On the following day, Sir John Mitchell handed to Fergus the
official documents respecting the restoration of the estates and,
after taking copies of the same, Fergus wrote a long letter to his
mother, inclosing the official papers, Mitchell having offered to
send the packet home with his despatches. Fergus was glad to get
the documents sent off in this way--by which, indeed, he had sent
the greater part of his letters to his mother--the post being so
uncertain and insecure that there was no trusting it; and although
his mother's replies were always sent to the care of the
ambassador, a large number of them were lost in the transit.
Early in April Fergus suddenly broke down. His work had been almost
incessant. The cold in the tent had, at night, been extreme; and,
having been wetted to the skin one day, when a sudden thaw came on,
his clothes had been frozen stiff when, at nightfall, the frost
returned with even greater severity than before. In spite of the
cloaks and blankets that Karl heaped upon his bed, he shivered all
night, and in the morning hot fits came on. The king's surgeon,
coming in to see him, pronounced that the chill had resulted in
what was probably rheumatic fever.
He was at once carried to a hospital, some miles in the rear. This
was crowded with officers and men, suffering from the effects of
their hardships; but a room was assigned to him in a house close
by, that had been taken for the use of officers of distinction.
Here for two months he lay helpless, and at times delirious. Karl
sat up with him almost night and day, taking two or three hours'
sleep occasionally on the floor, but starting up whenever his
master moved or spoke. Sir John Mitchell rode over several times to
see him, and the king's own surgeon went over twice a week. These
visits, however, both ceased three weeks after he entered the
hospital, the king's army having rapidly marched away.
At the end of June he was out and able to sit in the sun in the
garden.
"How long shall I be before I am fit for duty again?" he asked the
surgeon, two days later.
"Six weeks or two months. It will be fully that time before you can
regain your strength. In a month, no doubt, you will be able to sit
a horse; but I should say that it would be quite twice that time,
before you will be fit to perform the work that falls to your lot
on the king's staff. You want to have quiet, and at the same time
you need pleasant company. The worst thing you can possibly do is
to worry and fret yourself. Instead of bringing things about
sooner, it will only delay them. What you have to do is to bask in
the sun, eat and drink as much as you can, and take life
pleasantly.
"There is one thing, you have nothing to grieve about that you are
not with the king. He is marching hither and thither with wonderful
celerity but, do what he will, he cannot induce either Daun or Lacy
to give battle; though together they are three to one against him.
Whenever he approaches they simply shut themselves up in
impregnable places, erect palisades and batteries, and hope that he
will dash himself against them; which he is not likely to do."
Fergus found that Frederick, when he marched, had left behind a
force sufficient to check any attempt that the Austrian garrison of
Dresden might make, towards the north; but that at present all was
quiet, the enemy venturing on no aggressive movements, never
knowing when the king might suddenly pounce down upon them. He
found that there was no attempt made to blockade the town. No carts
with provisions were allowed to pass in from the north side, but on
the west there was free ingress and egress, there being no Prussian
troops in that direction. Fergus therefore hired a peasant to carry
a letter for him to Count Eulenfurst, explaining how it was that he
had been unable to get leave during the winter; and that, for the
last two months and a half, he had been laid up in the hospital.
Three days later a carriage drove up to the house. The count
himself leapt out, and hurried across the garden to where Fergus
was sitting.
"This is indeed kind of you, count," Fergus said, as he rose.
"By no means, Drummond. I only wish that we had known your
situation before. You should have got someone to write, if you
could not do it yourself. We were not surprised at your not
visiting us in the winter, for with both armies on the alert we
knew that, in the first place, you were busy, and probably not able
to get leave of absence; and in the next place, you could hardly
have got in.
"You can imagine the concern we felt when your letter reached us,
yesterday evening. Of course, I determined to start at once. You
must indeed have had a hard time of it, for you have fallen away so
much that I should hardly have known you."
"I have picked up very much in the last fortnight, count; and I
hope, in another month, to be something like myself again; though
the doctor insists that I shall not be fit for campaigning work for
double that time."
"Well, I have come to take you back with me. The countess asks me
to tell you that if you do not come at once, she will drive hither
with two or three of her maids, and establish herself as your
nurse. It will not be a very long drive, for I am well known to the
Austrians, and have a pass from the governor to go through their
lines when I please, and to visit a small estate I have, thirty
miles to the north. And no doubt you can get a similar pass for us
to leave your lines."
"I should like nothing so much, count; but might I not get you into
trouble, if it were known that you had one of the king's officers
at your house?"
"In the first place no one would know it, and in the second place I
don't think that I should get into any trouble, were it found out.
It is not a Prussian officer that I shall be entertaining, still
less a spy, but a dear friend who is an invalid and needs care. As
everyone knows what you did for me, the excuse would be ample.
"Moreover, it happens that Governor Maguire is a personal friend of
mine, and I shall call upon him and tell him that I have a sick
friend staying with me and, without letting him know who you are,
say that I give him my word of honour that you will, while with me,
remain in the grounds, and will make no inquiries concerning his
fortifications and plans of defence. He will understand what I
mean, and if anyone should make a report to him it will, at any
rate, cause no trouble; though I do not say that he might not feel
obliged to give me notice that you had best go.
"Well, for today I will remain here and rest my horses; and
tomorrow morning we will start, early.
"Ah! I see you have your henchman still with you. He, like
yourself, has escaped both Austrian and French bullets.
"Well, Karl," he went on as the soldier came up, "you don't seem to
have managed to keep your master out of mischief."
"No, count; but it was not my fault. It was the fault of those
horses you gave him."
"Why, how was that, Karl?"
"Well, sir, the colonel was the best mounted man on the king's
staff and, however hard he worked the horses, they always seemed to
keep in good condition. So that whenever there was anything to be
done, it was sure to be, 'Colonel Drummond, please go here or go
there.' He was always on horseback, and so at last he broke down.
Anyone else would have broken down months before, but he never
seemed to know what it was to be tired."
"What, have you got another step, Drummond?" the count said,
smiling at the soldier's tone of discontent.
"Yes, count. It is not for anything particular this time, but for
what I may call general services.
"You are going to have an easy time of it now, Karl. Count
Eulenfurst is kindly going to take me off and nurse me for a bit;
and you will have to stay here and look after the horses, until I
return. It would not be safe for you to accompany me, and I think
you want a rest as much as I want nursing.
"Why, for two months, count, this good fellow never took off his
coat; and I don't think he ever slept an hour at a time. I have
never once called when he was not there to answer."
"I did what I could," Karl growled, "but it was not much. The
colonel has always looked well after me, and the least I could do
was to look after him, when he wanted it.
"I am very glad he is going with you, sir. It is dull enough for
him here; and I am sure he will get on much faster, under your care
and the ladies', than he would do moping about in this place."
Fergus wrote a note to the general of the division, and Karl
returned with a pass authorizing Count Eulenfurst's carriage to
pass through the lines, at any time.
"There is one difficulty I have not thought of, count. I have no
civilian clothes. Those I brought with me were left in the magazine
at Dresden, when I first marched away; and there they have been,
ever since. But indeed, even if I had them, I do not think that
they would fit me; seeing that I have grown some four inches in
height since I came out, and at least as much more round my
shoulders."
"I thought of that," the count said, "and have brought with me a
suit from Dresden that will, I think, fit you as well as an
invalid's clothes can be expected to fit."
The next morning an early start was made. No difficulties were
encountered on the way and, although sundry detours had to be made,
they reached the count's house after a three-hours' drive. Thirza
ran down to meet them as the count drove up; and she gave a little
cry of surprise, and pity, as the count helped Fergus to alight.
"I shall soon be better, countess," he said with a smile, as he
held out his hand. "I am quite a giant in strength, compared with
what I was a fortnight ago; but just at present I am a little
tired, after the drive."
"You look dreadfully bad," the girl said. "Still, I hope we shall
soon bring you round again. My father said you would be back with
him about this time, and we shall begin by giving you some soup, at
once."
As they entered the hall, the countess herself came down.
"Welcome back again! I may say, I hope, welcome home again, Major
Drummond!"
"Colonel Drummond," the count corrected. "He is one of Frederick's
colonels now."
"I congratulate you," she went on, "though just at present, you
certainly do not look a very formidable colonel. However, we will
soon build you up; but don't try to talk now. I see the journey has
been almost too much for you.
"In here, please. I thought you had better take something before
you climbed the stairs."
A meal was laid, in a room leading off the hall; and after a basin
of soup and a couple of glasses of Rhine wine, Fergus felt much
better.
"That is right," the count said. "You have now got a tinge of
colour in your cheeks.
"Come, Thirza, you must not look so woebegone, because our knight
is pulled down a bit. Invalids want a cheerful face and, unless you
brighten up, I shall not intrust any of the nursing duties to you."
Thirza tried to smile, but the attempt was a very forced one.
"It has been a surprise," she said quietly, but with an evident
effort. "You see, I have always seen Colonel Drummond looking so
strong and bright. Though I knew that he had been very ill, somehow
I did not expect to see him like this."
"But I can assure you I am better," Fergus said, laughing. "I did
feel done when we arrived, but I can assure you that is not my
normal state; and being here among you all will very soon effect a
transformation. In a very short time you will see that I shall
refuse altogether to be treated as an invalid, and my nurse's post
will be a sinecure."
"Now you had better go and lie down, and get a sleep for two or
three hours," the countess said, decidedly. "You will have your old
bedroom, and we have fitted up the next room as a sitting room. We
know a good many of the Austrian and Confederate officers, and of
an afternoon and evening they often drop in; and although we are
not afraid of questions, it will be more pleasant for you to have a
place of your own.
"Still, I hope you will be able to be out in the garden behind the
house, the best part of the day, under the trees. You would be as
safe from interruption, there, as if you were a hundred miles away
from Dresden. We have arranged that Thirza shall have chief charge
of you, out there; while the count and I will look after you while
you are in the house."
Fergus obediently lay down and slept for some hours. As the
countess had arranged, he rang his bell on waking and, hearing from
the servant who answered it that there were no visitors downstairs,
he went down. The count had gone out, but the countess and Thirza
went out into the grounds with him; and he found that, in a quiet
and shady corner, a sofa had been placed for his use, with a table
and two or three chairs.
The countess remained chatting with him until a servant came out,
to say that three Austrian officers had called; and she went in,
leaving him to the charge of Thirza. For two or three hours they
talked together, and were then joined by the count and countess;
when Fergus told them the piece of good fortune that had befallen
him, by recovering his father's estates. They were greatly pleased
and interested.
"And are they extensive?" the count asked.
"They are extensive," he said, "if taken by acreage; but if
calculated by the revenue that they bring in, they would seem small
to you. But at any rate, they suffice to make one wealthy in
Scotland. The large proportion of it is mountain and moorland; but
as the head of my clan, I shall hold a position far above what is
represented by the income. Two hundred men were ready to draw
sword, at my father's orders, and to follow him in battle.
"I don't know that, here in Germany, you can quite understand the
ties that bind the members of a clan to their head. They do not
regard him as tenants regard a lord; but rather as a protector, a
friend, and even a relation. All disputes are carried to him for
arbitration. The finest trout from the stream, the fattest buck
from the hills, are sent to him as an offering. They draw their
swords at his bidding, and will die for him in battle. To them he
is a sort of king, and they would obey his orders, were he to tell
them to rise in rebellion.
"The feeling is to some extent dying out and, since Culloden, the
power of the clans has greatly abated. Nevertheless, some of the
Highland regiments in our army were raised by chiefs wholly from
their own clansmen.
"In many respects this restoration of my inheritance changes my
position altogether. As I told you the last time I was here, I
shall stop until this terrible war is over. The king has been most
kind and gracious to me, and to leave before the struggle is over I
should feel to be an act of desertion. Once the sword is sheathed,
I intend to return to Scotland; for I should not care to remain in
the service, when there is nought but life in garrison to look
forward to. Moreover, the strength of the army would, of course, be
largely diminished, at once.
"What I should do afterwards, I know not. Perhaps I might obtain a
commission in our own army, for there are always opportunities of
seeing service in America, India, or elsewhere, under the British
flag. More likely I shall, at any rate for a time, remain at home.
My mother has no other child, and it is a lonely life, indeed, for
her."
"Do you not think of settling here?"
"What is there for me to do, count, outside the army? I could not
turn merchant, for I should assuredly be bankrupt, at the end of
the first month; nor could I well turn cultivator, when I have no
land to dig. Now, however, my future is determined for me; and a
point that has, I own, troubled me much, has been decided without
an effort on my part."
The conversation was continued for some little time, the count
asking many questions about Fergus's ancestral home, the scenery,
and mode of life. Fergus noticed that Thirza took no part in the
conversation, but sat still; and looked, he thought, pale.
The days succeeded each other quietly and uneventfully, and Fergus
gained strength rapidly; so that, in the middle of July, he began
to feel that he was again fit for service. One evening he was
sitting alone in the garden with the count, when the latter said to
him:
"You remember our conversation on the first evening of our coming
here, as to the impossibility of your doing anything, did you
remain out here after leaving the army. There was one solution to
which you did not allude. Many Scottish and Irish soldiers, both in
this country, in France, Austria, and Germany, have married well.
Why should you not do the same?"
Fergus was silent for a minute, and then he said:
"Yes, count; but they continued in the service, rose to the rank of
generals and, as in the case of my cousin Keith, to that of
marshal."
"But you might do the same, if you remained in the army," the count
said. "You are assuredly, by far, the youngest colonel in it. You
are a favourite of the king's, and might hope for anything."
"I am afraid, count, I have too much of our Scottish feeling of
independence; and should not, therefore, like to owe everything to
a wife."
"The feeling is creditable, if not carried too far," the count
said. "You have a position that is a most honourable one. You have
made your name famous in the army, where brave men are common. You
possess the qualities of youth, a splendid physique, and--I don't
wish to flatter you--a face that might win any woman's fancy. There
are none, however placed, who might not be proud of such a
son-in-law."
"You judge everyone by yourself, count," Fergus said slowly. "You
overrate my qualities, and forget the fact that I am, after all,
but a soldier of fortune."
"Then you never thought of such a thing?"
Fergus was silent for a minute, and then said:
"We may think of many things, count, that we know, in our hearts,
are but fancies which will never be realized."
"Let us suppose a case," the count said. "Let us take a case like
mine. You did me an inestimable service. You certainly saved my
life, and the lives of several others; including, perhaps, those of
my wife and daughter. The latter has constantly heard your name
associated with deeds of valour. Would it be improbable that she
should feel a depth of gratitude that would, as she grew, increase
into a warmer feeling; while you, on your part, might entertain a
liking for her? Would it be such an out-of-the-way thing for you to
come to me, and ask her hand? Or an out-of-the-way thing that I
should gladly give her to you?"
"It may not seem so to you, count," Fergus said quietly; "but it
has seemed so to me. I understand what you are so generously saying
but, even with such encouragement, I can scarce dare to ask what
seems to me so presumptuous a question. For four years, now, this
house has been as a home to me; and it was but natural that, as
your daughter grew up, I should have grown to love her. I have told
myself, hundreds of times, that it would be, indeed, a base return
for your kindness, were I to try to steal her heart; and never have
I said a single word to her that I would not have said, aloud, had
you and her mother been present. During the month that I have been
here, now, I have struggled hard with myself; thrown with her, as I
have been, for hours every day. But I have made up my mind that no
word should ever pass my lips; and if it has done so, now, it is
because you have drawn it from me."
"I am glad that I have done so," the count said, gravely. "For the
last two years I have hoped that this might be so, for in no other
way could I repay our debt of gratitude to you. I cannot tell what
Thirza's thoughts are; but there have been three suitors for her
hand this year, any of whom might well, in point of means and
character, have been considered suitable; but when I spoke to her
she laughed at the idea and, though she said nothing, I gathered
that her love was already given.
"As my only child, her happiness is my first consideration. As to
the question of means, it is absurd to mention them; for did she
marry the wealthiest noble, she could desire no more than she will
have. I told you, the first time you came to us after that terrible
night, that we should always regard you as one of ourselves. We
have done so; and I can assure you that her mother and I desire
nothing better for her.
"For your sake, I am glad that you have come into this Scottish
estate; but for my own I care nothing for it, and indeed, am in one
respect sorry; for you will naturally wish that, for a part of the
time each year, she should reside there with you.
"Now, that has not been so dreadful, has it?"
"Not in any way, count; and I thank you, with all my heart, for
your kindness. My feeling for your daughter has grown up gradually,
and it was not until I was last here that I recognized how much I
cared for her. I then, when I went away, resolved it would be
better for me not to return; at any rate, not to stay here again,
until I heard that she was married. It is true that I talked of
paying you a visit, even were Dresden captured; but I knew that
when the time came I should be able to find excuses for not doing
so. During the time that I was laid up with fever, she was ever in
my mind; but the necessity for my remaining away from here only
impressed itself, more and more strongly, upon me.
"Then you appeared, and carried me off. I could not refuse to come,
without giving my reason; but I fully determined that in no way, by
look or word, would I allow her to see that I regarded her other
than as the daughter of my kind host. I have had a hard fight to
keep that resolution, for each day my feelings have grown stronger
and stronger; and I had resolved that, before I left, I would own
to you, not my presumption, for I have not presumed, but my
weakness, and ask you to press me no more to come here, until your
daughter was married."
"You have acted just as I should have expected from you, Drummond.
The great hope of the countess and myself has been to see Thirza
happily married. Fortune or position in a suitor have been
altogether immaterial points, excepting that we would assure
ourselves that it was not to obtain these that her hand was sought.
From the first we have regarded you, not only with gratitude, but
with deep interest. It seemed to us only natural that, after so
strange and romantic a beginning to your acquaintance, Thirza
should regard you with more than ordinary interest. To her you
would be a sort of hero of romance. We watched you closely then,
and found that in addition to your bravery you possessed all the
qualities that we could desire. You were modest, frank, and
natural. So far from making much of the service you had rendered
us, you were always unwilling to speak of it; and when that could
not be avoided, you made as little of it as possible.
"I spoke several times of you to Marshal Keith, and he said that he
regarded you almost as a son, and spoke in the highest terms of
you. We saw, or fancied we saw, in the pleasure which Thirza
betrayed when you returned after each of your absences; and in the
anxiety which she evinced when battles had taken place, until I
could ascertain that your name was not among the lists of killed
and wounded; that what we had thought likely was taking place, and
that she regarded you with an interest beyond that which would be
excited by gratitude only.
"As to yourself, and your thoughts on the subject, we knew nothing.
We never saw anything in your manner to her that showed that your
heart was affected. You chatted with her as freely and naturally as
to us and, even since you have been here this time, we have
observed no change in you. And yet, it seemed to us well-nigh
impossible that a young soldier should be thrown so much with a
girl who, though it is her father who says so, is exceptionally
pretty and of charming manners, and continue to regard her with
indifference; unless, indeed, he loved elsewhere, which we were
sure in your case could hardly be. I had however, like yourself,
determined to speak on the matter before you left us; as, had you
not felt towards her as we hoped, the countess and I agreed that it
would be better, for her sake, that we should not press you to come
to stay with us again until she was married.
"I am truly glad that the matter stands as we had hoped. I can only
repeat that there is no one to whom we could intrust her happiness
so confidently as to you."
"I will do my best to justify your confidence, count," Fergus said
warmly.
"Now I will go into the house and tell my wife, and then we can
acquaint Thirza. It is the custom here, at least among people of
rank, for the parents first to acquaint their daughter with a
proposal that has been made for her hand, and of their wishes on
the subject. Parental control is not carried to the point, now,
that it used to be; and maidens sometimes entertain different
opinions to those of their parents. Happily, in the present case,
there is no reason to fear that Thirza will exhibit any contumacy.
"Fortunately we are alone at dinner, today. Therefore do you come
down, a quarter of an hour before the usual hour, and we will get
the matter formally settled."
When Fergus went into the drawing room, the count was already
there.
"Thirza shows no unwillingness to carry out our commands in this
matter," he said with a smile, as he held out his hand to Fergus
and shook it very heartily. "I pointed out to her that you would
naturally expect her to accompany you every year to Scotland, and
to spend some months among your people there. She did not seem to
consider that any insupportable objection.
"In one respect, Fergus, I think that it is well for you that I am
comparatively a young man; being now but forty-four, while the
countess is six years younger; thus it may be a good many years
before you will be called upon to assume the control of my estates,
and the position of one of the great landowners of Saxony. One of
these estates will, of course, be Thirza's dowry at once; but that
will not tie you so much, and you will be freer to come and go as
it pleases you."
Two or three minutes later the door opened, and the countess
entered, leading Thirza by the hand. The girl advanced with
downcast eyes, until her father stepped forward and took her left
hand, while he held the right of Fergus.
"My daughter," he said, "your mother and I have chosen for your
husband Colonel Fergus Drummond. We consider the match to be in all
ways a suitable one. We esteem him highly, and are convinced that
he will make you happy; loving you, as he says, tenderly and truly.
In this room where you first saw him, I need not recall to you the
services he rendered to us; and I exhort you to obey this our
order, and to be a true and loving spouse to him."
The girl looked up now.
"That will I, father and mother, and most willingly; and will
always, to my life's end, be a true and loving wife to him."
[Illustration: "Take her, Drummond, you have won your bride
fairly and well"]
"Take her, Colonel," the count said, putting her hand into that of
Fergus. "You have won your bride fairly and well, and I know that
you will be a worthy husband to her."
"That I swear to be," Fergus said, as he stooped and kissed her. "I
feel how great is the boon that you have given me; and shall, to my
life's end, be deeply thankful to you both for the confidence which
you have placed in me, in thus intrusting her to my care.
"And to you, Thirza, do I swear to be a loving husband, to the end
of my life."
"And now," the count said, "we will leave these young people till
the bell rings," and taking the countess's hand, he led her into
the next room.
The ten minutes that passed, before the signal for dinner was
given, sufficed to do much to lessen the awkwardness of the
occasion; and Fergus was heartily grateful to the count for having
left them to themselves for that short time. The dinner passed off
as usual, the count chatting gaily; while Fergus attempted, with
indifferent success, to follow him. Thirza was very silent, but her
cheeks were flushed, and her eyes radiant with happiness.
It did not escape the attention of the servants who waited that
instead of, as usual, leading down the countess while the count
brought down his daughter; this time the count and his wife had
come down first, followed by Fergus and the young countess. Nor
were they slow to notice Thirza's flushed face.
The count's household had been deeply interested in the visits of
Fergus. The women had always been unanimous in their opinion that
they would all have been murdered by the marauders, had it not been
for his interposition; and had also agreed that the most proper
thing in the world, after what had happened, would be that the
young countess should someday marry this brave young officer. Each
time that he had come, during the last four years, they had watched
and hoped that they should hear that this was coming about; but
hitherto they had been terribly disappointed, and had almost agreed
that, if nothing came of this long visit, nothing would ever come
of it. The news, therefore, brought down by the menservants excited
a lively interest.
"I said all along that it would be so some day," one of the women
exclaimed. "The countess would never have allowed our young lady to
be out in the garden, every afternoon, if she and the count had not
been willing that there should be a match; and I am sure I don't
see how he could help falling in love with the young countess."
"Nor she with him," another woman added. "He is the
pleasantest-looking young gentleman I have ever seen, and we know
that he is one of the bravest; and though he is a Prussian officer,
there is not a bit of stiffness about him. Well, I only hope it is
true."
"I would not count on it too much," one of the older women said.
"You never can take menfolks' opinions on such matters. I am sure
any of us would know with half an eye, if we saw them together, how
matters stood; but as for men, they are as blind as bats in such
matters. Still, the fact that he took the young countess down,
instead of our lady, goes for something."
The next morning, indeed, the news was confirmed. The countess told
her tire woman, who had been Thirza's nurse, what had happened; and
in a few minutes it was known all over the house, and even the
parties most concerned scarcely felt more pleasure than the women
of the count's establishment.