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diff --git a/31901.txt b/31901.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..b53f633 --- /dev/null +++ b/31901.txt @@ -0,0 +1,18990 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of Tom Burke Of "Ours", Volume I (of II), by +Charles James Lever + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Tom Burke Of "Ours", Volume I (of II) + +Author: Charles James Lever + +Illustrator: Phiz. + +Release Date: April 6, 2010 [EBook #31901] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TOM BURKE OF "OURS", VOLUME *** + + + + +Produced by David Widger + + + + + +TOM BURKE OF "OURS." + + +By Charles James Lever + +With Illustrations By Phiz. and Browne + + + +IN TWO VOLUMES + +VOL. I + + +Transcriber's Note: Two print editions have been used for this Project +Gutenberg Edition of "Tom Burke of 'Ours'": The Little Brown edition +(Boston) of 1913 with illustrations by Phiz; and the Chapman and Hall +editon (London) of 1853 with illustrations by Browne. Illegible and +missing pages were found in both print editions. + +DW + + +TO + +MISS EDGEWORTH. + + + +Madam,--This weak attempt to depict the military life of France, during +the brief but glorious period of the Empire, I beg to dedicate to you. +Had the scene of this, like that of my former books, been laid chiefly +in Ireland, I should have felt too sensibly my own inferiority to +venture on the presumption of such a step. As it is, I never was more +conscious of the demerits of my volume than when inscribing it to you; +but I cannot resist the temptation of being, even thus, associated with +a name,--the first in my country's literature. + +Another motive I will not conceal,--the ardent desire I have to assure +you, that, amid the thousands you have made better, and wiser, and +happier, by your writings, you cannot count one who feels more proudly +the common tie of country with you, nor more sincerely admires your +goodness and your genius, than + +Your devoted and obedient servant, + +CHARLES J. LEVER. + +Temple-O Nov. 25, 1848. + + + +PREFATORY EPISTLE FROM MR. BURKE. + + + +My dear O'Flaherty,--It seems that I am to be the "next devoured." Well, +be it so; my story, such as it is, you shall have. Only one condition +would I bargain for,--that you seriously disabuse your readers of the +notion that the life before them was one either of much pleasure or +profit. I might moralize a little here about neglected opportunities and +mistaken opinions; but, as I am about to present you with my narrative, +the moral--if there be one--need not be anticipated. + +I believe I have nothing else to premise, save that if my tale have +little wit, it has some warning; and as Bob Lambert observed to the +hangman who soaped the rope for his execution, "even that same 's a +comfort." If our friend Lorrequer, then, will as kindly facilitate my +debut, I give him free liberty to "cut me down" when he likes, and am, + +Yours, as ever, + +TOM BURKE. + +To T. O'Flaherty, Esq. + + + + +PREFACE. + + + +I WAS led to write this story by two impulses: first, the fascination +which the name and exploits of the great Emperor had ever exercised on +my mind as a boy; and secondly, by the favorable notice which the Press +had bestowed upon my scenes of soldier life in "Charles O'Malley." + +If I had not in the wars of the Empire the patriotic spirit of a great +national struggle to sustain me, I had a field far wider and grander +than any afforded by our Peninsular campaigns; while in the character of +the French army, composed as it was of elements derived from every rank +and condition, there were picturesque effects one might have sought for +in vain throughout the rest of Europe. + +It was my fortune to have known personally some of those who filled +great parts in this glorious drama. I had listened over and over to +their descriptions of scenes, to which their look, and voice, and manner +imparted a thrilling intensity of interest. I had opportunities of +questioning them for explanations, of asking for solutions of this and +that difficulty which had puzzled me, till I grew so familiar with the +great names of the time, the events, and even the localities, that when +I addressed myself to my tale, it was with a mind filled by my topics to +the utter exclusion of all other subjects. + +Neither before nor since have I ever enjoyed to the same extent the +sense of being so entirely engrossed by a single theme. A great tableau +of the Empire, from its gorgeous celebrations in Paris to its numerous +achievements on the field of battle, was ever outspread before me, and +I sat down rather to record than to invent the scenes of my story. A +feeling that, as I treated of real events I was bound to maintain +a degree of accuracy in relation to them, even in fiction, made me +endeavor to possess myself of a correct knowledge of localities, and, +so far as I was able, with a due estimate of those whose characters I +discussed. + +Some of the battlefields I have gone over; of others, I have learned the +particulars from witnesses of the great struggles that have made them +famous. To the claim of this exactness I have, therefore, the pretension +of at least the desire to be faithful. For my story, it has all the +faults and shortcomings which beset everything I have ever written; for +these I can but offer regrets, only the more poignant that I feel how +justly they are due. + +The same accuracy which I claim for scenes and situations, I should +like, if I dared, to claim for the individuals who figure in this tale; +but I cannot, in any fairness, pretend to more than an attempt to paint +resemblances of those whom I have myself admired in the description +of others. Pioche and Minette are of this number. So is, but of a very +different school, the character of Duchesne; for which, however, I had +what almost amounted to an original. As to the episodes of this story, +one or two were communicated as facts; the others are mere invention. + +I do not remember any particulars to which I should further advert; +while I feel, that the longer I dwell upon the theme, the more occasion +is there to entreat indulgence,--an indulgence which, if you are not +weary of according, will be most gratefully accepted by + +Your faithful servant, + +CHARLES LEVER + +Casa Capponi, Florence, May, 1867. + + + + +CONTENTS. + + + + + +TOM BURKE OF "OURS." + + + +CHAPTER I. MYSELF. + +It was at the close of a cold, raw day in January--no matter for the +year--that the Gal way mail was seen to wind its slow course through +that long and dull plain that skirts the Shannon, as you approach the +"sweet town of Athlone." The reeking box-coats and dripping umbrellas +that hung down on every side bespoke a day of heavy rain, while the +splashed and mud-stained panels of the coach bore token of cut-up +roads, which the jaded and toil-worn horses amply confirmed. If the +outsiders--with hats pressed firmly down, and heads bent against the +cutting wind--presented an aspect far from comfortable, those within, +who peeped with difficulty through the dim glass, had little to charm +the eye; their flannel nightcaps and red comforters were only to be seen +at rare intervals, as they gazed on the dreary prospect, and then sank +back into the coach to con over their moody thoughts, or, if fortunate, +perhaps to doze. + +In the rumble, with the guard, sat one whose burly figure and rosy +cheeks seemed to feel no touch of the inclement wind that made his +companions crouch. An oiled-silk foraging-cap fastened beneath the chin, +and a large mantle of blue cloth, bespoke him a soldier, if even the +assured tone of his voice and a certain easy carriage of his head had +not conveyed to the acute observer the same information. Unsubdued in +spirit, undepressed in mind, either by the long day of pouring rain or +the melancholy outline of country on every side, his dark eye flashed as +brightly from beneath the brim of his cap, and his ruddy face beamed as +cheerily, as though Nature had put forth her every charm of weather +and scenery to greet and delight him. Now inquiring of the guard of the +various persons whose property lay on either side, the name of some poor +hamlet or some humble village; now humming to himself some stray verse +of an old campaigning song,--he passed his time, diversifying these +amusements by a courteous salute to a gaping country girl, as, with +unmeaning look, she stared at the passing coach. But his principal +occupation seemed to consist in retaining one wing of his wide cloak +around the figure of a little boy, who lay asleep beside him, and whose +head jogged heavily against his arm with every motion of the coach. + +"And so that's Athlone, yonder, you tell me," said the captain, for such +he was,--"'the sweet town of Athlone, ochone!' Well, it might be worse. +I 've passed ten years in Africa,--on the burning coast, as they call +it: you never light a fire to cook your victuals, but only lay them +before the sun for ten minutes, game something less, and the joint's +done; all true, by Jove! Lie still, my young friend, or you'll heave us +both over! And whereabouts does he live, guard?" + +"Something like a mile and a half from here," replied the gruff guard. + +"Poor little fellow! he's sleeping it out well. They certainly don't +take overmuch care of him, or they'd never have sent him on the top of +a coach in weather like this, without even a greatcoat to cover him. +I say, Tom, my lad, wake up; you're not far from home now. Are you +dreaming of the plum-pudding and the pony and the big spaniel, eh?" + +"Whisht!" said the guard, in a low whisper. "The chap's father is dying, +and they've sent for him from school to see him." + +A loud blast of the horn now awoke me thoroughly from the half-dreamy +slumber in which I had listened to the previous dialogue, and I sat up +and looked about me. Yes, reader, my unworthy self it was who was then +indulging in as pleasant a dream of home and holidays as ever blessed +even a schoolboy's vigils. Though my eyes were open, it was some minutes +before I could rally myself to understand where I was, and with what +object. My senses were blunted by cold, and my drenched limbs were +cramped and stiffened; for the worthy captain, to whose humanity I owed +the share of his cloak, had only joined the coach late in the day, +and during the whole morning I had been exposed to the most pitiless +downpour of rain and sleet. + +"Here you are!" said the rough guard, as the coach drew up to let me +down. "No need of blowing the horn here, I suppose?" + +This was said in allusion to the miserable appearance of the ruined +cabin that figured as my father's gate lodge, where some naked children +were seen standing before the door, looking with astonishment at the +coach and passengers. + +"Well, good-by, my little man. I hope you 'll find the governor better. +Give him my respects; and, hark ye, if ever you come over to Athlone, +don't forget to come and see me: Captain Bubbleton,--George Frederick +Augustus Bubbleton, Forty-fifth Regiment; or, when at home, Little +Bubbleton, Herts, and Bungalow Hut, in the Carnatic^ that's the mark. So +good-by! good-by!" + +I waved my hand to him in adieu, and then turned to enter the gate. + +"Well, Freney," said I, to a half-dressed, wild-looking figure that +rushed out to lift the gate open,--for the hinges had been long broken, +and it was attached to the pier by some yards of strong rope,--"how is +my father?" + +A gloomy nod and a discouraging sign with his open hand were the only +reply. + +"Is there any hope?" said I, faintly. + +"Sorrow one of me knows; I dare n't go near the house. I was sarved with +notice to quit a month ago, and they tell him I 'm gone. Oh vo, vo! what +'s to become of us all!" + +I threw the bag which contained my humble wardrobe on my shoulder, +and without waiting for further questioning, walked forward. Night +was falling fast, and nothing short of my intimacy with the place from +infancy could have enabled me to find my way. The avenue, from long +neglect and disuse, was completely obliterated; the fences were broken +up to burn; the young trees had mostly shared the same fate; the cattle +strayed at will through the plantations; and all bespoke utter ruin and +destruction. + +If the scene around me was sad, it only the better suited my own heart. +I was returning to a home where I had never heard the voice of kindness +or affection; where one fond word, one look of welcome, had never +met me. I was returning, not to receive the last blessing of a loving +parent, but merely sent for as a necessary ceremony on the occasion. And +perhaps there was a mock propriety in inviting me once more to the house +which I was never to revisit. My father, a widower for many years, had +bestowed all his affection on my elder brother, to whom so much of his +property as had escaped the general wreck was to descend. He had been +sent to Eton under the guidance of a private tutor, while an obscure +Dublin school was deemed good enough for me. For him every nerve was +strained to supply all his boyish extravagance, and enable him to +compete with the sons of men of high rank and fortune, whose names, +mentioned in his letters home, were an ample recompense for all the +lavish expenditure their intimacy entailed. My letters were few and +brief; their unvaried theme the delay in the last quarter's payment, +or the unfurnished condition of my little trunk, which more than once +exposed me to the taunts of my schoolfellows. + +He was a fair and delicate boy, timid in manner and retiring in +disposition; I, a browned-faced varlet, who knew every one from the herd +to the high-sheriff. To him the servants were directed to look up as the +head of the house; while I was consigned either to total neglect, or +the attentions of those who only figured as supernumeraries in our Army +List. Yet, with all these sources of jealousy between us, we loved each +other tenderly. George pitied "poor Tommy," as he called me; and for +that very pity my heart clung to him. He would often undertake to plead +my cause for those bolder infractions his gentle nature never ventured +on; and it was only from long association with boys of superior rank, +whose habits and opinions he believed to be standards for his imitation, +that A" at length a feeling of estrangement grew up between us, and we +learned to look somewhat coldly on each other. + +From these brief details it will not be wondered at it I turned +homeward with a heavy heart. From the hour I received the letter of my +recall--which was written by my father's attorney in most concise and +legal phrase--I had scarcely ceased to shed tears; for so it is, there +is something in the very thought of being left an orphan, friendless +and unprotected, quite distinct from the loss of affection and kindness +which overwhelms the young heart with a very flood of wretchedness. +Besides, a stray word or two of kindness had now and then escaped my +father towards me, and I treasured these up as my richest possession. +I thought of them over and over. Many a lonely night, when my heart has +been low and sinkings I repeated them to myself, like talismans against +grief; and when I slept, my dreams would dwell on them and make my +waking happy. + +As I issued from a dark copse of beech-trees, the indistinct outline of +the old house met my eye. I could trace the high-pitched roof, the +tall and pointed gables against the sky; and with a strange sense of +undefinable fear,' beheld a solitary light that twinkled from the window +of an upper room, where my father lay. The remainder of the building +was in deep shadow. I mounted the long flight of stone steps that led +to what once had been a terrace; but the balustrades were broken many a +year ago; and even the heavy granite stone had been smashed in several +places. The hall door lay wide open, and the hall itself had no other +light save such as the flickering of a wood fire afforded, as its +uncertain flashes fell upon the dark wainscot and the floor. + +I had just recognized the grim, old-fashioned portraits that covered +the walls, when my eye was attracted by a figure near the fire. I +approached, and beheld an old man doubled with age. His bleared eyes +were bent upon the wood embers, which he was trying to rake together +with a stick; his clothes bespoke the most miserable poverty, and +afforded no protection against the cold and cutting blast. He was +croning some old song to himself as I drew near, and paid no attention +to me. I moved round so as to let the light fall on his face, and then +perceived it was old Lanty, as he was called. Poor fellow! Age and +neglect had changed him sadly since I had seen him last. He had been +the huntsman of the family for two generations; but having somehow +displeased my father one day at the cover, he rode at him and struck him +on the head with his loaded whip. The man fell senseless from his horse, +and was carried home. A few days, however, enabled him to rally and be +about again; but his senses had left him forever. All recollection +of the unlucky circumstance had faded from his mind, and his rambling +thoughts dwelt on his old pursuits; so that he passed his days about +the stables, looking after the horses and giving directions about them. +Latterly he had become too infirm for this, and never left his own +cabin; but now, from some strange cause, he had come up to "the house," +and was sitting by the fire as I found him. + +They who know Ireland will acknowledge the strange impulse which, at the +approach of death, seems to excite the people to congregate about the +house of mourning. The passion for deep and powerful excitement--the +most remarkable feature in their complex nature--seems to revel in +the details of sorrow and suffering. Not content even with the tragedy +before them, they call in the aid of superstition to heighten the +awfulness of the scene; and every story of ghost and banshee' is conned +over in tones that need not the occasion to make them thrill upon the +heart. At such a time the deepest workings of their wild spirits are +revealed. Their grief is low and sorrow-struck, or it is loud and +passionate; now breaking into some plaintive wail over the virtues +of the departed, now bursting into a frenzied appeal to the Father of +Mercies as to the justice of recalling those from earth who were its +blessing: while, stranger than all, a dash of reckless merriment will +break in upon the gloom; but it is like the red lightning through the +storm, that as it rends the cloud only displays the havoc and desolation +around, and at its parting leaves even a blacker darkness behind it. + +From my infancy I had been familiar with scenes of this kind; and my +habit of stealing away unobserved from home to witness a country wake +had endeared me much to the country-people, who felt this no small +kindness from "the master's son." Somehow the ready welcome and +attention I always met with had worked on my young heart, and I learned +to feel all the interest of these scenes fully as much as those about +me. It was, then, with a sense of desolation that I looked upon the one +solitary mourner who now sat at the hearth,--that poor old idiot man +who gazed on vacancy, or muttered with parched lip some few words to +himself. That he alone should be found to join his sorrows to ours, +seemed to me like utter destitution, and as I leaned against the chimney +I burst into tears. + +"Don't cry, alannah! don't cry," said the old man; "it 's the worst way +at all. Get up again and ride him at it bould. Oh vo! look at where the +thief is taking now,--along the stonewall there!" Here he broke out into +a low, wailing ditty:-- + + "And the fox set him down and looked about-- + And many were feared to follow; + 'Maybe I 'm wrong,'says he, 'but I doubt + That you 'll be as gay to-morrow. + For loud as you cry, and high as you ride, + And little you feel my sorrow, + I'll be free on the mountain-side, + While you 'll lie low to-morrow. + Oh, Moddideroo, aroo, aroo!'" + +"Ay, just so; they 'll run to earth in the cold churchyard. +Whisht!--hark there! Soho, soho! That's Badger I hear." + +I turned away with a bursting heart, and felt my way up the broad oak +stair, which was left in complete darkness. As I reached the corridor, +off which the bedrooms lay, I heard voices talking together in a low +tone; they came from my father's room, the door of which lay ajar. I +approached noiselessly and peeped in: by the fire, which was the only +light now in the apartment, sat two persons at a set table, one of +whom I at once recognized as the tall, solemn-looking figure of Doctor +Finnerty; the other I detected, by the sharp tones of his voice, to be +Mr. Anthony Basset, my father's confidential attorney. + +On the table before them lay a mass of papers, parchments, leases, +deeds, together with glasses and a black bottle, whose accompaniments of +hot water and sugar left no doubt as to its contents. The chimney-piece +was crowded with a range of vials and medicine bottles, some of them +empty, some of them half finished. + +[Illustration: Law and Physic in the Chamber of Death 008] + +From the bed in the corner of the room came the heavy sound of snoring +respiration, which either betokened deep sleep or insensibility. If +I enjoyed but little favor in my father's house, I owed much of the +coldness shown to me to the evil influence of the very two persons who +sat before me in conclave. Of the precise source of the doctor's dislike +I was not quite clear, except, perhaps, that I recovered from the +measles when he predicted my certain death; the attorney's was, however, +no mystery. + +About three years before, he had stopped to breakfast at our house on +his way to Ballinasloe fair. As his pony was led round to the stable, it +caught my eye. It was a most tempting bit of horseflesh, full of spirit +and in top condition, for he was going to sell it. I followed him round, +and appeared just as the servant was about to unsaddle him. The attorney +was no favorite in the house, and I had little difficulty in persuading +the man, instead of taking off the saddle, merely to shorten the +stirrups to the utmost limit. The next minute I was on his back flying +over the lawn at a stretching gallop. Fences abounded on all sides, and +I rushed him at double ditches, stone walls, and bog-wood rails, with a +mad delight that at every leap rose higher. After about three quarters +of an hour thus passed, his blood, as well as my own, being by this time +thoroughly roused, I determined to try him at the wall of an old pound +which stood some few hundred yards from the front of the house. Its +exposure to the window at any other time would have deterred me from +even the thought of such an exploit, but now I was quite beyond the pale +of such cold calculations; besides that, I was accompanied by a select +party of all the laborers, with their wives and children, whose praises +of my horsemanship would have made me take the lock of a canal if before +me. A tine gallop of grass sward led to the pound, and over this I went, +cheered with as merry a cry as ever stirred a light heart. One glance I +threw at the house as I drew near the leap. The window of the breakfast +parlor was open; my father and Mr. Basset were both at it, I saw +their faces red with passion; I heard their loud shout; my very +spirit sickened within me. I saw no more; I felt the pony rush at the +wall,--the quick stroke of his feet,--the rise,--the plunge,--and then +a crash,--and I was sent spinning over his head some half-dozen yards, +ploughing up the ground on face and hands. I was carried home with a +broken head; the pony's knees were in the same condition. My father said +that he ought to be shot for humanity's sake; Tony suggested the same +treatment for me, on similar grounds. The upshot, however, was, I +secured an enemy for life; and worse still, one whose power to injure was +equalled by his inclination. + +Into the company of these two worthies I now found myself thus +accidentally thrown, and would gladly have retreated at once, but that +some indescribable impulse to be near my father's sickbed was on me; and +so I crept stealthily in and sat down in a large chair at the foot of +the bed, where unnoticed I listened to the long-drawn heavings of his +chest, and in silence wept over my own desolate condition. + +For a long time the absorbing nature of my own grief prevented me +hearing the muttered conversation near the lire; but at length, as the +night wore on and my sorrow had found vent in tears, I began to listen +to the dialogue beside me. + +"He 'll have five hundred pounds under his grandfather's will, in spite +of us. But what 's that?" said the attorney. + +"I 'll take him as an apprentice for it, I know," said the doctor, with +a grin that made me shudder. + +"That's settled already," replied Mr. Basset. "He's to be articled to +me for five years; but I think it 's likely he 'll go to sea before the +time expires. How heavily the old man is sleeping! Now, is that natural +sleep?" + +"No, that's always a bad sign; that puffing with the lips is generally +among the last symptoms. Well, he'll be a loss anyhow, when he's gone. +There's an eight-ounce mixture he never tasted yet,--infusion of gentian +with soda. Put your lips to that." + +"Devil a one o' me will ever sup the like!" said the attorney, +finishing his tumbler of punch as he spoke. "Faugh! how can you drink +them things that way?" + +"Sure it's the compound infusion, made with orangepeel and cardamom +seeds. There is n't one of them did n't cost two and ninepence. He 'll +be eight weeks in bed come Tuesday next." + +"Well, well! If he lived till the next assizes, it would be telling me +four hundred pounds; not to speak of the costs of two ejectments I have +in hand against Mullins and his father-in-law." + +"It's a wonder," said the doctor, after a pause, "that Tom didn't come +by the coach. It's no matter now, at any rate; for since the eldest +son's away, there's no one here to interfere with us." + +"It was a masterly stroke of yours, doctor, to tell the old man the +weather was too severe to bring George over from Eton. As sure as he +came he'd make up matters with Tom; and the end of it would be, I 'd +lose the agency, and you would n't have those pleasant little bills for +the tenantry,--eh. Fin?" + +"Whisht! he's waking now. Well, sir; well, Mr. Burke, how do you feel +now? He 's off again!" + +"The funeral ought to be on a Sunday," said Basset, in a whisper; +"there 'll be no getting the people to come any other day. He 's saying +something, I think." + +"Fin," said my father, in a faint, hoarse voice,--"Fin, give me a drink. +It 's not warm!" + +"Yes, sir; I had it on the fire." + +"Well, then, it 's myself that 's growing cold. How 's the pulse now. +Fin? Is the Dublin doctor come yet?" + +"No, sir; we 're expecting him every minute. But sure, you know, we 're +doing everything." + +"Oh! I know it. Yes, to be sure, Fin; but they 've many a new thing up +in Dublin there, we don't hear of. Whisht! what's that?" + +"It 's Tony, sir,--Tony Basset; he 's sitting up with me." + +"Come over here, Tony. Tony, I'm going fast; I feel it, and my heart is +low. Could we withdraw the proceedings about Freney?" + +"He 's the biggest blackguard--" + +"Ah! no matter now; I 'm going to a place where we 'll all need mercy. +What was it that Canealy said he 'd give for the land?" + +"Two pound ten an acre; and Freney never paid thirty shillings out of +it." + +"It's mighty odd George didn't come over." + +"Sure, I told you there was two feet of snow on the ground." + +"Lord be about us, what a severe season! But why isn't Tom here?" I +started at the words, and was about to rush forward, when he added,--"I +don't want him, though." + +"Of course you don't," said the attorney; "it's little comfort he ever +gave you. Are you in pain there?" + +"Ay, great pain over my heart. Well, well! don't be hard to him when I +'m gone." + +"Don't let him talk so much," said Basset, in a whisper, to the doctor. + +"You must compose yourself, Mr. Burke," said the doctor. "Try and take a +sleep; the night isn't half through yet." + +The sick man obeyed without a word; and soon after, the heavy +respiration betokened the same lethargic slumber once more. + +The voices of the speakers gradually fell into a low, monotonous sound; +the long-drawn breathings from the sickbed mingled with them; the fire +only sent forth an occasional gleam, as some piece of falling turf +seemed to revive its wasting life, and shot up a myriad of bright +sparks; and the chirping of the cricket in the chimney-corner sounded to +my mournful heart like the tick of the death-watch. + +As I listened, my tears fell fast, and a gulping fulness in my throat +made me feel like one in suffocation. But deep sorrow somehow tends to +sleep. The weariness of the long day and dreary night, exhaustion, the +dull hum of the subdued voices, and the faint light, all combined to +make me drowsy, and I fell into a heavy slumber. + +I am writing now of the far-off past,--of the long years ago of my +youth,--since which my seared heart has had many a sore and scalding +lesson; yet I cannot think of that night, fixed and graven as it lies in +my memory, without a touch of boyish softness. I remember every waking +thought that crossed my mind: my very dream is still before me. It +was of my mother. I thought of her as she lay on a sofa in the old +drawing-room; the window open, and the blinds drawn, the gentle breeze +of a June morning flapping them lazily to and fro as I knelt beside +her to repeat my little hymn, the first I ever learned; and how at each +moment my eyes would turn and my thoughts stray to that open casement, +through which the odor of flowers and the sweet song of birds were +pouring, and my little heart was panting for liberty, while her gentle +smile and faint words bade me remember where I was. And then I was +straying away through the old garden, where the very sunlight fell +scantily through the thick-woven branches, loaded with perfumed +blossoms; the blackbirds hopped fearlessly from twig to twig, mingling +their clear notes with the breezy murmur of the leaves and the deep hum +of summer bees. How happy was I then! And why cannot such happiness be +lasting? Why can we not shelter ourselves from the base contamination of +worldly cares, and live on amid pleasures pure as these, with hearts as +holy and desires as simple as in childhood? + +Suddenly a change came over my dream, and the dark clouds began to +gather from all quarters, and a low, creeping wind moaned heavily along. +I thought I heard ray name called. I started and awoke. For a second or +two the delusion was so strong that I could not remember where I was; +but as the gray light of a breaking morning fell through the half-open +shutters, I beheld the two figures near the fire. They were both +sound asleep, the deep-drawn breathing and nodding heads attesting the +heaviness of their slumber. + +I felt cold and cramped, but still afraid to stir, although a longing to +approach the bedside was still upon me. A faint sigh and some muttered +words here came to my ear, and I listened. It was my father; but so +indistinct the sounds, they seemed more like the ramblings of a dream. +I crept noiselessly on tiptoe to the bed, and drawing the curtain gently +over, gazed within. He was lying on his back, his hands and arms outside +the clothes. His beard had grown so much and he had wasted so far that I +could scarcely have known him. His eyes were wide open, but fixed on the +top of the bed; his lips moved rapidly, and by his hands, as they were +closely clasped, I thought it was in prayer. I leaned over him, and +placed my hand in his. For some time he did not seem to notice it; but +at last he pressed it softly, and rubbing the fingers to and fro, he +said, in a low, faint voice,--"Is this your hand, my boy?" + +I thought my heart had split, as in a gush of tears I bent down and +kissed him. + +"I can't see well, my dear; there's something between me and the light, +and a weight is on me--here--here--" + +A heavy sigh, and a shudder that shook his whole frame, followed these +words. + +"They told me I wasn't to see you once again," said he, as a sickly +smile played over his mouth; "but I knew you'd come to sit by me. It +'s a lonely thing not to have one's own at such an hour as this. Don't +weep, my dear, my own heart's failing me fast." + +A broken, muttering sound followed, and then he said, in a loud voice; +"I never did it! it was Tony Basset. He told me,--he persuaded me. Ah! +that was a sore day when I listened to him. Who 's to tell me I 'm not +to be master of my own estate? Turn them adrift,--ay, every man of them. +I 'll weed the ground of such wretches,--eh, Tony? Did any one say +Freney's mother was dead? they may wake her at the cross roads, if they +like. Poor old Molly! I 'm sorry for her, too. She nursed me and my +sister that's gone; and maybe her deathbed, poor as she was, was +easier than mine will be,--without kith or kin, child or friend. Oh, +George!--and I that doted on you with all my heart! Whose hand's this? +Ah, I forgot; my darling boy, it's you. Come to me here, my child! Was +n't it for you that I toiled and scraped this many a year? Wasn't it for +you that I did all this? and--God, forgive me!--maybe it 's my soul +that I 've perilled to leave you a rich man. Where 's Tom? where 's that +fellow now?" + +"Here, sir!" said I, squeezing his hand, and pressing it to my lips. + +He sprang up at the words, and sat up in his bed, his eyes dilated to +their widest, and his pale lips parted asunder. + +"Where?" cried he, as he felt me over with his thin fingers, and drew me +towards him. + +"Here, father, here!" + +"And is this Tom?" said he, as his voice fell into a low, hollow sound; +and then added: "Where's George? answer me at once. Oh, I see it! He +isn't here; he would n't come over to see his old father. Tony! Tony +Basset, I say!" shouted the sick man, in a voice that roused the +sleepers, and brought them to his bedside, "open that window there. Let +me look out,--do it as I bid you,--open it wide. Turn in all the cattle +you can find on the road. Do you hear me, Tony? Drive them in from every +side. Finnerty, I say, mind my words; for" (here he uttered a most awful +and terrific oath), "as I linger on this side of the grave, I 'll not +leave him a blade of grass I can take from him." + +His chest heaved with a convulsive spasm; his face became pale as death; +his eyes fixed; he clutched eagerly at the bedclothes; and then, with +a horrible cry, he fell back upon the pillow, as a faint stream of red +blood trickled from his nostril and ran down his chin. + +"It 's all over now!" whispered the doctor. + +"Is he dead?" said Basset. + +The other made no reply; but drawing the curtains close, he turned away, +and they both moved noiselessly from the room. + + + +CHAPTER II. DARBY THE "BLAST." + +If there are dreams which, by their vividness and accuracy of detail, +seem altogether like reality, so are there certain actual passages in +our lives which, in their indistinctness while occurring, and in the +faint impression they leave behind them, seem only as mere dreams. Most +of our early sorrows are of this kind. The warm current of our young +hearts would appear to repel the cold touch of affliction; nor can grief +at this period do more than breathe an icy chill upon the surface of our +affections, where all is glowing and fervid beneath. The struggle +then between the bounding heart and the depressing care renders our +impressions of grief vague and ill defined. + +A stunning sense of some great calamity, some sorrow without hope, +mingled in my waking thoughts with a childish notion of freedom. +Unloved, uncared for, my early years presented but few pleasures. My +boyhood had been a long struggle to win some mark of affection from one +who cared not for me, and to whom still my heart had clung, as does the +drowning man to the last plank of all the wreck. The tie that bound me +to him was now severed, and I was without-one in the wide world to look +up to or to love. + +I looked out from my window upon the bleak country. A heavy snowstorm +had fallen during the night. A lowering sky of leaden hue stretched +above the dreary landscape, across which no living thing was seen to +move. Within doors all was silent. The doctor and the attorney had both +taken their departure; the deep wheel-track in the snow marked the +road they had followed. The servants, seated around the kitchen fire, +conversed in low and broken whispers. The only sound that broke the +stillness was the ticking of the clock upon the stair. There was +something that smote heavily on my heart in the monotonous ticking of +that clock: that told of time passing beside him who had gone; that +seemed to speak of minutes close to one whose minutes were eternity. I +crept into the room where the dead body lay, and as my tears ran fast, I +bent over it. I thought sometimes the expression of those cold features +changed,--now frowning heavily, now smiling blandly on me. I watched +them, till in my eager gaze the lips seemed to move and the cheek to +flush. How hard is it to believe in death! how difficult to think that +"there is a sleep that knows no waking!" I knelt down beside the bed +and prayed. I prayed that now, as all of earth was nought to him who was +departed, he would give me the affection he had not bestowed in life. +I besought him not to chill the heart that in its lonely desolation had +neither home nor friend. My throat sobbed to bursting as in my words I +seemed to realize the fulness of my affliction. The door opened behind +me as with bent-down head I knelt. A heavy footstep slowly moved along +the floor; and the next moment the tottering figure of old Lanty stood +beside me, gazing on the dead man. There was that look of vacancy in his +filmy eye that showed he knew nothing of what had happened. + +"Is he asleep. Master Tommy?" said the old man, in a faint whisper. + +My lips trembled, but I could not speak the word. + +"I thought he wanted the 'dogs' up at Meelif; but I 'm strained here +about the loins, and can't go out myself. Tell him that, when he wakes." + +"He'll never wake now, Lanty; he's dead!" said I, as a rush of tears +half choked my utterance. + +"Dead!" said he, repeating the word two or three times,--"dead! Well, +well! I wonder will Master George keep the dogs now. There seldom comes +a better; and 'twas himself that liked the cry o' them." + +He tottered from the room as he spoke, and I could hear him muttering +the same words over and over, as he crept slowly down the stair. + +I have said that this painful stroke of fortune was as a dream to me; +and so for three days I felt it. The altered circumstances of everything +about me were inexplicable to my puzzled brain. The very kindness of the +servants, so unusual to me, struck me forcibly. They felt that the time +was past when any sympathy for me had been the passport to disfavor, and +they pitied me. + +The funeral took place on the third morning. Mr. Basset having +acquainted my brother that there was no necessity for his presence, even +that consolation was denied me,--to meet him who alone remained of all +my name and house belonging to me. How I remember every detail of that +morning! The silence of the long night broken in upon by heavy footsteps +ascending the stairs; strange voices, not subdued like those of all in +our little household, but loud and coarse; even laughter I could hear, +the noise increasing at each moment. Then the muffled sound of wheels +upon the snow, and the cries of the drivers as they urged their horses +forward. Then a long interval, in which nought was heard save the happy +whistle of some poor postilion, who, careless of his errand, whiled away +the tedious time with a lively tune. And lastly, there came the dull +noise of feet moving step by step down the stair, the muttered words, +the shuffling sound of feet as they descended, and the clank of the +coffin as it struck against the wall. + +The long, low parlor was filled with people, few of whom I had ever +seen before. They were broken up into little knots, chatting cheerfully +together while they made a hurried breakfast. The table and sideboard +were covered with a profusion I had never witnessed previously. +Decanters of wine passed freely from hand to hand; and although the +voices fell somewhat as I appeared amidst them, I looked in vain for one +touch of sorrow for the dead, or even respect for his memory. + +As I took my place in the carriage beside the attorney, a kind of dreamy +apathy settled down on me, and I scarcely knew what was passing. I only +remember the horrible shrinking sense of dread with which I recoiled +from his one attempt at consolation, and the abrupt way in which he +desisted, and turned to converse with the doctor. How my heart sickened +as we drew near the churchyard, and I beheld the open gate that stood +wide awaiting us! The dusky figures, with their mournful black cloaks, +moved slowly across the snow, like spirits of some gloomy world; while +the death-bell echoed in my ears, and sent a shuddering through my +frame. + +"What is to become of the second boy?" said the clergyman, in a low +whisper, but which, by some strange fatality, struck forcibly on my ear. + +"It's not much matter," replied Basset, still lower; "for the present he +goes home with me. Tom, I say, you come back with me to-day." + +"No," said I, boldly; "I'll go home again." + +"Home!" repeated he, with a scornful laugh,--"home I And where may that +be, youngster?" + +"For shame, Basset!" said the clergyman; "don't speak that way to him. +My little man, you can't go home today. Mr. Basset will take you with +him for a few days, until your late father's will is known, and his +wishes respecting you." + +"I'll go home, sir!" said I, but in a fainter tone, and with tears in my +eyes. + +"Well, well! let him do so for to-day; it may relieve his poor heart. +Come, Basset, I 'll take him back myself." + +I clasped his hand as he spoke, and kissed it over and over. + +"With all my heart," cried Basset. "I'll come over and fetch him +to-morrow;" and then he added, in a lower tone, "and before that you +'ll have found out quite enough to be heartily sick of your charge." + +All the worthy vicar's efforts to rouse me from my stupor or interest me +failed. He brought me to his house, where, amid his own happy children, +he deemed my heart would have yielded to the sympathy of my own age. But +I pined to get back; I longed--why, I knew not--to be in my own little +chamber, alone with my grief. In vain he tried every consolation his +kind heart and his life's experience had taught him; the very happiness +I witnessed but reminded me of my own state, and I pressed the more +eagerly to return. + +It was late when he drew up to the door of the house, to which already +the closed window shutters had given a look of gloom and desertion. We +knocked several times before any one came, and at length two or three +heads appeared at an upper window, in half-terror at the unlooked-for +summons for admission. + +"Good-by, my dear boy!" said the vicar, as he kissed me; "don't forget +what I have been telling you. It will make you bear your present sorrow +better, and teach you to be happier when it is over." + +"Come down to the kitchen, alannah!" said the old cook, as the hall +door closed; "come down and sit with us there. Sure it 's no wonder your +heart 'ud be low." + +"Yes, Master Tommy; and Darby "the Blast" is there, and a tune and the +pipes will raise you." + +I suffered myself to be led along listlessly between them to the +kitchen, where, around a huge fire of red turf, the servants of the +house were all assembled, together with some neighboring cottagers; +Darby "the Blast" occupying a prominent place in the party, his pipes +laid across his knees as he employed himself in concocting a smoking +tumbler of punch. + +"Your most obadient!" said Darby, with a profound reverence, as I +entered. "May I make so bowld as to surmise that my presence is n't +unsaysonable to your feelings? for I wouldn't be contumacious enough to +adjudicate without your honor's permission." + +What I muttered in reply I know not; but the whole party were speedily +reseated, every eye turned admiringly on Darby for the very neat and +appropriate expression of his apology. + +Young as I was and slight as had been the consideration heretofore +accorded me, there was that in the lonely desolation of my condition +which awakened all their sympathies, and directed all their interests +towards me; and in no country are the differences of rank such slight +barriers in excluding the feeling of one portion of the community from +the sorrows of the others: the Irish peasant, however humble, seems +to possess an intuitive tact on this subject, and to minister all +the consolations in his power with a gentle delicacy that cannot be +surpassed. + +The silence caused by my appearing among them was unbroken for some time +after I took my seat by the fire; and the only sounds were the +clinking of a spoon against the glass, or, the deep-drawn sigh of some +compassionate soul, as she wiped a stray tear from the corner of her eye +with her apron. + +Darby alone manifested a little impatience at the sudden change in a +party where his powers of agreeability had so lately been successful, +and fidgeted on his chair, unscrewed his pipes, blew into them, screwed +them on again, and then slyly nodded over to the housemaid, as he raised +his glass to his lips. + +"Never mind me," said I to the old cook, who, between grief and the +glare of a turf fire, had her face swelled out to twice its natural +size,--"never mind me, Molly, or I 'll go away." + +"And why would you, darlin'? Troth, no! sure there 's nobody feels for +you like them that was always about you. Take a cup of tay, alannah; it +'ll do you good." + +"Yes, Master Tom," said the butler; "you never tasted anything since +Tuesday night." + +"Do, sir, av ye plaze!" said the pretty housemaid, as she stood before +me, cup in hand. + +"Arrah! what's tay?" said Darby, in a contemptuous tone of voice. "A +few dirty laves, with a drop of water on top of them, that has neither +beatification nor invigoration. Here 's the _fons animi_!" said he, +patting the whisky bottle affectionately. "Did ye ever hear of the +ancients indulging in tay? D'ye think Polyphamus and Jupither took tay?" + +The cook looked down abashed and ashamed. + +"Tay's good enough for women,--no offence, Mrs. Cook!--but you might +boil down Paykin, and it'd never be potteen. _Ex quo vis ligno non fit +Mercurius_,--'You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.' That's +the meaning of it; ligno 's a sow." + +Heaven knows I was in no mirthful mood at that moment; but I burst into +a fit of laughing at this, in which, from a sense of politeness, the +party all joined. + +"That's it, acushla!" said the old cook, as her eyes sparkled with +delight; "sure it makes my heart light to see you smilin' again. Maybe +Darby would raise a tune now, and there 's nothing equal to it for the +spirits." + +"Yes, Mr. M'Keown," said the housemaid; "play 'Kiss me twice!' Master +Tom likes it." + +"Devil a doubt he does!" replied Darby, so maliciously as to make poor +Kitty blush a deep scarlet; "and no shame to him! But you see my fingers +is cut. Master Tom, and I can't perform the reduplicating intonations +with proper effect." + +"How did that happen. Darby?" said the butler. + +"Faix, easy enough. Tim Daly and myself was hunting a cat the other +evening, and she was under the dhresser, and we wor poking her with a +burnt stick and a raypinghook, and she somehow always escaped us, and +except about an inch of her tail, that we cut off, there was no getting +at her; and at last I hated a toastin'-fork and put it in, when out +she flew, teeth and claws, at me. Look, there 's where she stuck +her thieving nails into my thumb, and took the piece clean out. The +onnatural baste!" + +"Arrah!" said the old cook, with a most reflective gravity, "there 's +nothing so treacherous as a cat! "--a moral to the story which I found +met general assent among the whole company. + +"Nevertheless," observed Darby, with an air of ill-dissembled +condescension, "if it isn't umbrageous to your honor, I 'll intonate +something in the way of an ode or a canticle." + +"One of your own. Darby," said the butler, interrupting. + +"Well, I've no objection," replied Darby, with an affected modesty; +"for you see, master, like Homer, I accompany myself on the pipes, +though--glory be to God!--I'm not blind. The little thing I 'll give +you is imitated from the ancients--like Tibullus or Euthropeus--in the +natural key." + +Mister M'Keown, after this announcement, pushed his empty tumbler +towards the butler with a significant glance gave a few preparatory +grunts with the pipes, followed by a long dolorous quaver, and then a +still more melancholy cadence, like the expiring bray of an asthmatic +jackass; all of which sounds, seeming to be the essential preliminaries +to any performance on the bagpipes, were listened to with great +attention by the company. At length, having assumed an imposing +attitude, he lifted up both elbows, tilted his little finger affectedly +up, dilated his cheeks, and began the following to the well-known air of +"Una:"-- + + +MUSIC. + + Of all the arts and sciences, + 'T is music surely takes the sway; + It has its own appliances + To melt the heart or make it gay. + To raise us, + Or plaze us, + There 's nothing with it can compare; + To make us bowld, + Or hot or cowld, + Just as suits the kind of air. + + There 's not a woman, man, or child. + That has n't felt its powers too; + Don't deny it!--when you smiled + Your eyes confess'd, that so did you. + + The very winds that sigh or roar; + The leaves that rustle, dry and sear; + The waves that beat upon the shore,-- + They all are music to your ear. + It was of use + To Orpheus,-- + He charmed the fishes in the say; + So everything + Alive can sing,-- + The kettle even sings for tay! + + There's not a woman, man, or child. + That hau n't felt its power too; + Don't deny it!--when you smiled + Your eyes confess'd, that so did you. + + +I have certainly since this period listened to more brilliant musical +performances, but for the extent of the audience, I do not think it was +possible to reap a more overwhelming harvest of applause. Indeed, the +old cook kept repeating stray fragments of the words to every air that +crossed her memory for the rest of the evening; and as for Kitty, I +intercepted more than one soft glance intended for Mister M'Keown as a +reward for his minstrelsy. + +Darby, to do him justice, seemed fully sensible of his triumph, and +sat back in his chair and imbibed his liquor like a man who had won his +laurels, and needed no further efforts to maintain his eminent position +in life. + +As the wintry wind moaned dismally without, and the leafless trees +shook and trembled with the cold blast, the party drew in closer to the +cheerful turf fire, with that sense of selfish delight that seems +to revel in the contrast of indoor comfort with the bleakness and +dreariness without. + +"Well, Darby," said the butler, "you weren't far wrong when you took my +advice to stay here for the night; listen to how it 's blowing." + +"That 's hail!" said the old cook, as the big drops came pattering down +the chimney, and hissed on the red embers as they fell. "It 's a cruel +night, glory be to God!" Here the old lady blessed herself,--a ceremony +which the others followed. + +"For all that," said Darby, "I ought to be up at Crocknavorrigha this +blessed evening. Joe Neale was to be married to-day." + +"Joe! is it Joe?" said the butler. + +"I wish her luck of him, whoever she is!" added the cook. + +"Faix, and he's a smart boy!" chimed in the housemaid, with something +not far from a blush as she spoke. + +"He was a raal devil for coortin', anyhow!" said the butler. + +"It's just for peace he's marrying now, then," said Darby; "the women +never gave him any quietness. Just so, Kitty; you need n't be looking +cross that way,--it 's truth I'm telling you. They were always coming +about him, and teasing him, and the like, and he could n't bear it any +longer." + +"Arrah, howld your prate!" interrupted the old cook, whose indignation +for the honor of the sex could not endure more. "He's the biggest liar +from this to himself; and that same 's not a small word. Darby M'Keown." + +There was a pointedness in the latter part of this speech which might +have led to angry consequences, had I not interposed by asking Mr. +M'Keown himself if he ever was in love. + +"Arrah, it 's wishing it, I am, the same love. Sure my back and sides +is sore with it; my misfortunes would fill a book. Did n't I bind myself +apprentice to a carpenter for love of Molly Scraw, a niece he had, just +to be near her and be looking at her; and that 's the way I shaved off +the top of my thumb with the plane. By the mortial, it was near killing +me. I usedn't to eat or drink; and though I was three years at the +thrade, faix, at the end of it, I could n't tell you the gimlet from the +handsaw!" + +"And you wor never married, Mister M'Keown?" said Kitty. + +"Never, my darling, but often mighty near it. Many 's the quare thing +happened to me," said Darby, meditatingly; "and sure if it was n't my +guardian angel, or something of the kind, prevented it, I 'd maybe have +more wives this day than the Emperor of Roossia himself." + +"Arrah, don't be talking!" grunted out the old cook, whose passion could +scarcely be restrained at the boastful tone Mister M'Keown assumed in +descanting on his successes. + +"There was Biddy Finn," continued Darby, without paying any attention +to the cook's interruption; "she might be Mrs. M'Keown this day, av it +wasn't for a remarkable thing that happened." + +"What was that?" said Kitty, with eager curiosity. + +"Tell us about it. Mister M'Keown," said the butler. + +"The devil a word of truth he'll tell you," grumbled the cook, as she +raked the ashes with a stick. + +"There 's them here does not care for agreeable intercoorse," said +Darby, assuming a grand air. + +"Come, Daxby; I 'd like to hear the story," said I. + +After a few preparatory scruples, in which modesty, offended dignity, +and conscious merit struggled, Mr. M'Keown began by informing us that +he had once a most ardent attachment to a certain Biddy Finn, of +Ballyclough,--a lady of considerable personal attractions, to whom for a +long time he had been constant, and at last, through the intervention of +Father Curtin, agreed to marry. Darby's consent to the arrangements was +not altogether the result of his reverence's eloquence, nor indeed the +justice of the case; nor was it quite owing to Biddy's black eyes and +pretty lips; but rather to the soul-persuading powers of some fourteen +tumblers of strong punch which he swallowed at a _seance_ in Biddy's +father's house one cold evening in November, after which he betook +himself to the road homewards, where--But we must give his story in his +own words: + +"Whether it was the prospect of happiness before me, or the potteen," +quoth Darby, "but so it was,--I never felt a step of the road home that +night, though it was every foot of five mile. When I came to a stile, I +used to give a whoop, and over it; then I'd run for a hundred yards +or two, flourish my stick, cry out, 'Who 'll say a word against Biddy +Finn?' and then over another fence, flying. Well, I reached home at +last, and wet enough I was; but I did n't care for that. I opened the +door and struck a light; there was the least taste of kindling on the +hearth, and I put some dry sticks into it and some turf, and knelt down +and began blowing it up. + +"'Troth,' says I to myself, 'if I wor married, it isn't this way I'd +be,--on my knees like a nagur; but when I 'd come home, there 'ud be +a fine fire blazin' fornint me, and a clean table out before it, and +a beautiful cup of tay waiting for me, and somebody I won't mintion, +sitting there, looking at me, smilin'.' + +"'Don't be making a fool of yourself, Darby M'Keown,' said a gruff voice +near the chimley. + +"I jumped at him, and cried out, 'Who 's that?' But there was no answer; +and at last, after going round the kitchen, I began to think it was only +my own voice I heard; so I knelt down again, and set to blowing away at +the fire. + +"'And it's yerself, Biddy,' says I, 'that would be an ornament to a +dacent cabin; and a purtier leg and foot--' + +"'Be the light that shines, you're making me sick. Darby M'Keown,' said +the voice again. + +"'The heavens be about us!' says I, 'what 's that? and who are you at +all?' for someways I thought I knew the voice. + +"'I 'm your father!' says the voice. + +"'My father!' says I. 'Holy Joseph, is it truth you 're telling me?' + +"'The divil a word o' lie in it,' says the voice. 'Take me down, and +give me an air o' the fire, for the night 's cowld.' + +"'And where are you, father,' says I, 'av it's plasing to ye?' + +"'I 'm on the dhresser,' says he. 'Don't you see me?' + +"'Sorra bit o' me. Where now?' + +"'Arrah, on the second shelf, next the rowling-pin. Don't you see the +green jug?--that's me.' + +"'Oh, the saints in heaven be about us!' says I; 'and are you a green +jug?' + +"'I am,' says he; 'and sure I might be worse. Tim Healey's mother is +only a cullender, and she died two years before me.' + +"'Oh! father, darlin',' says I, 'I hoped you wor in glory; and you only +a jug all this time!' + +"'Never fret about it,' says my father; 'it 's the transmogrification +of sowls, and we 'll be right by and by. Take me down, I say, and put me +near the fire.' + +"So I up and took him down, and wiped him with a clean cloth, and put +him on the hearth before the blaze. + +"'Darby,' says he, 'I'm famished with the druth. Since you took to +coortin' there 's nothing ever goes into my mouth; haven't you a taste +of something in the house?' + +"I wasn't long till I hated some wather, and took down the bottle of +whiskey and some sugar, and made a rousing jugful, as strong as need be. + +"'Are you satisfied, father?' says I. + +"'I am,' says he; 'you 're a dutiful child, and here 's your health, +and don't be thinking of Biddy Finn,' + +"With that my father began to explain how there was never any rest nor +quietness for a man after he married,--more be token, if his wife was +fond of talking; and that he never could take his dhrop of drink in +comfort afterwards. + +"'May I never,' says he, 'but I 'd rather be a green jug, as I am now, +than alive again wid your mother. Sure it 's not here you'd be sitting +to-night,' says he, 'discoorsing with me, av you wor married; devil a +bit. Fill me,' says my father, 'and I 'll tell you more.' + +"And sure enough I did, and we talked away till near daylight; and then +the first thing I did was to take the ould mare out of the stable, and +set off to Father Curtin, and towld him all about it, and how my father +would n't give his consent by no means. + +"'We'll not mind the marriage,' says his rivirence; 'but go back and +bring me your father,--the jug, I mean,--and we 'll try and get him out +of trouble; for it 's trouble he 's in, or he would n't be that way. +Give me the two pound ten,' says the priest; 'you had it for the +wedding, and it will be better spent getting your father out of +purgatory than sending you into it. '" + +"Arrah, aren't you ashamed of yourself?" cried the cook, with a look of +ineffable scorn, as he concluded. + +"Look now," said Darby, "see this; if it is n't thruth--" + +"And what became of your father?" interrupted the butler. + +"And Biddy Finn, what did she do?" said the housemaid. + +Darby, however, vouchsafed no reply, but sat back in his chair with an +offended look, and sipped his liquor in silence. + +A fresh brew of punch under the butler's auspices speedily, however, +dispelled the cloud that hovered over the conviviality of the party; and +even the cook vouchsafed to assist in the preparation of some rashers, +which Darby suggested were beautiful things for the thirst at this +hour of the night; but whether in allaying or exciting it, he did n't +exactly lay down. The conversation now became general; and as they +seemed resolved to continue their festivities to a late hour, I took the +first opportunity I could, when unobserved, to steal away and return to +my own room. + +No sooner alone again than all the sorrow of my lonely state came back +upon me; and as I laid my head on my pillow, the full measure of my +misery flowed in upon my heart, and I sobbed myself to sleep. + + + +CHAPTER III. THE DEPARTURE + +The violent beating of the rain against the glass, and the loud crash of +the storm as it shook the window-frames or snapped the sturdy branches +of the old trees, awoke me. I got up, and opening the shutters, +endeavored to look out; but the darkness was impenetrable, and I could +see nothing but the gnarled and grotesque forms of the leafless trees +dimly marked against the sky, as they moved to and fro like the arms +of some mighty giant. Masses of heavy snow melted by the rain fell at +intervals from the steep roof, and struck the ground beneath with a +low sumph like thunder. A grayish, leaden tinge that marked the horizon +showed it was near daybreak; but there was nought of promise in this +harbinger of morning. Like my own career, it opened gloomily and +in sadness: so felt I at least; and as I sat beside the window, and +strained my eyes to pierce the darkening storm, I thought that even +watching the wild hurricane without was better than brooding over the +sorrows within my own bosom. + +How long I remained thus I know not; but already the faint streak that +announces sunrise marked the dull-colored sky, when the cheerful sounds +of a voice singing in the room underneath attracted me. I listened, and +in a moment recognized the piper. Darby M'Keown. He moved quickly about, +and by his motions I could collect that he was making preparations for +his journey. + +If I could venture to pronounce, from the merry tones of his voice and +the light elastic step with which he trod the floor, I certainly would +not suppose that the dreary weather had any terror for him. He spoke so +loud that I could catch a great deal of the dialogue he maintained with +himself, and some odd verses of the song with which from time to time he +garnished his reflections. + +"Marry, indeed! Catch me at it--nabocklish--with the countryside +before me, and the hoith of good eating and drinking for a blast of the +chantre. Well, well! women 's quare craytures anyway. + + 'Ho, ho! Mister Ramey, + No more of your blarney, + I 'd have yoa not make so free; + You may go where you plaze. + And make love at your ease. + But the devil may have you for me.' + +Very well, ma'am. Mister M'Keown is your most obedient,--never say it +twice, honey; and isn't there as good fish, eh?--whoop! + + 'Oh! my heart is unazy. + My brain is run crazy, + Sure it 's often I wish I was dead; + 'Tis your smile now so sweet! + Now your ankles and feet. + That 's walked into my heart, Molly Spread! + Tol de rol, de rol, oh!' + +Whew! thttt 's rain, anyhow. I would n't mind it, bad as it is, if I +hadn't the side of a mountain before me; but sure it comes to the same +in the end. Catty Delany is a good warrant for a pleasant evening; and, +please God, I 'll be playing 'Baltiorum' beside the fire there before +this time to-night. + + 'She 'd a pig and boneens. + And a bed and a dresser. + And a nate little room + For the father confessor; + With a cupboard and curtains, and something, I 'm towld. + That his riv'rance liked when the weather was cowld. + And it 's hurroo, hurroo! Biddy O'Rafferty!' + +After all, aix, the priest bates us out. There 's eight o'clock now, and +I'm not off; devil a one's stirring in the house either. Well, I believe +I may take my leave of it; sorrow many tunes of the pipes it's likely to +hear, with Tony Basset over it. And my heart 's low when I think of that +child there. Poor Tom! and it was you liked fun when you could have it." + +I wanted but the compassionate tone in which these few words were spoken +to decide me in a resolution that I had been for some time pondering +over. I knew that ere many hours Basset would come in search of me; +I felt that, once in his power, I had nothing to expect but the +long-promised payment of his old debt of hatred to me. In a few seconds +I ran over with myself the prospect of misery before me, and determined +at once, at every hazard, to make my escape. Darby seemed to afford me +the best possible opportunity for this purpose; and I dressed myself, +therefore, in the greatest haste, and throwing whatever I could find of +my wardrobe into my carpet-bag, I pocketed my little purse, with all +my worldly wealth,--some twelve or thirteen shillings,--and noiselessly +slipped downstairs to the room beneath. I reached the door at the very +moment Darby opened it to issue forth. He started back with fear, and +crossed himself twice. + +"Don't be afraid. Darby," said I, uneasy lest he should make any +noise that would alarm the others; "I want to know which road you are +travelling this morning." + +"The saints be about us, but you frightened me. Master Tommy; though, +intermediately, I may obsarve, I 'm by no ways timorous. I 'm going +within two miles of Athlone." + +"That's exactly where I want to go. Darby; will you take me with you?" +for at the instant Captain Bubbleton's address flashed on my mind, and I +resolved to seek him out and ask his advice in my difficulties. + +"I see it all," replied Darby, as he placed the tip of his finger on his +nose. "I conceive your embarrassments,--you're afraid of Basset; +and small blame to you. But don't do it. Master Tommy,--don't do it, +alannah! that 's the hardest life at all." + +"What?" said I, in amazement. + +"To 'list! Sure I know what you're after. Faix, it would sarve you +better to larn the pipes." + +I hastened to assure Darby of his error; and in a few words informed him +of what I had overheard of Basset's intentions respecting me. + +"Make you an attorney!" said Darby, interrupting me abruptly; "an +attorney! There's nothing so mean as an attorney. The police is +gentlemen compared to them,--they fight it out fair like men; but the +other chaps sit in a house planning and contriving mischief all day +long, inventing every kind of wickedness, and then getting people to +do it. See, now, I believe in my conscience the devil was the first +attorney, and it was just to serve his own ends that he bred a ruction +between Adam and Eve. But whisht! there's somebody stirring. Are you for +the road?" + +"Yes, Darby; my mind's made up." + +Indeed, his own elegant eulogium on legal pursuits assisted my +resolution, and filled my heart with renewed disgust at the thought of +such a guardian as Tony Basset. + +We walked stealthily along the gloomy passages, traversed the old +hall, and noiselessly withdrew the heavy bolts and the great chain that +fastened the door. The rain was sweeping along the ground in torrents, +and the wind dashed it against the window panes in fitful gusts. It +needed all our strength to close the door after us against the storm, +and it was only after several trials that we succeeded in doing so. The +hollow sound of the oak door smote upon my heart as it closed behind me; +in an instant the sense of banishment, of utter destitution, was present +to my mind. I turned my eyes to gaze upon the old house,--to take my +last farewell of it forever! Gloomy as my prospect was, my sorrow was +less for the sad future than for the misery of the moment. + +"No, Master Tom! no, you must go back," said Darby, who watched with +a tender interest the sickly paleness of my cheek, and the tottering +uncertainty of my walk. + +"No, Darby," said I, with an effort at firmness; "I'll not look round +any more." And bending my head against the storm, I stepped out boldly +beside my companion. We walked on without speaking, and soon left the +neglected avenue and ruined gate lodge behind us, as we reached the +highroad that led to Athlone. + +Darby, who only waited to let my first burst of sorrow find its natural +vent, no sooner perceived from my step and the renewed color of my cheek +that I had rallied my courage once more, than he opened all his stores +of agreeability, which, to my inexperience in such matters, were by +no means inconsiderable. Abandoning at once all high-flown +phraseology,--which Mr. M'Keown, I afterwards remarked, only retained as +a kind of gala suit for great occasions,--he spoke freely and naturally. +Lightening the way with many a story,--now grave, now gay,--he seemed +to care little for the inclemency of the weather, and looked pleasantly +forward to a happy evening as an ample reward for the present hardship. + +"And the captain, Master Tom; you say he's an agreeable man?" said +Darby, alluding to my late companion on the coach, whose merits I was +never tired of recapitulating. + +"Oh, delightful! He has travelled everywhere, and seems to know +everybody and everything. He 's very rich, too; I forget how many houses +he has in England, and elephants without number in India." + +"Faix, you were in luck to fall in with him!" observed Darby. + +"Yes, that I was I I 'm sure he 'll do something for me; and for you +too, Darby, when he knows you have been so kind to me." + +"Me! What did I do, darling? and what could I do, a poor piper like me? +Wouldn't it be honor enough for me if a gentleman's son would travel the +road with me? Darby M'Keown's a proud man this day to have you beside +him." + +A ruined cabin in the road, whose blackened walls and charred timbers +denoted its fate, here attracted my companion's attention. He stopped +for a second or two to look on it; and then, kneeling down, he muttered +a short prayer for the eternal rest of some one departed, and taking +up a stone, he threw it on a heap of similar ones which lay near the +doorside. + +"What happened there, Darby?" said I, as he resumed his way. + +"They wor out in the thrubles!" was his only reply, as he cast a glance +behind, to perceive if any one had remarked him. + +Though he made no further allusion to the fate of those who once +inhabited the cabin, he spoke freely of his own share in the eventful +year of 'Ninety-eight' justifying, as it then seemed to me, every step +of the patriotic party, and explaining the causes of their unsuccess so +naturally and so clearly that I could not help following with interest +every detail of his narrative, and joining in his regrets for the +unexpected and adverse strokes fortune dealt upon them. As he warmed +with his subject, he spoke of France with an enthusiasm that I soon +found contagious. He told me of the glorious career of the French armies +in Italy and Austria; and of that wonderful man, of whom I then +heard for the first time, as spreading a halo of victory over his +nation,--contrasting, as he went on, the rewards which awaited heroism +and bravery in that service with the purchased promotion in ours, +artfully illustrating his position by a reference to myself, and what +my fortunes would have been if born under that happier sky. "No elder +brother there," said he, "to live in affluence, while the younger ones +are turned out to wander on the wide world, houseless and penniless. And +all these things we might have done, had we been but true to ourselves." +I drank in all he said with avidity. The bearing of his arguments on my +own fortunes gave them an interest and an apparent truth my young mind +eagerly devoured; and when he ceased to speak, I pondered over all he +told me in a spirit that left its impress on my whole future life. + +It was a new notion to me to connect my own fortunes with anything in +the political condition of the country; and while it gave my young heart +a kind of martyred courage, it set my brain a-thinking on a class of +subjects which never before possessed any interest for me. There was a +flattery, too, in the thought that I owed my straitened circumstances +less to any demerits of my own, than to political disabilities. The time +was well chosen by my companion to instil his doctrines into my heart. +I was young, ardent, enthusiastic; my own wrongs had taught me to +hate injustice and oppression; my condition had made me feel, and feel +bitterly, the humiliation of dependence; and if I listened with eager +curiosity to every story and every incident of the bygone Rebellion, it +was because the contest was represented to me as one between tyranny on +one side and struggling liberty on the other. I heard the names of those +who sided with the insurgent party extolled as the great and good men of +their country; their ancient families and hereditary claims furnishing +a contrast to many of the opposite party, whose recent settlement in the +island and new-born aristocracy were held up in scoff and derision. In +a word, I learned to believe that the one side was characterized by +cruelty, oppression, and injustice; the other, conspicuous only for +endurance, courage, patriotism, and truth. What a picture was this to a +mind like mine! and at a moment, too, when I seemed to realize in my own +desolation an example of the very sufferings I heard of! + +If the portrait McKeown drew of Ireland was sad and gloomy, he painted +France in colors the brightest and most seductive. Dwelling less on the +political advantages which the Revolution had won for the popular party, +he directed my entire attention to the brilliant career of glory +the French army had followed; the triumphant success of the Italian +campaign; the war in Germany; and the splendor of Paris, which he +represented as a very paradise on earth; but above all, he dwelt on +the character and achievements of the First Consul, recounting many +anecdotes of his early life, from the period when he was a schoolboy +at Brienne to the hour when he dictated the conditions of peace to the +oldest monarchies of Europe, and proclaimed war with the voice of one +who came as an avenger. + +I drank in every word he spoke with avidity. The very enthusiasm of his +manner was contagious; I felt my heart bound with rapturous delight +at some hardy deed of soldierlike daring, and conceived a kind of +wild idolatry for the man who seemed to have infused his own glorious +temperament into the mighty thousands around him, and converted a whole +nation into heroes. + +Darby's information on all these matters--which seemed to me something +miraculous--had been obtained at different periods from French +emissaries who were scattered through Ireland; many of them old soldiers +who had served in the campaigns of Egypt and Italy. + +"But sure, if you 'd come with me, Master Tom, I could bring you where +you'll see them yourself; and you could talk to them of the battles and +skirmishes, for I suppose you spake French." + +"Very little. Darby. How sorry I am now that I don't know it well." + +"No matter; they'll soon teach you, and many a thing besides. There 's +a captain I know of, not far from where we are this minute, could learn +you the small sword,--in style, he could. I wish you saw him in his +green uniform with white facings, and three elegant crosses upon it +that General Bonaparte gave him with his own hands; he had them on one +Sunday, and I never see'd anything equal to it." + +"And are there many French officers hereabouts?" + +"Not now; no, they're almost all gone. After the rising they went back +to France, except a few. Well, there'll be call for them again, please +God." + +"Will there be another Rebellion, then, Darby?" + +As I put this question fearlessly, and in a voice loud enough to be +heard at some distance, a horseman, wrapped up in a loose cloth cloak, +was passing. He suddenly pulled up short, and turning his horse +round, stood exactly opposite to the piper. Darby saluted the stranger +respectfully, and seemed desirous to pass on; but the other, turning +round in his saddle, fixed a stern look on him, and he cried out,-- + +"What! at the old trade, M'Keown. Is there no curing you, eh?" + +"Just so, major," said Darby, assuming a tone of voice he had not +made use of the entire morning; "I 'm conveying a little instrumental +recreation." + +"None of your damned gibberish with me. Who 's that with you?" + +"He 's the son of a neighbor of mine, your honor," said Darby, with +an imploring look at me not to betray him. "His father 's a +schoolmaster,--a philomath, as one might say." + +I was about to contradict this statement bluntly, when the stranger +called out to me,-- + +"Mark me, young sir, you 're not in the best of company this morning, +and I recommend you to part with your friend as soon as may be. And +you," said he, turning to Darby, "let me see you in Athlone at ten +o'clock to-morrow. D' ye hear me?" + +The piper grew pale as death as he heard this command, to which he only +responded by touching his hat in silence; while the horseman, drawing +his cloak around, dashed his spurs into his beast's flanks, and was soon +out of sight. Darby stood for a moment or two looking down the road, +where the stranger had disappeared; a livid hue colored his cheek, and +a tremulous quivering of his under-lip gave him the appearance of one in +ague. + +"I'll be even with ye yet," muttered he between his clenched teeth; "and +when the hour comes--" + +Here he repeated some words in Irish with a vehemence of manner that +actually made my blood tingle; then suddenly recovering himself, he +assumed a kind of sickly smile. "That's a hard man, the major." + +"I'm thinking," said Darby, after a pause of some minutes,--"I 'm +thinking it 's better for you not to go into Athlone with me; for if +Basset wishes to track you out, that 'll be the first place he 'll try. +Besides, now that the major has seen you, he'll never forget you." + +Having pledged myself to adopt any course my companion recommended, he +resumed,-- + +"Ay, that 's the best way. I 'll lave you at Ned Malone's in the Glen; +and when I 've done with the major in the morning, I 'll look after your +friend the captain, and tell him where you are." + +I readily assented to this arrangement; and only asked what distance it +might yet be to Ned Malone's, for already I began to feel fatigue. + +"A good ten miles," said Darby,--"no less; but we 'll stop here above, +and get something to eat, and then we 'll take a rest for an hour or +two, and you 'll think nothing of the road after." + +I stepped out with increased energy at the cheering prospect; and +although the violence of the weather was nothing abated, I consoled +myself with thinking of the rest and refreshment before me, and resolved +not to bestow a thought upon the present. Darby, on the other hand, +seemed more depressed than before, and betrayed in many ways a state of +doubt and uncertainty as to his movements,--sometimes pushing on rapidly +for half a mile or so; then relapsing into a slow and plodding +pace; often looking back too, and more than once coming to a perfect +stand-still, talking the whole time to himself in a low muttering voice. + +In this way we proceeded for above two miles, when at last I descried +through the beating rain the dusky gable of a small cabin in the +distance, and eagerly asked if that were to be our halting place. + +"Yes," said Darby, "that 's Peg's cabin; and though it 's not very +remarkable in the way of cookery or the like, it 's the only house +within seven miles of us." + +As we came nearer, the aspect of the building became even less enticing. +It was a low mud hovel, with a miserable roof of sods, or scraws, as +they are technically called; a wretched attempt at a chimney occupying +the gable; and the front to the road containing a small square aperture, +with a single pane of glass as a window, and a wicker contrivance in +the shape of a door, which, notwithstanding the severity of the day, +lay wide open to permit the exit of the smoke, which rolled more freely +through this than through the chimney. A filthy pool of stagnant, +green-covered water stood before the door, through which a little +causeway of earth led. Upon this a thin, lank-sided sow was standing to +be rained, on, her long, pointed snout turned meditatively towards the +luscious mud beside her. Displacing this Important member of the family +with an unceremonious kick. Darby stooped to enter the low doorway, +uttering as he did so the customary "God save all here!" As I followed +him in, I did not catch the usual response to the greeting, and from the +thick smoke which filled the cabin, could see nothing whatever around +me. + +"Well, Peg," said Darby, "how is it with you the day?" + +A low grunting noise issued from the foot of a little mud wall beside +the fireplace. I turned and beheld the figure of a woman of some seventy +years of age, seated beside the turf embers; her dark eyes, bleared with +smoke and dimmed with age, were still sharp and piercing; and her nose, +thin and aquiline, indicated a class of features by no means common +among the people. Her dress was the blue frieze coat of a laboring man, +over the woollen gown usually worn by women. Her feet and legs were +bare; and her head was covered with an old straw bonnet, whose faded +ribbon and tarnished finery betokened its having once belonged to some +richer owner. There was no vestige of any furniture,--neither table nor +chair, nor dresser, nor even a bed, unless some straw laid against the +wall in one corner could be thus called; a pot suspended over the wet +and sodden turf by a piece of hay rope, and an earthen pipkin with water +stood beside her. The floor of the hovel, lower in many places than the +road without, was cut up into sloppy mud by the tread of the sow, who +ranged at will through the premises. In a word, more dire and wretched +poverty it was impossible to conceive. + +Darby's first movement was to take off the lid and peer into the pot, +when the bubbling sound of the boiling potatoes assured him that we +should have at least something to eat; his next, was to turn a little +basket upside down for a seat, to which he motioned me with his hand; +then, approaching the old woman, he placed his hand to his mouth and +shouted in her ear,-- + +"What 's the major after this morning, Peg?" + +She shook her head gloomily a couple of times, but gave no answer. + +"I 'm thinking there 's bad work going on at the town there," cried he, +in the same loud tone as before. + +Peg muttered something in Irish, but far too low to be audible. + +"Is she mad, poor thing?" said I, in a whisper. + +The words were not well uttered when she darted on me her black and +piercing eyes, with a look so steadfast as to make me quail beneath +them. + +"Who 's that there?" said the hag, in a croaking, harsh voice. + +"He 's a young boy from beyond Loughrea." + +"No!" shouted she, in a tone of passionate energy; "don't tell me a lie. +I 'd know his brows among a thousand,--he 's a son of Matt Burke's, of +Cronmore." + +"Begorra, she is a witch; devil a doubt of it!" muttered Darby between +his teeth. "You 're right, Peg," continued he, after a moment. "His +father's dead, and the poor child's left nothing in the world." + +"And so ould Matt's dead?" interrupted she. "When did he die?" + +"On Tuesday morning, before day." + +"I was driaming of him that morning, and I thought he kem up here to the +cabin door on his knees, and said, 'Peggy, Peggy M'Casky! I'm come to +ax your pardon for all I done to you.' And I sat up in my bed, and cried +out, 'Who 's that?' and he said, ''T is me,--'t is Mister Burke; I 'm +come to give you back your lease.' 'I 'll tell you what you 'll give +me back,' says I; 'give me the man whose heart you bruck with bad +treatment; give me the two fine boys you transported for life; give me +back twenty years of my own, that I spent in sorrow and misery.'" + +"Peg, acushla! don't speak of it any more. The poor child here, that +'s fasting from daybreak, he is n't to blame for what his father did. I +think the praties is done by this time." + +So saying, he lifted the pot from the fire, and carried it to the door +to strain off the water. The action seemed to rouse the old woman, who +rose rapidly to her legs, and, hastening to the door, snatched the pot +from his hand and pushed him to one side. + +"'Tis two days since I tasted bit or sup; 'tis God himself knows when +and where I may have it again; but if I never broke my fast, I'll not do +it with the son of him that left me a lone woman this day, that brought +the man that loved me to the grave, and my children to shame forever." + +As she spoke, she dashed the pot into the road with such force as to +break it into fifty pieces; and then, sitting down on the outside of the +cabin, she wrung her hands and moaned piteously, in the very excess of +her sorrow. + +"Let us be going," said Darby, in a whisper. "There 'a no spaking to her +when she 's one of them fits on her." + +We moved silently from the hovel, and gained the road. My heart was full +to bursting; shame and abasement overwhelmed me, and I dated not look +up. + +"Good-by, Peg. I hope we 'll be better friends when we meet again," said +Darby, as he passed out. + +She made no reply, but entered the cabin, from which, in an instant +after, she emerged, carrying a lighted sod of turf in a rude wooden +tongs. + +[Illustration: The Curse 42] + +"Come along quick!" said Darby, with a look of terror; "she's going to +curse you." + +I turned round, transfixed and motionless. If my life depended on it, I +could not have stirred a limb. The old woman by this time had knelt down +on the road, and was muttering rapidly to herself. + +"Gome along, I say I," said Darby, pulling me by the arm. + +"And now," cried the hag aloud, "may bad luck be your shadow wherever +you walk, with sorrow behind and bad hopes before you! May you never +taste happiness nor ease; and, like this turf, may your heart be always +burning here, and--" + +I heard no more, for Darby, tearing me away by main force, dragged me +along the road, just as the hissing turf embers had fallen at my feet +where the hag had thrown them. + + + +CHAPTER IV. MY WANDERINGS. + +I CANNOT deny it,--the horrible imprecation I had heard uttered against +me seemed to fill up the cup of my misery. An outcast, without home, +without a friend, this alone was wanting to overwhelm me with very +wretchedness; and as I covered my face with both hands, I thought my +heart would break. + +"Come, come. Master Tom!" said Darby, "don't be afeard; it'll never do +you harm, all she said. I made the sign of the cross on the road between +you and her with the end of my stick, and you 're safe enough this time. +Faix, she 's a quare divil when she 's roused,--to destroy an illigint +pot of praties that way! But sure she had hard provocation. Well, well! +you war n't to blame, anyhow; Tony Basset will have a sore reckoning +some day for all this." + +The mention of that name recalled me in a moment to the consideration +of my own danger if he were to succeed in overtaking me, and I eagerly +communicated my fear to Darby. + +"That's thrue," said he; "we must leave the highroad, for Basset will be +up at the house by this, and will lose no time in following you out. If +you had a bit of something to eat." + +"As to that. Darby," said I, with a sickly effort to smile, "Peg's curse +took away my appetite, full as well as her potatoes would have done." + +"'T is a bad way to breakfast, after all," said Darby. "Do you ever take +a shaugh of the pipe, Master Tom?" + +"No," said I, laughing, "I never learned to smoke yet." + +"Well," replied he, a little piqued by the tone of my answer, "'t is +worse you might be doin' than that same. Tobacco's a fine thing for the +heart! Many's the time, when I 'm alone, if I had n't the pipe I 'd be +lone and sorrowful,--thinking over the hard times and the like; but when +I 've filled my dudeen, and do be watching the smoke curling up, I begin +dhraming about sitting round the fire with pleasant companions, chatting +away, and discoorsing, and telling stories. And then I invint the +stories to myself about quare devils of pipers travelling over the +country, making love here and there, and playing dhroll tunes out of +their own heads; and then I make the tunes to them. And after that, +maybe, I make words, and sometimes lay down the pipe and begin singing +to myself; and often I take up the bagpipes and play away with all my +might, till I think I see the darlingest little fairies ever you seen +dancing before me, setting to one another, and turning round, and +capering away,--down the middle and up again; small chaps, with +three-cornered hats, and wigs, and little red coats all slashed with +goold; and beautiful little craytures houlding their petticoats, +this way to show a nate leg and foot; and I do be calling out to +them,--'Hands round!' 'That 's your sowl!' 'Look at the green fellow; +'tis himself can do it!' 'Rise the jig, hoo!'--and faix 't is sorry +enough I 'm when they go, and lave me all alone by myself." + +"And how does all that come into your head. Darby?" "Troth, 'tis hard +to tell," said Darby, with a sigh. "But my notion is, that the poor man +that has neither fine houses, nor fine clothes, nor horses, nor sarvants +to amuse him, that Providence is kind to him in another way, and fills +his mind with all manner of dhroll thoughts and quare stories and bits +of songs, and the like, and lets him into many a sacret about fairies +and the good people that the rich has no time for. And sure you must +have often remarked it, that the quality has never a bit of fun in +them at all, but does be always coming to us for something to make them +laugh. Did you never lave the parlor, when the company was sitting with +lashings of wine and fruit, and every convaniency, and go downstairs to +the kitchen, where maybe there was nothing but a salt herrin' and a jug +of punch; and if you did, where wais the most fun, I wondher? Arrah, +when they bid me play a tune for them, and I look at their sorrowful +pale faces, and their dim eyes and the stiff way they sit upon their +chairs, I never put heart in it; but when I rise 'Dirty James,' or 'The +Little Bould Fox,' or 'Kiss my Lady,' for the boys and girls, sure 't is +my whole sowl does be in the bag, and I squeeze the notes out of it with +all my might." + +In this way did Darby converse until we reached a cross road, when, +coming to a halt, he pointed with his finger to the distance, and +said,-- + +"Athlone is down beyond that low mountain. Now, Ned Malone's is only six +short miles from this. You keep this byroad till you reach the smith's +forge; then turn off to the lift, across the fields, till you come to an +ould ruin; lave that to your right hand, and follow the boreen straight; +'twill bring you to Ned's doore." + +"But I don't know him," said I. + +"What signifies that? Sure 'tis no need you have. Tell him you 'll stop +there till Darby the Blast comes for you. And see, now, here 's all you +have to do: put your right thumb in the palm of your lift hand,--this +way,--and then kiss the other thumb, and then you have it. But mind +you don't do that till you 're alone with him; 't is a token between +ourselves." + +"I wish you were coming with me, Darby; I'd rather not leave you!" + +"'Tis myself mislikes it, too," said Darby, with a sigh. "But I daren't +miss going to Athlone; the major would soon ferret me out; and it's +worse it would be for me." + +"And what am I to do if Mr. Basset comes after me?" + +"If he has n't a throop of horse at his back, you may laugh at him in +Ned Malone's, And now good-by, acushla; and don't let your heart be +low,--you 'll be a man soon, you know." + +The words of encouragement could not have been more happily chosen to +raise my drooping spirits. The sense of opening manhood was already +stirring within me, and waited but for some direct occasion to elicit it +in full vigor. + +I shook Darby's hand with a firm grasp, and assuming the easiest smile I +could accomplish, I set out on the path before me with all the alacrity +in my power. + +The first thought that shot across my mind when I parted with my +companion was the utter loneliness of my condition; the next--and +it followed immediately on the other--was the bold consciousness of +personal freedom. I enjoyed at the moment the untrammelled liberty to +wander without let or control. All memory of Tony Basset was forgotten, +and I only remembered the restraint of school and the tyranny of my +master. My plan--and already I had formed a plan--was to become a +farmer's servant, to work as a daily laborer. Ned Malone would probably +accept of me, young as I was, in that capacity; and I had no other +ambition than such as secured my independence. + +As I travelled along I wove within my mind a whole web of imaginary +circumstances: of days of peaceful toil; of nights of happy and +contented rest; of friendship formed with those of my own age and +condition; of the long summer evenings when I should ramble alone to +commune with myself on my humble but happy lot; on the red hearth in +winter, around which the merry faces of the cottagers were beaming, as +some pleasant tale was told;--and as I asked myself, would I exchange a +life like this for all the advantages of fortune my brother's position +afforded him, my heart replied, No! Even then the words of the piper +had worked upon me, and already had I connected the possession of wealth +with oppression and tyranny, and the lowly fortunes of the poor man as +alone securing high-souled liberty of thought and freedom of speech and +action. + +I trudged along through the storm, turning from time to time to see +that I was not pursued; for as the day waned, my fear of being overtaken +increased, and in every moaning of the wind and every rustle of +the branches I thought I heard Tony Basset summoning me to stop and +surrender myself his prisoner. This dread gradually gave way, as the +loneliness of the road was unbroken by a single traveller; the wild +half-tilled fields presented no living object far or near; the thick +rain swooped along the swampy earth, and, in its misty darkness, shut +out all distant prospect; and a sadder picture eye never rested on. + +At length I reached the ruined church Darby spoke of, and following the +track he indicated, soon came out upon the boreen, where for the first +time some little shelter existed. + +It was only at nightfall, when fatigue and hunger had nearly obtained +the victory over me, that I saw, at some short distance in front, the +long roof of a well-thatched cabin. As I came nearer, I could perceive +that it contained several windows, and that the door was sheltered by a +small porch,--marks of comfort by no means common among the neighboring +farmers; lights moved here and there through the cabin; and the voices +of people driving in the cows, and the barking of dogs, were welcome +sounds to my ear. A half-clad urchin, of some seven years old, armed +with a huge bramble, was driving a flock of turkeys before him as I +approached; but instead of replying to my question, "If this were Ned +Malone's," the little fellow threw down his weapon, and ran for his +life. Before I could recover from my surprise at his strange conduct, +the door opened, and a large, powerful-looking man, in a long blue +coat, appeared. He carried a musket in his hand, which, as soon as he +perceived the figure before him, he laid down within the porch, calling +out to some one inside,-- + +"Go back, Maurice,--it's nothing. Well, sir," continued he, addressing +me, "do you want anybody hereabouts?" + +"Is this Ned Malone's, may I ask?" said I. + +"It is," answered he; "and I am Ned Malone, at your service. And what +then?" + +There was something in the cold, forbidding tone in which he spoke, as +well as in the hard severity of his look, that froze all my resolution +to ask a favor, and I would gladly have sought elsewhere for shelter for +the night had I known where to look. + +The delay this indecision on my part created, caused him to repeat +his question, while he fixed his eyes on me with a dark and piercing +expression. + +"Darby the Blast told me," said I, with a great effort to seem at ease, +"that you would give me shelter to-night. To-morrow morning he 's to +come here for me." + +"And who are you," said he, harshly, "that I am to take into my house? +In these troublesome times a man may ask the name of his lodger." + +"My name is Burke. My father's name was Burke, of Cremore; but he 's +dead now." + +"'T is you that Basset is after all day, is it?" + +"I can't tell; but I fear it may be." + +"Well, some one told him that you took the Dublin road, and another sent +him up here, and the boys here sent him to Durragh. And what are you +after, young gentleman? Do you dislike Tony Basset? Is that it?" + +"Yes," said I; "I 'm resolved never to go home and live with him. He +made my father hate me, and through him I have been left a beggar." + +"There 's more than you has a score to settle with Tony. Come into the +house and get your clothes dried. But stop, I have a bit of a caution +to give you. If you see anything or anybody while you 're under my roof +that you did n't expect--" + +"Trust me there!" interrupted I, eagerly, and making the sign the piper +had taught me. + +"What!" cried Malone, in astonishment; "are you one of us? Is a son +of Matt Burke's going to redress the wrongs his father and grandfather +before him inflicted? Give me your hand, my brave boy; there 's nothing +in this house isn't your own from this minit." + +I grasped his strong hand in mine, and with a proud and swelling heart, +followed him into the cabin. + +A whisper crept round the various persons that sat and stood about the +kitchen fire as I appeared among them; and the next moment one after +another pressed anxiously forward to shake hands with me. + +"Help him off with his wet clothes, Maurice," said Malone, to a young +man of some twenty years; and in a few seconds my wet garments were hung +on chairs before the blaze, and I myself, accompanied with a frieze +coat that would make a waistcoat for an elephant, sat basking before +the cheerful turf fire. The savory steam of a great mess of meat and +potatoes induced me to peep into the large pot over the fire. A hearty +burst of laughing from the whole party acknowledged their detection of +my ravenous hunger, and the supper was smoking on the board in a few +minutes after. Unhappily, a good number of years have rolled over my +head since that night; but I still hesitate to decide whether to my +appetite or to Mrs. Malone's cookery should attribute it, but certainly +my performance on that occasion called forth unqualified admiration. + +I observed during the supper that one of the girls carried a plateful of +the savory dish into a small room at the end of the kitchen, carefully +closing the door after her as she entered; and when she came out, +exchanging with Malone a few hurried words, to which the attention of +the others was evidently directed. The caution I had already received, +and my own sense of propriety, prevented my paying any attention to +this, and I conversed with those about me, freely narrating the whole +circumstances of my departure from home, my fear of Basset, and my firm +resolve, come what might, never to become an inmate of his house and +family. Not all the interest they took in my fortunes, nor even the warm +praises of what they called my courage and manliness, could ward off the +tendency to sleep, and my eyes actually closed as I lay down in my bed, +and notwithstanding the noise of voices and the sounds of laughter near +me, sank into the heaviest slumber. + + + +CHAPTER V. THE CABIN. + +Before day broke the stir and bustle of the household awoke me, and +had it not been for the half-open door, which permitted a view of the +proceedings in the kitchen, I should have been sadly puzzled to remember +where I was. The cheerful turf fire, the happy faces, and the pleasant +voices all reminded me of the preceding night, and I lay pondering over +my fortunes, and revolving within myself many a plan for the future. + +In all the daydreams of ambition in which youth indulges, there is this +advantage over the projects of maturer years,--the past never mingles +with the future. In after life our bygone existence is ever tingeing the +time to come; the expectations friends have formed of us, the promises +we have made to our own hearts, the hopes we have created, seem to +pledge us to something which, if anattained, sounds like failure. But +in earlier years, the budding consciousness of our ability to reach the +goal doea but stimulate us, and never chills our efforts by the dread +of disappointment; we have, as it were, only bound ourselves in +recognizances with our own hearts,--the world has not gone bail for us, +and our falling short involves not the ruin of others, nor the loss of +that self-respect which is but the reflex of the opinion of society. I +felt this strongly; and the more I ruminated on it, the more resolutely +bent was I to adopt some bold career,--some enterprising path, where +ambition should supply to me the pleasures and excitements that others +found among friends and home. + +I now perceived how unsuitable would be to me the quiet monotony of +a peasant's life; how irksome the recurrence of the same daily +occupations, the routine of ceaseless labor, the intercourse with +those whose views and hopes strayed not beyond their own hedgerows. A +soldier's life appeared to realize all that I looked for; but then +the conversation of the piper recurred to me, and I remembered how he +painted these men to me as mere hireling bravos, to whom glory or fame +was nothing,--merely actuated by the basest of passions, the slaves of +tyranny. All the atrocities he mentioned of the military in the past +year came up before me, and with them the brave resistance of the people +in their struggle for independence. How my heart glowed with enthusiasm +as I thought over the bold stand they had made, and how I panted to be +a man, and linked in such a cause! Every gloomy circumstance in my own +fate seemed as the result of that grinding oppression under which my +country suffered,--even to the curse vented on me by one whose ruin +and desolation lay at my own father's door. My temples throbbed, and +my heart beat painfully against my side, as I revolved these thoughts +within me; and when I rose from my bed that morning, I was a rebel with +all my soul. + +The day, like the preceding one, was stormy and inclement; the rain +poured down without ceasing, and the dark, lowering sky gave no promise +of better things. The household of the cottage remained all at home, and +betook themselves to such occupations as indoor permitted. The women sat +down to their spinning-wheels; some of the men employed themselves in +repairing their tools, and others in making nets for fishing: but all +were engaged. Meanwhile, amid the sounds of labor was mixed the busy hum +of merry voices, as they chatted away pleasantly, with many a story +and many a song lightening the long hours of the dark day. As for me, I +longed impatiently for Darby's return: a thousand half-formed plans were +flitting through my mind; and I burned to hear whether Basset was still +in pursuit of me; what course he was adopting to regain me within his +control; if Darby had seen my friend Bubbleton, and whether he showed +any disposition to befriend and protect me. These and such like thoughts +kept passing through my mind; and as the storm would shake the rude +door, I would stand up with eagerness, hoping every moment to see +him enter. But the day moved on, and the dusky half-light of a wintry +afternoon was falling, and Darby made not his appearance. When I spoke +of him to the others, they expressed no surprise at his absence, merely +remarking that he was always uncertain,--no one knew when to expect him; +that he rarely came when they looked for him, and constantly dropped in +when no one anticipated it. + +"There he is now, then!" said one of the young men, springing up and +opening the door; "I hear his voice in the glen." + +"Do you see him, Maurice?" cried Malone. "Is it him?" + +The young man stepped back, his face pale as death, and his mouth partly +open. + +He whispered a word in the old man's ear; to which the other +responded,--"Where?" + +The youth pointed with his finger. "How many are they?" was his next +question, while his dark eye glanced towards the old musket that hung on +the wall above the fire. + +"Too many,--too many for us," said Maurice, bitterly. + +The women, who had gathered around the speaker, looked at each other +with an expression of utter wretchedness, when one of them, breaking +from the others, rushed into the little inner room off the kitchen, and +slammed the door violently behind her. The next instant the sound of +voices was heard from the room, as if in altercation. Malone turned +round at once, and throwing the door wide open, called out,-- + +"Be quiet, I say; there's not a moment to be lost. Maurice, put that gun +away; Shamus, take up your net again; sit down, girls." + +At the same instant he drew from his bosom a long horse pistol, +and having examined the loading and priming, replaced it within his +waistcoat, and sat down on a chair beside the fire, his strongly marked +countenance fixed on the red blaze, while his lips muttered rapidly some +words to himself. + +"Are ye ready there?" he cried, as his eyes were turned towards the +small door. + +"In a minit," said the woman from within. + +At the same instant the sounds of voices and the regular tramp of men +marching were heard without. + +"Halt! stand at ease!" called out a deep voice; and the clank of the +muskets as they fell to the ground was heard through the cabin. + +Meanwhile, every one within had resumed his previous place and +occupation, and the buzz of voices resounded through the kitchen as +though no interruption whatever had taken place. The latch was now +lifted, and a sergeant, stooping to permit his tall feather to pass in, +entered, followed by a man in plain clothes. + +The latter was a short, powerfully-built man, of about fifty; his hair, +of a grizzly gray, contrasted with the deep purple of his countenance, +which was swollen and bloated; the mouth, its most remarkable feature, +was large and thick-lipped, the under-lip, projecting considerably +forward, and having a strange, convulsive motion when he was not +speaking. + +"It's a hard day. Mister Barton," said Malone, rising from his seat, and +stroking down his hair with one hand; "won't ye come over and take an +air at the fire?" + +"I will, indeed, Ned," said he, taking the proffered seat, and +stretching out his legs to the blaze. "It's a severe season we have. I +don't know how the poor are to get in the turf; the bogs are very wet +entirely." + +"They are, indeed, sir; and the harvest 'ill be very late getting in +now," said one of the young men, with a most obsequious voice. "Won't ye +sit down, sir?" said he to the sergeant. + +A nod from Mister Barton in acquiescence decided the matter, and the +sergeant was seated. + +"What's here, Mary?" said Barton, striking the large pot that hung over +the fire with his foot. + +"It's the boys' dinner, sir," said the girl. + +"I think it wouldn't be a bad job if we joined them," replied he, +laughingly,--"eh, sergeant?" + +"There 'ill be enough for us all," said Malone; "and I'm sure ye're +welcome to it." + +The table was quickly spread, the places next the fire being reserved +for the strangers; while Malone, unlocking a cupboard, took down a +bottle of whiskey, which he placed before them, remarking, as he did +so,-- + +"Don't be afeard, gentlemen, 'tis Parliament." + +"That 's right, Malone. I like a man to be loyal in these bad times; +there's nothing like it. (Faith, Mary, you're a good cook; that's as +savory a stew as ever I tasted.) Where 's Patsey now? I have n't seen +him for some time." + +The girl's face grew dark red, and then became as suddenly pale; when, +staggering back, she lifted her apron to her face, and leaned against +the dresser. + +"He's transported for life," said Malone, in a deep, sepulchral voice, +while all his efforts to conceal agitation were fruitless. + +"Oh, I remember," said Barton, carelessly; "he was in the dock with the +Hogans. (I 'll take another bone from you, Ned. Sergeant, that 's a real +Irish dish, and no bad one either.)" + +"What's doing at the town to-day?" said Malone, affecting an air of easy +indifference. + +"Nothing remarkable, I believe. They have taken up that rascal. Darby +the Blast, as they call him. The major had him under examination this +morning for two hours; and they say he 'll give evidence against the +Dillons, (a little more fat, if ye please;) money, you know, Ned, will +do anything these times." + +"You ought to know that, sir," said Maurice, with such an air of assumed +innocence as actually made Barton look ashamed. In an instant, however, +he recovered himself, and pretended to laugh at the remark. "Your +health, sergeant; Ned Malone, your health; ladies, yours; and boys, +the same." A shower of "thank ye, sir's," followed this piece of +unlooked-for courtesy. "Who's that boy there, Ned?" said he, pointing to +me as I sat with my eyes riveted upon him. + +"He's from this side of Banagher, sir," said Malone, evading the +question. + +"Come over here, younker. What 's his name?" + +"Tom, sir." + +"Come over, Tom, till I teach you a toast. Here's a glass, my lad; +hold it steady, till I fill you a bumper. Did you ever hear tell of the +croppies?" + +"No, never!" + +"Never heard of the croppies! Well, you're not long in Ned Malone's +company anyhow, eh? ha! ha! ha! Well, my man, the croppies is another +name for the rebels, and the toast I 'm going to give you is about them. +So mind you finish it at one pull. Here now, are you ready?" + +"Yes, quite ready," said I, as I held the brimming glass straight before +me. + +"Here 's it, then,-- + + "'May every croppy taste the rope. + And find some man to hang them; + May Bagnal Harvey and the Pope + Have Heppenstal to hang them!'" + +I knew enough of the meaning of his words to catch the allusion, and +dashing the glass with all my force against the wall, I smashed it +into a hundred pieces. Barton sprang from his chair, his face dark with +passion. Clutching me by the collar with both hands, he cried out,-- + +"Halloo! there without, bring in the handcuffs here! As sure as my name +'s Sandy Barton, we 'll teach you that toast practically, and that ere +long." + +"Take care what you do there," said Malone, fiercely. "That young +gentleman is a son of Matthew Burke of Cremore; his relatives are not +the kind of people to figure in your riding-house." + +"Are you a son of Matthew Burke?" + +"I am." + +"What brings you here then? why are you not at home?" + +"By what right do you dare to ask me? I have yet to learn how far I am +responsible for where I go to a thief-catcher." + +"You hear that, sergeant? you heard him use a word to bring me into +contempt before the people, and excite them to use acts of violence +towards me?" + +"No such thing. Mister Barton!" said Malone, coolly; "nobody here has +any thought of molesting you. I told you that young gentleman's name +and condition, to prevent you making any mistake concerning him; for his +friends are not the people to trifle with." + +This artfully-put menace had its effect. Barton sat down again, and +appeared to reflect for a few minuted; then taking a roll of paper from +his pocket, he began leisurely to peruse it. The silence at this moment +was something horribly oppressive. + +"This is a search-warrant, Mr. Malone," said Barton, laying down the +paper on the table, "empowering me to seek for the body of a certain +French officer, said to be concealed in these parts. Informations on +oath state that he passed at least one night under your roof. As he +has not accepted the amnesty granted to the other officers in the late +famous attempt against the peace of this country, the law will deal +with him as strict justice may demand; at the same time, it is right you +should know that harboring or sheltering him, under these circumstances, +involves the person or persons so doing in his guilt. Mr. Malone's +well-known and tried loyalty," continued Barton, with a half grin +of most malicious meaning, "would certainly exculpate him from any +suspicion of this nature; but sworn informations are stubborn things, +and it is possible, that in ignorance of the danger such a proceeding +would involve--" + +"I thought the thrubbles was over, sir," interrupted Malone, wiping his +forehead with the back of his hand, "and that an honest, industrious +man, that minded his own business, had nothing to fear from any one." + +"And you thought right," said Barton, slowly and deliberately, while +he scanned the other's features with a searching look; "and that is the +very fact I'm come to ascertain. And now, with your leave, we'll first +search the house and offices, and then I 'll put a little interrogatory +to such persons as I think fit, touching this affair." + +"You're welcome to go over the cabin whenever you like," said Malone, +rising, and evidently laboring to repress his passionate indignation at +Barton's coolness. + +Barton stood up at the same moment, and giving a wink at the sergeant to +follow, walked towards the small door I've already mentioned. Malone's +wife at this started forward, and catching Barton's arm, whispered a few +words in his ear. + +"She must be a very old woman by this time," said Barton, fixing his +sharp eyes on the speaker. + +"Upwards of ninety, sir, and bedridden for twelve years," said the +woman, wiping a tear away with her apron. + +"And how comes it she's so afraid of the soldiers, if she's doting?" + +"Arrah! they used to frighten her so much, coming in at night, and +firing shots at the doore, and drinking and singing songs, that she +never got over it; an that's the rayson. I 'll beg of your honor not to +bring in the sergeant, and to disturb her only as little as you can, for +it sets her raving about battles and murders, and it 's maybe ten days +before we 'll get her mind at ease again." + +"Well, well, I'll not trouble her," said he, quickly, "Sergeant, step +back for a moment." + +With this he entered the room, followed by the woman whose uncertain +step and quiet gesture seemed to suggest caution. + +"She 's asleep, sir," said she, approaching the bed. "It 's many a day +since she had as fine a sleep as that. 'T is good luck you brought us +this morning, Mister Barton." + +"Draw aside the curtain a little," said Barton, in a low voice, as if +fearing to awake the sleeper. + +"'Tis rousing her up, you'll be, Mister Barton, she feels the light at +wanst." + +"She breathes very long for so old a woman," said he somewhat louder, +"and has a good broad shoulder, too. T 'd like, if it was only for +curiosity, just to see her face a little closer. I thought so! Come, +captain; it 's no use--" + +A scream from the woman drowned the remainder of the speech, while at +the same instant one of the young men shut-to the outside door, and +barred it. The sergeant was immediately pinioned with his hands behind +his back, and Malone drew his horse-pistol from his bosom, and holding +up his hand, called out,-- + +"Not a word,--not a word! If ye spake, it will be the last time ever +you 'll do so!" said he to the sergeant + +At the same moment, the noise of a scuffle was heard in the inner room, +and the door burst suddenly open, and Barton issued forth, dragging in +his strong hands the figure of a young, slightly-formed man. His coat +was off, but its trousers were braided with gold, in military fashion; +and his black mustache denoted the officer. The struggle of the youth to +get free was utterly fruitless; Barton's grasp was on his collar, and he +held him as though he were a child. + +[Illustration: The Struggle 059] + +Malone stooped down towards the fire, and, opening the pan of his +pistol, examined the priming; then, slapping it down again, he stood +erect, "Barton," said he, in a tone of firm determination I heard him +use for the first time,--"Barton, it 's bad to provoke a man with the +halter round his neck. I know what 's before me well enough now. But +see, let him escape; give him two hours to get away, and here I 'll +surrender myself your prisoner, and follow you where you like." + +"Break in the door, there, blast ye!" was the reply to this offer, as +Barton shouted to the soldiers at the top of his voice. Two of the young +men darted forward as he spoke, and threw themselves against it. "Fire +through it!" cried Barton, stamping with passion. + +"You will have it, will you, then?" said Malone, as he ground his teeth +in anger; then raising his pistol, he sprang forward, and holding it +within a yard of Barton's face, shouted out, "There!" + +The powder flashed in the lock, and quick as its own report. Barton +hurled the Frenchman round to protect him from the ball, but only in +time to receive the shot in his right arm as he held it uplifted. The +arm fell powerless to his side; while Malone, springing on him like a +tiger, grasped him in his powerful grip, and they both rolled upon the +ground in terrible conflict. The Frenchman stood for an instant like one +transfixed; then, bursting from the spot, dashed through the kitchen to +the small room I had slept in. One of the young men followed him. The +crash of glass and the sounds of breaking woodwork were heard among the +other noises; and at the same moment the door gave way in front, and the +soldiers with fixed bayonets entered at a charge. + +"Fire on them I fire on them!" shouted Barton, as he lay struggling on +the ground; and a random volley rang through the cabin, filling it with +smoke. + +A yell of anguish burst forth at the moment; and one of the women lay +stretched upon the hearth, her bosom bathed in blood. The scene was +now a terrible one; for although overpowered by numbers, the young men +rushed on the soldiers, and regardless of wounds, endeavored to wrest +their arms from them. The bayonets glanced through the blue smoke, and +shouts of rage and defiance rose up amid frightful screams of suffering +and woe. A bayonet stab in the side, received I know not how, sent +me half fainting into the little room through which the Frenchman had +escaped. The open window being before me, I did nob deliberate a second, +but mounting the table, crept through it, and fell heavily on the turf +outside. In a moment after I rallied, and staggering onwards, reached a +potato field, where, overcome by pain and weakness, I sank into one of +the furrows, scarcely conscious of what had occurred. + +Weak and exhausted as I was, I could still hear the sounds of the +conflict that raged within the cabin. Gradually, however, they grew +fainter and fainter, and at last subsided altogether. Yet I feared to +stir; and although night was now falling, and the silence continued +unbroken, I lay still, hoping to hear some well-known voice, or even +the footstep of some one belonging to the house. But all was calm, and +nothing stirred; the very air, too, was hushed,--not a leaf moved in the +thin, frosty atmosphere. The dread of finding the soldiers in possession +of the cabin made me fearful of quitting my hiding place, and I did not +move. Some hours had passed over ere I gained courage enough to raise my +head and look about me. + +My first glance was directed towards the distant highroad, where I +expected to have seen some of the party who attacked the cabin, but +far as my eye could reach, no living thing was to be seen; my next was +towards the cabin, which, to my horror and amazement, I soon perceived +was enveloped in a thick, dark smoke, that rolled lazily from the +windows and doorway, and even issued from the thatched roof. As I +looked, I could hear the crackling of timber and the sound of wood +burning. These continued to increase; and then a red, forked flame shot +through one of the casements, and turning upwards, caught the thatch, +where, passing rapidly across the entire roof, it burst into a broad +sheet of fire, which died out again as rapidly, and left the gloomy +smoke triumphant. + +Meanwhile a roaring sound, like that of a furnace, was heard from +within; and at last, with an explosion like a mortar, the roof burst +open, and the bright blaze sprang forth. The rafters were soon enveloped +in fire, and the heated straw rose into the air, and floated in thin +streaks of flame through the black sky. The door cases and the window +frames were all burning, and marked their outlines against the dark +walls: and as the thatch was consumed, the red rafters were seen like +the ribs of a skeleton; but they fell in one by one, sending up in their +descent millions of red sparks into the dark air. The black wall of the +cabin had given way to the heat, and through its wide fissure I could +see the interior, now one mass of undistinguishable ruin: nothing +remained, save the charred and blackened walls. + +I sat gazing at this sad sight like one entranced. Sometimes it seemed +to me as a terrible dream; and then the truth would break upon me with +fearful force, and my heart felt as though it would burst far beyond my +bosom. The last flickering flame died away, the hissing sounds of +the fire were stilled, and the dark walls stood out against the bleak +background in all their horrible deformity, as I rose and entered +the cabin. I stood within the little room where I had slept the night +before, and looked out into the kitchen, around whose happy hearth +the merry voices were so lately heard. I brought them up before me, in +imagination, as they sat there. One by one I marked their places in my +mind, and thought of the kindness of their welcome to me, and the words +of comfort and encouragement they spoke' The hearth was now cold +and black; the pale stars looked down between the walls, and a chill +moonlight flickered through the gloomy ruin. My heart had no room for +sorrow; but another feeling found a place within it: a savage thirst for +vengeance,--vengeance upon those who had desecrated a peaceful home, and +brought blood and death among its inmates! Here was the very realization +before my eyes of what M'Keown had been telling me; here the horrible +picture he had drawn of tyranny and outrage. In the humble cottagers I +saw but simpleminded peasants, who had opened their doors to some poor +unfriended outcast,--one who, like myself, had neither house nor home. +I saw them offering their hospitality to him who sought it, freely and +openly; and at last adventuring all they possessed in the world, rather +than betray him,--and their reward was this! Oh, how my heart revolted +at such oppression! how my spirit fired at such indignity! I thought a +life passed in opposition to such tyranny were too short a vengeance; +and I knelt me down beside that blackened hearth, and swore myself its +enemy to the death. + + + +CHAPTER VI. MY EDUCATION. + +As I thought over the various incidents the last few days of my life had +presented, I began to wonder with myself whether the world always went +on thus, and if the same scenes of misery and woe I had witnessed were +in the ordinary course of nature. The work of years seemed to me to +have been accomplished in a few brief hours. Here, where I stood +but yesterday, a happy family were met together; and now, death and +misfortune had laid waste the spot, and save the cold walls, nothing +marked it as a human habitation. What had become of them? where had +they gone to? Had they fled from the blood-stained hands of the cruel +soldiery, or were they led away to prison? These were the questions +constantly recurring to my mind. And the French officer, too,--what of +him? I felt the deepest interest in his fate. Poor fellow! he looked so +pale and sickly; and yet there was something both bold and manly in his +flashing eye and compressed lip. He was doubtless one of those Darby +alluded to. What a lot was his! and how little did my own sorrows seem, +as I compared them with his houseless, friendless condition! + +As my thoughts thus wandered on, a dark shadow fell across the gleam of +moonlight that lit up the ruined cabin. I turned suddenly, and saw the +figure of a man leaning against the doorpost. For a second or two fear +was uppermost in my mind, but rallying soon, I called out, "Who 's +there?" + +"'T is me. Darby M'Keown!" said a well-known voice, but in a tone of +deepest sorrow. "I came over to have a look at the ould walls once +more." + +"You heard it all, then. Darby?" + +"Yes; they wor bringing the prisoners into Athlone as I left the town, +and I thought to myself you 'd maybe be hiding somewhere hereabouts. Is +the captain away? Is he safe?" + +"The French officer? Yes, he escaped early in the business. I know he +must be far off by this time; Heaven knows which way, though." + +"Maybe I could guess," said Darby, quietly. "Well, well! it 's hard to +know what 's best. Sometimes it would seem the will of God that we are +n't to succeed; and if we hadn't right on our side, it would not be easy +to bear up against such misfortunes as these." + +There was a silence on both sides after these words, during which I +pandered them well in my mind. + +"Come, Mister Tom!" said Darby, suddenly; "'tis time we were moving. +You 're not safe here no more nor others. Basset is looking for you +everywhere, and you 'll have to leave the neighborhood, for a while +at least. Your friend, the captain, too, is gone; his regiment marched +yesterday. So now make up your mind what to do." + +"That's easily done, Darby," said I, attempting to seem at ease. +"Whichever is your road shall be mine, if you let me." + +"Let you? Yes, with a hearty welcome, too, my darling! But the first +thing is to get you some clothes that won't discover on you. Here 's a +hat I squeezed into my own that 'll just fit you; and I 've a coat here +that 's about your size. That's enough for the present; and as we go +along, I 'll teach you your part, how you are to behave, and he 'll be +no fool that 'll find you out after ten days or a fortnight." + +My change of costume was soon effected, and my wound, which turned out +to be a trifling one, looked after. I took a farewell look at the old +walls, and stepped after my companion down the boreen. + +"If we make haste," said Darby, "we'll be beyond Shannon Harbor before +day; and then, when we 're on the canal, we 'll easy get a lift in some +of the boats going to Dublin." + +"And are you for Dublin?" inquired I, eagerly. + +"Yes. I'm to be there on the twenty-fourth of this month, please God. +There 's a meeting of the friends of Ireland to be then, and some +resolutions will be taken about what 's to be done. There 's bad work +going on in the Parliament." + +"Indeed, Darby! What is it?" + +"Oh! you couldn't understand it well. But it's just as if we war n't to +have anything to say to governing ourselves; only to be made slaves of, +and sent abroad to fight for the English, that always hate us and abuse +us." + +"And are we going to bear with this?" cried I, passionately. + +"No," said Darby, laying his hand on my shoulder,--"no; not at least +if we had twenty thousand like you, my brave boy. But you'll hear +everything yourself soon. And now, let me attend to your education a +bit, for we're not out of the enemy's country." + +Darby now commenced his code of instruction to me, by which I learned +that I was to perform a species of second to him in all minstrelsy; not +exactly on the truest principles of harmony, but merely alternating with +him in the verses of his songs. These, which were entirely of his +own composition, were all to be learned,--and orally, too, for Mister +M'Keown was too jealous of his copyright ever to commit them to +writing, and especially charged me never to repeat any lyric in the same +neighborhood. + +"It's not only the robbery I care for," quoth Darby, "but the varmints +desthroys my poethry completely; some' times changing the words, +injuring the sentiments, and even altering the tune. Now, it's only last +Tuesday I heerd 'Behave politely,' to the tune of 'Look how he sarved +me!'" + +Besides the musical portion of my education, there was another scarcely +less difficult to be attended to: this was, the skilful adaptation of +our melodies, not only to the prevailing tastes of the company, but +to their political and party bearings; Darby supplying me with various +hints how I was to discover at a moment the peculiar bias of any +stranger's politics. + +"The boys," said Darby, thereby meaning his own party, "does be always +sly and careful, and begin by asking, maybe, for 'Do you incline?' +or 'Crows in the barley,' or the like. Then they 'll say, 'Have you +anything new, Mister M'Keown, from up the country?' 'Something sweet, +is it?' says I. 'Ay, or sour, av ye have it,' they 'll 'say. 'Maybe ye'd +like "Vinegar-hill," then,' says I. Arrah, you'd see their faces redden +up with delight; and how they 'll beat time to every stroke of the tune, +it 's a pleasure to play for them. But the yeos (meaning the yeomen) +will call out mightily,--'Piper! halloo there! piper, I say, rise The +Boyne water, or Croppies lie down.'" + +"And of course you refuse, Darby?" + +"Refuse! Refuse, is it? and get a bayonet in me? Devil a bit, my dear. +I 'll play it up with all the spirit I can; and nod my head to the tune, +and beat the time with my heel and toe; and maybe, if I see need of +it, I fasten this to the end of the chanter, and that does the business +entirely." + +Here Darby took from the lining of his hat a bunch of orange ribbon, +whose faded glories showed it had done long and active service in the +cause of loyalty. + +I confess Darby's influence over me did not gain any accession of +power by this honest avowal of his political expediency; and the +bold assertion of a nation's wrongs, by which at first he won over my +enthusiasm, seemed sadly at variance with this truckling policy. He was +quicksighted enough to perceive what was passing in my mind, and at once +remarked,-- + +"'Tis a hard part we're obliged to play, Master Tom; but one comfort we +have,--it 's only a short time we 'll need it. You know the song? "Here +he broke into the popular tune of the day:-- + + "'And the French will come again, + Says the Shan van vaugh; + And they 'll bring ten thousand men. + Says the Shan van vaugh; + And with powder and with ball, + For our rights we 'll loudly call: + Don't you think they 'll hear us then! + Says the Shan van vaugh.' + +Ye must larn that air, Master Tom. And see, now, the yeos is as fond of +it as the boys; only remember to put their own words to it,--and devil a +harm in that same when one 's not in earnest. See, now, I believe it 's +a natural pleasure for an Irishman to be humbugging somebody; and faix, +when there 's nobody by he 'd rather be taking a rise out of himself +than doing nothing. It 's the way that 's in us, God help us! Sure it 's +that same makes us sich favorites with the ladies, and gives us a kind +of native janius for coortin': + + "''T is the look of his eye, + And a way he can sigh, + Makes Paddy a darlin' wherever he goes; + With a sugary brogue. + Ye 'd hear the rogue + Cheat the girls before their nose.' + +And why not? Don't they like to be chated, when they 're sure to win +after all,--to win a warm heart and a stout arm to fight for them?" + +This species of logic I give as a specimen of Mister M'Keown's power of, +if not explaining away a difficulty, at least getting out of all reach +of it,--an attribute almost as Irish as the cause it was 'employed to +defend. + +As we journeyed along, Darby maintained a strict reserve as to the event +which had required his presence in Athlone; nor did he allude to the +mayor but passingly, observing that he did n't know how it happened that +a Dublin magistrate should have come up to these parts,--"though, to be +sure, he 's a great friend of the Right Honorable." + +"And who is he?" asked I. + +"The Right Honorable! Don't you know, then? Why, I did n't think there +was a child in the county could n't tell that. Sure, it 's Denis Browne +himself." + +The name seemed at once to suggest a whole flood of recollections; and +Darby expatiated for hours long on the terrible power of a man by whose +hands life and death were distributed, without any aid from judge or +jury,--thus opening to me another chapter of the lawless tyranny to +which he was directing my attention, and by which he already saw my mind +was greatly influenced. + +About an hour after daybreak we arrived at a small cabin; which served +as a lockhouse on the canal side. It needed not the cold, murky sky, +nor the ceaseless pattering of the rain, to make this place look more +comfortless and miserable than anything I had ever beheld. Around, for +miles in extent, the country was one unbroken flat, without any trace +of wood, or even a single thorn hedge, to relieve the eye. Low, +marshy meadows, where the rank flaggers and reedy grass grew tall and +luxuriant, with here and there some stray patches of tillage, were girt +round by vast plains of bog, cut up into every variety of trench and +pit. The cabin itself, though slated and built of stone, was in bad +repair; the roof broken in many places, and the window mended with +pieces of board, and even straw. As we came close. Darby remarked that +there was no smoke from the chimney, and that the door was fastened on +the outside. + +"That looks bad," said he, as he stopped short about a dozen paces from +the hovel, and looked steadily at it; "they've taken him too!" + +"Who is it, Darby?" said I; "what did he do?" + +M'Keown paid no attention to my question, but unfastening the hasp, +which attached the door without any padlock, entered. The fire was yet +alive on the hearth, and a small stool drawn close to it showed where +some one had been sitting. There was nothing unusual in the appearance +of the cabin; the same humble furniture and cooking utensils lying about +as were seen in any other. Darby, however, scrutinized everything +most carefully, looking everywhere and into everything; till at last, +reaching his hand above the door, he pulled out from the straw of the +thatch a small piece of dirty and crumpled paper, which he opened with +the greatest care and attention, and then flattening it out with his +hand, began to read it over to himself, his eye flashing and his cheek +growing redder as he pored over it. At last he broke silence with,-- + +"'T is myself never doubted ye, Tim, my boy. Look at that, Master Tom. +But sure, you wouldn't understand it, after all. The yeos took him up +last night. 'T is something about cutting the canal and attacking the +boat that 's again' him; and he left that there--that bit of paper--to +give the boys courage that he wouldn't betray them' That 's the way the +cause will prosper,--if we 'll only stick by one another. For many a +time, when they take a man up, they spread it about that he's turned +informer against the rest; and then the others gets careless, and don't +mind whether they're taken or not." + +Darby replaced the piece of paper carefully; and then, listening for a +moment, exclaimed,--"I hear the boat coming; let's wait for it outside." + +While he employed himself in getting his pipes into readiness, I could +not help ruminating on the strength of loyalty to one another the poor +people observed amid every temptation and every seduction; how, in the +midst of such misery as theirs, neither threats nor bribery seemed to +influence them, was a strong testimony in favor of their truth, and, to +such a reasoner as I was, a no less cogent argument for the goodness of +the cause that elicited such virtues. + +As the boat came alongside, I remarked that the deck was without a +passenger. Heaps of trunks and luggage littered it the entire way; but +the severity of the weather had driven every one under cover, except the +steersman and the captain, who, both of them wrapped up in thick coats +of frieze, seemed like huge bears standing on their hindquarters. + +"How are you, Darby?" shouted the skipper. "Call out that lazy rascal to +open the lock." + +"I don't think he's at home, sir," said Darby, as innocently as though +he knew nothing of the reason for his absence. + +"Not at home! The scoundrel, where can he be, then? Come, youngster," +cried he, addressing me, "take the key there, and open the lock." + +Until this moment, I forgot the character which my dress and appearance +assigned to me. But a look from the piper recalled me at once to +recollection; and taking up the iron key, I proceeded, under Darby's +instructions, to do what I was desired, while Darby and the captain +amused themselves by wondering what had become of Tim, and speculated on +the immediate consequences his absence would bring down on him. + +"Are you going with us, Darby?" said the captain. + +"Faix, I don't know, sir," said he, as if hesitating. "Ar there was any +gentleman that liked the pipes--" + +"Yes, yes; come along, man," rejoined the skipper. "Is the boy with you? +Very well; come in, youngster." + +We were soon under way again; and Darby, having arranged his instrument +to his satisfaction, commenced a very spirited voluntary to announce +his arrival. In an instant the cabin door opened, and a red-faced, +coarse-looking fellow, in uniform, called out,-- + +"Halloo, there! is that a piper?" + +"Yes, sir," said Darby, without turning his face round; while, at the +same time, he put a question in Irish to the skipper, who answered it +with a single word. + +"I say, piper, come down here!" cried the yeoman, for such he +was,--"come down here, and let 's have a tune!" + +"I 'm coming, sir!" cried Darby, standing up; and holding out his hand +to me, he called out,--"Tom, alannah, lead me down stairs." + +I looked up in his face, and to my amazement perceived that he had +turned up the white of his eyes to represent blindness, and was groping +with his hand like one deprived of sight. As any hesitation on my part +might have betrayed him at once, I took his hand, and led him along, +step by step, to the cabin door. + +I had barely time to perceive that all the passengers were habited in +uniform, when one of them called out,--"We don't want the young fellow; +let him go back. Piper, sit down here." + +The motion for my exclusion was passed without a negative; and I closed +the door, and sat down by myself among the trunks on deck. + +For the remainder of the day I saw nothing of Darby,--the shouts of +laughter and clapping of hands below stairs occasionally informing +me how successful were his efforts to amuse his company; while I had +abundant time to think over my own plans, and make some resolutions for +the future. + + + +CHAPTER VII. KEVIN STREET. + +How this long, melancholy day wore on I cannot say. To me it was as +gloomy in revery as in its own dismal aspect; the very sounds of mirth +that issued from the cabin beneath grated harshly on my ear; and the +merry strains of Darby's pipes and the clear notes of his rich voice +seemed like treachery from one who so lately had spoken in terms of +heart-breathing emotion of his countrymen and their wrongs. While, +therefore, my estimation for my companion suffered, my sorrow for the +cause that demanded such sacrifices deepened at every moment, and I +panted with eagerness for the moment when I might take my place among +the bold defenders of my country, and openly dare our oppressors to the +battle. All that M'Keown had told me of English tyranny and oppression +was connected in my mind with the dreadful scene I had so lately been a +witness to, and for the cause of which I looked no further than an act +of simple hospitality. From this I wandered on to the thought of those +brave allies who had deserted their career of Continental glory to share +our almost hopeless fortunes here; and how I burned to know them, and +learn from them something of a soldier's ardor. + +Night had fallen when the fitful flashing of lamps between the tall elms +that lined the banks announced our approach to the capital. There is +something dreadfully depressing in the aspect of a large city, to the +poor, unfriended youth, who without house or home is starting upon his +life's journey. The stir, the movement, the onward tide of population, +intent on pleasure or business, are things in which he has no part. The +appearance of wealth humiliates, while the sight of poverty affrights +him; and, while every one is animated by some purpose, he alone seems +like a waif thrown on the shores of life, unclaimed, unlocked for. Thus +did I feel among that busy crowd who now pressed to the deck, gathering +together their luggage, and preparing for departure. Some home awaited +each of these,--some hearth, some happy faces to greet their coming. But +I had none of these. This was a sorrowful thought; and as I brooded +over it, my head sank upon my knees, and I saw nothing of what was going +forward about me. + +"Tom," whispered a low voice in my ear,--"Master Tom, don't delay, my +dear; let us slip out here. The soldiers want me to go with them to +their billets, and I have promised; but I don't mean to do it." + +I looked up. It was Darby, buttoned up in his coat, his pipes unfastened +for the convenience of carriage. + +"Slip out after me at the lock here; it 's so dark we 'll never be +seen." + +Keeping my eye on him, I elbowed my way through the crowded deck, and +sprang out just as the boat began her forward movement. + +"Here we are, all safe!" said Darby, patting me on the shoulder. "And +now that I 've time to ask you, did you get your dinner, my child?" + +"Oh yes; the captain brought me something to eat." + +"Come, that's right, anyhow. Glory be to God! I ate heartily of some +bacon and greens; though the blackguards--bad luck to them for the +same!--made me eat an orange lily whole, afraid the _greens_, as they +said, might injure me." + +"I wonder. Darby," said I, "that you haven't more firmness than to +change this way at every moment." + +"Firmness, is it? Faix, it's firm enough I'd be, and Stiff, too, if I +did n't. Sure it 's the only way now at all. Wait, my honey, till the +time comes round for ourselves, and faix, you 'll never accuse me of +coorting their favor; but now, at this moment, you perceive, we must do +it to learn their plans. What do you think I got to-night? I learned all +the signs the yeos have when they 're drinking together, and what they +say at each sign. Thers 's a way they have of gripping the two little +fingers together that I'll not forget soon." + +For some time we walked on at a rapid pace, without exchanging more than +an occasional word. At last we entered a narrow, ill-lighted street, +which led from the canal harbor to one of the larger and wider +thoroughfares. + +"I almost forget the way here," said Darby, stopping and looking about +him. + +At last, unable to solve the difficulty, he leaned over the half-door +of a shop, and called out to a man within, "Can you tell where is Kevin +Street?" + +"No. 39?" said the man, after looking at him steadily for a moment. + +Darby stroked down one side of his face with his hand slowly; a gesture +immediately imitated by the other man. + +"What do you know?" said Darby. + +"I know 'U,'" replied the man. + +"And what more?" + +"I know 'N'" + +"That 'ill do," said Darby, shaking hands with him cordially. "Now, tell +me the way, for I have no time to spare." + +"Begorra! you 're in as great haste as if ye were Darby the Blast +himself. Ye 'll come in and take a glass?" + +Darby only laughed, and again excusing himself, he asked the way; which +having learned, he wished his newly-made friend good-night, and we +proceeded. + +"They know you well hereabouts; by name, at least," said I, when we had +walked on a little. + +"That they do," said Darby, proudly. "From Wexford to Belfast there +'s few does n't know me; and they 'll know more of me, av I 'm right, +before I die." + +This he spoke with more of determination than I ever heard him use +previously. + +"Here 's the street now; there 's the lamp,--that one with the two +burners there. Faix, we 've made good track since morning, anyhow." + +As he spoke we entered a narrow passage, through which the street lamp +threw a dubious half-light. This conducted us to a small paved court, +crossing which we arrived at the door of a large house. Darby knocked +in a peculiar manner, and the door was speedily opened by a man who +whispered something, to which M'Keown made answer in the same low tone. + +"I 'm glad to see you again," said the man, louder, as he made way for +him to pass. + +I pushed forward to follow, when suddenly a strong arm was stretched +across my breast, and a gruff voice asked,--"Who are you?" + +Darby stepped back, and said something in his ear. The other replied, +sturdily, in the negative; and although Darby, as it appeared, used +every power of persuasion he possessed, the man was inexorable. + +At last, when the temper of both appeared nearly giving way. Darby +turned to me, and said,--"Wait for me a moment, Tom, where you are, and +I 'll come for you." + +So saying, he disappeared, and the door closed at the same time, leaving +me in darkness on the outside. My patience was not severely taxed; ere +five minutes the door opened, and Darby, followed by another person, +appeared. + +"Mr. Burke," said this latter, with the tone of voice that at once +bespoke a gentleman, "I am proud to know you." He grasped my hand warmly +as he spoke, and shook it affectionately. "I esteem it an honor to be +your sponsor here. Can you find your way after me? This place is never +lighted; but I trust you 'll know it better ere long." + +Muttering some words of acknowledgment, I followed my unseen +acquaintance along the dark corridor. + +"There's a step, here," cried he; "and now mind the stairs." + +A long and winding flight conducted us to a landing, where a candle was +burning in a tin sconce. Here my conductor turned round. + +"Your Christian name is Thomas, I believe," said he. At the same moment, +as the light fell on me, he started suddenly back, with an air of +mingled astonishment and chagrin. "Why, M'Keown, you told me--" The rest +of the sentence was lost in a whisper. + +"It 's a disguise I made him wear," said Darby. "He 'd no chance of +escaping the country without it." + +"I 'm not speaking of that," retorted the other, angrily. + +"It is his age, I mean; he's only a boy. How old are you, sir?" continued +he, addressing me, but with far less courtesy than before. + +"Old enough to live for my country; or die for it either, if need be," +said I, haughtily. + +"Bravo, my darling!" cried the piper, slapping me on the shoulder with +enthusiasm. + +"That's not exactly my question," said the stranger, smiling +good-naturedly; "I want to know your age." + +"I was fourteen in August," said I. + +"I had rather you could say twenty," responded he, thoughtfully. "This +is a sad mistake of yours, Darby. What dependence can be placed on a +child like this? He's only a child, after all." + +"He's a child I'll go bail for with my head," said Darby. + +"Your head has fully as much on it as it is fit to carry," said the +other, in a tone of rebuke. "Have you told him anything of the object +and intentions of this Society? But of course you have revealed +everything. Well, I 'll not be a party to this business. Young +gentleman," continued he, in a voice of earnest and impressive accent, +"all I know of you is the few particulars this man has stated respecting +your unfriended position, and the cruelty to which you fear to expose +yourself in trusting to the guardianship of Mr. Basset. If these reasons +have induced you, from recklessness and indifference, to risk your life, +by association with men who are actuated by high and noble principles, +then, I say, you shall not enter here. If, however, aware of the object +and intentions of our Union, you are desirous to aid us, young though +you be, I shall not refuse you." + +"That's it," interrupted Darby; "if you feel in your heart a friend to +your country--" + +"Silence!" said the other, harshly; "let him decide for himself." + +"I neither know your intentions, nor even guess at them," said I, +frankly. "My destitution, and the poor prospect before me, make me, as +you suppose, indifferent to what I embark in, provided that it be not +dishonorable. + +"It is not danger that will deter me, that 's all I can promise you." + +"I see," said the stranger, "this is but another of your pranks, Mr. +M'Keown; the young gentleman was to be kidnapped amongst us. One thing," +said he, turning to me, "I feel assured of, that anything you have +witnessed here is safe within your keeping; and now we'll not press the +matter further. In a few days you can hear, and make up your mind on all +these things; and as you are not otherwise provided, let us make you our +guest in the mean while." + +Without giving me time to reply, he led me downstairs again, and +unlocking a room on the second floor, passed through several rooms, +until he reached one comfortably fitted up like a study. + +"You must be satisfied with a sofa here for to-night but to-morrow I +will make you more comfortable." + +I threw my eyes over the well-filled bookshelf with delight, and was +preparing to thank him for all his kindness to me, when he added,-- + +"I must leave you now, but we 'll meet to-morrow; so good-night. Come +along, M'Keown; we shall want you presently." + +I would gladly have detained Darby to interrogate him about my new abode +and its inhabitants; but he was obliged to obey, and I heard the door +locked as they closed it on the outside, and shortly after the sounds of +their feet died away, and I was left in silence. + +Determined to con over, and if possible explain to myself, the mystery +of my position, I drew my sofa towards the fire and sat down; but +fatigue, stronger than all my curiosity, had the mastery, and I was soon +sound asleep. + + + +CHAPTER VIII. NO. 39, AND ITS FREQUENTERS. + +When my eyes opened the following morning, it was quite pardonable in me +if I believed I was still dreaming. The room, which I had scarcely time +to look at the previous evening, now appeared handsomely, almost richly +furnished. Books in handsome bindings covered the shelves, prints in +gilded frames occupied the walls, and a large mirror filled the space +above the chimney. Various little articles of taste, in bronze and +marble, were scattered about, and a silver tea equipage of antique +pattern graced a small table near the fire. A pair of splendidly mounted +pistols hung at one side of the chimney glass, and a gorgeously gilt +sabre occupied the other. + +While I took a patient survey of all these, and was deliberately +examining myself as to how and when I had first made their acquaintance, +a voice from an adjoining room, the door of which lay open, exclaimed,-- + +"_Sacristi! quel mauvais temps!_" and then broke out into a little +French air, to which, after a minute, the singer appeared to move, in a +kind of dancing measure. "Qui, c'est ca!" exclaimed he, in rapture, as +he whirled round in a pirouette, overturning a dressing-table and its +contents with a tremendous crash upon the floor. + +I started up, and without thinking of what I was doing, rushed in. + +"Ha! bonjour," said he, gayly, stretching out two fingers of a hand +almost concealed beneath a mass of rings. And then suddenly changing to +English, which he spoke perfectly, saving with a foreign accent,--"How +did you sleep? I suppose the _tintamarre_ awoke you." + +I hastened to apologize for my intrusion; which he stopped at once by +asking if I had passed a comfortable night, and had a great appetite for +breakfast. + +Assuring him of both facts, I retreated into the sitting room, where he +followed me, laughing heartily at his mishap, which he confessed he +had not patience to remedy. "And what 's worse," added he; "I have no +servant. But here 's some tea and coffee; let us chat while we eat." + +I drew over my chair at his invitation, and found myself--before half +an hour went by--acted on by that strange magnetism which certain +individuals possess, to detail to my new friend the principal events +of my simple story, down to the very moment in which we sat opposite to +each other. He listened to me with the greatest attention, occasionally +interposing a question, or asking an explanation of something which he +did not perfectly comprehend; and when I concluded, he paused for some +minutes, and then, with a slight laugh, said:-- + +"You don't know how you disappointed the people here. Your travelling +companion had given them to understand that you were some other Burke, +whose alliance they have been long desiring. In fact, they were certain +of it; but," said he, starting up hastily, "it is far better as it is. +I suspect, my young friend, the way in which you have been entrapped. +Don't fear; we are perfectly safe here. I know all the hackneyed +declamations about wrongs and slavery that are in vogue; and I know, +too, how timidly they shrink from every enterprise by which their cause +might be honorably, boldly asserted. I am myself another victim to the +assumed patriotism of this party. I came over here two years since to +take the command. A command,--but in what an army! An undisciplined +rabble, without arms, without officers, without even clothes; their only +notion of warfare, a midnight murder, or a reckless and indiscriminate +slaughter. The result could not be doubtful,--utter defeat and +discomfiture. My countrymen, disgusted at the scenes they witnessed, and +ashamed of such _confrerie_; accepted the amnesty, and returned to France. +I--" + +Here he hesitated, and blushed slightly; after which he resumed:-- + +"I yielded to a credulity for which there was neither reason nor excuse: +I remained. Promises were made me, oaths were sworn, statements were +produced to show how complete the organization of the insurgents really +was, and to what purpose it might be turned. I drew up a plan of a +campaign; corresponded with the different leaders; encouraged the +wavering; restrained the headstrong; confirmed the hesitating; and, in +fact, for fourteen months held them together, not only against their +opponents, but their own more dangerous disunion. And the end is,--what +think you? I only learned it yesterday, on my return from an excursion +in the West which nearly cost me my life. I was concealed in a cabin in +woman's clothes--" + +"At Malone's, in the Glen?" + +"Yes; how did you know that?" + +"I was there. I saw you captured and witnessed your escape." + +"_Diantre_! How near it was!" + +He paused for a second, and I took the opportunity to recount to him +the dreadful issue of the scene, with the burning of the cabin. He grew +sickly pale as I related the circumstance; then flushing as quickly, he +exclaimed,-- + +"We must look to this; these people must be taken care of, I 'll speak +to Dalton; you know him?" + +"No; I know not one here." + +"It was he who met you last night; he is a noble fellow. But stay; there +'s a knock at the door." + +He approached the fireplace, and taking down the pistols which hung +beside it, walked slowly towards the door. + +"'Tis Darby, sir,--Darby the Blast, coming to speak a word to Mister +Burke," said a voice from without. + +The door was opened at once, and Darby entered. Making a deep reverence +to the French officer, in whose presence he seemed by no means at his +ease. Darby dropped his voice to its most humble cadence, and said,-- + +"Might I be so bould as to have a word with ye, Master Tom?" + +There was something in the way this request was made that seemed to +imply a desire for secrecy,--so, at least, the Frenchman understood +it,--and turning hastily rounds he said,-- + +"Yes, to be sure. I 'll go into my dressing-room; there is nothing to +prevent your speaking here." + +No sooner was the door closed, than Darby drew a chair close to me, and +bending down his head, whispered,-- + +"Don't trust him,--not from here to that window. They 're going to do it +without him; Mahony told me so himself. But my name was not drawn, and I +'m to be off to Kildare this evening. There 's a meeting of the boys at +the Curragh, and I want you to come with me." + +The state of doubt and uncertainty which had harassed my mind for +the last twenty-four hours was no longer tolerable; so I boldly asked +M'Keown for an explanation as to the people in whose house I was,--their +objects and plans, and how far I was myself involved in their designs. + +In fewer words than I could convey it. Darby informed me that the house +was the meeting place of the United Irishmen, who still cherished the +hope of reviving the scenes of '98; that, conscious the failure before +was attributable to their having taken the field as an army when +they should have merely contented themselves with secret and indirect +attacks, they had resolved to adopt a different tactique. It was, in +fact, determined that every political opponent to their party should be +marked,--himself, his family, and his property; that no opportunity was +to be lost of injuring him or his, and, if need be, of taking away his +life; that various measures were to be propounded to Parliament by their +friends, to the maintenance of which threats were to be freely used to +the Government members; and with respect to the great measure of the +day,--the Union,--it was decided that on the night of the division a +certain number of people should occupy the gallery above the Ministerial +benches, armed with hand-grenades and other destructive missiles; that, +on a signal given, these were to be thrown amongst them, scattering +death and ruin on all sides. + +"It will be seen, then," said Darby, with a fiendish grin, "how the +enemies of Ireland pay for their hatred of her! Maybe they 'll vote away +their country after that!" + +Whether it was the tone, the look, or the words that suddenly awoke me +from my dreamy infatuation, I know not; but coming so soon after the +Frenchman's detail of the barbarism of the party, a thorough disgust +seized me, and the atrocity of this wholesale murder lost nothing of its +blackness from being linked with the cause of liberty. + +With ready quickness, Darby saw what my impression was, and hastily +remarked:-- + +"We 'll be all away out of this, Master Tom, you know, before that. We +'ll be up in Kildare, where we 'll see the boys exercising and marching; +that's what 'ill do your heart good to look at. But before we go, you +'ll have to take the oath, for I'm answerable for you all this time with +my own head; not that I care for that same, but others might mistrust +ye." + +"Halloo!" cried the Frenchman, from within; "I hope you have finished +your conference there, for you seem to forget there's no fire in this +room." + +"Yes, sir; and I beg a thousand pardons," said Darby, servilely. "And +Master Tom only wants to bid you goodby before he goes." + +"Goes! goes where? Are you so soon tired of me?" said he, in an accent +of most winning sweetness. + +"He's obliged to be at the Curragh, at the meeting there," said Darby, +answering for me. + +"What meeting? I never heard of it." + +"It 's a review, sir, of the throops, that 's to be by moonlight." + +"A review!" said the Frenchman, with a scornful laugh. "And do you call +this midnight assembly of marauding savages a review?" + +Darby's face grew dark with rage, and for a second I thought he would +have sprung on his assailant; but with a fawning, shrewd smile he lisped +out,-- + +"It's what they call it. Captain; sure the poor boys knows no better." + +"Are you going to this review?" said the Frenchman, with an ironical +pronunciation of the word. + +"I scarce know where to go, or what to do," said I, in a tone of +despairing sadness; "any certainty would be preferable to the doubts +that harass me." + +"Stay with me," said the Frenchman, interrupting me and laying his hand +on my shoulder; "we shall be companions to each other. Your friend here +knows I can teach you many things that may be useful to you hereafter; +and perhaps, with all humility I may say, your stay will be as +profitable as at the camp yonder." + +"I should not like to desert one who has been so kind to me as Darby; +and if he wishes--" + +Before I could finish my sentence, the door was opened by a key from +without, and Dalton, as he was called, stood amongst us. + +"What, Darby!" said he, in a voice of something like emotion; "not gone +yet! You know I forbid you coming up here; I suspected what you would be +at. Come, lose no more time; we 'll take care of Mr. Burke for you." + +Darby hung his head sorrowfully, and left the room without speaking, +followed by Dalton, whose voice I heard in a tone of anger as he +descended the stairs. + +There was a certain openness, an easy air of careless freedom, in the +young Frenchman, which made me feel at home in his company almost the +very moment of our acquaintance; and when he asked some questions about +myself and my family, I hesitated not to tell him my entire history, +with the causes which had first brought me into Darby's society, and led +me to imbibe his doctrines and opinions. He paused when I finished, and +after reflecting for some minutes, he looked me gravely in the face, and +said,-- + +"But you are aware of the place you are now in?" + +"No," said I; "further than the fact of my having enjoyed a capital +night's rest and eaten an excellent breakfast, I know nothing about it." + +A hearty burst of laughter from my companion followed this very candid +acknowledgment on my part. + +"Then, may I ask, what are your intentions for the future? Have you +any?" + +"At least one hundred," said I, smiling; "but every one of them has +about as many objections against it. I should like much, for instance, +to be a soldier,--not in the English service though. I should like to +belong to an army where neither birth nor fortune can make nor mar a +man's career. I should like, too, to be engaged in some great war of +liberty, where with each victory we gained the voices of a liberated +people would fall in blessings upon us. And then I should like to raise +myself to high command by some great achievement." + +"And then," said the Frenchman, interrupting, "to come back to Ireland, +and cut off the head of this terrible Monsieur Basset. N'est-ce pas, +Tom?" + +I could not help joining in his laugh against myself; although in good +truth I had felt better pleased if he had taken up my enthusiasm in a +different mood. + +"So much for mere dreaming!" said I, with half a sigh, as our laughter +subsided. + +"Not so," said he, quickly,--"not so; all you said is far more +attainable than you suspect. I have been in such a service myself. I won +my 'grade' as officer at the point of my sword, when scarcely your age; +and before I was fifteen, received this." + +He took down the sword that hung over the chimney as he said these +words, and drawing it from the scabbard, pointed to the inscription, +which in letters of gold adorned the blade,--"Rivoli," "Arcole;" then +turning the reverse, I read,--"Au Lieutenant Charles Gustave de Meudon, +Troisieme Cuirassiers." + +"This, then, is your name?" said I, repeating it half aloud. + +"Yes," replied he, as he drew himself up, and seemed struggling to +repress a feeling of pride that sent the blood rushing to his cheek and +brow. + +"How I should like to be you!" was the wish that burst from me at that +moment, and which I could not help uttering in words. + +"Helas, non!" said the Frenchman, sorrowfully, and turning away to +conceal his agitation; "I have broken with fortune many a day since." + +The tone of bitter disappointment in which these words were spoken left +no room for reply, and we were both silent. + +Charles--for so I must now call him to my reader, as he compelled me to +do so with himself--Charles was the first to speak. + +"Not many months ago my thoughts were very like your own; but since then +how many disappointments! how many reverses!" + +He walked hurriedly up and down the room as he said this; then stopping +suddenly before me, laid his hand on my shoulder, and with a voice of +impressive earnestness said:-- + +"Be advised by me: join not with these people; do not embark with them +in their enterprise. Their enterprise!" repeated he, scornfully: "they +have none. The only men of action here are they with whom no man of +honor, no soldier, could associate; their only daring, some deed of +rapine and murder. No! liberty is not to be achieved by such hands as +these. And the other,--the men of political wisdom, who prate about +reform and the people's rights, who would gladly see such as me +adventure in the cause they do not care themselves to advocate,--they +are all false alike. Give me," cried he, with energy, and stamping his +foot upon the ground,--"give me a demibrigade of ours, some squadrons +of Milhaud's cavalry, and trois bouches a feu to open the way before us. +But why do I speak of this? Some midnight burning, some savage murder, +some cowardly attack on unarmed and defenceless people,--these are our +campaigns here. And shall I stain this blade in such a conflict?" + +"But you will go back to France?" said I, endeavoring to say something +that might rally him from his gloom. + +"Never," replied he, firmly, "never! I alone, of all my countrymen, +maintained, that to leave the people here at such a crisis was unfair +and unmanly. I alone believed in the representations that were made +of extended organization, of high hopes, and ardent expectations. I +accepted the command of their army. Their army! what a mockery! When +others accepted the amnesty, I refused, and lived in concealment, my +life hanging upon the chance of being captured. For fourteen months I +have wandered from county to county, endeavoring to rally the spirit +I had been taught to think only needed restraint to hold back its +impetuous daring. I have spent money largely, for it was largely placed +at my disposal; I have distributed places and promises; I have accepted +every post where danger offered; and in return, I hoped that the hour +was approaching when we should test the courage of our enemies by such +an outbreak as would astonish Europe. And what think you has all ended +in? But my cheek burns at the very thought! An intended attack on the +Government Members of Parliament,--an act of base assassination,--a +cowardly murder! And for what, too?--to prevent a political union +with England I Have they forgotten that our cause was total rupture! +independence! open enmity with England! But, c'est fini, I have given +them my last resolve. Yesterday evening I told the delegates the only +chance that, in my opinion, existed of their successfully asserting +their own independence. I gave them the letters of French officers, high +in command and station, concurring with my own views; and I have pledged +myself to wait one month longer,--if they deem my plans worthy of +acceptance,--to consider all the details, and arrange the mode of +proceeding. If they refuse, then I leave Ireland forever within a week. +In America, the cause I glory in is still triumphant; and there, +no prestige of failure shall follow me to damp my own efforts, nor +discourage the high hopes of such as trust me. But you, my poor +boy,--and how have I forgotten you in all this sad history I--I will not +suffer you to be misled by false representations and flattering offers. +It may be the only consolation I shall carry with me from this land of +anarchy and misfortune. But even that is something,--if I rescue one +untried and uncorrupted heart from the misery of such associates. You +shall be a soldier,--be my companion here while I stay. I 'll arrange +everything for your comfort; we 'll read and talk together; and I will +endeavor to repay the debt I owe to France, by sending back there one +better than myself to guard her eagles." + +The tears ran fast down my cheeks as I heard these words; but not one +syllable could I utter. + +"You do not like my plan. Well--" + +Before he could conclude, I seized his hand with rapture within both of +mine, and pressed it to my lips. + +"It is a bargain, then," said he, gayly. "And now let us lose no more +time; let us remove this breakfast-table, and begin at once." + +Another table was soon drawn over to the fire, upon which a mass of +books, maps, and plates were heaped by my companion, who seemed to act +in the whole affair with all the delight of a schoolboy in some exploit +of amusement. + +"You are aware, Tom, that this place is a prison to me, and therefore I +am not altogether disinterested in this proposal. You, however, can go +out when you please; but until you understand the precautions necessary +to prevent you from being traced here, it is better not to venture into +the city." + +"I have no wish whatever to leave this," said I, quickly, while I ranged +my eye with delight over the pile of books before me, and thought of all +the pleasure I was to draw from their perusal. + +"You must tell me so three weeks hence, if you wish to flatter me," +replied Charles, as he drew over his chair, and pointed with his hand to +another. + +It needed not the pleasing and attractive power of my teacher to make my +study the most captivating of all amusements. Military science, even in +its gravest forms, had an interest for me such as no other pursuit +could equal. In its vast range of collateral subjects, it opened an +inexhaustible mine to stimulate industry and encourage research. The +great wars of the world were the great episodes in history, wherein +monarchs and princes were nothing, if not generals. With what delight, +then, did I hang over the pages of Carnot and Jomini! With what an +anxious heart would I read the narrative of a siege, where, against +every disadvantage of numbers and munitions of war, some few resisted +all the attacks of the adverse forces, with no other protection save +that of consummate skill! With what enthusiasm did I hear of Charles the +Twelfth, of Wallenstein, of the Prince Eugene! And how often-times did +I ask myself in secret, Why had the world none such as these to boast of +now?--till at last the name of Bonaparte burst from my companion's lips, +as, with a torrent of long-restrained devotion, he broke forth into an +eloquent and impassioned account of the great general of his age! + +That name once heard, I could not bear to think or speak of any other. +How I followed him,--from the siege of Toulon, as he knelt down beside +the gun which he pointed with his own hand, to the glorious battlefields +of Italy,--and heard, from one who listened to his shout of +"Suivez-moi" on the bridge of Lodi, the glorious heroism of that day! I +tracked him across the pathless deserts of the East,--beneath the shadow +of the Pyramids, whose fame seems somehow to have revived in the history +of that great man. And then I listened to the stories--and how numerous +were they!--of his personal daring; the devotion and love men bore him; +the magic influence of his presence; the command of his look. The very +short and broken sentences he addressed to his generals were treasured +up in my mind, and repeated over and over to myself. Charles possessed +a miniature of the First Consul, which he assured me was strikingly +like him; and for hours long I could sit and gaze upon that cold, +unimpassioned brow, where greatness seemed to sit enthroned. How I +longed to look upon that broad and massive forehead,--the deep-set, +searching eye,--the mouth, where sweetness and severity seemed +tempered,--and that finely rounded chin, that gave his head so much the +character of antique beauty! His image filled every avenue of my brain; +his eye seemed on me in my waking moments, and I thought I heard his +voice in my dream. Never did lover dwell more rapturously on the memory +of his mistress than did my boyish thoughts on Bonaparte. What would I +not have done to serve him? What would I not have dared to win one word, +one look of his, in praise? All other names faded away before his;--the +halo around him paled every other star; the victories! had thought +of before with admiration I now only regarded as trifling successes, +compared with the overwhelming torrent of his conquests. Charles saw my +enthusiasm, and ministered to it with eager delight. Every trait in his +beloved leader that could stimulate admiration or excite affection, he +dwelt on with all the fondness of a Frenchman for his idol; till at last +the world seemed to my eyes but the theatre of his greatness, and +men the mere instruments of that commanding intellect that ruled the +destinies and disposed of the fortunes of nations. + +In this way, days and weeks, and even months rolled on, for Charles's +interest in my studies had induced him to abandon his former intention +of departure; and he now scarcely took any part in the proceedings of +the delegates, and devoted himself almost exclusively to me. During the +daytime we never left the house; but when night fell we used to walk +forth, not into the city, but by some country road, often along +the canal-side,--our conversation on the only topic wherein we felt +interested. And these rambles still live within my memory with all +the vivid freshness of yesterday; and while my heart saddens over the +influence they shed upon my after life, I cannot help the train of +pleasure with which even yet I dwell upon their recollection. How +guarded should he be who converses with a boy, forgetting with what +power each word is fraught by the mere force of years,--how the +flattery of equality destroys judgment, and saps all power of +discrimination,--and, more than all, how dangerous it is to graft upon +the tender sapling the ripe fruits of experience, not knowing how, in +such, they may grow to very rankness! Few are there who cannot look +back to their childhood for the origin of opinions that have had their +influence over all their latter years; and when these have owed their +birth to those we loved, is it wonderful that we should cling to faults +which seemed hallowed by friendship? + +Meanwhile I was becoming a man, if not in years, at least in spirit +and ambition. The pursuits natural to my age were passed over for the +studies of more advanced years. Military history had imparted to me a +soldier's valor, and I could take no pleasure in anything save as it +bore upon the one engrossing topic of my mind. Charles, too, seemed to +feel all his own ambition revived in mine, and watched with pride the +progress I was making under his guidance. + + + +CHAPTER IX. THE FRENCHMAN'S STORY + +While my life slipped thus pleasantly along, the hopes of the insurgent +party fell daily and hourly lower; disunion and distrust pervaded all +their councils, jealousies and suspicions grew up among their leaders. +Many of those whose credit stood highest in their party became informers +to the Government, whose persevering activity increased with every +emergency; and finally, they who would have adventured everything +but some few months before, grew lukewarm and indifferent. A dogged +carelessness seemed to have succeeded to their outbreak of enthusiasm, +and they looked on at the execution of their companions and the wreck of +their party with a stupid and stolid indifference. + +For some time previous the delegates met at rare and irregular +intervals, and finally ceased to assemble altogether. The bolder portion +of the body, disgusted with the weak and temporizing views of the +others, withdrew first: and the less determined formed themselves into +a new Society, whose object was merely to get up petitions and addresses +unfavorable to the great project of the Government,--a Legislative Union +with England. + +From the turn events had taken, my companion, as it may be supposed, +took no interest in their proceedings. Affecting to think that all was +not lost,--while in his heart he felt bitterly the disappointment of +his hopes,--a settled melancholy, unrelieved even by those flashes of +buoyancy which a Frenchman rarely loses in any misfortune, now grew upon +him. His cheek grew paler, and his frame seemed wasting away, while his +impaired strength and tottering step betrayed that something more than +sorrow was at work within him. Still he persevered in our course of +study, and notwithstanding all my efforts to induce him to relax in +his labors, his desire to teach me grew with every day. For some time +a short, hacking cough, with pain in his chest, had seized on him, and +although it yielded to slight remedies, it returned again and again. +Our night walks were therefore obliged to be discontinued, and the +confinement to the house preyed upon his spirits and shook his nerves. +Boy as I was, I could not look upon his altered face and attenuated +figure without a thrilling fear at my heart lest he might be seriously +ill. He perceived my anxiety quickly, and endeavored, with many a +cheering speech, to assure me that these were attacks to which he had +been long accustomed, and which never were either lasting or dangerous; +but the very hollow accents in which he spoke robbed these words of all +their comfort to me. + +The winter, which had been unusually long and severe, at length passed +away, and the spring, milder and more genial than is customary in our +climate, succeeded; the sunlight came slanting down through the narrow +court, and fell in one rich yellow patch upon the floor. Charles +started; his dark eyes, hollow and sunk, glowed with unwonted +brightness, and his haggard and hollow cheek suddenly flushed with a +crimson glow. + +"Mon cher," said he, in a voice tremulous with emotion, "I think if I +were to leave this I might recover." + +The very possibility of his death, until that moment, had never even +crossed my mind, and in the misery of the thought I burst into tears. +From that hour the impression never left my mind; and every accent of +his low, soft voice, every glance of his mild, dark eye, sank into +my heart, as though I heard and saw them for the last time. There was +nothing to fear now, so far as political causes were concerned, in our +removing from our present abode; and it was arranged between us that we +should leave town, and take up our residence in the county of Wicklow. +There was a small cottage at the opening of Glenmalure which my +companion constantly spoke of; he had passed two nights there already, +and left it with many a resolve to return and enjoy the delightful +scenery of the neighborhood. + +The month of April was drawing to a close, when one morning soon after +sunrise we left Dublin. A heavy mist, such as often in northern climates +ushers in a day of unusual brightness, shrouded every object from our +view for several miles of the way. Charles scarcely spoke; the increased +exertion seemed to have fatigued and exhausted him, and he lay back in +the carriage, his handkerchief pressed to his mouth, and his eyes half +closed. + +We had passed the little town of Bray, and entered upon that long road +which traverses the valley between the two Sugar Loaves, when suddenly +the sun burst forth; the lazy mists rolled heavily up the valley and +along the mountainsides, disclosing as they went patches of fertile +richness or dark masses of frowning rock. Above this, again, the purple +heath appeared glowing like a gorgeous amethyst, as the red sunlight +played upon it, or sparkled on the shining granite that rose through +the luxuriant herbage. Gradually the ravine grew narrower; the mountain +seemed like one vast chain, severed by some great convulsion,--their +rugged sides appeared to mark the very junction; trunks of aged and +mighty trees hung threateningly above the pass; and a hollow echoing +sound arose as the horses trod along the causeway. It was a spot of wild +and gloomy grandeur, and as I gazed on it intently, suddenly I felt +a hand upon my shoulder. I turned round: it was Charles's, his eyes +riveted on the scene, his lips parted with eagerness. He spoke at +length; but at first his voice was hoarse and low, by degrees it grew +fuller and richer, and at last rolled on in all its wonted strength and +roundness. + +"See there,--look!" cried he, as his thin, attenuated figure pointed +to the pass. "What a ravine to defend! The column, with two pieces of +artillery in the road; the cavalry to form behind, where you see that +open space, and advance between the open files of the infantry; the +tirailleurs scattered along that ridge where the furze is thickest, or +down there among those masses of rock. Sacristi! what a volume of fire +they 'd pour down! See how the blue smoke and the ring of the musket +would mark them out as they dotted the mountain-side, and yet were +unapproachable to the enemy! And think then of the rolling thunder +of the eighteen-pounders shaking these old mountains, and the long, +clattering crash of the platoon following after, and the dark shakos +towering above the smoke! And then the loud 'Viva!'--I think I hear it." + +His cheek became purple as he spoke, his veins swollen and distended; +his voice, though loud, lost nothing of its musical cadence; and his +whole look betokened excitement, almost bordering on madness. Suddenly +his chest heaved, a tremendous fit of coughing seized him, and he fell +forward upon my shoulder. I lifted him up; and what was my horror to +perceive that all his vest and cravat were bathed in florid blood, which +issued from his mouth! He had burst a blood-vessel in his wild transport +of enthusiasm, and now lay pale, cold, and senseless in my arms. + +It was a long time before we could proceed with our journey, for +although fortunately the bleeding did not continue, fainting followed +fainting for hours after. At length we were enabled to set out again, +but only at a walking pace. For the remainder of the day his head rested +on my shoulder, and his cold hand in mine, as we slowly traversed +the long, weary miles towards Glenmalure. The night was falling as +we arrived at our journey's end. Here, however, every kindness and +attention awaited us; and I soon had the happiness of seeing my poor +friend in his bed, and sleeping with all the ease and tranquillity of a +child. + +From that hour every other thought was merged in my fears for him. +I watched with an agonizing intensity every change of his malady; I +scanned with an aching heart every symptom day by day. How many times +has the false bloom of hectic shed happiness over me! How often in +my secret walks have I offered up my prayer of thankfulness, as the +deceitful glow of fever colored his wan cheek, and lent a more than +natural brilliancy to his sunk and filmy eye! The world to me was all +nothing, save as it influenced him. Every cloud that moved above, each +breeze that rustled, I thought of for him; and when I slept, his image +was still before me, and his voice seemed to call me oftentimes in the +silence of the night, and when I awoke and saw him sleeping, I knew not +which was the reality. + +His debility increased rapidly; and although the mild air of summer and +the shelter of the deep valley seemed to have relieved his cough, his +weakness grew daily more and more. His character, too, seemed to have +undergone a change as great and as striking as that in his health. The +high and chivalrous ambition, the soldierlike heroism, the ardent spirit +of patriotism that at first marked him, had given way to a low and +tender melancholy,--an almost womanish tenderness,--that made him +love to have the little children of the cabin near him, to hear their +innocent prattle and watch their infant gambols. He talked, too, of +home; of the old chateau in Provence, where he was born, and described +to me its antiquated terraces and quaint, old-fashioned alleys, where as +a boy he wandered with his sister. + +"Pauvre Marie!" said he, as a deep blush covered his pale cheek, "how +have I deserted you!" The thought seemed full of anguish for him, and +for the remainder of the day he scarcely spoke. + +Some days after his first mention of his sister, we were sitting +together in front of the cabin, enjoying the shade of a large +chestnut-tree, which already had put forth its early leaves, and +tempered if it did not exclude the rays of the sun. + +"You heard me speak of my sister," said he, in a low and broken voice. +"She is all that I have on earth near to me. We were brought up together +as children; learned the same plays, had the same masters, spent not one +hour in the long day asunder, and at night we pressed each other's hands +as we sunk to sleep. She was to me all that I ever dreamed of girlish +loveliness, of woman's happiest nature; and I was her ideal of boyish +daring, of youthful boldness, and manly enterprise. We loved each +other,--like those who felt they had no need of other affection, save +such as sprang from our cradles, and tracked us on through life. Hers +was a heart that seemed made for all that human nature can taste of +happiness; her eye, her lip, her blooming cheek knew no other expression +than a smile; her very step was buoyancy; her laugh rang through your +heart as joy-bells fill the air; and yet,--and yet! I brought that heart +to sorrow, and that cheek I made pale, and hollow, and sunken as you see +my own. My cursed ambition, that rested not content with my own path in +life, threw its baleful shadow across hers. The story is a short one, +and I may tell it to you. + +"When I left Provence to join the army of the South, I was obliged to +leave Marie under the care of an old and distant relative, who resided +some two leagues from us on the Loire. The chevalier was a widower, with +one son about my own age, of whom I knew nothing save that he had never +left his father's house; had been educated completely at home; and had +obtained the reputation of being a sombre, retired bookworm, who avoided +the world, and preferred the lonely solitude of a provincial chateau to +the gay dissipations of Paris. + +"My only fear in intrusting my poor sister in such hands was the dire +stupidity of the _sejour_; but as I bid her goodby, I said, laughingly, +'Prenez garde, Marie, don't fall in love with Claude de Lauzan.' + +"'Poor Claude!' said she, bursting into a fit of laughter; 'what a sad +affair that would be for him!' So saying, we parted. + +"I made the campaign of Italy, where, as I have perhaps too often told +you, I had some opportunities of distinguishing myself, and was promoted +to a squadron on the field of Arcole. Great as my boyish exultation +was at my success, I believe its highest pleasure arose from the +anticipation of Marie's delight when she received my letter with +the news. I wrote to her nearly every week, and heard from her as +frequently. At the time I did not mark, as I have since done, the +altered tone of her letters to me: how, gradually, the high ambitious +daring that animated her early answers became tamed down into half +regretful fears of a soldier's career; her sorrows for those whose +conquered countries were laid waste by fire and sword; her implied +censure of a war whose injustice she more than hinted at; and, lastly, +her avowed preference for those peaceful paths in life that were devoted +to the happiness of one's fellows, and the worship of Him who deserved +all our affection. I did not mark, I say, this change,--the bustle of +the camp, the din of arms, the crash of mounted squadrons, are poor aids +to reflection, and I thought of Marie but as I left her. + +"It was after a few months of absence I returned to Provence,--the +_croix d'honneur_ on my bosom, the sabre I won at Lodi by my side. I +rushed into the room bursting with impatience to clasp my sister in my +arms, and burning to tell her all my deeds and all my dangers. She met +me with her old affection; but how altered in its form! Her gay and +girlish lightness, the very soul of buoyant pleasure, was gone; and in +its place a mild, sad smile played upon her lip, and a deep, thoughtful +look was in her dark brown eye. She looked not less beautiful,--no, far +from it; her loveliness was increased tenfold. But the disappointment +smote heavily on my heart. I looked about me like one seeking for +some explanation; and there stood Claude--pale, still, and +motionless--before me: the very look she wore reflected in his calm +features; her very smile was on his lips. In an instant the whole truth +flashed across me: she loved him. + +"There are thoughts which rend us, as lightning does the rock, opening +new surfaces that lay hid since the Creation, and tearing our fast-knit +sympathies asunder like the rent granite: mine was such. From that hour +I hated him; the very virtues that had, under happier circumstances, +made us like brothers, but added fuel to the flame. My rival, he had +robbed me of my sister;--he had left me without that one great prize +I owned on earth; and all that I had dared and won seemed poor, and +barren, and worthless, since she no longer valued it. + +"That very night I wrote a letter to the First Consul. I knew the ardent +desire he possessed to attach to Josephine's suite such members of the +old aristocracy as could be induced to join it. He had more than +once hinted to me that the fame of my sister's beauty had reached +the Tuileries; that with such pretensions as hers, the seclusion of a +chateau in Provence was ill suited to her. I stated at once my wish +that she might be received as one of the Ladies of the Court, avowing +my intention to afford her any sum that might be deemed suitable to +maintain her in so exalted a sphere. This, you are not aware, is the +mode by which the members of a family express to the consul that they +surrender all right and guardianship in the individual given, tendering +to him full power to dispose of her in marriage, exactly as though he +were her own father. + +"Before day broke my letter was on its way to Paris; in less than a week +came the answer, accepting my proposal in the most flattering terms, +and commanding me to repair to the Tuileries with my sister, and take +command of a regiment d' elite then preparing for service. + +"I may not dwell on the scene that followed; the very memory of it is +too much for my weak and failing spirits. Claude flung himself at my +feet, and confessed his love. He declared his willingness to submit to +any or everything I should dictate: he would join the army; he would +volunteer for Egypt. Poor fellow! his trembling accents and bloodless +lip comported ill with the heroism of his words. Only promise that in +the end Marie should be his, and there was no danger he would not dare, +no course in life, however unsuited to him, he would not follow at my +bidding. I know not whether my heart could have withstood such an appeal +as this, had I been free to act; but now the die was cast. I handed +him the First Consul's letter. He opened it with a hand trembling like +palsy, and read it over; he leaned his head against the chimney when he +finished, and gave me back the letter without a word. I could not bear +to look on him, and left the room. + +"When I returned he was gone. We left the chateau the same evening for +Paris. Marie scarcely spoke one word during the journey; a fatuous, +stupid indifference to everything and every one had seized her, and she +seemed perfectly careless whither we went. This gradually yielded to a +settled melancholy, which never left her. On our arrival in Paris, I did +not dare to present myself with her at the Tuileries; so, feigning +her ill health as an excuse, I remained some weeks at Versailles, to +endeavor by affection and care to overcome this sad feature of her +malady. It was about six weeks after this that I read in the 'Journal +des Debats' an announcement that, Claude de Lauzan had accepted holy +orders, and was appointed _cure_ of La Fleche, in Brittany.' At first +the news came on me like a thunder-clap; but after a while's reflection +I began to believe it was perhaps the very best thing could have +happened. And under this view of the matter I left the paper in Marie's +way. + +"I was right. She did not appear the next morning at breakfast, nor the +entire day after. The following day the same; but in the evening came +a few lines written with a pencil, saying she wished to see me. I +went;--but I cannot tell you. My very heart is bursting as I think of +her, as she sat up in her bed; her long, dark hair falling in heavy +masses over her shoulders, and her darker eyes flashing with a +brightness that seemed like wandering intellect. She fell upon my neck +and cried; her tears ran down my cheek, and her sobs shook me. I know +not what I said: but I remember that she agreed to everything I had +arranged for her; she even smiled a sickly smile as I spoke of what an +ornament she would be to the belle cour,--and we parted. + +"That was the last good-night I ever wished her. The next day she was +received at Court, and I was ordered to Normandy; thence I was sent to +Boulogne, and soon after to Ireland." + +"But you have written to her,--you have heard from her?" + +"Alas! no. I have written again and again; but either she has never +received my letters, or she will not answer them." + +The tone of sorrow he concluded in left no room for any effort at +consolation, and we were silent; at last he took my hand in his, and as +his feverish fingers pressed it, he said,--"'T is a sad thing when we +work the misery of those for whose happiness we would have shed our +heart's blood." + + + +CHAPTER X. THE CHURCHYARD + +The excitement caused by the mere narration of his sister's suffering +weighed heavily on De Meudon's weak and exhausted frame. His thoughts +would flow in no other channel; his reveries were of home and long past +years; and a depression far greater than I had yet witnessed settled +down upon his jaded spirits. + +"Is not my present condition like a just retribution on my ambitious +folly?" was his continued reflection. And so he felt it. With a +Frenchman's belief in destiny, he regarded the failure of all his +hopes, and the ruin of the cause he had embarked in, as the natural +and inevitable consequences of his own ungenerous conduct; and even +reproached himself for carrying his evil fortune into an enterprise +which, without him, might have been successful. These gloomy +forebodings, against which reason was of no avail, grew hourly upon him, +and visibly influenced his chances of recovery. + +It was a sad spectacle to look on one who possessed so much of good, so +many fair and attractive qualities, thus wasting away without a single +consolation he could lay to his bruised and wounded spirit. The very +successes he once gloried to remember, now only added bitterness to his +fallen state. To think of what he had been, and look on what he was, was +his heaviest affliction; and he fell into deep, brooding melancholy, in +which he scarcely spoke, but sat looking at vacancy, waiting as it were +for death. + +I remember it well. I had been sitting silently by his bedside; for +hours he had not spoken, but an occasional deep-drawn sigh showed he +was not sleeping. It was night, and all in the little household were at +rest; a slight rustling of the curtain attracted me, and I felt his hand +steal from the clothes and grasp my own. + +"I have been thinking of you, my dear boy," said he, "and what is to +become of you when I'm gone. There, do not sob! The time is short now, +and I begin to feel it so; for somehow, as we approach the confines of +eternity, our mental vision grows clearer and more distinct,--doubts +that have long puzzled us seem doubts no longer. Many of our highest +hopes and aspirations--the daydreams that made life glorious--pass +before our eyes, and become the poor and empty pageants of the hour. +Like the traveller, who as he journeys along sees little of the way, +but at the last sits down upon some grassy bank, and gazes over the long +line of road; so, as the close of life draws near, we throw a backward +glance upon the past. But how differently does all seem to our eyes! +How many of those we envied once do we pity now! how many of those who +appeared low and humble, whose thoughts seemed bowed to earth, do we now +recognize as soaring aloft, high above their fellow-men, like creatures +of some other sphere!" He paused; then in a tone of greater earnestness +added: "You must not join these people, Tom. The day is gone by when +anything great or good could have been accomplished. The horrors of +civil war will ever prevent good men from uniting themselves to a cause +which has no other road save through bloodshed; and many wise ones, who +weigh well the dangers, see it hopeless. France is your country: there +liberty has been won; there lives one great man, whose notice, were it +but passingly bestowed, is fame. If life were spared me, I could have +served you there; as it is, I can do something." + +He paused for a while, and then drawing the curtain gently to one side, +said,--"Can it be moonlight? it is so very bright." + +"Yes," said I; "the moon is at the full." + +He sat up as I spoke, and looked eagerly out through the little window. + +"I have got a fancy,--how strange, too; it is one I have often smiled at +in others, but I feel it strongly now: it is to choose some spot where +I shall be laid when I am dead. There is a little ruin at the bottom of +this glen; you must remember it well. If I mistake not, there is a well +close beside it. I remember resting there one hot and sultry day in +July. It was an eventful day, too. We beat the King's troops, and took +seventy prisoners; and I rode from Arklow down here to bring up some +ammunition that we had secreted in one of the lead mines. Well I +recollect falling asleep beside that well, and having such a delightful +dream of home when I was a child, and of a pony which Marie used to ride +behind me; and I thought we were galloping through the vineyard, she +grasping me round the waist, half laughing, half in fear,--and when I +awoke I could not remember where I was. I should like to see that old +spot again, and I feel strong enough now to try it." + +I endeavored, with all my power of persuasion, to prevent his attempting +to walk such a distance, and in the night air too; but the more I +reasoned against it, the more bent was he on the project, and at last +I was obliged to yield a reluctant consent, and assist him to rise +and dress. The energy which animated him at first soon sank under the +effort, and before we had gone a quarter of a mile he grew faint and +weary; still he persevered, and leaning heavily on my arm, he tottered +along. + +"If I make no better progress," said he, smiling sadly, "there will be +no need to assist me coming back." + +At last we reached the ruin, which, like many of the old churches in +Ireland, was a mere gable, overgrown with ivy, and pierced with a single +window, whose rudely-formed arch betokened great antiquity. Vestiges +of the side walls remained in part, but the inside of the building was +filled with tombstones and grave-mounds, selected by the people as being +a place of more than ordinary sanctity; among these the rank dock weeds +and nettles grew luxuriantly, and the tall grass lay heavy and matted. +We sat for some time looking on this same spot. A few garlands were +withering on some rude crosses of stick, to mark the latest of those who +sought their rest there; and upon these my companion's eyes were bent +with a melancholy meaning. + +How long we sat there in silence I know not; but a rustling of the ivy +behind me was the first thing to attract my attention. I turned quickly +round, and in the window of the ruin beheld the head of a man bent +eagerly in the direction we were in; the moonlight fell upon him at the +moment, and I saw that the face was blackened. + +"Who's that?" I called aloud, as with my finger I directed De Meudon to +the spot. No answer was returned, and I repeated my question yet louder; +but still no reply, while I could mark that the head was turned slightly +round, as if to speak with some one without. The noise of feet, and the +low murmur of several voices, now came from the side of the ruin; at +the same instant a dozen men, their faces blackened, and wearing a white +badge on their hats, stood up as if out of the very ground around us. + +"What are you doing here at this time of night?" said a hard voice, in +tones that boded but little kindliness. + +"We are as free to walk the country, when we like it, as you are, I +hope," was my answer. + +"I know his voice well," said another of the crowd; "I told you it was +them." + +"Is it you that stop at Wild's, in the glen?" said the first speaker. + +"Yes," replied I. + +"And is it to get share of what 's going, that ye 're come to join us +now?" repeated he, in a tone of mockery. + +"Be easy, Lanty; 'tis the French officer that behaved so stout up at +Ross. It 's little he cares for money, as myself knows. I saw him throw +a handful of goold among the boys when they stopped to pillage, and bid +them do their work first, and that he 'd give them plenty after." + +"Maybe he 'd do the same now," said a voice from the crowd, in a tone of +irony; and the words were received by the rest with a roar of laughter. + +"Stop laughing," said the first speaker, in a voice of command; "we've +small time for joking." As he spoke he threw himself heavily on the bank +beside De Meudon, and placing his hand familiarly on his arm, said, in a +low but clear voice: "The boys is come up here to-night to draw lots +for three men to settle Barton, that 's come down here yesterday, and +stopping at the barrack there. We knew you war n't well lately, and we +did n't trouble you; but now that you 're come up of yourself among us, +it 's only fair and reasonable you 'd take your chance with the rest, +and draw your lot with the others." + +"Arrah, he 's too weak; the man is dying," said a voice near. + +"And if he is," said the other, "who wants his help? sure, is n't it to +keep him quiet, and not bethray us?" + +"The devil a fear of that," said the former speaker; "he's thrue to the +backbone; I know them that knows him well." + +By this time De Meudon had risen to his feet, and stood leaning upon a +tall headstone beside him; his foraging cap fell off in his effort to +stand, and his long thin hair floated in masses down his pale cheeks and +on his shoulders. The moon was full upon him; and what a contrast did +his noble features present to the ruffian band that sat and stood around +him! + +"And is it a scheme of murder, of cold, cowardly assasination, you have +dared to propose to me?" said he, darting a look of fiery indignation +on him who seemed the leader. "Is it thus you understand my presence in +your country and in your cause? Think ye it was for this that I left the +glorious army of France,--that I quitted the field of honorable war to +mix with such as you? Ay, if it were the last word I were to speak on +earth, I 'd denounce you, wretches that stain with blood and massacre +the sacred cause the best and boldest bleed for!" + +The click of a trigger sounded harshly on my ear, and my blood ran cold +with horror. De Meudon heard it too, and continued,--"You do but cheat +me of an hour or two, and I am ready." + +He paused, as if waiting for the shot. A deadly silence followed; it +lasted for some minutes, when again he spoke,--"I came here to-night not +knowing of your intentions, not expecting you; I came here to choose +a grave, where, before another week pass over, I hoped to rest. If you +will it sooner, I shall not gainsay you." + +Low murmurs ran through the crowd, and something like a tone of pity +could be heard mingling through the voices. + +"Let him go home, then, in God's name!" said one of the number; "that's +the best way." + +"Ay, take him home," said another, addressing me; "Dan Kelly 's a hard +man when he 's roused." + +The words were repeated on every side, and I led De Meudon forth leaning +on my arm; for already, the excitement over, a stupid indifference crept +over him, and he walked on by my side without speaking. + +I confess it was not without trepidation, and many a backward glance +towards the old ruin, that I turned homeward to our cabin. There was +that in their looks at which I trembled for my companion; nor do I yet +know why they spared him at that moment. + + + +CHAPTER XI. TOO LATE. + +The day which followed the events I have mentioned was a sad one to me. +The fatigue and the excitement together brought on fever with De Meudon. +His head became attacked, and before evening his faculties began to +wander. All the strange events of his checkered life were mixed up in +his disturbed intellect; and he talked on for hours about Italy, and +Egypt, the Tuileries, La Vendee, and Ireland, without ceasing. The +entire of the night he never slept, and the next day the symptoms +appeared still more aggravated. The features of his insanity were wilder +and less controllable. He lost all memory of me; and sometimes the sight +of me at his bedside threw him into most terrific paroxysms of passion; +while at others, he would hold my hand for hours together, and seem to +feel my presence as something soothing. His frequent recurrence to the +scene in the churchyard showed the deep impression it had made upon +his mind, and how fatally it had influenced the worst symptoms of his +malady. + +Thus passed two days and nights. On the third morning, exhaustion seemed +to have worn him into a false calm. His wild, staring eye had become +heavier, his movements less rapid; the spot of color had left his cheek; +the mouth was pinched up and rigid; and a flatness of the muscles of the +face betokened complete depression. He spoke seldom, and with a voice +hoarse and cavernous, but no longer in the tone of wild excitement as +before. I sat by his bedside still and in silence, my own sad thoughts +my only company. As it grew later, the sleepless days and nights I had +passed, and the stillness of the sickroom, overcame me, and I slept. + +I awoke with a start; some dreamy consciousness of neglect had flashed +across me, and I sat up. I peeped into the bed, and started back with +amazement. I looked again, and there lay De Meudon, on the outside of +the clothes, dressed in his full uniform,--the green coat and white +facing, the large gold epaulettes, the brilliant crosses on the breast; +his plumed chapeau lay at one side of him, and his sabre at the other. +He lay still and motionless. I held the candle near his face, and could +mark a slight smile that curled his cold lip, and gave to his wan and +wasted features something of their former expression. + +"Oui, mon cher," said he, in a weak whisper, as he took my hand and +kissed it, "c'est bien moi." And then added, "It was another of my +strange fancies to put on these once more before I died; and when I +found you sleeping, I arose and did so. I have changed something since I +wore this last: it was at a ball at Cambaceres." + +My joy at hearing him speak once more with full possession of his +reason, was damped by the great change a few hours had worked in his +appearance. His skin was cold and clammy; a gluey moisture rested on his +cheek; and his teeth were dark and discolored. A slimy froth, too, was +ever rising to his lips as he spoke; while at every respiration his +chest heaved and waved like a stormy sea. + +"You are thirsty, Charles," said I, stooping over him to wet his lips. + +"No," said he, calmly, "I have but one thing which wants relief; it is +here." + +He pressed his hand to his heart as he spoke, while such a look of +misery as crossed his features I never beheld. + +"Your heart--" + +"Is broken," said he, with a sigh. For some minutes he said nothing, +then whispered: "Take my pocket-book from beneath my pillow; yes, that +'s it. There is a letter you 'll give my sister; you 'll promise me +that? Well, the other is for Lecharlier, the _chef_ of the Polytechnique +at Paris; that is for you,--you must be _un eleve_ there. There are +some five or six thousand francs,--it 's all I have now: they are yours; +Marie is already provided for. Tell her--But no; she has forgiven me +long since,--I feel it. You 'll one day win your grade,--high up; yes, +you must do so. Perhaps it may be your fortune to speak with General +Bonaparte; if so, I beg you say to him, that when Charles de Meudon was +dying, in exile, with but one friend left of all the world, he held this +portrait to his lips, and with his last breath he kissed it." + +The fervor of the action drew the blood to his face and temples, which +as suddenly became pale again. A shivering ran through his limbs; a +quick heaving of his bosom; a sigh; and all was still. He was dead! + +The stunning sense of deep affliction is a mercy from on high. Weak +human faculties, long strained by daily communing with grief, would +fall into idiocy were their acuteness not blunted and their perception +rendered dull. It is for memory to trace back through the mazes of +misery the object of our sorrow, as the widow searches for the corpse of +him she loved amid the slain upon the battlefield. + +I sat benumbed with sorrow, a vague desire for the breaking day my only +thought. Already the indistinct glimmerings of morning were visible, +when I heard the sounds of men marching along the road towards the +house. I could mark, by the clank of their firelocks and their regular +step, that they were soldiers. They halted at the door of the cabin, +whence a loud knocking now proceeded. + +"Halloo, there!" said a voice, whose tones seemed to sink into my very +heart; "halloo, Peter! get up and open the door." + +"What's the matter?" cried the old man, starting up, and groping his way +towards the door. + +The sound of several voices and the noise of approaching footsteps +drowned the reply; and the same instant the door of the little room in +which I sat opened, and a sergeant entered. + +"Sorry to disturb ye, sir," said he, civilly; "but duty can't be +avoided. I have a warrant to arrest Captain de Meudon, a French officer +that is concealed here. May I ask where is he?" + +I pointed to the bed. The sergeant approached, and by the half-light +could just perceive the glitter of the uniform, as the body lay shaded +by the curtain. + +"I arrest you, sir, in the King's name," said he. "Halloo, Kelly! this +is your prisoner, isn't he?" + +A head appeared at the door as he spoke; and as the eyes wandered +stealthily round the chamber, I recognized, despite the change of color, +the wretch who led the party at the churchyard. + +"Come in, damn ye," said the sergeant, impatiently; "what are you afraid +for? Is this your man? Halloo, sir!" said he, shaking the corpse by the +shoulder. + +"You must call even louder yet," said I, while something like the fury +of a fiend was working within me. + +"What!" said the sergeant, snatching up the light and holding it within +the bed. He started back in horror as he did so, and called out, "He is +dead!" + +Kelly sprang forward at the word, and seizing the candle, held it down +to the face of the corpse; but the flame rose as steadily before those +cold lips as though the breath of life had never warmed them. + +"I 'll get the reward, anyhow, sergeant, won't I?" said the ruffian, +while the thirst for gain added fresh expression to his savage features. + +A look of disgust was the only reply he met with, as the sergeant walked +into the outer room, and whispered something to the man of the house. At +the same instant the galloping of a horse was heard on the causeway. It +came nearer and nearer, and ceased suddenly at the door, as a deep voice +shouted out,-- + +"Well! all right, I hope, sergeant. Is he safe?" + +A whispered reply, and a low, muttered sound of two or three voices +followed, and Barton--the same man I had seen at the fray in Malone's +cabin--entered the room. He approached the bed, and drawing back the +curtains, rudely gazed on the dead man, while over his shoulder peered +the demoniac countenance of the informer Kelly, his savage features +working in anxiety lest his gains should have escaped him. + +Barton's eye ranged the little chamber till it fell on me, as I sat +still and motionless against the wall. He started slightly, and then +advancing close, fixed his piercing glance upon me. + +"Ha!" cried he, "you here! Well, that is more than I looked for this +morning. I have a short score to settle with you. Sergeant, here 's one +prisoner for you, at any rate." + +"Yes," said Kelly, springing forward, "he was at the churchyard with the +other; I'll swear to that." + +"I think we can do without your valuable aid in this business," said +Barton, smiling maliciously. "Come along, young gentleman; we 'll try +and finish the education that has begun so prosperously." + +My eyes involuntarily turned to the table where De Meudon's pistols +were lying. The utter hopelessness of such a contest deterred me not, I +sprang towards them; but as I did so, the strong hand of Barton was on +my collar, and with a hoarse laugh, he threw me against the wall, as he +called out,-- + +"Folly, boy! mere folly. You are quite sure of the rope without that. +Here, take him off!" + +As he spoke, two soldiers seized me on either side, and before a minute +elapsed, pinioned my arms behind my back. In another moment the men fell +in, the order was given to march, and I was led away between the files, +Kelly following at the rear; while Barton's voice might be heard issuing +from the cabin, as he gave his orders for the burial of the body, and +the removal of all the effects and papers to the barrack at Glencree. + +We might have been about an hour on the road when Barton overtook us. +He rode to the head of the party, and handing a paper to the sergeant, +muttered some words, among which I could only gather the phrase, +"Committed to Newgate;" then, turning round in his saddle, he fixed his +eyes on Kelly, who, like a beast of prey, continued to hang upon the +track of his victim. + +"Well, Dan," cried he, "you may go home again now. I am afraid you 've +gained nothing this time but character." + +"Home!" muttered the wretch in a voice of agony; "is it face home after +this morning's work?" + +"And why not, man? Take my word for it, the neighbors will be too much +afraid to meddle with you now." + +"Oh, Mister Barton! oh, darling! don't send me back there, for the love +of Heaven! Take me with you!" cried the miserable wretch, in tones of +heart-moving misery. + +"Oh, young gentleman," said he, taming towards me, and catching me by +the sleeve, "spake a word for me this day!" + +"Don't you think he has enough of troubles of his own to think of, Dan?" +said Barton, with a tone of seeming kindliness. "Go back, man; go back! +there 's plenty of work before you in this very county. Don't lay your +hand on me, you scoundrel; your touch would pollute a hangman." + +The man fell back as if stunned at the sound of these words; his face +became livid, and his lips white as snow. He staggered a pace or two, +like a drunken man, and then stood stock-still, his eyes fixed upon the +road. + +"Quick march!" said the sergeant. + +The soldiers stepped out again; and as we turned the angle of the road, +about a mile farther, I beheld Kelly still standing in the self same +attitude we left him. Barton, after some order to the sergeant, soon +left us, and we continued our march till near nine o'clock, when the +party halted to breakfast. They pressed me to eat with every kind +entreaty, but I could taste nothing, and we resumed our road after half +an hour. But the day becoming oppressively hot, it was deemed better to +defer our march till near sunset; we stopped, then, during the noon, +in a shady thicket near the roadside, where the men, unbuckling their +knapsacks and loosening their stocks, lay down in the deep grass, either +chatting together or smoking. The sergeant made many attempts to draw +me into conversation, but my heart was too full of its own sensations +either to speak or listen; so he abandoned the pursuit with a good +grace, and betook himself to his pipe at the foot of a tree, where, +after its last whiff escaped, he sank into a heavy sleep. + +Such of the party as were not disposed for sleep gathered together in +a little knot on a small patch of green grass, in the middle of a beech +clump, where, having arranged themselves with as much comfort as the +place permitted, they began chatting away over their life and its +adventures pleasantly and freely. I was glad to seek any distraction +from my own gloomy thoughts in listening to them, as I lay only a few +yards off; but though I endeavored with all my might to attend to and +take interest in their converse, my thoughts always turned to him I had +lost forever,--the first, the only friend I had ever known. All care for +myself and what fortune awaited me was merged in my sorrow for him. If +not indifferent to my fate, I was at least unmindful of it, and although +the words of those near me fell upon my ear, I neither heard nor marked +them. + +From this dreamy lethargy I was at last suddenly aroused by the hearty +bursts of laughter that broke from the party, and a loud clapping of +hands that denoted their applause of something or somebody then before +them. + +"I say, George," said one of the soldiers, "he's a queer 'un, too, that +piper." + +"Yes, he 's a droll chap," responded the other solemnly, as he rolled +forth a long curl of smoke from the angle of his mouth. + +"Can you play 'Rule Britannia,' then?" asked another of the men. + +"No, sir," said a voice I at once knew to be no other than my friend +Darby's,--"no, sir. But av the 'Fox's Lament,' or 'Mary's Dream;' +wasn't uncongenial to your sentiments, it would be a felicity to me to +expatiate upon the same before yez." + +"Eh, Bell," cried a rough voice, "does that beat you now?" + +"No," said another, "not a bit. He means he 'll give us something Irish +instead; he don't know 'Rule Britannia! '" + +"Not know 'Rule Britannia!' Why, where the devil were you ever bred or +born, man,--eh?" + +"Kerry, sir, the kingdom of Kerry, was the nativity of my father; +my maternal progenitrix emanated from Clare. Maybe you 've heard the +adage,-- + + "'From Keiry his father, from Clare came his mother; + He 's more rogue nor fool on one side and the other.' + +Not but that, in my humble individuality, I am an exceptions +illustration of the proverbial catastrophe." + +Another shout of rude laughter from his audience followed this speech, +amid the uproar of which Darby began tuning his pipes, as if perfectly +unaware that any singularity on his part had called forth the mirth. + +"Well, what are we to have, old fellow, after all that confounded +squeaking and grunting?" said he who appeared the chief spokesman of the +party. + +"'Tis a trifling production of my own muse, sir,--a kind of +biographical, poetical, and categorical dissertation of the delights, +devices, and daily doings of your obaydient servant and ever submissive +slave, Darby the Blast." + +Though it was evident very little of his eloquent announcement was +comprehended by the party, their laughter was not less ready, and a +general chorus proclaimed their attention to the song. + +Darby accordingly assumed his wonted dignity of port, and having given +some half dozen premonitory flourishes, which certainly had the effect +of astonishing and overawing the audience, he began, to the air of "The +Night before Larry was stretched," the following ditty:-- + + + + DARBY THE BLAST. + + Oh! my name it is Darby the Blast; + My country is Ireland all over; + My religion is never to fast, + But live, as I wander, in clover; + To make fun for myself every day, + The ladies to plaise when I 'm able, + The boys to amuse as I play, + And make the jugs dance on the table. + Oh! success to the chanter, my dear! + + Your eyes on each side you may cast, + But there is n't a house that is near ye + But they 're glad to have Darby the Blast, + And they 'll tell ye 'tis he that can cheer ye. + Oh! 't is he can put life in a feast; + What music lies under his knuckle; + As he plays "Will I send for the Priest?" + Or a jig they call "Cover the Buckle." + Oh! good luck to the chanter, your sowl! + + But give me an audience in rags; + They 're illigant people for list'ning; + 'T is they that can humor the bags + As I rise a fine tune at a christ'ning. + There 's many a weddin' I make + Where they never get further nor sighing; + And when I perform at a wake, + The corpse looks delighted at dying. + Oh! success to the chanter, your sowl! + + + +"Eh! what's that?" cried a gruff voice; "the corpse does what?" + +"'T is a rhetorical amplification, that means he would if he could," +said Darby, stopping to explain. + +"I say," said another, "that's all gammon and stuff; a corpse could n't +know what was doing,--eh, old fellow?" + +"'T is an Irish corpse I was describin'," said Darby, proudly, and +evidently, while sore pushed for an explanation, having a severe +struggle to keep down his contempt for the company that needed it. + +An effort I made at this moment to obtain a nearer view of the party, +from whom I was slightly separated by some low brushwood, brought my +hand in contact with something sharp; I started and looked round, and to +my astonishment saw a clasp knife, such as gardeners carry, lying open +beside me. In a second I guessed the meaning of this. It had been so +left by Darby, to give me an opportunity of cutting the cords that bound +my arms, and thus facilitating my escape. His presence was doubtless +there for this object, and all the entertaining powers he displayed +only brought forth to occupy the soldiers' attention while I effected my +deliverance. Regret for the time lost was my first thought; my second, +more profitable, was not to waste another moment. So, kneeling down +I managed with the knife to cut some of my fastenings, and after some +little struggle freed one arm; to liberate the other was the work of +a second, and I stood up untrammelled. What was to be done next? for +although at liberty, the soldiers lay about me on every side, and escape +seemed impossible. Besides, I knew not where to turn, where to look for +one friendly face, nor any one who would afford me shelter. Just then +I heard Darby's voice raised above its former pitch, and evidently +intended to be heard by me. + +"Sure, there's Captain Bubbleton, of the Forty-fifth Regiment, now in +Dublin, in George's Street Barracks. Ay, in George's Street Barracks," +said he, repeating the words as if to impress them on me. "'T is himself +could tell you what I say is thrue; and if you wouldn't put confidential +authentification on the infirmation of a poor leather-squeezing, +timber-tickling crayture like myself, sure you 'd have reverential +obaydience to your own commissioned captain." + +"Well, I don't think much of that song of yours, anyhow, old Blow, or +Blast, or whatever your name is. Have you nothing about the service, eh? +'The British Grenadiers;' give us that." + +"Yes; 'The British Grenadiers,' that's the tune!" cried a number of the +party together. + +"I never heard them play but onst, sir," said Darby, meekly; "and they +were in sich a hurry that day, I couldn't pick up the tune." + +"A hurry! what d' you mean?" said the corporal. + +"Yes, sir; 't was the day but one after the French landed; and the +British Grenadiers that you were talking of was running away towards +Castlebar." + +"What 's that you say there?" cried out one of the soldiers, in a voice +of passion. + +"'Tis that they wor running away, sir," replied Darby, with a most +insulting coolness; "and small blame to thim for that same, av they wor +frightened." + +In an instant the party sprang to their legs, while a perfect shower of +curses fell upon the luckless piper, and fifty humane proposals to smash +his skull, break his neck and every bone in his body, were mooted on all +sides. Meanwhile M'Keown remonstrated, in a spirit which in a minute I +perceived was not intended to appease their irritation; on the contrary, +his apologies were couched in very different guise, being rather excuses +for his mishap in having started a disagreeable topic, than any regret +for the mode in which he treated it. + +"And sure, sir," continued he, addressing the corporal, "'t was n't my +fault av they tuck to their heels; would n't any one run for his life av +he had the opportunity?" + +He raised his voice once more at these words with such significance that +I resolved to profit by the counsel if the lucky moment should offer.--I +had not long to wait. The insulting manner of Darby, still more than +his words, had provoked them beyond endurance, and one of the soldiers, +drawing his bayonet, drove it through the leather bag of his pipes. A +shout of rage from the piper, and a knockdown blow that levelled the +offender, replied to the insult. In an instant the whole party were upon +him. Their very numbers, however, defeated their vengeance; as I could +hear from the tone of Darby's voice, who, far from declining the combat, +continued to throw in every possible incentive to battle, as he struck +right and left of him. "Ah, you got that!--Well done!--'Tis brave you +are! ten against one!--Devil fear you!" + +The scuffle by this time had brought the sergeant to the spot, who in +vain endeavored to ascertain the cause of the tumult, as they rolled +over one another on the ground, while caps, belts, and fragments of +bagpipes were scattered about on every side. The uproar had now reached +its height, and Darby's yells and invectives were poured forth with true +native fluency. The moment seemed propitious to me. I was free,--no one +near; the hint about Bubbleton was evidently intended for my guidance. +I crept stealthily a few yards beneath the brushwood, and emerged safely +upon the road. The sounds of the conflict, amid which Darby's own voice +rose pre-eminent, told me that all were too busily engaged to waste a +thought on me. I pressed forward at my best pace, and soon reached the +crest of a hill, from which the view extended for miles on every side. +My eyes, however, were bent in but one direction: they turned westwards, +where a vast plain stretched away towards the horizon, its varied +surface presenting all the rich and cultivated beauty of a garden; +villas and mansions surrounded with large parks; waving cornfields and +orchards in all the luxuriance of blossom. Towards the east lay the sea; +the coast line broken into jutting promontories and little bays, dotted +with white cottages, with here and there some white-sailed skiff, scarce +moving in the calm air. But amid all this outspread loveliness of view, +my attention was fixed upon a dense and heavy cloud that seemed balanced +in the bright atmosphere far away in the distance. Thither my eyes +turned, and on that spot was my gaze riveted, for I knew that beneath +that canopy of dull smoke lay Dublin. The distant murmur of the angry +voices still reached me as I stood. I turned one backward look; the +road was lonely, not a shadow moved upon it. Before me the mountain road +descended in a zigzag course till it reached the valley. I sprang over +the low wall that skirted the wayside, and with my eyes still fixed upon +the dark cloud, I hurried on. My heart grew lighter with every step; and +when at length I reached the shelter of a pine-wood, and perceived no +sign of being pursued, my spirits rose to such a pitch of excitement +that I shouted for very joy. + +For above an hour my path continued within the shelter of the wood; and +when at last I emerged, it was not without a sense of sudden fear that I +looked back upon the mountains which frowned above me, and seemed still +so near. I thought, too, I could mark figures on the road, md imagined +I could see them moving backwards and forwards, like persons seeking for +something; and then I shuddered to think that they too might be at that +very moment looking at me. The thought added fresh speed to my flight, +and for some miles I pressed forward without even turning once. + +It was late in the evening as I drew near the city. Hungry and tired as +I was, the fear of being overtaken was uppermost in my thoughts; and +as I mingled in the crowds that strolled along the roads enjoying the +delicious calmness of a summer's eve, I shrank from every eye like +something guilty, and feared that every glance that fell on me was +detection itself. + +It was not until I entered the city, and found myself traversing the +crowded and narrow streets that formed the outskirts, that I felt at +ease; and inquiring my way to George's Street Barracks, I hurried on, +regardless of the strange sights and sounds about. At that hour the +humbler portion of the population was all astir; their daily work ended, +they were either strolling along with their families for an evening +walk, or standing in groups around the numerous ballad-singers, +who delighted their audience with diatribes against the Union, and +ridiculous attacks on the Ministry of the day. These, however, were +not always unmolested, for as I passed on, I saw more than one errant +minstrel seized on by the soldiery, and hurried off to the guardhouse +to explain some uncivil or equivocal allusion to Lord Castlereagh or Mr. +Cook,--such evidences of arbitrary power being sure to elicit a hearty +groan or shout' of derision from the mob, which in turn was replied to +by the soldiers. These scolding matches gave an appearance of tumult +to the town, which on some occasions did not stop short at mere war of +words. + +In the larger and better streets such scenes were unfrequent; but +here patrols of mounted dragoons or police passed from time to time, +exchanging as they went certain signals as to the state of the city; +while crowds of people thronged the pathways, and conversed in a low +tone, which broke forth now and then into a savage yell as often as some +interference on the part of the military seemed to excite their angry +passions. At the Castle gates the crowd was more dense and apparently +more daring, requiring all the efforts of the dragoons to keep them +from pressing against the railings, and leave a space for the exit of +carriages which from time to time issued from the Castle yard. Few of +these, indeed, went forth unnoticed. Some watchful eye would detect the +occupant as he lay back to escape observation; his name would be shouted +aloud, as an inevitable volley of hisses and execrations showered upon +him. And in this way were received the names of Mr. Bingham, Colonel +Loftus, the Right Hon. Denis Browne, Isaac Corry, and several others who +happened that day to be dining with the Lord-Lieutenant, and were now on +their way to the House of Commons. + +Nothing struck me so much in the scene as the real or apparent knowledge +possessed by the mob of all the circumstances of each individual's +personal and political career; and thus the price for which they had +been purchased--either in rank, place, or pounds sterling--was cried +aloud amid shouts of derision and laughter, or the more vindictive yells +of an infuriated populace. + +"Ha, Ben! what are you to get for Baltinglass? Boroughs is up in the +market." "Well, Dick, you won't take the place; nothing but hard cash." +"Don't be hiding. Jemmy." "Look at the Prince of Orange, boys!" "A groan +for the Prince of Orange!"--here a fearful groan from the mob echoed +through the streets. "There 's Luke Fox; ha! stole away!"--here followed +another yell. + +With difficulty I elbowed my way through the densely-packed crowd, and +at last reached the corner of George's Street, where a strong police +force was stationed, not permitting the passage of any one either up or +down that great thoroughfare. Finding it impossible to penetrate by this +way, I continued along Dame Street, where I found the crowd to thicken +as I advanced. Not only were the pathways, but the entire streets, +filled with people; through whom the dragoons could with difficulty +force a passage for the carriages, which continued at intervals to pass +down. Around the statue of King William the mob was in its greatest +force. Not merely the railings around the statue, but the figure itself +was surmounted by persons, who, taking advantage of their elevated and +secure position, hurled their abuse upon the police and military with +double bitterness. These sallies of invective were always accompanied by +some humorous allusion, which created a laugh among the crowd beneath; +to which, as the objects of the ridicule were by no means insensible, +the usual reply was by charging on the people, and a command to keep +back,--a difficult precept when pressed forward by some hundreds behind +them. As I made my way slowly through the moving mass, I could see that +a powerful body of horse patrolled between the mob and the front of the +College, the space before which and the iron railings being crammed with +students of the University, for so their caps and gowns bespoke them. +Between this party and the others a constant exchange of abuse and +insult was maintained, which even occasionally came to blows whenever +any chance opportunity of coming in contact, unobserved by the soldiery, +presented itself. + +In the interval between these rival parties, each member's carriage was +obliged to pass; and here each candidate for the honors of one and the +execrations of the other, met his bane and antidote. + +"Ha, broken beak, there you go! bad luck to you!" "Ha, old vulture, +Flood!" + +"Three cheers for Flood, lads!" shouted a voice from the College; and +in the loud cry the yells of their opponents were silenced, but only to +break forth the next moment into further license. + +"Here he comes, here he comes!" said the mob; "make way there, or he +'ll take you flying! it 's himself can do it. God bless your honor, and +may you never want a good baste under ye!" + +This civil speech was directed to a smart, handsome-looking man of about +five and forty, who came dashing along on a roan thoroughbred, perfectly +careless of the crowd, through which he rode with a smiling face and a +merry look. His leathers and tops were all in perfect jockey style, +and even to his long-lashed whip he was in everything a sportsmanlike +figure. + +"That's Greorge Ponsonby," said a man beside me, in answer to my +question. "And I suppose you know who that is?" + +A perfect yell from the crowd drowned my reply; and amid the mingled +curses and execrations of the mass, a dark-colored carriage moved slowly +on, the coachman evidently fearful at every step lest his horses should +strike against some of the crowd, and thus license the outbreak that +seemed only waiting an opportunity to burst forth. + +"Ha, Bladderchops, Bloody Jack! are you there?" shouted the savage +ringleaders, as they pressed up to the very glasses of the carriage, and +stared at the occupant. + +"Who is it?" said I, again. + +"John Toler, the Attorney-General." + +Amid deafening cries of vengeance against him, the carriage moved +on, and then rose the wild cheers of the College men to welcome their +partisan. + +A hurrah from the distant end of Dame Street now broke on the ear, +which, taken up by those bearer, swelled into a regular thunder; and at +the same moment the dragoons cried out to keep back, a lane was formed +in a second, and down it came six smoking thoroughbreds, the postilions +in white and silver, cutting and spurring with all their might. Never +did I hear such a cheer as now burst forth. A yellow chariot, its panels +covered with emblazonry, came flying past; a hand waved from the window +in return to the salutation of the crowd, and the name of Tom Conolly +of Castletown rent the very air. Two outriders in their rich liveries +followed, unable to keep their place through the thick mass that wedged +in after the retiring equipage. + +Scarcely had the last echo of the voices subsided when a cheer +burst from the opposite side, and a waving of caps and handkerchiefs +proclaimed that some redoubted champion of Protestant ascendancy was +approaching. The crowd rocked to and fro as question after question +poured in. + +"Who is it? who is coming?" But none could tell, for as yet the +carriage, whose horses were heard at a smart trot, had not turned the +corner of Grafton Street. In a few moments the doubt seemed resolved, +for scarcely did the horses appear in sight when a perfect yell rose +from the crowd and drowned the cheers of their opponents. I cannot +convey anything like the outbreak of vindictive passion that seemed to +convulse the mob as a splendidly appointed carriage drove rapidly past +and made towards the colonnade of the Parliament House. A rush of the +people was made at the moment, in which, as in a wave, I was borne along +in spite of me. The dragoons, with drawn sabres, pressed down upon the +crowd, and a scene of frightful confusion followed: many were sorely +wounded by the soldiers; some were trampled under foot; and one poor +wretch, in an effort to recover himself from stumbling, was supposed to +be stooping for a stone, and cut through the skull without mercy. He +lay there insensible for some time; but at last a party of the crowd, +braving everything, rushed forward and carried him away to an hospital. + +During this, I had established myself on the top of a lamp-post, which +gave me a full view, not only of all the proceedings of the mob, but +of the different arrivals as they drew up at the door of the House. The +carriage whose approach was signalized by all these disasters, had now +reached the colonnade. The steps were lowered, and a young man of the +very handsomest and most elegant appearance descended slowly from the +chariot. His dress was in the height of the reigning fashion, but withal +had a certain negligence that bespoke one who less paid attention to +toilette, than that his costume was a thing of course, which could not +but be, like all about him, in the most perfect taste. In his hand he +held a white handkerchief, which, as he carelessly shook, the perfume +floated over the savage-looking, half-naked crowd around. He turned to +give some directions to his coachman; and at the same moment a dead cat +was hurled by some one in the crowd and struck him on the breast, a cry +of exultation rending the very air in welcome of this ruffian act. +As for him, he slowly moved his face round towards the mob, and as he +brushed the dirt from his coat with his kerchief, he be, stowed on them +one look so full of immeasurable heartfelt contempt that they actually +quailed beneath it. The cry grew fainter and fainter, and it was only as +he turned to enter the House that they recovered self-possession enough +to renew their insulting shout. I did not need to ask the name, for the +yell of "Bloody Castlereagh" shook the very air. + +"Make way there! make way, boys!" shouted a rough voice from the crowd; +and a roar of laughter, that seemed to burst from the entire street, +answered the command, and the same instant a large burly figure advanced +through a lane made for him in the crowd, mopping his great bullet head +with a bright scarlet handkerchief. + +"Long life to you, Mr. Egan!" shouted one. "Three cheers for Bully Egan, +boys!" cried another; and the appeal was responded to at once. + +"Make way, you blackguards! make way, I say," said Egan, affecting to +be displeased at this display of his popularity; "don't you see who's +coming?" + +Every eye was turned at once towards Daly's Clubhouse, in which +direction he pointed; but it was some minutes before the dense crowd +would permit anything to be seen. Suddenly, however, a cheer arose +wilder and louder than any I had yet heard; from the street to the very +housetops the cry was caught up and repeated, while a tumultuous joy +seemed to rock the crowd as they moved to and fro. + +At this moment the excitement was almost maddening. Every neck was +strained in one direction, every eye pointed thither, while the +prolonged cheering was sustained with a roar as deafening as the sea in +a storm. At last the crowd were forced back, and I saw three gentlemen +advancing abreast: the two outside ones were holding between them the +weak and trembling figure of an old and broken man, whose emaciated form +and withered face presented the very extreme of lassitude and weakness; +his loose coat hung awkwardly on his spare and shrunken form, and he +moved along in a shuffling, slipshod fashion. As they mounted the steps +of the Parliament House, the cheering grew wilder and more enthusiastic; +and I wondered how he who was evidently the object could seem so +indifferent to the welcome thus given him, as with bent-down head he +pressed on, neither turning right nor left. With seeming difficulty he +was assisted up the steps, when he slowly turned round, and removing +his hat, saluted the crowd. The motion was a simple one, but in its very +simplicity was its power. The broad white forehead,--across which some +scanty hair floated,--the eye that now beamed proudly forth, was turned +upon them; and never was the magic of a look more striking. For a second +all was hushed, and then a very thunder of applause rolled out, and the +name of Henry Grattan burst from every tongue. + +Just then one of the mob, exasperated by a stroke from the flat of a +dragoon's sabre, had caught the soldier by the foot and flung him from +his saddle to the ground; his comrades flew to his rescue at once, and +charged the crowd, which fell back before them. The College men, taking +advantage of this, sprang forward on the mob, armed with their favorite +weapons, their hurdles of strong oak; the street was immediately torn +up behind, and a shower of paving stones poured in upon the luckless +military, now completely hemmed in between both parties. Tells of rage +and defiance rose on either side, and the cheers of the victors and +cries of the wounded were mixed in mad confusion. + +My lamp-post was no longer an enviable position, and I slipped gently +down towards the ground; in doing so, however, I unfortunately kicked +off a soldier's cap. The man turned on me at once and collared me, +and notwithstanding all my excuses insisted on carrying me off to +the guardhouse. The danger of such a thing at once struck me, and I +resisted manfully. The mob cheered me, at which the soldier only became +more angry; and ashamed, too, at being opposed by a mere boy, he seized +me rudely by the throat. My blood rose at this, and I struck boldly at +him; my fist met him in the face, and before he could recover himself +the crowd were upon him. Down he went, while a rush of the mob, escaping +from the dragoons, flowed over his body. At the same moment the shout, +"Guard, turn out!" was heard from the angle of the Bank, and the +clattering of arms and the roll of a drum followed. A cheer from the mob +seemed to accept the challenge, and every hand was employed tearing +up the pavement and preparing for the fray. Whether by my own +self-appointment, or by common consent, I cannot say, but I at once took +the leadership; and having formed the crowd into two parties, +directed them, if hard pressed, to retreat either by College Street or +Westmoreland Street. Thus one party could assist the other by enfilading +the attacking force, unless they were in sufficient strength to pursue +both together. We had not long to wait the order of battle. The soldiers +were formed in a second, and the word was given to advance at a charge. +The same instant I stepped forward and cried, "Fire!" Never was an +order so obeyed; a hundred paving stones showered down on the wretched +soldiers, who fell here and there in the ranks. "Again!" I shouted to my +second battalion, that stood waiting for the word; and down came another +hailstorm, that rattled upon their caps and muskets, and sent many +a stout fellow to the rear. A wild cheer from the mob proclaimed the +victory; but at the same instant a rattling of ramrods and a clank +of firelocks was heard in front, and from the rear of the soldiers a +company marched out in echelon, and drew up as if on parade. All was +stilled; not a man moved in the crowd,--indeed our tactics seemed now at +an end; when suddenly the word, "Make ready--present!" was called out, +and the same instant a ringing discharge of musketry tore through the +crowd. Never did I witness such a scene as followed. All attempts to +retreat were blocked up by the pressure from behind; and the sight of +the wounded who fell by the discharge of the soldiers seemed to paralyze +every effort of the mob. One terrified cry rose from the mass, as they +shrank from the muskets. Again the ramrods were heard clinking in the +barrels. I saw there was but one moment, and cried out, "Courage, lads, +and down upon them!"--and with that I dashed madly forward, followed +by the mob, that like a mighty mass now rolled heavily after me. The +soldiers fell back as we came on; their bayonets were brought to the +charge; the word "Fire low!" was passed along the line, and a bright +sheet of flame flashed forth, and was answered by a scream of anguish +that drowned the crash of the fire. In the rush backwards I was thrown +on the ground, and at first believed I had been shot; but I soon +perceived I was safe, and sprang to my legs. But the same moment a blow +on the head from the but-end of a musket smote me to the earth, and +I neither saw nor heard of anything very clearly afterwards. I had, +indeed, a faint, dreamy recollection of being danced upon and trampled +by some hundred heavy feet, and then experiencing a kind of swinging, +rocking motion, as if carried on something; but these sensations are far +too vague to reason upon, much less to chronicle. + + + +CHAPTER XII. A CHARACTER. + +There must have been a very considerable interval from the moment I have +last recorded to that in which I next became a responsible individual; +but in what manner, in what place, or in what company it was passed, the +reader must excuse my indulging, for many important reasons,--one of +which is, I never clearly knew anything of the matter. + +To date my recollections from my first consciousness, I may state that I +found myself on my back in a very narrow bed, a table beside me covered +with phials and small flasks, with paper cravats, some of which hung +down, queue fashion, to an absurd extent. A few rush backed and bottomed +chairs lay along the walls, which were coarsely whitewashed. A window, +of very unclean and unprepossessing aspect, was partly shaded by a faded +scarlet curtain, while the floor was equally sparingly decked with +a small and ragged carpet. Where was I? was the frequent but +unsatisfactory query I ever put to myself. Could this be a prison? had I +been captured on that riotous evening, and carried off to jail? or was +I in Darby M'Keown's territory?--for somehow, a very general +impression was on my mind that Darby's gifts of ubiquity were somewhat +remarkable,--or, lastly (and the thought was not a pleasant one), was +this the domicile of Anthony Basset, Esq., attorney-at-law? To have +resolved any or all of these doubts by rising and taking a personal +survey of the premises would have been my first thought; but unluckily +I found one of my arms bandaged, and enclosed in a brace of wooden +splints; a very considerable general impression pervaded me of bruises +and injuries all over my body; and, worse still, a kind of megrim +accompanied every attempt to lift my head from the pillow, that made me +heartily glad to lie down again and be at rest. + +That I had not fallen into unfriendly hands was about the extent to +which my deductions led me; and with this consolatory fact, and a steady +resolve to remain awake three days, if necessary, so as to interrogate +the first visitor who should approach me, I mustered all my patience, +and waited quietly. What hour of the day it was when first I awoke +to even thus much of consciousness I cannot say; but I well remember +watching what appeared to me twelve mortal hours in my anxious +expectation. At last a key turned in an outer lock, a door opened, and +I heard a heavy foot enter. This was shortly followed by another step, +whose less imposing tread was, I suspected, a woman's. + +"Where, in the devil's name, is the candle?" said a gruff voice, that +actually seemed to me not unknown. "I left it on the table when I went +out. Oh, my shin's broke!--that infernal table!" + +"Oh, Lord! oh, Lord!" screamed the female voice. + +"Ah, you 've caught it too!" cried the other, in glee; "did you think +you saw a little blue flame before you when your shin was barked?" + +"You're a monster!" said the lady, in a tone of passionate indignation. + +"Here it is,--I have it," replied the other, not paying the slightest +attention to the endearing epithet last bestowed; "and damn me, if it 's +not burned down to the socket. Halloo there, Peter Dodd! You scoundrel, +where are you?" + +"Call him Saladin," said the lady, with a sneer, "and perhaps he 'll +answer." + +"Imp of darkness, where are you gone to? Peter--Dodd--Dodd--Peter! Ah, +you young blackguard! where were you all this time?" + +"Asleep, sir; sure you know well, sir, it 's little rest I get," said +a thin, childish voice in answer. "Wasn't it five o'clock this morning +when I devilled the two kidneys ye had for supper for the four officers, +and had to borrey the kian pepper over the way?" + +"I'll bore a gimlet hole through your pineal gland, and stuff it with +brass-headed nails, if you reply to me. Anna Maria, that was a fine +thought, eh? glorious, by Jove! There, put the candle there, hand your +mistress a chair; give me my robe-de'chambre. Confound me, if it's not +getting like the kingdom of Prussia on the map, full of very straggling +dependencies. Supper, Saladin!" + +"The sorrow taste--" + +"What, thou piece of human ebony! what do you say?" + +"Me hab no--a--ting in de larder," cried the child, in a broken voice. + +"Isn't there a back of a duck and two slices of cold bacon?" asked the +lady, in the tone of a cross-examining barrister. + +"I poisoned the bacon for the rats, Miss; and for the duck--" + +"Let me strangle him with my own hands," shouted the man; "let me tear +him up into merrythoughts. Look here, sirrah," said he, in a voice like +John Kemble's; "there may be nothing which man eats within these walls; +there may not be wherewithal to regale a sickly fly,--no, not enough for +one poor spider to lunch upon; but if you ever dare to reply to me, save +in Oriental phrase, I 'll throw you in a sack, call my mutes, and hurl +you into the Bosphorus." + +"Where, sir?" + +"The Dodder, you son of a burned father! My hookah." + +"My slippers," repeated the lady. + +"My lute, and the sherbet," added the gentleman. + +By the stir in the chamber, these arrangements, or something equivalent +to them, seemed to have taken place; when again I heard,--"Dance a +lively measure, Saladin; my soul is heavy." + +Here a most vile tinkling of a guitar was heard, to which, by the sounds +of the feet, I could perceive Saladin was moving in a species of dance. + +"Let the child go to bed, and don't be making a fool of yourself," said +the lady, in a voice of bursting passion. + +"Thank Heaven," said I, half aloud, "she isn't mad." + +"Tink, tink, a - tink - a - tink, tink - a - tink - a - dido!" thrummed +out her companion. "I say, Saladin, heat me a little porter, with an egg +and some sugar." + +[Illustration: Saldin Danceth a Lively Measure 127] + +The door closed as the imp made his exit, and there was silence for some +seconds, during which my uppermost thought was, "What infernal mischance +has thrown me into a lunatic asylum?" At length the man spoke,-- + +"I say, Anna Maria, Cradock has this run of luck a long time." + +"He plays better than you," responded the lady, sharply. + +"I deny it," rejoined he, angrily. "I play whist better than any man +that ever lived, except the Begum of Soutancantantarahad, who beat my +father. They played for lacs of rupees on the points, and a territory on +the rub; five to two, first game against the loser, in white elephants." + +"How you do talk!" said Anna Maria. "Do you forget that all this rubbish +does n't go down with me?" + +"Well, I mean old Hickory, that had the snuffshop in Bath, used only to +give me one point in the rub, and we played for sixpence; damme, I 'll +not forget it,--he cleaned me out in no time. Tink, tink, a-tink-a-tink, +tink-a-tinka-dido! Here, Saladin! bear me the spicy cup, ambrosial boy!" + +"Ahem!" said the lady, in a tone that didn't sound exactly like +concurrence. + +"Eat a few dates, and then repose," said the deep voice. + +"I wish I had them, av they were eatable," said Saladin, as he turned +away. + +"Wretch, you have forgotten to salaam; exit slowly. Tink, tink, +a-tink-a-tink! Anna Maria, he's devilish good now for black parts; I +think I'll make Jones bring him out. Wouldn't it be original to make +Othello talk broken English? 'Farewell de camp!' Eh, by Jove! that 's a +fine thought. 'De spirit stir a drum, de piercy pipe.' By Jove! I like +that notion." + +Here the gentleman rose in a glorious burst of enthusiasm, and began +repeating snatches from Shakspeare, in the pleasant travesty he had hit +upon. + +"Cradock revoked, and you never saw him," said the lady, dryly, +interrupting the monologue. + +"I did see it clearly enough, but I had done so twice the same game," +said he, gayly; "and if the grave were to give up its dead, I, too, +should be a murderer. Fine thought that, is n't it?" + +"He won seventeen and sixpence from you," rejoined she, pettishly. + +"Two bad half-crowns,--dowlas, filthy dowlas," was the answer. + +"And the hopeful young gentleman in the next room,--what profitable +intentions, may I ask you, have you with respect to him?" + +"Burke! Tom Burke! Bless your heart, he 's only son and heir to Burke +of Mount Blazes, in the county Galway. His father keeps three packs of +harriers, one of fox, and another of staghounds,--a kind of brindled +devils, three feet eight in height; he won't take them under. His father +and mine were schoolfellows at Dundunderamud, in the Himalaya, and +he--that is, old Burke--saved my father's life in a tiger hunt. And am I +to forget the heritage of gratitude my father left me?" + +"You ought not, perhaps, since it was the only one he bequeathed," quoth +the lady. + +"What! is the territory of Shamdoonah and Bunfunterabad nothing? are +the great suits of red emeralds and blue opal, that were once the crown +jewels of Saidh Sing Doolah, nothing? is the scymitar of Hafiz, with +verses of the Koran in letters of pure brilliants, nothing?" + +"You'll drive me distracted with your insane folly," rejoined the lady, +rising and pushing back her chair with violence. "To talk this way when +you know you have n't got a five pound note in the world." + +"Ha, ha, ha!" laughed out the jolly voice of the other; "that's good, +faith. If I only consented to dip my Irish property, I could raise +fourteen hundred and seventy thousand pounds,--so Mahony tells me. But I +'ll never give up the royalties,--never! There, you have my last word on +the matter: rather than surrender my tin mine, I'd consent to starve +on twelve thousand a year, and resign my claim to the title which, +I believe, the next session will give me; and when you are Lady +Machinery--something or other--maybe they won't bite, eh? Ramskins +versus wrinkles." + +A violent bang of the door announced at this moment the exit of the lady +in a rage, to which her companion paid no attention, as he continued to +mumble to himself, "Surrender the royalties,--never! Oh, she 's gone. +Well, she's not far wrong, after all. I dare not draw a cheque on my own +exchequer at this moment for a larger sum than--let me see--twenty-four, +twenty-five, twenty-eight and tenpence; with twenty-nine shillings, +the grand firm of Bubbleton and Co. must shut up and suspend their +payments." So saying, he walked from the room in stately fashion, and +closed the door after him. + +My first thought, as I listened to this speech, was one of gratefulness +that I had fallen into the friendly hands of my old coach companion, +whose kindness still lived fresh in my memory; my next was, what +peculiar form of madness could account for the strange outpouring I had +just overheard, in which my own name was so absurdly introduced, coupled +with family circumstances I knew never had occurred. Sleep was now out +of the question with me; for whole hours long I could do nothing but +revolve in my mind all the extraordinary odds and ends of my friend +Bubbleton's conversation, which I remembered to have been so struck by +at my first meeting with him. The miraculous adventures of his career, +his hairbreadth 'scapes, his enormous wealth, the voluptuous ease of his +daily life, and his habits of luxury and expenditure with which he then +astounded me, had now received some solution; while, at the same time, +there was something in his own common-sense observations to himself +that puzzled me much, and gave a great difficulty to all my calculations +concerning him. + +To all these conflicting doubts and difficulties sleep at last +succeeded. But better far for me it had not; for with it came dreams +such as sick men only experience: all the distorted images that rose +before my wandering faculties, mingling with the strange fragments of +Bubbleton's conversation, made a phantasmagoria the most perplexing +and incomprehensible; and which, even on waking, I could not banish, so +completely had Saladin and his pas seul, the guitar, the hookah, and the +suit of red emeralds taken hold of my erring intellect. + +Candid, though not fair reader, have you ever been tipsy? Have you +ever gone so far over the boundaryline that separates the land of mere +sobriety from its neighboring territory, the country of irresponsible +impulses, that you actually doubted which was the way back,--that you +thought you saw as much good sense and good judgment on the one side of +the frontier as the other, with only a strong balance of good-fellowship +to induce a preference? If you know this state,--if you have taken the +precise quantum of champagne or moselle mousseux that induces it, and +yet goes no farther,--then do you perfectly understand all the trials +and difficulties of my waking moments, and you can appreciate the +arduous task I undertook in my effort to separate the real from the +imaginary, the true types from their counterfeits; in a word, the +wanderings of my own brain from those of Captain Bubbleton's. + +In this agreeable and profitable occupation was I engaged; when the +same imposing tread and heavy footstep I had heard the previous evening +entered the adjoining room and approached my door. The lock turned, and +the illustrious captain himself appeared. And here let me observe, +that if grave censure be occasionally bestowed on persons who, by the +assumption of voice, look, or costume, seek to terrorize over infant +minds, a no less heavy sentence should be bestowed on all who lord it +over the frail faculties of sickness by any absurdity in their personal +appearance. And that I may not seem captious, let me describe my friend. +The captain, who was somewhere about the forties, was a full-faced, +chubby, good-looking fellow, of some five feet ten or eleven inches in +height; his countenance had been intended by nature for the expression +of such emotions as arise from the enjoyment of turtle, milk punch, +truffled turkeys, mulled port, mullagatawny, stilton, stout, and pickled +oysters; a rich, mellow-looking pair of dark-brown eyes, with large bushy +eyebrows meeting above the nose, which latter feature was a little "on +the snub and off the Roman;" his mouth was thick-lipped, and had +that peculiar mobility which seems inseparable wherever eloquence or +imagination predominate; in color, his face was of that uniform +hue painters denominate as "warm, "--in fact, a rich sunset +Claude-Lorrainish tint that seemed a compound, the result of +high-seasoned meats, plethora, punch, and the tropics; in figure, he was +like a huge pudding-bag, supported on two short little dumpy pillars, +that from a sense of the superincumbent weight had wisely spread +themselves out below, giving to his lower man the appearance of a +stunted letter A; his arms were most preposterously short, and for the +convenience of locomotion he used them somewhat after the fashion of +fins. As to his costume on the morning in question, it was a singularly +dirty and patched dressing-gown of antique silk, fastened about the +waist by a girdle, from which depended a scymitar on one side and a +meerschaum on the other; a well-worn and not over clean-looking shawl +was fastened in fashion of a turban round his head; a pair of yellow +buskins with faded gold tassels decorated legs which occasionally peeped +from the folds of the _robe-de-chambre_ without any other covering. + +[Illustration: Tom Receives a Strange Visitor 132] + +Such was the outward man of him who suddenly stopped short at the +doorway, while he held the latch in his hand, and called out,-- + +"Burke, Tom Burke! don't be violent, don't be outrageous; you see I'm +armed! I'd cut you down without mercy if you attempt to lift a finger! +Promise me this,--do you hear me?" + +That any one even unarmed could have conceived fear from such a poor +weak object as I was seemed so utterly absurd that I laughed outright; +an emotion on my part that seemingly imparted but little confidence +to my friend the captain, who retreated still closer to the door, and +seemed ready for flight. The first use I could make of speech, however, +was, to assure him that I was not only perfectly calm and sensible, but +deeply grateful for kindness which I knew not how, nor to whom, I became +indebted. + +"Don't roll your eyes there; don't look so damned treacherous!" said +he. "Keep down your hands; keep them under the bedclothes. I 'll put a +bullet through your skull if you stirred!" + +I again protested that any manifestation of quietness he asked for I +would immediately comply with, and begged him to sit down beside me and +tell me where I was and how I had come hither. Having established an +outwork of a table and two chairs between us, and cautiously having left +the door ajar to secure his retreat, he drew the scymitar and placed it +before him, his eyes being fixed on me the entire time. + +"Well," said he, as he assumed a seat, and leaned his arm on the table, +"so you are quiet at last. Lord, what a frightful lunatic you were! +Nobody would approach your bed but me. The stoutest keeper of Swift's +Hospital fled from the spot; while I said, 'Leave him to me, the human +eye is your true agent to humble the pride of maniacal frenzy.'" + +With these words he fixed on me a look such as the chief murderer in a +melodrama assumes at the moment he proceeds to immolate a whole family. + +"You infernal young villain, how I subdued you! how you quailed before +me!" + +There was something so ludicrous in the contrast of this bravery with +his actual terror, that again I burst out a-laughing; upon which +he sprang up, and brandishing his sabre, vowed vengeance on me if I +stirred. After a considerable time spent thus, I at last succeeded in +impressing him with the fact, that if I had all the will in the world +to tear him to pieces, my strength would not suffice to carry me to the +door,--an assurance which, however sorrowfully made by me, I perceived +to afford him the most unmixed satisfaction. + +"That's right, quite right," said he; "and mad should he be indeed who +would measure strength with me. The red men of Tuscarora always called +me the 'Great Buffalo.' I used to carry a bark canoe with my squaw and +nine little black devils under one arm, so as to leave the other free +for my tomahawk. 'He, how, he!' that 's the war step." + +Here he stooped down to his knees, and then sprang up again, with a yell +that actually made me start, and brought a new actor on the scene in +the person of Anna Maria, whose name I had so frequently heard the night +before. + +"What is the matter?" said the lady, a short, squablike woman, of nearly +the captain's age, but none of his personal attractions. "We can't have +him screaming all day in that fashion." + +"It isn't he; it was I who was performing the war dance. Come, now, let +down your hair, and be a squaw,--do. What trouble is it? And bring in +Saladin; we'll get up a combat scene. Devilish fine thought that!" + +The indignant look of the lady in reply to this modest proposal again +overpowered me, and I sank back in my bed exhausted with laughter,--an +emotion which I was forced to subdue as well as I might on beholding the +angry countenance with which the lady regarded me. + +"I say, Burke," cried the captain, "let me present you to my sister, +Miss Anna Maria Bubbleton." + +A very dry recognition on Miss Anna Maria's part replied to the effort +I made to salute her; and as she turned on her heel, she said to her +brother, "Breakfast's ready," and left the room. + +Bubbleton jumped up at this, rubbed his mouth pleasantly with his hand, +smacked his lips; and then dropping his voice to a whisper, muttered, +"Excuse me, Tom; but if I have a weakness it is for Yarmouth bloaters, +and anchovy toast, milk chocolate, marmalade, hot rolls, and reindeer +tongue, with a very small glass of pure white brandy as a qualifier." So +saying, he whisked about and made his exit. + +While my host was thus occupied, I was visited by the regimental +surgeon, who informed me that my illness had now been of some weeks' +duration; severe brain fever, with various attending evils, and a broken +arm, being the happy results of my evening's adventure at the Parliament +House. + +"Bubbleton is an old friend of yours," continued the doctor. And then, +without giving me time to reply, added, "Capital fellow,--no better; a +little given to the miraculous, eh? but nothing worse." + +"Why, he does indeed seem to have a strong vein for fiction," said I, +half timidly. + +"Bless your heart, he never ceases. His world is an ideal thing, fall +of impossible people and events, where he has lived at least some +centuries, enjoying the intimacies of princes, statesmen, poets, and +warriors. He has, in his own estimation, unlimited wealth and unbounded +resources, the want of which he is never convinced of till pressed for +five shillings to buy his dinner." + +"And his sister," said I; "what of her?" + +"Just as strange a character in the opposite direction. She is as matter +of fact as he is imaginative. To all his flights she as resolutely +enters a dissentient; and he never inflates his balloon of miracles +without her stepping forward to punch a hole in it. But here they come." + +"I say. Pepper, how goes your patient? Spare no pains, old fellow,--no +expense; only get him round. I've left a cheque for you for five hundred +in the next room. This is no regimental case; come, come! it 's my way, +and I insist upon it." + +Pepper bowed with an air of the deepest gratitude, and actually looked +so overpowered by the liberality that I began to suspect there might +be less truth in his account of Bubbleton than I thought a few minutes +before. + +"All insanity has left him,--that's pleasant. I say, Tom, you must have +had glorious thoughts, eh? When you were mad, did you ever think you +were an anaconda bolting a goat, or the Eddystone Lighthouse when the +foundation began to shift?" + +"No, never." + +"How odd! I remember being once thrown on my head off a drag. I was +breaking in a pair of young unicorns for the Queen of--" + +"No!" said Anna Maria, in a voice of thunder, holding up her finger, at +the same moment, in token of reproof. + +The captain became mute on the instant, and the very word he was about +to utter stuck in his throat, and he stood with his mouth open, like one +in enchantment. + +"You said a little weak tea, I think," said Miss Bubbleton, turning +towards the doctor. + +"Yes; and some dry toast, if he liked it; and, in a day or two; a half +glass of wine and water." + +"Some of that tokay old Pippo Esterhazy sent us." + +"No," said the lady again, in the same tone of menace. + +"And perhaps, after a week, the open air and a little exercise in a +carriage." + +"The barouche and the four ponies," interrupted Bubbleton. + +"No!" repeated Miss Anna Maria, but in such a voice of imperious meaning +that the poor captain actually fell back, and only muttered to himself, +"What would be the use of wealth, if one could n't contribute to the +enjoyment of one's friends?" + +"There's the drum for parade," cried the doctor; "you'll be late, and so +shall I." + +They both bustled out of the room together; while Miss Anna Maria, +taking her work out of a small bag she carried on her arm, drew a chair +to the window and sat down, having quietly intimated to me that, as +conversation was deemed injurious to me, I must not speak one syllable. + + + +CHAPTER XIII. AN UNLOOKED-FOR VISITOR. + +All my endeavors to ascertain the steps by which I came to occupy my +present abode were fruitless, inasmuch as Captain Bubbleton contrived to +surround his explanation with such a mist of doubtful if not impossible +circumstances, that I gave up the effort in despair, and was obliged to +sit down satisfied with the naked fact, that it was by some soldiers +of his company I was captured, and by them brought to the guard-house. +Strangely enough, too, I found, that in his self-mystification the +worthy captain had invested me with all the honors of a stanch loyalist +who had earned his cracked skull in defence of the soldiery against the +mob; and this prevailing impression gave such a tone to his narrative, +that he not only set to work to trace back a whole generation of Burkes +famed for their attachment to the House of Hanover, but also took a peep +into the probable future, where he saw me covered with rewards for my +heroism and gallantry. + +Young as I was, I hesitated long how far I dare trust him with the real +state of the case. I felt that in so doing I should either expose him to +the self-reproach of having harbored one he would deem a rebel; or, by +withdrawing from me his protection, give him perhaps greater pain +by compelling him to such an ungracious act. Yet how could I receive +attention and kindness under these false colors? This was a puzzling +and difficult thing to resolve; and a hundred times a day I wished I had +never been rescued by him, but taken my chance of the worst fortune had +in store for me. + +While, therefore, my strength grew with every day, these thoughts +harassed and depressed me. The continual conflict in my mind deprived me +of all ease, and scarcely a morning broke in which I had not decided +on avowing my real position and my true sentiments; and still, when the +moment came, the flighty uncertainty of Bubbleton's manner, his caprice +and indiscretion, all frightened me, and I was silent. I hoped, too, +that some questioning on his part might give me a fitting opportunity +for such a disclosure; but here again I was deceived. The jolly captain +was far too busy inventing his own history of me, to think of asking for +mine; and I found out from the surgeon of the regiment, that according +to the statement made at the mess-table, I was an only son, possessed of +immense estates,--somewhat encumbered, to be sure (among other debts, a +large jointure to my mother); that I had come up to town to consult the +Attorney-General about the succession to a title long in abeyance in my +family, and was going down to the House in Lord Castlereagh's carriage, +when, fired by the ruffianism of the mob I sprang out, and struck one of +the ringleaders, etc. + +How this visionary history had its origin, or whether it had any save in +the wandering fancies of his brain, I know not; but either by frequent +repetition of it, or by the strong hold a favorite notion sometimes will +take of a weak intellect, he so far believed it true that he wrote more +than one letter to Lord Castlereagh to assure him that I was rapidly +recovering, and would be delighted to receive him; which, whether from a +knowledge of the captain's character, or his indifference as to my fate, +the Secretary certainly never took any notice of whatever. + +Bubbleton had too much experience of similar instances of neglect to +be either afflicted or offended at this silence; on the contrary, he +satisfied his mind by an excuse of his own inventing, and went about +saying, "I think we 'll have Castlereagh down to-day to see Burke," +until it became a cant on parade and a jest at mess. + +Meanwhile his active mind was not lying dormant. Indignant that +no inquiries had been made after me, and astonished that no +aide-de-camp--not even a liveried menial of the Viceroy's household--had +come down to receive the daily bulletin of my health, and somewhat +piqued, perhaps, that his own important services regarding me remained +unacknowledged, he set about springing a mine for himself which very +nearly became my ruin. + +After about ten days spent by me in this state of painful vacillation, +my mind vibrating between two opposite courses, and seeing arguments +for either, both in the matter-of-fact shortness of Miss Bubbleton's not +over-courteous manner, and the splendidly liberal and vast conceptions +of her brother, I went to my bed one night resolved that on the very +next morning I would hesitate no longer; and as my strength would now +permit of my being able to walk unassisted, I would explain freely to +Bubbleton every circumstance of my life, and take my leave of him, to +wander, I knew not where. This decision at length being come to, I slept +more soundly than I had slept for many nights, nor awoke until the +loud step and the louder voice of the captain had aroused me from my +slumbers. + +"Eh, Tom! a good night, my lad? How soundly you sleep! Just like the +Lachigong Indians; they go to bed after the hunting season, and never +wake till the bears come in next fall. I had the knack myself once; but +then I always took six or seven dozen of strong Burton ale first; and +that, they said, was n't quite fair. But for a white man, I 'd back +myself for a thousand to-morrow. But what 's this I have to tell you? +Something or other was in my head for you. Oh, I have it! I say, Tom, +old fellow, I think I have touched them up to some purpose. They did +n't expect it. No, hang it! they little knew what was in store for them; +they weren't quite prepared for it. By Jove, that they were n't!" + +"Who are they?" said I, sitting up in my bed, and somewhat curious to +hear something of these astonished individuals. + +"The Government, my lad; the Castle; the Private Sec.; the Major; the +Treasury; the Board of Green Cloth; the--what d' ye call them?--the +Privy Council." + +"Why, what has happened them?" + +"I 'll show you what 's happened. Lie down again and compose yourself. +He won't be here before twelve o'clock; though, by the bye, I promised +on my honor not to say a word about his coming. But it 's over now." + +"Who is it?" said I, eagerly. + +"Oh, I can't tell now. You 'll see him very soon; and right glad he 'll +be to see you, so he says. But here they are; here 's the whole affair." + +So saying, he covered the bed with a mass of news' papers, and blotted, +ill-written manuscripts, among which he commenced a vigorous search at +once. + +"Here it is; I've found it out. Listen to this: 'The Press, Friday, +August 10. The magnificent ourang-outang that Captain Bubbleton is about +to present to the Lady-Lieutenant--' No, that is n't it; it must be +in Faulkner. Ay, here we have it: 'In Captain Bubbleton's forthcoming +volume, which we have been favored with a private perusal of, a very +singular account is given of the gigantic mouse found in Candia, which +grows to the size of a common mastiff--'No, that 's not it. You 've +heard of that, Tom, though, have n't you?" + +"Never," said I, trying to repress a smile. + +"I 'm amazed at that; never heard of my curious speculations about the +Candian mouse! The fellow has a voice like a human being; you 'd hear +him crying in the woods, and you 'd swear it was a child. I 've a notion +that the Greeks took their word 'mousikos' from this fellow. But that +'s not what I 'm looking for; no, but here it is. This is squib +No. 1: 'Tuesday morning. We are at length enabled to state that the +young gentleman who took such a prominent part in defending the military +against the savage and murderous attack of the mob in the late riot in +College Green is now out of danger; being removed to Captain Bubbleton's +quarters in George's Street Barracks, he was immediately trepanned--'" + +"Eh? trepanned!" + +"No, you weren't trepanned; but Pepper said you might have been though, +and he 'd just as soon do it as not; so I put in trepanned. 'The pia +mater was fortunately not cut through.' That you don't understand; but +no matter,--hem, hem! 'Congestion of--' hem, hem! 'In our next, we hope +to give a still more favorable report.' Then here's the next: 'To the +aide-decamp sent to inquire after the "hero of College Green," the +answer this morning was, "Better; able to sit up."' Well, here we +go,--No. 3: 'His Excellency mentioned this morning at the Privy Council +the satisfaction he felt at being able to announce that Mr. (from +motives of delicacy we omit the name) is now permitted to take some +barley gruel, with a spoonful of old Madeira. The Bishop of Ferns and +Sir Boyle Roach both left their cards yesterday at the barracks.' I +waited a day or two after this; but--would you believe it?--no notice +was taken; not even the Opposition papers said a word, except some +insolent rascal in 'The Press' asks, 'Can you tell your readers, Are we +to have anything more from Captain Bubbleton?' So then I resolved to +come out in force, and here you see the result: 'Friday, 20th. It is now +our gratifying task to announce the complete restoration of the young +gentleman whose case has, for some weeks past, been the engrossing topic +of conversation of all ranks and classes, from the table of the Viceroy +to the humble denizen of Mud Island. Mr. Burke is the only son and heir +to the late Matthew Burke, of Cremore, county of Galway. His family have +been long distinguished for their steady, uncompromising loyalty; nor +is the hereditary glory of their house likely to suffer in the person +of the illustrious youth, who, we learn, is now to be raised to the +baronetcy under the title of Sir Thomas Bubbleton Burke, the second name +assumed to commemorate the services of Captain Bubbleton, whose--'Of +course I dilated a little here to round the paragraph. Well, this +did it; here was the shell that exploded the magazine. For early this +morning I received a polite note from the Castle,--I won't tell you the +writer, though; I like a good bit of surprise. And egad, now I think on +'t, I won't say anything more about the letter either, only that we 're +in luck, my lad, as you 'll soon acknowledge. What 's the hour now? Ah! +a quarter to twelve. But wait, I think I hear him in the next room. Jump +up, and dress as fast as you can, while I do the honors." + +With this the captain bustled out of the room; and, although he banged +the door after him, I could hear his voice in the act of welcoming some +new arrival. + +In spite of the sea of nonsense and absurdity through which I had waded +in the last half-hour, the communication he had made me excited my +curiosity to the utmost, and in some respect rendered me uneasy. It was +no part whatever of my object to afford any clue to Basset by which he +might trace me; and although much of the fear I had formerly entertained +of that dreaded personage had evaporated with increased knowledge of the +world, yet old instincts preserved their influence over me, and I felt +as though Tony Basset would be a name of terror to me for my life long. +It was quite clear, however, that the application from the Castle to +which he alluded could have no reference to the honest attorney; and +with this comforting reflection, which I confess came somewhat late, I +finished my dressing, and prepared to leave my room. + +"Oh, here he comes!" cried Bubbleton, as he flung open my door, and +announced my approach. "Come along, Tom, and let us see if your face +will let you be recognized." + +I scarcely had crossed the threshold when I started back with affright, +and had it not been for the wall against which I leaned, must have +fallen. The stranger, whose visit was to afford me so much of pleasure +was no other than Major Barton; there he stood, his arm leaning on the +chimney-piece, the same cool malicious smile playing about the angles of +his mouth which I noticed the first day I saw him in the glen. His sharp +eyes shot on me one quick, searching glance, and then turned to the +door; from which again they were directed to me as if some passing +thought had moved them. + +Bubbleton was the first to speak, for not noticing either the agitation +I was under or the stern expression of Barton's features, he ran on:-- + +"Eh, Major! that's your friend, isn't it? Changed a bit, I suppose; a +little blanched, but in a good cause, you know,--that's the thing. Come, +Tom, you don't forget your old friend. Major--what 's the name?" + +"Barton," repeated the other, dryly. + +"Yes, Major Barton; he 's come from his Excellency. I knew that last +paragraph would do it,--eh. Major?" + +"You were quite right, sir," said Barton, slowly and distinctly, "that +paragraph did do it; and very fortunate you may esteem yourself, if it +will not do you also." + +"Eh, what! how me? What d' you mean?" + +"How long, may I beg to ask," continued Barton, in the same quiet tone +of voice, "have you known this young gentleman?" + +"Burke,--Tom Burke? Bless your heart, since the height of that fender. +His father and mine were schoolfellows. I 'm not sure he was n't my +godfather, or, at least, one of them; I had four." Here the captain +began counting on his fingers. "There was the Moulah, one; the Cham, +two--" + +"I beg your pardon for the interruption," said Barton, with affected +politeness; "how long has he occupied these quarters? That fact may +possibly not be too antiquated for your memory." + +"How long?" said Bubbleton, reflectingly. "Let me see: here we are in +August--" + +"Three weeks on Tuesday last," said I, interfering, to prevent any +further drain on so lavish an imagination. + +"Then you came here on the day of the riots?" said Barton. + +"On that evening," was my reply. + +"On that evening,--just so. Before or after, may I isk?" + +"I shall answer no further questions," said I, resolutely. "If you have +any charge against me, it is for you to prove it." + +"Charge against you!" said Bubbleton, laughing. "Bless your heart, +boy, don't mistake him; they've sent him down to compliment you. Lord +Castlereagh mentions in his note--Where the devil did I throw that +note?" + +"It's of no consequence, Captain," said Barton, dryly; "his lordship +usually intrusts the management of these matters to me. May I learn, is +this young gentleman known in your regiment? Has he been at your mess?" + +"Tom Burke known among us! Why, man, he 's called nothing but 'Burke of +Ours.' He 's one of ourselves; not gazetted, you know, but all the same +in fact. We could n't get on without him; he's like the mess-plate, or +the orderly-book, or the regimental snuffbox." + +"I 'm sincerely sorry, sir," rejoined Barton, slowly, "to rob you and +the gallant Forty-fifth of one upon whom you place such just value; but +'Burke of Ours' must consent to be Burke of mine at present." + +"To be sure, my dear major, of course; anything convivial,--nothing +like good fellowship. We'll lend him to you for to-day,--one day, mark +me,--we can't spare him longer. And now I think of it, don't press him +with his wine; he 's been poorly of late." + +"Have no fears on that score," said Barton, laughing outright; "our +habits of life, in his circumstances, are rigidly temperate." Then, +turning to me, he continued, in an altered voice: "I need scarcely +explain to you, sir, the reason of my visit. When last we parted I did +not anticipate that our next meeting would have been in a royal barrack; +but you may thank your friend here for my knowledge of your abode--" + +Bubbleton attempted to interpose here a panegyric on himself; but Barton +went on,-- + +"Here is an order of the Privy Council for your apprehension; and +here--" + +"Apprehension!" echoed the captain, in a voice of wonderment and terror. + +"Here, sir, is your committal to Newgate. I suppose you'll not give +me the trouble of using force; I have a carriage in waiting below, and +request that we may lose no more time." + +"I am ready, sir," said I, as stoutly as I was able. + +"To Newgate!" repeated Bubbleton, as, overcome with fright, he sank +back in a chair, and crossed his arms on his breast. "Poor fellow! poor +fellow! perhaps they 'll bring it in manslaughter, eh?--or was it a bank +robbery?" + +Not even the misery before me could prevent my smiling at the worthy +captain's rapidly conceived narrative of me. I was in no merry mood, +however; and turning to him, grasped his hand. + +"It may happen," said I, "that we never meet again. I know not--indeed, +I hardly care--what is before me; but with all my heart I thank you for +your kindness. Farewell." + +"Farewell," said he, half mechanically, as he grasped my hand in both +of his, and the large tears rolled down his cheeks. "Poor fellow! all my +fault; see it now." + +I hurried after Barton downstairs, a nervous choking in my throat nearly +suffocating me. Just as I reached the door the carriage drew up, and +a policeman let down the steps. Already my foot was on them, when +Bubbleton was beside me. + +"I'll go with him, Major; you'll permit me, won't you?" + +"Not at present, Captain," said Barton, significantly; "it may happen +that we shall want you one of these days. Good-by." + +He pushed me forward as he spoke, and entered the carriage after me. I +felt the pressure of poor Bubbleton's hand as he grasped mine for the +last time, and discovered he had slipped something into my palm at +parting. I opened and found two guineas in gold, which the kindhearted +fellow had given me; perhaps they were his only ones in the world. + + + +CHAPTER XIV. THE JAIL. + +From the moment the carriage-door closed upon us, Barton never addressed +one word to me, but leaning back, seemed only anxious to escape being +recognized by the people, whose attention was drawn to the vehicle by +seeing two mounted policemen ride at either side of it. We drove along +the quays, and crossing an old, dilapidated bridge, traversed several +obscure and mean-looking streets, through which numbers of persons were +hurrying in the same direction we were going. At length we arrived at +a large open space, thronged with people whose dress and appearance +bespoke them from the country. They were all conversing in a low, +murmuring tone, and looking up from time to time towards a massive +building of dark granite, which I had only to glance at to guess was +Newgate. Our pace slackened to a walk as we entered the crowd; and while +we moved slowly along, I was struck by the eager and excited faces I saw +on every side. It could be no common occasion which impressed that vast +multitude with the one character of painful anxiety I beheld. + +As they stood gazing with upturned faces at the frowning portals of the +jail, the deep, solemn tolling of a bell rung out at the moment, and +as its sad notes vibrated through the air, it seemed to strike with +a mournful power on every heart in the crowd. In an instant, too, the +windows of all the houses were thronged with eager faces,--even the +parapets were crowded; and while every sound was hushed, each eye was +turned in one direction. I followed with my own whither the others were +bent, and beheld above my head the dark framework of the "drop," covered +with black cloth, above which a piece of rope swung back-. wards and +forwards with the wind. The narrow door behind was closed; but it was +clear that each second that stole by was bringing some wretched criminal +closer to his awful doom. + +As we neared the entrance, the massive doors were opened on a signal +from a policeman on the box of the carriage, and we drove inside the +gloomy vestibule. It was only then, as the heavy door banged behind me, +that my heart sank. Up to that moment a mingled sense of wrong, and a +feeling of desperate courage, had nerved me; but suddenly a cold chill +ran through my veins, my knees smote each other, and fear such as till +then I never knew crept over me. The carriage-door was now opened, the +steps lowered, and Barton descending first, addressed a few words to a +person near him, whom he called Mr. Gregg. + +It was one of those moments in life in which every passing look, every +chance word, every stir, every gesture, are measured up, and remembered +ever after. And I recollect now how, as I stepped from the carriage, a +feeling of shame passed across me lest the bystanders should mark my +fear, and what a relief I experienced on finding that my presence was +unnoticed; and then the instant after, that very same neglect--that +cold, cold indifference to me--smote as heavily on my spirits, and I +looked on myself as one whose fate had no interest for any, in whose +fortune none sympathized. + +"Drive on!" cried a rough voice to the coachman; and the carriage moved +through the narrow passage, in which some dozen of persons were now +standing. The next moment, a murmur of "They are coming!" was heard; +and the solemn tones of a man's voice chanting the last offices of the +Romish Church reached us, with the measured footfall of persons crossing +the flagged courtyard. In the backward movement now made by those around +me, I was brought close to a small arched doorway, within which a flight +of stone steps ascended in a spiral direction; and towards this point I +remarked that the persons who approached were tending. My eyes scarcely +glanced on those who came first; but they rested with a fearful interest +on the bareheaded priest, who, in all the trappings of his office, +walked, book in hand, repeating with mournful impressiveness the litany +for the dead. As he came nearer, I could see that his eyes were dimmed +with tears, and his pale lips quivered with emotion, while his very +cheek trembled with a convulsive agony. Not so he who followed. He was +a young man, scarce four and twenty; dressed in loose white trousers and +shirt, but without coat, vest, or cravat; his head bare, and displaying +a broad forehead, across which some straggling hairs of light brown were +blown by the wind. His eye was bright and flashing, and in the centre of +his pale cheek a small crimson spot glowed with a hectic coloring. His +step was firm, and as he planted it upon the ground a kind of elasticity +seemed to mark his footfall. He endeavored to repeat after the priest +the words as they fell from him; but as he looked wildly around, it was +clear his mind was straying from the subject which his lips expressed, +and that thoughts far different were passing within him. Suddenly +his eyes fell upon the major, who stood close to where I was. The man +started back, and for a second even that small spot of crimson left his +cheek, which became nearly livid in its pallor. A ghastly smile, that +showed his white teeth from side to side, crossed his features, and with +a voice of terrible earnestness, he said,-- + +"'T is easy for you to look calm, sir, at your morning's work, and I +hope you 're plazed at it." Then frowning fearfully, as his face grew +purple, he added, "But, by the Eternal I you 'd not look that way av we +two stood by ourselves on the side of Sliebmish, and nothing but our own +four arms between us." + +The horrible expression of vengeance that lit up his savage face at +these words seemed to awe even the callous and stern nature of Barton +himself. All his efforts to seem calm and at ease were for the moment +unavailing, and he shrank from the proud and flashing eye of the felon, +as though he were the guilty one in the presence of his accuser. + +Another stroke of the heavy bell rang out. The prisoner started, and +turning round his head, seemed to peer anxiously through the crowd +behind him, when his eyes fell upon the figure of a man apparently a +year or two younger than himself, and whose features, even in their +livid coloring, bore a striking resemblance to his own. + +"Come, Patsey," cried he, "come along with us." Then turning to the +jailer, while his face assumed a smile, and his voice a tone of winning +softness, he asked, "It is my brother, sir; he is come up nigh eighty +miles to see me, and I hope you 'll let him come upon the drop." + +There was something in the quiet earnestness of his manner in such a +moment that thrilled upon the heart more painfully than even the violent +outbreak of his passion; and when I saw the two brothers hand in hand, +march step by step along, and then disappear in the winding of the dark +stair, a sick, cold feeling came over me, and even the loud shout that +rent the air from the assembled thousands without scarce roused me +from my stupor. + +"Come, sir," cried a man, who in the dress of an official had been for +some minutes carefully reading over the document of my committal, "after +me, if you please." + +I followed him across the courtyard in the direction of a small building +which stood isolated and apart from the rest, when suddenly he stopped, +and carefully examining the paper in his hand, he said,-- + +"Wait a moment; I 'll join you presently." + +With these words, he hurried back towards the gate, where Barton still' +stood with two or three others. What passed between them I could not +hear; but I could distinctly mark that Barton's manner was more +abrupt and imperious than ever, and that while the jailer--for such he +was--expressed his scruples of one kind or another, the major would not +hear him with patience, but turning his back upon him, called out loud +enough to be heard even where I stood,-- + +"I tell you I don't care, regular or irregular; if you refuse to take +him in charge, on your head be it. We have come to a pretty pass. +Pollock," said he, turning to a person beside him, "when there is +more sympathy for a rebel in his Majesty's jail, than respect for a +Government officer." + +"I'll do it, sir,--I'll do it," cried the jailer; saying which he +motioned me to follow, while he muttered between his teeth, "there must +come an end to this, one day or other." + +With that he unlocked a strongly barred gate, and led me along a narrow +passage; at the extremity of which he opened a door into a small and +rather comfortably furnished room. + +"Here, sir," said he, "you 'll be better than where I have my orders to +put you; and in any case, I trust that our acquaintance will be but a +short one." + +These were the first words of kindness I had heard for some time past. I +turned to thank the speaker; but already the door had closed, and he was +gone. + +The quickly succeeding incidents of my life, the dark destiny that +seemed to track me, had given a reflective character to my mind while +I was yet a boy. The troubles and cares of life, that in manhood +serve only to mould and fashion character,--to call forth efforts of +endurance, of courage, or ability,--come upon us in early years with far +different effect and far different teaching. Every lesson tit deceit +and duplicity is a direct shock to some preconceived notion of faith and +honor; every punishment, whose severity in after years we had forgotten +in its justice, has to the eyes of youth a character of vindictive +cruelty. Looking only to effects, and never to causes, our views of +life are one-sided and imperfect; the better parts of our nature will +as often mislead us by false sympathy, as will the worst ones by their +pernicious tendency. + +From the hour I quitted my father's house to the present, I had seen +nothing but what to me appeared the sufferings of a poor, defenceless +people at the hands of wanton tyranny and outrage. I had seen the +peasant's cabin burned because it had been a shelter to an outcast; I +had heard the loud and drunken denunciations of a ruffianly soldiery +against those who professed no other object, who acknowledged no other +wish, than liberty and equality; and in my heart I vowed a rooted hate +to the enemies of my country,--a vow that lost nothing of its bitterness +because it was made within the walls of a prison. + +In reflections like these my evening passed on, and with it the greater +part of the night also. My mind was too much excited to permit me to +sleep, and I longed for daybreak with that craving impatience which sick +men feel who count the long hours of darkness, and think the morning +must bring relief. It came at last; and the heavy, clanking sounds of +massive doors opening and shutting--the mournful echoes that told of +captivity and durance--sighed along the corridors, and then all was +still. + +There is a time in reverie when silence seems not to encourage thought, +but rather, like some lowering cloud, to hang over and spread a gloomy +insensibility around us. Long watching and much thinking had brought me +now to this; and I sat looking upon the faint streak of sunlight that +streamed through the barred window, and speculating within myself when +it would fall upon the hearth. Suddenly I heard the sound of footsteps +in the corridor; my door was opened, and the jailer entered, followed by +a man carrying my breakfast. + +"Come, sir," said the former, "I hope you have got an appetite for our +prison fare. Lose no time; for there is a carriage in waiting to bring +you to the Castle, and the major himself is without." + +"I am ready this moment," said I, starting up, and taking my hat; +and notwithstanding every entreaty to eat, made with kindness and +good-nature, I refused everything, and followed him out into the +courtyard, where Barton was pacing up and down, impatiently awaiting our +coming. + + + +CHAPTER XV. THE CASTLE. + +Scarcely had the carriage driven from the gloomy portals of the jail, +and entered one of the long, straggling streets that led towards the +river, when I noticed a singular-looking figure who ran alongside, and +kept up with us as we went. A true type of the raggedness of old Dublin, +his clothes fluttered behind him like ribbons; even from his hat, +his long, red hair straggled and streamed, while his nether garments +displayed a patchwork no tartan could vie with. His legs were bare, save +where a single topboot defended one of them; the other was naked to +the foot, clad in an old morocco slipper, which he kicked up and caught +again as he went with surprising dexterity, accompanying the feat with +a wild yell which might have shamed a warwhoop. He carried a bundle of +printed papers over one arm; and flourished one of them in his right +hand, vociferating something all the while with uncommon energy. +Scarcely had the carriage drawn up at the door of an old-fashioned brick +building when he was beside it. + +"How are ye. Major? How is every bit of you, sir? Are ye taking them +this mornin'--'t is yourself knows how! Buy a ha'porth, sir." + +"What have you got to-day, Toby?" said the major, with a greater degree +of complacency in his manner than I had ever noticed before. + +"An illigant new song about Buck Whaley; or maybe you 'd like +'Beresford's Jig, or the Humors of Malbro' Green.'" + +"Why, man, they 're old these three weeks." + +"True for ye, Major. Begorra! there 's no chating you at all, at all. +Well, maybe you 'll have this: here 's the bloody and cruel outrage +committed by the yeomen on the body of a dacent and respectable young +man, by the name of Darby M'Keown, with the full and true account of how +he was inhumanly stabbed and murdered on the eighth day of July--" + +"Ay, give me that. I hope they 've done for that scoundrel; I have been +on his track three years." + +The fellow drew near, and, as he handed the paper to the major, +contrived to approach close to where I stood. "Buy one, master," said +he; and as he spoke, he turned completely round, so as only to be +observed by myself, and as suddenly the whole expression of his vacant +features changed like magic, and I saw before me the well-known face of +Darby himself. + +"Did you get an answer to that for me, Toby?', said the major. + +"Yes, sir; here it is." And with that he pulled off his tattered hat, +and withdrew a letter which lay concealed within the lining. "'T +is sixpence you ought to be afther givin' me this mornin', Major," +continued he, in an insinuating tone of voice; "the devil a less than +twenty-one mile it is out of this, not to spake of the danger I run, and +the boys out on every side o' me." + +"And what's the news up the country, Toby?" asked the major, as he broke +the seal of the letter. + +"'T is talking of a risin' they do be still, sir,--av the praties was +in; glory be to God, they say it 'll be a great sayson." + +"For which, Toby,--the crops or the croppies?" + +"Yes, sir," replied Toby, with a most provoking look of idiocy. "And you +won't buy Darby sir?" rejoined he, flourishing the printed placard. "No +matter; here 's the whole, full, thrue, and particular account--" And so +he turned the angle of the building, and I could hear his voice mingling +with the street noises as he wended his way down Dame Street. + +The major looked after him and smiled; and brief as was that smile, I +saw in it how thoroughly he was duped. + +"Come, sir, follow me, if you please," said he, addressing me. + +I mounted a flight of old and neglected stairs, and entered an anteroom, +where, having waited for a few seconds, the major whispered an order to +the porter, and passed on to the inner room, leaving me behind. + +As Major Barton passed out by one door, the porter turned the key in the +other, and placing it in his pocket, drew his chair to the window and +resumed the newspaper he was reading when we entered. How long I waited +I cannot say. My thoughts, though sad ones, chased each other rapidly, +and I felt not the time as it passed. Suddenly the door opened, and I +heard my name called. I drew a deep breath, like one who felt his fate +was in the balance, and entered. + +The room, which was plainly furnished, seemed to serve as an office. The +green covered table that stood in the middle was littered with letters +and papers, among which a large, heavy-browed, dark-featured man was +searching busily as I came in. Behind, and partly beside him, stood +Barton, in an attitude of respectful attention; while, with his back to +the fire, was a third person, whose age might have been from thirty-five +to forty. His dress was in the perfection of the mode: his topboots +reaching to the middle of his leg; his coat, of the lightest shade of +sky-blue, was lined with white silk; and two watch chains hung down +beneath his buff waistcoat, in the acme of the then fashion. His +features were frank and handsome, and saving a dash of puppyism that +gave a character of weakness to the expression, I should deem him a +manly, fine-looking fellow. + +"So this is your 'Robespierre,' Major, is it?" cried he, bursting into a +laugh, as I appeared. + +Barton approached nearer to him, and muttered something in a low, +mumbling tone, to which the other seemed to pay little if any attention. + +"You are here, sir," said the dark-featured man at the table, holding in +his hand a paper as he spoke, "you are here under a warrant of the Privy +Council, charging you with holding intercourse with that rebellious +and ill-fated faction who seek to disturb the peace and welfare of this +country,--disseminating dangerous and wicked doctrines, and being in +alliance with France--with France--What 'a that word, Barton?--to--" + +"In two words, young gentleman," said the young man at the fire, +"you are charged with keeping very bad company, learning exceedingly +unprofitable notions, and incurring very considerable present risk. Now +I am not disposed to think that at your age, and with your respectable +connections, either the cause or its associates can have taken a very +strong hold of your mind. I am sure that you must have received your +impressions, such as they are, from artful and designing persons, who +had only their own ends in view when involving you in their plots. If I +am justified in this opinion, and if you will pledge me your honor--" + +"I say, Cooke, you can't do this. The warrant sets forth--" + +"Well, well, we 'll admit him to bail." + +"It is not bailable. Right Honorable," said Barton, addressing the large +man at the table. + +"Phelan," said the younger man, turning away in pique, "we really have +matters of more importance than this boy's case to look after." + +"Boy as he is, sir," said Barton, obsequiously, "he was in the full +confidence of that notorious French captain for whose capture you +offered a reward of one thousand pounds." + +"You like to run your fox to earth. Barton," replied the +Under-Secretary, calmly, for it was he who spoke. + +"In alliance with France," continued the dark man, reading from +the paper, over which he continued to pore ever since, "for the +propagation--ay, that's it--the propagation of democratic--" + +"Come, come, Browne; never mind the warrant. If he can find bail--say +five hundred pounds--for his future appearance, we shall be satisfied." + +Browne, who never took his eyes from the paper, and seemed totally +insensible to everything but the current of his own thoughts, now looked +up, and fixing his dark and beetling look upon me, uttered in a deep, +low tone,-- + +"You see, sir, the imminent danger of your present position, and at +the same time the merciful leniency which has always characterized his +Majesty's Government,--ahem! If, therefore, you will plead guilty to any +transportable felony, the grand jury will find true bills--" + +"You mistake, Browne," said Cooke, endeavoring with his handkerchief to +repress a burst of laughter; "we are going to take his bail." + +"Bail!" said the other, in a voice and with a look of amazement +absolutely comic. + +Up to this moment I had not broken silence, but I was unable to remain +longer without speaking. + +"I am quite ready, sir," said I, resolutely, "to stand my trial for +anything laid to my charge. I am neither ashamed of the opinions I +profess, nor afraid of the dangers they involve." + +"You hear him, sir; you hear him," said Barton, triumphantly, turning +towards the Secretary, who bit his lip in disappointment, and frowned +on me with a mingled expression of anger and warning. "Let him only +proceed, and you 'll be quite satisfied, on his own showing, that he +cannot be admitted to bail." + +"Bail!" echoed the Right Honorable, whose faculties seemed to have +stuck fast in the mud of thought, and were totally unable to extricate +themselves. + +At the same moment, a gentle tap was heard at the door, and the porter +entered with a card, which he delivered to the Secretary. + +"Let him wait," was the brief reply, as he threw his eyes over it." +Captain Bubbleton!", muttered he, between his teeth; "don't know him." + +I started at the name, and felt my cheek flush. He saw it at once. + +"You know this gentleman, then?" said he, mildly. + +"Yes; to his humanity I am indebted for my life." + +"I think I shall be able to show, sir," said Barton, interposing, "that +through this Burke's instrumentality a very deep scheme of disaffection +is at this moment in operation among the troops in garrison. It was in +the barrack at George's Street that I apprehended him." + +"You may withdraw, sir," said the Secretary, turning towards me. "Let +Captain Bubbleton come in." + +As I left the room, the burly captain entered; but so flurried and +excited was he, that he never perceived me, as we passed each other. + +I had not been many minutes in the outer room when a loud laugh +attracted me, in which I could distinctly recognize the merry cadence +of my friend Bubbleton; and shortly after the door was opened, and I was +desired to enter. + +"You distinctly understand, then, Captain Bubbleton," said Mr. Cooke, +"that in accepting the bail in this case, I am assuming a responsibility +which may involve me in trouble?" + +"I have no doubt of it," muttered Barton, between his teeth. + +"We shall require two sureties of five hundred pounds each." + +"Take the whole myself, by Jove!" broke in Bubbleton, with a flourish of +his hand. "In for a penny,--eh, Tom?" + +"You can't do that, sir," interposed Barton. + +The Secretary nodded an assent, and for a moment or two Bubbleton looked +nonplussed. + +"You 'll of course have little difficulty as to a co-surety," continued +Barton, with a grin. "Burke of 'Ours' is sufficiently popular in the +Forty-fifth to make it an easy matter." + +"True," cried Bubbleton, "quite true; but in a thing of this kind, every +fellow will be so deuced anxious to come forward,--a kind of military +feeling, you know." + +"I understand it perfectly," said Cooke, with a polite bow; "although a +civilian, I think I can estimate the esprit de corps you speak of." + +"Nothing like it! nothing like it, by Jove! I 'll just tell you a story, +a little anecdote, in point. When we were in the Neelgharries, there was +a tiger devilish fond of one of ours. Some way or other, Forbes--that +was his name--" + +"The tiger's? + +"No, the captain's. Forbes had a devilish insinuating way with +him,--women always liked him,--and this tiger used to come in after +mess, and walk round where he was sitting, and Forbes used to give him +his dinner, just as you might a dog--" + +The Castle clock struck three just at this moment. The Secretary started +up. + +"My dear captain," cried he, putting his hand on Bubbleton's arm, +"I never was so sorry in my life; but I must hurry away to the Privy +Council. I shall be here, however, at four; and if you will meet me at +that time with the other security, we can arrange this little matter at +once." So saying, he seized his hat, bowed politely round the room, and +left us. + +"Come along, Tom!" cried Bubbleton, taking me by the arm. "Devilish +good fellow that! Knew I 'd tickle him with the tiger; nothing to what I +could have told him, however, if he had waited." + +"I beg your pardon, sir," said Barton, interposing between us and the +door; "Mr. Burke is in custody until the formality at least of a bail be +gone through." + +"So he is," said Bubbleton; "I forgot all about it. So good-by, Tom, for +half an hour; I 'll not be longer, depend on it." + +With this he shook me warmly by the hand, bustled out of the room, and +hurried downstairs, humming a tune as he went, apparently in capital +spirits, while I knew from his manner that the bail he was in search of +had about as much existence as the tiger in the Neelgharries. + +"You can wait in this room, sir," said Barton, opening the door of a +small apartment which had no other exit save through this office. + +I sat down in silence and in sorrow of heart, to speculate, as well as +I was able, on the consequences of my misfortune. I knew enough of +Bubbleton to be certain that all chance of assistance in that quarter +was out of the question: the only source he could draw upon being his +invention; the only wealth he possessed, the riches of his imagination, +which had, however, this advantage over any other species of property +I ever heard of,--the more he squandered it, the more affluent did he +become. Time wore on; the clock struck four, and yet no appearance of +Bubbleton. Another hour rolled by,--no one came near me; and at length, +from the perfect stillness without, I believed they had forgotten me. + + + +CHAPTER XVI. THE BAIL. + +Six o'clock, seven, and even eight struck; and yet no one came. The +monotonous tread of the sentry on guard at the Castle gate and the +occasional challenge to some passing stranger were the only sounds I +heard above the distant hum of the city, which grew fainter gradually as +evening fell. At last I heard the sound of a key moving in a lock, the +bang of a door, and then came the noise of many voices as the footsteps +mounted the stairs, amid which Bubbleton's was pre-eminently loud. The +party entered the room next to where I sat, and from the tones I could +collect that Major Barton and Mr. Cooke were of the number. Another +there was, too, whose voice was not absolutely new or strange to my +ears, though I could not possibly charge my memory where I had heard it +before. + +While I was thus musing, the door opened noiselessly, and Bubbleton +entering without a word, closed it behind him, and approached me on +tiptoe. + +"All right, my boy; they're doing the needful outside; ready in ten +minutes: never was such a piece of fortune; found out a glorious fellow; +heard of him from Hicks the money-lender; he'll go security to any +amount; knows your family well; knew your father, grandfather, I +believe; delighted to meet you; says he 'd rather see you than fifty +pounds." + +"Who is he, for Heaven's sake?" said I, impatiently; for it was a +new thing to me to receive anything like kindness on the score of my +father's memory. + +"Eh! who is he? He 's a kind of a bill-broking, mortgaging, +bail-giving, devilish good sort of fellow. I 've a notion he 'd do a bit +of something at three months." + +"But his name? what 's he called?" + +"His name is,--let me see,--his name is--But who cares for his name? +He can write it, I suppose, on a stamp, my boy; that 's the mark. Bless +your heart, I only spoil a stamp when I put my autograph across it; +it would be worth prime cost till then. What a glorious thing is +youth,--unfledged, unblemished youth,--to possess a name new to the +Jews, a reputation against which no one has 'protested' I Tom Burke, my +boy, I envy you. Now, when I write George Frederick Augustus Bubbleton +on any bill, warrant, or quittance, straightway there 's a grin around +the circle,--a kind of a damned impertinent sort of a half-civil smile, +as though to say 'nulla bona,' payable nowhere. But hold! that was a +tap at the door. Oh, they want us." + +So saying, the captain opened the door and introduced me. + +"I say, Tom," cried he, "come here, and thank our kind friend, +Mr.--Mr.--" + +"Mr. Basset!" said I, starting back, as my eyes beheld the pale, +sarcastic features of the worthy attorney, who stood at the table, +conversing in a low tone with the Under-Secretary. + +"Eh I what 's the matter?" whispered Bubbleton as he saw my color come +and go, and perceived that I leaned on a chair for support. "What the +devil 's wrong now?" + +"You 've betrayed me to my greatest enemy," said I, in a low, distinct +voice. + +"Eh! what? Why, you seem to have nothing but foes in the world. Confound +it, that's always my luck; my infernal good-nature is everlastingly +making a wrong plunge." + +"In that case, if I understand the matter aright, the bail is +unnecessary," said Mr. Cooke, addressing Basset, who never turned his +head to the part of the room where we stood. + +"No, sir; it is not necessary. While the law assists me to resume +my guardianship of this young gentleman, I am answerable for his +appearance." + +"The indentures are quite correct," said Barton, as he laid the papers +on the table, "as I believe Mr. Basset's statement to be also." + +"No bail necessary," interrupted Bubbleton, rubbing his hands +pleasantly; "so much the better. Wish them good evening, Tom, my hearty; +we shall be back in time for supper. You wouldn't take an oyster, Mr. +Cooke?" + +"I thank you very much, but I am unfortunately engaged." + +"Not so fast, captain, I beg you," said Basset, with a most servile but +malignant expression in his features. "The habits I would inculcate to +my apprentice are not exactly consistent with mess parties and barrack +suppers." + +"Apprentice! apprentice!" said Bubbleton, starting as if stung by a +wasp. "Eh! you 're surely not--not the--the--" + +"Yes, sir; there's the indenture, signed and sealed, if you are desirous +to satisfy yourself. The young gentleman himself will not deny his +father's instructions concerning him." + +I hung down my head, abashed and ashamed. The tears started to my eyes; +I turned away to wipe them, and feared to face the others again. I saw +that Bubbleton, my only friend, believed I had practised some deceit on +him; and how to explain, without disclosing what I dare not. + +There was a bustle in the room; a sound of voices; the noise of feet +descending the stairs; and when I again looked round, they were all +gone save Basset, who was leisurely collecting his papers together and +fastening them with a string. I turned my eyes everywhere, to see if +Bubbleton had not remained. But no; he had left me like the rest, and I +was alone with the man I most dreaded and disliked of all the world. + +"Well, sir," said Basset, as he thrust the papers into the pocket of his +greatcoat, "I'm ready now." + +"Where to, sir?" replied I, sternly, as he moved to leave the room; +for without thinking of how and why I was to succeed in it, a vague +resolution of defiance flitted through my mind. + +"To my house, sir; or to Newgate, if you prefer it. Don't mistake, +young gentleman, for a moment, the position you occupy; you owe your +liberation at this moment not to any merits of your own. Your connection +with the disaffected and rebellious body is well known: my interest with +the Government is your only protection. Again, sir, let me add, that +I have no peculiar desire for your company in my family; neither the +habits nor the opinions you have acquired will suit those you 'll meet +there." + +"Why, then, have you interfered with me?" said I, passionately. "Why +not have left me to my fate? Be it what it might, it would have been not +less acceptable, I assure you, than to become an inmate of your house." + +"That question were very easily answered," said he, interrupting me. + +"Then, why not do so?" + +"Come, come, sir; these are not the terms which are to subsist between +us, nor is this the place to discuss our difference. Follow me." + +He led the way downstairs as he spoke, and, taking my arm within his, +turned into the street. Without a word on either side, we proceeded down +Parliament Street, and crossing Essex Bridge, followed the quays for +some time; then turning into Stafford Street, we arrived at a house, +when having taken a latchkey from his pocket. Basset opened the door and +ushered me in, muttering half aloud as he turned the key in the lock, +and fastened the bolt, "Safe at last!" We turned from the narrow hall +into a small parlor, which, from its dingy furniture of writing-desk and +stools, I guessed to serve as an office. Here my companion lit a candle +from the embers of the fire, and having carefully closed the door, he +motioned me to a seat. + +"I have already told you, sir, that I am not in the least covetous of +your company in my house; circumstances which I may or may not +explain hereafter have led me to rescue you from the disgrace you must +eventually have brought upon your family." + +"Hold, sir; I have none, save a brother--" + +"Well, sir; and your brother's feelings are, I trust, not to be +slightingly treated--a young gentleman whose position and prospects are +of the very highest order." + +"You are his agent, I perceive Mr. Basset," said I, with a significant +smile. + +"I am, sir," replied he, with a deep flush that mounted even to his +forehead. + +"Then let me save you all further trouble on my account," said I, +calmly. "My brother's indifference to me or my fate has long since +absolved me from any regret I might feel for the consequences which my +actions might induce on his fortunes. His own conduct must stamp him, +as mine must me. I choose to judge for myself; and not even Mr. +Basset shall decide for me, although I am well aware his powers of +discrimination have had the double advantage of experience on both sides +of the question." + +As I said this, his face became almost livid, and his white lips +quivered with passion. He knew not before that I was acquainted with +his history, nor that I knew of his having sold to the Government +information which brought his schoolfellow and benefactor to the +scaffold. + +"Come, come," continued I, gaining courage, as I saw the effect my words +produced, "it is not your interest to injure me, however it may be your +wish. Is there no arrangement we can come to, mutually advantageous? We +shall be but sorry companions. I ought to have some property under my +grandfather's will." + +"There is, I believe, five hundred pounds," said Basset, with a slow +distinctness, as if not rejecting the turn the conversation had taken. + +"Well, then, what will you take to cancel that indenture? You don't set +a very high value on my services, I suppose?" + +"You forget, I perceive," said he, "that I am answerable for your future +appearance if called on." + +"There was no bail-bond drawn out, no sum mentioned, if I mistake not, +Mr. Basset." + +"Very true, sir; very true; but I pledged myself to the law adviser,--my +character is responsible." + +"Well, well, let me have two hundred pounds; bum that cursed +indenture--" + +"Two hundred pounds! Do you fancy, then, that you are in the possession +of this legacy? Why, it never may, in all likelihood it never will, be +yours; it's only payable on your attaining your majority." + +"Give me one hundred pounds, then,--give me fifty; let me only be free, +at liberty, and not absolutely a beggar on the streets." + +Basset leaned his head on the chimney, and seemed sunk in reflection; +while I, wound up to the highest pitch of excitement, trod up and down +the room, pouring forth from time to time short and broken sentences, +declaratory of my desire to surrender all that I might chance to inherit +by every casualty in life, to my last guinea, only let there be no +constraint on my actions, no attempt to control my personal liberty. + +"I see," cried I, passionately,--"I see what hampers you. You fear I may +compromise my family! It is my brother's fair fame you are thinking of. +But away with all dread on that score. I 'll leave Ireland; I have long +since determined on that." + +"Indeed!" said Basset, slowly, as he turned round his head, and looked +me full in the face. + +"Would you go to America, then?" + +"To America? No,--to France! That shall be the land of my adoption, as +it is this moment of all my heart's longings." + +His eyes sparkled, and a gleam of pleasure shot across his cold +features, as if he caught a glow of the enthusiasm that lit up mine. + +"Come," cried he, "I 'll think of this. Give me till tomorrow, and if +you 'll pledge yourself to leave Ireland within a week--" + +"I 'll pledge myself to nothing of the kind," replied I, fiercely. "It +is to be free,--free in thought as in act,--that I would barter all my +prospects with you. There must be but one compact between us,--it must +begin and end here. Take a night if you will to think it over, and +to-morrow morning--" + +"Well, then, to-morrow morning be it," said he, with more of animation +in his tone; "and now to supper!" + +"To bed, rather," said I, "if I may speak my mind; for rest is what I +now stand most in need of." + + + +CHAPTER XVII. MR. BASSET'S DWELLING + + +Excepting the two dingy-looking, dust-covered parlors, which served +as office and dining-room, the only portion of Mr. Basset's dwelling +untenanted by lodgers was the attics. The large brass plate that adorned +the hall door, setting forth in conspicuous letters, "Anthony Basset, +Attorney," gave indeed a most inadequate notion of the mixed population +within, whose respectability, in the inverse ratio of their height +from the ground, went on growing beautifully less, till it found its +culminating point in the host himself, on whose venerable head the light +streamed from a cobweb-covered pane in the roof. The stairs were dark +and narrow; the walls covered with a dull-colored old wainscot, that +flapped and banged with every foot that came and went; while the windows +were defended by strong iron railings, as if anything inside them could +possibly demand such means of protection. + +I followed Mr. Basset as he led the way up these apparently interminable +stairs, till at length the decreasing head room betokened that we were +near the slates. Mumbling a half apology for the locale, he introduced +me into a long, low attic, where a settle bed of the humblest +pretensions and a single rush-bottomed chair supporting a basin were +the only articles of furniture. Something like the drop curtain of a +strolling theatre closed up the distance; but this I could only perceive +imperfectly by the dim twilight of a dip candle, and in my state of +fatigue and weariness, I had little inclination to explore further. +Wishing me a good night, and promising that I should be called betimes +next morning, Mr. Basset took his leave; while I, overcome by a long day +of care and anxiety, threw myself on the bed, and slept far more soundly +than I could have believed it were possible for me to do under the roof +of Anthony Basset. + +The sun was streaming in a rich flood of yellow light through a small +skylight, and playing its merry gambols on the floor, when I awoke. The +birds, too, were singing; and the hum of the street noises, mellowed by +distance, broke not unpleasantly on the ear. It did not take me long to +remember where I was, and why. The conversation of the evening before +recurred at once to my mind; and hope, stronger than ever before I felt +it, filled my heart. It was clear Basset could place little value on +such services as mine; and if I could only contrive to make it his +interest to part with me, he would not hesitate about it. I resolved +that, whatever price he put upon my freedom, if in my power I should +pay it. My next plan was to find out, through some of the persons in +correspondence with France, the means of reaching that country, in whose +military service I longed to enroll myself. Had I but the papers of my +poor friend Charles de Meudon, there had been little difficulty in this; +but unfortunately they were seized by Major Barton on the day of his +death, and I had never seen them since. + +While I revolved these thoughts within myself I heard the merry notes of +a girl's voice, singing apparently in the very room with me. I started +up and looked about me, and now perceived that what seemed so like a +drop curtain' the night before was nothing more or less than a very +large patchwork quilt, suspended on a line across the entire attic, from +the other side of which came the sounds in question. It was clear, both +from the melody and the voice, that she could not be a servant; and +somewhat curious to know more of my fair neighbor, I rose gently, and +slipping on my clothes, approached the boundary of my territory with +noiseless step. + +A kind of whistling noise interrupted every now and then the lady's +song, and an occasional outbreak of impatience would burst forth in the +middle of the "Arrah, will you marry me, dear Alley Croker?" by some +malediction on a "black knot" or a broken string. I peeped over the +"drop," and beheld the figure of a young, plump, and pretty girl, busily +engaged in lacing her stays,--an occupation which accounted equally +for the noise of the rushing staylace and the bit of peevishness I had +heard. I quite forgot how inadvisable was the indulgence of my curiosity +in my admiration of my fair neighbor, whose buxom figure, not the less +attractive for the shortness of her drapery, showed itself to peculiar +advantage as she bent to one side and the other in her efforts to fasten +the impracticable bodice. A mass of rich brown hair, on which the sun +was playing, fell over her neck and on her shoulders, and half concealed +her round, well-turned arms as they plied their busy task. + +[Illustration: Peeping Tom 166] + +"Well, ain't my heart broke with you, entirely?" exclaimed she, as a +stubborn knot stopped all further progress. + +At this moment the cord, on which through inadvertence I had leaned +somewhat too heavily, gave way, and down came the curtain with a squash +to the floor. She sprang back with a bound, and, while a slight but +momentary blush flushed her cheek, stared at me half angrily, and then +cried out,--"Well, I hope you like me?" + +"Yes, that I do," said I, readily;--"and who wouldn't that saw you?" + +Whether it was the naivete of my confession, or my youth, or both, I +can't well say, but she laughed heartily at my speech, and threw herself +into a chair to indulge her mirth. + +"So we were neighbors, it seems," said I. + +"And if we were," said she, roguishly, "I think it's a very +unceremonious way you 've opened the acquaintance." + +"You forget, apparently, I haven't left my own territory." + +"Well, I 'm sure I wish you would, if you 're any good at a black knot; +my heart and my nails are both broke with one here." + +I didn't wait for any more formal invitation, but stepped at once over +the frontier; while she, rising from the chair, turned her back towards +me, as with her finger she directed me to the most chaotic assemblage of +knots, twists, loops, and entanglements I ever beheld. + +"And you're Burke, I suppose," cried she, as I commenced my labors. + +"Yes; I'm Burke." + +"Well, I hope you 're done with wildness by this time. Uncle Tony tells +fine tales of your doings." + +"Uncle Tony! So you 're Mr. Basset's niece? Is that--" + +"You did n't take me for his wife, I hope?" said she, again bursting out +into laughter. + +"In truth, I never thought so well of him as to suppose it." + +"Well, well, I 'm sure it 's little I expected you to look so mild and +so quiet. But you need n't pinch me, for all that. Is n't your name +Tom?" + +"Yes; I hope you 'll always call me so." + +"Maybe I will. Is n't that done yet? And there 's the milk bell. Uncle +will be in a nice passion if I 'm not down soon. Cut it,--cut it at +once." + +"Now do be patient for a minute or two; it's all right if you stay +quiet. I 'll try my teeth on it." + +"Yes; but you needn't try your lips too," said she, tartly. + +"Why, it 's the only plan to get your fingers out of the way. I 'm sure +I never was so puzzled in all my life." + +"Nothing like practice, my boy,--nothing," cried a merry voice from the +door behind me, half choked with laughing; while a muttered anathema, in +a deeper tone, followed. I looked back, and there stood Bubbleton, his +face florid with laughter, endeavoring to hold back Mr. Basset, whose +angry look and flashing eye there was no mistaking. + +"Mr. Burke,--Burke, I say! Nelly, what does this mean? How came this +young gentleman--" + +"As to that," said I, interrupting him, and my blood somewhat chafed by +his manner, "this piece of trumpery tumbled down when I leaned my arm on +it. I had no idea--" + +"No, no; to be sure not," broke in Bubbleton, in an ecstasy. "The thing +was delicious; such a bit of stage effect. She was there, as it might +be, combing her hair, and all that sort of thing; Tom was here, raving +about absence and eternal separation. You are an angry father, or +uncle,--all the same; and I 'm Count Neitztachenitz, the old friend and +brother officer of Tom's father. Now, let Miss Nelly--But where is she? +Why, she's gone! Eh, and Basset? Basset! Why, he 's gone! Come, Tom, +don't you go too. I say, my boy, devilish well got up that. You ought +to have had a white satin doublet and hose, slashed with pale +cherry-colored ribbons to match, small hat looped, aigrette and white +plume. She was perfect; her leg and foot were three certain rounds of +applause from the pit and gallery." + +"What nonsense!" said I, angrily; "we weren't playing a comedy." + +"Were n't you, though? Well, I 'm deuced sorry for it, that 's all; but +it did look confoundedly like an undress rehearsal." + +"Come, come, no foolery, I beg. I'm here in a very sad plight, and this +piece of nonsense may not make matters any better. Listen to me, if you +can, patiently for five minutes, and give me your advice." + +I took him by the arm as I spoke, and leading him from the room,--where +I saw that everything was only suggesting some piece of scenic +effect,--and in as few words as I could command, explained how I was +circumstanced; omitting, of course, any detail of my political bias, +and only stated so much of my desire as implied my wish to be free of my +contract with Basset, and at liberty to dispose of myself as I liked in +future. + +"I see," cried Bubbleton, as I finished; "the old fox has this five +hundred pounds of yours." + +"No, I didn't say that; I only mean--" + +"Well, well, it 's all the same. If he has n't, you know he ought." + +"No; that 's not essential either." + +"No matter, he would if he could; it just comes to the same thing, and +you only wish to get clear out of his hands at any cost. Is n't that +it?" + +"Exactly; you have it all perfectly." + +"Bless your heart, boy, there 's nothing easier; if I were in your +place, should arrange the affair in less than a week. I 'd have +fits,--strong fits,--and burn all the papers in the office during the +paroxysm. I 'd make a pile of deeds, leases, bonds, and settlements in +the backyard." + +"I don't fancy your plan would be so successful as you flatter +yourself," said a dry, husky voice behind; "there 's rather a stringent +law for refractory apprentices, as Mr. Burke may learn." We turned +round, and there stood Mr. Basset, with a grin of most diabolical +malignity in his by no means pleasant features. "At the same time," +continued he, "your suggestions are of infinite value, and shall be duly +appreciated in the King's Bench." + +"Eh,--King's Bench! Lord bless you, don't speak of it. Mere trifles,--I +just threw them out as good hints; I had fifty far better to come. There +'s the young lady, now. To be sure, he has started that notion himself, +so I must not pretend it was mine. But Miss Nelly, I think, Tom--" + +"Mr. Basset is well aware," interrupted I, "that I am only desirous to +be free and untrammelled; that whatever little means I may derive from +my family, I 'm willing to surrender all, short of actual beggary, to +attain this object,--that I intend quitting Ireland at once. If, then, +he consent to enter into an arrangement with me, let it be at once, +and on the spot. I have no desire, I have no power, to force him by a +threat, in case of refusal; but I hope he will make so much of amends +to one of whose present desolation and poverty he is not altogether +innocent." + +"There, there; that's devilish well said. The whole thing is all clear +before me. So come along, Basset; you and I will settle all this. Have +you got a private room where we can have five minutes' chat together? +Tom, wait for me here." + +Before either of us could consent or oppose his arrangement, he had +taken Basset's arm, and led him downstairs; while I, in a flurry of +opposing and conflicting resolves, sat down to think over my fortunes. + +Tired at length with waiting, and half suspecting that my volatile +friend had forgotten me and all my concerns, I descended to the parlor +in hopes to hear something of the pending negotiation. At the head of +a long, narrow table sat my fair acquaintance, Miss Nelly, her hair +braided very modestly at each aide of her pretty face, which had now +assumed an almost Quakerish propriety of expression. She was busily +engaged in distributing tea to three pale, red-eyed, emaciated men, +whose spongy-looking, threadbare garments bespoke to be attorney's +clerks, A small imp, a kind of embryo practitioner, knelt before the +fire in the act of toasting bread, but followed with his sharp piercing +eyes every stir in the apartment and seemed to watch with malicious +pleasure the wry faces around, whenever any undue dilution of the bohea, +or any curtailment of the blue milk, pressed heavily on the guests. +These were not exactly the circumstances to renew my acquaintance with +my fair neighbor, had I been so minded; so having declined her offer of +breakfast, I leaned moodily on the chimneypiece, my anxiety to know +my fate becoming each instant more painful. Meanwhile not a word was +spoken,--a sad, moody silence, unbroken save by the sounds of eating, +pervaded all, when suddenly the door of the front parlor was flung open, +and Bubbleton's pleasant voice was heard as he talked away unceasingly; +in an instant he entered, followed by Basset, over whose hard +countenance a shade of better nature seemed to pass. + +[Illustration: May Good Digestion Wait on Appetite 171] + +"In that case," cried the captain, "I'm your man, not that I 'm anything +of a performer at breakfast or dinner; supper 's rather my forte,--an +odor of a broiled bone at three in the morning, a herring smeared with +chetna and grilled with brandy, two hundred of small oysters, a few hot +ones to close with, a glass of seltzer dashed with hollands for health, +and, then any number you like of glasses, of hot brandy and water +afterwards for pleasure." + +While Bubbleton ran on in this fashion, he had broken about half a +dozen eggs into the slop basin, and seasoning the mess with pepper +and vinegar, was busily engaged in illustrating the moderation of his +morning appetite. + +"Try a thing like this, Tom," cried he, not defining how it was to be +effected under the circumstances; while he added in a whisper, "your +affair's all right." + +These few words brought courage to my heart; and I ventured to begin the +breakfast that had lain untasted before me. + +"I think, Mr. Burke," said Basset, as soon as he recovered from the +surprise Bubbleton's mode of breakfasting had excited,--"I think and +trust that all has been arranged to your satisfaction." Then turning +to the clerks, who ate away without even lifting their heads,--"Mr. +Muggridge, you will be late at the Masters' Office; Jones, take that +parcel to Hennet; Kit, carry my bag up to the Courts." + +Miss Nelly did not wait for the part destined for her, but with a demure +face rose from the table and left the room; giving me, however, one sly +glance as she passed my chair that I remembered for many a day after. + +"You 'll excuse me, gentlemen, if I am pressed for time this morning; a +very particular case comes on in the Common Pleas." + +"Never speak of it, my dear fellow," said Bubbleton, who had just +addressed himself to a round of spiced beef; "business has its calls +just as pleasure has,--ay, and appetite too. That would make an +excellent bit of supper, with some mulled port, after a few rubbers of +shorts." + +Basset paid little attention to this speech, but turning to me, +continued: + +"You mentioned your intention of leaving Ireland, I think. Might I +ask where you have decided on,--from where? Is it possible that your +brother--" + +"My brother's anxieties on my account, Mr. Basset, can scarcely be very +poignant, and deserve no particular respect or attention at my hands. +I suppose that this morning has concluded all necessary intercourse +between us; and if you have satisfied my friend Captain Bubbleton--" + +"Perfectly, perfectly. Another cup of tea, if you please. Yes, nothing +could be more gratifying than Mr. Basset's conduct; you are merely +to sign the receipt for the legacy, and he hands you over one hundred +pounds. Isn't that it?" + +"Yes, quite correct; my bill for one hundred at three months." + +"That's what I mean. But surely you're not done breakfast; why, Tom, +you 've eaten nothing. I have been picking away this half hour, just to +encourage you a bit. Well, well! I lunch in Stephen's Green at three; so +here goes." + +Mr. Basset now took from his pocket-book some papers, which, having +glanced his eye over, he handed to me. + +"This is a kind of acknowledgment, Mr. Burke, for the receipt of a +legacy to which you could be only entitled on attaining your majority. +Here are your indentures to me; and this is my acceptance for one +hundred pounds." + +"I am content," said I, eagerly, as I seized the pen. The thought of +my liberty alone filled my mind, and I cared little for the conditions +provided I secured that. + +Basset proffered his hand. I was in no humor to reject anything that +even simulated cordiality; I shook it heartily. Bubbleton followed +my example, and having pledged himself to see more of his pleasant +acquaintance, thrust his arm through mine and bustled out; adding, in a +tone loud enough to be overheard,-- + +"Made a capital fight of it; told him you were a Defender, a United +Irishman, a Peep-o'-day Boy, and all that sort of thing. Devilish glad +to get rid of you, even on Miss Nelly's account." + +And so he rattled away without ceasing, until we found ourselves at the +George's Street Barracks, my preoccupation of mind preventing my even +having remarked what way we came. + + + +CHAPTER XVIII. THE CAPTAIN'S QUARTERS + +I WAS not sorry to find that Miss Bubbleton did not respond to the noisy +summons of the captain, as he flourished about from one room to the +other, making the quarters echo to the sweet name of "Anna Maria." +"Saladin," "Grimes," "Peter," were also shouted out unsuccessfully; +and with a fierce menace against various grooms of the chambers, +waiting-men, and lackeys, who happily were still unborn, Bubbleton flung +himself into a seat, and began to conjecture what had become of the +inhabitants. + +"She's paying a morning call,--gone to see the Duchess; that 's it. Or +perhaps she 's looking over that suit of pearls I bought yesterday at +Gallon's; pretty baubles, but dear at eight hundred pounds. Never mind; +what 's money for, eh, Tom?" + +As he looked at me for a reply, I drew my chair closer towards him, and +assuming as much of importance as my manner could command, I besought +his attention for a moment. Hitherto, partly from my own indecision, +partly from his flighty and volatile bearing, I never had an opportunity +either to explain my real position or my political sentiments, much less +my intentions for the future. The moment had at length arrived, and +I resolved to profit by it; and in as few words as I was able, gave a +brief narrative of my life, from the hour of my father's death to the +day in which I fell into his own hands in Dublin, only omitting such +portions as might, by the mention of names, compromise others concerned. + +Nothing could possibly be more attentive than he was during the +entire detail. He leaned his head on his hand, and listened with eager +curiosity to all my scrapes and difficulties, occasionally nodding in +assent, and now evincing by his excited air his desire to learn farther; +and when I at last wound up by avowing my long cherished desire to +enter the French service, he sat perfectly silent, and seemed to reflect +gravely on the whole. + +"I say, Tom," said he, at length, as he stared me full in the face, +and laid his hand impressively on my knee, "there 's good stuff in +that,--excellent stuff, depend upon it." + +"Good stuff! what do you mean?" said I, in amazement. + +"I mean," replied he, "there's bone in it, sinew in it, substance in it; +there are some admirable situations too. How Fulham would come out in +Tony Basset,--brown shorts, white stockings, high shoes and buckles, +his own very costume. And there's that little thing, Miss Booth, for +Nelly; give her a couple of songs,--ballad airs take best. Williams +should be Barton; a devilish fine villain in coarse parts, +Williams,--I think I see him stealing along by the flats with his +soldiers to the attack. Then the second act should open: interior of +hut; peasants round a table (eating always successful on the stage; +nothing like seeing a fat fellow bolting hard eggs, and blustering out +unpronounceable jokes over a flagon of colored water). You, by right, +should have your own part; splendid thing, devilish fine,--your +sensations when the cabin was on tire, and the fellows were prodding +about with their bayonets to discover you." + +"And who 's to perform Captain Bubbleton?" asked I, venturing for once +to humor his absurdity. + +"Eh? Oh I there's nothing for me; no marked feature, nothing strong, +nothing characteristic. That has been through life my greatest, my very +highest ambition,--that no man should ever detect, by anything in my +manner, my dress, or my style of conversation, that I was not John +Nokes or Peter Styles. You 'll meet me at a dinner party, Tom; you 'll +converse with me, drink with me; we'll sit the evening together, grow +intimate, perhaps you 'll borrow fifty pounds of me; and yet I 'd wager +another, you'd never guess that I rode a hippopotamus across the Ganges +after tiffin one day, to pay my respects to the Governor-Greneral. That, +let me tell you, Tom, is the very proudest boast a man can make. Do you +see that scar? It looks nothing now. That was a bite from a ferocious +boa: the villain got into my room before breakfast; he had eaten my +chokeedar, a fellow I was very fond of--" + +"Ah, I remember you mentioned that to me. And now to come back to my +dull story, to which, I assure you, however dramatic you may deem it, I +'d prefer adding an act or so before it comes before the world. I intend +to leave this to-morrow." + +"No, no; you mustn't think of it yet awhile. Why, my dear fellow, you +'ve a hundred pounds; only think of that! Twenty will bring you to +Paris; less, if you choose. I once travelled from Glugdamuck to the +Ghauts of Bunderamud for half a rupee; put my elephants on three +biscuits a day; explained to them in Hindostanee--a most expressive +language--that our provisions had fallen short; that on our arrival all +arrears of grub should be made up. They tossed up their trunks thus in +token of assent, and on we marched. Well, when we came to Helgie, there +was no water--" + +"Very true," interrupted I, half in despair at the torrent of +story-telling I had got involved in. "But you forget I have neither +elephants, nor camels, nor coolies, nor chokeedars; I'm a mere +adventurer, with, except yourself, not a friend in the world." + +"Then why not join us?" cried the ever ready captain. "We are to +have our orders for foreign service in a few weeks; you 've only to +volunteer; you 've money enough to buy your kit. When you 're fairly in, +it 's only writing to your brother. Besides, something always turns +up; that 's my philosophy. I rarely want anything I don't find means to +obtain, somehow or other." + +"No," said I, resolutely, "I will never join the service of a country +which has inflicted such foul wrong on my native land." + +"All stuff and nonsense!" cried Bubbleton. "Who cares the deuce of clubs +about politics? When you 're my age, you 'll find that if you 're not +making something of politics, they 'll make very little of you. I 'd as +soon sell figs for my grocer or snuff for my tobacconist as I 'd bother +my head governing the kingdom for Billy Pitt. He 's paid for it,--that's +his business, not mine. No, no, my boy; join us,--you shall be 'Burke +of Ours!' We 'll have a glorious campaign among the Yankees. I 'll teach +you the Seneca language, and we 'll have a ramble through the Indian +settlements. Meanwhile you dine to-day at the mess; to-morrow we picnic +at the Dargle; next day we--What the deuce is next day to be? Oh yes! +next day we all dine with you. Nothing stiff or formal,--a snug, quiet +thing for sixteen; I'll manage it all." + +Here was an argument there was no resisting; so I complied at once, +comforting myself with a silent vow, come what might, I 'd leave Ireland +the day after my dinner party. + +Under whatever guise--with what history of my rank, wealth, and family +influence--Bubbleton thought proper to present me to his brother +officers, I cannot say; but nothing could possibly be more kind, or +even more cordial, than their reception of me. And although I had some +difficulty in replying to questions put under mistaken notions of my +position and intentions, I readily followed, as far as I was able, +the line suggested by my imaginative friend, whose representations, +I suspected, would be received with a suitable limitation by his old +associates. + +There is, perhaps, no species of society so striking and so captivating +to the young man entering on life as that of a military mess. The easy, +well-bred intimacy, that never degenerates into undue familiarity; +the good-humored, playful raillery, that never verges on coarseness +or severity; the happy blending of old men's wisdom and young men's +buoyancy,--are all very attractive features of social intercourse, even +independently of the stronger interest that invests the companionship of +men whose career is arms. I felt this, and enjoyed it too; not the +less pleasantly that I discovered no evidence of that violent partisan +feeling I had been led to believe was the distinguishing mark of the +Royalist soldier. If by chance any allusion was made to the troubles +of the period, it was invariably done rather in a tone of respect for +mistaken and ill directed political views, than in reprehension of +disloyalty and rebellion; and when I heard the dispassionate opinions +and listened to the mild counsels of these men, whom I had always +believed to be the veriest tyrants and oppressors, I could scarcely +credit my own senses, so utterly opposed were my impressions and my +experience. One only of the party evinced an opposite feeling. He was +a pale, thin, rather handsome man, of about five and twenty, who had +lately joined them from a dragoon regiment, and who by sundry little +innuendoes, was ever bringing uppermost the preference he evinced +for his former service, and his ardent desire to be back again in the +cavalry. + +Captain Montague Crofts was indeed the only exception I witnessed to the +almost brotherly feeling that prevailed in the Forty-fifth. Instead +of identifying himself with the habits and opinions of his brother +officers, he held himself studiously apart. Regarding his stay in the +regiment like a period of probation, he seemed resolved to form neither +intimacies nor friendships, but to wait patiently for the time of his +leaving the corps to emancipate himself from a society below his caste. + +The cold, repulsive, steady stare, the scarcely bowed head, the +impassive silence with which he heard the words of Bubbleton's +introduction of me, formed a strong contrast with the warm cordiality +of the others; and though at the time little disposed to criticise the +manner of any one, and still less to be dissatisfied with anything, I +conceived from the moment a dislike to Captain Crofts, which I felt to +increase with every minute I spent in his company. The first occasion +which suggested this dislike on my part, was from observing that while +Bubbleton--whose historical accuracy or blind adherence to reality no +one in the corps thought of requiring--narrated some of his incredible +adventures. Crofts, far from joining in the harmless mirth which +such tales created, invariably took delight in questioning and +cross-questioning the worthy captain, quoting him against himself, and +playing off a hundred tricks, which, however smart and witty in a law +court, are downright rudeness when practised in society. Bubbleton, it +is true, saw nothing in all this save the natural interest of a good +listener,--but the others did; and it was quite clear to me, that while +one was the greatest favorite in the regiment, the other had not a +single friend amongst them. To me, Crofts manifested the most perfect +indifference, not ever mixing himself in any conversation in which I +bore a part. He rarely turned his head towards that part of the table at +which I sat; and by an air of haughty superciliousness, gave me plainly +to understand that our acquaintance, though confessedly begun, was to +proceed no further. I cannot say how happy I felt to learn that one I +had so much cause to dislike was a violent aristocrat, an ultra-Tory, +a most uncompromising denouncer of the Irish Liberal party, and an +out-and-out advocate of severe and harsh measures towards the people. +He never missed an opportunity for the enunciation of such doctrines, +which, whatever might be the opinions of the listeners, there was at +the time I speak of no small risk in gainsaying, and this immunity did +Crofts enjoy to his heart's content. + +Slight as these few reminiscences of the mess are, they are the +called-up memories of days not to be forgotten by me; for now, what with +my habitual indecision on the one hand, and Bubbleton's solicitations +on the other, I continued to linger on in Dublin,--leading the careless, +easy life of those about me, joining in all the plots for amusement +which the capital afforded, and mixing in every society to which +my military friends had access. Slender as were my resources, they +sufficed, in the eyes of all who knew not their limit, to appear +abundant. Crofts was the only rich man in the regiment; and my +willingness to enter into every scheme of pleasure, regardless of cost, +impressed them all with the notion that Bubbleton for once was right, +and that "Burke was a kind of Westcountry Croesus," invaluable to the +regiment. + +Week after week rolled on, and still did I find myself a denizen of +George's Street. The silly routine of the barrack life filled all my +thoughts, save when the waning condition of my purse would momentarily +turn them towards the future; but these moments of reflection came but +seldom, and at last came not at all. It was autumn; the town almost +divested of its inhabitants,--at least of all who could leave it,--and +along the parched, sunburned streets a stray jingle or a noddy was +rarely seen to pass. The squares, so lately crowded with equipages and +cavalcades of horsemen, were silent and deserted; the closed shutters of +every house, and the grass-grown steps, vouched for the absence of the +owners. The same dreamy lethargy that seemed to rest over the deserted +city appeared to pervade everything; and save a certain subdued activity +among the officials of the Castle,--a kind of ground-swell movement +that boded something important,--there was nothing stirring. The great +measure of the Union, which had been carried on the night of the riots, +had, however, annihilated the hopes of the Irish Liberal party; and many +who once had taken a leading part in politics had now deserted public +life forever. + +They with whom I associated cared but little for these things. There +were but two or three Irish in the regiment, and they had long since +lost all their nationality in the wear and tear of the service; so that +I heard nothing of what occupied the public mind, and lived on, in the +very midst of the threatening hurricane, in a calm as deep as death +itself. + +I had seen neither Barton nor Basset since the day of my leave-taking; +and, stranger still, never could meet with Darby, who seemed to have +deserted Dublin. The wreck of the party he belonged to seemed now +effectually accomplished, and the prospect of Irish independence was +lost, as it seemed, forever. + +I was sitting one evening in the window of Bubbleton's quarters, +thinking over these things; not without self-reproach for the life I +was leading, so utterly adverse to the principles I had laid down for my +guidance. I thought of poor De Meudon, and all his ambitious dreams for +my success, and I felt my cheek flush with shame for my base desertion +of the cause to which, with his dying breath, he devoted me. I brought +up in memory those happy evenings as we wandered through the fields, +talking over the glorious campaigns of Italy or speculating on the +mighty changes we believed yet before us; and then I thought of the +reckless orgies in which my present life was passed. I remembered how +his full voice would falter when one great name fell from his lips; +and with what reverence he touched his chapeau as the word "Bonaparte" +escaped from him; and how my heart thrilled to think of an enthusiasm +that could light up the dying embers of a broken heart, and make it +flash out in vivid brilliancy once more,--and longed to feel as he did. + +For the first time for some weeks I found myself alone. Bubbleton was +on guard; and though I had promised to join him at supper, I lingered +at home to think and ponder over the past,--I scarcely dared to face the +future. It was growing dusky. The richly golden arch of an autumn moon +could be seen through the hazy mist of that half frost which is at this +season the sure harbinger of a hot day on the morrow. The street noises +had gradually died away, and save the distant sound of a ballad-singer, +whose mournful cadence fell sadly on the ear, I heard nothing. + +Without perceiving it, I found myself listening to the doggerel of the +minstrel, who, like most of her fellows of the period, was celebrating +the means that had been used by Government to carry their favorite +measure,--the Union with England. There was, indeed, very little to +charm the ear or win the sense, in either the accent or the sentiment of +the melody; yet somehow she had contrived to collect a pretty tolerable +audience, who moved slowly along with her down the street, and evinced +by many an outburst of enthusiasm how thoroughly they relished the +pointed allusions of the verse, and how completely they enjoyed the dull +satire of the song. + +As they approached the barracks, the procession came to a +halt,--probably deeming that so valuable a lesson should not be lost +to his Majesty's service; and forming into a circle round the singer, +a silence was commanded, when, with that quavering articulation so +characteristic of the tribe, and that strange quality of voice that +seems to alternate between a high treble and a deep bass, the lady +began:-- + +"Don't be crowdin' an me that a way. There it is now,--ye 're tearin' +the cloak off the back o' me! Divil receave the note I 'll sing, if ye +don't behave! And look at his honor up there, with a tenpenny bit in the +heel of his fist for me. The Lord reward your purty face; 't is yourself +has the darlin' blue eyes! Bad scran to yez, ye blaggards! look at my +elegant bonnet the way you 've made it!" + +"Arrah! rise the tune, and don't be blarneying the young gentleman," +said a voice from the crowd,--and then added, in a lower but very +audible tone, "Them chaps hasn't a farthin' beyond their pay,--three +and ninepence a day, and find themselves in pipeclay!" + +A rude laugh followed this insolent speech; and the ballad-singer, whose +delay had only been a ruse to attract a sufficient auditory, then began +to a very well-known air: + + "Come hither, M.P.'s, and I 'll tell + My advice, and I 'm sure you 'll not mock it: + Whoe'er has a country to sell, + Need never want gold in his pocket. + Your brother a bishop shall be; + Yourself--if you only will make a + Voice in our ma-jo-rity-- + We'll make you chief judge In Jamaica. + Tol, lol de rol, tol de rol lay!" + +The mob chorus here broke in, and continued with such hearty enthusiasm +that I lost the entire of the next verse in the tumult. + + "Your father, they say, is an ass, + And your mother not noted for knowledge; + But he 'll do very well at Madras, + And she shall be provost of college. + Your aunt, lady's-maid to the Queen; + And Bill, if he 'll give up his rakin', + And not drunk in daytime be seen, + I 'll make him a rosy archdeacon. + Tol, lol de rol, tol de rol lay! + + "A jollier set ne'er was seen + Than you 'll be, when freed from your callin'; + With an empty house in College Green,-- + What an elegant place to play ball in! + Ould Foster stand by with his mace, + He 'll do mighty well for a marker; + John Toler--" + +"Here 's the pollis!" said a gruff voice from the crowd; and the word +was repeated from mouth to mouth in every accent of fear and dread; +while in an instant all took to flighty--some dashing down obscure lanes +and narrow alleys, others running straight onwards towards Dame Street, +but all showing the evident apprehension they felt at the approach of +these dreaded officials. The ballad' singer alone did not move,--whether +too old or too infirm to trust to speed, or too much terrified to run, I +know not; but there she stood, the last cadence of her song still dying +on her lips, while the clattering sounds of men advancing rapidly were +heard in the distant street. + +I know not why,--some strange momentary impulse, half pity, half +caprice, moved me to her rescue, and I called out to the sentry, "Let +that woman pass in!" She heard the words, and with an activity greater +than I could have expected, sprang into the barrack yard, while the +police passed eagerly on in vain pursuit of their victims. + +I remained motionless in the window-seat, watching the now silent +street, when a gentle tap came to my door. I opened it, and there stood +the figure of the ballad-singer, her ragged cloak gathered closely +across her face with one hand, while with the other she held the bundle +of printed songs, her only stock-in-trade. + + + +CHAPTER XIX. THE QUARREL + +While I stood gazing at the uncouth and ragged figure before me, she +pushed rudely past, and shutting the door behind her, asked, in a low +whisper, "Are ye alone?"--and then, without waiting for a reply, threw +back the tattered bonnet that covered her head, and removing a wig of +long black hair, stared steadfastly at me. + +"Do you know me, now?" said the hag, in a voice of almost menacing +eagerness. + +"What!" cried I, in amazement; "it surely cannot be--Darby, is this +really you?" + +"Ye may well say it," replied he, bitterly.--"Ye had time enough to +forget me since we met last; and 'tis thinking twice your grand friends +the officers would be, before they 'd put their necks where mine is now +to see you. Read that,"--as he spoke, he threw a ragged and torn piece +of printed paper on the table,--"read that, and you 'll see there 's +five hundred pounds of blood money to the man that takes me. Ay, and +here I stand this minit in the King's barrack, and walked fifty-four +miles this blessed day just to see you and speak to you once more. Well, +well!" He turned away his head while he said this, and wiping a starting +tear from his red eyeball, he added, "Master Tom, 'tis myself would +never b'lieve ye done it." + +"Did what?" said I, eagerly. "What have I ever done that you should +charge me thus?" + +But Darby heard me not; his eyes were fixed on vacancy, and his lips +moved rapidly as though he were speaking to himself. + +"Ay," said he, half aloud, "true enough; 'tis the gentlemen that +betrayed us always,--never came good of the cause where they took a +part. But you,"--here he turned full round, and grasping my arm, spoke +directly to me, "you that I loved better than my own kith and kin, +that I thought would one day be a pride and glory to us all; you that I +brought over myself to the cause--" + +"And when have I deserted,--when have I betrayed it?" + +"When did you desert it?" repeated he, in a tone of mocking irony. +"Tell me the day and hour ye came here, tell me the first time ye sat +down among the red butchers of King George, and I 'll answer ye that. Is +it here you ought to be? Is this the home for him that has a heart for +Ireland? I never said you betrayed us. Others said it; but I stood to +it, ye never did that. But what does it signify? 'Tis no wonder ye left +us; we were poor and humble people; we had nothing at heart but the good +cause--" + +"Stop!" cried I, maddened by this taunt. "What could I have done? where +was my place?" + +"Don't ask me; if your own heart doesn't teach thee, how can I? But it's +over now; the day is gone, and I must take to the road again. My heart +is lighter since I seen you; and it will be lighter again when I give +you this wamin',--God knows if you 'll mind it. You think yourself safe +now since you joined the sodgers; you think they trust you, and that +Barton's eye is n't on ye still. There is n't a word you say is n't +noted down,--not a man you spake to isn't watched. You don't know it; +but I know it. There 's more go to the gallows in Ireland over their +wine, than with the pike in their hands. Take care of your friends, I +say." + +"You wrong them. Darby; and you wrong me. Never have I heard from one +here a single word that could offend the proudest heart among us." + +"Why would they? what need of it? Ar'n't we down, down? ar'n't we hunted +like wild beasts? is the roof left to shelter us? dare we walk the +roads? dare we say 'God save ye!' when we meet, and not be tried for +pass words? It 's no wonder they pity us; the hardest heart must melt +sometimes." + +"As to myself," said I,--for there was no use in attempting to reason +with him further,--"my every wish is with the cause as warmly as on the +day we parted. But I look to France--" + +"Ay, and why not? I remember the time your eye flashed and your cheek +grew another color when you spoke of that." + +"Yes, Darby," said I, after a pause; "and I had not been here now, +but that the only means I possessed of forwarding myself in the French +service are unfortunately lost to me." + +"And what was that?" interrupted he, eagerly. + +"Some letters which the poor Captain de Meudon gave me," said I, +endeavoring to seem as much at ease as I could. + +Darby stooped down as I spoke, and ripping open the lining of his cloak, +produced a small parcel fastened with a cord, saying, "Are these what +you mean?" + +I opened it with a trembling hand, and to my inexpressible delight, +discovered Charles's letter to the head of the Ecole Polytechnique, +together with a letter of credit and two cheques on his banker. The note +to his sister was not, however, among them. + +"How came you by these papers, Darby?" inquired I, eagerly. + +"I found them on the road Barton travelled, the same evening you made +your escape from the yeomanry; you remember that? They were soon missed, +and an orderly was sent back to search for them. Since that, I 've kept +them by me; and it was only yesterday that I thought of bringing them to +you, thinking you might know something about them." + +"There 's a mark on this one," said I, still gazing on the paper in my +hand; "it looks like blood." + +"If it is, it 's mine, then," said Darby, doggedly. And after a pause, +he continued: "The soldier galloped up the very minute I was stooping +for the papers. He called out to me to give them up; but I pretended not +to hear, and took a long look round to see what way I could escape where +his horse could n't follow me. But he saw what I was at; and the same +instant his sabre was in my shoulder, and the blood running hot down my +arm. I fell on my knees; but if I did, I took this from my breast" (here +he drew forth a long-barrelled rusty pistol), "and shot him through the +neck." + +[Illustration: Darby Exchanges Compliments with a "Sodger" 188] + +"Was he killed?" said I, in horror at the coolness of the recital. + +"Sorrow one o' me knows. He fell on his horse's mane, and I saw the +beast gallop with him up the road with his arms hanging at each side of +the neck. And then I heard a crash, and I saw that he was down, and the +horse was dragging him by the stirrup; but the dust soon hid him from +my sight. And indeed I was growing weak too; so I crept into the bushes +until it was dark, and then got down to Glencree." + +The easy indifference with which he spoke, the tone of coolness in which +he narrated this circumstance, thrilled through me far more painfully +than the most passionate description; and I stood gazing on him with a +feeling of dread that unhappily my features but too plainly indicated. +He seemed to know what was passing in my mind; and as if stung by what +he deemed my ingratitude for the service he had rendered me, his face +grew darkly red, the swollen veins stood out thick and knotted in his +forehead, his livid lips quivered, and he said in a thick, guttural +voice,-- + +"Maybe ye think I murdered him?" And then, as I made no answer, he +resumed in a different tone: "And faix, ye war n't long larnin' their +lessons. But hear me now: there never was a traitor to the cause had a +happy life or an easy death; there never was one betrayed us but we were +revenged on him or his. I don't think ye 're come to that yet; for if I +did, by the mortial--" + +As he pronounced the last word, in a tone of the fiercest menace, the +sound of many voices talking without, and the noise of a key turning +in the lock, broke in upon our colloquy; and Darby had scarcely time +to resume his disguise when Bubbleton entered, followed by three of his +brother officers, all speaking together, and in accents that evidently +betokened their having drunk somewhat freely. + +"I tell you, again and again, the diamond wins it But here we are," +cried Bubbleton; "and now for a pack of cards, and let 's decide the +thing at once." + +"You said you 'd bet fifty, I think?" drawled out Crofts, who was +unquestionably the most sober of the party. "But what have we here?" At +this instant his eye fell upon Darby, who had quietly ensconced himself +behind the door, and hoped to escape unseen. "Eh, what's this, I say?" + +"What!" cried Bubbleton; "what do I see? A nymph with bright and +flowing hair; a hag like Hecuba, by Jove! Tom Burke, my man, how comes +the damsel here?" + +"'Tis Kitty, ould Kitty Cole, your honor--The young gentleman was +buying a ballad from me, the Heavens prosper him!" said Darby. + +"Nothing treasonous, I hope; no disloyal effusion, Tom; no scandal about +Queen Elizabeth, my boy,--eh?" + +"Come, old lady," said Cradock, "let's have the latest novelty of the +Liberty." + +"Yes," said Bubbleton; "strike the harp in praise of--Confound the +word!" + +"Hang the old crone!" broke in Hilliard. "Here are the cards. The game +stands thus: a spade is led,--you 've got none; hearts are trumps." + +"No, you mistake; the diamond's the trump," said Cradock. + +"I cry halt," said Crofts, holding up both his hands; "the first thing +is, what's the bet?" + +"Anything you like," cried Bubbleton; "fifty,--a hundred,--five +hundred." + +"Be it then five hundred. I take you," said Crofts, coolly, taking a +memorandum book from his pocket. + +"No, no," interposed Hilliard; "Bubbleton, you sha'n't do any such +thing. Five,--ten,--twenty, if you wish; but I 'll not stand by at such +a wager." + +"Well, then, if twenty be as much as you have got permission to bet," +replied Crofts, insolently, "there's my stake." So saying, he threw +a note on the table, and looked over at Bubbleton, as if awaiting his +doing the same. + +I saw my poor friend's embarrassment, and without stirring from my +place, slipped a note into his hand in silence. A squeeze of his fingers +replied to me, and the same instant he threw the crumpled piece of paper +down, and cried out, "Now for it; decide the point." + +Crofts at once drew his chair to the table, and began with the utmost +coolness to arrange the cards; while the others, deeply interested in +the point at issue, looked on without speaking. I thought this a +good opportunity for Darby to effect his escape, and raising my hand +noiselessly, I pointed to the door. Darby, who had been only waiting for +the fortunate moment, stole quietly towards it; but while his hand was +on the lock, Crofts lifted his eyes towards me, and then throwing them +half round, intimated at once that he observed the manoeuvre. The blood +suffused my face and temples, and though I saw the door close behind +the piper, I could not recover from my embarrassment, or the fear that +pressed on me lest Crofts should have penetrated the secret of Darby's +disguise, and augured from the fact something to my discredit. + +"The game is now arranged," said he. "The spade being led here, the +second player follows suit; the third, having none, trumps the card, and +is overtrumped by the last in play. The trick is lost, therefore, and +with it the game." + +"No, no," interrupted Bubbleton, "you mistake altogether. The +diamond,--no, the heart; I mean the--the--What the deuce is it? I say, +Cradock, I had it all correct a minute ago; how is it, old fellow?" + +"Why, you 've lost, that's all," said the other, as he looked intently +on the table, and seemed to consider the point. + +"Yes, Bubbleton, there's no doubt about it; you've lost. We forgot all +about the last player," said Hilliard. + +A violent knocking at the outer door drowned the voices of all within, +while a gruff voice shouted out, "Captain Bubbleton, the grand round is +coming up Parliament Street." + +Bubbleton snatched up his sword, and dashing through the room, was +followed by the others in a roar of laughter, Crofts alone remaining +behind, proceeded leisurely to open the folded piece of bank paper that +lay before him, while I stood opposite unable to take my eyes from +him. Slowly unfolding the note, he flattened it with his hand, and then +proceeded to read aloud,-- + +"Payez au porteur la somme de deux mille livres--,' + +"I beg pardon," interrupted I. "There's a mistake there; that belongs to +me." + +"I thought as much," replied Crofts, with a very peculiar smile; "I +scarcely supposed my friend Bubbleton had gone so far." + +"There's the sum, sir," said I, endeavoring to control my temper, and +only eager to regain possession of what would at once have compromised +me, if discovered. "This is what Captain Bubbleton lost; twenty pounds, +if I mistake not?" + +"I must entreat your pardon, sir," said Crofts, folding up the French +billet de hanque, "My wager was not with you, nor can I permit you to +pay it. This is at present my property, and remains so until Captain +Bubbleton demands it from me." + +I was struck dumb by the manner in which these words were spoken. It +was clear to me, that not only he suspected the disguise of the +ballad-singer, but that by the discovery of the French note he connected +his presence with its being in my possession. Rousing myself for the +effort, I said,-- + +"You force me, sir, to speak of what nothing short of the circumstance +could have induced me to allude to. It was I gave Captain Bubbleton that +note. I gave it in mistake for this one." + +"I guessed as much, sir," was the cool answer of Crofts, as he placed +the note in his pocket-book and clasped it. "But I cannot permit your +candid explanation to alter the determination I have already come +to,--even had I not the stronger motive which as an officer in his +Majesty's pay I possess,--to inform the Government, on such infallible +evidence, how deeply interested our French neighbors are in our welfare +when they supply us with a commodity which report says is scarce enough +among themselves." + +"Do not suppose, sir, that your threat--for as such I understand it--has +any terror for me. There is, it's true, another whose safety might be +compromised by any step you might take in this affair; but when I tell +you that it is one who never did, never could have injured you, +and, moreover, that nothing treasonous or disloyal lies beneath your +discovery--" + +"You are really taking a vast deal of trouble, Mr. Burke," said he, +stopping me with a cold smile, "which I am forced to say is unnecessary. +Your explanation of how this _billet de banque_ came into your +possession may be required elsewhere, and will, I am certain, meet with +every respect and attention. As for me, an humble captain, with only one +principle to sustain me, one clue to guide me, in what I am disposed to +consider a question of some importance, I shall certainly ask advice of +others better able to direct me." + +"You refuse, then, sir, to restore me what I have assured you is mine?" + +"And what I have no doubt whatever you are correct in calling so," added +he, contemptuously. + +"And you persist in the refusal?" said I, in a voice which unhappily +betrayed more temper than I had yet shown. + +"Even so, sir," said he, moving towards the door. + +"In that case," said I, springing before him, and setting my back +against it, you don't leave this room until in the presence of a third +party,--I care not who he be,--I have told you somewhat more of my +opinion of you than it is necessary I should say now. + +The insulting expression of Crofts' features changed suddenly as I +spoke, the color left his cheek, and he became as pale as death; his +eye wandered round the room with an uncertain look, and then was fixed +steadfastly on the door, against which I stood firmly planted. At +length his face recovered its wonted character, and he said, in a cool, +distinct manner,-- + +"Your difficulties have made you bold, sir." + +"Not more bold than you 'll find me whenever you think fit to call +on me. But perhaps I am wrong for suggesting a test, which report, at +least, says Captain Crofts has little predilection for." + +"Insolent cub!" said he, half drawing his sword from the scabbard, and +as hastily replacing it when he perceived that I never moved a muscle +in my defence, but stood as if inviting his attack. "Let me pass, sir," +cried he, impetuously; "stand by this instant." + +I made no reply, but crossing my arms on my breast, stared at him firmly +as before. He had now advanced within a foot of me, his face purple with +passion, and his hands trembling with rage. + +"Let me pass, I say!" shouted he, in an accent that boded his passion +had completely got the ascendant. At the same instant he seized me by +the collar, and fixing his grip firmly in my clothes, prepared to hurl +me from the spot. + +The moment had now come that for some minutes past I had been expecting, +and with my open hand I struck him on the cheek, but so powerfully that +he reeled back with the stroke. A yell of rage burst from him, and in +an instant his sword leaped from the scabbard, and he darted fiercely at +me. I sprang to one side, and the weapon pierced the door and broke off +short; still, more than half the blade remained, and with this he flew +towards me. One quick glance I gave to look for something which might +serve to arm me; and the same moment the sharp steel pierced my side, +and I fell backwards with the shock, carrying my antagonist along with +me. The struggle was now a dreadful one; for while he endeavored to +withdraw the weapon from the wound, my hands were on his throat, and in +his strained eyeballs and livid color might be seen that a few seconds +more must decide the contest. A sharp pang shot through me. Just then a +hot gush of warm blood ran down my side, and I saw above me the shining +steel, which he was gradually shortening in his hand before he ventured +to strike. A wild cry broke from me; while at the instant, with a crash, +the door of the room fell forward, torn from its hinges. A heavy foot +approached, and the blow of a strong arm felled Crofts to the earth, +where he lay stunned and senseless. In a second I was on my feet. My +senses were reeling and uncertain; but I could see that it was Darby +who came to my rescue, and who was now binding a sash round my wound to +stanch the blood. + +"Now for it,--life or death 's on it now," said he, in a low but +distinct whisper. "Wipe the blood from your face, and be calm as you can +when you're passing the sentry." + +"Is he--" I dared not speak the word as I looked on the still motionless +body that lay before me. + +Darby raised one arm, and as he let it go, it fell heavily on the +ground. He stooped down, and placing his lips near the mouth, endeavored +to ascertain if he breathed; and then, jumping to his feet, he seized my +arm, and, in a tone I shall never forget, he said, "It 's over now!" + +I tottered back as he spoke. The horrible thought of murder,--the +frightful sense of crime, the heaviest, the blackest that can stain the +heart of man,--stunned me. My senses reeled; and as I looked on that +corpse stretched at my feet, I would have suffered my every bone to be +broken on the rack, to see one quiver of life animate its rigid members. + +Meanwhile Darby was kneeling down, and seemed to search for something +beside the body. "Ah! right! Come now," said he; "we must be far from +this before daybreak. And it 's lucky if we We the means to do it." + +I moved onward like one walking ib a dream when horrible images surround +him and dreadful thoughts are ever crowding fast; but where, amid all, +some glimmering sense of hope sustains him, and he half feels that the +terrors will pass away, and his soul be calm and tranquil once more. +What is it? what has happened? was the ever-rising question, as I heard +Darby groping his way along the dark gallery and the darker stairs. + +"Be steady, now," said he, in a whisper; "we 're at the gate." + +"Who comes there?" cried the sentry. + +"A friend!" said Darby, in a feigned voice, answering for me, while he +dropped behind me. + +The heavy bolts were withdrawn, and I felt the cold air of the streets +on my cheek. + +"Where to, now?" said I, with a dreamy oonsciousness that some place of +safety must be sought, without well knowing why or wherefore. + +"Lean on me, and don't speak," said Darby. "If you can walk as far as +the end of the quay, we 're all safe." + +I walked on without further questioning, and almost without thought; and +though, from time to time, Darby spoke to several persons as we passed, +I heard not what they said, nor took any notice of them. + + + +CHAPTER XX. THE FLIGHT + +"Are ye getting weak?" said Darby, as I staggered heavily against him, +and gasped twice or thrice for breath. "Are ye bleeding still?" was his +next question, while he passed his hand gently within the sash, and felt +my wound. I endeavored to mutter something in reply, to which he paid +no attention; but stooping down, he threw me across his shoulder, +and darting off at a more rapid pace than before, he left the more +frequented thoroughfare, and entered a narrow and gloomy alley, +unlighted by a single lamp. As he hurried onward, he stopped more than +once, as if in quest of some particular spot, but which in the darkness +he was unable to detect. + +"Oh, Holy Mother!" he muttered, "the blood is soaking through me! Master +Tom, dear! Master Tom, my darlin' speak to me,--speak to me, acushla!" +But though I heard each word distinctly, I could not utter one; a dreamy +stupor was over me, and I only wished to be left quiet. "This must be +it; ay, here it is," said Darby, as he laid me gently down on the stone +sill of the door, and knocked loudly with his knuckles. + +The summons, though repeated three or four times, was unheeded; and +although he knocked loudly enough to have alarmed the neighborhood, and +called out at the top of his voice, no one came; and the only sounds we +could hear were the distant cadences of a drinking song, mingled with +wild shouts of laughter, and still wilder cries of agony and woe. + +"Here they are, at last!" said Darby, as he almost staved in the door +with a heavy stone. + +"Who's there?" cried a harsh and feeble voice from within. + +"'Tis me, Molly; 'tis Darby M'Keown, Open quick, for the love of Heaven! +here 's a young gentleman bleedin' to death on the steps." + +"Ugh! there 's as good as ever he was, and going as fast, too, here +within," said the crone. "Ye must take him away; he would n't mind him +now for a king's ransom." + +"I 'll break open the door this minit," said Darby, with a horrible +oath, "av ye don't open it." + +"Ha, ha, ha!" laughed the hag. "If ye wor Darby M'Keown, ye 'd know well +how easy that is. Try it,--try it, acushla! oak timber and nails is +able to bear all you'll do!" + +"See now," said Darby, dropping his voice to a whisper; "see, Molly, +here 's five goold guineas for ye, av ye 'll let us in. 'T is a man's +life 's on it, and one I 'd give my own for twice over." + +"Av ye offered me forty," replied she, "I dar'n't do it. Ye don't know +the sorrow that 's here this night; 't is Dan Fortescue is going. I 'm +coming, I 'm coming!" muttered she to some call from within. And then, +without waiting to hear more, she shuffled back along the passage, and +left us once more alone. + +"There's nothing for it but this now," said Darby, as, retiring a few +paces, he dashed his shoulder against the door with all his force; but +though a powerful man, and though every window rattled and trembled with +the tremendous shock, the strong panels withstood the stroke, and never +yielded in the least. "'T is no use firing through the lock," said he, +in a tone of despair. "Blessed Joseph! what 's to be done?" + +As he spoke, the light tread of a barefooted child was heard coming up +the lane, and the same moment a little girl approached the door. She +carried a cup in her hand, and held it carefully, as if fearful of +spilling its contents. As she neared the door, she seemed uncertain how +to proceed, and at last, as if gaining courage, tapped twice at it with +her knuckles. + +"Don't ye know me, Nora?" said Darby; "don't ye know Darby the Blast?" + +"Ah, Mister M'Keown, is this you? Ah, I'm afeard it 's little use there +is in coming here to-night; Mr. Fortescue's dying within, and Doctor +Kenagh can't leave him, I 'm bringing him this to take, but--" + +"Nora, dear," said Darby, "I 've a secret for Mr. Fortescue, and must +see him before he dies. Here 's a crown, my darlin', and don't tell any +one I gave it to ye." Here he stooped down, and whispered rapidly some +words in her ear. + +"Who 's there?" broke in the hag 's voice from within. "'T is me; Nora," +said the child, boldly. "Are ye alone, there? do ye see any one about +the door?" + +"Sorra one. Can't you let me in out of the cowld?" "Come in quick, +then," said the crone, as she opened the door carefully, and only wide +enough to let the child pass; but the same instant Darby dashed forward +his foot, and flinging the door full wide, seized me by the collar, and +dragged me in after him, closing the door at once behind him. + +The screams of the hag, though loud and vehement, were as unheeded as +were Darby's own efforts to attract notice half an hour before. + +"Be quiet, I say; hush yer crying, or be the sowl o' the man that 's +dyin' I 'll dhrive a ball through ye." The sight of a pistol barrel +seemed at last to have its effect, and she contented herself with a low +wailing kind of noise, as she tottered after us along the passage. + +The cold air of the street and the rest combined had given me strength, +and I was able to follow Darby as he led the way through many a passage +and up more than one stair. + +"Here it is," said the child, in a whisper, as she stopped at the door +of a room which lay half ajar. + +We halted in silence, and listened to the breathings of a man whose +short, sobbing respiration, broken by hiccup, denoted the near approach +of death. + +"Go on," cried a deep, low voice, in a tone of eagerness; "ye 'll not +have the cough now for some time." + +The sick man made no reply, but his hurried breathing seemed to show +that he was making some unwonted effort. + +At last he spoke, but in a voice so faint and husky, we could not +hear the words. The other, however, appeared to listen, and by a stray +monosyllable, dropped at intervals, to follow the tenor of his speech. +At last the sound ceased, and all was still. + +"Go in now," said Darby, in a whisper, to the child; "I 'll follow you." + +The little girl gently pushed the door and entered, followed by M'Keown, +who, however, only advanced one foot within the room, as if doubting +what reception he should meet with. + +By the uncertain light of a wood fire, which threw in fitful flashes +its glare around, I perceived that a sick man lay on a mean-looking, +miserable bed in one corner of a dark room; beside him, seated on a low +stool, sat another, his head bent down to catch the low breathings which +the dying man gave forth from time to time. The heavy snoring sound of +others asleep directed my eyes to a distant part of the chamber, where I +saw three fellows lying on the floor, partly covered by a blanket. I +had barely time to see this much, when the figure beside the bed sprang +forward, and in a low but menacing tone, addressed M'Keown. + +The last words only could I catch, as he said, "And if he wakes up, he +may know you still." + +"And if he does," said Darby, doggedly, "who cares? Isn't there as good +blood as his shed for the cause? Look here!" + +He dragged me forward as he spoke, and, tearing open my coat, pointed to +the sash that was now saturated with the blood that flowed at every stir +from my wound. The other looked fixedly at me for a second or two, took +my hand within his, and letting it fall heavily, he whispered a word to +M'Keown, and turned away. + +"No, no!" cried Darby, violently. "By the holy Mass! ye 'll not trate +me that way. Sit down, Master Tom," said he, as he forced me into an +old armchair beside the fire. "Here, take a drink of water. Come here, +doctor; come here, now; stop the bleeding. Stand by me this wonst, and +by this--" + +Here he crossed his fingers before him, and looked fervently upwards. +But at this instant the sick man sprang up in his bed, and looked wildly +about him. + +"Isn't that Darby? isn't that M'Keown there?" cried he, as he pointed +with his finger. "Darby," he continued, in a low, clear whisper, "Darby, +see here, my boy. You often said I 'd do nothing for the cause. Is this +nothing?" He threw back the bedclothes, as he spoke, and disclosed a +ghastly wound that divided his chest, exposing the cartilage of the +ribs, which stood out amid the welling blood that oozed forth with every +respiration he made. "Is it nothing that I gave up rank, and place, and +fortune; the broad acres that were in my family for three centuries; all +my hopes, all my prospects--" + +"And if you did," interrupted M'Keown, hastily, "you knew what for." + +"I knew what for!" repeated the sick man, as a deadly smile played upon +his livid face and curled his white lip. "I know it now, at least. To +leave my inheritance to a bastard; to brand my name with disgrace and +dishonor; to go down to the grave a traitor; and, worse still--" + +He shuddered violently here, and though his mouth moved, no sound came +forth; he sank back, worn out and exhausted. + +"Was he there," said Darby to the doctor, with a significant emphasis on +the word,--"was he there to-night?" + +"He was," replied the other. "He thinks, too, he fired the shot that did +it; but, poor fellow! he was down before that. The boys brought him off. +That child is going fast," continued he, as his eye fell upon me. + +"Look to him, then, and don't be losin' time," said Darby, fiercely. +"Look to him," he added more mildly, and "the Heavens will bless +ye! Here 's twenty goolden guineas,--it's all I've saved these eight +years,--here they 're for you, and save his life." + +The old man knelt down beside me, and slipping a scissors within the +scarf that lay fastened to my side with clotted blood, he proceeded to +open and expose the situation of my wound. A cold, sick feeling, a kind +of half-fainting sensation, followed this, and I could hear nothing of +the dialogue that passed so near me. An occasional sting of pain shot +through me as the dressing proceeded; but save this, I had little +consciousness of anything. + +At length, like one awakening from a heavy slumber, with faculties +half clouded by the dreamy past, I looked around me. All was still and +motionless in the room. The doctor sat beside the sick man's bed; and +Darby, his eyes riveted on me, knelt close to my chair, and held his +hand upon the bandage over my wound. + +A gentle tap here came to the door, and the child I had seen before +entered noiselessly, and approaching the doctor, said, "the car is come, +sir." + +The old man nodded in silence, and then, turning towards Darby, he +whispered something in his ear. M'Keown sprang to his legs at once, his +cheek flushed deeply, and his eyes sparkled with animation. + +"I have it! I have it!" cried he, "There never was such luck for us +before." + +With that he drew the old man to one side, and speaking to him in a +low but rapid tone, evinced by the violence of his gestures and the +tremulous eagerness of his voice how deeply he was interested. + +"True enough, true enough," said the old man, after a pause. "Poor Dan +has but one more journey before him." + +"Is he able to bear it, doctor?" said Darby, pointing towards me with +his finger; "that's all I ask. Has he the strength in him?" + +"He'll do now," replied the other, gruffly; "there's little harm done +him this time. Let him taste that whenever you find him growing weak; +and keep his head low, and there 's no fear of him." + +As he spoke, he took from a cupboard in the wall a small phial, which +he handed to M'Keown, who received the precious elixir with as much +reverence as though it contained the very wellspring of human existence. +"And now," said Darby, "the less time lost now the better; it will soon +be daylight on us. Master Tom, can you rise, acushla? are you able to +stand up?" + +I made the effort as well as I could, but my limbs seemed chained down, +and even my arm felt like lead beside me. + +"Take him on your back," said the old man, hurriedly; "you 'll stay here +till sunrise. Take him downstairs, on your back, and when you have him +in the open air, turn him towards the wind, and keep his head low,--mind +that." + +I made another attempt to stand up; but before I could effect it, +Darby's strong arms were round my waist, and I felt myself lifted on his +shoulder and borne from the room, A muttered good-by passed between +the others, and Darby began to descend the stairs cautiously, while the +little child went before with a candle. As the street door was opened, I +could perceive that a car and horse stood in waiting, accompanied by two +men, who, the moment they saw me, sprang forward to Darby's assistance, +and helped to place me on the car. M'Keown was soon beside me, and +supporting my head upon his shoulder, he contrived to hold me in a +leaning position, giving me at the same time the full benefit of the +cool breeze, which already refreshed and restored me. + +The vehicle now moved on in darkness and in silence. At first our pace +was slow, but it gradually quickened as we passed along the quay; for as +such I recognized it by the dull sound of the river near us. The bright +lamps of the greater thoroughfares soon made their appearance; and as +we traversed these, I could mark that our pace slackened to a walk, +and that we kept the very middle of the wide street, as if to avoid +observation. Gradually we emerged from this, and, as I heard by the roll +of the wheels, reached the outskirts of the town. We had not been many +minutes there when the horse was put to his speed, and the car whirled +along at a tremendous rate. Excepting a sense of weight and stiffness +in the side, I had no painful feeling from my wound; while the rapidity +with which we passed through the air imparted a sensation of drowsiness +far from unpleasant. + +In this state I scarcely was conscious of what passed about me. Now and +then some occasional halt, some chance interruption, would momentarily +arouse me, and I could faintly hear the sound of voices; but of what +they spoke I knew nothing. Darby frequently questioned me, but my utmost +effort at reply was to press his hand. By times it would seem to me as +though all I felt were but the fancies of some sick dream, which the +morning should dispel and scatter. Then I thought that we were flying +from an enemy, who pressed hotly on us, and gained at every stride; +a vague, shadowy sense of some horrible event mingling with all, and +weighing heavily on my heart. + +As the time wore on, my senses became clearer, and I saw that we were +travelling along the seaside. The faint gray light of breaking day +shed a cold gleam across the green water, which plashed with a mournful +cadence on the low, flat shore. I watched the waves as they beat with a +heavy sough amid the scattered weeds, where the wild cry of the curlew +mingled with the sound as he skimmed along the gloomy water, and my +heart grew heavier. There is something--I know not what--terribly in +unison with our saddest thoughts, in the dull plash of the sea at night: +the loudest thunders of the storm, when white-crested waves rise +high and break in ten thousand eddies on the dark rocks, are not so +suggestive of melancholy as the sighing moan of the midnight tide. +Long-buried griefs, long-forgotten sorrows, rise up as we listen; and +we feel as though that wailing cry were the funeral chant over cherished +hopes and treasured aspirations. + +From my dark musings I was roused suddenly by Darby's voice, asking of +the men who sat at the opposite side how the wind was. + +"Westing by south," replied one; "as fair as need be, if there was +enough of it. But who knows, we may have a capful yet, when the sun gets +up." + +"We 'll not have long to wait for that," cried the other; "see there!" + +I lifted my eyes as he spoke, and beheld the pink stain of coming day +rising above the top of a large mountain. + +"That's Howth," said Darby, seizing with eagerness the proof of my +returning senses. + +"Come, press on as fast as you can," said one of the men; "we must catch +the ebb, or we'll never do it." + +"Where does she lie?" said Darby, in a low whisper. + +"Under the cliffs, in Bolskaton Bay," said the last speaker, whom I now +perceived by his dress and language to be a sailor. + +My curiosity was now excited to the utmost to know whither we were +bound; and with an effort I articulated the one word, "Where?" + +Darby's eyes brightened as I spoke; he pressed my hand firmly within +his, but made no reply. Attributing his silence to caution, I pressed +him no further; and indeed, already my former indifference came back on +me, and I felt listless as before. + +"Turn off there to the right," cried the sailor to the driver. And +suddenly we left the highroad, and entered a narrow byway, which seemed +to lead along the side of the mountain close to the water's edge. Before +we had proceeded far in this direction, a long, low whistle was heard +from a distance. + +"Stop there, stop!" said the sailor, as he knelt upon the car, and +replied to the signal. "Ay, all right; there they are," said he, as, +pointing to a little creek between the rocks below us, we saw a small +rowboat with six men lying on their oars. + +"Can't he walk?" said the sailor, in a half whisper, as he stood beside +the car. "Well, let 's lose no more time; we 'll take him down between +us." + +"No, no," said Darby; "put him on my back; I 'll do it myself." + +"The ground's slippier than you take it," said the other; "my way 's the +safest." + +With that he lifted me from the car, and placing me between Darby and +himself, they grasped each other's hands beneath me, and soon began a +descent which I saw would have been perfectly impracticable for one man +to have accomplished with another on his back. + +During the time, my desire to know where they were bringing me again +grew stronger than ever; and as I turned to ask Darby, I perceived that +the tears were coursing each other fast down his weatherbeaten cheeks, +while his lips shook and trembled like one in an ague. + +"Mind your footing there, my man, I say," cried the sailor, "or you'll +have us over the cliff." + +"Round the rock to the left there," cried a voice from below. "That's +it, that's it; now you're all right. Steady there; give me your hand." + +As he spoke, two men advanced from the boat, and assisted us down +the sloping beach, where the wet seaweed made every step a matter of +difficulty. + +"Lay him in the stern there; gently, lads, gently," said the voice of +one who appeared the chief amongst them. "That's it; throw those jackets +under his head. I say, piper, ar'n't you coming with us?" + +But Darby could not speak one word. A livid pallor was over his +features, and the tears fell, drop by drop, upon his cheek. + +"Master Tom," said he, at length, as his lips almost touched me, "my +child, my heart's blood, you won't forget poor Darby. Ye 'll be a great +man yet; ye 'll be all I wish ye. But will you remember a poor man like +me?" + +"Jump ashore there, my good fellow," cried the coxswain; "we'll have +enough to do to round the point before the tide ebbs." + +"One minit more, and God love ye for it," said Darby, in a voice of +imploring accent. "Who knows will we ever meet again; 't is the last +time, maybe, I 'll ever look on him." + +I could but press his hand to my heart; for my agitation increased the +debility I felt, and every effort to speak was in vain. + +"One half minit more,--if it 's only that he 'll be able to say, 'God +bless you, Darby!' and I 'll be happy." + +"Push off, my lads!" shouted the sailor, sternly; and as he spoke the +oars plashed heavily in the sea, and the boat rocked over with the +impulse. Twice the strong stroke of the oars sent the craft through +the clear water, when the piper clasped his arm wildly around me, and +kissing me on the cheek, he sprang over the side. The waves were nearly +to his shoulders; but in a few seconds he had buffeted through them, and +stood upon the shore. + +With a last effort I waved my hand in adieu; and as I sank back +exhausted, I heard a wild cry burst from him, half in triumph, half in +despair. One glance more I caught of his figure as we stood out to sea; +he was kneeling on the beach, bareheaded, and as if in prayer. The tears +gushed from my eyes as I beheld him, and the long pent up sorrow at last +broke forth, and I sobbed like a child. + +"Come, come, my lad! don't feel downhearted," said the sailor, laying +his hand on my shoulder; "the world can scarce have been over rough +to one so young as you are. Lift up your head, and see what a glorious +morning we 've got! And there comes the breeze over the water. We hadn't +such weather the last time we made this trip, I assure you." + +I looked up suddenly; and truly never did such a scene of loveliness +meet my eyes. The sun had risen in all his glorious brilliancy, and +poured a flood of golden light across the bay, tipping with a violet hue +the far-off peaks of the Wicklow mountains, and lighting up the wooded +valleys at their feet. Close above us rose the rugged sides of Howth in +dark shadow; the frowning rocks and gloomy caverns contrasting with the +glittering tints of the opposite coast, where every cottage and cliff +sparkled in the dancing sunlight. + +As we rounded the point, a cheer broke from the men, and was answered at +once. I turned my head, and saw beneath the tall cliffs the taper spars +of a small vessel, from which the sails hung listlessly, half brailed to +the mast. + +"There she lies," said the skipper. "That 's the 'Saucy Sal,' my master; +and if you're any judge of a craft, I think you 'll like her. Give way, +lads,--give way; when that rock yonder 's covered, the tide is at the +flood." + +The boat sprang to the strong jerk of their brawny arms, and in a +few minutes glided into the little creek where the "Saucy Sal" lay at +anchor. + +Lifting me up, they placed me on board the little vessel; while, without +losing a moment, they proceeded to ship the anchor and shake out the +canvas. In less than five minutes the white sails bent to the breeze, +the water rustled at the prow, and we stood out to sea. + +"Where to?" said I, in a faint whisper, to the sailor who held the +tiller beside me. + +"Down Channel, sir." + +"And then?" asked I once more,--"and then?" + +"That must depend on the revenue cruisers, I believe," said he, more +gruffly, and evidently indisposed to further questioning. + +Alas! I had too little interest in life to care for where, and laying my +head upon my arm, fell into a heavy stupor for several hours. + +The hot sun, the breeze, the unaccustomed motion, and worse than all, +the copious libations of brandy and water I was forced from time to +time to take, gradually brought on fever; and before evening, a burning +thirst and throbbing headache seized me, and my senses, that hitherto +had been but lethargic, became painfully acute, and my reason began to +wander. In this state I remained for days, totally unconscious of the +flight of time; frightful images of the past pursuing each other through +my heated brain, and torturing me with horrors unspeakable. + +It was in one of my violent paroxysms I tore the bandage from my side, +and reopening my half-healed wound, became in a moment deluged with +blood. I have no memory of aught that followed; the debility of almost +death itself succeeded, and I lay without sense or motion. To this +circumstance I owed my life, for when I next rallied the fever had left +me, my senses were unclouded, my cheek no longer burned, nor did my +temples throb; and as the sea breeze played across my face, I drank it +in with ecstasy, and felt once more the glorious sensations of returning +health. + +It was evening; the faint wind that follows sunset scarce filled the +sails as we glided along through the waveless sea. I had been listening +to the low, monotonous song of one of the sailors as he sat mending a +sail beside me, when suddenly I heard a voice hail us from the water. +The skipper jumped on the halfdeck, and immediately replied. The words +I could not hear, but by the stir and movement about me I saw something +unusual had occurred, and by an effort I raised my head above the +bulwark and looked about me. A long, low craft lay close alongside us, +filled with men, whose blue caps and striped shirts struck me as strange +and uncommon, not less than their black belts and cutlasses, with which +every man was armed. After an interchange of friendly greetings with our +crew,--for such they seemed, although I could not catch the words,--she +moved rapidly past us. + +"There's their flotilla, sir," said the helmsman, as he watched my eye +while it wandered over the water. + +I crept up higher, and followed the direction of his finger. Never shall +I forget that moment. Before me, scarce as it seemed a mile distant, +lay a thousand boats at anchor, beneath the shadow of tall sandhills, +decorated with gay and gaudy pennons, crowded with figures whose bright +colors and glittering arms shone gorgeously in the setting sunlight. The +bright waves reflected the myriad tints, while they seemed to plash in +unison with the rich swell of martial music that stole along the water +with every freshening breeze. The shore was covered with tents, some of +them surmounted with large banners that floated out gayly to the breeze; +and far as the eye could reach were hosts of armed men dotted over +the wide plain beside the sea. Vast columns of infantry were there,-- +cavalry and artillery, too,--their bright arms glittering, and their +gay plumes waving, but all still and motionless, as if spellbound. As I +looked, I could see horsemen gallop from the dense squares, and riding +hurriedly to and fro. Suddenly a blue rocket shot into the calm sky, and +broke in a million glittering fragments over the camp; the deep roar of +a cannon boomed out; and then the music of a thousand bands swelled high +and full, and in an instant the whole plain was in motion, and the turf +trembled beneath the tramp of marching men. Regiment followed regiment, +squadron poured after squadron, as they descended the paths towards the +beach; while a long, dark line wound through the glittering mass, and +marked the train of the artillery, as with caissons and ammunition +wagons they moved silently over the grassy surface. + +All that I had ever conceived of warlike preparation was as nothing to +the gorgeous spectacle before me. The stillness of the evening air, made +tremulous with the clang of trumpets and the hoarse roar of drums; +the mirror-like sea, colored with the reflection of bright banners and +waving pennants; and then the simultaneous step of the mighty army,--so +filled up every sense that I feared lest all might prove the mere +pageant of a dream, and vanish as it came. + +"What a glorious sight!" cried I, at length, half wild with enthusiasm. +"Where are we?" + +"Where are we?" repeated the skipper, smiling. "Look out, and you 'll +soon guess that. Are those very like the uniforms of King George? When +did you see steel breastplates and helmets before? This is France, my +lad!" + +"France! France!" said I, stupefied with the mere thought. + +"Yes, to be sure. That 's the Army of England, as they call it, you see +yonder; they are practising the embarkation. See the red rockets! There +they go,--three, four, five, six,--that's the signal. In less than half +an hour thirty thousand men will be ready to embark. Mark how they press +on faster and faster! and watch the cavalry, as they dismount and lead +their horses down the steep! See how the boats pull in shore! But, hallo +there! we shall get foul of the gunboats,--already we 've run in too +close. Down helm, my lad; keep the headland yonder on your lee." + +As he spoke, the light craft bent over to the breeze, and skipped freely +over the blue water. Each moment wafted us farther away from the bright +scene, and soon a projecting point shut out the whole, save the swell of +the brass bands as it floated on the breeze, and I might have believed +it a mere delusion. + +"They practise that manoeuvre often enough to know it well," said the +skipper, "sometimes at daybreak, now at noonday, and again, as we see, +at sunset; and no one knows at what moment the attack that seems a feint +may not turn out to be real. But here we are now alongside; our voyage +is ended." + +The anchor plashed from our bow, while a signal was made from the shore +and answered by us; and in an instant we were surrounded with boats. + +"Ha, Antoine!" cried a sous-officier in a naval uniform, who sat on the +gunwale of a long eight-oar gig, and touched his hat in recognition of +our skipper; "what news _outre mer_? what are we doing in Ireland?" + +"My young friend here must tell you that," replied the skipper, +laughingly, as he laid his hand on my shoulder. "Let me present him to +you: Mr. Burke,--Lieutenant Brevix." + +The lieutenant saluted me politely; and then, springing up, he jumped +gayly on board of us, and shook our hands with great appearance of +cordiality. + +"They 'll want to see you ashore, Antoine, as soon as may be; there are +despatches going off to-night for Paris, and they 'll be glad to send +the last accounts of the state of the Channel." + +"Light winds and no cruisers are all I have to tell them, then," said +the skipper. + +The lieutenant now took him aside, and they conversed for some time in +a low tone, during which I occupied myself by watching the sentinels who +paraded incessantly to and fro along a low wooden pier that stretched +out into the sea, and formed, with a promontory at some distance, a +small harbor. Their watch seemed of the most vigilant, if I might judge +from the low but continued cry which passed from mouth to mouth of +"Sentinelle, prenez garde a vous;" while from each boat across the +harbor a sing-song note chanted in response the monotonous sounds, "Bon +quart!" as each quarter of an hour stole past. + +These precautions against the approach of any strange craft extended, as +I afterwards learned, along the entire coast from Dieppe to Ostend; yet +were they not sufficient to prevent frequent visits from the English +spies, who penetrated into every quarter of the camp, and even had the +hardihood to visit the theatre of the town, and express loudly their +disapprobation of the performance. + +"You 'd better come ashore with me, sir," said the lieutenant; "Colonel +Dorsenne will be glad to ask you some questions. What papers have you +got?" + +"None, save a few private letters," said I, somewhat confused at the +question. + +"No matter," said he, gayly. "I hear from Antoine you wish to join the +service here. That wish is your best recommendation to the colonel; he +'ll not trouble you for reasons, I warrant you. Conduct monsieur to +the quartier-general," said the lieutenant to a corporal, who, with his +party of four men, stood awaiting at the landing-place the arrival of +any one from the boats; and in an instant, the men falling to each side +of me, took their way along the pier. + +I could mark as we went that more than once their looks were bent on me +with an expression of compassion and pity, which at the time I was at a +loss to explain. I knew not then that the road we were taking was +that which so often led to death; and that it was only on the very day +before, two Englishmen were shot for having ventured on shore without +authority. + +The consigne of the corporal passed us through one post after another, +until we reached the open plain, over which now the night was falling +fast. A lantern at some distance off marked the quarters of the officer +on duty; and thither we directed our steps, and at last reached a small +wooden hut, from within which the sounds of mirth and revelry proceeded. +The voice of the sentinel who challenged us brought an officer to the +door, who the moment his eyes fell on me stepped back, and passing his +hand hurriedly across his forehead muttered, half inaudibly, "Another +already!" + +While he retired into an inner apartment, I had time to look at the +singular decorations which adorned the walls of the antechamber. Around +on every side, and arranged like trophies, were grouped the weapons of +different arms of the service, surmounted with some device emblematic +of their peculiar character; or sometimes the mere record of some famous +battle in which they had pre-eminently distinguished themselves. Here +were the long, straight swords of the cuirassier crossed above the steel +breastplate, and surmounted by the heavy helmet half hid in leopard +skin, and bearing the almost effaced word "Arcole" in front; there was +the short carbine of the voltigeur, over which hung the red cap and its +gay gold tassel, with the embroidered motto "En avant" in gold letters. +The long and graceful weapon of the lancer, the curved sabre of +the _chasseur a cheval_, even the axe of the pioneer was not +wanting,--displaying at a glance some trait of every branch of the +mighty force that bore the proud designation of "La Grande Armee." + +I was busily engaged inspecting these when the door opened, and an +officer in full uniform appeared. His figure was above the middle size, +strongly and squarely built; and his bronzed features, and high, bold +forehead, gave him a soldier-like air. + +"Your name, sir," said he, quickly, as he drew himself up before me, and +looked sternly in my face. + +"Burke,--Thomas Burke." + +"Write it down, Auguste," said he, turning to a young officer, who +stood, pen in hand, behind him. + +"Your rank or profession?" + +"Gentilhomme," said I, not knowing that the word expressed nobility. + +"Ah, _pardieu_," cried he, as he showed his white teeth in a grin; +"produce your papers, if you have any." + +"I have nothing save those letters," said I, handing him those of De +Meudon. + +Scarce had his eye glanced over them, when I saw his color heighten and +his cheek tremble. + +"What!" cried he, "are you the same young Irishman who is mentioned +here, the constant companion and friend of poor Charles? He was my +schoolfellow; we were at Brienne together. What a mistake I was about to +fall into! How did you come, and when?" + +Before I could reply to any of his many questions, the naval officer I +had met at the harbor entered, and delivered his report. + +"Yes, yes; I know it all," said Dorsenne, hurriedly throwing his eye +over it. "It 's all right, perfectly right, Brevix. Let Capitaine +Antoine be examined at the quartier-general. I 'll take care of monsieur +here. And, to begin; come and join us at supper." + +Passing his arm familiarly over my shoulder, he led me into the +adjoining room, where two other officers were seated at a table covered +with silver dishes and numerous flasks of wine. A few words sufficed for +my introduction; and a few glasses of champagne placed me as thoroughly +at my ease as though I had passed my life amongst them, and never heard +any other conversation than the last movement of the French army, and +their projects for future campaigns. + +"And so," said the colonel, after hearing from me a short account of the +events which had induced me to turn my eyes to France,--"and so you'd be +a soldier? _Eh bien!_ see nothing better going myself. There 's Davernac +will tell you the same, though he has lost his arm in the service." + +"Oui, pardieu," said the officer on my right; "I am not the man to +dissuade him from a career I 've ever loved." + +"A vous, mon ami," said the young officer who first addressed me on my +arrival, as he held out his glass and clinked it against mine. "I +hope we shall have you one of these days as our guide through the dark +streets of London. The time may not be so distant as you think; never +shake your head at it." + +"It is not that I would mean," said I, eagerly. + +"What then?" said the colonel. "You don't suppose such an expedition as +ours could fail of success?" + +"Nor that either," replied I; "I am not so presumptuous as to form an +opinion on the subject." + +"Diantre, then! what is it?" + +"Simply this: that whatever fortune awaits me, I shall never be found +fighting against the country under whose rule I was born. England may +not be--alas! she has not been--just to us. But whatever resistance I +might have offered in the ranks of my countrymen, I shall never descend +to in an invading army. No, no; if France have no other war than +with England,--if she have not the cause of Continental liberty at +heart,--she 'll have no blood of mine shed in her Service." + +"Sacristi!" said the colonel, sipping his wine coolly, "you had better +keep these same opinions of yours to your self. There 's a certain +little General we have at Paris who rarely permits people to reason +about the cause of the campaign. However, it is growing late now, and we +'ll not discuss the matter at present. Auguste, will you take Burke to +your quarters? And to-morrow I 'll call on the general about his brevet +for the Polytechnique." + +I felt now that I had spoken more warmly than was pleasing to the party; +but the sentiments I had announced were only such as in my heart I had +resolved to abide by, and I was pleased that an opportunity so soon +offered to display them. I was glad to find myself at rest at last; and +although events pressed on me fast and thick enough to have occupied my +mind, no sooner had I laid my head on my pillow than I fell into a sound +sleep. + + + +CHAPTER XXI. THE ECOLE MILITAIRE + +Let me now skip over at a bound some twelve months of my life,--not that +they were to me without their chances and their changes, but they were +such as are incidental to all boyhood,--and present myself to my reader +as the scholar at the Polytechnique. What a change had the time, short +as it was, worked in all my opinions! how completely had I unlearned all +the teaching of my early instructor, poor Darby! how had I been taught +to think that glory was the real element of war, and that its cause was +of far less moment than its conduct! + +The enthusiasm which animated every corps of the French army, and was +felt through every fibre of the nation, had full sway in the little +world of the military school. There, every battle was known and conned +over; we called every spot of our playground by some name great in +the history of glory; and among ourselves we assumed the titles of the +heroes who shed such lustre on their country; and thus in all our boyish +sports our talk was of the Bridge of Lodi, Arcole, Rivoli, Castiglione, +the Pyramids, Mount Tabor. While the names of Kleber, Kellerman, +Massena, Desaix, Murat, were adopted amongst us, but one name only +remained unappropriated; and no one was bold enough to assume the +title of him whose victories were the boast of every tongue. If this +enthusiasm was general amongst us, I felt it in all its fullest force, +for it came untinged with any other thought. To me there was neither +home nor family; my days passed over in one unbroken calm,--no thought +of pleasure, no hope of happiness, when the fete day came round. My +every sense was wrapped up in the one great desire,--to be a soldier; to +have my name known among those great men whose fame was over Europe; to +be remembered by him whose slightest word of praise was honor itself. +When should that day come for me? When should I see the career open +before me? These were my earliest waking thoughts, my last at nightfall. + +If the intensity of purpose, the strong current of all my hopes, formed +for me an ideal and a happy world within me, yet did it lend a trait of +seriousness to my manner that seemed like melancholy; and while few +knew less what it was to grieve, a certain sadness in me struck my +companions, on which they often rallied me, but which I strove in +vain to conquer. It was true that at certain times my loneliness and +isolation came coldly on my heart; when one by one I saw others claimed +by their friends, and hurrying away to some happy home, where some fond +sister threw her arm around a brother's neck, or some doting mother +clasped her son close to her bosom and kissed his brow, a tear would +find its way down my cheek, and I would hasten to my room, and locking +the door, sit down alone to think, till my sad heart grew weary, or my +sterner nature rose within me, and by an effort over myself, I turned to +my studies and forgot all else. + +Meanwhile I made rapid progress; the unbroken tenor of my thoughts gave +me a decided advantage over the others, and long before the regular +period arrived, the day for my final examination was appointed. + +What a lasting impression do some passages of early life leave behind +them! Even yet,--and how many years are past!--how well do I remember +all the hopes and fears that stirred my heart as the day drew near! +how each morning at sunrise I rose to pore over some of the books which +formed the subjects of examination: how, when the gray dawn was only +breaking, have I bent over the pages of Vauban and the calculations of +Carnot! and with what a sinking spirit have I often found that a night +seemed to have erased all the fruit of a long day's labor, and that the +gain of my hard-worked intellect had escaped me,--and then again, like +magic, the lost thought would come back, my brain grow clear, and +all the indistinct and shadowy conceptions assume a firm and tangible +reality which I felt like power! At such times as these my spirits rose, +my heart beat high, a joyous feeling throbbed in every pulse, and an +exhilaration almost maddening elevated me, and there was nothing I would +not have dared, no danger I would not have confronted. Such were the +attractions of my boyish days, and such the temperament they bequeathed +to my manhood. + +It was on the 16th of June, the anniversary of Marengo, when the drum +beat to arms in the court of the Polytechnique; and soon after the +scholars were seen assembling in haste from various quarters, anxious to +learn if their prayer had been acceded to,--which asked permission for +them to visit the Invalides, the usual indulgence on the anniversary of +any great victory. + +As we flocked into the court we were struck by seeing an orderly dragoon +standing beside the headmaster, who was eagerly perusing a letter in his +hands; when he had concluded, he spoke a few words to the soldier, who +at once wheeled round his horse and trotted rapidly from the spot. + +Again the drums rolled out, and the order was given to form in line. In +an instant the command was obeyed, and we stood in silent expectation of +the news which we perceived awaited us. + +"Messieurs les eleves," he began, when stillness was restored, "this +day being the anniversary of the glorious battle of Marengo, the General +Bonaparte has decreed that a review should be held of the entire school. +Lieutenant-General d'Auvergne will arrive here at noon to inspect you, +and on such reports as I shall give of your general conduct, zeal, and +proficiency will recommendations be forwarded to the First Consul for +your promotion." + +A loud cheer followed this speech. The announcement far surpassed our +most ardent hopes, and there was no limit to our enthusiasm; and loud +vivas in honor of General Bonaparte, D'Auvergne, and the headmaster +himself were heard on all sides. + +Scarcely was the breakfast over when our preparations began. What a busy +scene it was! Here were some brushing up their uniforms, polishing their +sword-hilts, and pipeclaying their cross-belts; there might be seen +others conning over the directions of field manoeuvres, and refreshing +their memory of the words of command; some practised marching in groups +along the corridor; others, too much excited by the prospect before +them, jumped madly from place to place, shouting and singing snatches +of soldier songs; but all were occupied. As for me, it was only two days +before I had obtained my grade of corporal; my new uniform had only just +come home, and I put it on for the first time with no inconsiderable +pride; indeed, I could scarce turn my eyes as I walked from the stripes +upon my arm that denoted my rank. + +Long before the appointed time we were all assembled, and when the clock +struck twelve and the drum beat out, not a boy was absent. We were drawn +up in three columns according to our standing, spaces being left between +each to permit of our wheeling into line at the word of command. The +headmaster passed down our ranks, narrowly inspecting our equipments and +scrutinizing every detail of our costume; but a stronger impulse +than ordinary was now at work, and not the slightest irregularity was +anywhere detectable. + +Meanwhile the time passed on, and although every eye was directed to +the long avenue of lime-trees by which the general must arrive, nothing +moved along it; and the bright streaks of sunlight that peeped between +the trees were unbroken by any passing shadow. Whispers passed along +the ranks,--some fearing he might have forgotten the whole appointment; +others suspecting that another review elsewhere had engrossed his +attention; and at last a half murmur of dissatisfaction crept through +the mass, which only the presence of the _chef_ restrained within due +bounds. + +One o'clock struck, and yet no rider appeared; the alley remained silent +and deserted as before. The minutes now seemed like hours; weariness and +lassitude appeared everywhere. The ranks were broken, and many wandered +from their posts, and forgot all discipline. At last a cloud of dust +was seen to rise at a distance, and gradually it approached the long +avenue, and every eye was turned in the direction, and in an instant +the stragglers resumed their places, and all was attention and anxiety, +while every look pierced eagerly the dense cloud, to see whether it was +not the long-wished-for staff which was coming. At length the object +burst upon our sight; but what was our disappointment to see that it +was only a travelling carriage with four post-horses that approached. +No appearance of a soldier was there,--not one solitary dragoon. A +half-uttered shout announced our dissatisfaction, for we at once guessed +it was merely some chance visitor, or perhaps the friends of some of the +scholars, who had thus excited our false hopes. + +The chef himself participated in our feelings; and passing down the +lines, he announced that if the general did not arrive within ten +minutes, he would himself dismiss us, and set us at liberty. A cheer +of gratitude received this speech, and we stood patiently awaiting our +liberation, when suddenly, from the guard-house at the gate, the clash +of arms was heard, and the roll of drums in salute, and the same instant +the carriage we had seen rolled into the courtyard and took up its +station in the middle of the square. The next moment the door was opened +and the steps lowered, and an officer in a splendid uniform assisted +three ladies to alight. Before we recovered from the surprise of the +proceeding, the master had approached the party, and by his air of +deference and deep respect denoted that they were no ordinary visitors. +But our attention was quickly drawn from the group that now stood +talking and laughing together, for already the clank of a cavalry escort +was heard coming up the avenue, and we beheld the waving plumes and +brilliant uniform of a general officer's staff advancing at a rapid +trot. The drums now rolled out along the lines; we stood to arms; the +gallant cortege turned into the court and formed in front of us. All +eyes were fixed on the general himself, the perfect beau ideal of an +old soldier. He sat his horse as firmly and gracefully as the youngest +aide-de-camp of his suite; his long white hair, dressed in queue behind, +was brushed back off his high broad forehead; his clear blue eye, mild +yet resolute, glanced over our ranks; and as he bowed to the headmaster, +his whole gesture and bearing was worthy of the Court of which once he +was a brilliant member. + +"I have kept my young friends waiting for me," said he in a low but +clear voice, "and it now remains for me to make the only amende in my +power,--a short inspection. Dorsenne, will you take the command?" + +I started at the name, and looked round; and close beside him stood the +same officer who had so kindly received me the day I landed in France. +Though he looked at me, however, I saw he did not remember me, and my +spirits sank again as I thought how utterly friendless and alone I was. + +The general was true to his word in making the inspection as brief as +possible. He rode leisurely down the ranks, stopping from time to time +to express his satisfaction, or drop some chance word of encouragement +or advice, which we caught up with eagerness and delight. Forming us +into line, he ordered his aide-de-camp to put us through some of the +ordinary parade manoeuvres, which we knew as thoroughly as the most +disciplined troops. During all this time the group of ladies maintained +their position in front, and seemed to watch the review with every +semblance of interest. The general, too, made one of the party, and +appeared from time to time to explain the intended movement, and direct +their attention to the scene. + +"Let them march past in salute," said he, at length. "The poor fellows +have had enough of it; I must not encroach on the entire holiday." + +A unanimous cheer was the reply to this kind speech, and we formed in +sections and marched by him at a quickstep. The chef d'ecole had now +approached the staff, and was making his report on the boys, when the +general again interrupted him by saying,-- + +"Madame has expressed a wish to see the boys at their usual exercise of +the play hour. If the request be admissible--" + +"Certainly, mon general; of course," said he. And stepping forward, he +beckoned to one of the drummers to come near. He whispered a word, and +the tattoo beat out; and, like magic, every one sprang from his ranks, +caps were flung into the air, and vivas rung out from every quarter of +the court. + +The sudden transition from discipline to perfect liberty added to our +excitement, and we became half wild with delight. The first mad burst +of pleasure over, we turned, as if by instinct, to our accustomed +occupations. Here were seen a party collecting for a drill, officers +gathering and arranging their men, and sergeants assisting in the +muster; there, were others, armed with spades and shovels, at work on +an entrenchment, while some were driving down stockades and fixing a +palisade; another set, more peaceful in their pursuits, had retired to +their little gardens, and were busy with watering-pots and trowels. + +The section I belonged to were the seniors of the school, and we had +erected a kind of fort which it was our daily amusement to defend and +attack, the leadership on either side being determined by lots. On +this day the assault had fallen to my command, and I hurried hither and +thither collecting my forces, and burning for the attack. + +We were not long in assembling; and the garrison having announced their +readiness by the display of a flag from the ramparts, the assault began. +I know not why nor wherefore, but on this day my spirits were unusually +high; it was one of those chance occasions when my temperament, heated +and glowing, had elevated me in my own esteem, and I would have given my +life for some opportunity of distinguishing myself. + +I led my party on, then, with more than common daring, and though +repulsed by the besieged, we fell back only for a moment, and returned +to the assault determined to succeed; the others, animated by the same +spirit, fought as bravely, and the cheers that rose from one side were +replied to by shouts as full of defiance from the other. Heated and +excited, I turned round to order an attack of my whole force, when to +my surprise I beheld that the general and his staff, accompanied by the +ladies, had taken their places a short distance off, and were become +interested spectators of the siege. This alone was wanting to stimulate +my efforts to the utmost, and I now returned to the fight with tenfold +impetuosity. But if this feeling animated me, it also nerved my +antagonists, for their resistance rose with every moment, and as +they drove us back from their walls, cheers of triumph rang out and +proclaimed the victory. + +Already the battle had lasted nearly an hour, and all that was obtained +was a slight breach in one of the outworks, too small to be practicable +for assault. In this state were matters, when the sound of a cavalry +escort turned every eye towards the entrance to the courtyard, where +we now beheld a squadron of the Landers rouges following a numerous and +brilliant staff of general officers. + +Scarcely had they entered the gates when a loud cry rent the air, and +every voice shouted, "C'est lui! c'est lui!" and the next moment, "Vive +Bonaparte! vive le Premier Consul!" All that I ever heard from poor De +Meudon came rushing on my mind, and my heart swelled out till it seemed +bursting my very bosom. The next instant my eye turned to the little +fort; the moment was propitious, for there every cap was waving, every +look bent towards him, I seized the opportunity, and pointing silently +to the breach, stole forward. In a second I was beneath the grassy +rampart; in another, I reached the breach; the next brought me to the +top, where, with a shout of victory, I called on my men to follow me. On +they came rushing,--but too late; already the garrison were upon me, and +overcome by numbers, I fought alone and unsupported. Step by step they +drove me to the edge of the rampart; already my foot was on the breach, +when with a spring I dashed at the flagstaff, and carried it with me +as I fell headlong into the ditch. In a moment I was on my legs, but +so stunned and crushed that I fell almost immediately again; cold +perspiration broke over my face and forehead, and I should have fainted +but that they dashed some water over me. + +As I lay sick and faint I lifted my eyes; and what was my amazement to +see, not the little companions of the school about me, but the gorgeous +uniform of staff officers, and two elegantly-dressed ladies, one of whom +held a cup of water in her hand and sprinkled it over my brow. I looked +down upon my torn dress, and the sleeve of my coat, where the marks of +my rank were already half effaced, and I felt the tears start into +my eyes as the remembrance of my late failure crossed my mind. At the +instant the crowd opened, and a pale but handsome face, where command +was tempered by a look of almost womanly softness, smiled upon me. + +[Illlustration: C'etait bien fait, mon enfant 223] + +"C'etait bien fait, mon enfant," said he, "tres bien fait; and if you +have lost a coat by the struggle, why I must even see if I can't give +you another to replace it. Monsieur Legrange, what is the character of +this boy in the school? Is he diligent, zealous, and well-conducted!" + +"All of the three. General," said the chef, bowing obsequiously. + +"Let him have his brevet,--to date from to-day. Who are his friends?" + +A whispered answer replied to this inquiry. + +"Indeed!" said the first speaker; "reason the more we should take care +of him. Monsieur," continued he, turning towards me, "to-morrow you +shall have your epaulettes. Never forget how you gained them; and +remember ever that every grade in the service is within the reach of a +brave man who does his duty." + +So saying, he passed on, while, overcome by emotion, I could not speak +or move. + +"There, he is much better now," said a soft voice near me; "you see his +color is coming back." + +I looked up, and there were two ladies standing beside me. The elder was +tall and elegantly formed; her figure, which in itself most graceful, +looked to its full advantage by the splendor of her dress; there was an +air of stateliness in her manner, which had seemed hauteur were it +not for a look of most benevolent softness that played about her mouth +whenever she spoke. The younger, who might in years have seemed her +daughter, was in every respect unlike her: she was slight and delicately +formed; her complexion and her black eyes, shaded by a long dark fringe, +bespoke the Provencal; her features were beautifully regular, and when +at rest completely Greek in their character, but each moment some +chance word, some passing thought, implanted a new expression, and the +ever-varying look of her flashing eyes and full round lips played between +a smile and that arch spirit that essentially belongs to the fair +daughters of the South. It was not until my fixed gaze had brought a +deep blush to her cheek, that I felt how ardently I had been looking at +her. + +"Yes, yes," said she, hurriedly, "he's quite well now;" and at the same +moment she made a gesture of impatience to pass on. But the elder held +her arm close within her own, as she whispered, with something of half +malice, "But stay, Marie; I should like to hear his name. Ah," cried +she, starting in affected surprise, "how flushed you are! there must be +something in the air here, so we had better proceed." And with a soft +smile and a courteous motion of her hand, she passed on. + +I looked after them as they went. A strange odd feeling stirred within +my heart,--a kind of wild joy, with a mingled sense of hope too vague to +catch at. I watched the drooping feather of her bonnet, and the folds of +her dress as they fluttered in the wind; and when she disappeared from +my sight, I could scarce believe that she was not still beside me, +and that lier dark eyes did not look into my very soul. But already my +companions crowded about me, and amid a hundred warm congratulations and +kind wishes, I took my way back to the college. + +Scarcely was breakfast over the following morning, when the order +arrived for my removal from the scholar quarter of the Polytechnique to +that occupied by the cadets. A small tricolored cockade affixed to +my hat was the only emblem of my new rank; but simple as it was, no +decoration ever attracted more envy and admiration from the beholders, +nor gave more pride to the wearer, than that knot of ribbon. + +"At number thirteen you 'll find your quarters, Monsieur le Cadet," said +a sergeant, as he presented me with the official order. + +I remember at this very hour what a thrill his military salute sent +through me. It was the first acknowledgment of my grade; the first +recognition that I was no longer a mere schoolboy. I had not much time +granted me to indulge such sensations, for already my schoolfellows had +thronged round me, and overwhelmed me with questions and felicitations. + +"Ah, what a fortunate fellow! No examination to go through; has +his grade given him without toiling for it."--"Is it the cavalry, +Burke"--"Are you a cheval?"--"When do you join?"--"Where is your +regiment?"--"Shall we see you again?"--"Won't you write to us all about +the corps when you join them?"--"Who is your comrade?"--"Yes, tell us +that; who is he?" + +"Ma foi," said I, "I know not more than yourselves. You are all aware to +what an accident I owe my promotion. Where I am destined for, or in what +corps, I can't tell. And as to my comrade--" + +"Ah! take care he 's no tyrant," said one. + +"Yes, yes," cried another; "show him you know what a small sword is at +once." + +"Burke won't be trifled with," cried a third. + +And then followed a very chorus of voices, each detailing some atrocity +committed by the cadets on their newly-joined associates. One had a +friend wounded in the side the very day he joined; another knew some one +who was thrown out of a window: here was an account of a delicate boy +who passed an entire night in the snow, and died of a chest disease +three weeks after; there, a victim to intemperance met his fate in +the orgy that celebrated his promotion. This picture, I confess, did +somewhat damp the ardor of my first impressions; and I took leave of my +old friends with not less feeling of affection, that I doubted how much +kindness and good feeling I had to expect from my new ones. + +In this mood of mind I shook their hands for the last time, and followed +the soldier who carried my baggage to the distant quarter of the ecole. +As I entered the large court by the richly ornamented gate, whose +bronzed tracery and handsome carving dated from the time of Louis the +Fourteenth, my heart swelled with conscious pride. The facade of +the square, unlike the simple front of the scholars' quarters, was +beautifully architectural; massive consoles supported the windows, +and large armorial insignia, cut on stone, surmounted the different +entrances. But what most captivated my spirits and engaged my attention +was a large flag in the centre, from which waved the broad ensign of +France, beside which a sentinel paced to and fro. He presented arms as +I passed; and the click of his musket, as he stood erect, sent a thrill +through me, and made my very fingers tingle with delight. + +"This is number thirteen, sir," said the soldier, as we arrived in front +of one of the doorways; and before I could reply, the door opened, and a +young officer, in the uniform of an infantry regiment, appeared. He was +about to pass out, when his eye resting on the luggage the soldier had +just placed beside him, he stopped suddenly, and, touching his cap, +asked in a polite tone,-- + +"Not Mr. Burke, is it?" + +"Yes," said I, bowing in return. + +"Eh, mon camarade," said he, holding out his hand, "delighted to see +you. Have you breakfasted? Well, you 'll find all ready for you in the +quarters. I shall be back soon. I 'm only going to a morning drill, +which won't last half an hour; so make yourself at home, and we'll meet +soon again." + +So saying, he once more saluted me, and passed on. "Not very like what +I feared," thought I, as I entered the quarters, whose look of neatness +and comfort so pleasantly contrasted with my late abode. I had barely +time to look over the prints and maps of military subjects which +ornamented the walls, when my new friend made his appearance. + +"No parade to-day, thank Heaven," said he, throwing down his cap and +sabre, and lolling at full length on the little camp sofa. "Now, mon +cher camarade, let us make acquaintance at once, for our time is likely +to be of the shortest. My name is Tascher, a humble sous-lieutenant of +the Twenty-first Regiment of Foot. As much a stranger in this land as +yourself, I fancy," continued he, after a slight pause, "but very well +contented to be adopted by it." + +After this opening, he proceeded to inform me that he was the nephew of +Madame Bonaparte,--her sister's only son,--who, at his mother's death, +left Guadaloupe, and came over to France, and became an eleve of the +Polytechnique. There he had remained five years, and after a severe +examination, obtained his brevet in an infantry corps; his uncle +Bonaparte having shown him no other favor nor affection than a severe +reprimand on one occasion for some boyish freak, when all the other +delinquents escaped scot-free. + +"I am now under orders for service," said he; "but where for, and when, +I can't tell. But this I know, that whatever good fortune may be going +a-begging, I, Lieutenant Tascher, am very likely to get only the hem of +the garment." + +There was a tone of easy and frank good-nature in all he said, which +at once disposed me to like the young Creole; and we spent the whole +afternoon recounting our various adventures and fortunes, and before +night came on were sworn friends for life. + + + +CHAPTER XXII. THE TUILERIES IN 1803 + +The life of the cadet differed little from that of the schoolboy. The +same routine of study, the same daily round of occupation and duty, +were his. Until drafted to the particular corps to which he might be +appointed, he only could absent himself from the college by special +leave; and the most rigid of all military discipline prevailed during +the brief interval which was to fit him for the arduous life of a +soldier. The evenings, however, were at our disposal; and what a +pleasure it was, the fatigue of the day over, to wander forth into the +city,--that brilliant Paris, near which I had lived so long, and yet +had seen so little of! + +At first the splendor of the shops, the unceasing flow of population, +the might and grandeur of the public buildings, attracted all my +attention; and when these wore off in novelty, I could still wander +with delight through the gay gardens of the Tuileries, and watch the +sparkling fountains as they splashed in the pale moonlight, and look +upon the happy children who played about them, their merry laughter +ringing through the water's plash. What a fairy scene it was to +watch the groups as they passed and repassed--came and went and +disappeared--amid those dark alleys where the silent footstep did not +mar the sounds of happy voices! and then, how have I turned from +these to throw a wistful glance towards the palace windows, where some +half-closed curtain from time to time would show the golden sparkle of +a brilliant lustre or the rich frame of a mirror,--mayhap an open sash +would for a moment display some fair form, the outline only seen as she +leaned on the balcony and drank in the balmy air of the mild evening, +while the soft swell of music would float from the gorgeous saloon, +and falling on my ear, set me a-dreaming of pleasures my life had never +known! + +My utter loneliness pressed deeper on me every day; for while each of +my companions had friends and relatives, among whom their evenings were +passed, I was friendless and alone. The narrowness of my means--I had +nothing save my pay--prevented my frequenting the theatre, or even +accepting such invitations as the other cadets pressed upon me; and thus +for hours long have I sat and watched the windows of the palace, weaving +to myself stories of that ideal world from which my humble fortune +debarred me. + +It had been years since the Tuileries exhibited anything resembling the +state that formerly prevailed in that splendid palace; but at the period +I speak of Bonaparte had just been chosen Consul for life, and already +the organization of his household had undergone a most considerable +alteration. In the early years of the Consulate a confused assemblage of +aides-de-camp, whose heavy gait and loud speech betokened less the court +than the camp, were the only attendants on his person; he lived in the +centre pavilion, as if in a tent in the midst of his army. But now he +inhabited the splendid suite of rooms to the left of the pavilion,--_de +l'horloge_, as it is called,--which stretches away towards the river. +The whole service of the palace was remodelled; and without wounding +those prejudices that attached to the times of the deposed Monarchy +by adopting the titles of chamberlain, or gentlemen of the chamber, +he gradually instituted the ceremonial of a Court by preferring to the +posts about his person those whose air and manners savored most of the +higher habitudes of society, and whose families were distinguished among +the noblesse of the kingdom. + +Duroc, the chief aide-de-camp of the General, was appointed governor +of the palace; and it was said that the Consul himself studied all the +ancient ceremonial of the old Court, and ordained that every etiquette +of royalty should be resumed with the most unerring accuracy. The +chamberlains were represented by prefects of the palace; and Josephine +had her ladies of honor, like any princess of the blood royal. + +The Consul, still imitating the observances of the Bourbons, had +his _petits levers_ and his grand receptions; and if the new-created +functionaries possessed little of the courteous ease and high-bred +habitudes of the old Court, there was in their hard-won honors--most of +them promoted on the very field of battle--that which better suited the +prejudices of the period, and scarcely less became the gilded saloons of +the Tuileries. + +Like all newly-organized societies, the machinery worked ill at +first. Few if any of them had ever seen a Court; and the proud but yet +respectful obedience which characterized the French gentleman in the +presence of his sovereign was converted into an obsequious and vulgar +deference towards Bonaparte, equally opposite to the true type, as it +was foreign to the habits, of the blunt soldier who proffered it. + +But what, after all, signified these blemishes? There was beauty: never +in the brighter annals of France had more lovely women filled those +gorgeous saloons. There was genius, heroism: the highest chivalry of +the great nation could scarce vie with the proud deeds of those grouped +around him,--the mighty one on whom each eye was fixed. And if, as M. +Talleyrand remarked, there were those who knew not how to walk on +the waxed floor of a palace, few could tread more finely the field of +battles, and step with firmer foot the path that led to glory. Yet, +with all the First Consul's pride in those whose elevation to rank and +dignity was his own work, his predilections leaned daily more and more +towards the high and polished circles of the Faubourg St. Germain. The +courteous and easy politeness of Talleyrand, the chivalrous and courtly +bearing of the Comte de Narbonne, and the graceful elegance of Segur's +manners, formed too striking a contrast with the soldierlike rudeness +of the newly-promoted generals, not to make a profound impression on +one who could, in the deepest and weightiest concerns of life, take into +calculation the most minute and trivial circumstances. + +This disparity, remarkable as it was among the men, was still more so in +the ladies of the Court,--few of those newly elevated having tact enough +either to imitate successfully the polished usages of the old nobility, +or resolution sufficient to maintain their original habits without +blushing at their own want of breeding. + +If I have been led somewhat from the current of my own story by this +digression, it is merely that I may passingly note down some of the +features of the period,--one of the most remarkable in the history of +Modern Europe, and one which already, to the far-seeing eye of some, +betokened the speedy return to those very institutions of Monarchy to +uproot which cost the best blood of France, and a revolution the most +terrific the world has ever witnessed. + +And now, looking back on the great career of that great man, no portion +of his history can, perhaps, present anything to compare with the +splendor of the Consulate. A long succession of victories, the spoils +of half Europe, glory to very satiety, had intoxicated the nation. +A country flourishing in every element of prosperity; social order +restored; a high position amid surrounding nations; and everything that +could gratify national ambition obtained,--France stood at the very +pinnacle of her greatness. Even the splendor of those names who +represented the various states of Europe at her Court seemed to attest +her supremacy. The stately and polished Whitworth, conspicuous by +the elegance of his appearance and the perfection of his aristocratic +bearing; the Russian Ambassador, Marcoff; the Chevalier Azara, the +Minister of Spain, the courtier of Europe; Baron de Cetto, the Envoy of +Saxony, one of the most distinguished, both by manners and ability, m +the whole diplomatic circle, were among those who frequented the First +Consul's levies, which already, in the splendor of costume and the +gorgeous display of uniform, rivalled the most sumptuous days of the +Monarchy. + +All the long-forgotten ceremonial of a Court was restored. Dinners, most +splendid in all the array of pomp and grandeur, were given every week; +fetes, that vied with the luxurious era of Louis the Fourteenth himself, +took place frequently; and Paris became the rendezvous for all Europe, +curious to behold the rich trophies of successful wars, and mix in the +delight of a capital where pleasure reigned triumphant. + +The theatre presented an array of genius and talent hitherto unequalled. +Talma and Mademoiselle Mars were in the very zenith of their fame, and +obtained a large share of Bonaparte's favor, whose tastes were eminently +dramatic. In a word, a new era had commenced, and every class and walk, +every condition of man, seemed resolved to recompense itself, by the +pursuit of pleasure, for the long and dark night of trouble through +which it had passed. + +While, therefore, the Court of the First Consul partook of such +features as those, the circle of Josephine possessed attractions +totally different. There, amid her intimate friends, all the charm and +fascination of French society held sway. Each evening saw assembled +around her the wittiest and most polished persons of the day,--the gay +and spirited talkers who so pre-eminently gave the tone to Parisian +society: the handsomest women, and the most distinguished of the +litterateurs of the period, found ready access to one whose own powers +of pleasing have left an undying impression on some, who even still can +recall those delightful moments. + +Such were, in brief, the leading features of the Court then held in the +Tuileries; and such the germ of that new order of things which was so +soon to burst forth upon astonished Europe under the proud title of The +Empire. + + + +CHAPTER XXIII. A SURPRISE. + +I WAS sitting one evening alone in my quarters, an open volume before +me, in which I persuaded myself I was reading, while my thoughts were +far otherwise engaged, when my comrade Tascher suddenly entered the +room, and throwing himself into a chair, exclaimed, in a tone of +passionate impatience,-- + +"_Pardieu!_ it is a fine thing to be nephew to the first man in France!" + +"What has happened?" said I, when I perceived that he stopped short +without explaining further. + +"What has happened!--enough to drive one mad. Just hear this. You know +how fond I am of Paris, and how naturally I must wish to be near the +Tuileries, where I have the _entree_ to my aunt's soirees. Well, there +was a vacancy occurred yesterday in the huitieme hussars,--a corps +always stationed here or at Versailles,--and as I am longing to have a +cavalry grade, I waited on Madame Bonaparte to solicit her interest in +my favor. She promised, of course. The General was to breakfast with +her, and it was all settled: she was to ask him for the promotion, and +I had not a doubt of success; in fact, if I must confess, I told two or +three of my friends, and actually received their congratulations. + +"It so fell out, however, that he did not come to breakfast, nor dinner +either,--there's no knowing that man. But what think you? He walked in +this evening, just as we were preparing to act a proverb. Such a scene +as it was, to be sure. No one expected him. Most of us were dressed up +in costumes of one kind or other; and I, _ma foi!_--ridiculous enough, I +suppose,--I was costumed like a galley slave. He stood for a second or +two at the door with his arms folded, and his stern eyes wandering +over the whole room. There was not one amongst us would not have wished +himself many a mile away; even my aunt herself seemed quite confused, +and blushed, and grew pale, and blushed again. + +"'Ha!' cried he at last, in his dry, short voice. 'Pardon, ladies and +gentlemen, I have made a mistake; I believed I was in the Palace of the +Tuileries, and I find this is the Porte St. Martin.' + +"'Fi donc, Bonaparte!' cried my aunt, blushing, while with one of her +sweetest-smiles she endeavored to bring him back to good-humor. 'See how +you have frightened Madame de Narbonne--she 'll never be able to play +the miller's wife; and Marie here,--her tears will wash away all her +rouge.' + +"'And this amiable gentleman, what is to become of him?' said he, +interrupting her, while he laid his hand on my shoulder, and I stood +trembling like a culprit beside him. + +"'Ah, there! that 's Tascher,' said she, laughingly; and as if happy to +escape from her greater embarrassment by any means, she continued: 'Your +question comes, indeed, quite a propos. I have a request to make in his +favor: there's a vacancy in the huitieme, I think it is,--eh, Edward?' +(I nodded slightly, for if my life depended on it, I could not have +uttered a word.) 'Now, I am sure he 's been sous-lieutenant long enough; +and in the infantry too.' + +"'Can you ride well, sir?' said he, turning to me with a half frown on +his pale face. + +"'Yes, General,' replied I, with my heart almost choking me as I spoke. + +"'Well, sir, you shall be employed, and in a service worthy your present +tastes, if I may judge from your costume. A detachment of prisoners is +to march to-morrow from this for the Bagne de Brest; hold yourself in +readiness to accompany the military escort. Go, sir, and report yourself +to your colonel.' He waved his hand when he had finished; and how I left +the room, reached the street, and found myself here, hang me if I can +tell you." + +"And is there no help for this? Must you really go?" said I, +compassionating the dejected and sorrow-struck expression of the youth. + +"Must I go! _Ma foi_ you know little of this dear uncle of mine, if you +ask such a question. When once his mind 's made up, anything like an +attempt to argue only confirms his resolve. The best thing now is, to +obey and say nothing; for if my aunt remonstrates, I may spend my life +in garrison there over the galley slaves." + +A knocking at the outer door interrupted our conversation at this +moment, and a corporal of the staff entered, with a despatch-bag at his +waist. + +"Sous-Lieutenant Tascher," said he, touching his cap, and presenting a +large official-looking letter to my companion, who threw it from him on +the table, and turned away to hide his confusion. "Monsieur Burke," said +the corporal, withdrawing another ominous document from his leathern +pouch. + +"_Diantre!_" cried Tascher, turning quickly about, "have I got you into +a scrape as well as myself? I remember now the General asked me who was +my 'comrade.'" + +I took the paper with a trembling hand, and tore it open. The first line +was all I could read; it was a War Office official, appointing me to the +vacant commission in the huitieme hussars. + +Tascher's hand shook as he leaned on my shoulder, and I could feel a +convulsive twitching of his fingers as his agitation increased; but in +a second or two he recovered his self-command, and taking my hand within +both of his, he said, while the large tears were starting from his +eyes,-- + +"I'm glad it's you, Burke!" and then turned away, unable to say more. + +It was some time before I could bring myself to credit my good fortune. +Had I been free to choose, I could have desired nothing better nor more +to my liking; and when I succeeded at length, then came my embarrassment +at my poor friend's disappointment, which must have been still more +poignant as contrasted with my success. Tascher, however, had all the +Creole warmth of temperament. The first burst over, he really enjoyed +the thought of my promotion; and we sat up the entire night talking over +plans for the future, and making a hundred resolves for contingencies, +some of which never arose, and many, when they came, suggested remedies +of their own. + +At daybreak my comrade's horses came to the door, and a mounted orderly +attended to accompany him to the prison where the convoy were assembled. +We shook hands again and again. He was leaving what had been his home +for years,--Paris, the gay and brilliant city in whose pleasures he had +mixed, and whose fascinations he had tasted. I was parting from one with +whom I had lived in a friendship as close as can subsist between two +natures essentially different. We both were sad. + +"Adieu, Burke!" said he, as he waved his hand for the last time. "I +hope you'll command the huitieme when next we meet." + +I hurried into the quarters, which already seemed lonely and deserted, +so soon does desolation throw its darkening shadow before it. The sword +that had hung above the chimney crosswise on my own was gone; the shako, +too, and the pistols were missing; the vacant chair stood opposite to +mine; and the isolation I felt became so painful that I wandered out +into the open air, glad to escape the sight of objects every one of +which only suggested how utterly alone I stood in the world when the +departure of one friend had left me companionless. + +No one save he who has experienced it can form any just idea of the +intense hold a career of any kind will take of the mind of him who, +without the ties of country, of kindred, and of friends, devotes all +his energies in one direction. The affections that might, under other +influences, have grown up,--the hopes that might have flourished in the +happy sphere of a home,--become the springs of a more daring ambition. +In proportion as he deserts other roads in life, the path he has struck +out for himself seems wider and grander, and his far-seeing eye enables +him to look into the long distance with a prophetic vision, where are +rewards for his hard won victories, the recompense of long years of +toil. The pursuit, become a passion, gradually draws all into its +vortex; and that success which at first he believed only attainable by +some one mighty effort, seems at last to demand every energy of his life +and every moment of his existence: and as the miser would deem his ruin +near should the most trifling opportunity of gain escape him, so +does the ambitious man feel that every incident in life must be made +tributary to the success which is his mammon. It was thus I thought of +the profession of arms: my whole soul was in it; no other wish, no other +hope, divided my heart; that passion reigned there alone. How often do +we find it in life that the means become the end,--that the effort we +employ to reach an object takes hold upon our fancy, gains hourly upon +our affections, and at length usurps the place of what before had been +our idol? As a boy, liberty, the bold assertion of my country's rights, +stirred my heart, and made me wish to be a soldier. As years rolled on, +the warlike passion sank deeper and deeper in my nature,--the thirst for +glory grew upon me; and forgetting all save that, I longed for the time +when on the battle-field I should win my name to fame and honor. + +In this wise were my musings, as I loitered homeward and entered my +quarters. A sealed packet, addressed Sous-Lieutenant Burke,--how that +humble title made my heart beat!--lay on my table. Supposing it referred +to my new appointment, I sat down to con it over at my leisure; but no +sooner had I torn open the envelope than a card fell to the ground. I +took it up hastily, and read,--"D'apres l'ordre de Madame Bonaparte, +j'ai l'honneur de vous inviter a une soiree--" + +"What!" cried I, aloud; "_me!_--invite me to the Palace! There must be +some mistake here." And I turned again to the envelope, where my name +was legibly written, with my grade and the number of my new corps. There +could be no doubt of it; and yet was it still inexplicable. I that was +so perfectly alone,--a stranger, without a friend, save among the +humble ranks of the school,--how came such a distinction as this to +be conferred on me? I thought of Tascher; but then we had lived months +together, and such a thing had never been even alluded to. The more +I reflected on it, the greater became my difficulty; and in a maze of +confusion and embarrassment, I passed the day in preparation for the +evening,--for, as was customary at the period, the invitations for small +parties were issued on the very mornings' themselves. + +My first care was to look after the uniform of my new corps, in which I +knew I must appear. My last remaining bank note--the sole survivor of my +little stock of wealth--was before me; and I sat calculating with myself +the costly outlay of a hussar dress, the full uniform of which had not +till now entered into my computation. Never was my ingenuity more sorely +tried than in the endeavor to bring the outlay within the narrow limits +of my little purse; and when at length I would think that all had been +remembered, some small but costly item would rise up against me, and +disconcert all my calculations. + +At noon I set out to wait on my new colonel, whose quarters were in the +Place Vendome. The visit was a short and not over pleasant one; a crowd +of officers filled the rooms, among whom I edged my way with difficulty +towards the place where Colonel Marbois was standing. He was a short, +thick-set, vulgar-looking man, of about fifty; his mustache and whiskers +meeting above the lip, and his bushy, black beard below, gave him the +air of a pioneer, which his harsh Breton accent did not derogate from. + +"Ah, c'est vous!" said he, as my name was announced. "You 'll have to +learn in future, sir, that officers of your rank are not received at +the levies of their colonel. You hear me: report yourself to the _chef +d'escadron_, however, who will give you your orders. And mark me, sir, +let this be the last day you are seen in that uniform." + +A short and not very gracious nod concluded the audience; and I took +my leave not the less abashed that I could mark a kind of half smile on +most of the faces about me as I withdrew from the crowd,--scarcely in +the street, however, when my heart felt light and my step elastic. I was +a sous-lieutenant of hussars; and if I did my duty, what cared I for +the smiles and frowns of my colonel? and had not the General Bonaparte +himself told me that "no grade was too high for the brave man who did +so?" + +[Illustration: Monsieur Crillac's Salon 239] + +I can scarcely avoid a smile even yet as I call to mind the awe I felt +on entering the splendid shop of Monsieur Crillac,--the fashionable +tailor of those days, whose plateglass windows and showy costumes formed +the standing point for many a lounger around the corner of the Rue de +richelieu and the Boulevard. His saloon, as he somewhat ostentatiously +called it, was the rendezvous for the idlers of a fashionable world, who +spent their mornings canvassing the last gossip of the city and devising +new extravagances in dress. The morning papers, caricatures, prints +of fashions, patterns of waistcoats, and new devices for buttons, were +scattered over a table, round which, in every attitude of indolence and +ease, were stretched some dozen of the exquisites of the period, +engaged in that species of half-ennui, half-conversation, that forms a +considerable part of the existence of your young men of fashion of every +age and every country. Their frock-coats of light cloth, high-collared, +and covered with buttons; their _bottes a revers_ reaching only mid-leg, +and met there by a tight _pantalon collant_; their hair studiously +brushed back off their foreheads, and worn long, though not in queue +behind,--bespoke them as the most accurate types of the mode. + +The appearance of a youth in the simple uniform of the Polytechnique, in +such a place, seemed to excite universal astonishment. Such a phenomenon +apparently had never been witnessed before; and as they turned fully +round to stare at me, it was clear they never deemed that any mark +of rudeness could be felt by one so humble as I was. Monsieur Crillac +himself, who was sipping his glass of _eau sucree_, with one arm +leaning on the chimney-piece, never deigned to pay me other attention +than a half-smile, as, with a voice of most patronizing softness, he +lisped out,-- + +"What can we do for you here, Monsieur?" + +Apparently the answer to this question was a matter of interest to the +party, who suddenly ceased talking to listen. + +"I wish to order a uniform," said I, summoning up all my resolution not +to seem abashed. "This is a tailor's, if I don't mistake?" + +"Monsieur is quite correct," replied the imperturbable proprietor, +whose self-satisfied smile became still more insulting, "but perhaps not +exactly what you seek for. Gentlemen who wear your cloth seldom visit +us." + +"No, Crillac," interrupted one of the bystanders; "I never heard that +you advertised yourself as fashioner to the Polytechnique, or tailor in +ordinary to the corps of Pompiers." + +"You are insolent, sir!" said I, turning fiercely round upon the +speaker. The words were scarce spoken, when the party sprang to +their legs,--some endeavoring to restrain the temper of the young man +addressed; others, pressing around, called on me to apologize on the +spot for what I had said. + +"No, no; let us have his name,--his name," said three or four in a +breath. "De Beauvais will take the punishment into his own hands." + +"Be advised, young gentleman; unsay your words, and go your way," said +an elder one of the party; while he added in a whisper, "De Beauvais has +no equal in Paris with the small sword." + +"There is my address," said I, seizing a pen, and writing on a piece of +paper before me. + +"Ha!" said De Beauvais, as he threw his eye on the writing; "he has +got his grade, it seems: all the better that,--I half shrunk from the +ridicule of an affair with a cadet. So you are serious about this?" + +"Sir!" said I, all my efforts being barely enough to repress my rising +passion. + +"Well, well! enough about it. To-morrow morning; the Bois de Boulogne; +the rapier. You understand me, I suppose?" + +I nodded, and was about to leave the place, when I remembered that in my +confusion I had neither asked my antagonist's name nor rank. + +"And you, sir," said I, "may I have the honor to learn who you are?" + +"Pardieu, my young friend!" cried one of the others; "The information +will not strengthen your nerves. But if you will have it, he is the +Marquis de Beauvais, and tolerably well known in that little locality +where he expects to meet you to-morrow." + +"Till then, sir," replied I, touching my cap, as I turned into the +street; not, however, before a burst of laughter rang through the party +at a witticism of which I was the object, and the latter part of which +only could I catch. + +It was De Beauvais who spoke: "In which case, Crillac, another artist +must take his measure." + +The allusion could not be mistaken, and I confess I did not relish it +like the others. + +I should, I fear, have fallen very low in the estimate of my companions +and associates could the real state of my heart at that moment have been +laid open to them. It was, I freely own, one of great depression. But an +hour ago, and life was opening before me with many a bright and cheerful +hope; and now in an instant was my fortune clouded. Let me not be +misunderstood: among the rules of the Polytechnique, duelling was +strictly forbidden; and although numerous transgressions occurred, so +determined was the head of the Government to put down the practice, +that the individuals thus erring were either reduced in rank or +their promotion stopped for a considerable period, while the personal +displeasure of Greneral Bonaparte rarely failed to show itself with +reference to them. Now, it was clear to me that some unknown +friend, some secret well-wisher, had interested himself in my humble +fate,--that I owed my newly acquired rank to his kindness and +good offices. What, then, might I not be forfeiting by this unhappy +rencontre? Was it not more than likely that such an instance of +misconduct, the very day of my promotion, might determine the whole +tenor of my future career? What misrepresentation might not gain +currency about my conduct? These were sad reflections indeed, and every +moment but increased them. + +When I reached the college, I called on one of my friends; but not +finding him in his quarters, I wrote a few lines, begging he would come +over to me the moment he returned. This done, I sat down alone to think +over my adventure, and devise if I could some means to prevent its +publicity, or if not that, its being garbled and misstated. Hour after +hour rolled past--my wandering thoughts took no note of time--and the +deep-tolled bell of the Polytechnique struck eight before I was aware +the day was nearly over. Nine was the hour mentioned on my card of +invitation: it flashed suddenly on me. What was to be done? I had no +uniform save that of the ecole. Such a costume in such a place would, +I feared, be considered too ridiculous; yet to absent myself altogether +was impossible. Never was I in such a dilemma. All my endeavors to +rescue myself were fruitless; and at last, worn out with the conflict +of my doubts and fears, I stepped into the fiacre and set out for the +Palace. + + + +CHAPTER XXIV. THE PAVILLON DE FLORE. + +As my humble carriage slackened its pace to a walk on approaching the +Place Carousel, I for the first time perceived that the open space +around was thronged with equipages, moving slowly along in line towards +the gate of the Palace. A picket of dragoons was drawn up at the great +archway, and mounted gendarmes rode up and down to preserve order in the +crowd. Before me stretched the long facade of the Tuileries, now lighted +up in its entire extent; the rich hangings and costly furniture could be +seen even where I was. + +What a sinking sense of shame overwhelmed me as I thought of my +humble position amid that mighty concourse of all that was great and +illustrious in France! and how I shrunk within myself as I thought of +the poor scholar of the Polytechnique--for such my dress, proclaimed +me--mixing with the most distinguished diplomatists and generals of +Europe! The rebuke I had met with from my colonel in the morning +was still fresh in my recollection, and I dreaded something like a +repetition of it. + +"Oh, why had I not known that this was a grand reception?" was +the ever-rising thought of my mind. My card of invitation said a +soiree,--even that I might have dared: but here was a regular levee! +Already I was near enough to hear the names announced at the foot of the +grand staircase, where ambassadors, senators, ministers of state, and +officers of the highest rank succeeded each other in quick succession. +My carriage stood now next but two. I was near enough to see the last +arrival hand his card to the huissier in waiting, and hear his title +called out, "Le Ministre de la Guerre," when the person in the carriage +before me cried to his coachman, "To the left,--the Pa villon de +Flore;" and at the same moment the carriage turned from the line, and +drove rapidly towards a distant wing of the Palace. + +"Move up! move up!" shouted a dragoon. "Or are you for the soiree de +Madame?" + +"Yes, yes!" said I, hastily, as I heard his question. + +"Follow that carriage, then," said he, pointing with his sabre; and in +a moment we left the dense file, and followed the sounds of the retiring +wheels towards a dark corner of the Palace, where a single lamp over a +gate was the only light to guide us. + +Never shall I forget the sense of relief I felt as I lay back in the +carriage, and listened to the hum and din of the vast crowd growing each +moment fainter. "Thank Heaven," said I, "it's no levee!" Scarce half +a dozen equipages stood around the door as we drove up, and a single +dragoon was the guard of honor. + +"Whom shall I announce, sir?" said a huissier in black, whose manner was +as deferential as though my appearance bespoke an ambassador. I gave +my name, and followed him up a wide stair, where the deep velvet carpet +left no footfall audible. A large bronze candelabra, supporting a blaze +of waxlights, diffused a light like day on every side. The doors opened +before us as if by magic, and I found myself in an antechamber, where +the huissier, repeating my name to another in waiting, retired. Passing +through this, we entered a small drawing-room, in which sat two persons +engaged at a chess table, but who never looked up or noticed us as we +proceeded. At last the two wings of a wide folding door were thrown +open, and my name was announced in a low but audible voice. + +The salon into which I now entered was a large and splendidly-furnished +apartment, whose light, tempered by a species of abat-jour, gave a +kind of soft mysterious effect to everything about, and made even the +figures, as they sat in little groups, appear something almost +dramatic in their character. The conversation, too, was maintained in +a half-subdued tone,--a gentle murmur of voices, that, mingling with +the swell of music in another and distant apartment, and the plash of a +small fountain in a vase of goldfish in the room itself, made a strange +but most pleasing assemblage of sounds. Even in the momentary glance +which, on entering, I threw around me, I perceived that no studied +etiquette or courtly stateliness prevailed. The guests were disposed in +every attitude of lounging ease and careless abandon; and it was plain +to see that all or nearly all about were intimates of the place. + +As the door closed behind me, I stood half uncertain how to proceed. +Unhappily, I knew little of the habitudes of the great world, and every +step I took was a matter of difficulty. + +"I think you will find Madame Bonaparte in that room," said a +middle-aged and handsome man, whose mild voice and gentle smile did much +to set me at my ease. "But perhaps you don't know her." + +I muttered something I meant to be a negative, to which he immediately +replied,-- + +"Then let me present you. There is no ceremony here, and I shall be your +groom of the chambers. But here she is. Madame la Consulesse, this young +gentleman desires to make his respects." + +"Ha! our friend of the Polytechnique,--Monsieur Burke, is it not?" + +"Yes, Madame," said I, bowing low, and blushing deeply as I recognized, +in the splendidly-attired and beautiful person before me, the lady +who so kindly held the water to my lips the day of my accident at the +school. + +"Why, they told me you were promoted,--a hussar, I think." + +"Yes, Madame; but--but--" + +"You are too fond of old associations to part from them easily," said +she, laughing. "Come here, Stephanie, and see a miracle of manhood, that +could resist all the _clinquant_ of a hussar for the simple costume of +the E cole Militaire. Monsieur de Custine, this is my young friend of +whom I told you the other day." + +The gentleman, the same who had so kindly noticed me, bowed politely. + +"And now I must leave you together, for I see they are teasing poor +Madame Lefebvre." And with a smile she passed on into a small boudoir, +from which the sounds of merry laughter were proceeding. + +"You don't know any one here?" said Monsieur de Custine, as he motioned +me to a place beside him on a sofa. "Nor is there any very remarkable +person here to point out to you this evening. The First Consul's levee +absorbs all the celebrities; but by and by they will drop in to pay +their respects, and you 'll see them all. The handsome woman yonder with +her fan before her is Madame Beauharnais Lavalette, and the good-looking +young fellow in the staff uniform is Monsieur de Melcy, a stepson of +General Rapp." + +"And the large handsome man with the embroidered coat who passed through +so hurriedly?" + +"Yes, he is somebody,--that's Decres, the Ministre de la Marine; he is +gone to the levee. And there, next the door, with his eyes cast down and +his hands folded, that is the Abbe Maynal, one of the most 'spirituel' +men of the day. But I suppose you 'd much rather look at the beauties +of the Court than hear long stories about literature and politics. And +there is the gem of loveliness among them." + +I turned my eyes as he spoke, and close beside me, engaged in an eager +conversation with an old lady, stood a young and most beautiful girl. +Her long hair, through which, in the then mode, violets were wreathed +and interwoven, descended in rich masses of curl over a neck white as +marble. The corsage of her dress, which, in imitation of Greek costume, +was made low, displayed her well-rounded shoulders to the greatest +advantage; and though rather below than above the middle size, there +was a dignity and grace in the air of her figure, and a certain elegance +about her slightest movements, that was most fascinating. + +"And the 'Rose de Provence,'--how is she this evening?" said my +companion, rising suddenly, and presenting himself with a smile before +her. + +"Ah! you here. Monsieur de Custine? we thought you had been at Nancy." + +The accent, the tone of voice in which she said these few words, sent +a thrill through me; and as I looked again, I recognized the young lady +who stood at Madame Bonaparte's side on the memorable day of my fall. +Perhaps my astonishment made me start; for she turned round towards me, +and with a soft and most charming smile saluted me, + +"How they are laughing in that room!" said she, turning towards her +other companions. "Monsieur de Custine has deserted his dear friend this +evening, and left her to her unassisted defence." + +"_Ma foi_," replied he, "I got ill rewarded for my advocacy. It was only +last week, when I helped her out through one of her blunders in grammar +she called me a 'ganache' for my pains." + +"How very ungrateful! You that have been interpreter to her, her tutor +for the entire winter, without whom she could neither have obtained an +ice nor a glass of water!" + +"So is it; but you are all ungrateful. But I think I had better go and +pay my respects to her. Pray, come along with me." + +[Illustration: The Rose of Provence 247] + +I followed the party into a small room fitted up like a tent, where, +amid some half-dozen persons assembled around like an audience, sat a +large, florid, and good-looking person, her costume of scarlet velvet, +turban, and robe adding to the flushed and high-colored expression of +her features. She was talking in a loud voice, and with an accent of +such _patois_ as I should much more naturally have expected in a remote +faubourg than in the gilded _salons_ of the Tuileries. She had been +relating some anecdotes of military life, which came within her own +experience; and evidently amused her auditory as much by her manner as +the matter of her narrative. + +"Oui, parbleu," said she, drawing a long breath, "I was only the wife +of a sergeant in the 'Gardes Francaises' in those days; but they were +pleasant times, and the men one used to see were men indeed. They were +not as much laced in gold, nor had not so much finery on their jackets; +but they were bold, bronzed, manly fellows. You 'd not see such a poor, +miserable little fellow as De Custine there, in a whole demi-brigade." +When the laugh this speech caused, and in which her own merry voice +joined, subsided, she continued; "Where will you find, now, anything +like the Twenty-second of the line? Pioche was in that. Poor Pioche! I +tied up his jaw in Egypt when it was smashed by a bullet. I remember, +too, when the regiment came back, your husband, the General, reviewed +them in the court below, and poor Pioche was quite offended at not +being noticed. 'We were good friends,' quoth he, 'at Mount Tabor, but +he forgets all that now; that 's what comes of a rise in the world. "Le +Petit Caporal" was humble enough once, I warrant him; but now he can't +remember me.' Well, they were ordered to march past in line; and there +was Pioche, with his great dark eyes fixed on the General, and his big +black beard flowing down to his waist. But no, he never noticed him no +more than the tambour that beat the rappel. He could bear it no longer; +his head was twisting with impatience and chagrin; and he sprang out of +the lines, and seizing a brass gun,--a _piece de quatre_,--he mounted +it like a fusee to his shoulder, and marched past, calling out, 'Tu'--he +always _tu'toied_ him--' tu te rappelles maintenant, n'est-ce pas, +petit?'" + +No one enjoyed this little story more than Madame Bonaparte herself, who +laughed for several minutes after it was over. Story after story did she +pour forth in this way; most of them, however, had their merit in +some personality or other, which, while recognized by the rest, had no +attraction for me. There was in all she said the easy self-complacency +of a kind-hearted but vulgar woman, vain of her husband, proud of +his services, and perfectly indifferent to the habits and usages of a +society 'whose manners she gave herself no trouble to imitate, nor of +whose ridicule was she in the least afraid. + +I sauntered from the room alone, to wander through the other apartments, +where objects of art and curiosities of every kind were profusely +scattered. The marbles of Greece and Rome, the strange carvings of +Egypt, the rich vases of Sevres were there, amid cabinet pictures of the +rarest and most costly kind. Those delicious landscapes of the time of +Louis the Fifteenth, where every charm of nature and art was conveyed +upon the canvas: the cool arbors of Versailles, with their terraced +promenades and hissing fountains,--the subjects which Vanloo loved to +paint, and which that voluptuous Court loved to contemplate,--the long +alleys of shady green, where gay groups were strolling in the mellow +softness of an autumn sunset; those proud dames whose sweeping garments +brushed the velvet turf, and at whose sides, uncovered, walked the +chivalry of France,--how did they live again in the bright pencil of +Moucheron! and how did they carry one in fancy to the great days of the +Monarchy! Strange place for them, too,--the boudoir of her whose husband +had uprooted the ancient dynasty they commemorated, had erased from the +list of kings that proudest of all the royal stocks in Europe. Was it +the narrow-minded glory of the Usurper, that loved to look upon the +greatness he had humbled, that brought them there? or was it rather the +wellspring of that proud hope just rising in his heart, that he was to +be successor of those great kings whose history formed the annals of +Europe itself? + +As I wandered on, captivated in every sense by the charm of what to me +was a scene in fairyland, I came suddenly before a picture of Josephine, +surrounded by the ladies of her Court. It was by Isabey, and had all +the delicate beauty and transparent finish of that delightful painter. +Beside it was another portrait by the same artist; and I started back +in amazement at the resemblance. Never had color better caught the rich +tint of a Southern complexion; the liquid softness of eye, the full and +sparkling intelligence of ready wit and bright fancy, all beamed in that +lovely face. It needed not the golden letters in the frame which called +it "La Rose de Provence." I sat down before it unconsciously, delighted +that I might gaze on such beauty unconstrained. The white hand leaned on +a balustrade, and seemed almost as if stretching from the very canvas. I +could have knelt and kissed it. That was the very look she wore the +hour I saw her first,--it had never left my thoughts day or night. +The half-rising blush, the slightly averted head, the mingled look of +impatience and kindness,--all were there; and so entranced had I become, +that I feared each instant lest the vision would depart, and leave +me dark and desolate. The silence of the room was almost unbroken. A +distant murmur of voices, the tones of a harp, were all I heard; and I +sat, I know not how long, thus wrapped in ecstasy. + +A tall screen of Chinese fabric separated the part of the room I +occupied from the rest, and left me free to contemplate alone those +charms which each moment grew stronger upon me. An hour might +perhaps have thus elapsed, when suddenly I heard the sound of voices +approaching, but in a different direction from that of the salons. They +were raised above the ordinary tone of speaking, and one in particular +sounded in a strange accent of mingled passion and sarcasm which I shall +never forget. The door of the room was flung open before I could rise +from my chair; and two persons entered, neither of whom could I see from +my position behind the screen. + +"I ask you, again and again, Is the treaty of Amiens a treaty, or is it +not?" said a harsh, imperious tone I at once recognized as that of the +First Consol, while his voice actually trembled with anger. + +"My Lord Whitworth observed, if I mistake not," replied a measured and +soft accent, where a certain courtier-like unction prevailed, "that the +withdrawal of the British troops from Malta would follow, on our making +a similar step as regards our forces in Switzerland and Piedmont." + +"What right have they to make such a condition? They never complained of +the occupation of Switzerland at the time of the treaty. I will not hear +of such a stipulation. I tell you. Monsieur de Talleyrand, I 'd rather +see the English in the Faubourg St. Antoine than in the Island of Malta. +Why should we treat with England as a Continental power? Of India, if +she will; and as to Egypt, I told my lord that sooner or later it must +belong to France." + +"A frankness he has reason to be thankful for," observed M. de +Talleyrand, in a voice of sarcastic slyness. + +"Que voulez-vous?" replied Bonaparte, in a raised tone. "They want a +war, and they shall have it. What matter the cause?--such treaties of +peace as these had better be covered with black crape." Then dropping +his voice to a half-whisper, he added: "You must see him to-morrow; +explain how the attacks of the English press have irritated me; how +deeply wounded I must feel at such a license permitted under the very +eyes of a friendly government,--plots against my life encouraged, +assassination countenanced! Repeat, that Sebastiani's mission to Egypt +is merely commercial; that although prepared for war, our wish, the wish +of France, is peace; that the armaments in Holland are destined for the +Colonies. Show yourself disposed to treat, but not to make advances. +Reject the word ultimatum, if he employ it; the phrase implies a parley +between a superior and an inferior. This is no longer the France that +remembers an English commissary at Dunkirk. If he do not use the +word, then remark on its absence; say, these are not times for longer +anxiety,--that we must know, at last, to what we are to look; tell him +the Bourbons are not still on the throne here; let him feel with whom he +has to deal." + +"And if he demand his passport," gravely observed Talleyrand, "you can +be in the country for a day; at Plombiferes,--at St. Cloud." + +A low, subdued laugh followed these words, and they walked forward +towards the salons, still conversing, but in a whispered tone. + +A cold perspiration broke over my face and forehead, the drops fell +heavily down my cheek, as I sat an unwilling listener of this eventful +dialogue. That the fate of Europe was in the balance I knew full well; +and ardently as I longed for war, the dreadful picture that rose before +me damped much of my ardor; while a sense of my personal danger, if +discovered where I was, made me tremble from head to foot. It was, then, +with a sinking spirit, that I retraced my steps towards the salons, not +knowing if my absence had not been remarked and commented on. How little +was I versed in such society, where each came and went as it +pleased him,--where the most brilliant beauty, the most spiritual +conversationalist, left no gap by absence,--and where such as I were no +more noticed than the statues that held the waxlights! + +The salons were now crowded: ministers of state, ambassadors, general +officers in their splendid uniforms, filled the apartments, in which the +din of conversation and the sounds of laughter mingled. Yet, through the +air of gayety which reigned throughout,--the tone of light and flippant +smartness which prevailed,--I thought I could mark here and there +among some of the ministers an appearance of excitement and a look of +preoccupation little in unison with the easy intimacy which all seemed +to possess. I looked on every side for the First Consul himself, but +he was nowhere to be seen. Monsieur Talleyrand, however, remained: I +recognized him by his soft and measured accent, as he sat beside Madame +Bonaparte, and was relating some story in a low voice, at which she +seemed greatly amused. I could not help wondering at the lively and +animated character of features, beneath which were concealed the dark +secrets of state affairs, the tangled mysteries of political intrigue. +To look on him, you would have said, "There sits one whose easy life +flows on, unruffled by this world's chances." + +Not so the tall and swarthy man, whose dark mustache hangs far below his +chin, and who leans on the chimneypiece yonder; the large veins of his +forehead are swollen and knitted, and his deep voice seems to tremble +with strong emotion as he speaks. + +"Pray, Monsieur, who is that officer yonder?" said I, to a gentleman +beside me, and whose shoulder was half turned away. + +"That," said he, raising his glass, "that is Savary, the Minister of +Police. And, pardon, you are Mr. Burke,--is 't not so?" + +I started as he pronounced my name, and looking fixedly at him, +recognized the antagonist with whom I was to measure swords the next +morning in the Bois de Boulogne. I colored at the awkwardness of my +situation; but he, with more ease and self-possession, resumed,-- + +"Monsieur, this is, to me at least, a very fortunate meeting. I have +called twice, in the hope of seeing you this evening, and am overjoyed +now to find you here. I behaved very ill to you this morning; I feel +it now, I almost felt it at the time. If you will accept my apology for +what has occurred, I make it most freely. My character is in no need of +an affair to make me known as a man of courage; yours, there can be no +doubt of. May I hope you agree with me? I see you hesitate: perhaps +I anticipate the reason,--you do not know how far you can or ought to +receive such an amende?" I nodded, and he continued: "Well, I am rather +a practised person in these matters, and I can safely say you may." + +"Be it so, then," said I, taking the hand he proffered, and shaking it +warmly; "I am too young in the world to be my own guide, and I feel you +would not deceive me." + +A gratified look, and a renewed pressure of the hand, replied to my +speech. + +"One favor more,--you must n't refuse me. Let us sup together. My +_caleche_ is below; people are already taking their leave here; and, if +you have no particular reason for remaining--" + +"None; I know no one." + +"_Allons_, then," said he, gayly, taking my arm. And I soon found myself +descending the marble stairs beside the man I had expected to stand +opposed to in deadly conflict a few hours later. + + + +CHAPTER XXV. THE SUPPER AT "BEAUVILLIERS'S" + +"Where to?," asked the coachman, as we entered the _caleche_. + +"Beauvilliers," said the marquis, throwing himself back in his seat, and +remaining for some minutes silent. + +At last, as if suddenly recollecting that we were strangers to each +other, he said, "You know Beauvilliers, of course?" + +"No," replied I, with hesitation; "I really have not any acquaintance." + +"Parbleu," said he, laughing, "you ought at least to have his +friendship. He is the most celebrated restaurateur of this or any +other age; no one has carried the great art of the cuisine to a higher +perfection, and his cellars are unequalled in Paris. But you shall +pronounce for yourself." + +"Unhappily my judgment is of little value. Do you forget that the diet +roll of the Polytechnique is a bad school for gastronomy?" + +"But a glorious preparation for it," interrupted he. "How delightful +must be the enjoyment to the unsophisticated palate of those first +impressions which a _carpe a la Chambord_, a pheasant _truffe_, a dish +of _ortolans a la Provengale_, inspire! But here we are. Our party is +a small one,--an old prefet of the South, an abbe, a secretary of the +Russian embassy, and ourselves." + +This information he gave me as we mounted a narrow and winding stair, +dimly lighted by a single lamp. On reaching the landing, however, a +waiter stood in readiness to usher us into a small apartment decorated +with all the luxury of gold and plate glass, so profusely employed in +the interior of all cafes. The guests already mentioned were there, and +evidently awaiting our arrival with no small impatience. + +"As usual, Henri," said the old man, whom I guessed to be the +prefet,--"as usual, an hour behind your appointment." + +"Forgive him. Monsieur," said abbe, with a simper. "The fascinations of +a Court--" + +The grimace the old man made at this last word threw the whole party +into a roar of laughter, which only ceased by the marquis presenting me +in all form to each of his friends. + +"A table, a table, for Heaven's sake!" cried the prefet, ringing the +bell, and bustling about the room with a fidgety impatience. + +This was, however, unneeded; for in less than five minutes the supper +made its appearance, and we took our places at the board. + +The encomiums pronounced as each dish came and went satisfied me that +the feast was unexceptionable. As for myself, I ate away, only conscious +that I had never been so regaled before, and wondering within me how +far ingenuity had been exercised to produce the endless variety that +appeared at table. The wine, too, circulated freely; and Champagne, +Bordeaux, and Chambertin followed one another in succession, as the +different meats indicated the peculiar vintage. In the conversation +I could take no part,--it was entirely gastronomic; and no man ever +existed more ignorant of the seasons that promised well for truffles, or +the state of the atmosphere that threatened acidity to the vines. + +"Well, Henri," said the prefet, when the dessert made its appearance, +and the time for concluding the gourmand dissertation seemed +arrived,--"well! and what news from the Tuileries?" + +"Nothing--absolutely nothing," said he, carelessly,--"the same +people; the same topics; the eternal game of tric-trac with old Madame +d'Angerton; Denon tormenting some new victim with a mummy or a map of +Egypt; Madame Lefebvre relating camp anecdotes--" + +"Ah, she is delightful!" interrupted the prefet. + +"So thinks your chief, at least, Askoff," said De Beauvais, turning to +the Russian. "He sat on the sofa beside her for a good hour and a half." + +"Who sat near him on the other side?" slyly asked the other. + +"On the other side? I forget: no, I remember it was Monsieur de +Talleyrand and Madame Bonaparte. And, now I think of it, he must have +overheard what they said." + +"Is it true, then, that Bonaparte insulted the English ambassador at the +reception? Askoff heard it as he left the Rue St. Honore." + +"Perfectly true. The scene was a most outrageous one; and Lord Whitworth +retired, declaring to Talleyrand--at least, so they say--that without +an apology being made, he would abstain from any future visits at the +Tuileries." + +"But what is to come of it?--tell me that. What is to be the result?" + +"_Pardieu!_ I know not. A reconciliation to-morrow; an article in the +'Moniteur;' a dinner at the Court; and then another rupture, and another +article." + +"Or a war," said the Russian, looking cautiously about, to see if his +opinion met any advocacy. + +"What say you to that, mon ami?" said De Beauvais, turning to me. "Glad +enough, I suppose, you 'll be to win your epaulettes as colonel." + +"That, too, is on the cards," said the abbe, sipping his glass quietly. +"One can credit anything these times." + +"Even the Catholic religion, Abbe," said De Beauvais, laughing. + +"Or the Restoration," replied the abbe, with a half-malicious look at +the prefet, which seemed greatly to amuse the Russian. + +"Or the Restoration!" repeated the prefet, solemnly, after him,--"or the +Restoration!" And then filling his glass to the brim, he drained it to +the bottom. + +"It is a hussar corps you are appointed to?" said De Beauvais, hastily +turning towards me, as if anxious to engage my attention. + +"Yes; the huitieme," said I: "do you know them?" + +"No; I have few acquaintances in the army." + +"His father, sir," said the prefet, with a voice of considerable +emphasis, "was an old garde du corps in those times when the sword was +only worn by gentlemen." + +"So much the worse for the army," whispered the abbe, in an undertone, +that was sufficiently audible to the rest to cause an outbreak of +laughter. + +"And when," continued the prefet, undisturbed by the interruption, +"birth had its privileges." + +"Among the rest, that of being the first beheaded," murmured the +inexorable abbe. + +"Were truffles dear before the Revolution, prefet?" said De Beauvais, +with a half-impertinent air of simplicity. + +"No, sir; nothing was dear save the King's favor." + +"Which could also be had for paying for," quoth the abbe. + +"The 'Moniteur' of this evening, gentlemen," said the waiter, entering +with the paper, whose publication had been delayed some two hours beyond +the usual period. + +"Ah, let us see what we have here," said De Beauvais, opening the +journal and reading aloud: "'Greneral Espinasse is appointed to the +command of the fourth corps, stationed at Lille; and Major-General +Lannes to the fortress of Montreil, vacant by--' No matter,--here it is. +'Does the English government suppose that France is one of her Indian +possessions, without the means to declare her wrongs or the power to +avenge them? Can they believe that rights are not reciprocal, and that +the observance of one contracting party involves nothing on the part of +the other?'" + +"There, there, De Beauvais; don't worry us with that tiresome nonsense." + +"'Or,' continued the marquis, still reading aloud, 'do they presume to +say that we shall issue no commercial instructions to our agents +abroad lest English susceptibility should be wounded by any prospect of +increased advantages to our trade?'" + +"Our trade!" echoed the prefet, with a most contemptuous intonation on +the word. + +"Ah, for those good old times, when there was none!" said the abbe, with +such a semblance of honest sincerity as drew an approving smile from the +old man. + +"Hear this, Prefet," said De Beauvais: "'From the times of Colbert +to the present'--what think you? the allusion right royal, is it +not?--'From the times of Colbert our negotiations have been always +conducted in this manner.'" + +"Sir, I beseech you read no more of that intolerable nonsense." + +"And here," continued the marquis, "follows a special invocation of the +benediction of Heaven on the just efforts which France is called on to +make, to repress the insolent aggression of England. Abbe, this concerns +you." + +"Of course," said he, meekly. "I am quite prepared to pray for the party +in power; if Heaven but leaves them there, I must conclude they deserve +it." + +A doubtful look, as if he but half understood him, was the only reply +the old prefet made to this speech; at which the laughter of the others +could no longer be repressed, and burst forth most heartily. + +"But let us read on. Whose style is this, think you? 'France possessed +within her dominion every nation from the North Sea to the Adriatic. And +how did she employ her power?--in restoring to Batavia self-government; +in giving liberty to Switzerland; and in ceding Venice to Austria, while +the troops at the very gates of Vienna are halted and repass the Rhine +once more. Are these the evidences of ambition? Are these the signs of +that overweening lust of territory with which England dares to reproach +us? And if such passions prevailed, what was easier than to have +indulged them? Was not Italy our own? Were not Batavia, Switzerland, +Portugal, all ours? But no, peace was the desire of the nation; peace +at any cost. The colony of St. Domingo, that immense territory, was not +conceived a sacrifice too great to secure such a blessing.'" + +"Pardieu! De Beauvais, I can bear it no longer." + +"You must let me give you the reverse of the medal. Hear now what +England has done." + +"He writes well, at least for the taste of newspaper readers," said the +abbe, musingly; "but still he only understands the pen as he does the +sword,--it must be a weapon of attack." + +"Who is the writer, then?" said I, in a half-whisper. + +"Who!--can you doubt it?--Bonaparte himself. What other man in France +would venture to pronounce so authoritatively on the prospects and the +intentions of the nation?" + +"Or who," said the abbe, in his dry manner, "could speak with such +accuracy of the 'Illustrious and Magnanimous Chief 'that rules her +destinies?" + +"It is growing late," said the prefet, with the air of one who took no +pleasure in the conversation, "and I start for Rouen to-morrow morning." + +"Come, come, prefet! one bumper before we part," said Be Beauvais. +"Something has put you out of temper this evening; yet I think I know a +toast can restore you to good-humor again." + +The old man lifted his hand with a gesture of caution, while he suddenly +directed a look towards me. + +"No, no; don't be afraid," said De Beauvais, laughing; "I think you 'll +acquit me of any rashness. Fill up, then; and here let us drink to one +in the old palace of the Tuileries who at this moment can bring us back +in memory to the most glorious days of our country." + +"_Pardieu!_ that must be the First Consul, I suppose," whispered the +abbe, to the prefet, who dashed his glass with such violence on the +table as to smash it in a hundred pieces. + +"See what comes of impatience!" cried De Beauvais, laughing. "And +now you have not wherewithal to pledge my fair cousin the 'Rose of +Provence.'" + +"The Rose of Provence!" said each in turn; while, excited by the wine, +of which I had drunk freely, and carried away by the enthusiasm of the +moment, I re-echoed the words in such a tone as drew every eye upon me. + +"Ah! you know my cousin, then?" said De Beauvais,--looking at me with a +strange mixture of curiosity and astonishment. + +"No," said I; "I have seen her--I saw her this evening at the Palace." + +"Well, I must present you," said he, smiling good-day naturedly. + +Before I could mutter my acknowledgment, the party had risen, and were +taking leave of each other for the night. + +"I shall see you soon again, Burke," said De Beauvais, as he pressed my +hand warmly; "and now, adieu!" + +With that we parted; and I took my way back towards the Polytechnique, +my mind full of strange incidents of this the most eventful night in my +quiet and monotonous existence. + + + +CHAPTER XXVI. THE TWO VISITS. + +Amid all the stirring duties of the next day, amid all the excitement +of a new position, my mind recurred continually to the events of +the previous twenty-four hours: now dwelling on the soiree at the +Palace,--the unaccustomed splendor, the rank, the beauty I had +witnessed; now on that eventful moment I spent behind the screen; then +on my strange rencontre with my antagonist, and that still stranger +supper that followed it. + +It was not, indeed, without certain misgivings, which I could neither +account for nor dismiss from my mind, that I reflected on the character +and conversation of my new associates. The tone of levity in which +they dared to speak of him whose name was to me something bordering on +idolatry,--the liberty with which they ventured to canvass his measures +and his opinions, even to ridiculing them,--were so many puzzles to +my mind; and I half reproached myself for having tamely listened to +language which now, as I thought over it, seemed to demand my notice. +Totally ignorant of all political intrigue,--unconscious that any party +did or could exist in France save that of the First Consul himself,--I +could find no solution to the enigma, and at last began to think that I +had been exaggerating to myself the words I had heard, and permitting my +ignorance to weigh with me, where with more knowledge I should have seen +nothing reprehensible. And if the spirit in which they discussed the +acts of Bonaparte differed from what I had been accustomed to, might it +not rather proceed from my own want of acquaintance with the usages of +society, than any deficiency in attachment on their sides? The prefet +was, of course, as an officer of the Government, no mean judge of what +became him; the abbe, too, as a man of education and in holy orders, was +equally unlikely to express unbecoming opinions; the Russian scarcely +spoke at all; and as for De Beauvais, his careless and headlong +impetuosity made me feel easy on his score. And so I reasoned myself +into the conviction that it was only the ordinary bearing and everyday +habit of society to speak thus openly of one who in the narrower limits +of our little world was deemed something to worship. + +Shall I own what then I could scarcely have confessed to myself, that +the few words De Beauvais spoke at parting,--the avowed cousinship +with her they called "La Rose de Provence,"--did much to induce this +conviction on my mind? while his promise to present me was a pledge I +could not possibly believe consistent with any but right loyal thoughts +and honest doctrines. Still, I would have given anything for one friend +to advise with,--one faithful counsellor to aid me. But again was I +alone in the world; and save the short and not over-flattering reception +of my colonel, I had neither seen nor spoken to one of my new corps. + +That evening I joined my regiment, and took up my quarters in the +barracks, where already the rumor of important political events had +reached the officers, and they stood in groups discussing the chances of +a war, or listening to the "Moniteur," which was read out by one of +the party. What a strange thrill it sent through me to think that I was +privy to the deepest secret of that important step on which the peace of +Europe was resting,--that I had heard the very words as they fell from +the lips of him on whom the destiny of millions then depended! With what +a different interpretation to me came those passages in the Government +journal which breathed of peace, and spoke of painful sacrifices to +avoid a war, for which already his very soul was thirsting! and how to +my young heart did that passion for glory exalt him who could throw all +into the scale! The proud position he occupied,--the mighty chief of +a mighty nation; the adulation in which he daily lived; the gorgeous +splendor of a Court no country in Europe equalled,--all these (and more, +his future destiny) did lie set upon the cast for the great game his +manly spirit gloried in. + +In such thoughts as these I lived as in a world of my own. Companionship +I had none; my brother officers, with few exceptions, had risen from the +ranks, and were of that class which felt no pleasure save in the coarse +amusements of the barrack-room or the vulgar jests of the service. The +better classes lived studiously apart from these, and made no approaches +to intimacy with any newly joined officer with whose family and +connections they were unacquainted; and I, from my change of country, +stood thus alone, unacknowledged and unknown. At first this isolation +pained and grieved me, but gradually it became less irksome; and when +at length they who had at first avoided and shunned my intimacy showed +themselves disposed to know me, my pride, which before would have been +gratified by such an acknowledgment, was now wounded, and I coolly +declined their advances. + +Some weeks passed in this manner, during which I never saw or heard +of De Beauvais, and at length began to feel somewhat offended at the +suddenness with which he seemed to drop an intimacy begun at his own +desire; when one evening, as I had returned to my barrack-room after +parade, I heard a knock at my door. I rose and opened it, when, to my +surprise, I beheld De Beauvais before me. He was much thinner than when +I last saw him, and his dress and appearance all betokened far less of +care and attention. + +"Are these your quarters?" said he, entering and throwing a cautious +look about. "Are you alone here?" + +"Yes," said I; "perfectly." + +"You expect no one?" + +"Not any," said I, again, still more surprised at the agitation of his +manner, and the evident degree of anxiety he labored under. + +"Thank Heaven!" said he, drawing a deep sigh as he threw himself on my +little camp-bed, and covered his face with his hands. + +Seeing that something weighed heavily on him, I half feared to interfere +with the current of his thoughts, and merely drew my chair and sat down +beside him. + +"I say, Burke, mon cher, have you any wine? Let me have a glass or +two, for save some galette, and that not the best either, I have tasted +nothing these last twenty-four hours." + +I soon set before him the contents of my humble larder, and in a few +moments he rallied a good deal, and looking up with a smile said,-- + +"I think you have been cultivating your education as gourmand since I +saw you; that pasty is worthy our friend in the Palais Royal. Well, and +how have you been since we met?" + +"Let me rather ask yow," said I, "You are not looking so well as the +last time I saw you. Have you been ill?" + +"Ill! no, not ill. Yet I can't say so; for I have suffered a good deal, +too. No, my friend; I have had much to harass and distress me. I +have been travelling, too, long distances and weary ones,--met some +disappointments; and altogether the world has not gone so well with me +as I think it ought. And now of you,--what of yourself?" + +"Alas!" said I, "if you have met much to annoy, I have only lived a dull +life of daily monotony. If it has had little to distress, there is fully +as little to cheer; and I half suspect the fine illusions I used to +picture to myself of a soldier's career had very little connection with +reality." + +As De Beauvais seemed to listen with more attention than such a theme +would naturally call for, I gradually was drawn into a picture of my +barrack life, in which I dwelt at length on my own solitary position, +and the want of that companionship which formed the chief charm of my +schoolboy life. To all this he paid a marked attention,--now questioning +me on some unexplained point; now agreeing with me in what I said by a +word or a gesture. + +"And do you know, Burke," said he, interrupting me in my description +of those whose early coldness of manner had chilled my first +advances,--"and do you know," said he, impetuously, "who these +aristocrats are? The sons of honest _bourgeois_ of Paris. Their fathers +are worthy men of the Rue Vivienne or the Palais,--excellent people, +I 've no doubt, but very far better judges of point lace and pate, de +Perigord than disputed precedence and armorial quarterings. Far better +the others,--the humble soldiers of fortune, whose highest pride is +their own daring, their own undaunted heroism. Well, well," added he, +after a pause, "I must get you away from this; I can manage it in a day +or two. You shall be sent down to Versailles with a detachment." + +I could not help starting with surprise at these words, and through all +the pleasure they gave me my astonishment was still predominant. + +"I see you are amazed at what I say; but it is not so wonderful as you +think. My cousin has only to hint to Madame Bonaparte, who is at present +there, and the thing is done." + +I blushed deeply as I thought of the agency through which my wishes were +to meet accomplishment, and turned away to hide my embarrassment. + +"By the bye, I have not presented you to her yet. I 've had no +opportunity; but now I shall do so at once." + +"Pray, tell me your cousin's name," said I, anxious to say anything to +conceal my confusion. "I 've only heard her name called 'La Rose de +Provence.'" + +"Yes, that was a silly fancy of Madame la Consulesse, because Marie is +Provengale, But her name is De Rochfort,--at least her mother's name; +for, by another caprice, she was forbidden by Bonaparte to bear her +father's name. But this is rather a sore topic with me; let us +change it. How did you like my friends the other evening? The abb, is +agreeable, is he not?" + +"Yes," said I, hesitating somewhat; "but I am so unaccustomed to hear +General Bonaparte discussed so freely--" + +"That absurd Polytechnique!" interrupted De Beauvais. "How many a +fine fellow has it spoiled with its ridiculous notions and foolish +prejudices!" + +"Come, come," said I; "you must not call prejudices the attachment which +I, and all who wear an epaulette, feel in our glorious chief. There, +there! don't laugh, or you 'll provoke me; for if I, an alien, feel +this, how should you, who are a Frenchman born, sympathize with such a +proud career?" + +"If you talk of sympathy, Burke, let me ask you. Have you ever heard +speak of certain old families of these realms who have been driven +forth and expatriated to seek a home among strangers,--themselves the +descendants of the fairest chivalry of our land, the proud scions of +Saint Louis? and has your sympathy never strayed across sea to mingle +with their sorrows?" His voice trembled as he spoke, and a large tear +filled his eye and tracked its way along his cheek, as the last word +vibrated on his tongue; and then, as if suddenly remembering how far +he had been carried away by momentary impulse, he added, in an altered +voice, "But what have we to do with these things? Our road is yet to be +travelled by either of us,--yours a fair path enough, if it only fulfil +its early promise. The fortunate fellow that can win his grade while yet +a schoolboy--" + +"How came you to know--" + +"Oh! I know more than that, Burke; and, believe me, if my foolish +conduct the first day we met had led to anything disastrous, I should +have passed a life of sorrow for it ever after. But we shall have time +enough to talk over all these matters in the green alleys of Versailles, +where I hope to see you before a week be over. Great events may happen +ere long, too. Burke, you don't know it; but I can tell you, a war with +England is at this moment on the eve of declaration." + +"Perhaps," said I, somewhat piqued by the tone of superiority in which +he had spoken for some minutes, and anxious to assume for myself a +position which, I forgot, conferred no credit by the manner of its +attainment, "I know more of that than you are aware of." + +"Oh," replied he, carelessly, "the gossip of a mess is but little to be +relied on. The sabreurs will always tell you that the order to march is +given." + +"I don't mean that," said I, haughtily. "My information has a higher +source, the highest of all,--Greneral Bonaparte himself!" + +"How! what! Bonaparte himself!" + +"Listen to me," said I; and hurried on by a foolish vanity, and a +strange desire I cannot explain to make a confidant in what I felt to +be a secret too weighty for my own bosom, I told him all that I had +overheard when seated behind the screen in the salon at the Tuileries. + +"You heard this,--you, yourself?" cried he, as his eyes flashed, and he +grasped my arm with an eager grip. + +"Yes, with my own ears I heard it," said I, half trembling at the +disclosure I made, and ready to give all I possessed to recall my words. + +"My friend, my dear friend," said he, impetuously, "you must hesitate no +longer; be one of us." + +I started at the words, and growing pale with agitation as the very +thought of the importance of what I had related flashed across me, I +stammered out, "Take care what you propose to me, De Beauvais. I do not, +I cannot, fathom your meaning now; but if I thought that anything like +treachery to the First Consul--that anything traitorous to the great +cause of liberty for which he has fought and conquered--was meditated, I +'d go forthwith and tell him, word for word, all I have spoken now, even +though the confession might, as it would, humble me forever, and destroy +all my future hope of advancement." + +"And be well laughed at for your pains, foolish boy!" said he, throwing +himself back in his chair, and bursting out into a fit of laughter. "No, +no, Burke; you must not do anything half so ridiculous, or my pretty +cousin could never look at you without a smile ever after. And _a +propos_, of that, when shall I present you? That splendid jacket, and +all that finery of dolman there, will make sad work of her poor heart." + +I blushed deeply at the silly impetuosity I had betrayed myself into, +and muttered some equally silly apology for it. Still, young as I was, I +could perceive that my words made no common impression on him, and would +have given my best blood to recall them. + +"Do you know, De Beauvais," said I, affecting as much of coolness as I +could, "do you know, I half regret having told you this. The manner +in which I heard this conversation--though, as you will see, quite +involuntary on my part--should have prevented my ever having repeated +it; and now the only reparation I can make is to wait on my colonel, +explain the whole circumstance, and ask his advice." + +"In plain words, to make public what at present is only confided to a +friend. Well, you think the phrase too strong for one you have seen but +twice,--the first time not exactly on terms such as warrant the phrase. +But come, if you can't trust me, I 'll see if I can't trust you." + +He drew at these words a roll of paper from his pocket, and was +proceeding to open it on the table when a violent knocking was heard at +my door. + +"What 's that? who can it be?" said he, starting up, and growing pale as +death. + +The look of terror in his face appalled me; and I stood, not able to +reply, or even move towards the door, when the knocking was repeated +much louder, and I heard my name called out. Pointing to a closet which +led from the room, and without speaking a word, I walked forward and +unlocked the door. A tall man, wrapped in a blue cloak, and wearing +a cocked hat covered with oilskin, stood before me, accompanied by a +sergeant of my troop. + +"This is the sous-lieutenant, sir," said the sergeant, touching his cap. + +"That will do," replied the other; "you may leave us now." Then turning +to me he added, "May I have the favor of a few minutes' conversation +with you, Mr. Burke? I am Monsieur Gisquet, chef de police of the +department." + +A trembling ran through me at the words, and I stammered out something +scarce audible in reply. Monsieur Gisquet followed me as I led the +way into my room, which already had been deserted by De Beauvais; and +casting a quick glance around, he leisurely took off his hat and cloak +and drew a chair towards the table. + +"Are we alone, sir?" said he, in a measured tone of voice, while his eye +fell with a peculiar meaning on a chair which stood opposite to mine, on +the opposite side of the stove. + +"I had a friend with me when you knocked," I muttered, in a broken and +uncertain accent; "but perhaps--" + +Before I could finish my sentence the door of the cabinet slowly +opened, and De Beauvais appeared, but so metamorphosed I could scarcely +recognize him; for, short as the interval was, he had put on my old +uniform of the Polytechnique, which, from our similarity in height, +fitted him perfectly. + +"All safe, Tom," said he, stealing out, with an easy smile on his +countenance. "Par Saint Denis! I thought it was old Legrange himself +come to look for me. Ah, Monsieur, how d' ye do? You have given me a +rare fright tonight. I came to spend the day with my friend here, and, +as ill luck would have it, have outstayed my time. The _ecole_ closes at +nine, so that I 'm in for a week's arrest at least." + +"A cool confession this, sir, to a minister of police!" said Gisquet, +sternly, while his dark eyes surveyed the speaker from head to foot. + +"Not when that minister is called Gisquet," said he, readily, and bowing +courteously as he spoke. + +"You know me, then?" said the other, still peering at him with a sharp +look. + +"Only from your likeness to a little boy in my company," said he, "Henri +Gisquet. A fine little fellow he is, and one of the cleverest in the +school." + +"You are right, sir; he is my son," said the minister, as a pleased +smile passed over his swarthy features. "Come, I think I must get you +safe through your dilemma. Take this; the officer of the night will be +satisfied with the explanation, and Monsieur Legrange will not hear of +it." + +So saying, he seized a pen, and writing a few lines rapidly on a piece +of paper, he folded it note fashion, and handed it to De Beauvais. + +"A handsome ring, sir!" said he, suddenly, and holding the fingers +within his own; "a very costly one, too." + +"Yes, sir," said De Beauvais, blushing scarlet. "A cousin of mine--" + +"Ha, ha! an amourette, too. Well, well, young gentleman! no need of +further confessions; lose no more time here. Bonsoir." + +"Adieu, Burke," said De Beauvais, shaking my hand with a peculiar +pressure. + +"Adieu, Monsieur Gisquet. This order will pass me through the barrack, +won't it?" + +"Yes; to be sure. You need fear no interference with my people either, +go where you will this evening." + +"Thanks, sir, once more," said he, and departed. + +"Now for our business, Mr. Burke," said the minister, opening his packet +of papers before him, and commencing to con over its contents. "I shall +ask you a few questions, to which you will please to reply with all the +accuracy you can command, remembering that you are liable to be called +on to verify any statement hereafter on oath. With whom did you speak on +the evening of the 2d of May, at the soiree of Madame Bonaparte?" + +"I scarcely remember if I spoke to any one save Madame herself. A +strange gentleman, whose name I forget, presented me; one or two others, +also unknown to me, may have spoken a passing word or so; and when +coming away I met Monsieur de Beauvais." + +"Monsieur de Beauvais! who is he?" + +"_Ma foi_ I can't tell you. I saw him the day before for the first time; +we renewed our acquaintance, and we supped together." + +"At Beauvilliers's?" said he, interrupting. + +"Pardieu, Monsieur!" said I, somewhat stung at the espionage on my +movements; "you seem to know everything so well already, it is quite +needless to interrogate me any further." + +"Perhaps not," replied he, coolly. "I wish to have the names of the +party you supped with." + +"Well, there was one who was called the prefet, a large, full, elderly +man." + +"Yes, yes, I know him," interrupted Gisquet again. "And the others?" + +"There was an abbe, and a secretary of the Russian mission." + +"No other?" said he, in a tone of disappointment. + +"No one, save De Beauvais and myself; we were but five in all." + +"Did no one come in daring the evening? + +"No, not any." + +"Nor did any leave the party?" + +"No; we separated at the same moment." + +"Who accompanied you to the barracks?" + +"No one; I returned alone." + +"And this Monsieur de Beauvais,--you can't tell anything of him? What +age is he? what height?" + +"About my own," said I, blushing deeply at the thought of the events +of a few moments back. "He may be somewhat older, but he looks not much +more than twenty-one or two." + +"Have you mentioned any of these circumstances to any of your brother +officers or to your colonel?" + +"No, sir, never." + +"Very right, sir. These are times in which discretion is of no common +importance. I have only to recommend similar circumspection in future. +It is probable that some of these gentlemen may visit you and write +to you; they may invite you to sup or to dine. If so, sir, accept the +invitation. Be cautious, however, not to speak of this interview to any +one. Remember, sir, I am the messenger of one who never forgave a breach +of trust, but who also never fails to reward loyalty and attachment. If +you be but prudent, Mr. Burke, your fortune is certain." + +With these words. Monsieur Gisquet threw his cloak over his shoulder, +and raising his hat, he bowed formally to me and withdrew; leaving me to +meditations which, I need not say, were none of the happiest. + +If my fears were excited by the thought of the acquaintances I had so +rashly formed, so also was my pride insulted by the system of watching +to which my movements had been subjected; and deeper still, by the +insulting nature of the proposal the minister of police had not scrupled +to make to me,--on reflecting over which, only, did I perceive how base +and dishonorable it was. + +"What!" asked I of myself, "is it a spy--is it a false underhand +betrayer of the men into whose society I have been admitted on terms of +friendly intercourse--he would make of me? What saw he in me or in my +actions to dare so far? Was not the very cloth I wear enough to guard me +against such an insult?" Then came the maddening reflection, "Why had +I not thought of this sooner? Why had I not rejected his proposal with +scorn, and told him that I was not of the stuff he looked for?" + +But what is it that he wished to learn? and who were these men, and what +were their designs? These were questions' that flashed across me; and I +trembled to think how deeply implicated I might become at any moment in +plans of which I knew nothing, merely from the imprudence with which I +had made their acquaintance. The escape of De Beauvais, if discovered, +would also inevitably involve me; and thus did I seem hurried along by a +train of incidents without will or concurrence, each step but increasing +the darkness around me. + +That Gisquet knew most of the party was clear; De Beauvais alone seemed +personally unknown to him. What, then, did he want of me? Alas! it was a +tangled web I could make nothing of: and all I could resolve on was, to +avoid in future all renewal of intimacy with De Beauvais; to observe the +greatest circumspection with regard to all new acquaintance; and since +the police thought it worth their while to set spies upon my track, to +limit any excursions, for some time at least, to the routine of my duty +and the bounds of the barrack-yard. These were wise resolutions, and +if somewhat late in coming, yet not without their comfort; above all, +because, in my heart, I felt no misgivings of affection, no lack of +loyalty, to him who was still my idol. + +"Well, well," thought I, "something may come of this,--perhaps a war. If +so, happy shall I be to leave Paris and all its intrigues behind me, +and seek distinction in a more congenial sphere, and under other banners +than a police minister would afford me." + +With thoughts like these I fell asleep, to dream over all the events +of the preceding day, and wake the next morning with an aching head and +confused brain,--my only clear impression being that some danger hung +over me; but from what quarter, and how or in what way it was to be met +or averted, I could not guess. + +The whole day I felt a feverish dread lest De Beauvais should appear. +Something whispered me that my difficulties were to come of my +acquaintance with him; and I studiously passed my time among my brother +officers, knowing that, so long as I remained among them, he was +not likely to visit me. And when evening came, I gladly accepted an +invitation to a barrack-room supper, which, but the night before, I +should have declined without hesitation. + +This compliance on my part seemed well taken by my companions; and in +their frank and cordial reception of me, I felt a degree of reproach +to myself for my having hitherto lived estranged from them. We had just +taken our places at table, when the door was flung wide open, and a +young captain of the regiment rushed in, waving a paper over his head, +as he called out,-- + +"Good news, mes braves, glorious news for you! Listen to this: The +English ambassador has demanded his passports, and left Paris. Expresses +are sent off to the fourth corps to move towards the coast; twelve +regiments have received orders to march; so that before my Lord leaves +Calais, he may witness a review of the army. '" + +"Is this true?" + +"It is all certain. Read it; here 's the 'Moniteur,' with the official +announcement." + +In an instant a dozen heads were bent over the paper, each eager to scan +the paragraph so long and ardently desired. + +"Come, Burke, I hope you have not forgotten your English," said the +major. "We shall want you soon to interpret for us in London; if, +pardieu, we can ever find our way through the fogs of that ill-starred +island." + +I hung my head without speaking; the miserable isolation of him who has +no country is a sad and sickening sense of want no momentary enthusiasm, +no impulse of high daring can make up for. Happily for me, all were +too deeply interested in the important news to remark me, or pay any +attention to my feelings. + + + +CHAPTER XXVII. THE MARCH TO VERSAILLES + +They who remember the excited state of England on the rupture of the +peace of Amiens; the spirit of military ardor that animated every class +and condition of life; the national hatred, carried to the highest pitch +by the instigations and attack of a violent press,--can yet form but an +imperfect notion of the mad enthusiasm that prevailed in France on the +same occasion. The very fact that there was no determinate and precise +cause of quarrel added to the exasperation on both sides. It was less +like the warfare of two great nations, than the personal animosity of +two high-spirited and passionate individuals, who, having interchanged +words of insult, resolve on the sword as the only arbiter between them. +All that the long rivalry of centuries, national dislike, jealousy in +every form, and ridicule in a thousand shapes could suggest, were added +to the already existing hate, and gave to the coming contest a character +of blackest venom. + +In England, the tyrannic rule of Bonaparte gave deep offence to all true +lovers of liberty, and gave rise to fears of what the condition of their +own country would become should he continue to increase his power by +conquest. In France, the rapid rise to honor and wealth the career of +arms so singularly favored, made partisans of war in every quarter of +the kingdom. The peaceful arts were but mean pursuits compared with +that royal road to rank and riches,--the field of battle; and their +self-interest lent its share in forming the spirit of hostility, which +wanted no element of hatred to make it perfect. + +Paris,--where so lately nothing was heard save the roll of splendid +equipages, the din of that gay world whose business is amusement; where +amid gilded salons the voluptuous habits of the Consulate mixed with +the less courtly but scarce less costly display of military +splendor,--became now like a vast camp. Regiments poured in daily, +to resume their march the next morning; the dull rumble of ammunition +wagons and caissons, the warlike clank of mounted cavalry, awoke the +citizens at daybreak; the pickets of hussar corps and the dusty and +travel-stained infantry soldiers filled the streets at nightfall. Yet +through all, the mad gayety of this excited nation prevailed. The cafes +were Crowded with eager and delighted faces; the tables spread in the +open air were occupied by groups whose merry voices and ready laughter +attested that war was the pastime of the people, and the very note of +preparation a tocsin of joy and festivity. The walls were placarded +with inflammatory addresses to the patriotism and spirit of France. +The papers teemed with artful and cleverly written explanations of the +rupture with England; in which every complaint against that country was +magnified, and every argument put forward to prove the peaceful +desires of that nation whose present enthusiasm for war was an unhappy +commentary on the assertion. The good faith of France was extolled; the +moderation of the First Consul dwelt upon; and the treachery of that +"perfidious Albion, that respected not the faith of treaties," was +displayed in such irrefragable clearness, that the humblest citizen +thought the cause his own, and felt the coming contest the ordeal of his +own honor. + +All the souvenirs of the former wars were invoked to give spirit to the +approaching struggle, and they were sufficiently numerous to let no week +pass over without at least one eventful victory to commemorate. Now it +was Kellerman's cuirassiers, whose laurel-wreathed helmets reminded +the passing stranger that on that day eight years they tore through the +dense ranks of the Austrians, and sabred the gunners at the very guns. +Now it was the Polish regiments, the steel-clad lancers, who paraded +before the Tuileries in memory of the proud day they marched through +Montebello with that awful sentence on their banners, "Venice exists +no longer!" Here were corps of infantry, intermingled with dragoons, +pledging each other as they passed along; while the names of +Castiglione, Bassano, and Roveredo rang througl the motley crowd. The +very children, "les enfants de troupe," seemed filled with the warlike +enthusiasm of their fathers; and each battalion, as it moved past, +stepped to the encouraging shouts of thousands who gazed with envious +admiration on the heroes of their country. + +Never did the pent-up feelings of a nation find vent in such a universal +torrent of warlike fervor as now filled the land. The clank of the +sabre was the music that charmed the popular ear; and the "coquette +vivandiere," as she tripped along the gravel avenued of the Tuileries +gardens, was as much an object of admiration as the most splendidly +attired beauty of the Faubourg St. Germain. The whole tone of society +assumed the feature of the political emergency. The theatres only +represented such pieces as bore upon the ancient renown of the nation +in arms,--its victories and conquests; the artists painted no other +subjects; and the literature of the period appealed to few other +sympathies than are found in the rude manners of the guardroom or around +the watchfires of the bivouac. Pegault Lebrun was the popular author of +the day; and his works are even now no mean indication of the current +tastes and opinions of the period. + +The predictions too hastily made by the English journals, that the +influence of Bonaparte in France could not survive the rupture of that +peace which had excited so much enthusiasm, were met by a burst of +national unanimity that soon dispelled the delusive hope. Never was +there a greater error than to suppose that any prospect of commercial +prosperity, any vista of wealth and riches, could compensate to +Frenchmen for the intoxication of that glory in which they lived as +in an orgy. Too many banners floated from the deep aisles of the +Invalides--too many cannon, the spoils of the Italian and German wars, +bristled on the rampart--not to recall the memory of those fete days +when a bulletin threw the entire city into a frenzy of joy. The Louvre +and the Luxembourg, too, were filled with the treasures of conquered +States; and these are not the guarantees of a long peace. + +Such! in brief, was the state of Paris when the declaration of war by +Great Britain once more called the nation to arms. Every regiment was at +once ordered to make up its full complement to the war standard, and the +furnaces were employed in forging shot and casting cannon throughout the +length and breadth of France. The cavalry corps were stationed about +St. Omer and Compiegne, where a rich corn country supplied forage in +abundance. Among the rest, the order came for the huitieme to march: one +squadron only was to remain behind, chosen to execute _le service +des depeches_ from St. Cloud and Versailles to Paris; and to this I +belonged. + +From the evening of Monsieur Gisquet's visit I had never seen or heard +of De Beauvais; and at last the hope grew in me that we were to meet no +more, when suddenly the thought flashed across my mind: this is what he +spoke of,--he promised I should be sent to Versailles! Can it be chance? +or is this his doing? These were difficult questions to solve, and gave +me far more embarrassment than pleasure. My fear that my acquaintance +with him was in the end to involve me in some calamity, was a kind of +superstition which I could not combat; and I resolved at once to see +my colonel,--with whom, happily, I was now on the best of terms,--and +endeavor to exchange with some other officer, any being willing to +accept a post so much more agreeable than a mere country quarter, I +found the old man busied in the preparations for departure; he was +marking out the days of march to the adjutant as I entered. + +"Well, Burke," said he, "you are the fortunate fellow this time; your +troop remains behind." + +"It is on that account, sir, I am come. You'll think my request a +strange one, but if it be not against rule, would you permit me to +exchange my destination with another officer?" + +"What,--eh? the boy 's mad! Why, it 's to Versailles you are going." + +"I know, sir; but somehow I'd rather remain with the regiment." + +"This is very strange,--I don't understand it," said he, leisurely; +"come here." With that he drew me into the recess of a window where we +could talk unheard by others. "Burke," continued he, "I'm not the man +to question my young fellows about secrets which they 'd rather keep for +themselves; but there is something here more than common. Do you know +that in the order it was your squadron was specially marked out--all +the officers' names were mentioned, and yours particularly--for +Versailles?" + +A deadly paleness and a cold chill spread over my face. I tried to say +some commonplace, but I could not utter more than the words, "I feared +it." Happily for me he did not hear them, but taking my hand kindly, +said,-- + +"I see it all: some youthful folly or other would make you better +pleased to leave Paris just now. Never mind,--stormy times are coming; +you 'll have enough on your hands presently. And let me advise you to +make the most of your time at Versailles; for if I 'm not mistaken, you +'ll see much more of camps than courts for some time to come." + +The rest of that day left me but little time for reflection; but in such +short intervals as I could snatch from duty, one thought ever rose to +my mind: Can this be De Beauvais's doing? has he had any share, in my +present destination,--and with what object? "Well," said I to myself at +last, "these are but foolish fears after all, and may be causeless ones. +If I but follow the straight path of my duty, what need I care if the +whole world intrigued and plotted around me? And after all, was it not +most likely that we should never see each other again?" + +The day was just breaking when we left Paris; the bright beams of a May +morning's sun were flickering and playing in the rippling river that ran +cold and gray beneath. The tall towers of the Tuileries threw their +long shadows across the Place Carrousel, where a dragoon regiment was +encamped. They were already astir, and some of the men were standing +around the fountains with their horses, and others were looking +after the saddles and accoutrements in preparation for the march; a +half-expiring fire here and there marked where some little party had +been sitting together, while the jars and flasks about bespoke a merry +evening. A trumpeter sat, statue-like, on his white horse his trumpet +resting on his knee,--surveying the whole scene, and as if deferring to +the last the wakeful summons that should rouse some of his yet sleeping +comrades: I could see thus much as we passed. Our road led along the +quay towards the Place Louis the Fifteenth, where an infantry battalion +with four guns was picketed. The men were breakfasting and preparing for +the route. They were part of the grande armee under orders for Boulogne. + +We soon traversed the Champs Elysees, and entered the open country. For +some miles it was merely a succession of large cornfields, and here +and there a small vineyard, that met the eye on either side: but as we +proceeded farther, we were girt in by rich orchards in full blossom, +the whole air loaded with perfume; neat cottages peeped from the woody +enclosures, the trellised walls covered with honeysuckles and wild +roses; the surface, too, was undulating, and waved in every imaginable +direction, offering every variety of hill and valley, precipice and +plain, in even the smallest space. As yet no peasant was stirring, no +smoke curled from a single chimney, and all, save the song of the lark, +was silent. It was a peaceful scene, and a strong contrast to that we +left behind us, and whatever ambitious yearnings filled my heart as I +looked upon the armed ranks of the mailed cuirassiers, I felt a deeper +sense of happiness as I strayed along those green alleys through which +the sun came slanting sparingly, and where the leaves only stirred as +their winged tenants moved among them. + +We travelled for some hours through the dark paths of the Bois de +Boulogne, and again emerged in a country wild and verdant as before. And +thus passed our day; till the setting sun rested on the tall roof of the +great Palace, and lit up every window in golden splendor as we entered +the town of Versailles. + +I could scarce avoid halting as I rode up the wide terrace of the +Palace. Never had I felt before the overcoming sense of grandeur which +architecture can bestow. The great facade in its chaste and simple +beauty, stretched away to a distance, where dark lime-trees closed the +background, their tall summits only peeping above the lofty terrace in +which the chateau stands. On that terrace, too, were walking a crowd of +persons of the Court, the full-dress costume showing that they had but +left the salons to enjoy the cool and refreshing air of the evening. +I saw some turn and look after our travel-stained and dusty party, and +confess I felt a half sense of shame at our wayworn appearance. + +I had not long to suffer such mortification, for ere we marched +more than a few minutes, we were joined by a Marechal de Logis, who +accompanied us to our quarters,--one of the buildings adjoining the +Palace,--where we found everything in readiness for our arrival. And +there! to my surprise, discovered that a most sumptuous supper awaited +me,--a politeness I was utterly a stranger to, not being over-cognizant +of the etiquette and privilege which await the officer on guard at a +Royal Palace. + + + +CHAPTER XXVIII. THE PARK OF VERSAILLES + +The instructions delivered to me soon after my arrival in Versailles +convinced me that the transmission of despatches was not the service we +were called on to discharge, but merely a pretence to blind others as to +our presence; the real duty being the establishment of a cordon +around the Royal Palace, permitting no one to enter or pass within the +precincts who was not provided with a regular leave, and empowering us +to detain all suspected individuals, and forward them for examination to +St. Cloud. + +To avoid all suspicion as to the true object, the men were ordered to +pass from place to place as if with despatches, many being stationed in +different parts of the park; my duty requiring me to be continually on +the alert to visit these pickets, and make a daily report to the Prefet +de Police at Paris. + +What the nature of the suspicion, or from what quarter Monsieur Savary +anticipated danger, I could not even guess; and though I well knew that +his sources of information were unquestionable, I began at last to think +that the whole was merely some plot devised by the police themselves, +to display uncommon vigilance and enhance their own importance. This +conviction grew stronger as day by day I remarked that no person more +than ordinary had even approached near the town of Versailles itself, +while the absurd exactitude of inquiry as to every minute thing that +occurred went on just as before. + +While my life passed on in this monotonous fashion, the little Court of +Madame Bonaparte seemed to enjoy all its accustomed pleasure. The +actors of the Francais came down expressly from Paris, and gave nightly +representation in the Palace; _fourgons_ continued to arrive from the +capital with all the luxuries for the table; new guests poured in day +after day; and the lighted-up saloons, and the sounds of music that +filled the Court, told each evening, that whatever fear prevailed +without, the minds of those within the Palace, had little to cause +depression. + +It was not without a feeling of wounded pride I saw myself omitted in +all the invitations; for although my rank was not sufficient of itself +to lead me to expect such an attention, my position as the officer on +guard would have fully warranted the politeness, had I not even already +received marks of civility while in Paris. From time to time, as I +passed through the park, I came upon some of the Court party; and it was +with a sense of painful humiliation I observed that Madame Bonaparte +had completely forgotten me, while from one whose indifference was +more galling still, I did not even obtain a look in passing. How had +I forfeited the esteem which voluntarily they had bestowed on +me,--the good opinion which had raised me from an humble cadet of the +Polytechnique to a commission in one of the first corps in the service? +Under what evil influence was I placed? + +Such were the questions that forced themselves on me night and day; that +haunted my path as I walked, and my dreams at night. As the impression +grew on me, I imagined that every one I met regarded me with a look of +distance and distrust,--that each saw in me one who had forfeited his +fair name by some low or unworthy action,--till at last I actually +avoided the walks where I was likely to encounter the visitors of the +Palace, and shunned the very approach of a stranger, like a guilty +thing. All the brilliant prospects of my soldier's life, that a few days +back shone out before me, were now changed into a dreamy despondence. +The service I was employed on--so different from what I deemed became +a chivalrous career--was repugnant to all my feelings; and when the +time for visiting my pickets came, I shrank with shame from a duty that +suited rather the spy of the police than the officer of hussars. + +Every day my depression increased. My isolation, doubly painful from the +gayety and life around me, seemed to mark me out as one unfit to know, +and lessened me in my own esteem; and as I walked the long, dark alleys +of the park, a weighty load upon my heart, I envied the meanest soldier +of my troop, and would willingly have changed his fortune with my own. +It was a relief to me even when night came--the shutters of my little +room closed, my lamp lighted--to think that there at least I was free +from the dark glances and sidelong looks of all I met; that I was alone +with my own sorrow,--no contemptuous eye to pierce my sad heart, and +see in my gloom a self-convicted criminal. Had I one, but one friend, +to advise with! to pour out all my sufferings before him, and say, "Tell +me, how shall I act? Am I to go on enduring? or where shall I, where can +I, vindicate my fame?" + +With such sad thoughts for company, I sat one evening alone,--my mind +now recurring to the early scenes of my childhood, and to that harsh +teaching which even in infancy had marked me for suffering; now +straying onward to a vision of the future I used to paint so brightly to +myself,--when a gentle tap at the door aroused me. + +"Come in," said I, carelessly, supposing it a sergeant of my troop. + +The door slowly opened, and a figure wrapped in a loose horseman's cloak +entered. + +"Ah! Lieutenant, don't you know me?" said a voice, whose peculiar tone +struck me as well known. "The Abbe d'Ervan, at your service." + +"Indeed!" said I, starting with surprise, not less at the unexpected +visitor himself than at the manner of his appearance. "Why, Abbe, you +must have passed the sentinel." + +"And so I did, my dear boy," replied he, as he folded up his cloak +leisurely on one chair, and seated himself on another opposite me. +"Nothing wonderful in that, I suppose?" + +"But the countersign; they surely asked you for it?" + +"To be sure they did, and I gave it,--'Vincennes;' au easy word enough. +But come, come! you are not going to play the police with me. I have +taken you in, on my way back to St. Cloud, where I am stopping just now, +to pay you a little visit and talk over the news." + +"Pardon me once more, my dear abbe; but a young soldier may seem +over-punctilious. Have you the privilege to pass through the royal park +after nightfall?" + +"I think I have shown you that already, my most rigid inquisitor, +otherwise I should not have known the password. Give me your report for +to-morrow. Ah, here it is! What's the hour now?--a quarter to eleven. +This will save you some trouble." + +So saying, he took a pen and wrote in a large free hand, "The Abbe +d'Ervan, from the chateau d'Ancre to St. Cloud." + +"Monsieur Savary will ask you no further questions, trust me. And now, +if you have got over all your fears and disquietudes, may I take the +liberty to remind you that the chateau is ten leagues off; that I +dined at three, and have eaten nothing since. Abbes you are aware, are +privileged gastronomists, and the family of D'Ervan have a most unhappy +addiction to good things. A poulet, however, and a flask of Chablis, +will do for the present; for I long to talk with you." + +While I made my humble preparations to entertain him, he rambled on +in his usual free and pleasant manner,--that mixture of smartness +and carelessness which seemed equally diffused through all he said, +imparting a sufficiency to awake, without containing anything to engage +too deeply, the listener's attention. + +"Come, come, Lieutenant, make no apology for the fare: the pate is +excellent; and as for the Burgundy, it is easy enough to see your +Chambertin comes from the Consul's cellar. And so you tell me that you +find this place dull, which I own I'm surprised at. These little soirees +are usually amusing; but perhaps at your age the dazzling gayety of the +ballroom is more attractive." + +"In truth, Abbe, the distinction would be a matter of some difficulty to +me, I know so little of either. And indeed, Madame la Consulesse is not +over likely to enlighten my ignorance; I have never been asked to the +Palace." + +"You are jesting, surely?" + +"Perfectly in earnest, I assure you. This is my third week of being +quartered here; and not only have I not been invited, but, stranger +still, Madame Bonaparte passed and never noticed me; and another, one +of her suite, did the same: so you see there can be no accident in the +matter." + +"How strange!" said the abbe, leaning his head on his hand. And then, as +if speaking to himself, muttered, "But so it is; there is no such tyrant +as your _parvenu_. The caprice of sudden elevation knows no guidance. +And you can't even guess at the cause of all this?" + +"Not with all my ingenuity could I invent anything like a reason." + +"Well, well; we may find it out yet. These are strange times altogether. +Lieutenant. Men's minds are more unsettled than ever they were. The +Jacobin begins to feel he has been laboring for nothing; that all he +deems the rubbish of a monarchy has been removed, only to build up a +greater oppression. The soldier sees his conquests have only made the +fortune of one man in the army, and that one not overmindful of his old +companions. Many begin to think--and they may have some cause for the +notion--that the old family of France knew the interests of the nation +best, after all; and certain it is, they were never ungrateful to those +who served them. Your countrymen had always their share of favor shown +them; you do surprise me when you say you've never been invited." + +"So it is, though; and, worse still, there is evidently some secret +reason. Men look at me as if I had done something to stain my character +and name." + +"No, no; you mistake all that. This new and patchwork Court does but try +to imitate the tone of its leader. When did you see De Beauvais?" + +"Not for some months past. Is he in Paris?" + +"No; the poor fellow has been ill. He 's in Normandy just now, but I +expect him back soon. There is a youth who might be anything he pleased: +his family, one of the oldest in the South; his means abundant; his own +ability first-rate. But his principles are of that inflexible material +that won't bend for mere convenience' sake; he does not like, he does +not approve of, the present Government of France." + +"What would he have, then? Does not Bonaparte satisfy the ambition of +a Frenchman? Does he wish a greater name than that at the head of his +nation?" + +"That's a brilliant lamp before us. But see there," cried the abbe, as +he flung open the shutter, and pointed to the bright moon that shone +pale and beautiful in the clear sky--"see there! Is there not something +grander far in the glorious radiance of the orb that has thrown its +lustre on the world for ages? Is it not a glorious thought to revel in +the times long past, and think of those, our fathers, who lived beneath +the same bright beams, and drank in the same golden waters? Men are too +prone to measure themselves with one of yesterday; they find it hard +to wonder at the statue of him whom they have themselves placed on the +pedestal. Feudalism, too, seems a very part of our nature." + +"These are thoughts I've never known, nor would I now wish to learn +them," said I; "and as for me, a hero needs no ancestry to make him +glorious in my eyes." + +"All true," said the abbe, sipping his glass, and smiling kindly on +me. "A young heart should feel as yours does; and time was when such +feelings had made the fortune of their owner. But even now the world is +changed about us. The gendarmes have the mission that once belonged to +the steel-clad cuirassiers; and, in return, the hussar is little better +than a mouchard." + +The blood mounted to my face and temples, and throbbed in every vein and +artery of my forehead, as I heard this contemptuous epithet applied to +the corps I belonged to,--a sarcasm that told not less poignantly on +me, that I felt how applicable it was to my present position. He saw how +deeply mortified the word had made me; and, putting his hand in mine, +with a voice of winning softness he added:-- + +"One who would be a friend must risk a little now and then; as he who +passes over a plank before his neighbor will sometimes spring to try its +soundness, even at the hazard of a fall. Don't mistake me, Lieutenant; +you have a higher mission than this. France is on the eve of a mighty +change; let us hope it may be a happy one. And now it 's getting +late,--far later, indeed, than is my wont to be abroad,--and so I 'll +wish you good-night. I 'll find a bed in the village; and since I have +made you out here, we must meet often." + +There was something--I could not define what exactly--that alarmed me in +the conversation of the abbe; and lonely and solitary as I was, it was +with a sense of relief I saw him take his departure. + +The pupil of a school where the Consul's name was never mentioned +without enthusiasm and admiration, I found it strange that any one +should venture to form any other estimate of him than I was used to +hear; and yet in all he said I could but faintly trace out anything to +take amiss. That men of his cloth should feel warmly towards the exiled +family was natural enough. They could have but few sympathies with the +soldier's calling, and of course felt themselves in a very different +position now from what they once had occupied. The restoration of +Catholicism was, I well knew, rather a political and social than a +religious movement; and Bonaparte never had the slightest intention of +replacing the Church in its former position of ascendency, but rather +of using it as a state engine and giving a stability to the new order +of things, which could only be done on the foundation of prejudices and +convictions old as the nation itself. + +In this way the rising generation looked on the priests; and in this +way had I been taught to regard the whole class of religionists. It was, +then, nothing wonderful if ambitious men among them, of whom D'Ervan +might be one, felt somewhat indignant at the post assigned them, and did +not espouse with warmth the cause of one who merely condescended to make +them the tool of his intentions. "Yes, yes," said I to myself, "I have +defined my friend the abbe; and though not a very dangerous character +after all, it 's just as well I should be on my guard. His being in +possession of the password, and his venturing to write his name in the +police report, are evidences that he enjoys the favor of the Prefet de +Police. Well, well, I'm sure I am heartily tired of such reflections. +Would that the campaign were once begun! The roll of a platoon and the +deep thunder of an artillery fire would soon drown the small whispering +of such miserable plottings from one's head." + +About a week passed over after this visit, in which, at first, I was +rather better pleased that the abbe, did not come again; but as my +solitude began to press more heavily on me, I felt a kind of regret at +not seeing him. His lively tone in conversation, though spiced with that +_morqueur_ spirit which Frenchmen nearly all assume, amused me greatly; +and little versed as I was in the world or in its ways, I saw that he +knew it thoroughly. + +Such were my thoughts as I returned home one evening along the broad +alley of the park, when I heard a foot coming rapidly up behind me. + +"I say, Lieutenant," cried the voice of the very man I was thinking of, +"your people are terribly on the alert to-night. They refused to let +me pass, until I told them I was coming to you; and here are two worthy +fellows who won't take my word for it without your corroboration." + +I then perceived that two dismounted dragoons followed him at the +distance of a few paces. + +"All right, men," said I, passing my arm beneath the abba's, and turning +again towards my quarters. "Would n't they take the password, then?" +continued I, as we walked on. + +"_Ma foi_, I don't know, for I haven't got it." + +"How I not got it?" + +"Don't look so terribly frightened, my dear boy! you 'll not be put +under arrest or any such mishap on my account. But the truth is, I 've +been away some days from home, and have not had time to write to the +minister for the order; and as I wanted to go over to St. Cloud this +evening, and as this route saves me at least a league's walking, of +course I availed myself of the privilege of our friendship both to rest +my legs and have a little chat with you. Well! and how do you get +on here now? I hope the chateau is more hospitable to you, eh? Not +so?--that is most strange. But I have brought you a few books which may +serve to while away the hours; and as a recompense, I 'll ask you for a +supper." + +By this time we were at the door of my quarters, where, having ordered +up the best repast my cuisine afforded, we sat down to await its +appearance. Unlike the former evening, the abbe now seemed low and +depressed; spoke little, and then moodily, over the unsettled state +of men's minds, and the rumors that pervaded Paris of some momentous +change,--men knew not what; and thus, by a stray phrase, a chance +word, or an unfinished sentence, gave me to think that the hour was +approaching for some great political convulsion. + +"But, Lieutenant, you never told me by what accident you came first +amongst us: let me hear your story. The feeling with which I ask is not +the fruit of an impertinent curiosity. I wish sincerely to know more +about one in whose fortunes I have taken a deep interest. De Beauvais +told me the little anecdote which made you first acquainted; and though +the event promised but little of future friendship, the circumstances +have turned out differently. You have not one who speaks and thinks of +you more highly than he does. I left him this morning not many +miles from this. And now that I think of it, he gave me a letter +for you,--here it is." So saying, he threw it carelessly on the +chimney-piece, and continued: "I must tell you a secret of poor De +Beauvais, for I know you feel interested in him. You must know, then, +that our friend is desperately in love with a very beautiful cousin of +his own, one of the suite of Madame Bonaparte. She 's a well-known Court +beauty; and if you had seen more of the Tuileries, you'd have heard of +La Rose de Provence." + +"I have seen her, I think," muttered I, as my cheek grew crimson, and my +lips trembled. + +"Well," resumed the abbe, and without noticing my embarrassment, "this +love affair, which I believe began long ago, and might have ended in +marriage,--for there is no disparity of rank, no want of wealth, nor +any other difficulty to prevent it,--has been interrupted by General +Bonaparte, because, and for no other reason, mark ye, than that De +Beauvais's family were Bourbonists. His father was a captain of the +Garde du Corps, and his grandfather a grand falconer, or something or +other, with Louis the Fifteenth. Now, the young marquis was well enough +inclined to go with the current of events in France. The order of things +once changed, he deemed it best to follow the crowd, and frequented the +Tuileries like many others of his own politics,--I believe you met him +there,--till one morning lately he resolved to try his fortune where the +game was his all. And he waited on Madame Bonaparte to ask her consent +to his marriage with his cousin; for I must tell you that she is an +orphan, and in all such cases the parental right is exercised by the +head of the Government. Madame referred him coldly to the General, who +received him more coldly still; and instead of replying to his suit, as +he expected, broke out into invectives against De Beauvais's friends; +called them_Chouans_and assassins; said they never ceased to plot +against his life with his most inveterate enemies, the English; that +the exiled family maintained a corps of spies in Paris, of whom he half +suspected him to be one; and, in a word, contrived to heap more insult +on him in one quarter of an hour than, as he himself said, his whole +family had endured from the days of Saint Louis to the present. De +Beauvais from that hour absented himself from the Tuileries, and indeed +almost entirely from Paris,--now living with his friends in Normandy, +now spending a few weeks in the South. But at last he has determined on +his course, and means to leave France forever. I believe the object of +his coming here at this moment is to see his cousin for the last time. +Perhaps his note to you has some reference to it." + +I took the letter with a trembling hand,--a fear of something undefined +was over me,--and tearing it open, read as follows:-- + + Dear Friend,--The Abbe, d'Ervan will deliver this into your + hands, and if you wish it, explain the reason of the request + it contains,--which is simply that you will afford me the + shelter of your quarters for one day in the park at + Versailles. I know the difficulty of your position; and if + any other means under heaven presented itself, I should not + ask the favor, which, although I pledge my honor not to + abuse, I shall value as the dearest a whole life's gratitude + can repay. My heart tells me that you will not refuse the + last wish of one you will never see after this meeting. I + shall wait at the gate below the Trianon at eleven o'clock + on Friday night, when you can pass me through the sentries. + + Yours, ever and devoted, + + Henri De Beauvais. + +"The thing is impossible," said I, laying down the letter on the table, +and staring over at D'Ervan. + +"No more so, dear friend, than what you have done for me this evening, +and which, I need not tell you, involves no risk whatever. Here am I +now, without pass or countersign, your guest,--the partaker of as good a +supper and as excellent a glass of wine as man need care for. In an hour +hence,--say two at most,--I shall be on my way over to St. Cloud. Who +is, then, I ask you, to be the wiser? You'll not put me down in the +night report. Don't start: I repeat it, you can't do it, for I had no +countersign to pass through; and as the Consul reads these sheets every +morning, you are not going to lose your commission for the sake of an +absurd punctilio that nobody on earth will thank you for. Come, come, my +worthy lieutenant, these same excellent scruples of yours savor far more +of the scholar at the rigid old Polytechnique than the young officer of +hussars. Help me to that ortolan there, and pass the bottle. There! a +bumper of such a vintage is a good reward for so much talking." + +While the abbe, continued to exert himself, by many a flippant remark +and many a smart anecdote, to dissipate the gloom that now fell over +my spirits, I grew only more and more silent. The one false step I had +taken already presented itself before me as the precedent for further +wrong, and I knew not what course to take, nor how to escape from my +dilemma. + +"I say, Lieutenant," said D'Ervan, after a pause of some minutes, during +which he had never ceased to regard me with a fixed, steady stare, "you +are about as unlike the usual character of your countrymen as one can +well conceive." + +"How so?" said I, half smiling at the remark. + +"All the Irishmen I have ever seen," replied he,--"and I have known +some scores of them,--were bold, dashing, intrepid fellows, that cared +nothing for an enterprise if danger had no share in it; who loved a +difficulty as other men love safety; who had an instinct for where their +own reckless courage would give them an advantage over all others; and +took life easily, under the conviction that, every day could present the +circumstance where a ready wit and a stout heart could make the way to +fortune. Such were the Irish I knew in the brigade; and though not a +man of the number had ever seen what they called the Green Island, they +were as unlike the English, or French, or Germans, or any other people, +as--as the old Court of Louis the Fourteenth was unlike the guardroom +style of reception that goes on nowadays yonder." + +"What you say may be just," said I, coolly; "and if I seem to have few +features of that headlong spirit which is the gift of my nation, the +circumstances of my boyhood could well explain, perhaps excuse them. +From my earliest years I have had to struggle against ills that many +men in a long lifetime do not meet with. If suspicion and distrust have +crept or stolen into my heart, it is from, watching the conduct of +those I deemed high-spirited and honorable, and seeing them weak and, +vacillating and faithless. And lastly, if every early hope that stirred +my heart does but wane and pale within me, as stars go out when day is +near, you cannot wonder that I, who stand alone here, without home or +friend, should feel a throb of fear at aught which may tarnish a name +that has yet no memory of past services to rely upon. And if you knew +how sorely such emotions war against the spirit that lives here, believe +me you had never made the reproach; my punishment is enough already." + +"Forgive me, my dear boy, if I said anything that could wound you for a +moment," said the abbe. "This costume of mine, they say, gives a +woman's privilege, and truly I believe it does something of the sex's +impertinence also.. I ought to have known you better; and I do know you +better by this time. And now let me press a request I made some half an +hour ago: tell me this same story of yours. I long to learn something of +the little boy, where I feel such affection for the man." + +The look of kindness and the tone of soothing interest that accompanied +these words I could not resist; so, drawing my chair close towards +him, I began the narrative of my life. He listened with the most +eager attention to my account of the political condition of Ireland; +questioned me closely as to my connection with the intrigues of the +period; and when I mentioned the name of Charles de Meudon, a livid +paleness overspread his features as he asked, in a low, hollow tone, if +I were with him when he died? + +"Yes," replied I, "by his bedside." + +"Did he ever speak to you of me? Did he ever tell you much of his early +life when in Provence?" + +"Yes, yes; he spoke often of those happy days in the old chateau, where +his sister, on whom he doted to distraction, was his companion. Hers was +a sad story, too. Strange, is it not,--I have never heard of her since I +came to France?" + +A long pause followed these words, and the abbe, leaned his head upon +his hand, and seemed to be lost in thought. + +"She was in love with her cousin," I continued, "and Charles, unhappily, +refused his consent. Unhappily, I say; for he wept over his conduct on +his deathbed." + +"Did he?" cried the abbe, with a start, while his eye flashed fire, and +his nostrils swelled and dilated like a chafed horse. "Did he do this?" + +"Yes, bitterly he repented it; and although he never confessed it, I +could see that he had been deceived by others, and turned from his own +high-souled purpose, respecting his sister. I wonder what became of +Claude,--he entered the Church." + +"Ay, and lies there now," replied the abbe, sternly. + +"Poor fellow! is he dead, too? and so young." + +"Yes; he contrived to entangle himself in some Jacobite plot." + +"Why, he was a Royalist." + +"So he was. It might have been another conspiracy, then,--some _Chouan_ +intrigue. Whatever it was, the Government heard of it. He was arrested +at the door of his own _presbyiere_; the grenadiers were drawn up in his +own garden; and he was tried, condemned, and shot in less than an hour. +The officer of the company ate the dinner that was preparing for him." + +"What a destiny! And Marie de Meudon?" + +"Hush! the name is proscribed. The De Meudons professed strong Royalist +opinions, and Bonaparte would not permit her bearing her family name. +She is known by that of her mother's family except by those poor minions +of the Court who endeavor, with their fake affectation, to revive the +graceful pleasantries of Marie Antoinette's time, and they call her La +Rose de Provence." + +"La Bose de Provence," cried I, springing up from my chair, "the sister +of Charles!" while a thrill of ecstasy ran through my frame,--followed +the moment after by a cold, faint feel,--and I sank almost breathless in +the chair. + +"Ha!" cried the abbe, leaning over me, and holding the lamp close to +my face, "what--" And then, as he resumed his place, he slowly muttered +between his teeth, "I did not dream of this!" + +Not a word was now spoken by either. The abbe, sat mute and motionless, +his eyes bent upon the floor, and his hands clasped before him. As +for me, every emotion of hope and fear, joy and sorrow, succeeded one +another in my mind; and it was only as I thought of De Beauvais once +more that a gloomy despair spread itself before me, and I remembered +that he loved her, and how the abbe, hinted his passion was returned. + +"The day is breaking," said D'Ervan, as he opened the shutter and looked +out; "I must away. Well, I hope I may tell my poor friend De Beauvais +that you 'll not refuse his request. Charles de Meudon's sister may have +a claim on your kindness too." + +"If I thought that she--" + +"You mean, that she loved him. You must take his word for that; she is +not likely to make a confidant of you. Besides, he tells you it's a +last meeting; you can scarcely say nay. Poor girl, he is the only one +remaining to her of all her house! On his departure you are not more a +stranger here than is she in the land of her fathers." + +"I'll do it I I'll do it!" cried I, passionately. "Let him meet me where +he mentioned; I 'll be there." + +"That's as it should be," said the abbe, grasping my hand, and pressing +it fervently. "But come, don't forget you must pass me through this same +cordon of yours." + +With a timid and shrinking heart I walked beside the abbe, across the +open terrace, towards the large gate, which with its bronzed and gilded +tracery was already shining in the rich sunlight. + +"A fine-looking fellow, that dragoon yonder; he 's deco' rated, I see." + +"Yes; an old hussar of the Garde." + +"What 's he called?" + +"Pierre Dulong; a name well known in his troop." + +"Halte-la!" cried the soldier, as we approached. + +"Your officer," said I. + +"The word?" + +"Arcole." + +"Pass, 'Arcole;' and good-morrow." + +"Adieu, Lieutenant; adieu, Pierre," said the abbe, as he waved his hand +and passed out. + +I stood for a minute or two uncertain of purpose; why, I know not. The +tone of the last few words seemed uttered in something like a sneer. +"What folly, though!" said I to myself. "D'Ervan is a strange fellow, +and it is his way." + +"We shall meet soon, Abbe," I cried out, as he was turning the corner +of the park wall. + +"Yes, yes, rely on it; we shall meet,--and soon." + +He kept his word. + + + +CHAPTER XXIX. LA ROSE OF PROVENCE. + +The one thought that dwelt in my mind the entire day was that Marie de +Rochfort was Charles de Meudon's sister. The fact once known, seemed to +explain that secret power she exercised over my hopes and longings. The +spell her presence threw around ever as she passed me in the park; that +strange influence with which the few words I had heard her speak still +remained fast rooted in my memory,--all these did I attribute to the +hold her name had taken of my heart as I sat night after night listening +to her brother's stories. And then, why had I not guessed it earlier? +why had I not perceived the striking resemblance which it now seemed +impossible to overlook? The dark eye, beaming beneath a brow squarely +chiselled like an antique cameo; the straight nose, and short, up-turned +lip, where a half-saucy look seemed struggling with a sweet smile; and +then the voice,--was it not his own rich. Southern accent, tempered by +her softer nature? Yes; I should have known her. + +In reflections like these I made my round of duty, my whole heart +wrapped up in this discovery. I never thought of De Beauvais, or his +letter. It seemed to me as though I had known her long and intimately. +She was not the Rose de Provence of the Court, the admired of the +Tuileries, the worshipped belle of Versailles; but Marie de Meudon, the +sister of one who loved me as a brother. + +There was a dark alley near the Trianon that led along the side of a +little lake, where rocks and creeping plants, rudely grouped together, +gave a half-wild aspect to the scene; the tall beech and the drooping +ash-trees that grew along the bank threw their shadows far across the +still water. And here I had remarked that Mademoiselle de Meudon came +frequently alone. It was a place, from its look of shade and gloom, +little likely to attract the gay visitors of the Court, who better loved +the smoothly-shaven grass of the Palace walks, or the broad terraces +where bright fountains were plashing. Since I discovered that she +avoided me when we met, I had never taken this path on my rounds, +although leading directly to one of my outposts, but preferred rather a +different and longer route. + +Now, however, I sought it eagerly; and as I hurried on, I dreaded lest +my unwonted haste might excite suspicion. I resolved to see and speak +to her. It was her brother's wish that I should know her; and till now I +felt as though my great object in coming to France was unobtained, if I +knew not her whose name was hallowed in my memory. Poor Charles used +to tell me she would be a sister to me. How my heart trembled at the +thought! As I drew near I stopped to think how she might receive me; +with what feelings hear me speak of one who was the cause of all her +unhappiness. But then they said she loved De Beauvais. What! was poor +Claude forgotten? Was all the lovedream of her first affection passed? + +My thoughts ran wild as different impulses struggled through them, and I +could resolve on nothing. Before me, scarcely a dozen paces, and alone, +she stood looking on the calm lake, where the light in golden and +green patches played, as it struggled through the dense foliage. The +clattering of my sabre startled her, and without looking back, she +dropped her veil, and moved slowly on. + +"Mademoiselle de Meudon!" said I, taking off my shako, and bowing deeply +before her. + +"What! how! Why this name, sir? Don't you know it's forbidden here?" + +"I know it, Madame. But it is by that name alone I dare to speak to you. +It was by that I learned to know you,--from one who loved you, and who +did not reject my humble heart; one who, amid all the trials of hard +fate, felt the hardest to be,--the wrong he did his sister." + +"Did you speak of my brother Charles?" said she, in a voice low and +tremulous. + +"I did, Madame. The last message his lips ever uttered was given to +me,--and for you. Not until last night did I know that I was every hour +of the day so near to one whose name was treasured in my heart." + +"Oh, tell me of him! tell me of my dear Charles!" cried she, as the +tears ran fast down her pale cheeks. "Where was his death? Was it among +strangers that he breathed his last? Was there one there who loved him?" + +"There was! there was!" cried I, passionately, unable to say more. + +"And where was that youth that loved him so tenderly? I heard of him +as one who never left his side,--tending him in sickness, and watching +beside him in sorrow. Was he not there?" + +"I was! I was! My hand held his; in my ear his last sigh was breathed." + +"Oh! was it you indeed who were my brother's friend?" said she, seizing +my hand, and pressing it to her lips. The hot tears dropped heavily on +my wrist, and in my ecstasy I knew not where I was. "Oh," cried she, +passionately, "I did not think that in my loneliness such a happiness as +this remained for me! I never dreamed to see and speak to one who knew +and loved my own dear Charles; who could tell me of his solitary hours +of exile,--what hopes and fears stirred that proud heart of his; who +could bring back to me in all their force again the bright hours of our +happy youth, when we were all to each other,--when our childhood knew +no greater bliss than that we loved. Alas, alas! how short-lived was it +all! He lies buried beyond the sea in the soil of the stranger; and I +live on to mourn over the past and shudder at the future. But come, let +us sit down upon this bank; you must not leave me till I hear all about +him. Where did you meet first?" + +We sat down upon a grassy bench beside the stream, where I at once began +the narrative of my first acquaintance with De Meudon. At first the rush +of sensations that came crowding on me made me speak with difficulty and +effort. The flutter of her dress as the soft wind waved it to and fro, +the melody of her voice, and her full, languid eye, where sorrow and +long-buried affection mingled their expression, sent thrilling +through my heart thoughts that I dared not dwell upon. Gradually, as I +proceeded, my mind recurred to my poor friend, and I warmed as I spoke +of his heroic darings and his bold counsels. All his high-souled ardor, +all the nobleness of his great nature,--his self-devotion, and his +suffering,--were again before me, mingled with those traits of womanly +softness which only belong to those whose courage was almost fanaticism. +How her dark eyes grew darker as she listened, and her parted lips and +her fast-heaving bosom betrayed the agitation that she felt! And how +that proud look melted into sorrow when I told of the day when his +outpouring heart recurred to home and her, the loved one of his boyhood. +Every walk in that old terraced garden, each grassy alley and each shady +seat, I knew as though I saw them. + +Although I did not mention Claude, nor even distinctly allude to the +circumstances which led to their unhappiness, I could see that her cheek +became paler and paler; and that, despite an effort to seem calm, +the features moved with a slight jerking motion, her lip trembled +convulsively, and, with a low, sad sigh she fell back fainting. + +[Illustration: The Lady of the Lake 300] + +I sprang down the bank towards the lake, and in an Instant dipped my +shako in the water; and as I hastened back, she was sitting up, her eyes +staring madly 'round her, her look wild almost to insanity, while her +outstretched finger pointed to the copse of low beech near us. + +"There, there! I saw him!" said she. "He was there now. Look! look!" + +Shocked at the terrified expression of her features, and alarmed lest +ray story had conjured up before her disordered imagination the image of +her lost brother, I spoke to her in words of encouragement. + +"No, no!" replied she to my words, "I saw him,--I heard his voice, too. +Let us leave this; bring me to the Trianon; and--" + +The terrified and eager look she threw around at each word did not admit +of longer parley, and I drew her arm within mine to lead her forward. +"This is no fancy, as you deem it," said she, in a low and broken tone, +to which an accent of bitterness lent a terrible power; "nor could the +grave give up before me one so full of terror to my heart as him I saw +there." + +Her head sank heavily as she uttered this; and, notwithstanding every +effort I made, she spoke no more, nor would give me any answer to my +questions regarding the cause of her fears. + +As we walked forward we heard the sound of voices, which she at once +recognized as belonging to the Court party, and pressing my hand +slightly, she motioned me to leave her. I pressed the pale fingers to my +lips, and darted away, my every thought bent on discovering the cause of +her late fright. + +In an instant I was back beside the lake. I searched every copse and +every brake; I wandered for hours through the dark woods; but nothing +could I see. I stooped to examine the ground, but could not even detect +the pressure of a footstep. The dried branches lay unbroken, and the +leaves unpressed around; and I at last became convinced that an excited +brain, and a mind harassed by a long sorrow, had conjured up the image +she spoke of. As I approached the picket, which was one of the most +remote in my rounds, I resolved to ask the sentry had he seen any one. + +"Yes, Lieutenant," said the soldier; "a man passed some short time ago +in an undress uniform. He gave the word, and I let him proceed." + +"Was he old or young?" + +"Middle-aged, and of your height." + +"Which way did he take?" + +"He turned towards the left as he passed out; I lost sight of him then." + +I hurried immediately onward, and entered the wood by the path in the +direction mentioned, my mind painfully excited by what I heard, and +resolved to do everything to probe this matter to the bottom. But, +though I walked miles in every direction, I met none save a few +fagot-gatherers, and they had not seen any one like him I sought for. + +With a weary and a heavy heart I turned towards my quarters, all the +happiness of the morning dashed by the strange event I have related. +My night was feverish and disturbed; for a long time I could not sleep, +and, when I did, wild and terrible fancies came on me, and I started up +in terror. A horrible face recurred at every instant to my mind's eye; +and even when awake, the least noise, the slightest rustling of the +leaves in the park, agitated and excited me. At last, worn out with the +painful struggle, between sleep and waking, I arose and dressed. + +The day was breaking, and already the birds were carolling to the rising +sun. I strolled out into the park. The fresh and bracing air of morning +cooled my burning brow; the mild influences of the hour, when sweet +perfumes float softly in the dew-loaded breeze, soothed and calmed me; +and I wandered back in thought to her who already had given a charm to +my existence I never knew before. + +The long-wished-for dream of my boyhood was realized at last. I knew +the sister of my friend; I sat beside her, and heard her speak to me in +tones so like his own. I was no longer the friendless alien, without one +to care for, one to feel interested in his fortunes. The isolation that +pressed so painfully on me fled before that thought: and now I felt +raised in my own esteem by those dark eyes that thanked me as I spoke of +poor Charles. What a thrill that look sent through my heart! Oh, did +she know the power of that glance! Could she foresee what seeds of high +ambition her every smile was sowing! The round of my duty was to me +devoid of all fatigue, and I returned to my quarters with a light step +and a lighter heart. + +The entire day I lingered about the Trianon and near the lake; but Marie +never came, nor did she appear in the walks at all. "Was she ill? Had +the vision, whatever it was, of yesterday, preyed upon her health?" were +my first thoughts, and I inquired eagerly if any doctor had been seen +about the chateau. But no, nothing unusual seemed to have occurred, and +a ball was to take place that very evening. I would have given worlds, +were they mine, even to know in what part of the Palace she was lodged; +and fifty times did I affect to have some duty, as an excuse to cross +the terrace and steal a cautious glance towards the windows,--but in +vain. + +So engrossed was my mind with thoughts of her that I forgot all else. +The pickets, too, I had not visited since daybreak, and my report to the +minister remained unfilled. It was late in the evening when I sallied +forth to my duty, and night, with scarce a star, was falling fast. My +preoccupation prevented my feeling the way as I walked along; and I had +already visited all the outposts except one, when a low, faint whistle, +that seemed to issue from the copse near me, startled me. It was +repeated after a moment, and I called out,-- + +"Who 's there? Advance." + +"Ah, I thought it was you, Burke!" said a voice I at once knew to be +Beauvais's. "You broke faith with me at the town-gate yonder, and so I +had to come down here." + +"How? You surely were not there when I passed?" + +"Yes, but I was, though. Did you not see the woodcutter, with his blouse +on his arm, lighting his pipe at the door of the guardhouse?" + +"Yes; but you can't mean that it was you." + +"Do you remember his saying, 'Buy a cheap charretie of wood, Lieutenant; +I 'll leave it at your quarters? '" + +"De Beauvais," said I, gravely, "these risks may be fatal to us both. +My orders are positive; and if I disobey them, there are no powerful +friends nor high relatives to screen me from a deserving punishment." + +"What folly you speak, Burke! If I did not know you better, I should say +you grudged me the hospitality I have myself asked you for. One night to +rest,--and I need it much, if you knew but all,--and one day to speak to +Marie, and you have done with me. Is that too much?" + +"No,--not if I did not betray a trust in sheltering you, far too little +to speak of, much less thank me for. But--" + +"Do spare me these scruples, and let us take the shortest way to your +quarters. A supper and three chairs to sleep on, are worth all your +arguments, eloquent though they be." + +We walked on together, almost in silence: I overwhelmed with fear for +the result should my conduct ever become known; he evidently chagrined +at my reception of him, and little disposed to make allowances for +scruples he would not have respected himself. + +"So here we are at last," said he, as he threw himself on my little +sofa, seemingly worn out with exhaustion. I had now time to look at him +by the light, and almost started back at the spectacle that presented +itself. His dress, which was that of the meanest peasant, was ragged and +torn; his shoes scarce held together with coarse thongs; and his beard, +unshaven for weeks past, increased the haggard look of features where +actual want and starvation seemed impressed. + +"You are surprised at my costume," said he, with a sad smile; "and, +certes, Crillac would not court a customer habited as I am just now. But +what will you say when I assure you that the outward man--and you +will not accuse him of any voluptuous extravagance--has a very great +advantage over the inner one? In plain words, Lieutenant, you 'd hurry +your cook, if you knew I have not tasted food, save what the hedges +afford, for two days: not from poverty neither; there 's wherewithal +there to dine, even at Beauvilliers's." He rattled a well-filled purse +as he spoke. + +"Come, come, De Beauvais! you accuse me of doing the honors with a bad +grace; and, in truth, I wish I were your host outside the pickets. But +let me retrieve my character a little. Taste this capon." + +"If you never dined with a wolf, you shall now," said he, drawing his +chair to the table and filling a large goblet with Burgundy. + +For ten or fifteen minutes he ate on like a man whom long starvation +had rendered half savage; then ceasing suddenly, he looked up, and said, +"Lieutenant, the cuisine here might tempt a more fastidious man than I +am; and if these people are not hospitable enough to invite you to their +soiries, they certainly do not starve you at home." + +"How knew you that I was not asked to the chateau?" said I, reddening +with a sense of offended pride I could not conceal. + +"Know it? Why, man, these things are known at once. People talk of them +in saloons and morning visits, and comment on them in promenades; and +though I seem not to have been keeping company with the beau monde +latterly, I hear what goes on there too. But trust me, boy, if your +favor stands not high with the Court of to-day, you may perhaps be +preparing the road to fortune with that of to-morrow." + +"Though you speak in riddle, De Beauvais, so long as I suspect that what +you mean would offer insult to those I serve, let me say,--and I say it +in all temper, but in all firmness,--you 'll find no ready listener +in me. The highest favor I aspire to is the praise of our great chief, +General Bonaparte; and here I pledge his health." + +"I'll drink no more wine to-night," said he, sulkily pushing his glass +before him. "Is this to be my bed?" + +"Of course not; mine is ready for you. I 'll rest on the sofa there, for +I shall have to visit my pickets by daybreak." + +"In Heaven's name, for what?" said he, with a half sneer. "What can +that poor Savary be dreaming of? Is there any one about to steal +the staircase of the Louvre, or the clock from the pavilion of the +Tuileries? Or is it the savants of the Institute he 's afraid of +losing?" + +"Rail on, my good friend; you 'll find it very hard to make an old +scholar of the Polytechnique think poorly of the man that gains +battles." + +"Well, well, I give up my faith in physiognomy. Do you remember that +same evening in the Tuileries when I asked your pardon, and begged to be +your friend? I thought you a different fellow then from what I see you +now; that silly hussar pelisse has turned many a head before yours." + +"You wish to make me angry, De Beauvais, and you 'll not succeed. A +night's rest will bring you to better temper with all the world." + +"Will it, faith! In that case a tolerably large portion of it must take +leave of it before morning; for I promise you, my worthy hussar, there +are some I don't expect to feel so very charitably towards as you +expect." + +"Well, well! What say you to bed?" + +"I 'll sleep where I am," said he, with some harshness in his tone. +"Good-night." + +The words were scarcely uttered when he turned on his side, and, shading +his eyes from the light with his hand, fell fast asleep. + +It was already past midnight, and as I was fatigued with my day's +walking, I soon retired to my bed, but not to rest. Whenever I closed +my eyes, Beauvais's pale and worn face seemed before me,--the haggard +expression of suffering and privation. And then I fell to thinking what +enterprise of danger could involve him in such necessities as these. It +must be one of peril, or he had not become what now I saw him. His very +voice was changed,--its clear, manly tone was now harsh and dissonant; +his frank and cheerful look was downcast and suspicious. + +At last, worn out with thinking, I fell asleep; but was suddenly +awakened by a voice shouting from the outer room. I sat up and listened. +It was De Beauvais, calling wildly for help; the cry grew fainter, and +soon sank into the long-drawn respiration of repose. Poor fellow! even +in his dreams his thoughts were of strife and danger. + + + +CHAPTER XXX. A WARNING. + +The day was breaking when I was up and stirring, resolving to visit the +pickets before De Beauvais awoke; for even still the tone of ridicule he +assumed was strong before me. I passed stealthily through the room where +he was still sleeping; the faint light streamed through the half-closed +shutters, and fell upon a face so pale, so haggard, and so worn, that I +started back in horror. How altered was he, indeed, from what I had seen +him first! The cheek once ruddy with the flush of youth was now pinched +and drawn in; the very lips were bloodless, as if not illness alone, but +long fasting from food, had pressed upon him. His hair, too, which used +to fall upon his shoulders and on his neck in rich and perfumed locks, +silky and delicate as a girl's, was now tangled and matted, and hung +across his face and temples wild and straggling. Even to his hands his +changed condition was apparent, for they were torn and bleeding; while +in the attitude of sleep, you could trace the heavy unconscious slumber +of one utterly worn out and exhausted. His dress was of the coarse stuff +the peasants wear in their blouses; and even that seemed old and worn. +What strange career had brought him down to this I could not think; for +poor as all seemed about him, his well-stocked purse showed that his +costume was worn rather for disguise than necessity. + +Such was my first thought; my second, more painful still, recurred to +her he loved, by whom he was perhaps beloved in turn. Oh! if anything +can add to the bitter smart of jealousy, it is the dreadful conviction +that she for whom our heart's best blood would flow to insure one +hour of happiness, has placed her whole life's fortune on the veriest +chance,--bestowing her love on one whose life gives no guarantee for the +future,--no hope, no pledge, that the world's wildest schemes of +daring and ambition are not dearer to his eyes than all her charms and +affections. How does our own deep devotion come up before us contrasted +with this! and how, in the consciousness of higher motives and more +ennobling thoughts, do we still feel inferior to him who, if poor in all +besides, is rich in her love! + +Such envious feelings filled my heart as I looked on him; and with slow, +sad step I moved on, when by accident I came against a chair, and threw +it down. The noise awoke him, and with a spring he was on his legs, and +drawing a pistol from his bosom, cried out,-- + +"Ha! what is 't? Why, Burke, it 's you! What hour is it?" + +"Not four yet. I 'm sorry to have disturbed you, De Beauvais; but the +chair here--" + +"Yes, yes; I placed it so last night. I felt so very heavy that I could +not trust myself with waking to a slight noise. Where to, so early? Ah! +these pickets; I forgot." And with that he lay down again, and before I +left the house was fast asleep once more. + +Some trifling details of duty detained me at one or two of the outposts, +and it was beyond my usual time when I turned homeward. I had but just +reached the broad alley that leads to the foot of the great terrace, +when I saw a figure before me hastening on towards the chateau. The +flutter of the dress showed it to be a woman; and then the thought +flashed on me,--it was Mademoiselle de Meudon. Yes, it was her step; I +knew it well. She had left the place thus early to meet De Beauvais. + +Without well knowing what I did, I had increased my speed, and was now +rapidly overtaking her, when the noise of my footsteps on the ground +made her turn about and look back. I stopped short suddenly. An +indistinct sense of something culpable on my part in thus pursuing her +flitted across my mind, and I could not move. There she stood, too, +motionless; but for a second or two only, and then beckoned to me with +her hand. I could scarcely trust my eyes, nor did I dare to stir till +she had repeated the motion twice or thrice. + +As I drew near, I remarked that her eyes were red with weeping, and her +face pale as death. For a moment she gazed steadfastly at me, and then, +with a voice whose accent I can never forget, she said,-- + +"And you, too, the dearest friend of my own Charles, whose very deathbed +spoke of loyalty to him, how have you been drawn from your allegiance?" + +I stood amazed and astounded, unable to utter a word in reply, when she +resumed,-- + +"For them there is reason, too: they lived, or their fathers did, in +the sunshine of the old Monarchy; wealth, rank, riches, power,--all were +theirs. But you, who came amongst us with high hopes of greatness, +where others have earned them on the field of battle,--whose youth is +a guarantee that base and unworthy thoughts should form no part of his +motives, and whose high career began under the very eyes of him, the +idol of every soldier's heart,--oh I why turn from such a path as this, +to dark and crooked ways, where low intrigue and plot and treachery are +better weapons than your own stout heart and your own bright sword?" + +"Hear me, I pray you," said I, bursting into impatience,--"hear me but +one word, and know that you accuse me wrongfully. I have no part in, nor +have I knowledge of, any treason." + +"Oh, speak not thus to me! There are those who may call their acts by +high-sounding titles, and say, 'We are but restoring our own sovereigns +to the land they owned.' But you are free to think and feel; no prestige +of long years blinds your reason or obstructs your sense of right." + +"Once more I swear, that though I can but guess at where your suspicions +point, my faith is now as true, my loyalty as firm, as when I pledged +myself at your dear brother's side to be a soldier." + +"Then why have you mixed yourself with their intrigues? Why are you +already suspected? Why has Madame Bonaparte received orders to omit your +name in all the invitations to the chateau?" + +"Alas! I know not. I learn now, for the first time that suspicion ever +attached to me." + +"It is said, too,--for already such things are spoken of,--that you know +that dreadful man whose very presence is contamination. Oh! does it not +seem like fate that his dark path should traverse every portion of my +destiny?" + +The sobs that burst from her at these words seemed to rend her very +bosom. "They say," continued she, while her voice trembled with strong +emotion,--"they say he has been here." + +"I know not of whom you speak," said I, as a cold chill ran through my +blood. + +"Mehee de la Touche," replied she, with an effort. + +"I never heard of him till now; the very name is unknown to me." + +"Thank God for this!" muttered she between her teeth. "I thought, +perhaps, that De Beauvais had made you known to each other." + +"No; De Beauvais never introduced me, save to some friends of his one +evening at a supper, several months back; and only one of them have I +ever seen since,--an Abbe, d'Ervan. And, indeed, if I am guilty of any +breach of duty, I did not think the reproach was to come from you." + +The bitterness of these last words was wrung from me in a moment of +wounded pride. + +"How! what mean you?" said she, impetuously. "No one has dared to call +my fidelity into question, nor speak of me as false to those who cherish +and protect me." + +"You mistake my meaning," said I, sadly and slowly. Then hesitating how +far I should dare allude to De Beauvais's affection, I stopped, when +suddenly her face became deeply flushed, and a tear started to her eye. + +"Alas, she loves him!" said I to my heart, and a sickness like death +passed over me. "Leave me, leave me quickly!" cried she. "I see persons +watching us from the terrace." And with that she moved hastily on +towards the chateau, and I turned into one of the narrow walks that led +into the wood. + +Two trains of thought struggled for mastery in my mind: how had I become +suspected? how should I wipe out the stain upon my honor? + +There was not an incident of my life since my landing in France I did +not call to mind; and yet, save in the unhappy meeting with De Beauvais, +I could not see the slightest probability that even malevolence could +attach anything to my reputation. "From d'Ervan, it is true, I heard +more than once opinions that startled me; less, however, by anything +direct in their meaning, than that they were totally new and strange. +And yet the abbe, I had every reason to believe, was a friend of the +present Government; at least it was evident he was on terms of close +intimacy with Monsieur Savary. + +"De Beauvais must clear up some of these doubts for me," thought I; "he +must inform me more particularly as to those to whom he introduced me. I +shall endeavor to learn, too, something of their schemes, and thus guard +myself against the mere chance of suspicion; for unquestionably he +is not in ignorance of the movement, whatever it be." And with such +intentions I hurried onwards, eager to reach my quarters. + +As I entered my room, a low, heavy sob broke on my ear; I started back +with surprise. It was De Beauvais, who sat, his head buried in his +hands, leaning on the table. + +"Ha!" said he, springing up, and passing his hand hurriedly across his +eyes, "so soon back! I scarcely expected you." + +"It is past ten o'clock,--a full hour later than my usual return." + +"Indeed!" rejoined he, with an air of impertinent surprise. "So +then your pickets have been arresting and detaining some poor devils +gathering fagots or acorns? or have you unfathomed the depth of this +terrible plot your Prefet de Police has become insane about?" + +"Neither," said I, affecting a careless tone. "The Government of the +Consul is sufficiently strong to make men's minds easy on that score. +Whatever intrigues are at work, they are as little likely to escape his +keen eye as their perpetrators are, when taken, the fire of a grenadier +company." + +"_Ma foi!_ sir, you speak confidently," replied he, in an accent of pride +totally different from his former tone. "And yet I have heard of persons +just as confident, too, who afterwards confessed they had been mistaken. +But perhaps it seems less strange to you that a sous-lieutenant of +artillery should rule the destinies of France, than that the King of the +country should resume the throne of his ancestors." + +"Take care, De Beauvais, with whom you speak. I warn you; and be assured +I 'll not be trifled with. One word more, and I put you under arrest." + +"Not here, surely," replied he, in a low and searching voice,--"not +here. Let us walk out into the park. Let it be in the great alley, or on +the terrace yonder; or, better still, let the capture take place in the +wood; but do not let your loyalty violate the hospitality of your home." + +"Forgive me, I pray; I knew not what I said. You tempted me sorely, +though. Think but for a moment, De Beauvais, how I stand here, and let +your own heart judge me. I am an alien,--a friendless stranger. There +lives not one in all the length and breadth of France who would raise +a finger, or speak one word, to save me were my head in peril. My +sword and my fidelity are all my hope; that both should remain pure and +unblemished is all my wish. The grade I have I owe to him--" + +"Great cause for gratitude, truly!" he broke in. "The chief _eleve_ of +the Polytechnique is made a sous-lieutenant of cavalry, with functions +of a sergeant of the gendarmerie, with orders to stop all travellers, +and search their pockets. Shame on it! It was not thus the rightful +sovereigns of France regarded those who wore their epaulettes; not thus +did they esteem the soldier's part. Think, for a second, what you are, +and then reflect what you might be. Cold and unimpassioned as you call +yourself, I know your heart better. There lives not one who treasures a +higher ambition in his breast than you. Ah! your eyes sparkle already. +Think, then, I say, what a career opens before you, if you have courage +to embrace it. It 's a great game that enables a man to spring from +sous-lieutenant to colonel of a regiment. Come, Burke! I can have no +reason, save your welfare, to press these considerations on you. What +are you writing there?" + +"A report to the Prefet de Police. I see now, however late it is, the +unworthiness of the part I 've acted, in remaining in a service where I +'ve listened to statements such as these. I shall ask to have my +grade withdrawn, and be reduced to the ranks; there, perhaps, I may be +permitted to carry a soldier's musket without a stain upon my honor." + +"You can do better, sir," interrupted he, as his face grew purple with +passion, and his eyes flashed fire, "far better: call up your dragoons +yonder, and place me, where you threatened, under arrest; forward your +report to the minister, that Henri de Beauvais, Marquis et Pair de +France when such things were, has been taken with the 'Croix de St. +Louis' and the cordon in his possession." Here he took from his bosom +the decoration, and waved it above his head. "Add, too, that he came +prepared to tempt your loyalty with this." He drew forth at the words a +parchment document, and dashed it on the table before me. "There, sir, +read it; it is the King's own handwriting,--your brevet of colonel to +a regiment of the Gardes. Such proofs of your devotion can scarcely go +unrewarded. They may raise you to the rank of police spy. There is a +lady yonder, too, who should also share in your elevation, as she does +in your loyal sentiments; Mademoiselle de Meudon may be too quick for +you. Lose no time, sir; such chances as these are not the fruit of +every day. After all, I can scarcely go to the guillotine under better +auspices than with my cousin and my friend as my betrayers. Mayhap, too, +they 'll do you the honor to make you mount guard beside the scaffold. +Such an occasion to display your devotion should not escape you,--David +found it profitable to catch the expiring agonies of his own friends, as +with easel and brush he sat beside the guillotine: the hint should not +be lost." + +The insulting emphasis with which he spoke the last words cut me to +the very heart, and I stood speechless before him, trembling like a +criminal. + +"Let us part, De Beauvais," said I, at length, as I held my hand towards +him. "Let us say adieu to each other, and forever. I can forgive all +you have said to me, far better than I could myself had I listened to +your persuasions. What may be honorable and just in you, would be black +ingratitude and dark treachery in me. I shall now endeavor to forget we +have ever met, and once more, good-by!" + +"You are right," replied he, after a pause of some seconds, and in a +tone of great sadness; "we never should have met. Adieu!" + +"One word more, De Beauvais. I find that I have been suspected of some +treasonable intercourse; that even here I am watched and spied upon. +Tell me, I beseech you, before you go, from what quarter comes this +danger, that I may guard against it." + +"In good truth, you give me credit for quicker perceptions than I +have any right to. How so loyal a gentleman should lie under such an +imputation I cannot even guess." + +"Your sneers shall not provoke me. The fact is as I state it; and if +you will not help me to the discovery, tell me, at least, who are the +persons to whom you introduced me formerly at Beauvilliers's?" + +"Very excellent company! I trust none of them have cheated you at +ecarte." + +"Pray, have done with jesting, and answer me. Who is your Abbe?" + +"_Ma foi_, he is the Abbe, d'Ervan. What part of France he comes from, +who are his family, friends, and resources,--are all questions I have +never thought proper to ask him; possibly because I am not so scrupulous +on the score of my acquaintances as you are. He is a very clever, +amusing, witty person; knows almost every one; has the entree into every +house in the Faubourg St. Germain; can compose a couplet and sing it; +make a mayonnaise or a madrigal better than any man I know; and, in +fact, if he were one of these days to be a minister of France, I should +not be so very much surprised as you appear this moment at my not +knowing more about him. As to the other, the Russian secretary,--or spy, +if you like the phrase better, he was unlucky enough to have one of his +couriers robbed by a party of brigands, which scandal says were sent out +for the purpose by Monsieur de Talleyrand. His secret despatches +were opened and read; and as they were found to implicate the Russian +Government in certain intrigues carrying on, the Czar had only one +course open, which was to recall the secretary and disavow his whole +proceedings. The better to evince his displeasure, I hear they have +slit his nose, and sent him to pass the winter at Tobolsk. Lastly, the +prefet. What shall I say of him, save that he was a prefet in the South, +and wants to be one again? His greatest endeavors in any cause will be +to pledge its success in Burgundy, or, if you wish, drink the downfall +of its enemy; and as to his enthusiasm, he cares a devilish deal more +for a change of weather than a change of dynasty, particularly in the +truffle season, or when the vines are ripening. Such are the truly +dangerous associates you have kept company with. It now only remains to +speak of my humble self, whose history, I need scarcely say, is far more +at your service than worth the hearing. Are you satisfied?" + +"Quite so, as regards me; by no means so, however, as to your fate. +Short as our intimacy has been, I have seen enough of you to know +that qualities like yours should not be wasted in a mad or hopeless +enterprise." + +"Who told you it was either?" interrupted he, impetuously. "Who dares to +say that the rule of a Usurper is more firmly placed than the prestige +of a Monarchy that goes back to Hugues Capet? Come, come! I will not +discuss these questions with you, nor have I temper now left to do so. +Give me the countersign to pass the sentry, and let us part." + +"Not in anger, though, De Beauvais." + +"Not in friendship, sir," replied he, proudly, as he waved back, with +his, my proffered hand. "Adieu!" said he, in a softened tone, as he +moved from the room; and then, turning quickly round, he added, "We may +meet again hereafter, and scarcely can do so on equal terms. If fortune +stand by you I must be a beggar; should I win, yours is indeed a sorry +lot. When that time comes, let him with whom the world goes best not +forget the other. Good-by!" And with that he turned away, and left the +house. + +I watched him as he strode along the silent alleys, careless and free as +though he had no cause for fear, till he disappeared in the dark wood: +and then I sat down at the door to think over our interview. Never had +my heart felt more depressed. My own weakness in having ever admitted +the intimacy of men whose dangerous designs were apparent had totally +undermined the strong principle of rectitude I should have relied upon +in such a trial, and on which I could have thrown myself for support. +What had I to guide me after all, save my devotion to the cause of +Bonaparte himself? The prejudices of education, the leanings of family +opinion, the inclinations of friends, exist not for the alien. He has to +choose his allegiance; it is not born with him. His loyalty is not the +growth of a hundred different sympathies, that have twined round his +heart in childhood and grown with him to manhood; speaking of home and +infancy, of his own native streams and mountains, of a land that was his +father's. No! with him it is not a conviction,--it is but a feeling. + +Such was the substance of my reverie; and as I arose and strolled out +into the park, it was with a deeply-uttered vow to be true to him and +his fortunes whose name first lit the spark of ambition in my heart, and +through weal or woe to devote myself to him. + + + +CHAPTER XXXI. THE CHATEAU + + +The same day that De Beauvais left me, the Court took its departure +from Versailles. A sudden resolution of the Consul to visit the camp +at Boulogne, where he was to be accompanied by Madame Bonaparte, was +announced as the reason for this change; while a dark rumor ran that +some detected scheme for his assassination had induced his friends to +advise this step. Certain it was, the preparations were made with the +utmost speed, and in less than an hour after the despatch had arrived +from Paris, the Court was on its way back to the capital. + +It was not without a sense of sadness that I watched the equipages as +they rolled one by one from beneath the deep colonnade, and traversed +the wide terrace, to disappear in the recesses of the dark forest. I +strained my eyes to catch even a passing look at one who to me had made +every walk and every alley a thing to love. But I could not see her; and +the last roll of the retiring wheels died away in the distance without +one friendly voice to say adieu, one smile at parting. + +Though I had not participated in the festivities of the chateau, nor +even been noticed by any of the guests, the absence of its gay world, +the glitter of its brilliant cortege, the neighing steeds in all their +bright panoply, the clank of military music, the gorgeously dressed +ladies who strolled along its terraced walks, made the solitude that +followed appear dark and desolate indeed; and now, as I walked the +park, whose avenues at noonday were silent as at midnight, the desertion +imparted a melancholy feeling to my heart I could not explain. How often +had I stopped beneath that balcony, striving to distinguish the soft +tones of one gentle voice amid the buzz of conversation! How had I +watched the crowded promenade every evening upon the terrace, to see one +figure there among the rest! and when my eye had fallen upon her, how +has it followed and traced her as she went! And now I frequented each +spot where I had ever seen her,--pacing at sunset the very walk she used +to take, dwelling on each word she ever spoke to me. The chateau, too, +of which before I had not passed the door, I now revisited again and +again, lingering in each room where I thought she had been, and even +resting on the chairs, and calling up before me her image as though +present. + +Thus passed over weeks and months. The summer glided into the mellow +autumn, and the autumn itself grew cold and chill, with grayish skies +and sighing winds that swept the leaves along the dark walks and moaned +sadly among the tall beech-trees. The still, calm waters of the little +lake, that reflected the bright foliage and the deep blue sky motionless +as in a mirror, was now ruffled by the passing breeze, and surged with a +low, sad sound against its rocky sides; and as I watched these changes, +I sorrowed less for the departing season than that every trace of her +I loved was fading from before me. The bare and skeleton branches now +threw their gaunt shadows where I had seen her walk at noonday enveloped +in deep shade. Dark, watery clouds were hurrying across the surface of +the stream where I had seen her fair form mirrored. The cold winds +of coming winter swept along the princely terrace where not a zephyr +rustled her dress as she moved. And somehow, I could not help connecting +these changes with my own sensations, and feeling that a gloomy winter +was approaching to my own most cherished hopes. + +Months passed over with me thus, in which, save on my round of duty, +I never spoke to any one. D'Ervan did not return as he promised,--a +circumstance which, with all my solitude, I sincerely rejoiced at. And +of De Beauvais I heard nothing; and yet, on one account, I could have +wished much to learn where he was. Unhappily, in the excitement of +the morning I last saw him, he forgot on the table at my quarters the +commission of colonel by which he had endeavored to tempt my ambition, +and which I never noticed till several hours after his departure. +Unwilling to destroy, and yet fearful of retaining it in my possession, +I knew not well what to do, and had locked it up in my writing-desk, +anxiously looking for an opportunity to forward it to him. None such, +however, presented itself, nor did I ever hear from him from the hour he +left me. + +The unbroken solitude in which I lived disposed me to study, and +I resumed the course which in earlier days had afforded me so much +interest and amusement; and by this, not only was my mind drawn off from +the contemplation of the painful circumstances of my own loneliness, but +gradually my former ardor for military distinction came back in all its +force. And thus did I learn, for the first time, how many of the griefs +that our brains beget find their remedies in the source they spring +from,--the exercise of the intellect being like that of the body, an +essential to a healthy state of thinking and feeling. Each day imparted +fresh energy to me in the path I followed; and in these solitary hours I +made those acquisitions in knowledge which in after life were to render +me the most important services, and prepare me for the contingencies of +a soldier's career. + +While thus engaged, time rolled over, and already the dark and gloomy +month of January set in with clouded skies and nights of storm and +rain. Everything wore its most cheerless aspect. Not only were the trees +leafless and bare, the roads broken up and fissured with streams of +water, but the neglected look of the chateau itself bespoke the sad +and gloomy, season. The closed shutters, the closely barred doors, +the statues covered up with mats to protect them from the weather, the +conservatories despoiled of all their gay habitants, betrayed that the +time was passed when in the warm air of sunset happy groups wandered +hither and thither, inhaling the rich odors of the flowers and gazing on +the brilliant landscape. + +It was about nine o'clock at night. The storm that usually began each +evening at the same hour was already stirring in fitful gusts among the +bare branches of the trees, or sending a sudden plash of rain against +the windows, when, as I drew closer to ray fire, and was preparing to +enjoy myself for the evening over my book, I heard the regular tramping +sound of a cavalry horse approaching along the terrace; the jingle of +the accoutrements was a noise I could not mistake. I arose, but before I +reached the door I heard a deep voice call out,-- + + "The Sous-Lieutenant Burke; a despatch from Paris." I took + the paper, which was sealed and folded in the most formal + manner, and returning to the room, opened it. The contents + ran thus:-- + + Sous-Lieutenant: On receipt of this you are commanded to + station four dragoons of your party, with a corporal, on the + road leading from Chaillot to Versailles, who shall detain + all persons passing that way unable to account + satisfactorily for their presence. You will also station a + picket of two dragoons at the cross-road from the Tron to + St. Cloud for the like purpose. The remainder of your party + to be under arms during the night, and if requisite, at the + disposal of Captain Lepelletier. For the execution of which, + the present order will be your responsibility. + + (Signed) Savary, + + Colonel de Gendarmerie d'Elite. + + Given at the Tuileries, January 14, 1804. + + +"So," thought I, "there is, then, something astir after all. These +precautions all indicate minute and accurate information; and now to +perform my part." Just at that instant I perceived at my feet a small +note, which apparently had fallen from the envelope as I opened it. I +took it up. It was addressed: "Sous-Lieutenant Burke," with the words +"in haste" written in the corner. Tearing it open at once, I read the +following:-- + + All is discovered; Pichegru arrested; Moreau at the + Temple. A party have left this to capture the others at the + Chateau d'Ancre; they cannot be there before midnight; + you may then yet be in time to save H. de B., who is among + them. Not an instant must be lost. + +There was no signature to this strange epistle, but I knew at once +from whom it came. Marie alone could venture on such a step to save her +lover. My own determination was taken at once; should my head be on +it, I 'd do her bidding. While I sent for the sergeant to give him the +orders of the colonel, I directed my servant to bring round my horse +to the door as lightly equipped as possible, and, save the holsters, +nothing of his usual accoutrements. Meanwhile I prepared myself for the +road by loading my pistols and fastening on my sword. The commission, +too, which De Beauvais had left behind, I did not forget, but taking it +from my desk, I placed it safely in my bosom. Nor was the brief billet +omitted, which, having read and re-read, I placed in the lining of my +cap for safety. One difficulty still presented itself: where was the +chateau, and how in the darkness of a winter's night should I find it? +I just then remembered that my troop sergeant, a sharp, intelligent +fellow, had been for some weeks past engaged in procuring forage about +the neighborhood, for several miles round. I sent for him at once and +asked him if he knew it. + +"Yes, lieutenant; perfectly. It was an old-seigneurie once; and though +much dismantled, has a look of respectability still about it. I 've +often been there to buy corn; but the gruff old farmer, they say, hates +the military, and it 's not easy to get him to deal with us at all." + +"What's the distance from here?" + +"Two leagues and a half, almost three; indeed you may count it as much, +the road is so bad." + +"Now then for the way. Describe it; be as brief as you can." + +"You know the cross on the high road beyond Ypres?" + +"I do. Proceed." + +"Passing the cross and the little shrine, go forward for a mile or +something more, till you come to a small cabaret on the roadside, at the +end of which you 'll find a 'chemin de traverse,' a clay road, which +will lead you up the fields about half a league to a large pond where +they water the cattle; cross this, and continue till you see the lights +of a village to your left; the barking of the dogs will guide you if the +lights be out; don't enter the village, but go on till you meet an old +gateway covered with ivy,--enter there, and you are in the avenue of the +chateau. The high road is full five leagues about, but you 'll easily +find this way. There 's a mastiff there you should be on your guard +against,--though you must not fire on him either; they were going to +take my life once that I half drew a pistol from my holster against him, +and I heard one of the fellows say to another that monseigneur's dog was +well worth a bleu any day, whatever he meant by that." + +Very few minutes sufficed to give my orders respecting the picket, and +I was in my saddle and ready for the road; and although my departure +excited no surprise among my men, coupled as it was with the orders I +had just given, I overheard the troop sergeant mutter to another as I +passed out, "Parbleu, I always suspected there was something wrong about +that old chateau yonder; come what weather it would, they'd never let +you take shelter within the walls of it." + +The night was so dark that when I turned into the road I could not even +distinguish my horse's head; heavy drifts of rain, too, went sweeping +along, and the wind roared through the forest with a noise like the sea +in a storm. + +I now put spurs to my horse, and the animal, fresh from long pampering, +sprang forward madly, and dashed onward. The very beating of the rain, +the adverse wind, seemed to chafe his spirits and excite his courage. +With head bent down, and hands firmly grasping the reins, I rode on, +till the faint glimmering of a light caught my eye at a distance; a few +miles brought me beside it. It was a little candle that burned in the +shrine above the image of the Virgin. Some pious but humble hand had +placed it there, regardless of the rain and storm; and there it was now +burning secure from the rude assaults of the harsh night, and throwing +its yellow light on the few cheap trinkets which village devotion had +consecrated to the beloved saint. As I looked at the little altar, I +thought of the perilous enterprise I was engaged in. I could have wished +my heart to have yielded to the influence of a superstition which for +every moment of life seems to have its own apt consolation and succor. +For when, as wayworn travellers refresh their parched lips at some +roadside well, and bless the charity that carved the little basin in the +rock,--so followers of this faith have ever and anon before their eyes +some material evidence of their Church's benevolence: now arming +them against the arrows of the world; now rendering them grateful for +benefits received; now taxing their selfishness by sacrifices which +elevate them in their own esteem; now comforting them by examples which +make them proud of their afflictions. It is this direct appeal from +the human heart to the hourly consolations of religion, that forms the +stronghold of belief in Catholic countries. + +These thoughts were passing through my mind long after I left the little +shrine behind me. "So," said I, "here must be the _cabaret_ the sergeant +spoke of," as I heard the sound of a voice issuing from a small house +on the roadside. For a second or two I hesitated whether I should not +dismount and ask the way; but a moment's consideration satisfied me it +were better to risk nothing by delay, and cautiously advancing, I heard +by the sound of my horse's feet that we had left the highroad, and were +now on the clay path I looked for. + +Again I dashed onward at a gallop, my powerful horse splashing through +the deep ground, or striding boldly across the heavy furrows; now +breasting some steep and rugged ascent where the torn-up way gave +passage to a swollen rivulet; now plunging down into some valley where +the darkness seemed thicker and more impenetrable still. At last I could +see, far down beneath me, the twinkling light of the village, and began +to deliberate with myself at what point I should turn off leftwards. +Each moment the path seemed to lead me in the direction of the light, +while I felt that my road led straight onwards. I drew my rein to +deliberate what course I should take, when directly in front of me I +thought I could detect the clank of a sabre flapping against the flank +of a horse. I lowered my head on a level with my horse's main, and could +now distinctly hear the sound I suspected; and more still, the deep +tones of a soldier's voice interrogating some one, who by the patois of +his answer I guessed to be a peasant. + +"You are certain, then, we have not come wrong?" said the horseman. + +"Ah! I know the way too well for that,--travelling it daylight and dark +since I was a boy. I was born in the village below. We shall soon reach +the little wooden bridge, and then, taming to the left, beside Martin +Guichard's--" + +"What care I for all that?" interrupted the other, roughly. "How far are +we now from the chateau? Is it still a league off?" + +"_Parbleu!_ no, nor the half of it. When you rise the hill yonder, +you 'll see a light,--they always have one burning in the tourelle +there,--and that 's the chateau." + +"Thank Heaven for that!" muttered I. "And now only let me pass them, and +all is safe." + +The figures before me, whom I could now dimly trace in the darkness, +were descending step by step a rugged and narrow path, where a tall +hedge formed a wall on either side. To get before them here, therefore, +was out of the question; my only chance was by a detour through the +fields to come down upon the village, and if possible gain the bridge he +spoke of before them. Quick as the thought, I turned from the deep road +to the still deeper earth of the ploughed field beside it. My horse, +a strong and powerful Norman, needed but the slightest movement of the +hand to plunge hotly on. My eyes bent upon the twinkle of the few lights +that still marked the little hamlet, I rode fearlessly forward,--now +tearing madly through some low osier fence; now slipping in the wet and +plashy soil, where each stride threatened to bring us both to the earth. +The descent became soon almost precipitous; but the deep ground gave +a footing, and I never slackened my speed. At length, with a crashing +sound, I found that we had burst the little enclosure of some village +garden, and could dimly trace the outline of a cottage at some distance +in front. Dismounting now, I felt my way cautiously for the path that +usually conducts at the end of the cabin to the garden. This I soon made +out, and the next minute was in the street. Happily, the storm, which +raged still as violently as before, suffered no one to be without doors, +and save the rare glimmer of a light, all was sunk in darkness. + +I walked on beside my horse for some minutes, and at last I heard the +rushing sound of a swollen river as it tore along in its narrow bed; +and approaching step by step discovered the little bridge, which simply +consisted of two planks, unprotected by any railing at either side. With +a little difficulty I succeeded in leading my horse across, and was just +about to mount, when the sound of the trooper's voice from the village +street again reached me. + +A sudden thought flashed through my mind. Each moment might now be +precious; and stooping down, I lifted the end of the plank and sent it +with a crash into the stream; the other soon followed it, and before +I was in my saddle again the torrent was carrying them along amid the +rocks of the stream. + +"Here is a misfortune," cried the peasant, in a tone of misery; "the +bridge has been carried away by the flood." + +"_Tonnerre de ciel_! and is there no other way across?" said the +dragoon, in a voice of passion. + +I waited not to hear more, but giving the spur to my horse, dashed up +the steep bank, and the next moment saw the light of the chateau,--for +such I guessed to be a bright star that twinkled at a distance. "Speed +now will do it," said I, and put my strong Norman to his utmost. The +wind tore past me scarce faster than I went, while the beating rain came +round me. The footway soon altered, and I found that we were crossing +a smooth turf like a lawn. "Ha! this is the old gate," thought I, as +a tall archway, overhung with ivy and closed by a strong door, opposed +farther progress. I beat loudly against it with the heavy handle of my +whip, but to no purpose; the hoarse voice of the storm drowned all such +sounds. I dismounted and endeavored to make myself heard by knocking +with a large stone. I shouted, I cried aloud, but all in vain. My terror +increased every instant. What was to be done? The dragoon might arrive +at any moment, and then I myself must share the ruin of the others. +Maddened by the emergency that each moment grew more pressing, I sprang +into the saddle, and following the direction of the wall, rode round +to the other side of the chateau, seeking some open spot, some break +whereby to enter. + +I had not gone far when I saw a portion of the wall which broken and +dilapidated, afforded the opportunity desired. I hesitated not, but +dashed wildly at it. My horse, unaccustomed to such an effort, chested +the barrier, and came rolling head foremost to the earth, throwing me +several yards before him. A cry of pain escaped me as I fell; and I +scarcely could gain my knees to rise, when the hoarse bay of a savage +dog broke upon my ear, and I heard the animal tearing through the +brushwood towards me. I drew my sabre in a trice, and scarce knowing at +what side to defend myself, laid wildly about me, while I shouted with +all my might for help. The furious beast sprang like a tiger at my +throat, and, though wounded by a chance cut, seized me in his terrible +fangs. Fortunately the strong collar of my uniform served to protect me; +but the violence of the assault carried me off my balance, and we rolled +one over the other to the ground. Grasping his throat with both hands, I +endeavored to strangle him, while he vainly sought to reach my face. + +At this critical moment my cries were heard within, and numerous lights +flitted up and down in front of the chateau, and a crowd of persons, all +armed, were quickly about me. Seizing the dog by his collar, a peasant +tore him away; while another, holding a lantern to my face, cried out in +a voice of terror, "They are upon us! we are lost!" + +"_Parbleu!_ you should let Colbert finish his work,--he is a 'blue;' +they are but food for dogs any day." + +[Illustration: The Chouans 327] + +"Not so," said another, in a low, determined voice; "this is a surer +weapon.', I heard the cock of a pistol click as he spoke. + +"Halt there! stop, I say!" cried a voice, in a tone of command. "I know +him; I know him well. It 's Burke; is it not?" + +It was De Beauvais spoke, while at the same moment he knelt down beside +me od the grass, and put his arm round my neck. I whispered one word +into his ear. He sprang to his feet, and with a hasty direction to +assist me towards the house, disappeared. Before I could reach the door +he was again beside me. + +"And you did this to save me, dear friend?" said he, in a voice half +stifled with sobs. "You have run all this danger for my sake?" + +I did not dare to take the merit of an act I had no claim to, still +less to speak of her for whose sake I risked my life, and leaned on him +without speaking, as he led me within the porch. + +"Sit down here for a moment,--but one moment," said he, in a whisper, +"and I'll return to you." + +I sat down upon a bench, and looked about me. The place had all +the evidence of being one of consequence in former days. The walls, +wainscoted in dark walnut wood, were adorned with grotesque carvings +of hunting scenes and instruments of venery. The ceiling, in the same +taste, displayed trophies of weapons, intermingled with different +emblems of the _chasse_; while in the centre, and enclosed within a +garter, were the royal arms of the Bourbons,--the gilding that once +shone on them was tarnished and faded; the fleurs-de-lis, too, were +broken and dilapidated; while but a stray letter of the proud motto +remained, as if not willing to survive the downfall of those on whom it +was now less a boast than a sarcasm. + +As I sat thus, the wide hall was gradually filled with men, whose +anxious and excited faces betokened the fears my presence had excited, +while not one ventured to speak or address a word to me. Most of them +were armed with cutlasses, and some carried pistols in belts round their +waists; while others had rude pikes, whose coarse fashion betokened the +handiwork of a village smith. They stood in a semicircle round me; +and while their eyes were riveted upon me with an expression of most +piercing interest, not a syllable was spoken. Suddenly a door was opened +at the end of a corridor, and De Beauvais called out,-- + +"This way, Burke; come this way!" + + + +CHAPTER XXXII. THE CHATEAU d'ANCRE. + +Before I had time to collect myself, I was hurried on by De Beauvais +into a room, when the moment I had entered the door was closed and +locked behind me. By the light of a coarse and rudely formed chandelier +that occupied the middle of a table, I saw a party of near a dozen +persons who sat around it,--the head of the board being filled by one +whose singular appearance attracted all my attention. He was a man of +enormous breadth of chest and shoulders, with a lofty massive head, on +either side of which a quantity of red hair fell in profusion; a +beard of the same color descended far on his bosom, which, with his +overhanging eyebrows, imparted a most savage and ferocious expression to +features which of themselves were harsh and repulsive. Though he wore +a blouse in peasant fashion, it was easy to see that he was not of the +lower walk of society. Across his brawny chest a broad belt of black +leather passed, to support a strong straight sword, the heavy hilt of +which peeped above the arm of his chair. A pair of handsomely-mounted +pistols lay before him on the table; and the carved handle of a poniard +could be seen projecting slightly from the breast-pocket of his vest. +Of the rest who were about him I had but time to perceive that they were +peasants; but all were armed, and most of them wearing a knot of white +ribbon at the breast of their blouses. + +Every eye was turned towards me, as I stood at the foot of the table +astonished and speechless--while De Beauvais, quitting my arm, hastened +to the large man's side, and whispered some words in his ear. He rose +slowly from his chair, and in a moment each face was turned to him. +Speaking in a deep guttural tone, he addressed them for some minutes in +a patois of which I was totally ignorant; every word he uttered seemed +to stir their very hearts, if I were to judge from the short and heavy +respiration, the deep-drawn breath, the flushed faces and staring eyes +around me. More than once some allusion seemed made to me,--at least, +they turned simultaneously to look at me; once, too, at something he +said, each man carried his hand round to his sword-hilt, but dropped +it again listlessly as he continued. The discourse over, the door was +unlocked, and one by one they left the room, each man saluting the +speaker with a reverence as he passed out. De Beauvais closed the door +and barred it as the last man disappeared, and turning hastily round, +called out,-- + +"What now?" + +The large man bent his head down between his hands, and spoke not in +reply; then suddenly springing up, he said,-- + +"Take my horse--he is fresh and ready for the road--and make for +Quilleboeuf; the ford at Montgorge will be swollen, but he 'll take the +stream for you. At the farmer's house that looks over the river you can +stop." + +"I know it, I know it," said De Beauvais. "But what of you, are you to +remain behind?" + +"I 'll go with him," said he, pointing towards me. "As his companion, +I can reach the Bois de Boulogne; in any case, as his prisoner. Once +there, you may trust me for the rest." + +De Beauvais looked at me for a reply. I hesitated what to say, and at +last said,-- + +"For your sake, Henri de Beauvais, and yours only, have I ventured on a +step which may, in all likelihood, be my ruin. I neither know, nor wish +to know, your plans; nor will I associate myself with any one, be he who +he may, in your enterprise." + +"Jacques Tisserand, the tanner," continued the large man, as if not +heeding nor caring for my interruption, "will warn Armand de Polignac +of what has happened; and Charles de la Riviere had better remain near +Deauville for the English cutter,--she 'll lie off the coast to-morrow or +next day. Away! lose not a moment." + +"And my dear friend here," said De Beauvais, turning to me, "who has +risked his very life to rescue me, shall I leave him thus?" + +"Can you save him by remaining?" said the other, as he coolly examined +the priming of his pistols. "We shall all escape, if you be but quick." + +A look from De Beauvais drew me towards him, when he threw his arms +around my neck, and in a low, broken voice, muttered, "When I tell you +that all I lived for exists to me no longer,--the love I sought refused +me, my dearest ambition thwarted,--you will not think that a selfish +desire for life prompts me now; but a solemn oath to obey the slightest +command of that man,--sworn before my sovereign,--binds me, and I must +not break it." + +"Away, away! I hear voices at the gate below," cried the other. + +"Adieu! adieu forever," said De Beauvais, as he kissed my cheek, and +sprang through a small doorway in the wainscot which closed after him as +he went. + +"Now for our movements," said the large man, unhooking a cloak that hung +against the wall. "You must tie my hands with this cord in such a way +that, although seemingly secure, I can free myself at a moment; place me +on a horse, a fast one too, beside you; and order your troopers to ride +in front and rear of us. When we reach the Bois de Boulogne, leave the +Avenue des Chasseurs and turn towards St. Cloud. _Tonnerre de del_, +they're firing yonder!" An irregular discharge of small arms, followed +by a wild cheer, rang out above the sound of the storm. "Again! did +you hear that? there are the carbines of cavalry; I know their ring. +Accursed dogs, that would not do my bidding!" cried he, stamping with +passion on the ground, while, throwing off his blouse, he stuck his +pistols in a belt around his waist, and prepared for mortal combat. + +Meanwhile pistol-shots, mingled with savage shouts and wild hurrahs, +were heard approaching nearer and nearer; and at length a loud knocking +at the front door, with a cry of "They 're here! they 're here!" + +The large man, now fully armed, and with his drawn sword in his hand, +unlocked the door. The passage without was full of armed peasants, +silent and watchful for his commands. A few words in the former patois +seemed sufficient to convey them, and their answer was a cheer that made +the walls ring. + +The chief moved rapidly from place to place through the crowds, who at +his bidding broke into parties: some of them occupied doorways which +enfiladed the hall; others knelt down to suffer some to fire above their +heads; here were two posted, armed with hatchets, at the very entrance +itself; and six of the most determined-looking were to dispute the +passage with their muskets. Such was the disposition of the force, when +suddenly the light was extinguished, and all left in utter darkness. +The deep breathing of their anxious breasts alone marked their presence; +when without doors the sounds of strife gradually died away, and the +storm alone was heard. + +As for me, I leaned against a doorway, my arms folded on my bosom, my +head sunk, while I prayed for death, the only exit I could see to my +dishonor. + +There was a terrible pause,--the very hurricane seemed to abate +its violence, and only the heavy rain was heard as it fell in +torrents,--when, with a loud crash, the door in front was burst open, +and fell with a bang upon the floor. Not a word from those within, not +a motion, betrayed their presence; while the whispered tones of a party +without showed that the enemy was there. + +"Bring up the torches quickly here," called out a voice like that of an +officer; and as he spoke the red flare of lighted pine branches was seen +moving through the misty atmosphere. + +The light fell upon a strong party of dismounted dragoons and +_gendarmerie_, who, carbine in hand, stood waiting for the word to dash +forward. The officer, whose figure I could distinguish as he moved along +the front of his men, appeared to hesitate, and for a few seconds all +stood motionless. At length, as if having resolved on his plan, he +approached the doorway, a pine torch in his hand; another step, and the +light must have disclosed the dense array of armed peasants that stood +and knelt around the hall, when a deep low voice within uttered the one +word, "Now!--and quick," as if by his breath the powder had been ignited, +a volley rang out, pattering like hail on the steel breastplates and +through the branches of the trees. A mingled shout of rage and agony +rose from those without, and without waiting for a command, they rushed +onward. + +The peasants, who had not time to reload their pieces, clubbed them in +their strong hands, and laid wildly about them. The fight was now hand +to hand; for, narrow as was the doorway, some three or four dragoons +pressed every moment in, and gradually the hall became a dense mass of +indiscriminate combatants. The large man fought like one possessed, and +cleft his way towards the entrance with a long straight dagger, as if +regardless of friends or foes. "A moi! a moi!" cried a tall and powerful +man, as he sprang at his throat; "this is he!" The words were his last, +as, stabbed to the very heart, he sprang backward in his death-agony; +but at the moment a perfect shower of bullets rattled around the large +man, one of which alone took effect in his shoulder. Still he strove +onwards, and at last, with a spring like a savage tiger, he lowered his +head, and bounded clean out into the court. Scarcely, however, had his +foot touched the wet grass, when he slipped forward, and fell heavily +on his back. A dozen swords flashed above him as he lay, and only by +the most immense efforts of the officer was he spared death in a hundred +wounds. + +[Illustration: Capture of the "Red-Beard" 334] + +The defeat of their leader seemed to subdue all the daring courage of +his party; the few who were able to escape dashed hither and thither, +through passages and doorways they were well acquainted with; while the +flagged floor was bathed in blood from the rest, as they lay in mangled +and frightful forms, dead and dying on every side. + +Like one in some dreadful dream, I stood spectator of this savage +strife, wishing that some stray bullet had found my heart, yet ashamed +to die with such a stain upon my honor. I crossed my arms before my +breast, and waited for my doom. Two gendarmes passed quickly to and +fro with torches, examining the faces and looks of those who were still +likely to live, when suddenly one of them cried out, as he stood before +me,-- + +"What 's this? An officer of hussars here!" + +The exclamation brought an officer to the spot, who, holding a lantern +to my face, said quickly,--"How is this, sir? how came you here?" + +"Here is my sword, sir," said I, drawing it from the scabbard; "I place +myself under arrest. In another place, and to other judges, I must +explain my conduct." + +"_Parbleu!_ Jacques," said the officer, addressing another who sat, while +his wounds were being bound up, on a chair near, "this affair is worse +than we thought of. Here 's one of the huitieme in the thick of it." + +"I hope, sir," said I, addressing the young man, whose arm was bleeding +profusely from a sabre wound,--"I hope, sir, your wound may not be of +consequence." + +He looked up suddenly, and while a smile of the most insulting sarcasm +curled his bloodless lip, answered,-- + +"I thank you, sir, for your sympathy; but you must forgive me, if one of +these days I cannot bandy consolations with you." + +"You are right, Lieutenant," said a dragoon, who lay bleeding from a +dreadful cut in the forehead; "I'd not exchange places with him myself +this minute for all his epaulettes." + +With an overwhelming sense of my own degraded position, when to such +taunts as these I dared not reply, I stood mute and confounded. + +Meantime the soldiers were engaged in collecting together the scattered +weapons, fastening the wrists of the prisoners with cords, and +ransacking the house for such proofs of the conspiracy as might +criminate others at a distance. By the time these operations were +concluded, the day began to break, and I could distinguish in the +courtyard several large covered carts or charrettes destined to convey +the prisoners. One of these was given up entirely to the chief, who, +although only slightly wounded, would never assist himself in the least, +but lay a heavy, inert mass, suffering the others to lift him and place +him in the cart. Such as were too badly wounded to be moved were placed +in a room in the chateau, a guard being left over them. + +A sergeant of the _gendarmerie_ now approached me as I stood, and +commenced, without a word, to examine me for any papers or documents +that might be concealed about my person. + +"You are in error," said I, quietly. "I have nothing of what you +suspect." + +"Do you call this nothing?" interrupted he, triumphantly, as he drew +forth the parchment commission I had placed in my bosom, and forgot to +restore to De Beauvais. "_Parbleu!_ you'd have had a better memory had +your plans succeeded." + +"Give it here," said an officer, as he saw the sergeant devouring the +document with his eyes. "Ah!" cried he, starting, "he was playing a high +stake, too. Let him be closely secured." + +While the orders of the officer were being followed up, the various +prisoners were secured in the carts, mounted dragoons stationed at +either side, their carbines held unslung in their hands. At last my turn +came, and I was ordered to mount into a _charrette_ with two gendarmes, +whose orders respecting any effort at escape on my part were pretty +clearly indicated by the position of two pistols carried at either side +of me. + +A day of heavy, unremitting rain, without any wind or storm, succeeded +to the night of tempest. Dark inky clouds lay motionless near the earth, +whose surface became blacker by the shadow. A weighty and lowering +atmosphere added to the gloom I felt, and neither in my heart within nor +in the world without could I find one solitary consolation. + +At first I dreaded lest my companions should address me,--a single +question would have wrung my very soul; but happily they maintained a +rigid silence, nor did they even speak to each other during the +entire journey. At noon we halted at a small roadside cabaret, where +refreshments were provided, and relays of horses in waiting, and again +set out on our way. The day was declining when we reached the Bois de +Boulogne, and entered the long avenue that leads to the Barriere de +l'Etoile. The heavy wheels moved noiselessly over the even turf, and, +save the jingle of the troopers' equipments, all was hushed. For above +an hour we had proceeded thus, when a loud shout in front, followed by a +pistol-shot, and then three or four others quickly after it, halted the +party; and I could mark through the uncertain light the mounted figures +dashing wildly here and there, and plunging into the thickest of the +wood. + +"Look to the prisoners," cried an officer, as he galloped down the line; +and, at the word, every man seized his carbine, and held himself on the +alert. + +Meanwhile the whole cavalcade was halted, and I could see that something +of consequence had occurred in front, though of what nature I could +not even guess. At last a sergeant of the gendarmes rode up to our side +splashed and heated. + +"Has he escaped?" cried one of the men beside me. + +"Yes!" said he, with an oath, "the brigand has got away; though how +he cut the cords on his wrists, or by what means he sprang from the +charrette to the road, the devil must answer. Ha! there they are firing +away after him. The only use of their powder is to show the fellow where +they are." + +"I would not change places with our captain this evening," cried one of +the gendarmerie. "Returning to Paris without the red beard--" + +"_Ma foi_, you're not wrong there. It will be a heavy reckoning for him +with dark Savary; and as to taking a Breton in a wood--" + +The word to march interrupted the colloquy, and again we moved forward. + +By some strange sympathy I cannot account for, I felt glad that the +chief had made his escape. The gallantry of his defence, the implicit +obedience yielded him by the others, had succeeded in establishing an +interest for him in my mind; and the very last act of daring courage +by which he effected his liberty increased the feeling. By what an +easy transition, too, do we come to feel for those whose fate has any +similarity with our own! The very circumstance of common misfortune is a +binding link; and thus I was not without an anxious hope that the chief +might succeed in his escape, though, had I known his intrigue or his +intentions, such interest had scarcely found a place in my heart. + +Such reflections as these led me to think how great must be the charm to +the human mind of overcoming difficulty or confronting danger, when even +for those of whom we know nothing we can feel, and feel warmly, when +they stand before us in such a light as this. Heroism and bravery appeal +to every nature; and bad must be the cause in which they are exerted, +before we can venture to think ill of those who possess them. + +The lamps were beginning to be lighted as we reached the Barriere, and +halted to permit the officer of the party to make his report of who +we were. The formality soon finished, we defiled along the Boulevard, +followed by a crowd, that, increasing each moment, at last occupied +the entire road, and made our progress slow and difficult. While the +curiosity of the people to catch sight of the prisoners demanded all +the vigilance of the guards to prevent it, a sad and most appalling +stillness pervaded the whole multitude, and I could hear a murmur as +they went that it was Generals Moreau and Pichegru who were taken. + +At length we halted, and I could see that the foremost charrette was +entering a low archway, over which a massive portcullis hung. The gloomy +shadow of a dark, vast mass, that rose against the inky sky, lowered +above the wall, and somehow seemed to me as if well known. + +"This is the Temple?" said I to the gendarme on my right. + +A nod was the reply, and a half-expressive look that seemed to say, "In +that word you have said your destiny." + +About two years previous to the time I now speak of, I remember one +evening, when returning from a solitary walk along the Boulevard, +stopping in front of a tall and weather-beaten tower, the walls black +with age, and pierced here and there with narrow windows, across which +strong iron stanchions ran transversely. A gloomy fosse, crossed by a +narrow drawbridge, surrounded the external wall of this dreary building, +which needed no superstition to invest it with a character of crime +and misfortune. This was the Temple,--the ancient castle of the knights +whose cruelties were written in the dark obbliettes and the noisome +dungeons of that dread abode. A terrace ran along the tower on three +sides. There, for hours long, walked in sadness and in sorrow the last +of France's kings,--Louis the Sixteenth,--his children at his side. In +that dark turret the Dauphin suffered death. At the low casement yonder, +Madame Royale sat hour by hour, the stone on which she leaned wet +with her tears. The place was one of gloomy and sinister repute: the +neighborhood spoke of the heavy roll of carriages that passed the +drawbridge at the dead of night; of strange sounds and cries, of secret +executions, and even of tortures that were inflicted there. Of these +dreadful missions a corps called the "Gendarmes d'Elite" were vulgarly +supposed the chosen executors, and their savage looks and repulsive +exterior gave credibility to the surmise; while some affirmed that the +Mameluke guard the Consul had brought with him from Egypt had no other +function than the murder of the prisoners confined there. + +Little thought I then that in a few brief months I should pass beneath +that black portcullis a prisoner. Little did I anticipate, as I wended +my homeward way, my heart heavy and my step slow, that the day was to +come when in my own person I was to feel the sorrows over which I then +wept for others. + + + +CHAPTER XXXIII. THE TEMPLE + +This was the second morning of my life which opened in the narrow cell +of a prison; and when I awoke and looked upon the bare, bleak walls, the +barred window, the strongly bolted door, I thought of the time when as +a boy I slept within the walls of Newgate. The same sad sounds were now +about me: the measured tread of sentinels; the tramp of patrols; the +cavernous clank of door-closing, and the grating noise of locking and +unlocking heavy gates; and then that dreary silence, more depressing +than all,--how they came back upon me now, seeming to wipe out all +space, and bring me to the hours of my boyhood's trials! Yet what were +they to this? what were the dangers I then incurred to the inevitable +ruin now before me? True, I knew neither the conspirators nor their +crime; but who would believe it? How came I among them? Dare I tell it, +and betray her whose honor was dearer to me than my life? Yet it was +hard to face death in such a cause; no sense of high though unsuccessful +daring to support me; no strongly roused passion to warm my blood, and +teach me bravely to endure a tarnished name. Disgrace and dishonor were +all my portion,--in that land, too, where I once hoped to win fame and +glory, and make for myself a reputation among the first and greatest. + +The deep roll of a drum, followed by the harsh turning of keys in the +locks along the corridor, interrupted my sad musings; and the next +minute my door was unbolted, and an official, dressed in the uniform of +the prison, presented himself before me. + +"Ah, monsieur! awake and dressed already!" said he, in a gay and smiling +tone, for which the place had not prepared me. "At eight we breakfast +here; at nine you are free to promenade in the garden or on the +terrace,--at least, all who are not _au secret_,--and I have to +felicitate monsieur on that pleasure." + +"How, then? I am not a prisoner?" + +"Yes, _parbleu!_ you are a prisoner, but not under such heavy imputation +as to be confined apart. All in this quarter enjoy a fair share of +liberty: live together, walk, chat, read the papers, and have an easy +time of it. But you shall judge for yourself; come along with me." + +In a strange state of mingled hope and fear I followed the jailer along +the corridor, and across a paved courtyard into a low hall, where basins +and other requisites for a prison toilet were arranged around the walls. +Passing through this, we ascended a narrow stair, and finally entered a +large, well-lighted room, along which a table, plentifully but plainly +provided, extended the entire length. The apartment was crowded with +persons of every age, and apparently every condition, all conversing +noisily and eagerly together, and evidencing as little seeming restraint +as though within the walls of a cafe. + +[Illustration: The Templars 341] + +Seated at a table, I could not help feeling amused at the strange medley +of rank and country about me. Here were old _militaire_, with bushy +beards and mustaches, side by side with muddy-faced peasants, whose +long, yellow locks bespoke them of Norman blood; hard, weather-beaten +sailors from the coast of Bretagne, talking familiarly with venerable +seigneurs in all the pomp of powder and a queue; priests with shaven +crowns; young fellows, whose easy looks of unabashed effrontery betrayed +the careless Parisian,--all were mingled up together, and yet not one +among the number did I see whose appearance denoted sorrow for his +condition or anxiety for his fate. + +The various circumstances of their imprisonment, the imputation they +lay under, the acts of which they were accused, formed the topics of +conversation, in common with the gossip of the town, the news of the +theatres, and the movements in political life. Never was there a society +with less restraint; each man knew his neighbor's history too well to +make concealment of any value, and frankness seemed the order of the +day. While I was initiating myself into so much of the habit of the +place, a large, flat, florid personage, who sat at the head of the +table, called out to me for my name. + +"The governor desires to have your name and rank for his list," said my +neighbor at the right hand. + +Having given the required information, I could not help expressing +my surprise how, in the presence of the governor of the prison, they +ventured to speak so freely. + +"Ha," said the person I addressed, "he is not the governor of the +Temple; that's merely a title we have given him among ourselves. The +office is held always by the oldest _detenu_. Now he has been here ten +months, and succeeded to the throne about a fortnight since. The Abbe, +yonder, with the silk scarf round his waist, will be his successor, in a +few days." + +"Indeed! Then he will be at liberty so soon. I thought he seemed in +excellent spirits." + +"Not much, perhaps, on that score," replied he. "His sentence is hard +labor for life at the Bagne de Toulon." + +I started back with horror, and could not utter a word. + +"The Abbe," continued my informant, "would be right happy to take his +sentence. But the governor is speaking to you." + +"Monsieur le sous-lieutenant," said the governor, in a deep, solemn +accent, "I have the honor to salute you, and bid you welcome to the +Temple, in the name of my respectable and valued friends here about me. +We rejoice to possess one of your cloth amongst us. The last was, if I +remember aright, the Capitaine de Lorme, who boasted he could hit the +Consul at sixty paces with a pistol bullet." + +"Pardon, governor," said a handsome man in a braided frock; "we had +Ducaisne since." + +"So we had, commandant," said the governor, bowing politely, "and a very +pleasant fellow he was; but he only stopped one night here." + +"A single night, I remember it well," grunted out a thick-lipped, +rosy-faced little fellow near the bottom of the table. "You 'll meet him +soon, governor; he 's at Toulon. Pray, present my respects--" + +"A fine! a fine!" shouted a dozen voices in a breath. + +"I deny it, I deny it," replied the rosy-faced man, rising from his +chair. "I appeal to the governor if I am not innocent. I ask him if +there were anything which could possibly offend his feelings in my +allusion to Toulon, whither for the benefit of his precious health he is +about to repair." + +"Yes," replied the governor, solemnly, "you are fined three francs. I +always preferred Brest; Toulon is not to my taste." + +"Pay! pay!" cried out the others; while a pewter dish, on which some +twenty pieces of money were lying, was passed down the table. + +"And to resume," said the governor, turning towards me, "the secretary +will wait on you after breakfast to receive the fees of initiation, and +such information as you desire to afford him for your coming amongst +us, both being perfectly discretionary with you. He who desires the +privilege of our amicable reunion soon learns the conditions on which to +obtain it. The enjoyments of our existence here are cheap at any price. +Le Pere d'Oligny, yonder, will tell you life is short,--very few here +are likely to dispute the assertion, and perhaps the Abbe, Thomas may +give you a strong hint how to make the best of it." + +"_Parbleu_, governor I you forget the Abbe, left us this morning." + +"True, true; how my memory is failing me! The dear Abbe, did leave us, +sure enough." + +"Where for?" said I, in a whisper. + +"La Plaine de Grenelle," said the person beside me, in a low tone. "He +was guillotined at five o'clock." + +A sick shudder ran through me; and though the governor continued his +oration, I heard not a word he spoke, nor could I arouse myself from +the stupor until the cheers of the party, at the conclusion of the +harangue, awoke me. + +"The morning looks fine enough for a walk," said the man beside me. +"What say you to the gardens?" + +I followed him without speaking across the court and down a flight of +stone steps into a large open space, planted tastefully with trees, and +adorned by a beautiful fountain. Various walks and alleys traversed +the garden in every direction, along which parties were to be seen +walking,--some laughing, some reading aloud the morning papers; but +all engaged, and, to all seeming, pleasantly. Yet did their reckless +indifference to life, their horrible carelessness of each other's fate, +seem to me far more dreadful than any expression of sorrow, however +painful; and I shrank from them as though the contamination of their +society might impart that terrible state of unfeeling apathy they were +given up to. Even guilt itself had seemed less repulsive than this +shocking and unnatural recklessness. + +Pondering thus, I hurried from the crowded path, and sought a lonely, +unfrequented walk which led along the wall of the garden. I had not +proceeded far when the low but solemn notes of church music struck on my +ear. I hastened forward, and soon perceived, through the branches of a +beech hedge, a party of some sixteen or eighteen persons kneeling on the +grass, their hands lifted as if in prayer, while they joined in a psalm +tune,--one of those simple but touching airs which the peasantry of the +South are so attached to. Their oval faces bronzed with the sun; their +long, flowing hair, divided on the head and falling loose on either +shoulder; their dark eyes and long lashes,--bespoke them all from that +land of Bourbon loyalty, La Vendue, even had not their yellow jackets, +covered with buttons along the sleeves, and their loose hose, evinced +their nationality. Many of the countenances I now remembered to have +seen the preceding night; but some were careworn and emaciated, as if +from long imprisonment. + +I cannot tell how the simple piety of these poor peasants touched me, +contrasted, too, with the horrible indifference of the others. As I +approached them, I was recognized; and whether supposing that I was a +well wisher to their cause, or attracted merely by the tie of common +misfortune, they saluted me respectfully, and seemed glad to see me. +While two or three of those I had seen before moved forward to speak +to me, I remarked that a low, swarthy man, with a scar across his upper +lip, examined me with marked attention, and then whispered something +to the rest. At first he seemed to pay little respect to whatever they +said,--an incredulous shake of the head, or an impatient motion of the +hand, replying to their observations. Gradually, however, he relaxed in +this, and I could see that his stern features assumed a look of kinder +meaning. "So, friend," said he, holding out his tanned and powerful hand +towards me, "it was thou saved our chief from being snared like a wolf +in a trap. Le bon Dieu will remember the service hereafter; and the +good King will not forget thee, if the time ever comes for his better +fortune." + +"You must not thank me," said I, smiling; "the service I rendered was +one instigated by friendship only. I know not your plans; I never knew +them. The epaulette I wear I never was false to." + +A murmur of dissatisfaction ran along the party, and I could mark that +in the words they interchanged, feelings of surprise were mingled with +displeasure. At last, the short man, commanding silence with a slight +motion of the hand, said,-- + +"I am sorry for it,--your courage merited a better cause; however, the +avowal was at least an honest one. And now, tell us, why came you here?" + +"For the very reason I 've mentioned. My presence at the chateau last +night, and my discovery during the attack, were enough to impute guilt. +How can I clear myself, without criminating those I would not name?" + +"That matters but little. Doubtless, you have powerful friends,--rich +ones, perhaps, and in office; they will bear you harmless." + +"Alas! you are wrong. I have not in all the length and breadth of France +one who, if a word would save me from the scaffold, would care to speak +it. I am a stranger and an alien." + +"Hal" said a fair-haired, handsome youth, starting from the grass where +he had been sitting, "what would I not give now, if your lot was mine. +They 'd not make my heart tremble if I could forget the cabin I was born +in." + +"Hush, Philippe!" said the other, "the weapon is not in their armory to +make a Vendean tremble--But, hark! there is the drum for the inspection. +You must present yourself each day at noon, at the low postern yonder, +and write your name; and mark me, before we part, it cannot serve us, it +may ruin you, if we are seen to speak together. Trust no one here' Those +whom you see yonder are half of them _moutons_." + +"How?" said I, not understanding the phrase. + +"Ay, it was a prison word I used," resumed he. "I would say they are but +spies of the police, who, as if confined for their offences, are only +here to obtain confessions from unguarded, unsuspecting prisoners. Their +frankness and sincerity are snares that have led many to the guillotine: +beware of them. You dare not carry your glass to your lip, but the +murmured toast might be your condemnation. Adieu!" said he; and as he +spoke he turned away and left the place, followed by the rest. + +The disgust I felt at first for the others was certainly not lessened by +learning that their guilt was stained by treachery the blackest that can +disgrace humanity; and now, as I walked among them, it was with a sense +of shrinking horror I recoiled from the very touch of the wretches whose +smiles were but lures to the scaffold. + +"Ha! our lost and strayed friend," said one, as I appeared, "come hither +and make a clean breast of it. What amiable weaknesses have introduced +you to the Temple?" + +"In truth," said I, endeavoring to conceal my knowledge of my +acquaintances' real character, "I cannot even guess, nor do I believe +that any one else is wiser than myself." + +"_Parbleu!_, young gentleman," said the Abbe, as he spied me +impertinently through his glass, "you are excessively old-fashioned for +your years. Don't you know that spotless innocence went out with the +Bourbons? Every one since that dies in the glorious assertion of his +peculiar wickedness, with certain extenuating circumstances which he +calls human nature." + +"And now, then," resumed the first speaker, "for your mishap,--what was +it?" + +"I should only deceive you were I to give any other answer than my +first. Mere suspicion there may be against me; there can be no more." + +"Well, well, let us have the suspicions. The 'Moniteur' is late this +morning, and we have nothing to amuse us." + +"Who are you?" cried another, a tall, insolent-looking fellow, with a +dark mustache. "That 's the first question. I've seen a _mouton_ in a +hussar dress before now." + +"I am too late a resident here," answered I, "to guess how far insolence +goes unpunished; but if I were outside these walls, and you also, I 'd +teach you a lesson you have yet to learn, sir." + +"_Parbleu!_" said one of the former speakers, "Jacques, he has you +there, though it was no great sharpness to see you were a _blane-bec_." + +The tall fellow moved away, muttering to himself, as a hearty laugh +broke forth among the rest. + +"And now," said the Abbe, with a simper, "pardon the liberty; but have +you had any trifling inducement for coming to pass a few days here? Were +you making love to Madame la Consulesse? or did you laugh at General +Bonaparte's grand dinners? or have you been learning the English +grammar? or what is it?" + +I shook my head, and was silent. + +"Gome, come, be frank with us; unblemished virtue fares very ill here. +There was a gentleman lost his head this morning, who never did anything +all his life other than keep the post-office at Tarbes; but somehow +he happened to let a letter pass into the bag addressed to an elderly +gentleman in England, called the Comte d'Artois, not knowing that the +count's letters are always 'to the care of Citizen Bonaparte.' Well, +they shortened him by the neck for it. Cruel, you will say; but so much +for innocence." + +"For the last time, then, gentlemen, I must express my sincere sorrow +that I have neither murder, treason, nor any other infamy on my +conscience which might qualify me for the distinguished honor of +associating with you. Such being the case, and my sense of my deficiency +being so great, you will, I 'm sure, pardon me if I do not obtrude on +society of which I am unworthy, and which I have now the honor to wish +a good day to." With this and a formal bow, returned equally politely by +the rest, I moved on, and entered the tower. + +Sombre and sad as were my own reflections, yet did I prefer their +company to that of my fellow-prisoners, for whom already I began to +conceive a perfect feeling of abhorrence. Revolting, indeed, was the +indifference to fame, honor, and even life, which I already witnessed +among them; but what was it compared with the deliberate treachery of +men who could wait for the hour when the heart, overflowing with sorrow, +opened itself for consolation and comfort, and then search its every +recess for proofs of guilt that should bring the mourner to the +scaffold? + +How any government could need, how they could tolerate, such assassins +as these, I could not conceive. And was this his doing? were these his +minions, whose high-souled chivalry had been my worship and my idolatry? +No, no; I'll not believe it. Bonaparte knows not the dark and terrible +secrets of these gloomy walls. The hero of Arcole, the conqueror of +Italy, wots not of the frightful tyranny of these dungeons: did he but +know them, what a destiny would wait on those who thus stain with crime +and treachery the fame of that "Belle France" he made so great! + +Oh! that in the hour of my accusation,--in the very last of my life, +were it on the step of the guillotine,--I could but speak with words to +reach him, and say how glory like his must be tarnished if such deeds +went on unpunished; that while thousands and thousands were welcoming +his path with cries of wild enthusiasm and joy, in the cold cells of the +Temple there were breaking hearts, whose sorrow-wrung confessions were +registered, whose prayers were canvassed for evidences of desires that +might be converted into treason. He could have no sympathy with men like +these.. Not such the brave who followed him at Lodi; not kindred souls +were they who died for him at Marengo. Alas, alas! how might men read +of him hereafter, if by such acts the splendor of his greatness was +to suffer stain! While thoughts like these filled my mind, and in the +excitement of awakened indignation I trod my little cell backwards and +forwards, the jailer entered, and having locked the door behind him, +approached me. + +"You are the Sous-Lieutenant Burke: is it not so? Well, I have a letter +for you; I promised to deliver it on one condition only,--which is, that +when read, you shall tear it in pieces. Were it known that I did this, +my head would roll in the Plaine de Grenelle before daybreak tomorrow. +I also promised to put you on your guard: speak to few here; confide in +none. And now here is your letter." + +I opened the billet hastily, and read the few lines it contained, which +evidently were written in a feigned hand. + + "Your life is in danger; any delay may be your ruin. Address + the minister at once as to the cause of your detention, and + for the charges under which you are committed; demand + permission to consult an advocate, and when demanded it + can't be refused. Write to Monsieur Baillot, of 4 Rue + Chantereine, in whom you may trust implicitly, and who has + already instructions for your defence. Accept the enclosed, + and believe in the faithful attachment of a sincere friend." + +A billet de hanque for three thousand francs was folded in the note, and +fell to the ground as I read it. + +"_Parbleu!_ I'll not ask you to tear this, though," said the jailer, as +he handed it to me. "And now let me see you destroy the other." + +I read and re-read the few lines over and over, some new meaning +striking me at each word, while I asked myself from whom it could have +come. Was it De Beauvais? or dare I hope it was one dearest to me of all +the world? Who, then, in the saddest hour of my existence, could step +between me and my sorrow, and leave hope as my companion in the dreary +solitude of a prison? + +"Again I say be quick," cried the jailer; "my being here so long may be +remarked. Tear it at once." + +He followed with an eager eye every morsel of paper as it fell from my +hand, and only seemed at ease as the last dropped to the ground; and +then, without speaking a word, unlocked the door and withdrew. + +The shipwrecked sailor, clinging to some wave-tossed raft, and watching +with bloodshot eye the falling day, where no friendly sail has once +appeared, and at last, as every hope dies out one by one within him, he +hears a cheer break through the plashing of the sea, calling on him +to live, may feel something like what were my sensations, as once more +alone in my cell I thought of the friendly voice that could arouse me +from my cold despair, and bid me hope again. + +What a change came over the world to my eyes! The very cell itself no +longer seemed dark and dreary; the faint sunlight that fell through the +narrow window seemed soft and mellow; the voices I heard without struck +me not as dissonant and harsh; the reckless gayety I shuddered at, the +dark treachery I abhorred,--I could now compassionate the one and openly +despise the other; and it was with that stout determination at my heart +that I sallied forth into the garden, where still the others lingered, +waiting for the drum that summoned them to dinner. + + + +CHAPTER XXXIV. THE CHOUANS + +When night came, and all was silent in the prison, I sat down to write +my letter to the minister. I knew enough of such matters to be aware +that brevity is the great requisite; and therefore, without any attempt +to anticipate my accusation by a defence of my motives, I simply but +respectfully demanded the charges alleged against me, and prayed for the +earliest and most speedy investigation into my conduct. Such were the +instructions of my unknown friend, and as I proceeded to follow them, +their meaning at once became apparent to me. Haste was recommended, +evidently to prevent such explanations and inquiries into my conduct as +more time might afford. My appearance at the chateau might still be +a mystery to them, and one which might remain unfathomable if any +plausible reason were put forward. And what more could be laid to my +charge? True, the brevet of colonel found on my person; but this I could +with truth allege had never been accepted by me. They would scarcely +condemn me on such testimony, unsupported by any direct charge; and +who could bring such save De Beauvais? Flimsy and weak as such pretexts +were, yet were they enough in my then frame of mind to support my +courage and nerve my heart. But more than all I trusted in the sincere +loyalty I felt for the cause of the Government and its great chief,--a +sentiment which, however difficult to prove, gave myself that inward +sense of safety which only can flow from strong convictions of honesty. +"It may so happen," thought I, "that circumstances may appear against +me; but I know and feel my heart is true and firm, and even at the +worst, such a consciousness will enable me to bear whatever may be my +fortune." + +The next morning my altered manner and happier look excited the +attention of the others, who by varions endeavors tried to fathom the +cause or learn any particulars of my fate; but in vain, for already I +was on my guard against even a chance expression, and, save on the +most commonplace topics, held no intercourse with any. Far from being +offended at my reserve, they seemed rather to have conceived a species +of respect for one whose secrecy imparted something of interest to him; +and while they tried, by the chance allusion to political events and +characters, to sound me, I could see that, though baffled, they by no +means gave up the battle. + +As time wore on, this half-persecution died away; each day brought some +prisoner or other amongst us, or removed some of those we had to other +places of confinement, and thus I became forgotten in the interest of +newer events. About a week after my entrance we were walking as usual +about the gardens, when a rumor ran that a prisoner of great consequence +had been arrested the preceding night and conveyed to the Temple; and +various surmises were afloat as to who he might be, or whether he should +be au secret or at large. While the point was eagerly discussed, a low +door from the house was opened, and the jailer appeared, followed by a +large, powerful man, whom in one glance I remembered as the chief of the +Vendean party at the chateau, and the same who effected his escape in +the Bois de Boulogne. He passed close to where I stood, his arm folded +on his breast; his clear blue eye bent calmly on me, yet never by the +slightest sign did he indicate that we had ever met before. I divined +at once his meaning, and felt grateful for what I guessed might be a +measure necessary to my safety. + +"I tell you," said a shrivelled old fellow, in a worn dressing-gown and +slippers, who held the "Moniteur" of that day in his hand, "I tell you +it is himself; and see, his hand is wounded, though he does his best to +conceal the bandage in his bosom." + +"Well, well! read us the account; where did it occur?" cried two or +three in a breath. + +The old man seated himself on a bench, and having arranged his +spectacles and unfolded the journal, held out his hand to proclaim +silence, when suddenly a wild cheer broke from the distant part of +the garden, whither the newly arrived prisoner had turned his steps; a +second, louder, followed, in which the wild cry of "Vive le Roi!" could +be distinctly heard. + +"You hear them," said the old man; "was I right now? I knew it must be +him." + +"Strange enough, too, he should not be _au secret_," said another; +"the generals have never been suffered to speak to any one since their +confinement. But read on, let us hear it." + +"'On yesterday morning,'" said the little man, reading aloud, "'Picot, +the servant of George, was arrested; and although every endeavor was +made to induce him to confess where his master was--'" + +"Do you know the meaning of that phrase, Duchos?" said a tall, +melancholy-looking man, with a bald head. "That means the torture; thumb +screws and flint vices are the mode once more: see here." + +As he spoke he undid a silk handkerchief that was wrapped around his +wrist, and exhibited a hand that seemed actually smashed into fragments; +the bones were forced in many places through the flesh, which hung in +dark-colored and blood-stained pieces about. + +"I would show that hand at the tribunal," muttered an old soldier in a +faded blue frock; "I'd hold it up when they 'd ask me to swear." + +"Your head would only fare the worse for doing so," said the Abbe. "Read +on Monsieur Duchos." + +"Oh, where was I? (_Pardieu!_ Colonel, I wish you would cover that up; +I shall dream of that terrible thumb all night.) Here we are: 'Though +nothing could be learned from Picot, it was ascertained that the +brigand--'" + +"Ha, ha!" said a fat little fellow in a blouse, "they call them all +brigands: Moreau is a brigand; Pichegru is a brigand too." + +"'That the brigand had passed Monday night near Chaillot, and on +Tuesday, towards evening, was seen at Sainte-Genevieve, where it was +suspected he slept on the mountain; on Wednesday the police traced him +to the cabriolet stand at the end of the Rue de Conde, where he took a +carriage and drove towards the Odeon.'" + +"Probably he was going to the spectacle. What did they play that night?" +said the fat man; "'La Mort de Barberousse,' perhaps." + +The other read on: "'The officer cried out, as he seized the bridle, +"Je vous arrete!" when George levelled a pistol and shot him through the +forehead, and then springing over the dead body dashed down the street. +The butchers of the neighborhood, who knew the reward offered for +his apprehension, pursued and fell upon him with their hatchets; a +hand-to-hand encounter followed, in which the brigand's wrist was nearly +severed from his arm; and thus disabled and overpowered, he was secured +and conveyed to the Temple.'" + +"And who is this man?" said I in a whisper to the tall person near me." + +"The General George Cadoudal,--a brave Breton, and a faithful follower +of his King," replied he; "and may Heaven have pity on him now!" He +crossed himself piously as he spoke, and moved slowly away. + +"General Cadoudal!" repeated I to myself; "the same whose description +figured on every wall of the capital, and for whose apprehension immense +rewards were offered." And with an inward shudder I thought of my chance +intercourse with the man to harbor whom was death,--the dreaded chief of +the Chouans, the daring Breton of whom Paris rung with stories. And this +was the companion of Henri de Beauvais. + +Revolving such thoughts, I strolled along unconsciously, until I reached +the place where some days before I had seen the Vendeans engaged in +prayer. The loud tone of a deep voice arrested my steps. I stopped and +listened. It was George himself who spoke; he stood, drawn up to his +full height, in the midst of a large circle who sat around on the grass. +Though his language was a _patois_ of which I was ignorant, I could +catch here and there some indication of his meaning, as much perhaps +from his gesture and the look of those he addressed, as from the words +themselves. + +It was an exhortation to them to endure with fortitude the lot that had +befallen them; to meet death when it came without fear, as they could do +so without dishonor; to strengthen their courage by looking to him, who +would always give them an example of what they should be. The last words +he spoke were in a plainer dialect, and almost these: "Throw no glance +on the past. We are where we are,--we are where God, in his wisdom and +for his own ends, has placed us. If this cause be just, our martyrdom is +a blessed one; if it be not so, our death is our punishment. And never +forget that you are permitted to meet it from the same spot where our +glorious monarch went to meet his own." + +A cry of "Vive le Roi!" half stifled by sobs of emotion, broke from the +listeners, as they rose and pressed around him. There he stood in the +midst, while like children they came to kiss his hand, to hear him speak +one word, even to look on him. Their swarthy faces, where hardship and +suffering had left many a deep line and furrow, beamed with smiles as he +turned towards them; and many a proud look was bent on the rest by those +to whom he addressed a single word. + +One I could not help remarking above the others,--a slight, pale, and +handsome youth, whose almost girlish cheek the first down of youth was +shading. George leaned his arm round his neck, and called him by his +name, and in a voice almost tremulous from emotion: "And you, Bouvet de +Lozier, whose infancy wanted nothing of luxury and enjoyment, for whom +all that wealth and affection could bestow were in abundance,--how do +you bear these rugged reverses, my dear boy?" + +The youth looked up with eyes bathed in tears; the hectic spot in his +face gave way to the paleness of death, and his lips moved without a +sound. + +"He has been ill,--the count has," said a peasant, in a low voice. + +"Poor fellow!" said George; "he was not meant for trials like these; the +cares he used to bury in his mother's lap met other consolations than +our ruder ones. Look up, Bouvet, my man, and remember you are a man." + +The youth trembled from head to foot, and looked fearfully around, as +if dreading something, while he clutched the strong arm beside him, as +though for protection. + +"Courage, boy, courage!" said George. "We are together here; what can +harm you?" + +Then dropping his voice, and turning to the rest, he added, "They have +been tampering with his reason; his eye betrays a wandering intellect. +Take him with you, Claude,--he loves you; and do not leave him for a +moment." + +The youth pressed George's fingers to his pale lips, and with his head +bent down and listless gait, moved slowly away. + +As I wandered from the spot, my heart was full of all I had witnessed. +The influence of their chief had surprised me on the night of the +attack on the chateau. But how much more wonderful did it seem now when +confined within the walls of a prison,--the only exit to which was the +path that led to the guillotine! Yet was their reliance on all he said +as great, as implicit their faith in him, as warm their affection, as +though success had crowned each effort he suggested, and that fortune +had been as kind as she had proved adverse to his enterprise. + +Such were the _Chohans_ in the Temple. Life had presented to their hardy +natures too many vicissitudes to make them quail beneath the horrors of +a prison; death they had confronted in many shapes, and they feared it +not even at the hands of the executioner. Loyalty to the exiled family +of France was less a political than a religious feeling,--one inculcated +at the altar, and carried home to the fireside of the cottage. Devotion +to their King was a part of their faith; the sovereign was but a saint +the more in their calendar. The glorious triumphs of the Revolutionary +armies, the great conquests of the Consulate, found no sympathy within +their bosoms; they neither joined the battle nor partook of the ovation. +They looked on all such as the passing pageant of the hour, and muttered +to one another that the bon Dieu could not bless a nation that was false +to its King. + +Who could see them as they met each morning, and not feel deeply +interested in these brave but simple peasants? At daybreak they knelt +together in prayer, their chief officiating as priest; their deep voices +joined in the hymn of their own native valleys, as with tearful eyes +they sang the songs that reminded them of home. The service over, George +addressed them in a short speech: some words of advice and guidance +for the coming day; reminding them that ere another morning shone, many +might be summoned before the tribunal to be examined, and from, thence +led forth to death; exhorting them to fidelity to each other and loyalty +to their glorious cause. Then came the games of their country, which +they played with all the enthusiasm of liberty and happiness. These were +again succeeded by hours passed in hearing and relating stories of their +beloved Bretagne,--of its tried faith and its ancient bravery; while, +through all, they lived a community apart from the other prisoners, who +never dared to obtrude upon them: nor did the most venturesome of the +police spies ever transgress a limit that might have cost him his life. + +Thus did two so different currents run side by side within the walls of +the Temple, and each regarding the other with distrust and dislike. + +While thus I felt a growing interest for these bold but simple children +of the forest, my anxiety for my own fate grew hourly greater. No answer +was ever returned to my letter to the minister, nor any notice taken +of it whatever; and though each day I heard of some one or other being +examined before the "Tribunal Special" or the Prefet de Police, I seemed +as much forgotten as though the grave enclosed me. My dread of anything +like acquaintance or intimacy with the other prisoners prevented my +learning much of what went forward each day, and from which, from some +source or other, they seemed well informed. A chance phrase, an odd word +now and then dropped, would tell me of some new discovery by the police +or some recent confession by a captured conspirator; but of what the +crime consisted, and who were they principally implicated, I remained +totally ignorant. + +It was well known that both Moreau and Pichegru were confined in a +part of the tower that opened upon the terrace, but neither suffered to +communicate with each other, nor even to appear at large like the other +prisoners. It was rumored, too, that each day one or both were submitted +to long and searching examinations, which, it was said, had hitherto +elicited nothing from either save total denial of any complicity +whatever, and complete ignorance of the plots and machinations of +others. + +So much we could learn from the "Moniteur," which reached us each day; +and while assuming a tone of open reprobation regarding the _Chouans_, +spoke in terms the most cautious and reserved respecting the two +generals, as if probing the public mind how far their implication in +treason might be credited, and with what faith the proofs of their +participation might be received. + +At last the train seemed laid; the explosion was all prepared, and +nothing wanting but the spark to ignite it. A letter from Moreau to the +Consul appeared in the columns of the Government paper; in which, after +recapitulating in terms most suitable the services he had rendered the +Republic while in command of the army of the Rhine,--the confidence the +Convention had always placed in him, the frequent occasions which +had presented themselves to him of gratifying ambitious views (had he +conceived such he adverted, in brief but touching terms, to his +conduct on the 18th Brumaire in seconding the adventurous step taken by +Bonaparte himself, and attributed the neglect his devotion had met +with, rather to the interference and plotting of his enemies than to +any estrangement on the part of the Consul.) Throughout the whole of the +epistle there reigned a tone of reverence for the authority of Bonaparte +most striking and remarkable; there was nothing like an approach to +the equality which might well be supposed to subsist between two great +generals,--albeit the one was at the height of power, and the other sunk +in the very depth of misfortune. On the contrary, the letter was nothing +more than an appeal to old souvenirs and former services to one who +possessed the power, if he had the will, to save him; it breathed +throughout the sentiments of one who demands a favor, and that favor his +life and honor, at the hands of him who had already constituted himself +the fountain of both. + +While such was the position of Moreau,--a position which resulted in his +downfall,--chance informed as of the different ground occupied by his +companion in misfortune, the Greneral Pichegru. + +About three days after the publication of Moreau's letter, we were +walking as usual in the garden of the Temple, when a huissier came up, +and beckoning to two of the prisoners, desired them to follow him. Such +was the ordinary course by which one or more were daily summoned before +the tribunal for examination, and we took no notice of what had become +a matter of every-day occurrence, and went on conversing as before about +the news of the morning. Several hours elapsed without the others having +returned; and at last we began to feel anxious about their fate, when +one of them made his appearance, his heightened color and agitated +expression betokening that something more than common had occurred. + +"We were examined with Pichegru," said the prisoner,--who was an old +quartermaster in the army of the Upper Rhine,--as he sat down upon a +bench and wiped his forehead with his handkerchief. + +"Indeed!" said the tall colonel with the bald head; "before Monsieur +Real, I suppose?" + +"Yes, before Real. My poor old general: there he was, as I used to see +him formerly, with his hand on the breast of his uniform, his pale, thin +features as calm as ever, until at last when roused his eyes flashed +fire and his lip trembled before he broke out into such a torrent of +attack--" + +"Attack, say you?" interrupted the Abbe,; "a bold course, my faith! in +one who has need of all his powers for defence." + +"It was ever his tactique to be the assailant," said a bronzed, +soldierlike fellow, in a patched uniform; "he did so in Holland." + +"He chose a better enemy to practise it with then, than he has done +now," resumed the quartermaster, sadly. + +"Whom do you mean?" cried half a dozen voices together. + +..."The Consul." + +"The Consul! Bonaparte! Attack him!" repeated one after the other, in +accents of surprise and horror. "Poor fellow, he is deranged." + +"So I almost thought myself, as I heard him," replied the quartermaster; +"for, after submitting with patience to a long and tiresome examination, +he suddenly, as if endurance could go no farther, cried out,--'Assez!' +The prefet started, and Thuriot, who sat beside him, looked up +terrified, while Pichegru went on: 'So the whole of this negotiation +about Cayenne is then a falsehood? Your promise to make me governor +there, if I consented to quit France forever, was a trick to extort +confession or a bribe to silence? Be it so. Now, come what will, I 'll +not leave France; and, more still, I 'll declare everything before the +judges openly at the tribunal. The people shall know, all Europe shall +know, who is my accuser, and what he is. Yes! your Consul himself +treated with the Bourbons in Italy; the negotiations were begun, +continued, carried on, and only broken off by his own excessive demands. +Ay, I can prove it: his very return from Egypt through the whole English +fleet,--that happy chance, as you were wont to term it,--was a secret +treaty with Pitt for the restoration of the exiled family on his +reaching Paris. These facts--and facts you shall confess them--are in my +power to prove; and prove them I will in the face of all France.'" + +"Poor Pichegru!" said the abbe, contemptuously. "What an ill-tempered +child a great general may be, after all! Did he think the hour would +ever come for him to realize such a dream?" + +"What do you mean?" cried two or three together. + +"The Corsican never forgets a vendetta," was the cool reply, as he +walked away. + +"True," said the colonel, thoughtfully; "quite true." + +To me these words were riddles. My only feeling towards Pichegru was one +of contempt and pity, that in any depth of misfortune he could resort +to such an unworthy attack upon him who still was the idol of all my +thoughts; and for this, the conqueror of Holland stood now as low in my +esteem as the most vulgar of the rabble gang that each day saw sentenced +to the galleys. + + + +CHAPTER XXXV. THE REIGN OF TERROR UNDER THE CONSULATE. + +On the morning that followed the scene I have spoken of came the news of +the arrest, the trial, and the death of the Duc d'Enghien. That terrible +tragedy--which yet weighs, and will weigh forever, on the memory of +the period--reached us in our prison with all the terrible force of +circumstances to make it a day of sorrow and mourning. Such details as +the journals afforded but little satisfied our curiosity. The youth, the +virtues, the bravery of the prince had made him the idol of his party; +and while his death was lamented for his own sake, his followers read +in it the determination of the Government to stop at nothing in their +resolve to exterminate that party. A gloomy silence sat upon the +Chouans, who no longer moved about as before, regardless of their +confinement to a prison. Their chief remained apart: he neither spoke +to any one nor seemed to notice those who passed; he looked stunned and +stupefied, rather than deeply affected, and when he lifted his eyes, +their expression was cold and wandering. Even the other prisoners, who +rarely gave way to feeling of any kind, seemed at first overwhelmed by +these sad tidings; and doubtless many who before had trusted to rank and +influence for their safety, saw how little dependence could be placed on +such aid when the blow had fallen upon a "Conde" himself. + +I, who neither knew the political movements of the time nor the sources +of the danger the Consul's party anticipated, could only mourn over the +unhappy fate of a gallant prince whose daring had cost him his life, +and never dreamed for a moment of calling in question the honor or good +faith of Bonaparte in an affair of which I could have easily believed +him totally ignorant. Such, indeed, was the representation of the +"Moniteur;" and whatever doubts the hints about me might have excited, +were speedily allayed by the accounts I read of the Consul's indignation +at the haste and informality of the trial, and his deep anger at the +catastrophe that followed it. + +"Savary will be disgraced for this," said I to the Abbe, who leaned over +my shoulder while I read the paper; "Bonaparte can never forgive him." + +"You mistake, my dear sir," replied he, with a strange expression I +could not fathom. "The Consul is the most forgiving of men; he never +bears malice." + +"But here was a dreadful event,--a crime, perhaps." + +"Only a fault," resumed he. "By the bye, Colonel, this order about +closing the barriers will be excessively inconvenient to the good people +of Paris." + +"I have been thinking over that, too," said an overdressed, +affected-looking youth, whose perfumed curls and studied costume formed +a strange contrast with the habits of his fellow-prisoners. "If +they shut up the Barriere de de l'Etoile, what are they to do for +Longchamps?" + +"_Parbleu!_ that did not strike me," interposed the colonel, tapping his +forehead with his finger. "I 'll wager a crown that they haven't thought +of that themselves." + +"The Champs Ellyses are surely long enough for such tomfoolery," said +the quartermaster, in a gruff, savage tone. + +"Not one half," was the imperturbable reply of the youth; +"and Longchamps promised admirably this year. I had ordered a +_caleche_,--light blue, with gilt circles on the wheels, and a bronze +carving to the pole,--like an antique chariot." + +"_Parbleu!_ you are more likely to take your next airing in a simpler +conveyance," said the quartermaster with a grin. + +"I was to have driven la Comtesse de Beauflers to the Bois de Boulogne." + +"You must content yourself with the Comte de la Marque" (the prison name +of the executioner) "instead," growled out the other. + +I turned away, no less disgusted at the frivolity that could only see in +the dreadful event that took place the temporary interruption to a vain +and silly promenade, than at the savage coarseness that could revel in +the pain common misfortune gave him the privilege of inflicting. + +Such, however, was the prevalent tone of thinking and speaking there. +The death of friends,--the ruin of those best loved and cared for; the +danger that each day came nearer to themselves,--were all casualties to +which habit, recklessness of life, and libertinism had accustomed them; +while about former modes of life,--the pleasures of the capital, its +delights and dissipation,--they conversed with the most eager interest. +It is thus, while in some natures misfortunes will call forth into +exercise the best and noblest traits that in happier circumstances had +never found the necessity that gave them birth; so, in others, adversity +depresses and demoralizes those weaker temperaments that seemed formed +to sail safely in the calm waters, but never destined to brave the +stormy seas of life. + +With such associates I could have neither sympathy nor friendship; and +my life passed on in one unbroken and dreary monotony, day succeeding +day and night following night, till my thoughts, turned ever inward, had +worn as it were a track for themselves in which the world without and +its people had no share whatever. Not only was my application to +the minister unanswered, but I was never examined before any of the +tribunals; and sometimes the dreadful fate of those prisoners who in the +Reign of Terror passed their whole life in prison, their crimes, their +very existence forgotten, would cross my mind, and strike me with terror +unspeakable. + +If in the sombre atmosphere of the Temple a sad and cheerless monotony +prevailed, events followed fast on each other in that world from which +its gloomy walls excluded us. Every hour was some new feature of the +dark conspiracy brought to light; the vigilance of Monsieur Real slept +not night or day; and all that bribery, terror, or torture could effect, +was put into requisition to obtain full and precise information as to +every one concerned in the plot. + +It was a bright, fresh morning in April, the sixth of the month,--the +day is graven on my memory,--when, on walking forth into the garden, I +was surprised to see the prisoners standing in a circle round a tree on +which a placard was fastened, with glances eagerly turned towards the +paper or bent sadly to the ground. They stood around, sad and silent. To +my question of what had occurred, a significant look at the tree was the +only reply I received, while in the faces of all I perceived that some +dreadful news had reached them. Forcing my way with difficulty through +the crowd, I at length approached near enough to read the placard, on +which in large letters was written,-- + + "6 Avril. Le Temple. + + "Charles Pichegru, ez-General Republicain, s'est e trangle + dans sa prison." + +"And did Pichegru, the great conqueror of Holland, die by his own hand?" +said I, as my eye rested on the fatal bulletin. + +"Don't you read it, young man?" replied a deep, solemn voice beside me, +which I at once knew was that of General George himself, "Can you doubt +the accuracy of information supplied by the police?" + +The bystanders looked up with a terrified and frightened expression, as +if dreading lest the very listening to his words might be construed into +an acquiescence in them. + +"Trust me, he is dead," continued he. "They who have announced his fate +here have a right to be relied on. It now only remains to be seen how he +died. These prison maladies have a strange interest for us who live +in the infected climate; and, if I mistake not, I see the 'Moniteur', +yonder, a full hour before its usual time. See what a blessing, +gentlemen, you enjoy in a paternal Government, which in moments of +public anxiety can feel for your distress and hasten to alleviate it!" + +The tone of sarcasm he spoke in, the measured fall of every word, sank +into the hearers' minds, and though they stood mute, they did not even +move from the spot. + +"Here is the 'Moniteur' now," said the quartermaster, opening the paper +and reading aloud. + +"To his oft-repeated assurances that he would make no attempt upon his +life--'" + +A rude burst of laughter from George interrupted the reader here. + +"I ask your pardon, sir," said he, touching his cap; "proceed. I promise +not to interrupt you again." + +"'That he would make no attempt upon his life, Greneral Pichegru +obtained permission that the sentries should be stationed outside his +cell during the night. Having provided himself with a fagot, which +he secreted beneath his bed, he supped as usual in the evening of +yesterday, eating heartily at eleven o'clock, and retiring to rest by +twelve. When thus alone he placed the stick within the folds of the +black silk cravat he generally wore round his neck, in such a manner as, +when twisted, to act like a tourniquet; and having turned it with such +a degree of force as to arrest the return of blood from the head, he +fastened it beneath his head and shoulders, and in this manner, apoplexy +supervening, expired.'" + +"_Par Saint Louis_, sir," cried George, "the explanation is admirable, +and most satisfactorily shows how a man may possess life long enough +to be certain he has killed himself. The only thing wanting is for the +general to assist in dressing the proces-verbal, when doubtless his own +views of his case would be equally edifying and instructive. And see, +already the ceremony has begun." + +As he spoke, he pointed to a number of persons who crossed the terrace, +preceded by Savary in his uniform of the Gendarmes d'Elite, and who went +in the direction of the cell where the dead body lay. + +The prisoners now fell into little knots and groups, talking beneath +their breath, and apparently terrified at every stir about them. Each +compared his sensation of what he thought he heard during the night with +the other's. Some asserted that they distinctly heard the chains of the +drawbridge creak long after midnight; others vouched for the quick tramp +of feet along the corridors, and the sounds of strange voices; one, +whose cell was beneath that of Pichegru, said that he was awoke +before day by a violent crash overhead, followed by a harsh sound like +coughing, which continued for some time and then ceased entirely. These +were vague, uncertain signs, yet what horrible thoughts did they not +beget in each listener's mind! + +As I stood terror-struck and speechless, I felt a tap oif my shoulder. +I turned; it was the Abbe, who, with a smile of peculiar irony, stood +behind me. + +"Poor Savary!" said he, in a whisper; "how will he ever get over this +blunder, and it so very like the former one!" + +He did not wait for a reply, but moved away. + +"Who is to be the next, sir?" cried George, with a deep voice, as he saw +the assemblage thus accidentally collected about to break up. "Moreau, +perhaps. One thing I bid you all bear witness to: suicide is a crime I +'ll never commit; let no narrative of a cravat and a fagot--" + +"Do you never eat mushrooms, General?" said the Abbe, dryly; and +whether from the manner of the speaker, or the puzzled look of him +to whom the speech was addressed, the whole crowd burst into a fit of +laughter,--the emotion seemed like one in which relief was felt by all. +They laughed long and loud; and now the faces that a minute before were +marked by every character of deep affliction, looked merry and happy. +Each had some story, some apropos to tell, or some smart witticism to +let off against his neighbor; and to hear them you would say that never +was there a subject more suggestive of drollery than the one of suicide +and sudden death. + +And thus was it ever. No event, however dreadful,--no circumstance, +however shocking,--could do more than momentarily affect those whose +life possessed no security, was governed by no principle. Levity and +unbelief--unbelief that extended not only to matters of religion, but +actually penetrated every relation of life, rendering them sceptical of +friendship, love, truth, honor, and charity--were the impulses under +which they lived; and they would have laughed him to scorn who should +have attempted to establish another code of acting or thinking. Such +feelings, if they made them but little suited to all the habits and +charities of life, certainly rendered them most indifferent to death; +and much of that courage so much lauded and admired on the scaffold +had no other source than in the headlong recklessness the prison had +inculcated,--the indifference to everything, where everything was +questionable and doubtful. + +I struggled powerfully against the taint of such a consuming malady. +I bethought me of my boyhood and its early purpose,--of him who first +stirred my soul to ambition,--and asked myself, what would he have +thought of me had I yielded to such a trial as this? I pictured before +me a career when such devotion as I felt, aided by a stout heart, must +win its way to honor; and when roused to thought, these low, depressing +dreams, these dark hours of doubt and despair, vanished before it. But +gradually my health gave way, my lethargic apathy increased upon me, the +gloomy walls of my cell had thrown their shadow over my spirit, and I +sank into a state of moping indifference in which I scarcely marked the +change of day and night; and felt at length that had the sentence been +pronounced which condemned me for life to the walls of the Temple, I +could have heard it without emotion. + +"Come, sous-lieutenant, it's your turn now!" said the turnkey, entering +my cell one morning, where I sat alone at breakfast; "I have just +received the orders for your appearance." + +"How! where?" said I, scarcely able to do more than guess at the meaning +of his words; "before the prefet, is it?" + +"No, no; a very different affair, indeed. You are summoned with the +_Chouan_ prisoners to appear at the Palais de Justice." + +"The Palais!" said I, as for the first time for weeks past a sentiment +of fear crept through me. "Are we to be tried without having a list of +the charges alleged against us?" + +"You 'll hear them time enough in court." + +"Without an advocate to defend us." + +"The President will name one for that purpose." + +"And can the jury--" + +"Jury! There is no jury; the Consul has suspended trial by jury for +two years. Come, come, don't be downhearted; your friends without are +singing away as gayly as though it were a festival. My faith, that +Greneral George is made of iron, I believe. He has been confined _au +secret_ these ten days, his rations diminished to almost a starvation +level, and yet there is he now, with his countenance as calm and his +look as firm as if he were at large on the hills of La Vendee. Cheer up, +then; let the example of your chief--" + +"Chief! he is no chief of mine." + +"That 's as it may, or may not be," replied he, gruffly, as though +wounded by what he deemed a want of confidence in his honor. "However, +make haste and dress, for the carriages will be here to convey you to +the Palais. And there now are the Gendarmes d'Elite assembling in the +court." + +As I proceeded to dress, I could see from the window of my cell that a +squadron of gendarmes, in full uniform, were drawn up in the square of +the prison, along one side of which were several carriages standing, +each with two gendarmes seated on the box. The prisoners were confined +to their walls; but at every window some face appeared peering anxiously +at the proceedings beneath, and watching with inquisitive gaze every, +even the slightest, movement. + +Just as the clock struck nine the door of my cell was opened, and a +greffier of the court entered, and, taking from a black portmanteau at +his side a roll of paper, began without delay to repeat in a sing-song +recitative tone a formal summons of the Grand Tribunal for the +"surrender of the body of Thomas Burke, sous-lieutenant of the huitieme +hussars, now in the prison of the Temple, and accused of the crime of +treason." + +The last word made me shudder as it fell from him; and not all my +stoical indifference of weeks past was proof against such an accusation. +The jailer having formally listened to the document, and replied by +reading aloud another, delivered me over to the officer, who desired me +to follow him. + +In the court beneath the greater number of the prisoners were already +assembled. George, among the number, was conspicuous, not only by his +size and proportions, but by a handsome uniform, in the breast of which +he wore his decoration of St. Louis, from which descended a bright bow +of crimson ribbon. A slight bustle at one of the doorways of the tower +suddenly seemed to attract his attention, and I saw that he turned +quickly round, and forced his way through the crowd to the place. +Eager to learn what it was, I followed him at once. Pushing with some +difficulty forward, I reached the doorway, on the step of which lay a +young man in a fainting fit. His face, pale as death, had no color save +two dark circles round the eyes, which, though open, were upturned and +filmy. His cravat had been hastily removed by some of the bystanders, +and showed a purple welt around his neck, on one side of which a mass +of blood escaping beneath the skin, made a dreadful-looking tumor. His +dress denoted a person of condition, as well as the character of his +features; but never had I looked upon an object so sad and woe-begone +before. At his side knelt Greorge; his strong arm round his back, while +his great massive hand patted the water on his brow. The stern features +of the hardy Breton, which ever before had conveyed to me nothing +but daring and impetuous passion, were softened to a look of womanly +kindliness, his blue eye beaming as softly as though it were a mother +leaning over her infant. + +"Bouvet, my dear, dear boy, remember thou art a Breton; rally thyself, +my child,--bethink thee of the cause." + +The name of the youth at once recalled him whom I had seen some months +before among the _Chouan_ prisoners, and who, sad and sickly as he then +seemed, was now much further gone towards the tomb. + +"Bouvet," cried Greorge, in an accent of heartrending sorrow, "this will +disgrace us forever!" + +The youth turned his cold eyes round till they were fixed on the other's +face; while his lips, still parted, and his cheek pale and flattened, +gave him the appearance of a corpse suddenly called back to life. + +"There, my own brave boy," said Greorge, kissing his forehead--"there, +thou art thyself again!" He bent over till his lips nearly touched +the youth's ear, and then whispered: "Dost thou forget the last words +Monsieur spoke to thee, Bouvet? 'Conserve-toi pour tes amis, et centre +nos ennemis communs!'" + +The boy started up at the sounds, and looked wildly about him, while his +hands were open wide with a kind of spasmodic motion. + +"_Tonnerre de ciel!_" cried George, with frantic passion; "what have they +done with him? his mind is gone. Bouvet! Bouvet de Lozier! knowest +thou this?" He tore from his bosom a miniature, surrounded with large +brilliants, and held it to the eyes of the youth. + +A wild shriek broke from the youth as he fell back in strong +convulsions. The dreadful cry seemed like the last wail of expiring +reason, so sad, so piercing was its cadence. + +"Look, see!" said George, turning a savage scowl upon the crowd; "they +have taken away his mind; he is an idiot." + +"The General George Cadoudal," cried a loud voice from the centre of the +court. + +"Here," was the firm reply. + +"This way, sir; the carriage yonder." + +"Monsieur Sol de Gisolles!" + +"Here," replied a tall, aristocratic-looking personage, in deep +mourning. + +Sous-Lieutenant Burke was next called, and I followed the others, and +soon found myself seated in a close calecfie, with a gendarme beside me, +while two mounted men of the corps sat at either side of the carriage +with drawn swords. Picot, the servant of George, the faithful Breton, +was next summoned; and Lebourgeois, an old but handsome man, in the +simple habit of a farmer, with his long white hair, and soft kind +countenance. Many other names were called over, and nearly an hour +elapsed before the ceremony was concluded, and the order was given to +move forward. + +At last the heavy gates were opened, and the procession issued forth. +I was surprised to see that the entire Boulevard was lined with troops, +behind which thousands of people were closely wedged, all the windows, +and even the housetops, being filled with spectators. + +When we reached the quays, the crowd was greater still, and it required +all the efforts of the troops to keep it back sufficiently to permit an +open space for the carriages; while at all the streets that opened +at the quays, mounted dragoons were stationed to prevent any carriage +passing down. Never had I beheld such a vast multitude of people; +and yet, through all that crowded host, a deep, solemn silence +prevailed,--not a cry nor a shout was heard in all the way. Once only, +at the corner of the Pont Neuf, a cry of "Vive Moreau!" was given by +some one in the crowd; but it was a solitary voice, and the moment +after I saw a gendarme force his way through the mass, and seizing a +miserable-looking creature by the neck, hurry him along beside his horse +towards the guardhouse. On crossing the bridge, I saw that a company of +artillery and two guns were placed in position beside Desaix's +monument, so as to command the Pont Neuf: all these preparations clearly +indicating that the Government felt the occasion such as to warrant the +most energetic measures of security. There was something in the earnest +look of the cannoniers, as they stood with their lighted matches beside +the guns, that betrayed the resolve of one whose quick determination was +ever ready for the moment of danger. + +The narrow streets of the Isle St. Louis, more densely crowded than any +part of the way, slackened our pace considerably, and frequently the +gendarmes were obliged to clear the space before the carriages could +proceed. I could not help feeling struck, as we passed along these +miserable and dark alleys,--where vice and crime, and wretchedness of +every type herded together,--to hear at every step some expressions +of pity or commiseration from those who themselves seemed the veriest +objects of compassion. + +"Ah, Voila," cried an old creature in rags, on whose cotton bonnet a +faded and dirty tricolored ribbon was fastened--"voila Moreau! I'd know +his proud face any day. Poor general, I hope it will not go hard with +you to-day!" "Look there," screamed a hag, as the carriage in which +Bouvet sat passed by--"look at the handsome youth that's dying! Holy +Virgin! he'll not be living when they reach the gate of the Palais!" + +"And there," cried another, "there's a hussar officer, pale enough, I +trow he is. Come, I 'll say a prayer or two for him there; it can do him +no harm anyhow." + +The hoarse rattle of a drum in front mingled with the noise of the +cavalcade, and I now could hear the clank of a guard turning out. The +minute after we stood before a colossal gateway, whose rich tracery +shone in the most gorgeous gilding; it was in the splendid taste of +Louis the Fourteenth, and well became the entrance of what once had been +a royal palace. "Alas!" thought I, "how unlike those who once trod this +wide court is the melancholy cortege that now enters it!" + +As each carriage drew up at the foot of a wide flight of stone steps, +the prisoners descended, and escorted by gendarmes on each side, were +led into the building. When all had reached the hall, the order was +given to move forward, and we walked on till we came to a long gallery. +On either side was a range of massive pillars, between which views were +obtained of various spacious but dimly-lighted chambers, apparently +neglected and unused; some benches here and there, an old cabinet, and +a deal table, were all the furniture. Here we halted for a few moments, +till a door opening at the extreme end, a sign was made for us to +advance. And now we heard a low rushing sound, like the distant breaking +of the sea in a calm night; it grew louder as we went, till we could +mark the mingling of several hundred voices, as they conversed in a +subdued and under tone. Then, indeed, a dreadful thrill ran through me, +as I thought of the countless mass before whom I was to stand forth a +criminal, and it needed every effort in my power to keep my feet. + +A heavy curtain of dark cloth yet separated us from a view of the court; +but we could hear the voice of the president commanding silence, and +the monotonous intonation of the clerk reading the order for the +proceedings. This concluded, a deep voice called out, "Introduce the +prisoners!" and the words were repeated still louder by a huissier at +the entrance; and at a signal the line moved forward, the curtain was +drawn back, and we advanced into the court. + +The crowd of faces that filled the vast space from the body of the court +below to the galleries above, turned as we passed on to the bench, at +one side of the raised platform near the seat of the judges. A similar +bench, but unoccupied, ran along the opposite side; while directly in +front of the judges were ranged the advocates in rows, closely packed +as they could sit,--a small desk, somewhat advanced from the rest, being +the seat reserved for the Procureur-General of the court. + +The vast multitudes of spectators; the pomp and circumstance of a court +of justice; the solemn look of the judges, arrayed in their dark robes +and square black caps, reminding one of the officers of the Inquisition, +as we see them in old paintings; the silence where so many were +assembled,--all struck me with awe, and I scarcely dared to look up, +lest in the glances bent upon me I should meet some whose looks might +seem to condemn me. + +"Proclaim the _seance_," said the President. And with: a loud voice +the _huissier_ of the court made proclamation that the tribunal had +commenced its sitting. + +This concluded, the Procureur-General proceeded to read the names of the +accused, beginning with General Moreau, Armand de Polignac, Charles de +Riviere, Sol de Gisolles, George Cadoudal, and some twenty others +of less note, among which I heard with a sinking heart my own name +pronounced. + +Some customary formalities seemed now to occupy the court for a +considerable time; after which the _huissier_ called silence once more. + +"General Moreau!" said the President, in a deep voice that was heard +throughout the entire court. "Rise up, sir," added he, after a few +seconds' pause. + +I looked down the bench, at the farthest end of which I saw the +tall and well-knit figure of a man in the uniform of a general of the +Republic; his back was turned towards me, but his bearing and carriage +were quite enough to distinguish the soldier. + +"Your name and surname," said the President. + +Before an answer could be returned, a dull sound, like something heavy +falling, resounded through the court, and in an instant several persons +around me stood up. I bent forward to see, and beheld the figure of +Bouvet de Lozier stretched insensible upon the ground; beside him his +faithful friend George was stooping, and endeavoring to open his vest to +give him air. + +"Bring some water here quickly!" cried the hardy Breton, in a tone that +showed little respect for where he stood. "Your absurd ceremonial has +frightened the poor boy out of his senses." + +"Respect the court, sir, or I commit you!" said the President, in a +voice of anger. + +A contemptuous look, followed by a still more contemptuous shrug of the +shoulders, was his reply. + +"Remove the prisoner," said the President, pointing to the still +fainting youth, "and proclaim silence in the court." + +The officers of the tribunal carried the deathlike figure of the boy +down the steps, and bore him to some of the chambers near. + +This little incident, slight and passing as it was, seemed much to +affect the auditory, and it was some time before perfect silence could +be again restored. + +"So much for the regime of the Temple!" said George, aloud, as he looked +after the insensible form of his friend. + +"Silence, sir!" cried one of the judges, M. Thuriot, a harsh and +severe-looking man, whose hatred to the prisoners was the subject of +much conversation in the prison. + +"Ah, it is you, Tue-Roi!" cried George, punning upon his name, for he +had been one of the regicides. "You there! I thought they had found you +out long ere this." + +A burst of laughter that nothing could repress broke through the crowded +court, and it was not until some five or six persons were forcibly +removed by the gendarmes that order was again restored. + +"Read the act of accusation," said the President, in a deep solemn +voice. + +"In the name of the Republic, one and indivisible--" + +"Monsieur le President," interrupted the Procureur-General, "I would +submit to the court, that as in the first accusation there are several +of the prisoners not included, they should not remain during the recital +of the indictment." + +A conversation of some minutes now took place between the judges, during +which again the silence was unbroken in the court. I turned gladly +from the gaze of the thousand spectators to the bench where my +fellow-prisoners were seated; and however varied by age, rank, and +occupation, there seemed but one feeling amongst them,--a hardy and +resolute spirit to brave every danger without flinching. + +"Which of the prisoners are not accused under the first act?" said +Thuriot. + +"Charles Auguste Bebarde, dit le Noir; Guillaume Lebarte; and Thomas +Burke, Sous-Lieutenant in the Eighth Regiment of Hussars." + +"Let them withdraw," said the President. + +A slight bustle ensued in the body of the court as the gendarmes +advanced to make a passage for our exit; and for a moment I could +perceive that the attention of the assembly was drawn towards us. One +by one we descended to the platform, and with a gendarme on either side, +proceeded to pass out, when suddenly the deep, mellow voice of Cadoudal +called out aloud,-- + +"Adieu, my friends, adieu! If we are not to be better treated than our +prince, we shall never see you again." + +"Silence, sir!" cried the President, severely; and then, turning towards +the bar of advocates, he continued, "If that man have an advocate +in this court, it would well become him to warn his client that such +continued insult to the tribunal can only prejudice his cause." + +"I have none, and I wish for none," replied George, in a tone of +defiance. "This mockery is but the first step of the guillotine, and I +can walk it without assistance." + +A renewed call of "Silence!" and a deep murmur through the assembly, was +all I heard, as the door of the court opened and closed behind us. As +we marched along a low vaulted corridor, the sounds of the court grew +fainter and fainter; and at last the echoes of our own steps were the +only noises. + +The room to which we were conducted was a small whitewashed chamber, +around which ran a bench of unpainted wood. A deal table stood in the +centre, on which was a common-looking earthenware jar of water and some +tin goblets. The window was several feet from the ground, and strongly +barred with iron. + +"La salle d'attente is gloomy enough," said one of my companions, "and +yet some of us may be very sorry to leave it." + +"Not I, at least," cried the other, resolutely. "The basket beneath +the guillotine will be an easier couch than I have slept on these three +months." + + + +CHAPTER XXXVI. THE PALAIS DE JUSTICE + +"It will go hard with Moreau to-day," said the elder of the two +prisoners, a large, swarthy-looking Breton, in the dress of a sailor; +"the Consul hates him." + +"Whom does he not hate," said the younger, a slight and handsome +youth--"whom does he not hate that ever rivalled him in glory? What love +did he bear to Kleber or Desaix?" + +"It is false," said I, fiercely. "Bonaparte's greatness stands far +too high to feel such rivalry as theirs. The conqueror of Italy and of +Egypt--" + +"Is a Corsican," interrupted the elder. + +"And a tyrant," rejoined the other, in the same breath. + +"These words become you well," said I, bitterly. "Would that no stain +lay on my honor, and I could make you eat them." + +"And who are you that dare to speak thus?" said the younger; "or how +came one like you mixed up with men whose hearts were in a great cause, +and who came to sell their lives upon it?" + +"I tell you, boy," broke in the elder, in a slow and measured tone, +"I have made more stalwart limbs than thine bend, and stronger joints +crack, for less than thou hast ventured to tell us; but sorrow and +suffering are hard masters, and I can bear more now than I was wont to +do. Let us have no more words." + +As he spoke, he leaned his head upon his hand, and turned towards the +wall; the other, too, sat down in a comer of the cell, and was silent. +And thus we remained for hours long. + +The dreary stillness, made more depressing by the presence of the +two prisoners, whose deep-drawn breathings were the only sounds they +uttered, had something unspeakably sad and melancholy in it, and more +than once I felt sorry for the few words I had spoken, which separated +those whose misfortunes should have made them brothers. + +A confused and distant hum, swelling and falling at intervals, now +filled the air, and gradually I could distinguish the shouts of people +at a distance. This increased as it came nearer; and then I heard the +tramping noise of many feet, and of a great multitude of people passing +in the street below, and suddenly a wild cheer broke forth, "Vive le +Consul!" "Vive Bonaparte!" followed the next instant by the clanking +sound of a cavalry escort, while the cry grew louder and louder, and the +vivas drowned all other sounds. + +"You hear them, Guillaume, you hear them," said the sailor to the other +prisoner; "That shout is our death-cry. Bonaparte comes not here to-day +but to see his judges do his bidding." + +"What care I?" said the other, fiercely. "The guillotine or the sabre, +the axe or the bayonet,--it is all one. We knew what must come of it." + +The door opened as he spoke, and a greffier of the tribunal appeared +with four gendarmes. + +"Come, Messieurs," said he, "the court is waiting for you." + +"And how go matters without, sir?" said the elder, in an easy tone. + +"Badly for the prisoners," said the greffier, shaking his head. +"Monsieur Moreau, the general's brother, has done much injury; he has +insulted the Consul." + +"Bravely done!" cried the younger man, with enthusiasm. "It is well he +should hear truth one day, though the tongue that uttered it should be +cold the next." + +"Move on, sir!" said the greffier, sternly. "Not you," added he, as I +pressed forward after the rest; "your time has not come." + +"Would that it had!" said I, as the door closed upon me, and I was left +in total solitude. + +The day was over, and the evening already late, when a turnkey appeared, +and desired me to follow him. A moody indifference to everything had +settled on me, and I never spoke as I walked behind him down corridor +after corridor; and across a court, into a large, massive-looking +building, whose grated windows and strongly-barred doors reminded me of +the Temple. + +"Here is your cell," said he, roughly, as he unlocked a low door near +the entrance. + +"It is gloomy enough," said I, with a sad smile. + +"And yet many have shed tears to leave it before now," rejoined he, with +a savage twinkle of his small eyes. + +I was glad when the hoarse crash of the closed door told me I was alone; +and I threw myself upon my bed and buried my face in my hands. + +There is a state which is not sleep, and yet is akin to it, into which +grief can bring us,--a half-dreary stupor, where only sorrows are felt; +and even they come dulled and blunted, as if time and years had softened +down their sting. But no ray of hope shines there,--a dreary waste, +without a star. The cold, dark sea, boundless and bleak, is not more +saddening than life then seems before us; there is neither path to +follow nor goal to reach, and an apathy worse than death creeps over all +our faculties. And yet, when we awake we wish for this again. Into this +state I sank, and when morning came felt sorry that the light should +shine into my narrow cell, and rouse me from my stupor. When the turnkey +entered to bring me breakfast, I turned towards the wall, and trembled +lest he should speak to me; and it was with a strange thrill I heard the +door close as he went out. The abandonment of one's sorrow--that daily, +hourly indulgence in grief which the uncheered solitude of a prison +begets--soon brings the mind to the narrow range of one or two topics. +With the death of hope, all fancy and imagination perish, the springs of +all speculation are dried up, and every faculty bent towards one point; +the reason, like a limb unexercised, wastes and pines, and becomes +paralyzed. + +Now and then the thought would flash across me, "What if this were +madness?"--and I shuddered not at the thought. Such had my prison made +me. + +Four days and nights passed over thus,--a long, monotonous dream, in +which I counted not the time,--and I lay upon my straw bed watching the +expiring light of the candle with that strange interest one attaches +to everything within the limits of a prison-cell. The flame waned and +flickered: now lighting up for a second the cold gray walls, scratched +with many a prisoner's name; now subsiding, it threw strange and fitful +shapes upon them,--figures that seemed to move and to beckon to one +another,--goblin outlines, wild and fanciful. Then came a bright flash +as the wick fell, and all was dark. + +"If the dead do but sleep!" was the first thought that crossed my +mind as the gloom of total night wrapped every object about me, and a +stillness most appalling prevailed. Suddenly I heard the sounds of a +heavy bolt withdrawn and a door opening; then a low, rushing noise, like +wind blowing through a narrow corridor; and at last the marching sounds +of feet, and the accents of men speaking together: nearer and nearer +they came, and at length halted at the door of my cell. A cold, faint +feeling, the sickness of the heart, crept over me; the hour, the sounds, +reminded me of what so often I had heard men speak of in the Temple, and +the dread of assassination made me tremble from head to foot. The light +streamed from beneath the door, and reached to my bed; and I calculated +the number of steps it would take before they approached me. The key +grated in the lock and the door opened slowly, and three men stood +at the entrance. I sprang up wildly to my feet; a sudden impulse of +self-defence seized me; and with a wild shout for them to come on, I +rushed forward. My foot, however, caught the angle of the iron bedstead, +and I fell headlong and senseless to the ground. + +Some interval elapsed; and when next I felt consciousness, I was lying +full length on my bed, the cell lit up by two candles on the table, +beside which sat two men, their heads bent eagerly over a mass of papers +before them. One was an old and venerable-looking man, his white hair +and long queue so bespeaking him; he wore a loose cloth cloak that +covered his entire figure, but I could see that a brass scabbard of a +sword projected beneath it; on the chair beside him, too, there lay a +foraging-cap. The other, much younger, though still not in youth, was a +thin, pale, careworn man; his forehead was high and strongly marked; +and there was an intensity and determination in his brow and about the +angles of his mouth most striking; he was dressed in black, with deep +ruffles at his wrist. + +"It is quite clear. General," said he, in a low and measured voice, +where each word fell with perfect distinctness--"it is quite clear that +they can press a conviction here if they will. The allegations are so +contrived as rather to indicate complicity than actually establish it. +The defence in such cases has to combat shadows, not overturn facts; +and, believe me, a procureur-general, aided by a police, is a dexterous +enemy." + +"I have no doubt of it," said the general, rapidly; "but what are the +weak points? where is he most assailable?" + +"Everywhere," said the other. "To begin: the secret information of the +outbreak between Lord Whitworth and the Consul; the frequent meetings +with the Marquis de Beauvais; the false report to the Chef de Police; +the concealment of this abbe--By the bye, I am not quite clear about +that part of the case; why have not the prosecution brought this Abbe, +forward? It is plain they have his evidence, and can produce him if +they will; and I see no other name in the act of accusation than our old +acquaintance, Mehee de la Touche--" + +"The villain!" cried the general, with a stamp of indignation, while a +convulsive spasm seemed to shake every fibre of his frame. + +"Mehee de la Touche!" said I to myself; "I have heard that name before." +And like a lightning flash it crossed my mind that such was the name of +the man Marie de Meudon charged me with knowing. + +"But still," said the general, "what can they make of all these? That of +indiscretion, folly, breach of discipline, if you will; but--" + +"Wait a little," said the other, quietly. "Then comes the night of the +chateau, in which he is found among the _Chouan_ party in their very +den, taking part in the defence." + +"No, no! Lamoriciere, who commanded the cuirassiers, can establish +the fact beyond question, that Burke took no part in the affray, and +delivered his sword at once when called on." + +"At least they found him there, and on his person the brevet of colonel, +signed by Monsieur himself." + +"Of that I can give no explanation," replied the general; "but I am in +possession of such information as can account for his presence at the +chateau, and establish his innocence on that point." + +"Indeed!" cried the advocate, for such he was; "with that much may be +done." + +"Unhappily, however," rejoined the general, "if such a disclosure is +not necessary to save his life, I cannot venture to give it; the ruin of +another must follow the explanation." + +"Without it he is lost," said the advocate, solemnly. + +"And would not accept of life with it," said I, boldly, as I started up +in my bed, and looked fixedly at them. + +The general sprang back, astonished and speechless; but the advocate, +with more command over his emotions, cast his eyes upon the paper before +him, and quickly asked,-- + +"And the commission; how do you account for that?" + +"It was offered to and refused by me. He who made the proposal forgot it +on my table, and I was about to restore it when I was made prisoner." + +"What condition was attached to your acceptance of it?" + +"Some vague, indistinct proposals were made to me to join a conspiracy +of which I was neither told the object nor intentions. Indeed, I stopped +any disclosure by rejecting the bribe." + +"Who made these same proposals?" + +"I shall not tell his name." + +"No matter," said the advocate, carelessly; "it was the Marquis de +Beauvais;" And then, as if affecting to write, I saw his sharp eyes +glance over towards me, while a smile of gratified cunning twitched his +lip. "You will have no objection to say how first you became acquainted +with him?" + +The dexterity of this query, by replying to which I at once established +his preceding assumption, completely escaped me, and I gave an account +of my first meeting with De Beauvais, without ever dreaming of the +inferences it led to. + +"An unhappy rencontre," said the advocate, as if musing; "better have +finished the intimacy, as you first intended, at the Bois de Boulogne." + +"It may be as you say, sir," said I, irritated by the flippancy of his +remark; "but perhaps I may ask the name of the gentleman who takes such +interest in my affairs, and by what right he meddles in them?" + +The general started back in his chair, and was about to speak, when +the advocate laid his hand gently on his arm to restrain him, and, in a +voice of the most unruffled smoothness, replied,-- + +"As to my name, sir, it is Laurence Baillot; my rank is simple avocat to +the Cours et Tribunaux; and the 'right' by which I interfere in matters +personal to you is the consideration of fifty louis which accompanied +this brief." + +"And my name, young man, is Lieutenant-General d'Auvergne," said the old +man, proudly, as he stared me steadfastly in the face. + +I arose at once, and saluted the general with a deep and respectful +obeisance. It was the same officer who reviewed us at the Polytechnique +the day of my promotion. + +"You are now, I hope, satisfied with the reasons of our presence, and +that nothing but considerations of your interest can have influenced our +visit," said the avocat, with calmness. "Such being the case, sit +down here, and relate all you can of your life since your leaving the +Polytechnique. Be brief, too, for it is now three o'clock; the court +opens at ten, your case will be called the second, and I must at least +have three hours of sleep." + +The general pointed to a seat beside him; I sat down, and without +any delay proceeded to give a rapid account of all my adventures and +proceedings to the hour we were then assembled, only omitting all +mention of Mademoiselle de Meudon's name, and such allusions to De +Beauvais as might lead to his crimination. + +The advocate wrote down, as rapidly as I spoke them, the principal +details of my history, and when I had concluded, perused the notes he +had taken with a quick eye. + +"This will never do," said he, with more impatience in his manner than +I had yet witnessed. "Here are a mass of circumstances all unexplained, +and all suspicious. It is now entirely a question of the feeling of +the court. The charges, if pressed, must lead to a conviction. +Your innocence, sir, may satisfy--indeed, it has satisfied--General +d'Auvergne, who else had not been here this night; but the proofs are +not before us." + +He paused for a moment, and then continued in a lower tone, addressing +himself directly to the general: "We must entreat a delay; a day--two +days, certainly--will establish the proofs against George and his +accomplices; they will be condemned and executed at once. It is most +likely that the court will not recur to capital punishment again. The +example being made, any further demonstration will be needless. I see +you put little faith in this manoeuvre; but, trust me, I know the temper +of the tribunal. Besides, the political stroke has already succeeded. +Bonaparte has conquered all his enemies; his next step will be to profit +by the victory." These words were riddles to me at the time, though the +day soon came when their meaning was palpable. "Yes, two days will do +it," said he, confidently raising his voice as he spoke; "and then, +whether there be a hussar the more or one the less in France, will +little trouble the current of events." + +"Then how to obtain the time,--that is the question," said the general. + +"Oh, we shall try something. There can always be a witness to be called; +some evidence all-essential not forthcoming; some necessary proof not +quite unravelled. What if we summoned this same Abbe? The court will +make proclamation for him. D'Ervan is the name?" + +"Yes; but if by so doing he may be involved--" + +"Fear nothing on that score; he'll never turn up, believe me. We can +affect to show that his evidence is all-important. Yes, we'll make the +Abbe, d'Ervan our first witness. Where shall we say he resides? Rouen, +I suppose, will do; yes, Rouen." And so, without waiting for a reply, +he continued to write. "By this, you perceive," he remarked, "we shall +disconcert their plans. They are evidently keeping this abbe up for some +greater occasion; they have a case against himself, perhaps, in which +the proofs are not yet sufficient for conviction. We 'll trouble their +game, and they may be glad to compromise with us." + +The general looked as much confounded as myself at these schemes of the +lawyer, but we both were silent. + +A few questions more followed, to which he wrote down my answers as I +gave them, and then starting up, he said,-- + +"And now, General, I must hasten home to bed. Be ready, at all events, +for appearing before the tribunal, Mr. Burke; at ten you will be called. +And so, good-night." He bowed formally to me, as he opened the door to +permit the general to pass out first. + +"I'll follow you in a moment," said the general, while he closed the +door after him, and remained behind with me in the cell. "It was only +this evening, sir," said he, in a low voice, "at the return of Madame +Bonaparte from Boulogne, that Mademoiselle de Meudon learned you were +not at liberty. She has made me acquainted with the circumstances by +which your present risk has been incurred, and has put me in possession +of wherewithal to establish your innocence as regards the adventure +at the chateau d'Ancre. This disclosure, if it exculpates you, will of +course criminate her, and among those, too, where she has been received +and admitted on terms of the closest friendship. The natural desire to +save her cousin's life will not cover the act by which so horrible a +conspiracy might have escaped punishment. Bonaparte never forgives! Now, +I am in possession of this proof; and if you demand it, it shall be +in your keeping. I have no hesitation in saying that the other charges +against you can easily be got over, this one being refuted. What do you +say?" + +"Nothing could make me accept of such an exculpation," said I, +resolutely; "and were it offered in spite of me, I 'll plead guilty to +the whole act, and suffer with the rest." + +The old man's eyes glistened with 'pleasure, and I thought I saw a tear +fall on his cheek. + +"Now," cried he, as he grasped my hand in both his--"now I feel that +you are innocent, my brave boy, and, come what will, I 'll stand by +you." + +With that he hurried from the cell, and followed the advocate, who was +already calling with some impatience to have the doors unlocked. + +I was again alone. No, not alone, for in my narrow cell hope was with me +now. + + + +CHAPTER XXXVII. THE TRIAL. + +So doubtful was the Government of the day in what way the people +of Paris would be disposed to regard the trial of the _Chouan_ +prisoners,--how far public sympathy might side with misfortune and +heroism, and in what way they would regard Moreau, whose career in arms +so many had witnessed with pride and enthusiasm,--that for several days +they did not dare to strike the decisive blow which was to establish +their guilt, but advanced with slow and cautious steps, gradually +accumulating a mass of small circumstances, on which the "Moniteur" each +day commented, and the other journals of less authority expatiated, +as if to prepare the public mind for further and more important +revelations. + +At last, however, the day arrived in which the mine was to be sprung. +The secret police--whose information extended to all that went on in +every class of the capital, and who knew the chitchat of the highest +circles equally as they did the grumblings of the Faubourg St. Antoine-- +pronounced the time had come when the fatal stroke might no longer be +withheld, and when the long-destined vengeance should descend on their +devoted heads. + +The want of energy on the part of the prosecution--the absence of +important witnesses and of all direct evidence whatever--which marked +the first four days of the trial, had infused a high hope and a strong +sense of security into the prisoners' hearts. The proofs which they +so much dreaded, and of whose existence they well knew, were not +forthcoming against them. The rumored treachery of some of their party +began at length to lose its terror for them; while in the lax and +careless proceedings of the Procureur-General they saw, or fancied +they saw, a desire on the part of Government to render the public +uninterested spectators of the scene, and thus prepare the way for an +acquittal, while no danger of any excitement existed. + +Such was the state of matters at the close of the fourth day. A tiresome +and desultory discussion on some merely legal question had occupied the +court for several hours, and many of the spectators, wearied and tired +out, had gone home disappointed in their expectations, and secretly +resolving not to return the following day. + +This was the moment for which the party in power had been waiting,--the +interval of false security, as it would seem, when all danger was +past, and no longer any apprehension existed. The sudden shock of the +newly-discovered proofs would then come with peculiar force; while, +mo matter how rapid any subsequent step might be, all charge of +precipitancy or undue haste had been disproved by the tardy nature of +the first four days' proceedings. + +For the change of scene about to take place, an early edition of the +"Moniteur" prepared the public; and by daybreak the walls of Paris +were placarded with great announcements of the discoveries made by the +Government: how, by their untiring efforts, the whole plot, which was +to deluge France with blood and subvert the glorious institutions of +freedom they had acquired by the Revolution, had been laid open; new +and convincing evidence of the guilt of the _Chouans_ had turned up; and +a frightful picture of anarchy and social disorganization was +displayed,--all of which was to originate in an effort to restore the +Bourbons to the throne of France. + +While, therefore, the galleries of the court were crowded to suffocation +at an early hour, and every avenue leading to the tribunal crammed with +people anxious to be present at this eventful crisis, the prisoners +took their places on the "bench of the accused," totally unaware of +the reason of the excitement they witnessed, and strangely puzzled to +conceive what unknown circumstance had reinvested the proceedings with a +new interest. + +As I took my place among the rest, I stared with surprise at the scene: +the strange contrast between the thousands there, whose strained eyes +and feverish faces betokened the highest degree of excitement; and that +little group on which every look was turned, calm and even cheerful. +There sat George Cadoudal in the midst of them, his hands clasped in +those at either side of him; his strongly-marked features perfectly +at rest, and his eyes bent with a steady stare on the bench where the +judges were seated. Moreau was not present, nor did I see some of the +_Chouans_ whom I remembered on the former day. + +The usual formal proclamation of the court being made, silence was +called by the crier,--a useless precaution, as throughout that vast +assembly not a whisper was to be heard. A conversation of some minutes +took place between the Procureur and the counsel for the prisoners, in +which I recognized the voice of Monsieur Baillot, my own advocate; which +was interrupted by the President, desiring that the proceedings should +commence. + +The Procureur-General bowed and took his seat, while the President, +turning towards George, said:-- + +"George Cadoudal, you have hitherto persisted in a course of blank +denial regarding every circumstance of the conspiracy with which you +are charged. You have asserted your ignorance of persons and places with +which we are provided with proof to show you are well acquainted. You +have neither accounted for your presence in suspected situations, +nor satisfactorily shown what were the objects of your intimacy with +suspected individuals. The court now desires to ask you whether, at this +stage of the proceedings, you wish to offer more explicit revelations, +or explain any of the dubious events of your career." + +"I will answer any question you put to me," replied George, sternly; +"but I have lived too long in another country not to have learned some +of its usages, and I feel no desire to become my own accuser. Let him +there" (he pointed to the Procureur-General) "do his office; he is the +paid and salaried assailant of the innocent." + +"I call upon the court," said the Procureur, rising, when he was +suddenly interrupted by the President, saying,-- + +"We will protect you, Monsieur le Procureur. And once again we would +admonish the accused, that insolence to the authorities of this court +is but a sorry plea in vindication of his innocence, and shall be no +recommendation to our mercy." + +"Your mercy!" said George, in a voice of scorn and sarcasm. "Who ever +heard of a tiger's benevolence or a wolf's charity? And even if you +wished it, he whose slaves you are--" + +"I call upon you to be silent," said an advocate, rising from a bench +directly behind him. "Another interruption of this kind, and I shall +abandon the defence." + +"What?" said George, turning quickly round and staring at him with a +look of withering contempt; "and have they bought you over too?" + +"Call the first witness," said the President; and an indistinct murmur +was heard, and a slight confusion seen to agitate the crowd, as the +gendarmes opened a path towards the witness bench. And then I saw two +men carrying something between them, which I soon perceived to be a man. +The legs, which were alone apparent, hung down listlessly like those of +a corpse; and one arm, which fell over the shoulder of the bearer, moved +to and fro, as they went, like the limb of a dead man. Every neck was +stretched from the galleries above, and along the benches beneath, +to catch a glimpse of the mysterious figure, which seemed like an +apparition from the grave come to give evidence. His face, too, was +concealed by a handkerchief; and as he was placed in a chair provided +for the purpose, the assistants stood at either side to support his +drooping figure. + +"Let the witness be sworn," said the President; and, with the aid of an +officer of the court, a thin white hand was held up, on which the +flesh seemed almost transparent from emaciation. A low, muttering sound +followed, and the President spoke again,--"Let the witness be uncovered. +George Cadoudal, advance!" + +As the hardy _Chouan_ stepped forward, the handkerchief fell from the +witness's face, while his head slowly turned round towards the prisoner. +A cry, like the yell of a wounded animal, broke from the stout Breton, +as he bounded into the air and held up both his arms to their full +height. + +"Toi, toi!" screamed he, in accents that seemed the very last of a heart +wrung to agony, while he leaned forward and fixed his eyes on him, till +the very orbs seemed bursting from their sockets. "Oui," added he, in +a lower tone, but one which was felt in every corner of that crowded +assemblage--"oui, c'est lui!" Then clasping his trembling hands +together, as his knees bent beneath him, he turned his eyes upwards, and +said, "Le bon Dieu, that makes men's hearts and knows their thoughts, +deals with us as he will; and I must have sinned sorely towards him when +such punishment as this has fallen upon me. Oh, my brother! my child! my +own Bouvet de Lozier!" + +[Illustration: The Witness 391] + +"Bouvet de Lozier!" cried the other prisoners, with a shout wild as +madness itself, while every man sprang forward to look at him. But +already his head had fallen back over the chair, the limbs stretched out +rigidly, and the arm fell heavily down. + +"He is dying!" "He is dead!" were the exclamations of the crowd, and a +general cry for a doctor was heard around. Several physicians were soon +at his side, and by the aid of restoratives he was gradually brought +back to animation; but cold and speechless he lay, unable to understand +anything, and was obliged to be conveyed back again to his bed. + +It was some time before the excitement of this harrowing scene was over; +and when order at length was restored in the court, George Cadoudal was +seen seated, as at first, on the bench, while around him his faithful +followers were grouped. Like children round a beloved father, some +leaned on his neck, others clasped his knees; some covered his hands +with kisses, and called him by the most endearing names. But though he +moved his head from, side to side, and tried to smile upon them, a +cold vacancy was in his face; his lips were parted, and his eyes stared +wildly before him; his very hair stood out from his forehead, on which +the big drops of sweat were seen. + +"Father; dear father, it is but one who is false; see, look how many of +your children are true to you! Think on us who are with you here, and +will go with you to death without shrinking." + +"He is but a child, too, father; and they have stolen away his reason +from him," said another. + +"Yes, they have brought him to this by suffering," cried a third, as +with a clenched hand he menaced the bench, where sat the judges. + +"Order in the court!" cried the President. But the command was +reiterated again and again before silence could be obtained; and when +again I could observe the proceedings, I saw the Procureur-General +addressing the tribunal, to demand a postponement in consequence of +the illness of the last witness, whose testimony was pronounced +all-conclusive. + +A discussion took place on the subject between the counsel for the +prisoners and the prosecution; and at length it was ruled that this +trial should not be proceeded with till the following morning. + +"We are, however, prepared to go on with the other cases," said the +Procureur, "if the court will permit." + +"Certainly," said the President. + +"In that case," continued the Procureur, "we shall call on the accused +Thomas Burke, lieutenant of the huitieme hussars, now present." + +For some minutes nothing more could be heard, for the crowded galleries, +thronged with expectant hundreds, began now to empty. Mine was a name +without interest for any; and the thronged masses rose to depart, while +their over-excited minds found vent in words which, drowned all else. It +was in vain silence and order were proclaimed; the proceedings had lost +all interest, and with it all respect, and for full ten minutes the +uproar lasted. Meanwhile, M. Baillot, taking his place by my side, +produced some most voluminous papers, in which he soon became deeply +engaged. I turned one look throughout the now almost deserted seats, but +not one face there was known to me. The few who remained seemed to stay +rather from indolence than any other motive, as they lounged over the +vacant benches and yawned listlessly; and much as I dreaded the gaze of +that appalling multitude, I sickened at the miserable isolation of my +lot, and felt overwhelmed to think that for me there was not one who +should pity or regret my fall. + +At last order was established in the court, and the Procureur opened +the proceeding by reciting the act of my accusation, in which all the +circumstances already mentioned by my advocate were dwelt and commented +on with the habitual force and exaggeration of bar oratory. The address +was short, however,--scarcely fifteen minutes long; and by the tone +of the speaker, and the manner of the judges, I guessed that my case +excited little or no interest to the prosecution, either from my own +humble and insignificant position, or the certainty they felt of my +conviction. + +My advocate rose to demand a delay, even a short one, pleading most +energetically against the precipitancy of a proceeding in which +the indictment was but made known the day previous. The President +interrupted him roughly, and with an assurance that no circumstance +short of the necessity to produce some important evidence not then +forthcoming, would induce him to grant a postponement. + +M. Baillot replied at once, "Such, sir, is our case; a witness, whose +evidence is of the highest moment, is not to be found; a day or two +might enable us to obtain his testimony. It is upon this we ground our +hope, our certainty, of an acquittal. The court will not, I am certain, +refuse its clemency in such an emergency as this." + +"Where is this same witness to be found? Is he in Paris? Is he in +France?" + +"We hope in Paris, Monsieur le President." + +"And his name?" + +"The Abbe d'Ervan." + +A strange murmur ran along the bench of judges at the words; and I could +see that some of them smiled in spite of their efforts to seem grave, +while the Procureur-General did not scruple to laugh outright. + +"I believe, sir," said he, addressing the President, "that I can +accommodate my learned brother with this so-much desired testimony +perhaps more speedily, I will not say than he wishes, but than he +expects." + +"How is this?" said my advocate, in a whisper to me. "They have this +Abbe then. Has he turned against his party?" + +"I know nothing of him," said I, recklessly; "falsehood and treachery +seem so rife here, that it can well be as you say." + +"The Abbe d'Ervan!" cried a loud voice; and with the words the +well-known figure moved rapidly from the crowd and mounted the steps of +the platform. + +"You are lost!" said Baillot, in a low, solemn voice; "it is Mehee de la +Touche himself!" + +Had the words of my sentence rung in my ears I had not felt them more, +that name, by some secret spell, had such terror in it. + +"You know the prisoner before you, sir?" said the President, turning +towards the Abbe. + +Before he could reply, my advocate broke in:-- + +"Pardon me, sir; but previous to the examination of this respectable +witness, I would ask under what name he is to figure in this process? +Is he here the Abbe d'Ervan, the agreeable and gifted frequenter of the +Faubourg St. Germain?--is he the Chevalier Maupret, the companion and +associate of the house of Bourbon?--or is he the no less celebrated and +esteemed citizen Mehe e de la Touche, whose active exertions have been +of such value in these eventful times that we should think no recompense +sufficient for them had he not been paid by both parties? Yes, sir," +continued he, in an altered tone, "I repeat it: we are prepared to show +that this man is unworthy of all credit; that he whose testimony the +court now calls is a hired spy and bribed calumniator,--the instigator +to the treason he prosecutes, the designer of the schemes for which +other men's blood has paid the penalty. Is this abbe without, and +gendarme within, to be at large in the world, ensnaring the unsuspecting +youth of France by subtle and insidious doctrines disguised under the +semblance of after-dinner gayety? Are we to feel that on such evidence +as this, the fame, the honor, the life of every man is to rest?--he, +who earns his livelihood by treason, and whose wealth is gathered in the +bloody sawdust beneath the guillotine!" + +"We shall not hear these observations longer," said the President, with +an accent of severity. "You may comment on the evidence of the witness +hereafter, and, if you are able to do so, disprove it. His character is +under the protection of the court." + +"No, sir!" said the advocate, with energy; "no court, however high,--no +tribunal, beneath that of Heaven itself, whose decrees we dare not +question,--can throw a shield over a man like this. There are crimes +which stain the nation they occur in; which, happening in our age, make +men sorry for their generation, and wish they had lived in other times." + +"Once more, sir, I command you to desist!" interrupted the President. + +"If I dare to dictate to the honorable court?" said the so-called Abbe, +in an accent of the most honeyed sweetness, and with a smile of the most +winning expression, "I would ask permission for the learned gentleman to +proceed. These well-arranged paragraphs, this indignation got by heart, +must have vent, since they 're paid for; and it would save the tribunal +the time which must be consumed in listening to them hereafter." + +"If," said the advocate, "the coolness and indifference to blood which +the headsman exhibits, be a proof of guilt in the victim before him, I +could congratulate the prosecution on their witness. But," cried he, +in an accent of wild excitement, "great Heavens! are we again fallen +on such times as to need atrocity like this? Is the terrible ordeal +of blood through which we have passed to be renewed once more? Is the +accusation to be hoarded, the calumnious evidence secreted, the charge +held back, till the scaffold is ready,--and then the indictment, the +slander, the sentence, and the death, to follow on one another like the +flash and the thunder? Is the very imputation of having heard from a +Bourbon to bear its prestige of sudden death?" + +"Silence, sir!" cried the President, to whom the allusion to the Duc +d'Enghien was peculiarly offensive, and who saw in the looks of the +spectators with what force it told. "You know the prisoner?" said he, +turning towards D'Ervan. + +"I have that honor, sir," said he, with a bland smile. + +"State to the court the place and the occasion of your first meeting +him." + +"If I remember correctly, it was in the Palais Royal, at Beauvilliers's. +There was a meeting of some of the _Chouan_ party arranged for that +evening, but from some accident only three or four were present. The +sous-lieutenant, however, was one." + +"Repeat, as far as your memory serves you, the conduct and conversation +of the prisoner during the evening in question." + +In reply, the Abbe, recapitulated every minute particular of the supper; +scarcely an observation the most trivial he did not recall, and apply, +by some infernal ingenuity, to the scheme of the conspiracy. Although +never, even in the slightest instance, falsifying any speech, he +tortured the few words I did say into such a semblance of criminality +that I started, as I heard the interpretation which now appeared so +naturally to attach to them. (During all this time my advocate never +interrupted him once, but occupied himself in writing as rapidly as he +could follow the evidence.) The chance expression which concluded the +evening,--the hope of meeting soon,--was artfully construed into an +arranged and recognized agreement that I had accepted companionship +amongst them, and formally joined their ranks. + +From this he passed on to the second charge,--respecting the +conversation I had overheard at the Tuileries, and which I so unhappily +repeated to Beauvais. This the Abbe, dwelt upon with great minuteness, +as evidencing my being an accomplice; showing how I had exhibited great +zeal in the new cause I had embarked in, and affecting to mark how very +highly the service was rated by those in whose power lay the rewards of +such an achievement. + +Then followed the account of my appointment at Versailles, in which I +heard, with a sinking heart, how thoroughly even there the toils were +spread around me. It appeared that the reason of the neglect I then +experienced was an order from the minister that I should not be noticed +in any way; that the object of my being placed there was to test my +fidelity, which already was suspected; that it was supposed such neglect +might naturally have the effect of throwing me more willingly into +the views of the conspirators, and, as I was watched in every minute +particular, of establishing my own guilt and leading to the detection of +others. + +Then came a narrative of his visits to my quarters, in which the +omission of all mention of his name in my report was clearly shown as an +evidence of my conscious culpability. And, to my horror and confusion, +a new witness was produced,--the sentinel, Pierre Dulong, who mounted +guard at the gate of the chateau on the morning when I passed the Abbe, +through the park. + +With an accuracy beyond my belief, he repeated all out conversations, +making the dubious hints and dark suggestions which he himself threw out +as much mine as his own; and having at length given a full picture of +my treacherous conduct, he introduced my intimacy with Beauvais as the +crowning circumstance of my guilt. + +"I shall pause here," said he, with a cool malignity, but ill concealed +beneath a look of affected sorrow--"I shall pause here, and, with the +permission of the court, allow the accused to make, if he will, a full +confession of his criminality; or, if he refuse this, I shall proceed +to the disclosure of other circumstances, by which it will be seen that +these dark designs met favor and countenance in higher quarters; and +among those, too, whose sex, if nothing else, should have removed them +beyond the contamination of confederacy with assassination." + +"The court," said the President, sternly, "will enter into no compromise +of this kind. You are here to give such evidence as you possess, fully, +frankly, and without reserve; nor can we permit you to hold out any +promises to the prisoner that his confession of guilt can afford a +screen to the culpability of others." + +"I demand," cried the Procureur-General, "a full disclosure from the +witness of everything he knows concerning this conspiracy." + +"In that case I shall speak," said the Abbe. + +At this instant a noise was heard in the hall without; a half murmur ran +through the court; and suddenly the heavy curtain was drawn aside, and a +loud voice called out,-- + +"In the name of the Republic, one and indivisible, an order of council." + +The messenger, splashed and covered with mud, advanced through the +court, and delivered a packet into the hands of the President, who, +having broken the large seals, proceeded leisurely to read it over. + +At the same moment I felt my arm gently touched, and a small pencil note +was slipped into my hand. It ran thus:-- + + Dear Sir,--Burke is safe. An order for his transmission + before a military tribunal has just been signed by the First + Consul. Stop all the evidence at once, as he is no longer + before the court + + The court-martial will be but a formality, and in a few days + he will be at liberty. + + Yours, D'AUVERGNE, Lieut,-General. + +Before I could recover from the shock of such glad tidings, the +President rose, and said,-- + +"In the matter of the accused Burke, this court has no longer +cognizance, as he is summoned before the tribunal of the army. Let him +withdraw, and call on the next case,--Auguste Leconisset." + +D'Ervan stooped down and whispered a few words to the Procureur-General, +who immediately demanded to peruse the order of council. To this my +advocate at once objected, and a short and animated discussion on the +legal question followed. The President, however, ruled in favor of my +defender; and at the same instant a corporal's guard appeared, into +whose charge I was formally handed over, and marched from the court. + +Such was the excited state of my mind, in such a confused whirl were +all my faculties, that I knew nothing of what was passing around me; and +save that I was ordered to mount into a carriage, and driven along at +a rapid pace, I remembered no more. At length we reached the quay +Voltaire, and entered the large square of the barrack. The tears burst +out and ran down my cheeks, as I looked once more on the emblems of the +career I loved. We stopped at the door of a large stone building, +where two sentries were posted; and the moment after I found myself +the occupant of a small barrack-room, in which, though under arrest, no +feature of harsh confinement appeared, and from whose windows I could +survey the movement of the troops in the court, and hear the sounds +which for so many a day had been the most welcome to my existence. + + + +CHAPTER XXXVIII. THE CUIRASSIER. + +Although my arrest was continued with all its strictness, I never +heard one word of my transmission before the military tribunal; and +a fortnight elapsed, during which I passed through every stage of +expectancy, doubt, and at last indifference, no tidings having ever +reached me as to what fortune lay in store for me. + +The gruff old invalid that carried my daily rations seemed but +ill-disposed to afford me any information, even as to the common events +without, and seldom made any other reply to my questioning than an +erect position as if on parade, a military salute, and "Connais pas, +mon lieutenant,"--a phrase which I actually began to abhor from its +repetition. Still, his daily visits showed I was not utterly +forgotten; while from my window I had a view of all that went on in the +barrack-yard. There--for I had neither books nor newspapers--I spent my +day watching the evolutions of the soldiers: the parade at daybreak, +the relieving guards, the drill, the exercise, the very labors of the +barrack-square,--all had their interest for me; and at length I began to +know the very faces of the soldiers, and could recognize the bronzed and +weather-beaten features of the veterans of the republican armies. + +It was a cuirassier regiment, and one that had seen much service; most +of the _sous-officiers_ and many of the men were decorated, and their +helmets bore the haughty device of "Dix centre un!" in memory of some +battle against the Austrians, where they repulsed and overthrew a force +of ten times their own number. + +At first their heavy equipments and huge unwieldy horses seemed strange +and uncouth to my eyes, accustomed to the more elegant and trim style of +a hussar corps; but gradually I fancied there was something almost more +soldierlike about them. Their dark faces harmonized too with the great +black cuirass; and the large massive boot mounting to the middle of the +thigh, the long horsehaired helmet, the straight sword, and peculiar, +heavy, plodding step, reminded me of what I used to read of the Roman +centurion; while the horses, covered with weighty and massive trappings, +moved with a warlike bearing and a tramp as stately as their riders. + +When evening came, and set the soldiers free from duty, I used to watch +them for hours long, as they sat in little groups and knots about the +barrack-yard, smoking and chatting,--occasionally singing too. Even +then, however, their distinctive character was preserved: unlike the +noisy, boisterous merriment of the hussar, the staid cuirassier deemed +such levity unbecoming the dignity of his arm of the service, and there +reigned a half-solemn feature over all their intercourse, which struck +me forcibly. I knew not then--as I have learned full well since--how +every department of the French army had its distinctive characteristic, +and that Napoleon studied and even encouraged the growth of these +singular manners to a great extent; doubtless, too, feeling a pride +in his own thorough intimacy with their most minute traits, and that +facility with which, by a single word, he could address himself to +the cherished feeling of a particular corps. And the tact by which +the monarch wins over and fascinates the nobles of his court was here +exercised in the great world of a camp,--and with far more success too; +a phrase, a name, some well-known battle, the date of a victory, would +fall from his lips as he rode along the line, and be caught up with +enthusiasm by thousands, who felt in the one word a recognition of +past services. "Thou"--he always addressed the soldiers in the second +person--"thou wert with me at Cairo," "I remember thee at Arcole," were +enough to reward wounds, suffering, mutilation itself; and he to whom +such was addressed became an object of veneration among his fellows. + +Certain corps preserved more studiously than others the memories of +past achievements,--the heirlooms of their glory; and to these Bonaparte +always spoke with a feel ing of friendship most captivating to the +soldier's heart, and from them he selected the various regiments that +composed his "Guard." The cuirassiers belonged to this proud force; and +even an unmilitary eye could mark, in their haughty bearing and assured +look, that they were a favored corps. + +Among those with whose faces I had now grown familiar there was one whom +I regarded with unusual interest; he seemed to me the very type of his +class. He was a man of gigantic size, towering by half a head above the +very tallest of his fellows, while his enormous breadth of chest and +shoulder actually seemed to detract from his great height. The lower +part of his face was entirely concealed by a beard of bright red hair +that fell in a huge mass over the breast of his cuirass, and seemed by +its trim and fashion to be an object of no common pride to the wearer; +his nose was marked by a sabre-cut that extended across one entire +cheek, leaving a deep blue welt in its track. But saving these traits, +wild and savage enough, the countenance was singularly mild and +pleasing. He had large and liquid blue eyes, soft and lustrous as any +girl's,--the lashes, too, were long and falling; and his forehead, which +was high and open, was white as snow. I was not long in remarking +the strange influence this man seemed to possess over the rest,--an +ascendency not in any way attributable to the mark on his sleeve which +proclaimed him a corporal. It seemed as though his slightest word, his +least gesture, was attended to; and though evidently taciturn and quiet, +when he spoke I could detect in his manner an air of promptitude and +command that marked him as one born to be above his fellows. If he +seemed such in the idle hours, on parade he was the beau ideal of +a cuirassier. His great warhorse, seemingly small for the immense +proportions of the heavy rider, bounded with each movement of his wrist, +as if instinct with the horseman's wishes. + +I waited with some impatience for the invalid's arrival, to ask who this +remarkable soldier was, certain that I should hear of no common man. He +came soon after, and as I pointed out the object of my curiosity, the +old fellow drew himself up with pride, and while a grim effort at a +smile crossed his features, replied,-- + +"That 's Pioche,--le gros Pioche!" + +"Pioche!" said I, repeating the name aloud, and endeavoring to remember +why it seemed well known to me. + +"Yes,--Pioche," rejoined he, gruffly. "If monsieur had ever been in +Egypt, the name would scarcely sound so strange in his ears." And with +this sarcasm he hobbled from the room and closed the door, while I could +hear him grumbling along the entire corridor, in evident anger at the +ignorance that did not know "Pioche!" + +Twenty times did I repeat the name aloud, before it flashed across me as +the same Madame Lefebvre mentioned at the soiree in the Palace. It +was Pioche who shouldered the brass fieldpiece, and passed before the +general on parade. The gigantic size, the powerful strength, the strange +name,--all could belong to no other; and I felt as though at once I had +found an old acquaintance in the great cuirassier of the Guard. + +If the prisoner in his lonely cell has few incidents to charm his +solitary hours, in return he is enabled by some happy gift to make these +the sources of many thoughts. The gleam of light that falls upon the +floor, broken by the iron gratings of his window, comes laden with +storied fancies of other lands,--of far distant countries where men +are dwelling in their native mountains free and happy. Forgetful of his +prison, the captive wanders in his fancy through valleys he has seen +in boyhood, and with friends to be met no more. He turns gladly to the +past, of whose pleasures no adverse fortune can deprive him, and lives +over again the happy hours of his youth; and thinks, with a melancholy +not devoid of its own pleasure, of what they would feel who loved him +could they but see him now. He pictures their sympathy and their sorrow, +and his heart feels lighter, though his eyes drop tears. + +In this way the great cuirassier became an object for my thoughts by day +and my dreams by night. I fancied a hundred stories of which he was the +hero; and these imaginings served to while away many a tedious hour, +and gave me an interest in watching the little spot of earth that was +visible from my barred window. + +It was in one of these reveries I sat one evening, when I heard the +sounds of feet approaching along the corridor that led to my room; +the clank of a sabre and the jingle of spurs sounded not like my gruff +visitor. My door was opened before I had time for much conjecture, and +Greneral d'Auvergne stood before me. + +"Ah! mon lieutenant," cried he, gayly, "you have been thinking +very hardly of me since we met last, I 'm sure; charging me with +forgetfulness, and accusing me of great neglect." + +"Pardon me, General," said I, hurriedly; "your former kindness, for +which I never can be grateful enough, has been always before my mind. I +have not yet forgotten that you saved my life; more still,--you rescued +my name from dishonor." + +"Well, well; that's all past and gone now. Your reputation stands clear +at last. De Beauvais has surrendered himself to the authorities at +Rouen, and made a full confession of everything, exculpating you +completely in every particular; save the indiscretion of your +intercourse with Mehee de la Touche, or, as you know him better, the +Abbe, d'Ervan." + +"And poor De Beauvais, what is to become of him?" said I, eagerly. + +"Have no fears on his account," said he, with something like confusion +in his manner. "She (that is, Madame Bonaparte) has kindly interested +herself in his behalf, and he is to sail for Guadaloupe in a few +days,--his own proposition and wish." + +"And does General Bonaparte know now that I was guiltless?" cried I, +with enthusiasm. + +"My dear young man," said he, with a bland smile, "I very much fear that +the general has little time at this moment to give the matter much +of his attention. Great events have happened,--are happening while we +speak. War is threatening on the side of Austria. Yes, it is true: the +camp of Boulogne has received orders to break up; troops are once more +on their march to the Rhine; all France is arming." + +"Oh, when shall I be free?" + +"You are free!" cried he, clapping me gayly on the shoulder. "An +amnesty against all untried prisoners for state of offences has been +proclaimed. At such a moment of national joy--" + +"What do you mean?" + +"What! and have I not told you my great news? The Senate have presented +to Bonaparte an address, praying his acceptance of the throne of France; +or, in their very words, to make his authority eternal." + +"And he?" said I, breathless with impatience to know the result. + +"He," continued the general, "has replied as became him, desiring them +to state clearly their views,--by what steps they propose to consolidate +the acquired liberties of the nation. And while avowing that no higher +honor or dignity can await him than such as he has already received at +the hands of the people, 'Yet,' added he, 'when the hour arrives that +I can see such to be the will of France,--when one voice proclaims it +from Alsace to the Ocean, from Lisle to the Pyrenees,--then shall I be +ready to accept the throne of France.'" + +The general entered minutely into all the circumstances of the great +political change, and detailed the effect which the late conspiracy had +had on the minds of the people, and with what terror they contemplated +the social disorders that must accrue from the death of their great +ruler; how nothing short of a Government based on a Monarchy, with the +right of succession established, could withstand such a terrific crisis. +As he spoke, the words I had heard in the Temple crossed my mind, and I +remembered that such was the anticipation of the prisoners, as they said +among themselves, "When the guillotine has done its work, they 'll patch +up the timbers into a throne." + +"And George Cadoudal, and the others?" said I. + +"They are no more. Betrayed by their own party, they met death like +brave men, and as worthy of a better cause. But let us not turn to so +sad a theme. The order for your liberation will be here to-morrow; and +as I am appointed to a brigade on active service, I have come to offer +you the post of aide-de-camp." + +I could not speak; my heart was too full for words. I knew how great the +risk of showing any favor to one who stood in such a position as I did; +and I could but look my gratitude, while the tears ran down my cheeks. + +"Well," cried he, as he took my hand in his, "so much is settled. Now to +another point, and one in which my frankness must cause you no offence. +You are not rich,--neither am I; but Bonaparte always gives us +opportunities to gather our epaulettes,--ay, and find the bullion to +make them, too. Meanwhile, you may want money--" + +"No, General," cried I, eagerly; "here are three thousand francs some +kind friend sent me. I know not whence they came; and even if I wanted, +did not dare to spend them. But now--" + +The old man paused, and appeared confused, while he leaned his finger on +his forehead, and seemed endeavoring to recall some passing thought. + +"Did they come from you, sir?" said I, timidly. + +"No, not from me," repeated he, slowly. "You say you never found out the +donor?" + +"Never," said I, while a sense of shame prevented my adding what rose to +my mind,--Could they not be from Mademoiselle de Meudon? + +"Well, well," said he, at length, "be it so. And now till to-morrow: I +shall be here at noon, and bring the minister's order with me. And so, +good-by." + +"Good-by," said I, as I stood overcome with happiness. "Let what will +come of it, this is a moment worth living for." + + + +CHAPTER XXXIX. A MORNING AT THE TUILLERIES + +True to his appointment, the general appeared the following day as +the hour of noon was striking. He brought the official papers from +the Minister of War, as well as the formal letter naming me his +aide-de-camp. The documents were all perfectly regular; and being read +over by the military commission, I was sent for, when my sword was +restored to me by the colonel of the regiment in garrison, and I was +free once more. + +"You have received a severe lesson, Burke," said the general, as he took +my arm to lead me towards his carriage, "and all owing to the rashness +with which, in times of difficulty and danger, you permitted yourself to +form intimacies with men utterly unknown to you. There are epochs when +weakness is the worst of evils. You are very young, to be sure, and I +trust the experience you have acquired here will serve for a lifetime." + +"Still, sir, in all this sad business, my faith never wavered; my +attachment to the Consul was unshaken." + +"Had it been otherwise, do you think you had been here now?" said he, +dryly. "Were not the evidences of your fidelity set off against +your folly, what chance of escape remained for you? No, no; she who +befriended you so steadily throughout this tangled scheme for your ruin, +had never advocated your cause were there reason to suppose you were +involved in the conspiracy against her husband's life." + +"Who do you mean?" said I. "I scarcely understand." + +"The Consulesse, of course. But for Madame Bonaparte you were lost; even +since I saw you last, I have learned how deeply interested she became in +your fortunes. The letter you received in the Temple came from her, and +the enclosure also. And now, with your leave, we can do nothing better +than pay our respects to her, and make our acknowledgments for such +kindness. She receives at this hour, and will, I know, take your visit +in good part." + +While I professed my readiness to comply with the suggestion, we drove +into the court of the Tuileries. It was so early that, except the +officers of the Consul's staff and some of those on guard, we were the +only persons visible. + +"We are the first arrivals," said the general, as we drew up at the door +of the pavilion. "I am not sorry for it; we shall have our audience over +before the crowd assembles." + +Giving our names to the usher, we mounted the stairs, and passed on +from room to room until we came to a large salon, in which seats were +formally arranged in a semicircle, an armchair somewhat higher than the +rest occupying the centre. Several full-length portraits of the generals +of the Revolutionary armies adorned the walls, and a striking likeness +of the Consul himself, on horseback, held the principal place. I had +but time to see thus much, when the two sides of the folding-doors were +flung open, and Madame Bonaparte, followed by Mademoiselle de Meudon, +entered. Scarcely were the doors closed, when she said, smiling,-- + +"I heard of your arrival. General, and guessed its purport, so came at +once. Monsieur Burke, I am happy to see you at liberty once more." + +"That I owe it to you, Madame, makes it doubly dear to me," said I, +faltering. + +"You must not overrate my exertions on your behalf," replied the +Consulesse, in a hurried voice. "There was an amende due to you for the +treatment you met with at Versailles,--all Savary's fault; and now I am +sincerely sorry I ever suffered myself to become a party to his schemes. +Indeed, I never guessed them, or I should not. General d'Auvergne has +made you his aide-decamp, he tells me." + +"Yes, Madame; my good fortune has showered favors on me most suddenly. +Your kindness has been an augury of success in everything." + +She smiled, as if pleased, and then said, "I have a piece of advice +to give you, and hope you 'll profit by it." Then, turning towards the +general, who all this time was deeply engaged in talking to Mademoiselle +de Meudon, she added, "Don't you think. General, that it were as well +Monsieur Burke should not be in the way of meeting the Consul for some +short time to come. Is there any garrison duty, or any service away from +Paris, where for a week or so he could remain?" + +"I have thought of that, Madame," said the general. "Two of the +regiments in my brigade are to march tomorrow for the east of France, +and I intend my young friend to proceed to Strasburg at once." + +"This is not meant for banishment," said she to me, with a look of much +sweetness; "but Bonaparte will now and then say a severe thing, likely +to dwell in the mind of him to whom it was addressed long after the +sentiment which dictated it has departed. A little time will efface all +memory of this sad affair, and then we shall be happy to see you here +again." + +"Or events may happen soon, Madame, by which he may make his own peace +with General Bonaparte." + +"True, very true," said she, gravely. "And as to that. General, what +advices are there from Vienna?" + +She drew the general aside into one of the windows, leaving me alone +with Mademoiselle de Meudon. But a minute before, and I had given the +world for such an opportunity, and now I could not speak a syllable. +She, too, seemed equally confused, and bent over a large vase of +moss-roses, as if totally occupied by their arrangement. I drew nearer, +and endeavored to address her; but the words would not come, while a +hundred gushing thoughts pressed on me, and my heart beat loud enough +for me to hear it. At last I saw her lips move, and thought I heard my +name. I bent down my head lower; it was her voice, but so low as to be +scarcely audible. + +"I cannot thank you, sir, as I could wish," said she, "for the service +you rendered me, at the risk of your own life and honor. And though I +knew not the dangers you were to incur by my request, I asked it as +of the only one I knew who would brave such danger at my asking." She +paused for a second, then continued: "The friend of Charles could not +but be the friend of Marie de Meudon. There is now another favor I would +beg at your hands," said she, while a livid paleness overspread her +features. + +"Oh, name it!" said I, passionately. "Say, how can I serve you?" + +"It is this," said she, with an accent whose solemnity sank into the +very recesses of my heart. "We have ever been an unlucky race; De Meudon +is but a name for misfortune not only have we met little else in our +own lives, but all who have befriended us have paid the penalty of their +friendship. My dear brother knew this well; and I--." She paused, and +then, though her lips moved, the words that followed were inaudible. +"There is but one on earth," continued she, as her eyes, brimful of +tears, were turned towards Madame Bonaparte, who still stood talking +in the window, "over whose fortunes my affection has thrown no blight. +Heaven grant it may be ever so!" Then suddenly, as if remembering +herself, she added: "What I would ask is this,--that we should meet no +more. Nay, nay; look not so harshly at me. If I, alone in the world, ask +to be deprived of his friendship who loved my brother so--" + +"Oh! if you be alone in the world, feel for one like me, who has not +even a country he can call his own. Take not the one hope from my heart, +I ask you. Leave me the thought that there is one, but one, in all this +land, to whom my name, if ever mentioned with praise, can bring one +moment's pleasure,--who can say 'I knew him.' Do not forget that +Charles, with his dying breath, said you would be my sister." + +The door of the _salon_ opened suddenly, and a name was announced, but +in my confusion, I heard not what. Madame Bonaparte, however, advanced +towards the new arrival with an air of welcome, as she said,-- + +"We were just wishing for you, general. Pray tell us all the news of +Paris." + +The person thus addressed was a very tall and singularly handsome man, +whose dark eyes, and dark whiskers meeting in the middle of his chin, +gave him the appearance of an Italian. He was dressed in a hussar +uniform, whose gorgeous braiding of gold was heightened in effect by a +blaze of orders and stars that covered the entire breast; the scarlet +pantaloons, tight to the leg, displayed to advantage the perfect +symmetry of his form; while his boots of yellow morocco, bound and +tasselled with gold, seemed the very coquetry of military costume. A +sabre, the hilt actually covered with precious stones, clanked at his +side, and the aigrette of his plumed hat was a large diamond. There was +something almost theatrical in the manner of his approach, as with a +stately step and a deep bow he took Madame Bonaparte's hand and kissed +it; a ceremony he repeated to Mademoiselle de Meudon, adding, as he did +so,-- + +"And my fair rose de Provence, more beautiful than ever!--how is she?" + +"What flattery is he whispering, Marie?" said the Consulesse, laughing. +"Don't you know, General, that I insist on all the compliments here +being paid to myself. What do you think of my robe? Your judgment is +said to be perfect." + +"Charming, absolutely charming!" said he, in an attitude of affected +admiration. "It is only such taste as yours could have devised anything +so beautiful. Yet the roses,--I half think I should have preferred them +white." + +"You can scarcely imagine that vain fellow with the long ringlets the +boldest soldier of the French army," said the general, in a low whisper, +as he drew me to one side. + +"Indeed! And who is he, then?" + +"You a hussar, and not know him! Why, Murat, to be sure." + +"So, then, Madame, all my news of Monsieur Talleyrand's ball, it seems, +is stale already. You 've heard that the russian and Austrian ministers +both sent apologies?" + +"Oh dear!" said she, sighing; "have I not heard it a thousand times, and +every reason for it canvassed, until I wished both of their excellencies +at--at Madame Lefebvre's dinner-party?" + +"That was perfect," cried Murat, aloud; "a regular bivouac in a salon. +You'd think that the silver dishes and the gilt candelabras had just +been captured from the enemy, and that the cuisine was made by beat of +drum." + +"The general is an honest man and a brave officer," said D'Auvergne, +somewhat nettled at the tone Murat spoke in. + +"No small boast either," replied the other, shrugging his shoulders +carelessly, "in the times and the land we live in." + +"And what of Cambaceres's soiree,--how did it go off?" interposed Madame +Bonaparte, anxious to relieve the awkward pause that followed. + +"Like everything in his hotel,--sombre, stately, and stupid; the company +all dull, who would be agreeable everywhere else; the tone of the +reception labored and affected; and every one dying to get away to +Fouche's,--it was his second night for receiving." + +"Was that pleasanter, then?" + +"A hundred times. There are no parties like his: one meets everybody; +it is a kind of neutral territory for the Faubourg and the Jacobin, the +partisan of our people and the followers of Heaven knows who. Fouche +slips about, whispering the same anecdote in confidence to every one, +and binding each to secrecy. Then, as every one comes there to spy his +neighbor, the host has an excellent opportunity of pumping all in turn; +and while they all persist in telling him nothing but lies, they forget +that with him no readier road could lead to the detection of truth." + +"The Consul!" said a servant, aloud, as the door opened and closed with +a crash; and Bonaparte, dressed in the uniform of the Chasseurs of the +Guard, and covered with dust, entered. + +"Was Decres here?" And then, without waiting for a reply, continued: +"It is settled, all finally arranged; I told you, Madame, the 'pear was +ripe.' I start to-morrow for Boulogne; you, Murat, must accompany +me; D'Auvergne, your division will march the day after. Who is this +gentleman?" + +This latter question, in all its abruptness, was addressed to me, while +a dark and ominous frown settled on his features. + +"My aide-de-camp, sir," said the old general, hastily, hoping thus to +escape further inquiry. + +"Your name, sir?" said the Consul, harshly, as he fixed his piercing +eyes upon me. + +"Burke, sir; sous-lieutenant--" + +"Of the Eighth Hussars," continued he. "I know the rest, sir. Every +conspiracy is made up of knaves and fools; you figured in the +latter capacity. Mark me, sir, your name is yet to make; the time +is approaching when you may have the opportunity. Still, General d' +Auvergne, it is not in the ranks of a _Chouan_ plot I should have gone +to select my staff." + +"Pardon me, sir; but this young man's devotion to you--" + +"Is on record. General; I have seen it in Mehee de la Touche's own +writing," added Bonaparte, with a sneer. "Give me the fidelity, sir, +that has no tarnish,--like your own, D'Auvergne. Go, sir," said he, +turning to me, while he waved his hand towards the door; "it will +need all your bravery and all your heroism to make me acquit General +d'Auvergne of an act of folly." + +[Illustration: Napoleon sends Burke from the room] + +I hung my head in shame, and with a low reverence and a tottering step +moved from the room and closed the door behind me. + +I had just reached the street when the general overtook me. + +"Come, come, Burke," said he; "you must not mind this. I heard Lannes +receive a heavier reproof because he only carried away three guns of an +Austrian battery when there were four in all." + +"Bonaparte never forgets, sir," muttered I, between my teeth, as the +well-remembered phrase crossed my mind. + +"Then there 's but one thing to do, my boy; give him a pleasanter +souvenir to look back upon. Besides," added he, in a lower tone, "the +general is ever harsh at the moment of victory; and such is the +present. In a few days more, France will have an emperor; the Senate has +declared, and the army wait but for the signal to salute their monarch. +And now for your own duties. Make your arrangements to start to-night by +post for Mayence; I shall join you there in about ten days. You are, on +your arrival, to report yourself to the general in command, and receive +your instructions from him. A great movement towards the Rhine is +in contemplation; but, of course, everything awaits the progress of +political changes in Paris." + +Thus conversing, we reached the corner of the Rue de Rohan, where the +general's quarters were. + +"You'll be here then punctually at eight to-night," said he; and we +parted. + +I walked on for some time without knowing which way I went, the strange +conflict of my mind so completely absorbed me,--hope and fear, pride, +shame, and sorrow, alternately swaying me with their impulses. I noticed +not the gay and splendid streets through which I passed, nor the merry +groups which poured along. At length I remembered that but a few hours +remained for me to make some purchases necessary for my journey. My new +uniform as aide-de-camp, too, was yet to be ordered; and by some +strange hazard I was exactly at the corner of the Rue de Richelieu on the +Boulevard, at the very shop of Monsieur Grillac where some months before +began the singular current of ill luck that had followed me ever since. +A half shudder of fear passed across me for a second as I thought of all +the dangers I had gone through; and the next moment I felt ashamed of +my cowardice, and pushing the glass door before me, walked in. I looked +about me for the well-known face of the proprietor, but he was nowhere +to be seen. A lean and wasted little old man, hung round with tapes and +measures, was the only person there. Saluting me with a most respectful +bow, he asked my orders. + +"I thought this was Crillac's," said I, hesitatingly. + +A shrug of the shoulders and a strange expression of the eyebrows was +the only reply. + +"I remember he lived here some eight or ten months ago," said I +again, curious to find out the meaning of the man's ignorance of his +predecessor. + +"Monsieur has been away from Paris for some time then?" was the cautious +question of the little man, as he peered curiously at me. + +"Yes; I have been away," said I, after a pause. + +"Monsieur knew Criliac probably when he was here?" + +"I never saw him but once," said I. + +"Ha!" cried he, after a long silence. "Then you probably never heard +of the _Chouan_ conspiracy to murder the Chief Consul and overthrow the +Government, nor of their trial at the Palais de Justice?" + +I nodded slightly, and he went on. + +"Monsieur Crillac's evidence was of great value in the proceeding: he +knew Jules de Polignac and Charles de la Riviere well; and but for him, +San Victor would have escaped." + +"And what has become of him since?" + +"He is gone back to the South; he has been promoted." + +"Promoted! what do you mean?" + +"_Parbleu!_ it is easy enough to understand. He was made chef de bureau +in the department of--" + +"What! was he not a tailor then?" + +"A tailor! No," said the little man, laughing heartily; "he was +a mouchard, a police spy, who knew all the Royalist party well at +Bordeaux; and Fouche brought him up here to Paris, and established him +in this house. Ah, mon Dieu!" said he, sighing, "he had a better and a +pleasanter occupation than cutting out pantaloons." + +Without heeding the reiterated professions of the little tailor of his +desire for my patronage, I strolled out again, lost in reflection, and +sick to the heart of a system based on such duplicity and deception. + +At last in Mayence! What a change of life was this to me! A large +fortress garrisoned by twelve thousand men, principally artillery, +awaited here the orders of the Consul; but whither the destination +before them, or what the hour when the word to march was to summon them, +none could tell. Meanwhile the activity of the troops was studiously +kept up; battering trains of field artillery were exercised day after +day; the men were practised in all the movements of the field; while +the foundries were unceasingly occupied in casting guns and the furnaces +rolled forth their myriads of shell and shot. Staff-officers came and +went; expresses arrived from Paris; and orderlies, travel-stained and +tired, galloped in from the other fortified places near; but still no +whisper came to say where the great game of war was to open, for what +quarter of the globe the terrible carnage was destined. From daylight +till dark no moment of our time was unoccupied; reports innumerable were +to be furnished on every possible subject; and frequently it was far in +the night ere I returned to rest. + +To others this unbroken monotony may have been wearisome and +uninteresting; to me each incident bore upon the great cause I gloried +in,--the dull rumble of the caissons, the heavy clattering of the brass +guns, were music to my ear, and I never wearied of the din and clamor +that spoke of preparation. Such was indeed the preoccupation of my +thoughts that I scarcely marked the course of events which were even +then passing, or the mighty changes that already moved across the +destinies of France. To my eyes the conqueror of Lodi needed no title; +what sceptre could equal his own sword? France might desire in her pride +to unite her destinies with such a name as his; but he, the general +of Italy and Egypt, could not be exalted by any dignity. Such were my +boyish fancies; and as I indulged them, again there grew up the hope +within me that a brighter day was yet to beam on my own fortunes, when +I should do that which even in his eyes might seem worthy. His very +reproaches stirred my courage and nerved my heart. There was a combat, +there was a battlefield, before me, in which my whole fame and honor +lay; and could I but succeed in making him confess that he had wronged +me, what pride was in the thought? "Yes," said I, again and again, "a +devotion to him such as I can offer must have success: one who, like me, +has neither home nor friends nor country to share his heart, must have +room in it for one passion; and that shall be glory. She whom alone I +could have loved,--I dared not confess I did love her,--never could be +mine. Life must have its object; and what so noble as that before me?" +My very dreams caught up the infatuation of my waking thoughts, +and images of battle, deadly contests, and terrific skirmishes were +constantly passing before me; and I actually went my daily rounds +of duty buried in these thoughts, and lost to everything save what +ministered to my excited imagination. + +We who lived far away on the distant frontier could but collect from the +journals the state of excitement and enthusiasm into which every class +of the capital was thrown by Napoleon's elevation to the Monarchy. Never +perhaps in any country did the current of popular favor run in a stream +so united. The army hailed him as their brother of the sword, and felt +the proud distinction that the chief of the Empire was chosen from their +ranks. The civilian saw the restoration of Monarchy as the pledge +of that security which alone was wanting to consolidate national +prosperity. The clergy, however they may have distrusted his sincerity, +could not but acknowledge that to his influence was owing the return of +the ancient faith; and, save the Vendeans, broken and discomfited, and +the scattered remnants of the Jacobin party, discouraged by the fate of +Moreau, none raised a voice against him. A few of the old Republicans, +among whom was Camot, did, it is true, proclaim their dissent; but so +moderately, and with so little of partisan spirit, as to call forth a +eulogium on their honorable conduct from Napoleon himself. + +The mighty change, which was to undo all the long and arduous struggles +for liberty which took years in their accomplishments, was effected +in one burst of national enthusiasm. Surrounded by nations on whose +friendship they dared not reckon,--at war with their most powerful +enemy, England,--France saw herself dependent on the genius of one great +man; and beheld, too, the formidable conspiracy for his assassination, +coupled with the schemes against her own independence. He became thus +indissolubly linked with her fortunes; self-interest and gratitude +pointed both in the same direction to secure his services; and the +Imperial Crowa was indeed less the reward of the past than the price +of the future. Even they who loved him least, felt that in his guidance +there was safety, and that without him the prospect was dark and dreary +and threatening. + +Another element which greatly contributed to the same effect, was the +social ruin caused by the Revolution; the destruction of all commerce, +the forfeiture of property, had thrown every class into the service of +the Government. Men gladly advocated a change by which the ancient +forms of a Monarchy might be restored; and with them the long train of +patronage and appointments, their inevitable attendants. Even the old +families of the kingdom hailed the return of an order of things which +might include them in the favors of the Crown; and the question now was, +what rank or class should be foremost in tendering their allegiance to +the new sovereign. We should hesitate ere we condemn the sudden impulse +by which many were driven at this period. Confiscation and exile had +done much to break the spirit of even the hardiest; and the very return +to the institutions in which all their ancient prejudices were involved +seemed a pledge against the tyranny of the mass. + +As for Napoleon himself, each step in his proud career seemed to evoke +the spirit necessary to direct it; the resources of his mighty intellect +appeared, with every new drain on them, only the more inexhaustible. +Animated through his whole life by the one great principle,--the +aggrandizement of France,--his vast intelligence gathering strength with +his own increase of power, enabled him to cultivate every element of +national greatness, and mould their energies to his will; till at length +the nation seemed but one vast body, of which he was the heart, the +impulse, that sent the life-blood bounding through all its arteries, and +with whose beating pulses every, even the most remote portion, throbbed +in unison. + +The same day that established the Empire, declared the rank and dignity +accorded to each member of the royal family, with the titles to be borne +by the ministers and other high officers of the Crown. The next step +was the creation of a new order of nobility,--one which, without +ancient lineage or vast possessions, could still command the respect +and admiration of all,--the marshals of France. The names of Berthier, +Murat, Augereau, Massena, Bernadotte, Ney, Soult, Lannes, Mortier, +Davoust, Bessieres, were enough to throw a blaze of lustre on the +order. And had it not been for the omission of Macdonald's name in this +glorious list, public enthusiasm had been complete; but then he was the +friend of Moreau, and Bonaparte "did not forgive." + +The restoration of the old titles so long in abeyance, the return to +the pomp and state of Monarchy, seemed like a national fete, and Paris +became the scene of a splendid festivity and a magnificence unknown +for many years past. It was necessary for the new Court to make its +impression on the world; and the endeavor was to eclipse, by luxury and +splendor, the grandeur which in the days of the Bourbons was an heirloom +of royalty. To this end functionaries and officers of the Palace were +appointed in myriads; brilliant and costly uniforms adopted; courtly +titles and ceremonial observances increased without end; and etiquette, +carried to a pitch of strictness which no former reign had ever +exhibited, now regulated every department of the state. + +While, however, nothing was too minute or too trivial, provided that it +bore, even in the remotest way, on the re-establishment of that throne +he had so long and so ardently desired, Napoleon's great mind was +eagerly bent upon the necessity of giving to the Empire one of those +astounding evidences of his genius which marked him as above all other +men. He wished to show to France that the Crown had devolved upon the +rightful successor to Charlemagne, and to prove to the army that the +purple mantle of royalty could not conceal the spur of the warrior; and +thus, while all believed him occupied with the ordinary routine of +the period, his ambitious thoughts were carrying him away across the +Pyrenees or beyond the Danube, to battlefields of even greater glory +than ever, and to conquests prouder than all his former ones. + +The same power of concentrativeness that he so eminently possessed +himself, he imparted, as if by magic, to his Government. Paris was +France; to the capital flocked all whose talent or zeal prompted them +to seek for advancement. The Emperor was not only the fountain of +all honor, but of all emolument and place. So patronage was exercised +without his permission; and none was conferred without the conviction +that some stanch adherent was secured whose friendship was ratified, or +whose former enmity was conciliated. + +Thus passed the year that followed his accession to the throne,--that +brilliant pageant of a nation's enthusiasm rendering tribute to the +majesty of intellect. At length the period of inaction seemed drawing to +a close; and a greater activity in the war department, and a new levy +of troops, betokened the approach of some more energetic measures. +Men whispered that the English expedition was about to sail, and +reinforcements of ammunition and artillery were despatched to the coast, +when suddenly came the news of Trafalgar. Villeneuve was beaten,-- +his fleet annihilated,--the whole combination of events destroyed; and +England, again triumphant on the element she had made her own, hurled +defiance at the threats of her enemy. The same despatch that brought the +intelligence to Mayence told us to be in readiness for a movement; but +when, or where to, none of us could surmise. Still detachments from +various corps stationed about were marched into the garrison, skeleton +regiments commanded to make up their deficiencies, and a renewed energy +was everywhere perceptible. At last, towards the middle of August, I was +sent for by the general in command of the fortress, and informed that +General d'Auvergne had been promoted to the command of a cavalry brigade +stationed at Coblentz. + +"You are to join him there immediately," continued he; "but here is a +note from himself, which probably will explain everything." And with +that he handed me a small sealed letter. + +It was the first, save on purely regimental matters, I had ever received +from him, and somehow I felt unusually anxious about its contents. It +ran in these words:-- + + My dear B.,--His Majesty has just sent for me, and most + graciously esteeming me not yet too old to serve him, has + given me the command of a brigade,--late the Twelfth, now to + be called 'D'Auvergne's Cavalry.' I would willingly have + mentioned your name for promotion, to which your zeal and + activity would well entitle you; but deemed it better to + let your claim come before the Emperor's personal notice, + which an opportunity will, I trust, soon permit of its + doing. His Majesty, with a kindness which the devotion of a + life could not repay, has also interested himself personally + for me in a quarter where only his influence could have + proved successful. But the explanation of this I reserve for + your arrival. And now I request that you will lose no time + in repairing to Paris, where I shall expect to see you by + Tuesday. + + Yours, + + D'AUVERGNE, Lieut. 'General' + +This strange paragraph puzzled me not a little; nor could I, by any +exercise of ingenuity, find out even a plausible meaning for it. I read +it over and over, weighing and canvassing every word, and torturing each +syllable; but all to no purpose. Had the general been some youthful but +unhappy lover, to forward whose suit the Emperor had lent his influence, +then had I understood the allusion; but with the old weather-beaten +officer, whose hairs were blanched with years and service, the very +thought of such a thing was too absurd. Yet what could be the royal +favor so lavishly praised? He needed no intercession with the Empress; +at least, I remembered well how marked the kindness of Josephine was +towards him in former times. But to what use guessing? Thoughts, by long +revolving, often become only the more entangled, and we lose sight of +the real difficulty in canvassing our own impressions concerning it. And +so from this text did I spin away a hundred fancies that occupied me the +whole road to Paris, nor left me till the din and movement of the great +capital banished all other reflections. + +Arrangement had been made for my reception at the Rue de Rohan; but I +learned that the general was at Versailles with the Court, and only came +up to Paris once or twice each week. His direction to me was, to wait +for his arrival, and not to leave the city on any account. + +With what a strange feeling did I survey the Palace of the +Tuileries,--the scene of my first moment of delighted admiration of her +I now loved, and, alas! of my first step in the long catalogue of my +misfortunes! I lingered about the gardens with a fascination I could not +account for; my destiny seemed somehow linked with the spot, and I could +not reason myself out of the notion but that there, in that great pile, +the fate of my whole life was to be decided. + +My entire day was passed in this way; and evening found me seated on +one of the benches near the windows of the pavilion, where I watched the +lustres in the long gallery as one by one they burst into light, and saw +the gilt candelabras twinkling as each taper was illuminated. It was an +evening reception of the Emperor, and I could mark the vast assemblage, +in every variety of uniform, that filled the salons. At length the drums +beat for strangers to leave the gardens; the patrols passed on; and +gradually the crowded walks became thinner and thinner; the sounds of +the drum grew fainter; and finally the whole space became still and +noiseless,--not a voice was to be heard, not a step moved on the gravel. +I knew that the gates were now locked; and yet I stayed on, glad to be +alone, and at leisure to dream away among the fancies that kept ever +rising to my mind, and to follow out the trains of thought that ever and +anon opened before me. + +As the hour grew later, and the salons filled more and more, the +windows were opened along the terrace to give air, and I could hear the +continued murmur of hundreds of voices conversing, while at times the +sound of laughter rose above the rest. What a rush of thoughts came on +me as I sat! how did I picture to myself the dark intrigues, the subtle +plots of wily diplomatists, the bold and daring aspirations of the +brave soldiers, the high hopes and the ambitious yearnings that were +all commingled there, grouped around him whose dreams were of universal +empire! While I mused, the night glided on, and the solemn sound of the +bell of Notre Dame proclaimed midnight. I now could mark that the salons +were thinning, and the unceasing din of carriages in the Place announced +the departure of the guests. In little more than half an hour the great +gallery was empty, and but a few groups remained in the apartments +adjoining. Even they soon departed; and then I could see the servants +passing from room to room extinguishing the lights, and soon the great +facade of the palace wac wrapped in darkness. A twinkling light appeared +here and there for some time, but it too went out. The night was calm +and still and sultry; not a leaf stirred; and the heavy tread of the +sentinels as they paced the marble vestibule was heard plainly where I +stood. + +How full of thought to me was that vast pile, now shrouded in the gloom +of night! What bold, ambitious deeds,--what dreams of empire,--had not +been conceived there! The great of other days, indeed, entered little +into my mind, as I remembered it was the home of him, the greatest of +them all. How terrible, too, it was to think, that within that silent +palace, which seemed sleeping with the tranquil quiet of an humble +cottage, the dreadful plans which were to convulse the world, to shake +thrones and dynasties, to make of Europe a vast battlefield, were +now devising. The masses of dark cloud that hung heavily in the air, +obscuring the sky and shutting out every star, seemed to my fevered +imagination an augury of evil; and the oppressive, loaded atmosphere, +though perfumed with the odor of flowers, sunk heavily on the spirits. +Again the hour rang out, and I remembered that the gates of the garden +were now closed for the night, and that I should remain where I was +till daylight liberated me. My mind was, however, too full of its own +thoughts to make me care for sleep, and I strolled along the gloomy +walks lost in revery. + + + +CHAPTER XL. A NIGHT IN THE TUILERIES GARDENS. + +As the night wore on, I remembered that once, when a boy at the +Polytechnique, I longed to penetrate one of the little enclosures which +fenced the small flower-gardens beside the Palace, and which were railed +up from the public promenades by a low iron railing. The bouquets of +rich flowers that grew there, sparkling with the light dew of a little +jet d'eau that fell in raindrops over them, had often tempted my young +heart; but still in the daytime such a transgression would have been +immediately punished. Now, with the strange caprice which so often +prompts us in after years to do that which in youth we wished but could +not accomplish, I wandered towards the gardens, and crossing over the +low fence, entered the parterre; each step awoke the sleeping perfume of +the flowers, and I strolled along the velvet turf until I reached a low +bench, half covered with honeysuckle and woodbine. Here I threw myself +down, and, wrapping my cloak around me, resolved to rest till daybreak. +The stillness of all around, the balmy air, and my own musings, +gradually conspired to make me drowsy, and I slept. + +My sleep could not have been long, when I was awakened by a noise close +beside me. I started up and looked about, and for some seconds I could +scarcely credit that I was not still dreaming. Not more than a dozen +paces from where I lay, and where before the dark walls of the Palace +rose in unbroken blackness, was now a chamber, brilliantly lighted up by +several wax-lights that stood on a table. At the window, which opened to +the ground and led into the garden, stood the figure of a man, but from +his position before the light I could not remark more than that he wore +epaulettes. It was the noise of the opening jalousies which awoke me; +and I could see his hand stretched out, as if to ascertain whether or +not it was raining. At the table I could perceive another person, on +whose uniform the light fell strongly, displaying many a cross and star, +which twinkled with every stir he made. He was busily engaged writing, +and never lifted his head from the paper. The walls of the room were +covered with shelves filled with books; and on the chairs about, and +even on the floor, lay maps and drawings in every disorder; a sword +and belt, as if just taken off, lay on the table among the writing +materials, and a cocked hat beside them. + +While I noticed these details, my very heart was chill within me. +The dark figure at the window, which stirred not, seemed as if turned +towards me, and more than once I almost thought I could see his eyes +bent upon me. This was, however, but the mere suggestion of my own +fears for in the shade of the seat no light whatever fell, and I was +perfectly concealed. In the deep stillness I could hear the scraping +sound of the pen on the paper, and scarcely dared to breathe lest I +should cause discovery, when the figure retired from the window, and +moved towards the table. For some minutes he appeared to stoop over a +large map, which lay outstretched before him, and across which I could' +see his finger moving rapidly. + +[Illustration: The Scene Shifted 425] + +Suddenly he stood erect, and in a voice which even now rings within my +heart, said, "It must be so, Duroc; by any other route Bernadotte will be +too late!" + +What was the reply I know not, such terror now fell over me. It was the +Emperor himself who spoke. It was he who the instant before was standing +close beside me at the window; and thus, a second time in my life, did I +become the unwilling eavesdropper of the man I most feared and respected +of all the world. Before I could summon resolution to withdraw, Napoleon +spoke again. + +"Hardenberg," said he, in a tone of contemptuous passion, "Hardenberg is +but a Prussian! the event will satisfy his scruples. Besides, if they +do talk about invasion of territory, you can reply: the Margraves were +always open to belligerent parties; remind them of what took place in +'96, and again in 1800,--though, _parbleu_, the souvenir may not be so +pleasant a one. Protract the discussion, at all events, Duroc; time! +time! Then," added he, after a brief pause, "let them advance, and they +'ll never pass the Danube. And if they wait for me, I 'll fall upon +them here,--here, between Ulm and Augsburg. You must, however, start for +Berlin at once." + +At this instant a heavy hand fell upon my shoulder, and passing down my +arm, seized me by the wrist. I started back, and beheld a dragoon, for +so his helmet and cloak bespoke, of enormous stature, who, motioning me +to silence, led me softly and with noiseless step along the flower-beds, +as if fearful of attracting the Emperor's notice. My limbs tottered +beneath me as I went, for the dreadful imputation an accident might fix +on me stared on me with all its awful consequences. Without a word on +either side we reached the little railing, crossed it, and regained the +open park, when the soldier, placing himself in front of me, said, in a +deep, low voice,-- + +"Your name; who are you?" + +"An officer of the huitieme regiment of hussars," said I, boldly. + +"We shall see that presently," replied he, in a tone of disbelief. "How +came you here?" + +In a few words I explained how, having remained too late in the garden, +I preferred to pass my night on a bench to the unpleasantness of being +brought up before the officer on duty; adding, that it was only on the +very moment of his coming that I awoke. + +"I know that," interrupted he, in a less surly voice. "I found you +sleeping, and feared to awake you suddenly, lest in the surprise a word +or a cry would escape you. One syllable had cost your head." + +In the tone of these last few words there was something I thought I +could recognize, and resolving at a bold venture in such an emergency as +I found myself placed, I said at a hazard,-- + +"The better fortune mine, that I fell into the hands of a kind as well +as a brave soldier,--the Corporal Pioche." + +"Sacristi! You know me then!" cried he, thunderstruck. + +"To be sure I do. Could I be an aide-de-camp to the General d'Auvergne, +and not have heard of Pioche?" + +"An aide-de-camp of the general," said he, starting back, as he carried +his hand to the salute. "Pardon, mon officier; but you know that duty--" + +"Quite true; it was all my own indiscretion. And now, Pioche, if you 'll +keep me company here till daybreak--it cannot be far off now--the light +will soon satisfy you that my account of myself is a true one." + +"Willingly, sir," said the gruff cuirassier. "My patrol is, to watch the +parterres from the pavilion to the allee yonder; and, if you please, we +'ll take up our quarters on this bench." + +They who know not the strange mixture of deference and familiarity of +which the relation between officer and soldier is made up in the French +service, will perhaps wonder a the tone of almost equality in which we +conversed. But such is the case: the Revolutionary armies acknowledged +no other gredations of rank than such as the service conferred, nor any +degree of superiority save that derivable from greater ability of more +daring heroism; and although the troops more implicitly obeyed the +commands of their officers, the occasion of discipline over a perfect +feeling of equality remained amongst all, whether they wore the epaulets +of colones or carried a musket in the ranks. With time, and the changes +the Consulate had introduced, much of this excessive familiarity was +suppressed; still it was no uncommon thing to hear the humble rank and +file address the general of division as "thou,"--the expression of +closest friendship, probably dating from the hours of schoolboy +attachment. Nor was the officer of rank thought less of because in the +hours of off-duty, he mixed freely with those who had been his +companions through life, and talked with them as brothers. It is +probable that in no other nation such a course could have been practised +without a total subversion of all respect and the ruin of all habits of +order. The Frenchman is, however, essentially military; not merely +warlike, like the inhabitants of Great Britain,--his mind ever inclines +to the details of war as an art. It is in generalship he glories, not +the mere conflict of force; and the humblest soldier in the army takes +an interest in the great game of tactics, which in any other people +would be quite incredible. Hence he submits to the control which +otherwise he could not endure; for this, he yields to command at the +hands of one, who, although his equal in all other respects, he here +acknowledges as his superior. He knows, too, that the grade of officer +is open to merit alone, and he feels that the epaulette may be his own +one day. Such causes as these, constantly in operation, could not fail +to raise the morale of an army; nor can we wonder that from such a +source were derived many, if not most, of the great names that formed +the marshals of France. Again, to this military spirit the French owe +the perfection of their tirailleur force,--the consummate skill of +independent parties, of which every campaign gave evidence. Napoleon +found this spirit in the nation, and spared nothing to give it its +fullest development. He quickly saw to what height of enthusiasm a +people could be brought, to whom a cross or a decoration, an epaulette +or a sabre of honor, were deemed the ample rewards of every daring and +of every privation; and never in any age or in any country was chivalry +so universally spread over the wide surface of a people. With them, rank +claimed no exception from fatigue or suffering. The officer fared little +better than the soldier on a march; in a battle, he was only more +exposed to danger. By daring only could he win his way upwards; and an +emulative ardor was continually maintained, which was ever giving to the +world instances of individual heroism far more brilliant than all the +famed achievements of the crusaders. + +This brief digression, unnecessary perhaps to many of my readers, may +serve to explain to others how naturally our conversation took the easy +tone of familiar equality; nor will they be surprised at the abrupt +question of the cuirassier, as he said,-- + +"_Mille tonnerres!_ lieutenant! was it from your liking the post of +danger you selected that bench yonder?" + +"The choice was a mere accident." + +"An accident, _morbleu!_" said he, with a low laugh. "That was +what Lasalle called it at the Adige, when the wheel came off the +eight-pounder in the charge, and the enemy carried off the gun. 'An +accident!' said the Petit Caporal to him,--I was close by when he said +it,--'will your friends in Paris call it an accident if the "ordre du +jour" to-morrow condemn you to be shot?' I know him well," continued +Pioche; "that I do. I was second bombardier with him at Toulon,--ay, at +Cairo too. I mind well the evening he came to our quarters; poor +enough we were at the time,--no clothes, no rations: I was cook to our +division; but somehow there was little duty in my department, till one +day the vivandiere's ass, (a brave beast he was too, before provisions +fell short),--a spent shot took him in the flank, and killed him on the +spot. + +"Sacristi!" what damage it did! All the canteens were smashed to atoms; +horn goblets and platters knocked to pieces; but worst of all, a keg of +true Nantz was broached, and every drop lost. Poor Madame Gougon! she +loved that ass as if he had been one of the regiment; and though we +all offered her assignats on our pay, for a month each, to give us the +carcass, she wouldn't do it. No, faith! she would have him buried, and +with funeral honors! _Parbleu!_ it was a whim; but the poor thing was +in grief, and we could not refuse her. I commanded the party," continued +Pioche, "and a long distance we had to march, lest the shots might be +heard in the quartier-general. Well, we had some trouble in getting the +poor soul away from the grave. _Sacristi!_ she took it so much to heart, +I thought she 'd have masses said for him. But we did succeed at last, +and before dawn we were all within the camp as if nothing had happened. +The whole of that day, however, the ass was never out of our minds. It +was not grief; no, no! don't think that. We were all thinking of what a +sin it was to have him buried there,--such a fine beast as he was,--and +not a pound of meat to be had if you were to offer a nine-pounder gun +for it. 'He is never the worse for his funeral,' said I; 'remember, +boys, how well preserved he was in brandy before he was buried: let's +have him up again!' No sooner was night come, than we set off for +the place where we laid him, and in less than two hours I was busily +employed in making a delicious salmi of his haunch. _Mille bommbes!_ I +think I have the smell of it before me; it was gibier, and the gravy +was like a purie. We were all pleasantly seated round the fire, watching +every turn of the roast, when--crack!--I heard the noise of the patrol +bringing his gun to the present, and before we had time to jump up, the +Petit Caporal was upon us; he was mounted on a little dark Arab, and +dressed in his gray surtout. + +"'What 's all this here?' cried he, pulling up short, while the barb +sniffed the air, just as if he guessed what the meat was. 'Who has +stolen this sheep?' + +"'It is not a sheep, General,' said I, stepping forward, and trying to +hide the long ladle I was basting with. + +[Illustration: The "Big Pioche" Indulging in Delicacies 430] + +"'Not a sheep; then it is an ox, mayhap, or a calf," said he again, with +an angry look. + +"'Neither, General,' said I; 'it was a--a--a beast of our division.' + +"'A beast of your division! What does that mean? No trifling, mind! out +with it at once. What's this? Where did it come from?' + +"'An ass, may it please you, sir,' said I, trembling all over, for I saw +he was in a rare passion. And as he repeated the word after me, I told +him the whole story, and how we could not suffer such capital prog to be +eaten by any other than good citizens of the Republic. + +"While I was telling him so much, the rest stood round terrified; they +could not even turn the joint, though it was burning; and, to say truth, +I thought myself we were all in a bad way, when suddenly he burst into a +fit of laughing, and said,-- + +"'What part of France do these fellows come from?' + +"'Alsace, mon general,' was the answer from every one. + +"'I thought so, I thought so,' said he; 'Sybarites, all.' + +"'No, mon general, grenadiers of the Fourth. Milhaud's brigade,' said I. +And with that he turned away, and we could hear him laughing long after +he galloped off. I saw he mistook us," said Pioche, "and that he could +not be angry with the old Fourth." + +"You must have seen a great deal of hardship, Pioche," said I, as +he came to a pause, and wishing to draw him on to speak more of his +campaigns. + +"_Ma foi!_ there were few who saw service from '92 to '97 had not their +share of it. But they were brave times, too; every battle had its day +of promotion afterwards. Le Petit Caporal would ride down the ranks +with his staff, looking for this one, and asking for that. 'Where 's the +adjutant of the Sixth?' 'Dead, mon general.' 'Where 's the colonel of +the Voltigeurs?' 'Badly wounded.' 'Carry him this sabre of honor.' 'Who +fell over the Austrian standard, and carried away the fragment of the +drapeau?' 'One of my fellows. General; here he is.' 'And what is your +name, my brave fellow?'" + +The corporal paused here, and drew a deep breath; and after a few +seconds' pause, added in altered tone, "_Sacristi!_ they were fine +times!" + +"But what did he say to the soldier that took the colors?" asked I, +impatiently. "Who was he?" + +"It was I," replied Pioche himself, in a deep voice, where pride and +devotion struggled powerfully together. + +"You, Pioche! indeed! Well, what said the general when he saw you?" + +"'Ah, Pioche,' said he, gayly, 'my old friend of Toulouse!' + +"'Yes, General,' said I, 'we 've had some warm work together.' + +"'True, Pioche, and may again perhaps. But you've been made a corporal +since that; what am I to do for you now?' + +"This was a puzzling question, and I did not know how to answer it, and +he repeated it before I could make up my mind. + +"'Is there nothing, then, in which I can be of use to Corporal Pioche?' + +"'Yes, mon general,' said I, 'there is.' + +"'Speak it out, man, then; what is it?' + +"'I wish, then, you 'd rate the commissary-general of our division for +one blunder he's ever making. The powder they serve us out is always +wet, and our bread is as hard as _mitraille_. Neither bayonets nor teeth +will last forever, you know, General.' And he burst out a-laughing +before I finished. + +"'Rest assured, Pioche, I'll look to this,' said he; and he kept his +word." + +"But why didn't you ask for promotion?" said I. "What folly, was it not, +to throw away such a chance? You might have been an officer ere this." + +"No," replied he, with a sorrowful shake of the head; "that was +impossible." + +"But why so? Bonaparte knew you well; he often noticed you." + +"True; all true," said he, more sadly than before. "But then--" + +"What, then?" asked I, with more of interest than delicacy at the +moment. + +"I never learned to read," said Pioche, in a low voice, which trembled +with agitation, while he drew his swarthy hand across his eyes, and was +silent. + +The few words so spoken thrilled most powerfully within me. I saw that I +had awakened the saddest thoughts of the poor fellow's heart, and would +have given worlds to be able to recall my question. Here, then, was the +corroding sorrow of his life,--the grief that left its impress on his +stern features, and tinged with care the open brow of the brave soldier. +Each moment our silence was prolonged made it still more poignant, but I +made an effort to break it, and happily with success. + +"After all, Pioche," said I, laying my hand on his arm, "I would +willingly exchange my epaulettes for these stripes on your sleeve, +to have had Bonaparte speak to me as he has spoken to you; that was a +prouder distinction than any other, and will be a fonder recollection, +too, hereafter." + +"Do you think so, mon lieutenant?" said the poor fellow, turning round +quickly, as a faint smile played about his features--"do you think so? +_Sacristi!_ I have said as much to myself sometimes, when I've been +alone. And then I 've almost thought I could hear his kind, soft voice +ringing in my ears; for it is kind and soft as a woman's, when +he pleases, though, parbleu! it can call like a trumpet at other +times,--ay, and tingle within your heart till it sets your blood boiling +and makes your hands twitch. I mind well the campaign in the Valais; the +words keep dinning in my ears to this hour." + +"What was that, Pioche?" said I, pleased to see him turn from the +remembrance of his own regrets. + +"It is a good while past now,--I forget the year exactly,--but we were +marching on Italy, and it was in spring. Still, the ground was covered +with snow; every night came on with a hailstorm that lasted till nigh +daybreak, and when we arose from the bivouac we were so stiff and frozen +we could not move. They said at the time something went wrong with the +commissariat; but when did it ever go right, I wonder? Ammunition and +provisions were always late; and though the general used to drive away a +commissary every week or ten days for misconduct, the new ones that +came turned out just as bad. The Petit Caporal kept sending them word to +Paris not to send down any more 'savants,' but a good, honest man, with +common sense and active habits. But, _parbleu_, birds of that feather +must have been rare just then, for we never could catch one of them. +Whatever was the cause, we never were so ill off; our shakos were like +wet paper, and took any shape; and out of ridicule we used to come upon +parade with them fashioned into three-cocked hats, and pointed caps, and +slouched beavers. The officers couldn't say a word, you know, all +this time; it was not our fault if we were in such misery. Then, as to +shoes,--a few could boast of the upper leathers, but a sole or a heel +was not to be found in a company. Our coats were actually in rags, and +a pivot sentry looked for all the world like a flagstaff, as he stood +fluttering in the wind. + +"We bore up, however, as well as we could, for some time, grumbling +occasionally over our condition, and sometimes laughing at it when we +had the heart; till at last, when we saw the new convoy arrive, and +all the biscuits distributed among the young regiments and the new +conscripts, we could endure it no longer, and a terrible outcry arose +among the troops. We were all drawn up on parade,--it was an inspection; +for, _parbleu!_ though we were as ragged as scarecrows, they would have +us out twice a week to review us, and put us through the manoeuvres. +Scarcely had the general--it was Bonaparte himself--got halfway down +the line, when a shout ran from rank to rank: 'Bread! shoes! caps! +biscuits!' + +"'What do I hear?' said Bonaparte, standing up in his stirrups, and +frowning at the line. 'Who are the malcontents that dare to cry out on +parade? Let them stand out; let me see them.' + +"And at once more than half the regiment of grenadiers sprang forward, +and shouted louder than before, 'Bread! bread! let us have food and +clothing! If we are to fight, let us not die of hunger!' + +"'Grenadiers of the Fourth,' cried he, in a terrible voice, 'to your +ranks! Second division, and third!' shouted he, with his hand up, 'form +in square!--carry arms!--present arms! front rank, kneel! Kneel!' said +he, again louder; for you know we never did that in those days. However, +every word was obeyed, and down dropped the leading files on their +knees; and there we were rooted to the ground. Not a man spoke; all +silent as death. + +"He then advanced to the front of the staff, and pointing his hand to a +convoy of wagons that could just be seen turning the angle of the +road, with white flags flying, to show what they were, called out, +'Commissary-general, distribute full rations and half ammunition to the +young regiments; half rations and full ammunition to the veterans of +Egypt!' A shout of applause burst out; but he cried louder than +before, 'Silence in the ranks!' Then, taking off his chapeau, he stood +bareheaded before us; and in a voice like the bugle that blows the +charge, he read from a large paper in his hand, 'In the name of the +French Republic, one and indivisible. The Directory of the nation +decrees, that the thanks of the Government be given to the Grenadiers +of the Fourth, who have deserved well of their country. Vive la +Republique!' + +"'Vive la Republique!' shouted the whole square in a roar, like the sea +itself. Who thought more of hardships or hunger then? Our only desire +was when we were to meet the enemy; and many a jest and many a laugh +went round as we loaded our pouches with the new ammunition. + +"'Who's that fellow yonder?' said Bonaparte, as he rode slowly down the +line. 'I should know him, I think. Is n't that Pioche?' + +"'Yes, mon general,' said I, saluting him; 'it is what remains of poor +Pioche,--_parbleu!_ very little more than half, though.' + +"'Ah, glutton!' said he, laughing, 'I ought to have guessed you were +here; one such gourmand is enough to corrupt a whole brigade.' + +"'Pioche is a good soldier, citizen-general, 'said my captain, who was +an old schoolfellow of mine. + +"'I know it, Captain,' said the general. + +"'You were in Excelmans's dragoons, Pioche, if mistake not?' + +"Two years and ten months, citizen-general.' + +"'Why did you leave them, and when?' + +"'At Monte Bello, with the colonel's permission.' + +"'And the reason?' + +"'_Morbleu!_ it was a fancy I had. They killed two horses under me that +day, and I saw I was not destined for the cavalry.' + +"'Ha, ha!' said he, with a sly laugh; 'had they been asses, the thing +might have been different, eh?' + +"'Yes, mon general,' said I, growing red, for I knew what he meant. + +"'Come, Pioche, you must go back again to your old corps; they want +one or two like you,--though, _parbleu!_ you 'll ruin the Republic in +remounts.' + +"'As you please it, General.' + +"'Well, what shall I do for you besides? Any more commissaries to row, +eh? Methinks no bad time to gratify you in that way.' + +"'Ah, mon general if you would only hang up one now and then.' + +"'So I intend, the next time I hear of any of my soldiers being +obliged to eat the asses of the vivandieres.' And with that he rode on, +laughing, though none, save myself, knew what he alluded to; and, _ma +foi_, I was not disposed to turn the laugh against myself by telling. +But there goes the _reveil_, and I must leave you, mon lieutenant; the +gates will be open in a few minutes." + +"Good-by, Pioche," said I, "and many thanks for your pleasant company. I +hope we shall meet again, and soon." + +"I hope so, mon lieutenant; and if it be at a bivouac fire, all the +better." + +The gallant corporal made his military salute, wheeled about, stiff +as if on parade, and departed; while I, throwing my cloak over my arm, +turned into the broad alley and left the garden. + + + +CHAPTER XLI. A STORY OF THE YEAR '92. + +I FOUND everything in the rue de rohan as I had left it the day before. +General d'Auvergne had not been there during my absence, but a messenger +from Versailles brought intelligence that the Court would arrive that +evening in Paris, and in all likelihood the general would accompany +them. + +My day was then at my disposal, and having dressed, I strolled out to +enjoy all the strange and novel sights of the great capital. They who +can carry their memories back to Paris at that period may remember the +prodigious amount of luxury and wealth so prodigally exhibited; the +equipages, the liveries, the taste in dress, were all of the most costly +character; the very shops, too, vied with each other in the splendor and +richness of their display, and court uniforms and ornaments of jewelry +glittered in every window. Hussar jackets in all their bravery, chapeaux +covered with feather trimming and looped with diamonds, sabres with +ivory scabbards encrusted with topaz and turquoise, replaced the simple +costumes of the Revolutionary era as rapidly as did the high-sounding +titles of "Excellence" and "Monseigneur" the unpretending designation of +"citoyen." Still, the military feature of the land was in the ascendant; +in the phrase of the day, it was the "mustache" that governed. Not a +street but had its group of officers, on horseback or on foot; regiments +passed on duty, or arrived from the march, at every turn of the way. The +very rabble kept time and step as they followed, and the warlike spirit +animated every class of the population. All these things ministered to +my enthusiasm, and set my heart beating stronger for the time when the +career of arms was to open before me. This, if I were to judge from all +I saw, could not now be far distant. The country for miles around +Paris was covered with marching men, their faces all turned eastward; +orderlies, booted and splashed, trotted rapidly from street to street; +and general officers, with their aides-de-camp, rode up and down with a +haste that boded preparation. + +My mind was too full of its own absorbing interests to make me care to +visit the theatre; and having dined in a cafe on the Boulevard, I turned +towards the general's quarters in the hope of finding him arrived. As I +entered the Rue de Rohan, I was surprised at a crowd collected about the +door, watching the details of packing a travelling carriage which stood +before it. A heavy fourgon, loaded with military chests and boxes, +seemed also to attract their attention, and call forth many a surmise as +to its destination. + +"Le Petit Caporal has something in his head, depend upon it," said a +thin, dark-whiskered fellow with a wooden leg, whose air and gesture +bespoke the old soldier; "the staff never move off, extra post, without +a good reason for it." + +"It is the English are about to catch it this time," said a +miserable-looking, decrepit creature, who was occupied in roasting +chestnuts over an open stove. "Hot, all hot! messieurs et mesdames! +real 'marrons de Nancy,'--the true and only veritable chestnuts with a +truffle flavor. _Sacristi!_ now the sea-wolves will meet their match! +It is such brave fellows as you, monsieur le grenadier, can make them +tremble." + +The old pensioner smoothed down his mustache, and made no reply. + +"The English, indeed!" said a fat, ruddy-faced woman, with a slight +line of dark beard on her upper lip. "My husband 's a pioneer in the +Twenty-second, and says they're nothing better than poltroons. How +we made them run at Arcole! Wasn't it Arcole?" said she, as a buzz of +laughter ran through the crowd. + +"_Tonnerre de guerre_" cried the little man, "if I was at them!" + +A loud burst of merriment met this warlike speech; while the maimed +soldier, apparently pleased with the creature's courage, smiled blandly +on him as he said, "Let me have two sous' worth of your chestnuts." + +Leaving the party to their discussion, I now entered the house, and +edging my way upstairs between trunks and packing-cases, arrived at +the drawing-room. The general had just come in; he had been the whole +morning at Court, and was eating a hurried dinner in order to return to +the Tuileries for the evening reception. Although his manner towards me +was kind and cordial in the extreme, I thought he looked agitated and +even depressed, and seemed much older and more broken than before. + +"You see, Burke, you 'll have little time to enjoy Paris gayeties; we +leave to-morrow." + +"Indeed, sir! So soon?" + +"Yes; Lasalle is off already; Dorsenne starts in two hours; and we three +rendezvous at Coblentz. I wished much to see you," continued he, after +a minute's pause; "but I could not get away from Versailles even for a +day. Tell me, have you got a letter I wrote to you when at Mayence? I +mean, is it still in existence?" + +"Yes, sir," said I, somewhat astonished at the question. + +"I wrote it hurriedly," added he, with something of confusion in his +manner; "do let me see it." + +I unlocked my writing-desk at once, and handed him his own letter. He +opened it hastily, and having thrown his eyes speedily across it, said, +and in a voice far more at ease than before,-- + +"That will do. I feared lest perhaps--But no matter; this is better than +I thought." + +With this he gave the letter back into my hands, and appeared for some +moments engaged in deep thought; then, with a voice and manner which +showed a different channel was given to his thoughts, he said,-- + +"The game has opened; the Austrians have invaded Bavaria. The whole +disposable force of France is on the march,--a hurried movement; but so +it is. Napoleon always strikes like his own emblem, the eagle." + +"True, sir; but even that serves to heighten the chivalrous feeling of +the soldier, when the sword springs from the scabbard at the call of +honor, and is not drawn slowly forth at the whispered counsel of some +wily diplomat." + +He smiled half-mournfully at the remark, or at my impetuosity in making +it, as he said:-- + +"My dear boy, never flatter yourself that the cause of any war can enter +into the calculation of the soldier. The liberty he fights for is often +the rankest tyranny; the patriotism he defends, the veriest oppression. +Play the game as though the stake were but your own ambition, if you +would play it manfully. As for me, I buckle on the harness for the +last time, come what will of it. The Emperor feels, and justly feels, +indignant that many of the older officers have declined the service by +which alone they were elevated to rank, and wealth, and honor. It +was not, then, at the moment when he distinguished me by an unsought +promotion,--still more, conferred a personal favor on me, that I could +ask leave to retire from the army." + +By the tone in which he said these last few words, I saw that the +general was now approaching the topic I felt so curious about, and did +not venture by a word to interrupt or divert his thoughts from it. My +calculation proved correct; for, after meditating some eight or +ten minutes, he drew his chair closer to mine, and in a voice of +ill-repressed agitation, spoke thus:-- + +"You doubtless know the history of our great Revolution,--the causes +that led to, the consequences that immediately sprang from it,--the +terrible anarchy, the utter confiscation of wealth, and, worse still, +the social disorganization that invaded every family, however humble or +however exalted, setting wives against their husbands, children against +their parents, and making brothers sworn enemies to one another. It was +in vain for any man once engaged in the struggle to draw back; the +least hesitation to perform any order of the Convention--the delay of a +moment, to think--was death: some one was ever on the watch to denounce +the man thus deliberating, and he was led forth to the guillotine like +the blackest criminal. The immediate result of all this was a distrust +that pervaded the entire nation. No one knew who to speak to, nor +dare any confide in him who once had been his dearest friend. The old +Royalists trembled at every stir; the few demonstrations they forced +themselves to make of concurrence in the new state of things were +received with suspicion and jealousy. The 'Blues'--for so the +Revolutionary party was called--thirsted for their blood; the +aristocracy had been, as they deemed, long their oppressors, and +where vengeance ceased, cupidity began. They longed to seize upon the +confiscated estates, and revel as masters in the halls where so oft they +had waited as lackeys. But the evil ended not here. Wherever private +hate or secret malice lurked, an opportunity for revenge now offered; +and for one head that fell under the supposed guilt of treason to +France, a hundred dropped beneath the axe from causes of personal +animosity and long-nurtured vengeance: and thus many an idle word +uttered in haste or carelessness, some passing slight, some chance +neglect, met now its retribution, and that retribution was ever death. + +"It chanced that in the South, in one of those remote districts where +intelligence is always slow in arriving, and where political movements +rarely disturb the quiet current of daily life, there lived one of those +old seigneurs who at that period were deemed sovereign princes in the +little locale they inhabited. The soil had been their own for centuries; +long custom had made them respected and looked up to; while the acts of +kindness and benevolence in which, from father to son, their education +consisted, formed even a stronger tie to the affections of the +peasantry. The Church, too, contributed not a little to the maintenance +of this feudalism; and the chateau' entered into the subject of the +village prayers as naturally as though a very principle of their faith. +There was something beautifully touching in the intercourse between the +lord of the soil and its tillers: in the kindly interest of the one, +repaid in reverence and devotion by the others; his foresight for their +benefit, their attachment and fidelity,--the paternal care, the filial +love,--made a picture of rural happiness such as no land ever equalled, +such as perhaps none will ever see again. The seigneur of whom I speak +was a true type of this class. He had been in his boyhood a page at +the gorgeous court of Louis the Fifteenth, mixed in the voluptuous +fascinations of the period; but, early disgusted by the sensuality of +the day, retired to his distant chateau, bringing with him a wife,--one +of the most beautiful and accomplished persons of the Court, but one +who, like himself, preferred the peace and tranquillity of a country +life to the whirlwind pleasures of a vicious capital. For year's they +lived childless; but at last, after a long lapse of time, two children +were born to this union, a boy and girl,--both lovely, and likely in +every respect to bless them with happiness. Shortly after the birth +of the girl, the mother became delicate, and after some months of +suffering, died. The father, who never rallied from the hour of her +death, and took little interest in the world, soon followed her, and the +children were left orphans when the eldest was but four years of +age, and his sister but three. Before the count died, he sent for +his steward. You know that the steward, or intendant, in France, was +formerly the person of greatest trust in any family,--the faithful +adviser in times of difficulty, the depositary of secrets, the friend, +in a word, who in humble guise offered his counsel in every domestic +arrangement, and without whom no project was entertained or determined +on; and usually the office was hereditary, descending from father to son +for centuries. + +"In this family such was the case. His father and grandfather before him +had filled the office, and Leon Guichard well knew every tradition of +the house, and from his infancy his mind had been stored with tales of +its ancient wealth and former greatness. His father had died but a short +time previous, and when the count's last illness seized him, Leon was +only in the second year of his stewardship. Brief as the period was, +however, it had sufficed to give abundant proof of his zeal and +ability. New sources of wealth grew up under his judicious management; +improvements were everywhere conspicuous; and while the seigneur himself +found his income increased by nearly one-half, the tenants had gained in +equal proportion,--such was the result of his activity and intelligence. +These changes, marvellous as they may seem, were then of frequent +occurrence. The lands of the South had been tilled for centuries without +any effort at improvement; sons were content to go on as their fathers +had done before them; increased civilization, with its new train of +wants and luxuries, never invaded this remote, untravelled district, and +primitive tastes and simple habits succeeded each other generation after +generation unaltered and unchanged. + +"Suddenly, however, a new light broke on the world, which penetrated +even the darkness of the far-off valleys of La Provence. Intelligence +began to be more widely diffused; men read and reflected; the rudiments +of every art and every science were put within the reach of humble +comprehensions; and they who before were limited to memory or hearsay +for such knowledge as they possessed, could now apply at the fountain +for themselves. Leon Guichard was not slow in cultivating these new +resources, and applying them to the circumstances about him; and +although many an obstacle arose, dictated by stupid adherence to old +customs, or fast-rooted prejudice against newfashioned methods, by +perseverance he overcame them all, and actually enriched the people in +spite of themselves. + +"The seigneur, himself a man of no mean intellect, saw much of this with +sorrow; he felt that a mighty change was accomplishing, and that as one +by one the ancient landmarks by which men had been guided for ages were +removed, none could foresee what results might follow, nor where the +passion for alteration might cease. The superstitions of the Church, +harmless in themselves, were now openly attacked; its observances, +before so deeply venerated, were even assailed as idle ceremonies; and +it seemed as if the strong cable that bound men to faith and loyalty +had parted, and that their minds were drifting over a broad and pathless +sea. Such was the ominous opening of the Revolution, such the terrible +ground-swell before the storm. + +"On his deathbed, then, he entreated Leon to be aware that evil days +were approaching; that the time was not distant when men should rely +upon the affection and love of those around them, on the ties that +attached to each other for years long, on the mutual interest that +had grown up from their cradles. He besought him to turn the people's +'minds, as far as might be, from the specious theories that were afloat, +and fix them on their once-loved traditions; and, above all, he charged +him, as the guardian of his orphan children, to keep them aloof from +the contamination of dangerous doctrines, and to train them up in the +ancient virtues of their house,--in charity and benevolence. + +"Scarce had the old count's grave closed over him, when men began to +perceive a marked change in Leon Guichard. No longer humble, even to +subserviency, as before, he now assumed an air of pride and haughtiness +that soon estranged his companions from him. As guardian to the orphan +children, he resided in the chateau, and took on him the pretensions +of the master. Its stately equipage, with great emblazoned panels,--the +village wonder at every fete day,--was now replaced by a more modern +vehicle, newly arrived from Paris, in which Monsieur Guichard daily took +his airings. The old servants, many of them born in the chateau, were +sent adrift, and a new and very different class succeeded them. All was +changed: even the little path that led up from the presbytere to the +chateau, and along which the old cure was seen wending his way on each +Sunday to his dinner with the seigneur, was now closed, the gate walled +up; while the Sabbath itself was only dedicated to greater festivities +and excess, to the scandal of the villagers. + +"Meanwhile the children grew up in strength and beauty; like wild +flowers, they had no nurture, but they flourished in all this neglect, +ignorant and unconscious of the scenes around them. They roved about +the livelong day through the meadows, or that wilderness of a garden on +which no longer any care was bestowed, and where rank luxuriance gave +a beauty of its own to the rich vegetation. With the unsuspecting +freshness of their youth, they enjoyed the present without a thought of +the future,--they loved each other, and were happy. + +"To them the vague reports and swelling waves of the Revolution, which +each day gained ground, brought neither fear nor apprehension; they +little dreamed that the violence of political strife could ever reach +their quiet valleys. Nor did they think the hour was near when the tramp +of soldiery and the ruffianly shout of predatory war were to replace the +song of the vigneron and the dance of the villager. + +"The Revolution came at last, sweeping like a torrent over the land. It +blasted as it went; beneath its baneful breath everything withered and +wasted; loyalty, religion, affection, and brotherly love, all died out +in the devoted country; anarchy and bloodshed were masters of the scene. +The first dreadful act of this fearful drama passed like a dream to +those who, at a distance from Paris, only read of the atrocities of that +wretched capital; but when the wave rolled nearer; when crowds of armed +men, wild and savage in look, with ragged uniforms and bloodstained +hands, prowled about the villages where in happier times a soldier had +never been seen; when the mob around the guillotine supplied the place +of the gathering at the market; when the pavement was wet and slippery +with human blood,--men's natures suddenly became changed, as though some +terrible curse from on high had fallen on them. Their minds caught up +the fearful contagion of revolt, and a mad impulse to deny all they had +once held sacred and venerable seized on all. Their blasphemies against +religion went hand in hand with their desecration of everything holy in +social life, and a pre-eminence in guilt became the highest object of +ambition. Sated with slaughter, bloated with crime, the nation reeled +like a drunken savage over the ruin it created, and with the insane +lust of blood poured forth its armed thousands throughout the whole of +Europe. + +"Then began the much-boasted triumphs of the Revolutionary armies,--the +lauded victories of those great asserters of liberty; say rather +the carnage of famished wolves, the devastating rage of bloodthirsty +maniacs. The conscription seized on the whole youth of France, as if +fearful that in the untarnished minds of the young the seeds of better +things might bear fruit in season. They carried them away to scenes of +violence and rapine, where, amid the shouts of battle and the cries +of the dying, no voice of human sympathy might touch their hearts, no +trembling of remorse should stir within them. + +"'You are named in the conscription, Monsieur, said Leon, in a short, +abrupt tone, as one morning he entered the dressing-room of his young +master. + +"'I! I named in the conscription!' replied the other, with a look of +incredulity and anger. 'This is but a sorry jest, Master Leon; and not +in too good taste, either.' + +"'Good or bad,' answered the steward, 'the fact is as I say; here is +the order from the municipalite. You were fifteen yesterday, you know.' + +"'True; and what then? Am I not Marquis de Neufchatel, Comte de +Rochefort, in right of my mother?' + +"'There are no more marquises, no more counts,' said the other, roughly; +'France has had enough of such cattle. The less you allude to them the +safer for your head.' + +"He spoke truly,--the reign of the aristocracy was ended. And while they +were yet speaking, an emissary of the Convention, accompanied by a +party of troops, arrived at the chateau to fetch away the newly-drawn +conscript. + +"I must not dwell on the scene which followed: the heartrending sorrow +of those who had lived but for each other, now torn asunder for the +first time, not knowing when, if ever, they were to meet again. His +sister wished to follow him; but even had he permitted it, such would +have been impossible: the dreadful career of a Revolutionary soldier was +an obstacle insurmountable. The same evening the battalion of infantry +to which he was attached began their march towards Savoy, and the lovely +orphan of the chateau fell dangerously ill. + +"Youth, however, triumphed over her malady, which, indeed, was brought +on by grief; and after some weeks she was restored to health. During the +interval, nothing could be more kind and attentive than Leon Guichard; +his manner, of late years rough and uncivil, became softened and tender; +the hundred little attentions which illness seeks for he paid with zeal +and watchfulness; everything which could alleviate her sorrow or calm +her afflicted mind was resorted to with a kind of instinctive delicacy, +and she began to feel that in her long-cherished dislike of the +intendant she had done him grievous wrong. + +"This change of manner attracted the attention of many besides the +inhabitants of the chateau. They remarked his altered looks and bearing, +the more studied attention to his dress and appearance, and the singular +difference in all his habits of life. No longer did he pass his time in +the wild orgies of debauchery and excess, but in careful management of +the estate, and rarely or never left the chateau after nightfall. + +"A hundred different interpretations were given to this line of acting. +Some said that the more settled condition of political affairs had made +him cautious and careful, for it was now the reign of the Directory, +and the old excesses of '92 were no longer endured; others, that he was +naturally of a kind and benevolent nature, and that his savage manner +and reckless conduct were assumed merely in compliance with the horrible +features of the time. + +"None, however, suspected the real cause. Leon Guichard was in love! +Yes, the humble steward, the coarse follower of the vices of that +detestable period, was captivated by the beauty of the young girl, +now springing into womanhood. The freshness of her artless nature, her +guileless innocence, her soft voice, her character so balanced between +gayety and thoughtfulness, her loveliness, so unlike all he had ever +seen before, had seized upon his whole heart; and, as the sun darting +from behind the blackest clouds will light up the surface of a bleak +landscape, touching every barren rock and tipping every bell of purple +heath with color and richness, so over his rugged nature the beauty of +this fair girl shed a very halo of light, and a spirit awoke within him +to seek for better things, to endeavor better things, to fly the coarse, +depraved habits of his former self, to conform to the tastes of her he +worshipped. Day by day his stern nature became more softened. No longer +those terrible bursts of passion, to which he once gave way, escaped +him; his voice, his very look, too, were changed in their expression, +and a gentleness of manner almost amounting to timidity now +characterized him who had once been the type of the most savage Jacobin. + +"She to whom this wondrous change was owing knew nothing of the miracle +she had worked; she would not, indeed, have believed, had one told her. +She scarcely remarked him when they met, and did not perceive that he +was no longer like his former self; her whole soul wrapped up in her +dear brother, s fate, she lived from week to week in the thought of his +letters home. It is true, her life had many enjoyments which owed their +source to the intendant's care; but she knew not of this, and felt more +grateful to him when he came letter in hand from the little post of the +village, than when the fair mossroses of spring filled the vases of +the salon, or the earliest fruits of summer decked her table. At times +something in his demeanor would strike her,--a tinge of sorrow it seemed +rather than aught else; but as she attributed this, as every other +grief, to her brother's absence, she paid no further attention to it, +and merely thought good Leon had more feeling than they used to give him +credit for. + +"At last, the campaign of Arcole over, the young soldier obtained a +short leave to see his sister. How altered were they both! She, from +the child, had become the beautiful girl,--her eyes flashing with the +brilliant sparkle of youth, her step elastic, her color changing with +every passing expression. He was already a man, bronzed and sunburnt, +his dark eyes darker, and his voice deeper; but still his former self in +all the warmth of his affection to his sister. + +"The lieutenant--for so was he always called by the old soldier who +accompanied him as his servant, and oftentimes by the rest of his +household--had seen much of the world in the few years of his absence. + +"The chances and changes of a camp had taught him many things which lie +far beyond its own limits, and he had learned to scan men's minds and +motives with a quick eye and ready wit. He was not long, therefore, in +observing the alteration in Leon Guichard's manner; nor was he slow in +tracing it to its real cause. At first the sudden impulse of his passion +would have driven him to any length,--the presumption of such a thought +was too great to endure. But then the times he lived in taught him some +strong lessons. He remembered the scenes of social disorder and anarchy +of his childhood,--how every rank became subverted, and how men's +minds were left to their own unbridled influences to choose their own +position,--and he bethought him, that in such trials as these Leon had +conducted himself with moderation; that to his skilful management it was +owing if the property had not suffered confiscation like so many others; +and that it was perhaps hard to condemn a man for being struck by charms +which, however above him in the scale of rank, were still continually +before his eyes. + +"Reasoning thus, he determined, as the wisest course, to remove his +sister to the house of a relative, where she could remain during his +absence. This would at once put a stop to the steward's folly,--for so +he could not help deeming it,--and, what was of equal consequence in +the young soldier's eyes, prevent his sister being offended by ever +suspecting the existence of such a feeling towards her. The plan, once +resolved on, met no difficulty from his sister; his promise to return +soon to see her was enough to compensate for any arrangement, and it was +determined that they should set out towards the South by the first week +in September. + +"When the intimation of this change first reached Leon, which it did +from the other servants, he could not believe it, and resolved to +hasten to the lieutenant himself, and ask if it were true. On that day, +however, the young soldier was absent shooting, and was not to return +before night. Tortured with doubt and fear, trembling at the very +thought of her departure whose presence had been the loadstar of his +life, he rushed from the house and hurried into the wood. Every spot +reminded him of her; and he shuddered to think that in a few hours his +existence would have lost its spring; that ere the week was passed +he would be alone without the sight of her whom even to have seen +constituted the happiness of the whole day. Revolving such sad thoughts, +he strolled on, not knowing whither, and at last, on turning the angle +of a path, found himself before the object of his musings. She was +returning from a farewell visit to one of the cottagers, and was +hastening to the chateau to dress for dinner. + +"'Ah, Monsieur Leon,' said she, suddenly, 'I am glad to meet you here. +These poor people at the wooden bridge will miss me, I fear; you must +look to them in my absence. And there is old Jeannette,--she fancies she +can spin still; I pray you let her have her little pension regularly. +The children at Calotte, too,--they are too far from the school; mind +that they have their books.' + +"'And are you indeed going from hence, Mademoiselle?' said he, in a +tone and accent so unlike his ordinary one as to make her start with +surprise. + +"'Yes, to be sure. We leave the day after to-morrow.' + +"'And have you no regret, Mademoiselle, to leave the home of your +childhood and those you have--known there?' + +"'Sir!' replied she haughtily, as the tone of his voice assumed a +meaning which could not be mistaken; 'you seem to have forgotten +yourself somewhat, or you had not dared--' + +"'Dared!' interrupted he, in a louder key,--'dared! I have dared more +than that! Yes,' cried he, in a voice where passion could be no longer +held under, 'Leon Guichard, the steward, has dared to love his master's +daughter! Start not so proudly back, Madame! Time was when such an +avowal had been a presumption death could not repay. But these days are +passed; the haughty have been well humbled; they who deemed their blood +a stream too pure to mingle with the current in plebeian veins, have +poured it lavishly beneath the guillotine. Leon Guichard has no master +now!' + +"The fire flashed from his eyes as he spoke, and his color, pale at +first, grew darker and darker, till his face became almost purple; +while his nostrils, swelled to twice their natural size, dilated and +contracted like those of a fiery charger. Terrified at the frightful +paroxysm of passion before her, the timid girl endeavored to allay his +anger, and replied,-- + +"'You know well, Leon, that my brother has ever treated you as a +friend--' + +"'He a friend!' cried he, stamping on the ground, while a look of +demoniac malice lit up his features. 'He, who talks to me as though +I were a vassal, a slave; he, who deems his merest word of approval a +recompense for all my labor, all my toil; he, whose very glance shoots +into my heart like a dagger! Think you I forgive him the contemptuous +treatment of nineteen years, or that I can pardon insults because they +have grown into habits? Hear me!'--he grasped her wrist rigidly as he +spoke, and continued, 'I have sworn an oath to be revenged on him, from +the hour when, a boy scarce eight years old, he struck me in the face, +and called me canaille. I vowed his ruin. I toiled for it, I strove for +it, and I succeeded,--ay, succeeded. I obtained from the Convention the +confiscation of your lands,--all, everything you possessed. I held the +titles in my possession, for I was the owner of this broad chateau,--ay, +Leon Guichard! even so; you were but my guest here. I kept it by me many +a day, and when your brother was drawn in the conscription I resolved to +assert my right before the world.' + +"He paused for a moment, while a tremendous convulsion shook his frame, +and made him tremble liker one in an ague; then suddenly rallying, he +passed his hand across his brow, and in a lower voice, resumed, 'I would +have done so, but for you.' + +"'For me! What mean you?' said she, almost sinking with terror. + +"'I loved you,--loved you as only he can love who can surrender all his +cherished hopes, his dream of ambition, his vengeance even, to his love. +I thought, too, that you were not cold to my advances; and fearing lest +any hazard should apprise you of my success, and thus run counter to my +wishes, I lived on here as your servant, still hoping for the hour when +I might call you mine, and avow myself the lord of this chateau. How +long I might have continued thus I know not. To see you, to look on you, +to live beneath the same roof with you, seemed happiness enough; but +when I heard that you were to leave this, to go away, never to return +perhaps, or if so, not as her I loved and worshipped, then--But why look +you thus? Is it because you doubt these things? Look here; see this. Is +that in form? Are these signatures authentic? Is this the seal of the +National Convention? What say you now? It is not the steward Leon +that sues, but the Citizen Guichard, proprietaire de Rochefort. Now, +methinks, that makes some difference in the proposition.' + +"'None, sir,' replied she, with a voice whose steady utterance made each +word sink into his heart, 'save that it adds to my contempt for him +who has dared to seek my affection in the ruin of my family. I did not +despise you before--' + +"'Beware!' said he, in a voice of menace, but in which no violence of +passion entered; 'you are in my power. I ask you again, will you +consent to be my wife? Will you save your brother from the scaffold, and +yourself from beggary and ruin? I can accomplish both.' + +"A look of ineffable scorn was all her reply; when he sprang forward and +threw his arm round her waist. + +"'Or would you drive me to the worst--' + +"A terrific shriek broke from her as she felt his hand around her, when +the brushwood crashed behind her, and her brother's dogs sprang from the +thicket. With a loud cry she called upon his name. He answered from the +wood, and dashed towards her just as she sank fainting to the ground. +Leon was gone. + +"As soon as returning strength permitted, she told her brother the +fearful story of the steward; but bound him by every entreaty not to +bring himself in contact with a monster so depraved. When they reached +the chateau, they learned that Guichard had been there and left it +again. And from that hour they saw him no more. + +"I must now conclude in a few words; and, to do so, may mention, that +in the year '99 I became the purchaser of Haut Rochefort at a sale of +forfeited estates, it having been bought by Government on some previous +occasion, but from whom and how, I never heard. The story I have told I +learned from the notaire of Hubane, the village in the neighborhood, who +was conversant with all its details, and knew well the several actors in +it, as well as their future fortunes. + +"The brother became a distinguished officer, and rose to some rank in +the service; but embarking in the expedition to Ireland, was reported +to Bonaparte as having betrayed the French cause. The result was, he +was struck off the list of the army, and pronounced degraded. He died in +some unknown place. + +"The sister became attached to her cousin, but the brother opposing +the union, she was taken away to Paris. The lover returned to Bretagne, +where, having heard a false report of her marriage at Court, he assumed +holy orders; and being subsequently charged--but it is now believed +falsely--of corresponding with the Bourbons, was shot in his own garden +by a platoon of infantry. But how is this? Are you ill? Has my story so +affected you?" + +"That brother was my friend,--my dearest, my only friend, Charles de +Meudon!" + +"What! and did you know poor Charles?" + +But I could not speak; the tears ran fast down my cheeks as I thought of +all his sorrows,--sorrows far greater than ever he had told me. + +"Poor Marie!" said the general, as he wiped a tear from his eye; "few +have met such an enemy as she did. Every misfortune of her life has +sprung from one hand: her brother's, her lover's death, were both his +acts." + +"Laon Guichard! And who is he? or how could he have done these things?" + +"Methinks you might yourself reply to your own question." + +"I! How could that be? I know him not." + +"Yes, but you do. Laon Guichard is Mehee de la Touche!" + +Had a thunderbolt fallen between us I could not have felt more terror. +That name, spoken but twice or thrice in my hearing, had each time +brought its omen of evil. + +It was the same with whose acquaintance Marie de Meudon charged me in +the garden of Versailles; the same who brought the _Chouans_ to the +guillotine, and had so nearly involved myself in their ruin; and now I +heard of him as one whose dreadful life had been a course of perfidy and +crime,--one who blasted all around him, and scattered ruin as he went. + +"I have little more to add," resumed the general, after a long pause, +and in a voice whose weakened accents evinced how fearfully the +remembrance he called up affected him. "What remains, too, more +immediately concerns myself than others. I am the last of my house. An +ancient family, and one not undistinguished in the annals of France, +hangs but on the feeble thread of a withered and broken old man's life, +with whom it dies. My only brother fell in the Austrian campaign. I +never had a sister. Uncles and cousins I have had in numbers; but death +and exile have been rife these last twenty years, and, save myself, none +bears the name of D'Auvergne. + +"Yet once I nourished the hope of a family,--of a race who should hand +down the ancient virtues of our house to after years. I thought of those +gallant ancestors whose portraits graced the walls of the old chateau +I was born in, and fancied myself leading my infant boy from picture +to picture, as I pointed out the brave and the good who had been his +forefathers. But this is a dream long since dispelled. I was then a +youth, scarce older than yourself, rich, and with every prospect of +happiness before me. I fell in love, and the object of my passion +seemed one created to have made the very paradise I sought for. She was +beautiful, beyond even the loveliest of a handsome Court; high-born and +gifted. But her heart was bestowed on another,--one who, unlike myself, +encouraged no daring thoughts, no ambitious longings, but who, wholly +devoted to her he loved, sought in tranquil quiet the happiness such +spirits can give each other. She told me herself frankly, as I speak +now to you, that she could not be mine; and then placed my hand in her +husband's. This was Marie de Rochefort, the mother of Mademoiselle de +Meudon. + +"The world's changes seem ever to bring about these strange vicissitudes +by which our early deeds of good and evil are brought more forcibly to +our memories, and we are made to think over the past by some accident of +the present. After twenty years I came to live in that chateau where she +whom I once loved had lived and died. I became the lord of that estate +which her husband once possessed, and where in happiness they had dwelt +together. I will not dwell upon the thoughts such associations ever give +rise to; I dare not, old as I am, evoke them." + +He paused for some minutes, and then went on: "Two years ago I learned +that Mademoiselle de Meudon was the daughter of my once loved Marie. +From that hour I felt no longer childless. I watched over her,--without, +however, attracting notice on her part,--and followed her everywhere. +The very day I saw you first at the Polytechnique, I was beside her. +From all I could learn and hear, her life bad been one of devoted +attachment to her brother, and then to Madame Bonaparte. Her heart, it +was said, was buried with him she once loved,--at least none since +had ever won even the slightest acknowledgment from her bordering on +encouragement. + +"Satisfied that she was everything I could have wished my own daughter, +and feeling that with youth the springs of affection rarely dry up, I +conceived the idea of settling all my property on her, and entreating +the Emperor to make me her guardian, with her own consent of course. He +agreed: he went further; he repealed, so far as it concerned her, the +law by which the daughters of Royalists cannot inherit, and made her +eligible to succeed to property, and placed her hand at my disposal. + +"Such was the state of matters when I wrote to you. Since that I have +seen her, and spoken to her in confidence. She has consented to every +portion of the arrangement, save that which involves her marrying; but +some strange superstition being over her mind that her fate is to ruin +all with whom it is linked, that her name carries an evil destiny +with it, she refuses every offer of marriage, and will not yield to my +solicitation. + +"I thought," said the general, as he leaned on his hand, and muttered +half aloud, "that I had conceived a plan which must bring happiness with +it. But, however, one part of my design is accomplished: she is my heir; +the daughter of my own loved Marie is the child of my adoption, and for +this I have reason to feel grateful. The cheerless feeling of a deathbed +where not one mourns for the dying haunts me no longer, and I feel not +as one deserted and alone. To-morrow I go to wish her adieu; and we are +to be at the Tuileries by noon. The Emperor holds a levee, and our final +orders will then be given." + +The old general rallied at the last few words he spoke, and pressing my +hand affectionately, wished me goodnight, and withdrew; while I, with a +mind confused and stunned, sat thinking over the melancholy story he had +related, and sorrowing over the misfortunes of one whose lot in life had +been far sadder than my own. + + + +CHAPTER XLII. THE HALL OF THE MARSHALS + +Some minutes before noon we entered the Place du Carrousel, now thronged +with equipages and led horses. Officers in the rich uniforms of every arm +of the service were pressing their way to the Palace, amid the crash of +carriages, the buzz of recognitions, and the thundering sounds of the +brass band, whose echo was redoubled beneath the vaulted vestibule of +the Palace. + +Borne along with the torrent, we mounted the wide stair and passed +from room to room, until we arrived at the great antechamber where the +officers of the household were assembled in their splendid dresses. Here +the crowd was so dense we were unable to move on for some time, and +it was after nearly an hour's waiting that we at last found ourselves +within that gorgeous gallery named by the Emperor "La Salle des +Marechaux." At any other moment my attention had been riveted upon +the magnificence and beauty of this great _salon_--its pictures, its +gildings, the richness of the hangings, the tasteful elegance of the +ceiling, with its tracery of dull gold, the great works of art in bronze +and marble that adorned it on every side,--but now my mind took another +and very different range. Here around me were met the greatest generals +and warriors of Europe,--the names second alone to his who had no equal. +There stood Ney, with his broad, retiring forehead, and his eyes black +and flashing, like an eagle's. With what energy he spoke! how full of +passionate vigor that thick and rapid utterance, that left a tremulous +quivering on his lip even when he ceased to speak! What a contrast to +the bronzed, unmoved features of the large man he addressed, and who +listened to him with such deference of manner: his yellow mustache +bespeaks not the Frenchman; he is a German, by blood at least,--for it +is Kellerman, the colonel of the curassiers of the Guard. And yonder was +Soult, with his strong features seamed by many a day of hardship, +the centre of a group of colonels of the staff to whom he was rapidly +communicating their orders. Close beside him stood Lannes, his arm in +a sling; a gunshot wound that defied the art of the surgeons still +deprived him of his left hand. And there leaned Savary against the +window, his dark eyes riveted on the corps of _gendarmerie_ in the court +beneath; full taller by a head than the largest about him, he seemed +almost gigantic in the massive accoutrements of his service. The fierce +Davoust; the gay and splendid Murat, with his waving plumes and jewelled +dolman; Lefebvre, the very type of his class, moving with difficulty +from a wound in his hip,--all were there: while passing rapidly from +place to place, I remarked a young and handsome man, whose uniform of +colonel bore the decoration of the Legion; he appeared to know and be +known to all. This was Eugene Beauharnais, the stepson of the Emperor. + +"Ah, General d'Auvergne!" cried he, approaching with a smile, "his +Majesty desires to see you after the levee. You leave to-night, I +believe?" + +"Yes, Colonel; all is in readiness," said the general; while I thought a +look of anxiety at the Emperor's summons seemed to agitate his features. + +"One of your staff?" said Beauharnais, bowing, as he looked towards me. + +"My aide-de-camp, Lieutenant Burke," replied the general, presenting me. + +"Ah! I remember," said the colonel, as he drew himself proudly up, and +seemed as though the recollection were anything but favorable to me. + +But just then the wide folding-doors were thrown open, and a loud voice +proclaimed, "Sa Majeste l'Empereur!" + +In an instant every voice was hushed, the groups broke up, and fell +back into two long lines, between which lay a passage; along this the +officers of the Palace retired slowly, facing the Emperor, who came step +by step after them. I could but see the pale face, massive and regular, +like the head of an antique cameo; the hair combed straight upon his +fine forehead; and his large, full eyes, as they turned hither and +thither among that crowd, once his equals, now how immeasurably his +inferiors! He stopped every now and then to say a word or two to some +one as he passed, but in so low a tone, that even in the dead silence +around nothing was audible save a murmur. It was a relief to my own +excited feelings, as, with high, beating heart, I gazed on the greatest +monarch of the world, that I beheld the others around, the oldest +generals, the time-worn companions of his battles, not less moved than +myself. + +While the Emperor passed slowly along, I could mark that Eugene +Beauharnais moved rapidly through the gallery, whispering now to this +one, now to that, among the officers of superior grade, who immediately +after left the salon by a door at the end. At length he approached +General d'Auvergne, saying,-- + +"The audience of the marshals, will not occupy more than half an hour; +pray be in readiness to wait on his Majesty when he calls. You can +remain in the blue drawing-room next the gallery!" + +The general bowed, and taking my arm, moved slowly from the spot in +the direction mentioned, and in a few minutes we found ourselves in the +small room where the Empress used to receive her morning visitors during +the Consulate. + +"You remember this _salon_ Burke?" said the general, carelessly. + +"Yes, sir, but too well; it was here that his Majesty gave me that +rebuke--" + +"True, true, my dear boy; I forgot that completely. But come, there has +been time enough to forget it since. I wonder what can mean this summons +to attend here! I have received my orders; there has been, so far as I +understand, no change of plan. Well, well, we shall soon know. See, +the levee has begun to break up already; there goes the staff of the +artillery; that roll of the drum is for some general of division." + +And now the crash of carriages, and the sounds of cavalry escorts +jingling beside them, mingled with the deep beating of the drums, made +a mass of noises that filled the air, and continued without interruption +|or above an hour. + +"_Sacristi_" cried the general, "the crowd seems to pour in as fast as +it goes out; this may last for the entire day. I have scarce two hours +left me now." + +He walked the room impatiently; now muttering some broken words to +himself, now stopping to listen to the sounds without. Still the din +continued, and the distant roll of equipages, growing louder as they +came, told that the tide was yet pressing onwards towards the Palace. +"Three o'clock!" cried the general, as the bell of the pavilion sounded; +"at four I was to leave. Such were my written orders, signed by the +minister." + +His impatience now became extreme. He knew how difficult it was, in a +matter of military discipline, to satisfy Napoleon that any breach, +even when caused by his direct orders, was not a fault. Besides, his old +habits had taught him to respect a command from the Minister of War as +something above all others. + +"Beauharnais must have mistaken," said he, angrily. "His Majesty gave me +my final directions; I'll wait no longer." + +Yet did he hesitate to leave, and seemed actually to rely on me for some +hint for his guidance. I did not dare to offer a suggestion; and while +thus we both stood uncertain, the door opened, and a huissier called +out,-- + +"Lieutenant-Greneral d'Auvergne,--this way, sir," said the official, as +he threw open a folding-door into a long gallery that looked into the +garden. They passed out together, and I was alone. + +The agitation of the general at this unexpected summons had communicated +itself to me, but in a far different way; for I imagined that his +Majesty desired only to confer some mark of favor on the gallant old +general before parting with him. Yet did I not venture to suggest this +to him, for fear I should be mistaken. + +While I revolved these doubts in my mind, the door was flung open with a +crash, and a page, in the uniform of the Court, rushed in. + +"May I ask, sir," cried he, breathlessly, "can you inform me where +is the aide-de-camp of the General d'Auvergne? I forget the name, +unfortunately." + +"I am the person,--Lieutenant Burke." + +"The same; that is the name. Gome after me with all haste; this way." +And so saying, he rushed down a flight of stone stairs, clearing six or +seven at a spring. + +"A hurried business this, Lieutenant," said the page, laughingly; "took +them by by surprise, I fancy." + +"What is it? What do you mean?" asked I, eagerly. + +"Hush!" said he, placing his fingers on his lips; "here they come." + +We had just time to stand to one side of the gallery, as the officers +of the household came up, two and two, followed by the Chancellor of +France, and the Dean of St. Roch in his full canonicals. They approached +the table, on which several papers and documents were lying, and +proceeded to sign their names to different writings before them. While +I looked on, puzzled and amazed, totally unable to make the most vague +conjecture of the nature of the proceedings, I perceived that General +d'Auvergne had entered the room, and was standing among the rest at the +table. + +"Whose signature do you propose here. General?" said the chancellor, as +he took up a paper before him. + +"My aide-de-camp. Lieutenant Burke." + +"He is here, sir," said the page, stepping forward. + +"You are to sign your name here, sir, and again on this side," said +the chancellor, "with your birthplace annexed, age, and rank in the +service." + +"I am a foreigner," said I; "does that make any difference here?" + +"None," said he, smiling; "the witness is but a very subordinate +personage here." + +I took the pen, and proceeded to write as I was desired; and, while thus +engaged, the door opened, and a short, heavy step crossed the room. I +did not dare to look up; some secret feeling of terror ran through me, +and told me it was the Emperor himself. + +"Well, D'Auvergne," said he, in a frank, bold way, quite different from +his ordinary voice, "you seem but half content with this plan of mine. +_Pardieu!_ there's many a brave fellow would not deem the case so hard a +one." + +"As your wish, sire--" + +"As mine, _diantre!_ my friend. Do not say mine only; you forget that +the lady expressed herself equally satisfied. Come I is the _acte_ +completed?" + +"It wants but your Majesty's signature," said the chancellor. + +The Emperor took the pen, and dashed some indescribable scroll across +the paper; then turning suddenly towards the general, he conversed with +him eagerly for several minutes, but in so low a voice as not to +be audible where I stood. I could but catch the words "Darmstadt-- +Augsburg--the fourth corps;" from which it seemed the movements of the +army were the subject; when he added, in a louder voice,-- + +"Every hour now is worth a day, ay, a week, hereafter. Remember that, +D'Auvergne." + +"Everything is finished, sire," said the chancellor, handing the folded +papers to the Emperor. + +"These are for your keeping, Greneral," said he, delivering them into +D'Auvergne's hand. + +"Pardon, sire," said the chancellor, hastily, "I have made a great error +here. Madame la Comtesse has not appended her signature to the consent." + +"Indeed!" said the Emperor, smiling. "We have been too hasty, it would +seem; so thinks our reverend father of Saint Roch, I perceive, who is +evidently not accustomed to officiate _au coup de tambour_." + +"Her Majesty the Empress!" said the _huissier_, as he opened the doors +to permit her to enter. She was dressed in full Court dress, covered +with jewels; she held within her arm the hand of another, over whose +figure a deep veil was thrown, that entirely concealed her from head to +foot. + +"Madame la Comtesse will have the kindness to sign this," said the +chancellor, as he handed over a pen to the lady. + +She threw back her veil as he spoke. As she turned towards the table, I +saw the pale, almost deathlike features of Marie de Meudon. Such was the +shock, I scarce restrained a cry from bursting forth, and a film fell +before my eyes as I looked, and the figures before me floated like +masses of vapor before my sight. + +The Empress now spoke to the general, but no longer could I take notice +of what was said. Voices there were, but they conveyed nothing to my +mind. A terrible rush of thoughts, too quick for perception, chased one +another through my brain, and I felt as though my temples were bursting +open from some pressure within. + +Suddenly the general moved forward, and knelt to kiss the Empress's +hand; he then took that of Mademoiselle de Meudon, and held it to his +lips. I heard the word "Adieu!" faintly uttered by her low voice; the +veil fell once more over her features. That moment a stir followed, and +in a few minutes more we were descending the stairs alone, the general +leaning on my arm, his right hand pressed across his eyes. + +When we reached the court, several officers of rank pressed forward, and +I could hear the buzz of phrases implying congratulations and joy, to +which the old general replied briefly, and with evident depression of +manner. The dreadful oppression of a sad dream was over me still, and I +felt as though to awake were impossible, when, to some remark near him, +the general replied,-- + +"True! Quite true, Monseigneur; I have made her my wife. There only +remains one reparation for it, which is to make her my widow." + +"His wife!" said I, aloud, re-echoing the word without knowing. + +"Even so, mon ami," said he, pressing my hand softly; "my name and my +fortune are both hers. As for myself,--we shall never meet again." + +He turned away his head as he spoke, nor uttered another word during the +remainder of the way. + +When we arrived at the Rue de Rohan the horses were harnessed to the +carriage, and all in readiness for our departure. The rumor of expected +war had brought, a crowd of idlers about the door, through which we +passed with some difficulty into the house. Hastily throwing an eye +over the now dismantled room, the old general approached the window that +looked out upon the Tuileries. "Adieu!" muttered he to himself; "je ne +vous reverrai jamais!" And with that he pressed his travelling-cap over +his brows, and descended the stairs. + +A cheer burst from the mob; the postilion's whip cracked loudly; +the horses dashed over the pavement; and ere the first flurry of mad +excitement had subsided from my mind, Paris was some miles behind us, +and we were hastening on towards the frontier. + +Almost every man has experienced at least one period of his life when +the curtain seems to drop, and the drama in which he has hitherto acted +to end; when a total change appears to pass over the interests he has +lived among, and a new and very different kind of existence to open +before him. Such is the case when the death of friends has left us +alone and companionless; when they into whose ears we poured our whole +thoughts of sorrow or of joy are gone, and we look around upon the bleak +world without a tie to existence, without one hope to cheer us. How +naturally then do we turn from every path and place once lingered +over! how do we fly the thoughts wherein once consisted our greatest +happiness, and seek from other sources impressions less painful, because +unconnected with the past! Still, the bereavement of death is never +devoid of a sense of holy calm, a sort of solemn peace connected with +the memory of the lost one. In the sleep that knows no waking we see the +end of earthly troubles; in the silence of the grave come no sounds +of this world's contention; the winds that stir the rank grass of the +churchyard breathe at least repose. Not so when fate has severed us from +those we loved best during lifetime; when the fortunes we hoped to link +with our own are torn asunder from us; when the hour comes when we must +turn from the path we had followed with pleasure and happiness, and +seek another road in life, bearing with us not only all the memory of +the past, but all the speculation on the future. There is no sorrow, no +affliction, like this. + +It was thus I viewed my joyless fortune,--with such depressing +reflections I thought over the past. What mattered it now how my career +might turn? There lived not one to care whether rank or honor, disgrace +or death, were to be my portion. The glorious path I often longed to +tread opened for me now without exciting one spark of enthusiasm. So +is it even in our most selfish desires, we live less for ourselves than +others. + +If my road in life seemed to present few features to hang hopes on, he +who sat beside me appeared still more depressed. Seldom speaking, and +then but in monosyllables, he remained sunk in reverie. + +And thus passed the days of our journey, when on the third evening we +came in sight of Coblentz. Then indeed there burst upon my astonished +gaze one of those scenes which once seen are never forgotten. From the +gentle declivity which we were now descending, the view extended several +miles in every direction. Beneath us lay the city of Coblentz, its +spires and domes shining like gilded bronze as the rays of the setting +sun fell upon them; the Moselle swept along one side of the town till it +mingled its eddies with the broad Rhine, now one sheet of liquid gold; +the long pontoon bridge, against whose dark cutwaters the bright stream +broke in sparkling circles, trembled beneath the dull roll of artillery +and baggage-wagons, which might be seen issuing from the town, and +serpentining their course along the river's edge for miles, till they +were lost in the narrow glen by which the Lahn flows into the Rhine. +Beyond rose the great precipice of rock, with its crowning fortress +of Ehrenbreitstein, along whose battlemented walls, almost lost in the +heavy clouds of evening, might be seen dark specks moving from place to +place,--the soldiers of the garrison looking down from their eyrie on +the war-tide that flowed beneath. Lower down the river many boats were +crossing, in which, as the sunlight shone, one could mark the glancing +of arms and the glitter of uniforms; while farther again, and in deep +shadow, rose the solitary towers of the ruined castle of Lahneck, its +shattered walls and grass-grown battlements standing clearly out against +the evening sky. + +Far as we were oif, every breeze that stirred bore towards us the +softened swell of military music, which, even when too faint to trace, +made the air tremulous with its martial sounds. Along the ramparts of +the city were crowds of townspeople, gazing with anxious wonderment at +the spectacle; for none knew, save the generals in command of divisions, +the destination of that mighty force, the greatest Europe had ever +seen up to that period. Such indeed were the measures taken to ensure +secrecy, that none were permitted to cross the frontier without a +special authority from the Minister for Foreign Affairs; the letters in +the various post-offices were detained, and even travellers were denied +post-horses on the great roads to the eastward, lest intelligence +might be conveyed to Germany of the movement in progress. Meanwhile, +at Manheim, at Spire, at Strasburg, and at Coblentz, the long columns +streamed forth whose eagles were soon destined to meet in the great +plains of Southern Germany. + +Such was the gorgeous spectacle that each moment grew more palpable to +our astonished senses,--more brilliant far than anything painting could +realize,--more spirit-stirring than the grandest words that poet ever +sang. + +"The cuirassiers and the dragoons of the Guard are yonder," said the +general, as he directed his glass to a large square of the town where +a vast mass of dismounted cavalry were standing. "You see how punctual +they are; we are but two hours behind our time, and they are awaiting +our arrival." + +"And do we move forward to-night, General?" asked I, in some surprise. + +"Yes, and every night. The marches are to be made fourteen hours each +day. There go the Lancers of Berg; you see their scarlet dolmans, don't +you? And yonder, in the three large boats beyond the point, there are +the sappers of the Guard. What are the shouts I hear? Whence comes that +cheering? Oh, I see! it's a vivandiere; her horse has backed into the +river. See, see! she is going to swim him over! Look how the current +takes him down! Bravely done, faith! She heads him to the stream; it +won't do, though; she must be carried down." + +Just at this critical moment a boat shoots out from under the cliff; a +few strokes of the oars and they are alongside. There's a splash and a +shout, and the skiff moves on. + +"And now I see they have given her a rope, and are towing her and her +horse across. See how the old spirit comes back with the first blast of +the trumpet," said the old general, as his eyes flashed with enthusiasm. +"That damsel there,--I 'll warrant ye, she 'd have thought twice about +stepping over a rivulet in the streets of Paris yesterday; and look at +her now! Well done! gallantly done! See how she spurs him up the +bank! _Ma foi!_ Mademoiselle, you 'll have no lack of lovers for that +achievement." + +A few minutes more and we entered the town, whose streets were thronged +with soldiers hurrying on to their different corps, and eager townsfolk +asking a hundred questions, to which, of course, few waited to reply. + +"This way, General," said an officer in undress, who recognized General +d'Auvergne. "The cavalry of the third division is stationed on the +square." + +Driving through a narrow street, through which the _caleche_ had barely +room to pass, we now found ourselves in the Place,--a handsome space +surrounded with a double row of trees, under which the dragoons were +lying, holding the bridles of their horses. + +The general had scarcely put foot to ground when the trumpets sounded +the call. The superior officers came running forward to greet him. +Taking the arm of a short man in the uniform of the cuirassiers, the +general entered a cafe near, while I became the centre of some dozen +officers, all eagerly asking the news from Paris, and whether the +Emperor had yet left the capital. It was not without considerable +astonishment I then perceived how totally ignorant they all were of the +destination of the army; many alleging it was designed for Russia, +and others equally positive that the Prussians were the object of +attack,--the arguments in support of each opinion being wonderfully +ingenious, and only deficient in one respect, having not a particle of +fact for their foundation. + +In the midst of these conjecturings came a new subject for discussion; +for one of the group, who had just received a letter from his brother, a +page at the Tuileries, was reading the contents aloud for the benefit of +the rest:-- + +"Jules says that they are all astray as to the Emperor's movements. +Duroc has left Paris suddenly, but no one knows for where; the only +thing certain is, a hot campaign is to open somewhere. One hundred and +eighty thousand men--" + +"Bah!" said an old, white-mustached major, with a look of evident +unbelief; "we never had forty with the army of the Sambre." + +"And what then?" said another, fiercely. "Do you compare your army of +the Sambre, your sans-culottes Republicans, with the Imperial troops?" + +The old major's face became deeply crimsoned, and with a muttered _A +demain_ he walked away. + +"Go after him, Amedee," said another; "you had no right to say that." + +"Not I, faith," said the other, carelessly. "There is a grudge between +us these three weeks past, and we may as well have it out. Go on with +the letter, Henri." + +"Oh, it is filled with Court gossip," said the reader, negligently. "Ha! +what is this, though?--the postscript:-- + +"'I have just time to tell you the strangest bit of news we have chanced +upon for some time past. The Emperor has this moment married old +General d'Auvergne to the very handsomest girl in the Empress's +suite,--Mademoiselle de Meudon. There is a rumor afloat about the old +man having made her his heir, and desiring to confer her hand on +some young fellow of his own choosing. But this passion to make Court +matches, which has seized his Majesty lately, stops at nothing; and it +is whispered that old Madame d'Orvalle is actually terrified at every +levee lest she should be disposed of to one of the new marshals. I must +say that the general looks considerably put out by the arrangement,--not +unnaturally, perhaps, as he is likely to pass the honeymoon in the +field; while his aide-de-camp, a certain Monsieur Burke, whose name you +may remember figuring in the affair of Pichegru and George--'" + +"Perhaps it were as well, sir," said I, quietly, "that I should tell +you the person alluded to is myself. I have no desire to learn how +your correspondent speaks of me; nor, I take it for granted, do these +gentlemen desire to canvass me in my own hearing. With your leave, then, +I shall withdraw." + +"A word. Monsieur; one word, first," said the officer, whose insolent +taunt had already offended the veteran major. "We are most of us here +staff-officers, and I need not say accustomed to live pretty much +together. Will you favor us, then, with a little explanation as to the +manner in which you escaped a trial in that business. Your name, if I +mistake not, did not figure before the tribunal after the first day?" + +"Well, sir; and then?" + +"And then? Why, there is one only explanation in such a circumstance." + +"And that is? if I may be so bold--" + +"That the _mouchard_ fares better than his victim." + +"I believe, sir," said I, "I comprehend your meaning; I hope there will +be no fear of your mistaking mine." + +With that I drew off the long gauntlet glove I wore, and struck him +across the face. + +Every man sprang backwards as I did so, as though a shell had fallen +in the midst of us; while a deep voice called out from behind, "Le +Capitaine Amedee Pichot is under arrest." + +I turned, and beheld the provost-marshal with his guard approach, and +take my adversary's sword from him. + +"What charge is this, Marshal?" said he, as a livid color spread over +his cheek. + +"Your duel of yesterday, Capitaine; you seem to forget all about it +already." + +"Whenever and wherever you please, sir," said I, passing close beside +him, and speaking in a whisper. + +He nodded without uttering a word in reply, and moved after the guard, +while the others dispersed silently, and left me standing alone in the +Place. + +What would I not have given at that moment for but one friend to counsel +and advise me; and yet, save the general, to whom I dared not speak on +such a subject, I had not one in the whole world. It was, indeed, but +too true, that life had little value for me; yet never did I contemplate +a duel with more abhorrence. The insult I had inflicted, however, could +have no other result. While I reasoned thus, the door of the cafe, +opened, and the general appeared. + +"Burke," cried he, "come in here, and make a hasty supper; you must be +in the saddle in half an hour." + +"Quite ready, sir." + +"I know it, my lad. Your orders are there: ride forward to Ettingen, and +prepare the billets for the fourth demi-brigade, which will reach that +village by to-morrow evening; you'll have time for something to eat, and +a glass of wine, before the orderly arrives. This piece of duty is +put on you, because a certain Captain Pichot, the only one of the +commissaries' department who can speak German, has just been put under +arrest for a duel he fought yesterday. I wish the court-marshal would +shoot the fellow, with all my heart and soul; he's a perfect curse to +the whole division. In any case, if he escape this time, I'll keep my +eye on him, and he'll scarce get clear through my hands, I'll warrant +him." + +It may be supposed that I heard these words with no common emotion, +bearing as they did so closely on my own circumstances at the moment. +But I hung down my head and affected to eat, while the old general +walked hastily up and down the _salon_ muttering half aloud heavy +denunciations on the practice of duelling, which at any cost of life he +resolved to put down in his command. + +"Done already! Why, man, you've eaten nothing. Well, then, I see the +orderly without; you've got a capital moonlight for your ride. And so, +_au revoir_." + +"Good-by, sir," said I, as I sprang into the saddle. "And now for +Ettingen." + + + +CHAPTER XLIII. THE MARCH ON THE DANUBE. + +There is a strange, unnatural kind of pleasure felt sometimes in the +continued attacks of evil fortune: the dogged courage with which we bear +up against the ills of fate, swimming more strongly as the waves grow +rougher, has its own meed of consolation. It is only at such a time, +perhaps, that the really independent spirit of our natures is in the +ascendant, and that we can stand amid the storm, conscious of our +firmness, and bid the winds "blow and crack their cheeks." Yet, through +how many sorrows must one have waded, ere he reach this point! through +what trials must he have passed I how must hope have paled, and +flickered, and died out I how must all self-love, all ambition, all +desire itself have withered within us, till we become like the mere rock +amid the breakers, against which the waves beat in vain! When that hour +comes, the heart has grown cold and callous, the affections have dried +up, and man looks no more upon his fellow-men as brothers. + +Towards this sad condition I found myself rapidly verging; the isolation +of my homeless, friendless state, the death of my hopes, the uncheered +path in which I walked, all conspired to make me feel depressed, and +I perceived that a half-recklessness was already stealing over me, and +that in my indifference as to fortune now lay my greatest consolation. +There was a time when such a rencontre as lately befell me had made me +miserable till the hour came when I should meet my adversary; now, my +blood boiled with no indignant passion, no current of angry vengeance +stirred through my veins, a stupid sullenness was over me, and I cared +nothing what might happen. And if this state became not permanent, I owe +it to youth alone--the mainspring of many of our best endeavors. + +We had travelled some seven or eight miles when we stopped for a few +seconds at the door of a cabaret, and then I discovered for the first +time that my old friend Pioche was the corporal of our little party. To +my slight reproach for his not having sooner made himself known to +me, the honest fellow replied that he saw I was low in spirits about +something, and did not wish to obtrude upon me. + +"Not but, after all, mon lieutenant, the best way is always to 'face +front' against bad luck, and charge through; _sapermint_, that's the way +we did at Marengo, when Desaix's corps was cut off from the left--But +pardon, mon officier, I forgot you were not there." + +There was something so pleasant in the gruff courtesy of the hardy +cuirassier, that I willingly led him on to speak of his former +life,--a subject which, once entered on, he followed as fancy or memory +suggested. + +"I used to feel low-spirited myself, once," said Pioche, as he smoothed +down his great mustache with a complacent motion of his fingers--"I used +to be very low in heart when I entered the service first, and saw all my +old school-fellows and companions winning their epaulettes and becoming +captains and colonels,--ay, _parbleu_, and marshals, too,--while, +because I could not read, I was to remain all my life in the ranks; as +if one could not force a palisade nor break through a square till he had +stuffed his head with learning. All this made me very sad, and I would +sit brooding over it for hours long. But at last I began to think my +own lot was not the worst after all; my duty was easily done, and, when +over, I could sleep sound till the _reveil_ blew. I ran no danger of being +scolded by the Petit Caporal, because my division was not somewhere +yesterday, nor in some other place to-day. He never came with a frown to +ask me why I had not captured another howitzer and taken more prisoners. +No, faith! It was always,--'Well done, Pioche! bravely done, mon enfant! +here's a piece of twenty francs to drink my health.' Or perhaps he'd +mutter between his teeth, 'That honest fellow there would make a better +general than one half of them.' Not that he was in earnest, you know; +but still it was pleasant just to hear it." + +"And yet, Pioche," said I, "it does surprise me why, seeing that this +want of learning was the bar to your promotion, you did not--" + +"And so I did, mon lieutenant; at least I tried to learn to read. +_Morbleu!_ it was a weary time for me. I'd rather be under arrest three +days a week, than be at it again. Mademoiselle Minette--she was the +vivandiere of ours--undertook to teach me; and I used to go over to the +canteen every evening after drill. Many a sad heart had I over these +same lessons. Saprelotte, I could learn the look of every man in a +brigade before I could know the letters in the alphabet, they looked so +confoundedly alike when they stood up all in a line. The only fellows +I could distinguish were the big ones, that were probably the sergeants +and sous-officiers; and when my eye was fixed on one column, it would +stray away to another; and then mademoiselle would laugh, and that would +lead to something else. Et, _ma foi_, the spelling-book was soon thrown +aside, and lessons given up for that evening." + +"I suppose Mademoiselle Minette was pretty, Pioche?" + +"Was I ay, and is, too. What! mon lieutenant, did you never see her on +parade? She's the handsomest girl in the army, and rides so well,--mille +cannons! She might have been a great lady before this if she 'd have +left the regiment; but no, she'd die first! Her father was tambour-major +with us, and killed at Groningen when she was only an infant; and we +used to carry her about in our arms on the march, and hand her from +one to another. I have seen her pass from the leading files to the +baggage-guard, on a long summer's day; that I have. Le Petit Caporal +knows her well; she gave him a gourd full of eau-de-vie at Cairo when +he was so faint he could scarcely speak. It was after that he saw her in +the breach at Acre; one of our fellows was lying wounded in the ruins, +and mademoiselle waited till the storming party fell back, and then ran +up to him with her flask in her hand. 'Whose pretty ankles are these? I +think I ought to know them,' said an officer, as she passed along. 'No +flattery will do with me, Monsieur,' cried Minette; 'it's hard enough +to get one's living here, without giving Nantz brandy for nothing.' +Saerigtif when the laugh made her turn about, she saw it was the Petit +Caporal himself who spoke to her. Poor Minette! she blushed scarlet, and +nearly dropped with shame; but that did not prevent her dashing up the +breach towards the wounded man; not that it was of any use, though,--he +was dead when she got up." + +"I should like much to see mademoiselle. Is she still with the Fourth?" + +"Yes, mon lieutenant; I parted with her a few hours ago." + +A half suppressed sigh that followed these words showed that the worthy +corporal was touched on the most tender key of his nature, and for some +time he lapsed into a silence I could not venture to break. At length, +desiring to give the conversation a turn, I asked if he knew the +Capitaine Pichot. + +"Know him!" cried Pioche, almost bounding in his saddle as he spoke. +"That I do. _Peste!_ I have good reason to know him: see there." With +that he lifted the curled mustache from his upper lip, and disclosed +to my view a blue scar that marked one side of his mouth. "That was his +doing." + +"Indeed! How so, pray?" + +"I 'll tell you. We were in garrison at Metz, where, as you know, the +great commissariat station is held,--thousands of cannon and mortars, +shells and shot, and tons of powder without end. Well, the orders were +very strict against smoking; any man found with a pipe in his mouth was +sentenced to a week in the 'salle de police,' and I can't say what else +besides. When we marched into the town, this order stared us in the +face; a great placard, with big letters, which they who could read said +was against smoking. Now, most of us came from Alsace, and it was pretty +much like setting a fish to live on dry land, bidding us go without +tobacco. As for me, I smoke just as I breathe, without knowing or +thinking of it. My pipe lies in my mouth as naturally as my foot rests +in the stirrup; and so, although I intended to obey the order, I knew +well the time might come when, just from not thinking, I should be +caught smoking away; for if I were on guard over a magazine it would be +all the same,--I could not help it. So I resolved, as the only way not +to be caught tripping, to leave all my pipes in a secret place, till +the time came for us to leave Metz,--an hour, I need not say, we all +anxiously longed for. This I did," continued Pioche, "that same evening, +and all went on favorably for some time, when one night, as I was +returning to quarters, the devil, who meddles with everything in this +world, made me stick my hands into the pocket of my undress jacket, and +I there discovered a little bit of a pipe about the length of one joint +of your thumb,--a poor scrubby thing of clay, sure enough; but there +it was, and, worse still, ready filled with tobacco. Had it been a good +sized meerschaum, with a tassel and an amber mouthpiece, I had resisted +like a man; but the temptation came in so humble a shape, I thought I +was only guilty of a small sin in transgressing, and so I lit my little +friend, and went gayly along towards the barracks. Just as I passed the +corner of the market-place I heard a great noise of voices and laughing +in the cafe, and recognized the tones of our major and some of the +officers, as they sat sipping their wine in the verandah. Before I could +raise my hand to my mouth, Capitaine Pichot cried out, 'Halte-la!--right +about face!--attention!--left wheel!--eyes front!' This I did, as if on +parade, and stood stock still; when suddenly crack went a noise, and a +pistol-bullet smashed the pipe in two, and grazed my lip, when a roar of +laughing followed, as he called out louder than before, 'Quick march!' +and I stepped out to my quarters, never turning my head right or left, +not knowing what other ball practice might be in store for me. _Tonnerre +de Dieu!_ a little windage of the shot might have cost me every tooth I +have in the world!" + +"It was a cruel jest, Pioche, and you 're a good-humored fellow to take +it so easily." + +"Not so. Lieutenant. I had no punishment afterwards, and was well +content to be quit for the fright." + +With such stray memories of his campaigning days did Pioche beguile the +way: now moralizing over the chances and changes of a soldier's fortune; +now comforting himself with some pleasant reflection, that even in his +own humble walk he had assisted at some of the greatest triumphs of the +French armies. Of the future he spoke with the easy confidence of one +who felt that in the Emperor's guidance there could be full trust,--both +of the cause being a just one, and the result victorious. A perfect +type of his class, his bravery was only to be equalled by the implicit +confidence he felt in his leader. That the troops of any country, no +matter how numerous and well equipped, could resist a French army was +a problem he could not even entertain. The thing was too absurd; and if +Napoleon did not at that moment wield undisputed sway over the whole of +Europe, it was simply owing to his excess of moderation, and the willing +sacrifice of his ambition to his greater love of liberty. + +I confess, if I were sometimes tempted to smile at the simplicity of the +honest soldier, I was more often carried away by his warm enthusiasm; so +frequently, too, did he interweave in his narrative the mention of those +great victories, whose fame was unquestionable, that in my assent to +the facts I went a great way in my concurrence with the inferences he +deduced from them. And thus we travelled on for several days in +advance of the division, regulating the halting-places and the billets, +according to the nature and facilities of the country. The towns and +villages in our "route" presented an aspect of the most profound peace; +and however strange it seemed, yet each day attested how completely +ignorant the people were of the advance of that mighty army that now, in +four vast columns of march, was pouring its thousands into the heart of +Germany. The Princes of Baden and Darmstadt, through whose territories +we passed, had not as yet given in their adherence to the Emperor; and +the inhabitants of those countries seemed perplexed and confused at +the intentions of their powerful neighbor, whose immense trains of +ammunition and enormous parks of artillery filled every road and blocked +up every village. + +At length we reached Manheim, where a portion of the corps of Marechal +Davoust were in waiting to join us: and there we first learned, by the +imperial bulletin, the object of the war and the destination of the +troops. The document was written by Napoleon himself, and bore abundant +evidence of his style. After the usual programme, attesting his sincere +love for peace, and his desire for the cultivation of those happy and +industrious habits which make nations more prosperous than glorious, +it went on to speak of the great coalition between Russia and Austria, +which, in union with the "_perfide_ Albion," had no other thought nor +wish than the abasement and dismemberment of France. "But, soldiers!" +continued he, "your Emperor is in the midst of you. France itself in all +its majesty, is at your back, and you are but the advanced guard of a +mighty people! There are fatigues and privations, battles, and forced +marches, before you; but let them oppose to us every resistance they are +able, we swear never to cry 'Halt!' till we have planted our eagles on +the territory of our enemies!" + +We halted two days at Manheim to permit some regiments to come up, and +then marched forward to Nordlingen, which place the Emperor himself had +only quitted the night before. Here the report reached us that a +smart affair had taken place the previous morning between the Austrian +division and a portion of Ney's advanced guard, in which we had +rather the worst of it, and had lost some prisoners. The news excited +considerable discontent among the troops, and increased their impatience +to move forward to a very great degree. Meanwhile, the different +divisions of the French army were converging towards Ulm, from the +north, south, and west; and every hour brought them nearer to that +devoted spot, which as yet, in the security of an enormous garrison, +never dreamed of sudden attack. + +The corps of Soult was now pushed forward to Augsburg, and, extended by +a line of communication to Meiningen, the only channel of communication +which remained open to the enemy. The quartier-general of the Emperor +was established at Zummerhausen; Ney was at Guntzburg: Marmont +threatened in the west; and Bernadotte, arriving by forced marches +from Prussia, hovered in the north.--so that Ulm was invested in every +direction at one blow, and that in a space of time almost inconceivable. + +While these immense combinations were being effected,--requiring as +they did an enormous extent of circumference to march over before the +fortress could be thus enclosed, as it were, within our grasp,--our +astonishment increased daily that the Austrians delayed to give battle; +but, as if terror-stricken, they waited on day after day while the +measures for their ruin were accomplishing. At length a desperate sortie +was made from the garrison; and a large body of troops, escaping by the +left bank of the Danube, directed their course towards Bohemia; while +another corps, in the opposite direction, forced back Ney's advanced +guard, and took the road towards Nordlingen. Having directed a strong +detachment in pursuit of this latter corps, which was commanded by +the Archduke Frederick himself, the Emperor closed in around Ulm, and +forcing the passage of the river at Elchingen, prepared for the final +attack. + +While these dispositions were being effected, the cavalry brigade, under +General d'Auvergne, consisting of three regiments of heavy dragoons, the +Fourth Cuirassiers, and Eighth Hussars, continued to descend the left +bank of the Danube in pursuit of a part of the Austrian garrison which +had taken that line in retreat towards Vienna. We followed as far +as Guntzburg without coming up with them; and there the news of the +capitulation of Meiningen, with its garrison of six thousand men, to +Marechal Soult, reached us, along with an order to return to Ulm. + +Up to this time all I had seen of war was forced marches, bivouacs +hastily broken up, hurried movements in advance and retreat, the fatigue +of night parties, and a continual alert. At first the hourly expectation +of coming in sight of the enemy kept up our spirits; but when day after +day passed, and the same pursuit followed, where the pursued never +appeared, the younger soldiers grumbled loudly at fatigues undertaken +without object, and, as it seemed to them, by mistake. + +On the night of the 17th of October we bivouacked within a league of +Ulm. Scarcely were the pickets formed for the night, when orders came +for the whole brigade to assemble under arms at daybreak. A thousand +rumors were abroad as to the meaning of the order, but none came near +the true solution; indeed, the difficulty was increased by the added +command, that the regiments should appear _en grande tenue_, or in full +dress. + +I saw that my old commander made a point of keeping me in suspense as to +the morrow, and affected as much as possible an air of indifference on +the subject. He had himself arrived late from Ulm, where he had seen +the Emperor; and amused me by mentioning the surprise of an Austrian +aide-de-camp, who, sent to deliver a letter, found his Majesty sitting +with his boots off, and stretched before a bivouac fire. "Yes," said +Napoleon, divining at once his astonishment, "it is even so. Your master +wished to remind me of my old trade, and I hope that the imperial purple +has not made me forget its lessons." + +By daybreak the next morning our brigade was in the saddle, and in +motion towards the quartier-general,--a gently rising ground, surmounted +by a farmhouse, where the Emperor had fixed his quarters. As we mounted +the hill we came in sight of the whole army drawn up in battle array. +They stood in columns of divisions, with artillery and cavalry between +them, the bands of the various regiments in front. The day was a +brilliant one, and heightened the effect of the scene. Beyond us lay +Ulm,--silent as if untenanted: not a sentinel appeared on the walls; the +very flag had disappeared from the battlements. Our surprise was great +at this; but how was it increased as the rumor fled from mouth to +mouth,--"Ulm has capitulated; thirty-five thousand men have become +prisoners of war!" + +Ere the first moments of wonder had ceased, the staff of the Emperor was +seen passing along the line, and finally taking up its station on the +hill, while the regimental bands burst forth into one crash the most +spirit-stirring and exciting. The proud notes swelled and filled the +air, as the sun, bursting forth with increased brilliancy, tipped every +helmet and banner, and displayed the mighty hosts in all the splendor +of their pageantry. Beneath the hill stretched a vast plain in the +direction of Neuburg; and here we at first supposed it was the Emperor's +intention to review the troops. But a very different scene was destined +to pass on that spot. + +Suddenly a single gun boom, out; and as the lazy smoke moved heavily +along the earth, the gates of Ulm opened, and the head of an Austrian +column appeared. Not with beat of drum or colors flying did they +advance; but slow in step, with arms reversed, and their heads downcast, +they marched on towards the mound. Defiling beneath this, they moved +into the plain, and, corps by corps, piled their arms and resumed +their "route," the white line serpentining along the vast plain, and +stretching away into the dim distance. Never was a sight so sad as +this! All that war can present of suffering and bloodshed, all that the +battlefield can show of dead and dying, were nothing to the miserable +abasement of those thousands, who from daybreak till noon poured on +their unceasing tide! + +On the hill beside the Emperor stood several officers in white uniform, +whose sad faces and suffering looks attested the misery of their hearts. +"Better a thousand deaths than such humiliation!" was the muttered cry +of every man about me; while in very sorrow at such a scene, the tears +coursed down the hardy cheeks of many a bronzed soldier, and some turned +away their heads, unable to behold the spectacle. + +Seventy pieces of cannon, with a long train of ammunition wagons, and +four thousand cavalry horses, brought up the rear of this melancholy +procession,--the spoils of the capitulation of Ulm. Truly, if that day +were, as the imperial bulletin announced it, "one of the most glorious +for France," it was also the darkest in the history of Austria,--when +thirty-two regiments of infantry and fifteen of cavalry, with artillery +and siege defences of every kind, laid down their arms and surrendered +themselves prisoners. + +Thus in fifteen days from the passing of the Rhine was the campaign +begun and ended, and the Austrian Empire prostrate at the feet of +Napoleon. + + + +CHAPTER XLIV. THE CANTEEN. + +The Emperor returned that night to Elchingen, accompanied by a numerous +staff, among whom was the General d'Auvergne. I remember well the +toilsome ascent of the steep town, which, built on a cliff above the +Danube, was now little better than a heap of ruins, from the assault of +Ney's division two days before. Scrambling our way over fallen houses +and massive fragments of masonry, we reached the square that forms the +highest point of the city; from thence we looked down upon the great +plain, with the majestic Danube winding along for miles. In the valley +lay Ulm, now sad and silent: no watch-fires blazed along its deserted +ramparts, and through its open gates there streamed the idle tide of +soldiers and camp followers, curious to see the place which once they +had deemed almost impregnable. The quartier-general was established +here, and the different staffs disposed of themselves, as well as they +were able, throughout the houses near: most of these, indeed, had been +deserted by their inhabitants, whose dread of the French was a feeling +ministered to by every artifice in the power of the Austrian Government. +As for me, I was but a young campaigner, and might from sheer ignorance +have passed my night in the open air, when by good fortune I caught +sight of my old companion, Pioche, hurrying along a narrow street, +carrying a basket well stored with bottles on his arm. + +"Ah, mon lieutenant, you here! and not supped yet, I 'd wager a crown?" + +"You'd win it too, Pioche; nor do I see very great chance of my doing +so." + +"Come along with me, sir; Mademoiselle Minette has just opened her +canteen in the flower-market. Such it was once, they tell me; but there +is little odor left there now, save such as contract powder gives. +But no matter you 'll have a roast capon and sausages, and some of the +Austrian wine; I have just secured half a dozen bottles here." + +I need scarcely say that this was an invitation there was no declining, +and I joined the corporal at once, and hurried on to mademoiselle's +quarters. We had not proceeded far, when the noise of voices speaking +and singing in a loud tone announced that we were approaching the +canteen. + +"You hear them, mon lieutenant!" said Pioche, with a look of delight; +"you hear the rogues. _Par Saint Jaaques_, they know where to make +themselves merry. Good wine for drinking, lodging for nothing, fire for +the trouble of lighting it, are brave inducements to enjoy life." + +"But it 's a canteen; surely mademoiselle is paid?" + +"Not the first night of a campaign, I suppose," said he, with a voice +of rebuke. "_Parbleu_! that would be a pretty affair! No, no; each man +brings what he can find, drinks what he is able, and leaves the rest; +which, after all, is a very fair stock-in-trade to begin with. And so +now, mon lieutenant, to commence operations regularly, just sling this +ham on your sabre over your shoulder, and take this turkey carelessly in +your hand,--that 's it. Here we are; follow me." + +Passing through an arched gateway, we entered a little courtyard where +several horses were picketed, the ground about them being strewn +with straw knee-deep; cavalry saddles, holsters, and sheepskins lay +confusedly on every side, along with sabres and carbines; a great lamp, +detached from its position over the street entrance, was suspended from +a lance out of a window, and threw its light over the scene. Stepping +cautiously through this chaotic heap, we reached a glass door, from +within which the riotous sounds were most audibly issuing. Pioche pushed +it open, and we entered a large room, full fifty feet in length, at one +end of which, under a species of canopy, formed by two old regimental +colors, sat Mademoiselle Minette,--for so I guessed to be a very +pretty brunette, with a most decidedly Parisian look about her air and +toilette; a table, covered with a snow-white napkin, was in front +of her, on which lay a large bouquet and an open book, in which she +appeared to be writing as we came in. The room on either side was +filled by small tables, around which sat parties drinking, card-playing, +singing or quarrelling as it might be, with a degree of energy and +vociferation only campaigning can give an idea of. + +The first thing which surprised me was, that all ranks in the service +seemed confusedly mixed up together, there being no distinction of class +whatever; captains and corporals, sergeants, lieutenants, colonels, and +tambourmajors, were inextricably commingled, hobnobbing, handshaking, +and even kissing in turn, that most fraternal and familiar "tu" of +dearest friendship being heard on every side. + +Resisting a hundred invitations to join some party or other as he passed +up the room, Pioche led me forward towards Mademoiselle Minette, to +present me in due form ere I took my place. + +The honest corporal, who would have charged a square without blinking, +seemed actually to tremble as he came near the pretty vivandiere; and +when, with a roguish twinkle of her dark eye, and a half smile on her +saucy lip, she said, "Ah, c'est toi, gros Pioche?" the poor fellow could +only mutter a "Oui, Mademoiselle," in a voice scarce loud enough to be +heard. + +"And monsieur," said she, "whom I have the honor to see?" + +"Is my lieutenant. Mademoiselle; or he is aide-de-camp of my general, +which comes to the same thing." + +With a few words of gracious civility, well and neatly expressed +mademoiselle welcomed me to the canteen, which, she said, had often been +graced by the presence of General d'Auvergne himself. + +"Yes, by Saint Denis!" cried Pioche, with energy; "Prince Murat, and +Marechal Davoust, too, have been here." + +Dropping his voice to a whisper, he added something that called a faint +blush to mademoiselle's cheek as she replied, "You think so, do you?" +Then, turning to me, asked if I were not disposed to sup. + +"Yes, that he is," interrupted Pioche; "and here is the materiel;"--with +which he displayed his pannier of bottles, and pointed to the spoils +which, following his directions, I carried in my hands. + +The corporal having despatched the fowls to the kitchen, proceeded +to arrange a little table at a short distance from where mademoiselle +sat,--an arrangement, I could perceive, which called forth some rather +angry looks from those around the room, and I could overhear more +than one muttered Sacre! as to the ambitious pretensions of the "gros +Pioche." + +He himself paid little if any attention to these signs of discontent, +but seemed wholly occupied in perfecting the table arrangements, which +he did with the skill and despatch of a tavern waiter. + +"Here, mon lieutenant, this is your place," said he, with a bow, as he +placed a chair for me at the head of the board; and then, with a polite +obeisance to the lady, he added, "Avec permission, Mademoiselle," and +took his own seat at the side. + +A very appetizing dish made its appearance at this moment; and +notwithstanding my curiosity to watch the proceedings of the party, and +my admiration for mademoiselle herself, hunger carried the day, and I +was soon too deeply engaged in the discussion of my supper to pay much +attention to aught else. It was just then that, forgetting where I was, +and unmindful that I was not enjoying the regular fare of an inn, I +called out, as if to the waiter, for "bread." A roar of laughter ran +through the room at my mistake, when a dark-whiskered little fellow, in +an undress frock, stuck his small sword into a loaf, and handed it to me +from the table where he sat. + +There was something in the act which rather puzzled me, and might have +continued longer to do so, had not Pioche whispered me in a low voice, +"Take it, take it." + +I reached out my hand for the purpose, when, just as I had caught the +loaf, with a slight motion of his wrist he disengaged the point of the +weapon, and gave me a scratch on the back of my hand. The gesture I made +called forth a renewed peal of laughing; and I now perceived, from the +little man's triumphant look at his companions, that the whole thing was +intended as an insult. Resolving, however, to go quietly in the matter, +I held out my hand when it was still bleeding, and said,-- + +"You perceive, sir?" + +"Ah, an accident, _morbleu!_, said he, with a careless shrug of his +shoulders, and a half leer of impertinent indifference. + +"So is this also," replied I, as, springing up, I seized the sword he +was returning to its scabbard, and smashed the blade across my knee. + +"Well done, well done!" cried twenty voices in a breath; while the +whole room rose in a confused manlier to take one side or other in +the contest, several crowding around the little man, whose voice had +suddenly lost its tone of easy impertinence, and was now heard swearing +away, with the most guttural intonation. + +"What kind of swordsman are you?" whispered Pioche, in my ear. + +"Sufficiently expert to care little for an enemy of his caliber." + +"Ah, you don't know that," replied he; "it's Francois, the maitre +d'armes of the Fourth." + +"You must not fight him, Monsieur," said mademoiselle, as she laid her +hand on mine, and looked up into my face with a most expressive glance. + +"They are waiting for you without, mon lieutenant," said an old +sergeant-major, touching his cap as he spoke. + +"Come along," said Pioche, with a deeply-muttered oath; "and, by the +blood of Saint Louis, it shall be the last time Maitre Francois shows +his skill in fence, if I cost them the fire of a platoon to-morrow." + +I was hurried along by the crowd to the court, a hundred different +advisers whispering their various counsels in my ears as I went. + +"Take care of his lunge in tierce,--mind that," cried one. + +"Push him outside the arm,--outside, remember; take my advice, young +man," said an old sous-officier,--"close on him at once, take his point +where he gives it, and make sure of your own weapon." + +"No bad plan either," cried two or three. "Monsieur Auguste is right; +Francois can't bear the cold steel, and if he sees it close, he loses +his head altogether." + +The courtyard was already cleared for action; the horses picketed in one +corner, the straw removed, and a blaze of light from all the lamps and +candles of the supper-room showed the ground as clearly as at noonday. +While my antagonist was taking off his coat and vest,--an operation +I did not choose to imitate,--I took a rapid survey of the scene, +and notwithstanding the rush of advisers around me, was sufficiently +collected to decide on my mode of acting. + +"Come, mon lieutenant, off with your frock," said an officer at my side; +"even if you don't care for the advantage of a free sword-arm, those +fellows yonder won't believe it all fair, if you do not strip." + +"Yes, yes, take it off," said a fellow in the crowd, "your fine +epaulettes may as well escape tarnishing; and that new coat, too, will +be all the better without a hole in it." + +I hastily threw off my coat and waistcoat, when the crowd fell back, and +the maitre d'armes advancing into the open space with a light and nimble +step, cried out, "En garde, Monsieur!" I stood my ground, and crossed my +sword with his. + +For a few seconds I contented myself with merely observing my adversary, +who handled his weapon not only with all the skill of an accomplished +swordsman, but with a dexterity that showed me he was playing off his +art before his companions. + +As if to measure his distance, he made two or three slight passes over +the guard of my sword, and then grating his blade against mine with that +peculiar motion which bodes attack, he fixed his eyes on mine, to draw +off my attention from his intended thrust. The quickness and facility +with which his weapon changed from side to side of mine, the easy motion +of his wrist, and the rigid firm ness of his arm, all showed me I was +no match for him,--although one of the best of my day at the military +school,--and I did not venture to proceed beyond mere defence. He saw +this, and by many a trick endeavored to induce an attack,--now dropping +his point carelessly, to address a monosyllable to a friend near; now +throwing open his guard, as if from negligence. + +At length, as if tired with waiting, he called out, "_Que cela finisse!_" +and rushed in on me. + +[Illustration: Tom masters the "Maitre d'Armes"] + +The rapidity of the assault, for a second or so, completely overcame me; +and though I defended myself mechanically, I could neither follow his +weapon with my eye nor anticipate his intended thrust. Twice his point +touched my sword-arm above the wrist, and by a slight wound there, saved +my lungs from being pierced. At last, after a desperate rally, in which +he broke in on my guard, he made a fearful lunge at my chest. I bent +forward, and received his blade in the muscles of my back, when, with a +wheel round, I smashed the sword in me, and buried my own up to the hilt +in his body. He fell bathed in blood; and I, staggering backwards, was +caught in Pioche's arms at the moment when all consciousness was fast +leaving me. + +A few minutes after I came to myself, and found that I was lying on +a heap of straw in the yard, while two regimental surgeons were most +industriously engaged in trying to stop the hemorrhage of my wounds. + +With little interest in my own fate, I could not help feeling anxious +about my antagonist. They shook their heads mournfully in reply to my +question, and desired me to be as calm as possible, for my life hung on +a very thread. The dressing completed, I was carried into the house, and +laid on a bed in a small, neat-looking chamber, which I heard, as they +carried me along, mademoiselle had kindly placed at my disposal. She +herself assisted to place the pillow beneath my head, and then with +noiseless gesture closed the curtains of the window, and took her seat +at the bedside. + +The moment the others had left the room, I turned to ask for' the maitre +d'armes. But she could only say that his companions of the Fourth had +carried him away to the ambulance, refusing all offers of aid except +from the surgeons of their own corps. + +"They say," added she, with a naive simplicity, "that Francois is not +made like other folk, and that the only doctors who understand him are +in the Fourth Regiment. However that may be, it will puzzle them sadly +this time; you have given him his _coup de conge_." + +"I hope not, sincerely," said I, with a shudder. + +"And why not?" cried mademoiselle, in astonishment. "Is it not a good +service you render to the whole brigade? Would not the division be all +the happier if such as he, and Pichot, and the rest of them--" + +"Pichot,--Amedee Pichot?" + +"Yes, Amedee Pichot, to be sure. But what's that knocking outside? Ah, +there 's Pioche at the window!" + +Mademoiselle arose and walked towards the door; but before she reached +it, it was opened, and General d'Auvergne entered the room. + +"Is he here?" asked he, in a low voice. + +"Yes, General," said mademoiselle, with a courtesy, as she placed the +chair for him to sit down. "He is much better. I 'll wait outside till +you want me," added she, as she left the room and closed the door. + +"Come, come, my boy," said the kind old man, as he took my hand in his, +"don't give way thus. I have made many inquiries about this affair, +and they all tend to exculpate you. This fellow Francois is the _mauvaise +tete_ of the regiment, and I only wish his chastisement had come from +some other hand than yours." + +"Will he live. General?" asked I, with a smothering fulness in my throat +as I uttered the words. + +"Not if he be mortal, I believe. The sword pierced his chest from side +to side." + +I groaned heavily as I heard these words; and burying my head beneath +the clothes, became absorbed in my grief. What would I not have endured +then of insult and contumely, rather than suffer the terrible load upon +my conscience of a fellow-creature's blood, shed in passion and revenge! +How willingly would I have accepted the most despised position among men +to be void of this crime! + +"It matters not," cried I, in my despair--"it matters not how I guide my +path, misfortunes beset me at every turn of the way--" + +"Speak not thus," said the general, sternly. "The career you have +embarked in is a stormy and a rough one. Other men have fared worse +than you have in it,--and without repining too. You knew of one such +yourself, who in all the saddest bereavements of his hopes cherished a +soldier's heart and a soldier's courage." + +The allusion to my poor friend, Charles de Meudon, brought the tears +to my eyes, and I felt that all my sufferings were little compared with +his. + +"Let your first care be to get well as soon as you can: happily your +name may escape the Emperor's notice in this affair by appearing in the +list of wounded; our friend the maitre d'armes is not likely to discover +on you. The campaign is begun, however, and you must try to take your +share of it. The Emperor's staff starts for Munich to-morrow. I must +accompany them; but I leave you in good hands here, and this detachment +will occupy Elchingen at least ten days longer." + +Scarcely had the general left me when mademoiselle re-entered the room. + +"So Monsieur," said she, smiling archly, "you have been left in my care, +it seems. Morbleu! it's well the vivandiere of the regiment is not a +prude, or I should scarcely know how to act. Well, well, one can only do +one's best. And now, shall I read for you, or shall I leave you quiet +for an hour or two?" + +"Just so; leave him alone for a little while," said a gruff voice +from the end of the bed, at the same time that the huge beard and red +mustache of Pioche appeared peeping above the curtain. + +"Is he not stupid, that great animal of a cuirassier?" said +mademoiselle, starting at the voice so unexpectedly heard. "I say, mon +caporal, right face,--march. Do you hear, sir? You 've got the feuille de +route; what do you stay for?" + +"Ah, Mademoiselle!" said the poor fellow, as he smoothed down his +hair on his forehead, and looked the very impersonation of sheepish +admiration. + +"Well?" replied she, as if not understanding his appeal to her +feelings--"well?" + +A look of total embarrassment, an expression of complete bewilderment, +was his only reply; while his eyes wandered round the room till they met +mine; and then, as if suddenly conscious that a third party was present, +he blushed deeply, and said,-- + +"Too true, mon lieutenant; she does with me what she will." + +"Don't believe him. Monsieur," interposed she, quickly. "I told him to +get knocked on the head a dozen times, and he 's never done so." + +"I would though, and right soon too, if you were only in earnest," said +he, with a vehemence that bespoke the truth of the assertion. + +"There, there," said she, with a smile, as she held out her hand to him; +"we are friends." + +The poor fellow pressed it to his lips with the respectful devotion of a +Bayard; and with a muttered "This evening," left the room. + +"It is no small triumph, Mademoiselle," said I, "that you have inspired +such a passion in the hardy breast of the cuirassier." + +A saucy shake of the head, as though she did not like the compliment, +was the only reply. She bent her head down over her work, and seemed +absorbed in its details; while I, reverting to my own cares, became +silent also. + +"And so, Monsieur," said she, after a long pause--"and so you deem +this conquest of mine a very wonderful thing?" + +"You mistake me," said I, eagerly,--"you mistake me much. My surprise +was rather that one like Pioche, good-hearted, simple fellow as he is, +should possess the refinement of feeling--" + +[Illustration: Minnet_and_Pioche] + +"A clever flank movement of yours. Lieutenant," interposed she, with a +pleasant laugh; "and I'll not attack you again. And, after all, I am a +little proud of my conquest." + +"The confession is a flattering one, from one who doubtless has had a +great many to boast of." + +"A great many, indeed!" replied she, naively; "so many, that I can't +reckon them,--not to boast of, however, as you term it. _Par bleu!_ some +of them had little of that--But here comes the doctor, and I must not +let him see us talking. _Ma foi_, they little think when their backs are +turned how seldom we mind their directions!" + +The surgeon's visit was a matter of a few seconds; he contented himself +with feeling my pulse and reiterating his advice as to quiet. + +"You have got the best nurse in the army. Monsieur," said he, as he +took his leave. "I have only one caution to give you,--take care if an +affection of the heart be not a worse affair than a thrust of a small +sword. I have known such a termination of an illness before now." + +Mademoiselle made no reply save an arch look of half anger, and left the +room; and I, wearied and exhausted, sank into a heavy slumber. + + + +CHAPTER XLV. THE "VIVANDIERE OF THE FOURTH" + + +Von three entire weeks my wound confined me to the limits of mY chamber; +and Yet, were it not for my impatience to be up and stirring, mY life +was not devoid of happiness. + +Every movement of the army, in its most minute detail, was daily +reported to me by Mademoiselle Minette. The bulletins of the Emperor, +the promotions, the _on dits_ of the bivouac and the march, brought +by the various battalions, as they moved on towards the east, were all +related by her with such knowledge of military phrase and soldiers' +style as to amuse me, equally by her manner as by what she told. + +The cuirassiers marched soon after I received my wound, and though +attached to the corps, she remained behind at Elchingen, having pledged +herself, as she said, to the general, to restore me safe and sound +before she left me. The little window beside my bed offered a +widely-extended view over the great plain beneath; and there I have sat +the entire day, watching the columns of cavalry and infantry as they +poured along, seemingly without ceasing, towards the Lower Danube. +Sometimes the faint sounds of the soldiers' songs would reach +me,--the rude chorus of a regiment timing their step to some warrior's +chant,--and set my heart a beating to be with them once more; sometimes +my eye would rest upon the slow train of wagons, surmounted with a white +flag, that wound their way heavily in the rear, and my spirit sank as I +thought over the poor wounded fellows that were thus borne onward with +the tide of war, as the crushed serpent trails his wounded folds behind +him. + +Mademoiselle seldom left me. Seated at her work, often for hours without +speaking, she would follow the train of her own thoughts, and when +by chance she gave a passing glance through the window at the scene +beneath, some single word would escape her as to the regiments or their +officers, few of which were unknown to her, at least by reputation. + +I could not but mark, that within the last twelve or fourteen days she +seemed more sad and depressed than before; the lively gayety of her +character had given place to a meek and suffering melancholy, which I +could not help attributing to the circumstances in which she was placed, +away from all her ordinary pursuits and the companions of her daily +life. I hinted as much one day, and was about to insist on her leaving +me, when she suddenly interrupted me, saying,-- + +"It is all true. I am sad, and know not why, for I never felt happier; +yet, if you wished me to be gay as I used to be, I could not for the +world. It is not because I am far from those I have learned to look on +as my brothers; not so, my changeful fortune has often placed me thus. +Perhaps it's your fault, mon lieutenant," said she, suddenly, turning +her eyes full upon me. + +"Mine, Minette,--mine!" said I, in amazement. + +She blushed deeply, and held down her head, while her bosom heaved +several times convulsively; and then, while a deathly paleness spread +over her cheek, she said, in a low, broken voice,-- + +"Perhaps it is because I am an orphan, and never knew what it was to +have those whose dispositions I should imitate, and whose tastes +I should study; but somehow I feel even as though I could not help +becoming like those I am near to,--following them, ay, and outstripping +them, in all their likings and dislikings." + +"And so, as you seem sad and sorrowful, it is more than probable that +you took the color of my thoughts. I should feel sorry, Minette, to +think it were thus; I should ill repay all your kindness to me. I must +try and wear a happier countenance." + +"Do so, and mine will soon reflect it," said she, laughing. "But, +perhaps, you have cause for sorrow," added she, as she stole a glance at +me beneath her eyelashes. + +"You know, Minette, that I am an orphan like yourself," said I, half +evading the question. + +"Ah!" cried she, passionately, "if I had been a man, I should like to be +such a one as Murat there. See how his black eyes sparkle, and his proud +lip curls, when the roll of artillery or the clattering of a platoon is +heard! how his whole soul is in the fight! I remember once--it was at +the Iser--his brigade was stationed beneath the hill, and had no orders +to move forward for several hours. He used to get off his horse and walk +about, and endeavor, by pushing the smoke away, thus, with his hand, and +almost kneeling to the ground, to catch a view of the battle; and then +he would spring into the saddle, and for sheer passion dash the spurs +into his horse's flank, till he reared and plunged again. I watched him +thus for hours. I loved to look on him, chafing and fretting like his +own mettled charger, he was so handsome! 'A drink, Minette! Something +to cool my lips, for Heaven's sake,' said he, at last, as he saw me +standing near him. I filled the little cup you see here with wine, +and handed it to him. Scarcely had he raised it to his lips, when an +aide-decamp galloped up, and whispered some words in haste. + +"'Ha, ha!' cried he, with a shout of joy; 'they want us, then! The +squadrons will advance by sections, and charge!--charge!' And with +that he flung the goblet from him to the ground; and when I took it up I +found that with the grasp of his strong fingers he had crushed it nearly +together: see here! I never would let it be changed; it is just as at +the time he clasped it, and I kept it as a souvenir of the prince." + +She took from a little shelf the cup, as she spoke, and held it up +before me with the devoted admiration with which some worshipper would +regard a holy relic. + +"And that," said Minette, as she pressed to her lips a faded cockade, +whose time-worn tints still showed the tricolored emblems of the +Republic--"that do I value above the cross of the Legion itself." + +"Whose was it, Minette? Some brave soldier's, I'm sure." + +"And you may be sure. That was the cockade of Le Premier Grenadier de la +France,--La Tour d'Auvergne, the cousin of your own general." + +Seeing that I had not heard before of him, she paused for a few seconds +in amazement, and then muttered, "A brave school to train the youth +of France it must be where the name of La Tour d' Auvergne was never +mentioned!" + +Having thus vented her indignation, she proceeded to tell me of her +hero, who, though descended from one of the most distinguished families +of France, yet persisted in carrying his musket in the ranks of the +Republican army, never attaining to a higher grade, nor known by any +other title than the "Premier Grenadier de la France." Foremost in every +post of danger, the volunteer at every emergency of more than ordinary +peril, he refused every proffer of advancement, and lived among his +comrades the simple life of a soldier. + +"He fell at Neuburg," said mademoiselle, "scarce a day's march from +here; they buried him on the field, and placed him dead, as he had been +ever while living, with his face towards the enemy. And you never heard +of him? _Juste Ciel!_ it is almost incredible. You never brigaded with +the Forty-fifth of the line; that 's certain." + +"And why so?" + +"Because they call his name at every parade muster as though he were +still alive and well. The first man called is La Tour d' Auvergne, and +the first soldier answers, 'Mort sur le champ de bataille.' That 's a +prouder monument than your statues and tombstones--is it not?" + +"Indeed it is," said I, to whom the anecdote was then new, though I +afterwards lived to hear it corroborated in every respect. + +With many such traits of the service did mademoiselle beguile the +time,--now telling of the pleasant life of the cantonment; now of the +wild scenes of the battlefield. Young as she was, she had seen much of +both, and learned around the bivouac fires the old traditions of the +Revolutionary armies, and the brave deeds of the first veterans of +France. In such narratives, too, her own enthusiastic nature burst +forth in all its vehemence: her eyes would sparkle, and her words come +rapidly, as she described some fierce attack or headlong charge; and it +was impossible to listen without catching up a portion of her ardor, so +wrapped up did she herself become in the excitement of her story. + +Thus one evening, while describing the passage of the Adige, after +detailing most circumstantially the position and strength of the +attacking columns, and describing how each successive advance was +repulsed by the murderous fire of the artillery, she proceeded to relate +the plan of a flank movement, effected by some light infantry regiment +thrown across the river a considerable distance up the stream. + +"We came along," said she, "under the shade of some willows, and at last +reached the ford. The leading companies halted; two officers sounded the +river, and found that it was passable. I was close by at the time. It +was the Colonel Lajolais who commanded the brigade, and he asked me for +a goutte. + +"'It may be the last you 'll ever give me, Minette,' said he; 'I don't +expect to see you again.' + +"'Are you going to remain at this side, Colonel?' said I. + +"'No, _parbleu!_' said he, 'not when the Twenty-second cross to the +other.' + +"'Neither am I, then,' said I; 'my place is with the head of the +battalion.' + +"Well, well; they all pressed me to stay back; they said a thousand +kind things too. But that only decided me the more to go on; and as the +signal rocket was fired, the word was given, and on we went. For the +first eight or ten paces it was mere wading; but suddenly a grenadier in +the front called out, _Gare!_ lift your muskets; it's deep here.' And so +it was. With one plunge down I went; but they seized me by the arms and +carried me along, and some way or other we reached the bank. _Morbleu!_ +I felt half drowned. But there was little time to think over these +things, for scarcely had the column formed when the cry of 'Cavalry!' +was given, and down came the lancers with a swoop. But we were all +ready. The flank companies fell back, and formed in square, and a +tremendous volley sent them off faster than they came. + +"'Now, then, push forward double quick!' said the old colonel; 'the _pas +de charge!_, Alas! the poor little drummer was lying dead at his feet. +The thought suddenly seized me; I sprang forward, unstrung his drum, +threw the strap over my shoulder, and beat the _pas de charge_! A cheer +ran along the whole battalion, and on we went. _Mort de ceil!_ I was +never so near the fire before. There was the enemy, scarce two hundred +yards off,--two great columns, with artillery between,--waiting for us. +'Keep her back! keep back, Minette, _brave fille!_' I heard no more; a shot +came whizzing past, and struck me here." + +She pulled down her dress as she spoke, and disclosed the scar of a +bullet's track on her white shoulder; then, as if suddenly recollecting, +she blushed deeply, drew her kerchief closely around her, and muttered +in a low voice,-- + +"_Ma foi_, how these things make one forget to be a woman!" And with +that she hung down her head, and despite all I could say would not utter +another word. + +Such was the vivandiere of the Fourth: blending in her character the +woman's weakness and the soldier's ardor; the delicacy of feeling, which +not even the life of camps and bivouacs could eradicate, with the wild +enthusiasm for glory,--the passion of her nation. It needed not her dark +eyes, shaded with their long black fringe; her oval face, whose freckles +but displayed the transparent skin beneath; her graceful figure and her +elastic step,--to make her an object of attraction in the regiment. +Nor could I be surprised to learn, as I did, how many a high offer +of marriage had been made to her by those soldiers of fortune whose +gallantry and daring had won them honors in the service. + +To value at their real price such attractions, one should meet them far +away, and remote from the ordinary habits of the world: in the wild, +reckless career of the camp; on the long march; beside the weary +watchfire; ay, on the very field of battle,--amid the din, the clamor, +and the smoke,--the cheers, the cries of carnage. Then, indeed, such an +apparition had something magical in it. To see that tender girl tripping +along fearlessly from rank to rank as though she had a charmed life, now +saluting with her hand some brave soldier as he rode by to the charge, +now stooping beside the wounded, and holding to his bloodless lips the +longed-for cup; to watch her as she rode gracefully at the head of the +regiment, or lay beside the fire of the bivouac, relating with a woman's +grace some story of the campaign, while the gray-bearded veteran and the +raw youth hung on each word, and wondered how the scenes in which they +mingled and acted could bear such interest when told by rosy lips,--who +would wonder if she had many lovers? Who would not rather be surprised +at those who remained coldly indifferent to such charms as hers? + +Let my confession, then, excite neither astonishment nor suspicion, when +I acknowledge, that in such companionship the days slipped rapidly over. +I never wearied of hearing her tell of the scenes she had witnessed, nor +did she of recounting them; and although a sense of reproach used now +and then to cross me for the life of inactivity and indolence I was +leading. Mademoiselle Minette promised me many a brave opportunity of +distinction to come, and campaigns of as great glory as even those of +Italy and Egypt. + + + +END OF VOL. I. + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Tom Burke Of "Ours", Volume I (of II), by +Charles James Lever + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TOM BURKE OF "OURS", VOLUME *** + +***** This file should be named 31901.txt or 31901.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/3/1/9/0/31901/ + +Produced by David Widger + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. 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