ALRINA.
Mr. Freeman's house seemed, in many respects, as unsociable as its
master; for it was one of those oldfashioned farm-houses one meets with
occasionally in remote, out-of-the-way places, without having a farm
attached to it,--the farm formerly held with the house having been added
to an adjoining farm belonging to the same proprietor, on which there
happened to be a larger and better house. It was, even then, an
oldfashioned house, with an entrance-hall, if such it might be called,
into which you entered from the front door. On the right was the parlour
or best sitting-room, and on the left the common sitting-room where the
family generally sat. Opposite the front door were the stairs, and on
each side of the stairs there was a door,--the one leading into the
kitchen, and the other into the little back garden. Over the best
parlour was Mr. Freeman's private room, into which no one was permitted
to enter except those whose superstition led them to consult "The
Maister," as he was generally designated, and to seek his aid in
extricating them from some dire misfortune, and then great preparations
were made before the visitors were admitted into this mysterious room.
Mr. Freeman was a widower--so it was said--and his sister kept his
house, and exercised strict dominion over his only daughter, a young
girl of eighteen.
Miss Freeman, the sister, it was generally believed, knew more of her
brother's secrets than she liked to tell; and many a severe reprimand
did Alrina receive from her aunt for her curiosity, in trying to pry
into secrets which the elder lady thought she had no right to concern
herself about. Alice Ann, the servant of all work, was one of that
neighbourhood, and therefore spoke the broad Cornish dialect; but
Alrina, who had received a tolerably good education, as times went, had
not been infected by the dialect, which is so very contagious when
almost everyone speaks it around you. She had just attained her
eighteenth year; but, from her rotundity of figure, and womanly manners,
she might have been taken for a girl of that age two years before, at
least. She had been kept at a boarding-school in one of our large towns
almost from her infancy, and had seen very little either of her father
or aunt until recently, and therefore she knew little more of them, or
their habits and pursuits, than a stranger, until she left school about
twelve months before. In stature she was about the middle height,--very
fair, with bright auburn hair, which some were malicious enough to call
red, but "golden" would have been the more correct term. Red hair is not
generally admired, but there was such a golden hue cast over Alrina's
hair, that made her soft blue eyes look softer in the contrast.
Hogarth's line of beauty was displayed in the contour of her figure; and
such a pretty little foot and ankle might be seen as the rude wind waved
the drapery aside, when, like a fairy, she glided over the rocks--so
bold and varied on those high cliffs--that, taken _tout ensemble_, she
was just the very girl a man would fall in love with at first sight.
There were so many beauties visible at once, and such a happy
combination of them all; and then the pretty dimples in her cheeks, when
she smiled, betokened a temper mild and amiable, and yet with spirit
enough to resent a wrong, and assert her own rights against all the
world. And thus, although she was obliged to put up with many
indignities from her aunt, she managed, by her tact in yielding in minor
points, to have her own way in greater, and, to her, more important,
ones.
Alrina was in the kitchen assisting Alice Ann on the morning after the
wreck, her aunt having gone into the village on some domestic errand,
and for a quiet gossip with some of her numerous friends.
"Did my father say he would return to dinner, Alice Ann?" said Alrina,
as she prinked the paste round the edge of the pie she had just made.
"No, he dedn't," replied Alice Ann. "When do he say what time he'll be
home, or where he's going to?"
"I am tired of all this mystery," said Alrina;--"I wish I knew the
meaning of it all. That room upstairs puzzles me very much. I should
like to peep into it one day, and see where all the noise comes from,
when those 'goostrumnoodles' come here to know who has ill-wished them,
and wait in the best parlour while my father goes upstairs to prepare
the room for their reception."
"So shud I too, Miss Reeney," replied Alice Ann; "but 'tes no good to
try, I b'lieve; for I tried to peep in through the keyhole one day, and
a blast of gunpowder came out and nearly blinded me."
"Hush! here he comes," said Alrina, who heard her father's footstep in
the passage.
"Alrina," said he, opening the kitchen-door, "give these men some beer
for bringing this chest up from the cove. Take it to the top of the
stairs, men, and I shall be able to put it under lock and key myself
till the proper owner comes to claim it."
While the other men were taking the chest upstairs, and drinking their
beer, Josiah went into the kitchen to speak to Alice Ann, for whom he
had a sneaking kindness, as the gossips said, although Mrs. Brown tried
to insinuate that it was for the sake of the fair Alrina herself that
Josiah so strenuously defended the sayings and doings of the family.
"You've had a bra' night of it, I s'pose," said Alice Ann,--"fust weth
your drink up to Maister Brown's, to watch in the new year, and then
weth your walk to Pendeen to watch in the wreck. What have 'ee picked
up, thon, 'Siah?"
"Why nothin' at all, Alice Ann," replied he, "'cept the g'eat chest
that's carr'd up in the Maister's room."
"What is that chest brought up here for?" said Alrina, returning from
giving the men their beer; "I think we've got lumber enough here
already."
"So shud I, Miss Reeney," replied Josiah; "but I'd see the inside of a
good many things ef I wor you."
"Come, Josiah," exclaimed Mr. Freeman, "we'll go down to the cove again;
there may be more valuables washed in, and more dead bodies
perhaps,--living ones I don't expect to see."
Even the bright eyes of Alice Ann were not sufficiently attractive to
keep Josiah from trying his luck once more in search of the stray
treasures which the sea might yet wash in.
While the men went down into the cove, and over the rocks, in search of
treasure, Mr. Freeman took the higher road which led to the Point, and
there he stood watching the waves as they dashed against the bold cliffs
and fell back again into the white foam beneath, enveloping all the
surrounding objects in a hazy mist.
About a quarter of a mile from the promontory on which Mr. Freeman
stood, rose a large cluster of high rocks, over which the sea rolled at
intervals. As the mist cleared occasionally, Mr. Freeman fancied he
could see something move in a crevice of one of the topmost of those
rocks; but, after looking again and again, he began at last to think it
was nothing but imagination, for it seemed as if it was impossible for
any living creature to remain on those rocks so long in safety. He could
not rest satisfied, however, so he sought Josiah and brought him to look
at the object also.
"'Tes a man or a woman, I do b'lieve!" exclaimed Josiah, after looking
on the object for some time through a glass which he had borrowed from
one of the wreckers; "but how he got there, or how long he'll stay
there, I don't knaw."
It was impossible for any boat to go out, and it seemed almost certain
that he must perish, whoever or whatever it was. They made signals by
holding up their handkerchiefs tied to a stick, that the poor creature
might have the consolation of knowing he was seen, and cared for; and
that was all they could do.
Night came on once more, and all hands returned to their homes to rest
after the fatigues of the past day and night, and examine the treasures
they had picked up.
Josiah had been so much engaged in attending on Mr. Freeman, that he had
not succeeded in picking up anything worth carrying home. He thought,
therefore, he would remain at the Cove a little longer; so he stole
round the Point, and stooped down between two low rocks to conceal
himself until the others were gone; and as he stooped, he saw something
partially buried in the sand a few yards from him. At first he thought
it was a rock; but the waves, as they rolled over it, seemed to move it.
He watched for an opportunity when the waves receded, and at last he ran
out, at the risk of his life, and seized his prize. It was as much as he
could do to pull it up out of the sand, in which it was embedded;--he
succeeded, however, and got back to his hiding-place in safety, but not
without a good wetting, for a wave washed completely over him while he
was getting up the object of his cupidity, and he barely saved himself
from being carried out to sea, and that was all. It was a small box,
very strongly made, and very heavy. There was something valuable inside
it, he had no doubt; so he took off his coat, which was very wet,
wrapped it round the box, and made the best of his way home with his
treasure.
The next morning Mr. Freeman was early at the Point, but could see
nothing of the object which had before attracted his attention, and he
supposed it must have perished;--but he did not like to give it up; and
towards the middle of the day, the sea having calmed down a good deal,
he induced some stout sailors to go out to those rocks, and see if there
was anything there or not.
It was a perilous undertaking; but the boat was got ready and manned,
and four brave fellows started amid the shouts of their comrades on the
beach. After a severe struggle with the waves, they succeeded in getting
near the rocks, but it was impossible yet to land,--so they returned for
more help, and to wait till the tide was lower. They saw something lying
between two of the rocks, they said, but what it was they couldn't tell.
When the tide was at its lowest, the sea having subsided yet a little
more, two boats were manned, and ropes and grappling-irons, and all that
was deemed necessary, were put on board; and this time two of the boats'
crew succeeded in landing on the rock, where they found a man,
apparently lifeless, grasping a sharp rock so firmly, that it was with
difficulty they were enabled to extricate him;--it seemed like a death
grasp; but, on examination, they found that he still breathed. They
brought him on shore and rubbed him, and poured a little brandy down his
throat, which revived him; and he was carried at once to the inn, where
every attention was paid to him. It was at first thought he would sink
from exhaustion and the want of food for so many hours, but, after a
night's sleep, he rallied so as to be able to thank his deliverers, and
to give them some information respecting himself, as well as of the
vessel which had met with such a melancholy fate.
The ship was an East Indiaman, he said, returning to England with a
valuable cargo. The captain died on the voyage, and the mate was too
fond of the brandy-bottle, and flirting with the lady-passengers, to
attend to his duty, so he missed his reckoning and got on the rocks
before he expected, notwithstanding the warnings that were given him by
the sailors. The storm arose so suddenly that even the most wary were
caught.
The lanterns on the cliffs deceived them too, he said; for they seemed
to be close to the edge of the cliff, whereas they were some distance
inland. The boats were launched, and filled, but he believed everyone
perished. He got hold of some spars that were floating round the wreck
when she broke up, and held on as long as he could, but was eventually
lifted on to the rocks, where he was so providentially found;--he got
jammed between two sharp rocks, and there he held on with all his might;
but he could scarcely keep his position, for when the storm was at its
height the sea washed over him continually. There were several
passengers on board,--some bringing home gold, and others indigo and
other kinds of wealth, but all had perished. He was one of the crew, he
said, and therefore had not lost much. The ship belonged to the East
India Company, and so he supposed they could afford to lose a little;
but he believed they had taken care of themselves by insurances.
The poor man was well treated, and when sufficiently recovered a
subscription was made for him, and he was sent on to his friends.