liiMiiiMKiiSiiii'llSil^^^^ George Dunn RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET EED CAP AKD BLUE JACKET BY GEOEGE DUNN 'AA.Aa TraAaia yap IN THREE VOLUMES VOL. I. WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS EDINBURGH AND LONDON MDCCCXCI V J7I T>^n-ki„ ™„«o^ J 8S3 CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME. I. II. III. IV. V. VI. VII. ^ VIII h IX. X. V XI. h^xii. ; XIII. ^ XIV. PROLOGUE, ..... A VILLAGE SCHOOL A CENTURY AGO, A MUSICAL EVENING AT THE MANSE, A TALK ON THE BENTS, THE HOLY WELL, .... ANDREW VISITS HIS AUNT JANE, . LORD WIMPOLE HAS A TALK WITH SIBYLLA, MILLY's PROFESSION OF FAITH, bell visits swinton hall, Satan's head, ..... lord wimpole studies revenge, blessed are the peacemakers, . anger in celestial minds, lord wimpole plays the part of the good samaritan, . . . . . mrs badger has an objectionable visitor, PAGE 1 21 36 53 71 95 112 131 147 170 189 207 235 255 282 EED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. PKOLOGUE. Anno Domini 1781, the 25th day of Janu- ary. It is a coral islet in the South Pacific, a circular ridge of rock enclosing a tranquil lagoon, the bosom of which heaves with a languid rhythm responsive to the long swell of billows which break in monotonous thunder on the shore, and crowd a mass of water into the narrow opening which con- nects the lagoon with the boundless waste of ocean. The rock is clothed with luxu- riant vegetation, and groves of palms wave their feathery foliage in the breeze. On the southern segfment of the belt of coral the VOL. I. A 2 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. disintegration of the calcareous substance of the rock has formed a tiny beach white as snow and glancing with dazzling brightness in the sunshine. Here the mutilated skele- ton of a ship lies high and dry. A rude hut, constructed of planking and debins of the wreck, and thatched with palm-fronds, stands near the edge of the lagoon in a spot shel- tered from the prevailing winds. On the highest summit of the rock appears one of the ship's spars with a pennant fluttering at the top. On the afternoon of this 25 th day of January a man was standing beside this improvised flag -staff or signalling -station, and sweeping the horizon with a telescope. His motionless and statuesque attitude be- spoke the calm endurance of one habituated to stoical passivity by repeated disappoint- ments. His tattered and faded habiliments still bore traces of having been the uniform of a naval officer. A sword hung by his side. Another man — for he had a com- panion — was lying prone on the ground beside the hut, and gazing with the same PROLOGUE. 3 motionless intensity into the pellucid waters of the lagoon. This natural aquarium presented indeed a lovely sight. The sea-flags were swaying gracefully to and fro, long strips of crimson dulse undulated with the movement of the water, the coral-tree dipped its green leaves and bunches of scarlet blossoms into the water with every gust of wind, while purple mullets and goldfish were darting with in- cessant and capricious motion through the glassy element, and gorgeous sea -anemones flaunted their pink and snowy filaments. At last the recumbent figure rose with a long-drawn sigh and entered the hut. He j)ut some fresh cocoa-nut husks upon the fire that was smouldering on a slab of rock, and looked into the pot suspended gipsy - fashion over it. As he did so he mut- tered, as it seemed, unconsciously to himself, like one impelled to self - converse in the dearth of social intercourse. He looked for some time at the sodden mass of kalo-root that had been left to stew slowly, and then, with an abrupt gesture, took out of his pocket 4 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. a silver whistle, and blew a shrill blast as a signal to his companion. The latter, after a considerable interval, ajDpeared, breathing somewhat quickly, and with a far-away look in his eyes. '' Another of your savoury dishes, Ralph," he said in a harsh tone. " Another of the same, Nicholas," said his companion. " It doesn't take long to box the compass of our cookery. Yams, kalo- root, cocoa - nut, and their permutations through this eternity of time which mortals call a year." " We are not sufficientlv inventive, me- thinks. There should be plenty of edible fishes." " The last we tried nearly poisoned us, if you remember." *' They were too beautiful to be good. 'Tis a natural parable, perchance," rejoined Nicholas, wath a mocking ring in his voice. " Nay, it is the wise parsimony of nature. In these desolate regions there are no mouths to eat wholesome fish." " Nor eyes to admire their beauty." PROLOGUE. 5 " The old controversy, Nicholas," said Ralph with a smile. ^' Be sure they are beautiful to the great Artist." *' Tush ! their brilliant colours are meant to make them attractive to their destroyers. Their beauty is their destruction. Another parable ! " " Attractive to their destroyers ? More probably to their mates. A harmless para- ble this time ! " So saying, he ladled out a quantity of the stringy substance into a cocoanut-shell, handed it to his companion, and then helped himself. " According to all sound social principles," said Nicholas, with an unpleasant smile, " I ought to do all the cooking, instead of tak- ing it in turn." " The conventions of society do not exist here," said Ralph. '' You and I are now strictly equal in the eye of nature. You might draw a diameter through the island, and insist upon my keeping within my pro- per limits. I a peer of the realm, forsooth ! What realm ? Assuredly not that of nature. 6 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. I should indeed get a new scutcheon — a row of sweet-potatoes azure, a pahn-branch pendant, a pot sable, and so forth. And for the motto or device — what say you ? ' Immersabihs undis,' or ' qui meruit pal- mam ferat.' " " You can still be merry, it appears," said Nicholas. " Very deadly merriment ; much as a prisoner might clank his fetters for amuse- ment." '' I wonder if we shall ever taste again the roast -beef of old England," said Nicholas, after a long silence, and mechanically turn- ing his head round towards the flag-staff. " Out, mocking fiend ! " cried Ralph, melo- dramatically. '' Don't recall the sweet visions of the past which hover through the odorous steams of hospitable inns and cook-shops. Dost remember the George at Dover, Nicho- las, and mine host who was a standing cer- tificate of good cheer ? I' faith, I under- stand the nobility of a baron of beef now. I would exchange my patent for one." ' You would think differently if a ship PROLOGUE. 7 hove in sight," said Nicholas. Ralph was silent for a few moments, and then said — " Think you, I care for barren honours, my good cousin ? But for my wife and my sweet child " He stopped short, shivered spasmodically, while a choking sob rose in his throat, and his eyes filled with sudden tears. Nicholas knitted his brows, and drummed his fingers nervously on the rough table at w^hich they sat. ^'I am thankful I have neither wife nor child to think of," he said. " Nay, Nicholas, 'tis the thought of my two loved ones that keejDS me from absolute despair. I must live, ' I shall live, and see them again. God in His mercy " " Pooh, pooh," exclaimed Nicholas, in a tone of cold contempt ; "it is all chance. Think you that toe are of any consequence •in this boundless universe ? No, no ; I hold with good old Homer : Jove is away from home, dining with the blameless Ethiopians." " It is a poor creed, Nicholas, and makes poor men ; for if we could suppose the 8 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. Supreme Being careless of any of His crea- tures, it would be an argument for human selfishness. Why should we not also dine with the Ethiopians? Nay, nay; not a sparrow falls without His permission." " Why does He let the sparrow fall, then ? " retorted Nicholas, with a gruff laugh. ''Because it is time, my short-sighted cousin. Think of the joys a poor sparrow has — its ecstasy of buoyant flight, its career- ing freedom — ay, we poor prisoners can faintly imagine that. The sparrow has its day of sunny bliss. It would be cruel to condemn it to a helpless, feeble-pinioned age." Nicholas laughed boisterously. " 'Tis a grotesque idea, enough — a bald, white-feathered sparrow." " Yes," continued Kalph, musingly. " The atheist thinks like Alphonso of Castile, that he could have constructed a better world if he had infinite power ; but he is a fool, as the Psalmist says, and 'tis as impossible for him to conceive a better scheme of creation as for the sparrow we speak of to construct a science of zoology." PROLOGLTE. 9 *' Spoken like a bishop — ' in partibus in- fidelium,' " said Nicholas, scoffingiy. " I wish you joy of your creed. But it is easy to approve of the dispensations of Providence when one has a title, a large rent-roll, and all the pleasures of eye and sense." Ralph, smiling, made a sweeping move- ment with his arm. " Pshaw ! " exclaimed Nicholas, replying to his cousin's gesture. " We shall not be always here. At least, I hope I shall not. Then good-bye to natural equality ! Then it will be ' Your Lordship,^ ' gros comme le bras.' You are merely a planet in occupa- tion. You will re-trick your beams." " You speak as if you grudged me those accidental advantages," said Palph, reproach- fully. " And yet I have not concentrated them within myself I have treated you as my friend." "You mean, you have allowed me to be your parasite," replied Nicholas, with a lowering- brow. " Nay, do not let us bandy harsh words," said Ptalph, gently. ''I know this pitiless 10 EED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. serenity of nature breeds exasperation ; but let us prove that we have the robust virtues of a harsher clinie." " Why, there you are again — my moral as well as my material benefactor. You are a dripping well of philosophic maxims. You thus assert your superiority, and fix me in a low subordination, a humiliating pupilage." "Grant, nevertheless, that I have never ah-ed superiority," said Ealph, with a pained look. " I grant it. But observe : your studious and circumspect endeavour to ignore the dis- tinctions of rank, your very affectation of equality, has in it something more keenly galling than the calm or even the blunt assertion of superiority. And you drape yourself with the added virtue of mag- nanimity." " That is the language of morbid pride," said Ralph, impatiently. " But I do not wish to quarrel with you. It is a hard thing, I know, for two men to live in such isolation as ours without becoming wearied of one another. The best of us need to be PROLOGUE. 1 1 socially diluted. It would have been better for us if we had had to struggle for our sub- sistence. Life, such as it is, has been too easy. We have not been compelled to work off our spleen. It is significant that man is most ferocious where nature is most benig- nant. This Pacific Ocean breeds cannibals. Come, Nicholas, let us be reasonable. Do not let us forget that we are still English- men." 'Tis easy for you to philosophise. The only slave-philosopher was Epictetus, and he taught stoicism. And I am still too young for that. And besides, the passions have their own logic." He cast down his head Avith a fierce and brooding look. " What passions ? I do not understand you, Nicholas," said Kalph, coldly. *' Do you forget that you robbed me of the woman I loved ? " asked Nicholas, after a long pause. " Ah ! that, then, is the major premiss of your logic of the passions," said Ralph, draw- ing in his breath, and growing pale. 12 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Yes, I loved the woman whom you made your wife because you could not obtain her on easier terms." " Tis a foul calumny," said Ralph, hotly. " Foul ! — calumny ! You say that to me ? Take care ! " " Yes, for I honoured her too highly to dream of any looser tie than marriage." " Honoured her ? And yet you concealed your marriage, as if she had been your mistress." ^' I owe you no account of my actions. But, as you well know, there were potent reasons. The aristocratic pride of my father and mother — as fanatical and irrational as it was deeply rooted — would have refused to recognise as my wife one who had been on the lyric stage. I wished to spare her humiliation." " The usual cant ! Whether would she be more humiliated by the cold disdain of your bigoted family or by the indignity .of a clandestine marriage ? " " You are insolent, sir. She understood me, and was willing to be patient. But PROLOGUE. 1 3 enough, and more than enough, of that. I would have called any other man to account for such language." Nicholas contemptuously shrugged his shoulders. "And am I to understand," continued Ralph, with sparkling eyes, " that all this time you have cherished rancour and hatred because she preferred me to you ? You have been wearing a mask, have you ? What a monster of duplicity you make yourself to be ! " " Had not your self-complacency been so great," retorted Nicholas, with a burning brow, " you would easily have detected my feelinofs. Have I ever made a show of afPection ? But have it so ! I concealed my plebeian hatred as you concealed your plebeian amours. We have both lived in glass houses " " Stained glass ! " said Ealph, cuttingly. " But what means this manoeuvred out- burst ? Do you wish to pick a quarrel with me ? " ''You have taken your full share in the 14 EED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. altercation. I, too, would have called any other man to account for your looks, tones, and language. If your sword is fretting in its scabbard, out with it ! I care not if I receive a mortal wound. This is not life, it is purgatory." " Because you make it so. Oh God 1 has it come to this ? " cried Ralph, with a look and gesture of agonised despair. '* Here are two men separated from all the kind intercourse of their fellow mor- tals, sharing the same dangers, privations, miseries, and yet they must add tenfold wretchedness to their hapless lot. Oh, Nicholas, self-pity should make you pitiful. I do not understand you, I do not recog- nise you. Is it temporary madness ? Are you running amuck like a wild Malay ? I have often proved your chivalry, your loy- alty. When the men took to the boats, you refused to abandon me. There was the Nicholas I knew. I did not rob you of her. I did not supplant you. You knew her before me. What of that ? Was she not free to bestow her love ? Oh, PROLOGUE. 15 Nicholas, be your own true self! I have not so stout a heart as you have. I need a little friendshi23, a little kind companion- ship to keep me from madness or absolute despair. Or if this may not be, plunge your sword into my heart and rid me of an intolerable existence." '' It is you who are insane," replied Nicholas, drawing himself up. " Do you take me for an assassin ? I would kill myself rather than kill another — save by an honourable duel. You speak of wretch- edness. You cannot be as wretched as I am. You have the recollection of her love. You have been in paradise. I know only the hell of jealousy and bafEed longing." "Your passion does not carry convic- tion," said Ralph, with a scrutinising and suspicious glance. " It looks like stage- thunder. You have loved many women — and forgotten them ! A voluptuary, and yet so tragically constant ! You are gild- ing a baser passion. Is it envy ? is it cupid- ity ? is it the sour resentment of a man defrauded by nature and society of his pro- 16 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. per place ? If so, you are blighting and searing your own heart. You are deep- ening your o^vn misery. You are digging a grave for every high aspiration, every generous thought. This purgatory that you spoke of will become a hell. How can we live together on such terms ? And yet, how forbear to live too^ether ? Think of it." "You are eloquent as usual," said Nich- olas, coldly. " I shall not imitate you. It is useless to harangue the passions. No Greek tragedian ever made Chiron lecture Hercules when tortured by the shirt of Nessus. As for living together, how does many a woman live with her husband, hat- ing and scorning him as her legalised tyrant or her brute associate ? Enough, and more than enough, as you have said. I leave you for the present." Ralph watched his cousin hastily return to his post of observation, and then he sadly wended his way to the stretch of level beach near which his ship had struck the outer ring of rock that encircled the island. The battered hulk and giant ribs PROLOGUE. 1 7 of the wreck looked like the skeleton of some monstrous saurian belonging to an antediluvian age ; the hawse-holes in the still solid bows simulated empty eye-sockets; and the broken bowsprit a protruding horn — so weird and illusive was the scene in the commingling of day and night. There " at one stride comes the dark " ; and soon the sky was studded with unfamiliar con- stellations. In his grief and forlornness, Ralph's heart yearned towards the serenity of the illimitable heavens. He fixed his eyes on the Southern Cross, wondering if this group of stars had been set in the skies as a holy symbol. He murmured the sacred words — " Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the south," as a kind of answer to his speculative inquiry. After pacing to and fro for an hour, wrapped in painful musings, he sat down in a hollow of the rock ; and ere long, lulled by the soft whisper of the wind and the voluminous roar of the surf, he fell asleep. VOL. I. B 18 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. Meanwhile, Nicholas stood beside the flag- staff fiercely and feverishly intent. No, it had not been the white glimmer of a bird's wing or a larger patch of foam. A vessel was rising fast in the ofiing, and seemed to be heading for the island under a press of canvas. A couple of hours passed, and the outlines of masts, spars, and sails, bathed in the milky light of the rising moon, became defined like some delicate carving in ivory. Only a streak of white under the vessel's bows showed the speed of her aj)proach. "It is now high time,'' he muttered, and descended from his post of observation. An hour passed, and then the report of a cannon broke the stillness, and awoke a thousand answering cries of affrighted sea - birds. Shortly after, Nicholas reappeared on the summit of the rock, pale, weary, and hag- gard. He began to haul the pennant up and down with frantic haste. The vessel — evidently an English frigate — stood about half a mile from the island, hove -to, her fore - sail slowly lifting, her main - topsail PROLOGUE. 1 9 laid aback and fluttering against the mast. Then a boat was lowered promj^tly and pulled towards the island. The feathered oars, moving like parts of some perfect machine, glanced in the moonshine. As the boat came near, Nicholas by shouts and gestures directed the steersman to- wards a practicable landing - place. The boat was run aground, and the young mid- shipman who had been seated in the stern- sheets bounded nimbly ashore. He gazed at Nicholas with curiosity and interest. " Who are you, sir ? " he asked, with pre- cocious dignity. " A miserable shipwrecked man," said Nicholas, hoarsely. " Take me off, for God's sake — I mean " " Are you the only man on the island ? " interrupted the youthful officer. " The only living man. For pity's sake, take me away from this accursed spot." " Have you no property or belongings to remove ? " " Nothing, nothing," cried Nicholas, im- patiently stamping his foot. 20 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " You are in a devil of a hurry, it ap- pears," remarked the midshipman. " -^i^y savages about ? " "No, — yes, — some perhaps;" and he passed his hand across his brow. The young officer glanced round at his crew and significantly tapped his forehead. " In with you then," he said, in a more subdued tone. Nicholas sprang into the boat, and sitting down on one of the thwarts, buried his face in his hands. " Push off, men, and give way," said the midshipman. 21 CHAPTEE I. A VILLAGE SCHOOL A CENTUEY AGO. Ix the same year as that in which our tale commenced, Andrew Prosser, A.M. of Aber- deen University, was appointed schoolmaster of Fownie, a village on the east coast of Scotland. He was a native of the Mearns, and had lost both parents when he was a boy; but being of '^pregnant parts," accord- ing to the old-fashioned phrase, he had so well profited by the drilling in Latin and Greek which he received at the parish school that he gained a bursary at Aber- deen University, and, after a four years' course, took his degree. He was a youth of twenty when he came to Fownie, and for twelve years he had uneventfully discharged 22 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. the duties of his office. He was now a tall, stalwart man, with a handsome well-pro- portioned figure, and in his student days he had been a redoubtable wrestler. Like most very powerful men he was good- natured, and his look of professional aus- terity hardly imposed upon any one, least of all upon his pupils, who, however, had a salutary respect for his physical prowess. At this time no one spoke of moral suasion — probably the phrase had not been in- vented — and school discipline was main- tained at the point of the tawse. Moral offences, indeed, w^ere treated — as if they had been cutaneous eruptions — by external applications. Andrew's predecessor had been thoroughly imbued with this prin- ciple, which might not unaptly be sum- marised in the satirical lines written by an appreciative schoolboy — " Hie, licec, lioc, Give the dunce a knock ; Amandum, amandi, You're in for a pandy." Accordingly, Andrew had found the boys A VILLAGE SCHOOL A CENTURY AGO. 23 brutalised and the girls morbidly timid ; and since the dominie was regarded as the natural enemy of boys, much as the French were considered to be the natural enemies of the British, Andrew had experi- enced the playful humour of his pupils in various ways. Each scholar came to school in winter with a contributory peat under his arm ; and once or twice a miniature explosion occurred, a small quantity of pow- der having been inserted into the heart of an innocent - looking peat. Occasionally, also, a pod of cayenne pepper was cunningly thrown into the fire, with the result that master and pupil sneezed in unison for a quarter of an hour to an accompaniment of stifled bursts of laughter instead of God- bless - you's. Sometimes, by preconcerted arrangement, the slate-pencil or " skeely " of all the youthful arithmeticians began to make screeching and scraping sounds which mioiit have corruo^ated the skin of an alii- gator. The quart ink-bottle now and then yielded treacle instead of ink. A blackened portion of the wall, which served instead of 24 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. a black-board, frequently exhibited Andrew's features, in which the slight cast of his left eye was prodigiously exaggerated. To such sketches various festive mottoes were at- tached, such as " swivels," '' gleed - eyed Andy" (in impossible spelling), " hard-a- port," and so forth. Andrew, in those times of probation, would certainly have subscribed very heartily to Plato's statement that a boy is a most plotting and " insidious beast." In process of time, however, his good hu- mour, supj^orted by his vigorous biceps, gained the mastery ; and at the epoch when our narrative opens there was ]3robably not another dominie in the county so much beloved and respected. The schoolhouse was a two-storeyed build- ing with a thatched roof, the ground-floor being occuj)ied by the schoolroom — there was but one — and the three apartments on the floor above forming Andrew's abode. It stood on the brow of a hill overlooking the sea. The schoolroom was a moderate - sized apartment, low in the roof, and floored with planks well worn by hundreds of shuffling A VILLAGE SCHOOL A CENTURY AGO. 25 feet, and studded with defiant knots and knobs, like warts upon a well-shaven coun- tenance. The limited space was lumbered wdth heavy unwieldy desks, the surface of which was like " the ribbed sea-sand," the more friable fibres of the wood having yielded to the attrition of two or three generations of corduroy cuffs ; while notches, hacks, initials, and arabesques, executed by bold if untutored pocket - knives, formed " woodcuts " little reconcilable with the canons of art. The master's desk, a massive and monu- mental structure, resembling a pulpit shorn of its base (which is an allegory importing the relation of the schoolmaster to the minis- ter), stood near the huge open fireplace. In those days there were no grates skilfully contrived for conveying the heat up the chimney. A map of Europe, with its lower edge tattered and fringed, hung upon the wall, pale and ghostly, its original colours having faded to a nondescript hue. A pointer leaned against a corner of the room, its taper end charred to a blackened stump. 26 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. it being a handy implement, useful for pok- ing either the fire or the ribs of lounging and lethargic jDupils. In another corner stood a terrestrial globe, which had been baptised with a bottle of ink, and now re23re- sented nothing but primeval chaos, out of which the British Isles dimly emerged, with a segment of the hostile shore of France. In another dark corner lay a smooth flat stone, on which misdemeanants in former days had been set to cool after castigation — a delicate antijDhlogistic attention. It was not yet eight o'clock, for in summer the school opened at seven. A class of twelve, boys and girls intermixed, was floundering through the ^^I'oper names in a chapter of Nehemiah ; while Andrew was pointing and trimming the quills for future use, occasionally interjecting a mild and ex- postulatory correction. " John Dempster, look at the word. It isna Cherub-babble, it's Zerubbabel. .Ye needna misca' the puir man. He's dead now, and ' de mortuis nil nisi bonum ' — what does that mean, Sandy ? " A VILLAGE SCHOOL A CENTURY AGO. 27 " Please, sir, I dinna ken," said Sandy. " You should pat a wee bit label on your skull, Sandy, ' To let, unfurnished.' That's the broad phylactery that would suit you. Ye're a minus quantity, ay, and an irrational quantity forby. Next boy ! " " ' The children of Hashum,' " went on the "next boy" in a dull level voice, "'three hundred twenty and eight.' " " Ay, ay," remarked Andrew, sarcastically, " I haena got sae mony o' the children o' Hash'em, but I've got ower mony for a' that." And on the chapter went till it closed with the welcome remark — " ' When the seventh month came, the children of Israel were in their ceeties.' " " Ay, ay, that's fine reading ; ye can gang to you7^ seaties,'' was Andrew's dry comment. " Latin class come forward. John Dempster's class, take your grammar and parse the words in Exercise 24. And next time, John, that ye're parsing ' in the times of Abraham,' dinna say that ' times ' is in the objective case governed by Abraham. Dinna mix up 28 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. grammatical and patriarchal government, there's a braw lad ! " John, a logger-headed urchin with a very tousled head, shambled to his seat, followed by the rest of his class-mates. The Latin class consisted of three, two boys and a girl. Andrew took his seat on his three-legged stool, and glanced round uj)on the three with a genial smile, which the two lads sheepishly returned. The girl, meanwhile, with a calm and earnest counte- nance was turning up the place. She was dressed in a somewhat faded but spotlessly clean print frock ; and, while most of the girls had their feet encased in large and clumsy shoes, — some of them evidently derelict and secured as salvage, — she wore small and dainty shoes with steel buckles. Her hands, though somewhat coarsened with manual labour, were small, white, and finely formed. She was indeed a charming maiden, all the more so that she was utterly uncon- scious of her attractions. The face was purely and delicately moulded, the eyebrows were chastely arched above deep - blue A VILLAGE SCHOOL A CENTURY AGO. 29 thoughtful eyes, the small mouth wore an expression of mingled sadness and sweet- ness ; and when she smiled — which was seldom — she showed reofular teeth white as milk. Her form was slight and girlish, but justly proportioned, and gave promise of maidenly grace and symmetry. But perhaps her greatest charm was her voice, which was exquisitely soft and rich, full of caressinof modulations and delicate sur- prises of tone, so that when she spoke — and she was chary of speech — her simjDlest utterances haunted the ear with undefined delight, and she might have talked nonsense with impunity. When she began to trans- late, the scratching quills and scraping pencils stopped, and the boys and girls in the desks forgot their tasks to gaze and listen with ojDen mouths and ears. On the present occasion they experienced a new sen- sation — they heard her laugh ; and broad uncomprehending grins overspread every face, so magical and so musical was the sound. Her laugh — whereat she instantly blushed a dark crimson — was caused by a 30 EED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. mistranslation perpetrated by one of her companions, Thomas Fairley, a flaxen-headed, amiably stupid lad, designed by his parents for the ministry. This youth, on coming to the line — " Infandum, regina, jubes renovare dolorem," Thou bidst me, queen, renew unutterable woe — rendered it thus unhappily — " the queen bids her infant renew its grief" Andrew was too much accustomed to Tom's perverse ingenuity to laugh ; he only smiled, and remarked with mock imdigna- tion, — " Did she, though ? the heartless huzzie ! " Then he added, in a tone of melancholy expostulation, " Oh, Tom, Tom, do ye really think the Romans talked Bedlam ? Do ye imagine that road-makers, and bridge-builders, and warriors, and law- givers such as they were, could talk sic blethers ? " Further disquisition was interrupted by a smart rap at the door, and John Dem23ster, who, in consideration of his grammatical ineffectiveness, was intrusted with the duty of opening the door, replenishing the ink- A VILLAGE SCHOOL A CENTUHY AGO. 31 bottles, and a variety of other incidental employments, rose from his seat and lifted the *^ sneck." A handsome yomig fellow appeared in the doorway, clad in the blue uniform of a midshipman, and with his dirk by his side. "Is that you, Watty — Mr Gordon, I mean ? " — cried Andrew, delightedly. " Come in, come in. I'm blithe to see you." The dazzling apparition of the young mid- shipman, as he complied with the invitation and stepped into the schoolroom, plunged the scholars into profound and admiring stupe- faction, till one boy, more adventurous than the rest, began to clap his hands softly, and Mr Prosser, far from repressing the sign of welcome, said with pedantic unction, '' Vos plaudite " ; and Walter, who had been a pupil in the school (he had once "shied" an ink - bottle at Mr Pressor's head — the mark was still upon the wall, " plain for all « folk to see"), was greeted with uproarious applause. He returned the compliment by bowing gracefully, and with a heightened colour. 32 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Gang away to your seats, ye Latiners," said Mr Prosser, " and write out the verb 2^laudo in the first person plural of all the tenses, while I have a crack with my auld pupil." The three accordingly retired, and Walter's eyes involuntarily followed the movements of the young girl with obvious interest and admiration. " Are ye still on board the Hecla, Mr Gordon ? " asked Mr Prosser. " Yes, sir," was the smiling reply ; " and we have had several brushes with the Johnny Crapauds." Mr Prosser knitted his brows and shook his head. " And of course you beat them," was his dry comment. " Of course," said the youthful hero, proudly. " They're a grand nation for all that," said Mr !?rosser, in a low tone. "What, sir!" exclaimed the young mid- shipman, " when they executed their king and queen — the bloodthirsty villains ! " A VILLAGE SCHOOL A CENTURY AGO. 33 "Well, but we executed Charles I.," re- marked Mr Prosser. " Oh, that's a different case, you know," said Walter, confidently. " Oh, of course ; we did it with an axe, — they did it with a guillotine. A very shavp distinction." Walter laughed, and shook his head dubiously. " How are your father and sister, Mr Gordon ? " Mr Prosser continued, j)leasantly. " Both very well, sir. My sister has be- come a monstrous fine lady, I assure you. I hardly knew her. You should hear her play on the guitar ; and how she does sing 1 — Italian and Spanish songs, not French, mind you." "You haven't heard the 'Marseillaise,' I suppose ? " " No, I have not. I prefer ' Rule Brit- annia,' '' said Walter, with a frank smile. " Yes, it's a braw song, especially when the ' ne-e-ever shall be slaves ' flutters and flaps like a jib when you are putting about." Walter laughed gaily. VOL. I. C 34 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " That's good, sir. I see you haven't for- got your seamanship." " Oh, I am still a bit of a Palinurus." " Who was he, sir, may I ask ? " " Oh, Mr Gordon, have you forgot the steersman of the Trojan fleet ? " asked Mr Prosser, reproachfully. " I have, sir. I'm sure I beg his pardon. But my Latin was always a purser's allow- ance, for which, of course, I have to thank my own idleness." " Well, how long are you to be ashore ? " " I have a month's leave. We are refit- ting at Portsmouth. But I must not take up your time, sir." Then he added in a whisper — " You are still teaching Bella Simpson, see. " Ay, she knows more about Palinurus thS.n you do, Mr Gordon," was the w^iispered reply. " She always was a monstrous clever girl. Is she still living with that smuggling uncle of hers ? ". " Yes ; and what's worse, that fuddling A VILLAGE SCHOOL A CENTURY AGO. 35 randy of an aunt. She's between Scylla and Chary bdis, puh^ lassie ! But she steers her bark well ; she's well ballasted." " Well, sir, good day to you. I hope to see you again soon," said Walter. So saying, he shook hands heartily with his former preceptor, and took his leave, after a last fugitive glance at the young girl, bent studiously over her desk. 36 CHAPTER 11. A MUSICAL EVENING AT THE MANSE. When afternoon school was over, Andrew Prosser took a short stroll, and then went up-stairs to his own apartments. These, as we have said, were three in number — a kitchen, bedroom, and little parlour. An elderly female, a widow, Mrs Badger by name, acted as his housekeeper nominally, but had gradually extended her functions till she had become his friend, mentor, doctor, spiritual adviser, and beneficent domestic tyrant. She was a tall, some- what ungainly woman, with hard austere features. She was aggressively religious, and, as violent repudiation of Catholic in- fallibility generally implies a firm conviction of personal infallibility, she was extremely A MUSICAL EVENING AT THE MANSE. 37 dogmatic. She had originally belonged to the Muggletonians, who believed that the soul remains dormant till the resurrection ; but after her husband's death she had changed her creed and become a BajDtist. There being none of that sect in Fownie, she went to the parish church, but always stalked majestically out of her pew when a bajDtism of infants took place, ex2:)ressing her dissent by contemptuous sniffs and a grim and stony smile of derision. Andrew often groaned under her domination, but yielded to it on the whole submissively, realising that probity and plausibility seldom go together. And probity was the law of Mrs Badger's being ; she husbanded his resources more carefully than he would have done himself, and higgled on his behalf with an obstinacy and asperity which would have spoiled the savour of his food had he known of it. Between her and the fishwives in par- ticular there ragged a war " without herald and without truce." Every haddock was a skirmish, every cod a war-prize. On reaching the top of the stairs, Andrew 38 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. tajD^^ecI softly at the door, which was opened after a decorous intervaL " Wipe your feet on the mat, Andrew," said Mrs Badger, severely. "Your shoon are fair harkened wi' glaur. Where have ye been ? " " I took a bit turn along the road, and the roads, like everything else in this down- trodden country, are out o' order. ^' And Andrew shook his head with a look of sour severity. Mrs Badger gave a slight snort, and re- turned to the kitchen, Avhither she was fol- lowed by Andrew, after he had conscien- tiously wiped his shoes. The kitchen was spotlessly and finically clean. The deal-floor bore only traces of " elbow-grease," as careful housewives recommend ; the tins on the dresser blinked gaily in the sunshine ; the delf-ware beamed with homely cordiality; even the earthenware teapot, though black, was comely. The light of the fire danced on the polished fender, where the poker and tongs reposed in state ; the duties of the one implement being performed by a plebeian iron rod leaning against one of the jambs, A MUSICAL EVENING AT THE MANSE. 39 and the other being so stiff with aristocratic idleness that, when it expanded, one limb remained fixed in jDaralytic rigidity, as if to assert its genteel helplessness ; and Mrs Badger wisely supj)lied its services with her own hands, armed for the purpose with leathern gauntlets. A table covered with a coarse but snowy table - cloth stood in the middle of the apartment. " What's for dinner to-day, Mrs Badger ? " asked Andrew, anxiously. " Sheep's-head broth," was the short and somewhat defiant reply. " Ye ken I dinna like sheep's-head," mur- mured Andrew. *' Ye dinna like what's good for you," said Mrs Badger. " Its halesome, and sweet, and nourishing, and thrifty ; and in these dear times " " Well, will ye give me a bit dram after- wards ? " asked Andrew, compromising mat- ters. "If ye can find it in your heart to drink what I'm sure hasna paid its duty to the king " 40 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. ^' Tliat for the king ! " said Andrew, with a derisive snap of the fingers. ''The pampered loons get ower muckle of our goods and gear." " Dinna speak evil o' dignities, Andrew," said Mrs Badger, severely. " Dignities ! " echoed Andrew, waving his horn-spoon with a rhetorical gesture. " Dig- nities are indignities ; " and mollified by the felicity of his own remark, he proceeded to take his dinner without further parley. His wholesome and thrifty meal being despatched, he began to cast covert and uneasy glances at a long clay pipe lying on the chimney-shelf. " Take your pipe, Andrew," said Mrs Badger, with an air of grim toleration ; " and when you're smoking, dinna forget to moraleese upon it. What says the godly poet ? — 'AH worldly stuff Gangs wi' a puff, Thus think and smoke tobacco ; And when the bowl gets foul within, Think of your soul defiled wi' sin ' " '' Hoots, woman," interposed Andrew. A MUSICAL EVENING AT THE MANSE. 41 " One thing at a time. When I pray, I pray ; when I smoke, I smoke ; but piety and puffing is the queerest tobacco mixture I ever heard of. And, now, I'll hae my dram, if ye please." " Smoke up the lum, then," said Mrs Badger, balancing the concession with a condition. ^' Ay, ay, Mrs Badger, I see ye believe in a quid pro quo,^ remarked Andrew. "If ye have any objection to make, s^Deak out like a man," said Mrs Badger, bridling. " If that's Laetin, keep it where ye keep your stour — doon-stairs. " " Nae offence," said Andrew ; "ye needna take a body up afore he falls." When Andrew had finished his pipe, he took down a violin which was hanging on the wall, and tuned it. Then he struck up the revolutionary " (^a ira," the " Carmag- nole," the " Marseillaise," and other melodies of the same kidney, which he played with much spirit and purity of tone, winding up with " God save the King," which he exe- cuted (that is probably the right word) with 42 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. a good deal of raspiness and a variety of burlesque tremolos and cadenzas. Having thus given vent to his secret political senti- ments, he stepped back into the kitchen with his instrument under his arm, and said, with a would-be jaunty air, which was a flagrant failure — " I'm ganging to take a daunder down to the minister's, Mrs Badger ; ye needna bide up for me." '' Very weel," rejoined Mrs Badger, with some asperity. " The minister and you are weel yokit thegither. He's a miserable Laodicean, and cares mair for reels and springs than the Psalms o' David." " Hoots, awa," said Andrew ; " David played on a harp, which is as much a stringed instrument as the fiddle. And, as for springs, ye ken he danced such a fandango that he scandalised a' the on- lookers, and they werena that blate in those days." " Dinna be profane, Andrew ; ye ken he danced for holy joy, no for carnal gratifica- A MUSICAL EVENING AT THE MANSE. 43 tion. The minister wad be better employed making a wheen new sermons ; we're getting cauld kail het up again ower often to my thinkinof." ** A good tale is no the waur of being twice told, Mrs Badger." " Use not vain repetitions as the heathen do," said Mrs Badger. " You're aye heaving the Bible at folk's heads," said Andrew, a little impatiently. " Your texts are a' brickbats." " Faithful are the wounds of a friend," re- torted the irrepressible Mrs Badger. "Aweel, ril gang and get my wounds dressed," said Andrew, with a laugh. ^' Beware of those, Andrew, that heal the wound slightly," rejoined Mrs Badger. Andrew shrugged his shoulders, and quietly withdrew. For who can argue with a Con- cordance ? The manse stood at the end of the long and straggling street which passed through Fownie. It was enclosed by a stone wall of the statutory height, over which sycamores 44 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. and horse-chestnuts hung their redundant fohage. A wooden door, painted green, gave access to the dweUing. A grassy sward, planted here and there with rhododendrons, stretched in front of the house ; and on the west side, and at the back, was a garden of hospitable size, in a corner of which was a little summer-house mantled with clematis. The garden was stocked with an abundance of old-fashioned flowers and medicinal herbs. Andrew sighed heavily as he pushed open the green door and entered. He tapped modestly at the front door ; and, after a short interval, it was opened * by a young lady, who, on seeing Andrew, blushed faintly, and held out her hand with a gentle smile. " Good evening. Miss Marjoribanks," said Andrew, softly. " How do you do, Mr Prosser ? " she said, in a low melodious voice. " Papa is making a visit, but will be back presently. He thought you would come to-night," she went on with a smile ; "he said there was music in the air. Is there second hearing as well as second sight, I wonder ? Pray, come in. A MUSICAL EVENING AT THE MANSE. 45 Mamma has had a headache all day, and is restino^ for a little." She seemed to be speaking so as to take the edge off a slight sense of embarrassment, which a woman out-manoeuvres more skil- fully than a man. She led the way to a little parlour, balmy with the scent of flowers. There was a harpsichord — probably the only one in Fownie, — and a violoncello leaned in a tipsy attitude — 'tis the Silenus of musical instruments — against a corner. Andrew untied the silk - handkerchief wrapped round his violin, and laid the in- strument on -the table. Then he sat down in an arm-chair, with a preoccupied and pen- sive look on his honest and manly features. ^' It is nearly a fortnight since you were here last," said Miss Marjoribanks, in a play- fully reproachful tone. " You know you need, never wait for an invitation. Your violin is your passport," she added, as if by way of afterthought. " I have not been in good spirits," said Andrew, looking at her with a troubled look in his large dark eyes. 46 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Then you should have tried Kmg Saul's remedy. Nothing serious, I hope ? " " Nothing exceptionally so. Kpoor man's troubles are chronic." A little colour came and went in her pale cheeks. With a woman's delicate intuition she divined the motive for his remark. " I think everybody is poor nowadays," she said, gently. "These dreadful wars " " Say rather the tyranny of kings and the wasteful luxury of nobles and land- owners who batten on the toil of the people," said Andrew, in a harsh vibrating voice ; for on this subject he was always fierce and acrimonious. Speculative anti- pathies indeed are more intense and im- placable than personal ones, and perhaps no one is so truculent as a humanitarian. "Homer calls the king the shepherd of the people," continued Andrew ; " nowadays he would call him the butcher of the people. What are we ? Sheep for the slaughter, after we have first been well shorn. But it will not last. Miss Marjoribanks. The Seine will flow into the Thames." A MUSICAL EVENING AT THE MANSE. 4*7 " I hope not, Mr Prosser," said Miss Mar- joribanks, earnestly. " Its waters are red' with blood and salt with human tears." " Tyranny, when it grows to a plethora, needs blood - letting," said Andrew, vehe- mently. " I grant you the French Revolu- tion has been a violent remedy. A people brutalised by oppression acts brutally. The rulers of France sowed the wind, and have reaped the whirlwind. But, as Andrew Marvell says of our own Revolution in the time of Charles L, the French Revolution ' To all lands not free Shall climacteric be.' " "I have no wish to discuss such subjects," said Miss Marjoribanks, -somewhat coldly. " But I Avould earnestly warn you, Mr Prosser, to beware of what you say to those you are not absolutely sure of But here comes papa," and she rose from her seat with an obvious air of relief. Mr Marjoribanks entered the room. He was tall and somewhat gaunt, his cheeks a little sunken, and his shoulders rounded, but the brightness of his deep - blue eyes 48 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. and the fresh colour of his mobile lijis in- dicated an abundant store of vitality. The fine contour and ample size of his forehead were rendered more conspicuous by his bald- ness. " A sicht o' you, Andrew, is guid for sair een," he said, with a winning smile, as he came forward and shook Mr Prosser heartily by the hand. " So you have brought your fiddle,'^ and taking up the instrument he thrummed the strings in a pizzicato style as he went on talking. " I have just seen Bella Simpson, Milly ; she is turning a beautiful girl. I wish we could get her away from her uncle's. Not that Simpson is a bad fellow ; he is a very regular hearer, and a bit of a theologian ; but that inn of his harbours queer customers. Then his wife — it's sad, very sad." " I think Bell might with proper training become a good teacher of music," said Miss Marjoribanks. " She has an enchanting voice." " She sings as if she were ' quiring to the young - eyed cherubim,' " said Mr Marjori- A MUSICAL EVENING AT THE MANSE. 49 banks. " Oh, why is it, Andrew, that truth has not such a soul-subduing organ ? Don't you think she would make anybody good if she merely sang the Ten Command- ments, while I — never mind. Crows are needed as well as nightingales, I suppose." " She has got a famous headpiece," said Andrew, with professional enthusiasm. " She's as far as cube root in arithmetic, and quadratics in algebra, and she's un- commonly clear about the use of the sub- junctive mood, which is, as you know, Mr Marjoribanks, a crucial test of Latinity." '^ It is, as I know to my cost," said Mr Marjoribanks, the right corner of his mouth descending in a humorous smile. " But never mind Latin ; it's dead, and it's a pity that it isn't decently buried, with a Requiescat in ]jace engraved upon its tombstone, express- ing the pious aspirations of schoolboys. Tune up your fiddle, while I go and freshen myself with a wash." Miss Marjoribanks sat down to the harpsi- chord, and gave Andrew his A, embroidering it with softly sounded chords, till his instru- VOL. I. D 50 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. ment was in tune ; and then she ghded into the sweet old melody, " There grows a bonnie briar - bush in oor kailyard," while Andrew supplied a dexterous " vamp," as he called it. The minister now rea]3peared, and got his 'cello in order. " We'll give a sop to Cerberus, Andrew, and play a few sacred pieces at first, while folks are stirring about. People call me the ' fiddling minister,' v/hich is much worse than being a ' fuddling minister,' mind you ; so we'll strike up some of the songs of Zion — eh, Andrew ? What say you to ' Now Israel may say ' ? " " It's a grand tune," said Andrew — " a kind of Covenantinof march." " Then we might try ' Adeste Fideles.' Why do you smile, Milly ? I didn't invent the title. After that — it's well to have a programme — we might take the glorious minuet from Handel's ' Saul,' then — sound your A again, Andrew." The programme was duly carried out and liberally extended, with intervals of soci- A MUSICAL EVENING AT THE MANSE. 51 able conversation ; and by ten o'clock, after various delicate and cautious gradations of selection, the musical rehearsal tapered off with reels and strathspeys. At about eleven o'clock Andrew left the manse. The village was buried in profound stillness, and he could hear with absolute distinctness the waves plashing on the shore, and the rattle and clash of the pebbles sucked back by the undertow. It was a very dark night, and as Andrew turned into the lane leading to the schoolhouse, he came suddenly into collision with the burly figure of a man. Andrew, with instant exasperation — for his nerves were still tingling with musical ex- citement — gave the man a vindictive push, for which he was rewarded with a growling imprecation. "Oh, is it you, Simpson?" said Andrew, recognising Simpson's favourite expletive. " Mr Pressor ! " exclaimed the other, with an abrupt transition to marked civility of tone. " My excuses. It's fell dark the nicht ; I'm wae for the revenue cutters — baith them and the free - traders will be UNIVERSITY OF ilUNOlS LIBRARY 52 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. droppin' anchors this nicht ; " and he gave a significant laugh. '' Weel, weel, we maun a' live." ^' I have something to say to you, Simp- son," said Andrew, lowering his voice. " Come on to the bents with me." 53 CHAPTEE III. A TALK ON THE BENTS. The two men went along the bents, ap- proaching at the same tmie the shore. A dilapidated ujDturned boat lay on the mar- gin of the grassy slope, and sitting down, they leaned their backs against it. For a minute or two they listened to the rhyth- mic plash of the waves, and the random gusts of wind filling the waste places of the night. Andrew had fallen into a reverie, probably a melancholy one, for he sighed when he was roused by Simpson's question — " "Well, what is it, Andrew ? " Andrew cleared his throat. " Ye ken, Simpson, that I have been whiles 54 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. useful to you and your clanjamfry o' dare- devils." " I ken that, Mr Prosser," said the other, with gruff heartiness. "And ye can aye get a keg o' spirits when ye give me the hint." " Oh, I'm aware ye are always willing to liquidate your obligations," said Andrew. " But drinking is not much in my line — beyond a post-prandial dram, that is ; and if I wink at your on-goings, and even at times lend ye a helping hand, ye may be sure I have other reasons. I'll maybe tell ye what they are when I can lippen to ye." " Eh, Mr Prosser, but that's hard," said Simpson in an aggrieved tone. " Smuggling, Simpson, is no exactly a school for a' the virtues, ye see, and I must be cautious. In these sair times everybody is living in a whispering gallery, with the Secretary o' State at the one focus, and the President of the Court o' Session at the other. However, that's Greek to you, Simp- son. What I mean is, that it's safest to take soundings when ye're in an unknown bay. A TALK ON THE BENTS. 55 You may be shallow or you may be deep, — but my metaphors are getting fankled. Well, now, I saw Gillespie, the j^reventive officer, last night." Simpson muttered an angry oath. *' Do you think he jalooses anything about our next venture ? " he asked, anxiously. " Bide a wee, and I'll tell you a' about it. You must know I was takino^ a daunder along the shore about ten o'clock. It was gey and dark, — I think, Simpson, you must have the power the Thessalian witches had of drawing down the moon, — well, I had just got as far as the Deil's Mash-tub, and was standing looking doon into it — the tide was full, and the waves were churning and boiling in it — when I found myself gruppit from behind by the collar of my coat. I thought at first that somebody — maybe auld Clootie himsel' — wanted to push me into the infernal caldron, and my very hair stiffened wi' the gliff I got. Fortunately for mysel', I'm not an easy customer to tackle " Simpson gave a croaking laugh. 56 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. ^' That's true, Mr Prosser. I'm thinking you could gar the Pert Polly's anchor come hame, if you took a haul at the cable." a Porritch and sobriety does it," said An- drew, com23lacently. ^' If ye lift your little finger ower often, you'll lift nothing else afore long. And tea is nearly as bad. Our women never had the vapours till tea came in fashion." ^' I never could thole sic watery blash," said Simpson, with much emphasis. " I ken ye prefer strong waters," remarked Andrew. '' But if, as Dr Johnson says, ' Who drives fat oxen should himself be fat,' it does not follow logically that he who drinks strong waters should himself be strong. However, this is a digression. When I found myself gruppit, I let out a backward kick, that garred the fellow yell like a demoniac. He let go his hold, and I turned round and faced him. It was Gillesj)ie, and he was standing on one leg like a drookit hen, and holding the other with both hands, and swearing — well, if the deil himsel' had come out of his Mash-tub, A TALK ON THE BENTS. 57 he couldna have improved upon it. ' What do you mean/ said I, ' collaring a man like that ? Can a man no take a walk by the shore — which, mind you, belongs to the peojDle and no to the blood-sucking land- owners — without being mishandled by an officer of excise ? ' 'I know you, Andrew Prosser,' says he, gnashing his teeth ; ' you're hand in glove wi' the smugglers. You're here to make private signals.' I gave a laugh at that. ^ I'm here as a lover of Nature,' said I, ' and I'm wae to see that her fairest scenes are defaced by officers of excise. Gang hame, John ; ye have found a mare's nest this time, and tasted the quality of her hoofs for by.' ' I'll chalk that kick up ahint the door, Prosser,' says he, ' and you'll pay for it. I hae my eye upon you.' ' A cat may look at a king, nae doot,' said I ; ' sae lang as ye keep your hands afP me, you may glower your een oot o' your heid.' ^ Bide a wee, my braw billy,' says he ; ^ I'll make a clean sweep of you all afore lang. You're ower intimate wi' Simpson to be an honest man' 58 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. — ye see, Simpson, ye're mair famed for the smell o' brandy than the odour of sanctity " " The deil thraw the neck o' him ! " mut- tered Sim23Son, indignantly. ''Amen! but ye'll have to be cautious, for I think lie has got secret information. Somebody's tap is running." This intimation appeared to alarm Simpson considerably. " Who can it be ? " he mut- tered. " If I knew " And he supplied the hiatus by clenching his formidable fist, and growling some very vigorous impreca- tions. " So much for that matter," said Andrew, " and if I see any danger looming I'll let you know. And now, I have another subject to discuss with you." " It's getting late," said Simpson, in slightly muffled tones, "and the raw air is bad for my rheumatics." "Yours is an accommodating rheumatism, Simpson," said Andrew. " However, I winna insist. Only, mind ye, the subject has got to be faced sune or syne." A TALK ON THE BENTS. 59 " Oh, very well, then ; a wilfa' man will hiae his way. What is it ? " " Nobody can say, Simpson, that I am a busybody. I have too much respect for the liberty of the — citizen. A man's habits are his own, even if they're bad. . A hallan- shaker has a right to his rags, as a merchant to his broadcloth ; and sumptuary laws, moral as well as physical, I'm dead against. But if a man's ways threaten to injure those I am bound to protect, then I step in. A sweep has a right to his sooty clothes ; but I wadna let him gang among my tidy bit lassies and smudge their clean pinafores. I'm in loco parentis to my pupils ; and if a parent, relative, or guardian neglects his or her duties, then I interfere. A neglected child is virtually an orphan, and an orphan should find a father in every good man, and a mother in every kind - hearted woman. Now, to apply these principles, which are maybe rather above your comprehension, for your liquid capacity is greater than your mental, I doubt " " Maybe I'm no as dull as ye think," said 60 HED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. Simj^son, a little sullenly. '^ I canna talk like you. You could talk the hind -leg aff a horse — a horse ? — an elephant ! But I hae my thochts, deep anes- " " Ower deep, I'm thinking," said Andrew. " But my words aye gang to leeward o' my ideas." "Well, well, you may be a ^mute in- glorious Milton ' for me, SimjDSon ; but I'm gangin' to leeward of m^ subject. You have a niece who is my pupil." " I hae, and a braw lass she is, though I say it that shouldna." " Why should you not ? " " Weel, ye see, being a relative " "Yes, that's just it. What relative is she ? Is she your niece or your wife's ? " "She's my brother's daughter," said Simp- son, after a short pause. " She is not what is ironically called a love- child, eh ? You'll excuse the question." "No, no; that's a' richt ! " said Simpson, emphatically. " She was born in holy wed- lock." ' Good. Is her father dead ? " A TALK ON THE BENTS. 61 " Dead as Methusalem. He was a captain in the merchant service, and was drowned when his ship was wrecked on one of the Scilly Islands. Puir Archie ! He was a braw lad — muckle handsomer than me." " That's highly probable ; and his wife must have been a bonnie woman, judging by Bell, — for I must confess I can only see her likeness to you ' tanquam in speculo,' in a glass, very darkly." " Ay, ay, Bessie was a braw lass," said Simpson, with a laboured sigh. " But all flesh is grass. And noo, I think I'll e'en take the road hame." " Man alive ! " cried Andrew, with un- bounded surprise, " I have only just begun. All this has only been a kind of preface or preamble." " Well, well," said Simpson, gruffly. " Sae be it. Only haul closer to windward, gin ye please." " Tom Simpson," said Andrew, solemnly, '' it's no easy matter to get the weather- gage of you." Simpson gave a hoarse chuckle. 62 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. *' Maybe no," he said. " Well, I'll come a few points nearer the wind," continued Andrew, significantly. ^' My question is this : What do ye mean to do with Bell ? " " To give her a guid education first, — and I believe that there's no a schoolmaster in the country can carry her on as weel as you can, Mr Prosser." '^ Who is steering wild now ? " asked Andrew, ignoring the ingratiating remark. " A good education is a means to an end. What's the end in her case ? " " Weel, she'll be handy in the hoose. My wife is unco fond o' her." " We are getting on to delicate ground now," said Andrew. " But I'll ask you a question : Is your wife fit to look after a young lassie growing up into womanhood ? Dinna answer me unless ye like : it's no business of mine directly. But I have heard of blows given " " She's no hersel' when the fit is on her," said Simpson, in a low tone. " She's fair red wud. A bear robbed o' its whelps is a A TALK OX THE BENTS. 63 small comparison. But eh ! she's sorry after- hin. She has a big heart as well as a big body. And then she's English, ye ken. We shouldna judge her by oor standard." *' Well, passing that, do ye mean to say that ye mean to keep her in that boosing- kain of yours ? Ye ken the sort of talk that's to be heard there, and the wild on- goings of your harum-scarum companions." " Their bark is waur than their bite. I would rather lippen her to them than to fine city bucks and macaronis. Besides, I'm there to protect her " " ' Quis custodiet ipsos custodes ? ' " mut- tered Andrew, grimly. " Na, na, Mr Prosser ; she's safe enough wi' me. I ken a wheen lassies that would hae been better serving stoups o' ale than waiting at table. Brose and broth disna coup the stamack, and that's what the diet they get at some grand hooses does for the puir misguidit limmers." " There's some truth in that, Simpson," said Andrew. " But observe : life in an ale- house would be misery to Bell. She isn't 64 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. made of the same clay as you or me. Now, you have taken charge of her, and you are responsible for her peace of mmd, her happi- ness, and her j)rospects. Who would marry her out of an alehouse ? I mean, what man worthy of her beauty, her talents, and her virtues ? No, no ; you must put her some- where else than among your pint - stoups. Ye dinna plant a rose-tree in a midden, do ye?" " That's a braw comparison, by my certy ! " exclaimed Simpson, indignantly. " Comparisons ai^e sometimes odorous," re- marked Andrew, composedly. " Reason it out, Simpson ; you have got to find a proper sphere for her." " Orphans hae nae call to be pernickety," said Simpson, a little sullenly. '^ And it wad be wrong to gie her ideas abune her station." '^ Station ! " cried Andrew, hotly. '^ Na- ture knows nothing about station. Rank, titles, coronets, and crowns are man's silly work. But Nature means that her ladies and gentlemen (who are oftener clad in A TALK ON THE BENTS. 65 homespun than in purple and fine Knen) should live according to their station as fixed by her : to wit, that good brains should have a chance of free activity, and virtue not be stained by the propinquity of vice. If we treated men and women as we treat our cabbages and potatoes and roses and lilies, humanity would be a garden of the Lord. And that good time is coming. We are makinsr a beoinninof on the other side of the Channel. A Tree of Freedom has been planted, whose leaves are for the healing of the nations. But this is a di- gression. You'll mind, Simpson, that Bell is one of Nature's ladies, and you have got to respect that fact. Forby that, she is well educated. She can read Virgil and Horace. You would set her to clean pint- stoups, would you ? I tell ye, Simpson, it's hi^h treason ao-ainst Nature ! And that's the only treason that I reprobate." '^ Ye seem unco fond o' her," remarked Simpson, with a gruff laugh. " I love her as her father miofht have done," said Andrew, solemnly. '* I have VOL. I. E 66 P.ED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. taught her since she was a wee bit toddhn' bairn. I mind the very twist o' her bonny mou' when she said a-h, ah. There's nothing but goodness and truth and sweetness in her heart. Foul fa' the man that wrongs her ! " " To my thinking/' said Simpson, as if struck by a luminous idea, " you should wait for twa or three years and marry her yoursel'. I'm sure, we would be prood o' the match, and it would be the only way o' convincing you that she's only a woman. It's wunnerfu' how angels afore marriage take the moult after marriage." '' Ye have paid me a compliment, Simp- son, in proposing sic a thing," said Andrew, gravely. " But observe ! though I care nothing for human rank, and for that matter would think myself good enough for a duchess, — that's not pride, for I re- gard a duchess only as a woman, and I'll be bound a duchess wants a man first, and a duke next, — but I respect natural distinc- tions ; for all men are not equal in the sight of Nature, more's the pity, and what we A TALK ON THE BENTS. G7 should aim at, — dinna fidge aboot, this is better than counting a tavern score, — what we should aim at is to make Nature's Cin- derellas Nature's princesses, raise the stan- dard of the race till all are equal in a natural sense — equal, I say, not uniform, just as I saw this spring some beds of primroses in the minister's garden all equal in a sense, but all distinct in pattern and colouring, some patterns and colours rarer than others, and so more frail and delicate, as not yet hardened to a type, — for ex- ample, lilac primroses. Have you ever seen a lilac primrose, Simpson ? I needna ask you ; but it's a finer sight than the Pert Polly sneaking into the Giant's Elbow with a hundred kegs of Hollands in her hold. But I am gangin' to leeward this time. What I mean is, Bell is far above me- Simpson's attention, which had been mani- festly wandering, became at once concen- trated. "You're ower blate," he interposed, hastily. " No ; I am just, that's all. She is a prin- 68 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. cess in disguise. I could never educate myself wp to her level." " Havers ! " said Simpson. " Truth ! Where did she c^et her refine- ment, her unconscious grace like a fawn's ? her innocent but noble gaze ? her simple courtesy ? never bold, but never abashed ; modest but never awkward ; never haughty, but yet the very turn of her neck is stately, and, as the Latin poet says, ' incedit regina,' she walks like a queen.'' " By my certy ! " exclaimed Simpson, with a burst of laughter too boisterous to be quite spontaneous. " Like Paul, much learning hath made thee mad." " I am not mad, most noble Simpson," rejoined Andrew, with a short dry laugh. '' Come, now, who was her mother ? A lady ? for birth as yet unfortunately means breeding." " She came of a good stock, I believe," said Simpson. " But I must leave you. Ye hae preached me a lang sermon, and my brains are fair bizzin'." A TALK ON THE BENTS. 69 " Very well ; but mind, my sermon has got an application. Think it over, and let me ken what you ettle to do with her. I'll help you, if I can." " I will, Mr Prosser, I will," said Simpson with alacrity. " Guid nicht. It's lang past elders' hours." *' Good nicht," replied Andrew, mechani- cally. He stood for some time wrajDt in medita- tion, and then muttered to himself, " There's some secret aboot the lassie's birth. He has been like a hen on a hot girdle for the last half-hour." He sat down on the boat, and probably his thoughts had fixed themselves on Miss Marjoribanks, for he sighed heavily now and then. At last he rose and wended his way slowly homewards. As he softly opened the door, Mrs Badger's voice from the closet where she slept smote his ears, and made him start nervously. " Ye keep braw hours, Andrew. Where hae ye been ? " 70 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " I have been studying a problem, Mrs Badger/' was the reply. "I've been trying to find x.^' " The clock has lang syne chappit twal," was the injured remark. " Let it chap," said Andrew, impatiently ; " that's what it's for." 71 CHAPTER IV. THE HOLY WELL. Beechgrove Hall, the residence of Mr Gordon, Walter's father, stood a mile in- land from the village. It was an old house, lofty for its width, with high- pitched roofs and turret -like projections at the angles of the walls. It was reached from the road by a fine avenue of beeches ; and standing near the middle of a long acclivity, it commanded an extensive view of the surrounding country. Mr Gordon had been a navy contractor, and had amassed a laro^e fortune while he was still comparatively in the prime of life. His wife had died shortly after the birth of his only daughter Sibylla, who was two 72 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. years younger than Walter. Though only sixteen years of age, she seemed already a young woman — this precocious physical de- velopment being probably due to the fact that her mother had been a Creole. It was the breakfast hour of the day after Walter's arrival, and his father and he were standing at the window chatting together till Sibylla should make her appearance. Mr Gordon was a stout handsome man, whose whole appearance, his massive and yet well-proportioned frame, his grave and deliberate movements, the level steadiness of his voice, and the dignity of his look, conveyed an impression of moral stability and repose, which contrasted strikingly with the gay vivacity of his son. And yet the youth had his fathers powerful brow, and his expressive and mobile fea- tures when at rest settled into the same placid gravity. His face had a healthy paleness, with a faint olive tinge, sugges- tive of the Creole blood in his veins ; but he had his fathers dark blue eyes, with specks of hazel round the iris. THE HOLY WELL. 7 Q " Good morning, gentlemen," said a play- ful voice ; and as father and son turned round, Sibylla — for it was she — made an elaborate curtsey, full of sportive grace. Her father imprisoned her soft cheeks within his large shapely white hands and kissed her on the brow ; and Walter, imi- tating her roguish humour, took her hand and raised it to his lips with an air of courtly homage. " Ten minutes late. Miss Indolence," said Mr Gordon, smilingly consulting his watch as he took his seat at the table. " 'Tis deej) design, papa ; your hunger makes me sure of a welcome. Good morn- ing, John." This salutation was addressed to Mr Gordon's man - servant, John Wilkie, who waited at table. He was a tall elderly man, with a rugged weather-beaten face ; his lower eyelids were seamed with a net- work of fine wrinkles, and his eyes wore that peering and yet far-away look — the reflection of the mystery of the sea — which sailors acquire who have for long years 74 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. been in the habit of scanning distant hori- zons and misty stretches of ocean. He had a wooden leg, and wore a long pig-tail tied with a bow of black ribbon. He had been boatswain on board the frigate Resistance under Captain King, and had lost his right leg below the knee in the spirited action fought between that vessel and the French frigate La Coquette in the year 1783 near Turk's Island. He had been pensioned, and had returned to his native village of Fownie, where Mr Gordon had made his acquaintance and taken him into his service. He had proved an invaluable servant, obedient without servility as a true man-of-war's- man, and punctiliously honest as befits a man with a wooden leg, who, from the emphasis and noisy assertion of his walk, has lost the capacity for furtive and sneak- ing movements. He idolised his young mistress, and while mechanically respectful to his master, was on quarter - deck be- haviour with the young midshipman, doff- ing his cap to him in season and out of THE HOLY WELL. 75 season. Poor John ! he knew nothing of natural equaUty and the rights of man ; and if any one had tried to indoctrinate him with these fine French notions, he would probably have squirted his tobacco- juice with vicious energy and growled his contempt for the Johnny Crapauds and their frivolous and fantastic notions. John returned the morning salutation of his mistress in a voice like the rumble of a carronade, though his eyes brightened and his features assumed a grim and dislocated smile. Sibylla was a charming and engaging sight, as she sat at the head of the table behind the tea-urn, dressed in a dainty white muslin gown, her taper fingers hovering over the cups as she dispensed the hospitalities of the breakfast-table. Her cheeks had the same olive tinge as her brother's, her hair and eyebrows were dark ; but her eyes, like her brother's, were blue — a piquant contrast, which lent a strange and bewildering charm to her features. The arch smiling face had the soft loveliness, the almost porcelain deli- cacy, of a portrait by Greuze ; but if any 76 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. critic of jDhysiognomy had observed that face while her father said grace, he would have been struck by the comj^lete change of ex- pression, due to the absolute correspondence between feeling and its outward manifesta- tion, which resulted in what might be called physical honesty. The Hebe had become a nun, the maiden a la Greuze was transformed into a Madonna a la Murillo. Her face, in- deed, with the eyes closed and the lips gently pressed together, might have served as a model for that of some virgin confessor, the more so that in repose it bore the imprint of a haunting and unconscious pathos, a dim foreshadowing of sorrow. After the conversation had touched on a number of indifferent topics, Walter said suddenly — " Speaking of the people I met yesterday, there was one whom I don't happen to know." *' What sort of a person ? " asked Mr Gordon. " A gentleman, rather dark-complexioned, the cheeks and chin close-shaven, and with THE HOLY WELL. 77 a long black moustache. He was riding on a handsome chestnut in the direction of Swinton. You know I had gone to see my old nurse, and I met him on the way back. He looked inquisitively at me for a moment or two, and then honoured me with an almost imperceptible salutation." ''Who could it be, John?" asked Mr Gordon, with some show of interest. " Lord Wimpole, sir," said John, in a matter-of-fact tone. " Ah, to be sure," rejoined Mr Gordon ; " Lord Wimpole of Swinton Hall, Walter. I heard that he had recently arrived, and meant to stay for a few months. I must give him a call." "Is it socially possible for you to visit a live lord, papa ? " asked Sibylla, half jocularly. "Is it not the case that etiquette, like the tide, only goes up a certain distance, and that the nobility are above high-water mark ? I would not like you to be snubbed." " Lord Wimpole is as little likely to snub me as I am to take a snubbing, my dear," said Mr Gordon. 78 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Well, he looks as if he was quite capable of being arrogant," remarked Walter. "He is just like the caj)tain of an Algerine felucca or a Spanish xebeque : these fellows often have the same air of dusky picturesque dare- devilry. But what is he ? who is he ? what is he doing here ? " " I don't know much about him," replied his father. " I understand he has obtained his estate and title from some collateral branch. In his younger days I believe he was in one of the services — army or navy, I don't know which. He has the reputation of having led a somewhat unsettled life." "Is he married, sir ? " asked Walter. " I believe not. But it is hardly in good taste to talk about him in this way. Did you see Mr Pressor, Walter ? " " Oh yes," replied Walter, with a smile. " He is just as delightfully whimsical as ever. " There are strange rumours about him, Watty," remarked Sibylla, earnestly. " My dear Sibylla ! " exclaimed Walter, incredulously. THE HOLY WELL. 79 "It is quite true, dear, though possibly it is mere detraction. People insinuate that he is not a loyal subject, that he harbours sedi- tious projects, and is even a member of a secret society imbued with revolutionary prin- ciples. He is also said to be in league with smugglers ; but, to be sure, that is nothing, for in that matter few have clean hands. Even I do not too curiously trace the ^ere- grinations of the lace that reaches me." " But what grounds have they for accus- ing him of disloyalty ? " asked Walter, anxiously. " Nay, I know not ; but he talks strangely at times, and he plays the ' Ca ira,' and such- like songs, on his fiddle." " There's no sedition in a fiddle,'' said Walter. " You are not a papist because you play ' Ave Marias ' on your harpsichord." " I have dutifully taken my religion from papa, who knows best, and whose goodness commends his religion ; but, if I may be frank, I have my leanings towards the Catholic Church. Our dear mamma was a Catholic ; " and her eyes filled with tears. 80 KED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " May you always be as good as she was, my dear," said Mr Gordon, a little huskily. " But we won't speak about such matters, which pertain to the individual conscience. We must not identify religion either with superstition or bigotry, which are its east- ward and westward shadows. I, too, have heard of Mr Prosser's proceedings, and you should advise him to be careful, Walter. I am a justice of the peace, and I might have an unpleasant duty to perform. Now I shall leave you. I have some letters to write." " What do you say to a walk, Sibylla ? " asked Walter. " 'Tis not often I have the prospect of so gallant an escort," said Sibylla, gaily. " I shall be delighted." And she left the room to dress. " Is there anything in this, sir ? " asked Walter, as his father rose from the table. " I fear it greatly ; and in times like these even lukewarmness is veiled treason. Warn your friend. I should not like him to come to harm." In an incredibly short time for a young THE HOLY WELL. 81 lady, Sibylla reappeared equipped for her walk. She was dressed in a gown of French cambric, and a Flemish mantle of twilled sarsenet, — so might loveliness be attired in those distant days, — while a chip hat, trimmed with jonquille ribbon, adorned her head. " By Neptune and his trident ! " exclaimed Walter, gaily, as he surveyed his sister, '^ you are monstrous fine. What fashion-plate have you walked out of ? " " Nay, keep your compliments for some other young lady, and don't beggar your- self in flatteries, or, as flattery is woman's ambrosia, some young damsel will have to starve for want of it." Walter s cheeks reddened a little, and he gave an embarrassed laugh. " Where would you like to go ? " he asked. " There is an old well in the skirts of Swinton Wood which I sometimes visit. It was, and is still indeed, regarded as a holy well, of much medicinal virtue ; but Mr Mar- joribanks says it is ferruginous, and that the Virgin has nothing to do with it — though, VOL. I. F 82 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. perhaps, mind you, iron needs a blessing as much as ordinary food. Be that as it may, 'tis a pretty spot, though grievously neglect- ed. And yet its very dilapidation has a pathetic charm. It is a symbol of decayed faith. How many peo23le long generations ago visited the well with pious hopes ! And they have long since departed, but still the water flows. How vain is our life, how evanescent our joys and sorrows 1 " '* Very true, no doubt ; but we have got to live our life, as these people lived theirs. And in my profession it is a fine thing that death is as much honoured as life, so that we get the full good of our existence." " You have been in several actions, dearest," said Sibylla, tenderly. " How many is it ? " " Counting the big ones and the little whets and divertissements, I have been in seven," said Walter, a little self- complacently. " Were you not afraid ? " " I was too much afraid of being afraid to think much of the danger. Ah, but if you saw our captain ! What a hero he is ! He goes into action as if he were going to a ball." THE HOLY WELL. 83 With such talk they beguiled the way till they reached the well. A little footpath diveror-ino^ from the road led to a circular space embowered in elms and mountain-ashes. The wooded slope here abruptly terminated in a rugged face of rock, from a fissure in the middle of which issued a runnel of water, that flowed down into a stone trough stained a reddish yellow, and felted on the outside with the greenest moss. A decayed plank lay over the tiny channel by which the water escaped to some neighbouring brook. Nothing could be more inviting than the soothing murmur and gurgle of the tiny stream ; and brother and sister seated them- selves on a tree-trunk which had been up- rooted by a storm, and lay athwart the rounded hollow. There was a dreamy spell about the scene which predisposed to silence, and Sibylla's face had assumed a look of pensive melan- choly, when her musings were interrupted by a question addressed to her — " Sibylla, dear, what mean those little bits of crimson worsted or cloth tied round 84 EED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. the branches of the rowan - tree opposite us ? " "Every strip means a maiden's heart long- ing to be occupied," replied Sibylla, with a smile. " It is an old, old superstition. Girls who want a husband (and they are perchance more numerous than those who don't) fasten up these as reminders to the gentle patron of the well ; at least, that is the origin of the superstitious rite. And so they speak * good painted cloth,' though they confide the secret only to this same patron. The strip must be the colour of their heart's blood, and the berries of the tree may fancifully symbolise drops of blood. So I interpret. Indeed we are wrong if we think there was little imagin- ation in these old times. To my thinking, it is we who are unimaginative." " Well, Sibylla, you need offer no such vows ; your face makes you sure of many suitors." " Only my face ? " repeated Sibylla, with a blush and in a reproachful tone. " Yes, your face — that is, your eloquent face ; but I must not forestall your suitors." THE HOLY WELL. 85 '' Believe me, Watty, my wishes are not commonplace in such a matter. Even to a brother I may not speak of such things, but I foresee that if I purchase happiness, it will be at a heavy cost ; and indeed, I think I have been born to prove in my experience the most essential sweetness of sorrow." " You have your meaning, doubtless ; but I don't grasp it," said Walter, with a laugh. "You are too subtle for a plain sailor like me." " Emotions have their metaphysics. Heigho ! this comes of reading Milton and ShakesjDeare. For one thing, Watty, I shall never marry a fool. Let him be wicked, wild, tempestuous, or blasted with misfortune and at odds with fortune and his fellow-men — there is my sphere ; but heaven defend me from a fool, however good he be, if it be possible to be a fool and yet good, which I greatly doubt." "A romantic notion, dear Sibylla. You must not throw yourself away on any one less worthy than yourself" 86 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. "A fig for such prudent notions," said Sibvlla, imj^etuously. " Is it not far nobler for a woman to raise and redeem a man ? I do not admire the woman who has every vii'tue except that of self-sacrifice. And she is but a Pharisee who prizes her own perfection so highly that she will not look at a man less vh'tuous than herself. What is virtue worth if it has not coui'age ? When you, good brother, encounter a sinking ship, you do not think of the characters of the perishing mariners. Even if they were pirates, I be- lieve vou would try to rescue them." " Yes ; and we would j)robably hang them afterwards." " That is as may be. But, in the first place, vou would give them a glimpse of the humanity they had disowned, and so prepare them for repentance. We profess to be Christians : but surelv the first dutv of a Christian is to seek and save those that are lost." *' Would you marrv a bad man, Sibylla ? " *' What do you mean by a bad man ? Does a really bad man exist ? " THE HOLY WELL. 87 " I have met a good few in my short experience of Hfe," rephed Walter, with a lauofh. " Pooh, my dear, what do you know of the men whom you knock on the head '? Per- haps, indeed, a woman shoukl not marry a man who is manifestly depraved, who has become one of Circe's hogs ; but if she meets and loves a man who, amidst all his errors, has still some glimmer of the heavenly light, she should be bold and adventurous enough, I think, to share her goodness with him. His love will be all the greater for his grati- tude. A wife who is also a Madonna has a double chance of adoration. But perhaps this is not the sort of talk that befits a good and virtuous female ! " " I must always strike my flag when I have an argument with you, Sibylla. That comes of staying at home and reading Milton and Shakespeare, as you said. And that suggests to me that I saw Imogen lately," " Ah, Walter, I know whom you mean. Is your heart still anchored there ? " 88 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Oh, I am not a sighing swain," said Walter, blushing. " And yet she is — she is " " Infinitely engaging is, I believe, the modish phrase," said Sibylla, laughing. " She seems vastly improved — I mean in refinement and so on." " The reason is not far to seek," said Sibylla, gaily, "for she associates with me." " How kind of you, Sibylla ! " " Oh, do not suppose that I am acting as lapidary on your account. Bell and I are bosom-friends, because we love one another. Nor do I think it any derogation on my part, for nobody believes that Simpson is her uncle." " Perhaps it would be better if he were," said Walter, gloomily. " Her birth is no doubt a mystery ; but, I am prone to think, no ignoble one. Or else, whence her instinctive goodness 1 And she has dim memories of a lovely and tender mother. Simpson and his wife are farming her, I do suspect." " This should be looked to." THE HOLY WELL. 89 "And so It shall, if I live," said Sibylla, energetically. " She is very clever, is she not ? " " She is musical to the tips of her fingers. Do you know she will sit down to the harp- sichord and play any song she hears, though she does not know a single note '? " " Why don't you teach her ? " " She prefers to hear me play," said Sibylla, with a slight shade of embarrassment. " Be- sides, she is very modest, and does not wish to acquire accomplishments which she avers are beyond her station. Perhaps she is right, after all ; for indeed, even common girls have sometimes uncommon beauty." At this point their conversation was interrupted by the sound of ajDp reaching footsteps, and, turning their heads, they saw a tall gentleman come striding up the path. He was handsomely dressed, and had an air of inbred distinction. Seeinof the two young people, he courteously raised his hat and said, " I crave your pardon," in some- what untuneful but cultivated accents. 90 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. Walter rose to his feet and stiffly returned the salutation. " There are no intruders, sir, where all are free to come," he said coldly, for he had recognised Lord Wimpole. " I bethink me," said that gentleman, " that I have the honour of addressino^ Miss Gordon and her brother." Sibylla rose and curtseyed politely. She cast a woman's comprehensive glance upon him, and confessed to herself that, though he was not a handsome man, he possessed attractions superior to merely physical beauty. He must have been at least thirty - five years of age, and his form had reached its acme of strength and vigour. His features were somewhat rudely but not coarsely modelled : the fore- head was full, high, and finely outlined, as she had observed when he raised his hat ; and there was a sombre power in his large and luminous eye. His face wore an expression of haughty reserve, and his carriage was dignified. His aristocratic bearing was not belied by his manner of THE HOLY WELL. 91 speech, which was courtly if somewhat abrupt. "Permit me," said he, "to explain my presence here. I have heard that a certain young lady had expressed surprise that I should leave this well in such a state of ruin- ous neglect ; and I came to judge for myself, and to arrange for its proper repair." " Believe me, sir, I did not impute blame," said Sibylla, w^ith a heightened colour. " I accept the assurance, and indeed it is not strictly my duty to keep this place in order ; for though it lies perhaps within the precincts of the estate, there is right-of-way, and the good people who use the well might not unreasonably be expected to do some- thing for it. The trough, I see, is broken, and no doubt in bad Aveather the approach is muddy. This plank, too, is but a sorry means of access to the salubrious waters. The matter, in short, shall receive immediate attention." Sibylla bowed, and smiled with a grateful look. " I am puzzled to conceive who can have 92 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. conveyed my random remarks," she said, half ' interrogatively. "I fear they must have been exaggerated in the process of transmission." " Your remarks made a little circuit thus : they travelled from the manse to the school- house, where lives an unsparing critic of the nobility ; thence to the inn, there being, people say, subterranean means of communi- cation between the two places — I speak, of course, metaphorically ; then they travelled to me, Mr Simpson being a tenant of mine. How far they have been coloured or swelled in volume after passing through these several channels I know not, nor does it matter, for any one who looks u23on Miss Gordon will acquit her of any ungentle expression of opinion." "It is evident I must be more careful in the future," said Sibylla, with a look of vexation. " Pray do not bestow a thought uj^on such a trifle," said Lord Wimpole. "In a small place like this the origination of ideas is a slow process, and the good folks are glad to THE HOLY WELL. 9P) borrow the casually expressed opinions of their betters, as the destitute wear second- hand clothes. Well, well, ' tant de bruit pour une omelette ' ! Mr Gordon has not yet found time to do me the honour of a caU " " He mentioned that matter this very morning," interposed Sibylla, hastily. Lord Wimpole bowed. '' I shall be delia;hted to see him at his convenience. And now, I shall not further intrude. I presume your ship is refitting, Mr Gordon ? " " Yes, sir; it has been a good deal battered about, but we expect to be in proper trim in the course of a few weeks." " Well, I wish you a full share of glory and prize-money." '' Tliank you," said Walter, drily, who thought this a somewhat patronising re- mark. Then, after the exchange of ceremonious salutations, Lord Wimpole took his leave. The brother and sister were silent for a few minutes, and then Walter said — 94 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. "I dislike the fellow. His very courtesy is offensive ; it is so elaborately ironical." " I think you exaggerate, Walter," said Sibylla, mildly. " And confess that it was thoughtful of him to act upon a casual remark of mine. It was neighbourly and kind." " All depends upon the motive," said Wal- ter, with a sombre look. " As Mr Prosser would say, I fear the Danai even when bringing gifts." " Well, 'tis no matter," was his sister's reply. But they were silent and preoccupied dur- ing their walk home. 95 CHAPTER V. AXDPvEAY VISITS HIS AUNT JANE. It was Mr Prosser's habit every Wednesday afternoon (Wednesdays and Saturdays being half-holidays) to make an excursion, from which he did not return till some time dur- ing the early hours of Thursday morning. Interrogated on the subject, he was accus- tomed to explain that he had a relative in Dundee — his Aunt Jane — who was in indif- ferent health, and whom he helped to make up her books, for she kept a chandler's shop. People, however, were wont to shake their heads dubiously when discussing the matter, and though they could not affirm that Aunt Jane was an apocryphal personage, for one or two of the Fownie folks had hunted up 96 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. her shop, and had even self- sacrificingly bought candles from her, nevertheless it was surmised either that some female, younger and more attractive than Aunt Jane, was the occasion of these toilsome pilgrimages — who would walk fourteen miles to see an aunt ? — or that Andrew was a member of a secret political club, and that Aunt Jane was but a colourable pretext and a sort of friendly flag to mask clandestine commerce and political piracy. But Prosser was not deterred from continuing his habit by these insinuations and suspicions, for he had a stiff sinew in his neck, and had advanced notions of civil liberty. Occasionally, instead of walking the distance, he went to Dundee by sea, accomplishing the journey in a lug- sailed boat obligingly lent him by Simpson, the worthy landlord of the Anchor Inn. " Lent " is, however, hardly the proper word, for in order to requite the obligation, Prosser insisted upon receiving Bell as a free pupil. Great, then, was the astonishment of the good folks of Fownie (for such a village is like a glass hive, the movements of every ANDREW VISITS HIS AUNT JANE. 97 member of the community being watched with close scrutiny), when, one fine Wednes- day afternoon, Mr Prosser and Simpson were seen to embark together in the lug-sailed boat. Moreover, SimjDson was habited in an unwonted style. Instead of his broad Scots bonnet, which was as well known as his red shock of hair, he wore a three- cornered hat, somewhat greasy and battered indeed, and limp in the flaps, but still a head - gear arresting attention ; he had also donned a faded blue coat with brass buttons ; and, instead of his long well-oiled boots reaching above the knee, he wore buckled shoes. His rubicund face, sur- rounded by its nimbus of red hair, sleeked, however, for the occasion, was charged with an expression of solemn importance, a little spoiled by the somewhat uneasy glances of his twinkling and fugitive grey eyes. A crowd of loungers on the beach had gathered to witness the departure of the strangely assorted pair. " What's in the wind the day, Tam ? " VOL. I. G 98 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. asked one, translating into speech the thoughts of all. " I'm ganging to see a writer," was the reply, uttered in a studied drawl. " Wae's me ! " said another, with mock concern. " That's serious. You'll be mak- ing your will, I'se warrant." " I'll no' leave you anything, Sandy," was the rej)ly, which was received with general laughter. " How's your Aunt Jane, Mr Prosser ? " asked another, with an air of polite inquiry and a circular wink. '' I'll tell her you were speerin' for her, William," said Andrew, coolly; "and she'll maybe give you a dozen farthing dips and a horn lantern to light you when you're stoicherin' hame o' nights." This allusion to the inquirer's convivial habits raised a laugh at his expense ; and the further proceedings of the two men were watched in silence. The boat was pushed ofP, the lug-sail hoisted, and in a few minutes the little vessel was skimming along, its progress ANDREW VISITS HIS AUNT JANE. 99 being attentively watched by the loungers on the shore, till its dwindling outlines di- verted their speculation to the chances of the weather. The wind was steady, and Andrew, who was seated forward, opened conversation with his companion. '' Mind you, Simpson, this is a serious mat- ter, and I dinna want to bind an unwilling victim to the horns of the altar. If at the last moment ye take the rue, say so, and I'll bear nae grudge. Are ye convinced ? " '' Ay, I'm convinced," was the gruif reply. " It's a poor Government when the Pert Polly has to play at hide-and-seek with the revenue cutters. I'm for freedom in a' things, in trade particularly. So ye may ding doon the Government as soon as ye like ; but I draw the line at the Kirk, Andrew. Ye maunna ding doon the Kirk. I dinna believe in the worship of Peason. Peason is but a farthing dip (as ye were saying to that bletherin' idiot) in matters of eternity. Could Peason have given us a Bible ? — answer me that." a a 100 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Ye're a fine theologian, Simpson, I ken that, especially when ye hae spirits in the hold," rejoined Andrew, caustically. " But this is a political matter. Leave the Kirk alane ; it doesna need you for a buttress or a stoop, — stowps are queer stoops for a Kirk, if ye'll excuse the remark. Tell me, have you got liberty ? " D — d little ! " was the sententious reply. Have I got liberty ? Why, I canna scrape innocent catgut but they find treason in it. As for freedom of speech or freedom of printing, they simply dinna exist. Oh, Georgius Rex ! ' quousque tandem abutere nostra patientia ? ' " " Slack aft the sheet, Mr Prosser, a wee bit," said Simpson, who felt that he must assert his nautical superiority when Latin was brouofht on board. After a sail of nearly three hours, our voyagers reached Dundee. Proceeding some distance up the Nethergate, Andrew stopped at a low -browed shop and pushed open a half-door, which gave notice of their entrance by setting a bell in clangorous motion. A ANDREW VISITS HIS AUNT JANE. 101 tall gaunt woman emerged from an inner apartment, and greeted Andrew with a wry smile. " How are ye, auntie ? " he asked, and then hastily introduced his companion, lest his inquiry should lead to a minute description of her bodily condition. " Glad to see you, Mr Simpson. Ye look fine and hearty. I wish I was the same. But I'm sair hadden doon wi' a hoast. It is a wearing and a wearying thing a hoast. At night whiles I canna get a wink o' sleep " " How's your rheumatism, auntie ? " in- terposed Andrew, anxious for a change of prolixity. " Powerful bad, Andrew," replied Aunt Jane, with a doleful shake of the head. " My knee feels whiles as if somebody was borino^ red-hot needles into it." " I ken," said Simpson, cordially, for nothing breeds friendship like the com- parison of ailments. "You should try hot vomitations, — no that I think muckle o' hot water by itsel'." " How's business ? ' asked Andrew, hastily. 102 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " I clinna ken," said Aunt Jane, dolefully. " It doesna come near my doors. It's the wars that's ruining everything." " No your trade, auntie, for when there's a great victory — and how do the puir French folk manage to exist at all when they are being constantly beaten ? unless they are like women, dogs, and the sandal-tree, ' the more they be beaten, the better they be ' — when there's a victory, there's an illu- mination, and your stock melts away fast enoucrh." " Ay, and the folks gang to their beds in the dark for a fortnight afterhin. I get nae benefit from your ile-luminations. It's a puir trade, and the smell o' the tallow gets round my heart." " Ye should take a thimblefu' o' cognac now and then," said Simpson. " Nae doot," was the dejected reply, " but it's dear." Simpson coughed, and cleared his throat." " I hae a friend," said he, with a vague sweep of his hand, " who gets it cheap. If you'll accept a bottle " ANDREW VISITS HIS AUNT JANE. 103 " That will I/' said Aunt Jane, with alacrity, " and you'll get a widow's blessing." " Now, we must be off, auntie," said Andrew, who was fidgeting about impa- tiently. " Ay, ay, Andrew ; I never get mair than just a glisk o' ye. Dinna mind me, — I'm only a lone widow." " We'll be back again in two or three hours," said Andrew, " and we might take a rizzered haddie, or something of that sort." " Ay, ay," said Aunt Jane, resignedly. The two men advanced for some distance up the street, and then Andrew, after a swift exploring glance, turned hastily into a close, and ascended the stairs at its farther extremity. He stopped at the first landing and gave three interspaced knocks at a low door. A small slide closing a spy-hole, or " speer," as it was sometimes called, was shot to one side, and after the visitors had been apparently reconnoitred, a lean fore- finger, not particularly clean, and with an ebony frame round the nail, was thrust out. Andrew placed his own forefinger over it 104 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. crosswise, and immediately thereafter the door was unbolted, thrown open, and as instantly closed when the two men had entered. A strangely attired figure met Sim23son's astonished gaze. A tall man stood before him in the lobby, holding a candlestick in his left hand. A dingy white tunic, the breast of which was emblazoned with a large red cross made of silk, descended to his ankles, and his head was adorned with a Phrygian cap. "Welcome, Athanasius," he said to Andrew, solemnly. " Take ofP your shoes, stranger," he added, turning to Simpson with an im- posing gesture of command. Simpson dutifully obeyed, and through two large holes in his stockings displayed a pair* of blushing heels. The three men then entered a largish apartment, in which about a score of men were seated on benches covered with red baize. They were all, like the personage who had opened the door, habited in white tunics, only the red crosses upon their breasts were of smaller dimensions. On AXDREW VISITS HIS AUNT JANE. 105 Andrew and Simpson entering, all rose, and a murmur of " Welcome, Athanasius," passed round the room. After some low-voiced conversation, the tall man, who was evidently the master of ceremonies, rose and said solemnly — " The initiation will now take place." He bent down and traced with chalk a triangle upon the wooden floor. Then ad- dressing Simpson curtly, he said, " Stranger, stand within." Simpson did so, with a sheepish and somewhat anxious look, glanc- inof round in search of Andrew, who, how- ever, had retired to a side-room in order to don his white robe and red cap. When Andrew had re-entered the room, and the Chapter had been constituted, the master of ceremonies took his stand upon a small platform opposite the triangularly marked space and addressed Simpson in tones of exaggerated solemnity — " Stranger, our Brother Athanasius has reported that you wish to become a member of the Grand Associated Order of Knight- Templars. Is that so ? " 106 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. Simpson replied in the affirmative. " Brothers Athanasius and Bernardus, bhndfold him." This was done, and Brother Bernardus, drawing a pistol out of his pocket, fired it off close to Simpson's ear. If this was an experiment to test the steadiness of his nerves, the results were satisfactory, for Simpson merely started, and, pulling off the bandage round his brows, looked round with a threatening scowl. " I shall now explain the ceremonies and symbols of your initiation," said the offici- ating Templar, calmly ignoring Simpson's displeasure. " Take off your coat. This is to signify that you are to strip off the rags and tatters of your present supersti- tions, religious and political ; and in future you will wear in these assemblies, or Chap- ters, as we prefer to call them, the white robe, emblem of our pure and elevated faith, adorned with the red cross, which is the symbol of the crusade we wage against political and social error." Simpson was now led forward to a table ANDREW VISITS HIS AUNT JANE. 107 on which stood a small holly-tree, set in an earthenware pot and garnished with a number of small red candles, which were now lighted. " This," said the Chief Temj)lar, " is the Burning Bush. The people are in Egyptian bondage, and we are to lead them forth into the Land of Liberty. Each member of the Order is a Moses, who has renounced alleOTance to Pharaoh." This remark was greeted with subdued applause. Simpson was now led up to a carpet suspended on a cord across the room. " This is the veil of the Temple," con- tinued the orator, " which, as you see, is rent from top to bottom. Pass through, with head erect." Simpson obeyed. " This implies," resumed the interpreter, " that the old dispensation is annulled, that the Law is cancelled, and the Liberty of the Gospel of Humanity achieved." After a pause, Simpson was now conducted to a table on which was an object concealed 108 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. beneath a white cloth, which being removed, disclosed to view a human skull filled with a red liquid. "All Sacraments are consecrated with blood," continued the officiating Templar. " Drink." " That I winna," exclaimed Simpson, grow- ing pale, and with a grimace of disgust. This emphatic refusal, which he had re- inforced with an oath, provoked a burst of indignation from the assembled knights. But Andrew whispered something in Simp- son's ear, who muttered discontentedly, "Ye might hae told me it was claret, though I would hae preferred whisky." " Silence ! " said the Chief Templar, in solemn rebuke. " Drink. This liquor is the symbol of the blood which must be shed before liberty is attained, and this skull is the emblem of Death, for Death is the parent of Life : the seed must die before the new plant germinates. The chosen People must exterminate the Canaanites. Drink ! " Simpson gingerly lifted the skull, and ANDREW VISITS HIS AUNT JANE. 109 swallowed a mouthful with a very wry face. A sword was now put into his hand. " With this sword," the gruesome person- age continued, " you will attack the enemies of our Order and defend your brethren in all circumstances, even in case of murder or treason, and you will not disclose the secrets of the Order under pain of death, and you will, if so commanded by the Chapter, use the sword or other mortal weapons, whereof this sword is the comprehensive expression, without hesitation or remorse. Kneel ! " Simpson obeyed with a look of trepidation, and the Chief Templar, dipping the point of the sword into the liquor contained by the skull, said — " I name thee Brother Bonifacius, in the name of Liberty, Fraternity, and Equality." Having touched Simpson on the shoulder with the sword, he added, " Bise, Brother Bonifacius, your initiation is complete. Go to the vestry and don the white robe." The tedious and fantastic ceremony being 110 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. ended, the business of the Chapter began, and was not concluded till nearly ten o'clock, by which time Brother Bonifacius was nod- ding sleepily in his seat, little disturbed by the strife of tongues which raged without intermission, and which threatened at times to culminate in blows ; for the liberty of speech professed and practised by each Knight -Templar was balanced by an equal liberty to knock down a brother Templar for expressing uncongenial sentiments. At last the meeting broke up, and Andrew with his associate returned to Aunt Jane's abode. Having partaken of refreshment, they proceeded to the harbour, and about midnight set sail for Fownie, where they safely landed after a somewhat rough pas- sage, during which Simpson occasionally revived his spirits by application to a whisky-flask. His last words as he parted from Andrew were uttered in a husky whisjjer — " Ding doon the Government if ye like, but I draw the line at the Kirk. * Her very dust to me is dear.' " ANDEEW VISITS HIS AUNT JANE. Ill At this point he shoAvecI emotion, and Andrew said impatiently — " Hoots awa ! ye're greetin' fou, Simpson. But, mind, a close mouth about this night's proceedings, or ye might get tapped for — whisky-and-water. " And with a significant gesture he strode off towards the schoolhouse. Simpson stared after him for a while with tipsy gi^avity, and then, with a derisive snap of his fingers, stumbled off towards the inn, mutterino^ to himself. 112 CHAPTER YI. LORD WIMPOLE HAS A TALK WITH SIBYLLA. In those stirring and heroic days of which we write, Hfe resembled a busthng farce, or a tragedy with swiftly succeeding episodes of terror and disaster. Life was adventurous because the living sought adventure, and squandered their vitality royally by land and sea, supporting their fine extravagance on post-obits of glory. But even then the action flagged at times, and the spectators yawned at stretches of prosy commonj)lace. Even good Homer nods occasionally, and the epic of humanity, when George the Third was king, grew now and then mortally dull. Or, to use a figure more suited to those days, when Britain was at once the Bome and the Carthage of LORD WIMPOLE AND SIBYLLA. 11 o Europe, and wielded no doubtful sovereignty of the seas, the peaceful trade-winds suc- ceeded the " roaring Forties." In FoAMiie thino^s had settled into dull placidity. Mr Prosser taught the village school with quiet assiduity, and visited his Aunt Jane with exemplary regularity ; Simp- son landed his cargoes, and made money fast ; Gillespie's zeal as an excise officer was tempered with bouts of drinking, and his big dog, as well known and as much feared as himself, had gone mad, and had to be shot ; Walter was in the West Indies, vary- ing his activity with attacks of fever — he had Yellow Jack twice, but stopped short each time at the '' black vomit "; his sister became month by month more richly beautiful, like some exuberant passion-flower ; Mr Marjori- banks finished his stock of sermons and began them over again, like a barrel-organ with its tunes ; his daughter grew more pensive and reserved ; and Bell emerged into maidenhood. Lord Wimpole had come and gone at frequent intervals, looking as dis- dainfully saturnine as ever, and now in the VOL. L H 114 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. spring of 1794 he was installed at Swinton Hall. He had become a regular visitor at Beechgrove, where Mr Gordon always made him heartily welcome. Sibylla's feelings could not be so easily divined. She was invariably courteous ; but a certain distant coolness, like wind blowing ofP snow, played upon the surface of her manner. It was a pleasant afternoon ; and Lord Wim23ole had ridden over to see Mr Gordon on a matter of business, some daring cases of poaching having recently occurred. After despatching business, he had been invited to enter the drawing-room, where Sibylla was employed with some tapestry-work as inter- minable as Penelope's web. " Sibylla, dear, entertain Lord Wimpole for a short while," said her father ; '' I have some depositions to receive. Will your lordship excuse me ? " " By all means. But I fear to trouble Miss Gordon." Sibylla made a deprecating movement with her hand, and invited him to take a seat. LORD WIMPOLE AND SIBYLLA. 115 " Near the fire, my lord, for I have observed that, like myself, you like warmth." " I am a salamander, if I may speak tropi- cally," he said, with a smile. "Purgatory must be very bad to frighten me ; and the priests must do what the Greenland mission- aries had to do, substitute ice for fire." '' Satirical as usual, my lord. Are you never in earnest ? " " The most dangerous people in the world are the earnest ones. They upset thrones and convulse society. The cynics are the salt of the earth." " But progress, Lord Wimpole ! Without the earnest people there would be no progress." " I doubt it very much. Your men of progress are the flies on the carriage-wheel ; they think they are making it go on. They make indeed revolutions,'^ he went on, smiling at the conceit ; " but in reality they and we are impelled by unseen and inscrutable forces. Pooh ! they are conceited fools, when they think humanity dances to the jingling of their bells." 116 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. Gazing abstractedly at the blazing billets on the hearth, he sank into a gloomy reverie. Sibylla sat equally silent, with a faint smile on her lips. She inwardly preferred his taciturnity to modish chatter, and there was a nameless charm in this pensive tete-a-tete. " I have sometimes thought," he said, looking up with a smile, " that the Catholic Church, which shows so deep and true a knowledge of human nature, might with ad- vantage have instituted an order of virgin confessors." " I hardly understand, my lord." " I beg your pardon. What I mean is this : there should be virgin confessors, to whom a man might confide in solemn secrecy his sins and errors. After all a priest is a man, not much, if at all, better than your average mortal ; and while I would scorn to confess to such a man, it would be a great relief for me to tell some saintly maiden what has so often caused me re- morse. Her very ignorance of evil would point the contrast, and disclose the great gulf between purity and guilt. Then how LORD WIMPOLE AND SIBYLLA. 117 gently would she reprove, perchance she might shecl a few pitymg tears, and with her keen intuitions she would detect the latent germ of goodness, and appraise the force of circumstance, which leads often to such desperate results. For example, why should not I confess to you ? I know you well now, and I feel a sense of repose in your presence which I feel nowhere else ; why then should I not invoke a sister-spirit to my aid ? " '^ Indeed, my lord, you could not have a kinder confessor, if I may be so bold : but I have my illusions, which I do not wish destroyed ; and I conjecture that as regards your moral health you are a ' malade imaginaire.' " " Ah, Sibylla, Sibylla ! " he said, softly. The gentle ruefulness of his tone touched her heart. Her eyes filled with tears, and the sweet girlishness of her look gave place to a woman's yearning gaze, as she glanced at his brooding countenance flickeringly illumined by the light of the fire. " Well, well," he said, with an impatient 118 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. sigh. " Keep your illusions as long as you can. Some day you will know me, and, I fear, respect me less." '' Never ! " "Fond enthusiast ! You impute your own virtues." " This is strange talk, my lord, and let me end it thus : if ever you are in deep distress, let me know^ ; perhaps I shall in- stinctively know, and then I shall be your confessor and consoler, if I may, in all sisterly and womanly sincerity." " A vow ! a vow ! " he exclaimed. " Rash girl ! you know not what you commit your- self to." "Yes, I know," she replied, nodding her head gently in affirmation. "Is it self- praise to say that I am the genius of sorrow ? In my happiest moments — and I have many such — I never forget my future destiny. There is something here tells me " — and she laid her hand upon her heart — " that I shall never be supremely happy till I am supremely miserable. But I feel too that the finest joy, the most LORD WIMPOLE AND SIBYLLA. 119 pungent ecstasy, is wrung from a bleeding heart. Who can paint the raptures of the Mother of Sorrows ? " They sat silent for a long time, and then he said — " All this is in the vein of the melancholy Jacques. Let us change the current of our thoughts. Will you sing me ' Santa Lucia ' ? The last time you sang it, your voice haunted me for days. I cannot myself account for it, but I am passionately fond of music. It is almost the only pleasure I am susceptible of now." " I shall be delighted," she replied, with glad alacrity. " Of course with a guitar accompaniment. I like its delicious throbs of sentiment and pathos." Sibylla was an accomplished musician, and her voice was a rich and sympathetic con- tralto, so that the simple but beautiful Neapolitan air was exquisitely rendered ; and Lord Wimpole's face was almost trans- figured as he listened to the melting strains. "Your name should have been Cecilia," 120 KED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. he said, when she had finished with a crisp and delicate arpeggio. " Nay, to me it shall be Cecilia. Now, divine Cecilia, let me have ' Santissima.' " Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes spark- ling with delight. Fond girl ! he played upon her heart as movingly as she upon her guitar. And could he misinterpret the delicate reserve which silently chid his inexplicable silence ? Before she had finished the song, her father had re-entered the room. He held an open letter in his hand, but stood listen- ing till the last lingering cadence had died away. " A letter from Walter, dear," he said, eagerly. '' He is at Plymouth, he says, but won't have time to visit us. The Hecla is revictualling. Listen to this, my lord, and judge of the sort of rapacious villains who provision his Majesty's ships nowadays. But perhaps I detain you." '' Not in the least. Pray proceed," said Lord Wimpole, courteously, '' This is what Walter says," continued LORD WIMPOLE AND SIBYLLA. 121 Mr Gordon : " ' The provisions during our last cruise in the Mediterranean have been scandalously bad. The salt beef, which we had to eat so constantly that we all got scurvy more or less, was at times half putrid. The " hard-tack " was only soft where there were maggots and weevils, and we had to rap each biscuit soundly, to make the abom- inations drop out. For breakfast we got burgoo (or porridge), with treacle so called, for I would prefer to call it muddy syrup, and you came upon insects in it constantly, which I think must have died of sheer dis- gust. The drinking-water, too, had not been obtained from a pure source ; it stank like bilge-water, and when I drained it through my pocket-handkerchief I had to hold my nose (tell Sibylla to think of that when she uses lavender-water). I had scurvy on the hands and face ; but when we put into Coron in the Morea we got plenty of raw onions, which we devoured with more avidity than if they had been sugar-plums. That soon cured us. But why have we not a regular supply of lemons ? The fact is, we are pro- 122 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. visioned by a set of swindling scamps, who amass wealth by buying up abominable stuff for our consumption, and who can afford to bribe knaves in office to wink at their dis- honesty. I am certain that this usage of our gallant seamen will end in a serious mutiny some day. There is much smoulder- ing discontent, and the discipline is in not a few shi]3S brutally harsh. I am thankful to say that the Hecla is fortunate in having an excellent captain, who is simply adored by all of us, and who maintains the finest order with extremely little punishment. Not that he is lenient — God bless him ! — for he has several times given me sky-parlour (that is, sent me to the main - topmast - head, and kept me there three or four hours, which means being congealed or carbonadoed according to the weather). But no doubt I deserved it. I may add that soap has been rather scarce, and we had often to turn our stock- ings, &c. As Tom Harris, our second lieu- tenant, says jocularly, " One good turn de- serves another." As we put in our stores in a great hurry, many things were over- LORD WIMPOLE AND SIBYLLA. 123 looked ; and we have had much discomfort in consequence. But there is no use com- plaining, and with issues so mighty at stake, we have little reason to be fastidious or fault-finding. A great deal depends upon the general sentiment pervading the ship, and as that is very healthy on board the Hecla, we laugh our troubles off and make a jest of them. Tom Harris is great at this, and has all kinds of nautical similes for our makeshift contrivances. For ex- ample, he was invited one day to dine with the captain ; but his only presentable pair of stockings had a hole in the ankle which he had no time to darn, even if he had the worsted, which I doubt. So he wrapped a handkerchief round his ankle, and gravely informed the captain that he had barked his shin in going down the com- panion. This he called " fothering the leak" (you must understand that fothering is clap- ping a sail over a hole to keep out the water). We had several times a lively brush with the French, but that's all in the way of business ; besides, they fight fair, and when 124 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. they have struck theh^ flag, they are j^olite and good-natured enough, especially if you know a little of their lingo. What we detest is the jDrivateers and the Algerian pirates, for they are as treacherous as they are cruel. We give them no quarter. A Moorish dance at the end of a yard-arm is the only polite entertainment that suits them.' I am afraid, my lord, that I am griev- ously abusing your patience. You cannot be expected to be interested as I am by my dear boy's garrulous letter." " On the contrary, it is quite a pleasure to listen to his fresh impressions. Besides, I was in the navy myself, and can sympathise with his feelings." ^'You are very kind to say so. By the way, there is a matter I wish to speak to you about at your leisure ; but there is no hurry, and I must not trespass on your courtesy." " My dear sir, my time is not as well filled as it ought to be, and Beechgrove Hall is not a place one is in haste to leave." LORD WIMPOLE AND SIBYLLA. 125 Mr Gordon bowed, with a gratified look. '' Well, as you are so obliging, the matter is this. You need not go away, Sibylla : it interests you even more than me, for mine is only a kind of deputed interest, Mr Marjoribanks having requested me to appeal to Lord Wimpole on the subject. He thinks that Simpson of the Anchor Inn is not treating his niece projoerly." Lord Wimpole's brows contracted, and a dusky flush mounted to the very roots of his hair. '' I am afraid I have unwittingly given your lordship ofience. But if you will allow me to complete my explanation " " Pray, proceed, sir," said Lord Wimpole, abruptly. " Both matter and manner are totally void of offence." " Mr Marjoribanks conjectures, and my daughter also thinks, that Simpson has the enjoyment of some means or property belonging to his niece, and accruing to her when she comes of age by her father's settlement. Now, if this be so, it is mani- fest that Miss Bell — so we always call her, 126 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. and a more charming girl does not exist — should receive such an education and such treatment as befits her future position. She has, I believe, been well educated at the village school ; for Mr Prosser is an ex- cellent teacher, whatever be his demerits, on which I am loath to dilate, and he has, moreover, taken a deep interest in her in a very chivalrous and unselfish way, as I am bound to say, — I am afraid I am imi- tating my son's prolixity. What we think is, that she should be sent to a genteel ladies' seminary, to fit her either for her future position as a lady, or, if that be too san- guine an expectation, to enable her to earn her living in a cultivated and res23ectable way. She has excellent abilities, and the most exquisite voice you can imagine : even my daughter " " Avows her inferiority," interposed Si- bylla, in a low voice. " 'Tis too great a demand upon my credul- ity to admit that," said Lord Wimpole, who had recovered his outward composure. " At any rate," continued Mr Gordon, LORD WIMPOLE AND SIBYLLA. 127 " she is well fitted to adorn any situation in life. Now, my lord, I feel a delicacy in proceeding farther ; but Simpson, I be- lieve, is a tenant of yours, and speaks of you in warm terms as having befriended him in earlier days " " The babbling sot exaggerates," said Lord Wimpole, with the same heightened colour and contraction of his eyebrows. " He rendered a service to a kinsman of mine, which I have requited in some slight way, particularly in not raising his rent, for he is making a fortune under my nose. I anticipate your request, Mr Gordon. It is that I should interrogate him, and impress upon him that the young lady, whom I have several times seen, and who certainly seems to justify the high opinion which her friends have of her — that I should see she gets justice. Now, my influence with Simpson is no doubt considerable, but whether it would warrant my active interference is questionable." " I quite perceive that, my lord," said Mr Gordon, who was evidently anxious to drop the subject. 128 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Nevertheless," continued Lord Wimpole, '^ the matter shall be looked into, and that speedily. It is certain that Simpson is a hypocritical dog, who sails very near the wind in business matters. But am I to understand" — he went on with a strange, and it seemed angry, sparkle of the eye — " that Miss — that the young lady, for so I may call her, if Miss Gordon is her friend — has menial work to perform, or serves nog- gins of ale to Simpson's boozing rascals ? " '' I think she is well enough treated in these matters," replied Mr Gordon. " Simpson's fault is rather one of omission than com- mission. Besides, Mrs Simpson is occasion- ally addicted to intemperance, and — but I need not jDursue the subject further. Your lordship sees the situation." " Clearly, and you may reckon on the fullest exercise of my influence. Though, of course, I cannot guarantee Simpson's concur- rence with the views of Miss Bell's friends." " Of course not, and I hope we are not suggesting an intervention on your part likely to be unpleasant." LORD WIMPOLE AND SIBYLLA. 129 " The unpleasantness will have its com- pensations," said Lord Wimpole, with a courteous bow. Then, having raised Sibylla's hand to his lips, he bowed to Mr Gordon and withdrew. Father and daughter were silent for a while after his departure, and then Mr Gor- don said, with an inquiring look — "Well, my dear, and what do you think of him ? " " I don't exactly know what to think," she replied, with a slight blush. " He seems to like your society ; but if his visits have no serious motive, I confess I would rather he discontinued them. More- over, he seems to me a moody, discontented, and choleric man." " On the surface, perhaps." " Pardon the question, my dear, but am I to understand " " Pray don't ask me anything, for I can- not answer," said Sibylla, precipitately. " I think that with time he will come to under- stand his own feelinofs." " And what of your own feelings, Sibylla ?" VOL. I. I 130 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Ah, dearest papa, if I am ever to be un- happy, it will be through him," and she clasped her arms round her father's neck. As she did so he felt a tear fall on his cheek, while a shuddering sob seemed to convulse her tender frame. With a look of deep con- cern, he gently unwound her arms and kissed her on the brow. " Do not, at least, Sibylla, cultivate your own unhappiness," he said, with affectionate earnestness. "Few men, least of all Lord Wimpole, are worth a woman's lasting sor- row." " And few men forbear to inflict it," said Sibylla, in a broken voice. 131 CHAPTER VII. milly's profession or faith. On the Saturday evening of this same week, Andrew Prosser, after a simple meal of porridge-and-milk, retired to ^his bedroom and donned his Sunday suit, — for, being precentor at the kirk, he had to arrange for the service of praise on the following day. This suit was somewhat rusty at the seams, though a periodical attempt was made to revive its pristine black by sponging it with ink-and-water. The ruffles of his shirt, too, were considerably frayed at the edges — a defect only to be mitigated by a severe degree of starching. Still, he did not look amiss, for success in wearing a black suit is largely attained by filling it. Mrs Badger, 132 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. who was ironing, and had a very inflamed face and temper in consequence, stared at him — for he did not usually don his official coat on such occasions — and remarked with a sour smile : "A body might think ye had the wedding -garment on, Andrew, in the worldly meaning of the word ; for as to the spiritual meaning, I'm afraid your righteous- ness is but as filthy rags." " Ay, ay," said Andrew ; "ye are fond o' giving me ' the sincere milk of the word,' but it's aye lippered, I find. Ye needna bide up for me ; I'm gangin' to the minister's." " Ye keep braw hours when ye gang there," rejoined Mrs Badger. ''If it was a tavern, a body wouldna wonder ; but I'll wad a guinea — if it wasna sinful to bet — that even Simpson is in his bed when the minister is scraping away on his big fiddle and drinking toddy. Wae's me for the Kirk of Scotland ; it's a kennel for dumb dogs that will not bark." " They dinna snarl, at any rate," said Andrew, goaded to indignation. " I' faith, if ye will use such a comparison, the Kirk is milly's profession of faith. 133 like a big sonsy Newfoundland with a lot o' terriers and mongrel curs barking at its heels. But it disna fash itself, and it doesna need, for a' these tykes are ower busy worry- ing ane anither to do it any harm." " Ye're a queer mixture, Andrew," said Mrs Badger, with mild sarcasm. ^' Ye dinna be- lieve in kings, and yet King George is head o' the Kirk as by law established. What would the Kirk be without the King ? " " Hoots, Mrs Badger," exclaimed Andrew, wincing a little, "it's no' the king's image and superscription that makes a gold guinea valuable ; it's the worth of the metal. But I have no time to be claverin' here. Guid nicht." *^ Guid nicht, Andrew," said Mrs Badger, as solemnly as if she were bidding him a last farewell with serious doubts as to his ulti- mate destination. Andrew made his way towards the manse in a very dejected state of mind. He was deeply but hopelessly in love, and he was very poor. His statutory salary was £6, lis. Ijd. ('tis well to be accurate), and his fees 134 KED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. amounted to £9, not including what he got for teaching Latin, which was 12 shilhngs per annum for each pupil. His office as session- clerk brought him £2. Then he got a few presents from his pupils at Candlemas by ancient prescription. In addition, there were a few "perquisites." Every school in those days that wished to maintain its repu- tation had a main of cocks ; the lads must have their cock -pit, to imbibe by force of imitation a staunch and dauntless spirit, which, alas ! often received its quietus in an- other kind of cock -pit. The schoolmaster had a right to the cocks that were killed, as also to the fugles — to wit, those fowls which showed a recreant and craven disposition, and fled from the arena. Summing up every source of emolument, his income may have amounted to £25, with free house and garden. Such was the pecuniary position of school- masters a century ago. Small wonder, then, if Andrew was depressed, with love and poverty at ceaseless war. On reaching the manse, Andrew was ushered by Kirstie — the elderly serving- milly's profession of faith. 135 woman — into the little sitting-room, where he found Mrs Marjoribanks and her daughter quietly sewing. Mrs Marjoribanks was a genteel little lady, who looked almost as youthful as her daughter, so fresh and fair was her com- plexion and so bright her eyes. Formidable eyes they were, keen as well as bright, and with a half-mocking, half-good-natured gleam in them. Her genially satirical smile disclosed tiny teeth in excellent preserva- tion, which promised many a bite yet at the world's apple. Her manner was one of somewhat aggressive frankness, and Andrew stood greatly in awe of her, as big men do of little ladies, who, it is well known, are the most charming tyrants in the world. " Good evening, Andrew," she said, patron- isingly. " The minister is out visiting. A thing they call influenza is very common just now. We used to call it a catarrh or a feverish cold ; but the doctors like to invent new names for maladies they cannot cure. Will you take a seat ? " 136 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. Andrew did so, and then addressed the younger lady — "I hope I see you well, Miss Marjori- banks ? " " Quite well, I thank you, Mr Prosser." '^You are not ' quite well, I thank you,' my dear," said Mrs Marjoribanks, tartly. ^' You mope in the house too much. Have you been out to-day ? " " No, mamma." " Then take Mr Prosser into the garden and show him our Gloire de Dijon roses." '^ Very well, mamma," was the dutiful reply, as Miss Marjoribanks rose slowly and reluctantly from her seat, and led the way to the garden. Both of the young people seemed embarrassed and ill at ease. '^ Miss Marjoribanks, we schoolmasters are an unhappy body of men," said Andrew, as he softly stroked the petals of a full-blown rose. " You have many troubles and annoyances, doubtless, — stupid or refractory children, un- reasonable parents " " Well, I did not exactly mean that. If a milly's profession of faith. 137 child is stupid, well, nature meant it to be so, and you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, as the proverb says. As for refractory children, the rod is a wholesome corrective ; and when parents are troublesome, you can shut the door in their face. But one thing we schoolmasters can't do — we can't keep the wolf from the door. I am a very poor man, Miss Marjoribanks.'' " I hope it will not be always so, for your sake." He shook his head. " Why, I could make more in a month by smuggling than in half a year by the exercise of my vocation, for I can lay aloft in a gale of wind, splice a rope, fish a sipiXY, or take my trick at the wheel with the best of them." " The money so made would be the price of degradation, Mr Prosser," said Miss Mar- joribanks, earnestly. " Do not imagine that I regret my poverty, save for one reason," he said, huskily. He took her hand and pressed it to his lips before she could prevent the impulsive action. 138 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Ah, Miss Marjoribanks, to know you, to love you with every fibre of my poor heart, and yet to feel that my poverty is an impas- sable barrier — that is misery indeed." His emotion was too sincere not to touch her heart. Her cheeks were glowing with maidenly embarrassment, but there was a gentle look in her eyes, and her lips trembled as she said — " You are, I fear, prone to exaggeration and extremes, Mr Prosser. I have simple wishes and simple needs, and I do not fear poverty — if I were sure of undivided affection." " Undivided ! " he repeated, in a tone of reproachful astonishment. " You are the only woman I have ever loved, or ever will love." " Let us be perfectly frank with one another," she said, after a pause, during which she manifestly struggled with her emotion. "I do not speak of any other woman. I believe — yes, I will say the word which is to me a sacred one — I believe you love me truly " milly's profession of faith. 139 " Yes, ever since you were my pupil. Ah, these were happy days, when I was sure of seeing you every morning, coming in with your gentle smile ; you were fourteen or fifteen then " " I was a spoiled pupil, I fear," she said, with a tearful smile. " And I often wondered why your voice was so different when you spoke to me. But still, Mr Prosser, I have a rival." " I hardly understand," he stammered. " I think you do," she rejoined. " My rival is Politics, or shall I say — Conspiracy ? Ah, Mr Prosser, if you knew how fervently I wish you would renounce such vain and Utopian schemes — not to call them criminal and seditious, — if you knew how often I lie awake at night, thinking, thinking, and — why should I conceal it ? — praying for you " She stopped, overpowered by grief '' Heaven bless you, dear, dear Milly," he said, in a choking voice. " I am a child," she gasped, impatiently brushing away her tears. "It is a j^rivilege 140 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. to be loved — often it is woman's only privi- lege — and I would give my heart freely to a good man's keeping, but I must feel that it would be safe there." " You doubt me '? " " I do," she replied, tremulously, but yet firmly. " My notions are doubtless old- fashioned, but there are three names I revere — God, the Church, and the King. I cannot argue with you. My feelings go deeper than any reason. I wish no Goddess of Reason instead of a blessed Heavenly Father — to His name be praise ! — I wish no bloodthirsty Dictator instead of our good old King ; no declaration of the Rights of Man instead of the Gospel. The shadow of the Church fell upon my cradle ; may it fall upon my grave ! I could never link my hand with any man, if I thought he was a disloyal subject." " You forget the tyranny and oppression to which we are subjected," said Andrew, in a low voice. '^ The Government cannot palter with treason when the very existence of the milly's profession of faith. 141 kingdom is at stake. But I will not argue. Those who are not satisfied with their country at such a crisis should leave it. Freedom will come when we are able to enjoy it. I have not read as much as you have, perhaps fortunately for me ; but I be- lieve that it has been devotion, truth, self- sacrifice, and obedience that have made Britain great, — not charters, declarations, constitutions, spun like cobwebs in the brains of lawyers' clerks and pamphle- teers." To say that Andrew was astonished by this fervent language is but a weak ex- pression. Miss Marjoribanks was so habit- ually calm and self-restrained, that her deep and glowing earnestness was a revelation. Her soft and gracious beauty was trans- figured, her eyes were brighter, her bearing more noble, and her voice, usually so mild, was rich and vibrating. And as indignant sincerity almost compels conviction, Andrew felt a sense of meanness and discomfiture new to him. He involuntarily contrasted this passionate earnestness with the turgid 142 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. eloquence of the Knight - Templars, this warm devotion with their envenomed hate. " Believe me, Miss Marjoribanks," he said, hmnbly, " my motives are good." " I know that, and it makes me all the sadder. Do you think I would have spoken so to a base revolutionary ? " '' It adds to my misery that you condemn me," he went on. " The times are all out of joint ; I know not why I should continue to live." " I would implore you to do nothing rash or desperate," she said, with an anxious look. ^' Both my convictions and my feelings are indeed unchangeable — do not forget that ; and you have perchance much suffering be- fore you. But do not think yourself utterly forsaken. I shall never forget you, though I deplore your errors. And I am sure you will abandon your present opinions after fuller knowledge and experience. Is it pre- sumptuous to say so ? So true a nature as yours is cannot for long persist in such un- worthy courses. And now we shall speak no more of this. It is inexpressibly painful milly's profession of faith. 143 to me ; my health is not very strong just now, and I cannot bear much agitation. It will not seem strange to you if you seldom see me." He covered his eyes with his hand to hide the tears that filled them. " I shall leave you now," she added. " You might wait here till papa joins you. Farewell." She held out her hand, which he took and pressed to his lips. " Farewell ! " he repeated. " Think of me as kindly as you can." Her only reply was a stifled sob, as she swiftly withdrew. Not long after Mr Marjoribanks entered the garden. His manner was constrained, and his look clouded. " I hear strange things of you, Andrew," he said, a little hesitatingly, after some gfeneral conversation. " Bear in mind that the whole country just now is an ear of Dionysius. I would not that you contribute your whisper, for it will reach the tyrant's ear. We understand each other. Set it 144 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. down that few causes are worthy of mar- tyrdom. I am a Moderate ; I don't much beheve in enthusiasm of any kind, unless it be musical enthusiasm, which is, after all, half sensual. If we could preserve those moods which a starry night inspires, we would take a saner view of the world and ourselves. What are we in the stream of existence ? 'Tis our vanity that drapes us in importance. How vain our hopes and our ambitions, how ephemeral our joys ! So deeply is Christianity pervaded with this feeling, that it is ever looking forward beyond this scene of being.'' ^^ It is deeply true," said Andrew, with a sombre look. " But early Christianity taught a different lesson from what you are reading me." " Yes ; because the early Christians de- spised this world, and looked perpetually forward to a better. But that was pious despair, excusable perhaps in the deplorable state of Boman society. For a half-way house this world is a comfortable place enough, and I'll e'en take mine ease in milly's profession of faith. 145 mine inn. Christianity was never meant to make us querulous, still less seditious. * Render unto Csesar the things that are Caesar's.' What means this homily, An- drew ? This, namely : that you should not fash your thumb about the State. It's bad enough, no doubt, but it is better than anarchy. Our king is not a Solon or a Solomon ; he is safer as he is. A clever king is as dangerous — as a clever wife ! Tyranny, my dear lad ! Wait till you are married, and then perhaps you will admit that a certain degree of tyranny is not a bad thing. Would I ever change my damp clothes when I come home if my good lady did not compel me ? And so a cohort of diseases, as friend Horace says, has been put to flight. Even Mrs Badger has her use, and is doubtless as salutary as a mus- tard-plaster." Andrew could not help joining, though ruefully, in the minister's laugh. *^ The conclusion of the whole matter is — let the world wag ! I have observed that very often a good old clock does not go VOL. I. K 146 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. SO well after it has been cleaned and re- paired as it did before. As for charters and declarations, they are good for lining trunks, but for nothing else that I can see : I would not give a Gavotte of Rameau for the whole of them. My advice, then, is the Pythagorean maxim : ' Stir not the fire with the sword.' Are you coming in ? " But Andrew dejectedly declined, and bade his friend adieu. 147 CHAPTER VIII. BELL VISITS SWINTON HALL. Lord Wimpole was speaking in moderation when he said that he had seen Bell several times. He had met her indeed so frequently during his recent visits to Fownie, that a young lady with a nice perception of amatory omens would have refused to recognise hap- hazard as responsible for these encounters. Sometimes he arrived at Beechgrove Hall when she was there, and she had to curtsey to him before she withdrew. At other times he was coming up the avenue as she was going down, or the reverse. And now and then she met him on the road to Fownie. On the first few occasions her instincts had w^arned her that he regarded her with a 148 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. latent antipathy ; and when he saluted her with frigid formality, she had seemed to dis- cern a sour and rancorous scorn in his look — at least that was her impression, and women, like other domestic creatures subject to the caprices of man, have keen perceptions. But the wind had veered into a more genial quarter. He seemed now to be glad to see her. His was one of those wintry countenances which a smile instantly illu- mines ; and when he beheld her approaching, his face at once lost its sombre and repel- lent look, and his movements became more buoyant. And as those smile most win- ningly who smile most rarely, this spon- taneous irradiation of feature affected her with a strange feeling of delight, which hovered over an abashed dismay. What can be more thrillingly sweet to a young maid than the homage of a mature man ? For if he has been during his pre- vious life insensible to feminine attractions, she has mounted the glacis of his well- guarded heart, and if he be hlase, she has roused him from his lethargy of feeling. BELL VISITS SWINTON HALL. 149 Bell would not indeed have confessed even to herself that she loved him ; most probably she did not : but perhaps love was beginning to crystallise in her heart, — a sudden shock might determine the cohesion of feeling. Meanwhile her deportment towards him was one of simple dignity. Those were the days of Evelinas and Camillas, when the " tender passion " was associated with modish affecta- tions, with blushes, tremors, palpitations, vapours, with downcast looks and embar- rassed silences, and all the sweet distress of love's captives. Perhaps, as she curtseyed and then passed on with the blush of a milk- maid and the port of a princess, she offered a pleasing contrast to the young ladies whom he encountered in fashionable society. Bell had read two or three novels of the period, and knew that all gentlemen may roughly be referred to one of three cate- gories : first, the Fop, who was obtrusive but not dangerous ; second, the Rake, who was both obtrusive and dangerous, and who practised abduction and seduction ; and third, the Lover, who was neither obtrusive nor 150 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. dangerous, and who, after a series of polite encounters at operas, balls, and ridottos, finally fell on his knees before the object of his resj)ectful adoration and confessed his flame. Now, Lord Wimpole was not a fop, though always studiously correct in his attire. He did not seem to be a rake, for his bearing was uniformly respectful. But how could he be a lover ? That was impossible, for was he not on a dizzy social height above her ? He must belong to an unknown cate- gory, and in this shadowy limbo she wisely resolved to leave him. Nevertheless, his smile made her heart beat tumultuously. Then, again, he was almost Sibylla's lover, and it would be treason to friendship even to think of him except as of a gracious person- ality at an almost immeasurable distance. Her feelings and fortitude, however, were destined to be put to the proof For, a couple of days after Lord Wimpole's last visit to Beechgrove Hall, Simpson entered the little parlour where she was seated sewing, and said to her — BELL VLSITS SWINTON HALL. 151 " Busk yourself up a bit, my lassie. I'm gangin' with you to Swinton Hall on business." " With me, uncle ? " asked Bell, looking aghast. " Yes, and ye needna look sae carfuffled : he'll no eat you." " But what business ? " " Ask nae questions, and I'll tell nae lees — no that I would ever imitate the prophet Ananias." " I do not wish to meet Lord Wimpole," said Bell, tremulously. " Hoots ! he's auld enough to be your father, wellnigh." " I don't consider him old," protested Bell. "I didna say he had ae foot in the grave, did I ? But he can look ower his shouther at his youth, for a' that. And as to his reputation — ' gie a dog an ill name ' : I ken that by my ain experience. I dinna say he has been a saint, — ye canna keep a man in a glass case ; and, as far as I hae observed, the guid men are either fushionless or hypocritical. The best o' men ' lie among 152 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. the pots ' whiles ; but I'll uphaud hnn for a true gentleman. Sae, gae and pit on your braws. KSee that ye dinna gang wi' clouted shoon like the Gibeonites, when they went to — where did they gang? Maybe Jabesh - Gilead. Ye like braw things, so that's nae trial." Bell accordingly made ready with some trepidation to accompany Simpson, who had donned his best suit, and, as attire reacts upon the mind and induces a metaphysical conformity, looked solemn, not to say Sab- batical or funereal. A walk of a mile took them to the lodge- gate of Swinton Hall. A broad avenue of elms led up to a circular open space in front of the house, which consisted of a large corps de logis flanked with massive square wings. The roof was flat and crene- lated, and a stone portico ran the entire length of the main building. A civil elderly woman ushered the two visitors into the library, where they found Lord Wimpole reading. He rose and greeted them with the winning courtesy which in a BELL VISITS SWINTON HALL. 153 man of such a stern and haughty bearing had all the impressive effect of an agreeable surprise. After the exchange of some formal remarks, he said to Simpson — " Now, sir, I have some matters to discuss with your niece, as I informed you ; and I shall beg her to accompany me to the with- drawing-room for a short time. Meanwhile, make yourself at home. There are various liquors on the table at your service, and there are numerous books of divinity — I know your tastes in both directions. The only book pertaining to that class which I have ever looked into is Jonathan Edwards on the Will, wherein he proves irrefragably — in my poor judgment — that we have no freedom of the will at all, but are always the slaves of the strongest motive. It is, I think, a sound, and sometimes a consola- tory, doctrine. You can test it practically, Simpson, by observing which proves to be the strongest motive on the present occasion — rum, whisky, or divinity." '' My lord, knowledge puffeth up," said Simpson, "so I'll try the whisky." 154 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Very good. Now, Miss Bell, may I request you to honour me with a short in- terview on a somewhat important matter ? " She acquiesced with a curtsey, and he preceded her up a broad stone staircase to the first landing. The walls of this staircase were hung with several dusky oil-paintings, and he paused in his ascent to point them out and comment upon them. He j)robably wished to divert her attention from the em- barrassing novelty of her situation. " Here is a ' Cain and Abel,' said to be by Giorgione. The treatment is somewhat original. Cain has just slain his brother, and is stooping over a pool to wash his blood- stained hands ; he sees in the water the reflection of his face and the divinely im- printed stigma of guilt upon his forehead, and shrinks back in horror, not of his crime, but of the indelible mark which he is doomed to wear. " This is a ' Fall of the Angels ' by a Dutch artist ^ — a mere delirium tremens in pigments. It is to be noticed that the Christian, or perhaps I should rather say BELL VISITS SWINTON HALL. 155 the Biblical, mythology has not the repose, the grace, or the dignity of the Greek. Compare a demon with a faun, and you have the difference in a nut-shell. And it all comes to this, that the Hebrews had no humour. — But I must not detain you longer over these paintings." The withdrawing - room into which he introduced the young girl was a spacious apartment, the furniture of which, though old-fashioned, seemed to Bell's unaccustomed eyes sumptuously magnificent. Lord Wim- pole, however, noted with involuntary in- terest that she did not seem out of place amid the somewhat faded splendour of the room. She was manifestly embarrassed, but showed no sign of awkwardness ; and the high-bred refinement of her look and bear- ing seemed to suit the richness of the apartment. He placed a seat for her beside one of the tall windows, and then sat down at some distance. " Now, Miss Bell — you will permit me thus to address you, I hope — I have no doubt you have often felt the disharmony 156 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. of your present surroundings. You have been revolted by the drunkenness, the sordid cupidity, the reckless language, which be- long to a common tavern. Moreover, Simp- son, though in some respects a meritorious man, is underbred, and Mrs Simpson — pray excuse my plain speaking — is a very unsuit- able guardian for a young maiden like you." " She has always been very kind to me, and I regard her with much affection," said Bell, in a low tone. "I do not doubt it. Nevertheless, the Anchor Inn is no place for you. Have you formed any plans for the future ? " *' I have thought at times of being a lady's-maid," said Bell, with a vivid blush. Lord Wimpole's face, as if sympatheti- cally, became suffused with a dark crimson, and he cast down his eyes. " Nay, nay, it will not do," he replied, energetically. " In the first place, I know not if forced submission to a fine lady's whims and fits of spleen would be less galling than your present situation. In the next place, if you will excuse me, you BELL VISITS SWINTON HALL. 157 are too beautiful. Your mistress would be jealous of you ; and you would be pestered with the attention of fops and dandies, who think a pretty abigail fair game. I wound your delicacy by these remarks, but the truth must be faced. No, no ; you must dismiss that idea. Let me propose another plan. Mr Simpson at one time did me an important service, which I have endeavoured, though inadequately, to requite. Now, I wish to redress the balance of obligation, and I propose the following arrangement — namely, that you should go for a year or two to a ladies' seminary or boarding-school, so as to complete your education, and fit you — unless some better fate intervene — for the position of governess or lady-teacher. What say you to that ? " " May I ask who would defray the ex- pense ? " " That is a small circumstance which hardly merits discussion." " Pardon me, I think it of great con- sequence, my lord," replied Bell, with a proud flush. 158 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " I would merely be repaying an obliga- tion." "Your lordship is, I fear, merely disguis- ing your generosity." He smiled, and made a deprecating move- ment with his hand. " Let me interpret your feelings," he said, leaning back in his chair and gazing at her intently. " You think that by accept- ing this slight service you would be placing yourself in my dej)endence ; that I would expect some return ; that people might impute dubious motives to me or to you. Pray banish such ideas. You need never know of my existence — unless you choose. I would keep myself in the background, unless you preferred that I should be a principal figure in the tableau." " I am confounded by your lordship's generosity," said Bell; "but perhaps, sir, you will explain your motive." " Are you already so distrustful of human nature ? Here am I with sufficient means, and with neither wife nor child. Why should I not feel a kindly impulse to assist BELL VISITS SWINTON HALL. 159 a gentle, clever, and lovely girl ? — oh, I grant you that had Nature been less kind to you, I might have imitated her examj^le. Who can tell ? female merit is much commended by a pretty face. But, besides, your friends are all interested in your future. Miss Gordon, for example " Bell started, and looked inquiringly, almost distressfully, at him. " Miss Gordon is a charming young lady, and I would do anything to pleasure her, but sentimental motives need not be imputed, if I may contradict an unspoken surmise. Then Mr Marjoribanks, and in a word every one of your friends, think something should be done ; and as I have great influence with Mr Simpson, I am naturally expected to take the first step." He was silent for a while, gazing at her downcast face, which betrayed her mental perplexity. " No, my lord," she said at length ; "I am truly grateful, but I cannot accept your offer." He seemed neither surprised nor disap- pointed. 160 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " But if Mr Simpson himself sent you to a boarding-school, you would not object to go? '' Most certainly I would object, my lord. I am of age to do something for myself I know he would grudge the expense, and I will receive no benefit grudgingly bestowed." " So proud ? Well, 'tis only right and worthy of you. But my quiver is not empty yet. Has it ever struck you that possibly you are in no way related to Mr and Mrs Simpson ? " " I have long thought so, my lord, and the thought has been full of pain ; for if so, I am an orphan, and my birth — ah, who can say what misery clings to it ? " Her eyes filled with tears, and he could see the tension of her clasped hands. He hesitated a few moments, rubbing his brow, and then said — " 'Tis evident, my dear child, that I am destined to be the reader of your fortunes, and here my function begins. Your birth is honourable, and you are a lady born." When he had uttered the words, he drew BELL VISITS SWINTON HALL. 161 a deep breath and looked at her with a kind of tender suspense. " You say so. Then it must be true. Thank God ! thank God ! " She covered her face with her hands to conceal the tears that came with a sudden outburst of blended emotion. He went forward, and taking a chair beside her, gently laid his hand upon her head with a caressing touch. She shrank back a little and looked timidly at him, but the deep humanity of his gaze reassured her. " Now, dear Isabel (for that is your name)," he said, in soft but thrilling tones, " you will expect the revelation of a mystery. Alas ! 'tis as yet impossible. But the revelation is only ]30stponed. Circumstances which I can- not disclose compel me to be silent till you come of age or till you marry. At either of these junctures you may appeal to me, and your appeal shall be answered. '^ " And I am only seventeen," murmured Bell, dejectedly. *'Time passes swiftly — all too swiftly, alas ! ' Youth's a stuff will not endure,' as glorious Will says. Would that I could VOL. I. L 162 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. ' grow backward,' as he also says somewhere, and meet you at some sweet intersection of our paths. But to come to business. Your birth being worthy of you, and your posses- sion of means on coming of age being in- herently probable — take my word for it, I deceive you not — it follows that you may freely accept any advance of funds from Mr Simpson or from any one else without hesi- tation. Well, what say you now ? '' " Are you my guardian, sir ? " she asked, with a bashful and at the same time a wist- ful look. " Your guardian ? " he repeated, huskily and with evident emotion. '' Yes, your guardian indeed ! Perhaps not in legal strictness, but certainly in aim, intention, and sufficiently accredited capacity. Very well. All this being the case, it is mani- festly necessary that you should acquire the accomplishments which are the appanage of a lady. For you will ultimately, I hope, take your place in society, and you must be conversant with those graceful futilities which mark caste. You are in a sense well BELL VISITS SWINTOX HALL. 163 educated, but you are not trained : you can- not dance a minuet, flirt a fan, or enamel your conversation with French words and phrases which very unjustly impute jDoverty and inelegance to our mother-tongue. I con- fess I prefer your natural and unvarnished refinement ; but the decrees of fashion must be respected. Every class of society has a freemasonry of words, tones, gestures, which only the initiated can use. Further, it is the essence of fine manners to be unobtrusive in everything ; and even a charming and idyllic rusticity is obtrusive. Society can- not endure angles — except in furniture. Your fine young lady must cultivate a graceful indifference of tone and sentiment ; her feelings must not speak above their breath ; her real nature must be largely a matter of conjecture ; and the honeymoon is a voyage of discovery to the adventurous swain who wins this problematical being. Forsooth, nobody would marry at all did he not know that a young lady is also a young woman with a heart and a head waiting to be liberated. But I am too dis- 164 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. cursive. Nothing makes a man so eloquent as a sympathetic listener. And your lovely face is the mirror of my rhetoric. What say you now ? Shall I draw another arrow from my quiver ? " " Indeed, my lord, I am so confused, amazed, bewildered by what you have told me, that I cannot reason. Is it all true ? You would not, could not (oh, forgive the thought !) deceive a helpless girl." " If I were capable of so foully wronging you," he replied, with passionate earnestness, " I would be the paltriest wretch that ever crawled and sneaked to an oblivious grave. You believe me, Isabel ? " he asked, with a kind of imperious tenderness. " I believe you, my lord," she replied, with a submissive and confiding look. " Thank you. Now I am eager for a deeper intimacy with you, which I fear you will not grant me." '* I dare not, for many reasons, sir," said Bell, in a low tone. " Nor would you respect me if I did. And I aspire to your respect." ^' Dear credulous girl ! " he said, in vibrat- BELL VISITS SWINTON HALL. 165 ing tones, " the aspiration should be inverted. And yet I am not a villain. Who calls me villain ? " He held his head to one side as if listen- ing for some distant voice. "Oh, do not say such words ! " she ex- claimed in a pleading tone. " How could any one be so base and cruel as call you so?" " Kind, generous girl ! God — I bless you, if any blessing of mine But I am digres- sing again. What I wished to say was this : I desire a deeper intimacy, in all honour and sincere respect. But this may not be when I am ' Your lordship,' ' Sir,' and the rest of it. Away with these gilded ad- ditions ! Let me tell you a secret — not to be whispered till the proper hour arrives " " I do not like secrets, my lord. I j)ray you not to tell it," said Bell, with deep earnestness. " 'Tis not a secret of which we have need to be ashamed. I would not inveigle you into duplicity or complicity. But secrecy is often synonymous with self-respect, not 166 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. with duplicity. As Shakespeare says, ' The chariest maid is 23rodigal enough, when ' I forget the rest." "But a secret between your lordship and me ! Think of it, sir. I cannot express my thought as I would like, but you can divine it — you have so keen an intellect. How dangerous is an intimacy grounded upon a mutual secret ! I have patience. Let me wait." "So be it, you noble girl, worthy of your birth, worthy of the deepest respect, worthy of adoration. I shall say no more. And as regards what I have said, let me beg of you to conceal it, for weighty reasons. Have I your solemn promise ? " " If you desire it, most assuredly I shall. There is no shame in concealing brighter prospects." " And as a compromise, try to think of me, try to call me, your guardian." " I shall gladly so think of you, my lord." " How formal ! " he said, in a tone of re- proach. " Indeed, sir," she replied, with a blush BELL VLSITS SWINTON HALL. 167 and a timid look, ''I do not dislike to use the appellation." His face brightened, and his lips moved as if he would fain speak, but the arrested utterance passed into a smile. "Very well, my dear Isabel, very well. Now, our good friend downstairs will wonder at our protracted absence, unless he is deep in divinity or drink. To bring our con- versation to a point : you will consent to my proposal ? " " I shall be glad to enter a boarding-school — I know my deficiencies — but, I beg, not at your charges." " Well, I dare not insist when your feel- ing is so strong. But if Simpson or his wife agrees " " I shall consent on condition that I re- cognise my obligation to repay them, if you assure me I shall be able so to do." " And if they do not agree, then 1 shall see that money is raised upon your future prospects, — literally, I mean, and without any pious fraud — as if I were capable of anything pious ! " 168 BED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " I beg of my guardian not to disparage himself/' said Bell, with a bashful smile in which there was the faintest approach to archness. " After that, what can I say ? " he ex- claimed, gently raising her hand to his lips. " Lo ! I wear a halo. I am trans- figured, translated. I strike the stars with my lofty head, as your friend Horace says. In all seriousness, I pray — I mean, may I acquire the power and the will, as I have the dee23 desire, to make my worth equal to your esteem. Now, my dear ward, let us go. What a memorable day for me ! " " And for me ! " said Bell. He took her hand to lead her from the apartment. Her cheeks were glowing, her head bent down ; but it seemed as if her form had gained a new grace, a more elastic movement, a finer poise, which presented a vivid but harmonious contrast to the dignity and proud self-consciousness of his manhood. They found Simpson peacefully slumbering in a comfortable arm - chair, and they ex- BELL VISITS SWINTON HALL. 169 changed a smile of amusement. He woke up, however, as they stepped into the room. '^ I believe I hae been in the land o' nod," he said, rubbing his eyes. " Ye hae been a mortal lang while away, lassie. But women are a stiffnecked generation, and need a lecture as lang as the mainyard to get them to dae what a man would dae for a single word wi' a bit oath clapped ahint it. And noo, we maun be jogging hame." 170 CHAPTEE IX. Satan's head. The fishing village of Fownie stands at the southern end of a long precipitous line of cliffs which fronts the German Ocean. Leav- ing the village and climbing the gradual acclivity which merges in this elevated ridge, you may walk for miles along the summit of the rocks, which here and there have been hollowed and honeycombed into caverns and blow - holes by the incessant action of the sea. About a mile and a half from the village is a semicircular bay, ter- minating at either end in two bluff pro- montories. The rocks consist of a solid base of sandstone surmounted by conglomer- ate, whereof the incrusted stones and pebbles, Satan's head. 171 detached by the buffeting of the waves, have formed a shmgly beach within the bosom of the bay. Few sights are more beautiful than this pebbly stretch of shore, esjDecially when it has been laved by the tide ; for then it gleams with a rich variety of tints, pink and rose and yellow and amber, which diversify the predominating white. It is indeed a sym23hony of colour, whereof the white — not dull at such a time, but softly opalescent — is the basis. It is strange to think that this conglomerate, which was once a wave-washed shore, is again becom- ing a beach, and these pebbles, imprisoned for myriads of years, are returning to their ocean home once more. Compared with this vast cycle of change, the siege of Troy and* the building of the Pyramids are as yesterday. But even this abacus of pebbles avails not to calculate the age of this frag- ment of the world ; for what is pebble was rock slowly quarried by patient streams through long millenniums. " They are but dressings of a former sight." 172 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. Reflections such as these, though in a vaguer form, for geology was yet in embryo, passed through Andrew Prosser's mind as he wended his way along the clifPs. It was past mid- day, and a fog had descended upon the sea and shore. Wrapped in this shifting mass of vapour, the cliffs, bluffs, stacks of rock, pinnacles, and escarpments, seemed like the turbid phantasm of a dream. There was a heavy ground - swell, and the long billows tumbled in booming thunder into the caves, crannies, and tunnels with which the coast is indented. The long flat reefs, like natural moles and jetties, rose above the water, for the tide was only beginning to make ; and the waves climbing above them fell back ao^ain in lono" cataracts down their perpendicular sides. After half an hour's walk, Andrew regftjhed that part of the coast opposite a huge isolated rock known by the weird name of Satan's Head. It emerged in massive grandeur from a rugged pavement of rock intersected by rough channels filled with the first influx of the tide. Its rudely Satan's head. 17 Q hewn profile loomed out of the mist, solemn, defiant, implacable, and it required no great effort of the imamnation to lend a kind of sinister life to the frowning features — the dark beetling brows, the aquiline nose, the inward notch of the mouth, the rugged chin ; while two or three protuberances at the top of the colossal forehead simulated rudi- mentary horns. As Andrew advanced, the expression seemed to change when looked at from a different visual angle. The upper lip swelled into a portentous pout, the shade gathered more deeply into the sunken orbits. Andrew gazed long at this grotesque sculp- ture of the waves. He had often seen it before, but the mist gave a wider scope to shaping fancy. The anarchy of the sea had carved this congenial image of its wild havoc and ferocity. Even in fine weather it w^ears a look of mysterious malignity. It seems biding its time. The play of light and shade sets free a lurking grin, a mock- ing grimace. It tolerates the sunshine with contemptuous indifference, but is ever listen- ing for the storm. It gives a purpose and 174 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. coherence to the random wildness of these tormented cUffs. It concentrates and em- bodies the grim cruelty of nature. Andrew continued his walk till he reached the shingly bay, and descending by a steep path, he toiled over the stones till he reached the entrance of a cave. As he advanced into its interior it grew darker, and at the farther end or recess formed by an elbow of the rocky passage there was total obscurity. The silence was broken by the tinkle and gurgle of a tiny spring which filtered out of the rock above and lost itself in the sandy bed of the cave, no doubt percolating down- wards to the sea - level. Taking a small lantern from his pocket, Andrew struck a light, and, aided by the feeble glimmer, dis- covered a small niche or cranny in the rock. Insertinof his hand, he drew out a small packet enveloped in oilskin. This he eagerly unrolled, and found the contents to be what he expected — a number of newspapers, po- litical catechisms, broad - sheets, lampoons, pamphlets, and other varieties of the revolu- tionary literature of France. Some smug- Satan's head. 175 gling lugger had doubtless been the agency of transmission. Sitting down on a ledge of rocks, he pro- ceeded to examine his treasure by the dim light of his lantern. His appreciative en- joyment was, however, interrupted by the sound of approaching footsteps. He in- stantly extinguished his lantern, and hastily rolling up the papers into a rough parcel, put them back again into the niche from which he had removed them. Then he stood motionless and expectant. The new- comer appeared to have paused at the entrance of the cave. He was also evi- dently impatient, for he ground the pebbles beneath his heels, and occasionally smote his cane or walking-stick against the sides of the rocky cavity. With infinite caution Andrew stole to- wards the salient angle of the passage and peered out. To his surprise he recognised Lord Wimpole. After a time that gentle- man's impatience seemed to be diverted by a train of more agreeable reflections, for he began to hum with a true but somewhat 176 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. dissonant voice some snatches of a French chanson, leaning the while against the wall of the cave. Andrew listened, and could not help smiling as he caught the words, the dainty triviality of which seemed to suit so little the haughty, grim-visaged singer : — " Douce bergerette, Humecte tes pieds Des claires rosees ; L'aube se dessine D'une couleur si fine ; Quitte ta blanche coiicliette Douce bergerette Douillette ! " Douce bergerette, Cueillis le frais bouton Qui sent pour moi si bon, Parce qu'il contient Le parf um de ta main ; Ne te cache pas, finette, Douce bergerette, Douillette ! L'aube, c'est ton sourire " The song was interrupted by the approach of another individual, who appeared to be in haste. Lord Wimpole drew himself erect. SATAN S HEAD. l77 and said in a tone of stern displeasure, " You have kept me waiting an unconscion- able time, Simpson." " I humbly beg pardon, my lord, but " " Explanations import a further loss of time," said Lord Wimpole, curtly. *' Let us proceed to business. I suppose there is no risk of eavesdroppers here ? " "You may be sure there's naebody here," said Simpson, confidently. " Eh, but it's a damp, gruesome hole is this cave. I can understand why Abraham used the cave of Machpelah for a grave. I wadna come here after nightfall for a king's ransom. There's an uncanny sough aboot it. There hae been ghosts seen '^ " Spirits you mean," said Lord Wimpole, drily. " Now listen to me." Andrew also prepared to listen. He had no squeamish scruples about eavesdropping in such circumstances. He scented roguery, and inwardly congratulated himself upon an opportunity which might not improbably be fruitful of important revelations. On the one hand his political prejudices suggested VOL. I. M 178 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. suspicion of an aristocrat, and on the other he had a very feeble faith in Simpsons honesty. Possibly, also, the study of French political literature led him to justify a pro- ceeding repugnant to a British sense of honour. He therefore listened with both his ears. "It is time, Simpson, that we made other arrangements regarding Miss Bell,'' began his lordship. " The maid grows wonderfully beautiful, and people are beginning to sur- mise that she is no relation of yours. Be- sides, the Anchor Inn is no place for her, nor are you the most fitting guardian for her." " Maybe she is safer wi' me than she would be wi' your lordship," Simpson retorted some- what sulkily. "I hae my principles, and if any impudent loon said an ill-guided word to Bell, I would keelhaul him properly. Naebody can say that I have neglected her. She has been well grounded in the Carritches, wi' the reasons annexed ; and if that's no guid ballast for a lassie, I dinna ken what is." Satan's head. 179 " I am not blaming you. Your principles, though somewhat limited in their range, are sound enough so far as they go," said Lord Wimpole. *' But she must now make a new departure. I propose that she should go to a boarding-school or ladies' seminary of some kind. We had a long conversation yester- day." " The lassie was in a bit o' a fluther after it," said Simpson, suspiciously. '* I'm no very sure that I acted richtly in taking her to see your lordship." " What do you mean ? " demanded Lord Wimpole. " Weel, ye see, you fine gentlemen, lords mair particularly, seem to think that, besides haein' the purple and fine linen and Ben- jamin's portion o' rich vivers, ye should also hae ony bonnie lassie that comes in your way. Now, to my thinking, the bonnie lassies should fall to the common lads, as a kind o' what Andrew Prosser calls a solatium for the lack o' the fine things you and those like you enjoy. It's no fair that you should hae everything. However, our time's com- 180 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. ing. Whether would you like to be Dives or Lazarus a hundred years after this ? " From the theological colour of this question, it may be surmised that Simpson had been " bowsing his jib." " Well," replied Lord Wimpole, with a laugh, " I would like to be in some other person's bosom than Abraham's.'' " Dinna be profane, my lord, if you please." '' I beg your pardon ; but we are irrelevant. As for our young friend's excitement, it was natural. I told her she was not your niece." '' Hoots ! that's piper's news to her. She has lang seen through that fable. Ye must hae said mair than that." " I said more than I have any intention of repeating," was the haughty rejoinder. " I dinna want to ken what ye said ; but mind, I didna bring her up to be a fine gen- tleman's plaything." '' Forbear your insolence : her virtue is more precious to me than it can be to you." " Ay, ay ! we a' mean to be good till temp- tation comes like a squall, and then we're Satan's head. 181 on our beam-ends afore we ken where we are. Ill no hae her wranged. She's a win- some wee thmg, for a' her pride." " A winsome wee thing ! Thank you for that, Simpson. You have well described her." "Of course, if your lordship means to marry her, it's different. Ye might do waur. She's a bonny quean." " A queen indeed ! You are inspired to- day, Simpson. But this is not business. Tush ! who can think of her and not deem everything else for the moment unworthy of a thought ? She has bewitched me." " It's a fine thing when our inclina- tions and our interests row in the same boat." " What mean you by that ? " " Naething very particular. But it's some- times difficult to make out which o' the twa thino's is rowinof the stroke-oar." " No innuendoes, if you please. What do you mean ? " " Weel, if I may be so bold, I think your lordship wants to get out of a difficulty by 182 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. marrying her. You might have adopted her, if you meant kindly by her." " I see I must make things clear to your blundering intelligence. First, then, I al- most hated her for long, as the daughter of a favoured rival. She was the outward token of my defeat. I was robbed of my paternity. But that feeling has long van- ished ; it makes me shudder to think of it. In the next place, I could not show any manifest interest in her for a shoal of reasons. People would have said she was my child, the fruit of some obscure amour. Then again, if my interest in her had been too evident, she might imagine that she had a claim on me, might expect me to be a fairy godfather to her for the rest of her days, might have become dissatisfied with her station. On the other hand, she might be too grateful, might become devoted to me — 'tis neck or nothing with romantic young girls ; they hate or they adore, as they would describe their milk-and-water pas- sions. Now, though I have not your noble virtue, and have never learnt the Catechism Satan's head. 183 with the reasons annexed, I have never in my most luxurious moods dreamt of doing her harm. Her mother's memory has made her sacred in my eyes, and will keep her so. I hope you have followed this tedious explanation. Well now, I have broken ground. I have told her that she may without loss of self-respect avail herself of any means taken to better her education, and I wish you to use your influence and authority to determine her concurrence in my plans." " Weel, there is a lot to be said there- anent. First and foremost, girls ding a for camsteariness. They ken their power. They ken ye canna bang them aboot as ye would a thrawn laddie. Why, they're madams afore they're oot o' short frocks. Ye think ye're getting on fine wi' a lassie, skimming alang wi' a breeze abaft the beam, and you at the helm priding yoursel' on your sea- manship, when a' at ance she broaches to, and ye maun let everything fly. Davy Jones himsel' couldna steer them, the jauds ! Then there's another side to the question. If she 184 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. leaves me, I supj)ose your lordship means to withdraw aliment." " Well, you would not expect to be paid for doing nothing. You have already feathered your nest well." " Weel, ye see, I do expect to be paid for doing nothing, for what I might do might be inconvenient to your lordship." " Oh, ho ! blackmailing ! Why, you shabby villain, I could ruin you. I could rack-rent you out of Fownie." " Maybe ye could, I'll no say ; and maybe you would like to do it. But it wouldna be safe. I dinna mean to be pitched overboard like Jonah. I dinna ask to sit in the cabin, but I expect a berth on board. Whales are no sae providential nowadays." " Do you, in your wildest moments of im- pudence, hope to have me at your mercy ? " demanded Lord Wimpole. " I am ready to defy any and every man, as I would defy the devil himself in his blackest pit." " Whist ! whist ! ye God-forgotten sinner, that I should say so," cried Simpson, in hor- rified accents. "Ye are prood as Lucifer SATAN S HEAD. 185 himsel' nae doot, and daring ; I ken your heart is stout ; but what becomes o' human pride and human daring, when the last trump sounds over land and sea? How will ye feel when ye hear your lang indict- ment read out ? Ye will call on the rocks to hide you." Lord Wimpole was for a few minutes silent. Simpson was not a pattern of vir- tue, but he was fervently orthodox, and his earnestness made him for the moment re- S2)ectable. " Every Scotchman is a theologian, as every Frenchman is an actor," resumed Lord Wimpole, sarcastically. " But to be iprsiC- tical. What knowledge do you possess which it would be worth my while to sup- press ? Out with it." " I ken the exact date o' Bell's birth for ae thing. I ken other things forby. Na, na, Lord Wimpole, ye needna think to fling the glaiks in my een. I see through your plan. Ye want to marry the lassie so as to n:iake yersel' safe. Your love, my lord, is a painted flame." 186 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. Andrew heard a furious oath, the sudden shuifling of feet, a half-choked exclamation of rage and terror, and peering out from his coign of vantage, he saw Lord Wimpole clutching Simpson by the throat, his feat- ures livid and distorted with the fierce emotions agitating him. Andrew sprang to his feet and ran towards the mouth of the cave. "Hands off!" he shouted, and rushing up to Lord Wimpole, twined his hand within his silken cravat, and dragged him away from Simpson. Lord Wimpole was for a moment con- founded by Andrew's sudden apparition. Li another instant he had grappled with him. Andrew was a man of exceptional physical power, but he had found his match, and it was only by the application of a wrestlinof trick that he was able to throw his antagonist. He fell heavily with him and upon him. Lord Wimpole lay quite still, while Andrew scrambled to his feet, and glanced anxiously round for some defensive weapon. Then Lord Wimpole sat up and Satan's head. 187 gazed silently at Andrew. His face was ashy pale ; his features, as it were, petrified in a hideous mask of concentrated hate, while beads of froth oozed out at the corners of his lips. He rose slowly to his feet and confronted Andrew. " I shall settle scores with you after- w^ards," he said in a low voice. " Aweel, my lord, you'll find my books kept by Double Entry," said Andrew, stoutly, "and you may be sure you'll get a receij^t in full." " You insolent dog ! " said Lord Wimpole, grinding out the words through his clenched teeth. "You insolent aristocrat!" retorted An- drew, infusing into the epithet all its French offensiveness. Lord Wimpole cast one sinister look of disdain and malignity at Andrew, and then, with a careless glance at Simpson, strode away from the cave. The two men listened in silence to the churning and grating of the shingle under his furious and precipitate steps. 188 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. "Your bread's baked, my braw callant," muttered Simpson, with a white face and tremblinof voice. " Ye had better take the winofs o' the morniner and flee to the utter- most parts o' the sea." " Hoots awa' ! " said Andrew, " I'm no to be daunted wi' his catamountain looks. Besides, you and I ken the chink in his armour." "Ye heard a' that was said?" " Every doom's word. Now, Brother Bonifacius, mind your oath ! " " This is no political matter, Andrew." " You'll find it will turn out so. If that tinselled knave seeks vengeance, it will be through my political associations ; and then you'll hae to keep your weather-eye lifting on your ain account." Simpson grunted an unwilling assent, and the two men set out homewards. The fog had lifted, and the sun was shining brightly. In the distance they could see Lord Wim- pole's tall figure striding onwards like an embodied Fate. 189 CHAPTER X. LORD WIMPOLE STUDIES REVENGE. Tpie two men walked along in silence till they reached the part of the cliffs fronting Satan's Head. Then Andrew said, " This is a fine quiet spot, Simpson. We'll sit down here, for you and I have an account to redd up." A man \tho has just been half-throttled may be excused for being in a somewhat irritable state ; and besides, Simpson was annoyed and dismayed that his conversation with Lord Wimpole had been overheard. Accordingly, he replied gruffly — " Ye're aye catechising me, Andrew. But ye're no my father confessor, mind that. And besides, this is nane o' your business. Dinna scaud your fingers wi' other folk's 190 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. kail. Ye'll find your ain het enough, if I'm no mistaken." '' Here's gratitude ! " said Andrew. '^ But for me, your harns ran a chance of being plastered on the side of the cave." " I'll no deny that ye did me a good turn ; but, my certy, ye charge compound inter- est for any service ye dae me ! What dae your copy-books say? 'Virtue is its ain . " My cojDy-books also say, * Honesty is the best policy.' Sit down, Simpson ; you've got to hear me. I know enough to be dangerous, mind that." Simpson seemed to feel the force of the remark, for he sulkily complied. " Now, Simpson, I needna say that I didna intend to listen to your conversation. I was forced to listen, for I didna want to have to explain what I was doing in the cave. However, there's nae need for apologies. Everything is lawful against villany. When crime steeks the door, justice keeks in by the keyhole. And if justice is blind, as she is represented to be. LORD WIMPOLE STUDIES REVENGE. 191 the mair need for her to hae sflee* hearingf. Now, Simpson, you know all about Miss Bell, mair than even his braw lordship jalooses." " That's my affair," said Simpson, doggedly. " Is Brother Bonifacius a rocrue ? " asked Andrew, cuttingly. " Does a Templar wrong an orphan ? " " The Templars hae naething to do with this." " Ay, but they have. We are republicans, and must cherish republican virtues. Do the Bio^hts of Man not include the rio-hts of orj^hans ? A man cannot be a pure patriot and a base traitor at the same time." '*Ye may talk, Andrew Prosser ; and i' faith, your tongue is like the clapper o' a mill ! It w^ould deave the last trumpet " " Good ! " exclaimed Andrew with solemn exaltation. " You speak of the last trumpet. How will you stand then, with injustice done and villany concealed and connived at ? What says the grand Latin hymn — oh, the noble words ! — 'Quidqiiid latet apparebit, Nil inultuiu remanebit,' 192 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. which means, that everything hidden will come to light, and nothing shall remain un- avenged. Think of that and tremble. If you hide a wrong, you are an accomplice. Even poor blindfolded Justice says that. An orphan forby ! There's much I dinna believe in. The Calvinistic Deity is in my opinion no more like the true Deity than — with rev- erence be it spoken — the chalk caricatures made of me by my saucy pupils resemble me ; but, like the virtuous Robespierre, I believe in the Supreme Being. And ye may be sure that He has a mair tender feeling for orphans than for any others of His creatures. He must be in a deeper sense a Father to them, to make up for the loss of an earthly father." " Ye should hae been a minister, Andrew," said Simpson, considerably impressed by this long harangue, and recovering his ingratia- ting manner. " Man, Simpson, ye hae nae mair sense than a canary, which whistles loudest at family worship," said Andrew, with impatient disgust. " What is the connection between Bell and that titled villain ? " LORD WIMPOLE STUDIES REVENGE. 193 " Ye heard for yoursel'." " True enough, I didna put my ears in my pocket ; but hearing is one thing and under- standing another." " Ye must be satisfied wi' this, that I'll no see Bell wranged. I'll bide my time till everything is ready, and then " " How many years' purchase of your life hae ye got, Simpson ? " asked Andrew, sol- emnly. "If I die, there's documents," was the reply. " Where are they ? " '' In a safe place." "I see how it is. Ye hae got a dumb spirit in you. But I have not." " Ye never said a truer word than that," rejoined Simpson with a gruff laugh. " I'll bring the matter up at the first Chapter of the Templars, and then you'll be forced to give an account of yourself" *' Here's fine liberty o' the subject, if a body has to tell his private affairs. Afore ye put down the tyranny o' Governments, put down your ain tyranny." VOL. I. N 194 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Bide a wee, Brother Bonifacius. Obe- dience is the first duty of man ; the only question is, what and whom he has to obey. Is it to be a senseless despotism, or an en- lightened and beneficent authority ? " " Knight Templars here or Knight Tem- plars there, I'll keep my affairs to mysel'," said Simpson, obstinately. " Is that your last word ? " '' That's the end o' the chapter," said SimjDSon with a grin. " Then I wash my hands of the conse- quences. Mind, I'll no rest. Dearly as I love liberty, I love justice mair. You are a marked man, Simpson." " Threats ? " ^' Yes," said Andrew, with a heightened colour. " The Templars represent the true type of society in which a man shall be com- pelled to do right, or become a fugitive and a vagabond like Cain." "Ye needna craw sae crouse, Andrew Prosser," rej)lied Simpson, with a dark scowl. " If you dae me an ill turn, you'll rue it. There's twa can play at clypin'." LORD WIMPOLE STUDIES REVENGE. 195 " My braw man, if you turn informer you had better order a suit of armour, an iron mask, and a brazen tower to live in, for I wouldna gie a plack for your life. Get you gone, miserable wretch ! " Simpson growled some unintelligible words, and with a parting look of fear and hatred, set oif at a good round pace for Fownie ; while Andrew retraced his steps to the cave to recover his packet of papers. Simpson, however, had not gone far before he suddenly came upon Lord Wimpole at a turn of the path. He was standing motion- less, with his arms crossed upon his broad chest, and with his cane forking out behind him, as if in readiness for an instant blow. Perhaps he had expected to encounter An- drew. The heavy scowl upon his brow re- laxed when he caught sight of Simpson, and he unclasped his arms. " I am of few words, Simpson," he said, with a lordly look in little consistency with the apology which he now offered. " I have done you an outrage. Accept either my apology or a sum of money as solatium." 196 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " I am satisfied Avi' the apology," replied Simpson in a surly tone; " but I would advise you next time to keep your ten command- ments afF a body's thrapple." '' Enough said ! You have accepted my apology, and I love not to drink the lees of a quarrel. Moreover, the indignity has been as much mine as yours. I wish you to come in the course of an hour to Swinton Hall. We have need of further consultation." " Aweel, if you promise no to mishandle me " Simpson began. Lord Wimpole's eyes flashed, and bend- ing forward so as to gaze into Simpson's eyes, at the same time stretching forward his long and powerful forefinger, and point- ing it at Simpson's throat, he said in a low tone — " I shall never strike you again, Simpson ; it will depend upon yourself whether I kill you or not. Now, will you come ? " "Ay, I'll come," Simpson replied, with an abject look of fear. Accordingly, after Simpson had returned to the Anchor Inn, had composed his agi- LORD WIMrOLE STUDIES REVENGE. 197 tatecl nerves with a stiff dram, and had re- paired the disorder of his attire, he set out for S win ton Hall. He was ushered into the library as on the previous occasion, and found Lord Wimpole tranquilly seated at his escritoire. "Take a seat, and excuse me for a brief instant," said that gentleman, in a more gracious tone than was habitual with him. " Meanwhile, help yourself to a glass of wine or spirits. I take very little of these things myself, because I don't desire to go to the devil before my time." Simpson, nothing loath, complied with the invitation, and Lord Wimpole finished his letter. Having done so, he rang the bell, and directed that the missive should be instantly conveyed to Mr Gordon, senior. Then he sat down, leaned back in his chair, threw one leg over the other in an easy posture, and confronted Simpson with a smile of demure mockery. " Talking of the devil, Simpson, I have sometimes thought that he is a distillation," he beofan. 198 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. "A — distillation?" repeated Simpson, with his glass half-way to his lips. " Ay, you are a theologian, and have no doubt some light — lurid light — on the sub- ject." ^' The less said aboot him the better," replied Simpson. " He's a chiel that has got lang ears." " Ay, the devil is an ass, no doubt ; for why should he persist in doing evil when he knows he will be defeated in the long-run ? And since his business is a losing one, why should we not all leave his sooty forge, where we help to make his fiery darts? Or to change the metaphor, why should we not cease to run his contraband spirits, and pay duty to the King, as we should? Come, shall we give up the illicit traffic, and try honesty for a change ? " " If you think you can afford to do it," said Simj)son, slowly. '' That I can, and that I would have you know," said Lord Wimpole, emphatically. " I believe I have finished my apprenticeship; or if not, I can always run my indentures." LORD WIMPOLE STUDIES REVENGE. 199 " You are speaking in parables, my lord ; and as I am a plain man " " Oh, you are shrewd enough, Simpson, shrewd enough. And being orthodox, you will take care not to give the devil too strong a purchase. But if you thought he were only a distillation, what then ? " " Ay, what then ? " echoed Simpson, with a bewildered stare. " You will not pare an inch off his claws, or abridge his tail, such is your orthodoxy. And yet, he is merely a distillation. Your heart and mine, Simpson, is the still, and wicked thoughts are the vapours which, when condensed, form this potent spirit. Now perfumes, delicious perfumes, giving sweetness to beauty in itself far more sweet, may also be distilled. What say you if we distil perfumes instead of this rank and fiery spirit ? " " Weel, my lord, you hae doubtless a meaning, but I wish you would distil it,'^ said Simpson, with a laugh. " I shall do so," said Lord Wim^Dole, with an abrupt transition to sternness. " You 200 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. think I have a guilty secret, and you think to trade upon it. You expect hush-money ; you hope to keep me in a shivering, shnking, base submission. You do not know your man, Simpson. If there is a single deed of mine hid in the shadows of my past life which should threaten my ruin, then I should appeal to goodness, not to cupidity. You are warned. I truckle to no one for any poor boon my life affords. You understand me now ? " " Yes, I understand you, my lord," replied Simpson, " and I never had any intention o' fashing your lordship ; but that's nae reason why another man should share our secrets.'' " You mean Prosser, I supj)ose ? " " Yes. He kens ower muckle or suspects ower muckle." " I understand he is a friend of yours." " Andrew would tire out the best friend he ever had. He is dominie out o' school as weel as in it. A dog daurna wag his tail in Fownie without Andrew's leave. He has a grievous tongue, has Andrew. I think a change o' air would dae him good." LORD WIMPOLE STUDIES REVENGE. 201 " I agree with you : he is a pragmatical, prying scoundrel." " That's ower stranor- a word. He means weel." " To the Government ? " " As for that, 111 sae naething. I'll no sow hemp-seed for my ain neck." " They say he is a member of a secret society : is that true ? " " There's a lot o' clishmaclavers in a wee place like Fownie. Folks will be suspecting me next." " Very probably. How came he to be in the cave to-day ? " " This is the Wednesday half-holiday, and he would be taking a daunder alang the shore. And that reminds me, he'll be gang- in' to Dundee in the evening"." " For what purpose ? " " To see his Aunt Jane." " Or some other Jane." " Na, na ; Andrew's a respectable lad. I'll no hae his character abused. His auntie is a widow woman, and needs help in making up her books and writing out orders. I hae 202 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. seen her mysel', so that's j)roof positive ; and she's a douce canny body, though she's aye craikin' aboot her ailments. Of course, he may hae other business to transact. We hae nae richt to take precognition o' his doinofs." " Then he probably goes on some political errand. Don't you think so ? " " I neither meddle nor make wi' politics. For what says the Preacher ? ' Curse not the king, no not in thy thought ; for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter.' He was a wise man, was Solomon, except that he had ower mony wives. I find ane enough, and whiles mair than enough." Lord Wimpole leant lazily forward and picked up a paper-cutter, with which he amused himself by making passes through the air as if he were lopping off the heads of poppies. *' Your principles do you honour, Simpson, in a general way, but veracity is not one of them. Alas ! many an inventor of fiction is lost to literature for want of a good edu- LORD WIMPOLE STUDIES REVENGE. 203 cation. And conversely, may we not say that creative art acts sometimes like a seton or cataplasm, and draws away the peccant humours ? But I am wasting time. Not- withstanding your profession of political indifference, Simpson, you are yourself a member of a Secret Society ; and if I wished to suppress you, how easy it would be I " Simpson started to his feet with blanched cheeks and glaring eyes. " My lord, you are jesting," he faltered. " You — you " " Sit down, my good man. I can keep a secret as well as you. I intend you no harm. But you will answer me a few ques- tions, if you please. When does Prosser go to Dundee ? " " About six o'clock. But " " Give me leave. I think there is time. I can get a warrant of arrest, and set the town-officer of St Thomas to work by that time." " But, my lord " " Give me leave. He takes the usual coach-road ? " 204 BED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Yes. But surely, my lord " " Pray do not interrupt. You are safe enough. Will he be armed ? " " He'll hae a stout walking-stick, and he'll use it, my lord. Wow, but Andrew will fecht ! You had better gie the idea up. It's an unchancy affair." " Well, I could get John Wilkie to help," said Lord Wimpole, thoughtfully. " John hates Republicans, as the devil hates holy water." " John Wilkie ! his wooden leg is a sair impediment. Of course he has his cutlash. But it wouldna be wise to use it. Andrew will be like a lion in the swellings of Jordan, and that's a sma' comparison." " So much the worse for Prosser. It will be deforcement." " He'll no mind what they call it. He'll fecht like Apollyon in the Valley of Humili- ation. Na, na, my lord ; wait till ye get a squad o' soldiers, if ye must hae your revenge on the puir fellow. Eh, but I'm wae for him ! " " You wish to gain time for warning him. LORD WIMPOLE STUDIES REVENGE. 205 I tell you there is no intention of proceeding against your Associated Order, or whatever you call it. We merely wish to lop off an excrescence. Doubtless you would require to be circumspect, but a long career of smug- gling has made you a master of craft and subterfuge." " But what has led your lordship to think that I would be sic a daft gowk, sic a red- w^ud, senseless, glaikit idiot" — he went on, gnashing his teeth — "as to join ony un- lawfu, seditious, treasonable society ? I wad hae nae mair brains than a tomtit '' " Yes ; that reminds me that one of your confederates is a bird-fancier," said Lord Wimpole, with a mischievous smile. " Oh Lord ! Guid be gracious to us ! Here's a bonny kettle o' fish ! But if the warst comes to the warst, I'll make a clean breast o' it. I'll no be hanged and quartered for a lot o' ranting, raving, bletherin' loons. Oh Lord ! what will my wife say ? " He sat down in his chair, trembling in every limb, while Lord Wimpole surveyed him with a mocking smile. 206 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Pooh, pooh ! Simpson, you take too tragic a view of the matter," he said, after a considerable interval, during which Simp- son's imagination had ample time to erect a gibbet. " I pledge you my protection. Be under no alarm. You will not be in- criminated or molested. Now I must be off. Pray excuse me if I terminate this interview somewhat abruptly. There is just one thing I must beg. Don't warn Prosser — it might be dangerous. And now, good day to you. Help yourself to a glass of spirits. You are somewhat perturbed." So saying, he nodded blandly, and left the room. 207 CHAPTEE XL BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. Simpson wended his way homewards in a daze, with but one thought luridly bright in the hazy horror of his mind — the thought, namely, that he was a ruined man. For if Andrew were arrested, as seemed likely, and compromising documents were found in his possession revealing the existence, the haunt, and the membership of the Knight- Templars, his own connection with that treasonable society was certain to come to light. Lord Wimpole had endeavoured to reassure him ; but was it not manifestly his lordship's interest to get rid of him ? At times, in the whirl and turmoil of his thoughts, the recollection of the grimly 208 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. smiling nobleman whisking off the heads of imaginary flowers pictured itself before his imagination, and he shuddered. The whole interview indeed, though his mind was too turbid to reproduce its details, had left an abiding sense of Lord Wimpole's formidable superiority of intellect, will, and daring ; and he fervently resolved that if, by a happy chance, he escaped the present imminent danger, he would never again provoke a conflict with so terrible an antagonist. But in the meantime, what was he to do ? Despite Lord Wimpole's warning, he re- solved to give Andrew an intimation of danger. While he had been at Swinton Hall, Bell had been seated in the little private parlour of the inn making a head-dress — bonnets were not then in vogue — for Mrs Simpson. The basis of this structure was a head- piece of jonquille- coloured silk artistically crumpled, from the summit of which soared three diverging feathers forming the " pan- ache," as it was called. BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKEKS. 209 As Mrs Simpson was tall and stout, Bell could not think of the appearance which the portly dame would present without a mingled feeling of awe and dismay. Mrs Simpson, meanwhile, standing with her arms akimbo, watched the young girl's manipulations with admiring interest and anticipative delight. Her face was large and powerful, the massive features being nobly moulded, and she had a magnificent head of coal-black hair, so that Bell often thought she might have served as a model for a Boman empress. A kind and generous heart beat within that exuberant bosom ; but alas ! she was at times unable to resist the blandishments of her husband's cognac. When she in- dulged this weakness, her whole nature ap- peared to be transformed. At the slightest provocation she fell into a paroxysm of blind and irresponsible fury, in which her great strength made her supremely dangerous. At such times her husband deemed it pru- dent to lurk in cautious seclusion ; and even Bell, who with all her gentleness was high- VOL. I. o 210 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. spirited, shrank from the unfortunate woman with nervous trepidation. For once, but only once, Mrs Simpson had struck her so violent a blow as to render her unconscious. The unhappy woman was sobered at once by the act, and her con- trition had been as violent in its expression as the rage which had preceded it. She tore her hair, and beat her bosom ; and when Bell had come to herself, overwhelmed the girl with passionate caresses and floods of repentant tears. The blow had never been repeated, and Bell was henceforth the only one who could in some measure moderate the trans- ports of her intoxicated frenzy. When she felt the terrible craving assert its tyranny, for her fits of intoxication seemed a kind of physical crisis, she would implore Bell to watch her, and keep her out of temptation as far as possible. As Bell grew up, she became increasingly successful in warding off these excesses, which seemed rather a kind of demoniacal possession than a voluntary self-indulgence. Though the word dipsomania had not yet been in- BLESSED AKE THE PEACEMAKERS. 211 vented, and cle23tomania was more succinctly denominated thievery, there can be little doubt that Mrs Simpson was the victim of an inherited propensity for drink. She was an Englishwoman, whom Simpson had met and married at Portsmouth. His feelings towards his wife were somewhat complicated. He was proud of her, but in his inmost heart profoundly afraid of her, for he was conscious that her most favour- able attitude towards him was one of good- natured tolerance not unmingled with con- tempt. Under the influence of cognac she became at once aggressive. She was fas- tidiously clean and tidy in her habits, and Simpson's neglect of the minor graces of dress and deportment affected her with a feeling of almost physical repulsion. She had the reputation of being " near " in money matters, of which she had the sole management, though Simpson cheated her with comically transparent artfulness, and secreted little hoards with a kind of magpie subtlety. She had, however, a good excuse for her parsimony ; she was bent on accumu- 212 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. latinof a " tocher " for Bell. She had never had a child of her own, and all her baffled maternity spent its affection on her " little lass." "You are quick with your fingers, dear," remarked Mrs Simpson, after a long silence. " You would make a good milliner." " I sometimes thought of learning that occupation," Bell replied, " when I have been in perplexity about my future." Mrs Simpson shook her head. " Better things are in store for you than that," she said, in a somewhat melancholy tone. " You will leave me, I fear, ere long, and then what will become of me without you, my dear ? " " We won't speak of that, dear aunt," said Bell, affectionately. " We shall have to speak of it ; I know what is being said. Everybody knows that you should not be in a common inn, but should be getting the education proper for a young lady. And so you should, no doubt. But you won't look down on your poor aunt, will you ? I have never wronged you. I BLESSED AEE THE PEACEMAKERS. 213 know nothing of your birth or parentage, my dear ; and if you had been my own daughter, I could not have loved you more." " I know that, dear. I have never felt the misery and sad dependence of an orphan, thanks to your fond affection." "It is good of you to say so. But things are shaping, I know well. Lord Wimpole and my man have been a good deal together of late, and something is brewing. But his lordship shall not make a cat's-paw of the silly oaf." " I am sure Lord Wimpole means me no harm." " Little you know, you sweet innocent ! He is a fine and stately man, no doubt, and perhaps too proud for ordinary vices, but there's a canker at his heart. He is like one of the grand old oaks which I have seen in my native county of Hereford, fair to see, but all decayed within. "Wait till a storm comes." " I doubt you are prejudiced, dear aunt," said Bell, in a low voice. 214 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. ''It is natural for you to think so, darling, knowing little of the evil of this deceitful world. When I was your age," she went on, with a sigh and a downcast look, " I thought the same. I was a lady's-maid in my young days. If I could forget all that happened then, maybe I would not need the devil's comfort that I crave for, God forgive me ! Put away that silly gewgaw, my dear," she added, pointing to the headdress ; "it sickens me to see it. Women, young and old, are empty fools, who would peril their soul's salvation for a painted rag or a glittering stone. Strange that worms should spin a covering for what the worms must so soon consume. Away with it, my dear ! But when I said all women were fools, I didn't mean you, God bless you ! " She strained the young girl to her bosom, tenderly kissed her, and then went up-stairs. Shortly after, Simpson entered the parlour. " What is the matter, Mr Simpson ? " asked Bell, alarmed by his disordered looks and almost convulsive movements. BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. 215 He threw himself into a chair with a heavy groan, and wiped away the cold sweat that bedew^ed his brow. " AVhat's the matter, quo' she ! " he replied, irritably. " Everything's the matter." Then with a sudden change to self- com- miseration, " Eh, lassie, lassie ! " he groaned out, '' ' Strono' bulls of Bashan have com- passed me about ; ' or at least there's ane that has tossed me and gored me, and means, I think, to trample the life out o' my miserable body. ' Put not thy trust in princes,' Bell, nor in lords — the lords o' justiciary least of all, God be mercifu' to me ! " Shall I go for my aunt ? " asked Bell, who was beginning to be seriously alarmed. " What ! go for my aunt — I mean my wife — ye daft limmer ? " repeated Simpson, in great dismay. '' Na, na ; she would be Job's wife to me this day. Where is she ? " " Up-stairs." " That's ae drop o' comfort in my bitter cup. Now, steek the door, my dawtie. I dinna want Peggy to hear what I hae to say. 216 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. And if ye dinna understand, for God's sake dinna deave me wi^ questions, for my head is bummin like a bees' byke. Now listen to me. Bell. Ye maun ken that Andrew Prosser and Lord Wimpole hae had a bit tuilzie, and his lordship is neither to haud nor to bind ower it." *' Oh, I am grieved to hear it," said Bell ; *' but why " *' There ye begin, ye silly tawpie," said Simpson, peevishly. " Can ye no stop your gab for twa minutes ? I was saying they had a scuffle thegither, and his lordship is hot for revenge " *' Oh, do not say that ! " protested Bell ; "he is too high-minded " " There ye gang again ! " cried Simpson, clapping his hands to his head ; " what wi' dominies, lords, and lassies, life in this God- forgotten place is nae better than the valley of Jehoshaphat. Will ye listen, ye gibbie- gash ? " "Not if you speak to me in that way, Mr Simpson," said Bell, proudly. " Eh, but ye're a thrawn huzzie, Bell ! BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. 217 Ye needna take the dorts, lassie ; as I am this day, my words are like the sj)arks that fly upwards. Ye're a kind-hearted creature, I ken that brawly." " Well, I shall try not to interrupt,'^ said BeU. " Thank goodness for that ! Weel, ye see, Lord Wimpole is thinking o' getting An- drew arrested. Hooly now. Bell ! Whether a man can be arrested for a common assault or no, I dinna ken ; the lawyers, confound them, ken that best. But the affair is mair fankled than that. That's but a drop in the bucket. For, ye see, Andrew and me are members o' a kind o' club or society — free- masons like — and the Government is sus- picious o' a' societies at this time. Forby that, there's a sough abroad that Andrew is disloyal, and maybe this is a roondaboot way o' getting him into the cleiks o' the law. So I want you to warn him. He'll be gangin' to Dundee the nicht — tell him he's no to gang on nae account whatever. He maun juik and let the jaw gae by. Do ye understand that, my dawtie ? " 218 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Tolerably well ; but oh, Mr Simpson, things are far worse than you have hinted." Simpson groaned. " I misdoot ye're no far wrang, lassie. But do as I tell ye. Ye'll gang to Andrew, and ye'll say to him first, ' When is lint in the bell ? ' — though, my certy, hemp would be the properer word, wae's me ! After that ye'll say, ' An Achan is in the camp.' These are passwords, ye ken, and will let him see that ye hae your credentials, so to speak. Do ye understand that, my dear." Bell nodded. " Then ye'll warn him no to leave Fownie this nicht, nor for mony a nicht to come." " But why do you not warn him your- self?" asked Bell. " Why do I not warn him mysel', quo' she ? " said Simpson, evidently staggered by the question. " Weel, ye see, Andrew and I hae had words. He would slam the door in my face, that would he. Or if he did listen to me, he would gang against my advice to spite me. That cock winna fecht, lassie. But he'll be guided by you ; you can BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. 219 row folks roond your little finger. So rin awa^ my dawtie, and do your errand, and rU be muckle obleeged to you." "Very well ; I'll do my best, Mr Simpson," said Bell. SimjDSon appeared to be much relieved. " Naebody can say now that I didna act the part o' the good Samaritan,^' he said, self- complacently. " Oi^ty? folks shouldna gang to Jericho if they can help it. Eh, but 111 remember this on my last bed, and it will be a comfort to me. My auld mither — rest her soul ! — would hae been prood o' me this day." So saying, he left the parlour, and Bell heard him presently clinking glasses behind the bar. As Bell went up the village street to- wards the schoolhouse, the goodwives of the place, who all thought her an " upsetting quean," leaned on their domestic brooms or wiped the soap-suds from their brawny arms to exchange appropriate comments. " There's the little madam," said one, in a pregnant whisper. 220 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " She's in an unco fluther," remarked a neighbour gossip. " She's fell prood," said another. " She's aye been finger-fed, ye see. She's the English wife's dawtie. I'm thinkin' she was a' the tocher Sam got wi' his braw wife." "Fat for suld that stunkered-looking loon be hand in glove wi' Tam ? Ay, ay, the cat aye kens the road to the kirn." " She's no sic a burning beauty when a' is said," remarked a stout dame, sourly. " She's but a shilj)it willow- wand o' a lassock. The deil confound her dirty pride 1 " " Hoots, Mrs Flucker, the lassie's weel eneugh ! " protested another gossip. " She canna help being genty. She's got guid bluid in her. Some lord's bye-blow, nae doot." " What's bred in the bane will come oot in the flesh. She's gangin' her mither's gait, I trow." " The nicht afore last," said another, in a mysterious whisper, " his lordship stood for a lang while staring at her window. It had BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. 221 chappit ten, and I was looking oot for my man : I saw him wi' my ain een." Meanwhile Bell, anxiously preoccupied, and unconscious that she was running the gauntlet of censorious criticism and specula- tion, had sped her way to the schoolhouse. Mrs Badger was evidently astonished to see her, and on being asked whether Andrew was in, replied — " Ay, he's in ; but let me tell ye. Bell Simpson, it's no seemly for a young lassie to come speerin' after an unmarried man." " Oh, Mrs Badger ! " exclaimed Bell, with a burning blush. " I am sent by Mr Simp- son to see AndrcAv on serious business," she faltered, and then burst into tears. " Come in," said Mrs Badger more gently. ^' He's in his room dressin'. He is gangin' to see his Aunt Jane, ye ken." And she pursed her lips. " Pray tell him I am anxious to see him," faltered Bell, struggling with her emotion. " Dinna greet, lassie," said Mrs Badger. " It was only a word o' warnin'. We are a' frail creatures. Dinna greet. Ye'll hae 222 EED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. plenty o' time to dae that afore ye're as auld as me. If a' the tears I hae shed were put into a bottle, as the Psalmist says, it would need to be a big ane. I'll chap at his door." In a few minutes Andrew appeared. " Ah, Miss Bell ! " he exclaimed, with a beaming smile, " I'm blithe to see you. But you seem disturbed." " Mr Prosser, I was told to say to you, ^ When is lint in the bell ? ' " Andrew started and looked intently at the young girl. Then his face flushed, and his eyes sparkled angrily. " Anything else, Miss Bell ? " " He bade me also say, ' Brother, there is an Achan in the camp.' " " And what right has that shabby scoundrel to inveigle a young maid into a compromising situation ? Ay, ay, he's all of a piece ; there's neither honesty nor honour in his fause heart. And he is the Achan, no other ; and I well know the reason. Any- thing else. Miss Bell ? " " He warns you not to go to Dundee this BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. 223 evening. From his manner, I feel sure that he knows of danger threatening you." " Danger of arrest ? " " I fear so. Oh, Mr Prosser, be persuaded and do not go ! " " Not go ? I would go if the road were paved with red-hot coulters — or at least I would try. Am I the man to prate about liberty, and then creep into a mouse -hole when my personal liberty is threatened ? Besides, this is most probably a ruse on his part." " Really I do not think so," said Bell. "Mr Simpson seemed terribly agitated and alarmed." " That's good news, and he'll be mair agitated and alarmed when I meet him." " Andrew, be sensible for aince," said Mrs Badger, earnestly, " and dinna gang to Dundee. There's nae call for ye to thrust your hand into the cockatrice's den." "Ay, but there is, Mrs Badger — that I may grip it and squeeze the venomous reptile to death. And in short," he continued in a melancholy tone, " I care little what befalls 224 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. me. I have lost what Is far more precious than hberty. Let the tow gang wi' the bucket." " Oh, do not say so ! " said Bell, tearfully. " Your friends would be truly grieved if any misfortune happened to you." "Ah, Miss Bell, replied Andrew, with a sad smile, ' Most friendship is feigning, Most loving — mere folly ! ' That it is, mere folly, though at the time it may seem heavenly sweet. And as for friends, how many friends had Job when his calamities came thick and fast ? His wife told him to curse God and die — no doubt she wanted another man. Then his friends : did they help him to build his house, or club together to buy a wheen cows and sheep for him? No they. He scarted himself with potsherds, and they scarted him with cen- sorious speeches ; " and Andrew glanced at Mrs Badger, who was sitting fidgeting with her apron. "Verily this is a valley of Baca," she whimpered, hastily brushing away a few BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. 225 tears from her eyes. " Oh, Andrew, dinna be thrawn. Bide at hame the nicht." " Never ! " cried Andrew, hotly. " I'm low enough, God knows ; poor enough in purse and reputation ; and — and — yes, I am low enough, but I would indeed be still lower, at the very bottom of the abyss of ignominy, if I ceased to respect myself, and having denounced the Pharaoh who oppresses the People, trembled at the rumble of his chariots. I'll face this danger, whatever it IS. " A wilfu' man will hae his way," said Mrs Badger, with a heavy sigh. '' But let me tell you, my puir Andrew, ye should take mair thocht o' your life, considering how little prepared ye are for the losing of it, as I sadly fear." " Our Maker isna as anxious as an earthly monarch to find His creatures guilty of treason. He will quash many an indict- ment, I firmly believe." " Mrs Badger, will you oblige me with writing-paper ? " asked Bell, gently. " That I will, my hinnie," said Mrs Badger, VOL. I. . P 226 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. gulping down a sob ; " for, so far as puir human nature can be guid, you are guid, as I weel believe. A kind-hearted lassie ye are, and a bonnie ; and eh, if ye had but the robe of imputed righteousness, ye would be indeed a daughter o' the King o' Zion, all glorious within and without ! " She went into Andrew's parlour and pres- ently returned with writing materials. Then she sat down on a stool before the fire, and now and then furtively wij)ed away a tear. Andrew, meanwhile, leaning against the wall, gazed affectionately at the young maiden, as, seated at the kitchen table, she wrote the following lines : — " My Lord, — Having learned to my great distress that you and Mr Prosser have had an altercation, and that you are bitter against him (with what degree of justice I know not), insomuch that you design to proceed to extremities with him, which, I fear, import his utter ruin, I venture to take the great liberty (for which I hope your lordship will pardon me) of interceding on BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. 227 his behalf. He does not and shall not know of this proceeding on my part, and would perchance resent it ; but I owe him much gratitude for all his kindness to me, and he is, when understood, a very worthy and honourable man. I would therefore sub- missively entreat your lordship to show as much lenity and indulgence in this matter as you can. I add no more, for if my entreaties do not avail, much less will my arguments. — I rest, your lordship's most obedient servant, "Isabel Simpson." Having folded up and wafered this missive, she prepared to go. " I suppose I must not ask, Miss Bell, to whom you have addressed this letter ? " said Andrew. " That must remain a secret, Mr Prosser," said Bell, colouring. Andrew bowed and smiled ; and then Bell, having shaken hands with Mrs Badger, took her leave. " Isn't she a dear sweet creature that ? " said Andrew. 228 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. '^ Her lips drop honey and the honeycomb," rephed Mrs Badger, tremulously. " Oh, what a wearifu' warld ! what a wearifu' warld ! Everything's wrang ! When, oh ! when, will He come, whose right it is to reign ? " Andrew noiselessly returned to his par- lour. Bell now stejDped out briskly for Swinton Hall. At the siofht of each traveller in the distance her heart was contracted with a spasm of terror, for she feared that he might be Lord Wimpole. She reached the Hall, however, without encountering him, and having delivered the letter at the door to the elderly female who had admitted her on the occasion of her previous visit when ac- companied by Simpson, she turned quickly away from the house and re - entered the avenue. But those whom we do not wish to see have an uncomfortable trick of making their appearance ; and she had not advanced more than a few yards when she caught sight of Lord Wimpole at the farther extremity of the leafy vista. Her heart gave so violent a throb that she BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. 229 thought she would have fainted, her knees trembled beneath her, and her feet felt like lead as she advanced slowly to meet him, struggling the while to gain some degree of self-command. He was mounted, and his horse was flecked with foam, as if it had been hard driven. No sooner did he espy her than he sprang to the ground, and greeted her with ceremonious politeness, though there was a bright and elated look in his dark eyes. " I have left a note for your lordship, which will explain my errand," she said, pantingly. " Letters, my dear Isabel, are but halting substitutes for speech. Pray tell me your errand." "I have made a request." " 'Tis granted, to the utmost circumference of my poor ability." " Oh, sir, I thank you ! " said Bell. " The matter is this : we fear that you mean to punish Mr Prosser for his temerity in assail- ing you." He frowned, and fixed his penetrating gaze upon the young girl. 230 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " Will nothing cure that clown's blabbing indiscretion ? " he exclaimed, Avith vicious energy. Then more lightly : "I beg pardon. Methinks, dear child, the branks were more suited for men than for women. But permit me to correct a misunderstanding. Prosser, no doubt, is a fussy presumptuous fellow ; and he certainly laid hands on me, as I on him. It is impossible to say Avho was really the aggressor : we rushed at one another with the impetuosity, though not with the tender- ness, of a lover and his lass ; and when both are equally willing, it is dividing a hair 'twixt upper and nether side to demand who kissed first. But I wound your delicacy. Enough. I bear him no grudge. He is a man of courage, and I respect such. But alas ! my dear Isabel, his political principles are de- plorable, I have not been able to overlook the reports current as to his disaffection, and it appeared to me that the time had come to institute searching inquiries." ' " Ah, sir, you have destroyed my last hopes ! " said Bell, sadly. " Had I known you would have taken the BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. 231 matter so to heart, I would have left to others the dutv of investiofatmo- the amount of truth in these rumours regardmg him. As for the assault, pray think no more of it. He shall not be molested on that ac- count. And as for his possible arrest and examination, I shall endeavour to prevent it, or at least avert serious consequences. Rest assured I shall do my utmost for him — my utmost. My credit, protection, and purse are at his disposal." " Ah, my lord, this is indeed generous ! " said Bell, gratefully. "I am amply rewarded by your good opinion. And I shall set off presently on your mission of mercy. But what did Mr Simpson say ? " " Indeed, my lord, he was so confused and agitated that I had some difficulty in under- standing him." " How few people can keep a secret, Isabel ! But you can, I trow." " When necessary, yes." " You have never yet tasted the quintes- sential sweetness of a secret, my dear child," 232 BED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. he said, with a Hngering gaze, and throwing his arm lightly round his horse's neck. " A secret, let me tell you, is a friend that never wearies you, a bosom friend that whispers to you in your hours of loneliness. It makes society superfluous, books an intrusion, music the interruption of an inward harmony. A secret is a kind of famulus or genius or fairy — what you will : it waves its wand, and an enchanted palace rises silent and lovely as the dawning of the day. But when a secret is shared by two beings, it is the closest of all ties. 'Tis the chink be- tween Pyramus and Thisbe. Aha 1 might I not be a poet of the Dellacruscan Academy ? If, therefore, you wish warmth in winter's cold, freshness in summer's heat — if you wish ' to sit i' the centre and enjoy bright day,' and carry an Italian sky about with you — then have some dainty delicious secret." " It depends, I think, upon the secret," said Bell, venturing to look up with a smile. '' But " " Ah ! you bring me back to prose ; and yet I thought my rhetoric was moving. But BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. 233 it appears you are preoccupied with poor Prosser's concerns. My tirade has been wasted. Exit Holofernes." " Indeed, my lord, it is always delightful to listen to you," said Bell. " Thank you. But when you know me better you will say of me — ' In him much embryo, much abortion lay, Much future ode, and abdicated play.' What a wrench it is to leave you ! Why cannot I lift you to my saddle-bow, and ride away, ride away to the land of Cockayne, or the gardens of Armida, or Arcadia, or Circe's Isle, or the Hesperides, or all in succession ; for we have moods, passions, and delights suitable to each and all. I have made you blush, I vow. Forgive me. But as for this Prosser, I take it your intervention is pure friendship, is it not ? It often happens that preceptors impart first the art of read- mg " Oh, my lord, pray do not think " " I crave pardon again. I foresee you will have to be perpetually forgiving me, 234 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. and I perpetually offending for the pleasure of being forgiven. Adieu, my dear ward ! " He lifted her hand to his lips, smiled gaily, then swinging himself lightly into the saddle, rode oif. 235 CHAPTEE XII. AXGER IX CELESTIAL MIXDS. As Bell trod lier homeward way, her heart beat lightly m her bosom. And yet she was conscious of a feelino; of abashed and incredu- lous amazement. Who and what was she that such a gentleman, so accomplished and ingenious, should seem to take pleasure in talking to her ? and should look at her so winningly, and, she whispered to herself, so fondly ? What did it mean ? Could it be that this prince should stoop to such a Cin- derella as she ? For even if her birth were honourable, her manners and slender acquire- ments were those of a Cinderella. But oh ! how sweet to be protected by such a man ! Such thoughts would come, rousing hot 236 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. blushes and a fever of the heart. But again, was he not apparently Sibylla's lover ? And was it not disloyal to think of him save with dispassionate respect and distant ad- miration 1 In her present mood she hoped she might not meet Sibylla. But, once more by the freakishness of fate, just as she was passing the lodge-gate of Beechgrove Hall, she be- held her friend coming down the avenue, adorably attired in a green sarcenet gown, with a dainty toque upon her head, and waving her green parasol as a signal to Bell that she was recognised. Bell turned up the avenue to meet her friend. " Oh thou faithless one," exclaimed Sibylla, shaking an admonitory finger, " you were passing the gate without coming to see me ! Call you that backing your friends, turning your back upon them ? " "It is easily explained," said Bell. " I have had bad news, and I am very anxious to get back to Fownie as soon as possible." ANGER IN CELESTIAL MINDS. 237 " What news, my dearest clear ?" " It appears that Mr Prosser is likely to be arrested." " La helle affaire ! Oh, I beg pardon. Why, yes ; papa was telling me about that. Indeed, owing to Lord Wimpole's strong representation, papa was reluctantly induced to w^ite out a warrant of arrest. But, in the first place, Mr Prosser seems to be a very incendiary sort of person, and a hatcher of sedition, who, as such, deserves little sym- pathy from you or me " " I know nothing of politics, but I know him to be a very excellent man, who has been constantly kind to me." " What ! sits the wind in that quarter ? Is it possible that the heart which beats beneath that very becoming gown — did you make it yourself ? " " Every stitch, dear." '' What fairy fingers you have got ! Well, am I right ? " " Hip-ht about what ? " " That this excellent sedition - monger has inspired a virtuous attachment (that 238 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. is the phrase, I believe) within my Celia's bosom ? " " Oh, Sibylla, how wildly you do talk ! Workaday people have other things to think of than — love." " Nay, I was but jesting, or rather giv- ing utterance to a random conjecture. But where on earth have you been ? " " I have left a letter at Swinton Hall, begging Lord Wimpole to interpose in Mr Prosser's behalf." Sibylla frowned slightly, and looked sus- piciously at her friend. " You — went — to — Swinton— Hall ? " she asked, scanning the words. " Yes, and wherefore not ? " "It is a little unfortunate," replied Sibylla, with a sarcastic ring in her voice, " that both the gentlemen involved are unmarried. Be- lieve me, however much our womanly sym- pathies may be excited, it is as dangerous to plead to one gentleman as it is to plead for another. Women, when they interfere, always complicate matters, for no one will believe that they interfere from disinterested ANGER IN CELESTIAL MINDS. 239 motives. Nor do we, as a rule. I make allowance for your early training ; but surely, my dear child, you know that your visit to Swinton Hall was excessively improper." " Improper ! " exclaimed Bell, indignantly, for on such a theme the most dove-like maiden will angrily ruffle her feathers. " I protest, you take an undue advantage of your superior rank and age when you proceed to school me as to my behaviour. Let me tell you, I am to be judged not by appearance but by my motives." " Oh, la, my dear child, motives are mixed ! and I surmise that there was a sprig of fancy in the plain woof of your errand." " I vow there was none ; I am not so in- flammable or so silly as some young ladies are. " Young ladies, quotha ! Has your com- munication with a lord procured you this flatterin£ denomination ? " "If to be ungenerous is to be a young lady, then, indeed, I am not one," said Bell. " Madam, I crave your pardon," retorted Sibylla, making an elaborate curtsey. 240 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " My time is too valuable, Miss Gordon, to be spent in the interchange of incivilities," said Bell, loftily, " so I shall even bid you good-day." " What airs in the Maid of the Inn ! " " I am not the Maid of the Inn, and your taunt is paltry." " I do not indeed know what you are, any more than you do yourself," rejoined Sibylla, plying her poisoned arrows, " but it is certain you are vastly spoiled among your friends because you have a strawberry - and - cream complexion. Nevertheless, it is a far cry from the Anchor Inn to Swinton Hall." " I shall take care to remember that it is also a far cry from the Anchor Inn to Beech- grove Hall." " You will do well, for I wish not Beech- grove Hall to be a half-way house." " Madam, you are insolent," said Bell. " Madam, you are a minx ! " At this point both girls began to" weep freely. " You dear wretch ! " sobbed Sibylla, " you have wounded me to the heart." ANGER IN CELESTIAL MIXDS. 241 " Oh, Sibylla," said Bell, in a broken voice, "you have spoken to me most cruelly." " I confess I have," Sibylla replied ; " but you provoked me by your perfidy." " Perfidy ? I understand you not, Sibylla." "Is it not perfidy for a maiden to lie in ambush for her friend's lover ? " "Your language is intolerable, Miss Gor- don," replied Bell, indignantly. "I lie in ambush ? when it has been my constant endeavour to avoid Lord Wimpole." " Hark you. Miss Simpson," said Sibylla, drawing herself up with an air of dignity which would have been slightly comical but for the passion that flashed in her eyes and quivered in her voice, " your avoidance of Lord Wimpole is itself suspicious. Your formal reserve when you have met him in my society has been too marked. When a maid puts on armour, it is a sign that she deems herself vulnerable. Nothing could be more proper, tantalisingly proper, than your be- haviour ; but the sainte-nitouche — I beg par- don, the sanctified prude — is ever the most dangerous of coquettes. When every look VOL. I. Q 242 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. and tone say, ' Observe my coldness, sir, they mean, ' Try to thaw me, thou teasingly impassive man ! ' '^ Perhaps some of these envenomed darts struck home : at any rate Bell grew very pale, and though bitterly indignant, showed no vehemence in her reply. " Very well, be it so, madam," she said, coldly. " I am your rival, it appears. Be it so, I say again." " What ! thou conceited chit ! " cried Si- bylla, laughing hysterically. " Do you think he would marry you? He might, perhaps — though I should hate him and you for it — take a short voyage with you to the island of Cythera " " Oh, shame, shame ! " cried Bell ; " where is your maiden modesty ? " The two young women stood confronting each other with sparkling eyes and panting bosoms. Then Sibylla threw up her arms, and burst into a passion of weeping. " Oh, heaven help me ! " she moaned. " But I have seen this coming. Oh, Bell, if I have wronged you, I implore your for- ANGEH IN CELESTIAL MINDS. 243 giveness ! And indeed I am half distraught. It is my inward pain has made me inflict pain. Nay, I know your goodness : it is envy of it which has made me disparage it. But my instincts are keen. I have detected a subtle change in him and you. He was coming to love me ; his love was almost in bloom, when a sudden frost came — no, not a sudden frost, but the gradual chill which creeps over a dying man. Nay, I blame you not. I have been unjust, most likely, and perchance you are as much a victim as I ; but I have not been so unjust as to say or insinuate what is utterly groundless. There is, there is a growing tenderness in your heart which is giving fresh brightness to your eyes, a softer bloom to your cheek, a more elastic vigour to your limbs. Dare you deny the change ? Oh, my once fondly loved companion, how cruel you have be- come ! " I deny not the change, Sibylla," said Bell, gently ; " but you mistake the cause — would that I could tell it you ! But I have promised secrecy, and I may not break my 244 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. VOW. Oh, Sibylla, think of what would most delight me, conjecture it with all the ingenuity of your former affection, and then imj)ute the change to that." "Ah! I begin to understand," cried Sibylla, with parted lips, and a faint gleam of .joy suffusing her agitated features. "You know something of your birth ; you are not a nameless thing — ah \ why did you not hint this before ? " "It is only a very short time ago that — but I must say no more ; and what I have hinted must be revealed to no one. Have I your promise ? " " My most solemn promise. Oh, can you forgive me ? Yet do not forgive me too readily, or I shall suspect again. Oh, this jealousy ! this waking nightmare ! this intermittent fever ! Swear to me But I shall not make you swear, for I would only search your oath for some reser- vation, some evasion. Enough ! let us part in peace. But if your birth be honourable, then your rivalry becomes possible. Oh God ! that I should be so tossed to and fro. ANGER IN CELESTIAL MINDS. 245 Where is my self-respect, my pride ? I understand everything now in hmnan life — calamities, crimes, and even the exultant abandonment of virtue. Pity me, Bell ! it is pitiful to make such an exhibition of my poor lacerated heart. Perhaps when I see you again, I shall be composed, and varnished over with a ladylike indifference and friv- olity. But, ah ! the pangs will still be there. And how you act shall determine whether I worshijD you as an angel or hate you as a demon. And now farewell," she said, with a strange blending of penitence and sternness. She first held out her hand, and then, as if by an irresistible imj^ulse, strained Bell to her heart. Bell submitted to the embrace with an inward feelino^ of revulsion. It seemed to her as if she were being bound by a vow of renunciation. As she languidly retraced her steps to- wards Fownie, her mind recalled every phase of the agitating interview with a vivid in- tensity that wearied her. This outburst of passion was a revelation to her. Were the poets and dramatists, then, right when they 246 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. dejDicted the fierce excess, the feverish long- ings, of love ? Were the people who ate and drank and went to market subject to such overmastering emotions ? If so, what un- seen tragedies were being enacted every- where ! The casual smile proceeded often, perchance, from some inward illumination, some brooding ecstasy ; the clouded look for which a trivial cause suggested itself was often, perhaps, the expression of a hopeless sorrow. Was it indeed true that every man liveth to himself, and holds a com- munion with himself which in the very bustle of resort implies an utter loneliness ? Then several things which Sibylla had said burned in her memory, and caused a feeling of almost physical pain and disgust. She felt degraded and debased when she thought of them. Never could she forget or forgive that hint about " a short voyage to the island of Cythera." It seemed to poison the very springs of feeling. It smirched the pure soft feathers of Venus' doves. And yet, perhaps, the leering innuendo was usefiil. The ignorance which is prized in woman is ANGER IN CELESTIAL MINDS. 247 often fatal to her ; and perchance the half- discovered mystery of evil is more appalling and more deterrent than its crude deformity. By the time Bell had reached Fownie, Andrew had already taken his departure. He carried a small bag slung over his shoul- der, and held a stout staff in his hand. It was a lovely evening, with a wide sweep of overarching blue flecked with strips and wisps of cloud lazily trailing and feathering out in the upper regions of the atmosphere. The air was cool and sweet, a pure benison to wearied lungs. Andrew beguiled the monotony of his soli- tary march by repeating those odes of Horace which were his special favourites. He had finished the ode beginning '' Quid fles, As- terie," and the thoughts and feelings sug- gested by it occupied his mind for a consider- able time. " It's a bonnie name ' Asterie,' " he rumi- nated ; " and, indeed, every good and lovely maiden is like a star. Ah, Milly, shall I ever forget your starry eyes ? That's no very likely, is it ? But it's no likely either 248 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. that I'll ever return blessed with Bithynian merchandise. There's only one thing likely, and that is that I'll hae to ' spend the sleep- less nights not without many tears.' Well, it's a rueful comfort that I dinna need to tell her, ' Abide unyielding ' to another suitor ; for I'm sure she likes the puir blundering dominie too much, unworthy though he be, to listen to any other man's tale of love. Can anything in this world of change be as grand as constancy ? It is the law of nature, it is the glory of God Himself, with whom * is no variableness, neither shadow of turn- ing.' But indeed, when a man has won such a woman's heart, there's little credit in constancy. When a man really loves the Bible or Shakespeare, he will never cast them aside for another book ; and she's my Bible and my Shakespeare bound together, for indeed her looks are ' gospel books,' and I find her in every one of Shakespeare's lovely creations." His sentimental musings were interrupted by the rumble of a distant vehicle behind him. ANGER IN CELESTIAL MINDS. 249 He had now accomplished half the inter- vening distance, and the road at this stage of his journey passed through a wood which, forming a canopy of foliage above, seemed to anticipate the shades of night. The sounds increased rapidly in distinctness, and he could distinguish the trot of a pair of horses. He was not a timid man, and he was a proud man to boot, nevertheless he felt vaguely alarmed. And he had cause for anxiety, for in an inside pocket of his bag he had the minutes of the last Chapter of the Knight-Templars, and a considerable number of dangerous documents, with not a few specimens of French revolu- tionary literature. He stood still and looked back, waiting till the vehicle came in sight. It seemed a lumbering family-coach, but was evidently drawn by two powerful and spirited animals. Two men were seated on the box, and as he stood gazing, a head was protruded from the window and seemed to reconnoitre the route. The coach came on and passed him, and Andrew heaved a sigh of relief ; but his satisfaction was of short duration. The horses were abruptly pulled up, the door was 250 EED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. opened, and a short but wiry-looking man sprang into the road, followed by John Wilkie. The first individual halted in the middle of the road and drew a paper out of his pocket. He wore a broad blue bonnet, a coarse cloth jacket of the same colour, and velveteen breeches reaching a little below the knee. Andrew recognised him at once as Saunders, the town-officer of St Thomas. This official having peremptorily ordered Andrew to stand still, proceeded to read the document which he held in his hand. It ran as follows : — " I, Matthew Gordon, Justice of the Peace in the County of Forfar, do hereby empower William Saunders, Town-officer of St Thomas, to arrest and lodge in the Town-house of St Thomas, Andrew Prosser, Schoolmaster of Fownie, on well-grounded suspicion of trea- son and disaffection to the Government. Given at my house of Beechgrove, the twenty-fifth day of May, seventeen hundred and ninety-four, under my hand and seal. Matthew Gordon, J. P." ANGER IN CELESTIAL MINDS. 251 " Now, Andrew Prosser," said Saunders, " I summon you to surrender yourself into my custody." Andrew hesitated for a moment or two. It was tolerably certain that if he were arrested he would be searched, and if so the compromising documents in his possession would furnish abundant materials for an indictment of treason before the Court of Justiciary. In that case, his political asso- ciates would be equally involved in ruin. A man thinks rapidly in such emergencies, and on a hurried survey of the consequences likely to follow from his apprehension, he resolved to resist capture. " I refuse to give myself up," he said, curtly. " Ye misguided loon," cried Saunders, " dae ye ken what deforcement of the officers of the law means ? " " I ken that there's ower muckle law and ower little justice in puir Scotland at this present," said Andrew, bitterly. At this crisis John Wilkie interposed. "Andrew, gie yoursel' up peaceably," he 252 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. said, a little remorsefully. " It's nae shame to you to strike your colours when you're outnumbered. I would be wae to board a fine lad like you ; but duty, ye ken — we maun a' jump to the bosun's whistle." " I have my duty as well," said Andrew, resolutely. " And I give you fair warning, all of you, that I'll defend myself. Dinna blame me, John Wilkie, if ye get a few clours." " Clours come natural to me, Andrew, baith in the giving and receiving," said John, stoutly. " Ye had better clap a stopper on that lang tongue o' yours, and come aboard this craft handsomely," and he pointed to the coach. Saunders, seeing that Andrew had put himself in a posture of defence, and measur- ing his antagonist's strength with profes- sional accuracy, hung in the wind, as John Wilkie might have said. ^' Are ye afraid, ye lubber ? " cried Wilkie, indignantly. " If I hadna a jury-mast o' a leg, I wouldna stand here like a jack-tar whistling for a wind." ANGER IN CELESTIAL MINDS. 253 " You're a bold British tar, John," said Andrew, mockingly, " attacking me with a cutlass when I have only a bit stick. Put that in your pipe, John, and smoke it." " Cutlash be ," growled Wilkie, sheath- ing his weapon, however, with an awkwardly shamefaced air. " Come doon frae the box, Sandy, and gie us a hand." At the same time the driver descended and went to the horses' heads, in case the animals should be rendered restive by the impending struggle. The town-officer, feeling his reputation at stake, now clutched firmly the stout staff with which he was armed, and advanced to the attack, while Wilkie took off the broad leathern belt that encircled his waist, and swinging it round his head, stumped up towards Andrew. Before, however, he could deliver a blow, Saunders had received a stroke on his right arm that made him drop his weapon with a howl of rage and pain. The next instant the buckle of Wilkie's belt descended with merciless vigour on Andrew's head, stunning him for a few moments. The old tar then grappled with his antagonist. 254 RED CAP AXD BLUE JACKET. The man who had been hailed as Sandy followed his example, and a violent struggle ensued, in the course of which Andrew's wal- let was torn from him, and he was severely mauled by Wilkie's formidable fists. An- drew, even in his excitement and exaspera- tion, forbore to take full advantage of his muscular strength against the old sailor ; but a fortunate kick shivered the wooden leg, and Wilkie, after pirouetting for a second or two, went by the board, as he might have said, and measured his length on the ground. Relieved of one assailant, Andrew clutched the other by the throat and drove his head against a tree with a shock that made the teeth rattle in his head. Saunders mean- while was dancing about nursing his injured arm and swearing copiously. Andrew now sprang into the middle of the road and rushed towards the driver, who, seeing his approach, slunk away from the horses' heads. In another moment Andrew had clambered up to the box, seized the reins, and whipping up the plunging and excited animals, drove ofP at a furious pace. 255 CHAPTER XIIL LORD WIMPOLE PLAYS THE PART OF THE GOOD SAMARITAN. For a considerable time, as may be sup- posed, Andrew could do nothing more than hold the reins and guide the horses ; but when he recovered his breath and some measure of composure, he perceived the serious difficulties in which he had involved himself. He must be ready with an ex- planation of the plight he was in ; some plausible tale must be concocted. He sur- veyed himself ruefully. He had lost his bonnet in the tussle, his coat was rent, and one sleeve hung by a few stitches. His face also bore witness of hard usage, one eye was nearly closed, his upper lij) cut. 256 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. his knuckles skinned, and a fiery red stripe ran across his cheek where Wilkie's belt had struck him. His first resolve was to leave the horses and vehicle somewhere in the neighbourhood of Dundee, and enter the town on foot. But even then his appear- ance would excite comment and suspicion. He accordingly determined to state that, having dropped his whip, he had descended from the box, and that on his attempting to remount, the horses had bolted and had dragged him some distance along the ground as he clung to the reins. He had been sent to fetch a doctor for Lord Wimpole, who was ill with a fever. Such was the ground- work of his explanation, and he employed the rest of his time in anticipating objections and embarrassing questions, and in giving a general solidity and coherence of parts to his airy fabric. It is impossible to tell how much hard lying a man is capable of, till the emergency arises. Andrew even derived a species of grim amusement from the elaboration of his fictions, and with a kind of artistic prodigality he lavished upon LORD WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITAN. 257 the fruit of his imagination a number of flourishes and decorative designs. Having his story pat and proof against incredulity, as he thought, he set himself squarely in his seat, brandished his whip with a professional air, and apostrophised the horses with names, at which they pricked their ears in astonishment, but with resignation, for they aj^preciated his power of wrist, and respected his application of the whip. Darkness was setting in when he reached Dundee. He drove up the Nether- gate to the Black Bull Inn. The landlord came to the door and gazed at driver and equipage with silent stupefaction. An ostler in his shirt-sleeves emerged from the yard, chewing a meditative straw, and fell into a cataleptic state. A number of loungers — for every inn harbours such parasites — gathered as if at a signal, and leaning against the walls, added their quota of wondering scrutiny. '^ Here, my man," said Andrew sharply to the ostler, " dinna stand glowerin at me. Unyoke the horses and bait them VOL. I. R 258 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. while I gang for a doctor ; " and so saying he dismounted as rapidly as his stiff and aching limbs permitted. " A doctor ? " repeated the landlord, rous- ing himself from depths of mystified specu- lation. " What's wrang ? " ^' I hae little time to stand palavering," said Andrew, impatiently. "Lord Wimpole wouldna thank me for haverin' while he was groaning." " Lord Wimpole of Swinton Ha ? Is he took ill?" "Fever, they think," said Andrew, with a rueful shake of the head. " Or maybe small - pox," he added, with portentous solemnity. The landlord edged away into the passage, and shouted to the ostler, " Take the horses in, ye muckle gomeral, and be quick aboot it." The ostler growled some inarticulate reply, and, as he unbuckled the straps, said to Andrew — "Ye wouldna be the waur o' a doctor yoursel', I'm thinkin'. Where did ye get a' thae clours ? " LORD WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITAN. 259 " I canna manage horses as well as you, my braw lad," said Andrew, with a shrug. "I hae had a sair ca' -through with the beasties. First they bolted when I was getting up — I had dropped my whip, ye see — and I found myself whummlin along the road like a poke o' draff, but holding the reins like grim death : it's a mercy I didna get among the wheels. Then when I did get to my feet — there was a provi- dential rise in the road and they slackened their pace a bit, and sma' wonder wi' sic a Noah's Ark at their heels — I had a sair ado to get up to the box. Even then I w^asna at the end o' my tribulations, for sic reesty beasts I never saw : if I hadna held the reins firm, they would hae been at the back o' beyont by this time — ye ugly deevils ! " and he shook his fist at the un- offending animals. " They look canny enough," said the ostler. " They may weel be that. I hae ta'en the spunk oot o' them, I'se warrant." " Ye've trashed them sair, that's positive," 260 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. said the ostler. " Ye're no used to horses, I'll wager." " Me ! I would almost as soon ride ahint a witch on a broom-stick ; but his lordship's coachman has the rheumatism, and T couldna refuse. But I'll send in a lang bill for sticking-plaster," he added, with a significant laugh. " Dinna gie them ower muckle aits, or Jehu himsel' wouldna be fit to drive them. I'll be back in the course of an hour wi' a doctor." " 'Od man, ye'll founder them ! " said the ostler, with professional concern. " Let them founder ! " exclaimed Andrew, impatiently. " What's that to Lord Wim- pole's life ? " Andrew turned away, and at the same moment caught sight of Lord Wimpole riding hastily down the street towards the inn. Andrew's heart gave a violent throb, and then seemed to stop beating. " It's a' ower wi' me," he muttered faintly; " and serve me right for telling sic a lot o' cracks." Escape was impossible, for Lord Wimpole's LORD WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITAN. 261 keen eye had espied him at once, and Andrew interpreted too well the sardonic smile on his enemy's dark features. Andrew went forward to him, and said calmly — " Do with me as you please, my lord. ^ Conclamatum est.' " Lord Wimpole laughed, and playfully tapped him on the shoulder with his whip. " Would it embarrass you, Mr Prosser, if I dismounted at the Black Bull ? " he asked, with almost a roguish smile. " Indeed it would," said Andrew, bluntly. " I have been reeling off lies by the fathom." " It only needs a beginning, Mr Prosser. Telling lies, as you ingenuously call it, is the labour of the Danaides. Well, it would be a pity to wither the first blossoms of your imagination. Oblige me by accompanying me to the Boyal George. I have something to say to you." Andrew acquiesced with a bow, and marched along towards the Boyal George with the calmness and even the indifference of despair. Beaching the inn, Lord Wim- 262 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. pole consigned his horse to the care of an ostler, and entering bespoke a private room, at the same time ordering refreshments for two. The landlord having surveyed Andrew with frowning astonishment, Lord Wimpole said curtly, " See if you can procure a pre- sentable coat and hat for my companion. He has met with an accident." Andrew made no comment ; indeed if Lord Wimpole had ordered a roc's egg he would hardly have expressed surprise. . " Now, Mr Prosser, sit down, if you please," said his lordship, with a grim but not unkindly smile. " After having slain the Philistines hip and thigh with a great slaughter, and, to alter the historical perspective, having sped along the Flaminian Way with your glowing axle, you must need rest and refreshment." " My lord, it is hardly generous to season your revenge with this irony of kindness. It is a dreary and Saturnine kind of humour." " Mr Prosser, I design nothing against you," said Lord Wimpole, gravely. " Nay LOED WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITAN. 263 more, I am here to help you in your present predicament." Andrew stared at him incredulously, and then laid his head upon the table to hide the outburst of emotion which overmastered him. " Compose yourself," said Lord Wimpole. " The waiter will be here presently with refreshments." Andrew rose, and stepping to the window, looked out upon the street, while his com- panion sat silent, thoughtfully tapping his boot with his whip. A noble round of beef and a couple of bottles of claret were brought in by a def- erential waiter. When he had arranged the table and softly withdrawn, Lord Wimpole turned round. " Now, Mr Prosser, pray join me at this extemporary refection." " Your lordship heaps coals of fire on my head," said Andrew, brokenly. " Not a jot, not a jot, excejDt it be the luxury of revenge to feed your enemy. Here is claret, if I mistake not, that would ' create a soul under the ribs of death.' It 264 KED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. is astonishing how eating and drinking change our horizon. Your good health, Mr Prosser ! " ** My humble duty to your lordship," said Andrew, chokingly. But when he saw his plate piled with honest beef, which was variegated with cunning streaks of red and white, most mov- ingly appealing to the palate, he straight- way felt ravenous, and fell to with right good will. The claret too, with its rounded and velvety caressing upon his tongue, dif- fused comfort through his wearied body, and his stomach felt a gratitude that its neighbour the heart is often too chary of confessing. In brief, he made a Gargantuan meal, and his companion worthily emulated his prowess. " Now, sir," said Andrew, with a laugh, and drawing a full breath to gauge with satisfaction the full measure of his repletion, " I feel as if I could fight with wild beasts at Ephesus. But may I ask what your lord- ship means by this ? for 'tis clean out of my reckoning." LORD WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITAN. 265 " The matter is simple. A mutual friend has pled on your behalf " " Miss Bell ? " asked Andrew, eagerly. Lord Wimpole nodded. "It's like her," said Andrew. "There's nothing but kindness and truth and fidelity in that ano^el-bosom." Lord Wimpole thrust forth his hand and gripped Andrew's so vigorously that he winced. " You have rightly described her," he said, in deep thrilling tones. " Now to business ; we must not be discursive on such a theme. I suppose you are in a bad ^x ? " " I'm a ruined man, my lord." " So bad ? " " Yes ; they've got my wallet, and there's enough in it to hang or transport me." " You have me to thank for that, I fear." " Well, your lordship is what the school- men call the proximate cause, but you have only anticipated what was sure to happen." " You must flee the country, I suppose." " That I will, this very night," said Andrew. 266 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. " I shall not detain you at such a time. You will have arrangements to make, and time is precious. Now, Mr Prosser, there are few ills in life that are not alleviated by a little money, and I have come provided for this emergency. Pray, hear me out. I pro- pose to lend you a trifle, which you can repay in more fortunate circumstances." " That means the Greek calends, my lord. I could not " " 'Tis no matter. I do nothing by halves. Our mutual friend will be distressed if you show any mistaken delicacy at such a crisis of your fortunes. Here is a leather-bag, which you will, I hope, guard more carefully than you did your political grenade, which has now, I fear, burst. As Miss Bell's friend, you must be mine. Take it with my hearty good wishes." Andrew took the bag proffered him, his manly features convulsed with irrepressible emotion. ^' This is kind, this is generous, this is divine," he faltered. " How small I am be- side your lordship ! Forgive me all my hard LOED WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITAN. 267 thoughts of you. Oh, why do you hide that bright and heavenly Hght of your nature under a bushel ? " Lord Wimpole blenched, and his features assumed almost a harrowed look. " Say no more — you little know me, Mr Prosser. But if she trusts me " He sighed heavily. " She does, she must," exclaimed Andrew, eagerly. " Ah, my lord, you have a strange fascination. Use it for good. Be kind to women, who, alas ! have often to fight against their own hearts as well as against the world. Besist yourself, if they can- not resist you. I understand it now. I would fight for you to my last breath. Oh, my lord, be always as noble as you so often are ! " and seizing Lord Wimpole's hand, he pressed it to his own labouring heart. " We grow elegiac," said Lord Wimpole, with a catch in his voice. " Enough of this ! Now, farewell ! Lose no time in making preparations for flight. And if you are ever in serious straits, write to me. I shall send 268 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. the waiter up with some articles of apparel. Farewell." So saying, he hurriedly left the room. " Now this is a lesson to me never to judge," said Andrew solemnly to himself. " I see now how it is that our heavenly Father is so long-suffering. He kens what is good in a' His puir erring creatures, and He doesna need to be in a hurry. That fine man has doubtless often grieved the Spirit of Grace, but he'll be forgiven, that he will, because he loved much. And to think that my wee bonnie Bell can row him round her finger ! Hoots ! she's just his guardian angel in a tenement of clay. She will ransom him for goodness. I hope it isna irreverence to think that if there had been women-angels in heaven, as there are on earth, puir auld Clootie wouldna hae fallen." Ten minutes later Andrew stepped reso- lutely out of the inn. His first visit was to the Abbot of the Chapter of Knight- Templars. This worthy, who had acted as master of ceremonies at the initiation of Simpson, was a bird-fancier. Andrew found LORD WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITA^\ 269 him engaged in stuffing a mallard, and at once gave him a succinct account of his recent adventures. The Abbot received the intelligence of the loss of the wallet and its incriminating contents with profound con- sternation, and rated Andrew soundly on his want of prudence. " Ay, ay," said Andrew, bitterly. '' Kick a man when he's down. But ye needna be sae carfuffled. What can the authorities make of Brother Bernardus, and Anastasius, and the like ? There isna a proper name in the whole minute-book." " That's true," remarked the Abbot, con- siderably reassured. ''What do you mean to do I " " Well, ye see, there was a hantle o' docu- ments, newspapers, pamphlets, and so on, that are quite enough to settle my case. I must flee the country." " It would doubtless be the best plan," said the Abbot. " Ay, ay — ' calca Caesaris hostem,' " said Andrew, sarcastically. " I'll be outlawed, mind you. I may never see Auld Scot- 270 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. land aofain. I never thous^ht I loved it SO much." " Brother Ludovic sails to-night," said the Abbot, eagerly. " Where is he bound '? " " For France." " In the way of fair trade, I suppose ? " " So I su]3pose — he is bound for Boulogne." "Can ye get me on board ? " " Easily." " Come along then, and arrange the affair with him." The Abbot gave an embarrassed cough. " It's rather unchancy for the two of us " Oh, I see," said Andrew, caustically. " I'm a social leper now. Unclean ! un- clean ! " " Prudence is the handmaid of safety," remarked the Abbot, pompously. " Prudence is cousin-german to cowardice, I'm thinking," Andrew retorted. " I'll give you a line for Brother Ludo- vic," said the Abbot, soothingly. LORD WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITAN. 27 1 " You'll give me line enough to let me swing, I'se warrant." " You are excited and unreasonable," said the Abbot, with his official air of dignity. '^ I'm no excited — I'm scunnered ! " said Andrew, indignantly. " You struggle for liberty ! You lead the People into the Pro- mised Land ! Na, na ; stuff your wrens and your tomtits — that's your vocation. Well, give me the line and let me go." '^ I'll give you your line," said the Abbot, disdainfully. " But I shall report your lan- guage to the Chapter." " Ye can repeat it to the whole Canon," retorted Andrew, " including the Apocrypha ; but for any sake leave out the Maccabees, for you hae nothing in common with the brave Hebrew patriots." The Abbot in great haste scrawled a few lines on a scrap of paper, which he handed to Andrew with an absurd attempt at dig- nity. Andrew scanned it rapidly, and put it in his pocket. "I would not advise you," he said, '^ to 272 EED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. hold a Chapter in a hurry. There seems to be treachery somewhere. You had better revise your Chapter ; I think a corrupt read- ing has got into it." So saying, and with a contemptuous smile on his lips, he left the apartment, and made his way in hot haste to his Aunt Jane's shop. When Andrew appeared before his aunt, she held up her hands in dismay. " Be gracious to us, Andrew ! what hae ye been after ? Why, ye're a' wounds and bruises and purifying sores ! " " I hae had a bit tuilzie. Never mind that. I'm in a hurry. Ye see, I must run the country." " Ay, ay, I thought it would come to this," said Aunt Jane, with considerable equanimity. '' Weel, we a' hae oor tribula- tions. Many a time I am weary o' my groaning, as the Psalmist says, though I question if he suffered as much as I do. Last night " ^^ Ye can catalogue your ailments another time, auntie. I'm in a hurry." " Ye're aye in a hurry," retorted Aunt LORD WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITAN. 273 Jane, with an indignant snifF. " However, gang your ways. Ye were aye wise in your ain conceit." " I hae tried to make the world better than I found it. I'm no the first man that has found the Auld Adam ower strong for him." " It doesna do, Andrew, to be keekin' into everybody's kail-pot. Ye'll no get thanks for that." " Well, I'm no here to argle-bargle. Can you give me a morsel of writing-paper ? I hae a letter to write." After considerable delay he was provided with writing materials, and sitting down he scrawled a few lines of hearty thanks to Bell for her kind interposition on his behalf, at the same time stating his obligations to Lord Wimpole in the warmest and most effusive terms. " You'll get this posted for me, auntie ? " he said, when he had carefully wafered his letter. " Oh yes, I'll dae that for you, Andrew," said Aunt Jane, magnanimously. VOL. I. S 274 RED CAP AXD BLUE JACKET. "Well, good-bye, auntie," said Andrew. " Ye've got rid of a ne'er-do-well for a while." '' Good-bye, Andrew. I hope your afflic- tions will be blest to you." " Thank you," said Andrew, with a rueful grimace, as he hastily withdrew. A rapid walk of ten minutes took him to the harbour. This harbour occupied but a contracted space, and was enclosed by a rough, crooked, and misshapen breast- work of stone, extended on one side so as to form a small pier or jetty. At that time the trade in various kinds of linen fabrics gave employment during the year to not much more than a hundred vessels of very moder- ate tonnage. It was quite dark as Andrew went down to the Sea-gate, and there was a fog upon the water. A lantern suspended from the foremast of a lugger guided his steps to the place where the vessel lay. It was of about fifty tons burthen, was decked, and had two masts and a running jib-boom. Andrew, on coming alongside, hailed a sea- man who was lolling over the bulwark. LORD WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITAN. 275 " Where's the skipper ? " The sailor repHed with an oath that he did not know, adding the conviction, how- ever, that the skipper was stowing Hquor in his hold. Further inquiry was rendered unnecessary by the somewhat lurching approach of an enormously stout man, wearing jack-boots, a pea-jacket, and a sou'-wester. He was fol- lowed at a respectful distance by a group of half-a-dozen seamen. This individual Andrew recognised at once as Brother Ludovic, and going up to him he said in a whisper, "When is lint in the bell ? " Brother Ludovic started slightly, and peered suspiciously into Andrew's face. " That depends on the weather," he re- plied, and then added heartily, " Oh, it's you, Andrew. Glad to see you. Come on board, and bowse up your jib." " Drinking is no in my mind at present," said Andrew, gloomily. " But I'll come on board, for I hae weighty things to tell you." "Ye seem dowie-like, but a tot of grog 276 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. will hearten you up," said the skipper, whose name was Michael Burnside. So saying, he swung himself on board and squeezed himself down the companion into his little cabin, followed by Andrew. A swinging lamp dimly lighted the tiny apartment, and Michael's big body seemed by force of contrast almost colossal. He straightway lifted the lid of a locker, and taking out a bottle of rum, poured a liberal quantity into two large glasses. " Now, Andrew, overhaul your log, but dinna pay out mair slack than ye can help, for the tide's making fast." Andrew accordingly gave a brief account of his present circumstances, and concluded by inquiring whether Michael would take him on board, and land him at Boulogne, adding that he was able and willing to pay for his passage. " Hoots ! ye'll be handy in working the ship ; and tarry breeks gang free, ye ken. But what will ye dae in France ? Things are a' tapsalteery there, as I hear." " God knows ! But I'm thinking I could LORD WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITAN. 277 maybe get out to America from Havre or Bordeaux, and then I could make my living easy. I'm a fair seaman, having had to do with boats since I was a boy ; and if I canna get teaching, or clerking, or work in a store, I'll e'en try the coasting-trade." " Hae ye shot in the locker ? For ye needna gang to America withoot that. If ye want to get on wi' the Yankees, ye must be able to birl the bawbees. They're a grippy lot, and would buy you, and then sell you at the next market. Naething for naething, says Jonathan." ^' I am fairly well provided, thanks to a generous friend." " Say the word, and I'll lend you fifty pounds," said Michael, who was in a mellow state of mind. "You're a true friend, Michael," said Andrew, tremulously. " And I'll never forget your kindness." "Avast there!" said the skipper, smiting the table with his ponderous fist. "Belay all that nonsense, Andy. Besides, we are bound to help you. We're an Associated 278 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. Order — though, mind you, there's some I dinna care a dottle for. There's the Abbot. His tongue works Hke a loose fid ; but when it comes to doing, it's up keeleg and run, or I'm mista'en. There's mair canvas than cargo aboot him." Andrew shook his head significantly. " He gave me a bit line for you, Michael." " Did he, though? Light your pipe wi' it, Andy. I need nae lines. You're here, and ye're welcome. Confound his impudence ! Does he think he's commodore to gie me my sailing orders ? " and Michael spat con- temptuously on the floor. Andrew's self-command had been so severe- ly tried by the agitations of the day that the seaman's bluff kindness entirely unmanned him. He laid his head on the table to hide his emotion. "Avast there!" cried the skipper in his stentorian voice, and slapping Andrew vigor- ously on the shoulders. " Will ye pipe your eye like a sailor's sweetheart when she's bundled into the shore-boat ? Be a man 1 " " I'm a broken man, Michael," said Andrew, LORD WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITAN. 279 with a groan. '^ I must leave my home, my country, my " The skipper hastily took a mouthful of grog, half choked himself, and coughed till his larofe face seemed distended to the burst- ing-point. After relieving himself with a volley of full-flavoured oaths, he cried out, '' Do ye think that I'm to waste my time preaching to you, and pulling lang faces like a loblolly boy ? Avast ! ye're no the first braw lad that has had to cut his cable and run. " It's over," said Andrew, breathing heav- ily. " Something went round my heart, but it s over. " Take a dram, Andy," said the skipper, cheerfully. " That's the richt medicine for a sick heart. I mind when Jean Armstrong threw me ower. She said there was ower muckle o' me to take at ae gulp. She mar- ried a peelie-walie 'pothecary lad afterhin, serve her richt ! Eh, but I was bad for a while, for she was a bonnie lassie. I mind the glint o' her een yet, the gilpy 1 What would I hae been then withoot a stiff dram ? 280 KED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. I tried Hollands and Jamaica and Cognac, but I aye seemed to hear her say, as she often said, puir lassie, ' Ca canny, Michael.' Weel, weel, she's in her grave lang syne." He heaved a portentous sigh, and rose to his feet, saying, " I must see what the ram- paging deevils are after. It's aboot time we were aff. We'll hae to use our sweeps, I'm thinking." Much stamping of feet on the deck now followed, and the skipper's oaths pervaded the atmosphere. Ere long Andrew heard the cry of " Cast off," and the lugger began to move, propelled by boat-hooks from the pier. Once in the tide-way the sails were hoisted. Andrew went on deck, and leaning against the bulwarks, gazed long and wistfully at the lights of the town. But as the wind was light and baffling, the sweeps were got out, and Andrew, glad to divert his mind from saddening reflections, lent a hand. An hour passed, by which time they were near- ing the mouth of the Firth, and the breeze, which had come and gone in languid puffs like a sick man's laboured but feeble breath- LORD WIMPOLE THE GOOD SAMARITAN. 281 ing, now began to blow with steadier volume. Long lines of white water gleamed spectrally on Barrie sands. The sweeps were taken in, and the lugger began to forge ahead under foresail, mainsail, and jib. Andrew joined the skipper, who was standing by the wheel, every now and then ^' squinting " at the sky overhead. The fog had lifted, and patches of cloud were floating across the moon, their edges ravelled out in vapoury fringes and filaments, which showed a disposition to part from the denser masses, as if the wind were increasing in strength in the upper regions of the atmosphere. " Boreas is picking the wool aff his lambs," said Michael, with a laugh. " We'll hae the shearing ere lang. Keep her at that, Sandy, east and by north, till I gie ye the word." " Ay, ay, sir," said the helmsman. The skipper now descended to his cabin, inviting Andrew to accompany him. 282 CHAPTEE XIY. MRS BADGER HAS AN OBJECTIONABLE VISITOR. Andrew's non-appearance on the following day caused great commotion and excite- ment in Fownie ; but in the course of the forenoon the news spread of his at- tempted capture, and of its failure owing to his stubborn and desperate resistance. As opposition to the law was thoroughly congenial to the spirit of the community, Andrew's popularity took at once an up- ward bound ; and had he returned, he would doubtless have been received with a triumphal demonstration. But two or three days passed without any intelligence respecting his fate, and his friends and ac- AN OBJECTIONABLE VISITOR. 283 quaintances came to the unwilling conclu- sion that he had " run the country." Mrs Bada-er was in a state of sore afflic- tion ; for despite the harsh surface of her nature, she had a feeling heart, and was secretly much attached to Andrew. She had indeed no hesitation in painting his defects in vivid colours with a Biblical brush, but she only exhibited the portrai- ture to himself, and deep in her heart she acknowledged the sincerity, manly courage, and unpretending kindness of his nature. His disappearance, therefore, made a sad blank in her otherwise monotonous exis- tence. She missed his pungent though never acrimonious sarcasm, the raspiness and snarl of his discontented and aggres- sive fiddle, which, sooth to say, was of plebeian origin, and had much of the peev- ishness of youth ; she missed the wreaths of smoke from his long clay pipe, which she did not fail to dust carefully, and replace on the mantelpiece with a heavy sigh ; she missed, perhaps most of all, the little skirmishes which gave a dramatic interest to her life. 284 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. She would sit for hours on a "creepie" reading her Bible, sighing over the Lam- entations of Jeremiah or following the vicissitudes of David's career after he was banished from the court of Saul and took to the hills as a magnanimous bandit. On Monday of the following week she was busily engaged polishing the mahog- any table of the little parlour, occasionally moistening its surface with a few pious drops, when a peremptory knock came to the door. Her heart gave a responsive throb, and she almost flew to the door. On opening it, a strange-looking personage met her gaze. This unexpected visitor was a short ill - favoured man, enveloped in a long overcoat which flapped round his at- tenuated limbs, and was "sicklied o'er" with the gTeenish shimmer of age. Its greasy cufls almost concealed a pair of meagre and very dirty hands, the curved fingers of which were tipped with long black-rimmed nails so as to present an un- comfortable resemblance to talons. He had a large loose mouth, and the wiry tufts AN OBJECTIONABLE VISITOR. 285 of a straggling moustache imperfectly con- cealed two front teeth of inordinate size. His eyes were keen and restless, at once cowering and lowering in expression, while his features were perked up with a laboured affectation of impudent importance. " Ye'll ken me again, mistress," he said, somewhat abashed by her severe and evi- dently unfavourable scrutiny. " Folks that ken ye ance, dinna want to ken ye a second time, I'se warrant," retorted Mrs Badger. " Who may ye be ? " " I'm mair in the habit o' speirin' than answering," he replied, with a grotesque attempt to assume a dignified air. " Is Andrew Pressor in ? " " No, he's no in," she replied, with much asperity ; '' and if he was, he wouldna hae dealings wi' a cheat- the -woodie like you. Gang your gait. There's nae charity here for wastrels." " Stash your gab," blurted out the fellow, hotly, '' ye auld cankered carline. I'm a messenger-at-arms." "Ye're fit for the job," retorted Mrs 286 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. Badger, caustically. " And what may ye -be want in' ? " " Let me in ; I hae to search the hoose," he said. " I'll dae that. I can aye burn some flowers o' sulphur afterhin. But wipe your dirty shoon on the mat," she added, with an emphasis that included his whole person in the recommendation. He sulkily complied, and entering the house, made a minute investigation, accom- panied by Mrs Badger, who enlivened his occupation with sarcastic comments and ironical advice. " Eh, but ye're a fell woman," he remarked when his perquisition was concluded. "Ye hae an ill-scraped tongue, guid wife ; and I'm thinkin' I hae got Andrew's portion as weel as my ain. Weel, weel, hard names break nae banes. As for Andrew, he's fugi- tate, that's clear." " What's fuofitate ? Dinna talk thieves' Latin to me, gin ye please." " Fugitate ? Andrew kens brawly what that means, I trow. He has fled from the . AN OBJECTIONABLE VISITOR. 287 authority o' the law, that's what it means. In a way, that saves the law a lot o' trouble, for after a judgment of outlawry has been pronounced, his life isna worth a docken. Anybody can kill him if he resists capture, and nae guilt is incurred." '' And what is he charged with ? " asked Mrs Badger in a somewhat tremulous voice. '' Treason ! " replied the messenger - at - arms with pompous relish. " I hold a war- rant for his apprehension from the Sheriff of Forfar in pursuance of a writ of Capias from the High Court of Justiciary. " What's likely to happen, now that Andrew has fled ? " asked Mrs Badger, her anxiety dominating every other feeling. " Weel, as yeVe gotten off your high horse, I'll e'en tell ye," said the mes- senger, not averse to show his import- ance as an oracle of the law. " But hae ye got a mouthful o' spirits aboot the hoose ? I'm sair forfoughten wi' my lang walk." " I'll gie you a dram afore ye gang awa'," said Mrs Badger, severely. " 111 be bound. 288 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. folks are mair willing to gie you a deoch-an- doruis than a propine." "Aweel, I dinna invite myseF. But I'll answer your question. First of all, a Writ of Proclamation will be issued, whereby Prosser will be proclaimed three times — ance at the Sheriff Court, a second time at the Quarter Sessions, and the third time near the door o' the Parish Kirk. If he is still latitate — that is, in hiding — a Writ o' Exi- gent will be issued, calling him to appear and surrender himself at ane or other of five successive Courts — the law gies him a lang rope, but ilka time he fails to appear it's another coil roond his neck. If he doesna appear at any o' these Courts, judgment of Outlawry is pronounced. He is then a fugitive and a vagabond on the face o' the earth ; civilly he's a dead man ; he has nae mair richts than a kittiwake. So, if ye ken where he is " " But I dinna," protested Mrs Badger, humbly, being completely overawed by this formidable recital of legal proceedings. " A man doesna slip away from his friends AX OBJECTIOXABLE VISITOR. 289 like a knotless threed," said the messenger, shaking his head. " And mind, compound- ing of felony is a serious matter. However, I hae warned ye," and he passed his hand significantly over his lips. Mrs Badger went into the house and returned with a bottle of whisky and a glass. '' Help yersel'," she said, shortly. " 'Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging.' " '' Very true, mistress, wine is a mocker. Ye may take a hale bottle o' claret and no feel even a bummin' in your heid. My respects ! " So saying he quaffed his glass, and hand- ing it back with a wistful look, took his departure. An hour later, Mrs Badger was rapping at the manse door. It cost her a great effort to take this step ; but she was in sore perplexity, and felt the need of advice. She was ushered into the parlour, where she found the minister and his wife and daughter. Miss Marjoribanks grew extremely pale VOL. I. , T 290 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. when she saw this unwonted visitor, for she knew that Mrs Badger would never come to the manse unless on some serious errand. '' What news of our poor Andrew ? " asked Mr Marjoribanks, anxiously. " There's a warrant oot for his apprehen- sion," replied Mrs Badger, faintly. " On what charge ? " " Treason." Miss Marjoribanks gave an inarticulate cry, and clasped her hands together. Mrs Marjoribanks, who was seated in a low arm-chair, daintily arrayed in a flowered silk gown, and with a lace cap on her comely head, leaned forward a little and looked at her husband, her daughter, and Mrs Badger in turn. '' Does no one know where he is ? " she asked, calmly. Mrs Badger mournfully shook her head. " He'll no wish to bring his friends into trouble," she said. '' He was aye consider- ate, puir laddie," and a tear stole down her furrowed cheek. AN OBJECTIONABLE VISITOR. 291 " What will be the consequences ? " asked Mr Marjoribanks, after a long and melan- choly pause. " He'l] be outlawed, and killed if he puts foot on Scottish soil. That's what the mes- senger-at-arms told me." " Oh, that's exaggeration," said Mr Marjori- banks. " Our laws are not so bad as that." " God made justice, and man made laws," said Mrs Badger, solemnly. " I wouldna lippen to the laws." '' Well, Andrew has been very rash and foolish," said Mrs Marjoribanks, in somewhat hard, crisp tones. " I hope it will be a useful lesson to him." "Oh, mamma 1 " exclaimed Miss Marjori- banks in sorrowful expostulation. " Poor Andrew ! " murmured the minister, mournfully. " This is the result of schismatic courses in Church and State," remarked Mrs Mar- joribanks. "Maybe that's true, ma'am," said Mrs Badger, with an indignant sniff. " But it's cauld comfort. However, I must not take 292 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. up your time, ma'am. It's taking a liberty to call, but I couldna help mysel'." " We are much obliged to you, Mrs Bad- ger," said Mr Marjoribanks. . " Let us know if anything further occurs. Andrew is a heavy loss to me — he was my right-hand man. Such a worthy fellow, and such a precentor. I wonder whom I shall get to take his place." '' We'll hae to make melody in our hearts to the Lord," said Mrs Badger. Mrs Marjoribanks stood softly patting the back of one hand with the palm of the other. " Oh, I'm gangin', ma'am, I'm gangin'," said Mrs Badger with alacrity, " and muckle obliged for Christian sympathy." Miss Marjoribanks accompanied Mrs Bad- ger to the door. " We must all pray for him," she said in a low and tearful voice. "Very true, miss," said Mrs Badger, drearily ; " but, wae's me, the heavens are like brass ! " She paused for a few minutes. AN OBJECTIONABLE VISITOR. 293 and then said in an almost inaudible voice, " He fair worshipped you, miss. I could read him like a book. He kenned you was far above him, and he maybe let his modesty wrang him : to be such a bold man, he was unco blate. I suppose naething could hae come o' it. He was puir, very puir — it's a queer warld, miss — a throughither ! Puir Andrew, he had a big heart. And I was never overly kind to him. That's what vexes me now. I flyted whiles, and glunshed at him, God forgie me ! " It was no slight evidence of Mrs Badger's sympathetic appreciation of Miss Marjori- banks' character that she unbosomed herself so freely. "Do not reproach yourself, dear Mrs Badger," said the young girl, much moved. " He always spoke so highly of you, and knew your real worth." '' Oh, dinna speak hke that," said Mrs Badger, now weeping freely. " I canna stand it — my punishment is greater than I can bear. I dinna wonder that he thocht so 294 RED CAP AND BLUE JACKET. much o' you. ' Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all.' " And crushing Miss Marjoribanks' slender fingers in her horny palm, she bade her good- bye, and went away with drooping head and languid gait. END OF THE FIRST VOLUME. PRINTED BY WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS. POPULAE NOVELS. EACH COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME. 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