gablefrom
all
the
rest
of
the
house
.
This
door
Jane
had
left
locked
from
the
inside
,
fearing
lest
others
should
lock
her
in
,
as
they
had
threatened
to
do
.
But
now
we
found
that
a
strong
iron
bolt
had
been
fixed
upon
the
outside
,
while
we
were
asleep
in
the
morning
,
and
that
we
had
no
chance
of
forcing
it
.
Next
I
asked
Jane
,
whether
she
thought
that
the
house
,
now
Mrs.
Daldy
was
gone
,
would
be
still
in
the
hands
of
our
enemies
.
Would
not
Mrs.
Fletcher
at
once
re-assert
her
authority
?
Might
not
Matilda
Jenkins
be
expected
to
fly
to
the
rescue
?
The
nurse
,
knowing
all
the
politics
of
the
servants
'
hall
,
assured
me
that
there
was
no
hope
of
either
of
these
events
.
Robert
,
a
drunken
Wesleyan
,
turned
out
of
the
sect
in
Cheltenham
,
was
Mrs.
Daldy
's
lieutenant
,
and
would
take
all
care
of
Matilda
,
to
whose
good
graces
he
had
been
making
overture
.
As
for
Mrs.
Fletcher
,
she
was
probably
in
the
same
plight
as
ourselves
.
From
what
I
heard
about
Robert
,
I
began
to
believe
that
he
had
private
orders
to
disown
me
at
the
station
,
for
the
double
purpose
of
yielding
a
tit-bit
of
insolence
,
and
warning
of
my
arrival
.
However
,
that
mattered
very
little
;
but
out
of
those
rooms
I
must
get
,
either
by
door
or
by
window
;
and
that
,
too
,
without
delay
.
Do
they
expect
to
triumph
so
easily
over
Clara
Vaughan
?
And
in
her
father
's
house
?
The
windows
were
about
twenty
feet
from
the
ground
,
as
nearly
as
I
could
guess
,
and
the
rooms
beneath
were
empty
.
At
once
I
resolved
to
attempt
an
escape
that
way
,
and
to
do
so
before
the
moon
,
which
was
southing
now
,
should
shine
on
the
western
aspect
.
Good
Jane
was
terrified
at
the
thought
;
and
then
,
upon
my
persisting
,
implored
me
to
let
her
make
the
attempt
,
if
it
must
be
made
at
all
.
"
Now
,
Jane
,
no
more
,
if
you
please
.
We
ca
n't
waste
time
about
that
.
You
have
a
husband
partly
dependent
upon
you
,
and
several
children
to
think
of
.
For
me
nobody
cares
.
"
But
I
hoped
somebody
did
.
"
And
you
know
I
am
far
more
active
and
much
lighter
than
you
are
.
Help
me
out
with
the
feather
bed
.
"
The
little
bed
in
the
dressing-room
,
which
she
had
to
sleep
on
,
was
speedily
brought
to
the
window
,
and
dropped
just
underneath
it
.
It
fell
upon
the
grass
with
a
pleasing
and
quiet
flop
.
Then
the
two
strong
bell-ropes
,
already
cut
down
and
plaited
together
,
were
tied
round
the
bars
of
the
double
window
sashes
,
the
lower
sash
being
thrown
up
to
the
full
extent
,
the
glass
pressed
quietly
out
with
a
pair
of
wet
towels
,
and
the
splinters
removed
,
so
as
not
to
cut
the
rope
.
The
latter
still
failed
to
reach
more
than
half-way
to
the
ground
,
but
I
would
venture
the
drop
if
I
could
only
descend
so
far
.
After
winding
a
linen
sheet
around
my
body
and
dress
,
with
the
end
tied
round
one
ankle
,
so
as
to
leave
me
free
use
of
my
limbs
,
I
sat
upon
the
window-sill
in
the
broad
shadow
,
and
calculated
my
chances
.
Should
I
begin
the
descent
with
face
,
or
with
back
,
to
the
wall
?
Face
to
the
wall
I
resolved
on
,
for
though
I
should
have
to
drop
backward
so
,
yet
what
I
feared
most
of
all
was
having
the
back
of
my
head
crushed
against
the
house
.
Next
to
this
I
dreaded
a
sprain
of
the
ankle
,
but
all
our
family
are
well-knit
and
straight
in
the
joint
.
So
I
launched
myself
off
,
beginning
as
gently
as
could
be
,
Jane
having
firm
hold
of
one
hand
,
until
I
was
well
on
the
voyage
.
Though
not
well
versed
in
calisthenic
arts
,
I
got
on
famously
almost
as
far
as
the
end
of
the
rope
,
keeping
away
from
the
wall
by
the
over-saling
of
the
window-sill
,
and
the
rapid
use
of
my
feet
.
Then
I
rested
a
moment
on
a
projecting
ledge
—
called
,
I
believe
,
a
"
stringing-course
"
—
and
away
hand
below
hand
again
.
But
I
struck
my
knuckles
terribly
against
that
stringing-course
,
and
very
nearly
lost
hold
from
the
pain
of
the
blow
;
then
bending
my
body
forward
I
gave
one
good
push
at
the
wall
,
and
shutting
both
eyes
,
I
believe
,
let
go
the
rope
altogether
.
Backward
I
fell
,
and
rolled
over
upon
the
feather
bed
.
I
was
not
even
stunned
,
but
feared
for
a
moment
to
try
if
my
limbs
were
sound
.
There
I
sat
and
stripped
off
the
winding
sheet
.
Presently
,
up
I
got
,
and
,
in
my
triumph
,
alas
!
could
not
help
crying
"
All
right
,
Hurrah
!
"
like
a
foolish
little
child
.
In
a
moment
I
saw
that
my
cry
had
been
heard
,
where
it
should
not
have
been
.
A
rapid
flitting
of
lights
along
the
lower
windows
and
in
the
stableyard
,
and
I
knew
that
chase
would
be
given
.
But
after
leaving
my
father
's
house
in
such
a
dignified
manner
,
was
it
likely
that
I
would
give
in
and
be
caught
?
Now
,
Clara
,
you
could
beat
all
your
nurses
in
running
,
off
and
away
like
the
wind
!
Away
I
went
full
speed
towards
the
shade
of
the
avenue
,
while
Jane
had
the
wit
to
scream
out
of
the
window
,
"
Help
!
Help
!
Here
's
the
house
on
fire
!
"
This
made
some
little
diversion
;
I
had
a
capital
start
,
and
it
was
but
half
a
mile
to
the
lodge
where
old
Whitehead
lived
.
Once
there
,
I
should
care
for
nobody
.
I
must
have
escaped
very
easily
,
for
my
feet
seemed
as
swift
as
a
deer
's
;
but
,
as
my
luck
would
have
it
,
the
light
iron
gates
between
the
lawn
and
the
park
were
fastened
.
What
on
earth
should
I
do
?
I
saw
men
running
across
the
lawn
,
and
,
what
was
worse
,
they
saw
me
.
In
vain
I
pulled
at
the
gates
;
they
rattled
,
but
would
not
yield
.
Had
I
owned
true
presence
of
mind
,
I
should
have
walked
boldly
up
to
the
men
,
and
dared
them
to
touch
me
fresh
from
the
fever-room
.
In
the
flurry
of
the
moment
I
never
thought
of
that
,
but
darted
into
the
shrubbery
,
and
crouched
among
thick
laurels
.
Presently
I
heard
them
rush
down
the
main
drive
and
begin
the
search
,
with
some
heavy
swearing
.
Two
of
them
came
to
the
very
clump
I
was
hiding
in
,
and
pushed
a
pitchfork
almost
into
my
side
,
but
the
stupid
fellows
had
lanterns
,
which
blinded
them
to
the
moonlight
.
On
they
went
with
grumblings
and
growlings
,
which
told
me
exactly
where
to
shun
them
.
Judging
at
length
,
from
the
silence
,
that
the
search
had
passed
to
the
right
,
I
slipped
from
my
tangled
lair
,
and
glided
away
to
the
left
,
beyond
the
shrubbery
spring
,
where
a
little
gate
,
as
I
knew
,
led
to
a
glade
in
the
park
.
The
deep
ha-ha
which
I
had
feared
to
jump
in
the
dark
,
because
of
the
loose
stones
at
the
bottom
,
was
here
succeeded
by
a
high
oak
paling
,
and
probably
through
that
gate
had
come
the
murderer
of
my
father
.
With
a
cold
shudder
at
the
remembrance
,
I
stole
along
through
the
shadowy
places
,
and
had
almost
reached
the
little
gate
,
when
I
saw
two
of
the
searchers
coming
straight
towards
me
.
To
the
right
of
me
was
the
park-paling
,
on
the
left
a
breastwork
of
sod
,
which
I
could
not
climb
without
being
clearly
seen
;
to
fly
was
to
meet
the
enemy
;
should
I
yield
,
and
be
baffled
after
all
;
insulted
too
,
most
likely
,
for
I
knew
that
the
men
were
tipsy
?
In
my
hand
was
the
tightly-wound
sheet
,
used
as
a
rope
to
confine
my
dress
.
I
had
folded
it
short
and
carried
it
,
on
the
chance
of
its
proving
useful
.
In
a
moment
I
was
under
the
palings
in
deep
shadow
,
with
the
white
sheet
thrown
around
me
,
falling
from
my
forehead
,
and
draped
artistically
over
the
right
arm
.
Stock
still
I
stood
against
the
black
boards
,
and
two
great
coils
of
long
black
hair
flowed
down
the
winding
sheet
.
The
men
came
up
,
tired
of
the
chase
,
and
grumbling
;
and
by
their
voices
I
knew
them
for
my
good
friends
Jacob
and
Bob
.
Suddenly
,
they
espied
a
tall
,
white
figure
,
of
tremendous
aspect
.
They
stopped
short
,
both
tongue
and
foot
,
and
I
distinctly
heard
their
teeth
chatter
.
With
a
slow
and
spectral
motion
,
I
raised
my
draped
white
arm
,
and
fetched
a
low
,
sepulchral
moan
.
Down
fell
the
lantern
,
and
,
with
a
loud
yell
,
away
went
the
men
,
as
hard
as
their
legs
could
carry
them
.
Laughing
heartily
,
I
refolded
my
sheet
,
and
taking
the
short
cut
across
the
park
to
the
lodge
where
old
Whitehead
lived
,
arrived
,
without
having
met
even
my
old
friend
"
Tulip
.
"
The
old
man
,
in
hot
indignation
,
drew
forth
his
battered
musket
—
for
he
had
once
been
in
the
militia
—
and
swore
that
he
would
march
upon
the
—
—
rogues
at
once
.
Instead
of
that
I
sent
him
for
the
two
Hiatts
,
and
the
village
constable
;
and
soon
,
without
invitation
,
half
the
village
attended
.
With
my
torn
dress
tucked
up
by
good
Mrs.
Whitehead
,
and
a
hat
on
my
head
,
newly
bought
for
her
clean
little
grandchild
,
I
set
forth
again
in
the
moonlight
,
at
the
head
of
a
faithful
army
,
to
recover
my
native
home
.
Hiatt
easily
opened
the
gate
,
which
had
defied
my
flurried
efforts
,
and
we
presented
ourselves
at
the
main
entrance
,
a
force
that
would
frighten
a
castle
.
It
is
needless
to
say
that
we
carried
all
before
us
.
The
state
of
siege
was
rescinded
,
Mrs.
Fletcher
and
Tilly
set
free
,
all
the
ringleaders
turned
away
neck
and
crop
,
and
what
was
far
more
important
,
my
poor
uncle
removed
,
without
being
conscious
of
it
,
to
a
sweet
and
wholesome
room
.
The
sturdy
Gloucestershire
yeomen
scorned
all
idea
of
danger
.
Tired
with
all
my
adventures
,
before
I
slept
that
night
—
still
near
my
uncle
's
bed
—
two
reflections
came
dreamily
over
my
mind
.
The
first
was
a
piece
of
vanity
.
"
Ah
,
Mrs.
Daldy
,
you
little
know
Clara
Vaughan
!
"
The
second
was
,
"
Dear
me
,
how
Conrad
would
be
astonished
at
this
!
And
how
strange
that
his
father
should
thus
have
saved
my
uncle
's
life
!
For
he
must
have
died
,
if
left
in
that
noisome
room
.
"
BOOK
IV
.
CHAPTER
I
.
Before
that
week
was
over
,
my
uncle
could
sit
up
in
bed
for
a
short
time
every
day
,
being
duly
propped
in
a
downy
nest
of
pillows
.
One
arm
,
however
,
remained
quite
impotent
,
and
part
of
one
side
rigid
and
numb
.
His
recovery
was
slow
and
tedious
,
as
might
well
be
expected
with
one
who
had
been
dragged
not
from
the
jaws
but
the
very
throat
of
death
.
For
a
long
time
also
his
mind
was
feeble
and
dim
,
a
mirror
overcast
by
the
vapours
of
the
body
.
To
me
,
who
am
fond
of
observing
,
in
my
own
little
childish
way
,
it
was
interesting
as
well
as
delightful
to
note
how
,
day
by
day
,
the
mind
and
body
,
hand
in
hand
,
rose
stronger
.
More
than
all
was
I
taught
,
and
humbled
in
my
own
conceit
,
by
taking
heed
how
tardily
came
back
the
power
to
guide
and
control
the
imagination
.
That
object-glass
of
the
mind
—
not
achromatic
even
in
first-rate
intellects
—
had
long
been
out
of
the
focal
distance
from
the
lens
of
reason
's
eye
.
Upon
it
had
been
glancing
loose
distorted
images
,
rendered
home
imperfectly
,
if
at
all
,
to
the
retina
of
the
brain
.
Herein
its
state
was
the
very
opposite
to
that
of
my
own
phrenoscope
.
I
have
no
large
imagination
;
but
the
images
it
presents
are
vivid
,
and
I
see
well
round
them
.
Every
one
of
them
is
not
cast
,
but
cut
,
on
my
sensorium
.
Whether
I
can
strike
them
off
in
words
—
whether
my
telegraph
can
print
its
message
—
is
quite
another
question
,
and
beside
its
purpose
.
Having
rendered
home
to
me
the
idols
(
oftentimes
inverted
,
though
distinct
)
it
leaves
expression
and
judgment
to
do
their
best
with
the
copyright
.
Now
,
both
in
fabric
and
in
mould
,
my
uncle
's
mind
was
different
.
Naturally
his
powers
were
far
superior
,
but
he
seemed
to
take
no
pride
in
them
.
No
dark
and
settled
purpose
had
ever
thrown
its
shadow
,
and
even
its
weight
,
upon
them
;
nor
had
they
felt
,
so
far
as
I
knew
,
the
rough
grasp
of
adversity
.
Therefore
they
were
longer
in
recovering
from
the
blow
,
than
I
think
my
own
would
have
been
.
There
were
few
things
,
among
the
many
desired
by
Mrs.
Daldy
,
which
she
failed
to
reconcile
with
her
strong
sense
of
religion
.
"
There
is
not
one
"
—
I
have
heard
her
say
—
"
not
one
of
the
things
we
believe
to
be
for
our
good
,
which
we
should
scruple
to
lay
before
the
Throne
of
Grace
.
Even
the
throbbings
of
that
little
unregenerate
heart
"
—
Clara
Vaughan
's
to
wit
,
who
had
kicked
her
that
morning
,
quite
by
accident
of
course
—
"
even
they
are
known
and
sifted
there
"
—
slight
confusion
of
metaphor
caused
by
strong
conviction
of
sin
—
"
Infinite
mercy
knows
the
things
that
be
for
our
edification
,
and
confirmation
in
the
faith
.
Yes
,
backsliding
sinner
,
the
want
of
real
heart-felt
spiritual
life
can
be
supplied
by
prayer
alone
.
Is
it
not
so
in
your
experience
,
Elder
?
"
"
Prayer
,
my
dear
Madam
,
and
searching
of
the
heart
.
Oh
the
depth
of
the
wickedness
of
the
unconverted
heart
!
"
And
he
took
another
glass
of
sherry
.
That
night
I
remember
she
worked
very
hard
,
for
her
;
and
the
next
day
she
presented
me
with
markers
the
size
of
a
gallows
,
progged
with
many
holes
;
on
one
was
done
in
cross-stitch
,
"
Pray
without
ceasing
,
"
and
upon
the
other
"
Wrestle
thou
in
prayer
.
Gen.
xxxii
.
24.
"
Both
of
these
I
threw
into
the
fire
there
before
her
eyes
.
From
this
it
will
be
clear
,
that
in
her
devotions
she
still
remembered
me
,
and
doubtless
prayed
in
good
Scriptural
phraseology
for
my
release
from
this
wicked
world
.
Dr.
Churchyard
's
last
report
had
raised
her
terror
to
the
highest
pitch
,
and
instead
of
wrestling
in
prayer
,
she
had
run
away
in
high
panic
,
upon
hearing
that
the
fever-nurse
was
seen
at
large
the
night
before
.
"
We
must
use
the
means
of
grace
,
"
she
said
to
Mrs.
Fletcher
,
before
she
locked
her
in
,
"
and
accept
the
mercies
vouchsafed
to
us
.
And
it
would
be
sinful
,
dear
Mrs.
Fletcher
,
in
me
to
neglect
such
a
warning
as
this
.
"
It
was
wise
,
as
well
as
righteous
,
in
her
to
keep
aloof
for
a
time
,
while
her
devices
worked
their
consummation
.
For
the
present
it
appeared
to
me
that
they
were
failing
signally
.
My
uncle
was
regaining
strength
of
mind
and
body
;
while
native
air
,
a
sense
of
triumph
,
and
daily
exercise
,
kept
me
in
blooming
health
.
My
patient
,
who
otherwise
could
hardly
bear
me
to
leave
him
for
an
hour
,
insisted
upon
my
taking
a
long
ride
every
day
.
Lilla
was
charmed
,
and
so
was
I
,
with
the
sweet
spring
air
,
and
the
rich
familiar
scenery
.
And
how
it
did
make
me
eat
!
Thankful
indeed
I
ought
to
be
,
and
am
,
that
it
pleased
God
to
spare
me
that
awful
and
deadly
pestilence
.
But
the
worst
injury
done
by
canting
hypocrites
is
,
that
the
repulsion
they
create
drives
away
others
from
good
.
Truly
I
may
say
,
that
for
days
after
being
in
contact
with
that
slimy
sanctity
,
I
could
not
say
my
own
prayers
,
as
a
little
child
should
do
.
Of
that
fever
there
had
been
three
fatal
cases
in
the
village
,
before
it
entered
our
house
;
and
I
found
that
it
was
spreading
rapidly
.
With
my
uncle
's
authority
,
I
had
the
drainage
surveyed
and
amended
at
once
;
and
so
the
pest
was
stayed
.
Of
course
we
did
not
neglect
our
own
weak
point
;
and
the
crawling
noisome
smell
was
no
longer
perceived
in
the
room
,
nor
the
white
vapour
on
the
grass
.
And
so
three
weeks
went
by
;
no
news
from
London
or
Devonshire
,
no
explanation
between
my
uncle
and
myself
,
no
arrangements
as
to
my
expectations
in
life
.
As
yet
my
uncle
was
too
weak
to
bear
any
sort
of
excitement
,
and
seemed
desirous
only
to
be
passive
in
my
hands
.
His
eyes
always
followed
me
to
every
part
of
the
room
,
and
he
would
even
be
propped
on
the
sofa
to
see
me
ride
down
the
avenue
;
and
there
I
always
found
him
watching
for
my
return
.
Meanwhile
I
yearned
to
be
once
more
in
a
certain
little
room
with
a
north
aspect
,
opposite
a
cheesemonger
's
shop
in
an
obscure
street
of
London
.
Nightly
I
dreamed
of
Giudice
,
and
daily
I
dreamed
of
dear
Isola
and
Conrad
.
The
dog
in
the
stableyard
,
who
had
hitherto
owned
no
especial
attractions
for
me
,
suddenly
found
himself
petted
,
and
coaxed
,
and
fed
(
which
he
thought
much
more
of
)
to
the
scandal
of
Mrs.
Fletcher
,
and
the
great
alarm
of
the
grooms
,
who
would
rather
not
have
me
there
.
Moreover
,
the
dog
himself
,
though
I
strove
to
invest
him
with
every
chivalrous
attribute
,
was
of
a
low
and
ungenial
order
,
adorned
with
no
graces
of
mind
,
and
little
taste
,
except
for
bones
and
gravy
.
But
perhaps
my
standard
was
too
high
:
peradventure
I
even
commenced
with
more
prejudice
than
a
bulldog
's
.
Be
that
as
it
may
—
and
if
I
can
see
round
things
,
I
ought
to
see
round
myself
—
every
day
fell
heavier
and
heavier
from
the
fair
balance
of
time
;
and
every
night
the
stars
—
for
there
was
now
no
moon
—
looked
wearier
in
the
heavens
,
and
less
inclined
for
business
.
How
long
,
how
long
shall
you
go
round
the
pole
in
your
steady
pacing
way
,
as
if
the
sky
were
for
auction
,
and
you
were
pacing
the
lots
;
while
I
,
with
more
fire
in
me
than
you
can
strike
or
steal
,
am
ditched
like
a
glow-worm
kicked
under
a
dock-leaf
,
and
see
no
polestar
at
all
?
Here
is
May
,
the
height
of
May
:
I
am
full
of
life
and
spirit
:
the
garb
of
death
,
like
an
April
cloud
,
blows
over
.
Let
me
see
.
Last
birthday
I
was
eighteen
:
I
have
known
more
troubles
than
years
,
and
enjoyed
no
youth
as
yet
.
Last
year
I
spent
in
growing
,
and
pining
,
and
starving
.
Now
the
Power
,
that
balances
earth
and
heaven
,
has
filled
me
with
joy
and
light
.
Neither
am
I
renegade
to
my
life
,
in
opening
wide
my
heart
to
this
flood
of
love
and
happiness
.
Still
am
I
set
upon
one
strong
purpose
.
Still
am
I
sworn
,
and
will
not
repent
,
that
if
filial
duty
demand
it
,
I
will
trample
love
under
my
feet
,
and
cut
the
throat
of
happiness
.
During
most
of
this
time
,
I
had
no
idea
where
the
queen
of
hypocrites
was
;
though
doubtless
she
knew
all
that
was
happening
to
us
.
As
soon
as
he
heard
of
my
uncle
's
surprising
rally
,
Dr.
Churchyard
came
over
,
and
claimed
all
the
merit
for
his
own
last
prescription
.
Brought
face
to
face
with
the
awkward
fact
that
the
medicine
had
not
been
procured
,
he
was
not
in
the
least
disconcerted
,
but
found
that
we
had
misunderstood
him
,
the
prescription
to
which
he
referred
was
the
one
before
the
last
.
At
any
rate
,
he
enhanced
his
own
fame
immensely
,
and
became
"
instrumental
under
Providence
"
in
killing
more
people
than
ever
.
In
reply
to
Mrs.
Fletcher
,
for
I
would
not
deign
to
ask
him
,
he
stated
that
the
excellent
and
devoted
Mrs.
Daldy
had
not
been
seen
lately
in
Cheltenham
.
Her
son
,
however
,
was
there
,
and
foremost
in
the
ranks
of
Pump-room
Lady-killers
.
Just
what
he
was
fit
for
.
The
doctor
entertained
a
belief
,
and
spread
the
report
in
Cheltenham
,
that
Dorcas
was
lodged
in
a
humble
cot
among
the
haunts
of
pestilence
,
imperilling
her
life
and
lavishing
her
substance
to
relieve
the
fever-stricken
.
This
being
more
than
I
could
stand
,
I
asked
the
worthy
doctor
—
who
,
after
all
,
was
a
man
of
the
world
—
what
three
wealthy
persons
Dorcas
had
carried
with
her
.
At
first
he
feigned
not
to
understand
me
,
then
looked
sly
,
and
changed
the
subject
cleverly
.
Of
course
I
referred
to
the
well-known
fact
,
that
she
supported
her
grandeur
and
her
son
's
extravagance
by
playing
an
admirable
rubber
.
She
was
playing
a
better
one
now
.
Dr.
Churchyard
finished
by
writing
another
prescription
,
which
,
after
his
departure
,
I
handed
to
the
husband
of
Venus
,
legitimate
disposer
of
mineral
medicines
.
CHAPTER
II
.
London
!
London
!
was
still
the
cry
of
my
heart
;
and
was
I
not
summoned
thither
by
duty
long
ago
?
What
might
become
,
during
all
this
time
,
of
the
man
whom
I
was
bound
to
watch
at
every
turn
,
and
whom
I
was
now
in
a
better
condition
to
deal
with
?
My
first
visit
,
every
morning
,
was
to
my
parents
'
graves
,
and
neither
of
them
would
be
there
but
for
his
ruthless
hand
.
As
I
sat
there
how
lonely
I
felt
!
how
sadly
forlorn
in
the
world
,
be
my
lot
wealth
or
poverty
,
victory
or
defeat
!
One
morning
as
I
sat
there
my
spirit
was
moved
by
dreams
of
the
night
before
,
and
I
vowed
,
in
that
bodily
but
invisible
presence
,
that
none
,
except
one
whose
name
I
whispered
,
should
ever
kneel
on
that
turf
hand
in
hand
with
me
.
Borne
out
of
my
usual
vein
by
the
deed
myself
had
done
,
I
entered
the
ancient
church
,
always
left
open
for
me
,
and
,
kneeling
at
the
altar-rails
,
with
many
a
Vaughan
supine
in
prayer
,
pennons
,
helms
,
and
trophies
round
me
,
stately
dames
in
marble
white
,
and
old
crusaders
clutching
still
the
cross
—
there
I
made
my
vow
upon
the
knee-cupped
stones
,
that
if
he
claimed
me
not
,
the
race
should
end
with
me
.
It
was
a
presumptuous
and
unholy
act
,
with
all
around
me
quelled
by
time
,
with
ages
laid
aside
in
dust
,
with
many
a
stouter
heart
and
larger
mind
than
mine
,
helpless
even
to
superintend
the
wasting
of
his
tenement
,
with
all
his
bygone
bliss
and
woe
,
stanchest
love
and
deadliest
hate
,
less
eloquent
now
than
the
fly
whom
the
spider
has
caught
in
his
skull
.
Returning
across
the
park
,
after
a
warm
interview
with
"
Tulip
,
"
who
insisted
mainly
upon
having
his
ears
well
scratched
,
I
found
my
uncle
in
his
snug
wheel-chair
,
waiting
near
the
side-door
for
me
to
help
and
accompany
him
forth
.
This
was
our
best
way
to
take
him
out
,
because
of
the
steps
at
the
front-door
.
He
had
not
yet
been
in
the
open
air
since
his
terrible
illness
,
but
,
judging
by
my
own
experience
,
I
thought
that
he
pined
for
the
breeze
,
and
,
after
long
council
,
it
was
resolved
to
trust
him
forth
this
day
.
With
all
his
heart
he
was
longing
to
be
out
;
but
,
instead
of
expressing
impatience
,
smiled
gratefully
at
me
.
I
now
observed
that
he
had
a
sweet
and
winning
smile
—
a
gift
bestowed
not
rarely
on
faces
of
a
sombre
cast
.
In
return
for
it
I
kissed
him
,
and
we
sailed
smoothly
out
.
How
he
revelled
,
to
be
sure
,
in
the
first
clear
breath
from
the
lips
of
heaven
!
Stretching
one
poor
arm
forth
—
the
other
he
could
not
move
—
he
tried
to
spread
himself
like
a
flower
to
the
sun
.
Then
he
drew
long
draughts
of
liquid
freedom
,
and
was
for
a
time
as
one
intoxicated
.
In
the
glorious
crystal
bath
he
seemed
to
float
away
from
earth
.
Coming
to
himself
at
length
,
he
looked
at
me
,
and
said
,
"
Now
John
may
go
,
if
he
pleases
.
"
A
year
ago
he
would
have
said
,
"
Go
,
John
,
"
and
no
more
.
But
illness
is
a
great
refiner
.
When
John
was
out
of
sight
he
allowed
free
vent
to
the
tears
of
joy
and
gratitude
,
whereof
,
in
my
opinion
,
he
had
no
call
to
be
ashamed
.
I
kissed
him
many
times
.
My
warm
impassioned
nature
always
felt
for
and
delighted
in
any
touch
like
this
.
Then
he
placed
his
better
hand
on
the
cold
and
rigid
one
,
lifting
this
with
that
,
and
poured
forth
silent
thanks
to
the
Giver
of
all
things
.
"
Clara
,
darling
,
"
at
length
he
said
,
"
how
can
I
ever
show
you
a
thousandth
part
of
my
gratitude
for
all
the
lovingkindness
you
have
heaped
on
me
?
Coals
of
fire
,
indeed
!
and
they
have
warmed
my
selfish
heart
.
With
loathsome
death
before
your
face
,
in
all
the
pride
and
bloom
of
early
youth
and
richest
—
"
I
will
not
repeat
his
words
,
because
it
would
not
become
me
;
but
I
am
forced
by
all
that
has
happened
to
show
what
his
feelings
were
.
"
And
all
this
for
me
—
me
who
have
been
your
bitterest
enemy
,
who
have
turned
you
out
of
your
father
's
house
,
and
caused
your
mother
's
death
!
"
Here
I
stopped
him
,
lest
he
should
be
overcome
.
"
Dear
uncle
,
talk
no
more
of
this
—
never
even
think
of
it
.
The
fault
was
all
my
own
.
You
know
I
would
not
stop
,
often
as
you
asked
me
.
There
always
was
a
bar
between
us
,
and
it
was
my
obstinacy
.
"
"
No
,
it
was
my
pride
.
Clara
,
in
my
better
mind
I
loved
you
all
along
.
How
could
I
help
admiring
your
truth
and
courage
and
devotion
to
your
father
?
Although
I
own
that
you
were
very
bitter
against
me
,
yet
,
if
I
had
only
used
the
proper
means
,
I
might
have
got
the
better
of
it
.
If
I
had
told
you
all
my
story
,
you
would
have
pitied
more
even
than
condemned
me
.
But
my
pride
forbade
,
and
I
made
the
common
mistake
of
regarding
you
as
a
child
,
because
you
were
that
in
years
.
I
forgot
to
allow
for
the
forcing
powers
of
grief
.
Even
now
,
pulled
down
as
I
am
,
and
humbled
by
the
wisdom
of
Heaven
,
I
cannot
tell
you
my
strange
history
without
the
acutest
pain
.
"
"
Then
I
am
sure
,
uncle
,
I
will
never
let
you
do
it
.
"
"
Yes
,
it
is
my
duty
,
and
the
sooner
done
the
better
.
Rescued
though
I
am
,
for
the
present
,
by
your
wonderful
courage
and
skill
,
I
feel
that
one
more
blow
,
even
a
slight
one
now
,
and
time
for
me
is
ended
.
But
if
it
were
God
's
will
to
cut
me
off
to-morrow
,
I
should
die
in
happiness
,
having
made
my
peace
,
and
won
your
kind
forgiveness
.
"
"
You
shall
not
tell
me
now
at
any
rate
.
And
I
wo
n't
have
you
talk
so
,
uncle
.
Mind
,
I
am
head-nurse
still
.
Now
come
and
see
how
lovely
the
ranunculus
are
getting
.
"
I
began
to
wheel
him
over
the
grass
and
gather
flowers
(
which
"
he
played
with
like
a
child
)
,
to
change
,
if
possible
,
the
current
of
his
thoughts
.
Stupid
thing
!
I
took
the
wrong
way
to
do
it
.
"
Oh
,
uncle
dear
!
you
will
laugh
at
me
,
and
say
I
am
as
bad
as
ever
;
but
as
soon
as
you
get
better
I
want
to
be
off
again
,
kind
and
good
as
you
are
to
me
.
"
He
trembled
so
violently
,
that
I
feared
the
chair
would
be
upset
.
"
What
,
Clara
,
ca
n't
you
live
with
me
even
now
?
Everything
shall
be
yours
,
as
it
ought
to
be
.
I
will
never
meddle
with
you
in
any
way
,
but
keep
to
some
lonely
corner
,
and
not
see
you
very
often
.
Oh
,
Clara
!
dear
Clara
!
do
n't
go
away
!
You
know
I
am
quite
helpless
,
and
I
ca
n't
live
long
,
and
you
are
all
in
all
to
me
,
and
I
am
so
proud
of
you
,
darling
!
But
it
is
not
for
myself
I
care
.
I
cannot
tell
,
much
less
can
you
,
what
mischief
may
be
done
if
you
leave
this
house
again
.
That
low
,
crafty
woman
will
be
back
again
directly
—
she
who
made
cowards
of
all
the
household
,
and
acted
the
coward
herself
,
who
left
me
to
die
in
my
lonely
bed
,
while
she
took
all
my
keys
.
If
her
treachery
succeeds
,
I
shall
rise
from
my
grave
.
And
I
know
she
will
poison
me
yet
,
if
she
gets
the
chance
,
and
can
make
anything
by
it
.
"
It
was
the
first
time
he
had
spoken
to
me
of
Mrs.
Daldy
,
and
I
was
amazed
at
his
bitterness
,
for
I
had
heard
of
no
quarrel
between
them
.
What
on
earth
did
it
mean
?
"
Do
n't
go
,
Clara
!
"
he
implored
me
,
with
the
cold
sweat
on
his
forehead
,
and
every
line
in
his
poor
thin
face
a-quivering
.
"
Do
n't
go
,
my
darling
,
blessed
Clara
!
I
have
had
none
to
love
for
years
and
years
,
and
to
love
you
is
so
sweet
!
If
you
go
I
must
die
at
once
,
and
,
worse
than
that
,
die
wretched
in
the
knowledge
that
you
will
be
robbed
.
"
He
fell
back
in
the
chair
,
from
which
,
in
his
excitement
,
he
had
striven
to
rise
,
and
for
some
minutes
there
he
lay
insensible
.
When
I
had
succeeded
in
bringing
him
to
himself
,
he
looked
at
me
so
piteously
,
with
so
much
death
in
his
eyes
,
that
I
promised
,
with
a
sinking
heart
,
never
to
leave
him
more
,
except
upon
absolute
necessity
,
until
he
should
be
well
,
or
need
my
care
no
longer
.
He
even
tried
to
persuade
me
not
to
go
to
London
for
the
things
I
had
left
there
,
but
to
send
a
trusty
person
to
pack
and
bring
them
home
.
To
this
,
however
,
I
could
not
yield
,
feeling
,
as
I
did
,
that
,
after
all
my
love
for
Isola
,
and
all
her
kindness
to
me
,
I
was
bound
to
see
her
and
say
farewell
;
and
what
harm
could
there
possibly
be
in
so
short
an
absence
?
My
uncle
wished
me
to
bring
her
down
for
a
good
long
visit
,
but
this
at
such
a
time
could
not
be
thought
of
.
Moreover
,
lively
,
impulsive
Idols
would
have
grown
very
long-faced
in
a
dull
sick
house
,
which
ours
must
be
for
the
present
.
It
was
settled
at
last
that
I
should
go
to
London
the
following
Monday
,
stay
there
one
entire
day
,
and
come
back
the
day
after
with
all
my
trifling
chattels
.
One
thing
more
my
uncle
proposed
which
I
would
not
hear
of
.
It
was
,
that
he
should
transfer
to
me
,
by
deed
of
gift
,
all
the
estate
,
both
real
and
personal
,
reserving
only
a
small
annuity
for
himself
,
and
a
sum
of
10
,
000
*
l
.
*
for
some
special
purpose
,
which
he
would
disclose
to
me
at
leisure
.
Thus
,
he
said
,
he
should
feel
as
if
justice
had
been
done
,
and
there
would
be
some
security
against
Mrs.
Daldy
's
schemes
.
Of
the
latter
I
felt
no
fear
whatever
,
and
thought
it
the
effect
of
a
shaken
mind
that
he
attached
so
much
importance
to
them
.
Under
no
circumstances
would
I
think
,
for
a
moment
,
of
allowing
him
so
to
divest
himself
.
Money
,
to
any
amount
,
I
could
have
,
though
I
wanted
very
little
,
seeing
that
now
,
once
more
,
a
solemn
duty
would
withdraw
me
from
my
long
pursuit
,
and
from
all
the
frivolities
which
many
girls
delight
in
.
I
begged
my
uncle
to
appoint
an
honest
steward
for
the
estate
,
and
to
assign
me
a
moderate
yearly
allowance
,
which
would
save
much
trouble
.
To
this
he
at
last
consented
,
and
proposed
for
me
so
large
a
revenue
,
that
,
after
removing
the
last
cipher
,
I
had
more
than
I
knew
how
to
spend
.
The
first
thing
I
did
was
to
send
the
kind
farmer
the
residue
of
the
sum
he
had
lent
me
,
together
with
interest
at
ten
per
cent
.
,
which
did
not
seem
excessive
,
considering
that
he
had
no
security
.
And
now
,
with
the
utmost
anxiety
,
I
looked
forward
to
the
time
when
my
poor
uncle
should
be
strong
enough
to
tell
me
,
without
risk
,
that
history
of
himself
which
he
had
distinctly
promised
me
.
Surely
it
must
shed
some
light
on
the
mystery
of
my
own
.
This
thought
,
as
well
as
the
sense
of
duty
,
reconciled
me
in
some
measure
to
the
suspension
of
my
life-long
search
.
He
would
have
told
me
everything
then
and
there
,
in
his
warm
gratitude
for
my
undertaking
;
but
I
durst
not
let
him
.
He
was
already
fatigued
with
so
much
talking
,
and
when
the
stimulus
of
the
fresh
air
was
gone
,
he
suffered
a
serious
relapse
.
CHAPTER
III
.
On
the
following
Monday
,
my
poor
uncle
being
rather
better
again
,
I
set
off
for
London
,
as
had
been
determined
,
and
arrived
there
late
in
the
afternoon
.
It
had
been
proposed
to
send
a
servant
with
me
,
but
I
had
been
too
long
accustomed
to
independence
,
and
also
had
reasons
of
my
own
for
refusing
.
I
was
to
receive
,
on
the
morrow
,
an
account
,
by
telegraph
,
of
my
patient
's
health
and
spirits
,
and
promised
to
give
,
in
return
,
some
tidings
of
myself
.
Mrs.
Shelfer
had
not
been
apprised
of
my
coming
,
because
she
would
have
been
sure
to
tell
Miss
Isola
,
whom
,
as
well
as
her
brother
,
I
wished
to
take
by
surprise
.
Dear
Isola
had
often
inquired
about
my
family
,
but
only
knew
that
I
was
an
orphan
,
much
reduced
in
the
world
,
poor
,
and
all
alone
.
Much
as
I
loved
her
,
I
knew
quite
well
that
she
could
not
keep
a
secret
,
and
whenever
she
teased
me
about
my
"
iron
mask
,
"
I
retorted
upon
her
that
she
had
first
to
discover
the
secret
of
her
own
home
.
As
we
rushed
towards
the
mighty
city
,
what
a
flush
was
in
my
cheeks
,
what
a
flutter
in
my
heart
!
Whom
might
I
not
see
even
upon
the
platform
,
or
,
at
any
rate
,
in
the
streets
,
and
,
poverty
being
removed
,
what
obstacle
could
there
be
between
us
?
Not
that
I
intended
to
resign
myself
to
affection
,
and
lead
a
life
of
softness
,
until
I
had
discharged
to
the
utmost
my
duty
to
the
dead
.
Yet
some
sort
of
pledge
might
pass
—
some
surety
there
might
be
,
that
neither
of
us
would
feel
thereafter
quite
alone
in
the
world
.
But
how
could
I
tell
that
he
even
cared
about
me
?
Well
,
I
had
a
strong
suspicion
.
In
some
things
the
eyes
are
the
best
detective
police
.
Only
I
had
always
been
so
unlucky
.
Was
it
not
too
good
luck
for
me
ever
to
be
true
?
Mrs.
Shelfer
's
door
was
opened
at
my
knock
,
not
by
her
own
little
bustling
self
,
nor
even
by
shock-headed
and
sly
"
Charley
,
"
but
by
a
short
stout
man
of
affable
self-importance
,
with
a
semi-Jewish
face
,
and
a
confidential
air
.
He
had
a
pot
of
porter
in
one
hand
and
a
paper-roll
in
the
other
,
a
greasy
hat
on
his
head
,
and
one
leg
of
his
trousers
had
lost
the
lower
half
.
Upon
learning
my
name
and
object
,
he
took
no
notice
whatever
of
me
,
but
put
up
his
paper-roll
for
a
trumpet
,
and
shouted
along
the
passage
,
"
Balaam
,
here
's
a
kick
!
I
'm
bothered
if
it
's
all
lies
,
after
all
.
Never
dreamed
the
old
gal
could
tell
a
word
of
truth
.
Had
a
higher
opinion
of
her
.
Blowed
if
the
young
woman
herself
ai
n't
come
!
"
"
Easy
there
,
Balak
"
—
the
mouth
of
the
speaker
was
full
—
"
keep
the
door
,
I
tell
you
.
Never
gets
a
bit
of
time
to
my
victuals
.
She
's
up
to
a
plant
,
I
doubt
.
Just
let
me
have
a
squint
at
her
.
"
Out
came
another
man
with
a
like
appearance
and
air
,
and
a
blade-bone
in
his
hand
,
whereat
he
continued
to
gnaw
throughout
the
interview
.
It
was
indeed
a
squint
with
which
he
favoured
me
,
and
neither
of
them
would
move
for
me
to
pass
.
"
Pray
what
is
the
meaning
of
all
this
?
"
I
asked
,
in
my
grandest
manner
.
"
Surely
I
have
not
mistaken
the
house
I
lived
in
.
This
,
I
believe
,
is
Mrs.
Shelfer
's
house
?
"
Instead
of
answering
me
,
they
closed
the
door
enough
to
put
the
slide-chain
on
,
leaving
me
still
outside
,
where
,
with
boiling
indignation
,
I
heard
myself
discussed
;
the
cabman
looking
on
with
an
experienced
grin
.
"
Well
,
Balaam
,
now
,
and
what
do
you
think
of
that
party
?
"
"
Uncommon
fine
young
gal
,
and
doosed
mannersome
too
;
but
it
do
n't
follow
,
for
all
that
,
that
the
thing
is
on
the
square
,
you
know
.
Have
she
got
any
luggage
,
Balak
?
"
"
No
,
mate
.
And
that
looks
fishy
,
now
one
come
to
think
on
it
.
Stop
,
let
me
have
another
look
.
"
"
No
;
leave
that
to
me
.
Slip
the
chain
out
,
Balak
:
and
keep
your
foot
behind
the
door
.
She
ca
n't
push
us
both
in
without
assault
and
battery
.
"
To
my
shame
and
indignation
,
I
was
subjected
to
another
critical
cross-fire
from
half
drunken
eyes
.
I
turned
my
back
and
stamped
in
my
vexation
;
the
cabman
gave
me
an
approving
nod
.
This
little
act
of
mine
was
so
unmistakably
genuine
,
and
displayed
such
very
nice
embroidery
—
I
do
like
a
tasteful
petticoat
—
that
the
hard
heart
of
Balaam
was
softened
;
at
the
same
moment
a
brilliant
idea
stole
through
his
cautious
mind
.
"
Stop
now
,
Balak
,
put
your
foot
there
.
She
ca
n't
push
us
both
in
,
I
believe
;
leastways
not
without
battery
and
contempt
of
court
.
Now
what
do
you
think
of
this
?
"
—
And
he
whispered
to
his
grimy
friend
.
"
Well
,
that
beats
all
I
ever
heer
'd
on
.
Let
you
alone
for
brains
,
Balaam
,
and
me
for
muscle
and
pluck
!
"
"
Now
,
young
lady
,
"
began
Balaam
in
a
diplomatic
tone
,
"
me
and
my
mate
here
be
in
a
constitution
of
trust
,
or
else
you
may
take
your
oath
,
and
never
a
pervarication
,
we
never
would
keep
an
agreeable
young
female
"
—
here
he
gave
me
two
ogles
intended
for
one
—
"
on
the
flinty
stones
so
long
;
only
we
ca
n't
say
if
you
mean
honest
,
and
there
be
such
a
many
bad
ones
going
,
and
we
've
got
a
leary
file
inside
.
Now
listen
to
what
I
say
.
There
's
a
dog
as
big
as
a
lion
in
the
room
as
you
calls
yourn
;
and
he
do
show
his
teeth
,
and
no
mistake
.
We
be
afeared
to
show
our
noses
there
,
even
at
the
command
of
dooty
.
You
can
hear
him
growling
now
like
all
the
Strand
and
Fleet
Street
;
and
my
mate
Balak
here
leave
half
his
breeches
behind
him
,
saving
your
presence
,
Miss
,
and
lucky
to
get
off
so
.
Now
if
so
be
you
undertakes
,
honour
bright
,
to
march
straight
into
that
front
room
,
my
mate
and
self
have
concluded
to
let
you
in
.
"
"
Of
course
I
will
,
"
said
I
,
smiling
at
their
terrors
.
So
I
paid
the
cabman
,
took
up
my
little
bag
,
and
ran
right
up
the
stairs
.
Balaam
and
Balak
feared
to
come
round
the
corner
.
"
You
must
unlock
the
door
,
Miss
,
"
cried
one
of
them
,
"
we
was
forced
to
lock
him
in
.
"
"
Oh
Judy
,
my
darling
Judy
,
my
own
pet
love
of
a
Judy
.
"
He
let
me
say
no
more
;
his
paws
were
on
my
shoulders
,
and
I
was
in
a
shower-bath
of
kisses
.
In
the
ecstasy
of
my
joy
,
I
forgot
all
about
the
two
men
and
their
mysterious
doings
,
and
flung
myself
down
on
a
chair
,
while
Judy
,
out
of
his
mind
with
delight
,
even
tried
to
sit
on
my
lap
.
He
whinnied
,
and
cried
,
and
laughed
,
and
yelled
,
and
could
find
no
vent
for
his
feelings
,
until
he
threw
his
great
head
back
and
told
all
in
a
wow-wow
,
that
must
have
been
heard
in
Oxford
Street
.
A
little
familiar
knock
,
and
Mrs.
Shelfer
appeared
,
looking
rather
better
than
ever
.
"
Why
,
dear
Mrs.
Shelfer
,
how
glad
I
am
to
see
you
!
And
you
look
much
younger
,
I
declare
!
"
"
And
,
Miss
,
you
do
look
bootiful
,
bootiful
,
my
good
friend
!
Splendid
things
,
"
—
I
was
dressed
a
little
better
,
but
still
in
sombre
colours
—
"
splendid
,
Miss
Vaughan
,
and
how
you
becomes
'
em
to
be
sure
!
Talk
of
Miss
Idols
after
that
,
why
it
's
the
Queen
to
a
gipsy
!
And
pray
,
Miss
,
if
I
may
make
so
bold
,
what
did
you
give
for
this
?
it
beats
my
sarcenet
dress
,
I
do
believe
.
"
"
Nothing
,
Mrs.
Shelfer
,
only
a
little
kiss
.
"
"
Gracious
me
,
Miss
,
then
you
've
been
and
got
engaged
,
and
to
a
lord
at
least
.
I
heard
you
were
come
into
your
great
fortune
at
last
;
more
than
all
Middlesex
they
tell
me
,
Regency
Park
and
all
!
And
that
poor
straight-legged
young
man
,
as
come
here
every
day
to
see
Judy
,
and
to
ask
for
you
.
"
"
Now
,
Mrs.
Shelfer
,
do
n't
talk
nonsense
,
"
—
my
heart
was
jumping
,
but
I
did
not
want
her
to
see
it
.
"
I
only
hope
you
have
n't
said
a
word
to
him
about
these
foolish
reports
.
"
"
Me
,
Miss
!
Do
you
think
I
would
now
?
"
"
Yes
;
I
know
by
your
face
you
have
.
You
ca
n't
cheat
me
,
Mrs.
Shelfer
.
Never
mind
,
if
you
have
not
mentioned
my
name
.
"
It
never
struck
me
that
Conrad
would
be
frightened
at
my
money
.
"
No
,
never
,
Miss
,
as
I
hope
to
be
saved
.
"
And
she
crossed
herself
,
which
I
had
never
seen
her
do
.
"
Come
,
Mrs.
Shelfer
,
now
;
I
've
got
some
pretty
little
trifles
for
you
in
this
bag
.
"
She
jumped
with
pleasure
;
she
was
so
fond
of
knick-knacks
:
then
she
put
her
fingers
on
her
lips
and
went
to
the
door
and
listened
.
Presently
she
came
back
with
a
mysterious
air
.
"
Pray
,
Miss
,
as
you
are
so
very
kind
,
excuse
my
taking
the
liberty
,
but
would
you
mind
giving
Judy
the
bag
in
his
paws
?
no
fear
of
them
getting
it
there
.
"
"
Why
,
what
on
earth
is
the
matter
?
Why
did
n't
you
let
me
in
?
Who
are
those
nasty
men
?
"
"
Oh
,
it
's
nothing
,
Miss
;
nothing
at
all
to
speak
of
:
only
they
knocks
my
sticks
so
in
making
the
inwentory
,
and
the
one
they
made
last
time
,
and
the
time
before
,
would
do
every
bit
as
well
.
But
they
charges
for
it
,
every
time
,
the
rogues
—
and
they
dare
to
put
the
chairs
down
lackered
and
American
cloth
,
good
,
morocco
as
ever
was
,
and
as
if
Miss
Minto
—
"
"
Now
,
Mrs.
Shelfer
,
tell
me
in
two
words
what
it
means
.
Is
it
a
sale
?
"
"
No
,
no
,
Miss
,
I
should
hope
not
;
only
an
execution
,
and
them
two
men
are
the
bailiffs
;
civil
tongues
enough
,
and
very
good
judges
of
porter
and
periwinkles
.
They
're
the
ones
as
come
last
time
;
but
I
'd
sooner
have
the
old
ones
,
jolly
fellows
they
were
,
and
knew
how
to
wink
both
eyes
.
But
that
cross-eyed
thief
—
"
"
And
have
they
got
my
things
,
Mrs.
Shelfer
?
"
"
No
,
Miss
;
only
what
few
was
in
the
bedroom
;
they
dare
n't
come
here
for
Judy
.
It
was
as
much
as
their
lives
were
worth
.
If
I
had
known
they
was
coming
,
I
'd
have
had
him
at
the
front
door
,
but
they
locked
him
in
as
soon
as
he
got
a
piece
out
of
the
other
fellow
's
leg
.
Bless
me
,
how
he
did
holloa
!
"
"
Do
you
mean
to
say
,
Mrs.
Shelfer
,
that
they
have
taken
possession
of
my
things
in
my
bedroom
?
"
"
To
be
sure
,
Miss.
I
said
they
was
yours
,
and
of
course
they
would
n't
believe
me
,
and
the
folding
door
was
shut
,
but
Judy
would
have
broken
it
down
only
they
put
the
bedstead
again
it
.
Gracious
me
!
I
never
see
a
dog
take
on
so
in
all
my
life
!
He
was
like
a
roaring
lion
.
"
"
I
should
rather
hope
so
.
Giudice
,
I
commend
you
;
and
I
've
a
great
mind
to
let
you
out
,
and
what
is
more
,
I
will
if
they
do
n't
give
me
back
my
things
.
Surely
,
Mrs.
Shelfer
,
they
have
no
right
to
my
property
.
"
"
Well
,
so
I
say
,
Miss
;
because
it
is
n't
for
the
landlord
;
but
they
wo
n't
believe
they
are
yours
.
"
"
If
they
do
n't
believe
me
pretty
soon
,
Giudice
shall
convince
them
.
He
is
a
judge
you
know
,
and
I
've
no
idea
of
robbery
any
more
than
he
has
.
But
who
is
doing
all
this
,
and
why
do
you
seem
so
unconcerned
about
it
?
I
should
cry
my
eyes
out
,
I
am
sure
.
"
"
Bless
your
pretty
heart
,
Miss
;
this
makes
the
fifteenth
time
I
've
had
them
here
in
the
last
four
years
.
At
first
I
was
terribly
put
out
,
and
made
myself
a
figure
crying
;
but
now
I
only
think
it
's
company
,
and
they
drink
as
if
they
was
,
that
's
certain
.
You
must
have
seen
the
inwentories
,
Miss
,
round
the
candles
lots
of
times
.
Only
one
thing
they
does
that
do
n't
strike
me
as
wery
honourable
,
though
it
's
law
I
b'lieve
;
they
charges
me
,
and
wery
high
too
,
for
eating
up
my
victuals
,
and
they
will
have
meat
four
times
a
day
.
Why
,
that
Balak
,
him
with
his
breeches
gone
—
"
"
Who
put
them
in
,
Mrs.
Shelfer
,
and
how
much
is
it
for
?
"
"
Oh
,
it
's
one
of
Charley
's
bills
or
notes
,
of
course
.
Quinlan
holds
it
,
him
as
keeps
"
the
little
dust-pan
,
"
down
Maiden
Lane
,
and
Charley
says
that
all
he
got
for
it
was
ten
shillings
and
a
waggon-load
of
water-cresses
.
Now
they
'll
be
here
directly
,
Miss
,
with
you
to
keep
the
dog
in
.
Excuse
me
,
Miss
,
I
see
you
have
got
one
of
them
new
wide
things
as
go
all
round
and
up
—
capital
things
,
I
must
have
one
before
they
come
again
.
And
could
you
manage
to
sit
upon
the
sofa
,
Miss
,
and
the
three
best
chairs
in
your
petticoat
,
with
the
tea-poy
on
your
lap
?
"
"
What
on
earth
do
you
mean
,
Mrs.
Shelfer
?
"
"
Why
,
Miss
,
they
ca
n't
lay
hold
of
any
article
in
use
,
I
believe
,
and
you
have
got
so
much
room
in
your
things
.
"
"
Do
you
suppose
I
intend
to
let
them
come
here
,
for
a
moment
?
Now
let
me
look
at
my
bedroom
.
Come
,
Judy
.
"
"
Oh
,
Miss
,
they
did
have
such
a
hunt
here
for
Charley
's
double-barrel
gun
;
a
regular
beauty
it
is
,
and
that
big
rogue
Quinlan
is
after
it
.
They
know
it
all
round
this
neighbourhood
,
it
was
made
by
a
famous
maker
,
Joe
something
,
I
b'lieve
,
and
the
best
he
ever
made
;
it
was
poor
Miss
Minto
's
brother
's
;
and
they
sha
n't
have
it
,
not
one
of
'
em
.
I
'd
sooner
shoot
them
with
it
.
I
keeps
it
always
in
the
safest
place
I
knows
on
,
and
twice
a
year
I
see
that
it
do
n't
get
rusty
.
"
"
What
safe
place
do
you
keep
it
in
?
"
She
put
her
little
mouth
up
to
my
ear
,
and
her
little
hand
up
to
her
mouth
,
and
whispered
—
"
At
the
broker
's
,
Miss
,
in
Barbican
.
He
has
had
it
now
six
years
.
It
's
in
for
a
quarter
its
value
,
but
that
's
all
the
better
for
me
:
I
have
less
to
pay
for
keeping
it
,
and
I
carries
the
ticket
night
and
day
in
my
bosom
.
And
do
you
know
,
my
good
friend
,
they
thought
they
had
got
it
just
now
;
they
got
a
key
that
fitted
that
box
of
yours
,
that
you
always
locked
so
carefully
,
and
they
made
sure
that
was
it
;
ha
,
ha
,
how
I
laughed
at
them
when
they
opened
it
!
"
"
What
!
have
they
dared
to
open
my
mahogany
box
?
"
It
was
the
repository
of
my
precious
relics
.
"
To
be
sure
they
did
,
Miss
,
and
they
found
such
curious
things
there
!
A
lovely
thing
all
set
with
jewels
,
they
said
,
a
baggonet
fit
for
the
Duke
of
Wellington
,
and
plaster
shapes
like
a
cobbler
's
last
,
and
coloured
paper
with
queer
letters
on
it
,
and
a
piece
of
long
black
hair
,
and
a
plan
with
distances
on
it
—
Lor
,
Miss
,
what
on
earth
is
the
matter
?
Water
!
water
!
You
're
like
death
—
Balaam
!
Balak
!
"
"
Stop
,
Mrs.
Shelfer
"
—
I
had
fallen
on
the
bed
—
"
I
would
not
for
ten
thousand
pounds
have
had
that
box
exposed
to
those
low
ruffians
,
ransacked
,
and
even
catalogued
.
If
I
can
punish
them
I
will
;
and
you
too
,
you
low
,
miserly
,
meddling
,
inquisitive
old
crone
.
"
She
cared
for
nothing
—
though
afterwards
she
told
me
she
never
saw
such
eyes
in
her
life
—
until
I
luckily
called
her
an
"
old
crone
.
"
At
that
,
she
fell
back
upon
the
towel-horse
,
and
sobbed
with
both
hands
over
her
eyes
,
as
if
her
heart
would
break
.
I
had
pierced
her
in
the
tenderest
point
—
her
age
.
I
did
not
feel
sorry
for
her
at
all
for
at
least
two
minutes
,
but
let
her
cry
away
.
"
Serves
her
right
,
"
I
thought
.
Even
if
she
could
not
have
stopped
them
from
opening
that
box
of
mine
,
at
any
rate
she
had
no
right
to
gossip
about
it
,
and
enjoy
it
all
,
as
she
evidently
had
done
.
Furthermore
,
I
knew
well
that
she
had
always
been
on
the
tingle
to
learn
the
contents
of
that
box
,
and
many
a
time
I
had
baffled
her
.
Now
she
had
triumphed
thoroughly
,
and
I
should
not
have
been
female
if
I
had
calmly
allowed
it
.
But
seeing
her
great
distress
(
through
all
of
which
she
talked
,
with
sobs
for
affirmations
)
,
I
began
to
think
what
a
pity
it
was
;
then
to
wonder
whether
she
deserved
it
all
;
next
,
to
believe
that
she
had
done
no
harm
;
lastly
,
to
feel
that
I
had
been
a
brute
.
Thereupon
I
rushed
to
coax
and
kiss
her
,
wiped
away
her
tears
with
my
own
lawn
handkerchief
—
the
feel
of
which
consoled
her
,
for
the
edge
was
lace
—
and
begged
her
pardon
fifty
times
in
a
thousand
foolish
words
.
Finally
she
was
quite
set
up
again
by
this
:
"
I
tell
you
,
my
dear
Patty
,
when
I
come
to
your
age
,
when
I
am
five
and
thirty
"
—
she
was
fifty-two
at
least
—
"
I
shall
fully
deserve
to
be
called
an
old
woman
for
this
;
and
much
older
I
shall
look
,
there
is
no
doubt
,
than
you
do
.
"
"
Right
,
my
good
friend
,
you
are
quite
right
there
"
—
this
expression
showed
me
that
she
herself
was
right
.
—
"
Why
the
young
man
from
the
butcher
's
,
he
said
to
me
this
morning
,
and
beautiful
black
hair
reminded
me
of
yours
,
Miss
,
all
stuck
together
with
the
fat
from
off
the
kidneys
—
"
"
Come
,
Mrs.
Shelfer
,
let
me
see
about
my
box
.
"
"
To
be
sure
,
to
be
sure
,
my
dear
Miss
Vaughan
;
but
what
do
you
think
he
said
?
'
Now
,
William
John
,
'
says
I
,
'
a
good
steak
mind
,
a
tender
juicy
steak
,
for
the
gentleman
visitors
here
'
—
Balaam
,
Miss
,
and
Balak
,
if
you
please
,
—
'
does
like
good
juicy
meat
.
'
'
Mrs
.
Shelfer
