LIFE IN SEW FOREST

Mataura Ensign, Volume 6, Issue 335, 29 February 1884, Page 5

LIFE IN SEW FOREST

By Richard Bla.ckmore. CfiiLPTEit XL (Continued.) Now, Issachar being a very slow man, there was no chance that he would hurry over his present inspection of Cradook. For a very long time he looked at him from the various point's of view ; then, at last he shook his head, and poked his long black chin out. ' Noiv this here wunna do, ye know I'll fetch the 'doctor to ye, master, as ye seeni to care for the poor young charp/ : And Zaky Jupp, requiring no answer went slowly down the stairs, with a great hand on either wall to save noise ; then at a long trot, rolling over all who came in his way, and rounding the corners, like a ship whose rudderb^ni|=»;.ire broken, he followed the doctor irpna street to street, keeping up the same pace till he found him. Dr Tink was coming out of a court not fdr froth Mriiylebono Line, where the small-pox always lay festering. 1 Ye 11 just corni street 'long wi* me to the poor chap as saved our Looey, 3aid Mr Jiipp, coolly getting into the broughom, and sitttng in the place of honor, while he dragged Dr Tink in by the collar, and set him upon the front seat. . ♦ Fire awa' now for Martimer Straat, 'and if ye dunna laither the narg, mind, I'll laither ye when we gits there.' The nag was leathered to Mr Jupp's satisfaction, and far beyond his own, and they arrived at the coal and cabbage shop before John Eosedaw had finished reading a paper which Mrs Jupp had shown him, thinking that it was a prescription. ' He wrote it in his sleep sir, without knowing a thing about it ; in his sleep, or in his brain wandering ; I came in and found him at it, in the middle of the. night; and my how cold his fingers was, and his head so hot ! We took it to three great chemists' shops, but tb/*y could not make it up. They hadn't go all the drug, they said, and they couldn't make out all the quantities.' ' Neither can I,' said John ; ' bur it rings well, considering that the poor boy wrote it when his brain was weak ■with fever. The dialects are somewhat muddled, moreover; but we must not be, hypercritical.' ' NOj sir^ to be sure not. lam sure I meant no hypocrisy. Only you see it ain't 'Christian' writing ; and Mr. ClinkerjSjsh'ake his head at it, and say it come straight from, the devil, aud his hoof inf every line of it.' JMrß'.tTupfp, the 'Greek characters are TseautifnJj'.Qiough'some of the lines are not upjto.tne mark. . But tor my part, I wondefrhow ; ariy nian can write mixed Greek i^ ! L'6ndoti'.;. 1 shall iave gisQatp^lvalfipre, in, talking it over -with himj:<pleaseLGod> that he ever gets ■well- "'lb think that ; his poor weary brain should still be hankering after his classics^!' j. . . V' : It wea-.tne.. dirge in Cymbeline put into Greek choral metre, and John B.osed|W / s' tears flowed over the words as Polydore's had done, and Cadwal's. . Unhappy CJradpck ! His misty brain had vapoured off in that sweet wild dirge, which hovers above, as if the freed soul lingHred, for the clogged one to shake i ts wings to it. The parson was pondering and closing his wet eyes to recover faith in ■God — whom- best we see with the eyes shut, except whbnHis stare are shining — while ; ; lssachar Jupp came up the stairs, poking Or Tink before him, because Ihe: still thought it likely that the son of medicine ' would evaporate. The doctorj Tvlio knew his tricks and put up with "them, lest anything worse might come, of it, solaced his sense of dignity, when he got to the top, by a grand'bow to' Mr Kosedew. John gave irim the change in a kind one ; the n offered his hand, as he always did, being a man> -of the ancient fashion. While they were both looking sadly at Cradock, he sat up suddenly in the bed, and stretching forth his naked arms (wherein was little nourishment) laughed a» an aged man does, and then nodde4 ( at M i^eni solemnly. His glazed eyes werej so. , prominent, that their •whites reflected the tint of the rings round*[them. * Ladjj.es and "gentlemen, stop him if you please, and give him a pen and ink and my< best hat to write on. Oh, don't let him go by.' ' Sto^ whdin,; my dear sir ?' asked the doctor, putting out his arms as if to do lit: : * Now I've slopped him. What'3 1 His name V * Thi\' golden lad. Oh, don't you know 1, You can't have got him if you don't. iThe golden lad that came from heaven to tell me I did not do it, that I didn'iji'do it, sir — all a mistake altogether.! It mates me laugh, I declare it does iiit makes me laugh for an hour every time ke ; comes, because they are so wise.' 1 All but my Amy, my Amy; she was such a foolish little thing, she never would hear a word of it. iiud now I ball you all to witness, obtestor, antestqr," 'one, two, three, four, five ; let him put it down on a sheet o£ foolscap, with room enough for the names below it > ft U the ladies and gentleman put their names in double columnj and get; Mr Clinkers, if you can, and Jenny, to go at the bottom only be particular about the double column, ladies one side gentlemen the Other, Jike a' country dance, you know, or the carmen sceculare, and at the bottomy right across, Miss Amy Eose dew's naWe," .;;;", ' ■'■'." The contemplation "of that last beatitude was:f too ■< much for the poor fel low • h^feft back, faint on the pillow ! and 'tb# shpg ! blind, untucked by the Wissfu^.^mptionsj rattled its rings or the floor; •-! - - . , . . 1 Blow' me if I can stand it, criec Issachar! 'ptyV.fcwpft ? own thr f e at a step,, andiwhen he came back his face looked- dearer, and he said some thing abbiif a'nbggin. Mrs Ducksacn foolted af^p 5 l^ni;; for business must b< attendefoto. ; ', ; : . ' ■yViMhei-evev Ibe right again, pooi fellow % Pr Tifik, I implore jou p tel

, me your opinion sincfox-ly.' 'Then 1 cannot say that I think he will, fc»till, I have some hopes oi: if. Much will depend upon the original strength of the cerebellum, and the regularity of his previous habits. If he has lt.-d a wild loose life, ho has no chance whatever of sanclity.' 'No, he Iris led a most healthy 5 life — tempeiMti), gentle*, and equable, His brain hua always been clear and J , vigorous, without being too creative. 5 ] Tie r vas one of the sotuidest scholars J for his a-e I have ever nv.it with.' 1 ' 13 ut ho has hud some terrible ; blow, eh? 1 >j 'Oh yes, a most terrible blow,' John thought what a terrible blow it would i-e to his own life's lif>, if the issue went against him, and for tears he ciild ask no more. Chapter XLT. The goo.] people asst-mbled in Now" elhurttt church were agreeably surprised, on tho following '•uiuky, by the announcement from V< r I'ell — in that loud sou'-rous voice of hi:-;, which h-.n\ frightcm-d hpinsters out of their nyus, lest he uvre forbidding, instead of asking their b-nms of matrimony — that there would be no sermon that morning, inasmuch as he, the llev. Octavius, was forced to hurry away, at full spei-td, to assuage the rampant desire of Kushford for the performance of divine service. Mrs Novell CorkltMnore, who had the great curtained paw of the Hall entirely to herself and cliilil — f»rEo<i never would go to church, b< c sue they defy the. devil there- G"orm>, -who appeased her act've oiind by counting the bi-rtK.vhradt'd nuiis and then multiplying them into ea^h o:her, and subtracting the ones that were broken, lifted her indescribab c eyes, and said, ' Thank God ' almost audibly. Octavius Pell, hurrying out of the porch, ascended CorsDbus, as had been arranged ; but he did it so rapidly, and with such an air of decision, that Amy standing at the churchyard gate, full of benii iful misgivings, could not help exclaiming, 1 Oh please, Mr Pell, whatever you do, leave your stick here till Monday. We will take such care of it.' 'Indeed, I hear I must not, Miss Rosedew/ Octavhi3 answered gravely, looking first at his stick, and then at the flanks of Bseby, who was full of interesting tricks ; I have so far to go, ] you know, and I must try to keep time ' with them. — Whoa, you little villaiA'!' : 'Oh dear, lam so sorry. At any rate 'please not to strike him, only stroke - him with it. He is so very high (spirited. And he has never had a weajl upon him, at least since he came to papa. And I could not bear to Sf c it. J \" And I know you won't, Mr Pell.' Qctavius looked at the soft-hearted girl,: blushing so in her new drawn ■bonnet — mauve with black, for the s ake of poor Clayton. He looked at her out of his knowing dry eyes in that sort of response-to-the-Litany style which a curate adopts to his rector's daughter. ' Can yon suppose, Miss Itasedew, that I would have the heart to beat him now ? — Ah, you will, will you ihen 1 Rsebus thought better of it. * No, I hope you would rot,' said Amy, iri pure good faith, with a glance however, at the thick bamboo,' becauseit would be socruel. It is holloa, I hope but it has such knots, and it looks s« very hard !' ' Hollow, and thin as a piece of piecrust ; and you know how this wood splits.' • Oh, I am so glad, because you can't hurt him so much. Please not to go, if you can hold him, more than three miles and a half an hour. Papa says that is the pace that always suits his health best. And please to take the saddle off, and keep it at your house, that the Eushford boy may not ride him back. And please to choose a steady boy from the head-class in your Sunday School, and if possible, a communicant. But I'ji sadly afraid there's no trusting the boys. 1 Indeed, I fear not,' said Octavius gravely ; and adding to himself, 'at anyrate when you are concerned, you darling. What a love you are ! But there's no eh ancestor me, I know ; and it's a good job for me, that I knew it. Oh you little angel, I wonder who the lucky fellow is !' Aunt Eudoxia had dropped him a hint, quite in a casual way, when he saw that the stout young bachelor was going in, over head and ears. Sweet Amy watched Mr Pell, or rather his steed, with fond interest, until they turned the corner ; and certainly the pace, so far, was very j sedate indeed. Octavius was an up- ' right man — you could see that by his seat in the saddle — as well as by a kind and good-natured one ; and on no account would he have vexed that gentle and beautiful girl. Neverthe--1 I less he {grew impatient, as Corcebus ; pretentiously, and snorted so as to defy 1 the winds, and was fain to travel sideways, as if the distance was not r enoughfor him ; and all the time he ; was swallowing the earth at the ! rate of no more than four miles an > hour. Then the young parson pulled L out his watch, and saw that it wanted i but half-an-hour of the time himself i had fixed for morning service at Uush- , ford. And h<> could not bear xhe 5 though of keeping the poor folk waits' ing about the cross, as they always did , and wbuld wait, till the parson apa peared among them. As Mr Wise - has well observed, ' the peasant of the New Forest is too full of veneration.' And here let me acknowledge, as it - behoveth a man to do, not in a scrambf ling preface, which nobody ever would b read, but in the body of my work, 1 great and loving obligation to the labors of Mr John R. Wise. His book 1 is perfectly beautiful, written in admirs able English, full of observations, taste s and gentle learing ; and the descrip- -- tions of scenery are such that they b make the heart yearn to verify them. b I know the New Forest pretty well from my own perambulations and perer quitions — one barbarism is no wcr*se 1 th&n the other— but I never -phottld

)mve loved it as I do but for his loving ; guidance. Thcllev. Mr Pell,- as people put, when they write to parson,— ho ping i still to keep fv'th with Amy, lie .use : her eyes were so lovely, — pulled the snaffle and turned Corsebus into a short cub, through beeches and hazels. Then compromise came soon^ to- an end, and tbe big bamboo was compelled to fall upon the fat flank of Corsebus > because he would not go without it. ' lie showed sense of .'that first attachI nv.nt only by a little buck-jump and a ' sprightly wag of his tail , then hoping j tliiilTthe situation need r:ot be looked !in i,he face, shambled along at five n.i'es an hour, with a mild responsibility. <Fi\e miles more,' said Octavius Pell, 'and only twenty minutes to do it. in ! It.* an unlucky thing for you, Corrcbus. that your mistress is en •j^u'eil.' AVhack, came the yellow buinboowg.iiii, and this lime in solid psrnest; Ka?b«a went off as if he w.e-Mit 10 £jo mad. He had never kn.wn B mil a blow sine.} th« days w herein he belonged to the innkeeper. Oh, could a horse with four feeds a day be expected to put up with ty ninny 1 But, to the nnggy's great amazenicnt, Octave Pell did not tumble off; more than that, he seemed to stick closer, with a most unpleasant embrace and a pressure that told upon, the wj.-jd — not of heaven but of horse — till the following symptoms appeared : Kirst a. whe< z", and creak internal, 1 slow creak, like leather chafing, or a I p;«ir of bellow* out of order; then a I :oud«r rciTonsi ranee, like the ironwork of a roller, or the gudgeons of a wheelbarrow ; then faster and faster, a sucking noisf, like the bucket of mi old pump, when the gardener works: by the job ; finally, puff, ai.d ro,»r, and shriek, with notes of passing saduc ss, like the neap-tide wailing up a cavern, or the lament of the Berkshire Blowing Stone. In forest g'ades, where hollow hoofs fell en the sod quite mutely, that roar was enough, to try masculine courage, though never unnerved by a heartshock. How then could poor Pearl Garnet, sitting all alone, in a lonely spot, wherein she had plodged herself to her dead love, sitting there to indulge her tears, the only luxury left her — how could she help being frightened to death as the unearthly sound approached her 1 The terror was mutual. Corsebus, turning the corner sharply, stopped short, in a nioie that must have sent his true master over his wi'hers, to explore the nature of the evil. Then he shook all through, and would have bolted, if the bamboo had not fallen heavily. In the niche of a hallow oak was crouching, falling backward with terror, and clutching at the brave old bark, trying to hide behind it — only the snowy arms would come outwards — a beautiful girl, clad in summer white on that foggy day. of December. ! he brown cloak, which had protected her from sylvan curiosity, lay on the ground, a few yards away, on the spot so sad and sacred. Pearl Garnet's grief , if we know the whole of it, or perhaps be«au*e we cannot, was greater than any girl could bear. A lovely, young, and. loving maid, with stores of imagination, yet a practical power of stowing it ; of building castles, yet keeping them all within compass of the kitchen-range; quite different from our : Amy, yet a better wife for some men — according to what the trumps are, and Amy must have hearts, or she dies ; — that very nice girl, we have let her go weep, and never once cared to follow her. There is never any justice in this world; therefore who cares to apologise? It would take up ail our business-time if we did it properly. ]No\v, as she stretched her white arms forth, and her delicate form shrunk back into the black embrace of the oak tree ; while her rich hair was streaming all down her neck, and her dark eyes still full of teardrops ; the rider, no less than the horse, was amazed, and seemed to behold a vision. Then as she shrunk into the tree-hole, with a shriek of deadly terror — for what love casteth out fear? — and she saw not through the horn beam frizzie, and Corsebus groaned sepulchrally, Pell came down with a dash on one foot, and went, quick jump, to help her. In a fainting fit — for the heart so firm and defiant in da}S of happiness was fluxed now and frail with misery — she was cowering away in the dark tree-nook, like the pearls of misletoe fallen, with her' head thrown back (such an elegant! head, a woman's greatest beauty), and the round arms hanging helpless. Hereupon Mr P<ll was abroad. He had never experienced any sisters, nor much mother consciously — being the eighth soti, as of course we know, of a jolly Yorkshire baronet ; at any rate he had lost his mother: at the birth oE Nonus Pell ; and I am sorry there are not ninety of them, if of equal merit. So Octavius stood like a fish out of water, with both hands in his pocket, as it is so generally the habit of nth' s to stand. Then, meaning no especial harm, nor perhaps great good, for that milter, he said to himself — ' Confour.d it all. What the deuce am I to do V His sermon upon the Third Commandment,, about to be pre died at Eushford, where the fishermen swore like St. Peter — that Bfi'rmon went crack in his pocket at such a shocking ■ejaculation. Never heeding that, he ■went on to do what a stout fellow and a gentleman must have done in this emergency. He lifted the drooping figure forth into the Open air, touching it only with his hands, timidly and reverently. Then he fetched wa'er in his best Sunday hat - the only chimneypot he possessed — from the strram trickling through the spire-bed ; and he sprinkled it on the broadjwliite forehead, as if he were christening a ■ j baby. The moment he saw that hor >: ; life was returning, and her deep grey I eyes> quiet havens of sorrow, opened 1 * i •-'•

and asked where their owner wa?, that moment Octave laid her back against the rugged trunk, in the thick brown cloak which ho had fetched when he went f"r the water; a-d wrapped it around her, delicately, as if she were taking a 7-inp th^re. Oh, man of short pipes and hard bachelor fare, for this thrm jdeservest asv good a wife as ever basted a leg of mutton ! At last the young lady looked up at him with a deep-drawn sigh, and said — . ' T am afraid I have been very silly.' No, indeed, you have not. But I am very sorry for you, because I am dreadfully clumsy.' Sue glanced at his anowy choker — which he never wore hut on Sundays — and, being a very quick-witted young woman, she guessed at once who he was. ' Oh please to tell me — I hope the service is not over at Nowelhurst church.' 'The sersico haß been over for a quarter of a hour ; because there was no sermon.' 4 Oh, what.'sh»li I do, then 1 What can I do 1 I had better never go home again.' This was. said to herself, in anguish and Pell saw that, he wa3 not meant to hear it. ' Can I go, please, to the rectory t Mr Eooedew is from home ; but I am sure they will give me shetler until my — -until lam sent foi\ X have lost my w.-iy in tho wood lion. The statement j w <s none of the tmesr. j 1 To be sure/ said the hasty parson, forgeLiing al>out the Kushford bells, the rheumatic clerk, and the quid -chewing pilots — let them turn their quids a bit longer -'to be sure, I will take you their at once. Allow me to introduce myself. How very stupid of me ! Octavius Pell, Mr Eosedew's curate at Rusfeford.' Hereupon ' Pello, populi, pulsum ' (as his friends lov ( d to call him from his driving powers at cricket, and to show thut ihey knew pome Latin) executed a Uobie salaam — quite of the modern pchool, however, and without the old lednpl'c.iii.m (like the load on the back <f Christian) — till the duckweed cam;.- out of his hat in a body, and fell into the flounce tucket ol the beautiful Pearl's white skirt. She never looked, though she kn^.w it was there —that girl understood her business — but curtsied to him prettily, having recovered her strength by this time , and there was something in his dry, manly tone, curt modesty, and breeding, without any flourish about it which led the youiag maid to trust him, as if she had known him long. ' I am Pearl Garnet,' said she, imitating his style unconciously, 'the daughter — I mean 1 live at Nowelhurst Dell Cottage.' ConeSus had cut off for stable long ago with three long weals of bamboo upon him, which he vowed he would show to Amy. ' Please to take my arm, Miss Garnet. I know your brother well ; and a braver or more straightforward young gentleman never thought small things of himself after doing great ones., Pearl was delighted to hear Bob's praises ; and Mr Pell treated that subject so cleverly, from every possible point ot view, that she was quite astonished when she saw thu rectory side-gate, and Octaviu?, in the most ; light-hearted manner, made a sudden and warm farewell, aud darted" away for Rushfofd. How good it is for a sad, heavy heart to exchange with a g\y and light one ! ' Hang it ! aft^r- that let me have a burster! was his clerical ejaculation, lor else it is all up with me. I hope we haven't spiifc t ho sermon, though, or got any. duckweed down it. Duckweed, indeed ; what a duck she is! And oh, what splendid eyes !" He ran all the way to Eushford, at a pace unknown co Coraebus ; and his governor-coat How away behind him, with the sermon banging about, and ! the text peeping oub under the pocket lup. ' Swear not at all,' were the words, I believe , and a rare good sermon it must have been, if it stuck to the text under the circumstances. ( To he continued,)