as in buying horses in a market, it -was quite a business affair; and what was a little surprising, the -unfortunate objects of this degrading exhibition took all in good part. -But what else could they do? In the grasp of power, they knew that -resistance was worse than useless. Close by were cow-hide whips handled -by heartless ruffians voraciously chewing tobacco, as if to keep up -the proper inspiration of brutality. Across the way was seen an ugly -brick building inscribed with the word JAIL, in tall black letters on -a white ground, to which establishment, in case of remonstrance, the -poor wretches would have been instantly marched for punishment. Doom -hopeless! - -The equanimity, and indeed the good-humour, with which these blacks -seemed to endure their fate, indicated, we thought, good points -of character. Nowhere in travelling about did we observe anything -positively disagreeable, to remind us that the labourers in the fields -or the loiterers at doorways were slaves. Often, we heard singing -and jollity, as if light-heartedness was on the whole predominant. -Obviously, slave-owners were not all Legrees. On the contrary, in -many instances they shewed a kind indulgence to their ‘servants,’ as -they called them, and were pleased to see them singing, laughing, and -making merry in the intervals of rest from labour. Perhaps this is not -saying much, for the singing of slaves may be compared to the notes -of a bird in captivity, to be admired, but pitied. Anyway, there was -a disposition to seek solacement in the outpouring of song. If not -intellectually brilliant, the negro is naturally vivacious. Even when -he grows old, he is still something of a boy, with an inherent love of -frolic. He is clever in picking up tunes, and one of the complaints -which we heard against him in a free state was that if not looked -after by his master, he would continually go out to entertainments and -dance all night. A curious result of the taste for music has been the -creation of what are known as negro melodies; partly suggested by old -English airs, and by the psalm and hymn tunes that had been heard at -church or in the devotional exercises of missionaries. With a blended -simplicity and oddity, the negro airs which have gained currency are -wonderfully harmonious and touching. The time is well marked, shewing -correctness of ear, and accordingly the pieces, however eccentric -in language, are well adapted for singing in harmony by a number of -voices. From the performances of the ‘Christy Minstrels,’ as they -are usually designated--white men with blackened faces imitative of -negroes--people will have a pretty good idea of the melodies we speak -of; but we should say that the real thing is to be obtained only from a -band of genuine negroes, who for some years have been travelling about, -and who style themselves the Jubilee Singers. Of these we want to say -something. - -As is well known, the abolition of slavery in the United States was -no deliberate act of national justice and humanity, but took place -in consequence of a proclamation issued by President Lincoln in the -exigency of the civil war in 1862. Without preparation for freedom, -over four millions of slaves were thrown on their own resources. They -could work, but comparatively few of them could read; for it had been -hitherto penal to teach them. Considering their state of ignorance, and -the good grounds they generally had for resenting past treatment, they -behaved with a singular degree of moderation. What, however, was to be -done with such a mass of illiterates, unaccustomed to self-reliance, -and who, even if desirous of being taught, had no means of being so? -Here comes in a bright feature of the Anglo-Saxon and Christian-minded -North. Within six months of the close of the war, societies of -benevolent individuals sprang up to extend the blessings of elementary -education to hordes of negroes; and in which movement ladies -appropriately took part. In the confusion and rankling animosities -that prevailed in the South, the efforts to uplift the negro by -means of schools were heroic, often dangerous, and always attended -with difficulty. There was likewise much good done by the American -Missionary Association. Schools, academies, and preaching stations -were at length established in quarters where they were most needed. To -complete the organisation of humanising influences, some thoughtful -individuals struck out the idea of establishing a University for the -higher education of the freed people, and training them to go forth as -ministers and teachers, as well as leaders in various departments of -civil life. - -It was easier to conceive this brilliant idea than to bring it to -a practical issue. Where was the money to come from to build a -University, to equip it properly, and to pay for professors? There -would even be a difficulty in finding a site, for few land-owners in -a central situation would be willing to promote the elevation of the -coloured races. The history of the way in which these preliminary -difficulties were overcome is about as interesting a narrative as we -ever read. Immense spirit and ingenuity were developed in bringing the -scheme into shape. Without saying what it was for, a suitable site was -procured at the price of sixteen thousand dollars, near Nashville, the -capital of Tennessee. There were already a few frame-buildings on the -spot, which were employed to accommodate a school, as a beginning of -the proposed educational operations. The institution was called the -Fisk University, in honour of General Clinton B. Fisk, who had taken -a warm interest in the undertaking. The establishment was opened in -January 1866. - -By-and-by the school, or we might say schools, throve. Thousands of -negroes were taught by a band of eager teachers, some of whom only a -short time before did not know one letter from another. There was an -honest enthusiasm in the whole affair that brought with it the blessing -of success. Again we are called on to note what good is often done by -the quiet unprompted and unselfish energy of a single individual. About -the time when the Fisk University was organised, there cast up a young -man named White, who, looking about for a means of livelihood, took up -the profession of teacher. He was the son of a village blacksmith in -the state of New York, had fought in several battles during the war, -and made himself useful in connection with the Freedman's Bureau at -Nashville. He had a special taste for vocal music, with which he amused -his leisure hours, and this accomplishment along with good business -habits, made him very acceptable as a coadjutor in the University. -White started a singing class among the negroes, male and female, who -came to get lessons in reading; and, pleased with their aptitude, he -fell upon the bold plan of drilling them as a choir of singers, who -should travel through the Northern cities in the hope of gathering -money to help the University funds. Getting his band into trim, he set -out with them on a musical excursion in October 1871, carrying with -them the good wishes of all, from the Principal of the institution -downwards. - -In our own country, the getting up of a university, or even the -enlargement of one, is ordinarily a serious affair. Unless some wealthy -person has bequeathed money for the purpose, government is worried -for grants, and the public are worried for subscriptions. Keeping -proceedings of this kind in view, one can hardly fail to be amused -with the novel and heroic notion entertained by a dozen simple-minded -negroes in trying to collect fifty to a hundred thousand pounds -for a University by mere dint of singing a few simple hymns, which -illustrious dons of the musical profession would only laugh at. Yet, -this is what was attempted. Led by White as general manager, and by -Miss Wells, who took the oversight of the girls of the party, the -negroes went on their way, poorly clothed, and with barely means to -pay for a night's lodging. We observe by the history given of them, -that they trusted a good deal to kind treatment from Congregational -and other churches. They got the gratuitous use of chapels for their -concerts, or what were termed ‘praise services,’ and when they became -known, engagements freely poured in upon them. The sweetness of the -voices, the accuracy of the execution, the precision of the time, -and the wild simplicity of the words, astonished the audiences who -listened to them; the wonder being of course augmented by the fact of -their colour and the knowledge that only a few years ago these singers -had been slaves. Although generally well received, they had at first -numerous difficulties to encounter. The expense of travelling from town -to town was considerable. To give a distinctive character to their -enterprise, they assumed the name of Jubilee Singers, significant of -their emancipation in 1862, as the year of negro jubilee! - -Their first eminent successes were at New York, Boston, and in -Connecticut. The good-will of the people took the shape not only -of money contributions, but of articles to furnish their proposed -University. A firm at Boston made them a present of a thousand dollar -organ. The singing campaign of three months over the principal parts -of the Northern states yielded, after paying all expenses, the sum of -twenty thousand dollars. The company were received at the University -with joy and thanksgiving--a prodigious triumph for White, the planner -and conductor of the expedition. - -Encouraged by this success, a second campaign followed, and the result -was another sum of twenty thousand dollars, making forty thousand -that had now been secured. In this expedition, the party encountered -various caste prejudices. Halls were refused to them; at some -railway stations they were treated with indignity, and hotel-keepers -declined to give them accommodation. At one hotel where the keeper -received them, all the waiters deserted their posts, and the Jubilee -Singers waited on themselves and blackened their own boots. These -misadventures were taken with good-humour. Having so far done well -within American territory, the party resolved to try their fortune -in Great Britain, for which purpose they were favoured with letters -of introduction likely to advance their enterprise. Curiously enough, -cabin accommodation was refused to the party by one after another of -the leading ocean steamship lines. At last they were received on board -one of the Cunard steamers, and safely and agreeably landed in England. - -The letters of introduction worked marvels. We are to contemplate the -Jubilee Singers one May afternoon in 1873, at Willis's Rooms, giving -a private concert to a select body of individuals, by invitation of -the Earl of Shaftesbury and a Committee of the Freedman's Aid Society. -There was a distinguished assemblage; the singers did their best, and -all were delighted. The Duke and Duchess of Argyll were foremost in -expressing a desire to promote the object of the party, and arranged -for a visit of the singers to Argyll Lodge the next day. This visit to -Argyll Lodge was a notable event. The Queen, who is always foremost -in works of intelligent benevolence, graciously attended for a short -time, and listened with manifest pleasure to the hymns which the -singers had learned in bondage. Her Majesty in departing, communicated -through the Duke her thanks for the gratification she had received. -These preliminary efforts insured to the Jubilee Singers a wide round -of popularity. Hospitable invitations poured in upon them from persons -of literary and political distinction. Among the most pleasurable -of these invitations was one to breakfast from Mr Gladstone, then -prime-minister, by whom they were cordially received. After breakfast, -the singers entertained the company with their wonderful music. The -intense feeling with which they sang _John Brown_, with the refrain-- - - John Brown died that the slave might be free, - -electrified the audience; and ‘never,’ said a spectator, ‘shall I -forget Mr Gladstone's rapt enthusiastic attention. His form was bent -forward, his eyes were riveted; all the intellect and soul of his great -nature seemed expressed in his countenance; and when they had finished, -he kept saying: “Isn't it wonderful? I never heard anything like it!”’ - -After spending three months in London, the Jubilee Singers proceeded -to give a round of concerts in the principal towns of England and -Scotland; being everywhere well received by large and appreciative -audiences. Financially, the excursion was eminently successful. -Nearly ten thousand pounds had been raised for the Fisk University, -besides special gifts for the purchase of philosophical apparatus, and -donations of books for the library. The money collected first and last -by the singers now amounted to about twenty thousand pounds, which -went a considerable way towards the building of the University, which -assumed shape and was opened in 1875. To reinforce the funds, another -visit to Great Britain was determined on. We cannot go into an account -of this second visit; it is enough to say that the singers again made -their appearance in all the principal towns of England and Scotland, -and were able to take back the sum of ten thousand pounds; making in -all as a result of their labours the sum of thirty thousand. Since -this time, the party have made various excursions, always increasing -the funds for the erection of college buildings; but of the exact -particulars we have no account. One of the objects in view is to erect -a building called the Livingstone Missionary Hall, designed, as we -understand, for the special preparation of missionaries for Africa. The -latest statement we see on the subject is that the Jubilee Singers have -gone on a visit to Germany, to secure funds to complete this building -and further equip the University for missionary work. - -The vicissitudes of travelling at home and abroad during several years -led to changes in the company of singers. When members were obliged to -retire, others equally qualified took their place. At different times -twenty-four persons in all have belonged to the company. All of them -have been slaves or of slave parentage. Excepting a few mulattoes, -all have been of a pure negro type; and their respective histories -offer some interesting facts concerning the condition of people of -colour in the slave states up till the period of general emancipation. -It is gratifying to know that the extraordinary change of life from -privation and contumely to comfort and public respect has not uplifted -the feelings, or materially altered the habits of the members of -the corps. In their moral and religious obligations they have ever -been irreproachable. We are told that none of them uses tobacco; and -their English friends, whose hospitalities have been so abundant, are -equally surprised, if not gratified, to find that they are inveterate -abstainers from alcoholic liquors. Considering the temptations and -buffetings of their early life, there is not a little to admire in the -conduct as well as in the accomplishments of the several individuals -composing the party. The energetic yet modest way they have acquitted -themselves in the routine of the very peculiar duties imposed on them, -is probably not often met with in parties of higher pretensions. - -We have now in brief told the story of the Jubilee Singers, and -it is more than ordinarily remarkable. A handful of freed negro -slaves undertaking by voluntary efforts to collect funds wherewith -to establish and support a University, having for its object the -higher education of the coloured population in the United States. -The enterprise has had no parallel. These negroes do not beg, nor do -they trouble people for subscriptions. They only try to raise funds -by the exercise of their talents in an honest line of industry, by -communicating pleasure to countless audiences. Amidst the frauds -and commercial rascalities of pompous pretenders that are becoming -a scandal to the age, the unselfish and noble endeavours of these -humble melodists stand out in marked contrast, as something to applaud -and to redeem human nature. The marvel of the enterprise has been -its universal success. High and low are equally pleased. Professing -no particular knowledge in music, but yielding to none in an ardent -admiration of the simpler class of national ballads and songs, we have -listened to the melodies of the Jubilee Singers with heartfelt delight. -Whether with or without instrumental accompaniment, the melodies might -be described as supplying a new relish. It has been remarked that the -greater number of the pieces are in the same scale as that in which -Scottish music is written, with the fourth and seventh tones omitted. -This would only indicate the untutored nature of their origin, and -the wonder is greater at the effects produced. Nothing is left for -us to add but an advice to our readers. It is, to take the earliest -opportunity to go and hear the JUBILEE SINGERS. - - W. C. - - - - -HELENA, LADY HARROGATE. - - -CHAPTER II.--AT CARBERY CHASE. - -The horseman, at whose approach the interesting inmate of _The -Traveller's Rest_ had so abruptly withdrawn from the place of -observation whence he was contemplating the Elizabethan front of -Carbery Court, had scarcely recognised in the lounger smoking his pipe -beneath the elm, the bronzed seafaring fellow whom he had frequently -of late encountered. But as the man moved off with hasty step and an -evident dislike to observation, the rider's eyes for a moment followed -him. - -‘A queer customer that,’ he said carelessly to himself. ‘What is he, I -wonder? If I saw that ugly face of his near Ashdown Park or Newmarket -Heath, I'd lay a trifle that he was a racing tout; in London I would -class him as a dog-dealer or dog-stealer, or possibly a sham smuggler, -one of those gruff longshore-men who waylay you with their contraband -cabbage-leaf _Trabucos_; but being here, I think he has more the look -of a real one.’ - -Having said which, he rode on, in the quiet enjoyment of a cigar, -towards the material of which it is unlikely that the leaf of any -British vegetable had contributed; while no sound but the jingling of -the bridle-rein and the tramp of the horse's feet broke the silence. -Overhead there soared aloft a living canopy of verdure, formed by -the mighty trees, that seemed to throw, as it were, a succession of -triumphal arches over the smooth carriage-road, flecked with broad bars -of light and shadow. There were vistas here and there, opening out -from between the massive trees, on which an artist's eye might have -feasted, dells clothed with beech and birch trees, fairy glens through -which trickled some brooklet fresh from its cradle among the ridges of -Dartmoor, pools on which the water-lily floated, and around which the -deer bent down their antlered heads to drink. But Jasper Denzil had -little or no appreciation of the charms of a landscape, and as he rode -on, the only comment which escaped him was evoked by the sight of the -superb old house, its many windows glistening golden in the sloping -sun, as though to challenge admiration. - -‘Tiresome old jail!’ he said, tossing away the stump of his cigar. ‘A -nice place to be mewed up in, with the London season at high-pressure, -is this! If it were mine to do as I liked with’---- But the only son -and heir of Sir Sykes Denzil did not definitely state the course that -he should pursue were he undisputed proprietor of Carbery Chase. - -Jasper, whose actual age may have been six or at the most seven and -twenty, was one of those men of whom it is puzzling to say whether -they look, for their years, very youthful or surprisingly old. He was -below the middle height, and his smooth pale face seemed at first -sight almost boyish; but the cold glance of the small blue eyes, the -firmness of the compressed lips, and the tell-tale lines that were -faintly visible at the angles of both eyes and mouth, were not such as -we associate with ingenuous youth. - -Captain Denzil (Jasper had at an early age attained, thanks to the -golden ladder by which the offspring of wealthy men were wont to climb, -his captaincy in the light cavalry regiment to which he had till -recently belonged) had proved himself an expensive son to Sir Sykes. -His fair moustache, pallid face, and drawling accent were well known on -race-courses, and quite familiar in those darkened rooms at fashionable -clubs where the fickle goddess Chance is worshipped by card-players -around their lamp-lit green tables, while it is honest daylight in the -workaday world beyond. - -He rode into the yard and dismounted; but instead of immediately -entering the house, lingered to exchange a thoughtful word or two as -to the signs of an incipient spavin in the off fore-leg of the fiery -chestnut which he had been riding. - -‘Knew he wasn't sound of course, when I bought him,’ remarked the -captain, with calm philosophy. ‘A friend's horse never is, especially -when the friend is such an impulsive open-hearted fellow as Charley -Granger. But he was cheap, and he has a turn of speed, and I've entered -him for the Pebworth Steeplechase, and don't want to pay forfeit. So -see to the bandages, Phillips, will you; and don't have him out, except -for gentle exercise on the soft, this fortnight. We mustn't neglect -that leg.’ - -Jasper was not one of those who care for a horse, as some of us do, for -the horse's own sake, and out of genuine love for the noblest of the -dumb servants that do the bidding of mankind. But he did regard the -genus _equus_ as a very valuable instrument for gambling purposes, and -as such to be tended with jealous care and helped, when convenient, to -victory on the turf. - -With a slow step and a careless indolent manner, Jasper Denzil crossed -the paved yard, and entered by a side-door the mansion that must -one day in the course of nature be his, but of which as a place of -residence we have already heard him express an opinion the reverse -of flattering. There was very little at Carbery Chase to amuse the -captain, cut off from his usual sources of excitement and a temporary -exile from London and its pleasures. It was sorry work this pottering -business of picking up a few ten-pound bets on country courses, or -winning paltry stakes by the aid of wretched platers. It was better -than nothing no doubt; precisely as at Monaco we see the ruined -millionaire, Spanish or Russian, eagerly playing for silver when his -last rouleaux of louis-d'or have taken wing; but he felt that it was -a sore degradation for one whose dash and coolness had won dubious -compliments from very great personages. - -Traversing a passage, Jasper presently crossed the great hall--full -of costly marbles brought from Italy, in days when there were no -manufacturers of the spurious antique--and opened the door of what was -known as the morning-room, cheerful and bright as a morning-room should -be, and overlooking the rose-garden, then glorious in its glow and -blush of tender colour. - -Two ladies were the occupants of the room, both young and both pretty, -though each of them had that likeness to Jasper (her only brother) -which we so constantly trace in members of the same family. Lucy it -is true was dark-haired and dark-eyed; while Blanche, the younger and -taller of the two, was delicately--perhaps too delicately--fair of -complexion, and had hair of the palest gold. Sir Sykes had been for -several years a widower; and all the Denzil family, with the exception -of the baronet himself, were now present in that room, through the -French windows of which came stealing in the fresh scent of roses. - -‘I saw you, Jasper, from the pheasantry, as you came up the park; but -you did not see me,’ said Miss Denzil, smiling. ‘You did not stay, -then, to see the finish of the Pebworth cricket-match?’ - -‘I--no!’ answered Jasper with a yawn. ‘Cricket is amusing, I daresay, -to those who knock the ball about, or to those who run to pick it up -again, as the French countess said of our noble national game; but it -is slow--fearfully slow.’ And the captain yawned again. - -‘Most things are, I am afraid, at Carbery,’ said Blanche gently.--‘We -have tried to amuse him--have we not, Lucy?--by dragging him with -us to such primitive merry-makings as lay within driving distance, -archery-meetings, flower-shows’---- - -‘Yes, and all manner of Arcadian entertainments of the same species,’ -interrupted Jasper, drumming with his ringed fingers on the glass of -the open window near which he was standing. ‘I believe I had a narrow -escape from what they called a sillabub party at that old woman's (Lady -Di Horner's) house at Ottery St Luke's, with a cow on the lawn and the -rest of it. The natives, I suppose, like that kind of thing; I don't.’ -There was a half-peevish lassitude in his tone, in his attitude, as he -spoke, which added emphasis to words that were, if ungracious, perhaps -not unkindly meant. But his sisters were not in the least offended that -their brother should shew so unaffectedly how little pleasure he took -in their society, and how complete was his distaste for their simple -pleasures and homely occupations. A grown-up brother is, in the eyes -of good girls, a hero by right of birth, and with Lucy and Blanche the -captain was a privileged person, not to be judged by the standards of -ordinary ethics. - -‘If the governor,’ said Jasper, after a pause, ‘would ask people down -here--I mean of course after town is empty--a houseful of people of -the right sort, why then, one might get through the autumn and winter -without being moped to death.’ - -Lucy shook her head. ‘There is no chance, brother,’ she said, ‘that -papa should fill his house with what you would consider people of the -right sort. The Vanes will come of course, and the Henshaws, and’---- - -‘Never mind the rest of the names,’ broke in the captain with a lazy -brusqueness; ‘heavy county members, who know more of the points of -a bullock than they do of those of a horse; and their fat wives and -starched daughters. What have I done, to be buried alive in this way!’ - -Women have this merit, that they seldom retort, as they might sometimes -do with crushing effect, upon a man who bewails his hard lot, be -his self-pity ever so unreasonable. Lucy and Blanche Denzil knew, -or guessed, with tolerable accuracy that it was due to Jasper's own -extravagance that he no longer wore the gay trappings of a captain -of Lancers, and that the soles of his varnished boots were no longer -familiar with the Pall-Mall pavement. - -‘I'll go in and see my father; he's in the library, I suppose?’ said -Jasper, and without waiting for an answer, he sauntered off. - -Sir Sykes Denzil was a man of methodical habits, and his son's -conjecture that he would be found at that hour in the library was -quite warranted, not only by fact, but by his daily practice. On -his way thither the young man passed by the suite of drawing-rooms, -only the smallest of which was ever used, save on the occasions, not -too frequent, when some great dinner-party or possibly a dance at -Carbery Chase set all the neighbouring lanes and roads aglow with -carriage-lamps. With all its splendour, the Court was what might be -described as a dull house; the master of which had never made the most, -even for selfish purposes, of his large share in the good things of -this world. - -The library, Sir Sykes's favourite room, was a stately apartment, with -gilt cornices and a richly painted ceiling. It overlooked the stone -terrace whereon, amidst statues and marble vases overbrimming with -scarlet geraniums, the peacocks strutted. The great central window was -of ancient stained glass, and from its quaint panes in their leaden -setting flashed forth the lost colours of the blue and crimson, deemed -inimitable for centuries past, but which probably owed their peculiar -beauty to the corroding touch of time. This window, of which honourable -mention was made in the county guide-book aforesaid, glimmered with -heraldic blazonry, wherein the couchant greyhounds of the present -owners of Carbery found no place. - -The baronet, who was seated at his writing-table, strewn with papers, -looked up as he heard the opening of the door, and greeted his son -with rather a conventional smile of recognition. ‘So you are back with -us earlier than usual, Jasper,’ he said, in a tone that was polite, -but scarcely cordial. The young man's voice, as usual with him when -he addressed his father, had lost much of the languid insolence which -habit had rendered natural to him. - -‘Yes, sir; I don't care much for cricket, so I did not stay to see the -end of it. So far as I could hear, the Zingari were beating the County -hollow. But as I said before, that style of thing is not much in my -line.’ - -‘Better for you, my boy, if it had been,’ returned the baronet dryly. -‘A young fellow cannot break his health or ruin his fortunes at -cricket, as more fashionable pastimes may help him to do.’ - -The captain winced and reddened. ‘I didn't expect a lecture, father,’ -he said peevishly. ‘Indeed I'm not likely to forget the crasher I came -down with, that my misfortunes should be thrown in my teeth every day I -live.’ - -‘We will let the subject drop,’ said the baronet after a momentary -pause. ‘Who were at Pebworth to-day? No lack of company, I suppose? Our -friends hereabouts are not all as complete cosmopolitans as you are, -Jasper; and some of the ladies at anyrate may have gone there in hopes -of seeing Devon win the game.’ - -Jasper half sullenly made answer that he could scarcely say who were -there. ‘Fulfords and Courtenays and the Carews, and the people from -Prideaux Park, yes; and the De Vere girls, and Harrogate their brother. -The old Earl wasn't there, and the ladies went on horseback.’ - -‘Lady Gladys looks well on horseback,’ observed Sir Sykes with a -sidelong glance at his son. - -‘Yes; and rides nicely,’ answered Jasper with an air of the most utter -indifference; and then the eyes of the father and the son met, not -frankly, but as the eyes of two wary fencing-masters might do at the -instant of crossing swords. Sir Sykes and Jasper were not, so far as -outward seeming went, in the least alike. The common attribute of -worldliness they did indeed share, but neither in looks nor in manner -did they resemble each other. The baronet was a tall and handsome -man, whose dark hair was now dashed with gray, and his high forehead -deeply lined, but who still presented to the eyes of the world a showy -exterior and a bearing that was at once dignified and urbane. That he -was not in perfect health could only be conjectured from the slowness -of his step, and those faintly marked furrows near the corners of the -shapely mouth, in which a shrewd physician might have read of mischief -silently at work; but to unprofessional scrutiny he appeared simply as -a gentleman of a goodly presence. - -A melancholy man, albeit a proud and a courteous one, Sir Sykes was -known to be. And singularly enough, the baronet's sadness was supposed -to date from the day when he had lost, long years ago, the eldest of -his three daughters, a little girl to whom he was rumoured to have -been unusually attached. This was the odder, because Sir Sykes was -not the sort of man who is generally credited with very deep feelings -or a peculiar strength of family affection. He had borne his wife's -decease with polished equanimity; but those who had known him in his -early poverty and in his subsequent prosperity averred that the lord of -Carbery had never been the same man since the death of this child. - -‘I wish,’ said Sir Sykes, speaking slowly, and poising a gold-hafted -paper-knife between his soft white fingers--‘I wish I could see you -married and settled.’ - -‘The settling, if, as I suppose, it means the making of a suitable -settlement, makes the main impediment to marrying, with some of us at -least,’ rejoined Jasper with mock gravity; but before his father could -reply, a servant entered bringing a letter. Sir Sykes mechanically took -up the letter from the silver tray and as mechanically opened it. But -his eyes had hardly glanced at the first half-page before a great and -sudden change came over his calm face; he grew white, almost livid, to -his very lips, and let his hand which held the open letter drop heavily -upon the table. - -‘Are you ill, sir?’ said Jasper quickly and with a sort of anxiety -unusual with him. It was impossible to avoid taking notice of the -baronet's very evident emotion; impossible too not to connect the cause -of it with the letter which Sir Sykes held in his hand. But the master -of Carbery Chase rallied himself, and though his face was even ghastly -in its pallor and his breath came painfully, he managed to smile as he -rejoined: ‘Not ill. It is a mere pain, a spasm at most, which comes at -times, but goes as quickly, or nearly so, as it comes. It is a trifle, -not worth the talking about. It is getting late, and I have a note or -two to write and some papers to look over before the dressing-bell -rings. We shall meet at dinner presently.’ - -Jasper rose to go. ‘I hardly like’---- he began. - -‘I am better; I am well; it is nothing,’ interrupted Sir Sykes -irritably; and then blandly added: ‘I thank you, my dear boy, for your -solicitude, but I am best alone.’ - -Jasper had not proceeded two paces along the carpeted corridor before -he heard the key of the library door turned from within. - -‘I'd give a cool hundred,’ said this exemplary youth, ‘to look over -my father's shoulder as he reads that letter. To have a hold on the -governor would’---- He left the rest of the sentence unspoken, and -passed on, leaving Sir Sykes in the locked-up library to the company of -his own solitary thoughts. - - - - -TIGER-SHOOTING. - - -Tiger-shooting in India differs a trifle from the tame pursuit of -game in England--a very different thing indeed from the miserable -amusement of the _battue_, in which hundreds of defenceless creatures -are shot down without any chance of danger to the shooter. To go out -tiger-shooting is to run the risk of encountering a deadly enemy, which -on grounds of public policy it is of importance to destroy. So much as -a preliminary observation. - -The danger connected with tiger-shooting varies very much in proportion -to the conditions under which it is prosecuted. Thus a man on foot -following the fresh tracks of a tiger up to his lair, and shooting -him as he lies, or following him up on foot when wounded, incurs the -maximum risk. In all cases, after being wounded, ungovernable fury and -a fierce longing for revenge take the place of that instinctive fear -or shyness of man which tigers share with all other wild animals. This -instinctive dread of man is so well known to the tribes who inhabit the -forests of India, that even solitary individuals will hail the prospect -of suddenly encountering a tiger, provided, of course, that he is not a -man-eater. They know their safety at such a moment lies in preserving a -composed attitude and demeanour. The tiger will often yield the right -of way; but if the human subject finds it necessary to set that example -in the way of politeness, he knows it to be absolutely essential to the -preservation of his life that he should do so with every appearance -of self-possession, and without any signs of fear or precipitancy. -A passage in _King Richard III._ accurately reflects the line of -conduct which should be observed, holding good as it does equally with -reference to the tiger: - - To fly the boar, before the boar pursues, - Were to incense the boar to follow us, - And make pursuit where he did mean no chase. - -In proportion to the successful days, the number of blank days in -tiger-shooting is extraordinarily large, as the experience of most -shikarees will confirm. This is owing to ‘hanks’ or beats being so -often badly planned or mismanaged; through which tigers escape which -might otherwise have easily been brought to book. The dry and denuded -state of an Indian jungle during the hot weather makes that the most -fitting season for tiger-shooting. Indeed it is the only season in -which the sport can be undertaken with a reasonable prospect of -success. The available covers for a tiger are then much reduced in -number and extent; and in the inverse ratio are the chances increased -of the animal's not betaking himself to some distant locality before -the plan of action which is intended to effect his destruction has -had time to develop itself. In other words, any faint and accidental -signs of a disturbance in a tiger's vicinity will rouse him from his -lair, and drive him to green patch or snug retreat miles away, if the -weather be cool and cover abundant; whereas with very hot weather and -extensive denudation of shade, he will prefer remaining where he is -until the sounds assume too decided a character to be mistaken; when -the probabilities are that the sportsman will be perfectly ready on his -making a move. - -The great point to remember in arranging to hunt a tiger is that one -of his most prominent characteristics is cunning--and that this _must -be met by cunning_. This is not sufficiently studied, especially by -beginners. Eager and enthusiastic for the fray, and for the thrill -of satisfaction which the all-important moment of the actual kill -inspires, the inexperienced sportsman is too apt to overlook those -precautions and preparations which are essential aids to success; or -he relies upon others for doing in the above respects what he should -attend to himself. The first thing to be done on arriving at the ground -where a tiger has safely been marked down by the early despatched -scouts is to acquaint one's self thoroughly with its topography. The -nature of the ground varies very much; consisting sometimes of a pile -of rocks rising from a plain, of a confused mass of hills, or of a -large single hill, a river or small water-course stocked with green -bushes, and with level jungle or perhaps open ground bordering on both -sides; and so on. On being roused from his lair in say a water-course -by the beaters, a tiger is very likely to cross over into the jungle, -especially if another ravine is not far off to which he can retire. He -does so with the express object of getting rid of his disturbers as -soon as possible; or let us say that instinct tells him that an entire -change of locality is most conducive to his safety. On the other hand, -if there be no adjoining cover, a tiger will keep to the same channel -and steal along its course. The difference between the two cases -represents the comparative prospect of a tiger being bagged. When a -tiger is compelled to steal along the channel from which he has been -roused, the prospect becomes nearly a certainty, assuming the ‘hank’ to -be conducted in a correct manner. - -A very slight noise, such as slight coughing, will sometimes start -a tiger; while he will at other times refuse to move, although even -shots should be fired into the bush or among the rocks where he may -be lying concealed. As Colonel Rice, late of the Bombay army, very -justly remarks in his book entitled _Tiger-shooting in India_--and the -writer's own experience is entirely corroborative of that statement--no -two tigers can be depended on for behaving exactly alike under the -same circumstances. An old tiger, and especially one which has been -hunted before, is extremely wary, and very difficult to circumvent -with even good management; while a young one readily falls a victim, -like any other greenhorn. A tigress with young cubs is always very -savage, and will sometimes charge anybody approaching her den or other -resting-place before her own presence is at all suspected. Three men -in the service of the writer were once obliged to take refuge on a -rock only some six or seven feet high, where an angry tigress bayed -them, and repeatedly threatened to charge home for at least two hours. -One of the men was armed with a sword, and the other two had nothing -but sticks in their hands. The tigress crouched at the very foot of -the rock, which was small but flat-topped, over and over again. She -there alternately blinked and glared at the unfortunate men, who only -succeeded in keeping her off from actually springing on them by dint -of vigorous and incessant shouting, and constantly changing front, -according as the tigress herself kept moving from one side of the rock -to another, and occasionally retiring a few paces, and then stealing -forward and crouching again. The state of their throats and the -terribly husky whisper to which their voices were in the end reduced, -may easily be imagined. However, down to their humblest followers, -hunters as a rule are a merry set, and directly actual danger has -passed away the danger is forgotten. - -In large covers there are often outlets and lines of exit, in addition -to those guarded by a party of say four or five sportsmen, who post -themselves at the most important points. These all require to be -blocked up, so that a tiger, should he attempt to escape by any of -them, may be readily turned on to a path which will draw him under -fire. One of the covers in which the writer was fortunate enough to -bag several tigers in different years, consisted of a river of about a -hundred and fifty yards width, with ravines branching out at different -points, and low hills bordering the banks. It was impracticable -with fewer than a hundred men, and was best driven by elephants, in -consequence of the thick and tangled state of the bushes. It was a -piece of ground of the kind described above, offering numerous outlets, -as the cover extended right under one of the banks, and ran for some -distance along the length of the river; while the bank itself was -of no great height, and might be ascended in a moment at any point. -The method of blocking up the outlets which the sportsmen themselves -cannot watch, is to place over them, on trees, the sharpest and most -intelligent of the men that can be selected from among the beaters. -They should be instructed to strike the tree with a stone taken up in -the hand for that purpose, or to employ any other simple process of -producing a noise, so that the tiger may be headed back the moment he -is seen to be advancing, and his intention is unmistakable. A blank -shot will be necessary to turn a _rapidly_ advancing tiger; and a -matchlock or spare gun in the hands of a competent person should in -such cases be kept in reserve. Many of the rivers in India during the -hunting season are perfectly dry beds, except as to a mere rill or -narrow stream. The actual water's edge is, however, almost sure to be -the tiger's position, if fringed by bushes sufficiently large to afford -him shelter; for he delights in lapping the water frequently, and in -laving his limbs during the hottest hours of the day. - -With respect to the height a tiger will clear at a bound or series of -bounds, some uncertainty seems to prevail. In Captain Shakspeare's -_Wild Sports of India_, the author, when twelve feet up a tree, -scarcely thought himself beyond the reach of the man-eater he was -expecting, as he believed a tiger capable of springing over that -height. In the book of Colonel Gordon Gumming (a brother of the African -hunter), a sad case is recorded of his gun-bearer being pulled out of -a tree and killed by a wounded tiger through incautiously standing -only some eight feet above the ground. But points of this nature are -altogether of a secondary character, the slightest vantage-ground being -sufficient if the requisites are preserved of a cool head and steady -hand to guide the management of an efficient weapon. - -To the generality of tastes, the most satisfactory method of hunting -tigers is with and upon a well-trained elephant. But when the -arrangements are on a very extensive scale, they fail of anything like -due effect. On special occasions, elephants have been employed in the -hunting-field by the score, and also by the hundred, as in the case of -the Prince of Wales's excursions in Nepaul. A cordon of eight hundred -elephants was then employed to inclose a jungle and to drive the game -on to a central point; but the bag, though good, was disproportionately -small, looking to the means and labour employed. Better results might -have been obtained if the ground had been traversed in sections with -only a few elephants, though this would have required more time, which -probably could not be spared. The great object to be kept in view in -approaching a tiger for the purpose of obtaining a fair shot, is to do -as little as possible towards startling the beast until within a few -yards, even though obstructions such as bushes or rocks intervene; for -when once a ‘scare’ is excited, a tiger will break through an inclosing -line of elephants and probably escape altogether; whereas by being -quietly followed up with scouts previously sent forward to note and -telegraph his progress, the chances are all in favour of the sportsman. - -In hilly tracts where the hills run in long ridges and are flanked -or intersected by ravines, as in Rajpootana, tiger-shooting may at -all times be conducted on foot with comparative safety. This was -successfully done by Colonel (then Lieutenant) Rice from twenty to -twenty-five years back. He never once employed an elephant, and treats -the notion of doing so with a certain amount of disdain. Confessing -to a desire to employ his rifle on the tigers in the island of -Singapore, which is (or certainly was) very much infested by them, -he remarks: ‘There the old notion prevails that without elephants -tigers are best let alone.’ Evidently the Colonel does not consider -the elephant a necessary adjunct to the sport, nor did he really find -it so. There can, however, be no question that in large swamps and -grass tracts, and in fact under all circumstances, an elephant is a -most powerful auxiliary, whose importance cannot be over-rated. If -trees and such positions are taken to meet the tiger when he first -breaks, the advantage of afterwards following him up on an elephant if -only wounded, is too obvious to need any comment. But it is of course -absolutely necessary that the elephant should be one which can be -depended on for making a firm stand before a tiger. The more steady the -elephant, the better the aim that can be taken; but the uninitiated -should know that there is always some slight oscillatory movement in -an elephant, so that a small though perhaps an infinitesimal measure -of calculation has to be applied in shooting from its back. From a -neglect of this necessity, tigers are sometimes missed at absurdly -close quarters, though there may be no actual change in the elephant's -position to account for the circumstance, and to justify the miss. On -the other hand, as sometimes happens, an elephant may very seriously -incommode or perhaps precipitate his rider to the ground, by actually -charging a tiger and dropping down on his knees, in order the better -to crush the foe. At the same time, an elephant that bolts jeopardises -his rider's life in a worse degree, by the reckless manner in which he -pursues his flight. Should the jungle consist of trees, there is almost -a certainty of the howdah being dashed up against them, or of its being -swept off by some projecting bough, which affords a clear passage to -the body of the elephant, but not to the howdah and those seated in it. -The latter, therefore, run a serious risk of being badly injured or of -losing their lives. - -One important essential for the obtaining of sport is a liberal -expenditure of money. It both sweetens labour and smooths the path -to danger. To keep an elephant in prime hearty condition costs about -fifteen pounds a month, and good elephants may occasionally be borrowed -from native chiefs through the instrumentality of political officers; -but unless one has influence enough to insure his being thus favoured, -he should make up his mind to hunt on foot. Many men have done, and -still do so with the most satisfactory results; while with respect -to elephants, some special elements of risk exist, which prove fatal -entirely from a want of common forethought. Thus, an unfortunate -officer of one of Her Majesty's regiments serving in India ventured -into a jungle after a tiger, seated merely on the pad on which a howdah -is made to rest; he was thrown off, and fell into the jaws of the -enraged beast. A person seated in this manner is at any moment liable -to be thrown by a sudden swerve, and such an occurrence is extremely -likely when a tiger charges, or suddenly appears before an elephant. -The writer remembers an instance within his own experience of being -mounted on an elephant off whose back at least a hundred tigers had -at various times been killed, and which was therefore generally very -staunch, and of there being a second and third elephant on each side -of the first; yet on a panther very little bigger than a large cat -charging from a bush, the three elephants together turned in an instant -and ignominiously retreated for about a dozen yards. The shock of the -movement was so great that he was forced back on the seat from which he -had just risen the moment before, and must have infallibly been hurled -to the ground had he been seated on a pad only. It should therefore be -adopted as a rule never to be deviated from, that a tiger should not -be approached on an elephant otherwise than in a properly constructed -howdah. - -But as a contrast to the behaviour of the panther above referred to, a -large tiger will sometimes altogether refuse to face an elephant, and -will retreat from point to point of a cover until he at last becomes an -easy victim; which shews in what extremely opposite lights the subject -requires to be looked at. - -The duty of arranging a proper plan of attack upon a tiger in any -known position is sometimes delegated by the English sportsman to -his head native shikaree, who is qualified for that task both by a -certain aptitude and a considerable amount of experience; but the -best of such men are apt sometimes to fail, and close supervision of -them is consequently always necessary. Besides, they are generally -trained by those who have them in their service; and a long course of -association and reciprocal action between master and servant is needed -to produce an efficient henchman. It is therefore advisable for men -who are about to begin tiger-shooting to take their initiatory lessons -in jungle-craft under the guidance of some brother-sportsman, who can -be looked on as a sort of distinguished professor who has already -graduated with honours in his studies. - - - - -THE BELL-RINGER. - -IN FOUR CHAPTERS. - - -CHAPTER II.--THE STORY OF RUTH. - -‘I can't think whatever's come over Nathan; he's that queer there's no -such thing as making of him out.’ This remark was addressed by Mark -Day, the tenor bell-ringer, to Obadiah Lang, who rang the third bell, a -few days after the events narrated in the previous chapter. - -‘Ay,’ responded Obadiah. ‘There's the practisin' for Christmas-eve, the -practisin' for the carols and for the hymns a' Christmas-day; he don't -seem to care about them at all, and when I says to him: “How about the -evergreens for the church?” he stared hard, and said: “I'll see;” and -walked off.’ - -‘That ain't all neither,’ said Mark Day. ‘He's wonderful curious about -his house. He don't ask nobody in, but stands agen the door, with it -in his hand, and seems afraid all the time you are talking to him. My -opinion is, trouble's turned his brain. If he don't alter, I shall -speak to the parson.’ - -‘Don't do nothing you're sorry for afterwards,’ replied Obadiah. -‘Y' see Nathan ain't like one of us; he mostly have his reasons for -everythink, which ain't the case with everybody nowadays: it's all talk -and no do with the many.’ - -At this moment some one made his way to the churchyard, and to that -some one, the men touched their hats respectfully. It was Oliver -Peregrine. He brushed past quickly; but had the men been keen -observers, they might have noticed that his face was pale and his air -abstracted. He was going for a long and solitary walk, his custom -when any matter disturbed him, or as Gertrude Peregrine said, ‘when -he had a fit of the blues.’ He was not favoured by that young lady, -who secretly wondered how Patricia could fancy him. To her sister, -Gertrude said nothing of her choice, for Patricia was reserved and -distant even to her nearest of kin. Few could imagine how deeply she -loved this silent studious man. He himself was far from guessing the -depth of her affection, his own being centred not on Patricia but on -her inheritance, which would be his by marriage. All his life he had -coveted a position with wealth to support it; had determined to make it -his; had planned and worked for it; when, just as he was on the point -of attaining his ends, Death stepped in, and for the time frustrated -his hopes. Again the time drew near, and again Death intervened; while -impatient of the delay, the arrival of Colonel Lindsay, whom he well -remembered, proved a further source of annoyance. - -Oliver and the Colonel had been secret antagonists in days gone by; -for the latter, a brave, honest, God-fearing soldier, disliked the -character of the younger man, whom he mistrusted; and from his long -and close intimacy with Squire Peregrine, felt at liberty to search -into matters of which he had heard, but seen nothing. After some years -spent in India, he had returned, to find changes at Linden Hall which -grieved and even displeased him. He felt more than ever disposed to -mistrust Oliver, but like a skilful tactician, knew that his plans must -be laid with the utmost secrecy; his enemies being the obstinate and -unforgiving disposition of his old friend, the craftiness of Oliver, -and his ignorance of the whereabouts of the outlawed son, to whom he -had acted as god-father, and for whom he entertained a true affection. -He had heard the story as related by Dobson, whose fidelity was -unimpeachable; but found that even that faithful dependent was obliged -to acknowledge that the case was as clear as the day, and that Mr -Bertram would never be forgiven by his father. - -‘Never, sir,’ concluded Dobson; ‘not if he was dying.’ - -‘And how about the girl's brother, Dobson? You mentioned her -brother. Is he still alive? And does he manifest a vindictive spirit -towards--towards my god-son?’ - -‘Not he, sir. Nathan Boltz has forgiven him years ago. Poor Ruth -forgave him long before she died; but my master will never forgive him. -My mistress died with his name upon her lips; I believe waiting for his -return had killed her. It is a sad history, sir.’ - -Colonel Lindsay had made up his mind he would hear the story from -the lips of Nathan himself, and at once. Therefore, on the evening -of the day when Mark Day and Obadiah Lang had conversed respecting -Nathan, there came a gentle tap on the cottage door, which the owner -cautiously opened. In a few words the Colonel made it known that he -desired to speak to him; and with some hesitation Nathan bid him -enter. The Colonel had excused himself after dinner from returning -to the drawing-room, and had wrapped a large cloak over him by way -of disguise; this and his fur cap and muffler prevented Nathan from -discovering the rank of his visitor until they were seated in the neat -and pleasant room in which he usually lived. The cottage staircase led -from the kitchen to the floor above; but the door which opened upon the -kitchen was shut. - -Nathan waited for Colonel Lindsay to speak; he knew that he was a -visitor at the Hall, and yet he shewed little anxiety concerning what -he might have to say to him. But when the Colonel, with soldierly -authority, made known who he was, and that he came for the purpose of -hearing the sad story of his sister's life, in order to forward the -ends of justice; then Nathan's hands trembled, his lip quivered, and in -a low voice he begged to be excused. - -‘No,’ replied Colonel Lindsay with decision and yet kindness in his -tone; ‘you must tell me the whole of the particulars, either here or in -a court of justice; for I am determined to search them out, for reasons -which I shall hereafter explain.’ - -Nathan gazed at his visitor inquiringly, then gathering his resolution -together, he said: ‘If your object, Colonel Lindsay, be to bring the -offender to justice, I must utterly decline either in this place or any -other to open my lips upon the subject. I will never betray him. I mean -that I will give no evidence, not even if I am punished for withholding -it.’ He spoke under considerable excitement, but still with caution in -his manner. - -This was not lost upon the Colonel, who answered: ‘Would you shield -your sister's betrayer, the man who beguiled her, and then left her to -sustain herself as best she might?’ - -‘He did not do that,’ replied Nathan; ‘she received an allowance as -long as she lived. But I promised her on her dying bed never to reveal -anything concerning her; and can I, ought I to break that promise?’ - -‘Yes!’ answered the Colonel decidedly. ‘Nathan Boltz, you may trust me -not to make use of my knowledge against the author of all this sorrow, -for the sake of my old friend, for the sake of his son. Can you not -trust me?’ - -‘Yes, sir, I will trust you; but you will not’---- He paused. - -‘I will do nothing without your consent,’ said Colonel Lindsay. ‘And -now, let me hear it, for time passes. Please, begin at the beginning.’ - -‘My father,’ began Nathan, ‘was a Dutch sailor. My mother died when -Ruth was thirteen, and I two years older. After her death--which -happened at a time when my father had returned from a voyage--he did -not go to sea any more, but became a labourer under Squire Peregrine, -and kept a house for me and Ruth. The Squire was very kind to my father -and his orphans; and after a time Ruth learned the dressmaking, and -I was apprenticed to the head gardener at the Hall. My sister was a -beautiful girl, the belle of the village, and as modest as she was -pretty. We were very happy, until the Squire's son came home from -college, and began to notice Ruth in a manner which led my father to -warn her to beware. She smiled in her innocence, and told him he was -mistaken; and as we saw little or nothing of Mr Bertram, the feeling -died out. Thus matters remained for more than a year. But when I was -twenty and Ruth eighteen, the blow fell with crushing effect upon us -all. We rose one morning to find her gone, and to hear that Mr Bertram -had also disappeared, after forging his father's name for five hundred -pounds. It was useless to pursue the fugitives, even if we had had any -clue to their flight; and our desire was frustrated by orders from -Squire Peregrine to abandon all search. Day after day we waited and -hoped. But it was some months before poor Ruth made her way to us, -footsore and weary, and begging forgiveness for her sin. Then we knew -that he had not married her; and my father went nigh mad with anger. We -had been poor, but free from shame. He thanked God that my mother was -dead; and followed her soon after the death of Ruth's baby, which lived -only a few weeks. From time to time Mr Bertram sent her money, and when -I mentioned him, she always answered: “Have patience, Nathan. He will -marry me soon. Do not question me; only trust me.” I was very bitter -against him then, and would have killed him if we had met. I told Ruth -so; and she shuddered and prayed we might never meet until he had done -her justice. So the weary time went on; poor Ruth hopeful and patient; -so patient, that I used to wonder how she could live alone year after -year and not try to find him, not go mad with grief and disappointment. -But so it was. I could never understand her. We cannot all bear trouble -alike, sir’---- - -Nathan stopped suddenly, and turned his face away. - -‘Go on,’ said Colonel Lindsay, rather anxiously, consulting his watch; -and Nathan obeyed. - -‘My sister and I lived together in this manner for more than ten years. -She supported herself by dressmaking, and was fully employed, for her -history was known, and she was deeply pitied. As she received a regular -allowance from Mr Bertram, she must have known at such times where he -was; but never allowed me to see or hear anything of her proceedings. -Sometimes my violence frightened her. I know now how blind and wrong -I was. The Squire, who is a true gentleman, gave me the office of -bell-ringer and sexton, and made us many valuable presents; and it was -understood that no mention should ever be made by either of us of the -blight and sorrow of our life. But one day when my sister heard from -Mr Dobson that his young master's name was struck out of the will, and -that the young ladies were to be brought up in ignorance that they had -a brother, she came home in great distress; and one evening soon after, -when she had been with some work to a distant farm, she fainted on this -spot where I now sit, causing me great alarm. She would not reveal the -cause of her illness; and from that time, which was two years from the -date of Mr Bertram's flight, I said nothing to her of her sorrow and -its cause. Ten years after that her health gave way, and I saw that her -sickness was unto death. Inwardly, I vowed vengeance on the man who had -wrought this foul wrong; outwardly, I remained calmly waiting for the -end. Every luxury was sent her from the Hall; but Mrs Peregrine did not -visit her; no doubt she was forbidden, as her nature was both gentle -and forgiving. However, when the end was near at hand, Ruth implored me -to fetch her, and I did so. The urgency of my manner prevailed, and she -came immediately, alone and on foot. It was too late; Death had arrived -before her; and after a few kind words to me, she left. I found all -the money Ruth had received from Mr Bertram put by, and used a portion -of it for funeral expenses. From the day of her death I was a changed -man. She had besought me, charged me, as I would meet her hereafter, -to conquer even a desire for vengeance, and had commended Mr Bertram -to my care and protection, should he ever return; and so vehement -was her manner and so solemn her tone, that I made a vow to obey her -dying injunction; and have kept it. I have forgiven, as I hope to be -forgiven.’ - -Again Nathan paused, while a strange peacefulness gathered over his -face. - -‘Have you finished?’ inquired his visitor, much moved. - -‘Not quite. Soon after the date of Ruth's death, all remittances -ceased; and I concluded that he who had sent them was dead. This was -one circumstance worth notice. The other, that shortly before her death -Mrs Peregrine sent for me, and charged me that should her son return, I -would neither do nor say anything to widen the breach between him and -his father. For “Nathan,” she said, “I feel convinced that some day he -_will_ return. Therefore, for the sake of poor Ruth, who is gone, and -for my sake, who will soon follow her, promise me that you will do what -you can to bring them together; promise me, Nathan! I have always been -so grieved that I was too late to hear what your sister had to say. -Poor girl, she had a claim on us, although the world would have smiled -at the idea. It is just possible that she might have been married to my -son. What do you think?” - -‘I told her I thought not; but added that my sister had been very -secret in all that she had said and done. - -‘“'Tis a great relief to speak of my poor boy,” said Mrs Peregrine, who -seemed to forget all difference in rank; “and this will be the last -time, Nathan, that we may meet on earth. Bear my words in mind. My end -is peace, but one cannot have peace without forgiveness.” - -‘I left her almost awe-stricken; it was so wonderful to have had this -lesson twice repeated. Neither had said a word of the wrong done to -them; it seemed to have faded out before the joy and peace which filled -their hearts, and which now fills mine.’ - -Nathan paused, and again the bright look stole into his face. - -‘Well?’ said Colonel Lindsay. - -‘That is all, sir,’ answered Nathan, evidently relieved that his -visitor rose to go. - -‘Nothing more?’ pursued the Colonel, as he buttoned his cloak. He -looked straight at Nathan, whose eyes fell before the soldier's -searching glance. - -‘No,’ he hesitated--‘nothing.’ - -There was silence. Suddenly a voice from a room above called ‘Nathan!’ -twice. - -‘Whose voice is that?’ exclaimed Colonel Lindsay. ‘I thought you lived -alone?’ - -‘I do; but this is a friend who is ill, and is staying with me for a -time. Excuse me, sir, but I am wanted.’ - -Again the call for Nathan. - -‘Go to your friend,’ said the Colonel; ‘I will not detain you. After -you have attended to his wants, come back to me.’ - -Very unwillingly Nathan opened the staircase door; but no sooner had he -turned to go upstairs than he found his visitor behind him. - -‘Go on,’ he said, as he paused. ‘I can read you like a book.’ Another -moment, and Colonel Lindsay had clasped the hands of Bertram Peregrine, -and Nathan had left the two alone. - -Alone with Bertram, the Colonel heard his story, sympathised in his -trials, related all that had been told him by the Squire, and promised -to act as mediator between father and son; for he entertained no doubts -as to the truth of the statement, having always believed his god-son -sinned against rather than sinning. At the same time he congratulated -himself on his true perception of character. - -When Colonel Lindsay returned to the Hall he was in a fever of -anxiety, distress, and hope; what steps to take he could not tell, but -determined to have but one confidant, Nathan Boltz. - - -CHAPTER III.--TOLLING THE CURFEW. - -Oliver Peregrine hated Nathan Boltz; but nobody suspected it, least of -all Nathan himself. Oliver longed for the time to come when as Squire -of Linden he could shew his hatred, for which he considered he had -satisfactory reasons: one being, that Nathan was a favourite in the -village and Oliver was disliked; another, that he was a protégé of the -Squire's; a third, that he had been a great hinderance to Oliver's -schemes. And now this Colonel Lindsay seemed to be smitten with the -bell-ringer, for he frequently engaged him in conversation and met him -in the belfry to inspect the bells. Evidently the Colonel was mad on -the subject of bell-ringing. - -But at the end of a fortnight it occurred to Oliver, who was always -prying and suspecting, that their visitor must have some deeper motive -than this love of bells and their ringers. He set himself to watch. -Just now the Hall was very quiet. Christmas would be kept entirely by -themselves, therefore Oliver had plenty of leisure. He said nothing to -Patricia of his suspicions; he was not communicative, and she forbore -to question him. - -To Gertrude, Oliver had never appeared more distasteful than at this -time; and she missed the presence of the sweet sister in whom she -had confided; for Gertrude had her romance. A very degrading affair -Patricia would have called it. However, no one knew of it. Indeed -Gertrude had dared scarcely confess it to herself. She loved with the -depth and purity of a Christian maiden. Whom? None other than Nathan -the bell-ringer! Fearful was Gertrude of whispering his name even in -the solitude of her chamber. Yet it afforded her a melancholy pleasure -that he should have prepared the last resting-places of her mother and -sister, and that in some manner, she did not quite know how, his life -should be connected with her family. - -‘But what recompense can we make him,’ she would argue, ‘in return for -Bertram's wrong? Even my father acknowledges that he did this wrong, -and has made him pay in full the penalty of his sin.’ And then she -would sigh, as she felt how hopeless, how almost criminal was her love. -In vain, however, she struggled against it. In her eyes Nathan was the -true type of a gentleman; and ‘Oh!’ she would cry, ‘if Bertram felt -thus for Ruth, how could he--how could he forsake her in her time of -need?’ - -Sometimes Gertrude had feared that Oliver Peregrine would discover -her secret, or suspect her, from her having already refused certain -eligible connections approved by her father; but she had no cause to -fear: her family had not the most remote suspicion of the truth. - -Christmas drew near, while Colonel Lindsay continued his visits to the -belfry, where, as we know, certain weighty considerations detained -him in converse with Nathan; and several times Oliver had watched the -Colonel emerge from the cottage of the man he so detested. At last, -with some difficulty, Oliver managed to play the eavesdropper, and -gathered from their conversation that the subject of it was closely -connected with his uncle. - -‘What--if?’ he muttered to himself, but dared not complete his -question; and as he walked home, after the Colonel had left Nathan, -he grew more and more uneasy, and determined to find out for himself -the secret of Nathan's attic window, where for the last fortnight a -light had been observed. Conceive his annoyance when, on commencing a -cross-examination of the Colonel in a friendly tone, he found the old -soldier on his guard, and ready to parry every attack. Foiled on every -side by the experienced veteran, Oliver altered his tactics, and made -up his mind to use force, as stratagem availed nothing, and to wring -the secret from Nathan Boltz. - -It was on a dark starless evening that Nathan set out to toll the -curfew, accompanied by Bertram Peregrine, who having recovered in a -great measure from the effects of his fatigue and exposure, desired -to revisit the well-remembered church, in which many of his ancestors -were buried. Colonel Lindsay had arranged to meet him there to decide -upon an immediate course of action; and the belfry was to be the scene -of their consultation. Nathan and his patient soon reached the belfry, -whence the tolling of the curfew was to be the signal for the Colonel -to join them. But Oliver had invented a mysterious communication which -should detain the Colonel in waiting for an imaginary visitor, and -give him the opportunity of going instead; therefore while the soldier -waited impatiently at the Hall for his unknown correspondent, Oliver -borrowed his cloak, and opening the door in the wall before mentioned, -entered the churchyard and repaired to the church. - -‘I hear the Colonel; he has just come in,’ said Nathan. ‘Will you shew -a light, Mr Bertram?’ As he spoke he continued the tolling of the -curfew; and his companion descended the stairs with the lantern in his -hand; but he saw no one, for Oliver was concealed in the deep shadow of -the porch. - -Just as Bertram stepped forward saying: ‘This way, Colonel Lindsay,’ -the lantern was dashed from his hand, and a violent blow felled him to -the ground. He rose and grappled with his antagonist, who maintained -a dead silence, until slipping over the steps into the interior of -the church, they fell with violence on the stone floor; at the same -moment Bertram felt a sharp wound in his side, and uttered a loud cry -as Nathan rushed from the belfry bearing a candle in his hand. He saw -before him Oliver Peregrine about to escape from the scene, while his -cousin lay on the floor of the church bleeding and unconscious. - -In a moment Nathan had grasped Oliver in a powerful grip, the signal -for a terrible struggle, during which, however, the latter overpowered -his antagonist; and the would-be murderer escaped in the darkness, just -as Colonel Lindsay, who had begun to suspect treachery, came hastily -upon the scene followed by Dobson and two or three of the villagers. -The reason of the sudden stoppage of the bell was apparent to all. With -faces of horror and affright they gazed upon Nathan, who, breathless -and trembling, supported the wounded man upon his arm. - -‘What is it? Who is it?’ demanded Colonel Lindsay, as he picked up -his cloak, which lay in the porch; but Nathan made no reply; and -his interrogator saw that for some unknown reason he purposely kept -silence; also that he took no notice of the cloak or the broken -lantern, but signed to Dobson to help him to bear Bertram from the -church. - -Colonel Lindsay at once comprehended the manœuvre; and spreading out -the cloak, they laid Bertram gently down upon it; then Nathan, assisted -by two labourers and the Colonel, raised him, and preceded by Dobson, -whose legs trembled beneath him, bore their senseless burden through -the churchyard. ‘To the Hall!’ was the word of command, given and -obeyed, as they marched slowly but steadily through the grounds, until -they reached the principal entrance. There a crowd of bewildered faces -including those of Squire Peregrine, his daughters and servants, met -their gaze. - -‘Charles,’ said Colonel Lindsay, ‘I bring you your son. You dare not -refuse him a home if he is living, or a grave if he be dead.’ - -The Squire made no reply, but sank upon the nearest chair and covered -his face with his hands. - -‘Shew me to a room,’ continued Colonel Lindsay. - -Now Nathan and the gloomy procession moved up the broad staircase, -leaving those below watching their progress in dumb amazement. Patricia -was the first to recover, and sign to her father to follow her to the -room they had just left. Her movement dispersed the crowd of servants -to wonder and talk among themselves; while Gertrude found herself -surrounded by her younger sisters, who began eagerly plying her with -questions. To all their importunities, Gertrude only answered: ‘Do not -ask me--do not ask me;’ and with the tears streaming down her face, -which she in vain attempted to control, she mounted the staircase, and -with a trembling hand knocked at the door of the room into which her -brother had been carried. Colonel Lindsay answered her. - -‘May I come in?’ she whispered; and receiving permission, she stepped -up to the bed, around which the men were still busy. One glance at her -apparently dying brother determined her. - -‘Colonel Lindsay,’ she said with forced composure, ‘pray telegraph at -once for a physician. Papa cannot collect himself sufficiently; but -I am sure he would wish it.’ Then turning to two young men who stood -waiting near the door, she despatched them in all speed for the local -practitioner, Dr Downes. - -Then she addressed herself to Nathan: ‘You will watch my brother, will -you not, until I come back? If he should return to consciousness, he -will be glad to find you near him.’ Without waiting for a reply, she -left the room quietly, but soon returned, prepared to act nurse to the -wounded man. - -As Nathan raised his eyes, he thought he had never seen anything so -charming before; nothing of which he had read could exceed the womanly -gentleness and loveliness of that fair face; and his own flushed with -shame as he allowed his eyes to dwell upon it longer than in his -opinion was consistent with good breeding. ‘And at such a time,’ said -Nathan to himself, as he again bent over the prostrate form. - -Gertrude had brought with her an aged servant who had nursed them, and -still remained an inmate of the Hall. In spite of the changes produced -by time and the circumstances under which she now saw him, Nurse -Goodall recognised Bertram at once, and her agitation was extreme; -for being fully acquainted with every circumstance connected with his -flight, she argued that there could be but one termination to this rash -proceeding on the part of Colonel Lindsay--the expulsion of the son now -lying at the point of death from his father's roof; for she knew full -well the obstinate character of the Squire of Linden, and blamed the -Colonel for thus precipitating the end. - -As yet, no one in the Hall knew anything further than that the son of -the house had returned desperately wounded, and that Colonel Lindsay -and Nathan had brought him home: all the rest was mystery unfathomable. -At this juncture, the surgeon, Dr Downes, entered the room in a little -trepidation, his visits to the Hall being rare, and this message having -been sudden and brief. The surgeon perceived a complicated case, and -made an examination of his patient. This done, he inquired if any -person was present to whom the injured man was thoroughly accustomed. -Colonel Lindsay mentioned Nathan and himself. The surgeon then -requested Gertrude and the servants to retire, and proposed to wait -with Nathan the advent of the physician, who had been telegraphed for. -Colonel Lindsay, promising to introduce Dr Ferris directly he arrived, -left the room also, and taking Gertrude on his arm, sought the Squire, -who was still in conversation with his eldest daughter. Patricia and -her father received him coldly, and positively declined to see Bertram. - -‘Charles,’ said the Colonel, ‘I have much to tell you, which had better -be said privately. Will you give me a few minutes in your library?’ -The tone was so full of meaning, that the Squire rose and led the way. -The result of their conference will be shewn in the conclusion of our -narrative. - - - - -THE SALT MARSHES OF BRITTANY. - - -Not the least interesting part of France is the wide range of country -watered by the Loire. It is here that feudal and historic remains may -best be studied; fine old castles, palaces, and abbeys rise before the -traveller on all sides. The gloomy Blois, where those arch enemies of -French liberty the Guises, were assassinated; the castellated den of -Plessis-les-Tours, where Louis XI. carried out his deep-laid schemes, -so well described in _Quentin Durward_; and the high towers and deep -vaults of Amboise, which tell of many a tragic conspiracy and massacre. -Here too is the picturesque Chénonceaux, with its rich ceilings and -tapestry, where Mary Queen of Scots passed some happy days in her -sad life, and Francis I. drew around him his joyous court. Joan of -Arc unfurled her banner in this interesting province; and the heroic -Vendeans lie buried by thousands, martyrs to their religion and their -king. It is a bright sunny land; the acacia hedges divide the fields -with their elegant white blossoms; the vineyards are loaded with purple -grapes, the apple orchards give abundance of cider; a lazy kind of -land where the idler may kill time to his heart's content. Yet the -Loire cannot boast of equal beauty with the Seine; its raging waters -inundate the country in winter, leaving dry shoals in summer; and near -its mouth, the district called the Marais is an uninteresting tract of -sand, salt marshes, and ponds. It is of this unpromising scene that we -would write, where ten thousand persons find occupation in the making -of salt. - -The interest attaching to the people arises from their extreme -simplicity. Thanks to the salubrity of the country, they are a fine -hardy race, the men tall and well-proportioned, the women celebrated -for their fresh complexions. Watch them as they work in the salt-fields -carrying heavy loads on their heads, barefoot, in short petticoats, -and running rather than walking on the edge of the ponds. But all this -is changed on grand fête days, when the costume of their forefathers -in past centuries is worn. It is called the marriage dress, as it -is first donned by the women on that day. Since it must last for a -lifetime, it is carefully laid aside for special occasions. There is -the embroidered cap and white handkerchief for the shoulders, edged -with lace; the belt and bodice stitched with gold thread. A gay violet -petticoat is partially covered by a white dress, the sleeves of which -are either red or white; and an apron of yellow or red silk adds to -the smart attire. The red stockings are embroidered, and the violet -sandals cover well-shaped feet. As for the bridegroom to this pretty -bride, he adorns himself with a brown cloth shirt, a muslin collarette, -full knickerbockers, and no less than two waistcoats, one white, the -other blue, with a large black cloth mantle over all. To complete -his toilet there is a three-cornered hat with velvet cords, white -embroidered stockings, and white buckskin shoes. Such is the costume of -Bourg-de-Batz; but each village has its own distinctive coiffure. The -burning summer sun, whose rays are reflected from the salt marshes as -if from a lens, forces all to wear wide-brimmed hats for daily work; -the high winds and great changes of temperature necessitating double or -triple woollen waistcoats; yet even this time-honoured style of dress -has something picturesque about it. - -Let us cross to the left bank of the Loire, and ascend the hill -into the little town of Pellerin, justly proud of its position and -commanding views. From this vantage-ground the eye passes over the -indented coast-line where the points of Mesquer, Croisic, and many -others advance into the sea. The green pastures and pretty villas -of Saint Etienne form the foreground to the barren reaches of the -salt district, which extends towards Morbihan, occupying about six -thousand acres. The commercial centre of the country is the town of -Guérande, perched on a hill, and belonging to a long past age. Its -high ramparts, built for defence in troublous times, can only be -entered by four gates, which bear the marks of portcullises. Enormous -trees entirely conceal it from the traveller, who would fancy he was -approaching a green forest, instead of an old fortified place belonging -to feudal times. Vines and cereals grow admirably on the higher -ground surrounding it, to the very verge of the salt marshes, which -are utterly bare. Looking towards the sea, the marks of its fury are -apparent, as if Nature wished to collect all her weapons of defence for -the inhabitants. Gigantic rocks of capricious forms, sometimes rising -like a bundle of lances; sometimes lying on the shore, as if they were -Egyptian sphinxes, or lions turned into stone, and polished by the -waves; or even resembling these very waves petrified in a moment on -some tempestuous day. - -Nothing is more easy to describe than a salt marsh. Imagine a -market-garden divided into squares; but instead of the green -vegetables, each square filled with water, and the walks not level -with, but raised above the spaces about ten inches in height. The -parallelograms are termed in the vernacular _œillets_. These are filled -with sea-water, which pours in through conduits at high-tide, the water -having been stored during a period of from fifteen to thirty days, in -reservoirs attached to each marsh. The system of canals through which -it passes is of a complicated nature; and the production of the salt -constitutes, so to speak, a special branch of agriculture, where the -visible help of man assists the hidden work of Nature. The ground must -be dug and arranged in a particular manner, that the saline particles -may crystallise, just as a field where wheat grows and ripens. Thus, it -is not surprising that the salt-workers adopt the professional terms of -the farmers. At certain times they say ‘The marsh is in flower;’ they -speak of the ‘harvest’ and of ‘reaping the salt.’ - -It is in the _œillet_, where the water is only about an inch in depth, -that the salt forms, thanks to the evaporation of the sun, and to the -current which, slowly circulating through the different compartments, -assists the evaporation. The salt which then falls to the bottom of the -basin is raked out by the _paludier_ into round hollows made at the -edge at certain distances. This is done every one or two days. The art -consists in raking up all the salt without drawing the mud with it. In -the salt marsh of Guérande they collect separately a white salt, which -forms on the surface under the appearance of foam, and is used for the -salting of sardines. - -It will easily be understood that everything depends on the sky; above -all things, the heat of the solar rays is necessary. In cloudy weather -there is no crystallisation. Rainy seasons are most disastrous for the -_paludiers_. The harvest varies from year to year; but calculating the -produce for ten years, it amounts to three or four thousand pounds of -salt in each _œillet_. Work begins in the month of June, and is carried -on till October. The number of _œillets_ varies with the size of the -marsh; that of Guérande contains about twenty-four thousand; others -are much less. The gathered salt is carried daily to some slope near -and packed in a conical form, very much resembling the tents of a camp -when seen from a distance. At Guérande the women are seen running in -this direction, carrying the salt on their heads in large wooden bowls, -holding about fifty pounds; whilst at Bourgneuf the men are employed, -who make use of willow-baskets borne on the shoulder. If the salt is -sold immediately, the cone is only covered with a little earth. But it -more frequently happens that when the harvest is good, speculators buy -large quantities to keep until the price rises, and then large masses a -thousand pounds in weight are formed, and protected by a thick layer of -earth. - -Like all kinds of property in France, the salt marshes are much -divided. More than three thousand proprietors share that of Guérande; -and there is a kind of co-operative partnership between the owner and -the worker, the latter generally receiving a quarter of the profits, -out of which he pays the porters. The gain is, however, miserably -small; and the wonder is how the various families manage to exist upon -it. Even if the wife and daughter help, the whole family only earn -about two hundred and fifty-five francs a year--ten pounds of our -money; and in consequence of the season when the salt is collected, -the _paludier_ has no chance of increasing his income by assisting -the farmers, and can only employ himself in the trifling labours of -winter. So low, indeed, have the profits sunk, that in some marshes the -expenses have exceeded them; in short there is no kind of property in -France that has for the last century undergone more terrible reverses -than this. These changes are partly due to the railways, which have -provided a much more efficient and rapid means of transport for the -east of France than for the west. - -There are three large zones in the country where salt is found. In -the eastern district it is derived from springs and mines; but in the -present day the salt mines are treated like the springs. Instead of -dividing the lumps with the pickaxe, galleries are cut through and -flooded with water; when this is sufficiently saturated, it is brought -to the surface and evaporated in heated caldrons. The aid of the sun -is not required; fine or rainy days do not count, and the making of -salt becomes a trade for all the year round. In the south the plan is -varied, because there is no tide in the Mediterranean Sea. Here, by the -help of a mechanical apparatus, the sea-water is pumped into enormous -squares, where it crystallises, and the evaporation is accelerated by a -continual circulation. With a warm temperature and a cloudless sky, the -water requires to be renewed only at intervals, whilst the salt itself -is not collected until the end of summer. Thus the poor workmen of -Brittany have a more laborious and less remunerative task, though the -salt is acknowledged to be of a finer quality. - -The family life is necessarily of a very hard and parsimonious -character. It is impossible to buy animal food; a thin soup supplies -the morning and evening repast, with poorly cooked potatoes at mid-day. -Those who are near the sea can add the sardine and common shell-fish, -which are not worth the trouble of taking into the towns to sell. The -cruel proverb, ‘Who sleeps, dines,’ finds here its literal application; -during the winter the people lie in bed all the day to save a meal. -There is a strong family affection apparent among them, the father -exercising a patriarchal authority in the much-loved home. If they go -away, it is never for more than twenty leagues, to sell the salt from -door to door. Driving before them their indefatigable mules, borne down -at starting with too heavy a load, they penetrate through the devious -narrow lanes, knowing the path to every hamlet or farmhouse where they -hope to meet with a customer. - -The population of Bourg-de-Batz is said to be a branch of the Saxon -race, and has hitherto been so jealous of preserving an unbroken -genealogy that marriages are always made among themselves. A union with -a stranger is felt to be a misalliance. There are some local customs -still remaining which point to an ancient origin, a visible legacy of -paganism perpetuated to the present day. Such is the festival which is -celebrated at Croisic in the month of August in honour of Hirmen, a -pagan divinity in the form of a stone with a wide base lying near the -sea. Here, with grotesque movements, the women execute round the stone -a sort of sacred dance, and every young girl who is unfortunate enough -to touch it is certain not to be married during the year. There is an -old chapel of St Goustan which shews the tenacity with which the people -hold to their traditions. Once a place for pilgrimages, it has not been -used for sacred purposes during seventy years, and serves as a magazine -for arms. Yet the inhabitants of Batz visit it yearly, and especially -pray beneath the sacred walls at Whitsuntide. - -Sunday is strictly kept as a day of rest from their toils; then the -poorest dress in clean clothes, men, women, and children going in -family groups to church. After that, relations and neighbours pay -visits. Man is no longer a beast of burden, but shews that he has a -heart and a conscience; a happy spirit of good temper and frankness -reigns everywhere. Indeed the high moral qualities of the natives, -their love of education, and strong attachment to their native soil, -make them a vigorous branch of the French nation, and one calculated to -gain the traveller's respect. - - - - -CRITICAL ODDITIES. - - -That short pithy criticisms are occasionally as pointed as those that -are more elaborated, may be gleaned from the following, which we cull -at random for the amusement of our readers. - -A little calculation would have saved a well-known novelist being taken -to task by a fair graduate of Elmira College, who thus relieved her -mind by writing as follows to the College magazine: ‘In a novel of -Miss Braddon's, a book of wonderful plot and incident, the hero, after -coming to grief in a civilised country, went to Australia to make his -fortune; and while yet an apprentice at the pick and shovel, found an -immense nugget of gold, which he hid, now in one place, now in another, -and finally, was obliged to carry in his under-shirt pocket for weeks. -When he reached home its sale made him immensely rich. I had a little -curiosity in the matter, and obtaining the current price of gold, -found, by a simple computation, that the nugget must have weighed _a -hundred and ninety-four pounds_. A sizeable pocket that must have been!’ - -Albert Smith had his pronouns criticised in the following neat way by -Thackeray. Turning over the leaves of a young lady's album, Thackeray -came upon the following lines: - - Mont Blanc is the Monarch of Mountains-- - They crowned him long ago; - But who they got to put it on, - Nobody seems to know.--ALBERT SMITH. - -And wrote underneath: - - I know that Albert wrote in a hurry: - To criticise I scarce presume; - But yet methinks that Lindley Murray, - Instead of ‘who,’ had written ‘whom.’ - - W. M. THACKERAY. - -Not quite so good-naturedly did Chorley treat Patmore's _Angel in the -House_, in his critical versicles: ‘The gentle reader we apprise, That -this new Angel in the House, Contains a tale, not very wise, About a -parson and a spouse. The author, gentle as a lamb, Has managèd his -rhymes to fit; He haply fancies he has writ Another _In Memoriam_. How -his intended gathered flowers, And took her tea, and after sung, Is -told in style somewhat like ours, For delectation of the young.’ Then -after giving ‘some little pictures’ in the poet's own language, the -cruel critic went on--‘From ball to bed, from field to farm, The tale -flows nicely purling on; With much conceit there is no harm, In the -love-legend here begun. The rest will come some other day, If public -sympathy allows; And this is all we have to say About the Angel in the -House.’ - -This hardly amounted to faint praise, a kind of encouragement Mr -Buckstone owned had a very depressing effect upon him when he ranked -among youthful aspirants to theatrical honours. ‘I was,’ said the -comedian, ‘given by my manager a very good part to act, which being -received by the public with roars of laughter, I considered that my -future was made. A worthy vendor of newspapers, a great critic and -patron of the drama, asked me for an order. On giving him one, I called -the next day expecting to hear a flattering account of my performance, -but was disappointed. Determined to learn what effect my acting had -produced on him, I nervously put the question: “Did you see me last -night?” to which he replied: “O yes.” “Well,” said I, “were you -pleased?” And he again replied with his “O yes.” I then came to the -point with: “Did you like my acting?” And he rejoined: “O yes; you made -me _smile_.”’ - -A more appreciative critic was the lady who after seeing Garrick -and Barry severally play Romeo, observed that in the garden scene, -Garrick's looks were so animated and his gestures so spirited, that had -she been Juliet she should have thought Romeo was going to jump up to -her; but that Barry was so tender, melting, and persuasive, that had -she been Juliet she should have jumped down to him. - -An old seaman after looking long at the picture of ‘Rochester from the -River,’ cried: ‘Yes, that's it--just opposite old Staunton's, where -I served my time--just as it used to look when I was a youngster no -higher than my stick. It's forty years since I saw the old place; but -_if the haze would only clear off_, I could point out every house!’ - -When M. Gondinet's _Free_ was produced at the Porte St Martin Theatre, -a Parisian critic commended the playwright for rendering a good deal of -the dialogue inaudible by a liberal employment of muskets and cannon; -and then conjugated _Free_ thus: ‘I am free to go to the play; thou art -free to be bored by the first act; he or she is free to be bored by act -second; we are free to be bored by the third; you are free to be bored -still more by the fourth and fifth acts; and they are free to stay away -for the future.’ - -M. Gondinet's drama was seemingly as fitting a subject for the -pruning-knife as the play of which Mark Twain, speaking for himself and -partner, deposed: ‘The more we cut out of it, the better it got along. -We cut out, and cut out, and cut out; and I do believe this would be -one of the best plays in the world to-day, if our strength had held -out, and we could have gone on and cut out the rest of it.’ - -An Ohio politician ‘on the stump,’ stayed the torrent of his eloquence -for a moment, and looking round with a self-satisfied air, put the -question: ‘Now, gentlemen, what do you think?’ A voice from the crowd -replied: ‘Well, Mr Speaker, if you ask me, I think, sir, I do indeed, -that if you and me were to stump the state together, we could tell more -lies than any other two men in the country, sir; and I'd not say a word -myself, sir, all the time.’ The orator must have felt as grateful as -the actor whose impersonation of the hero of _Escaped from Sing-Sing_ -impelled a weary pittite to proclaim aloud that the play would have -been better ‘if that chap hadn't escaped from Sing-Sing;’ or the Opera -tenor whose first solo elicited from Pat in the upper regions the -despairing ejaculation: ‘Och, my eighteen-pince!’ - -A young negro, carefully conducting an old blind woman through the -Philadelphia Exhibition, stopped in front of a statue of Cupid and -Psyche, and thus enlightened his sightless companion: ‘Dis is a white -mammy and her babby, and dey has just got no clo' onto 'em at all, and -he is a-kissin' of her like mischief, to be shuah. I's kind o' glad you -can't see 'em, 'cause you'd be flustered like, 'cause dey don't stay -in de house till dey dresses deyselves. All dese figures seem to be -scarce o' clo', but dey is mighty pooty, only dey be too white to be -any 'lation to you and me, mammy.’ Then turning to a statue in bronze: -‘Dere be one nigger among 'em which is crying over a handkerchief. Dey -call him Othello. Mebbe his mother is dead, and he can't fetch her to -de show, poor fellow!’ - -An American officer riding by the bronze statue of Henry Clay in Canal -Street, New Orleans, was asked by his Irish orderly if the New Orleans -‘fellers’ were so fond of niggers that they put a statue of one in -their ‘fashionablest’ street. ‘That's not a nigger, Tom; that's the -great Clay statue,’ said the amused officer. Tom rode round the statue, -dismounted, climbed upon the pedestal, examined the figure closely, and -then said: ‘Did they tell yez it was clay? It looks to me like iron!’ - -Tom's ignorance was more excusable than that of the Yankee who, -learning on inquiry that the colossal equestrian figure in Union -Square, New York, was ‘General Washington, the father of his country,’ -observed: ‘It is? I never heard of him before; but there is one thing -about him I do like--he does set a horse plaguy well.’ A compliment to -the artist, at all events. - -Perhaps Salvini took it as a compliment when his Othello was compared -to the awakening fury of the Hyrcanian tiger disturbed at his feast -of blood, and his Hamlet described as ‘a magnificent hoodlum on -his muscle, with a big mad on, smashing things generally;’ and the -Boston actress was delighted to know her ‘subtle grace, flexible as -the sinuosities of a morning mist, yet thoroughly proportioned to -the curves of the character, was most especially noticeable.’ But -the Hungarian prima donna must have felt a little dubious as to the -intentions of the critic who wrote of her: ‘Her voice is wonderful. -She runs up and down the scale with the agility of an experienced cat -running up and down a house-top, and two or three fences thrown in. She -turns figurative flip-flaps on every bar, tearing up the thermometer -to away above two hundred and twelve, and sliding down again so far -below zero that one feels chilled to the bone.’ The fair singer would -probably have preferred something in this style: ‘Miss ---- wore a rich -purple suit with a handsome shade of lavender, a white over-garment, -tight-fitting, with flowing sleeves, and a white bonnet trimmed with -the same shades of purple and lavender, and she sang finely.’ - -That has the merit of being intelligible. The writer was not in such a -desperate condition as the Memphis theatrical reporter who lauded an -actress as ‘intense yet expansive, comprehensive yet particular, fervid -without faultiness; glowing and still controlled, natural but refined, -daring anything, fearing nothing but to violate grace; pure as dew, -soft as the gush of distant music, gentle as a star beaming through the -riven clouds. With mystery of charms she comes near to us, and melts -down our admiration into love; but when we take her to us as something -familiar and delicious, she floats away to the far heights of fame, -and looks down on our despair with countenance of peaceful lustre and -smiles as sweet as spring.’ If the lady did not reciprocate, her heart -must have been of adamant. - - - - -THE WELL-KNOWN SPOT. - - - Again with joy I view the waking shore, - Where mem'ries live for ever in their green, - And from the solemn graveyard's checkered floor - Gaze fondly o'er the all-enchanting scene. - - The same sad rooks awake their mocking cries, - And drooping willows weep the early grave, - As o'er the dead the restless spirit flies, - Tries vainly yet yon broken heart to save. - - But, hush! sad soul, nor leave this hallowed spot, - Where peaceful slumber seals the closèd eye. - The lonely sleeper now awaken not - By the rude raving, or the deep-drawn sigh. - - Oh, let me mourn (the fainting heart replies), - These new-made graves, which take my wond'ring sight; - Say, who beneath this little tombstone lies, - Or who this Angel guards through the long night. - - When last I saw, no mounds lay heaving there, - No sexton rude had turned the resting sod. - Alas, how changed! The holy and the fair - Have sunk in death, and triumphed in their God. - - Then let me pause, if here my Maker stays, - And guards his saints from the inhuman foe. - His word is true; my trembling heart obeys; - Bless'd are the dead who to the Saviour go. - - Now new refulgence breathes o'er all the scene; - Yon lark's sweet warble now is sweeter still; - Yon blady grass stands out in purer green; - And softer music tinkles from the rill. - - For why? O mark! The cause is written here; - The pale-faced marble tells the softened tale, - That sweeteneth the sigh, arrests the starting tear, - And lulls to silence the untimely wail. - - ASTLEY H. BALDWIN. - - * * * * * - -Printed and Published by W. & R. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Chambers's Journal of Popular Literature, Science, and Art, No. 733, January 12, 1878 - -Author: Various - -Editor: William Chambers - Robert Chambers - -Release Date: August 18, 2016 [EBook #52833] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CHAMBERS'S JOURNAL, JAN 12, 1878 *** - - - - -Produced by Susan Skinner and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - -</pre> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">{17}</a></span></p> - - -<h1>CHAMBERS'S JOURNAL<br /> -OF<br /> -POPULAR<br /> -LITERATURE, SCIENCE, AND ART.</h1> - - -<h2>CONTENTS</h2> - -<p class='center'> - -<!-- Autogenerated TOC. Modify or delete as required. --> - - -<a href="#THE_JUBILEE_SINGERS">THE JUBILEE SINGERS.</a><br /> -<a href="#HELENA_LADY_HARROGATE">HELENA, LADY HARROGATE.</a><br /> -<a href="#TIGER-SHOOTING">TIGER-SHOOTING.</a><br /> -<a href="#THE_BELL-RINGER">THE BELL-RINGER.</a><br /> -<a href="#THE_SALT_MARSHES_OF_BRITTANY">THE SALT MARSHES OF BRITTANY.</a><br /> -<a href="#CRITICAL_ODDITIES">CRITICAL ODDITIES.</a><br /> -<a href="#THE_WELL-KNOWN_SPOT">THE WELL-KNOWN SPOT.</a><br /> - -<!-- End Autogenerated TOC. --> - -</p> - -<hr class="full" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/header.png" width="600" height="294" alt="Chambers's Journal of Popular Literature, Science, and Art. Fourth Series. Conducted by William and Robert Chambers." /> -</div> - - -<hr class="full" /> -<p class='center'><b><span class="smcap">No.</span> 733.</b> <b>SATURDAY, JANUARY 12, 1878.</b> <b><span class="smcap">Price</span> 1<i>d.</i></b></p> - - -<hr class="full" /> -<div> - - - - -<h2><a name="THE_JUBILEE_SINGERS" id="THE_JUBILEE_SINGERS">THE JUBILEE SINGERS.</a></h2> - - - - -<p><span class="smcap">One</span> of the most interesting and vivid of our -recollections is that of witnessing some scenes in -negro slavery in the United States, now upwards -of twenty years ago—very nearly the close of the -iniquity; but of that nobody was aware. There was -a novelty in seeing fairly dressed men and women -brought out for sale by public auction, and in -observing how the persons who came to buy carefully -examined the men's hands and the flexibility -of their fingers, looked into their mouths to make -sure of their teeth, and having effected a removal -of the coats and shirts, scanned the bare backs to -discover whether they had suffered by the lash. -Just as in buying horses in a market, it was quite -a business affair; and what was a little surprising, -the unfortunate objects of this degrading exhibition -took all in good part. But what else could they -do? In the grasp of power, they knew that resistance -was worse than useless. Close by were cow-hide -whips handled by heartless ruffians voraciously -chewing tobacco, as if to keep up the proper -inspiration of brutality. Across the way was seen -an ugly brick building inscribed with the word -<span class="smcap">Jail</span>, in tall black letters on a white ground, to -which establishment, in case of remonstrance, the -poor wretches would have been instantly marched -for punishment. Doom hopeless!</p> - -<p>The equanimity, and indeed the good-humour, -with which these blacks seemed to endure their -fate, indicated, we thought, good points of character. -Nowhere in travelling about did we observe -anything positively disagreeable, to remind us -that the labourers in the fields or the loiterers at -doorways were slaves. Often, we heard singing -and jollity, as if light-heartedness was on the whole -predominant. Obviously, slave-owners were not all -Legrees. On the contrary, in many instances they -shewed a kind indulgence to their ‘servants,’ as -they called them, and were pleased to see them -singing, laughing, and making merry in the intervals -of rest from labour. Perhaps this is not -saying much, for the singing of slaves may be -compared to the notes of a bird in captivity, to -be admired, but pitied. Anyway, there was a -disposition to seek solacement in the outpouring -of song. If not intellectually brilliant, the negro -is naturally vivacious. Even when he grows -old, he is still something of a boy, with an -inherent love of frolic. He is clever in picking -up tunes, and one of the complaints which we -heard against him in a free state was that if not -looked after by his master, he would continually -go out to entertainments and dance all night. -A curious result of the taste for music has been -the creation of what are known as negro melodies; -partly suggested by old English airs, and by the -psalm and hymn tunes that had been heard at -church or in the devotional exercises of missionaries. -With a blended simplicity and oddity, the -negro airs which have gained currency are wonderfully -harmonious and touching. The time is well -marked, shewing correctness of ear, and accordingly -the pieces, however eccentric in language, are well -adapted for singing in harmony by a number of -voices. From the performances of the ‘Christy -Minstrels,’ as they are usually designated—white -men with blackened faces imitative of negroes—people -will have a pretty good idea of the -melodies we speak of; but we should say that -the real thing is to be obtained only from a band -of genuine negroes, who for some years have -been travelling about, and who style themselves -the Jubilee Singers. Of these we want to say -something.</p> - -<p>As is well known, the abolition of slavery in the -United States was no deliberate act of national -justice and humanity, but took place in consequence -of a proclamation issued by President -Lincoln in the exigency of the civil war in 1862. -Without preparation for freedom, over four millions -of slaves were thrown on their own resources. -They could work, but comparatively few of them -could read; for it had been hitherto penal to -teach them. Considering their state of ignorance, -and the good grounds they generally had for -resenting past treatment, they behaved with a -singular degree of moderation. What, however, -was to be done with such a mass of illiterates,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">{18}</a></span> -unaccustomed to self-reliance, and who, even if -desirous of being taught, had no means of being -so? Here comes in a bright feature of the -Anglo-Saxon and Christian-minded North. Within -six months of the close of the war, societies of -benevolent individuals sprang up to extend the -blessings of elementary education to hordes of -negroes; and in which movement ladies appropriately -took part. In the confusion and rankling -animosities that prevailed in the South, the efforts -to uplift the negro by means of schools were -heroic, often dangerous, and always attended with -difficulty. There was likewise much good done -by the American Missionary Association. Schools, -academies, and preaching stations were at length -established in quarters where they were most -needed. To complete the organisation of humanising -influences, some thoughtful individuals -struck out the idea of establishing a University -for the higher education of the freed people, and -training them to go forth as ministers and -teachers, as well as leaders in various departments -of civil life.</p> - -<p>It was easier to conceive this brilliant idea than -to bring it to a practical issue. Where was the -money to come from to build a University, to -equip it properly, and to pay for professors? -There would even be a difficulty in finding a site, -for few land-owners in a central situation would -be willing to promote the elevation of the coloured -races. The history of the way in which these -preliminary difficulties were overcome is about as -interesting a narrative as we ever read. Immense -spirit and ingenuity were developed in bringing -the scheme into shape. Without saying what it -was for, a suitable site was procured at the price -of sixteen thousand dollars, near Nashville, the -capital of Tennessee. There were already a few -frame-buildings on the spot, which were employed -to accommodate a school, as a beginning of the -proposed educational operations. The institution -was called the Fisk University, in honour of -General Clinton B. Fisk, who had taken a warm -interest in the undertaking. The establishment -was opened in January 1866.</p> - -<p>By-and-by the school, or we might say schools, -throve. Thousands of negroes were taught by -a band of eager teachers, some of whom only a -short time before did not know one letter from -another. There was an honest enthusiasm in -the whole affair that brought with it the blessing -of success. Again we are called on to note what -good is often done by the quiet unprompted and -unselfish energy of a single individual. About -the time when the Fisk University was organised, -there cast up a young man named White, -who, looking about for a means of livelihood, -took up the profession of teacher. He was the -son of a village blacksmith in the state of New -York, had fought in several battles during the -war, and made himself useful in connection with -the Freedman's Bureau at Nashville. He had a -special taste for vocal music, with which he -amused his leisure hours, and this accomplishment -along with good business habits, made him very -acceptable as a coadjutor in the University. White -started a singing class among the negroes, male -and female, who came to get lessons in reading; -and, pleased with their aptitude, he fell upon -the bold plan of drilling them as a choir of singers, -who should travel through the Northern cities -in the hope of gathering money to help the University -funds. Getting his band into trim, he -set out with them on a musical excursion in -October 1871, carrying with them the good wishes -of all, from the Principal of the institution downwards.</p> - -<p>In our own country, the getting up of a university, -or even the enlargement of one, is ordinarily -a serious affair. Unless some wealthy person has -bequeathed money for the purpose, government is -worried for grants, and the public are worried for -subscriptions. Keeping proceedings of this kind -in view, one can hardly fail to be amused with the -novel and heroic notion entertained by a dozen -simple-minded negroes in trying to collect fifty -to a hundred thousand pounds for a University by -mere dint of singing a few simple hymns, which -illustrious dons of the musical profession would -only laugh at. Yet, this is what was attempted. -Led by White as general manager, and by Miss -Wells, who took the oversight of the girls of the -party, the negroes went on their way, poorly -clothed, and with barely means to pay for a night's -lodging. We observe by the history given of -them, that they trusted a good deal to kind treatment -from Congregational and other churches. -They got the gratuitous use of chapels for their -concerts, or what were termed ‘praise services,’ -and when they became known, engagements -freely poured in upon them. The sweetness -of the voices, the accuracy of the execution, the -precision of the time, and the wild simplicity of -the words, astonished the audiences who listened to -them; the wonder being of course augmented by -the fact of their colour and the knowledge that only -a few years ago these singers had been slaves. Although -generally well received, they had at first -numerous difficulties to encounter. The expense -of travelling from town to town was considerable. -To give a distinctive character to their enterprise, -they assumed the name of Jubilee Singers, significant -of their emancipation in 1862, as the year of -negro jubilee!</p> - -<p>Their first eminent successes were at New York, -Boston, and in Connecticut. The good-will of the -people took the shape not only of money contributions, -but of articles to furnish their proposed -University. A firm at Boston made them a present -of a thousand dollar organ. The singing campaign -of three months over the principal parts of the -Northern states yielded, after paying all expenses, -the sum of twenty thousand dollars. The company -were received at the University with joy and -thanksgiving—a prodigious triumph for White, the -planner and conductor of the expedition.</p> - -<p>Encouraged by this success, a second campaign -followed, and the result was another sum of twenty -thousand dollars, making forty thousand that had -now been secured. In this expedition, the party -encountered various caste prejudices. Halls were -refused to them; at some railway stations they -were treated with indignity, and hotel-keepers -declined to give them accommodation. At one -hotel where the keeper received them, all the -waiters deserted their posts, and the Jubilee -Singers waited on themselves and blackened their -own boots. These misadventures were taken with -good-humour. Having so far done well within -American territory, the party resolved to try their<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">{19}</a></span> -fortune in Great Britain, for which purpose they -were favoured with letters of introduction likely -to advance their enterprise. Curiously enough, -cabin accommodation was refused to the party by -one after another of the leading ocean steamship -lines. At last they were received on board one of -the Cunard steamers, and safely and agreeably -landed in England.</p> - -<p>The letters of introduction worked marvels. -We are to contemplate the Jubilee Singers one -May afternoon in 1873, at Willis's Rooms, giving -a private concert to a select body of individuals, -by invitation of the Earl of Shaftesbury and a -Committee of the Freedman's Aid Society. There -was a distinguished assemblage; the singers did -their best, and all were delighted. The Duke -and Duchess of Argyll were foremost in expressing -a desire to promote the object of the party, and -arranged for a visit of the singers to Argyll Lodge -the next day. This visit to Argyll Lodge was -a notable event. The Queen, who is always -foremost in works of intelligent benevolence, -graciously attended for a short time, and listened -with manifest pleasure to the hymns which the -singers had learned in bondage. Her Majesty -in departing, communicated through the Duke -her thanks for the gratification she had received. -These preliminary efforts insured to the Jubilee -Singers a wide round of popularity. Hospitable -invitations poured in upon them from persons -of literary and political distinction. Among the -most pleasurable of these invitations was one to -breakfast from Mr Gladstone, then prime-minister, -by whom they were cordially received. After -breakfast, the singers entertained the company -with their wonderful music. The intense feeling -with which they sang <i>John Brown</i>, with the -refrain—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">John Brown died that the slave might be free,<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>electrified the audience; and ‘never,’ said a -spectator, ’shall I forget Mr Gladstone's rapt -enthusiastic attention. His form was bent forward, -his eyes were riveted; all the intellect and soul -of his great nature seemed expressed in his countenance; -and when they had finished, he kept -saying: “Isn't it wonderful? I never heard anything -like it!”’</p> - -<p>After spending three months in London, the -Jubilee Singers proceeded to give a round of -concerts in the principal towns of England and -Scotland; being everywhere well received by large -and appreciative audiences. Financially, the excursion -was eminently successful. Nearly ten -thousand pounds had been raised for the Fisk -University, besides special gifts for the purchase -of philosophical apparatus, and donations of books -for the library. The money collected first and -last by the singers now amounted to about twenty -thousand pounds, which went a considerable way -towards the building of the University, which -assumed shape and was opened in 1875. To reinforce -the funds, another visit to Great Britain was -determined on. We cannot go into an account of -this second visit; it is enough to say that the -singers again made their appearance in all the -principal towns of England and Scotland, and -were able to take back the sum of ten thousand -pounds; making in all as a result of their labours -the sum of thirty thousand. Since this time, the -party have made various excursions, always increasing -the funds for the erection of college buildings; -but of the exact particulars we have no -account. One of the objects in view is to erect -a building called the Livingstone Missionary Hall, -designed, as we understand, for the special preparation -of missionaries for Africa. The latest statement -we see on the subject is that the Jubilee -Singers have gone on a visit to Germany, to secure -funds to complete this building and further equip -the University for missionary work.</p> - -<p>The vicissitudes of travelling at home and -abroad during several years led to changes in the -company of singers. When members were obliged -to retire, others equally qualified took their place. -At different times twenty-four persons in all have -belonged to the company. All of them have been -slaves or of slave parentage. Excepting a few -mulattoes, all have been of a pure negro type; and -their respective histories offer some interesting -facts concerning the condition of people of colour -in the slave states up till the period of general -emancipation. It is gratifying to know that the -extraordinary change of life from privation and -contumely to comfort and public respect has not -uplifted the feelings, or materially altered the habits -of the members of the corps. In their moral and -religious obligations they have ever been irreproachable. -We are told that none of them uses tobacco; -and their English friends, whose hospitalities have -been so abundant, are equally surprised, if not -gratified, to find that they are inveterate abstainers -from alcoholic liquors. Considering the temptations -and buffetings of their early life, there is not -a little to admire in the conduct as well as in the -accomplishments of the several individuals composing -the party. The energetic yet modest way -they have acquitted themselves in the routine of -the very peculiar duties imposed on them, is -probably not often met with in parties of higher -pretensions.</p> - -<p>We have now in brief told the story of the -Jubilee Singers, and it is more than ordinarily -remarkable. A handful of freed negro slaves undertaking -by voluntary efforts to collect funds wherewith -to establish and support a University, having -for its object the higher education of the coloured -population in the United States. The enterprise -has had no parallel. These negroes do not beg, -nor do they trouble people for subscriptions. They -only try to raise funds by the exercise of their -talents in an honest line of industry, by communicating -pleasure to countless audiences. Amidst -the frauds and commercial rascalities of pompous -pretenders that are becoming a scandal to the age, -the unselfish and noble endeavours of these humble -melodists stand out in marked contrast, as something -to applaud and to redeem human nature. -The marvel of the enterprise has been its universal -success. High and low are equally pleased. Professing -no particular knowledge in music, but -yielding to none in an ardent admiration of the -simpler class of national ballads and songs, we have -listened to the melodies of the Jubilee Singers -with heartfelt delight. Whether with or without -instrumental accompaniment, the melodies might -be described as supplying a new relish. It has -been remarked that the greater number of the -pieces are in the same scale as that in which -Scottish music is written, with the fourth and -seventh tones omitted. This would only indicate -the untutored nature of their origin, and the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">{20}</a></span> -wonder is greater at the effects produced. Nothing -is left for us to add but an advice to our readers. -It is, to take the earliest opportunity to go and -hear the <span class="smcap">Jubilee Singers</span>.</p> - -<p class='right'> -W. C. -</p> - -<hr class="chap" /></div><div> - - -<h2><a name="HELENA_LADY_HARROGATE" id="HELENA_LADY_HARROGATE">HELENA, LADY HARROGATE.</a></h2> - - -<h3>CHAPTER II.—AT CARBERY CHASE.</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">The</span> horseman, at whose approach the interesting -inmate of <i>The Traveller's Rest</i> had so abruptly -withdrawn from the place of observation whence -he was contemplating the Elizabethan front of -Carbery Court, had scarcely recognised in the -lounger smoking his pipe beneath the elm, the -bronzed seafaring fellow whom he had frequently -of late encountered. But as the man moved off -with hasty step and an evident dislike to observation, -the rider's eyes for a moment followed him.</p> - -<p>‘A queer customer that,’ he said carelessly to -himself. ‘What is he, I wonder? If I saw that -ugly face of his near Ashdown Park or Newmarket -Heath, I'd lay a trifle that he was a racing tout; -in London I would class him as a dog-dealer or -dog-stealer, or possibly a sham smuggler, one of -those gruff longshore-men who waylay you with -their contraband cabbage-leaf <i>Trabucos</i>; but being -here, I think he has more the look of a real one.’</p> - -<p>Having said which, he rode on, in the quiet -enjoyment of a cigar, towards the material of -which it is unlikely that the leaf of any British -vegetable had contributed; while no sound but the -jingling of the bridle-rein and the tramp of the -horse's feet broke the silence. Overhead there -soared aloft a living canopy of verdure, formed by -the mighty trees, that seemed to throw, as it were, -a succession of triumphal arches over the smooth -carriage-road, flecked with broad bars of light and -shadow. There were vistas here and there, opening -out from between the massive trees, on -which an artist's eye might have feasted, dells -clothed with beech and birch trees, fairy glens -through which trickled some brooklet fresh from -its cradle among the ridges of Dartmoor, pools -on which the water-lily floated, and around which -the deer bent down their antlered heads to -drink. But Jasper Denzil had little or no appreciation -of the charms of a landscape, and as he -rode on, the only comment which escaped him was -evoked by the sight of the superb old house, its -many windows glistening golden in the sloping -sun, as though to challenge admiration.</p> - -<p>‘Tiresome old jail!’ he said, tossing away the -stump of his cigar. ‘A nice place to be mewed -up in, with the London season at high-pressure, is -this! If it were mine to do as I liked with’—— But -the only son and heir of Sir Sykes Denzil did -not definitely state the course that he should -pursue were he undisputed proprietor of Carbery -Chase.</p> - -<p>Jasper, whose actual age may have been six or -at the most seven and twenty, was one of those -men of whom it is puzzling to say whether -they look, for their years, very youthful or surprisingly -old. He was below the middle height, -and his smooth pale face seemed at first sight -almost boyish; but the cold glance of the small -blue eyes, the firmness of the compressed lips, and -the tell-tale lines that were faintly visible at the -angles of both eyes and mouth, were not such as -we associate with ingenuous youth.</p> - -<p>Captain Denzil (Jasper had at an early age -attained, thanks to the golden ladder by which the -offspring of wealthy men were wont to climb, his -captaincy in the light cavalry regiment to which -he had till recently belonged) had proved himself -an expensive son to Sir Sykes. His fair moustache, -pallid face, and drawling accent were well known on -race-courses, and quite familiar in those darkened -rooms at fashionable clubs where the fickle goddess -Chance is worshipped by card-players around their -lamp-lit green tables, while it is honest daylight -in the workaday world beyond.</p> - -<p>He rode into the yard and dismounted; but -instead of immediately entering the house, lingered -to exchange a thoughtful word or two as to the -signs of an incipient spavin in the off fore-leg of -the fiery chestnut which he had been riding.</p> - -<p>‘Knew he wasn't sound of course, when I -bought him,’ remarked the captain, with calm -philosophy. ‘A friend's horse never is, especially -when the friend is such an impulsive open-hearted -fellow as Charley Granger. But he was cheap, -and he has a turn of speed, and I've entered him -for the Pebworth Steeplechase, and don't want to -pay forfeit. So see to the bandages, Phillips, will -you; and don't have him out, except for gentle -exercise on the soft, this fortnight. We mustn't -neglect that leg.’</p> - -<p>Jasper was not one of those who care for a horse, -as some of us do, for the horse's own sake, and -out of genuine love for the noblest of the dumb -servants that do the bidding of mankind. But he -did regard the genus <i>equus</i> as a very valuable -instrument for gambling purposes, and as such to -be tended with jealous care and helped, when -convenient, to victory on the turf.</p> - -<p>With a slow step and a careless indolent -manner, Jasper Denzil crossed the paved yard, -and entered by a side-door the mansion that -must one day in the course of nature be his, but -of which as a place of residence we have already -heard him express an opinion the reverse of flattering. -There was very little at Carbery Chase to -amuse the captain, cut off from his usual sources -of excitement and a temporary exile from London -and its pleasures. It was sorry work this pottering -business of picking up a few ten-pound bets -on country courses, or winning paltry stakes by -the aid of wretched platers. It was better than -nothing no doubt; precisely as at Monaco we see -the ruined millionaire, Spanish or Russian, eagerly -playing for silver when his last rouleaux of louis-d'or -have taken wing; but he felt that it was a -sore degradation for one whose dash and coolness -had won dubious compliments from very great -personages.</p> - -<p>Traversing a passage, Jasper presently crossed -the great hall—full of costly marbles brought from -Italy, in days when there were no manufacturers -of the spurious antique—and opened the door of -what was known as the morning-room, cheerful -and bright as a morning-room should be, and -overlooking the rose-garden, then glorious in its -glow and blush of tender colour.</p> - -<p>Two ladies were the occupants of the room, both -young and both pretty, though each of them had -that likeness to Jasper (her only brother) which we -so constantly trace in members of the same family. -Lucy it is true was dark-haired and dark-eyed; -while Blanche, the younger and taller of the two, -was delicately—perhaps too delicately—fair of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">{21}</a></span> -complexion, and had hair of the palest gold. Sir -Sykes had been for several years a widower; and -all the Denzil family, with the exception of the -baronet himself, were now present in that room, -through the French windows of which came -stealing in the fresh scent of roses.</p> - -<p>‘I saw you, Jasper, from the pheasantry, as you -came up the park; but you did not see me,’ said -Miss Denzil, smiling. ‘You did not stay, then, -to see the finish of the Pebworth cricket-match?’</p> - -<p>‘I—no!’ answered Jasper with a yawn. ‘Cricket -is amusing, I daresay, to those who knock the ball -about, or to those who run to pick it up again, -as the French countess said of our noble national -game; but it is slow—fearfully slow.’ And the -captain yawned again.</p> - -<p>‘Most things are, I am afraid, at Carbery,’ -said Blanche gently.—‘We have tried to amuse -him—have we not, Lucy?—by dragging him -with us to such primitive merry-makings as lay -within driving distance, archery-meetings, flower-shows’——</p> - -<p>‘Yes, and all manner of Arcadian entertainments -of the same species,’ interrupted Jasper, -drumming with his ringed fingers on the glass of -the open window near which he was standing. -‘I believe I had a narrow escape from what they -called a sillabub party at that old woman's (Lady -Di Horner's) house at Ottery St Luke's, with a -cow on the lawn and the rest of it. The natives, -I suppose, like that kind of thing; I don't.’ There -was a half-peevish lassitude in his tone, in his -attitude, as he spoke, which added emphasis to -words that were, if ungracious, perhaps not -unkindly meant. But his sisters were not in the -least offended that their brother should shew so -unaffectedly how little pleasure he took in their -society, and how complete was his distaste for -their simple pleasures and homely occupations. -A grown-up brother is, in the eyes of good girls, a -hero by right of birth, and with Lucy and Blanche -the captain was a privileged person, not to be -judged by the standards of ordinary ethics.</p> - -<p>‘If the governor,’ said Jasper, after a pause, -‘would ask people down here—I mean of course -after town is empty—a houseful of people of the -right sort, why then, one might get through the -autumn and winter without being moped to -death.’</p> - -<p>Lucy shook her head. ‘There is no chance, -brother,’ she said, ‘that papa should fill his house -with what you would consider people of the right -sort. The Vanes will come of course, and the -Henshaws, and’——</p> - -<p>‘Never mind the rest of the names,’ broke in -the captain with a lazy brusqueness; ‘heavy -county members, who know more of the points of -a bullock than they do of those of a horse; and -their fat wives and starched daughters. What -have I done, to be buried alive in this way!’</p> - -<p>Women have this merit, that they seldom -retort, as they might sometimes do with crushing -effect, upon a man who bewails his hard lot, be his -self-pity ever so unreasonable. Lucy and Blanche -Denzil knew, or guessed, with tolerable accuracy -that it was due to Jasper's own extravagance that -he no longer wore the gay trappings of a captain -of Lancers, and that the soles of his varnished -boots were no longer familiar with the Pall-Mall -pavement.</p> - -<p>‘I'll go in and see my father; he's in the -library, I suppose?’ said Jasper, and without -waiting for an answer, he sauntered off.</p> - -<p>Sir Sykes Denzil was a man of methodical -habits, and his son's conjecture that he would be -found at that hour in the library was quite warranted, -not only by fact, but by his daily practice. -On his way thither the young man passed by the -suite of drawing-rooms, only the smallest of which -was ever used, save on the occasions, not too -frequent, when some great dinner-party or possibly -a dance at Carbery Chase set all the neighbouring -lanes and roads aglow with carriage-lamps. -With all its splendour, the Court was what might -be described as a dull house; the master of which -had never made the most, even for selfish purposes, -of his large share in the good things of this -world.</p> - -<p>The library, Sir Sykes's favourite room, was -a stately apartment, with gilt cornices and a -richly painted ceiling. It overlooked the stone -terrace whereon, amidst statues and marble vases -overbrimming with scarlet geraniums, the peacocks -strutted. The great central window was of ancient -stained glass, and from its quaint panes in their -leaden setting flashed forth the lost colours of -the blue and crimson, deemed inimitable for -centuries past, but which probably owed their -peculiar beauty to the corroding touch of time. -This window, of which honourable mention was -made in the county guide-book aforesaid, glimmered -with heraldic blazonry, wherein the couchant -greyhounds of the present owners of Carbery -found no place.</p> - -<p>The baronet, who was seated at his writing-table, -strewn with papers, looked up as he heard -the opening of the door, and greeted his son -with rather a conventional smile of recognition. -‘So you are back with us earlier than usual, -Jasper,’ he said, in a tone that was polite, but -scarcely cordial. The young man's voice, as usual -with him when he addressed his father, had lost -much of the languid insolence which habit had -rendered natural to him.</p> - -<p>‘Yes, sir; I don't care much for cricket, so I -did not stay to see the end of it. So far as I could -hear, the Zingari were beating the County hollow. -But as I said before, that style of thing is not -much in my line.’</p> - -<p>‘Better for you, my boy, if it had been,’ -returned the baronet dryly. ‘A young fellow -cannot break his health or ruin his fortunes at -cricket, as more fashionable pastimes may help -him to do.’</p> - -<p>The captain winced and reddened. ‘I didn't -expect a lecture, father,’ he said peevishly. ‘Indeed -I'm not likely to forget the crasher I came -down with, that my misfortunes should be thrown -in my teeth every day I live.’</p> - -<p>‘We will let the subject drop,’ said the baronet -after a momentary pause. ‘Who were at Pebworth -to-day? No lack of company, I suppose? Our -friends hereabouts are not all as complete cosmopolitans -as you are, Jasper; and some of the -ladies at anyrate may have gone there in hopes -of seeing Devon win the game.’</p> - -<p>Jasper half sullenly made answer that he could -scarcely say who were there. ‘Fulfords and Courtenays -and the Carews, and the people from -Prideaux Park, yes; and the De Vere girls, and -Harrogate their brother. The old Earl wasn't -there, and the ladies went on horseback.’</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">{22}</a></span></p> - -<p>‘Lady Gladys looks well on horseback,’ observed -Sir Sykes with a sidelong glance at his son.</p> - -<p>‘Yes; and rides nicely,’ answered Jasper with -an air of the most utter indifference; and then -the eyes of the father and the son met, not frankly, -but as the eyes of two wary fencing-masters might -do at the instant of crossing swords. Sir Sykes -and Jasper were not, so far as outward seeming -went, in the least alike. The common attribute -of worldliness they did indeed share, but neither -in looks nor in manner did they resemble each -other. The baronet was a tall and handsome -man, whose dark hair was now dashed with gray, -and his high forehead deeply lined, but who still -presented to the eyes of the world a showy exterior -and a bearing that was at once dignified and -urbane. That he was not in perfect health could -only be conjectured from the slowness of his step, -and those faintly marked furrows near the corners -of the shapely mouth, in which a shrewd physician -might have read of mischief silently at work; -but to unprofessional scrutiny he appeared simply -as a gentleman of a goodly presence.</p> - -<p>A melancholy man, albeit a proud and a courteous -one, Sir Sykes was known to be. And -singularly enough, the baronet's sadness was supposed -to date from the day when he had lost, long -years ago, the eldest of his three daughters, a -little girl to whom he was rumoured to have been -unusually attached. This was the odder, because -Sir Sykes was not the sort of man who is generally -credited with very deep feelings or a peculiar -strength of family affection. He had borne his -wife's decease with polished equanimity; but those -who had known him in his early poverty and in -his subsequent prosperity averred that the lord of -Carbery had never been the same man since the -death of this child.</p> - -<p>‘I wish,’ said Sir Sykes, speaking slowly, and -poising a gold-hafted paper-knife between his soft -white fingers—‘I wish I could see you married -and settled.’</p> - -<p>‘The settling, if, as I suppose, it means the -making of a suitable settlement, makes the main -impediment to marrying, with some of us at least,’ -rejoined Jasper with mock gravity; but before his -father could reply, a servant entered bringing a -letter. Sir Sykes mechanically took up the letter -from the silver tray and as mechanically opened -it. But his eyes had hardly glanced at the first -half-page before a great and sudden change came -over his calm face; he grew white, almost livid, -to his very lips, and let his hand which held the -open letter drop heavily upon the table.</p> - -<p>‘Are you ill, sir?’ said Jasper quickly and with -a sort of anxiety unusual with him. It was impossible -to avoid taking notice of the baronet's -very evident emotion; impossible too not to -connect the cause of it with the letter which Sir -Sykes held in his hand. But the master of -Carbery Chase rallied himself, and though his face -was even ghastly in its pallor and his breath -came painfully, he managed to smile as he rejoined: -‘Not ill. It is a mere pain, a spasm at -most, which comes at times, but goes as quickly, -or nearly so, as it comes. It is a trifle, not worth -the talking about. It is getting late, and I have -a note or two to write and some papers to look -over before the dressing-bell rings. We shall -meet at dinner presently.’</p> - -<p>Jasper rose to go. ‘I hardly like’—— he began.</p> - -<p>‘I am better; I am well; it is nothing,’ interrupted -Sir Sykes irritably; and then blandly -added: ‘I thank you, my dear boy, for your -solicitude, but I am best alone.’</p> - -<p>Jasper had not proceeded two paces along the -carpeted corridor before he heard the key of the -library door turned from within.</p> - -<p>‘I'd give a cool hundred,’ said this exemplary -youth, ‘to look over my father's shoulder as he -reads that letter. To have a hold on the governor -would’—— He left the rest of the sentence unspoken, -and passed on, leaving Sir Sykes in the -locked-up library to the company of his own -solitary thoughts.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /></div><div> -<h2><a name="TIGER-SHOOTING" id="TIGER-SHOOTING">TIGER-SHOOTING.</a></h2> - - -<p><span class="smcap">Tiger-shooting</span> in India differs a trifle from the -tame pursuit of game in England—a very different -thing indeed from the miserable amusement of the -<i>battue</i>, in which hundreds of defenceless creatures -are shot down without any chance of danger to -the shooter. To go out tiger-shooting is to run -the risk of encountering a deadly enemy, which on -grounds of public policy it is of importance to -destroy. So much as a preliminary observation.</p> - -<p>The danger connected with tiger-shooting varies -very much in proportion to the conditions under -which it is prosecuted. Thus a man on foot following -the fresh tracks of a tiger up to his lair, -and shooting him as he lies, or following him up -on foot when wounded, incurs the maximum risk. -In all cases, after being wounded, ungovernable -fury and a fierce longing for revenge take the place -of that instinctive fear or shyness of man which -tigers share with all other wild animals. This instinctive -dread of man is so well known to the tribes -who inhabit the forests of India, that even solitary -individuals will hail the prospect of suddenly -encountering a tiger, provided, of course, that he is -not a man-eater. They know their safety at such -a moment lies in preserving a composed attitude -and demeanour. The tiger will often yield the -right of way; but if the human subject finds it -necessary to set that example in the way of politeness, -he knows it to be absolutely essential to the -preservation of his life that he should do so with -every appearance of self-possession, and without -any signs of fear or precipitancy. A passage in -<i>King Richard III.</i> accurately reflects the line of -conduct which should be observed, holding good -as it does equally with reference to the tiger:</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">To fly the boar, before the boar pursues,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Were to incense the boar to follow us,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">And make pursuit where he did mean no chase.<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>In proportion to the successful days, the number -of blank days in tiger-shooting is extraordinarily -large, as the experience of most shikarees will -confirm. This is owing to ‘hanks’ or beats being -so often badly planned or mismanaged; through -which tigers escape which might otherwise have -easily been brought to book. The dry and -denuded state of an Indian jungle during the hot -weather makes that the most fitting season for -tiger-shooting. Indeed it is the only season in -which the sport can be undertaken with a reasonable -prospect of success. The available covers for -a tiger are then much reduced in number and -extent; and in the inverse ratio are the chances -increased of the animal's not betaking himself to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">{23}</a></span> -some distant locality before the plan of action -which is intended to effect his destruction has had -time to develop itself. In other words, any faint -and accidental signs of a disturbance in a tiger's -vicinity will rouse him from his lair, and drive -him to green patch or snug retreat miles away, -if the weather be cool and cover abundant; -whereas with very hot weather and extensive -denudation of shade, he will prefer remaining -where he is until the sounds assume too decided -a character to be mistaken; when the probabilities -are that the sportsman will be perfectly -ready on his making a move.</p> - -<p>The great point to remember in arranging to -hunt a tiger is that one of his most prominent -characteristics is cunning—and that this <i>must be -met by cunning</i>. This is not sufficiently studied, -especially by beginners. Eager and enthusiastic -for the fray, and for the thrill of satisfaction -which the all-important moment of the actual -kill inspires, the inexperienced sportsman is too -apt to overlook those precautions and preparations -which are essential aids to success; or he -relies upon others for doing in the above respects -what he should attend to himself. The first -thing to be done on arriving at the ground -where a tiger has safely been marked down -by the early despatched scouts is to acquaint -one's self thoroughly with its topography. The -nature of the ground varies very much; consisting -sometimes of a pile of rocks rising from a -plain, of a confused mass of hills, or of a large -single hill, a river or small water-course stocked -with green bushes, and with level jungle or perhaps -open ground bordering on both sides; and so on. -On being roused from his lair in say a water-course -by the beaters, a tiger is very likely to cross over -into the jungle, especially if another ravine is not -far off to which he can retire. He does so with -the express object of getting rid of his disturbers -as soon as possible; or let us say that instinct -tells him that an entire change of locality is most -conducive to his safety. On the other hand, if -there be no adjoining cover, a tiger will keep to -the same channel and steal along its course. The -difference between the two cases represents the -comparative prospect of a tiger being bagged. -When a tiger is compelled to steal along the -channel from which he has been roused, the prospect -becomes nearly a certainty, assuming the -‘hank’ to be conducted in a correct manner.</p> - -<p>A very slight noise, such as slight coughing, -will sometimes start a tiger; while he will at other -times refuse to move, although even shots should -be fired into the bush or among the rocks where -he may be lying concealed. As Colonel Rice, -late of the Bombay army, very justly remarks -in his book entitled <i>Tiger-shooting in India</i>—and -the writer's own experience is entirely corroborative -of that statement—no two tigers can be -depended on for behaving exactly alike under the -same circumstances. An old tiger, and especially -one which has been hunted before, is extremely -wary, and very difficult to circumvent with even -good management; while a young one readily -falls a victim, like any other greenhorn. A tigress -with young cubs is always very savage, and will -sometimes charge anybody approaching her den or -other resting-place before her own presence is at -all suspected. Three men in the service of the -writer were once obliged to take refuge on a rock -only some six or seven feet high, where an angry -tigress bayed them, and repeatedly threatened to -charge home for at least two hours. One of the -men was armed with a sword, and the other two -had nothing but sticks in their hands. The tigress -crouched at the very foot of the rock, which was -small but flat-topped, over and over again. She -there alternately blinked and glared at the unfortunate -men, who only succeeded in keeping her off -from actually springing on them by dint of vigorous -and incessant shouting, and constantly changing -front, according as the tigress herself kept -moving from one side of the rock to another, and -occasionally retiring a few paces, and then stealing -forward and crouching again. The state of their -throats and the terribly husky whisper to which -their voices were in the end reduced, may easily -be imagined. However, down to their humblest -followers, hunters as a rule are a merry set, and -directly actual danger has passed away the danger -is forgotten.</p> - -<p>In large covers there are often outlets and lines -of exit, in addition to those guarded by a party of -say four or five sportsmen, who post themselves at -the most important points. These all require to -be blocked up, so that a tiger, should he attempt -to escape by any of them, may be readily turned -on to a path which will draw him under fire. One -of the covers in which the writer was fortunate -enough to bag several tigers in different years, consisted -of a river of about a hundred and fifty yards -width, with ravines branching out at different -points, and low hills bordering the banks. It was -impracticable with fewer than a hundred men, and -was best driven by elephants, in consequence of -the thick and tangled state of the bushes. It was -a piece of ground of the kind described above, -offering numerous outlets, as the cover extended -right under one of the banks, and ran for some -distance along the length of the river; while the -bank itself was of no great height, and might -be ascended in a moment at any point. The -method of blocking up the outlets which the -sportsmen themselves cannot watch, is to place -over them, on trees, the sharpest and most intelligent -of the men that can be selected from among -the beaters. They should be instructed to strike -the tree with a stone taken up in the hand for -that purpose, or to employ any other simple -process of producing a noise, so that the tiger may -be headed back the moment he is seen to be -advancing, and his intention is unmistakable. A -blank shot will be necessary to turn a <i>rapidly</i> -advancing tiger; and a matchlock or spare gun -in the hands of a competent person should in -such cases be kept in reserve. Many of the -rivers in India during the hunting season are -perfectly dry beds, except as to a mere rill or -narrow stream. The actual water's edge is, however, -almost sure to be the tiger's position, if -fringed by bushes sufficiently large to afford him -shelter; for he delights in lapping the water -frequently, and in laving his limbs during the -hottest hours of the day.</p> - -<p>With respect to the height a tiger will clear -at a bound or series of bounds, some uncertainty -seems to prevail. In Captain Shakspeare's -<i>Wild Sports of India</i>, the author, when twelve -feet up a tree, scarcely thought himself beyond -the reach of the man-eater he was expecting, -as he believed a tiger capable of springing over<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">{24}</a></span> -that height. In the book of Colonel Gordon Gumming -(a brother of the African hunter), a sad case -is recorded of his gun-bearer being pulled out -of a tree and killed by a wounded tiger through -incautiously standing only some eight feet above -the ground. But points of this nature are altogether -of a secondary character, the slightest -vantage-ground being sufficient if the requisites -are preserved of a cool head and steady hand to -guide the management of an efficient weapon.</p> - -<p>To the generality of tastes, the most satisfactory -method of hunting tigers is with and upon a well-trained -elephant. But when the arrangements are -on a very extensive scale, they fail of anything -like due effect. On special occasions, elephants -have been employed in the hunting-field by the -score, and also by the hundred, as in the case -of the Prince of Wales's excursions in Nepaul. -A cordon of eight hundred elephants was then -employed to inclose a jungle and to drive the -game on to a central point; but the bag, though -good, was disproportionately small, looking to the -means and labour employed. Better results might -have been obtained if the ground had been traversed -in sections with only a few elephants, -though this would have required more time, -which probably could not be spared. The great -object to be kept in view in approaching a tiger -for the purpose of obtaining a fair shot, is to do as -little as possible towards startling the beast until -within a few yards, even though obstructions such -as bushes or rocks intervene; for when once a -‘scare’ is excited, a tiger will break through an -inclosing line of elephants and probably escape -altogether; whereas by being quietly followed up -with scouts previously sent forward to note and -telegraph his progress, the chances are all in favour -of the sportsman.</p> - -<p>In hilly tracts where the hills run in long -ridges and are flanked or intersected by ravines, -as in Rajpootana, tiger-shooting may at all times -be conducted on foot with comparative safety. -This was successfully done by Colonel (then -Lieutenant) Rice from twenty to twenty-five years -back. He never once employed an elephant, and -treats the notion of doing so with a certain amount -of disdain. Confessing to a desire to employ his -rifle on the tigers in the island of Singapore, -which is (or certainly was) very much infested by -them, he remarks: ‘There the old notion prevails -that without elephants tigers are best let alone.’ -Evidently the Colonel does not consider the elephant -a necessary adjunct to the sport, nor did -he really find it so. There can, however, be no -question that in large swamps and grass tracts, -and in fact under all circumstances, an elephant is -a most powerful auxiliary, whose importance cannot -be over-rated. If trees and such positions are -taken to meet the tiger when he first breaks, the -advantage of afterwards following him up on an -elephant if only wounded, is too obvious to need -any comment. But it is of course absolutely necessary -that the elephant should be one which can -be depended on for making a firm stand before a -tiger. The more steady the elephant, the better -the aim that can be taken; but the uninitiated -should know that there is always some slight -oscillatory movement in an elephant, so that a -small though perhaps an infinitesimal measure -of calculation has to be applied in shooting from -its back. From a neglect of this necessity, -tigers are sometimes missed at absurdly close -quarters, though there may be no actual change -in the elephant's position to account for the circumstance, -and to justify the miss. On the other -hand, as sometimes happens, an elephant may very -seriously incommode or perhaps precipitate his -rider to the ground, by actually charging a tiger -and dropping down on his knees, in order the -better to crush the foe. At the same time, an -elephant that bolts jeopardises his rider's life in a -worse degree, by the reckless manner in which he -pursues his flight. Should the jungle consist of -trees, there is almost a certainty of the howdah -being dashed up against them, or of its being -swept off by some projecting bough, which affords -a clear passage to the body of the elephant, but -not to the howdah and those seated in it. The -latter, therefore, run a serious risk of being badly -injured or of losing their lives.</p> - -<p>One important essential for the obtaining of -sport is a liberal expenditure of money. It -both sweetens labour and smooths the path to -danger. To keep an elephant in prime hearty -condition costs about fifteen pounds a month, -and good elephants may occasionally be borrowed -from native chiefs through the instrumentality -of political officers; but unless one has influence -enough to insure his being thus favoured, he -should make up his mind to hunt on foot. Many -men have done, and still do so with the most satisfactory -results; while with respect to elephants, -some special elements of risk exist, which prove -fatal entirely from a want of common forethought. -Thus, an unfortunate officer of one of Her -Majesty's regiments serving in India ventured into -a jungle after a tiger, seated merely on the pad on -which a howdah is made to rest; he was thrown -off, and fell into the jaws of the enraged beast. -A person seated in this manner is at any moment -liable to be thrown by a sudden swerve, and such -an occurrence is extremely likely when a tiger -charges, or suddenly appears before an elephant. -The writer remembers an instance within his own -experience of being mounted on an elephant off -whose back at least a hundred tigers had at -various times been killed, and which was therefore -generally very staunch, and of there being a -second and third elephant on each side of the -first; yet on a panther very little bigger than a -large cat charging from a bush, the three elephants -together turned in an instant and ignominiously -retreated for about a dozen yards. The shock of -the movement was so great that he was forced back -on the seat from which he had just risen the -moment before, and must have infallibly been -hurled to the ground had he been seated on a pad -only. It should therefore be adopted as a rule -never to be deviated from, that a tiger should not -be approached on an elephant otherwise than in a -properly constructed howdah.</p> - -<p>But as a contrast to the behaviour of the panther -above referred to, a large tiger will sometimes -altogether refuse to face an elephant, and will -retreat from point to point of a cover until he at -last becomes an easy victim; which shews in -what extremely opposite lights the subject requires -to be looked at.</p> - -<p>The duty of arranging a proper plan of attack -upon a tiger in any known position is sometimes -delegated by the English sportsman to his head -native shikaree, who is qualified for that task both<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">{25}</a></span> -by a certain aptitude and a considerable amount of -experience; but the best of such men are apt sometimes -to fail, and close supervision of them is -consequently always necessary. Besides, they are -generally trained by those who have them in their -service; and a long course of association and -reciprocal action between master and servant is -needed to produce an efficient henchman. It is -therefore advisable for men who are about to -begin tiger-shooting to take their initiatory lessons -in jungle-craft under the guidance of some brother-sportsman, -who can be looked on as a sort of distinguished -professor who has already graduated -with honours in his studies.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /></div><div> -<h2><a name="THE_BELL-RINGER" id="THE_BELL-RINGER">THE BELL-RINGER.</a></h2> - -<p class='ph3'>IN FOUR CHAPTERS.</p> - - -<h3>CHAPTER II.—THE STORY OF RUTH.</h3> - -<p>‘<span class="smcap">I can't</span> think whatever's come over Nathan; he's -that queer there's no such thing as making of him -out.’ This remark was addressed by Mark Day, the -tenor bell-ringer, to Obadiah Lang, who rang the -third bell, a few days after the events narrated in -the previous chapter.</p> - -<p>‘Ay,’ responded Obadiah. ‘There's the practisin' -for Christmas-eve, the practisin' for the carols -and for the hymns a' Christmas-day; he don't seem -to care about them at all, and when I says to him: -“How about the evergreens for the church?” he -stared hard, and said: “I'll see;” and walked off.’</p> - -<p>‘That ain't all neither,’ said Mark Day. ‘He's -wonderful curious about his house. He don't ask -nobody in, but stands agen the door, with it in -his hand, and seems afraid all the time you are -talking to him. My opinion is, trouble's turned -his brain. If he don't alter, I shall speak to the -parson.’</p> - -<p>‘Don't do nothing you're sorry for afterwards,’ -replied Obadiah. ‘Y' see Nathan ain't like one of -us; he mostly have his reasons for everythink, -which ain't the case with everybody nowadays: -it's all talk and no do with the many.’</p> - -<p>At this moment some one made his way to the -churchyard, and to that some one, the men touched -their hats respectfully. It was Oliver Peregrine. -He brushed past quickly; but had the men been -keen observers, they might have noticed that -his face was pale and his air abstracted. He -was going for a long and solitary walk, his -custom when any matter disturbed him, or as -Gertrude Peregrine said, ‘when he had a fit of -the blues.’ He was not favoured by that young -lady, who secretly wondered how Patricia could -fancy him. To her sister, Gertrude said nothing -of her choice, for Patricia was reserved and distant -even to her nearest of kin. Few could imagine -how deeply she loved this silent studious -man. He himself was far from guessing the depth -of her affection, his own being centred not on -Patricia but on her inheritance, which would be his -by marriage. All his life he had coveted a position -with wealth to support it; had determined to make -it his; had planned and worked for it; when, -just as he was on the point of attaining his ends, -Death stepped in, and for the time frustrated his -hopes. Again the time drew near, and again Death -intervened; while impatient of the delay, the arrival -of Colonel Lindsay, whom he well remembered, -proved a further source of annoyance.</p> - -<p>Oliver and the Colonel had been secret antagonists -in days gone by; for the latter, a brave, -honest, God-fearing soldier, disliked the character -of the younger man, whom he mistrusted; and -from his long and close intimacy with Squire -Peregrine, felt at liberty to search into matters -of which he had heard, but seen nothing. After -some years spent in India, he had returned, to -find changes at Linden Hall which grieved and -even displeased him. He felt more than ever -disposed to mistrust Oliver, but like a skilful -tactician, knew that his plans must be laid with -the utmost secrecy; his enemies being the obstinate -and unforgiving disposition of his old friend, -the craftiness of Oliver, and his ignorance of the -whereabouts of the outlawed son, to whom he had -acted as god-father, and for whom he entertained a -true affection. He had heard the story as related -by Dobson, whose fidelity was unimpeachable; but -found that even that faithful dependent was -obliged to acknowledge that the case was as clear -as the day, and that Mr Bertram would never be -forgiven by his father.</p> - -<p>‘Never, sir,’ concluded Dobson; ‘not if he was -dying.’</p> - -<p>‘And how about the girl's brother, Dobson? -You mentioned her brother. Is he still alive? -And does he manifest a vindictive spirit towards—towards -my god-son?’</p> - -<p>‘Not he, sir. Nathan Boltz has forgiven him -years ago. Poor Ruth forgave him long before she -died; but my master will never forgive him. My -mistress died with his name upon her lips; I -believe waiting for his return had killed her. It -is a sad history, sir.’</p> - -<p>Colonel Lindsay had made up his mind he -would hear the story from the lips of Nathan -himself, and at once. Therefore, on the evening of -the day when Mark Day and Obadiah Lang had -conversed respecting Nathan, there came a gentle -tap on the cottage door, which the owner cautiously -opened. In a few words the Colonel made it -known that he desired to speak to him; and with -some hesitation Nathan bid him enter. The -Colonel had excused himself after dinner from -returning to the drawing-room, and had wrapped a -large cloak over him by way of disguise; this -and his fur cap and muffler prevented Nathan from -discovering the rank of his visitor until they were -seated in the neat and pleasant room in which he -usually lived. The cottage staircase led from the -kitchen to the floor above; but the door which -opened upon the kitchen was shut.</p> - -<p>Nathan waited for Colonel Lindsay to speak; -he knew that he was a visitor at the Hall, and -yet he shewed little anxiety concerning what he -might have to say to him. But when the Colonel, -with soldierly authority, made known who he was, -and that he came for the purpose of hearing the sad -story of his sister's life, in order to forward the -ends of justice; then Nathan's hands trembled, -his lip quivered, and in a low voice he begged to -be excused.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">{26}</a></span></p> - -<p>‘No,’ replied Colonel Lindsay with decision and -yet kindness in his tone; ‘you must tell me the -whole of the particulars, either here or in a court -of justice; for I am determined to search them out, -for reasons which I shall hereafter explain.’</p> - -<p>Nathan gazed at his visitor inquiringly, then -gathering his resolution together, he said: ‘If your -object, Colonel Lindsay, be to bring the offender -to justice, I must utterly decline either in this -place or any other to open my lips upon the -subject. I will never betray him. I mean that I -will give no evidence, not even if I am punished -for withholding it.’ He spoke under considerable -excitement, but still with caution in his -manner.</p> - -<p>This was not lost upon the Colonel, who -answered: ‘Would you shield your sister's betrayer, -the man who beguiled her, and then left her to -sustain herself as best she might?’</p> - -<p>‘He did not do that,’ replied Nathan; ‘she -received an allowance as long as she lived. But I -promised her on her dying bed never to reveal -anything concerning her; and can I, ought I to -break that promise?’</p> - -<p>‘Yes!’ answered the Colonel decidedly. ‘Nathan -Boltz, you may trust me not to make use of my -knowledge against the author of all this sorrow, -for the sake of my old friend, for the sake of his -son. Can you not trust me?’</p> - -<p>‘Yes, sir, I will trust you; but you will not’—— He -paused.</p> - -<p>‘I will do nothing without your consent,’ said -Colonel Lindsay. ‘And now, let me hear it, for -time passes. Please, begin at the beginning.’</p> - -<p>‘My father,’ began Nathan, ‘was a Dutch sailor. -My mother died when Ruth was thirteen, and I two -years older. After her death—which happened -at a time when my father had returned from a -voyage—he did not go to sea any more, but -became a labourer under Squire Peregrine, and -kept a house for me and Ruth. The Squire was -very kind to my father and his orphans; and after -a time Ruth learned the dressmaking, and I was -apprenticed to the head gardener at the Hall. My -sister was a beautiful girl, the belle of the village, -and as modest as she was pretty. We were very -happy, until the Squire's son came home from -college, and began to notice Ruth in a manner -which led my father to warn her to beware. She -smiled in her innocence, and told him he was -mistaken; and as we saw little or nothing of Mr -Bertram, the feeling died out. Thus matters -remained for more than a year. But when I was -twenty and Ruth eighteen, the blow fell with -crushing effect upon us all. We rose one morning -to find her gone, and to hear that Mr Bertram -had also disappeared, after forging his father's -name for five hundred pounds. It was useless to -pursue the fugitives, even if we had had any clue -to their flight; and our desire was frustrated by -orders from Squire Peregrine to abandon all search. -Day after day we waited and hoped. But it was -some months before poor Ruth made her way to -us, footsore and weary, and begging forgiveness for -her sin. Then we knew that he had not married -her; and my father went nigh mad with anger. We -had been poor, but free from shame. He thanked -God that my mother was dead; and followed her -soon after the death of Ruth's baby, which lived -only a few weeks. From time to time Mr Bertram -sent her money, and when I mentioned him, -she always answered: “Have patience, Nathan. -He will marry me soon. Do not question me; only -trust me.” I was very bitter against him then, -and would have killed him if we had met. I told -Ruth so; and she shuddered and prayed we might -never meet until he had done her justice. So the -weary time went on; poor Ruth hopeful and -patient; so patient, that I used to wonder how she -could live alone year after year and not try to find -him, not go mad with grief and disappointment. -But so it was. I could never understand her. -We cannot all bear trouble alike, sir’——</p> - -<p>Nathan stopped suddenly, and turned his face -away.</p> - -<p>‘Go on,’ said Colonel Lindsay, rather anxiously, -consulting his watch; and Nathan obeyed.</p> - -<p>‘My sister and I lived together in this manner -for more than ten years. She supported herself -by dressmaking, and was fully employed, for her -history was known, and she was deeply pitied. -As she received a regular allowance from Mr -Bertram, she must have known at such times -where he was; but never allowed me to see or -hear anything of her proceedings. Sometimes -my violence frightened her. I know now how -blind and wrong I was. The Squire, who is a -true gentleman, gave me the office of bell-ringer -and sexton, and made us many valuable presents; -and it was understood that no mention should -ever be made by either of us of the blight -and sorrow of our life. But one day when my -sister heard from Mr Dobson that his young -master's name was struck out of the will, and that -the young ladies were to be brought up in ignorance -that they had a brother, she came home -in great distress; and one evening soon after, -when she had been with some work to a distant -farm, she fainted on this spot where I now sit, -causing me great alarm. She would not reveal -the cause of her illness; and from that time, -which was two years from the date of Mr Bertram's -flight, I said nothing to her of her sorrow -and its cause. Ten years after that her health -gave way, and I saw that her sickness was unto -death. Inwardly, I vowed vengeance on the man -who had wrought this foul wrong; outwardly, I -remained calmly waiting for the end. Every luxury -was sent her from the Hall; but Mrs Peregrine -did not visit her; no doubt she was forbidden, as -her nature was both gentle and forgiving. However, -when the end was near at hand, Ruth implored -me to fetch her, and I did so. The urgency -of my manner prevailed, and she came immediately, -alone and on foot. It was too late; Death had -arrived before her; and after a few kind words -to me, she left. I found all the money Ruth -had received from Mr Bertram put by, and used -a portion of it for funeral expenses. From the -day of her death I was a changed man. She had -besought me, charged me, as I would meet her -hereafter, to conquer even a desire for vengeance, -and had commended Mr Bertram to my care and -protection, should he ever return; and so vehement -was her manner and so solemn her tone, that I -made a vow to obey her dying injunction; and -have kept it. I have forgiven, as I hope to be -forgiven.’</p> - -<p>Again Nathan paused, while a strange peacefulness -gathered over his face.</p> - -<p>‘Have you finished?’ inquired his visitor, much -moved.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">{27}</a></span></p> - -<p>‘Not quite. Soon after the date of Ruth's death, -all remittances ceased; and I concluded that he -who had sent them was dead. This was one circumstance -worth notice. The other, that shortly -before her death Mrs Peregrine sent for me, and -charged me that should her son return, I would -neither do nor say anything to widen the breach -between him and his father. For “Nathan,” she -said, “I feel convinced that some day he <i>will</i> -return. Therefore, for the sake of poor Ruth, who -is gone, and for my sake, who will soon follow her, -promise me that you will do what you can to -bring them together; promise me, Nathan! I have -always been so grieved that I was too late to hear -what your sister had to say. Poor girl, she had a -claim on us, although the world would have -smiled at the idea. It is just possible that she -might have been married to my son. What do -you think?”</p> - -<p>‘I told her I thought not; but added that my -sister had been very secret in all that she had said -and done.</p> - -<p>‘“'Tis a great relief to speak of my poor boy,” -said Mrs Peregrine, who seemed to forget all -difference in rank; “and this will be the last time, -Nathan, that we may meet on earth. Bear my -words in mind. My end is peace, but one cannot -have peace without forgiveness.”</p> - -<p>‘I left her almost awe-stricken; it was so wonderful -to have had this lesson twice repeated. Neither -had said a word of the wrong done to them; it -seemed to have faded out before the joy and peace -which filled their hearts, and which now fills -mine.’</p> - -<p>Nathan paused, and again the bright look stole -into his face.</p> - -<p>‘Well?’ said Colonel Lindsay.</p> - -<p>‘That is all, sir,’ answered Nathan, evidently -relieved that his visitor rose to go.</p> - -<p>‘Nothing more?’ pursued the Colonel, as he -buttoned his cloak. He looked straight at Nathan, -whose eyes fell before the soldier's searching glance.</p> - -<p>‘No,’ he hesitated—‘nothing.’</p> - -<p>There was silence. Suddenly a voice from a -room above called ‘Nathan!’ twice.</p> - -<p>‘Whose voice is that?’ exclaimed Colonel Lindsay. -‘I thought you lived alone?’</p> - -<p>‘I do; but this is a friend who is ill, and is -staying with me for a time. Excuse me, sir, but I -am wanted.’</p> - -<p>Again the call for Nathan.</p> - -<p>‘Go to your friend,’ said the Colonel; ‘I will -not detain you. After you have attended to his -wants, come back to me.’</p> - -<p>Very unwillingly Nathan opened the staircase -door; but no sooner had he turned to go upstairs -than he found his visitor behind him.</p> - -<p>‘Go on,’ he said, as he paused. ‘I can read you -like a book.’ Another moment, and Colonel Lindsay -had clasped the hands of Bertram Peregrine, -and Nathan had left the two alone.</p> - -<p>Alone with Bertram, the Colonel heard his story, -sympathised in his trials, related all that had been -told him by the Squire, and promised to act as -mediator between father and son; for he entertained -no doubts as to the truth of the statement, -having always believed his god-son sinned against -rather than sinning. At the same time he congratulated -himself on his true perception of character.</p> - -<p>When Colonel Lindsay returned to the Hall he -was in a fever of anxiety, distress, and hope; what -steps to take he could not tell, but determined to -have but one confidant, Nathan Boltz.</p> - - -<h3>CHAPTER III.—TOLLING THE CURFEW.</h3> - -<p>Oliver Peregrine hated Nathan Boltz; but -nobody suspected it, least of all Nathan himself. -Oliver longed for the time to come when as Squire -of Linden he could shew his hatred, for which he -considered he had satisfactory reasons: one being, -that Nathan was a favourite in the village and -Oliver was disliked; another, that he was a protg -of the Squire's; a third, that he had been a -great hinderance to Oliver's schemes. And now -this Colonel Lindsay seemed to be smitten with -the bell-ringer, for he frequently engaged him in -conversation and met him in the belfry to inspect -the bells. Evidently the Colonel was mad on the -subject of bell-ringing.</p> - -<p>But at the end of a fortnight it occurred to -Oliver, who was always prying and suspecting, -that their visitor must have some deeper motive -than this love of bells and their ringers. He set -himself to watch. Just now the Hall was very -quiet. Christmas would be kept entirely by themselves, -therefore Oliver had plenty of leisure. He -said nothing to Patricia of his suspicions; he was -not communicative, and she forbore to question -him.</p> - -<p>To Gertrude, Oliver had never appeared more -distasteful than at this time; and she missed the -presence of the sweet sister in whom she had -confided; for Gertrude had her romance. A very -degrading affair Patricia would have called it. -However, no one knew of it. Indeed Gertrude -had dared scarcely confess it to herself. She loved -with the depth and purity of a Christian maiden. -Whom? None other than Nathan the bell-ringer! -Fearful was Gertrude of whispering his name even -in the solitude of her chamber. Yet it afforded -her a melancholy pleasure that he should have -prepared the last resting-places of her mother and -sister, and that in some manner, she did not quite -know how, his life should be connected with her -family.</p> - -<p>‘But what recompense can we make him,’ she -would argue, ‘in return for Bertram's wrong? Even -my father acknowledges that he did this wrong, -and has made him pay in full the penalty of his -sin.’ And then she would sigh, as she felt how -hopeless, how almost criminal was her love. In -vain, however, she struggled against it. In her -eyes Nathan was the true type of a gentleman; -and ‘Oh!’ she would cry, ‘if Bertram felt thus -for Ruth, how could he—how could he forsake -her in her time of need?’</p> - -<p>Sometimes Gertrude had feared that Oliver -Peregrine would discover her secret, or suspect -her, from her having already refused certain -eligible connections approved by her father; but -she had no cause to fear: her family had not the -most remote suspicion of the truth.</p> - -<p>Christmas drew near, while Colonel Lindsay -continued his visits to the belfry, where, as we -know, certain weighty considerations detained him -in converse with Nathan; and several times -Oliver had watched the Colonel emerge from the -cottage of the man he so detested. At last, with -some difficulty, Oliver managed to play the eavesdropper, -and gathered from their conversation that<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">{28}</a></span> -the subject of it was closely connected with his -uncle.</p> - -<p>‘What—if?’ he muttered to himself, but dared -not complete his question; and as he walked -home, after the Colonel had left Nathan, he grew -more and more uneasy, and determined to find out -for himself the secret of Nathan's attic window, -where for the last fortnight a light had been -observed. Conceive his annoyance when, on commencing -a cross-examination of the Colonel in -a friendly tone, he found the old soldier on his -guard, and ready to parry every attack. Foiled -on every side by the experienced veteran, Oliver -altered his tactics, and made up his mind to use -force, as stratagem availed nothing, and to wring -the secret from Nathan Boltz.</p> - -<p>It was on a dark starless evening that Nathan -set out to toll the curfew, accompanied by -Bertram Peregrine, who having recovered in a -great measure from the effects of his fatigue and -exposure, desired to revisit the well-remembered -church, in which many of his ancestors were -buried. Colonel Lindsay had arranged to meet -him there to decide upon an immediate course of -action; and the belfry was to be the scene of their -consultation. Nathan and his patient soon reached -the belfry, whence the tolling of the curfew -was to be the signal for the Colonel to join -them. But Oliver had invented a mysterious -communication which should detain the Colonel -in waiting for an imaginary visitor, and give him -the opportunity of going instead; therefore while -the soldier waited impatiently at the Hall for -his unknown correspondent, Oliver borrowed his -cloak, and opening the door in the wall before -mentioned, entered the churchyard and repaired -to the church.</p> - -<p>‘I hear the Colonel; he has just come in,’ said -Nathan. ‘Will you shew a light, Mr Bertram?’ -As he spoke he continued the tolling of the -curfew; and his companion descended the stairs -with the lantern in his hand; but he saw no one, -for Oliver was concealed in the deep shadow of -the porch.</p> - -<p>Just as Bertram stepped forward saying: ‘This -way, Colonel Lindsay,’ the lantern was dashed -from his hand, and a violent blow felled him -to the ground. He rose and grappled with his -antagonist, who maintained a dead silence, until -slipping over the steps into the interior of the -church, they fell with violence on the stone floor; -at the same moment Bertram felt a sharp wound -in his side, and uttered a loud cry as Nathan -rushed from the belfry bearing a candle in his -hand. He saw before him Oliver Peregrine about -to escape from the scene, while his cousin lay -on the floor of the church bleeding and unconscious.</p> - -<p>In a moment Nathan had grasped Oliver in a -powerful grip, the signal for a terrible struggle, -during which, however, the latter overpowered -his antagonist; and the would-be murderer escaped -in the darkness, just as Colonel Lindsay, who had -begun to suspect treachery, came hastily upon the -scene followed by Dobson and two or three of the -villagers. The reason of the sudden stoppage of -the bell was apparent to all. With faces of -horror and affright they gazed upon Nathan, -who, breathless and trembling, supported the -wounded man upon his arm.</p> - -<p>‘What is it? Who is it?’ demanded Colonel -Lindsay, as he picked up his cloak, which lay in -the porch; but Nathan made no reply; and his -interrogator saw that for some unknown reason he -purposely kept silence; also that he took no notice -of the cloak or the broken lantern, but signed -to Dobson to help him to bear Bertram from the -church.</p> - -<p>Colonel Lindsay at once comprehended the manœuvre; -and spreading out the cloak, they laid -Bertram gently down upon it; then Nathan, -assisted by two labourers and the Colonel, raised -him, and preceded by Dobson, whose legs trembled -beneath him, bore their senseless burden through -the churchyard. ‘To the Hall!’ was the word -of command, given and obeyed, as they marched -slowly but steadily through the grounds, until -they reached the principal entrance. There a -crowd of bewildered faces including those of -Squire Peregrine, his daughters and servants, met -their gaze.</p> - -<p>‘Charles,’ said Colonel Lindsay, ‘I bring you -your son. You dare not refuse him a home if he -is living, or a grave if he be dead.’</p> - -<p>The Squire made no reply, but sank upon the -nearest chair and covered his face with his hands.</p> - -<p>‘Shew me to a room,’ continued Colonel -Lindsay.</p> - -<p>Now Nathan and the gloomy procession moved -up the broad staircase, leaving those below watching -their progress in dumb amazement. Patricia -was the first to recover, and sign to her father to -follow her to the room they had just left. Her -movement dispersed the crowd of servants to -wonder and talk among themselves; while Gertrude -found herself surrounded by her younger -sisters, who began eagerly plying her with questions. -To all their importunities, Gertrude only -answered: ‘Do not ask me—do not ask me;’ and -with the tears streaming down her face, which -she in vain attempted to control, she mounted -the staircase, and with a trembling hand knocked -at the door of the room into which her brother -had been carried. Colonel Lindsay answered -her.</p> - -<p>‘May I come in?’ she whispered; and receiving -permission, she stepped up to the bed, around -which the men were still busy. One glance at -her apparently dying brother determined her.</p> - -<p>‘Colonel Lindsay,’ she said with forced composure, -‘pray telegraph at once for a physician. -Papa cannot collect himself sufficiently; but I am -sure he would wish it.’ Then turning to two -young men who stood waiting near the door, she -despatched them in all speed for the local practitioner, -Dr Downes.</p> - -<p>Then she addressed herself to Nathan: ‘You -will watch my brother, will you not, until I come -back? If he should return to consciousness, he -will be glad to find you near him.’ Without -waiting for a reply, she left the room quietly, -but soon returned, prepared to act nurse to the -wounded man.</p> - -<p>As Nathan raised his eyes, he thought he had -never seen anything so charming before; nothing -of which he had read could exceed the womanly -gentleness and loveliness of that fair face; and his -own flushed with shame as he allowed his eyes -to dwell upon it longer than in his opinion was -consistent with good breeding. ‘And at such a -time,’ said Nathan to himself, as he again bent -over the prostrate form.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">{29}</a></span></p> - -<p>Gertrude had brought with her an aged servant -who had nursed them, and still remained an -inmate of the Hall. In spite of the changes produced -by time and the circumstances under which -she now saw him, Nurse Goodall recognised Bertram -at once, and her agitation was extreme; for -being fully acquainted with every circumstance -connected with his flight, she argued that there -could be but one termination to this rash proceeding -on the part of Colonel Lindsay—the expulsion -of the son now lying at the point of death from his -father's roof; for she knew full well the obstinate -character of the Squire of Linden, and blamed the -Colonel for thus precipitating the end.</p> - -<p>As yet, no one in the Hall knew anything -further than that the son of the house had returned -desperately wounded, and that Colonel Lindsay -and Nathan had brought him home: all the rest -was mystery unfathomable. At this juncture, the -surgeon, Dr Downes, entered the room in a little -trepidation, his visits to the Hall being rare, and -this message having been sudden and brief. The -surgeon perceived a complicated case, and made -an examination of his patient. This done, he -inquired if any person was present to whom the -injured man was thoroughly accustomed. Colonel -Lindsay mentioned Nathan and himself. The -surgeon then requested Gertrude and the servants -to retire, and proposed to wait with Nathan the -advent of the physician, who had been telegraphed -for. Colonel Lindsay, promising to introduce Dr -Ferris directly he arrived, left the room also, and -taking Gertrude on his arm, sought the Squire, -who was still in conversation with his eldest -daughter. Patricia and her father received him -coldly, and positively declined to see Bertram.</p> - -<p>‘Charles,’ said the Colonel, ‘I have much to tell -you, which had better be said privately. Will -you give me a few minutes in your library?’ -The tone was so full of meaning, that the Squire -rose and led the way. The result of their conference -will be shewn in the conclusion of our -narrative.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /></div><div> -<h2><a name="THE_SALT_MARSHES_OF_BRITTANY" id="THE_SALT_MARSHES_OF_BRITTANY">THE SALT MARSHES OF BRITTANY.</a></h2> - - -<p><span class="smcap">Not</span> the least interesting part of France is the -wide range of country watered by the Loire. It -is here that feudal and historic remains may best -be studied; fine old castles, palaces, and abbeys -rise before the traveller on all sides. The gloomy -Blois, where those arch enemies of French liberty -the Guises, were assassinated; the castellated den -of Plessis-les-Tours, where Louis XI. carried out -his deep-laid schemes, so well described in <i>Quentin -Durward</i>; and the high towers and deep vaults -of Amboise, which tell of many a tragic conspiracy -and massacre. Here too is the picturesque -Chnonceaux, with its rich ceilings and tapestry, -where Mary Queen of Scots passed some happy -days in her sad life, and Francis I. drew around -him his joyous court. Joan of Arc unfurled her -banner in this interesting province; and the heroic -Vendeans lie buried by thousands, martyrs to -their religion and their king. It is a bright -sunny land; the acacia hedges divide the fields -with their elegant white blossoms; the vineyards -are loaded with purple grapes, the apple orchards -give abundance of cider; a lazy kind of land -where the idler may kill time to his heart's -content. Yet the Loire cannot boast of equal -beauty with the Seine; its raging waters inundate -the country in winter, leaving dry shoals in -summer; and near its mouth, the district called -the Marais is an uninteresting tract of sand, salt -marshes, and ponds. It is of this unpromising -scene that we would write, where ten thousand -persons find occupation in the making of salt.</p> - -<p>The interest attaching to the people arises from -their extreme simplicity. Thanks to the salubrity -of the country, they are a fine hardy race, the men -tall and well-proportioned, the women celebrated -for their fresh complexions. Watch them as they -work in the salt-fields carrying heavy loads on their -heads, barefoot, in short petticoats, and running -rather than walking on the edge of the ponds. -But all this is changed on grand fte days, when -the costume of their forefathers in past centuries is -worn. It is called the marriage dress, as it is first -donned by the women on that day. Since it must -last for a lifetime, it is carefully laid aside for -special occasions. There is the embroidered cap -and white handkerchief for the shoulders, edged -with lace; the belt and bodice stitched with -gold thread. A gay violet petticoat is partially -covered by a white dress, the sleeves of which are -either red or white; and an apron of yellow or red -silk adds to the smart attire. The red stockings -are embroidered, and the violet sandals cover well-shaped -feet. As for the bridegroom to this pretty -bride, he adorns himself with a brown cloth shirt, -a muslin collarette, full knickerbockers, and no -less than two waistcoats, one white, the other blue, -with a large black cloth mantle over all. To complete -his toilet there is a three-cornered hat with -velvet cords, white embroidered stockings, and -white buckskin shoes. Such is the costume of -Bourg-de-Batz; but each village has its own distinctive -coiffure. The burning summer sun, whose -rays are reflected from the salt marshes as if from -a lens, forces all to wear wide-brimmed hats for -daily work; the high winds and great changes of -temperature necessitating double or triple woollen -waistcoats; yet even this time-honoured style of -dress has something picturesque about it.</p> - -<p>Let us cross to the left bank of the Loire, and -ascend the hill into the little town of Pellerin, -justly proud of its position and commanding views. -From this vantage-ground the eye passes over the -indented coast-line where the points of Mesquer, -Croisic, and many others advance into the sea. -The green pastures and pretty villas of Saint -Etienne form the foreground to the barren reaches -of the salt district, which extends towards Morbihan, -occupying about six thousand acres. The -commercial centre of the country is the town -of Gurande, perched on a hill, and belonging -to a long past age. Its high ramparts, built for -defence in troublous times, can only be entered -by four gates, which bear the marks of portcullises. -Enormous trees entirely conceal it from the traveller, -who would fancy he was approaching a -green forest, instead of an old fortified place belonging -to feudal times. Vines and cereals grow -admirably on the higher ground surrounding it, -to the very verge of the salt marshes, which are -utterly bare. Looking towards the sea, the marks -of its fury are apparent, as if Nature wished to -collect all her weapons of defence for the inhabitants. -Gigantic rocks of capricious forms, sometimes<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">{30}</a></span> -rising like a bundle of lances; sometimes -lying on the shore, as if they were Egyptian -sphinxes, or lions turned into stone, and polished -by the waves; or even resembling these very -waves petrified in a moment on some tempestuous -day.</p> - -<p>Nothing is more easy to describe than a salt -marsh. Imagine a market-garden divided into -squares; but instead of the green vegetables, each -square filled with water, and the walks not level -with, but raised above the spaces about ten inches -in height. The parallelograms are termed in the -vernacular <i>œillets</i>. These are filled with sea-water, -which pours in through conduits at high-tide, -the water having been stored during a period -of from fifteen to thirty days, in reservoirs attached -to each marsh. The system of canals through -which it passes is of a complicated nature; and -the production of the salt constitutes, so to -speak, a special branch of agriculture, where the -visible help of man assists the hidden work of -Nature. The ground must be dug and arranged in -a particular manner, that the saline particles may -crystallise, just as a field where wheat grows and -ripens. Thus, it is not surprising that the salt-workers -adopt the professional terms of the -farmers. At certain times they say ‘The marsh -is in flower;’ they speak of the ‘harvest’ and -of ‘reaping the salt.’</p> - -<p>It is in the <i>œillet</i>, where the water is only about -an inch in depth, that the salt forms, thanks to the -evaporation of the sun, and to the current which, -slowly circulating through the different compartments, -assists the evaporation. The salt which -then falls to the bottom of the basin is raked out -by the <i>paludier</i> into round hollows made at the -edge at certain distances. This is done every one -or two days. The art consists in raking up all -the salt without drawing the mud with it. In -the salt marsh of Gurande they collect separately -a white salt, which forms on the surface under the -appearance of foam, and is used for the salting of -sardines.</p> - -<p>It will easily be understood that everything -depends on the sky; above all things, the heat of -the solar rays is necessary. In cloudy weather -there is no crystallisation. Rainy seasons are most -disastrous for the <i>paludiers</i>. The harvest varies -from year to year; but calculating the produce for -ten years, it amounts to three or four thousand -pounds of salt in each <i>œillet</i>. Work begins in the -month of June, and is carried on till October. The -number of <i>œillets</i> varies with the size of the marsh; -that of Gurande contains about twenty-four thousand; -others are much less. The gathered salt is -carried daily to some slope near and packed in a -conical form, very much resembling the tents of a -camp when seen from a distance. At Gurande -the women are seen running in this direction, -carrying the salt on their heads in large wooden -bowls, holding about fifty pounds; whilst at -Bourgneuf the men are employed, who make use -of willow-baskets borne on the shoulder. If the -salt is sold immediately, the cone is only covered -with a little earth. But it more frequently -happens that when the harvest is good, speculators -buy large quantities to keep until the price -rises, and then large masses a thousand pounds -in weight are formed, and protected by a thick -layer of earth.</p> - -<p>Like all kinds of property in France, the salt -marshes are much divided. More than three -thousand proprietors share that of Gurande; and -there is a kind of co-operative partnership between -the owner and the worker, the latter generally -receiving a quarter of the profits, out of which he -pays the porters. The gain is, however, miserably -small; and the wonder is how the various families -manage to exist upon it. Even if the wife and -daughter help, the whole family only earn about -two hundred and fifty-five francs a year—ten -pounds of our money; and in consequence of the -season when the salt is collected, the <i>paludier</i> has -no chance of increasing his income by assisting -the farmers, and can only employ himself in the -trifling labours of winter. So low, indeed, have -the profits sunk, that in some marshes the expenses -have exceeded them; in short there is no kind of -property in France that has for the last century -undergone more terrible reverses than this. These -changes are partly due to the railways, which -have provided a much more efficient and rapid -means of transport for the east of France than -for the west.</p> - -<p>There are three large zones in the country -where salt is found. In the eastern district it -is derived from springs and mines; but in the -present day the salt mines are treated like the -springs. Instead of dividing the lumps with the -pickaxe, galleries are cut through and flooded -with water; when this is sufficiently saturated, it -is brought to the surface and evaporated in heated -caldrons. The aid of the sun is not required; -fine or rainy days do not count, and the making of -salt becomes a trade for all the year round. In -the south the plan is varied, because there is no -tide in the Mediterranean Sea. Here, by the help -of a mechanical apparatus, the sea-water is pumped -into enormous squares, where it crystallises, and the -evaporation is accelerated by a continual circulation. -With a warm temperature and a cloudless -sky, the water requires to be renewed only at -intervals, whilst the salt itself is not collected until -the end of summer. Thus the poor workmen of -Brittany have a more laborious and less remunerative -task, though the salt is acknowledged to be -of a finer quality.</p> - -<p>The family life is necessarily of a very hard and -parsimonious character. It is impossible to buy -animal food; a thin soup supplies the morning -and evening repast, with poorly cooked potatoes -at mid-day. Those who are near the sea can add -the sardine and common shell-fish, which are not -worth the trouble of taking into the towns to sell. -The cruel proverb, ‘Who sleeps, dines,’ finds here -its literal application; during the winter the people -lie in bed all the day to save a meal. There is a -strong family affection apparent among them, the -father exercising a patriarchal authority in the -much-loved home. If they go away, it is never -for more than twenty leagues, to sell the salt from -door to door. Driving before them their indefatigable -mules, borne down at starting with too -heavy a load, they penetrate through the devious -narrow lanes, knowing the path to every hamlet -or farmhouse where they hope to meet with a -customer.</p> - -<p>The population of Bourg-de-Batz is said to be a -branch of the Saxon race, and has hitherto been -so jealous of preserving an unbroken genealogy -that marriages are always made among themselves. -A union with a stranger is felt to be a misalliance.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">{31}</a></span> -There are some local customs still remaining -which point to an ancient origin, a visible -legacy of paganism perpetuated to the present -day. Such is the festival which is celebrated at -Croisic in the month of August in honour of -Hirmen, a pagan divinity in the form of a -stone with a wide base lying near the sea. Here, -with grotesque movements, the women execute -round the stone a sort of sacred dance, and every -young girl who is unfortunate enough to touch -it is certain not to be married during the year. -There is an old chapel of St Goustan which shews -the tenacity with which the people hold to their -traditions. Once a place for pilgrimages, it has -not been used for sacred purposes during seventy -years, and serves as a magazine for arms. Yet the -inhabitants of Batz visit it yearly, and especially -pray beneath the sacred walls at Whitsuntide.</p> - -<p>Sunday is strictly kept as a day of rest from -their toils; then the poorest dress in clean clothes, -men, women, and children going in family groups -to church. After that, relations and neighbours -pay visits. Man is no longer a beast of burden, -but shews that he has a heart and a conscience; -a happy spirit of good temper and frankness -reigns everywhere. Indeed the high moral qualities -of the natives, their love of education, and -strong attachment to their native soil, make them -a vigorous branch of the French nation, and one -calculated to gain the traveller's respect.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /></div><div> -<h2><a name="CRITICAL_ODDITIES" id="CRITICAL_ODDITIES">CRITICAL ODDITIES.</a></h2> - - -<p><span class="smcap">That</span> short pithy criticisms are occasionally as -pointed as those that are more elaborated, may be -gleaned from the following, which we cull at -random for the amusement of our readers.</p> - -<p>A little calculation would have saved a well-known -novelist being taken to task by a fair -graduate of Elmira College, who thus relieved her -mind by writing as follows to the College magazine: -‘In a novel of Miss Braddon's, a book of -wonderful plot and incident, the hero, after -coming to grief in a civilised country, went to -Australia to make his fortune; and while yet an -apprentice at the pick and shovel, found an immense -nugget of gold, which he hid, now in one -place, now in another, and finally, was obliged -to carry in his under-shirt pocket for weeks. -When he reached home its sale made him immensely -rich. I had a little curiosity in the -matter, and obtaining the current price of gold, -found, by a simple computation, that the nugget -must have weighed <i>a hundred and ninety-four -pounds</i>. A sizeable pocket that must have been!’</p> - -<p>Albert Smith had his pronouns criticised in the -following neat way by Thackeray. Turning over -the leaves of a young lady's album, Thackeray -came upon the following lines:</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">Mont Blanc is the Monarch of Mountains—<br /></span> -<span class="i2">They crowned him long ago;<br /></span> -<span class="i0">But who they got to put it on,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">Nobody seems to know.—<span class="smcap">Albert Smith.</span><br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>And wrote underneath:</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">I know that Albert wrote in a hurry:<br /></span> -<span class="i2">To criticise I scarce presume;<br /></span> -<span class="i0">But yet methinks that Lindley Murray,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">Instead of ‘who,’ had written ‘whom.’<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class='ml8'> -<span class="smcap">W. M. Thackeray.</span><br /> -</p> - -<p>Not quite so good-naturedly did Chorley treat -Patmore's <i>Angel in the House</i>, in his critical versicles: -‘The gentle reader we apprise, That this -new Angel in the House, Contains a tale, not very -wise, About a parson and a spouse. The author, -gentle as a lamb, Has managd his rhymes to fit; -He haply fancies he has writ Another <i>In Memoriam</i>. -How his intended gathered flowers, And took her -tea, and after sung, Is told in style somewhat like -ours, For delectation of the young.’ Then after -giving ‘some little pictures’ in the poet's own -language, the cruel critic went on—‘From ball to -bed, from field to farm, The tale flows nicely purling -on; With much conceit there is no harm, In -the love-legend here begun. The rest will come -some other day, If public sympathy allows; And -this is all we have to say About the Angel in the -House.’</p> - -<p>This hardly amounted to faint praise, a kind of -encouragement Mr Buckstone owned had a very -depressing effect upon him when he ranked among -youthful aspirants to theatrical honours. ‘I -was,’ said the comedian, ‘given by my manager a -very good part to act, which being received by the -public with roars of laughter, I considered that -my future was made. A worthy vendor of newspapers, -a great critic and patron of the drama, -asked me for an order. On giving him one, I -called the next day expecting to hear a flattering -account of my performance, but was disappointed. -Determined to learn what effect my acting had -produced on him, I nervously put the question: -“Did you see me last night?” to which he replied: -“O yes.” “Well,” said I, “were you pleased?” -And he again replied with his “O yes.” I then -came to the point with: “Did you like my acting?” -And he rejoined: “O yes; you made me -<i>smile</i>.”’</p> - -<p>A more appreciative critic was the lady who -after seeing Garrick and Barry severally play -Romeo, observed that in the garden scene, -Garrick's looks were so animated and his gestures -so spirited, that had she been Juliet she -should have thought Romeo was going to jump -up to her; but that Barry was so tender, melting, -and persuasive, that had she been Juliet she -should have jumped down to him.</p> - -<p>An old seaman after looking long at the picture -of ‘Rochester from the River,’ cried: ‘Yes, that's -it—just opposite old Staunton's, where I served -my time—just as it used to look when I was a -youngster no higher than my stick. It's forty -years since I saw the old place; but <i>if the haze -would only clear off</i>, I could point out every -house!’</p> - -<p>When M. Gondinet's <i>Free</i> was produced at the -Porte St Martin Theatre, a Parisian critic commended -the playwright for rendering a good deal -of the dialogue inaudible by a liberal employment -of muskets and cannon; and then conjugated <i>Free</i> -thus: ‘I am free to go to the play; thou art free -to be bored by the first act; he or she is free to be -bored by act second; we are free to be bored by -the third; you are free to be bored still more by -the fourth and fifth acts; and they are free to stay -away for the future.’</p> - -<p>M. Gondinet's drama was seemingly as fitting a -subject for the pruning-knife as the play of which -Mark Twain, speaking for himself and partner, -deposed:<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">{32}</a></span> ‘The more we cut out of it, the better it -got along. We cut out, and cut out, and cut out; -and I do believe this would be one of the best -plays in the world to-day, if our strength had held -out, and we could have gone on and cut out the -rest of it.’</p> - -<p>An Ohio politician ‘on the stump,’ stayed the -torrent of his eloquence for a moment, and looking -round with a self-satisfied air, put the question: -‘Now, gentlemen, what do you think?’ A voice -from the crowd replied: ‘Well, Mr Speaker, if -you ask me, I think, sir, I do indeed, that if -you and me were to stump the state together, -we could tell more lies than any other two men -in the country, sir; and I'd not say a word -myself, sir, all the time.’ The orator must have -felt as grateful as the actor whose impersonation -of the hero of <i>Escaped from Sing-Sing</i> impelled a -weary pittite to proclaim aloud that the play -would have been better ‘if that chap hadn't -escaped from Sing-Sing;’ or the Opera tenor whose -first solo elicited from Pat in the upper regions the -despairing ejaculation: ‘Och, my eighteen-pince!’</p> - -<p>A young negro, carefully conducting an old -blind woman through the Philadelphia Exhibition, -stopped in front of a statue of Cupid and Psyche, -and thus enlightened his sightless companion: -‘Dis is a white mammy and her babby, and dey -has just got no clo' onto 'em at all, and he is -a-kissin' of her like mischief, to be shuah. I's -kind o' glad you can't see 'em, 'cause you'd be -flustered like, 'cause dey don't stay in de house -till dey dresses deyselves. All dese figures seem -to be scarce o' clo', but dey is mighty pooty, only -dey be too white to be any 'lation to you and -me, mammy.’ Then turning to a statue in bronze: -‘Dere be one nigger among 'em which is crying -over a handkerchief. Dey call him Othello. -Mebbe his mother is dead, and he can't fetch -her to de show, poor fellow!’</p> - -<p>An American officer riding by the bronze statue -of Henry Clay in Canal Street, New Orleans, was -asked by his Irish orderly if the New Orleans -‘fellers’ were so fond of niggers that they put -a statue of one in their ‘fashionablest’ street. -‘That's not a nigger, Tom; that's the great Clay -statue,’ said the amused officer. Tom rode round -the statue, dismounted, climbed upon the pedestal, -examined the figure closely, and then said: ‘Did -they tell yez it was clay? It looks to me like -iron!’</p> - -<p>Tom's ignorance was more excusable than that -of the Yankee who, learning on inquiry that the -colossal equestrian figure in Union Square, New -York, was ‘General Washington, the father of his -country,’ observed: ‘It is? I never heard of -him before; but there is one thing about him -I do like—he does set a horse plaguy well.’ A -compliment to the artist, at all events.</p> - -<p>Perhaps Salvini took it as a compliment when -his Othello was compared to the awakening fury -of the Hyrcanian tiger disturbed at his feast of -blood, and his Hamlet described as ‘a magnificent -hoodlum on his muscle, with a big mad on, smashing -things generally;’ and the Boston actress was -delighted to know her ‘subtle grace, flexible as -the sinuosities of a morning mist, yet thoroughly -proportioned to the curves of the character, was -most especially noticeable.’ But the Hungarian -prima donna must have felt a little dubious as -to the intentions of the critic who wrote of her: -‘Her voice is wonderful. She runs up and down -the scale with the agility of an experienced cat -running up and down a house-top, and two or -three fences thrown in. She turns figurative flip-flaps -on every bar, tearing up the thermometer to -away above two hundred and twelve, and sliding -down again so far below zero that one feels -chilled to the bone.’ The fair singer would probably -have preferred something in this style: -‘Miss —— wore a rich purple suit with a handsome -shade of lavender, a white over-garment, -tight-fitting, with flowing sleeves, and a white -bonnet trimmed with the same shades of purple -and lavender, and she sang finely.’</p> - -<p>That has the merit of being intelligible. The -writer was not in such a desperate condition as -the Memphis theatrical reporter who lauded an -actress as ‘intense yet expansive, comprehensive -yet particular, fervid without faultiness; glowing -and still controlled, natural but refined, daring -anything, fearing nothing but to violate grace; -pure as dew, soft as the gush of distant music, -gentle as a star beaming through the riven clouds. -With mystery of charms she comes near to us, -and melts down our admiration into love; but -when we take her to us as something familiar and -delicious, she floats away to the far heights of -fame, and looks down on our despair with countenance -of peaceful lustre and smiles as sweet as -spring.’ If the lady did not reciprocate, her heart -must have been of adamant.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /></div><div> -<h2><a name="THE_WELL-KNOWN_SPOT" id="THE_WELL-KNOWN_SPOT">THE WELL-KNOWN SPOT.</a></h2> - - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0"><span class="smcap">Again</span> with joy I view the waking shore,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Where mem'ries live for ever in their green,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">And from the solemn graveyard's checkered floor<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Gaze fondly o'er the all-enchanting scene.<br /></span> -</div><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">The same sad rooks awake their mocking cries,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">And drooping willows weep the early grave,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">As o'er the dead the restless spirit flies,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Tries vainly yet yon broken heart to save.<br /></span> -</div><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">But, hush! sad soul, nor leave this hallowed spot,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Where peaceful slumber seals the closd eye.<br /></span> -<span class="i0">The lonely sleeper now awaken not<br /></span> -<span class="i0">By the rude raving, or the deep-drawn sigh.<br /></span> -</div><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">Oh, let me mourn (the fainting heart replies),<br /></span> -<span class="i0">These new-made graves, which take my wond'ring sight;<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Say, who beneath this little tombstone lies,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Or who this Angel guards through the long night.<br /></span> -</div><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">When last I saw, no mounds lay heaving there,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">No sexton rude had turned the resting sod.<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Alas, how changed! The holy and the fair<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Have sunk in death, and triumphed in their God.<br /></span> -</div><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">Then let me pause, if here my Maker stays,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">And guards his saints from the inhuman foe.<br /></span> -<span class="i0">His word is true; my trembling heart obeys;<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Bless'd are the dead who to the Saviour go.<br /></span> -</div><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">Now new refulgence breathes o'er all the scene;<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Yon lark's sweet warble now is sweeter still;<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Yon blady grass stands out in purer green;<br /></span> -<span class="i0">And softer music tinkles from the rill.<br /></span> -</div><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">For why? O mark! The cause is written here;<br /></span> -<span class="i0">The pale-faced marble tells the softened tale,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">That sweeteneth the sigh, arrests the starting tear,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">And lulls to silence the untimely wail.<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class='ml8'> -<span class="smcap">Astley H. Baldwin.</span> -</p> -</div> -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class='center'>Printed and Published by <span class="smcap">W. & R. Chambers</span>, 47 Paternoster -Row, <span class="smcap">London</span>, and 339 High Street, <span class="smcap">Edinburgh</span>.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class='center'><i>All Rights Reserved.</i></p> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Chambers's Journal of Popular -Literature, Science, and Art, No. 733, January 12, 1878, by Various - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CHAMBERS'S JOURNAL, JAN 12, 1878 *** - -***** This file should be named 52833-h.htm or 52833-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/2/8/3/52833/ - -Produced by Susan Skinner and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law 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. 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