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SHREWSBURY 
 
Jiy THE SAME AUTHOR, 
 
 A T'^^.^T'' ""' '^'"^ WOLF 
 A laleofthe Massacre of St. Bartholomew 
 
 A GENTLEMAN OF FRANCE 
 
 AlaleoftheDaysofHenryofNavaire. 
 
 THE RED COCKADE 
 
 A Tale ofthe French Revolution. 
 
WITH A GESTUR,.: P.ET.VEEN CONTEMPT AND IMPATIENCE 
 THF, DUKE KKMOVED LIS HAT' 
 
\y 
 
 
 Longmans' Colonial Library 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 a IRomnncc 
 
 BY 
 
 STANLEY J. WEYMAN 
 
 AUTIIOi; OF 'a Cil£NTLEMAN OF IHANCE, ' " UNDER TUB KliK UOUE, 
 "jllli HOUSE OF lllE WOLFi ETC. 
 
 WITH 24 ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 BY 
 
 CLAUDE A. SHEPPERSON 
 
 i 
 
 TORONTO 
 
 THE COPP CLARK CO., LIMITED 
 
 LONDON 
 
 LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO. 
 
 1898 
 
 This Edition is intended for circulation only in India and 
 the British Colonies 
 

 Copyright, 1897 
 By STANLEY J. W2YMAN 
 
 IN 
 
 Ail ri^Ms reserved 
 
TO MY BROTHER HENRY 
 
 IN MEMORY OF A SUNDAY AFTERNOON IN THE YEAR 1877 
 
 THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 13 
 21 
 
 34 
 37 
 73 
 
 85 
 
 94 
 
 With a gesture between contempt and impatience the 
 
 DUKE removed HIS HAT Frontispiece. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 She looked directly at me 
 
 In an instant i was on the other side of the fence . 
 
 Stole down the stairs and into the garden . 
 
 My companion seized my wrist 
 
 The constable led me out of the crowd 
 
 " When my back is turned go through that window " . 
 
 He wore a dingy morning-gown and had laid aside 
 his wig 
 
 "Damn your King William, and you too!" he cried . 109 
 
 He pressed the ring of cold steel 113 
 
 In the great chair sat an elderly lady leaning on an 
 ebony stick , , , r^2 
 
 I heard a light foot following me 156 
 
 With a gesture between contempt and impatience the 
 
 DUKE removed HIS HAT 179 
 
 I FLUNG MY ARMS ROUND HIM FROM BEHIND, AND WITH MY 
 
 RIGHT HAND JERKED UP THE PISTOL . . . . Igl 
 
 A SLIGHT GENTLEMAN AMBLED AND PACED IN FRONT OF A 
 
 CHILD lyg 
 
 " Now WE WILL HAVE THAT LETTER, IF YOU PLEASE " . 22$ 
 
 I SAW A MAN HAD COME TO A STAND BEFORE THE DOOR . 230 
 
viii 
 
 ^^^S7' OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The place was nothing „ork than . 
 
 BOARD . _ ™^^ A CONCEALED CUP- 
 
 And TURNING FROM MF „„• „,., " " ' " * ' ^55 
 
 HANDS CLASPED KEHIND '„!„ " V"" '^^''^ '""'= '*°°"- "'^ 
 
 She CAME A STEP NEARER To ^v \ ' ' ' ' ^^' 
 
 q.p T ' '^'^'^ '"''^ERKD AT ME 
 
 fc>iR John . <jt.„., ^i me . . 30^ 
 
 ■ • SIARKD AT MF A MOMENT 
 aJIE LISTENED IN siLFMrr . ' • • 321 
 
 '-^KRn^ of a judge 
 Hb shut himself in with his tkouiuf ' ' -^^1 
 
 I STOOD THERE AT I AST ' * ' ' ^^^ 
 
 ALL TURNED TOWARDS \xv ' ""' "'^"'' '''' '""^ '''''^''*^ 
 
SEALED cup. 
 
 •: ROOM, HIS 
 
 r ME 
 
 PAGB 
 
 281 
 304 
 
 "H SOME- 
 
 • 347 
 
 • 366 
 
 I'HE TABLE 
 
 • 397 
 CK . 406 
 
 SHREA¥SBURY 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 That the untimely deatli at the age of fifty-eight of 
 that great prince, Charles, J)ake of Shrewsbury, mv most 
 noble and generous patron, has afflicted me "with" a sor- 
 row wliich I may truly call acerbus et mgens, is nothing 
 to the world; which from one in my situation could expect 
 no otlier, and, on the briefest relation of the benefits I 
 had at his hands, might look for more. Were this all, 
 therefore, or my task confined to such a relation, I should 
 supererogate indeed in making this appearance. But I am 
 informed that my lord Duke's deatli has revived in cer- 
 tain quarters those rumours to his prejudice which were 
 so industriously put about at the time of his first retire- 
 ment; and which, refuted as they were at the moment by 
 the express declaration of his Sovereign, and at leisure by 
 his own beliaviour, as well as by the support which at two 
 great crises he gave to the Protestant succession, formed 
 always a proof of the malice, as now of the persistence, 
 of his enemies. 
 
 Still, such as they are, and though, not these circum- 
 stances only, but a thousand others have time after time 
 exposed them, I am instructed that they are again afloat; 
 and find favour in circles where to think ill of public men 
 is hold the first test of experience. And this being the 
 
sHRHwsnrnY 
 
 eonile:r,r, .'"t: r,:;,?r"'- ™^" »'"■» *» » 
 
 .-emoved to tl,e Am j^" rt olv l" T' '^ ' *^^' "' 
 
 "" pioiLMty, and alwaj-s rememberiuir a siiviiw „f t j 
 Somere', that oft*ii tl,o .„„„t ^ . T' "J"ig ot Lord 
 is that on whLh th^ w? ""'^f ""^ P"'^ °^ *««timony 
 adventure on tlfflirsSh^^^^^ ''""^' ^^'"^- ^^' 
 perhaps the bulk of wr Iv ' V '''' ^* "^""'^' ^"^ 
 their readers I feel Jv ' if ' k^i .* '''"' "^ ^^'' '""'^^^ of 
 
 Of a brief and ^lrn;:::n::^^X-'^MS.^r^^^^ 
 in the first iilace in f1i«oi,.„ ^ "'^•'ing, .vnieh, acquired 
 
 waslatenn!prove"bc„n3 
 
 of my lord's papers '^ """"" '" "'^ oomp„siti„„ 
 
 e^tteom^ZTooo^r ',"'', "^J"^^" "* »- *° the 
 least I69J i, t softh ud""', h,'^' ■7°'"' ""'»™*' ^ "' 
 
 st"Hhepartio„,r"Lrt:. ,!^;vc,tre::r^ 
 
 lore befrTr , ',°*'"'''°'''*°^«^ithme. There- 
 
 r;,'it^Tr„tr,rirL"d'r"r^'"°'"'°'' 
 
 in the way of tlmt XZll ' f '''' ^ ""^"^^ ^^ f^" 
 -othefpre,,-i-S;el-;--^^^^^^^^^^ 
 
 I 
 =1 
 
SITREWSUURY 
 
 8 
 
 i 
 
 some do not please at this distance, and yet must be set 
 down, if with a wrv face. 
 
 Of which, I am {,^lad to say, that the worst— with one 
 exception— conies first, or at least early. And with tliat, 
 to proceed; premising always that, as in all that follows 
 I am no one, and the tale is my lord's, I shall deal very 
 succinctly with my own concerns and chancings, and 
 where I must state them for clearness of narration, will 
 do so currente calamo (as the ancients were wont to say) 
 and so forthwith to those more important matters witt 
 which my readers desire to be made acquainted. 
 
 Suffice it, then, that I Avas born near Bishop's Stortford 
 on the borders of Hertfordshire, in that year so trul} 
 called the Annus Mirabilis, 106G; my father, a small 
 yeoman, my mother of no better stock, she being the 
 daughter of a poor parson in that neighbourhood. In 
 such a station she Avas not likely to boast much learning, 
 yet she could read, and having served two years in a great 
 man's still-room, had acquired notions of gentility that 
 went as ill with her station as they were little calculated 
 to increase her contentment. Our house lay not far from 
 the high road between Ware and Bishop's Stortford, 
 which furnished us with frequent opportunities of view- 
 ing the King and Court, who were in the habit of passing 
 that way two or three times in the year to Newmarket to 
 see the horse-races. On these occasions we crowded with 
 our neighbours to the side of the road, and gaped on the 
 pageant, which lacked no show of ladies, both masked 
 and unmasked, and gentlemen in all kinds of fripperies, 
 and mettlesome horses that hit the taste of some among 
 us better than either. On these exc-rsions my mother 
 was ever the foremost and the most roaiiy; yet it was not 
 long before I learned to beware of lier hand for days after, I 
 and expect none but gloomy looks and fretful answers; 
 while my fiitlier dared no more spell duty for as much as 
 a week, than refuse the King's taxes. 
 
4 simKwsitrh'v 
 
 Nevertheless, and wliutever slie was as a wife— and it is 
 true she could din^ my father's ears, and, for as handsome 
 as she Avas, there wcvq times when he would luuo been 
 happier witli a iilaiuer woman~l am far from saving tliat 
 she was a bad mother. Indeed, she was a kind, 'if fickle, 
 and passionate one, wiser at large a?id in intention than 
 in practice and in small nuitters. Vot if f„r one thing 
 only, and putting aside natural affection— in which J trust 
 I am not deficient— she desei-ved to be named by me with 
 undying gratitude. For having learned to read, but 
 never to write, beyond, that is, the trifle of her maiden 
 name, she valued scholarship both bv that she had. and 
 that she had not; and in the year i f ter I was breeched, 
 prevaded on my father who, for his part, good man, never 
 advanced beyond the Neck Verse, to bind me to the 
 ancient Grammar School at Bishop's Stortford, then 
 kept by a Mr. (f . 
 
 I believe that there were some Avho thought this as much 
 beyond our pretensions, as our small farm fell below the 
 homestead of a man of substance; and for certain, tiie 
 first lesson I learned at that school was to behave myself 
 lowly and reverently to all my betters, being trounced on 
 arrival by three squires' sons, and afterwai-ds, in due order 
 and gradation, by all who had or affected gentility. To 
 balance this I found that I had the advantage of my mas- 
 ter's favour, and that for no greater a thing than the tinge 
 of my father's opinions. For whereas the commonalty ?n 
 that country, as in all the eastern counties, had been for 
 the Parliament in the late troubles, and still loved a pa- 
 triot, my father was a King's man; which placed him 
 
 high in Mr. G 's estimation, who had been dis[)laced 
 
 by the Rump and hated all of that side, and not for the 
 loss of his place only, but, and in a far greater degree, 
 for a thing which befell him later, after heliad withdrawn 
 to Oxford. For being of St. John's College, and seeing 
 all that rich and loyal foundation at stake, he entered 
 
Hiiiii'WsiiriiV 
 
 himself in :i body of horso wiiicli \\\i^ iTvificd umong the 
 younger oollegiuiis imd serviiiits; iind probably il' be bud 
 been so luoky iis to Iu8o an eye or an arm in tlie iield of 
 bonoiir, lie would iiave forgiven Oliver all, and iu)t tlie 
 King's sulferiugri only, but his own. But in place of 
 that it was his ill-chance to be one of a troop tluit, 
 marching at night by the river near Wallingford, took 
 fright at nothing and galloped to Abingdon without 
 drawing rein; for which reason, and because an example 
 was needed, they were disbanded. True, I never heard 
 that the fault on that occasion lay with our master, nor 
 that he was a man of less courage than his neighbours; but 
 he took the matter peculiarly to heart, and never forgave 
 the Uoundheuds the slur they had unwittingly cast on his 
 honour; on the contrary, and in the event, he regularly 
 celebrated the thirtieth of January by Hogging the six 
 boys who stood lowest in each form, and afterwards read- 
 ing the service of the day over their smarting tails. ]iy 
 some, indeed, it was alleged that the veriest dunces, if of 
 loyal stock, might look to escape on these occasions; but 
 I treat this as a calumny. 
 
 That the good man did in truth love and favour loyalty, 
 however, and this without sparing the rod in season, I am 
 myself a bright and excellent example. For though I 
 never attained to the outward flower of scholarship by 
 proceeding to the learned degree of iirts at either of the 
 Universities, I gained the root and kernel of the nnitter 
 at Bishop's Storti'ord, being able at the age of fourteen to 
 write a fine baud, and read Eutrojuus, and C.esar, and 
 teacli the horn-book and Christ-Cross to vounger bovs. 
 These attainments, and the taste for polite learning, 
 which, as these pages will testify, I have never ceased to 
 cultivate, I owe rather to the predilection which he had 
 for me than to my own gifts; which, indeed, though 
 doubtless I was always a boy of parts, I do not remember 
 to have been great at the first. Suh fcruld, however, and 
 
siii{i':\\siiriiv 
 
 with oiicouragemoiit, I so fur advanperl thnt ho presently 
 hegiin to consider tlie promoting nie to tlio place of usher, 
 with H cane in rommi'iidain ; ami. doubtless, he would 
 have done it hut for a lit that took him at the first news 
 of the Rye House Plot, and the danger his Sacred Majesty 
 had run thereby— which a friend imprudently brougl'it to 
 him when he was merry after dinner— and Avhich caused 
 an illness that at one and the same time carried him olf, 
 and deprived me of tlie best of pedagogues. 
 
 After that, and learning that his successor had a son 
 whom ho proposed to pronu^te to the place I desired, I 
 returned to the school no nu>re. but began to live at home; 
 at first witli jileasure, but after no long interval with' 
 growing chagrin and tedium. Our house possessed none 
 of the comforts that are necessary to idleness, and there- 
 fore when the east wind drove nie imloors from swinging 
 on tlie gate, or sulking in the stack-yard, I fouiul it 
 neither welcome nor occupation. My "^younger brother 
 had seized on the place of assistant to my father, and 
 having got thews and experience ambulando, found fresh 
 ground every day for making mock of my uselessness. 
 Did I milk, the cows kicked over the bucket, while I 
 thought of other things; did I plough, my furrows ran 
 crooked; when I thrashed, the flail soon wearied my 
 arms. In the result, therefore, the respect with which 
 my father had at first regarded my learning, wore off, 
 and he grew to hate the sight of me whether I hung over 
 the fire or loafed in the doorway, my sleeves too short for 
 my chapped arms, and my breeches barely to my knees. 
 Though my mother still believed in me, and occasionally^ 
 when she was in an ill-humour with my father, made me 
 read to her, her support scarcely balanced the neighbours' 
 sneers. Nor when I chanced to displease her— wliich, to 
 do her justice, was not often, for I was her favourite— was 
 she above joining in the general cry, and asking me, while 
 she cuffed me, whether I thought the cherries fell into 
 
siiL'KWsnrRV 
 
 the mouth, and nieiuit to 8})eii(l all my life with my liunds 
 ill my pockets. 
 
 To nuike ii ioni^ story short, at the end of twelve months, 
 wluM'oof every day of the last ten iiicreaBod my liatred of 
 our home surroundings, the dull strip of common before 
 the door, the duck-pond, ^'".e grey liorizon, and the twin 
 ash-trees on wliicli I hud cut my name so often, I heard 
 througli a neijrlibour tliut an uslier was reciuired in a school 
 at Ware. 'I'his was enough for me; whik\ of my family, 
 who saw me leave with greater relief on their own account 
 than hope on mine, only my mother felt or alfected regret. 
 With tell shillings in my pocket, her i)artiiig gift, and my 
 scanty library of tbi'eo volumes packed among my clothes 
 on my back, I [)lo(lded the twelve miles to Ware, eatistied 
 
 the learued Mr. I) that I had had the small-pox, would 
 
 sleep three in a bed, and knew more than he did; and the 
 same day was duly engaged to teach in his classical semi- 
 nary, in return for my board, lodging, washing, and nine 
 guineas a year. 
 
 lie had trailed a pike in the wars, and was an ignorant, 
 but neither a cruel, nor, save in the ])reteiice of knowl- 
 edge, a dishonest man; it might be supposed, therefore, 
 tliat, after the taste of idleness and dependence I had 
 had, 1 should here find myself tolerably placed, and in 
 the fair way of promotion. But I presently found that I 
 had merely exchanged a desert for a prison, wherein I had 
 not only the sheplierding of the boys to do, both by night 
 and day, which in a short time grew inconceivably irk- 
 some, 80 that I had to choose whether 1 would be tyrant 
 or slave; but also the main weight of teaching, and there 
 no choice at all but to be a drudge. And this without 
 any alleviation from week's end to week's end, either at 
 meals or at any other time! for my employer's wife had 
 high notions, and must keep a separate house, though 
 next door, and with communications; sitting down with 
 us only on Sundays, and then at dinner, when woe betide 
 
8 
 
 SIlh'KWsTiritY 
 
 tlu, boy wlmpiifed hid food or choke,! ovor th. mul.Un 
 bulls. Jlaviug miinnoA h^r^Ai on mv . I /""''ImR- 
 
 ot iin uncle wIki whs a f •„,,«„ i i i"- ' ■ "^'""^ 
 
 In«n.ibly, her ,,„„,, vZ ^ t^t tm"" ''""'^ ''"^• 
 
 f 00,. „„«;-:: t';i,:::':^ :h.:;;^j:' '- '"'° 
 
 iites in the dav nt.ri f,. i - ""^^"^ *"^ " few min- 
 
 u.oureJ ,e, ami at last tho„.'l,t , „a,l 7. ''" 
 
 i'e owed .„„ in the day. ' "" ™™''« 
 
 Consigaed to this solitarv life hv (hA«« ..i.„ 
 not likely that I slioiiH fii ' "i"ee »bove me, it was 
 
 ot lads to hom Is told .n «. T''°"f '"" '" "» »"<='^ty 
 the oldest w,« "o'mtel Ll: ;::: "t' "r ;" ''"»■" 
 
 r,,--rL^:;-s:^?t^ 
 
 wherein, since all viol. :,t games and« ot, .'",'.' "'"^ 
 
 by the good lady's -ruplef (wh„ W„Cl ^^te 7 ''I'''"; 
 
 o'S^: TvS'tr '•"'^'■^'/° '-M-ti'rt 'r: 
 
 play: iMtnetnhfin'oTr"^'''' "'"'<''* 
 presented on its one onon 1. *""•'"' *"« J'"'' 
 
 butts, and dr • L cLTr "'',\\''^»'- P™«Pect of water- 
 
 thatihofd ■ :Vrij^^ l"™ ",'° '"' ""^ ' ""'-» 
 thing at that schofl ' """" ""y other ,,l„ce or 
 
 Iti«tr„ewewal)<ed„ui:.,,eo-...ry at .Winter- 
 
siiiih'ws/iruy 
 
 » 
 
 
 vnls; 1,11 1 fis three sides of the towu were t'orbuMoii to iif< 
 by u p-eiit niiiii, wliorfo jjroporty hiy in that (|iiarter. and 
 wlio feui-ed for his oume, our excursions wore alwiiys along 
 one road, unieli atl'orded neitiier change nor variety. 
 Moreover, I had a partienLir reason for liking these e.vcnr- 
 sions as little as possible, winch was that they oxi)osocl me 
 to fre(|nent meetii-gs with gay young Himvkl of niv own 
 age, whose .sc-niful looks as tJiey rode by, with the con- 
 temptuous , ,111, ■., tiiey called after me, asking who dressed 
 the boys' hair and the like, I found it dillieult to supi)ort 
 —even with the aid of those reflections on the dignity of 
 learning and the Latin tongue which [ had imbibed from 
 my late master. 
 
 lie it remembered (in palliation of that which I shall 
 presently tell) that at this time I was only eighteen, an 
 age at which the passions and andiitions awake, and that 
 this was my life. At a time when youth demands change 
 and excitement and the fringe of ornament, my days and 
 weeks went by in a plain round, as barren of wholesome 
 interests as it was unadorned by any kindlv aid or eom- 
 ])anionship. To rise, to teach, to use the cane, to move 
 always in a dull atmosjjhere of routine; for diversion to 
 pace the yard 1 have describetl, always with shrill quarrel- 
 lings in my ears— these with the weekly walk imule u]) my 
 life at Ware, and must form my excuse. How the one 
 came to an abrupt end, how I came to have sore need of 
 the other, it is now my business to tell; but of these in 
 the next chapter; wherein also I proi)ose to show, without 
 any moraliti s, another thing that shall prove them to the 
 P".po8e, namely, how these early experiences, which I 
 have thus curtly described, led me per nam doloromm to 
 my late lord, and mingled my fortunes with his. uiuler 
 circumstances not unworthy of examination by those who 
 take mankind for their study. 
 
10 
 
 ninth: wsiiVHY 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 To begin, Mrs. D , my master's better-half, tliough 
 
 she seldom condescended to our house, and when encra4d 
 in her kitchen premises atfected to ignore the proximity 
 of ours, enjoyed in Ware the reputation of a shrewd and 
 cai.able house-wife. Whether she owed this solely to the 
 possession of a sharp temj^er and voluble voice, I cannot 
 say; but only that during all the time I was there I 
 scarcely ever passed an hour in our miserable playground 
 without my ears being deafened and mv brain irritated 
 by the sound of ^ her chiding. Slie had the advantage, 
 when I hrst came to the school, of an elderly servant 
 wJio went about her work under an even flow of scoldino-' 
 and, it may be, had become so accustomed totiie infliction 
 as to be neither the better nor worse for it. But about 
 the tmie of which I am writing, when, as I have said, 
 1 had been there twelve months, I remarked a change 
 in Miu D— -'s voice, and judged from the increased 
 acerbity and rising shi-iUness of her tone that she had 
 passed from drilling an old servant to informing a new 
 one. lo confirm this theory, before long, - Lazy slut! " 
 and Dirty baggage!" and "Take that, Insolence," 
 were the best of tiie terms I heard; and these so fre- 
 qnently mingled with blows and slaps, and at times with 
 the sound of sobbing, that my gall rose. I had listened 
 indifferently enough, and if with irritation, without much 
 pain, to the chiding of the old servant; and I knew no 
 more of this one. But by the instinct which draws youth 
 
 to youth, or by reason of Mrs. D 's increased severity, 
 
 I began to feel for her, to pity her, and at last to wonder 
 what she was like, and her age, and so forth. 
 
 Nothing more formidable tl,au a, low paling- sci)arated 
 the garden of Mrs. D 's house from our yard; but 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 11 
 
 that lier eyes might not be otfeucled by the ignoble sight 
 of the trade by which she lived, four great water-l^utts 
 were ranked along the fence, which, being as tall as a 
 man, and nicely arranged, and strengthened on the inner 
 side by an accumulation of rubbish and so forth, formeil 
 a pretty effective screen. The boys indeed had their spy- 
 holes, and were in the habit of peei)ing when I did not 
 check them; but in only one place, at the corner farthest 
 from the house, was it possible to see by accident, as it 
 were, and without stooping or manifest prying, a small 
 patch of the garden. This gap in the corner I had hitherto 
 
 shunned, for Mrs. D had more than once sent mo 
 
 from it with a flea in my ear and hot cheeks: now, how- 
 ever, it became a favourite with me, and as far as J could, 
 without courting the notice of the wretched urchins who 
 wiiined and squabbled round me, I began to frequent it ; 
 sometimes leaning against the abutting fence with my 
 back to the house, as in a fit of abstraction, and then 
 slowly turning — when I did not fail to rake the aforesaid 
 patch with my eyes; and sometimes taking that corner 
 for the limit of a brisk walk to and fro, which made it 
 natural to pause and wheel at that point. 
 
 Notwithstanding these ruses, however, and though Mrs. 
 
 D 's voice, raised in anger, frequently bore witness 
 
 to her neighbourhood, it was some time before I caught 
 a glimpse of the person, whose fate, more doleful than 
 mine, yet not dissimilar, had awakened my interest. At 
 length I espied her, slowly crossing the garden, with her 
 back to me and a yoke on her shoulders. Two pails hung 
 from the yoke, I smelled swill ; and in a trice seeing in 
 her no more than a wretched drab, in clogs and a coarse 
 sacking-apron, I felt my ])hilanthro]n' brought to the test; 
 and without a second glance turned awav in distjust. 
 And thought no more of her. 
 
 After tliat I took a distaste for the gap, and I do not 
 remember that I visited it for a week or more; when, at 
 
19 
 
 SliREWSIIUItY 
 
 ength, chance or custom taking me there again I saw 
 the s,me woman' hanging clothes on the line si,e iJ 
 .or back to me as on the former occasion; bn^thir int^I 
 ...gered watchh.g her, and whether she inew o , o la 
 
 pl*!e in the fence beside the water-barrels, at which I 
 
 eau eshedid not turn my way, and more because she wore 
 a dirty limp snn-bonnct, which obscured her featmes 
 Bnt I continued to watch; and by-and-by she had 
 flmshcd her hanging, and took np the empty teket "o 
 go in again; and thereon, suddenly in the "t ofrMng 
 f.om stooping, she looked directly at me, not be nf 
 more than two, or at the most three,'paces from me I? 
 
 r"so iiTit'r'','"f " 'T'' ' 'W"-' *- -»»d 
 ZS't ? w "'' ™"""l'!'ig i" me that had never 
 
 though I have been long married and have children mv 
 body burns at the remembrance of it. For no only ™ 
 the face that for those two seconds looked into mine a f™ 
 of rare beauty, brown and low-browed, with scaiS 
 
 ery, brighter than a queen's ewels, bnt in the look, short 
 as It was and passing, shone a something that I had i e™ 
 
 Ired mrwi;^ '7'°" '"•*™P""i™. "»* on the instant 
 nrea my blood. I suppose, nay, I know now tb.it tl,^ 
 face that flashed that look at mc from . ndc 'th di tv 
 
 and as by a miracle, become dull and almost uglv or the 
 most beautifnl in the world. But then, that andill i^ 
 thii^s were new to me who knew no women, and W 
 neve spoken to a woman in the way of love nor though 
 of one when her back was turned; so new, that when it 
 was over and she gone without a second Hani.T w™ 
 back tu the house another man, my heart thumping in 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 18 
 
 my breast, aud my cheeks burning, and my whole being 
 oppressed with desire and bashfulness and wonder and 
 curiosity, and a hundred other emotions that would not 
 
 SHE LOOKED DIRECTLY AT ME 
 
 permit me to be at ease until I had hidden myself from 
 all eyes. 
 
 Well, to be brief, that, in less than the time I have 
 
 taken to tell it, changed all. I was eighteen; the girl's 
 
14 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 Bliiniug eyes burned me up, as flame burns stubble In 
 an hour, a week a day,! can no more say within wimt 
 time tlmu J can describe what befel me before I was born 
 -for il that was a sleeping, this was a dream, and passed 
 sw. .md confused as one-I was madly and' desperately 
 m love Her face bnlliant, mischievous, alluring, rose 
 before the thumbed grammar by day, and the dim case- 
 ment of the fetid, crowded bedroom by night, and filled 
 the slow, grey dawnings, now with joy and now with 
 despair For the time, I thought only of her, lived for 
 her, did my work in dreams of her. I kept no count of 
 time I gave no heed to what passed round me; but I 
 went through the routine of my miserable life, happy as 
 the Blave that rich> in the possession of some beneflcent 
 drug, defies the pains of labou. and the lash. I say my 
 miserable life; but I say it, so great was the change, in I 
 
 figure only and in retrospect. Mrs. D might scorn 
 
 me now, and the boys squabble round me, yet that life 
 was no longer miserable nor dull, whereof every morning 
 flattered me with hopes of seeing my mistress, and every 
 third day or so fulfilled the promise. ^ 
 
 With all this, and though from the moment her eyes 
 met mine across the fence, her beauty possessed me utterly, 
 a tull fortnight elapsed before I spoke with her In the 
 interval I saw her tliree times, and always in the wretched 
 guise in which she had first appeared to me; which, so 
 tar from checking my passion, now augmented it by the 
 full measure of the mystery with which the sordidness of 
 her dress m contrast with her beauty, invested her in my 
 mind. But, for speaking with her, that was another mat- 
 ter, and one presenting so many difficulties (whereof, as 
 
 the boys constant presence and Mrs. J) 's temper 
 
 were the greatest, so my bashfulness was not the least) 
 tliat 1 tlunk we might have gone another fortnight, and 
 perhap,. a third to tliufc, and not come to it, had not a cer- 
 tain privilege on which Mr. D 's good lady greatly 
 
SIIREWSBURY 
 
 15 
 
 prided lierself, come to our aid in the nick of time, and 
 by bringing us into the same room (a thing which liad 
 never occurred before, and of itself threw me into a fever) 
 combined with fortune to aid my liopes. 
 
 This privilege— so Mrs. D invariably styled it— was 
 
 the solemn gatliering of the household on one Sunday in 
 each month to listen to a disco ^rse which, her husband 
 sitting meekly by, she read to us from the works of some 
 Independent divine. On these occasions she delivered 
 herself so sonorously and with so much gusto, that I do 
 not doubt she found compensation in them for the tedium 
 of the sermon on Passive Obedience, or on the fate of the 
 Amalekite, to which, in compliance with the laws against 
 Dissent, she had perforce listened earlier in the day. 
 The master and mistress and the servant sat on one side 
 of the room, I with the boys on the other; and hitlierto 
 I am unable to say which of us had suffered more under 
 the infliction. But the appearance of my sweet martyr 
 —so, when Madam's voice rang shrillest and most angrily 
 over the soapsuds, I had come to think of her— in a place 
 behind her master and mistress (being the same in which 
 the old servant had nodded and grunted every sermon 
 evening since my coming), put a new complexion on the 
 matter. For her, she entered, as if unconscious of my 
 presence, and took her seat with downcast eyes and hands 
 folded, and that dull look on her face which, when she 
 chose, veiled three-fourths of its beauty. But my ears 
 flamed, and the blood surged to my head; and I thought 
 that all must read my secret in my face. 
 
 With Mrs. D , however, this was the one hour in 
 
 the month when the suspicions natural in one of her carp- 
 ing temper, slept, and she tasted a pleiisure comparatively 
 pure. Majestically arrayed in a huge pair of spectacles 
 — which on this occasion, and in the character of the 
 family priest, her vanity permitted and even incited her 
 to wear— and provided with a couple of tall tallow 
 
16 
 
 SimEWSIiVRY 
 
 candles, wluch it was her husband's duty to snuff, she 
 woiikl open the dreaded quarto and prop it firmly on the 
 table before her. IMien, after giving out her text in a 
 tone that need not have disgraced Hugh Peters or the 
 most famous preacher of her persuasion, it was her cus- 
 tom to lift her eyes and look round to assure herself that 
 all was cringing attention ; and this was the trying moment- 
 woe to the boy whose gaze wandered~his back would' 
 smart for it before he slept. 'I^hese preliminaries at an 
 end, however, and the discourse begun, the danger was 
 over for the tmie; for, in the voluptuous roll of the long 
 wordy sentences, and the elections and damnations, and 
 free wills that plentifully bestrewed them, she speedily 
 forgot all but thd sound of her own voice; and, nothing 
 occurring to rouse her, might be trusted to read for the 
 hour and half with pleasure to herself and without risk 
 to others. 
 
 So it fell out on this occasion. As soon, therefore, as 
 the steady droning of her voice gave me courage to look 
 up, I had before me the same scene with which a dozen 
 Sunday evenings had made me familiar; the dull circle 
 of yellow light; within it Madam's horn-rimmed glasses 
 shining over the book, while her finger industriously 
 follo.ved tlie lines; a little behind, her husband, noddino- 
 and recovering himself by turns. Not now was this alf 
 however: now I saw also imprhais, a dim oval face' 
 framed in the background behind the two old people; and 
 that, now in shadow now in light, gleamed before mv fas- 
 cinated eyes with unearthly beauty. Once or twicc'^fear- 
 mg to be observed, I averted my gaze and looked else- 
 where; guiltily and with hot temples. But always I 
 returned to it again. And always, the longer I let my 
 eyes dwell on the vision— for a vision it seemed in the 
 halo of the candles— and the more monotondus hung 
 
 the Hilence, broken only by Mrs. D 's even drone, the 
 
 more distinctly the beautiful face stood out, and the more 
 
SHREWSBUIiY 
 
 17 
 
 \h 
 
 bewitching and silluring appeared the red lips and smiling 
 eyes and dark clustering hair, tlnit moment by moment 
 drew my heart from me, and kindled my ripening brain 
 and filled my veins with fever! 
 
 " Seventhly, and under this head, of the sin of 
 David!" 
 
 So Mrs. D booming on, in her deep voice, to all 
 
 seeming endlessly; while the air of the dingy white- 
 washed room grew stale, and the candles guttered and 
 burned low, and the boys, poor little wretches, leaned on 
 one another's shoulders and sighed, and it was difficult to 
 
 say whether Mr. D 's noddings or his recoveries went 
 
 nearer to breaking his neck, At last — or was it only my 
 fancy? — I thought I made out a small brown hand gliding 
 within the circle of light. Then — or was I dreaming ? — 
 one of the candles began to move; but to move so little 
 and so stealthily, that I could not swear to it; nor ever 
 
 could have sworn, if Mr. D 's wig had not a moment 
 
 later taken fire with a light flame, and a stench, and a 
 frizzling sound, that in a second brought him, still half- 
 asleep, but swearing, to his feet. 
 
 Mrs. D , her mouth open, and the volume lifted, 
 
 halted in the middle of a word, and glared as if she had 
 been shot; her surprise at the interruption so great — and 
 no wonder — that she could not for a while find words. 
 But the stream of her indignation, so checked, only 
 gathered volume; and in a few seconds broke forth. 
 
 " Mr. D ! " she varied, slamming the book down on 
 
 the table. "You disgusting beast! Do you know that 
 the boys are here ? " 
 
 " My wig is on fire!" he cried for answer. He had 
 taken it off, and now held it at arm's length, looking at 
 it so ruefully that the boys, though they knew the danger, 
 could scarcely restrain their laughter. 
 
 " And serve you right for a weak-kneed member! " his 
 wife answered in a voice that made us quake. "'If you 
 
18 
 
 fiiiRi'jwsinrnY 
 
 had not guzzled at dinner, h\y, and fswilled Km-.l! U 
 would huve remained avvai<e inste-i, f . '' ^^" 
 wig, and staining your so d - A xnd ^ Z^ ' ^'^"^'^ 
 ones " ' ^ ' '"^"^ ^'i"«"'g these little 
 
 '' f?.?hr 'i'fr? "^y ''^^«' " l^e 'l^^«l^"-ed, roundly 
 Rubbish! " she answered in u tone tl -t „. n , i 
 no denial And then, ^' Give the ti^^^ . 1^" ' ' !;' 
 continued, peremntorilv " Anri , / "^"' i^ mi ! she 
 on y„,„. „eJd. if L° will tlu^t'^r Vfl S"'''1 
 
 >vijiuu cue tnat excellent man to the llP•M•^ i^^ 
 '« «„, give t|,e wig to Jennie!" e s -eimed -^"l' 
 
 ":rp:trsUi;'-nn:\;rf;^^^^^^^^ 
 
 the ,„.id and ,„.a ™>,,ie|j e 'C t 1 ,f ^ '''" '™ "" 
 
 "'ii.i J.1 J - , itiLe tin tno room i-aiur 
 
 of 'tiTilirt'elir "' T""'^ ^"^^ ^^ ^ ^--« -^burst 
 
 But Si frr/;, '''^' ^^'""^^"^^^' ^^ ^ft«^ events. 
 ^uL vvjut 1 lelt at the moment I should in v.u't, u. ^ 
 
 ae-e„be. At one ti.e I waa on the pl't 'oV.^i^^in'^ 
 
SintEWSIiURY 
 
 10 
 
 1 beer you 
 1^ ii good 
 liese little 
 
 illy. 
 
 uld brook 
 sir! " she 
 il kerchief 
 ' does not 
 liscourse; 
 Bo you 
 Bd. " A 
 I'ers and 
 
 i"it; but 
 • wig, in 
 9. This 
 )atieuce, 
 e. JVor 
 ' trail of 
 » was on 
 ivang. 
 !ie cj'ied 
 he next 
 3r mun- 
 aadam ! 
 p until 
 J. Do 
 ciously 
 like a 
 re not 
 
 tburst 
 I vents. 
 try to 
 nging 
 
 on the woman, and at another iill but caught the sobbinjr 
 girl in my arms and challenged the world to toucdi her. 
 
 Fortunately, Mr. ]) . now fully awakened, and the 
 
 more inclined to rememl)er decency in jjroportion as his 
 wife forgot it, recalled me to myself by sternly bidding me 
 see the boys to their beds. 
 
 Glad to escape, they needed no second order, but 
 flocked to the door, and I with them. In our retreat, it 
 was necessary f(n- me to pass close to the shrinking girl, 
 
 whom ]\Irs. D was still abusing with all the cruelty 
 
 imaginable; as I did so I heard, or dreamed that I heard, 
 three words, breathed in the faintest possible whisper. T 
 say, dreamed I heard, for the girl neither looked at me 
 nor removed tlie apron from her face, nor by abating her 
 sobs or any other sign betrayed that she spoke or that 
 she was conscious of my neighbourhood. 
 
 Yet the three words, " Garden, ten minutes," so gently 
 breathed, that I doubted while I heard, could only liave 
 come from her; and assured of that, it will be believed 
 that I found the ten minntes I spent seeing the boys to 
 bed by the light of one scanty rushlight the longest and 
 most tumultuous I ever passed. If she had not spoken 
 I should have found it a sorry titne, indeed; since the 
 moment the door was closed behiiid me I discerned a 
 hundred reasons to be dissatisfied Avith my conduct, 
 thought of a hundred things I should have said, and saw 
 a hundred things I should have done; and stood a coward 
 convicted. Now, however, all was not over; I might 
 explain. I was about to see her, to speak with her, to 
 pour out my indignation and i)ity, perhaps to touch her 
 hand; and in the delicious throb of fear and hope and 
 excitement with which these anticipations filled my breast, 
 I speedily forgot to regret what was past. 
 
do 
 
 sfriiKws/irifi' 
 
 C'llAITKIf III 
 
 ivnt^Zr^V^'""" ^-'T '^^^"'"«^^-''^- to boast, and with 
 trutii, that they earned to their first assiir„at on with 
 wonmn an even pnlse. Bnt as I do not iM^sunrto -ank 
 myself among these, who have been coLnor meaof 
 high station (of vvliom niy late Lord Kochester "Is I 
 believe, the chief in n.y time), neither- 1 enJmpnv 
 
 ing—ji.ive i. If I ,nay say so without disrespect so lifM« 
 heart as to crave tl.e reputation. In truth Texpe^n d 
 t^.at evening, as I crept out of the back door of M, 
 
 ^.~^n Tu T ''°!f '^'^ *^^'^^°«"^ «f ''^« whispering 
 garden, a full share of the guilty feeling that goes with 
 secrecy; and more than my share of the agitatiofof sp^ 
 natural in one who knows (and is new t^o the though 
 that under cover of the darkness a woman stands t7mb 
 hng and waiting for him. A few paces from the housT- 
 
 of dtectron' T ''''^r f^^^"^^^' ^^^-^'^ ^' ^^- rlk 
 
 was stm t :; «1^ ^"''^ ^''^ '' ""'''''' "^3^^^1f «'«t all 
 was St 1. then shivering, as much with excitement as 'it 
 
 ZtZT' '!^f "^^^ ^^^ ^^^« -^' ' hasteTed tHl 
 Sstress ' '"^'^ ""'''''' ' '"^'^ ^^^-« -en my 
 
 J^ ^'^ i/T *,!'" ^^^' '''^^' "^y ^^"^ '-^"^ peered through it 
 and called her name softly-'Mennie! Jennie! "and 
 h ned; and after an interval called again, more boldly 
 Still hearing nothing, I discovered bv the sinking Tmv 
 heart -which was such that, for allmv eighteefvears T 
 could have sat down and cried-how mueh^I had S ;n 
 
 Yet I did not despair. Mrs. D niii^lit I„ve k^,,t 
 
 ber, or one ol a hundred things might havl ;'„i:;:,':ed t 
 
. niKl with 
 ion witJi u 
 le to rank 
 y men of 
 er was, I 
 unhappy 
 'itlistaiul- 
 , so little 
 perienced 
 r of Mr. 
 hispering- 
 foes witli 
 I of spirit 
 thought) 
 s tremb- 
 liouse — 
 the risk 
 that all 
 iiit as at 
 id to the 
 seen my 
 
 ongh it, 
 !" and 
 boldly, 
 r at my 
 years, I 
 juilt on 
 still got 
 
 ve kept 
 3ned to 
 
 
 
 ^ti I \ 'i\ 
 
 IN AN INSTANT I WAS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE FENCE 
 
i* 
 
snRKWsurRV 
 
 98 
 
 I 
 
 (lolay her; from one ciuise or another she might not have 
 been able to slip out as quickly as she had thought. Sho 
 might come yet ; anil so, though the more prolonged my 
 absence, the greater risk of detection I ran, I composed 
 myself to wait with what patience 1 might. The town 
 was quiet; human noise at an end for the day; but Mr. 
 
 D 's school stood on the outskirts, with its back to 
 
 the open country, and between the sighing of the wind 
 among the poplars, and the murmur of a neighbouring 
 brook, and those far-off noises that seem inseparable from 
 the night, I had stood a minute or more before another 
 sound, differing from all these, and having its origin at a 
 spot much nearer to me, caught my ear, and set my heart 
 beating. It was the noise of a woman weeping; and to 
 this day I do not know precisely what I did on hearing it 
 — wlien I made out what it was, I mean — or how I found 
 courage to do it; only, that in an instant, as it seemed to 
 me, I was on the otlier side of the fence, and had taken 
 the girl in my arms, with her head on my shoulder, and 
 her wet eyes looking into mine, while I rained kisses on 
 her face. 
 
 Doubtless the darkness and her grief and my passion 
 gave me boldness to do this; and to do a hundred other 
 mad things in my ecstasy. For, as I had never spoken 
 to her before, any more than I liad ever held a woman in 
 my arms before, so I had not thought, I had not dreamed 
 of this! of her hand, perhaps, but no more. Therefore, 
 and though since Adam's time the stars have looked down 
 on many a lover's raptures, never, I verily believe, have 
 they gazed on transports so perfect, so uulooked for, as 
 were mine at that moment! And all the time not a word 
 passed between us; but after a while she pushed me from 
 her, with a kind of force that would not be resisted, and 
 holding me at arm's length, looked at me strangely; and 
 then thrusting me altogether from her, she bade me, 
 almost roughly, go back, 
 
24 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 herrtl^kL/"' ''"" ^'"'•" ' -■-", astonished and 
 
 me as you say you do ." ' ^^ ^^^^ ^^^e 
 
 _Ipr« "//,.' I cried. ..„., And what then 
 
 withln'L.:^e^'s«t"t™i;:d'nr"""^'' "°°"^' ^-^^ 
 
 one of your boys " ' "' ""= """"'• I "m not 
 
 and whereof that C he fi J ' ^™ ^ """"" '" '"'°'''' 
 tack. "Gio'" she^ii ''^'f™™^' «l'<= ™e<i me 
 go. Do yon heafmeT.1' ™**'"y- " For this time, 
 
 »toS'in°'„'!:::,tr%"„d'* """T' -'-'"standing, I 
 the fence. Whe^I 'wis on ' ''^^ T^"' ""« ^ «™ied 
 and rewarded me by "viZ 11 fV^l <=»""' "> ">« gap, 
 derstand me," sheLfd ?• V ^f^ '" "'"• " ^^- 
 
 sir, only when I glTyt. leav™- "' '° °™' *° ">« «'"«• 
 "' oXJ ?' n ■ ./' °™ J""- be so crnel ? " 
 
 beaten.^Y^TnoTwant tZ; r .' *"" "* ™«^'' ""^ 
 
 " If that hag Zches ;'„ 'alin mT: ■ •/ '^T'" ' " 
 ™«eat the thonght, " llill^fHinil™^' ''<"'■»« -"" 
 
 mi/i:^Unttth:;,itoi';-,rt''" ^-^^^ -'-^ ™ 
 
 I will strangle her! " I cried 
 She lanshed, a little cruellv " m. , „ 
 
 " Bnt I mean them i " I •^' , ™'''"''' «'"> "aid. 
 
 I swore it_I swo wh,t! r'!''v''™'™'"^'y- ^nd 
 
 "Well." sbe™:.::^; ' x :■;,• :Li t'i°™ t"^ ' 
 
 ""'" "- "-'"" '--'' ■"yc'.;eeZ=artiriricr^ 
 
SHREWSBURV 
 
 25 
 
 V 
 
 she 
 
 I 
 
 scent of her Imir stole away my senses, "perhaps some 
 day I shall try you. Are you sure tliat you will not fail 
 me then? " 
 
 I swore it, panting, and tried to draw her towards me 
 by her arm ; but she held back, laughing softly and as one 
 well pleased; and then, in a moment, snatching her hand 
 from me, she vanished in the darkness of the garden, leav- 
 ing mo in a seventh heaven of delight, my blood fired by 
 her kisses, my fancy dwelling on her beauty; and without 
 one afterthought. 
 
 Doubtless had I been less deep in love (wherein I was 
 far over-head), or deeper in experience, I miglit have noted 
 it for a curious thing that she should be so quickly com- 
 forted; and should be able to rise in a few moments, and 
 at the touch of my lips, from passionate despair to perfect 
 control, both of herself and of me. And starting thence, 
 I might have gone on to suspect that she possessed her 
 full share of i\\e finesse, which is always a Avoman's shield 
 and sometimes her sword. But as such suspicions are 
 foreign to youth, so are they especially foreign to youthful 
 love, which takes nothing lower than perfection for its idol. 
 And this I can say for certain, that they no more entered 
 my brain than did the consequences which were to flow 
 from my passion. 
 
 For the time, indeed, I was in an ecstasy, a rapture, 
 walking a-tip-toe, and troubled by none of the things 
 that trouble common folk; so that to this day — thougli 
 long married — I look back to that period of innocent folly 
 with a yearning and a regret, the sorer for this, that when 
 I try to analyse the luippiness I enjoyed, I fail, and make 
 nothing of it. That all things should be changed for me, 
 and I be changed in my own eyes — so that I walked a 
 head taller and esteemed myself ridiculously — by the fact 
 that a kitchen wencli in a drngpf>i])etticoat and clofrs liad. 
 let me kiss her, and left me to believe that she loved me, 
 seems incredible now; as incredible as that a daily glimpse 
 
36 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 dumplings, ind hr^.ilii,!'^ ! j''";'' "'"' "» 
 mto a mansion ol tremnlous jo"' ®' '"''■'' ""«'"■''' 
 
 mistress went in »"' Ind !?'""' '^ ^°.""«' '""' "J' 
 
 good exempWm I ™ "'™"^''''» *'"= >™ »Pt to imitate 
 aelf, no common gS ' "' "'"' J"'"*""^ «''°«1 ''«- 
 
 .arnr:::;:;etr;y:t.^'--tfr-*" 
 
 Satan, needed no Uof ^ this o/n J"?!. °' " '™''"' 
 Dorinda_so I ohLtene e^ . „'" Je™ t"*: ^ "' 
 
 the iirst flush 0? t ,e "Losa Tfl'^ 1"°'' i!" *" ™''- ^t 
 because sl>e did no pTsess ■ iTt!! ''"^'"f ? Pf'' «""« 
 for the humiiit, tha? coTdelLld VZ- \t"t t.: 
 
 s/^a:t:hX:^-;;::ir'-?~ 
 ^StES~ia~=^ 
 
 all my inirenuitv bnH , i ^J^^ obstacle for a time taxed 
 
 a».4 .n-^^:\:av^^:il'r :r.li!;^ri^^ 
 
 ». the playground. This, the approach of warm 'welZ 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 27 
 
 id powder- 
 back gar- 
 , with its 
 J fingers, 
 
 to me, so 
 ■> that my 
 md spoke 
 lo her the 
 ik to note 
 
 imitate 
 ■ her rags 
 fj of her 
 wed lier- 
 
 which I 
 and the 
 becanse 
 
 1 female 
 i'hen my 
 'O low a 
 d at our 
 ad. At 
 >r thing 
 )red her 
 
 at tlie 
 >roposaI 
 ■y maid 
 iture in 
 
 ig that 
 ier tlie 
 e taxed 
 boldly 
 ciasHes 
 eatlier 
 
 I 
 
 giving colour to the petition, was allowed ; after which, 
 as Dorinda was engaged in the back premises at that 
 hour, and could listen while she drudged, the rest was 
 easy. Calling up the lowest class, I would Und fault with 
 their reading, and after flying out at them in a simulated 
 passion, would remit them again and again to the ele- 
 ments; so that for a fortnight or more, and, indeed, until 
 the noise of the lads repeating the lesson annoyed Mrs. 
 
 D 's ears, tlie playground rang Avith a-b, ab; e-b, eb; 
 
 c-a-t, cat; d-o-g, dog, and the like, with the alphabet 
 and the rest of the horn-book. And all this so frequently 
 repeated, that with this assistance, and the help of a 
 spelling-book which I gave her, and which she studied 
 before others awoke, my mistress at the end of two months 
 could read tolerably, and was beginning to essay easy 
 round-hand. 
 
 And Heaven knows how delicious were those lessons 
 under the shabby ragged tree that shaded one half of the 
 yard ! I spoke to the yawning grubby-fingered boys, who 
 slouched and straddled round me; but I knew to whose 
 ears I applieJ myself; nor had pupil ever a more diligent 
 master, or master an apter pupil. Once a week I had 
 my fee of kisses, but rarely, very rarely, was permitted 
 to cross the fence; a reserve on my Dorinda's part, that, 
 while it augmented the esteem in which I held her, main- 
 tained my passion at a white heat. When, nevertheless, 
 I remonstrated with her, and loverliko, complained of 
 the rigour which in my heart I commended, she chid me 
 for setting a low value on her; and Avhen I persisted, 
 "Go on," she said, drawing away from me with a won- 
 derful air of offence. " Tell me at once, and in so many 
 words, that you think me a low thing! That you really 
 take me for the kitchen drudge I appear! " 
 
 Her tone was full of meaning, with a hint of mystery, 
 but as I had never thought her aught else — and yet an 
 angel — I was dumb. 
 
28 
 
 SHREWSBUBr 
 
 )| ' 
 
 " You did think me that f " she cried, jixin. me witi, 
 air- """ '^P^"'"*^ '" " '™« "»' demfndeVt 
 
 u"e«7/ht;" ''^™"'" "■'" ^"--' -' «* "" 
 
 milteke'" y.''!"" ""''. '""'T"' ^ '"'™ '«*'' "nler a 
 mistaKe, she answered, speakine verv flisf^TifK. „ ^ • 
 
 a voice that sent n.y heart' into mX^^.^^rwe;: 
 fond-or said you were-of the cook-maid. She does no? 
 exist, m, sir, a little farther away, if you please '' mv 
 mistress contmued, haughtily, her head in the ah' 'and 
 tould ' T' '' ""'''''' ^^-^^ *han that if "t 
 
 It IS almos. the first thing I can remember-a dav when 
 
 ntr ;ry ^^^ f "1: ^''\^ "-^^-« «^ ^oid\:id: 
 
 dered out the^dd T k'"'' '^ " -^'^"* ''^r, and wan! 
 
 IS scat into the streets; where," she continued dream- 
 
 ib^ a.;a g.zmg away from me, -there were '^e^t 
 
 ci-^vds,_a.d men firing guns, and people running e^eiy 
 
 I uttered an exclamation of astonishment. She noticed 
 
 I" T}'^^ " '^'''' P^"««' ^"d then went on in he 
 same thoughtful tone, - As far as I can remember it was ! 
 I^acewhere there were booths and stalls crowded » 
 and among hem, it seems to me, a man was being hunted 
 
 Tt him" r n"f ' '''''' ^"^*^^^' -^"^^ soldiers shot 
 at him At last he came where I had dropped on ihl 
 
 ground in terror, after running child-like wS the d 
 
 ger was greatest. He glared at me an instant- eta" 
 
 -.nning, stooping down below the level of thp hnnfi 
 
 and th had lost him for the time; ttt hln^heTm; 
 
 r : h idTo z' '7''' ir r r ^^^^^^ ^^^^^^ ^-^^^^' 
 
 mu '? " P' ^'"''' *« "'"W Have the child" 
 
 The crowd ra,»ed the «ame cry, aad made a way for Ifim 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 29 
 
 to pass. And then — I do not remember anytl)ing, until 
 I found myself shabbily dressed in u little inn, where, 
 I suppose, the man, having made his escape, left me." 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 At that I remember that I cried out in overwhelming 
 excitement and amazement; cried out that I knew the 
 man and his story, and the place whence she had been 
 taken; that I had heard the tale from my father years 
 before. " It was Colonel Porter who picked you up — 
 Colonel Porter, and he saved his life by it! " I cried, quite 
 beside myself at the wonderful discovery I had made. 
 " It was Colonel Porter, in the great riot at Norwich." 
 
 "Ah?" she said, slowly; looking away from me, and 
 speaking so coolly and strangely as both to surprise and 
 damp me. 
 
 Yet I persisted. "Yes," I said, "the story is well 
 
 known; at least that part of it. But " and there and 
 
 at that word I stopped, dumbfounded and gaping. 
 
 "But what?" she asked sharply, and looked at me 
 again ; the colour risen in her face. 
 
 "But — you are only eighteen," I hazarded timidly, 
 " and the Norwich riot was in the War time. I dare say, 
 thirty years ago." 
 
 She turned on me in a sort of passion. 
 
 " Well, sir, and what of that? " she cried. " Do you 
 think me thirty?" 
 
 " No, indeed," I answered. And at the most she was 
 nineteen. 
 
 " Then don't you believe me ? " 
 
 I cried out too at that; but, boy-like, I was so proud of 
 my knowledge and acuteness that I could not let the 
 
do 
 
 SIIliEWSBtrnY 
 
 And " "^ "® thu'ty now. 
 
 finlw T,;;i/;''.f-----d. %ing out at n.e in a 
 
 tinned, passionately, waving me off -Tl 1'"^- 
 things and tl.en pnt them on^iP- T . T^^ "P 
 
 about ^^orwich." ^ "''^^'' "^^'^ ^ word 
 
 ;; I know you did not," I protested. 
 
 and with influito difflcu t„e,^ '"ir: "'",",' '"''' 
 divided us whtr^-^ f ''''^^ comcidence that had 
 
 N^ivvi I tandin 'th'l'"'^'' " «°'"' ''^'" »' ^'«'"^'^'^- 
 "owitistatiding this discrepancy, however ami tl,n„„l. 
 
SiTREWSBUnr 
 
 al 
 
 ml that we should often revert to the subject, and to her 
 pretensions, aud the liardship of lier lot: and my curiosity 
 and questions giving a tillij) to her memory, scarcely a day 
 passed but she recovered some new detail fn a the past; 
 as at one time a service of gold-plate which she perfectly 
 remembered she had seen on her father's sideboard ; and 
 at another time an accident that had befell her in her 
 childhood, through her father's coach and six horses being 
 overturned in a slough. Such particulars (aiul numy 
 others as pertinent and romantic, on which I will not 
 linger) gave us a certainty of her past consequence and 
 her future fortune were her parents once knoAvn; and 
 while they served to augment the respect in which my 
 love held her, gradually and almost imperceptibly led her 
 to take a higher tone Avitli me, and even on occasions to 
 carry herself towards me with an air of mystery, as if 
 there were still some things which she had not confided 
 to me. 
 
 This attitude on her part — which in itself pained me 
 extremely — and still more the fear naturally arising from 
 it, that if she came by her own I should immediately lose 
 her, forced me to make the acquaintance of yet another 
 side of love* by throwing me, I mean, into such a fever 
 of suspicion and jealousy as made me for a period the 
 most unhappy of men. From this plight my mistress, 
 exercising the privilege of her sex, made no haste to 
 relieve me. On the contrary, by affecting an increased 
 reserve and asserting that her movements were watched, 
 she prolonged my doubts; nor when this treatment had 
 wrought the desired end of reducing me to the lowest 
 depths, and she at length consented to meet me, did she 
 entirely relent or abandon her reserve; or if she did so, 
 on rare occasions, it was only to set me some task as the 
 price of her complaisance, or expose me to some trial by 
 which she might prove my devotion. 
 
 In a word, while J became hopelessly enslaved, even to 
 
32 
 
 ^"iJIHEWSliUuy 
 
 i I 
 
 in it, and jud. o,, v i" r ^^''^ "" "^ ^^ «*«^^*^ 
 
 prices, she appe ued 7hT'~Z '^ ^''' ^'''' '^ ^''' «a- 
 cluy, and ^^^l^t^'':^::^'^^ ^-- '- every 
 Wliether this tveatmerThJT ^ .^^''^' privileges, 
 stinct of a woman or J . rl'"^^" "^ *^'^ "^^"ral in- 
 
 calculated rSas Z It'"'''''' ^^"^^" ^« ^«^*- 
 effect; and ?o 8«r 1 ^ w7^'"''' ^* ^^^^ *'^« letter 
 
 absent, s e eo'dl;;^^^^^^^^^ ''''\ ^^'^"' "^^- ^ ^-.^ 
 
 .ecret withheld thaS/„™en 7™°^''™^''°" "' » 
 to nothiiiK less th™ „„ ^, """"''o ""e before, amounted 
 
 oooa.on „", Te a^rj^Xr >[ ^^ ^^^^ - "■« 
 who was to lie one ni^bf „t t<! y, "'^^ °' ^'"'^- 
 
 to Newmarket M?' D!i^^^*."' Z'V '"^ "^ 
 orders that all shoZ kee77he hi «™d the strictest 
 not so much o,,tof a propertrel th^r^''™"^"' 
 
 'he scalelgZ r ove- b„t ittT T'i™ "^'^""^ ""'^ '" 
 
 -mething'that J^sVsiLTerLtn «, J,™' ' /°™* 
 .ng from Dorinda's lipl; nreo„ld I fd t?f ''°""' ™"" 
 dangers to which a young .rSmnst f "' """y 
 
 such an exnedition i„ H?. ! * ? ""'P""' '"*"<*>' o" 
 a youth h?Iove nothi ^th ?l""' "' °'«'.t. But as to 
 
 rallying on mv cro« earpY ^ ""'^ *^'^" ^ ^'**^e 
 
 ^ S u my crop-eared manners, and some scolding, 
 
SJfJfh'WSBURV 
 
 M 
 
 a dress far 
 e by stealth 
 
 of lier ea- 
 rn me every 
 
 pi'ivileges. 
 natural iu- 
 I as better 
 I the latter 
 fcer a long 
 broached a 
 I uf ked no 
 f pointing 
 ;h scarcely 
 
 which she 
 >tion of a 
 amounted 
 ivn on the 
 of York, 
 a his way 
 
 strictest 
 bis visit; 
 morality 
 3rved for 
 atic and 
 d person 
 little in 
 I found 
 sal com- 
 30 many 
 rself on 
 ut as to 
 }s to do 
 nomeut 
 
 a little 
 olding, 
 
 to make me see it in its true aspect of an innocent frolic, 
 fraught with as much pleasure to the cavalier as novelty 
 to the escorted. 
 
 " You will don your new suit," she said, merrily, " and 
 I shall meet you in the garden at half past nine." 
 
 '' And if the boj^s may miss me ? " I protested feebly. 
 
 '"The boys have missed you before!" she answered, 
 mocking my tone. "Were you not here last nighty 
 And for a whole hour, sir ? " 
 
 I confessed with hot cheeks that I had been there; 
 humbly and tamely awaiting her pleasure. 
 
 ''And did they tell then?" she asked scornfully. 
 " Or are they less afraid of the birch now ? But of course 
 — if yon don't care to come with me — or are afraid. 
 
 sir- 
 
 .9" 
 
 " I am neither," I said warmly. " Only I do not quite 
 understand, sweet, what you wish." 
 
 "They lie at the Rose," she said. "And amongst 
 them, I am told, are the prettiest men and the most lovely 
 women in the world. And jewels, and laces, and such 
 dresses! Oh, I am mad to see them! And music and 
 gaming and dancing! And dishes and plates of gold! 
 And a Popish priest, which is a thing I have never seen, 
 though I have heard of it. And " 
 
 "And do you expect to see all these things through 
 the windows? " 1 cried in my superior knowledge. 
 
 She did not answer at once, but with her hands on mv 
 shoulders, swayed to and fro sideways as if she already 
 heard the music; while her gipsy face looked archly into 
 mine, first on this side and then on that, and her hair 
 swung to and fro on her shoulders in a beautiful abandon- 
 ment which I found it impossiblf> to resist. At last she 
 stopped, and, "Yes," she said demurely, "through the 
 windows. Master Kichard Longfacel Do you meet mo 
 here at half past nine — in your new suit, sir — and you 
 shall see them too — through the windows." 
 3 
 
84 
 
 siIliiJWSBURy 
 
 iii 
 
 ""■" ^^'|»cJ» I ]iua just 
 
 laid down ; and 
 dressing myself 
 witJi shaking fiji- 
 ^ors and in t]ie 
 dark — tJiat my 
 l)ed-fe]]oAvs might 
 J^now as little as 
 possible of niy 
 movements— stole 
 down thestairsand 
 into the garden. 
 
 '^ere I found 
 myself first at the 
 rendezvous, y^he 
 Tiightwasda]'k,but 
 an unusual liglit 
 hung over the town, and 
 tlie wind that stirred the 
 poplars brought scraps and 
 Bounds of music to the ear. I 
 had some time to wait, and time 
 too to think what I was about 
 
 STOI.K DOWV THK STU.. ' ^f ^ ^'^ '''^^^^ ^^^ ^^^"^^S of 
 Juw.\ THE STAIRS AND dctCCtlOn Sinri rli'cw,,* i 
 
 ^NTo THE GARDEN eveu to t.^trfi '^^s^issal, and 
 
 even to taste the qualms that 
 
 wiH. my anticipations o^ZZr^^rt' r?'''' 
 my fears, no vision of tlw w f !' ■,' ''""«'' I '"'d 
 -y mind ae I stoo I L e li eii^^ '' °'"™'"" "''" »" 
 of tlie plunge I Zl T ,t V ""^ "y 'ore«'ai-ni„g 
 iJiuu^c I was about to take AnW ^^j; ti ? 
 come to the end nf m,. >, r r ^^ before I liad 
 
 ne end of my patience Dorinda stood beside me. 
 
issuatle Jier, 
 ient to ]ier 
 tJ fij)pointed 
 ilepiilJet on 
 I l>Jul just 
 
 own ; MiHl 
 
 ig myself 
 mking Hu. 
 
 'fl in tlio 
 - 1 Ji a t my 
 OAvs might 
 s little as 
 e of my 
 nU — 'Stole 
 Bstairsand 
 giu-den. 
 
 I found 
 ii'st at tlie 
 us. y^lie 
 
 dark, but 
 ual liglit 
 iown, and 
 ;ii'i"ed the 
 fips and 
 3 ear. I 
 and time 
 as about 
 ances of 
 sal, and 
 ms that 
 mingled 
 1 I had 
 tself on 
 iVarning 
 'e I liad 
 ide me. 
 
 tiiih'Kwsnrin' 
 
 m 
 
 Dark as it was, I fancied tliat I discerned something 
 strange in lier appearance, and I would have investigated 
 It; but she whispered that wo were late, and evading as 
 well my questions as the caress I offered, she bade me help 
 her as quickly as I could over the fence. 1 did so; we 
 crossed a neighbouring garden, aiul in a twinkling 'ami 
 with the least possible difficulty stood in the road. Here 
 the strains of music came more plainly to the ear, and the 
 glare of light hung lower and shone more brightly. This 
 seemed enough for my mistress; she turned that way 
 without hesitation, and set forward, the outskirts of the 
 town being quickly passed. Between the late hour and 
 the flux of people towards the centre of interest, the 
 streets were vacant; and we met no one until we reached 
 the main thoroughfare, and came upon the edge of the 
 great crowd that moved to and fro before the Rose Inn. 
 Here all the windows, in one of which a band of music 
 was playing some new air, were brilliantly lighted; while 
 below and round the door was such a throng of hurrying 
 waiters and drawers, and such a carrying of meals and 
 drinks, and a shouting of orders as almost turned the 
 brain. A carriage and six that had just set down a 
 grandee, come to pay his devoirs to the Prince, was mov- 
 ing off as we came up, the horses smoking, the footmen 
 panting, and the postilions stooping in their saddles. A 
 little to one side a cask was being staved for the troopers 
 who had come with the Duke; and on all the noisy, 
 moving scene and the flags that streamed from the roofs 
 and windows, and the shifting crowd, poured the ruddy 
 light of a great bon-feu that burned on the farther side 
 of the way. 
 
 Nor, rare as were these things, were they the most 
 pertinent or the strangest that the fire revealed to me. I 
 had come for nothing else but to see, dam et furtim, as 
 the classics say, what was to be seen; with no thought of 
 passing beyond the uttermost ring of spectators. But as 
 
Sfl 
 
 sir/fEws/ir/n' 
 
 . 
 
 Jhuuff back slmmefHcodly ,ny .mnpanion seized my wrist 
 
 neck, where the cloak fell loose «•„« m, i ° j 
 
 ;n.t.esMhecook.n.iawh 
 
 ilonestly, for an instant, I recoiled and lumcr back af mi 1 
 
 sha^Vt^eorneo^'^ ^'""^"' ""^^^ ^^^ whispered ^.e 
 
 Thebvlilt'^- '''^ 'f '.'''" ^^^"g"^S ^««k in dismay, 
 ihe bystanders were beginning to turn and stare and in 
 a moment would ].ave jeered us. 
 
 ^'' Within doors, ' she urged. 
 
 " 'TJiey will not admit us! "' 
 
 on :':iL'ih^!,et'rL';ri'iTer'' r" '^-^ 
 
 love and her slave. Relucten ^' '..d ato rklS- '", 
 g.'ve way and sneaked behind !,«• to the Zr i ,' 
 
 -i^ "jnSit'Xo^-jrs.::! 
 
 totoT/h.HTor,?^^'.'':;^'-'"-""^ "•^■''"- ""' ^'^^ 
 K-new the ho.. th^rl^X tre:^ ^,1'^ ^ 
 
!(1 my wrist 
 
 'MlOllKtmtO, 
 
 iived for u 
 ized 1110 in 
 lagine tliat 
 lit m Htiirs 
 en liuir, so 
 ice of hor 
 rindn, my 
 lie garden ! 
 ick, afraid 
 80 iinpre- 
 pered me 
 
 I dismay. 
 ■e> and in 
 
 idly, and 
 
 and that 
 I i^as in 
 lulkily, I 
 A man 
 . minded 
 us pass; 
 lurrying 
 Ik coats, 
 's, and a 
 leu, and 
 
 b by my 
 p where 
 3 if she 
 and led 
 
 MY COMPANION SEIZED MY WRIST 
 
] ' I! 
 
 (I 
 
smtEWSBirUY 
 
 89 
 
 the way into a great room that stood on the right of the 
 hall. 
 
 Here, down the Bpacious floor, and lighted by shaded 
 candles, were ranged several tables, at which a number of 
 persons had seats, while others again stood or moved 
 about the room. The majority of those present were men. 
 I noticed, however, three or four women masked after the 
 fashion of my companion, but more gorgeously dressed, 
 and in my simplicity did not doubt that these were duch- 
 esses, the more as they talked and laughed loudly; whereas 
 the general company — save those who sat at one table 
 where the game was at a standstill, and all were crying 
 persistently for a Tallier — spoke low, the rattle of dice 
 and chink of coin, and an occasional oath, taking the 
 place of conversation. I saw piles of guineas and half- 
 guineas on the tables, and gold lace on the men's coats, 
 and the women a dream of silks and furbelows, and 
 gleaming shoulders and flashing eyes; and between awe 
 of my company, and horror at finding myself in such a 
 place, I took all for real that glittered. Where, there- 
 fore, a man of experience would have discerned a crowd 
 of dubious rakes and rustic squires tempting fortune for 
 the benefit of the Groom- Porter, whose privilege was 
 ambulatory, I fancied I gazed on earls and barons ; saw 
 a garter on every leg, and, blind to the stained walls of 
 the common inn-room, supplied every bully who cried 
 the main or called the trumps with the pedigree of a 
 Howard. 
 
 This was a delusion not unnatural, and a prey to it, I 
 expected each moment to be my last in that company. 
 But the fringe of spectators that stood behind the players 
 favouring us, we fell easily into line at one of the tables, 
 and nothing happening, and no one saying us nay, I pres- 
 ently breathetl more freely. I could see that mv com- 
 panion's beauty, though hidden in the main by her mask, 
 was the subject of general remark; and that it drew on 
 
40 
 
 i^iniEwsBuur 
 
 +1, 1-^ ""g "eroes; And seen the sirens' To ivliini^ 
 handed to her ^ *'*'^' ^ ^""^^^^ ^^^i«l^ he 
 
 bi«nl,ot ll.fclt:™''"""*' ''"^"^'"'' -*" "" the 
 
 "And yet I think I have seen vou nlav v " i,o .« r ^ 
 And .fleeting to be engaged i„ idSS'im he t w; 
 eyes rove over her figure ^ ' ^^^ 
 
 she.idj:„,^rd^.X":d7/'"'^ ^^"'^™"•'■ 
 
 notLing else bnt trw '^"'' "" ^ ''""'^d " ^r 
 
 she'rl^Vd. °"' '"°" "'"' ^ am-behind my n.aak," 
 
 -UmVli';!!':":?' '""■''"^' "an'J M>e,.of„.e I an, going 
 •■So am I!" mj „i,t,.e,, „,„„,^j_ ^.^^ ^ ^_^.^^_^^^^ 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 41 
 
 that both surprised uud delighted me. "Good night, 
 good spendthrift! You are gbing; and I am going." 
 
 " Well hit! " he replied, with a grin. " And well con- 
 tent if we go together! Yet I think I know how I could 
 keep you! " 
 
 " Yes? " she said, indifferently. 
 
 " By deserving the name," he answered. " You called 
 me spendthrift." 
 
 On that I do not know whether she thought him too 
 forward, or saAv that I was nearly at the end of my 
 patience — which it may be imagined was no little tried by 
 this badinage — but she turned her shoulder to him out- 
 right, and spoke a word to me in a low tone. Then : 
 "Give me a guinea, Dick!" she said, pretty loudly. 
 "I think I'll play." 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 She spoke confidently and with a grand air, knowing 
 that I had brought a guinea with me; so that I had 
 neither the heart to shame her, nor the courage to dis- 
 please her. Though it was the ninth part of my income 
 therefore, and it seemed to me sheer madness or worse to 
 stake such a sum on a single card, and win or lose it in a 
 moment, I lugged it out and gave it to her. Even then, 
 knowing her to have no more skill in the game than I 
 had, I was at a stand, wondering what she would do with 
 it; but with the tact which never fails a woman she laid 
 it where the gentleman had placed his. With better 
 luck; for in a twinkling, and before I thought it well 
 begun, the deal was over, the players sat back, and swore, 
 and the banker, giving and taking here and there, thrust 
 a guinea over to our guinea. I was in a sweat to take 
 
42 
 
 SJlHEWSBVItY 
 
 j 
 
 Let it lie, Dick! Do 
 
 both up before anyone cheated us; but she nudo-ed 
 
 and said with her finest aii 
 
 hear? Let it lie." 
 This was almost more than I could bear, to see fortune 
 my grasp, and not shut my hand upon it, but she 
 
 me, 
 you 
 
 m 
 
 mistress and I let it lie; and 
 
 was 
 
 +1,^ -p, ,. ;, -' --- " moment, hey presto, as 
 
 the ii^gyptians say, the two guineas were four, and those 
 who played next us, seeing her success, began to pass re- 
 marks on her, making nothing of debating who she was 
 and discussmg about her shape and complexion in terms 
 that made my cheeks burn. Whether this open admira- 
 tion turned her head, or their freedom confused her, she 
 let the money lie again; and when I would have snatched 
 It up not; regarding her, the dealer prevented me, sav- 
 ing that It was too late, while she with an air, as if I had 
 been her servant, turned and rated me sharply for a 
 fool. This caused a little disturbance at which all the 
 company laughed. However, the event proved me no 
 tool, but wiser than most, for in two minutes that pretty 
 sum, which was as much as I had ever possessed at one 
 tmie m my life, was swept off; and for two guineas the 
 richer, which we had been a moment before, we remained 
 . one, a:id that my only one, the poorer! 
 
 For myself, I could have cried at the misadventure 
 but my mistress carried it off with a shrill laugh, and 
 tossing- her head in affected contempt-whereat, I am 
 bound to confess, the company laughed again-turned 
 .trom the table. I sneaked after her as miserable as you 
 please, and in tliat order we had got half way to the 
 (ioor, when tlie gentleman who had addressed her befor- 
 stepped up ni front of her. - Beauty so reckless," he 
 said, speaking with a grin, and in a tone of greater free- 
 dom than he had used previously, " needs someone to 
 care for it! ITuless I am mistaken, lAIistress, you came 
 Oh foot y " And with a sneering smile, he dropped his 
 eyet to the hem of her cloak. 
 
 I' -. 
 
SHREWS BURY 
 
 43 
 
 (Igetl me. 
 Do you 
 
 36 fortune 
 t she was 
 presto, as 
 and those 
 
 pas3 re- 
 she was, 
 in terms 
 
 1 admira- 
 her, she 
 
 snatched 
 me, say- 
 
 I if I liad 
 •ly for a 
 li all the 
 f me no 
 at pretty 
 d at one 
 neas the 
 emained 
 
 venture, 
 igh, and 
 t, I am 
 -turned 
 3 as you 
 to the 
 before, 
 iss," he 
 ;er free- 
 eone to 
 
 II came 
 ped his 
 
 Alas, I looked too, and the murder was out. To be 
 sure Dorinda had clothed herself very handsomely above, 
 but coming to her feet had trusted to her cloak to hide 
 the deficiency shs had no means to supply. Still, and 
 in spite of this, all might have been well if she had not 
 in her chagrin at losing, forgotten the blot, and, unused 
 to long skirts, raised them so high as to expose a foot, 
 shapely indeed, but stockingless, and shod in an old 
 broken shoe ! 
 
 Her ears and neck turned crimson at the exposure, and 
 she f'ropped her cloak as if it burned her hand. I fan- 
 cied hat if the stranger had looked to ingratiate himself 
 by his ill-mannered jest, he had gone the wrong way about 
 it, and I was not surprised when she answered in a voice 
 quivering with mortification, "Yes, on foot. But you 
 may spare your pains. I am in this gentleman's care, I 
 thank you." 
 
 '• Oh," he said, in a peculiar tone, " this gentleman ? " 
 And he looked me up and down. 
 
 I knew that it behooved me to ruffle it with him, and 
 let him know by out-staring him that at a Avord I was 
 ready to pull his nose. But I was a boy in sti'ange com- 
 pany, and utterly cast down by the loss of my guinea; 
 he a Court bully in sword and lace, bred to carry it in 
 such and worse places. Though he seemed to be no more 
 than thirty, he had a long and hard face under his peri- 
 wig, and eyes both tired and melancholy; and he spoke 
 with a drawl and a curling lip, and by the mere way he 
 looked at uie showed that he thought me no better than 
 dirt. To make a long story sliort, I had not looked at 
 him a moment before my eyes fell. 
 
 '•Oh, this gentleman?" he said again, in a tone of 
 cutting contempt. " Well, I liope that he has more 
 gnineas than one — or your ladyship will soon trudge it, 
 skin to mud. As it is, I fear that I detain you. Kindly 
 carry my compliments to Farmer Grudgen. And the pigs!" 
 
44 
 
 ^IlkEWsJUiuy 
 
 l! 
 
 ™ch temper as .,1^' j'^. 'l„T' "^uf,:;;'"'' 
 such a rase, both at the loss of my ™im, TIT A '" 
 flonted, that I could scarcely 8"™,^™ ' ^'"^ '" 
 awe of Dorinda I .nM „„<.i • *"™™ myself; yet m my 
 
 outbreak on her part th 'on*' '"'""*'"« "<' *'»"'»S ">' 
 uot easy *°?oret^ir t' wt! '=°""'"J".''"<»'» »' "'hich it ,vas 
 
 homeward and t<jok the road with„,rt a tm-d ''' ""'"^ 
 
 the risk o'Sg detected audi' 'T'"S.*° ™^ "™" 
 
 risk that came hot :i'„tT;t;h™'"f' '""-■' 
 over anri T T.o^ i • ^^^^'^ ''^^ pleasure was 
 
 theroaf'''vnn' ^"^^' ^^^^.-^^^ly-and halted abruptly in 
 tne road, you must lend me a guinea " 
 
 be. witf Httle 'd,^ltu:f"^\^1 T'""^' '' '""^ 
 just » "i^P^easure. Why, have you not 
 
 ;^' What? "she said. 
 
 " Lost my only one. " 
 
 She laughed with a recklessness that confounded me 
 Well, you have got to find another one '' sho «.?ii" 
 And one to that!" ^^ one, sJiesaid. 
 
 ^'' Another guinea ? " [ gasped. 
 
 "Yes, another guinea, and' another guinea!" she 
 
snREwsBrnv 
 
 45 
 
 "led alien 
 truth not 
 I thought 
 viug us to 
 life'ht, and 
 i was in 
 t being so 
 'et in my 
 oaring an 
 ch it M'as 
 ed there- 
 wt push- 
 , turned 
 
 under- 
 that sh( 
 ;k— that 
 ly niind 
 [ ran — a 
 iure was 
 id -room 
 3. But 
 r found 
 
 ptly in 
 
 it may 
 )u not 
 
 id me. 
 said. 
 
 ' she 
 
 answered, mimicking my tone of consternation. '*One 
 for my shoes and stocking?'. — oh, I wish he were dead!" 
 And she stamped her foot passionately. '' And one " 
 
 " Yes? " I said, with a poor attem))t at irony. '" And 
 one ? " 
 
 " For me to stake next Friday, when the Duke passes 
 this way on his road home." 
 
 "He does not!" 
 
 "He does, he does!" she retorted. "And vou will 
 do too — what I say, sir! or " 
 
 " Or what? " I cried, calling up a spirit for once. 
 
 " Or " and she raised her voice a little, and sang: 
 
 " But alas, when I wake, and no Phyllis I f,ntl, 
 How I sigh to myself all alone 1 " 
 
 " You never loved me! " I cried, in a rage at that and 
 her greed. 
 
 " L'ave it your own way!" she answered, carelessly, 
 and saig it again; and after that there Avas no more talk, 
 but we walked with all the width of the road between us; 
 I with a sore heart and she titupping along, cool and 
 happy, pleased, I think, that she had visited on me some 
 of the chagrin which the stranger had caused her, and 
 for the rest with God knows what thoughts in her heart. 
 At least I little suspected them; yet, with the little 
 knowledge I had, I was angry and pained; and for the 
 time was so far freed from illusion that I would not make 
 the overture, but hardened myself with the thought of 
 my guinea and her selfishness; and coming to the gap in 
 the first fence helped her over with a cold hand and no 
 embrace such as was usual between us at such Junctures. 
 
 In a word, we were like naughty children returning 
 after playing truant; and might have parted in that guise, 
 and this the very best thing that could have happened 
 to me — who had no guinea, and knew not where to get 
 one; though I would not go so far as to say that, in the 
 
40 
 
 snnrjwsiijiiY 
 
 mmmrn 
 
 ■n, . un „ .KlCon ,,,„od ho,, h.nck, and ho tag ,„ 'o^k 
 
 .'»che<l mo, though that w,« i,„p„««iMe B^ lit '"■ 
 ™ en„„„h. I might ,„,, ^ P ,„^ ^« ^l miZl 
 
 m what I naked; h„t on tho instant, ohlivious otZ 
 
 aliko forgotten, sprang to the fence, my blood on Are' 
 and words biibblin"- on n,v li™ i„\u ""• 
 
 shn„l,l 1,.,,.. 1 " , "■'^ P*' Another second, and I 
 Should hue bee,i at her feet, have kissed her shoes tmut 
 
 «1 colour from tho grey tasks and dull dntagerv rf 
 
 "in:;erzi.^i$j:^ 
 
 ^ff . «^«ience, it made up u pass bn, and BaRfiinn'fl 
 offspi-nig, impatience: on wliicli it « in hi ^ I 
 mistress counted, since fo L i^ol^^^ 
 
 Once however, I heard her on the other side of th^ 
 fence, singing: "^ "- ^•'^'' 
 
siih'Kwsunn' 
 
 47 
 
 luive saved 
 ;lie garden 
 id pJaiu to 
 iseu, J)or- 
 Jier oloak 
 tho most 
 '<■ and lier 
 ite of ]ier 
 oni sho^v- 
 her liair 
 fiat I saw 
 d it only 
 uld show 
 us of all 
 my loss 
 on fire," 
 :1, and J 
 s .luddy 
 with a 
 ne, fled 
 I at my 
 
 ' bed to 
 to take 
 ?ery of 
 ys, and 
 ng and 
 ve now 
 ission's 
 sed my 
 e kept 
 Jzvous, 
 howed 
 
 of tho 
 
 "But ulii>, when I wake, uud no Pliyllis I find, 
 How 1 sigh to myself all aloiu' I" 
 
 And, sick at heart. I understood the threat and her atti- 
 tude. Nevertlieless, and tliough the knowledge should 
 Imve cured me, by convincing me that she was utterly 
 unworthy and had never loved me, 1 only consumeil the 
 more for her. and grovelled the lower in spirit before her 
 and her beauty; and the devil presently putting in my 
 way the means where he had already provided the motive, 
 it was no wonder that I made but a poor resistance, and 
 in a short time fell. 
 
 It came about in this Avay. In the course of the week, 
 and before the Friday on which the Duke was to return 
 
 that way, Mr. I) announced an urgent call to London; 
 
 and as he was too wise to broach such a proposal without 
 
 a quid pro quo, Mrs. D must needs go with him. 
 
 The stage-wagon, which travelled three days in the week, 
 would serve next morning, and all was hasty prepara- 
 tion; clothes were packed and mails got out; a gossip, one 
 
 Mrs. Harris, was engaged to take Mrs. I) 's place, and 
 
 the boys were entrusted to me, with strict instructions 
 to see all lights out at night, and no waste. That these 
 injunctions might be the more deeply impressed on me, 
 
 1 was summoned to Mrs. D 's parlour to receive 
 
 them ; but unluckily with the instructions given to me 
 were mingled housekeeping directions to Mrs. Harris, 
 who was also present; the result being that when I 
 retired from the room I carried with me the knowledge 
 that in a certain desk, perfectly accessible, my employer 
 left thrae guineas, to be used in case of emergency, but 
 otherwise not to be touched. 
 
 It was an unhappy chance, explaining, as well as 
 accounting for, so much of what follows, that were I to 
 enter into long details of the catastrophe, it would be 
 useless: since the Judicious reader will have alrfiady 
 informed himself of a result that was never in doubt. 
 
48 
 
 sniiiJwsiivitY 
 
 vird'lhV^"'"' "^'* ?^ ^^V^oy.v^^ departure at once pro- 
 
 in ignorance- for n« t .of , ^ "^^^ *^^^"^ ^ ^"^"ed 
 
 a hundred ti.nes, and a hundred 7 ttat- /, ^ ' '""*• 
 
 story short-before Mr D—Tn^ h .7 *" cut a long 
 of the house- and t1,„'f '• \ ^^^'' *^'^® ^^«"^« ^"t 
 
 redeemed when shp shnniri i PJeciges, to be 
 
 pleasures of tl^gtlttrid ™ °""' """' '^'^'^ ^"^ 
 
 To tell the trath, her craving for these and ir. v. 
 
 and kindne., a:t'"ipt"h e' rllT^,!,'^' TT' 
 
 me but the hidemroL of ?l ; r'^^'P^^^^^^ 
 Accordingly wWhrpl "" ^^^ Punisliment. 
 
 the same'iJdestineV^^^^^^^^^ "^' T '"I ^^^'^^^^'^ 
 
 with JesB peril mT Z \ ^efore-but this time 
 
 would scarcely sHndrv? ^ '"'^'''^ ^"'^^^^^^ ^"^ 
 
 HFceij stand even wneu a hand gripped my 
 
HHREWSBURY 
 
 40 
 
 at once pro- 
 moving the 
 'd, held out 
 ifit I sinned 
 d inechuni- 
 ief, thief," 
 I once even 
 ted iluit I 
 cut a long 
 hours out 
 sen ted the 
 r complai- 
 es, to be 
 tasted the 
 
 md to be 
 i nothing 
 de to me, 
 er society 
 But as 
 )servience 
 'as essen- 
 le money 
 ict before 
 ishment. 
 I ejected 
 his time 
 isy-going 
 ity; and 
 )eset me 
 gave no 
 hich we 
 had my 
 it I was 
 on, and 
 ped my 
 
 shoulder. However, a rough voice exclaiming in my ear, 
 •' Softly, youngster! Who are you tluit polio in so 
 boldly? I don't know you," brought me to my senses. 
 '• I was in last weei«," I answered, gasping with eager- 
 
 UfjSS. 
 
 •'Then you Avere one too many," the doorkeeper 
 retorted, thrusting me back without mercy. "This is 
 not a tradesman's ordiiuiry. It is for your betters." 
 
 '' But I was in," I cried, desperately. '• I was in last 
 week." 
 
 " Well, you will not go in again," he answered coolly. 
 "For the lady, it is different. Pass in, miHtress," he 
 continued, withdrawing his arm that she might pass, and 
 looking at her with an impudent leer. " I can never 
 refuse a pretty face. And I will bet a guinea that there 
 is one behind that mask." 
 
 On which, to my astonishment, and while I stood agape 
 between rage and shame, my mistress, with a hurried 
 word — that might stand for a farewell, or might liave 
 been merely a request to me to wait, for I could not catch 
 it — accepted the invitation; and deserting me without the 
 least sign of remorse, passed in and disappeared. For a 
 moment I could scarcely, thus abandoned, believe my 
 senses or that she had left me; then, the iron of her 
 ingratitude entering into my soul, and a gentleman tap- 
 ping me imperatively on the shoulder and saying that I 
 blocked the way, I was fain to turn aside, and plunge into 
 the darkness, to hide the sobs I could no longer restrain. 
 
 For a time, leaning my forehead against a house in a 
 side alley, I called her all the names in the world , reflect- 
 ing bitterly at whose expense she was here, and at what a 
 price I had bought her pleasure. Nor, it may be thought, 
 was I likely to find excuses for her soon. But a lover, as 
 he can weave his unhappiness out of the airiest trifles, so 
 froiii very gossamer can he spin comfort; nor was it long 
 before I considered the necessity under which we lay to 
 4 
 
fiO 
 
 SIIltEWSIWRy 
 
 able us it was unexpected t/^''''''?^ '^ «« ^^i«agree- 
 aspect, Mked me what I ,li,, iJal pla'ce" " """ 
 
 e^eata:t«^:r:A^^^^^^^ 
 
 the most important of his n,a™8 A. I? \ '*^ ''•''''"' 
 the Wicafparty, and taCln t th mt^of tha^ 
 
 words in which to an s wet '^'"'"^' ^'"^^ ^"^ ^° 
 
 haps m7 d'"'" ^' ''^ "f ^^"^ ^"'"^y ^* that. - Per. 
 naps Mr. D may be able to answer me T «}inii I i 
 
 care to visit him to-morrow, sir, andTa" whettr ht ^ 
 a.v..o how his usher employs his nights. Good evening. " 
 
SUREWSbCRY 
 
 51 
 
 So saying, he loft me horribly Btartled, and u ])rey to 
 apprehensions, which were not lessened by tlie guilt, tluit 
 already lay on my coaseieuce in another and more serious 
 matter. For such is the common course of ill-doing; to 
 plunge a man, 1 mean, deeper and tleeper in the mire. 
 I now saw not one ridge of trouble only before me, but a 
 second and a third; and no visible way of escape from 
 the consequences of my imprudence. To add to my 
 fears, the gentleman on leaving me joined the same cor;- 
 tier who had spoken to Dorinda on the occasion of our 
 former visit, and who had just come out; so that t) v..\y 
 prepurisessed mind nothing seemed more probable 'h.ui 
 that the latter would tell him in whose company he fcj '. 
 seen me and the details of our adventure. As a fact, it 
 was from this person's clutches my master's patron was 
 here to rescue his nephew. But I did not know this; and 
 seeking in my panic to be reassured, I asked a servant 
 beside me who the stranger was. 
 
 "He?" he said. "Oh, he is a gentleman from the 
 Temple. Been playing with him?" and he looked at 
 me, askance. 
 
 "No," I said. 
 
 " Oh," he replied, " the better for you." 
 
 " But what is his name ? " I urged. 
 
 " Who does not know Mat. Smith, Esquire, of the 
 Temple, is a country booby — and that is you! " the man 
 retorted quickly; and went off laughing. Still this, 
 seeing that I did not know the name, relieved me a little; 
 and the next moment I was aware of Dorinda waiting for 
 me at the door. Deducing from the smile that played 
 on her countenance the happiest omens of sm'cess, I 
 forgot my other troubles in the relief which this prom- 
 ised; and I sprang to meet her. Guiding her as quickly 
 as I could through the crowd, I asked her the instant I 
 could find voice to speak, what luck she had had. 
 
 " What luck ? " she cried; and then pettishly, " there. 
 
89 
 
 nJtsxwssujiy 
 
 clumay. you are pulling me into that puddle. Have a 
 
 still fJ'tHI ^^ ^*™ ""' '"" '"'I ^''eWmed, standing 
 st.U ,nthe r<»d; and :t seemed to me that my heart sto^ 
 
 "Tn^.Mgro:::^.""''^™™-"'"^"^- 
 
 oarZ:i;,.''""Whrvot''al'''' ^'""^ ""'"** ■'^P"'^ 
 guiueas/baby.l'^ou?" ™' ^"'"« *" '="^ *°^ *"" 
 
 ij 
 
 , CHAPTER VI 
 
 chUd^aL^Zti *" "^ ?■* "'"' '"■^''"'8 "own like a 
 oniia, and that not bo much at the thono-hf nf ^i.^ a 
 
 perate strait to which she had brou^hrm^^th^^^^^^^^ tht 
 
 dT^rtdrbf f "". ^ock/withThe^tstt 
 the bLt and if T I , T^ "' ^"™^^ ^^ *^« ^and, at 
 vttion wh i . ""^ benefit^but at the sudden con- 
 
 viction, which came upon me, perfect and overwhelming 
 that my mis ress, for whom I had risked so much dfd 
 
 couilrjj- ^r ^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^ ^^ ^« '^^^^^ th or^; 
 
 8ocrueirt>?dSir"'^''r' ^^™P^^*^' thoughtlessnes 
 so cruel! Nor did her next words tend to heal the mis-' 
 chief, or give me comfort. 
 
 ''Oh! " she exclaimed, flouncing from me w ih imr^o 
 t.ont contempt, and walkingon thf others." oTt':S^- 
 
 to h'uml ai:"™^" ^™ ''•'™ " ■»-• " And sh'e began 
 at 'Stibility™'' '""'' ■"" --'■ " I -«' ='S-t 
 
Have a 
 
 , did you 
 
 standing 
 art stood 
 
 5 replied 
 for two 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 68 
 
 n like a 
 i-he des- 
 gh this 
 jpect of 
 and, at 
 sn eon- 
 slming, 
 3li, did 
 theory, 
 essness 
 e mis-' 
 
 impa- 
 B way, 
 m for 
 began 
 
 ighast 
 
 "Care?" she retorted indifferently, swinging her 
 visor in her hand. " For what ? " 
 
 ' ' For me ! Or for anything ! ' ' 
 
 With a coolness that appalled me, she finished the verse 
 she was humming; then, " Your finger hurts, therefore 
 you are going to die ! " she said, with a sneer. " You see 
 the fire and therefore you must be burned. Why, you 
 have the courage of a hen ! A flea ! A mouse ! You are 
 not worthy the name of a man." 
 
 " I am man enough to be hanged," I answered miser- 
 ably. 
 
 "Hanged?" quoth she, quite cheerfully. " Do you 
 think that man was ever hanged for three guineas? " 
 
 " Ay, scores," I said, " and for less! " 
 
 "Then they must have been cravens like you!" she 
 retorted, perfectly well satisfied with her answer. " And 
 spun their own ropes. Come, silly, cheer up ! A great 
 many things may happen in a week! And if that vixen 
 is back under a week, I will eat her! " 
 
 "A week won't make three guineas," I said dolefully. 
 
 " No, but a good heart will," she rejoined. " And not 
 three but thirty ! Only, ' ' she continued, looking askance 
 at me, " you have not the spirit of a man. You are Just 
 Tumbledown Dick, as they say, and as well named as 
 nine-pence! " 
 
 It seemed inconceivable to me that she could jest so 
 merrily and carry herself so gaily, after such a loss; and 
 I stopped short in sudden hope and new-born expectation; 
 and peered at her, striving to read her thoughts. " I 
 don't believe you have lost them! " I exclaimed at last. 
 
 "Every groat, Dick!" she answered, curtly— yet still 
 in the best of spirits. " Never doubt that! " 
 
 On which it was not wonderful that my disappoint- 
 ment and her eheorfuluGSs agreed so ill, that we came 
 to bitter words, and beginning by calling one another 
 "Thankless," and "Clutch-penny," rose presently to 
 
% 
 
 54 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 Fool," and "Jade"; and eventually parted on the 
 latter at the garden fence; where Dorinda, so far from 
 lingering as on the former night, flounced from me in a 
 passion, and left me without a single word of regret 
 How miserably after that I stole to bed, and how wake- 
 fully I tossed in the close garret, I cannot hope to convey 
 to my readers; suffice it that a hundred times I cursed 
 the folly that had led me to ruin, a hundred times went 
 hot and cold at thought of the dock and the gallows- 
 and yet amid all found in Dorinda's heartlessness the 
 sharpest pain. I felt sure now, and told myself con- 
 tinually, that she had never loved me; therefore— at the 
 time it seemed to follow— I deemed my own love at an 
 end and cast her off; and heaping the sharpest reproaches 
 on her head, found my one sweet consolation— whereat I 
 wept miserabl3?u-in composing a last dying speech and 
 confession that should soften at length that obdurate 
 bosom, and break that unfeeling heart. 
 
 But with the day, and the rising to imminent terrors 
 and hourly fear of detection, came first regret, then self- 
 reproach— lest I too should be somewhat in fault— then a 
 revival of passion; lastly, a frantic yearning to be recon- 
 ciled to the only person to whom I could speak freely, or 
 who knew the danger and strait in which I stood. My 
 heart melting like water at the thought, I was ready to 
 do anything or say anything, to abase myself to any depth, 
 m order to regain her favour and have her advice; and 
 
 the absence of Mr. and Mrs. D , and Mrs. Harris's 
 
 easiness rendering it a matter of no difficulty to seek her, 
 m the course of the afternoon I took my courage in mv 
 hands and went into the next house There I found only 
 Mrs. Harris. 
 
 " The little slut has stepped out," she said, looking up 
 from the pot over which she was stooping. '* She asked 
 leave for half an hour and has been gone an hour. But 
 it is the way of the wenches all the world over. Do you 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 68 
 
 rted on the 
 so far from 
 "om me in a 
 d of i-egret. 
 I how wake- 
 pe to convey 
 lies I cursed 
 times went 
 the gallows; 
 ;lessness the 
 myself con- 
 :ore — at the 
 a love at an 
 t reproaches 
 —whereat I 
 speech and 
 it obdurate 
 
 lent terrors 
 ;, then self- 
 ult— then a 
 o be recon- 
 k freely, or 
 Jtood. My 
 as ready to 
 any depth, 
 dvice; and 
 •s. Harris's 
 seek her, 
 •age in my 
 found only 
 
 looking up 
 She asked 
 3ur. But 
 . Do you 
 
 beware of them, Mr. Price," she continued, eyeing me, 
 and laughing jollily, 
 
 I made some trifling answer; and returning to my own 
 domain, with all the pangs of loneliness added to those of 
 terror, sat down in the ding}-, dreary taskroom and aban- 
 doned myself to bitter forebodings. She did not, she 
 never could have loved me! I knew it and felt it now. 
 Yet I must think of her or go mad. I must think of her 
 or of the cart and cord; and so, through the hours that 
 followed, I had only eyes for the next garden, and ears 
 for her voice. The boys and their chattering, and the 
 necessity I was under of playing my part before them, 
 well-nigh mastered me. For, at any hour, on any day, 
 
 while I sat there among them, Mr. and Mrs. D 
 
 might return, and the loss be discovered ; and yet, and 
 though time was everything, all the efforts X made to 
 see Jennie or get speech with her failed; and of myself 
 I seemed to be unable to think out any plan or way of 
 escape. 
 
 I am sure that the most ascetic, could he have weighed 
 the i rfcures of those four days during which I sat sur- 
 rounded by the boys, and now making frantic efforts to 
 appear myself, now sunk in a staring, pale-faced lethargy 
 of despair, would have deemed them a punishment more 
 than commensurate with my guilt. The unusual air of 
 
 peace and quietness with which Mrs. D 's absence 
 
 invested the school had no more power to soothe me than 
 the prodence of Mrs. Harris, nodding over her plain -stitch 
 in the next garden, availed to banish the burning gusts 
 of fear that at times parched my skin. At length, on 
 the fifth day, the immediate warning of coming judgment 
 arrived in the shape of a letter announcing that my 
 employer v/ould return (D.V.) by the night waggon, 
 which in the ordinary course was due to reach Ware 
 aDoutj SIX next liioriiiiig. 
 At that I could stand the strain no longer, but flinging 
 
S6 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 appearance and deception to the winds, I rose from the 
 class I was pretending to teach, and in a disorder I made 
 no effort to suppress, followed Mrs. Harris; who, having 
 declared the news, was already waddling back to the next 
 house. She started at sight of me in her train-as she 
 well miglit, for it was the busiest time of the day; then 
 asked if anything ailed me. 
 1^ No, " I said. '' I Avant a word with Jennie." 
 " Do you ? " quotli she, looking hard at me. "So it 
 would seem, do a good many young fellows. She is a 
 nice hand^'ul if ever there was one." 
 "Wbyr" I stammered. 
 
 <* '^x?7\ " " ^^'® ^'iswered in a tone very sharp for her. 
 Why, because— but what have you to do with Jennie 
 young man ? " ' 
 
 " Nothing, "il said. 
 
 "Then have nothing," she answered promptly, and 
 shook her sides at her sharpness. " That is no puzzle' 
 And as It IS no more than half-past ten, and I hear your 
 boys rampaging like so many wild Irishmen-suppose 
 you go back to them, young man ! " 
 
 I obeyed; but whatever effect her warning mip-ht have 
 Jiad earher-and I Pfirewdly suspect that it would have 
 affected me as much as water affects a duck's back-it 
 came too late; my one desire now being to see the girl 
 even as my one hope lay in her advice. Nine had struck 
 that evening, however, and night had fallen, and I grown 
 fairly sick with fear, before my efforts were rewarded, 
 and stealing into the garden on a last desperate search- 
 I think for the twentieth time-I camt on her standing 
 in the dusk, beside the fence where I had so often met her 
 I sprang to her side, relief at my heart, reproaches on 
 my hps; but it was only to recoil at sight of her face 
 gTown hard and old and pinched, and for the moment 
 almost ugly, "Why, child!" I cried, forgetting my 
 own trouble. "What is it?" » 6 j 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 67 
 
 e from the 
 der I made 
 'ho, having 
 to the next 
 tin — as she 
 day; then 
 
 e/ 
 
 '' So, it 
 She is a 
 
 p for her. 
 th Jennie, 
 
 fiptly, and 
 10 puzzle! 
 hear your 
 — suppose 
 
 light have 
 
 5uld have 
 
 1 back — it 
 
 J the girl, 
 
 ad struck 
 
 i I grown 
 
 •ewarded, 
 
 search — 
 
 standing 
 
 met her. 
 
 >aches on 
 
 her face, 
 
 ! moment 
 
 tting my 
 
 a sneer. 
 
 She laughed without mirth, looking at me strangely. 
 " What do you suppose? " she said huskily, and I could 
 see that fear was on her. " Do you think that you are 
 the only one in danger ? " 
 
 ''How?" I exclaimed. 
 
 "How?" she replied in a tone of mockery. "Why, 
 do you suppose that stockings and shoes are the only 
 things that cost money ? Or that vizor masks, and gloves 
 and hoods grow on bushes ? Briefly, fool, if you can give 
 me four guineas, I am saved. If not " 
 
 " My God! " I cried, horror-stricken. 
 
 "If not," she continued hardily, "you have taught 
 me to read, and that may save my neck. I suppose I 
 shall be sent to the plantations, to be beaten weekly, and 
 work in the sun, and " 
 
 " Four guineas! " I groaned. 
 
 "Yes, seven in all!" she answered with 
 " Have you got them ? " 
 
 " No, nor a groat! " I answered, overwhelmed by the 
 discovery that instead of giving help she needed it. 
 "Not a penny!" 
 
 " Then it must be got! " she answered fiercely. " It 
 must be got! " and as she repeated the words, she dropped 
 her mocking tone, and spoke with feverish energy. " It 
 must be got, Dick! " and she seized my hands and held 
 them. " It must be, and can be, if you have a spark of 
 spirit, if you are not the poor mean thing I sometimes 
 think you. Listen! Listen! In the old man's room 
 upstairs— the door is locked and double-locked, I have 
 tried it— are sixty guineas, in a bag! Sixty guineas, in a 
 drawer of the old bureau by the bed! " 
 
 "It is death," I cried feebly, recoiling i^rom her as I 
 spoke. " It is death ! I dare not ! I dare not do it ! " 
 
 "Then we hang! We hang, man!" she answered 
 fiercely. " You and I ! Will it be better to hang for a 
 Iamb than a sheep ? For seven guineas than for sixty ? " 
 
88 
 
 .HREWSBURY 
 
 "But if we take it, what shall we Ih) the better for 
 it V' I said weakly. " He returns in the morning. " 
 
 "By the morning, given the money, wo shall be a score 
 of miles away!" she answered, llmging lier arms round 
 my neck, and hanging on my breast, while her hot breath 
 fanned my cheek. No wonder I felt my I,rain reel, and 
 my will melt. "Away from here, Dick," .he repejttfd 
 softly. " A\^ay- and together! " 
 
 Yet I made an effort to withstand her. '" You forge< 
 the door," I said. "If the door is locked, and Mrs. 
 Harris sleeps rv. the next room, how can it be done? " 
 
 "Not by the door, bu: by the window," she replied. 
 " There is a ladder in the au»)d -.,irden fiv>m this; and 
 the latch of the window is ucrrk. The old fool indoors 
 sleeps like a hog. By eleven sbo 'a ill be sound. And oh 
 Dick!" my mistress cried, bre.^king down on a sudden 
 and snatching my hands to her bosom, " will you see me 
 shamed? Play the man for ten minutes only— for ten 
 mir- ates only, and by morning we shall be safe, and far 
 fronihere! And— and together, Dick! Together!" 
 
 Was it likely, I ask, was it possible that I should long 
 resist pleading such as this? That holding her in my 
 arms, in the warm summer night, with her hair on my 
 breast, while the moon sailed overhead and a cricket 
 chirped in the wall hard by— was it likely or possible, 
 I say, that I should steel my heart against her; that I 
 should turn from the cup of pleasure, who had tasted as 
 yet so few delights, and drudged and been stinted all my 
 life ? Whose appetite had known no daintier relish than 
 the dull round of dumpling and bacon, or at the best salt 
 meat and spinach; and who for sole companionship had 
 been shut in, June days and December nights alike, with 
 a band of mischievous boys, whom the ancients justly 
 called genus improhum. At any rate I did not; to my 
 shame, great or small, according as I shall be harshly or 
 charitably judged-I did not; but with a beating heart 
 
 JjL 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 69 
 
 le better for 
 rning." 
 ill be a score 
 arms round 
 r hot breath 
 lin reel, and 
 ha repeatfti 
 
 You forget 
 , and Mrs. 
 done?" 
 she replied. 
 ci this; and 
 ool indoors 
 i. And oh, 
 I a sudden 
 you see me 
 ly — for ten 
 ife, and far 
 )therl " 
 3hould long 
 her in my 
 hair on my 
 I a cricket 
 »r possible, 
 ler; that I 
 d tasted as 
 ited all my 
 relish than 
 le best salt 
 anship had 
 alike, with 
 mts justly 
 lot; to my 
 harshly or 
 ting heart 
 
 an-; clioked voicCj T gave my word and left her ; and an 
 ho;ir latei I cri|'t down the creaking stairs for the last 
 tinK', guilty am ^ihivering, a bundle in my hand, and 
 found her waitiag for me in the old place. 
 
 I confess that the flurry of my spirits in this crisis was 
 such as to disturb my judgment; and my passion for my 
 mi • tress beiup; uo longer of the higher kind, these two 
 things mny iiooounfc for the fact that I felt no wonder or 
 repul«icr) when she explained to me, coolly and in detail, 
 wl^^^e thti bureau stood, and in what part of it lay the 
 inojjoy; even adding that I had better bring away a pair 
 of silver candlesticks which I should find in another 
 place. By the time she had made these things clear to 
 me, the favourable moment was come; the lights of the 
 town had long been extinguished, and the house obscur- 
 ing the moon cast a black shadow on the garden, that 
 greatly seconded our movements. Yet for myself, and 
 though all went well with us, I trembled at the faintest 
 sound, and started if a leaf stirred; nay, to this day I 
 tvillingly believe that the smallest trifle, a light at a win- 
 dow or a distant voice, would have deterred me from the 
 adventure. But nothing occurred to hinder or alarm; 
 and the darkness cloaking us only too effectually, and 
 my accomplice directing me where to find the ladder, I 
 fetched it, and with her help thrust it over the fence and 
 climbed over after it. 
 
 This was a small thing, the worst being to come. The 
 part of the garden under the wall of the house was 
 paved; it was only with the greatest exertion therefore 
 and the utmost care that we could raise the ladder on it 
 without noise; and but for the surprising strength which 
 Jennie showed, I doubt if we should have succeeded, my 
 hands trembled so violently. In the end we raised it, 
 however; the upper part fell lightly beside the second 
 floor casement, and Jennie whispered to me to ascend. 
 
 I had gone too far now to retreat, and I obeyed, and 
 
00 
 
 SIIREWSBUBY 
 
 i 
 
 time, I elicl 4 dTdlntrtt' ™"'' '' """"O "* ^^l" " 
 I cripd ..^.,-''"'™™» Jennie's arms. "Hush'" 
 
 -fr'toSkt'LTl™'''''". "T"* "■""" hat come 
 
 work;. " Go „^c!r ? " ? P°°''^' ™'«° '» ">« 
 ".most stri.f„; re in t S Ltt ""'St """'f' 
 guineas awaiting ns up there Xf!' • " '"^'^ 
 
 yon badge, becanse ahCsil;;" '' ^'™"' """=' '"'» 
 
 hose^"Tennf.l!'"'i°T?*'"'^^" ^ "•"monstrated. "A 
 noise, .lennie^i this time of night! " 
 
 God knows! " she answered. " What is it to «s? " 
 
 taken, I was ashamed to lmng%acT wtr an^ T ""'; 
 «P, though my logs trembled under me S a iJ T> 
 mg suddenly out of the ivy gl„ed ,^ to tt T.,^ f " 
 both hands win, fl,. J"/'"™ "« to tlie ladder by 
 
 Alone, nothing ™ earth Z/r*"^ "'" °" "^ '"^^ 
 but w,'t), t1 • "f™ would have persuaded me to it- 
 
 -.dbeawat^^rxIXS--^^^^^^^^^ 
 
 \ 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 61 
 
 istinctly— the 
 e night—the 
 rently in the 
 ind at auch a 
 "Hush!" 
 is someone 
 
 h had come 
 1 a rage that 
 aven in the 
 ed fiercely, 
 3re are sixty 
 i, man, and 
 
 •ated. "A 
 
 t tons?" 
 ficend; but 
 been mis- 
 nd I went 
 ' bird dart- 
 ladder by 
 I my face. 
 I me to it; 
 the latch 
 scribed it, 
 nbed over 
 
 nstant in 
 I strongly 
 this day. 
 ■ the pen- 
 hich was 
 fro regu- 
 he house 
 ede; and 
 
 though I feared and sweated, and at the touch of a hand 
 must have screamed aloud, I went forward and groping 
 my way across the floor, found the bureau, and tried the 
 drawer. 
 
 It was locked, but crazily; and Jennie foreseeing the 
 obstacle had given me a chisel. Inserting the point, I 
 listened awhile to assure myself that all was quiet, and 
 then with the resolution of despair forced the drawer 
 open Avith a single wrench. Probably the noise was no 
 great one, but to my ears it rang through the night 
 loud as the crack of laden ice. I heard the sleeper in 
 the next room cease her snoring and turn in the becl; and 
 cowering down on the floor I gave up all for lost. But 
 in a moment she began to breatlie again, and encouraged 
 by that and the silence in the house, I drew the drawer 
 open, and feeling for the bag, discovered it, and clutch- 
 ing it firmly, turned to the window. 
 
 I found that Jennie had mounted the ladder, and was 
 looking into the room, her hands on the sill, her head 
 dark against the sky. "Have you got it?" she whis- 
 pered, thrusting in her arm and groping for me. " Then 
 give it me while you get the candlesticks. They are 
 wrapped in flannel, and are under the bed." 
 
 I gave her the bag, which chinked as it passed from 
 haiid to hand ; then I turned obediently, and groping my 
 way to the bed which stood beside the bureau, I felt 
 under it. I found nothing, but did not at once give up. 
 The candlesticks might lie on the farther side, and 
 accordingly I rose and climbed over the bed and tried 
 again, passing my hands through the flue and dust which 
 
 had gathered under Mrs. D 's best feather-bed. 
 
 How long I might have searched in the dark, and 
 vainly, I cannot say; for my efforts were brought to a 
 premature end by a dull thud that came to my ears appar- 
 ently from the next room. Certain that it coiild be caused 
 by nothing less than Mrs. Harris getfin- out of bed, I 
 
«8 StlUHWSHURV 
 
 crawled out, and ^oi to my feet ir ;t pmiic, met stood in 
 the dark quakin/? and listening;; .^o torrilied that I am 
 sure if the ,i?ood woman had . litored at tliat moment, I 
 should have fallen on my knetn before her, and confessed 
 all. Nothing followed, howevor; the houae remained 
 quiet; I heard no second sound. But my nerro". , 
 gone. I wanted nothing so much now as to be out of the 
 place; not for a thousand guineas would 1 have stayed; 
 and without giving another thought to the candlesticks,' 
 I groped my way to iiip window, and passing one log over 
 the sill, felt hurriedly J.or the ladder. 
 
 I failed to find ir, anci tried again; then neering down 
 called Jennie by name. She did not answer. A sacond 
 time I called, and felt about with my foot; still without 
 success. Then as it dawned upon me at last that the 
 ladder was really gone, and I a prisoner, I thought of 
 prudence no longer, but I culled frantically, at firi,r in a 
 whisper, and then as loudly as I dared; called and called 
 again, '' Jennie! Jennie! " And yet again, " Jennie! " 
 
 Still no answer o;une; but listening intently, in one of 
 the intervals of silence, I caught the even beat of hoofs, 
 receding along the road, and growing each moment less 
 marked. They held me; scarcely breathing, T listened 
 to them, until they died away in the distance of the 
 summer night, and only the sharp insistent chirp o the 
 cricket, singing iu the garden belo\ came .0 my Civ... 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 How long I hung at the Avindow, at one time un'^jd 
 and stricken down by th( catastrophe that had )efa n 
 me, and at another feeling frurLticaiiy for the ladder 
 which I had ov^t- and over again made sure was not there, 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 68 
 
 nd stood in 
 
 timt f am 
 
 moment, I 
 
 id confessed 
 
 2 remaiiiod 
 
 nerrc ' • , 
 
 e 'Jilt of the 
 
 lave stayed ; 
 
 mdlesticks, 
 
 )ne log over 
 
 ering down 
 A second 
 ill without 
 Bt that the 
 thouirht of 
 it fir!,^ in a 
 and called 
 'Jennie! " 
 ^ in one of 
 t of hoofs, 
 oment less 
 T listened 
 ice of the 
 irp o the 
 ny e...^^. 
 
 It un d 
 il lefa n 
 he ladder 
 not there, 
 
 "ii 
 
 '4. 
 
 I know no more than another; but oidy that after a time, 
 first 8asi)icion and then rage darted lightning-like through 
 the stupor that clouLled my mind, and I awoke to all the 
 tortures tiiat love outraged by treachery can feel; with 
 such pangs and terrors added as only a faithful beast, 
 bound and doomed and writhing under the knife of its 
 master, may be supposed to endure. 
 
 For a while, it is tiiie, imagining that Jennie, terrified 
 by someone's approach, had lowered the ladder and 
 withdrawn herself, and so would presently return to free 
 me, I ho})ed against hope. But as minutes passed, and 
 yet more minutes, laden only with the cricket's evou 
 chirp, and the creepy rustling of the wind in the poplars, 
 and still failed to bring her, the sound of retreating hoofs 
 which I had heard recurred to my mind, with dreadful 
 significance, and on the top of it a hundred suspicious 
 circur tances; among "hich, as her sudden passion when 
 I had taken fright at th^^ foot of the ladder, was not the 
 least, so her avoidance o: e during the last few days and 
 her frequent absences from the house, spoken to by Mrs. 
 Harris, had their weight. a fine, by the light of her 
 desertion after receiving t! .; plunci ", and while I sought 
 the candlesticks— which 1 had no\ nviuced myself were 
 not there — many things obscure beluie, or to which I had 
 wilfully shut my eyes — as her callousness, her greed, her 
 recklessness— stood out plainly; while these again, being 
 coolly considered, reflected so seriously on her, as to give 
 her sudden departure the worst possible appearance, 
 even in a lover's eyes. The days had been when I would 
 not have believed such a thing of her at the mouth of an 
 angol from Heaven. But much had happened since, to 
 whicli my prssion had blinded me, temporarily only; so 
 Lhat it needed but a flash of searing light to make all clear, 
 and convince me that she had not onl y left me, but left me 
 ' ipped — I who had given up all and risked all for her' 
 
 lu the first agony of pain and rage wrought by a con- 
 
04 
 
 StlRKWSBUIiY 
 
 victiou 80 liorrible, I could tliink only 0/ hor treachery 
 and my lose; and head to knees on the bare floor of the 
 room I wept as if my heart would l.mik, or choked with 
 the sobs that seemed to re.ul my br.ast. And little won- 
 der seeing that I hud given her a boy's first devotion, and 
 that of all Bins ingratitude has the sharpest tooth ! But 
 to this paroxysm, when I had nearly exhausted invHlf 
 came an end and an antidote in the shape of urgent fear- 
 which suddenly flooding my soul, roused me from my 
 apatliy of grief, and set me to pacing the room in a dread- 
 till panic, trying now the door and now the window But 
 on both my attacks were in vain, the former being locked 
 ami resisting the chisel, while the latter hung thirty feet 
 above the paved yard. 
 
 Thus caught and snared, as neatly any bird in a 
 springe I had no resource but in my wits; and for a time 
 as I had nothing of which I could form a rope, I busied 
 myself with the expedient of throwing out the feather- 
 bed and eaping upon it. But when I had dragged it to 
 the window, and came to measure the depth, I recoiled 
 as the most desperate might, from the leap; and softly 
 returning the bed to its place, I fell to biting my nails, or 
 httully roamed from place to place, according as despair 
 or some new hope possessed me. 
 
 In one or other of these moods the <hiwn found me- 
 and then in a surprisingly short time I heard tht dreaded 
 sounds of life awaken round me, and creeping to the win- 
 dow 1 closed It, and crouched down on the floor Pres- 
 ently Mrs Harris began to stir, and a boy ^valked whis- 
 tling shrilly across the adjacent yard; and then-strangest 
 of all things, and not to be invented-in the crisis of my 
 fate with the feet of those who must detect me almost 
 on the stairs, I fell asleep; and awoke only when a key 
 grated m the lock of the room, and I started up to find 
 
 Mr. U- m the doorway staring at me, and behind him 
 
 a crowd of piled-up faces. 
 
s If u f:\vs nrifv 
 
 on 
 
 lor trouchery 
 i floor of the 
 choked witli 
 d little woii- 
 levotiou, and 
 tootli ! Hat 
 iHted myisclf, 
 urgent fear; 
 le from my 
 1 in a dread- 
 iudovv. But 
 jeing locked 
 J thirty feet 
 
 ly bird in a 
 1 for a time, 
 le, I busied 
 ;he feather- 
 ragged it to 
 1 I recoiled, 
 
 and softly 
 :ny nails, or 
 
 as despair 
 
 found me; 
 ;hc dreaded 
 to the win- 
 )or. Pres- 
 ilked whis- 
 — strangest 
 risis of my 
 me almost 
 hen a key 
 up to find 
 ehind him 
 
 '' Why, Price? " hv cried, with a look of stupefagtiou, 
 aK he came slowly into the room, "• what is the meaning 
 of this?" 
 
 Then I suppose my shame and guilty wilenoe told him, 
 for witli a Hiahlen hcowI and an oatli he strode to the 
 bureau and dragged out the drawer. A glance showed 
 him that the monoy was gone, and shouting frantically to 
 those at the door to keep it — to keep it, though they were 
 half-a-dozen to one!— ho clutched me by the breast'of my 
 coat, and shook me until my teeth chattered. 
 
 " Give it up," he cried, spluttering with rage. " Give 
 it up, you beggar's brat! Or, by heaven, you shall hang 
 for it." 
 
 But as I had nothing to give up, and could not speak, 
 I burst into tears; which with the odd part I had played 
 in staying in the room to be taken, and perhaps my 
 youth and innocent air, aroused the neighbours' surprise; 
 who, crowding round, asked him solicitously what was 
 missing. lie answered after a moment's hesitation, sixty 
 guineas. One had already clapped his liands over my 
 clothes, and another had forced my mouth open; but on 
 this they desisted, ami stood, full of admiration. 
 
 " He cannot have swallowed that," said the most active, 
 gaping at me. 
 
 "No, that is certain. But what beats me," said an- 
 other, looking round, "is how he got here." 
 
 " To say nothing of why he stayed here! " replied the 
 former. 
 
 ^" I'll tell you what," quoth a third, shaking his head. 
 " There is some hocus-pocus in this. And I should not 
 wonder, neighbours, if the Catholics were at the bottom 
 of it!" 
 
 The theory appeared to commend itself to more than 
 one— for they were all of the fanatical party; but it whs 
 
 swept to the winds by the entrance of Mrs. D , who 
 
 having heard of robbery, came in like a whirlwind, her 
 
t — 
 
 60 
 
 snREWsnrRY 
 
 w 
 
 face on fire, .and made no 'iiore ado, but vuslied upon me, 
 and tore and slapped my cheeks with all her might, cry- 
 ing with each blow, " You nasty thief, will that teach you 
 better manners ? That for your roguery! and that ! Oh, 
 you jail bird, I'll teach you! " 
 
 How long she would have continued to chastise me I 
 cannot say, but her husband presently stepped in to 
 protect me, and being thoroughly winded, she let me go 
 pretty willingly. But when she learned, having hitherto 
 been under the impression that I had been seized in the 
 act with the money upon me, that the latter could not 
 be found, her face turned yellow and she sat down in a 
 chair, 
 
 " Have you searched ? " she gasped. 
 
 " Everywhere," the neighbours answered her. 
 
 " He must have thrown it through the window." 
 
 They shook their heads. 
 
 On that she Jumped up, and looked at me with a cold 
 spite in her face that made me shiver. " Then I will tell 
 you what it is," she said, " he has given it to that hussy, 
 and she has taken it! But I will have it out of him; 
 where the money is, and she is, and how he got in! Mr. 
 
 D , when you have done standing there like a gaby, 
 
 fetch your stoutest cane; and do you, my friends, lay him 
 across that bed I And if we do not cut it out of his skin, 
 his name is not Richard Price. I wish I had the wench 
 here, and I would serve her the same! " 
 
 I screamed, and fell on my knees as they laid hands 
 
 on me; but Mrs. I) was a woman without bowels, 
 
 and the men were complaisant and not unwilling to see 
 the cruel sport of the usher flogged, and the schoolmaster 
 disciplined; and it would have gone hard with me, in 
 spite of my prayers, if the constable had not arrived at 
 that moment, and requested with dignity to see his pris- 
 oner. Introduced to me, he stared; and, moved I believe 
 by an impulse of pity, said I was young to hang. 
 
 I 
 
 V. 
 
SITREWSliURY 
 
 67 
 
 led upon me, 
 f might, cry- 
 lat teach you 
 I that! Oh, 
 
 ;hastise me I 
 jpped in to 
 le let me go 
 ing hitherto 
 seized in the 
 31* could not 
 at down in a 
 
 ler. 
 xlow." 
 
 with a cold 
 en I will tell 
 ) that hussy, 
 out of him ; 
 ;ot in ! Mr. 
 like a gaby, 
 nds, lay him 
 
 of his skin, 
 i the wench 
 
 J laid hands 
 LOut bowels, 
 ailing to see 
 ichoolmaster 
 with me, in 
 it arrived at 
 see his pris- 
 red I believe 
 
 ng- 
 
 " Ay, but not too good! " Mrs. D answered shrilly, 
 
 her head trembling with passion. " He and tlie hussy, 
 that is gone, have robbed me of eighty guineas in a green 
 bag, as I am prepared to swear! '' 
 
 ''Sixty, Mrs. D ," said her husband, looking a 
 
 warning at her and then askance at 
 
 liis neighbours. 
 
 " Kot take the man, does it matter to a guinea or 
 two?" she retorted— but her sallow face flushed a little. 
 "At any rate," she continued, pressing her thin lips 
 together, and nodding her head viciously, "sixty or 
 eighty, they have taken them." 
 
 It seemed, however, that even to that one of the neigh- 
 bours had a word to say. " As to the girl, I am not so 
 
 sure, Mrs. D ," he struck in ponderously. " If she is 
 
 the wench that has been carrying on with the gentleman 
 au the 'Rose,' she has had other fish to fry. Though 
 I don't say, mind you, that she has 7iot been in this. 
 Only " 
 
 But Mrs. D could restrain herself no longer. 
 
 "Only! only! Gentlemen at the 'Rose'!" she cried. 
 " Why, man, are you mad ? What do you think has my 
 maid— though maid she is not, but a dirty drab, and 
 more is the pity I took her ouo of charity from the parish 
 — she was Kitty Higgs's base-born brat as you know — 
 what has she to do with gentlemen at the ' Rose ' ? " 
 
 "Well, that is not for me to say," the man answered 
 quietly. " Only I know that for a week or more a wench 
 has been walking with the gentleman in the roads and so 
 forth, by night as well as by day. I came on them twice 
 myself hard by here: and though she was dressed more 
 like a fine madam than a serving girl, I watched her into 
 your house. And for the rest, Mrs. Harris must know 
 more than I do." 
 
 But Mrs. Harris, when Mrs. D turned on her in a 
 
 white rage, conld only cover her head and weep in a cor- 
 ner; as much, I believe, out of sorrow for me as on her 
 
08 
 
 STIIiEWSBURY 
 
 own account. However, the fact that the good-natured 
 woman had left Jennie pretty much to her own devices 
 
 could not be gainsaid; and Mrs. J) had much to say 
 
 on it. But when she talked of sending after the baggage 
 and jailing her, ay, and the gentleman at the "Rose" 
 too, if he could not pay the money, the constable pursed 
 up his lips. 
 
 " It is to be remembered that he came with His Royal 
 Highness, our gracious Prince," he said, swelling out his 
 chest and puffing out his cheeks with importance. " And 
 though it is true he ordered his horses and went for Lon- 
 don last evening — as I know myself, having seen him 
 go, and seen him before for the matter of that at Hert- 
 ford Assizes, for he is a Counsellor— it does not follow 
 that the wench went with him. Or, if she did, Mrs. 
 D , " 
 
 " That she had anything to do with this money," the 
 neighbour who had spoken before put in. 
 
 "Precisely, Mr. Jenkins," the constable answered. 
 " You are a man of sense. For my part," he continued, 
 looking rouna a little defiantly, " I am no Whig, and I 
 am not for meddling with Court gentlemen, and least 
 of all lawyers And if you will take my advice, Mr. 
 
 D , you will be satisfied to lay this young jail-bird by 
 
 the heels; and if he does not speak before the rope is 
 round his neck, it is not likely that you will get your 
 money other ways. But, lord," the good man went on, 
 standing back from me, to view me the better, "he is 
 young to be such a villain! It is 'broke and entered,' 
 too, and so he will swing for it." And he took off his 
 hat and wiped his bald head, while he gazed at me 
 between pity and admiration. 
 
 Mrs. I) , •'vho was very far from sharing either of 
 
 these feelings, would have had me taken at once before a 
 Justice and coininitted. But the constable, partly to 
 prove his importance, and partly, I believe, to give me a 
 
 i 
 
SlIIiEWSIiURV 
 
 ood-natured 
 own devices 
 much to say 
 the baggage 
 lie ''Rose" 
 table pursed 
 
 li His Royal 
 ling out his 
 nee. " And 
 snt for Lon- 
 g seen him 
 at at Hert- 
 not follow 
 3 did, Mrs. 
 
 loney," the 
 
 ! answered, 
 s continued, 
 Vhig, and I 
 I, and least 
 idvice, Mr. 
 jail-bird by 
 the rojie is 
 11 get your 
 m went on, 
 iter, "he is 
 d entered,' 
 ;ook off his 
 ized at me 
 
 ig either of 
 ice before a 
 , partly to 
 ) give me a 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 chance of disclosing where the money lay, before it was 
 too late, would have the house and garden searched, and 
 all the boys exumiued; under the impression that I might 
 have had one of these for my accomplice. Naturally, 
 however, nothing came of this, except the discovery that 
 I had been out of nights lately; which had scarcely been 
 made when who should appear on the scene, in an unlucky 
 hour for me, but the gentleman who had identified me 
 outside the gaming room at the '"Rose." As he had 
 come for the very purpose of laying a complaint against 
 me, his story destroyed the last scrap of my credit, by 
 exhibiting me as a secret rake; and this removing all 
 doubt of my guilt, if any were still entertained even by 
 Mrs. Harris, it was determined to convey me, dinner over, 
 to Sir Baldwin AVinston's, at Abbot's Stanstead, to be 
 committed; the two Justices who resided in Ware being 
 at the moment disabled. 
 
 All this time, and while my fate was being decided, I 
 listened to one and another in a dull despair, which de- 
 prived me of the power to defend myself; aud from which 
 
 nothing less than Mrs. D 's atrocious proposal to riog 
 
 me, until I gave up the money, could draw me, and that 
 only for a moment. Conscious of my guilt, and seized in 
 the act and on the scene of my crime, I beheld only the 
 near and certain prospect of punishment; while I had not 
 the temptation to tell all, and inform against my crafty 
 accomplice, to which a knowledge of her destination must 
 have exposed me. Besides— and I think a great part of 
 my apathy wi« due to this— I still felt the stunning eflPects 
 of the blow which Jior cruel treachery had dealt me. I 
 saw her in Jier true light; and as I sat, weei)ing silently, 
 and seeming to those who watched me. little moved, I 
 was thinking at least as much of the })ast and my love, 
 and her crrft, as of the fate that lay before me. 
 
 Though this was presently brought vividly before me, 
 and of all persons by Mrs. Harris. Mrs. D of her- 
 
If 
 
 70 
 
 SURE wsB cur 
 
 self H'oukl have given me neither bit nor sup in the house- 
 
 but the constable insisting that the Kiug's prisoner must 
 
 be fed, Mrs. Harris, tearful and shaking, was allowed to 
 
 brxng me some broken victuals. These set before me, the 
 
 good soul, instead of retiring, pottered aimlessly about 
 
 the room; and by and by got behind me; on which, or 
 
 rather a moment later, I felt something cold and sharp 
 
 at the nape of my neck and started up. Bursting into 
 
 a flood of tears she plumped down on a seat, and I saw 
 
 that she had a pair of scissors and a scrap of my hair in 
 
 her hand. 
 
 •'Good Lord!" I said. 
 
 Doubtless the tone in which I spoke betrayed me, for 
 the constable's man who was in charge of me lauo-hed 
 brutally. •• (^ad, if he does not think she did it out of 
 love!" he cried, speaking to a friend who was sitting 
 with him. "When all the old dame wants is a charm 
 for the rheumatics; and she thinks the chance too good 
 to be lost." 
 
 IJen I remembered that the hair of a hanged man is 
 in that part held to be sovereign for the rheumatics: and 
 I sat down feeling cold and faint. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 L 
 
 iHAT saying, though a small thing, and a foolish one, 
 brought my state home to me; and, moreover, filled me 
 with so grisly a foreboding of the gibbet, that hence- 
 torth T gave iii} treacherous mistress no more thou«lit 
 than she deserved— whid) was little; but I became wholly 
 taken up with my own fate, and especially with the recol- 
 ection of a man, wliom I had once seen, pitched and 
 liauging m chains, at Much Hadham Crossroads. The 
 
 ■"•■^Mfci 
 
Hn 
 
 siiREWsiiunr 
 
 71 
 
 in the house; 
 >risouer iiiust 
 as allowed to 
 sfore me, the 
 ilessly about 
 311 which, or 
 3 and sharp 
 ursting into 
 lit, and I saw 
 I my hair in 
 
 lyed me, for 
 me laughed 
 did it out of 
 Avas sitting 
 ! is a charm 
 ice too good 
 
 iged 
 
 man is 
 
 natics: and 
 
 foolish one, 
 I', filled me 
 hat hence- 
 re thought 
 ime wholly 
 1 the recol- 
 itched and 
 )ads. The 
 
 1 
 
 'k. 
 I 
 
 i 
 
 horrible spectacle he had become, ten days dead, grew on 
 my mind, until 1 grovelled and sweated in a green terror, 
 and that not so much at the prospect of death — though 
 this sent me hot and cold in the same instant — as of the 
 harsh rope about my neck, and the sacking bands, and 
 the dreadful apparatus, and the grinning loathsome 
 thing 1 must become. 
 
 Near swooning at these thoughts, I sank huddled into 
 the chair; and was presently plucked up by the constable's 
 assistant, who, seeing my state, came forward, and though 
 he was nati; ally a coarse fellow, strove to hearten me, 
 saying that there was always hope until the cart moved, 
 and that many a man cast for death was drinking the 
 King's health in the Plantations. AVith an oath or two 
 and in a loud voice. 
 
 On that a last flicker of pride came to my aid, and try- 
 ing to meet his eye I muttered that it was not that; that 
 I was not afraid, and that at worst I should be burned in 
 the hand. 
 
 "To be sure!" he said nodding, and looking at me 
 curiously. " To be sure. It is well to be a scholar! " 
 
 I was athirst, however, to get some further and better 
 assurance from him; and fixing my eyes on his face, I 
 asked hoarsely, "You think that it is certain? You 
 think there is no doubt ? " 
 
 "Certain sure, my Toby!" he answered. But I saw 
 that, as he moved away, he winked to his comrade, and I 
 heard the latter ask him softly, as he took his seat again, 
 " Is 't so ? Will the lad cheat the hangman ? " 
 
 "Not he!" was the reply, uttered in a whisper — but 
 terror sharpened my ears. " TMiere was so long a list at 
 the last Assizes, and half of them lerjit, that it was given 
 out they would override it this time, and mfii;'? ''vamples. 
 And ten to one he will swiug, Ben." 
 
 " But is it the law ? " 
 
 I did not hear the answer for the drummiij iu my ears 
 
K 
 
 HHKllWNUVUi- 
 
 ami the cbcadful confusion in my brain; whicl, were such 
 thfn J T^f "''^'^f '^' constable's entrance or S unv 
 
 Sctel:d« -li^3^^^ 'S^lel: 
 
 ■nt, out ot the windows to see me go; and Mrs n 
 w.th me, my only recollection beiuR of the su ns hi^ltl ! 
 
 n, tsT' "■'' "' *^ ''''"•"■*' «»' "^ 
 
 TI,"'Kf, ^ ?',"«'- ""'" ""J- doomed self, enjoyed 
 Ihe b terness of the thought that yesterday i had been 
 
 1 don t think ye']l be welcome," the porter added 
 looking onrioiislj at me. ^ ^®'^' 
 
 ^^ -Justice's business/' the constable replied sturdily 
 J- he King must be served " ""luuy. 
 
 ■ ,=a!n 0} It, t"oijorier retorted; and went in. 
 
 MMRi 
 
 IWW 
 
;h were such 
 36 or of uuy. 
 >und myself 
 ' a pony, in 
 s. My feet 
 li some gave 
 md looking 
 mself, and 
 on to Hert- 
 led me out 
 ringing up 
 were hang- 
 
 vlrB. D 
 
 by my mis- 
 tongue, all 
 
 through a 
 er remains 
 shine that 
 t all crea- 
 enjoyed. 
 had been 
 leed great 
 'US, whose 
 Steward's 
 ' they ex- 
 after the 
 re grand 
 jluding a 
 
 r added, 
 
 sturdily. 
 
 methins- 
 
 THE CONSTABLE LED ME OUT OF THE 
 
 CROWD 
 
PT 
 
 
 
SllRKWSIiniV 
 
 75 
 
 All which I heard idly; not Kiipposing thiit it niwuit 
 to me the dilference between life and death, foi-tune and 
 misery; or tluit in the c'om])any come unexpectedly from 
 London lurked my salvation. If I dwelt on tlie news at 
 all it -was only as it might affect me by adding to the 
 shame I felt. But in this I deceived myself; for when 
 the ordeal of waiting in the servants' liall — where the 
 maids pitied me and would have fed me if I could have 
 eaten — was over, and we were ushered into the parlour in 
 wliich Sir Winston, who had newly rieen from dinner, 
 would see ns, we found only one gentleman with him. 
 
 The two stood at the farther end of a long narrow room, 
 in the bay of u largo window, that, open to the ground, 
 permitted a view of cool sward and yew hedges. That 
 they had liad comi)anions, lately withdrawn, was clear; 
 and this, not only from the length of the table, Avhich, 
 bestrewn with plates and glasses and half-empty flagons, 
 stretched up the room from us to them, but from two 
 chairs, thrown down in the hurry of rising, and six or 
 seven others thrust back, haphazard, against the panels. 
 In the side of the room were four tall straight windows 
 that allowed the sunshine to fall in regular bars on the 
 table; and these, displaying here a little pool of spilled 
 claret, and tliere a broken tobacco pipe, the ash still 
 smouldering, gave a touch of grimness to the luxurious 
 disorder. 
 
 The same incongruity was to be observed in the appear- 
 ance of the elder and stouter of the two men ; who had 
 hung his periwig on the back of a chair, and showed a 
 bald head and flushed face that agreed very ill with his 
 laced cravat and embroidered (Hjat. Standin<r with his 
 feet a])art and his arm outsti-etched, he was not immedi- 
 ately aware of our entrance; but continued to address his 
 companion in words that were coherent, yet betrayed how 
 he had been employed. 
 
 "Crop-eared knaves, my lord, half of them, and I 
 
Hi 
 
 till RE W SB U It V 
 
 one! " he cried, as we came to a halt a little within the 
 door, to awiut his pleasure — J with shaking kneos and 
 sinking heart. " And ready to become the same again if 
 the times call for it. For why ? Because it was only so 
 we could keep or get, my lord. And martyrs have been 
 few in my time, though fools plenty." 
 
 " I should be sorry to deny the last. Sir Winston," his 
 companion answered, smiling; for whom at the moment, 
 l)lind bat as I was, I had no eyes, seeing in him only a 
 noble youth, handsomely dressed and periwigged, and 
 two, or it might be three years older than myself; whereas 
 1 hung on the Justice's nod. '' But here is your case," 
 the young man continued, turning to me, and speaking 
 in a pleasant voice. 
 
 '• And a hard case one of them is," the Justice answered 
 jollily, as he turned to us, and singled out the constable. 
 '• That is you, Dyson! " he r : vlnued, " one of those of 
 whom I have been telling yo ■ . .y lord. A psalm-singer 
 
 in the troubles, sergeant ui l.o.d Grey's regiment, a 
 
 roundhead, and ran away, wit!; better men than himself, 
 
 at Cropredy Bridge. To-day he damns a Whig, and goes 
 
 to bed drunk every twenty-ninth of May." 
 
 " Having a good example, your honour! " the constable 
 
 answered grinning. 
 
 " Ay. to be sure. And why don't you follow it also ? " 
 
 Sir Winston continued, turning to the schoolmaster. 
 
 •' But crop-eared you were and crop-eared you are; one of 
 
 Shaftesbury's brisk boys, my lord ! And ought to be fined 
 
 for a ranter every Monday morning, if all had their 
 
 deserts! " 
 
 " Then I am afraid that your theory does not apply to 
 
 him. Sir Winston," the young man said with a smile. 
 
 " Here is one martyr already; and if one martyr, why not 
 
 many? " 
 
 "Martyr?" the Justice answered, with half-a-dozen 
 
 oaths. " He? No one less! He goes to church as you 
 
 
 \ ness. 
 
 ty*";!)! 
 
sirR/:\vs/{rRr 
 
 rr 
 
 within the 
 knees unci 
 ne again if 
 vas only so 
 have been 
 
 Bton," his 
 i monie.'it, 
 lini only a 
 ygecl, and 
 :; whereas 
 our case," 
 speaking 
 
 ! answered 
 constable, 
 if those of 
 ilm-singer 
 ^iment, a 
 II himself, 
 , and goes 
 
 I constable 
 
 it also?" 
 jolinaster. 
 re; one of 
 
 be fined 
 had their 
 
 t apply to 
 
 1 a smile. 
 , why not 
 
 If-a-dozen 
 eh us you 
 
 and I do, and does not smart to tlio tune of a penny ! It 
 i true he pulls a solemn face and abhors mince-pies and 
 l»ium-porridjie. But why? Because ho keeps a school, 
 and tlie rijiliteous, or what are lefl of them, who are just 
 such hypocrites as himself, resort nnto his company with 
 
 boys uiid guineas! Iicsort unto his company, eh, 1) ? " 
 
 the Justice repeated gleefully, addressing th(! schoolmas- 
 ter. " That is tlie phrase, isn't it? Oh, I have chopped 
 Scripture with old Noll in my time. And so it pa\s, do 
 you see, my lord? When it does not, he'll danin the 
 Whigs and turn Tantivy or Abhorrer, or something that 
 does. Anil so it is with all; they are loyal. A'ever were 
 Englishmen more loyal; but to what are they loyal? 
 Themselves, my lord ! " 
 
 "Yet there are A\'hig6 who do not keep schools," the 
 young lord said, after a hearty laugh. 
 
 '•Ay, my lord, and why?" Sir Winston answered, in 
 high goou humour, '' because we are all trimmers to the 
 wind, but some trim too late, and some too soon. And 
 those are your Whigs. Never you turn Wliig, my lord, 
 whatever you do, or you will die in a Dutch garret like 
 'I'ony Shiftsbury ! And if anyone could have made 
 Whiggery pay nowadays, clever Anthony ^vould have. 
 Here's his health, but I doubt he is in hell, these eight 
 months." 
 
 And Sir Winston, going to the table, filled and drank 
 off a bumper of claret. Then he filled again. ''The 
 King— God bless him— is not very well, I hear," said he, 
 winking at the young lord. '' So I will give you another 
 toast. Ilis Highness's health, and confusion to all 
 who would exclude him ! And now what is this busi- 
 ness, Dyson? Who is the lad? What has he been 
 doing?" 
 
 The constable began to explain; but before he had 
 ulLered many words, the baronet, whose last draught had 
 more than a little fuddled him, cut him short. "Oh, 
 

 
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 >^ 
 

 7^ 
 
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 ^ 
 
You are 
 
 
 niiui 
 
 >^ SUREWSmiiV 
 
 coino to me to-morrow I " Jio said. '• Or stay 
 in tlieCominisHioii for tlie county, mv lord ':"' 
 
 '■ I am, but 1 liave not acted,'' tlie 
 anK\v(>red. 
 
 " li'ot it, num, bnt yoii sliall act now ! Murf^larv is it'^ 
 Mroke and entere.l, oil ? Then that is a hang'ino"matter; 
 and a young hound shonid be blooded. 1 am off ! ^,U 
 lord will do it, Dyson. My lord will do it." ' ' "^ 
 
 With which the Justice lurched out of the window so 
 Jiuickly, not to say unsteadily, tliat he was gone before 
 Jus comi)aniou could remonstrate. The young lord, thus 
 abandoned, looked at first at a nonplus, and seemed for a 
 while more than half-inclined to follow. But changino- 
 Ins mmd, and curious, 1 am willing to believe, to hear the 
 case of a prisoner so ijiuch out of the common as T must 
 have appeared to him, he turned to us, and adopting a 
 certain stateliness, which came easilv to him, young as he 
 was, he told the constable he would hear him. 
 
 Then it was that, hanging for my life on t'he nods and 
 words of intelligence tliat from time to time fell from 
 him, and whereby he lifted the constable out of the sloucrh 
 of verbiage in which he floundered, I dared again to 
 Jiope; and noting with eyes sharpened by terror the cast 
 of ins serious handsome features, and the curves of his 
 mouth, sensitive as a woman's yet wondrously under con- 
 trol, saw a prospect of life. For a time indeed I had 
 nothing more substantial on which to build than such 
 signs, so damning seemed the tale that branded me as 
 taken in the act and on the scene of my crimes But 
 when the young peer, after eyeing me gravely and piti- 
 fuLy, asked if they had found the money on me, and the 
 constable answered, •'• No," and my lord retorted, " Then 
 where ^v;ii8 it?" and got no answer ; and again when he 
 enquired as to the lock on the door and the height of the 
 window, and who had aided me to enter, and learned that 
 a girl was suspeoted and no oi 
 
 me else— then I felt the 
 
sirRKwsnrRv 
 
 70 
 
 blood beat liotly iu my head, and u mist come before mv 
 eyes. 
 
 *' Who is his accomplice ? Pooh; theiT iinist bo one! '' 
 he said. 
 
 "The girl, may it pleasun* your lordship," the con- 
 stable answered. 
 
 ''The girl? Then why should she leave him to be 
 taken ? How did he enter ? " 
 
 " By a ladder, it is supposed, my lord." 
 
 " It is supposed ? " 
 
 " Yes, my lord." 
 
 " Sut ladder or no ladder, why did she leave him ? " 
 
 The constable scratched his head. 
 
 "Perhaps they were surprised, please your lordship," 
 he ventured at last. 
 
 " But the boy was found in the room at seven, dolt. 
 And the sun is up before four. What was he doing all 
 those hours? Surprised, pooh ! " 
 
 "W^ell, I don't know as to that, your worship," the 
 man answered sturdily; " but only that the prisoner was 
 found in the room, in which he had not ought to be, and 
 the money was gone from the room where it had oucrht 
 to be ! " '' 
 
 '•And the bureau was broken open," Mr. D cried 
 
 eagerly. " And what is more, he has never denied it, mv 
 lord! Never." 
 
 At that and at sight of the change that came over my 
 Judge's face the hope that had risen in me died sud- 
 denly; and I saw again the grim prospect of the prison 
 and the gibbet ; and to be led from one to the other, 
 dumb, one of a drove, unregarded. And, it coming upon 
 me strongly that in a moment it would be too late, I found 
 my voice and cried to him, " Oh, my lord, save me ! " I 
 cried. " Help me ! For the sake of God, help me ! " 
 
 Whether my words m.oved him or he had not yet "-iven 
 up my case, he looked at me attentively, and with a sluide 
 
 
 1 1 1 
 
 1^ 
 
80 
 
 SlIREWSIirRV 
 
 as of recollection on his fuce. Then he asked quietly 
 what I was. 
 
 ' Usiier in a school, my lord," womeone answered. 
 
 '•Poor devil!" he exclaimed. And then, to tlie 
 otiiers, "-Jlere, yon ! Withdraw a little to the passage, 
 if you please. I would speak with him alone." 
 
 The constable opened his nioutli to demur; but the 
 young gentleman would not suffer it; saying with a fine 
 air that there was no resisting, " Pooh, man, I am Lord 
 Shrewsbury. I will be responsible for him." And witli 
 that he got them out of the I'oom. 
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 I KNOW now that there never was a man in whom the 
 natural propensity to side with the weaker party was by 
 custom and exercise more highly developed than in my late 
 lord, in whose presence I then stood; who, indeed, carried 
 that virtue to such an extent that "" any fault could be 
 found with his public carriage— ',v I am very fai from 
 admitting, but only that such a coloiir might be given to 
 some parts of it by his enemies— the iinw was attributable 
 to this excess of generosity. Yet he has since told me 
 that on this occasion of our first meeting, it was neither 
 my youth nor my misery— in the main at any rate— that 
 induced, him to take so extraordinary a step as that of 
 seeing me alone; but a strange and puzzling reminiscence, 
 which my features aroused in him, and whereto liis first 
 words, when we were left together, bore witness. " Where, 
 my lad," said he, staring at me, "have I seen vou 
 before?" 
 
 As well as I could, for the dread of him in which [ 
 stood, 1 essayed to clear my brain and think; and in me 
 
 ■^■M^^ 
 
sniiicwsiiCiiY 
 
 81 
 
 also, us [ looked at him, the attempt awoke a recollection, 
 as if I had somewhere met him. But I could conceive 
 one place only where it was possible I might have seen a 
 man of his rank; and so stammered that perhaps at the 
 Rose Inn, at Ware, in the gaming- room I might have met 
 lani. 
 
 llis lip curled, *' No," he said coldly, '' I have honoured 
 the Groom-Povter at Whitehall once and again by leaving 
 my guineas with him. But at the liose Inn, at Ware — 
 never! And heavens, man," lie continued in a tone of 
 contemptuous wonder, "what brought such as you in 
 that place?" 
 
 In shame, and aware, now that it was too late, that I 
 had said the worst thing in the world to commend myself 
 to him, I stammered that I had gone thither — that I had 
 gone thither with a friend. 
 
 ■' A woman ? " he said quickly. 
 
 I allowed that it was so. 
 
 '"The same that led you into this?" he continued 
 sharply. 
 
 But to that I made no answer: whereon, with kindly 
 sternness he bade me remember where I stood, and that 
 in a few minutes . t would be too late to speak. 
 
 •' You can trust me, I suppose ? " he continued with a 
 fine scorn, '' that I shall not give evidence against you. 
 By being candid, thei'efore, you may make things bettei-, 
 but can hardly r ake them worse." 
 
 Whereon I have every reason to be thankful, nay, it 
 has been matter for a life's rejoicing that I was not proof 
 against his kindness; but without more ado, sobbing over 
 some parts of niy tale, and whispering others, I told him 
 my whole story from the first meeting with my temptress 
 — so I may truly call her — to the final moment when, the 
 money gone, and the ladder removed, I was rudely awak- 
 (nied, to find myself a pri.snner, \ told it, I have reason 
 to believe, with feeling, and in words that carried con- 
 
 m 
 
 H 
 
 ■= II 
 
 
 1. 
 
 f 
 
 
 ! 
 
 ■ 
 
 
 
 
 - 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 
 ..^ ,, 
 
 h] = 
 
 
83 
 
 siui i:\vstiruy 
 
 ! ; i 
 
 vict.on; the more as, though skilled in literary co,n- 
 pos.tjon and in writing secnndnn, artem, I i.ave li tie 
 imagumtion. At any rate, when I had done, a^d .„ ' 
 erod off re uctantly into a half coherent and ^h^ S- 
 OKs appeal lor mercy, I found my yonng jud^e ^a „. 
 Ht n.e with a heat of indignation in cheek ^nd eye S 
 strangely altered him. ^ ' 
 
 - Good G— . ! " he cried, " what a Jezebel ! " And 
 
 :;;o::;tyr ' '''' '--' '-- ^-^^-^^ '^ -^^ ^^^- ^le 
 
 True as the words were (and 1 knew that, after what I 
 
 ad told Inm, nothing else svas true of her), they forced 
 
 u groan from me. ^ iuiceci 
 
 "Poor devil " he said at that. And then again 
 
 lac ''UTS- ' V ''"'" • '' '' ■'' '^^-^ ^^^^i 
 la , he coiitinued warmly, "and 1 would like t^ see 
 
 befoie a is done ! I never heard of such u vixen ' But 
 
 ^^}^n ^did It, my fnend, and I do not see your way oui 
 
 ''Then must I hang? " I cried desperately. 
 He did not answer. 
 
 V hither he was tending, and I could have shrieked in 
 
 terror, " you can do anything." 
 "I?" he said. 
 
 ''You ! If yon would speak to the judge, mv lord. " 
 He laiig^^ied, without mirth. - Ue would whip you 
 
 ins ead of hanging you," he said contemptuously. ^ ^ 
 To the King, then. " 
 
 and hen with a kind of contemptuous suavitv, " M^ 
 
 mt;;;.;:!:. "" t^^^^-^^— ^-- "everthei;ssvou 
 
 r. T^,' ''"' ^liversions-you do not know these 
 
 thing. Bu.you may take it from me, that I am more 
 
sii m:\vs nruy 
 
 sa 
 
 Mviry coiii- 
 have little 
 Jind (jujiv- 
 lioUy pite- 
 ge grazing 
 eye, that 
 
 !" And 
 
 I whut lie 
 
 ;er what I 
 ley forced 
 
 >n again, 
 ame, iiiy 
 ie to see 
 
 II see her 
 n ! But 
 id at me, 
 
 way out 
 
 11 to Bee 
 ieked in 
 
 lord." 
 bip you 
 
 swered ; 
 ', '"My 
 
 less you 
 w these 
 lu more 
 
 than suspeeted of belonging to the party whose e.xistenec 
 Sir Baldwin denies— I mean to the Whigs; and the sus- 
 picion alone is enough to damn any request of niinc/' 
 
 On that, after staring at him a^noment, 1 did a thing 
 that surprised him; and luid he known me Letter a thin^' 
 that would have surprised him more. For the courage to 
 do It, and to show myself in colours unlike mv own, I luul 
 to thank neither desjiair nor fear, though both were pres- 
 ent; but a kin/i of rage that seized me, on liearing him 
 speak in a tone above me, and as if, having heard my 
 stoi-y, lie was satisiied with the curiosity of it, and woulil 
 dismiss the subject, and I might go to the gallows. J 
 know now that in so speaking he had not that intent, but 
 thatbrouglit up short by the certainty of my guilt, and 
 the impasse as to helping me, in which he stood, he chose 
 that mode of repressing the emotion he felt. I did not 
 understand this however: and with a bitterness born of 
 the misconception, and in a voice that sounded harsh, 
 and anyone's rather than mine, I burst into a furious 
 torrent of reproaches, asking him if it was only for this 
 he had seen me alone, and to make a tale. '' To make a 
 tale," I cried, '' and a jest ? One that with the same face 
 with which you send me out to be strangled and to rot, 
 and with the same smile, you'll tell, my lord, after supper 
 to Sir Baldwin and your like. Oh, for shame, my lord, 
 for shame! " I cried, passionately, and losing all fear ol' 
 him in my indignation. •' As you inav some dav be in 
 trouble yourself— for great heads fall as well as low ones 
 in these days, and as little pitied— if you have bowels of 
 
 compassion, my lord, and a mother to love you " 
 
 He turned on me so swiftly at that word, that my 
 an^'er quailed before his. " Silence! " he cried, fiercely. 
 
 ■' IFow dare you, such as you, mention . Hut there, 
 
 fellow — be silent ! " 
 
 I caught the ring of ])aiu as well as anger in his tone, 
 and obeyed him; though I could not discern what I had 
 
 III 
 
84 
 
 siih'fjwshriiV 
 
 ^iiu\ to touch him so 8oreIy. Ho on his side glowered at 
 n.e a iiiument; and m ^^■e stood, uhilo hope died within 
 mo, and I grow afraid of liin. again, and a sliadow fell on 
 tiie room as it inid already fallen on his face. I waited 
 tor nothing now but the word that should send me from 
 ins presence, and thought nothing so certain as that I had 
 Hung away what slender chance remained to me. It was 
 with a start that when he broke the silence I was aware 
 of a new sound in his voice. 
 
 "Listen, my lad," lie said in a constrained tone-and 
 he did not look at me. - Yon are right in one thin^ 
 It 1 meant to do nothing for you, I had no right to vour 
 conhdence. I do not know what it was in your ^face 
 induced me to see you. I wish I had not. But since I 
 have I must do what I can to save you: and there is onlv 
 one way. Mind you," ho continued in a sudden burst of 
 unger • I do not like it ! And I do it out of regard for 
 myself, not for you, my lad ! Mind vou that ' " 
 
 " Oh, my lord ! " I cried, ready tJ fall down and wor- 
 ship him. 
 
 '"Be silent," he answered, coldly, -and when my 
 back is turned go through tliat window. Do you undo/ 
 stand ? It is all I can do for you. The alley on the left 
 leads to the stables. Pass through them boldly • if vou 
 are not stopped you will in a minute be on the high road 
 Ihe turn, to the left at the cross-roads, loads to Totten- 
 ham and London. That on the right will take you to 
 Little 1 arndon and Epping. That is all I have to sav • 
 while I look for a piece of paper to sign your commit- 
 ment, you would do Avell to go. Only remember, mv 
 man, if you are retaken— do not look to me." 
 
 He suited the action to the words by turning his back 
 on mo, and beginning to search in a bureau that stood 
 beside him. Jiut so su(Ulen and so unexpected was the 
 proposal he had made, that though ho had said distinctlv 
 
 ^o. I doubt If, apart from the open window I 
 
 [ gr - -<H ,_ 
 
lowered at 
 led within 
 low fell on 
 I waited 
 :i me from 
 that I had 
 e. It was 
 was aware 
 
 tone — and 
 me thing, 
 bt to yonr 
 your face 
 it since I 
 re is only 
 1 burst of 
 ■egard for 
 
 and wor- 
 
 v^hen my 
 u under- 
 1 the left 
 ' ; if you 
 igh road. 
 ► Totten- 
 e you to 
 3 to say ; 
 commit- 
 iber, my 
 
 his back 
 lat stood 
 was tiie 
 istinotlv 
 adow, i 
 
 shonld have understood his purpose. As it was I came to 
 
 t slowiy-so slowly that he lost patience, and with 1, ' 
 
 head stdl bunod an.ong the pigoon-lndes. swore at ni!. 
 
 Are you going-"' he said. '>''->- •■ - ' 
 
 Or doyuii think (hat 
 
 WHEN MV IfAfK IS TURNKI) CO TlIROJTGir 
 
 I'lrAT wiNnnw 
 
 ilthinf ttf T ''" ^^'"^^ ^"' ^'" • ^'^ >^^" ^J""k it is 
 not 1 g that I am going to tell a lie for such as you ? 
 hitlier go or hang, my lad ! " " 
 
 J heard no more. A moment earlier nothing had been 
 
 II' 
 
 i 
 
 f : 
 
 1 
 
 , 
 
 m,M, > 
 
4 I 
 
 ii 
 
 80 
 
 SIlREWSm'RY 
 
 further from my thoii^'lits tlmii to attempt an escape, but 
 the impulse of hiH will Htoiidied my Wiivoririf,' rosolutioii. 
 and with sot teeth and a heatiiin; hoart, I stopped throu^ii 
 the window. Outside 1 turned to the left alon<r a shady 
 green alley fenced hy liedges of yew, and espNing the 
 stable-yard before me, walked bold. , across it. ]iy good 
 luck the gi-ooms and helpers were at supper and I saw only 
 one num standing at a door. JIo staivd at me. moutli'- 
 ing a straw, but said notluTig, and iu a twinkling J had 
 ])assed him, left the curtilage behind me, and had the 
 park fence and gate in si^hc. 
 
 Until ] readied this, not knowing whose eves were on 
 me, I had the presence of mind to walk; though cold 
 shivers ran down my back, and my liair crept, and everv 
 second I fancied — for I was too nervous to look back- 
 that I felt Dyson's hand on my collar. Arriving safelv 
 at the gate, however, and the road stretching before me 
 with no one in sight, I took to my heels, and ran a (juarter 
 of a mile along it ; then leaping the fence that bounded 
 it on the right, I started recklessly across counti-y, my 
 aim being to strike the Little Parndon highway, to which 
 my loi-d liad referred, at a point beyond the cross-roads, 
 and so to avoid passing the latter. 
 
 I am aware that this mode of escape, this walking 
 through a window and running off unmolested, sounds 
 bald and commonplace; and that if I could import into 
 my story some touch of romance or womanish disguise, 
 such as— to compare great things with small— marked 
 my Lord Nithsdale's escape from the Tower three years 
 ago, I should cut a better figure. Whereas in the flight 
 across the fields on a quiet afternoon, with the sun casting 
 long shadows on the meadows, and for my most instpnt 
 alarms, the suddeji whirring up before me of partridge or 
 plover, few will find anything heroic. But let them place 
 themselves for a moment in my skin, and remember that 
 as T sweated and panted and stumbled and rose again, as 
 
sHREwsnrnv 
 
 87 
 
 jsoapp. but 
 roKolution, 
 'd throufjli 
 '^ ii wliudy 
 iiniiig the 
 By good 
 T saw only 
 10. inoutli- 
 Vm'ff J liiid 
 1 had the 
 
 'S were on 
 ouf,di CM)1(1 
 and every 
 )k biick — 
 ing safely 
 before nie 
 a (juarter 
 t bounded 
 Lin try, my 
 I to wbich 
 OSS-road K, 
 
 3 walking 
 d, sounds 
 iport into 
 
 disguise, 
 — marked 
 iree years 
 the flight 
 in casting 
 st instant 
 rtridge or 
 hem place 
 nber that 
 
 again, as 
 
 I 
 
 a 
 
 1 
 
 I splasJK'd in reckless haste tl 
 
 irnii^r], sIcMighs and ditc] 
 
 and tore my way through grei.t blackthorns. 1 ha.l d..ath 
 a ways at my hools ! Let thorn remon.ber that in the long 
 shadows that crosso.l my path I saw the gallows, and again 
 the gallows, and -..h-o more the gallows; and Ih-d n^.re 
 quickly; and that it needed but the distant bark of a doir 
 or the shout of a boy scaring birds, to persuade me thai 
 the hue and cry was coming, and to iiU me with the last 
 extremity of fear. 
 
 I believe that the adventurer, and the knight of the 
 road, when it falls to their lot to be so huntecf-as mu.t 
 often happen, though more commonlv such an one is 
 taken securus ef rhrins in the arms of 'his mistress-find 
 seme mitigation of their pains in the anticipation of con- 
 fbct and in the stern joy which the resolve to sell life 
 dearly imparts to the man of action. Hut I was unarmed 
 und u-orn out with my exertions; no soldier, and with nJ 
 lieart to light. My flight therefore across the quiet fields 
 was ],ure terror, the torture of unmitigated fear. Fear 
 spurred me and whipped me ; and vet, had 1 known it I 
 tnight have spared my terror. lAn- darkness found me. 
 ^^•eak and exhausted, but still free, in the neighbourhood 
 ol Lppitig in Essex, where I passed the night in the 
 forest; and before noon next day. believing that thev 
 would watch for me on the Tottenham Road, I had found 
 courage to slink in to London by way of Ohingford. and 
 m the heart of that r; : t city, whose magnitude exceeded 
 all my expectations, luui safely and efl'ectually lost nivself 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 At this point, it becomes me to pause. I set out, the 
 reader will remember, to furnish such a narrative of the 
 
 : I M 
 
w sniiKW'siiciiv 
 
 events attenrlin^r my first meeting Nvitli mv lionoiired na- 
 tron, us taken witli a brief account of niv.self mic^hti-nahlc. 
 all to pursue with insight as well a8 advanta-c tlio details 
 of my later connection with him. And this being done 
 and bearing in mind that Sir .loim Fenwick did not sulTer 
 for his conspiracy until 1090. and that consequently a 
 period of thirteen years di-ided the former events, wliich 
 I have related, from those which follow—and which have 
 to do, as I intimated at the outset, with my lord's alleged 
 cognisance of that conspiracy— some may, and with im- 
 patience, look to me to j.roceed at once to the gist of 
 the matter. Which I propose to do ; but first to crave 
 the reader's indulgence, while in a very hasty and per- 
 functory numner I trace rny humble fortunes in the inter- 
 val; whereby time will in the end be saved. 
 
 That arriving in London, as I have related, a hWxtxxc 
 penniless and homeless, in fear of the law, I contrived to 
 keep out of the beadle's hands, and was neither w]iii)ped 
 for a vagrant at Jiridewell, nor starved outright in the 
 streets, I attribute to most singular good fortune ; wliich 
 not only rescued me {slatim) from a great and instant 
 danger that all but engulfed me, but within a few hours 
 found for me honest and constant employment, and that 
 of an uncommon kind. 
 
 It so happened that, perplexed by the clamour of the 
 great city, wherein all faces were new to me and ways 
 alike, I came to a stand about noon in the neighbourhood 
 of Newgate Market; where, confident that in the immense 
 and never-ceasing tide of life that ebbs and flows in that 
 quarter, I was safe from recognition, I ventured to sell an 
 undergarment in a small shop in an alley, and buying a 
 loaf with the price, satisfied my hunger. JJut the return 
 of strength was accompanied by no return of hope; rather 
 my prime necessity supplied, I felt the forlornness of mv 
 position more acutely. In ^vhich condition, having no 
 resource but to wander aimlessly from one street to another 
 
furiiEwsnrRr pp 
 
 while the dflyligl,t lasted-and after that no prospect at 
 all except to pasH the night in the Ban.. nmnner-I oun.o 
 presently mto I.ttlo Hritain. an.l stoppcl, .« luck woul.i 
 havo It before one of the bookshops that crowd that i)urt 
 A number of pei-sons were poring over the books, and 1 
 
 he backs of the volumes, before one of my neighbours 
 touched my elbow, and when I turned and met his ey 
 noddedtome. ''Ascholar?" he said, smiling pleasaS 
 through a pair of glasses. "Ah, how ill does the muse 
 lequite her worshippers. From the country, my friend v " 
 
 I answered that I was; and seeing him to be a man well 
 on in years, c ad in good broadcloth, and of a sober, sub- 
 Btantial aspect, I saluted him abjectly. 
 
 -A^^^^f '"'""''1 lu '^''^' '^«''"' "°^^^'"fe' cheerfully. 
 And a stranger to the town I expect '-• " 
 
 "Yes," I said. ^ ' 
 
 ''And a reader? A reader? Ah, how ill does the 
 
 ,m,se But you can read?" he ejaculated, breaking 
 
 off somewhat suddenly. ^ 
 
 I said I could, and to convince him read off the names 
 of several of the volumes before me. [ remembered after 
 wards that instead of looking at them to see if I r ad 
 aright, he kept his eyes on my face. 
 
 half « nli " ^' ee^^^'^^PPi^g ^^ ^vhen I had deciphered 
 half-a-dozen - You do your schoolmaster credit, my lad. 
 
 Such a man should not want, and yet you look frankly 
 
 my friend, are you in need of employment v 
 
 He asked the question with so much benevolence, and 
 ooked at me with so good-natured a twinkle in his eyes, 
 that my tears nearly overflowed, and I had much ado to 
 answer him. ''Yes," I said. ''And without friends 
 
 "Indeed, indeed," quoth he 
 I can. And first, you may do .... „ „., 
 ease shall not go unrequited. Come th 
 
 " Well, I must do what 
 o me a service, which in 
 
 way 
 
 M 
 
 any 
 
 III 
 
i I 
 
 90 
 
 iii 
 
 'I' ' 
 
 SffREWSBFRV 
 
 \\ ithout waiting for an answer he led me into the moutl, 
 01 a court liard by, where we were less open to observa- 
 tion ; there, pointing to a shop at a little distance from 
 that at which he had found me, he explained that he 
 wished to purchase a copy of Seidell's Baronar/e that stood 
 at the front of the stall, but that the tradesman knew 
 him and would overcharge him. -' So do you go and buy 
 It for me, my friend," he continued, chuckling over his 
 innocent subterfuge, with a simplicity that took with me 
 immensely. -It should be half-a-guinea. There is a 
 guinea -and he lugged one out. - Buy the book and 
 bring the change to me, and it shall be something in 
 your pocket. Alas, that the muse should -so ill But 
 
 e ;?' >^V' ""-^ '^'^'" ^^ continued, "and remember 
 Sekleus Baronage, half-a-guinea. And not a penny 
 more ! " , ^ -^ 
 
 Delighted with the luck which had found me such a 
 patron, and anxious to acquit myself to the best advan- 
 tage I hurried to do his bidding; first making sure that I 
 knew where to find him. The shop he had pointed out, 
 which was surmounted by the sign of a gun, and appeared 
 to enjoy no small share of public favour, Avas full of per- 
 sons reading and talking; but almost the first book on 
 which my eyes alighted was Selden's Baronage, and the 
 tradesman when I applied to him made no difficulty about 
 tlie price, saying at once that it was half-a-guinea. I 
 handed him my money, and without breaking off his talk 
 with a customer, he was counting the change, when some- 
 thing in my aspect struck him, and he looked at the 
 guinea On which he muttered an oath and thrust it 
 back into my hand. 
 " It will not do," he said angrily. " Begone ' " 
 I was quite taken aback: the more as several' persons 
 looked up from their books, and his immediate companion 
 a meagre dry-looking man in a snuff-coloured suit, fell 
 to staring at me. " What do you mean -'I stammered. 
 
srrREwsnrRv 
 
 01 
 
 a 
 
 Yon knc.v very well," the tradesman answererl me 
 roughly. " Ami had better be gone ! And more, I tell 
 you, if you want a hemp collar, my man, von are in the 
 way to get one ! " 
 " Clipped ? " quoth the dry-looking man. 
 " New clipped and bright at the edges! " the bookseller 
 answered. " Now go, my man, and be thankful I don't 
 send for a constable." 
 
 At that I shrank away, two or three of the customers 
 coming to the door to see me out, and watching which 
 way I turned. This, I suppose-though I was then, an . 
 for a little time longer in doubt about him— was the rea- 
 son why I could see nothino- of my charitable friend, when 
 I returned to the place w .-e I had left him. I looked 
 this way and that, but he was gone ; and though, not 
 knowing what else to do, and having still the guinea in 
 my possession, I lingered about the mouth of the court 
 for an hour or more, looking for him, he did not return 
 
 At the end of that time the meagre dry man whom I 
 liad seen m the shop passed with a book under his arm- 
 and seeing me, after a moment's hesitation stood and 
 spoke to me. - Well, my friend ? " said he, looking hard 
 at me. Are you waiting for the halter ? " 
 
 I told him civilly, no ; but that the gentleman who had 
 given me the guinea to change had bidden me return to 
 him there. 
 
 " And he is not here ? " he said with a sneer 
 
 "No," I said. 
 
 He stared at me, wondering at the simplicity of mv 
 answer; and then, "Well, you are either the biggest 
 fool or the L;ggest knave within the bills! " he exclaimed 
 Are you straight from Gotham ? " 
 
 " No," I told him. " From the north." And that I 
 wanted employment. 
 
 "You are like to got it— at the Plantations'" he 
 answered savagely, taking snuff. I remarked that neither 
 
 i : ! I 
 
92 
 
 SIIJiEWSBUIiY 
 
 hie hands nor his linen were of the cleanest, and that the 
 ormer were stained with ink. - What are you ? '' he con 
 tmue. presently in the same snappish, clun-lish to e 
 
 1 toJtl Jiim a schoolmaster. 
 /'Exempli grafM;^ he answered quickly, and turning 
 
 the nearest stall, he indicated the title-pLge of a book' 
 Read me that. Master Schoolmaster." ^ ^' ""^ ^ ^"^''• 
 
 nieytrlnd'"'''""'''^ ^"' *^""' "You write. Show 
 
 takVme— '^ """ Paperorink there, but that if he would 
 
 "Zr^LT' "'T ' *°"^- " ^^^^"^^' impatiently. 
 
 Show me your right nand, middle finger, and I will 
 
 find^you senbU or non scriMt. So! ^Aml you wi;" 
 
 II Yes," I said. ' 
 
 " Hard work and little pay ? " 
 
 1 said I wanted to make my living 
 
 "Ay and maybe the first time you come to me, you 
 
 g-uffly. Hm! That touches you home does if ^ 
 
 Now I was overjoyed, indeed. With such a prospect 
 of employment, it seemed to me a small thing thafl mus 
 pass the mght in the streets; but even thaVl scaped 
 For when he was about to part from me, he asked me 
 ^^.^' -one,Itoldhim,^4t^r 
 
 Brome is no fool See here, " he continued slipping his 
 pocket and looking shrewdly at me, " that guinea l\o 
 worth a groat to you; except to hang vou " 
 "J^o," I said, ruefully. 
 
 **»,, 
 
"Well, I will give you five shillings for it, as gold 
 mind you ; as gold, and not to pass. Are you content ■' ' ' 
 • It IS not mine," I said doubtfully. 
 " Take it or leave it!" he said, screwing up his eyes, 
 and so plainly pleased with the bargain he was driving 
 that I had no inkling of the kind heart that underlay 
 that crabbed manner. >' Take it or leave it, my man " 
 Thus pressed, and my mind retaining no real doubt of 
 . the knavery of the man who had entrusted the guinea to 
 me, I handed it to my new friend, and received in return a 
 crown. And this being my last disposition of money not 
 my own I think it a fit season to record that from that 
 day to this I have been enabled by God's help and man's 
 kindness to keep the eighth commandment; and earning 
 honestly what I have spent have been poor, but never a 
 beggar. 
 
 In gratitude for which, and both those good men 
 being now dead, I here conjoin the names of Mr. Timothy 
 Brome of -Fleet Street, newsmonger and author, whose 
 sJiarp tongue and morose manners cloaked a hundred 
 benefactions; and of Charles, Duke of Shrewsbury, my 
 honoured patron, who never gave but his smile doubled 
 the gift which his humanity dictated. 
 
 The reader will believe that punctually on the morrow 
 I went with joy and thankfulness to my new master, 
 whom I found up three pairs of stairs in a room barely 
 furnished but heaped in every part with piles of manu- 
 scripts and dogs-eared books, and all so covered with dust 
 that type and script were alike illegible. He wore a dingy 
 morniug-gown and had laid aside his wig; but the air of 
 importance with which he nodded to me and a sort of dig- 
 nity that clothed him as he Avalked to and fro on the ink- 
 stained floor mightily impressed me, and drove me to 
 wonder what sort of trade was carried on hero. He con- 
 tinued, for some minutes after I entered, to declaim one 
 hne sentence atter unotlier, rolling the long word, over 
 
 ; ,!, 
 
i)4 
 
 sitrtEWsuuity 
 
 his tongue with a great appearance of enjoyment: a pro- 
 cess which he only interrupted to point me' to a stool and 
 desk, and cry with averted eyes— lest he should cut the 
 thread of his thoughts — '' Write ! " 
 
 " HE WORE A DINGY MORNING-GOWN AND HAD LAID 
 ASIDE HIS WIG " 
 
 On my hesitating, '' Write ! " he repeated, in the tone 
 of one commanding a thousand troopers. And then he 
 epoke thus — and as he spoke I wrote: — 
 
 •■ This day His Gracious Majesty, whose health appears 
 
 -**-.. 
 

 silk i:\vsiiVRr 
 
 05 
 
 to be completely restored, went, accompanied by the 
 I^rench Ambassador and a brilliant conii)any, to take the 
 air m the Mall. Despatches from Holland say that 
 the Duke of Monmouth has arrived at the Hague and has 
 been well received. Letters from the West say that the 
 city of Bristol having a well-founded confidence in the 
 Royal Clemency has hastened to lay its Charter at His 
 Majesty's feet. The 30th of the month began the Sessions 
 at the Old Bailey, and held the first and second of this ; 
 where seventeen persons received sentence of death, nine 
 to be burned in the hand, seven to be transported, and 
 eleven ordered to be whipped. Yesterday, or this dav, 
 a commission was sealed appointing the Lord Chief 
 Justice Jeffreys- 
 
 55 
 
 Wm 
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 In a word, my master was a writer of Newsletters, and in 
 that capacity possessed of so excellent a style and so great 
 a coanection in the Western Counties that, as he was 
 wont to boast, there was hardly a squire or rector from 
 Bristol to Dawlish that did not owe what he knew of His 
 Majesty's gout, or Mr. Dryden's last play, to his weekly 
 epistles. The Popish Plot which had cost the lives of 
 Lord Stafford and so many of his persuasion, no less than 
 the Rye House Plot, which by placing the Whigs at the 
 mercy of the Government had at once afforded those their 
 revenge, and illnstrated the ups and downs of court life 
 had given so sharp a stimulus to the appetite for news,' 
 that of late he had found himself unable to cope with it. 
 In this unsettled condition, and meditatiuir changes which 
 should belittle Sir Roger and The London Mi 
 
 oust print from the field, he fell in with 
 
 ercury, and 
 me; and where 
 
 i I fi ' 
 
i)6 
 
 snitEwsHrky 
 
 i j 
 
 another man would have selected a bachelor wiiose cassock 
 and scarf might commend him at Wills' or Childs', his 
 eccentric kindness snatched me from the gutter, and set 
 me on a tall stool, there to write all day for the delectation 
 of country houses and mayors' parlours. 
 
 I remember that at first it seemed to me so easy a trick 
 (this noting the news of the day in plain round hand) 
 that I wondered they paid him to do it, more than an- 
 other. But besides that I then had knowledge of one 
 side of the business only, I mean the framing the news, 
 but none of the manner in which it was collected at Gar- 
 raway's and the Cockpit, the Sessions House, the Mall, 
 and the Gallery at Whitehall. I presently learned that 
 even of the share that fell to my lot I knew only as much 
 as a dog that turns the spit knows of the roasting of 
 meat. For when my employer, finding me docile and 
 industrious — as I know I was, being thankful for such a 
 haven, and crushed in spirit not only by the dangers 
 through which I had passed, but also by my mistress's 
 treachery — when I say, he left me one day to my devices, 
 merely skimming through a copy and leaving me to mul- 
 tiply it, with, for sole guide, tlie list of places to which 
 the letters were to go, as Bridgewater, Whig; Bath, 
 Tory; Bridport, Tory; Taunton, Whig; Frome, Whig; 
 Lyme, Whig, and so on, I came very far short of success. 
 True, when he returned in the evening I had my packets 
 ready and neatly prepared for the mail, which then ran 
 to the West thrice a week and left next morning ; and I 
 had good hopes that he would send them untouched. But 
 great was my dismay Avhen he fell into a rage over the first 
 he picked up, and asked me bluntly if I was quite a fool. 
 
 I stammered some answer, and asked in confusion what 
 was the matter. 
 
 "Everything," he said. "Here, let me see ! Why, 
 you dolt and dunderhead, you have sent letters in iden- 
 tical terms to Frome and Bridport." 
 
 ^^.. 
 
SIIREWSHURl" 
 
 cried. 
 
 Yes," I said faintly. 
 
 But the one is Whig and the other is Tory 
 
 I '^ 
 
 07 
 
 he 
 
 same 
 
 But the news, sir," I made bold to answer, 
 
 is the 
 
 Is it? " he cried in fine contempt. '• Why you are a 
 natural ! I thought you had learned sometliing by this 
 time. Jlere, where is the Frome letter? '" The Lon- 
 don Gazette " announces that Ills Majeatii hm been gra- 
 ciously pleased to reward my Lord Rochester s services at 
 the Treasury Board by raising him to the dignity of 
 Lord President of the Council, an elevation which renders 
 necessary his resignation of his sent at the Board.' Tut- 
 tut! That is the Court tone. Here, out with it, and 
 write: — 
 
 The Earl of Rochester's removal from the Treasury 
 Board to the Presidency of the Council, ivhich is an- 
 nounced in " The Gazette:' is very well understood. His 
 lordship made what resistance he could, but the facts were 
 plain, and the King could do no otherwise. Rumotir has 
 it that the sum lost to the country in the manner already 
 hinted exceeds fifty thousand guineas.' 
 
 "There, what comes next? ' Letters from the Con- 
 tinent have it that strong recommendations have been 
 
 made to the Court at the Hague to dismiss the D of 
 
 M . and it is confidently expected that the next packet 
 
 Pooh, out with it. 
 
 loill bring the 7iews of his departure.' 
 Write this: — 
 
 '' ' The D of M is still at the Hague, where he 
 
 IS being sumptuously entertained. Much is made of His 
 
 Majesty s anger, but the D is well supplied with 
 
 money from an unknown source, which some take to be 
 siynifica. At a ball given by their Highnesses on the 
 eleventh, he dancea an English count rij' dance with the 
 Lady Mary, wherein his grace and skill ivon all hearts.' 
 
 "That is better. And now what next? ' This day 
 
 11, 
 
 t 
 
 ■■ 
 
 :, ■ . 
 
 ^^^1 
 
 
 l^^^l 
 
 i''- 
 
 1i^ 
 
 H 
 
 ]■■ 
 
 ^^1 
 
Tr= 
 
 08 
 
 SHJiEWSBUUV 
 
 f! 
 
 an Ambassador from the King of Sinm in the. East Indies 
 waited on /lis Majesty toith great rnarks of respect ' 
 I inph! Well leave it, but add, ' Ah, si sic propius.' 
 
 "And then, ^ There are rnmonrs that /lis Majestn 
 ■intends to rail a parliament shortly, in lohich plan 'he is 
 liindered only by tJie state of his gotit.' 
 
 •• Out with that mid write this:—- In tlie city is much 
 murmuring tliat a parliament is not called. Though 
 His Majesty has not played lately at tennis, he showed 
 tnmself yesterday in Hyde Park, so that some who main- 
 tain his health to be the cause deserve no weight In his 
 company were /lis Highness the Duke of York and the 
 Irench Ambassador.' 
 
 "There, you fool," my master continued, flinging two- 
 tiards of the packets back to me. " You will have to 
 amend these, and another time you will know better " 
 
 Which showed me that I had still something to leai-n; 
 and that as there are tricks in all trades, so Mr. Timothy 
 Brome, the writer, did not enjoy without reason the repu- 
 tation of the most popular newsvendor in London. But 
 as I addressed myself to the business with zeal, I presently 
 began to acquire a mastery over his methods; and my 
 knowledge of public affairs growing with each day's Avork 
 as in such an employment it could not fail to grow I was 
 able before very long to take the composition of the let- 
 ters in a great measure off his hands; leaving him free to 
 walk Change Alley and the coffee-houses, where his snuff- 
 coloured suit and snai)pi8h wit were as well known as his 
 secret charity was little suspected. 
 
 In priA^ate indeed, he was of so honest a disposition, 
 his faults of temper notwithstanding, as to cause me at 
 hrst some surprise ; since I fancied an incompatibility 
 between this and the laxity of his public views; which he 
 carried so far that he was not only a political skeptic him- 
 self, bu held all others to be the same; maintaining that 
 the best public men were only of this or that colour 
 
siiiiKwsiniiv 
 
 oe 
 
 because it snitod their pockets or jiml)itions, and that of 
 all, lie respected most Lord Halifiix and his i)arty, who 
 at least trinnned openly, and never cried loudly for^either 
 extreme. 
 
 P.iit as liis actions in otlier matters bettered his profes- 
 sions, so I presently found that in this too he belied 
 himself; which was made clear when ho came to the test 
 For the death of King Charles the Second occurring soon 
 after I came to serve him— so soon that I still winced 
 when my former life was probed, and hated a woman and 
 trembled at sight of a constable, and wondered if this 
 were really /, who went to and fro daily from my garret 
 in Bride Lane to St. Dunstan's— the death, I say, of the 
 King occurring just at that time, we were speedily over- 
 whelmed by a rush of events so momentous and following 
 so quickly one on another that they threw the old see-saw 
 of Court and Country off its balance; and upset with it the 
 minds of many who had hitherto clung firmly to a party 
 For the King had been scarcely laid very quietly— some 
 thought, meanly— in his grave and the Duke of York 
 been proclaimed by the title of James the Second, when 
 those who had fled the country in the last reign, either 
 after the Rye House Plot, or later with Monmouth 
 returned and kindled two great insurrections, that of the 
 Marquess of Argyle in the north, and that of the Duke 
 of Monmouth in the west. Occurring almost simultane- 
 ously, it was wonderful to see how, in spite of the cry of 
 a Popish King, and the Protestant religion in danger, 
 which the rebels everywhere raised, these outbreaks rallied 
 all prudent folk to the King; whose popularity never 
 before or afterwards, stood so high as on the day of the 
 battle of Sedgmoor. 
 
 And doubtless he might have retained the confidence and 
 affection of his people, and by these means attained to the 
 utmost of his legitimate wishes— I mean the relief of the 
 papists from penal clauses if not from civil disabilities— 
 
 I 
 
 / r I 
 
luu 
 
 SHItEWSIiCHY 
 
 had he gone about it diKcreetly, and with the moderation 
 which 80 delicate a matter required. Jiut in tlie outset 
 the severity with wliicli the western rebels were punished, 
 botli bythe military after tiie rout and by the Lord Cliief 
 Justice at the Assizes wliich followed, gave check to his 
 popularity; and thenceforth for three years all went one 
 way. The Test Acts, abrogated at the lirst in a case here 
 and there (yet ominously in such, in particular, as 
 favoured the admission of jmpists to the ai-mv). were ])res- 
 ently nnllilied, with other acts of a like character, by a 
 general declaration of indulgence; and that, to the dis- 
 gust of the clergy, to be read in the churches. To this 
 main assault on the passive obedience which the Church 
 had so often preached, and to which it still fondly clnno-, 
 were added innumeralile meaner attacks perhaps more 
 humiliating; as the expulsion of the Protestant Fellows 
 from Magdalene College, the conversion of University 
 College into a Romish Seminary, and the dismissal of my 
 Lords Rochester and Clarendon, the King's brothers-in- 
 law, from all their places because— as was everywhere 
 rumoured— they would not resign the creed in which 
 they had been born. 
 
 It were long to recount all the other errors into which 
 the King fell; but I may lay stress on the dissolution of 
 a most loyal Parliament, because it would not legalise 
 his measures; on the open and shameless attempt to pack 
 Its successor, on the corruption of the Judges, and on the 
 trial of the seven bishops for sedition. It were shorter 
 ana equally to the point to say that an administration 
 conducted for three years on these lines, sufficed not only 
 to sap the patient loyalty of the nation, but to rouse from 
 Its rest the political conscience of my employer Mr 
 Brome, after much muttering and many snappish correc- 
 tions and alterations, all tending (as I soon perceived) to 
 Whiggery, resigned, on the day the Fellows of Magdalene 
 were expelled, his time-honoured system of duplicity; and 
 
 *--. 
 
SllliKWSHriiY 
 
 101 
 
 ^ 
 
 thencoforward, until tho end, iHHUod the sjinie letter to 
 Tory Hqiiire and Wliijf borou<rli alike. 
 
 What was more reniarkahle, and, had the Kin^^ known, 
 it might have served his obstinate Majesty for a warning, 
 we lost no patrons by the step; l)nt i-'ather increased our 
 rejKlers; the whole nation by this time being of (jne mind. 
 When the end canie therefore, and in answer to the 
 famous Invitation signed by the Seven, the Deliverer, as 
 the Whig party still love to call him, lauded at Torbay, 
 and witli scarcely a blow, and no life lost, entered Lon- 
 don, there were few among those who ruffled it in his 
 train, as he rode to 8t. James's, who had done as much 
 to bring him to his thi-one as my master; though he, good 
 honest man, wore neither spurs nor sword, and stood 
 humbly a-foot in tho mouth of an alley to see the show 
 go by. 
 
 '■ i ■ 
 
 CHAPTEK XII 
 
 I SUPPOSE that there never was an abrupt change in the 
 government of a nation more quietly, successfully, and 
 bloodlessly carried through than our great Revolution. 
 But it is the way of the peiidulum to swing back; and it 
 was not long before those who had been most deeply con- 
 cerned in the event began to reflect and compare, nor, 
 as they had before them the example of the Civil War 
 and tlie subsequent restoration besides, and were persons 
 bred for tiie most part in an atmosphere of Divine Right 
 and passive obedience (whether they had imbibed those 
 doctrines or not), was it wonderful if a proportion of them 
 began to repent at leisure what they had done in haste. 
 The late King's harsh and implacable temper, and the 
 severity with which he had suppressed one rising, were 
 not calculated to reassure men when they began to doubt. 
 
 
 A 
 
smiKwsnuuY 
 
 
 W J 
 
 I he posmbility of hin return hnn^r like a thick oIoikI over 
 the moro tii.ud ; while the favou.-H which tiie new Kincr 
 showered on his Dut.Oimen, the .leg.mlutioii of the (,oin 
 and of trade, .i/id tiie inatiy disasters that atten(h>d tho 
 first yc^ars of the new f^over.inient were sufliciont to shako 
 the coMlidenoe and ciiiil the Iioarts even of the Htoutest 
 and most ])atriot;c. 
 
 So bad was the aspect of thinrrg that it was rumoured 
 that King Wdham would abdicate; and this aggravating 
 the general uncertainty, nuuiy in high plm^es spent their 
 days in a dreadful looking forward to judgment ; nor 
 ever, I believe, slept without dreaming of Tower Hill the 
 axe, and the sawdust. The result that was natural' fol- 
 lowed. While many hastened to nmke a secret peace with 
 St. (rennain 8, others, either as a jnatter of conscience or 
 because they felt that they had offended too deeply 
 renuuned constant; but perceiving treachery in the air 
 and l,eir.g in daily fear of invasion, breathed nothing but 
 tlireats and slaughter against the seceders. This beaot a 
 period of plots andcounter-j.lots, of perjury aiid intrFgue, 
 of denunciations and accusations real and feigned such 
 as I believe no otlier country has ever known; the' Jaco- 
 bites considering a restoration certain, and the time onlv 
 doubtful ; while the Whigs in their hearts were inclined 
 to agree with them and feared the worst. 
 
 During seven such years I lived and worked with Mr 
 Brome; who, partly, I think, because he had come late to 
 ins i)olitical bearings, and partly because the Tories and 
 Jacobites had a newswriterin the m -,ri,;us Mr Dyer— to 
 whose letters Mr. Dryden, it was smu -v.rld somef -n-^ 
 contribute-remaiued steadfast 'n his V ',jg opinions- 
 and did no little in the country parts to lessen the sti^ 
 ^^'lllch the Nonjurors' complaints created. I saw much 
 of him and little of others ; and being honestly busy and 
 honourably employed-not that my stvle made any noise 
 m the conee-houses, which was scarcely to be expected 
 
sirh'Hwsnrnv 
 
 103 
 
 sinno it passiMl for Mr. Hn.mo'K— I begun t(» r^jyard my 
 life lu'foro I ciuno U) London i.s an ii<,dj droum. Vot it 
 liJid loft iMo witli two i)ro(divitieH wliicli uro not oomnion 
 at the ago which I hud then michcd ; the one h love of 
 solitude and a retired life, which, a matter of necoH8it\ at 
 first, grow by-and-by into a habit; tlu* other an averKenusa 
 for women that amonnted almost to a fear of them. Mr. 
 Brome, who was a eon firmed baehelor,did nothing to alter 
 my views on either jwint. or to reconeilo me to the world ; 
 and as my life was i)aHsed between myattie in Mride Lane 
 and his apartment in Fleet Street, where he liad a toler- 
 able library, few were better aeqnainted with publie affaii's 
 or had less experience of private, than I ; or knew more 
 intimately the order of the signs and the aspect .,f the 
 houses between the Fleet Prison and 8t. Dunsran's 
 Church. 
 
 Partly out of fear, and partly out of a desire to be d. iie 
 
 with my former life. T made myself known to no one in 
 
 Hertfordshire; but, some five yeai-s after my arrival , ii 
 
 London, having a sudden craving to see my mother. I 
 
 walked down one Hiinday to Epping. There makim^ 
 
 cautions enquiries of the Bishop Stortford carrier, I heard 
 
 of her death, and on the return journey burst once into a 
 
 great fit of weeping at the thought of some kind word or 
 
 other she had spoken to me on a remembered occasion. 
 
 But with this tribute to nature I dismissed my famUy, 
 
 and even that good friend from my mind ; going back to 
 
 my lod-ing with a contentment which this glimpse of my 
 
 former life wondrously augmented. 
 
 Of .Mr. D or of the wicked woman who had deceived 
 
 me I was not likely to hear ; but there was one, and he 
 the only stranger who mife Londiniiim had shown me 
 kindness, whose name my pen was frequentlv called on to 
 transcribe, and whose fame was even in those days in all 
 men's moutiss. With a thrill of pleasure 1 heard that 
 my Lord Shrewsbury had been one of the seven who 
 
104 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 Signed the famous invitation : then that the King had 
 named him one of the two Secretaries of State; and again 
 after two years, during which his doings filled more and 
 more of the public ear— so that he stood for the govern- 
 ment— that he had suddenly and mysteriously resigned 
 all his offices and retired into the country. Later still, in 
 the same year, in the sad days which followed the defeat 
 of Beacliy Head, when a French fleet sailed the Channel, 
 and in the King's absence, the most confident quailed, I 
 heard that he had ridden post to Kensington to place his 
 sword and purse at the Queen's feet; and, later still, 1694, 
 when three years of silence had obscured his memory, I 
 heard with pleasure, and the world with surprise, that he 
 had accepted his old office, and stood higher than ever in 
 the King's favoui^. 
 
 The next year Queen Mary died. This, as it left only 
 the King's life between the Jacobites and a Restoration, 
 increased as well their activity as the precautions of the 
 government ; whose most difficult task lay in sifting the 
 wheat from the chaff and discerning between the fictions 
 of a crowd of false witnesses (who tlironged the Secre- 
 tary's office and lived by this new trade) and the genuine 
 disclosures of their own spies and informers. In the pre- 
 carious position in wliich the government stood, ministers 
 dared neglect nothing, nor even stand on scruples. In 
 moments of alarm, therefore, it was no uncommon thing 
 to close the gates and prosecute a house to house search 
 for Jacobites ; the most notorious being seized and the 
 addresses of the less dangerous taken"; One of these 
 searches which surprised the city in the month of Decern- 
 ber, '95, had for me results so important that I may 
 make it the beginning of a consecutive narrative. 
 
 I happened to be sitting in my attic that evening over 
 a httle coal fire, putting into slu.pe some Whig reflections 
 on the Coinage Bill ; our newsletter tending more and 
 more to take the form of a pamphlet. A frugal supper. 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 105 
 
 long postponed, stood at my elbo\v, and the first I knew 
 of tlie searcli that «'as afoot, a man without warnino- 
 opened my door, wliieh was on tiie latcli, and thrust in 
 his head. 
 
 Naturally I rose in alarm; and we stared at one another 
 by the light of my one candle. Only the intruder's head 
 and shoulders were in the room, but I could see that he 
 wore bands and a cassock, and a great bird's nest wig 
 ^^iich overhung a beak-like nose and bright eyes. 
 
 "Sir," said he after a moment's pause, during which 
 the eyes leaving me glittered to every part of the room 
 " I see you are alone, and have a very handy curtain 
 there." 
 
 I gasped, but to so strange an exordium had nothing to 
 say. Tlie stranger nodded at that as if satisfied, and slowly 
 edging his body into the room, disclosed to my sight the 
 tallest and most uncouth figure imaginable. A long face 
 ending in a tapering chin added much to the grotesque 
 ugliness of his aspect; in spite of which his features wore 
 a smirk of importance, and though he breathed quickly 
 like a man pressed and in haste, it was impossible not to 
 see that he was master of himself. 
 
 And of me; for when I went to ask his meaning he 
 shot out his great under-lip at me, and showed me the 
 long barrel of a horse pistol that he carried under his cas- 
 sock. I recoiled. 
 
 "Good sir," he said, with an ugly grin, " 'tis an argu- 
 ment 1 thought would have weight with you. To be 
 short I liave to ask your hospitality. There is a search 
 tor Jacobites ; at any moment the messengers may be 
 here. I live opi)osite to you and am a Nonjuring clergy- 
 man liable to suspicion; you aro a friend to'j\[r. Timotliy 
 Brome, who is known to stand well with the government 
 I propose therefore to hide beliind the curtain of vour 
 bed. Your room will not be searched, nor shall I be 
 found if you play your part. If you fail to i)lay it— then 
 
 Klli 
 
 I 
 
 i. i \\ 
 
 f 
 
^Tt= 
 
 rr 
 
 106 
 
 SUREWSBURY 
 
 I shall be taken; but you, my clear friend, Avill not see 
 it." 
 
 Me said the last words with another of his hideous grins, 
 and tapped the })arrel of his pistol with so mucli meaning 
 tliat I felt the blood leave my cheeks. He took this for a 
 proof of his prowess; and nodding, as well content, he 
 stood a moment in the middle of the floor, and listened 
 with the tail of liis eye on me. 
 
 He liad no reason to watch me, however, for I was 
 unarmed and cowed ; nor had we stood many seconds 
 before a noise of voices and weapons with the trampling 
 of feet broke out on the stairs, and at once confirmed his 
 story and proved the urgency of his need. Apparently 
 he was aware of the course things would take and mat 
 tlie constables and messengers would first search the lov er 
 floors; for instead of betaking himself forthwith tg his 
 place of hiding— as seemed natural— he looked cunningly 
 round the chamber, and bade me sit down to my papers. 
 " Do you say at once that you are Mr. Brome's writer," 
 he continued with an oatli, " and mark me well, my man. 
 Betray me by a word or sign, and I strew your brains on 
 tlie floor! " 
 
 After that threat, and though he went then, and hid 
 iiis hateful face— which already filled me witli fear and 
 repugnance beyond words— behind the curtain, where 
 between bed and wall, there was a slender space, I liad 
 much ado to keep my seat and my self-control. In the 
 sili'nce which filled the room I could hear Jiis breathing ; 
 and I felt sure that the searchers must hear it also when 
 they entered. Assured that the Sancrofts and Kens, and 
 the honest but misguided folk who followed them, did 
 not carry pistols, I gave no credit to his statement that he 
 was a Nonjuring parson; but deemed him some desperate 
 higliwayman or plotter, whose presence in my room, 
 should he be discovered and should 1 1>y good luck escape 
 his malice, would land me at the best in Bridewell or the 
 
SITHEWSJUrUY 
 
 107 
 
 Marshalsea. By-and-by the candle-wick ^rew lonff and 
 terrified at the prospect of being left in the dark with him 
 I went to snnff it. With a savage word he whispered me 
 to et It be; after which I had no choice but to sit in fear 
 and semi-darkness, listening to the banging of doors below, 
 and the alternate rising and falling of voices, as the search 
 party entered or issned from the successive rooms 
 
 In my chamber with its four whitewashed walls and 
 tQ\x sticks of furniture there was only one place where a 
 man could stand and be unseen; and that was behind the 
 curtain. There, I thought, the most heedless mesRenger 
 must search; and as I listened to the steps ascending the 
 last flight I was in an agony. I foresaw the moment 
 when the constable would carelessly and perfunctorilv 
 draw the curtain-and then the flash, the report, the cry 
 the mad struggle up and down the room, which would 
 lollow. 
 
 So strong was this impression, that though I had been 
 waiting minutes wlien the summons came and a hand 
 struck my door, I could not at once find voice to s . ak 
 Ihe latch was up, and the door half open when I r ied 
 iiUter ! " and rose. 
 
 In the doorway appeared three or four faces, a couple 
 
 of lanthorns, held high, and a gleam of pike-heads. 
 
 Kichard Price, servant to Mr. Brome, the newswriter " 
 
 cried one of the visitors, reading in a sonorous voice from 
 
 a paper. 
 
 "Well affected," answered a second— evidentlv the 
 person in command. " Brome is a good man. I know 
 him. JSTo one hidden here ? " 
 
 "No," I said, with a loudness and boldness tliat sur- 
 prised me. 
 
 " No lodger, my man ? " 
 
 "None!" 
 
 "Right !" ho answered. 
 
 King William ! " 
 
 " Good-night, and God save 
 
 ■I 
 
 ? r' 
 
 I » 
 
I' I 
 
 t hi 
 
 
 108 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 "Amen!" quoth I; and then, and not before, my 
 knees began to ehake. 
 
 However, it no longer mattered, for before I could be- 
 lieve tliat the danger was over they were gone and had 
 closed the door; and I caught a sniggering laugh behind 
 the curtain. Still tliey had gone no farther than the 
 stairs ; I heai'd them knock on the opposite door and 
 troop in there, and I caught the tones of a woman's voice, 
 young and fresh, answering them. But in a minute they 
 came out again, apparently satisfied, and crowded down 
 stairs; whereon the man behind the curtain laughed again, 
 and swaggering out, Bobadil-like, shook his fist with furi- 
 ous gestures after them. 
 
 " Damn your King William, and you too! " he cried in 
 ferocious triumph. " One of these days God will squeeze 
 him like the rotten orange he is ; and if God will not, I 
 will ! I, Robert Ferguson ! Trot, for the set of pudding- 
 headed blind-eyed moles that you are ! Call yourselves 
 constables ! Bah ! But as for you, my friend," he con- 
 tinu J \, turning to me and throwing his pistol with a crash 
 on t!)j table, "you have more spunk than I thought you 
 had, and spoke up like a gentleman of mettle. There is 
 my hand on it ! " 
 
 My throat was so dry that I could not speak, but I gave 
 him my hand. 
 
 He gripped it and threw it from him with a boastful 
 gesture, and stalking to the farther side of the room and 
 back again, "There!" cried he. "Now you can say 
 that you have touched hands with Ferguson, the famous 
 Ferguson, the Ferguson on whose head a thousand guineas 
 have been set ! Ferguson the Kingmaker, who defied 
 three Kings and made three Kings and will yet make a 
 fourth ! Fire and fuiies, do a set of boozing tipstaves 
 think to take the man who outwitted Jeffreys and slipped 
 through Kirke'.s lambs?" 
 
 Hearing who he was. I stared at him in astonishment ; 
 
n iirhn 
 
 r 
 
 I ■ 1 ■ ■ _ , 
 
 i^::- ' I: 
 
 1^'^^^ 
 
 1 \ 
 
 " DAMN YOUR KING WILLIAM, AND YOU TOO 1 " HE CRIED 
 
 I i 
 
|[ ■■ ■ i 
 
 li 
 
SIIUEWsmriiY 
 
 111 
 
 but in astonishment largely leavened with fear and 
 hatred ; for I knew the reputation he enjoyed, and both 
 what he had done, and of what he was suspected. That 
 
 iTfp «n? r ^'?T"^^"*"^"^^ he had borne a charmed 
 life, and where Sidney and Ilussell, Arffvie and Mon 
 
 mouth Rumbold and Ayloffe had suif^-ed ^CtlZ, 
 he had escaped scot free was one thing and certain ; bu 
 that men accounted for this in strange ways was an;ther 
 carcely less assured. While his friends maintained thai 
 he owed his immunity to a singular skill in disguise, his 
 enemies, and men who were only so far his enemies a 
 they were the enemies of all that was most base in human 
 nature, asserted that this had little to do with it, but w n^ 
 so far as to say hat in all his plots, with Russel and with 
 Monmouth, with Argyle and with Ayloffe, he had played 
 booty, and played the traitor : and tempting men, and 
 inviting men to the gibbet, had taken good care to !o 
 one step farther-and by betraying them to secure h's 
 own neck from peril I 
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 if llZr' *^' ?f ^ '"'' ^'^'''' ™^ 5 on whose face, as 
 If heavenpurposed to warn his fellows against him, malig- 
 nant passion and an insane vanity were so plainly stamped 
 
 1 i i?'"'' ^^'""^ *° b^' ^^^^li^y- His shambling gait 
 seemed a fitting conveyance for a gaunt, stooping fig! re 
 
 awkward and uncouth that when he gave wav to ges 
 ticulation ,t seemed to be moved by wir^ ; yet,-'once he 
 
 ooked askance at you, face and figure were' forgotten in 
 
 It v£T "\^' ''1 '^^'' *^'^^^^«^«"« -d ---el, leered 
 at you from the penthouse of his huge, ill-fitting ;vig 
 
112 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 Nevertheless, I confess tliafc. while I hated nnd loathed 
 the man, he cowed me. His latest escape had intoxicated 
 him. and astride on my table, or stalking the floor, he gave 
 way to his vanity. Pouring ont a Hood of ril)a]d threats 
 iind imaginings, he now hinted at the fate which had 
 never failed to befall those who thwarted him ; now he 
 boasted of his cunning and his hundred intrigues, and 
 now he touched, not obscurely, on some great design soon 
 to be executed. His audacitv. no less than his frankness, 
 bewildered me ; for if he did not tell me all, he told 
 enough, were it true, to hang a man. Yet I soon found 
 that he had method in his madness; for while I listened 
 with a siuimefaced air, hating him and meditating in- 
 forming against him the moment I was freed from his 
 presence, he ttirned on me with a hideous grin, and 
 thrusting the muzzle of his pistol against my temple, 
 swore with endless curses to slay me if I betrayed him. 
 
 '• You will go to Brome to-morrow, as usual," he said. 
 " The Whiggish old dotard, I could pluck out his in- 
 wards ! And you will say not one word of Mr. Ferguson ! 
 For, mark me, sirrah Diclc, alone or in company I shall 
 be at your elbow, nor will all Cutts's guards avail to save 
 
 you ! Do you mark me ? Then d you, down on 
 
 your knees ! Down on your knees, you white-livered 
 dog, and swear by the Gospels you will tell no living soul 
 by tongue or pen that you have seen me." 
 
 He pressed the cold steel muzzle to my temple and I 
 knelt and swore. When it was done, he roared and jeered 
 at me. " You see, I have my oath ! " he cried, " as well 
 as Little Hooknose ! And no non-jurors ! Now say 
 ' Down with King William ! '" 
 
 I said it. 
 
 " Louder ! Louder ! " he cried. 
 
 I could only comply. 
 
 " Now, write it ! Write it ! " he continued, thrusting a 
 piece of paper under my nose, and slapping his huge hand 
 
$^ 
 
 ( ' i 
 
 If ■ i 
 
 HE PRESSED THE RING OF COLD STEEL 
 
 
 1 » 
 
 ! 
 
 1 1. 
 
ill 
 
i^iiitEWsJuriiV 
 
 115 
 
 upon It. "I'll have it in bhiok mid Avhite ! Or write 
 thiH-hu! Im! tlmt will be hotter. Are you ready? Write 
 I^hereby abjure my allegiance to Prince William.' " ' 
 " No," I aaid faintly, laying down the pen which I had 
 taken up at his bidding. " I will not write it " 
 ^^ '' Yoix will write it ! " he answered in a terrible tone. 
 ^ And within a very few seconds. Write it at once, sirrah ' 
 1 hereby abjure my allegiance to Prince William • ' " 
 I wrote it with a shaking hand, after a glance 'at the 
 pistol muzzle. 
 
 "And swear that I regard King James as mv lawful 
 sovereign. And I undertake to obey the rules of "the St 
 Germain's Club, and to forward its interests. Good ' 
 -Now sign it." 
 I did so. 
 
 "Date it '^ cried the tyrant; and when I liad done so 
 he snatched the paper from me and flourished it in tlie 
 air. " I'here is my passport ! " quoth he, with an exul- 
 tant laugh. " When I am taken that will be taken, and 
 when that is taken the worse for Mr. Kicliard Price if he 
 ^ taken. He will taste of the hangman's lash. So ' 
 You are a clever fellow, Richard Price, but Robert Fer- 
 guson 18 your master, as he has been better men's ' " 
 
 The man was so much in love with cruelty, that even 
 when he had gained his point he could not bear to give up ' 
 the pleasure of torturing me; and for half an hour he con- 
 tinued to flout and jeer at me, sometimes picturing mv 
 fate If the paper fell into the Secretary's hands, and some- 
 times threatening me with his pistol, and making sport 
 of my alarm. At last, reluctantly, and after many warn- 
 ings of what would liappen to me if I informed, he took 
 himself off ; and I heard him go into the opposite rooms 
 and slam the door. 
 
 Be sure I Avas not long in securing mine after him ' I 
 was m a pitiable state of terror ; shaking at thought of 
 the man's return, and in an ague when I considered the 
 
fW 
 
 ~TiriT-imnT 
 
 UG 
 
 siiu t:\vsiii' liV 
 
 power over me, wliich the paper I luul signed gave him. 
 I could iiardly believe that, in so short a time, anything 
 80 dreadful had hapjtonod to me ! Yet it were hard to 
 say whether, with all my terror, I did not hate iiim more 
 than I feared him; for though at one time my heart was 
 water when I thought of betraying him, at another it 
 glowed with rage and loathing, and to s])ite him, and to 
 free myself from him, I would risk anything. And as I 
 was not wanting in foresight, and could picture with little 
 difticulty the slavery in which he would hold me from 
 that day forward — and wherein his cruel spirit would 
 delight — it was the latter mood that prevailed with me, 
 and determined my action when morning came. 
 
 Reflecting that I could expect no mercy from him, but 
 had little to feai" from the Government, if I told my tale 
 frankly, I determined at all risks to go to the Secretary. 
 I would have done so, the moment I rose, the thought 
 that at any moment he might burst in upon me keeping 
 me in a cold sweat ; but I was prudent enough to abide 
 by my habits, and refrain from anticipating by a second 
 the hour at which it was my custom to descend. I 
 waited in the utmost trepidation, therefore, until half-past 
 seven, when with a quaking heart, but a mind made up, 
 I ventured down to the street. 
 
 It was barely light, but the coffee-houses were open, and 
 between early customers to these, and barbers passing with 
 their curling tongs, and milkmen and hawkers plying 
 morning wares, and apprentices setting out their masters' 
 goods, the ways were full and noisy ; so that I had no rea- 
 son to fear pursuit, and in the hubbub gained courage the 
 farther I left my oppressor behind me. Nevertheless, I 
 took the precaution of going first to Mr. Brome's, oppo- 
 site St. Dunstan's; and passing in there, as was my daily 
 custom, lingered a little in the entry. When by this ruse 
 I had made a^ssurance doubly sure, I slipped out, and 
 went through the crowded Strand to Whitehall. 
 
 
 ■!« 
 
Sim i:\vs liUHY 
 
 117 
 
 ^ Mr. Hromo hiul a specieH of luulorstandinfr with tlio 
 (Jovoniinent ; uiid on one occiiHion beiii«,' ill/hiul made 
 me his ineKfionger to the Secrctnry'H. I know the j)Iaco 
 therefore, but none tlie less gave way to timidity when I 
 HHw the crowd of nshers, spicR, ti})HtaveH, and bnsvbodies 
 that hnng ahont the door of the ofHce, and took enrions 
 note of everyone wlio wont in or out. Mv heart faihul 
 me at the sight, and I was already more than lialf inclined 
 to go away, my business undone, when someone touched 
 my sleeve, and J started and turned. A girl still in her 
 teens, with a keen and pinched face, and a handkerchief 
 neatly drawn over her head, handed a uoto to me 
 "Forme?" I asked. 
 "Yes," said she. 
 
 I took it on that and opened it, my hands shaking. 
 But when I read the contents, Avhich were these— " Mr 
 Itobert Ferguson's respects to the Secretary, and he has 
 to-day changed his lodging. He will to-morrow be 
 pleased to supply the bearer's character"— I thought I 
 should have fallen to the ground. Nor was my alarm 
 the less for the reflection which immediately arose in my 
 nnnd that the note had of necessity been written and 
 despatched before I left Mr. Brome's door ; and conse- 
 quently before I had taken any step towards the execution 
 of my design ! 
 
 Still, what I held was but a piece of paper bearing a 
 message from a man proscribed, who dared not show his 
 face where I stood. A word to the doorkeepers and I 
 might even now go in and lay my information. But the 
 man's omniscience cowed my spirit, terrified me, and 
 broke me down. Assured after this, that whatever I did 
 or wherever I went he would know and be warned in 
 time, and I gain by my information nothing but the 
 name of a gull or a cheat, I turned from the donv Th^n 
 Beeing that the girl waited, "There is no answer," I 
 said. 
 
118 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 " Will you please to go to the gentleman ? " quoth she. 
 
 My jaw dropped. '' God forbid ! " I said, beginning 
 to tremble. 
 
 " I think you had better," said she. 
 
 And this time there was that in her voice roused doubts 
 in me and made me waver— lest what I had done prove 
 insufficient, and he betray me, though I refrained from 
 informing. Sullenly, therefore, and after a moment's 
 thought, I asked her where he was. 
 
 "I am not to tell you," she answered. "You can 
 come with me if you please." 
 
 "Go on," I said. 
 
 She cast a sharp glance at the group ahout the office, 
 then turned, and walking rapidly north by Charing Cross 
 led me through St. Martin's J^ane and Bedford Bury to 
 Covent Garden. Skirting this, she threaded Hart Street 
 and Red Lion Court, and crossing Drury Lane conducted 
 me into Lincoln's Inn Fields, where she turned sharply 
 to the left and through Ralph Court to the Turnstile. 
 Seeing that she lingered here and from time to time looked 
 back, I fancied that we were near our destination ; but 
 starting afresh, she led me along Holborn and through 
 Staple Inn. Presently it struck me that we were near 
 Bride Lane, and I cried " He is in my room ? " 
 
 "Yes," she said gravely, and without explanation. 
 "If he pleases you will find him there." And without 
 more she signed to me to go on, and disappeared herself 
 in the mouth of an alley by Green's Rents. 
 
 It did please him. When I entered Avith the air, 
 doubtless, of a whipped hound, I found him sitting on 
 my table swinging his legs and humming an air; and with 
 so devilish a look of malice and triumph on his face as 
 sent my heart into my boots. Notwithstanding, for a 
 while it was his humour not to speak to me but to leer at 
 me askance out of the corner of his eyes, and keep me on 
 tenterhooks, expecting what he would say or do ; and 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 110 
 
 this he maintained nntil he had finished liis tune, when 
 with a grin he asJied after his friend tlie Secretary, 
 
 " Was it Trumball you saw, or the new DiiJie?" said 
 he; and when I did not auswer he roared out an oath, 
 and snatching up the pistol wliicli hiy on tlie table 
 beside him, levelled it at me. " Answer, will you ? ])o 
 you think that I am to speak twice to such uncovenanted 
 dirt as you ? Whom did you see ? " 
 ''No one," I stammered, trembling. 
 "And why not? " he cried. "And why not, you 
 spawn of Satan ? " 
 
 "I received your note," I said. 
 
 " Oh, you received my note! " he Avhimpered, dropping 
 his voice and mocking my alarm. "'Your lordship re- 
 ceived my note, did you ? And if you had not got my 
 note, you would have informed, would you ? You would 
 have informed and sent me to the gallows, would you ? 
 
 Answer ! Answer, or " 
 
 "l^es!" I cried in an agony of terror; for he was 
 bringing the pistol nearer and nearer to my face, while 
 his finger toyed with the trigger, and at any moment 
 might press it too sharply. 
 
 " So ! And you tell me that to my face, do you ? " he 
 answered, eyeing me so truculently, that I held up my 
 hands and backed to the door. " You, dare tell me that, 
 do you ? Come here, sirrah ! " 
 I hesitated. 
 
 " Come here ! " he cried. " Or by I will shoot 
 
 you ! For the last time, come here ! " 
 I went nearer. 
 
 "Oh, but I would like to see you in the boot ! " he 
 said. " It would be the finest sight ! It would not need 
 a turn of the screw to make you cry out ! And mind 
 you," he continued, suddenly seizing my ear in his great 
 hand, and twisting it until I screamed, "in a boot of 
 gome kind or other I shall have you— if you play me false ! 
 
 
 r ■ 
 p , { 
 
 
 Uk i 
 
 
 1 = 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 ...i&kt 
 
 Wii 
 
130 
 
 SHREWS liURY 
 
 Do you understand, eh ? Do you understand, you sheep 
 
 in wolf's clothing?" 
 
 " Yes ! " 1 cried. " Yes, yes ! " He had forced me 
 
 to my knees, and brouglit his cruel sneering face close to 
 
 mine. 
 
 " Very well. Then get up — if you have learned your 
 
 lesson. You have had one proof that T know more than 
 
 others. Do not seek another. V>\\t, umph — where have 
 
 I seen you before. Master Trembler? " 
 I said humbly, my spirit (piite broken, that I did not 
 
 know. 
 
 "No?" he answered, staring at me with his face 
 puckered up. " Yet somewhere I have. And some day 
 I shall call it to ^mind. In the meantime — remember that 
 you are my slave, my dog, my turnspit, to fetch or carry, 
 cry or be merry at my will. You will sleep or wake, go 
 or come as I bid you. And so long as you do tliat — 
 Richard Price, you shall live. ]?ut on the day you play 
 me false, or whisper my name to living soul — on that day, 
 or witiiin the week, you will hang ! Do you hear, hang, 
 you Erastian dog ! Hang, and be carrion : with Ayloffe, 
 and many another good man, that would stint me, and take 
 no warning ! " 
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 Alas, the secret subjection into which I fell from that 
 day onwards, to a man who knew neither pity nor scruple 
 — and wielded his power with the greater enjoyment and 
 the less remorse for the piquant contrast it afforded to his 
 position, as a proscribed and hunted traitor, in hiding for 
 his life — exceeded all the anticipations ox it which I had 
 entertained. Having his favourite lodging in the rooms 
 opposite mine, he was ready, when the cruel humour 
 
siiujijwsiiuur 
 
 121 
 
 seized him, to sally forth and mock and torment me • 
 while the privacy of his movements and the number of 
 hi8 disgniKcs (whence it arose tliat J never knew until I 
 saw him wliether he was there or not) ke])t me in a state 
 ot su8i)ense and misery well nigh intolerable. Yet such 
 was the s])ell of fear under which he had contrived to lav 
 nie-he being a violent and dangerous num and ] no 
 soldier-and so crafty were the means, no less than the 
 art, by which he gradually wound a chain about me, that 
 in spite of my hatred I found resistance vain ; and for a 
 long time, and until a thus ex macMnd, as the ancients 
 say, appeared on the scene, saw no resource but to bear 
 the yoke and do his bidding. 
 
 He had one principal mode of strengthening his hold 
 upon me; which stood the higher in his favour, as besides 
 effecting that object and rendering me serviceable, it 
 amused him with the spectacle of my alarms. 'Fhis con- 
 sisted in the employing me in his treasonable designs- as 
 by sending me with letters and messages to Sam's Coffee- 
 house, or to the r>og in Drury Lane, or to more private 
 places where the Jacobites congregated ; by making me a 
 go-between to arrange meetings with those of his kidney 
 who dared not stir abroad in daylight, and came and went 
 between London and the coast of France under cover of 
 night; or lastly, by using me to droj) treasonable papers 
 in the streets, or fetch the same from the secret press, in 
 a court off St. James's, where they were printed. 
 
 He took especial delight in im]iosing this last task 
 upon me, and in depicting, when I returned fresh from 
 performing it, the penalties to which I had rendered my- 
 self liable. It may occur to some that when I passed 
 through the streets with such pa])ers in mv hands I had 
 an easy way out of my troubles; and could at any moment 
 by conveying the letters to the Secretarv's office procure 
 the tyrant's arrest, and my own freedom.' But besides the 
 fact that his frequent change of lodging, his excellent 
 
 1 ; 
 
 V ■ »^ 
 
 1:1 
 
 i 
 
 
lii'i 
 
 133 
 
 SIIREWSBUliY 
 
 information, and the legion of spies who served him, 
 rendered it doubtful wiiether with the best will in the 
 world the messengers would find him where I hud left 
 him, he frequently boasted— and the boast, if unfounded, 
 added to my distrust of all with whom I came into con- 
 tact — that the very tipsters and officers were in his pay, 
 and that Cutts himself dared not arrest him ! Besides, 
 I more than suspected that often the letters he gave me 
 were blank, and the errands harmless : and that the one 
 and the other were feigned only for the purpose of trying 
 me, or out of pure cruelty — to the end that when I re- 
 turned he might describe with gusto the process of hang- 
 ing, drawing, and quartering, and gloat over the horror 
 with which I listened to his relation ; a practice which he 
 carried to such an extent as more than once to reduce me 
 to tears of rage and anguish. 
 
 Such was my life at home, where if my tyrant was not 
 always at my elbow I was every hour obnoxious to his 
 appearance; for early in our connection he forbade me to 
 lock my door. Abroad I was scarcely more easy, seeing 
 that, besides an impression I had that wherever I went I 
 Avas dogged, there was scarcely an item of news which it 
 fell to my lot to record that did not throw me into a panic. 
 One day it would be Mr. Bear arrested on a charge of 
 high treason, and in possession of I knew not what com- 
 promising letters: another, the suicide in the Temple of 
 a gentleman to whom I myself had a week earlier taken a 
 letter, and who had in my presence let fall expressions 
 which led me to think him in the same evil case with me. 
 Another day it would be an announcement that the Gov- 
 ernment had discovered a new Conspiracy; or that letters 
 going for France had been seized in Romney Marshes; 
 or that the Lancashire witnesses were speaking more can- 
 didly ; or that Dr. Gates had been taken up and held to 
 bail for a misdemeanour. All these and many other 
 rumours punished me in turn ; and filling my mind Avith 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 128 
 
 the keenest apprehensions, must -'n a short time have ren- 
 dered my life intolerable. 
 
 As it was, Mr Brome, within a month, saw so great a 
 change in me that he would have me take a holidav 
 advising me to go afield either to my relations, or to some 
 village on the Lea to which neighbourhood Mr. Izaak 
 Walton s book had given a reputation exceeding its 
 deserts. He reinforced the advice with a gift of two 
 guineas, that I might spend the month royally; then in a 
 great hurry added an injunction that I should not waste 
 
 to tZr , ^^'l '^' ^''^^' ^"- ^ ^^^ «^« --pie folly 
 to tell the whole by way of protest and bitter complaint 
 to my other master; who first with a grin took from me 
 the two gumeas, and then made himself merry over the 
 increased time I could now place at his disposal. 
 
 And It IS timely, Dick, it is timely," he said with 
 ugly pleasantry^ "For, the good cause, the cause you 
 love so dearly, Dick, is prospering. Another month and 
 you and I know what will happen. Ha ! ha ! we know 
 In the meantime, work while it is day, Dick. Put your 
 hand to the plough and look not back. If all were as for- 
 ward as you, our necks would be in little peril, and we 
 might see a rope without thinking of a cart " 
 
 " Curse you ! " I cried, almost beside myself between 
 disappointment, and the rage into which his fiend 
 t asing threw me. " Cannot you keep your tongue off 
 that i Is it not enough that you " 
 
 oul^''^' w"^'* Tt*" ^^"'P • " ^"^^^^ ^^ ^i^king hide- 
 ously. Here's to Louis James, Mary, and the Prince 
 
 ^.tfiJ.'.ZttL:'^^' '-' '-'' '''' '''' '-^^-^' 
 
 oJ.p^^T:i^'' "^^*^"^"- "'^"^^ '^^ ^-'^' ^« 
 ;; Well ? " he said with a grin. " And what then v " 
 
 " AnVr ^i ^' ^^T"^ • ^^'"^"^ ' " I ^^-^ed furiously. 
 And God grant I may be there to see. " 
 
 
 i»( 
 
iri 
 
 I 
 
 124 
 
 SIIREWSIiURY 
 
 '• You will that," he unswered with composure. 
 "• Make your mind easy, my man, for, trust me, if 1 am 
 in the first cart, you'll be in the second. That is my 
 security, friend Dick. If I go, you ^'o. Who carried to 
 Mr. Warmaky's chambers the letters from Franco, I would 
 like to know ? And Avho But the cause ! " he con- 
 tinued, breaking off, ''the cause ! To business, and no 
 more havers. Here's work for you. You sliall go, do you 
 hear me, Richard, to Oovent Garden to the Piazza there, in 
 half an hour's time. It will be full dark then. You will 
 see there a fine gentleman walking up and down, taking 
 his tobacco, with a white handkerchief hanging from his 
 pocket. You will give him that note, and say ' Roberts 
 and Guiney arcjgood men '—d'ye take it ? ' Roberts and 
 Giiiney are good men,' say that, and no more, and come 
 back to me." 
 
 I answered at first, being in a rage, and not liking this 
 errand better than otlierslhaddone for him, that I would 
 not— I would not, though he killed me. But he had a 
 way with him that I could not long resist ; and he pres- 
 ently cowed me, and sent me off. 
 
 I liad so far fallen into his sneaking habits that though 
 it was dark night when I started, I went the farthest way 
 round by Holboru, and the new fashionable quarter, Soho; 
 and passing tlirough King's Square itself, and before the 
 late Duke of Monmouth's house — the sight of which did 
 not lessen my distaste for my errand — I entered Oovent 
 Garden by James Street, which comes into the square 
 between the two Piazzas. At the corner, I had to turn 
 into the roadway to avoid a party of roisterers who had 
 just issued from the Nag's Head coffee-house and were 
 roaring for a coacli ; and being in the keniiel, and observ- 
 ing under the Piazza and liefore the taverus nioie lights 
 and link-boys than I liked, I continued along the gutter, 
 dirty as it was (and always is in the neighbourhood of the 
 market), until I was half-way across the square, where I 
 
stiHjjwsmrity 
 
 128 
 
 could turn and reconnoitre ut niv leisure. Here for a 
 moment, running my eye along tlie I>ia..a, which hud its 
 usua fringe of flower girls and mumj.ers, swearing porters 
 and hackne-^ coaches, I thought my man with the white 
 handkerchief had not come ; hut shifting my gaze to the 
 Little 1 lazza, which was darker and less frequented, I 
 presently espied him walking to a.id fro under cover 
 with a cane in his hand and the air of a gentleman who 
 had supped and was looking out for a pretty girl. He 
 was a tall stout man, wearing a large black peruke and a 
 lace cravat and ruffles; and he carried a steel-hilted sword 
 and had somehow the bearing of one who had seen service 
 abroad. 
 
 Satisfied that he was the person I wanted, I went to 
 him ; but stepping up to him a little hastily, I gave him 
 a start, I suppose, for he backed from me and laid his 
 hand on his hilt, rapping out an oath. However, a clearer 
 view reassured him, and he cocked his hat, and swore at 
 me again but in a different tone. " Sir," said he very 
 rudely, another time give a gentleman a wider berth 
 unless you want his cane about your shoulders ' '' 
 
 For answer I merely pulled out the note I had and held 
 It towards him, being accustomed to such errands and 
 
 under the Great Piazza a number of persons were loiter- 
 ing, and among them link-boys and chairmen and the 
 like who notice everything. 
 
 However he made no movement to take the letter, but 
 only said, "Forme?" 
 
 ''Yes," I answered. 
 
 " From whom ? " said he, roughly. 
 
 " You will learn that inside," I said. " I was bidden 
 only to say that Roberts and Uuinev are good men " 
 wZt!," V f^«^a;'«ed, "why did you not say that 
 before .- and at that took the letter. On which . having 
 done my part and not liking the neighbourhood, I was for 
 
 i\U 
 
 'M%i 
 
p^ 
 
 126 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 t: k 
 
 going, and had actually made a half turn, when a man 
 slighter than the tirst and taller, eanie out of the shadow 
 behind him, and standing by his side, touched his hat to 
 me. I stopped. 
 
 " Good evening, my lord," he said, addressing me with 
 ceremony, and a sort of dignity. " I little thought to see 
 you here on this business. It is the best news I have had 
 myself or have had to give to others this many a day. It 
 shall be well represented, and the risk you run. And 
 whatever be thought on this side, believe me, at St. Ger- 
 main's " 
 
 "Hush!" died the first man, interrupting him at 
 that, and raiher ^luu nly. I think he had been too much 
 surprised to spe^k before. " You are too hasty, sir," he 
 continued. " There must be a mistake here. The gen- 
 tleman to whom you are speaking " 
 
 " There is no mistake. This gentleman and I are well 
 acquainted," the other responded coolly, and in the tone 
 of a man who knows what he is doing. And then to me, 
 and with a different air, " My lord, you may not wish to 
 say your name aloud ; that I can understand, and this is 
 no very safe place for either of us. But if we could mee' 
 
 somewhere, say at " 
 
 "Hush, sir," the man with the handkerchief cried, 
 and this time almost angrily. " There is a mistake here, 
 and in a moment you will say too much, if you have not 
 said it already. This gentleman — if he is a gentleman — 
 brings a letter from R. F., and is no more of a lord, I'll 
 be sworn, than I am ! " 
 "FjromR. F.?" 
 " Yes ; and therefore if he is the person you think 
 
 him But come, sir," he continued, eyeing me 
 
 angrily, " what is your name ? End this." 
 
 I did not wish to tell him, yet liked less to refuse. So 
 I lied, and on the spur of the moment said, " Charles Tay- 
 lor," that being the name of a man who lived below me. 
 
 mg. 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 m 
 
 "T If ^ 7" « nick one hand into the other. 
 Ihere Charles ! he cried, and looked at me smil- 
 ing. I have an eye for faces, and if you are not " 
 
 • -Nay sir I pray, bo qniet," the man with the white 
 handkerchief remoastratod. "Or if you are so certain 
 - und then he looked hard at me and frowned as if he 
 
 yoii think. 1 Ins gentleman will doubtless excuse iis, and 
 wait a moment, whetlier he be whom you think liim or not ' ' 
 1 was as uneasy and as unwilling to stay as could be ; 
 but the man s tone was resolute, and I saw that he was not 
 a man to cross ; so with an ill grace 1 consented, and the 
 two cb-awing aside together into the deeper shadow under 
 the Piazza, began to confer. This left me to kick mv 
 heels impatiently, and watch out of the corner of my eye 
 the loiterers under the other Piazza, to learn if any ob- 
 
 whToh T ^Z'T'^^y '^''^ ''''-' '^^^^ "P -i*h a quarrel 
 which hao just broken out between two hackney coach- 
 men, and though a man came near me, bringing a woman, 
 he had no eyes for me, and, calling a sedan-chair, went 
 away again almost immediately. 
 
 I was so engrossed with watching on that side and tak- 
 ing everyone who looked towards me for an informer, 
 t at It was with a kind of shock that I found my two 
 friends had grown in the course of their conference to 
 thtee ; nor had I more than discovered this before the new 
 comer left the other two and sauntered up to me. - Oh 
 ah he^ said carelessly, "and who do you say thai 
 
 f] ~i. ""? ^'^ ^^ '^^^PP^^' ^^^'^"^g in my face. And 
 then, By heavens, it is ! " he cried. 
 
 ..y i^'" *if ^ ^ '''^' something astonished, and more 
 am^ .ed ; and answered with spirit-though he was a hard- 
 bitten man, with the look of a soldier or gamester to 
 whom ordinarily I should have given the wall-thatTwas 
 
 wlXh t"" '''"'r^''' ^"^^ knew nothing of the matter on 
 winch I was there, nor for whom they took me. 
 
 i i 
 
 1: 
 
'. ' 
 
 it 
 
 !!■ 
 il 
 
 i ] 
 
 t\ 
 
 lili 
 
 128 
 
 SnitEWSbURY 
 
 Tlis face, which for a second or more had blazed with 
 excitement, fell suddenly; and when I had done speaking, 
 he laughed. 
 
 " Don't you ? " lie said. 
 
 "No," said I. " Not a groat ! " 
 
 "So it seems," he said again, as if that settled tlie 
 matter. " Well, then what is your name ? " 
 
 " Charles Taylor," I answered. 
 
 "And you come from that old rogue Ferg — R. F., I 
 mean?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 " Well then you can go back to him," he said, dismis- 
 sing me with a nod. " Or wait. Did you know that 
 gentleman, my (friend ? " 
 
 " Which ?" said I. 
 
 " The tall one." 
 
 " Not from Adam," I said. 
 
 no need you should know 
 " So, go. And do you tell 
 that old fox to lie close. He was never in anything yet 
 but he spoiled it. Tell him to lie close, and keep his 
 bragging tongue quiet if he can. And now be off. I 
 will explain to the gentlemen." 
 
 I needed no second bidding, but before the words were 
 well out of his mouth, had crossed the square, to the mar- 
 ket side, where there were no lights ; thence skirting the 
 garden of Bedford House, I made my way into the Strand, 
 and home by a pretty direct route. The farther I left 
 the men behind me, however, the higher rose my curios- 
 ity ; so that by the time I reached Bride Lane, and had 
 climbed the stairs to my garret, I was agape to know more, 
 and for once in my life, was glad to find the old plotter 
 in my room. Nor was it without satisfaction, that to his 
 eager question, " You gave the note to the gentleman? " 
 I answered shortly that I had given it to three. 
 
 "To three?" he exclaimed, starting up in a sudden 
 
 " Good ! Then there is 
 him," he answered coolly. 
 
SIlUl'JWSIiUUY 
 
 Vi\i 
 
 -d cur, if you have botrayed me! What 
 
 me," I answered 
 "I gave it to the 
 
 5> 
 
 fury. " You d- 
 do you mean ? " 
 
 "Only that I did what you told 
 sullenly ; at which ho sat down again, 
 gentleman ; but he had two with him 
 
 "The more to hang him," he sneered, quickly recover- 
 ing himself. " And what did he say ? " 
 
 withl'im^" ^""^'""^ *''''* ^ remember. But the two 
 
 ''Ay?" 
 
 "One of them said, ' Tell the old fox '-or the rog<ie, 
 
 or he called you both-' to lie close ! ' And he added " 
 
 1 continued, spite giving me courage, "that you had 
 
 hitherto spoiled everything you had been in, xAIr. Fergu- 
 
 At that I do not think that I ever saw a man in such a 
 lage Fortunately he did not turn it on me; but for two 
 01- three minutes he cursed and swore, bit things and 
 foamed at the mouth, trampled on his wig and raged up 
 and down, like notliing so much as a madman; while the 
 iniprecations he uttered against his enemies were so hor- 
 rible I feared to stay with him. At length it seemed to 
 occur to him that the man who could send such a message 
 to him, Ferguson, the great Ferguson, the Ferguson with 
 a thousand guineas on his head, must be a very great man 
 ndeed : which while it consoled him in som^measure! 
 excited his curiosity m another and inordinate degree 
 He hastened to put to me a number of questions, as, what 
 
 sne^t a7/^''' ^^".' '^' *^^ ^^« pay the'other re- 
 spect ? And how were they dressed ? And had either a 
 
 nbbon or a star ? And though in answer I could tell him 
 no more than that the youngest was extremely tall and 
 slight, under thirty, and of an easy carriage and bearing, 
 and in appearance the leader, it was oimnfrli for him • he 
 presently cned out that he had it, and slapped his thigh, 
 trad! It 18 Jamie Churchill!" he cried. "It's 
 9 
 
 IP 
 
 y 
 
 
 ai 
 
 11 
 
 i 
 
 it 
 
 t 
 
 1* 
 
 
 
 \'i 
 
 ill; 
 
 
 P 1 
 
Wa 
 
 (. 
 
 r' 
 
 m 
 
 mi 
 
 i\ 
 
 v.w 
 
 SIIRKWSliUliY 
 
 Ho hml a vilhiinoiis French 
 
 Berwick, stop my vitals ! 
 acceut, iuul lie iiotV" 
 
 " Something of the kind," I answered. Adding with 
 as much of a. sneer as I dared, '"If it was not a Scotch 
 one, sir." 
 
 He took the gibe and scowled at me — he spoke always 
 like a Sawney, and could never pass for English; but in 
 his pleasure at the discovery he had made he let the word 
 pass. " See, man! " lie said, "• there are line times com- 
 ing ! It is like Monmouth's day over again. I'll warrant 
 Hunt's, down in the Marshes, is like a penny ferry with 
 their coming over. The fat is fairly in tiie fire now, and 
 if we do not singe little Hooknose's wig for him, I'll 
 hang for it ! He is a better man than his father, is 
 Jamie ; ay, the very same figure of a man that his cold- 
 blooded, grease-your-boots, and sell-you-for-a-groat uncle, 
 John Churchill, was at his age ! So Jamie is over ! 
 Well, well : and if we knew precisely where he was and 
 where he lies nights — there are two ways about it ! 
 Ye-es ! Ye-es ! " And the old rogue, falling first into a 
 drawl and then into sihmce, looked at me slyly, and, 
 unless I was inistaken, began t > ruminate on a new trea- 
 son ; rubbing now one calf antl now the other, and now 
 dressing his ragged wig with his fingers, as he continued 
 to smile at his wicked thoughts ; so that, as ho sat tliere, 
 one leg over the other knee, he was tlie veriest bald- 
 headed Judas to be conceived. In the meantime I 
 watched him and hated him, and, I thought, read him. 
 
 Whatever the scheme in his mind, however, and 
 whether he was, as I expected, as ready to sell the Duke 
 of Berwick as to plot with him, he said no more to me on 
 the subject ; but presently went to his own room. Thue 
 left, I thought it high time to consider where I stood, 
 being all of a tremble and twitter with what I had heard 
 and seen; and I tossed through the night, fearfully sound- 
 ing the depths in which I found myself, and striving to 
 
sinn:\Ysnii;y 
 
 \'n 
 
 gain stron^rtl, to buttl(, with tl.o ^l^c.an, that .lay by <lav 
 WHH torcin^r „,o furtl.or u.i,l further fr„m tl)o huul. 1 wa« 
 no boy or lool, lumwun, of the danger of being mixed up 
 with great men and great namoH ; rather the ten vears 
 ^Umng wlaeh 1 had followed pnblie alVairs had presented 
 me with only too many examples of the iron pot and clay 
 piteher. When, therefore, I slept at last, late in the 
 
 Td hIoV) r" ^' '^T'\ "^ t^^^" ^l^'*^f?« ^"'l Tyburn road 
 nd the Ordmury-who bore in my dream a marvellous 
 likeness to Mr. J3rome-an.d a wall <.f faces that lined the 
 way and never ceased from St. Giles's Pound to the Edffo- 
 waro lioad. ^^u^u 
 
 Such a dream, taken with my night's thoughts, left me 
 eager to put in execution a plan 1 had more than once 
 considered; which was to give up all, to fly from London, 
 and hiding myself in some rp.iet place under anothe; 
 lurne, to live as I best might until Ferguson's capture, or 
 a change in the state of affairs freed me from danger. 
 At a distance fn n. , m, I might even gain courage to 
 nform agamsf ..m ; but this I left for fntnre decision 
 the main thing now being to pack my clothes, secure 
 about me the money I had saved, which amounted to 
 thirty guineas, and escape from the town on foot or in a 
 stage-wagon without any of his myj-nn<lons beinu the 
 wiser. '^ 
 
 To adopt this course was to lose Mr. Brome's friendship 
 and the livehhood which his employment provided • but 
 such was the fear I had conceived Jf Ferguson's schemes 
 and the perils they involved that I scarcely hesitated. 
 l.elore noon, an hour which I thought lea4 open to sus- 
 picion, I had engaged a porter and bidden him wait 
 belw ha.1 made all my other arrangements, and in five 
 mmutos 1 should have been safe in the streets with my 
 tace set towards Kensington-wheu, ut the Inst moment 
 there came a tap at my door and a voice asked if J 
 was in. 
 
 ii' 
 
 i 
 
f: 
 
 183 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 It was not an hour at which Ferguson had ever troubled 
 me, and trusting to this I had not been careful to hide 
 the signs of removal which my room presented. For a 
 moment I hung over my trunk, panic-stricken; then the 
 door opened, and admitted the girl who had intervened 
 once before — I mean at the door of the Secretary's office — 
 and whom I had since noticed, but not often, going in at 
 the opposite rooms. 
 
 She curtseyed demurely, standing in the doorway, and 
 said that Mr. Smith — which was one of the names by 
 which Ferguson went — had sent her to me with a message. 
 
 " Yes," I said, forcing myself to speak. 
 
 " Would you please to wait on him this evening at 
 eight," she antewered. " He wishes to speak with you." 
 
 " Yes," I said again, helplessly assenting; and there was 
 an end of my fine evasion. I took it for a warning, and 
 my clothes from my mail ; and going down paid the por- 
 ter a groat, and received m return a dozen porter's oaths. 
 And so dismissed him and my plan togetlier. 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 |i i 
 
 !■' 
 
 1 
 
 ] .: 
 
 It must be confessed that after that it was with a sore 
 shrinking and foreboding of punishment I prepared to 
 obey Mr. Ferguson's summons, and at the hour he had 
 fixed knocked at his door. Hitherto he had always come 
 to me; and even so and on my own ground I had suffered 
 enough at his hands. What I had to expect, therefore, 
 when entirely in his power I failed to guess, but on that 
 account felt only the greater apprehension ; so that it was 
 with relief I recognised, firstly, as soon iis I crossed the 
 threshold, a peculiar neatness and cleanliness in tho 
 rooms, as if Ferguson at home were something different 
 
simjjwsnruy jgg 
 
 his humour to MlTmT- t ^ '" "''"''' " ™ 
 announced that the vSt^rt ht "^ f "'-'"'"^ ™'''5» 
 
 "■b- i\evei nas such a brave consniratoi- 1 at 
 .■ope and he will sweat ! For mv w I • ,. ™' " 
 him. Here, you sirra) "1° "^i^ '. '"''' ^°" "^ of 
 
 "this gentlenfau wi h™ to sneak t""' "^/'''"'"S '"^' 
 yon will do what he Wis you'^ or^r- ™'^' ^^'^ >■"«. 
 
 said,!„f tr'and bow d'to mc lr°"V ""'^ ' ''^ 
 was the last comer „7t* h « I I TmetTn T 'l 
 Garden; and the one who had dismi ed me < ■ yZI 
 too fast," lie went on, smilinir "«.,rf ™- ^ . '^° 
 
 a wrong impression of me "|r. "'^Z^Z!^'"' "^"^ 
 ■DUt it was Fei-ffuson's fnm f.^ +,.i /• 
 
 ;M with a boiste.™,:!:,: " '"ii Vt;!:'?';"^" ,",: 
 
 he cried in derision. " nl more tI'io, t, l "'""' ' 
 «er ! The man's nameJ^" ^ °' *''"" ' "■" '"'''"■ 
 
 He spoke w,th a politeness which .entZ to"!,, me. 
 
 IP 
 
 r ii 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 and the fiirthov for tlie contrast it atl'orded to Ferguson's 
 violence. Witli liis appearance I was not so greatly taken; 
 finding in it, thougli he was dressed well enough, clearer 
 signs of recklessness than of discretion, and plainer evi- 
 dences of hard living than of charity or study. But per- 
 haps the prayer of such a man, when lie stoops to pray, is 
 the more powerful. At any rate I was already half gained, 
 when I answered ; asking him timidly what I could do 
 for him. 
 
 " Pay a call with me," said he lightly. " Neither more 
 than that, nor less." 
 
 J asked him on whom we were to call. 
 On a lady," he answered, " who lives at the other 
 end of the towh." 
 
 But can I be of any service?" I said, feebly strug- 
 gling against the inevitable. 
 
 " You can," he answered. " Of great service." 
 
 " Devil a bit ! " said Ferguson testily, and stared deri- 
 sion at me out of a cloud of smoke. It occurred to me 
 then that he was not quite sober, and further that he was 
 no more in the secret of the service than I was. " Devil 
 a bit ! " said he again, and more offensively. 
 
 "You will let me judge of that," said the gentleman, 
 and he turned to the table. " Will you mind changing 
 the clothes you wear for these?" he said to me with a 
 pleasant air. On which I saw that he had on the table by 
 his hand a suit of fine silk velvet clothes, and surmounted 
 by a grand dress peruque, with a laced steinkirk and 
 ruffles to match. "Pardon the impertinence," he con- 
 tinued, shrugging his shoulders as if the matter were a 
 very slight one, while I stared in amazement at this new 
 turn. "It is only that I think you will aid me the bet- 
 ter in these. And after all, what is a change of clothes ? ' ' 
 
 Naturally I looked at the things in wonder. I had 
 never worn clothes of the kind. "'Do you want me to 
 put them on?" I said. 
 
siiREwsnvny 
 
 186 
 
 f. "/.^^f' ^^f .'"'Severed, smiling. -Will you do it on 
 tlie faith that it will serve me, and trust to me to explain 
 
 "If there is no danger in-in the business," I said 
 reluctantly, ^I suppose I must." As a fact, whatever 
 he asked me, with Ferguson beside him, I should have to 
 do, so great was my fear of that man 
 
 '' Ther^' "^ ^^*°^^^'" ^'^ ^-^Piied. " I will answer for 
 It. 1 shall accompany you and return with you " 
 
 On that, and though I did not comprehend in" the least 
 egre. what was required of me, I consented, and took 
 the clo hes at the stranger's bidding into the next room 
 where I pu off mine and put these on ; and presently 
 .e.'>ing myself in a little square of glass that hung againS 
 *.^.. V al , scarcely knew myself in a grand suit of blue vel- 
 
 andtcelnffl ^'""f ''''^' l^'^^'^-^olouv, a dress peruque 
 oav« T r. ^"d cravat. Being unable to tie he 
 ciavat I went back into the room with it in my hand • 
 where I found not only tlie two I had left but'ihe girl 
 
 Greeted tirT""'^- "' '^'' ""™'^^- ''^^' *-« --^ 
 greeted the change in me with oaths of surprise; the 
 
 gul, who stood in the background, with an open-eyed 
 
 tare ; but for a moment and until the stranger had tied 
 
 itnT i" "'' "^''"^ ''"'' ^^'^ *^-^ I understo d 
 
 with .. • ^r"^''°° ^'''"^^ "P ^"^ ''"'^^^''S round me 
 with a candle, gazing at me from top to toe, the other 
 asked him m u voice of some amusement if he knew now 
 
 ;; A daw in jay's feathers ! " said he, scornfully. 
 
 And you do not know him ? " 
 " Not I— except for the silly fool he is ' " 
 
 kno Jm "r" f "°^ know-well, someone you ought to 
 know the stranger answered dryly. "You are net- 
 ting old, Mr. Ferguson." ^^^ 
 
 My master cursed his impudence. 
 
 " I am afraid that you do not keep abreast of the risinc^ 
 
 i' ' 
 
im 
 
 SIIUEWSBURV 
 
 I 
 
 
 f: i 
 
 if 
 
 li! 
 
 generation," the other continued, coolly eyeing the rage 
 his words excited. "And for your Sliaftesburys, and 
 Monmouths, and Ludlows, and the old gang, they don't 
 count for much now. You must look about you, Mr. 
 Ferguson; you must look about you and open your eyes, 
 and learn new tricks, or before you know it you will find 
 yourself on the shelf." 
 
 It would be difficult to exaggerate the fury into which 
 this threw my master; he raved, stamped, and swore, and 
 finally, having recourse to his old trick, tore otf his wig, 
 flung it on the ground, and stamped on i^. " There ! " 
 he cried, with horrible imprecations, the 'nore horrible 
 for the bald ugliness of the man, ''and that is what I 
 will do to you^— by-and-by, Mr. Smith. On the shelf, 
 am I ? And need new tricks ? Hark you, sir, I am not 
 so much on the shelf that I cannot spoil your game, what- 
 ever it is. And G — d — me but I will ! " 
 
 Mr. Smith, listening, cool and dark -faced, shrugged his 
 shoulders ; but for all his seeming indifference, kept a 
 wary eye on the plotter. " Tut — tut, Mr. Ferguson, you 
 are angry with me," he said. " And say things you do 
 not mean. Besides, you don't know " 
 
 " Know ? " the other shrieked. 
 
 " Just so, know what my game is." 
 
 " I know this ! " Ferguson retorted, dropping his voice 
 on a sudden to a baleful whisper, " Who is here, and 
 where he lies, Mr. Smith. And " 
 
 "So do Tom, Dick, and Harry," the other answered, 
 shrugging his shoulders contemptuously; and then to me, 
 "Mr. Taylor," he continued with politeness, "I think 
 we will be going. Light the door, my dear. That is it. 
 I have a coach below, and — good-night, Mr. Ferguson, 
 good-night to you. I'll tell Sir George I have seen you. 
 And do you think over my advice." 
 
 At that my master broke out afresh, cursing the otiier's 
 impudence, and frantically swearing to be even with him; 
 
snuEwsHURy 
 
 187 
 
 but I lost what he said, in a Buddeii consternation that 
 seized me, as I crossed the thresliold ; a kind of shiver, 
 which came over me at the prospect of the night, and the 
 dark coach ride, and the uncertainty of tliis new adventure. 
 The lights in the room, and Mr. Smitli's politeness, had 
 given me a courage wliich the dark staircase dissipated ; 
 and but for the hold which my new employer, perhaps 
 unconsciously, laid on my arm, I think I should have stood 
 hack and refused to go. Under his gentle compulsion, 
 however, I went down and took my seat in the coach that 
 awaited us; and my companion following me and closing 
 the door, someone unseen raised the steps, and in a mo- 
 ment we were jolting out of Bride Lane, and turned in 
 the direction of the Strand. 
 
 More than this I could not distinguish with all my curi- 
 osity, and look out as I might; for Mr. Smith muttering 
 something I did not catch, drew the curtain over the win- 
 dow on my side, and, for the other, interposed himself so 
 continually and skilfully between it and my eyes, that 
 the coach turning two or three corners, in a few minutes 
 I was quite ignorant where we were, or whether we &i\\\ 
 held a westward direction. A hundred notions of foot- 
 pads, abductions, Mr. Thynne, and the like passed 
 through my mind wliile the coach rumbled on, and 
 rumbled on, and rumbled on endlessly ; nor was the fact 
 that we appeared to avoid the business parts of the town, 
 and chose unlighted ways, calculated to steadv my nerves.' 
 At length, and while I still debated whether I wished this 
 suspense at an end, or feared more what was to follow, 
 the coach stopped with a jerk, which almost threw me 
 out of my seat. 
 
 "We are there," said my companion, who had been 
 some time silent. " I must trouble you to descend, Mr. 
 Taylor. And have no fears. The matter in hand is verv 
 simple. Only be good enough to follow me closely, and 
 quickly." ^ 
 
 t: 
 
188 
 
 SHREWSnURY 
 
 4 1 . . I 
 
 \n 
 
 And without releiising n)y arm he hurried me out of the 
 coach, and through ii door in a wall. Tliis admitted us 
 only to a garden; and that so dark, and so completely 
 obscured by high walls and the branches of trees, which 
 showed faintly overhead, feathering against the sky, that 
 but for the guidance of his hand, I must have stood, un- 
 able to proceed. Such an overture was far from abating 
 my f^ars ; nor had 1 expected this sudden plunge into a 
 solitude, which seemed the more chilling, as v,e stood in 
 London, and had a little while before passed from the 
 hum of the Strand. 1 tried to consider where we could 
 be, and the possibilities of retreat; but my conductor left 
 me little room for indecision. Still holding my arm, he 
 led me down a walk, and to a door, which opened as Ave 
 approached. A flood of light poured out and fell on the 
 pale green of the surrounding trees ; the next moment l 
 stood in a small, bare lobby or ante-room, and hoard the 
 door chained behind me. 
 
 My eyes dazzled by a lamp, I saw no moi'e at first than 
 that the person who held it, and had admii ted us, was a 
 woman. But on her setting down the lamp, and pro- 
 ceeding to look mb up and down deliberately, the Avhile 
 Mr. Smith stood by, as if he had brought me for this and 
 no other, I took une. y note of her. She a])peared to be 
 verging on forty but was still handsome after a coarse and 
 full-blown fashion, with lips over-full and cheeks too red ; 
 her dark hair still kept its colour, and the remains of a 
 great vivacity still lurked in her gloomy eyes. Her di-ess, 
 of an untidy richness worn and tarnished, and ill-fastened 
 at the neck, was no mean match for her face; and led me to 
 think her— and therein I was right— the waiting-woman 
 of some great lady. Perhaps I should, if let alone, have 
 come something nearer the truth than this, and quite 
 home; but Mr. Smith cut short my observations by falling 
 upon her in a tone of anger, '' Hang it, madam, if you are 
 not satislied," ho cried, '' I can only tell you " 
 
sitREwsmntv 
 
 189 
 
 Who 
 
 k\ I 
 
 e answered, \ 
 '•But " 
 
 11 
 
 -s not satisfied ?" i 
 surveying me wifcli the utmost coolness. 
 'But what?" 
 
 '* I cannot help thinkiufr xin. .*■ ; 
 
 it 1 r, ,. "'"'"viug >Viiut 18 your name sir 
 
 if you please?" This to me. r^me, sir, 
 
 "Taylor," I said. 
 
 unZaif ' J:f""\ «'-,reP-ted the name as if 
 unceitdin. I remember no Taylor; and yet " 
 
 You remember? You remember? You know verv 
 
 tifti;""rii:\r;r'^^"-" ''-■ ^'^-^^^ -^^ ^-"p - 
 
 tiently. It is the likeness you are thinking of ! Whv 
 It IS as plain, woman, as the nose on his f!ce It L so 
 plain that .f I had brought him in by the front dooril" 
 
 - ^n i'^ 1"; mouth shut ! " She interposed. 
 
 ,, No on- would have been the wiser. " 
 
 head ISe ' ''it T^^' ^'''^^'f^' ^"^» ^^^"^^ ^e with her 
 neaa dsuie, it is near enough " 
 
 ;; It is the thing ! " he cried, with an oath. 
 As a Chelsea orange is a China orange ' " she an 
 swered, contemptuously. ^ ^ ^"" 
 
 At that he looked at her in a sort of dark fury pre 
 
 tL A ■' -^ heaven, you vixen," he cried in 
 
 the end, surprise and rage contending in his tone "T 
 
 believe you love him still ! " ' ^ 
 
 Her back being towards me I did not see her face but 
 
 gXiayitd^uml""''^^"^^^^ ''and if I do? Much 
 Ambiguous as were the words-but not the tone-the 
 
 "Madam's pleasure," she answered. And I could 
 
 was, this time, short-lived, for at that moment ■ '=— ^ - 
 tinkled in a distant room, a 
 
 she took up the lamp. 
 
.«'*^ 
 
 140 
 
 sniiEwsnuitY 
 
 !! 
 
 " Come," she said. '* And do yoii, Kir," she eontinu^'d, 
 turning to me and speaking sliarply, " liold up your liead 
 and look as if you could cut your own food. You are 
 going to see an old woman. Do you think that slie will 
 eat you ?" 
 
 I let the gibe pass, and wondering o' wliom and what 
 it was she reminded me, whenever she spoke, I followed 
 her up a short dark flight of stairs to a second ante-room, 
 or closet, situate, as *ar as I could judge, over the other. 
 It was hung with dull, faded tapestry and smolled close, 
 as if seldom used and more seldom aired. Setting down 
 tlie lamp on a little side-table whereon a crumpled domino, 
 a couple of masks, and an empty perfume bottle already 
 lay, she bade us in a low voice wait for her and be silent ; 
 and enforcing the last order by ])lacing her finger on 
 her lip, she glided quietly out through a door so skilfully 
 masked by the tapestry as to seem one of the walls. 
 
 Left alone ^ ith Mr. Smith, who seated himself on the 
 table, I had leisure to take note of the closet. Eemark- 
 ingthat the wall at one end was partly hidden by a couple 
 of curtains, between which a bare bracket stood out from 
 the wall, I concluded that the place had been a secret 
 oratory and had witnessed many a clandestine mass, I 
 might have carried my observations fartlier ; but they 
 were cut short at this point by the return of the woman, 
 who nodding, in silence, held the door open for us to 
 pass. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 3 
 
 The first to enter, and prepared for many things— 
 among which the gloomy swroundings of an ascetic, 
 devoted to the dark usages of the eld faith, held the 
 first place in piobability — I halted in surprise on the 
 
SHREWSIWRY 
 
 141 
 
 threshold of a lofty and splendid room sutf used with rose- 
 tmted light, and furnished with a luxury to which I had 
 been hitherto a stranger. The walls, hung with gorgeous 
 French tapestry, presented a succession of palaces and 
 hunting scenes, interspersed with birds of strange and 
 tropical plumage ; between which and the eves were scat- 
 tered a profusion of Japanese screens, cabinets, and tables 
 with some of tliose quaint Dutch idols, brought from the 
 East, which, new to me, were beginning at this time to 
 take the public taste. Embracing the upper half of the 
 room, and also a ruelle, in which stood a stately bed with 
 pillars of silver, a circle of stronger light, dispersed bv 
 lamps cunningly hidden in the ceiling, fell on a suite of 
 furniture of rose brocade and silver; in the great chair of 
 which, with her feet on a foot-stool set upon the open 
 hearth, sat an elderly lady, leaning on an ebony stick A 
 monkey mowed and gibbered on the back of her chair; 
 and a parrot, vieing in brilliance with the broidered 
 birds on the wall, hung by its claws from a ring above her 
 head. 
 
 Nor was the lady herself unworthy of the splendour of 
 her surroundings. It is true, her face and piled-up hair, 
 painted and dyed into an extravagant caricature of youth, ' 
 aped the graces of sixteen, and at the first glance touched 
 the note of tlie grotesque rather than the beautiful ; but 
 It needed only a second look to convince me that with all 
 that she on whom I looked was a great lady of the world, 
 so still she sat, and so proud and dark was the gaze she 
 bent on me over her clasped hands. 
 
 At first, it seemed to me, she gazed like one who, feel- 
 ing a great surprise, has learned to hide that and all other 
 emotions. But presently, " Come in, booby," she cried, 
 m a voice petulant and cracking with age. " Does a 
 woman frighten you ? Come nearer, I say. Ay, I have 
 seen your double. But tlie lamp has gone out." 
 
 The woman who had admitted me rustled forward. 
 
 ill. 
 
I 
 
 I 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 148 
 
 siiiiNWsHrny 
 
 1 
 
 •' It llilS 8UUk 
 
 ;i little iierhaps, imulurn," she said in u 
 
 
 smooth voice. 
 
 " But I 
 
 III 
 
 ^j^bfci^S^'^^ 
 
 IN THE (JREAT CHAIR SAT AN ELDERI.V I.ADY 
 LEANING ON AN EBONY STICK 
 
 " But you are a fool," the lady cried. " I nicaiit the 
 lamp ill the man, silly. Do you tliink tliat anyone who 
 has ever seen him would take that block of wood for my 
 
siiiiEWsiiruy 
 
 148 
 
 son 'i Give him u brain, and lighi u li,,. i,i l.im, and 
 
 K])ark up those oyster eyea, and tuni lii.n round, turu 
 
 hiin round, woman ! " 
 
 "Turn," Smith muttered, in a tierce wliisper. 
 
 *' Ay," the lady cried, ay I went tu obey, " see his back 
 and he ia like enough ! " ' 
 
 "And perhaps, madam, strangers " 
 
 "Strangers? Tiiey'd be stiauge, indeed, man, to be 
 tai<eu m by him ! But walk him, walk him. Do you 
 liear, fellow," slie continued, nodding peevishly at me, 
 "hold up your head, and cross the room likeunuin if you 
 lire one. Do you think the small-pox is in the air that 
 you fear it ! Ha ! That is better. And what is your 
 name. I wonder, that you have that nose and mouth, and 
 that turn of the chin V " 
 
 " CharleH Taylor," I made bold to answer, though her 
 eyes went through me. and killed the courage in me. 
 
 *. r A^m ^'""'''^'^' ^^''^^ ^' ^'^^' ^»o"8l»." she replied. 
 
 And laylor, that was your mother's. It is a waiting- 
 woman's name. But who was your father, mv man ? " 
 
 " Charles ^J'aylor too," I stammered, falling deev.er and 
 deeper into the lie. 
 
 " Odds my eyes, no ! " she retorted with an uglv grin 
 and shook her i)iled-up head at me, "and you know it ' 
 Come nearer!" and then when I obeved, "take that 
 for your lie ! " she cried ; and, leaning Vorward with an 
 activity I did not suspect, she aimed a blow at me with 
 her ebony cane, and, catching me smartiv across the shins 
 made me jump again. "That is for Iving, my man,'' 
 she continued with satisfaction, as I stooped ruefully to 
 rub myself. " Before now I have had a man stopped and 
 killed m the street for less. Ay, that have I ! and a 
 prettier man than you, and a gentleman! And nf)w 
 walk ! walk ! " she repeated, tapi)ing the floor imperi- 
 ously, ••and fancy that you have money in your purse." 
 I obeyed. But naturally the smart of the cane did not 
 
 )i 
 
 ii 
 
Ill II 
 
 i» 
 
 ifilli 
 
 h 
 
 144 
 
 siiiiKWsiiiitr 
 
 toud to Het me at my ease, or abate my awe of the old 
 witch ; and left to myself I should liave made a pour 
 show. lioth the man and the woman, however, prompted 
 and drilled me with stealthy eagerness, and whispering 
 me continually to do this and that, to hold up my chin, 
 to lay back my shoulders, to sl|^ake out my handkerchief, 
 to point my toes, I suppose I came off better in tiiis 
 strange exhibition than might have been expected. For 
 by-and-by, the lady, who never ceased to watch mo with 
 sharp eyes, grunted and bade mo stand. " He might 
 pass," she said, " among foole, md with his mouth shut I 
 But odds my life," she continued, irritably, " (Jod have 
 mercy on us that there should bo need of all this ! la 
 there no royalty left in the world, that my son, of all 
 people, should turn traitor to his lawful King, and spit 
 on his father's faith ? Sometimes I could curse him. 
 And you, woman," she cried with sudden fierceness, 
 "you cajoled him once. Can you do nothing now, you 
 Jezebel?" 
 
 But the woman she addressed stood stiffly upright, 
 looking before her, and answered nothing ; and the mis- 
 tress, with a smothered curse, turned to the man. 
 " Well," she said, " have you nothing to say? " 
 
 *' Only, madam, what I said before," he answered 
 smoothly and gravely ; " my lord's secession is no longei 
 in issue. The question is how he may be brought back 
 into the path of loyalty. To be frank, he is not of the 
 stuff of those, whom your ladyship knows, who will read- 
 ily lick both sides of the trencher. And so, without some 
 little pressure, ho will not be brought back. But were 
 he once committed to the good cause, either by an indis- 
 cretion on his own part, if he could be induced to 
 that " 
 
 " Which he cannot, man, he cannot," she struck in 
 impatiently, " He mttde one slip, and he will make no 
 second." 
 
SllHEWSHlUV 
 
 140 
 
 '"IViio, niudum." tlio lim,, aiiHwercl. •■ TJ,,.,, thorn 
 rcmuiUH only the way which .loon not depend on him • 
 and w nch I h.foro in.licuto.l ; some ruse which n.uy Id' 
 both the friendH und enen.ies of the good cai.«e to'ti h k 
 nn. conunuted to it. Afterwards, this opinion b o . 
 bronght to his notice, und wifh it, the poHsih lity of c IC 
 ing hiinse f to the Hjiti^faction both of St. (^ennuin' a'l 
 St. JarnoH'8, he wovid, I think, come over." 
 ,. 5|« ^ long "Mv ro; fd," sui<l ma<him, dryly. 
 It 18 u loiij way to I-fome. mmhun," said" the man 
 with meaning i.. hi ' voine ' 
 
 thi^rn't'^r'^ '"' '''-■■^■''^ uneasily in her seat. -You 
 think that the one uieaue the othor V " she said at last. 
 
 just l^r!:^^' ^"^ ^^^^'-^ '^ ^' "- P°-^' -^-h has 
 
 "A new point! VVhatV" 
 
 " There is a design, and it presses," the man answered 
 in a low voice, and as if he chose his words with care '' It 
 will be executed within the month. If it succeed and 
 
 head will fall so certainly. Not Lord Middleton's influ- 
 ence no, nor yours, my lady, will save him." 
 ^ What, and my Lord Marlborough escape?" 
 
 his s^nSrit;^'"' '" '^ '" '-"^^ '"^ ^^- ^-' 1-ved 
 "I believe it," she said, grimly. "He is the devil 
 
 *' He has made his peace, madam." 
 "Russell?" 
 
 " The same, madam, and given proofs " 
 
 tishlv "'' '/^' ""IT^' 'Y '^'' ''''^' sharply and pet- 
 
 W^fi. I "'f^^'"^^' '' ''^ ""^ °^'"^^' where does it s ick 
 that the king does not come over ? " 
 
 '' On a life, madam. - Smitli answered , letting each word 
 fall slowly, as if it were a jewel. • ■ One life intervenes. " 
 
MO 
 
 HIIRKWSBURY 
 
 ?he stiid, sitting up and looking straight 
 "Sits the wind in that quarter? Well, I 
 
 •Ha!" 
 
 before her. 
 thought so." 
 
 " And therefore time presses." 
 
 '•Still, man," she said, "our family has done much 
 for the throne; and his Gracious Majesty has " 
 
 " Has many virtues, my lady, but he is not forgiving," 
 quoth the tempter, coolly. 
 
 On that she sighed, and deeply ; and I, hearing the 
 sigh, and seeing how uneasily she moved in her chair, 
 comprehended that in old age the passions, however 
 strong they may have been in youth, become slaves to help 
 others to their aims; ay, and I comprehended also that, 
 sharply as she had just rated both the man and the 
 woman, and great lady as she was, and arrogant as had 
 been her life — whereof evidence more than enough was to 
 be found in every glance of her eye and tone of her voice 
 — she was now being pushed and pushed and pushed, into 
 that to which she was but half inclined. But half inclined, 
 I repeat ; and yet the battle was over, and she persuaded. 
 I think, but I am not quite sure, that some assenting 
 word had actually fallen from her — or she was in the act 
 of speaking one — when a gentle knock at the door cut 
 short our conference. Mr. Smith raised his hand in 
 warning, and the woman, gliding to the door, opened it, 
 and after speaking a word to someone without, returned. 
 
 " My lord is below," said slie. 
 
 It was strange to see how madam's face changed at that; 
 and how, on the instant, eagerness took the place of 
 fatigue, and hope of eiimii. There was no question now 
 of withstanding her; or of any other giving orders. The 
 parrot must be removed, because he did not like it ; and 
 we fared no better. " Let him up," she cried, peremp- 
 torily, striking her stick on the floor; " let him up. And 
 do you, Monterey," she continued to the woman, "begone, 
 and quickly. It irks iiim to see you. And, Smith, to-rnor- 
 
SHREWSIiUnY 147 
 
 WW L^"^'" ^;r"''- ^o'"« to-morrow, unci I will fculk. 
 Ad take away that oaf ! Ugh, out Mitli him ! My lord 
 
 TnX r ''^^' ""'^"^ *■"■ ""^^^ ^•^^-^'■^^- To-morrow 
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 Truth to tell, I desired nothing so much as to be ffone 
 aud be ou o^ this imbroglio; and the woman whom 
 madam had called Monterey, tv.tching my sSvrand 
 
 as I could through the door by which we had entered 
 Even so we were not a moment too soon, if I wa to 
 etreat unseen For as the curtain dropped behind me 
 I heard a man's voice in the room I had left and t^ 
 
 Sd^tlTttr ^^^^^^ 'r ''- ^-P '^^iekt had 
 if r r. . n\^^^'' '"^ ^'" ^^^"^^ '^* t^ie instant-so that 
 the hgh fell brightly on her face-I was witness of an 
 extraordinary change which passed over her fWeT 
 She grew rigid with rage-rage, I took it to be-and stood 
 listening with distended eyes, in perfect forget^hiess of 
 my presence; until, seeming at lasl to remeinber me, she 
 
 me in a kind of frantic uncertainty ; being manifesto 
 torn in two between the desire to hea; what^pa S and 
 he desire to see me out that I might not hea Butt 
 to effect the latter she must sacrifice theformer itdi noi 
 require a sage to predict which impulse, curios yi^ied 
 by hatred or mere prudence, would prevail with a woman 
 And as the sage would have predicted so it happened •' 
 a er making an abortive movement as if she woTld place 
 
 ttge^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "^^ ^ ''^^ '^ -^ -^ be silent. 
 
 H 
 
 
148 
 
 SHltEWSBrRY 
 
 
 
 
 I fancy that it was tlie mention of her own name 
 turned the scale ; for tliat was the first word that caught 
 my ear, and who that was a woman would not listen, 
 being mentioned ? The speaker was her mistress, and 
 the words " What, Monterey ? " uttered in a voice a little 
 sharp and raised, were as clearly heard as if we had been 
 in the room. 
 
 *' Yes, madam," came the answer. 
 
 "Well," my lady replied with a chuckle, "I do not 
 think that you are the person who ought to " 
 
 "Object? Perhaps not, my lady mother," came the 
 answer. The speaker's tone was one of grave yet kindly 
 remonstrance; the voice quite strange to. me. " But that 
 is precisely why I do," he continued. " I cannot think 
 it wise or fitting that you should keep her about you." 
 
 " You kept her long enough about you ! " madam 
 answered, in a tone between vexation and raillery. 
 
 " I own it ; and I am not proud of it," the new-comer 
 rejoined. Whereat, though I was careful not to look at 
 the woman listening beside me, I saw the " cins in one of 
 her hands which was under my eyes swell with the rage in 
 her, and the nail of the thumb grow white with the pres- 
 sure she was placing on the table to keep herself still. " I 
 am very far from proud of it," the speaker continued, 
 " and for the matter of that " 
 
 '•You were always a bit of a Puritan, Charles," my 
 lady cried. 
 
 "It maybe." 
 
 "I am sure I do not know where you get it from," 
 madam continued irritably, stirring in her chair — I heard 
 It crack, and her voice told the rest. " Not from me, 
 I'll swear ! " 
 
 " I never accused you, madam." 
 
 That answer seemed to please her, for on the instant 
 she went off into such a fit of laughter as fairly choked 
 her. When she had a little recovered from the paroxysm 
 
tillltJ'JWsnURY i4g 
 
 of coughing that followed this, " You can be more an.us- 
 mg Imn you think, Charles," she said. " If yom' tlZv 
 
 had had a spark of your humour " ^ 
 
 "I thought that it was agreed between us that we 
 should not talk of him," the man said gravely ' and liU 
 a shght suspicion of sternness in his voice. 
 
 "Oh, if you are on your high horse!" madim a., 
 swered, ^' the devil take yon ! I^.t, there, I am st'thai 
 I do not want to talk of him, poor tnan. He wis d u 
 enough. Let us talk of something livelier, let us Sk o 
 Monterey mstead; what is amiss with her v". "' '^"^ °^ 
 
 you'." ^"^ """* *'""^ *^'* '^'' ^' '" ^* P^^^°" ^"^ ^« «bout 
 ''D>\'wLt'"'^ «^^^"«^--'" -y lady retorted. 
 
 Mr' ?'^ ^ w''^ '""T *""^ ^^^ *^^^*^ ^1^« ^^as married; to 
 Mr. Bridges' steward at Kingston " 
 
 " Matthew Smith ? " 
 "Yes." 
 
 like trirow?"'"''"r^'^ '"■"' *' '"y ^'"^I'and, I should 
 ke to know ? madam answered in a tone of malice 
 Why, you, my friend." ^• 
 
 "' i^ 'I P*f «ible. I remember something of the kind " 
 
 And who recommended him to you ? Why, she did: 
 
 m the days when you <.id not warn people against her " 
 
 And madam chuckled wickedly. 
 
 fwliv! '' possible," he answered, "but the matter is 
 
 twelve years old, and more; and I do not want to " 
 
 (xo back to it," madam cried sharply. "I can 
 quite understand that. Nor to have Moiterey about to 
 remind you of it-and of your wild oats. " 
 Perhaps." 
 
 - Perhaps Mr. Square-Toes ? You know it is the 
 case ! was the vivid answer. " For otherwise, as I like 
 . le woman, and now, at all events, she is married- 
 what 18 against her ? " 
 
 
If: 
 
 tli 
 
 li^ 
 
 150 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 "I do not trust her," was the meacured answer. 
 " And, madani, in these days people are more strait-laced 
 tlian tliey were; it is not fitting." 
 
 "That for people!" my lady cried with a reckless 
 good humour that would have been striking in one half 
 her age. "People! Odds my life, when did I care for 
 people? But come, I will make a bargain with you. 
 Tit for tat. A Eoland for your Oliver! If you will 
 give me your Anne I will give you my Monterey." 
 
 "My Anne?" he exclaimed, in a tone of complete 
 bewilderment. 
 
 "Yes, your Anne! Come, my Monterey for your 
 Anne! " 
 
 There was silence for a moment, and then " I do not 
 at all understand you," he said. 
 
 " Don't you ? I think you do," she answered lightly. 
 " Look you, 
 
 ' When William king is William king no more.' 
 
 Now, you understand ? " 
 
 " I understand, my lady, that you are saying things 
 which are not fitting for me to hear," the man answered, 
 in a tone of cold displeasure. "The King, thank God, 
 is well. When he ails, it will be time to talk of his 
 succession." 
 
 " It will be a little late then," she retorted. " In the 
 meantime, and to please me " 
 
 He raised his hand in protest. " Auything else," he 
 said. 
 
 " You have not yet heard what I propose," she cried, 
 her voice shrill with anger. "It is a trifle, and to 
 please me you might well do it. Set your hand to a note 
 which I will see delivered in the proper quarter; promis- 
 ing nothing in the Prince's life-time- -there! but only that 
 in the event of his death you w^ii support a Restoration 
 
 " J. cannot do it," he answered. 
 
 95 
 
SIIHEWSliURY 
 
 151 
 
 << 
 
 Why 
 
 "Cannot do it?" nhe rejoined wiC. heat, 
 not ? You have done as much before. " 
 
 "It maybe: and been forgiven for it by tlie best 
 master man ever luid ! " 
 
 ;; VVlio feels nothing, forgives easily," she sneered, 
 iut not twice," he said gravely. " Tlie King " 
 
 "Which King?" *= 
 
 S^A^ "^"1^'!'^ ^ acknowledge," he answered, un- 
 moved. '; Who knows, believe me, so much more than 
 you give him credit for, that it were well if your friends 
 bethought them of that before it be too late. He has 
 
 Wt^r / T'^; T^ ^"'^^"'^ ""^^-^•^ <>"« knows it 
 better than I-but he is not blinded; and there is a 
 
 point madam, beyond which he can be .^ steadfast to 
 punish as your King. If Sir John Fenwick, therefore, 
 
 who I know well, is m England " 
 
 _ But at that she cut him short, carried away by a pas- 
 sion, which she had curbed as long as it was in her 
 impetuous nature to curb anything. " Odds mv life' " 
 8he_ cried and at the sound of her voice uplifted in a 
 shriek of anger, the woman listening beside me raised 
 her face to mine, and smiled cruelly— " Odds mv life 
 your King and my King! Kings indeed! Why, man^ 
 mkm, how many Kings do you think there are! By 
 G-d Master Charles, you will learn one of these days 
 that there is but one King, sent by God, one King and 
 no more and that his yea and nay are life and death! 
 You fool, you! I tell you, you are trembling on the 
 edge you are tottering! A day, a week, a month, at 
 most, and you fall-unless you clutch at the chance of 
 safety I offer you! Sign the note! Sign the note, 
 man! No one but the King and Middleton shall know 
 01 It; and^when the day comes, as couio it will, it shall 
 
 you. 
 
 " Never madam," was the cold and unmoved answer 
 bo much I heard and my lady's oath and volley of 
 
 li 
 

 = i M 
 
 152 
 
 SHREWSBUHY 
 
 ^1 I 
 
 Jibiise; but in the midst of this, aixl. wJn'le she still rasped, 
 my conpanlon, satisfied 1 suppose with what she had 
 h-ariied and assured that her lady wonld rot g* t; her 
 way, twitched my sleeve, aid softly taking np the M-mp, 
 signed to me to go before her. I obeyed nothing loth, 
 and regaining the Rimall ante-room by which I had en- 
 tered, fotnil the mic! '■mith awaiting ns. 
 
 When they had whispered tof!;(^ther, "I'll eiee yon 
 home, Mr. Tfivlor," saiu \\c, so newfiat grindy. ''And 
 to-uiorrow I will call and talk > isinee-^. Whit we want 
 yon to do is a very simple matttr, " 
 
 '" It is simpiy that my lady's son is a fool! " the wo- 
 amn criefl snappishly. 
 
 "Well," he said, smiling, "T should hardly call my 
 Lord Hhrewsbary that! " 
 
 The woman screamed and clupped her hand to his 
 mouth. " You babbling idiot! ' she cried, in a passion. 
 "You have let it out." 
 
 He stood gaping. " Good lord! "he said. 
 
 "You have let it out with a vengeance now!" she 
 repeated, furiously. 
 
 He looked foolish; and at last, "He did not hear," 
 he said. 
 
 " Hear? He heard, unless he is deaf! " she retorted. 
 "You may lay your account with tluit. For me, I'll 
 leave you. You have done the mischief and may mend 
 it." 
 
 CHAPTER XVIIl 
 
 y 
 
 But as the spoken word has sometimes the permanence 
 which proverbs attach to the Litt'-ra scripta, and is only 
 confirmed by bungling essays to v . it, so it was in this 
 case; Mr. Smith's endeavours 1> j^^jlain away the fact 
 
SimEWSHUHV 
 
 l.-jS 
 
 which he had carelessly blabbed only servins? to impress 
 It the more deeply on my memory. It would seem that 
 he was partly aware of this; for not only did his attempts 
 lack the dexterity which I should have expected from one 
 whose features augured much experience of the world 
 but he quickly gave up the attempt as labour in vain, and 
 gruffly bidding me go befoVe to the coach, followed me 
 and took his seat beside me. We rumbled away. The 
 night was overcast, the neighbourhood seemed to be rural- 
 and, starting from an unknown point, I had less chance 
 than before of tracing the devious lanes and streets 
 tiirough which we drove; so that when the coach pres- 
 ently stopped in a part of the town more frequented, I 
 had not the least idea where we were, or where we had 
 been. 
 
 " You can get home from here," said he, still ruffled 
 and scarce able to speak to me civilly. ' 
 
 Then I saw, as I went to descend, that we were near 
 the end of Holborn, in the Tyburn Road, where it grows 
 to country. "I will see you to-morrow," he cried 
 
 And, mmd you, in the meantime, the less you say to 
 Ferguson the better, my man! " With which the coach 
 drove away towards Kensington, leaving me standing 
 against the wall of St. CJiles's Pound. 
 
 Thus released, alone, and free to consider what had 
 happened to me, I found a difficulty in tracing where I 
 hud been, but none in following the drift of the strange 
 scene and stranger conversation at which I had been pres- 
 ent. Even the plans of those who had conveyed me to 
 that place Avere transparent. It needed no Solomon to 
 discern that in the man Smith and the woman Monterev 
 the young lord had two foes in his mother's household 
 as dangerous as foes could be; the woman moved, as I 
 conjectured, by that sjjretw injuria formw, of which the 
 great Koraan poet speaks, and the man by I know not 
 what old wrong or jealousy. It was plain that these two. 
 
•sit 
 
 Ittti! 
 
 .>t 
 
 I 
 
 
 III 
 
 164 
 
 iSJfJiJ'JWSIiUItV 
 
 to obtain their ends, wore urging on the mother a most 
 perilous policy: that, 1 mean, of committing the sou to 
 tlie Jacobite Court, that bo he might be cut otl from St. 
 James's; moreover, that, u,\i he could not be induced, in 
 pt'oprid persond, to such a treasonable step as would 
 serve their entis, advantage was to be taken of some like- 
 ness that I bore to him (which Smith had observed the 
 previous evening in Covent Garden) to jiersonate him in 
 a place or company where his presence would be conclu- 
 sive both for and against him. 
 
 I could believe that the mother contemplated but 
 vaguely the power over him which the incident would 
 give her; and dreamed of using it only in the last resort; 
 rather amusing herself in the present with the thought 
 that short of 'this, and without bringing the deception to 
 his notice, the effect she desired Avould be produced — 
 since he would be held at St. Germain's to be well affected, 
 and at St. James's the matter would not be known. So, 
 in his own despite, and without his knowledge, he could 
 be reconciled to the one court, while remaining faithful 
 to the other! 
 
 But,, as in the mass of conspiracies — and this was esjie- 
 cially true of the conspiracies of that age — the acute eye 
 can detect the existence of an inn^r and outer ring of 
 conspirators, whereof the latter are commonly the dupes 
 of the former, so I took it that here Smith and the wo- 
 man meditated other and more serious results than those 
 which my lady foresaw; and, thinking less of my lord's 
 safety in the event of a Restoration than of punishing 
 him or obtaining a hold upon him — and more of private' 
 revenge than of the Good Cause — had madam for their 
 principal tool. Such a consideration, while it increased 
 my reluctance to be mixed up with a matter so two-faced, 
 left me to think whether I should not seek out the vic- 
 tim, and by an early information, gain his favour and 
 protection. 
 
SHREWSBURY jgg 
 
 I Stood in the darkness of the street donbtfiil, and 
 weighing l>o matter. Clearly, if I had to do the thing 
 now was the time, before 1 saw Smith, or exposed myself 
 an urgency whieh in spite of his politeness might, I 
 fancied, be of a kind ditlicult to resist. If by toi^' 
 straight to Lord Shrewsbury 1 could kill two binis with 
 one stone-could at once free myself from the gang of 
 J^lot tors under whom I suffered, and secure for the future 
 a valuable patron-here was a chance in a hundred, aud 
 I should be foolish to hesitate. 
 
 Nor did I do so long. True, it stuck me a little that I 
 knew nothing o my Lord Shrewsbury's whereabouts in 
 London; nor whether he lived in town, or in the great 
 house among the lanes and gardens which I had visfted, 
 but of the road whereto I had no more knowledge than 
 a blind man. This, however, I could learn at the^neares" 
 coffee-house: and impulse rather than calculation direct- 
 ing my steps, I hurried hot-foot towards Covent Gardn. 
 winch lay conveniently to my hand. 
 
 It was not until I was in the Square and close to the 
 Piazza that I bethought me liow imprudent I was to 
 re-visit the scene of last night's adventure; a place where 
 it was common knowledge that the Jacobites held their 
 assignations; and where I might be recognised To 
 reinforce this late-found discretion, and btow up the 
 Bpurk of alarm already kindled, I had not stood hesitat- 
 ing while a man could count ten, before my eye fell on 
 he very same soldierly gentleman, with the handkercliief 
 hanging out of his pocket, to whom I had been sent , e 
 
 o !f 1 ?' "' }: ^'^^ ''"'^^^^ *'^«"5 but as I caught 
 
 ight o him two others came up and joined him: and in 
 
 teror lest these should be the two I had met before, I 
 
 retreated hastily into the shadow of St. Paul's Church 
 
 and so back the way I liad come. ' 
 
 Ho u ever, I was not to get off so easily. Though the 
 
iii r 
 
 U. 
 
 i- *.: 
 
 
 il 
 
 ISO 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 Iiour w'AA late, the market closed, and the pavement in 
 fiont of the taverns deserted, or fringed only by a chair 
 waiting for a belated gamester, I ran a greater risk of be- 
 ing recognised, as I i)assed, 
 than I thonght; and had 
 not gone ten paces along 
 King Street before I heard 
 a light foot following me, 
 and a hand canght my arm. 
 Turning in a fright 1 found 
 it was only a girl; and, at 
 first sight, was for wresting 
 myself from her, glad that 
 it was no worse: but she 
 muttered my name, and 
 looking down f recognised 
 to my as^-nishment the ^irl 
 I had seen at Ferguson h 
 earlier in the evening. 
 
 At that, I remember, a 
 dread of the man and his 
 power seized mo 
 and chilled my 
 very heart. This 
 was the third time 
 this girl, whom I 
 never saw at other 
 seasons, had arisen 
 out of the ground 
 to confront me and 
 pluck me back 
 noint if betraying him. I. taredaMier,think- 
 itl know not wliit of affright and shrink- 
 ild bi^.ircely command either voice or limbs. 
 And yet as she stood lonkinp ;it mft with, tlia dark 
 length of the street stretching to the market behind her, 
 
 I HEARD A LIGHT FOOT FOLLOWING ME 
 
 when on t'l 
 ing of till,? 
 ing; and c 
 
srih'Kwsnrnv 
 
 w 
 
 it must 1)0 confeHsed tliat there was little in her apiH^ariineo 
 to cause terror. The i.iglit heing cold, and a small rain 
 falling, slie had a shawl drawn tightly over her head, 
 whence her face, small and pale as a child's, peered at 
 me. I thought to read in it a sly and elfish triumph 
 such as became Ferguson's minion- instead I discerned 
 only a weariness that went ill with her years— and a little 
 flicker of contempt in eye and lip. The weariness was 
 also in her voice when she spoke. "Well met, Mr. 
 Price," she said. '' I am in hick to light on you, "' 
 
 I shivered in m' shoes; but without seeming to mark 
 me, "I want this note taken to Mr. Watkins," she con- 
 tinued, rapidly pressing a scrap of paper into mv hand. 
 ** He is in the tavern there, the Seven Stars. Ask for 
 the Apollo Room, and yon will find him." 
 
 "But, one minute," I protected, as in her eagerness 
 she pushed me that way with her hand, " did Mi-. Fergu- 
 son Is it from him ? " 
 
 "Of course, fool," she answered, sharply. "Do you 
 think that I have been standing here for the hist half-hour 
 in cold and wet for my own pleasure ? " 
 
 " But if he sent it? " I remonstrated, feebly, • perhaps 
 
 he may not like me to interfere— to " 
 
 "Like me to?" she retorted, sharply, mocking my 
 tone. " Who said he would ? Cannot you understand 
 that it is I who do not like to? That I am not going 
 into that place at this time of night, and half in the 
 house drunken brutes? It is bad eno ,ii to be here, 
 loitering up and down as if I were what I «m '(,>t— and 
 free to be spoken to by every impudent blood that passes'. 
 Go, man, and do it, and I will wait so long. What do 
 you fear?" 
 
 " The rope," said 1, " to be plaii, Avith you." And I 
 looked with abhori-ence at the scrap of paper she had 
 given me. "I have taken too .aany of these,' I said. 
 
 "Well, you will take one more! " she answered, dow- 
 
 i> rt 
 
 1 ' 
 
 I 
 
188 
 
 SllItEWsm'RV 
 
 
 r, 
 
 il: 
 
 \u 
 
 gecUy. --Or you are no nmii. See, there ih the dooi'. 
 Ask for the Apollo Roojn, <,nve it to him, and the thing 
 in ilono! " And with that she set both handfi to mo and 
 pushed mo the way she would have me move — I mouu 
 towards the tavern. " Go! " she said. "• Go! " 
 
 Hate the thing as I might, and did, I could not renirtt 
 persuasions addresned to me in such a tone; nor fail to 
 be moved by the girl's shrinking from the task, which 
 had to be done, it seemed, by one of us. After all, it 
 was no more than I had done several times before; and 
 my reluctance having its origin in the resolution, to which 
 1 had just con)e, to break otf from tlie gang, yielded to 
 the reflection that the design lay as yet in my own breast, 
 and might be carried out as well to-morrow as to-day. In 
 a word, I coniplied out of pity, went to the tavern, and 
 walked boldly in. 
 
 I had been in the house before, and knew where I 
 should find a waiter of whom I might enquire privately; 
 I passed by the public room, therefore, and was for going 
 to the place I mean. I had scarcely advanced three paces 
 beyond the threshold, however, befoi'e a great noise of 
 voices and laughter and beating of feet met my ears and 
 surprised me; the hubbub was so loud and boisterous as 
 to be unusual even in places of that kind, I had no 
 more tluin taken this in, and set it down to an orgy be- 
 yond tiie ordinary, when T came on a pale-faced group 
 standing at gaze at the foot of the stairs, the landlord, 
 two or tliree drawers, and as many women being among 
 them. It was easy to see that they were in a fever about, 
 the noise above; for while the host was openly wringing 
 his hands and crying that those devils would ruin him, a 
 woman who seemed to be his wife was urging first one 
 and then another of the drawers to ascend and caution the 
 party. That something more than disorderliuess or a 
 visit from the eonstiiblc was in question I gathered from 
 the host's pale face; and this was confirmed when on 
 
 as 
 
 If 
 
i* 
 
 siiiii:wsnrny 
 
 m 
 
 sooinjr mo fchey diKpei-Hod u little, and alTocted to ho mi- 
 conecnicd. Until I uslunl for tlic Apollo Uooni, whereon 
 they iill came to<,'ot]ier a^'iiin and fell on me with com- 
 plaints and entreutieH. 
 
 " 'Foro (iod, sir, I think your friends are mud! " the 
 host cried, in a perfect fury. '* Go np! Go up, and tell 
 them that if they want to be hanged, and to hang me as 
 well, they are going the right way about it. " 
 
 •'It is well it is night," said the head waiter grimly, 
 " or the Market porters would have broken our windows 
 before now." 
 
 '• And got us all in the Compter! " the women wailed. 
 And then to me, " do up, sir, go u]) and tell tliem that 
 if they would not have the mob pull the house down " 
 
 But the tumult above, waxing lond at that moment, 
 drowned her words, and certainly took from me what 
 little good- will to ascend I had. However, the host, hav- 
 ing me there, a person who had enquired for the room, 
 would take no denial, but, delighted to have found a 
 deputy, he fairly set mo on the stairs and pushed me up. 
 '* Vxo up and tell tlieni! Go up aiul tell them! " he kept 
 repeating. " You asked for the room and there it is." 
 
 In a word I had no choice, and Avith reluctance went 
 up. The noise was such I could not fail to find the door 
 and the room; I knocked and opened, a roar of voices 
 poured out, and even before I entered the room I knew 
 what wai^ afoot, and could swear to treason. Such cries 
 as " Down with the Whigs and damn their King! " " The 
 ^9th of May and a glorious Restoration!" " Here's to 
 the Hunting Party! " poured out in a confused medley; 
 with half-a-dozen others equally treasonable, and equally 
 certain, were they overheard in the street, to bring down 
 the mob and the messengers on the speakers. 
 True, as soon as the half -muddled brains of the com- 
 
 pany took in the fact that the dour 
 
 str 
 
 was open, and a 
 
 *nger standing on the threshold— which they were not 
 
 ^M 
 
160 
 
 SUREWSHURY 
 
 quick to discern owing to the cloud of tobacco-smoke 
 tliut filled' the room — nine-tenths quavered off into 
 silence and gaped at nie; that in-oportiou of the com- 
 pany having still the sense to recognise the ri^k they 
 were running, and to apprehend that judgment had 
 taken them in the act. Two men in particular, older 
 than the rest—the one a fat, infirm fellow with a pallid 
 face and the air of a rich citizen, the other a peevish, 
 red-eyed atomy in a green fur-liued coat— were of this 
 party. They had not, I think, been of the happiest 
 before, seated in the midst of that crew; but now, sink- 
 ing back in their high-backed chairs, they stared at me 
 as if I carried death in my face. A neighbour of theirs, 
 however, went beyond them; for, with a howl that the 
 Secretary wai on them and the officers were below, he 
 kicked over his chair and dashed for a window, pausing 
 only when he had thrown it up. 
 
 But with all this the recklessness of some was evident: 
 for while I stood, uncertain to Avhom to speak, one of 
 the more drunken staggered from his seat, and giving a 
 shrill view-halloa that might have been heard in Bedford 
 House, made towards me with a cup in his hand. 
 
 "Drink!" he cried, with a hiccough as he forced it 
 upon me. "Drink! To the squeezing of the Rotten 
 Orange! Drink, man, or you are no friend of ours, but 
 a snivelling, sneaking, white-faced son of a Dutchman 
 
 like your master! So drink, and Eh, what is it? 
 
 What is the matter ? " 
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 Tm 
 
 was no small thing could enlighten tliafc brain clouded 
 by the fumes of drink and conceit; but the silence, per- 
 
 anu 
 
 i 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 161 
 
 but 
 
 feet jind clothing panic— a silence that had set in with his 
 first word, and a panic that had grown with a whisper 
 passed round the table— came home to him at last. 
 "What is it? What is the matter?" he cried, with a 
 silly drunken laugh. And he turned to look. 
 
 No one answered; but he saw the sight which I had 
 already seen— his fellows fallen from him, and huddled 
 on the farther side of the table, as sheep huddle from 
 the sheep-dog; some pale, cross-eyed, and with lips 
 drawn back, seeking softly in their cloaks for weapons; 
 others standing irresolute, or leaning against the wall, 
 shaking and unnerved. 
 
 Cooled, but not sobered by the sight, he turned to me 
 again. " Won't he drink the toast ? " he maundered, in 
 an uncertain voice. " Why— why not, I'd like to know. 
 Eh? Why not?" he repeated; and staggered. 
 
 At that someone in the crowd laughed hysterically; 
 and this breaking the spell, a second found his voice. 
 " Gad ! It is not the man! " the latter cried with a rat- 
 tling oath . " It is all right ! 
 speak, fool!" he went on 
 here?" 
 
 " This for Mr. Wilkins," I answered, holding out my 
 note. 
 
 I meant no jest, but the words supplied the signal for 
 such a roar of laughter as well-nigh lifted the roof. The 
 men were still between drunk '^nd sober; and in the 
 rebound of their relief staggered and clung to one an- 
 other, and bent this way and that in a paroxysm of con- 
 vulsive mirth. Vainly one or two, less heady than their 
 fellows, essayed to stay a tumult that promised to rouse 
 the watchmen; it was not until after a considerable inter- 
 val—nor until tlie more drunken had laughed their fill, 
 and I had asked myself a hundred times if these were 
 men to be trusted with secrets and others' necks— that 
 the man with the white handkerchief, who had just 
 11 
 
 I swear it is ! Here you, 
 to me. "What do you 
 
 11 
 
 '.; is ■, 
 
1!^ ■ 
 
 162 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 entered, gained silence and a hearing. This done, how- 
 ever, lie rated his fellows with the utmost anger and con- 
 tempt; the two elderly gentlemen whom 1 have men- 
 tioned, adding their quavering, passionate remonstrances 
 to his. But as in this kind of association there can be 
 little discipline, and those are most forward who have 
 least to lose, the hotheads only looked silly for a moment, 
 and the next were calling for more liquor. 
 
 " Not a bottle! " said he of the white handkerchief, 
 *' Nom de dieu, not a bottle! " 
 
 "Come, Captain, we are not on service now," quoth 
 one. 
 
 " Aren't you ? " said he, looking darkly at them. 
 
 " No, not we! " cried the other recklessly, " and what 
 is more, we ^¥\\\ have no ' Regiment du Roi ' regulations 
 here ! Is not a gentleman to have a second bottle if he 
 wants one?" 
 
 "It is twelve o'clock," replied the Captain. "For 
 the love of Heaven, man, wait till this business is over; 
 and then drink until you burst, if you please! For 
 me, I am going to bed." 
 
 "But who is this — lord! I don't know what to call 
 him! "the fellow retorted, turning to me with a half- 
 drunken gesture. " This Gentleman Dancing Master ? " 
 
 " A messenger from the old Fox: Mr. — Taylor, I think 
 he calls himself? " and the officer turned to me. 
 
 "Yes," said I. 
 
 " Well, you may go. Tell the gentleman who sent 
 you that Wilkins got his note, and will bear the matter 
 in mind." 
 
 I said I would; and was going with that, and never 
 more glad than to be out of that company. But the fellow 
 who had asked who I was, and who, being thwarted of 
 his drink, was out of temper, called rudelv to know 
 where T got my v/ig, and v/ho rigged me out like « lord; 
 swearing that Ferguson's service must be a d d deal 
 
 III 
 
HURE\\\^liURY 
 
 168 
 
 For 
 
 better tiian tlie one he was in, and the pay higher than 
 a poor tKooper's. 
 
 This gave the cue to the man who had before forced 
 the drink on me; who, still having the cup in his hand, 
 thrust himself in my way, and forcing the liquor on me 
 so violently that he spilled some over my coat, vowed 
 that tliough all the Scotch colonels in the world barred 
 the way, I should drink his toast, or he would skewer 
 me. 
 
 "To Saturday's work! A straight eye and a firm 
 hand! " he cried. " Drink man, drink! For a hunting 
 we will go, and a hunting we will go! And if we don't 
 flush the game at Turnham Green, call me a bungler!" 
 
 I heard one of the elder men protest, with something 
 between a curse and a groan, that the fool would pro- 
 claim it at Charing Cross next; but, thinking only to be 
 gone (and the man being so drunk that it was evident 
 resistance would but render him more obstinate, and 
 imperil my skin), I took the cup and drank, and gave it 
 back to him. By that time two or three of the more 
 prudent— if any in that company could be called pru- 
 dent— had risen and joined us; who when he would have 
 given another toast, forced him away, scolding him 
 soundly for a leaky chatterer, and a fool" who would ruin 
 all with the drink. 
 
 Freed from his importunities. I waited for no second 
 permission; but got me out ana down the stairs. At 
 the foot of which tiie landlord's scared face and the 
 waiting, watching eyes of the drawers and servants, who 
 still lingered there, listening, put the last touch to the 
 picture of madness and recklessness I had witnessed 
 above. Here were informers and evidences ready to hand 
 and more than enough, if the beggars in the street, 
 and the orange girls, and nighfe walkers who prowled 
 
 the market were not suijicient, 
 
 to bring home to its 
 
 authors the treason they bawled and shouted overhead 
 
n 
 
 li 
 
 ■ i; 
 
 f 
 
 If' 
 
 i'f: 1 
 
 K54 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 The thought that such rogues should endanger my 
 neck, and good, honest men's necks, made my blood run 
 cold and hot at once; hot, when I thought of their folly, 
 cold, when I recalled Mr. Ashton executed in '90 for 
 carrying treasonable letters, or Anderton, betrayed, and 
 done to death for printing the like. I could understand 
 Ferguson's methods; they had reason in them, and if I 
 hated them and loathed them, they were not so very 
 dangerous. For he had disguises and many names and 
 lodgings, and lurked from one to another under cover of 
 night; and if he sowed treason, he sowed i> stealthily 
 and in darkness, with all the adjuncts which prudence 
 and tradition dictated; he boasted to those only Avhom 
 he had in his power, and used the like instruments. But 
 the outbreak of noisy, rampant, reckless rebellion which 
 I had witnessed— and which it seemed to me must be 
 known to all London within twenty-four hours — filled me 
 with panic. It so put me beside myself, that when the 
 girl who had employed me on that errand met me in the 
 street, I cursed her and would have passed her; being 
 unable to say another word, lest I should weep. But she 
 turned with me, and keeping pace with me asked me 
 continually what it was; and getting no answer, by-and- 
 by caught my arm, and forced me to stand in the pas- 
 sage beyond Bedford House and close to the Strand. 
 Here she repeated her question so fiercely — asking me 
 besides if I were mad, and the like — and showed herself 
 such a termagant, that I had no option but to answer 
 her. 
 
 " Mad ? " I cried, passionately. " Aye, I am mad— to 
 have anything to do with such as you." 
 
 "But what is it? What has happened?" she per- 
 sisted, peering at me; and so barring the way that I 
 could not pass. 
 
 '' Oould you not lieai' ? *" 
 
 '•I could hear that they were drinking," she an- 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 105 
 
 swered. " I knew that, and therefore I thouglit that you 
 should go to them." 
 
 " And run the risk ? " 
 
 " Well, you are a man," she answered coolly. 
 
 At that I stood so taken aback — for she spoke it with 
 meaning and a sort of sting — that for a minute I did not 
 answer her. Then, " Is not a man's life as much to him, 
 as a woman's is to her ? " I said with indignation. 
 
 " A man's! " she replied. " Aye, but not a mouse's! 
 I will tell you what, Mr. Taylor, or Mr. Price, or what- 
 ever your name is " 
 
 " Call me what you like ! " I said. " Only let me go ! " 
 
 ''Then I will call you Mr. Craven! " she retorted bit- 
 terly. " Or Mr. Daw in Peacock's feathers. And let 
 you go. Go, go, you coward! Go, you craven! " 
 
 It was not the most gracious permission, and stung me; 
 but I took it sullenly, and getting away from her went 
 down the passage towards the Strand, leaving her there; 
 not gladly, although to go had been all I had asked a mo- 
 ment before. N^o man, indeed, could have more firmly 
 resolved to wrench himself from the grasp of the gang 
 whose tool this little spitfire was; nor to a man bred to 
 peaceful pursuits Cas I had been) and flung into such an 
 imbroglio as tliis — Avherein to dance on nothing seemed 
 to be the alternative whichever way I looked — was it a 
 matter of so much consequence to be called coward by a 
 child, that I must hesitate for that. Add to this, that 
 the place and time, a dingy p tssage on a dark night with 
 rain falling and a chill wind blowing, and none abroad 
 but such as honest men would avoid, were not incentives 
 to rashness or adventure. 
 
 And yet — and yet when it came to going, nullis ves- 
 tigiia reircrrtfm^ as the lati-ib say, I proved to be either 
 too n?i>ch )! too little of a man, these arguments not- 
 v,'ithstf ?;.dli!^'; too little of a maii to vvcigh reason justly 
 againsii priae, or too much of a man to hear with phi- 
 
 it 
 
m 
 
 t ■■;i 
 
 , n 
 
 If 'ii 
 
 166 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 
 losophy a girl's taunt. Wlien I had gone fifty yards, there- 
 fore, I halted; and tlien in a moment, went back. Not 
 slowly, however, but in a gust of irritation; so that for 
 a very little I could have struck the girl for the puling 
 face and helplessness that gave her an advantage over me. 
 I found her in the same place, and asked her roughly 
 what she wanted. 
 
 "A man," she said. 
 Well," I answered sullenly, " what is it? " 
 Have I found one? that is the question," she re- 
 torted keenly. And at that again, I could have had it 
 in my heart to strike her across her scornful face. " My 
 uncle is at least a man." 
 
 " He is a bad one, curse him ! " I cried in a fury. 
 
 She looked at me coolly. ''That is better," she 
 said. " If your deeds were of a piece with your words 
 you would be no man's slave. His least of all, Mr, 
 Price!" 
 
 "You talk finely," I said, my passion cooling, as I 
 began to read a covert meaning in her tone and words, 
 and that she would be at something. "It comes well 
 from you, who do his errands day and night! " 
 
 "Or find someone to do them,", she answered with 
 derision. 
 
 " Well, after this you will have to find someone else," 
 I cried, warming again. 
 
 "Ah, if you would keep your word!" she cried in a 
 different tone, clapping her hands softly, and peering at 
 me. " If you would keep your word." 
 
 Seeing more clearly than ever that she would be at 
 something, and Avishing to kiiow what it was, " Try me," 
 I said. " What do you mean ? " 
 
 "It is plain," she answered, "what I mean. Carry 
 no more messages! Be sneak and hfA no longer! Cease 
 to put your head in a noose to serve rogues' ends! Have 
 done, man, with cringing and fawning, and trembling 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 167 
 
 at big words. Break off with these villains who hold you, 
 put a hundred miles between you and them, and be your- 
 self! Be a man!" ^ 
 
 " Why, do you mean your uncle ? " I cried, vaatlv sur- 
 prised. "^ 
 
 ^" Why not? "she said. 
 
 il'o'^^'t"'^ ^^" ^^^^ *''^* ^^-^^ ^hy do his bidding your- 
 self ? I answered, doubting all this might be a trap of 
 that cunning devil's. "If I sneak and spy, who spies 
 on me, miss?" ^ 
 
 "I do," she said, leaning against the wall of Bedford 
 Garden, where one of Heming's new lights, set up at 
 the next corner, shone full on her face. "And I am 
 weary of it." 
 
 "But if you are weary of it " 
 
 "If I am weary of it, why don't I free myself instead 
 of preaching to you ? " she answered. " First, because I 
 am a woman, Mr. Wiseman." 
 
 II I don't see what that has to do with it," I retorted 
 Don't you ? " she answered bitterly. " Then I will 
 tell you. My uncle feeds me, clothes me, gives me a 
 roof-and sometimes beats me. If I nm away as I bid 
 you run away, where shall I find board and lodging or 
 anything but the beating? A man comes and goes; a 
 woman, if she has not someone to answer for her, must 
 to the Justice and then to the Kound-house and be set to 
 beating hemp; and her shoulders smarting to boot. Can 
 I get service without a character? " 
 II No," I said, "that is true." 
 " Or travel without money ? " 
 "No." 
 
 " Or alone— except to Whetstone Park ? " 
 
 "No." 
 
 1 '17^^\. 'V!!i ^""^ *"" ^^ "' "''''' *^®'''" '^® answered, 
 leaning her Iittie shawled liuud farther and farther back 
 
 against the wall, and slowly moving it to and fro, while 
 
 It 
 
m 
 
 is, 
 
 i 
 
 i:i! 
 
 168 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 she looked at me from under her eyelashes, "for he can 
 do all. And take a woman with him. " 
 
 I started at that, and stared at her, and saw a little 
 colour come into her pale face. But her eyes, far from 
 falling under my gaze, met my eyes with a bold, mis- 
 chievous look; that gradually, and as she still moved her 
 head to and fro, melted into a smile. 
 
 It was impossible to mistake her meaning, and I felt 
 a thrill run through me, such as I liad not known for 
 ten years. "Oh," I said at last, and awkwardly, "I 
 see now." 
 
 *' You would have seen long ago if you had not been 
 a fool," she answered. And then, as if to excuse herself 
 she added— but this I did not understand—" Not that 
 fine feathers piake fine birds — I am not such a fool my- 
 self, as to think that. But " 
 
 " But what ? " I said, my face warm. 
 
 " I am a fool all the same." 
 
 Her eyes falling with that, and her pale face growing 
 to a deeper colour, I had no doubt of the main thing, 
 though I could not follow her precise drift. And I take 
 it, there are few men who, upon such an invitation, how- 
 ever veiled, would not respond. Accordingly I took a 
 step towards the girl, and weit, though clumsily, to put 
 my arm round her. 
 
 But she pushed me off with a vigour that surprised me; 
 and she mocked me with a face between mischief and 
 triumph; a face that was more like a mutinous boy's than 
 a girl's. " Oh, no," she said. " There is a good deal 
 between this and that, Mr. Price." 
 " How ? " I said shamefacedly. 
 
 "Do you go?" she asked sharply. "Is it -settled? 
 That first of all, if you please." 
 
 As to the going — somewhere — I had made up my mind 
 long ago; before I met her, or went into the Seven Stars, 
 or knew that a dozen mad topers were roaring treason 
 
 Hi 
 
SHREWSBURY jgg 
 
 about the to.v^j, and bidding fair to hang us all. But 
 being of a cautious temper, and seeing conditions wliieh 
 I had not contemplated added to the bargain, and having 
 besides a shrewd idea that I could not afterwards with- 
 draw I hesitated. " It is dangerous! " I said 
 
 wrn/^/n^ *l" ^°" 7^^* '^ dangerous," she answered, 
 wrathfully showing her little white teeth as she flashed 
 her eyes at me, "and that is to be where we are Do 
 you know what they are doing there-in that housed" 
 And she pointed towards the Market, whence we had 
 come. 
 
 more^""'" ^ ^^^^ ^^^uctantly, wishing she would say no 
 
 ^ -Killing the King," she answered in a low voice. 
 It 18 for Saturday, or Saturday week. He is to be 
 stopped m his coach as he comes from hunting-in the 
 lane between Turnham Green and the river. You can 
 count their chances. They are merry plotters! And 
 TVT'n '^'' continued, -do you know where you 
 stand, Mr. Price, and whether it is dangerous ? " 
 
 wv,,- \ ^"""^^''-^ '^i^' *^"«"^^ling at that bloodv design, 
 which no whit surprised me since everything I had heard 
 corroborated it-- I know what I have to do " 
 ''What? "she said. 
 
 foil'i?'' '*'a!^n*- *^ *^' Secretary's office," I said, "and 
 tell him. Tellnim!" 
 
 "You won't do it," she answered, -or,at least, I 
 won vt 
 
 '' wl!^ ^ " ^ ^""^^^^ atremble with excitement. 
 Why ? " she echoed, mocking me; and I noticed that 
 not only were her eyes bright, but her lips red. " Whv 
 firstly, Mr. Price, because I want to have done with plots 
 and live honestly; and that is not to be done on blood- 
 money. And secondly, because it is dangerous-as you 
 call it. Do you want to be an evidence, set up for all to 
 point at, and six months after to be decoyed to Wap- 
 
170 
 
 STIREWSnUliY 
 
 ; 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 ping, 
 
 dropped iuto a dark hold, aud carried over to 
 Franco?"' 
 
 " God forbid! " I said, aghast nt this view of things. 
 
 ""Then have done witli infoiming," she answered, 
 with a little spurt of heat. ''Or let be, at any rate, 
 until we are safe ourselves and snug in the country. 
 Then if you choose, and you do nothinj^ to hurt my uncle 
 — for I will not have him touched — Ave may talk of it. 
 But not for money. " 
 
 Those words "safe and snug," telling of a prospect 
 that at that tnoraent seemed of all others tlic most desir- 
 able in the world, dwelt so lovingly on my ear, that in 
 pk'ce of hesitation I felt only eagerness and haste. 
 
 "I will go!" I said. 
 
 "You wiir?" she said. 
 
 "Yes," I answered. 
 
 "And " 
 
 "And what?" I said, wondering. 
 
 She hesitated a moment, and then, " That is for you 
 to say," she replied, lowering her eyes. 
 
 It is possible that I might not have understood her, 
 even then, if I had not marked her face, and seen that 
 her lips were quivering with a sudden shyness, which 
 words and manner in vain belied. She blushed, and 
 trembled; and, lowering her eyes, drew forward the shawl 
 that covered her head, the street-urchin gone out of her. 
 And I, seeing and understanding, had other and new 
 thoughts of her which remained with me. " If vou 
 mean that," I said, clumsily, " I will make you my wife 
 — if you will let me." 
 
 " Well, we'll see about it, when we get to .Romford," 
 she answered, looking nervously aside, and plucking at 
 the fringe of the shawl. " We have to escape first. And 
 now — listen," she continued, rapidly, and in her ordi- 
 nary voice. " My uncle is removing to-morrow to an- 
 other hiding-place, and I go first with some clothes and 
 
SHHEWSBUHY 
 
 m 
 
 baggage. He will not flit himself till it is dark. Do 
 you put your trunk outside your door, and I will take it 
 and send it hy the ( 'hehnsford waggon. At noon meet me 
 at Uerkenwell Gate, and we will walk to Romford and 
 bide there until we know how things are joiner " 
 "Whyllomford?" Jsaid. 
 "Why anywhere? " she answ^-d, impatiently. 
 Ihat was true enough; and g in what mood she 
 
 was, and that out of sheer coi, .uess she was inclined 
 to be the more shrewish now, because she had melted to 
 me a moment l)efore, I refrained from asking farther ques- 
 tions; listening instead to her minute directions, which 
 were given with as much clearness and perspicuity as if 
 Bhe had dwelt on this escape for a twelvemonth ])ast. It 
 was plain, indeed, that she had not fetched and carried 
 for the famous Ferguson for nothing; nor watched his 
 methods to little purpose. Nor was this all: miiuded 
 with this display of precocious skill there constantly 
 appeared a touch of malice and mischief, more natural 
 111 a boy than a girl, and seldom found even in boys 
 where the gutter has not served for a school. And through 
 this again, as through the folds of a shifting gauze 
 appeared that which gradually and as I listened took more 
 and more a hold on me— the woman. 
 
 Yet I suppose that there never was a stranger love- 
 making m the world; if love-making that could be called 
 wherein one at least of us had in mind ten thoughts of 
 fear and death for one of happiness or love; and a pulse 
 attuned rather to the dreary drip of the wet eaves about 
 us, and the monotonous yelp of a cur chained among 
 tlie stalls, than to the flutter of desire. 
 
 And yet, when, our plan agreed upon, and the details 
 settled, we turned homewards and went together through 
 the streets, I could not refrain from glanchig at my com- 
 panion from time to time, in doubt and almost incredu- 
 lity. W hen the dream refused to melt, when I found her 
 
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 >IPPLIED_^ IIVUGE . Inc 
 
 .^= 1653 East Main Street 
 .^=r ^ Rochester, NY 14609 USA 
 ,^=^= Phone: 716/482-0300 
 -^ Fax: 716/288-5989 
 
 © 1993. AppliBd Image. Inc. All Rights Reserved 
 
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 still moving ut my elbow, her small sliawled head on a 
 evel with my shoukler-when, I say, I found her so, not 
 ove, but a sense of companionshii) and a feeling of gratu- 
 lation that I was no longer alone, stole for the first time 
 into my mind and comforted me. I had gone so many 
 years through these streets solus et caeleb.s, that I pricked 
 my ears and pinched myself in sheer astonishment at 
 finding another beside me and other feet keeping time 
 with mine; nor knew whether to be more confounded or 
 relieved by the thought that of all persons' interests her 
 interests marched with mine. 
 
 CHAPTER XX 
 
 The clocks had gone midnight, when I parted from 
 Mary at the door of the house and groped my way up- 
 stairs to my room; where, throwing off my clothes I lay 
 down not to sleep, but to resolve endlessly and futilelv 
 the plans we had made, and the risks we ran and the 
 thousand issues that might come of either. Cogitation 
 brought me no nearer to a knowledge of the event, but 
 only heated my brain and increased mv impatience; the 
 latter to such a degree that with the first light I was up 
 and moving, and had my trunk packed. Xor did I fail 
 to note the strange and almost incredible turn which now 
 led me to look for support in my flight to the very person 
 whose ominous entrance twenty-four hours earlier had 
 forced me to lay aside the thought. 
 
 Long before it could by any chance be necessary I 
 opened my door, and softly carrying out mv box, placed 
 it in a dark corner on the landing. After this a great 
 interval elapsed, during which I conjured up a hundred 
 mischances. At length I heard someone afoot opposite- 
 
{■, 
 
 ''^IfliHWSliUHY 
 
 173 
 
 and then the stiinihlincr tivul ,J .. . . 
 
 down tJie stair.. Abo^.t XV ^ "' ^'•'I'Tvinir ^.)od. 
 
 an.l learned with ;atiHlf . n' 'T'""""^ ^'^ I'^'^'J' ""t. 
 
 ;ff;itre.aiLr^t:t t\:t%rrt!r^'"'^ 
 
 Bestowing a hvst look on the little a X 1. i i \ 'f "'• 
 my home so Ion- and nntJl i . i "''' ^"''^ '»'^» 
 
 took up mvhatamrlr f ' T ""''^M^P^' "'on'o. J 
 
 in my clothes. 1 ope^dX " . ""^ "^""">'- ''^^^''«> 
 
 amiLetoiisteSeu:!:;;,::;^'^^^^^'^"^^^ 
 -ciden grip o/irLri^rit '^^rr'^^ 
 
 Ferguson's: wlio liKtm,i„„ -, "°"""^'- ine Iwncl was 
 heml me move to«r ? „" fl"!! "''""■'"'"■ ''"'"■• '■"'l 
 thewUI beside i ad 'hi 'm"" '"'""«'" "S""'«t 
 tliest from the s'fd r .J' , , " ,'" "" *"-k comer far- 
 chuckled va^^ty a Wsc' ■"""^°" "'■^- "<"'<••»• "« 
 1.-1 given n,ef a,:] r^k^ "fio ™, t^ 'f',' "' 
 |™.y what I had done with ^^C^Jl:^ „";; 
 
 walttCVa'tttrre-rufli^-'r' "' ^""" 
 And mind yon \U vZl T . . """'=''' "^ '"«'«'• 
 
 Win wring 'hi:'tende, V ;r' 1 T'" f ■"',"• " ' 
 the present, liowever th-.t LIT '"'"■ '"""'• "■"»'■ 
 
 it, when I want it' n1 ""'^™'- ' "''"I' '"'« 
 
 Come into my room ..'^"' ' '"""> »*«' 'V"'* *'"■ you. 
 
 I -.'» ™a?k:"°"-?;trr;s'\;,' ?* "^''•-'^'>- -^'-" 
 
 "01, f« fi ',*'"' '^^'- '^era:"son, J will ." 
 
 "And"for'°wh!;:/'"-"-" "^ ""-"• "--'kil' ...0. 
 
 ''My dinner, "I faltered. 
 ™.«.d, y„„ dirty. ,o..hor„ pecna;.:" "he crie<.1: 1'f :;; 
 
 r 
 
m 
 
 174 
 
 SIIREWSIiURY 
 
 ' W ho are you to dine at taverns wJieii the Kind's buK''- 
 ness wants you ? Stand you there, and listen to m,, or 
 by tlie (Jod above me, you sliall never take meat or drink 
 a.uain. Do you see tliis, you craven';"' and lie plucked 
 out his horrible horse pistol, and flourished the muzzle in 
 my face. " Mark it, and remem]>er that J am Fercnison 
 the famous Ferguson, Ferguson the plotter, and no little 
 person to be thwarted! And now listen to me." 
 
 1 could have wept with rage and despair, knowing that 
 with every moment this wretch kej.t me, mv chance of 
 fulfilling the appointment at Clerkenwell (iatc was pass- 
 ing; and that if he detained me only one half hour 
 longer. I must be late. 'Po the pistol, however, and his 
 Bcowhng, truculent, blotched face that lackin<^ the wi"- 
 which hung on a chair beside him, was one degree more 
 ugly than its wont, there was no answer; and I said sul- 
 lenly that I would listen. 
 
 " Vou had better," he answered. "Mark yon, there 
 18 a gentleman coming to see me; and to his coming and 
 to what he says to me I will have a witness. You follow 
 me? " 
 
 " ies," I said, looking round, but in vain, for a way 
 of escape. 
 
 "And you are the witness. You shall go into that 
 room, mark you, and you shall be as mute as a mouse! 
 I put this little cupboard opeii, the back is thin and 
 there is a crack in it; set your eye to that and vou will 
 see him. And look you, listen to everv word, and note 
 It; and keep still— keep still, or it will be the worse for 
 you, Mr. Price! " 
 
 " Very well," I said obediently; hope springing up. as 
 I thought I saw a way of escape. " And what time must 
 I be here?" 
 
 " You are here, and you will stay here," he answered 
 dashing to the ground the scarce-born plan. •'"Why, 
 man, he may come any minute." 
 
siuiEwsnrny 
 
 Still— if J couM 
 
 persisted. 
 
 I si 
 
 go out for— for t 
 
 (»o out! ( 
 And 
 
 lould 1)0 eusier. 
 
 «o minutes," I 
 
 be easier 
 
 ;>out!" 1,0 cried, interrupt 
 
 dinners 
 
 I) 
 
 And t 
 
 about 
 
 ye know, Mj-. | 
 
 ■ivei'n.- 
 
 A)id 
 
 '".i,' nie ill a 
 
 with his hiir, 
 
 v""! Ay. r have.' 
 
 rice, J h 
 
 you would 
 
 iive uiy doubts 
 
 ic continued, leerinir at 
 
 close to n 
 sell in i; 
 
 111 
 
 ^•-nningeyes; and now thrustin^^ 1 
 
 >e, uow druwincr it baek 
 
 two 
 Av, I }i 
 
 s^' us, I wonder ? .Ali,,,] vou, if 
 
 amiin. 
 
 I 
 
 lie careful 
 
 in play at that crame. and I ] 
 ' a\c writing of yours, .Mr. [ 
 
 nie 
 
 lis face 
 
 ' Are you for 
 
 i'Syour thought. 
 
 that 
 lave writing of vours! 
 
 ould^ send it wherj it will I 
 01-— give me that coat 
 
 nee, and for twopom-e 
 lang you. 8o be careful. 
 
 AV'isli 
 
 back. 
 
 I'lg tliat 1 had th 
 
 l)raying that the next 
 
 courage to strike h 
 
 iiii in tlie 
 
 lini, hating him with a dumb 1 
 
 word he said mig],t choke 
 
 impotence, and for th 
 
 latred, the blacker for its 
 
 bim, I gave him the lon<^- 
 
 c menial services h 
 
 e made me dc 
 
 wliich he pointed, and saw h 
 
 skirted pi urn -colon red coat to 
 
 %m-e iu it, and top all with his 'fresh 
 
 ill! clothe his lank 
 
 UUff 
 
 bade me tie 1 
 
 being done to his 1 
 
 linly 
 
 ly curled wig. 1\q 
 
 >« points ami fa.ten on his sword; and 
 
 living— and he was not 
 
 this 
 
 please-he pulled down h; • T m f '^""^ ^'^''^ ^'^^^ to 
 
 P-ening lLj^^^^::^2::^f-^ to and fro, 
 
 and loathsome for the ih It , ^ /'"? "^•^^■*' "'^'^^ 
 
 time, I saw hiin bedizened '' "^''^^' ^"" "^^ «^«^ 
 
 to th:^:^:::::'r:.hr hoi '' t'^""^^ "^^ ^""-'*v as 
 
 - from my o^tl^^ ^V ^ij Tu^^' '^-''^' 
 
 be placed me he.i.ln ,],. .,...„,, ,. , ,"ea-tiame. Jfere 
 
 mentioned; and 
 
 wh 
 
 ispcnng m mv 
 
 ear the most fearful threats and obj 
 
 ur- 
 
176 
 
 siinf:wsBrnv 
 
 ^nitions in cuse I moved, oi- proved fjil.ie to liiin, lie cunt a 
 last look round to assure himself that all was right; then 
 he went hack into his own ai)artment, where throu<,di mv 
 Judas-hole I saw him pause. The girl's departure with 
 the luggage had left the room hut meagrely furnished; 
 whether this and the effect it might have on his visitor's 
 mind struck him. or he hegan at the last moment to 
 doubt the prudence of his en.teri)rise, he stood awhile in 
 the middle of tlie floor gnawing his nails, a7id listening, 
 or perhaps thinking. The drift of his reflections, how- 
 ever, was soon nuido clear; for on the visitor's impa- 
 tiently repeating his summons, he moved stealthily to 
 one of the windows — which being set in the mode of 
 garret windows, dee}) in the slope of the roof, gave little 
 li";ht— and by piling his cloak in a heap on the sill, he 
 contrived to obscure some of that little. This done, and 
 crying softly "Coming! Coming!" he hastened to the 
 door and opened it, bowing and scraping with an immense 
 show of humility. 
 
 The man, who had knocked, and who walked in with 
 an inpatient step as if the waiting had been little to his 
 taste, Avas tall and slight; for the rest, a cloak, and a hat 
 flapping low over his face, hid both features and complex- 
 ion. I noticed that Ferguson bowed again and humbly, 
 but did not address him; and that the gentleman also 
 kept silence until he had seen the door secured behind 
 him. Then, and as his host with seeming clumsiness, 
 brushed past him and so secured a position with his back 
 to the light, he asked sharply, " AVhere is he? " 
 
 The plotter leant his hands on the back of the chair 
 and paused an instant before he answered. When he did 
 he spoke with less assurance than I had ever heard him 
 speak before; he even stammered a little '"Your 
 drace," he said, '' has come to see a person — who — who 
 wrote to you ? Prom this house ? " 
 
 "Ilumv Where is he?" 
 
ISllRKWSHrUY 
 
 "Here." 
 
 "Here? But where, niiiTi, where? 
 replied, iookiiiff quickly round. 
 
 the newcomer 
 
 e. vou 
 
 Still Ferguson did not move. *' Mv lord Duk. >uu 
 came here, m a word— to nee I.ord >riddleton ? " he suid 
 It wa« easy to see that the visitor's gorue rose at' the 
 other 8 manner, no less than at this namin- (,t' names 
 lint with an effort he swallowed his chagrin. - If vou 
 know that, you know all," he answered with composure 
 •• So without more, take me to him. But I mav as well 
 
 say, sir, since you seem to be in his confidence —'" 
 
 " It was my hand wrote the letter." 
 " Was it so? Then you should know, sir, that a mad- 
 der and more foolish thing was never done! It my Lord 
 Middleton," the stranger continued coldly, his tone in- 
 clining to sarcasm rather than to feeling, ^'desired to 
 ruin his best friend and the one most able'to save him in 
 a certain event-if ]„, meant to requite, sir, one who has 
 already suffered more than was reasonable in his service 
 by consigning him to his destruction, he did well Other- 
 wise he was mad. .Alad, or worse, to send such a letter 
 to a place where he must know of his own knowledc^e 
 that nine letters out of ten are 0])ened by others' hands'"" 
 "Your Grace is right," Ferguson answered drily and 
 in his natural voice; at the sound of which, e'ither 
 because of its native harshness or because it touched 
 some chord in his memory, the other started. " But the 
 fact is," the plotter continued hardilv, and with a smack 
 of impertinence, " my Lord Middleton, so far as I know 
 IS still with the King at St. Germain's." 
 
 " At St. Germain's ? " the stranger cried. " With the 
 King? " 
 
 "Yes, and to be candid," Ferguson answered, " I was 
 not aware, my lord, that you had sent him a safe con- 
 duct." 
 
 " You villain! " the Duke cried, and stepped forward, 
 IS 
 
178 
 
 I i 
 
 siiiij'jwsnruy 
 
 \m ni^e excited us .nuch by the man's manner as by the 
 tnck which had been phiyed him. " How dared von sav, 
 then, that he was here ? " he continued. " Answer fel- 
 low, or It will be the worse for you." 
 
 '•! said only, your (irace," Fer-uson replied, retreat- 
 ing a step, - that the writer of the letter was here " 
 
 For a moment the Duke, utterly duinfounded by this, 
 Htood looking at him. " And you are he V " he said at 
 
 )lot!" '''"'"' """"^ ^'"' ""^'"" ""^ *'"'- 
 
 _ "And of many plots besides," my nuister answered 
 
 Sv '{• ^""^ *'''"' "^^y^^^'^^' '1<^ you not know me 
 yet .-'" he cried. 
 
 -Xot I! .Stand out, sir, and let me see your face. 
 
 J hen perhaps, if we have met before " 
 
 "Oh, we have met before! " was the quick and impu- 
 dent answer. - 1 am not ashamed of my face. It has 
 been known in its time. But fair i,lay is a jewel, my 
 ord. It is eight years since I saw your Grace last, and I 
 Imve a fancy to learn if you are changed. Will you oblicre 
 
 w- 1 "^°" "^"""^'^ ^^^ "">' ^''''^' ^^°^^' n^e vours! " 
 With a gesture between contempt and impatience the 
 Duke removed the hat, which at his entrance he had 
 merely touched; and hastily lowering the cloak from his 
 neck, confronted his opponent. 
 
 I i i 
 
 \\' 
 
 { 
 
 ; : 
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 It cannot at this time of day be needful for me to de- 
 scribe m detail the aspect of those features which the 
 action disclosed, since they are as well remembered bv 
 many still living as they are faithfully preserved foV 
 posterity-lacking some of the glow and passion which 
 
WITH A CESTURE BETWEEN CONTEMPT AND IMPATIENCE 
 THE DUKE REMOVED HIS HAT ' 
 
 mi 
 
then 
 
 whi( 
 
 bui'v 
 
 yixtli 
 
 fair ( 
 
 tude 
 
 thre\ 
 
 As 1 
 
 his e 
 
 if it 
 
 oji ti: 
 
 of th 
 
 if th; 
 
 sitior 
 
 little 
 
 alike 
 
 derin 
 
 gjive 
 
 he wji 
 
 lil)ert 
 
 his rij 
 
 Sue 
 
 guson 
 
 stand 
 
 deelar 
 
 come, 
 
 as I hi 
 
 the d( 
 
 they h 
 
 ment 
 
 a temj 
 
 nouem 
 
 such £ 
 
 and SE 
 
 out in 
 
 feature 
 
siiiiEW'sni'iiy 
 
 181 
 
 then unimated tlieni— on tlio canvas l)v Sir Peter Lelv 
 which hangs in the CharterhouHe. The'l)i.j<c of Shrews- 
 bury—to set concealment aside-was then in his thirty- 
 sixth year, in tlio prime and bloom ..f manhood, of^i 
 fair complexion and re-ular features; over which the hahi- 
 tude of hi-h rank and the possession of unrivalled parts 
 threw a cast of reserve and stateliness, not nnhecomin.r 
 As ho WJ.8 by nature so sensitive that on this side aloiio 
 hi8 enemies found him vulnerable, so his face in repose. 
 If it had any blemish at all, had the fanlt of bonlerin- 
 on the womanish, the lines of his mouth following those 
 of the clioicest models of antiquity. lint this blemish— 
 if that which bore witness to the most affectionate dispo- 
 sition in the world could be called by that name-was 
 little marked in public life, the awe which his eyes 
 alike firm and penetrating, insi)ired in the vulgar, ren- 
 dering most people blind to it. To sum up, his face 
 gave a just idea of his character; for though indolent 
 he was of such a temi)er that the greatest dared take no 
 iberty with him; and though proud he gave the meanest 
 ills rights and a place. 
 
 Such, in fine, was the man who now confronted Fer- 
 guson, and with a stern light in his eye bade the schemer 
 stand out. That the latter from the first had intended to 
 declare himself, was as certain as that, now the time had 
 come, he hesitated; awed by the mere power -? worth 
 as I have heard that wicked men calling up s] ^nts from 
 the deep have stood affrighted before the very beings 
 they have summoned. Yet his hesitation was for a mo- 
 ment only; after which, rallying the native audacity of 
 a temperament which rejoiced in these intrigues and d6- 
 nouements, he stepped jauntily forward, and assuming 
 such a parody of dignity as likened his clumsy figure 
 and sneaking face to nothing so much as an ape decked 
 out m man's clothes, he allowed the light to fall on his 
 features. 
 
 
 
18'J 
 
 ii 
 
 itllll 
 
 ii 
 
 II 
 
 ill;: 
 
 siiREWsnritv 
 
 Tlio Duko looked. luul oven where I ntood behind the 
 I'lth iiiid pliiKter purtitioii I lieurd him catch his breath. 
 '' Voa are Itobort Ferj^uson! " lu! said. 
 
 "Well j!;uesHed!" the plotter uiiswered, with a harsh 
 discordant laugh. " Your Grace has not forgotten '8«. 
 J5elieve me, if the Prince of Orange had kept as good a 
 njomory, I should not have been in this garret, nor need 
 I have troubled your lordshij) to visit me in it." 
 
 " It would have been better for you, sir, had you still re- 
 frained," the Duke answered with severity. ''Mr. Fer- 
 guson, I tell you at once that I do not bear his Majesty's 
 Commission in vain, and my first proceeding on leaving 
 this house will bo to sign a warrant for your apprehen- 
 sion, and direct the officers where it can be executed." 
 
 "And r, i^y loi'd," Ferguson answered with an impu- 
 dent attempt at pleasnntry, "have a very good mind to 
 take you at your word, and let you go to do it. For 
 when your officers arrived they would not find me, while 
 your Grace would go hence to fall into as pretty a trap as 
 was ever laid for a man." 
 
 "Doubtless, then, of your laying!" my lord cried, 
 with a gesture of contempt. 
 
 " On the contrary. Until I saw you, I knew of the trap 
 indeed, but not for whoia it was intended. Since I have 
 seen you, however— and how greatly you have improved 
 since '88, when we last met "—Ferguson added, imper- 
 tinently,—" my eyes are opened, and I feel a very sincere 
 pity for your lordship." 
 
 "I am obliged to you for your warning," the Duke 
 answered, drily, "and will endeavour to take care of ' 
 myself. If that be all, therefore, that you have to say 
 to me— and I assume that the letter in Lord :Middleton's 
 name was no more than a ruse — I will say good-day." 
 
 " But that is not all, nor a part! " Ferguson replied. 
 " I have a bargain to propose, and information "—this 
 sullenly and with lowered eyes — " to give." 
 
 ; !! 
 
sj/h'h'ws/iruy 
 
 IKt 
 
 (< 
 
 AsuRiml!" my lord iiriHworod, Hlinifrfrinfr hin r}io„i. 
 
 dera, and s{H!iikiiii,' witli the most (wittitifr 
 
 pr scorn. •• IJnt 
 permit mo to sav tliut you have mudo a mistake. Mr. Vvr- 
 jruHon, in Hendinj; for mo. You should know hy this 
 time, bein- versed in these ulfairs, that I leave 8uc:h bar- 
 .:;ainH to Mndorlinfju." 
 
 " NevorthelesH, to this bargain you must bo a partv " 
 the other answered violently. - Xuy, mv lord. I can 
 fniike you a party. I have only to tell vou a thinjr I 
 know; and whetlier you will or no, for your own Hafety 
 you must do what I ask." 
 
 " For my own safety, Mr. Fer<ruson, [ am not in the 
 habit ^of doing anything I would not do for other rea- 
 sons," the Duke answered coldly. " For the rest, if 
 you have anything to tell me that concerns the Kiiicr's 
 service " " 
 
 " Which King's ? " the plotter cried, with a sneer. 
 
 " I acknowledge one only— then, I say, I will hear it. 
 But I will neither do nor promise anything in return." 
 
 " You talk finely," Ferguson cried, "yet you cannot 
 deny that before this I have told things that were worth 
 knowing." 
 
 '•That were worth men's lives!" my lord answered, 
 speaking in a low stern voice, and looking at him with a 
 strange abhorrence. " Yes. Afr. Ferguson, I acknowledge 
 that. That were worth men's lives. And it reminds me 
 that you are growing old, an<I have blood on vour hands; 
 you only and God know how much. But some I know; 
 the proof of it lies in my office. If you will take my 
 advice, therefore, you will think rather of quitting the 
 world and making your peace with heaven— if by any 
 means it can be done— than of digging pits for better 
 men than yourself. Man," he continued, looking fix- 
 edlyat him, "do you never think of Avlotfe and Sid- 
 ney? And Russell? And Monmouth ? \\nd Cornish ? 
 Of the men you have egged on to death, and the men vou 
 
184 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 have— sold! God forgive you! God forgive you, for 
 man never will! " 
 
 I should fail, and lamentjibly, were I to try to describe 
 either the stern feeling with wliich my lord uttered this 
 solemn address— tlie more solemn as it came from a young 
 man to an old one—or the horrid passion born of rage, 
 fear, and remorse commingled, with which the intriguer 
 received it. When my lord had ceased to speak, Fer- 
 guson broke into the most fearful imprecations; calling 
 down vengeance not only on others for wrongs done to 
 him, but on his own head if he had ever done aught but 
 what was right; and this rant he so sprinkled with texts 
 of scriptnre and scraps of the old Covenanters' language 
 that for profanity and blasphemy I never heard the like. 
 The Duke, after watching the exhibition for a time with 
 eyes of pity and reprobation, ended by setting on his 
 hat and turning to the door. This sufficed— as nothing 
 else would have— to bring the conspirator to his senses. 
 With a hideous chuckle, which brought his tirade to a 
 fitting conclusion, '' Not so fast, my lord ! Not so fast," 
 he cried, slapping his pocket. 'The key is here. 'l 
 have something to say before you go." 
 
 "In God's name say it then!" the Duke cried, his 
 face sick with disgust. 
 
 "I will! " Ferguson answered hoarsely, leaning on the 
 table which stood between them and thrusting forward 
 his chin, his face still suffused with rage. " And see you 
 how I will confound you! The Duke of Berwick is in 
 England. The Duke of Berwick is in London. And 
 what is worse for you, my lord, he lies to-night at Dr. ' 
 Lloyd's in Hogsden Gardens. So take that information 
 to yourself, my Lord Secretary, and make what you can 
 of it— not forgetting the King's interest! Ha! ha! I 
 have you tight there, I think." 
 
 His triumph, extreme and offensive as it was. seemed to 
 be justified by the consternation— I can call it by no other 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 185 
 
 name— which darkened the Duke's countenance as he lis- 
 tened, and heUl him a moment speecliloss and motionless. 
 ,£f]arin,tr at the other. At last, " And ,;fm sent to me to 
 tell me this? " he cried. 
 
 '• I did! I did! There is no other living man would 
 have thought of it or done it. And why? Because 
 there is no man can play my cards but myself." 
 
 " You devil! " my lord cried; and was silent. 
 
 Seeing that I knew little moi-e of this of which they 
 spoke than that the Duke of Berwielc was King James' 
 natural son and favourite, I was at a loss to comprehend, 
 either the Duke's chagrin or Ferguson's very evident 
 triumph. Tlie hitter's next words, however, w- far 
 towards explaining his Jubilation; and if they did not 
 perfectly clear up my lord's position— fully to enter into 
 which required a nobility of sentiment and a nicety of 
 honour on a par with iiis own— they enabled me to guess 
 where the shoe pinched. 
 
 "D'ye take me now, my lord?" the plotter cried, 
 with a savage grimace. " That concerns the King's ser- 
 vice I think; and yet— I dare you to make use of it. 
 Ay, my Lord Secretary, I dare you to make use of it! " 
 he repeated, his unwholesome face deep red with excite- 
 ment. "For why? Because you know that there will 
 be a day of reckoning presently— and sooner, mayhap, 
 than some think. You know that. Sooner or later it will 
 come— it will come, and then ' Touch not mine anointed ! ' 
 Or rather, touch but a hair of his Jamie's head, and his 
 ^[ajesty'll no forgive! He'll no forgive! There will be 
 mercy for my Lord Devonshire, and my Lord Admiral, 
 ay, and for that incarnate liar and devil, John Churchill ! 
 Ay, even for him, for he has made all safe both sides and 
 so have the others. But do you touch the King's 
 blood, though it be bastard— do you send to-night to the 
 Bishop'is and take him, and go on to wliat follows— and 
 you may kneel like Monmouth, and plead like my Lady 
 
l!h 
 
 186 
 
 SITREWSTiURY 
 
 the 
 
 i^'l 
 
 . h 
 
 
 il\-A 
 
 li 
 
 Ptussell,, and you'll to the axe and tlie sawdnst, wh 
 tiriie comes! Ay, you will! you will! yon will! " 
 
 'i'hough his harsh voice rose almost to a shriek with the 
 last words, and the room rang with them, the Duke stood 
 mutely regarding him, and made no answer. After an 
 interval, Ferguson himself went on, but in a lower tone. 
 
 I hat IS the one course you mav take, my lord " he 
 said, -and the result of it! If you follow mv advice 
 however you will not a.lopt that course. Instead yoii 
 will let PitzJamesbe. You will act as if you had not 
 seen me to-day, nor heard that he was in London. You'll 
 wipe this meeting from your memorv and live as if it 
 had not been. And so, at the Restoration, you will have 
 nothing to fear on that head. But-but in the mean- 
 time," Ferguson continued with an ugly grin, "it may 
 be the worse for your Grace if the truth, and your knowl- 
 edge of the truth, come to the Prince's ears, whose 
 Minister yon are; and worse again if it comes to Ben- 
 tmck s, who. I am told, is some trouble to your Grace 
 already." 
 
 The Duke's face was a picture. " You villain' " he 
 said again. '• What do you want ? " 
 
 " For my silence?" 
 
 " For your silence ? No. What is your aim ? What 
 is your object ? You betray one and the other. The son 
 of your King to prison and death. Me, if vou can, to 
 rum and shame. And why? Why, man? What do vou 
 gain?" ^ 
 
 "What do I gain? What shall I gain, you mean," 
 J^erguson answered, smiling cunningly. " Onlv your ' 
 Grace's signature to a scrap of paper-give me that, and 
 1 am mum, and neither Berwick nor you will be a penny 
 the worse." ^ 
 
 ''What, money?" cried my lord, surprised, I think. 
 Oh, no, not money," said the plotter coolly. "^ And 
 yet— it may be money's worth to me over there." 
 
snuEwsjiURy 
 
 187 
 
 CHAP'rER XXII 
 
 ^^ " It is this way, my lord." ho continued iifter a pause. 
 "Lord Middleton said some things over there in your 
 Grace's name— that would be four years buck: but'^you 
 never acted on them, though it was wliispered von paid 
 dearly for them here. In tlie interval it luis beeji the aim 
 of a good many to get something more detiuite from your 
 Grace; the rather as you stand almo.^t alone, the main 
 part of the Court, and more than you know, having made 
 their peace. But tlie efforts of those persons failed with 
 your Grace because they went about it in the wrong way. 
 Now, I, Robert Ferguson," tlie plotter continued, pat- 
 ting himself on the chest, and bowing witli grotesque 
 conceit, '"have gone about it in the right wav: and I 
 shall not fail. The position is this. You must either 
 arrest the Duke of Berwick, or you must let him go. 
 That is clear. If you do the former, vou offend beyond 
 pardon, and your head will fall at the ^Restoration, Wlio- 
 ever goes clear. On the other liand, if vou let the Duke 
 escape and it comes to the Prince of Orange's ears that 
 you knew of his presence, you will be ruined with your 
 present party. The only course left to you, therefore, is 
 to let him go, but to purchase my silence— that it may 
 not reach the Prince's ears— by signing a few words on 
 a paper, which shall be sealed liere, and opened only by 
 His Majesty in his closet. Now, my lord, what do\ou 
 say to that?" 
 
 "That you are a fool as well as a knave!" was the 
 Duke's unexpected reply. He had recovered his equa- 
 nimity, and took a pinch of snuff as he spoke. 
 
 The plotter's eyes sparkled. "Whv?" he cried with 
 an^oath. " And is that language for a gentleman ? " 
 . "A gentleman? Faugh!" cried my lord. "And 
 
 I ir. 
 
i;, ; 
 
 i 
 
 m 
 
 188 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 t!!-i 
 
 why ? Because you suppose your w, rd to be of value 
 Whereas ypu should know that were you to go to Ken- 
 sington and tell the King that you had informed me of 
 this or that or the other, and were I to deny it you 
 would to Newgate for certain, and to the pillory perhai)s 
 —but I sliould be not a penny the worse. Your word 
 forsooth ! Why, man, you are crazed ! " 
 
 "Ay, but if I had you followed here?" the other 
 answered sava-ely. " If I can produce three witnesses to 
 prove that yoa were with me to-day, and by stealth! 
 And by stealth, my lord ? What then ? " 
 
 " Why, then this! " the Duke answered with compo- 
 sure. ''And it is my answer. I shall go hence to the 
 King and tell him all; and on your information, Mr 
 J^erguson, the, Duke of Berwick will be arrested What- 
 ever my fate or his after that, I shall have done my duty 
 and kept my oath as a privy-councillor, and the rest I 
 leave to God! But for you," he continued, slowly and 
 with solemnity, " who to gain a hold on me have be- 
 trayed the son of your King, your fate be on your own 
 head!" '' 
 
 The plotter, who, I think, had expected any answer but 
 this, and. It may be, had never considered his own posi- 
 tion, should^ the Duke stand firm, roared out a furious 
 
 You he ! " And then again in a frenzv, as the conse- 
 quences rose more clearly before him, "You lie'" he 
 cried, striking his hand on the table. " You will not do 
 it! You will not dare to do it! " 
 
 "Mr. Ferguson," the Duke answered haughtilv "I 
 do not suffer persons of your condition to tell me" what 
 I dare, or do not dare; or persons of any condition to 
 give me the lie. Be good enough to open the door! " 
 
 " Sign the paper! " the conspirator hissed. His face 
 at no time sightly, was now distorted by fear and the 
 rage of defeat; while the chair on the back of which he 
 leaned his loft hand, jerked this way and that as if the . 
 
 m 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 1«!) 
 
 palsy had him. "Sign the paper, will you? Or your 
 blood be on your own head! " 
 
 The Duke's only answer was to point to the door with 
 his cane. "Open it!" he said, his breath coming a 
 little quickly, but his manner otherwise unmoved. "Do 
 you hear me?" 
 
 But either Ferguson's rage had so much the mastery of 
 him that he could no longer control himself, or he was 
 desperate, seeing into what an abyss the other's firmness 
 was pushing him; or from the first he had determined on 
 this course in the last resort. At any rate at that word, 
 and instead of complying, he fell back a step and with a 
 dark face drew a pistol from the pocket of his long coat. 
 " Sign! " he cried, his voice whistling in his throat, as he 
 levelled the arm at my lord's head. " Sign, you Roman 
 spawn, or I'll spill your brains! Sign, or you don't go 
 out of this room alive! Has the Lord's foot been put on 
 the neck of his enemies that such as you should divide 
 the spoil ! " 
 
 There was nothing to sign, for he had not produced 
 the paper. But in the delirium of fear and excitement 
 into which he had fallen, he was unconscious of this, 
 and of all except that he was in danger of falling into 
 the pit he had digged for another. His hand shook so 
 violently that every moment I expected the pistol to ex- 
 plode, with his will or without it; his fears no less than 
 his despair putting my lord in danger. What he, who 
 stood thus exposed to naked death tliought in his heart 
 while his existence hung on a shaking finger, I can not 
 say, nor if he prayed ; for no man talked less of religion, 
 to be, as I trust ho was, a believer; while the pride which 
 supported him in tluit crisis was as powerful to close his 
 lips after the event. " Put that down ! " was all he said ; 
 and met the other's eyes without blenchinff. though T 
 think that he was a trifle paler than he had been. 
 
 " Sign! " answered the madman with an oath. 
 

 '■'. 
 
 «l, 
 
 lit 
 
 100 
 
 SHUEWSBUItV 
 
 
 Put It down! " repeated the Dnke; and doubtless his 
 courage by imposing a restraint on the other's headiness 
 postponed, though it could not avert, the catastrophe. 
 
 For, every second they stood thus fronting one another 
 Ferguson grinning and gibbering to iiim to sign, I looked 
 to see the pistol explode, and my lord fall lifeless. My 
 knees shook under me; horrified at this murder to be 
 committed under my eyes, scarce conscious what I did or 
 would do, I fumbled for the handle cf the door-which 
 luckily was beside me; and found it precisely as the 
 Duke with a twirl of his cane, as swift as it was unex- 
 pected, knocked the pistol aside and sprang bodily on the 
 villain striving to bear him down. He had no time to 
 draw his sword. 
 
 He was the younger man by twenty years and the more 
 active. If not the more powerful; so that for an instant 
 It seemed to me that the danger was over. But I counted 
 without Ferguson; who leaping back before the other 
 could gmpple with him, with a nimbleness beyond his 
 years put the table between them, and levelling the pistol 
 afresh with a snarl of rage, pulled the trigger. The flint 
 snapped harmlessly! ^^ ^ne nint 
 
 More than that I could not hear, and, by heaven's 
 mercy, the movement had brought the wretch close to 
 tho door at which I stood, and which I had that mo- 
 ment opened. As he aimed the pistol a second time, 
 and with a fresh execration, I flung my arms round him 
 from behind and with my right hand jerked up the 
 pistol; which exploded, bringing down a rush of plaster, 
 and filling the room with smoke and brimstone 
 
 An interposition so sudden and timely must have been 
 no ess a surprise to the Duke than to Ferguson. Never- 
 t:.eles8 the former, without the loss of a moment, flung 
 himself on his antagonist; and seizing the pistol, while I 
 clung-^ to hmi behind, in a twinkling he had him dis- 
 armed. Yet, even when this was done, so furious were 
 
I FLUNG MY ARMS ROUND HIM FROM BEHIND, AND WITH 
 MY RIGHT HAND IKRKED UP THE PISTOL 
 
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 103 
 
 the man's struggles, uud so iuluunun the strength he 
 displayed (even to biting and foaming in a fury that 
 could only be called maniacal) that it was as much as 
 we could both do to concjuer him; tiiough we wore two 
 to one, and younger. JSior would he be quiet or resign 
 himself to defeat until we hud him down on his back, 
 with my lord's sword-point at his throat. 
 
 Then it was that while wo stood over him, panting and 
 trembling with the exertions we had made, my lord 
 turned his eyes on me. ' ' My friend, ' ' he said, ' ' who are 
 you?" 
 
 I could not speak for emotion; and though he was 
 calmer, I could see that he was deeply stirred, both by 
 the risk he had run, and the narrowness of his oscai)e. 
 " My lord," I cried, at last, " take me away." 
 
 "From here?" he said. 
 
 "Yes," I said, "for God's sake, for CJod's sake, take 
 me away," and I burst into an uncontrollable fit of sob- 
 bing; so overcome was I by what had happened, and what 
 had almost happened. 
 
 He looked at me, his lip twitching a little, and his 
 breast heaving. " Be easy, man," he said. " Were you 
 set to watch me?" 
 
 "Yes," I said. 
 
 "And you heard all? 
 
 "All," 
 
 " Who are you ? " he said again. 
 
 " Two months ago I was an honest man," I answered 
 bitterly, "and then I got into his clutches. And he has 
 ridden me. Ah, how he has ridden me! " 
 
 " I see," he said, nodding gravely. '' Well, his riding 
 days are over. Hark you, Mr. Ferguson," he continued, 
 
 turning to the prostrate man, who, grovelling before us 
 
 I had taken the precaution of tying his hands with my 
 garters— acknowledged his attention by a hollow groan, 
 " I am no thief- taker, and I shall not soil my hands with 
 13 
 
 
 
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 W 
 

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 li 
 
 iii 
 
 !I 
 
 III 
 
 ^1 
 
 194 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 you. But within an hour the meesengers will be here; 
 and if they find you, look to youraelf ; for I think that 
 in that case you will indubitably hang. In the meantime 
 1 will take your pistol." Then to me, ''Come, my 
 man," he said, " if you wish to go with me." 
 
 "I do," I cried. 
 ^ " Well, I owe you more than that, " he answered kindly. 
 "And I need you, besides. Mr. Ferguson, I bid you 
 farewell. You have proved yourself a more foolish man 
 than I thought you. A worse you could not. The best 
 I can wish you is that you may never see my face again." 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 My lord, I found, had a coach, without arms or insig- 
 nia, waiting for him at the Great Turnstile in Holborn; 
 where, if persons recognised him as he alighted, he would 
 be taken to have business with the lawyers in Lincoln's 
 Inn, or at my Lord Somers's in the Fields. Following 
 him to the coach on foot, I never saw a man walk in 
 more deep or anxious thought. He took no heed of me, 
 after bidding me by a gesture to attend him; but twice 
 he stood in doubt, and once he made as if he would 
 return whence he had come, and once as if he would 
 cross the Fields— I think to Powis House. In the end 
 he went on, and arriving at the coach, the door of which 
 was opened for him by a footman in a plain livery, he 
 bade me by a sign to follow him into it. This I was not 
 for doing, thinking it too great an honour; but on his 
 crying impatiently, " Man, how do you think I am to 
 talk to you if you ride outside?" I hastened to enter, 
 in equal confusion and humility. 
 Nevertheless, some time elapsed, and we had travelled 
 
SIIHEWSIWRY 
 
 195 
 
 <( 
 
 tlie length of Holborn before he spoke. Then rousing 
 himself on a sudden from his preoccupation, he looked at 
 me. ''Do you know a man called Barclay V " said he. 
 
 '' No, your Grace," I answered. 
 ' Sir George Barclay V " 
 
 "No, your Grace." 
 
 " Or Porter ? Or Charnock 'i Or King ? " 
 
 " No, your Grace." 
 
 "Umph!" said he, seeming to be disappointed; and 
 for a time he looked out of the window. Presently, 
 however, he glanced at me again, and so sharply that I 
 dropped my eyes, out of respect. " I have seen you 
 before," he said, at last. 
 
 Surprised beyond measure that he remembered me, so 
 many years having elapsed, I confessed with emotion that 
 ho had. 
 
 " Where ? " he asked plainly. " I see many people. 
 And I have not old Rowley's memory." 
 
 I told him. "Your Grace may not remember it," I 
 said, greatly moved, "but many years ago at Abbot's 
 Stanstead, at Sir Baldwin Winston's " 
 
 "What?" he exclaimed, cutting me short, with a 
 flicker of laughter in his grave eyes. And he looked me 
 over. "Did I flesh my maiden justice-sword on you? 
 Were you the lad who ran away ? " 
 
 "Yes, my lord— the lad whose life you saved," I an- 
 swered. 
 
 "Well, then we are quits," he had the kindness to 
 answer; and asked me how I had lived since those days. 
 
 I told him, naming Mr. Timothy Brome, and saying 
 that he would give me a character. The mention of the 
 news- writer, however, had a different effect from that I 
 expected; his Grace conceiving a hasty idea that he also 
 was concerned with Ferguson, and muttering under this 
 impression that if such men were turning, it was vain to 
 fight against the stream. I hastened to disabuse him of 
 
 If, 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 1 
 
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 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 ml 
 
M 
 
 I.M' 
 
 
 S/f/fK\ ,BrRY 
 
 th« fi/jti'on by exj)laiiiing liow F came to fall into Fergu- 
 son's ijittfiff... Ou which he asked me >'-hut I had done 
 
 nd to 
 me«- 
 
 for the plottfei , ,and how he had employed ine. 
 
 "He would send me on errands," I answered, " 8 
 fetcli papers from the printers, and to carry his 
 sanies." 
 
 " To coffee-houses ? " 
 " Often, your Grace." 
 
 '• Did he ever send you to Covont Garden ? " he asked, 
 looking fixedly at me. 
 
 '• Yea, your Grace, to a gentleman with a white liand- 
 kerchief hanging from his pocket." 
 
 " Ha! " said he; and with an eager ligiit in his face ho 
 bade me tell him all I knew of that man. This giving 
 me the cue, 1 detailed what I had seen and heard at tiie 
 Seven Stars the previous evening, the toast of the Squeez- 
 ing of the Kotten Orange, tlie hints which had escaped 
 the drunken conspirator, not forgetting his references to 
 the Hunting Party, and tiie date, Saturday or Saturday 
 week. I added also wlmt J had learned from the girl, but 
 mentioned for this no authority. To all my lord listened 
 attentively, nodding from moment to moment, and at 
 last, " Then Porter is not lying tliis time," he said, draw- 
 ing a deep breath. "• I feared— but here we are. Follow 
 me, my friend, and keep close to me." 
 
 Engrossed h\ my story, and the attention that was due 
 to his rank, I had paid no heed either to the way we had 
 come, or to our gradual passage from the smoke and bab- 
 ble of London to country air and stillnops. A vague, 
 notion that we were still travelling the Oxford Road was 
 all I retained: and tliis was rudely shaken when, recalled 
 to the present by his words, I looked out, and discovered 
 that the coacl; was bowling along an avenue of lofty trees, 
 with park-like ustures stretched on either hand. I had 
 no more than tin. % lotv^ ro much and that the horses 
 were slackening Uii. - pifce, before we rumbled under an 
 
 The 
 
STTREWSIiriiY 
 
 W 
 
 
 archway, and drew up in a ppacious courtyard sliut in on 
 four Hides by wurni-looking red-brick buildingw, wlioreof 
 tile wing under winch we had drive 
 a (juaintly-Hlmjjed Ijell turret. 
 
 n wan Hurinounted l)y 
 
 Ignorant wliero my lord lived, and little a<!(|uainted 
 witii tlie vill8'4i'S which lie around London, I supposed 
 
 'i'he Higlit of 
 
 that he had biougl t me to his house, 
 couple of Kontries, who walked with armn ])orte(i before 
 a wide, 1'»n llight of steps leading to the principal door, 
 should have enlightened me; but a flock of pigeons, that, 
 disturbed by our entrance, were now settling down, and 
 beginning to strut the gravel with the most absurd air of 
 possession, caught my attention, and diverted me from 
 this mark of State. Nor did a knot of servants, loung- 
 ing silently under a portico, or two or three sedans which 
 I espied waiting a little apart, go far to detract from the 
 general air of peace and quietude which prevailed in the 
 place. Other observations I had no time to make; for 
 my lord, mounting the steps, bade me follow him. 
 
 I did so, across a spacious hall floored with shining 
 wood laid in strange patterns. Here were three or four 
 servants, who stood at attention, but did not approach ; 
 and passing them without notice, we had reached the foot 
 of a wide and handsome staircase before a person dressed 
 plainly in black and carrying a tall slender wand came 
 forward, and with a low boAv interposed himself. 
 
 "Your Grace's pardon," he said, ''the Couucii has 
 broken up." 
 
 "Ho'' Ing?" 
 
 " About half an hour. " 
 
 " Ah! And Lord Somers ? Did he go back to town ? " 
 
 "Yes, your Grace, immediately." 
 
 The Duke at that asked a question which I, standing 
 back a little out of respect, and being awed besides by 
 the grandeur of the place and the silence, did not catch. 
 The answer, however, "Only Lord Portland and Mr. 
 
 Jfc- 
 
108 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 (( 
 
 Sewell," I heard; and likewise the Duke's rejoinder, 
 am going up." 
 
 "You will permit me to announce your Grace," the 
 other answered quickly. He seemed to be something 
 between a gentleman and a servant. 
 
 "No," my lord said. '' I am in haste, and I have that 
 will be my warranty. This person goes with me." 
 
 "I hope your Grace— will answer for it then," the 
 man in black replied respectfully, but with a little hesi- 
 tation in his tone. 
 
 " I will answer for it that you are not blamed, Nash," 
 the Duke rejoined, with good nature. " Yes, yes. And 
 now let us up." 
 
 On that the man with the wand stood aside still a 
 
 little doubtfiilly I thought— and let us pass: and my 
 patron preceding me, we went up a wide staircase and 
 along a silent corridor, and through one or two swing 
 doors, the Duke seeming to be conversant with the house. 
 It was impossible not to admire the sombre richness of 
 the carved furniture, which stood here and there in the 
 corridor; or the grotesque designs and eastern colouring 
 of the China ware and Mogul idols that peered from the 
 corners, or rose boldly on brackets. Such a mode of fur- 
 nishing was new to me, but neither its novelty nor the 
 evidences of wealth and taste which abundantly met the 
 eye, impressed me so deeply as the stillness which every- 
 where prevailed; and which seemed so much a part of 
 the place, that when his Grace opened the second swing 
 door, and the shrill piping voice of a child, crowing and, 
 laughing in an ecstasy of infantile pleasure, came forth 
 and met us, I started as if a gun had exploded. 
 
 I know now that the sound, by giving my patron assur- 
 ance that he whom he sought was not there, but in his 
 closet, led to my admission; and that without that assur- 
 ance my lord would have left me to wait at the door. As 
 it was, he said nothing to me, but went on; and I follow- 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 199 
 
 ing him in my innocence through tlie doorway, came, at 
 the same moment he did, on a scene as rare as it is by me 
 well remembered. 
 
 We stood on the threshold of a wide and splendid gal- 
 
 !il; 
 
 A SLIGHT GENTLEMAN AMBLED AND PACED IN FRONT OF A CHILD 
 
 lery, set here and there with huge china vases, and hung 
 with pictures; which even then I discerned to be of great 
 beauty, and afterwards learned were of no less value. 
 Letting my eyes travel down this vista, they paused natu- 
 
300 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 1 J 
 
 
 lij 
 
 H:. 
 
 rally on a spot under one of the windows; where with 
 hi8 back to,u8 and ribbons in- his hands, a slight gentle- 
 man, who stooped soniewliat and was dressed in black 
 ambled and piced in front of a child of four or five ye-irs 
 old. The wintry sunlight which fell in cold bars on the 
 floor, proved his progress to be more showy than real- 
 nevertheless the child shrieked in its joy, and dancing! 
 jerked the ribbons and waved a tiny whip. In answet- 
 the gentleman whose long curled periwig bobbed oddly 
 on his shoulders-he had his back to us-pranced more 
 and more stoutly; though on legs a little thin and 
 bent. 
 
 A long moment I stared at this picture, little thinking 
 on what I gazed; nor was it until a gentleman seated at a 
 side table not ifar from the pair, rose hurriedly from his 
 chair and with a guttural exclamation came towards us 
 that I remarked this third occupant of the gallery. When 
 I did so. It was to discern that he Avas angry, and that my 
 lord was taken aback and disturbed. It even seemed to 
 me that my patron made a hasty movement to withdraw 
 Before he could do so, however, or I who, behind him 
 barred the way, could take the hint, the gentleman in 
 black, warned of our presence by the other's exclama- 
 tion, turned to us, and still standing and holding the rib- 
 bons in his hands looked at us. 
 
 He had a long sallow face, which seemed the sallower 
 for the dark heavy wig that fell round it; a large hooked 
 nose and full peevish lips; with eyes -both bright and 
 morose. I am told that he seldom smiled, and never 
 laughed, and that while the best tales of Kin<r Charles's 
 Court passed round him, he would stand abstracted or 
 on occasion wither the teller by a silent nod. The Court 
 wits who dubbed my Lord Nottingham, Don Dismallo 
 could hnd no worse title for him. Yet that he had a well 
 of humour, deeply hidden and rarely drawn upoji, no one 
 could doubt who saw him approach us, a ilicker of dry 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 201 
 
 amusement in his eyes giving the lie to his pursed-uplips 
 and the grimness of his visage. 
 
 Your (Jrace is always welcome," he said, speaking in 
 English a little broken and guttural. "And yet you 
 might have come more it propos, I confess." 
 
 "A thousand pardons, sir," my lord answered, bow- 
 ing until his knee well-nigh touched the ground. "I 
 thought that you were in your closet, sir, or I should 
 have taken your pleasure before I intruded." 
 
 " But you have news ? " 
 
 "Yes, sir." 
 
 "Ha! And this person "—he looked fixedly at me— 
 "is conctvied." 
 
 "Yes, sir." 
 
 " Then, my Lord Buck—" and with that he turned 
 and addressed the child who was still tugging at the rib- 
 bons, " Ilfaut partir ! Do you hear me, you must go ? 
 Go, petit vaurien! I have business." 
 
 The child looked at him boldly. " Fant il9'' said he. 
 
 " Oui! out! Say merci, and go." 
 
 " Merci, Mo7isieur,'' the boy answered. And then to 
 us with a solemn nod. " J'ai'eu sa Majeste for my che- 
 vaux!'' 
 
 " Cheval ! Cheval! " corrected the gentleman in black. 
 "And be off." 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 Apprised by what I heard, not only that T stood in 
 the Gallery of Kensington Court— a mansion which His 
 Majesty had lately bought from Lord Nottingham, and 
 made his favourite residence— but that the gentleman in 
 black whom I had found so simply emploved was no other 
 than the King himself, I ask you to imagine with what 
 
202 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 interest I looked upon him. Ho whom the old King of 
 France had dubbed in bitter derision, the '' Little Squire 
 
 o^ j" and whom two revolutions had successfully 
 
 created Stadtholder of Holland and Sovereign of these 
 Isles, was at this time forty-six years old, already prema- 
 turely bent, and a prey to the asthma which afflicted his 
 later life. Reserved in manner, and sombre, not to say 
 melancholy, in aspect, hiding strong passions behind a 
 pale mask of stoicism as chilling to his friends as it was 
 baffling to his enemies, he was such as a youth spent under 
 the eyes of watchful foes, and a manhood in the prosecu- 
 tion of weighty and secret designs, made him. Descended 
 on the one side from William the Silent, on the other 
 from the great Henry of France, he was thought to ex- 
 hibit, in mo*re moderate degree, the virtues and failings 
 which marked those ''amous princes, and to represent, not 
 in blood only, but in his fortunes, the two soldiers of the 
 sixteenth century whose courage in disaster and skill in 
 defeat still passed for a proverb; who, frequently beaten 
 in the field, not seldom garnered the fruits of the cam- 
 paign, and rose, Antaeus-like, the stronger from every 
 fall. ^ 
 
 That, in all stations, as a private person, a Stadtholder 
 and a King, his late Majesty remembered the noble 
 sources whence he sprang, was proved, I think, not only 
 by the exactness with which his life was wrought to the 
 pattern of those old mottoes of his house, Smvus tran- 
 quillus in Undis, and Tandem fit Surculus arbor, 
 whereof the former was borne, I have read, by the Taci- 
 turn, and the latter by Maurice of Nassau— but of two 
 other particulars of which I beg leave to mention. The 
 first was that more majorum he took naturally and from 
 the first the lead as the champion of the Protestant relig- 
 ion in Europe; the second, that though he had his birth 
 in a republic, and was called to be King by election (so 
 that it was no uncommon thing for some of his subjects 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 203 
 
 to put slights upon him as little more than their equal- 
 ay, and though he had to bear such affronts in silence), 
 he had the true spirit and pride of a King born in the 
 purple, and by right divine. Insomuch that many attrib- 
 uted to this the gloom and reserve of his manners; main- 
 taining that these were assumed less as a shield against 
 the malice of his enemies, than as a cloak to abate the 
 familiarity of his friends. 
 
 And certainly some in speaking of him of late years 
 belittle his birth no less than his exploits, when they call 
 him Dutch William, and the like; speaking in terms un- 
 worthy of a sovereign, and as if he had drawn his blood 
 from that merchant race, instead of— as the fact was— 
 from the princely houses of Stuart, Bourbon, Nassau, 
 and Medici; and from such ancestors as the noble Coligny 
 and King Charles the Martyr. But of his birth, enough. 
 
 For the rest, having a story to tell, and not history to 
 write, I refrain from recalling how great he was as a 
 statesman, how resourceful as a strategist, how indomita- 
 ble as a commander, how valiant when occasion required 
 in the pitched field. Nor is it necessary, seeing that 
 before the rise of my Lord Marlborough (who still sur- 
 vives, but alas, quantum rautatus ab illo!) he had no 
 rival in any of these capacities, nor in the first will ever 
 be excelled. 
 
 Nor, as a fact, looking on him in the flesh as I then 
 did for the first timo, can I say that I saw anything to 
 betoken greatness, or the least outside evidence of the 
 fiery spirit that twice in two great wars stayed all the 
 power of Louis and of France; that saved Holland; that 
 united all Europe in three great leagues; finally, that leap- 
 ing the bounds of the probable, won a kingdom, only to 
 hold it cheap, and a means to farther ends. I say I saw 
 in him not the least trace of this, but only a plain, thin, 
 grave, and rather peevish gentleman, in black and a large 
 wig, who coughed much between his words, spoke with a 
 
 
pi; 
 11 
 
 ill 
 
 ! '1 
 
 III 
 
 I !| 
 
 I' 
 
 204 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 foreign accent, and often lapsed into French or some 
 strange tdngne. 
 
 He waited until tlie door liad fallen to behind the cli'ld 
 and the long gallery lay silent, and then bade ray lord 
 speak. " I breathe better here," he said. '^ I hate small 
 rooms. What is the news you have brought ? " 
 
 "No good news, sir," my patron answered. "And 
 yet I can scarcely call it bad. In the country it will have 
 • a good effect." 
 
 ''Bien! But what is it ? " 
 " I have seen Ferguson, sir." 
 
 " Then you have seen a d d scoundrel! " the King 
 
 exclaimed, with an energy I had not expected from him; 
 and, mdeed, such outbreaks were rare with him. •' He is 
 arrested, theb ? " 
 
 "No, sir," the Duke' answered. " I trust, however, 
 that he will be before night." 
 
 " But if he be free, how came you in hie company? " 
 the King asked, somewhat sharply. 
 
 My lord hesitated, and seemed for a moment at a loss 
 how to answer. Being behind him, I could not see his 
 face, but I fancied that he grew red, and that the fourth 
 person present, a stout, burly gentleman, marked with 
 the small-pox, who had advanced and now stood near the 
 King, was hard put to it not to smile. At last, "I 
 received a letter, sir," my lord said, speaking stiffly and 
 with constraint, "purporting to come from a third per- 
 son " ^ 
 
 "Ah!" said the King, drawling the word, and nod- 
 ding dry comprehension. 
 
 " On the faith ci which, believing it to be from that 
 other— if you undc-stand, sir " 
 
 ^'^' I understand perfectly," said the King, and coughed. 
 
 I was induced," my lord said doggedly, "to give the 
 
 villain a meeting. And learned, sir, partly from him, 
 
 and partly from this man here "—this more freely— 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 205 
 
 "enough to corroborate the main particulars of Mr. 
 Prendergast's story." 
 
 "Ah?" said the King. "Good. And the particu- 
 lars?" 
 
 "That Sir George Barclay, the person mentioned by 
 Mr. Prendergast, is giving nightly rendezvous in Covent 
 Garden to persons mainly from France, who are being 
 formed by him into a band; the design, as stated by Pren- 
 dergast, to fall on your Majesty's person in the lane 
 between Fulham Green and the river on your returnin» 
 from hunting." 
 
 "Does he agree as to the names?" the King asked, 
 looking at me. 
 
 " He knows no names, sir," the Duke answered, " but 
 he saw a number of the conspirators at the Seven Stars 
 in Oovent Garden last night, and heard them speak openly 
 of a hunting party; with other things pointing the same 
 way." 
 
 " Was Barclay there ? " 
 
 " He can speak to a person who I think can be identi- 
 fied as Barclay," my lord answered. " He cannot speak 
 to Charnock " 
 
 " That is the Oxford man ? " 
 
 "Yes, sir— or Porter, or King; or the others by those 
 names. But he can speak to two of them under the 
 names by which Prendergast said that they were pass- 
 ing." 
 
 " C'est tout! Well, it does not seem to me to be so 
 simple ! " the Kii.g said with a touch of impatience. 
 " What is this person's name, and who is he ? " 
 
 The Duke told him that I had been Ferguson's tool. 
 
 " That rogue is in it then ? " 
 
 " He is privy to it," the Duke answered. 
 
 His Majesty shrugged^ his shoulders, as if the answer 
 annoyed him. "You Jinglish draw fine distinctions," 
 he said. " Whatever you do, however, let us have no 
 
 ( ■ .£■ 
 
2306 
 
 
 * 
 
 
 JH 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 u 
 
 repetition of the Lancashire fiasco. You will bear that 
 in mind, my lord, if you please. Another of Taafe's 
 pseudo plots would do us more harm in the country than 
 the loss of a battle in Flanders. Faugh ! we have knaves 
 at home, but you have a breed here-your Oates's and 
 your Taafes and your Fullers— for whom breaking on the 
 wheel is too good ! " 
 
 "There aro rogues, sir, in all countries," my lord 
 answered somewhat tartly. '' I do not know that we 
 have a monopoly of them." 
 
 " The Duke of Shrewsbury is right there, sir," the 
 gentleman behind the King who had not yet spoken, 
 struck in, in a good-natured tono. '* They are things of 
 
 which there is no scarcity anywhere. I remember " 
 
 ''Taisez.n Taisez!'^ cried the King brusquely, cut- 
 tmg short his reminiscences— whereat the gentleman, 
 smiling imperturbably, took snuff. "Tell me this. Is 
 Sir John Fen wick implicated ? " 
 
 "There may be evidence against him," my lord an- 
 swered cautiously. 
 
 The King sneered openly. " Yes," he said. " I see 
 I'orter and Goodman and Charnock are guilty! But 
 when it touches one of yourselves, my lord, then ' There 
 18 evidence against him,' or *It is a case of suspicion,' 
 or-oh, you all hang together!" And pursing up his 
 ips he looked sourly at us. " You all hang together! " 
 he repeated. "I stand to be shot . at-c'es^ dommage. 
 But touch a noble, and Gave la Noblesse!'' 
 
 .. t" ^.?}^ ^^ ^^ "^^ injustice, sir," my lord cried warmly. 
 I will answer for it " 
 
 "Oh, I do you an injustice, do I?" the King said, 
 disregarding his last words. ''Of course I do' Of 
 course you are all faithful, most faithful. You have all 
 taken the oath. But I tell you, my Lord Shrewsbury, 
 the King to whom you swore allegiance, the King crowned 
 in 89 was not William the Third, but Noblesse the first' 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 207 
 
 La Nohhsse ! Yes, my lord, you may look at me, and us 
 angrily aa you like; but it was so. Par dieuet diabh, 
 you tie my hands! You tie my hands, you cling to my 
 sword, you choke my purse! I had as much power in 
 Holland as I have here. And more! And morel " 
 
 He would have gone farther, and with the same can- 
 dour I think; but at that the gentleman who had inter- 
 rupted him before, struck in again, addressing him rap- 
 idly in what I took to be Dutch, and doubtless pointing 
 out the danger of too great openness. At any rate I 
 took that to be the gist of his words, not only from his 
 manner, but from the fact that when he had done— the 
 King looking gloomy and answering nothing— he turned 
 to my lord. 
 
 '' The King trusts your Grace," he said bluntly. " He 
 has never said as much to an Englishman before. I am 
 sure that the trust is well placed and that his Majesty's 
 feelings will go no farther." 
 
 The Duke bowed. " Your Majesty authorises me to 
 take the necessary steps then," he said, speaking some- 
 what drily, but otherwise ignoring what had passed. 
 ''To secure your safety, sir, as well as to arrest the 
 guilty, no time should be lost. Warrants should be 
 issued immediately, and these persons taken up." 
 
 " Before Ferguson can warn them," the King said in 
 his ordinary tone. " Yes, see to it, my lord; and let the 
 Council be recalled. The guards, too, should be doubled, 
 and the regiment Prendergast mentioned displaced. 
 Outts must look to that, and do you, my lord," he con- 
 tinued rapidly, addressing the gentleman beside him, 
 whom I now conjectured to be Lord Portland, "fetch 
 him hither and lose no time. Take one of my coaches. 
 It is a plot, if all be true, should do us good in the coun- 
 try. And that, I think, is your Grace's opinion." 
 
 "It should, sir. Doubtless, sir, we English have our 
 faults; but we are not fond of assassins." 
 
 %-. 
 
208 
 
 SIIREWSIiURY 
 
 ** And you are confident that this ig no bubble ? " the 
 King said thoughtfully. 
 
 " Yes, sir, I am." 
 
 By this time Lord Portland had withdrawn through ii 
 door at the farther end of the gallery. The King, tak- 
 ing a turn this way and that, with his hands clasped 
 behind him, and his head bent low, so that his great wig 
 almost hid his features, seemed to be lost in thought. 
 After waiting a moment the Duke coughed, and this 
 failing to attract the King's attention, he ventured to 
 address him. '^ There is another matter I have to men- 
 tion to you, sir," he said, with a touch of constraint in 
 his tone. 
 
 The King paused in his walk, and looked sharply at 
 him. *'Ali, of course," he said, nodding. "Did you 
 see Lord Middleton." 
 
 The Duke could not hide a start. '* Lord Middleton. 
 sir ?" he faltered. 
 
 The King smiled coldly, 
 from him, I suppose ? " 
 My lord rallied himself. 
 
 " The letter," he said, " was 
 
 "Ko, sir, it was not," he 
 answered, with a flash of spirit. " It purported to be 
 from him." 
 
 " Yet you went— wherever you went— thinking to see 
 him?" his Majesty continued, smiling ratlier disagree- 
 ably. 
 
 " I did," my lord answered, his tone betraying his agi- 
 tation. ''But to do nothing to the prejudice of your 
 service, sir, and what I could to further your interests- 
 short of giving him up. He is my relative." 
 
 The King shrugged his shoulders. 
 
 "And for years," ray lord cried warmly, "was mv 
 intimate friend. " 
 
 The King shrugged his shoulders again. " We have 
 fought that out before," he said, with a p.icfli of weari- 
 ness. " And more than once. For the rest"iu that con- 
 
Sim i:\vsiirin' 
 
 SOD 
 
 was 
 
 noctioii ami whatever others may Bay, Lord Shrewsbury 
 lias no ground to comphiin of me." 
 
 "I have cause, sir, to do far otherwise!" the Duke 
 answered in a tone suddenly clian^xed and so full of emo- 
 tion that it was not ditticult to discern that lie had forpjot- 
 ten my presence; which was not wonderful, as 1 stood 
 behind him in tiie shadow of the doorway, whither out of 
 modesty J had retreated. " CJod knows I remember it! " 
 he continued. " Were it not for that, if I were not 
 bound to your Majesty by more than common ties of 
 gratitude, I should not be to-day in a service which — for 
 which I am unlit! The daily duties of which, per- 
 formed by other men with indifference or appetite, fill 
 me with pity and distaste! tlie risks attending which — I 
 speak without ceremony, sir — make me play the coward 
 with myself a hundred times a day! " 
 
 " Caesar," the King said quietly, '' lets none but Osar 
 call him coward." 
 
 Kindly as the words were uttered, and in a tone differ- 
 ing much from that which the King had hitherto used, 
 the Duke took no heed of them. " Others wish for my 
 place; God knows 1 wish they had it! " he cried, his agi- 
 tation growing rather than decreasing. " Every hour, 
 sir, I pray to be quit of the faction and perjury in which 
 I live! Every hour I loathe more deeply the work I have 
 to do and the people Avith whom I have to do it. I never 
 go to my office but my gorge rises; nor leave it but I see 
 the end. And yet I must stay in it! I must stay in it! 
 I tell you, sir," he continued impetuously, "on the day 
 that you burned those letters you but freed me from one 
 slavery to fling me into another! " 
 
 " Yet an honest one! " said the King in a peculiar tone. 
 
 My lord threw up his hands. " You have a right to 
 say that, sir. But if anyone else — or, no I — I forget 
 myself." 
 
 "Something has disturbed you," said tlie King inter- 
 14 
 
 -: life 
 
 '■% 
 
 ' fp ^ 
 
 ■ 1 
 
11 
 
 i 
 
 I If! 
 
 210 
 
 siriiEwsnrriY 
 
 veninj? will, much kindncHS. ''Take time! And in the 
 meanwhile, listen to mo. As to the general dintaste yoii 
 expreHs for my service, I will not, and J do not, do you 
 the mjuHtice to attribute it— whatever you say your- 
 self—to your fears of what may happen in a poksibh, 
 event; I mc.in, ranrieu rer/iinf ri'stUuL If such fears 
 weighed so iieavily with you, you would neither have 
 signed tlie Invitation to me, nor come to me eight years 
 ago. But I take it with perhaps some apprehensions of 
 this kind, you have— and this is the real gist of the mat- 
 ter—a natural distaste for affairs, and a natural prone- 
 ness to be on good terms with all, rogues as well as good 
 men. It irks you to sign a death-warrant, to send one 
 to Newgate, and another to— bah, I forget the names of 
 your prisons; to know that your friends abroad are not as 
 well placed at St. Germain's as they were at St. James's! 
 You have no care to push an advantage, no anxiety to 
 ruin a rival; you would rather trust a man than bind 
 him. In a word, my lord, you have no taste for public 
 life m dangerous and troubled times such as these; al- 
 though perforce you have played a high part in it." 
 
 " Sir! " the Duke cried, with an anxiety and eagerness 
 that touched me, "you know me better than I know 
 myself. You see my failings, my unfitness; and surely, 
 
 seeing them so clearly, you will not refuse to " 
 
 " Eelease you ? " the King said smiling. " That does 
 not follow. For consider, my lord, you are not the only 
 one in the world who pursues perforce a path for which 
 he has little taste. To be King of England has a higher 
 sound than to be Stadtholder of Holland. But to be a 
 King and no King; to see your way clearly and be 
 thwarted by those who see no fool of the field; to have 
 France by the throat and be baffled for the lack of ten 
 thousand men or a million guilders; above all, to be served 
 by men who have made use of you— who have one foot 
 on either shore, and having betrayed their old Master to 
 
simKwsiiiin' 
 
 211 
 
 gain thoir ends, would now betray you to save their 
 necks. This, too, forms no hed of rosori! IJut I lie on 
 it! I lie on it!" lie concluded pldegniiiticallv; iind ih 
 he spoke he took u pinch of snulf. " Ju line, niv lord." 
 he continued, " to bo high, or what the w(»rid calls high, 
 is to be unha|)py." 
 
 The Duke sighed. "You, sir, have tluwe (|iialities 
 which fit you for your part," he said sadly. •• I have 
 not." 
 
 "Havel?" 
 
 The King said no more, but the gesture with which he 
 held out his hands, as if he bade the other mark his fee- 
 bleness, his short breath, his hacking cough, his pallor, 
 had more meaning than many words. "No, my lord." 
 he continued after a pause, "I cannot release you. I 
 cannot afford to release you, because I cannot afford to 
 release the one man who does not day by day beti-ay me, 
 and who never has betrayed me! " 
 
 "I would to heaven that you could say that! " the 
 Duke cried, much moved. 
 
 " I can, my friend," the King answered, with a gesture 
 of kindness. " It was nothing, and it is forgotten. I 
 have long ceased to think of it. But, c'ent vmi! I remem- 
 ber when I say I can trust no one else. I do my good 
 Somers an injustice. He is a dry man, however, *like 
 myself, and poor company, and does not count for much." 
 
 My lord, contending with his feelings, did not answer, 
 and the King who, while speaking, had seated himself in 
 a high-backed chair, in which he looked frailer and more 
 feeble than when on his legs, let a minute elapse before 
 he resumed in a different and brisker tone, "And now 
 tell me what has troubled our good Secretary to-day ? " 
 
 " The Duke of Berwick, sir, is in London." 
 ^ To my astonishment, and I have no doubt to the Duke's, 
 mere 
 
 mg 
 
 rely 
 
 this pretty plot, then ? 
 
 Ah! " he said, 
 
 •>•> 
 
 Is he 
 
 m 
 
213 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 i: Hi.. 
 
 "I think not," the Duke answered. "But I should 
 suppose " 
 
 " Tliat lie is here to take advantage of it," the King 
 said. '' Well, he is liis uncle's own nephew. I suppose 
 Ferguson sold him — us he has sold every one all his 
 life?" 
 
 " Yes, sir. But not, I think, with the intention that 
 I should carry out the bargain." 
 
 "EhV" 
 
 "It is a long tale, sir," the Duke said rather wearily. 
 " And having given your Majesty the information " 
 
 "You need not tell the tale? Well, no, for I can 
 guess it! " the King answered. " The old rogue, I sup- 
 pose, was fc|r ruining you with me if you hid the news; 
 and for damning you with King James if you informed: 
 which latter he did not think likely, but that instead he 
 would have a hold on you." 
 
 The Duke in a tone of much surprise acknowledged 
 that he had guessed rightly. 
 
 " Well, it was a pretty dilemma," said the King with 
 a sort of gusto. " And where is M. Fitz James in hid- 
 
 ing 
 
 g 11 
 
 "At Dr. Lloyd's in Hogsden Gardens," my lord an- 
 swered. But he could not conceal his gloom. 
 
 "Tie must be arrested," said the King. "A warrant 
 must be issued. Will you see to it with the others ? " 
 
 My lord assented; but with such a sigh that it required 
 no wizard to discern both the cloud that hung over him, 
 and also that now he had done what Ferguson had dared 
 him to do, the consequences lay heavy on him. The 
 King, after considering him a moment with a singular 
 expression, between amusement and reproach, broke the 
 silence. 
 
 "See here, my lord," he said with good nature. "I 
 will tell you what to do. Sit down now, and here, and 
 write a line to Monsieur, bidding him begone; and send 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 213 
 
 it by ti private hand, and tlie warrant by a messenger un 
 hour later." 
 
 The Duke stared at the King in astonishment. " Bnt 
 he will escape, sir," he faltered. 
 
 "So much the better," the King answered indiJl'er- 
 ently. "If we take him what are we to do with him V 
 Besides, to tell you the truth, my lord, he did me a great 
 service eight years ago." 
 
 "He, sir?" 
 
 "Yes," said the King smiling. "He induced his 
 father to fly the country, when, if he had- stayed— but 
 you know that story. So do you warn him, and the 
 sooner he is beyond La Manche the better." 
 
 The Duke looked unhappy. " I dare not do it, sir," 
 he said at last, after a pause. 
 
 " Dare not do it ? When I authorise it ? Why not 'i " 
 
 " No, sir. Because if I were impeached by the Com- 
 mons " 
 
 The King shrugged his shoulders. 
 
 "Ah, these safeguards!" he muttered. "These 
 town councils, and provincial councils, and States-Gen- 
 eral! And now these Commons and Lords! Shall I ever 
 be quit of them ? Well, there is but one way tlien. I 
 must do it. If they impeach me, I go back to Loo; and 
 they may stcAV in their oavii juice! " 
 
 He rose with that, and moving stiffly to the table at 
 which Lord Portland had been writing when Ave entered, 
 he sought for and found a pen. Then sitting in the chair 
 which the Groom of the Stole had left vacant, he tore a 
 slip of paper from a folio before him and, writing some 
 lines on it — about six, as far as I could judg(> — handed 
 the paper to the Duke, who liad remained standing at a 
 formal distance. 
 
 "Voila, Monsieur," he said. "Will that suit your 
 lordship?" 
 
 The Duke took it respectfully and looked at it. " But, 
 
 |s.|l 
 
314 
 
 SHIiEWSBURY 
 
 sir, it is in my namel " ho cried, aghast. "And bears 
 my signature." 
 
 ^^ ''M, Men, why not?" his Majesty answered lightly. 
 " The name is the name of Jacob, but the hand is the 
 hand of Esau. Take it and send it by a trusty messen- 
 ger. Perhaps the man who came with you, and who— 
 pheugh, my lord! I had forgotten that this person Avas 
 here! We have spoken too freely." 
 
 The oath which the Duke let fall as he turned, and 
 the face of dismay and anger with which he gazed on me, 
 were proof enough that he shared the King's opinion, as 
 he had shared his mistake. For a moment, the two glar- 
 ing at me with equal disgust and vexation, I thought 
 I should sink into the floor. Then the King beckoned 
 me to come forward, and I obeyed him. 
 
 ill 
 
 i l'j\ 
 
 ri 
 
 CHAPTER XXV 
 
 The odd and unexpected glimpse of generosity which 
 the King had allowed to escape him, in his interview 
 with the Duke, somewhat lessened the fears I must other- 
 wise have entertained at that moment. To which must 
 be added that I am one of those who, when violence and 
 physical danger are not in question, retain a fair mastery 
 of their minds. Nevertheless, I am free to confess that 
 as I went forward, I wished myself anywhere else in the 
 world, and would have sacrificed half my remaining 
 economies to be seated, pen in hand, and obscurely safe, 
 in Mr. Brome's room. 
 
 But the thing took a turn which relieved me when I 
 least expected it. As I approached, the chagrin in the 
 King's face gave place to a look of surprise; and that 
 again, but more slowly, to one of intelligence. "Ah! 
 
ISIIREWSBUliY 
 
 215 
 
 Je me trovijjais ! '' he muttered rapidly. "What did 
 you say his name was ? " 
 
 ''Price," the Duke answered, continuing to glower at 
 me. 
 
 " Price ? Ah, celn va sans dire ! liut — he is a cadet — 
 a dependent ? He is in some way connected — how do you 
 say it— related to your family! " 
 
 " To mine, sir! " the Duke exclaimed in a voice of the 
 utmost astonishment; and he drew liimself up us if the 
 King had pricked him. 
 
 " N'est-ce pas fa?'' his Majesty replied, looking from 
 one to the other of us. *' Yet he has so much a look 
 of you that it might be possible in some lights to take 
 him for your grace, were lie differently dressed! " 
 
 The Duke looked purely offended. "Your JMajesty 
 is under a strange misapprehension," he said, very 
 stiffly. "If this person resembles me — of which I was 
 not aware — I know notliing of the cause; and the like- 
 ness for what it is worth, must be accidental. As a fact, 
 I never saw him but once before in my life, sir, and that 
 perfecdyby chance." And he very briefly related the 
 circumstances under whicli we came together. 
 
 The King listened to the story, but as if he scarcely 
 believed it; and he smiled when the Duke came to tell 
 how he allowed mo to escape. Then, "And you have 
 never seen him from that day to this ? " he said incredu- 
 lously. 
 
 " Never! " said the Duke, positively. " But it is not 
 my intention to lose sight of him again." 
 
 "Ah?" the King said. 
 
 "I have not told you, sir, all that happened," the 
 Duke continued, reading, I think, the King's thoughts. 
 "But briefly, Mr. Ferguson, who has come to be little 
 short of a madman, drew a pistol on me at the close of 
 our interview; and but for his friend here — who had 
 been placed to listen, but at that broke from his place of 
 
 (ffi>' 
 
216 
 
 SIIIiEWSlWRY 
 
 hiding and knocked up the muzzle, so that it exploded 
 harmlessly— I should have come off ill." 
 
 "And I not much better," the King said, nodding and 
 looking grave. " Yon are unhurt." 
 "Yes, sir." 
 
 "Well, that puts another face on it; and if you are 
 retaining him beside you, what he has now heard will be 
 of the less importance. Hark you, my friend," he con- 
 tinued, addressing me, " can you keep your mouth shut ? " 
 I said humbly that I could and would. 
 "Then, Taisez! Taisez!'' he answered emphatically. 
 "And take this letter to Hogsden Gardens to Jiiehop 
 Lloyd's. See Bishop Lloyd and put it in his hands. Say 
 nothing, give no message, but go to your master's in St. 
 James's Square. Will you seal it, Duke, with a plain 
 seal ? Good. And go you but, man, by the way you 
 canif^ in, and answer no questions. And now for the 
 council and the wai-rants, my lord. We have lost too 
 much time already! " 
 
 To say that I went from the presence Avithout knowiuo- 
 hov/ 1 did it, and when I reached the courtyard had no 
 more idea how I had gained it, or by what staircase I had 
 descended, than if I had been blind, is but the truth; 
 nor is it to be wondered at when the amazing thing which 
 had happened to me is in the least degree taken into con- 
 sideration. In truth I walked on air and saw nothing, I 
 was so deeply overjoyed; and though it is certain that 'as 
 I went out I met one and another, passed the sentries, 
 and ran the gauntlet of curious eyes— for who that quits 
 a court escapes that ordeal ?— I was no more conscious" of 
 the observations made upon me, or the surprise I excited 
 as I went by, than if I had really walked in the clouds. 
 Issuing from the gates I took by instinct rather than 
 design the road to London, and hugging to my breast the 
 letter which the King^-thc King!— had entrusted to me, 
 made the best of my way towards Tyburn. 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 217 
 
 I had been wiser had I gone by the other road through 
 the village and taken the first coach I found ; there are 
 commonly one or two at Kensington waiting to carry pas- 
 sengers to London. But in the fluster of my spirits, I 
 did not measure the distance I liad to go, or tlie time 
 I should consume in walking. My main anxiety for tlie 
 moment was to be alone; alone, and at leisure to probe 
 my fortune and success, and appreciate both the relief 
 and the good luck I had compassed. I could have sung 
 as I walked; I could have skipped and danced; and a 
 gleam of sunshine breaking the March sky, and gilding 
 the leafless arms of the trees and the flat green pastures 
 that border the road north of Hyde Park, I was moved 
 to raise my hat and look upwards and revertntly thank 
 Providence for this wonderful instance of its goodness, 
 which I had not had the heart to do for some time. 
 
 When I descended a little to earth — a step which was 
 hastened by a flash of ^-ccollection that showed me Fergu- 
 son's niece waiting at Clerkenwell Gate, a little figure, 
 forlorn and desolate, yet with eyes of wrath and a face 
 puckered with determination — when I came I say a little 
 to myself and to think of Hogsden Gardens, and remem- 
 bered that it lay on the farther side of town by Bunhill 
 Fields, I was already at Tyburn, turning; and it seemed 
 to be no longer worth while to ride. The day was on the 
 wane, and the road thence to St. Giles's Pound was lively 
 with persons come out to take the air, through whom I 
 threaded my way at a good pace, and coming to Holborn 
 without mishap, turned up Cow Lane, and so got speedily 
 to Smithfield, and across the market to Long Lane, know- 
 ing my way so far without having need to ask. 
 
 Here, however, I took sudden fright. My mind, 
 which as I walked had been busy with the girl and the 
 steps I should take to find her— if indeed I wished to 
 find her, about which I was puzzled, the surrounding cir- 
 cumstances being so different — was invaded by the notion 
 
 1*1 
 
218 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 that I liad been long on the road. To this was added 
 next moment the reflection that messengers sent to arrest 
 tlie Duke could by taking a coach forestall me. The 
 thought threw me into a hot fit, which increased on me 
 when I considered that I did not know the remainder of 
 the road, and might waste much time in tracing it. Natu- 
 rally my first impulse in this strait was to seek a guide; 
 but Long Lane by Smithfield is only one degree better 
 than Whetstone Park, and I shrank from applying to the 
 sots and drabs who stood at the doors and corners, or 
 lounged out of the patched windows, and, lazily or rudely, 
 watched me go by. 
 
 In this difficulty, and growing the more diffident and 
 alarmed the more slowly I walked, I looked about eagerly 
 for some person, of passable aspect, of whom I could en- 
 quire. I saw none, and my uncertain glances and loit- 
 ering steps were beginning to draw on me advances and 
 an attention that were anything but welcome, when, 
 reaching a corner where an alley, now removed — I think 
 it was then called Dog Alley— runs out of Long Lane, I 
 saw a man, decently habited, come out of a house a little 
 way down the alley. He closed the door sharply behind 
 him, and, as I looked, went off in the opposite direction. 
 
 Here was my opportunity. Without losing a moment 
 I ran after him, and lie, hearing my steps, turned; and 
 we came face to face. Tlien, when it was too late to 
 retreat, I saw with unutterable dismay that the man I had 
 stopped was no stranger, but the person who had dressed 
 me up the night before and taken me to the mysterious 
 house in the suburbs; the man called Smith whom I had 
 first seen under the Piazza in Covent Garden, and again 
 in Ferguson's room. 
 
 To come face to face with anyone of the gang with the 
 knowledge that I had but now left the palace after inform- 
 ing against them was of itself enough to make my knees 
 tremble under mo. But of this man, though his civil 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 m 
 
 210 
 
 treatment had been in pleasant contrast to Ferguson's 
 brutality, I had conceived an instinctive dread, based as 
 much on his silence and reserve and a sort of strict power 
 with which I credited him, as on his ontemptuous treat- 
 ment of my tyrant. In a word, had I come on Ferguson 
 himself I could scarcely have been more overcome. 
 
 On hearing my footsteps he had turned on me very 
 sharply, with the air of a man who had no mind to be fol- 
 lowed, and no taste for followers. But on seeing who it 
 was his face grew light and he whistled his surprise. " I 
 was on my way to you," he said, "and here you are. 
 That is good luck. I suppose Ferguson sent you ? " 
 
 " No," I stammered, avoiding his eyes, and wondering, 
 with inward quakings, what was going to happen to me. 
 " I — I lost my road." 
 
 "Oh!" said he, and looked keenly at me. "Lost 
 your roa^, did you ? Well, it was very much to the pur- 
 pose, as it happened. May I ask where you were going ? ' ' 
 I shifted my feet uneasily. "To Bunhill Fields," I 
 said, naming the first place of which I could think. 
 
 "Ah!" he answered, with apparent carelessness, and 
 though it seemed scarcely possible he should fail to ob- 
 serve the heat and disorder into which his presence had 
 thrown me, he made no sign. " Well, you are not far 
 out," he continued, " and I will come with you. When 
 you have done your errand we will talk over my business. 
 This way. I know this end of the town well. And so 
 it was not Ferguson," he aaded with a sharp look at me, 
 " who sent you after me ? " 
 "No," I said. 
 
 " Nor his errand that brought you here ? " 
 "No," I said again, my mouth dry. "And I need 
 not give you the trouble to come with me. I shall be 
 taking you " 
 
 «, " ^"* ?^ ™y ^^y *** ^o* ^^ »"'" he answered briskly. 
 " And it is no trouble. Come along, my friend." 
 
 
I 
 
 I 
 
 220 
 
 suiiEwsJiuuy 
 
 I dared say no more, nor show farther reluctance; and 
 so, with feet like lead and eyes roving furtively for a way 
 of escape, I turned and went with him. Nay, it was not 
 my feet only that were weighted; the letter, and my con- 
 sciousness of it, lay so heavy on my mind that it was like 
 lead in the pocket. 
 
 I was indeed in a strait now! And in one so difficult 
 I could discern no way out of it; for though I could in 
 part, and in part only, command my countenance, I 
 failed absolutely to command my thoughts,, which did 
 nothing but revolve tumultuously abcut the words, 
 " What am I to do? Wliat am I to do?" words that 
 seemed written in red letters on my brain. Only one 
 thing was clear to me in the confusion, and that was the 
 urgent necessity I lay under of hiding my errand, the 
 disclosure of which must carry with it the disclosure of 
 the place whence I came and the company I had been 
 keeping. With time to think and coolness to distinguish 
 I should doubtless liave seen the possibility of announc- 
 ing my errand to the Duke, yet laying it on Ferguson's 
 shoulders; but pushed for time and unable at a pinch to 
 weigh all the issues, I could form no determination, much 
 less one leading to so daring a step. After one denial, 
 that is. 
 
 In the meantime we moved on; and at first my com- 
 panion seemed to be unconscious of my sluggish pace 
 and my perturbation. But presently I felt ratlier than 
 saw that from minute to minute he glanced at me as- 
 kance, and that after each of those inspections he laughed 
 silently. The knowledge that I lay under this observa- 
 tion immeasurably increased my embarrassment. I could 
 no longer put a fair face on the matter, but every time he 
 looked at me looked away guiltily, unable to support his 
 eyes. This presently grew so insupportable that to escape 
 from my embarrassment I coughed and affected to choke. 
 
 '' You have a cold, I am afraid," ho said, scarcely con- 
 
SIlREWSnURY 
 
 221 
 
 cealing the sneer in his tone. " And yet you look warm. 
 You must have walked fast, my friend 'i " 
 
 I muttered tiuit I luid. 
 
 "To overtake me, perliaps! It was i,'ood of you," he 
 said in the same tone of secret badinage. '• But we are 
 here. What part of the Fields do you want? White- 
 cross Street ? " 
 
 "No," I muttered. 
 
 " Then it must be Baxter's llents." 
 
 "No." 
 
 " Bunhill Row ? " 
 
 "No." 
 
 "No? AVell, there is not much else here," he said; 
 and he shrugged his shoulders, "except the Fields and 
 the burial-ground. Your business does not lie with tlie 
 latter, I suppose?" 
 
 " No," i said faintly. And we stood. 
 
 At another time I must have shaddered at the dreary 
 expanse on this uttermost fringe of tlie town that 
 stretched before us under a waning light; an expanse of 
 waste land broken only by the wall of the burial-ground, 
 or the chijjney of a brick-kiln, and bordered, where its 
 limits were visible, by half-built houses, and squatter 
 huts, and vast piles of refuse. Ugly as the prospect was, 
 however, ?nd far from reassuring to the timorous, I asked 
 nothing better than to look at it, and look at it, and con- 
 tinue to look at it. But Mr. Smith, who did not under- 
 stand this mood, turned with an impatient huigli. 
 
 " I suppose that you did not come here to look at that," 
 said he. 
 
 Like a fool I jumped at the absurd, the flimsy pretext. 
 
 " Yes," I said. " I— I - .erely came to take the air." 
 
 The moment the words were spoken I trembled at my 
 audacity. But he took it better than T expected, for 
 he merely paused to stare at me, and then chuckled 
 grimly. 
 
 ■M? 
 
 
232 
 
 SHREWSJiURV 
 
 Well," he said, " then, now that vou have taken 
 
 the 
 
 ii 
 
 air let us go back. Have you anything to object to that, 
 Mr. Taylor ?" 
 
 to 
 
 I could find nothing. 
 
 "I will come with you," he continued. " I want 
 sou Ferguson, and we can settle my business there." 
 
 lint this only presented to nie a dreadful vision of Fer- 
 guson, released from his bonds, and mad with rage and 
 the desire to nvenge himself; and I stopped short. 
 
 " I am not going there," I said. 
 
 "No? Then where, may I ask, are you going?" he 
 answered, watching me with a placid amusement, which 
 made it as clear as the daylight, that he saw through my 
 evasions. " Where is it my lord's pleasure to go ? " 
 
 "To BrWe's, in Fleet Street," I said hoarsely. And 
 if he had had his back to me at tliat instant, and I a 
 knife in my hand, I could have run him through! For 
 as I said it, and he with mocking suavity assented, and 
 we stepped out together to return the way we had come 
 through Long Lane— over which the sky hung low in a 
 dull yellow haze, the last of the western light— I had a 
 swift and stinging recollection of the King and my lord, 
 and the letter, and the passage of time; and could have 
 sprung from his side, and poured out curses on him in 
 the impotence of my rage and impatience. For the hour 
 of grace which the King had granted was gone, and a 
 second was passing, and still the letter that should warn 
 the Duke of Berwick lay in my pocket, and I saw no 
 chance of delivering it. 
 
 That Smith discerned the chagrin which this enforced 
 companionship caused me — though not the ground of it 
 —was as plain as that the fact gave him pleasure of no 
 common kind. I had no longer such a command of my 
 features that I could trust myself to look at him; but I 
 Vr-as conscious, using some other sense, that he frequently 
 looked at me, and always after these inspections, smiled 
 
STTREWSBURY 
 
 223 
 
 like a man who finds something to his taste. And I 
 hated him. 
 
 How h)ng with these feelings T could have borne to go 
 with him, or what I sliould liave <lone in the last resort 
 had he continued tlie same tactics, remains unproved; for 
 at the same corner half-way down Long Lane, where 1 
 had first espied liim, he paused. " I want to go in 
 here," he said coolly. ''I need only detain you a 
 moment, Mr. Taylor." , 
 
 "I will wait for you," I muttered, tingling all over 
 with sudden hope. While he was inside I could run 
 for it. 
 
 "Very well," he said. "This way.'' 
 I fancied that he suspected nothing, and that perhaps 
 1 had been wrong throughout; and overjoyed I went 
 with him to the door of the house from which I had soen 
 him emerge; my intention being to begone hotfoot the 
 instant his back was turned. The house was three- 
 stoned high, narrow and commonplace, one of a row not 
 long built, and but partially inhabited. Apparently he 
 was at home there, for taking a key from his pocket, he 
 opened the door; and stood aside for me to enter 
 "I will wait/' I muttered. 
 
 " Very well. You can wait inside," he answered. 
 If I had been wise I should have turned there and 
 then, m the open street, and taking to my heels have 
 run for my life and stayed for notliing. But, partly 
 fool and partly craven, clinging to a hope which was 
 scarcely a belief, that when he went upstairs or into an- 
 other room, I might stealthily unlatch the door and 
 begone, I let myself be persuaded; and I entered. The 
 moment I had done so, he whipped out the key and 
 thrusting the door to with his shoulder, locked it on the 
 inside. 
 
 Then tiie man threw off all disguise. He turned with 
 a laugh of triumph to where I stood trembling in the 
 
 
IH 
 
 n 
 
 ilm 
 
 384 
 
 HJUtEWSBURY 
 
 half-dark pafisage. "Now," he said, "wo will have 
 that letter, if you please, Mr. 'I'aylor. 1 have a fancy to 
 Hoe wliat is in it." 
 
 "Tiie letter!" [ faltered. 
 
 "Yes, the letter!" 
 
 " I liave no letter," I waid. 
 
 "Tiit-tut, letter or no letter, out with it! Do you 
 tliiuk I could not see you touching your breast every half 
 minute, to make sure that you had it safe — and not know 
 Avhat was in the wind! You are a poor plotter, Mr. 
 'I'aylor, aiul I doubt if you will ever be of any use to me. 
 iiut come, out with it! Unless you want me to be rough 
 with you. Out with whatever it is you have there, and 
 no tricks!" 
 
 He had 'a way with him when he spoke in that tone, 
 not loudly but between his teeth, his eyes at the same time 
 growing towards one another, that was worse than Fer- 
 guson's pistol; and I was alone with him in an empty 
 house. Some, who would have done what I did, may 
 blame me; but in the main the world is sensible, and I 
 shall forfeit no prudent man's esteem when I confess 
 that, after one attempt at evasion which he met by 
 wrenching my coat open, and thrusting me against the 
 wall so violently that my head spun again, I gave up 
 the letter. 
 
 " I warn you ! I warn you! " I cried, in a paroxysm of 
 rage and grief. " It is for the Duke of Berwick, and if 
 you open it " 
 
 "For the Duke of Berwick?" he answered, pausing 
 and gazing at me with his finger on the seal. "Why, 
 you fool, why did you not tell nie that ])efore? Froai 
 whom ? From that scum, Ferguson ? " 
 
 "From the Duke of Shrewsbury," I cried, rendered 
 reckless by my rage. 
 
 What?" he cried, in a voice of extraordinaiy sur- 
 
 prise. 
 
sur- 
 
 15 
 
 "NOW WE WILL HAVE THAT LETTER. IF VOU PLEASE" 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 227 
 
 "From the Duke of Shrewsbury," I repeated; think- 
 ing that he had not understood me. 
 
 " My God ! " he said, with a deep breath. " And have 
 I caught the fox at last! " 
 
 "You are more likely to be caught yourself! " I an- 
 swered, furiously. 
 
 Nevertheless, his words were a puzzle to me; but his 
 tone of slow growing, almost incredulous triumph told 
 something. Taking very little heed of me, and merely 
 signing to me to follow him, he sprang up the stairs, 
 and opening a door led the way into a back- room bare 
 and miserable, but lighted by the last yellow glow of the 
 western sky. It was possible to read here, and without a 
 moment's hesitation he broke the seal of the letter, and 
 tearing the packet open, read the contents. 
 
 That the perusal gave him immense satisfaction his 
 face, which in the level light, cast by the window, seemed 
 to gleam with unholy joy, was witness, no less than his 
 movements. Flourishing the letter in uncontrollable 
 excitement he twice strode the floor, muttering un- 
 formed sentences. Then he looked at the paper again 
 and his jaw fell. " But it is not his hand! " he cried, 
 staring at it in very plain dismay. And then recovering 
 himself afresh, " No matter," he said. " It is his name, 
 and the veriest fool would have used another hand. Is 
 it yours ? Did you write it, blockhead ? " 
 
 "No," I said. 
 
 "No! But now I think of it— thousand devils, how 
 came you by it ? By this— eh ? " he rapped out. " This 
 
 letter ? What d d hocus pocus is here ? What have 
 
 you to do with the Duke of Shrewsbury, that he makes 
 you his messenger? " 
 
 He bent his brows on me, and I knew that I had never 
 been in greater danger in my life. Yet something of 
 evil came to me in this extremity. Comprehending that 
 if I said I came from Kensington I might expect the 
 
 ii 
 
 I 
 
228 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 if 
 
 
 ill 
 
 worst, I lied to him; yet used the truth where it suited 
 me. "The Duke came to Ferguson's," I said. 
 
 "To Ferguson's?" he answered, staring at me. 
 
 " Yes, and bade him get that to the Duke, for his 
 lodging was known and warrants would be out." 
 
 Smith clapped his hands together softly. ''What!" 
 he cried. "Is he in it as deep as that? Oh, the cun- 
 ning! Oh, the cunning of him! And I to be going to 
 all this trouble, and close on despair at that! And— Fer- 
 guson gave you the letter ? " 
 
 "They both did." 
 
 "That old fox, too! And I was beginning to think 
 him a bygone! Yet he beats us all ! he beats us all! Or 
 he would have beaten us if he had not trusted this silly. 
 But I am forgetting. The Duke must be warned— if he 
 has not started. When was this given to you, Mr. Trusty 
 Taylor?" 
 
 "Two hours ago," I said, sullenly. 
 
 I was pleased to see that that alarmed him. "You 
 fool! " he said, " why did you not tell me at once what 
 you had got, and whither you were going ? If the Duke 
 is taken it will lie at your door. And if he is saved, it 
 will be to my credit." 
 
 " I will come with you," I said, plucking up a spirit as 
 I saw him about to leave. 
 
 "No, you will not," he answered, drily. "I am 
 much obliged to you, but I prefer to gain the credit and 
 tell the tale my own way. You will stay here, Mr. Tay- 
 lor, and when the Duke is away I'll come and release 
 you. In the meantime I would advise you to keep quiet. 
 Hoity-toity, what is this ? " he continued, as in my despair 
 T tried to push by him. " Go back, you fool, or it will 
 be the worse for you. You are not going out." 
 
 And, resisting all my appeals and remonstrances, he 
 thrust me forcibly from the door; and whipping outside 
 it, locked it on me. In vain I hammered on it with my 
 
siiBBWsBirjiy 
 
 fist and called after hiin, and threatened him. He clat- 
 tered unheeding down the stair, and I heard the house- 
 door slammed and locked. I listened a moment, but all 
 remained quiet; and then, wild with rage, I turned to 
 the window, thinking that by that way I might still escape. 
 Alas, it looked only into a walled yard, and was strongly 
 barred to boot. 
 
 God knows I thought myself then the most unlucky of 
 men; a man ruined when on the point of a great and 
 seemingly assured success. I flung myself down in my 
 despair, and could have dasht my head against the 
 boards. But presently, in the midst of my bewailing 
 myself, and when the first convulsive fit of rage was abat- 
 ing, a new thought brouH^+ me to my feet in a panic. 
 What if Smith, before ' - airned, fell in with Fergu- 
 son? The meeting wa. :._ iuore probable, inasmuch as, 
 if Ferguson succeeded in freeing himself, he was as likely 
 to hasten to the Duke of Berwick to warn him as to do 
 anythiog else. At any rate I was not inclined to sit 
 weighing the chances nicely, but hastening frantically to 
 the door, I tried it with knee and shoulder. To my joy 
 it yielded somewhat; on which, throwing caution aside, 
 I drew back and flung myself against it with all my 
 weight. The lock gave Avay, and the door flying open, I 
 came near to falling headlong down the stairs. 
 
 Still, I had succeeded. But I soon found that I was 
 little nearer freedom than before. The passage Avas now 
 dark, and the house-door, when I found my way to it, 
 resisted all my efforts. This drove me to seek another 
 egress, which it was far from easy to find. At length, and 
 by dint of groping about, I hit on a door which led into 
 a downstairs rooiu; it was unlocked and J entered, feeling 
 before me with my hands. The darkness, tlie silence of 
 the empty house, and my hurry, formed a situation to 
 appal the boldest; but I wus desperate, and extending my 
 arms I trod cautiously across the room to where the win- 
 
280 
 
 SHliEWSBURY 
 
 !* 
 
 ii 
 
 I 
 : i^ 
 
 dow slioiild bo, uud sought for and found the shutters. 
 
 I tried the bar, aud to 
 njy joy felt it swing. 
 I let it down softly 
 and dragged the shut- 
 ters open, and sweat- 
 ing at every pore, savv 
 through the leaded 
 panes the dark dull 
 lane outside, with a 
 faint light from a 
 neighbouring window 
 falling on the wall op- 
 posite. 
 
 I was seeking for 
 a part of the window 
 that opened, and won- 
 dering whether, fail- 
 ing that, I should have 
 the courage to burst 
 the casement and run 
 for it, when a step ap- 
 proaching along the 
 lane set my heart beat- 
 ing. The step came 
 nearer and paused, 
 and peering out, my 
 face nearer the glass, 
 I saw a man had come 
 to a stand before the 
 door. I looked, and 
 then, to say that my 
 knees quivered under 
 me but faintly ex. 
 presses the terror I felt ! For as the man moved he 
 broiighi, himself within the circle of light I have men- 
 
 I SAW A MAN HAD COME TO A STAND 
 KKKORE THK DOOR 
 
SintEWSBUJiY 
 
 231 
 
 s shutters. 
 )ar, aud to 
 it swing, 
 'wn softly 
 '. the shut- 
 nd sweat- 
 pore, saw 
 e leaded 
 3ark dull 
 !, Avith a 
 from a 
 I window 
 fe wall op- 
 
 iking for 
 e window 
 and won- 
 her, fail- 
 ould have 
 to burst 
 and run 
 I step ap- 
 long the 
 3art beat- 
 kep came 
 paused, 
 out, my 
 he glass, 
 lad come 
 sfore the 
 ced, and 
 that my 
 d under 
 itly ex- 
 oved he 
 ve men- 
 
 tioned, and at tlie same time he raised liis face, doubtless 
 after searching in his pocket for the kev; and tl rou. 
 the glass my eyes met those of Ferguson ^ ^ 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI 
 
 If, a few minutes before, I had thought mvself tlie 
 most unlucky of men and placed by that whirh had t 
 ready happened beyond fear or misfortune, it'ewb tie." 
 when I saw that sight from the window/and illtl 
 in the darkness, as if even from the road and rott 
 the panes Ferguson's eyes must discover me. Ignoln 
 whether the room in which I stood contained anyt" 
 
 tltr: "' ^""'"'f^''^ ^""^' °^ "«^«««i*y discover me 
 to the hrst person who entered with a light, my naturil 
 
 tl,.f/'f.!^ ' M- ''''* '"'^ *° '^° ^^'' '"^ ^'^'^- % the time 
 that, trembling in every limb, I had groped my way into 
 
 he passage, the key was turning in the lock of^he ou er 
 
 ; , and I saw myself within an arm's length of captu e 
 
 ^ lut r^; rr ^^^^^Vl'-"^^ ^^-P-atefy for the'sta : 
 case, but stumbled over the lowest step, and fell on mv 
 knees with a crash that seemed to shake the walls. Fo"r 
 
 w eie I fell; nor when, spurred by the imminence of the 
 
 np tl.e stairs and crouch down on the landing, a little to 
 one side, and out of eye-shot from below. 
 
 Willingly now, in return for present safetv. would I 
 have forgiven Fortune all her past buffets; foi- f F gu 
 on came up., as I thought him sure to come op, Iwas 
 lost; since I could neither retreat without noise, nor ill 
 
 V 
 
 % 
 
233 
 
 SHBEWSBUnr 
 
 could, knew where to hide. In this extremity, my heart 
 beating BO thickly that I could scarcely listen, and thought 
 1 must choke, I was relieved to hear Ferguson-after 
 spending what seemed to me to be an age, striking flint 
 and steel in the passage-go grumbling into the lower 
 room, whence a glimmer falling on the wall of the passacre 
 told me that he had at last succeeded in procuring a \wU 
 It was no surprise to me as I swe-^.ted and cringed iiwnv 
 hiding-place, to learn that he was in the worst of tem- 
 pers. I heard him swear— as I supposed— at the opon 
 shutter; then, almost before I had thanked Providence for 
 present safety, he was out again in the passage. I made 
 no doubt that he was going to ascend now, and I gave 
 myself up for lost. But instead, he stood and called 
 Mary! Mary? Do ye hear, you hussy? If ye are 
 
 hiding above there, it will be tlie worse for you, ye d d 
 
 baggage! Come down, d'vc hear me? " 
 
 Surely now, I thought," getting no answer, he would 
 come up, and my heart stood. But it seemed he called 
 only to make sure, and not because he thought that she 
 was above; for he went back into the lower room, and I 
 heard him moving to and fro, and going about to ^ight a 
 hre, the crackling of which gave an odd note of cheer- 
 fulness in the house. I was beginning to weigh t..^ pos- 
 sibility of slipping by the half-open door, on the chance 
 ot hnding the outer door unfastened; and with this in 
 vieAV, had risen to my feet, when a key again grated in 
 the lock, and supposing it to be Smith, I returned to mv 
 former position. •' 
 
 Had it been Smith, it would have been some comfoVt 
 to me; for I thought him more prudent if no less danger- 
 ous than the plotter, and I fancied that I had more to 
 fear from one thai, from two. But the step that entered 
 was lighter than a man's, while Ferguson's greeting told 
 the rest and made the situation clear. 
 
 Ha, 
 
 you are here at last, are you! " he cried with 
 
 an 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 233 
 
 angry oath. " Did yon want me to break every boue in 
 your body, lass, that you stayed out till now, and I to 
 have the tire to light ? You should have a pretty good 
 tale to tell or have kept clear of this! D'ye hear me? 
 Speak, you viper, and don't stand there glowering like a 
 wood-cat! " 
 
 *"I am here now," was the answer. My heart leapt, 
 for the voice was Mary's; tiie tone, sullen and weary, I 
 could understand. 
 
 " Here now! ' he retorted. " And that in to be all, is 
 it? Perhaps, my girl, I will presently show you two 
 minds about that. Where is the baggage ? " 
 
 "It is not here." 
 
 "Not here?" he cried. 
 
 " No," she answered. 
 
 " And why not, you Jezebel ? " 
 ^^ "You need not misname me," she answered coolly. 
 "I vvas followed and could not come here; and I could 
 not carry it about with me all aay. And I could not 
 send it, for there was no one liere to take it in. It is at 
 tho Spread Eagle in Gracechurch Street, to go by to- 
 morrow's waggon to Colchester. That is what I told 
 them, but it can be fetched away to-morrow." 
 
 "If I did not think you were a big liar, girl?" he 
 answered doubtfully; but I knew by his tone that he 
 believed her. 
 
 " You may think what you like," she replied. 
 
 "And how do you think I am to do for to-night?" 
 he answered querulously. 
 
 "You must do as you can," she said. "You have 
 your Hollands, and I have brought some bread and 
 meat." 
 
 " It is a dog's life," he said, with a snarl. 
 
 " It is the life ym v^hoose," she retorted sharply. 
 
 " Pcste! " he answered after a pauRp, of sheer astonish- 
 ment at her audacity. " What is it to you, you slut ? " 
 
234 
 
 SURE WSli CRY 
 
 i\ 
 
 I I 
 
 J .B7 
 
 " Why, a dog's life too! and not of my choice! " she 
 cried passionately, her voice breaking. •• What am I 
 better, as I live, than an orange girl in the streets ? What 
 do I get, and walk the piivement on your errands night 
 and day? What do I get? And always hiding and 
 sneaking, hiding and sneaking! And for what ? " 
 ^ "For your living, you beggarly baggage! " he roared. 
 ''Who feeds you and clothes you, you graceless hussy? 
 Who boards you and lodges you, and finds yo'i in meat 
 
 and malt, you feckless toad ? You shameless " 
 
 "Ay, call names! " she answered bitterly — and it was 
 not hard to discern that she was beside herself with the 
 long sick waiting and the disappointment. "It is what 
 you are good for! It is all that your plots end in! Call 
 names, and you are happy! But I am tired, and tired of 
 it, I tell you. I am tired of bare boards and hiding, and 
 all for Avhat ? For those that, when you have brought 
 them back, you will be as fierce to oust s^ you are now to 
 restore! And shameless it is you call me? " she contin- 
 ued with feverish rapidity. " Shameless? Have you not 
 sent me out into the streets a hundred times, and close on 
 midnight, and not a thought or care what would happen 
 to me so long as your letter went safe ? Have you not 
 sent me where to be taken was to be jailed and whipped, 
 and not a thought of pity or what a life it was for a 
 girl? Have you not done this and more?" she contin- 
 ued, breathless with passion. " And more ? And yet you 
 take praise for feeding me! And call me graceless and 
 shameless." 
 
 She paused and gav^ him room to speak, but though 
 he put on a show of 1 luster it was evident her violence 
 alarmed him. " Odd's name, and what is all this ? " ho 
 said. " What ails the girl ? What has set you up now, 
 you vixen?" 
 
 "You!" she cried vehemently. "You and your 
 trade!" 
 
SIIREWSliURY 
 
 93.J 
 
 *' Well," he siiici, with a sort of sullen reasonableness, 
 " and what is the matter with the trade ? What is wrong 
 with the trade, I say? I'll tell you this, my lass, you 
 would live badly without it." 
 
 "I would live honestly," she cried. ''And ad my 
 father lived! " 
 
 " You drab! " he cried. " Leave that alone." 
 
 At that, and when judging from the tone of his voice 
 I expected him to break out with fresh oaths and curses, 
 there was instead an astonishing silence, which fell for me 
 at an unlucky moment, for forgetting, in my desire to 
 see as well as hear, the risk I ran, I had crept down the 
 stairs, and now lacked but a pace of seeing into the room. 
 The noise ceasing, I dared neither take that step nor 
 retreat; and it was only when the silence had continued 
 83 long that curiosity overcame fear, that I ventured the 
 advance, and looking in, saw that the girl, her fire and 
 fury gone, was leaning against the wall beside the hearth, 
 her face averted; while Ferguson himself, in an attitude 
 of dejection scarcely less marked, stood near her, his head 
 bowed and his blood-shot eyes fixed on the fire. 
 
 "Ay, he lived honestly, your father," he muttered at 
 last. " It is true, my lass. I grant it. But he had a 
 fair wind, had Alan, and a short course; and if he had 
 lived to be sixty, God knows! We are what we are made. 
 I mind him well, and the burn we fished and the pickle 
 things we took out, and your mother that played with us 
 in her cutty sark, and not a shoe between us nor a bodle 
 of money; but the green hills round us, and all we knew 
 of the world that it lay beyond them. And that was all 
 your father ever knew, my lass. And well for him! Ay, 
 well for him! But woe's me, and woe to the man who 
 took my living, and woe to the evil King! " 
 
 His voice was beginning to rise ; in a moment he would 
 have reached his usual pitch of denunciation, of which 
 even now some of his many writings afford a pale reflec- 
 
II 
 
 I; 
 
 'it 
 
 ii 
 
 III- 
 
 286 
 
 sniiEwsiii'ky 
 
 tiou; but at the word Kinr/ there came a sliarp knocking 
 at the door, and lie paused. Voy nie, J turned in a 
 panic, and, heedless vviiat noise I made, hurried up the 
 stairs. Tlie steps creaked under me, but fortunately the 
 knocking was repeated so quickly and persistently that it 
 covered the sound of my flight; and before I liad more 
 than ensconced myself in the old place, Ferguson, doubt- 
 less in obedience to some signal, was at the door and had 
 opened it. 
 
 Immediately half-a-dozen men poured noisily in, breath- 
 ing hard and growling in low tones, and passed into the 
 room below. But until the outer door was closed and 
 secured, nothing I could catch, though fear sharpened 
 my ears, was said. Then, as Ferguson went in after 
 them, one of the newcomers raised his voice in answer to 
 a question, and cried with a rattling oath, " AVhat is up? 
 What is up, old fox ? Why, all is up ! And we'll all 
 swing for it before the month is over, if we cannot clear 
 out to-night! You are a clever one, Mr. Ferguson, but 
 you are caught this time, with better men. God! if I 
 had the sneak here that peached on us, I would cut his 
 liver out! I would- 
 
 )5 
 
 Two or three voices joined in to the same tune and 
 drowned his words, one asking where Prendergast was, 
 another where Porter was, a third indulging in threats 
 so horrid and blasphemies so profane that I turned cold 
 where I crouched. I began to understand what had 
 happened, and my situation; but that nothing might be 
 spared me Ferguson, in a quavering voice that proved all 
 was news to him, asked again what was the matter. 
 
 *' The Blues are moved." cried three or four at once. 
 " They were marching out when we left. The guards at 
 Kensington are doubled^ and the orders for the King's 
 hunting to-morrow are cancelled. They were hurrying 
 to and fro calling the Council when we came away, and 
 messengers were beginning to go round the taverns." 
 
siiUKWsin'nv 
 
 237 
 
 '* And they have seized tlie hom's at ^he King of Jiohe- 
 mia's Head," added anotlior. "so they know a lot." 
 
 "Hut is it— certain?" Ferguson asked, with a break 
 in Ids voice. 
 
 " Ay, as certain as timt we shall hung if wo do not get 
 over! " was the brntal answer. 
 "And the Captain?" 
 
 "I have been at Ids lodgings, lie has not been hoard 
 of since noon, lie ordered his horse then and they say 
 took the road; and h(dl to it. if that is so, he is lialf' way 
 to France by this! An<l safe! Safe, you devils, and we 
 are left here caught like rats! " 
 
 *'Ay, we'll go farther than France!" one shrieked. 
 " As for me I am off. I shall " 
 
 "No, by God, you don't ! " cried another; and flung 
 himself, as it seemed to me, between him and the doort 
 "You don't go and sell the rest of us, and save your 
 own neck. You " 
 
 " Where is Porter? " a third struck in. 
 
 "And Prendergast ? " 
 
 " They are not here! Xor Sir William! Xor Friend! 
 So what is the good of talking like that? " 
 
 "He will make a fat hang, will Sir William!" said 
 one, with a mad laugh that died in his throat. " It will 
 cure his gout." 
 
 At that, one of the others cried with furions oaths for 
 liquor; and I judged that Ferguson gave them of his 
 Hollands. But it was little among so many, and was 
 gone in a moment, and they calling for more. " There 
 is a keg npstairs," said he. " lu the back-room. But 
 get it for yourselves. You have hung me. To think 
 that I should have played the game with such fools," 
 ^^ They laughed recklessly, a savage note in their voices. 
 "Ay, you should have stuck to your pen, old fox," one 
 cried. " Then it was only the })rintor hung. But we'll 
 drink your health before you swing. Upl Keyes, and 
 
 .^A. 
 
.JliiiiJ 
 
 a if IP a 
 
 3:W 
 
 s/f/f/jwsnf'ifv 
 
 fetch the stufT. It may bo had, but we'll drink to the 
 8f|ueeziTig of the rotten oniugo once juore; if it bo the 
 hist toiiBt J drink! " 
 
 I |a 
 
 OTIAPTEU XXVII 
 
 Tin' terror that had j^ripped nio on their first entrance, 
 and drivinff all the blood in luy body to my heart liad 
 there set it bounding madly— this terror I should vainly 
 try to describe to persons who have never been in such a 
 situation or within a few feet of death, as I then fouml 
 myself. That, reckless and driven to the Avail, the con- 
 spirators would sacrifice me to their vengeance if they 
 discovered me I felt certain; and at any moment they 
 might come up and discover me. Yet behind me were 
 the confining walls of the rooms whence I knew of no 
 exit, and before me, where alone evasion seemed to be 
 possible, the open door of the room below, and the flood 
 of light that issued from the doorway, forbade the at- 
 tempt. I lay sweating and listening therefore, while they 
 snarled and cursed in the black mood of men betrayed 
 and hopeless; and yet because of the chance that after all 
 they might go out as they Jiad come, I could so far keep 
 my terror within bounds. 
 
 Not so, when I heard Ferguson bid the man mount 
 and fetch the keg. Had he come without a light I might 
 still have controlled myself and kept quiet; and holding 
 my breath though I were suffocated, and silencing my 
 heart though I died, might have lain and let him pass in 
 the darkness. Nay, had I crouched low, he need not have 
 observed me with a light; for I was a little beside the 
 stairhead, and to enter the room whence I had broken 
 out he need not face me. But when I heard him stum- 
 
.s7//,v;ir,s7>77.')' 
 
 i:in 
 
 bling upwiirdrt, a siulden soiifio of tlie loiiolineHs of the 
 house i)i that fur corner of town eamo on mo; and with 
 it, an overwlu-lming perception of my iieli)]e8.sness and 
 of the life and death Btrii^rf.|e to which the men l)elo\v 
 were committed— so that death seemed to he in the air; 
 which together so far overciimo me that I did the hist 
 tiling I shouhl have expected. As the man came up tlie 
 Ktairs, the light in hi.s hand, I rose up and stood, gaspincr 
 at him. "^ 
 
 lie paused and held up the light. "The revjl! *' i.p 
 
 said, staring. And then, "Who the »re voi/"' 
 
 Here, Ferguson! Here's your man! " 
 
 The only answer from below was a roar for lif|i (>>• 
 
 " What are you doing here?" he went on, puzzled as 
 much by my silence as my })resenco. 
 
 "I am— going," I stammered; a desperate hope risiiiir 
 in my breast at sight of the man's perplexity. He miglu 
 let me pass. 
 
 For aught I know he would have done so; and it is 
 possible that I might have gone unseen by the open door 
 below and gained the street. Jiut as he stood staring, a 
 second man came into the passage, and looked up and saw 
 me. " Hullo! " he said. " Who is that ? " 
 
 " Ferguson's man," Koyes answered. " But, boil me, 
 if I know what is the matter with him! " 
 
 The other called Ferguson and he came out, and saw 
 me; looked, and with a scream of rage, sprang up the 
 stairs. In the fury of his wrath— he threw himself on 
 me so suddenly and with so much violence and intention 
 that I was a child in his hands; and but for the other's 
 exertions, who not understanding the matter tore him 
 from me, I must have been choked out of nand. As it 
 was I was black in the face, dizzy, and scarcely conscious 
 when they freed me from him: nor in much "better ,ase 
 for the respite. For with all they could do he would not 
 release my shoulder, but dragging me down, cried breath- 
 
240 
 
 srrREwsnrRY 
 
 lessly and continuously to tlio others to listen— to listen! 
 That he had the traitor! tliat I was the informer! the spy, 
 the blood-eeller! And with that, and as he partly forced 
 and partly tugged me down the men thickened round 
 me, until dragged into the lighted room I found myself 
 hemmed in by a circle of lowering faces and gloomy eyot^, 
 a circle that, look where I might, presented no breach or 
 chance of escape, no face that pitied or understood. II o 
 who seemed to be in highest authority among them— 
 afterwards I knew him for Charnock^ the unfrocked 
 Fellow of Magdalen, who suffered with King and Keyes 
 —did indeed make Ferguson let me go; thrusting him 
 back and calling on him to tell his tale, and have done 
 with his blasphemy. But though I turned that way in 
 momentary hope of aid, I read no encouragement in a 
 face as stern* and relentless as it was fanatical. A lamp 
 hooked high on one wall, and so that it threw its light 
 downwards, obscured half the circle, and flung a bright 
 glare on the other half; but in light or shade, seen or 
 unseen, and whether drink flushed it, or passion blanched 
 it, every face that met my shrinking gaze seemed to be 
 instinct with coming doom. 
 
 In such situations fear, which spurs some minds, para- 
 lyses others. Vainly I tried to think, to frame a defence, 
 to deny or avoid. The glare of the lamp dazzled and con- 
 fused me. To Ferguson's passionate iterations, "The 
 Lord has delivered him into our hands! I tell you, the 
 Lord has delivered him into our hands! There is your 
 informer! I swear it! I can prove it! " I could find no 
 answer except a feeble, " I am not! I nm not! " which I 
 continued to repeat— while one plucked me this way that 
 he might see me better, and anotlier that way— until 
 Keyes struck me on the mouth, and thrusting me back 
 bade me be silent. 
 
 "And you, too, Mr. Ferguson," Charnock said, raising 
 his hand to still the tunii.lt, "have done with your bias- 
 
 
Sltlil'JWSBURr 
 
 241 
 
 m 
 
 phemy. And talk plainly. Say what you know, and 
 have no fear; if what you allege be proved, we will do 
 justice on him." 
 
 "Ay, by !" cried Cassel, the swearer. "A life 
 
 for a life." 
 
 " But, first, what do you know 'i " Char nock continued 
 brusquely. " Speak to the point. We must be gone by 
 midnight if we are to save ourselves." 
 
 Then, and then only, I think, Ferguson, hitherto 
 blinded by rage, became sensible of the fact that he stood 
 himself in a dubious position; and that to tell all, and 
 particularly to reveal the visit which the Secretary had paid 
 to him at his lodgings, would, even with the addition of 
 the attempt he had made on the Duke's life, place his 
 conduct in a light far from favourable. Not only were 
 the men before him in no mood to draw fine distinctions, 
 or take all for granted, but it was on the credit of his 
 name and as his tool that I had come to be mixed up 
 in the matter and gained my knowledge of it. It took 
 no great acuteness, therefore, to foresee that their sus- 
 picions, once roused, they would punish first and prove 
 afterwards, and bo as ready to turn on the master as the 
 man. 
 
 These, when I came to review the scene afterwards, 
 coolly and in safety, were, I had no doubt, the reflections 
 that gave Ferguson pause at the last moment, and occa- 
 sioned a kind of fit into which he fell at that— his eyes 
 glaring, his jaws moving dnmbly, and his hands springing 
 out in uncouth gestures, like those of a man half-para- 
 lysed—a fit which at the time was set down to pure rage 
 and a temper of mind always bordering on the insane. I 
 suppose tliat in that moment, and under cover of that 
 display, his crafty brain, apt in such crises, did its work, 
 for when he found his voice he had his tale pat; and 
 where truth and a lie most ingeniously and sometimes 
 inexplicably mixed would scarcely serve his turn or win 
 1« 
 
 a 
 
m 
 
 SNli^ws^trJii' 
 
 t' 
 
 n 
 
 him credence, he imposed on tlieni, even on Charnock, by 
 pure scorn and an air of superior knowledge. 
 
 " What I. know ? " said he. " You shall have it. It 
 IS enough to blast him ten times. To-day it happened 
 that the Secretary came to me to my lodgings." 
 
 Tor a moment the roar of surprise which'followed this 
 statement, silenced him. But in a moment he recovered 
 himself. 
 
 " Ay! " he said, looking round him, defiantly. " The 
 Secretary. What of it? Do you think that you know 
 everytliing, or that everything is told to you ? To-day, I 
 say, the Duke of Shrewsbury came to my lodgings." " 
 
 I' Why ? " cried Charnock, between hi/teeth. "Vhy ? " 
 
 "Why?" Ferguson answered. "Well, if you will 
 have it, to send a message through n\e to the other Duke, 
 as he has done three times before since his Grace has 
 been in England." 
 
 " To the Duke of Berwick ? " 
 
 "What other Duke is there?" the plotter asked, 
 scornfully. 
 
 "But G ! If the Secretary knows that his Grace 
 
 is in England " 
 
 " Well ? " 
 
 " What will he not know ? " 
 
 "I cannot say what he will not know, Mr. Charnock," 
 the plotter answered, with a cunning smile that brought 
 his wig to his eyebrows. " But I can say what he did 
 not know, lie knew nothing of your little business. 
 For the rest, when he left me I missed my man here, and 
 coming to enquire, learned that he had been seen to join 
 the Secretary at the door of the house, speak to him, and 
 go away witli him. That was enough for me. I changed 
 my lodging, slipped away here, and had been here an hour 
 when you came. As soon as you said that some one had 
 peached to-day I knew who it was. Then Keyes cried 
 that he was here, and there he was." 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 243 
 
 " But how did he come to be here? " Charnock asked 
 sternly, and with suspicion. 
 
 "God knows!" said Ferguson, shrugging his shoul- 
 ders; "I don't." 
 
 •' You did not bring him ? " 
 
 " Go to, for a fool! Perhaps he came to listen, per- 
 haps he was sent. He knew of this place. For the rest, 
 1 have told you all I know, and it is enough or should be. 
 Hang the dog up! There is a beam and a hook. You 
 hound, you shall swing for it! " he shrieked, passionately, 
 m he brought his crimson, blotched face close to mine, 
 and threatened me with his two swollen fingers. " You 
 thought to outwit me, did you ? You, you dog ! You 
 crossed me and thought to sell me, did you ? You dolt! 
 you zany! you are sold yourself! Sold and shall swing! 
 Swing! Ay, and so shall all my enemies perish! " 
 
 "An end to that," said Charnock, pushing him away 
 roughly. " All the same, if this is true, he shall swing. " 
 
 " Well, it is true enough," cried a man thrusting him- 
 self forward, while with shaking knees and chattering 
 teeth, and tongue that refused to do its work, I strove to 
 form words, to speak, to say or do something — something 
 that might arrest the instant doom that threatened me. 
 "It is true enough," continued he coolly. "I was on 
 the watch at the Kensington end this afternoon and saw 
 the Secretary arrive and go in to the Dutchman. And 
 he had this bully boy with him. I know him again and 
 can swear to him." 
 
 CHAPTER XXVITI 
 
 I BELIEVE that it is one thing to confront with calm- 
 ness a death that is known to bo inevitable, and quite an- 
 
 
 i 
 
 % 
 
 
 1: 
 
 ¥: I 
 
iJ44 
 
 sitkicwsiiiiky^ 
 
 inuiM 
 
 other and a far more difficult thin^r to assume the same 
 brow where liope and a chance remain. I am not greatly 
 ashamed, therefore, that in a crisis which amply justified 
 all the horror and repugnance wiiich mortals feel at the 
 prospect of sudden and violent dissolution, I fell below 
 the heroic standard, and said and did things, miles impar 
 A chilli. 
 
 Nevertheless, it is with ao good- will I dwell on the 
 matter; in writing, as in life, there are decencies and 
 indecencies; things to be told and others to be implied 
 Let few words then suffice, alike for the moment when 
 <^hainock, holding back the others, wrung from me, half- 
 swooning as I was, the admission that I had been to Ken- 
 sington, and that the sentry was not mistaken : and for 
 those minutes of frenzied terror wliich followed, when 
 screaming and struggling in their gras]), now trying to 
 fling myself down, ar'l now shrieking prayers for mercy, 
 I was dragged to a spot below the hook, and held there by 
 relentless fingers while a rope was being fetched from the 
 next room. I had no vision, as I have read some have, 
 of the things done in my life: but the set, dark faces that 
 hemmed me in under the light, the grim looks of one, 
 and the scared pallor of another, even Ferguson's hideous 
 visage as he hovered in the background, biting his nails 
 between terror and exultation—all these, even enlarged 
 and multiplied, I saw with a dreadful clearness, and a 
 keenness of vision that of itself was torture. 
 
 *'0h, God!" I cried at last. ''Help! Help!" 
 For from man I could see no help. 
 
 " Ay, man, pray," said Charnock, inexorably. " Pray, 
 for you must die. We will give you one minute. Here 
 comes the rope. Who will fasten it ? " 
 
 "A fool," cried a hard gibing voice, from somewhere 
 beyond the circle. " N"o other. " 
 
 I started convulsively: I had forgotten the girl's pres- 
 ence. 80 doubtless had the conspirators, for at the sound 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 243 
 
 they turned quickly towards lier; and, the ring of men 
 openjjig out in the movement, slie became visible tome. 
 She stood confronting all, daring all. Her lips red, her 
 face white as paper, her eyes glittering with a strange, 
 wild fierceness. Long afterwards she told me that the 
 sound of my shrieks and cries ringing in lier ears had 
 been almost more than she could bear: that as scream 
 rose on scream she had driven the nails into her palms 
 until her hands bled, and so only had been able to restrain 
 herself, knowing well that if she would intervene to the 
 purpose her time was not yet. 
 
 Now that it had come, nothing could exceed the mock- 
 ery and scorn that rang in her tone. "'A fool," she 
 cried, stridently, '^ has fetched it, and a fool will fasten 
 it! And, let who hang, they will hang. And two of 
 you. Ay, you at the back there, will hang them. Why, 
 you are fools, you are all fools, or you would take care 
 that every man among you put his hand to the job, and 
 was as deep as another. Or, if you like precedence, 
 and it is a question of fastening— for the man who 
 fetched, he is as good as dead already— let the hand that 
 wove the noose, tie it! Let that man tie it! " And with 
 pitiless finger she pointed to the old plotter, who, sneak- 
 ing, and cringing in the background, had already his eye 
 on tlie door and his mind on retreat. " Let him tie it!" 
 she repeated. 
 
 "You slut!" he roared, his eyes squinting, his face 
 hvid with fury. *' Your tongue shall be slit. To your 
 garret, vixen." 
 
 But the others, as was not unnatural, saw the matter in 
 
 a different light. " By , the wench is right! " cried 
 
 Cassel; and Keyes saying the same, and another backing 
 iiim, there was a general chorus of "Ay, the girl is 
 right! The girl is right! " At that the man who had 
 brought the rope, threw it down. "There's for me!" 
 he said, gloomily, and with an ugly gleam in his eyes. 
 
 4 
 
 ■ V: 
 
 :W> 
 
 W 
 
240 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 (^ 
 
 m\ 
 
 Let the old devil take ic up. It is his job, not mine, 
 and if I swing, he shall swing too." 
 
 " Fair! "cried all. •' That h fair! " And, '* That is 
 fair, Mr. Ferguson," said Charnock. " Do you put the 
 rope round his neck." 
 
 " I ? " Ferguson (spluttered; glaring from under hb wig. 
 
 "Yes, you!" the man who had brought ihv iope 
 retorted with violence. ''You! And why not, I'd j ike 
 to know, my gentleman ? " 
 
 "I am no liangman! " cried tl^t plotter, with a miser- 
 able assumplioR of diiuity. 
 
 But the words and i ' -^ evasion only inflamed the gen- 
 eral rage. ■' And are we i ' (. ij-vsel roai-.,d, with a volley 
 
 of oaths. '' You covenant 
 
 ing old quill-driver!' 
 that we are *here to 
 
 , pf-aim -singing, tub-thump- 
 he oiitinueu. "Do you think 
 ilo your dirty work, and squeeze 
 
 throats at your bidding ? Peste ! For a gill of Hollands 
 I would split your tongue for you. That and your pen 
 iiave done too much harm already ! " 
 
 "Peace!" Charnock said. "Go softly, man. And 
 do }i.i;, Mr. Ferguson, take up the rope and do your part. 
 Othei wise we shall have strange thoughts of you. There 
 have been things said before, and it were well you gave 
 no colour tc them." 
 
 I cannot believe that even I, writhing as a few minutes 
 before I had writhed in their hands, and screaming and 
 begging for life, could have presented a more pitiable 
 spectacle than Ferguson exhibited, thus brought to book. 
 All the base and craven instincts of a low and cowardly 
 nature, brought to the surface by the challenge thus flung 
 in his face, he quailed and cowered before the men; and 
 shifting his feet and breathing hard glanced askance, first 
 at one and then at another, as if to see who would sup- 
 port him, or who could most easily be persuaded. But he 
 found scant enrnuragcmcnt anywhere; the men, savage 
 and ill-disposed, to begin, and driven to the wall, to boot, 
 
 Mp\ 
 
I 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 m 
 
 347 
 
 haa ]/o\v conceived suspicions, and in proportion as delay 
 and liis corduct diverted tlieir rage from me, turned it on 
 him will' growing ferocity. 
 
 'Hero is the cock of the pit!" cried Keves, who 
 seemed to be a trooper and a man of no education, lack- 
 ing even the occasional French word or accent that be- 
 trayed the others' sojourn with King Louis. "D 
 
 hhn ! He would have us hang the man, but won't lay a 
 finger on him himself! He is no Ketch, isn't he ? Well, 
 1 hang no man either, unless I put a hand on himS' 
 And he pointed full at the plotter. 
 
 A murmur of assent, stern and full of meaning, echoed 
 his words. 
 
 "Mr. Ferguson," said Chamock, with grave polite- 
 ness, "you hear what this gentleman says? And mind 
 you, if you ask me, he has reason. A few minutes ago 
 you were forward with us to hang this person. And 
 among gentlemen to urge another to do what you will not 
 do yourself, lays you open to comment. It may even be 
 pretended, that if your rogue informed, you were not so 
 ignorant of the fact as you would have us believe you." 
 
 It was wonderful to see how the men, sore and desper- 
 ate, caught at that notion, and with what greedy ferocity 
 they turned on the knave who, only a few moments before, 
 had swayed their passions to his will. It was to no pur- 
 pose that Ferguson, head and hands shaking as with a 
 palsy, strove frantically to hurl back the accusation. His 
 wonted profanity seemed to fail him on this occasion, 
 while the violence which had daunted men of saner tem- 
 peraments proved no match for Cassel's brutality, who, 
 breaking in on him before he had stammered a score of 
 words, called him liar and sneak, and, denouncing him 
 with outstretched finger, was in the act to hound his com- 
 rades on him, when something caught the ear of one of 
 them, and with a cry of alarm this man, who stood near 
 the door, raised his hand for silence. 
 
 If 
 
848 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 Rage died down in the others' faces, and involuntarily 
 they clustered together. But the panic was of short du- 
 ration; hardly Imd the alui-in heen given and taken, or 
 the lamp winch hung against the wall been snatclied down 
 and shaded, before the sound of a key in the door reas- 
 sured the conspirators. For me, wiio throughout the 
 scene, last described, had leaned half-swooning against 
 the wall, listening, with what feelings the reader may 
 easily judge, to the contest for my life-for me, who now 
 stood reprieved, and for the moment safe, any change 
 might be expected to be fraught with terror But 
 whether I had passed the bitterness of death, or sheer 
 terror had exhausted my capacity for suffering, it is cer- 
 tain that I awaited the event with lack-lustre eyes; and 
 hearing a cry of, "It's Mat Smith! " felt neither fear nor 
 surprise, nor ev^n moved, when Smith entered, followed 
 by a woman, and with a quick glance took in the room 
 and its occupants. 
 
 " ^ood," said Cassel with an oath. " I tliought that 
 the soldiers were on us. But if they had been, curse 
 me, but I would have sent this old Judas to his place 
 before me!" 
 
 Smith looked with a grim smile from the speaker to 
 Ferguson; and raising his eyebrows, "Judas," said he 
 with ironical politeness, as he laid his cloak and cane 
 upon the table, "is it possible that you refer to my 
 friend Mr. Ferguson ? " 
 
 ^ "Strangle your friend!" Cassel answered coarsely 
 Do you know that his man there has blown on the 
 thing and sold us ? " 
 
 Smith's eye had already found me, where I leaned 
 against the wall, my hands tied. " I see, " he said coolly 
 ' I knew before that the game was up; and I have been 
 somewhere, and warned someone," he added, with a 
 glance at Charnock, who nodded. " But I did not know 
 how they had the office." 
 
SIIHEWSnUIiY 
 
 24!) 
 
 He gave it! That is Jiosv they I;..rl it! " Cassel re- 
 tortec . And it is my belief that like man like master! 
 Ami that that poor piece there would no more have dared 
 
 to inform without liis patron's leave than " 
 
 He left the end of his sentence to be understood: but 
 Charnock, taking up the tale and disregarding Fergu- 
 son 8 mutterings, described in a few words what had hap- 
 pened When he came to the girl's intervention in my 
 behalf the woman who had entered with Smith, and who 
 though she seemed to be known to the conspirators-for 
 her appearance caused no remark-had hitherto remained 
 fidgetting in the background, moved forward into the 
 room; and approaching the girl, who was sitting moodily 
 at a table by the fire, touched her cheek with her fingers 
 and slipping her hand under her chin, turned up her face! 
 io this the girl made no resistance, and the two women 
 remained looking into one another's eyes for a long min- 
 ute. Then the elder, who was the same woman I had 
 seen with Smith at the great lady's house in the outskirts, 
 let the girl s face drop again, with a little flirt of her 
 nngers. 
 
 " Doris and Strephon, I see ? " she said with a sneer. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX 
 
 What the girl answered I did not catch, for as she 
 raised her head again to reply, my ear caught the sound of 
 rising danger. Ferguson was speaking, his words, no 
 longer coherent, a mere frothing of oaths and calling 
 of iideous fates on his head if he had ever betrayed, if 
 he had ever sold, if he had ever deceived, now ran in a 
 steady current of wrathful denunciation. And the men 
 listened; he had their ears again; ..e was no longeron 
 
 I Bl- 
 ip' 
 
2S0 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 li- 
 
 liiill 
 
 his trial. Afterrardd I learned tout while my attention 
 was astray witii tiie womer,, >Sruifi , ? y staciiig what I 
 had stated to him— namely, tiiat the Secrcrarv had used 
 Ferguson as the intermedi;viy through whom to warn Ber- 
 wick— liad confirmed the plotter's story, and at a stroke 
 had restored his position. Whereon, full of spite, ond 
 desperately certain that however exposed hi .. j un otnor 
 sides I at any rate laiew enough to hang him, the wretched 
 man had set himself anew to compass my destruction. 
 Deterred neither 'jy the check he had received, nor by 
 the gloomy looks v' the conspirators, who responded but 
 sluggishly to his appeal, he drove home again and again, 
 and with wild ;v >rd8 and wilder oaths, the one point on 
 which he relied, the one point that was so dear to him 
 that he could not understand their hesitation. 
 
 ''Waste of time?" he cried. "We would be better 
 employed looking to ourselves and slipping awj, / to Rom- 
 ney, wonld we? But you are fools! You are babes! 
 There is the evidence that can gwear to you all ! There is 
 the evidence keen to do it ! There is the evidence in your 
 hands! And you will let him escape ? " 
 
 "There is evidence without him," said King sulkilv. 
 " Where is Prendergast ? " 
 
 "Oh, he is honest." 
 
 "But where is he ? And where is Porter ? " 
 
 "Where is Sir John Fenv, : \ for Hiat mji .-r?" re- 
 plied the man who had answercv. for Prendergast. " He 
 is too high and mighty to mix with us, and will only eat 
 the chestnut when we hav- got v., oai of the fire. For 
 that matter, where are Friend and Parkyns ? They are 
 not here." 
 
 ^^ " Pshaw! " Ferguson cried, in a rage at the digression. 
 " Why will you be thinking of them ? f lot v„u gee 
 that they are tainted, they are mi it? T' ,- . not if 
 they will ! And they are gentlemen besides, aud nui dirty 
 knaves like this feiiow." 
 
SHREWSnURY 
 
 m 
 
 ''For the matter of that," said Cassel, bhintlv. 
 
 Preston was a lord, lint lie sold Ashton. " 
 
 The woi .Is brought a kind of cold breath of suspicion 
 into the room, at the cliill touch of which each looked 
 steultlnly at his neighbour, as if he said, ^' Is it he? Or 
 he V " Ferguson seeing on this that he luado little nro^r. 
 ress, and that the men, though they looked at me venge- 
 fully, were not to be kindled, grew furious and more furi- 
 ous, and beguii to storm and rave, liut Charnock in a 
 moment cut him short. 
 
 "Mr. Ferguson is so far right," said lie, "ti-at if we 
 let this person go to perfect his evidence against us, we 
 shall bo very foolish. Clearly, it is to set a premium on 
 treason." 
 
 "Then let Mr. Ferguson deal with him." Oassel an- 
 swerod, curtly. " He is his man, and it is his business. 
 1 don t lay a band on him, and that is flat." 
 
 ' ' Nor I ! IS c ■ I ! " cried several, with eagerness. G od 
 knows if they ; ,ght in their hearts to curry favour 
 with me. 
 
 '' You are all mm' " Ferguson cried, beating the air. 
 
 ' And you are u coward'" Cassel retorted. "I'd as 
 soon trust him a^ you. vou are taken you'll peach, 
 
 Ferguson ! G yo., J know you will. You 
 
 will peach! You are as white-livered a cur as ever 
 lived! " 
 
 Th.n, seeing them divided, and the most blood .'- 
 minded of them— for such Cassel had been -i short time 
 before-taking up my cause, I thought that for certain 
 the bitterness of death was past; and I took courage 
 discerning for tlie first time solid land bevond the deeps 
 and black suffocating fears through which I had passed 
 For tlie first time I allowed my thoughts to dwell on the 
 future, and myself to hope and plan. But the warm cur- 
 rent of returning life had scarcely coursed through my 
 veins and set my heart beating, before Charnock's cold 
 
 
siiREwsnrnY 
 
 J ■• 
 
 voice, taking np the tale, smote on mv ear, and in a 
 moment daHhed my jubilation. There mis tlmt in his 
 tone j^ripjx'd my lioiirt afresh. 
 
 '• IW, man," ho said. - I'oa .! Js this a time to 
 be bickering ? Let us bo clear before m^ separate, what is 
 to be done with this man. For my part, I am not for 
 lotting lum go." 
 
 '^Nor I," said Smith, speaking almost for the first 
 time. 
 
 The others, lately so hot and impassioned, looked at 
 the speakers and at one another with a sort of apathy 
 
 Only J^erguson cried violently, ''Nor I, by ! Nor 
 
 !■ We are many, and what is one life ? " 
 
 *' Quito so, Mr. Ferguson, " Charnock retorted '' But 
 will you take the life V " 
 
 ^^ The plotter ^rew back as he had drawn back before. 
 
 It 18 everybody's business," he muttered. 
 
 "Then will you take part in it ? You are the first to 
 conden n. Will yon be one to execute ? " 
 
 Ferguson moistened his lips with his tongue, and, swal- 
 lowing with an effort, looked shiftily at me and away 
 again. The sweat stood on his face. For me, I watched 
 him, fascinated; watched him, and still he did not an- 
 swer. 
 
 A y."i,^* ^^'" ^'^''^ Charnock, at last. "You will not 
 And that being so, is there anyone else who will ' If 
 not, what is to be done ? " 
 
 " Put him in a lugger," Keyes cried, "at the bridge; 
 and by morning " ® ' 
 
 "He will be taken off at the Nore." Cassel answered 
 scornfully. "And you too if you think to get off that 
 way. There are more Billops in the Pool than the Bil- 
 lop who gave up Ashton. " 
 
 '* Gag him and leave him here." 
 
 "And have him found by the messengers to-morrow 
 
 morning ? " Cassel answered. " As 
 
 well and better, call 
 
snuKwsiiUkv 
 
 m 
 
 a ohair, and pay tlio chairmen, and bid thoin take hini 
 to the Secretarj'B ottice witli our coinplimerits." 
 
 " Well, if not here, in one of the other pens. Fer'>u- 
 8on knows plenty." " 
 
 The woman who had come in with Smith lau^'hcd. 
 '• That might answer," she said, " if his sweetheart were 
 not here. Do you think she would leave him to starve 'i " 
 
 There was a general stir and muttering as the men 
 turned to the girl. '' Pooh," said one, " it is Ferguson's 
 girl." 
 
 ^'' And your spy's sweetheart," the woman repeated. 
 
 The girl lifted her head and showed tlie room a face 
 pale, weary, and dull-eyed, '"lie is nothing to me," 
 she said. 
 
 And the men would have believed her; but the woman, 
 with a swift, cat-like movement, seized her wrist and 
 held It. "Nothing to you, my girl, isn't he?" she 
 cried. "Then you have the fever or the small-pox on 
 you! One, two, three " 
 
 Her face flaming, the girl sprang up and snatched 
 away her hand. 
 
 The woman laughed— and how I hated her! " He is 
 nothing to you, isn't he? " she said in a mocking tone. 
 '* Yet what will you not give me to save him, mv chick ? 
 What will you not give me to see him safe out of this 
 house? What ?" 
 
 "Peace, peace!" cried Charnock. "Time is every- 
 thing, and we are wasting it. Unless we would be taken, 
 every man of us, we should be half-way to Romnev Marsh 
 by morning." 
 
 *' Will you leave him to me ! " said Smith suddenlv 
 
 "Leave him?" 
 
 "Ay. Or better, let me have two minutes* talk with 
 him here, and if he comes to my way of thinking, I 
 will answer for him." 
 
 "Answer for him?" cried Ferguson, with a sneer. 
 
 i^ 
 
284 
 
 iyllUiJWSliUJtY 
 
 "If you answer for Jiim no better than I did, you will 
 give us small surety." 
 
 ''Ay, but I am not you, Mr. Ferguson," Smith re- 
 torted, in a tone of contempt, whereat the older man 
 writhed impotently. 
 
 "This person-Mr. Taylor or Mr. Price-or whatever 
 1118 name is— knows me and that what I say I do " 
 
 "Well, do-what you like with him," Charnock an- 
 swered peevishly, - so that you stop his mouth." 
 
 To my great joy the other men assented in the same 
 tone, being glad to be rid of the burden. It may seem 
 strange to some that those who had prepared an hour be- 
 fore to take my life, should now be as ready to let me go: 
 but there are few men who are eager to take life in cold 
 blood, and kill a man as they would a sheep. Moreover, 
 in favour of these men-on whose memory the Assassina- 
 tion Hot has cast obloquy not altogether deserved, since 
 7 „ 1'^"" ''^'^ assassins ; n the strict sense, and the worst 
 o± all ierguson, escaped his just fate-in their favour I 
 say, it IS to be observed that the fact which they designed 
 however l^orrid in the eyes of good ciLizens, and certaini; 
 not to be defended by me, was not in their sight so much 
 a murder as an act of private warfare carried into the ene- 
 my scountiy. So fully I am persuaded was this the case, 
 that had It been a question of stabbing the King in the 
 bjick or shooting him from a window, I believe not one 
 would have volunteered. Let this stand to their credit : 
 to he credit of men whom I saw and have described at 
 their worst, drunken, reckless, ill-combined, and worse 
 goyernea; whose illegal design had it been accomplished, 
 must have postponed the Protestant succession in these 
 realms; but who, misguided and betrayed as they were by 
 leaders more evil than tliemselves, evinced some spark of 
 chivalry in their lives-for all did it in a measuil for a 
 cause-and in their sulforinos a fortitude that would 
 ii.ive become better men and a nobler eliort. 
 
 
SHREWSBURY 253 
 
 So much of them. One released my hands, and an- 
 other at Smith's request found him a light; and my new 
 protector bidding me follow him, and leading the way 
 upstairs to the bare room at the back whence I liad 
 broken out, those we left were deep in muttered plans 
 
 TMK I-LACE WAS NOTHINC; MORK THAN A CONCEALED CUPBOARD 
 
 and whisperings of the Marsh, and Hunt's house, and 
 Harrison s Inn at Dimchnrch, before we were out of 
 Ji earing. 
 
 Smith's first act. when we reached the room above, was 
 to close the door upon as. This done, he set his candle 
 
236 
 
 aintj'jwj^iBL'jii' 
 
 on the floor— whence its flame threw dark wavering 
 outhnes of our figures on the ceiling-and moved to the 
 Jieartli. Here, while I stared, wondering at his silence, 
 he searched for some spring or handle, and finding it 
 caused a large piece of the wainscot to fall out and reveal 
 a cavity about three feet deep and six long. He beckoned 
 me to bring the candle and look in, and supposing it to 
 be a secret way out, I did so. However, outlet there was 
 none. The place was nothing more than a concealed 
 cupboard. 
 
 " Well ? " he said, when he had moved the candle to 
 Hud fro that I might see the better— his face the while 
 wearing a smile that caught and held my gaze. " Well '^ 
 what do you think of it, Mr. Taylor ? " 
 
 I did not understand him, and I said so, trembling 
 
 " It IS a tolferable hiding-place ? " said he. 
 
 I nodded; to please him I would have said it was a 
 palace. 
 
 " And not a bad prison ? " 
 
 I nodded again; staring at him, fascinated. I began 
 to understand. * 
 
 "And a grave?" 
 
 I shuddered. " What do you mean ? " I muttered. 
 Lay a man in there, bound hand and foot, and 
 gagged; what would you find in a year's time, Mr Price v 
 ]\otmuch." 
 
 I stared at him. 
 
 "If they knew of that downstairs," he continued, 
 stopping to snuff the candle with his fingers, then look- 
 ing askance at me, "would they use it, I wonder? 
 Would they use it ? What do you think, Mr. Price ? » 
 
 Again I made no answer. 
 
 " Shall I tell them ? " said he easily. 
 
 I' What-what do you want?" I whispered hoarselv. 
 Uut is better," said he, nodding. '' Well to bo 
 candid- almost nothhifr t-v- i^i-i^. ^ i"- l 
 
 'irst, that you 
 
SIIREWSBUBY 
 
 367 
 
 ^*r i 
 
 wavering 
 ed to the 
 s silence, 
 nding it, 
 nd reveal 
 beckoned 
 sing it to 
 ;here was 
 30ucealed 
 
 :.'andle to 
 
 he while 
 
 "Wellv 
 
 )liug. 
 
 it was a 
 
 I began 
 
 sred. 
 ot, and 
 . Price ? 
 
 Ltinued, 
 n look- 
 bonder ? 
 3e?" 
 
 t'sely. 
 
 to be 
 nit you 
 
 will give no evidence against anyone here. That of 
 course. ' 
 
 I muttered assent. I was ready to promise anything. 
 And secondly, that you will, when I call upon you, 
 do me a li tie favour, Mr. Price. It is a small matter, a 
 ^•ifle I asked you at my lady's house three days back. 
 Promise to do that for me, as and when I demand per- 
 formance and in ten miuutes from this time you shall 
 leave the house, safe, free, and unhurt " 
 
 - I promise "I said eagerly. - 1 p,o,nise honestly! " 
 But even while I spoke-this seemed to be the stran- 
 ges of all the things that had happened to me that night, 
 that this man should think it worth while to pledge me 
 under such circumstances, or value at a groat a pi'omise 
 BO given For the pledge M'as a pledge to do ill, and as 
 soon as he and the other conspirators were laid by the 
 heels or had fled the country, what sanction remained to 
 bind me? I saw that as I spoke, and promised-and 
 promised. And would have promised fifty times-with 
 the reservation that I did so under force viajeure Who 
 would not have done the same, being in my place ? 
 
 But I suppose I answered too quickly to please him, 
 and so he read my thoughts, or he had it in his mind from 
 the first to read me a lesson, for the words were scarcely 
 out of my mouth before he slid his hand into his breast 
 with the ugliest smile I ever saw on a man's face; and he 
 signed to me to get into the cupboard. "Get in " he 
 said between his closed teeth; and then when, terrified 
 by the change in him and the order, I began to back 
 from It, 'Get in!" he said, in a voice that set me 
 shaking; or take the consequences. Do you hear me? 
 I am no Ferguson to threaten and no more " 
 
 I dared resist no longer, and I crawled in, trembling 
 and pmyinghim not to shut me in-not to shut me in. 
 Lie down! '■• liu au\A r»i^„f;,,~ _.. . •,, , 
 
 A \ • 1 r' .„"." " ' .^"--Eitnij^ xju iiic with cruel eves, 
 and his hand still in his breast, 
 
 17 
 
258 
 
 SIIUEWSBUUY 
 
 I lay down, praying for morcy. 
 
 '*0n your back! On your back!" he continued. 
 And your hands by your sides. So! That is better 
 Now hsten to me, xMr. Price, and think on what I say." 
 When you want to be laid out for good as you are laid 
 out now wlien you are ready for your coffin and shroud 
 -and the worms-then break your promise to me, for 
 coffin and shroud and worms will be ready. Think of that 
 -think of that and of me when the temptation comes. 
 And hark you, you fancy," he went on, fixing his eyes on 
 mine and you count on it, that I shall be taken with 
 Uie others or escaping shall be wliere you need not fear 
 me. Don t deceive yourself. If a week hence I am in 
 prison, taKe that for a sign, and please yourself. But if I 
 am free, obey, obey— or God help you' " 
 
 I know not how to describe with any approach to fi- 
 delity the peculiar effect which words apparently so simple 
 had on me, or the terror, out of all proportion to t^he 
 meane chosen-for he spoke without oath, violence, or 
 passion-into which they threw me, and which was ^ery 
 far from passing with the sound. I had feared Ferguson! 
 but I feared this man more, a hundred times more! And 
 h^JZ ^'^^- rr^'T ^^'^"'' ^" explanation, save that 
 
 hiZ 1 ^r if'.T^ '" ''^™^^ ^^ "^^^^ ^" ^"d some- 
 thing beyond what he said. The plans for deceiving him 
 and breaking my word which I had entertained a moment 
 before melted into thinnest air while I lay and sweatedTn 
 my narrow berth, not daring to move eye or limb until 
 he gave me leave. 
 
 And he, as if he knew how fear of him grew on me 
 under his gaze-or in sheer cruelty, I know not which 
 -kept me there, and sat smiling and smiling at me (as 
 the devil may smile at some dead man passed beyond re- 
 demption)-kept me there God knows how long. But so 
 long, and to such pur])ose, that when at lengtli he bade 
 me rise, and looking closely into my face, nodded, and 
 
SHHEWSBURV ggg 
 
 told me I might go-nuy, later than that, whe.i he had 
 led me downstan-B aad opeaed the door for me, ancfZ- 
 ported me through it-for in the cold air I stagge cVS 
 
 o stir until he had twice-smiling the second time- 
 remt\ri??- '''' ""^'" ^^^^^ ^^^' "you are free. But 
 
 
 ClIAPTPJR XXX 
 
 Few men are condemned to such an ordeal as that 
 hrough which I had passed; and though someth ead 
 this, and are as remote from death as the wife, that may 
 be any day and must be one day, is from the yo^ng bac^e^ 
 lor-though some I say, and in particular those ho 
 never saw blade drawn in anger in their lives, buUave 
 done all their fighting in the cock-pit, may th nk hatl 
 carried It poorly in the circumstances, and^vith no eo 
 the front and bravado suitable to the occasion, I would 
 have them remember the old saying, .V. suior uvrj^l 
 wn n\""^ ask of a scholar only a scholar's work I 
 would have them lemember that in the shadow of 'the 
 caffold ev'en a man so gallant by repute as the Lord vZ 
 ton of that day, stooped to be an evidence; and that Tn 
 
 availed as little as the reckless courage of Monmouth or 
 the effrontery of Sir John Fenwick' to raise Ttsowne 
 above the common level. 
 
 Simplunter, it is one thing to vapour at the Cocoa-tree 
 among wits and beaux, and another lo ^.]-n the hLai'l 
 wlien ^le time comes, as no less a pe.on .h.n mv l! d 
 Bohngbroke discovered. -aM th'-it no %• ' . \ i li? 
 'U. I would have large talke™ to^^.ZZ t" IC 
 
 I! 
 
260 
 
 SITlihJWSlWItY 
 
 myself I am content that I came through the trial with 
 my life; and yet not with ho much of that either, tla 
 anything snrer than instinct guided my steps when al 
 was over to the )uke's home in 8t. James's Square where 
 not';::^' nfr -cl h Ip^e., it was won!lerfuI I w 
 
 Im-d ^t 1 f "''"^""^ "^^^•^- t^o^-tunately, my 
 
 lod marvelling a my failure to return before and 
 mindful even in the turmoil of that evenincr of the 
 service I had done him in the day, had given oi'S;!. L my 
 
 T^^:V^rT^ ^ ""'' recognised, half dead as 
 I nas and taken to the steward's room, and being let 
 
 bed all who saw me supposing that I was suffering from 
 vertigo, or some injury, though no marks of blows on the 
 head could be discovered. 
 
 That was a liight long remembered in London. Mes- 
 sengers with lights, attended by files of soldiers, were everv 
 hour passing through the streets, searching houses ami 
 arresting the suspected. From mouth to mouth rumou 
 of the conspiracy flew abroad; at nine o'clock it was stated 
 
 ha he had been seized; later that he was dead. Early 
 in the evening the draw-bridge at the Tower was drawn 
 
 and guaiucd; a whole battalion stood all night under 
 arms at Kensington; the Council was in peqoetua IsTt 
 ting; many houses were lighted from eve to dawn; nor 
 since the great panic of Beachy Head in '90 had k re 
 been an alarm so deep or widespread. 
 
 If this was so in the city generally, at the Secretary's 
 residence, whither many of the prisoners were broni^i 
 for examina ion as soon as they were taken, the excfte- 
 ment was at its height. The Square outside then nnen- 
 closed, was occupied all night by successiv; groups of 
 sight-seers, or of persons more nearly interesttd in the 
 event. One consequence of this was that, with all this 
 
8l.ook a,„l fright r 1 I '" 1"*'™ '" "'""I' "'f '!'<! 
 
 self ill Iwi ,-n o * wioie i awoke, and fnulin'' mv- 
 
 looked round me i,i amazement Tiri , ^\ '"/^ 
 
 .0 ™™ I u..,a„ to .can ItVa'd h^Z S' ,r™f 
 
 »n;:,;tfbrs';: ; :;"::;-/ ^^'°^»'r "■^^-' 
 
 At that aud tl,e tChte of hi Tl ;"""°>>' '""^ed. 
 aud the danger I hj esc °V f f I ^°T ""'""S''' 
 ana for a ,„„Lut t.i^'dS'ret.tne ! "l;: 'St' 
 t he oheertui aspect of the roo„, much aiding me"^ ircov 
 
 ^redTdlrd "'•'""■'«• "^ ""'*'"« "' '°H I P- 
 
 :^:;;;'Stfi--L^-!!i-{-™^ 
 
 tl.on., and panioulariy at a rTw of ^'i^h't' 2^::Z::Z 
 
5*1 
 
 302 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 seated on clmirs along one side of the hall, seemed to be 
 in the charge of a messenger and some tipstaves, and to 
 be prisoners awaiting examination. Between these last 
 and the stairs occupying the floor of the hall, and both 
 moving and standing still, were a crowd of persons of 
 condition, the greater part, to all appearance, clients of 
 the Duke, or officers and persons who, having the entree, 
 had stepped m out of curiosity to see the sight. 
 
 However, 1 had no eyes for these, for with a beating 
 heart I recognised among tiie dejected prisoners seated 
 along the wall, four whom I knew. King, Keyes, Cassel, 
 and lerguson himself, and I had anything but a mind to 
 stay to be recognised in my turn. I was in the act of 
 withdrawing, therefore, as quietly as I could, when I saw 
 with a kind of shock that the prisoner at the end of the 
 row, the one nearest to me and farthest from the door 
 was a girl. It scarcely needed a second glance to tell me 
 that the girl was Mary. The light at that inner extrem- 
 ity of the hall was waning, and her face, always pale and 
 now in shadow, wore an aspect of grey and weary depres- 
 sion that, natural as it was under the circumstances, went 
 to my heart, and impressed me deeply in proportion as 
 1 iiad always found her hard and self-reliant. But moved 
 as I was, I dared not linger, since to linger might be to be 
 observed. With a light foot, therefore, I carried out mv 
 lirst intention, and drawing back undiscovered, sneaked 
 up the staircase to my room. 
 
 My clue in the circumstances was clear. Plainly it was 
 to he close and keep quiet and shun observation until the 
 crisis was passed; then by every means in my power- 
 saving always the becoming an evidence in court, which 
 was too dangerous— to deserve the Duke's favour; and as 
 to the pledge I had given to Smith, to be guided by the 
 future. "^ 
 
 Such a line of conduct was immensely favonred by the 
 Illness to which I had so fortunately succumbed. Once 
 
nest t"Cr!i/ '"'/"'[ ''. ^*^ "»-- «-' effect weak- 
 ness and in a ,luy or two I might liope that things would 
 be o far advanced that n.y share in then, and kr^wTe^^ 
 of them wou d go for little, and 1, on the ground of L 
 
 In fact nothing could seem more simple than such a 
 
 aspect I felt that I had every reason to hug myself 
 
 fndtdtiiTrTef 'nr '' ''' ^'^' --"' -^ 
 
 maeea well ott. Here, in the remote toi) floor of mv 
 
 L 1, i!'. '^^" ^" *^'""^^^ "^«- I* ^a« not to be denie 
 that she had gone some way towards saving my life-'f 
 she had not actually saved it; and I had a kimf o fee 
 mg for her on that account. True, things we e .reatt 
 al red since we had agreed to go to iiomford togetW .^ 
 mcphas/acere; I had got no patron then, nor such nro 
 pects as I now had, these troubles once overplst Tf" 
 for all that, it troubled me to think of her rfL ^p^. 
 her, pale and downcast; and by-and-by T fo/ni m^ 
 again at the door of my room with my hand on theTftcl 
 rhence I went back, shivering and as'hamed, Ld caS- 
 myself and cbubtless rightly a fool; and triei, by 3 
 ngthe crowd in the Square-but timidly, since ella 
 
 tho S W-r' VT>^'^ '' vecogniseL-to diveHmy 
 thoughts. With so little success in the end, however 
 that presently I was stealing down the stairs aga n 
 1 knew that i<- ""i° i*^,^,— -' i t ^■, &"'"• 
 
 ^ . "" ^'^ impoBBiuiu I could pass down flm 
 
 mam sta,rca,e and through the servants unobserved, tat 
 
364 
 
 SJUnJWSBiRY 
 
 I took It that in such .i house there must be a hacksfairB: 
 and coming to the fiivst floor I turned craftily down the 
 maiu corri(]or leading into tlie heart of tlie house, and 
 pretty quickly found that stairca^e-u hich was as good 
 as dark— and crept down it still meeting no one- a 
 thing tliat surprised me until T stood in the long passage 
 on the ground floor corresponding with the corridoi above, 
 and found tliat the door, which from its position should 
 cut it off from the front hall, was fastened. Tantalised 
 by the murmur of voices in tlie hall, and my proxin.ity, 
 1 tried the lock twice; but the second effort onlv confirm- 
 ing the result of the first, I was letting down" the latch 
 as softly as I could, hoping that I should not be detected 
 when the door was sharply flung open in mv face, all the 
 noise and heat of the hall burst on me, and" in the open- 
 ing appeared a fetout angry man, who glared at me as if 
 ne would eat me. 
 
 " What are you doing here ? " he cried, " when twice I 
 have^tdd you-— -" There }.. ,.. pped, seeing who it was, 
 and Hallo! he continued ;'■ ., different and more civil 
 tone, it IS you, is it ? Are < !»u better ? " 
 
 Afterwards I learned thai he was Mr. Martin, my 
 lord 8 house-steward, but at the time I knew him only 
 for someone in authority; and I muttered an excuse. 
 
 VVe I, come through, now you are here," he continued 
 sharply. "But the orders are strict that this door be 
 kept locked while this business is going. You can see as 
 well, or better, from the stairs. There, those are the 
 men. And a rare set of Frenchified devils they look' 
 Charnock is in with my lord now, and I hope he may not 
 blow him up with gunpowder or some fiendish trick." 
 
 He had scarcely told me when, a stir in the body of the 
 hall announcing a new arrival, a cry was raised of " Room 
 for my Lord Marlborough and my Lord Godolphin ! " and 
 the press falling to either side out of respect. I had a 
 glimpse of two gentlemen in the act of entering- one 
 
SnitKWSHVUi' 
 
 m 
 
 i\ 
 
 a stout and very noble-looking nmu of florid conii.lexion 
 the other stout also and i,tM-8oi.Hblo, but a trifle smug 
 and soJornn. The steward had no sooner heard their 
 names annonn. ed, (i.an in u great Ihister he hade n.ekee,) 
 the door a minute; and pud.ing hLnnelf into the throng, 
 he went with immense importance to receive them 
 
 oheel nA'""""^' ^"''' "^ ^''''^ "* *'^« '"""^^"t that the 
 check of his presence was withdru^vn, I found myself 
 
 clo«e to the door; moreover, the movement, by thrustinc. 
 tose who liad before occupied the floor bu-k npon ^ 
 
 nooked for .'f I T" "^-^'"r'^'^^^- "»r eyes met. and 
 1 looked foi a flush of joy and surprise, a cry of recocmi- 
 
 stef fm^ ^"t though Marystarted, and iL an^tlnt 
 stared a me wide-eyed, her gaze fell the next moment 
 and muttering something inaudible, she let her cd h "ink 
 back on iier breast. 
 
 I did not remember that she, supposing I liad informed 
 
 BukeTst V'' --^vhiclAad 'bound me li tit 
 Duke of Shrewsbury, would see nothing surprising in mv 
 presence in his house, and more .I.eply wounded than I 
 can now believe possible by her demeanour, I bent over 
 
 ''Don't you know me? " I whispered. " Marv' " 
 on the flooT'' '"' "''"'^^ '^' ^'"^^ '^'^^^"^^' ^'^''^- «)'«« 
 
 "Can I do anything for you?" I persisted; but this 
 t^me I spoke more coldly; her silence began 'to annoy 
 
 so^t^iW h"^ then with a wan smile; and, with lips 
 '' Yof p!t f ^^ ''"'''•;; i^^^-^«'™«d their office, spoke. 
 
 You can let me escape," she said. 
 
 ''That is impossible," I answered promptly-to put an 
 end to such notions. And then to comfort her,^" bJ. 
 sides, what can they do to you!" I said confidently. 
 
^^ 
 
 
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 f^HRlJWSIiUliV 
 
 ■«. You iiYQ not a man, and they do not burn 
 .™.ne,,^,o,.^„„ „ow, „nle«. it i. to,- Z^^^Z 
 
 ■■ Thty will send ,„e to tho CoiMi)tei--,iri,l ,vl,i,, ,„„ " 
 sho muttoml «l,„.l,lc,-i„gso sncMeilv and vi„™ J /..t 
 
 voice" '' ' "'" """■ ■■' *'' "' ""I"'""""' i" h«- 
 I knew tliat it was not unlikely that tlie House of f'm. 
 reofon would be her fate; and that such I ate even to" 
 
 than death. And I felt something of the horror and lurk- 
 
 feTe'ri", ,'''■'' •""■""^" '■»■• ™»"' and strain^ 
 nei eyes. Iheliall was grownig dark round us and tl,„ 
 
 hrong of persons of all s„rt„ tiuU tilled it, o so„1°g „ 
 
 a.r with their breathing and the odour of he r elofhe 
 
 ana the jiLice. I saw this the beginning of the dre-.rv 
 roa<l winch she had to travel; and rny heart°r vo th.g wt i 
 
 and d d a thnig I very seldom did. I 8,vore 
 
 And then— heaven knows how I went on to , n,;„ 
 unwise and reckless, and in every Xou^^,:" 
 Certa mly ,t was not the n.ere opportunity tempto „" 
 though a chance more favourable the Jner J 7/ 
 l»ing completely engrossed ,t ttSe In eoZ 
 not have bee., conoeived-yet it »™ certain y not tta 
 
 1 nd ^n-or nof rV"" r""'" "' '"e mome^.tn,' It 
 o not nL',I', '"'^'."8 '" «ee whether I were watohed 
 
 »'" '' 1""'- '" '»»', all 1 remendjer of it is tli'Lt in 
 a paroxysm of pity, feeling rather than seein "tl at tl e 
 people round us con.pletely hid us, I touched the girl's 
 
not burn 
 Clieer 
 
 ng. 
 
 \vliip me," 
 ulently that 
 you can get 
 and spoak- 
 lot you had 
 dded, after 
 ice in her 
 
 ise of Cor- 
 , even to a 
 S8 tolerable 
 ■and lurk- 
 d strained 
 s, and the 
 zoning tJie 
 r clothes, 
 nfinement 
 ;he dreary 
 I ting vvitii 
 a passion. 
 
 gso 
 
 I thin 
 tlike me: 
 ted me — 
 attention 
 *n, could 
 lot tliat, 
 , in tiheer 
 watched 
 stion on 
 that, in 
 that the 
 le girl's 
 
 Snh'NWsiiURV „„. 
 
 rfn toir"" '^T' ""'' ^''' '^''''S^^'' -^^^ the natu- 
 ral, It toolifih, imi)ulse on wliich J acted w. f T 
 
 her to my room, hers to follow wh re ltd 'C ' 
 
 domg a most foolish thin.. ^ nutln \ ' '''''J^^^^y 
 
 ' ^^' "'y ]>ciu, shaking like an nwnpn .,^■,n t\i i i. 
 as white as a sheet-a si.^Ie foo tste rl^ a "^^ ''"^ 
 
 floor that edged the nZiZ Tt^ ^ *"" ^^'^ '"^'"'''^ 
 moment the^)uk" S LXHT''^ '']' ''^ ''''' 
 more than five naces ."^^ 1 r" ^.^'"'" ^^ ^^^^''^^'^^y "« 
 
 Tl 
 
 paces away, came plump upon 
 He surprise was ho complete that, we h 
 
 us. 
 
 iid no time to 
 
368 
 
 sniii'jwsnriiy 
 
 ove, and we ntood as if tnrncl to stone. Yet even 
 I'en, If 1 luul retained perfect presence of n.ind • , 
 bethougl.t ,ne that he nught nut know the girl, 'vo" 
 
 P ybably deeni her one of ins ho.usehold-a 1 
 
 f nlf aVh "'; "T "" ^^"-^^ ^^'^^"^» questioned 
 t^oZ^J""- ''-' ''-'' -- 1>-^ ^'-t he s.^ 
 
 " ^^'" ^7 better? " lie said, pausing witli the kindno«« 
 and consideration that so well became hini-.lr tl • 
 became no other man so well. ^' I ,,, gh^/to ee In 
 ^. a.. .bout. We shall want you p^sentir^V!;;;: 
 
 And then, if I had answered him at once, I l.-ive no 
 doubt that lie would have passed on; but my teetl cl 
 tered so p.tiably that I could only gape aT^n^n it 
 hat, seeing m a moment that somefhing was w'ron"' b 
 looked at my companion, and recognised her I saw hk 
 rn^:;''^^^;?"^ astomshment'and hismout.r r 
 ''Indwliardoy^:;^-^^'^^^^--^^^^^ 
 
 lie said no more, for as he reached that word the door 
 beside me opened gently, and a man slid round it ooked 
 
 n 1 -s li :'^T"^ ^tood his month agape., a stifleT : h 
 on hi. lip. It ,vas Cassel, his hands shackled. 
 
 At this fresh appearance the Duke's astonishment m-iv 
 be magtned, and could scarcely be exceeded. He sfH 
 
 1 nlit oTr '''1 1""^'^"^^^ ^^''- «*'" rem .be 
 nd It, or who might be the next to issue from it J 't 
 
 ^iri^JoT'T] T^"""^ ""''^'^^^ -^'^'-" 
 
 m tne feituation-whicli there certainlv was, thonrrh -it 
 «>et„,e was far from discerning it-and b i ! a m,n 
 who, in all circumstances, retained a natural ,L-,!^"!1 
 recov( 
 
 took a tone between the 
 
 ff liimself before any one of 
 
 •ave and ironical. 
 
 us, 
 .Afr. 
 
Vet even 
 iiind, ;ui(l 
 iiiid would 
 
 wtill-rooiii 
 'ell. For 
 [iieHtioned 
 tt liifi eye 
 't lie sus- 
 
 kindness 
 "uy, that 
 
 see thsit 
 . AVhat 
 
 liave no 
 'til ojiat- 
 ; and on 
 I'ono', lie 
 
 mw his 
 til qrew 
 le cried. 
 
 the door 
 
 looked, 
 
 led oath 
 
 int may 
 B stared 
 tied be- 
 . But 
 bizarre 
 ngh at 
 a man 
 lity. he 
 
 of 118, 
 
 " Mr. 
 
 SjIJiKWSHriiV o«j, 
 
 CasHol V " he HHid. - Unless n.y eyes deceive me ^ The 
 ge.itleiuati J saw a few minutes ago - " 
 
 /•'I'lie same," the (•oii8i,irator''aiiswered jauntilv but 
 his loir"" '-'' '"''"^ '''''^'"'^ ^^'^''"'^ '^'' Duke belied 
 «nnfn''''' l^^'';h"l>'^.'': my lord answered, taking out his 
 
 30U w II see, sir. that your presence here needs some 
 explanation ? May I ask how yon came here ? " 
 
 sweied. Kxeept that I came into vour house with no 
 
 nave outstayed ?ny welcome." 
 
 '^I believe it," said my lord drily, -if I believe 
 
 be ng so, may I beg that you will descend again? I an. 
 lo h to u,e force in my own house, Mr. Cassel. and to 
 call the servants would prejudice your case. If vou are 
 
 Xi:^:;:;:;;^;^^^^^"^^'-^-^^^^^--^-wi.iom 
 snS;:i::;:^jf£;ttT;:""^^^^^'t^'^ 
 
 ,, , ,, ; " , ^ snouki not have come up, but 
 
 t ut I ,,,v that .S,,uare-toes there smuggle <mt the 
 
 fdllow.'' '''' "*" """" ''''' ^°^^''"^ '^ '^'^""'^ "'^^^'^-''^l to 
 
 -Oil!" said the Duke, Hashing a glance at me that 
 
 Wned my knee-joints. - He smuggle., her o„t, did 
 
 swereJ' '"^."'' 'm -"^f '''''^ '^'' conspirator an- 
 sweietl. She saved his life vesterdav " 
 
 •■Indeed!" 
 
 "Ay when Ferguson would have hauiir him like a 
 dog! And m,t far wrong either! But mum! I an 
 ^•'•^'■- And save him or no, J ,lid not think 
 
 talking. 
 
 'I 
 
 •r 
 
 ••eature had the spunk to do the thing. N 
 
 not, 
 
 0, I did 
 
'i'fi 
 
 870 
 
 ^nnj'jwsjiCHY 
 
 iff!# t 
 
 i\o, ami as tor the wencli, your Graec " .i i -.i 
 
 the word Cussol dropped his voL - sht ?*'' 
 
 a cliild. Vo„ ]iave enou.r ?m' ii ""^ '""''" *'''"» 
 
 ^/^' />/... Jet her .o ny t d T M "-T"' '^"''' "'"' 
 'vu 1. . T ' "^ ^'"- '-'^t the girl ^o " 
 
 J lie ])uke raised his evebrows ^^r 
 ^aid iie. slowly "Ot \l^ ^ ''•'' "^ f^^'""' 
 
 (.'assel?" ^' ^* ''^^^"^ *^^^ •>•'>" talking, Mr. 
 
 doorway a couple of m Is ^ ' ? T^ '^'^'^'"^^ "^*« '^ 
 
 CIO. .iy as I ever' saw anythina- in iiiv lifo T i., i '^"/.^^ 
 examine her features. ^ ' ^ ^''''^ '^^" ^""^ 
 
 Nevertheless, ''I see no trn-i " i 
 "But I see vou Mv r .^ ', '^ '^V^'^^^^\ coolly. 
 
 von ,^, u .^^^ ""^ yo" to descend at once Do 
 
 JO , t r, he continued, addressi,i<r me slmrnlv " 
 With him, and when von ho,.. , i t- , ""•^H^^y, 'go 
 
 bring „,e the keTrf tCir.' "" ""^ """ '» "«' '"'" 
 ';nelU,u„,l <l!"saidOa68el. 
 
 " b..i;,g ™'2\r;t ti.atto,..'!" ^"" "-'"^^ *» "- 
 
 ; m 
 
 V r ■' 
 
voly. 
 
 ' Hiid with 
 more tliuii 
 "^(icre no in 
 
 no ffirl," 
 ^iiig, Mr. 
 
 afore, tJie 
 'd into a 
 'uld hear 
 failed to 
 ilian that 
 wlien, as 
 seen him 
 
 I coolly. 
 
 may be 
 
 e found 
 
 ce. Do 
 
 y^ "so 
 
 the hall 
 
 anger. 
 3 me — 
 
 lifting 
 lord," 
 
 For a 
 
 tmuEwsncuy 
 
 CilAPTKIi XA'XI 
 
 What was preparing, or what my lord intendp.l }».• 
 w"l wasTf i^T "'" '1" ^^'^" '^^^^"" undetected- 
 
 .'■ -'^** yo" ^^^ai^t an escape tiiat wav ' " s-iirl lio u,. ^- 
 w.tl, importance. •• ,.e.' o H ,,„ 1'. ? e I'l J 
 
 then on the other. " Where is tli-.t «inf fi 7 
 
 '' Tn w.'fii „ / ,, ^'"^ ^"''^^ ^'^s here ? " 
 
 .. i'' 7;,*^ y«'"' "^'i^ter," said Oassel coolly. 
 «nt Charnock is with him " 
 
 going to be kept n, tins croivd „I1 night V •• 
 
 „i. ,. . ^ time, and tlie messeuL'-ers and f;i> 
 
 taves being engaged at the farther end of the ,1 n 
 shepherding tl-.eir nnsoners on the .id. of tul hole-' ~ 
 
 and being crowded 
 
 ipou besides by gentlemen whom they 
 
snrtEwsiiiiii' 
 
 III 
 
 the lull; but the l.^ht hanging low, u.ul being intor- 
 c te.l by the ho.t.ls of those before us. burolv reached 
 the corner ni winch I .stood. Still I knew that this w^ 
 
 i?he^ /';«^^'^'™e! Mva« raised, and'- ]>rice! Who 
 8 he JIiK (race wants l>rice! " passing fr(,ni lip to li„ 
 he s ew..-d thrust me forward, an.l calle'l to the\.ear s^ 
 to make a Avay for me; and this being done I was sneedilv 
 p^sed hrough the crowd to a door .It the farther Sle of 
 the hall, where two servants who stood on guard there 
 
 adrnTtLr '' ''"""^'" ''''' ' ''■'' ^^« --> I -« 
 
 I knew that I was not yet out of the wood. Moreover I 
 hud cause to donbt how I now stood in the Duke's favour 
 or what nnght be his intentions towards me. ]iut at leas^ 
 hud escaped from the hall and from the stewar.l whom 
 1 had begun to regard with a mixture of fear and hatred- 
 and I prepared to face the ordeal before me with a corn-age 
 that now seems astonishing. However, for the moment 
 my courage was not to be proved. The roon^ in which I 
 found myself was large and lofty,, lined for the most par 
 .ith books and adorned with marble busts, that gleamed 
 ghostly ,n the obscured corners, or stood out bright and 
 white where the radiance of the candles fell on them. In 
 
 fnd l.t t wl"™''^'*^ ''''^ papers, pens, and books; 
 and th s, with three inquisitorial chairs, set along the far- 
 ther side of It, had a formidable air. But the three per- 
 ons for whose accommodation the chairs had been placed, 
 
 neartii, and so deei.ly engrossed in the subicct ufider dis- 
 
api Killed or 
 :i(l lowered 
 ' middle of 
 Miig iutor- 
 ly readied 
 t this wiiH 
 tt, when ii 
 ce! Who 
 lip to lip, 
 le nearest 
 IS speedily 
 er side of 
 ird there, 
 m, I was 
 
 toreover I 
 
 'fi fiivour, 
 it at least 
 I'd whom 
 I hatred ; 
 a coiirasfe 
 
 moment 
 ■ wliich I 
 nost part 
 .i,deamed 
 ight and 
 lem. In 
 the floor 
 I books; 
 
 the far- 
 iree per- 
 i placed, 
 fore the 
 ider dis- 
 5e, they 
 
 Grace," ]« wa« sayi, ,^.,0, 7'™ !!'''''''• ^"'''' 
 
 npper lip. "'""' "'"' 'lol'«ateIy dusted Lis 
 
 towards .„e. " If „ »„ tZ Zt f' '"'' '"' '""''' 
 
 pJln^-'llid'";*' .^ ''','"""*■• •' '*''"■ "^l 1""'= gain bv 
 thoroj'gw; ?. """"'■"■' " ''"•™"» '« 8° »'» "-matter 
 
 af p!?c.'ni"Uddr " .^s :!:ir ^'>' 
 
 wliether yo«r (Jrace ba. tl« s,.me. " ' '"°" "- 
 
 I know none why we should not eo into if '• h 
 
 inclining ,l^.eatf„:i™'^ 'continued slightly 
 may be said of Lord MarlbZth " ' "' ""' '"""' 
 
 nnconSal^d^lltal'l"™;™™'' *"^ ^■^'' '" " ™'» - 
 
 if he lied ! 7 » gesture so proud and easv that 
 
 he hul-a. s„n,„ have been found ready to asser't-he 
 
 If 
 
274 
 
 SIIHKWsiiUliy 
 
 I 
 
 showcl ii mastery of that art aliko amazing and incredi- 
 ble. •' And of Lord (Jodcdphin al«o." 
 
 " % <iod, yes! " tliat peer exclaimed, in sucli a hurrv 
 to assent that his words tumbled over one another. 
 
 "Just so. I ^ay so, my lord," tlie Karl repeated with 
 a faint ring of scorn in his tone, while Lord Godolphin 
 wiped his forehead. " But innocence is no shield against 
 calumny, and if these rogues can prolong their lives by a 
 he, do you think that they will not tell one 'i Or even 
 ten? " 
 
 "Ay, by God, will they!" cried Godolphin. "Or 
 twenty. I'll lay thee long odds to that. " 
 
 My lord bowed and admitted that it was possible. 
 
 "So possible," Lord Marlborough continued, lightly 
 and pleasantly, "that it is not long since your Grace 
 unless I am mistaken, suffered after that very fashion I 
 have no mind to probe your secrets, Duke— God forbid' 
 1 leave such tasks to my Lord Portland! JJut. unless I 
 am in error, when you last left office advantage was taken 
 of some"~he paused, and then with an easy motion of 
 his white hands-"- some trifling indiscretion. It was ex- 
 aggerated and increased tenfold, and placed in a li^lit so 
 false that"_ho paused again to take a pincli of'snufl:' 
 from his box-" that for a time even the King was in- 
 duced to believe-that my Lord Shrewsbury was corres- 
 ponding with France. Most amusing! " 
 
 The Duke did not answer for a moment; then in a 
 voice that shook a little, " It is an age of false witnesses," 
 he said. 
 
 "Precisely," Lord Marlborough answered, ehrugginff 
 his shoulders with charming bonhomie. " That is what I 
 say. They do not greatly hurt you or me. We have 
 clear consciences and clean hands; and can defy these 
 rutfaans. But the party must be considered." 
 
 "There is something in that," said the Duke, nod- 
 ding and speaking in his natural tone. 
 
Or 
 
 sfrnKwsurity o- 
 
 ''Ami Biimllor nicM, uh iiuiocent. l.i.f, ,,1010 vulnonihl,- 
 they too h|,„u],| bo considered " vuj.iorabi,.- 
 
 ^^-lVue,"«dd f..nl(iodolphin, nodding. '^ True, l,y 
 ' ;, , mv . r '"^ '^ ^' '^ 'luostionuhle policy." 
 
 «:«,.«;•; ';.'.';i,T--"' "•'*» ■ -"- 
 
 'Sir John Fen wick?" 
 
 '^Tes." 
 
 It has not been reported " 
 
 door that they ^iJ^^ ZX t'tTT 
 were crossing the roon. in that direct n"w en 1 , tn 
 hubbub arose ontside and a cry of alarm ^ 
 
 they had more than raised thei^- eveb ws Ta^' ' 
 
 another politely .bat it n.eant. tLToo^ e;id: Zb"? 
 stood was opened, and a gentleman cmne "^''^^J. "7 \ 
 with a flustered face at the J)uk "you V- "' ''^'^ 
 don," he said hurriedly - ol .f L '^'"^ " I^'^'"- 
 
 escaped!" "^"e^">- One of the prisoners has 
 
 "-Escaped! "said the Duke, -jfow^" 
 
 Uie woman has somehow slipped awiv Ti,v^ 1 
 the^owd it i» boHeve,,. ,„„,. >3,,,,»™>;„„ ^^;^_ 
 
«'« SiniHW'SHl'liV 
 
 Hut at U lilt, moiiuMit the unfortimnto otticiiil liiriiHi'If 
 uiipoiiml in the doorwiiy, looking' sciim] out of liiw liA.. 
 " Wliiit iH thirt ■"' Huid tlio Duke slmrplv. 
 
 Tlu!^ iium whiiriiKMod. -"Fore (lod it in not iiiv 
 fiuilt," li(. crit'd. •• Slio nover pa.ssud through tlio door! 
 Miiy I dii! if Hho did, your (I nice." 
 
 '• Sho may ha wtill in tho liall 'i " 
 
 " Wo liavc Hoarched ittlin)u«-h imd througii! " the niaii 
 atirtworod desi)eraU'ly. •• It rcinaius oidy to Hearoh tho 
 liouse, your (Iract — with your ]K'riMiHsion." 
 
 *• What!" the Duke criod. rcallv or ai)i.aroiitlv shirt- 
 k'd. •• Why the houHc':"' 
 
 "Sho muKt have slipned into tlio house, for slio never 
 went out!" tlio num answered dogjrodlv. "Sh.' never 
 went out! " ■ 
 
 The Duke shrugged Jiiri sliouhlers and turned to Lord 
 Marlborough. " Wiiat do you think V " waid he. 
 
 The Earl raised his eyebrows. Hy this time half the 
 concourse in the hall had ])ressed to the doorway, and 
 were staring into the room. -Call ACartin," said the 
 Duke. "And stand back there a little, if you i)lease/' 
 he continued haughtily. •' This is no public court, biit 
 my house, good peo])le." 
 
 It seemed to mo— but 1. behind the door, was in a 
 boundless friglit— that the steward would never eome. 
 He did come at last, and pushing his way througli the 
 crowd, presented himself with a bustling confidence that 
 failed to hide his apprehensions. Nor was the Duke's 
 reception of him calculated to set him at his ease. 
 
 " Stand out, man! " he said harshlv. and with a nearer 
 approach to the tyrannical than T had hitherto seen in 
 a man, who was perhaps the best-natured of his species. 
 "Stand out and ansM-er me, and tu) evasions. Did I not 
 give you an order of the strictest character, to lock the 
 inner door and leave it for nothing, and no one— while 
 this business was forward ? " 
 
siiwawsitiin- 
 
 il liiiiiHi'ir 
 
 '- liis lift'. 
 
 not iiiv 
 tlio door! 
 
 ' the iiiiiii 
 iiiroh tlio 
 
 tly utiirt- 
 
 lio uovor 
 Ik- never 
 
 to Tjord 
 
 Imlf the 
 viiy, iiiid 
 Hiiid the 
 l)lease," 
 )urt, but 
 
 'as in il 
 il" f'onie. 
 ugh tlie 
 lice thiit 
 Duke's 
 
 a nearer 
 seen in 
 species, 
 id I not 
 lock the 
 ! — while 
 
 Martin -aKped. " May it pl.-ase your drace." he .ai.l. 
 
 "1 
 
 "Answer, fool, what I asl<." the huko ,.rie.l. cuttin.^ 
 him Hh(.rt with the iit.noHt asperity. - Did I „ot .riv?. 
 you those orders ? " ' " 
 
 The man was astonislied. and iitterjv terrified. " Yes " 
 he said. •• It is true, your (irace." 
 
 " And did you obey tlieni 'i " 
 
 Poor Martin, seeing tiuit all the trouble was like to 
 rest on us hack, answered as in all probabilitv the Duke 
 expected. - 1 did, your (Irace, " he said roundiv "I 
 uive not been an arm's length from the door, nor has it 
 been unlocked. I have the key here," he continued, 
 producing it and holding it up. 
 
 •• Has anyone passed tiirough the <l.,or while you have 
 been on guard ':' " ^ 
 
 The steward had gmie too far to confess the truth now 
 and swore positively and repeatedly that no one had passed 
 through the door or coul.l luive passed through the door- 
 that It was impossible; that the door had been locked all 
 he time and the key in his possession: linally, that if 
 he girl hud gone through the door she must have gone 
 through the keyhole, an.d was a witch. At which Tome 
 present crossed themselves. 
 
 ^'I am satisfied," said the Duke, a.ldressing the mes- 
 senger. "Doubtless she slipped through the crowd. 
 «nt as you are responsible and will juive to answer 
 for the girl, 1 would advise you to lose no time in 
 searching such of Mr. Ferguson's haunts as are known 
 to you. It IS probable that she will take refuge in one 
 or o her o them. However, I will report the matter 
 as fa^ouraby as I can to the council. You can go 
 Lodge the others according to the warrants, and make no 
 second blunder. See these people out, Martin. And 
 for you, my lords, I am sorry that this matter has de- 
 tained you." 
 
 I 
 
'ml: 
 
 378 
 
 SniiEWSBURY 
 
 cnrhZf"'~"' ''^'"' ^'"" *^«^'^'^^'^'-- " «"i^^ tl.e Earl 
 
 "Pa* j7. /o..//" my lord answered, and smilincr 
 shrugged his shoulders. -lUen!^^ smilmg. 
 
 I 
 
 CnAPTER XXXII 
 
 I,«!!T *^^'''* inclination towards merriment I nu.st 
 
 a sWI togue u^all he need wish; and I laid „,y1, " 
 
 ^;u^ r.:; zti ii::; - f r -iLt!; V" 
 
 h ,." ]" !'■?,"," """'" • " ''" "»''' »i"' 1"« face averted and In. 
 
 faces aT'nfe ™' *"■"" """'^'■^l' "'"''"'!=' ''W-us 
 
 '■ Then leave iis. Shut the door. " 
 
 If my lord had sjwke.i the momeTit that was done -md 
 we were alone, I think it would have relie e?n e i" 
 he eon ,m,ed to search an,„„g the papers „n t Ic ill 
 and lett me to sink under the weight of the sfnt«1,. v 
 w.t . its ordered rows „f hooks, its tcli, 1 „ ^ind tZ 
 mnto busts of the great dead. The J)nk, '« ell. l i 
 a chair, his embroidered star ,-1 terin. „, " b e^t'T 
 -vord and despatol,-bo.. wer^ on another c5,ah;t;,d: 
 
SIlRJ'JWSJiriiY 
 
 m'pl""' iff,,'" 'V'" "'"""' ^'''™^'' ™»"g "'e 
 p.ipeib on the tab e. From tlip Inffv ,.. .. ^ i ■ » 
 
 veined marble that, suppor ed bVl/ul ^^^^^^ '^^^^^^^^^ ''' 
 towered high above me (the work L I £arntd ^ ' , =^ 
 of thegreatIni,o Jones;, the portri "t o Tm , n"^ 
 
 n \h: n '" '" '" ""^"^ ^^'-^^"^^ ^— ^ do " on m ' 
 and the sti Iness continuing unbroken, and all the thin 5 
 
 I saw speaking to me gravely and weightilv, o 1 wmfd 
 lytherto unknown to me-a world wherein the I, fn 
 c bu.g.l the thick pile of carpets for tl^^lndhig t: d 
 lanan, and orders were obeyed unspoken, and saW 
 ves el serva.its went to and fro at a sigr.-a ^orld of old 
 t adz ions old observances, and old customs tt 
 
 •onnd this man still young, I felt my spirits sink- hf 
 d stance was so great from the sphere I hL known hi h! 
 et to Every moment the silence grew more oppressive 
 the ticking of the clock more monotonous; it was an m 
 
 end of the table, -and write what I shall tell you." 
 
 And before I could marvel at the ease of the transition 
 I was seated, quietly writing; what I can no longer remlm' 
 ber, for it was the first only of many luindred m rs'^^f 
 private and public importance, which I was priv £d to 
 
 like ; thlt re^f-btT- ''7 ''''''' '''^^^' -'^ ^^ 
 Jikeiy that I exhibited much of the natural capacity for 
 
 netr;'' "^"V' '^" '^^^^ ->' ''' t« manifest sLe 
 nevertheless Ins Grac. after glancing .ver it, was pi ased 
 
 ^thX:!^^^ :!^t^^- "^ou learned to L^:^ 
 
 " Yes, your Grace." 
 
 "Then now," he continued, seating himself- I had 
 risen re.pectfully-^_-rell mc what hap ^ 
 
 ¥ 
 
 terday. 
 
 Jpened to you yes- 
 

 280 
 
 sinu:wsjiriiY 
 
 I had no choice but to obey, but before I told my storv 
 seeing hat he was in a good luimour an.l so fav^frabh- 
 
 in the most moving terms possible I conjured him to 
 
 I would tell him all, I would be faithful and true to him 
 and ask nothing better than to be his servant-but b n 
 informer m court I dured not. 
 
 - You dare not?" he said., with an odd look at me. 
 And why not, man?" 
 But all I could answer was, " I dare not* " 
 
 wtLr.M 
 
 But I still clung to my point. I would tell, but I 
 would give no evidence; I dared not 
 
 - I am afraid, Mr. Price," he said at that, and with an 
 
 cLu^r "' "''""^^^' ^^''''' ^^'^^ -^ -"-"»»g of a 
 
 migl"ll;t;t^''""'^ '''"' '^"' *^"* '' ""^^^^ b«-it 
 
 - But~who of us is not ? " he answered, with a sudden 
 ges ure between scorn and self-reproof. - ])o you mean 
 that, man ? " And he fixed his lyes on me. '"Ve ll" 
 IS tr;^e. AVhoof usisnot?" he repeated, slowly; and 
 turning from me, he began to pace the ro^m, hi^ hands 
 clasped behind him; so that before he had mai a single 
 tu™ It was easy to see that he had forgotten my presence 
 
 A\ho of us IS not afra.d-if not of these scoundrels 
 still of the future, of the return, of Jacobus irncund^^^ 
 rnfje.^, of another 29th of May ? To be safe now and to 
 be safe thc,i_who ,s n.t thinking of that and living for 
 that, and planning for that ? " 
 
 _ He was silent a moment, then with something of anger 
 m his voice, 'My Lord Marlborough, dipped to the li|.s 
 m 88, who shall say that for all that ho h.s not made his 
 
me. 
 
 NURjjwsnruy 
 peace ? And lias good reason to ur 
 
 381 
 
 dogs lie. And Goaoiphiu, i. it ;;r,;. I ;-„;™:s 
 
 ge us to let sleeping 
 
 he 
 
 AN. TUKN,N,. KKOM MK, „. ...AW TO PACK T„K ROOM. HIS HANOS 
 II.ASI'KD liKllIND HIM 
 
 btttu And Sunderland wlio tni.st. no one and whom 
 no one trusts ? And J.ee.ls-all things for power y ^ 
 
282 
 
 SJIUEWSliURy 
 
 Clarendon, once pardoned ? And Kussell, all temper v 
 \Viio knows what pledges they have -iven, or may crive*^ 
 Devonshire-Devonshire only has to lose, and stands to 
 lose with me. With me! " 
 
 As he spoke thus he seemed to be so human, and throusli 
 tlie robe of state and stateliness in which he lived the 
 beating of the poor human heart Avas so plaiidy visible 
 tliat my heart went out to him, and with an eager- 
 ness and boldness that now surprise me, I spoke to 
 Jnm. ^ 
 
 "But, your Grace," I said, "while the King lives all 
 goes well, and were anything to hapi)en to him " 
 
 "Yes?" said he, staring at me, and no little aston- 
 ished at the interruption. 
 
 " There is the Princess Anne. She is here, she would 
 succeed, and " 
 
 -w'^r'^-.'"^'' ^?'^ Marlborough!" said he, smiling. 
 J\ell It may be. But who taught you politics, Mr. 
 Price?" 
 
 Grief" ^'''™^'" ^^'^ ^' abashed. - What I know, your 
 
 " lla! I keep forgetting," he answered, gaily, "that I 
 am talking to one of the makers of opinion— the formers 
 of taste. But there, you shall be no evidence, I give you 
 my word. So tell me all you know, and what befell you 
 yesten^ay." ^ 
 
 I had no desire but to do so-on those terms, and one 
 small matter excepted-aud not only to do that, but all 
 things that could serve him. Nevertheless, and though 
 I had high hopes of what I might get by his grace and 
 favour, I was far from understanding that that was the 
 beginning of twenty years of faithful labour at his side- 
 of a matter of fifteen thousand papers written under his 
 eye; of whole ledgers made up, of estate accompts bal- 
 anced and tallies collected; of many winters and summers 
 spent among his hooks, either in the placid shades of 
 
STriiEwsnriiY ^^^ 
 
 said miuiv kiiul tln-„o-. + ''""^"^- ^V Jien I hiul done, he 
 saying tliem -irul l„;*i , -'^ '"" '™i"ior of 
 
 Oie Zoom in ta.re ' "" ''"'°"''™ '"'* '° V" 
 
 -':";:ri:ottn:in::;;f'"!;°"'"^f^^ 
 
 Needless to say, the one matter on Avhich T h.-l i 
 «.e secnty of tl.e l.avon in which I h.y, 1^ to ':;o<;;:;! 
 
284 
 
 snnHwsHuur 
 
 J . 
 
 age me f;o tlie point of ]iuzard. So strong was tlie hold 
 on my fears whicli this man had compassed; and ko com- 
 plete tlie slavery to which lie had i-educod my will 
 
 But though at the time of confession, I found it a relief 
 to be silent about him, this same silence presently left me 
 alone to cope with him, and with fears sufficienly poignant 
 which his memory awakened: the result being that witli 
 prospects more favourable and a future better assured than 
 1 had ever imagined would be mine, or than any man of 
 my condition had a right to expect, T still found this 
 drop of poison in my cuj.. It was not enough that all 
 things-aud my patron-favouring me, I sank easily into 
 the position of his privy clerk, that I retained that excel- 
 lent room in which I had first been placed, that I found 
 myself accepted by the household as a fact— so that never 
 a man saved from drowning by a strand had a right to 
 ])raise his fortune as I had; nor that, the wind from every 
 quarter, seeming at tlie same time to abate, the prisoners 
 went for trial, and nothing said of me. while Ferguson 
 ot whose complicity no legal proof could be found lay 
 111 prison under the suspension of the Habeas Corpus 
 and kept silence; nor even that a note came from Mary' 
 ostensibly from Dunkirk, and without compromising me 
 informed me of her safety. It was not enough, Isay 
 that each and all of these things lai.pened beyond my 
 hopes; for in the midst of my ])rosperitv. whether I stood 
 writing at my lord's elbow in the stillness of the stately 
 library, or moved at ease through the corridor, greeted 
 with respect by my fellow-servants, and with civility by 
 all, I was alike haunted by the thought and terror of 
 umith, and the knowledge that at any moment, the con- 
 spirator might appear to hurl me from this paradise. 
 Ihe secrecy which I had maintained about him doubled 
 his power; even as the ease and luxury in which I lived 
 presented in darker and fouler colours' the sordid scenes 
 and perils through which I had waded to this eminence 
 
:! tlie liold 
 i<l Ko coni- 
 •ill. 
 
 it a relief 
 ly left me 
 poignant, 
 that with 
 ured than 
 ly man of 
 ound this 
 h that all 
 'usily into 
 bat excel- 
 b I found 
 hat never 
 I right to 
 'om every 
 prisoners 
 'erguson, 
 nnd, lay 
 
 Corpus, 
 m Mary, 
 ising me 
 1, I say, 
 y'ond my 
 V I stood 
 9 stately 
 
 greeted 
 vility by 
 error of 
 the con- 
 >ai'adise. 
 doubled 
 I I lived 
 I scenes 
 inence. 
 
 SirkEWSIiURY 385 
 
 CHAPTE]{ A XX III 
 
 I TirixK that I had sp.nt a week, or it might be ,nore 
 in this situation of mingled ease and torment, when on 
 coming down one morning after a hag-ridden night I 
 lean a stir in the hall ; and, going that way to learn'what 
 meant met the servants returning in a erowd from 
 tl e front and talking low about something. Martin 
 who was foremost, cried, - Ha, you are too hie! " And 
 
 m2:t''""Arir"''; f ^ ^ '"^^ ^>^" ^^ ^^^^ beside the 
 
 -tTur-a^ ^^'"""if'V'^^^ ^ffi*^^'" he said. 
 
 But lord s sakes, Mr. Price," he continued, lifting 
 
 IS IniSXr P" nT "^^ '" ^^P^ '' ^^Pr-« his aston^ 
 wmb i. ^^^^^^^f^^^e thought it? Her ladyship 
 will be in a taking! I hope that there may be no more 
 m it than appears! " ^ 
 
 "In what? "said I. 
 
 inl' andt 7'1:l^ ^^ ""'"''''^' '^'^'^ "^« ''^'^ "lean- 
 ing, and then softly closing the door on us. " I hope it 
 
 may end there That is all I say! Between ourselves." 
 You forget," I cried with irritation, - that I know 
 nothing about It! What arrest? And who is arrested?" 
 Mr. Bridges's man of business." 
 '^' What Mr. Bridges? " I cried. 
 "Lord Mr. Price, have you no wits?" he answered 
 taring at me " My lord's mother's husband. Th; 
 Countess s, to be sure ! You must know Mr. Smith. ' ' 
 
 It needed no more tiian that; although, without the 
 name, we might have gone on at . oss mirposes for an 
 hour. But the name-the world helu only one Smith for 
 me, and he it seemed was arrested 
 
 He was arrested! It was with the greatest difficulty 
 that I could control my joy. Fortunately the little cub 
 where m. stood, was ill-lighted, and M^^^tin, a man too 
 
286 
 
 ^^ffnEWSBFRY 
 
 TervHnt of 1 ' '^ '''' "^'^ -n^enuenco to be over- 
 pgXhv " ««"'intnionH. 8till, for a inon.ent, I was 
 
 pe.feetly overcon.e, the elTervescence of n.v spiritH Huch 
 hat I cou d do nothing but lean a^unst the i of 
 
 a pa an of jubilation. Sn.ith was taken! Smith wfs f 
 the hands of justice! Smith was ai-rested anc I Lj Ve 
 lie first rapture past, however, I began to doubt 
 partly because the news seemed to be too good to be tru ' 
 
 le fZ TT 'T''' ''""'''^ '"^' continued to 2 
 thethi /" ?^^ '''''^- ^^''^'^' therefore, to have 
 
 the thing confirmed, I cut him short; and cryinV -TW 
 
 iiim back to the point at which he liad left me. 
 
 VV hy, Mr. Pri,ce," he answered, - I thought evervonp 
 
 her fiTt n'n "' '^''''\^'''- -^ ^ord first took up w h 
 
 fj ^^Tu ^^e^Tone knows that. " 
 
 VVhen my lord took no with Jiov9" t -j 
 among half-rfcogni.d o^oCntle^d^^Zl 
 hght may come through the least chink-to s'ee c ay 
 
 Mr Martin nodded confidentially. - That is hmv she 
 
 roo My loid met her somewhere when he was youn^ 
 and gay and took up with her, and to please h^.ot h? 
 place for Mr. Smith, who had been her flame be ore 
 However, my lord soon tired of her for thonT v 
 
 TOO lie parted from her slie went back to her old lov« 
 
 have heard hat my lord was in a pretty taking wlien he 
 
^"^fiiiiJWHBuuy 
 
 287 
 
 '' wr„7e t^^::::: - »« -i". » off,,.. 
 
 What ,1 ,d y„„ .ay H,..t_tl,ey called L r • r l ^ 
 
 1 remeniberea where I 1.1,1 ],„»'. 1 n 
 who had borne if ami „! ,"" """"> •"=*"■■« ■'"id 
 
 «. " And my tX "I'll'"'' ''«'," "»" ' "« ,1a.. 
 
 " Hush ! " ]ie sjiid " ^ri, i 
 the better, Mr. IMee " ''" ™'' "'""" """^l' 'Wngs 
 
 rZ"'i,o'Str„ ;: \Z ^^ ;'>o ran „„ „,, ,„^ 
 
 "and held hi^,o«whik"f Med f .'"T" ^ «'■'■'"•' 
 
 who had Mr. KiUigrew sta^.^ ItTtre^ Zi' •^';'' 
 In a panic lie olann^.i ),; i V ^creet; and " 
 
 man- •-'Lo oritl 'Tl k o,: X '"^ """'"'• " <'°^' 
 head tnrned ? n„ ylf t linkTl , r" »■■«• " '» y™ 
 '0 give tongue to snch t S ' T ? """* ''"''' ?'»■=« 
 short time l,ere, anTtothfLIf'^; ^°" ""' '«' 1"'* " 
 throw .vonr tongie that wa 1 ' haTetrbC f ' '^ ^'"■■ 
 in twenty years, and would „:(., "°' !''"'''»''"« much 
 ".•e you to talk ;f snch rr^yTalT.." ''"""^''■""' Who 
 
 thongh it was his olnlLe^tnTlfat'tnl'^' ''''''' 
 the point, I made Ivrntf^ fn ^ .V '^^^ ^^^ ^e to 
 
 this\vith' the bett tirrr '''''''' ^"^ ^-"^ 
 Smith was now powerl^sTand V /'^'"^^^brance tlmt 
 I contrived presen Iv n o ^^^^^'^^k^d plans abortive, 
 which the dSco'e^V^^^^^^^^^ B„t the ferment 
 
 '"oved me to escape as li^lct '"'"''^^l' ^^ "^^ «P"-ifc« 
 there to considerTt lisZll "' ^"'''^^' '' "^^^ ^«°"^' 
 
 which, but for SmithVt'ev/'^T"''^^ P««^^^«" i" 
 myself. ^ ' *""'^^^ «^P*"^'e' I must have found 
 
 A suspicion Of the truth I had entertained before; but 
 
If ' m 
 
 ■I'l 
 1 f 
 
 liii 
 
 d88 
 
 SfruiJWSIiirRV 
 
 this certainty tlmt tlio iiuiii I \vii« to be trepanned into 
 personating was my benefactor, and tlmt in the plot his 
 own mother was engaged, filled me with as much horror, 
 when I considered the necessity of (jomplying under 
 which I might have lain, as thankfulness when I reflected 
 on the escape I had had. Nor did these two consider- 
 ations, overwhelming as tney may well ai)pear, account for 
 all the agitation I was experiencing. Mr. ALartin, in 
 speaking of Afadame Monterey's origin, had mentioned 
 Hertfordshire; and the name, bringing together two sets 
 of facts hitherto so distant in my mind that I had never 
 undertaken to connect them, had in a flash presented 
 Smith and madame in their true colours. Why I had 
 not before associated the Smith I now knew with that 
 Templar Smith whom I darkly remembered as Jennie's 
 accomplice in my early trouble; why I had not recognised 
 in the woman's coarsely handsome features the charms 
 that thirteen years before had flred my boy's blood and 
 brought me to the foot of the gallows, is not more diffi- 
 cult to explain than why this one mention of Hertford- 
 shire sufficed to raise the curtain; ay, and not only to 
 raise it, but to set the whole drama so plainly before me 
 that I could be no wiser had I followed every scene in 
 madame's life, and, a witness of her shameful lUbiit 
 under Smith's protection, her seduction of my lord and 
 her period of splendour, had attended her in her final de- 
 clension when, a discarded mistress, she saw no better 
 alternative than a marriage with her former protector. 
 
 How greatly this identification of the two conspirators 
 increased, as well as the loathing in which I held their 
 schemes, as my relief upon the reflection that those 
 schemes were now futile, I will not say. Suffice it that 
 the knowledge that, but for Smith's arrest, I must have 
 chosen between playing the basest part in the world and 
 running a risk whereat I shuddered, filled me with thank- 
 fulness immcasurjiblc, a thankfulness which I did not fail 
 
sifitijwsunn' 
 
 289 
 
 to pour out ou my knees, and wliicli wu.s in no degree 
 leaseued by ji KJuiddering consciousness tlnit in tlnitdilmn- 
 nui. ha, Providence not averted it. 1 niiglit Inive-ay, 
 Bhoiild liuve— i.layed the baser part! 
 
 No wondei- that a liundred harrouing reeollections 
 crowded on ,ny mind, or tlnit under the pressure of these 
 the tum.dt of my spi.ius became so imwerful that I pres- 
 ently seized my Init, and liastily escaping from tlie iiouse 
 sought m rapid movement some relief from the unpleas- 
 ant retrospect. Crossing the (h-een Park, I chose a field 
 path tiiat led by the Pimlico marshes tj Knlluun; and 
 gnidua ly the songs of the larks ami the spring sunshine 
 —lor the (hiy was calm and serene— leading my mind into 
 a niore cheerful groove, I began to dwell rather on the 
 tact of my escape than on the crime from which I had 
 escaped, and contemplating the secure career that now 
 lay in view before me, I was not long in seeing that 
 thankfulness should be my strongest feeling. Turnino 
 my back on Smith and his like, I began to build my house 
 again; saw a smiling wife and babes, and days s])ent be- 
 tween my home and my lord's papers; and then a green 
 old age and slippered feet tottering through the quiet 
 sliades of a library. Before I turned I iiad roofed the 
 house with an honourable headstone, and felt the tears 
 rise in generous sympathy with the village assembled to 
 do the old man honour. 
 
 In a word, tasting the full relief of emancipation, I 
 became so gay and lightsome that even the smoke and din 
 of London, when I re-entered it, failed to subdue the 
 unusual humour. I could have sung, I could have 
 laughed aloud. Let the dead past bury its dead! For 
 iergusou Smith, the Monterey-a fig! Who had come 
 ofi best after all ? And of their fine plottings and con- 
 trivings what had been the upshot ? They had failed and 
 1 Jiad triumphed; they were prisoners, I was frf^c and 
 safe. 
 
 19 
 
9fl(; 
 
 f^ 
 
 i I' 
 
 Hi 
 I' 
 
 m '/• 
 
 III 
 
 sin^KWf nr 
 
 Ne«^' tike ganlen-wall of HucK.ncrhnm TTouso tl,orc waa 
 u bear Ammn^, and u prens of peuj^le roun.J it „ !^ 
 
 \ lit Mr / ', '''". ""'" " J'^^'^'"^^ '""^ ^^«"t on laughing 
 A l.tUo inrt hor l,y M,o cl^e of tl.o lake, was a nmn with 
 a l)arrow and ( hfo— tJuMi u iiov..|(v f), ., ,i 
 lent thnf ,.f fi. I : '"^^^">'^'''""fe'''' i>'WHo])reva- 
 
 lent that at tlio lant sesHionn. I am told, the thi.ur wis 
 
 presented for a nuisance. T Htood here and sa 'nnw 
 ose and jn the exaltation of n.y spirits, pushed hin a i e 
 and laid down a shilling, and won, and Un aga n-and 
 ugam; whether the cog failed or the truckster ^fho own" 
 he barrow thought me a good bait. Either way riook 
 up my wmnmgs with an air and hectored away a good a 
 bu ly as another; placed for the moment so far above niy 
 self and comn.o,, modesty, that I wondered wl Jthe7l 
 A«uld ever sink back into the timid citizen, or el my 
 % -8 drop before a bravo's. ^ 
 
 Alas, in a moment, quantum mntatuH ah illo ! At tlie 
 SS; " '''''^''' '""^-'^^ '^^^ "--' I "-t MaUhew 
 
 Bici^'lrwr'/- ^ 1^"'" '",/" "" "^^^^"*' ^-^ *"rne^ 
 Bick. He was free, alone, walking with his head hi^h 
 
 and an easy gait. Worse, he saw me; saw how I ow. fS 
 
 sTgttt;; 1 it;"'^ '^'''''' ^'-^ ''-''-' --''- -- at 
 
 me^tthlTt '"' r."-?f ^'.^'"^^ "i'' ^^ ^^^^*«d before 
 me with that ., met devil's grin on his face. - Well " he 
 
 ''%^'^-^,^y<^-^^^v.rnce? I was looking for vou'' 
 
 f or me ? " I muttered. " I thought-I heard-lthat 
 
 you were arrested. " ^"^^ 
 
 ;'A mistake! " he answered, continuing to smile. " A 
 mistake! Some other Smith. " 
 ;^' ^nd you were not arrested ? " I whispered. 
 Uh, 1 was ariVfSd! " he answered jauntily "And 
 
srifiHWsnrify .„,, 
 
 ruttorodanoxclHinuti..,.: two wohIh wn,n<r fro,,, „iP 
 
 "':^>''<, ^J'Hl':' Vm- kin.l of yon. .Mr. I W ' Hui.l • 
 
 HH'OH M.^^ Inn.self i„ the net of leuvin.^ m. ••?',! 
 stand ., , tnnl f,o-,„orrowy I'ortor is un evid , u ,^ 
 
 Z .hm /':,^'^"^"'"«^'- «'^'''<i»J? HiH head with UHM ilo 
 that chilled the „mrrow in niy bones. - what cmiin, v 
 we keep. A rascal like Porte,, ^ni^ht see you o, me n 
 the streot-and swear to ns. I fa ! 1 fa ! U s unds^no , 
 strouH 0,1.1 but so it ,night bo. But by-by, Mr P ee' 
 I must not keep you." ^ ^^' 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV 
 
 Thk state in which I crawled back to the house after 
 tins encounter maybe conceived but not described PW 
 an exaltation o mind to which the epithet del, Z 
 mia It be apphed with propriety, I fell in an insta, t to a 
 >lepth of abjeotness as monstro... as my late fe li mt 
 more real and reasonable. All the thing., on my tea" 
 from wuoh I had been congratulati,,/mvself Lw 1 v 
 before me, and formed a vista as gloomy as the ,"oint to 
 which it tended was drea.lful. To be a elave to fh« 
 
 wardlyat ease, while inwardly devoured by daily and 
 hourly terror; to hang between the choice of W "r 
 Imseiiess, comfort or treachery; U disnern in my^'^ 
 Btruction or my patron's the inevitable ending'; beyona 
 

 
 Hi' 
 
 U>" 
 
 ■i I 
 
 392 
 
 SHREWSBruV 
 
 a 
 
 might be 
 
 you 
 
 You could not 
 
 all. to foresee that I sliould clioose the evil and eschew the 
 good, and to wish it othenviso and be powerless to chancre 
 It— these things, und ])iirticuhirly tlu^ last, filled me witli 
 anticipations of miseiy so great tliat I rolled on my bed 
 and cursed Providence and my fate; and next dav went 
 down so pale, and ill, and woe-begone that the servants 
 took note of it. 
 
 'VPheiigh, Mr. Price," said .Uartin, 
 Charnock himself, or Keyes, poor devil! 
 look more like hanging! "^ What is it? " 
 I muttered that I was not well. 
 
 "It is Keyes I am sorry for," continued the steward, 
 who was taking his morning draught, "if so be they »o 
 to the end with him. I have heard of a master given up 
 by his servant, but never before of a servant hung on his 
 master's evidence— and his master the one that drew him 
 into it ! Hang Captain Porter, say I ! A fine Captain ! ' ' 
 " Oh, they will let the poor devil live," said another 
 "Keyes?" 
 Ay." 
 
 Not they! " said Mr. Martin with great appearance 
 of wisdom. " He was in the Blues, do you see, my man 
 and if It spread there ? No, he will swing. He will 
 swing for the example. Don't you think so, ilfr. Price ? 
 You are in there with my lord, and should know." 
 
 lint I muttered something and escaped, finding soli- 
 tude and my own reflections as tolerable as their gossip 
 A little later, my lord, sending for me, kept me close at 
 work until evening; which was so far fortunate, as the 
 employment, by diverting my thoughts, helped to lift 
 me out of the panic into which I had fallen. True, the 
 news that the tliree conspirators were found guilty and 
 were to die the following Monday, exactly as Smith had 
 foretold, threw me again into the cold fit, and heralded 
 another night of misery. But as it is not possible for 
 under the same peril without the sense 
 
 a 
 
 a 
 
 mortals to lie long 
 
 O 
 
 
eschew the 
 to change 
 
 1 me witli 
 
 n my bed, 
 (lav went 
 
 B servants 
 
 might be 
 could not 
 
 steward, 
 e they go 
 given u]) 
 ng on his 
 drew him 
 aptain! " 
 tnother. 
 
 >pearance 
 
 my man, 
 
 He will 
 
 I-. Price ? 
 
 ing soli- 
 r gossip. 
 3 close at 
 3, as the 
 i to lift 
 'rue, the 
 lilty and 
 lith had 
 heralded 
 dble for 
 he sense 
 
 SllUJ-^WSBUUr 398 
 
 beaiable ihe stateliness of the houseliold, the silence 
 and books that surrounded me, the regula hou a^d 
 ^e^tdy employment soothed n.y nerves; Ind Sn.ith mt;;: 
 mg no sign, and nothing occurring to indicate that he 
 e. nt to keep lus word or sunnnon me to fuliil mine, I 
 lulled myself „ito the belief that all Avas a dream. 
 
 sucT, n .r '' -^ ^'' *''"' ^'''''^ '^^^PP^= '^ ^^ t^^-t' with 
 such apprehensions as never quite left me, was beyond 
 
 my plnlosophy. And I had rude awakenings. One day 
 
 i>bu n, followed by the hawking of their last dving 
 speeches and confessions in the streets, that jogged f 
 out of rny fancied security, and sent me sick Incf whi^^ 
 faced rom the windows. Another it was the sentenc n 
 Sir John Friend and Sir William Perkins, the two elderly 
 citizens whom I had twice seen among the plotter ud 
 never without wondering how they Lme to be of the 
 g<ang. A little later, three more suffered, and again tie 
 Square mng with the shrill cries of the chapmen who 
 peddled their last speeches from door to door Against 
 . I hese Captain Porter and a man commonl ta M 
 Scum Goodman," both pariiaj^es cnnunis, and person 
 of the most infamous character, bore witness; thiir ev ! 
 clence being corro])orated by that of a man of higher 
 standing, Mr. Prendergast. Whether they could lo 
 pix)ve against Cassel and Ferguson, or reasons of State 
 intervened, those, with several of their fellows, lay t 
 prison untried ; a course which, in other circumstances, 
 might have involved the (Jovernment in obloquy. Bu 
 so keen at this time was the general feeling against the 
 plotters, and so higli fcho King's popuhtrity tliat^ho n ig 
 have shed more bh..od had he ciiosen. " " "' 
 the executions stopped 
 Igence 
 
 iiiid 
 
 indignation, gradually slackened until 
 
 Here, however, 
 
 Majesty showing mercy 
 
 cry, despite tiie popular 
 
 it was restricted to 
 
394 
 
 SJIfiKWSIiUltY 
 
 ■t 
 
 Ml 
 
 
 Sir John Fenwick, who was believed to be still in hidiuff 
 m the country, and on wlioso punishment the Kine Avas 
 reported to be firmly set. 
 
 How deeply these events and rumours, which formed 
 tlie staple of conversation during the summer of '9(5 
 troubled my existence, I leave to the imagination; pro- 
 vising only that in proportion to the outward quiet of my 
 life was the power to agitate which they exerted. 
 
 Moreover, there were times when a terror more sub- 
 stantial trespassed on my peace. One day going hastily 
 into the hall I found the servants all peei)ing, Mr. Martiii 
 holding open the door, a dozen faces staring curiously in 
 from the sunshine of the Square, and my lord standing 
 very stiff, on the threshold of his room, while in the 
 middle of the flow stood a scowling man, flashily dressed. 
 Ihe Duke was speaking when I ajipeared. '• At the 
 oflSce, sir," I heard him say. '' You misunderstood me. 
 1 can see you there only." 
 
 " Your Grace is hard on mo," the man muttered Avith 
 a glance that would be rebellious, and was hang-dog " I 
 have done the King good service, and this is the way 
 
 1 am requited. It is enough " 
 
 ''It is more than enough, Captain Porter, " my lord 
 said, quietly taking him up. ''At the ofl^ice, if you 
 please. This house is for my friends. " 
 
 " And the King's friends ? They may shift for them- 
 selves?" the wretch— who even then wore finery bought 
 with blood— cried bitterly. 
 
 '' The King is served in many ways," my lord answered 
 with a fine air of contempt. '' Martin, the door! And 
 remember, anotlier time I am not within to Captain 
 i orter. At three in the office, sir, if vou ])loase." 
 
 The man slunk away at Miat; but as lie passed through 
 tlie doorway. I heard him mutter that when Sir John 
 Fenwick was taken he would see; and that proud as some 
 people were now, they might be glad to save their necks 
 
tiliiijjwsiiuiiy 
 
 295 
 
 I iti hiding 
 King was 
 
 ch formed 
 er of '9(), 
 tion; pro- 
 liet of my 
 1. 
 
 iiore sub- 
 ig hastily 
 Lr. Martin 
 riously in 
 standing, 
 e in the 
 Y dressed. 
 ''At the 
 stood me. 
 
 ired Avitli 
 
 dog. "I 
 
 the way 
 
 my lord 
 !, if you 
 
 or them- 
 f bought 
 
 mewered 
 1-! And 
 Captain 
 
 through 
 »ir John 
 as some 
 ir necks 
 
 when the tune came. He passed out of sight then, and 
 hearing my lord speak, I turned, and saw Matthew Smith 
 whom I had not before noticed, waiting on liim with a 
 etter. The Duke, pausing on the thresliold of the 
 library, broke the seal, and ran his eye over the paper 
 
 '' I will send an answer," he said, " later in the day. 
 Or—" and he looked up quickly. "Are you return- 
 ing, sir? " 
 
 " If your Grace pleases." 
 
 " It shall be ready then by two o'clock," my lord an- 
 swered stiffly. ' ' Good-morning. ' ' 
 
 " Good-morning, your Grace." 
 
 And .ay lord went in. The colloquy had been of the 
 slightest; but I had noted that my patron's tone, when 
 he spoke to Smith, was guarded and civil, if distant, and 
 that through the few formal words they had exchanged 
 peered a sort of understanding. This shook me; and 
 when Smith turned to me, a faint sneer on his lips, and 
 told me that I was a bold man, my heart was water. He 
 was at home here as everywhere; what could I do against 
 him ? ° 
 
 " Do you understand, Mr. IMce ? " he repeated. " Or 
 are you a oigger fool than I take you for ? " 
 
 I' Why? "I stammered. 
 
 "Why? Why, to push in on Porter after that fash- 
 ion, he muttered under his breath— for Martin was 
 making towards us. " Lucky he did not recognize you 
 and denounce you! For a groat he would do it— or to 
 spite the Duke! Take care, man," he continued seri- 
 ously, " if you do not want to join Charnock, whose head 
 IS in airy quarters to-night." 
 
 This left mo the prey of a new terror; for remember- 
 ing that I had once seen Porter at Ferguson's lodging, 
 I could not shut my eyes to the reasonableness of the 
 warning. I saw myself beset by dangers on that side 
 also, went for a time on eggs, and trembled at every 
 
hm 
 
 f 
 
 h 
 
 
 
 w 
 
 k 
 
 296 
 
 SIWfJWSIiURY 
 
 sound; indeed, for n full fortnight I never passed the 
 threshold— excusing myself on tlie ground of vertigo if 
 ordered to go on errands. In the course of that fort- 
 night I had a thousand opportunities of (jontrasting the 
 qiuet m whicli I lived,, beliind the dull windou's of the 
 great liouse, with the dangers into whic^h I might at any 
 moment be flung; and if any man ever repented of any- 
 thing, I repented of my lack of candour respecting 
 Nmith. trom time to time I saw him ])ass— grim re- 
 served, a walking menace. ^Vhen he looked up at' the 
 windows, I read mastery and a secret knowledge in his 
 eye; while the way in which he went and came, free and 
 unquestioned, was itself a monition; Avas it to be won- 
 dered that T feared this man, who, while Charnock's head 
 mouldered on a t^plke on l^emple liar, and Friend and 
 lorkins passed to the gallows, walked the Strand, and 
 ounged in the Mall, as safe in appearance as my lord 
 himself ? 
 
 T kuew that at any moment he might call ui)on me to 
 fulfil my word. Whetlior in that case, the demand bein- 
 such as to allow me leisure to forecast the consequences*' 
 J should have complied, or taking my courage in my 
 hands, have thrown myself on my lord's indul^rence I 
 cannot now say; for in the issue a sudden and uirforeseeu 
 shifting of scene prevented my calculations, and hurried 
 me onwards, Avhether I would or no. 
 
 It happened, I have said, suddenly. One afternoon 
 there came a great bustle in the Square; and who should 
 It bo but the Countess, my lord's mother, come to visit 
 him m her coach-and-six, with such a paraphernalia of 
 gentlewomen and negro pages, outriders, and runnino- 
 footmen, as di-ew together all the ragamufHns irom the 
 mews, and fai.-ly brought back King Charles's days. As 
 the great coach, which held six inside, swung and lum- 
 bered to a stand at the door, I saw a painted face, with 
 bold black eyes, glaring from the window, cheek by jowl 
 
jassed the 
 vertigo, if 
 that fort- 
 istiiig the 
 \vs of the 
 lifc at any 
 cl of any- 
 especting 
 grim, re- 
 ip at the 
 ?e in his 
 free and 
 be won- 
 ik's liead 
 ioiid and 
 md, and 
 my lord 
 
 a me to 
 id being 
 ^uences, 
 i in my 
 ^ence, I 
 foreseen 
 luirried 
 
 ternoon 
 should 
 to visit 
 lalia of 
 unniug 
 •om the 
 fB. As 
 d lum- 
 e, Avith 
 by jowl 
 
 m a plain black suit and ,vi?_>H „ ' ' '"" ».g«'tlcma,i 
 I ever saw o„e-an,I Monterev 1 '","' '"'""" " 
 
 geutleTOmen; and as 1 1 1 5' . ™ "'' *'"■<"> o"'" 
 
 these, or for hat m ter b. t? ""■"'■'" '"^ '""='>«'^'»-i by 
 to retire behind irflo.' I< "'"'^""'' ' """'" '"""e 
 
 ......ailed in tLtifttiolrz:::^'"' -^"'■■'"' '-^ 
 
 quarters of an hour theTwl ?'''?"?' ""'' '" «..•^''- 
 
 ™™. I took ad™,ti7;r .is'rrt '"*'""'" ■" '"» 
 
 had been wiser ha<l I staved tw ? "'^ "'"''"'«' «<! 
 
 ont at the back. But a eravil ' °'' '"'"'"' ^''"' ^'W"'' 
 te.'ey again, and with'thX ^ ^1™:,::? "' """"■ 
 ( she really ,v>« my old mistre s Tl " ^ ' '"'""■''"" 
 hall again, where the o^wJ , ■ ™ ^'^^ me to the 
 vants token up with te^ .W ,l""r^ ^"^'^ """ "."^ »>- 
 blackamoors, I mlZed t ' a™ i ,'^"™"'«»'« l»n-ot and 
 »ame time see wST wlted Tr"""'°"' """ '" «.« 
 ouee been all the world to mt-and if T'"', '""' '""^ 
 now think without a tenderregret d rjl'T ' ''°"''" ""* 
 but to the state of blissfn low • '^'""^^'^' "ot to her, 
 l.ad been the eatt 17 wl fe " « ^"""°"' °' '".'<='. "I." 
 -was still handsome "„ a CO 'r»f r,"'" '' '''"™ '^"P»'''<' 
 at a distance. I eo„ld\ t Ten tt ""iBrf -f"?? »^'" 
 revenge, I had it- for n^^ ^^Ti , "' '* ' .desired 
 
 » that her go^i tok VTn .rerX^T'^^'™ »'°"^' 
 pi'oachod, but her lin« T,„,i ^"®^;, )^"en the viewer an- 
 
 With the indes e' -Us: tdC "v ■ l!' Xl;r„;^- 'H'' 
 >ong grown bitter-and an h„„rl, lu -l^^^tlr:,:; 
 
 the 
 
 -age 
 
 deatli 
 
 Presently, while Mr. Martin 
 
 on Iier, and I, from 
 
 was pressing ]iis civilities 
 
 'Iff 
 
 • a". 
 
 a corner near the door th 
 
 fougli which 
 
298 
 
 ailRMWSlWRY 
 
 n 
 
 lil_ 
 
 I had let Mary escape, was curiously reading her couute- 
 nauce, the door of my lord's room opened, and the 
 Countess came out, supported on the one side by thb 
 Duke's arm, on the other by her great ebony cane. The 
 servants hurried to form two lines; and I suppose curios- 
 ity led me to press nearer than was prudent, or her eyes 
 were of peculiar sharpness; or perhaps she looked for me, 
 and had I not been there would have called for me. At 
 any rate, she had not moved three steps towards her coach 
 before her gaze, roving along the line of servants, alighted 
 on me; and she stood. 
 
 ''I'll have that rascal!" she cried in her high, shrill 
 voice— and she pointed at me with her cane, and stood. 
 " lie looks as if butter would not melt in his mouth, 
 but if he is not a lad of wax, call me a street slut! Hark 
 you, my man; you come with me. Bid him, Shrews- 
 bury!" 
 
 My lord, his face flushing, spoke low, and seemed to 
 make demur; but she persisted. 
 
 " Odd's life; you make me sick! " she cried irritably. 
 "You will not this, and you fancy that! The ser- 
 vants Go to for a fool! In my time master was 
 
 master, and if any blabbed, man or maid, it was strip 
 and whip! But now— do you quarrel with me, or do 
 
 you not?" 
 
 The Duke shrugged his shoulders, and smiled un- 
 easily. "Times are somewhat changed> madam," he 
 
 said. 
 
 "Ay, by our lord, they are," she cried, swearing 
 roundly. *' And why ? Because there are no men nowa- 
 days, but mealy-mouthed Josephs, like tliat trembler 
 yonder, whose heavb is in his boots because I want him 
 carry a message." And she pointed to me with her long 
 cane, while her head quivered with excitement and age. 
 " Sort him out; sort him out and send him with me; 
 or we quarrel, my lord." 
 
SlIliEW^JiirRY 
 
 399 
 
 couute- 
 and the 
 e by the 
 le. The 
 e curios- 
 her eyes 
 L for me, 
 me. At 
 ler eoacli 
 alighted 
 
 ;h, shrill 
 id stood. 
 i mouth, 
 t! Hark 
 Shrews- 
 
 "But no lies! " she cried. " D'ye send him." 
 
 My lord bowed reluctantly. -Go," he said, looking 
 at me. "'"& 
 
 - Itf ^'^ I'Z '^' "' ^ *'" ^""^'" '^'^ «^-i«d sharply. 
 But he Ijad be teiv or Still, tell him, tell him!" 
 
 ono.irf' ""{ ^'^ '^"^ '°^'''^^' " *'^^ ^'^^"ntess is good 
 
 enough to- wish you to do an errand for her. Be good 
 
 enough to consider yourself at her disposal, and go with 
 
 he coach now. Be easy," he continued, nodding pleas- 
 
 81013— her ladyship needs you for a week only " 
 
 devil f'o'r me! "' '"' ""'' " ^'''"' *'^' ^" "^^^ ^^ *« ^^^ 
 
 eemed to 
 
 irritably. 
 The ser- 
 ister was 
 was strip 
 le, or do 
 
 liled un- 
 am," he 
 
 swearing 
 ten nowa- 
 
 trembler 
 ivaut him 
 L her long 
 
 and age. 
 with me; 
 
 ClIAl'TEU XXXV 
 
 Rightly has the Latin poet sung of the dura ilia of 
 the J^ates, who either resistless rout all human resolu- 
 tions or, whei-e the mind has been hardened to meet the 
 attack, turn the poor wretch's flank, and lo! while he 
 squares his shield, and shortens his spear to meet the 
 occasion, habel—liQ has it under the fifth rib 
 
 So it was with me. While I dreamed of resistance, 
 and would harden my heart and set fast my feet, fate 
 cross-but tocked me; and I fell, not knowing. The 
 Countess s coach bore me away, unresisting; and Smith, 
 whom I hated as I never hated even Ferguson, gave me 
 the word Prom my plain clothes, to the long curled 
 peruke, the cravat, ruffles, and fine suit in which I had 
 once before paraded myself, was but a step; I took it 
 perforce, and being conducted, when J Avas ready, into 
 the Countess's chamber, to wait her pleasure, could have 
 
!i S' 
 
 \l. 
 
 800 
 
 SIlUEWSliURY 
 
 fancied the last six months a dream — could have fancied 
 the conspirators still at work, Captain Barclay still pac- 
 ing the Piazza, my lord still a stranger to me, the library 
 a vision; in a word, I could have fancied all those events, 
 which had filled half a year, to l)c no more than creatures of 
 the imagination, so unchanged was the great silent room, 
 where my lady, while I waited, played piquet with Mon- 
 terey, amid the gorgeousness of her rose-and-silver suite. 
 
 The monkey gibbered as of old, and the parrot vied 
 with the broidered parrots on the Avail; and now, as then, 
 the air was heavy Avith scent and musk, while the light, 
 cunningly arranged, fell on the part Avhere the Countess 
 sat, now grumbling and now swearing, or noAV, Avhile the 
 cards were dealing, thumping the floor impatiently Avith 
 her stick. She had so perfectly the grand air of a past 
 generation, that Avhen her eye turned in my direction I 
 trembled, and thought no more of resistance; yet Avhen 
 she resumed the game, she gradually — and more and 
 more completely, as I Avatched — sank into a querulous, 
 feeble, fierce old Avoman, Avliose passion, Avhere it did not 
 terrify, moved to derision, and Avhose fads and fancies, as 
 patent as the day, placed her at the mercy of all Avho 
 cared to flatter or cozen her. 
 
 Madame Avas about it now; letting her Avin, and again 
 gaining a slight advantage; mingling hints at old vani- 
 ties and conquests (whereat my lady greAV garrulous) with 
 new scandals, coarse and spiteful; Avhining a little Avhen 
 my lady, in a fury caused by a bad hand, struck her 
 across the face Avith a fan to teach her to be aAvkAvard, 
 but cheering up at once Avhen the Countess's mood 
 changed Avith the cards. In a word, as she had betrayed 
 me young, she cozened my lady old; but seeing her fea- 
 tures groAvn hard Avith time, and her eyes grown lifeless, 
 and the devil grinning more plainly from behind the 
 mask, that once had been so fair, it Avas a Avonder to me 
 that even the Countess Avas deceived. 
 
 U 
 
SIIREWSBUIiY 801 
 
 Presently my lady threw dou'n her curds in a r-vre 
 
 ^^ Monterey whispered her that I had not had myinstruc- 
 
 '• Then give them, and let him m,! " she cried " wi,„. 
 .B the ring ? Here, y„„ daw in poaoofk's fefihers!^ k! 
 
 Vilhers IS aheant.v! 'I'ake that, and ride with 4tthew 
 mn ..t A,-hford, and say-JIonterey, tell him what to 
 
 AncUUlie''"!?^' '^'■'"'"'r"''' ''"'*'■"«•'''■'' l>i« service.' 
 And It the gentleman asks • Whitlierf or this or th.t 
 to whatever he asks, answer thns: <! am not here »; 
 John, to answer c,„ostions. Favour me by oonTOvit 
 that rng and my services whither von are goin" I Z 
 not talk hnt when the tin,e con>es i shall ST''' 
 
 test tout ! said the Countess, nodding approval 
 It yon are not man enonrii to renAot tl,„f -PI""™- 
 I'or a noodle! Say it, n.an " ' '""' "'"» y°" 
 
 it ^l'/^""t ^"'"' '° "'^' "' '""■'*' I -^'''W not ren.ember 
 
 itrrtitdrLt;i:tUTrtr'"'-T^^' 
 
 into my head. I hnt whimpS' tit tSjir^fS 
 to the task My hdy, when she saw that, lew „„t ' 1 
 afresh, and threw first the vapours bottle ami "le„ ."r 
 
 Sy ISeMS.' "StZe l^ ^^^t f ^^ 
 
 :ii : i 
 
303 
 
 sirifEwsBrRv 
 
 pi, 
 
 seized it, she twisted it with such unexpected strengtli 
 and spite that I roared with pain, and fairly fell on my 
 knees beside her. 
 
 •'There is for you, ///us cochou I'" nho cried. "So 
 you cati B})eak up when you like! Now go to the end of 
 the room, niy nuin, and [)lay your part a^'ain, aiul play 
 
 it better! Or, by , I will have up those who shall 
 
 lash your back to the bone. Iloity toity! These are fine 
 times, when scum like you, my lad, put on airs! " 
 
 This was not the discipline, nor were these the threats, 
 to give an actor courage; but in sheer desperation, I spoke 
 up, and, this time, had the good fortune to please her; 
 and, Monterey mocking me, and pushing me this way 
 and that, I went through my part a dozen times. At 
 length the Countess expressed herself satisfied, and with 
 a grim nod, and an " Odds my life, he is not so unlike, 
 after all! " gave me leave to go. But when I was half 
 way to the door, she called me back, aiui after I had tim- 
 idly obeyed, she sat awhile, glowering at me in silence. 
 At last, " No," she said irritably, "it is too late! " and 
 she struck on the floor with her stick. '' It is too late to 
 turn back! The cross devil did nothing but thwart me 
 to-day, and what he will not do ban (jri, he shall do per- 
 force. He has brought it on himself, and he must abide 
 his (lest in ! Yet — Monterey! " 
 
 The woman was at her side in a moment. " Yes, 
 madam!" 
 
 "I suppose that there is no danger of a contretemps,'''' 
 she said, stirring restlessly in her chair. *' Sir John will 
 get away ? They will not take him, and find the ring on 
 him — and learn whose it is ? " 
 
 On that, if I had been quick, and had had both wits 
 and courage at command, I should have thrown myself at 
 her feet; and so I might have opened her eyes. But I 
 wavered, and before I had found lieart to do it, the wait- 
 ing-woman, smooth and watchful, was in the breach. 
 
Ves, 
 
 snREwsnnfr ^^ 
 
 ^^^■^i^:tx!i%^r:, -""'If '- 
 
 -"o„„M, and it will l,c od, if ',«:!, ''„';''" " """ 
 
 man i« taken o/n^t taken 'fn'b^riC th,'""!*" """'• '^ 
 now, if that contrary devH „7. 7' '?°'"''- *^™n 
 
 argi.ed with me and arJl, « °" "^ ""'^ '•"^ not 
 Wmgo! Let him g,;,"^'' "'"' "' '»-%-l>"t, let 
 
 which I had^come n' b°,t bv'th/.>M " '?'"'"^'' «"•»"«•' 
 to the dingy cloaet at S fead o ' he"™ 'vft "''V™'""*^ 
 In the closet a brifrht in,«r^ a , ^ "^^^® staircase. 
 
 ^..sty table, and S it" f ^at hi' ^ ™ «" 
 a cloak, riding-boofn „„^ » ^'larenew hmith, wearjnar 
 oagerly at th?w„m»; hf« !r»^«Wed hat. He looked 
 lamp; but he did not'stlr ! ,'"i"*u'" *" S'"" "' "'O 
 behind her. Then "Cr>,;,l'?t'"^ "'"""^ "« ^oor 
 
 She nodded "«•" '^ ""^ whiapered. 
 
 " Von have got the ring ? " 
 
 fft'rri' '° '""' '"*'' » ™"lo of triumph 
 ..if o^t!" "^ o';^^, f'i^'r '-Xpod it into 
 the aoonor we are away. ^, bTter ""'"' """'' "^ '™'"'' 
 
 Bword, and rM ■ rw'^'i^ "jt? '"'\'"""''"' » '""«''' 
 meant, and for whom '^^he. w^ ' '^^^^ *^^^ "''J^'^te 
 prospect of the pZ." i^toZl f'^^T'"' "■"* «' ""o 
 ney, and the pe Hs^^f the *L ' "*'"' "' '"^ J""- 
 
 that I would /ot^r'i'tuidX ™tj itt°r 
 
 
 'i I 
 
 'n 
 
■M , 
 
 . I'- 
 ■ 1 
 
 vs.- 
 
 804 
 
 HIlUEWHliVHY 
 
 Jiut Sinitli whipped between me and the door. " You 
 fool! " ho Hiiid, piishinff me buck. " Are you mud ? Or 
 don\ you know me yet? " 
 
 "1 know you too well!" I cried, beside myself witli 
 
 SHE CAME A STEP NEARER TO ME, AND PEERED AT ME 
 
 rage, and with apprehensions of the plunge on the brink 
 of which I stood. " You have cursed mo from the first 
 day I saw you at Ware! You have been the curse of 
 my life! You, and that Jezebel! " 
 
r. " You 
 nuul ? Or 
 
 yself witli 
 
 mii. 
 
 Urv- 
 
 KT ME 
 
 the brink 
 I the first 
 ) curse of 
 
 it to ,„y face. •• u \V. I- '. ""'",""' '"'''" ""J I'xW 
 
 '»ia...in.'.''''-";f/^;- ;l^,'x':!;'^'f^"'■''''■" 
 J-clVIOl . ilO wild wi-jit ifllllr '«<•.-•' 
 
 'l-o« it M.attor vvlmt ),i» „a,ri«i" ' ''"""■• " '"" 
 
 Oh, it iiiiittorB verv miu.li " i 
 
 ogle me ii. u„ evacr, J' L ^ i ' '"' "^"'^' '^^^^^^ixn% to 
 
 of mine. 11 fHee^lh ■' ' , •' ^^ " "^' '" "" ^^'^ ^"^""^ 
 
 -but I tl.ou,l t th '.;'Ti ^ ''' "^>'"""<i 
 
 Up ...ir ..,1 1 1 , '^ Jikeuess to the Duke " 
 
 lie uu.e.l her old Ihuues, and tlie Duke V, I .'i 
 ^\ hut doe« it nioun ? " ],,. ,,ii,] .-Vl . ^^"'"' 
 
 " Ue i« tlie hid we iJ . U' \ '" ^'' ' 
 
 ^^1-ostsof 'l!o 'it^enr^V"'"-' ^"'^^ ^'^••^-»^' 
 I'Hppened in uno 1 e 'l IV y ^^ ^'"^' T ^' '"'^''^^ ^^''^« 
 Vou saw him nil ni ,t Tr p"""'"" '''"' ''''^^^• 
 ^"•«t night I saw jou /" ^' ^"^'^'"^•^ "^^'^'t-^ The 
 
 He looked at me, long and stran^elv - \,.i w 
 does it mean ? " he k-hM -.f i f ""*• p'y- And wliat 
 
 aud susj.ieion. ^'''' ''^^'^"^^' ^^'''^^-'^ loader 
 
 «ho shrugged her shouklers. "^W/v .,,,.'" , 
 swered. '"Ask him!" ^«'i^pas. she an- 
 
 *'You ruined me once!" I cn,.d "a,,,) i 
 me! And now you would have n M-uin hi ' ^y '^""^ 
 devds,youare! Devils! But I d^; you- " ^"^""' 
 
 .'tppeared on the u lee M h T "'"''^ ^'^ ^''^''^ ^^'"" 
 und he turned to her r,-el P '^ ''^' "'"""^ ^"••^^^«^' 
 to laugh at," he said/ ' ^"' '''" " ^ ««^ ""^hing 
 
k 
 
 .'I 'i 
 
 I ! 
 
 80& 
 
 ISUUEWSBURy 
 
 " But I do! " she answered pertly. " You three all 
 mixed up! It would make a cat laugh, my lad." 
 
 lie cursed her. "Have done witii that!" he said 
 fiercely. " And say, what is to be done V " 
 
 " Done? " she answered briskly, and in a tone of gen- 
 uine surprise. " Why, that which was to be done. 
 What difference does this make V " 
 
 But he looked at her, pondering darkly, as if it did 
 make a difference. I suppose that somewhere, deep down 
 in his nature, there lurked a grain of superscitiou, wliich 
 found in this singular coincidence, this sudden strhiging 
 together of persons long parted, an evil omen. Or it 
 may be that he had still some scrap of conscience left, 
 that, seared and deadened as it was, stirred and started 
 at this strange itpheaval of an old crime. At any rate, 
 •' I dou't know," he growled at last. '' I don't like it, 
 and that is flat. There is some practice in this." 
 
 " There is a fool in it," she answered naively. ■* And 
 there are like to be two! " 
 
 I thought to back him up, and I braced myself against 
 the wall, to wliich I had retired. " I won't go! " I said 
 doggedly. *' 1 will call for help in the streets, first! " 
 
 " You will do as you are told," she answered coolly, 
 "And you," she continued to Smith in a voice of sting- 
 ing scorn, " are you going to give it up now, when all is 
 safe ? Will you stand to my lord as this poor silly fellow 
 stands to you ? Have you waited for years for your re- 
 venge—to move aside now? Why, my G — d ! the Duke 
 iri worth ten of you. lie is a man, at any- rate, llo 
 
 is " 
 
 •' J*eace, girl," he cried, with 1 know not what of 
 menace in his tone, 
 "Then, will you go?" 
 
 "Yes. 1 will go!" lie answered between his toeth. 
 " But by heaven, you slut, if ill comes of it, I will wring 
 your ueck! I will, so help me heaven ! You shall deceive 
 
smtEwsiiLutr 
 
 807 
 
 three all 
 
 he said 
 
 ! of gen- 
 )e (lone. 
 
 if it did 
 ep down 
 II, wliich 
 ;tnuging 
 Or it 
 nee left, 
 I started 
 M\y rate, 
 t like it, 
 
 ^'And 
 
 I against 
 ! " I said 
 irst!" 
 cl coolly, 
 of sting- 
 len all is 
 ly fellow 
 yonr re- 
 ;he Duke 
 ate. lie 
 
 what of 
 
 is toeth. 
 ill wring 
 11 deceive 
 
 no other man! If there is practice of yours in this, if 
 
 thi.s tool is lioro by your connivance "" 
 
 " lie is not! " slie answered. " Jio satislied." 
 Apparently he was satislied. for he drew a deep breath, 
 
 and stood silent. She tiirjicd to me. " Get ready," she 
 
 said shai-ply. 
 
 ^ "-^'"•" I muttered, summoning mH my resolution. 
 
 • 1 shall not go. I— f Imve not " 
 
 ^^ Smith turned to me. and the refusal died on my lijis. 
 Tlio struggle with the \voman had i-oused the man's pas- 
 sions; and I rend in his eyes such a glare of ferocity as 
 chilled my Ijlood and unstrung my knees. Nor was that 
 all; for wlien 1 went, trembling, to take the cloak. ^'One 
 moment," he said grimly, '^ not so fast, mv friend. Let 
 us understand one another before we start." Mr. Price or 
 Mr. Taylor or wliutever your name is, take note, do you 
 hear me, of three things ? One, that the business Ave are 
 on is life or death. Do you grasp that ? " 
 
 I muttered a shuddering assent. 
 
 *• Secondly," lie continued, with the same gruesome 
 civility, '-my hand will never be more than six inches 
 from the butt of a pistol, until I see this home again. 
 Do you grasp that 'i " 
 
 T nodded. 
 
 " Thirdly, at the least sign of treachery or disobedience 
 on your pnrt, I blow out your brains first, and my own 
 afterwards, if that be necessary. Do you grasp that? " 
 
 I nodded. 
 
 " That is especially well," he said. " Because the last 
 item IS important to you. On the other hand, ]Hr. Price, 
 play honest John with me, and in forty-eight hours you 
 shall be back in your master's house, free and safe; and 
 I shall trouble you no more. Do vou understand 
 that?" 
 
 I said 1 (lid; my teeth chattering, and my eyes seeking 
 to evade his. 
 
 WJ 
 
808 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 " Then, now, you may get into those things," he said. 
 "And do you ride when I bid you, and halt Avlieu I bid 
 you, and speak when I say speak, and be silent wheu T 
 say be silent — do those four things, I say, and you will die 
 in your bed. They are all I ask." 
 
 I stooped, shaking all over, to take up the boots. 
 "' Heart up, pretty! " cried the woman, with an odd laugh 
 that broke off short with a sort of (inavcr. "It is clear 
 that you are not born to be hanged. And for the rest " 
 
 " Peace, peace, wench," said Smith impatiently. " And 
 dress him." 
 
 ,CHAPTEK XXXVI 
 
 It wanted two hours of midniglit on a fine night when 
 we two rode over London Bridge, and through a gap in 
 the houses saw the river flowing below, a ripple of silver 
 framed in blackness, and so cold to the eye that involun- 
 tarily I shivered; feeling a return of all the vague fears 
 and apprehensions Avhich, originally awakened by the 
 pros])ect of the journey, had been set at rest for the time 
 by the awe in which I held my companion. I began to 
 recall a dozen stories of footpads and highwaymen, out- 
 rage and robbery, which I had read, and found but cold 
 comfort in the reflection that the Kent Road, from the 
 amount of traffic that used it, was accounted one of the 
 safest in England. It was not wonderful, that with 
 nerves so disordered, I went in front of danger; or that 
 when — opposite the Marshalsea, where the chain crosses 
 the road, near the entrance to White Horse Yard — a man 
 came suddenly out of a passage and caught hold of my 
 companion's rem, I cried out, and all but turned my 
 horse to iiy. 
 
 Smith himself appeared to be taken off his guard; for. 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 309 
 
 And 
 
 after bidding me beware what I did, he called witii the 
 same iiarshness to the man to roleaBo tlie rein, or take 
 the consequences. 
 
 '^Oh, I am all right," the fellow answered rou^rhly 
 peering at him through the darkness. " You are" Mr 
 Smith?" 
 "Well?" 
 
 " Fairholt seixt me — to stop von. " 
 "Fairholt!" 
 "Ay, he is here." 
 " Here? " my companion cried, in a tone of rage and 
 
 surprise " AVhat the ! Why, he should bt^you 
 
 know where, by this time! " 
 
 '• Ay, but his horse threw him this morning, and he is 
 lying at the White Horse here, with a broken leg! " 
 
 Smith cursed the absent man for a fool. "I wish he 
 had broken his neck ! " he said savagely. And then, after 
 an interval, " Has he sent anybody ? " 
 
 " He has had something else to think about," the man 
 answered drily. "And so would you, master, with his 
 leg! 
 
 Smith swore again, and sat gloomily silent. 
 
 " He says if you can stead it off for twenty-four hours " 
 the^man continued, " he will arrange that " 
 
 ^' No names," Smith cried sharply, interrupting him. 
 _ \Vell, that— someone shall take his place and do the 
 ]ob." 
 
 Smith did not answer for a time, but at length in a 
 curt, incisive tone, "Tell him, yes," he said. "I will 
 see to It. And you— keep a still tongue, will you ? You 
 were going with him, I suppose ? " 
 
 ^;Ay." 
 
 " And you will come with the other? " 
 " May be. And if not I shall not blab." 
 Smith by a nod showed that the man had taken his 
 meaning; after which, bidding him good-night he 
 
310 
 
 SIIREWSBUItY 
 
 \y^ ' 
 
 m 
 
 
 pricked up his liorso. " Come on," he saifl. adflressina 
 me with impatience. "I thoiiglit to luive hud conipan'^ 
 ions, smd so ridden more securely. 15ut we must make 
 tlio best of it." 
 
 Heaven knows that I too would have liked companions, 
 and took the road again dolefully enough. IS or was that 
 the worst of it; Smith, in speaking to'the stranger, had 
 mentioned Fairholt. Now, I knew the name, and know 
 the man to be one of the messengers attached to the 
 Secretary's office, one whose business it was to execute 
 Avarrants and arrest political prisoners. ]}ut what had 
 Smith, riding to a secret interview with a num outlawed 
 and iii hiding, to do with messengers? With Fairholt? 
 And then, as if this Avere not enough to disturb me 
 with a view of treachery, black as gulf seen by traveller 
 through a rift in the mist— if this glimpse, I say, wqyc 
 not enough, how was I going to reconcile Smith's state- 
 ment that he had expected companions with his first cry, 
 uttered m wrath and surprise— that Fairholt ought to be 
 by this time— well, at some distant point ? 
 
 Iv fine, I was so far from being persiuidod that Smitli 
 had expected company, that I gravely suspected that he 
 had made quite other arrangements; arrangements of the 
 most perfidious character. And as the horses' hoofs 
 rang monotonously on the hard road, ami we rose and 
 fell in the saddle, and I peered forward into the gloom, 
 fearing all things and doubting all things, foi- certain I 
 feared and doubted nothing so much as I did the dark 
 and secret man beside me; whose scheming brain, spin- 
 ning plot within plot, each darker and more involved than 
 the other, kept all my ingenuity at a stretch to overtake 
 the final end and purpose ho had at heart. 
 
 Indeed, I despair of conveying to others how gravely 
 this sombre companionship and more sombre uncertainty 
 aggravated the terrors of a journey, that at the best of 
 times must have been little to my taste. To the common 
 
SHREWSBUTiV 
 
 risks of the rojid. deserted at that hour 
 
 311 
 
 , - "■" """' by all save eut- 
 
 pnrses and rogues, was added a suspicion, as mucli more 
 
 uu-assing than tliese, as uuHcen dangers ever surpass the 
 knowji. It was in vain that I strove to divert my mind 
 troni the iiguro by my side; neitlier the bleak heath above 
 (.reenwich-wlience we looked back at the reddish ha/e 
 tliat canopied London, and forward to where the Thames 
 marshes stretched eastward under night— nor the o-ib- 
 bot on Dartford Brent, where a body hung in chatns 
 poisoning the air, nor the light that shone dim and soli- 
 tary far to the loft, across the river, and puzzled me 
 until he told me that it Avas Tilbury-neither of these 
 things, I say, though they occupied mv thoughts by 
 turns and for a moment, had power to dVive him from 
 my mind, or divert my fears to dangers more apparent 
 And in this mood, now glancing askance at him, and 
 now moving uneasily under his gaze, I might have ridden 
 to Itochoster if my ear '.ad liot caught-I think when we 
 were two or three miles short of the citv-the sound of 
 a horse trotting fast on the road behind us. 
 
 At lirst it followed so faintly on the breeze that I 
 doubted, thinking it might be either the echo of our 
 hoofs, or a pulse beating in my ears. Then, on a hard 
 piece of ground, it declared itself unmistakably; and 
 again as suddenly it died aAvay. 
 
 At that I spoke involuntarily. ''He has stopped," 
 J said. ^^ 
 
 Smith lauglied in his teeth. " He is crossing the wet 
 bottom, fool— by the creek," he said. 
 
 And before I could answer him the dull sound of a 
 horse galloping fast, but moving on the turf that ran 
 alongside the road, proved him to be right. ''Diaw 
 up! "he whispered in something of a hurry, and then, 
 as I hesitated, - Do you hear?" he continued, sharply 
 
 seizing myrom. "What do you fear? Do 
 that night birds prey on night birds ? " 
 
 you think 
 
I 
 
 ! 
 
 i 
 
 V I 
 
 ^i..:. 
 
 !'!) 
 
 ^il 
 
 813 
 
 siiREwsnrRv 
 
 Whatever I fearcl. I feared him more: and turning 
 my liorse, I sat,shivorinf,^ For notwithstanding his con- 
 fident words I saw that lie was handling his holster; and 
 I knew that lie was drawing a pistol; and it was well 
 the suspense was short. Before I had time for many 
 qualms, the horseman, a dark figure, lurched on us 
 through the gloom, pulled his horse on to its haunches, 
 and, with raised hand, cried to us to deliver. 
 
 " And no nonsense! " he added sharjjly. " '' Or a brace 
 
 of balls will soon " 
 
 Smith laughed. " Box it about! " he cried. 
 " Hallo! " the stranger answered, taking a lower tone- 
 and he peered at us, bending down over his horse's neck.' 
 ' Who are you, in fly-by-night ? " 
 
 " A box-it-about! " my companion answered with tart- 
 ness. '' That is enough for you. So good-night. And 
 I wish you better luck next time." 
 
 "But " 
 
 "St!" Smith answered, cutting him short. "lam 
 going to my father, and the less said about it the better " 
 "So? Well, give him my love, then." And backing 
 his horse, the stranger bade us good-night, and with a 
 curse on his bad fortune turned and rode off. Smith 
 saw him go, and then wheeling we took the road again. 
 
 Safely, however, as we had emerged from this encoun- 
 ter, and far as it went towards proving that we bore a 
 talisman against the ordinary i)eril8 of travellers, it was 
 not of a kind to reassure a law-abiding man. To be 
 hung as the accomplice of footpads and high-tobys was a 
 scarcely better fate than to be robbed and wounded by 
 them, and I was heartily glad when we found ourselves in 
 the outskirts of Rochester, and stopping at a house of call 
 outside the sleeping city, roused a drowsv hostler, and 
 late as the hour was, gained entrance and a welcome. 
 
 I confess, that safe in these comfortable quarters, on a 
 fiauded heartli, before a rekindled fire, with lights and 
 
I turning 
 ^ \m coii- 
 ster; and 
 was well 
 for many 
 d on us 
 launches, 
 
 'r a brace 
 
 ver tone; 
 e's neck. 
 
 I'ith tait- 
 
 it. And 
 
 "lam 
 
 better." 
 
 backing 
 
 I with a 
 
 Smith 
 again, 
 encoun- 
 5 bore a 
 I, it was 
 
 To be 
 ys was a 
 ided by 
 ■elves in 
 3 of call 
 er, and 
 me. 
 
 i*s, on a 
 its^ and 
 
 And Smith grow?, g o vi if "'T °' .'"'r'"'" ^"''"^• 
 count tlie hours ihlt T I , ^'"'"''' ' ™"' »■' ^ 
 
 mission ac 3i Sed ?! ,7"'' r''*"'"' <"" ""»«™We 
 
 »n. Why shou^'tn ; e' olra'atr T "; '"'" 
 prevent me ? Where h >. f Ci 7 ^ ^^^'""^ '^^« <^o 
 
 in three days w'st l le^t^^^ *( , J" three days, 
 
 looking up uuicklv m«f Q ti ," ^''^'^ '"^'^c^^; "»fl 
 
 on me ^ ^ ^ "''^ ^'"^"^^ ^^^^ brooding gloomily 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVn 
 
 ■•oads for artaistence a, dT °* ^'^™*' ^^ '» '!«' 
 
 beet^t "ZtcT 'S"'*' ^' ™" *■= -°"S"' - >- 
 •0 leave l°Z„n at that "'"'"'""r'"'"' '"^'"^ S™"'' 
 
 to the rest of the journey Ta^i^ f ^ . ." ''"^"'' 
 ester, wo rode on hv SS^ u '>"'« '"'« '* Kwh- 
 
 thence aften comfo^»h f °""* '° Fe.ersham, and 
 
 n^inutes after „i„h«'n *'""'• "'''^'^ ™ "mved a tew 
 
 »fter nightfall. 
 Those who are acquainted with the UKI 
 tranoo into Ashford will remember that 
 
 Old Inn at the 
 
 en- 
 
 the yard and 
 
'I ' 
 
 111' 
 
 Ui 
 
 ;u4 
 
 sniiFAvsBmy 
 
 stables are as oonspicuons for size and eommocliousness as 
 the Jionse, a l)]a(;k and wliite hiuldiiio:, a little withdrawn 
 from the street, is strikin;j:lv niai'ked by the lack of those 
 advantages. J believe that the huge (toiicoiirse thither 
 of cattlc-drovcrs at the season of the great fairs is the 
 eause of this; those persons lying close themselves but 
 needing space for tlieir beasts. And at such times I can 
 imagine that the roomy enceinfc, and those long lines of 
 buildings, may be cheerful enough. 
 
 Hut seen, as we saw them, when we rode in, by the 
 lasteohl light of a dull evening, M'ith noth'ng dear or 
 j)lain save the i-oof ridge, and that black against a pale 
 sky, they and the i>lace looked infinitely disnuil. .\or did 
 any warnith of welcome, or cheerful greeting, such as even 
 poor inns afford ^o all and sundry, amend the lirst im- 
 pression of gloom and decay, which the house and its 
 surroundings conveyed to the mind. On the contrary, 
 not a soul was to be seen, and we had i-idden half way 
 across the yard, and Smith had twice called '' House! 
 Jfouse! " before anyone was aroused. 
 
 'riien tlie upper half of a stable-dooi" creaked open, ami 
 a man holding up a great horn Ian thorn, ])eered out at us. 
 
 '•Are you all asleep I" " cried my comi)anion. Aiul 
 when the man made no answer, but still continued to 
 look at us, "■ What is in the house," he added, angrilv, 
 '•that you stick out yourdeatli's head to frighten coni- 
 pany ? Is it Ince or old ^'antz 'i Or French goods V Aiw 
 way. box it about and be done with it, and attend to us." 
 
 "Right, master, right, I am coming," the man an- 
 swered, suddenly rousing himself; and opening the lower 
 half of the door, he came heavily out. •'At your ser- 
 vice," he said. •' But we have little coiupany." 
 
 " The times are bad ? " 
 
 "Ay, they looked a bit better six juonths back," 
 
 " But nothing came of it V " 
 
 "No, worse luck." 
 
lonsness hh 
 witlidi'iiwn 
 ,'k of fhoso 
 THo tliiMior 
 iiirs is tlie 
 isolvoH but 
 ;ii)i08 I ean 
 ig lines of 
 
 in, by tlio 
 
 ^' (.'lejir or 
 
 nst ii palo 
 
 Is or (lid 
 
 ich as even 
 
 e lirst ini- 
 
 se and its 
 
 contrary, 
 
 half way 
 
 •' House! 
 
 open, and 
 out at ut^. 
 m. And 
 itinued to 
 , angrily, 
 hten coin- 
 ids V Any 
 id to ne." 
 ! man an- 
 tlie lower 
 your ser- 
 
 k." 
 
 I Jui^llf--'''''' '" ^'''''■'' '"■■ '''•"-'«»"■"- "oil,,,,,,.. 
 
 '•' ''^"'<1. •• V..U li;.vr 
 
 'I'lic IVIlow ,i;riim,.d. •- |fi„|,t, - ) 
 l-lu! iian-jor ii. uiiistor " 
 
 hi^Ji.i::i;;:;f:.:li::,::!''"-;i;t;;;7'''^«'-" ■•-■•- 
 
 I siipposoy " he mM. ■ ''■"■° ""'"'' S'lo-te, 
 
 Ay, one," the man answered slnw],. , . i r ^1 
 i-oluctantly. '^weud, sJowiy, and I tliought, 
 
 '•rslie,l)yanycliance.amanof thonnmonf 1 . 
 
 'Iwtaiit Ktall ,vl,in,iio,llo„,ny ■ ■■ '" '"'™" '" ■' 
 
 the s„hlie ; , " hi I V ?' "'"'/"""■g «i tl.e llai, of 
 »i(l, '■ evc,.y „„.„ to hul-" "■*' '"■■'"""■' 1"^ 
 
 pricki,,. its'c,.,. tun' ' ; :'^"'';'™'""V'r "■"' 
 
 ifis horse, i 
 
 '»l>li, not so bad,"' my 
 
 The 
 
 «nppose 
 
 companion sai<]. 
 
 in 
 
 'III with the straw looked 
 
 fch. 
 
 ''iiiimal over reil 
 
 ec- 
 
816 
 
 SITREWSTirRV 
 
 \l \ 
 
 f 
 
 tively. At length witli soinotlu?ifr bet 
 
 fi siirli 
 
 He 
 
 piinio oil it," lie wiid. 
 
 woon n grunt and 
 
 a 
 
 He won't go on it in a iinrry. 
 
 Why not?" said the m 
 
 iin, more (luickly tiuin lie l)a(l 
 
 yet spoken: and he looked from the liorse to my compan- 
 ion with a hint of hostility. 
 
 ^ "Have you no eyes?" Smith answered, roughly. 
 " The off-fore has filled; the horse is as lame as a mum- 
 per! " 
 
 "Gammon!" cried the other, evidently stung. And 
 then, " You know a deal about horses in London! And 
 never saw one or a blade of green grass, maybe, until 
 you came Kent way! " 
 
 "As you please," Smith said, indifferently. "But 
 my business is hot with the horse but the master. So 
 take us in, my good friend, and give us supper, for I am 
 famished. And afterwards, if you please, we will see 
 him." 
 
 "That is as he pleases," the fellow answered sulkily. 
 But he raised no second objection, and when we had lit- 
 tered down the horses he led the way into the house by 
 a back door, and so along a passage and down a step or 
 two, which landed us in a room with a sanded floor, u 
 fire, and a show of Avarmth and comfort, as welcome as 
 It was unexpected. Here ho left us to remove our cloaks, 
 and we presently heard him giving orders, and bustling 
 the kitchen. 
 
 The floor of the room in which ho had left us was sunk 
 a little below the level of the road outside; and the ceil- 
 ing being low and the window of greater width than 
 height, and the mantel-shelf having for ornament a row 
 of clean delft and pewter, I thought that no place had 
 ever looked more snug and cosy. But whatever comfort 
 T looked to derive from surroundings so much better than 
 I had expected, was dashed by Smith's first words, who, 
 in as we were alone came close to me under the pre- 
 
 as 
 
I grunt; mid 
 
 tl)aii ]io had 
 my compiiu- 
 
 1, rouf?hly. 
 as a mum- 
 
 ;nng. And 
 Ion ! And 
 lay be, until 
 
 "But 
 
 So 
 
 aaster, 
 
 sr, for I am 
 
 ve will seo 
 
 ed sulkily, 
 we had lit- 
 3 house by 
 I a stej) or 
 led floor, a 
 \^elcome as 
 rar cloaks, 
 d bustling 
 
 3 was sunk 
 d the ceil- 
 idth than 
 lent a row 
 place had 
 sr comfort 
 •etter than 
 )rds, who, 
 sr the pre- 
 
 teuce of unelaspir..g my cloak, and in u lo,v, guanled 
 t^no, and with a look of the gnmmest. warned me'Jopl:' 
 
 11 be done, he muttered. " Uo through with it 
 
 ^oiulon. Jiut fail or play me false, Mr. Price and bv 
 
 atL,|va.ds. Do you mark me? ]Jo you n.ark me, 
 
 I Nvhispered in abject nervousness-seeing that he was 
 n^ed m earnest-that I would do my best; ad he 
 hu ed mo a nng which was doubtless the same that t e 
 Countess had given to her woman. It liad a great cW 
 cu cani.o-.pon theston^ .^^l^^ wL'ln .^^ 
 and 1 htted my finger not ill. But I had no more t h-u 
 tune to glance at it before the host and his wir-r, ie 
 
 ^^ and ale, and as one or other of them stayed with us 
 while we ate, and watched us closelv. nothing 1 e pa 1 
 
 ^^? "f ^"'^*^>' ^^ ^'-^' --etimes Lb' tt; 
 
 P . T .T ^ """'^ sometimes in cant phrases about the 
 
 ate plot the arrest of Hunt at Dvmcliurch (who had 
 
 often ^^ill s Hhip came over, Mr. Birkenhead's many es- 
 capes, and the like. Probably the man and wonuui wei^ 
 testing S.nith; but if so, he satisfied them, for when we 
 had f nished our meal, and he asked oi)en ly if Sir John 
 
 taking a light from the Avonian's hand, led the way u, 
 H ow-browed staircase to a room over that in which we 
 
 enter'S 'T '^ '"^^^"^^^ ^^^^ ^ ^^^ bidding 
 fur";^"*' ""^^ "' ^'^^ ' ^''^^ ^'-> -y ^-rt beaming 
 
 low ?n Jhr''-r^'^'^i T'r^^'^^ ^^^^ ""^ b«"«^*»^ it in being 
 low in the ceiling, looked the lower for the gaunt height 
 
 
 % I 
 
ai8 
 
 Sl/Iih'Ws/il'uy 
 
 if 
 
 
 lac le ot tbo Hour to reeeivo us. Thin ,tn.I spare by 
 nature, ti.o u.ougre and rutluw poor-loukin^^ .Ir J ul.ich 
 .0 wore added to the sin^ulurity of his aspect. ^Vi th 
 I ry-as-dust c.,,n.plexion, un.l a three-days'-old hea , h 
 
 a eyes h.ht-oolo,.red. qui.k-.Iunc-in.. ^nd -uu.uine tml 
 notwithstaud.uo- the d.uo-r and unccrtuintv o( his po i' 
 ^, a tu^mve .u this waysi.le house, wit), a thouand 
 ^nu^s on h.shead-for [ never doubted I was h.okin,. 
 on Su John h.nviok-his nutnner was at one .non.ont 
 ^"•.•o^uHt an.l hoastful. and at an<,t,her drean.v. , 
 
 -neluu, ..-the air of a visionary; uorcouhl^-o^^^ 
 
 tiK ^v^s man for our purj.oso; one to Avhoin all his 
 go «e were swan*, and a nlas,, of the han<l. if it „,u-ch 
 
 I h h,s hopes an<l wishes,, of as n.nch value as a ideZ 
 «iyned and scaled . ^ ^ 
 
 All tl,is taken for granted, it is t. ho confessed that at 
 
 k , ; ^ ,;"' '" 'T '1'' "'^^ '^'" ^'"^^'•''^ -- -mi- 
 
 • U n '7T'' '^""'''' '' ''^••" ''^' '^'^i''' ^^''tli a sigh. 
 
 .H<;1. well, and I thought it was Hirkenhoad. lirotn 
 BHKl It was not, but I thought that it n.nst be. It i no 
 every one knows Uirkonhead when ho sees hin,." 
 • .No. Sir Jolm. tliat is true " 
 
 " However I shall see hi,n in the morning. I go 
 
 oe witn (,ill. \\ hen we conic back " 
 
 said ^''' ^''' ''*"''"' '""''" '"'^^ '>'^' f^lmnged then!" Smith 
 
 hcZ^!!P' '''^';'''- '''"' ^''"' ^'"^^^' ^•■^'^^' ^'"'' their low 
 b a of a master swept into the sea! And gentlemen in 
 
 h^r homes aga,n 1 have been .n.using^nyself even 
 o^N. he contn.ued. Ins eyes wandering to the table on 
 
 the old style, I thmk, or possibly on tlie lines of the other 
 
sin{ i:\vsni in- 
 
 stood ill the 
 I'll I .Sparc by 
 (Irciss wliic'h 
 ct. Witli ji 
 'I I lean i. lie 
 ii.iruine. and 
 ol' liis j)()si- 
 a tlioiiHuiid 
 iVHK looking 
 no inojnent 
 •• He hud 
 Id any one 
 at here was 
 'in all his 
 it marched 
 as a J (led fro 
 
 i'<I that at 
 vas unmiK- 
 ith a sigh. 
 1. Jii'own 
 It is not 
 
 5> 
 
 »?• I ffo 
 
 ists ho will 
 
 UIO 
 
 I " 
 
 iSinith 
 
 their low 
 tlenien in 
 >e]f even 
 
 tal)l(! on 
 »'o snnlfv 
 
 J fall, in 
 the other 
 
 II 
 
 011.^0 at Ite.vhani. I an. divided 
 
 '•^ tho more 
 
 commodious; me o,„ ad 
 
 between the two. 'V\ 
 
 bev h 
 
 10 
 
 Htateliness. However Tmh^ / "'' ^'"" ^'''^''' 
 
 i mnst be in tL saddi; , ' ^ 'V' ''''^''' ""^^ ^^^' 
 
 long wl.oii tliev can co,„o at me Ul„ ''" 
 
 an, car,- ij;. c \""' 'f ""''"■'»'' "■'"" "-^gcs I 
 ti.e.v have!,, a» •,„";■: ,,',7'" ","" '"" ""''<°" 
 
 ""•" "1.0 .-0 . J to it,, , 7' ' ''"'"r"": '" """ ""•• 
 
 l'««il.fe.M,., t,, l' Mt'l, :"""■• "rf "■'"' "" """•'' 
 
 „^, , , '"'tl'- llo»' tl,.' .l,-„nkf.|, 
 
 last out the year. These 
 
 DiitcJ) isoor i-t 
 
 l^iit It cannot last. It will not 
 
880 
 
 tmitEWSBURY 
 
 I'i ! 
 
 executions have opened men's eyes finely I And bv 
 Christmas we shall be back. " 
 
 " A merry Christmas it will be," said Smith. " Heaven 
 grant it. But you have not asked. Sir John, who it is I 
 have with me." 
 
 At that and at a sign he made me, I let fall the collar 
 of the cloak I was wearing; which, in obedience to his 
 directions, I had hitherto kept high about my chin. Sir 
 John his eyes drawn to me, as much by my action as by 
 hmith 8 words, stared at me a moment before his mouth 
 opened wide in recognition and surprise. Then " I— I 
 am snrelynot mistaken!" he cried, advancing' a step 
 while the colour rose in his sallow face. " It is— it cer- 
 tainly is " 
 
 "Sir John," 8*mitli cried in haste, and, he, too, ad- 
 vanced a step and raised a hand in warning, " this is 
 Colonel Talbot! Colonel Talbot, mark you, sir; I am 
 sure you understand me, and the reasons which make it 
 impossible for any but Colonel Talbot to visit you here 
 lie lias done me the honour to accompany me. But 
 perhaps," he continued, checking himself with an air 
 ot deference, '' it were more fitting I left you now." 
 
 "No," I said hurriedly, repeating the lesson' I had 
 learned by rote, and in which Smith had not failed to 
 practice me a dozen times that day. " I am here to one 
 end only-to ask Sir John Fenwick to do Colonel Talbot 
 a kindness; to take this ring and convey it with my ser- 
 vice and duty— whither he is going. " 
 _ " Oh, but this is extraordinary! " Sir Jolni cried, lift- 
 ing his hands and eyes in a kind of ecstasy. "This 
 18 a dispensation! A providence! But, my lord " he 
 continued with rapture, " there is one more step you may 
 take one more eftort you may make. Be the restorer, 
 the Monk of this generation! So ripe is the pear that 
 y^^VQ you to ride through the City to-morrow, and pro- 
 claim our rightful sovereign, not a citizen but would 
 
! And by 
 
 • "Heaven 
 who it is I 
 
 1 the collar 
 ence to his 
 
 chin. 8ir 
 ction as by 
 
 his month 
 len, "I— I 
 ing a step, 
 ' is — it eer- 
 
 e, too, ad- 
 ?, " this is 
 sir; I am 
 h make it 
 : yon here, 
 me. Bnt, 
 ith an air 
 low." 
 son I had 
 ' failed to 
 ere to one 
 lel Talbot 
 li my ser- 
 
 ;ried, lift- 
 . "This 
 ord," he 
 
 • yon may 
 restorer, 
 
 pear that 
 and pro- 
 nt won Id 
 
 ^:^^^r" 
 
 l^!tl'< 
 
 SIR JOHN 
 21 
 
 ' . . RTAKICD AT Mii A MOMKNT 
 
p 
 
 
 ( 
 
 c 
 
 1 
 
 e 
 
 w 
 
 SI 
 
 v< 
 
SIIIiEWSnURY 
 
 323 
 
 TS^aJe l-^t'^l: ™"'-' «"•- -Jo- >..■» pike! 
 Keyes'B exec «"" A:d trirf'/r^"' "^^'"^^ »* 
 dream that they see ntteh p„L "" '"■'"^-''° y»» 
 
 soldier, overpaM and dn „ f ?™'""''"' »'«' »»teh 
 
 will confirm it^' °"''' ""y- '" <'<»'"I« tho King 
 
 norfeei.'''''"i^;f :tta!;r"-'' t""™« " ""s- 1 <>« 
 
 no other. Awl I ™ w?; / ."■" <^'<"«''<'" ™bot and 
 suggestions, b„ to r, melt """"' '" "'""^ '»■ '"'''"' 
 
 good enough t^ convev tw ! • ., "' ^°'"' '"""'»• »" 
 
 you are going!^' ^ "" ""^ "'"' "^ '''■■™e whither 
 
 wiiltr„o"mllV"''" "■ -^ -Proachfnlly. "You 
 
 ;;^n^t..o,.imee„m;.lJ.nVZart^d^^::^^^^ 
 
 in sneLe :,:; l^Hp^S^hf: ,™" '""'»■• "^ '»»" 
 gave wav to a second wi" T"'^ ''''''"'™* "' "' 
 ".ore selfl* and „' thl/l '■■« T" ^"''"''*''™' 
 heartv. "This will ^ ? ™™ ''"^ *>«*. •>«' not less 
 
 I>«s had for a twelvelonth " ^ "T,'""'" ^^'"'"'"»>' 
 
 chat faction wUhth^r\v7^r" ^'""^^ ^^^^^^'^ -^^ 
 He has wasted tlf a .nn) ^'^"/^""^ ^^^^"^ to pomler! 
 ent ! Good Lo ni T «I . ""^^ ""^ ^"^ ^"^^^ ^'^ ^^her- 
 
 said Smi/r"f ^ ^'°^""'^ ''^^^^^^ ^« «" the road ac^ain » 
 earn ^mith, mterven iig deftlv '- Af fi,. , """ /^»-^."'' 
 
 very safe place for iiim " ' ''' ''''^ *^^° ^° ""« 
 
 "That is true," said Sir John, with ready consider- 
 
 
 \t'\, 
 
824 
 
 SIIREWSBUIiV 
 
 ation. " And I should be riding within the half -hour. 
 But to Romney. You, i suppose, return to London ? " 
 "To London," I baid, mechanically. 
 " Direct? " said he, with deference. 
 "As directly as we dare," Smith answered; and with 
 the word moved to the door and opened it. On which I 
 bowed and v/as for going out; perhaps with a little awk- 
 wardness. But Sir John, too deeply impressed by the 
 honour I had done Lum to let me retire so lamely, started 
 forward, and snatching np a candle, would hold the door 
 and light me; bending his long back, and calling to 
 Brown to look to us— to look to us! ]S"or was this all; 
 for when I halted half way down the stairs, and turned, 
 feeling that such iCourtesy demanded some acknowledge- 
 ment or at least a word of thanks, he took the word out 
 of my mouth. 
 
 "Hist! Colonel Talbot! " he cried in a loud whisper; 
 and leaning far over the stairs he held the light high 
 with one hand and shaded his eyes with the other. 
 " You know that we have the Tower? " 
 
 "The Tower? " I muttered, not understanding him. 
 " To be sure. Ailesbury has it in his hand. It will 
 declare for us whenever he gets the word. But— you 
 know it from him, I suppose ? " 
 
 "From Lord Ailesbury ? " I exclaimed in sheer sur- 
 prise. " But he is a prisoner! " 
 
 Sir John winked. "Prisoner and master! " he mut- 
 tered, nodding vigorously. " But there, I must not keep 
 you. Good luck and hon voyage, M. le due." 
 
 Which was the last I saw of him for that time. Nor 
 did I ever see him again save on one occasion. That he 
 was a violent and factious man, and a foe to the Protest- 
 ant succession I do not deny; nor that some passages in 
 his life do him little credit, and the most bruited the 
 least. But for all this, and though I was then even a 
 stranger to him, I am fain to confess that as I stumbled 
 
'"'tWT 
 
 half-hour, 
 ondon?" 
 
 1 and with 
 )n which I 
 little awk- 
 sed by the 
 ily, started 
 d the door 
 calling to 
 as this all; 
 id turned, 
 :nowledge- 
 I word out 
 
 i whisper; 
 light high 
 ihe other. 
 
 ing him. 
 . It will 
 But — ^you 
 
 3heer sur- 
 
 " he mut- 
 ; not keep 
 
 me. Nor 
 That he 
 ) Protest- 
 assages in 
 •uited the 
 n even a 
 stumbled 
 
 335 
 extension o t ooW ZLIT 7. "'°* ■"»"« '»'■ "» 
 
 matter ? What ails yo„ ? " ' '"' '=™'^' ^''"" « ^e 
 "Vou.f'Isaid. "Yon, curse you." 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVIII 
 
 And donbtless it was this onthroit n, >„n 
 
 pioion of me which it sowed ^ Smfth's mind t'„t '"" 
 sioned the seauel nf m,,. o/i ! smma, tnat occa- 
 
 ^^=11^' ^e Zr- T^^ 
 iniha/ir.^^ , . ^^'rtuu. iviore tnan once he wen*- 
 to the door, and cymg me ,«kance and sourly, came bit 
 but in the end and after standing a while rresoh.l h^ 
 
 wl::l;:^^: :j»j:'!'«^- to s^i ,„,.,„, ^ 
 
 *an bore that hole i„ /o:;:^ T^f J- -- - I 
 
 111; 
 
 I;' 
 ; ■ I 
 
826 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 m 
 
 
 hf 
 
 before me. By C , I wish you were afc the bottom of 
 
 the nearest horse-poud! " 
 
 His words hud the effect he intended, of bringing mc 
 to my senses; but tliey went farther. For in j^roportion 
 as they cooled my temper tliey awakened my fears; and 
 though I obeyed him abjectly, took up my bag and fol- 
 lowed him, it was with a sudden and horrible distrust of 
 his purpose. I saw that I had not only ceased to be 
 of use to him, but was now in his way, und might be a 
 danger to him, and the night— which enveloped us tlie 
 moment we crossed the threshold and seemed the more 
 dre ry and forbidding for the ruddy light and comfort we 
 left behind us— reminding me of the long dark miles I 
 must ride by his side, each mile a terror to one and an 
 opportunity to th^ other, I had much ado not to give way 
 to instant panic there and then. However, for the time 
 I controlled myself; and stumbling across the g'oomv 
 yard to the spot where a faint gleam of light indicated 
 the door of the stables, I Avent in. 
 
 The landlord was saddling our horses; and a little 
 cheered by the warmth of his lanthorn, I went to help 
 him. Smith turned aside, as I thought, into the next 
 stall. But Brown was sharper and more suspicious, and 
 in a twinkling called to him lustily, to know what h, was 
 doing. Getting no answer, *•' Devil take him," the laiul- 
 lord cried. "He cannot keep from that horse! Here, 
 you! What are you doing there ? " 
 
 " Coming! " Smith answered; but even as he spoke I 
 caught the smart click of iron falling on iron, and the 
 horse in the distant stall moved sharply with a hurried 
 clatter of hoofs on tlie stones. "Coming!" Smith re- 
 peated. " What is the matter with you, man ? " 
 
 " You had better come," the landlord answered sav- 
 agely. " Or I shall fetch you. Here you! " this to me, 
 "lead yours out, will you. I want to see your backs, 
 and be quit of you! " 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 bottom of 
 
 mgiiig mo 
 pi-oportion 
 fears; and 
 I, and fol- 
 listrust of 
 sed to be 
 light be a 
 )ed us the 
 the more 
 jmfort Avo 
 k miles I 
 ne and an 
 ► give way 
 tlie time 
 e g'oomy 
 indicated 
 
 i a little 
 it to lielj) 
 I the next 
 sious, and 
 :at h. was 
 the land- 
 ) ! Here, 
 
 B spoke I 
 , and the 
 I luirried 
 i^mith re- 
 
 ered eav- 
 lis to me, 
 Lir backs. 
 
 I took my horse by the bridle, and led it out of 
 
 827 
 
 the 
 
 stable, Willie iirown went to bit the other. And so 
 being alone outside, and the moon rising at the moment 
 over the roof of the house and showing me the open 
 gates at the Qn,{ of the yard, the impulse to escape from 
 bmith while I had tlie opportunity came on me with 
 overpowering force. Bettor ac(puiinted than the land- 
 lord with the villain's plans I had not a doubt that at 
 that very moment he was laming Sir John's horse for the 
 purpose of detaining him; and the cold-biooded treach- 
 ery of this act, filling me with as much terror on my own 
 account-who might be the next victim-as hatred of 
 the perpetrator, I climbed softly to my saddle, and began 
 to walk my horse towards the gates. Doubtless Smith 
 Avas too busy, cloaking his own moveme.'us, to be obser- 
 vant of mine. I reached the gates unnoticed, and turning 
 instinctively from London— iu which direction I fancied 
 that he would be sure to pursue mc-I kicked my mare 
 trst into a quick walk, then into a cautious trot, finallv 
 iito a canter. The beast, though Jar from speedy, was 
 fresh from its corn; it took hold of the bit, shied at a 
 chance light m a cotter's window, and went faster and 
 faster, its ears pricked forward. In a minute we had 
 left Ashford behind us, and were clattering through the 
 moonlight. With one hand on the pommel and the 
 other holding the shortened reins I urged the mare on 
 with all the pressure of my legs; and albeit I trembled 
 now at some late-seen obstacle, which proved to be onlv 
 the shadow of a tree, thrown across the road, and now at 
 the steepness of a descent that appeared suddenly before 
 me, I never faltered, but uphill and downhill drove in 
 my heels, and with fear behind me, rode in the nicrht as 
 I had never before dared to ride in the daylight. * 
 
 I had known nothing like it since the "summer day 
 +w.i,.o years before when I had fled across the Hertford- 
 meadows on my feet. The sweat 
 
 shir 
 
 my 
 
 doAvn me. 
 
 
338 
 
 ^SHREWSBURY 
 
 ;i 
 
 f" 
 
 I stooped in the saddle out of pure weakness; if the 
 horse i)ricked its ears forward I spread mhie backward 
 listening for sounds of pursii , I . But such a speed could 
 not be long maintained, and when we had gone, as I 
 judged, two miles, the mare began to flag, and the canter 
 became a trot. Still for another mile I urged her on, 
 until feeling her labour under me, and foreseeing that I 
 must ride far, I had the thought to turn into the first 
 lane to which I came, and there wait in the shadow of a 
 tree until Smith, if he followed, should pass. 
 
 I did this, sprang down, and standing by mv panting 
 horse, in a marshy hollow, some two hundred paces from 
 the road, listened intently, for twenty minutes, it may 
 be, but they seemed to be hours to me. After the life I 
 had been leading ih London, this loneliness in the night 
 in a strange and wild ])lace, and with a i-elentless enemy 
 on my track, appalled my very soul. I was hot and yet 
 I shivered, and started nt the least sound, ./he scream 
 of a curlew daunted me, the rustling of the rushes and 
 sedge shook me, and when a sad wail, as of a multitude 
 of lost souls passed overhead, I cowered almost to my 
 knees. Yet, inasmuch as these sounds, doleful and 
 dreary as they were, were all I heard, and the night air 
 brought no trampling of distant hoofs to my ear, I had 
 reason to be thankful, and more than thankful; and my 
 mare having by this time got her wind again, I led her 
 back to the road, climbed into the saddle and plodded on 
 steadily; deriving a wonderful relief and confidence from 
 the thought that Smith had olio wed me London- wards. 
 Moreover, I had conceived a sort of horror of tlie lone- 
 liness of the Avaste country-,side, and to keep the highway 
 was willing to run some risk. I took it that the road I 
 was travelling must bring me to Roinney, and for a good 
 hour and a half, T jogged with a loose rein through the 
 gloom, the way becoming ever flatter and wetter, the 
 wmd more chill and salt, and the night darker, the moon 
 
SHREWSBURY 339 
 
 renection tliat a dozen gm.t ,litol,es, each wide cnourfi 
 and deep enough to smotliei- my Iiorse mi<'l,t. 1 » h^t 
 me and the honae, availed to keep 'e ""1' „'fr 
 more as I now felt ™,e from the Brftness of he ."nlt a r 
 t at Eomneyand the «.a were at no great distancel'o: 
 
 i;:..r«:irit;];tirti:-f^;^ir: 
 sm:J;Th:is:rLT;r?™^---^-^^^^^^ 
 
 For five minutes after that I plodded on in tl.e ham.v 
 belief Imt my journey was as gJod as over, a^^dl saved 
 and I let my mind dwell on shelter and Jotv \J7t \ 
 
 t e patcliof low gloom before me where my fancy pictured 
 e sleeping town. Then on a sudden/my eir caS 
 tlie dull beat of a horse's hoofs on tlie road behind me 
 and my heart standing still with terror, I j^ ck d at m^ 
 reins, and stood to listen. Av and it wL ^^-p ^ 
 
 moment satisfied me of tliat. '' Thud tlnid thud7'/ 
 aM ei.1. s,u...s,uash, s,uish-s,ui:;;l a^ lie ^fs^: 
 ■n„ up behind me; and not only behind me but hard 
 upon me_,vithin less than a hundred paees of n^ lie 
 
 nto a cleai sky, showed me to him before I could set mv 
 desperate y, I heard the man shout. That was enonsh 
 road, I flogged my horse into a jaded cantor, and Lnf g 
 
f"'^ 
 
 330 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 I'm fl 
 
 low ill the saddle 
 
 igl 
 
 (-» 
 
 if 
 
 mortal fear of a bulle 
 eyes to the dangers that lay ahead, and the 
 escape from that whicli followed on my heels. 
 
 Suddenly, and while I was still kicking and urging on 
 my horse, before the first flush of fear had left mo, I 
 heard a t rash and a cry behind me; but I did not dare 
 at the moment to look back. I only leaned ilie lower, 
 and clung the more tightly to my horse's mane and still 
 pressed on. By-and-by, however, hearing nothing, it 
 flashed on me that I was riding alone, that I was n., longer 
 pursued ; and a little later taking courage to draw rein and 
 look back wearily, I found that I could see nothing, nor 
 hear any sound save the heavy panting of my own horse. 
 I had escaped. I had escaped and was alone on the 
 marsh. But as I 'soon satisfied myself, I was no longer 
 on the causeway along which I had" been travelling when 
 the man surprised me. The wind which had then met 
 me was now on my right cheek; the lights for which I 
 had been heading were no longer visible. The track, too, 
 when I moved cautiously forward, seemed more wet and 
 rough; after that it needed little to convince me that I 
 had strayed from the highway, probably at the point 
 where my pursuer had fallen. 
 
 This, since I dared not return by the way I had come, 
 terribly perplexed me. 1 dismounted, and wet and shiv- 
 ering stood by my horse, which hung its head, and rest- 
 lessly lifted its feet by turns as if it already felt the en- 
 gulfing power of the moss. Peering out every way I saw 
 nothing but gloom and mist, the dark waste and unknown 
 depths of the marsh. It was a situation to try the stout- 
 est, nor did it need the mournful sough of the wind as it 
 swept the flats, or the strange gurgling noises that from 
 time to time rose from the sloughs about me to add the 
 last touch of fear and melancholy to the scene. 
 
 Though, for my own part, I sank in no farther than 
 my ankles, the horse by its restlessness evinced a etrony 
 
sniiEwsBrjtY 
 
 sense of danger, an.l I dared not stand 
 clouds had again obscured tJie 
 WHS absolute, to advance seen... „. ,, 
 !T:!:"V "^^'^^.'5' ''' fear tluit the h 
 
 wliere I 
 
 881 
 
 still. But as 
 
 moon and the darkness 
 
 ance seemed as dangerous as to 
 
 orse, if I stood 
 
 breuiv loose from nie, I led 
 
 cautiously: and tkn L V,. V " •'' ^ ^'^ '^ ^^^'^^'^'d 
 
 instinct of the beCnM«i ^ ^, '°'^ ^vonderfully the 
 had once been to Id h.fl, ' 'f ^ ^vniembering that I 
 
 Heaven knows how welcome it was to n,P » T 
 weary and sliiverintr wifh 1 1 ! • ®' ^ ^^"« ^^et, 
 that \Jry2^^^ ^ "^^^ 7* ' *'^« "g^»«h air of 
 
 told the nalit^Ikrdr^JtrsT^TV'f ' ^"' 
 others do ale and wine Bnf S .i '^ *^^' ^"^""> »« 
 
 and the horse too; and we movtl n! T\} ^"''^'"^ "^' 
 entlybythe help^f te ^0:, g ^1^ T' T" 
 grey uaist which trebled the size of Tu ' V . T^^ ^ 
 huge wall or bank loom acl^ tf t'' ''/ '^'' ' 
 when I discerned it- -m^ T 1 ^1 ^ I was close to it 
 
 despair of s^untin^lf I < fi' T' *'^^" ^^""^^ ^« 
 clambering upTsol?bHnT? 'r^^°''' ^'^^ ^'^'^^^^ 
 stones, in a minutror L T 1 t ^^^'"^ ""'^"^ *^^« 
 gained the sirmU and 1 1 T^' ' ^''^^ ''^^'^^' ^« 
 
 smooth miik::r:'^rtt.":ii;tfn:'^ '^'°" "^ *^^ 
 
 So seen it'liorl o o^" i • ^ '"^^^^ "^'^^*'^" ^he fog. 
 seen it had a strangely weird and pallid aspect, L 
 
t- # 
 
 ¥ I 
 
 ?'.' 
 
 833 
 
 sirifEwsnrnr 
 
 of a (Iciul sea. viewed in dreams: and I stood a moment to 
 l)reathe my hcrm and admire the si-ootacle; nor did I lail 
 to tliaiik ()o(i that T waa out of that dreary and trcach- 
 (M-ouH phice. Then, considering my future movements 
 and not knowMijr wiiich nay I oii^ht to taivc— to ri;,dit or 
 left ahnig the heacli~to gain tlie more rjuicikly liolp and 
 shelter, I was reining my mare down the sea side of tlie 
 bank wlien a welcome sound caught my ear. It was a 
 man's voice giving an order. I halted and peered through 
 the sea-haze; and by-and-hy I made out a boat, Ivimr 
 beached at the edge of the tide, some huiulred and flftj 
 yards to my left. There were men standing in it. I 
 could not see how many; and more were in the act of 
 pushing it oif the strand. Theii- voices came to me with 
 singular clearness: but the words were unintelligible. 
 
 The sight gave me pause: and for a moment I stood 
 reconnoitring tlie men. To advance or not was the .,ues- 
 tion, and I was still debating it, and striving to deduce 
 something from the men's appearance, when something, 
 I never knew what— perhaps some noise ill-apprehended 
 —led me to turn aside my head Whatever the cause of 
 the movement, it apprised me of something little sus- 
 pected. Not fifty paces behind me I saw the figure of a 
 giant horseman looming out of the mist. He'' was ad- 
 vancing along the summit of the sea-wall below which I 
 stood; hence I saw him before ho made me out: and this 
 gave me the start and the advantage. I had time to take 
 111 the thing, and seize my horse by the head, and move 
 eight or ten paces towards the boat before he took the 
 cue. Then on neither side was there any concealment. 
 AVith a cry, a yell rather, the mere sound of which flung 
 me into a panic, the man urged his horse down the bank 
 shouting fiercely to me to stand; I in utter terror spurred 
 mine across the beach towards the men I had seen. 
 
 I have said that I had some sixty yards of start, and 
 two hundred or so to cross, to reach the boat; but the 
 
horses were ecaicelv jihlo fn trr.* . ^ 
 
 v(3ritulilo raco of ..Im ^. / ^'^^ sound of hoof«, it wuh u 
 
 tlio shore be,i,lo u». Ho cried "[ Is^'f,'" "'^•■' '"i'I'i"8 
 
 thu* e„„.. live b, o.,i„;td';::Xn::i;r""T:''r'' 
 
 were my only ho„e a„,I I too crie,l L h , und T 
 
 tliem. vt fhi.f f„,. ^ wJiougJi the hujuI towan h 
 
 me "kio; „':;,;;:,!;'••>?"* '° "T"'" ""•' ™'"'"" 
 
 .bolt ""'«" '°"S"»,"I"P1»<1 mo over thotid; ,t„ 
 
 lotttto^iri-, !:'.'",';;;;:;;", 7'' '"■"'^•" '" "■-'- 
 
 i..g <lo,vn the beach, a Wd h w 'iri,7"l '' "r"" ''"■°''- 
 
 o; |o.er,u, .tr„.es\d/ove"lt-'ii'\l:;: ;;;'';:™;'t 
 
 water, and the '«' itw LT ,'r'V''r'^ ™ "■" 
 the last glimpse of l,i,„ .?„ l T- • """''° " '""t 
 
 wardonlgrerblui;:!'" ""^''"'"^ '-"^^ -""- 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIX 
 
 II 
 
'r\i 
 
 884 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 upward in the spring, and in the blood of a man to live 
 in the present and future, the past going for little; and 
 I had not crouched two minutes on the thwart before the 
 steady lurch of the boat outwards and seawards fixed my 
 attention. From this to asking myself by what chance I 
 had been saved, and who were the men who sat round me 
 —and evinced no more curiosity about me thau if tliey 
 had been sent to tlie spot purely and simply to rescue 
 me — was but a step. 
 
 1 took it, scanned them stealthily, and was far from 
 reassured; the sea-garb was then new to me, and these 
 wearers of it were the wildest of their class. The fog 
 wliich enfolded us magnified their clumsy shoulders and 
 great knitted night-caps and the tarry ringlets that hung 
 m festoons about their scarred and tanned faces. The 
 huge gnarled hands that swung to and fro with the oars 
 were no more like human flesh tlian the sea-boots which 
 the men wore, drawn high on their thighs. They had 
 rings in their ears, and from all came a reek of tobacco, 
 and salt-fish, and strange oaths; nor did it need the ad- 
 dition of the hanger and pistol which each wore in his 
 bolt to inform me that I had fallen once again among 
 fierce and desperate men. 
 
 Dismayed by all I saw, it yet surprised me that no 
 one questioned me. He who sat in the stern of the boat, 
 and seemed to be in command, had a whistle continually 
 at his lips, and his eyes on the curtain of haze before us; 
 but if the tiller and navigation of the bort took up his 
 thoughts, there were others. These, however, Avere con- 
 tent to pull on in silence, eyeing me </ith dull brutish 
 stares, until tlie fog lifting disclosed on a sudden the 
 hull of a tall ship looming liigh beside us. A shrill pip- 
 ing came from it— a sound T had lieard before, but taken 
 to be the scream of a sea-bird; and this, as we drew up, 
 was followed by a hail. The man by my side let his 
 whittle fall that he mig} ^ answer— which he did, in 
 
man to live 
 • little; and 
 t before the 
 ds fixed my 
 lat chance I 
 it round me 
 lau if tliey 
 ly to rescue 
 
 IS far from 
 , and these 
 1. The fog 
 )ulders and 
 i that hung 
 'aces. The 
 th the oars 
 •oots wliich 
 They had 
 3f tobacco, 
 ied the ad- 
 v^ore in his 
 ain among 
 
 le that no 
 f the boat, 
 continually 
 
 before us; 
 )ok up his 
 
 were con- 
 ill brutish 
 udden the 
 shrill pip- 
 but taken 
 
 drew up, 
 de let his 
 le did, iu 
 
 r 
 
 NIIUJiWNBVUl- 
 
 S36 
 
 »d wave l,is j"" '=»'"-<='»'''' »P"»K0,i the bulwarks 
 
 ^^TZtS^:^ "A.... «o„ save the 
 b»..«I, come on board" ■. W. ,"' '"; "'" «»">" «" 
 
 sooner. Up wiryo,', .s r I /"' '"""I'-erque the 
 
 -,^0 «o„e Lh the^^. tid-ri: tf.;:. fi--' -" '^' 
 
 ''»<! been waiting, ", CI ".f ""' l''"'-'"' ""^ "P, 
 to my feet on li /" "t t athonr; „n„ ,« j J' 
 
 >rWoh the sailor., tlne^ do' -^ J '"'""' *" '-"P" '"'''i"'- 
 togetl,er: for I tov"Z 1] , ,"' "'^' ''■™"'' '^"»<=k«<i 
 
 deek was surer gr„n„„.; 1 .,,'"'" "> r''""'- '"" "'« 
 coekIe.«l,eil wlirei I /at t Ip'T?'"""""" "■»" ""> 
 >".cler me. threaten ng eve Lo.ne'; I '*"" """ ""°'''«" 
 ■■'«!.; and I went „,, iS «rZ1 ? 'T' '">''"»"'- 
 
 ■•";g'otted, I .prang d„"wn "n the Zk' "'»""'-«W^'l ""d 
 
 bo>i':nTi:k*t;cr»i-r' "'^ ~"* "--^ 
 
 he s.«d. " Gkd to e„ ; f " •'"-*'' ***■• •'"I'n ! " 
 
 yon wore taken- { aiJ"' '"'■ ^'"'^""' '» '■""• tl'at 
 
 you. Bnta,r;we',t.*e:rweT\L"'t'''"°r 
 one moment." ' and— your pardon 
 
 r:Sn:';;r:rhJr:'^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
 
 to one .ide fnd t en to tb^T^.r " .'"'"'^ "' '^'''' "■'^t 
 andahanlingatrol TirJ "',"'," «'■"'" ^''""ting 
 
 footing, and for'an" T,^! , y: / ™«t J-ve ,o»t ,nj^ 
 
 "P on a level with the ^lar^iCderaTirCw™" 
 
 it a 
 
 i? 1 
 
336 
 
 ISIl HEWS BURY 
 
 §-\ 
 
 swallow us bodily. Instead, the sloop, still heeling over, 
 began to gather way, and presently was hissing through 
 the water, piling the white surf before it, only to pour it 
 foaming to either side. The haze, like a moving curtain, 
 began to glide by us ; and looking straight ahead I saw a yel- 
 low glare that told of the sun rising over tlie French dunes. 
 The man who had received me, and who seemed to be 
 the master, returned to my side. "We are under way, 
 sir," he said, '"and I am glad of it. But you will like 
 to see Mr. IJirkenhead? He would have met you, but 
 the sea-colic took him as he lay on the swell outside 
 Dunquerque whistling for a wind. He gets it badly one 
 time, and one time he is as hearty as you are. He is 
 better this morning, but he is ill enough." 
 
 I muttered that I would see him by-and-by, when he 
 
 was better. That I would lie down a little, and 
 
 "Oh! I have got a bunk for you in his cabin," the 
 master answered briskly. " I thought you would want to 
 talk State secrets. Follow me, if you please, and look 
 to your sea-legs, sir." 
 
 He led the way to a hatch or trap-door, and raising it 
 began to descend. Not daring to refuse I followed him, 
 down a steep ladder into the dark bowels of the ship, 
 tlie reek of tar and bilge-water, cheese and old rum, 
 growing stronger with every foot we descended. At the 
 bottom of the ladder ho pushed aside a sliding panel, 
 and signed me to pass through the opening. I obeyed, 
 and found myself in a sort of dog-hole — as it seemed to 
 me who knew nothing of ships' cabins— lighted only by 
 a span-wide round window, so dark, therefore, that I 
 stood a moment groping, and so close and foul-smelling 
 that my gorge rose. 
 
 Out of the gloom came a groan as of a sick sheep. 
 " Here is Sir John, safe and sound! " cried the master 
 in his sea tones. " There is good medicine for you, Mr. 
 Birkenhead." And he peered into the darkness. 
 
887 
 
 man like himr-CL "CfrVT'' """ '" - 
 earned him across seventv tin, ', ''"' ■""' ' '"'™ 
 He .ho.,M know th Z\ Tthe Vr°™i' ""' ™" «"• 
 if any ,„an docs. Bu 1^^ \ f '° ^outhwrt 
 and do jou lie down in thi i , ° *•"■ "'" i"'""''- 
 bring yl acme Zt":^ r^^^V"'"' f""- ' ""' 
 
 te.^^.winho.,,«,,3eer-a.?;:n''Ut 
 
 me! tr^Lrtt"r,^:,« T7' "*™ '■» ""•■«'■' 
 
 consider my position an 7 wlf^f " ?°™' "' ''"'^-ess 
 
 wn reached Dunqneroue I „ ' '/ "^ P"'«''''y "-'il 
 happen when Birke'iE Z "K """ »■''"* »-»"ld 
 
 ealled the Eoyal p'°t a^d~ih„ T"" 'r'""" *'« J"""^^^ 
 
 ronsed himself, and found Th,t ,^f ' '"^' "''"'» be 
 off the wrong man Lt left s ^T * "f-""' °"'J' ''^cn 
 be not be eor(»in to risit t L Lf '" *° '"' '"*» ' '^"'"d 
 it ' ..caped his haU I r^frr: °" 7^ '"'"' ' 0'' 
 aaborein a foreign land w'thT I '^P^'='' » danger. 
 
 guageatmycomLnrriXdd reVlTtr""'' "° '»- 
 shuddered more at the thouX „f r°V 1''''°/''''°'' ^'" 
 so that presently all m, W. , • ^"•'^'"= bead's anger; , 
 
 rtrenuons eilort to ' 7„? rji°*'."V''"'™* "^''" '"'»« 
 
 lying still and quL'^lletinToJ^.r P"'™^ ''^ 
 have fallen. '^ "''' "'bich he appeared to 
 
 on':^■lTrSZt^'T^'^ ™'^''^"- »- board 
 
 creaking It "i^'ttsf^lT:, V" '"''-'"" 
 88 ' ^"^'^ 0* the seas as tliey 
 
 Is- « 
 
888 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 foamed along tlie quarter, and tlie banging of blocks and 
 ropes — noises that never ceased, failed to cover the 
 sound of liis breathing. And this nearness to me, taken 
 with the fact tliat I could not see him, so tormented me 
 with doubt whether he was awake or asleep, was recover- 
 ing or growing worse, tliat more than once I raised my 
 head and listened until my necK ached. In tlie twilight 
 of tiie cabin I could see his cloak swaying lazily on a 
 hook; on another hung a belt with pistols, that slid this 
 way an^^ that with the swing of the vessel. And pres- 
 ently watching these and listening to the regularity of 
 his breathing, I laid my head down and did the last thing 
 I proposed to do or should have thought possible; for I 
 fell asleep. 
 
 I awoke with a* man's hand on my shoulder; and sat 
 up with a start of alarm, a man's voice in my ear. The 
 floor of the cabin slanted no longer, the cloak and sAvord- 
 belt hung motionless on the wall; and in place of the 
 sullen plash of the waves and the ceaseless creaking of 
 joists and knees, that had before tilled tlie inwards of the 
 ship, a medley of shouts and cries, as shrill as they were 
 unintelligible, filled the pauses of the windlass. These 
 things were, and I took them in and drew the inference, 
 that we were in harbour; but mechanically, for it seemed, 
 at the moment, that such wits as terror left me were in 
 the grasp of the man who shook me and swore at me by 
 turns; and whose short hair — for he was wigless — fairly 
 bristled with rage and perplexity. 
 
 "You! AVho the devil are youf'' he cried, franti- 
 cally. " What witchcraft is this ? Here, Gill ! Gill! 
 Do you hear, you tarry pudding-head ? Who is this you 
 have put in my cabin? And where is Fen wick? 
 Where " 
 
 "Where is Sir John?" cried a voice somewhat dis- 
 tant, as if the speaker stooped to the hatcliwav= "He 
 is there, Mr. Birkenhead. I set him there myself. And 
 
locks and 
 over the 
 lie, taken 
 ?nted rae 
 ! recover- 
 •aised my 
 ! twilight 
 yA\y on a 
 slid this 
 md pres- 
 Lilarity of 
 ast thing 
 lie; for I 
 
 ; and sat 
 ir. The 
 id sword- 
 ce of the 
 making of 
 •ds of the 
 ;hey were 
 . These 
 nference, 
 b seemed, 
 I were in 
 at me by 
 3S — fairly 
 
 d, franti- 
 
 . ! Gill! 
 
 this you 
 
 j^enwick ? 
 
 what dis- 
 
 V. 
 
 If. 
 
 "He 
 And 
 
 srrREwsnrRv 
 
 between gentlemen, such words as those, Mr 
 head " ' 
 
 '' As what? " cried the man who held me. 
 
 '' As tarry. But never mind ; betAveen friends- 
 
 ^^ 
 
 339 
 Birken- 
 
 Friends be hanged!" cried my assailant with vio- 
 lence- Who IS this fool? That is what I asked. And 
 you, have you no tongue?" he continued, glaring at 
 me Who are you, and where is Sir John Fen wick '^ " 
 
 Jiefore I could answer, the master, who had descended, 
 crowded himself into the doorwav. " That ^'^ Sir John " 
 he said, sulkily. " I thought that you " 
 
 " This, Sir John ? " the other exclaimed. 
 
 *'Ay, to be sure." 
 
 "As much Sir John as you are the warming-pan'" 
 Birkenhead retorted; and released me with so much vio- 
 lence that my head rapped against the panels. " This 
 Sir John Fenwick ? " And then, " Oh, man, man, you 
 have des^oyed me "he cried. " AVhere is my reputation 
 now? You have left the real Simon Pure to be taken 
 and brought off this-this-you booby, you gri^ i"' 
 ape, who are you ? " s "'"''ig 
 
 Trembling, I told him my name. 
 
 " And Sir John ? " he said. " Where is he ? " 
 I left him at Ashford," I muttered. 
 
 " It is a lie! " he cried in a voice that thrilled me to 
 the marrow. You did not leave him at Ashford ! He 
 was with you on the beach-he was with you and vou 
 deserted him! You left him to be taken, and saved yo'ur" 
 self. You wretch! You Judas!" ^ 
 
 God knows by what intuition he spoke. For me I 
 swear that it was not until that moment, not until he had 
 put the possibility into words that I knew-ay, knew 
 for that was the only word, so certain was I after the 
 event-that the man who had ridden down the beach and 
 ca.ied vainly on the sailors to wait, the man from whom 
 we had rowed away laughing, taking with us his last 
 
 m 
 
HI 
 
 !■ 1 1 
 
 P' 
 
 t ': 
 
 r 
 
 
 m 
 
 ■ , ' 
 
 II; i 
 
 840 
 
 SIJREWSTiURY 
 
 hope of life, was not Mattliew Smith, but Sir John Fen- 
 wick! Now, things which should huve opened my eyes 
 then, and had not, came back to niu. 1 recalled how tall 
 and gaunt the rider had looked through the haze, and a 
 something novel in his voice, and plaintive in his tone. 
 True, I had heard the click-clack of Smith's h<*vse's shoes 
 as clearly as I over heard anything in my life; but if Sir 
 John, alarmed by the sound of my hasty departure, and 
 fearing treachery, had sallied out, and leaping on the 
 first horse he foiifid, had ridden after me, then all was 
 clear. 
 
 I saw that, and cowereo. befoi'i the mon's accusing 
 eyes: so that they had been more tlitu! Sulooicns had they 
 taken ray sudden disorder for .vgiit but guilt— guilt 
 brought honre. Yof Birk0n]).;si.u, his rage was terrible. 
 He seized me by the throat, and disregarding my pitiful 
 pleas that I had not known, I hjul not known, he dragged 
 me from the berth, and made as if he would choke me 
 there and then with his naked hands. Instead, liowever, 
 he sudr;^nly loosed me. '' Faugh," he cried; " I will not 
 dirty my hands with you! That such as yon— you should 
 be a man's death! You! But you shall not escape. 
 Gill, up with him! Up with him and to the yard-arm. 
 String him up! He shall swing before he is an hour 
 older!" 
 
 " In Punquerque harbour ? " said the other. 
 
 ''Why not?" 
 
 " Why not ? " said the master. " Because, Mr. Birken- 
 head, I serve a King de jure and not de facto. That is 
 why not. And if you want another reason " 
 
 "Well?" 
 
 " I am not aware that His Majesty has raised you to 
 the Bench," the master answered sturdily. 
 
 " Oh, you have turned sea-lawyer, have you ? " 
 
 "Law is law," said the shipmaster. "England, or 
 France, or the high seas." 
 
 I 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 841 
 
 _ And owuK,^ is owling! " the other retorted with pas- 
 .^lon. Abu saiuggling, smuggling! You are a fine 
 n...n to talk: If you will not hang him-as they will 
 liung Fenwick, so help me, never doubt it.'-what will 
 you do with him ? " 
 
 M " ^^^^ "Y,T^" ^ ^^^ ^* '^^'^ ''^P^ece, and let him run 
 .ae gaunat t, the captain answered, with a phlegm that 
 froze n,e. - Trust me, sir, they will not leave much of a 
 
 orjianiieowiiig." 
 
 It was terrible to see how Birkenhead, vain, choleric 
 and maddened by disappointment, jumped at the cruel 
 suggestion. For me, I shrank into the bunk into the 
 farthest corner, and cried for mercy; I might as well 
 have cried to the winds. I was hauled out, the word 
 passed up and despite my desperate struggles, prayers 
 and threats-the latter not unmingled witli the name of 
 Shrewsbury, which did but harden them-I was dragged 
 to the foot of the ladder. Thence I was carried on deck 
 where, half-dead with fear and powerless in the hands of 
 three stout seamen, I met none but grinning faces and 
 looks of cruel anticipation. Few need to be told with 
 what zest tlie common herd flock to a scene of cruel sport 
 how hard are their bosoms, how fiendish the pleasure 
 wJiicii all but the most humane and thoughtful take in 
 helpless suffering. Small was the chance that my pleas 
 ot innocence and appeals for a hearing would gain atten- 
 
 i-T*^ x^ T '^^'^y' *''® "'^^ ^""'^^ t^eir arms and 
 licked their lips, and in a moment I must have been set 
 lor the baiting. 
 
 But in certain circumstances the extremity of fear is 
 another name for the extremity of daring; and the mas- 
 ter, at this last moment going to range the crew in two 
 lines, and one of the sailors who had me in charge releas- 
 mg me for an instant, that he might arm himself with a 
 sand-oag. I saw my opportunity. With a desperate swing 
 I wrenched myself from the grasp of the other men 
 
843 
 
 li ', ' 
 
 SIIHEWSIiUUr 
 
 if J 
 
 Iff 
 
 m^ 
 
 III 
 
 That (lone, a single bound carrietl mo to the ])lank which 
 joined the deck to the shore. I flew across it, swift as 
 the wind; and as the whole crew seeing what had liap- 
 pened broke from their stations and with yells and 
 whoops of glee took up the chase, I si)rang on shore. 
 Bursting recklessly through the fringe of idlers whom 
 the arrival of the ship had brought to the water's edge, 
 I sped across the open wharf, threaded a labyrinth of 
 bales and casks, and darted up the first lane to which I 
 came. 
 
 Fear gave me wings, and I left the wharf a score of 
 yards ahead of my pursuers. But the seamen, who had 
 taken up the chase with the gusto of boys let loose from 
 school, made up for the lack of speed by wliooping like 
 demons; and the English among them halloing "'Stop 
 Thief ! " and the otliers some French words alike in im- 
 port, the alarm went abreast of me. Fortunately the 
 lane was almost deserted, and I easily evaded the half- 
 hearted efforts to stop me, which one or two made. It 
 seemed that I should for the present got away. But at 
 the last moment, at the head of the lane fate waited for 
 me: an old woman standing in a doorway — and wlio 
 made, as I came up, as if she was afraid of me— flung a 
 
 the 
 
 bucket after me. It fell in front of me, I trod on 
 edge and fell with a shriek of pain. 
 
 Before I could rise or speak, the foremost of the sailors 
 came up and struck me on the head with a sand-bag; and 
 the others as they arrived rained blows on me without 
 mercy. I managed to utter a cry, then instinctively cov- 
 ered my head with my arms. They belaboured me until 
 they were tired and I almost senseless; when, thinking 
 me dead, they went off whistling, and I crawled into the 
 nearest doorway and fainted away. 
 
sj/uE\vsjii'Jiy 
 
 343 
 
 CITAP'IM<:r XL 
 
 When I recovered i»y senses I wm on my back in one 
 of eighteen bed*, in a long white-walled room, having 
 barred windows, and a vaulted ceiling. A woman, garbed 
 strangely in black, and with a queer white cap drawn 
 tight round her face, leaned over me, and with her finger 
 laid to her lips, enjoined silence. Jlere and there along 
 the wall were pictures of saints; and at the end two can- 
 dles burned before a kind of altar. I had an idea that I 
 had been partly conscious, and had lain tossing giddily 
 with a burning head, and a dreadful thirst through days 
 and nights of fever. Now, though I could scarcely raise 
 my head, and my brain reeled if I stirred, I was clear- 
 minded, and knew that the bone of my leg was broken, 
 and that for that reason I had a bed to myself where 
 most lay double. For the rest I was so weak I could only 
 cry in pure gratitude when the nun came to me in my 
 turn and led me, and plain, stout, and gentle-eyed, laid 
 ler fingers on her lip, or smiling, said in her odd Eng- 
 lish <^uee-at, quee-at, monsieur!" 
 
 In face of the blessings which tlie Protestant Succes- 
 sion, as settled in our present House of Hanover has 
 secured to these islands, it would little become me to find 
 a virtue in papistry; and my late lord, who early saw and 
 abjured the errors of that faith, would have been the last 
 to support or encourage such a thesis. Notwithstanding 
 which, I venture to say that the devotion of these women 
 to their calling is a thing not to be decried, merely be- 
 cause we have no counterpart of it, nor the charity of 
 that hospital, simply because the burning of candles and 
 worshipping of saints alternate with the tendance of the 
 wretched. On the contrary, it seems to mo that were 
 such a profession, the idolatrous vuv.v excepted, grafted 
 
 mi 
 
844 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 mvv' I' 
 
 l'\ 
 
 on our Church, it might redound alike to ^he credit of 
 religion— which of late the writings of juora Bolingbroke 
 have somewhat belittled— and to the good of mankind. 
 
 So much with submission; lior will the most rigid of 
 our divines blame me, when tliey learn thut I lay ten 
 weeks in the Maison de Dieu at Duuquerquo, doponri- ' 
 for everything on the kind oflicos of those good ivomen; 
 and nursed during that long period with a solicitude and 
 patience not to be exceoded by that of wife or mother. 
 When I had b(; far r jooverod as to be able to leave my 
 bed, and move a few yards on crutches, I Avas assisted to a 
 shady courtyard, nestled snugly between the hospital and 
 the old town wall. Here, under a gnarled mulberry tree 
 which had sheltered th<^ troops of Parma, I spent ni) time 
 in a dream of peace, through which nuns, apple-faced and 
 kind-eyed, flitted laden with tisanes, or bearing bottles 
 that called for the immediate attention of M. le Med vein's 
 long nose and silver-rimmed spectacles. Occasionally 
 their Director would seat himself beside me, and silently 
 run through his office: or instruct me in the French 
 tongue, and the evils of Janseniyin— mainly by means of 
 the snuff-box which rarely left his fine white hands. 
 More often the meagre apothecary, young, ycJlow, dry* 
 ambitious, with a hungry light in liis eyes, \,ould take an 
 English lesson, until the coming of his nperior ro ted 
 him, and sent him to his gallip* and ompoui ^ng 
 with a flea in his ear. 
 
 Such were the scenes and companions that attended 
 my return to health; nor, my pirit. o^ijig attune- to 
 these, should I have come to seek or desire others, though 
 enhanced by my native air— a species of inertia, mol- j 
 easily excused by those who have viewed French life near 
 at hand, than by such as have never travelled— li for -n 
 encounter as important iv its consequ' aces as it is 
 expected, which broke the even current of my days. 
 
 It mm no unco-nmon thins f( 
 
 txie 
 
 nuns to bring one 
 
nuuEwsiniur 
 
 845 
 
 t^^l r. '"r T'° *" ''''' "^ *^« ^"'"^ hope tliat I 
 
 nature of the case, were invariably Jac(.l,ite8, and eitl.er 
 knowing something of my story, tl.ought n.e .veil sen-e,] 
 or (cming to examine mo, shied at the names of Mr' 
 Brome and Lord Shrewsbury, sncli efforts had bnt one 
 end. When I heard, therefore, for the fourth or fifth 
 
 ri/^v' '''^''!r''^ "'''^«' ^"'^i^^We, and„f a vivacitv 
 t^^ -J^-Mt marveillense was coming to see n.e, I was as 
 ar rom supposing that I should find an acciuaintanoo. a 
 1 was from anticipating the interview with pleasure an 
 agine my surprise, therefore, when S.mir Marie called me 
 into the garden at th , appointed time; and, hor simple 
 face shining with delight, led me to the old muTb y 
 tree where, who should be sitting but Marv Ferguson! 
 
 bhe had as little expected to meet me as I to meet her 
 bn^ coming on me ihus suddenly, and seeing me hune' 
 and in a sense a crij-pie. reduced, moreover, by the lon^ 
 Illness hrough whici : had passed, she let her feelings 
 have waj. .uch tenderi^^ss as she had entertained for 
 me before welled up nov :th irresistible force, and giv- 
 mg the he to a certain hoydenis hardness, inherent in a 
 disposition which was never on. the most common, in 
 a moment she was in my arms, a she did not weep her- 
 self, she pardoned, and ])os8ibly viewed with pleasure 
 hose tears on my part, which weakness and surprise drew 
 from me, wiide a hundred broken words and exclamation^ 
 bore witness to the gratitude she felt on the score of her 
 
 Thus brought together, in a strange country, and agi- 
 tated by a hundred memories, nothing was at tirst made 
 
 Mane had long fled to carry the talc with mingled glee 
 
 and horror into the house, before we grew sufficiently 
 
 aim to answfi'' t'>" ""»v.i ~iaoa --,- J" ^• ^ • "^ 
 
 to each to ask! —'^'' 'i'^^"«"«- ^^^^eh it occurred 
 
 » 
 
 ♦•# •» 
 
840 
 
 siinEwsiii'itv 
 
 h 
 
 w 
 
 At length Alary, pregsed to tell me how nhe hud fared 
 Hince her escupe, made oue of tlie odd faces I could so 
 well remember. Ami " Not as I womM, l.i.t as I could," 
 she said, dryly. '' By crossing with letters." 
 
 '• Crossing? " I exclaimed. 
 
 '' To he sure, " she answered. *' I go to and from Lon- 
 don witli letters." 
 
 "But should you bo taken?" I cried, with u vivid 
 remenibranco of the terroi- into which the prospect of 
 punishment had thrown her. 
 
 She shrugi^rd her shoulders; yet sujipressed, or I was 
 mistaken, a shudder. Then "What will you?" she 
 said, spreading out her little hands French fashion, and 
 making again that odd grimace. " It is the old story. I 
 must live, Dick. And what can a woman do? Will 
 Lady Middloton tako me for her chMvcn'^ (jom-nanfe? 
 Or Lady Melfort find me a place in her household ? I 
 am Ferguson's niece, a backstairs wench of whom no one 
 knows anything. If I were handsome now, bien ! As I 
 am not — to live I must risk my living." 
 
 " You are handsome enough for mo! " I cried. 
 She raised her eyebrows, with a look in her eyes that 
 I remember, puzzled me. " AVell, may be," she said a 
 trifle tartly. " And the other is neither here nor there, 
 lor the rest, Dick. I live at Captain Gill's, and his wife 
 claws me Monday and kisses me Tuesday," 
 
 '• And you have taken letters to London ? " I said, won- 
 dering at hei' courage. 
 
 '• Three times, " she answered, nodding soberly. " And 
 to Tunbridge once. A woman passes. A man would be 
 
 taken. So Mr. Birkenhead says. But " and with 
 
 the word she broke off abruptly, and stared at me; and 
 continued to stare at me, her face which was rounder and 
 more womanly than in the old days, falling strangely. 
 
 It wore such a look indeed, that I glanced over my 
 shoulder thinking that she saw aomething. Finding 
 
le hud fared 
 
 i I could 60 
 
 iH 1 could," 
 
 1 from Lon- 
 
 ith u vivid 
 prospect of 
 
 h or I was 
 
 ^ou?" she 
 ishioii, and 
 d story. I 
 do? 'will 
 )i'eriu()ite? 
 behold ? I 
 om no one 
 'en ! As I 
 
 eyes tliat, 
 ?he said a 
 nor there. 
 1 his wife 
 
 said, won- 
 
 y. "And 
 would be 
 and with 
 me; and 
 
 mder and 
 
 ngely. 
 
 i over my 
 Finding 
 
 SHE LISTENED IN SILENCE, STANDING OVER ME WITH SOMETHIVO 
 OF THE SEVERITY OF A JUDGE 
 
iU 
 
 I!- 
 (f: 
 
 1. 
 
 
 M 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 349 
 
 I cried. "What is it? What is the 
 
 nothing, "Mary! " 
 matter?" 
 
 tolhtir^"'i"''"-''^ came with Sir John Feinvick 
 aiieady nsen. "And betrayed lii.n? Dickt j).-,.,. 
 don't say .t ! '' she continued hurriedly, hoi 1 c". out t; 
 hands as if she would M'ard off my woi-ds " Don ^ 
 
 Sh'^T "-'''' ' '^' ^oi,::^'nJ'z:z 
 
 H rtords :r '" "'' "^"' ''''^' ''''' -- '--•" 
 Tinf ' KM T '"^ "'^' ^^"'^ "« ^^^^- f^ce frightened me 
 But while I winced a kind of courage, born of kd Z" 
 tion and of a sense of injustice long endured came to me: 
 and I answered her with spirit. "No" uSd ' tI' 
 not that man." ' '^^"' ^ ^^ 
 
 '' No ?" she cried. 
 man I am-if y„„ will listen to ml!" "' *'" ""' """" 
 
 here, so far as it «s not already known „ her SI™ 
 he'^::verit;olT' T"""^r '"' ''"■' -™*i"/ 
 
 LoX:;i4i^tt:ersj;itr ^ --'"' '" '"^ ^'- ^■- 
 
 thought of my suiferings. ^ ^' ""'^ "'^ 
 
 "Not even that? " 
 **No, nothing; not even that," I said. 
 
850 
 
 STTREWSJiURY 
 
 ''Nov that within a mouth, in all probability, he will 
 be tried and executed! " 
 
 "No." 
 
 "Nor that your master is in peril? You have not 
 heard that Sir Jobn has turned on him and denounced 
 him before the Council of the King?" 
 
 " No," I said. " How should I? " 
 
 "What?" she cried incredulously. "You do not 
 know that with Avhich all England is ringing— though it 
 touches you of all men ? " 
 
 " How should I ? " I said feebly. "Who would tell 
 me here ? And for weeks I have been ill." 
 
 She nodded. •• Go on," she said. 
 I obeyed. I took up the thread again, told her how 
 we reached Ashfordi how I saw Sir John, how I fled, and 
 how I was pursued; finally how I was received on board 
 the boat, and never, until the following dav, when Birk- 
 enhead flung it in niy teeth, guessed tliat I had forestalled 
 Sir John, and ro])bed him of his one chance of escape. 
 "For if I had known," I continued warmly, "why 
 should I fly from him ? What liad I to fear from him ? 
 Or what to gain, if Smith with a pistol were not at my 
 heels, by leavin<r England? Gain?" I continued bit- 
 terly, seeincr Lhat I had convinced her. " What did I 
 gaiu? This! This!" And I touched my crippled 
 leaf. 
 
 "Thank God!" 
 God, Dick. But — 
 
 she said, with emotion. "Thank 
 
 11 
 
 But Avhat ! " I retorted sharply; for in the telling of 
 the story I had come to see more clearly than before how 
 cruelly I had been treated. "But what ? " 
 
 "Well, just this," she said gently. "Have you not 
 brought it on yourself in a measure ? If you had been 
 more— that is, I nxean, if you had not been so " 
 
 " So what ? " I cried querulously, seeing lier hesitate. 
 
 " Well, so quick to think that it was Matthew Smith— 
 
) would tell 
 
 351 
 ^C^:^ '''' ^^^--^^' ^miling rather heartlessly. 
 
 "There was a mist," I said. 
 ^5iie laughed in her odd wav " nf 
 was a mist," she a-n-eed ^^An,] ^*.^""^'*^^^ ^^^'k, there 
 witliout straw. Ami tf t^r nil ^'r!, ''"'"°* "'^^'^« ^'^<^^' 
 James's Square, fnd i'tt L /'" '^'"^ ''''^' ^''^'^' '" «t. 
 there is a tliug%o b done 1 r'/"' ''^ "'"' '"•^^- ^^^^ 
 her lips closedlirm ; aS a^ 1 • ^'"r' ^' ^^"^^- " ^^"^ 
 still remember, ha 1 1' ft f'^'V^ J'-nembered, and 
 day, and learned to Im ", tt "' O ''Tr^' ^^^''^* 
 done! " she continued - n- i "^' *''^^ "^"^t be 
 
 Buke to be rain b! \r.tH,^^1' ^T ^'"^ ^^^^ ^«^^'« ^^^ 
 here and let tho^^^rogu^ w ^ ti^^^' '.1^'^" ""^ "^* ^^^ 
 John has denounced him." " '''" '" ^"'"- ^^^ 
 
 And may denouncp r»mi " t . -i 
 tion. -May denoun e n e /' T L .^ '^,^'''' ^^' *'^^ "«- 
 " J^V/^ denounce n e Tf it I'^'^'^'f ''''^' ''^''^^'^' 
 at Ashford, it was I ! " "'^ '^^' '^"'^^ ^^^'^ ^vas 
 
 And who are vou '■'" slio t.^^^.* j 
 withered me. " Who mU„ ,f ' ""*'' " '"^ that 
 at A.hf„„l or uotlia! «^™ ?"«>««■ .vou met Sir John 
 boor, <ir„„kard, a it's fe , ,'-'''~?''" '"""""o'""™, 
 «y what you vH J. ,? earfl ,'• '" ''''''' «"" '""' I 
 <i«es not l,art at lef> ■• '" *"' "' '"«'' S-'nc, and 
 "Mice?" 
 
 and' th'; Too^' t :::r;t ;i;i" ™"" -' '- '-*- 
 
 "For what are vJ Wh,t "™" "'"= ''""M be. 
 
 what are we if we ,eav t' S^kriwr ■'"" 'r'-"' 
 h™ to be ruined and diJrJl^ , !"« enemies, leave 
 
 penalty, while von, the ..feT;f/,f™,^™ '» m *!>« 
 and snug f For ehal n , f i '*' ''" ''"re-lie safe 
 tiuued with such a M, in "■ ""'""^^'" ""^ <=»"- 
 
 feeding behind 11 faVL" IT "'^r'^' "» P'^eo^s 
 three nuns looked out imjuisitiv^iij," ''"' " '™ "'' 
 
15- ; 
 
 if- 
 
 353 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 I liad my own thoughts and my own feelings about my 
 lord, as he well knew in after years. I challenge any to 
 say that I lacked either respect or affection for him. 
 But a man's wits move more slowly than a woman's, and 
 the news came on me suddenly. It was no great wonder 
 if I could not in a moment stomach the prospect of re- 
 turning to risk and jeopardy, to the turmoil from which 
 I had been so long freed, and the hazards of a life and 
 death struggle. In the political life of twenty years ago 
 men carried their necks to market. Knowing that I 
 might save tlie Duke and suffer in his place— the fate of 
 many a poor dependant; or miglit bo confronted with 
 Smith; or brought face to face with Ferguson; or perish 
 l)efore I reached London in the net in which my lord's 
 own feet were caught, I foresaw not one but a hundred 
 dangers; and those such as no prudent man could be 
 expected to regard with equanimity, or any but a hare- 
 brained girl would encounter with a light heart. 
 
 Still I desired to stand well with her; and that being so 
 I confess that it was with relief I remembered my lame- 
 ness; and named it to her. Passing over the harshness 
 of her last words, "You are right," I said. "'Some- 
 thing should be done. But for me it is impossible at 
 present. I am lame, as you see." 
 
 "Lame?" she cried. 
 
 " More than lame," I answered— but there was that in 
 her tone which bade me avoid her eyes. "A crinnle, 
 Mary." ^^ ' 
 
 " No, not a cripple," she answered. 
 
 "Yes," I said. 
 
 " No, Dick," she answered in a voice low, but so grave 
 and firm that I winced. "Let us be frank for once. 
 Not a cripple, but a coward." 
 
 " I never said I was a soldier," I answered. 
 
 "Nor T," she replied, wilfully misunderstanding me. 
 " I said, a coward! And a coward I will not marry! " 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 Y years ago 
 
 Wfl ^^^ 
 
 .0 ae Square ? " I ^,ZZ IC^r^ ^''^^ ^°»- ^e- 
 
 -LNo, She answered. "Rnfif,. 
 the sneak for Ferguson xS . ^ ''^^''^^^ Played 
 
 f Smith! It /araiwtd lt;:;? ?^ri^^^^-^- 
 
 dare not look behind ! And « no ?'T^ -because he 
 rifice his benefactor, to lave J« "'^ ^^"^ ^°^^ «-«- 
 
 only know in how m;ny othev tl '^''" '^^'' ^^^ ^^^^ 
 
 «;an! You have a chan now- VT/-'"^ ^^^^ *^^« 
 thing and all will be forgiven Oh n' ^ ^"^-""^ ^^^^« 
 continued-and with a sSen m' ' ^^'^ '" «^« 
 
 stooped and threw her arm rn. ^ ''' "^ ^^^^ ^^^^ «be 
 do iti Do it for us bothT Do^^io" if " '' '^^" ^^^ ^^^ 
 knows It were better we wereVnZ \l ^""^ '^^°"°*' ^^d 
 
 I cannot hor^e to descrre ?h.?^' ^^"^ "^^"^^d"' " 
 into these last^words or he S^ TT"'. ^^^^ «^« «»-ew 
 me, weakened as I w^l^^f ^f^J^^^V'^^ ™^h* «« 
 by tears I conjured her t gTvf me me f ' '"" '^^^^^ 
 
 "'lo:Td\;^nl::If ^^^^^^^^ 
 
 fresh excitement, and aT f 2 't 'Tf °^ ^^^^ "^« - 
 ^^'i» give you no time Yoa h^^ T\ ^™'^ ^''' "^ 
 what purpose ? I wi Lve 1 .?,- '^ " ^^^'^^^^^ ^"^ to 
 your word. " ^ ^°" ''^ ^^'"e. Do you give me 
 
 '' To go to England ? " 
 
 I was ashake from head +« -p^ ^ 
 
 Intn.thiflhadknln LlwJtrh f^"^^ ^^-d' 
 inevitable end of the road on wb7^ r ^' *^^' ''''^''' ^ud 
 I could not have been more If [^^'^^^^ to enter, 
 and fear, and Shan JofCandd?«^ 'fJ' ' ^^ •^"^-^" ^'^^e 
 I bung in that misery he contfr? T ^''' ''^'^ ^^^^^^ 
 I iooked, as it ha^Jnetn^^Xl' fV' ^"^' -«' 
 was no longer hof with anser L^ I . ^ '^^ ^^^^ it 
 ^^ anger, but sad ar..] drawn as by a 
 
I ' 
 
 354 
 
 SITREWSBURY 
 
 
 m m 
 
 sharp pain. And I gave her my word, trembling and 
 shaking. 
 
 "• Xow," said she, '' are you a brave man; and perliaps 
 the bravest. ' ' 
 
 CHAPTER XLI 
 
 That the arrest of Sir John Fenwick, reported in Lon- 
 don on the 13th of June, was regarded by all parties as 
 an event of the first magnitude, scarce exceeded in import- 
 ance by a victory in Flanders or a defeat in the Mediter- 
 ranean, is a thing not to be denied at this time of day; 
 when men, still in thteir prime, can recall the commotion 
 occasioned by it. The private animosity, which was be- 
 lieved to exist between Sir John and the King, and which 
 dated, if the gossip of Will's and Garraway's went for 
 anything, not from the slight which he had put upon the 
 late Queen, but from a much earlier period, when he had 
 served under William in Flanders, aroused men's curios- 
 ity, and in a sense their pity; as if they were to see here 
 the end of a Greek drama. 
 
 Nor, apart from the public and general interest, which 
 Sir John's bii ih and family connections, no less than his 
 share in the plot, considerably augmented, was there any 
 faction which could view his arrest with indifference. 
 He had been so deep in the confidence of St. Germain's 
 that were he to make a discovery, not Tories and Jacobites 
 only lay at his mercy, but all that large class among the 
 Whigs who had stooped to palter with James. These, as 
 they were the more culpable had also more to fear. 
 Trembling at the prospect of a disclosure which must con- 
 vict them of practices afc variance with their most solemn 
 professions, they were supported by none of those senti- 
 ments of loyalty, honourable if mistaken, whicli exo'ised 
 
oh exonsftfl 
 
 SiriiEWSBUny 
 
 855 
 
 delootion by «,o Ink and 1 7tt ""f '? ^" '""''> »« 
 burden of apprehension eiiHl, ' '""'^ ''» '™«1 ">e 
 ho had none to share ™ vTSt"" '""■■' '>^™'^. because 
 
 -tile absence of the Kino- i 
 Flanders, aggravated the sSpense- ""w? 'TP''^'""^^ ^" 
 ^vJdely for the reasons above 1/' .! ^'^ ^''^^^^^^ «« 
 
 too m,eh to say that barelylttfj.tf""' ''?' ^' ^^ ^'«* 
 of the first or second rank who ^^^'^'^'^^^^ '^o"Id be found 
 
 "' ^l^e question of Sir jlV^nXk's^V"''^""^^^-^'' 
 lovvever, I make bold to sav tuT ,^'"''- ^^ *'^««e. 
 though the news that Sh^J^"' Zl ^T' "'^ "^^ ' ^"^ 
 had sent for the Duke of Dp"!; i ^^^ "^ *^^^ ^^^«^^er, 
 a passing feeling of lealousv i^ i '^ ""'^^ ^^^''« ^'^'^ited 
 not the other Duke^wt the J"' T'^-^'''' ^' ^^^ 
 might more fitly unbosom h mself 7 '^ "'^? ^''' J«^- 
 »^deed, had it from his own fps tW T^^.^^^^ent, and, 
 
 connected with the Princess a^''*,?'^^^,^ ""'' ^"«»^ess 
 had been reconciled before hi ^ ' ^'^^""^ "^^ King 
 named Sir John. From L n%.^^*T'"^"'^' P^««^«% 
 the Duke of Devonshire ,nd, '^"''"^^"^ ^"^^^ *« 
 
 ^vhich filled the coffee-ho'r' t 'bT"'! '' ^^^ ^^^^^^s 
 seemed concerned ; my lord in hi« ^ '^'^- ^^^^^^ ^^^'I 
 ^^ At length the lattei^pot; ou IH'''^'^ ^'^^*^^^^- 
 
 To tell you the truth, my lord ^ h ""V. ^'' "^"^^• 
 thmk ,i is a mare's nest I Zk b.l "^'l ^'"^^^^^ " ^ 
 nient has been made. " ^'^''® ^hat any state- 
 
 The Ear) iooked astonished ''Af. r , 
 he said. ^- ™' I ask why not ? " 
 
 "inch mistaken 
 
 sw red 
 to me. 
 
 -&^ ^'•" i>"ke would have 
 
 Anri'ha:rhr^^s:;;;-^^T«'''"^««i 
 
 :n- 
 
 llt 
 
356 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 
 " You have not Jisked the Duke ? " 
 
 "Of course not," 
 
 "But— he was with Sir John," the Earl perBisted 
 steadily. '• There is no doubt of that, is there v " 
 
 "Oh, no." 
 
 " Well, then, is not that in itself strange V " 
 
 " I think not, there have always been friendly rela- 
 tions," my lord continued, "between the Duke and Sir 
 John." 
 
 " Just so,^'^ Lord Marlborough answered, taking a pinch 
 of snuff. '< Still, do those relations warrant the Lord 
 Steward in visiting him now ? " 
 
 The Secretary looked a little startled. "Well I don't 
 know," he said. " But the Duke of Devonshire's patri- 
 otism is so well established " 
 
 " That he may steal the horse, while we look over the 
 wall," Lord Marlborough answered, taking him up with 
 a smile. "Be that as it may," he continued, "and I 
 am sure that tiie same may be said of the Duke of 
 Shrewsbury,"— here the two noblemen bowed to one an- 
 other—" I think your Grace's information is somewhat 
 faulty on this point. I happen to know that immediately 
 after the interview a special messenger left Devonshire 
 House for Loo; and that the matters he carried were re- 
 duced into writing by his Grace's own hand. That being 
 so, Duke, you are better qualified to draw the inference 
 than I am." 
 
 My lord, at that, looked grave and nodded, being con- 
 vinced; and I do not doubt that he felt the slight which 
 the other Duke's silence implied. But though, of all 
 the men I have ever met, he was the most sensitive, he 
 was the last also, to wear his heart on his sleeve; and not 
 only did he refrain from complaint of his colleague's 
 conduct, but he hastened to dispel by a word or two the 
 effect of his momentary gravity. " Ah, then I can guess 
 what happened," he said, nodding his comprehension 
 
and to no one else. " "^ *^' ^"'^ "<= first haud- 
 
 Lord Marlborough rose. " Duke " h. -a . 
 think It is fair that I «}i«„n^ ' he said firmlv, ''I 
 
 The reason you gi e is not thl """'' '^"""'^ ^^^^^ vou 
 the coffee-housesll t e Lord T'" i'^^ ^^^^ ^^^^^^^ ^^ 
 
 " J^o! " said my Jord wi hi ; ?'^ ' reticence." 
 voice. ^ '*'''*' '^'"^ ^ fa"it note of scorn in his 
 
 "^o," said the Ear] '-nn+i 
 Will's-and for the nutter n ^^'^^ ^^^^^'^^y, they say at 
 too, that the statement! lU,"* f '^^^ ^*- ^-'es's 
 men in povv( .." ^^ ^^^'^ 'because it touched 
 
 .'' ^^ power ? " said my lord wifl, m 
 
 ies, tnree men." 
 ^" Do they 2iame them?" 
 
 ''Myself." 
 
 «o *■•„,. into hi, ias'^Cd y ''°'"^^'"■''=™'>■™d 
 shuffled uneasily in his da , J^ "^ ''"''' '^""''"'i' ""d 
 perhaps suspecting, mortavare ^/ir T'"'"""'^' »'"• 
 h.8 enemies attributed to IZ 11 '?'"''■ "*'"='' 
 oot have been the statesman 1,„ ^"^ ^™"gh, he would 
 oied an ulterior des,V„ T, ! ■^' '' ^' '""i "»' fon- 
 
 """on";;a?'';!,it^hte!Lttr""\''''°^^»™^^ 
 " ™ce displayed "m!!"r "^.'^S'™' P"™' 
 
 J5 
 
 he 
 
 say— to Ked Russell ? 
 
 5) 
 
 will your Grace 
 
858 
 
 SIlUBWSBUliV 
 
 Is he named '.' 
 
 ^ the First Lord of the Admiralty? 
 "In the coffee-houses." 
 "Ah!" 
 
 " Lord Godolphin ! " 
 "Impossible! " 
 
 "Xot so impossible as the fourth," Lord Marlborou-h 
 answered with u light laugh, in which courtesv, amuse- 
 ment and a fine perception of the ridiculons were nicely 
 mmgled. " Can you not guess, Duke '^ " 
 
 But my loixJ too prudent to suggest names i)) that con- 
 nection shook his head. " Who could ? " he said, raisin-r 
 his eyebrows scornfully. " They might is .-ell nam^ 
 me, as some you are mentioning." 
 
 Lord Marlborough laughed ''softi v. "My very dear 
 Duke," he said, " th^t is just what they are doing! They 
 do name you. You are the fourth. " 
 
 I belieye that my lord had so little expected the answer 
 that for a space he remained, . '.uaig at the speaker in 
 equa surprise and dismay. Then Ins indignation finding 
 vent. It IS not possible! - h, ,,ried. "Even in the 
 coffee-houses! And besides, if your story is true? my 
 ord the Duke of Devonshire alone knows what Sir John 
 has discovered, and whom he has accused ' " 
 
 Lord Marlborough pursed up his lips. "Things ^et 
 kncnvu-strangely," he said. " For instance, the shadow 
 Mhich came between your Grace aud His Majesty in '9o 
 -probably you supposed it to be known to the Kin^ 
 only, or if to any besides, to Portland at most ? On the 
 contrary, there was scarce a knot of chatterers at Garra- 
 way's but whispered of your dinners with Middleton and 
 meetings with Montgomery, Avatched for the event,' and 
 gave the odds on St. Germain's in guessing." 
 
 The Earl spoke in his airiest manner, took snuff in 
 tnedio, and with a carelessness that none could so well 
 affect, avoided looking at his hearer, l^evertheless, the 
 shaft went home. My lord, smitten between the joints 
 
? named 't " 
 
 rai'lborouj^h 
 ;esy, unmse- 
 were nicely 
 
 in til at Gon- 
 ial il, raisin L' 
 well name 
 
 very dear 
 ng! They 
 
 the answer 
 speaker, in 
 ion finding 
 ven in the 
 true, my 
 it Sir John 
 
 ['hings get 
 he ehadoM' 
 esty in '90 
 the King 
 ' On the 
 i at Garra- 
 leton, and 
 ivent, and 
 
 : snuff in 
 Id so well 
 
 leless, the 
 .ixC jOints 
 
 ^UUKWtiliUUY ggy 
 
 have maiStaineJ, - SXd tt i "'"^n' "^"^^ '^'^ 
 ^ ajatter whiL'lX^r^;:;^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^ on 
 
 and seomed to fn^T ^^ '^'' ''^'''^ ^^'^ ^"^e, 
 
 ueu to jiibtily hhsown aterferenop " Tf f k 
 
 18 anything at all in thi.s rumour i f ^h r ,' /^ ^^^^^ 
 said anytliinrr I takp ,> fi f ? i '^"'^''^ ^^"« ^^ally 
 
 lom of it.' ^' ^' ''^ "^^^ ^^^« old gossip is at the hot- 
 
 did'n:t^:trii^:^: -^j^, ^ ''-^''^' ^-^ -^ 
 
 natural course to L,rv thV ^ r'"'""^''' *^^^ "^ost 
 country, and bVdrvn? ''^' '"^" *^^^ informant's 
 
 that a/La t '/:v 7Z" ;r" Ti7;7'"^ ^^'^^••^ ^"»^^-^ 
 
 cast on km. B^Z^TluneT '^' ^"^Pufcation 
 
 the dignity, which wainet^ot^'^rS' T 'Tt 
 and he made no attemnttnri; .^".^'^.^^'^^^mg, to my lord; 
 
 or question his td'^npr it "1 1 l^^ 
 your pardon," he saicf. 4for.ot mt- f''T'^ ' ^ ^'^ 
 tily. But he is -i mn .f ,• 7 ^ : ^^^^^ ^^^^ «Poke has- 
 J "Y"'^ "® ^^ -i most impudent fellow ' "' 
 
 " nnpudent fellow " Mip ^^o,.i • j 
 
 more fe„ou,. than he Lad yeuxhibitd "' "™'' """■ 
 
 tinufd? u::,ghSr "• B^rd:" ^"™'" -"^ "'■■<' -- 
 
 " 48 lifl wHi f! J . , "^ dangerous one." 
 Lo AloT ^r J:J:^ -'i^^^'o- '« has done," 
 
 of. H he will save h^ead l,e ! "'""""S'^ """'S'" 
 So, as he ..vill „oT „ 1 u """' ^'ve up some one. 
 
 " Ti, J TT- • ^ ^ ^0°^' ^"d can spare ue " 
 
 f. 
 
 St. 
 
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'o 
 
 
 /.« 
 
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 ^ 
 
360 
 
 ^UREWtiliUHy 
 
 Well, that may be a good thing for 
 
 us 1" the Earl 
 
 noj,os„f men and make profl/o, l^ZuLt ""'• 
 
 more of the matter now threatening and tood 1 ?" 
 more by it than m^r i«,./i t x. ,. » '*"^ si^ooa to lose 
 
 Uaving attained this object, so far as it ^m.i;i i, v 
 toinedin » «ngle interviet, and flndil that th. n t" 
 
 of the two w?„"°™*'''""^^'^'»<' *■" «oodmL „t 
 Hai^yo'rheSTDurj"' ''' '*"' "^^ *-"''«'• 
 
 I arnl:-: t7at' utnTS. " "' ""' '''^"-^- " ^""^ 
 ^' You would have heard it ? " 
 '' Necessarily." 
 
tililtJJWtiliUHy 
 
 361 
 
 n he has notLn i ,d „ed to !n T '/ '""'*'"''8 '" "■ 
 hear that he is hesitating." * ' ' '"^^ '"■» '"I"" I 
 
 '•Then he must be looked to." 
 
 differetlrs';: !:,?:'.■::■;--" .-"Wmate all the 
 he only Porter- and h.' A * """'• " '^'''e™ would 
 
 %Ld liw ws'';ttrr;r™"'-^'^-^-" 
 
 required in a case of treasoTw^" ^ *^° '^ ™''° 
 
 call for comment. Then li, !,"*'.'' ''**"""" 'o 
 smiled. " That were to li^ tf f "*'■•'' "'""• '>« 
 order to keep the fln^L'^-trr""' "^ '"^^' - 
 
 Ouke.asyoualwav are' B^t r"":, ^^ »« '^ht. 
 long." With whici Tnd anl ™ .^"^'"''^ ^^ 'oo 
 took his leave a second « me "' "■"" °' "'"•""S^. '•« 
 
 doubrwt W^\e"teZ'',^^'"■'^ "im, none can 
 for his high l^iticl a^ d g,"r Tn^'^rK ""■* "^'^^ 
 "ess, venial and casual of whichh IM *"' '^« ^^l'- 
 hefore in stooping to listen ttrl ^MdleT """'V^"" 
 tions-a fault which he l,»d /7„ ■ f'™'«'on s solioita- 
 King and by him for^ven to fi'!f «""" ""'^ " ^e 
 property of the public 'wri';;;^ ^ *'"" *'^ "^ 'he 
 that on this was' to be f^nnS fafrr'i •"" '° ''^™ 
 proper refutation of which the 1 / "^'"'S^' ^<" the 
 was torture intolerabir ?„ « ^^ "'""' >» ■■"''ed up, 
 my lord excell d a,yman:f UsT""1 ""> --Miculo,,^ 
 therefore out of his own hV ! u™' '"' °°"W father 
 would be aimed thTma'Tb'''' "''"'? »' "" "'»' 
 bring over William in '88 S ^t^ ","' "* ""^ «^» to 
 
 '«-ohhehad,not:;-;it:-tThit:i»rbS; 
 
 I 
 
Mi! 
 
 3Ga 
 
 smtEWsBcur 
 
 tempted to commit himself. The Minister unfaithful, 
 the patriot importuned, were parts in which he saw him- 
 self exposed to the town, to the sallies of Tom Brown, 
 ard the impertinences of Ned Ward; nay, in proportion 
 as he appreciated the grandeur of honest rebellion, of 
 treason, open and declared, he felt shame for the pettiness 
 of the part he had himself played, a waverer when 
 trusted, and a palterer when in i)ower. 
 
 Such reflections weighed on him so heavily that though 
 one of the proudest and therefore to those below him 
 one of the most courteous and considerate of men, he 
 could scarcely bring himself to face his subordinates, 
 when the hour came for him to attend the office. Sir 
 John Trumbali still deferred to him. Mr. Vernon still 
 bowed until the curJs of hie wig hid his stout red cheeks, 
 the clerks where he came still rose, pale, smug, and sub- 
 missive, in his honour. But he fancied— quite falsely— 
 something ironical in this respect; he pictured uods and 
 heard woi-ds behind his back; and suspecting the talk, 
 which hushed at his entrance rose high on his departure, 
 to be at his expense, he underwent a score of martyrdoms 
 before he returned to St. James's Square. 
 
 Meanwhile the absence of tlie King aggravate s 
 position; firstly, by depriving him of the only couiiu.-.nt 
 his pride permitted him; secondly, by adding to 1 .s 
 troubles the jealousies which invariably attcud govern- 
 ment by a Council. Popularly considered, he was first 
 Minister of the Crown, and deepest in tlie King's confi- 
 dence. But th3 knowledge that one of his colleagues 
 withheld a matter from him, and Avas in private commu- 
 nication with William in respect to it, was not rendered 
 less irksome by the suspicion, amounting almost to a cer- 
 tainty, that his own concern in the business was that of a 
 culprit. This it was which first and most intimately 
 touched his dignity; and this it was which at the end 
 of a fortnight of suspense drove him to a desperate reso- 
 
Br unfaithful, 
 1 he saw him- 
 
 Tom Brown, 
 in proportion 
 
 rebellion, of 
 ' the pettiness 
 vaverer when 
 
 y that though 
 ie below him 
 e of men, he 
 subordinates, 
 le oflRce. Sir 
 Vernon still 
 it red cheeks, 
 lug, and sub- 
 uitc falsely — 
 red nods and 
 ing the talk, 
 lis departure, 
 : martyrdoms 
 
 gravate s 
 Illy coniiu.int 
 Iding to 1 .3 
 ;cad govern- 
 
 he was first 
 King's confi- 
 is colleagues 
 /ate commu- 
 lot rendered 
 lost to a cer- 
 wm that of a 
 t intimately 
 
 at the end 
 sperate reso- 
 
 and tellin,, the l.uke tirhetiwf ,„::;'"' "■"""«' 
 io him, he beggeu ,. seat in hilT • "™"<"' ""litter 
 the Lord Stewafd forelw wh '"''"'«"• '*"' "''"^'1'" 
 the subject tliacreetlv o 1! T,. °""""S ""'l Pin-ied 
 reached the Care and ,S'' ^T'' '""»'' 1'™' «'ey 
 topics. There' m^WdrlSr''-'^"^''* °» «-"»! 
 then, it seemed nitu..:? to'3' he'S T^V'T' 
 to enter; but my lord in«tr...w i i ., J^evonshire 
 
 him round and round;" n'^'j^^,"^^,!^"^- to drive 
 started, ''I have not been veilTl[v '^^ ^^ 
 was true, more than nna J,o ^' ^^ said— which 
 
 Council TabrJ' and tTT'""""'"*^^^ ^" ^' -^ the 
 shall find iTlessa^^'r^^"^ ? tell you, that I fear I 
 
 - To Roehan pto7. " s^M h t '""^'^'^ '°^ '^' *™-" 
 or two of regret ' companion, after a word 
 
 "^o, to Eyford." 
 For a moment his Graop of n^.r^« i.- 
 my lord ^vithct look 'It him 1,°^"'''. f '" ^"""'i "d 
 startled. At Ien»tli ^^hl ,, *" "''"' """ he was 
 " I would no do 5 at w l?t T" ^' ^""'^0° H°"«e. 
 " Why not ? " asM Ciotd " "™'" ''^ -'^' ^»-"^' 
 suiil?'""^""' '"-^ <•- '«"g' '"e King's service may 
 
 bo:ir^.'YrLJzs;er'' ^'i '"-'' «"■"- 
 
 Again the other Duke deWd h! f '"'™\'«''"e'-- " 
 spoke his voice wis h„tl f- T*^* !"« """er: but when he 
 
 ™. •• he said " If ™ i'^'" """^ "'"•?"'*• " ^■■'"'Wy. I 
 
 that it wouM i.ave'2°;;.^;;r„r?. "•"'^' -^ '^"- 
 
 Sir JohTknori.:ai:/kl ;het •"'%''" ^»" "'"'"" 
 known for some ti„L. •• ' '^^ kuows-and has 
 
804 
 
 SlU{E\\\SBUIir 
 
 m 
 
 This time Miere was uo doubt that the Lord Steward 
 was startled. " You cannot mean it, Duke," he said, 
 m a constrained voice, and with a gesture of reproach! 
 " You cannot moan that it was with his Majesty's knowl- 
 edge you had a meeting with Sir John, he being outlawed 
 at the time and under ban? That were to make His 
 Majesty at best an abettor of treason; and at worst a 
 viler thing! For to incite to treason and then to perse- 
 cute the traitor— but it is impossible! " 
 
 *' I have not the least notion what your (J race means," 
 my lord said, in a freezing tone. " What is this folly 
 about a meeting with Sir John ? " 
 
 The Duke of Devonshire was as proud as my patron; 
 and nothing in the great mansion which he was then 
 builamg in the wild* of the Derbysliire Peak was likely to 
 cause the gaping peasants more astonishment than he felt 
 at this setback. "I don't understand your Grace," he 
 said, at last, in a tone of marked offence. 
 
 '*Nor I you," my lord answered, thoroughly roused. 
 " I am afraid— I have said too much," said the other, 
 
 " Or too little," my lord retorted. '' Yon must so on 
 now." ^ 
 
 '' Must? Must? " quoth the Duke, whose high spirit 
 had ten years before led him to strike a blow that came 
 near to costing him his estate. 
 
 "Ay, must— in justice," said my lord. ''In justice 
 to me as well as to others." 
 
 After a brief pause, " That is another thing," answered 
 the Lord Steward civilly. "But— is it possible, Duke, 
 that you know so much, and do not know that Sir John 
 asserts that you met him at Ashford two days only 
 before his capture, and entrusted him with a ring and a 
 message— both for St. Germain's?" 
 
 "At Ashford "■ 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 •J ?' 
 
Lord Steward 
 ce," he said, 
 
 of reproach. 
 esty's knowl- 
 3ing outlawed 
 to make His 
 d at worst a 
 ihen to perse- 
 face means," 
 
 is this folly 
 
 ! my patron ; 
 
 he was then 
 
 was likely to 
 
 than he felt 
 
 Grace," he 
 
 ily roused, 
 d the other, 
 
 must go on 
 
 s high spirit 
 ' that came 
 
 "In justice 
 
 ."answered 
 ible, Duke, 
 it Sir John 
 days only 
 . ring and a 
 
 SimEWSBUHY g^^ 
 
 "This is sheer madness," mv Ion] ox-'.^a x. n- 
 
 hand to his head. ^ AvoyoulvT iT ' l^"^'"'^ '"« 
 IV" ^»-'e you mad, Devonshire, or am 
 
 Wliether the Duke, havintr hearrl <!i. t i , 
 marked his manner of tellin ^a/ n f '? "^'^ 
 cause, or thought that my lor7over;c e «^''*'"^^f "^^ 
 not immediately answerf anrXrhe 7?"'"' ^ ^"^ 
 tone was dry, though conrteol .^VeU "/''''^' ^"' 
 may be Sir John who is mad," he said "' °' '""""^^ 
 
 the co;;r:n'd^fat"'LZ" r^""''^^^^^^^ "^ ^" 
 not mean to tell me l^Tyl llZfCl 7'''' "'' 
 and a bull, and a— a '' ^*°^ "^^ ^ ^^ck 
 
 "' Wetf''" '"' '■" """'^ ^^ ^^-«-«hire, quietly. 
 
 plil7'"^^s'!fj;hn'Cl"'^C' ''^ ^^^'^ «^--d re- 
 others. Lord Ma? Iboroil T1 p ^ *' ''^ ^^'^' three 
 And what he saylb^^^^^^^^^^ ^^.^olphin. 
 
 true. Therefore " '"^ *^'^ ^^^^ to be 
 
 cri7r;i:S' fating tt^"-^.t^e truth about me?" 
 cent apUance r- ah ndr^d^ev ! "^^ '''''' ^ ^- 
 
 "True." 
 
 thrmtttiticjfrynt:^^^^ 
 
 for twenty.four hours and ihlf .5 J ^^ ^"^ °^ ^^^^ 
 
 Londnn / Let Sir t\ ^^^'^ ''^^ ^« ^«o^n to half 
 
 . i^t feir John name the day. " 
 

 n 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 8fiC 
 
 STWEWSBFRY 
 
 " Tie hus," the other ])uke iuiswercd. " Ho lavs it 
 the tenth of June," 
 
 '^AVell:'" 
 
 ''There wjiSH Land Rmik meeting of the Council 
 that day. But your Grace did not attend it. " 
 
 / 
 
 on 
 
 OJl 
 
 \ ' tjtiiy ' 
 
 ^ iisT J'' ; I 
 
 xVir^^flf' 
 
 HE SHUT HIMSELF IN WITH HIS TROUBLE 
 
 "No? No, I remember I did not. It was the day 
 my mother was taken ill. She sent for me, and I lav at 
 her house that night and the next. " 
 
 His Grace of Devonshire coughed. " That is unfor- 
 tunate," he said, and leaned forward to bow to the 
 
ITo lavB it on 
 
 sn/?F;wsnrRv 
 
 867 
 
 licou «a, tliougl, I ,Io „ot ,I„ubt your word t 
 world w, 1 require wit„e««.s. And I.. 3. Shrlw bur '« 
 Lousehold ,. Buspeet. Her Jacobite leamLrarrk„own 
 ami her people's evidence would go for little rtT^l 
 
 j»53^r:i^b^dr''T^,»we:^L:5i;- 
 
 1 ifnow tlie King, and I tliink I do " 
 
 But the picture wliieh these words suggested to mv 
 
 d s nund was too mucli for hie equanin.ity To W 
 for certain tliat tlio King, who had extended induVenc 
 to him once, was in possession of this new accusSn am? 
 perhaps believed it, that was bad enonjrh Zf ?'i 
 
 humed word of sympathy to comply, mvTorf srem e,I 
 
 CHAPTER XLII 
 
 eJ n,t.7 r™""'?^^ '"'''""'^^ ^* ^'"'^"^ "^v lord's Great- 
 est misfortune, that in a crisis of his affairs which dt 
 
808 
 
 siWEvrsnrriY 
 
 nin,: ; 
 
 manded ,ill ho asHistunce that friendship, the closest and 
 most intimate could allonl, he liad neither wife nor child 
 to whom he could turn, und from whom, without loss of 
 dignity, ho might receive comfort und Hnp],„rt. He was 
 
 Li f '^rT"' ''^^"'"'^^"^ ^'■•"" '''^^' "e^^^ relations as lie 
 
 ad, by dillerences as well religious as political, and from 
 
 the world at large by the grandeur of a position which 
 
 llrer- "" ''"^'''"' "' ^''^ privileges it conferred 
 
 ^ To a melancholy habit, which some attributed i, the sad 
 circumstances attendant on his father's death, and others 
 to the change of faith, which he had been induced to make 
 on reaching manhood, he added a natural sliyness and 
 reserve, qualities which, ordinarily veiled from observa- 
 tion by manners and nn address the most charming and 
 easy in the world, were none the less obstacles, where 
 friendship was m question. i\ot that of friendship there 
 was much among the political men of that day: the perils 
 and uncertainties of the time inculcated a distrust, which 
 was only overcome where blood or marriage cemented the 
 tie-as in the case of Lords Sunderland, Godolphin, and 
 Marlborough, and again of the Kussells and Cavendishes, 
 i^ut, be that as it may, my lord stood outside these bonds 
 and enjoyed and rued a splendid isolation. As if already 
 selected by fortune for that strange combination of great 
 posts with personal loneliness, which was to be more strik- 
 ingly exhibited m the death-chamber of her late Majesty 
 Queen Anne he lived, whether in his grand house in 
 
 fbii wTi' ^^"*^«\^^' ^* %f«rd among the Gloucester- 
 shire Wolds, as much apart as any man in London or in 
 j*jngland. 
 
 RuMhr!: ^ ^ri' "1" ?"'^ '""^ *^^^ I^"^g of Hearts. 
 But the popularity, of which that title seemed the sign 
 
 Zt7 '^uu- ^^'*.^^^'"' ^'"^ ^^"^^«^' ^orn, while they 
 talked with him, of his spontaneous kindness and bound- 
 less address; doomed to perish an hour later, of spite and 
 
e closost uiid 
 nte nor child 
 ithout loss of 
 )rt. He was 
 ilutions as he 
 al, and from 
 sition whicJi 
 it conferred 
 
 ed to the sad 
 ., and otliers 
 iced to make 
 sliyiiess and 
 om observa- 
 aniiing and 
 icles, where 
 idship there 
 r, tlie perils 
 rust, which 
 mented tlie 
 olphin, and 
 avendishes. 
 hese bonds, 
 i if already 
 on of great 
 more strik- 
 ite Majesty 
 1 house in 
 jrloucester- 
 idon or in 
 
 of Hearts. 
 1 the sign 
 vhile they 
 nd bouud- 
 ' spite and 
 
 'S7//i'A'U',v//r/,'}' 
 
 ',m 
 
 envy, or of sheer inanition. Sinf.n fhn n i 
 
 Kiiiff w,„to to l,im , ,,"7'''™'',''''', '''''"■ "I'i'-'li tlie 
 
 trust, too fully co]ivi„ce,l"of tl!r r° " ^°" •"'"• I 
 
 I place iu you to h nk ,l, ,/ ft,™ confidonco which 
 impre^onin mc! Yot H T ''"'■?"'"' '""te any 
 sincerity, wlio ou v .,ceuU "" ""' ''"""^ nmn's 
 
 one of his o™™'rtv " °™ "" '"■' ^'"■"»' "»<1 ••"' 
 
 whic:;!;,^i::;i::;,t:; r:L"r/;' "';,-^'"'-'-^'^ '="-■ 
 
 displayed i,. it tlL, 1 Ze .traZ >'" ."''"'''''"'"''^ 
 the Sovereign ]„kI dealt ""ran^w °'"J ''"'"^ 
 spint, and that no,, the worl n„'t 1 , . "'^'™° 
 immediate accusation. ,vith a ft, ffi /?."'■ "' ">e 
 cumstance, he thou<.I t f 1 k ?'"''" °' *'""' »■><• e"'- 
 truth must qui i^^ te „ ' ',!a"V"f;r' ""'J' *»' *« 
 time few would be fo nd J,V f ^,' "' """ "' "'<' ™ai.- 
 
 B«. he .aw with paS el t Zaftt^'l' '"'"' "' ''• 
 rub the old sore and <rn]] it f. ^ charge would 
 
 seated alone His fb™ ilfh'/'"' "^' ''' ^"--^' 
 if thei^n alread/s^S • ^t:h ^'^Z^T'^' ^^ 
 Bhame he foresaw what stiunr] wi ^\^th throes of 
 
 and Wharton, would 1 .? "-'^^ ^^ings, such as Somers 
 
 24 
 
 ^'tyot him; what the Po.^^o^ and 
 
370 
 
 siih'KwsHriiV 
 
 
 I 
 
 lii' 
 
 tho Courant would print of liim; wimt the rank und file 
 of tlio party— exposed to no danger in the event of a lies, 
 toration, and concxHiuently to few temptations to make 
 their peace abroad— would think of tlieir trunted leailor, 
 when they learned the truth. 
 
 On Marll)orough and Hussell, (Jodolphin iinu Sunder- 
 land, the breath of suspicion luid l-lown: on him never 
 aiul ho had held his head higli. Ifow could ho meet 
 tliem now ? How could he face them ? Nav, if that 
 were all, how, he asked hiniuelf, could he face the honest 
 Xonjuror? Or tho honest Jacobite? Or tho honest 
 Tory ? He, who had taken the oaths to tlio new govern- 
 ment and broken them, who had set up the new govern- 
 ment and deceived it, who had dubbed himself patriot— 
 cui bono? Presently brooding over it, lie came to think 
 that there was but one man in England, tiu-pis.nmiiH ; 
 that it would be better in the day of reckoning for the 
 nieanest carted pickpocket, whose sentence came before 
 him for revision, than for the King's Secretary in his 
 garter and robes ! 
 
 Nor, if he had known all that was passing, and all that 
 was being said, among those with whom his fancy pain- 
 fully busied itsel^, would he have been the happier. For 
 Sir John's statement got abroad with marvellous quick- 
 ness. Before Lord Portland arrived from Holland the 
 details were whispered in every tavern and coffee-house 
 within the Bills. The Tories and Jacobites, aiming 
 above everything at finding a counterblast to the Assas- 
 sination Plot, the discovery of which had so completely 
 sapped their credit with the nation, pounced on the scan- 
 dal with ghoulish avidity, and repeated and exaggerated 
 it on every occasion. Every Jacobite house of call, from 
 the notorious Dog in Drury Lane, the haunt of mumpers 
 and foot-pads, to the Chocolate House in St. James's 
 rang with it. For Sir John, ull (they said among them- 
 selves) that they had expected of him was surpassed by 
 
the enc.y ],oist with .i '^'* "'''"^ Jacobite, .eeing 
 
 -i.-.'ery 'o,. 1; i' /;;■'; I-tam coma .void S 
 tliHt 8ir John was t o , os M !""'"' ''"'^""^ ^^^'^''-^'i''^' 
 
 tlio sanio gun an< o!;;r ""/'"'" ''**"^"^"' ^"^-•"-' ^^^ 
 brought abo.u t i:^^^- f f •r''"'"'^^ '''''' '-^^^ 
 TrenchardtohisaLth W ^l^''^' ■ "'"^ ^'"""^^^'^^ 
 ^•n- John with the lli p.', ti^ f^t •:"' '"'rf "'"^ 
 and filling the Kose T-.L n .1 t'^ason and fdonv, 
 admitted the weio^? whi H ^' l"';^*^"«tations, whiJh 
 cha.^es ^^ron,:;:'^ f truth of the 
 
 aloud for meetings, ennuirl.ni'' ^ ^''"'t>' ^""^^1 
 the leaders soon found 1. l»':»«ecutions; to whi.h 
 
 would or no t^^emselves pledged, whether they 
 
 My lord out of sensitiveness or th-.f nv 
 of what was due to himself -m 1 lu ^^^'r^W'^'^^-'^tion 
 unfitted him for p wL if" S' /""'^ -hich in a degree 
 
 pleading indisposit on be. n t t " T\ ^''^''''' *''^^' 
 all requests proffered bv hi^^l ^ f^' '^"""'^^ and to 
 
 part ii theii^lelibc^^'tionsvpT '^T'' '''"' ^^^'^^""''^ take 
 This notwithsti;l:i;;t^c^S ;;,:r ^'^^l-^'^^ive. 
 communicated to him •im) ^ I ^ ''''' '^^''^ ^^'^« 
 
 ings, whieh it wa ;;;"; C :d tr m' '' '" '"^^^■ 
 Somers' in Lincoln's Inn Sis n d th .7'"' '"' ^''^ 
 ral liussell's -would doubtlP 7 1 ^^"^ '^ther at Admi- 
 within the hour As it J ^?? ^'''' "^^'^^« *« him 
 
 the news froranot;l:^r'bnTin 'VT''' 
 c-n,ashesataIone,dwelli^-,il,;j;X^;;;;^^ 
 
 ,• I- ■ 
 
372 
 
 SIlUEWSBUUy 
 
 Square was roused at the quietest time of the forenoon 
 by an arrival. With a huge clatter, the Countess's glass 
 chariot, with its outriders, running footmen, and lolling 
 waiting- women, rolled up to the door; and in a moment 
 my lady was announced. 
 
 It is probable that there was no one whom he had less 
 wish to see. But he could not deny himself to her; and 
 he rose with an involuntary groan. The Countess on her 
 side was in no better temper, as her first Avords indicated. 
 •'My life, my lord, what is this I liear," she cried roundly, 
 as soon as the door closed upon her. " That you are 
 lying down to be trodden on! And cannot do this, 
 and will not do that, but pule and cry at home while 
 they spin a rope for you! Sakes, man, play the one 
 side, play the other side— which you please! But plav 
 it! play it!" 
 
 My lord, chagrined as much by the intrusion as by the 
 reproach, answered her with more spirit than he was wont 
 to use to her. ''I thought, Madam," he answered 
 sharply, "that the one thing you desired was my with- 
 drawal from public life ? " 
 
 '• Ay, but not after this fashion! " she retorted, strik- 
 ing her ebony cane on the floor and staring at him, her 
 reddled face and huge curled wig trembling. " If all I 
 hear be true— and I hear that they are going to hold two 
 inquests on you— and you continue to sit here, it will 
 be a fine withdrawal! You will be doomed by James 
 
 and blocked by William, and that d d rogue John 
 
 Churchill will wear your clothes! Withdrawal say you ? 
 No, if you had withdrawn six months ago when I bade 
 you, you would have gone and been thanked. But now, 
 the fat is in the fire, and, wanting courage, you'll frizzle, 
 my lad." 
 
 " And whom have I to thank for that. Madam ? " he 
 asked, with bitterness. 
 
 " Why, yourself, booby! " she cried. 
 
SHREWSBURY 
 
 o73 
 
 rather foolish or rt^enT W 1." T '"''^ '°°'-'»'' 
 change, however, " YorSs ,!^'' ■,'„ ™«-g the 
 "Lord Middleton auTs jiVS'""' ?° ''''"""•'''''' 
 gomery, and the rest, wC vo„ Li ™''' "'"' ^f""*" 
 jng mo toioin - Who unaMer^l^rX n?"'.P""- 
 But you are right. Madam. I selfor mln "".r' 
 It IS not possible to nlav a»-.m J ti; "X^" '""''' *>">' 
 and ..erefore I >eave';!S ^ ttm " "' *'" "''"^^' 
 Pack of rubbish! "she cried. 
 
 swered':„MlV"'''Yo„""'?' " ^°'' -- «"<'-" he an- 
 -ne ? Theroti,, be «: Sd Vlb-*""'.' '"^ '"'""^^'^ » 
 
 ''And I, Madam, shall be on mv wav fn Fvf., i >, 
 
 her fun share o'f a ^ot ^-s 1^^^^^^^^^^ "■■'' "-'"S 
 
 wishing to see him retire aftef Jbi^ f l,™' "". *"" ^"""^ 
 never eonceived the n2rA"hirr'' ""''"" 
 her answer bore witness " t1 t? , . « ,'° ""'"'"'J' "' 
 shrilly. " More like": ^J^ |j f' ^il^ "r"' 
 
 Trees and a thirteenha'pennyTelfor Lf ' ^'"■''^ 
 
 ure! God, mv lad ^,SZ„l ""^^^ 'hat le your meas- 
 
 8iok."shecoTtinu;d^her:^.!!.,T;'f •', Y"" -ake me 
 the violence of her m^e, , , "''' *"'=* "•"'"M by 
 
 her half-pals.^ tn^^.Tha'^: .?%«""»' '""-"-'^P '» 
 the spirit to turn on these petti^l "'" *""'" '-"^ 
 
 " Se" 'rf l^llT''' ".« -M -o.e>essly 
 
 = These perts and start-ups' Bnf vm, „ ^ 
 
 You avp ma-i " .T ;• ^ "^ ^^^^ 8,^6 mad 
 
 luuRiemad, s^he continued. ^' IVfRrl «. ir,-.„ t 
 
 When ],e fled the country-and who 
 
 man 
 
 as King Jamie was 
 
 more glad than tlie 
 
874 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 fi 
 
 » i 
 
 i 
 
 
 n 
 
 Dutchman! And as it was with him so it will be with 
 you. Ihey will strip you, Charles. They will strip you 
 baro as you were born! And the end will be, you'll lie 
 with Ailesbury in the Tower, or bed with Tony Hamilton 
 in a garret— ?a has ./ " ^ ^^numn 
 
 " Which is precisely the course to which you have been 
 pressing me," he replied with something of a sneer 
 
 Ay, with a full purse ! ' ' she screamed. " With a full 
 purse fool ! With Eyford and fifty thousand guineas, 
 my lad! But go, a beggar, as you'll go, and it is wel- 
 come you'll be-to the doorkey and the kennel, or like 
 enough to King Louis' Bastile! Tell me, man, that 
 this IS all nonsense! That you'll show your face to your 
 enemies, go abroad and be King again! " 
 My lord answered giiavely that his mind was quite made 
 
 "To go? "she gasped. ''To go to Eyford?" And 
 raising her stick in her shaking hand, she made a gesture 
 so menacing that, fearing she would strike him, my lord 
 stepped back. "^ 
 
 Nevertheless, he answered her firmly. "Yes to 
 
 '^llZt' ^^^ ^^*^®'' *° *^® ^"^^ ^« already written. ' ' ' 
 
 rhen that for you, and your King! " she shrieked- 
 and in an excess of uncontrolled passion, she whirled her 
 stick round and brought it down on a stand of priceless 
 Venice crystal which stood beside her; being the same 
 that Seigniors Soranzo and Venier had presented to the 
 Duke in requital of the noble entertainment which my 
 lord had given to the Venetian Ambassadors, the April 
 preceding. The blow shivered the vases, which fell in a 
 score of fragnents to the floor; but not content with the 
 rum she had accomplished, the Countess struck fiercely 
 again and again. - There's for you, you poor speechless 
 tool! she continued. " That a son of mine should lie 
 down to his enemies! Tiiere was never Brudenel did it 
 But your father, he too wa« a " 
 
f, fi 
 
 SHREWSBURY g^j 
 
 -gf «":„'; ais'it itj^\ "r- '"^ - ^'^ ™-^ 
 
 fence. Madam," he re' aS""' " ""'i''^ ^''- "»'- 
 neither the wring y„„"ht .„ ^°" '^° '™'' '''"<"> 
 you miscall, nor thZ Zi """y/eara ago to him 
 
 you, nor ditterencrofcSrrTff'""'^''" ''"««' 
 have prevailed to ettJi « ' differences of party, 
 
 ned, '■ and we do nof , "^ ?'"'''' °' ''''°' " "-e contin 
 this'at lel from ;„ "iVfT' 7 "^y- For I have 
 
 She glared at him a ml ntt^ aT"' *°f ™- " 
 all distorting her face Then ,?ft , 'nf'' ™'^«°-^' 
 " The door, boor' Yot, .» *-ii °°''' ^''^ """sed. 
 
 not obey mi, ahali relpeetT tT ^"' "■"• " y™ '"" 
 I enter 'your houee 2^— " '"'' "* ""*' "■"• « o™' 
 
 flickering vengX",^ Cf '"§' t' "'^ f^^ "^^ 
 no heed to that, but riad TLl ^Tf "^ '<"■<• ?"« 
 even at the cost of hf vLnetl ?ff i"", "'' ."' ^'' "* 
 ^Uence and led her in^Zml^l^^^l^:"^ '"' 
 
 sh^tS" rctr^rtS'- ''"^""^«''*>'- 
 
 her passion alighted who witlf ,. t ™'°™ ™ "''"'n 
 pected the impendTng'tm T L " ^"f' "« "'"^ «" 
 times found napping S *,,!'" """S "^'"'-^ ^'^ »">«- 
 
 Ph.nge. WhethS^fefaturilUr. '' P^^^g -"' 
 stepped her authoritv 'f ?"™*'"''"?-wman had over- 
 
 which existed iade \° t i,P''''™""f « °° " «>nility, 
 lady nor was tot Ip'ndeT^^^^^^ "'""'^ "V 
 
 "ion such as this: whether tl,? ? °' «"* "' ?•«- 
 
 Monterey, rendered ' o„ t ^l™ t ""' / "^' "^ 
 enough to betray her triumph, iylri^oTf^ri 
 
876 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 To li, ^^ ^^: f"'' ^^'"^'' '^ '' ^^^*^i° that at the 
 door the storm broke. Without the least warning tlie 
 Countess, after using her arm to descend, turned on her 
 u very Bess of Bedlam. ^'' 
 
 ''And you you grinning ape! " she cried, -you come 
 no farther! This is no home of yours; begone, or I wm 
 haveyou whipped! You don'tgo into my hous; againT" 
 
 The astonished woman, taken utterly aback, and not in 
 the le i understanding, began to remonstrate. Her first 
 thought was that the Countess was ill. " Your ladvshin 
 ~is not well?" she cried, with solicitude veiling he? 
 alarm. " You cannot mean " 
 
 hei^ Wh Iw 1'"' "^'"'^''^^ ^"^^^' ^°d do no more 
 
 nZ\ V ''? ^^^^^''^ ^^ y""^«' ^^^° ^^«^^t' ^«d never 
 came back, and nought but excuses ? And now this." 
 
 • A \^. ^^^' '''^''^ ^^^' y^"- " <^^ie waiting-woman 
 cried. "What does this mean?" 
 
 " You know! " said my lady with an oath. " So be- 
 
 gone about your business, and don't let me see your face 
 
 again or it will be the worse for vou " 
 
 i}^''H'7\f \r "'"^^ ^^'^'''' ^^ *^« suddenness of 
 the attack, the Monterey began to whimper; and again 
 
 asked how she had offended her and what she had done 
 to deserve this '' I, who have served you so long, and 
 so foithfully ? " she cried. - What have I done to earn 
 
 " God and you know-better than I do! " was the fierce 
 answer. And then, "Williams," the Countess cried to 
 her major-domo, who, witli the lacqueys and grooms, was 
 standing by, enjoying the fall of the favourite-- see 
 that that drab does not cross my threshold again; or vou 
 go, do you hear? Ay, mistress, you would poison me if 
 you could! "the old lady went on, gibing, and pointing 
 with her stick at the face, green with venom and spite 
 that betrayed the baffled woman's feelings. " T;ook at 
 
hat at the 
 truiug the 
 ed on her, 
 
 you come 
 , or I will 
 e again! " 
 nd not in 
 
 Her first 
 ' ladyship 
 iling her 
 
 ;d, mock- 
 • no more 
 nd never 
 this." 
 ?-woman 
 
 "So be- 
 our face 
 
 nness of 
 d again 
 ad done 
 ng, and 
 to earn 
 
 le fierce 
 3ried to 
 tns, was 
 !— "see 
 or you 
 1 me if 
 ointing 
 i spite, 
 iook at 
 
 SHREWfSBURY 
 
 her! Look at hprf ti,« • ,, 
 There is Madame Tn^e"' i^ ^^'^^^ "^"'^^^'or y„„, 
 »he could. Ji„t yo, sho ,id 1 ?'"'' P°'»™ yo" ^i 
 «'»t! V„„ will /„t have th .1 '^""^ '* ^'*«'''y. you 
 out here-,,e,.o on the ^.'^td 1' """"■ /"' ''"^ »g 
 hf packing, and see she lakes n» ^^°:'' y'"'""^' ^"-d 
 P">ner or a sleeve, or sheloes to P >?^' °' "■'""' >"" » 
 Ay> you drab," mvladvflV ^'"'•'"Ston fair for it. 
 
 "on, "I'll se; yo?S hemp"™ .' "f ""''' ->"'- 
 smarting t • • ™'"P 3 et ! and your shoulders 
 
 "May God forgive vn,, r " ■ , 
 fighting with her n^, ^ ' """• "»<' waiting-woman, 
 
 oooilf tSr; S%:r °";; «■" *» ^readfu, „« ^y, 
 etaud for much in the sum, my .frl" ' ^°"'' """' ™"'t 
 
 MoXnrterhTSrn^-;"™^ Madame 
 
 vants, as they stood to ZtLM '""''' "' *e ser- 
 
 toke in what had happenL ' T^' '"'* *« thoroughly 
 
 all her prospects whS^J:,*"'' Th"'^ ""^^ '"'^ of 
 
 passion, rage, des,,air, " Let me ™ " ?' "''^-S "i'h 
 
 «ng and trying 'frantically Z 2 "'' "™^' '"^™'>- 
 
 t"L.>' -P-' yo» ^-hierv;»Srf-t 
 
 <io:o^ettira:2'la^h^-:,I* "» -io.- 
 
 When, maddened by the to„I ^^*^/"«<^ ^er back. And 
 -If on him in a Zn^yZt^T^^' ^'^ ^^^ ^'^- 
 round the waist lifting her off h^' ''^"'^^ ^^"^^^* ^^er 
 screaming and scratching and sifi ^^1' '^'""'^ ^^^ «"* 
 
 mistress, or I'll drop you in'tf 'T ^''''' "^^^«-s, 
 are not young enough ^ nor V.' ^"''^ P^^^' You 
 7«.' Ten years ago vJu "^ Jf-f ^^ «"«"gh for these 
 pleased!" " •• ""'^^'^ ^^^ve scratched all you 
 
 
 I 
 
878 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 "Strike yoii dead ! " she cried, - my husband-my hus- 
 band shall kill you all! Ay, he shall!" 
 
 "When he gets out of the Gatehouse, we will talk, 
 mistress ^^ the man answered. " But he's there, and you 
 
 M 
 
 iai 
 
 CHAPTER XLIII 
 
 My lord persisted in his design of retiring to Eyford- 
 nor could all the persuasions of his friends, and of some 
 who were less his friends than their own, induce him to 
 attend either the meeting of the party at Admiral Rus- 
 sell s, or that which was held in Lincoln's Inn Fields- 
 a thing which I take to be in itself a refutation of the 
 sta ement, sometimes heard in his disparagement, that 
 he lacked strength For it is on record that his oAce of 
 Marlborough m the great war, where he had in a manner 
 to contend with Emperors and Princes, held all together 
 by his firmness and conduct; yet he failed with my lord 
 though he tried hard, pleading as some thought in his 
 own cause To his arguments and those of Admiral 
 Russell and Lord Godc'phin, the hearty support of the 
 party was not lacking, if it could have availed But as a 
 fact It went into the other scale, since in proportion as 
 his followers proclaimed their faith in my lord's inno- 
 cence, and denounced his accusers, he felt shame for the 
 old folly and inconsistency, that known by some, and sus- 
 pected by more, must now be proclaimed to the world 
 It was this w^iich for a time paralysed the vigour and in- 
 tellect that at two great crises saved the Protestant Partv 
 and this, which finally determined him to leave London 
 
 It was not known, when he started, that horse-patrols 
 bad been ordered to the Kent and Essex roads in expec- 
 tation of His Majesty's immediate crossing. Kor is it 
 
SHUEWSBURY 
 
 ,. 879 
 
 which, indeed, he wa Lemed ^TY' ^"^"l^ence-of 
 depending; n^V ^orT ^TrTo^Jf^^l ''^' ^.« -« 
 tions in his own mind, "^t a^ \r ! ^ ^^ considera- 
 lay the first niglit, Mr Vernn„ ^^^^^^nhead, where he 
 with hin, as L vZ'^elTsZTi^^^^^^^^ 
 gave him news which prosentlv i *^t!"°rning-and 
 only was His Majesty Wlv e.t T? ^!' °^^"^- ^«* 
 where his apartments were bein/r .V* ^^^^''^^ton, 
 he had expressed his intlntL of ! t^ ^'''^'''^' ^"* 
 and sifting him. '""'^^^^^^ of seeing Fenwick at once, 
 
 " Nor is that all " Mr v^,. 
 
 reason to think that your JZZ ''f ""^'- "' ^^^^ 
 
 apprehension as to the "LtX ,f t,'' 1''''^'''' ""«" 
 being made." "aracter of the charges that are 
 
 "What matter what the charges arp 9 »»^ 
 wearily leaning back in his coach For ^uf''^^''^ 
 on starting. ^' ^^^ he had insisted 
 
 "It does matter verv mimh 
 
 Duke," Mr. Vernon arwer^dbW?"^ T' P^^««°««' 
 right gentleman, wCe after "f^'-^ '°^'' ^^^^^^^"- 
 though thought at the It JlTCT"'""" '' '^'' ^''^^' 
 and of the most sudden Zf^.n .^^.^''^'^^ elevation, 
 able career. - Pardon 'me T^ f'^'^'^ ^^^^« ^o^our^ 
 
 swayed too long by yo", L,?'" T'^' ^ ^^«^« ^een 
 topic." ^ -^ ^ "' ^"^^^^ « extreme dislike of the 
 
 ;; Which continues," my lord said drily 
 
 petuou^^aTtL^rL^it;^-:;^^^^ 
 
 anger with, -Your Grace foi - r ! . '"""^"'^ ^"^ 
 question! High Treason r .t' • '^i^ , ^^ ^^^^on is in 
 
 ^-^ but /.;.. Jrand tn Kent^, ^S t' ^*^^^^^- 
 aiding and abetting 8ir John p • ,^^ ^""^^^^^ ^n 
 traitor, and bv his moui^[ and h ^'"''''^' ^"^ «"«^wed 
 
 I 
 
 am] encouraging 
 
II 
 
 p ' 
 k 
 
 i 
 
 1 
 
 fc- 
 
 H 
 
 |. 
 
 880 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 before liim. "Who is the 
 
 Yon are beside the mark, sir," my lord answered, in 
 a tone of freezing displeasure. ' ' That has nothing to do 
 Nvith It It ,8 a foolish tale which will not stand a min- 
 ute. No man believes it. " 
 ;; May be! But by (J d! two men will prove it " 
 
 that "" "''''''"' '^''''*'' ""^ ^''''^' ^"' '^' ^^'"s^^* ^y 
 
 "Ay, two men! And two men are enough, in trea- 
 son. 
 
 My lord stared hard 
 second ? " he said at last. 
 
 fi, " ^T ^A^'T ^^"''''' ^^* ^'''''^ ^"''"^^ f«r the purpose," 
 the Under-Secretary ansr.ered, overjoyed that he had at 
 last got a hearing. ' A man named .Matthew Smith, long 
 suspected of Jacobite practices, and arrested with the 
 others at the time of the late conspiracy, but released, 
 
 (lb i I " Del y S -— 
 
 "Well?" 
 
 ."[^;«rruptjy," quoth the Under-Secretary coolly, and 
 laid his hand on the check-string. 
 
 My lord sprang in his seat. '' What ? " he cried- and 
 lit ered an oath, a thing to which he rarely condesceided. 
 inen. It is true I know the man " 
 
 " He is in the Countess's service." 
 
 - In her husband's. And he was brought before me. 
 J3ut the warrant was against one John Smith-or Wil- 
 liam Smith, I forget which-and I knew this man to be 
 
 mistake, I released the man." 
 
 "Of^lr"''K?.w^'' ^'™"^' "^^^^"^ impatiently. 
 Of course, but that, your Grace, is not the gravamen 
 It is a more serious matter that he alleges that he accom- 
 sC'stn %^^^.^r^^*hat you there in his presence 
 saw Sir John Fenwick, that you gave Sir John a ring- 
 and, maword, he confirms Sir John's statement in all 
 points. And there being now two witnesses, the matter 
 
^sHJiEwshuity 
 
 881 
 
 And Jio made 
 
 becomes gruve. Shall I stop the coach v ' ' 
 H-a.n as If he would twitch the coi-d. ' 
 
 the h:i:^^^;:S;j t^S;,f V^^ - ^^^--in 
 
 the glass with his finfers ' 'hoI'^^^ 
 
 evidence? " he said at' last. "sa, Si/L""' '^' ^"^ 
 ugainsthim?" -"«« '^ir John approved 
 
 l.ad evidence to give Ceh „4 t> ""A™"' *'"" ''" 
 
 him, more or lees- and he . .■ f ^^^^ ^^^e^ 
 
 <»<<Vfo« ».«.. Thev have 2"i""'. «'' J"'-'" "e 
 
 friend in my teeth. I see Zt T ., ? '"""' '''"^"'^ 'l'" 
 too lightly Sir Tol,i T '""" '™''"' ""is matter 
 
 notion's, L'a gentlem^' ' 1?''"" '' '^ '" ^"""^ "' '"« 
 «„Id iense meZ?TCe LZYT *?*""'' """ >»« 
 There is some ill praote h^ ""'"" "" "'hout grounds. 
 
 eorcfarhifdeil^'h't,*- ^'"■"™ '»"™^- «'™ ^ble to 
 "Some plot." 
 
 oH^r'^^Jtiri'::^i;:t!n:?.,^"— ta,,, 
 
 please," he said. ^^' "you 
 
 orders, my lord cried "Trrn- *i^^T'^^' ^'"^^^"^^ f«^' 
 '• \Tr. r . 1 ,- . , • -^lajf^enhead ! " 
 
 ^0, Loudon,' «aui Mr. Vernon firmly. •< And one 
 
 f.i 
 
3«a 
 
 anni'jwNiwity 
 
 
 I 
 
 i' - ' .. 
 
 ''i 
 
 from Ills Juiiuls, coiiHented to be led bv ]„•« ! 
 
 house in place of his own und bv iL 1^ Vernon's 
 
 office, prese„t]';'XU':;trt'S TolXftf '"k*^ 
 Imil ridden in from Margate afrdLwstif,! '"^ 
 and w„n,a g,-ve a. andiloe to S^TZl'Zf^Z^ 
 
 etLtation 1.'" *1'"«' ''''' "" "^"'^ 'han fnlffl S! 
 
 
 
>sj//ii:\[\sjn/jiy 
 
 m 
 
 CIIAI'TKIi XLIV 
 
 About ten on the niorninff of the '{rrl nf at i 
 that year eight ,.„tieme„ of tl e fl„t Ink tTnS' 1 
 were assembled in tJie irallorv ,,t K„, ■ . J-'ngland 
 
 summons to the K l', dl W U.'T"' """"'=" " 
 
 an™" Po^Lt;^^^^^^ "- Marquis of Dorset, 
 
 noticed thatTn^fMr^ ' ^'""^ "P^^^^ ^^ ^^"« to be 
 miral R„« ! , f' ^^rlborough and Godolphin and Ad- 
 miral Kussell, who seemed to fall n-ifumllv !«+ . 
 
 th'oo *uy ■"""""' "™*' " """"-'^'^ '»-»" 
 
 Ad':sL,tM:ri;eLr.*:'r, '"""^"^ '^""'" «- 
 
 these oooasions "S S,V*T„v, f °'^.<'»™P'"'y' »" ""« "' 
 '•Sir Jidward," said Lord Dorset, speaking gravely and 
 
aoor of the Koyal closet was tl.roivn open, and a irenll, 
 .".m ,,Bl,e,- a,,pea,-ed, inviting ti.em to enter. '• My™ t 
 »M, pentlomen," he said, •' His Majesty desires Z tobe 
 «ate,l, as at the Council. He will be presenti; C ° 
 
 vert atloTCr'^ T *! '"'' '"»■" '"='"« """l'- *eeo„- 
 versation took a lower tone, each speaking onlv to bi, 
 
 speed of 1,18 new yacht, another the excellent health an I 
 -p.nts >n wh.ch His .Majesty had retnrned; mftn a door 
 
 vo oes, and ktir of feet were heard, and after a moment's 
 delay, Sir John Fenwick entered, a prisoner anTw,H, 
 
 this t,Sy;\r;inr:; ?r'^' fr,,'" """ ""• 
 
 Admiral, was retnrned bv the prisoner ^ 
 
 Will t' pts::;;;;t::'.? ^^"'^ °' "'™"*"-^' '■ *^ ^ing 
 
 ato'od' Tittaf " '° '"'" "'"""■" *'™»-^ "-"red, and 
 His gaunt form, clothed in black, hi.« face always stern 
 and now haggard, his eyes-i„ which pride and tol 
 c^m, at one moment overcame and at another gave pTce 
 tothe ookof a hnnted beast-these things wmJd have 
 
 cucumst. .-.as. How much more when those who ^azed 
 
 knew, too, ....,, w.th,. u few moments lie must meet the 
 
888 
 
 •'«'t7:::e,!T,:„;;;^::r';;;;, '■;■ "» --t.. ., , , 
 
 '» !"■">-. H,„ the ,°tei '•"■""' ,"";' "" ''"« -..no,! 
 '■'"' 'I'e- Im.K to ,. li r;''"'''- ''•""'"'-«■ ••".- 
 
 "'"'■■'mil „f H,„ licit, ,t„„ ,,'■""""" I""' '« ti.o 
 
 ,1^0 nn.l tl.o Lord Ste,var^ 1; , ■'^' '^'"''^'>' ^^ ^ ^oor 
 '"-^[: t''-n in a foreign ac'e t • (<n'?1 *","^^''* '^^^^ '^e 
 '»«;'^Hteh, "lie seat:,, n v , ;.]« ^T^-J^^',' adding i„.. 
 ^nil proceed." " '^'''- ^^'^^ ^^^''^l .Steward, we 
 
 ^Jis entrance and un.vi.. i 
 J-Jced ^tlikethegra. i ;,;;''^ f -t awkward, 
 
 "s «tand. one Jnind ligl.t v i' .^ '^' «« ^'« t^^iv 
 
 Wd .Steward's elmir hi „/ ^ '" ''" '^""'^ ^^ ".e 
 -now. Withered fa^ Ijant ttr;!/^"^''^ '^'''^ -^^ 
 a dignity of their own. Fo > f f ^* P^^''"^'"^' ^ad 
 that he was that which no Sfnl f t^ '^ "'^ ^^' ^''^'-^otten 
 ever been-a soldier aiid co la Je""f '' "^^'^^'^"^ ^^^ 
 home m all the .amps of FJa "t , l?""] ^^^^^'^^'^^ at 
 ^ar w . h .very peril of bntH? I u '""' "^" ^^hine, famil- 
 where, where other'nenb/';.^'^^^ at his ease ,m- 
 f- knowledge that Ih s tS tInlVd 7 '•^^'- ^^^^ 
 tam awe and grandeur even in tht .? /'"' ^'^*^^ « •^«^- 
 this day he wore a black su/.! ^T °^ "^^'''^^^^8. On 
 of the Garter; and as he loV^Tt'l'^"^ ^^^ *he ribbon 
 on his breast, that his eye °hich u' '^"" ^^"'^ «° ^^^ 
 y^^th a keen and alniost'b^^eS " ' "" "'^«^^°« ^^■^'^ 
 
 25 
 
 i^ht, were hidden. 
 
88(t 
 
 SHREWSIU'liV 
 
 
 J lie Lord Steward, i.i obedience to his command, was 
 about to address Sir Joiin, when the Kin^, with a 
 brusqneness characteristic of him, intervened. -Sir 
 John, ; he said, in a harsh, dry voice, and speaking 
 partly m French, partly in English, "your papers are 
 altogether unsatisfactory. Instead of giving us an ac 
 count of the plots formed by you and your accomplices, 
 plots of which all the details must be exactly known to 
 you you tell us stories without authority, without date, 
 without place, about noblemen and gentlemen, with 
 whom you do not pretend to have had any intercourse. 
 in short your confession appears to be a contrivance, in- 
 tended to screen those who are really engaged in designs 
 against us, and to make me suspect and discard those in 
 whom I have good reason to place confidence. If you 
 look for any favour from me, therefore, vou will give me 
 this moment, and on this spot, a full and straightforward 
 account of what you know of your own knowledge. And 
 —but do you tell him the rest, my lord." 
 
 ''Sir John," said the Lord Steward in a tone serious 
 and compassionate, "His Majesty invites vour confidence, 
 and will for good reasons show you his favour. But vou 
 mus deserve it. And it is his particular desire that you 
 conclude nothing from the fact that you are admitted to 
 see him." 
 
 "On the contrary," said the King, dryly, "I see you, 
 sn, for the sake of my friends. If, therefore, you can 
 substantiate the cliarges you have made, it behoves you to 
 do it. Otherwise, to make a full and free confession of 
 what you do know." 
 
 "Sir," said Sir John hoarsely, speaking for the first 
 time, I stand here worse placed than any man ever was 
 i^or 1 am tried by those whom I accuse." 
 
 The King slightly shrugged his shoulders. " Fallait 
 petiser la, when you accused them," he muttered. 
 
 Sir John casta fierce despairing glance along the table. 
 
l;« 
 
 And that is all ri'v +i,„i 
 
 the scene. ^ ' ^' '^ ^^ ^^^'^^^ only to cut short 
 
 " All," said Sir John firmlv " 
 
 It would not deceive a child ,1 i"°' ""■'" '« «<!. 
 ae J)„ke high i„ ,,i, ,,^^^;'l- ■"'■»'' )e« one ,.h„ um 
 
 aionT^Tbrh-'Too::" "" /:" '»'«"'. -^ looi^ed 
 
 """ feble I can p ofe ^ -T "l?'"'"™^- " And yet 
 rtantiate, si,, To y' . J h ""''• " '^''"" I "" 8"b. 
 ■•^ove «,ai,ioi„„ , y 7'J^ '■"Jf " ^"tness, and a ,vitne , 
 
 Majosty's favou;? " '^™™ """■ ""•' ^h"" I have yZ 
 "Perfectly." «ni<7 f],„ tt- 
 
 -i<i a genend thdll t^d ^"vttnt -f "?, '^' ^^^^"^'^-' 
 J>«d gone abroad, by „o nZTT' 7" f""''^^' ^"""^^'n's 
 ease vyas known, eyen to s me t tt T ,f '' ""'' '^'^'"^'« 
 
 joar indulgence, sir, " tZa-'^^r''''^- '' ^ ^^'-'^v; 
 ty:« permission, I call i t^ Duk^ f 1^^ '''''' ^^i«- 
 18 in waiting." ^ ^"^^ ^^ Shrewsbury, .'^o 
 
 '"^n ^^aiting," said the Kine- in 
 ^or was the surprise confined o'l '' 'T' "^ «»^P''i«e; 
 he was ill, Mr. Secretary " " ^""^^ ^ ^^^"ght that 
 ^ He ,s so ill/sir, as to bfi y.,.y mfif + u i 
 secretary answered " yJ t^ ^^^ *" ^^ "^J-oad, ' ' the 
 
 ^et he came to be in readi- 
 
Hi ' 
 
 388 
 
 SffHEWsniliY 
 
 
 r j 
 
 ness, if yonr Majesty neetled ],irn. Sir John Fenwick 
 persisting, I ask your Majesty's indulgence while I fetcii 
 him." 
 
 TJie King nodded, but with a pinched and dissatisfied 
 tace; and Sir William retiring, in a moment returned 
 with the Duke. At his entrance. His Majesty greeted 
 him dryly, and with a hint of displeasure in his manner- 
 thinking probably that this savoured too much of a covp 
 de theatre, a thing he hated. But seeing the next instant, 
 and before the Secretary took his seat, how ill the Duke 
 looked, his face betrayed signs of disturbance; after 
 which, his eyelids drooping, it fell into the dull and 
 bpliinx-like mould which it assumed when he did not 
 wish his thoughts to be read by those about him. 
 
 Tliat the Duke's i)kllor and wretched appearance gave 
 rise to suspicion in other minds is equally certain; the 
 more hardy of those present, such as my Lord .Alarlbor- 
 ough and the Admiral, being aware that nothing short of 
 guilt, and the immediate prospect of detection, could so 
 change themselves. And while some felt a kind of ad- 
 miration, as they conned and measured the stupendous 
 edihce of skilful deceit, which my lord had so long and 
 perfectly concealed behind a front of brass, as to take in 
 all the world, others were already busied with the etfect it 
 would have on the party, and how this might be softened 
 and that explained, and in a word another man substi- 
 tuted with as little shock as possible for this man. Nor 
 were these emotions at all weakened when my lord, after 
 saluting the King, took his seat, without speaking or 
 meeting the general gaze. 
 
 "Now, sir," said the King impatiently, when all was 
 quiet again, " the Duke is here. Proceed. " 
 
 ^u""^,.^,^"'." ^^^ '^^^^ answered with greater hardiness 
 than he had yet used, " I have simply to repeat to his face 
 what I have said behind his back: that on the 10th of 
 last June, in the evening, he met me at Ashford, in 
 
sinnjwsnuitY 
 
 Kent 7 '^^^ 
 
 «™ in Ins face. '™'' '° *« «»' he I,„d compa^. 
 
 'Sir John, " he «fl,V] „^^ 
 --"a he wa, ZTL~:^^i- "v" "™^^ ««""'« the 
 '.on ,t ^„,.e barbarous ' „ taor °''' '" ^"°'' " P™i- 
 
 aeso gentlemen, hear moshTe „1 ? ?'' ^'J^^'y "nd 
 ">e.;e « not a word of tr„ h tl!';° '"f"'"' «><"n; that 
 Sir John stared it 1,; " '™a' Jon say. " 
 
 ---..^ed^f;:----.^^^^ 
 
 Duie o™tiXr\^f °!-d on «- "«. of J„ne,.. the 
 
 »omb. I never saw you C'a„d% T ""^ "'' '" ""•' 
 J/o« rfK„ ./ " Si, J , ,,"^^ " 7 gave you no rin?." 
 
 f*"''--edtobe„rr:rte:;t':^i: 
 
 ^o\y it is certain f], <■ i 
 P-ent thought of t J-tftrie' "'*"'^°' 'hose 
 men was so steadfast that e°en T n ^"r"""' "' «« two 
 men was at fa„,t_t,,e K,„!7„I; :■" ""'"orough's aou- 
 of the matter, and with Zll " ?"™'y ™» to be rid 
 » rtop to it at this po n ™r! >'''''*r™ '>e «ed to p" t 
 &rti.er, my i„„,s /" f said f^?;',"' "''"" '» '^"Y « s 
 fnends. We I,„o„, our enlie , '""y- " ^^e inow or 
 rrre. and deserving^lT'''^'''^- This is a story .C 
 Bnt Sir John at th / f "'"'Pt- " ' 
 
 flercely, and ree^Lg" tVe'Ki.S i'™'*^""« "^"''^'3' and 
 
 being no less nrgenl! L ,i^« ' P™""'"' and the DnJce 
 
 nnseasonahly for bis ow^trel^r ."■""*?'" » ''■'* 
 
 "ifted to the bottom, tlie K n!T ]""" "■" '""tter be 
 
 f on " Very well " ^ »• f jf '"'."""■°" I"" «o let rt 
 
 '""e his witness let him " 1 .."T""""''*' " « he 
 
 I 
 
 *#* 
 
 And then, with 
 
 will 
 0"e of those 
 
390 
 
 SIIIiEWSBUBY 
 
 spirits of peevishness, which stood in strange contrast 
 with his wonted magnanimity, he added, to the Duke of 
 bhrewsbury, -It is your own choice, my lord. Don't 
 blame me." 
 
 _ The querulous words bore a meaning which all recog- 
 nisea; and some at the table started, and resumed the 
 calculation how they should trim their sails in a certain 
 event. But nothing ever became the Duke better than 
 the manner in wliich he received that insinuation. " Be 
 it so, sir," he said with spirit. " Mv choice and desire 
 IS that Sir John have as full a share of justice as I claim 
 for myself, and as fair a hearing. Less than that were 
 inconsistent with your Majesty's prerogative, and mv 
 honour." '' 
 
 The King's only Answer was a sulky and careless nod. 
 On which Si.- William Trumball, after whispering to the 
 prisoner, went out, and after a brief delav, which seemed 
 to many at the table long enough, returned with Matthew 
 Smith. 
 
 CHAPTER XLV 
 
 That the villain expected nothing so little as to see the 
 man he was preparing to ruin, I can well believe; and 
 equally that the ordeal, sudden and unforeseen, tried even 
 his iron composure. I have heard that after glancing 
 once at the Duke he averted his eyes; and thencefortli 
 looked and addressed himself entirely to the end of the 
 table where the King stood. But, this apart, it could not 
 be denied that he played his part to a marvel. Known to 
 more than one as a ruffling blade about town, who had 
 grown sober but not less dangerous with age and the 
 change of times, he had still saved some rags and tatters 
 of a gentleman's reputation; and he dressed himself ao- 
 
SHREWSBUltr 
 
 891 
 
 not unfavourable at tetftlr"^^ "^''^ ^'^ ^«^^^«««i«« 
 
 ^^ete::^/;;rM:^^;:fjrT^-^-.w.at 
 
 appearance had created though t,^''"'"'^"^^ ''^'^' his 
 «omo „,easure to vTlovtTt^ 7^' Probably due in 
 ^vord nor sign betrayed the a If i"'^' ^^^" ^^^"^^r bv 
 «-" to whom for years past e h« l ''?' ^'^' ^^^*' ^^^^ ^ 
 and once in six months ast 1 '^^^ ^P''^^" «««"a]]y, 
 with the utmost ful ness and n ? T'"'^^^ ^^ ^^^o^^ 
 tl- journey, which asVelri'^^"^ T'' ^^^^^ «f 
 gefcher to Ashford. AtXX\\"''' ^^^ ^^^^^ to- 
 «^ey]ay, by what road hyl IT/' '^ ''''''^' ^^^re 
 pat. x\ordidhe stop t ere buf T'' "^^ ^"^^'^ ^«« 
 the same ease and exL e L tit h 'f "i^ *^ ^«'^*« ^ith 
 passed between Sir John ad r '^ *"^^' '^^* ^^^ 
 inn. *^"^ ^"s companion at the 
 
 ^iS°:i^r^rs:t^:,t^- told. With min^ 
 
 ears totally deaf The men wh "??""?' '^^"^^ ^^^ on 
 versed in deceptions ardL-^''*?'^ ^^^'^ statesmen, 
 wbo knew Gates and ha^hear'dT''' T"^ -^-rs-men 
 listened, they shut tLteve «1 ^""^^ ^^^' "'"^^ "« «^«3^ 
 themselves that thi wa' If. :;^°^^^^^«d them, to assur^ 
 
 Pearance, even Lord Po thnr] .''"'' ^^^«^'« ^^^ ap- 
 ^ojalty was notorTous had .1 ''.^^'*'"'' ^^ ^°-^^i«h 
 ^^ohn;s story as a de";;r f ei^^T^^^ \^ ridicule Sir 
 
 even in teeth of my lord's d\lf^ ^^' ^^^"' «"d ^his, 
 appear that one of^tl e kL^w '-'"/^^^^^^^le did it 
 
 «toop to a thing so foolish. \?ow";r^ ^^''''''''' ^^^"^d 
 of meaning that no one looked ai ^'"'■^'P ^'"^"^^^ 
 gazed either at the witness n. T. Neighbour, but all 
 And some Md.o knew 2 ]o /V ? ''^^^ '''^''' ^hem. 
 affection for him, felt the 2\ ' '''"'^ ^^^^ ^he most 
 the room oppressive, '"''' ^^^ ^he stillness of 
 
893 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 :»'' 
 
 II! 
 
 Mi 
 
 Suddenly the current of the story was broken bv the 
 Kin^^ 8 harsh accerlt. " Wliat Avas the date ? " lie asked 
 
 on which you reached Asliford ? " ' 
 
 "The 10th of June, sir." 
 
 " Where was the Duke on that day ? " William contin- 
 ued; and he turned to the Lord Steward, llis tone and 
 question, implying the most perfect contempt for tlie tale 
 to which he was listening, to an extent broke the spell- 
 and had the reply been sacisfactory all would liave been 
 over But the Duke of Devonshire, turning to my lord 
 for the answer, got only that he lay tliose two nights at 
 his mother's, in the suburbs; and thereon a blank look 
 fell on more than one face. The King, indeed, sniffed 
 and muttered "Then twenty witnesses can confute 
 this. as if the ansiver satisfied, and was all he had ex- 
 l)ected; but that others were at gaze, and in doubt was 
 as noticeable, as that those who looked most solemn and 
 thoughtful, were the three who had themselves stood in 
 danger that day. 
 
 _ At a nod from the King, Smith resumed his tale; but 
 m a moment he was pulled u]) short by Lord Dorset, who 
 requested His Majesty's leave to put a question. TIavincr 
 got permission, " How do you say that the Duke-came 
 to take you with him? " the Marquis asked sharply 
 " To take me, my lord ? " 
 "Yes." 
 
 " Must I answe.' that question ? " 
 " Yes," said Lord Dorset, with grave dignity 
 " Well, simply because I had been the medium of com- 
 munication between his Grace and Sir John," Smith an 
 swered, dryly. " Even as on former occasions I had 
 acted as agent between his Grace and Lord Middleton " 
 My lord started violently and half rose. 
 Then as he fell back into his seat, "That, sir, is the 
 hrst word of truth this person has spoken," he said, with 
 dignity. It IS a fact thr.t in the year '9:^ he twice 
 
SIUiEWSBUItY 
 , S98 
 
 cned, vehemently. - You 111 t ^o"Iie!" he 
 
 drel ! Sir-pardon me b'^ thf • "T- '"''''' ^'^^ ««^»"- 
 cannot sit by and hem it- " ' ''~""^ ^« *«« "^"^h! I 
 
 -uff with a droll expression of eW n "^n ' '^'^"^^ 
 else ask a question. Mv Lord Dn ^.^' ^^ '" •'^">'«^e 
 
 day shine. " '^''' ^'"^'^'' Pe^^iaps, he may one 
 
 answer it or not as he ifkL t '^.f'''' ^"^ he can 
 John, that it was the Duke of Shi''' u'^ '''' ^"«^^' «»' 
 at^^sljford and eonferret^^^^ met you 
 
 1 knew the I)nkp " <s,-v t i. 
 had seen him often and « i answered clearly. - j 
 
 -How often hd\"s£;^"!^V"^^^^^^^ 
 in^. p „ >>«» spoken to him before this meet- 
 
 ;; Possibly on a dozen occasions." 
 
 ''S:b:^^::^;^-3;^^^-ve.at^^^^ 
 
 John added, :th a flash ^ '''"• ^ ^"«^ him." Sir 
 
 I l;"ow you; Lord \Lt:2T^,': "^^^-"^' '' - -H as 
 ^^ He gave his title ? " ^ ' 
 
 nam^'^S Mo'ef Taibot"''^"''" ''"'"™"^- " He gave the 
 -"« made by a statemen lat at ^1,?',"" "" '"'P™- 
 
 ii 
 
 #1 
 
 les, 
 
894 
 
 SHUEWSBUIty 
 
 mv lort hadT; M°V°'" "''° '"' "'"" ''«" ™^ that 
 my lord had used tliat name iu his wild and bovish davs 
 
 when he would be incoynUoj and, moreover, the usfoj 
 
 e . tha flunsy disguise oast a sort of decent probabUity 
 
 tie first t''.; "?, "' "" ^""^^ ^""""l "»JiWe. For 
 the hrst time the balance of credit and probability swum 
 
 rchf„r' wi " '""' """'^ "«"»'«> V X f 
 one a fc ti"'° "!"'""'»' "^ lasted a brie, while; n 
 
 tTon pL tl ?° ",'? °\ ™l»»te«"ns » farther c/^es- 
 tr«l« f ,'"" *""""' ^»'"' was f orgotten-or 
 the gleam of insolent triumph in his eye might have sud 
 somewhat. For the timo «;,■ r„i i ! . 
 Men's mi>„l/,„ I '™«.0" Jolm took a lower seat, 
 mens minds were busy with the Duke, and the Unk^ 
 only; busy with what the result would be to bin and o 
 tbe liar y, were this proved; while most, perce v ng"ul v 
 and by instinct tliat they tK-uched upon a great 3 
 shrank from the dmonemcnt. ""gody, 
 
 blindlv'onllfV''""?:*'" '^"'"' ""^■' "1 ""Ving 
 
 F^rtiVi -xtVi^tt s;r "'^ " *»^>- ''--'^■ 
 
 spelk^S;;?'^ "- ^^-8 -'"ieniy, "you had better 
 The words were meant in kindness, but they indicated ,, 
 
 Kn!' : :T,i1,'"""T"'^^ '""'-t^" that e:n the 
 and mv lord " .?■''* "' -^-M'toation and a defence; 
 
 and ray lord, seeing this, and acknowledging the invita 
 
 ZTn *f !? °"1^ ''^ '^ ^"S'" r-eren!e,°cont1n„ed to 
 
 .tn V rf ,"'" ''''°''' '"'"*° '"is weakness evident. Yet 
 
 ben he had cleared his throat and spoke, his yoi™ had 
 
 t be old ring of ™thority_with a toud, of pathos Sdd 
 
 pLtig ""'^ ''"'^ '""' '"'"^^ '■""* "'e sceptre wt 
 
 few^'Rl?H '"'f ' ",*1''f »' •^°'™<'' ™bot were not 
 11 imbu. Nor have you, or my lords, to do with tliem 
 Doubtless, with ray fellows, I shall have to gVye anTc! 
 

 SHREWSBURY 
 
 895 
 count of them one dav H„f . .. 
 
 r^ will nmke a plain It T^ '^'"' ^.^" ^^^^^« *« ^eal 
 '93 he «-as a go-between f^V J J'T ^'^' «'"'' that in 
 i« true; as you, Z^^o^^Z 7 '"^ ^°'^^ Middleton. It 
 -talready,'m^;tn;tT:;^^ '' *^-^ ^«o. it 
 
 Lord Middleton and I tere rptr^ ''"'' *^"^- *^« ^^^t, 
 once at that time wesIZw '?' ^' "^^^ "^^^^ tl^nn 
 F-nce. I promf erorr'a ?T T '^'"'^ ^^« ^^"^ ^o 
 ests here, he in return offZ. ' '' ''^'^ "^ ^''^' ^"^er- 
 As to t],e latter I told htrr i 2 "'' ^"°^ ««^^«« there, 
 forgiven; yet taci ly I'^'ht f^'^^^ ^^« ^-1% to be 
 the late King if he cou rl T "^^^^ ^"^ P^^^^ with 
 
 ery," the Btfke cont'ted ll^T ' '"'^"^ ^ ^^^^troon- 
 Patlietie gesture. '• It wa« "f ''f ^''' ^"»''« ^^ith a 
 place than the meanest m^L^J '"f ' *° ^^^^ ^ ^ower 
 "•« eure. I «ee that nfyTds '^ r^^'^^ ^^'^^« "P 
 ;t has weighed on me Z yea t' A i'"' ^"""'^ ''' ^"^ 
 But for this "-and with the ul- 1"^ ^'^'^^ ^ ^'^^ ^^^ it. 
 "" and round and he sto d erecf 2 "'''/ ^^^^^ ^^^^ 
 lace of his steinkirk tie ^nT^ ' ""^ ^'^"^ ^'"ong the 
 
 his accuser-^^ fo; th \ feh^^Tm"""^' ^^^^^^^^"^ - 
 old fault and using his know m ?• P''^""""^ on an 
 me, I know nothing o it -Vt ^' "^ '\' ^'""^^ ^^^^t on 
 Bome base and damnable pi Jet \rtr"^ '' ''' '' ^ 
 here I cannot refute it- but '^"fi "' ™^"^^"t and 
 
 another place I shall refilte t \a P™^"" *^"^^ ^"^^ ^n 
 that as to it, I am not g l^o.f;; T" '"' ""''' ^ ^^^ 
 
 As the last word rnS.i T ^^ ^'""^ouvl " 
 looking round Z S S'/^" ^^ ^^ sat down, 
 -as a silence, broken pre,entlvh:'^r'f"'^^' '^^^^^^e 
 "'1^0 rose, his voice and manne ^. f " ^'''^ ^^''''''^' 
 t'O". " His Grace is rigTt ^ I'tf T^ T '''''^ ^^o- 
 holieve with him that tht]' ' '"'^' '^« «^'d. - 1 
 
 ^''^^^^^'-t it has I:;:: ::;r r rii'-^-^b-t it is 
 
 would suggest therefore th' 
 
 gone so far that it cannot 
 
 at if 
 
 stop here. I 
 
 your Majesty sees fit 
 
80(1 
 
 siinHwsitrHv 
 
 % 
 
 A knock at tho door inUMTui.tod In,,,, and l,o turned 
 thut «ay in.iuitR.MMy. and pausod. The Kin^r, too, 
 Slu.ice, round with a gesture of annoyance. " 8ce uJ.a 
 It IS, he said. 
 
 Sir William Tru.nhall rose and went; and after a brief 
 C(»ifereMeo. during which the lords at the table continue.l 
 to cas, inpatient ghmces towards the door, he returned. 
 It It please you, sir," he said, "u witness desires to bo 
 lieard An.] with that his face expressed so much sur- 
 prise that the King stared at him in wonder 
 
 A witness?" said the King, and pished and fidgeted 
 m his chair. Then, ''This is not a Court of Justice," 
 he continued, peevishly. " We shall have all the worl.I 
 here presently. Ii„t_well, let him in." 
 
 Sir Willian. obeyed, and Avent and returned under the 
 eyes of the Council; nor will the reader who has perused 
 with attention tho earlier part of this history be greatly 
 surprised to hear that when lie returned, I. Kiehard 
 Trice, Avas with him. 
 I am not going to dwell on the miserv through which 
 had gone 1,1 anticipation of that appearance; the fears 
 
 thiongh which I had lain, sweating and awake. Suffic^ 
 t that T stood there at last, seeing in a kind of maze the 
 sober lights and dark rich colours of the room, and the 
 faces at the table all turned towards me; and stood 
 tee not in the humble guise befitting my station, but 
 m velvet and ruffles, sword and peruke, the verv double 
 as the mirror before which I had dressed had assured mo,' 
 o iny .oble patron. This, at Mr. Vernon's suggestion 
 and by his contrivance. 
 
 ^V^lile I had lived in my lord's house, and moved to 
 a .1 fro soberly garbed, in a big wig or my own hair, the 
 likeness had been no more than ground for a nudge and 
 
 Smith ll"l"^ ?''""'.'• ^'''' '^'^''''^ °"«^ ™^>^-e' ^^B 
 femith had dressed me, m a suit of the Dnke's clothes, 
 
lio turned 
 viu^r, too, 
 ' 8ce wJiiit 
 
 ter 11 brief 
 con tinned 
 returjicd. 
 dres to bo 
 nuch snr- 
 
 d fidgeted 
 Jnstice." 
 tlie world 
 
 mder tlie 
 
 s |)eruf5ed 
 
 '6 y-i-eutlj 
 
 Kic'mrd 
 
 ?li wliich 
 tlie fears 
 watches, 
 Suffice 
 maze tlie 
 and the 
 id stood 
 ;ion, but 
 double, 
 I red ino, 
 "•gestion 
 
 loved to 
 lair, the 
 Ige and 
 nore, as 
 clothes, 
 
 ■■■% -..., _^ . 
 
 MiHtffiiiP 
 
n 
 
 oc 
 
 wi 
 
 Eh 
 
 bli 
 
 fool 
 
 an e 
 
 fron 
 
 ishir 
 
 was 
 
 disce 
 
 him. 
 
 test a 
 
 villai 
 
 Bef 
 
 neckc 
 his ho 
 
m^ 
 
 T 
 
 SlUil WSIiURY 
 
 , m 
 
 '° ■'• One or two, in „i ' "' " " *"'''" '■'"•M ''e bli,„l 
 ;vI.ilo,Si,.John. wl>„,, o„3,;;""'"' -^"l"""".! on it; 
 
 -tom«ln„„nt. " wi,„t do™ It „,e ", ™''' '" "'" '""'■>«' 
 
 «>o.,i^':;f;;,;t ,:;,:'::'«•"■■ ""''-'» «- «,. 
 
 "'Mle, l„ng],ed drviv "T f ''™ ""' «"' '" ™.<1 tile 
 
 """tinned, addressing Le-'V^,' ■^'"!'*' """'." ''e 
 h"ueel,oIda»-l,iIe„,,„v„.r;„/°" «>■<> '" Wi» Duke', 
 
 bling. ^ ■"''J°^''-""Je.-con,,n,l,,i„n," I ,aid, tre,„. 
 
 'oot'/L t;s;t':;;;;lt''f ^'""' »-'-- at t,. 
 
 » eCdit bit re';: Tved" tT-'- "■"^' "'■"' " "- -<> 
 '■•"mSirJolin. D„„^i o ■■2' '^''^ ""».auoe. li oame 
 
 ■»l""e„tand ^-spieionl^ " e t",""'"; '""«» »«'o„- 
 >™ and >vonde'. wl,y it^ ™ 1!, T T'"" ""'^ "--^^'y 
 
 h™. Witii a cry of raw l,„T *^' "^ "'"^^ '' ImmUi 
 te«t against the fraud ft „ il 'I ? '"■" ''""^^ » l>ro 
 "llainbyljisside. ..'y* J'"^♦''»'' '« '"™ed on the 
 "Yon have destroyed me" y;^; """""''rel! " he cried. 
 
 Before he conld be iield off hi fi"™ '"'"'^'""^ "'«■' " 
 nee e, th and olntehin/lf V :„°^-7-e i" Sf'b's 
 "- i."M ti,at Admiral Bnssell and s'ir W iH^XmS 
 
400 
 
 SriREWSBVliY 
 
 hiid to rise and drajr 
 
 liiiii away by force. " Easy, 
 
 
 ifflul 
 
 I 
 
 Pfi, 
 
 fMr John, said the Admiral with rongli sympathy. " Be 
 satisfied. He will get his deserts. Please (lod,"'if I had 
 nm on my ship an hour his back should be worse than 
 Oates s ever was! " 
 
 Sir Joim's rage and disappointment were painful to 
 \vitness, and trying even to men of the world. Jiut what 
 shall I say of the fury of the man at bav, who denounced 
 and convicted m liis moment of triumph saw. white-faced 
 ins long-spun web swept easily aside ? Doubtless lie knew 
 as soon as he saw me, that the game was lost, and could 
 have slam me with a look. And most men would with- 
 out more ado have been on their knees. But he possessed, 
 If od knows, a courage as rare and perfect as the cause in 
 which he displayed it v^as vile and abominable; and in a 
 twinkling he recovered himself, and was Matthew Smith 
 once more. While the room rang with congratulations, 
 questions, answers and exclamations, and I had much ado 
 to answer one half of the noble lords who would examine 
 me, his voice, raised and strident, was heard above the 
 tumult. 
 
 " Yoir Majesty is easily deceived! " he cried, his very 
 tone flouting the presence in which he stood; yet partly 
 out of curiosity, j^artly in sheer astonishment at his au- 
 dacity, they turned to listen. " Do you think it is for 
 nothing his Grace keeps a double in his house ? Or that 
 It boots much whether he or his Secretary went to meet 
 birJohn? But enough! I have here! here," he con- 
 tinued, tapping his breast and throwing back his head, 
 that, that shall out-face him; be he never so clever' 
 Does his double write his hand too? Read that, sir. 
 Kead that, my lords, and say what you think of your 
 Whig leader ! " *^ 
 
 And with a reckless gesture, he flung a letter on the 
 table. But the action and words were so lackin<r in 
 respect for royal chambers that for a moment no one took 
 
'1 
 
 401 
 
 opened it. ""'' P'^'^g"' i""' deliberation 
 
 Have I your Majesty's leave'" i.„ •, 
 King nodding peevislilv " TJ^ .V '""'' »'"' the 
 writing," the^D^nt S con ,L"°^ "'■ ''™^'' ""''- 
 and ,ooWng d„bio„s„ ^ ^;;^UC^^ "''^ '^P^- 
 
 And so'set t:^ he rSr ' "ff * -'°*". «-cely. 
 1-e.ves started iZ\ZtTti\r !''''''''«' "-' 
 on his hands where tliov rl„t i' Tt * ™""' ™* ""ok 
 " It is his hand at foo ■ T 'f r " ,1^'" ^'"'^ ^""- 
 
 "ere/,t;,r/ '""si'.a , I'rf, '^, '^" '""'^ ''"''^"^ - 
 ■ " What is it ? " ^tei hrR- " '"'f ' ^''- • " 
 
 the lines as he spX "^ ^ """"'"« ''" '^^ ''°'^'> 
 
 v.as a hundred ti,nes more S T" '""""• Th« 
 which had fallen thron ", C^,f f •?, " !""•«" "'an that 
 »" had his Grace o°n the IIv't r',f '*'''"'''» 
 showed his en,otion by a fa ePn,ore°tt "''■■"'°'™'gh 
 serene; Admiral KusseM I , , *"" "ommonlv 
 
 by the attention iTe Ta^^u^ ,!"f'f «"*; Godelp,,in 
 
 -as Smith behindhand n no n. the t'!''™- ''''"'■ 
 For an instant he tmvered \fTr \ """" P™l"ced. 
 with malevolent tri Zh H^ ' *™ '""^ 8'eannng 
 were turned. ' ^^ *''""ght that the tables 
 
 KinglCd'" ^"""^ "™" '» *'- ""^y •" the pa,«r . " the 
 " '"";/'»i-t>-'«." Lo.-d Portland answered, with a 
 
403 
 
 SIIREWSBURr 
 
 e plot was discovered. I remember it. I am afraid 
 wiUi him." ""^""' "" ''^'•^' ^^" --^ -P-«J^ -e 
 
 At that there was a great roar of laughter, wliich had 
 uot worn itself out before one and another began o press 
 then- congratulations on the Duke. He for f^ par'Ta 
 as If stunned; answering with a forced smile where it 
 was necessary, more often keeping silence. He had es 
 
 laid. But his face betrayed no triumph. 
 
 Matthew Smith, on the other hand, brought up short 
 
 by that answer, could' not believe it. He stood awhile 
 
 Ike a man in a fit; then, the sweat standing on his brow' 
 
 ras'rl'V'rr"^ ^^meagued agamsf him; that U 
 
 on and^l' "'•'/'' ?' ^^ ^^''^'''^'^ ^'^^^'- -"^ so 
 
 ve;v nnfi f''''T/'' ; ""'-^^ ""^ '''''''' ^"^1 <^^her things 
 
 what'^fo do'''' circumstances, for a minute no one knew 
 what to do each looking at his neighbour, until the Lord 
 
 der^Tl^f ^"'"^'^"•' ^"^^ "^ ^ -- «f thnn! 
 der, lake that man away, Mr. Secretary, this is your 
 
 c^nrh the"' "''' ''"' ^" • " ^^^ '''''"^ «- ^^i^^a- 
 Bv that ti.! r^^^'^^^^'l' ^"d t»^«y laid hands on him. 
 By that time, however, he had recovered the will and 
 
 iJd' ll r\ !, ^''' "^"''^" ^^^ despairing look at my 
 lord, he suffered them to lead him out. ^ 
 
^^liJ'JWSBURY 
 
 403 
 
 CHAPTER XLVI 
 
 He had gained the battle bt If / "°', ""'"'PP.v life- 
 l>i".«olf, though gnessedt sol C * """^ ""'j' '» 
 weakness had been told as r.; /^ "''^ "' "'« °l<' 
 toM; and even while hsfl , '°'''''™ "»»"'' >» 
 
 "ig at the foot of the tn.hl. 7 ^ •^'''"'' n>">iain- 
 and downcast; too pond to 'jr""''' "'""« "' ^'^my 
 vour, yet shaken bvT k ° Id"'' T "'" '^"S'" '"- 
 the time; that in a^it e wMet, *','"" "™--'e" ™ 
 lum, and with it tl e chin e * ' rf""';/™''' "'^e on 
 fSineand air, and freedom ?t. Kr-'"" »""'' "« ™n- 
 Some thonght that n . '■ '''.'■"■''S'SS and revenges. 
 
 h-i been pfaj d ,1 hr'ThtK °'' "' ?" '™'' ''''-I 
 him «-ith indulgeice Swel "« ""«■" P'-oP^'y view 
 character for cCenV wiJoh e^: l^"' ''" *'"^ "^^ "« 
 tliat Sovereign. But W !„ , ., """""' ""'"ved 
 occasion; and wherthel'Z, "?■';"''''' ""« ™ 'his 
 had caused had comp et^ ^dt tlv l"" n' """°™' 
 John, advising him to denend !.n • ' '" »''<'''«»d Sir 
 vour by a franl and f°, Sver Tb"" ''""■""« '"« '»- 
 on. contrivances as tha wl ich S wV" "'""' '''«™'- 
 
 "I was no party to i •' tL f '"'"' "P^^'^- 
 swered. ^^ "' "'^ ""happy gentleman an- 
 
 thrK;;'t:tor's:r;or^v""'- »^'"-' ^°"'" 
 
 '■ I throw mvselt on y„,Ir (m •'^"^« ""'■'' *" »^-" 
 
 "That wiir„ot d^, si jlit ?;r'T""y-" 
 
 . "11 Jolin, the King answered. 
 
404 
 
 SHREWsnURY 
 
 and folgf °"^ ^''" ''' '^^^"^ ^^^^^^^ — -^ ^^ «i-it 
 
 I will not say that I expected anything less from vou 
 My lords, let him be removed." ^ 
 
 ATid with that the messengers came in and Sir John 
 
 I thotht ;i".' "'^; *'^"- ^' "^^^ ^-^^ been fancy bn" 
 
 I thought tliat as he turned from the table a ha^^^ard 
 
 liade fell on his face, and a soul in mortal an^lh 
 
 ttas i^^nr '"" '^^ ^^"- ^"^ ^^- --^^ --'; 
 
 whilst. tT ^'r '^"'?"- ^^'f "^^^^ ^ *^^ "^-« --« every- 
 hm, had fled the country; and for a time it was beHeved 
 ta , Sir John would escape. How, in face of that diffi- 
 culty those who were determined on his death, effected 
 t how he was attainted, and how he suffered on Tower 
 Hdl with all the forms and privileges of a peer-on 1^ 
 28th of January of the succeeding year— is « «fnv. f 
 trite and familiar to call for repetition "' '"' 
 
 ret?rL^' R f'^T '^''P''''''^ ^roke up. His Majesty 
 
 some who had greater regard for the post factum than ] e 
 pce>nienUa were for sending me to the Compter and 
 leavmg the Law Officers to deal with me. But n v lord 
 rou^ng himself, interposed roundly, spoke for me and 
 would have given bail had they persisted. See n "how 
 ever, how gravely he took it, and being inclined to'plcae 
 hjm, they desisted, and I was allowed to go, on the s^n 
 pe condition that the Duke kept me undfr his on ey 
 J his he very gladly consented to do ^ 
 
 Nor was it the only kindness he did me, or the greatest- 
 for having heard from me at length and in detail dl to' 
 circnmstances leading up to my'timely interven^if, t 
 
it to be a froo pardo., If !l , \ i''"' =°' ""<' '""'ul 
 granted to EieC Priori. Vn "'p*' ?''"' «™'' »■■" 
 and tl,mg, done hy them Wntfv? ""' *"" '"'" '"'""t" 
 
 begun to wait upon him on nr.f ^ ^ Jmd already 
 
 check the stewar'd's aro^sT^dSf ^ at "^^'' ^^ 
 nearly spent, but that autumn was fine .ndth ^'VT 
 which lay on tlie smooth tnrf W ,'/''"] ^^^ sunlight 
 
 splendour of the beeclXestwf^ '''^^ *^^ ^"'^^^^ 
 tl.inking of Murv liul t I.p . ^'^''"^- ^ ^^^^ been 
 
 open to the park .n one «Tl T resembled, being 
 
 the paper, nly lord L " Igl Li^ 'f e"' T'T ^^^'"^^"^ 
 or rather to the name tl .f w T' ""'^ *^ ^^' "^n^e- 
 such a flow of 0^41 tir.'' T^^ ^''* "^"'^-I f-Jt 
 come me as left mT if i ' ^"^ remembrance over- 
 only to hinrb^f to herlCi^^^^^^^^^^^^^ this directed, not 
 her management that haSghf^^^ T ^'l ''™ ''''' 
 this haven and safety ^ ""^^"'^^ "^^ ^^'i" to 
 
 ingrate living. ""* ^ '""'^ ^e the veriest 
 
 " And you have nothing more in oat 9 ^ i 
 still smiling. ^ ® ^'^ ""^^ - lie continued, 
 
 " ^NTothing, " I coifi << i^^. - 
 
 i-.oti„,oSHo.d.i:fp.p„t:i';:-.',' "'^' ""'-^ " 
 
Is a far cry, eh! And the roads are bad. And the 
 worse," I said gloomily, looking at the paper 
 
 << 
 
 seas 
 "Are 
 
 as 
 
 SHK WAS MAKING MARKS ON THE TURF WITil A SI 
 
 TICK 
 
 Tunt^dus looked at tlie water. - And to get word to her 
 IS not of the easiest." 
 
 ''No," the Ouke said. "Say you so? Then what 
 
n 
 
 sjwjjwsnnn' ^^^ 
 
 do you make of tliis, t'uint-heart v " a a u 
 
 tln-ough the open window. '^'"^ ^' I'^^^^^d 
 
 I looked, and on the sP'if ,..i ,• i 
 been ™oa„t-t],e ^l ^^ ^^'^.^^^'^ '"*- "-' 
 >vl.e,-e „,y lord sometimes smoked Vf :'"""' ■"'"•'"'I-'" 
 seated with her shonlder and h„ ' , '"-' ""'^ " 8"'' 
 
 to ns. She was makinffmarl. T "'' ™°'' ""■"«' 
 »ke held, and porfnTir^L " ""* "■'"' " ^«<^1< 
 world held noth „gefseTth!rT , I™ f"^'=' "' " "'« 
 
 l-r. Itlyl'r\ ;,''jtr"';f "W-vin'.o to 
 Seeing that ther'et: :».;;l':rit " """""-"ft- «"• 
 
 • A condition ? " I cried n Jiffi, / ui , 
 arr^^ 1 , «^JU(i, ti jittJe troubled 
 
 Jo be sure, blockliP-ir] " i,. . 
 
 l.umo„r. " In Vhoti'l'e is '/tV"'"'"-"' "' Wgh g„„d 
 
 B"treevercat"'Jl;'r"' """ '»"^'>^''- '-'-"ly. 
 then existed JVwZ l'"™";!*' '"■"*"'' «""■ ''-^ 
 back anil p„t l.er h nd T h VCr IL^'n'" ^'^""^^ 
 01- take it; while her sni.ll fl^ ', ^ ""''' ""t tonoh 
 
 I'll not tei'l. " sheoTier'-'r, Z[^ 'Z'"^, " ""'" 
 B.o„d.n„„ey does not thrive. 'S"'*,: js t 'p™ e'-!!!'.?' 
 
 the Price. ^And the pard'nt: ^t'. tlll'^ ^'"« '« 
 
 self ol'sbL' 'iZZ^'f T"«" '»'''*""-«^ -y- 
 
 lord in the eyllZTi r '""" "" '''^''""g mv 
 
 tions ^vhfoh^celh fi ?i'?r'"'''°'" "' "'"^ ™P»t» 
 on him; and 11^ jh th '"'™ "'■™'- "»"«' '» ''eap 
 since he bv his 1! ! ' , ^?'"" "'^"'""y «"'" spite 
 
 Queen's deat,^™rtf^:eri,"';r:i-d:n"oe''';'"^ 
 
408 
 
 SlIREWSIiUUY 
 
 Up 
 
 ill. 
 
 
 riiat durmg the long interval of seventeen years that 
 separated the memorable meeting at Kensington, which I 
 have ventured to describe, from the still more famous 
 scene in tlie Queen's death-chamber, he took no part in 
 public life has seemed to some a crime or the tacit avowal 
 o'le How far these err, and how ill-qualified thev 
 are to follow the workings of that noble mind, will appeaV 
 in the pages I have written; which show with clearness 
 that tlie retirement on which so much stress has been 
 laid, was due not to guilt, but to an appreciation of hon- 
 our so delicate that a spot invisiLIe to the common eye 
 seemed to him a stain non snUU, ddanda. After the 
 avowal made before his colleagues-of the communica- 
 tions I mean, with Lord Middleton-nothing would do 
 but he must leave London at once and seek in the shades 
 and retirement of Eyford that peace of mind a.id ease of 
 body which had for the moment abandoned him 
 
 He went: and for a time still retained office. Later 
 notwithstanding the most urgent and flattering instances 
 on the King's part-which yet exist, honourable alike to 
 the writer and the recipient-he persisted in his resolu- 
 tion to retu-e; and on the 13th of December, 1098, bein- 
 at that tinie in very poor health, the consequence of I 
 tall while hunting, he returned the Seals to the Kino- 
 In the autumn of the following year he Avent abroad; but 
 though he found in a private life-so far as the life of a 
 man of his princely station could be called private-a 
 happiness often denied to place men and favourites, hP 
 was not to be diverted when the time came from the post 
 ot danger. Were I writing an eulogium merelv, I should 
 here enumerate those great posts and offices which he so 
 worthily filled at the time of Queen Anne's death, when 
 as Lord Treasurer of England, Lord Cliamberlain, and 
 Lord Lieutenant of Ireland-an aggregation of honours 
 I believe without precedent-he performed services and 
 controlled events on the importance of which his enemies 
 
years that 
 n, which I 
 )re famous 
 uo part in 
 icit avowal 
 lified they 
 vill appear 
 1 clearness 
 8 lias been 
 >n of hon- 
 mmon eye 
 After the 
 mmuniea- 
 woulcl do 
 ;he shades 
 id ease of 
 
 Later, 
 instances 
 e alike to 
 is resolu- 
 98, being 
 Jnce of a 
 lie King, 
 ■oad; but 
 life of a 
 dvate — a 
 I rites, he 
 the post 
 I should 
 ich he so 
 ih, when 
 ain, and 
 honours 
 ices and 
 enemies 
 
 ^"^IIJtJJWsjiUltY 
 
 409 
 
 I^ut I forbear: and 
 
 ig 
 
 no less than his friends are agreed 
 Heave t^^e task .0 a worthierlnd. 
 
 SHiith^nHi :;l;;r"S \ Tf '' ^^^^'-- 
 
 ;'^the-,,ter, there 0^^ n o ^^.t s"^*^ ""^'^^ 
 ^'•^ve been whipped and pilloried and tl,f""'^^ "'"^^^^ 
 Jiave come bv a short ro^.d to ].k i "' '"'^^ "^''^^l 
 
 i'old himself too hi-h a ul «, "'T . ^'"^ '^^' ^^-'ke 
 
 too low, for revenge; am Sm 1 ":;Vr'^^' ""^""^'^^^ ^""^ 
 "^ l>n«oii, gave nse^'u i fo^n « /'^''^'r"^^ ^"«"*'- 
 ont prosecution. He the^ ;? ' . •'"' ''^'''"'''^ ^^'^"1- 
 ^igainst the Duke bul , ,. 1 *" '^^'^ ^ ^^'^^^ charge 
 
 -"king lower ;;mU:,'T:t"r "'''"' ^"^ -^'^^^ 
 
 skulking in rags in tl I dl . '''" *^'" ^^^^''^ ^''t^r 
 In London I m^ist n oVfl 1 ^T "^ ^^'' «^^' «^voy. 
 
 -Wch year he came to m Jo/dt In' T'l '' ''^' "^ 
 broken and diseased, I neVll)^ '' ""''' ^^^'"^ 
 
 was indiTeren to «fe LfST T' "^ '^"^ --""t 
 f'^niiy. It seems probable V ''*"f '"" ^'" "^>' ^''^^^'^ 
 
 to retain his influe'^ce ^hr^'V^^f ^e still hoped 
 wife, and thwarted in h btTw^'''',*'' ^^ "^^^^« ^^ 1"« 
 was no better disposed to her i^ 7 ''°"^""'" ^^«»"«««1' 
 separated; but blf^Ve ,tt ," t^'' '' '''^' ^he; 
 -If by beating her so sev J hL^^^^^ T"?^l bim- 
 apartments, ;vas robbed by her Wl 1 ^"^ '•^' ^" ^" ^^'^^■ 
 Pnt to ti,e door penniless L^] .,f ^^''^^^^'' '"^"^ finally was 
 
 ^^•f-"\bad one'e ^::rt;tTr T' ''^^'y 
 
 reduced to be the drudcrp "; * ^" this plight, 
 
 ;o the ven. „os1t?o,:t wh o ^f S't "'^'i ^"" ^■""'' 
 
 I^ 's, she made 1 ]«Rf ^7 \ ^ ^''""^ ber at Mr. 
 
 for assistance. ^ ^''^"''"^^ ^^PP^^l to the Duke 
 
 He answered by the yrHnf ^.^^ 
 cient, on which s4e „S w ^'?^?';' ^^'-^^ but suffi- 
 2Q* might have ended her days in a de- 
 
' i: 
 
 h 
 
 Mr 
 
 410 
 
 tillJiEWSIiURY 
 
 gree of comfort. But, having acquired in her forniPr 
 circumstunco. an unfortunate craving for ir nk w "eh 
 
 whiJe, and that in great squalor and misery, dying if I 
 remember rightly, in a publichouse in Spit^l' Jdlt L 
 
 
 PRINTED FROM AMERICAN PLATES 
 AT tllU ABERUtliN UNIVERSITY PRESS, 
 
her former 
 
 rink, wliich 
 
 but a little 
 
 dying, if I 
 
 Selds in the