PROSPECTS BRIGHTEN.
Thus far our fortune keeps an onward course,
And we are graced with wreaths of victory.
--Shakespeare.
Leaving Mrs. Le Noir, Traverse went down to the stable, saddled the
horse that had been allotted to his use, and set off for a long day's
journey to New Orleans, where late at night he arrived, and put up at
the St. Charles.
He slept deeply from fatigue until late the next morning, when he was
awakened by the sounds of trumpets, drums and fifes, and by general
rejoicing.
He arose and looked from his windows to ascertain the cause, and saw
the square full of people in a state of the highest excitement,
watching for a military procession coming up the street.
It was the United States troops under their gallant commanders, who had
landed from the steamboats that morning and were now marching from the
quays up to their quarters at the St. Charles.
As they advanced, Traverse, eagerly upon the lookout, recognized his
own regiment.
Traverse withdrew from the window, hurriedly completed his toilet, and
hastened down-stairs, where he soon found himself face to face with
Herbert, who warmly grasping his hand, exclaimed:
"You here, old friend? Why, I thought you were down in East Feliciana,
with your interesting patient!"
"It is for the interest of that 'interesting patient' that I am here,
Herbert! Did I tell you, she was one of the victims of that demon Le
Noir?"
"No: but I know it from another source. I know as much, or more of her,
perhaps, than you do!"
"Ah!" exclaimed Traverse, in surprise.
"Yes! I know, for instance, that she is Capitola's mother, the
long-lost widow of Eugene Le Noir, the mistress of the Hidden House,
and the ghost who drew folks' curtains there at night."
"Then you do know something about her, but how did you arrive at the
knowledge?"
"By the 'last dying speech and confession' of Gabriel Le Noir, confided
to me to be used in restitution after his decease. But, come! There is
the second bell. Our mess are going in to breakfast; join us and
afterwards you and I will retire and compare notes," said Herbert,
taking the arm of his friend as they followed the moving crowd into the
breakfast parlor.
After the morning meal was concluded the friends withdrew together to
the chamber occupied by Traverse Rocke, where they sat down for mutual
explanations.
Herbert first related to Traverse all that had occurred from the time
that the latter left the city of Mexico, including the arrival of
Craven Le Noir at the dying bed of his father, the subsequent death and
funeral of Colonel Le Noir, and the late emigration of Craven, who to
avoid the shame of the approaching revelation, joined a party of
explorers bound for the recently discovered gold mines in California.
"The civilized world is then rid of two villains at once," said the
uncompromising Traverse.
Herbert took from his pocket the confession of Colonel Le Noir, which
he said he was now at liberty to use as he thought proper for the ends
of justice. That certain parts of the disclosure intimately concerned
Traverse Rocke, to whom he should therefore read the whole. The
confession may be briefly summed up as follows:
The first item was that he had sought to win the affections of Marah
Rocke, the supposed wife of Major Ira Warfield; he had sedulously
waylaid and followed her with his suit during the whole summer; she had
constantly repulsed and avoided him; he, listening to his own evil
passions, had bribed her maid to admit him in the dark to Marah's
cabin, upon a certain night when her husband was to be absent; that the
unexpected return of Major Warfield, who had tracked him to the house,
had prevented the success of his evil purpose, but had not saved the
reputation of the innocent wife, whose infuriated husband would not
believe her ignorant of the presence of the villain in her house; that
he, Gabriel Le Noir, in hatred as well as in shame, had forborne until
now to make the explanation, which he hoped might now, late in life as
it was, bring the long-severed pair together, and establish Marah Rocke
and her son in their legal and social rights.
The second item in the black list of crime was the death of his elder
brother, whom he declared he had not intended to kill. He said that,
having contracted large debts which he was unable to pay he had
returned secretly from his distant quarters to demand the money from
his brother, who had often helped him; that, meeting his brother in the
woods, he made this request. Eugene reproached him for his extravagance
and folly, and refused to aid him; an encounter ensued, in which Eugene
fell. He, Gabriel Le Noir, fled pursued by the curse of Cain, and
reached his own quarters before even his absence had been suspected.
His agency in the death of his brother was not suspected even by his
accomplice in other crimes, the outlaw called Black Donald, who,
thinking to gain an ascendency over one whom he called his patron,
actually pretended to have made way with Eugene Le Noir for the sake of
his younger brother.
The third item of confession was the abduction of the nurse and babe of
the young widow of Eugene, the circumstances of which are already known
to the reader.
The fourth in the dreadful list comprised the deceptions, wrongs and
persecutions practised upon Madame Eugene Le Noir, and the final false
imprisonment of that lady under the charge of insanity, in the private
madhouse kept by Doctor Pierre St. Jean, in East Feliciana.
In conclusion, he spoke of the wrongs done to Clara Day, whose pardon,
with that of others, he begged. And he prayed that in consideration of
his son, as little publicity as was possible might be given to these
crimes.
During the reading of this confession, the eyes of Traverse Rocke were
fixed in wonder and half incredulity upon the face of Herbert, and at
its conclusion he said:
"What a mass of crime! But that we may not dare to question the mercy
of the Lord, I should ask if these were sins that he would ever pardon!
Herbert, it appalls me to think of it!"
Then, after deep thought, he added:
"This, then, was the secret of my dear mother's long unhappiness. She
was Major Warfield's forsaken wife. Herbert, I feel as though I never,
never could forgive my father!"
"Traverse, if Major Warfield had wilfully and wantonly forsaken your
mother, I should say that your resentment was natural and right. Who
should be an honorable woman's champion if not her own son? But Major
Warfield, as well as his wife, was more sinned against than sinning.
Your parents were both victims of a cruel conspiracy, and he suffered
as much in his way as she did in hers," said Herbert.
"I always thought, somehow, that my dear mother was a forsaken wife.
She never told me so, but there was something about her circumstances
and manners, her retired life, her condition, so much below her
deserts, her never speaking of her husband's death, which would have
been natural for her to do, had she been a widow--all, somehow, went to
give me the impression that my father had abandoned us. Lately I had
suspected Major Warfield had something to do with the sad affair,
though I never once suspected him to be my father. So much for natural
instincts," said Traverse, with a melancholy smile.
"Traverse," said Herbert, with the design of drawing him off from sad
remembrances of his mother's early trials. "Traverse, this confession,
signed and witnessed as it is, will wonderfully simplify your course of
action in regard to the deliverance of Madame Le Noir."
"Yes; so it will," said Traverse, with animation. "There will be no
need now of applying to law, especially if you will come down with me
to East Feliciana and bring the confession with you."
"I will set out with you this very morning, if you wish, as I am on
leave. What! To hasten to the release of Capitola's mother, I would set
out at midnight and ride straight on for a week!"
"Ah! there is no need of such extravagant feats of travel. It is now
ten o'clock; if we start within an hour we can reach the 'Calm Retreat'
by eleven o'clock to-night."
"En avant, then," exclaimed Herbert, rising and ringing the bell.
Traverse ordered horses, and in twenty minutes the friends were on the
road to East Feliciana.
They reached the "Calm Retreat" so late that night that there was none
but the porter awake to admit them.
Traverse took his friend up to his own dormitory, saying, laughingly:
"It is an unappreciable distance of time since you and I occupied the
same bed, Herbert."
"Yes; but it is not the first, by five hundred times. Do you remember,
Traverse, the low attic where we used to sleep, and how on stormy
nights we used to listen to the rain pattering on the roof, within two
or three inches of our faces, and how we used to be half afraid to turn
over for fear that we should bump our heads against the timbers of the
ceiling?"
"Yes, indeed," said Traverse.
And thereupon the two friends launched into a discussion of old times,
when the two widows and their sons lived together--the two women
occupying one bed, and the two boys the other. And this discussion they
kept up until long after they retired, and until sleep overtook them.
The next morning Traverse conducted his friend down to the breakfast
parlor, to introduce him to Doctor St. Jean, who, as soon as he
perceived his young medical assistant, sprang forward exclaiming:
"Grand ciel! Is this then you? Have you then returned? What for did you
run away with my horse?"
"I went to New Orleans in great haste, upon very important business,
sir."
"Grand Dieu! I should think so, when you ride off on my horse without
saying a word. If it had been my ambling pony I should have been in
despair, I! Your business so hasty and so important was accomplished, I
hope."
"Yes; I did my errand with less trouble than I had anticipated, owing
to the happy circumstance of meeting my friend here, who has come down
hither connected with the same business."
"Ah! vera happy to see your friend. In the medical profession, I
suppose?"
"No, sir; in the army. Allow me to present him. Major Herbert Greyson,
of the --th Regiment of Cavalry."
"Ou! ay! Grand ciel! This is the brave, the distinguished, the
illustrious officer, so honorably mentioned in the dispatches of the
invincible Taylor and the mighty Scott!" said the little Frenchman,
bowing his night-capped head down to his slippery toes.
Herbert smiled as he returned the bow. And then the little French
doctor, turning to Traverse said:
"But your business, so important and so hasty, which has brought this
officer so illustrious down here--what is it, my friend?"
"We will have the honor of explaining to Monsieur le Docteur, over our
coffee, if he will oblige us by ordering the servant to retire," said
Traverse, who sometimes adopted, in speaking to the old Frenchman, his
own formal style of politeness. "Go, then, John!"
"Oui, oui, certainement! Allez donc, John!"
As soon as the man had gone, Traverse said:
"I propose to discuss this business over our coffee, because it will
save time without interfering with our morning meal, and I know that
immediately afterwards you will go your usual round of visits to your
patients."
"Eh bien! proceed, my son! proceed!"
Traverse immediately commenced and related all that was necessary
concerning the fraud practised upon the institution by introducing into
it an unfortunate woman, represented to be mad, but really only
sorrowful, nervous and excitable. And to prove the truth of his words,
Traverse desired Herbert to read from the confession the portion
relating to this fraud, and to show the doctor the signature of the
principal and the witness.
To have seen the old French doctor then! I rejoice in a Frenchman, for
the frank abandon with which he gives himself up to his emotions! Our
doctor, after staring at the confession, took hold of the top of his
blue tasseled night-cap, pulled it off his head and threw it violently
upon the floor! Then remembering that he was exposing a cranium as bald
as a peeled potato, he suddenly caught it up again, clapped it upon his
crown and exclaimed:
"Sacre! Diable!" and other ejaculations dreadful to translate, and
others again which it would be profane to set down in French or
English.
Gabriel Le Noir was no longer an officer illustrious, a gentleman noble
and distinguished, compassionate and tender; he was a robber infamous!
a villain atrocious, a caitiff ruth, and without remorse!
After breakfast the doctor consented that his young hero, his little
knight-errant, his dear son, should go to the distressed lady and open
the good news to her, while the great Major Greyson, the warrior
invincible, should go around with himself to inspect the institution.
Traverse immediately repaired to the chamber of Mrs. Le Noir, whom he
found sitting at the window, engaged in some little trifle of
needlework, the same pale, patient woman that she had first appeared to
him.
"Ah, you have come! I read good news upon your smiling face, my friend!
Tell it! I have borne the worst of sorrows! Shall I not have strength
to bear joy?"
Traverse told her all, and then ended by saying:
"Now, dear madame, it is necessary that we leave this place within two
hours, as Major Greyson's regiment leaves New Orleans for Washington
to-morrow, and it is advisable that you go under our protection. We can
get you a female attendant from the St. Charles."
"Oh, I can be ready in ten minutes! Bless you, I have no fine lady's
wardrobe to pack up!" replied Mrs. Le Noir, with a smile.
Traverse bowed and went out to procure a carriage from the next
village. And in half an hour afterwards the whole party took leave of
Doctor Pierre St. Jean and his "institution incomparable," and set
forth on their journey to New Orleans, whence in two days afterwards
they sailed for the North. And now, dear reader, let you and I take the
fast boat and get home before them, to see our little Cap, and find out
what adventures she is now engaged in, and how she is getting on.