The Man-at-Arms; or, Henry De Cerons. Volumes I and II. G. P. R. James

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СКАЧАТЬ Langdon, it swept on by the city towards its meeting with the kindred stream, and on their joint progress to the ocean: I could gaze, in short, upon all the natural objects which my eye had been accustomed to behold from childhood, without that deep feeling of regret on quitting them which I had experienced the moment before; and, as I turned my horse's rein to ride on, I murmured,

      "I shall see you all again, perhaps, with a lighter heart and a spirit more at rest."

      The country was well known to me; for, during the last two or three years, I had made manifold excursions from the chateau in different directions; and now, leaving the high road somewhat to the right, I took a bridle-path which conducted me towards my place of rest for the night more rapidly, though somewhat more roughly, than the ordinary track.

      Advancing somewhat quickly, for my charger was impatient of the bridle, I passed a man upon a small rugged horse, neither very fat nor very comely in its appearance, and apparently little able to carry him and the large package which he bore on the croup behind. When first I saw him he was trailing a spear along, with one end of the shaft describing a long zigzag line upon the road; but the sound of a horse's feet made him turn round rapidly, and his lance was brought into rest in a moment, in a way that bespoke no slight practice in charging a sudden enemy.

      Whether on an occasion he might charge any one without much considering if it were an enemy or friend, I did not know at the time; but such things were very common in those days, though I think the worthy gentleman was somewhat too badly mounted to attempt the experiment upon me, even if I had been alone.

      We passed, however, in all safety, with a "Good-evening, seigneur," on the part of our fellow-traveller. I had only time, as I passed by, to remark that he was a tall, rawboned man, with a countenance which did not prepossess any one very much in his favour. He was somewhat dirty in his clothing, and rugged in his person and appearance also; though there was a roguish twinkle in his eye, which did not escape my attention, even in the slight glance I obtained.

      In a short time after I arrived at Cubzac, and rode straight to the inn, the hospitable doors of which showed themselves very willing to give me admission.

      When I stood in the courtyard, however, and saw my armour and my valise unloaded from Andriot's horse, while the aubergiste waited to conduct me, with every appearance of reverence, towards the hall of general entertainment, a strange feeling suddenly came over me, from the recollection that it was not yet four-and-twenty hours since the arrival of the Baron de Blancford at his own chateau, that all I had done--the making of a new acquaintance, my dealings with the Jew, the purchase of horses and of arms, and a hundred little incidents, which appeared to me like the occupations of a life--had in reality occupied but a few hours. So it was, however: my whole fate and course of existence had been changed as by the stroke of a magician's wand, which had set me free in a moment from the state of indolent dependance in which I had been forced to remain like one of the spirits in the old fables, imprisoned motionless in the heart of some knotted oak, and had sent me forth in a moment to active life and energetic exertion.

      There was something ennobling, elevating, inspiring in the feelings, very different from the sensations with which I had looked back upon the scenes I was leaving, from the northern bank of the Garonne. That all this had been accomplished in so short a space, gave me a sensation of power and energy; a confidence in myself which I had before wanted; and in the calm and deliberate step, and thoughtful air with which I followed the landlord into the auberge, no one, I think, could have discovered any trace of a mind as inexperienced as that of a mere boy.

      The hall of the inn was a very spacious one; and a long table appeared in the middle, at the farther end of which I could just see, through the dim twilight of the evening, some seven or eight persons assembled round what seemed a hasty supper. One of the servants of the inn, however, brought in lights almost immediately after I had entered; and it then became evident that the party had just arrived from some long journey. There were two or three grave, elderly men of respectable appearance, apparently tradesmen of some importance, or merchants. There was a good dame, too, of the same class, with two or three little girls of seven or eight years old, and one or two women servants; besides which, there was a youth of eighteen or nineteen, strong and well made, scarcely tasting his supper, but sitting beside the rest, and resting thoughtfully, with his head leaning on his hand.

      Manifold were the caps and mantles which covered the whole party; and one would certainly have supposed, from the way in which they were wrapped up, that we were in the midst of winter rather than in the warmest time of year. It often happened at that time, however, that such superabundant garments were adopted for the purpose of concealment; and I judged, and judged rightly, that these might be a party of wealthy traders, who, travelling through a disturbed country, and in dangerous times, chose to be recognised as little as possible, lest the report of wealth might draw upon them the attention of the plunderers with whom the country was overrun.

      All their eyes had been turned upon me as soon as I entered; the conversation they were carrying on ceased; and, as if for something to say, one of the elder men addressed the younger, saying,

      "Why do you not eat your supper, Martin? You are not sick, are you?"

      "Not sick, uncle, but sorry," replied the lad.

      "Pshaw! Thou art a whimsical boy," replied the elder man. "I can tell thee, however poor a trade thou mayest follow, it is richer than that of a soldier. Here is this gentleman coming in," he added, raising his eyes to me as I stood half way up the table. "He looks as if he knew something of arms, and I dare say will tell thee that to sell silk or linen, however little one may get, is better than fighting all day, watching all night, and having hard blows for one's only payment."

      I laughed at his description of the soldier's life; and, as he addressed me first, replied at once, "I cannot think we are so badly off as that, my good sir. Every one knows his own taste; and, though certainly fortunes are rarely made by the sword, yet honour is gained, and glory, and frequently competence; and you must remember there is not a noble family in the land which does not owe its elevation to the sword."

      "That was in other days, that was in other days," said the elder man. "But I am right, then, in thinking you a soldier, sir?"

      I nodded my head, and was about to reply somewhat more fully, when Andriot entered the room and whispered a word or two in my ear, which made me rise and go out, while the landlord busily put down my cover, and prepared to give me supper.

      The intelligence which the lad had brought me was simply that the man with the spear, whom we had passed on the road, had come into the inn-yard, and, finding him there, had asked him many questions concerning me. The good youth had been in one of his loquacious moods, and had given the interrogator more information than I thought right, telling him my name, and that I was a gentleman going to join the army. On this the other had immediately asked to speak with me, and I accordingly went out at once, in order to put my mind at ease with regard to the person in whose favour Andriot had shown himself so communicative.

      I found him in the courtyard busy in unloading his beast, and examining the contents of the package he had thus carried behind him, which proved to be a considerable store of very miscellaneous pieces of armour, both offensive and defensive. The cuirass was at that moment on the top, and, from its condition, left little doubt that one of its possessors, at least, had seen some service like itself; for not only did sundry hacks and dents betray the fact of many a close encounter, but a large round hole appeared to have been perforated, either by bullet or lance, on the right-hand side, near the armhole; and the gap was now curiously stopped up by means of a piece of thick leather, attached by nails driven through the iron and clinched on the inside.

      "Why, my good friend," I said, looking at the cuirass, and without taking any immediate notice of his message, "that piece of leather will never keep out anything."

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