may heaven ne’er trust my friend with happiness
till it has taught him how to bear it well
by previous pain.
—young.
good lord, deliver us!” ejaculated jock. “i’m right glad to see ye wearing red ribbons, for in truth i took ye for highwaymen.”
“what are you doing in the king’s highway at this hour of the night?” said the sergeant, whose temper had not been improved by the ill-success of his errand.
“why, sir, as you see, i be a carrier, and be a-drivin’ my cart to henley, same as i’ve done this many a year.”
“what’s in the cart?”
“corn, sir, an’t please you,” said jock, with humility.
“why, yes, it pleases me very well,” said the sergeant, grimly. “the corn, i take it, is going by barge to london, eh?”
“why, that’s a fact, sir, it be,” said jock, scratching his head thoughtfully, and sorely perplexed as to what he could do.
“then you can just turn about, my good man, and drive it to oxford; our granaries are none too full, and we’ll store it in them instead. i annex that corn in the king’s name.”
the blood ran cold in the fugitives’ veins; they listened intently to jock’s pleading voice.
“oh! sir! for heaven’s sake don’t do that,” he cried. “i’m a ruined man if you take the corn, for i be answerable for it to the owner. and i’ve other orders for carting back from henley. have mercy, sir, on a poor old carrier that’s old enough to be your grandsire.”
“curse you, i say we need the corn in oxford; why should it go to feed those rebel dogs in london?”
“why, now i think of it,” said jock, “you must be the very man i’ve a message for. doth not your officer lie at watlington?”
“ay! what of him?”
“well, sir, he bade me tell you to wait on him at the ‘hare and hounds’ as you returned, and if so be i clapped eyes on some wandering minstrels i was to tell ye.”
“why, yes, to be sure; have you come across them?” said the sergeant eagerly.
“well, sir, i did hear a man a-singin’ as he journeyed along the road a matter o’ five miles from here, singin’ a ballad, he was, about the cramp in his purse.”
“well, well; and was he alone?”
“nay, i think there was a couple o’ men with him, but i only heard the one a-singin’,” said jock, his honest face boldly confronting his questioner.
“five miles back! then we shall soon come up with them. since you have told us this i’ll not force you to drive back to oxford with your load, but my men shall take a couple of sacks before them on their saddles as toll.”
jock grumbled, and the prisoners shuddered, for now, indeed, they feared discovery was certain. but the carrier was equal to the emergency. he folded back a bit of the sailcloth and handed his whip and reins to the sergeant.
“i’ll ask you to hold them, sir, for i need both my hands; if the wind once gets hold of this plaguey cloth, there’ll be the devil to pay.”
with that he cautiously dragged out first one sack and then a second, tucking the cloth carefully round the remainder. as the cold wind blew upon the fugitives a violent shivering fit seized gabriel; his teeth chattered, and it was all he could do to stifle the cough which threatened to choke him. nothing but the strong instinct of self-preservation carried him through the agony of the struggle. but at length came the welcome sound of the departure of the soldiers, and jock, with a cheery word to his horses, drove on.
“that was a narrow escape,” muttered humphrey, “but i shall not feel safe till the barge is under weigh.”
another hour brought them to their destination, and jock drew up at the wharf, and told them he would seek out the bargee and get him to start with as little delay as possible.
“you are worth your weight in gold, man,” said humphrey, when the carrier returned with a couple of men to unload the cart. “had it not been for your ready wit, we should now be on our way back to oxford castle.”
“eh, master humphrey, i’d gladly do more than that for your father’s son. but have a care of your friend, sir, for i think he be sore spent.”
glancing at gabriel by the light of the carrier’s lantern on that dark winter morning, humphrey saw that jock was right. and all through the long, weary hours on the barge, only sheltered from the piercing wind by the sacks of corn and a load of wood which was already stacked up on board, he watched over his companion, feeling very doubtful whether he would survive to the end of the journey.
it was quite late in the afternoon when the bargee set them down at chiswick, and after much trouble humphrey succeeded in getting his friend borne to notting hill. gabriel was by this time quite indifferent to all that passed, and it was only when they actually reached the manor that he roused himself to speak to the astonished butler who appeared in answer to humphrey’s knock at the front door.
“is your mistress within? if so, tell her i have made my escape from oxford and would fain speak with her,” he said.
“let me help you, sir,” said the man, shocked to note the change which the war had made in one he had seen a little more than a year ago in full health and vigour. “an’ you’ll rest in this room for a while i’ll go and prepare my mistress. beg pardon, mistress helena, i did not know you were here.”
humphrey, as he helped his friend into the room, saw a little fair-haired maiden whose heavy mourning robe only enhanced the delicate beauty of her face. her blue eyes lighted up joyously at the sight of gabriel.
“oh! mr. harford, have you indeed got your exchange at length?” she exclaimed, greeting him with an eagerness and warmth that instantly sent a jealous pang to humphrey’s heart. “we legan almost to despair of getting you released.”
“don’t come too near me,” said gabriel, “for i have the new fever on me, an’ i mistake not.”
“then i am well-fitted to nurse you,” she said, gaily, “seeing that i myself had it last september. here comes my godmother to welcome you.”
madam harford’s greeting was almost wordless, but in her smile, and in the clasp of her strong hand, there was a world of expression.
“thanks to my friend and fellow-prisoner, mr. humphrey neal, we have contrived to escape, madam,” said gabriel. “he will tell you of our adventures, but in truth i am scarce fit to ask your hospitality.”
“nonsense, lad,” said madam harford, promptly silencing him. “to whom should you come but your grand-dame! why, you are little more than a skeleton, and in a burning fever! helena, my child, go and see that the fires are lighted in the blue-room, and in the turret-chamber, and bid mrs. malony wait on me at once.”
helena needed no second bidding, but flew off in the best of spirits to prepare all things for the comfort of her knight-errant. but her midsummer dream, nevertheless, came to a sudden end that very night.
cousin malvina, an excellent nurse, had been left in charge of the patient while the others supped, but later on madam harford and helena relieved guard. they found that gabriel already slept, and the old lady, taking cousin malvina’s chair by the bed, bade helena in a whisper to set the room in order.
little mistress nell stole gently across to the fireplace, and began to fold the clothes which lay in a heap on the floor; then her eye happened to fall on a belt evidently containing money, which, with a small shagreen case, lay on the mantelshelf. opening a drawer she stowed these safely away, and only then perceived that under the case lay the miniature of a darkeyed girl, whose radiant beauty filled her with admiration.
for a moment she could think of nothing but the loveliness of the picture. but very soon, with a start, she awoke from her dream to find herself in a cold and lonely world. her knight-errant had a lady-love of his own, and the marriage her father had hoped for would assuredly never come about.
taking up the miniature she laid it gently in the drawer beside the belt and the shagreen case, and, turning the key, drew it from the lock and handed it to madam harford.
“i have locked up some money and private things of mr. harford’s,” she whispered.
madam harford, whose quick eyes instantly detected a change in the girl, sent her on some errand, and then looked to see what the said private things consisted of. although she had never heard of hilary’s existence, she gave a shrewd little nod as she caught sight of the miniature.
“if the lad loves that maid,” she thought to herself, “he’ll never do for a husband for my sweet little god-daughter. we must seek a match elsewhere.”
but, in truth, for many days it seemed doubtful whether gabriel would live to wed any one, and the manor was pervaded by an atmosphere of gloom and of deep anxiety, which did not help poor helena to rise above her troubles.
humphrey neal, who had been pressed to stay by his kindly hostess, watched the girl with much more sympathy and comprehension than she guessed. he listened to her account of the way in which gabriel and captain heyworth had rescued her in the spring; he told all the details of their escape from oxford, and often succeeded in persuading her to walk in the grounds of the manor.
one day it happened that they were walking together in the garden when they saw a coach, drawn by two powerful black horses, approaching the house.
“that must be sir theodore mayerne, the great physician,” said helena in an awestruck voice. “madam harford wrote begging him to come, but she feared he would not be willing to make the journey, for he seldom goes to any, being very corpulent and unwieldy.”
“‘if the mountain cannot come to mahomet, mahomet must go to the mountain,’” quoted humphrey with a laugh. “let us watch the great man dismount. in truth, report was right; he is a very falstaff, and can scarce pass the door of his own coach.”
“but they say he is the greatest physician living,” said helena. “if any one can save mr. harford’s life he is the man.”
“madam harford hopes that his own father, a noted physician of hereford, will be here ere long,” said humphrey. “she sent a messenger for him the very morning after our arrival. they would have done much better, in my opinion, if they had sent for this ‘hilary’ he is ever calling for in his delirium—his brother, it may be.”
helena blushed crimson.
“nay, he hath but one brother—a mere child, named brid-stock.”
“ah! and now i think of it,” resumed humphrey, “hilary is a name that may be borne by either sex. perchance he calls for the lady on whom his heart is set.”
“in truth i think he doth,” said little nell, commanding her voice with an effort.
humphrey walked for some paces in silence. he longed to make love to this little fair-haired maiden, with her pathetic eyes and her dainty air of womanly dignity and reserve, which somehow was scarcely in keeping with her girlish face and tiny figure. but he understood her well enough to hold his tongue for the present, treating her only with deference, and waiting upon her sedulously in a way which she soon learned to like.
they had just returned to the house when the physician’s voice was heard on the stairs talking to madam harford. helena hastily retreated into the nearest room, but humphrey, anxious to hear the latest report of his friend, lingered in the hall, and madam harford presented him to sir theodore mayerne.
“this is mr. neal, who helped my grandson in his escape from oxford,” she said.
“i wish the escape could have been made a couple of months sooner,” said the physician, glancing keenly at humphrey. “the patient is worn out by want of food and air, and hath no strength left to fight this fever.”
“they told me in the prison that he did well enough till the last six weeks,” said humphrey, “and that it was nursing those that fell sick of the fever that were him out. he went by the name of ‘doctor’ among them, and they told me that he saved several lives.”
“brave fellow! i will do my utmost for him,” said the physician. “let them try, madam, the remedies i have prescribed, and to-morrow i will see him again.”
with that he bowed himself out, leaving madam harford grateful for such an unusual concession, yet knowing well that it pointed to the gravity of the crisis.
all through the anxious days that followed, while gabriel hung between life and death, subtle links were slowly forging themselves between the watchers at the manor house. instinctively they turned to those of their own generation for solace. madam harford found comfort in long confidential talks with mistress malvina, and helena thought the only endurable hours of the day were those in which humphrey neal walked with her in the grounds. he was much in the sick room, but when released he invariably sought out little mistress nell, and with lassie the retriever to act as duenna they would take a brisk walk, sometimes going to the village of paddington, or visiting kensington gravel pits, or now and then wandering as far as hyde-park.
during those days helena heard of the quiet times before the war, when the old house at chinnor had been one of the happiest homes in england, and humphrey, the only son of the house, had thought of little but hawking and hunting and fishing. his father, like many another squire, had taken neither side in the great dispute of the day, both parties had seemed to him in the wrong, and, as he truly said, he had not the knowledge to fit him to make choice betwixt them.
helena heard now with indignation of prince rupert’s wanton cruelty in burning the entire village of chinnor, and shed tears over humphrey’s pitiful account of the way in which his parents both of them old and infirm, had been forced to fly from their burning house in the middle of the night. they had never recovered from the shock and from the ruin of the old family home. and helena understood how much sadness was hidden beneath humphrey’s cheerful manner, and knew that he assumed an air of light-hearted carelessness as a man dons a coat of mail in troubled times.
another subject on which they liked to talk was of his kinsfolk at katterham, and their mutual admiration of sir robert neal’s granddaughter clemency, now happily wedded to captain heyworth, proved a great bond of union. humphrey was pleased and yet surprised to hear the girl’s warm tribute to clemency’s charms, having the notion common to many men that one woman always tries to detract from another’s merits. he therefore set down nell’s glowing words entirely to her credit, and thought they denoted a generosity altogether unique. in fact, day by day, he fell deeper and deeper in love with the god-daughter of his hostess, and madam harford watched the process contentedly, and left the two unmolested, hoping that helena’s heart would be caught in the rebound.
but there came a day in january when the struggle to hold death at bay in the sick room absorbed every one’s thoughts. sir theodore, who took a special interest in the young lieutenant, had been for more than an hour at his bedside, and helena had gathered that he had not much hope, when, about four o’clock, madam harford came downstairs to give some order to one of the servants.
“yet i know the family constitution better even than this wise physician,” said the resolute old lady. “in all things the harfords show wonderful tenacity, and i do not yet despair.”
“there is a horseman galloping up the avenue, ma’am,” said helena, glancing from the window. “could it be his father?” a gleam of joy and relief lit up the strong face of madam alice harford; she walked firmly to the front door, regardless of custom, and quite ignoring the bitter cold, peered eagerly out into the twilight.
“my son,” she cried. “now, indeed, shall we have good hope. he still lives, bridstock—i can’t say more than that.”
“thank god that i am in time to see him,” said the doctor, stooping to greet his mother with tender reverence. “nay, in truth, ma’am, i fear to see you at the door in this nipping frost; come to the fire and tell me of gabriel.”
“he is at death’s door with the new fever, and is terribly weakened by want of food all these months, and the poisonous air of his gaol. sir theodore mayerne would have more hope were it not for his exhaustion; but, indeed, i still trust in his youth and his sound constitution.”
“let me go to him now without delay,” said the doctor, and with a heavy heart he was led to the silent room above, where lay the son he had parted from in the spring, so wasted by starvation and suffering that his own father could scarcely recognise him. gabriel was unconscious, and dr. mayerne was administering a strong stimulant, in the hope of fighting off death a little longer. he greeted dr. harford with kindly sympathy.
“try if your voice will rouse him,” he said. “but i fear the pulse is failing.”
dr. harford knelt down by the bed and bent low over the dying man.
“gabriel,” he sard, “i have reached you at last. look up, my son.”
in terrible suspense they watched the eyelids quiver and slowly open; there was amazed recognition in the hazel eyes.
“father,” he whispered, “you here in prison?”
“here with you at notting hill manor,” said the doctor. “try to swallow this—it will strengthen you.”
gabriel obeyed dreamily, glancing in some surprise at the portly form of sir theodore mayerne, which certainly bore not the remotest likeness to any of the lean inhabitants of oxford castle. he began to grasp the idea that his father had journeyed from hereford, and his lips framed the word, “hilary!”
“she is well,” said dr. harford, quietly. “on my way here i saw her at whitbourne, where she was keeping christmas with the bishop. she was grieved to hear of your sufferings, and hopes you will soon recover.”
a look of content came into the eager eyes. gabriel asked no further questions, but lay in a state of dreamy peace. if hilary hoped for his recovery, why then the worst of his suffering was over. his hold on life grew strong once more, and he fell into a profound sleep.
“i have hopes of him now,” whispered sir theodore, “tomorrow i will visit him again,” and he stole out of the room with a quietness which seemed magical in a man of such bulk.