Athelstane Ford, Page 3

  CHAPTER III

  _THE BEGINNING OF THE RIVALRY_

  And now, lest it be wondered what was done by them at home in thematter of my flight, I will tell here so much as I afterwards came toknow.

  When the letter which I had left behind me was put into my father'shands, it appears, he read it once through, and delivered it to mymother. Next, without saying one word, he went out by himself into thestable, saddled his great horse, Gustavus, which stood seventeen handshigh, presently mounted it, and rode off at a strong gallop, settinghis face towards the London road.

  It was not till the end of the second day that he came back, the horsecovered with dirt to the shoulders. He said nothing of where he hadbeen, but walked into the house with a stern face, and called for thefamily Bible, which had belonged to his grandfather in the time of theCommonwealth. This book was bound in parchment and fastened with ironclasps, and lay always on the top shelf of the old oak press, whenceit had not been taken down once in a dozen years.

  My mother brought it to him trembling, and when she saw him open it atthe blank page within the cover, whereon were written the names of allthe Fords for four generations, she fell upon her knees and imploredhim not to carry out what he had in his mind. But he heeded her nomore than if he had been stone deaf, and taking a pen in his righthand drew it through my name and the date of my birth and baptism,making a line right across the page, which looks as if it had beendrawn with a ruler to this day. Then he threw the sand upon it, and assoon as it was dry closed the book and handed it back to my mother,who was fain to restore it to its place.

  All this time not a word had passed his lips. At supper my father atebut little, and drank still less. When it was time for prayers he bademy mother read the chapter instead of him, as was his wont whengreatly fatigued. Whereupon that sweet saint, as I must ever haveleave to call her, turned, not to the prophecy of Ezekiel, but to thegospel of Saint Luke, and read out from that chapter which containsthe parable of the Prodigal Son. And when she came to the words, "Forthis my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and isfound"--when she had come to this place, my father, who had sat andlistened hitherto, cried out in a harsh voice--

  "Stop, woman!"

  And he took the Bible from her and turned over the leaves till he wasat the book of Ezekiel, and read the chapter in order as usual.

  Nevertheless in the night my mother, who lay awake weeping, heard himgive more than one sigh; and presently, while it was still dark, herose up and went out of the room and downstairs, and stayed away abovean hour; after which he came back and lay down again. And he strictlyforbade her ever to utter my name in his hearing from that time.

  * * * * *

  I lay in hiding above a week before I durst venture abroad except atnight. And very soothing to my spirit those night rambles were, thoughmelancholy; for the look of all things was so changed and solemn underthe black sky, or in the silent radiance of the moon, the houses wereso oppressively still, and the masts of the ships so spectral upon thewater, that it seemed to me by the end of those few days, that I hadbeen exploring another world, and had got at last to be familiar withits ways.

  In the daytime I was safe enough in my snug quarters in the tavern,for not a soul knew I was there save the privateer's crew. And to dothose ruffians justice, though there were few other crimes they stuckat, I believe that a thousand pounds would not have tempted one ofthem to give me up after I had been duly embodied in their company.Indeed, I found some of them to be good fellows enough, and grew notto dislike old Muzzy, the boatswain--for so he was called, though Iknow not if it was his proper name or one bestowed upon him by hismates. He was, if I mistake not, a foundling. He had conceived a hugefriendship for me, and would come upstairs to the garret where I wassecluded, and give me lessons in the broadsword exercise by the hour,the knowledge of which stood me in good stead in not very long.

  But practise how I might, I never reached that perfection which theboatswain had attained, who was, I do think, the most complete masterof his weapon then alive. I have heard, not from his mouth only, butfrom others of the crew, of the duel which he fought with threeFrenchmen together, at a time of peace between the countries, inCivita Vecchia, and how he left them all dead upon the ground. Forsuch were English tars in those days, a manly race of whom we have butfew left now.

  The rest of the crew I pass over as being of a class common enough inall our seaports. The profane language they constantly employed grew,by dint of repetition, to have no meaning in my ears, as I am sure ithad none, for the most part, in theirs. The thing which I found ithardest to accustom myself to was the smoking of tobacco. Indeed,after I had lit my first pipe I fell so ill that I looked upon it as ajudgment of Providence, and vowed I would never light another. Butseeing all the rest at it day by day, I soon ventured again, and cameat last to enjoy it no less than they did. And no doubt if there wereanything mischievous in this habit when pursued in moderation, itwould have been denounced by the sacred writers, who would, by meansof their inspiration, have foreseen its introduction into theseregions, though not then known.

  But what will for ever make memorable to me the days which I spent inYarmouth, waiting for the _Fair Maid_ to be equipped for sea, was thedeep joy of my first love for the woman whose lot was to be sostrangely cast in with mine. I do not know whether she at first failedto perceive this passion, or whether she slighted it as the heedlessfancy of a lad, for she behaved towards me as if there could be nosuch thoughts between us, caressing me openly before company, andthereby causing me the keenest joy and anguish at the same time.

  Mistress Marian Rising, to give her her full description, was, as Ihave said, the niece of my host. Her own parents were settled in theEast India Company's factory at Fort William, on the river Hooghley,where her father did business in drugs and was amassing, according toreport, a considerable fortune. She told me that her people hadrefused to carry her out with them to the East, on account of theunhealthiness of that climate, but being now grown of age she wasresolved to take the first occasion of going out there to join them.

  She spoke much of the marvels of that great region which we now callIndostan, and of which little then was known in my part of Norfolk,describing the vast wealth and luxury of its people, the power andsplendour of the nabobs and princes, and the curiosity of theirbuildings and manufactures. Of all these she spoke as familiarly as ifshe had dwelt among them, deeming, I suppose, that the connectionbetween her and that region invested her with authority on thesubject. I need scarce say that I drank in every word with greedyears, and was become daily more inflamed with desire to voyagethither.

  My cousin Rupert was frequently a third party in our conversations. Heused a tone of familiarity with Marian which I was inclined to resent,though she took it in good part. But he deeply offended me one daythat we were together by referring openly to what I thought my secretpassion for the girl.

  We had been discussing the question of how far it was safe for me toventure abroad into the streets, and he wound up by saying--

  "To speak my mind plainly, Mistress Marian, I think it is high time mycousin got further out of reach of your fascination. You and he havebeen too much together of late; and if I mistake not Master Athelstanewould not object to prolong his captivity for ever on such terms."

  "What do you mean?" I cried angrily.

  But the girl only laughed.

  "Be quiet, sir!" she said. "You ought to be ashamed of yourself forshowing jealousy of a mere boy like this! Why, he is scarce old enoughto notice whether I have brown eyes or black."

  This made me still more angry with Rupert.

  "Mere boy as I am, I will thank you not to meddle between me and anylady who may choose to favour me with her goodwill!" I told him.

  "I crave your pardon, my venerable cousin," sneered Rupert. "I was notaware that matters between Mrs. Rising and you had made such progress.I would offer to go to Saint Nicholas, and bid them put up the bannsnext Sunday, if I
were not afraid it might bring my worthy uncle overfrom Brandon with a whip and a dog-collar."

  I sprang to my feet as red as fire, and was as likely to have answeredhim with a blow as a word, if Marian had not come between us.

  "Sit down, you foolish boy," she said, giving me a look that turned mywrath into secret exultation. "As for you, Rupert Gurney, I have toldyou before that I will not endure your hectoring temper. If you cannotbehave more civilly, there are plenty of other inns in Great Yarmouth,and you had better betake yourself to one of them."

  Rupert now saw he had gone too far, and passed off the thing as apleasantry. After that he became as friendly to me as ever; but Icould not so soon get over his ungenerous words, and I think I neverfelt quite the same love and admiration for him afterwards.

  About this time I overheard a conversation between Mr. Sims and mycousin which I by no means liked. They were seated in the parlour ofthe inn by themselves, overhauling the ship's papers, which they tookout of a tin case, such as is used by mariners to guard against thechances of a wetting. I had come in to join them, for they sometimesused me as a clerk in the business of the ship, and found them toobusy to heed my presence.

  "I tell you, Gurney, I mislike it," Captain Sims was saying. "Here isthe date of our commission, by which, as you may see, it has run outsince the conclusion of the peace. The _Fair Maid_ cannot sail underthat."

  Rupert cursed the commission, and cursed the date upon it, with muchheartiness.

  "We must sail without it, then, that's all!" he said, as soon as hehad finished cursing. "It will be all one by the time we make Gheriah.Thanks to this cursed peace we might as well whistle for another asapply to the Admiralty Commissioners."

  "Nay, not so fast!" exclaimed the other, drawing back in his chair."That were to proclaim ourselves pirates at once."

  "Well, and pray what else have we been till now?" returned my cousin,giving him a nasty look.

  Mr. Sims shook his head gravely.

  "No; I have been a privateersman all my life, barring a few smugglingventures in the late peace, but I have never put to sea without myletters of marque and reprisal, duly signed and sealed."

  Rupert curled his lip as he looked at the other.

  "And what did your letters of marque say as to the Portuguese slaverwe sank in the Gaboons?" he demanded scornfully. "And what of thatBristol schooner we mistook for a Frenchman off Finisterre, and had athousand pounds of coffee out of, before we discovered the error?"

  "No matter," said Sims, setting his fist upon the table with an angrythump; "I don't profess to be more particular than other men when Iget on the high seas; but I've always got my letters of marque onboard, and as long as I have them, d'ye see, they can't hang me."

  Rupert seemed to be casting about for some way to satisfy hisscruples. Presently he said--

  "There's no other way for it, then--we must alter the date."

  Mr. Sims gave a start, and let drop an oath.

  "You're a strange man, Gurney," he said; "I can't make you out thismorning. You talk of forging the king's commission as if it were nomore than altering the log. Why, man, that's a worse hanging matterthan sailing with no papers at all!"

  My cousin fairly lost his temper at this, and cursed the other for athin-skinned numbskull.

  "Either we sail or we don't," he concluded by saying, "and either wesail with a commission or without it. I am ready here to alter thedate with my own hand--it is but turning a IV into a VI--to give ustwo years more, and you need know nothing of the matter."

  The captain came into this with surprising readiness thinking, nodoubt, that he had sufficiently guarded his own neck in the business.Then for the first time they perceived me; and Sims was for making metake an oath on the gospels not to betray what I had heard. But Rupertrebuked him sharply, bidding him to know that no Ford had evercommitted treachery or dishonour within the memory of man, any more,he was good enough to say, than the Gurneys themselves.

  And this testimony of his so soothed me that I allowed my conscienceto slumber in the matter of the forged commission. Yet it was plainenough to me by this time that my cousin was a desperate scoundrel,and that the company I had enlisted among were little better than agang of pirates, if better they could be called.

  I daresay it was not to be expected that I should associate for longwith such men without falling into their ways. But what prevailed mostto change me from my former character, and wrought on me for evil was,I verily believe, the frenzy of the passion which possessed me forMarian.

  By this time I had gathered courage to let her know how she stood inmy regard, and with the worst result for me that could have happened.For she would listen well-pleased to all the desperate love I pouredinto her ear, and then the next day I would find her closeted with mycousin Rupert, who was become her bold and notorious wooer, or elsewith one of the flash young gentlemen of the town, who frequented thetavern for no other purpose but to make love to her, and brought herpresents of rings and lockets and suchlike matters, which she neverscrupled to accept. And when I upbraided her for this wantonness, shegave me cruel words.

  "I would have you to know that I am not your mistress, pert young sir,any more than I am your cousin's! And I suppose I am free to do as Iplease, without your leave first had! If it likes me to entertain thesociety of other young gentlemen, be sure I shall do so; and as forthe trinkets you are pleased to be jealous of, it will be time enoughto cast them in my teeth when you have better to bestow on meyourself."

  With that she flung away, leaving me sore distressed and amazed. Butthough this speech removed somewhat of my blindness, yet the love Ihad for her was no whit lessened, but rather increased in vehemence.And seeing that I had but little money of my own to procure her suchtoys as she spoke of, I forthwith betook me to dicing and gambling,which hitherto I had refrained from, in the hopes of bettering myestate.

  The luck I had in this was very various, so that at one time guineasseemed to be dropping out of my pockets, whereas at others I mightransack them through without finding so much as a silver penny. Andaccording to the state of my fortunes, so did I prosper in Marian'sregard; and in this ill-state of my affairs I grew reckless, and drankto drive away better thoughts, and so came on rapidly to the evil hourwhich was to end it all.

  For, as it happened, I was one night throwing the dice with my cousinRupert, and he had won of me, and as I went on, drinking in betweenwhiles, I lost what little coolness I had started with, and finallystaked my last penny on the last throw, and lost that too. Then Iflung myself back from the table with an oath.

  "Fair and softly, cousin," said Rupert, picking up the money I hadthrown before him. "It does not much matter who wins, seeing that itall goes into the same pocket afterwards."

  "What do you mean?" I cried sharply. For nothing angered me more thanto have him say anything which glanced at our rivalry for Marian, inwhich business I had too much reason to suspect he was more fortunatethan myself. That very day, moreover, I had found them together, andthey had looked ill-pleased at being disturbed.

  "Faith, I think you must know my meaning well enough by this time,"answered Rupert, with an insulting smile. "Before you try to play thegallant you must line your pocket better."

  "Hold your tongue!" I said fiercely. "I am not used to buy favours,like some who have nothing but their purse to commend them."

  "Then you should go where favours are not sold," he sneered, with anevil smile.

  "Those words in your teeth!" I shouted, starting up and clapping myhand on my sword, which I had bought two days before of a Jew.

  By this time the noise of our quarrel had aroused the whole room, andthe company were crowding round us, the men of the _Fair Maid_ in thefront. Rupert bit his lip as he saw where he stood.

  "Peace, youngster," he said, with a threatening look which belied hiswords. "I will not be forced into a quarrel here."

  "Here or outside, I care not," says I, "but I swear you shall takeback the slander you have cast upon a woman yo
u are not fit to speakwith!"

  "D--n you!" says Rupert, "do you want me to fight for a----"

  He got no farther, for with that I caught up the dice-box and dashedit between his eyes, so that he fairly staggered back, and the bloodstarted from his nostrils. And then, almost before I knew what washappening, his sword was out, and mine was clashing against it, andthe table was overturned on the floor, and then there was a rush and ashout, and some one was holding me back from behind, while Mr. Simsand the boatswain stood between us, and Rupert, with a look on hisface which I had never seen there before, was saying in a very steadyvoice--

  "Gentlemen, you may arrange it as you please, but take notice that itmust be _a la mort_."