CHAPTER FOUR.
One afternoon, when it was blowing too hard to allow Dermot to put tosea in his boat, he had gone to the vicarage to obtain his usualinstruction, carrying with him some fish he had caught, as a present tothe vicar's niece. After he had received his instruction and was aboutto take his departure, Miss O'Reilly called him back to thank him forthe fish which he had brought her.
"By-the-bye!" observed Mr Jamieson, "Dermot can take the pony which Iwish to send for young Lord Fitz Barry, and the cloak which he left herethe other day."
Dermot had not often ridden; but where is the Irish boy who would notundertake to mount the most fiery steed, if he was asked to do so?
He gladly promised to take the pony and cloak to the castle. It wasalready late in the day, but he observed that "that did not matter," asit must be a dark night in which he could not find his way home. Thepony was, however, in the field, and some more time elapsed before hewas caught. Miss O'Reilly then bethought her, that Dermot had been along time without food, and insisted on his taking some before he setoff in that blustering evening. It was thus almost dark before he leftthe vicarage for the castle. He looked down on the bay: the frigatestill lay at anchor there, the wind being still from the north.
"If the wind shifts a little more to the west, she will have to put tosea," thought Dermot. "It will not do for her to remain in the bay withthe wind blowing in from the west, and with such often rolls in here,enough to cast the stoutest ship high upon the beach, or to dash her tofragments should she touch the rocks."
Dermot rode on, not, however, very fast, as the little animal wasunwilling to leave his own home, not guessing the comfortable quartersto which he was bound. The wind brought up a heavy shower of rain andhail; Dermot was doubtful whether he ought to shelter himself under theyoung lord's cloak. "Still," he thought, "it will not be the worse forbeing on my shoulders, and I shall be wet through and well-nigh frozenbefore I reach the castle, if I am to sit on this animal's back exposedto the storm."
He wisely therefore, having overcome his scruples, put on the cloak, andcontinued his course as fast as the pony would condescend to go towardsthe castle.
Just as the frigate was hid from his view by some intervening downs, hethought he saw the men going aloft to loose the topsails, an indicationof the ship being about to get under weigh.
"It is the wisest thing that can be done," he thought to himself. "Shecan easily stand off until the summer gale is over, and run no risk ofbeing driven on shore."
He was already at no great distance from the castle, when suddenly frombehind some rocks and bushes which lay near the road, a number of mensprang up and seized the bridle of his pony. He was too much astonishedto cry out, or to ask what was their purpose in thus attacking him.
By the expressions that they uttered, however, he soon discovered thatthey were under the impression that they had got possession of the younglord.
"Now," he thought to himself, with admirable presence of mind, "the bestthing I can do is to hold my tongue, and just see what they intended todo with him. I would a great deal rather that they caught hold of me,to whom it matters not what harm they do, than the young lord. I wouldwillingly save him for his sweet sister's sake, and for his too, for heis a kind boy, with a gentle heart. I am sure of that. There is nopride or haughtiness about him. If there were, I should not feeldisposed to serve him. No, I could not do that. Well, I will see whatthese men want to do with him. They will be rather surprised andenraged may be when they find whom they have got, instead of the younglord."
These thoughts passed rapidly through Dermot's mind, as he saw that hewas surrounded by an armed band of men. They did not attempt to pullhim from his pony, but turning round the animal's head, they led himacross the country inland at a rapid rate, a man holding the rein oneither side with a firm grasp, to prevent the little animal from fallingover the rough ground they were traversing.
Dermot firmly kept to his resolution of saying nothing. The night wasso dark, that had it not been for his knowledge of the direction fromwhich the wind blew, he would have been unable to guess where he wasgoing. In a short time, however, he found the wind blew directly in histeeth. He knew that they must be travelling north, and also, from thecharacter of the ground, that they had already passed beyond thevicarage, and that they could be at no great distance from his own home.Now they turned once more to the west, and he felt sure they wereapproaching the sea. The ground became more and more wild and rugged,and he guessed by feeling that they continued to ascend for somedistance, that they had reached a range of wild hills which lay in thatdirection.
All this time he had kept his senses wide awake, nor did he allowhimself to feel the slightest fear of what was likely to happen.
"No great harm can come to me," at length he thought to himself; "and ifit does, what matters it? There are those who will look after mymother, and I shall have saved the young lord from some plot which theseruffians have formed against him."
All this time the people round him were speaking the native Irish,little supposing that their prisoner understood every word they said.He was at length able to gather from their conversation that theyintended to hold the young lord as a hostage, threatening, if thedemands they proposed making were not granted, that they would kill himin revenge.
At length, he was ordered to dismount, and he found himself led forwardthrough a narrow passage, with rocks on either side, which conductedthem into the interior of a cave. It was of considerable size, the roofand sides covered apparently with smoke, probably the result of theillicit distillery which existed, or had existed there. It was dimlylighted by a lamp fixed on a projecting point of the rock. This enabledDermot to see that a number of arms were piled up along one side,muskets, pikes, and swords. There were two small field-pieces, and whathe supposed to be cases of ammunition. Had the light been greater hewould probably have been at once discovered. As it was, however, he wasled forthwith to the farther part of the cave, where he was told to takehis seat on a rough bed-place.
"We'll be after bringing your food directly," said a man, the firstperson who had spoken to him since his capture. "You will be quiet now,and not attempt to run away; for we should shoot you if you did withoutthe slightest ceremony. You understand that? Or stay, if we were tobind one of your feet to the leg of this bunk, we should have you moresecure, I'm thinking."
Dermot, adhering to his resolution, said nothing in return, but allowedhimself to be secured as the man proposed. He laughed, however, tohimself at the thought of the ease with which he could immediatelyliberate himself should he wish to do so, and wrapping himself closelyin the cloak, the better to conceal his figure and dress, should bychance a gleam of light fall upon him, he lay down on the bunk.
Other persons now continued to arrive, until the cave was full of men,the greater part of whom were peasants or small farmers; at least theircomrades treated them with but little ceremony.
As Dermot, however, was watching what took place, he heard the menwhispering to each other, "It's him! It's him; he's come to lead us, nofear now."
Just then a man appeared at the entrance of the cave. As he advancedwith a confident, indeed somewhat swaggering step, towards the table inthe centre, all the men rose from their seats and greeted him in varioustones of welcome.
He told them that he had been narrowly watched, that he had had nolittle difficulty in escaping his enemies and their enemies, that he wasthankful to find himself among them, and prepared to undertake anyenterprise, however hazardous, which might tend to forward their greatand glorious cause--the overthrow of their Saxon tyrants and theestablishment of the Irish race as the lords and rulers of theircountry.
He said a great deal more to the same effect, which was eagerly listenedto by the assembled rebels.
"Long life to the O'Higgins, he's the boy for us," resounded through thecavern, or at least words to that effect in the native Irish, the onlylanguage spoken by those present.
The O'Higgins spoke it, but Dermot remarked that he did so with somedifficulty.
The conspirators seemed highly delighted at having made so valuable aprize, and began, in no subdued voices, to discuss their future plansand proceedings.
Dermot listened eagerly, anxious to catch every word that was uttered.He found that they were a band of United Irishmen, as the rebels weregenerally called at that time, and that in spite of the ill-success oftheir undertaking in the north, they proposed carrying out a rising inthat part of the country. Their first object was to attack the Castleof Kilfinnan, where they hoped to find a supply of arms and a largeamount of booty. They expected also to extract a considerable sum forthe ransom of the prisoners they might capture in the castle, and, ifnot, they proposed putting them all to death, in revenge for theexecution of their fellow-rebels, which had taken place in other partsof the country.
The chief impediment to their plan was the continuance of the frigate onthe coast. They were anxious to devise some plan by which she might bedrawn off to another part of Ireland, or induced, at all events, to putto sea. Some of the boldest of the party proposed collecting a flotillaof boats, and taking possession of her, in the belief that they couldland her guns and other arms, and thus obtain the means of bettercompeting with the royal troops.
These and many other schemes were freely discussed by the rebels. Aftersome time another person entered the cavern. Dermot looked up and sawby the light of the lamp, which fell on his countenance, that the newcomer was no other than Father O'Rourke. He and the O'Higgins greetedeach other warmly. It was evident that they were looked upon as theleaders of the undertaking. The one active in a spiritual capacity,urging on the infatuated men the justice of their cause and promisingthem his own prayers and the protection of heaven, and telling them togo on and conquer; the other inviting them to follow him, and promisingthem the victory. Father O'Rourke particularly advocated the mostenergetic measures. He even advised that they should at once marchtowards the castle, and, exposing the young lord to view, threaten tohang him if the gates were not opened to admit them.
This plan was, however, overruled by others, who declared that thefrigate still lay in the bay, and that whatever the Earl might do, theirappearance on the shore would certainly bring the shot of her guns abouttheir ears.
"And what are you afraid of, comrades?" exclaimed Father O'Rourke. "Ifthey do, cannot I give each of you the blessed picture of Saint Patrick,and won't that, worn about your neck, guard you from the shot of theenemy? Ah, if you knew the value of those blessed amulets, you wouldall of you be anxious to purchase them. No soldier should ever think ofgoing into battle without such a safeguard. Have I not been offering upprayers day and night for the last month for your success, and are yousuch heretics as to believe that they have all been uttered in vain?No, trust me, let us go and attack the castle this night or to-morrow atfarthest, and depend upon it, we shall gain such a victory as will makeall the people in the country around rise up and join us. They onlywant to see a little success, and Ireland shall have her own again.What, boys! are we to be kept down by the red-coats, and the vileheretics who call George the Third king? No, I say again. Ireland forthe Irish. May Saint Patrick and all the blessed Saints fight for us,and we will have true liberty once more in the green Isle of old Erin!"
While listening to the address of the priest, very similar to manyothers uttered then, and even at the present day, by the so-calledpastors of the Romish Church in Ireland, Dermot was thinking over whathe should attempt to do. He knew perfectly well from the way his feethad been tied to the bed, that he could liberate himself immediately;but how to steal out of the cavern without being observed was thedifficulty; even should the chief body of the rebels go to sleep, it wasnot likely that they would leave the cavern without a guard. If hecould escape, however, he thought his best plan would be to hasten offto the castle, to which he felt sure he could find his way, and givenotice of the plans of the conspirators.
"The Earl probably does not dream of an attack being made on hisresidence, and will not certainly be prepared," thought Dermot tohimself. "Perhaps the rebels will steal towards the chief door andbreak it open before any one within can stop them. The frigate, too, ifshe has not sailed already, will very likely go away, or be misled bythe treacherous information those people will send on board. Now, if Icould steal away without their finding out who I am, they will notsuspect that their plans are discovered as they know that the young lordwould not understand what had been said." Dermot's great desiretherefore was to escape from the cavern. He found that not only was itexpected that the country around would rise and attack all theProtestant dwelling-houses in the neighbourhood, but that a Frenchsquadron with troops would come off the coast and support their cause.
This, altogether, was terrible news, and Dermot felt that it was mostimportant it should be conveyed without delay to Kilfinnan Castle, theprincipal seat in that neighbourhood.
Dermot had never liked Father O'Rourke, and he had now still less causeto admire him. He guessed, too, from the character of the man, thatalthough he would encourage the people round to rebel, he was not likelyto run himself into danger. He was not surprised, therefore, afterhearing him inflame the passions and ardour of his misguided countrymen,to see him quietly take his departure after uttering his blessing andpromising them success if they would follow his injunctions.
We must now return to the vicarage. Scarcely had Dermot left the houseon the pony, than Miss O'Reilly began to regret that she had allowed himto go. She went to the door and felt the blast blowing keenly from thenorth, and knowing the lateness of the hour, she feared that he would bebenighted long before he could reach the castle. She would willinglyhave despatched some one to him, but she had no person to send.
While standing at the door, she heard a voice, singing one of the wildand plaintive airs of the country, down in the valley beneath thevicarage. She knew by the sounds that the singer was drawing nearer andnearer the house.
"It is poor mad Kathleen," she said to herself, "though she has but asmall amount of brains, yet she is fleet of foot, and would soonovertake the lad, and bring him back to the house. It would be betterto do that, than let him go on with the pony he ill knows how tobestride."
The song continued, and in a short time the singer stood in front of thevicarage.
"Well, Kathleen, what brings you here?" asked Miss O'Reilly, addressingher in a kind tone.
"What brings me here takes me wherever I list to go, my own free will,"answered the mad girl, who was still young, and possessed of an amountof beauty which made those who saw her feel even more sympathy andcompassion than they might have done, had her appearance been lessattractive.
"You are good and kind, Kathleen," said Miss O'Reilly; "you would do mea kindness, I know, if I were to ask you."
"That I would, lady!" answered the girl, in the broken Saxon which wasspoken by not many of the peasantry in that part of Ireland; "I would doanything to serve you, just say what it is."
Miss O'Reilly, in a few words, explained to Kathleen what she wished tohave done.
"You know him, you know young Dermot O'Neil?"
"Oh yes, I know him well; he is a gentle lad and a good one, and I wouldgladly serve him, as I would you, lady."
Miss O'Reilly again endeavoured to impress upon the wandering mind ofthe poor girl what she was to do, and then begged her to hasten off toovertake Dermot. However, neither she nor Miss O'Reilly were aware ofthe distance Dermot would have got before Kathleen could overtake him.
The mad girl went singing on as was her wont for some time, tillsuddenly she became unusually silent. She had not gone far when sheheard the loud talking of a body of men approaching her.
"Those voices at this time of the evening bode no good," she said toherself. "They are some of the rebels who they say are about thecountry. I never loved such. I will hide and watch to see what theyare about."
She accordingly concealed herself amo
ng the rocks and uneven ground withwhich the road was bounded. The tramp of feet approached, coming fromthe direction of the castle, and she saw some men leading a pony onwhich a lad was mounted, hurriedly proceeding towards the north.
From what she had heard from Miss O'Reilly, she at once concluded thatthe person she had seen in the hands of the insurgents must be Dermothimself.
"Now the next thing I have to do," she thought, "is to follow and try tofind out where they are taking him to. Surely they will not do him aninjury, but still they have no right to carry him off; of that I amcertain."
Gathering her cloak around her, she quickly followed the footsteps ofthe party she had seen pass. She had to keep at a cautious distance,lest in crossing any open space, she might have been discovered, butwhere a person in their right mind might have hesitated, she went onfearlessly. The road was rough and up and down hill, but she continuedher pursuit till the party suddenly came to a halt.
"Oh!" she said to herself; "I know the spot where they have gone to;shall I go on, or shall I go back to Miss O'Reilly and tell her how Ihave been defeated in fulfilling her directions?"
In spite of the distance she determined to follow the latter course.
The astonishment of Miss O'Reilly was very great when, at a late hour inthe evening, Kathleen appeared and told her what had befallen youngDermot.
Miss O'Reilly instantly consulted her uncle, who fortunately was athome.
"There is something wrong going forward, at all events," he observed."But why the rebels should have made Dermot prisoner is more than I cansay. However, perhaps you can persuade Kathleen to go back to the caveand endeavour to release him. I don't know what else we can do. In themorning I will ride over to the castle and consult with the Earl. Heshould be informed that a rising of some sort is on foot through thecountry, though I do not suppose it is of much consequence."
Kathleen was perfectly ready to undertake the release of Dermot if shecould accomplish it, and she promised at all events to enter the cavernand to communicate with him.
"He is a wise lad, and it will be a wise thing to do as he bids me," sheobserved.
"But you must be weary, Kathleen," said Miss O'Reilly; "you will wantsome refreshment before you set out again to-night."
"No, no, when the mind's at work the body requires no food," said themad girl, and she burst forth in a wild song which showed the excitementunder which she was labouring.