The Span o' Life: A Tale of Louisbourg & Quebec
CHAPTER XX
AT QUEBEC
When our first greetings were over, I asked eagerly for Lucy.
"She is not with us at the moment, my dear," said Mme. de Sarennes;"but we look for news of her soon now."
"Where is she?" I asked, dreading to discover the hand of M. deSarennes in the matter.
"When you left with le pere Jean, she was much distressed, for shehad not the same reliance on his assurance of your safety as we,and at first insisted that you would never have willingly gonewithout her, but after a while she seemed to be content. I did notknow, until Angelique told me later, that she was possessed withthe idea of her son being in Quebec, or I might have persuaded herof its folly. But I knew nothing of it, and thought she was quitecontent to await your return, when we were astonished by herdisappearance. She left a note behind, which, however, did not tellus anything beyond the word Quebec, as it was, of course, in English.Angelique, fetch the note; it is in my red box. We had search madefor her as soon as possible, and heard of her along the road asfar as Beaumont, but there all trace was lost. Here is the note,my dear," she said, as Angelique entered.
The poor little letter was not addressed, and was written in atrembling hand.
"I am going to Quebec to find my son" [I read]. "M. de Sarennes tells me he is there, and I need not stay from him now my mistress is gone. I am thankful to every one who was kind to me, and I will pray for each one every night. LUCY."
"It is as I thought," said Mme. de Sarennes. "Poor soul, I am moredistressed at the thought of her unrest than for her safety, forour people are very good, particularly to any one they see is notof strong mind. She had some money, Angelique tells me. I have senther description to the different convents, where they are likelyto know of any one in want; and in a small place like this it willnot be long before we hear of her."
"But I am greatly distressed, madame, that you should have had thisanxiety, in addition to what I have caused."
"If we had not cared for her, we should have had no anxiety; andas for yourself, my dear, you must not think we were troubled whenle pere Jean told us you were under his direction; and now thatyou have come back to us in safety, your long absence is atonedfor. I did not know I could have missed any one so much who wasoutside of my own family."
This unexpected tenderness from one I had respected rather thanloved, for I had stood somewhat in awe of the usually unresponsiveold lady, touched me more than I can tell, and gave me a sense ofhome and protection which I had long missed, and it was a pain tothink I was forced to hide the true reason of my flight from herloyal heart.
The Sarennes house made one of a tower-like group of dwellingsforming a little island, as it were, at the head of the Cote de laMontagne, round which swept the streets to zigzag down the long,steep hill, and join, after many turnings, at its foot. Frontingit stood the bishop's palace, a modest enough edifice, and from mywindow at the back I could look on the house of Philibert, popularlyknown as "Le Chien d'Or," from the curious carving over the door,hinting at some tragedy of patient waiting and revenge.
Immediately above was a bright little cul-de-sac, dignified by thename of la rue du Parloir--the theatre of many of the social doingsof Quebec; behind this, on the one side, rose the simple apse ofthe Cathedral, and on the other the white walls and glisteningroofs of the Seminary.
It was not long before I learned the gossip of the town fromAngelique, who had already made her first triumphs in society, inwhich she rejoiced so frankly that I felt like a girl again as shechattered of her pleasures.
"It might not seem much to you, Marguerite, after Paris, but to meit is splendid, and we have all sorts of men here."
"No doubt, cherie. And you find them all charming?"
"Well, they all try to please me, even the bad ones."
"You have bad ones too, ma mie?"
"Indeed we have, Marguerite, as bad as you ever saw in Paris. Youneedn't laugh."
"Heaven forbid! I never found them amusing in Paris, or else where."
"Oh, but I do! There is M. Bigot, the Intendant. He is wicked, ifyou like! He is ugly too; but his manner!--it is simply enchanting.He dresses to perfection; and when he plays with a lady, he losesto her like a nobleman. I don't care what they say about him, c'estun galant homme! and the place would be very dull without him."
"But he is not the only man, Angelique?"
"Dear no! And he wouldn't be so bad, I am sure, if it were not forthat odious Mme. Pean; I am sure she is dreadful, and so prettytoo! But there are other men; there is M. de Bougainville, who isyoung, and has le bel air, but is too serious. M. Poulariez, talland gallant-looking--he is colonel of the Royal Rouissillon; thereis Major Joannes--he remembers you on the yacht--he is the littleofficer who provided the wine for the toasts; then there is M. deRoquemaure and M. de la Rochebeaucourt, and, best of all, there isM. de Maxwell--M. le Chevalier de Maxwell de Kirkconnel--he is acountryman of your own, Marguerite;" and she paused and looked atme as if awaiting an answer.
"Yes, and what of him?" I asked, with a good shew of composure.
"Simply that he is the only man I have ever seen that I could fallin love with. That shocks you, I suppose? Well, don't be afraid.I am not nearly so bold as I pretend, and I don't mean a word ofit. I am simply telling you how much I like him; besides, he isold enough to be my grandfather. Do you know why I like him?"
"No, cherie. Why?"
"Because when Mme. de Lanaudiere, Mme. de Beaubassin, and others,were being good to me by patting me on the head and bidding mebehave like a nice little girl, as it were, M. de Maxwell treatedme as if I were the greatest lady in the room. He would leave thebest dressed among them all to cross the floor openly and speakwith me, and because he did so others followed, and I am in request.He is only 'Chevalier,' you know; but he could not have more weighthere were he Duke or Prince."
"And he is proud of the distinction, I suppose?"
"Perhaps so, but he does not shew it; but all this is nothing tohis singing."
"Tell me of that."
"Only the other night, at Mme. de Lanaudiere's, he sang so thateven the players stopped in their game to listen. I know nothingof music, but I could have cried before he ended; and when he hadsung again, as every one wished, Mme. de Lanaudiere cried, beforeus all; 'Chevalier, you must not sing again or we cannot call ourhearts our own!' And every one laughed and clapped their hands.That is what I call a triumph!"
"Yes, Angelique, I know. One of the dearest things I can rememberis a loved voice singing."
Only those who have known the hunger of the heart can realise thesweet comfort these innocent words brought to me. They picturedthe Hugh I had carried all these years in my heart. How readily Icould conceive the gentle consideration and the charm which wonthe gratitude of this simple girl as they had won my own!
As we settled down to our regular life, Angelique's one distresswas that I would not go with her into the society she so dearlyloved. She could not understand my refusal, and even her motherthought it would be well that I should shew myself, if merely toestablish my position and put an end to the annoying questioningswhich began to circulate concerning my station and intentions.But on this point I was firm, and the only concession I would makewas to send a note to M. de Montcalm, begging he would pay me thehonour of a visit.
He came on the morrow, and his respect and courtesy towards me wentfar to establish my position in the eyes of Mme. de Sarennes, forhe treated me with all the consideration one would shew towards anequal.
He informed me that his aide, M. de Bougainville, would sail forFrance almost immediately--we were then at the beginning ofNovember--and if I would brave the discomforts of so late a passage,he would place me under his care; but Mme. de Sarennes protestedso firmly against my undertaking such a voyage that I was spareda decision.
In truth I did not know what to do. My pride urged me to go; butmy love, in spite of what had passed, drew me closer and closer toQuebec. I could not go without learning the truth
, and yet I couldnot bring myself to meet Hugh at the moment, which I should haveto do if I accepted M. de Montcalm's offer; so I allowed mattersto shape themselves without my interference.
"Peace may be proclaimed this winter, and if so, Mme. de St. Justcan go without danger in the spring. Besides, she cannot go untilshe knows of the safety of one she is interested in," said Mme. deSarennes, decidedly; and her reminder of my duty towards Lucy endedthe discussion.
"Then, madame," said M. de Montcalm, turning to me, "if you are tostay with us you must renounce your retirement, and give us yoursupport in our little society. We are too few to spare any possibleaddition to it, the more so that if peace be not proclaimed beforespring everything is likely to come to an end, so far as we areconcerned."
"Mon Dieu, Marquis! Do not speak so lightly of disaster," interruptedMme. de Sarennes, severely.
"Ma foi, madame! What is the use of shutting our eyes to theinevitable? We are hemmed in right and left, and the next move willbe directed on us here. It needs no prophet to foretell that."
"But is there not Carillon?"
"There is also the river."
"They can never come up the river! See what befell them before! Iremember well how their fleet was destroyed under their AdmiralWalker."
"Nothing happens but the impossible, madame; and we are no longerin an age that hopes for miracles."
"Monsieur, it pains me to hear you speak thus. God is not lesspowerful now than He was fifty years ago."
"I sincerely trust not, madame; but his Majesty will hardly acquitme if I rely on a chance tempest or a difficult channel. It is onlythe question of a pilot."
"And think you, monsieur, a Canadian would ever consent to pilotan enemy up our river?"
"Madame, I cannot doubt that even a Canadian will act as other men,if he have a pistol at the back of his head. No, no, madame; believeme, the river is our danger, and I would that M. de Vaudreuil mightsee it as I do."
"M. de Vaudreuil is a God-fearing man, monsieur."
"So much the better for him, madame; but, unfortunately, I amresponsible for military matters," he answered, with a bitternesswhich made me most uncomfortable.
He saw my distress and added, quickly: "But such affairs shouldnot be discussed before ladies; I forget myself. Mme. de Sarennes,I have every respect for your opinion, and it is only my anxietyfor our common cause which urges me to exaggerate what may afterall be merely possible dangers."
"Now, Mme. de St. Just, to return to our society. We are dull now,and shall be until the last ships leave; but we will have ballsand routs later on, and perhaps may even offer you a novelty inthe shape of a winter pique-nique, a fete champetre in four feetof snow."
"That, I am sure, must be delightful," I answered, pleased thatthe conversation had taken a different turn; "but I am afraid Ihave little interest in amusement as yet."
"We have cards, madame, if you are ever tempted to woo the ficklegoddess."
"M. de Montcalm," asked Mme. de Sarennes, in her severest manner,"do you intend to put an end to scandalous play this winter?"
"Eh, mon Dieu, madame! I must do something, I suppose. It is indeeda scandal that officers should ruin themselves, and I assure youI have had many a bad quarter of an hour over it. It cannot beforbidden altogether, for they must amuse themselves in some manner."
"They exist without it in Montreal."
"Possibly; but M. de Vaudreuil is there. We cannot hope to aspireto all his virtues." And to my dismay I saw we were once morenearing dangerous ground.
To turn the conversation again, I asked for news of the English atLouisbourg.
"Some are still there, some in garrison at Beausejour, some in NewYork and Boston, and others returned to England; but we willdoubtless have an opportunity of inspecting most of them here nextspring, unless, as Mme. de Sarennes suggests, peace be declared inthe meantime."
This was as bad as ever, but led to nothing more than a momentarystiffness, which Angelique's entrance dissipated, and made a merryending to a visit not without its difficulties.
Before the Marquis left, he said to me: "You may not have heard,madame, but your brother, who is an officer in Fraser's, a Highlandregiment, was captured in the first engagement, and was a prisonerin Louisbourg up to the capitulation. If you wish, I can obtainmore definite news of him through M. de Maxwell, one of our officerswho was in garrison there at the time."
Nothing could have been more unlooked-for, and for a moment I wasoverwhelmed at the thought of this innocent betrayal of my presenceto Hugh. I could hardly find courage to reply, and it was fortunatethat my answer served as a cover to my confusion.
"M. de Montcalm, I have never heard from or written to my brothersince he accepted his English commission," I said, in a tremblingvoice.
"Pardon, madame; I had forgotten when I spoke."
"Just as we forget, monsieur, that our Marguerite is not one of usby birth as she is in heart," cried Angelique, enthusiastically,slipping her arm about me.
This shewed me more than any other happening how precarious myposition was, for though neither Angelique, nor her mother, nor M.de Montcalm, would now mention my identity, any of them mightalready have spoken of my brother. M. de Sarennes knew my secret,and Hugh might discover it at any moment.
When the Marquis left, Mme. de Sarennes no longer made an effortto contain her indignation.
"They are all alike!" she burst forth. "They make not the slightesteffort to understand us, nor to do aught but amuse themselves. Youare quite right, Marguerite, to refuse to have any part in theirgaieties! I shall never urge you again. To talk of balls and routsand gaming as necessities, when the people are starving within ourvery walls!
"What wonder is it our husbands and brothers and sons say thesefaineants care naught what becomes of the country or the people,so long as they gain some little distinction which may entitle themto an early return and an empty decoration! They have neither pity,nor faith, nor the slightest interest in the cause for which theyare fighting.
"If M. de Vaudreuil, whom they pretend to despise, were permittedto take the field himself, with a few thousand good Canadians behindhim, we would hear a different story. Think you if my son had beenpermitted to reach Louisbourg it would have fallen? No, a thousandtimes no! And it is the same elsewhere. Who repulsed the Englishcharge at Carillon? The Canadians. Who brings every importantpiece of news of the enemy? Some despised Canadian. Who know howto fight and how to handle themselves in the woods? Canadians, andonly Canadians! And these are the men they affect to despise! Andit is Canadian wives and sisters and daughters--more shame tothem!--who lay themselves out to amuse and to be talked about bythese same disdainful gentry!
"Go to your room, mademoiselle!" she ended, turning on Angelique."I will hear nothing of your doings among a clique I despise fromtop to bottom;" and the indignant old lady stopped, worn out forvery lack of breath, while Angelique made a little laughing grimaceat me and fled.
The indictment was severe, but there was much truth in it at thesame time. The condition of the people was pitiable in the extreme.Provisions were at ruinous prices, the wretched paper money wasalmost worthless, and even the officers were beggared by theirnecessary expenses. At the opening of the New Year the Intendancewas invaded by a crowd of desperate women clamouring for relief,and the address of M. Bigot in ridding himself of his unwelcomevisitors was laughed at as a joke. Worse than this, no attemptwas made to lessen or even hide the gaieties that went on, playwas as high and as ruinous as ever, and the town was all agog overthe report of a ball to be given with unusual splendour by theIntendant on Twelfth-Night. It was true that he made a dailydistribution of food at his doors, that he spake pleasant andreassuring words to the suffering people, that he even permittedthe respectably dressed among them to enter and view his guestsfrom the gallery of his ball-room, but this did but serve tointensify the bitterness and indignation of those who stood apartfrom him and his following. It would be unjust to brand M. deMontcalm, and perhaps others, as willin
g participants in theseexcesses; on account of their position, their presence at all formalentertainments was a necessity, and certainly the town offered nodistraction of any other nature whatsoever.
Our inquiries had so far failed in discovering any trace of Lucy'swhereabouts, and yet I felt certain she was in or about Quebec,and as she had acquired enough French to make her wants known, andwas provided with money sufficient to meet them, we held it likelyshe was in some family, but probably seldom stirred abroad for fearshe might be recognised and prevented from keeping her patientwatch.
At length the great event of the winter came on--the ball at theIntendance on Twelfth-Night. Angelique was all impatience for theevening, and, when dressed, her excitement added to the charm ofher girlish beauty.
"I wish you would come, Marguerite!" she exclaimed, longingly.
"I would like to, cherie, if only to see you."
"And to see M. de Maxwell too. I should like you to see him. Iassure you one does not see such a man every day. He has such browneyes; they do not sparkle, but they are deep. He has lovely hands,as well cared for as a woman's, but strong and masterful, I amsure. He has a fine foot and a well-turned leg. That is nearlyall--except his smile; he smiles, and you think he is smiling foryou alone--and when he speaks, you are sure of it! Such a low,sweet voice! You are always certain he is never thinking of anyone else when you are listening to it. And he dresses--plainly,perhaps--but it is perfection for him. But there--I must run; Denishas been at the door for an hour," and, kissing me affectionately,she hurried off.
It was well for me she did so, for I could not have listened toher light-hearted babble longer without betraying myself. When Iclosed the door behind her, and had spent half an hour with Mme.de Sarennes, I regained my room overwhelmed by the storm of emotionsraised within me. "Oh, why cannot I see him, I, of all women inthe world?" I cried, aloud, and the words set free my tears torelieve me. As I regained control of myself I caught sight ofAngelique's pretty fan, on my table, forgotten in her hurry; andthe moment I saw it a plan flashed before me, and I determined tosee with my own eyes what I had so long pictured in my heart.
Bathing my face until every trace of my outburst was removed, Idressed myself, and taking a large blue cloak with a hood, whichmight be worn by either a lady or her servant, I picked up the fanand stole quietly out into the street.
It was a beautiful, soft night, without a moon, and I went down bythe rue St. Jean and the Palace Hill without interruption, and,passing beyond the walls, went straight to the Intendance, whichwas all aglow with light, and surrounded by a gaping crowd.
Quickly passing through the people, and saying to the grenadier onguard at the gate, "For Mademoiselle de Sarennes," I was admittedto the court-yard, and passed the lackeys at the entrance with thesame password.
Singling out one who looked civil, I drew him aside.
"I bring this fan for Mademoiselle de Sarennes, but I wish, nowthat I am here, to have a look at the ball. Is there any placewhere I can go besides the gallery?"
"Perfectly, mademoiselle; I can shew you just the place. You werelucky in coming to me. Do you know me?"
"No," I answered, willing to flatter him; "but you look as if youwould know what I want."
"Aha!" he exclaimed, pluming himself. "You were right, perfectlyright. You have only to follow me," and he led the way down thecorridor, and, unlocking a door, he motioned me to enter. I drewback as a rush of music and voices and the warm air of the ball-roomswept out.
"Do not be afraid," he whispered, "this is curtained off. You canstay here for an hour if you like, no one will come through beforethen; only, when you leave, be sure and turn the key again, andbring it to me."
I thanked him, and he left, closing the door noiselessly behindhim; and then approaching the curtains, I carefully parted them,and looked out on the ball-room.