There are periods in the life of some men, when, either by a
concatenation of unfortunate events, or by the accumulated
consequences of their own errors, the prospect on every side becomes
so clouded, that there is no resource for them, but to shut their eyes
to the menacing aspect of all things, and to take refuge in the moral
blindness of thoughtless inaction, against the pressure of present
difficulties. "I dare not think," is the excuse of many a man, for
continuing in the same course of levity which first brought
misfortunes upon him; but such is not always the case with those who
fly to wretched merriment in the hour of distress; and such was not
the case with Sir Robert Croyland.
He had thought for long years, till his very heart sickened at the
name of reflection. He had looked round for help, and had found none.
He had tried to discover some prospect of relief; and all was
darkness. The storm he had long foreseen was now bursting upon his
head; it was no longer to be delayed; it was not to be warded off. His
daughter's misery, or his own destruction, was the only choice before
him; and he was resolved to think no more--to let events take their
course, and to meet them as he best might.
But to resolve is one thing--to execute, another; and Edith's father
was not a man who could keep such a determination long. He might
indeed, for a time, cease to think of all the painful particulars of
his situation; but there will ever come moments when thought is forced
even upon the thoughtless, and events will arise, to press reflection
upon any heart. His efforts were, at first, very successful. After he
had despatched the letter to Mr. Radford, he had said, "I must really
pay my visitor some attention. It will serve to occupy my mind, too.
Anything to escape from the torturing consideration of questions,
which must ever be solved in wretchedness." And when he returned to
Sir Edward Digby, his conversation was particularly gay and cheerful.
It first turned to the unpleasant fact of the abstraction of all his
horses; but he now spoke of it in a lighter and less careful manner
than before.
"Doubtless," he said, "they have been taken without leave, as usual,
by the smugglers, to use for their own purposes. It is quite a common
practice in this county; and yet we all go on leaving our stable-doors
open, as if to invite all who pass to enter, and choose what they
like. Then, I suppose, they have been captured with other spoil, in
the strife of yesterday morning, and are become the prize of the
conquerors; so that I shall never see them again."
"Oh, no!" answered the young officer, "they will be restored, I am
quite sure, upon your identifying them, and proving that they were
taken, without your consent, by the smugglers. I shall go over to
Woodchurch by-and-by; and if you please, I will claim them for you."
"It is scarcely worth while," replied the baronet; "I doubt that I
shall ever get them back. These are little losses which every man in
this neighbourhood must suffer, as a penalty for remaining in a half
savage part of the country.--What are you disposed to do this morning,
Sir Edward? Do you again walk the stubbles?"
"I fear it 'would be of little use," answered Digby; "there has been
so much galloping lately, that I do not think a partridge has been
left undisturbed in its furrow; and the sun is too high for much
sport."
"Well, then, let us walk in the garden for a little," said Sir Robert;
"it is curious, in some respects, having been laid out long before
this house was built, antiquated as it is."
Sir Edward Digby assented, but looked round for Zara, as he certainly
thought her society would be a great addition to her father's. She had
not yet returned to the room, however; and Sir Robert, as if he
divined his young companion's feelings, requested his sister to tell
her niece, when she came, that he and their guest were walking in the
garden. "It is one of her favourite spots, Sir Edward," he continued,
as they went out, "and many a meditative hour she spends there; for,
gay as she is, she has her fits of thought, too."
The young baronet internally said, "Well she may, in this house!" but
making a more civil answer to his entertainer, he followed him to the
garden; and so well and even cheerfully did Sir Robert Croyland keep
up the conversation, so learnedly did he descant upon the levelling
and preservation of turf in bowling-greens, and upon the clipping of
old yew-trees--both before and after Zara joined them--that Digby
began to doubt, notwithstanding all he had heard, whether he could
really have such a load upon his heart as he himself had stated to
Edith, and to fancy that, after all, it might be a stratagem to drive
her to compliance with his wishes.
A little incident, of no great moment in the eyes of any one but a
very careful observer of his fellow-men--and Digby was far more so
than he seemed--soon settled the doubt. As they were passing under an
old wall of red brick--channelled by time and the shoots of pears and
peaches--which separated the garden from the different courts, a door
suddenly opened behind them, just after they had passed it; and while
Sir Edward's eyes were turned to the face of the master of the house,
Sir Robert's ear instantly caught the sound, and his cheek became as
pale as ashes.
"There is some dark terror there!" thought the young officer; but,
turning to Zara, he finished the sentence he had been uttering, while
her father's coachman, who was the person that had opened the door,
came forward to say that one of the horses had returned.
"Returned!" exclaimed Sir Robert Croyland; "has been brought back, I
suppose you mean?"
"Ay, Sir Robert," replied the man; "a fellow from the lone house by
Iden Green brought him; and in a sad state the poor beast is. He's got
a cut, like with a knife, all down his shoulder."
"Your dragoon swords are sharp, Sir Edward," said the old baronet,
gaily, to his guest; "however, I will go and see him myself, and
rejoin you here in a minute."
"I am so glad to have a moment alone," cried Zara, as soon as her
father was gone, "that you must forgive me if I use it directly. I am
going to ask you a favour, Sir Edward. You must take me a ride, and
lend me a horse. I have just had a message from poor Harry Leyton; he
wishes to see me, but I am afraid to go alone, with so many soldiers
about."
"Are they such terrible animals?" asked her companion, with a smile,
adding, however, "I shall be delighted, if your father will consent;
for I have already told him that I am going to Woodchurch this
afternoon."
"Oh! you must ask me yourself, Sir Edward," replied Zara, "quite in a
civil tone; and then when you see that I am willing, you must be very
pressing with my father--quite as if you were a lover; and he will not
refuse you.--I'll bear you harmless, as I have heard Mr. Radford say;"
she added, with a playful smile that was quickly saddened.
"You shall command for the time," answered Digby, as gaily; "perhaps
after that, I may take my turn, sweet lady. But I have a good deal to
say to you, too, which I could not fully explain last night."
"As we go--as we go," replied Zara; "my father will be back directly,
otherwise I would tell you a long story about my aunt, who has
evidently got some great secret which she is all impatience to
divulge. If I had stayed an hour with her, I might have arrived at it;
but I was afraid of losing my opportunity here.--Oh, that invaluable
thing, opportunity! Once lost, what years of misery does it not
sometimes leave behind.--Would to Heaven that Edith and Leyton had run
away with each other when they were about it.--We should all have been
happier now."
"And I should never have known you," replied Digby. Zara smiled, and
shook her head, as if saying, "That is hardly fair;" but Sir Robert
Croyland was seen coming up the walk; and she only replied, "Now do
your _devoir_, gallant knight, and let me see if you do it zealously."
"I have been trying in your absence, my dear sir," said Digby, rather
maliciously, as the baronet joined them, "to persuade your fair
daughter to run away with me. But she is very dutiful, and will not
take such a rash step, though the distance is only to Woodchurch,
without your consent. I pray you give it; for I long to mount her on
my quietest horse, and see her try her skill in horsemanship again."
Sir Robert Croyland looked grave; and ere the words were half spoken,
Sir Edward Digby felt that he had committed an error in his game; for
he was well aware that when we have a favour to ask, we should not
call up, by speech or look, in the mind of the person who is to grant
it, any association having a contrary tendency.
"I am afraid that I have no servant whom I could send with you, Sir
Edward," replied her father; "one I have just dispatched to some
distance, and you know I am left without horses, for this poor beast
just come back, is unfit. Neither do I think it would be altogether
consistent with decorum, for Zara to go with you quite alone."
Sir Edward Digby mentally sent the word decorum back to the place from
whence it came; but he was resolved to press his point; and when Zara
replied, "Oh, do let me go, papa!" he added, "My servant can accompany
us, to satisfy propriety, Sir Robert; and you know I have quartered
three horses upon you. Then, as I find the fair lady is somewhat
afraid of a multitude of soldiers, I promise most faithfully not even
to dismount in Woodchurch, but to say what I have to say, to the
officer in command there, and then canter back over the country."
"Who is the officer in command?" asked Sir Robert Croyland.
Zara drew her breath quick, but Sir Edward Digby avoided the dangerous
point. "Irby has one troop there," he replied; "and there are parts of
two others. When I have made interest enough here," he continued, with
a half bow to Zara, "I shall beg to introduce Irby to you, Sir Robert;
you will like him much, I think. I have known him long."
"Pray invite him to dinner while he stays," said Sir Robert Croyland;
"it will give me much pleasure to see him."
"Not yet--not yet!" answered Digby, laughing; "I always secure my own
approaches first."
Sir Robert Croyland smiled graciously, and, turning to Zara, said,
"Well, my dear, I see no objection, if you wish it. You had better go
and get ready."
Zara's cheek was glowing, and she took her father at the first word;
but when she was gone, Sir Robert thought fit to lecture his guest a
little, upon the bad habit of spoiling young ladies which he seemed to
have acquired. He did it jocularly, but with his usual pompous and
grave air; and no one would have recognised in the Sir Robert Croyland
walking in the garden, the father whom we have lately seen humbled
before his own child. There is no part of a man's character which he
keeps up so well to the world as that part which is not his own. The
assertion may seem to be a contradiction in terms; but there is no
other way of expressing the sense clearly; and whether those terms be
correct or not, will depend upon whether character is properly innate
or accumulated.
Sir Edward Digby answered gaily, for it was his object to keep his
host in good humour at least, for the time. He denied the possibility
of spoiling a lady, while he acknowledged his propensity to attempt
impossibilities in that direction; and at the same time, with a good
grace, and a frankness, real yet assumed--for his words were true,
though they might not have been spoken just then, under any other
circumstances--he admitted that, of all people whom he should like to
spoil, the fair being who had just left them was the foremost. The
words were too decided to be mistaken. Sir Edward Digby was evidently
a gentleman, and known to be a man of honour. No man of honour trifles
with a woman's affections; and Sir Robert Croyland, wise in this
instance if not in others, did as all wise fathers would do, held his
tongue for a time that the matter might cool and harden, and then
changed the subject.
Digby, however, had grown thoughtful. Did he repent what he had said?
No, certainly not. He wished, indeed, that he had not been driven to
say it so soon; for there were doubts in his own mind whether Zara
herself were altogether won. She was frank, she was kind, she trusted
him, she acted with him; but there was at times a shade of reserve
about her, coming suddenly, which seemed to him as a warning. She had
from the first taken such pains to ensure that her confidence--the
confidence of circumstances--should not be misunderstood; she had
responded so little to the first approaches of love, while she had
yielded so readily to those of friendship, that there was a doubt in
his mind which made him uneasy; and, every now and then, her uncle's
account of her character rung in his ear, and made him think--"I have
found this artillery more dangerous than I expected."
What a pity it is that uncles will not hold their tongues!
At length, he bethought him that it would be as well to order the
horses, which was accordingly done; and some time before they were
ready, the fair girl herself appeared, and continued walking up and
down the garden with her father and their guest, looking very lovely,
both from excitement, which gave a varying colour to her cheek, and
from intense feelings, which, denied the lips, looked out with deeper
soul from the eyes.
"I think, Zara," said Sir Robert Croyland, when it was announced that
the horses and the servant were ready, "that you took Sir Edward to
the north, when you went over to your uncle's. You had better,
therefore, in returning--for I know, in your wild spirits, when once
on horseback, you will not be contented with the straight road--you
had better, I say, come by the southwest."
"Oh, papa, I could never learn the points of the compass in my life!"
answered Zara, laughing; "I suppose that is the reason why, as my aunt
says, I steer so ill."
"I mean--by the lower road," replied her father; and he laid such
emphasis on the words, that Zara received them as a command.
They mounted and set out, much to the surprise of Mrs. Barbara
Croyland, who saw them from the window, and thence derived her first
information of their intended expedition; for Zara was afraid of her
aunt's kindnesses, and never encountered them when she could help it.
When they were a hundred yards from the house, the conversation began;
but I will not enter into all the details; for at first they related
to facts with which the reader is already well acquainted. Sir Edward
Digby told her at large, all that had passed between himself and
Leyton on the preceding day, and Zara, in return, informed him of the
message she had received from his friend, and how it had been
conveyed. Their minds then turned to other things, or rather to other
branches of the same subjects; and, what was to be done? was the next
question; for hours were flying--the moment that was to decide the
fate of the two beings in whom each felt a deep though separate
interest, was approaching fast; and no progress had apparently been
made.
Zara's feelings seemed as much divided as Edith's had been. She shrank
from the thought, that her sister, whom she loved with a species of
adoration, should sacrifice herself on any account to such a fate as
that which must attend the wife of Richard Radford. She shrank also,
as a young, generous woman's heart must ever shrink, from the thought
of any one wedding the abhorred, and separating for ever from the
beloved; but then, when she came to turn her eyes towards her father,
she trembled for him as much as for Edith; and, with her two hands
resting on the pommel of the saddle, she gazed down in anxious and
bitter thought.
"I know not your father as well as you do, my dear Miss Croyland,"
said her companion, at length, as he marked these emotions; "and
therefore I cannot tell what might be his conduct under particular
circumstances." Zara suddenly raised her eyes, and fixed them on his
face; but Digby continued. "I do not speak of the past, but of the
future. I take it for granted--not alone as a courtesy, but from all I
have seen--that Sir Robert Croyland cannot have committed any act,
that could justly render him liable to danger from the law."
"Thank you--thank you!" said Zara, dropping her eyes again; "you judge
rightly, I am sure."
"But at the same time," he proceeded, "it is clear that some
unfortunate concurrence of circumstances has placed him either really,
or in imagination, in Mr. Radford's power. Now, would he but act a
bold and decided part--dare the worst--discountenance a bad man and a
villain--even, if necessary, in his magisterial capacity, treat him as
he deserves--he would take away the sting from his malice. Any
accusation this man might bring would have _enmity_ too strongly
written upon it, to carry much weight; and all the evidence in favour
of your father would have double force."
"He cannot--he will not," answered Zara, sadly, "unless he be actually
driven. I know no more than you, Sir Edward, how all this has
happened; but I know my father, and I know that he shrinks from
disgrace more than death. An accusation, a public trial, would kill
him by the worst and most terrible kind of torture. Mr. Radford, too,
has wound the toils round him completely--that I can see. He could say
that Sir Robert Croyland has acted contrary to all his own principles,
at his request; and he could point to the cause. He could say that Sir
Robert Croyland suddenly became, and has been for years the most
intimate friend and companion of a man he scorned and avoided;
and he could assert that it was because the proud man was in the
cunning man's power. If, for vengeance, he chooses to avow his own
disgrace--and what is there not Mr. Radford would avow to serve his
ends?--believe me, he has my father in a net, from which it will be
difficult to disentangle him."
They both fell into thought again; but Zara did not sink in Digby's
estimation, from the clear and firm view which she took of her
father's position.
"Well," he said, at length, "let us wait, and hear what poor Leyton
has to tell you. Perhaps he may have gained some further insight, or
may have formed some plan; and now, Zara, let us for a moment speak of
ourselves. You see, to-day, I have been forced to make love to you."
"Too much," said Zara, gravely. "I am sure you intended it for the
best; but I am sorry it could not be avoided."
"And yet it is very pleasant," answered Digby, half jestingly, half
seriously.
Zara seemed agitated: "Do not, do not!" she replied; "my mind is too
full of sad things, to think of what might be pleasant or not at
another time;" and she turned a look towards him, in which kindness,
entreaty, and seriousness were all so blended, that it left him in
greater doubt than ever, as to her sensations. "Besides," she added,
the serious predominating in her tone, "consider what a difference one
rash word, on either part, may make between us. Let me regard you, at
least for the present, as a friend--or a brother, as you once said,
Digby; let me take counsel with you, seek your advice, call for your
assistance, without one thought or care to shackle or restrain me. In
pity, do; for you know not how much I need support."
"Then I am most ready to give it, on your own terms, and in your own
way," answered Digby, warmly; but, immediately afterwards, he fell
into a reverie, and in his own mind thought--"She is wrong in her
view; or indifferent towards me. With a lover to whom all is
acknowledged, and with whom all is decided, she would have greater
confidence, than with a friend, towards whom the dearest feelings of
the heart are in doubt. This must be resolved speedily, but not now;
for it evidently agitates her too much.--Yet, after all, in that
agitation is hope."
Just as his meditations had reached this point, they passed by the
little public house of the Chequers, then a very favourite sign in
England, and especially in that part of the country; and in five
minutes after, they perceived a horseman on the road, riding rapidly
towards them.
"There is Leyton," said Sir Edward Digby, as he came somewhat nearer;
but Zara gazed forward with surprise, at the tall, manly figure,
dressed in the handsome uniform of the time, the pale but noble
countenance, and the calm commanding air. "Impossible!" she cried.
"Why, he was a gay, slight, florid, young man."
"Six or seven years ago," answered Digby; "but that, my dear Miss
Croyland, is Sir Henry Leyton, depend upon it."
Now, it may seem strange that Edith should have instantly recognised,
even at a much greater distance, the man whom her sister did not,
though the same period had passed since each had seen him; but, it
must be remembered, that Edith was between two and three years older
than Zara; and those two or three years, at the time of life which
they had reached when Leyton left England, are amongst the most
important in a woman's life--those when new feelings and new thoughts
arise, to impress for ever, on the woman's heart, events and persons
that the girl forgets in an hour.
Leyton, however, it certainly was; and when Zara could see his
features distinctly, she recalled the lines. Springing from his horse
as soon as he was near, her sister's lover cast the bridle of his
charger over his arm, and, taking the hand she extended to him, kissed
it affectionately: "Oh, Zara, how you are changed!" he said. "But so
am I; and you have gained, whilst I have lost. It is very kind of you
to come thus speedily."
"You could not doubt, Leyton, that I would, if possible," answered
Zara; "but all things are much changed in our house, as well as
ourselves; and that wild liberty which we formerly enjoyed, of running
whithersoever we would, is sadly abridged now. But what have you to
say, Leyton? for I dare not stay long."
Digby was dropping behind, apparently to speak to his servant for a
moment; but Leyton called to him, assuring him that he had nothing to
say, which he might not hear.
"Presently, presently," answered Zara's companion; and leaving them
alone, he rode up to good Mr. Somers, who, with his usual discretion,
had halted, as they halted, at a very respectful distance. The young
officer seemed to give some orders, which were rather long, and then
returned at a slow pace. In the meantime, the conversation of Leyton
and Zara had gone on; but his only object, it appeared, was to see
her, and to entreat her to aid and support his Edith in any trial she
might be put to. "I spent a short period of chequered happiness with
her last night," he said; "and she then told me, dear Zara, that she
was sure her father would send for her in the course of this day. If
such be the case, keep with her always as far as possible; bid her
still remember Harry Leyton; bid her resist to the end; and assure her
that he will come to her deliverance ultimately. Were it myself alone,
I would sacrifice anything, and set her free; but when I know that, by
so doing, I should make her wretched for ever--that her own heart
would be broken, and nothing but an early death relieve her, I cannot
do it, Zara--no one can expect it."
"Perhaps not--perhaps not, Leyton;" answered Zara, with the tears in
her eyes; "but yet--my father! However, I cannot advise--I cannot even
ask anything. All is so dark and perplexed, I am lost!"
"I am labouring now, dear Zara," replied the young officer, "to find
or devise means of rendering his safety sure. Already I have the power
to crush the bad man in whose grasp he is, and render his testimony,
whatever it may be, nearly valueless. At all events, the only course
before us, is that which I have pointed out; and while Digby is with
you, you can never want the best and surest counsel and assistance.
You may confide in him fully, Zara. I have now known him many years;
and a more honourable and upright man, or one of greater talent, does
not live."
There was something very gratifying to Zara in what he said of his
friend; and had she been in a mood to scrutinize her own feelings
accurately, the pleasure that she experienced in hearing such words
spoken of Sir Edward Digby--the agitated sort of pleasure--might have
given her an insight into her own heart. As it was, it only sent a
passing blush into her cheek, and she replied, "I am sure he is all
you say, Harry; and indeed, it is to his connivance that I owe my
being able to come hither to-day. These smugglers took away all my
father's horses; and I suppose, from what I hear, that some of them
have been captured by your men."
"If such is the case they shall be sent back," replied Leyton; "for I
am well aware that the horses being found with the smugglers, is no
proof that they were therewith the owner's consent. To-morrow, I trust
to be able to give you a further insight into my plans, for I am
promised some information of importance to-night; and perhaps, even
before you reach home, I shall have put a bar against Mr. Richard
Radford's claims to Edith, which he may find insurmountable."
As he was speaking, Sir Edward Digby returned, quickening his horse's
pace as he came near, and pointing with his hand. "You have got a
detachment out, I see, Leyton," he said--"Is there any new affair
before you?"
"Oh, no," replied the Colonel, "it is merely Irby and a part of his
troop, whom I have despatched to search the wood, for I have certain
intelligence that the man we are seeking is concealed there."
"They may save themselves the trouble," replied Zara, shaking her
head; "for though he was certainly there all yesterday, he made his
escape this morning."
Leyton hit his lip, and his brow grew clouded. "That is unfortunate,"
he said, "most unfortunate!--I do not ask you how you know, Zara; but
are you quite sure?"
"Perfectly," she answered--"I would not deceive you for the world,
Leyton; and I only say what I have said, because I think that, if you
do search the wood, it may draw attention to your being in this
neighbourhood, which as yet is not known at Harbourne, and it may
embarrass us very much."
"I am not sure, Leyton," said Sir Edward Digby, "that as far as your
own purposes are concerned, it might not be better to seem, at all
events, to withdraw the troops, or at least a part of them, from this
neighbourhood. Indeed, though I have no right to give you advice upon
the subject, I think also it might be beneficial in other respects,
for as soon as the smugglers think you gone, they will act with more
freedom."
"I propose to do so, to-morrow," replied the colonel; "but I have some
information already, and expect more, upon which I must act in the
first place. It will be as well, however, to stop Irby's party, if
there is no end to be obtained by their proceedings."
He then took leave of Zara and his friend, mounted his horse, and rode
back to meet the troop that was advancing; while Zara and Sir Edward
Digby, after following the same road up to the first houses of
Woodchurch, turned away to the right, and went back to Harbourne, by
the small country road which leads from Kennardington to Tenterden.
Their conversation, as they went, would be of very little interest to
the reader; for it consisted almost altogether of comments upon
Leyton's changed appearance, and discussions of the same questions of
doubt and difficulty which had occupied them before. They went slowly,
however; and when they reached the house it did not want much more
than three quarters of an hour to the usual time of dinner. Sir Robert
Croyland they found looking out of the glass-door, which commanded a
view towards his brother's house, and his first question was, which
way they had returned. Sir Edward Digby gave an easy and unconcerned
reply, describing the road they had followed, and comparing it,
greatly to its disadvantage, with that which they had pursued on their
former expedition.
"Then you saw nothing of the carriage, Zara?" inquired her father. "It
is very strange that Edith has not come back."
"No, we saw no carriage of any kind; but a carrier's cart," replied
the young lady. "Perhaps if Edith did not know you were going to send,
she might not be ready."
This reason, however, did not seem to satisfy Sir Robert Croyland; and
after talking with him for a few minutes more as he stood, still
gazing forth over the country, Zara and Digby retired to change their
dress before dinner; and the latter received a long report from his
servant of facts which will be shown hereafter. The man was
particularly minute and communicative, because his master asked him no
questions, and suffered him to tell his tale his own way. But that
tale fully occupied the time till the second bell rang, and Digby
hurried down to dinner.
Still, Miss Croyland had not returned; and it was evident that Sir
Robert Croyland was annoyed and uneasy. All the suavity and
cheerfulness of the morning was gone; for one importunate source of
care and thought will always carry the recollection back to others;
and he sat at the dinner table in silence and gloom, only broken by
brief intervals of conversation, which he carried on with a laborious
effort.
Just as Mrs. Barbara rose to retire, however, the butler re-entered
the room, announcing to Sir Robert Croyland that Mr. Radford had
called, and wished to speak with him. "He would not come in, sir,"
continued the man, "for he said he wanted to speak with you alone, so
I showed him into the library."
Sir Robert Croyland instantly rose, but looked with a hesitating
glance at his guest, while Mrs. Barbara and Zara retired from the
room.
"Pray, do not let me detain you, Sir Robert," said the young officer;
"I have taken as much wine as I ever do, and will go and join the
ladies in the drawing-room."
The customs of the day required that the master of the house should
press the bottle upon his guest; and Sir Robert Croyland did not fail
to do so. But Digby remained firm, and, to settle the question, walked
quietly to the door and entered the drawing-room. There, he found Zara
seated; but Mrs. Barbara was standing near the table, and apparently
in a state, for which the English language supplies but one term, and
that not a very classical one. I mean, she was in a _fidget_.
The reader is aware that the library of Harbourne House was adjacent
to the drawing-room, and that there was a door between them. It was a
thick, solid, oaken door, however, such as shut out the wind in the
good old times; and, moreover, it fitted very close. Thus, though the
minute after Sir Edward had entered the room, a low murmur, as of
persons speaking somewhat loud, was heard from the library, not a
single syllable could be distinguished; and Mrs. Barbara looked at the
keyhole, with a longing indescribable. After about thirty seconds'
martyrdom, Mrs. Barbara quitted the room: Zara, who knew her aunt,
candidly trusting, that she had gone to put herself out of temptation;
and Sir Edward Digby never for a moment imagining, that she could have
been in any temptation at all. It may now be necessary, however, to
follow Sir Robert Croyland to the library, and to reveal to the reader
all that Mrs. Barbara was so anxious to learn.
He found Mr. Radford, booted and spurred, standing, with his tall,
bony figure, in as easy an attitude as it could assume, by the
fire-place; and the baronet's first question was, "In the name of
Heaven, Radford, what has become of Edith?--Neither she nor the
carriage have returned."
"Oh, yes, the carriage has, half an hour ago!" replied Mr. Radford;
"and I met the horses going back as I came.--Didn't you get my message
which I sent by the coachman?"
"No, I must have been at dinner," answered Sir Robert Croyland, "and
the fools did not give it to me."
"Well, it is no great matter," rejoined Mr. Radford, in the quietest
possible tone. "It was only to say that I was coming over, and would
explain to you all about Miss Croyland."
"But where is she? Why did she not come?" demanded her father, with
some of the old impetuosity of his youth.
"She is at my house," answered the other, deliberately; "I thought it
would be a great deal better, Croyland, to bring her there at once, as
you left to me the decision of where the marriage was to be. She could
be quite as comfortable there as here. My son will be up to-morrow;
and the marriage can take place quietly, without any piece of work.
Now, here it would be difficult to manage it; for, in the first place,
it would be dangerous for my son. You have got a stranger in the
house, and a whole heap of servants, who cannot be trusted. I have
arranged everything for the marriage, and for their going off quietly
on their little tour. We shall soon get a pardon for this affair with
the dragoons; and that will be all settled."
Sir Robert Croyland had remained mute; not with any calm or tranquil
feelings, but with indignation and astonishment. "Upon my life and
soul," he cried, "this is too bad! Do you mean to say, sir, that you
have ventured, without my knowledge or consent, to change my
daughter's destination, and take her to your house when I wished her
to be brought here?"
"Undoubtedly," replied Mr. Radford, with the most perfect calmness.
"Well then, sir," exclaimed the baronet, irritated beyond all
endurance--"I have to tell you, that you have committed a gross,
insolent, and unjustifiable act; and I have to insist that she be
brought back here this very night."
"Nay, my dear friend--nay," replied Mr. Radford, in a half jeering
tone. "These are harsh words that you use; but you must hear me first,
before I pay any attention to them."
"I want to hear nothing, sir," cried Sir Robert Croyland, his anger
still carrying him forward. "But if you do not send her back to her
own home, I will get horses over from Tenterden, and bring her
myself.--Her slavery has not yet commenced, Mr. Radford."
"I shall not be able to bring her over," answered Mr. Radford, still
maintaining the same provoking coolness; "because, in case of her
return, I should be obliged to use my horses myself, to lay certain
important facts, which we both know of, before a brother magistrate."
He paused, and Sir Robert Croyland winced. But still indignation was
uppermost for the time; and rapidly as lightning the thoughts of
resistance passed through his mind. "This man's conduct is too bad,"
he said to himself. "After such a daring act as this, with his
character blackened by so many stains, and so clear a case of revenge,
the magistrates will surely hardly listen to him." But as he continued
to reflect, timidity--the habitual timidity of many years--began to
mingle with and dilute his resolution; and Mr. Radford, who knew him
to the very heart, after having suffered him to reflect just long
enough to shake his firmness, went on in a somewhat different tone,
saying, "Come, Sir Robert! don't be unreasonable; and before you
quarrel irretrievably with an old friend, listen quietly to what he
has got to say."
"Well, sir, well," said Sir Robert Croyland, casting himself into a
chair--"what is it you have got to say?"
"Why, simply this, my dear friend," answered Mr. Radford, "that you
are not aware of all the circumstances, and therefore cannot judge yet
whether I have acted right or wrong. You and I have decided, I think,
that there can no longer be any delay in the arrangement of our
affairs. I put it plainly to you yesterday, that it was to be now or
never; and you agreed that it should be now. You brought me your
daughter's consent in the afternoon; and so far the matter was
settled. I don't want to injure you; and if you are injured, it is
your own fault--"
"But I gave no consent," said Sir Robert Croyland, "that she should be
taken to your house. The circumstances--the circumstances, Mr.
Radford!"
"Presently, presently," replied his companion. "I take it for
granted, that, when you have pledged yourself to a thing, you are
anxious to accomplish it. Now I tell you, there was no sure way of
accomplishing this, but that which I have taken. Do you know who is
the commander of this dragoon regiment which is down here?--No. But I
do. Do you know who is the man, who, like a sub-officer of the
Customs, attacked our friends yesterday morning, took some fifty of
them prisoners, robbed me of some seventy thousand pounds, and is now
hunting after my son, as if he were a fox?--No. But I do; and I will
tell you who he is.--One Harry Leyton, whom you may have heard
of--now, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Henry Leyton, Knight of the Bath,
forsooth!"
Sir Robert Croyland gazed upon him in astonishment; but, whatever were
his other sensations, deep grief and bitter regret mingled with them,
when he thought that circumstances should ever have driven or tempted
him to promise his daughter's hand to a low, dissolute, unprincipled
villan, and to put a fatal barrier between her and one whom he had
always known to be generous, honorable, and high principled, and who
had now gained such distinction in the service of his country. He
remained perfectly silent, however; and the expression of surprise and
consternation which his countenance displayed, was misinterpreted by
Mr. Radford to his own advantage.
"Now, look here, Sir Robert," he continued; "if your daughter were in
your house, you could not help this young man having some
communication with her. He has already been over at your brother's,
and has seen her, I doubt not. Here, then, is your fair daughter Miss
Zara, your guest Sir Edward Digby--his intimate friend, I dare
say--all your maids and half your men servants, even dear Mrs. Barbara
herself, with her sweet meddling ways, would all be ready to fetch and
carry between the lovers. In short, our whole plans would be
overturned; and I should be compelled to do that which would be very
disagreeable to me, and to strike at this upstart Henry Leyton through
the breast of Sir Robert Croyland. In my house, he can have no access
to her; and though some mischief may already have been done, yet it
can go no further."
"Now I understand what you mean by revenge," said the baronet, in a
low tone, folding his hands together.--"Now I understand."
"Well, but have I judged rightly or wrongly?" demanded Mr. Radford.
"Rightly, I suppose," said Sir Robert Croyland, sadly. "It can't be
helped;--but poor Edith, how does she bear it?"
"Oh, very well," answered Mr. Radford, quietly. "She cried a little at
first, and when she found where they were going, asked the coachman
what he meant. It was my coachman, you know, not yours; and so he
lied, like a good, honest fellow, and said you were waiting for her at
my house. I was obliged to make up a little bit of a story too, and
tell her you knew all about it; but that was no great harm; for I was
resolved, you should know all about it, very soon."
"Lied like a good honest fellow!" murmured Sir Robert Croyland, to
himself. "Well," he continued, aloud, "at all events I must come over
to-morrow, and try to reconcile the poor girl to it."
"Do so, do so," answered Mr. Radford; "and in the meantime, I must be
off; for I've still a good deal of work to do to-night. Did you see,
they have withdrawn the dragoons from the wood? They knew it would be
of no use to keep them there. So now, good night--that's all settled."
"All settled, indeed," murmured Sir Robert Croyland as Mr. Radford
left him; and for nearly half an hour after, he continued sitting in
the library, with his hands clasped upon his knee, exactly in the same
position.