Constance Sherwood: An Autobiography of the Sixteenth Century

came up to us anddrew my arm in his. Then I felt strong again, and bidding her to gohome, walked a little way with him. The first words he said were:

  "Mr. Watson is safe, but hath broke his leg and his arm. Know youaught of Mistress Ward?"

  "There is a warrant out against her," I answered, and told him of thepursuivants coming to seek for her at our house.

  "God shield," he said, "she be not apprehended! for sentence of deathwould then be certainly passed upon her."

  "Oh, Basil," I exclaimed, "why was the cord left?"

  "Ah, the devil would have it," he began; but chiding himself, liftedoff his hat, and said, "Almighty God did so permit it to happen thatthis mishap occurred. But I see," he subjoined, "you are not fit towalk or stand, sweetheart. Come into Mr. Wells's house. Albeit theyare not at home, we may go and sit in the parlor; and it may be moreprudent I should not be seen abroad to-day. I pray God Mr. Watson andI will sail to-night for Calais."

  So we rang the bell at the door of Mr. Wells's house; and hishousekeeper, who opened it, smiled when she saw Basil, for he was agreat favorite with her, as, indeed, methinks he always was with allkinds of people. She showed us into Mr. Wells's study, which she saidwas the most comfortable room and best aired in the house, for that,for the sake of the books, she did often light a fire in it; andnothing would serve her but she must do so now. And then she asked ifwe had breakfasted, and Basil said i' faith he had not, and should bevery glad of somewhat to eat, if she would fetch it for him. So whenthe fire was kindled--and methought it never would burn, the wood wasso damp--she went away for a little while, and he then told me thehaps of the past night.

  "Tom Price (Hodgson's boatman) and I," he said, "rowed his boat closeonto the shore, near to the prison, and laid there under the cover ofsome penthouses which stood betwixt the river and the prison's wall.When the clock struck twelve, I promise you my heart began to beat asany girl's, I was so frightened lest Mr. Watson should not havereceived the cord, or that his courage should fail. Howsoever, in lessthan one minute I thought I perceived something moving about one ofthe windows, and then a body appeared sitting at first on the ledge,but afterward it turned itself round, and, facing the wall, sank downslowly, hanging on by a cord."

  "Oh, Basil!" I exclaimed, "could you keep on looking?"

  "Yea," he answered; "as if mine eyes should start out of my head. Hecame down slowly, helping himself, I ween, with his feet against thewall; but when he got to about twenty or thirty feet, I guess it tohave been, from the roof of the shed, he stopped of a sudden, and hungmotionless. 'He is out of breath,' I said to Tom. 'Or the rope provestoo short,' quoth he. We watched him for a moment. He swung to andfro, then rested again, his feet against the wall. 'Beshrew me, but Iwill climb on to that roof myself, and get nigh to him,' I whisperedto Tom, and was springing out of the boat, when we heard a noise moreloud than can be thought of. 'I'll warrant you he hath fallen on theplanks,' quoth Tom. 'Marry, but we will pick him up then,' quoth I;and found myself soon on the edge of the roof, which was broken in atone place, and, looking down, I thought I saw him lying on the ground.I cried as loud as I durst, 'Mr. Watson, be you there? Hist! Are youhurt? Speak if you can.' Methinks he was stunned by the fall, for hedid not answer; so there remained nothing left to do but to leapmyself through the opening into the shed, where I found him with hiseyes shut, and moaning. But when I spake to him he came to himself,'and tried to rise, but could not stand, one of his legs being muchhurt. 'Climb on to my back, reverend sir,' I said 'and with God's helpwe shall get out.' Howsoever, the way out did not appear manifest, andmostly with another beside one's self to carry. But glancing round theinside of the shed, I perceived a door, the fastening of which, when Ishook it, roughly enough I promise you, gave way; and the boat lay,God be praised, close to it outside. I gave one look up to the prison,and saw lights flashing in some of the windows. 'They be astir,' Isaid to Tom. 'Hist! lend a hand, man, and take the reverend gentlemanfrom off my back and into the boat.' Mr. Watson uttered a groan.He most have suffered cruel pain; for, as we since found, his leg andalso his arm were broken, and he looked more dead than alive.

  "We began to row as fast as we could; but now he, coming to himself,feels in his coat, and cries out:

  "'Oh, kind sirs--the cord, the cord! Stop, I pray you; stop, turnback.'

  "'Not for the world,' I cried, 'reverend sir.'

  "Then he, in a lamentable voice:

  "'Oh, if you turn not back and bring away the cord, the poorgentlewoman which did give it unto me must needs fall into soretrouble. Oh, for God's sake, turn back!'

  "I gave a hasty glance at the prison, where increasing stir of lightswas visible, and resolved that to return should be certain ruin toourselves and to him for whom Mistress Ward had risked her life, andlittle or no hope in it for her, as it was not possible there shouldbe time to get the cord and then escape, which with best speed nowcould with difficulty be effected. So I turned a deaf ear to Mr.Watson's pleadings, with an assured conscience she should have wishedno otherwise herself; and by God's mercy we made such way before theycould put out a boat, landing unseen beyond the next bridge, that wecould secretly convey him to the house of a Catholic not far from theriver on the other side, where he doth lie concealed. I promise you,sweetheart, we did row hard. Albeit I strove very much last year whenI won the boat-match at Richmond, by my troth it was but child's playto last night's racing. Poor Mr. Watson fainted before we landed, andneither of us dared venture to stop from pulling for to assist him.But, God be praised, he is now in a good bed; and I fetched for him atdaybreak a leech I know in the Borough, who hath set his broken limbs;and to-night if the weather be not foul, when it gets dark, we willconvey him in a boat to a vessel at the river's mouth, which I haveretained for to take us to Calais. But I would Mistress Ward was onboard of it also."

  "Oh, Basil," I exclaimed, "if we can discover where she doth lodge, itwould not then be impossible. If we had forecasted this yesterday, shewould be saved. Yet she had perhaps refused to tell us."

  "Most like she would," he answered; "but if you do hit by any meansupon her abode to-day, forthwith despatch a trusty messenger unto meat Mr. Hodgson's, and I promise you, sweetheart, she shall, will shenill she, if I have to use force for it, be carried away to France,and stowed with a good madame I know at Calais."

  The housekeeper then came in with bread and meat and beer, which mydear Basil did very gladly partake of, for he had eat nothing sincethe day before, and was greatly in want of food. I waited on him,forestalling housewifely duties, with so great a contentment in thisquiet hour spent in his company that nothing could surpass it. Thefire now burned brightly; and whilst he ate, we talked of the timewhen we should be married and live at Euston, so retired from the busyworld without as should be most safe and peaceful in these troublesometimes, even as in that silent house we were for a short time shut outfrom the noisy city, the sounds of which reached without disturbingus. Oh how welcome was that little interval of peace which we thenenjoyed! I ween we were both very tired; and when the good housekeepercame in for to fetch away his plate he had fallen asleep, with hishead resting on his hands; and I was likewise dozing in a high-backedchair opposite to him. The noise she made awoke me, but not him, whoslept most soundly. She smiled, and in a motherly manner moved him toa more comfortable position, and said she would lay a wager on it hehad not been abed at all that night.

  "Well, I'll warrant you to be a good guesser, Mistress Mason," Ianswered. "And if you did but know what a hard and a good work he hathbeen engaged in, methinks you would never tarry in his praise."

  "Ah, Mistress Sherwood," she replied, "I have known Master Basil thesemany years; and a more noble, kindly, generous heart never, I ween,did beat in a man's bosom. He very often came here with his father andhis brother when both were striplings; and Master Hubert was thesharpest and some said the most well-behaved of the twain. But beshrewme if I liked not better Master Basil, albeit he was sometimes verytroublesome, but not techey or rude as some boys be. I
remember itwell how I laughed one day when these young masters--methinks thisone was no more than five years and the other four--were at playtogether in this room, and Basil had a new jerkin on, and colored hosefor the first time. Hubert wore a kirtle, which displeasured him, forhe said folks should take him to be a wench. So he comes to me,half-crying, and says, 'Why hath Baz that fine new suit and me not thesame?' 'Because, little sir, he is the eldest,' I said. 'Ah,' quoththe shrewd imp, 'the next time I be born methinketh I will push Bazaside and be the eldest.' If I should