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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..7823476 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #66582 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/66582) diff --git a/old/66582-0.txt b/old/66582-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index fe3f1af..0000000 --- a/old/66582-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,5137 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of Colville of the Guards, Volume III (of 3), -by James Grant - -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 -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: Colville of the Guards, Volume III (of 3) - -Author: James Grant - -Release Date: October 20, 2021 [eBook #66582] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Al Haines - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK COLVILLE OF THE GUARDS, VOLUME III -(OF 3) *** - - - - - - - COLVILLE OF THE GUARDS - - - BY - - JAMES GRANT - - AUTHOR OF - "THE ROMANCE OF WAR," "THE CAMERONIANS," - "THE SCOTTISH CAVALIER," - ETC., ETC. - - - - IN THREE VOLUMES. - - VOL. III. - - - - LONDON: - HURST AND BLACKETT, PUBLISHERS, - 13, GREAT MARLBOROUGH STREET. - 1885. - - _All rights reserved._ - - - - - CONTENTS - - I. The "Flying Foam" - II. Ellinor - III. The Gale - IV. Alone! - V. In the Bala Hissar - VI. The Fort of Mahmoud Shah - VII. The Fugitive - VIII. The Ghilzie - IX. A New Snare - X. The House by the Fleethen - XI. In Hamburg Still - XII. The Plot Thickens - XIII. With Roberts' Column - XIV. The Battle of Charasiah - XV. Enough Done for Honour - XVI. The Fate of Ellinor - XVII. Among the Birks of Invermay - - - - -COLVILLE OF THE GUARDS. - - - -CHAPTER I. - -THE 'FLYING FOAM.' - -When Ellinor, whom we left some pages back in a very perilous -predicament, opened her eyes again it was on an unfamiliar scene--the -cabin of a ship--and on several male faces, all of which were also -unfamiliar save one; and her eyes half closed again, as she was too -weak and exhausted to disentangle the confusion of her thoughts and, -half imagining she was in a horrible dream, would have striven to -sleep but for the wet and sodden garments that clung to her. - -'What has happened?' she moaned. 'Where am I?' - -'Safe aboard the "_Flying Foam_,"' said the voice of the man who had -rescued her, the sailing-master of that vessel, Mr. Rufane Ringbolt, -whom we shall erelong describe more fully. - -Her miserable plight and imminent peril had been seen from the deck -by that personage, who at once had a boat lowered from his craft, -which lay at anchor in the Elbe. He had saved her, and in a spirit -of mischief--or not knowing what else to do with her--had brought her -on board the yacht of his employer, Mr. Adolphus Dewsnap, whose -present companion and bosom-friend was Sir Redmond Sleath, whose -first emotions of perplexity and evil on Ringbolt bringing off a lady -changed to those of blank astonishment and high triumph on -recognising in the half-drowned girl--Ellinor Wellwood! - -Dewsnap rubbed his hands with satisfaction. They had just landed two -or three peculiar lady friends at the Brandenburgerhafen to go back -to London by steamer, or remain in gay Hamburg as they listed, and -already the _Flying Foam_ seemed a little lonely. - -'By Jove, you look more beautiful than ever, Ellinor!' exclaimed -Sleath, taking her hands in his, as she reclined helplessly on a -sofa. 'My friend, Mr. Dewsnap--let me introduce him--Miss Ellinor -Wellwood. This is a most unexpected joy!' - -'I am glad of the accident which gives me the honour of making your -acquaintance, Miss Ellinor,' responded Mr. Dewsnap, near whom she -recognised the grinning visage of Mr. John Gaiters, Sleath's devoted -valet. - -Seeing the helpless and terrified condition she was in, Mr. Ringbolt -almost forced her to imbibe a little weak brandy and water from a -liqueur-frame that stood on the cabin-table; and then, as there were -no female attendants on board the yacht, with considerable readiness -and forethought, brought down from the deck a Vierlander boat-woman, -who had come off with vegetables for the steward and cook, to attend -upon Ellinor. - -The Vierlander had some doubts and scruples at first; but when a few -twenty-groschen pieces were slipped into her hand these evaporated, -and a smile of acquiescence spread over her weather-beaten but -pleasant-looking countenance, for she had soft, dark eyes, a _nez -retrousse_ decidedly, and, if rather a large mouth, full red lips, as -Mr. Ringbolt could remark appreciatively. - -She took Ellinor into an inner cabin, and soon changed her wet -garments for some that the late fair voyagers had left behind them; -and when, in fear and terror, she implored to be set on shore, she -was told that it was impossible, as a heavy fog had suddenly settled -down on the land and river. - -'Oh, heaven, what will become of me? Mary! Mary!' wailed Ellinor, -as she clung, as if for protection, to the hands of the -picturesquely-clad Vierlander. - -'Hope I haven't brought you a Scotch prize aboard, gentlemen,' said -Mr. Ringbolt, winking knowingly, as he mixed himself a glass of grog. - -'A Scotch prize--what the devil is that?' asked Mr. Dewsnap, whose -cognomen among his chums was generally 'Dolly.' - -'Well--it means a mistake--worse than no prize--one likely to hamper -the captors with heavy legal expenses.' - -'A Scotch prize, and no mistake!' exclaimed Sleath, as Ellinor, weak, -tottering, and scarcely able to stand or articulate, appeared with -her new attendant at the door of the cabin, which was now so darkened -by the evening fog that the steward was lighting the lamps. - -Sleath, approaching, attempted to take her hand. - -'Don't, sir--dare to touch me!' she cried, in a weak voice, while -starting back. - -'She knows you, Sleath, by Jove!' exclaimed Mr. Dolly Dewsnap, -becoming interested. - -'Rather,' said Sleath, with an ugly wink. 'Are you not glad to see -me so unexpectedly, Ellinor?' - -'Glad!' said she, shudderingly. - -Her old repugnance was now increased tenfold, and mingled with -genuine terror. A man with such a bearing and with such an -expression as she read in the cold blue eyes of Sleath, would, she -knew, have no mercy, so she turned to Dewsnap; but there was little -to encourage her in his leery and _blasé_, though rather rubicund, -visage. - -'Put me on shore, sir, I entreat you,' she said. - -'It is impossible--utterly impossible, till the fog lifts,' said he, -emphatically. - -'I shall die!' exclaimed Ellinor, in a low, husky voice, as the light -seemed to leave her eyes. - -She put her tremulous hands to her slender throat, for a painful lump -seemed to rise there--nay, was there--catching her breath, while this -meeting again, under all the circumstances, with Sir Redmond Sleath -seemed 'one of those strange and almost incredible things which, -however, we meet with every day in that marvellous volume of romance, -real life.' - -She cowered and shrank back before Sleath as if he were some wild -animal, which only excited in him a spirit of anger and banter, while -his friend Dewsnap knew not what to think of the situation as yet. - -'Altona agrees with you,' said the baronet, jauntily. 'You are -handsomer than ever. Womanhood gains instead of loses by maturity. -But don't be so devilish stuck up! And _what_ were you doing in -Altona?' - -She made no reply, but now glanced imploringly and appealingly to -Ringbolt, while Sleath resumed in this fashion-- - -'I did not entrap you this evening--I did not run away with you,' -said he, surveying with admiration the volume of her rich brown hair, -which was then brushed out, and floated damp and at full length over -her shoulders, and she figured now in a species of costume such as -she had never worn before, including a tailor-made jacket and a round -felt hat, part of the wardrobe of one of Mr. Dolly Dewsnap's recent -fair voyagers, left for conveyance back to London, and now likely to -prove exceedingly useful. And Ellinor was almost passive in the -hands of those among whom Fate had so suddenly cast her. - -After her recent narrow escape from a dreadful death, and now her -present misery, she was too feeble and too full of fear to summon -proper pride and just indignation to her aid. - -'Fate has given you to me again,' continued Sleath, 'so, why not -stoop--yield to the inevitable, and the delight of living for and -loving each other! We shall remain on the Continent now, Ellinor, -and never again set foot in that cold-blooded England.' - -A comical expression twinkled now in the eyes of Mr. Dewsnap, who was -an undersized, but fleshy and flashy, personage, about thirty years -of age, and vulgar in style and aspect, though dressed in accurate -yachting costume, with gilt buttons and glazed boots. He knew not -what to think of the situation, we say. Though far from -straitlaced--though a thorough-paced scamp, in fact--he was puzzled -and doubtful what to think of the past relations of his chum Sir -Redmond and this young lady, who, he saw at a glance, was neither -fast nor vicious, as most of the baronet's lady friends were; that -she was no dove from St. John's Wood, or 'girl of the period' in any -way. - -While Ringbolt beckoned Gaiters on deck to obtain some information on -the subject from him, Sleath began again, in low and softer voice, -while hanging over her. - -'We were about to run away together before, and would have done so, -but for the brute your sister's dog. Now, Ellinor, darling, we shall -elope in earnest, and we shall not be the first couple who have done -so, and lived happy ever after, like couples in the old story books.' - -'Don't be alarmed--don't fear, Miss Ellinor,' said Dewsnap, thinking -it necessary to say something, as she turned her haggard eyes on him, -and ignored the presence of Sleath. - -'Don't fear!' says a writer. 'How often in this world of terror and -trouble has that phrase been spoken, and how often will it yet be -spoken--in vain.' - -'Oh, sir, will you, in mercy, if you are a man, set me on shore?' she -implored again. - -Dewsnap shrugged his shoulders, and looked at Sleath, while muttering -something about 'the fog.' - -'No!' exclaimed the latter, emphatically; 'and no accident but one -sent from heaven or hell shall rob me of you now!' he added, almost -savagely, through his set teeth, as he recalled the castigation he -had met with at the hands of Robert Wodrow and his own muttered vow -of vengeance. - -She gave him but one glance, yet it was expressive of loathing and -fear that were unconquerable--as though he were some thing of horror; -but somehow her strength of purpose and defiance piqued or attracted -him, and he loved her with all the coarseness of his low nature. - -'How she fears that fellow!' thought Ringbolt, who was peeping down -the skylight. 'There is some secret--some strange story in all this.' - -Of this strange interview, the Vierlander woman could make nothing; -but, seeing that her charge was about to sink at their feet, she -conveyed her into the little cabin or state-room, in which Ellinor's -attire had been changed, and, closing the door, laid her on a bed to -recover strength and composure, and there, fainting, feverish, and -well-nigh delirious, she clung wildly, as if for protection, to her -attendant. - -Meanwhile the night darkened, and the fog undoubtedly deepened, so -the yacht's bell was clanged ever and anon, while the two -'gentlemen,' with the sailing-master, Ringbolt, and the mate sat down -to a luxurious dinner produced by Joe Lobscouse, cook of the _Flying -Foam_, who, as a _chef_, was not equal to that of Dewsnap at home, -Ragout--but Monsieur Ragout flatly declined to go to sea with that -vessel, or 'any oder Voam,' as he always said. But in cooking Joe -Lobscouse chiefly excelled in the famous _olla podrida_ which bears -his name, and is a compound of salt meat, biscuits, potatoes, onions, -and spices, all minced and stewed together, and though dearly loved -by those before the mast, such a dish was never seen in the cabin, of -course. - -The wine went freely round, for Dewsnap was lavish with his Clicquot -and Mumm's extra dry. - -'With all her air of ineffable innocence, I believe that girl to be a -deep one,' said he, with a wink to Sleath, as he had no belief in -female purity whatever, and had detestable views of society in -general. - -'She agreed to run away with me once, so why should I not go in for -running away with her now?' - -'Right you are, my boy!' said Dewsnap. - -'You remember that cad, Colville of the Guards?' said Sleath, -viciously. - -'I have heard of him,' replied Dewsnap, evasively. 'Well?' - -'He trumped up a story about this girl being a cousin of his to keep -her, and her sister too, by Jove, to himself--a fact, Dolly; told me -in London they were his cousins, though he never said so when we were -at Dunkeld's place in Scotland. But now he has gone to Cabul, and -the devil go with him!' - -'What are we to do if the Vierlander woman won't remain on board -after the fog lifts?' asked the sailing-master, Ringbolt. - -'In that case we should have little difficulty in getting a sharp -girl to attend, or, better still, some knowing and suggestive elderly -party,' said Sleath. - -'All right, sir--one has not far to look in Hamburg for what you -want.' - -'Dash it all!' exclaimed Dewsnap, who was fast becoming rather -inebriated (this was not precisely what he said, but it looks milder -in print). 'This girl of yours, Sleath, is likely to give us a deal -of bother.' - -'Not at all. I shall soon find a way to put an end to her nonsense,' -growled Sir Redmond. - -Like the latter, Dewsnap always suspected everybody until he knew -they were innocent, and, if innocent, he deemed them fools. Thus he -never doubted in his mind that the apparent repugnance of Ellinor was -all coyness and affectation. - -Mr. Adolphus Dewsnap, son of the late Alderman Sir Jephson Dewsnap, -Knight, a soap-boiler in Bow, where he made a colossal fortune, was a -fool and a cad of the first water, who looked up to Sleath, having a -title, as one of 'the upper ten,' though Sleath's father had been, -like the said alderman, a boy of the Foundling Hospital, from whence -perhaps emanate many of the grotesque names we find in London. - -The story of their titles is simple, and one of everyday recurrence. - -The fathers of Sleath and Dewsnap had been made respectively a -baronet and a knight for services rendered to the Ministry; but as -those of the former, though equally important, had been performed -with less scruple, he had been rewarded with the diploma of a baronet -of Great Britain, and a coat-of-arms, which taxed the ingenuity of -the entire College of Heralds. - -Sir Redmond Sleath was a man of violent temper naturally, especially -when his will was thwarted; thus he felt himself humiliated, and, -when inflamed with wine, rendered almost savage by the spirit of -opposition and dismay he encountered in Ellinor Wellwood, whom he -still viewed as a poor girl, without parents, friends, or protector -other than Leslie Colville, and he now was far away indeed. - -Dewsnap occasionally had half-tipsy thoughts of pretending to -befriend this stray girl, and getting her away somehow 'on his own -hook,' as he phrased it to himself. - -But he had a wholesome fear of Sleath, for, notwithstanding all his -wealth, the latter had obtained somehow a great ascendency over him. - -'She knows too much about one now,' muttered Sleath to himself. 'The -marriage dodge and the ailing uncle won't do again--so how to deceive -her?' - - '"Sigh no more, ladies, sigh no more, - Men are deceivers ever." - -so says Shakespeare,' said Dewsnap, tipsily rolling his head from -side to side; 'and he was right; devilish few of us are worth sighing -for, I think.' - -'Dolly Dewsnap turned moralist!' exclaimed Sleath, with a scornful -laugh. - -'Steward, some more moist!' cried Dewsnap. 'We'll drink Miss -What-her-name's jolly good health. What says Byron, or some other -fellow? - - "Man, being reasonable, must get drunk; - The best of life is but intoxication." - -So let us--drink--drink as long'sh--there'sh--a -shot--in--the--locker!' he added, in a voice that became every moment -more thick and 'feathery.' - -So in these perilous hands was Ellinor Wellwood now. - -But for the presence and companionship of the honest Vierlander -woman, to whom she clung, though of whose patois of Danish or North -German she could make little or nothing, Ellinor thought she must -have died. - -Her own clothes had been destroyed by her immersion, and meantime, -when quite conscious, she felt it something odious and repellant to -wear the clothes of others of whom she knew nothing, but suspected -much. - -How long was this atrocity to be continued? - -She remained resolutely in the little cabin, declining to enter the -saloon, or take food or refreshment of any kind, and, when sense -quite returned, she watched from the little eyelet-hole--the port was -nothing more--of her sleeping-place for a passing ship or boat, to -which she might shriek for aid; but dense dark mist obscured -everything, and she cast herself on the bed in despair. - -The _Flying Foam_ was cutter-rigged, and sat in the water gracefully. -She was about a hundred and fifty tons burden, and consequently had -an immense fore-and-aft boom-mainsail. Her deck was of narrow deal -planks, and was always white as snow--white as swab and holystone -could make it. Her ten guns were all burnished brass; the binnacles -and bitts were of polished mahogany; the cabins were all panelled -maple, with gilded mouldings; everything there was alike luxuriant -and _recherché_; for the purse the old soap-boiler left to his only -son and heir was a pretty long one; yet he was sometimes a little in -debt, and found yachting then convenient. - -The crew consisted of twelve men all told, including the -sailing-master and Joe Lobscouse, the cook. - -The former, Rufane Ringbolt, was, if not a good, not a bad-looking -man, about forty years of age; his eyes were clear, blue, and -penetrating, but cunning, leery, and shifting at times. The -expression of his mouth, about the curves especially, was sinister -and lascivious. There was a self-confident and reckless bearing -about him too aggressive to be that of a gentleman or officer, for he -had been the latter once, having served in Her Majesty's navy, but -been--dismissed. - -He and his captain had both fallen in love with one of those fast -young ladies who are to be met with on the promenades of Portsmouth -and Plymouth; but, as she preferred the young lieutenant to the -elderly captain, the latter was always 'down' on the former, who from -that moment became what is known in the service as 'a marked man.' - -His temper was sorely tried, and he soon found himself before a -court-martial, charged with neglect of duty and insubordination. -Never while he lived did Ringbolt forget the day of that -court-martial in the cabin of the _Victory_, and amid his potations -it always came most vividly before him in its bitter details, with -the sunshine streaming through the cabin windows, the ripple on the -harbour waves, and Portsmouth Hard in the distance. - -There was the exulting and malevolent face of the prosecutor when the -court was cleared for 'finding;' there was the ringing of the bell -that announced it was reopened, and in custody of the master-at-arms, -with cocked hat and drawn sword, he--the prisoner--appeared before -the court, all captains in full uniform, whose faces were graven on -his memory. - -During the proceedings his sword had been laid on the table, with the -point towards the president and the hilt towards himself; now he saw -that its position was reversed, and he knew that all was over, and he -went down the ship's side into a shore boat a broken and degraded man! - -And as the young lady, the cause of all the mischief, soon afterwards -bestowed her hand upon the elderly captain who had 'smashed him,' -Ringbolt had ever after but a very poor opinion of womankind. - -He felt some natural curiosity about the damsel he had been the means -of bringing on board the cutter, but there all further interest in -her ended. - -He thought if Sir Redmond Sleath, whose general character was well -known to him, knew the lady it was all right; he had no fear of being -deemed an accessory in an abduction; for though Mr. Ringbolt did not -fear God, like many other men in the world, he mightily feared the -police. - -As for the Vierlander woman, she thought the ailing girl was the wife -of one of the two Englanders, though she saw no wedding-ring on her -finger; but then, like all foreigners, she thought the Englanders -very eccentric. - -For several days the fog, consequent to swollen tides, rested on the -Elbe, and the cutter rode with her foresail loose, Sleath having -proposed a trip to Heligoland; but Ellinor was ill--almost oblivious -of everything, while Dewsnap dared not land her, and yet feared to -keep her on board, thinking that Sleath's story of her utter -friendlessness might be falsehood after all. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -ELLINOR. - -Sir Redmond Sleath had no pity for the suspense and agony of mind now -endured by Mary; and as for Dewsnap and Ringbolt, they knew nothing -about her. - -During the days just mentioned the clanging of the ship's bell from -time to time, and the din of fog horns from vessels passing with less -than half-steam up, informed Ellinor that the fog still rested on the -river; yet every morning she heard the rasping of the holystones as -the deck was cleaned, and the mysterious cry of 'soak and send'--the -order to pass the wet swabs along. - -The terror she had undergone, the subsequent affronts, unblushing and -terrible--for such she deemed Sleath's love-making--and the uncertain -future, all throbbed in hot and wretched thought wildly through her -heart, till at last, when the yacht was fairly under way, -fainting-fits and the torment of sea-sickness made reflection, fear, -and regret alike impossible, for a kind of delirium came upon her, -and she grew oblivious of her surroundings; but we are anticipating. - -'The girl may die on our hands, if this sort of thing goes on,' said -Dewsnap, 'and that might prove deuced awkward for us all.' - -'I have thought of that, sir,' said Ringbolt; 'but one may as well -whistle psalms to the taff-rail----' - -'As attempt to move me--you are right, Mr. Ringbolt,' interrupted -Sleath; 'but there is no dying in the case.' - -'Why not send her ashore----?' began Dewsnap. - -'And relinquish her? Not if I know it.' - -'I mean to the boarding-house of the old Frau Wyburg, near the -Bleichen Canal--you know the place.' - -'Few rascals in Hamburg don't. She would keep her safe enough for -me--it is not a bad idea; but I shall try my luck with her again -before resorting to _that_.' - -At the cruelty Dewsnap's suggestion involved, even Ringbolt shook his -head dissentingly, and said, - -'Whatever you do, steer clear of her husband--the Herr Wyburg, as he -calls himself--he is a dangerous and a shady party--worse than the -devil himself.' - -'You know Hamburg, then, Mr. Ringbolt?' - -'Rather!' replied the other, with a wink that inferred a great deal. - -If this affair of Ellinor's abduction found its way into any of the -social weeklies, it might form a very awkward thing for her; but -neither for Sir Redmond or his friend, Mr. Adolphus Dewsnap, as both -were now rather out of the social 'scratch race.' - -'A pleasant story for the fair Blanche to hear,' surmised Sleath, as -he laughingly made up a cigarette. - -'Who is she?' asked Dewsnap. - -'The daughter of Lord Dunkeld.' - -'He is, of course, a topsawyer,' said Dewsnap, superciliously, as, -notwithstanding his wealth, he had been rather ignored in society, -'and speaks in the House, I suppose?' - -'Yes.' - -'But I have never heard of a word he said.' - -'Likely enough--he never gets beyond "Hear, hear!" He is a Scots' -representative peer.' - -'With a family tree, of course. D--n'm, I would rather have a good -gooseberry-bush!' - -The little state-room or cabin occupied by Ellinor she saw had -evidently and recently been used by ladies before. In the drawers of -the dressing-glass were hair-pins, an old kid glove, a broken jet -bracelet, and other etcetera. - -The door had a bolt on the inside. - -One night she found, to her terror, that this had been removed! - -Her heart grew sick within her; but, with the assistance of her -attendant, she contrived to barricade the door most efficiently by -placing a chair between it and her bed, on which, without undressing, -she lay down with her temples throbbing like every other pulse with -terror. - -All grew still in the cutter, and not a sound was heard but the -ripples that ran alongside as she strained at her anchor--so very -still that Ellinor was about to sleep, when a sound startled her, and -she sprang up in dismay. - -Some one without was attempting to force her door. Who that some one -was she doubted not; but, after a time, finding himself completely -baffled, with a half-suppressed malediction, he went away. - -Ellinor lay awake in an agony of mind till morning dawned, when she -opened the eyelet port of her cabin, and looked out. The fog was -less thick, and a gasp of joy escaped her on seeing a boat with -several men in it approaching. She shrieked to them for succour, and -waved her handkerchief. On this they paused on their oars, and -seemed to confer with each other, but, instead of drawing nearer, -they laughed, kissed their hands to her in mockery, resumed their -pulling, and vanished into the mist. - -Had any boat's crew actually boarded the yacht to make inquiries, -Sleath was quite prepared to assert that the lady on board was his -demented wife. - -With the fog resting on the Elbe, she could see nothing of the land, -and as the cutter might--she thought--have shifted her position in -the night--she knew not where she was. Altona, she thought, might be -miles away, yet it was only a rifle-shot distant. But for its -extreme protraction, she might, at times, have thought she was in a -dream, and that all her mental misery was but a provoking and ghastly -phantasmagoria. - -Days had elapsed now since her separation from Mary and Mrs. -Deroubigne. They must, she knew, deem her dead--drowned--and might -have gone away, she knew not where. - -Torn in this outrageous fashion from the society of the only persons -she loved on earth! Exiled from happiness, doomed to probable -disgrace and misconstruction of conduct. - -Her whole soul was wrapped up in one idea--escape! But how was she -to achieve it, out of that accursed vessel, unless she cast herself -headlong into the river? She certainly shrank from self-destruction, -and hoped that something--'that vague something, the forlorn hope of -the desperate'--might intervene to save and set her free. - -Sir Redmond's persistent love-making could draw no response from her. - -This enraged him; he ground his teeth, while longing to take her in -his arms, and kiss her whether she would or not; yet he dared not -attempt to molest her when he was sober and in daylight; something in -the girl's purity and disgust of him repressed him. He dissembled, -and said, submissively, - -'With your love, Ellinor--in offering mine--I would be a very -different man from what I have been.' - -'Your love!' she muttered, in a low voice of scorn. - -'Yes.' - -'Dare you offer it again to me after all I know?' - -'What a little tragedy spit-fire it is! Well, it is perhaps too much -to ask you to love me, so I will only crave permission to love you.' - -'Insult on insult! Oh, this is intolerable!' exclaimed Ellinor, -covering her face with her hands. 'It is useless to remind a man -like you of his marriage.' - -Sleath's eyes gleamed dangerously. He and Ellinor were alone in the -saloon, as Dewsnap and the sailing-master were smoking on deck, and -the companion-way was kept bolted to prevent any attempt at escape. - -'What did I know of life, of the world, or of human nature when I met -that artful woman with the absurd name, Fubsby, and took vows--if -vows they were--for a life-time. Married! Well, even if I were so -legally--which I don't quite admit--what then? In the society in -which we move--' - -'We?' - -'Dewsnap and I--flirtation forms the great occupation--even -accomplishment--of married life on the part of those who are bound by -it. You have much to learn yet, my simple little Ellinor.' - -'Do you call this conduct of yours flirtation--this illegal and -punishable abduction of me--and insulting, loathly love-making?' - -'Loathly--an unpleasant phrase to use. Instead of the wretched life -you lead at Paddington, I can give you one well worth living,' said -he, as if he addressed a girl at a bar or a buffet, and in ignorance -of all that had passed since he had discovered their residence in St. -Mary's Terrace; 'and in turn, Ellinor, you will learn that a faithful -old lover is not to be despised.' - -'I have already learned that,' said Ellinor, her tears beginning to -fall hotly as she thought of Robert Wodrow. - -'I am glad to hear you say so,' said Sleath, thinking of himself, -'and to find that after all you cannot forget a man who has once -loved you--and loves you so fondly still, in spite of the coldness -you manifest and the obliquy you heap upon him. How grand it is to -forgive!' he continued, attempting to take her hand. 'The literary -bear Samuel Johnson never seemed so wretched as a man and a moralist, -than when he gloried in loving a _good hater_.' - -Ellinor prevented him from capturing her hand by shudderingly -retreating to the other end of the saloon. The contrast between the -two men--the one who had sought, and still sought, to ensnare, and he -whom she had wronged--who loved her so well, and had found, as she -thought, a grave in that far away land, burned itself into her heart -and brain with growing intensity, and wringing her hands, his name -escaped her in a low voice. - -'Robert--oh, Robert!' - -Would time ever heal--ever conquer her reproachful heart-wound? - -Fury gathered in the heart of Sleath. - -'So,' said he, 'our mutual friend, Mr. Robert Wodrow, was not born to -be hanged, if the newspaper accounts were true, by Jove; ha! ha!' - -'Sir?' said Ellinor, scarcely understanding his brutal jest. - -'Cheated the gallows--that is all.' - -In that speech he revealed the underlying brutality of his nature--of -the parvenu--the son of the foundling; and, in his wrath, he followed -it up by another home-thrust. - -'What will be said of you--what thought, when it becomes known that -you have been alone, cruising on board this yacht with us--with _me_?' - -He saw without pity the start, the pained flush and pallor that -crossed her face by turns, as he coarsely put into words the fear -that had been hovering in her own mind. - -She tried to reply to his cruel mockery; her white lips unclosed, and -then shut again, for her voice died away upon them. - -With all his love-making, never once did Sleath's heart--or what -passed for that organ--really soften towards the helpless girl, and -times there were when he regarded her as a wolf might have done. He -still made a mockery of the 'cousin story,' as he called it, and, -though Ellinor on one occasion condescended to partially explain it, -he did not, and could not, believe it to be anything else than some -cunning scheme of Colville; and as that individual, whom he hated, -was now in India, he had nothing to fear from him, and only hoped he -might soon get 'knocked on the head.' - -At times there was something--what shall we call it?--almost savage -in the admiration and exultation with which this man regarded the -creature who was so entirely at his mercy, and who had been brought -to him as flotsam from the sea! - -He keenly relished, too, in one sense, all _blasé_ as he was, the air -of resistance with which she repulsed him; her bearing was so -different and apart from that of most of the conventional girls he -had generally met--not that he much affected the society of ladies -generally. - -But he regarded them chiefly as a means of excitement--like -champagne, an unruly horse, or a close run at _écarté_, and, so far -as Ellinor was concerned, he had a firm desire to prove that his will -was the stronger of the two. - -At last he left her and went on deck. She stretched out her arms on -the saloon table, and bowed her head on them in a kind of dumb -despair, as she thought over all the degrading speeches to which she -had been subjected. - -'Oh,' thought she, 'that I could bury my hot face among the cool, -dewy roses that bloom at Birkwoodbrae! There I think I should get -well--get well--get strong and be myself again perhaps.' - -But instead, she was fated to get worse, for the moment the fog -lifted, sail was made on the yacht, and--as stated in the beginning -of this chapter--the horrors of sea-sickness assailed her, and she -lay prostrate in the little cabin. - -She had often been afraid to eat or drink, lest what she partook of -might be drugged; she had read or heard of such things; but she was -past all such reflections or considerations now. - -There was something daring and lawless in the conduct of Sir Redmond -with reference to the whole affair; but of that, too, she was--for -the present time--oblivious. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -THE GALE. - -The crew of the cutter knew not what to make of the solitary and -singular passenger they had on board, and whom the Vierlander woman -agreed to attend till they reached Heligoland. - -They had often seen ladies on board during runs to the Mediterranean -and elsewhere, who were certainly not quite the _crême de la crême_; -but that was no business of theirs, and now, though Sleath would have -disdained to acknowledge it, and Ellinor knew it not, the presence of -Dewsnap and Ringbolt (though neither of them were very meritorious -characters) proved a species of protection to her, but the sturdy, -honest Vierlander more than all. - -Thus her tormentor resolved that he would take her ashore with him in -some place, where she would be more completely at his mercy among -absolute strangers and dependent upon him for existence. - -The crew of the yacht had saved her life, so they could scarcely be -accused of abduction in keeping her on board during the bewildering -fog or the blowy weather that succeeded it; but, without making the -slightest effort by the use of a well-manned boat to put her ashore -at Altona, they were now beating against a rough, head wind, and -attempting to get out of the Elbe for sea. - -To where and for what purpose? Heligoland could only be touched at -in passing. Were they to haul up for England after that? Such, were -a few of the surmises among the men forward. - -Mid-day after the fog lifted saw the _Flying Foam_ under weigh, with -canvas set, the foresail braced sharp up, the jib and fore-and-aft -mainsail set, the boom of the latter well on board, as she was -running close-hauled against a head wind for the mouth of the Elbe, -some eighty miles distant, and making long tacks as the river widened. - -Altona and then Blankenese, a tiny fishing village, with its houses -scattered along the green slope among the trees, terraced over each -other, were soon left astern, and the head of the cutter pointed -towards Hamburg and then Stade, with the Prussian flag flying on the -ramparts of Swingerschanze, where the White Horse of Hanover will -never fly again. - -The wind was blowing half a gale, and some reefs were taken in the -boom-mainsail when the low batteries of Gluckstadt, on the Danish -side of the river, were in sight, and darkness fell soon after the -last rays of the sun faded out on the spire of Freyburg; and still -the close-hauled cutter, with her lights hung out, laboured on, and -ere long, as the river, with all its treacherous shoals, widened, she -became assailed by impetuous attacks of the sea. - -The past day had been dull and hazy, and the half-gale now subsided -almost entirely, but then the cutter rolled heavily, adding to the -misery of the unfortunate Ellinor. Then the wind, blowing from the -level coast, would recover its strength, and, changing its direction, -become furious, while a heavy swell came on, and when dawn stole in -the _Flying Foam_, still close-hauled on the port tack, was standing -over towards Cuxhaven, the shore of which is so low that the only -objects seen against the sky were the flagstaff of a battery and the -guns of the latter mounted _en barbette_. - -There the river pilot went on shore, when the cutter, lying on the -next tack, headed off to seaward, steered by Ringbolt himself, close -to the wind, with her head just so near it as to keep the sails full -without shaking them. - -The baffling head-wind soon increased to a tempest; the timbers of -the cutter groaned as she strained in the trough of the sea one -moment and rode over a great wave the next, while the water poured in -volumes over her deck, gorging the scuppers and carrying every loose -article to leeward, and ere long the canvas was reduced until none -was left than what was necessary for steering purposes. - -All on board, even Dewsnap and Sleath, had donned their 'storm -toggery,' and appeared on deck in oilskin jackets, with sou'-westers -tied under their chins, the baronet making vows, as ever and anon he -clutched a belaying pin, floundered into the loose bight of a rope, -or had to oppose his back to a drenching sea, that if he were once -safe on German or Danish soil, he would tempt the perils of 'the -briny' no more. - -All day the cutter, though so beautifully modelled and built, beat -against the wind without making progress, and now one of those -tempestuous gales that so often sweep the North Sea began to spend -its fury on her. - -Rufane Ringbolt began to look thoughtful; he had the well sounded; -glanced at the binnacle and aloft ever and anon; put a fresh quid of -tobacco in his cheek, and took a survey of the weather. - -A cloud darker than usual and lower down obscured the sky, spreading -over the zenith. A lambent glare of lightning shot through its -darkest or densest part; another and another followed, and like the -roar of artillery the thunder hurtled through the stormy air. - -The wind lulled for an instant, permitting the _Flying Foam_ to right -herself from her careen, but again the wind bellowed over the sea, -tearing away the foam and snow-white spoondrift from the wave-crests, -and again the cutter was pressed down to her bearings by its force -and fury. - -Pitchy darkness came on, but the vivid lightning flashes were -incessant. - -Owing to the obscurity, the difficulty of the watch on deck in -passing ropes to each other became great, and the alternate gleams, -with a deluge of rain, so blinded them that they were scarcely able -to execute an order; so, hoarsely and angrily, Ringbolt summoned on -deck the watch below, and as they were somewhat tardy in obeying, he -resorted, we are sorry to say, to much strong language. - -'Show a leg and turn out!' he bellowed down the forecastle hatch, -'tumble up the watch--quick, you infernal chowderheads, you'll find -it no child's play now.' - -As this reinforcement, only three or four in number, came 'tumbling -up,' half dressed, the wind suddenly burst--but for a few minutes -only--from an unexpected quarter, taking the cutter aback and -throwing her nearly on her beam-ends. - -The man steering was hurled right over the wheel, the rest, with -coils of rope and whatever was loose or had become loosened, were -heaped in a mass of confusion among the lee scuppers. In alarm that -the craft was foundering, Sir Redmond Sleath, forgetting all about -Ellinor, then praying on her knees with arms stretched over her -bed--praying till sickness again overpowered her--sought some Dutch -courage in the steward's pantry by imbibing more than one stiff glass -of brandy. - -Ringbolt was the first to gather himself up. With an oath he reached -the wheel; the spokes revolved rapidly in his powerful grasp, and the -cutter was righted in time to save the mast, but still intense -darkness reigned--the lights of Cuxhaven had long since melted into -the sea--with tremendous peals of thunder, while vast masses of water -passed over the buoyant and gallant cutter, and the blinding rain and -the bitter salt spray were mingled together. - -The lamp still burned in the binnacle, and the wetted garments and -bronzed visage of Ringbolt shone in its wavering gleam as he grasped -the spokes of the wheel, planted his feet firmly on the deck grating, -and looked from time to time aloft, though he could discern nothing. - -Day began to dawn, but the gale still continued. The cutter was in -the Elbe mouth, though no land was in sight; but Ringbolt knew that -the two sandbanks between what is called the Southern and Northern -Elbe lay ahead, but northward of Merwark Island; and, just as this -reflection occurred to him, the mate came aft in the grey dawn, his -face expressive of concern, to report 'the lower mast sprung!' - -This startling intelligence proved true, for Ringbolt found the mast -had been thus injured in the gale--a great crack ran obliquely -through it, rendering it quite unsafe for carrying the usual quantity -of sail thereon, and he knew that unless instant precautions were -taken the cutter might speedily become a wreck aloft, tidings which -made the teeth of the selfish Sleath chatter in his head. - -With all his errors and backslidings, Ringbolt was equal to the -occasion, and became the English seaman and the officer at once. - -'Sprung it is, by heavens!' he exclaimed. 'Take in sail--away aloft -to the cap with the top-maul, out with the fid, stand by the -mast-rope, and lower away the topmast.' - -Three active fellows were soon up at the cross-trees. A stroke or -two of the maul knocked out the square bar (with a shoulder at one -end) that supported the weight of the topmast, which quickly slid -down in front of the foremast through its upper and lower cap, and -was at once made fast. - -This eased alike the cutter and the mast, but it was necessary to put -her before the wind, and run up the river again, as it would have -been rashness to venture into the North Sea with a crippled mast. -The storm had nearly spent itself, but thunder could still be heard -in the distance between the lulls of the wind. - -So the _Flying Foam_ was once more running up the Elbe, to be -repaired at Hamburg, with her topsail-yard down on the cap, her jib -and staysail set, her fore and aft mainsail close reefed, and the -boom so well eased off that its end skipped the waves at times as she -rolled heavily before the wind. - -At Cuxhaven another pilot, to take her up the river, came on board -from the yacht, which, by their statutes, the inhabitants of that -place are bound to have always at sea, or near the outermost buoy, to -conduct any vessel requiring assistance; and, aided ere long by a -tug-steamer, the _Flying Foam_, passing Altona in the night, when -dawn came in again, was moored for repair in the outer portion of the -Binnen Hafen, under the shadow of the lofty and wonderfully -picturesque old houses of the Stubbenhuck. - -And now, having recovered from his fear and tribulation. Sir Redmond -Sleath began to consider in what way he could delude his luckless -victim ashore. - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -ALONE! - -In furtherance of his own cruel and nefarious schemes against -Ellinor, Sir Redmond had forbidden the Vierlander attendant to inform -her of where the yacht was now, and a few silver kassengelds -effectually sealed her lips, while Ellinor, still confined to her -little cabin, was prostrate in strength, and only thankful that the -din of the storm had passed away, and the awful pitching and rolling -of the cutter was at an end. - -Dewsnap had fortified himself with so many potations of brandy and -water during the last few hours that he was scarcely sober now, and -swayed about on his feet swearing it was still 'the roll of the ship.' - -'My watch has stopped,' said he, in a thick voice, to Sleath. - -'Indeed,' said the baronet, not much interested in the matter. - -'I tried to wind it up last night, and mistook the corkscrew for a -key.' - -'After such a devil of a time as we have had of it I don't wonder at -anything.' - -Meanwhile Sleath was still considering how he would induce Ellinor to -trust herself on shore with him, after writing to announce her coming -to the Frau Wyburg's residence, or _pension_ as she was pleased to -call it; and Dewsnap was busy imbibing a 'pick-me-up' of iced seltzer -and brandy, while conning over the sporting intelligence at several -recent meetings--the plates run for, the bets at starting, the Welter -sweepstakes, and so forth, without even caring to open the letters -the steward had brought him from the Poste Restante at the Post -Strasse, when suddenly a loud interjection escaped him. - -'What is up?' asked Sleath, looking up from his coffee. - -'The devil to pay in the East!' - -'How?' - -'A Reuter's telegram announcing the murder of Sir Louis Cavagnari, -and massacre of the entire embassy at Cabul!' - -'The entire lot?' - -'Escort and every man-jack of the Europeans!' - -Sleath was of course interested, and read for himself the brief and -alarming despatch. - -'So that cad Colville is wiped out then--a devilish good job too!' -was his first comment, and he contrived soon to let Ellinor Wellwood -know the fate of her 'cousin,' as he called Colville in mockery. - -Her first thoughts were of Mary. - -More than ever did Ellinor long to be with her now. She strove to -leave her bed, but sank helplessly back upon the pillow, and lay -there still choked by dry sobs, her face pallid to the lips; in her -half-closed eyes an unnatural gleam that came of mental and bodily -suffering, while her hands were clenched at times till the nails -almost cut the tender palms. - - -Ringbolt, the sailing-master, had a keen appreciation of the charming -in female nature, and was able to admire every variety of the sex -that came under his observation. - -The wonderful beauty and delicacy of Ellinor inflamed his fancy. He -saw that she seemed, somehow, utterly helpless--a mysterious waif, -cast upon the waters; he saw that she trembled under the unpleasant -gaze of Dewsnap, and simply loathed Sleath, who sought to make -himself the arbiter of her destiny; so Mr. Rufane Ringbolt thought -why should he not enter stakes for this prize? Why should not he try -to make his innings when others failed? - -She had been picked up like a derelict craft, and by himself, too; -and then Hamburg--dissipated Hamburg--filled with people of many -races and creeds--was just the place where people may play the -wildest pranks with ease. - -Thus Ringbolt had been a kind of protection in one way to Ellinor, -over whom he kept an eye, on his own account, and, as Sleath began to -think, was always on the watch, as he was one who took what he called -'dog watches,' or 'dog snoozes,' and could sleep by night or day with -wonderful facility, and apparently with one eye open. - -And now that the yacht was moored along the quay of the Binnen Hafen, -close by such thoroughfares as the Deich Strasse, and would soon be -dismasted and in the riggers' hands, he thought the time had come -when he might venture on some scheme of gaining Ellinor's gratitude -first by pretending to succour and free her. - -And, as these ideas occurred to him, his eyes sparkled, the colour in -his grog-pimpled cheeks deepened, and he mumbled about with his lips -like a man who had been in the habit of chewing twist tobacco, which -was the case with Ringbolt after he was turned out of the navy and -took to the yachting line of business. - -The watchfulness we have referred to had not been unnoticed, and -Sleath began to suspect that, if Ringbolt was not doing this for -himself, he must be acting in the interests of Mr. Dolly Dewsnap, and -thus some action on his own part was imperatively necessary. - -He was becoming exasperated, piqued, and disgusted, moreover, with -Ellinor's trembling abhorrence of him, and began secretly to arrange -with the faithful and unscrupulous Gaiters a scheme for having her -more completely in his power ashore, and luring her quietly from the -yacht on the pretence of restoring her to Mrs. Deroubigne. - -'The embassy massacred--every officer and soldier destroyed!' -exclaimed the latter, when she read the same startling telegram that -gave Sir Redmond such extreme satisfaction. 'The hope of her -future--her soul--her existence gone--poor Mary! Poor darling! -_How_ am I to break this to her?' - -But broken it had to be, and then to Mary came hours of agony--such -hours as in our lives count for years! - -'Ellinor drowned and--and Colville slain.' - -Mary Wellwood was stunned and sorely stricken, and bowed her head as -if the waves of Destiny were rolling over her. - -She read the paragraph, so comprehensive and yet so terrible in its -brevity, again and again, till it seemed to pierce like burning -needles into her heart and brain. - -So Leslie Colville was gone--dead--destroyed in what manner or after -what torment she would never, never know. - -His face and figure--his voice and smile came vividly and poignantly -to memory as she sat like one turned to stone, with the kind arms of -Mrs. Deroubigne around her, caressing her head on her bosom. - -The dire calamity she had hourly dreaded might happen, had come at -last, and yet there seemed to be an impossibility in the realisation -of it. - -Oh, why did men become soldiers? - -'Alone--alone in the world now!' wailed Mary. - -'My darling, you have me and my little girls to love you as sisters,' -said Mrs. Deroubigne, folding the deathly-pale girl again and again -to her motherly breast; but, passionate though her sympathy and -regard, Mary shivered, and thought who could ever replace Ellinor as -a sister, and felt, as she said, most fearfully alone. - -Her mind at times became confused. Something more had happened to -her--she scarcely knew what it was. - -Never again did it seem possible that she could take any interest in -the life of the world and its daily routine. She was -apathetic--careless of what was done with herself or anything around -her. - -Existence and its ties seemed over and done with, yet her present -calamity seemed also a kind of dream to her. 'Sometimes in great -trouble,' says a writer, 'the brain acts in this way of itself--it -will return to events of long ago and recall them vividly, while the -immediate moment becomes remote. But the reaction is all the more -intense for this mental rest; and when the mind returns to the -contemplation of the _present_ it is to see with greater vividness.' - -'The embassy massacred to a man!' How often was she to reiterate -mentally that appalling line? - -It was now Mary's evil fortune to feel perhaps--nay, surely--more -keenly than her sister had done this new calamity, for poor Ellinor -had certainly ceased for a time to love, though she had never failed -to respect Robert Wodrow, now deemed also with the dead. - -All was silent in that pretty villa by the broad and shining -Elbe--shining in the light of the moon. The fire glowed in the tall, -cylindrical, porcelain stove in a corner of the room; that room ere -while decorated and prepared for her and Ellinor so lovingly by Mrs. -Deroubigne, and there she lay restless, sleepless, and alone, too -bewildered to realise the dire calamity that had befallen her, and -been acted in blood and wrath so far, far away, and yet but a few -hours ago. - -The curtains were drawn back, and the red glow of the half-open stove -and of the night-light shed a radiance on her surroundings, but -whenever her eyes wandered they seemed to see something that was -familiar and yet strange to them. - -Her mind was every way confused and involved, and poor Jack from time -to time licked her hand unnoticed. - -There was, however, always the one prominent idea. Leslie Colville, -the one love of her heart, her affianced husband, was dead--killed -cruelly--horribly, she doubted not, but in what fashion she knew not, -and, fortunately perhaps, should never know. - -And ever and anon aching memory went back to that sunny noon when she -first met him, yet knew him not, as they fished together by the -bonnie Birks of Invermay. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -IN THE BALA HISSAR. - -Our advanced post was in the Kurram Valley--the only part of the -Afghan border which had been trodden by the foot of a Briton since -the previous Cabul war--a post, the boundary of the so-called -'scientific frontier,' which had been held by a body of our troops, -European and native, for some three months during the summer of this -eventful year; and all had been suffering more or less from the -breathless heat and malaria, dulness, and that growing _ennui_ which -a languid game of polo or lawn-tennis (without ladies) utterly failed -to ameliorate; and all thought that, as anything exciting was better -than nothing, a brush with the Mongols, the Ahmed, or Hassan Keyls -would be a relief. - -Many officers began to think, even to talk, hopefully of leave of -absence to visit India, to look up old chums in Peshawur, Rawul -Pindi, or Lahore; or when longer leave for Europe must be given; when -news of the attack on the Residency at Cabul, and the massacre of the -envoy and his people fell upon them like a clap of thunder! - -These terrible tidings were brought by Taimur, a Usbeg Tartar, who -served as a trooper in the Guide escort--a man of undoubted daring, -bravery, and hardihood--who had achieved his escape from the city of -blood by the aid of some of his own race who were among the Cabulee -troops that had come in from Herat. - -After twelve days' wandering, and enduring great suffering in those -savage and stupendous mountain gorges that lie between Cabul and the -Kotal of Lundikhani, he reached the advanced post in the Kurram -Valley, in rags, famished, and every way in a deplorable state of -destitution, to make his report, which was instantly telegraphed by -the officer commanding to the Viceroy at Simla. - -'Everyone cut off as close as a whistle! By Jove, colonel, we'll -have to be up and doing something,' said Algy Redhaven, the hussar, -as he lounged, pipe in mouth, and hands in the pockets of his -pyjamas, into the tent of old Spatterdash. - -The early summer months had been passed peacefully and pleasantly by -our embassy at Cabul, notwithstanding the petty insults and annoyance -we have already referred to. In the cool, breezy morning, when the -sun was coming up above the hills that look down on the clear, -shallow, and rapid Cabul flowing towards the Indus; or in the -evening, when he was setting behind the summits of the Haft Kotal, -Sir Louis Cavagnari, attended by Colville and others, escorted by a -few of the Guide Corps, rode through the city to view places of -interest in the neighbourhood, sometimes towards the Chardeh Valley -eastward, or the plains of Killa-Kazi on the west. - -Their quarters in the picturesque and ancient Bala Hissar were -rendered as comfortable as furniture of English style and -make--relics of Elphinstone's slaughtered army and plundered -cantonments--could make them; but the walls of the rooms were -scribbled over with ribald pencillings, anti-English hits and -insolent political allusions there was no mistaking, left there by -members of the late Russian mission; while 'from the Ameer himself, -as from the commandant, dalis of fruit and vegetables, fish, milk, -and sweetmeats were daily provided; and whatever Cabul could offer in -the way of entertainment or amusement was readily forthcoming.' - -All seemed so peaceful, and the chances of renewed hostility so -remote, that Colville was about to make arrangements for quitting the -Embassy, resigning his appointment, and procuring an escort through -the passes to Lundi Khani Khotal in the Kurram Valley on his homeward -way. - -He also intended to take with him Robert Wodrow. The latter had -changed greatly of late for the better. In his face, that which had -been mere good looks had deepened into earnestness of purpose in -every feature. If, under the heat of the summer sun, his cheek was -browner and less round, his mouth, in expression, was a trifle harder -and more set, changes indicative of one who was aware that he had his -way in the world to hew out, and due to Colville's influence, -presence, and friendly encouragement. - -He found him one day whistling loudly while grooming his horse in the -stables of the Bala Hissar. - -'Wodrow, old man,' said Colville, laughingly, 'by Jove, I am glad to -hear you whistling. Your lips seemed only capable of sighing once. -But the air you indulge in is a sad one.' - -'It is "The Birks of Invermay," sir. I was thinking as usual of old -times, and of those from whom we are so far away.' - -'Many a thousand miles, even as the crow flies.' - -All remained, to all appearance, peaceful, we say, at Cabul, till one -fatal morning, about eight o'clock, when the Turkistani and Ordal -Regiments, consisting of several battalions in the Ameer's army, were -mustered for arrears of pay in one of the stately courts of the Bala -Hissar. - -Daud Shah, a sirdir or general of the army--a venerable -soldier--could only distribute one month's pay, but, with shrill and -vehement shouts that made every carved arcade and shaded balcony -re-echo, they demanded two. - -'Two months' pay or blood!' - -The sirdir attempted to remonstrate with them, on which tumult and -disorder pervaded their ranks, and they broke out into open mutiny. - -Then another sirdir--whose name is not unknown to the -reader--exclaimed, with a voice loud enough to be heard above the -fast-growing disturbance, - -'Let us kill the Envoy and then the Ameer who would sell us to the -Feringhees!' - -'Deen! deen! deen and death,' shouted all, and, rushing into the -greater court of the palace, they proceeded to stone and loot without -mercy the servants of the Residency. - -Enraged by this rough treatment, Taimur, the Usbeg Tartar, and some -of his Guide comrades, without temporising or waiting for the orders -of their officers, betook them to their carbines and opened a fire -upon the multitude from the open windows and stately galleries -overlooking the court. - -Colville and other officers called upon them to cease firing, and -they did so for a time. - -Then it was that the Sirdir Mahmoud Shah, a man whose fanaticism made -him all but a Ghazi, shook his hand upwards at the gallery where they -stood, and called, with a shrill voice, - -'Brutes! beasts! vermin! filthy Feringhees! Enjoy the pleasures of -life for a brief time, but your speedy departure shall be into the -flames of hell, with water like molten brass to drink, and ye shall -say, as the Koran tells us--"Oh, Malec, intercede for us, that the -Lord may end us by annihilation."' - -He spoke in Afghani, yet many understood him, and an officer said, - -'These beggars quote their Koran as glibly as Cromwell's Puritans did -the Bible, and with the same view to blood and slaughter.' - -Led by Mahmoud chiefly, the mutineers rushed away to procure their -arms and ammunition, with which they returned in a few minutes, -inflamed by all the hate and rancour of race and religion, and -pitilessly resolved to massacre all. - -The time of their absence has been given as about fifteen minutes, -and, with horses at hand, it is said that all in the Residency might -have made their escape, had they chosen to attempt it, but either -they trusted to the sacred character of the embassy, underrated the -actual amount of peril, or, like bold Britons, were determined to -face it, and show fight. - -The roof of the Residency was an untenable place, being commanded by -the flat roofs and windows of loftier houses, yet there Sir Louis -Cavagnari and his little band were gathered, and there, making a kind -of rampart or shelter-trench with what they could collect, they -resolved to sell their lives as dearly as possible in conflict with -the savage hordes--the sea of human beings that surged around them. - -The mutineers, all well-armed with rifles and bayonets, and supplied -with excellent ammunition, were now joined by the fanatical -multitudes of the city, by robbers intent on plunder, budmashes, and -villains of every kind, seeking blood and outrage, brandishing long -juzails, sabres, and charahs, or deadly native knives, with points -like needles and edges like razors--blades that flashed and glanced -in the sunshine like their bloodshot and malevolent eyes; their -strange garments, wide-sleeved camises, sheepskin cloaks, and -bright-coloured loonghees or caps, adding to the picturesqueness of -the savage and bewildering scene, overlooked by the pillared arcades, -with horse-shoe arches, and the carved balconies on ponderous marble -brackets projecting from the palace walls, and all half revealed and -half hidden amid the eddying smoke of pistols and musketry. - -All were yelling, till their yells ended in a death-shriek, as a shot -struck them down; many were quoting the inevitable Koran, or hurling -offensive and abusive epithets, as they crushed upon and jostled each -other, while seething and surging around their victims. - -Hope of victory--even of successful defence--the latter could have -none. For them nothing was left now but to struggle to the last of -their blood and breath, and until the last man perished in his agony! - -Colville, while handling the carbine of a Guide who had fallen near -him, even in that desperate time, thought how hideous looked the sea -of human faces into which he was sending shot after shot, as fast as -he could drop them into the block of the breechloader. - -'The faces of the Afghans,' says a writer, 'often develop into those -of the most villainous-looking scoundrels. Shylock, Caliban, and -Sycorax and his dam all have numerous representatives, though I think -the first is the commonest type, on account of the decidedly Jewish -cast of most Cabuli features, and the low cunning and cruelty which -supplies the only animation in their otherwise stolid countenances, -true indices of the mind beneath--fatalist by creed; false, -murderous, and tyrannical by education. In this description,' he -adds, 'I do not include the Kuzzil Bash (Persian), or Hindoo -settlers, who preserve their own distinctive features, both mental -and physical.' - -For five hours had the unequal conflict been waged, when Sir Louis -Cavagnari, who was in the thick of it, was wounded in the forehead by -a ball that had ricochetted from a wall near him. - -Close and terrible was the fire poured by the Guides with their -carbines and by the few European officers into the dense masses of -the foe beneath, and deadly that fire proved--the front files, if -they could be termed so, melted away or fell over each other in -heaps, but fresh men pushed forward from the rear and took their -places, serving only to feed the harvest of death gathered at the -hands of those who fought not for existence--the hope of that was -quite lost now--but for vengeance. - -'Allah! Allah! Allah! Deen! Deen! Deen!' were the shouts that -loaded the air below, rising above the sputtering roar of the -firearms. On the other side was no sound, but a yell or a groan as a -man fell wounded, too often mortally. 'La Ilah illa Allah!' ('There -is no God but God.') - -Yet devilry, cruelty, and slaughter were there supreme. - -'I wish we could make a headlong rush on them and clear the square by -a charge--cut our way through,' cried Colville; 'but we have not men -enough, and then Sir Louis Cavagnari and all the wounded would be -butchered if left behind.' - -'How fast the devils fire!' exclaimed a young officer; 'my revolver -barrel is quite hot already.' - -'You'll soon get used to the whizz of the bullets,' replied Colville, -whose face if now pale with desperation, was filled with an -expression of determination too. 'Keep cool, men--aim well, and let -every shot tell.' - -But amid that dense mob below--a literal sea of upturned and dark, -revengeful faces, with glistening teeth and flashing eyes--no bullet -could miss a mark; while all around were heard the crash of falling -bricks, beams, and plaster, the yells of the Afghans, the shrieks of -their women, and the roar of the fast gathering flames. - -'Mark that fellow!' cried several officers, indicating a leader in a -green loonghee, who seemed to have a charmed life--Mahmoud Shah, in -fact. - -'I should like to pick that devil off,' said Robert Wodrow, dropping -a cartridge into the breechblock of his carbine. 'He seems to be -head cock and bottle-washer of the whole shindy!' he added, in the -phraseology of his student days. His ballet sped, but only grazed -the shoulder of the old fanatic, and added to the latter's fury. - -A soldier of the Guides who had been wounded in the temple fell -headlong from the flat roof into the mass below, and was hewn by -tulwars and charahs to pieces--literally chopped into ounce pieces. - -In the desperation of their circumstances it was resolved to appeal -for succour and protection to the Ameer, who, while all this deadly -work was in progress, remained with indifference apparently in his -palace, and amid the ladies of his harem. - -The ambassador, whose wound had been dressed by Dr. Kelly, desired a -moonshi to write a letter imploring royal aid, but the scribe was so -terrified by the uproar that his fingers were unable to hold the pen; -so one was written in Afghani by Taimar, the Guide, and this missive -Robert Wodrow boldly volunteered to deliver in person. - -'You are throwing your life away, Wodrow,' said Colville. 'The risk -is frightful.' - -'So be it, Captain Colville; but better mine than yours. You have -something to live for. What have I?' - -Untwisting a couple of cartridges into a saucer, he made a species of -black paste therewith, and, blackening his face before a mirror, -contrived still further to disguise himself with some Afghan clothing -that was found in the Residency--a brown camise with loose wide -sleeves, a furred _choga_ or mantle, a _loonghee_, and armed with a -tulwar and shield, like a budmash. He placed the letter in his -pocket, and issuing from a secret underground doorway passed from the -Bala Hissar unnoticed by the crowds which surged around it, and -brandishing his weapon and shouting ever and anon like the rest, -'Deen! Deen!' he contrived to reach the Ameer, to whose hands he -forwarded the letter through Daud Shah, a friendly sirdir or general. - -It was speedily brought back with a brief reply written upon it by -the prince-- - -'If God willeth. I am just making arrangements.' - -The brave Wodrow experienced many difficulties in making his way -back, for the hostile crowds were increasing every moment, and to -reach the Residency he had at one time literally to act the part of a -leader, and risk the fire of his own friends, among whom, however, he -soon found himself, and delivered the message of the Ameer to the -half-conscious Cavagnari, who was suffering sorely from his wound. - -But no succour came, and the hopeless and desperate resistance was -continued. - -A second letter to the Ameer was now despatched; but its bearer, a -Hindoo, was discovered and cut to pieces. - -After two hours more fighting--hours that added to the heaps of dead -and dying below the Bala Hissar walls, and to the fearful casualties -in the ranks of the small band fighting for existence within the -Residency--Lieutenant Hamilton sent out Taimar, the guide, with an -open letter promising the Ameer's mutineers six months' pay if they -dispersed. - -Courageous Taimar, clad in his uniform as a guide-soldier--drab, -laced, piped, and faced with scarlet--went among them, but he was not -listened to. The letter was torn to shreds; his uniform was rent off -him; he was robbed of all he had, severely beaten, and tossed into a -vault, where he lay insensible till he made his escape under cloud of -night; and that he was not slain outright was simply due to his Usbeg -blood and features. And eventually he reached our outpost at -Lundi-Khani Kotal in the Kurram Valley. - -After his return to the Residency, amid the confusion and defence of -so many points of the roof on which the whole of its slender garrison -were now gathered, Robert Wodrow for a time was unable to discover -Colville, and feared that he had fallen. - -After a little time he discovered him on the summit of an isolated -tower, where, with four men, he had taken post to enfilade the fire -of the mutineers; but his four soldiers were all shot down in quick -succession. Wodrow saw him turn them on their faces, take the -ammunition from their pouches, and proceed single-handed to defend -with a musket the tower which was now in flames, and was ere long -enveloped in smoke. - -When a puff of wind blew the latter aside for a moment a cry escaped -Robert Wodrow, for Colville had vanished, and in a few minutes after, -the tower fell thundering down in a mass of blazing ruins. - -The assailants had now discovered that loftier buildings, as stated, -commanded the flat roof of the Residency, the upper storey of which -was open on every side, being merely a sleeping place during the hot -months of the year, and consisting of a roof, wattled and plastered, -resting on slender pillars of wood, painted and gaily gilded. - -Thus the insurgents were enabled by a fire, chiefly directed from the -loftier windows and roof of the arsenal, to drive the desperate and -now despairing defenders downward from floor to floor, till they -ultimately reached the last, upon the ground; and there, for no less -than four hours more, they made a noble and heroic resistance against -the fanatical and furious multitude which hurled its strength against -them, so close at times that the young officers of Cavagnari's suite -were seen to fire their pistols right into the mouths and eyes of -their savage assailants. - -Weary, breathless, and suffering from an intense thirst, incident to -hot exertion and fierce excitement--a thirst they had neither the -means nor the time to allay--their eyes bloodshot, their lips baked, -their undressed wounds in many instances streaming with blood, their -faces pale as death--the death that was so soon to overtake them -all--the handful of Europeans and Guide soldiers maintained the -unequal conflict with a heroism that mingled with despair. - -It was at this crisis in their fate that Daud Shah, a fine old Afghan -sirdir, came riding from the Ameer's palace, through the crowds of -people, and called upon them 'to desist from their infamous crime!' - -He was a man above fifty years of age, with a stern face of a -decidedly Jewish type, an aquiline nose, and high cheekbones, dark -and restless eyes, having beetling brows tufted with grizzly hair, -and a long grey beard that descended to his shawl-girdle. - -But his appearance only added to the rancorous fury of the people and -the mutineers. Rushing on him with rage, Mahmoud Shah tore him from -his saddle; he was wounded by a bayonet, severely stoned, and borne -away to the palace, covered with blood and in a dying condition. - -Two other officers of high rank--one a sirdir or general--also strove -to quell the disturbance, but were fired on and compelled to seek -safety in flight. - -That portion of the Bala Hissar assigned as a Residency was far too -large for the little garrison that had then to defend it, and it was -now surrounded on its four sides by that ferocious multitude of armed -men bent on slaughter and cruelty, led on by an equally frantic band -of moollahs. - -'They are flinging lighted brands on the roof from the arsenal,' -cried some one, and overhead the roar of flames was soon heard as the -open upper storey we have described became sheeted with fire. - -'If that is the case, a little time will see us all gone to the -bow-wows!' cried Robert Wodrow, whom danger always seemed to -exhilarate and make more reckless. - -Despairing of all succour from the false Ameer, and as if eager to -die hard, and in doing so to anticipate their doom, the few surviving -heroes of the little garrison charged out sword in hand, and -plunged--thrusting with the point, and hewing with the edge--into the -human sea that filled the court between the Bala Hissar gate, just as -night was closing, and there they all perished to a man, save -one--perished just as the roof of the Residency came crashing down -amid black smoke and crackling flames, thus preserving the bodies of -Sir Louis Cavagnari, of Dr. Kelly, and several others from the last -insults of a savage enemy. - -Aided by the wild confusion, the sudden darkness of the tropical -night, and not a little by his disguised visage and native costume, -Robert Wodrow achieved a passage into the streets of the city, and -from thence, as all thoroughfares save those in the vicinity of the -Bala Hissar were deserted, into the open plain near the city, and -there he threaded his way without molestation among the apple, -citron, and olive groves, the mud forts and garden walls, till he -found a plantation of sugar-canes, and then, weary, worn, covered -with bruises, famished, and athirst--ready almost to weep--after the -past excitement of that terrible day, and the loss of all his friends -and comrades--last, not least, Leslie Colville, he flung himself on -the ground to recover breath and to think over the situation. - -Day was dawning, and tipping with red and gold the summits of the -Bala Hissar, when Wodrow awoke to find that he had been asleep for -some hours, and now rose, stiff and sore in every limb. The flames -of the conflagration had died out, but a black pall of smoke overhung -the towers and battlements of the ancient and picturesque palatial -fortress, which, with a recklessness of courage for which it is -difficult to account, he actually resolved to revisit, as if to see -the last--the end of everything. - -He had the caution, however, to readjust his disguise, to carefully -load his revolver, and by untwisting another cartridge and mixing the -powder in a dew-laden leaf, to carefully retouch his face, using the -case of his watch as a mirror, and to re-blacken his hands and -wrists, before he ventured near the scene of the last night's horrors. - -Of the Residency, the blackened walls and smouldering ashes alone -remained, and as these furnished no 'loot,' the place was deserted by -all save the dead. - -Of the latter there lay heaped over each other, and soaked in each -other's blood, some five hundred Afghans, attesting--irrespective of -wounded--of the stubborn vigour of the defence, for every cartridge -fired by the desperate few must have told more than double among the -masses. - -The marble arches and pillars of the beautiful carved arcades and -open galleries, the walls and pavement, were all spotted and starred -by the bullets of rifles and carbines, and clots and splashes of -blood were everywhere, with the corpses of the Europeans and Guides, -easily distinguished by their uniforms. The solitary survivor saw -the body of the young and gallant Hamilton, stripped of his braided -jacket and woefully gashed, lying across a mountain gun, over which -he had fallen or been flung by his slayers, 'and beyond it, in a -trench which the Afghans had failed to storm, were heaped, thick and -charred by fire, the corpses of the heroic Guides. Each man had died -where he stood, and in their rear were the smouldering ruins of the -building wherein Cavagnari, Kelly, and others were lying.' - -Robert Wodrow gave a glance at the blackened ruins of the tower on -the summit of which he had last seen Colville, rifle in hand, -resisting to the last, and a bitter sigh escaped him as he quitted -the city, and resolutely turned his face and steps towards the -passes, through which he hoped to reach our outpost at Lundi Khani -Kotal, more than a hundred and fifty miles distant, amid hostile -tribes and savage ways, by the Latband Pass, Jugdulluk, Gundamuck, -and the Khoord Khyber, at the very contemplation of which his heart -sank with despair. - -'All about the city,' said a print of the time, 'there were Afghans -enough--the whole hive seemed restless with multitudinous motion; but -when the solitary traveller (after the hideous uproar of the past -night) had cleared the city precincts, the old desolation of the -dreary hill country lay stretched before him, and along the rugged -ways hardly a man was moving.' - -Yet the rugged paths through the stupendous passes had many dangers -for the disguised hussar. Tigers, wolves, and hyenas were to be met -with, making sleep and night alike perilous and horrible; and to -these were added by day the chance of discovery by the equally savage -tribesmen, and a death by torture, such as only the Oriental mind can -conceive, at their merciless hands. - -Yet, though aware of all he had to encounter, Robert Wodrow took to -the hills as a mountaineer born, and strode resolutely and manfully -on. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -THE FORT OF MAHMOUD SHAH. - -Resolutely had Leslie Colville defended the summit of the somewhat -isolated tower on which he had taken post with only four chosen -marksmen, intending to enfilade the front attack on the Residency, -and pick off the best shots in possession of the lofty arsenal roof; -but he had soon the mortification to see each of his men perish in -quick succession, and to find the tower in flames beneath him, -cutting off his descent, and leaving him helplessly exposed to a fire -from those who must soon have smitten him down but for the frantic -fury with which they impeded each other's aim and operations; and -while thus perilously situated he heard friendly voices--or such he -thought them to be--calling to him from below in Hindustani. - -He looked down, and on a gun-platform about twenty feet from where he -stood were four natives, Hindostanees, as appeared by their -costume--the turban, with a couple of scarfs each, one wrapped round -the body, and the other over the shoulders, leaving the rest of the -body uncovered--holding outstretched a strong horse-rug or blanket, -into which they invited him to drop himself, and trust to them and to -their united strength for breaking his fall. - -'Chullo, sahib--golee chulte!' (come along, sir--the balls are -flying) cried one. - -'Chullo, bhai--chullo, pultania sahib!' (Come on, brother--come, -battalion officer) cried the other three, also in a kind of -Hindustani; so Colville never doubted but that they were -Hindoos--perhaps camp-followers--and Hindoos they certainly were. - -He paused for a moment, irresolute whether to trust to them or--what? -Meet death amid the flames which had cut off his retreat, and all -chance of rejoining his struggling companions--the flames that were -fast ascending in the tower from storey to storey, and would soon be -bursting through the flat roof on which he stood, for already the -smoke was rising like a black column through the trap-door by which -he had reached it. - -He failed to see the fierce expression of mockery and derision which -was in the dark faces of the four men below, and, deeming it wiser to -risk and trust them than to perish amid the flames, he dropped into -the rug, in which they received him with shrill yells of triumph, for -the plunder of his person, combined with his murder, were their -objects. - -But Colville was too quick for them. In leaping over he had -relinquished the rifle he had been using for his sword, and with the -latter, after baffling an attempt they made to muffle or bundle him -up in the rug, while they were staggering beneath his weight, he -waved them back just as they rushed upon him with their sharp -charahs, and such blind hate and fury that they all wounded each -other. - -He then put his back against the wall, and kept them at bay with his -sword-blade and levelled revolver, which, although they knew not, was -unfortunately empty. - -Streaming with blood from the wounds they had inflicted on each -other, they strove to close in upon him, and speedily several -budmashes with sword and shield, and other villains variously armed, -came upon the scene, and their cries were loud and fierce. - -'Astafferullah! put his head in a bhoosa bag, or one stuffed with -chillies!' - -'No, let it be in a bag of red pepper, and then let him die the death -of the doomed!' - -That he would have been bayoneted or shot and cut to pieces there and -then was beyond a doubt, had not a horseman furiously intervened by -dashing his steed between him and the rabble, who recoiled in -recognition of his presence and authority as a sirdir, and he -presented his right hand to Colville, exclaiming, - -'I ate of your bread and salt on that night when you saved me from -the Wahabi dogs in Jellalabad, and when I swore by the Koran and by -the Five Keys of Knowledge never to forget your kindness--nor do I -now!' - -As he spoke Colville, even in that supreme moment of excitement and -most deadly peril, recognised again Mahmoud Shah, the mock Hadji, -with the Israeliteish features, the complexion fairer than most -Afghans, and the livid sword-mark that traversed his right cheek. - -The fanatic, for such he was, had for Colville gratitude, and when -that exists there is always good-will. - -Mechanically the latter grasped the hand held out to him, while the -scowling mob, with gleaming eyes and weapons, dark and scowling -visages, drew back. - -'So--sirdir--you and the Hadji Mahmoud are the same?' exclaimed -Colville. - -'One and the same--I am that eater of dirt!' he added, to show his -humility. - -He ordered Colville to give up his arms, and, sending him under a -strong escort of his own people out of the city, once more addressed -himself to the congenial task of pressing the attack upon the -Residency--a task which he continued to the bitter end. - -Meanwhile Colville was conveyed, a prisoner, to one of the many forts -which stud the plain of Cabul and the heights of Beymaroo that -overhang it. - -Mahmoud had suddenly become his protector in fulfilment of the old -precept of being true to his salt; and Colville, who in his heart was -intensely thankful to Heaven for the succour afforded to him, while -so many poor fellows were perishing without mercy, felt confident -that while with Mahmoud, or under his care, he was tolerably safe; -for it is well known that after eating the bread and salt of another, -or even salt alone, one, according to Oriental ideas, comes under -peculiar obligations of protection and friendship. - -As an illustration of this, Lane tells us, in one of his valuable -notes to the 'Arabian Tales,' of a daring robber, who, one night, -excavated a passage into the palace of the Governor of Sijistan, -where he made up a great bale of gold and jewels; he was in the act -of carrying it off, when, in the dark, his foot happened to strike -against something hard on the floor. Believing it to be a jewel of -some kind--perhaps a great diamond--he picked it up, and on applying -his tongue to it, found that it was nothing else but a lump of rock -salt. - -Bitter was his disappointment, 'for having once tasted the salt of -the ocean, his aversion gave way to his respect for the laws of -hospitality; and throwing down his precious booty, he left it behind -him, and withdrew empty-handed to his habitation.' - -But Colville remembered, as old Colonel Spatterdash had told him -scores of times, how Asiatics can quibble in this very matter; and -that in the great Mutiny how often the Sepoys swore 'to be true to -their salt,' and not to murder their officers, but stood placidly and -approvingly by while the Pandies of other regiments slaughtered them. - -In this fashion Mahmoud Shah might be true to _his_ salt. Who can -say or fathom the cruel duplicity of the Oriental mind and nature? - -And, with these painful surmises and doubts in his mind, Colville -heard the roar of the conflict in and around the doomed Residency -dying away in the distance as the gates of the fort by the Cabul -river were closed behind him. - -As he entered, he looked back to the fatal Bala Hissar. The smoke of -the conflict, mingled with that of the conflagration, was eddying -about its picturesque towers and embattled masses on the mountain -slope, all bathed in ruddy splendour by the setting sun. What was -being enacted there now? he thought. Was all over now? Had the last -of the brave fallen? - -After sunset Mahmoud Shah arrived at the fort, which was his own -patrimonial stronghold, and assured Colville that all was ended--the -last man was slain, and the valour of the Cabulees had been -successful. - -'Success shows the hand of God, and of Mahomet the Prophet, blessed -be their names!' he added. - -His arrival at the fort was the signal for a species of ovation among -his followers, who mustered some hundreds, all villainous but -picturesque tatterdemalions, whose arms were as varied as the fashion -and colours of their costume. Many had girdles of leather, from -which hung bags for bullets, slugs, and flints, powder-horns and -cases for cartridges. Others had cummerbunds, in which were stuck -pistols, daggers, charahs, and British bayonets in such numbers that -it would have been puzzling to find room for one weapon more. - -In addition to all this paraphernalia, every man had a tulwar, and a -juzail, or flint or match-lock rifle, in his hand. - -Colville was compelled to dissemble his hatred and horror of those -who had so wantonly slaughtered his brave companions, many of whose -bright, joyous, and handsome English faces came so painfully to -memory at that time, all lying cold and gashed and bloody among the -ruins of the Residency; and that horror was blended with a great -disgust of his host and protector, when he recalled the tragedy his -treachery was supposed to have brought to pass with the squadron of -the 10th Hussars; that he was a spy who had imposed upon himself at -Jellalabad, and had led the Ameer's rebel tribes against us on more -than one occasion; but with all this, policy, and his own personal -safety, and hope of ultimate freedom compelled him to dissemble. - -'Are you thirsty, sahib?' was the first question Mahmoud asked him on -quitting his saddle. - -'Yes; dying with it! Who could be otherwise after the horrors and -exertion of the past day?' exclaimed Colville. - -'Drink, then--the commands of the Prophet are nothing to you,' said -Mahmoud, as he gave him a large cup filled with Cabul wine (which has -a flavour not unlike full-bodied Madeira), and with it a bunch of the -grapes of Ghuznee, which are greatly superior to those that grow in -the plain of Cabul; and Colville, half-sinking with exhaustion caused -by bodily fatigue and fierce over-excitement, thought he had never -had refreshment more grateful and acceptable. - -Built of mud and sun-dried bricks, the fort of Mahmoud was strong and -spacious; it was square, with a squat, round tower at each angle and -a keep in the centre, well loopholed for musketry, armed with -jingals, and those huge swivel blunderbusses named zumbooracks, -which, as firearms, are often as perilous to those who work them as -to those at whom they are levelled. - -The fort had two gates, in its eastern and western faces; these were -protected by demi-bastions, and there was a moat, once filled by the -Cabul, but now dry, neglected, and overgrown by vines and -orange-trees. - -The courtyard was spacious. In the keep was _Dewan-i-Am_, or -audience-chamber, surrounded by a divan or continuous seat; beyond it -was the _Dewan-i-Kas_, or principal private apartment, and in the -towers were lodged the servants of the establishment; apart from all -was a zenana, or women's apartments, and elsewhere, in every corner, -were stowed away the garrison, composed of the _budmashes_ and other -tatterdemalions just described. - -When not in the courtyard or on the summit of the keep--always -closely watched--Colville was generally in the _Dewan-i-Kas_, where -he shared the meals of the Mahmoud. Here carpets were laid on the -floor, and there was a kind of chair or stool of state, with cushions -for arms, and before it lay the tulwar, shield, and pistols of the -sirdir, as in a place of honour. - -The fort stood--and no doubt still stands--close to a bend of the -clear and otherwise shallow Cabul, a river which is formed by the -junction of the Ghorbund and Panjshir, and after dividing into three -branches it reunites and flows into the Indus, three miles above the -great fortress of Attock. - -And Colville, in his prison in the fort--for a prison to all intents -and purposes it was--lay for many a weary hour on a charpoy, or -native bed, listening to the murmur of the stream as it flowed over -its pebbled bed towards the mountain passes that led to India, and -marvelled what was in store for him; how long his captivity would -last; whether Mahmoud wanted a ransom or held him as a kind of -hostage: for that the destruction of the embassy would be amply -avenged none could doubt. Then how would it fare with the crafty -Ameer? - -'He is the son of an animal!' said Mahmoud, on one occasion, -scornfully; 'he plays fast and loose with your people and his own. -According to an old fable, every man bears on his back a wallet in -which are deposited his weaknesses and his vices, which, though -concealed from his own eyes, are open to the inspection of those of -others. Thus we see that the Ameer, if not the tool of Britain, will -be the slave of the Russ.' - -'Through his duplicity I am a prisoner.' - -'Better that than lying yonder in the Bala Hissar,' said Mahmoud, -with a cruel leer in his glittering black eyes. - -'I am most unfortunate!' - -'It was to be, and so it is.' - -The doctrine of fatalism meets and covers everything with the -Mussulmans, who can thus throw on the Deity the results of their own -negligence. - -'If it is God's will that a man should die, let him die,' said -Mahmoud, sententiously. 'If it be His will that he should live, let -him live.' - -Colville thought this was uncommonly like the creed of the 'Peculiar -People,' in the city of London. - -Though somewhat bored by the prayers and piety of Mahmoud Shah, and -greatly disgusted by his ferocity, Colville had not much otherwise to -complain of during his detention in the fort; and preferred those -times when he was left to himself, when the sirdir secluded himself -in his zenana, or was absent at the many weighty and evidently -important conferences which were being daily held in the palace of -Yakoub Khan. 'It is not good that man should be alone,' we are told; -so, as Mahmoud the pious had at least four wives in his zenana, he -spent much of his precious time there. - -The food which he shared with his host was excellent--it could not be -said at table, as it was spread on the floor; but, as knives, forks, -and spoons are things unknown as yet under the shadow of the Hindoo -Kush, it was rather repellant to our fastidious Guardsman to see -Mahmoud rend asunder with his fingers a boiled chicken or daintily -roasted hill _chuckore_ (or Greek partridge), to hand him a piece -with his brown-hued digits, which ever and anon he put half-way down -his throat. - -'Eat, sahib,' he would say; 'remember the proverb--touch the stomach -and you injure the vitals, but cherish it and you gain heart.' - -'But my heart sinks when I think of the friends I have lost through -vile treachery.' - -'It was the will of God your people should perish in the Bala -Hissar,' replied Mahmoud, quietly, as he filled his mouth with a -handful of boiled rice and green chillies. 'What says the Koran? -"When God willeth evil on a people there shall be none to avert it, -neither shall they have any protector beside Him. It is He who -causeth the lightning to appear unto you, to strike fear, to raise -hope, and who formeth the pregnant clouds." Praise God for His -bounty; eat and have no heavy thoughts. The Prophet has written -every man's fatal hour upon his forehead. It is done at his birth. -Yours had not come, on that day in the Bala Hissar.' - -Then Colville would think how strange and striking were his -surroundings, and from the bearded face of the sirdir who squatted on -a carpet opposite to him his eyes would wander round the -_Dewan-i-Kas_ where they were eating the evening meal. - -A piece of raw cotton floating in oil that was held in an old ladle -wedged into the bare stone wall cast its fitful and lurid glare on -the dark faces, the gleaming eyes, the quaint costumes, and oriental -weapons of the sirdir's men, who marvelled that he fed and housed an -unbeliever, instead of cutting his throat and tossing his carcase to -the jackals of the Beymaroo hills; an unbeliever, who shaved his chin -and not his head; but Allah! how strange were the customs for the -_Feringhee-logue_! - -'And fortunate it was for you,' Mahmoud resumed after a time, when -his chibouque was brought him, 'that your hour had not come; but come -it will, and how will it fare with you then? The paradise which is -promised to the pious is not for you,' he continued, plunging at -once, as usual with the Afghans, into the Koran; 'therein are rivers -of incorruptible water and of milk, the taste whereof changeth not; -rivers of wine, pleasant unto those who drink; and of clarified -honey; and therein shall be fruit of a thousand kinds, and a pardon -from the Lord. Shall the man for whom all these are prepared by the -Lord of the Daybreak, be as he who must dwell for ever in the fires -of hell, and will have boiling water given him to drink, which shall -burst his bowels?' - -And ever and anon Colville was treated to quotations much to the same -purpose. - -Seeing him one day gazing at a photo of Mary Wellwood, the sirdir -became at once full of curiosity. - -'One of your wives?' he asked. - -'No; but one who is to be my wife, I hope.' - -'She cannot be of rank--she has no ring in her nose. Is she -moon-faced?' (_i.e._, handsome.) - -'Very; as you see.' - -'And you love her very much?' - -'I do indeed.' - -'Better than your best horse, your camels, and all your fat-tailed -sheep?' - -'Better than all the world.' - -'Inshallah; perhaps you may see her soon again.' - -'Please God, I shall.' - -'Do you keep her locked up--in care of your father, or who--as you -are absent, and gone to the wars?' - -'Why should I do so?' - -'Many of our people, if of rank, lock up their wives when they -travel.' - -'Why?' - -'They may be false and artful.' - -'And what do you do then?' - -He only smiled grimly, and touched the carved silver hilt of the -charah in his crimson shawl girdle. - -'You treat them with a spirit of selfishness,' said Colville; 'but I -know that even Christian men do the same, by making more severe laws -for women than themselves, forgetting that by so doing they raise -them above themselves.' - -But the sirdir knew not what to make of this idea, and so remained -silent. - -Nearly three weeks had passed since Colville became a prisoner in the -fort of Mahmoud Shah, and no tidings had reached him of what was -doing in the world of India, beyond the Kyber and other passes, or of -what was transpiring in the city of Cabul. - -He knew that tidings of the massacre then must have been flashed home -by the electric telegraph long since, and that poor Mary would now be -mourning for him, as one who was no more! - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -THE FUGITIVE. - -Ignorant that Taimur, the Usbeg Tartar, the Guide soldier, was -preceding him, Robert Wodrow--full of longing for dire and terrible -vengeance on those who had destroyed his comrades and friends, among -them more especially Leslie Colville, as he never doubted--trod -resolutely on to reach Lundi-Khana Kotal, or any outpost at the head -of the Kurram Valley. - -From the circumstance of Robert Wodrow being a gentleman by birth and -education, and that both had loved two sisters, there had been a bond -of friendship between the staff-captain and the luckless private of -hussars. - -They were Europeans--another tie; and more than all, when so far away -from all who loved them, they were 'brother Scots.' - -Hungry and athirst--though the latter suffering could be appeased at -any passing stream--the evening of the day after the massacre, when -Wodrow finally turned his back upon the smoking ruins of the -Residency, saw him disguised and armed as we have described, -resolutely pursuing the mountain-path which led, he knew, from Cabul, -past Buthak towards the Lataband Pass, a distance of twenty-two -miles; but, disguised though he was, he felt that it was necessary -for his safety to avoid all towns and villages, among which, no -doubt, news of the destruction of the Feringhees must have spread -like wildfire. - -He found himself in a solitude--a place of the most intense -loneliness, so he paused to rest himself awhile beside a runnel that -trickled down the rocks, and to gather a few wild apples and grapes. -On one side rose the Katcha mountains to the height of eight thousand -feet; on the other were mountains quite as lofty. It was such a -scene and place as would require the pencil of Salvator Rosa to -depict, so deep were the shadows in the dark and savage passes, so -red the light that glowed on the eastern slopes of the mighty hills -as the sun veered westward. - -Vast groves of jelgoozeh pines, black and solemn, cast a gloom in -some places; in others the sturdy, snake-like roots of the -banyan-tree curled and twisted themselves among the rocks, and -through the holes and crevices of a little ruined musjid, or wayside -house of prayer, built of red and white marble, which was open and -empty. - -Wodrow looked at it wistfully, as if he would select it as a place -wherein to pass the night and escape the mountain dews; but he -thought of the snakes he had seen, and scorpions too, and remembered, -with a shudder, the huge and venomous reptiles of that kind he had -seen on the plains of Peshawur. - -He selected a crevice in the rocks where a quantity of dry and dead -leaves had been drifted by the wind, put his Afghan shield and tulwar -under his head as a pillow, muffled his furred choga around him, and, -soldier-like, accustomed to sleep anywhere, anyhow, or at any time, -he slept till morning was well in, so much had he been overcome by -the weariness of the preceding twenty-four hours. - -Another ten miles would bring him, he knew, to Jugdulluk--that place -of evil omen and blood--towards which the lonely fugitive trod on -through black and frowning gorges, where fantastic rocks, savage and -weird, flung grey and purple shadows that made the deeper passes dark -as midnight, and there the waters of the mountains could be seen -reflecting the sky above, as they rolled through the obscurity so far -down below. - -In some parts the mountains rose the perfection of naked desolation, -appalling in their silence and sublimity, looking like the scene of -some Titanic conflict in ages unknown, and yet every foot of the way -there had been traced in British blood--the blood of Elphinstone's -massacred army in the war of 1841. - -At one point, as Robert Wodrow was proceeding along a narrow ledge -above a giddy precipice, where the mists of a foaming torrent -streamed upward from the deep dark chasm below, he had a narrow -escape, at the thought of which his blood ran cold. - -At one place, treading over a loose spot, the earth and splintered -rock gave way beneath his feet, and before he could recover himself -he fell upon a lower ledge, some fifteen feet beneath, where he lay -for a time, half stunned and scarcely daring to breathe. - -At that moment death seemed close indeed! - -He was only five yards from the edge of a precipice, the height of -which his mind failed to fathom, and, as one in a dreadful dream, he -crawled upward and away from it on his hands and knees, till a surer -and less perilous route--path it could not be called--was won, and he -resumed his way with a prayer of thankfulness on his lips and in his -heart--one of the prayers he had learned as a child at his mother's -knee in the old manse of Kirktoun-Mailler. - -His anxiety and disquietude were increased now by hearing more than -once amid these profound solitudes the moaning yell of a hyæna, -responded to by that other peculiar sound which seems to be something -between the wail of a child and the howl of a dog--the cry of the -jackal; thus, the peril of hostile men apart, he was not sorry when -he came suddenly upon a species of village in a hollow of the -hills--we say a species of village, as it did not consist of built -houses, but only some seven or eight huts. - -The dwellings, poor and mean, were formed of stakes cut from the -adjacent forest, with walls formed of wicker-work plastered with mud, -and called 'wattle and dab;' leaves of trees and jungle grass formed -the roof, and all around them was jungle tainting the air, and to the -European very suggestive of fever and miasma. - -The inhabitants were rude and simple shepherds, whose _doombas_, or -fat-tailed Persian sheep, were grazing in the neighbouring valley, -and they seemed somewhat awed by the gaunt, tall, and keen-eyed -warrior, who, with shield and tulwar, pistols and dagger, his -floating loongee and cloak, alike stained with what was too evidently -blood, suddenly appeared among them and asked for food, offering for -it a handful of _kusiras_, or Afghan pence. - -From them he got milk, chupattees, and a _cuddoo_, or gourd full of -curry and rice, of which he ate like a famished kite, while the -wondering shepherds looked on without questioning, and evidently -impressed by the swagger and adopted ferocity of his bearing, -believing he could be no other than 'a very devil of a _budmash_' (or -swashbuckler) steeped in the blood of the Feringhees. - -Refreshed now, he resolved to lose no time in pushing on, saying that -he was going to Tezeen, which was not the case, as it lay some miles -on his right, but pursued the path towards the Suffaidh Sang, and was -warned at parting to beware of a certain place, marked by some ruined -walls, which were the abode of the Ghoule Biaban. - -Had these shepherds penetrated his disguise or doubted him? He -almost feared so, as he saw a little group of them, clad in their -loose blouses and conical caps of black fur, conferring together and -watching him as he disappeared over a _kotal_, a place where the road -dipped down. - -Sunset and falling darkness--after which it was perilous to travel in -such localities--found him at the ruined walls referred to as the -abode of the Ghoule, and there in a little clump of wild pistachio -trees he took up his quarters for the night, rightly supposing that -all natives would sedulously shun a place haunted by such a dreadful -demon as the Ghoule Biaban, or Spirit of the Waste--a gigantic and -hideous spectre, with a red tail and claws like a _syces_ sickle, who -is supposed to haunt all lonely places in Afghanistan and devour any -passenger whose evil fortune casts him in his way. - -No ghoule came to Robert Wodrow in his sleep, but a delightful dream, -which made him long remember the pistachio tope amid the lonely -waste--a dream of Ellinor Wellwood! - -So powerful, so vivid, was this dream that he almost said to himself -was it in sleep she came before him? - -He dreamed that she was beside him and imploring his forgiveness, -took his hands in her own, and pressed her lips passionately to them. -Then her cheek seemed to touch his, and he could feel her soft sweet -breath, and her dear eyes looked tenderly into his. - -So vivid was that dream that he turned his head on the root of the -tree against which it rested, towards the vision, if we may use the -term, and then, of course, it vanished, and the light of the African -sun streamed between the branches into his eyes. - -Robert Wodrow's heart beat hopefully and happily; he felt that he had -looked into the face of his other soul, with the assurance that they -would one day meet again; and that notwithstanding their separation, -and all that had come to pass, they were--perhaps--kindred spirits -after all; and that phrase has a deeper signification than most -people think. 'It is my solemn belief,' says a recent writer, 'that -spirits are wedded before their birth into this world, and that -somewhere, perhaps separated by barriers of space and circumstances, -there exists for every soul its fellow, its complement, whose -imperfections joined to that other's, will make a perfect whole, if -only men and women would not so rashly take the counterfeit for the -real.' - -So Robert Wodrow flattered himself that Ellinor, perhaps in a dream -of her own, had somehow come to him in the spirit, a wild and mystic -idea; but, as he examined his arms and ammunition before again -resuming his journey, he found that there had been perilously near -him in the night something as bad, if not worse, than the Ghoule -Biaban! - -Amid the sandy mud of a runnel that ran not far from the ruined walls -there were distinctly traceable the prints of tigers' feet, quite -fresh, like the paw-marks of a gigantic cat; so on this night, when -he thought that by the influence of superstition he was unusually -safe, he had been in more than usual peril! - -A few miles more would bring him to Gundamuck, a walled village, -twenty-eight miles west of Jellalabad, surrounded by luxuriant -wheat-fields and tall groves of sombre cypresses--the place where -Yakoub Khan and the ill-fated Cavagnari had signed that treaty of -peace which the former had so basely violated; but Gundamuck was a -place to be avoided by the fugitive, who kept among the mountains -above it, thus having to ford more than one tributary of the Surkh-ab -river, and while sighing to think he had still nearly seventy miles -to travel on foot before he would hear the sound of a British bugle, -he struck manfully into paths which presented themselves here and -there, but seemed to be only marked by the tread of beasts of prey. - -Among rocky mountains, divested of all verdure and green clothing, -his way lay now for miles, and, if the utter loneliness of the scenes -ensured safety, it was at times not the less impressive and appalling -to the solitary man, and made him think, - - 'The silent gloom around hath power - To banish aught of gladness; - The good with awful dreams to thrill, - The guilty--drive to madness!' - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -THE GHILZIE. - -In avoiding the village of Gundamuck by making a detour to the right, -Robert Wodrow came upon a handsome Moslem edgah built in a solitary -place. The mausoleum--for such it was, erected over the remains of a -santon or holy man--was built of white marble, with a dome and finely -carved horseshoe-shaped entrance door. - -The oleander and rose shed perfume around it, with many a flower -grown wild, as the garden which once environed it, either by -dissensions incident to Afghanistan or the departure of a tribe, was -completely neglected now. The custard apple, the pomegranate, and -the citron hung their golden but untasted fruit around it, and the -snow-white blossoms of the sweet jasmine hung in garlands from tree -to tree. - -The tomb looked solemn and picturesque, and Robert Wodrow was in the -act of pausing in his lonely way to admire it, when, somewhat to his -consternation, there stalked forth from the interior a tall and -grim-looking Afghan warrior, completely armed. - -His rosary of ninety-nine beads--each representing an attribute of -the Diety--dangled at his left wrist; thus he had evidently been -saying his prayers at the shrine of the santon. - -By some of the details of his costume he was evidently a Ghilzie, a -tribe above seven hundred thousand in number, who occupy the central -portion of that mountainous district which lies between Candahar and -Cabul--fierce, hardy, and warlike people, led always by many chiefs -of undoubted valour, under whom they have always given, and will yet -give, the British troops infinite trouble. - -His long, aquiline face was fair for an Afghan, being what they term -'wheat-coloured,' but his glittering eyes were dark and keen, and his -beard was black as the conical fur cap that surmounted his beetling -and shaggy eyebrows. - -Seeing that Wodrow's hand instantly wandered to the hilt of his -sword, as if instinctively he saw a foe, the Afghan became alarmed, -suspicious, and, pausing close by the door of the edgah, scrutinised -the stranger; and whether it was that some of the dark paste had left -the latter's face, or that there was some discrepancy in his costume, -it is impossible to say, but the Afghan unsheathed his sword and -shouted, - -'Feringhee!' - -He then levelled a pistol at the head of Wodrow, but it hung fire, -and the latter, ere he could draw another, instantly closed with him. - -He was a man of enormous stature and great muscular strength; he was, -moreover, fresh and well-fed, while the luckless Robert Wodrow was -faint, weary, and worn, having been feeding on fruit and wayside -herbs, or little better, since the morning that saw the slaughter at -the Residency inaugurated. - -Wodrow carried an Afghan shield of tanned buffalo hide, elaborately -gilded and furnished with four brass bosses; but simply as a portion -of his disguise, which the Ghilzie had so quickly penetrated, but he -knew not how to use it effectively, while his antagonist had a small -one, not much larger than a dinner-plate, on his left arm, and when -grasped in his left hand, it proved a defence which he used with -wonderful skill and dexterity. - -Both men were brave, completely master of their weapons, full of -perfect confidence in themselves, and what Wodrow afterwards called -'a rattling set-to, in which the pot-lid,' as he styled the little -Afghan shield, 'bore a great part,' now ensued. - -The Ghilzie fought in the spirit of rancour, excited by difference of -race and religion; Robert Wodrow in a spirit of desperation, to -preserve his life and liberty, and to achieve this nothing was left -him but to kill his assailant outright, if he could; but all that he -had been taught by the hussar drill-sergeant and fencing, master--cut -one and left point--two and right point--three and right point -again--cut four and left point, &c.--was useless here. - -They both used tulwars of equal weight, keenness, and length, but the -Ghilzie was fresh for the combat, and his tiny shield of tempered -steel grasped by a strong and active hand, if small, was handy, -impenetrable, and was ever opposed to the shower of cuts and thrusts -that Wodrow intended for its owner. - -Ever and anon they paused to gather breath, though they panted rather -than breathed, and their eyes glared into each other, as the rage of -conflict and lust of destruction grew in their hearts--Wodrow the -while feeling that every moment was to him most precious, as he knew -not what succour or comrades his foe might have at hand. - -He hewed, slashed, and thrust away, but there was no circumventing -the use of that pestilent little iron shield, which rang and emitted -red sparks beneath his strokes, and which there seemed no means of -getting over, under, or round about. - -The Ghilzie warrior was compelled, by the activity and desperation of -Wodrow's attack, to stand more on the defensive than he expected, and -his mountain blood waxed hot. Drawing back a pace or two, he hurled -three pistols in succession, which he snatched from his girdle, at -the head of Wodrow, who adroitly 'dodged' them, and suddenly closing, -struck the Ghilzie's tulwar from his hand to the distance of some -yards. - -The sudden wrench this action occasioned his wrist disconcerted him, -and Wodrow's sword having completed the sweep of the stroke, was -descending on his head ere he had time to draw the deadly _charah_ -which, among other weapons, was stuck in his girdle, when up went the -tiny shield, and in saving his head he left his face exposed, and -right into it Robert Wodrow planted his clenched hand with such force -and fury that the Ghilzie stumbled backward, and in falling was twice -run through the body and slain. Choking in blood, his last words -were: - -'I am gone. Oh, place my feet towards the Keblah.' - -Robert Wodrow felt neither pity nor remorse just then, as his blood -was boiling in fever-heat, and the Ghilzie had sought his own -destruction. - -The victor cast a rapid and furtive glance around him, and then -hurried on his way. Save the dead man, no other enemy was in sight. - -In a little time Wodrow looked back to the place where the Ghilzie -lay, and already he could see hovering over the latter in mid-air -several great black vultures wheeling in circles prior to swooping -down to begin their horrible banquet. - -That his disguise had been seen through by this unfortunate fellow -greatly disconcerted Robert Wodrow, and deprived him of much of the -confidence he had hitherto possessed, and he thought of travelling -only by night, and lurking in the woods or among rocks by day; but -his ignorance of the country, and the necessity of studying such -landmarks as he remembered, and keeping to the beaten path as much as -possible, together with the necessity for procuring food at all -risks, compelled him to relinquish the idea. - -He untwisted another cartridge, and again, with water from a runnel, -made some dark dye in a leaf, and carefully rubbing therewith his -face, neck, and ears, betook himself to the mountain ridges that -overhung Bahar; the latter is only twelve miles from Gundamuck, but -so rugged was the way he had to pursue, and so many the detours he -had to make to find fords on the streams he had to cross, that -evening was drawing on by the time he had passed on the right flank -of the village. - -He continued his way a few miles beyond it, and then, feeling -overcome by profound weariness and prostration after the events and -toil of the past day, he lay down among some thick, soft grass a -little way apart from the road, and, oblivious of snakes, wild -animals, and dew, dropped into a deep and dreamless sleep. - -How long he lay thus he knew not, but he was roused by voices and -other sounds. Starting up he found a moon of wonderful brilliance -shining clearly as if a second day had dawned, and close by him a -group of men with laden camels--a group that had halted on finding -him prostrate there, in doubt whether he was alive or dead. - -On seeing the turbans and dark faces, Wodrow thought all was over -with him, and his hand went at once to the hilt of his sword, and he -longed for the ring of Gyges, or anything that would render him -invisible. - -But the men among whom he found himself evidently took him for an -Afghan, and evinced no sign of hostility, though they were all well -armed. - -They proved to be five merchants from Ghuznee, having camels laden -with those dried fruits which constitute the principal article of -trade between Afghanistan and India, and these, together with -oranges, citrons, tobacco, and jars of red and yellow Derehnur wine, -they were now conveying to the banks of the Indus to exchange for -British goods, or sell, if possible, at the first British fort. - -Like themselves, their _syces_ and _bheesties_ (grass-cutters and -water-carriers) were all well armed, but were Hindoos, and with the -whole party Robert Wodrow had no occasion for much fear, as his -residence in the house of the Hakim, together with his knowledge of -the natives, picked up elsewhere, stood him in good stead now. - -'What are you?' asked one of the merchants. - -'A tchopper of Cabul,' replied Wodrow. - -'Then where is your horse?' - -'He fell under me on the way,' replied Wodrow, seeing at once his -mistake, for in Afghanistan, as in Persia, State despatches are -carried by mounted messengers called _tchoppers_, or mounted -couriers, and private letters by cossids, or foot-messengers, who -will sometimes travel seventy leagues in four consecutive days. - -'Then you are the bearer of a royal despatch?' - -'From the Ameer, whom God long preserve, to the officer commanding -the outpost at the Lundi-Khana Kotal. In the name of the Prophet, -give me some food; I am starving.' - -The unsuspecting merchants hastened to supply his wants, and one said, - -'Your despatch, no doubt, refers to the vengeance of heaven which has -overtaken the Feringhee dogs at the Bala Hissar?' - -'I presume so,' replied Wodrow, eating cold meat and buttered -chupatties with infinite relish. 'If it isn't an angel they are -entertaining unawares, they little think it is one of the 10th -Hussars,' was his thought. 'As for the Feringhees, they are now -eating other food than this,' said he aloud. - -'True,' added the merchant; 'the tree of Al Zakkum, which issueth -from the bottom of hell, and the fruit whereof resembleth the heads -of devils.' - -'May all their kindred come, as they have done, to a knowledge of -their fiendish idolatry,' said another, his voice becoming hoarse in -the extremity of his hatred; 'the heathens--the savages that they -are--dogs who come among us to cast a slur upon civilised men and a -holy religion--who eat of the unclean pig, a brute like themselves; -but we shall not cease to strike and slay, Bismillah! till not one -of them remain alive on this side of Attock!' - -'Oho, my friend,' thought Robert Wodrow; 'by Jove, I must keep my eye -upon you, now that I know the amiability of your sentiments.' - -He then learned with extreme satisfaction that they meant to pass -Lundi-Khana Kotal. He was accommodated with a seat on one of the -camels, which, though laden, travelled at a good average pace, and he -resolved to be very taciturn and careful in his bearing and -demeanour, especially after the morning dawned. - -'Fate and fortune have long seemed dead against me,' thought he; -'yet, heaven knows, it is not because I have been faint of heart; and -heaven always helps those who help themselves.' - -With these merchants he now travelled in ease and security for the -remainder of his journey, passing undiscovered through Sador, Baru, -Basawul, and other villages, and traversing the upper end of savage -Khoord Khyber Pass. Ere long he found himself approaching -Lundi-Khana Kotal, a post two thousand four hundred and eighty-eight -feet above the level of the sea, just as dawn was breaking, and there -came to him on the morning wind a sound there was no mistaking--the -pipers of a Highland regiment playing the morning reveille, 'Hey, -Johnnie Cope,' among the white tents of the British camp, and then he -knew that he was safe. - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -A NEW SNARE. - -In detailing the adventures of Leslie Colville and Robert Wodrow in -the distant land where fate and the fortunes of war had cast them -together, we have somewhat anticipated the time and the troubles -brought upon Ellinor by the daring of her unscrupulous abductor. - -The snares that had been laid for her, the loyal heart she had lost -and now believed to be cold in the grave--all came before the girl -with painful vividness, and she loathed herself for ever having -listened, as she had done at Birkwoodbrae, to the artful wretch who -from first to last had sought to lure her to destruction by so many -specious falsehoods; for, in many ways, the baronet had now become so -degraded in character that, so far as truth went, he was like the man -mentioned by Mark Twain, who had such a sacred regard for truth that -he never by any chance used it. - -Sooth, however, to say, prudence and weariness at times suggested to -Sir Redmond the abandonment of his enterprise and designs regarding -Ellinor; at other times, obstinacy, distorted pride, and, more than -all, inflamed passions and her apparent helplessness, spurred him on -in his schemes. He felt now that, if these were unsuccessful, they -could only be relinquished at peril and _exposé_ to himself. - -Her inertia provoked and alarmed him. He would have preferred some -of her former desperate energy, even though accompanied by -undisguised repugnance of himself. - -He knew that now, with Mary Wellwood, the luckless Ellinor must be -numbered with the dead; the last despairing advertisements he had -seen in the _Hamburger Nachrichten_ and other journals led him to -infer that such must be the case, and that the sorrowing sister had -no doubt left Altona in a state of grief, for which he cared not a -jot. - -He knew also that Ellinor was ignorant of Mary's precise whereabouts, -whether she was still in Altona or had gone back to London or -Birkwoodbrae; that she could not communicate with her, even by -letter, save through him, and was thus completely in his power, as a -baby or a bauble might have been; and he vaguely thought that if he -could get her away, on any pretence, to Brussels or some quiet little -village in the Netherlands, she would be still more so, and for the -contingencies of the future he drew heavily on his bankers through -Herr Burger, in the Gras Keller. - -For the future--let the future take care of itself! He had broken -with English society, if not with the police. Who was there, as a -relation, to call him to account, and who had the right to do so? he -asked of himself. - -As he was not without fears or suspicions of his friend Mr. Adolphus -Dewsnap, he resolved to get her away from the yacht. - -'Tears--always tears!' said he, angrily, on the day after the _Flying -Foam_ was moored alongside the jetty in the Binnenhafen. 'I daresay, -like your sister, you are sorry for that fellow Colville--your -"cousin" as he called himself--a good joke that! Very terrible, of -course--cut off by the Cabul niggers, and so forth; but we can only -die once. Hope he was duly prepared, as the devil-dodgers say, and -all that sort of thing.' - -In furtherance of his plan to get her away from the yacht, he said, -quite deliberately, - -'Your friend Mrs. Deroubigne has left Altona.' - -'Left it--gone!' exclaimed Ellinor, in a weak voice, and grieved but -not surprised. - -'Yes.' - -'For where?' - -'To another residence in Hamburg, whither I shall shortly take you -and leave you to relate your own adventures, for I am deuced tired of -this kind of work.' - -A gush of joy, but joy without the least gratitude, welled up in the -heart of Ellinor, and she prepared with wonderful alacrity to -accompany him, never suspecting that he was cajoling her and meant to -put her in the hands of Frau Wyburg, who for a sum paid down had -promised to keep her safely till he made other arrangements. - -He could not take her to the _Kron Prinzen, L'Europe_, or any of the -great hotels, for there she would have claimed and found protection, -and for him she would, he knew, be quite helpless in the hands of -Frau Wyburg and her husband; thus he resolved to keep his own counsel -on leaving the yacht as to where he was taking her; but Mr. Dolly -Dewsnap and Kingbolt too had shrewdly their own ideas on the subject. - -'Sorry we are not to have your company to the coast of France, Miss -Ellinor,' said Dewsnap, as he pressed a glass of wine upon her ere -she departed. - -'I don't think you'll miss much,' said Ringbolt, as the pale girl -made no reply. 'There you get sour wine, and they call it _vin -ordinaire_, and all kinds of offal cooked with fine French names, so -that I defy you to tell whether you are eating a bird of the air or a -fish of the sea. Ah, there is no place like Old England.' - -Mr. Dolly Dewsnap was about this time, as his subordinate Kingbolt -said, 'three sheets in the wind,' even before going to a late dinner -at _Hotel de Russie_ in the Jungfernsteig, and he was propping -himself against the cabin table while sipping his sherry, and -regarding Ellinor with a leering expression of admiration. - -'Won't you have a cigarette, Miss Ellinor?' said he, suddenly -producing his cigar-case. - -'Scotch girls, and English ones too, don't smoke,' said Sleath, -angrily. - -'Why not?' responded Dewsnap, sharply; 'by Jingo, I knew a Russian -Princess--the Princess Wroguenoff--who always smoked Turkish tobacco -in a Manzanita pipe; and a charming woman she was.' - -'So you don't know her now, Dolly?' - -'How do you know?' asked the other, who was disposed to be -quarrelsome just then. - -'You speak of her in the past tense.' - -'The droski waits, sir,' said Gaiters, suddenly appearing in the -companion-way. - -Sir Redmond gave his hand to Ellinor, who was ready, hatted and -shawled, and barely gave a bow of farewell to Dewsnap, as she -ascended to the deck, and bade adieu to her Vierlander attendant. - -Evening had fallen now, and the gas-lamps were reflected in the murky -and muddy waters of the Binnenhafen, as she stepped ashore, and -entered a close droski (as those cabs are named which ply for hire in -all the principal thoroughfares of Hamburg) unnoticed by any but some -dock porters, and an organ-grinder with a monkey 'appropriately -dressed in Highland costume,' as Sleath remarked while putting his -head out of the window, and telling Gaiters, who was seated beside -the driver, where they were to go. - -The vehicle proceeded slowly, and Ellinor, while in a fever of -impatience, and without hearing what Sir Redmond was saying to her, -looked forth from the windows alternately, and recognised the church -of St. Nicolai as they passed through the Hopfen Market, the street -called the Gras Keller, and the long and stately Neuerwall, after -which they seemed to traverse streets that were unknown to her, old, -mean, and dirty. - -'Need I urge upon you how strangely our paths seem to cross each -other--how strangely our lives seemed linked together, Ellinor?' said -he, attempting to take one of her hands caressingly. - -This roused her, and she withdrew it sharply. - -'Still perverse!' he resumed, with knitted brows. 'Fate has thrown -us together for a third time. You escaped me twice; but the third -time mine you shall be, so sure as you hear me speak!' - -She made not the slightest response, and surveyed with surprise the -network of canals and wet ditches the droski crossed by a succession -of iron bridges. - -'Ellinor,' said Sir Redmond again, 'you are over-excited; you have -not recovered from the terror of your accident--the sickness and -storm at the river mouth.' - -Her face was pale and rigid; her eyes alternately flashing fire at -the prospect of freedom, and then growing cold as steel with -indignation. - -To her it began to seem impossible that Mrs. Deroubigne and Mary -could have left their pretty and airy villa at Altona, on the grassy -bank of the Elbe, to dwell in such a locality as that in which she -found herself when the droski stopped. - -'Here we are, sir,' said Gaiters, jumping down and touching his -cockaded hat. - -A bell that emitted a dismal sound resounded to the downward pull of -the iron handle, and a large door--but all the doorways are large in -Hamburg--unfolded, showing a gloomy porch, lighted only by the -oil-lamp that burned feebly before a madonna perched on the wall to -give the house an external air of respectability. - -After a conference with some one within, Gaiters reappeared at the -droski window. - -'Madame Wyburg,' he said, 'tells me that Mrs. Deroubigne has left -this place two days ago, and gone, she believes, to Brussels.' - -'To Brussels!' exclaimed Ellinor, sick with disappointment and -dismay, as she sank back on her seat. 'I cannot go there vaguely in -search of them----' - -'Of course not; so what then?' - -'Oh, let me get back to London--to Grosvenor Square!' - -'You are too ill to travel just now, and must remain with kind Madame -Wyburg for a few days till the exact address of Mrs. Deroubigne is -found,' said Sleath, in the most persuasive tone he could adopt; 'but -here comes the master of the house,' he added, as a very singular -figure appeared. - -A man short in stature, but thick-set and powerfully built, with -leery grey eyes, dissipated and bloated features, and a ragged red -moustache, wearing a quaint garb, entirely black, with a plaited ruff -round his neck, a wig curled and powdered, a short Spanish cloak, and -a long Toledo sword, with a Mother Hubbard hat on his head, sharply -pointed, and about two feet high. - -This strange apparition of the sixteenth century doffed his -steeple-crowned hat to Ellinor, who after a time discovered that the -Herr Wyburg, among various other less respectable avocations, whereby -to eke out a living, was one of the sixteen _Reiten-Diener_, or hired -mourners, who--instead of the friends of the deceased--attend funeral -processions in Hamburg, carrying out Charles Dickens's well-known -definition of such a ceremony as 'a masquerade dipped in ink.' He -had just come from having a 'deep drink' with his comrades after an -interment at the _Begrabnissplatze_, or grand cemetery, outside the -Ulricus Bastion, for in their ways these fellows are precisely like -the human carrion crows we may see daily perched on the top of London -hearses returning from Kensal Green, Brompton, or elsewhere, in a -state of hat-band, jollity, and gin. - -He also bowed low and leeringly to Sir Redmond Sleath. - -This was not the first of the baronet's acquaintance with these -people. He had been aided by the Frau Wyburg in more than one -nefarious intrigue, the victim of which had dropped out of society, -and by her husband in more than one shady gambling transaction in a -'hell' of the Adolphus Platze, ere he succeeded to the title his -father's shady politics had won; so the trio knew each other -thoroughly. - -Ellinor, conceiving that she must be safer in the care of one of her -own sex than on board the yacht, agreed to remain with Frau Wyburg -till she proceeded to London or Brussels, and from that moment found -herself more than ever a hopeless prisoner. - -The frau was a pale, little woman, with black hair, wicked dark eyes, -a square and resolute-looking jaw, a cruel mouth, and a face -generally on which, after a time, Ellinor could not look without a -shudder when the woman's real character became known to her; but as -yet she was disposed to cling to her as a friend--a protector--in her -helplessness and excessive debility after all she had undergone, and -she gratefully accepted at her hands a cup of hot coffee in her cosy -parlour, with its gay chintz curtains and polished oak floor, while -her husband, with an eye to monetary business, drew Sir Redmond aside -to another apartment. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -THE HOUSE BY THE FLEETHEN. - -The abode of Herr Wyburg was situated in the oldest part of Hamburg, -where the streets are narrow, crowded, irregular, and, if -picturesque, squalid. They are generally of great height, built in -the Dutch fashion of brick and wood, and those inhabited by the lower -orders have their narrow windows so near each other as to give them -the aspect of huge manufactories, but with a heavy and gloomy -character about them. - -Many of these brick-nogging, tumble-down dwellings are admirable -subjects for the pencil. Numerous canals called _Fleethen_ intersect -this quarter, and run along the backs of the houses, giving the -streets a resemblance to those of Holland. In summer the muddy -exhalations from these are very unwholesome, and might prove -pestilential, were it not for the agitation in them caused by the -current of the Elbe. - -In this odious and unsavoury, but picturesque part of the city, which -escaped the great fire of 1842, and which has undergone little change -since the days of the Hanseatic League, the back wall of Herr -Wyburg's house was washed by the waters of the Fleethen, while on one -side it was isolated from the haggard district in which it stood by a -large market-garden. - -The original frame of the house had been altogether wood--Baltic -pine--but would seem to have been patched and repaired with bricks. - -The arms of Holstein and Schleswig, the nettleleaf and two lions -respectively, were reproduced in various parts of it, for in other -times it had been a residence of the old Counts of Holstein, the -ancient Lords of Hamburg, a dignity claimed by the Kings of Denmark -till 1768; but in rank it had come sorely down in the world, just as -in Scottish towns we find the ancient abodes of nobility, and even of -royalty, now abandoned to the squalid and the poor. - -Its walls were in some places panelled with almost black mahogany, -quaintly, if uncouthly, carved, and much discoloured by damp from the -adjacent Fleethen. The windows were high, jealously grated with -iron, and admitted but a foggy kind of light, even by noonday, and -the whole edifice had a general aspect of dreariness and desolation -that sunk like a weight on the young heart of Ellinor Wellwood. - -The back windows alone were ungrated, but then they overlooked the -Fleethen, that system of canals and intersecting ditches which -conceal many a crime, and where the body of the murdered--if found -before being swept into the Elbe--passes often for that of a suicide. - -When Wyburg withdrew with Sir Redmond, he offered that worthy his -hand, but the latter ignored the action, and did not respond to it. -In this he only acted 'snobbishly,' not because he knew the other to -be a finished rascal; and over the face of the latter there passed a -flush of rage and affront, while a dangerous gleam came into his -watery eyes. - -'It is no use, Sir Redmond, your attempting to come the fine or -arrogant gentleman over me,' said Herr Wyburg; 'you and I are too old -acquaintances for that.' - -His English was remarkably distinct, though of course the foreign -accent was very marked. He had been a billiard-marker in the Strand, -but had to quit London in some haste, having become too well-known in -the vicinity of 'Lester Square.' Hence it was that he knew English -well, and London too, in all its worst, foreign, and most -disreputable phases. - -He was a billiard-marker and gambler still, and ready to do any -rascality for which he was sufficiently paid. His wife--the Frau -Wyburg--had once been a dancer in the Schweitzer Pavilion and -Ambiguity Circus, during her less disreputable days, and was no more -above taking a bribe than himself. - -'Sir Redmond,' said he, pocketing the gold by which his services were -to be secured, 'I have seen some pretty faces in my time, but the -fraulein is downright beautiful!' he added, as he thought with -genuine admiration of the clear, creamy skin which so often -accompanies such hair and dark-blue eyes as those of Ellinor. - -'This young lady is my wife,' said Sleath, a little emphatically; -'and I wish you and your worthy frau to take all requisite care of -her for me--for a time.' - -Herr Wyburg closed one eye, and, with intense cunning in the other, -surveyed the speaker. - -'Your wife?' said he. - -'Yes.' - -'She has no wedding-ring.' - -'If it is not on her finger, it ought to be.' - -'And you wish us to take care of her--that she does not escape, you -mean?' - -'Precisely.' - -'Why?' - -'Need _you_ ask me why?' said Sleath, with irritation. 'She is -ill--strange,' he added, putting a finger to his forehead. 'Poor -girl--you understand?' - -Herr Wyburg winked his cunning eye again. He _did_ understand, and -shrewdly disbelieved that the girl was Sleath's wife; yet her -bearing, her fear, repugnance, and bodily weakness all puzzled him, -and, like his wife, he knew not what to think, save that Sleath's -golden sovereigns were very acceptable, and the latter now prepared -to depart--his droski was still at the door--and he bade Frau Wyburg -'good-night,' after she had recommended him not to insist on again -seeing Ellinor, who had retired to her room. - -'Ah,' said the frau, with one of her detestable but would-be suave -smiles, 'the Fraulein has got what the French call a -_migrain_--perhaps it is periodical--any way the kindness and love of -mein Herr,' she added, curtseying, 'will soon make it pass away.' - -Ellinor felt intense relief when Sir Redmond drove away, and strove -to hope that he had wearied or repented of his persecution, and would -really discover the address of Mrs. Deroubigne; but how was she to -travel without money, and she had scarcely a trinket about her! - -She was left, with a slipshod girl in attendance, in a tolerably -comfortable little room, with panelled walls, and having in one -corner a pretty little bed (with one of those enormous square pillows -peculiar to Germany), in another corner a tall cylindrical iron -stove, in which a fire was glowing redly across the polished floor -and on the panels of an antique clothes wardrobe. - -She looked from the casement window, and saw the lights in houses -opposite about fifty yards distant, and between them the still, deep, -and gloomy Fleethen ditch, or canal, in which these lights were -tremulously reflected; and something in the chill aspect of the -water, or what it suggested, as it lay just beneath her window, made -her shudder involuntarily. - -She was soon to find that she was snared, and more a helpless -prisoner than she had been when on board the _Flying Foam_; for Sir -Redmond had placed her in this abode, knowing where he could find her -again when he chose, and where, if he did _not_ choose, she might -disappear, as so many entrapped English girls do on the Continent, -and never be heard of again; and in gambling, dissipated, and -dissolute Hamburg the muddy waters of its Fleethen hide many an -unknown crime and many a secret sorrow. - -Lenchen (or Ellen), the girl who attended her, if slipshod, was -pretty and rosy, but saucy and flippant, though clad, like the usual -Hamburg housemaid, with a piquant lace cap, her white arms bare to -above the elbow, always scrupulously clean, and when she went to -market wore long kid gloves and the gayest of shawls, so disposed -under the arm as to conceal the basket, which is always shaped -unpleasantly like a child's coffin, but containing butter, cheese, -eggs, or whatever has been purchased. - -Ignorant of the German language, and ignorant also, as yet, of the -true character of the Frau Wyburg and her attendant Lenchen, and as -their broken English gave--as it always rather absurdly seems to -do--an idea of childish innocence even to the most rascally -foreigner, Ellinor became inspired by a new sense of protection in -the presence of these females--especially of Lenchen; but this -confidence might have received a shock had she seen how that young -lady comported herself with Rolandsburg's uhlans, and other -_soldaten_ in the vicinity of the Dammthor Wall and the _Burger -Militair Kauslie_. - -Three days passed, during which she saw and heard nothing of Sir -Redmond. The truth was, that worthy member of the 'upper ten' and -his Fidus Achates--his friend Dolly Dewsnap--having, through the -tipsy insolence of the latter, become involved in a street row at -night with a member of the _Neidergericht_, or Inferior Court, to -avoid the police, who 'wanted them,' had remained closely on board -the yacht in the Binnenhafen, where she was now remasted, and fast -becoming ready for sea in Ringbolt's skilful hands. - -As the evening of the third day was approaching, Ellinor, feeling -stronger and more impatient of action and restraint, attired herself -for the street in the best of the garments found for her in the yacht. - -'For what purpose?' asked Frau Wyburg, angrily. - -'To have a walk in the city,' replied Ellinor. - -'Mein Got, alone! and for what reason?' - -'To make some inquiries for myself at the post-office, or elsewhere.' - -'It cannot be permitted!' said Herr Wyburg, emphatically, and with -knitted brows, as he interposed. - -'Why?' - -'The Herr Sleath has forbidden such; moreover, it is not safe!' - -'Not safe in the streets of Hamburg?' questioned Ellinor, while tears -started to her eyes. 'I am not a child!' - -'Then why?' - -There were disturbances abroad, he told her trade-union mobs were -about, and the uhlans from the Dammthor were patrolling the streets -with lance and carbine. - -This was not true, but Ellinor was compelled to believe it, and -relinquished the attempt with a sigh of bitterness and disappointment. - -Lenchen daily brought her fresh flowers from market, as she said, by -order of _Herr Sleet_. - -The latter had often heard Ellinor say at Birkwoodbrae that she was -never dull or lonely if she only had flowers about her. - -But his gifts of flowers were unheeded now, she loathed them as if -their petals exhaled not fragrance but poison. - -Yet once she could not resist toying with some of them--the Dijon -roses especially, and with their odour across the tide of memory -there stole gently and subtly a memory of the past. - -Who has not some association of this kind? - -Ellinor's were of happy years at Birkwoodbrae and Robert Wodrow, and -a torrent of tears came with the memory, and a kind of lethargic -despair came over her as the little hope that dawned upon her began -to die again--the hope that Sleath had relented and really meant to -relinquish his persecution and restore her to her friends. - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - -IN HAMBURG STILL. - -Ellinor was altogether unlike any other girl on whom the evil eyes of -Herr Wyburg had rested, in Hamburg at least. Her face was so clearly -cut, with pride in its contour, a dreamy thought its eyes, and -something almost angelic in its purity--as Tennyson has it, - - 'A sight to make an old man young.' - - -The three days' unexpected absence of Sir Redmond rather alarmed Herr -Wyburg. He knew not how to account for it, and mightily, with all -his ruffianism, dreaded the gendarmes; thus he was genuinely glad -when, in the dusk of the third day, the baronet presented himself at -his house and inquired for his charge. - -'She is silent and dull as usual, and anxious for the address of a -lady friend,' replied Wyburg. 'I don't understand all this,' he -added, in a growling tone; 'have you made a fool of this girl or of -yourself?' - -'Of myself as yet, I think,' replied Sleath, with an oath. - -'Every man does so, once in his life at least, and generally -oftener,' said the German; 'but I thought you were too wide awake for -that now. With her sadness and her tears this girl is a profound -bore to us, even if paid for! I wish you would take some means to -cheer her--to please her--if you can.' - -'Don't talk to me about the idiotic vagaries of a girl!' snapped Sir -Redmond. - -'I do not wish to do so, mem Herr; but what would you have me say?' -replied Wyburg. 'Look here--it is all stuff and gammon about the -Fraulein being your wife. I lived too long in England not to have my -eyes opened.' - -'Well?' - -'You love her in your own fashion, I suppose?' - -'And she?' - -'Seems to hate you,' replied the German, with a grin. - -'Perhaps she is not the first of her sex who has said no when she -meant yes.' - -'You don't mean to marry her, I suppose?' - -'I have a wife, already,' replied Sleath. as he carefully -manipulated and prepared a cigar. - -'Der Teufel!' said Herr Wyburg, puffing out a cloud from his huge -meerschaum, 'but such things will happen.' - -'I have been engaged in many a lark and scrape, as you, Wyburg, know -well enough, but never in one so peculiar as this. The girls who -eloped with me before were always willing enough.' - -'She may turn ill--downright ill--on our hands unless some change is -brought about, and may have to be sent to the Krankenhaus; and -then--what then?' - -Sleath had not thought of this contingency, so he became alarmed and -asked to see Ellinor. - -On his entrance she rose at once and came towards him, her eyes -dilated with hope or expectation and her lips parted, but without -offering him a hand. - -'You have news for me at last?' she said. - -'News--about what--about whom?' - -'Mrs. Deroubigne and Mary.' - -'I have sent or gone daily to the post-office in the Post Strasse, -but neither by telegraph nor inquiry can I discover their whereabouts -in Brussels,' he replied, unblushingly: 'and even if we went there--' - -'There! that is not to be thought of. I shall take the steamer for -London,' exclaimed Ellinor, looking round her as if she would start -that moment. - -'No, you won't, my dear girl--yet a while, at least.' - -'I shall go mad--mad if I am kept here prisoner for another day!' -exclaimed Ellinor, wildly, as she wrung her hands and then pressed -them on her temples, while Herr Wyburg looked with a kind of gloomy -scorn from one to the other. - -He had many experiences in his career, but this was to him one -somewhat new. - -Ellinor was so painfully agitated that Sir Redmond was fain to resort -to the most specious falsehoods to soothe and calm her; he promised -most solemnly to write or telegraph to the British Ambassador at -Brussels, to the postal authorities there, and so forth; and, with -intense anger and mortification in his heart at his bad success, he -left her to rejoin Dewsnap, and have a 'deep drink' at the Hotel -Russie, and perhaps a turn into the Schweitzer Pavilion, feeling -inclined on one hand--all inflamed as he was with her beauty and -helplessness--to force her in some way to love him; and on the other, -to sail away with his friend in the _Flying Foam_, and leave her to -her fate in the hands of Herr Wyburg! - -He did neither for a day or two yet, but showered presents upon her; -he ransacked the Neuer Wall and the Alster Wall for all kinds of -pretty things, and bought up the best bouquets of the Vierlander -flower-girls by the score; and Frau Wyburg only looked forward to the -time when she could appropriate all the presents, when the girl was -away or--dead. - -All his presents and pretty trifles, over which Lenchen went into -ecstasies, remained, as he saw, untouched in their cases or packing -paper. - -'You disdain all these things which I feel such delight in offering -you,' said he, reproachfully. - -She wrung her interlaced fingers, but made no reply. - -A red gleam shot out of Sleath's eyes; he bit his lip, and the Frau -Wyburg laughed, while her black orbs glittered mischievously, and her -mouth wore its cruel expression more unpleasantly than usual. - -But for his early entanglement with his mother's maid--Seraphina -Fubsby, whose absurd name he loathed now--an event which too probably -had warped his whole life, he felt at times--but at times only--that -he would gladly have offered his hand and all he possessed to the -sweet and gentle Ellinor; and, though he knew how she shrank from -him, and loathed him, he could not help trying to play the old game -he had begun at Birkwoodbrae, by urging again and again that his -marriage was untrue, illegal, that he would prove it so, and also -urging his wild, blind passion for herself, on the plea of her -wonderful beauty, as Richard of England did his passion for the Lady -Anne, having rarely found an appeal to a woman on _that_ score fail -him. - -But he might as well have spoken to a statue now, and as she could -extract no tidings of her sister or Mrs. Deroubigne from him, she -thought only of escaping from the house of his odious friends. She -was now aware that she had been entrapped by a specious story, and -that neither Mary nor Mrs. Deroubigne would seem to have resided with -them after leaving Altona, as Frau Wyburg and her husband, though -'coached' by Sleath and Gaiters, evidently knew nothing about them -save their names, and a new dismay seized the unhappy girl. - -Escaping--but how? The avenues to the street were too closely -secured, and the window of her room was too high above the water of -the Fleethen to afford the least chance of escape there; while the -only boats that passed were those of the Vierlander people, laden -with vegetables, pulled swiftly along at rare and distant intervals. - -To appeal to the Wyburgs she knew would be vain. Her pure, pale face -with its dreamy eyes, into which there now came a hunted expression, -failed to win either their pity or commiseration; but escape she -must, or die! - -Ellinor knew now that in Sleath the animal nature predominated, and -that she might have to suffer from his cruelty and violence if she -remained in his power. - -But how was she to escape without money, without a knowledge of the -language, of the very locality in which he had placed her, without -bodily strength, and with only intense horror and aversion to nerve -and inspire her? - -On whom could she cast herself? - -Certainly not the repulsive Frau Wyburg, with her wicked black eyes -and square, resolute jaws, or her equally repellent husband, with the -leering eyes and ragged red moustache? What had she done that Fate -should have cast her into such unscrupulous, and to her altogether -inconceivable, hands? - -'She grows paler, if possible, every day,' said Wyburg to Sleath. -'If this sort of thing goes on, it will be an affair for the -Krankenhaus,' he added, in a growling voice, referring to the great -public hospital in the suburb of St. George. - -Dewsnap's yacht was getting ready for sea, and was now anchored by -the dolphins, outside the Binnenhafen, and Sleath was resolved to end -his affair with Ellinor in some fashion or other, for the hints of -Wyburg alarmed him. - -So he recommended to Ellinor a drive in an open droski, attended, not -by himself--he was too wary for that--but by the Frau Wyburg and -Gaiters, who was to have a seat on the dickey. He thought there was -little to fear in this, as Ellinor knew not a word of German, and -Gaiters was a careful fellow. - -Indeed, Mr. John Gaiters--though to all appearance a thoroughly -well-bred English serving-man, automaton-like in movements, reserved, -and when it suited him most civil in speech, and without an atom of -scruple--had one redeeming bull-dog feature in his character, and -that was intense fidelity to his dissolute, yet liberal, master. - -The afternoon was beautiful and sunny. The drive along the -Jungfernsteig and Alster Damm was charming enough to rouse even -Ellinor from her lethargy, but not to still her resolution to escape, -if she could. - -The scene, after all she had undergone of late, proved a gay and -enchanting one--the rows of stately mansions; the quadruple lines of -trees in full leaf; the deep blue of the Binner Alster, its bosom -studded by pretty pleasure-boats, tiny steamers, and flocks of -snow-white swans; and the German bands playing before the great -hotels, which were all gaily decorated with the flags of various -nations, as if for a holiday. But ere long there occurred that which -to her was a crushing episode. - -While Frau Wyburg stopped the droski to listen to a band that was -playing amid a group of people before the great Kron Prinzen Hotel, -Ellinor perceived a handsome open carriage close by, and in it were -seated an elderly gentleman and two ladies, who had their eyes fixed -on her. - -The trio were Lord and Lady Dunkeld with their daughter, Blanche -Galloway! - -Ellinor started from her seat, as they were quite within earshot, and -in their power lay succour--help--rescue! - -'Lady Dunkeld--Lady Dunkeld--Mrs. Deroubigne!' she exclaimed, wildly; -'you can doubtless give me her address? You know me--you know -me--Ellinor Wellwood!' - -They all heard her; but Lord Dunkeld looked steadily askance, showing -only the facial angle which he thought so like that of the Grande -Monarque, while the two ladies gazed with wonder at first, and then -with frigid hauteur; and Blanche, who, we have said, was strong in -love, ambition, and hate, said something to the coachman, who drove -away at once, while the usually imperturbable Gaiters, in some alarm, -took the droski in an opposite direction, and Ellinor sank back -despairing on her seat, as she was conveyed at a galloping pace back -to the gloomy house overlooking the Bleichen Fleet. The deadly and -sickening surmises of what these cold-hearted people thought, of what -the world might say, think, or suspect, seemed now to take a tangible -form, and the soul of the girl seemed to die within her. - -It was so fated, however, that the secret of her adventures was never -to be made known to the world of Mrs. Grundy--by the lips of Sir -Redmond Sleath, at least. - - -While this daring and extraordinary conspiracy against the freedom -and peace of Ellinor was in progress in that obscure and gloomy -house, among the damp and miasmatic districts of the Fleethen, her -sister Mary and Mrs. Deroubigne were still in the pretty villa at -Altona. - -The former was now in deep mourning--so deep that it was almost the -same as the weeds of a widow, for she felt herself a widow in heart, -indeed; and by the double loss she had endured the girl thought that -Fate was very cruel to her. - -She had received a pleasant, a delightfully-soothing letter from old -Dr. Wodrow, condoling with her on the sad news from Cabul, all -ignorant as he was yet of the escape of his son amid the new calamity -in that fatal city--fatal to Britons, at least. - -'Any place in which we are perfectly happy is a place we glorify and -transform,' says a writer: and in the joy of her engagement to Leslie -Colville, notwithstanding the perils he had to face, Mary had -glorified their pretty abode by the Elbe at Altona. - -That was all ended and over, and now the place had become to her one -of double gloom, and associated with a double sorrow. - -'Ah, Madame Deroubigne,' said the young Baron Rolandsburg, 'your -charming villa has now not unnaturally become to you a place of -calamitous associations--most unhomely,' he added. '_Ja-ja!_ it is -always so after misfortunes come.' - -And now as Altona had become so repugnant--a place of such horror to -both Mary Wellwood and Mrs. Deroubigne, the time was fast approaching -when they were to take their departure for London. - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - -THE PLOT THICKENS. - -Finding that his visits were fast making Ellinor seriously ill, Sir -Redmond, at the request of Herr Wyburg, did not intrude upon her for -a day or two, yet he called and left a sham message concerning his -continued inquiries for Mrs. Deroubigne. - -'Where are the friends of the Fraulein?' asked Herr Wyburg, twisting -his coarse, red moustache; 'in England?' - -'No, I rather think not,' replied Sir Redmond. - -'Where, then?' - -'They were in Altona last, I believe,' said the other, unguardedly. - -'Altona! In Altona! _Ach Gott!_ Then she is the Fraulein for -information concerning whom, alive or dead, such rewards were offered -by placards in the Bourse and in the _Hamburger Nachtrichten_.' - -'Nonsense,' said Sleath, discovering that the admission was a mistake. - -'It is no nonsense,' exclaimed Wyburg, trying to remember the amount -of the reward offered, his cupidity at once excited by the -consideration whether or not it was worth his while to betray his -employer. - -After the latter departed, he remembered the cunning and avaricious -gleam that came into the watery grey eyes of the German, and a -suspicion of his fidelity began to assume tangible shapes in the -tainted mind of Sleath. - -The chances that after all his trouble, care, cunning, and expense -she might be delivered from his snares, taken from his power, an -exposé made, and doubtless an appeal to the police of the city, to -the British consul and the four burgomasters, before his intrigue had -been successfully developed and Ellinor's voice silenced, filled him -with exasperation; and cursing his own imprudent admission to Herr -Wyburg, into whose hands he had thus put himself, he drank so deeply -at his hotel that night that, between his passion for Ellinor, and -fierce suspicion of his German tools, his mind became inflamed to a -dangerous degree, and he resolved that before the church bells tolled -midnight he would visit the persecuted girl, for the purpose of -making assurance doubly sure with her and his two paid creatures. - -'Yes,' he hiccupped, with an oath, as he was taken in a droski across -the Adolphs-brucke and the Nuerwall, 'I'll end it all, or know the -reason why! I have played the whining fool too long. Am I to pass -my days in slaving to study her whim-whams?--to overcome her prudery -and sham scruples? Am I a fool or a boy? Of what or of whom am I -afraid? I will now listen only to the dictates of my own mind.' - -He muttered much more to the same purpose aloud, and, quitting the -droski at the corner of the Grosse Bleichen, thrust a double-mark -into the driver's hand, and, without thinking of change, proceeded on -foot to the house of Herr Wyburg. - -A mass with three pointed gables, and each storey overhanging the -other on beams of timber, rose before him. All was dark in and -around it when he approached the door, and, tipsy though he was, he -could hear--he thought--the beating of his heart, and for a -moment--but a moment only--an emotion of timidity, even of shame, -came over him. - -'Pshaw!' he exclaimed, with a malediction, and rang the bell. - -After some delay and parleying, he was admitted by the drowsy -Lenchen, who surveyed him with more annoyance than respect in her -visage; but he strode past her without a word, and ascended to Herr -Wyburg's sitting-room. - -He found that worthy attired in his grotesque _Reiter-Diener_ -costume, with his steeple-crowned hat and toledo on the table beside -him. He was asleep in an easy-chair, and, after being at a funeral, -had drank and smoked himself into a state of partial insensibility. - -'I wish to see the Fraulein,' said Sleath to Frau Wyburg, who glanced -at him inquiringly. - -'She must be asleep,' was the answer. - -'I must see and speak with her.' - -'Ah, you have found her friends, then?' said Frau Wyburg, with one of -her detestable leers. - -Sleath made no reply, but, snatching a candle from the table, -proceeded at once towards the apartment of Ellinor, with a strange -pallor in his face, his bloodshot eyes aflame, and his steps unsteady. - -He hesitated a moment, and then turned the handle of the door. It -was locked on the inside, and refused to yield. - -He might naturally have expected this; but it served to surprise and -exasperate him, for at that moment he was in the mood to fight with -his own shadow. - -'Ellinor, rouse yourself--I have news for you--news at last!' he -exclaimed, and knocked on the door-panels more noisily than -respectfully. - -But there was no response from within. He applied his ear to the -keyhole; there was not a sound to be heard, and, as he had been given -to understand that young girls generally slept lightly, it was -impossible he could fail to waken her. - -He knocked more loudly again, but failed to elicit the slightest -response. Then he heard the mocking laugh of Frau Wyburg, who was -listening at the foot of the staircase, and, believing that already -he was being deluded, a gust of fury seized him, and applying his -foot to the door, and as it was old and worm-eaten, he dashed it open -with ease, and entered the darkened room. - -It was empty, and no cry of alarm or consternation followed his -furious irruption into it. The upheld candle showed him in a moment -that its occupant was no longer there. Ellinor was gone! - -Her bed had been unslept in; her hat and the jacket she had got on -board the _Flying Foam_ were lying on it. - -Where was she? Where hidden away? - -That double villain Wyburg had deceived him after all, was Sir -Redmond's instant thought, and, impressed by the rewards offered in -the _Hamburger Nachtrichten_ and elsewhere, had 'sold' him and given -her up to Mrs. Deroubigne. - -Though infuriated with rage and disappointment he became sober in a -moment, and turned to confront Wyburg and his wife; and, to do them -justice, their astonishment, incredulity, and alarm had not the least -appearance of being simulated, but were genuine. - -She was concealed from him perhaps in some other apartment. - -Frau Wyburg emphatically denied that she was. - -'Silence, hag!' exclaimed Sir Redmond; 'had you lived three centuries -ago, you would have been burned before the Rathhaus as a witch!' - -Her black eyes gleamed dangerously at this injurious remark, and on -Sir Redmond turning away to prosecute a search elsewhere in defiance -of the palpable evidence that the door had been locked on the inside, -and that the key was still in the lock, Herr Wyburg, who was mad with -consternation and drinking, roughly barred his way. - -On the second finger of his right hand Sir Redmond wore a cluster of -diamonds; so prominent and sharp were they that they cut through his -tightly-fitting kid glove. These brilliants, as he dealt Wyburg a -facer, laid his cheek completely open and nearly tore his left eye -out, thus a terrible and most unseemly brawl ensued. - -Wyburg was a man of enormous strength, and for whom the enervated -baronet was no match in any way. Maddened by pain, the sight of his -own blood flowing freely, by absinthe and _eau-de-vie_, inspirited by -revenge and greed together, he resolved to make Sleath a victim now, -and, though suffering from what the French call the _folie -paralytique_ which the two compounds referred to produce, he was -simply savage, yet methodical, in his proceedings. - -Rushing upon Sleath like an infuriated bull, he closed with him, and -hurling him down the staircase flung him in a heap, bleeding and -senseless, at the bottom. - -When he recovered, Sleath found himself, secured in an attic of -Wyburg's house, a prisoner, bound securely with ropes, stiff, sore, -and bruised, his face and shirt front all plastered with blood. - -Mr. John Gaiters, all the subsequent day, and indeed the day after, -was sorely perplexed by the non-appearance of his master at the Hotel -Russie, especially as the yacht of Mr. Dewsnap was now ready for sea. - -Frau Wyburg assured him that they had seen nothing of Sir Redmond for -several days, and as the young lady had gone he had most probably -accompanied her; and with this perplexing intelligence the valet was -compelled to content himself. - -This story or suggestion seemed to receive a certain corroboration -when Gaiters, who was well-nigh at his wit's end, on pursuing his -inquiries at Herr Burger's bank in the Gras Keller, where Sir Redmond -had letters of credit, found that a cheque, duly signed by him, had -been presented there on the preceding day and cashed for a pretty -large sum. - -Meanwhile, unable to communicate with the external world, Sir Redmond -remained, bound hand and foot, a wretched prisoner in the power of -the Wyburgs, one of whose first measures was the extortion of the -cheque in question as the price of his freedom; but, though the money -was duly paid, they still kept him in their hands, being somewhat -doubtful whether to release or destroy him. - -He knew not whether they had actually betrayed him and given over -Ellinor to her sister and chaperone, Mrs. Deroubigne, and in some -respects he cared not now. In his innate selfishness of heart, he -cursed her bitterly as being in one sense the cause of his present -predicament, and he longed with a savage energy to be free that he -might turn his back on Hamburg for ever. - -He strove with all his strength and energy to burst his bonds, while -the veins in his forehead swelled and the perspiration poured over -it, but strove, in vain, while Herr Wyburg, with his hideous visage -tied up in a blood-stained cloth, sat mockingly in his chair, smoking -his meerschaum, and sipping absinthe from time to time out of a green -cup-shaped German glass. - -The care with which the cheque had been executed and cashed induced -Herr Wyburg and his spouse to extort at all risks another, for their -greed and cupidity were thoroughly awakened now, and they had the -miserable man completely in their power; and the circumstance that -the funerals of one or two opulent burgers--one of them actually that -of a senator of the city--were taking place, in which the Herr with -his battered visage could take no part, and consequently pocket no -fees, made him the more resolved on extortion; and, if the worst came -to the worst, there were the waters of the Fleethen below the windows -of the house. - -'You'll never see that girl again unless you sign this other little -cheque,' said Frau Wyburg, with grim decision. - -'I don't care a doit about the girl; keep her,' replied Sleath -through his clenched teeth. 'For God-sake,' he added, imploringly, -'give me something to drink; I am perishing of thirst.' - -'Well, perish, then, if you won't sign this paper--it is stamped and -ready; but, till you sign it or die, the water remains in this -flagon,' replied Wyburg, placing a tall German beer-jug full of -sparkling water in tantalising proximity to the wretched man's lips, -and then putting it on the table, while madame looked on approvingly, -her black eyes gleaming, her pale face radiant with malice and greed, -her jaw looking more square, and her tiger mouth more tigerish than -ever. - -Somehow the words of Wyburg seemed to introduce a practical and -reasonable, if intensely obnoxious, element into what seemed the -phantasmal horror of a prolonged nightmare to Sir Redmond Sleath. - -'What is the sum?' he asked, huskily. - -'Three hundred pounds English money.' - -He groaned with rage at this renewed extortion; but, if money is -precious, life is more precious still, and these Wyburgs he knew to -be wretches without an atom of scruple, so he signed the cheque, -which the Herr, who knew his autograph perfectly well, folded and -handed to his better-half with a smile of grim satisfaction. - -'Unbind me now,' said Sleath, faintly. - -'Not if I know it, yet awhile,' replied the ruffian, who, though he -acted so methodically, was half mad with revenge for his gashed -visage, and the imbibing of absinthe and Danish corn-brandy. - -'What are you about to do with me?' asked Sleath, imploringly, and -with mortal fear in his face and accents. - -Wyburg made no reply, but proceeded with great deliberation to bore -two holes in the wainscot of the attic, and, passing through them the -ends of the ropes which bound his prisoner, told him that they were -being secured by the Frau to a little cask of powder on the other -side of the partition, and inserted in which there was a loaded and -cocked revolver, and that the instant he moved or attempted pursuit -or flight the tension of the ropes would cause an explosion that -would blow him and the house to pieces! - -Herr Wyburg had made that which to him was a small fortune out of Sir -Redmond, and dared not face any inquiry in case of that individual -escaping and appealing to law; he was far in arrear with his house -rent; he had sold his furniture twice over to different Jews in the -Scharsteinweg, and now resolved to quit Hamburg for purer air; and, -inspired by malice and revenge, he and his wife took their immediate -departure, leaving the wretched Sleath minus watch, purse, and rings, -and, as we have described, face to face with a miserable death, if he -attempted to escape! - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -WITH ROBERTS' COLUMN. - -'Welcome back from the other world, Bob Wodrow!' exclaimed Toby -Chace. 'The stable-call won't be new to you, though a good meal and -a deep drink may be, I have no doubt. So we are to have a shy at -these Afghan beggars again!' and while grooming his horse he began to -sing the stable-call in verse, while rubbing down his charger after -hissing away through his teeth in the most orthodox fashion, - - 'Come, come to your stable as quick as you're able, - Come, come to your stable, my jolly dragoon; - See your horse groomed well, and give him some hay, - With corn and water for night and for day; - Then come to your stable as fast as you're able, - Then come to your stable, my jolly dragoon.' - -So sang to Wodrow that jovial English trooper, Toby Chace, light of -heart, if unsteady of purpose, while bustling about his horse--Chace, -who, in his more palmy days, had more than one hunter of his own in -stall; who had once handsome rooms in Piccadilly, a snug corner in -his club, and was never without an invitation for cub-hunting in the -shires, or to pot the deer in the Highlands; the heir to an old -English baronetcy, and yet, in his fallen estate, was wont to -designate himself 'jolly as a sandboy, whatever the devil kind of boy -that is!' - -Left behind his regiment sick, Toby Chace was now, like Robert -Wodrow, attached _pro tem._ to a squadron of the 9th Lancers ordered -to the front. - -'So we march to-morrow to clear off the score we owe these fellows at -Cabul,' said he. - -'In that business, then, I have lost the best friend man ever had,' -said Wodrow, sighing; 'Captain Colville.' - -'A right good sort; we'll drink his health--his memory, I mean. I -wonder if Fred Roberts will let us sack the town?' - -'I think not, Toby--but why?' - -'It would be rare fun prying into the harems, or having them -escaladed by reprobates in regimentals.' - -Toby's naturally elastic spirits rose at the prospect of more -fighting, for his disposition was always to make the best of -everything, and it served him in good stead now. - -Ignorant of all that was transpiring to those most dear to him far -away in Europe, Colville was still a prisoner in the hands of Mahmoud -Shah. - -The cruel and barbarous murder of the young and gallant Hector -Maclain, after he had been so many weeks the prisoner and guest of -Ayoub Khan, proved that our Afghan enemies could be true or false to -their salt, exactly as suited their caprice or cruelty; thus, though -Leslie Colville was in precisely the same position in the Cabul fort, -it by no means followed that his life might not be taken in any -moment of fear or hatred. - -Life in India has often been described as one long and listless yawn, -born of weariness, heat, and indolence; but it was certainly not so -at this crisis on the borders of Afghanistan, which, to the average -British mind, is considered a part of India. - -An army was now detailed to punish the infatuated fanatics who had -destroyed our Embassy, but, though infatuated, they were also - - 'Souls made of fire and children of the sun, - With whom revenge is virtue!' - -So we now resolved to take a leaf out of their own book, and have our -revenge in turn. - -Once more our troops would have to toil along the stony and -boulder-strewn banks of the gloomy Khyber, up and down the awful -chasms of the Lundi Khana Kotal, by the mountain clefts and deep -defiles of Khoord Cabul, with every prospect of being harassed, -perhaps decimated, by thousands of hardy hillmen--the Khyberees, -Afreedees, Shinwarris, Mohmonds, Mongols, and Ghilzies. - -The gallant and active Sir Donald Stewart again seized Candahar; -Massey occupied the Shutargardan Pass; Baker took Kushi, and -Roberts--whose name is second to none in glory--was soon ready to -begin that campaign which all hoped would end in the conquest of the -blood-stained Cabul. - -The Viceroy of India made the greatest efforts to grapple with the -new difficulty, and hurry forward the army that was to uphold the -power of the fickle Ameer as our nominal ally--for nominal indeed he -was--and there was every prospect of his being slain by his insurgent -troops, led by Mahmoud Shah and other sirdirs, unless he took to -flight, or put himself at their head against us as intruders and -unbelievers. - -'This devil of an Ameer,' remarked old Colonel Spatterdash, 'is true -to the words of Swift--"The two maxims of every great man are always -to keep his countenance, and never to keep his word." - -Three columns were to advance simultaneously, and open communication -between Cabul and Peshawur, but we shall confine ourselves briefly to -that under Sir Frederick Roberts, which consisted of three batteries -of Artillery, a squadron of H.M. 9th Lancers, some Bengal and Punjaub -Cavalry, the Gordon and Albany Highlanders, the 67th Regiment, 3rd -Sikhs, 23rd Pioneers, and Spatterdash's Punjaubees--making a total of -barely eight thousand men. - -Scarlet, blue, and gold, had for the time been discarded by the -cavalry, and, like most of the infantry, they wore _karkee_, or -mud-coloured costumes--uniforms they could scarcely be called--with -the inevitable tropical helmet, and _putties_ or linen leg bandages. -The Scottish infantry, however, retained their tartans, wearing -respectively the green Gordon and red Royal Stuart; but the Lancers -laid aside their scarlet and white bannerettes. - -The 19th of September saw our advanced parties reconnoitering close -to Kushi, within thirty-five miles of Cabul, where twelve strong -battalions with many guns were reported to be in garrison; and on -that night the Duke of Albany's Highlanders were suddenly fired into, -when all was supposed to be quiet in the vicinity, and a group of -officers were chatting and smoking round a wood fire, which was -instantly scattered and extinguished that the enemy might have -nothing to aim by. - -The Highland pickets stood to their arms, and by a few half-random -volleys swept away the assailants, who proved to be Ghazis or -religious fanatics, armed with juzails, or long matchlock guns, with -a forked rest, which enables the marksman to take a steady aim. They -are formidable weapons in mountainous districts, and, though their -range exceeded that of old 'brown Bess,' it is far inferior to that -of the rifles now in use. - -Three days after, the Mongols attacked a convoy of provisions, borne -on mules, in a solitary pass, and killed about twenty-three of the -escort, chiefly by knives, and resistance proved useless, as the -mountain band was so numerous that they next attempted to storm a -tower at the summit of the Sirkai Kotal, or Red Pass, so named from -the peculiar colour of the narrow path which led to it, but were -repulsed and finally driven off by two companies of the Albany -Highlanders. But skirmishes such as these were now of daily -occurrence. - -A few days after saw General Baker, C.B. and V.C., with the brigade -of cavalry at Kushi (or 'the Village of Delights'), in a very barren -district, whence, however, could be seen the lovely Logur -Valley--fresh, green, and fertile; and then he pushed his patrols and -reconnaisances along the Cabul Road towards Zargun Shahr. - -The advanced camp at Kushi received some very unexpected guests on -the 23rd of September, when, at the head of twenty-five splendidly -clad and accoutred horsemen--including old Daud Shah--the Ameer -Yakoub Khan rode in and surrendered himself! - -'I have no longer any power left,' said he; 'I have been dethroned by -my own mutinous troops; but Inshallah! it is the will of God!' - -'What his true reason for this startling step may have been, we never -knew,' wrote an officer, 'certainly not the one he gave, for no -Afghan ever told the truth intentionally.' - -Handsome tents were given to him and his suite, and a guard of -honour, furnished by the Gordon Highlanders, was accorded him. Next -day General Roberts and his staff rode in amid the cheers of the -troops, and every face brightened, as all knew that the stern work of -vengeance was soon to begin, and the pitiful slaughter of the gallant -Cavagnari and his companions would be atoned for. - -Stolidly proud or stupidly unimpassionable, the Ameer did not -condescend to leave his tent, but lounged on a silken divan in the -doorway of it, with a lorgnette in his hands, and evinced no -excitement till he heard the pipes of the Gordon Highlanders, and saw -the kilted sentinels around him. - -'He is a man of about six or seven and thirty,' says Major Mitford, -of the 14th Bengal Lancers, in his narrative, 'with a light almond -complexion and a very long, hooked nose, the lower part of the face -hidden by a black beard and a moustache, the eyes having a dazed -expression like those of a freshly caught seal. This is said to have -been caused by the five years' confinement in a dark cell to which -his father, Shere Ali, subjected him, for conspiring against him.' - -By order of the Viceroy, Sir Frederick Roberts issued a manifesto to -the Afghan people to the effect that the British troops were -advancing on the capital to avenge the treachery of its armed -inhabitants, but that all who were peaceful would be unmolested; and -non-combatants, women, and children were advised to leave Cabul and -betake themselves to places of safety. - -After some necessary interviews or consultations with the dethroned -and fugitive Ameer, General Roberts concentrated his whole force at -Kushi prior to attacking the city or any force it might send into the -field against him. - -Meanwhile the so-called guard of honour furnished by the Gordon -Highlanders kept a close watch over Yakoub Khan, as all in camp -mistrusted him, and believed that he only made a pretence of giving -himself up, and had in reality come to spy our numbers and weak -points. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -THE BATTLE OF CHARASIAH. - -That something was on the _tapis_, and something like preparation, -and very like consternation too, existed in and about Cabul, became -evident to Leslie Colville, who suspected, though he was ignorant of -the truth, that it was caused by the advance of a British army. - -From the square keep of Mahmoud Shah's fort he could see mounted -scouts and regular cavalry patrols hourly scouring the road, while -crowds of Ghilzies and other hillmen, with banners waving and arms -glittering, hovered on the mountain sides; caravans of camels laden -with stores from Ghuznee, Bamian, Parwan, and elsewhere in the rear -passed daily into the gates of Cabul, and more than one train of -cannon too. - -All this he saw, but made no comment, and he asked no questions; he -was only glad and thankful to heaven when night fell or day dawned, -that another twelve hours of durance were passed, and that he was -still in the land of the living, or not, perhaps, sold as a slave to -the Beloochees or Usbeg Tartars, till one morning, about an hour or -more before dawn, Mahmoud roused him from the charpoy on which he -slept, and curtly told him that he must come forth. - -Leslie Colville's heart beat painfully, and his thoughts flashed home -to Mary Wellwood. Was death--such a murderous death as that by which -Maclain died--about to be meted out to him after all? - -He was without arms--helpless; nor would arms have availed him much -in that tower, garrisoned as it was by the fanatical cut-throats of -Mahmoud Shah, whom he followed into the court, where two horses -saddled and ready for the road were standing. - -'Mount,' said Mahmoud; 'mount and come with me, while the morning is -yet dark--we have not a moment to lose.' - -They quitted the tower by its western gate, and took together at a -hard gallop the road that led, as Colville knew by past experience, -along the left bank of the Cabul river, and, leaving all the -scattered forts, walled gardens, and orchards behind, runs by Khoord -Cabul and the Suffaidh Sang towards the Shutargardan Pass; and now -for the first time genuine hope began to dawn in his heart. - -'Hark!' cried Mahmoud; 'what sound is that?' - -'A British trumpet call,' replied Colville. - -'Yes--and look!' said his guide, whom Colville now perceived was clad -completely in spotless white, the costume of a Ghazi, assumed by -those Moslem fanatics who devote themselves to death in battle for -their Faith, and to achieving the death of all unbelievers. - -Day was breaking now, and already the snow-clad peaks of some of -those hills which are above eleven thousand feet in height, tipped -with rosy dawn as with fire, stood sharply up against the deep blue -sky, and, after a ten miles' ride from the vicinity of the city, -Mahmoud Shah drew his reins, and again said, 'Look!' - -Then Colville could see the gleam of arms in the distance, and as the -gleam was steady he knew it was a sign of troops advancing. - -'Your people are there,' said Mahmoud; 'join them, but keep out of my -way for the future, and tempt me no more; for never again, had we -eaten a peck of salt together, will I spare the life of an -unbeliever; I have sworn it by the ninety-nine holy attributes and -the Black Stone of Mecca! Go--and go with God, though Eblis is more -powerful yonder. There are the unbelievers who say the blessed Koran -is a lie, and who seek to turn us aside from the gods our fathers -worshipped, and of whom it was written on that Night of Power, when -the word came down from Heaven, they shall taste the fires of hell, -which like molten metal will devour their entrails!' - -His dark eyes flashed as he spoke, and he ground his set teeth in the -fury of his fanaticism. - -'Allah Shookr!' he exclaimed, and, without waiting for a single word -of thanks from Colville, wheeled his horse sharply round, and -galloped away towards the distant city at full speed; and a -picturesque figure he looked, in his snowy camise and loose mantle, -his long, white loonghee floating in the morning breeze, his juzail -slung across his back, and the head of his tall, tasselled lance -gleaming in the sunshine. - -Colville devoutly hoped they would never meet again; yet he had not -seen quite the last of Mahmoud Shah. - -He now rode joyfully on towards the two parties of British cavalry -which were then in sight, and who were--though he knew it not--about -to inaugurate those operations which brought on the battle of -Charasiah--or 'The Four Water Mills,' a spot about twelve British -miles from Cabul. - -The troops of Roberts had encamped there for the night, after passing -through the picturesque defile called the Sung-i-Navishta. All the -vicinity had been scoured by our cavalry patrols, and, little aware -that they were on the eve of a bloody engagement, the soldiers, weary -with a long day's march, had turned in early. - -Daybreak on this eventful day saw two cavalry patrols pushing along -the roads that lead from Charasiah to Cabul. Captain Neville, of the -14th Bengal Lancers, with twenty men of that corps, took that one -which, after crossing the Chardeh Valley, enters the south-western -suburbs of the city, while the southern road, leading through the -Sung-i-Navishta, was taken by Captain Apperley, with twenty of the -9th Lancers, and Robert Wodrow, as he had so recently trod the ways -there on foot, now rode with him as a guide. - -At nine a.m., a puff of smoke came suddenly from the loopholed-wall -of a village, and Wodrow's horse fell under him, killed by a musket -ball. Apperley reported that he had occupied another village, and -was now hard pressed by the enemy, on which a field-officer and -twenty more Lancers came on to his succour, while some native -infantry went at the double in the direction of Captain Neville's -party. - -Robert Wodrow was in the act of getting his carbine unstrapped from -his dead horse when a mounted man suddenly came upon him clad in a -sorely frayed and tattered blue patrol jacket, and wearing on his -head a scarlet Afghan loonghee, and great was his astonishment and -noisy and genuine his joy on discovering that this solitary and -unarmed rider was Leslie Colville, whom he had long since numbered -with the slain among the ashes of the Residency. - -They shook hands again and again warmly. Each had a hundred -questions to ask the other, but both had little information to give, -as Colville had been mewed up in Mahmoud's fort since the day of the -massacre, and no tidings from home in any way or of any kind had -reached Robert Wodrow. - -'And now, without a moment's delay, I must report myself at -headquarters,' said Colville. - -'The General and staff are as yet some miles in the rear, sir,' -replied Wodrow, recalled by the remark to their relative positions, -'and I shall guide you. By the carbine and musketry fire in front -our two cavalry patrols seem, to be catching it, and I must somehow -get another horse. We have plenty of time. The infantry have yet -some miles to come!' - -Wodrow seemed now alternately in very sad or in the wildest spirits. -With Colville's presence, his voice and kindly face, the young -fellow's thoughts and memories went keenly and vividly back to the -past time at Birkwoodbrae, to the manse of Kirktoun-Mailler, and all -the old associations of Ellinor Wellwood and his home. - -Then, indeed, he forgot for a time that he was only a corporal of -Hussars, as Colville did that he was an officer of the Guards, and -they chummed like old friends together. - -'Share with me the contents of my haversack and flask, Captain -Colville,' said Robert Wodrow, as they sat for a few minutes by the -banks of a wayside runnel. 'We are going into action again--that is -pretty evident. "Few, few shall part where many meet"--you know what -the poet says; and I care little if it be my chance to fall--after -all--after all I have undergone.' - -'Don't say so, Wodrow,' said Colville, in a tone of reprehension. -'Why the deuce are you so low in spirit now?' - -'I should not be, now that I have met you again, Captain Colville,' -replied Wodrow, as he received back his flask and took a long pull at -it; 'but I feel--I feel--I don't know how to-day. It is not fear, -but as if something was about to happen to me; and a song--a song -that she--Ellinor--used to sing seems to haunt my memory now.' - -'What song? "The Birks of Invermay"?' - -'No--another, and at this moment her very voice seems in my ears,' he -said, in broken accent. - -'And this song of Ellinor's----' - -'Ran thus,' said Wodrow, and, with a low voice and a certain humidity -in his eyes, he actually sang a now forgotten song-- - - 'Thy way along life's bright path lies, - Where flowers spring up before thee, - And faithful hearts and loving eyes - Assemble to adore thee. - The great and wise bend at thy shrine, - The fair and young pursue thee, - Fame's chaplets round thy temples twine, - And pleasure smiles to woo thee. - - 'Yet, 'mid each blessing time can bring, - Thy breast is still repining; - 'Tis cold as Ammon's icy spring, - O'er which no sun is shining; - And friendship's presence has no charm-- - And beauty's smiles are blighted, - Nor joy, nor fame the heart can warm, - That early love has slighted.' - - -'And _blighted_ has mine been, as you know, Captain Colville,' he -added, more sadly than bitterly. - -'Come, Wodrow, don't pose as a "blighted being," any way,' said the -other, who saw with pain the emotion of his comrade, and feared it -sprang from one not unfrequently met with on service, the -presentiment of coming death. 'Here comes a Hussar on the spur from -the front.' - -'Toby Chace!' exclaimed Wodrow, as that individual came powdering -along the road, but reined up sharply for a moment or so. 'Whither -so fast?' - -'I am sent back to report that the enemy in great force are advancing -from the direction of the city, and occupying the defile and range of -hills between this and Cabul, completely barring our advance. The -Ghilzies are all mustering, and the road to Zahidabad, where the -fifth division has encamped, is threatened.' - -'That is the road by which General Macpherson is advancing with a -great convoy of stores and ammunition.' - -'Yes--so no doubt we shall have to carry the heights before evening.' - -Toby Chace now recognised that Colville was an officer, though in -somewhat dilapidated garments, and saluted him, colouring deeply, -almost painfully, as he did so. - -'My comrade, Toby Chace, Captain Colville,' said Wodrow; 'he is like -myself, a reduced gentleman, and will die, I hope, a baronet.' - -'I am not in a hurry about that,' said Toby, and, as Colville bowed -to him, he saluted again, and proffered his brandy-flask, a silver -hunting one, on which a coat of arms was engraved--a relic of better -days at Melton and elsewhere. 'I have only a ration biscuit to offer -you, sir,' said Toby, laughing; 'but once into Cabul, we shall have -luxuries galore--_cotelettes de mouton à l'Ameer_--mutton chops and -green chillis. And now to deliver my report!' he added, and, putting -spurs to his horse, rode off in the direction of Kushi, while -Colville and Robert Wodrow followed him as fast as they could. There -was no time to be lost now, as the events of the day were rapidly -developing themselves. - -Colville reported himself to General Baker (whose brigade was coming -on), and joined that officer's staff, on procuring arms, while Wodrow -bade him farewell, and joined the squadron of Lancers to which he was -attached. - -Captain Apperley's command of the latter he had now dismounted, and -posted in a shallow ditch that surrounded a square mud fort, in which -he placed the chargers. A range of steep hills rose in front of this -improvised post, and through them lay the Sung-i-Navishta Pass--which -means the 'Place of the Written Stone,' from an ancient Persian -inscription carved on a mass of rock in the centre of the defile, -stating that the road then had been made in the reign of Shah Jehan, -who was crowned at Agra in 1628. - -Hills, steep, barren, and stony, were on the left of this post, and -there were grey garden walls, from which the Afghans were firing -briskly, but as most of their balls went into the air, it was evident -that they were ignorant of how to sight the rifles they were handling. - -A small party of the 12th Bengal Cavalry dismounted, held a walled -garden on the right of this post, and kept up a rattling carbine fire -on the enemy, who took cover among ground so rough and broken that no -cavalry in the saddle could act against them. - -To succour these advanced parties, whose posts were now enveloped in -whirls of eddying smoke, streaked by incessant jets or flashes of -fire, the Royal Artillery guns came on under Major Parry, with a wing -of the Gordon Highlanders under Major Stewart White, with some of the -23rd Pioneers and two squadrons of the 5th Punjaub Cavalry, all sent -by General Baker, who assigned to this mixed but slender force the -severe task of carrying these garrisoned heights. - -Old Spatterdash as he went to the front had just time to wring -Colville's hand and congratulate him, but in doing so reeled a little -in his saddle. In fact, at that early hour he was still groggy from -his potations over night, and said, in a feathery voice, - -'S'cuse me, Colville, but that infernal bullet I got at Lucknow is -troubling me as usual.' - -A few minutes more saw Spatterdash lying on his back, shot through -the head, and a riderless horse galloping rearward with loose reins, -while very heavy firing on the left announced that Baker was pushing -on towards the hills, and all along their green slopes could be seen -the white smoke of cannon and rifles eddying and rolling before the -soft morning breeze. - -As Major White pushed on with his somewhat mixed command, Colville -could see the rocky heights on both flanks of the Sung-i-Navishta -Pass manned by dark masses of the enemy, all ranked under numerous -standards that streamed in the breeze, red, blue, green, white, and -yellow, the colours of the different mountain tribes, or of the -fortified villages from which they came. - -There, too, were the sombre battalions of the Ameer's revolted -infantry, clad in brown tunics faced with scarlet; and, most -conspicuous of all, were a horde of Ghazis, furious and inflamed -fanatics, in purest white, led by several chiefs, but most notably by -Mahmoud Shah. - -Parry's battery now opened fire on the crowds that covered the -nearest hill, and, while yells of defiance mingled with the din of -the guns and musketry, four Afghan rifled mountain guns in the Pass -replied, making very good practice against us indeed, and waking the -echoes of the rocks that overhang the Logur river. - -'Let the guns continue to advance, and pound the nearest hill where -these fellows with the standards are,' said Major White, adding -proudly and confidently, 'With my Highlanders alone I shall sweep the -enemy from those hills on our right.' - -Parry then advanced his guns to within fifteen hundred yards, and -again opened fire. His cavalry escort was commanded by Major -Mitford, who says, 'We had thus leisure to watch the advance of the -92nd, which was a splendid sight. The dark green kilts went up the -steep rocky hillside at a fine rate, though one would occasionally -drop, and roll several feet down the slope, showing that the rattling -fire kept up by the enemy was not all display. Both sides took -advantage of every atom of cover, but still the gallant kilts pressed -on and up, and it was altogether as pretty a piece of light infantry -drill as could be seen.' - -Meanwhile Parry's guns were sending shell after shell with beautiful -precision to the crest of the hill he was ordered 'to pound.' They -exploded with dreadful effect whenever and wherever the enemy could -be seen preparing to charge. The Ghazis and Ghilzies lay over each -other in heaps, torn, mangled, and disembowelled, and the white robes -of the former were seen to be splashed and stained with blood; but -still the living yelled and brandished their swords and standards, -and by four p.m., Parry's guns had completely silenced the four that -had been thundering in the echoing pass. - -And now it was that the gallant commander of 'the Gay Gordons,' who -were still advancing, won his Victoria Cross, as he stormed the -crowded hills in person. 'Advancing with two companies of his -regiment,' says the _London Gazette_, 'he came upon a body of the -enemy, strongly posted, and outnumbering his force by eighteen to -one. His men being much exhausted, and immediate action necessary, -Major White took a rifle, and going on by himself, shot the leader of -the enemy.' - -The fall of this personage, who was deemed invulnerable, so -intimidated the enemy that they fled down the mountain side, while -the Highlanders crowned its crest with a ringing cheer, and then, -plunging with their bayonets into the dark defile of the -Sung-i-Navishta, they captured the four mountain guns, the horses of -which lay disembowelled, dead, or dying in the limber traces. So -swift was the rush of the Gordon Highlanders that they had only nine -casualties at this point. - -With the Albany Highlanders in the van, General Baker pushed along -the road towards Chardeh, the 5th Ghoorkas, 5th Punjaubees, and 23rd -Pioneers following them, till the whole were opposed on strong and -precipitous ground by four thousand Afghans ranged under six large -and brightly-coloured standards. - -Upward and onward went our troops under a withering rifle fire, the -echoes of which reverberated a hundredfold among the hills, as they -were tossed back from peak to peak. For two hours the fight went on, -our troops loading and firing with great coolness and deliberation; -and then was seen the fearful triumph of the breechloading weapon of -precision when properly sighted, for each successive row of swarthy -men, as they crowned the ridges of rock, was mown down by a deadly -fire, as wheat goes prone to the earth before the scythe of the -mower, till after a time it seemed that scarcely a man stood up alive -after the delivery of these thundering tempests of lead. - -The deadly Gatling guns (the pepper castors, as the soldiers named -them) proved of little use, owing to the acute angle of elevation; -but at last the heights were taken in rear by a flank movement of the -Gordon Highlanders, who, with colours flying and all their pipes -playing, came storming up the steep slopes, and, crowning the -summits, swept the enemy away, or all that remained of them. - -By four o'clock the Afghans were everywhere in full flight to Cabul, -with the loss of many colours, twenty pieces of cannon, and a host of -killed and wounded. - -Strong pickets were posted for the night, as the Ghilzies and Mahmoud -Shah's Ghazis were hovering about. The troops bivouacked, as the -tents and baggage were all packed for the advance to Cabul on the -morrow. - -During all the events of this most exciting day, by the difference of -their rank and duties, Colville had, of course, seen nothing of -Robert Wodrow, and feared that his presentiment had been fulfilled, -till he heard from one of the staff what the general had recorded in -the last paragraph of his despatch--a paragraph that excited utter -bewilderment, and joy too, in the hearts of some that were far away, -and had heard nothing of the absent one since the terrible -catastrophe in the Cabul river:-- - - -'Corporal Robert Wodrow, of the 10th Hussars (doing duty with the -squadron of H.M. 9th Lancers), having carried a message for me, on -the spur, through a most disastrous fire, after two aides-de-camp and -an orderly officer had fallen wounded successively in attempting this -perilous duty, I have the honour to recommend him for a commission in -the infantry, and also for the Victoria Cross.' - - -After they had read this, his old parents, as they looked from the -manse windows of Kirktoun-Mailler, knew why their kindly parish folk -lit that huge bonfire which they then saw blazing on the summit of -Craigmhor. - -With hearts that were very full the kindly old couple stood hand -clasped in hand, as when he had first won her girlish love among the -'siller' Birks of Invermay, and, though they were very silent now, -their souls were filled with prayer and prayerful thoughts. - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - -ENOUGH DONE FOR HONOUR. - -The morning of the day after the battle of Charasiah saw the cavalry -all in their saddles for an early movement. The dead had not been -buried as yet, - - And their executors, the knavish crows, - Flew o'er them, impatient for their hour, - -when about five o'clock, in a cold and bitter wind, Colville was sent -with instructions for the Lancers and Bengal cavalry to move off. - -They did so at a rapid pace, and entering a narrow part of the -Sung-i-Navishta pass, pursued a winding and stony road where the deep -Logur stream flows between rocks and slabs of granite, and there -seized a number of guns and brought them into camp. - -Though Cabul had been abandoned by the insurrectionary troops, whom -the results of Charasiah had stricken with terror, a considerable -body of fresh Afghan forces, who had returned from Kohistan, had -formed an entrenched position on a high hill which overlooks the Bala -Hissar, and to dislodge them was necessary before entering the city; -so, with eight squadrons of horse, General Massy swept round it -northward to watch the roads that led to Bamian and Kohistan, while -General Baker made a direct attack in front. - -During the events of the day Leslie Colville had been conscious of a -blow on his left shoulder, received in a skirmish, and believed it to -be inflicted by some soldier in swinging his musket about. But it -proved to be a juzail ball, almost spent, and lodged in the flesh, -out of which it was cut by Robert Wodrow, who bathed and dressed the -wound for him. - -The enemy failed to meet Massy and fled in the night, abandoning -their camp and twelve pieces of cannon; and under Massy and Colonel -Gough the cavalry went in pursuit, through that difficult ground -which lies in the vicinity of Cabul, and is encumbered by isolated -forts like that of Mahmoud Shah, and loopholed garden and orchard -walls, all affording sure cover for skirmishers. - -To keep as far as possible from these the cavalry rode by the way of -the Siah Sung, or Black Rock. As they proceeded, on their left rose -the grand and picturesque masses of the Bala Hissar, towers joined by -curtains rising above each other in succession, round, square, and -octagon, all crenelated, and glowing in the red radiance of the -morning sun, where not sunk in shadow. Loftily these masses rose -above even the smoke of the great city, the background of all being -the ridgy crest of the Tukt-i-Shah, or Emperor's seat, and the great -rocks of Asmai, on which hordes of the enemy were gathered. - -The heights there are precipitous, a thousand feet above the valley -of Cabul, and there the dark figures of the Afghans, with their arms -glittering in the sunshine, could be seen, clustering thick as a -swarm of bees against the grey granite of the cliffs, up the eastern -flank of which our infantry, with the Highlanders as usual in the -van, were now creeping with some light mountain guns. - -When the shells of the latter began to explode among the Afghans they -raised yells of derision, waved their standards, and danced like -madmen; and, heavy though the cannonade, they manifested no design of -abandoning the heights of Asmai. - -Leaving two squadrons of the 12th and 14th Bengal Regiments to watch -their movements, General Baker led the rest of the cavalry brigade -into the plain of Chardeh--where a clear and beautiful stream -flows--and then the horses were watered, while the din of cannon and -musketry showed that the attack and defence of Asmai were proceeding. - -Baker now rode on to watch a camp that had been formed at a village -round Deh Muzang, _en route_ to which his native guides abandoned -him, but were overtaken and shot on the spot. The whole district was -now encumbered by half-dispersed hordes of the enemy, which, as the -cavalry overtook them, resisted more or less, and after the sun set -the duty became full of peril in unknown ground. Thus, when darkness -fell, many of the dragoons went astray; some fell into ambuscades, -and several were killed or wounded before the villages in the Plain -of Chardeh, where they were to bivouac for the night, were reached. - -Among the latter who suffered was Wodrow's reckless and light-hearted -comrade, Toby Chace, whom, when Leslie Colville came up with Baker's -staff, he found dying of a dreadful tulwar wound, inflicted in combat -against great odds after his horse had been shot under him. - -This was just outside the village named Killa Kazi, which was -surrounded by a very high loop-holed wall, within which the native -cavalry had dismounted for the night, each trooper lying beside his -horse. - -Toby's wound had been given by one dreadful slash, and extended from -the chest to the thighs, laying the body so completely open, that -water as he drank it from Robert Wodrow's wooden bottle, actually -trickled from his viscera, yet he was wonderfully composed, and by -his own medical skill Wodrow, who supported Toby's head, knew that it -was all over with him. - -'Ah, Bob, I'll be gone in a brace of shakes,' said he, speaking -slowly at long intervals, and while his teeth chattered with agony -and the dew of death glittered on his forehead in the bright -moonlight; 'the folks in England, who live at home at ease, know -nothing of this sort of thing, thank God! Take my silver flask, Bob, -and keep it--keep it in memory of poor Toby Chace. It is all I have -now worth offering you. A girl gave it to me in--in happier times at -Ascot, one whose shoes I was not worthy to tie--but she married -another fellow anyhow.' - -After this his voice died away, his senses seemed to wander, and -whispering, with a sudden tenderness of manner, 'Mother, kiss me,' he -turned his face to the right and ceased to live. - -After a time Robert Wodrow, carefully and tenderly as a brother would -have done, rolled the dead hussar in a horse-rug and buried him under -one of the tall poplar-trees that shade the village wall, and there -he was left in his lonely grave, when next morning the cavalry rode -off: for a reconnaisance. - -So narrow were the paths they had to pursue that they proceeded in -single files till they struck on the great road to Ghuznee and swept -along it at a gallop, finding at every pace of the way abandoned -tents, baggage, cooking utensils, and dying Cabul ponies--the -abandoned spoil of the Kohistanies, Ghilzies, Logaris, and others who -had come to fight the British, but had lost heart and fled. - -Four days afterwards Leslie Colville found himself entering Cabul, -when Sir Frederick Roberts rode into it publicly, accompanied by the -son of the Ameer, for Yakoub Khan, imbrued as his hands were with the -blood of the Embassy, and inculpated with the actors in its -destruction, was too cunning to accompany the British forces, at the -head of whom rode the squadron of the 9th Royal Lancers. - -Possession of Cabul was now taken in the name of Queen Victoria. The -royal standard was hoisted on the Bala Hissar; our Horse Artillery -guns thundered forth a salute, and three ringing British cheers rang -along the ranks for the Empress of India. - -The punishment of the perpetrators of the outrage at the Residency, -the terrible explosion at the Bala Hissar, and the fighting that -ensued at the Shutargardan Pass and the Sirkai Kotal, lie somewhat -apart from our narrative; but we cannot omit that which ensued at the -Khoord Cabul and other defiles. - -On the 7th of the month after the capital was taken, Macpherson's -Flying Column marched down the savage valley, clearing it of -straggling bands of the enemy, from the tomb of Baba Issah to the -banks of the Cabul river, but not without a sharp fight at the former -place, where Mahmoud Shah and a band of select and most desperate -Ghazis had taken post and resisted to the last, courting that death -in battle to which they had vowed and devoted themselves. - -'Everyone who said "Lord, Lord!" two hundred years ago was deemed a -Christian,' says Charles Reade; 'but there are no earnest men now.' - -However, Mahmoud Shah and his Ghilzies, like the Mahdi and his -followers in Egypt, were terribly in earnest about their work of -religion and slaughter. - -Shouting 'Allah! Allah! Allah!' they resisted with juzail and -tulwar, shield, pistol, and charah, till they were all shot down, and -lay over each other piled in one great heap, all clad in white, but -gashed and bloody, and among the last who fell was Mahmoud Shah, who -was last seen, with his back to the holy tomb of Baba Issah, standing -across the dead body of his favourite white Arab, with eight of the -5th Ghoorkas dead at his feet, an empty horse-pistol in his left -hand, a blood-dripping tulwar in his right, and six bayonet wounds in -his body, - - 'The least a death to nature!' - - -By this time there had been hanged in Cabul more than sixty Afghans -for complicity in the slaughter of the Embassy. - -The European troops were now quartered in the barracks of Yakoub -Khan's late army in the adjacent cantonments at Sherpore, and soon -after an amnesty was granted to all who had fought against us, while -a proclamation was issued by Sir Frederick Roberts to the effect -that, in consequence of the abdication of the Ameer, 'and of the -outrage at the British embassy, the British government were now -compelled to occupy Cabul and other parts of Afghanistan, and he -invited the Afghan authorities, chiefs, and sirdirs to assist him to -enforce order in the districts under their control, and to consult -with him conjointly. The population of the occupied districts -would--it was added--be treated with justice and benevolence; their -religion and customs would be respected, and loyalty and good service -to the British crown would be suitably rewarded. On the other hand, -all offenders against the new administration would be severely -punished.' - -'We have restored order in Cabul, and punished all the guilty,' wrote -Leslie Colville to Mary. 'I have resigned my appointment on the -staff, deeming that I have _done enough for honour_, darling; and now -I am coming home!' - -And now we must return to Ellinor and her fate, while Colville is -speeding homeward as quickly as steam could carry him over land and -sea. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -THE FATE OF ELLINOR. - -We left Ellinor smarting keenly under the memory of how Lord Dunkeld -and the two ladies of his family ignored all recognition of her -presence in the Jungfernsteig, and the despairing mood of mind in -which she was brought back by Gaiters and the Erau Wyburg to the -gloomy house by the Bleichen Fleet. - -The expression of her face at that time seemed to tell simply of one -who endured life till death might come. - -'Escape from this--oh, how to escape!' she wailed, as she wrung her -slender hands in bitter helplessness. - -Her windows were always fastened beyond her power of opening them, -and the water of the Fleet was fully twenty feet below them, so -escape in that direction was not to be thought of. - -The evening of the fourth day of her intolerable captivity was -drawing to a close when Ellinor made a discovery by the merest chance. - -That which appeared to be the back of the antique wardrobe in her -room proved in reality to be a door, though partially concealed by -garments hung on pegs screwed into it. - -A door! Whither did it lead? To ask Lenchen would at once excite -suspicion, and perhaps deprive her of the power of utilising it if -possible. This discovery excited her alarm more than hope or -curiosity, for though she was able as yet to secure her chamber-door -on the inside at night--or was permitted to do so--her privacy might, -she naturally thought, be violated at any time by this new and -unexpected avenue, which she resolved to explore. - -The door-handle yielded to her touch; it fell backward, and she found -a comfortable, but narrow, old oak stair, the steps of which were -mouldy, damp, and worm-eaten. It descended at an angle, within the -thickness of the solid wall, some forty steps or so, and ended in an -opening that was without any door, and immediately overhung the -canal. Rusty hinges in the jambs showed that a door had once closed -this entrance to the house, but it had probably fallen to pieces and -never been replaced. - -In short, it was simply one of the many back entrances from the -water, of which the mercantile community in many parts of Hamburg -still avail themselves, and showed that at one time, and before that -of its declension, the house of Herr Wyburg had been the residence of -some wealthy trader, whose boats had been rowed or pulled up to his -private door from the Brandenburger Hafen and under the Scharstein -Bridge. - -Here was a source of escape suddenly found, and of which she might -avail herself; but the only boats she had ever seen pass that way -were those of the Vierlander vegetable dealers, and how was she to -make known to these people her peril and her wishes? - -Frau Wyburg had said to her more than once, 'When in tribulation -there is nothing like keeping your mind easy and trusting in the -unexpected.' - -And now the unexpected had come. - -Dusk was closing--almost darkness--as she stood there looking at the -gloomy and turbid water of the Fleet, across which lights from the -house windows were already casting dim and tremulous lines of -radiance, while she felt her heart beating wildly as prayer and agony -mingled in her soul together; but the former was responded to, for -even while she stood there she saw a boat approaching, pulled along -by four seamen, and containing about a dozen soldiers, to whom she -called aloud for succour. They responded by banter, and were about -to push past on their way when a cry of despair escaped her, and then -she heard the voice of one who seemed to be in authority issue an -order. - -The boat was steered in close to the entrance, and she sprang on -board to find herself among a party of Uhlans, who were all armed -with their carbines, and were under the command of him who had just -spoken--the fair-haired young Baron Holandsburg--and were a patrol of -the picket from the Dammthor Barracks in pursuit of two conscript -deserters. - -Overcome by the intensity of her agitation, Ellinor was about to sink -down in a kind of heap, as it were, when his arm went round her in -support. - -'My God!' he exclaimed; 'my God, it is the Fraulein Ellinor!' - -He gave a wild, inquiring glance at the house from which she had -come, but its sombre mass gave him no information; he then took her -death-cold hands in his caressingly, and looked -entreatingly--encouragingly--into her drawn and tragic face. - -To him a great pity and horror, with much of blank wonder, were -emphasised by its haggard expression, and her dazed, sunken eyes, as -she clung to him, and he felt he had no time then--as military duty -sternly required him to proceed--to inquire into the what, the -wherefore, and the how she came to be there! - -He felt only sorrow and intense dismay, he knew not of what, but was -only certain that she had escaped death, or that something else very -dreadful must have occurred. - -He felt thankful, however, that he had saved her in this sudden and -unexpected manner from some of the 'perils of nineteenth century -civilisation,' as the author of 'Altiora Peto' calls them. - -By his order, the boat's head was put round, and pulled away for the -nearest landing-place--the Pulverthbrugge, from whence he could have -her conveyed at once to Altona. - - -When again he saw her on the following day in the pretty drawing-room -of the villa, with her head resting on Mary's shoulder and Mary's arm -round her, and Mrs. Deroubigne hovering near, though colourless as a -lily, she was scarcely like the same ghastly and hunted creature he -had rescued in the boat, from whom he had so much to learn, and whose -adventures had been so perilous. - -She looked so pretty--so beautiful indeed--in her simple cotton -morning dress, with its delicate crisp puffs and frillings, with her -gentle eyes and pure, perfect face, that the young baron sighed to -think she was not, and never might be, his! - -And yet she owed him, by the chance of fate, a mighty debt of -gratitude. - -Her story was barely concluded when, with something that sounded very -naughty on his lips in his anger, he put his sword under his arm and -departed to look after that _schelm_ Sleath and the Wyburgs too. - -'Poor foolish Ellinor,' thought he, as he galloped his horse towards -the Rathhaus Strasse, 'if she could not love, she always had a look -of passionless affection for me--warm friendship shall I call it? -Yet her bright face was somewhat delusive, for she would never love, -nor flirt, nor even chatter nonsense with me.' - -Ellinor knew not exactly the names of those who had been in league -with Sleath against her, nor could she describe the exact locality of -the house in which they had detained her, but the baron knew where he -had found her, and with the police and some of the Uhlans who had -been with him on the preceding night, proceeded by boat up the -Bleichen Fleet; but, just as they were about to penetrate by the open -back entrance, a loud explosion was heard high over head, and a -quantity of bricks, tiles, and old timber came tumbling down to -splash in the canal. - -'Der Teufel! what is this!' exclaimed the baron, 'are we at the siege -of Paris again?' - -But, though the house was closely examined, the mingled tragedy and -catastrophe which Herr Wyburg's revengeful scheme had brought about -was never quite explained. - -Mr. John Gaiters heard betimes of a dead and mangled body, answering -to the description of his master, being discovered in the -half-blown-up house; and found himself without a place and also -without a character. - -He applied a cambric handkerchief--one of Sir Redmond's--to his eyes, -and then anathematised them. He then took possession of his late -master's portmanteaux at the 'Hotel Russie,' lit a cigarette, and -went leisurely on board the London steamer at the Hafenbasin, and -Hamburg knew him no more. - -The public prints had made all interested therein, aware that Leslie -Colville and another, described variously as Taimar of the Guide -Corps, and Corporal Wodrow of the 10th Hussars, had escaped the -massacre and were safe. - -Colville safe and living still! What an awful burden was now doubly -lifted from the heart of Mary--a heart too full for words. - -It was natural for her to have hope at her years; but the tidings of -the slaughter at the Residency seemed to crush all hope for ever. - -A telegram first came from Colville, and ere long there was actually -a letter from Robert Wodrow. - -'Forgive me, beloved Ellinor, as I have forgiven and forgotten a -portion of our past,' he wrote, gently and humbly. 'Because that -fellow Sleath was a rascal, you do not mean to go through life "a -maiden all forlorn." And so you still stick to me alone, in spite of -what people may say--a poor corporal of Hussars as yet. When I think -of you sought after, admired, and doubtless loved by dozens of -fellows, better a thousand degrees than luckless Bob Wodrow; I can -but trust to your heart holding the memory of me against them -all--for a memory it may be, Ellinor, as I am not out of this -perilous Afghanistan yet--and a year ago I never thought to be _here_. - - "The poison is yet in my brain, love, - The thorn in my flesh, for you know - 'Twas only a year ago, love, - 'Twas only a year ago." - -And Ellinor wept as she read the words his hands had traced. - -A few more references to history. - -A clasp for Charasiah was ordered to be worn with the war medal, but -ere he saw Ellinor, Robert Wodrow had yet to win the bronze star -awarded to all who shared in Roberts's famous march to Candahar. - -'After all the peril faced and glory won, are we to give up -Candahar--after _all_?' was the ever-recurring question among the -soldiers of our army, as they marched back to India, and felt that, -though Roberts had restored our prestige, all the honour gained in -battle would be lost if we failed to retain Candahar. - -Through the gates of that city have all the great conquerors of India -come--Alexander and Timor, Genghis Khan and Nadir Shah; it bars the -approach to India from the north and west, and the power that holds -it--as one day Russia will--commands both Cabul and Herat. - -The facilities for attacking India from it are innumerable, and, as -Sir Edward Hamley has it, 'I believe the concurrent testimony of all -Indians is that there is no territory on which it would be more -perilous to give our enemy the chance of winning a battle than our -Indian Empire.' - -General Roberts, in a minute to the Government, 29th May, 1880, urged -'that our grasp on Candahar should never be loosened,' and that its -military retention was of vital importance to us in all wars -connected with the Afghans or Russians in Central Asia. Lord Napier -of Magdala, Sir George Lawrence, Sir Henry Rawlinson, and all other -high authorities on Indian military affairs, have spoken or written -in the same tone on this all-important subject; yet, in defiance of -their opinions, Candahar was handed over to the Ameer, and since then -the Russian eagle has laid its talons on Merv! - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -AMONG THE BIRKS OF INVERMAY. - -'Home at last!' exclaimed Leslie Colville, aloud but to himself in -the excess of his joy, as his train from Dover went clanking in to -crowded and busy Charing-Cross Station. 'Home at last! How jolly it -is to see the English faces, the familiar sights and hear the -familiar sounds again--and to be once more in mufti!' - -'_Globe--Graphic--'Lustrated News--Punch!_' He listened to the calls -of the newsboys as if they sang sweet music; and for days past he had -thought of, whistled, and hummed the burden of an old Scottish song -he had heard his nurse sing long ago-- - - 'Hame, hame, hame, oh, fain wad I be; - Hame, hame, hame, in my ain countrie!' - -And the desire had become a realization--a fact. - -'And now to meet my darling!' he thought, as he plunged into a -well-horsed hansom, and, leaving his luggage to follow, was driven at -a tearing pace towards Grosvenor Square, for which the residence at -Altona had been gladly quitted by Mrs. Deroubigne and her two charges, - -'Journeys of a few hundred miles are no longer described in these -days of ours,' says Charles Reade; nor those of thousands at the rate -we travel, so we have not detailed the journey of Colville. - -At last it was ended, and he was with _her_. - -Mary's pulses were leaping with excitement when they met, and she -felt herself in his tender and prolonged embrace, though it all -seemed a delicious and delirious dream, from which she might waken -and again weep for him as dead, or as still expecting him. - -It was well-nigh a year since they had parted, a year of many -startling events, months since a line had been exchanged between -them; and who could blame them if, for a little time, they forgot all -the world, and everything else, but each other? - - -'How strange to think that this is the last walk we shall have -together as lovers,' said Mary, in a soft, cooing tone, as they -loitered by the Serpentine one evening. - -'Yes, when next we promenade thus it will be as sober married folks,' -said Colville, with his brightest smile. - -'Dear--dear Leslie!' - -'Our courtship days have been chequered certainly, but the end is a -happy one.' - -'Happy we have been from the moment we had perfect faith in each -other, with one dreadful interval,' said Mary, with a little sob in -her throat, as she thought of the first tidings from Cabul; 'could I -but see my pet Ellinor even half so happy!' - -'Her days for fullest happiness will come in time--and, dearest Mary, -if all these lawyer fellows, Horning and Tailzie, tell me is true, I -shall put a coronet on your golden hair, and you shall be my Lady -Colville of Ochiltree,' said he, laughingly. - -'Oh, to go home again!' said Mary, who was thinking more of -Birkwoodbrae than a peerage and a house in Tyburnia. 'I was always a -great knitter at odd times, Leslie, and half the old people at -Kirktoun-Mailler benefited thereby. I was born among my old people, -and long so much--amid my own great happiness--to see them once -again. It seems ages since I came away.' - -'And see them you shall in a little time now, darling, for there we -shall spend our honeymoon.' - -And then that season, so important in human life and human love, was -spent as Colville had promised, and to Mary supreme was the delight -of wandering over all the old familiar places again and again with -him--the trout-pool where they had first met and he had lifted her -off the stone; the Linn; the Holyhill; the Miller's Acre; under the -old gate with the legend on its lintel, and where again she could -train her flowers, and feed her chickens that looked like balls of -golden fluff, while the 'siller birks'--the Birks of Invermay--cast -their shadows over her again. - -She was back again in her old groove as if she had never left it--to -train her roses and clematis, to sow mignonette and sweet-scented -stocks, and plant white lilies for Ellinor to paint from; and, with -Jack by her side, with a solid silver collar (though one with spikes -would better have suited his pugnacious propensities), to wander when -dewy evening was falling, when the sheep were nibbling the grass -briskly and monotonously; and a gleam came from the old ingle-lum of -the kitchen, where Elspat was rolling out barley-meal cakes, and -where everything spoke of home--now more than ever home! - -'You see, Leslie darling,' said she, 'I feel for this place--we feel, -Ellinor and I--as no one else ever could, having always, during the -lifetime of papa and ever after, looked upon it as our own.' - -'And your own it is, pet Mary.' - -'And no other place, however grand or beautiful, could be like a home -to us.' - -The luxuries with which Colville could surround her--luxuries too -great for a mansion so small then--her carriage-horses, her pair of -ponies, her white Arab pad (all stabled as yet at the 'Dunkeld -Arms'), her set of sables, her jewellery, and Parisian toilettes, her -retinue of servants were the topics of 'the countryside,' and were -duly descanted on by Mademoiselle Rosette Patchouli for the -edification of her ladies; and the Honourable Blanche Gabrielle, with -her elevated eyebrows, foreign tricks of manner, and incipient little -French moustache, thought with anger of all she had lost. - -The pompous old lord, with his facial angle _à la_ Louis XIV., and -his cold-blooded yet perfectly aristocratic lady, would gladly have -shed the light of their countenances over Birkwoodbrae, but there -Mary's Christianity ended; and she would have nothing of them, -despite all good old Dr. Wodrow could urge. - -Robert was returning an officer, with a well-earned cluster of medals -on his breast, and he was coming straight to Kirktoun-Mailler and to -her. So Ellinor often seated herself on a mossy bank, and, leaning -her head of rich brown hair against the white stem of a silver birch, -would give herself up to memory, and many a happy and repentant -thought; while tears fell from her eyes--she was so happy! - -A little time ago it would have been torture for Ellinor to look upon -scenes so associated with Robert Wodrow, the lover she had wronged -and lost and mourned for; and it was painful still to do so, though -her heart throbbed with hope and joy, as he was returning to her with -the rank and position he had predicted to his mother. - -So Robert Wodrow will win the one woman of his heart! Hand and hand -they will go forward together into that new existence--that new world -of tame, married life, as it is deemed; but to them, a world of trust -and love it will be; while explanations and memories of the sweet and -bitter and perilous past will come in due course with the current of -their own happy and mutual thoughts. - - - -THE END. - - - -LONDON: PRINTED BY DUNCAN MACDONALD, BLENHEIM HOUSE. - - - - - - - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK COLVILLE OF THE GUARDS, VOLUME III -(OF 3) *** - -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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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 <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> - -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: Colville of the Guards, Volume III (of 3)</p> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: James Grant</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: October 20, 2021 [eBook #66582]</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Character set encoding: UTF-8</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Produced by: Al Haines</div> - -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK COLVILLE OF THE GUARDS, VOLUME III (OF 3) ***</div> - -<h1> -<br /><br /> - COLVILLE OF THE GUARDS<br /> -</h1> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t3b"> - BY<br /> -</p> - -<p class="t2"> - JAMES GRANT<br /> -</p> - -<p class="t3"> - AUTHOR OF<br /> - "THE ROMANCE OF WAR," "THE CAMERONIANS,"<br /> - "THE SCOTTISH CAVALIER,"<br /> - ETC., ETC.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> - IN THREE VOLUMES.<br /> -</p> - -<p class="t3"> - VOL. III.<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> - LONDON:<br /> - HURST AND BLACKETT, PUBLISHERS,<br /> - 13, GREAT MARLBOROUGH STREET.<br /> - 1885.<br /> -</p> - -<p class="t4"> - <i>All rights reserved.</i><br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="noindent"> - CONTENTS<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> - I. <a href="#chap01">The "Flying Foam"</a><br /> - II. <a href="#chap02">Ellinor</a><br /> - III. <a href="#chap03">The Gale</a><br /> - IV. <a href="#chap04">Alone!</a><br /> - V. <a href="#chap05">In the Bala Hissar</a><br /> - VI. <a href="#chap06">The Fort of Mahmoud Shah</a><br /> - VII. <a href="#chap07">The Fugitive</a><br /> - VIII. <a href="#chap08">The Ghilzie</a><br /> - IX. <a href="#chap09">A New Snare</a><br /> - X. <a href="#chap10">The House by the Fleethen</a><br /> - XI. <a href="#chap11">In Hamburg Still</a><br /> - XII. <a href="#chap12">The Plot Thickens</a><br /> - XIII. <a href="#chap13">With Roberts' Column</a><br /> - XIV. <a href="#chap14">The Battle of Charasiah</a><br /> - XV. <a href="#chap15">Enough Done for Honour</a><br /> - XVI. <a href="#chap16">The Fate of Ellinor</a><br /> - XVII. <a href="#chap17">Among the Birks of Invermay</a><br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap01"></a></p> - -<p class="t2"> -COLVILLE OF THE GUARDS. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER I. -<br /><br /> -THE 'FLYING FOAM.' -</h3> - -<p> -When Ellinor, whom we left some pages -back in a very perilous predicament, opened -her eyes again it was on an unfamiliar -scene—the cabin of a ship—and on several -male faces, all of which were also -unfamiliar save one; and her eyes half closed -again, as she was too weak and exhausted -to disentangle the confusion of her thoughts -and, half imagining she was in a horrible -dream, would have striven to sleep but for -the wet and sodden garments that clung -to her. -</p> - -<p> -'What has happened?' she moaned. -'Where am I?' -</p> - -<p> -'Safe aboard the "<i>Flying Foam</i>,"' said -the voice of the man who had rescued her, -the sailing-master of that vessel, -Mr. Rufane Ringbolt, whom we shall erelong -describe more fully. -</p> - -<p> -Her miserable plight and imminent -peril had been seen from the deck by that -personage, who at once had a boat lowered -from his craft, which lay at anchor in the -Elbe. He had saved her, and in a spirit -of mischief—or not knowing what else to -do with her—had brought her on board -the yacht of his employer, Mr. Adolphus -Dewsnap, whose present companion and -bosom-friend was Sir Redmond Sleath, -whose first emotions of perplexity and evil -on Ringbolt bringing off a lady changed to -those of blank astonishment and high -triumph on recognising in the half-drowned -girl—Ellinor Wellwood! -</p> - -<p> -Dewsnap rubbed his hands with -satisfaction. They had just landed two or -three peculiar lady friends at the -Brandenburgerhafen to go back to London by -steamer, or remain in gay Hamburg as -they listed, and already the <i>Flying Foam</i> -seemed a little lonely. -</p> - -<p> -'By Jove, you look more beautiful than -ever, Ellinor!' exclaimed Sleath, taking her -hands in his, as she reclined helplessly on -a sofa. 'My friend, Mr. Dewsnap—let -me introduce him—Miss Ellinor Wellwood. -This is a most unexpected joy!' -</p> - -<p> -'I am glad of the accident which gives -me the honour of making your acquaintance, -Miss Ellinor,' responded Mr. Dewsnap, -near whom she recognised the -grinning visage of Mr. John Gaiters, -Sleath's devoted valet. -</p> - -<p> -Seeing the helpless and terrified -condition she was in, Mr. Ringbolt almost -forced her to imbibe a little weak brandy -and water from a liqueur-frame that stood -on the cabin-table; and then, as there -were no female attendants on board the -yacht, with considerable readiness and -forethought, brought down from the deck -a Vierlander boat-woman, who had come -off with vegetables for the steward and -cook, to attend upon Ellinor. -</p> - -<p> -The Vierlander had some doubts and -scruples at first; but when a few twenty-groschen -pieces were slipped into her hand -these evaporated, and a smile of acquiescence -spread over her weather-beaten but -pleasant-looking countenance, for she had -soft, dark eyes, a <i>nez retrousse</i> decidedly, -and, if rather a large mouth, full red lips, -as Mr. Ringbolt could remark appreciatively. -</p> - -<p> -She took Ellinor into an inner cabin, -and soon changed her wet garments for -some that the late fair voyagers had left -behind them; and when, in fear and terror, -she implored to be set on shore, she was -told that it was impossible, as a heavy fog -had suddenly settled down on the land and -river. -</p> - -<p> -'Oh, heaven, what will become of me? -Mary! Mary!' wailed Ellinor, as she clung, -as if for protection, to the hands of the -picturesquely-clad Vierlander. -</p> - -<p> -'Hope I haven't brought you a Scotch -prize aboard, gentlemen,' said Mr. Ringbolt, -winking knowingly, as he mixed -himself a glass of grog. -</p> - -<p> -'A Scotch prize—what the devil is -that?' asked Mr. Dewsnap, whose -cognomen among his chums was generally -'Dolly.' -</p> - -<p> -'Well—it means a mistake—worse than -no prize—one likely to hamper the captors -with heavy legal expenses.' -</p> - -<p> -'A Scotch prize, and no mistake!' -exclaimed Sleath, as Ellinor, weak, tottering, -and scarcely able to stand or articulate, -appeared with her new attendant at the -door of the cabin, which was now so -darkened by the evening fog that the -steward was lighting the lamps. -</p> - -<p> -Sleath, approaching, attempted to take -her hand. -</p> - -<p> -'Don't, sir—dare to touch me!' she -cried, in a weak voice, while starting back. -</p> - -<p> -'She knows you, Sleath, by Jove!' -exclaimed Mr. Dolly Dewsnap, becoming -interested. -</p> - -<p> -'Rather,' said Sleath, with an ugly wink. -'Are you not glad to see me so -unexpectedly, Ellinor?' -</p> - -<p> -'Glad!' said she, shudderingly. -</p> - -<p> -Her old repugnance was now increased -tenfold, and mingled with genuine terror. -A man with such a bearing and with such -an expression as she read in the cold blue -eyes of Sleath, would, she knew, have no -mercy, so she turned to Dewsnap; but -there was little to encourage her in his -leery and <i>blasé</i>, though rather rubicund, -visage. -</p> - -<p> -'Put me on shore, sir, I entreat you,' -she said. -</p> - -<p> -'It is impossible—utterly impossible, till -the fog lifts,' said he, emphatically. -</p> - -<p> -'I shall die!' exclaimed Ellinor, in a -low, husky voice, as the light seemed to -leave her eyes. -</p> - -<p> -She put her tremulous hands to her -slender throat, for a painful lump seemed -to rise there—nay, was there—catching -her breath, while this meeting again, -under all the circumstances, with Sir -Redmond Sleath seemed 'one of those -strange and almost incredible things -which, however, we meet with every day -in that marvellous volume of romance, -real life.' -</p> - -<p> -She cowered and shrank back before -Sleath as if he were some wild animal, -which only excited in him a spirit of anger -and banter, while his friend Dewsnap -knew not what to think of the situation -as yet. -</p> - -<p> -'Altona agrees with you,' said the baronet, -jauntily. 'You are handsomer than -ever. Womanhood gains instead of loses -by maturity. But don't be so devilish -stuck up! And <i>what</i> were you doing in -Altona?' -</p> - -<p> -She made no reply, but now glanced -imploringly and appealingly to Ringbolt, -while Sleath resumed in this fashion— -</p> - -<p> -'I did not entrap you this evening—I -did not run away with you,' said he, -surveying with admiration the volume of her -rich brown hair, which was then brushed -out, and floated damp and at full length -over her shoulders, and she figured now -in a species of costume such as she had -never worn before, including a tailor-made -jacket and a round felt hat, part of the -wardrobe of one of Mr. Dolly Dewsnap's -recent fair voyagers, left for conveyance -back to London, and now likely to prove -exceedingly useful. And Ellinor was -almost passive in the hands of those -among whom Fate had so suddenly cast her. -</p> - -<p> -After her recent narrow escape from a -dreadful death, and now her present misery, -she was too feeble and too full of fear -to summon proper pride and just -indignation to her aid. -</p> - -<p> -'Fate has given you to me again,' -continued Sleath, 'so, why not stoop—yield -to the inevitable, and the delight of living -for and loving each other! We shall -remain on the Continent now, Ellinor, -and never again set foot in that -cold-blooded England.' -</p> - -<p> -A comical expression twinkled now in -the eyes of Mr. Dewsnap, who was an -undersized, but fleshy and flashy, personage, -about thirty years of age, and vulgar -in style and aspect, though dressed in -accurate yachting costume, with gilt -buttons and glazed boots. He knew not what -to think of the situation, we say. Though -far from straitlaced—though a thorough-paced -scamp, in fact—he was puzzled and -doubtful what to think of the past -relations of his chum Sir Redmond and this -young lady, who, he saw at a glance, was -neither fast nor vicious, as most of the -baronet's lady friends were; that she was -no dove from St. John's Wood, or 'girl of -the period' in any way. -</p> - -<p> -While Ringbolt beckoned Gaiters on -deck to obtain some information on the -subject from him, Sleath began again, in -low and softer voice, while hanging over -her. -</p> - -<p> -'We were about to run away together -before, and would have done so, but for -the brute your sister's dog. Now, Ellinor, -darling, we shall elope in earnest, and we -shall not be the first couple who have -done so, and lived happy ever after, like -couples in the old story books.' -</p> - -<p> -'Don't be alarmed—don't fear, Miss -Ellinor,' said Dewsnap, thinking it -necessary to say something, as she turned her -haggard eyes on him, and ignored the -presence of Sleath. -</p> - -<p> -'Don't fear!' says a writer. 'How often -in this world of terror and trouble has that -phrase been spoken, and how often will it -yet be spoken—in vain.' -</p> - -<p> -'Oh, sir, will you, in mercy, if you are a -man, set me on shore?' she implored again. -</p> - -<p> -Dewsnap shrugged his shoulders, and -looked at Sleath, while muttering -something about 'the fog.' -</p> - -<p> -'No!' exclaimed the latter, emphatically; -'and no accident but one sent from -heaven or hell shall rob me of you now!' -he added, almost savagely, through his -set teeth, as he recalled the castigation -he had met with at the hands of Robert -Wodrow and his own muttered vow of -vengeance. -</p> - -<p> -She gave him but one glance, yet it was -expressive of loathing and fear that were -unconquerable—as though he were some -thing of horror; but somehow her strength -of purpose and defiance piqued or attracted -him, and he loved her with all the coarseness -of his low nature. -</p> - -<p> -'How she fears that fellow!' thought -Ringbolt, who was peeping down the -skylight. 'There is some secret—some -strange story in all this.' -</p> - -<p> -Of this strange interview, the Vierlander -woman could make nothing; but, seeing -that her charge was about to sink at -their feet, she conveyed her into the little -cabin or state-room, in which Ellinor's -attire had been changed, and, closing the -door, laid her on a bed to recover strength -and composure, and there, fainting, feverish, -and well-nigh delirious, she clung -wildly, as if for protection, to her attendant. -</p> - -<p> -Meanwhile the night darkened, and the -fog undoubtedly deepened, so the yacht's -bell was clanged ever and anon, while the -two 'gentlemen,' with the sailing-master, -Ringbolt, and the mate sat down to a -luxurious dinner produced by Joe -Lobscouse, cook of the <i>Flying Foam</i>, who, as -a <i>chef</i>, was not equal to that of Dewsnap -at home, Ragout—but Monsieur Ragout -flatly declined to go to sea with that vessel, -or 'any oder Voam,' as he always said. -But in cooking Joe Lobscouse chiefly -excelled in the famous <i>olla podrida</i> which -bears his name, and is a compound of salt -meat, biscuits, potatoes, onions, and spices, -all minced and stewed together, and though -dearly loved by those before the mast, -such a dish was never seen in the cabin, of course. -</p> - -<p> -The wine went freely round, for Dewsnap -was lavish with his Clicquot and -Mumm's extra dry. -</p> - -<p> -'With all her air of ineffable innocence, -I believe that girl to be a deep one,' said -he, with a wink to Sleath, as he had no -belief in female purity whatever, and had -detestable views of society in general. -</p> - -<p> -'She agreed to run away with me once, -so why should I not go in for running -away with her now?' -</p> - -<p> -'Right you are, my boy!' said Dewsnap. -</p> - -<p> -'You remember that cad, Colville of the -Guards?' said Sleath, viciously. -</p> - -<p> -'I have heard of him,' replied Dewsnap, -evasively. 'Well?' -</p> - -<p> -'He trumped up a story about this girl -being a cousin of his to keep her, and her -sister too, by Jove, to himself—a fact, -Dolly; told me in London they were his -cousins, though he never said so when we -were at Dunkeld's place in Scotland. But -now he has gone to Cabul, and the devil -go with him!' -</p> - -<p> -'What are we to do if the Vierlander -woman won't remain on board after the fog -lifts?' asked the sailing-master, Ringbolt. -</p> - -<p> -'In that case we should have little difficulty -in getting a sharp girl to attend, or, -better still, some knowing and suggestive -elderly party,' said Sleath. -</p> - -<p> -'All right, sir—one has not far to look -in Hamburg for what you want.' -</p> - -<p> -'Dash it all!' exclaimed Dewsnap, who -was fast becoming rather inebriated (this -was not precisely what he said, but it looks -milder in print). 'This girl of yours, -Sleath, is likely to give us a deal of bother.' -</p> - -<p> -'Not at all. I shall soon find a way to -put an end to her nonsense,' growled Sir Redmond. -</p> - -<p> -Like the latter, Dewsnap always -suspected everybody until he knew they were -innocent, and, if innocent, he deemed them -fools. Thus he never doubted in his mind -that the apparent repugnance of Ellinor -was all coyness and affectation. -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Adolphus Dewsnap, son of the late -Alderman Sir Jephson Dewsnap, Knight, -a soap-boiler in Bow, where he made a -colossal fortune, was a fool and a cad of -the first water, who looked up to Sleath, -having a title, as one of 'the upper ten,' -though Sleath's father had been, like the -said alderman, a boy of the Foundling -Hospital, from whence perhaps emanate -many of the grotesque names we find in -London. -</p> - -<p> -The story of their titles is simple, and -one of everyday recurrence. -</p> - -<p> -The fathers of Sleath and Dewsnap had -been made respectively a baronet and a -knight for services rendered to the -Ministry; but as those of the former, though -equally important, had been performed -with less scruple, he had been rewarded -with the diploma of a baronet of Great -Britain, and a coat-of-arms, which taxed -the ingenuity of the entire College of -Heralds. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Redmond Sleath was a man of -violent temper naturally, especially when -his will was thwarted; thus he felt -himself humiliated, and, when inflamed with -wine, rendered almost savage by the spirit -of opposition and dismay he encountered -in Ellinor Wellwood, whom he still viewed -as a poor girl, without parents, friends, or -protector other than Leslie Colville, and -he now was far away indeed. -</p> - -<p> -Dewsnap occasionally had half-tipsy -thoughts of pretending to befriend this -stray girl, and getting her away -somehow 'on his own hook,' as he phrased -it to himself. -</p> - -<p> -But he had a wholesome fear of Sleath, -for, notwithstanding all his wealth, the -latter had obtained somehow a great -ascendency over him. -</p> - -<p> -'She knows too much about one now,' -muttered Sleath to himself. 'The -marriage dodge and the ailing uncle won't do -again—so how to deceive her?' -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - '"Sigh no more, ladies, sigh no more,<br /> - Men are deceivers ever."<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -so says Shakespeare,' said Dewsnap, tipsily -rolling his head from side to side; 'and -he was right; devilish few of us are worth -sighing for, I think.' -</p> - -<p> -'Dolly Dewsnap turned moralist!' -exclaimed Sleath, with a scornful laugh. -</p> - -<p> -'Steward, some more moist!' cried -Dewsnap. 'We'll drink Miss What-her-name's -jolly good health. What says Byron, or -some other fellow? -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "Man, being reasonable, must get drunk;<br /> - The best of life is but intoxication."<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -So let us—drink—drink as long'sh—there'sh—a -shot—in—the—locker!' he -added, in a voice that became every -moment more thick and 'feathery.' -</p> - -<p> -So in these perilous hands was Ellinor -Wellwood now. -</p> - -<p> -But for the presence and companionship -of the honest Vierlander woman, to whom -she clung, though of whose patois of -Danish or North German she could make -little or nothing, Ellinor thought she must -have died. -</p> - -<p> -Her own clothes had been destroyed by -her immersion, and meantime, when quite -conscious, she felt it something odious and -repellant to wear the clothes of others of -whom she knew nothing, but suspected -much. -</p> - -<p> -How long was this atrocity to be continued? -</p> - -<p> -She remained resolutely in the little -cabin, declining to enter the saloon, or -take food or refreshment of any kind, and, -when sense quite returned, she watched -from the little eyelet-hole—the port was -nothing more—of her sleeping-place for a -passing ship or boat, to which she might -shriek for aid; but dense dark mist -obscured everything, and she cast herself on -the bed in despair. -</p> - -<p> -The <i>Flying Foam</i> was cutter-rigged, and -sat in the water gracefully. She was -about a hundred and fifty tons burden, -and consequently had an immense -fore-and-aft boom-mainsail. Her deck was of -narrow deal planks, and was always white -as snow—white as swab and holystone -could make it. Her ten guns were all -burnished brass; the binnacles and bitts -were of polished mahogany; the cabins -were all panelled maple, with gilded -mouldings; everything there was alike -luxuriant and <i>recherché</i>; for the purse the old -soap-boiler left to his only son and heir -was a pretty long one; yet he was sometimes -a little in debt, and found yachting -then convenient. -</p> - -<p> -The crew consisted of twelve men all -told, including the sailing-master and Joe -Lobscouse, the cook. -</p> - -<p> -The former, Rufane Ringbolt, was, if -not a good, not a bad-looking man, about -forty years of age; his eyes were clear, -blue, and penetrating, but cunning, leery, -and shifting at times. The expression of -his mouth, about the curves especially, -was sinister and lascivious. There was a -self-confident and reckless bearing about -him too aggressive to be that of a gentleman -or officer, for he had been the latter -once, having served in Her Majesty's navy, -but been—dismissed. -</p> - -<p> -He and his captain had both fallen in -love with one of those fast young ladies -who are to be met with on the promenades -of Portsmouth and Plymouth; but, as she -preferred the young lieutenant to the -elderly captain, the latter was always -'down' on the former, who from that -moment became what is known in the -service as 'a marked man.' -</p> - -<p> -His temper was sorely tried, and he -soon found himself before a court-martial, -charged with neglect of duty and -insubordination. Never while he lived did -Ringbolt forget the day of that court-martial in -the cabin of the <i>Victory</i>, and amid his -potations it always came most vividly -before him in its bitter details, with the -sunshine streaming through the cabin -windows, the ripple on the harbour waves, -and Portsmouth Hard in the distance. -</p> - -<p> -There was the exulting and malevolent -face of the prosecutor when the court was -cleared for 'finding;' there was the ringing -of the bell that announced it was reopened, -and in custody of the master-at-arms, with -cocked hat and drawn sword, he—the -prisoner—appeared before the court, all -captains in full uniform, whose faces were -graven on his memory. -</p> - -<p> -During the proceedings his sword had -been laid on the table, with the point -towards the president and the hilt towards -himself; now he saw that its position was -reversed, and he knew that all was over, -and he went down the ship's side into a -shore boat a broken and degraded man! -</p> - -<p> -And as the young lady, the cause of all -the mischief, soon afterwards bestowed -her hand upon the elderly captain who had -'smashed him,' Ringbolt had ever after -but a very poor opinion of womankind. -</p> - -<p> -He felt some natural curiosity about the -damsel he had been the means of bringing -on board the cutter, but there all further -interest in her ended. -</p> - -<p> -He thought if Sir Redmond Sleath, -whose general character was well known -to him, knew the lady it was all right; he -had no fear of being deemed an accessory -in an abduction; for though Mr. Ringbolt -did not fear God, like many other men in -the world, he mightily feared the police. -</p> - -<p> -As for the Vierlander woman, she thought -the ailing girl was the wife of one of the -two Englanders, though she saw no -wedding-ring on her finger; but then, like all -foreigners, she thought the Englanders -very eccentric. -</p> - -<p> -For several days the fog, consequent to -swollen tides, rested on the Elbe, and the -cutter rode with her foresail loose, Sleath -having proposed a trip to Heligoland; but -Ellinor was ill—almost oblivious of -everything, while Dewsnap dared not land her, -and yet feared to keep her on board, -thinking that Sleath's story of her utter -friendlessness might be falsehood after all. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap02"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER II. -<br /><br /> -ELLINOR. -</h3> - -<p> -Sir Redmond Sleath had no pity for the -suspense and agony of mind now endured -by Mary; and as for Dewsnap and Ringbolt, -they knew nothing about her. -</p> - -<p> -During the days just mentioned the -clanging of the ship's bell from time to -time, and the din of fog horns from vessels -passing with less than half-steam up, -informed Ellinor that the fog still rested on -the river; yet every morning she heard the -rasping of the holystones as the deck was -cleaned, and the mysterious cry of 'soak -and send'—the order to pass the wet -swabs along. -</p> - -<p> -The terror she had undergone, the subsequent -affronts, unblushing and terrible—for -such she deemed Sleath's love-making—and -the uncertain future, all throbbed -in hot and wretched thought wildly -through her heart, till at last, when the -yacht was fairly under way, fainting-fits -and the torment of sea-sickness made -reflection, fear, and regret alike impossible, -for a kind of delirium came upon her, and -she grew oblivious of her surroundings; -but we are anticipating. -</p> - -<p> -'The girl may die on our hands, if this -sort of thing goes on,' said Dewsnap, 'and -that might prove deuced awkward for us all.' -</p> - -<p> -'I have thought of that, sir,' said Ringbolt; -'but one may as well whistle psalms -to the taff-rail——' -</p> - -<p> -'As attempt to move me—you are right, -Mr. Ringbolt,' interrupted Sleath; 'but -there is no dying in the case.' -</p> - -<p> -'Why not send her ashore——?' began -Dewsnap. -</p> - -<p> -'And relinquish her? Not if I know it.' -</p> - -<p> -'I mean to the boarding-house of the -old Frau Wyburg, near the Bleichen -Canal—you know the place.' -</p> - -<p> -'Few rascals in Hamburg don't. She -would keep her safe enough for me—it -is not a bad idea; but I shall try my -luck with her again before resorting to -<i>that</i>.' -</p> - -<p> -At the cruelty Dewsnap's suggestion -involved, even Ringbolt shook his head -dissentingly, and said, -</p> - -<p> -'Whatever you do, steer clear of her -husband—the Herr Wyburg, as he calls -himself—he is a dangerous and a shady -party—worse than the devil himself.' -</p> - -<p> -'You know Hamburg, then, Mr. Ringbolt?' -</p> - -<p> -'Rather!' replied the other, with a wink -that inferred a great deal. -</p> - -<p> -If this affair of Ellinor's abduction found -its way into any of the social weeklies, it -might form a very awkward thing for her; -but neither for Sir Redmond or his friend, -Mr. Adolphus Dewsnap, as both were now -rather out of the social 'scratch race.' -</p> - -<p> -'A pleasant story for the fair Blanche -to hear,' surmised Sleath, as he laughingly -made up a cigarette. -</p> - -<p> -'Who is she?' asked Dewsnap. -</p> - -<p> -'The daughter of Lord Dunkeld.' -</p> - -<p> -'He is, of course, a topsawyer,' said -Dewsnap, superciliously, as, notwithstanding -his wealth, he had been rather ignored -in society, 'and speaks in the House, I -suppose?' -</p> - -<p> -'Yes.' -</p> - -<p> -'But I have never heard of a word he said.' -</p> - -<p> -'Likely enough—he never gets beyond -"Hear, hear!" He is a Scots' representative peer.' -</p> - -<p> -'With a family tree, of course. D—n'm, -I would rather have a good gooseberry-bush!' -</p> - -<p> -The little state-room or cabin occupied -by Ellinor she saw had evidently and -recently been used by ladies before. In -the drawers of the dressing-glass were -hair-pins, an old kid glove, a broken jet -bracelet, and other etcetera. -</p> - -<p> -The door had a bolt on the inside. -</p> - -<p> -One night she found, to her terror, that -this had been removed! -</p> - -<p> -Her heart grew sick within her; but, -with the assistance of her attendant, she -contrived to barricade the door most -efficiently by placing a chair between it and -her bed, on which, without undressing, -she lay down with her temples throbbing -like every other pulse with terror. -</p> - -<p> -All grew still in the cutter, and not a -sound was heard but the ripples that ran -alongside as she strained at her anchor—so -very still that Ellinor was about to -sleep, when a sound startled her, and she -sprang up in dismay. -</p> - -<p> -Some one without was attempting to -force her door. Who that some one was -she doubted not; but, after a time, -finding himself completely baffled, with a -half-suppressed malediction, he went -away. -</p> - -<p> -Ellinor lay awake in an agony of mind -till morning dawned, when she opened the -eyelet port of her cabin, and looked out. -The fog was less thick, and a gasp of joy -escaped her on seeing a boat with several -men in it approaching. She shrieked to -them for succour, and waved her -handkerchief. On this they paused on their -oars, and seemed to confer with each -other, but, instead of drawing nearer, they -laughed, kissed their hands to her in -mockery, resumed their pulling, and -vanished into the mist. -</p> - -<p> -Had any boat's crew actually boarded -the yacht to make inquiries, Sleath was -quite prepared to assert that the lady on -board was his demented wife. -</p> - -<p> -With the fog resting on the Elbe, she -could see nothing of the land, and as the -cutter might—she thought—have shifted -her position in the night—she knew not -where she was. Altona, she thought, -might be miles away, yet it was only a -rifle-shot distant. But for its extreme -protraction, she might, at times, have thought -she was in a dream, and that all her -mental misery was but a provoking and -ghastly phantasmagoria. -</p> - -<p> -Days had elapsed now since her -separation from Mary and Mrs. Deroubigne. -They must, she knew, deem her -dead—drowned—and might have gone away, she -knew not where. -</p> - -<p> -Torn in this outrageous fashion from -the society of the only persons she loved -on earth! Exiled from happiness, doomed -to probable disgrace and misconstruction -of conduct. -</p> - -<p> -Her whole soul was wrapped up in one -idea—escape! But how was she to achieve -it, out of that accursed vessel, unless she -cast herself headlong into the river? She -certainly shrank from self-destruction, and -hoped that something—'that vague something, -the forlorn hope of the desperate'—might -intervene to save and set her free. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Redmond's persistent love-making -could draw no response from her. -</p> - -<p> -This enraged him; he ground his teeth, -while longing to take her in his arms, and -kiss her whether she would or not; yet -he dared not attempt to molest her when -he was sober and in daylight; something -in the girl's purity and disgust of him -repressed him. He dissembled, and said, -submissively, -</p> - -<p> -'With your love, Ellinor—in offering -mine—I would be a very different man -from what I have been.' -</p> - -<p> -'Your love!' she muttered, in a low -voice of scorn. -</p> - -<p> -'Yes.' -</p> - -<p> -'Dare you offer it again to me after all I -know?' -</p> - -<p> -'What a little tragedy spit-fire it is! -Well, it is perhaps too much to ask you to -love me, so I will only crave permission to -love you.' -</p> - -<p> -'Insult on insult! Oh, this is intolerable!' -exclaimed Ellinor, covering her face -with her hands. 'It is useless to remind -a man like you of his marriage.' -</p> - -<p> -Sleath's eyes gleamed dangerously. He -and Ellinor were alone in the saloon, as -Dewsnap and the sailing-master were -smoking on deck, and the companion-way -was kept bolted to prevent any attempt at -escape. -</p> - -<p> -'What did I know of life, of the world, -or of human nature when I met that artful -woman with the absurd name, Fubsby, and -took vows—if vows they were—for a -life-time. Married! Well, even if I were so -legally—which I don't quite admit—what -then? In the society in which we move—' -</p> - -<p> -'We?' -</p> - -<p> -'Dewsnap and I—flirtation forms the -great occupation—even accomplishment—of -married life on the part of those who -are bound by it. You have much to learn -yet, my simple little Ellinor.' -</p> - -<p> -'Do you call this conduct of yours -flirtation—this illegal and punishable abduction -of me—and insulting, loathly love-making?' -</p> - -<p> -'Loathly—an unpleasant phrase to use. -Instead of the wretched life you lead at -Paddington, I can give you one well worth -living,' said he, as if he addressed a girl at -a bar or a buffet, and in ignorance of all -that had passed since he had discovered -their residence in St. Mary's Terrace; -'and in turn, Ellinor, you will learn that a -faithful old lover is not to be despised.' -</p> - -<p> -'I have already learned that,' said -Ellinor, her tears beginning to fall hotly -as she thought of Robert Wodrow. -</p> - -<p> -'I am glad to hear you say so,' said -Sleath, thinking of himself, 'and to find -that after all you cannot forget a man who -has once loved you—and loves you so -fondly still, in spite of the coldness you -manifest and the obliquy you heap upon -him. How grand it is to forgive!' he -continued, attempting to take her hand. -'The literary bear Samuel Johnson never -seemed so wretched as a man and a moralist, -than when he gloried in loving a <i>good -hater</i>.' -</p> - -<p> -Ellinor prevented him from capturing -her hand by shudderingly retreating to -the other end of the saloon. The contrast -between the two men—the one who had -sought, and still sought, to ensnare, and -he whom she had wronged—who loved her -so well, and had found, as she thought, a -grave in that far away land, burned itself -into her heart and brain with growing -intensity, and wringing her hands, his -name escaped her in a low voice. -</p> - -<p> -'Robert—oh, Robert!' -</p> - -<p> -Would time ever heal—ever conquer her -reproachful heart-wound? -</p> - -<p> -Fury gathered in the heart of Sleath. -</p> - -<p> -'So,' said he, 'our mutual friend, -Mr. Robert Wodrow, was not born to be -hanged, if the newspaper accounts were -true, by Jove; ha! ha!' -</p> - -<p> -'Sir?' said Ellinor, scarcely understanding -his brutal jest. -</p> - -<p> -'Cheated the gallows—that is all.' -</p> - -<p> -In that speech he revealed the underlying -brutality of his nature—of the parvenu—the -son of the foundling; and, in -his wrath, he followed it up by another -home-thrust. -</p> - -<p> -'What will be said of you—what -thought, when it becomes known that -you have been alone, cruising on board -this yacht with us—with <i>me</i>?' -</p> - -<p> -He saw without pity the start, the -pained flush and pallor that crossed her -face by turns, as he coarsely put into words -the fear that had been hovering in her -own mind. -</p> - -<p> -She tried to reply to his cruel mockery; -her white lips unclosed, and then shut -again, for her voice died away upon them. -</p> - -<p> -With all his love-making, never once -did Sleath's heart—or what passed for -that organ—really soften towards the -helpless girl, and times there were -when he regarded her as a wolf might -have done. He still made a mockery of -the 'cousin story,' as he called it, and, -though Ellinor on one occasion condescended -to partially explain it, he did not, -and could not, believe it to be anything -else than some cunning scheme of -Colville; and as that individual, whom he -hated, was now in India, he had nothing -to fear from him, and only hoped he -might soon get 'knocked on the head.' -</p> - -<p> -At times there was something—what -shall we call it?—almost savage in the -admiration and exultation with which this -man regarded the creature who was so -entirely at his mercy, and who had been -brought to him as flotsam from the sea! -</p> - -<p> -He keenly relished, too, in one sense, -all <i>blasé</i> as he was, the air of resistance -with which she repulsed him; her bearing -was so different and apart from that of -most of the conventional girls he had -generally met—not that he much affected -the society of ladies generally. -</p> - -<p> -But he regarded them chiefly as a means -of excitement—like champagne, an unruly -horse, or a close run at <i>écarté</i>, and, so far -as Ellinor was concerned, he had a firm -desire to prove that his will was the -stronger of the two. -</p> - -<p> -At last he left her and went on deck. -She stretched out her arms on the saloon -table, and bowed her head on them in a -kind of dumb despair, as she thought over -all the degrading speeches to which she -had been subjected. -</p> - -<p> -'Oh,' thought she, 'that I could bury -my hot face among the cool, dewy roses -that bloom at Birkwoodbrae! There I -think I should get well—get well—get -strong and be myself again perhaps.' -</p> - -<p> -But instead, she was fated to get worse, -for the moment the fog lifted, sail was -made on the yacht, and—as stated in the -beginning of this chapter—the horrors of -sea-sickness assailed her, and she lay -prostrate in the little cabin. -</p> - -<p> -She had often been afraid to eat or -drink, lest what she partook of might be -drugged; she had read or heard of such -things; but she was past all such reflections -or considerations now. -</p> - -<p> -There was something daring and lawless -in the conduct of Sir Redmond with reference -to the whole affair; but of that, too, -she was—for the present time—oblivious. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap03"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER III. -<br /><br /> -THE GALE. -</h3> - -<p> -The crew of the cutter knew not what to -make of the solitary and singular -passenger they had on board, and whom the -Vierlander woman agreed to attend till -they reached Heligoland. -</p> - -<p> -They had often seen ladies on board -during runs to the Mediterranean and -elsewhere, who were certainly not quite the -<i>crême de la crême</i>; but that was no business -of theirs, and now, though Sleath would -have disdained to acknowledge it, and -Ellinor knew it not, the presence of -Dewsnap and Ringbolt (though neither of them -were very meritorious characters) proved -a species of protection to her, but the -sturdy, honest Vierlander more than all. -</p> - -<p> -Thus her tormentor resolved that he -would take her ashore with him in some -place, where she would be more completely -at his mercy among absolute strangers and -dependent upon him for existence. -</p> - -<p> -The crew of the yacht had saved her -life, so they could scarcely be accused of -abduction in keeping her on board during -the bewildering fog or the blowy weather -that succeeded it; but, without making the -slightest effort by the use of a well-manned -boat to put her ashore at Altona, they -were now beating against a rough, head -wind, and attempting to get out of the -Elbe for sea. -</p> - -<p> -To where and for what purpose? Heligoland -could only be touched at in passing. -Were they to haul up for England after -that? Such, were a few of the surmises -among the men forward. -</p> - -<p> -Mid-day after the fog lifted saw the -<i>Flying Foam</i> under weigh, with canvas set, -the foresail braced sharp up, the jib and -fore-and-aft mainsail set, the boom of the -latter well on board, as she was running -close-hauled against a head wind for the -mouth of the Elbe, some eighty miles -distant, and making long tacks as the river -widened. -</p> - -<p> -Altona and then Blankenese, a tiny -fishing village, with its houses scattered -along the green slope among the trees, -terraced over each other, were soon left -astern, and the head of the cutter pointed -towards Hamburg and then Stade, with -the Prussian flag flying on the ramparts of -Swingerschanze, where the White Horse -of Hanover will never fly again. -</p> - -<p> -The wind was blowing half a gale, and -some reefs were taken in the -boom-mainsail when the low batteries of Gluckstadt, -on the Danish side of the river, were in -sight, and darkness fell soon after the -last rays of the sun faded out on the spire -of Freyburg; and still the close-hauled -cutter, with her lights hung out, laboured -on, and ere long, as the river, with all its -treacherous shoals, widened, she became -assailed by impetuous attacks of the sea. -</p> - -<p> -The past day had been dull and hazy, -and the half-gale now subsided almost -entirely, but then the cutter rolled heavily, -adding to the misery of the unfortunate -Ellinor. Then the wind, blowing from -the level coast, would recover its strength, -and, changing its direction, become -furious, while a heavy swell came on, and -when dawn stole in the <i>Flying Foam</i>, still -close-hauled on the port tack, was -standing over towards Cuxhaven, the shore of -which is so low that the only objects seen -against the sky were the flagstaff of a -battery and the guns of the latter mounted -<i>en barbette</i>. -</p> - -<p> -There the river pilot went on shore, -when the cutter, lying on the next tack, -headed off to seaward, steered by Ringbolt -himself, close to the wind, with her -head just so near it as to keep the sails -full without shaking them. -</p> - -<p> -The baffling head-wind soon increased -to a tempest; the timbers of the cutter -groaned as she strained in the trough of -the sea one moment and rode over a great -wave the next, while the water poured in -volumes over her deck, gorging the -scuppers and carrying every loose article to -leeward, and ere long the canvas was -reduced until none was left than what was -necessary for steering purposes. -</p> - -<p> -All on board, even Dewsnap and Sleath, -had donned their 'storm toggery,' and -appeared on deck in oilskin jackets, with -sou'-westers tied under their chins, the -baronet making vows, as ever and anon -he clutched a belaying pin, floundered into -the loose bight of a rope, or had to oppose -his back to a drenching sea, that if he -were once safe on German or Danish soil, -he would tempt the perils of 'the briny' -no more. -</p> - -<p> -All day the cutter, though so beautifully -modelled and built, beat against the wind -without making progress, and now one of -those tempestuous gales that so often -sweep the North Sea began to spend its -fury on her. -</p> - -<p> -Rufane Ringbolt began to look thoughtful; -he had the well sounded; glanced at -the binnacle and aloft ever and anon; put -a fresh quid of tobacco in his cheek, and -took a survey of the weather. -</p> - -<p> -A cloud darker than usual and lower -down obscured the sky, spreading over the -zenith. A lambent glare of lightning shot -through its darkest or densest part; another -and another followed, and like the roar of -artillery the thunder hurtled through the -stormy air. -</p> - -<p> -The wind lulled for an instant, permitting -the <i>Flying Foam</i> to right herself from -her careen, but again the wind bellowed -over the sea, tearing away the foam and -snow-white spoondrift from the wave-crests, -and again the cutter was pressed -down to her bearings by its force and -fury. -</p> - -<p> -Pitchy darkness came on, but the vivid -lightning flashes were incessant. -</p> - -<p> -Owing to the obscurity, the difficulty of -the watch on deck in passing ropes to -each other became great, and the -alternate gleams, with a deluge of rain, -so blinded them that they were scarcely -able to execute an order; so, hoarsely -and angrily, Ringbolt summoned on -deck the watch below, and as they were -somewhat tardy in obeying, he resorted, -we are sorry to say, to much strong language. -</p> - -<p> -'Show a leg and turn out!' he bellowed -down the forecastle hatch, 'tumble up the -watch—quick, you infernal chowderheads, -you'll find it no child's play now.' -</p> - -<p> -As this reinforcement, only three or -four in number, came 'tumbling up,' half -dressed, the wind suddenly burst—but for -a few minutes only—from an unexpected -quarter, taking the cutter aback and -throwing her nearly on her beam-ends. -</p> - -<p> -The man steering was hurled right over -the wheel, the rest, with coils of rope and -whatever was loose or had become -loosened, were heaped in a mass of confusion -among the lee scuppers. In alarm that -the craft was foundering, Sir Redmond -Sleath, forgetting all about Ellinor, then -praying on her knees with arms stretched -over her bed—praying till sickness again -overpowered her—sought some Dutch -courage in the steward's pantry by -imbibing more than one stiff glass of brandy. -</p> - -<p> -Ringbolt was the first to gather himself -up. With an oath he reached the wheel; -the spokes revolved rapidly in his powerful -grasp, and the cutter was righted in time -to save the mast, but still intense darkness -reigned—the lights of Cuxhaven had long -since melted into the sea—with tremendous -peals of thunder, while vast masses -of water passed over the buoyant and -gallant cutter, and the blinding rain -and the bitter salt spray were mingled -together. -</p> - -<p> -The lamp still burned in the binnacle, -and the wetted garments and bronzed -visage of Ringbolt shone in its wavering -gleam as he grasped the spokes of the -wheel, planted his feet firmly on the deck -grating, and looked from time to time -aloft, though he could discern nothing. -</p> - -<p> -Day began to dawn, but the gale still -continued. The cutter was in the Elbe -mouth, though no land was in sight; but -Ringbolt knew that the two sandbanks -between what is called the Southern and -Northern Elbe lay ahead, but northward -of Merwark Island; and, just as this -reflection occurred to him, the mate came -aft in the grey dawn, his face expressive -of concern, to report 'the lower mast -sprung!' -</p> - -<p> -This startling intelligence proved true, -for Ringbolt found the mast had been thus -injured in the gale—a great crack ran -obliquely through it, rendering it quite -unsafe for carrying the usual quantity of -sail thereon, and he knew that unless -instant precautions were taken the cutter -might speedily become a wreck aloft, -tidings which made the teeth of the selfish -Sleath chatter in his head. -</p> - -<p> -With all his errors and backslidings, -Ringbolt was equal to the occasion, and -became the English seaman and the officer -at once. -</p> - -<p> -'Sprung it is, by heavens!' he exclaimed. -'Take in sail—away aloft to the cap with -the top-maul, out with the fid, stand by the -mast-rope, and lower away the topmast.' -</p> - -<p> -Three active fellows were soon up at the -cross-trees. A stroke or two of the maul -knocked out the square bar (with a shoulder -at one end) that supported the weight -of the topmast, which quickly slid down in -front of the foremast through its upper -and lower cap, and was at once made -fast. -</p> - -<p> -This eased alike the cutter and the -mast, but it was necessary to put her -before the wind, and run up the river -again, as it would have been rashness to -venture into the North Sea with a crippled -mast. The storm had nearly spent itself, -but thunder could still be heard in the -distance between the lulls of the wind. -</p> - -<p> -So the <i>Flying Foam</i> was once more -running up the Elbe, to be repaired at -Hamburg, with her topsail-yard down on -the cap, her jib and staysail set, her fore -and aft mainsail close reefed, and the -boom so well eased off that its end -skipped the waves at times as she rolled -heavily before the wind. -</p> - -<p> -At Cuxhaven another pilot, to take her -up the river, came on board from the -yacht, which, by their statutes, the -inhabitants of that place are bound to have -always at sea, or near the outermost buoy, -to conduct any vessel requiring assistance; -and, aided ere long by a tug-steamer, the -<i>Flying Foam</i>, passing Altona in the night, -when dawn came in again, was moored -for repair in the outer portion of the -Binnen Hafen, under the shadow of the -lofty and wonderfully picturesque old -houses of the Stubbenhuck. -</p> - -<p> -And now, having recovered from his -fear and tribulation. Sir Redmond Sleath -began to consider in what way he could -delude his luckless victim ashore. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap04"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER IV. -<br /><br /> -ALONE! -</h3> - -<p> -In furtherance of his own cruel and -nefarious schemes against Ellinor, Sir -Redmond had forbidden the Vierlander -attendant to inform her of where the yacht -was now, and a few silver kassengelds -effectually sealed her lips, while Ellinor, -still confined to her little cabin, was -prostrate in strength, and only thankful that -the din of the storm had passed away, and -the awful pitching and rolling of the cutter -was at an end. -</p> - -<p> -Dewsnap had fortified himself with so -many potations of brandy and water during -the last few hours that he was scarcely -sober now, and swayed about on his feet -swearing it was still 'the roll of the ship.' -</p> - -<p> -'My watch has stopped,' said he, in a -thick voice, to Sleath. -</p> - -<p> -'Indeed,' said the baronet, not much -interested in the matter. -</p> - -<p> -'I tried to wind it up last night, and -mistook the corkscrew for a key.' -</p> - -<p> -'After such a devil of a time as we have -had of it I don't wonder at anything.' -</p> - -<p> -Meanwhile Sleath was still considering -how he would induce Ellinor to trust -herself on shore with him, after writing to -announce her coming to the Frau Wyburg's -residence, or <i>pension</i> as she was pleased -to call it; and Dewsnap was busy imbibing -a 'pick-me-up' of iced seltzer and brandy, -while conning over the sporting intelligence -at several recent meetings—the -plates run for, the bets at starting, the -Welter sweepstakes, and so forth, without -even caring to open the letters the steward -had brought him from the Poste Restante -at the Post Strasse, when suddenly a loud -interjection escaped him. -</p> - -<p> -'What is up?' asked Sleath, looking up -from his coffee. -</p> - -<p> -'The devil to pay in the East!' -</p> - -<p> -'How?' -</p> - -<p> -'A Reuter's telegram announcing the -murder of Sir Louis Cavagnari, and -massacre of the entire embassy at Cabul!' -</p> - -<p> -'The entire lot?' -</p> - -<p> -'Escort and every man-jack of the -Europeans!' -</p> - -<p> -Sleath was of course interested, and -read for himself the brief and alarming -despatch. -</p> - -<p> -'So that cad Colville is wiped out then—a -devilish good job too!' was his first -comment, and he contrived soon to let -Ellinor Wellwood know the fate of her -'cousin,' as he called Colville in mockery. -</p> - -<p> -Her first thoughts were of Mary. -</p> - -<p> -More than ever did Ellinor long to be -with her now. She strove to leave her -bed, but sank helplessly back upon the -pillow, and lay there still choked by dry -sobs, her face pallid to the lips; in her -half-closed eyes an unnatural gleam that -came of mental and bodily suffering, while -her hands were clenched at times till the -nails almost cut the tender palms. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -Ringbolt, the sailing-master, had a keen -appreciation of the charming in female -nature, and was able to admire every -variety of the sex that came under his -observation. -</p> - -<p> -The wonderful beauty and delicacy of -Ellinor inflamed his fancy. He saw that -she seemed, somehow, utterly helpless—a -mysterious waif, cast upon the waters; he -saw that she trembled under the -unpleasant gaze of Dewsnap, and simply loathed -Sleath, who sought to make himself the -arbiter of her destiny; so Mr. Rufane -Ringbolt thought why should he not enter -stakes for this prize? Why should not -he try to make his innings when others -failed? -</p> - -<p> -She had been picked up like a derelict -craft, and by himself, too; and then -Hamburg—dissipated Hamburg—filled with -people of many races and creeds—was -just the place where people may play the -wildest pranks with ease. -</p> - -<p> -Thus Ringbolt had been a kind of -protection in one way to Ellinor, over whom -he kept an eye, on his own account, and, -as Sleath began to think, was always on -the watch, as he was one who took what -he called 'dog watches,' or 'dog snoozes,' -and could sleep by night or day with -wonderful facility, and apparently with one -eye open. -</p> - -<p> -And now that the yacht was moored -along the quay of the Binnen Hafen, close -by such thoroughfares as the Deich Strasse, -and would soon be dismasted and in the -riggers' hands, he thought the time had -come when he might venture on some -scheme of gaining Ellinor's gratitude -first by pretending to succour and free -her. -</p> - -<p> -And, as these ideas occurred to him, his -eyes sparkled, the colour in his -grog-pimpled cheeks deepened, and he mumbled -about with his lips like a man who had -been in the habit of chewing twist tobacco, -which was the case with Ringbolt after he -was turned out of the navy and took to -the yachting line of business. -</p> - -<p> -The watchfulness we have referred to -had not been unnoticed, and Sleath began -to suspect that, if Ringbolt was not doing -this for himself, he must be acting in the -interests of Mr. Dolly Dewsnap, and thus -some action on his own part was -imperatively necessary. -</p> - -<p> -He was becoming exasperated, piqued, -and disgusted, moreover, with Ellinor's -trembling abhorrence of him, and began -secretly to arrange with the faithful and -unscrupulous Gaiters a scheme for having -her more completely in his power ashore, -and luring her quietly from the yacht on -the pretence of restoring her to -Mrs. Deroubigne. -</p> - -<p> -'The embassy massacred—every officer -and soldier destroyed!' exclaimed the -latter, when she read the same startling -telegram that gave Sir Redmond such -extreme satisfaction. 'The hope of her -future—her soul—her existence gone—poor -Mary! Poor darling! <i>How</i> am I -to break this to her?' -</p> - -<p> -But broken it had to be, and then to -Mary came hours of agony—such hours -as in our lives count for years! -</p> - -<p> -'Ellinor drowned and—and Colville -slain.' -</p> - -<p> -Mary Wellwood was stunned and sorely -stricken, and bowed her head as if the -waves of Destiny were rolling over her. -</p> - -<p> -She read the paragraph, so comprehensive -and yet so terrible in its brevity, -again and again, till it seemed to pierce -like burning needles into her heart and -brain. -</p> - -<p> -So Leslie Colville was gone—dead—destroyed -in what manner or after what -torment she would never, never know. -</p> - -<p> -His face and figure—his voice and smile -came vividly and poignantly to memory as -she sat like one turned to stone, with the -kind arms of Mrs. Deroubigne around her, -caressing her head on her bosom. -</p> - -<p> -The dire calamity she had hourly dreaded -might happen, had come at last, and -yet there seemed to be an impossibility in -the realisation of it. -</p> - -<p> -Oh, why did men become soldiers? -</p> - -<p> -'Alone—alone in the world now!' wailed -Mary. -</p> - -<p> -'My darling, you have me and my little -girls to love you as sisters,' said -Mrs. Deroubigne, folding the deathly-pale girl -again and again to her motherly breast; -but, passionate though her sympathy and -regard, Mary shivered, and thought who -could ever replace Ellinor as a sister, and -felt, as she said, most fearfully alone. -</p> - -<p> -Her mind at times became confused. -Something more had happened to her—she -scarcely knew what it was. -</p> - -<p> -Never again did it seem possible that -she could take any interest in the life of -the world and its daily routine. She was -apathetic—careless of what was done with -herself or anything around her. -</p> - -<p> -Existence and its ties seemed over and -done with, yet her present calamity seemed -also a kind of dream to her. 'Sometimes -in great trouble,' says a writer, 'the brain -acts in this way of itself—it will return to -events of long ago and recall them vividly, -while the immediate moment becomes -remote. But the reaction is all the more -intense for this mental rest; and when the -mind returns to the contemplation of the -<i>present</i> it is to see with greater vividness.' -</p> - -<p> -'The embassy massacred to a man!' How -often was she to reiterate mentally -that appalling line? -</p> - -<p> -It was now Mary's evil fortune to feel -perhaps—nay, surely—more keenly than -her sister had done this new calamity, for -poor Ellinor had certainly ceased for a -time to love, though she had never failed -to respect Robert Wodrow, now deemed -also with the dead. -</p> - -<p> -All was silent in that pretty villa by -the broad and shining Elbe—shining in -the light of the moon. The fire glowed in -the tall, cylindrical, porcelain stove in a -corner of the room; that room ere while -decorated and prepared for her and Ellinor -so lovingly by Mrs. Deroubigne, and there -she lay restless, sleepless, and alone, too -bewildered to realise the dire calamity that -had befallen her, and been acted in blood -and wrath so far, far away, and yet but a -few hours ago. -</p> - -<p> -The curtains were drawn back, and the -red glow of the half-open stove and of -the night-light shed a radiance on her -surroundings, but whenever her eyes -wandered they seemed to see something that -was familiar and yet strange to them. -</p> - -<p> -Her mind was every way confused and -involved, and poor Jack from time to time -licked her hand unnoticed. -</p> - -<p> -There was, however, always the one -prominent idea. Leslie Colville, the one -love of her heart, her affianced husband, -was dead—killed cruelly—horribly, she -doubted not, but in what fashion she -knew not, and, fortunately perhaps, should -never know. -</p> - -<p> -And ever and anon aching memory went -back to that sunny noon when she first -met him, yet knew him not, as they fished -together by the bonnie Birks of Invermay. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap05"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER V. -<br /><br /> -IN THE BALA HISSAR. -</h3> - -<p> -Our advanced post was in the Kurram -Valley—the only part of the Afghan border -which had been trodden by the foot of a -Briton since the previous Cabul war—a -post, the boundary of the so-called -'scientific frontier,' which had been held by a -body of our troops, European and native, -for some three months during the summer -of this eventful year; and all had been -suffering more or less from the breathless -heat and malaria, dulness, and that growing -<i>ennui</i> which a languid game of polo or -lawn-tennis (without ladies) utterly failed -to ameliorate; and all thought that, as -anything exciting was better than nothing, -a brush with the Mongols, the Ahmed, or -Hassan Keyls would be a relief. -</p> - -<p> -Many officers began to think, even to -talk, hopefully of leave of absence to visit -India, to look up old chums in Peshawur, -Rawul Pindi, or Lahore; or when longer -leave for Europe must be given; when -news of the attack on the Residency at -Cabul, and the massacre of the envoy and -his people fell upon them like a clap of -thunder! -</p> - -<p> -These terrible tidings were brought by -Taimur, a Usbeg Tartar, who served as a -trooper in the Guide escort—a man of -undoubted daring, bravery, and hardihood—who -had achieved his escape from the -city of blood by the aid of some of his -own race who were among the Cabulee -troops that had come in from Herat. -</p> - -<p> -After twelve days' wandering, and -enduring great suffering in those savage and -stupendous mountain gorges that lie -between Cabul and the Kotal of Lundikhani, -he reached the advanced post in the -Kurram Valley, in rags, famished, and every -way in a deplorable state of destitution, to -make his report, which was instantly -telegraphed by the officer commanding to the -Viceroy at Simla. -</p> - -<p> -'Everyone cut off as close as a whistle! -By Jove, colonel, we'll have to be up and -doing something,' said Algy Redhaven, the -hussar, as he lounged, pipe in mouth, and -hands in the pockets of his pyjamas, into -the tent of old Spatterdash. -</p> - -<p> -The early summer months had been -passed peacefully and pleasantly by our -embassy at Cabul, notwithstanding the -petty insults and annoyance we have -already referred to. In the cool, breezy -morning, when the sun was coming up -above the hills that look down on the clear, -shallow, and rapid Cabul flowing towards -the Indus; or in the evening, when he was -setting behind the summits of the Haft -Kotal, Sir Louis Cavagnari, attended by -Colville and others, escorted by a few of -the Guide Corps, rode through the city to -view places of interest in the neighbourhood, -sometimes towards the Chardeh -Valley eastward, or the plains of -Killa-Kazi on the west. -</p> - -<p> -Their quarters in the picturesque and -ancient Bala Hissar were rendered as -comfortable as furniture of English style -and make—relics of Elphinstone's slaughtered -army and plundered cantonments—could -make them; but the walls of the -rooms were scribbled over with ribald -pencillings, anti-English hits and insolent -political allusions there was no mistaking, -left there by members of the late Russian -mission; while 'from the Ameer himself, -as from the commandant, dalis of fruit -and vegetables, fish, milk, and sweetmeats -were daily provided; and whatever Cabul -could offer in the way of entertainment or -amusement was readily forthcoming.' -</p> - -<p> -All seemed so peaceful, and the chances -of renewed hostility so remote, that -Colville was about to make arrangements for -quitting the Embassy, resigning his -appointment, and procuring an escort -through the passes to Lundi Khani Khotal -in the Kurram Valley on his homeward way. -</p> - -<p> -He also intended to take with him -Robert Wodrow. The latter had changed -greatly of late for the better. In his -face, that which had been mere good looks -had deepened into earnestness of purpose -in every feature. If, under the heat of -the summer sun, his cheek was browner -and less round, his mouth, in expression, -was a trifle harder and more set, changes -indicative of one who was aware that he -had his way in the world to hew out, and -due to Colville's influence, presence, and -friendly encouragement. -</p> - -<p> -He found him one day whistling loudly -while grooming his horse in the stables of -the Bala Hissar. -</p> - -<p> -'Wodrow, old man,' said Colville, -laughingly, 'by Jove, I am glad to hear you -whistling. Your lips seemed only capable -of sighing once. But the air you indulge -in is a sad one.' -</p> - -<p> -'It is "The Birks of Invermay," sir. I -was thinking as usual of old times, and of -those from whom we are so far away.' -</p> - -<p> -'Many a thousand miles, even as the -crow flies.' -</p> - -<p> -All remained, to all appearance, peaceful, -we say, at Cabul, till one fatal morning, -about eight o'clock, when the Turkistani -and Ordal Regiments, consisting -of several battalions in the Ameer's -army, were mustered for arrears of pay in -one of the stately courts of the Bala -Hissar. -</p> - -<p> -Daud Shah, a sirdir or general of the -army—a venerable soldier—could only -distribute one month's pay, but, with shrill -and vehement shouts that made every -carved arcade and shaded balcony re-echo, -they demanded two. -</p> - -<p> -'Two months' pay or blood!' -</p> - -<p> -The sirdir attempted to remonstrate -with them, on which tumult and disorder -pervaded their ranks, and they broke out -into open mutiny. -</p> - -<p> -Then another sirdir—whose name is not -unknown to the reader—exclaimed, with a -voice loud enough to be heard above the -fast-growing disturbance, -</p> - -<p> -'Let us kill the Envoy and then the -Ameer who would sell us to the Feringhees!' -</p> - -<p> -'Deen! deen! deen and death,' shouted -all, and, rushing into the greater court of -the palace, they proceeded to stone and -loot without mercy the servants of the -Residency. -</p> - -<p> -Enraged by this rough treatment, -Taimur, the Usbeg Tartar, and some of his -Guide comrades, without temporising or -waiting for the orders of their officers, -betook them to their carbines and opened a -fire upon the multitude from the open -windows and stately galleries overlooking -the court. -</p> - -<p> -Colville and other officers called upon -them to cease firing, and they did so for a -time. -</p> - -<p> -Then it was that the Sirdir Mahmoud -Shah, a man whose fanaticism made him -all but a Ghazi, shook his hand upwards -at the gallery where they stood, and called, -with a shrill voice, -</p> - -<p> -'Brutes! beasts! vermin! filthy Feringhees! -Enjoy the pleasures of life for a -brief time, but your speedy departure shall -be into the flames of hell, with water like -molten brass to drink, and ye shall say, as -the Koran tells us—"Oh, Malec, intercede -for us, that the Lord may end us by -annihilation."' -</p> - -<p> -He spoke in Afghani, yet many understood -him, and an officer said, -</p> - -<p> -'These beggars quote their Koran as -glibly as Cromwell's Puritans did the -Bible, and with the same view to blood -and slaughter.' -</p> - -<p> -Led by Mahmoud chiefly, the mutineers -rushed away to procure their arms and -ammunition, with which they returned in -a few minutes, inflamed by all the hate -and rancour of race and religion, and -pitilessly resolved to massacre all. -</p> - -<p> -The time of their absence has been given -as about fifteen minutes, and, with horses -at hand, it is said that all in the Residency -might have made their escape, had they -chosen to attempt it, but either they -trusted to the sacred character of the -embassy, underrated the actual amount -of peril, or, like bold Britons, were -determined to face it, and show fight. -</p> - -<p> -The roof of the Residency was an untenable -place, being commanded by the flat -roofs and windows of loftier houses, yet -there Sir Louis Cavagnari and his little -band were gathered, and there, making -a kind of rampart or shelter-trench with -what they could collect, they resolved to -sell their lives as dearly as possible in -conflict with the savage hordes—the sea of -human beings that surged around them. -</p> - -<p> -The mutineers, all well-armed with rifles -and bayonets, and supplied with excellent -ammunition, were now joined by the fanatical -multitudes of the city, by robbers -intent on plunder, budmashes, and villains -of every kind, seeking blood and outrage, -brandishing long juzails, sabres, and -charahs, or deadly native knives, with -points like needles and edges like -razors—blades that flashed and glanced in the -sunshine like their bloodshot and malevolent -eyes; their strange garments, wide-sleeved -camises, sheepskin cloaks, and -bright-coloured loonghees or caps, adding -to the picturesqueness of the savage and -bewildering scene, overlooked by the -pillared arcades, with horse-shoe arches, and -the carved balconies on ponderous marble -brackets projecting from the palace walls, -and all half revealed and half hidden amid -the eddying smoke of pistols and musketry. -</p> - -<p> -All were yelling, till their yells ended -in a death-shriek, as a shot struck them -down; many were quoting the inevitable -Koran, or hurling offensive and abusive -epithets, as they crushed upon and jostled -each other, while seething and surging -around their victims. -</p> - -<p> -Hope of victory—even of successful -defence—the latter could have none. For -them nothing was left now but to struggle -to the last of their blood and breath, and -until the last man perished in his agony! -</p> - -<p> -Colville, while handling the carbine of -a Guide who had fallen near him, even in -that desperate time, thought how hideous -looked the sea of human faces into which -he was sending shot after shot, as fast as -he could drop them into the block of the -breechloader. -</p> - -<p> -'The faces of the Afghans,' says a -writer, 'often develop into those of the -most villainous-looking scoundrels. -Shylock, Caliban, and Sycorax and his dam -all have numerous representatives, though -I think the first is the commonest type, -on account of the decidedly Jewish cast -of most Cabuli features, and the low -cunning and cruelty which supplies the only -animation in their otherwise stolid -countenances, true indices of the mind -beneath—fatalist by creed; false, murderous, and -tyrannical by education. In this description,' -he adds, 'I do not include the Kuzzil -Bash (Persian), or Hindoo settlers, who -preserve their own distinctive features, -both mental and physical.' -</p> - -<p> -For five hours had the unequal conflict -been waged, when Sir Louis Cavagnari, -who was in the thick of it, was wounded -in the forehead by a ball that had -ricochetted from a wall near him. -</p> - -<p> -Close and terrible was the fire poured -by the Guides with their carbines and by -the few European officers into the dense -masses of the foe beneath, and deadly that -fire proved—the front files, if they could -be termed so, melted away or fell over -each other in heaps, but fresh men pushed -forward from the rear and took their -places, serving only to feed the harvest of -death gathered at the hands of those who -fought not for existence—the hope of that -was quite lost now—but for vengeance. -</p> - -<p> -'Allah! Allah! Allah! Deen! Deen! -Deen!' were the shouts that loaded the air -below, rising above the sputtering roar of -the firearms. On the other side was no -sound, but a yell or a groan as a man fell -wounded, too often mortally. 'La Ilah -illa Allah!' ('There is no God but God.') -</p> - -<p> -Yet devilry, cruelty, and slaughter were -there supreme. -</p> - -<p> -'I wish we could make a headlong rush -on them and clear the square by a charge—cut -our way through,' cried Colville; -'but we have not men enough, and then -Sir Louis Cavagnari and all the wounded -would be butchered if left behind.' -</p> - -<p> -'How fast the devils fire!' exclaimed a -young officer; 'my revolver barrel is quite -hot already.' -</p> - -<p> -'You'll soon get used to the whizz of -the bullets,' replied Colville, whose face if -now pale with desperation, was filled with -an expression of determination too. 'Keep -cool, men—aim well, and let every shot -tell.' -</p> - -<p> -But amid that dense mob below—a -literal sea of upturned and dark, revengeful -faces, with glistening teeth and flashing -eyes—no bullet could miss a mark; -while all around were heard the crash of -falling bricks, beams, and plaster, the yells -of the Afghans, the shrieks of their women, -and the roar of the fast gathering flames. -</p> - -<p> -'Mark that fellow!' cried several officers, -indicating a leader in a green loonghee, who -seemed to have a charmed life—Mahmoud -Shah, in fact. -</p> - -<p> -'I should like to pick that devil off,' said -Robert Wodrow, dropping a cartridge into -the breechblock of his carbine. 'He -seems to be head cock and bottle-washer -of the whole shindy!' he added, in the -phraseology of his student days. His -ballet sped, but only grazed the shoulder -of the old fanatic, and added to the latter's -fury. -</p> - -<p> -A soldier of the Guides who had been -wounded in the temple fell headlong from -the flat roof into the mass below, and was -hewn by tulwars and charahs to -pieces—literally chopped into ounce pieces. -</p> - -<p> -In the desperation of their circumstances -it was resolved to appeal for succour and -protection to the Ameer, who, while all -this deadly work was in progress, remained -with indifference apparently in his palace, -and amid the ladies of his harem. -</p> - -<p> -The ambassador, whose wound had been -dressed by Dr. Kelly, desired a moonshi to -write a letter imploring royal aid, but the -scribe was so terrified by the uproar that -his fingers were unable to hold the pen; -so one was written in Afghani by Taimar, -the Guide, and this missive Robert Wodrow -boldly volunteered to deliver in person. -</p> - -<p> -'You are throwing your life away, -Wodrow,' said Colville. 'The risk is -frightful.' -</p> - -<p> -'So be it, Captain Colville; but better -mine than yours. You have something to -live for. What have I?' -</p> - -<p> -Untwisting a couple of cartridges into a -saucer, he made a species of black paste -therewith, and, blackening his face before -a mirror, contrived still further to disguise -himself with some Afghan clothing that -was found in the Residency—a brown -camise with loose wide sleeves, a furred -<i>choga</i> or mantle, a <i>loonghee</i>, and armed with -a tulwar and shield, like a budmash. He -placed the letter in his pocket, and issuing -from a secret underground doorway passed -from the Bala Hissar unnoticed by the -crowds which surged around it, and -brandishing his weapon and shouting ever and -anon like the rest, 'Deen! Deen!' he -contrived to reach the Ameer, to whose hands -he forwarded the letter through Daud -Shah, a friendly sirdir or general. -</p> - -<p> -It was speedily brought back with a -brief reply written upon it by the prince— -</p> - -<p> -'If God willeth. I am just making -arrangements.' -</p> - -<p> -The brave Wodrow experienced many -difficulties in making his way back, for the -hostile crowds were increasing every -moment, and to reach the Residency he had -at one time literally to act the part of a -leader, and risk the fire of his own friends, -among whom, however, he soon found -himself, and delivered the message of the -Ameer to the half-conscious Cavagnari, -who was suffering sorely from his wound. -</p> - -<p> -But no succour came, and the hopeless -and desperate resistance was continued. -</p> - -<p> -A second letter to the Ameer was now -despatched; but its bearer, a Hindoo, was -discovered and cut to pieces. -</p> - -<p> -After two hours more fighting—hours -that added to the heaps of dead and dying -below the Bala Hissar walls, and to the -fearful casualties in the ranks of the small -band fighting for existence within the -Residency—Lieutenant Hamilton sent out -Taimar, the guide, with an open letter -promising the Ameer's mutineers six -months' pay if they dispersed. -</p> - -<p> -Courageous Taimar, clad in his uniform -as a guide-soldier—drab, laced, piped, and -faced with scarlet—went among them, but -he was not listened to. The letter was -torn to shreds; his uniform was rent off -him; he was robbed of all he had, severely -beaten, and tossed into a vault, where he -lay insensible till he made his escape under -cloud of night; and that he was not slain -outright was simply due to his Usbeg -blood and features. And eventually he -reached our outpost at Lundi-Khani Kotal -in the Kurram Valley. -</p> - -<p> -After his return to the Residency, amid -the confusion and defence of so many -points of the roof on which the whole of -its slender garrison were now gathered, -Robert Wodrow for a time was unable to -discover Colville, and feared that he had -fallen. -</p> - -<p> -After a little time he discovered him on -the summit of an isolated tower, where, -with four men, he had taken post to -enfilade the fire of the mutineers; but his -four soldiers were all shot down in quick -succession. Wodrow saw him turn them -on their faces, take the ammunition from -their pouches, and proceed single-handed -to defend with a musket the tower which -was now in flames, and was ere long -enveloped in smoke. -</p> - -<p> -When a puff of wind blew the latter -aside for a moment a cry escaped Robert -Wodrow, for Colville had vanished, and in -a few minutes after, the tower fell -thundering down in a mass of blazing ruins. -</p> - -<p> -The assailants had now discovered that -loftier buildings, as stated, commanded -the flat roof of the Residency, the upper -storey of which was open on every side, -being merely a sleeping place during the hot -months of the year, and consisting of a -roof, wattled and plastered, resting on -slender pillars of wood, painted and gaily -gilded. -</p> - -<p> -Thus the insurgents were enabled by a -fire, chiefly directed from the loftier -windows and roof of the arsenal, to drive the -desperate and now despairing defenders -downward from floor to floor, till they -ultimately reached the last, upon the -ground; and there, for no less than four -hours more, they made a noble and heroic -resistance against the fanatical and -furious multitude which hurled its strength -against them, so close at times that the -young officers of Cavagnari's suite were -seen to fire their pistols right into the -mouths and eyes of their savage assailants. -</p> - -<p> -Weary, breathless, and suffering from -an intense thirst, incident to hot exertion -and fierce excitement—a thirst they had -neither the means nor the time to allay—their -eyes bloodshot, their lips baked, -their undressed wounds in many instances -streaming with blood, their faces pale as -death—the death that was so soon to -overtake them all—the handful of Europeans -and Guide soldiers maintained the unequal -conflict with a heroism that mingled with -despair. -</p> - -<p> -It was at this crisis in their fate that -Daud Shah, a fine old Afghan sirdir, came -riding from the Ameer's palace, through -the crowds of people, and called upon -them 'to desist from their infamous crime!' -</p> - -<p> -He was a man above fifty years of age, -with a stern face of a decidedly Jewish -type, an aquiline nose, and high cheekbones, -dark and restless eyes, having -beetling brows tufted with grizzly hair, and -a long grey beard that descended to his -shawl-girdle. -</p> - -<p> -But his appearance only added to the -rancorous fury of the people and the -mutineers. Rushing on him with rage, -Mahmoud Shah tore him from his saddle; he -was wounded by a bayonet, severely stoned, -and borne away to the palace, covered -with blood and in a dying condition. -</p> - -<p> -Two other officers of high rank—one a -sirdir or general—also strove to quell the -disturbance, but were fired on and -compelled to seek safety in flight. -</p> - -<p> -That portion of the Bala Hissar assigned -as a Residency was far too large for the -little garrison that had then to defend it, -and it was now surrounded on its four -sides by that ferocious multitude of armed -men bent on slaughter and cruelty, led on -by an equally frantic band of moollahs. -</p> - -<p> -'They are flinging lighted brands on -the roof from the arsenal,' cried some -one, and overhead the roar of flames -was soon heard as the open upper storey -we have described became sheeted with -fire. -</p> - -<p> -'If that is the case, a little time will -see us all gone to the bow-wows!' cried -Robert Wodrow, whom danger always -seemed to exhilarate and make more -reckless. -</p> - -<p> -Despairing of all succour from the false -Ameer, and as if eager to die hard, and in -doing so to anticipate their doom, the few -surviving heroes of the little garrison -charged out sword in hand, and -plunged—thrusting with the point, and hewing -with the edge—into the human sea that -filled the court between the Bala Hissar -gate, just as night was closing, and there -they all perished to a man, save one—perished -just as the roof of the Residency -came crashing down amid black smoke and -crackling flames, thus preserving the bodies -of Sir Louis Cavagnari, of Dr. Kelly, and -several others from the last insults of a -savage enemy. -</p> - -<p> -Aided by the wild confusion, the sudden -darkness of the tropical night, and not a -little by his disguised visage and native -costume, Robert Wodrow achieved a -passage into the streets of the city, and -from thence, as all thoroughfares save -those in the vicinity of the Bala Hissar -were deserted, into the open plain near -the city, and there he threaded his way -without molestation among the apple, -citron, and olive groves, the mud forts and -garden walls, till he found a plantation of -sugar-canes, and then, weary, worn, covered -with bruises, famished, and athirst—ready -almost to weep—after the past -excitement of that terrible day, and the loss -of all his friends and comrades—last, not -least, Leslie Colville, he flung himself on -the ground to recover breath and to think -over the situation. -</p> - -<p> -Day was dawning, and tipping with red -and gold the summits of the Bala Hissar, -when Wodrow awoke to find that he had -been asleep for some hours, and now rose, -stiff and sore in every limb. The flames -of the conflagration had died out, but a -black pall of smoke overhung the towers -and battlements of the ancient and -picturesque palatial fortress, which, with a -recklessness of courage for which it is -difficult to account, he actually resolved to -revisit, as if to see the last—the end of -everything. -</p> - -<p> -He had the caution, however, to readjust -his disguise, to carefully load his -revolver, and by untwisting another -cartridge and mixing the powder in a -dew-laden leaf, to carefully retouch his face, -using the case of his watch as a mirror, -and to re-blacken his hands and wrists, -before he ventured near the scene of the -last night's horrors. -</p> - -<p> -Of the Residency, the blackened walls -and smouldering ashes alone remained, -and as these furnished no 'loot,' the place -was deserted by all save the dead. -</p> - -<p> -Of the latter there lay heaped over each -other, and soaked in each other's blood, some -five hundred Afghans, attesting—irrespective -of wounded—of the stubborn vigour -of the defence, for every cartridge fired -by the desperate few must have told more -than double among the masses. -</p> - -<p> -The marble arches and pillars of the -beautiful carved arcades and open -galleries, the walls and pavement, were all -spotted and starred by the bullets of rifles -and carbines, and clots and splashes of -blood were everywhere, with the corpses -of the Europeans and Guides, easily -distinguished by their uniforms. The solitary -survivor saw the body of the young and -gallant Hamilton, stripped of his braided -jacket and woefully gashed, lying across a -mountain gun, over which he had fallen -or been flung by his slayers, 'and beyond -it, in a trench which the Afghans had -failed to storm, were heaped, thick and -charred by fire, the corpses of the heroic Guides. -Each man had died where he stood, and in -their rear were the smouldering ruins of -the building wherein Cavagnari, Kelly, and -others were lying.' -</p> - -<p> -Robert Wodrow gave a glance at the -blackened ruins of the tower on the -summit of which he had last seen Colville, -rifle in hand, resisting to the last, and a -bitter sigh escaped him as he quitted the -city, and resolutely turned his face and -steps towards the passes, through which -he hoped to reach our outpost at Lundi -Khani Kotal, more than a hundred and -fifty miles distant, amid hostile tribes and -savage ways, by the Latband Pass, -Jugdulluk, Gundamuck, and the Khoord -Khyber, at the very contemplation of which -his heart sank with despair. -</p> - -<p> -'All about the city,' said a print of the -time, 'there were Afghans enough—the -whole hive seemed restless with -multitudinous motion; but when the solitary -traveller (after the hideous uproar of the -past night) had cleared the city precincts, -the old desolation of the dreary hill -country lay stretched before him, and -along the rugged ways hardly a man was -moving.' -</p> - -<p> -Yet the rugged paths through the -stupendous passes had many dangers for -the disguised hussar. Tigers, wolves, and -hyenas were to be met with, making sleep -and night alike perilous and horrible; and -to these were added by day the chance -of discovery by the equally savage -tribesmen, and a death by torture, such as -only the Oriental mind can conceive, at -their merciless hands. -</p> - -<p> -Yet, though aware of all he had to -encounter, Robert Wodrow took to the -hills as a mountaineer born, and strode -resolutely and manfully on. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap06"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER VI. -<br /><br /> -THE FORT OF MAHMOUD SHAH. -</h3> - -<p> -Resolutely had Leslie Colville defended -the summit of the somewhat isolated tower -on which he had taken post with only -four chosen marksmen, intending to -enfilade the front attack on the Residency, -and pick off the best shots in possession -of the lofty arsenal roof; but he had soon -the mortification to see each of his men -perish in quick succession, and to find -the tower in flames beneath him, cutting -off his descent, and leaving him helplessly -exposed to a fire from those who must -soon have smitten him down but for the -frantic fury with which they impeded each -other's aim and operations; and while thus -perilously situated he heard friendly -voices—or such he thought them to be—calling -to him from below in Hindustani. -</p> - -<p> -He looked down, and on a gun-platform -about twenty feet from where he stood -were four natives, Hindostanees, as -appeared by their costume—the turban, with -a couple of scarfs each, one wrapped -round the body, and the other over the -shoulders, leaving the rest of the body -uncovered—holding outstretched a strong -horse-rug or blanket, into which they -invited him to drop himself, and trust to -them and to their united strength for -breaking his fall. -</p> - -<p> -'Chullo, sahib—golee chulte!' (come -along, sir—the balls are flying) cried one. -</p> - -<p> -'Chullo, bhai—chullo, pultania sahib!' -(Come on, brother—come, battalion officer) -cried the other three, also in a kind of -Hindustani; so Colville never doubted but -that they were Hindoos—perhaps -camp-followers—and Hindoos they certainly -were. -</p> - -<p> -He paused for a moment, irresolute -whether to trust to them or—what? Meet -death amid the flames which had cut off -his retreat, and all chance of rejoining -his struggling companions—the flames -that were fast ascending in the tower -from storey to storey, and would soon be -bursting through the flat roof on which -he stood, for already the smoke was rising -like a black column through the trap-door -by which he had reached it. -</p> - -<p> -He failed to see the fierce expression of -mockery and derision which was in the -dark faces of the four men below, and, -deeming it wiser to risk and trust them -than to perish amid the flames, he dropped -into the rug, in which they received him -with shrill yells of triumph, for the -plunder of his person, combined with his -murder, were their objects. -</p> - -<p> -But Colville was too quick for them. -In leaping over he had relinquished the -rifle he had been using for his sword, and -with the latter, after baffling an attempt -they made to muffle or bundle him up in -the rug, while they were staggering -beneath his weight, he waved them back just -as they rushed upon him with their sharp -charahs, and such blind hate and fury that -they all wounded each other. -</p> - -<p> -He then put his back against the wall, -and kept them at bay with his sword-blade -and levelled revolver, which, although they -knew not, was unfortunately empty. -</p> - -<p> -Streaming with blood from the wounds -they had inflicted on each other, they -strove to close in upon him, and speedily -several budmashes with sword and shield, -and other villains variously armed, came -upon the scene, and their cries were loud -and fierce. -</p> - -<p> -'Astafferullah! put his head in a bhoosa -bag, or one stuffed with chillies!' -</p> - -<p> -'No, let it be in a bag of red pepper, -and then let him die the death of the -doomed!' -</p> - -<p> -That he would have been bayoneted or -shot and cut to pieces there and then was -beyond a doubt, had not a horseman -furiously intervened by dashing his steed -between him and the rabble, who recoiled -in recognition of his presence and authority -as a sirdir, and he presented his right -hand to Colville, exclaiming, -</p> - -<p> -'I ate of your bread and salt on that -night when you saved me from the Wahabi -dogs in Jellalabad, and when I swore by -the Koran and by the Five Keys of Knowledge -never to forget your kindness—nor -do I now!' -</p> - -<p> -As he spoke Colville, even in that -supreme moment of excitement and most -deadly peril, recognised again Mahmoud -Shah, the mock Hadji, with the Israeliteish -features, the complexion fairer than -most Afghans, and the livid sword-mark -that traversed his right cheek. -</p> - -<p> -The fanatic, for such he was, had for -Colville gratitude, and when that exists -there is always good-will. -</p> - -<p> -Mechanically the latter grasped the hand -held out to him, while the scowling mob, -with gleaming eyes and weapons, dark and -scowling visages, drew back. -</p> - -<p> -'So—sirdir—you and the Hadji Mahmoud -are the same?' exclaimed Colville. -</p> - -<p> -'One and the same—I am that eater of -dirt!' he added, to show his humility. -</p> - -<p> -He ordered Colville to give up his arms, -and, sending him under a strong escort of -his own people out of the city, once more -addressed himself to the congenial task of -pressing the attack upon the -Residency—a task which he continued to the bitter -end. -</p> - -<p> -Meanwhile Colville was conveyed, a -prisoner, to one of the many forts which -stud the plain of Cabul and the heights of -Beymaroo that overhang it. -</p> - -<p> -Mahmoud had suddenly become his -protector in fulfilment of the old precept -of being true to his salt; and Colville, -who in his heart was intensely thankful to -Heaven for the succour afforded to him, -while so many poor fellows were perishing -without mercy, felt confident that -while with Mahmoud, or under his care, -he was tolerably safe; for it is well known -that after eating the bread and salt of -another, or even salt alone, one, according -to Oriental ideas, comes under peculiar -obligations of protection and friendship. -</p> - -<p> -As an illustration of this, Lane tells us, -in one of his valuable notes to the -'Arabian Tales,' of a daring robber, who, one -night, excavated a passage into the palace -of the Governor of Sijistan, where he made -up a great bale of gold and jewels; he -was in the act of carrying it off, when, in -the dark, his foot happened to strike -against something hard on the floor. -Believing it to be a jewel of some kind—perhaps -a great diamond—he picked it up, -and on applying his tongue to it, found -that it was nothing else but a lump of rock -salt. -</p> - -<p> -Bitter was his disappointment, 'for -having once tasted the salt of the ocean, his -aversion gave way to his respect for the -laws of hospitality; and throwing down -his precious booty, he left it behind him, -and withdrew empty-handed to his habitation.' -</p> - -<p> -But Colville remembered, as old Colonel -Spatterdash had told him scores of times, -how Asiatics can quibble in this very -matter; and that in the great Mutiny how -often the Sepoys swore 'to be true to their -salt,' and not to murder their officers, but -stood placidly and approvingly by while -the Pandies of other regiments slaughtered -them. -</p> - -<p> -In this fashion Mahmoud Shah might be -true to <i>his</i> salt. Who can say or fathom -the cruel duplicity of the Oriental mind -and nature? -</p> - -<p> -And, with these painful surmises and -doubts in his mind, Colville heard the roar -of the conflict in and around the doomed -Residency dying away in the distance as -the gates of the fort by the Cabul river -were closed behind him. -</p> - -<p> -As he entered, he looked back to the -fatal Bala Hissar. The smoke of the -conflict, mingled with that of the -conflagration, was eddying about its picturesque -towers and embattled masses on the mountain -slope, all bathed in ruddy splendour -by the setting sun. What was being -enacted there now? he thought. Was all -over now? Had the last of the brave -fallen? -</p> - -<p> -After sunset Mahmoud Shah arrived at -the fort, which was his own patrimonial -stronghold, and assured Colville that -all was ended—the last man was slain, -and the valour of the Cabulees had been -successful. -</p> - -<p> -'Success shows the hand of God, and of -Mahomet the Prophet, blessed be their -names!' he added. -</p> - -<p> -His arrival at the fort was the signal for -a species of ovation among his followers, -who mustered some hundreds, all villainous -but picturesque tatterdemalions, -whose arms were as varied as the fashion -and colours of their costume. Many had -girdles of leather, from which hung bags -for bullets, slugs, and flints, powder-horns -and cases for cartridges. Others had -cummerbunds, in which were stuck pistols, -daggers, charahs, and British bayonets in -such numbers that it would have been -puzzling to find room for one weapon -more. -</p> - -<p> -In addition to all this paraphernalia, -every man had a tulwar, and a juzail, or -flint or match-lock rifle, in his hand. -</p> - -<p> -Colville was compelled to dissemble his -hatred and horror of those who had so -wantonly slaughtered his brave companions, -many of whose bright, joyous, and -handsome English faces came so painfully -to memory at that time, all lying cold and -gashed and bloody among the ruins of the -Residency; and that horror was blended -with a great disgust of his host and -protector, when he recalled the tragedy his -treachery was supposed to have brought -to pass with the squadron of the 10th -Hussars; that he was a spy who had -imposed upon himself at Jellalabad, and -had led the Ameer's rebel tribes against -us on more than one occasion; but with -all this, policy, and his own personal -safety, and hope of ultimate freedom -compelled him to dissemble. -</p> - -<p> -'Are you thirsty, sahib?' was the first -question Mahmoud asked him on quitting -his saddle. -</p> - -<p> -'Yes; dying with it! Who could be -otherwise after the horrors and exertion of -the past day?' exclaimed Colville. -</p> - -<p> -'Drink, then—the commands of the -Prophet are nothing to you,' said Mahmoud, -as he gave him a large cup filled with -Cabul wine (which has a flavour not unlike -full-bodied Madeira), and with it a bunch -of the grapes of Ghuznee, which are greatly -superior to those that grow in the plain -of Cabul; and Colville, half-sinking with -exhaustion caused by bodily fatigue and -fierce over-excitement, thought he had -never had refreshment more grateful and -acceptable. -</p> - -<p> -Built of mud and sun-dried bricks, the -fort of Mahmoud was strong and spacious; -it was square, with a squat, round tower -at each angle and a keep in the centre, -well loopholed for musketry, armed with -jingals, and those huge swivel blunderbusses -named zumbooracks, which, as firearms, -are often as perilous to those who -work them as to those at whom they are -levelled. -</p> - -<p> -The fort had two gates, in its eastern -and western faces; these were protected -by demi-bastions, and there was a moat, -once filled by the Cabul, but now dry, -neglected, and overgrown by vines and -orange-trees. -</p> - -<p> -The courtyard was spacious. In the -keep was <i>Dewan-i-Am</i>, or audience-chamber, -surrounded by a divan or continuous -seat; beyond it was the <i>Dewan-i-Kas</i>, or -principal private apartment, and in the -towers were lodged the servants of the -establishment; apart from all was a zenana, -or women's apartments, and elsewhere, in -every corner, were stowed away the -garrison, composed of the <i>budmashes</i> and -other tatterdemalions just described. -</p> - -<p> -When not in the courtyard or on the -summit of the keep—always closely -watched—Colville was generally in the -<i>Dewan-i-Kas</i>, where he shared the meals of the -Mahmoud. Here carpets were laid on the -floor, and there was a kind of chair or -stool of state, with cushions for arms, and -before it lay the tulwar, shield, and pistols -of the sirdir, as in a place of honour. -</p> - -<p> -The fort stood—and no doubt still -stands—close to a bend of the clear and -otherwise shallow Cabul, a river which is -formed by the junction of the Ghorbund -and Panjshir, and after dividing into three -branches it reunites and flows into the -Indus, three miles above the great fortress -of Attock. -</p> - -<p> -And Colville, in his prison in the fort—for -a prison to all intents and purposes it -was—lay for many a weary hour on a -charpoy, or native bed, listening to the -murmur of the stream as it flowed over -its pebbled bed towards the mountain -passes that led to India, and marvelled -what was in store for him; how long his -captivity would last; whether Mahmoud -wanted a ransom or held him as a kind -of hostage: for that the destruction of the -embassy would be amply avenged none -could doubt. Then how would it fare -with the crafty Ameer? -</p> - -<p> -'He is the son of an animal!' said -Mahmoud, on one occasion, scornfully; 'he -plays fast and loose with your people and -his own. According to an old fable, every -man bears on his back a wallet in which -are deposited his weaknesses and his vices, -which, though concealed from his own -eyes, are open to the inspection of those -of others. Thus we see that the Ameer, -if not the tool of Britain, will be the slave -of the Russ.' -</p> - -<p> -'Through his duplicity I am a prisoner.' -</p> - -<p> -'Better that than lying yonder in the -Bala Hissar,' said Mahmoud, with a cruel -leer in his glittering black eyes. -</p> - -<p> -'I am most unfortunate!' -</p> - -<p> -'It was to be, and so it is.' -</p> - -<p> -The doctrine of fatalism meets and -covers everything with the Mussulmans, -who can thus throw on the Deity the -results of their own negligence. -</p> - -<p> -'If it is God's will that a man should -die, let him die,' said Mahmoud, sententiously. -'If it be His will that he should -live, let him live.' -</p> - -<p> -Colville thought this was uncommonly -like the creed of the 'Peculiar People,' in -the city of London. -</p> - -<p> -Though somewhat bored by the prayers -and piety of Mahmoud Shah, and greatly -disgusted by his ferocity, Colville had not -much otherwise to complain of during his -detention in the fort; and preferred those -times when he was left to himself, when -the sirdir secluded himself in his zenana, -or was absent at the many weighty and -evidently important conferences which -were being daily held in the palace of -Yakoub Khan. 'It is not good that man -should be alone,' we are told; so, as -Mahmoud the pious had at least four wives in -his zenana, he spent much of his precious -time there. -</p> - -<p> -The food which he shared with his host -was excellent—it could not be said at -table, as it was spread on the floor; but, -as knives, forks, and spoons are things -unknown as yet under the shadow of the -Hindoo Kush, it was rather repellant to -our fastidious Guardsman to see Mahmoud -rend asunder with his fingers a boiled -chicken or daintily roasted hill <i>chuckore</i> -(or Greek partridge), to hand him a piece -with his brown-hued digits, which ever -and anon he put half-way down his throat. -</p> - -<p> -'Eat, sahib,' he would say; 'remember -the proverb—touch the stomach and you -injure the vitals, but cherish it and you -gain heart.' -</p> - -<p> -'But my heart sinks when I think of -the friends I have lost through vile -treachery.' -</p> - -<p> -'It was the will of God your people -should perish in the Bala Hissar,' replied -Mahmoud, quietly, as he filled his mouth -with a handful of boiled rice and green -chillies. 'What says the Koran? "When -God willeth evil on a people there shall be -none to avert it, neither shall they have -any protector beside Him. It is He who -causeth the lightning to appear unto you, -to strike fear, to raise hope, and who -formeth the pregnant clouds." Praise God -for His bounty; eat and have no heavy -thoughts. The Prophet has written every -man's fatal hour upon his forehead. It is -done at his birth. Yours had not come, on -that day in the Bala Hissar.' -</p> - -<p> -Then Colville would think how strange -and striking were his surroundings, and -from the bearded face of the sirdir who -squatted on a carpet opposite to him his -eyes would wander round the <i>Dewan-i-Kas</i> -where they were eating the evening meal. -</p> - -<p> -A piece of raw cotton floating in oil that -was held in an old ladle wedged into the -bare stone wall cast its fitful and lurid -glare on the dark faces, the gleaming eyes, -the quaint costumes, and oriental weapons -of the sirdir's men, who marvelled that he -fed and housed an unbeliever, instead of -cutting his throat and tossing his carcase -to the jackals of the Beymaroo hills; an -unbeliever, who shaved his chin and not -his head; but Allah! how strange were -the customs for the <i>Feringhee-logue</i>! -</p> - -<p> -'And fortunate it was for you,' -Mahmoud resumed after a time, when his -chibouque was brought him, 'that your -hour had not come; but come it will, and -how will it fare with you then? The -paradise which is promised to the pious is -not for you,' he continued, plunging at -once, as usual with the Afghans, into the -Koran; 'therein are rivers of incorruptible -water and of milk, the taste whereof -changeth not; rivers of wine, pleasant -unto those who drink; and of clarified -honey; and therein shall be fruit of a -thousand kinds, and a pardon from the -Lord. Shall the man for whom all these -are prepared by the Lord of the Daybreak, -be as he who must dwell for ever in the -fires of hell, and will have boiling water -given him to drink, which shall burst his -bowels?' -</p> - -<p> -And ever and anon Colville was treated -to quotations much to the same purpose. -</p> - -<p> -Seeing him one day gazing at a photo -of Mary Wellwood, the sirdir became at -once full of curiosity. -</p> - -<p> -'One of your wives?' he asked. -</p> - -<p> -'No; but one who is to be my wife, I hope.' -</p> - -<p> -'She cannot be of rank—she has no -ring in her nose. Is she moon-faced?' (<i>i.e.</i>, -handsome.) -</p> - -<p> -'Very; as you see.' -</p> - -<p> -'And you love her very much?' -</p> - -<p> -'I do indeed.' -</p> - -<p> -'Better than your best horse, your -camels, and all your fat-tailed sheep?' -</p> - -<p> -'Better than all the world.' -</p> - -<p> -'Inshallah; perhaps you may see her -soon again.' -</p> - -<p> -'Please God, I shall.' -</p> - -<p> -'Do you keep her locked up—in care of -your father, or who—as you are absent, -and gone to the wars?' -</p> - -<p> -'Why should I do so?' -</p> - -<p> -'Many of our people, if of rank, lock up -their wives when they travel.' -</p> - -<p> -'Why?' -</p> - -<p> -'They may be false and artful.' -</p> - -<p> -'And what do you do then?' -</p> - -<p> -He only smiled grimly, and touched the -carved silver hilt of the charah in his -crimson shawl girdle. -</p> - -<p> -'You treat them with a spirit of selfishness,' -said Colville; 'but I know that even -Christian men do the same, by making -more severe laws for women than themselves, -forgetting that by so doing they -raise them above themselves.' -</p> - -<p> -But the sirdir knew not what to make -of this idea, and so remained silent. -</p> - -<p> -Nearly three weeks had passed since -Colville became a prisoner in the fort of -Mahmoud Shah, and no tidings had reached -him of what was doing in the world -of India, beyond the Kyber and other -passes, or of what was transpiring in the -city of Cabul. -</p> - -<p> -He knew that tidings of the massacre -then must have been flashed home by the -electric telegraph long since, and that poor -Mary would now be mourning for him, as -one who was no more! -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap07"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER VII. -<br /><br /> -THE FUGITIVE. -</h3> - -<p> -Ignorant that Taimur, the Usbeg Tartar, -the Guide soldier, was preceding him, -Robert Wodrow—full of longing for dire -and terrible vengeance on those who had -destroyed his comrades and friends, among -them more especially Leslie Colville, as -he never doubted—trod resolutely on to -reach Lundi-Khana Kotal, or any outpost -at the head of the Kurram Valley. -</p> - -<p> -From the circumstance of Robert Wodrow -being a gentleman by birth and education, -and that both had loved two sisters, -there had been a bond of friendship -between the staff-captain and the luckless -private of hussars. -</p> - -<p> -They were Europeans—another tie; and -more than all, when so far away from all -who loved them, they were 'brother Scots.' -</p> - -<p> -Hungry and athirst—though the latter -suffering could be appeased at any passing -stream—the evening of the day after the -massacre, when Wodrow finally turned -his back upon the smoking ruins of the -Residency, saw him disguised and armed -as we have described, resolutely pursuing -the mountain-path which led, he knew, -from Cabul, past Buthak towards the -Lataband Pass, a distance of twenty-two miles; -but, disguised though he was, he felt that -it was necessary for his safety to avoid all -towns and villages, among which, no doubt, -news of the destruction of the Feringhees -must have spread like wildfire. -</p> - -<p> -He found himself in a solitude—a place -of the most intense loneliness, so he paused -to rest himself awhile beside a runnel that -trickled down the rocks, and to gather a -few wild apples and grapes. On one side -rose the Katcha mountains to the height -of eight thousand feet; on the other were -mountains quite as lofty. It was such a -scene and place as would require the pencil -of Salvator Rosa to depict, so deep were -the shadows in the dark and savage passes, -so red the light that glowed on the eastern -slopes of the mighty hills as the sun veered -westward. -</p> - -<p> -Vast groves of jelgoozeh pines, black -and solemn, cast a gloom in some places; -in others the sturdy, snake-like roots of the -banyan-tree curled and twisted themselves -among the rocks, and through the holes -and crevices of a little ruined musjid, or -wayside house of prayer, built of red -and white marble, which was open and empty. -</p> - -<p> -Wodrow looked at it wistfully, as if he -would select it as a place wherein to pass -the night and escape the mountain dews; -but he thought of the snakes he had seen, -and scorpions too, and remembered, with -a shudder, the huge and venomous reptiles -of that kind he had seen on the plains of -Peshawur. -</p> - -<p> -He selected a crevice in the rocks where -a quantity of dry and dead leaves had been -drifted by the wind, put his Afghan shield -and tulwar under his head as a pillow, -muffled his furred choga around him, and, -soldier-like, accustomed to sleep anywhere, -anyhow, or at any time, he slept till -morning was well in, so much had he been -overcome by the weariness of the preceding -twenty-four hours. -</p> - -<p> -Another ten miles would bring him, he -knew, to Jugdulluk—that place of evil -omen and blood—towards which the lonely -fugitive trod on through black and -frowning gorges, where fantastic rocks, savage -and weird, flung grey and purple shadows -that made the deeper passes dark as -midnight, and there the waters of the -mountains could be seen reflecting the sky -above, as they rolled through the obscurity -so far down below. -</p> - -<p> -In some parts the mountains rose the -perfection of naked desolation, appalling -in their silence and sublimity, looking like -the scene of some Titanic conflict in ages -unknown, and yet every foot of the way -there had been traced in British blood—the -blood of Elphinstone's massacred army -in the war of 1841. -</p> - -<p> -At one point, as Robert Wodrow was -proceeding along a narrow ledge above a -giddy precipice, where the mists of a -foaming torrent streamed upward from -the deep dark chasm below, he had a -narrow escape, at the thought of which his -blood ran cold. -</p> - -<p> -At one place, treading over a loose spot, -the earth and splintered rock gave way -beneath his feet, and before he could -recover himself he fell upon a lower ledge, -some fifteen feet beneath, where he lay for -a time, half stunned and scarcely daring -to breathe. -</p> - -<p> -At that moment death seemed close indeed! -</p> - -<p> -He was only five yards from the edge -of a precipice, the height of which his -mind failed to fathom, and, as one in a -dreadful dream, he crawled upward and -away from it on his hands and knees, till -a surer and less perilous route—path it -could not be called—was won, and he -resumed his way with a prayer of thankfulness -on his lips and in his heart—one of -the prayers he had learned as a child at -his mother's knee in the old manse of -Kirktoun-Mailler. -</p> - -<p> -His anxiety and disquietude were -increased now by hearing more than once -amid these profound solitudes the moaning -yell of a hyæna, responded to by that other -peculiar sound which seems to be something -between the wail of a child and -the howl of a dog—the cry of the jackal; -thus, the peril of hostile men apart, he was -not sorry when he came suddenly upon a -species of village in a hollow of the -hills—we say a species of village, as it did not -consist of built houses, but only some seven -or eight huts. -</p> - -<p> -The dwellings, poor and mean, were -formed of stakes cut from the adjacent -forest, with walls formed of wicker-work -plastered with mud, and called 'wattle and -dab;' leaves of trees and jungle grass -formed the roof, and all around them was -jungle tainting the air, and to the European -very suggestive of fever and miasma. -</p> - -<p> -The inhabitants were rude and simple -shepherds, whose <i>doombas</i>, or fat-tailed -Persian sheep, were grazing in the -neighbouring valley, and they seemed somewhat -awed by the gaunt, tall, and keen-eyed -warrior, who, with shield and tulwar, -pistols and dagger, his floating loongee and -cloak, alike stained with what was too -evidently blood, suddenly appeared among -them and asked for food, offering for it a -handful of <i>kusiras</i>, or Afghan pence. -</p> - -<p> -From them he got milk, chupattees, and -a <i>cuddoo</i>, or gourd full of curry and rice, -of which he ate like a famished kite, while -the wondering shepherds looked on without -questioning, and evidently impressed -by the swagger and adopted ferocity of -his bearing, believing he could be no other -than 'a very devil of a <i>budmash</i>' (or -swashbuckler) steeped in the blood of the -Feringhees. -</p> - -<p> -Refreshed now, he resolved to lose no -time in pushing on, saying that he was -going to Tezeen, which was not the case, -as it lay some miles on his right, but -pursued the path towards the Suffaidh Sang, -and was warned at parting to beware of a -certain place, marked by some ruined -walls, which were the abode of the Ghoule -Biaban. -</p> - -<p> -Had these shepherds penetrated his -disguise or doubted him? He almost feared -so, as he saw a little group of them, clad -in their loose blouses and conical caps of -black fur, conferring together and -watching him as he disappeared over a <i>kotal</i>, a -place where the road dipped down. -</p> - -<p> -Sunset and falling darkness—after -which it was perilous to travel in such -localities—found him at the ruined walls -referred to as the abode of the Ghoule, -and there in a little clump of wild -pistachio trees he took up his quarters for -the night, rightly supposing that all -natives would sedulously shun a place -haunted by such a dreadful demon as the -Ghoule Biaban, or Spirit of the Waste—a -gigantic and hideous spectre, with a red -tail and claws like a <i>syces</i> sickle, who is -supposed to haunt all lonely places in -Afghanistan and devour any passenger -whose evil fortune casts him in his way. -</p> - -<p> -No ghoule came to Robert Wodrow in -his sleep, but a delightful dream, which -made him long remember the pistachio -tope amid the lonely waste—a dream of -Ellinor Wellwood! -</p> - -<p> -So powerful, so vivid, was this dream -that he almost said to himself was it in -sleep she came before him? -</p> - -<p> -He dreamed that she was beside him -and imploring his forgiveness, took his -hands in her own, and pressed her lips -passionately to them. Then her cheek -seemed to touch his, and he could feel her -soft sweet breath, and her dear eyes -looked tenderly into his. -</p> - -<p> -So vivid was that dream that he turned -his head on the root of the tree against -which it rested, towards the vision, if we -may use the term, and then, of course, it -vanished, and the light of the African sun -streamed between the branches into his -eyes. -</p> - -<p> -Robert Wodrow's heart beat hopefully -and happily; he felt that he had looked -into the face of his other soul, with the -assurance that they would one day meet -again; and that notwithstanding their -separation, and all that had come to pass, -they were—perhaps—kindred spirits after -all; and that phrase has a deeper signification -than most people think. 'It is my -solemn belief,' says a recent writer, 'that -spirits are wedded before their birth into -this world, and that somewhere, perhaps -separated by barriers of space and circumstances, -there exists for every soul its fellow, -its complement, whose imperfections -joined to that other's, will make a perfect -whole, if only men and women would not -so rashly take the counterfeit for the -real.' -</p> - -<p> -So Robert Wodrow flattered himself that -Ellinor, perhaps in a dream of her own, -had somehow come to him in the spirit, a -wild and mystic idea; but, as he examined -his arms and ammunition before again -resuming his journey, he found that there -had been perilously near him in the night -something as bad, if not worse, than the -Ghoule Biaban! -</p> - -<p> -Amid the sandy mud of a runnel that -ran not far from the ruined walls there -were distinctly traceable the prints of -tigers' feet, quite fresh, like the paw-marks -of a gigantic cat; so on this night, when -he thought that by the influence of -superstition he was unusually safe, he had been -in more than usual peril! -</p> - -<p> -A few miles more would bring him to -Gundamuck, a walled village, twenty-eight -miles west of Jellalabad, surrounded by -luxuriant wheat-fields and tall groves of -sombre cypresses—the place where Yakoub -Khan and the ill-fated Cavagnari had -signed that treaty of peace which the -former had so basely violated; but -Gundamuck was a place to be avoided by the -fugitive, who kept among the mountains -above it, thus having to ford more than -one tributary of the Surkh-ab river, and -while sighing to think he had still nearly -seventy miles to travel on foot before he -would hear the sound of a British bugle, -he struck manfully into paths which -presented themselves here and there, but -seemed to be only marked by the tread of -beasts of prey. -</p> - -<p> -Among rocky mountains, divested of all -verdure and green clothing, his way lay -now for miles, and, if the utter loneliness -of the scenes ensured safety, it was at -times not the less impressive and appalling -to the solitary man, and made him think, -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - 'The silent gloom around hath power<br /> - To banish aught of gladness;<br /> - The good with awful dreams to thrill,<br /> - The guilty—drive to madness!'<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap08"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER VIII. -<br /><br /> -THE GHILZIE. -</h3> - -<p> -In avoiding the village of Gundamuck by -making a detour to the right, Robert -Wodrow came upon a handsome Moslem -edgah built in a solitary place. The -mausoleum—for such it was, erected over -the remains of a santon or holy man—was -built of white marble, with a dome and -finely carved horseshoe-shaped entrance -door. -</p> - -<p> -The oleander and rose shed perfume -around it, with many a flower grown wild, -as the garden which once environed it, -either by dissensions incident to -Afghanistan or the departure of a tribe, was -completely neglected now. The custard -apple, the pomegranate, and the citron -hung their golden but untasted fruit -around it, and the snow-white blossoms of -the sweet jasmine hung in garlands from -tree to tree. -</p> - -<p> -The tomb looked solemn and picturesque, -and Robert Wodrow was in the act of -pausing in his lonely way to admire it, -when, somewhat to his consternation, -there stalked forth from the interior a tall -and grim-looking Afghan warrior, -completely armed. -</p> - -<p> -His rosary of ninety-nine beads—each -representing an attribute of the -Diety—dangled at his left wrist; thus he had -evidently been saying his prayers at the -shrine of the santon. -</p> - -<p> -By some of the details of his costume -he was evidently a Ghilzie, a tribe above -seven hundred thousand in number, who -occupy the central portion of that -mountainous district which lies between -Candahar and Cabul—fierce, hardy, and warlike -people, led always by many chiefs of -undoubted valour, under whom they have -always given, and will yet give, the British -troops infinite trouble. -</p> - -<p> -His long, aquiline face was fair for an -Afghan, being what they term 'wheat-coloured,' -but his glittering eyes were -dark and keen, and his beard was -black as the conical fur cap that -surmounted his beetling and shaggy eyebrows. -</p> - -<p> -Seeing that Wodrow's hand instantly -wandered to the hilt of his sword, as if -instinctively he saw a foe, the Afghan -became alarmed, suspicious, and, pausing -close by the door of the edgah, scrutinised -the stranger; and whether it was that -some of the dark paste had left the latter's -face, or that there was some discrepancy -in his costume, it is impossible to say, but -the Afghan unsheathed his sword and -shouted, -</p> - -<p> -'Feringhee!' -</p> - -<p> -He then levelled a pistol at the head of -Wodrow, but it hung fire, and the latter, -ere he could draw another, instantly closed -with him. -</p> - -<p> -He was a man of enormous stature and -great muscular strength; he was, moreover, -fresh and well-fed, while the luckless -Robert Wodrow was faint, weary, and -worn, having been feeding on fruit and -wayside herbs, or little better, since the -morning that saw the slaughter at the -Residency inaugurated. -</p> - -<p> -Wodrow carried an Afghan shield of -tanned buffalo hide, elaborately gilded and -furnished with four brass bosses; but -simply as a portion of his disguise, which the -Ghilzie had so quickly penetrated, but he -knew not how to use it effectively, while -his antagonist had a small one, not much -larger than a dinner-plate, on his left -arm, and when grasped in his left hand, it -proved a defence which he used with -wonderful skill and dexterity. -</p> - -<p> -Both men were brave, completely master -of their weapons, full of perfect confidence -in themselves, and what Wodrow afterwards -called 'a rattling set-to, in which -the pot-lid,' as he styled the little -Afghan shield, 'bore a great part,' now ensued. -</p> - -<p> -The Ghilzie fought in the spirit of -rancour, excited by difference of race and -religion; Robert Wodrow in a spirit of -desperation, to preserve his life and -liberty, and to achieve this nothing was left -him but to kill his assailant outright, if -he could; but all that he had been taught -by the hussar drill-sergeant and fencing, -master—cut one and left point—two and -right point—three and right point again—cut -four and left point, &c.—was useless -here. -</p> - -<p> -They both used tulwars of equal weight, -keenness, and length, but the Ghilzie was -fresh for the combat, and his tiny shield -of tempered steel grasped by a strong -and active hand, if small, was handy, -impenetrable, and was ever opposed to the -shower of cuts and thrusts that Wodrow -intended for its owner. -</p> - -<p> -Ever and anon they paused to gather -breath, though they panted rather than -breathed, and their eyes glared into each -other, as the rage of conflict and lust of -destruction grew in their hearts—Wodrow -the while feeling that every moment was -to him most precious, as he knew not what -succour or comrades his foe might have at -hand. -</p> - -<p> -He hewed, slashed, and thrust away, -but there was no circumventing the use -of that pestilent little iron shield, which -rang and emitted red sparks beneath -his strokes, and which there seemed no -means of getting over, under, or round -about. -</p> - -<p> -The Ghilzie warrior was compelled, by -the activity and desperation of Wodrow's -attack, to stand more on the defensive than -he expected, and his mountain blood waxed -hot. Drawing back a pace or two, he -hurled three pistols in succession, which -he snatched from his girdle, at the head -of Wodrow, who adroitly 'dodged' them, -and suddenly closing, struck the Ghilzie's -tulwar from his hand to the distance of -some yards. -</p> - -<p> -The sudden wrench this action occasioned -his wrist disconcerted him, and -Wodrow's sword having completed the -sweep of the stroke, was descending on -his head ere he had time to draw the -deadly <i>charah</i> which, among other weapons, -was stuck in his girdle, when up went the -tiny shield, and in saving his head he left -his face exposed, and right into it Robert -Wodrow planted his clenched hand with -such force and fury that the Ghilzie -stumbled backward, and in falling was twice -run through the body and slain. Choking -in blood, his last words were: -</p> - -<p> -'I am gone. Oh, place my feet towards -the Keblah.' -</p> - -<p> -Robert Wodrow felt neither pity nor -remorse just then, as his blood was boiling -in fever-heat, and the Ghilzie had sought -his own destruction. -</p> - -<p> -The victor cast a rapid and furtive -glance around him, and then hurried on -his way. Save the dead man, no other -enemy was in sight. -</p> - -<p> -In a little time Wodrow looked back to -the place where the Ghilzie lay, and already -he could see hovering over the latter in -mid-air several great black vultures -wheeling in circles prior to swooping down to -begin their horrible banquet. -</p> - -<p> -That his disguise had been seen through -by this unfortunate fellow greatly -disconcerted Robert Wodrow, and deprived him -of much of the confidence he had hitherto -possessed, and he thought of travelling -only by night, and lurking in the woods or -among rocks by day; but his ignorance of -the country, and the necessity of studying -such landmarks as he remembered, and -keeping to the beaten path as much as -possible, together with the necessity for -procuring food at all risks, compelled him -to relinquish the idea. -</p> - -<p> -He untwisted another cartridge, and -again, with water from a runnel, made -some dark dye in a leaf, and carefully -rubbing therewith his face, neck, and ears, -betook himself to the mountain ridges that -overhung Bahar; the latter is only twelve -miles from Gundamuck, but so rugged was -the way he had to pursue, and so many -the detours he had to make to find fords -on the streams he had to cross, that -evening was drawing on by the time -he had passed on the right flank of the -village. -</p> - -<p> -He continued his way a few miles -beyond it, and then, feeling overcome by -profound weariness and prostration after -the events and toil of the past day, -he lay down among some thick, soft -grass a little way apart from the road, -and, oblivious of snakes, wild animals, -and dew, dropped into a deep and -dreamless sleep. -</p> - -<p> -How long he lay thus he knew not, but -he was roused by voices and other sounds. -Starting up he found a moon of wonderful -brilliance shining clearly as if a second -day had dawned, and close by him a -group of men with laden camels—a group -that had halted on finding him prostrate -there, in doubt whether he was alive or -dead. -</p> - -<p> -On seeing the turbans and dark faces, -Wodrow thought all was over with him, -and his hand went at once to the hilt of -his sword, and he longed for the ring of -Gyges, or anything that would render him -invisible. -</p> - -<p> -But the men among whom he found -himself evidently took him for an Afghan, -and evinced no sign of hostility, though -they were all well armed. -</p> - -<p> -They proved to be five merchants from -Ghuznee, having camels laden with those -dried fruits which constitute the principal -article of trade between Afghanistan and -India, and these, together with oranges, -citrons, tobacco, and jars of red and yellow -Derehnur wine, they were now conveying -to the banks of the Indus to exchange for -British goods, or sell, if possible, at the -first British fort. -</p> - -<p> -Like themselves, their <i>syces</i> and <i>bheesties</i> -(grass-cutters and water-carriers) were all -well armed, but were Hindoos, and with -the whole party Robert Wodrow had no -occasion for much fear, as his residence in -the house of the Hakim, together with -his knowledge of the natives, picked up -elsewhere, stood him in good stead now. -</p> - -<p> -'What are you?' asked one of the merchants. -</p> - -<p> -'A tchopper of Cabul,' replied Wodrow. -</p> - -<p> -'Then where is your horse?' -</p> - -<p> -'He fell under me on the way,' replied -Wodrow, seeing at once his mistake, for -in Afghanistan, as in Persia, State -despatches are carried by mounted messengers -called <i>tchoppers</i>, or mounted couriers, -and private letters by cossids, or -foot-messengers, who will sometimes travel seventy -leagues in four consecutive days. -</p> - -<p> -'Then you are the bearer of a royal despatch?' -</p> - -<p> -'From the Ameer, whom God long preserve, -to the officer commanding the outpost -at the Lundi-Khana Kotal. In the -name of the Prophet, give me some food; -I am starving.' -</p> - -<p> -The unsuspecting merchants hastened -to supply his wants, and one said, -</p> - -<p> -'Your despatch, no doubt, refers to the -vengeance of heaven which has overtaken -the Feringhee dogs at the Bala Hissar?' -</p> - -<p> -'I presume so,' replied Wodrow, eating -cold meat and buttered chupatties with -infinite relish. 'If it isn't an angel they -are entertaining unawares, they little think -it is one of the 10th Hussars,' was his -thought. 'As for the Feringhees, they -are now eating other food than this,' said -he aloud. -</p> - -<p> -'True,' added the merchant; 'the tree -of Al Zakkum, which issueth from the -bottom of hell, and the fruit whereof -resembleth the heads of devils.' -</p> - -<p> -'May all their kindred come, as they -have done, to a knowledge of their fiendish -idolatry,' said another, his voice becoming -hoarse in the extremity of his hatred; 'the -heathens—the savages that they are—dogs -who come among us to cast a slur upon -civilised men and a holy religion—who -eat of the unclean pig, a brute like -themselves; but we shall not cease to -strike and slay, Bismillah! till not one -of them remain alive on this side of Attock!' -</p> - -<p> -'Oho, my friend,' thought Robert Wodrow; -'by Jove, I must keep my eye upon -you, now that I know the amiability of -your sentiments.' -</p> - -<p> -He then learned with extreme satisfaction -that they meant to pass Lundi-Khana -Kotal. He was accommodated with a seat -on one of the camels, which, though laden, -travelled at a good average pace, and he -resolved to be very taciturn and careful in -his bearing and demeanour, especially after -the morning dawned. -</p> - -<p> -'Fate and fortune have long seemed -dead against me,' thought he; 'yet, heaven -knows, it is not because I have been faint -of heart; and heaven always helps those -who help themselves.' -</p> - -<p> -With these merchants he now travelled -in ease and security for the remainder of -his journey, passing undiscovered through -Sador, Baru, Basawul, and other villages, -and traversing the upper end of savage -Khoord Khyber Pass. Ere long he found -himself approaching Lundi-Khana Kotal, -a post two thousand four hundred and -eighty-eight feet above the level of the -sea, just as dawn was breaking, and there -came to him on the morning wind a sound -there was no mistaking—the pipers of a -Highland regiment playing the morning -reveille, 'Hey, Johnnie Cope,' among the -white tents of the British camp, and then -he knew that he was safe. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap09"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER IX. -<br /><br /> -A NEW SNARE. -</h3> - -<p> -In detailing the adventures of Leslie -Colville and Robert Wodrow in the distant -land where fate and the fortunes of war -had cast them together, we have somewhat -anticipated the time and the troubles -brought upon Ellinor by the daring of -her unscrupulous abductor. -</p> - -<p> -The snares that had been laid for her, -the loyal heart she had lost and now -believed to be cold in the grave—all came -before the girl with painful vividness, and -she loathed herself for ever having -listened, as she had done at Birkwoodbrae, -to the artful wretch who from first to last -had sought to lure her to destruction by -so many specious falsehoods; for, in many -ways, the baronet had now become so -degraded in character that, so far as truth -went, he was like the man mentioned by -Mark Twain, who had such a sacred regard -for truth that he never by any chance -used it. -</p> - -<p> -Sooth, however, to say, prudence and -weariness at times suggested to Sir -Redmond the abandonment of his enterprise -and designs regarding Ellinor; at other -times, obstinacy, distorted pride, and, -more than all, inflamed passions and her -apparent helplessness, spurred him on in -his schemes. He felt now that, if these -were unsuccessful, they could only be -relinquished at peril and <i>exposé</i> to himself. -</p> - -<p> -Her inertia provoked and alarmed him. -He would have preferred some of her -former desperate energy, even though -accompanied by undisguised repugnance of -himself. -</p> - -<p> -He knew that now, with Mary Wellwood, -the luckless Ellinor must be numbered -with the dead; the last despairing -advertisements he had seen in the -<i>Hamburger Nachrichten</i> and other journals led -him to infer that such must be the case, -and that the sorrowing sister had no doubt -left Altona in a state of grief, for which -he cared not a jot. -</p> - -<p> -He knew also that Ellinor was ignorant -of Mary's precise whereabouts, whether -she was still in Altona or had gone back -to London or Birkwoodbrae; that she -could not communicate with her, even by -letter, save through him, and was thus -completely in his power, as a baby or a -bauble might have been; and he vaguely -thought that if he could get her away, on -any pretence, to Brussels or some quiet -little village in the Netherlands, she would -be still more so, and for the contingencies -of the future he drew heavily on his -bankers through Herr Burger, in the -Gras Keller. -</p> - -<p> -For the future—let the future take care -of itself! He had broken with English -society, if not with the police. Who was -there, as a relation, to call him to account, -and who had the right to do so? he asked -of himself. -</p> - -<p> -As he was not without fears or suspicions -of his friend Mr. Adolphus Dewsnap, -he resolved to get her away from the yacht. -</p> - -<p> -'Tears—always tears!' said he, angrily, -on the day after the <i>Flying Foam</i> was -moored alongside the jetty in the Binnenhafen. -'I daresay, like your sister, you -are sorry for that fellow Colville—your -"cousin" as he called himself—a good -joke that! Very terrible, of course—cut -off by the Cabul niggers, and so forth; but -we can only die once. Hope he was duly -prepared, as the devil-dodgers say, and all -that sort of thing.' -</p> - -<p> -In furtherance of his plan to get her -away from the yacht, he said, quite -deliberately, -</p> - -<p> -'Your friend Mrs. Deroubigne has left -Altona.' -</p> - -<p> -'Left it—gone!' exclaimed Ellinor, in a -weak voice, and grieved but not surprised. -</p> - -<p> -'Yes.' -</p> - -<p> -'For where?' -</p> - -<p> -'To another residence in Hamburg, -whither I shall shortly take you and leave -you to relate your own adventures, for I -am deuced tired of this kind of work.' -</p> - -<p> -A gush of joy, but joy without the least -gratitude, welled up in the heart of -Ellinor, and she prepared with wonderful -alacrity to accompany him, never suspecting -that he was cajoling her and meant to -put her in the hands of Frau Wyburg, who -for a sum paid down had promised to -keep her safely till he made other -arrangements. -</p> - -<p> -He could not take her to the <i>Kron Prinzen, -L'Europe</i>, or any of the great hotels, for -there she would have claimed and found -protection, and for him she would, he -knew, be quite helpless in the hands of -Frau Wyburg and her husband; thus he -resolved to keep his own counsel on leaving -the yacht as to where he was taking her; -but Mr. Dolly Dewsnap and Kingbolt too -had shrewdly their own ideas on the -subject. -</p> - -<p> -'Sorry we are not to have your company -to the coast of France, Miss Ellinor,' -said Dewsnap, as he pressed a glass of -wine upon her ere she departed. -</p> - -<p> -'I don't think you'll miss much,' said -Ringbolt, as the pale girl made no reply. -'There you get sour wine, and they call it -<i>vin ordinaire</i>, and all kinds of offal cooked -with fine French names, so that I defy you -to tell whether you are eating a bird of the -air or a fish of the sea. Ah, there is no -place like Old England.' -</p> - -<p> -Mr. Dolly Dewsnap was about this time, -as his subordinate Kingbolt said, 'three -sheets in the wind,' even before going to a -late dinner at <i>Hotel de Russie</i> in the -Jungfernsteig, and he was propping himself -against the cabin table while sipping his -sherry, and regarding Ellinor with a -leering expression of admiration. -</p> - -<p> -'Won't you have a cigarette, Miss Ellinor?' -said he, suddenly producing his -cigar-case. -</p> - -<p> -'Scotch girls, and English ones too, -don't smoke,' said Sleath, angrily. -</p> - -<p> -'Why not?' responded Dewsnap, sharply; -'by Jingo, I knew a Russian Princess—the -Princess Wroguenoff—who always -smoked Turkish tobacco in a Manzanita -pipe; and a charming woman she was.' -</p> - -<p> -'So you don't know her now, Dolly?' -</p> - -<p> -'How do you know?' asked the other, -who was disposed to be quarrelsome just -then. -</p> - -<p> -'You speak of her in the past tense.' -</p> - -<p> -'The droski waits, sir,' said Gaiters, -suddenly appearing in the companion-way. -</p> - -<p> -Sir Redmond gave his hand to Ellinor, -who was ready, hatted and shawled, and -barely gave a bow of farewell to Dewsnap, -as she ascended to the deck, and bade -adieu to her Vierlander attendant. -</p> - -<p> -Evening had fallen now, and the gas-lamps -were reflected in the murky and -muddy waters of the Binnenhafen, as she -stepped ashore, and entered a close droski -(as those cabs are named which ply for -hire in all the principal thoroughfares of -Hamburg) unnoticed by any but some -dock porters, and an organ-grinder with -a monkey 'appropriately dressed in -Highland costume,' as Sleath remarked while -putting his head out of the window, and -telling Gaiters, who was seated beside the -driver, where they were to go. -</p> - -<p> -The vehicle proceeded slowly, and -Ellinor, while in a fever of impatience, and -without hearing what Sir Redmond was -saying to her, looked forth from the -windows alternately, and recognised the -church of St. Nicolai as they passed -through the Hopfen Market, the street -called the Gras Keller, and the long and -stately Neuerwall, after which they seemed -to traverse streets that were unknown to -her, old, mean, and dirty. -</p> - -<p> -'Need I urge upon you how strangely -our paths seem to cross each other—how -strangely our lives seemed linked together, -Ellinor?' said he, attempting to take one -of her hands caressingly. -</p> - -<p> -This roused her, and she withdrew it -sharply. -</p> - -<p> -'Still perverse!' he resumed, with -knitted brows. 'Fate has thrown us together -for a third time. You escaped me twice; -but the third time mine you shall be, so -sure as you hear me speak!' -</p> - -<p> -She made not the slightest response, -and surveyed with surprise the network -of canals and wet ditches the droski crossed -by a succession of iron bridges. -</p> - -<p> -'Ellinor,' said Sir Redmond again, 'you -are over-excited; you have not recovered -from the terror of your accident—the -sickness and storm at the river mouth.' -</p> - -<p> -Her face was pale and rigid; her eyes -alternately flashing fire at the prospect of -freedom, and then growing cold as steel -with indignation. -</p> - -<p> -To her it began to seem impossible that -Mrs. Deroubigne and Mary could have left -their pretty and airy villa at Altona, on -the grassy bank of the Elbe, to dwell -in such a locality as that in which she -found herself when the droski stopped. -</p> - -<p> -'Here we are, sir,' said Gaiters, jumping -down and touching his cockaded hat. -</p> - -<p> -A bell that emitted a dismal sound -resounded to the downward pull of the iron -handle, and a large door—but all the -doorways are large in Hamburg—unfolded, -showing a gloomy porch, lighted only by -the oil-lamp that burned feebly before a -madonna perched on the wall to give the -house an external air of respectability. -</p> - -<p> -After a conference with some one -within, Gaiters reappeared at the droski -window. -</p> - -<p> -'Madame Wyburg,' he said, 'tells me -that Mrs. Deroubigne has left this place -two days ago, and gone, she believes, to -Brussels.' -</p> - -<p> -'To Brussels!' exclaimed Ellinor, sick -with disappointment and dismay, as she -sank back on her seat. 'I cannot go there -vaguely in search of them——' -</p> - -<p> -'Of course not; so what then?' -</p> - -<p> -'Oh, let me get back to London—to -Grosvenor Square!' -</p> - -<p> -'You are too ill to travel just now, and -must remain with kind Madame Wyburg -for a few days till the exact address of -Mrs. Deroubigne is found,' said Sleath, in -the most persuasive tone he could adopt; -'but here comes the master of the house,' -he added, as a very singular figure -appeared. -</p> - -<p> -A man short in stature, but thick-set -and powerfully built, with leery grey eyes, -dissipated and bloated features, and a -ragged red moustache, wearing a quaint garb, -entirely black, with a plaited ruff round -his neck, a wig curled and powdered, a -short Spanish cloak, and a long Toledo -sword, with a Mother Hubbard hat on his -head, sharply pointed, and about two feet -high. -</p> - -<p> -This strange apparition of the sixteenth -century doffed his steeple-crowned hat to -Ellinor, who after a time discovered that -the Herr Wyburg, among various other -less respectable avocations, whereby to eke -out a living, was one of the sixteen -<i>Reiten-Diener</i>, or hired mourners, who—instead -of the friends of the deceased—attend -funeral processions in Hamburg, carrying -out Charles Dickens's well-known definition -of such a ceremony as 'a masquerade -dipped in ink.' He had just come from -having a 'deep drink' with his comrades -after an interment at the <i>Begrabnissplatze</i>, -or grand cemetery, outside the Ulricus -Bastion, for in their ways these fellows are -precisely like the human carrion crows we -may see daily perched on the top of -London hearses returning from Kensal Green, -Brompton, or elsewhere, in a state of -hat-band, jollity, and gin. -</p> - -<p> -He also bowed low and leeringly to Sir -Redmond Sleath. -</p> - -<p> -This was not the first of the baronet's -acquaintance with these people. He had -been aided by the Frau Wyburg in more -than one nefarious intrigue, the victim of -which had dropped out of society, and by -her husband in more than one shady gambling -transaction in a 'hell' of the Adolphus -Platze, ere he succeeded to the title -his father's shady politics had won; so the -trio knew each other thoroughly. -</p> - -<p> -Ellinor, conceiving that she must be -safer in the care of one of her own sex -than on board the yacht, agreed to remain -with Frau Wyburg till she proceeded to -London or Brussels, and from that moment -found herself more than ever a hopeless -prisoner. -</p> - -<p> -The frau was a pale, little woman, with -black hair, wicked dark eyes, a square and -resolute-looking jaw, a cruel mouth, and a -face generally on which, after a time, -Ellinor could not look without a shudder -when the woman's real character became -known to her; but as yet she was disposed -to cling to her as a friend—a protector—in -her helplessness and excessive debility -after all she had undergone, and she -gratefully accepted at her hands a cup of hot -coffee in her cosy parlour, with its gay -chintz curtains and polished oak floor, -while her husband, with an eye to -monetary business, drew Sir Redmond aside to -another apartment. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap10"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER X. -<br /><br /> -THE HOUSE BY THE FLEETHEN. -</h3> - -<p> -The abode of Herr Wyburg was situated -in the oldest part of Hamburg, where the -streets are narrow, crowded, irregular, -and, if picturesque, squalid. They are -generally of great height, built in the -Dutch fashion of brick and wood, and -those inhabited by the lower orders have -their narrow windows so near each other -as to give them the aspect of huge -manufactories, but with a heavy and gloomy -character about them. -</p> - -<p> -Many of these brick-nogging, tumble-down -dwellings are admirable subjects for -the pencil. Numerous canals called -<i>Fleethen</i> intersect this quarter, and run along -the backs of the houses, giving the streets -a resemblance to those of Holland. In -summer the muddy exhalations from these -are very unwholesome, and might prove -pestilential, were it not for the agitation -in them caused by the current of the Elbe. -</p> - -<p> -In this odious and unsavoury, but -picturesque part of the city, which escaped -the great fire of 1842, and which has -undergone little change since the days of -the Hanseatic League, the back wall of -Herr Wyburg's house was washed by the -waters of the Fleethen, while on one side -it was isolated from the haggard district -in which it stood by a large market-garden. -</p> - -<p> -The original frame of the house had -been altogether wood—Baltic pine—but -would seem to have been patched and -repaired with bricks. -</p> - -<p> -The arms of Holstein and Schleswig, -the nettleleaf and two lions respectively, -were reproduced in various parts of it, -for in other times it had been a residence -of the old Counts of Holstein, the ancient -Lords of Hamburg, a dignity claimed by -the Kings of Denmark till 1768; but in -rank it had come sorely down in the -world, just as in Scottish towns we find -the ancient abodes of nobility, and even -of royalty, now abandoned to the squalid -and the poor. -</p> - -<p> -Its walls were in some places panelled -with almost black mahogany, quaintly, if -uncouthly, carved, and much discoloured -by damp from the adjacent Fleethen. The -windows were high, jealously grated with -iron, and admitted but a foggy kind of -light, even by noonday, and the whole -edifice had a general aspect of dreariness -and desolation that sunk like a weight on -the young heart of Ellinor Wellwood. -</p> - -<p> -The back windows alone were ungrated, -but then they overlooked the Fleethen, -that system of canals and intersecting -ditches which conceal many a crime, and -where the body of the murdered—if found -before being swept into the Elbe—passes -often for that of a suicide. -</p> - -<p> -When Wyburg withdrew with Sir Redmond, -he offered that worthy his hand, -but the latter ignored the action, and did -not respond to it. In this he only acted -'snobbishly,' not because he knew the -other to be a finished rascal; and over -the face of the latter there passed a flush -of rage and affront, while a dangerous -gleam came into his watery eyes. -</p> - -<p> -'It is no use, Sir Redmond, your -attempting to come the fine or arrogant -gentleman over me,' said Herr Wyburg; -'you and I are too old acquaintances for -that.' -</p> - -<p> -His English was remarkably distinct, -though of course the foreign accent was -very marked. He had been a billiard-marker -in the Strand, but had to quit -London in some haste, having become too -well-known in the vicinity of 'Lester -Square.' Hence it was that he knew -English well, and London too, in all its -worst, foreign, and most disreputable -phases. -</p> - -<p> -He was a billiard-marker and gambler -still, and ready to do any rascality for -which he was sufficiently paid. His -wife—the Frau Wyburg—had once been a -dancer in the Schweitzer Pavilion and -Ambiguity Circus, during her less -disreputable days, and was no more above -taking a bribe than himself. -</p> - -<p> -'Sir Redmond,' said he, pocketing the -gold by which his services were to be -secured, 'I have seen some pretty faces in -my time, but the fraulein is downright -beautiful!' he added, as he thought with -genuine admiration of the clear, creamy -skin which so often accompanies such -hair and dark-blue eyes as those of Ellinor. -</p> - -<p> -'This young lady is my wife,' said Sleath, -a little emphatically; 'and I wish you and -your worthy frau to take all requisite care -of her for me—for a time.' -</p> - -<p> -Herr Wyburg closed one eye, and, with -intense cunning in the other, surveyed the -speaker. -</p> - -<p> -'Your wife?' said he. -</p> - -<p> -'Yes.' -</p> - -<p> -'She has no wedding-ring.' -</p> - -<p> -'If it is not on her finger, it ought to be.' -</p> - -<p> -'And you wish us to take care of her—that -she does not escape, you mean?' -</p> - -<p> -'Precisely.' -</p> - -<p> -'Why?' -</p> - -<p> -'Need <i>you</i> ask me why?' said Sleath, -with irritation. 'She is ill—strange,' he -added, putting a finger to his forehead. -'Poor girl—you understand?' -</p> - -<p> -Herr Wyburg winked his cunning eye -again. He <i>did</i> understand, and shrewdly -disbelieved that the girl was Sleath's wife; -yet her bearing, her fear, repugnance, and -bodily weakness all puzzled him, and, like -his wife, he knew not what to think, save -that Sleath's golden sovereigns were very -acceptable, and the latter now prepared to -depart—his droski was still at the -door—and he bade Frau Wyburg 'good-night,' -after she had recommended him not to -insist on again seeing Ellinor, who had -retired to her room. -</p> - -<p> -'Ah,' said the frau, with one of her -detestable but would-be suave smiles, 'the -Fraulein has got what the French call a -<i>migrain</i>—perhaps it is periodical—any way -the kindness and love of mein Herr,' she -added, curtseying, 'will soon make it pass -away.' -</p> - -<p> -Ellinor felt intense relief when Sir -Redmond drove away, and strove to hope that -he had wearied or repented of his persecution, -and would really discover the address -of Mrs. Deroubigne; but how was she to -travel without money, and she had scarcely -a trinket about her! -</p> - -<p> -She was left, with a slipshod girl in -attendance, in a tolerably comfortable little -room, with panelled walls, and having in -one corner a pretty little bed (with one of -those enormous square pillows peculiar to -Germany), in another corner a tall cylindrical -iron stove, in which a fire was glowing -redly across the polished floor and on -the panels of an antique clothes wardrobe. -</p> - -<p> -She looked from the casement window, -and saw the lights in houses opposite about -fifty yards distant, and between them the -still, deep, and gloomy Fleethen ditch, or -canal, in which these lights were tremulously -reflected; and something in the chill -aspect of the water, or what it suggested, -as it lay just beneath her window, made -her shudder involuntarily. -</p> - -<p> -She was soon to find that she was snared, -and more a helpless prisoner than she had -been when on board the <i>Flying Foam</i>; for -Sir Redmond had placed her in this abode, -knowing where he could find her again -when he chose, and where, if he did <i>not</i> -choose, she might disappear, as so many -entrapped English girls do on the Continent, -and never be heard of again; and in -gambling, dissipated, and dissolute -Hamburg the muddy waters of its Fleethen -hide many an unknown crime and many a -secret sorrow. -</p> - -<p> -Lenchen (or Ellen), the girl who -attended her, if slipshod, was pretty and -rosy, but saucy and flippant, though clad, -like the usual Hamburg housemaid, with -a piquant lace cap, her white arms bare -to above the elbow, always scrupulously -clean, and when she went to market wore -long kid gloves and the gayest of shawls, -so disposed under the arm as to conceal -the basket, which is always shaped -unpleasantly like a child's coffin, but -containing butter, cheese, eggs, or whatever -has been purchased. -</p> - -<p> -Ignorant of the German language, and -ignorant also, as yet, of the true character -of the Frau Wyburg and her attendant -Lenchen, and as their broken English -gave—as it always rather absurdly seems -to do—an idea of childish innocence even -to the most rascally foreigner, Ellinor -became inspired by a new sense of -protection in the presence of these -females—especially of Lenchen; but this confidence -might have received a shock had she seen -how that young lady comported herself -with Rolandsburg's uhlans, and other -<i>soldaten</i> in the vicinity of the Dammthor -Wall and the <i>Burger Militair Kauslie</i>. -</p> - -<p> -Three days passed, during which she -saw and heard nothing of Sir Redmond. -The truth was, that worthy member of -the 'upper ten' and his Fidus Achates—his -friend Dolly Dewsnap—having, through -the tipsy insolence of the latter, become -involved in a street row at night with a -member of the <i>Neidergericht</i>, or Inferior -Court, to avoid the police, who 'wanted -them,' had remained closely on board the -yacht in the Binnenhafen, where she was -now remasted, and fast becoming ready for -sea in Ringbolt's skilful hands. -</p> - -<p> -As the evening of the third day was -approaching, Ellinor, feeling stronger and -more impatient of action and restraint, -attired herself for the street in the best -of the garments found for her in the -yacht. -</p> - -<p> -'For what purpose?' asked Frau Wyburg, angrily. -</p> - -<p> -'To have a walk in the city,' replied -Ellinor. -</p> - -<p> -'Mein Got, alone! and for what reason?' -</p> - -<p> -'To make some inquiries for myself at -the post-office, or elsewhere.' -</p> - -<p> -'It cannot be permitted!' said Herr -Wyburg, emphatically, and with knitted -brows, as he interposed. -</p> - -<p> -'Why?' -</p> - -<p> -'The Herr Sleath has forbidden such; -moreover, it is not safe!' -</p> - -<p> -'Not safe in the streets of Hamburg?' -questioned Ellinor, while tears started to -her eyes. 'I am not a child!' -</p> - -<p> -'Then why?' -</p> - -<p> -There were disturbances abroad, he told -her trade-union mobs were about, and -the uhlans from the Dammthor were -patrolling the streets with lance and carbine. -</p> - -<p> -This was not true, but Ellinor was -compelled to believe it, and relinquished the -attempt with a sigh of bitterness and -disappointment. -</p> - -<p> -Lenchen daily brought her fresh flowers -from market, as she said, by order of -<i>Herr Sleet</i>. -</p> - -<p> -The latter had often heard Ellinor say -at Birkwoodbrae that she was never dull -or lonely if she only had flowers about -her. -</p> - -<p> -But his gifts of flowers were unheeded -now, she loathed them as if their petals -exhaled not fragrance but poison. -</p> - -<p> -Yet once she could not resist toying with -some of them—the Dijon roses especially, -and with their odour across the tide of -memory there stole gently and subtly a -memory of the past. -</p> - -<p> -Who has not some association of this -kind? -</p> - -<p> -Ellinor's were of happy years at -Birkwoodbrae and Robert Wodrow, and a -torrent of tears came with the memory, and -a kind of lethargic despair came over her -as the little hope that dawned upon her -began to die again—the hope that Sleath -had relented and really meant to relinquish -his persecution and restore her to her -friends. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap11"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XI. -<br /><br /> -IN HAMBURG STILL. -</h3> - -<p> -Ellinor was altogether unlike any other -girl on whom the evil eyes of Herr -Wyburg had rested, in Hamburg at least. -Her face was so clearly cut, with pride in -its contour, a dreamy thought its eyes, -and something almost angelic in its -purity—as Tennyson has it, -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - 'A sight to make an old man young.'<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -The three days' unexpected absence of -Sir Redmond rather alarmed Herr -Wyburg. He knew not how to account for -it, and mightily, with all his ruffianism, -dreaded the gendarmes; thus he was genuinely -glad when, in the dusk of the third -day, the baronet presented himself at his -house and inquired for his charge. -</p> - -<p> -'She is silent and dull as usual, and -anxious for the address of a lady friend,' -replied Wyburg. 'I don't understand all -this,' he added, in a growling tone; 'have -you made a fool of this girl or of yourself?' -</p> - -<p> -'Of myself as yet, I think,' replied Sleath, -with an oath. -</p> - -<p> -'Every man does so, once in his life at -least, and generally oftener,' said the -German; 'but I thought you were too wide -awake for that now. With her sadness -and her tears this girl is a profound bore -to us, even if paid for! I wish you would -take some means to cheer her—to please -her—if you can.' -</p> - -<p> -'Don't talk to me about the idiotic -vagaries of a girl!' snapped Sir Redmond. -</p> - -<p> -'I do not wish to do so, mem Herr; but -what would you have me say?' replied -Wyburg. 'Look here—it is all stuff and -gammon about the Fraulein being your -wife. I lived too long in England not to -have my eyes opened.' -</p> - -<p> -'Well?' -</p> - -<p> -'You love her in your own fashion, I suppose?' -</p> - -<p> -'And she?' -</p> - -<p> -'Seems to hate you,' replied the German, with a grin. -</p> - -<p> -'Perhaps she is not the first of her sex -who has said no when she meant yes.' -</p> - -<p> -'You don't mean to marry her, I suppose?' -</p> - -<p> -'I have a wife, already,' replied Sleath. -as he carefully manipulated and prepared -a cigar. -</p> - -<p> -'Der Teufel!' said Herr Wyburg, puffing -out a cloud from his huge meerschaum, -'but such things will happen.' -</p> - -<p> -'I have been engaged in many a lark -and scrape, as you, Wyburg, know well -enough, but never in one so peculiar as -this. The girls who eloped with me before -were always willing enough.' -</p> - -<p> -'She may turn ill—downright ill—on -our hands unless some change is brought -about, and may have to be sent to the -Krankenhaus; and then—what then?' -</p> - -<p> -Sleath had not thought of this contingency, -so he became alarmed and asked to see Ellinor. -</p> - -<p> -On his entrance she rose at once and -came towards him, her eyes dilated with -hope or expectation and her lips parted, -but without offering him a hand. -</p> - -<p> -'You have news for me at last?' she said. -</p> - -<p> -'News—about what—about whom?' -</p> - -<p> -'Mrs. Deroubigne and Mary.' -</p> - -<p> -'I have sent or gone daily to the post-office -in the Post Strasse, but neither by -telegraph nor inquiry can I discover their -whereabouts in Brussels,' he replied, -unblushingly: 'and even if we went there—' -</p> - -<p> -'There! that is not to be thought of. -I shall take the steamer for London,' -exclaimed Ellinor, looking round her as if -she would start that moment. -</p> - -<p> -'No, you won't, my dear girl—yet a -while, at least.' -</p> - -<p> -'I shall go mad—mad if I am kept here -prisoner for another day!' exclaimed -Ellinor, wildly, as she wrung her hands and -then pressed them on her temples, while -Herr Wyburg looked with a kind of gloomy -scorn from one to the other. -</p> - -<p> -He had many experiences in his career, -but this was to him one somewhat new. -</p> - -<p> -Ellinor was so painfully agitated that -Sir Redmond was fain to resort to the -most specious falsehoods to soothe and -calm her; he promised most solemnly to -write or telegraph to the British -Ambassador at Brussels, to the postal authorities -there, and so forth; and, with intense -anger and mortification in his heart at his -bad success, he left her to rejoin Dewsnap, -and have a 'deep drink' at the Hotel Russie, -and perhaps a turn into the Schweitzer -Pavilion, feeling inclined on one hand—all -inflamed as he was with her beauty -and helplessness—to force her in some -way to love him; and on the other, to sail -away with his friend in the <i>Flying Foam</i>, -and leave her to her fate in the hands of -Herr Wyburg! -</p> - -<p> -He did neither for a day or two yet, but -showered presents upon her; he ransacked -the Neuer Wall and the Alster Wall for -all kinds of pretty things, and bought up -the best bouquets of the Vierlander -flower-girls by the score; and Frau Wyburg only -looked forward to the time when she could -appropriate all the presents, when the girl -was away or—dead. -</p> - -<p> -All his presents and pretty trifles, over -which Lenchen went into ecstasies, -remained, as he saw, untouched in their -cases or packing paper. -</p> - -<p> -'You disdain all these things which I -feel such delight in offering you,' said he, -reproachfully. -</p> - -<p> -She wrung her interlaced fingers, but -made no reply. -</p> - -<p> -A red gleam shot out of Sleath's eyes; -he bit his lip, and the Frau Wyburg laughed, -while her black orbs glittered mischievously, -and her mouth wore its cruel -expression more unpleasantly than usual. -</p> - -<p> -But for his early entanglement with his -mother's maid—Seraphina Fubsby, whose -absurd name he loathed now—an event -which too probably had warped his whole -life, he felt at times—but at times only—that -he would gladly have offered his hand -and all he possessed to the sweet and gentle -Ellinor; and, though he knew how she -shrank from him, and loathed him, he -could not help trying to play the old game -he had begun at Birkwoodbrae, by urging -again and again that his marriage was -untrue, illegal, that he would prove it so, -and also urging his wild, blind passion for -herself, on the plea of her wonderful -beauty, as Richard of England did his -passion for the Lady Anne, having rarely -found an appeal to a woman on <i>that</i> score -fail him. -</p> - -<p> -But he might as well have spoken to a -statue now, and as she could extract no -tidings of her sister or Mrs. Deroubigne -from him, she thought only of escaping -from the house of his odious friends. She -was now aware that she had been -entrapped by a specious story, and that -neither Mary nor Mrs. Deroubigne would -seem to have resided with them after -leaving Altona, as Frau Wyburg and her -husband, though 'coached' by Sleath and -Gaiters, evidently knew nothing about -them save their names, and a new dismay -seized the unhappy girl. -</p> - -<p> -Escaping—but how? The avenues to -the street were too closely secured, and -the window of her room was too high -above the water of the Fleethen to afford -the least chance of escape there; while the -only boats that passed were those of the -Vierlander people, laden with vegetables, -pulled swiftly along at rare and distant -intervals. -</p> - -<p> -To appeal to the Wyburgs she knew -would be vain. Her pure, pale face with -its dreamy eyes, into which there now -came a hunted expression, failed to win -either their pity or commiseration; but -escape she must, or die! -</p> - -<p> -Ellinor knew now that in Sleath the -animal nature predominated, and that she -might have to suffer from his cruelty and -violence if she remained in his power. -</p> - -<p> -But how was she to escape without money, -without a knowledge of the language, of -the very locality in which he had placed her, -without bodily strength, and with only -intense horror and aversion to nerve and -inspire her? -</p> - -<p> -On whom could she cast herself? -</p> - -<p> -Certainly not the repulsive Frau Wyburg, -with her wicked black eyes and square, -resolute jaws, or her equally repellent -husband, with the leering eyes and ragged -red moustache? What had she done that -Fate should have cast her into such -unscrupulous, and to her altogether -inconceivable, hands? -</p> - -<p> -'She grows paler, if possible, every day,' -said Wyburg to Sleath. 'If this sort of -thing goes on, it will be an affair for the -Krankenhaus,' he added, in a growling -voice, referring to the great public hospital -in the suburb of St. George. -</p> - -<p> -Dewsnap's yacht was getting ready for -sea, and was now anchored by the dolphins, -outside the Binnenhafen, and Sleath was -resolved to end his affair with Ellinor in -some fashion or other, for the hints of -Wyburg alarmed him. -</p> - -<p> -So he recommended to Ellinor a drive -in an open droski, attended, not by -himself—he was too wary for that—but by the -Frau Wyburg and Gaiters, who was to -have a seat on the dickey. He thought -there was little to fear in this, as Ellinor -knew not a word of German, and Gaiters -was a careful fellow. -</p> - -<p> -Indeed, Mr. John Gaiters—though to all -appearance a thoroughly well-bred English -serving-man, automaton-like in movements, -reserved, and when it suited him most civil -in speech, and without an atom of scruple—had -one redeeming bull-dog feature in -his character, and that was intense fidelity -to his dissolute, yet liberal, master. -</p> - -<p> -The afternoon was beautiful and sunny. -The drive along the Jungfernsteig and -Alster Damm was charming enough to -rouse even Ellinor from her lethargy, but -not to still her resolution to escape, if -she could. -</p> - -<p> -The scene, after all she had undergone -of late, proved a gay and enchanting one—the -rows of stately mansions; the quadruple -lines of trees in full leaf; the -deep blue of the Binner Alster, its bosom -studded by pretty pleasure-boats, tiny -steamers, and flocks of snow-white swans; -and the German bands playing before the -great hotels, which were all gaily decorated -with the flags of various nations, as if for -a holiday. But ere long there occurred -that which to her was a crushing episode. -</p> - -<p> -While Frau Wyburg stopped the droski -to listen to a band that was playing amid -a group of people before the great Kron -Prinzen Hotel, Ellinor perceived a handsome -open carriage close by, and in it were -seated an elderly gentleman and two -ladies, who had their eyes fixed on her. -</p> - -<p> -The trio were Lord and Lady Dunkeld -with their daughter, Blanche Galloway! -</p> - -<p> -Ellinor started from her seat, as they -were quite within earshot, and in their -power lay succour—help—rescue! -</p> - -<p> -'Lady Dunkeld—Lady Dunkeld—Mrs. Deroubigne!' -she exclaimed, wildly; 'you -can doubtless give me her address? You -know me—you know me—Ellinor Wellwood!' -</p> - -<p> -They all heard her; but Lord Dunkeld -looked steadily askance, showing only the -facial angle which he thought so like that -of the Grande Monarque, while the two -ladies gazed with wonder at first, and then -with frigid hauteur; and Blanche, who, -we have said, was strong in love, ambition, -and hate, said something to the coachman, -who drove away at once, while the usually -imperturbable Gaiters, in some alarm, took -the droski in an opposite direction, and -Ellinor sank back despairing on her seat, -as she was conveyed at a galloping pace -back to the gloomy house overlooking the -Bleichen Fleet. The deadly and sickening -surmises of what these cold-hearted -people thought, of what the world might say, -think, or suspect, seemed now to take a -tangible form, and the soul of the girl -seemed to die within her. -</p> - -<p> -It was so fated, however, that the secret -of her adventures was never to be made -known to the world of Mrs. Grundy—by -the lips of Sir Redmond Sleath, at least. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -While this daring and extraordinary -conspiracy against the freedom and peace -of Ellinor was in progress in that obscure -and gloomy house, among the damp and -miasmatic districts of the Fleethen, her -sister Mary and Mrs. Deroubigne were -still in the pretty villa at Altona. -</p> - -<p> -The former was now in deep mourning—so -deep that it was almost the same -as the weeds of a widow, for she felt -herself a widow in heart, indeed; and by -the double loss she had endured the girl -thought that Fate was very cruel to her. -</p> - -<p> -She had received a pleasant, a -delightfully-soothing letter from old -Dr. Wodrow, condoling with her on the sad news -from Cabul, all ignorant as he was yet -of the escape of his son amid the new -calamity in that fatal city—fatal to -Britons, at least. -</p> - -<p> -'Any place in which we are perfectly -happy is a place we glorify and transform,' -says a writer: and in the joy of her -engagement to Leslie Colville, notwithstanding -the perils he had to face, Mary had -glorified their pretty abode by the Elbe at -Altona. -</p> - -<p> -That was all ended and over, and now -the place had become to her one of double -gloom, and associated with a double -sorrow. -</p> - -<p> -'Ah, Madame Deroubigne,' said the -young Baron Rolandsburg, 'your charming -villa has now not unnaturally become -to you a place of calamitous associations—most -unhomely,' he added. '<i>Ja-ja!</i> it is -always so after misfortunes come.' -</p> - -<p> -And now as Altona had become so -repugnant—a place of such horror to both -Mary Wellwood and Mrs. Deroubigne, the -time was fast approaching when they were -to take their departure for London. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap12"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XII. -<br /><br /> -THE PLOT THICKENS. -</h3> - -<p> -Finding that his visits were fast making -Ellinor seriously ill, Sir Redmond, at the -request of Herr Wyburg, did not intrude -upon her for a day or two, yet he called -and left a sham message concerning -his continued inquiries for Mrs. Deroubigne. -</p> - -<p> -'Where are the friends of the Fraulein?' -asked Herr Wyburg, twisting his coarse, -red moustache; 'in England?' -</p> - -<p> -'No, I rather think not,' replied Sir -Redmond. -</p> - -<p> -'Where, then?' -</p> - -<p> -'They were in Altona last, I believe,' -said the other, unguardedly. -</p> - -<p> -'Altona! In Altona! <i>Ach Gott!</i> Then -she is the Fraulein for information -concerning whom, alive or dead, such rewards -were offered by placards in the Bourse and -in the <i>Hamburger Nachtrichten</i>.' -</p> - -<p> -'Nonsense,' said Sleath, discovering that -the admission was a mistake. -</p> - -<p> -'It is no nonsense,' exclaimed Wyburg, -trying to remember the amount of the -reward offered, his cupidity at once excited -by the consideration whether or not it -was worth his while to betray his employer. -</p> - -<p> -After the latter departed, he remembered -the cunning and avaricious gleam that -came into the watery grey eyes of the -German, and a suspicion of his fidelity -began to assume tangible shapes in the -tainted mind of Sleath. -</p> - -<p> -The chances that after all his trouble, -care, cunning, and expense she might be -delivered from his snares, taken from his -power, an exposé made, and doubtless an -appeal to the police of the city, to the -British consul and the four burgomasters, -before his intrigue had been successfully -developed and Ellinor's voice silenced, -filled him with exasperation; and cursing -his own imprudent admission to Herr -Wyburg, into whose hands he had thus put -himself, he drank so deeply at his hotel -that night that, between his passion for -Ellinor, and fierce suspicion of his German -tools, his mind became inflamed to a -dangerous degree, and he resolved that before -the church bells tolled midnight he would -visit the persecuted girl, for the purpose -of making assurance doubly sure with her -and his two paid creatures. -</p> - -<p> -'Yes,' he hiccupped, with an oath, as he -was taken in a droski across the -Adolphs-brucke and the Nuerwall, 'I'll end it all, -or know the reason why! I have played -the whining fool too long. Am I to pass -my days in slaving to study her -whim-whams?—to overcome her prudery and -sham scruples? Am I a fool or a boy? -Of what or of whom am I afraid? I will -now listen only to the dictates of my own -mind.' -</p> - -<p> -He muttered much more to the same -purpose aloud, and, quitting the droski at -the corner of the Grosse Bleichen, thrust -a double-mark into the driver's hand, -and, without thinking of change, -proceeded on foot to the house of Herr -Wyburg. -</p> - -<p> -A mass with three pointed gables, and -each storey overhanging the other on -beams of timber, rose before him. All -was dark in and around it when he -approached the door, and, tipsy though he -was, he could hear—he thought—the -beating of his heart, and for a -moment—but a moment only—an emotion of -timidity, even of shame, came over -him. -</p> - -<p> -'Pshaw!' he exclaimed, with a malediction, -and rang the bell. -</p> - -<p> -After some delay and parleying, he was -admitted by the drowsy Lenchen, who -surveyed him with more annoyance than -respect in her visage; but he strode past -her without a word, and ascended to Herr -Wyburg's sitting-room. -</p> - -<p> -He found that worthy attired in his -grotesque <i>Reiter-Diener</i> costume, with his -steeple-crowned hat and toledo on the -table beside him. He was asleep in an -easy-chair, and, after being at a funeral, -had drank and smoked himself into a state -of partial insensibility. -</p> - -<p> -'I wish to see the Fraulein,' said Sleath -to Frau Wyburg, who glanced at him -inquiringly. -</p> - -<p> -'She must be asleep,' was the answer. -</p> - -<p> -'I must see and speak with her.' -</p> - -<p> -'Ah, you have found her friends, then?' -said Frau Wyburg, with one of her -detestable leers. -</p> - -<p> -Sleath made no reply, but, snatching a -candle from the table, proceeded at once -towards the apartment of Ellinor, with a -strange pallor in his face, his bloodshot -eyes aflame, and his steps unsteady. -</p> - -<p> -He hesitated a moment, and then turned -the handle of the door. It was locked on -the inside, and refused to yield. -</p> - -<p> -He might naturally have expected this; -but it served to surprise and exasperate -him, for at that moment he was in the -mood to fight with his own shadow. -</p> - -<p> -'Ellinor, rouse yourself—I have news -for you—news at last!' he exclaimed, and -knocked on the door-panels more noisily -than respectfully. -</p> - -<p> -But there was no response from within. -He applied his ear to the keyhole; there -was not a sound to be heard, and, as -he had been given to understand that -young girls generally slept lightly, it -was impossible he could fail to waken her. -</p> - -<p> -He knocked more loudly again, but -failed to elicit the slightest response. -Then he heard the mocking laugh of -Frau Wyburg, who was listening at the -foot of the staircase, and, believing that -already he was being deluded, a gust of -fury seized him, and applying his foot to -the door, and as it was old and worm-eaten, -he dashed it open with ease, and -entered the darkened room. -</p> - -<p> -It was empty, and no cry of alarm or -consternation followed his furious irruption -into it. The upheld candle showed him -in a moment that its occupant was no -longer there. Ellinor was gone! -</p> - -<p> -Her bed had been unslept in; her hat -and the jacket she had got on board the -<i>Flying Foam</i> were lying on it. -</p> - -<p> -Where was she? Where hidden away? -</p> - -<p> -That double villain Wyburg had deceived -him after all, was Sir Redmond's -instant thought, and, impressed by the -rewards offered in the <i>Hamburger Nachtrichten</i> -and elsewhere, had 'sold' him and -given her up to Mrs. Deroubigne. -</p> - -<p> -Though infuriated with rage and -disappointment he became sober in a moment, -and turned to confront Wyburg and his -wife; and, to do them justice, their -astonishment, incredulity, and alarm had not -the least appearance of being simulated, -but were genuine. -</p> - -<p> -She was concealed from him perhaps in -some other apartment. -</p> - -<p> -Frau Wyburg emphatically denied that -she was. -</p> - -<p> -'Silence, hag!' exclaimed Sir Redmond; -'had you lived three centuries ago, you -would have been burned before the -Rathhaus as a witch!' -</p> - -<p> -Her black eyes gleamed dangerously at -this injurious remark, and on Sir Redmond -turning away to prosecute a search elsewhere -in defiance of the palpable evidence -that the door had been locked on the -inside, and that the key was still in the -lock, Herr Wyburg, who was mad with -consternation and drinking, roughly barred -his way. -</p> - -<p> -On the second finger of his right hand -Sir Redmond wore a cluster of diamonds; -so prominent and sharp were they that -they cut through his tightly-fitting kid -glove. These brilliants, as he dealt Wyburg -a facer, laid his cheek completely open -and nearly tore his left eye out, thus a -terrible and most unseemly brawl ensued. -</p> - -<p> -Wyburg was a man of enormous strength, -and for whom the enervated baronet was -no match in any way. Maddened by pain, -the sight of his own blood flowing freely, -by absinthe and <i>eau-de-vie</i>, inspirited by -revenge and greed together, he resolved -to make Sleath a victim now, and, though -suffering from what the French call the -<i>folie paralytique</i> which the two compounds -referred to produce, he was simply savage, -yet methodical, in his proceedings. -</p> - -<p> -Rushing upon Sleath like an infuriated -bull, he closed with him, and hurling him -down the staircase flung him in a heap, -bleeding and senseless, at the bottom. -</p> - -<p> -When he recovered, Sleath found himself, -secured in an attic of Wyburg's house, -a prisoner, bound securely with ropes, stiff, -sore, and bruised, his face and shirt front -all plastered with blood. -</p> - -<p> -Mr. John Gaiters, all the subsequent -day, and indeed the day after, was sorely -perplexed by the non-appearance of his -master at the Hotel Russie, especially as -the yacht of Mr. Dewsnap was now ready -for sea. -</p> - -<p> -Frau Wyburg assured him that they had -seen nothing of Sir Redmond for several -days, and as the young lady had gone he -had most probably accompanied her; and -with this perplexing intelligence the valet -was compelled to content himself. -</p> - -<p> -This story or suggestion seemed to -receive a certain corroboration when Gaiters, -who was well-nigh at his wit's end, on -pursuing his inquiries at Herr Burger's -bank in the Gras Keller, where Sir -Redmond had letters of credit, found that a -cheque, duly signed by him, had been -presented there on the preceding day and -cashed for a pretty large sum. -</p> - -<p> -Meanwhile, unable to communicate with -the external world, Sir Redmond remained, -bound hand and foot, a wretched prisoner -in the power of the Wyburgs, one of whose -first measures was the extortion of the -cheque in question as the price of his -freedom; but, though the money was duly -paid, they still kept him in their hands, -being somewhat doubtful whether to -release or destroy him. -</p> - -<p> -He knew not whether they had actually -betrayed him and given over Ellinor to -her sister and chaperone, Mrs. Deroubigne, -and in some respects he cared not now. -In his innate selfishness of heart, he cursed -her bitterly as being in one sense the cause -of his present predicament, and he longed -with a savage energy to be free that he -might turn his back on Hamburg for ever. -</p> - -<p> -He strove with all his strength and -energy to burst his bonds, while the veins -in his forehead swelled and the perspiration -poured over it, but strove, in vain, -while Herr Wyburg, with his hideous -visage tied up in a blood-stained cloth, sat -mockingly in his chair, smoking his -meerschaum, and sipping absinthe from time -to time out of a green cup-shaped German -glass. -</p> - -<p> -The care with which the cheque had -been executed and cashed induced Herr -Wyburg and his spouse to extort at all -risks another, for their greed and cupidity -were thoroughly awakened now, and they -had the miserable man completely in -their power; and the circumstance that -the funerals of one or two opulent -burgers—one of them actually that of a senator -of the city—were taking place, in which -the Herr with his battered visage could -take no part, and consequently pocket no -fees, made him the more resolved on -extortion; and, if the worst came to the -worst, there were the waters of the -Fleethen below the windows of the house. -</p> - -<p> -'You'll never see that girl again unless -you sign this other little cheque,' said Frau -Wyburg, with grim decision. -</p> - -<p> -'I don't care a doit about the girl; keep -her,' replied Sleath through his clenched -teeth. 'For God-sake,' he added, imploringly, -'give me something to drink; I am -perishing of thirst.' -</p> - -<p> -'Well, perish, then, if you won't sign -this paper—it is stamped and ready; but, -till you sign it or die, the water remains -in this flagon,' replied Wyburg, placing a -tall German beer-jug full of sparkling -water in tantalising proximity to the -wretched man's lips, and then putting it -on the table, while madame looked on -approvingly, her black eyes gleaming, her -pale face radiant with malice and greed, -her jaw looking more square, and her tiger -mouth more tigerish than ever. -</p> - -<p> -Somehow the words of Wyburg seemed -to introduce a practical and reasonable, if -intensely obnoxious, element into what -seemed the phantasmal horror of a -prolonged nightmare to Sir Redmond Sleath. -</p> - -<p> -'What is the sum?' he asked, huskily. -</p> - -<p> -'Three hundred pounds English money.' -</p> - -<p> -He groaned with rage at this renewed -extortion; but, if money is precious, life -is more precious still, and these Wyburgs -he knew to be wretches without an atom -of scruple, so he signed the cheque, which -the Herr, who knew his autograph -perfectly well, folded and handed to his -better-half with a smile of grim -satisfaction. -</p> - -<p> -'Unbind me now,' said Sleath, faintly. -</p> - -<p> -'Not if I know it, yet awhile,' replied -the ruffian, who, though he acted so -methodically, was half mad with revenge for -his gashed visage, and the imbibing of -absinthe and Danish corn-brandy. -</p> - -<p> -'What are you about to do with me?' -asked Sleath, imploringly, and with mortal -fear in his face and accents. -</p> - -<p> -Wyburg made no reply, but proceeded -with great deliberation to bore two holes -in the wainscot of the attic, and, passing -through them the ends of the ropes which -bound his prisoner, told him that they -were being secured by the Frau to a little -cask of powder on the other side of the -partition, and inserted in which there was -a loaded and cocked revolver, and that the -instant he moved or attempted pursuit or -flight the tension of the ropes would cause -an explosion that would blow him and the -house to pieces! -</p> - -<p> -Herr Wyburg had made that which to -him was a small fortune out of Sir Redmond, -and dared not face any inquiry in -case of that individual escaping and -appealing to law; he was far in arrear with -his house rent; he had sold his furniture -twice over to different Jews in the -Scharsteinweg, and now resolved to quit -Hamburg for purer air; and, inspired by malice -and revenge, he and his wife took their -immediate departure, leaving the wretched -Sleath minus watch, purse, and rings, and, -as we have described, face to face with -a miserable death, if he attempted to -escape! -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap13"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XIII. -<br /><br /> -WITH ROBERTS' COLUMN. -</h3> - -<p> -'Welcome back from the other world, Bob -Wodrow!' exclaimed Toby Chace. 'The -stable-call won't be new to you, though -a good meal and a deep drink may be, -I have no doubt. So we are to have a -shy at these Afghan beggars again!' and -while grooming his horse he began to -sing the stable-call in verse, while rubbing -down his charger after hissing away -through his teeth in the most orthodox -fashion, -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - 'Come, come to your stable as quick as you're able,<br /> - Come, come to your stable, my jolly dragoon;<br /> - See your horse groomed well, and give him some hay,<br /> - With corn and water for night and for day;<br /> - Then come to your stable as fast as you're able,<br /> - Then come to your stable, my jolly dragoon.'<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -So sang to Wodrow that jovial English -trooper, Toby Chace, light of heart, if -unsteady of purpose, while bustling about -his horse—Chace, who, in his more palmy -days, had more than one hunter of his -own in stall; who had once handsome rooms -in Piccadilly, a snug corner in his club, -and was never without an invitation for -cub-hunting in the shires, or to pot the -deer in the Highlands; the heir to an old -English baronetcy, and yet, in his fallen -estate, was wont to designate himself 'jolly -as a sandboy, whatever the devil kind of -boy that is!' -</p> - -<p> -Left behind his regiment sick, Toby -Chace was now, like Robert Wodrow, -attached <i>pro tem.</i> to a squadron of the -9th Lancers ordered to the front. -</p> - -<p> -'So we march to-morrow to clear off the -score we owe these fellows at Cabul,' said -he. -</p> - -<p> -'In that business, then, I have lost the -best friend man ever had,' said Wodrow, -sighing; 'Captain Colville.' -</p> - -<p> -'A right good sort; we'll drink his -health—his memory, I mean. I wonder -if Fred Roberts will let us sack the -town?' -</p> - -<p> -'I think not, Toby—but why?' -</p> - -<p> -'It would be rare fun prying into the -harems, or having them escaladed by -reprobates in regimentals.' -</p> - -<p> -Toby's naturally elastic spirits rose at -the prospect of more fighting, for his -disposition was always to make the best of -everything, and it served him in good -stead now. -</p> - -<p> -Ignorant of all that was transpiring to -those most dear to him far away in -Europe, Colville was still a prisoner in -the hands of Mahmoud Shah. -</p> - -<p> -The cruel and barbarous murder of the -young and gallant Hector Maclain, after -he had been so many weeks the prisoner -and guest of Ayoub Khan, proved that -our Afghan enemies could be true or false -to their salt, exactly as suited their caprice -or cruelty; thus, though Leslie Colville -was in precisely the same position in the -Cabul fort, it by no means followed that -his life might not be taken in any moment -of fear or hatred. -</p> - -<p> -Life in India has often been described -as one long and listless yawn, born of -weariness, heat, and indolence; but it was -certainly not so at this crisis on the -borders of Afghanistan, which, to the average -British mind, is considered a part of -India. -</p> - -<p> -An army was now detailed to punish the -infatuated fanatics who had destroyed our -Embassy, but, though infatuated, they were -also -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - 'Souls made of fire and children of the sun,<br /> - With whom revenge is virtue!'<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -So we now resolved to take a leaf out of -their own book, and have our revenge in -turn. -</p> - -<p> -Once more our troops would have to -toil along the stony and boulder-strewn -banks of the gloomy Khyber, up and down -the awful chasms of the Lundi Khana -Kotal, by the mountain clefts and deep -defiles of Khoord Cabul, with every -prospect of being harassed, perhaps decimated, -by thousands of hardy hillmen—the -Khyberees, Afreedees, Shinwarris, Mohmonds, -Mongols, and Ghilzies. -</p> - -<p> -The gallant and active Sir Donald -Stewart again seized Candahar; Massey -occupied the Shutargardan Pass; Baker -took Kushi, and Roberts—whose name is -second to none in glory—was soon ready -to begin that campaign which all hoped -would end in the conquest of the -blood-stained Cabul. -</p> - -<p> -The Viceroy of India made the greatest -efforts to grapple with the new difficulty, -and hurry forward the army that was to -uphold the power of the fickle Ameer as -our nominal ally—for nominal indeed he -was—and there was every prospect of his -being slain by his insurgent troops, led by -Mahmoud Shah and other sirdirs, unless -he took to flight, or put himself at their -head against us as intruders and unbelievers. -</p> - -<p> -'This devil of an Ameer,' remarked old -Colonel Spatterdash, 'is true to the words -of Swift—"The two maxims of every great -man are always to keep his countenance, -and never to keep his word." -</p> - -<p> -Three columns were to advance -simultaneously, and open communication -between Cabul and Peshawur, but we shall -confine ourselves briefly to that under Sir -Frederick Roberts, which consisted of -three batteries of Artillery, a squadron of -H.M. 9th Lancers, some Bengal and -Punjaub Cavalry, the Gordon and Albany -Highlanders, the 67th Regiment, 3rd -Sikhs, 23rd Pioneers, and Spatterdash's -Punjaubees—making a total of barely -eight thousand men. -</p> - -<p> -Scarlet, blue, and gold, had for the time -been discarded by the cavalry, and, like -most of the infantry, they wore <i>karkee</i>, or -mud-coloured costumes—uniforms they -could scarcely be called—with the inevitable -tropical helmet, and <i>putties</i> or linen -leg bandages. The Scottish infantry, -however, retained their tartans, wearing -respectively the green Gordon and red Royal -Stuart; but the Lancers laid aside their -scarlet and white bannerettes. -</p> - -<p> -The 19th of September saw our advanced -parties reconnoitering close to Kushi, -within thirty-five miles of Cabul, where -twelve strong battalions with many guns -were reported to be in garrison; and on -that night the Duke of Albany's Highlanders -were suddenly fired into, when all -was supposed to be quiet in the vicinity, -and a group of officers were chatting and -smoking round a wood fire, which was -instantly scattered and extinguished that -the enemy might have nothing to aim by. -</p> - -<p> -The Highland pickets stood to their -arms, and by a few half-random volleys -swept away the assailants, who proved to -be Ghazis or religious fanatics, armed with -juzails, or long matchlock guns, with a -forked rest, which enables the marksman -to take a steady aim. They are formidable -weapons in mountainous districts, and, -though their range exceeded that of old -'brown Bess,' it is far inferior to that of -the rifles now in use. -</p> - -<p> -Three days after, the Mongols attacked -a convoy of provisions, borne on mules, in -a solitary pass, and killed about twenty-three -of the escort, chiefly by knives, and -resistance proved useless, as the mountain -band was so numerous that they next -attempted to storm a tower at the summit -of the Sirkai Kotal, or Red Pass, so named -from the peculiar colour of the narrow -path which led to it, but were repulsed -and finally driven off by two companies of -the Albany Highlanders. But skirmishes -such as these were now of daily occurrence. -</p> - -<p> -A few days after saw General Baker, -C.B. and V.C., with the brigade of cavalry -at Kushi (or 'the Village of Delights'), in -a very barren district, whence, however, -could be seen the lovely Logur Valley—fresh, -green, and fertile; and then he -pushed his patrols and reconnaisances -along the Cabul Road towards Zargun -Shahr. -</p> - -<p> -The advanced camp at Kushi received -some very unexpected guests on the 23rd -of September, when, at the head of twenty-five -splendidly clad and accoutred -horsemen—including old Daud Shah—the -Ameer Yakoub Khan rode in and surrendered -himself! -</p> - -<p> -'I have no longer any power left,' said -he; 'I have been dethroned by my own -mutinous troops; but Inshallah! it is the -will of God!' -</p> - -<p> -'What his true reason for this startling -step may have been, we never knew,' wrote -an officer, 'certainly not the one he gave, -for no Afghan ever told the truth -intentionally.' -</p> - -<p> -Handsome tents were given to him and -his suite, and a guard of honour, furnished -by the Gordon Highlanders, was accorded -him. Next day General Roberts and his -staff rode in amid the cheers of the troops, -and every face brightened, as all knew -that the stern work of vengeance was soon -to begin, and the pitiful slaughter of the -gallant Cavagnari and his companions -would be atoned for. -</p> - -<p> -Stolidly proud or stupidly unimpassionable, -the Ameer did not condescend to -leave his tent, but lounged on a silken -divan in the doorway of it, with a lorgnette -in his hands, and evinced no excitement -till he heard the pipes of the Gordon -Highlanders, and saw the kilted sentinels -around him. -</p> - -<p> -'He is a man of about six or seven and -thirty,' says Major Mitford, of the 14th -Bengal Lancers, in his narrative, 'with a -light almond complexion and a very long, -hooked nose, the lower part of the face -hidden by a black beard and a moustache, -the eyes having a dazed expression like -those of a freshly caught seal. This is -said to have been caused by the five years' -confinement in a dark cell to which his -father, Shere Ali, subjected him, for -conspiring against him.' -</p> - -<p> -By order of the Viceroy, Sir Frederick -Roberts issued a manifesto to the Afghan -people to the effect that the British troops -were advancing on the capital to avenge -the treachery of its armed inhabitants, but -that all who were peaceful would be -unmolested; and non-combatants, women, -and children were advised to leave Cabul -and betake themselves to places of safety. -</p> - -<p> -After some necessary interviews or -consultations with the dethroned and fugitive -Ameer, General Roberts concentrated his -whole force at Kushi prior to attacking -the city or any force it might send into -the field against him. -</p> - -<p> -Meanwhile the so-called guard of honour -furnished by the Gordon Highlanders kept -a close watch over Yakoub Khan, as all in -camp mistrusted him, and believed that -he only made a pretence of giving himself -up, and had in reality come to spy our -numbers and weak points. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap14"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XIV. -<br /><br /> -THE BATTLE OF CHARASIAH. -</h3> - -<p> -That something was on the <i>tapis</i>, and -something like preparation, and very like -consternation too, existed in and about -Cabul, became evident to Leslie Colville, -who suspected, though he was ignorant -of the truth, that it was caused by the -advance of a British army. -</p> - -<p> -From the square keep of Mahmoud -Shah's fort he could see mounted scouts -and regular cavalry patrols hourly scouring -the road, while crowds of Ghilzies and -other hillmen, with banners waving and -arms glittering, hovered on the mountain -sides; caravans of camels laden with stores -from Ghuznee, Bamian, Parwan, and elsewhere -in the rear passed daily into the -gates of Cabul, and more than one train of -cannon too. -</p> - -<p> -All this he saw, but made no comment, -and he asked no questions; he was only -glad and thankful to heaven when night -fell or day dawned, that another twelve -hours of durance were passed, and that he -was still in the land of the living, or not, -perhaps, sold as a slave to the Beloochees -or Usbeg Tartars, till one morning, about -an hour or more before dawn, Mahmoud -roused him from the charpoy on which he -slept, and curtly told him that he must -come forth. -</p> - -<p> -Leslie Colville's heart beat painfully, -and his thoughts flashed home to Mary -Wellwood. Was death—such a murderous -death as that by which Maclain -died—about to be meted out to him after -all? -</p> - -<p> -He was without arms—helpless; nor -would arms have availed him much in -that tower, garrisoned as it was by the -fanatical cut-throats of Mahmoud Shah, -whom he followed into the court, where -two horses saddled and ready for the road -were standing. -</p> - -<p> -'Mount,' said Mahmoud; 'mount and -come with me, while the morning is yet -dark—we have not a moment to lose.' -</p> - -<p> -They quitted the tower by its western -gate, and took together at a hard gallop -the road that led, as Colville knew by past -experience, along the left bank of the -Cabul river, and, leaving all the scattered -forts, walled gardens, and orchards -behind, runs by Khoord Cabul and the -Suffaidh Sang towards the Shutargardan -Pass; and now for the first time genuine -hope began to dawn in his heart. -</p> - -<p> -'Hark!' cried Mahmoud; 'what sound -is that?' -</p> - -<p> -'A British trumpet call,' replied Colville. -</p> - -<p> -'Yes—and look!' said his guide, whom -Colville now perceived was clad completely -in spotless white, the costume of a Ghazi, -assumed by those Moslem fanatics who -devote themselves to death in battle for -their Faith, and to achieving the death of -all unbelievers. -</p> - -<p> -Day was breaking now, and already the -snow-clad peaks of some of those hills -which are above eleven thousand feet in -height, tipped with rosy dawn as with -fire, stood sharply up against the deep -blue sky, and, after a ten miles' ride from -the vicinity of the city, Mahmoud Shah -drew his reins, and again said, 'Look!' -</p> - -<p> -Then Colville could see the gleam of -arms in the distance, and as the gleam -was steady he knew it was a sign of -troops advancing. -</p> - -<p> -'Your people are there,' said Mahmoud; -'join them, but keep out of my way for -the future, and tempt me no more; for -never again, had we eaten a peck of salt -together, will I spare the life of an -unbeliever; I have sworn it by the -ninety-nine holy attributes and the Black Stone -of Mecca! Go—and go with God, though -Eblis is more powerful yonder. There -are the unbelievers who say the blessed -Koran is a lie, and who seek to turn -us aside from the gods our fathers -worshipped, and of whom it was written on -that Night of Power, when the word came -down from Heaven, they shall taste the -fires of hell, which like molten metal will -devour their entrails!' -</p> - -<p> -His dark eyes flashed as he spoke, and -he ground his set teeth in the fury of his -fanaticism. -</p> - -<p> -'Allah Shookr!' he exclaimed, and, -without waiting for a single word of thanks -from Colville, wheeled his horse sharply -round, and galloped away towards the -distant city at full speed; and a -picturesque figure he looked, in his snowy -camise and loose mantle, his long, white -loonghee floating in the morning breeze, -his juzail slung across his back, and the -head of his tall, tasselled lance gleaming -in the sunshine. -</p> - -<p> -Colville devoutly hoped they would -never meet again; yet he had not seen -quite the last of Mahmoud Shah. -</p> - -<p> -He now rode joyfully on towards the -two parties of British cavalry which were -then in sight, and who were—though he -knew it not—about to inaugurate those -operations which brought on the battle -of Charasiah—or 'The Four Water Mills,' -a spot about twelve British miles from -Cabul. -</p> - -<p> -The troops of Roberts had encamped -there for the night, after passing through -the picturesque defile called the -Sung-i-Navishta. All the vicinity had been -scoured by our cavalry patrols, and, little -aware that they were on the eve of a -bloody engagement, the soldiers, weary -with a long day's march, had turned in -early. -</p> - -<p> -Daybreak on this eventful day saw two -cavalry patrols pushing along the roads -that lead from Charasiah to Cabul. -Captain Neville, of the 14th Bengal Lancers, -with twenty men of that corps, took that -one which, after crossing the Chardeh -Valley, enters the south-western suburbs -of the city, while the southern road, -leading through the Sung-i-Navishta, was -taken by Captain Apperley, with twenty -of the 9th Lancers, and Robert Wodrow, -as he had so recently trod the ways there -on foot, now rode with him as a guide. -</p> - -<p> -At nine a.m., a puff of smoke came -suddenly from the loopholed-wall of a -village, and Wodrow's horse fell under -him, killed by a musket ball. Apperley -reported that he had occupied another -village, and was now hard pressed by the -enemy, on which a field-officer and twenty -more Lancers came on to his succour, -while some native infantry went at the -double in the direction of Captain Neville's -party. -</p> - -<p> -Robert Wodrow was in the act of getting -his carbine unstrapped from his dead -horse when a mounted man suddenly came -upon him clad in a sorely frayed and -tattered blue patrol jacket, and wearing on -his head a scarlet Afghan loonghee, and -great was his astonishment and noisy and -genuine his joy on discovering that this -solitary and unarmed rider was Leslie -Colville, whom he had long since numbered -with the slain among the ashes of the -Residency. -</p> - -<p> -They shook hands again and again -warmly. Each had a hundred questions -to ask the other, but both had little -information to give, as Colville had been -mewed up in Mahmoud's fort since the day -of the massacre, and no tidings from home -in any way or of any kind had reached -Robert Wodrow. -</p> - -<p> -'And now, without a moment's delay, I -must report myself at headquarters,' said -Colville. -</p> - -<p> -'The General and staff are as yet some -miles in the rear, sir,' replied Wodrow, -recalled by the remark to their relative -positions, 'and I shall guide you. By the -carbine and musketry fire in front our two -cavalry patrols seem, to be catching it, and -I must somehow get another horse. We -have plenty of time. The infantry have -yet some miles to come!' -</p> - -<p> -Wodrow seemed now alternately in -very sad or in the wildest spirits. With -Colville's presence, his voice and kindly -face, the young fellow's thoughts and -memories went keenly and vividly back to -the past time at Birkwoodbrae, to the -manse of Kirktoun-Mailler, and all the old -associations of Ellinor Wellwood and his -home. -</p> - -<p> -Then, indeed, he forgot for a time that -he was only a corporal of Hussars, as -Colville did that he was an officer of the -Guards, and they chummed like old friends -together. -</p> - -<p> -'Share with me the contents of my -haversack and flask, Captain Colville,' said -Robert Wodrow, as they sat for a few -minutes by the banks of a wayside runnel. -'We are going into action again—that is -pretty evident. "Few, few shall part -where many meet"—you know what the -poet says; and I care little if it be my -chance to fall—after all—after all I have -undergone.' -</p> - -<p> -'Don't say so, Wodrow,' said Colville, -in a tone of reprehension. 'Why -the deuce are you so low in spirit -now?' -</p> - -<p> -'I should not be, now that I have met -you again, Captain Colville,' replied -Wodrow, as he received back his flask and took -a long pull at it; 'but I feel—I feel—I -don't know how to-day. It is not fear, -but as if something was about to happen -to me; and a song—a song that -she—Ellinor—used to sing seems to haunt my -memory now.' -</p> - -<p> -'What song? "The Birks of Invermay"?' -</p> - -<p> -'No—another, and at this moment her -very voice seems in my ears,' he said, in -broken accent. -</p> - -<p> -'And this song of Ellinor's——' -</p> - -<p> -'Ran thus,' said Wodrow, and, with a -low voice and a certain humidity in his -eyes, he actually sang a now forgotten -song— -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - 'Thy way along life's bright path lies,<br /> - Where flowers spring up before thee,<br /> - And faithful hearts and loving eyes<br /> - Assemble to adore thee.<br /> - The great and wise bend at thy shrine,<br /> - The fair and young pursue thee,<br /> - Fame's chaplets round thy temples twine,<br /> - And pleasure smiles to woo thee.<br /> -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - 'Yet, 'mid each blessing time can bring,<br /> - Thy breast is still repining;<br /> - 'Tis cold as Ammon's icy spring,<br /> - O'er which no sun is shining;<br /> - And friendship's presence has no charm—<br /> - And beauty's smiles are blighted,<br /> - Nor joy, nor fame the heart can warm,<br /> - That early love has slighted.'<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -'And <i>blighted</i> has mine been, as you -know, Captain Colville,' he added, more -sadly than bitterly. -</p> - -<p> -'Come, Wodrow, don't pose as a "blighted -being," any way,' said the other, who -saw with pain the emotion of his comrade, -and feared it sprang from one not -unfrequently met with on service, the -presentiment of coming death. 'Here comes a -Hussar on the spur from the front.' -</p> - -<p> -'Toby Chace!' exclaimed Wodrow, as -that individual came powdering along the -road, but reined up sharply for a moment -or so. 'Whither so fast?' -</p> - -<p> -'I am sent back to report that the enemy -in great force are advancing from the -direction of the city, and occupying the -defile and range of hills between this and -Cabul, completely barring our advance. -The Ghilzies are all mustering, and the -road to Zahidabad, where the fifth division -has encamped, is threatened.' -</p> - -<p> -'That is the road by which General -Macpherson is advancing with a great -convoy of stores and ammunition.' -</p> - -<p> -'Yes—so no doubt we shall have to -carry the heights before evening.' -</p> - -<p> -Toby Chace now recognised that Colville -was an officer, though in somewhat -dilapidated garments, and saluted him, -colouring deeply, almost painfully, as he did -so. -</p> - -<p> -'My comrade, Toby Chace, Captain Colville,' -said Wodrow; 'he is like myself, a -reduced gentleman, and will die, I hope, a -baronet.' -</p> - -<p> -'I am not in a hurry about that,' said -Toby, and, as Colville bowed to him, he -saluted again, and proffered his -brandy-flask, a silver hunting one, on which a -coat of arms was engraved—a relic of -better days at Melton and elsewhere. 'I -have only a ration biscuit to offer you, sir,' -said Toby, laughing; 'but once into Cabul, -we shall have luxuries galore—<i>cotelettes de -mouton à l'Ameer</i>—mutton chops and green -chillis. And now to deliver my report!' -he added, and, putting spurs to his horse, -rode off in the direction of Kushi, while -Colville and Robert Wodrow followed him -as fast as they could. There was no -time to be lost now, as the events of the -day were rapidly developing themselves. -</p> - -<p> -Colville reported himself to General -Baker (whose brigade was coming on), -and joined that officer's staff, on procuring -arms, while Wodrow bade him farewell, -and joined the squadron of Lancers to -which he was attached. -</p> - -<p> -Captain Apperley's command of the -latter he had now dismounted, and posted -in a shallow ditch that surrounded a square -mud fort, in which he placed the chargers. -A range of steep hills rose in front of this -improvised post, and through them lay -the Sung-i-Navishta Pass—which means -the 'Place of the Written Stone,' from an -ancient Persian inscription carved on a -mass of rock in the centre of the defile, -stating that the road then had been made -in the reign of Shah Jehan, who was -crowned at Agra in 1628. -</p> - -<p> -Hills, steep, barren, and stony, were on -the left of this post, and there were grey -garden walls, from which the Afghans -were firing briskly, but as most of their -balls went into the air, it was evident that -they were ignorant of how to sight the -rifles they were handling. -</p> - -<p> -A small party of the 12th Bengal Cavalry -dismounted, held a walled garden on the -right of this post, and kept up a rattling -carbine fire on the enemy, who took cover -among ground so rough and broken that -no cavalry in the saddle could act against -them. -</p> - -<p> -To succour these advanced parties, -whose posts were now enveloped in whirls -of eddying smoke, streaked by incessant -jets or flashes of fire, the Royal Artillery -guns came on under Major Parry, with a -wing of the Gordon Highlanders under -Major Stewart White, with some of the -23rd Pioneers and two squadrons of the -5th Punjaub Cavalry, all sent by General -Baker, who assigned to this mixed but -slender force the severe task of carrying -these garrisoned heights. -</p> - -<p> -Old Spatterdash as he went to the front -had just time to wring Colville's hand and -congratulate him, but in doing so reeled a -little in his saddle. In fact, at that early -hour he was still groggy from his potations -over night, and said, in a feathery -voice, -</p> - -<p> -'S'cuse me, Colville, but that infernal -bullet I got at Lucknow is troubling me -as usual.' -</p> - -<p> -A few minutes more saw Spatterdash -lying on his back, shot through the head, -and a riderless horse galloping rearward -with loose reins, while very heavy firing -on the left announced that Baker was -pushing on towards the hills, and all along -their green slopes could be seen the white -smoke of cannon and rifles eddying and -rolling before the soft morning breeze. -</p> - -<p> -As Major White pushed on with his -somewhat mixed command, Colville could -see the rocky heights on both flanks of -the Sung-i-Navishta Pass manned by dark -masses of the enemy, all ranked under -numerous standards that streamed in the -breeze, red, blue, green, white, and yellow, -the colours of the different mountain -tribes, or of the fortified villages from -which they came. -</p> - -<p> -There, too, were the sombre battalions -of the Ameer's revolted infantry, clad in -brown tunics faced with scarlet; and, most -conspicuous of all, were a horde of Ghazis, -furious and inflamed fanatics, in purest -white, led by several chiefs, but most -notably by Mahmoud Shah. -</p> - -<p> -Parry's battery now opened fire on the -crowds that covered the nearest hill, -and, while yells of defiance mingled with -the din of the guns and musketry, four -Afghan rifled mountain guns in the Pass -replied, making very good practice against -us indeed, and waking the echoes of the -rocks that overhang the Logur river. -</p> - -<p> -'Let the guns continue to advance, and -pound the nearest hill where these fellows -with the standards are,' said Major White, -adding proudly and confidently, 'With my -Highlanders alone I shall sweep the enemy -from those hills on our right.' -</p> - -<p> -Parry then advanced his guns to within -fifteen hundred yards, and again opened -fire. His cavalry escort was commanded -by Major Mitford, who says, 'We had -thus leisure to watch the advance of the -92nd, which was a splendid sight. The -dark green kilts went up the steep rocky -hillside at a fine rate, though one would -occasionally drop, and roll several feet -down the slope, showing that the rattling -fire kept up by the enemy was not all -display. Both sides took advantage of every -atom of cover, but still the gallant kilts -pressed on and up, and it was altogether -as pretty a piece of light infantry drill as -could be seen.' -</p> - -<p> -Meanwhile Parry's guns were sending -shell after shell with beautiful precision to -the crest of the hill he was ordered 'to -pound.' They exploded with dreadful -effect whenever and wherever the enemy -could be seen preparing to charge. The -Ghazis and Ghilzies lay over each other -in heaps, torn, mangled, and disembowelled, -and the white robes of the former -were seen to be splashed and stained with -blood; but still the living yelled and -brandished their swords and standards, and by -four p.m., Parry's guns had completely -silenced the four that had been -thundering in the echoing pass. -</p> - -<p> -And now it was that the gallant -commander of 'the Gay Gordons,' who were -still advancing, won his Victoria Cross, as -he stormed the crowded hills in person. -'Advancing with two companies of his -regiment,' says the <i>London Gazette</i>, 'he -came upon a body of the enemy, strongly -posted, and outnumbering his force by -eighteen to one. His men being much -exhausted, and immediate action necessary, -Major White took a rifle, and going on by -himself, shot the leader of the enemy.' -</p> - -<p> -The fall of this personage, who was -deemed invulnerable, so intimidated the -enemy that they fled down the mountain -side, while the Highlanders crowned its -crest with a ringing cheer, and then, -plunging with their bayonets into the dark -defile of the Sung-i-Navishta, they captured -the four mountain guns, the horses of -which lay disembowelled, dead, or dying -in the limber traces. So swift was the -rush of the Gordon Highlanders that they -had only nine casualties at this point. -</p> - -<p> -With the Albany Highlanders in the -van, General Baker pushed along the road -towards Chardeh, the 5th Ghoorkas, 5th -Punjaubees, and 23rd Pioneers following -them, till the whole were opposed on -strong and precipitous ground by four -thousand Afghans ranged under six large -and brightly-coloured standards. -</p> - -<p> -Upward and onward went our troops -under a withering rifle fire, the echoes of -which reverberated a hundredfold among -the hills, as they were tossed back from -peak to peak. For two hours the fight -went on, our troops loading and firing -with great coolness and deliberation; and -then was seen the fearful triumph of the -breechloading weapon of precision when -properly sighted, for each successive row -of swarthy men, as they crowned the -ridges of rock, was mown down by a -deadly fire, as wheat goes prone to the -earth before the scythe of the mower, till -after a time it seemed that scarcely a man -stood up alive after the delivery of these -thundering tempests of lead. -</p> - -<p> -The deadly Gatling guns (the pepper -castors, as the soldiers named them) proved -of little use, owing to the acute angle of -elevation; but at last the heights were -taken in rear by a flank movement of the -Gordon Highlanders, who, with colours -flying and all their pipes playing, came -storming up the steep slopes, and, crowning -the summits, swept the enemy away, or -all that remained of them. -</p> - -<p> -By four o'clock the Afghans were everywhere -in full flight to Cabul, with the loss -of many colours, twenty pieces of cannon, -and a host of killed and wounded. -</p> - -<p> -Strong pickets were posted for the night, -as the Ghilzies and Mahmoud Shah's Ghazis -were hovering about. The troops bivouacked, -as the tents and baggage were all -packed for the advance to Cabul on the -morrow. -</p> - -<p> -During all the events of this most -exciting day, by the difference of their -rank and duties, Colville had, of course, -seen nothing of Robert Wodrow, and feared -that his presentiment had been fulfilled, -till he heard from one of the staff what -the general had recorded in the last -paragraph of his despatch—a paragraph that -excited utter bewilderment, and joy too, in -the hearts of some that were far away, and -had heard nothing of the absent one since -the terrible catastrophe in the Cabul -river:— -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -'Corporal Robert Wodrow, of the 10th -Hussars (doing duty with the squadron of -H.M. 9th Lancers), having carried a -message for me, on the spur, through a -most disastrous fire, after two aides-de-camp -and an orderly officer had fallen -wounded successively in attempting this -perilous duty, I have the honour to -recommend him for a commission in the -infantry, and also for the Victoria Cross.' -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -After they had read this, his old parents, -as they looked from the manse windows of -Kirktoun-Mailler, knew why their kindly -parish folk lit that huge bonfire which -they then saw blazing on the summit of -Craigmhor. -</p> - -<p> -With hearts that were very full the -kindly old couple stood hand clasped in -hand, as when he had first won her girlish -love among the 'siller' Birks of Invermay, -and, though they were very silent now, -their souls were filled with prayer and -prayerful thoughts. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap15"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XV. -<br /><br /> -ENOUGH DONE FOR HONOUR. -</h3> - -<p> -The morning of the day after the battle of -Charasiah saw the cavalry all in their -saddles for an early movement. The dead -had not been buried as yet, -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - And their executors, the knavish crows,<br /> - Flew o'er them, impatient for their hour,<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -when about five o'clock, in a cold and -bitter wind, Colville was sent with -instructions for the Lancers and Bengal cavalry -to move off. -</p> - -<p> -They did so at a rapid pace, and -entering a narrow part of the Sung-i-Navishta -pass, pursued a winding and stony road -where the deep Logur stream flows -between rocks and slabs of granite, and there -seized a number of guns and brought them -into camp. -</p> - -<p> -Though Cabul had been abandoned by -the insurrectionary troops, whom the -results of Charasiah had stricken with -terror, a considerable body of fresh Afghan -forces, who had returned from Kohistan, -had formed an entrenched position on a -high hill which overlooks the Bala Hissar, -and to dislodge them was necessary before -entering the city; so, with eight squadrons -of horse, General Massy swept round it -northward to watch the roads that led to -Bamian and Kohistan, while General Baker -made a direct attack in front. -</p> - -<p> -During the events of the day Leslie -Colville had been conscious of a blow on -his left shoulder, received in a skirmish, -and believed it to be inflicted by some -soldier in swinging his musket about. -But it proved to be a juzail ball, almost -spent, and lodged in the flesh, out of -which it was cut by Robert Wodrow, who -bathed and dressed the wound for him. -</p> - -<p> -The enemy failed to meet Massy and -fled in the night, abandoning their camp -and twelve pieces of cannon; and under -Massy and Colonel Gough the cavalry -went in pursuit, through that difficult -ground which lies in the vicinity of Cabul, -and is encumbered by isolated forts like -that of Mahmoud Shah, and loopholed -garden and orchard walls, all affording -sure cover for skirmishers. -</p> - -<p> -To keep as far as possible from these -the cavalry rode by the way of the Siah -Sung, or Black Rock. As they proceeded, -on their left rose the grand and picturesque -masses of the Bala Hissar, towers -joined by curtains rising above each other -in succession, round, square, and octagon, -all crenelated, and glowing in the red -radiance of the morning sun, where not sunk -in shadow. Loftily these masses rose -above even the smoke of the great city, -the background of all being the ridgy -crest of the Tukt-i-Shah, or Emperor's -seat, and the great rocks of Asmai, on -which hordes of the enemy were gathered. -</p> - -<p> -The heights there are precipitous, a -thousand feet above the valley of Cabul, -and there the dark figures of the Afghans, -with their arms glittering in the sunshine, -could be seen, clustering thick as a swarm -of bees against the grey granite of the -cliffs, up the eastern flank of which our -infantry, with the Highlanders as usual in -the van, were now creeping with some light -mountain guns. -</p> - -<p> -When the shells of the latter began to -explode among the Afghans they raised -yells of derision, waved their standards, -and danced like madmen; and, heavy -though the cannonade, they manifested -no design of abandoning the heights of -Asmai. -</p> - -<p> -Leaving two squadrons of the 12th and -14th Bengal Regiments to watch their -movements, General Baker led the rest -of the cavalry brigade into the plain of -Chardeh—where a clear and beautiful -stream flows—and then the horses were -watered, while the din of cannon and -musketry showed that the attack and defence -of Asmai were proceeding. -</p> - -<p> -Baker now rode on to watch a camp -that had been formed at a village round -Deh Muzang, <i>en route</i> to which his native -guides abandoned him, but were overtaken -and shot on the spot. The whole district -was now encumbered by half-dispersed -hordes of the enemy, which, as the cavalry -overtook them, resisted more or less, and -after the sun set the duty became full of -peril in unknown ground. Thus, when -darkness fell, many of the dragoons went -astray; some fell into ambuscades, and -several were killed or wounded before the -villages in the Plain of Chardeh, where -they were to bivouac for the night, were -reached. -</p> - -<p> -Among the latter who suffered was -Wodrow's reckless and light-hearted -comrade, Toby Chace, whom, when Leslie -Colville came up with Baker's staff, he -found dying of a dreadful tulwar wound, -inflicted in combat against great odds -after his horse had been shot under him. -</p> - -<p> -This was just outside the village named -Killa Kazi, which was surrounded by a -very high loop-holed wall, within which -the native cavalry had dismounted for the -night, each trooper lying beside his horse. -</p> - -<p> -Toby's wound had been given by one -dreadful slash, and extended from the -chest to the thighs, laying the body so -completely open, that water as he drank -it from Robert Wodrow's wooden bottle, -actually trickled from his viscera, yet he -was wonderfully composed, and by his -own medical skill Wodrow, who supported -Toby's head, knew that it was all over -with him. -</p> - -<p> -'Ah, Bob, I'll be gone in a brace of -shakes,' said he, speaking slowly at long -intervals, and while his teeth chattered -with agony and the dew of death glittered -on his forehead in the bright moonlight; -'the folks in England, who live at home -at ease, know nothing of this sort of thing, -thank God! Take my silver flask, Bob, -and keep it—keep it in memory of poor -Toby Chace. It is all I have now worth -offering you. A girl gave it to me in—in -happier times at Ascot, one whose shoes I -was not worthy to tie—but she married -another fellow anyhow.' -</p> - -<p> -After this his voice died away, his senses -seemed to wander, and whispering, with a -sudden tenderness of manner, 'Mother, -kiss me,' he turned his face to the right -and ceased to live. -</p> - -<p> -After a time Robert Wodrow, carefully -and tenderly as a brother would have done, -rolled the dead hussar in a horse-rug and -buried him under one of the tall poplar-trees -that shade the village wall, and there -he was left in his lonely grave, when next -morning the cavalry rode off: for a -reconnaisance. -</p> - -<p> -So narrow were the paths they had to -pursue that they proceeded in single files -till they struck on the great road to -Ghuznee and swept along it at a gallop, finding -at every pace of the way abandoned tents, -baggage, cooking utensils, and dying Cabul -ponies—the abandoned spoil of the -Kohistanies, Ghilzies, Logaris, and others who -had come to fight the British, but had lost -heart and fled. -</p> - -<p> -Four days afterwards Leslie Colville -found himself entering Cabul, when Sir -Frederick Roberts rode into it publicly, -accompanied by the son of the Ameer, for -Yakoub Khan, imbrued as his hands were -with the blood of the Embassy, and -inculpated with the actors in its destruction, -was too cunning to accompany the British -forces, at the head of whom rode the -squadron of the 9th Royal Lancers. -</p> - -<p> -Possession of Cabul was now taken in -the name of Queen Victoria. The royal -standard was hoisted on the Bala Hissar; -our Horse Artillery guns thundered forth -a salute, and three ringing British cheers -rang along the ranks for the Empress of -India. -</p> - -<p> -The punishment of the perpetrators of -the outrage at the Residency, the terrible -explosion at the Bala Hissar, and the -fighting that ensued at the Shutargardan -Pass and the Sirkai Kotal, lie somewhat -apart from our narrative; but we cannot -omit that which ensued at the Khoord -Cabul and other defiles. -</p> - -<p> -On the 7th of the month after the capital -was taken, Macpherson's Flying Column -marched down the savage valley, clearing -it of straggling bands of the enemy, from -the tomb of Baba Issah to the banks of -the Cabul river, but not without a sharp -fight at the former place, where Mahmoud -Shah and a band of select and most -desperate Ghazis had taken post and resisted -to the last, courting that death in battle -to which they had vowed and devoted -themselves. -</p> - -<p> -'Everyone who said "Lord, Lord!" two -hundred years ago was deemed a Christian,' -says Charles Reade; 'but there are -no earnest men now.' -</p> - -<p> -However, Mahmoud Shah and his Ghilzies, -like the Mahdi and his followers -in Egypt, were terribly in earnest about -their work of religion and slaughter. -</p> - -<p> -Shouting 'Allah! Allah! Allah!' they -resisted with juzail and tulwar, shield, -pistol, and charah, till they were all shot -down, and lay over each other piled in one -great heap, all clad in white, but gashed -and bloody, and among the last who fell -was Mahmoud Shah, who was last seen, -with his back to the holy tomb of Baba -Issah, standing across the dead body of -his favourite white Arab, with eight of the -5th Ghoorkas dead at his feet, an empty -horse-pistol in his left hand, a -blood-dripping tulwar in his right, and six -bayonet wounds in his body, -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - 'The least a death to nature!'<br /> -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -By this time there had been hanged in -Cabul more than sixty Afghans for -complicity in the slaughter of the Embassy. -</p> - -<p> -The European troops were now quartered -in the barracks of Yakoub Khan's -late army in the adjacent cantonments -at Sherpore, and soon after an amnesty -was granted to all who had fought against -us, while a proclamation was issued by -Sir Frederick Roberts to the effect that, -in consequence of the abdication of the -Ameer, 'and of the outrage at the British -embassy, the British government were -now compelled to occupy Cabul and other -parts of Afghanistan, and he invited the -Afghan authorities, chiefs, and sirdirs to -assist him to enforce order in the districts -under their control, and to consult with -him conjointly. The population of the -occupied districts would—it was added—be -treated with justice and benevolence; -their religion and customs would be -respected, and loyalty and good service to -the British crown would be suitably -rewarded. On the other hand, all offenders -against the new administration would be -severely punished.' -</p> - -<p> -'We have restored order in Cabul, and -punished all the guilty,' wrote Leslie -Colville to Mary. 'I have resigned my -appointment on the staff, deeming that I -have <i>done enough for honour</i>, darling; and -now I am coming home!' -</p> - -<p> -And now we must return to Ellinor and -her fate, while Colville is speeding -homeward as quickly as steam could carry him -over land and sea. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap16"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XVI. -<br /><br /> -THE FATE OF ELLINOR. -</h3> - -<p> -We left Ellinor smarting keenly under the -memory of how Lord Dunkeld and the -two ladies of his family ignored all -recognition of her presence in the -Jungfernsteig, and the despairing mood of -mind in which she was brought back by -Gaiters and the Erau Wyburg to the -gloomy house by the Bleichen Fleet. -</p> - -<p> -The expression of her face at that time -seemed to tell simply of one who endured -life till death might come. -</p> - -<p> -'Escape from this—oh, how to escape!' -she wailed, as she wrung her slender hands -in bitter helplessness. -</p> - -<p> -Her windows were always fastened beyond -her power of opening them, and the -water of the Fleet was fully twenty feet -below them, so escape in that direction -was not to be thought of. -</p> - -<p> -The evening of the fourth day of her -intolerable captivity was drawing to a -close when Ellinor made a discovery by -the merest chance. -</p> - -<p> -That which appeared to be the back -of the antique wardrobe in her room -proved in reality to be a door, though -partially concealed by garments hung on -pegs screwed into it. -</p> - -<p> -A door! Whither did it lead? To ask -Lenchen would at once excite suspicion, -and perhaps deprive her of the power of -utilising it if possible. This discovery -excited her alarm more than hope or -curiosity, for though she was able as yet -to secure her chamber-door on the inside -at night—or was permitted to do so—her -privacy might, she naturally thought, -be violated at any time by this new and -unexpected avenue, which she resolved to -explore. -</p> - -<p> -The door-handle yielded to her touch; -it fell backward, and she found a comfortable, -but narrow, old oak stair, the steps -of which were mouldy, damp, and worm-eaten. -It descended at an angle, within -the thickness of the solid wall, some forty -steps or so, and ended in an opening that -was without any door, and immediately -overhung the canal. Rusty hinges in the -jambs showed that a door had once closed -this entrance to the house, but it had -probably fallen to pieces and never been -replaced. -</p> - -<p> -In short, it was simply one of the many -back entrances from the water, of which -the mercantile community in many parts -of Hamburg still avail themselves, and -showed that at one time, and before that -of its declension, the house of Herr -Wyburg had been the residence of some -wealthy trader, whose boats had been -rowed or pulled up to his private door from -the Brandenburger Hafen and under the -Scharstein Bridge. -</p> - -<p> -Here was a source of escape suddenly -found, and of which she might avail -herself; but the only boats she had ever seen -pass that way were those of the Vierlander -vegetable dealers, and how was she to -make known to these people her peril and -her wishes? -</p> - -<p> -Frau Wyburg had said to her more than -once, 'When in tribulation there is -nothing like keeping your mind easy and -trusting in the unexpected.' -</p> - -<p> -And now the unexpected had come. -</p> - -<p> -Dusk was closing—almost darkness—as -she stood there looking at the gloomy and -turbid water of the Fleet, across which -lights from the house windows were -already casting dim and tremulous lines of -radiance, while she felt her heart beating -wildly as prayer and agony mingled in her -soul together; but the former was -responded to, for even while she stood there -she saw a boat approaching, pulled along -by four seamen, and containing about -a dozen soldiers, to whom she called -aloud for succour. They responded by -banter, and were about to push past on -their way when a cry of despair escaped -her, and then she heard the voice of one -who seemed to be in authority issue an -order. -</p> - -<p> -The boat was steered in close to the -entrance, and she sprang on board to find -herself among a party of Uhlans, who -were all armed with their carbines, and -were under the command of him who had -just spoken—the fair-haired young Baron -Holandsburg—and were a patrol of the -picket from the Dammthor Barracks in -pursuit of two conscript deserters. -</p> - -<p> -Overcome by the intensity of her agitation, -Ellinor was about to sink down in a -kind of heap, as it were, when his arm -went round her in support. -</p> - -<p> -'My God!' he exclaimed; 'my God, it -is the Fraulein Ellinor!' -</p> - -<p> -He gave a wild, inquiring glance at the -house from which she had come, but its -sombre mass gave him no information; he -then took her death-cold hands in his -caressingly, and looked -entreatingly—encouragingly—into -her drawn and tragic -face. -</p> - -<p> -To him a great pity and horror, with -much of blank wonder, were emphasised -by its haggard expression, and her dazed, -sunken eyes, as she clung to him, and he -felt he had no time then—as military duty -sternly required him to proceed—to -inquire into the what, the wherefore, and the -how she came to be there! -</p> - -<p> -He felt only sorrow and intense dismay, -he knew not of what, but was only certain -that she had escaped death, or that -something else very dreadful must have -occurred. -</p> - -<p> -He felt thankful, however, that he had -saved her in this sudden and unexpected -manner from some of the 'perils of nineteenth -century civilisation,' as the author -of 'Altiora Peto' calls them. -</p> - -<p> -By his order, the boat's head was put -round, and pulled away for the nearest -landing-place—the Pulverthbrugge, from -whence he could have her conveyed at once -to Altona. -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -When again he saw her on the following -day in the pretty drawing-room of the -villa, with her head resting on Mary's -shoulder and Mary's arm round her, and -Mrs. Deroubigne hovering near, though -colourless as a lily, she was scarcely like -the same ghastly and hunted creature he -had rescued in the boat, from whom he -had so much to learn, and whose -adventures had been so perilous. -</p> - -<p> -She looked so pretty—so beautiful -indeed—in her simple cotton morning dress, -with its delicate crisp puffs and frillings, -with her gentle eyes and pure, perfect -face, that the young baron sighed to think -she was not, and never might be, his! -</p> - -<p> -And yet she owed him, by the chance -of fate, a mighty debt of gratitude. -</p> - -<p> -Her story was barely concluded when, -with something that sounded very naughty -on his lips in his anger, he put his sword -under his arm and departed to look after -that <i>schelm</i> Sleath and the Wyburgs too. -</p> - -<p> -'Poor foolish Ellinor,' thought he, as he -galloped his horse towards the Rathhaus -Strasse, 'if she could not love, she always -had a look of passionless affection for -me—warm friendship shall I call it? Yet -her bright face was somewhat delusive, -for she would never love, nor flirt, nor -even chatter nonsense with me.' -</p> - -<p> -Ellinor knew not exactly the names of -those who had been in league with Sleath -against her, nor could she describe the -exact locality of the house in which they -had detained her, but the baron knew -where he had found her, and with the -police and some of the Uhlans who had -been with him on the preceding night, -proceeded by boat up the Bleichen Fleet; -but, just as they were about to penetrate -by the open back entrance, a loud -explosion was heard high over head, and a -quantity of bricks, tiles, and old timber -came tumbling down to splash in the -canal. -</p> - -<p> -'Der Teufel! what is this!' exclaimed -the baron, 'are we at the siege of Paris -again?' -</p> - -<p> -But, though the house was closely -examined, the mingled tragedy and -catastrophe which Herr Wyburg's revengeful -scheme had brought about was never quite -explained. -</p> - -<p> -Mr. John Gaiters heard betimes of a -dead and mangled body, answering to the -description of his master, being discovered -in the half-blown-up house; and found -himself without a place and also without a -character. -</p> - -<p> -He applied a cambric handkerchief—one -of Sir Redmond's—to his eyes, and then -anathematised them. He then took possession -of his late master's portmanteaux -at the 'Hotel Russie,' lit a cigarette, and -went leisurely on board the London steamer -at the Hafenbasin, and Hamburg knew -him no more. -</p> - -<p> -The public prints had made all interested -therein, aware that Leslie Colville and -another, described variously as Taimar of -the Guide Corps, and Corporal Wodrow of -the 10th Hussars, had escaped the massacre -and were safe. -</p> - -<p> -Colville safe and living still! What an -awful burden was now doubly lifted from -the heart of Mary—a heart too full for -words. -</p> - -<p> -It was natural for her to have hope at -her years; but the tidings of the slaughter -at the Residency seemed to crush all hope -for ever. -</p> - -<p> -A telegram first came from Colville, and -ere long there was actually a letter from -Robert Wodrow. -</p> - -<p> -'Forgive me, beloved Ellinor, as I have -forgiven and forgotten a portion of our -past,' he wrote, gently and humbly. -'Because that fellow Sleath was a rascal, you -do not mean to go through life "a maiden -all forlorn." And so you still stick to me -alone, in spite of what people may say—a -poor corporal of Hussars as yet. When I -think of you sought after, admired, and -doubtless loved by dozens of fellows, -better a thousand degrees than luckless Bob -Wodrow; I can but trust to your heart -holding the memory of me against them -all—for a memory it may be, Ellinor, as I -am not out of this perilous Afghanistan -yet—and a year ago I never thought to -be <i>here</i>. -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - "The poison is yet in my brain, love,<br /> - The thorn in my flesh, for you know<br /> - 'Twas only a year ago, love,<br /> - 'Twas only a year ago."<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -And Ellinor wept as she read the words -his hands had traced. -</p> - -<p> -A few more references to history. -</p> - -<p> -A clasp for Charasiah was ordered to be -worn with the war medal, but ere he saw -Ellinor, Robert Wodrow had yet to win the -bronze star awarded to all who shared in -Roberts's famous march to Candahar. -</p> - -<p> -'After all the peril faced and glory won, -are we to give up Candahar—after <i>all</i>?' -was the ever-recurring question among the -soldiers of our army, as they marched -back to India, and felt that, though -Roberts had restored our prestige, all the -honour gained in battle would be lost if -we failed to retain Candahar. -</p> - -<p> -Through the gates of that city have all -the great conquerors of India -come—Alexander and Timor, Genghis Khan and -Nadir Shah; it bars the approach to India -from the north and west, and the power -that holds it—as one day Russia -will—commands both Cabul and Herat. -</p> - -<p> -The facilities for attacking India from -it are innumerable, and, as Sir Edward -Hamley has it, 'I believe the concurrent -testimony of all Indians is that there is no -territory on which it would be more -perilous to give our enemy the chance of -winning a battle than our Indian Empire.' -</p> - -<p> -General Roberts, in a minute to the -Government, 29th May, 1880, urged 'that -our grasp on Candahar should never be -loosened,' and that its military retention -was of vital importance to us in all wars -connected with the Afghans or Russians -in Central Asia. Lord Napier of Magdala, -Sir George Lawrence, Sir Henry Rawlinson, -and all other high authorities on Indian -military affairs, have spoken or written in -the same tone on this all-important -subject; yet, in defiance of their opinions, -Candahar was handed over to the Ameer, -and since then the Russian eagle has laid -its talons on Merv! -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<p><a id="chap17"></a></p> - -<h3> -CHAPTER XVII. -<br /><br /> -AMONG THE BIRKS OF INVERMAY. -</h3> - -<p> -'Home at last!' exclaimed Leslie Colville, -aloud but to himself in the excess of his -joy, as his train from Dover went clanking -in to crowded and busy Charing-Cross -Station. 'Home at last! How jolly it is -to see the English faces, the familiar sights -and hear the familiar sounds again—and -to be once more in mufti!' -</p> - -<p> -'<i>Globe—Graphic—'Lustrated News—Punch!</i>' He -listened to the calls of the -newsboys as if they sang sweet music; -and for days past he had thought of, -whistled, and hummed the burden of an -old Scottish song he had heard his nurse -sing long ago— -</p> - -<p class="poem"> - 'Hame, hame, hame, oh, fain wad I be;<br /> - Hame, hame, hame, in my ain countrie!'<br /> -</p> - -<p class="noindent"> -And the desire had become a realization—a fact. -</p> - -<p> -'And now to meet my darling!' he -thought, as he plunged into a well-horsed -hansom, and, leaving his luggage to follow, -was driven at a tearing pace towards -Grosvenor Square, for which the residence -at Altona had been gladly quitted by -Mrs. Deroubigne and her two charges, -</p> - -<p> -'Journeys of a few hundred miles are -no longer described in these days of ours,' -says Charles Reade; nor those of thousands -at the rate we travel, so we have -not detailed the journey of Colville. -</p> - -<p> -At last it was ended, and he was with -<i>her</i>. -</p> - -<p> -Mary's pulses were leaping with excitement -when they met, and she felt herself -in his tender and prolonged embrace, -though it all seemed a delicious and -delirious dream, from which she might waken -and again weep for him as dead, or as still -expecting him. -</p> - -<p> -It was well-nigh a year since they had -parted, a year of many startling events, -months since a line had been exchanged -between them; and who could blame them -if, for a little time, they forgot all the -world, and everything else, but each other? -</p> - -<p><br /></p> - -<p> -'How strange to think that this is the -last walk we shall have together as lovers,' -said Mary, in a soft, cooing tone, as they -loitered by the Serpentine one evening. -</p> - -<p> -'Yes, when next we promenade thus it -will be as sober married folks,' said -Colville, with his brightest smile. -</p> - -<p> -'Dear—dear Leslie!' -</p> - -<p> -'Our courtship days have been chequered -certainly, but the end is a happy one.' -</p> - -<p> -'Happy we have been from the moment -we had perfect faith in each other, with -one dreadful interval,' said Mary, with a -little sob in her throat, as she thought of -the first tidings from Cabul; 'could I but -see my pet Ellinor even half so happy!' -</p> - -<p> -'Her days for fullest happiness will -come in time—and, dearest Mary, if all -these lawyer fellows, Horning and Tailzie, -tell me is true, I shall put a coronet on -your golden hair, and you shall be my -Lady Colville of Ochiltree,' said he, -laughingly. -</p> - -<p> -'Oh, to go home again!' said Mary, who -was thinking more of Birkwoodbrae than -a peerage and a house in Tyburnia. 'I was -always a great knitter at odd times, Leslie, -and half the old people at Kirktoun-Mailler -benefited thereby. I was born among -my old people, and long so much—amid -my own great happiness—to see them -once again. It seems ages since I came -away.' -</p> - -<p> -'And see them you shall in a little time -now, darling, for there we shall spend our -honeymoon.' -</p> - -<p> -And then that season, so important in -human life and human love, was spent as -Colville had promised, and to Mary supreme -was the delight of wandering over all the -old familiar places again and again with -him—the trout-pool where they had first -met and he had lifted her off the stone; -the Linn; the Holyhill; the Miller's Acre; -under the old gate with the legend on its -lintel, and where again she could train her -flowers, and feed her chickens that looked -like balls of golden fluff, while the 'siller -birks'—the Birks of Invermay—cast their -shadows over her again. -</p> - -<p> -She was back again in her old groove -as if she had never left it—to train her -roses and clematis, to sow mignonette and -sweet-scented stocks, and plant white lilies -for Ellinor to paint from; and, with Jack -by her side, with a solid silver collar -(though one with spikes would better have -suited his pugnacious propensities), to -wander when dewy evening was falling, -when the sheep were nibbling the grass -briskly and monotonously; and a gleam -came from the old ingle-lum of the kitchen, -where Elspat was rolling out barley-meal -cakes, and where everything spoke of -home—now more than ever home! -</p> - -<p> -'You see, Leslie darling,' said she, 'I -feel for this place—we feel, Ellinor and I—as -no one else ever could, having always, -during the lifetime of papa and ever after, -looked upon it as our own.' -</p> - -<p> -'And your own it is, pet Mary.' -</p> - -<p> -'And no other place, however grand or -beautiful, could be like a home to us.' -</p> - -<p> -The luxuries with which Colville could -surround her—luxuries too great for a -mansion so small then—her carriage-horses, -her pair of ponies, her white Arab -pad (all stabled as yet at the 'Dunkeld -Arms'), her set of sables, her jewellery, -and Parisian toilettes, her retinue of -servants were the topics of 'the countryside,' -and were duly descanted on by Mademoiselle -Rosette Patchouli for the edification -of her ladies; and the Honourable Blanche -Gabrielle, with her elevated eyebrows, -foreign tricks of manner, and incipient -little French moustache, thought with -anger of all she had lost. -</p> - -<p> -The pompous old lord, with his facial -angle <i>à la</i> Louis XIV., and his cold-blooded -yet perfectly aristocratic lady, -would gladly have shed the light of their -countenances over Birkwoodbrae, but there -Mary's Christianity ended; and she would -have nothing of them, despite all good old -Dr. Wodrow could urge. -</p> - -<p> -Robert was returning an officer, with a -well-earned cluster of medals on his breast, -and he was coming straight to Kirktoun-Mailler -and to her. So Ellinor often -seated herself on a mossy bank, and, -leaning her head of rich brown hair against -the white stem of a silver birch, would -give herself up to memory, and many a -happy and repentant thought; while tears -fell from her eyes—she was so happy! -</p> - -<p> -A little time ago it would have been -torture for Ellinor to look upon scenes so -associated with Robert Wodrow, the lover -she had wronged and lost and mourned -for; and it was painful still to do so, -though her heart throbbed with hope and -joy, as he was returning to her with the -rank and position he had predicted to his -mother. -</p> - -<p> -So Robert Wodrow will win the one -woman of his heart! Hand and hand -they will go forward together into that -new existence—that new world of tame, -married life, as it is deemed; but to them, -a world of trust and love it will be; while -explanations and memories of the sweet -and bitter and perilous past will come in -due course with the current of their own -happy and mutual thoughts. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t3"> -THE END. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /></p> - -<p class="t4"> -LONDON: PRINTED BY DUNCAN MACDONALD, BLENHEIM HOUSE. -</p> - -<p><br /><br /><br /><br /></p> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK COLVILLE OF THE GUARDS, VOLUME III (OF 3) ***</div> -<div style='text-align:left'> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -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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