When three or four miles down the river the boat was anchored, and
the two men were called into the cabin, and Leigh's scheme
explained to them.
"It is a big affair, sir," Medart said thoughtfully, when Jean had
concluded. "Now, there is no love lost between us and the ruffians
who carry out the committee's orders. They call us river rats, we
call them sewer rats, and there has been many fights between the
fishermen and these fellows, as far back as I can remember, and
lately these have been much more frequent. If the plan was only to
burn down their quarters, there are a good many who would lend a
hand; because it could be done quietly, and they would have no
particular reason for suspecting that it was the work of the
fishermen. But as for going into the jail, that would be different.
We should not have time, by what you say, to hunt up and kill all
the warders; and it would therefore be known, at once, that we were
concerned. Five or six of our fellows have already had their heads
chopped off, on suspicion of having aided Royalists to escape. They
don't mind whom they lay hands on, and they don't trouble
themselves to search, but just seize the first they come to who,
perhaps in a cabaret, has said a word against their doings.
"As to the trials, they are no trials at all. One of their fellows
comes in and says, 'I heard this man abusing the authorities, and I
accuse him also of being concerned in the escape of so and so.' It
is no odds what the prisoner says. The fellow who acts as judge
looks at the jury, who are all their creatures; they say 'Guilty
'and he says' Death!' and the accused are marched off again to the
prison, to wait until their turn comes for the guillotine. Well you
see, if this prison was broken into as you propose, and it was
known that the sailors had a hand in it, the chances are that they
would march a couple of hundred of us into the great square, which
would be choke full of the National Guard and volunteers, and just
shoot us down."
Jean was silent. The probability that things would go as the man
said was so evident that he had no answer.
"I think the way to get over that difficulty," Leigh said, when he
saw that Jean was puzzled, "would be for you all quietly to buy
other clothes or, better still, for them to be bought for you by
your wives. They should be such clothes as the peasants buy, when
they come into the town. It would then be supposed that the attack
was made by a party of Breton peasantry. As a good many other
prisoners would escape, in addition to Monsieur Martin and your
captain's wife, there would be no reason to suppose that the plot
was specially arranged to aid their escape, or that any of the
people of this town were concerned in the matter."
"That is so, Master Leigh," Rouget said. "It might be managed in
that way. But I think that most of our chaps had better be told off
for firing the town. I think that a good many might be willing to
undertake that job, for I have heard it said, many and many a time,
that they would like to burn the sewer rats out. There are other
men who would, I am sure, rather join in the attack on the jail, if
they could do so without putting the lives of all of us in danger.
"As to getting hold of an artilleryman, I don't know that that
would be difficult. The men employed on that sort of work are all
old soldiers, and many of these, though they dare not say so, hate
what is going on just as much as we do. I have met one of them with
Emile Moufflet, who served with you, captain, for two or three
years. When we have been chatting together, he has said things
about the committee that would have cost him his head, if he had
been overheard. I know that his chum is in charge of some stores,
but whether they are powder or not, I cannot say. But at any rate,
Emile will be able to find out for me the name of several of them
who have charge of powder; and he would be likely to know which of
them had sentiments like his own, and how far they could be
trusted.
"That would not take long, but to get hold of forty hands for the
other work would take some time. One dare go only to men one is
very intimate with, and get them to approach men whom they know
well; for even among us, there are fellows who take the committee's
money to spy over the others, and to find out whether any trouble
is likely to come, or Royalists to be shipped off. One generally
knows who they are, because they overdo their parts, and rail at
the Convention more roundly and openly than an honest man would
dare to do. Some of them one finds out that way; others, again, one
spots by their always having money to spend. If they are too shrewd
to betray themselves in that way, our wives find them out for us,
by telling us that their women and children have new clothes, and
we know well enough that there is no buying new clothes out of
fish, at their present price. Besides, most of these fellows give
up fishing altogether, and lounge about the wharves talking and
smoking, and one knows that a man and his family cannot live on
air. Still, there may be others who are too sly to let out their
secret in either way, and therefore one must be very careful whom
one speaks to. One would not think of telling anyone about what is
intended until, just as it comes off, one could simply say that one
has heard that there is something in the air, and that report says
that every man who will lend a hand will earn--how much, captain?"
"Two hundred francs."
"When one sees how a man takes that, one can go a step or two
further.
"Well, I should not think of letting out to a soul what the nature
of the work would be, simply saying that every precaution will be
taken to prevent its being known that any fishermen are engaged in
it. All that will take time. I should say that it might be nigh a
couple of weeks before one could get the whole thing arranged."
"What do you think, Desailles?" Jean said. "Shall we have a
fortnight?"
Desailles shook his head.
"I could not say; you might have more than that, if the prisoners
were taken in the regular order in which they were condemned. The
jails are crowded and, as fresh captures are effected, room must be
made for them. Of course the committee have a list, and they make a
mark against the names of those who are to be executed, each day.
It might be three weeks before your friends' turn comes, it might
be only a few days."
"I tell you what, Rouget; you and your comrade had better land
tomorrow morning, and set to work. You might say that three
fishermen from Saint Florent, finding their boat too small, hired
yours for a week to try their luck. If they succeed they will give
you a fair price for her, if not they will simply pay the hire. You
can say that the price is not much, but as it is as much as you can
make at fishing, you thought that you might as well have an idle
week on shore.
"Leigh and I can work her. As soon as day breaks you shall shoot
your nets, so that we can see exactly how you work, and be able to
catch an average amount of fish each day. I am sure that no one
will know us in these disguises and, at any rate, we sha'n't be
clumsy either with the sails or oars. You can say that, as we are
strangers, you have agreed to sell our fish for us; which will be
an excuse for your coming down to us, with the news of how you are
getting on, each time that we come in."
"That will do very well, captain; but in that case, as a good deal
of the fishing must be done at night, we had better get out the
nets at once, and show you how they are managed."
For the next three days the work was carried on. Desailles had
undertaken to obtain, from a friend of his on the committee of
public safety, news of what was going on, and an early copy of the
names of the prisoners told off for execution on the following day.
On the third day after their arrival, Martin and Leigh rowed up to
the wood where they had directed the band to assemble and found
that, with two or three exceptions, all had arrived. Four or five
of them were at once told to return, to the estate and to the army,
with a message from Jean begging all his tenants to leave, and join
the party in hiding. Many of them would, no doubt, have returned to
their homes within a day or two of the capture of Saumur. Letters
had already been written to Bonchamp and Rochejaquelein to say that
they were intending to attack the jail, and deliver a number of
captives besides Jean's father and wife; and to beg that they would
pick out some fifty or a hundred determined men, and send them on.
On the morning of the sixth day, when the two sailors joined them,
they were in a state of high excitement.
"There is great news, captain," Rouget said; "the whole city is in
a state of tumult. It is reported that Cathelineau, with his army,
is marching upon Nantes; and it is also reported--but this is not
so certain--that Charette is marching to join them, with all his
force."
"That is grand news, if true!" Jean exclaimed. "That would indeed
favour our scheme! I doubt whether they will capture Nantes, for
there is a big force here, and enough of them are seasoned troops
to encourage the volunteers and National Guard to make a good fight
of it. However we can, at any rate, take advantage of the attack to
carry out our own plans. When the fighting is at the hottest, you
may be sure that every armed man will be wanted at the work, and
that there will not be many guards left behind at the prison. Our
band here can dispose of them; and half a dozen men each, with
fireballs, can add to the confusion by setting fire to warehouses
and factories. The great thing now will be the powder."
"That we have managed already, captain," Medart replied. "As I told
you, I spoke to Emile Moufflet the first morning I went ashore, and
he said that it was at the magazines that his chum was employed.
Yesterday evening he came to us, and said that if I gave him the
two thousand francs that you had given me for the purpose, he would
hand us over two barrels of powder, at eleven o'clock last night.
We got them; and carried them, as you told us, to Brenon's; and
helped him to bury them in his shed. We also got, as you ordered, a
couple of yards of fuse."
"Bravo, Medart! everything seems going well for us."
The news of Cathelineau's advance was confirmed, on the following
day, by the return of the lads who had been sent to fetch
assistance. They brought with them eight or ten men from the
estate; and reported that la Rochejaquelein had remained at Saumur,
with a portion of his army, to defend that town against a large
force that Biron was assembling at Tours; while Cathelineau, having
with him Bonchamp and Stofflet, was marching with the main force
along the north bank of the river. They said, however, that his
force was greatly diminished, for that large numbers of his men,
objecting to fight outside their own country, had scattered to
their villages. They, however, confirmed the news that Charette was
reported to be marching north to join Cathelineau.
"That is the worst part of the whole business," Jean said,
bitterly. "Our generals have no control over their men. They will
fight when they want to fight, and return home when they choose. If
Cathelineau had come along with a big force, he would have been
joined by numbers of Bretons on the way and, if he had captured
Nantes, by the greater part of Southern Brittany. Now that so many
of his men have left him, it is quite possible that his attack may
fail; and in that case the result will be disastrous. His army
would disperse, the Blues would turn their whole force against la
Rochejaquelein, and the cause that a fortnight since seemed half
won would be lost.
"It shows, at any rate, that the idea of marching on Paris could
not be carried out; for if men refuse to march, when they would be
separated from their own country only by the river, to take Nantes,
by which La Vendee is constantly threatened; certainly a greater
portion still would have gone off to their homes, rather than join
in what would seem to them so terrible an affair as a march on
Paris. The peasants are good enough at fighting but, though they
may win a victory by their bravery, they are certain to lose a
campaign by their independent habits."
Feeling convinced that the approach of the Vendean army would
enable their enterprise to be carried out by a much smaller body
than had at first appeared necessary, Jean Martin told the two
sailors that they had better abstain from broaching the matter to
any more of their acquaintances. They had already obtained the
adhesion of those of whose fidelity they felt absolutely assured
and, should one of the others whom they intended to approach turn
traitor, it would overthrow all chances of success, and might cause
such alarm to the authorities that the executions would go on more
rapidly than before, and the fate of their friends be precipitated.
Day by day the excitement in the city increased. Generals Beysser
and Canclaux had, under their command, some ten thousand men. There
was no chance of further reinforcements reaching them, but they
felt confident that they could successfully defend the town with
this force.
Had Charette marched to Ponts-de-Ce and, crossing there, joined
Cathelineau, the danger would have been much more formidable; but
instead of so doing he was advancing directly towards Nantes, on
the south side of the river, the few places remaining in the hands
of the Republicans being hastily evacuated on his approach. Here,
however, he could give but slight aid to Cathelineau, for the
bridge crossing the Loire could be defended by a comparatively
small force, provided with cannon to sweep the approaches.
In order to reassure the townspeople and encourage the troops, the
French generals, as the enemy approached, moved out with a large
proportion of their force and threw up some intrenchments a mile
and a half outside the town; feeling confident that they could
withstand any attack in the open country.
As many of the peasants fled into Nantes, especially those who, in
the villages, had rendered themselves obnoxious by their
persecutions of those suspected of Royalist leanings, or who were
personally obnoxious to them, Leigh was able to gather the whole of
his party in the town. They were, like other peasants, to sleep in
the open squares or down near the walls. They were always to go
about in pairs, and to meet Pierre or Andre at places and hours
arranged by them. They were supplied with money sufficient to buy
bread, and were warned on no account to make themselves conspicuous
in any way. With them were the men from Martin's estates who had
answered to his summons.
Clothes had been bought for the twelve sailors engaged by Medart
and Rouget. The fireballs had been prepared in the cabin of the
fishing boat. Each of the fourteen fishermen was to carry two of
these. Their leaders had carefully gone round the quarter, and had
picked out the stores or warehouses into which the fireballs were
to be flung. Among these were several wood yards No private houses
were to be fired. That the flames would spread to these was likely
enough, but at least there would be time for the women and children
to escape.
Having decided upon the places to be fired, the sailors were one by
one taken round, and the two buildings assigned to each pointed
out, so that there would be no confusion or loss of time when the
signal was given. Only two stores near the water had been marked
down for destruction, namely, those belonging to the Martins. This
was Leigh's work. As a firm the business was extinct. It was now
the sole property of Jacques Martin, and there was no probability
that Martin senior or Jean would ever recover a share in it. As in
each of the stores a considerable quantity of spirits in addition
to the wine was housed, not only would the loss be very heavy, but
the interest excited in the vicinity would increase the confusion
and alarm that would prevail.
Desailles was in daily communication with his friend. He learned
that the list of prisoners was being taken, now, more in the order
in which they stood. The farce of a trial had been gone through, in
the case of Jean's wife, and she had of course been condemned. She
stood a good deal lower on the list than his father. There was not
much chance of the day of her execution being settled before the
arrival of the Vendean forces. The number of names, however, above
that of Monsieur Martin was rapidly decreasing, and there was
imminent danger that he might be included in the fatal list before
their arrival.
On the twenty-sixth of June the Vendeans arrived within a few miles
of the town, and a formal summons was sent in to the generals. It
was briefly refused. General Canclaux believed that he had so
strengthened his advanced position, which was occupied by his best
troops, that he would be able to repulse Cathelineau's force there.
The Vendeans, however, being informed by the peasantry of the
formidable nature of the intrenchments, decided that it would be
dangerous to attack them; and consequently moved round so as to
threaten the town from the north. Charette, on his side, moved his
force up within cannon shot of the bridge.
At eight o'clock on the evening of the twenty-seventh, the sound of
heavy firing was heard in Nantes. A column of the Vendeans had
attacked Nort, a place lying to the north of the town. It was
defended by six hundred troops of the line, and a body of the
National Guard. They maintained themselves there during the night
but, at daybreak, fell back upon the town, leaving their cannon
behind them. A considerable body of troops moved out to cover their
retreat.
Confident that the attack would begin that evening, every
preparation for action was made by Jean and Leigh. The powder
barrels were dug up, and holes bored for the fuses. The boys were
all informed that the hour for action was at hand; and were ordered
to lie down, at nightfall, in the open space facing the front of
the prison, scattering themselves among others who would be
sleeping there or, in expectation of the attack on the town
beginning, would be standing in groups listening for it. Leigh
would be among them.
As the hour neared twelve they were to gather in a body. The
sailors were not to begin their work until the attack on the town
commenced in earnest. Jean, with his twelve tenants, was to come up
at twelve. The exact moment for the attack was to be decided upon
by the progress made by the fires. When these had had their effect,
Leigh was to fall upon the guard round the prison; and Jean, with
his band, to run forward to the gate, plant the powder barrels
against it, light the fuse and run back.
As soon as they had killed or driven away the guard, Leigh's party
were to return to the front. There Andre, with half the band, were
to station themselves, and to hold the gate against any armed body
that might arrive; while Leigh, with the others, entered the prison
and aided, if necessary, to overpower the warders and blow open the
doors of the cells. The prisoners were all to be told that
Charette's army was on the other side of the Loire, and that their
best plan was to make their way down to the river, seize boats, and
get across.
At five o'clock in the afternoon Charette's guns opened against the
barricades that had been thrown up at the bridge. Canclaux, seeing
that the attack upon the north had rendered it useless for him to
retain the advanced post, ordered the troops there to fall back
into the town, at ten o'clock in the evening; and at eleven the
whole garrison were concentrated in Nantes.
Finding that, with the exception of the cannonade on both sides
across the river, all remained quiet, Leigh passed the word round
among his followers to remain as they were, until further orders.
Jean and his men came up by twos and threes before twelve; and
these, too, lay down as if to sleep, or seated themselves on the
steps of the houses. Few of the inhabitants had retired to rest.
They knew that at any moment the storm might break, and some
awaited the attack with hope that the time of their release from
the tyranny under which they had, for months, groaned, had come;
while others trembled at the thought of the vengeance that, if the
town were taken, would fall upon those who had been concerned in
what had passed.
Martin and Desailles presently joined Leigh. As the time went on
they began to fear that, for some reason or other, the Vendeans had
determined to delay their attack until the next day. At half past
two Charette's cannonade redoubled in vigour, and the rattle of
musketry showed that his troops were advancing. The batteries of
the defenders opened with equal violence, and their musketry
answered that of the assailants on the opposite bank.
"I think that that must be the signal for Cathelineau to begin,"
Martin said.
And, ten minutes later, the attack commenced with fury upon the
gates of Vannes, Rennes, and that by the river.
Every window was opened, and anxious faces looked out. The night
was dark, and the few oil lamps alone threw a feeble light on the
square. Suddenly a broad glare rose to the west, and the murmur,
"There is a house on fire!" passed from mouth to mouth. In another
few minutes flames were seen rising at a dozen points, and a cry of
consternation arose.
"The brigands have entered the town! They are going to burn it to
the ground."
Man after man of the little group of National Guards, who had been
gathered talking in front of the door of the prison, was seen to
detach himself from it and to move quietly away. Then those at the
windows noticed four or five parties of men move forward, from
among those who were standing talking; when within a short distance
of the guard there was a sharp command, and these groups all rushed
towards the gates together. There were shouts and cries, and then
there was silence. Taken wholly by surprise, the guard had fallen
under the knives of the Vendeans without having had time to fire a
shot.
Then the majority of their assailants ran off, half one way, half
the other, following the wall of the prison. Two pistol shots were
fired, a moment later. The men who had remained at the gate drew
back for some distance. There was a short pause, and then a
tremendous explosion. All the people gathered in the place, save
those who had carried out the affair, fled with cries of terror.
Then Jean and his party dashed forward towards the shattered gates
and entered the prison, and shot or cut down the frightened warders
as these came running out, dazed and bewildered at the sound of the
explosion. Jean seized one of them by the throat.
[Illustration: Jean seized one of them by the throat.]
"Where are the keys kept? Answer, or I will blow out your brains!"
The frightened ruffian at once led the way to the chief warder's
room. He had already fallen, being one of the first to run down.
There were two bunches of keys.
"These are of the doors of the corridors," the man said, taking
down one bunch. "The others are of the cells."
"Now, go before us and open them all--every one, mind."
They were soon joined by Leigh with his party, who had made short
work of the few guards who remained at their post outside the
prison.
"Set your men to blow in the doors," Jean said; "It would take half
an hour to unlock them all, at this rate."
Pistols were at once applied to the keyholes, and the locks
destroyed. There were a few separate cells, but the prisoners were
for the most part crowded, twenty or thirty together, in the larger
rooms. As he entered each room, Leigh shouted the directions agreed
on to the prisoners. In a short time he came upon Jean who, as had
been arranged, had first gone to the rooms where his father and
Patsey were confined. Jean started with these at once, with six of
his men, leaving Leigh and Desailles to see to the release of the
rest of the prisoners.
As soon as all rooms had been burst open or unlocked, he and his
party, with that at the gate, hurried away. The streets were light,
as a sheet of flame rose from the stores of Jacques Martin. The
musketry fire on the wharves showed that there were troops
stationed there. As they hurried along, the shouts of alarm which
rose in the town showed that the news of the attack upon the prison
had spread rapidly. As soon as the released prisoners knew that
they were well above the bridge, and the silence on the wharves
showed that none of the troops were stationed there, shouts of
delight arose. There were a good many boats moored to the bank, and
the fugitives threw themselves into these.
"Get out your oars and row straight across," Leigh shouted. "If you
drift down the stream, you will come under the fire of the troops
there."
Then, having done their work, he and his band went up a hundred
yards farther, where they knew that three large boats were lying.
In these they took their places and started to row across the river
and, in five minutes, reached the opposite bank. They sprang out,
with a shout of joy at finding themselves again in their own
country. Most of the fugitives also gained the opposite bank; but
some boats, in which there were but few capable of handling the
oars, drifted down the river, and lost most of their number from
the fire of the troops on the bank, before they could land among
the men of Charette's army.
Leigh with his boys soon joined the other party, who had landed a
hundred yards higher up. It was a joyful meeting, indeed, between
him and Patsey.
"Jean tells me it is all your doing that we have been got out," she
said. "I felt sure you would manage it, somehow."
They had already arranged their plans. Jean, with his wife and
father and his twelve men, was to start at once for Parthenay,
where Lescure was in command. Leigh had determined to join
Cathelineau, with as many of his band as chose to accompany him.
Desailles would go with Jean.
The boys, on the choice being given them, almost all decided to
accompany Leigh. They were excited at the success that had attended
them, and the tremendous roll of fire round the town showed how
fiercely their countrymen were fighting, and they longed to join in
the conflict.
Saying goodbye to those who were going, Leigh and his party towed
one of the boats a mile up the river, and then crossing, soon
joined the party engaged. The Vendeans had already advanced some
distance, but every house and garden was fiercely contested. Hour
after hour passed, and the troops were beginning to be discouraged.
It was broad daylight now, and the Vendeans pressed forward at all
points, more hotly than ever.
The troops were falling into disorder, and would soon have become a
disorganized mass; when a musket ball, fired from a window, struck
Cathelineau in the breast as, with his officers, who had been
considerably increased in number owing to the many gentlemen who
had joined him at Saumur, he was leading on his troops.
A cry of dismay rose from those who saw him fall, and the news
spread like wildfire among the peasants, who regarded him with an
almost superstitious reverence, and had a firm belief that he was
protected by Heaven from the balls of his enemies. His loss seemed
to them an irretrievable misfortune. The fierceness of their attack
diminished. Their ardour was gone, and the Blues, gaining courage
as their assailants ceased to press them, took the offensive.
They met with but little opposition. The Vendean army, lately on
the point of being victorious, was already breaking up and, ere
long, was scattered over the country, its retreat being undisturbed
by the enemy, who could scarcely believe their own good fortune at
having succeeded, when all had seemed lost.
Cathelineau was carried off; but died, a fortnight later, from the
effects of the wound. His death was a terrible blow to the cause.
The failure to take Nantes had, in itself, been a great misfortune;
but the Vendeans had suffered no more heavily than the enemy and,
had Cathelineau been but spared, matters might still have gone well
with them. The effect of his death, however, was for the time to
dishearten the peasantry utterly; and had at this time terms of
peace, which would have permitted them to enjoy the exercise of
their religion, and to be free from conscription, been offered to
them, they would gladly have been accepted.
Charette, after he saw that the attack upon Nantes from the north
side of the river had failed, fell back with his force, as before,
into Lower Poitou. The Vendeans, now under Bonchamp, who had also
been wounded, retired along the north bank of the Loire, crossing
the river at various points as they could find boats.
Before joining in the fight, Leigh had told his band that, in the
event of failure, he should recross the river in the boat that had
brought them over. They had all kept near him during the struggle.
Eight of them had fallen, several others were wounded, and he
himself had received a musket ball in the shoulder. As soon as he
saw that the battle was lost, he withdrew from it and made his way
with the boys to the river bank; recrossed the stream, and struck
across the country. After proceeding some six miles they entered a
wood, and lay down and slept for some hours, and then marched to
Parthenay.
Here the band broke up and proceeded to their homes; while Leigh
made his way to Lescure's headquarters, learned where his friends
were lodged, and joined them.
Patsey gave a cry of alarm as he entered. Fugitives had arrived
before him, and it was already known that the attack on Nantes had
failed, and that Cathelineau was mortally wounded.
"What is it, Leigh?"
"I am wounded in the shoulder. It is nothing very serious, I think;
though I suppose I sha'n't be able to hold a sword for some time."
A surgeon was soon fetched, the ball extracted, and the wound
bandaged; and they then sat down to talk over the events that had
occurred. Since they had been separated, Monsieur Martin had become
a broken man. The fact that his son, who assuredly had it in his
power to protect him, had given him over to the terrible tribunal,
had been a harder blow to him than the prospect of death; and even
the devotion that had been shown by Jean scarcely sufficed to
comfort him.
Patsey was pale and thin. Her imprisonment had told upon her and,
still more, the thought of what Jean must be suffering on her
account, and her uncertainty as to the fate of her child. But even
the twenty-four hours that had elapsed since she had left her
prison had done much for her. The news that the child was safe and
well had taken a load off her mind; and she felt proud, indeed,
that her release, and that of so many others of her fellow
prisoners, had been brought about by the devotion of her husband
and her brother. Before the day was out, she was laughing and
chatting as if nothing had happened.
On the following morning they started early, and reached home in
the afternoon. They were received with delight by their people,
although many of these had lost relations in the recent battles. A
house in the village was placed at their disposal, Patsey riding
straight on to see her child; with which, and its faithful nurse,
she soon returned.
"And now, Jean," Patsey said when, with the cure and Jules
Desailles, they sat down for a quiet talk that evening, "what is to
be the next thing?"
"You should ask the Blues that," he replied. "So far as I can see,
it will be a repetition of what has taken place. They will invade
us again, and probably we shall beat them back. Each time they will
come with larger forces and, at last, I suppose we shall have to
endeavour to make our way to England. I am afraid there can be no
question that that will be the end of it. Fight as we may, we
cannot withstand the whole strength of France."
"Why can we not fly at once?" Monsieur Martin asked.
"The difficulty in reaching the coast, and of getting a passage,
would be immense. Besides, so long as La Vendee resists, so long is
it my duty to fight; and I am sure that Patsey would not wish me to
do otherwise. I have been in it from the first, and must stay until
the end, if I am not killed before that comes. If it were possible
to send you and Patsey and Leigh away to England, I would gladly do
so; but I am sure that she would not go, and I think I may say the
same for Leigh."
"Certainly, Jean; as long as you stay, I stay. My life is far less
important than yours, for I have no one dependent upon me. I quite
agree with you that the war can end in only one way; but till that
comes, all those who have been the leaders of these poor peasants
ought to hold by them."
"I agree entirely with you both," Patsey added, and there was no
more to be said.