CHAPTER XXVIII
Nor board nor garner own we now, Nor roof nor latched door, Nor kind mate, bound, by holy vow, To bless a good man's store Noon lulls us in a gloomy den, And night is grown our day; Uprouse ye, then, my merry men! And use it as ye may
JOANNA BAILLIE.
Brown could now reckon his foes: they were five in number; two of themwere very powerful men, who appeared to be either real seamen orstrollers who assumed that character; the other three, an old man andtwo lads, were slighter made, and, from their black hair and darkcomplexion, seemed to belong to Meg's tribe. They passed from one toanother the cup out of which they drank their spirits. 'Here's to hisgood voyage!' said one of the seamen, drinking; 'a squally night he'sgot, however, to drift through the sky in.'
We omit here various execrations with which these honest gentlemengarnished their discourse, retaining only such of their expletives asare least offensive.
''A does not mind wind and weather; 'a has had many a north-easter inhis day.'
'He had his last yesterday,' said another gruffly; 'and now old Meg maypray for his last fair wind, as she's often done before.'
'I'll pray for nane o' him,' said Meg, 'nor for you neither, you randydog. The times are sair altered since I was a kinchen-mort. Men weremen then, and fought other in the open field, and there was nae millingin the darkmans. And the gentry had kind hearts, and would have givenbaith lap and pannel to ony puir gipsy; and there was not one, fromJohnnie Faa the upright man to little Christie that was in thepanniers, would cloyed a dud from them. But ye are a' altered from thegude auld rules, and no wonder that you scour the cramp-ring and trineto the cheat sae often. Yes, ye are a' altered: you'll eat thegoodman's meat, drink his drink, sleep on the strammel in his barn, andbreak his house and cut his throat for his pains! There's blood on yourhands, too, ye dogs, mair than ever came there by fair righting. Seehow ye'll die then. Lang it was ere he died; he strove, and strovesair, and could neither die nor live; but you--half the country willsee how ye'll grace the woodie.'
The party set up a hoarse laugh at Meg's prophecy.
'What made you come back here, ye auld beldam?' said one of thegipsies; 'could ye not have staid where you were, and spaed fortunes tothe Cumberland flats? Bing out and tour, ye auld devil, and see thatnobody has scented; that's a' you're good for now.'
'Is that a' I am good for now?' said the indignant matron. 'I was goodfor mair than that in the great fight between our folk and PatricoSalmon's; if I had not helped you with these very fambles (holding upher hands), Jean Baillie would have frummagem'd you, ye fecklessdo-little!'
There was here another laugh at the expense of the hero who hadreceived this amazon's assistance.
'Here, mother,' said one of the sailors, 'here's a cup of the right foryou, and never mind that bully-huff.'
Meg drank the spirits, and, withdrawing herself from fartherconversation, sat down before the spot where Brown lay hid, in such aposture that it would have been difficult for any one to haveapproached it without her rising. The men, however, showed nodisposition to disturb her.
They closed around the fire and held deep consultation together; butthe low tone in which they spoke, and the cant language which theyused, prevented Brown from understanding much of their conversation. Hegathered in general that they expressed great indignation against someindividual. 'He shall have his gruel,' said one, and then whisperedsomething very low into the ear of his comrade.
'I'll have nothing to do with that,' said the other.
'Are you turned hen-hearted, Jack?'
'No, by G-d, no more than yourself, but I won't. It was something likethat stopped all the trade fifteen or twenty years ago. You have heardof the Loup?'
'I have heard HIM (indicating the corpse by a jerk of his head) tellabout that job. G-d, how he used to laugh when he showed us how hefetched him off the perch!'
'Well, but it did up the trade for one while,' said Jack.
'How should that be?' asked the surly villain.
'Why,' replied Jack, 'the people got rusty about it, and would notdeal, and they had bought so many brooms that--'
'Well, for all that,' said the other, 'I think we should be down uponthe fellow one of these darkmans and let him get it well.'
'But old Meg's asleep now,' said another; 'she grows a driveller, andis afraid of her shadow. She'll sing out, some of theseodd-come-shortlies, if you don't look sharp.'
'Never fear,' said the old gipsy man; 'Meg's true-bred; she's the lastin the gang that will start; but she has some queer ways, and oftencuts queer words.'
With more of this gibberish they continued the conversation, renderingit thus, even to each other, a dark obscure dialect, eked out bysignificant nods and signs, but never expressing distinctly, or inplain language, the subject on which it turned. At length one of them,observing Meg was still fast asleep, or appeared to be so, desired oneof the lads 'to hand in the black Peter, that they might flick itopen.' The boy stepped to the door and brought in a portmanteau, whichBrown instantly recognised for his own. His thoughts immediately turnedto the unfortunate lad he had left with the carriage. Had the ruffiansmurdered him? was the horrible doubt that crossed his mind. The agonyof his attention grew yet keener, and while the villains pulled out andadmired the different articles of his clothes and linen, he eagerlylistened for some indication that might intimate the fate of thepostilion. But the ruffians were too much delighted with their prize,and too much busied in examining its contents, to enter into any detailconcerning the manner in which they had acquired it. The portmanteaucontained various articles of apparel, a pair of pistols, a leatherncase with a few papers, and some money, etc., etc. At any other time itwould have provoked Brown excessively to see the unceremonious mannerin which the thieves shared his property, and made themselves merry atthe expense of the owner. But the moment was too perilous to admit anythoughts but what had immediate reference to self-preservation.
After a sufficient scrutiny into the portmanteau, and an equitabledivision of its contents, the ruffians applied themselves more closelyto the serious occupation of drinking, in which they spent the greaterpart of the night. Brown was for some time in great hopes that theywould drink so deep as to render themselves insensible, when his escapewould have been an easy matter. But their dangerous trade requiredprecautions inconsistent with such unlimited indulgence, and theystopped short on this side of absolute intoxication. Three of them atlength composed themselves to rest, while the fourth watched. He wasrelieved in this duty by one of the others after a vigil of two hours.When the second watch had elapsed, the sentinel awakened the whole,who, to Brown's inexpressible relief, began to make some preparationsas if for departure, bundling up the various articles which each hadappropriated. Still, however, there remained something to be done. Twoof them, after some rummaging which not a little alarmed Brown,produced a mattock and shovel; another took a pickaxe from behind thestraw on which the dead body was extended. With these implements two ofthem left the hut, and the remaining three, two of whom were theseamen, very strong men, still remained in garrison.
After the space of about half an hour, one of those who had departedagain returned, and whispered the others. They wrapped up the dead bodyin the sea cloak which had served as a pall, and went out, bearing italong with them. The aged sibyl then arose from her real or feignedslumbers. She first went to the door, as if for the purpose of watchingthe departure of her late inmates, then returned, and commanded Brown,in a low and stifled voice, to follow her instantly. He obeyed; but, onleaving the hut, he would willingly have repossessed himself of hismoney, or papers at least, but this she prohibited in the mostperemptory manner. It immediately occurred to him that the suspicion ofhaving removed anything of which he might repossess himself would fallupon this woman, by whom in all probability his life had been saved. Hetherefore immediately desisted from his attempt, contenting himselfwith seizing a cutlass, which one of the ruffians had flung aside a
mongthe straw. On his feet, and possessed of this weapon, he already foundhimself half delivered from the dangers which beset him. Still,however, he felt stiffened and cramped, both with the cold and by theconstrained and unaltered position which he had occupied all night.But, as he followed the gipsy from the door of the hut, the fresh airof the morning and the action of walking restored circulation andactivity to his benumbed limbs.
The pale light of a winter's morning was rendered more clear by thesnow, which was lying all around, crisped by the influence of a severefrost. Brown cast a hasty glance at the landscape around him, that hemight be able again to know the spot. The little tower, of which only asingle vault remained, forming the dismal apartment in which he hadspent this remarkable night, was perched on the very point of aprojecting rock overhanging the rivulet. It was accessible only on oneside, and that from the ravine or glen below. On the other three sidesthe bank was precipitous, so that Brown had on the preceding eveningescaped more dangers than one; for, if he had attempted to go round thebuilding, which was once his purpose, he must have been dashed topieces. The dell was so narrow that the trees met in some places fromthe opposite sides. They were now loaded with snow instead of leaves,and thus formed a sort of frozen canopy over the rivulet beneath, whichwas marked by its darker colour, as it soaked its way obscurely throughwreaths of snow. In one place, where the glen was a little wider,leaving a small piece of flat ground between the rivulet and the bank,were situated the ruins of the hamlet in which Brown had been involvedon the preceding evening. The ruined gables, the insides of which werejapanned with turf-smoke, looked yet blacker contrasted with thepatches of snow which had been driven against them by the wind, andwith the drifts which lay around them.
Upon this wintry and dismal scene Brown could only at present cast avery hasty glance; for his guide, after pausing an instant as if topermit him to indulge his curiosity, strode hastily before him down thepath which led into the glen. He observed, with some feelings ofsuspicion, that she chose a track already marked by several feet, whichhe could only suppose were those of the depredators who had spent thenight in the vault. A moment's recollection, however, put hissuspicions to rest. It was not to be thought that the woman, who mighthave delivered him up to her gang when in a state totally defenceless,would have suspended her supposed treachery until he was armed and inthe open air, and had so many better chances of defence or escape. Hetherefore followed his guide in confidence and silence. They crossedthe small brook at the same place where it previously had been passedby those who had gone before. The footmarks then proceeded through theruined village, and from thence down the glen, which again narrowed toa ravine, after the small opening in which they were situated. But thegipsy no longer followed the same track; she turned aside, and led theway by a very rugged and uneven path up the bank which overhung thevillage. Although the snow in many places hid the pathway, and renderedthe footing uncertain and unsafe, Meg proceeded with a firm anddetermined step, which indicated an intimate knowledge of the groundshe traversed. At length they gained the top of the bank, though by apassage so steep and intricate that Brown, though convinced it was thesame by which he had descended on the night before, was not a littlesurprised how he had accomplished the task without breaking his neck.Above, the country opened wide and uninclosed for about a mile or twoon the one hand, and on the other were thick plantations ofconsiderable extent.
Meg, however, still led the way along the bank of the ravine out ofwhich they had ascended, until she heard beneath the murmur of voices.She then pointed to a deep plantation of trees at some distance. 'Theroad to Kippletringan,' she said, 'is on the other side of theseinclosures. Make the speed ye can; there's mair rests on your life thanother folk's. But you have lost all--stay.' She fumbled in an immensepocket, from which she produced a greasy purse--'Many's the awmous yourhouse has gi'en Meg and hers; and she has lived to pay it back in asmall degree;' and she placed the purse in his hand.
'The woman is insane,' thought Brown; but it was no time to debate thepoint, for the sounds he heard in the ravine below probably proceededfrom the banditti. 'How shall I repay this money,' he said, 'or howacknowledge the kindness you have done me?'
'I hae twa boons to crave,' answered the sibyl, speaking low andhastily: 'one, that you will never speak of what you have seen thisnight; the other, that you will not leave this country till you see meagain, and that you leave word at the Gordon Arms where you are to beheard of, and when I next call for you, be it in church or market, atwedding or at burial, Sunday or Saturday, mealtime or fasting, that yeleave everything else and come with me.'
'Why, that will do you little good, mother.'
'But 'twill do yoursell muckle, and that's what I'm thinking o'. I amnot mad, although I have had eneugh to make me sae; I am not mad, nordoating, nor drunken. I know what I am asking, and I know it has beenthe will of God to preserve you in strange dangers, and that I shall bethe instrument to set you in your father's seat again. Sae give me yourpromise, and mind that you owe your life to me this blessed night.'
'There's wildness in her manner, certainly,' thought Brown, 'and yet itis more like the wildness of energy than of madness.'--'Well, mother,since you do ask so useless and trifling a favour, you have my promise.It will at least give me an opportunity to repay your money withadditions. You are an uncommon kind of creditor, no doubt, but--'
'Away, away, then!' said she, waving her hand. 'Think not about thegoud, it's a' your ain; but remember your promise, and do not dare tofollow me or look after me.' So saying, she plunged again into thedell, and descended it with great agility, the icicles and snow-wreathsshowering down after her as she disappeared.
Notwithstanding her prohibition, Brown endeavoured to gain some pointof the bank from which he might, unseen, gaze down into the glen; andwith some difficulty (for it must be conceived that the utmost cautionwas necessary) he succeeded. The spot which he attained for thispurpose was the point of a projecting rock, which rose precipitouslyfrom among the trees. By kneeling down among the snow and stretchinghis head cautiously forward, he could observe what was going on in thebottom of the dell. He saw, as he expected, his companions of the lastnight, now joined by two or three others. They had cleared away thesnow from the foot of the rock and dug a deep pit, which was designedto serve the purpose of a grave. Around this they now stood, andlowered into it something wrapped in a naval cloak, which Browninstantly concluded to be the dead body of the man he had seen expire.They then stood silent for half a minute, as if under some touch offeeling for the loss of their companion. But if they experienced such,they did not long remain under its influence, for all hands wentpresently to work to fill up the grave; and Brown, perceiving that thetask would be soon ended, thought it best to take the gipsy woman'shint and walk as fast as possible until he should gain the shelter ofthe plantation.
Having arrived under cover of the trees, his first thought was of thegipsy's purse. He had accepted it without hesitation, though withsomething like a feeling of degradation, arising from the character ofthe person by whom he was thus accommodated. But it relieved him from aserious though temporary embarrassment. His money, excepting a very fewshillings, was in his portmanteau, and that was in possession of Meg'sfriends. Some time was necessary to write to his agent, or even toapply to his good host at Charlie's Hope, who would gladly havesupplied him. In the meantime he resolved to avail himself of Meg'ssubsidy, confident he should have a speedy opportunity of replacing itwith a handsome gratuity. 'It can be but a trifling sum,' he said tohimself, 'and I daresay the good lady may have a share of my banknotesto make amends.'
With these reflections he opened the leathern purse, expecting to findat most three or four guineas. But how much was he surprised todiscover that it contained, besides a considerable quantity of goldpieces, of different coinages and various countries, the joint amountof which could not be short of a hundred pounds, several valuable ringsand ornaments set with jewels, and, as appeared from the slightinspection he had time to give
them, of very considerable value.
Brown was equally astonished and embarrassed by the circumstances inwhich he found himself, possessed, as he now appeared to be, ofproperty to a much greater amount than his own, but which had beenobtained in all probability by the same nefarious means through whichhe had himself been plundered. His first thought was to inquire afterthe nearest justice of peace, and to place in his hands the treasure ofwhich he had thus unexpectedly become the depositary, telling at thesame time his own remarkable story. But a moment's considerationbrought several objections to this mode of procedure In the firstplace, by observing this course he should break his promise of silence,and might probably by that means involve the safety, perhaps the life,of this woman, who had risked her own to preserve his, and who hadvoluntarily endowed him with this treasure--a generosity which mightthus become the means of her ruin. This was not to be thought of.Besides, he was a stranger, and for a time at least unprovided withmeans of establishing his own character and credit to the satisfactionof a stupid or obstinate country magistrate. 'I will think over thematter more maturely,' he said; 'perhaps there may be a regimentquartered at the county town, in which case my knowledge of the serviceand acquaintance with many officers of the army cannot fail toestablish my situation and character by evidence which a civil judgecould not sufficiently estimate. And then I shall have the commandingofficer's assistance in managing matters so as to screen this unhappymadwoman, whose mistake or prejudice has been so fortunate for me. Acivil magistrate might think himself obliged to send out warrants forher at once, and the consequence, in case of her being taken, is prettyevident. No, she has been upon honour with me if she were the devil,and I will be equally upon honour with her. She shall have theprivilege of a court-martial, where the point of honour can qualifystrict law. Besides, I may see her at this place, Kipple--Couple--whatdid she call it? and then I can make restitution to her, and e'en letthe law claim its own when it can secure her. In the meanwhile,however, I cut rather an awkward figure for one who has the honour tobear his Majesty's commission, being little better than the receiver ofstolen goods.'
With these reflections, Brown took from the gipsy's treasure three orfour guineas, for the purpose of his immediate expenses, and, tying upthe rest in the purse which contained them, resolved not again to openit until he could either restore it to her by whom it was given, or putit into the hands of some public functionary. He next thought of thecutlass, and his first impulse was to leave it in the plantation. But,when he considered the risk of meeting with these ruffians, he couldnot resolve on parting with his arms. His walking-dress, though plain,had so much of a military character as suited not amiss with his havingsuch a weapon. Besides, though the custom of wearing swords by personsout of uniform had been gradually becoming antiquated, it was not yetso totally forgotten as to occasion any particular remark towards thosewho chose to adhere to it. Retaining, therefore, his weapon of defence,and placing the purse of the gipsy in a private pocket, our travellerstrode gallantly on through the wood in search of the promised highroad.