CHAPTER THIRTY NINE.
A strong bull stands, threat'ning furious war: He flourishes his horns, looks sourly round, And, hoarsely bellowing, traverses his ground. BLACKMORE.
It was on the second day after the arrival of Seymour, that Emily, whowas not aware of the addition to the party at the cottage, proceeded onfoot through the park and field adjacent, to pay Susan a visit. She wasattended by a man-servant in livery, who carried some books, which MrsMcElvina had expressed a desire to read. When Emily had arrived at thelast field, which was rented by a farmer hard by, she was surprised toperceive that it was occupied by an unpleasant tenant, to wit, a largebull; who, on their approach, commenced pawing the ground, and showingevery symptom of hostility. She quickened her pace, and as the animalapproached, found that she had gained much nearer to the stile beforeher than to the one which she had just passed over, and frightened asshe was, she determined to proceed. The servant who accompanied hermanifested more fear than she did. As the bull approached, Emily, whohad heard what precautions should be taken in a similar exigence, turnedher face towards the animal, and walked backwards to the stile. Thedomestic seemed determined to preserve the exact station which his dutyand respect required, and kept himself behind his young mistress. As,however, the bull advanced, and seemed inclined to charge upon them, hisfears would not permit him to remain in that situation, and throwingdown the books, he took to his heels, and ran for a gap in the hedge.By this manoeuvre, Emily was left to make any arrangements she pleasedwith the infuriated animal.
But the bull had no quarrel with a lady, dressed in a white muslinfrock; he had taken offence at the red plush inexpressibles, which werea part of the family livery, and immediately ran at the servant, passingEmily without notice. The terrified man threw himself in an agony offright into the gap, but was so paralysed with fear that he had nostrength to force his passage through. With his head and shoulders onthe other side of the hedge, there he stuck on his hands and knees,offering a fair target to the bull, who flew at it with such violence,that he forced him several yards in the opposite field. Senseless andexhausted, he lay there more from fear than injury, while the roaringbull paced up and down the hedge, with his tail in the air, attemptingin vain to force a passage in pursuit of the object of his detestation.
The mind of woman is often more powerful than her frame; and the onewill bear up against circumstances in which the other will succumb.Thus it was with Emily, who reached the stile, clambered over it withdifficulty, and attaining the house of McElvina, which was but a fewyards distant, felt that her powers failed her as soon as exertion wasno longer required. With difficulty she perceived with her swimmingeyes that there was a gentleman in the parlour; and faintly exclaiming,"O! Mr McElvina!" fell senseless into the arms of William Seymour.
Mr and Mrs McElvina were not at home: they had walked to the vicarage;and Seymour, who was very busy finishing a sketch of the _Aspasia_ forhis hostess, had declined accompanying them in their visit. Hissurprise at finding a young lady in his arms, may easily be imagined;but, great as was his surprise, his distress was greater, from theextreme novelty of the situation. It was not that he was unaccustomedto female society: on the contrary, his captain had introduced himeverywhere in the different ports of the colonies in which they hadanchored; and perhaps there is no better society, although limited, thanis to be met with at the table of a colonial governor, but here it wasquite different. He had been habituated to follow in the wake, as thelady governess made sail for the dining-room, the whole fleet formingtwo lines abreast in close order, and then coming to an anchor, inbeautiful precision, to attack the dinner, which surrendered atdiscretion. He had been habituated to the ball-room, where the ladiesglided over the chalked floor, like so many beautiful yachts plying inSouthampton Water on a fine day: he had tired his rate of sailing downthe middle of a country dance with some fair partner; and tacked andwore as required to the mazes of poussette and right and left. This wasall plain sailing; but the case was now quite different. Here was astrange sail, who had not even shown her number, taken aback in stays,and on her beam-ends in a squall.
Seymour knew nothing about fainting. Sometimes a man had fits on boarda ship (although invariably discharged when it was known); but the onlyremedy, in a man-of-war, in such cases, was to lay the patient downbetween the guns, and let him come-to at his own leisure. It wasimpossible to act so in this case; and Seymour, as he bent over thebeautiful pale countenance of Emily, felt that he never could be tiredof holding her in his arms. However, as it was necessary that somethingshould be done, he laid her down on the sofa, and seizing the bell-rope,pulled it violently for assistance. The wire had been previouslyslackened, and the force which Seymour used brought down the ropewithout ringing the bell. There was but one in the room: and, notchoosing to leave Emily, he was again compelled to rely on his ownresources. What was good for her? Water? There was none in the room,except what he had been painting with, and that was desperatelydiscoloured with the Indian ink. Nevertheless, he snatched up his largebrush which he used for washing-in his skies, and commenced painting herface and temples with the discoloured water; but without producing thedesired effect of re-animation.
What next?--Oh, salts and burnt feathers; he had read of them in anovel. Salts he had none--burnt feathers were to be procured. Therewere two live birds, called cardinals, belonging to Mrs McElvina, in acage near the window, and there was also a stuffed green parrot in aglass case. Seymour showed his usual presence of mind in his decision.The tails of the live birds would in all probability grow again; that ofthe stuffed parrot never could. He put his hand into the cage, andseizing the fluttering proprietors, pulled out both their long tails,and having secured the door of the cage, thrust the ends of the feathersinto the fire, and applied them, frizzing and spluttering, to thenostrils of Emily. But they were replaced in the fire again and again,until they would emit no more smoke, and Emily still continued in astate of insensibility. There was no help for it--the parrot, which heknew Mrs McElvina was partial to, must be sacrificed. A blow with thepoker demolished the glass, and the animal was wrenched off its perch,and the tail inserted between the bars of the grate. But burnt featherswere of no use; and Seymour, when he had burnt down the parrot's tail tothe stump, laid it upon the table in despair.
He now began to be seriously alarmed, and the beauty of the objectheightened his pity and commiseration. His anxiety increased to thatdegree that, losing his presence of mind, and giving way to hisfeelings, he apostrophised the inanimate form, and, hanging over it withthe tenderness of a mother over her lifeless child, as a last resource,kissed its lips again and again with almost frantic anxiety. At thetime of his most eager application of this last remedy, McElvina andSusan entered the room, without his being aware of their approach.
The parrot on the table, with his tail still burning like a slow match,first caught their eyes: and as they advanced further in, there wasSeymour, to their astonishment, kissing a young lady to whom he hadnever been introduced, and who appeared to be quite passive to hisendearments.
"Seymour!" cried McElvina,--"what is all this?"
"I'm glad you've come; I cannot bring her to. I've tried everything."
"So it appears. Why, you've smothered her--she's black in the face,"replied McElvina, observing the marks of the Indian ink upon Emily'scheek.
Susan, who immediately perceived the condition of Emily, applied hersalts, and desired McElvina to call the women. In a few minutes,whether it was that the remedies were more effectual, or nature hadresumed her powers, Emily opened her eyes, and was carried upstairs intoMrs McElvina's room.
We must return to the servant, who, with no other injury than a severecontusion of the Os coccygis, from the frontal bone of the bull,recovered his senses and his legs at the same moment, and never ceasedexerting the latter until he arrived at --- Hall, where he stated, whatindeed he really believed to be the case, that Miss Emily had been goredto death by the bull; asserti
ng, at the same time, what was equallyincorrect, that he had nearly been killed himself in attempting herrescue. The tidings were communicated to Mrs Rainscourt, who, franticat the intelligence, without bonnet or shawl, flew down the park towardsthe fields, followed by all the servants of the establishment, armedwith guns, pitchforks, and any other weapons that they could obtain, atthe moment of hurry and trepidation. They arrived at the field--thebull was there, waiting for them at the stile, for he had observed themat a distance, and as he was now opposed to half a dozen pair ofinexpressibles, instead of one, his wrath was proportionally increased.He pawed the ground, bellowed, and made divers attempts to leap thestile, which, had he effected, it is probable that more serious mischiefwould have occurred. The whole party stood aghast, while MrsRainscourt screamed, and called for her child--her child; and attemptedto recover her liberty, from the arms of those who held her, and rushinto the field to her own destruction.
The farmer to whom the animal belonged had heard his bellowing on thefirst assault, and had come out to ascertain the cause. He was just intime to behold the footman pushed through the hedge, and to witness theescape of Emily into the house of McElvina. Intending to remove theanimal, he returned to his dinner, when his resumed bellowing summonedhim again, and perceiving the cause, he joined the party, and,addressing Mrs Rainscourt, "The young lady is all safe, ma'am, in thegentleman's house yonder. The brute's quiet enough it's all along ofthem red breeches that angers him. A bull can't abide 'em, ma'am."
"Safe, do you say? Thank God. Oh! take me to her."
"This way, ma'am, then," said the farmer, leading her round the hedge tothe cottage of McElvina, by a more circuitous way.
Susan had just called up McElvina, and Seymour was again left to himselfin the parlour, when Mrs Rainscourt, bursting from those who conductedher, tottered in, and sank exhausted on the sofa. Seymour, to whom thewhole affair was a mystery, and who had been ruminating upon it, andupon the sweet lips which he had pressed, in utter astonishment, criedout, "What! another?" Not choosing, in this instance, to trust to hisown resources, he contented himself with again shoving the parrot's tailbetween the bars, and as he held it to his patient's nose, loudly calledout for McElvina, who, summoned by his appeals, with many others enteredthe room, and relieved him of his charge, who soon recovered, and joinedher daughter in the room upstairs.
The carriage had been sent for to convey Mrs Rainscourt and herdaughter home. When they came down into the parlour, previous to theirdeparture, Seymour was formally introduced, and received the thanks ofMrs Rainscourt for the attention which he had paid to her daughter anda general invitation to the hall.
Emily, to whom Susan had communicated the panacea to which Seymour hadultimately resorted, blushed deeply as she smiled her adieus; and ourhero, as the carriage whirled away, felt a sensation as new to him asthat of Cymon, when ignited by the rays of beauty which flashed from thesleeping Iphigenia.