The Admirable Lady Biddy Fane

  CHAPTER LIX.

  THE RAINY SEASON COMES TO AN END, BUT BY MY DELAY WE ARE BALKED OFRETURNING INTO THE BARAQUAN.

  Having decided to dwell on that lake for some months to come, we setabout making our cavern habitable. First of all we shifted our acutisinto a separate cave hard by our abode, where they were very wellhoused; and thither also we carried all the dry leaves and rubbish, thatwe might have our floor sweet and clean, and afford no harbor forinsects or worms. Then I parted off a fair corner to serve as a chamberfor my lady by setting up a hurdle which I made of suitable wands, boundtogether with lianes, and clothing it on both sides with palmettoleaves, overlapping each other and pinned to the hurdle withthorn-stickles. To get these materials I made several voyages in thecanoe amongst the wooded slopes that were partly under water; and inthese excursions I found a good store of cassavy, and many other thingsthat would be useful to us. When I had finished this partition to my ownsatisfaction and my dear lady's admiration (for she missed no occasionto encourage me with her approval), I hung up her sleeping-net and setone of the mat coverlets, which I had taken care to dry, ready to herhand. I would have had her use the other as a carpet to her feet, for Icould have slept without it as well as the Ingas do; but she would by nomeans hear of this, so that I was forced to forego the happiness ofyielding it to her use.

  And while I was about this business my dear comrade was not idle--no,not for one moment. For she herself made several expeditions in thecanoe alone, getting herbs for her conies, who were so appreciative ofher gentle interest that they came to eat from her hand, and did (aftera while) sit of a row at the mouth of their cave straining their necksto catch sight of her coming; and storing up in that cave such nuts andsticks as would serve for fuel when dry. And admirable it was to seewith what skill she navigated the canoe, and how resolute, bold, andmasterful she showed herself in carrying out her purpose--no matterwhat. Yet I was heartily pleased when these journeys were done, for allthe time of her absence I was in a flutter of fear, going every otherminute to spy out from the cavern if I could see her, and counting uponmishaps that might come to her.

  Amongst other things, she brought home certain heads of broom, withwhich she brushed the walls and floor, so that not a speck of dust wasto be seen. And all the time we were thus working together she kept up alively gossip with me, save when we had naught to talk about, and thoseintervals we filled up by singing together certain simple songs thatCornish children sing, so that we had not a dull hour all day, and werefor the best part as merry as any grigs.

  And lest any one should be disposed to think ill of her (as that sheforgot the dignity of her birth and breeding, and the delicacy of hersex in wearing the garb of a boy, and laying her hand with light heartto rough toil), I would urge this--that, in my humble thinking, she didinfinitely more to maintain her character for nobility and truewomanhood in making the best of her position with this cheerful, helpfulspirit, than if she had left all labor to me, and sat her down to bewailand bemoan the cruel usage of fortune. For a surety she did increase myrespect thereby, and I know no man who would not hold her sex in greaterveneration for the addition she made to its virtues.

  I lay awake the best part of that night scheming improvements of ourdwelling-place. "As my hurdle is such a success," says I to myself, "Iwill make another as soon as possible, and part off a corner for my ownsleeping-place, which will be more seemly and becoming than lying hereon the floor of our parlor like a tom cat. And while I am about it I mayas well make a third to shut off that nook against the entrance, whichwill serve my lady very commodiously for a kitchen. And there might Iset up a shelf for her vessels; and also with stones I can fashion afire-place, with a back chimney to carry off the smoke. The flat stonethere, if I can raise it up a bit, will answer very well as a dresser togrind cassavy upon; but I must hunt up some sort of slate to dry it uponover the fire, and likewise for baking the cakes when my lady has madethem. More gourds I must get for certain, that my dear lady may everhave store of fresh water to her hand; and this I shall do well to fetchfrom one of the fountains ere she rises in the morning, that she may nothave to ask for it or fetch it herself, which else she were like enoughto do. It will not be amiss, neither, if I look about pretty soon forsome convenient screened-off pool of sparkling water, where she maybathe freely. And now for our living-room, which will be square and neatwhen I have cut off the other two sides as I design, we must have somesort of table and benches. Polished oak have we none, but stones inplenty; and a fair stone set up straight and level must be our table; astone also will serve me well enough for a seat, but my lady shall havea chair if it cost me a fortnight to make one. In the mean time shecan't be left a-standing; so a stone she must have for the present, butI will make a mat of rushes to cover it, which I may do in an hour. Andwhile I am cutting these rushes I may as well get enough over and aboveto strew the floor of her chamber, for I can not abide the idea of hertender feet encountering the cold, hard rock. As for her chair, I mayfashion the frame with stout sticks of a proper kind, bound togetherwith lianes crosswise, like the letter X, and it shall have a back andelbows if my ingenuity carry me such length, and the seat and back I maymake of rushes woven together. If I can find rushes of divers colors toplait with a pleasing device, so much the better; and by working thissecretly before she rises of a morning, I may give it to her as asurprise for a birthday gift next Monday se'nnight, which must needsgive her pleasure, however poor be the merits of my workmanship." Andbeing got upon this theme I could not get away from it, but continued torevolve this chair in my mind till I fell asleep.

  I have no space to give an account of our life day by day, though I fainwould--for who can tire of narrating the history of happy hours? And sobriefly I must tell that I carried out all I designed that night I layawake, and more besides, for every day discovered new necessities, andwe begrudged no labor that ministered to our common comfort. When it wasfine we went a-hunting of waterfowl, of which there was abundance, andother times of game in those woods that lay high and dry; and herein didmy lady show herself as deft and skillful as in all else to which shelent her hand, bringing down her quarry with an arrow as surely as everI did, so that there was no lack of contentment on either side. And whenthe day was foul we stayed within our cavern--I fashioning arrows orsuch like, and Lady Biddy at her needle. I say her needle, for out ofthorns we contrived to make things that answered this purpose; and forstuff she had the skins of animals, which she shaped, with incredibleingenuity, into excellent socks for our feet, in place of shoes, whichwere now pretty nigh worn out. Nor did we lack amusement for our leisurehours, for my admirable lady being an excellent player of checks, shetaught me this game, marking our dining-table out in squares for acheck-board, and using divers-shaped nuts, ground flat at one end, formen. Also I tried to devise an instrument of music in the shape of adulcimer; but this I succeeded worse in than anything else, for we couldget no agreeable notes out of it, nor any sound that was worthy to matewith my dear lady's voice. But it gave us amusement, for all that, andmany a hearty laugh.

  In this way the winter, as I must call it, though there was never achilly day, passed away; and in those months there was not for me asingle wretched hour, save when the thought forced itself upon me thatit must come to an end. As suddenly as the rain had set in, it ceased,and every cloud vanished from the sky as if by enchantment. Intwenty-four hours the water sank as many inches, and as many more in thenext day. With the return of the sun the birds burst into song,hallooing and whistling from morn till night. Lady Biddy went quietlyabout her duties and said nothing; nor did I; yet all day long a voiceseemed to be saying in my ears, "You must go, Benet--you must go!" Evenwhen I slept, the same words were repeated in my dreams. Yet I could nothave the courage to tell Lady Biddy our time had come. But on the thirdevening, as we were standing by the mouth of our cavern, that bird wehad heard before in the mountains gave tongue to his strange call. Andmy lady, clasping her hands, cried:

  "Falmouth bells!--Falmouth be
lls!"

  "Yes," says I, touched by the plaintive joy in her voice, "they arecalling us. We must go." So the next morning we rowed over to the gap inthe mountains to see if the waters were suitable for our departure yetawhile; and there we found a great bar of refuse brought down by thewinter flood and no water flowing into the lake; nor was theresufficient depth to float our canoe. This proved to me that we ought tohave gone the moment I saw the water sinking, but for shame I dared notadmit the truth.

  "In a few days," says I, "the plain will be dry, and we shall be able tomarch well enough to the Baraquan."

  "We must leave our canoe behind us, musn't we, Benet?" says my ladyquietly.

  "Ay, but what of that?" says I, shortly; "can not we make another?"

  "Yes," says she; but not a word of reproach passed her lips, though shemust have seen that I was to blame not to have started while there wasyet water to float us back to the river. And so we returned to the cavewithout a word, for I was in a despicably bad temper, because I knew Iwas in fault for not going when my conscience bade me. This ill-humorpossessed me all day, though frequently my lady essayed to return to ourcustomary free and cordial understanding; only when night came and I layawake I felt remorse and grief for my wicked delay in the first place,and my foolish perversity after. "Fool," says I to myself bitterly, "notcontent with robbing your dear lady of freedom, you have marred a dayshe would have rendered happy. It may be the last she will ever care tolighten for you."

  I could not rest for the torment of my self-reproach. Getting out of mynet I went softly in the dark to her kitchen, and passed my hand overthe things she was wont to use.

  "Here," says I to myself, touching her dresser--"here have we stood sideby side grinding our cassavy, mirthful and light-hearted. Why were we sohappy and content? Because I had none but good intent towards her;because she was confident in me. Will she ever have faith in me again,knowing I have let slip her chance to escape? Can we ever more be happytogether?"

  Before daybreak I rowed over to the gap, and thence as soon as it waslight I perceived that vast plain green as far as the eye could reachwith the young shoots of reeds, laid bare by the further sinking of thewater; but for some distance round and about the gap and extending bythe hill, where the water had flowed in from the Baraquan, was a greatbed of yellow mud, neither firm enough for the foot nor liquid enoughfor the canoe. Seeing, therefore, that no escape was possible until thismud grew hard (if ever it should), I went back very desolate to thecavern. And there was our morning meal spread on fair fresh leaves,which Lady Biddy employed for a table-cloth, and that dear creaturewaiting to greet me with a cheerful bright countenance, as if she hadnaught to reproach me with, though I marked a shade of anxiety beneathher sweet smile.

  I told her where I had been, and, putting as good a face on it as well Icould, added that we must wait a few days for the ground to harden erewe started again upon our journey. "But," thinks I, "'twill neverharden, for surely from those hills there must dribble streams that flowinto the lake; and here must my dear patient lady linger another wholeyear." And with this reflection, despite all my efforts to seem easy andhopeful, I fell into a despondent mood.